Beautiful Blue

He looked at the cottage surrounded by wildflowers gently blowing in the wind. It was beautiful and peacefulness seemed to pour out of the house. The perfect place for his dear friend to live. He watched as a blonde woman stepped out of the house and walked into her garden picking different herbs and fruits. He almost didn’t want to disturb her but he knew she was one of the few people who could give him the answers he needed. Slowly he approached the gate. 

“Dora?” His voice was softer than usual, something that always happened when he spoke to his best friend. Something about her just made all his jagged edges round off and become less sharp. 

He could see her freeze. She slowly turned to look at him, her eyes filled with tears.

“This isn’t funny.” Her voice was shaking and he saw her hands start to shake too as her eyes filled with more tears. 

“What’s not funny?” Regulus said, stepping closer to the gate.

“Pretending to be Reggie.” She sniffled and looked away. 

“I’m not pretending, love.” He opened the gate and walked closer only for her to throw her basket at him. 

“Dora, it's really me. I’m not dead,” He reached a hand out to her. She started to cry. 

“Reggie died last July, stop pretending!” She turned to run in the house but he grabbed her arm which she quickly tried to shove him away.

“Dora, you sleep with shoes on because you sleep walk. When we first met you were wearing spectrespecs and said I had a lot of Wrackspurt around my head and sat with me on the train to cheer me up so they would go away.” He felt a fond smile grow on his face. 

“And you never go looking for the things you lose because they always come back to you.” Pandora looked at him properly, her eyes filling with more tears as she threw her arms around him sobbing. 

“You’re here! You’re alive!” He’d held her tight and placed a hair in her hair to try and comfort her.

“I’m here Dora.” He had no intention of letting go of her anytime soon. 

“How are you still alive?” Pandora asked, handing Regulus a cup of tea before sitting beside him on the couch. 

“I didn’t mean to. I was just in my room recovering and with Mothers health declining she thought I wasn’t home.” Regulus looked down at his tea feeling guilty for never coming to Pandora to tell her he was alive even if he didn’t want to get her involved, which was now unavoidable. 

“To tell you the truth I originally wasn't going to tell you I’m alive yet.” He said causing Pandora looked heartbroken 

“What do you mean? You were just going to let me think you died?” Regulus quickly grabbed her hand saying “I was going to tell you eventually. I wasn’t going to keep it from you forever. I’m just in a dangerous situation and didn’t want to put you in the same danger.” Pandora looked confused at that.

“Why tell me now then?” He sighed and squeezed her hand.

“I need your help, love.” She looked determined. 

“Start from the beginning.” At her words it all came pouring out of him. Like a bottle filled to the brim finally cracking and shattering from the pressure. Horcruxes, the cave, sneaking through the Malfoy and LeStrange manor, stealing from Bellatrix’s vault, trying to figure out what the other horcruxes were and where they are, how to destroy them. By the end of it his face buried in her shoulder with him in tears. 

She held him and rubbed his back. “That’s a lot on your shoulders dear.” She said running a hand through his hair.

“How can I help?” She looked even more determined than before. She was refusing to let her best friend suffer this alone. 

“I need to know any important items from the Ravenclaw house. Something from Rowena.” Regulus said, causing Pandora to think for a minute. 

“There’s her diadem but no one knows where it is. There's a myth in Ravenclaw house that her daughter Helena Ravenclaw stole it and hid it away for herself.” Pandora said, looking sorry she couldn’t help him more. 

He sighed. “So only Helena and Voldemort know where it is. I saw her wearing a diadem in her photo but I was hoping there was a different item that would be easier to find.” Pandora seemed to perk up. 

“Why not ask her?” Pandora looked excited.

“What? Ask who?” Regulus said feeling confused

“Helena Ravenclaw. She’s the Grey Lady, the ghost of Ravenclaw Tower. Well I suppose you’d have to get into Hogwarts to talk to her.” 

“I know a way.” He said, looking a bit guilty. 

“How?” She said looking confused.

“I may have stolen something from Potter.” Pandora gasped at his words.

