Chapter 23: The Locket
"R.A.B?" Hermione reads from the plaque. "Who is that?"
"Regulus Arcturus Black. Sirius' brother." I supply as we enter the room. "Sorted into Slytherin like the rest of 'em."
"So Sirius was the black sheep?" She asks.
"They were all Black sheep, Sirius was the only Black to be sorted into Gryffindor, or so he says." I explain. "He doesn't talk about him much. Sirius wanted to keep him away from their parents' influence, but he couldn't stop the path he was walking. Joined up as a death eater." The room is in perfect condition, no dust or mould in sight. A single 'Wimbourne Wasps' poster is on the wall by the window. Above the desk is a cork board loaded with clippings from the Daily Prophet, the theme is very apparent – Voldemort.
"Mum said he was always a bit weird. Spose this is what a Death Eater's room looks like." Tonks leans in to inspect the clippings.
"Looks like his closest friend was the house elf." I say, crouching down, much like Regulus did many times, to watch the interaction. "He looks stressed, the elf looks sick and frail." I turn my head and frown. "But he didn't always look like that … It's like he aged a hundred years in one night..."
"Kreacher." Regulus' apparitions' voice shakes. "Whatever happens, you must destroy the locket." He stresses.
"Kreacher not bes understand." Kreacher croaks as he accepts the locket.
"Kreacher, my old friend." Regulus smiles and lays a hand on the tiny shoulder. "You've always been there for me, and when I needed you most tonight, you came." He withdraws and stands up again. "I need to go now, do not follow me this time … Remember what I've asked you to do." Kreacher nods and grips the locket. The locket. It's … the locket.
"Oh my god." I mutter. Salazar's locket. "Kreacher." I call out. The old elf appears in front of me.
"Filthy half-blood calls for Kreacher?"
"Kreacher." I stare at him. "Regulus. He asked you to do something before he left."
"How does-"
"Please, Kreacher. Tell me if you've done it."
"Harry? What's going on?" Tonks asks. Kreacher's lip starts to shake.
"Kreacher could not. Kreacher tried to burn it, crush it, but no! Kreacher has failed Master Regulus! The Noble House of Black!"
"Kreacher." I put my hand on his shoulder. "Do you still have it?"
"Why does you want it?"
"Kreacher, Maybe Regulus didn't mean for you directly to destroy it, but to facilitate in it's destruction to the best of your abilities, then you wouldn't have failed, right?" I reason.
"Half-blood can destroy the locket? I nod. He looks torn, and twists on the spot vanishing.
"Harry?" I look up at Tonks.
"I can't explain everything right now, but this has to do with Voldemort." I straighten up. "He … He isn't dead, not yet, not completely. I need to …-" Kreacher returns, carefully holding the locket. I lower down to his level again. He says nothing as he extends his hands towards me, I take the locket.
Horcrux. Herman Matthews, a tramp, was used on July 16th 1946. Originally Salazar Slytherin's locket, purchased from a jeweller in Wales and enchanted to hold magic within. If worn by somebody that isn't attuned to receive from it, the locket will drain from that person. A side effect. This drain seems to have been corrupted by Tom and it nearly drove Regulus insane before he figured out what it was doing to him. It really wants me to wear it, so it can create it's offence.
"I'll explain everything when the time is right." I say, kissing Tonks' cheek and hugging Hermione. "Thanks, Kreacher!" I call as I run out the door and quickly descend the stairs.
"Harry?" Sirius almost spills his drink as I run past him. "What's the rush?" I head to the floo.
"I need to see Albus, right now." I say distractedly. I grab a handful of floo powder. "Hogwarts, Headmaster's office." The fire goes green. Hopefully he hasn't got company, or changed who can enter his office at any time. I duck into the fire.
"Ah, Harry. What an unexpected surprise." Albus watches me as I stand up. He's behind his desk doing paperwork. I slap the locket onto the wood.
"It's a horcrux. One of Toms." I rub my hands on my jeans, trying to rid my hands of the filth. "He killed a tramp in 1946, used his blood for the ritual." I close my eyes. "He hid it in a cave. Regulus found it and tried to destroy it but he couldn't. It need parseltongue to open it. It was Salazar's." I open my eyes again. "His house elf, his best friend, being mistreated and almost killed by Tom. That was what it took to turn him against his Master."
"How did this come into your possession?" Albus asks after inspecting the locket for a while.
"It started with a room full of sexy policewomen..."
"And you do not wish to destroy it?" Albus asks me after my explanation as we walk through the castle
"I want to destroy the soul, or facilitate in it's destruction. But the locket? Well … you don't just find unique and stupendously powerful artifacts everyday." I rub my scar, which has been steadily giving me a headache.
"What do you propose?"
"I think I can reverse engineer the process he used on his diary to un-make the locket horcrux, or at the very least transfer it into something we can destroy." I inspect the locket closely, turning it in my hands as we walk. "Salazar had a few books that he recorded the process he used to create the enchantments upon the locket. With time I might be able to duplicate it, but the planets would have to align, quite literally, to replicate the actual creation. With the knowledge of Toms creation of the diary and knowing exactly how magic transfers to and from the locket, I should be able to exorcise it."
"How did Tom know that the soul fragment would take to the locket?"
