The Diadem, the Locket and Voldemort
"Did you call us, Professor McGonagall?" The Grey Lady asked as she and the Bloody Baron arrived at her office (Dumbledore's former office but it's technically now hers since she became Acting Headmistress).
"In fact I did." McGonagall answered. "Do any of you know any reason to believe a former student named Tom Riddle might know the location of Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem?"
The Grey Lady lowered her head in shame. "I told him where to find my Mother's old diadem."
"Your Mother?" Ron asked in surprise.
"It's in History of Magic, Ronald." Hermione replied, exasperated. "The Grey Lady is Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter Helena Ravenclaw."
"It's good to know some students still value reading about Hogwarts' history." The Grey Lady commented.
"Thank you, Ms. Ravenclaw." Hermione replied.
"You're welcome." The Grey Lady said. "But why the sudden interest on knowing about Tom Riddle and my Mother's diadem?"
"We have a reason to believe he might have turned it into a Horcrux." Professor McGonagall explained.
Helena Ravenclaw obviously felt outraged because of this. "He did WHAT? I thought the young scoundrel was just using me to find a way to become smarter! How dare he turn my Mother's diadem into a Horcrux? Are you sure he did it?"
"We know he desired to turn relics from the founders of Hogwarts into Horcruxes." McGonagall explained. "We believe he did the same to Salazar Slytherin's locket, which we're already following a clue to; Helga Hufflepuff's cup, which we still have no clue to its whereabouts; and your Mother's diadem."
"I've hidden the diadem at an Albanian forest and told Tom Riddle about this." Helena explained. "But I don't know if he took it somewhere else or not."
"That was probably the same forest Tom was hidden while he didn't have a body." Portrait Dumbledore says. "We'd know if the diadem was still hidden there."
"Professor Dumbledore, remember when he applied for the Defense job and you turned him down?" Harry asked, surprising Professor Snape, who didn't know Voldemort tried to teach at Hogwarts.
"Yes, Harry."
"Professor, do you remember if Riddle had any access to the seventh floor that day?"
"I think so, Harry." Dumbledore answered. "Why do you ask?"
"Because Riddle might have known about the Room of Requirement and hidden a Horcrux there."
"I presume you're talking about a mysterious room where I found some chamber pots and that I never found again." Dumbledore commented. "I'd have known if Tom hid any Horcrux among them."
"If Tom Riddle ever hid a Horcrux there, it'll only appear to people needing the same thing he needed when he entered there to hide the Horcrux." Harry explained.
"Well, if you really want to find something hidden there, I know just exactly what you need to have it appear." Snape commented. They then went to the Room of Requirement needing a place to hide stuff and Harry recognized the stuff there as the stuff he saw when he hid the Half-Blood Prince's book.
"How will we find the diadem among this stuff?" Ron asked. "I don't even know what a diadem is."
"My Mother's diadem is a tiara with a cross at the top." Helena replies, angry at Ron's lack of knowledge.
Upon hearing this, Harry quickly remembered seeing a tiara like that on the bust he placed above the Half-Blood Prince's book when he hid it. To everyone's surprise, Harry soon finds the diadem.
"How did you know where it was, Potter?" Snape asked, already suspecting it had something to do with his old book.
"It doesn't matter now." McGonagall replied, stabbing the diadem with Gryffindor's sword. The diadem's yell left no doubts: the diadem was a Horcrux.
After the two ghosts returned to whatever they were doing when McGonagall called for them, the Golden Trio, McGonagall, Moody, Lupin and Snape returned to her office. "Professor Snape, any ideas on how to get through Nagini and find the Cup?"
"I have an idea but it's too risky." He answered.
"What's it?" McGonagall asked.
"If I tell the Dark Lord that Dumbledore found out about his Horcruxes, he'll want to check all his hiding spots and then Potter might learn about them via their connection to each other."
"You just want an excuse to warn your Lord and still pose as a Light Wizard, Snape." Moody accused.
"If you have a better idea, Alastor, I'm all ears." McGonagall sternly replied. Moody just grunted in response.
"Then it's all settled." McGonagall said. "Severus, I agree with your plan and wish you good luck.
Snape then extracted some memories and put them inside a bottle. "Minerva, if I die, please give these memories to Potter."
"Yes, Severus."
"Severus." Dumbledore called him. "I'm afraid it'll come the time Voldemort might try to kill Draco. Please watch out for him."
"Malfoy kills you and you still care about him?" Ron asked, completely shocked.
"I have my reasons, Mr. Weasley." It's all Dumbledore had to say.
Snape then left. Soon after, Kreacher returned with Mundungus Fletcher and the locket. "Yes. Now I recognize it from Hokey's memory."
"Then open it, Harry." Dumbledore asked.
"What?" McGonagall replied in shock.
"The Horcrux inside it cannot be destroyed unless the locket is open and it cannot be opened unless ordered so in Parseltongue." Dumbledore explained and Harry then hissed something that opened the locket, allowing Professor McGonagall to destroy the Horcrux.
Meanwhile, at Malfoy Manor, Voldemort and his Death Eaters (including a recently rescued Lucius Malfoy) were celebrating Draco Malfoy's murder of Albus Dumbledore. "Bellatrix, you should teach your nephew all you know." Voldemort commented. "He'll make a better Death Eater than his father."
"As you command, My Lord." Bellatrix replied.
Lucius Malfoy doesn't know if he should feel proud of or worried about his son. Sure, he liked the feeling of being Voldemort's right-hand-man and was happy that Dumbledore's death meant one step closer to having Pureblood supremacy on the Wizarding World but he couldn't help but notice how much the pressure was affecting Draco. However, before he had more time to think about this, the party was interrupted by Snape's sudden presence.
"You're late, S-s-severus." Voldemort said.
"My Lord, I must warn you of something." Snape replied. "In private."
"Whatever you have to say can be said in front of them." He pointed at the Malfoys and the Lestranges. "They're trustworthy."
"It's about your experiment to achieve immortality." Snape said.
"GET OUT!" Voldemort yelled at the other Death Eaters. "ALL OF YOU!"
What do you think about this fic so far? My only disappointment at this chapter is the fact I could find a way to give any relevance to the Bloody Baron's appearance. Please review.