“Regulus Black you didn’t!” Regulus winced

“I needed it! And it's not like I’m going to keep it! I’ll return it…eventually.” He mumbled the last part but Pandora still heard it and smacked his arm. 

“So what did you steal?” Regulus winced harder.

“Regulus. What did you steal.” Pandora said her voice firm. 

“I may have stolen his invisibility cloak.” Regulus said refusing to look at her. 

“Where did he even get one?!” She gaped at him. 

Regulus looked down at his tea before speaking hesitantly. “It maybe a family heirloom?” Pandora smacked his arm again.

“Regulus Arcturus Black you did not steal a family heirloom from the Potters!” He rubbed his arm saying “I’m gonna return it!” 

She rolled her eyes at him as if to say I can’t believe you. 

“Well can it fit two people?” It was now Regulus’ turn to gape at her. 

“You were just scolding me about it!” 

“Well you already have it.”

“I can’t believe you.” She just grinned at him and waited. He sighed. “We’re both small so yes, it will fit two people” 

“Perfect!” 

They shuffled down the corridor trying their best to not let the cloak slip or elbow each other. 

“I thought you said it’d fit both of us.” Pandora hissed under her breath. 

“Well we’re both under it aren’t we?” He mumbled back which she huffed at. 

He was already glad he went to her. Just seeing her made most of his stress melt away. She’s always had that effect on him. She exudes this calmness. It seemed to flow out of her in waves. She was always able to calm him down no matter what. She stayed with him even when everyone thought he was a bloodthirsty blood purist. She comforted him when no one else would. Comforted him when he got letters from his parents, when Sirius ran away and left him in the nightmare that was their house, she even comforted him when he was forced to get the Dark Mark. She never saw him as bad. Like Aunt Dorea she saw goodness in him. Even when he couldn’t see it himself. 

“Just up ahead is where she usually stays.” Regulus was glad they were close to where Helena stayed because while he loved Pandora he did not want to be stuck under this cloak with her. He saw the back of a ghostly figure up head which he hoped was Helena. Pandora slipped the cloak off her saying softly.

“Helena?” The ghost turned and seemed a bit surprised to see Pandora.

“Pandora. I thought you graduated.” She floated closer to Pandora. 

“I did but I need your help.” Pandora said which caused Helena to hesitate.

“With what?” She was cautious which he expected based on what Pandora told him about her. That she was a recluse and didn’t talk to most. 

“I need to know where the diadem is.” That seemed to anger her.

“I don’t wish to talk about such things.” She turned to leave when Pandora said quickly.

“Helena please, it needs to be destroyed.”

Pandora, why would you tell her that?!

That seemed to make her stop. “Destroy it? Why?”

“I believe someone put a curse on it.” 

She looked hesitant and a bit angry.

“Helena do you know?”

“There was a strange boy with a strange name he said he wanted to break it but he lied! He put a horrid curse and ruined it! I should have never told him where it was!” She yelled which made Regulus glad she stayed around from others so that no one would hear her shout.

“We can make things right Helena but you need to tell us what this boy did with it.” Pandora said gently. 

“Us?” Regulus winces and hesitantly came out from under the cloak. 

“Hello Helena Ravenclaw. I’m Regulus Black.” 

She looked angry at him being there and looked at Pandora.

“You hid him from me!” 

“I was afraid you wouldn’t tell me where the diadem was if you knew he was here. But we need to know Helena. It needs to be destroyed or the boy who put the curse on it can’t be killed.” Pandora said looking guilty and hoped Helena would understand and still help them.

She paused at that.

“He won’t die?” 

Regulus spoke. “No, he can come back every time he is killed unless we destroy it. We need your help Helena. Where did he hide it?”

“It's here, in the castle, in the place where everything is hidden. If you have to ask you’ll never know. If you know you need only ask.” Helena backed away. 

“Thank you Helena.” Pandora turned to leave when Regulus spoke up. 

“Helena, you said he had a strange name. Do you remember what it was?” 

She paused before turning to him. “Tom. Tom Riddle.” 

Regulus bowed his head. “Thank you Helena, I promise we’ll destroy it.” 

“Promises mean nothing to the dead.” Her form seemed to condense together and she flew away. 

