Chapter 6 Horcruxes
Harry was the last to enter the common room. He put his trunk with the other three. Hedwig, Pig, and Crookshanks were in their cages. Moody was standing by the fireplace cleaning his magical eye. Harry went over to Ginny and held her hand tightly.
“What’s wrong, Harry?” Ginny questioned.
“I’m nervous,” Harry admitted.
“Why?” Ginny giggled.
“Oh, just getting anxious, nervous, mostly about what Fred and George are going to do,” Harry confessed.
“Don’t be, everything will be fine,” Ginny assured Harry.
“Everyone ready?” asked Bill. As Bill reached into his robes pulling out a teacup to use as a portkey, he stated, “This should be the last time we have to use one of these.” Moody sent the trunks and cages on ahead. Everyone touched a finger to the teacup, three…two…one…
Harry hit the ground and remained standing. It figures, the last time to use a portkey and I finally arrived without stumbling. Harry was immediately hugged around the knees by Dobby. “Hello Dobby, how are you doing?”
“Fine, Harry Potter, sir,” Dobby piped.
“How’s Winky?” Ginny inquired.
“Winky is not feeling too good,” Dobby informed them.
“She not drinking butterbeer again is she?” asked Hermione warily.
“No, Miss Hermi. Mrs. Wheezy won’t let Winky have butterbeer. Mrs. Wheezy told Winky it was bad for the baby. But Winky and Dobby is sad because Mrs. Wheezy won’t let Dobby or Winky do any work!” Dobby squeaked.
Ginny said grinning, “Dobby, ask her if you could help and I bet she will. Right now, you are a guest in her house and Mum doesn’t let guests work.”
Dobby bounced, “Dobby will try that, Miss Wheezy.”
They went through the front door and were met with a mob of people. Mrs. Weasley was the first, giving everyone a huge hug. She turned to Hermionae, “Your parents are up in Percy’s old room.” Ron reached for Hermione’s hand and led her up the stairs.
“Ginny…Harry, we need to talk later,” then she released them for the rest to greet them. By the time all the ‘hello’s’ were done, Mrs. Weasley had set up a buffet style dinner which everyone enjoyed.
By eight o’clock, all of the guests had left and the rest were setting around the table except for the three fathers of the brides. Earlier, as the first guests were leaving, Harry had noticed Mr. Weasley leading Mr. Granger and Mr. Delacour to the shed with a bottle of Firewhiskey. Harry hoped that Mrs. Weasley would not find out about the Firewhiskey.
Harry had Ginny on his lap, while Ron and Hermione were sitting next to Mrs. Granger. Bill and Fleur were also sharing a seat while sitting next to Mrs. Delacour. Mrs. Weasley was sitting across from Harry and Ginny. Everyone was talking softly. Mrs. Weasley asked for everyone’s attention. “First, Mrs. Delacour, Mrs. Granger, and I have already done everything necessary for the weddings to take place Monday. We only need to clarify a few things. We are planning on a nighttime garden ceremony out in the orchard.
I know Bill and Fleur will be going on their honeymoon, but the rest…” Molly looked embarrassed, “well…,”
“Mum, Hermione, Ron, Harry, and I have already discussed this,” Ginny interrupted. “We know even after we are married Monday, the Order is not going to allow us to go anywhere unescorted. So, we all agreed to just stay here. We would like to go to 12 Grimmauld Place and do some shopping on Wednesday. On Thursday, we will go to the Ministry of Magic for our Apparition tests. We have already received times for our tests.” Ginny’s face became a very serious, “We only ask for one more thing Mum. Monday night you better keep Fred and George under control or they will suffer the consequences!” Ginny ended, sternly.
Both Harry and Ron decided it was a good time to look at their shoes.
“Well, I’ve already talked to them, not that it will do any good,” Mrs. Weasley huffed.
Mrs. Weasley got a slightly worried look on her face. “Harry, do you want your Aunt and Uncle to be here?” Mrs. Weasley asked quietly. Harry was shocked because he hadn’t even thought of them at all since the day of Dumbledore’s funeral.
“Harry?” came from three people simultaneously.
“I’m okay, just completely forgot about them.”
“No, Mum. I don’t want them to be part of the happiest day of my life,” he said unemotionally.
