A New Family Discovered

The O.W.L. exams began in mid-June and Harry was already exhausted from studying so hard. The theory exams were quite easy, but the practical exam, for him especially, was a different matter. It was not that he was being tested differently, but Harry was trying his best to make everything extraordinary. Madam Marchbanks took particular delight in testing him for most of the exams.

"I think you have adjusted to the accelerated program rather well, Mr Potter," said the old woman. "Now, I was wondering if you could vanish this iguana for me."

The Transfiguration exam was wonderful. Harry displayed his talent in inanimate conjuration by creating a throne for himself with the Potter crest clearly displayed on the back. Switching spells were quite easy and he amused his examiners by switching a vase of conjured lilies with his hair. The Charms exam was even better. When Professor Tofty asked him to animate his eggcup and make it do cartwheels, Harry went one step further and with careful concentration, began making the eggcup start dancing after giving it feet. When the eggcup bowed to Tofty after the show, the old man began roaring with laughter.

"Oh, you're quite cheeky, aren't you?" said the old professor fondly. "Yes, your mother did something quite similar when she took her exams. Now, if you could change the colour of this rat ..."

Herbology went reasonably well. Harry knew that it was not his best subject but he was sure that he would get an Outstanding anyway. Defence Against the Dark Arts was absolutely thrilling to show in front of the examiners. Harry took great delight in showing various curses, jinxes and counter-curses, stunning the examiner with his talent in non-verbal magic.

"Oh, bravo!" cried Professor Marchbanks as he conjured a marble stone slab when asked how to defend himself from Unforgivable Curses – an N.E.W.T question, actually, but Harry didn't care. The marble slab took four Reductor curses before it crumbled.

"Outstanding, Potter," she smiled. "Not many of them have the presence of mind to conjure stone in the path of a curse. You may go."

Ancient Runes and Arithmancy were very good as well. Harry took great delight in adding his knowledge about warding in the written papers. He was sure to get extra credit for that. But the best by far was Potions. Harry was supremely calm as he impressed the examiner with his spells which, he realised, other students who were taught by parents who specialised in Potions knew as well. His ingredients were meticulously cut into pieces and he ensured that the timer was set to the second. When he submitted the phials filled with perfect potion samples, he was sure that he would be pursuing the subject after school.

Care of Magical Creatures took place in the afternoon at the edge of the Forbidden Forest and the students had to identify the creatures and give them food, demonstrate the correct handling of others and identify the correct food to be given to an injured unicorn. Harry was quite surprised by his ability with magical creatures. The bowtruckle he interacted with during the exam had taken a shining to him.

Astronomy, Muggle Studies and History of Magic were fine. His perfect memory tuned with Occlumency exercises over the years had always helped him remember everything he wanted. The theory exams went well and he was quite happy with them. He also took the Duelling exam which was offered as a choice. Very few people took it, but Harry wanted it. By the time he finished all twelve of the exams, he was exhausted, but supremely happy.

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

1st July, 2003

Somewhere in Edinburgh, Scotland

"Oh look, it's the freak!" said the older boy jeering at the small frame of the eleven-year-old boy.

"Watch where you're going, freak," said another, forcing the smaller boy to trip on his shoes.

Dylan scrapped his elbow against the hard ground as he tried to control his tears. Even on his birthday, they didn't leave him alone. How he wished he could get away from here!

"Leave me alone," whispered Dylan pleadingly as he got to his feet, but the older boy punched him in the stomach.

"Oh, look, little Dylan here seems to want to talk back," he jeered. "I think it's time we taught him a lesson, don't you think, boys? Let the freak know his place!"

Dylan backed away, looking around for someone to help him, but there was nobody. "Please," he begged. "Just leave me alone."

"Coward!" spat another boy as the rest beat him up. "You stop doing all the freaky things that you do and we'll stop hitting you. We're only helping you become normal like us. Everyone in the orphanage knows of your freakish ways!"

"I don't know what it means!" screamed Dylan as a wave of powerful magic exploded from his body, throwing the boys away from him and onto the street. The bus coming towards the children had to turn sharply to avoid crushing them and that, in turn, led to it crashing into a building.

The young boy, Dylan, was unconscious.

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

"Ma'am, I have important news," said Auror Trainee Tonks as she entered the office of her boss, gasping for breath.

"What is it, Tonks?" asked Amelia, looking up from her paperwork.

