Companions of the White Warlock

Smoke Year VII - Companions of the White Warlock Chapter I Thursday, June 19, 1997

Harry Potter trudged determinedly towards the castle. He decided he wanted to go towards something and not think about also moving away. Away from the lake. Away from Dumbledore's tomb.

Hermione and Ron followed close behind him, making certain than no one else came too close to Harry. They knew he needed his private thoughts, and few others were important enough to intrude.

Still, they had to make two exceptions. "Mister Potter?"

Harry came away from the spot of inner peace he had found after all the recent troubles. He was surprised at how calm, how peaceful, he was, now that he knew where he was going, even though he had no real idea about how to get there. "Yes, Professor McGonagall?"

"I believe you know Professor Russell."

"Yes, ma'am," Harry acknowledged. "Professor," he greeted.

"We've never talked, Mister Potter," Russell acknowledged. "It is time we did so, and also time we took a little side trip before delivering you to your Aunt's."

'Interesting,' Harry thought. "A side trip where, sir?"

"Headquarters," McGonagall answered.

"For two reasons," Russell continued. "First of all, the Fidelius has been broken. We need to reapply it, even if only you and I remember the location after today. The second reason, well, that I will tell you when we get there, so that we may have some privacy."

Before Harry could say anything, Russell went on, "Miss Granger and Mister Weasley may come with us, if you like. You may also choose the Secret Keeper, if you prefer someone other than myself or yourself. If so, I will apply the Charm and I will know the location, but I will be unable to tell anyone."

Harry thought a moment. "Will it still be used as Headquarters?"

"That is up to you, Mister Potter," McGonagall answered. "It would be convenient, but it still needs to be protected."

"Fine, but I don't want that thief Fletcher there!"

"You will have no argument from me," McGonagall said fervently.

"Then you can do the Charm and be the Secret Keeper, Professor Russell," Harry said.

"Are you sure you wouldn't want to be the Secret Keeper?" Russell asked.

"It might be best," Hermione murmured.

"Okay, fine."

"Good. Please forgive the liberty, but I have sent your elf and the free elf ahead," Russell said. "I understand Miss Weasley has spent some time there already. Do you wish her or any of your other friends to come along as well? We may need to search for something while we are there, if we aren't lucky."

Harry frowned, and then his eyes went wide. "R.A.B.?"

"Exactly."

Harry thought some more. "Fine. We can ask Ginny, Neville, and Luna. It might take some extra eyes and some original ideas."

"Luna will have those," Ron muttered.

"Then let us go now, so no one will know we went," Russell said.

"Take them to your office," McGonagall said. "I'll send the others along shortly and you may leave from there."

"While we are waiting, Miss Granger can fill you in on our tutorials," Russell said. Hermione flushed slightly.

It was over an hour later when the Fidelius ritual had been completed at Grimmauld Place, and Harry had told the group gathered where they now were. It took another half an hour to explain the Horcrux theory to Ginny, Luna, and Neville.

"So," Luna said, summing up for herself, "Lord Thingy has split his soul into six or seven pieces. You destroyed one. . . ."

"The enchanted diary," Harry agreed. Ginny shuddered.

"And Professor Dumbledore destroyed a second."

"One of two Slytherin heirlooms," Harry agreed. "In that case, Slytherin's ring. We went after the second, a locket, but someone with the initials R.A.B. had beaten us to it."

"And I'm hoping it was Regulus Augustine Black," Professor Russell said. "We know he broke away from Voldemort's group and was killed or died. His body was found out there in the entrance hall." They moved into the entrance hallway. "Isn't that correct, Kreacher?"

Kreacher, who was huddled under the portrait of Sirius' mother, scowled, but nodded. Dobby was standing next to him.

"Did he have a necklace with him or near him when he was found?" Harry demanded.

Kreacher tried not to say anything, but nodded. Harry asked, "Was it a large gold locket, with an ornate 'S' on it?"

