H I R A E T H
xcvi||hate to do this on your birthday
Maria is lay in her bed. She can't sleep. It now reads 00:34am on her clock, June 30th. She is officially eighteen years old. She thought she would feel older and more mature. She feels pretty much the same as she did thirty four minutes ago on the 29th, it's rather disappointing. She could wish for so many things right now. The only thing she does is that Regulus may magically show up at her bedroom door.
Just as she closes her eyes, a knock is heard on the wood of her door and she frowns, sitting up and cautiously walking over to the door before slowly swinging it open, seeing a disheveled Regulus Black stood outside it.
"Reg—"
"Shhh!" Regulus hisses, beckoning someone and Maria frowns with slightly wide eyes as The Black family house elf — Kreacher — walks in, bowing low to Maria who looks at Regulus in confusion.
"What's going on?" Maria whispers as Regulus slowly closes the door behind him, cupping her face with his hand gently
"I'm going." Regulus says in determination. "He knows. He knows where a horcux is. And I'm going to find it. You don't have to come—"
"I'm coming." Maria cuts hun off and Regulus sighs, knowing there's no point in arguing with her as she will just find her own more dangerous way of getting to wherever they're going. "Give me a minute—"
"Ria—it's your birthday." Regulus says softly and sadly, his eyes holding tears as he grips her hand and she smiles through her underlining dread.
"I know."
"I don't want to do this to you on your birthday." Regulus whispers, tucking some hair behind her ear and she smiles. "There's a large chance we might not get out of this alive, sweetheart. You don't have to take that risk if you don't wish to."
"I'm going with you." Maria says smiling reassuringly. "I'm always with you." Regulus sighs but nods, letting her run to get changed in the bathroom.
When she exits, she's wearing Regulus' old Slytherin jumper and some baggy jeans with some black converse. Her hair is pulled into a loose braid and she looks beautiful, to him she always does. Even when they're walking into almost certain death. She slips her wand into her waistband and Regulus looks at Kreacher who holds out a wrinkled hand to both of them.
Maria looks at Regulus who nods and they both take the house elf's hand, the three disappearing from the Potter Manor instantly.
"So, how exactly do you know where it is?" Maria asks Kreacher as they land in the middle of the ocean on a small boat.
"Voldemort used him to test defences on the horcrux." Regulus says angrily, Maria nods softly. She knows that he cares dearly for the house elf that he grew up with.
The wind blows Regulus' messy hair around as they look around, Kreacher croaking out something inaudible and pointing to a small gaps in the cliff, leading to what looks to be a cave. Regulus looks at Maria who purses her lips, nodding and Regulus begins to row the boat towards the entrance.
It's dark inside. Maria takes out her wand.
"Lumos." She whispers, the top of her wand illuminating the areas surrounding them dimly and the boat hits something that crunches under the pressure. Regulus ties the boat to some of the rock and holds out a hand for Maria who takes it and carefully clambers out of the boat.
Her heart pounds in her chest, the thought of dying in this place haunts her already. The thought of the last words being said to her bother being 'goodnight' as he assumed he would be seeing her the next day to celebrate her birthday. The way he would blame himself. Even though she can't think of one way how he could, she knows he'd find a way.
Kreacher explains some things to Regulus who nods along with him as Maria zones out, thinking about James and her friends.
"Ria. . .we need to—Uh, give blood." Regulus says slowly and she swallows the lump in her throat, nodding. "I can do it—"
"I'll do it." Maria says and he goes to object but she had already dug her wand across her palm and winces slightly, Regulus watching her closely as she holds out her bleeding hand and legs some blood drip onto the rock.
They sizzle and the rock begins to crumble making Regulus reach forwards and grip Maria's arm, pulling her back away from it slightly as the wall crumbles down so there's a gape big enough for them to walk through.
Maria looks at Regulus before going to go inside but he grabs her quickly. He sighs, tears in his eyes as he shakes his head.
"I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you get back to your brother on your birthday." Regulus whispers, kissing her forehead tenderly and Maria smiles sadly. "I promise."
"It won't be much fun without you." Maria mumbles and Regulus sighs, pulling her lips up to his gently. They move slowly together, like they're putting all the love and fear they have into it before pulling away.
Regulus pulls back to look at her. He's looks into those chocolate brown eyes like he could say a million things. But he doesn't.
"Je pense que nous avons été écrits dans les étoiles, mon amour." Regulus whispers, a tear rolling down his cheek and she frowns up at him. "The second thing I ever asked you in French was 'do you think we were written in the stars?'. And I do."
Maria sniffles and brings him into a tight embrace, her arms around his middle and his tight around her shoulders. He pressed his lips to the top of her head before she looks up at him and kisses his jaw softly.
"I love you." Maria whispers and Regulus chuckles sadly.
"I love you." He mutters before they both look at the gape in the rock. "You sure about this?"
"Yes." Maria nods, stepping through the hole in the wall and Regulus looks after her, shaking his head in amusement as he follows her.
