16

Chapter XVI: The Locket of Slytherin

(Sirius P.O.V)

"A prophecy," Arthur whispered in shock, "About Harry being able to defeat the Dark Lord," Sirius watched as the orange-haired man wiped the sweat from his brow, "Somehow I always knew that would be the case, their lives have always seemed to be so intertwined, but hearing that a boy of just fifteen is tasked with such a burden, it makes me nauseous."

"I agree," Amos said with a growl, "I don't know Harry well, though I am appreciative of him allowing for my son- my son's body to be brought back," Amos said with a heavy pause, "But, if he couldn't beat Voldemort at the Graveyard, what's changed? Isn't this some helpless-"

"The boy will win," Moody growled, "And if I hear another whisper of doubt regarding my student's abilities, I'll make you-"

"Not the place, Moody," Tonks whispered, "We're allies here after all. We all want Harry to win, we all want Voldemort dead. I trust my brother completely but it's not abnormal for those to feel worried. All the same, it doesn't matter how strong Harry is if the information from Dumbledore that he passed on is true."

"And who is to say that it is?" Doge whispered, "We all know, thanks to now numerous instances that Dumbledore has a habit of muddling the truth, to say the least."

"He's telling the truth," Bill said solemnly, "I've seen a lot of dark magic in my line of work, but that necklace that we just sent off to Dumbledore, that one he believes to be an anchor, it was unlike anything I've worked with before. If Dumbledore claims that Voldemort made that object to make himself immortal, I kind of hate to say it, but I believe him."

Sirius nodded, "So we're in agreement about the plan, we know there are moles for the Dark Lord in the Ministry, thus making it a dangerous place to be, but leaving the prophecy unguarded only feeds deeper into Voldemort's hands. We must ensure that we keep that prophecy away from him at all costs. Granted this may be a lot harder than it sounds, as with Umbridge replacing Amelia Bones, any cover we may have is in jeopardy."

"How the Minister allowed such a detestable woman taking up the post that Madam Bones served so honorably is completely mind-boggling, does Fudge have no shame," Molly hissed out in frustration.

"No, clearly he doesn't," Remus muttered out, his nails scraping against the wooden table in frustration, "Which is why the second order of business is creating a plan to remove Fudge from office."

"Removing Fudge from office?" Molly called out her voice high-pitch and shrill, "How exactly are you planning to do that?"

"First," Sirius whispered, "We need to expose Umbridge for the horrid person that she is, secondly, we have Harry make a statement to the press regarding his appalment with Fudge's judgment, finally, with the public support at our back, Emmeline and I will push for a vote of no confidence, ideally, to save his image, he would simply step down. However, should he not, we hope that our votes, along with the other ministry members of the Wizengamot that favor being on the light side of public perception is enough to push the vote through."

"If this plan did succeed," Bill whispered, "Who would you put forward to replace him?'

"The lady that's put her life on the line for the safety of wizards hundreds of times before being appointed a department head, Madam Bones herself." The table showed little resistance to his suggestions as Sirius nodded, "But let's not get carried away, I still have to confirm she'd be willing to accept the position first, if not we'll have to find another person to run. The good news is, now that she's stabilized, she'll be able to receive visitors, and I just happen to have an appointment."

"Good," Bill nodded, "But with that being said, I believe we're done, are we not?"

"Yeah," Sirius said, "I've gotta make my appointment if we want a chance of this going through, and somebody needs to relieve Ted, Andy, and Agusta of their guard duty at the Burrow."

"We can handle it," Charlie said, "Bill and I are heading that way as it is."

"I'll go too," Tonks said, rising by Charlie's side, "In case you need, back up, or something."

"Ugh," Bill muttered out teasingly, "Am I about to third wheel at my own home."

"Shut up," Tonks and Charlie both muttered out, causing Sirius to laugh as he turned, ascending the stairs.

The house had felt so much more lively over the past couple years, but ever since Emmeline had first moved in with him, the house had truly begun to felt like a home, that feeling only grew as he opened his bedroom door, watching as his son laid curled up in his crib, a gentle smile resting on his sleeping face, "I love you, James, I promise you, Dad will always keep you safe, always."

