Harry busts into my room about a week before his birthday, panting from excursion. "Sef, I found your loophole," he proudly exclaims, holding up Salazar's private journal. Only Harry and I can read the Parsel writing, making the learning process slow, requiring translations for the others.
I cannot watch my sweet Emory fading any longer. Just a week before the wedding, her betrothed was murdered. She still speaks to his portrait, loving him even in death.
Skipping forward a few pages, I read another passage.
Emory refuses to marry. I know she is unhappy, but she should not live her life in anguish.
It has been years, but I've finally found a way to make my daughter happy. A long forgotten ritual used to find, and possibly alter the person's soulmate. Emory and Jameson formed their soulbond before his death, so I know this will make her happy. Necromancy is a lost art, but if it helps, is it really that bad?
"Harry, are you suggesting that my solution to the engagement is finding my soulmate?" At his nod, I sigh. "Harry, I want to get married, have kids, all of it. But I don't want that without Regulus. I don't want a soulmate, just Reggie."
"Sef, did you miss the last line? It's a form of necromancy, capable of reviving the dead. If you and Regulus are soulmates, we just need his body in order to revive him."
"No," Regulus says, sternly. I want to argue, but he stops me. "No, Korre, you will not be getting my body. Mainly because of its location, but also, I don't know the condition I'm in." Regulus won't meet my eyes, no matter what I try.
"I'll do the ritual. If Reggie isn't my soulmate, oh well, spinster life for me," I tell Harry, before turning to the painting. "But if he is, the ritual will find the body for us. I'm not giving up, now that I have hope."
"Inferi," Regulus whispers. "I died in a lake of Inferi, trying to destroy the Dark Lord's horcrux. I can't let you go in that cave, Mon Amour. I refuse to be the reason you die."
"I'm still doing it, Reg. You will be mine, as I am yours. Now, what's a Horcrux? My account manager gave me a note indicating the Gaunt ring was previously a horcrux."
Regulus launches into a lesson on the darkest magic known to wizardkind. Human sacrifices to create soul pieces hidden in objects. "We've apparently found two, with one destroyed."
"Three, actually. A few years ago, a Hogwarts student was possessed by Tom's diary. His ghost or whatever was sucking the students life force to get stronger, revived just enough to hold a wand. I used a basilisk fang on the diary, destroying it." Regulus asks where we found a basilisk, leading to the story of the Chamber of Secrets.
August first, Harry and I gather the last piece of the ritual. Sirius is arranging candles, while Remus writes runes on the floor. I sit in the middle of the magic circle, love oriented items around me. The room smells of rainwater, old parchment and blood, emanating from the cauldron of Amortentia.
Starting the ritual, Harry chants in Parseltongue, copying the words Salazar used for Emory. Each repetition of the chant makes the circle grow brighter, until I pass out.
I dream of a cliffside overlooking the ocean. Looking over the side, I see a cave. Inside the cave, I must pay a blood price, causing me to cut my hand for entry.
In the middle of the lake, sits a crystal island with a glowing basin. I can see the bodies floating through the water, but I only focus on one. I can feel Reggie's magic in the water, calling out to me, wanting me to find him. 'I'll find you, Regulus,' I think, before suddenly regaining consciousness.
"We'll need to prepare, but I know where to go and how to find him," I tell my dads and brother. After the ritual is complete, the other teens flood the room, demanding they be of help.
"I know I can't do this alone," I tell them. "I could use all the help I can get. However, we can't all go. There needs to be an adult here, to protect the house and younger children. I refuse to let anyone under fifteen risk their lives, and if you're underage, you won't be entering the cave."
Luna, Colin and Dennis admit defeat. Remus and Sirius share a long look before Remus nods, agreeing to stay behind. Pansy also agrees to stay. As our second best healer, she can help any new arrivals in my absence.
August seventh sees a group of nine witches and wizards standing on a cliffside. Sirius asks everyone if they know the plan.
"Theo, Granger and I are to get the rune circle ready," Draco says.
"I'm supposed to get the medical supplies laid out for easy grabbing," Ron adds his part. Harry says he's going in with Sirius and I as back up.
"Forge and I are-" Fred starts.
"-in charge of protection." George says.
"We have your back," they finish together.
Everyone simultaneously looks to me. I give the rune writers the diagram of symbols. "You'll only have an hour or two to complete the circle, the sooner the better. And be safe, everyone. I don't want to lose anyone here," I tell them, before leading my group down the cliff side. Getting into the right cave is easy, paying the price, not so much. If the others knew, they would offer themselves instead, and I can't ask that of them when I'm already endangering their lives. Walking to the wall, I cut my hand before anyone can think to protest, watching the cave in move out of the way.
Inside the cave feels just like the vision, including the pull towards Reggie's magic. I tell them where to find him.
"Twins, you stay on this bank. If something happens, we don't want to all be surrounded. Prongslet and Petal, got your brooms?" Harry unshrinks his Firebolt, as I do the same with Draco's Nimbus 2001. Even if he's a horrid man, everyone has to be right at least once, and Lucius delivered when he replaced the Slytherin quidditch brooms. Sirius and Harry mount their brooms, heading straight for the island, while I slowly fly about five feet above the water, out of inferi react, but close enough to sense Regulus.
He's not far from the edge of the island, but his magic is weak, coming from deep under water.
Touching down on the island, I tell my dad and brother where I feel the magic. "I don't think Accio will work. How do we get him out?" I whisper in desperation.
"I have an idea, but it's a stupid one," Harry says. Sirius and I both wait for his explanation. "Do you remember that Disney movie Hermione showed us?"
Thinking back to the movie, I realize what Harry is suggesting. Time to pull a Hercules*. Handing my rings and locket to Sirius, I take a running start, diving deep into the lake. As I swim deeper, the magic pull gets stronger, and Inferi start trying to stop me, to kill me.
Reaching the source of the pull, I see a horrific sight. While his body is mostly recognizable, there are chunks of flesh missing through his arms, legs and even his chest. Regulus looks like he was attacked by a rabid dog, an accurate description of Tom's character.
I still feel hands pulling at me, tearing at my flesh, but I finally have Regulus in my arms. I can't give up. Swimming harder, I break the surface, pushing Regulus ashore. The hands finally find purchase. I barely have time to take a breath, before being pulled back under. I refuse to die here! I do my best to cast a fire spell, but fail.
Suddenly, the lake is bursting with colors. The Inferi quickly retreat to the depths, allowing me to break the surface of the lake again. Looking to the cave entrance, the Weasley twins are throwing Filibuster Wet Start Fireworks into the lake. Well, that explains the colors.
Harry helps me out of the water, while Sirius is lecturing me about 'doing stupid shit without warning or thought'. Ignoring him, I cradle the mess that is Reggie's body and mount my broom. The other two quickly follow suit, before the three of us fly back to the twins. Fred and George quickly take Regulus from me, rushing him outside to the others.
My body is sluggish as I follow them, bleeding from the various scratches and bite marks. Padfoot helps me walk until we are outside, where the group now has Regulus laying in the circle. Hermione starts to stitch his wounds, just as I pass out.
A/N: The animated Hercules came out June 1997, but for this Fanfic's sake, it was June 1995