Kreacher smiled nastily. "No, Master. It was exactly like the one Master is wearing! Master Regulus had bought them, hoping to give one to the blood-tr. . . ." Dobby kicked Kreacher, ". . . to Master Sirius."

Harry pulled the faux Horcrux off his neck. "That's like the one we couldn't open in the Tapestry room!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Don't tell me we threw it out, or gave it to Fletcher to pawn!" Harry wailed.

Ron turned on Kreacher. "You nicked it, didn't you?"

Kreacher didn't answer. "Bring me the necklace, Kreacher, and when this war is over, I'll offer you to whomever you want, even a Malfoy," Harry said.

Kreacher's eyes went wide. "Master would do that for Kreacher?" Dobby kicked him again. "Yes, Master. Kreacher. . . ."

"Do NOT answer, Kreacher!" Mrs. Black's portrait screamed, the curtains opening.

"She is no longer your Mistress," Harry said. "Obey, and you will be rewarded. Disobey, and I swear I'll tear this place down to the dirt until I find it." He turned to Mrs. Black. "I own the house. When the war is over, I'll be glad to send you on to anyone you want, too."

The portrait thought, and then said, "No. You will make out a will, leaving this house and myself to Narcissa Malfoy, or her heir. If you win, you will turn the house and myself over to her or to her heir."

"Agreed, if you fulfill your bargain."

Mrs. Black commanded, "Go ahead, Kreacher."

Kreacher hesitated for a second, and Harry told him, "The offer is still open, Kreacher."

Kreacher jostled Mrs. Black's frame, and the necklace fell to the floor. "Stand back!" Russell demanded. He knelt over the locket and then wave his wand over it and the one Harry was carrying several times.

Russell stood up with the locket in his hand. He examined it and Harry's for several seconds and then handed them to Harry. "Open the false Horcrux, Harry."

Harry did so.

"Now open the other," Russell instructed. "It will open only when the other is already open."

Harry bit his lower lip, but did as he was told. As he did so, the Slytherin locket seemed to grow out of the space inside the smaller locket. "Everyone but Harry, stand back!" Russell snapped.

"How do I do it?" Harry asked. "It's not like I have another basilisk fang handy."

"Neither do I," Russell said with a grin. "Some Horcruxes may be easily broken, but Slytherin's locket had a number of charms built into it. Still, I have a solution. Miss Granger, can you tell your friends about the Stone of Duns Scotus?"

"The . . . the what?" Hermione asked.

"No? Miss Lovegood?"

"Duns Scotus, to mock the alchemists trying to create a Philosopher's Stone, created instead a stone which would turn gold to lead, and which would kill anyone touching the material or the beaker while the reaction was going on," Luna said shyly.

"Very good. Dobby, could you bring us a large lead-glass vase filled with water?"

"Yes, Professor."

Dobby was gone and back in less than two minutes. "Drop the locket into the water, Mister Potter." Harry did so. "Now, suspend this stone above the water with your levitation charm." As Harry did so, Russell moved everyone back. "I'll put a magical shield around the vase, which will disrupt Har . . . excuse me, Mister Potter's spell. Are we ready?"

Everyone nodded.

"On three. One . . . two . . . three." Russell waved his wand and Harry relaxed his. The small milky stone fell into the water, which immediately started to boil. A sickly green mist started to gather over the vase, but in a flash of light, everything went still. There was not a trace of the mist. The vase still stood, although it had partially melted. The water was gone. The gold locket and chain were clearly a dull lead. The stone still showed white.

"Who was that?" Mrs. Black asked in a small voice.

"That was one sixth or seventh of Voldemort's soul," Harry said. "Your younger son died striking back at his Master." He rounded on Kreacher. "He asked you to take that locket to Sirius, didn't he?"

Kreacher nodded fearfully as Harry flushed in ire.

"Harry!" Hermione snapped.

"Kreacher disobey his family," Dobby said in a horrified but quiet voice, "and then Kreacher acted to betray his Master!"

