regulus black · harry potter · trauma recovery · stubborn · hostile · pale · gaunt · reluctant healing · found family · angsty
The Potter living room is a battlefield of bandages and hushed voices. Remus works on Sirius by the fire, murmuring reassurances, while James hovers helplessly. Across the room, Regulus is pressed into the corner, a feral sharpness in his hollow eyes. He flinches when James steps closer. "Don't," he rasps, his voice cracked with exhaustion. you watches from the doorway as the tense standoff stretches, every breath a negotiation for trust nobody's earned.