When Harry didn't seem to understand, Sirius explained.
"Now that you've met my mother, I'm sure you can see something of her. My parents were staunch supporters of pedigree, mad fans of pure-bloods, and believed that being a Black was inherently noble…
This coincided with Lord Voldemort's belief that my foolish brother must have been so weak-minded that he believed them and joined the ranks of the Death Eaters…"
"And? What happened to him?" Harry asked curiously.
"Died!" Sirius's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Not killed by an Auror in battle, but by Lord Voldemort. It is possible, of course, that Lord Voldemort instructed someone to kill him!"
Harry was shocked and confused. Why would Voldemort kill his own men?
Sirius saw Harry's confusion and went on.
"I don't know exactly why, but my guess is that he joined the Death Eaters simply to please his parents and didn't realise how cruel it was.
When Voldemort's ambitions began to show, he wanted out, but he was in too deep! You can't expect to hand Voldemort a resignation letter and have done with it. It's life or death…"
Harry fell silent for a long time.
Kreacher, who was listening in, wanted to say something, but he stopped himself and muttered under his breath. This time, even those who were close could not hear him clearly.
Ivan, who also knew the cause and effect of the incident, said nothing, as he could not explain how he had learned about Regulus, and would be suspicious if he told the truth.
The only hope was to find the Horcrux and get Kreacher to talk about it himself!
After such an incident, coupled with the fact that it was getting late, no one had any intention of cleaning the house, so they each chose a clean room on the second floor and made do with it.
Ivan did not leave, but went to find Kreacher alone.
"Kreacher!"
"What can I do for you, sir?" The elderly house-elf seemed to be in a foul mood, and his usual peremptory manner was gone. His eyes were moist, as if he had been crying…
"I've heard a lot about Regulus from Sirius and I'm very interested in him. Can you tell me about him?" Ivan asked.
Perhaps thinking this was too abrupt, Ivan added.
"I meant no harm by it, but when Sirius introduced his brother, you seemed upset, as if you had a different opinion. I wondered if there might have been a misunderstanding…"
Kreacher stared at Ivan with his bulb-sized eyes, then left without another word.
Ivan understood that she did not trust him, so he sighed helplessly and tried to comfort her.
"It doesn't matter if you don't trust me. You can tell Sirius that he still cares about his brother…"
Although Sirius's earlier words were full of derision and disdain for his younger brother, Ivan could tell that Sirius was genuinely concerned about Regulus.
Kreacher shuddered, but did not look back. He simply snapped his fingers and vanished.
Yvonne shook her head, unsure if he was listening.
Early the next morning, after washing up and yawning, Ivan retired to the first-floor drawing room to enjoy his breakfast.
Harry, Lupin and Sirius were already there, and he was the last to arrive.
'Ivan, how was your night? Getting used to it?' Sirius asked with a smile.
"It's nice. It's the first time I've lived in a mansion this size!" Yvonne teased as she found a seat.
"You're welcome to come whenever you like! Anyway, let's eat, and I'll take you to the Blacks' library." Sirius clapped his hands.
Old Kreacher appeared in front of everyone with a plate in his hand. He lowered his head and placed the plates in front of everyone.
Breakfast was spartan compared to the luxurious decor, with a few bowls of porridge, a few pieces of bread, and some potato chips…
Sirius was furious, believing Kreacher was trying to slight his friends.
Fortunately, Harry managed to talk him out of it, saving Kreacher from a good scolding…
Of course, the house-elf didn't care about being scolded or punished by the grasshoppers.
However, as they passed Ivan, Kreacher suddenly stopped, hesitated, and then whispered.
"You can take a look in the cupboard in the drawing room on the first floor!"
Ivan turned his head to look at it in surprise, but Kreacher had returned to his normal form and was standing hunched in a corner of the living room, saying nothing.
Seeing this, Ivan gave up on the idea of asking any further questions. If Kreacher said so, he might as well go there himself.
After breakfast, Ivan refused Sirius's offer to visit the library, as he wanted to use the library as an excuse to do so.
Therefore, Ivan decided to follow Kreacher's instructions and go downstairs to find out if there was anything he might have missed while cleaning the house.
'Why? Did Kreacher just say something to you?'
Ivan's decision came as a surprise to Sirius, and he certainly noticed Ivan glancing at Kreacher as they ate, as if they were hiding something from him.
After a moment's hesitation, Ivan rehashed the story he had told Kreacher the night before.
"Kreacher told me to look in the cupboard in the living room on the first floor. Maybe your brother left a letter or something before he died."
Sirius's temper flared, and he glared at the house-elf standing in the corner of the room.
"How dare you… how dare you hide something so important from me! How did Regulus die? How much more have you not told me? I order you to tell me everything you know!"
Sirius was furious, as he had not seen his brother since he ran away from home, and learned everything afterwards…
How could he not be furious when he found out that Kreacher knew something and had kept it from him for days, possibly hiding Regulus's letters or belongings?