Mrs. Weasley let out a sigh of relief. “Okay then, Ron…Harry…Bill, have you got your dress robes yet?” All three shook their heads ‘no’. “Good, you three will leave Monday morning at eight and not return till five o’clock. You will have time to get dress here, actually the orchard; we have borrowed a tent for all the males to use to get ready as the Burrow will be used for the ladies,” Mrs. Weasley commanded.
Mrs. Granger spoke for the first time. “Excuse me, Mrs. Weasley. I don’t know the right way to say this since the subject hasn’t come up, but Mr. Granger and I would like to pay for all of this.”
“Call me Molly, please, and no, that’s very nice but we are going to pay for everything,” Molly declared.
Harry spoke up, “No, I will.”
Just at that moment, Dobby appeared holding a very elegant envelope. “Dobby was asked to deliver this to Mr. Harry Potter, sir,” Dobby said handing Harry the envelope. He then left the room. Harry wasn’t able to open it with one hand, as the other was around Ginny, so he handed it to her. Ginny opened the letter and then read the letter aloud.
Mr. Harry Potter,
Some good friends have put Galleons aside to pay all bills associated with these three weddings. Please consider it a wedding present.
Gringotts
Molly was angry, Bill was shocked, and Ginny and Harry just chuckled.
“You would think Grorn is trying to tell me something,” Harry joked.
Giggling, Ginny answered, “I think Grorn just likes you.”
Mrs. Weasley spoke rather tartly, “Well, since that leaves no room for discussion, I think we are done unless anyone has something else?” The three couples all shook their heads.
“Bill…Fleur, will you excuse us so Mrs. Granger and I can talk to these four?” Mrs. Weasley asked in her no nonsense tone. Bill looked at the four and grimaced. Mrs. Delacour smiled, stood, and stated she needed to get back to Gabrielle. Bill, Fleur, and Mrs. Delacour moved towards the door to the parlor. Mrs. Weasley was waiting for them to leave the room.
“Well, here it comes!!” Ron blurted out.
Ginny laughed, “Do you want me to interrupt her?”
“Yes, please Ginny,” Harry insisted.
Ginny declared, “Mum, we know what you are going to say. We don’t want to go against you, but we have already made our decision. If we have to, we are prepared to go 12 Grimmauld Place for the next two nights. Please don’t make us do that. We all love you Mum, so…”
At that moment, Dobby popped into the room, “Mrs. Wheezy, Winky is having the baby!”
Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Granger ran upstairs closely followed by Ginny and Hermione. By the time Ron and Harry reached Ron’s old room, the event was over and Winky sat holding her baby. All the ladies were making funny noises at the baby and saying how cute she was.
Ron and Harry went over and congratulated Dobby since therea was no way they were going to be able to penetrate the circle around Winky and the baby. Dobby himself was trying to look between Hermione and Ginny when Harry asked Dobby, “Have you picked a name yet?”
Dobby turned to Harry and bowed, touching his nose to the floor. When he straightened back up he said, “Mr. Harry Potter sir, Dobby and Winky ask Mr. Harry Potter’s permission to name the baby after Sir Potter’s wife, “Nancy?”
“Dobby, I would be honored,” Harry said with a small sniffle.
“Everybody out now please. Winky and Nancy need to rest,” Molly said as she herded the teenagers out of the room. “Mrs. Granger, will you help me for a minute?”
“Molly, please call me Barbara,” Mrs. Granger said as the door closed.
The teens started down to Ginny’s room. “Ginny, we are going to bed,” said Hermione as she pulled Ron into Fred and George’s old room, grinning wickedly.
I think I will do some snogging with Harry too, Ginny thought as she dragged Harry into her room.
A little later, Molly and Barbara came down the stairs. Molly came to a sudden stop outside Ginny’s door as definite sounds of kissing could be heard. Molly was reaching for the door, when a hand pulled her arm away. Barbara spoke quietly, “Molly, leave them alone. They are good kids. You raised your kids well and they won’t do anything wrong.”
“My daughter is only fifteen!” Molly cried softly.
Barbara slowly pulled Molly down the stairs to sit at the table. “Yes Molly, who will turn sixteen in less than a month, who is going to get married Monday night, and who is hopelessly and deeply in love with Harry. Molly, we are both losing a daughter, but we also gaining two, very brave, intelligent, and honorable young men as sons! I envy you as I only get to go through this once, but not only are you gaining a son and daughter Monday night, you will get to do it four more times with your other sons!” Barbara hugged Molly like Molly has done for her family all those years. Breaking apart, Barbara smiled and with a gleam in her eye said, “I’m going to find my husband and go to bed. I feel like a little snogging myself.”