"There was a huge burst of accidental magic in Edinburgh," she explained. "The Accidental Magic Reversal Squad found a young wizard beaten quite badly. He seems to have used magic to escape, but it caused quite a scene."

"Why are you telling me this?" asked Amelia, confused. "This is a matter that will be taken care of by them. Besides, it is to be handled by the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes and Wizarding Children Services. I'm no way involved."

"Normally, I would agree. But I found out the name of the boy who has been taken to St Mungo's. Right now, very few people know the boy's identity, but if the information leaks out, it could mean big trouble. I thought the boy's closest family had to be informed considering his name."

"What's his name?"

Tonks hesitated. "Dylan Lestrange."

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

Two hours later, Sirius Black and Harry Potter were walking towards the room that housed the boy in St Mungo's Hospital. Both of them were frowning.

"Did Bellatrix and Rodolphus have a child?"

"No," Sirius replied. "I know for a fact that Bellatrix lost her ability to bear children due to a stray curse that destroyed her uterus during a battle in Diagon Alley. The raid she conducted after she found out was pretty horrifying. I'm absolutely sure this boy is not Bellatrix's son. Maybe he is Rabastan's?"

"Or it might be completely random? After all, there are Muggles with the name of Potter, Black, Smith and a few others. It could be a coincidence."

"Maybe … a Gringotts lineage test would give the necessary information. But if he is anything like them ..."

"He's just a child, Sirius," said Harry quietly, but he did agree with his godfather's sentiments. Just as they were about to enter, a Healer stepped out of the room and was startled to see Sirius and Harry there.

"Lord Black, Mr Potter," the wizard nodded respectfully at them. "What can I do for you?"

"We're here to see your newest patient," said Sirius. "I have authorization since he might be – ahem – family. How is he doing?"

"Not well, psychologically speaking," said the Healer grimly. "He thought we were going to kill or torture him. I had to stun the lad before we could heal all his wounds. There are clear signs of long-term abuse. Broken bones, malnutrition, you name it. He'll have to be here for the next week, at least, to fix everything."

"Are you sure he said Lestrange?" asked Harry sharply.

"Yes, Mr Potter," the Healer nodded. "If you want to talk to him, I would advise you to be soothing. He doesn't know about the existence of magic."

Nodding, the two of them slipped through the privacy screens. The adorable looking boy had mousy brown hair with slight curls and looked quite small for his age. At the moment, however, he was sleeping peacefully.

"He's definitely a Lestrange," said Sirius quietly, observing the boy's features critically. "I'd recognise that cleft chin anywhere, but he is not Bellatrix's son. He might be the son of Rabastan."

"What about the mother?"

"We won't know that until we talk to him," said Sirius grimly. "Poor kid; I don't even want to imagine what is going to happen when people find out about this. The Lestranges are quite hated by everyone for what happened to Frank and Alice Longbottom, not to mention the countless other deaths they were responsible for."

"Well, there's no point in just standing here," said Harry quietly. He extended his hand towards the boy and there was a flash of red light from his palm. The boy groaned softly as he opened his grey eyes.

"W-Where am I?" he squeaked out.

"Easy," said Harry gently, surprising his godfather. "You're in a hospital, getting your injuries treated. We found you on a street in Edinburgh. May we know your name?"

The boy swallowed as he looked at the boy who was probably a few years older than him, maybe more. Harry began releasing some of his magic in a comforting way which enveloped the other boy, calming him down.

"Dylan," he said nervously. "Dylan Lestrange."

"It's nice to meet you, Dylan," Harry smiled. "I am Harry Potter, and this is my godfather, Sirius Black. How old are you?"

"Eleven," muttered Dylan. "My birthday is on the first of July."

"Well then, happy birthday, Dylan," said Harry, as he shook the boy's hand, making him gape in shock. No one had ever wished him on his birthday before. "Can you tell us the last thing you remember?"

"I – I was walking back to the orphanage," Dylan answered, swallowing hard. "That's when Tony and the rest started to gang up on me. They always call me a freak and they said that – that – I was to be cured of something. They were beating me up and I wished that they would stop … and then I blacked out. When I woke up, someone was asking me questions, holding a stick. I was scared that they were going to hurt me as they did at the orphanage. I panicked, but I can't recall anything after that."

Harry and Sirius looked at each other. "You said you were going to an orphanage," said Sirius slowly. "Do you live there? Do you know who your parents are?"

"No sir, I don't know who my parents are," he said, shivering slightly. "I was born at the orphanage. My mother died soon after from what I was told. She just named me before she died. I don't know anything else. Who are you?"

