Crack!

Harry fell out of bed in shock as Dobby reappeared before him. Mumbling, Harry picked himself up from the floor and put his glasses back on.

"Dobby is so sorry, Harry Potter!" Dobby exclaimed, his eyes wide. "It was not his intention to surprise you, sir."

"Never mind that. Did you find Ron and Hermione?" Harry wanted to know.

"Yes, sir! They were exactly where you have told Dobby they would be. Dobby has delivered them your message and now has a message for Harry Potter from his friends," Dobby answered.

"Brilliant! What is it?"

"Harry Potter's friends want to let him know that they are safe and that they will come for him as soon as possible."

Harry felt as if a huge weight has been lifted. His friends were coming, he was going to be freed. Just as he processed this happy thought, a flash of pain seared across his scar. Harry clutched it and it went away as fast as it came. He gingerly put his hand down and found Dobby watching him worriedly.

"What is wrong, Harry Potter?" Dobby asked.

"It's so weird," Harry replied shakily. "That only happens in specific rooms: here and the office below. The pain is stronger when I'm somewhere specific in the room too."

"Where does it hurt most in this room, sir?" Dobby inquired.

"Over there," Harry said, pointing at the dresser. Dobby approached it and began to search about. Then, not without difficulty, he pushed the dresser away from the wall and gasped.

"Harry Potter!" Dobby squeaked excitedly. "Look at what Dobby has found!"

Harry joined him and it was his turn to gasp. Hanging off the wall behind the dresser was Salazar Slytherin's locket. Harry couldn't believe his eyes.

"I-I can't believe this," Harry said softly, taking the locket.

"Doesn't your scar hurt, sir?" Dobby asked.

"A little," Harry replied truthfully. "But this – this feels like I'm familiar with the content of this locket."

"What is in it?"

"You don't want to know."

Dobby nodded and began to push the dresser back in its place. Harry put the locket around his neck and under his pyjamas before helping Dobby. As they pushed against the heavy piece of furniture, Harry felt as if there was a small pulse beating along with his own heart where the locket laid against his skin. He shuddered at the thought of it was like to have a miniature Voldemort hanging off his neck.

The dresser back in place, the Chosen One sat on his bed, thinking hard. He now had one Horcrux with no means to destroy it. Harry did not know what kind of substances was powerful enough to assure the destruction of a Horcrux let alone how to get his hands on some. All he was certain of was that, as Hermione had once said, no normal means of destruction will suffice.

"Can Dobby do anything else for Harry Potter?" Dobby asked quietly.

"Just let Ron and Hermione know that I've found the locket," Harry replied absent-mindly. "But do it tomorrow; get some sleep."

"Yes, sir," Dobby said, bowing, as Harry climbed back into bed. With another loud crack! the house-elf was gone. Harry took his glasses off and lay down, not bothering to remove the locket.

Snape sat up abruptly in his bed. How many nightly visits did Potter have? Dumbledore had warned Snape that that house-elf would be making nightly appearances and that Snape must act as if he was unaware of their plan. The former Potions master had grudgingly complied.

He got out of bed and went out on the balcony. The night was slightly cool, signalling the end of the summer. The stars twinkled in the sky but, as Snape looked out into the distance, they only seemed to shine above the castle and its grounds. The Dark Lord had ordered the Dementors to remain outside the grounds and he had also told them that they could only enter on Snape's command or the consequences would be severe. Snape was still unnerved at the idea of having an army of the foulest creatures on earth at his disposal.

The lights were still on in Hagrid's hut, making Snape wonder why Hagrid was still awake at this hour. A small black figure was wandering around the grounds and Snape strongly suspected that it was either Alecto or Amycus Carrow going to extreme lengths to catch students putting a toe out of line. Snape hoped that all students were in bed for their own sake.

Returning inside, Snape decided to see whether Potter still had a house-elf in his room (for all Snape knew since he was asleep, the cracking sound could have meant someone Apparating or Dispparating plus he was mildly curious about Potter's plans to destroy the Dark Lord). Snape walked all the way to the boy's room and peeked inside, seeing no occupants but Potter himself. Snape let the door slowly swing open, a sense of foreboding taking over. He knew that this was not panic; it was his instincts alerting him. He crept inside, his eyes darting from one end of the room to the next. His eyes fell on Potter, who was clearly rendered deaf with sleep. It couldn't be him again, could it? Snape could not help but feel that it was.

He approached Potter and was quick to notice that the boy's breathing was rather shallow. A sheen of sweat was visible underneath his fringe as it stuck to his forehead. Worried, Snape lightly touched Potter's cheek and was surprised to find the boy feeling clammy. As he wondered what could be possibly causing this (Potter had been fine about two hours ago), Snape caught the sight of something gold glimmering in the moonlight around Potter's neck. Snape squinted through the darkness and recognized the chain from Salazar Slytherin's locket.

Idiot boy! Snape thought angrily. What on earth were you thinking, wearing a piece of the Dark Lord's soul? I'm surprised it hasn't sprung to life and strangled you.

Snape felt around the chain but found no clasp. Swearing slightly under his breath, he gently lifted the chain over Potter's head and pulled the locket away. The effect was immediate: Potter's breathing eased and the bit of color that was missing returned. Snape clutched the locket and felt a small pulse emanating from it. Disgusted, he placed it on the table next to Potter's glasses.

Don't do anything as idiotic as that again, Snape thought. But knowing Potter, he was most likely to repeat his actions. Snape was tempted to fetch the sword of Gryffindor and dispose of the Horcrux himself. But, since Dumbledore had a very specific plan, Snape had to wait for Potter to discover the precious weapon on his own.

One Horcrux found, three to go! Let's destroy them ASAP!