— — — — — —
Clap, clap, clap!
The sudden applause snapped through the silence.
"Marvelous magic, Tom. Your ice spell might just be the strongest in the entire wizarding world." Dumbledore nodded approvingly.
Tom dipped his head. "I think so too."
This was the crushing advantage of knowledge. With [Kel'Thuzad + Antonidas]'s magical circuit and notes backing him, not becoming the strongest would have been embarrassing.
Still, while it was true, it wasn't anything to be proud of. A wizard's strength had never been measured by raw power alone.
"Teach me a couple tricks when you've got time," Sirius said sincerely. "I can pay."
Tom liked people who were this straightforward. Beaming, he said, "No problem. I'll sell you a copy of my notes later. Only 9,999 Galleons. You can pass it on to Harry or any descendants, no issue."
Dumbledore had watched the entire deal go down. He couldn't help asking, "Tom, are you… short on money?"
Nicolas chuckled, answering for him. "Ignore him. The boy just likes giving himself little hobbies. His hobby these days happens to be making money—not the money itself."
"Having a hobby does sound nice," Sirius sighed in agreement. "Harry's at school, and I've got nothing to do at home. Half the time I don't even know what I want to do, let alone what I should be doing."
"You can think about that when we get back." Tom was already climbing onto the carriage. He looked back at the group still standing around. "You're not planning to walk across the ice, right? Don't blame me if you catch a cold."
"Let's go."
The winged horses took off again. After a few powerful flaps, they reached the long, narrow fissure. Everyone climbed out. With a wave of his wand, Dumbledore shaped a staircase down.
Inside the rift, darkness swallowed everything. A few fish and shrimp washed up by the tide writhed faintly on the stone—fat and fresh.
"Lumos Maxima!"
Sirius raised his wand high. Light flooded forward, but the darkness seemed to stretch endlessly. The stone walls were black and polished like glass.
"Where's the entrance to the cave?" he muttered, scanning around.
Kreacher's memory had become a blur. He remembered the general location but not how Regulus actually entered the cave. Which meant they had to figure it out themselves.
Dumbledore, Nicolas Flamel, and Tom walked toward a wall. Then the three of them spread out, each examining a different section.
"Over here," Nicolas called. Tom and Dumbledore went over immediately. After a bit of study, they all nodded.
"That's it?" Lupin and Sirius exchanged a look. A shared wave of helpless frustration washed over them.
Why had they even come?
Trying to at least look useful, Sirius hurried closer and held up his wand to give them better light.
Nicolas tapped the stone wall with his wand. Golden light seeped into the smooth rock. Soon a faint archway appeared, with the shadow of a passage behind it.
"A sacrifice… offering…" Dumbledore murmured, understanding instantly. His voice carried a hint of contempt. "Typical Voldemort. You can smell the insecurity from a mile away."
"How do we get in?" Sirius asked, eager.
"A price must be paid—blood," Dumbledore said. "He wanted to weaken anyone who tried to follow him. Clearly, he wasn't confident in himself."
Sirius let out a mocking snort. "Bet he didn't expect this many of us to show up. Let me do it. I can't just stand here while the rest of you handle everything."
He flicked his wand, turning a stone at his feet into a dagger. He readied it against his palm, fully prepared to open the passage with his own blood.
"Wait."
The quiet voice belonged to Newt, who had been silent until now.
"If it just needs blood," Newt said, "why does it have to be ours?"
Sirius froze, dagger still in hand.
'Buddy… the mood was already set, and you had to say that now? This is awkward.'
But reading the room had never been one of Newt's virtues. He hefted his suitcase and walked over to Dumbledore like he was offering snacks, silently implying he had plenty of "supplies" inside.
The creatures in his case certainly weren't peaceful roommates. Fights and scrapes happened often, and collecting blood for potion-making had become second nature. He was basically a walking blood bank.
Dumbledore suddenly felt very glad to have brought Newt today. He really didn't want anyone bleeding in front of him. Magical creatures, though… that was different.
"What kind of blood do you need?" Newt asked.
"Dragon blood. Or the blood of any large creature. Preferably all from the same species—that's safest."
"Dragon blood it is."
Newt opened the case. A Niffler dove in, then popped back out five minutes later carrying a glass bottle. Tom noticed its belly had grown noticeably rounder, jingling as it waddled.
Newt noticed too. With a sigh, he took the bottle and stuffed the Niffler against his chest. Now was not the time for discipline.
Dumbledore guided the dragon blood toward the stone wall. The liquid sank into the rock in a strangely hungry way. When about half the bottle was gone, the archway appeared for real this time, no longer the magical projection Nicolas had created earlier.
