Chapter 266: Cave Trip
Harry felt like he was about to lose it — why hadn't he thought of this sooner?
He'd actually been trying to stall for time.
His plan was to prepare everything, then find Sirius and tell him about it first.
But he forgot where they were — the boiler room.
There was wood everywhere.
Next to it, the kitchen — plenty of oil.
And Kreacher's little house was full of rags.
"Harry, we're all ready," Ron said impatiently.
"There's wood outside — we can use it for cooking too."
"Kreacher is ready," added Draco.
The elf eagerly grabbed a bottle of oil and used it to soak the pile of now clean, colorful rags.
Even the magically expanded bag Harry had borrowed — one enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm — was now being used to store the wood.
Draco's wealth showed even in times like this; for once, Harry thought maybe having a rich friend wasn't entirely a good thing.
Crack!
With the familiar squeezing sensation, they Disapparated — and in an instant, they arrived.
It was a smooth, rocky island, about the size of Dumbledore's office — a flat slab of black stone surrounded by still, dark water. The only thing breaking the emptiness was a faint, eerie green glow.
Harry and the others already knew the island's layout.
The glow could only be coming from the stone basin.
Even so, Ron couldn't resist walking closer to it. The light came from an emerald-green liquid that glowed faintly, like phosphorescence.
The basin sat securely atop a carved base of stone, as if locked into place.
"Okay, Ron," Harry said seriously. "Let's go over the plan."
"According to Kreacher, the Inferi attack anyone who gets near the lake," Harry continued.
"Our goal is to find Regulus among them."
They all nodded grimly. Everyone knew the worst thing about Inferi — they could spread.
If there were enough of them, the recently dead could be turned into more Inferi.
During Voldemort's reign, they were nearly as common as Dementors — the tools of dark wizards.
And now, Regulus Black had become one of them.
"Alright, Harry, I'm ready," Ron said, pulling a bottle from his pocket. "Just checking something…"
He stared at it, confused. "Wait, I remember this was full! Why is it empty?"
"That's Voldemort's trick," Harry said grimly. "He made sure that anyone powerful enough to keep their magic after drinking the potion couldn't quench their thirst with conjured or carried water."
"Vera Verto!" Draco said confidently, transfiguring a piece of wood into a glass cup.
Then, "Aguamenti!" — clear spring water filled the glass.
But within seconds, the water vanished into thin air.
"Voldemort is so insidious!" Ron complained.
He'd barely had time to rest after their earlier training session — and now this.
Harry sighed. "Alright, let's divide the work."
"Kreacher, wrap these wooden sticks with the oily rags."
"Yes, Master Harry!" Kreacher squeaked, half-terrified but full of determination. His fear of the cave was overshadowed by his desire to bring Regulus home.
With a few quick waves of his fingers, the elf magically bound the wood and rags together.
"Ron, Draco — we'll drive the wood into the ground along the lakeshore, but leave some around us to form a circle," said Harry.
Within ten minutes, they had built a rough barrier — a circle of kindling with themselves at the center.
"Alright, here's the sequence," Harry instructed.
"Ron, use a spell to disturb the lake first. Once the Inferi get close to me and Draco, light the fires."
"Kreacher, you search for Regulus."
"If we don't find him, we'll burn them all with fire magic.
If we do, Kreacher — bring him straight to us. Understand?"
Everyone nodded.
"One… two… three!" Harry counted.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron shouted, pointing his wand at the lake.
The dark water rippled violently. The surface churned — and suddenly, pale heads began rising from below.
Dozens of them.
Men, women, children — all with sunken, sightless eyes.
Their skin was pallid, their movements jerky, their tattered clothes clinging wetly as they clawed at the rocks.
"Now! Fire!" Harry shouted.
Flames roared from both his and Draco's wands, igniting the wooden circle in an instant.
The fire blazed bright orange, lighting up the black cavern.
The Inferi hesitated, trembling as the heat pressed against them.
They couldn't move forward — but they couldn't retreat either, as the flames spread behind them.
"Kreacher!" Harry yelled.
Before Harry could stop him, Kreacher dashed into the horde of Inferi, clutching a torch.
"Found him! Kreacher found Master Regulus!" he cried.
Sure enough — Regulus's body was near the lakeshore, half-dragged underwater.
Harry spotted Kreacher pulling the corpse toward them — the Inferi that had been Regulus twitched, reaching toward Kreacher but unable to cross the flames.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry shouted.
"Levioso Cadaver!" (Floating Corpse!)
Regulus's body froze, then floated upward, stiff as a board.
"Kreacher, let's go!" Harry commanded.
Tears streamed down the elf's wrinkled face as he guided the floating body toward them.
A sharp pop followed — the world squeezed around them again.
The next moment, they were back in the boiler room.
"Master Regulus! You're home!" Kreacher sobbed joyfully. "Kreacher brought you home!"
He gently laid Regulus down and began wiping him clean with a soft towel he had prepared.
Harry and the others finally got a good look at the man.
Unlike other Inferi, Regulus's body was almost intact — his features pale but peaceful. His dark hair matched Sirius's, and though not as striking, he still bore that unmistakable Black family elegance.
"Harry," Draco whispered, "did… did we really do it?"
Harry nodded slowly. "Yeah. We just have to call Sirius now."
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(End of Chapter 266)
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