Chapter 340: A Warm Home
Regulus landed on his own doorstep. 12 Grimmauld Place.
One second it had been sea wind and sunshine. The next, London's industrial pallor.
Regulus had barely found his footing on the steps before the front door swung open from inside.
Kreacher stood in the vestibule, enormous ears flapping with excitement, body folded nearly in half, the tip of his nose inches from the floor.
"Young master is home!" His voice was high and trembling. "Kreacher has cleaned the room three times! The curtains are new! The sheets are new! The pillows have been beaten!"
Regulus stepped over the threshold, shrugged off his cloak in the entrance hall, and said without looking back, "Thank you, Kreacher."
Behind him, Kreacher was practically vibrating off his feet.
The entrance hall of Grimmauld Place looked the same as ever. Ancestral portraits on the walls dozed in their frames. Two of them cracked an eyelid, glanced at him, and closed their eyes again.
He walked down the corridor, passing the dining room.