"Thank you, Newt." Dumbledore returned the rest of the blood and stepped through the archway into the cave beyond. The others followed one after another.
...
At the end of the cave, the space suddenly opened up. Before them stretched a vast black lake, matte and mirrorlike, its surface perfectly still without a single ripple.
But the moment they entered, Sirius's Lumos began flickering. It blinked a few times, then went completely dark.
"What the?" Sirius stared at his wand, baffled.
"Your magic is being suppressed," Nicolas explained. "The place is thick with dark magic. It interferes with normal spellcasting. Same old trick, really—suppress the intruder's strength."
With Sirius's wand snuffed out, the only glow left came from the center of the lake, a steady greenish light. Everyone knew what it meant. That was where Voldemort had hidden the Horcrux, though Regulus had since switched it with a fake.
"He even left us transportation."
Dumbledore looked down and spotted a small boat by the shore. "Although he was rather stingy about it. Barely holds two people. Better to ride alone, so it won't sink."
"You still want to go?" Tom asked. "We already know it's a fake. No point wasting time."
Dumbledore hesitated. "I want to study the enchantments Voldemort used. After graduation he mastered many techniques I never taught him. This is a good chance to gather intel."
Tom suggested, "Then let's finish collecting the Inferi first. You can study later."
After a moment, Dumbledore nodded.
"Time to work, professor. And you too, Grandpa Newt." Tom waved to them. They both nodded. Newt turned the dial on his suitcase before opening it, and Nicolas stepped forward.
Tom transformed a stone at his feet into a flock of birds. They flew toward the lake—only to be yanked down by an unseen force. The still surface rippled violently, and pale hands burst from below, dragging the birds under.
"Inferi!" Sirius sucked in a sharp breath. He'd known they were coming, but the sheer number of them still hit hard.
The lake was no longer calm. Beneath the waves, countless faces floated upward. A quick count already passed a hundred, and this was only the area near the shore. The thought of how many filled the entire lake was terrifying.
And each Inferius represented a human life. How many people had Voldemort killed?
A chill crept up the backs of Lupin and Sirius.
"Professor!" Tom called.
"On it."
Nicolas grinned and pulled out a golden rope. He flicked it toward an Inferius's arm. The throw was horribly off, but the rope corrected its path midair like it had eyes, looping neatly around the creature. Then it split into countless thinner strands, weaving themselves underwater until the Inferius was wrapped up tight like a dumpling.
Thunk!
Tom summoned Megatron. He hadn't stopped upgrading his Transformer, turning it into something close to an alchemical creature.
The upgraded Megatron didn't need instructions. He strode over, snatched the rope from Nicolas, and started hauling with mechanical efficiency. The whole scene looked like a strange mix of tug-of-war and yanking vegetables out of the ground.
A few moments later a bundle of tightly wrapped Inferi burst out of the lake and was dragged all the way to shore.
Once they landed, Tom went down the line knocking each one unconscious, then tossed the whole batch into Newt's suitcase.
"Next wave!" he shouted.
Nicolas pulled out another rope.
Dumbledore, Sirius, and Lupin stood frozen, watching the macabre assembly line unfold. Nicolas caught them, Tom incapacitated them, and Newt buried them in the suitcase. The coordination was perfect. Not a single misstep.
"This is… actual wholesale," Sirius whispered.
Dumbledore said nothing.
Watching the scene, he honestly couldn't tell if Tom had corrupted Nicolas and Newt, or if the eternally mischievous Nicolas had dragged the two down with him.
It was absurd. Completely absurd.
Suddenly, Dumbledore chuckled.
"What are you laughing at?" Lupin asked.
"I was just thinking… if Voldemort knew his carefully prepared guards were being dismantled like this, would he be furious?"
Sirius laughed. "If I were Voldemort, I'd be coughing up blood."
"Enough joking. Come identify your brother." Tom shot them an annoyed look. He was doing all the work while the three of them were standing around chatting.
Sirius's expression shifted immediately. He hurried over, staring at the Inferi being lined up like a queue for delivery.
Not that it was his fault. The scene was so surreal he'd forgotten why he came in the first place.
One batch after another was pulled out and tossed into the suitcase. Sirius inspected every face he could, trying desperately to find Regulus.
Two full hours passed. More than half the lake had been cleared, and he still had nothing.
Just as disappointment began to settle in, an Inferius with a gaunt face and long, tangled hair appeared before him. Sirius froze for a second, then shouted with trembling urgency: "That's him! That's Regulus!"
.
.
.