Molly gave a little laugh, “Why not?”
At breakfast the next morning, everyone was seated around the table as Molly, with a little help from Barbara served another excellent meal. She still wouldn’t let Dobby help, saying he was a new dad and needed to rest. When everyone was finish eating and Dobby was once again told he needed to rest instead of clearing the table, Harry softy called to Dobby, “Dobby, will you come with me down to the orchard? I need to ask you a few questions.”
“Yes, Mr. Harry Potter sir,” Dobby beamed.
“Ron…Hermione…Ginny?”
All answer, “Yes.”
“I’ll meet you out there; I got to get some things,” Harry informed them.
Harry went upstairs and got the Pensieve, the sack Aberforth had given him, and a few extra items. He found the others sitting on sofas with a serving of sunflower juice on a table in the center. “Hi everyone, I got a few questions for Dobby first.”
“Dobby, how is Kreacher?” Harry asked with a bitter voice.
“Kreacher is still working at Hogwarts. The other House Elves don’t like Kreacher, so the House Elves make Kreacher do the bad jobs,” Dobby snickered.
“Dobby, Kreacher used to be the Black’s house elf gave him a,” again Harry said bitterly.
“Dobby knows, sir,” Dobby piped.
Harry continued, “If I took him back there and told him to reveal all the secrets of the house, would he?”
Dobby admitted, “If Harry Potter, sir, ordered Kreacher, Kreacher would have to reveal the secrets.”
“Could you tell if he was hiding something or not telling the whole truth?” Harry quizzed Dobby.
Dobby advised Harry, “Yes, Harry Potter, sir. But, Dobby would not know how to open or reveal the secrets.”
Harry proposed, “Would you be willing to go to the Black’s house and help me with Kreacher?”
“Yes, Harry Potter, sir,” Dobby said enthusiastically, as he didn’t like Kreacher much either.
“Right, once we get to the Black’s, I’ll call you there. Then, I’ll call Kreacher and we will go from there. Now go play with Nancy, and Dobby, Thank you.” Harry sat lost in thought.
“Harry!” Ron called.
“Harry!” Ginny yelled.
“Oh, right. What I want to talk to you three about is those private lessons Dumbledore gave me last year.” Harry turned to Ginny, “I didn’t want to say anything while we were at Hogwarts. I had this feeling that we were, not spied on, but observed quite closely. Plus, I had a funny feeling about Dumbledore’s portrait. Why was he always asleep? You think he would open his eyes once or twice by now.” Ron and Ginny quickly glanced at each other then focused on Harry.
“Give me a few minutes to get all the memories in here and I’ll show you.” A few minutes later Harry continued to address Ginny, “Ginny, Ron and Hermione know about what Dumbledore and I talked about but like you, they will be seeing the memories for the first time today. The first one I want to show you is of the Prophecy.” When the memory faded away, Ron, Hermione, and Harry waited for Ginny to work her way through it. Finally, Ginny looked at Harry and Harry got lost in her eyes. Harry could see the tears that Ginny would not let fall.
”Harry, this changes nothing. I still love you for today, tomorrow and the rest of our lives, and I will be beside you no matter what happens!” Ginny lovingly told him. Harry hugged his bride-to-be hard for several long minutes.
Harry then gave Ginny a quick rundown on Horcruxes before he continued with the other memories. He then went through each memory one by one, discussing each just as he and Dumbledore did. After the cave memory played, he showed them the locket and note he found next to Dumbledore’s body.
“So, that locket was a fake. Someone got to it before you and Dumbledore,” speculated Hermione.
Harry reached into the sack Aberforth gave him. “Do you remember this?” holding up a very well made locket.
“I do,” Ron exclaimed, “I was going to ask you for it, Harry, to give to Hermione. But when we couldn’t get it open, I thought better of it.”
“Oh, Ronald, that was so nice of you!” squealed Hermione.
Harry and Ginny watched Ron and Hermione kiss.
“That looks like fun,” Ginny said mischievously.
“Well then, kiss me Ginny!” Harry demanded.