Harry took a deep breath. "We're not sure yet, but we're probably your closest living relatives. Don't worry. We're not sending you back to the orphanage."

"What?" Dylan gasped, gaping at Harry. "R-Relatives? But–but, I was told I had no family! Why –"

"We didn't even know you existed until a few hours ago, Dylan," said Sirius patiently. "Can you please tell me the name of the orphanage that you grew up in?"

"It's called David's orphanage for children."

"Alright," said Sirius softly. "I'll just have to check something, but while I'm gone, Harry here will explain everything to you. But before I go, will you let me take a drop of your blood?"

"Blood? Why?"

"It is so that we can know who your parents are," said Harry soothingly. "Please, Dylan, it's very important. I'll explain everything to you as soon as Sirius leaves."

Sirius flicked his wand, conjuring a phial. Harry waved a hand over Dylan's palm, slicing a thin line. Dylan was gobsmacked at the display. Once a few drops of blood were taken, Harry healed the wound and Sirius left.

"How – how did you do that?" whispered Dylan.

"It's called magic."

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

Sirius and Amelia walked inside the orphanage, grimacing at the environment. This did not look like an orphanage which would take care of its children well. It was probably very poorly funded and where bullying was rampant.

"Yes, may I help you?" said the matron as she smiled sweetly at the expensively dressed couple in front of her.

"Yes, we were looking for the person in charge," said Amelia formally.

"That would be me. I'm Mary Jones," she said extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Jones," said Amelia. "I am Agent Bones from the MI5 and this is my partner Agent Black. We'd like to ask you a few questions regarding one Dylan Lestrange."

Miss Jones paused before asking carefully, "What would you like to know?"

"How did he end up at this orphanage?" asked Sirius.

"He was born here," she shrugged. "A teenage girl came here about eleven years ago, heavily pregnant in the evening. It's quite common so we took her in. She seemed to quite unhealthy; probably lived on the streets, poor dear. She gave birth to a healthy baby boy and asked us to name him Dylan Lestrange; yes, Lestrange is a very strange name, isn't it? Anyway, she kept mumbling about revenge and her son being half-blood. I remember it well because the words she used were so weird. May I know what's interesting about him?"

Sirius walked up to the woman and looked into her eyes. While his Legilimency skills couldn't even penetrate the mind of a young wizard, Muggles had no natural shields whatsoever. He went through her memories and found the relevant information. He saw everything that had been done to the boy and was disgusted by it. This only validated Harry's theory – there were indeed more magical children abused by Muggles. Harry wasn't the only one.

"Come on, Amelia," Sirius spat angrily. "We have what we need."

"Wait, where is the boy?" asked Miss Jones.

Amelia pointed her wand at her.

"Obliviate!"

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

"Thank you for meeting me without an appointment, Ironclaw," Amelia began.

"No problem at all, Lady Black," the goblin replied. "What can I do for you?"

"We were hoping you could identify this boy's parents," Sirius took over as he removed the phial containing a few drops of blood.

"The boy gave us his blood willingly and authorised it," said Amelia swiftly. "This is a matter concerning the Most Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange."

"Indeed?" asked Ironclaw in surprise.

"He was found in Muggle Edinburgh. He's just turned eleven and we need to know if he is related to the Lestranges and who his mother is."

The goblin nodded as he got a small silver bowl. He began mixing several powders and potions inside it. He took the phial and poured the blood into it. Once done, he took a special quill and a parchment shimmering with magic. He dipped the quill into the bowl. After a few seconds, the quill activated and began writing on the parchment. Ironclaw looked at it and nodded grimly.

"It looks like your suspicions were correct," said Ironclaw. "He is the illegitimate child of Rabastan Lestrange."

Sirius and Amelia took the parchment showing the lineage test and looked at it.

Name: Dylan Lestrange

Father: Rabastan Lestrange (Pureblood)

Mother: Charlene Cooper (Muggle-born)

Date of Birth: 1st July, 1992

Status: Illegitimate Heir Apparent of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange

"He must have raped her," Amelia muttered grimly. "That explains the revenge part."

"And the half-blood part as well," Sirius agreed. "She was a Muggle-born and the Lestranges are pureblood fanatics. She must have thought it would be the ultimate revenge against them."

"I'll check the Ministry archives for anyone named Charlene Cooper. Thank you for your services, Ironclaw."