Together Pandora and Regulus flipped the cloak back over their heads and walked back down the corridor. 

Tom Riddle. The name on the diary.

Glancing around quickly Regulus pulled the cloak off him and Pandora, looking at a plain wall. 

“The Come and Go Room?” Regulus turned to Pandora. “Are you sure?” 

She hummed. “Think about it. If you ask someone they won’t know of the room but if you know the room you just have to ask for what you want.” 

He nodded, “You always were better at riddles than me. But what should we ask for?”

“Well she said where everything is hidden. Ask for that,” She said before he nodded and stood at the plain wall. 

I need the room where everything is hidden. 

Slowly the shape of a door appeared which they quickly entered knowing it would disappear behind them from all the times they ventured inside during their Hogwarts years. They glanced around the room realizing they might have bitten off more than they could chew. The room had high ceilings and was filled with the most random junk. Floor to ceiling in slatted stacks that looked ready to fall over at any moment. There was barely a path between the stacks and piles. Regulus couldn’t help staring up hoping to Merlin the stacks would not fall on him as he looked around for the lost diadem. It was like a sea of lost treasures, part of him wanting to explore everything to see what he could find and another part wanting to leave it untouched. Neither part won however as he had a job to do. A job that was looking like it would take him much longer than he originally thought.

Pandora held out her wand. “Accio diadem.” They waited but nothing came forward. 

“Why can’t things be easy? I deserve it at this point.” Pandora laughed and rolled up her sleeves saying, “We better start looking.” Before looking at the nearest stack using her wand to float things down from the top.

“What I wouldn’t give to have my wand right now.” Regulus said, staring at all the things he’d have to look through by hand. 

“You don’t have it?” Pandora turned to him. 

“Unfortunately no, it's still in the cave, I didn’t want to return to get it.” He said before stepping towards a short stack of books and boxes. 

“Well you need some kind of defense.” Pandora flipping through a book. 

“What would you suggest?” He said while starting to look through a shorter stack. 

“A muggle one?” Pandora suggested. 

“A muggle one? How would I even get one of those?” Regulus asked while opening a box and dropping it when nothing was inside.

“I can buy it for you!” She seemed a little too excited to be buying a weapon. 

“What weapon would you even buy?” 

“I’ll figure it out! Just you wait!” Regulus couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He started down a thin path looking around at the different piles of books and random junk, even spotting a precariously stacked pile of chairs which seemed to defy gravity. 

“This room doesn’t seem safe.” Regulus called back to Pandora. 

“Most rooms in this castle aren’t!” She called back. 

Regulus laughed, “Fair enough!”.

Nothing. What must have been hours of searching and absolutely nothing to show for it but papercuts and sore feet and a hurt shoulder from when a book fell off a stack and nailed him in the shoulder. He was exhausted and frustrated. He found multiple books of potions, dark arts, even mundane charms like shining your shoes and whitening your teeth. Pandora found multiple things she wanted to take home to decorate her house. He was so close to giving up and leaving but knew they couldn’t. Not without the diadem. It couldn’t hurt to take a nap though. It's not like anyone was going to find him in this giant mess that surrounded him. 

“I’m going to nap Pandora.” He called over to her.

“I’ll be sure to find ink to draw on your face.”

“If you do that I will throw that plant pot you found further into the room.” She pouted. “Mean.”

“And drawing on my face isn’t?” 

“Now you’re getting it!” She laughed which made him smile. Her laugh had that effect.

He rolled his eyes again and sat down propping his back against a random stack among thousands of others. He shifted a bit to get comfortable nudging a table causing a box to fall off and hit him in the face.

“Ow! Fuck!” 

“Regulus what happened?!” She came running over and began to fret over him. Regulus rubbed his nose where the box hit him making sure to glare at the now opened box. He saw a glint of metal and out of curiosity opened it further and there it lay. Rowena Ravenclaw’s diadem. He couldn’t believe it. Hours after searching and he finds it by literally it hitting him in the face. Pandora began to laugh.

“Oh for fucks sake!” 

At least now they had it and could leave this horrible room.