PRONGSLET AND THE RETURN OF THE MARAUDERS (ON HOLD)

Chapter Twenty-Three

[Chapter Twenty-Three]

Pulled from the water, Milo was able to actually breathe properly after spitting out the water that had entered his mouth. He clung to the antlers of the Ceryneian Hind for dear (deer) life with a death grip as his soaked body was lifted up. His vision remained blurred without his glasses, but he could see the Hind beneath them, the vibrant golden glow of his family's guardian, keeping him afloat the treacherous waters at the time. It seemed he no longer had to reach out for the merfolk, which was great for him, simply because he had clearly neglected his inability to whistle. However, Milo didn't have the opportunity to relax, even if he felt safe in the presence of the Hind. He had to be mindful that Cedric and Regulus were still back in the cave and he needed to get them out of there.

Not entirely sure how the situation was going to go with getting Regulus out of the cave, none of that really mattered to Milo as he just didn't want them to be in the danger of the Inferi anymore.

"I need to get back into the cave," Milo informed the Hind, " I need to get back to Cedric and Regulus, they're still in there! Can you help me?"

There was a loud snort that emitted from the Hind as she dipped her head below the water, causing a mist to spray Milo in the face as it travelled with the wind. He was hoping that it meant yes and as the large deer moved in the direction of the cave, he could see that his translation was correct. The idea of reentering the hostile environment of the Inferi left Milo shivering, along with the fact that the wind was causing him to freeze as he remained above the water on the back of the Hind.

She travelled through the waters without a problem and as she approached the wall of the cave, she reared her head and Milo was able to watch in pure astonishment as the rock of the cave, almost folded back like a curtain, gaining her access inside. However, once they were in, the wall quickly closed up behind them, leaving them in darkness. But it wasn't time to focus on the lack of lighting as Milo could hear the sounds of struggling and yelling. The aggressive splashing was a clear sign that something had gone wrong in his absence, even if he had been gone for a short period of time.

It probably involved Cedric going after him after he had jumped into the waters, mainly because Milo knew that if he attempted to explain his thought process that Cedric would have deemed him insane and wouldn't have allowed it. But his crazy thoughts turned out to work in their favour, even if they didn't go as Milo initially planned. However, in the cave, it was Cedric that was being dragged under by the Inferi, confirming Milo's belief that he had attempted to go after him.

Regulus was attempting to try and help him out of the water, but the Inferi were attempting to drag him under as well. They were yelling throughout the chaos, trying to call out instructions to one another, or at least, attempt to call for help. Milo felt his heart drop into a panic as he saw Cedric's head go under and was about to actually jump in the water to attempt his own rescue, but it seemed the Ceryneian Hind could pick up on his thought process quickly.