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

Dylan laughed with delight as Harry made more things fly across the room, changing colours and conjuring objects.

"This is all so cool! I mean, magic is real!"

"I know how you feel," Harry couldn't help but smile. "When I learnt about the existence of magic, I thought I was dreaming. You'll get your Hogwarts letter in a few weeks."

"Are you really thirteen years old, Harry?" asked Dylan in surprise. "You look older to me."

Harry chuckled. "I turn thirteen in a month, actually," he answered. "I'm still technically twelve."

"No way! You look like you're fifteen or sixteen!"

"Magical children develop faster than Muggles, both physically and mentally. And some of us grow faster while others mature slowly. The malnutrition you suffered at the orphanage seems to have stunted your growth. You'll be surprised how fast you'll grow once the healers are done with you."

Dylan paused, trying to gather his thoughts. "Do you really think I'll get a Hogwarts letter?" he asked hopefully.

"Positive."

"Could you tell me more about it?" he asked shyly.

Just as Harry was about to reply, Sirius and Amelia entered the room. "Hello Dylan," Sirius greeted him with a warm smile. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm great, sir!" he said happily. "Harry was just showing me more magic. It's so cool!"

"That's good to know," said Sirius. "Dylan, this is my wife, Amelia. She is the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."

"Think of her as the head of a magical version of the U.K.'s Home Office," explained Harry quietly.

Dylan's eyes widened. "Ma'am," he said awkwardly. She was a stern looking woman with short red hair and blue eyes. When he saw her, he knew that she was not to be messed with. She definitely looked the part of an important government employee.

"Hello, Mr Lestrange," Amelia nodded. "We have managed to get some information about your parents. Would you like to know about them?"

"Yes, ma'am," said Dylan excitedly. Harry had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Your father is Rabastan Lestrange and your mother was one Charlene Cooper," said Amelia candidly. There was no point in trying to soft-pedal the truth, as she had an official duty to inform him of the situation. Taking a deep breath, she continued, "Your mother was a Muggle-born, meaning a witch or wizard born to non-magical parents. She attended Hogwarts but dropped out in her sixth year when her family was attacked."

"Attacked?" repeated Dylan in shock.

The next ten minutes was spent in explaining about the war with Voldemort. "And so, your mother never returned to Hogwarts. She seems to have gone into hiding in the Muggle world and had you in the orphanage."

"My parents were not married?" asked Dylan, his eyes wide, shaking his head in denial.

"Drink this first," said Harry, giving him a phial of calming draught. "Trust me, it'll help."

After the boy had calmed down, Amelia continued. "All the evidence we have gathered point towards the fact that your father might have – ahem – impregnated your mother without consent. The Gringotts lineage test confirms that they were not married and that you are illegitimate."

"What? There has got to be a mistake!"

"I don't think so, Dylan," said Sirius grimly, "because your father would never have involved himself romantically with a Muggle-born. From what we found out from the orphanage, it is clear that she knew who your father was as well. Thank Merlin he doesn't know about you."

"You mean my father is alive?" asked Dylan, horrified. "Why didn't he come and get me?"

"Guys, can I talk to him alone for a minute?" asked Harry quietly. Sirius and Amelia looked at each other and nodded. After they left, Harry sat down on the bed and took the boy's hand in his, giving it a soft squeeze.

"What I am about to tell you might come as a shock," he said slowly as he formed his words. "Dylan, your father is in prison. He has been for the past eleven years. He is a Death Eater, one of Voldemort's most faithful followers. He, his brother Rodolphus and Rodolphus' wife Bellatrix were sent to prison for life. In fact, you are related to Sirius though Bellatrix, by marriage. They are first cousins, you see."

Dylan's lower lip was trembling. Harry sighed as he pulled the younger boy into a tight hug as he cried into his chest. Harry made soothing sounds, rubbing Dylan's back as he silently let the boy vent. He had no idea why he was consoling the newly discovered Lestrange heir, but it reminded him too much of how he had been when he was at the Dursleys. Dylan was obviously in a state of shock and he needed someone. Harry may be cold, but he wasn't heartless.

"M-My dad is a murderer?" he hiccupped.

"There is no sugar-coating it, Dylan," said Harry grimly. "The Lestranges are quite – ahem – disliked by the common wizarding public. That's why we reacted as fast as we did. Your name raised a red alert and we had to keep you safe before someone took advantage of you by feeding you information for their benefit."

