Jane, Neville, and Hermione went to their session with Professor Dumbledore, to find Professor Trawlany complaining. Professor Dumbledore ordered her to leave, because Neville and Jane had an appointment, and she reluctantly did.
"I hope it's okay that we brought Hermione," Neville said. "She and I retrieved the memory together, after taking the liquid luck she won in potions class, so I wouldn't have been able to do it without her."
Hermione handed the bottle to Professor Dumbledore, who took it with a smile.
"Great! She can sit in. I have two more memories to show you, and then we'll get to this one. The first one came from a very old house-elf by the name of Hokey. Before we see what Hokey witnessed, I must first recount how Voldemort left Hogwarts."
He reached his seventh year, with top grades, and as Head Boy. Everyone expected great things from him. He ended up asking to remain at Hogwarts as a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, probably because he considered Hogwarts his home, and wanted power over young witches and wizards, but he was told he was too young for the position.
He ended up working up Borgin and Burkes. He sometimes got sent to persuade people to part with their treasures and sell them.
They then went into the pensive and were soon watching an overweight woman named Hepzibah Smith, with Hokey. Hokey led the person at the door into the room, and he was Voldemort, and he made his way through the cluttered room as though he had been there before. When he got to Hepzibah, he bowed to her and kissed her hand, and then presented her with flowers.
"Mr. Burke would like to make an improved offer for the goblin-made armor. Five hundred galleons he feels is more than fair –"
"Now, now, not so fast, or I'll think you're only here for my trinkets!"
"I am ordered here because of them. I am only a poor assistant, madam, who must do as he is told. Mr. Burke wishes me to enquire –"
"Oh, Mr. Burke, phooey! I've got something to show you that I've never shown Mr. Burke! Can you keep a secret, Matomorvool? Will you promise you won't tell Mr. Burke I've got it? He'd never let me rest if he knew I'd shown it to you, and I'm not selling, not to Mr. Burke, not to anyone! But you, Matomorvool, you'll appreciate it for its history, not how many galleons you can get from it …"
"I'd be glad to see anything Miss Hepzibah shows me."
She giggled. "I had Hokey bring it out for me … Hokey, where are you? I want to show Mr. Riddle our finest treasure … in fact, bring both while you're at it …"
Poor Hokey struggled to carry the two boxes to her, but she made it.
Hepzibah happily took the boxes, set them in her lap, and opened the top one. "Now, I think you'll like this, Matomorvool … oh, if my family knew I was showing you … they can't wait to get their hands on this!"
She opened the lid, to reveal a small golden cup, with handles. "I wonder if you know what this is, Matomorvool. Pick it up, have a good look!"
He did. "A badger," he murmured. Then this way …. ?"
"Helga Hufflepuff's, as you very well know, you clever boy!" She leaned forward and pinched his cheek. "Didn't I tell you I was distantly descended? This has been handed down in my family for years and years. Lovely, isn't it? And all sorts of powers it's supposed to possess, too, but I haven't tested them thoroughly. I just keep it nice and safe here in here …" She took the cup from Voldemort and put it back in its box. Once it was safely in its box, she called Hokey, who took it away.
"I think you'll like this one, even more, Matomorvool. Lean in a little, dear boy, so you can see … of course, Burke knows I've got this one, I bought it from him, and I daresay he'd love to get it back when I'm gone …" She opened the box to reveal a heavy golden locket.
Voldemort reached it and grabbed it, without invitation, and held it up to the light. "Slytherin mark," he said, as the light shined upon the serpentine S.
"That's right! I had to pay arm and leg for it, but I couldn't let it pass, not a real treasure like that, had to have it for my collection. Burke bought it, apparently, from a ragged-looking woman, who seemed to have stolen it, but had no idea of its true value."
Voldemort tightened his grip on the chain.
Jane didn't normally notice people's eyes, but she couldn't help but notice that there was something wrong with Voldemort's.
Hepzibah took it from him and put it away. "So there you are, Matomorvool, dear. I hope you enjoyed that!" She looked at him, for a bit. "Are you all right, dear?"
"Oh, yes."
Professor Dumbledore brought them back.
"Hepzibah Smith died two days after that little scene," Professor Dumbledore explained. "Hokey the house-elf was convicted by the Ministry of Magic of poisoning her mistress's evening cocoa by accident."
"No way!" Hermione yelled, angrily.
Jane and Neville nodded in agreement.
"I see we are all of one mind," Professor Dumbledore said. "Certainly there are many similarities between this death and that of the Riddles."
Apparently, poor Hokey was thrown in Azkaban. Matomorvool resigned from his job, before Hepzibah's relatives realized that her two most important treasures were gone, and nobody saw him for a long time.
Jane wondered what was worse, framing innocent people (wizards, witches, house elves, etcetera), or killing innocent people. She decided on framing. Dying seemed better than spending the rest of your life in Azkaban, thinking you did something horrible.