James cooed gently as he felt Emmeline walk-up behind him, "Somehow, I think he knows that already." Sirius smiled, turning as he planted a gentle kiss on his wife's lips, before breaking away towards the floo that resided in their bedroom.

"Merlin, I hope this goes well," Sirius muttered out.

"It will, Sirius," Emmeline said with a nod, "She's not the kind of woman that would refuse if she understood the situation."

Sirius nodded as he ducked into the fireplace, a pinch of powder in his hands as he looked up at the black tunnel that led to the chimney above. With a grunt, he uttered the St. Mungo's Visitor Center, and with a flash of green, he vanished. The scent of flora air-fresheners that were used to counteract the smell of the potion's lab on the floor above were in full effect as Sirius began walking towards the receptionist, who'd wasted no time standing in wait for him.

"Ah, Lord Black," The young blonde said, her brown eyes trying to exude confidence, "I understand you are here to visit Madam Bones, is that correct?"

"Yes," Sirius said with a nod, "And just Sirius is fine, all of this Lord Business is a bit pretentious don't you think, Marilyn?" The girl gulped gently before nodding, a comforting smile forming across his lips as the girl guided her to the elevator that took them to the recovery ward. Upon entering the floor, however, Sirius greatly began to doubt the need for a guide as only one room had seemed to be lined with a wall of aurors in front of it. "I take it that's Madam Bones' room."

"Yes," Marilyn nodded as she approached the guard, "Lord Black is here, he's a scheduled visitor to see Madam Bones."

The auror who'd received the message nodded as he grunted, "We'll have to perform a search to make sure you're not carrying anything-,"

"Oh, for Merlin's Sake, Bagely, let the man through!" Bones bellowed out Sirius catching the woman's stern eyes, "If a band of Death Eaters couldn't put me in the dirt it's clear that the Lord doesn't want me with him yet, let him in, and get the nurse, I've been needing to pee for like an hour." The auror, apparently named Bagely stepped aside as Sirius entered the room, the door slamming behind him as Madam Bones tried to sit up only to fail miserably, a smirk forming against Sirius' lips, "Don't go laughing now, even in this condition I could still take you."

"I don't doubt it," Sirius said with a chuckle, "How's your rehab been going?"

"Shitty," Madam Bones replied with a grunt, "How children manage to learn to walk so quickly and my body can't seem to manage is irritating."

"Most children don't have first and second-degree burns that are still healing on their legs," Sirius replied calmly.

"If I wanted a lecture, I'd hear it from Dr. Thatcher," Bones muttered, "Anyway, I heard you were here to discuss Ministry Business, so let's get to the point. What do you want?"

"I want you to run for Fudge's position after I push for a vote of no confidence," Sirius said bluntly.

Silence filled the room before a laugh erupted from Bones' mouth, "Please, like I'd want that shitty job, damn bureaucrats, all of them get under my skin." Bones' eyes widened in realization, "And don't you dare tell me I'm one because we all know that's not the case."

"That's the point, you're different," Sirius said, "And that difference is exactly what the world needs right now." Sirius sighed approaching the bed that the DMLE Head rested on, "Do you know who Fudge chose to replace you, none other than Delores Umbridge." He watched as Bones' eyes twitched in frustration, "Worse yet, you are a department head and how long did it take until auror's arrived at your house after being notified you were under attack? It's my suspicion that whoever is truly running the Ministry wants you dead, meaning whoever is calling the shots considers you a threat. I say you prove to them that you are."

Sirius paused watching the woman's face fall slightly before continuing, "He's been unwilling to cooperate with auror's demands for new equipment, his response to any crisis is always tremendously late, and now even the Muggle Prime Minister wants him removed." Sirius stepped forward, "You are a target, that fire should have made that clear as day. And If you're a target what does that mean for your niece, what does that mean for all these innocent bystanders who Fudge is doing nothing to protect. If you run, people will follow you, we're at war now, we need a bulldog at the helm, not a puppy."

