Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this chapter.
Chapter 7
WARNING UNHEEDED
There he was again, ripped from his body, less than spirit, less than the meanest ghost. He had indeed, never expected Harry Potter to stand up to him so bravely. Again, it was mere chance, Potter had survived again, and more than that, people all over the world thought that he, the greatest of them all, the greatest wizard ever to set foot on Earth, was finally dead. But they were wrong, and how wrong they were, they would know when the time came, which was not very far from now. For the second time in his life, he had felt that terrible pain, of being ripped from his body, seven years ago. It was pain beyond endurance; he had never thought that he would feel it again, ever, after he had come back for the brief period of four years. He had misjudged the boy's abilities, and though he had never underestimated the old muggle-loving fool, he had to admit that he had never imagined that Dumbledore would ever find out about his horcruxes. But Dumbledore had found that out, and even guessed what his horcruxes might be, and passed on the knowledge to the boy. But the boy was mistaken, Dumbledore was mistaken; Voldemort had always wanted to have seven horcruxes, but before his first downfall, he had had only six. He had wanted to make his seventh and final one with the killing of Harry Potter, the boy who was supposed to have the power to vanquish him. But he had failed, made a mistake, and had overseen the magical protection his mother had given him by her foolish sacrifice. The ancient magic rebound the curse he had cast on the boy, and he had become what he was now.
When he returned, again, he wanted to create his seventh horcrux by killing the boy. He had again failed, but then it had been the twin cores that had saved the boy. Then again he had tried a year later, but Dumbledore had saved the boy from his clutches. Then he had finally decided that it was better to create the horcrux first, and he personally killed Amelia Susan Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and created his seventh and final horcrux; or at least he had thought he had created his seventh horcrux.
He had learnt that he was wrong nearly two years later when Potter had come willingly to die. But had he wanted to sacrifice himself for the others as a sole reason, he would have come at the beginning itself. Then whyhadn't he come earlier? When he rethought about this after his assumed death, he found out only one reason: Potter was a horcrux. That was the reason Potter could speak Parseltongue, and that was why he had a direct connection with his mind, something thousands would die for. He had thought about this earlier before his second downfall, but it hadn't appealed to him as a probable theory. But now he knew, and accepted the fact that indeed, a part of hissoul, had been inside the boy. Potter had managed to destroy his horcruxes, all but one, the one he thought was his seventh, but the one which actually was his eighth.That horcrux had survived, for he knew for himself that it was the only one of which he had never checked the existence before the battle. While he had come to know of the thievery of one of his horcruxes, he had wanted to check if the others were safe. While he was thinking about them, he felt an intrusion into his mind, which he was sure, was by Potter. He had thought of all his horcruxes but one, and suddenly changed his thoughts to warning Severus on feeling the intrusion. So Potter had never known of his eighth horcrux, now his only one, before trying to kill him. Indeed, again, hehad made a mistake. He had killed Severus on the lines of thought that by killing its previous owner, one could become the Elder Wand's true master. But no, it was about taking the wand against the will of its owner, as Potter had said. Potter had, indeed, got some things right which hehad got wrong. So when he had cast the curse upon Potter, for the second time in his life, the killing curse had rebounded on him and he was left to become what was a form which no human knew about, which no human had practically experienced, other than he himself. He would not return to the world when all of it had just ended, he would wait like before, alone, for years until the world had calmed down from its last war. Though hissoul was gone from the boy's body, the remnants of their connection would remain, for it was Dark Magic. Harry Potter was a horcrux no more, but till he had the scar that was symbol of both hislife (as the horcrux) and destruction (as people thought about it), the connection between them would remain, though not as strong as before.
He had controlled his emotions strongly this time, for he didn't want anyone to realise that he was not dead. For if he should show his emotions again, Potter would realise that his scar hurt and the only reason for it: Lord Voldemort was not yet gone. This time, when he would return, it would be kept more silent than ever, and he would only start his reign of terror after killing the boy, who had irked him too often, and given him years of pain and trouble. The boy would be his first aim; but it would take some time before he returned; he would wait for another three or four years. Then, yes, he would go find one of his faithful servants who was still alive and out of Azkaban, and would return to a bodily form. And then, yes (though he had no lips, he could feel that cold smile curving his lips, the one that was symbol of his strong sense of purpose in destruction), he would begin a reign of terror the likes of which the world had never, ever seen.
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Harry Potter woke up in his house in the village of Godric's Hollow to find that his scar was prickling slightly. Could it be? he thought. This was the first time his scar had prickled in seven years, during which he had already married Ginny Weasley and had a one-year-old baby named James. But no, he thought, Voldemort couldn't be back again. He had seen him fall before his own eyes. How could he still be alive? Only if he had more horcruxes, he thought. But hadn't he, Ron and Hermione (who too were now married and were expecting a baby in three more months) made sure that they had destroyed all the horcruxes?
He finally decided that it was just some normal itching. And he wouldn't tell anyone either, for they would surely think he was trying to get famous by spreading a stupid rumour, for so many had seen Voldemort fall before their own eyes. Maybe Ron, Hermione and Ginny may understand, but wouldn't they think he had gone insane?
No, he said to himself. Voldemort is dead, and he will not return, he cannot return. But the fact was, he couldn't just digest the alternative.
And then he was ultimately relieved when he remembered that Voldemort's part of soul inside him was gone, and so, he thought, should be their connection. Then how could he even know if Voldemort was still alive? This thought led him to think that it was only some itching. He never realized how important his scar's prickling could be.
Harry Potter had lost what would have been more time for the world to prepare to fight, when Lord Voldemort rose again. His lack of a better intelligence would cost the world more than ever before.
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Thank you all for reviewing! Here's your answer for whether Harry would come into the show. So will Voldemort, but later. Sorry for the short chapter, anyway. Keep reviewing!