On their first day in 12 Grimmauld Place, Briar decided to be like Molly Weasley and try tidy the house to make it more habitable, since no one was usually here. But unfortunately this job was proving to be a lot more work than she thought, since every room looked like it had been turned upside down, and she had a sinking feeling someone had gone through the house
But by lunchtime the house did look a bit more tidy and Briar was very proud, considering she hadn't been allowed to use magic because of the Trace still being on her
"Briar! Briar!" Harry's voice shouted and from the drawing room she could hear three sets of heavy footsteps coming bounding down the stairs until the three out of breath teenagers burst into the room
"What happened?"
"Sirius's brother was a Death Eater, right?" He asked and she nodded "Well when me and Dumbledore went away we found this," he tossed a green locket at her "It's a horcux. Well actually it's a copy of one. Because someone with the initials R.A.B found it first and wrote that he would destroy the real one-"
"-and you think Regulus Black did that?" she asked and he nodded "Well, it fits, but where's the real locket?"
"We don't know," Hermione said "We searched his room but couldn't find it anywhere, so it might still be somewhere in the house"
"It was," Briar suddenly realised "When we were all here, before you guys arrived, and Molly was making us clean up we found a locket like this one in the living room but we couldn't open it so we threw it away."
"You threw it away?!"
"But!" she interrupted "Kreacher nicked loads of things from us and he loved Regulus so if there was something dark and valuable in the house, it would have ended up with him. Come on!" The four of them bounded down the stairs noisily, and Briar led them to Kreacher's cupboard in the kitchen. But when she tore it open, there was only nest of dirty old blankets in which the house-elfhad once slept "Kreacher!"
There was a loud crack and the house elf that Harry and Briar had soreluctantly inherited from Sirius appeared out of nowhere in front of the cold andempty fireplace
"Mistress. Master," croaked Kreacher and he bowed low;muttering to his knees, "back in my Mistress's old house with the blood-traitorWeasley and theMudblood -"
"I forbid you to call anyone 'blood traitor' or 'Mudblood,'" growled Harry "We've got a question for you, and I order you to answer it truthfully. Understand?"
"Yes, Master," said Kreacher, bowing low again.
"Two years ago," said Briar "there was a big gold locket in the drawing room upstairs. We threwit out. Did you steal it back?"
Kreacher straightened up tolook Briar full in the face. Then he said, "Yes."
"Where is it now?" asked Harry
Kreacher closed his eyes as though he could not bear to see their reactions to hisnext word. "Gone."
"Gone?" echoed Harry "What do you mean, it'sgone?" The elf shivered. "Kreacher," said Harry fiercely, "I order you –"
"Mundungus Fletcher," croaked the elf, his eyes still tight shut. "MundungusFletcher stole it all; Miss Bella's and Miss Cissy's pictures, my Mistress's gloves, theOrder of Merlin, First Class, the goblets with the family crest, and – and – and the locket, Master Regulus's locket. Kreacher did wrong, Kreacher failed inhis orders!"
Kreacher suddenly lunged for the poker standing inthe grate but Briar grabbed the back of his filthy pillowcase he wore "Kreacher,I order you to stay still!" she barked and he froze "Right. Kreacher, I want the truth: How do you know MundungusFletcher stole the locket?"
"Kreacher saw him!" gasped the elf as tears poured over his snout and intohis mouth full of graying teeth. "Kreacher saw him coming out of Kreacher'scupboard with his hands full of Kreacher's treasures. Kreacher told the sneak thiefto stop, but Mundungus Fletcher laughed and r-ran ... "
"You called the locket 'Master Regulus's,'" said Harry. "Why? Where did itcome from? What did Regulus have to do with it? Kreacher, sit up and tell meeverything you know about that locket, and everything Regulus had to do withit!"
