In Nomine Amoris

Chapter Six: The Letter

Harry woke up hours later to the sound of his bedroom door shutting. He rose from his bed and looked toward the door, finding that Aunt Petunia had just placed a tray of a couple sandwiches and some assorted vegetable sticks on the floor. He gratefully took the tray to his bed and began eating.

After he finished, he set the tray back down on the floor. He was walking back to the bed when something crunched beneath his foot. He glanced downward, expecting it to be some old newspaper he had lined Hedwig's cage with, but instead it was an envelope.

Curious, he picked it up to read the address. Dumbledore's letter! How could I have forgotten?

He reread the words that had formed when Hermione cast her spell. 'To Pass you Will need A voice in code.' She had explained what it meant. What was it again? Harry scratched his head, thinking hard. All the events yesterday had pushed Hermione's words of wisdom to the back of his mind. I sure could use one of those Memory-Recalling charms right about now...

Harry heard Aunt Petunia's voice call Dudley from the bottom of the stairs. Voice...voice-activated! Okay, but a password? Damnit, why'd Dumbledore have to be so clever?

It's a blessing of a curse, isn't it?

Oh, Professor. Sorry.

Quite all right, Harry. I am not a foreigner to frustration, I daresay.

Could you possibly help me with the password, sir?

Unfortunately, no. This is something you must figure out yourself, I'm afraid.

And then Professor Dumbledore's voice, which was as sweet as phoenix song to Harry's ears, fell silent.

Figure it out myself...without Hermione's brain by my side, that's a hopeless cause.

"Lemon drop. Fizzing Whizbee. Pumpkin Pasty. Chocolate Frog?" Harry shot ideas at the letter.

'Ha,' the words formed.

Obviously, Harry's attempts at discovering the password were unproductive. He had taken the approach of naming various wizarding sweets, as Dumbledore's usual passwords of choice were of that nature. After listing the entire stock of Honeyduke's sweetshop, Harry took the hint that this case was, in fact, different. But then an interesting idea came to his mind.

Wait, what if 'figuring it out myself' was a clue? Figuring something out is understanding it, in truth. I need to understand... I remember one time last year, Dumbledore told me something along the lines of understanding how love is a part of me. I'm fighting in the name of love. Could that be it? In the name of love? Worth a try, right?

"In the name of love," Harry said to the parchment envelope.

The letters again moved around to form words. 'Fine, you Win.'

With a great feeling of triumph, Harry finally ripped open the envelope. Inside were many papers, each in a different color of the rainbow--seven in all. The red paper stuck itself out above the others, signifying he should read it first.
Harry slid the paper out and unfolded it.

From the Desk of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Dear Harry,

Well done. You have worked out my clues, using sentiments from my past years. I understand you must be very curious as to why I have written you. I knew that I would not be able to tell you everything I needed to before my death. Surely you did not believe I had no plans to leave you to aid you in your quest?

There is always a place for beginning, and there is always a place for ending. I begin this letter to you with an explanation of my letter to you, and then an apology.

The other items in this envelope will be used in order of color. If course, I started with red. By no means will you be able to go out of order, for the papers are magically released from the envelope corresponding with the happening of certain events.

The orange paper, the second one, is my last will and testament. Harry, I am trusting you to take care of this before doing anything else. It is of great importance to not only me, but to you as well, that you read my will at a gathering of the following persons (and yourself), before you leave on your quest.

Minerva McGonagall

Rubeus Hagrid

Alastor Moody

Ronald Weasley

Hermione Granger

Horace Slughorn

All of the above people must attend, and no one else may join them. The distribution of the items received should closely follow the hearing.

The yellow, green, blue, and indigo papers are my notes on the Horcruxes, though I believe we already found one of them. The last paper, the violet one, shall be released from the envelope only when you have found and destroyed all the Horcruxes. I want you to read it before killing Voldemort, if that is possible.

With that behind us, I shall plow on forward.

I am truly sorry, Harry. I didn't want to leave you; selfishly, I thought I might live to see the world at peace, and you as its hero. Sadly, this will not be so. Everything happens for a reason. I had to pass on, for I was a hindrance to your cause. My presence would have been your greatest influence, rather than your passion for saving the world. I wish I could have passed more on to you, but only experience could strengthen you.

You alone can complete the task so seemingly destined for you. Though it seems you must do this, remember: you have a choice. And you have chosen wisely; you have chosen to do what is right, to protect those you love.

And that, Harry, is what sets you apart from Voldemort. I know you feel that loving is something so natural, almost obsolete, but it is not.

By helping you find Voldemort's Horcruxes in the contents of this envelope, I am not cheating on fate; no man could ever do such a thing. Think of this letter as a legacy, an inheritance, if you will, that was always meant for you to have.

If you'll remember the instance, that night you told me what had happened in the graveyard of Voldemort's father, when I looked as though something wonderful had happened in the midst of a very disturbing revelation, I shall explain it. I felt victorious at that particular moment you said that Voldemort could touch you, and could share the protection your mother had given you. This means that, after you perform the procedure of destroying his Horcruxes, he will be human. Completely, undeniably, actually human! There's no way around it. And yes, Harry, he will be weak, weaker than he has ever been before. And he won't even know it until it is too late to reverse your actions.

Debts will be repaid, revenge will transpire, emotions will run high, and cowards will find courage: all in the holy cause of righteousness--expect this, Harry.

And always remember, I am with you. I will help you as much as I can, but in the end, all it comes down to is you. I have every confidence in you. I have no doubts about your abilities. I only remind you to use your resources wisely, and keep a vigilant ear. Do not forget it.

Sincerely,

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Order of Merlin, First Class

Harry let himself fall into a lying position on his bed, letting the words of his former headmaster sink in. Wow...that was well worth the trouble.

He believes in me, he really does. Words could not describe the powerful emotion Harry felt after learning the person he had looked up to the most in his life, the one who had helped him mature so greatly, knew--not thought, but knew--he could prevail over evil. And that alone, he knew, would give him all the assurance he needed to do the very thing his mentor deemed him capable of.