Note: Second part. Enjoy!
Chapter Thirty-Three
The Vexing of Septima Vector
"The locket," Hermione gasped. "It's round the neck of Professor Vector. She's been wearing the blessed thing all year."
There was a moment of awed silence, and Hermione felt things fitting into place in her mind. Dobby's warning to Harry at the start of term feast, a warning of a new evil that had entered the school. It could only be the horcrux.
"It's got to be destroyed," said Harry simply, breaking the silence.
"The only question is how," said Ron. "I mean, you destroyed the diary with the basilisk's fang, but they aren't exactly handy to come by."
"The sword," said Hermione suddenly. "Gryffindor's sword. I reckon that's why Dumbledore left it to you. I was reading it in Secrets of the Darkest Art this morning," she explained to the boys' incredulous expressions. "It's long and complicated, but after your fight with the basilisk, the sword will be impregnated with its venom. It's one of the only things that can destroy a horcrux, along with Fiendfyre and a couple of other really powerful, uncontrollable pieces of magic." She paused. "Since basilisks and Fiendfyre are mostly only used by Dark Wizards anyway, they would have little to fear in that respect."
Ron and Harry nodded their agreement, and Hermione thought it amazing how they could setill be so surprised by the breadth of her knowledge after all these years.
"Do you think that Voldemort will try and possess her like he did Ginny?" Ron asked. Hermione nodded.
"I think he's trying as we speak. She's been different these past few weeks; that's what led to me finding out."
Ron paled visibly although he said nothing. Hermione knew that even though the events were nearly five years ago, what had happened to his sister in the chamber of secrets still affected him deeply. "Obviously, we've managed to catch him slightly earlier in the scheme this time."
"We need to get the sword from Professor McGonagall," said Harry. "The sooner the better."
Neither of the others disagreed with him and they set off towards the head's office. Hermione could not say precisely why they were moving at a half-run, but the urgency seemed fitting. Now that they knew where the horcrux was and how to destroy it, there was no point in delaying its demise any longer than necessary and letting it gain an even tighter grip on the arithmancy teacher.
They reached the stone griffon that guarded the head's door and stopped, unable to go further.
"So now what?" asked Ron. "What are Professor McGonagall's favourite sweets? I know she's always got a supply of ginger newts on hand."
"Ron," said Hermione, "we can't just try and break into her office. Besides, just because Albus Dumbledore protected his office with confectionary doesn't mean that his successor will."
Ron didn't reply, and Hermione turned to see what he was looking at over her shoulder. The griffon had sprung aside, affording them clear passage up the steps.
"I think it was 'Albus'," said Harry, trying to hide a small smile. "Well, seeing as we're in, so to speak, we might as well go up."
Hermione nodded, dumbstruck, and followed the boys up the stairs. By the time they got to the top, they were taking three at a time, and Hermione grimaced as they crashed into the office without a pre-emptory knock and stopped dead. Professor McGonagall was not alone. Snape was in the office with her, regarding the newly-arrived students with the same cool and disbelieving expression as the headmistress.
"I am assuming, you three, since you came in here at such a pace, that there is some sort of dire emergency on hand?" she asked.
Ron nodded; all three knew that it was best to remain silent in Snape's presence. Thankfully Professor McGonagall noticed their reticence and dismissed Snape. He sneered as he passed them, and Hermione made no attempt to disguise a shudder of revulsion.
"We need Gryffindor's sword," said Harry as soon as the door had closed behind the deputy headmaster and his tread had died away down the stairs.
"I beg your pardon."
"There's a horcrux in the school. Professor Vector has it," Hermione explained. "I don't think it was intentional," she added on seeing the headmistress's eyes narrow in suspicion. "But the fact remains that she has it, and it needs to be destroyed, and the sword is the only thing that can…"
"… that can destroy a horcrux," Professor McGonagall finished for her. "Yes, I had surmised as much." She paused. "Poor Septima. She has been exceedingly out of sorts these past two months. It should hardly come as a surprise."
Presently the transfiguration teacher rose and moved to the glass cabinet where the sword that Harry had pulled from the sorting hat in his second year lay. She unlocked it with a tap of her wand and carefully lifted it out, presenting it hilt-first to Harry.
"That's it?" he said. "You're just going to give it to me?"
"It is legally yours," explained Professor McGonagall, "and I am sure that you know much more of these dread items than I do. Added to that, time is of the essence, and I see no point in wasting any on fruitless discussion." She gestured to the door. "Let's go."
As the four of them reached the bottom of the stairs, Ron, who was leading the party, stopped dead.
"Won't it be a tad suspicious, running around the school with a hulking great sword?" he asked.
"Mr Weasley," said Professor McGonagall drily from the rear of the convoy, "this castle has seen so many imagination-stretching events in its time that the extraordinary has become common-place. I am sure that the headmistress and the school's three most interesting students running around with a 'hulking great sword' will not give anyone lasting cause for concern, but a disillusionment might be profitable in the short-term."
She cast a spell and the sword disappeared. Ron shrugged and they set off in the direction of the arithmancy teacher's office once more, Hermione explaining what had happened to Professor McGonagall as they went.