"I forbade Kreacher to send that locket on to my other son," Mrs. Black said. "Tell me, Potter. Is it true what Phineas told me? That He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is a half-blood of the worst kind?"

"The worst kind?"

"A Muggle father and a magical mother," Russell said. "A wizard may sow his wild oats as he will, while a witch must watch what she does." Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Luna all rolled their eyes at that.

"Then yes," Harry said. "In fact, she used a love potion on Voldemort's father until after she was pregnant. When he came to his senses, he dumped her." Ginny winced at that.

"Then I was wrong to stop my son's plans." With that, the curtains closed by themselves.

Harry turned to Kreacher. "Until the time I specifically order you to go somewhere, you are not to leave the cellar of this house. Understand?"

"Yes, Master." He wandered away.

Harry turned to the others. "I'm sorry I wasted your time."

"No, Harry," Neville said. "Thank you for including me. I mean that."

"Yes," Luna said. "Thank you." She thought. "What are the other Horcruxes?"

"Right," Ginny said with false bravado. "Three down, three to go."

"We don't know for sure if there is a Sixth," Harry reminded them. "To start the ceremony, Voldemort has to murder someone himself. He was going to create the Sixth Horcrux the night he murdered my parents. That's why he could tell my mother to get out of the way. He didn't need to murder her, he wanted to murder me."

Harry's eyes suddenly went wide. He pointed to his scar. "Could this be the Sixth Horcrux? Is this why he wants to murder me himself? Because he has to do in some special way to preserve his soul? That's it, isn't it? That's why I have a link to the bastard! That's why I can speak Parseltongue!"

"Nonsense, Harry," Luna said. "If that were the case, you would be evil."

"She's likely right, Mister Potter," Russell said.

"You may call me Harry, Professor."

"Thank you, Harry. Now, let me examine you." He waved his wand around Harry's scar, which twinged as he did so.

"Good news and bad news, Potter," he said three minutes later. "Your mother's love and sacrifice prevented Voldemort's Curse from killing you, just as the Headmaster has always said. Voldemort likely had some object with him with which he was going to make the Horcrux. He probably placed it next to your head and then let the Curse fly. His soul was already torn from the murders of your parents, and the attempted murder of you. So yes, a piece of his soul ripped through you, creating the link et cetera. However, you are not a Horcrux, it either created the Sixth Horcrux, rejoined to Voldemort, or was destroyed. You don't have to die for him to die."

"Ooomph!" Harry lost his breath as Hermione, Ginny, and Luna hugged him.

"Like I said, I don't know if that Sixth part of Voldemort went into the object, rejoined with him, or was destroyed," Russell admitted. "We need to go to Godric's Hollow and see if we can find out."

"How about Sunday?" Harry suggested.

Russell shook his head. "A week from Monday would be better. You need to spend some time with, or at least at, your relatives. And we'll go on a Monday because there will be less chance of any Muggles out and about.

Harry thought about that, and realized that Russell was allowing him to decide. "Okay, a week from Monday."

"So, we've destroyed the first three Horcruxes," Luna said, "and we have an idea for the Sixth and Voldemort is the Seventh. What are the Fourth and Fifth?"

"Dumbledore thought the Sixth might have been Voldemort's snake, Nagini," Harry said. "If he created one right before he regained his body, that is. He did murder a Muggle, and Dumbledore said that the snake was unusual."

"That's unlikely," Russell said. "When the snake dies, the Horcrux would be destroyed, and how likely would it be that Voldemort would consider killing a Muggle important enough to create a Horcrux when he was planning on killing you? He told his followers, I believe, that he had gone down the road of immortality, which implied he had at least one more ceremony to go. That means either that portion of his soul that split off that Halloween night either rejoined to him or he does not know that it split. It is, however, possible that Voldemort fed a Horcrux to the snake at some point. That could account for it's growing unusually large. I argued the point with Albus a few weeks ago when he finally told me some of this, but he was fixed on the idea. He might have been correct, but we need to go to Godric's Hollow first."

