Magic On Strike
It was kind of scary three days ago, Harry blacked out after telling Severus that something was wrong in accompaniment to putting a hand on his scar. Everyone was worried when Harry just dropped, but thankfully, Draco had been behind him and made sure he didn't hit hard, then Severus got help from Remus to lay Harry on the couch. The only other time Harry passed out had been after using the patronus charm when there wasn't any magic. There were multiple attempts to wake the teenager, but nothing worked. Hermione and Ron had informed that Harry was holding his scar, and in the past, that had always meant danger was coming and that danger was typically Voldemort. Given Tom was no longer a threat, Tom and Severus both deduced that perhaps something was going on with the horcrux. Tom did apologize to Lily and James, they both forgave him and it was clear Tom felt bad about what happened, especially after seeing how Harry didn't want to let go of the Resurrection Stone. It was thanks to Lily that Harry did, and then Harry destroyed not just the stone, but the Elder Wand, and also the Invisibility Cloak; saying they were too powerful to be kept together and in their world. And Harry was right, what problems would it cause if people knew the truth, it was better to just get rid of it and remove the possibility of anyone finding out and starting a battle. There was finally peace, Harry was trying to keep it.
It did come out that the horcrux was involved because just after Harry was placed on the couch, his scar started to glow red, then white as a very tiny ball of light came out before it floated towards Tom and entered his body. Now, Tom didn't have any real adverse reactions to part of his soul returning, but he did admit to feeling strange to have it back. At the same time, the horcrux in Harry wasn't the only one that returned to Tom's body. In fact, the one in Nagini appeared before Harry's did, then it was the one from the tiara piece, and the golden chalice, then finally, the ring. Five pieces returned to Tom, and aside from the feeling of being complete; the man's appearance changed; he looked about forty years old with his dashing good looks that had been mentioned. For Harry, he remained unconscious all this time, and it was now the 24th of March. Harry was kept on the couch, watched over by Severus mostly, who took shifts with Remus, Draco, and Tom. Hermione and Ron would pop over once a day to check in on Harry's status, also to bring updates to the rest of the Weasley family and Severus didn't mind; he knew the Weasley's saw Harry as family too.
"Should we take him to St. Mungo's?" Draco asked his godfather.
"They're not going to be able to do anything more than I have already tried, Draco." Severus told him. "They'd try potions and spells that I already did. I might be a potions master, but to earn that, you have to take basic medi-wizardry courses."
"I find it odd that nothing happened to Nagini when my soul inside her came out. She didn't report feeling anything," Tom remarked.
Harry stared to move and groan. "Harry!?" Severus got closer to his son, leaning over him as Harry's finally opened his eyes.
Harry blinked a couple times, then he managed a smile to his father. "Hi, Dad…"
"Oh, thank Merlin…" Severus sighed. "Are you alright?"
"I…Think so?" Harry replied as he forced himself to sit up, getting help from Draco.
"Scared us, mate," Ron said.
"You've been out for days." Hermione added.
"Days?" Harry asked. "I was napping, on the couch apparently."
"No, Harry…You weren't." Draco frowned. "What's the last thing you remember?"
"Destroying the Hallows, then a bad headache. Maybe closer to a migraine," Harry replied. "Why?"
"Well, you…Were holding your scar, and told Severus you didn't feel right. Then you blacked out…Harry, you've been unconscious for three days. You knocked out on the 21st, it's the 24th." Remus mentioned.
"Huh…Guess I was tired. I haven't slept that good in ages." Harry shrugged. "Why did I blackout? My scar hurting usually only ever meant Tom was close by. Guess that reactivated with magic back."
"You scar was hurting because that's where the piece of Tom's soul was." Severus said. "After you passed out, his soul emerged from your scar. Well, the piece of it."
"All his soul pieces have reformed. Nagini's came out, yours did, so did the other three objects." Lucius stated.
"That's only five. There was supposed to be six left, why didn't the last one reform too?" Harry inquired. "You look different, Tom. Was this a result of gaining back the pieces?"