A quiet hum filled the room, "Right now, I need to focus on my recovery," Bones stated softly, "Though, leaving Umbridge in my place will only make things worse in terms of our non-human relations." Sirius sighed as Bones looked up at him, "I can't make you any promises, Black, but I'll think about it, okay?"

"That's all I ask," Sirius said as he turned his back, his eyes set on the exit, "Thanks for hearing me out."

(Michael P.O.V)

"So, what exactly is it that you want us to do?" Daphne asked, her voice laced with confusion.

"I want to figure out exactly which runes I should add to each armor piece that I'm going to make," Michael said eagerly, "Right now, I only have this bracer to work on, but if all goes well at this stupid Christmas party, I should be getting much more material to work with." Michael waved eagerly, forcing the girls to approach as he unrolled a tube of parchment, his concept art unfolding before them, "So this is just a rough sketch but I figure that the quicker we can get a plan sorted the easier it will be at the end for me to make it."

"You-," Hermione stuttered out, "You actually want to plan something?"

"He can be pretty motivated when he wants to be," Claire said with a chuckle, "How often he wants to be though, that's another story."

"Thanks, babe," Michael said, rolling his eyes as Claire sent him a gentle smirk. "Look, the point is, I suck at runes, but I know that they can bring my project to the next level. I know that you are all really busy, but I need your help here."

"We were just surprised," Hermione said, "We didn't say we wouldn't help. Give it here, let me take a look at what you've got." Michael watched as the look on the female Ravenclaw Prefect's face grew wide with shock, the girl's chocolate brown eyes falling upon him once more as she muttered, "This is amazing, not just the schematic, but your concept art is so detailed."

Michael scratched his head nervously as Daphne looked over the drawing, "I see, so you aren't going to be covering your joints with anything so as not to inhibit your movement, but that leaves quite a vulnerability in your armor, a well-placed strike could leave you grounded in an instant."

"Yeah, I thought of that too, Blondie," Michael said with a nod as he lifted up his crafted dragon-hide knee guards, "Which is why I made these, the movement restriction is minimal, while also providing some decent protection. Only problem is Dragon-Hide can be a bit finicky with runes meaning we can't add any more material. The good news is that Dragon-Hide comes with a fair share of resistances already built-in."

Daphne nodded, "Okay, so I think the first step would be to assess what we believe the final build would look like. With most of the magic coming out of the palm of your hands, it's important that we fortify the runes around your wrists and arms in case of potential backfire. It's also of importance that we fortify your vital areas with the most defensive runes. Having them activated will have a draining effect on your magic, so while ideally, we'd like to provide ultimate protection everywhere, it simply isn't logical or possible."

"The vital areas most often sought out in combat are," Daphne said lifting a pen, "Base of the brain, the gallbladder, and the tip of the chin," Michael watched as the blonde girl continued to mark up his paper, "On top of that, it is important that your windpipe, carotid artery, and temple are protected, as well. The issue is while areas like your gallbladder can be defended easily, restrictions around your neck make turning to look behind you difficult. The protection we'll be able to offer is slim but better than nothing.

Michael nodded as he spoke, "Shielding runes, as well as fire, Ice, and wind-protective runes, should probably be a priority as Dragon-Hide already does well enough protecting against slashing spells. Fire resistance should be a priority as well due to Claire's fighting style."

"That makes sense, I'll definitely think about the best way of systematically placing the runes for the best effects," Hermione muttered, "I'll make sure Daphne looks it over to make sure we are providing your vital points with the most protection possible, but you said you needed help with something else too, right?"

"Yeah, I remember one time during our first year you were talking about a spell you wanted to learn because you wanted to use it in your bookbag to hold all the books you wanted. I blocked it out then because it sounded kinda boring but I kinda need to know what it is now if I have any chance of carrying this bulky suit of armor with me at all times."

"The extension charm," Hermione questioned back, "If that's the one you're talking about I can teach it to you pretty quickly it's not that hard."

"Great," Michael said, "And one last question," He said turning to Daphne, "You're the rune expert here. I know it's just a theory, but is there any way I can use runes to cast a spell?"

"Maybe," Daphne muttered after mulling it over, if you used blood runes it could be possible, but it wouldn't be very effective because you'd only be able to cast the one rune you drew. There wouldn't be a lot of versatility."

