Bringing Regulus Home

Sirius finally released Kreacher, standing there blankly, as if he were under Imperius Curse.

Lupin stepped forward and patted Sirius on the shoulder. "He was a true Black, and a true Slytherin. His name deserves to be praised by all."

Kyle sighed silently to himself, without saying a word.

In his view, Regulus made his decision from the very beginning; he never intended to come back alive.

Perhaps because his long-held ideals were shattered, this ending was already predetermined when he decided to part ways with Voldemort.

Voldemort was a master of Legilimency, a fact Regulus was well aware of, and he was not confident he could hide the fact that he had stolen the Horcrux.

This means that once his actions are discovered, he will inevitably face Voldemort's wrath, and not just him, but also the rest of the House of Black and Kreacher —no one will escape.

So he chose to sacrifice himself to protect this secret, and only in this way could more people be spared.

As for Kreacher, given Voldemort's personality, he would never care about a House-elf. He might have already forgotten about that lowly creature when he left the cave.

Sirius covered his face and burst into tears, which dripped onto the floor through his fingers.

He had misunderstood Regulus for over a decade, only to realize now that his brother was not weak at all, but even braver than him.

He was willing to die to kill Voldemort, even in a place where almost no one would ever set foot, even if no one would ever know about it... but he did it anyway.

Sirius couldn't fathom how Regulus had made that decision.

His mother was right, Kreacher was right, none of them were wrong, Regulus was truly far superior to him.

"I'm going to bring him back!" Sirius wiped the tears from his face. "No matter what, I'm going to take him home... He should be home, not stuck at the bottom of that cold lake!"

"Kreacher!" he suddenly shouted, "I command you, take me to that cave, and together we will bring Regulus home!"

The House-elf was lying on the ground, breathing heavily. Upon hearing Sirius's words, he immediately stood up, trembling all over, his teary eyes red and bloodshot.

"Kreacher... Kreacher is willing to obey the young master's orders!"

"Then let's go..."

Just as Sirius was about to grab Kreacher's arm, Lupin suddenly appeared between them.

"Wait, wait, Sirius," he said quickly. "We can't be so rash. We'd better inform Dumbledore first."

Kreacher looked up at him with resentment.

"Don't misunderstand, I didn't mean to stop you," Lupin explained, then continued, "But going there like this is too reckless. Don't forget, that's where the You-Know-Who hides things."

And as Kreacher just mentioned, the things beneath that lake... if I'm not mistaken, are probably Inferi, and there are at least several hundred of them.

To find Regulus, we must alert them... Can you handle hundreds of unkillable, incredibly strong monsters?"

Lupin's words finally calmed Sirius down a little, but only a little.

"I don't care, Remus," Sirius said earnestly. "I can't leave Regulus alone at the bottom of that cold lake. Every second here is torture for me, even more so than with Dementor."

Remus, I know you're right, but I don't want to wait any longer... I don't care if I die there, as long as I can bring Regulus back."

Lupin looked at him for a long time before sighing and taking a step back. "Alright then, I respect your decision."

"Thank you, Remus," Sirius said. "After we leave, write to Dumbledore; I think he'll find it."

"Okay." Lupin nodded.

"Thank you." Sirius reached out to grab Kreacher.

But then, without warning... Lupin raised his wand.

"Stupefy!"

Lupin's idea was simple: since he couldn't stop him, he would knock him out and tie him up until Dumbledore arrived.

However, Sirius seemed to have guessed his thoughts, and in an instant transformed into a large black dog, dodging the sneak attack.

He then immediately changed back and turned to look at Lupin.

"I know you too well, Remus," he said. "You think I didn't see it? You just instinctively gripped your wand."

"No matter what you say," Lupin dropped the pretense, "I can't just stand by and watch you go to your death. As long as I'm still standing today, you're not going anywhere!"

"I don't think so." Sirius smiled slightly. "Sorry, my friend."

"Kreacher, what are you waiting for!"

The House-elf immediately came to his side and grabbed his arm.

"Xiao Tian..."

Before Lupin could finish speaking, a loud bang rang out, and he was left alone in the large room.

On the other side.

Sirius felt a sudden dizziness, and when he opened his eyes again, he smelled a salty scent in the air.

He found himself in a huge cavern, surrounded by the sound of the ocean waves crashing.

"The way House-elf travel is really not good," a voice came from the side.

"Yes," Sirius replied instinctively, "And I haven't Apparated in a long time... wait."

He looked at the familiar person beside him, his eyes filled with disbelief, "Kyle? What are you doing here!"

"Of course I came with you, what else would I do?" Kyle shrugged. "Didn't you notice? While you and Lupin were arguing, I already had my hand on Kreacher's arm."

"But... but..." Sirius stammered for a long time before finally turning to look at Kreacher.

But Kreacher was a little confused at this moment. His attention had been focused on the two arguing people, and he hadn't noticed that there was another hand on his body.

"No, Kyle, it's too dangerous here. You can't come. Go back now!" Sirius said seriously.

"That's not right," Kyle shook his head. "If I wanted to go back, why did I come along in the first place? It doesn't make sense, does it?"

"But..."

"And Lupin is right." Kyle ignored him and continued, "You came here so recklessly, you're only going to take another life, you can't do anything else. We should have informed Dumbledore."

"I know!" Sirius said, "But even if we send an owl to Dumbledore now, he won't be here until dawn at the earliest, and I really can't wait that long."

"Who said that?" Kyle sighed, and with a pained expression, he took out a long, fiery red feather.

He then tapped it with his wand, and the feather instantly transformed into a short burst of flame.

Sirius's anxious gaze now held a hint of confusion.

"These are phoenix tail feathers," Kyle explained. "The phoenix is a magical creature. It will pluck its tail feathers and give them to those it loves. And when that person needs the phoenix's help, all they need to do is burn the tail feathers, and it will arrive in time... Oh, here it comes."

Kyle looked up and saw that the previously dark sky was suddenly filled with a red fireball.

It's Fawkes...

Appearing alongside it Dumbledore, dressed in pink strawberry pajamas and a pointed nightcap.