"Yes, actually. As for the question of why only five returned, that might be something to do with the fact I can't find the last one." Tom remarked. "All the others were where I left them, but one had been tampered with and taken. A fake was in its place. The cave one, I had turned Salazar Slytherin's locket into one. I hid it in a cave with multiple protections. However, when I retrieved the object…The necklace there was a fake. Someone took the real one." He explained.
"Okay, what items did you use. Maybe we missed something?" Harry suggested.
"Harry, for the love of God…You just woke up after being out for three days. Would you take it easy, please?" Severus sighed.
"Dad, come on. We know I don't do easy." Harry reminded. "I'm okay. Just hungry, actually." He admitted.
"Then let's get you something to eat first. After that, we'll worry about my soul piece." Tom told Harry.
. . .
Given the fact it had been about lunch time, everyone enjoyed the meal together. Harry also got in a shower, and changing his clothes. Now, like always, they were seated around the living room again.
"I still don't understand how Harry even ended up a horcrux. I didn't do any of the steps I did with the others, so how?" Tom considered.
"Because you were already unstable as hell from making the others." Harry stated. "When you killed my mother, your soul split for the seventh time. However, when your own curse rebounded, it destroyed your body and the part that had split latched onto the only living thing in the room. Which was me, at the time. A new host, if you would." He explained. "You are the one who actually set in motion of the prophecy happening. Yes, it was made, as a possibility. It might not have ever happened if you hadn't decided to pursue the matter. If my dad hadn't told you, you never would have made it your mission to snuff out the child of that prophecy. There were two kids born at the end of July that year, Neville, and myself. You chose me, a half-blood, like yourself." He continued.
Harry paused. "The reason Dumbledore believed my part of fulfilling the prophecy is because, as he said, a part of you lived in me. And it was a part that only you would have been able to destroy by killing me. The reason Dumbledore wanted me to die to you is because my death would have provided the same sacrificial love protection my mother gave me. Mom died for me, and I would have died to protect everyone else. On that sacrifice, you wouldn't have been able to hurt anyone else. That was why he wanted me to sacrifice myself, to save everyone. And in doing that killing, you would have killed not just me, but your own piece of your soul. It would have made you mortal, anyone could have killed you. That's why Dumbledore was obsessed with the prophecy, you're the one who set it in motion, Tom. If you hadn't come after me, you would have contently had six horcruxes made."
"I was intending on making you one. Seven, is a magical number. However…I was going to use your death as an infant to make the seventh. I chose items with meaning to make as my containers, your death would have been the ultimate horcrux because I killed the boy prophesized to destroy me." Tom said.
"Regardless, what you did is why the prophecy says neither can live while the other survives. You would live as long as you had your horcruxes, and I would live with you as one of them, even if unintentional. You are the one who gave me the power to destroy you when you marked me as your equal. This scar, where your soul piece was. Doing what you did gave me that and so you gave me the power to end you, through what would have been my sacrifice to save everyone I care about." Harry told him. "You set the prophecy in motion when you came after me."
"Well…Shit. I guess I did screw that one up." Tom blinked.
"But the prophecy was destroyed end of last year. I smashed it, so you wouldn't ever know the rest of it. Sirius told me about something you wanted what you didn't have last time. You didn't know the whole prophecy, and you lured me to the ministry to get it for you. I destroyed it, prophecy is no longer there or recorded. Right after that, we ended up with a magic ban that lasted nine months. Nine months where we all got to live the same way and everyone got to learn about one another. You learned how to love and you saw the power that holds. You saw what your quest for power did to me, and you saw me in yourself. You saw the signs of me finally letting out that hurt, anger…The darkness take hold. All you had wanted when you were young was someone to stop you. And you got to see through me what your life would have been like if someone had. When you saw me going down your road, you stopped it. I saved you. You saved me. That was powerful, enough that us teaming up to protect our families, the people we care about, brought magic back."
"Huh, never thought about it like that." Tom remarked.
