The Locked Room - 4

"So…the soul is split by murder, but love can shield the soul?" Harry asked, feeling very off-kilter.

"Precisely," Dumbledore replied. "I think you will find that the Dementors are less likely to be as drawn to you now that there is only one soul within you. The other – the evil presence forced upon you – is gone."

Harry shook his head, feeling very confused. His brain was still having trouble keeping up with the evening's events, and one great piece of the puzzle still baffled him. "How did I manage to get the Killing Curse to work against Voldemort?" he asked. "He was definitely off his game tonight. I shouldn't have been able to do that. He was much more powerful than me."

"You are again underestimating your greatest strength, Harry, and Tom's utter lack of that same quality," Dumbledore replied quietly.

"Love again?" Harry asked, almost wearily.

"When you were dueling Tom earlier, each time you struck, you uttered the name of one of Tom's former victims. Why did you do such a thing?" Dumbledore asked.

Harry shrugged, remembered the great fury he'd felt at the way Voldemort killed so casually. "He thought there was no consequence – that they didn't matter. Did you know that I found Bertha Jorkins' bones scattered in the woods as if she was nothing?"

"Which is, most likely, exactly as Voldemort saw her. But you buried her, and then struck back for her to let him know that she wasn't forgotten – that she did matter. You did the same for Cedric and Frank Bryce and every other person you named. Their spirits understood this and sang your praises for it," Dumbledore said gravely.

"Pardon?" Harry asked, thoroughly confused.

"The voices, Harry," Dumbledore said. "Did you not hear the voices rising behind the Veil?"

Harry's mouth opened and closed several times before he could form the words. "I did…but I didn't think anyone else could. Snape said those voices come from trapped souls behind it," he said, squeezing his eyes shut lest they betray him.

"They are not trapped," Dumbledore said firmly, a faint trace of anger in his voice. "The Veil is merely a gateway to the Afterworld. Not everyone can hear the voices, however. It has nothing to do with magical talent – only those in the mortal world who are pure of heart are able to hear them."

"But Voldemort heard them. You just said he did," Harry insisted.

"As in most magical equations, the opposite also holds true," Dumbledore said, smiling apologetically. "Those with a heart lacking of all compassion can also hear the voices, only they are frightened and alarmed by them, as you saw with Tom. He could hear the voices rising and detected the light growing, and he knew death was nearby. Death frightened Tom more than anything else, and in the end, it was your dead loved ones who enabled you to defeat him."

"So, what happens now?" Harry asked softly, uncertain of the answer he wanted.

"The battle is still raging at Hogwarts, although the Death Eaters have begun to notice the Dark Marks on their arms disappearing, and that Voldemort is gone from their minds. They are frightened and confused which has made them rather rabid. A dangerous situation, but I suspect the Order will have it contained shortly," Dumbledore replied, closing his eyes and creasing his forehead, as if he was looking somewhere else.

"And the losses?" Harry asked, his stomach clenching.

"That remains to be seen and is something you will have to learn when your body awakens," Dumbledore said sadly. "Which brings me to my next point…you need to give your spirit time to heal, Harry."