The Search Is Over

Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Up All Night, Sleep All Day

Pandora departed to get rid of the body on her parlor floor that was Regulus's first meal of the day, leaving him alone with Mortis. "I wonder," he asked the phoenix, question born of pure desperation. "If you would take a letter to Kreacher for me. I don't wish to insult you by expecting you to carry mail like a common owl and I never will ask you to do so again, but...I am using a charm to get the letters to him and...well I hope it isn't working because any other reason I can come up with for him not answering is not good. He is my best friend, and in truth my reason for living...Please if he is worried about me and never received the letters I'd never know. I don't dare return myself in case Voldemort is watching the manor. Ur...Do you even know who Voldemort is?"

The entire time Regulus was speaking, the black death phoenix sat on his shoulder, watching him through steady eyes. When asked if he knew who Voldemort was, he gave a single nod. "Will you take the letter for me?" Again the bird nodded and Regulus sighed with relief. "Thank you so much, Mortis! I owe you one...or as many as you want," he said ecstatically. Hastily he rewrote a version of the first letter he'd sent to Kreacher. Rolling it into a tube he presented it to Mortis who took it in his beak. "If I project an image of my manor into your mind and a map to it from downtown London, can you manage?" The bird nodded and Regulus projected the information. When Mortis nodded again, he stopped, taking the gesture as an indication of the phoenix's having properly received the information required.

"I can apparate to London with you. Flying from Rome would take ages and it's not fair to ask that of you," Regulus said. Mortis shook his head, launched off Regulus's shoulder and flew through the air. When he was half way across the room, the air sort of shimmered and he vanished. Well that was impressive, Regulus thought. He couldn't wait for Kreacher to see his death phoenix.

Dora was back before Mortis. "I would ready yourself for rest soon. The sun will rise in less than half an hour," she told him. Regulus nodded, hoping Mortis would return before then. He waited pensively, but five minutes before sunrise, there was still no sign of the bird. Dora rose from her seat on the sofa, liquid brown eyes on the large wall clock across the room. "Alright. I insist that you go to your coffin now. You are a new vampire and the sun will hit you hard," Dora told him firmly. Regulus sighed and relented, rising from the arm chair in which he'd been waiting.

"What will sunrise feel like," he asked as they ascended the stairs together."Like a heavy sleep drug," Dora replied. Sunlight, even seen from indoors is painful and definitely burns young ones like you. Walk out in direct sunlight and you become a human torch," she said, bluntly laying out the facts in a direct way he appreciated.

"Got it," Regulus said with a brisk nod. "No rays for me ever again."

Dora chuckled, pausing at the top of the stairs. "When you are many centuries older, you won't burn up but it is never comfortable and the sun always drugs even the very old vampires. Sleep well, Regulus." He nodded.

"You too." She went into a room at the end of the hall, and he returned to the one she'd shown him earlier that held the pleasantly posh coffin. The concept of entering the coffin was a bit disconcerting, considering usually only dead people who were as a result unaware did that. He couldn't help thinking that the strangeness would be more bearable if Kreacher were there to share it with him. Together they could get through anything, but alone...

He opened the lid and glanced at the black satin lining and matching pillow inside. Feeling a little silly, he carefully climbed in, lying flat on his back. He reached up and closed the lid, surrounding himself in utter darkness. A little to his surprise, the coffin turned out to be padded and quite comfortable. He had to admit, it was a relief to be safely tucked away from the now deadly sun in such security. With a sigh he allowed his body to relax while he waited for the sun to rise. He hoped Mortis was somehow communicating to Kreacher and that the elf was readying himself to join he and Dora. Hopefully that's what was taking so long for the phoenix to return. On that hopeful note, Regulus's conscious thoughts suddenly ended. When he was once again aware of himself, he could hear Dora moving about a few rooms away. Lifting the lid of his coffin with one hand, he rose and left the bedroom. Now that he wasn't as ravenous as he had been the previous day he was able to appreciate how well he could see in the dark. It was as if the lights were on, in fact.