"You did the same thing, didn't you?" snapped Dylan. After a few seconds, his eyes brimmed with tears of fear. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that; please don't be mad at me, Harry!"

"I'm not mad at you," said Harry softly. "I know how you feel. I know that we just met each other a few hours ago, but please, Dylan. Can you trust me? I won't leave you alone. I promise. My life was and is very similar to yours so I can understand you better than anyone. All I am asking is that you give me a chance. Please?"

Grey eyes meet green, looking for any sign of deceit. After a minute, Dylan nodded slowly as more tears flowed down his cheeks. This was all too much for him to handle at such short notice, especially finding out that his father was a notorious mass-murderer. Harry simply rubbed his back, trying to calm him down.

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

Harry stayed in the hospital with Dylan for the next several days. He wanted the boy to trust him and so far, it was going great. Even though Dylan was an illegitimate child, there was no denying the fact that he was the Heir Apparent of House Lestrange unless one of the Lestrange brothers sired another child, which was not possible considering they were in Azkaban for life.

The political ramifications of this would be huge, not to mention quite ugly, so before anyone to contest to be the guardian of the boy, Sirius and Amelia had quietly gotten it done. Dylan may not be Bellatrix's child, but the Lestranges had intermarried with the Blacks a few generations ago, so it was all clean. Besides, this would ensure that other dark families wouldn't try to get their claws on the boy. There was no telling what they would do. Even Lucius Malfoy would do his best to get custody. They had decided that it was better this way.

Once Dylan was fully healed, Sirius used his influence as the owner to make Rita Skeeter write an article in the Magical Daily newspaper, letting people know the truth. This had to be handled delicately because the name Lestrange might have once been quite influential, but it had since been disgraced because of the actions of the three which led to the state of the Longbottoms. The article correctly conveyed what had happened to the boy's mother and her family and that the boy had been raised in a Muggle orphanage, not knowing of his heritage.

There had been massive uproar as expected, but then again, even the smallest article with juicy information could get the population to talk or protest. The traditionalists on the Wizengamot had immediately tried to get custody, but Sirius announced that he had already gained guardianship of the boy. Albus Dumbledore was all for it even though he had been annoyed at not knowing about it. He did not want another child going down a dark path and the young Lestrange would be safer if he was kept as far away from the former Death Eaters as possible.

Augusta Longbottom had been another problem.

The woman had said that the boy should not be allowed at Hogwarts or any other magical school in Britain knowing what his father had done. Sirius had rebutted her statement saying that they shouldn't judge a child based on their parents' crimes. Dylan had never even met his father and didn't know of him until recently. He argued that Augusta was looking at Rabastan in Dylan and that was unethical. Augusta had been fuming and refused to talk to Sirius or Amelia after that.

A few others had said that the boy was illegitimate and hence could not access the Lestrange title or fortune. Sirius had calmly pointed out that no one at the Wizengamot had the authority to stop the boy from claiming his inheritance and anyone stupid enough to do so would be charged with line-theft. The family magic would decide if he could claim his position as the Heir. Needless to say, it was quite a messy political battle and Sirius was exhausted at the end of it.

Once he was healed, Dylan was taken to Black Castle where they spent their summer. The boy was in awe of the castle and also the beautiful beaches of the island. Daphne and Astoria had had also decided to come along. Dylan slowly began to open up over the course of the holidays. He also seemed to trust Harry the most, sticking to him wherever they went. Harry and Dylan went shopping for clothes along with Elizabeth Greengrass and by the end of the trip, the boy couldn't stop stuttering his thanks. Dylan had also devoured all the books Harry had given him about magic.

All in all, the summer holidays were going quite well.

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

The Lord's study in Potter Castle was dim, with the lighting charms at minimum setting and a fire burning brightly in the fireplace.

Harry Potter was sitting at the centre of the room, on a luxurious carpet, in a meditative state. He was looking for the memories that had come to him when he was in the Chamber of Secrets. He dwelled into his mind and found a memory which he had trapped in his mind palace.

He was standing in a classroom with Professor Slughorn and hesitantly asked while trying to hide his excitement. "Sir, I was wondering what you know about ... Horcruxes?"

"Well," said Slughorn, not looking at him, but fiddling with the ribbon on top of his box of crystallised pineapple. "Well, it can't hurt to give you an overview, of course, just so that you understand the term. A Horcrux is the word used for an object in which a person has concealed part of their soul."

