Chapter three
“The horcrux lies inside a flame. Waves that crash beneath the cave! Beware the horcrux inside the vault and the last one that bites will be a fault” Pandora murmured underneath her breath as the group walked down a path.
“What is she talking about Remus?” Regulus asked. “And don’t say you have to wait for the other two. Just tell me something.”
Remus sighed. “Okay fine. I’m sure you have heard the Oraculum mentioned quite a few times since you arrived. In essence it tells the future. It only lays out one path but it has only not been right one time and when that happened it made a new prediction which is where you come in. You see, horcruxes are pieces of a soul. Typically you make a horcrux and you make yourself immortal. The king over in these parts made a few horcruxes. A little under two years ago, two people were supposed to come over, find all the horcruxes and destroy the king. Unfortunately, only one of them was able to make it over. That was the only time the Oraculum has ever been wrong but when that happened it simply changed what it saw. Anyways, it was partially correct because the guy who made it was able to find half of the horcruxes as well as the goblin made blade. We need to find the remaining ones in order to kill the king.”
Regulus blinked at Remus, looking for signs of a joke but there were none. “Right, and who is this other guy?”
Remus winced a bit. “Nope, I’ve answered your question.”
Regulus rolled his eyes and leaned back against the hat.
“He’ll take the goblin sword in hand. The goblin blade will go snicker - snack! He’ll leave him dead and with his head he’ll rule the wonderland.” Pandora spoke again. “Oh dear, I was so close to another rhyme. I can’t always control the damn prophecies.”
“It’s okay Pandy. You were close enough.” Remus said.
“Can you tell me what Voldemort has done?” Regulus asked. “Why is everyone so set on him dying?”
Remus shuddered. “It’s not a pretty story.”
“Tell me anyway.” Regulus insisted.
“I’ll tell you.” Pandora said. “I’m a much better storyteller than Remus is.”
Remus nodded. “Okay Pandy, you can tell him. Just wait until we get to the place.”
Pandora nodded and Regulus had to grab onto the cloth to not fall off.
After a few more minutes of walking, Pandora set the hat down on a rock. Regulus looked around and saw the bones of old houses.
“It was here.” Pandora said. “Evan and I lived at Dumbledore's palace. Our father worked there. The Hatter clan had always been employed at court. Dumbledore was here visiting the townspeople for a celebration when there was an attack. I know that you’ve seen dementors but what you don’t know is what they do. You see, a dementor is a soul sucker. They quite literally can take your soul leaving nothing but a lifeless body behind. They suck all the joy out of you and leave you with absolutely nothing. It’s a fate worse than death and Voldemort ordered the dementors to get the souls of 3,000 people. This town wasn’t the only one. Evan and I were 9 when we watched one of them take our fathers soul. Afterwards, He torched all the cities that were left abandoned.
“I know people say I’m mad and they are probably right but there is a reason for my madness. You don’t watch someone's soul leave their body without coming out on the other side a little different.
“The thing is, Voldemort hasn’t stopped. If anything he’s gotten worse in the last few years. As the years have passed he has grown in both power and fear which really go hand in hand here. We need someone new in power. Really, we just need him out of power and we cannot do that without your help.” Pandora finished
Regulus stared up at her, eyes wide. “I, I don’t know how you expect me to help.”
Pandora rolled her eyes but before she could say anything, there was the sound of a branch snapping in the distance.
“They’ve come back.” Remus whispered. “Pandy, how far are we now?”
“The camp lies just beyond Godric's Hollow. We follow the lane, go right past the drain and stop the tyrant's reign.”
Remus groaned. “Pandora, please, could you be a bit more specific with your instructions.”
“Let me be Remus. It’s not like the two of you will get far on your own. Climb on the hat and we will be off.”
The two once again clambered onto the hat and Pandora was off in a dash. For such a small girl, she was mad fast and odds were whatever had been searching for them wouldn’t even realize they had been there.
Regulus watched as they dashed through the woods. The plants seemed to change every time they made the slightest turn. He saw huge toadstools, flowers that seemed to have faces on them, trees that cried and vines that shriveled in the sunlight.