The elf sat up, curled into a ball, placed his wet face between his knees,and began to rock backward and forward. When he spoke, his voice was muffledbut quite distinct in the silent, echoing kitchen. "Master Sirius ran away, good riddance, for he was a bad boy and brokemy Mistress's heart with his lawless ways. But Master Regulus had proper order;he knew what was due to the name of Black and the dignity of his pure blood.For years he talked of the Dark Lord, who was going to bring the wizards out ofhiding to rule the Muggles and the Muggle-borns ... and when he was sixteenyears old, Master Regulus joined theDark Lord. So proud, so proud, so happy to serve ...And one day, a year after he joined, Master Regulus came down to thekitchen to see Kreacher. Master Regulus always liked Kreacher. And MasterRegulus said ... he said ..." The old elf rocked faster than ever. "... he said that the Dark Lord required an elf."
"Voldemort needed an elf?" Briar repeated, puzzled
"Oh yes," moaned Kreacher. "And Master Regulus had volunteeredKreacher. It was an honour, said Master Regulus, an honour for him and forKreacher, who must be sure to do whatever the Dark Lord ordered him to do ...and then to c-come home." Kreacher rocked still faster, his breath comingin sobs. "So Kreacher went to the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord did not tell Kreacherwhat they were to do, but took Kreacher with him to a cave beside the sea. Andbeyond the cave was a cavern, and in the cavern was a great black lake... There was a boat ...There was a b-basin full of potion on the island. The D-Dark Lord madeKreacher drink it ..." The elf quaked from head to foot. "Kreacher drank, and as he drank he saw terrible thing ... Kreacher's insides burned... Kreacher cried for Master Regulus to save him, he cried for his Mistress Black, butthe Dark Lord only laughed ... He made Kreacher drink all the potion ... He droppeda locket into the empty basin ... He filled it with more potion And then the Dark Lord sailed away, leaving Kreacher on the island ... Kreacher needed water, he crawled to the island's edge and he drankfrom the black lake ... and hands, dead hands, came out of the water anddragged Kreacher under the surface ... "
"How did you get away?" Harry asked. Kreacher raised his ugly head and looked Harry with his great, bloodshot eyes.
"Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back," hesaid.
"I know – but how did you escape the Inferi?"
Kreacher did not seem to understand. "Master Regulus told Kreacher to come back," he repeated.
"I know, but – "
"Well, it's obvious, isn't it, Harry?" said Ron. "He disapparated!"
"But ... you couldn't apparate in and out of that cave," said Harry, "otherwiseDumbledore – "
"Elf magic isn't like wizard's magic, is it?" said Ron, "I mean, they can apparate and disapparate in and out of Hogwarts when we can't."
Hermione spoke, and hervoice was icy. "Of course, Voldemort would have considered the ways ofhouse-elves far beneath his notice ... It would never have occurred to him thatthey might have magic that he didn't."
"The house-elf's highest law is his Master's bidding," intoned Kreacher. "Kreacher was told to come home, so Kreacher came home ... "
"Well, then, you did what you were told, didn't you?" said Hermione kindly. "You didn't disobey orders at all!"
Kreacher shook his head, rocking as fast as ever. "So what happened when you got back?" Briar asked. "What did Regulussay when you told him what happened?"
"Master Regulus was very worried, very worried," croaked Kreacher. "Master Regulus told Kreacher to stay hidden and not to leave the house. Andthen ... it was a little while later ... Master Regulus came to find Kreacher in hiscupboard one night, and Master Regulus was strange, not as he usually was,disturbed in his mind, Kreacher could tell ... and he asked Kreacher to take him tothe cave, the cave where Kreacher had gone with the Dark Lord ... "
"And he made you drink the poison?" said Harry, disgusted.