"I don't need the versatility," Michael said with a smile, "I just need one spell for quick access, the switching spell."

(Dumbledore P.O.V)

Dumbledore's hands glided across the silver chain of the locket, his hands trembling from the ominous magic he felt between his fingers. The same magic that radiated from the necklace that had cursed Katie Bell. His eyes glanced up towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, the man looking at the jewelry with a heavy sneer. "Is that truly Slytherin's Locket?" Snape whispered only to be met with a grim nod.

"I'm afraid so," Dumbledore muttered, "And there's no denying it, this is without a doubt one of his Horcruxes." The old Headmaster's glimmering blue pools turned to the sword that hung on the wall by his desk, the goblin iron glimmering in the setting sun. "It's a shame to have to destroy such a relic, but it must be done. However, even with the basilisk venom that you have provided to enhance the sword, I managed to inflict nothing but a scratch on the emerald surface."

"Why didn't it shatter?" Snape mumbled out, "If Basilisk Venom worked for both the Ring and the Diary, why would this locket be any different?"

"I suspect it has to do with the fact that the locket is unopened," Dumbledore said as he scratched his chin, "I've tried a variety of spells to open it, but I suspect, due to its history, it requires a parselmouth to reveal its contents?"

"I see this is quite problematic," Snape said with a sigh.

"Yes," Dumbledore whispered, "Not as simple as my last solution of invading the chamber through the sewer systems, this requires a genuine parselmouth to breach. Thankfully, however, we seem to have one in our castle."

"Are you sure it is wise to introduce Potter to the locket, frustrating as the boy is, he's no idiot," Snape turned his eyes towards the locket, "The boy has the capability of sensing magic, if he recognizes the magic of the locket against his own scar, it could create, issues."

"It is a bridge we will cross once we get there," Dumbledore said, adjusting his seating position, "For now though, we have a much more dire circumstance to discuss, what report do you have regarding Draco's mission?"

"His objective hasn't changed," Snape said, his eyes falling upon the cursed necklace, "Though his methods have become rather complex." Snape grit his teeth in irritation, "On an even less enthusiastic note, the boy has his father's stubbornness. Upon me asking if he wanted assistance, he accused me of wanting to steal his glory. He hasn't come to report to my office for weeks, and as I had no knowledge of this 'necklace attempt' it is becoming clear that monitoring him is becoming far more of a challenge than I expected."

"This isn't acceptable Severus," Dumbledore said, his voice weak and tired, "If my life is the only that is put in jeopardy that is one thing, but if Draco remains unchecked, he's a true danger to this school. I won't be able to continue to guarantee his safety, and should Harry find out it was Draco who cursed Katie, I fear for the young man's life."

"Potter is just a boy," Snape said his voice lined with resentment.

"A boy who's magic is now stronger than yours," Dumbledore muttered out, "I fear that should Harry and young Draco come to fight, Draco would be defeated quite easily, even with the Dark Lord's training of him." He paused taking a look up at the dome-shaped roof above his head, the image of his once friend's electric-blue eyes looking down at him making him shutter, "I'm not quite sure just how Harry managed to grow so strong, but the boy's new power, it's high, and it only seems to be growing."

"I will see what I can do to convince the Dark Lord," Snape said with a bow, "At the moment, I fear he is the only man that Draco will listen to. Should I convince him that his plan may be in danger should Draco continue to proceed without my protection, there is a chance we may get him to instruct Draco differently."

A knock on the door caught Dumbledore's attention as he turned once more to his most loyal follower, "Thank you, Severus, that will be all for tonight. If you can let Harry in on your way out, it would be much appreciated." Dumbledore watched from his chair as Severus departed, swinging his mahogany door open revealing the young Prefect that stood in his way. He watched in silence as the boy and Severus shot each other killing glances before Harry pushed forward, the door closing behind him.

"Harry, my boy," Dumbledore said, bringing a smile to his face, desperately attempting to push down the less than promising news he'd just received, "I hope you've been doing well. Making progress with the Slughorn memory I assume?"