When the forest seemed to come to an end, the three stumbled into a town and Pandora stopped running.
Regulus saw them pass an old and broken sign with chipped paint that said, ‘Godric's Hollow’. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Remus relax and saw the corners of his lips turn up.
“We’re almost there Regulus.” Remus said
“The drain is just up ahead!” Pandora said cheerfully. “I wonder if Barty and Evan are there yet.”
Regulus turned to Remus. “What drain is she talking about?”
Remus smiled. “You’ll see in just a moment now won’t you?”
Regulus rolled his eyes. He wished desperately that everyone would stop being so vague.
As Remus had told him, only a moment later, Pandora came to an abrupt stop in front of a water well. She took off her hat and set the two on the edge.
“Well, you two best go ahead. I’m going to wait here for a moment.” She said smiling. “I think it’s best if there are only three of you there to explain everything. Wouldn’t you agree Remus?”
“I do think that would be best, Pandy.” Remus nodded. “Shall we Regulus?”
“Shall we what?” Regulus questioned.
Without saying anything, Remus grabbed Regulus’s hand and jumped off the edge of the well into the abyss. As regulus screamed, they suddenly came out on the other side to a huge open plain.
“I would really like to stop falling,” Regulus groaned, standing up.
“Yes, well, we are done now. No more drops for the time being.” Remus said, dusting his coat off.
Regulus looked down and realized he still had not grown. “When do I get to return to a normal height?”
Remus smiled. “Well, we are at the camp now. We just have to find Lily. She’s the potion maker and a mighty good healer. She’ll probably already have the antidote.”
“If we are at the camp, when can I meet these ‘other two’ and learn what the hell is going on?” Regulus asked.
Remus said nothing and instead looked up. After a moment he sighed. “Looks like Pandy won’t be coming down for a while. We best start walking.”
“I thought you said the camp was close.” Regulus exclaimed.
“It is close Regulus. If you focus your eyes you’ll be able to see it up ahead. The only issue is that we are about 3 inches tall and despite it being close for a normal sized person, we are not normal sizes. I hope lily will meet us along the way. My feet are killing me.” Remus explained
Regulus rolled his eyes and started walking. He really was exhausted and a long walk in basically a desert was not his idea of a good time.
He heard Remus give a small laugh before he started walking.
They walked in silence for a long while. Regulus could not believe his luck. How was it fair that he got stuck in this situation? I mean, normally the dreams worked a lot faster than this. Normally, he was Sirius quicker than he was now. Normally he didn’t hurt his arm or rip his shirt or actually feel any pain. In all honesty, his arm was throbbing and he was deeply regretting not letting Lily heal it.
This dream was also different from all his other ones. The whole plot wasn’t the same and it was worrying Regulus a bit. What if Remus was telling the truth. What if this wasn’t a dream?
Perhaps it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Afterall, he already liked more people here than he did back home. Pandora was actually very kind and although he hadn’t spoken to them for very long, Barty and Evan seemed fine.
Remus was a whole other story. Regulus felt like he and Remus could get along very well. They seemed to be very similar in regards to their general attitudes and outlooks on certain things.
As a matter of fact, if Remus would stop being so cryptic, Regulus could see himself really enjoying his company.
Wait- stop
What was he doing? Regulus knew this wasn’t real. He was bound to wake up. There was no point in growing attachments to these people who would cease to exist when he opened his eyes.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Remus lift his nose and begin sniffing.
“What on earth are you doing?” Regulus asked
“Shut up.” Remus whispered, still sniffing. “Lily Evans, I swear, if you step on us I will never talk to you again and I’ll ensure the other two don’t either.”
Suddenly, those green eyes appeared up in the sky. “You’re tempting me Remus. I mean really, the other two leaving me alone? Sounds like pure bliss.”
“Right.” Remus laughed. “Fine, if you step on us I’ll ensure they never give you a moment of peace. You know very well the power I hold over them.”
The rest of lily appeared and she picked up both Remus and Regulus. “You really are a bastard Lupin.” She said with a smile. “I guess I’ll carry you guys back. You really are taking ages.”
