A/N: This is my second attempt at writing a Harry Potter fic. I deleted the first because I really didn't like it and neither did anyone else who read it. I hope I have done it better this time. Please read and review.

To the Dark Lord

I know that I will be long dead before you read this

But I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret.

I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can.

I face death in the hope that when you meet your match,

You will be mortal once more

R.A.B

Regulus Arcturus Black sighed in relief as he finished writing the note that he knew would be read by Voldemort in many years time. It had taken a while to write since he was surrounded with darkness, the only light being the pale green which was radiating from the golden locket he was holding.

Suddenly, Regulus felt a small, rough hand tug at his long, shaggy black hair.

"Water…" a weak voice groaned at him.

Regulus looked down to see his family's house elf Kreacher who was groaning in pain and muttering the word 'water', again and again. Regulus looked for the large, crystal goblet that he had conjured.

When he found it, he held his wand up to the tip and said confidently, "Aguamenti!" Regulus frowned when he saw that though water appeared in the cup, it vanished as soon as he tried to give it to Kreacher to drink. "Aguamenti!" Regulus said again, this time speaking more clearly. Again the goblet filled with water and again that water disappeared as soon as he tried to let Kreacher drink it.

"Kreacher needs water…" Kreacher muttered more urgently then before.

Regulus, hearing the urgency in Kreacher's tone looked desperately for a way to get some water. Seeing no other way, Regulus plunged the goblet into the icy cold water that he had crossed in a boat on the way to the Horcrux. This time, the water did not disappear and Kreacher drank deeply.

"Master is a filthy blood traitor!" Kreacher said in disgust.

Regulus gave a grim smile. That meant that Kreacher was back to normal – well at least as normal as he had even been. Regulus went back to the task at hand as he put the locket he was holding on the ground gently and then pointing his wand at it he shouted, "Replicas!"

A thin beam of blue shot out from the wand and enveloped the Horcrux. A split-second later, another locket appeared next to the first, almost exactly the same. Regulus carefully folded the note that he had written and placed it within the second locket. Then he put that locket within the stone basin and cast another spell to refill the basin with the potion that Kreacher had just drunk. Just as he was turning around to leave, Regulus had an idea. He pointed his wand at the stone basin and cast a spell to make it radiate the same green light that the Horcrux was radiating.

"Pick up the Horcrux Kreacher, we are leaving!" Regulus said to Kreacher.

Kreacher glared at Regulus for a minute before picking up the Horcrux. "Master will not live much longer if the dark lord finds out what he's done…"

"Get in the boat Kreacher!" Regulus said. "And you're forbidden to tell anyone about what has happened here today!"

"Master is a..." Regulus didn't get to find out exactly what Kreacher thought he was as at that moment a pale grey hand grasped the edge of the boat, making it tip a little too far towards the right.

"Inferi!" Regulus yelled.

Kreacher moaned. "No, no, no, not inferi... Kreacher hates inferi..."

Regulus pointed his wand at the pale hand. "Incendio!" Bright red flames leapt up onto the hand and it promptly dropped off the boat. The boat itself kept moving forward, oblivious to the occupants and their plight.

Regulus was kept busy, burning any inferi that climbed their way onto the boat but after a while it became clear that there was far too many for him to handle.

"Abandon ship!" Regulus shouted as he leapt into the icy cold water.

Kreacher didn't move an inch towards the water and Regulus stared angrily at him. "Get over here now Kreacher!" Regulus yelled. Kreacher showed visible signs that he was trying to disobey Regulus's order but he was bound by magic to do whatever his master ordered him to do. Kreacher leapt into the water and hastily followed Regulus who was swimming as fast as he could, trying to escape the grasp of the inferi behind him.

Suddenly, Regulus felt a sharp pain shoot through his leg and he yelled, pointing his wand into the water and nonverbally casting Incendio. Unfortunately for him, the fire spell didn't work under water and the inferius that had bitten into his leg held on tight.

"Get it off of me!" Regulus yelled.

Kreacher struggled but once again he found himself unable to disobey Regulus's command. He dived under water and grabbed onto the inferius, tugging with all his strength to pull it away from his master. Finally the inferi dropped away from Regulus and started on the house-elf instead. Kreacher moved hurriedly through the water, trying to get away from the inferi but as he quickly found out, they swam much quicker then him under water.

Just as an inferius tried to take a bite out of Kreacher, Kreacher felt himself being magically tugged out of the water.

Regulus had used Wingardium Leviosa to raise Kreacher into the air and was now guiding him to the shore. The inferi were keeping away from him as Regulus had conjured a brightly burning fire out of thin air.

"We did well," Regulus said quietly as he tried to heal the gaping wound that the inferius had ripped in his leg.

"Won't be long now and then master will be dead!" Kreacher said to himself with an ugly looking smile.

Regulus wanted to tell Kreacher to shut up but he knew that the house-elf was right. He was not having much luck healing his leg and even if he did eventually manage to fix it there was the Dark Lord to consider. He would have noticed by now that Regulus had not been following orders like he was supposed to. Fortunately, Regulus was a highly skilled at occlumency so he could hide what he had been doing from his master.

"Give me a hand Kreacher," Regulus said to Kreacher who grudgingly ambled over to him and helped him to his feet.

Regulus stood still for a moment, trying to clear his head. He knew that he would have to keep a constant barrio of fire around him ad Kreacher to keep the inferi away but he had never paid any attention in school and as such only knew a few simple spells and a bit of dark magic. His only real choice was to continuously cast Incendio to keep the inferi away.

"Kreacher…" Regulus said weakly as they came upon the fake wall.

Kreacher understood and placed his hand on Regulus's wound with a little too much pressure, covering it in blood and then rubbing it into the wall which promptly disappeared. The two of them made their way slowly out of the cave until they were far enough to apparate. With a loud crack, they were gone, leaving little evidence that they had even been there in the first place.