Sometime later, Harry continued, “Getting back to the discussion, the reason we couldn’t get it open is I think it is one of the Horcruxes. If this is the third one, how are we going to destroy it? Remember the diary nearly killed Ginny, and the ring blackened Dumbledore’s arm. The poison around the fake locket caused Dumbledore to be so weak that Draco was able to disarm him.”
Hermione stood up and started pacing. The three just looked at her with knowing eyes. Finally she stopped, “Okay, this is going to take a few minutes, so just hang with me.”
“First, we have to go back to the graveyard. Voldemort told his Death Eaters he was disappointed in them for they knew the steps he had taken to ensure his immortality. How he had to inhabit small animals until a young foolish wizard came along. Voldemort was able to share Quirrell’s body giving him enough strength to continue to exist until he got his own body to ‘re-soul’, I guess is the word to use.”
“Now let’s go back to the time Snape heard the Prophecy. Remember now, Snape only heard the first part, ‘The One With The Power to Vanquish The Dark Lord…Born As The Seventh Month Dies’. Snape runs off to Voldemort and tells him. Voldemort knows ‘As The Seventh Month Dies’ two babies are born. He goes after your parents first because Peter was made the ‘secret-keeper’ and is then able to reveal their hiding place. Trying to kill you Harry, he unknowingly fulfills the first part of the second half of the Prophecy, ‘Marks Him As His Equal’. Harry fulfills the second part by acknowledging his love for Ginny, and everyone else’s love for him, ‘Will Have Power The Dark Lord Knows Not.’ We haven’t reached the third part of the second half yet.”
“Now back to the first half and the key words, ‘Power To Vanquish The Dark Lord’. Voldemort knows he is going to confront someone with this power so he creates the Horcruxes Since Voldemort specially asked about the number seven in Professor Slughorn’s memory, I am sure that he had already created all of them before going to the Potters. This is where I disagree with Dumbledore. I think Voldemort would have made them easy to find, not hard. Think about it. The ring was at the Gaunt's house, Malfoy had the diary where Voldemort could simply ask him for it, and the locket was originally in the cave. Getting access to the cave was easy, getting past the poison was difficult. That’s why I think the poison was put there later,” Hermione finished.
“But, the locket was at the Black’s. How did it get there?” She asked herself aloud. Hermione got a blank look on her face. The other three just stared at her knowing better than to interrupt her. Suddenly, she came out of the daze.
“NO, the locket was originally at the Black’s. The cave came later. Okay, this is pure speculation, but it fits. Suppose Voldemort goes to Mrs. Black and asks her to keep it for him. The Blacks have been long time supporters of the Dark Arts; look how the house is decorated. Then along comes Sirius who is sorted into Gryffindor. Voldemort tries to recruit Sirius into the Death Eaters but fails. Then, he gets his brother Regulus into the Death Eaters.
Knowing the house will eventually belong to Sirius, Voldemort has the cave created for the locket. Voldemort tells Regulus to take the locket to the cave, but something happens around this time causing Regulus to decide to leave Voldemort. Regulus thinks that there is only one Horcrux. So he writes that note, makes a fake locket, and puts the fake locket in the poison. Regulus then goes on the run and just like Karkaroff, Death Eaters catch up with him and killed him. But Voldemort doesn’t trust anyone, so he had Regulus followed and they saw Regulus put a locket in the poison. I bet Voldemort thinks the original locket is still in the cave.” Hermione finally sat down and took a long drink.
Ginny spoke up carefully, “I like your theory but we still need to find out how to destroy the locket. Harry stabbed the diary with the Basilisk’s fang, Dumbledore cracked the crystal in the ring, so how do we destroy the locket?”
“Oh, I don’t think we have to destroy the locket. We just have to open it. What I don’t know is what happens when Harry opens it,” Hermione said evenly.
“How does he open it?” Ginny asked.
“Parseltongue, of course," Hermione simply stated. “It is Slytherin’s heirloom, after all.”
Harry was mildly amazed at how simple everything fit her theory. “I’m not going to say anything in Parseltongue until we figure out what happens once it opens. I think we need to talk to Professor Slughorn, again. Let’s think on this for a few days and then meet again.” Harry put his memories back into his head, picked up all the items, and walked hand-in-hand with Ginny back to the Burrow.
A/N Chapter 7 Weddings