Douglas glanced at the clock and urged, "It's getting late. Let's move—there's no way we're leaving a hero to lie in that freezing lake through Christmas."
At these words, Kreacher grew frantic again. Dobby rushed forward and grabbed him tightly, which only made Kreacher more agitated—he kept wailing about being unclean.
It took a sharp, red-eyed scolding from Sirius to finally quiet Kreacher down.
Everyone looked to Douglas, who wasted no time giving orders. "Kreacher, you take Dobby and scout the route first. Once you've checked it out, come back for the rest of us."
He produced a porcelain vial and handed it to Dobby. "Inside are my own Vigor Pills. Apparating with passengers so many times will sap your strength, and I don't want any accidents. After each trip, you two take one pill each."
Dobby bowed so enthusiastically he nearly toppled over. "Master is so good to Dobby—always thinking of Dobby's well-being…"
Kreacher kept a disdainful distance from Dobby, ignoring Douglas and looking straight at Sirius.
Sirius scowled. "What are you staring at me for? Just do as Douglas says."
Kreacher shook his oversized head and muttered, "Oh, Master Sirius wants Kreacher to listen to… that Douglas. Kreacher listens to Master Sirius."
Douglas ground his molars in irritation. When Sirius called him "Douglas," at least it sounded neutral. From Kreacher, though, it was pure, unfiltered sarcasm.
Just as Kreacher and Dobby returned to collect Lupin and Sirius, Dumbledore suddenly turned to Douglas and asked, "Douglas, the cave is free of Horcruxes now. Why bother going back? If it's just to retrieve Regulus, Sirius and I can handle it. Or do you think Tom left some secret treasure behind?"
Douglas arched an eyebrow, grinning. "That's part of my next teaching plan. Hogwarts already has a few practical training sites, but which do you think is more hands-on—those, or a cave built by Lord Voldemort himself?"
At that moment, Kreacher and Dobby returned again. Douglas waved them to wait, then casually cast a soundproofing charm.
Dumbledore was silent for a moment, then nodded.
Douglas continued, "There's another advantage. If Voldemort ever returns, imagine how much braver our students will be—knowing they've already explored the Dark Lord's old lair. They won't tremble at his name anymore.
I want my students to face any Dark wizard without fear, to stand for what's right instead of shrinking back from power. I want them to know: their enemies aren't so terrifying—after all, they played games in a Dark Lord's lair back when they were still at school."
Dumbledore studied Douglas for a long moment, then broke into a sly smile. "And then?"
Douglas flashed a fawning grin, pulled a parchment from his robes, and handed it over. "So, we'll need a safe, stable passage between Hogwarts and here. Portkeys are out—too easily tracked by the Ministry. Apparition won't work—students can't do it.
Luckily, I've just developed a multi-person transportation array. But it'll require rare materials… so I'm hoping the school can help with supplies."
Dumbledore took the parchment, scanned the list, and his smile faltered. "Douglas, would you care to explain why you need 200 pounds of fresh dragon blood just for drawing the array? Dragon blood is good for runes, but that's excessive. And this… dragon thigh meat? With all this, I might as well make a batch of small Portkeys. You do realize, the Board of Governors can't know about this, so the funding will have to come from… creative accounting."
Douglas hurried to explain, "Professor, the Heads of House will all be involved in transforming this site. I'm sure Voldemort's magic will have immense research value for them.
Honestly, most of the materials for this array can only be sourced by me, so some of these items are just for barter."
Dumbledore nodded gravely. "Your explanation is flawless, Douglas—but I'll be taking a commission as the middleman. Fair's fair, isn't it?"
...
A vast cavern stretched around them—open, damp, and echoing with the briny tang of the sea. Far off, waves thundered against the rocks.
When Dumbledore and Douglas arrived, Lupin and Sirius were already exploring, wands at the ready.
Dumbledore raised his own wand, inspecting the jagged walls and the vaulted roof. He joined Sirius and Lupin at the edge, where a flight of steps led down into a shadowy passageway.
From his robes, Dumbledore produced his Deluminator. With a click, a sphere of light floated down the dark corridor.
They could all see now: the passage was slick with moisture, the floor thick with silt. Lupin frowned. "This doesn't look like a secret chamber's entrance—more like a tunnel from the sea. It must be low tide, or the water would flood in."
While the others examined the passage, Douglas set Dobby to measuring the platform's dimensions.
Dobby expertly pulled out a magical measuring tape, tossed it into the air, and watched as it zipped around the cavern, calling out numbers for Dobby to jot down in his notebook.
Meanwhile, Douglas shot a cold, knowing glance at Kreacher, who had been eyeing Dumbledore and the others. When Lupin declared the passage wasn't the entrance, Kreacher visibly relaxed—until he turned and caught Douglas's smirk. Kreacher froze, then muttered under his breath, shaking his head.
To Douglas, the old elf's scheming was obvious. He knew exactly where the entrance was—and how to open it—but he was waiting to see if these wizards could crack the Dark Lord's secrets themselves.
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