Sirius finally let go of Kreacher, standing there in a daze, as if hit by the Imperio curse.
Lupin stepped forward and patted Sirius on the shoulder, "He is a true Blake and an unassailable Slytherin. His name deserves to be praised by everyone."
Kael sighed silently beside them, without saying anything.
In his view, Regulus made his decision from the beginning; he never thought of coming back alive.
Perhaps it was because the ideal he had always upheld was shattered. When he decided to diverge from Voldemort, this conclusion was already destined.
Voldemort was an adept master of Legilimency; Regulus was well aware of this, and he wasn't confident he could hide the fact that he had stolen the Soul Artifact.
This meant that once his actions were discovered, he would definitely face Voldemort's wrath, and it wasn't just him — the Blake family and Kreacher would also not be spared.
So he chose to sacrifice himself to keep this secret, and only in this way could more people avoid disaster.
As for Kreacher, given Voldemort's character, he would hardly care about a house-elf. Perhaps, as he left the rock cave, he had already forgotten that humble creature.
Sirius covered his face, bursting into tears, with drops falling to the ground between his fingers.
He misunderstood Regulus for over ten years, only now realizing that his younger brother was not weak — he was even braver than him.
To face death to kill Voldemort, even in a place where hardly anyone would tread, even if no one would ever know about it... he still did it.
Sirius couldn't imagine how Regulus made such a decision back then.
His mother was right; Kreacher was right too; all those who spoke were not wrong — Regulus was really much stronger than him.
"I'm going to bring him back!" Sirius brushed away the tears from his face, "No matter what, I have to bring him home... he should come home, not stay at the bottom of that cold lake!"
"Kreacher!" he suddenly shouted, "I order you to take me to that cave, and together we will bring Regulus back home!"
The little elf, breathing heavily, was lying on the ground before standing up immediately at Sirius's call, his entire body trembling, his eyes swollen with tears.
"Kreacher... Kreacher is willing to follow the master's orders!"
"Then let's go..."
Just as Sirius reached for Kreacher's arm, Lupin suddenly appeared between them.
"Wait, wait, Sirius," he spoke rapidly, "We can't be so reckless; it's best to inform Dumbledore first."
Kreacher raised his head, glaring at him hatefully.
"Don't misunderstand; I'm not stopping you," Lupin explained, continuing, "But to go like this is indeed reckless. Don't forget, that place belongs to You-Know-Who.
Plus, Kreacher said it before; the things under that lake... if I'm right, they should be Inferi, and there are at least a few hundred of them.
To find Regulus, you'll have to stir them up... can you deal with hundreds of undead, powerful monsters?"
Lupin's words finally calmed Sirius down a bit, but only a bit.
"I don't care, Remus," Sirius said earnestly, "I can't leave Regulus alone at the cold bottom of that lake. Every second here is the most painful torture for me, more painful than the Dementor.
Remus, I know you're right, but I don't want to wait... as long as I can bring Regulus back, I don't care if I die there."
Lupin looked at him, and after a long sigh, he stepped back, "Alright, I respect your decision."
"Thank you, Remus," Sirius said, "Once we're gone, write to Dumbledore; I think he'll find the place."
"Okay," Lupin nodded.
"Thank you," Sirius reached out to grab Kreacher.
But just then, unexpectedly... Lupin raised his wand.
"Stupefy!"
Lupin's idea was simple: since he couldn't stop him, he'd knock him out and tie him up until Dumbledore arrived.
However, Sirius seemed to anticipate his plan; in an instant, he transformed into a large black dog, dodging the ambush.
He quickly changed back, turned to look at Lupin.
"I know you too well, Remus," he said, "Did you really think I didn't see you grasp your wand instinctively?"
"No matter what you say," Lupin stopped pretending, "I can't stand by and watch you go to your death; as long as I'm standing, you won't go anywhere!"
"I don't think so," Sirius smiled slightly, "Sorry, my friend.
"Kreacher, what are you waiting for!"
The little elf immediately came to his side, grabbing his arm.
"Sirius..."
Lupin hadn't finished speaking when, with a loud bang, the big room was left with only him.
...
On the other side.
Sirius felt like the world was whirling, and when he opened his eyes again, he smelled the salty air.
He found himself in a massive rock cave with the sound of the ocean waves crashing around him.
"House-elf travel isn't great," came a voice beside him.
"Yeah," Sirius replied instinctively, "Besides, I haven't Apparated in ages... wait."
He looked at the familiar person next to him, eyes full of disbelief, "Kael? How did you get here?"
"Of course, I came along with you; otherwise, how?" Kael shrugged, "Didn't you notice I had already put my hand on Kreacher's arm during your argument with Lupin?"
"But... but..."
Sirius stammered for a long time and finally turned to look at Kreacher.
But Kreacher was a bit confused. His focus was on the two arguing, not aware there was another hand on him.
"No, Kael, it's too dangerous here; you can't stay, go back!" Sirius said sternly.
"That's not right," Kael shook his head, "If I wanted to return, why would I come along in the first place? That doesn't make sense, does it!"
"But..."
"And Lupin was right," Kael continued without listening to him, "Rushing here only adds life; you couldn't do anything else. We should've informed Dumbledore."
"I know," Sirius said, "But even if we send an owl to Dumbledore now, he'll get here by dawn at the soonest; I can't wait that long."
"Who says so." Kael sighed, reluctantly pulling out a long, fiery red feather.
He then touched it with a wand, and the feather immediately burst into a brief flame.
An anxious look flashed in Sirius's eyes.
"It's a Phoenix tail feather," Kael explained, "Phoenixes are magical creatures; they will pull out their tail feathers for those they are close to, and when needing their help, burning the feather will bring them instantly... oh, there it is."
Kael looked up, and the originally dark sky suddenly had a red fireball.
It was Fawkes...
And with it came Dumbledore in pink strawberry pajamas, wearing a pointed nightcap.
...