Disclaimer: The HP Universe does not belong to me.

Success and Problems

Harry looked at Sirius. „I know that Number 12 Grimmauld Place is heavily guarded. Will you be able to bring a guest just like that or do you need to lower the guards first?"

Sirius thought about that. "I think it will be best if I go first, just to be on the safe site. My father installed some nasty defence magic to discourage strangers to drop by."

Harry smiled. "I am not easily discouraged if I want to visit my godfather. Are there other wizard families close by? I never found out much about the neighbourhood other than that the closest neighbours are muggles. If not, our apparating there might draw the attention of the Ministry."

"It is close enough to other wizard spots in London not to draw attention. The Blacks do not like society, but they like it even less to be too observable from official sources." Sirius had a slightly sarcastic smile on his face. Harry felt the need to reassure him.

"I have met quite a lot of Blacks, former Blacks and Black descendants and you have the whole range from as dark as it gets to good to a fault. I think you balance each other out and in the newer generations the good ones seem to take overhand."

"Are you talking about Dora? Excuse me, Tonks. She started to work as an auror a few years ago and she is all right, just like her mother. But Cousin Cissy's son Draco is as pure-blood fanatic just like his father."

"Actually, I was talking about your generation and the next one. You see, from five cousins three have turned out to be alright and Narcissa has some redeeming qualities, at least she really loves her son and her husband. Same goes for Draco: he might be a stuck-up pure-blood, but he is not truly evil; at least in my universe he did not chose the dark path in the end. And I know Tonks and Andromeda, they are both very good people."

Sirius felt a little better. He had spent most of the night thinking about Regulus and bitterly lamenting the fact that they had been born into such a family. If he had turned around in the end, he might have never chosen the dark side if he had not been born a Black.

"Well, let me just put on my invisibility cloak and then we can apparate to the little alley between Grimmauld place and Hedger Street. I don't want to be seen while you deal with the defence magic. As soon …"

James had been listening quietly while Harry talked to his friend. He knew how much bitterness Sirius still felt about his family and was astonished how much Harry seemed to understand of it and how well he was handling Sirius' dark mood. He must have gotten some experience with his godfather in the other universe. The last sentence got his attention, however. "Wait, you have got the Cloak with you? Where?"

Harry took something small out of his pocket, pointed at it with his wand and it grew into a moleskin bag. He reached inside, his arm vanishing much farther that it should have been possible, and pulled out the Invisibility Cloak.

"Smooth trick." Sirius was impressed.

"I copied it from Hermione, actually. Since the battle, I have gotten used to carrying all my important stuff with me for situations like … well, not quite like this, I did not expect to end up in another universe." He tried a grin which was not totally convincing.

"What else are you carrying around with you?" James had always been curious.

Harry's next grin was much more convincing. "You will see in time." James pouted, just to see his son smile some more. It worked.

"Well, as I was about to say, as soon as you are inside the house, call Kreature and tell him to stay put and not to disturb you. When I am inside, order him to listen and answer to me and never to tell anyone about what we are going to say and do. He will probably provoke you as much as he can, but please don't rise to the bait. And it is especially important that you never scream `Out´ at him. He used that command last time to leave the house and betray you."

Sirius's eyes showed a dangerous glint. "That treacherous little …", but Harry interrupted him.

"Please, Sirius. I hated him for that, too. But think about the life he was forced to lead, slave to a dark wizard family which treated him like … nothing. He does not have anything left besides his belief in the Blacks and their ways, so he clings to it as hard as he can. You have renounced their ways and still he must serve you as the last of the Blacks, although your mother, whom he loves because he does not have anyone else to love, hated you. I don't ask you to become his best friend, just don't let him provoke you to treat him roughly and let me deal with the rest. OK?"

"Yes, all right." It took a lot of effort to do so, but with Harry's explanation in mind, he saw that abusing Kreature for what he was would make him similar to his family, something he wanted to avoid at all costs.

"Let's go then."

……………………………………………

When Harry entered Number 12, he heard Mrs. Black's portrait scream its head off and he saw Kreature rooted to the spot, unable to talk, but with a look of such fury on his little face as he had not seen from him since the time he had called him to Privet Drive before his sixth year. He closed the door behind him and Sirius gave Kreature the orders they had agreed on. "Let's go to the kitchen." Harry suggested. They did.

Harry and Sirius sat at the kitchen table. Sirius concentrated on his godson to avoid having to look at the elf. "Please sit." Harry said to Kreature who, having been commanded to listen and answer, not to obey, stood still.

"Sit!" Sirius spat and returned his eyes to Harry. It was much more difficult to ignore Kreature's behaviour and snide comments than he had expected. They tried to suck him back to a time where he had been the white sheep of the Black clan, as he had called it himself. He had hated it.

Kreature had to obey.