“Or, you could give us the antidote.” Remus suggested. “I really don’t enjoy you being this much taller than me.”
Lily’s smile grew. “I didn’t bring the antidote with me. We will have to wait until we get back to camp. Luckily, it is very close to here.”
Regulus, who had not yet seen any signs of a camp, glanced over her shoulder. Sure enough, there was a camp set up. It wasn’t really just a camp though. It was more like a village. There seemed to be a bunch of houses, all differing in sizes and colors. He laughed a bit, surprised he hadn’t already seen it.
Lily started in a run and Regulus actually enjoyed it. The breeze in his hair felt nice and he enjoyed seeing how close they were getting to the camp.
As they entered the camp, Regulus saw that all the buildings were labeled. The biggest one said, ‘St. Mungo’s treatment for wounds and antidotes for what ales you’. As they entered, Regulus was hit with a gust of cool air and he smiled.
Lily set the two of them down on a counter and went over to a shelf, pulling out potion ingredients as she went. As she did it, she continued to disappear and reappear. It seemed as if she didn’t even know she was doing it.
“Okay so do we want it in drink form, pastry form or a shot?” She asked, setting everything on the counter.
“Let's do a drink.” Remus said. “That takes the least amount of time right?”
Lily nodded, getting right to work.
“So Regulus,” Lily spoke as she quickly stirred things together. “I’m sure you’re relieved to be here. You finally get to have all the information you’ve been tirelessly asking Remus for.”
Regulus laughed a bit and nodded. “Yes I am. I’m excited to meet the coveted two.”
Lily turned to look at Remus with an eyebrow arched. “Has Remus told you who the two are?”
“No, why?”
“Ah, leaving it a surprise.” Lily said, turning back to her cauldron. “Well, I am sure you will like them when you get to know them. One of them, you already know pretty well, believe it or not.”
“Lily!” Remus scolded.
“Calm yourself remus.” Lily laughed, dropping a few more ingredients in. “The other one, well, I would bet you are going to absolutely love him. It’ll take you a while to warm up to him but trust me, you are going to adore him. I mean, you’ll probably fall in love with-”
“Is the potion almost finished lils?” Remus interrupted, sending her a glare.
“Just about Rem.” Lily said, smiling sweetly.
Regulus groaned. “I really want to know what the two of you are talking about.”
“You’ve seen the Oraculum have you not?” Lily asked, setting a large vial beside her cauldron.
“I saw it for like a second.” regulus said. “Why?”
Lily smirked. “Well, I’m sure it will make more sense the next time you see it. Afterall, you had only met Remus. The next time you see I am positive it will mean a lot more to you.”
“Wasn’t it stolen?” Regulu asked.
“It was,” Lily answered. “But, there is already a mission in the works to get it back. They are only waiting on the two of you to finalize the plans.”
Remus nodded. “Well then, you should probably give us the antidote that you’ve had finished for a while.”
“You are absolutely no fun Remus.” Lily moaned, going to a large cabinet and pulling out two vials.
Regulus gawked. “What on earth are you brewing if you already had the antidote?”
“Well, if you must know, I am brewing an ointment for that nasty cut you have. Unfortunately, seeing as you didn’t let me purify it, it is going to leave scars but when this is finished it should take away the very apparent pain.” Lily said, handing the two boys the vials. “Now drink up.”
Regulus smiled thankfully and uncorked the vial, taking it all down at once. It burned going down his throat but he didn’t care.
He jumped off the table as he felt himself grow but when he reached his normal height, Remus had yet to drink his.
Lily laughed as Regulus looked at the two in confusion. “Why are you laughing?”
Before she could answer, the door burst open and a tall, handsome man with lopsided glasses and messy hair came bustling in. “Hey lils, I got the clothes you requested. Oh! Hi Rem.”
Regulus was still a bit confused until he looked down and realized he was stark naked.
He felt a blush creep up his neck as the stranger stared at him. “You must be Regulus.” the stranger stated. “It is so nice to finally meet you.”
Regulus turned to face Lily with a hand up, demanding his clothes and she begrudgingly handed them to him.