Harry nodded, "Yeah, if all goes well, I think I may be able to extract the information from Slughorn after the party, provided I make him drunk enough." The boy's face looked tired, alongside his prefect duties, Dumbledore knew far too well that Harry taken on quite his own share of ventures, from his place as seeker to his position as Club Leader, a club that had apparently been showing results of improved grades in Charms, Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts.

You'd have made a fine Professor, Harry, I'm sorry you won't get the chance, Dumbledore's eyes softened slightly at the thought before Harry continued, "What was the urgent message though Professor, I was in the middle of lesson planning when I got the letter. I trust the locket arrived in good condition?"

"That is precisely the urgent news I was referring to," Dumbledore said, forcing his magic to flare around the locket, throwing off the trace, "As I've stated previously, I'm not going to be around much longer, Harry, and there is a chance that we will be unable to destroy all of these objects in the time I have left. Should it come to that, I thought it was imperative that I teach you the secrets behind how to destroy one of these anchors."

He watched as the boy's eyes widened with recognition as he took a seat, his posture at full attention. "In my experiments, I have only come across one method that is capable of destroying these objects, that method being the use of basilisk venom, though as you can imagine, this presents an issue as the venom of a basilisk is quite rare." Dumbledore paused a moment, watching the boy's eyes before continuing, "However, thankfully Professor Snape kept a small vial of poison on hand for brewing, unfortunately, he wasn't quite able to use it as he hoped."

Dumbledore rose from his chair, prompting Harry to do the same as they approached the sword which hung on the wall, "Tell me, my boy, do you know what you are looking at?"

"A sword?" Harry responded; his brow tightly knit.

"Yes," Dumbledore said with a chuckle, "But not just any sword, what you are looking at is the sword of the one and only Godric Gryffindor." Dumbledore held back his flash of amusement that grew in his chest upon seeing Harry gaze upon the sword in wonder. "This sword is special for numerous reasons, however, the primary one behind its owner, is its craftsmanship, the blade of this sword is made entirely of Goblin-Steel. A metal I'm assuming you're familiar with from your History of Magic class."

"Apologize, sir," Harry said, "But I can't tell you the last time I've actually stayed awake throughout that whole class. What makes Goblin-Steel so special?"

"A shame, Harry," Dumbledore said with a slight grin, "Obtaining as much knowledge as possible from wherever you can is one of the great joys of life. No matter though, the reason that Goblin-Steel is so highly coveted is that unlike most metals that weaken over time, Goblin-Steel grows stronger, adding the capability of absorbing any type of material which can make the steel stronger. In our case, basilisk venom. It also means that should you accidentally cut yourself with this blade, death will come much faster than you might expect."

"Okay, so we whack the locket with the sword and remove another anchor, right? Seems simple enough," Harry said quickly, his eyes scanning the metal with excitement.

"If only it were," Dumbledore said, "Do you remember what I told you regarding the ring I destroyed?"

"Yeah, that it tempted you to put it on, right?" Harry replied.

"And in doing so, the ring nearly killed me," Dumbledore said, "These objects act almost as if they were alive, each of them having preservation instincts that make them difficult to be destroyed. That being said, I did try to 'whack' the locket as you so delicately put it, and as you can tell," Dumbledore said, lifting the locket exposing the dent that had been made in the emerald, "It only suffered a minor dent. Which leads me to assume that-"

"One of the protections requires the locket to be open," Harry said, bringing a smile to the old man's face, He catches on quick, that's for sure. The boy's face hardened, "However, if it was that simple, I would imagine the locket would already be destroyed, which leads me to ask, what is the holdup? Does it need a key or something?"

"Indeed, it does, but the key is more of a metaphorical one than a physical one," Dumbledore said earning a low growl from the fifth year, "It is my theory that this 'key' as you put it, is none other than the use of parseltongue. Yet, even with that assumption, it would be foolish to believe that Tom added no other safety measures, so it's important that we keep our wits about us."

"Okay, so I speak snake to this thing," Harry said calmly, "Once I do that, what's the plan?"

"If my theory is correct, once you command the locket to open, it'll become vulnerable, at that time, I'll bring the sword down and destroy the locket, thus ridding this world of another anchor."

