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Kreacher’s Commands


Regulus ran across the grounds, breathless, his cloaks flying out behind him as he went. Barty Crouch stumbled after him, still tugging his cloaks on. “Regulus, bloody hell - slow down!” Barty begged. But Regulus couldn’t slow. The adrenaline pumping through his veins was too powerful. He didn’t know how they were going to get to Malfoy Manor, where the Dark Lord had returned following the destruction of the Lestrange’s mansion. “Where are we going?”

“We have to get off the school grounds!” Regulus shouted, “This way. C’mon, hurry up.”

Barty grit his teeth and ran harder, nearly falling down the steep hill. They were passing Hagrid’s cabin, smoke rising from the chimney. There was a great deal of barking going on inside - at least three dogs were barking at once and Hagrid’s shadow was passing by the window as they went by. Regulus ducked through the trees into the Black Forest just past Hagrid’s toolshed and Barty felt his heart skip a beat.

“Reg, we’re not allowed -- we’re not allowed in there! It’s against the rules!”

Regulus was already several yards into the trees. “This is life and death! The rules don’t matter.”

“You still haven’t told me who’s in trouble!” Barty hissed. “How do I know it’s worth the risk?”

Regulus stared at him, disappointment welling up in him, “I’ve just told you somebody is going to die and you wonder if it’s worth the risk of breaking a rule to save them? Does it matter who it is?”

“I mean I’m not going in there after a mudblood,” Barty said.

Regulus answered, “It isn’t a mudblood we’re saving.”

Barty sighed and trampled his way through the brush to Regulus, “Well who then?”

“C’mon.” Regulus continued on through the trees, “This way…”

Barty rolled his eyes and hurried after his friend. “Why won’t you tell me?”

“Will you just trust me?”

“Well where are we going at least?”

“Malfoy Manor.”

Barty laughed, his lungs aching already from running, “We’re running all the way to Malfoy Manor?”

“No, only off the grounds. Then I can summon Kreacher and he can apparate us to London.”

“But Kreacher apparates onto the grounds all the time,” Barty argued, “Why couldn’t he just come get us in our dorm?”

Kreacher can apparate, but we can’t. Human disapparation isn’t possible on the grounds. I read it in a book at the library.” They’d reached a large clearing in the woods and Regulus came to a stop in the middle, looking around himself as Barty caught up and, wheezing, doubled over to grab his knees. Regulus called out, “Kreacher!” but there was no response. “Kreacher, I command you to come!” he tried again.

Barty knelt down and drew his wand, “Aquamenti,” he hissed, and he drank the water as it poured from his wandtip.

Regulus was pacing, “Kreacher, by order of the Noble House of Black, I command --”

CRACK!

“Master Regulus, Kreacher is here - Kreacher is here - Kreacher is sorry. Kreacher was fulfilling orders from Master Orion for the Dark Lord and could not come immediately! Kreacher will punish himself for making Master Regulus wait!” The elf bowed low.

Regulus shook his head, “No, Kreacher, don’t do that… Listen, I need you to get me and my friend Barty here to Malfoy Manor, it’s very important, and ---”

“Wait.”

Regulus looked up, so did Barty and Kreacher. Severus Snape had just stepped into the moonlight behind them. It was Snape that had spoken.

Regulus stared at Severus. “Decided to follow me after all, did you?”

“And a good thing I did. You can’t just go barging into Malfoy Manor in the middle of the night to rescue a house elf,” Severus sneered.

Barty looked up, “This is over a bloody elf? But your damn elf is right there, why are we going to London when he’s right there?”

“It’s not Kreacher, it’s… it’s another elf,” Regulus admitted.

“How many elves do you have?”

“Just the one,” Regulus replied, “The one we’re saving isn’t… isn’t technically mine...”

“It’s not even your elf?” Barty demanded. “Are you mad?”

“I feel like I’m the only one that isn’t mad,” Regulus replied. “Isn’t the fact that it is an innocent life in danger enough?”

Severus crossed his arms over his chest, “Regulus, listen to me. If you go after this elf now, you risk everything. If you wait - just a few hours - just until morning -”

Regulus looked quite ill. “But if he kills Toddy in the meantime --”

Severus shook his head, “He won’t.”

“How do you know?” Regulus demanded.

“Because, Regulus, believe it or not, killing a house elf is hardly the full of the Dark Lord’s plan tonight. There is much more going on right now and the elf is simply one of the many pieces.”