"Fantastic, now…How are we finding this last horcrux?" Bellatrix wondered.
"You said you used Salazar Slytherin's locket as one, but when you got it from the hiding place, you realized it was fake?" Harry asked.
"Yes. It has no dark energy on it like the others did." Tom nodded.
"Do you have the fake one?" Harry questioned. Tom pulled it out and gave it to Harry; he looked it over and inspected it before locating his pocket knife and prying the locket apart until it opened fully. "There's a note in here…Says that this person took your real horcrux and hidden it. Someone who knew clearly knew what these were and knew they had to be destroyed to kill you." Harry stated. "R.A.B…Why is that familiar? Did you have a Death Eater with those initials?"
"I might have, but there's been many over the years, Harry. I couldn't pinpoint exactly who. Plenty died during the first war." Tom admitted. "You said it was familiar?"
"Feels it. I've seen a name with those initials before, but I can't pin where…" Harry glanced down at his ring and saw the coat of arms for the Black family. "Wait a minute…" He paused. "Dobby!" The elf popped into the room.
"Master has called Dobby?" The elf asked.
"Can you take me to Headquarters?" Harry asked.
"Why can't you get there without him?" Hermione asked.
"Why are you even going there? You said you wouldn't, not after Sirius died." Ron reminded.
"I can't legally apparate yet, Hermione. Nor take out my broom. And I know what I said, but I can't avoid the place forever. I'll be right back." Harry stood up as Dobby took his hand and they were gone.
"Is anyone else as confused as I?" Draco wondered as a few people put their hands up. "Why didn't he just as one of the adults who can apparate to take him?"
"When Sirius died, the house went into lockdown and no one can get to it but Harry as the owner. And he's Lord Black, so only he can unlock it." Severus stated.
"But I thought Dumbledore was…Secret Keeper?" Ron asked.
"Not when the house goes under new ownership. Everything resets, therefore now…Harry's the secret keeper. Even if we know the location from the past, without Harry taking the house out of lockdown mode and specifically telling us we can go there, as if being retold the secret; we can't get there anymore. Dobby can get there because he's bonded to Harry." Severus stated.
"Oooh. I didn't know the spell worked that way." Hermione stated.
"Does Harry know that?" Ron wondered.
"He must if he knew to go there." Remus shrugged.
Harry returned five minutes later with Dobby. "Find what you were looking for?" Severus asked.
"I got my answer." Harry informed. "R.A.B stands for Regulus Arcturus Black. Sirius's brother."
"Wonderful, Harry…Now how did you figure that out?" Tom inquired.
"It's on the Black Family Tree in Sirius's house. I knew I'd seen it before…Over a year ago now, when Sirius showed me," Harry stated.
"Regulus was one of my Death Eaters, joined young, about seventeen or eighteen. When I hid the locket, I asked Regulus if I could borrow his elf to test the defenses I put around the locket…I left the elf there and he escaped with his elf magic. I do not know what happened to Regulus, unfortunately. He was one who escaped me." Tom stated.
"The tree says that Regulus died in 1979…That means his elf is the only one who knows what probably happened. The note in the locket says that he stole your real horcrux and intended to destroy it, says he is facing death in hopes that when you meet your match, you'd be mortal again." Harry said.
"Okay, so if Regulus is dead…Who is his elf?" Bellatrix questioned.
"Kreacher!" Harry called. Another pop as an old, grumpy looking elf appeared.
"Master has called for Kreacher…" The elf said.
"Pleasant as always, Kreacher. Nice to see you again," Harry drawled. "I've been told that Voldemort asked you to test the defenses around a certain object in a cave years ago, but he left you there to die. You escaped…What happened to Regulus?"
"Master Regulus told Kreacher to bring him to the cave and Kreacher obeyed. Kreacher took Master through the defenses, and was told to take whatever was there away. Master drank the horrid drink. Kreacher offered, but Master forbade it. Kreacher had to force Master to drink it when it became too much. Master was dragged into the lake and never came back. Master had told Kreacher that if something happened to him, swap the locket and leave him there, not tell his family what happened. Kreacher could not save him, but Kreacher did what Master asked and took the object away." The elf explained.