"I speak, you slice," Harry said condensing the message, "Alright, sounds easy enough, let's get this over with."

"Yes, indeed," Dumbledore said as he summoned a marble pillar from the right side of his room towards him to lay the locket on, "I suggest you start with just ordering the locket to open, if that doesn't work, we'll have to get creative." Dumbledore felt his knuckles whiten as he clenched his grip tight around the hilt of the blade, watching as the young man approached the locket with caution.

~Open~ Harry hissed, Dumbledore holding his breath as the locket began to rumble and click, before, without warning, black smoke flew from the center of the locket, the figure before him sending him into a panic. She was so young, so beautiful, exactly how he had always remembered her, except for one key difference, she was crying. "Why, Albus?" The girl whispered, "Why did you want to abandon us? Why did you love him more than us? I trusted you, Aberforth trusted you, and you chose him over us!"

Anger rose in the girl's voice as Dumbledore felt the strength in his arm start to fade. The young blonde girl approached him, her eyes suddenly became hollow and vacant, "You loved him more than us! You wanted to be free! And because you wanted to be free, you killed me! It was you, Albus! You killed me! You hated me! You wanted me gone!"

"No, Ariana," He whispered back, the sword dropping from his hand, "Merlin no, I didn't want that. I loved you, I loved Aberforth, you know that, you must-,"

"Lies!" The girl screamed, "You only loved him! And when he was defeated! You only learned to only love yourself! You-," The smoke disappeared with a roar as from the corner of his eye, he distantly caught a glimpse of a scarlet ruby pommel moving down swiftly through the smoke. Dumbledore dropped to his knees, clutching his head as a shrill scream erupted through his chambers before, just as quickly as it had arrived, the smoke vanished.

Dumbledore clutched his chest, the feeling of warm heat dripping down his face forced his hands to rub furiously as in the distance, Harry's panting had become clear, "That was, certainly something." Dumbledore turned to watch the boy, his own frame shaking like a leave in the wind, his hands wrapped tightly around his House Founder's sword. The blade clanked against the floor as Harry dropped it, the boy's body dropping to the ground right behind it. "Okay, now I know for next time, that was intense."

Dumbledore remained silent as Harry's green eyes pierced him like the blade at his side, "Are you alright, Professor?"

But the man couldn't speak, only watching the spot his sister had suddenly manifested herself in agony. Ariana, He muttered in his mind, Please forgive me. Dumbledore had only been broken from his thoughts by Harry's touch, the young man's hand outstretched. Harry's grunt had been loud, the young boy essentially holding all his weight as he was guided back to his chair. "Professor," Harry called out, clapping in his face, "Snap out of it!" Dumbledore looked up catching the boy's eyes once again, "You were the one who told me that it was going to be full of tricks, you can't let him get to you like that."

"It wasn't a trick," Dumbledore muttered, breaking his silence, "What she said, it was the truth. I wanted to be free, I chose my ambitions over my family. Harry," Dumbledore whispered, "I killed my sister."

"No, you didn't," Harry said, the firmness in his voice matched only by his grip upon his elderly shoulders. "Listen to me, Professor. I don't know your past that well, and honestly, I don't even like you that much, but I want you to understand something, I've heard the story, your famous duel with Grindelwald, the three-way duel that you had alongside your brother, I've heard all of it, and during my legilimency training with you, I've seen shreds of it as well. And through all of that, I don't believe you killed your sister, and even if you did, it wasn't your fault."

Dumbledore felt his whole-body trembling as he nodded softly, "Thank you, Harry, thank you."

"Uh, it's okay," The young man said patiently, "Just, try to get some rest, okay?" Dumbledore nodded once more, watching as Harry stepped backward approaching the exit, "For all your faults, I don't think you're a monster Professor, I may not always agree with you, but to do what you did, it takes courage, and courage is something to be respected." A soft smile appeared on Harry's face as he turned the knob of the door before him, "Goodnight, sir."

"Yes, goodnight, Harry," Dumbledore murmured out, watching as the door closed behind the young boy, If only you knew the whole truth, Harry, you wouldn't see me as anything short of a monster