"He read the books too, otherwise his soul would have just bounced straight off. It's a tricky process to transfer magic into it." We enter the abandoned girls toilets. "Evenin' Myrtle." I call out as we cross to the taps. She is a bit scared of Albus. "Open up." I hiss. The sink raises upwards, dropping the ever present dust onto the floor as the steps appear. We descend into the Chamber in silence.
"Tables?" Albus frowns as he looks around the cavern.
"Oh, I kinda use this place a lot." I say sheepishly. The various chairs and sofas are by the edge of the ley line convergence point. Books lines the shelves I've moved from Salazar's study. I set the locket down on the table as I slide the loose parchment around, or rather touch as many pieces as I can.
"Is this the basilisk's venom?" I look over my shoulder. Albus is standing by the set of shelves I've dedicated, or wish to dedicate, to the basilisk. The teeth and venom are all I've gotten round to removing thus far.
"I'm going to rend it down. It will take a while, but I think I can learn a lot about it's biology by doing so."
"Is there any way I can assist you?" He asks, now watching from beside me.
"I'm kind of freaking out a bit, truth be told." I laugh nervously. "How have you been since term ended?"
"Minor meetings to prepare for the tournament this year." He sighs. "I believe Cornelius is coming around where the age restriction is concerned. It is not just his decision, after all, there are other players in the game who hold the same sway."
"Fun." I say, picking the locket up again. "I think I can do this." I walk into the centre of the circle. "Er, best if you stay back." Positioning myself above the ley lines can allow me to fuel the process in case the horcrux fights back and push comes to shove, I'd prefer to have the Earth on my side. I also need to make sure that the locket doesn't pull from the ley lines to fight me. I take a steadying breath and draw my wand. "Open." The locket clicks open in my hand. The first shock is like a bolt of lightning running up my arm, straight to my head, like somebody has taken a cricket bat and cracked my skull open. I fall to my knees a second later. The horcrux tries to spring it's trap from the locket, but I instruct the locket's enchantments to not let any magic in or out, for now it is stable.
"Harry?" Albus looks like he is ready to jump to my aid. "Are you alright?"
"It's contained, for now. Both the locket and the soul are exposed now that it's open." I rub my forehead with the ball of my hand. "I can sort of … pull one out."
"The soul?" He calls out.
"Albus, what do you think happens if you have a soul flake floating around?" The memories of my encounter with Quirrell float to the surface. "I don't want two loose ends if Quirrell was another fragment." It would be so much easier to just destroy the locket. This is all very dramatic. "OK, I'm going to go for it."
Destroying the locket will be easier, I could always take the original enchantments off of it ... And put them onto my ring ... My mouth twists into a smile as I place the tip of my wand inside the locket, ignoring the constant thumping in my skull. A sound like creaking metal bounces around the chamber as the enchantments peel away from the locket. I have no delusions that if I were attempting this to anything but this locket in this exact location, it would not work. The properties allow the enchantments to be take off much like it would with any other magic. A golden orb of magic forms at the end of my wand and slowly inches it's way towards my hand. I clench my teeth as the burning hot orb reaches my hand and screw my eyes shut as the sizzling noise reaches my ears whilst the enchantments set onto my ring. I snap the locket shut, throwing it with as much force as I can muster. I quickly let my wand go back into it's holster and slip the burning hot ring off my finger. Albus rushes to my side.
"Did it work?" I nod weakly as I nurse my burnt hand.
"Just drop the damned locket in one of the venom tubs." He stands up again. Note to self – Do not move mythical enchantments across bare skin. I loud screeching noise signals the death of the horcrux. I slap the palm of my good hand to my forehead as the pain bites at me.
"We need to have a long discussion whilst Poppy repairs your hand." I nod and retrieve my ring from the floor. The new additions have completely set in and the mithril is now cool to touch. Despite the pain, horcrux and insanity of what I just did, I can't keep the grin off my face. I've got a new toy.
"So the build up was for nothing?" Hermione asks as we sit in Grimmauld Place's kitchen. "Because you destroyed the locket anyway?" I'd bent the truth slightly when I told Tonks, Hermione and Sirius about the locket. I said that if it wasn't destroyed, Voldemort would be far more dangerous when he returns, which they all agreed was inevitable.
"I wouldn't say it was for nothing, I just changed tactics halfway through." I tip back on two chair legs. "Makes a much better story with all the dramatics." I laugh as Hermione rolls her eyes.
"So you nicked the enchantments from the locket?" Tonks asks sceptically.
"Which should be impossible." Sirius adds, taking another drink from his tumbler.
"If the enchantments are for moving magic, then it's a more possible type of impossible." I explain.
"So could you put even more over the top of those?" Tonks asks.
"What d'ya mean?"
"Like … load on more than one set of enchantments, Like a library of them or something?" I blink a couple of times.
"There would be limitations." I say slowly. "But I don't see why it couldn't hang onto more than 2 or 3." I raise my butter beer to my lips and smile. I've always liked Albus' shield ring.
A/N: The ring now has the functionality of what i'd written Slytherin's locket to do, on top of being Harry's alchemical catalyst. Unfortunately it is still just a single object, albeit a powerful one, it isn't going to become an alternative for a philosophers stone.
This could have been merged with chapter 22, but i like to keep them at around this length. Enjoy!