Harry took the locket from Tom now and held it up as Kreacher instantly cowered away from the object. "Was this the object Regulus told you to take away from the cave?" Kreacher nodded.
"Kreacher tried and tried but could not destroy it as Master asked him to." Kreacher said.
"But there were two of these, weren't there. This is the one Regulus left in the cave…" Harry stated calmly.
"Yes." Kreacher confirmed.
"Where is the real one, Kreacher?" Hermione asked softly.
"I don't answer to you, Filthy Mudblood!" Kreacher snapped and tried to claw her.
Harry stepped in front as Kreacher stepped back and bowed his head. "But you do answer to me, Kreacher."
"Y-Yes, of course, Lord Black…" Kreacher responded.
"Where is the real locket? Somewhere in the house?" Harry questioned.
"He came in the night and took many things. The locket was one…" Kreacher replied.
"You mean someone broke into the house and stole things, including the locket?" Harry pushed as Kreacher nodded. "How long ago was this?"
"The thief came to the house when magic returned, Kreacher knows the thief escaped just as the house went into lockdown." Kreacher informed.
"Do you know who broke into the house?" Harry inquired. Kreacher nodded again. "Who?"
"Mundungus Fletcher." Kreacher replied.
"Find him." Harry ordered. Kreacher disappeared from sight as Harry sat down.
"Dragged into the lake…He must have meant the Inferi," Tom remarked. "The liquid I left to guard the locket was the Drink of Despair. It couldn't be moved, transfigured, vanished…Anything but drank. It causes fear, delirium, pain, and thirst. Regulus probably went to the lake for water, got dragged in and drowned."
"So delightful…" Hermione sassed.
"Hey, if you were on the line of thinking I was, you'd have done anything to protect your soul that let you be tethered to this world and not die too." Tom huffed. "I was insane, I wasn't thinking right."
It didn't take long before Kreacher returned to the room, carrying a second person with him. "The thief has been found."
"I'm not a-," The male started as Harry folded his arms over one another, using only a finger to raise the necklace from around the man's neck. "How did you even know it was there?"
"Would you like to try the statement again, Dung?" Harry inquired. "I can hear it whispering in Parseltongue, for the record. It's dark energy is exceedingly hard to miss."
"Alright, I admit I took it. I didn't know it was yours, Mr. Potter. Always been a huge admirer." Mundungus smiled, bowing his head.
"Nip it, Mundungus." Harry sighed. "Hand it over," He held out his hand. "All of it…" Mundungus located everything he took from Grimmauld and gave it back to Harry, then the necklace last. "Kreacher, take Mr. Fletcher back where you found him and then return these items to the house where they belong, please."
"Yes, Master Black." Kreacher grabbed onto Mundungus and they vanished as Harry handed Tom the locket back.
"Well, you're very no nonsense." Severus joked.
"What can I say, guess I'm like my dad." Harry replied.
"He's got you there, Uncle Sev." Draco snickered.
"So how do we get the soul out of this one?" Lucius asked.
"Well, this wasn't isn't a live human, and assumingly…All the others just reformed because it was happening at the same time…I suppose, Tom should just be able to open it and reclaim his soul?" Harry theorized.
"How do I open it?" Tom wondered.
"Well, I heard Parseltongue whispers, maybe try that?" Harry shrugged. "Tell it to open, like you did with the Chamber of Secrets?"
"Hehshaasssaaa…" Tom hissed. The locket sprung open as the dark cloud rose. "Now what?"
"Harness it. It's your soul, Tom." Harry informed.
Tom walked into the cloud and it seemed to wrap around him before fading into his body. When it all faded, the necklace fell to the ground, empty and Tom looked around fifty years old now. "Hahaha…I'm me again. Thank you, Harry."
"You're welcome." Harry replied.