"You're such a Gryffindor it's sickening." Regulus says jokingly and Maria scoffs as they walk on what seem to be crystals and Maria gasps and puts her arm out in front of Regulus before he can walk off into a large body of water.
"Lumos maxima." Regulus whispers, pointing his wand somewhere and the ball of light floats around the large cave for a moment before stopping and suddenly getting brighter, illuminating the whole cave.
Kreacher shakily points over to another small island in the cave and Regulus nods, understanding that over there is where this horcrux is.
"How are we meant to get over there?" Maria sighs, looking around and Regulus frowns, noticing a circular piece of metal on a slim crystal.
"Ria?" Regulus whisper shouts and she looks over at him. He grabs the circle and pulls, a chain emerging from the dark water. Maria sighs, grabbing part of it and they each pull the chain until a small boat is visible and afloat on the water.
"How nice of him to give us transport." Maria says sarcastically and Regulus climbs into the boat, grabbing Maria's outstretched hand and helping her hop in cautiously. Kreacher also jumps in as the boat suddenly moves.
It moves towards the horcrux.
The boat collided softly with the crystals and Maria clambers out onto the uneven ground, Regulus and Kreacher following suit. There's a stand in the middle of it and they approach in carefully, seeing liquid that almost looks like water with murky blackness floating inside it.
"That's emerald potion." Maria whispers, recognising the black swirls inside from a DADA book that had scribbles of writing inside and Regulus looks at her from the other side of the stand. "We have to drink it. The horcrux will be inside." Maria looks at Kreacher who nods. "I can drink it."
"No." Regulus shakes his head. "I'm doing it."
Maria sighs, knowing arguing will get her nowhere and nods reluctantly. He grabs the crystal scoop on the side of the dip in the stand where the potion in held.
"You have to make me finish all of it, Maria." Regulus mumbles. "Promise me?"
"But—"
"Ria, please. Let me do this." Regulus says and she purses her lips but nods as he scoops some liquid into it before sighing. His eyes flicker to hers for a moment before he drinks the liquid.
He stands there for a second before coughing and dropping the scoop and stumbling back, Maria gasping and rushing to his side and he's coughing like he's choking.
"Ria. . .more. . ." Regulus whispers between coughs, his voice hoarse and he looks between him and the basin, torn. She scrambles up and grabs the scoop, filling in with the liquid again, helping him drink it with shaky hands. She repeats this until she sees the liquid get shallower and shallower.
"Just—one more, one more." Maria says frantically as Regulus pushes her hand away from his mouth with tears dripping down his cheeks.
"No—Maria, please stop." The boy whimpers and Maria shakes her head, tears forming in her own eyes.
"One more, Reg, I promise—I promise." Maria says quickly and he sighs shakily, swallowing and nodding as she helps him drink the last of the potion. He's almost limp on the uneven ground as Maria rushes to the basin, grabbing a gold locket with a small snake on it. "You did it." She says with a smile, stuffing it into her pocket before Kreacher tentatively hands her an almost identical locket with a note inside making Maria frown and unfold the note.
'To the Dark Lord - I know I may be dead long before you read this, but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more.
—R.A.B.'
"Are we sure we should leave him this?" Maria asks Kreacher sceptically, folding it and putting it back into the locket.
"That is what Master Regulus ordered." Kreacher croaks, Maria nodding and placing the fake locket into the basin and it refills with the emerald potion.
"Regulus—you did it." Maria sniffles as she scrambled over to him, grabbing his face in her hands and he smiles exhaustedly, his eyelids drooped and his throat feeling dry.
"Water." Regulus whispers hoarsely and Maria nods, picking up the scoop again and pointing her wand at it.
"Aguamenti." She mutters and the scoop fills with fresh water that she helps him drink, crouching in front of him and she notices he brightens slightly. She stands up and walks to the edge of the crystal island, looking around with her hands on her hips. "You don't suppose we'll have to row back, do y—"
Maria is cut off by a slimy, bony hand gripping her ankle tightly and sweeping her off her feet. She groans as she lands roughly on her back, her head thankfully not hitting the crystals and she cries out when another hand grabs her knee.
"Regulus—help!" Maria yells, kicking them off when another creature comes at her side. Inferi. She remembers learning about them in DADA.
"Ria. . ." Regulus groans, simply unable to get up, his whole body feeling numb. "Kreacher—help."
"Regulus!" He hears Maria scream and Kreacher aids him and he falls on his hands and knees a few paces away from Maria who's clinging for dear life onto the crystals. Her legs are covered in those inferi and Regulus can see her hands slipping. "Go! Reg—please leave!"
"I'm not leaving you!" Regulus says, thinking frantically. "Kreacher—grab my hand and get us out of here when I say so." Kreacher nods, wrapping his bony fingers around two of Regulus' and Regulus stretches an arm towards Maria. "Grab my hand! Maria—please!"
Kreacher notices the creatures clambering towards them from all angles and Maria pulls herself slightly further onto the crystals.
"Please take my hand!"
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