"Yes, sir," he said. "What I don't understand, though — just out of curiosity — I mean, would one Horcrux be much use? Can you only split your soul once? Wouldn't it be better, make you stronger, to have your soul in more pieces, I mean, for instance, isn't seven the most powerfully magical number, wouldn't seven –"

He looked at the small diary in front of him and many other ingredients which surrounded him. A glass of potion, which was pitch black was sitting on a table. He took it and drank the contents, and then pointed his wand at the diary and said the spell. Pain. It was more pain than he had ever imagined! Had something gone wrong? Just as he felt like he couldn't tolerate the pain anymore, it stopped. He opened his eyes to look at the diary, which was glowing. He smiled widely. He was just sixteen, but he had done it. He had finally created his first Horcrux!

His filthy Muggle father! How dare the man leave his mother and reject him before he was even born? The words of his father calling him and his mother unnatural freaks still echoed in his mind. The big black and gold ring lay in front of him. He drank the potion and pointed the wand at the ring. Pain. The ring glowed.

How stupid of the ghost, and she actually was the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw herself! While he immensely respected Rowena for her sheer intelligence, he couldn't help but be disgusted by her daughter. She had just handed over her mother's prized diadem to him, without question! He gazed at the artefact in front of him. He drank the potion and pointed the wand at it. Pain. The diadem glowed.

That stupid woman! How dare she insult his mother? Not that he cared about his weak mother, but it was the principle of the thing! And she possessed Salazar Slytherin's locket! It rightfully belonged to him, the descendant of Slytherin. He looked at the golden cup in front of him. Hufflepuff's chalice. He drank the potion and pointed the wand at it. Pain. The cup glowed.

What a worthless family. He had just eliminated the McKinnons for daring to stand up to him and his Death Eaters; they would serve as an example to others who wanted to rebel against him and also send a strong message to the Ministry of Magic and Albus Dumbledore. He looked at the locket in front of him – Salazar's locket. He eagerly drank the potion and pointed his wand at the locket. The pain was a lot lesser than before. The locket glowed.

Harry gasped as he opened his eyes, his heart thumping wildly. He went over to the Floo in his study and threw the powder into the polished granite fireplace. "Black Castle," he shouted as he was engulfed by the green flames.

HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP

The Black Library was truly a horrifying place to be in if you did not approve of dark magic.

The Blacks were perhaps the most notorious of all the families in Europe who dabbled in such magic or at least studied it. They did not go too deep and actually break the laws of magic, but they did insist on studying it all. They were a paranoid bunch as there was no telling when someone could use the most dangerous of magic against the family. And the Blacks had to prevail at all cost.

That's why there were books on Horcruxes in the secret library which was accessible only to the Head of House, deep inside Black Castle. Harry had searched the Potter library, but not one book even mentioned the word Horcrux. He wasn't too surprised though. The Potters had their fair share of books on dark magic in their library, but Horcruxes were a taboo subject around the world; even dark wizards suppressed all knowledge of it as they knew of the consequences of splitting one's soul, but of course, Voldemort never did anything halfway – or ever listened to others.

"I can't believe the fool actually created one," said Sirius grimly. "According to Scorpius Black III, creating a Horcrux goes against the sacred laws of Magic. Tearing your soul is something that shouldn't be done. To think Voldemort created one at the age of sixteen is horrifying."

"It says here that a Horcrux can only be destroyed by something which is so destructive that it can't repair itself," said Amelia.

"Basilisk venom worked against the diary," Harry interrupted. "What else?"

"According to Virgo Black, Fiendfyre and the Killing Curse work too," said Sirius.

"I can perform the Killing Curse, but not Fiendfyre," Harry shrugged. "What?" he asked defensively when he caught them staring at him.

Sirius pursed his lips, giving him a penetrating look. "We'll talk about that later," he said quietly. "Virgo Black managed to split the soul of a rabbit and contain it in a metal jar; though how he did it is beyond me. He used the Killing Curse on it which worked. The curse itself works on the soul, so it is effective. Horcruxes are meant to be heavily protected and very, very few people can effectively perform the Killing Curse. Even amongst the Death Eaters, not all of them could cast it. I know I can't."

"Neither can I," admitted Amelia. "Any idea of how you were able to access Voldemort's memories?"

"Grandfather Alfred said something about a possession by Voldemort which was lodged in my scar. It was removed and destroyed by my house-elves when I was seven."

"Possession?" asked Sirius suspiciously. "No, that doesn't add up. I'll look into it."

"In the meantime, I'll see if I can access more of those memories."