high adventure! → regulus black ✓

[16] the last stand

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THE PLAN WAS SET WITHIN A FEW DAYS. Many of the members of the Order were quite excited, but those who knew Stella and Regulus best were more nervous than anything else. From a strategical standpoint the idea was sound, but that didn't make it seem any less mad to them.

The one positive thing about the whole situation was that Stella was getting back to being her old self. She was fiery and determined, but also sweet and patient. Seeing her like that made her friends more hopeful in her plan, but they couldn't shake the feeling that their luck might just run out on this one—after all, it was bound to sooner or later.

Regulus was downright terrified. He knew Stella was more than capable, but he worried that she was thinking more with her emotions than her head. She was tortured by Death Eaters, she had as personal a stake in it as anyone; what would happen when it came time to follow the plan through? Would she keep her head or freeze or do something that would result in her enduring even more pain? Worse than that, what if he couldn't handle whatever they were about to face? What if he couldn't save her this time?

"You're doing what?" Daniel's voice snapped Regulus back to reality. After some deliberation, they had all agreed that keeping the young man in the loop would be beneficial for all involved; if anything happened to Stella, it would be better for him to know why to begin with as opposed to having to hear the whole story after the fact. That being said, he was taking it about as well as they expected—which was to say not well at all.

"We're going to go back into hiding. We'll make it look like the Order's having us lay low for a while at a safe house." Stella explained all this with unmeasurable calm, which stunned Regulus more than he'd care to admit. He almost worried about her like that, for he knew she had to have been worried, even a little. Either she was hiding it well, or she was too determined to get revenge that she didn't feel fear at all, which was almost worse.

"Fighting in this war is one thing, Stel, but using yourself as bait?" Daniel rounded on Sirius and Regulus, who were at the moment sitting off to the side, watching the conversation unfold. "You're both allowing her to do this?" Sirius merely chuckled.

"She's a grown woman, mate, we don't exactly have a choice in the matter, do we? The best we can do is fortify the plan well enough that she doesn't get herself killed." He wasn't really helping the matter, but Regulus knew he didn't care. The look Sirius gave Stella told him that he was more focused on reminding her of the dangers than convincing her brother figure. He, as it turned out, sensed the same thing in her as his brother did. It was something they would discuss later.

Daniel couldn't have been more against the idea, but he eventually relented that it would be the best option for solving the problem permanently. After exchanging a long hug with Stella and making her promise to be careful he took his leave. Five minutes later as she was packing up her things, the two brothers found themselves in the doorway to the room.

"There's one more thing we have to talk about before you two leave," said Sirius, making his presence known to the girl, whose back had been to him. Neither of the young men missed the way she flinched, even if she tried her best to hide it. She didn't face them, nor did she stop folding her clothes. Sirius continued: "We need to know your head is in the right spot, Stella." This made her cease her movements and she turned to face him, trying her best to look casual but doing a rather poor job of it.

"What do you mean by that?" Sirius sighed, his expression softening. Regulus, for the time being, was letting his brother take the conversation, for he was still learning to understand his own emotions and couldn't necessarily coach her about her own. He was more there to report on his own observations if necessary and be there for emotional support than anything else.