Professor Vector started as they entered.
"What's going on, and why does that boy have a sword?"
The trio looked down at Harry's hand sheepishly to find that the disillusionment charm had worn off. Professor McGonagall came to the front of the group, and Hermione realised why she had come along on their quest. None of them would have been able to adequately explain the situation to the nervous and worn-down teacher.
"It's about your necklace, Septima," she said gently, sitting down in the chair opposite her colleague.
"What about it?" she asked, her fingers curling around the pendant protectively.
"We think it is glamoured." The headmistress passed her wand over the other woman's knuckles, and when she released her grip, the locket of Slytherin was clear to see.
"That's not mine," said Professor Vector, her voice shaking. "That's not my necklace."
"We know. Septima, this locket is cursed, powerfully cursed. It needs to be destroyed."
Professor Vector's eyes flickered to Harry.
"Hence the sword?"
"Hence the sword."
The arithmancy teacher nodded.
"Well, there's no time to lose then, is there?" she said, trying to sound cheerful and failing miserably. Now that she seemed to be aware of the locket and its dangers, Hermione noted that she was acting far more like her normal self. She made to take it off but the chain caught and her eyes widened.
"Minerva, it won't come off," she whispered, her face a picture of unadulterated terror.
There was silence for a moment as the gathered occupants of the small office wondered what on earth they could do. Finally, with shaking hands, Professor Vector held the drop as far away from her neck as the chain would allow, gently placing her other hand under the locket in an attempt to steady it.
"Can you do it like that?" she asked Harry.
He came over and turned the locket round in his fingers, running a thumb over the serpentine 'S' before handing it back to the professor, nodding unsurely.
"I'll have to open it," he said, more to himself than the others. "It's hidden inside."
Hermione looked on as Harry hissed a single word of Parseltongue.
Then all hell broke loose.
The room filled with thick, swirling, grey mist, incoherent and incomprehensible shapes forming out of it as it whirled like a tornado in the little office, sending Professor flying backwards as the tremendous force of mind contained within the locket struggled to push free from its confines and search out a suitable victim. The woman hit the wall behind her with a sickening crunch, and as Hermione battled her way across the floor to help her, a terrible voice began to speak, echoing from the confines of the necklace. How could something so small contain something so incredibly evil?
"Septima Vector," said the voice, a hissing, snake-like voice but nonetheless a mesmerising one that commanded attention, almost hypnotising those who heard it into listening. "You are a Slytherin like my own kin, a commendable witch, but there is much weakness in your frail and mortal heart."
Hermione finally reached her teacher to find that she was still conscious despite her blow, but only just, and there were tears welling in her half-closed eyes as the voice continued to torment her.
"All those hours that you spend, wondering what Brian does whilst you spend so much of your time closeted away in your little office here, miles from home. You know that your elusiveness and overwork has driven him to other women, you know that he's laughing behind your back."
"Harry, do something!" Hermione screamed above the roar of the voice and the roar of the whirlwind. Half of her was glad that the arithmancy office was at one end of a deserted corridor and it was more than likely that the rest of the school could not hear the commotion therein, but half of her was desperately hoping for someone to come and assist them in their plight.
"There's nothing I can do!" Harry replied, exasperated as he battled against the swirling winds. Hermione looked down to see the locket clutched between Professor Vector's fingers once more, her grip tight and unrelenting.
"Let go!" she called to her teacher. "Let go of the locket!"
The professor either did not or could not hear her, watching helplessly as the smoke began to melt into form; beautiful, scantily-clad young women emerging from the mist, all laughing cruelly with the same voice. In desperation, Hermione prised the older witch's fingers from round the locket and yanked it away from her neck, her stomach lurching when she drew blood but this feeling overwhelmed by relief when she managed to get it free, slamming it down on the flagged floor and holding the chain steadily away from the teacher's neck. She closed her eyes, as Harry brought the sword down and there was a sudden, ear-splitting scream. Then there was quiet in the office once more.
Hermione looked to see that the room was light again, and Harry standing panting over the sword, impaled in the twisted metal that had once been a locket. He reached down and pulled it free from Professor Vector's neck fully as the older witch slid into full unconsciousness.
"Did someone let a crumple-horned snorcack loose?" The voice had come from the doorway and Hermione peered over the desk to find Luna standing there, calming watching papers fluttering from the ceiling. "I thought I might have left my quill in here," she continued by way of explanation.
"Miss Lovegood, since you are here, could you please fetch Madame Pomfrey, as quickly as possible." Professor McGonagall got to her feet from where the horcrux had kept her pinned to the ground. "Mr Weasley, ask the first member of staff you find to contact Professor Vector's husband. Yes, even Professor Snape if he is the first you come across," she added sternly before Ron had a chance to formulate his question. He closed his mouth and left the room. As the three remaining occupants gathered to help the arithmancy teacher, Hermione was sure she heard him speak in muted tones.
"Three down, three to go."
Note2: Ok, that was slightly more epic than planned. Phew! Onwards!