"It is not difficult to imagine that he saw the locket, at least, as rightfully his," said Professor Dumbledore.
"But, why did he take the cup?" Hermione asked.
"It had belonged to another of Hogwarts founders," Professor Dumbledore said. "I think he still felt a great pull toward the school."
The next memory was Professor Dumbledore's. It was of Voldemort, who didn't really look like Matomorvool Riddle anymore, meeting with him in his office.
"I have come to you to ask that you permit me to return to the castle, to teach," Voldemort said. "I think you must know that I have seen and done much since I left this place. I could show and tell your students things they could gain from other wizards."
Professor Dumbledore told him that rumors of Voldemort's doings had reached him, but he didn't believe most of them.
"I have pushed the boundaries of magic further, perhaps, than they have ever been pushed –"
"Of some kinds of magic. Of some. Of others, you remain … forgive me … woefully ignorant."
Voldemort smiled, but his smile looked really evil. "The old argument. But nothing I have seen in the world has supported your famous pronouncements that love is more powerful than my kind of magic, Dumbledore."
"Perhaps you have been looking in the wrong places."
"Well then, what better place to start my fresh research than here, at Hogwarts?" Voldemort asked.
Professor Dumbledore asked what would happen to the death eaters, and mentioned knowing that some of them had traveled with him and were waiting for him in Hogsmede.
Voldemort was very upset that Professor Dumbledore knew so much, and then Professor Dumbledore claimed Voldemort didn't really want the job, and Voldemort claimed he did.
"Oh, you want to come back to Hogwarts, but you do not want to teach any more than you wanted to when you were eighteen. What is it you're after?"
Voldemort ended up storming out.
Professor Dumbledore brought them back.
"What did he even want to teach?" Jane asked. "Was he after the same job as last time?"
"He definitely was. We haven't been able to keep a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for more than a year, ever since," Professor Dumbledore explained.
"Hagrid was right when he said the job was cursed," Hermione said.
Last but not least, there was the memory from Professor Slughorn, so they were soon back in the pensive again.
Professor Slughorn was with Voldemort.
"Sir, I wondered what you know about … about Horcruxes?"
Professor Slughorn stared at him. "Project for Defense Against the Dark Arts, is it?"
"Not exactly, sir," he said. "I came across the term while reading and didn't fully understand it."
"No … well …. You'd be hard-pushed to find a book at Hogwarts that will give you details on Horcrux's, Matomorvool. That's very Dark stuff. Very dark indeed."
"But you obviously know all about them, sir? I mean, a wizard-like you – sorry, I mean, if you can't tell me, obviously – I just knew if anyone could tell me, you could – so I just thought I'd ask –"
"Well," said Professor Slughorn, pausing and appearing to be stimming. "Well, it can't hurt to give you an overview, of course. Just so that you understand the term. A Horcrux is the word used for an object in which a person has concealed part of their soul."
"I don't quite understand how that works, though, sir."
"Well, you split your soul, you see, and hide part of it in an object outside the body. Then, even if one's body is attacked or destroyed, one cannot die, for part of the soul remains earth-bound. But, of course, existence in such a form," he paused, "few would want to, Matomorvool, very few. Death would be preferable."
"How do you split your soul?"
"Well, you must understand that the soul is supposed to remain intact and whole. Splitting it is an act of violation, it is against nature."
"But how do you do it?"
"By an act of evil - the supreme act of evil. By committing murder. Killing rips the soul apart. The wizard intent upon creating a Horcrux would use the damage to his advantage: he would encase the torn portion –"
"Encase ? But how -?"
Professor Slughorn shook his head. "There is a spell, do not ask me, I don't know! Do I look as though I h have tried it – do I look like a killer?"
"No, sir, of course not. I'm sorry … I didn't mean to offend …"
"Not at all, not at all, not offended. It's natural to feel some curiosity about these things … wizards of a certain calibre have always been drawn to that aspect of magic …"
"Yes, sir. What I don't understand though – just out of curiosity – would one Horcrux be much use? Can you only split your soul once? Wouldn't it be better, make you stronger, to have your soul in more pieces? I mean, for instance, isn't seven the most magically powerful number, wouldn't seven –?"
"Merlin's beard! Seven! Isn't it bad enough to think of killing one person? And in any case …. bad enough to divide the soul … but to rip it into seven pieces …"
"Of course," Professor Slughorn muttered, "this is all hypothetical, what we're discussing, isn't it? All academic …"
"Yes, sir, of course."
"But, at the same time, Matomorvool, keep it quiet, what I've told – that's to say – what we've discussed. People wouldn't like to think we've been chatting about horcruxes. It's a banned subject at Hogwarts, you know … Dumbledore's particularly fierce about it …"
Jane wondered why he didn't just say it was a banned subject, in the first place.
"I won't say a word," Matomorvool said. He then turned and left, looking very happy.