Horcrux Removal

"Why would V- V- He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named be making a horcrux?" Neville asked.

"And what was the other name you called him?" Hermione asked.

"I assume you mean Voldemort?" Lady Helena replied. Both students nodded. "The one your time knows as Voldemort was born Tom Marvolo Riddle. Upon the death of his mother's family, he becomes the last blood descendent of Slytherin's line. However, he found his birth name was not suitably intimidating and created the moniker Lord Voldemort. The term "Lord" was purely stylistic, as he had not accepted his inheritance as Earl Slytherin."

"But we found out as soon as we were sorted!" Hermione exclaimed. "How could he not know?"

"For several reasons," Helena explained. "Young Harry here is the only living Potter in his time. As such, he was able to claim his Gryffindor inheritance. Similarly, with his mother and Tom Riddle dead, he was the only one of Slytherin's line. As your parents are non-magicals, while able to inherit the non-magical title of Ravenclaw, they are unable to inherit the magical title. Again, you are seen as the last, or more accurately, the first of your line. Most heirs, including Tom Riddle, are not in a position to claim Lordship while still at Hogwarts, as they have living relatives with higher claim. The last of his mother's family died after Riddle graduated, and he never returned to Hogwarts nor did he approach the goblins for an inheritance test, so he was unable to claim his Slytherin inheritance."

"There is also the matter of Hogwarts needing your help, and choosing to name you as soon as you arrived. Had she not needed you so desperately, Neville, with a still living parent, would have been unlikely to have his status revealed until he took up the Lordship of House Longbottom, therefor also making him the head of his branch of Gryffindor. Do you understand?"

All three nodded.

"As for why he was creating a horcrux, there are two common reasons, but only one likely one. The less likely reason is to study the effect of creating one. It is not recommended, and few scholars pursue it. I doubt that was his intention. The other reason is out of a belief that doing so would make him immortal."

"He's immortal?" Neville squeaked.

"No, he simply believed that making a horcrux would make him so," Ravenclaw corrected him. "When you split your soul, the part that is split becomes frozen in time. It does not age, does not think, does not witness the world pass. If one of you were to create a horcrux right now, that piece of your soul would, when released from its object, believe that it is still on this very day, in this very place."

"In many recorded instances, the piece of soul that was awakened, could not fully comprehend the changes that had happened since its creation, and the being often went mad or committed suicide. Additionally, as only a part of a soul, the horcrux being is at a disadvantage when it comes to all things, from reasoning to spell casting."

"Of course, that is to say nothing of the effect on the caster. If you create a horcrux, a part of your soul is taken away. Not only does this make you weaker, magically and physically, but it also shortens your lifespan. And when you die, the part of your soul you still retain will pass on. If the soul fragment in your horcrux is revived, it will live it's own life, starting from the place it diverged from the whole. It is not a path to immortality, as so many think."

"Think of it like photocopies," Helena said, emerging from another 'looking forward' trance. "The soul fragment is one page copied from a book; stuck on that section even though the book continues beyond it. Meanwhile, the copy is less clear and precise than the original. If someone were to take that copy, and attempt to write the rest of the book that follows, based only on that page, it would look nothing like the original book. And if the book is destroyed, it cannot be resurrected from the single copied page. Nor does the destruction of the page affect the original book."

Harry and Hermione nodded, understanding what she meant perfectly, while Neville simply looked confused. Helena considered him for a moment. "Imagine that a copying charm creates an imperfect copy instead of a perfect one," she told him. A moment later, he nodded hesitantly.

"So why would Voldemort want to create one of these things?" Harry asked. "If they're so useless?"

"Because very few know that they are that useless," Ravenclaw said. "Scholars are disinclined to split their own soul, while those who create them for less pure reasons are unlikely to publish the pitfalls of their creation. I happen to know a scholar who created a horcrux to study, and then, after a year, activated it. He and the horcrux copy of himself studied together, noting their similarities and differences. He performed numerous tests on his magical and physical strengths both before and after. He studied their memories, and their ability to harm or connect with each other. His studies are the seminal works on the subject."

"Incidentally, in every instance, the sum of the two parts were less than the original whole had been," Hufflepuff added.

"Yes," Ravenclaw confirmed. "His magical strength, physical strength, stamina, weakness, memory, abilities; Everything that he could quantifiably test, he did. The results of himself after the cast combined with the results of the horcrux were never as good as those of himself before the cast."

"At some point between now and Voldemort's time, clearly this information has been lost," Helena explained. "Voldemort found some references to horcruxes that was incorrect, and he believed that they would help him in his quest for domination of the Wizarding World. Ironically, had he simply claimed his Slytherin inheritance properly, he would have been an Earl, and one of the most powerful figures in the Wizarding World."

Neville shuddered at the thought.

Harry judiciously poked at the paste on his forehead and found it substantially harder than when it was applied. He looked at Hufflepuff questioningly, and she came over to poke it. "Yes, just a little bit longer. Hopefully they'll have the receptacle prepared by then."