But Kreacher shook his head and wept. Hermione's hands leapt to hermouth: She seemed to have understood something. "M-Master Regulus took from his pocket a locket like the one the DarkLord had," said Kreacher, tears pouring down either side of his snout-like nose. "And he told Kreacher to take it and, when the basin was empty, to switch thelockets ..." Kreacher's sobs came in great rasps now "And he order – Kreacher to leave – without him. And he told Kreacher – togo home – and never to tell my Mistress – what he had done – but to destroy the first locket. And he drank – all the potion – and Kreacher swapped the lockets– and watched... as Master Regulus ... was dragged beneath the water ... and ... "
"Oh, Kreacher!" wailed Hermione, who was crying. She dropped to herknees beside the elf and tried to hug him.
At once he was on his feet, cringingaway from her, quite obviously repulsed. "The Mudblood touched Kreacher, he will not allow it, what would hisMistress say?"
"I told you not to call her 'Mudblood'!" snarled Harry, but the elf wasalready punishing himself. He fell to the ground and banged his forehead onthe floor.
Once again Briar grabbed his pillowcase clothing and pulled him to his feet, forcing him to stand again "Stop!" she ordered and the elf was angry, but obeyed "So you brought the locket home, and you tried to destroy it?"
"Nothing Kreacher did made any mark upon it," moaned the elf. "Kreachertried everything, everything he knew, but nothing, nothing would work ... Somany powerful spells upon the casing, Kreacher was sure the way to destroy itwas to get inside it, but it would not open ... Kreacher punished himself, he triedagain, he punished himself, he tried again. Kreacher failed to obey orders,Kreacher could not destroy the locket! And his mistress was mad with grief,because Master Regulus had disappeared and Kreacher could not tell her whathad happened, no, because Master Regulus had f-f-forbidden him to tell any ofthe f-f-family what happened in the c-cave ..."
The four teenagers, none of whom liked Kreacher, all wore horrified expressions as they heard the torture this elf had been through "I don't understand you, Kreacher," Harry said finally. "Voldemort tried to kill you,Regulus died to bring Voldemort down, but you were still happy to betray SiriustoVoldemort? You were happy to go to Narcissa and Bellatrix, and pass informationto Voldemort through them ... "
"Harry, Kreacher doesn't think like that," said Hermione "He's a slave; house-elves are used to bad, even brutaltreatment; what Voldemort did to Kreacher wasn't that far out of the commonway. What do wizard wars mean to an elf like Kreacher? He's loyal to people whoare kind to him, and Mrs. Black must have been, and Regulus certainly was, so heserved them willingly and parroted their beliefs. I know what you're going to say," she went on as Harry began to protest, "that Regulus changed his mind ... but hedoesn't seem to have explained that to Kreacher, does he?" And I think I knowwhy. Kreacher and Regulus's family were all safest if they kept to the old pureblood line. Regulus was trying to protect them all."
"Sirius – "
"Sirius was horrible to Kreacher, Harry, and it's no good looking like that,you know it's true. Kreacher had been alone for such a long time when Siriuscame to live here, and he was probably starving for a bit of affection. I'm sure'Miss Cissy' and 'Miss Bella' were perfectly lovely to Kreacher when he turned up,so he did them a favour and told them everything they wanted to know. I've saidall along that wizards would pay forhow they treat house-elves. Well, Voldemort did ... and so did Sirius."
Again they fell silent and the only sound filling the kitchen was that of Kreacher sobbing "Kreacher" Briar said softly "Kreacher, I am going to ask you to do something. Kreacher, I want you, please, to go and find Mundungus Fletcher. Weneed to find out where the locket – where Master Regulus's locket it. It's reallyimportant. We want to finish the work Master Regulus started, we want to – er –ensure that he didn't die in vain."
Kreacher looked up at Briar "Find Mundungus Fletcher?" he croaked.
"And bring him here, to Grimmauld Place," she said "Do you think you could dothat for us?"
The elf nodded and shakily got to his feet, but before he could disappear Harry handed him something. The fake locket "You can keep this"
Unfortunately after that it took half an hour to calm the sobbing elf once more, but once he finally got a grip, the elf disapparated with his mission. But maybe if Kreacher could find Dung and the locket, they could destroy another horcrux and be one step closer to ending this war once and for all