Smile When You Dive In

Chapter 42

In the winter, Kreacher began the work for Voldemort that Regulus had agreed to. Prior to this, the Dark Lord had pulled Regulus aside and told him that he was not to ask Kreacher questions about what he was doing. He said that the elf would be sworn to secrecy, and that it would be very painful for him to tell. Regulus knew that any oath Kreacher swore to Voldemort would be easily overridden by his own status as Kreacher's master, but he didn't have any intention of asking about the tasks he was being set anyway, so he kept that to himself. He only told Kreacher that if he was unwilling to continue the work, he was to find Regulus during a moment alone so that he could pass the message along. After all, he had made a point of not requesting things of Kreacher for almost as long as he remembered, so it didn't seem fair to allow another to do it through him.

For several weeks, Regulus heard nothing more on the matter. Or rather, he heard nothing more from Kreacher. From Voldemort, he was thanked countless times in his letters, the frequency of which picked up enormously after granting the Dark Lord his request of service. From his mother, he received one letter in complaint that the elf was never around the house any more when she required him. Without any children at home to rear, Regulus wondered exactly what his mother required Kreacher for during the day. He didn't ask though, only told her that he had allowed the Dark Lord to use Kreacher, knowing that his answer would be satisfactory.

When he told Kreacher that he should find Regulus if he found the work to be unsatisfactory, he hadn't expected the elf to actually do so. In all of his life, he had never once heard the elf complain. But then, by saying that he should, Regulus supposed that he had bound Kreacher to do so. It was a Hogsmeade weekend, so while Regulus was alone in the village, he was hardly able to speak freely about the Dark Lord in such a public space. People jolted one another as they bustled through the narrow shop doorways, apologising in a merry tone that came around with the ice and the early sunsets. Displays for various gifts were already up in most of the windows, and there were so many shoppers not from the castle that Regulus almost didn't notice when he saw Kreacher tucked away into a ginnel between two of the shops.

"Master Regulus." The elf hissed, catching his attention. Regulus ducked into the darkness beside Kreacher right away, not bothering to look around to see if he was being watched. It didn't immediately occur to him what the topic of conversation would be.

"Kreacher, what is it? Is it mother? Is father alright?" He asked, which only seemed to annoy Kreacher. The elf snapped his fingers, and Regulus saw the unmistakable air of magic around them as Kreacher cast a silencing charm of some kind around the two of them. House elf magic worked differently than that of a wizard, but he could still tell when it was being used on him.

"Master and Mistress Black are both well. Kreacher comes regarding the work Master Regulus assigned him to." Kreacher said.

"Oh... Well, you know, Kreacher, we're not really supposed to talk about it." He knew that they couldn't be overheard by anybody around them, but he couldn't help but feel as though the Dark Lord would still know. He didn't want the man to feel betrayed by him. Even having the discussion felt treasonous, and the more he and Kreacher spoke, the more Regulus felt that his arm was about to begin burning.

"Be that as it may, Master Regulus instructed Kreacher to tell him 'immediately' if he found himself unwilling to complete such tasks." Kreacher's voice was firm and steady, as it always was, but Regulus couldn't help but wonder what he was really feeling, if he was actively admitting to not wanting to do something he'd been asked to do.

"Oh, right." He rubbed the back of his neck, remembering the occasion on which he had told Kreacher so. "So, you don't want to do it any more?" Already, his mind was filling with images of himself, telling the Dark Lord that he could no longer use Kreacher for the mysterious tasks. He would tell him by letter, of course. He had never seen the man angry, but knew how powerful he was, and wasn't in any rush to change that. He also hated disappointing people, and regardless of his latest discoveries, still couldn't help wanting the man to think highly of him.