"And what about the Fourth and Fifth Horcruxes?" Neville asked.

"I know what number Four is, but I don't know where it is," Harry said. "It's a small gold cup with two handles that belonged to Helga Hufflepuff. Riddle murdered a descendent of hers that had both the cup and the locket." He frowned. "Not that it matters, but it probably means he created that Horcrux when he killed that woman. He probably made the diary or the ring when he killed his father and his two grandparents. Dumbledore thought that the Fifth could be something that belonged to Ravenclaw, but that there were no heirlooms of Gryffindor, except that sword I pulled from the Hat and, I suppose, the Hat itself."

"So if we could trace the descendants of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor," Hermione said, "we might find out if they could have been murdered by Voldemort. If so, we could find out what heirloom might have been stolen."

"It might work for Ravenclaw, but not for Gryffindor," Russell said. "Harry is the last known legitimate descendent of Gryffindor, from his daughter's youngest son. Of course, there are likely others, lost to the geneologists if they intermixed with Muggles or squibs very much. Still, that would be another reason why he went after Harry here instead of. . . ." He stopped.

"Instead of who?" Ginny asked.

"Two babies fit the Prophecy," Harry said. "Voldemort marked me, so it was me, not Neville."

"What!" Neville squeaked.

"And there aren't any known legitimate descendents of Mistress Ravenclaw," Luna said. "The last one was a Dorcas Meadowes."

"She was a member of the original Order," Harry said, shocked. "Moody told me that Voldemort killed her personally."

"That gives us something to work on," Russell said. "Right, Harry has until a week from Monday to mostly rest. The rest of you? I will talk with your parents. I would like some of you to review all the material surrounding the death of this Dorcas Meadowes and the geneological material here and at Hogwarts. Miss Lovegood and I could be mistaken about the last heirs of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. We need to doublecheck all that."

They all nodded their agreement. "I can check though the archives of The Prophet," Luna said. "Daddy has a run of thirty years at home."

"And we have a lot of books on British wizarding families at home," Neville said.

"Good. You may all Floo home, then," Russell said. "I need Harry to write out about forty slips giving the address of Headquarters. Then I will escort him home and have a talk with his relatives."

"Did you have any questions, Harry?" Russell asked a while later as Harry wrote out the information slips.

"Why didn't Professor Dumbledore tell me about how closely you were working with him on this?" Harry asked.

"Albus was never one for sharing information," Russell said simply. "It was his one flaw as a leader."

Harry did not like hearing Dumbledore criticized, but he could hardly argue that point. "Getting the other two or three Horcruxes won't be this easy, will it?"

"I doubt it," Russell admitted. "Still, that locket gave off no magical signals which could hint at its use as a hiding place for a Horcrux. Horcruxes on their own give off powerful Dark Magic signals."

"And how do I recognize those?" Harry asked.

"Normally, you would learn those next year," Russell said. "I did teach Miss Granger this year, however, and Miss Lovegood has a rough idea."

"That's good to know."

"Albus forbade me to give anyone detailed information on Horcruxes, but Miss Granger knows the basics of how to deal with them, and I gave her copies of the books she'll need to learn what she needs to know. If something happens to me, you won't be operating blind."

Harry looked up. "Is something likely to happen to you?"

Russell snorted. "After you, I could be number two on Voldemort's 'most wanted' list. Greyback really wants me, too, almost as badly as I want him."

"And what about Snape?" Harry demanded.

"Ah, yes. We need to talk about him. Is there some day next week you're likely to be alone at your Aunt's?"

"She goes to a Club meeting every Wednesday afternoon," Harry said.

"Shall we say One o'clock?"

Harry nodded and held up a slip. "This was the last one."

"Then let's get you home. Or at least what passes for it."

"Have you met my relatives?" Harry asked.

"I am an intelligence officer, Harry. I am also very nosey. And yes, I have met your uncle three times." With a wave of his wand, Russell's robe turned into a three piece Muggle business suit. "Shall we?"

"Let's."