“And I suppose the Dark Lord just told you all his plans then!” Regulus sneered. “I saw Toddy - I saw the mind of the Dark Lord and he was --”

“I CAN SEE HIS MIND BETTER THAN YOU CAN!” Severus shouted in a growling sort of voice.

The words rang in the night air between them.

“Then what is happening if you know so much more than I do about what I saw?” Regulus demanded.

“I don’t know the details, exactly. I just know that something very big is happening tonight, Black, and if you go busting in there over an elf, he’s not going to find it amusing…” Severus looked at Kreacher. “You took the other elf to your Master, didn’t you?”

Kreacher’s ears flapped nervously.

“Kreacher. You brought Toddy to the Dark Lord?” Regulus’s eyes were wide.

“Kreacher was commanded… Kreacher only did as he was told… Master needed Toddy the elf and Toddy’s family… so Kreacher took them to his Master…”

“House elves have families?” Barty said, looking disturbed by the thought of it.

“Kreacher! How could you?!” Regulus cried, “How could you betray one of your own kind?!”

Kreacher’s big eyes were very troubled. “Kreacher doesn’t have a choice, Master Regulus… Kreacher did not want to do it… but Master tells Kreacher… and Kreacher doesn’t have a choice!”

“There’s more,” Severus said, “You took something else that you’re bringing back to him - you were about to bring it back when you were called here.”

Kreacher looked uncomfortable.

“What else, Kreacher?” Regulus demanded.

Kreacher grabbed his ears, “Kreacher is commanded not to tell! Kreacher is commanded not to say!” He yanked the ears very hard, conflicted.

“Well I command you to tell me,” Regulus insisted.

“Aahh!” Kreacher pulled his ears as hard as he could, hopping foot to foot, “Master Orion commands Kreacher not to tell, but Master Regulus commands Kreacher tell him! Kreacher cannot serve two masters equally!” He agonized.

Regulus’s voice was imperial, “Which of us are you more loyal to? Me or my Father?”

“AAhh!” Kreacher’s great big eyes had huge tears threatening in them.

“KREACHER!” Regulus shouted, and he grabbed the elf’s arm, gently, even as his voice hardened, careful not to hurt the elf. “TELL ME!”

Kreacher struggled, fighting himself internally, then wailed, “Kreacher is taking the clock the Dark Lord requested.”

“A clock?” Regulus looked at Severus. “What clock?”

Kreacher hesitated… then reached into a pouch he wore about him that Regulus had not noticed because it was made out of a second pillow case exactly like the one Kreacher wore tied about himself. He withdrew the old-fashioned style alarm clock carefully, holding it up.

Regulus took the clock and stared down at it. “It’s just a clock.” But it was a very heavy feeling clock. Much heavier than an ordinary clock should be, Regulus thought. He turned it over, but there was nothing special about it. It was just a plain, brass clock. Regulus looked to Severus, “Do you know the meaning of it?”

Severus shook his head, “Only that the Dark Lord wants it.”

“It just looks like an ordinary muggle clock,” said Regulus.

“Why would the Dark Lord want a muggle clock?” snorted Barty, who both Regulus and Severus had nearly forgotten was there at all. Barty walked over and looked over Regulus’s shoulder at the clock.

“Dunno,” replied Regulus. He looked up at Severus.

“I don’t know,” Severus replied. “But there’s something else, too, Kreacher, isn’t there?” Severus asked. “One more thing you’re supposed to do.”

Kreacher’s ears lay flat to his head. “How does the half blood, blight on the name of the house of Black, know the bidding of the Dark Lord?”

“What else are you supposed to do, Kreacher?” Regulus demanded.

“Kreacher is meant to seal the door below the tree.”

Regulus looked confused. “What?”

“The door below the tree; Kreacher is to seal it.”

“What door? What tree? Why?” They were literally surrounded by trees on every side. Regulus found himself looking around for one that would stand out as different, but they all looked the same…

“Kreacher can show Master,” the elf offered, trembling. “But Kreacher doesn’t know why.”

“You want to know why?” came a low, terrible voice through the dark.

All three boys and the elf turned as two forms came into the clearing. Regulus’s heart raced - how much of what they’d been saying had been heard? he wondered as Fenrir Greyback stepped into the clearing. Kreacher rushed over and took the clock from Regulus’s hand, shoving it into his pillowcase pouch quickly before the new arrivals could see it. Fenrir’s loping gait resembled his wolf form and his eyes glowed menacingly as he licked his teeth, his fang-like canines jutting out over his lower lip when he grinned. Beside him danced Druella Black, her eyes flashing bright and excited.

“It’s to make our job easier,” Greyback said.