"Kreature, my name is Harry Potter. I know you have no reason to trust or like me, just as you do not trust or like Sirius, and I do not expect it of you. But you and I have a common goal and I hope that you can put aside your hate long enough that we can achieve it. Will you let me explain?"

"Kreature has no choice, Kreature has been ordered by bad master to listen to the killer of the glorious Dark Lord." As Sirius wanted to punch the house-elf for this infamy, Harry stopped him and gave him a meaningful look to remind him of his promise.

"You have no choice now, but I hope you will not mind listening to me when I tell you that out common goal is to fulfil Master Regulus' last wish." Harry observed the impact of his words on Kreature. His scowl vanished, his eyes turned big and he thought he saw tears forming in them, before Kreature let his face go carefully blank.

"What would Harry Potter know of Master Regulus last wish? He was still a baby when my young master died and Kreature has never told anyone, because his good Master Regulus ordered him not to."

"And still I know what happened in the cave, both times that you have been there, once with Voldemort and once with your Master Regulus. I am sure you know that I died when I was a baby, not to long after Regulus died. I cannot tell you how I come to be alive or how I got to know about the locket, but I will tell you that I want to destroy the locket, just as your Master Regulus ordered you to do, and more important, I know how it can be done." Harry frowned a little. There was something about destroying the locket, something he had forgotten …

The blankness on Kreature's face vanished and was replaced by desperation. "Kreature tried everything he could think of. He tried again and again and had to punish himself harshly because he could not find a way. How can Harry Potter know?"

"I know because I found out what it is. There are several ways and I am working with Albus Dumbledore to provide one."

"Kreature's Mistress said that Dumbledore was an old fool that he was a muggle-loving weakling. Kreature's Mistress despised Dumbledore." Harry, who had pushed aside his struggle to remember what he had forgotten about destroying the locket (now was really not the moment), had expected this rant from Kreature and had held up a hand to stop Sirius from doing anything before it even started. He was going to take a risk, but he hoped that it worked out.

"What did Master Regulus say about Dumbledore? He would not have liked him, but did he doubt Dumbledore's abilities and knowledge?"

Kreature was quiet for some time. The rants about Dumbledore had come from Mrs. Black and he tried to remember if his young master had ever agreed or said anything else about Dumbledore. "Kreature thinks that his Master Regulus … believed Dumbledore to be a powerful wizard."

That was what Harry had speculated on. Not even the death-eaters did deny that Dumbledore's magic was powerful, no matter what they said about his attitudes and actions.

"Will you bring the locket to Albus Dumbledore so it can be destroyed for good? Will you fulfil your Master's last wish? The one that he died for?" Harry knew that he was piling it on, but he had to remind Kreature of Regulus to help him overcome his hate for Sirius and the prejudices against the `blood traitors´ that had been instilled into him during his whole life.

Kreature was silent for a long time and Harry was holding his breath. If Kreature refused to help they would have to try to take the locket by force. Not only did he not want to hurt Kreature, he had also seen enough of what Dobby and Kreature were able to do in times of need. He was not too sure about the outcome of a fight between two wizards and one enraged house-elf, even if one of the wizards was his master. Slowly, Kreature nodded. "Kreature will let Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore help him fulfil his young Master's last wish."

Harry smiled at him. "Then please go to fetch the locket and come back down. We will go to my parent's house and wait for Dumbledore." Kreature tried to stand up, but he could not. He gave a fierce look to Sirius, still being bound by his command to sit.

Sirius had listened to this strange conversation with growing astonishment. He had never heard a wizard talk to a house-elf like that. James and Lily treated theirs like a beloved old family member, but then Kabby loved them to distraction and fulfilled any wish before they could speak it out loud. Harry had treated Kreature like an equal and had even accepted his ranting about Dumbledore and his words about Voldemort. And Kreature had reacted like an intelligent being, able of strong emotions, but also of logical thoughts and listening to reason. He knew that house-elves could do that, he had seen it in the Hogwarts elves and in Kabby, but he had never applied that knowledge to Kreature. He would have to think about it. For now … maybe he should take Harry's behaviour as an example. "Do as Harry says, Kreature … please." Receiving an even fiercer scowl for the last word, he almost felt relieved.

When Kreature returned with the locket and showed it to Harry, he suddenly remembered what he had forgotten about it: He had needed to open it by speaking parsel before Ron had been able to stab it with the Sword of Griffindor! And the sword … damn it, the sword had only been able to destroy the horcrux because it had been in contact with basilisk poison! It had "imbibed whatever makes it stronger" as Hermione had said. How were they going to destroy any of the horcruxes? He would have to kill the basilisk first and in order to get to it he would have to speak parsel … How could he have forgotten those vital things?

AN: Well, Harry had a very interesting day before, he is bound to forget some things ...