“It’s fine.” The stranger said, a smirk creeping on his lips. “I mean, I’m not complaining. I’m actually quite enjoying the view.”
Regulus turned to glare at him, pulling the pants he was given on as quickly as he could.
“Sorry if they’re a bit big.” The stranger continued. “We don’t have anything Regulus sized just yet. I had to steal them from Padfoot's wardrobe.”
Regulus continued to glare, buttoning up the shirt. “Who the hell are you?”
The man gasped in mock offense. “Moony! You mean you haven’t told him about me? How could you?”
Remus, who had somehow taken the potion and changed into his clothes without Regulus noticing rolled his eyes. “You both told me that you wanted to introduce yourselves. He knows you as one of the two insufferable bitches I spend most of my time with.”
The man smiled once again. He was absolutely insufferable in Regulus’s opinion but his smile was bloody charming. “I’m James Potter. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“The feeling isn’t mutual, I assure you.” Regulus said, arching an eyebrow. “So, if you’re one of the two, where is the other one? I think it’s about time I get some sort of real explanation.”
“Ah, well, you see, he is in our house.” James said. “He is really nervous about seeing you again. I think you’ll just have to come with me. He said he wants to be familiar with the territory so that if you start throwing things he’ll know where to hide.”
Remus rolled his eyes but there was something affectionate in his smile. “Well then, let’s go. Regulus is right, he should know what's going on.” He said, walking to the door. “Oh and Lils, Pandy will be here soon.”
Lily grinned and waved goodbye to the three as they exited the hospital.
“So, Regulus, what has Remus told you about me?” James asked
Regulus groaned. “I thought we already established that he has told me absolutely nothing about you.”
James nodded. “Sure, sure. But I mean, there has to be something.”
Remus quickly cut in and said to Regulus, “Regulus, this is my friend James. He has a huge head but is actually one of the best people you will ever meet. When he is nervous he gets overly cocky as he is doing now but when he’s calmed down he is genuinely a good person. He is a steadfast friend and someone who you’ll want on your side.”
Regulus then turned to James. “That is all he has told me.”
“Awww, Remus” James gushed, “I love you too man. Except, you forget to mention that I am very pansexual and have a thing for broody men with dark hair and grey eyes who are mean to me.”
Regulus fumbled a bit before composing himself. “Remus, where exactly are we going?”
He heard James laugh before Remus said, “The house literally right there. The one with the sign that says, ‘Here lives RJL, JFP, SOB and someday RAB’”
Regulus paused. “Why are my initials on your house?”
“We always knew you’d come eventually. You have a room and everything. The room is personalized and should have some things you like.” Remus said softly.
“Shall we go in?” James asked.
Regulus nodded, pushing open the door. At first glance, Regulus could tell that this house was rather homey. There was a fire going and a soft couch by it as well as a few armchairs. Regulus approached the bookcase that was full of books that he had never heard of as well as some of his favorite novels.
There was a door that seemed to lead to a kitchen that James had already disappeared into and when Regulus tried to go in, Remus stopped him.
“I’d like to prepare you now. The third person is someone you know but I am not sure how you will react to seeing them in person. It has been a while since you last saw them at least while you were lucid and I would like to please request that you do not throw anything. I am quite fond of our mugs and teacups and would be quite sad if something were to happen to them. I do however give you permission to throw a punch if you must.”
Before Regulus could respond, someone in the kitchen yelled, “Really Moony? You’re more concerned about your teacups than you are about your lovely boyfriend?”
Remus sighed. “We’re coming in now.” He yelled
Slowly, the door opened to a very nice kitchen.
Regulus looked around for a minute before his eyes latched onto the man sitting at a circular table.
He looked different from how he had in Regulus’s past dreams. His hair was longer and he had an earring in one ear. He was wearing a leather jacket and black boots. Regulus couldn’t help but smile. He had always hated having short hair and he had begged Regulus on multiple occasions to pierce his ear.
Regulus was still examining him when the man said softly, “Hi Reggie.” His voice seemed to break as he spoke.
“Hi Sirius.” Regulus responded, still frozen in place.