kbinnz - Harry's New Home

"Why would anyone go to such extremes?" Sprout asked wonderingly. "Wouldn't one horcrux be enough for anyone?"

"Not for a Slytherin," Snape snapped. "A single horcrux gives you a single point of failure for your plan. You would of course require additional back up and safety. Once you split your soul once, why stop there?"

They turned to Dumbledore, who looked stunned. "I тАУ I must admit it never occurred to me that even Tom would create more than one horcrux," he confessed, "but I cannot fault your logic, Severus. Tom was always a secretive and mistrustful child, though he certainly had reason to be, given his childhood. But while I worried about him тАУ greatly тАУ during his time here, even I never foresaw the depths of depravity to which he has sunk."

"Splitting the soul can hardly be healthy," Madame Pomfrey interjected tartly. "Perhaps each time he did so, he lost even more of his sanity?"

Dumbledore looked very sad. "And his humanity. Yes, that would certainly explain much."

"But you said that at least this horcrux has been destroyed?" Sprout returned to the matter at hand. "What happened?"

"After we reached the Chamber itself and I saw the apparition of Tom, I spoke with him and quickly realized what we were dealing with. He was amused, I think, to see me so much older and so clearly upset at what he had done to himself. He wanted to ensure that I had understood his cleverness before he told the basilisk to destroy us, but happily, Hagrid's crossbow was enough to cause even the basilisk to falter, and by the time it recovered to charge again, I had sent Hagrid and the child back to Severus. I was able to hold off the basilisk for a few moments, but once I had realized that I was dealing with a horcrux, there was only one option." He sighed heavily. "I cast fiendfyre as soon as Hagrid was out of the Chamber. It consumed both basilisk and horcrux, and, I'm afraid, Myrtle's lavatory as well. We will have to find her a new location."

Flitwick managed to find his voice. "She was a Ravenclaw, I believe. I will ask the Gray Lady to speak with her. I'm sure we will find somewhere in the Tower where she will be happy."

"So horcruxes must be destroyed by fiendfyre?" Sprout gulped, pale.

"It is perhaps the mostтАж secureтАж method," Albus agreed.

"But, Headmaster, if Severus is right and there are other horcruxes, then that means that You Know Who really will rise again," Flitwick said, looking sick. "Is there nothing we can do?"

"Of course there is," McGonagall spoke up impatiently. "We need to find out where the others are and destroy them, just as Albus did with the Diary. We need to тАУ as Severus would say тАУ remove his back ups."

"And how are we to do that?" Poppy demanded. "Surely he has not been able to make any since being, well, defeated by Harry ten years ago. How could we find out what You Know Who did decades ago?"

"It appears that he began his activities here in Hogwarts, so we will begin our search here as well," Minerva said stoutly. "Perhaps Horace knows something. He was the boy's Head of House, after all."

Dumbledore was nodding slowly. "We shall have to exercise great caution and stealth in the hunt. If Voldemort were to discover what we are attempting to do, he would stop at nothing to prevent us, and as we have seen, he still has loyal Death Eaters." Everyone politely avoided looking at Snape.

"And how do you suggest we carry out a secret search while simultaneously attempting to run a school full of mischievous and nosy brats?" Snape demanded.

"Well тАУ" Dumbledore began, only to be interrupted by McGonagall.

"You are quite right, Severus. Some changes will have to occur."

Everyone looked at the Deputy Headmistress in surprise. "Erm, changes, my dear?" Dumbledore repeated uncertainly.

She nodded firmly. "Poppy, you have long been worried about Albus, have you not?" Poppy looked from McGonagall to Dumbledore in confusion. "He is not a young man, after all, and this has been a very stressful year. A collapse is imminent, no?"

Poppy's eyebrows rose in alarm, then the penny dropped. "Oh! Oh yes, you're quite right, Professor. It would hardly be a surprise if he had to take a term off to recover."

"But тАУ but тАУ " Dumbledore tried to protest.

"Don't be ridiculous, Albus. You are clearly the most knowledgeable person about these horcruxes, and if utter secrecy is so important, we can hardly trust the Aurors or any other part of Cornelius Fudge's government."

Even Snape was impressed with McGonagall's plan, but he felt obliged to point out an obvious flaw. "If these horcruxes are as dangerous as the Headmaster describes, it would hardly be safe for him to track them down on his own. I mean no disrespect, Headmaster," he said quickly, before the elderly but still amazingly powerful wizard could take offense, "but such an important task cannot be entrusted to a single person, no matter how skilled."

"Hmmmm." Dumbledore was clearly coming to terms with the idea. "Perhaps Sirius Black and Remus Lupin could assist. Now that Sirius is free from Azkaban, he тАУ"

"That mutt couldn't keep a secret if you hexed his mouth shut!" Snape snarled. "Why not just take Hagrid with you and be done with it?"

"Now, Severus, we all know you don't like тАУ"

"No, I do believe Severus is correct." Again Minerva broke in. "Sirius has never shown much talent for dissembling, and he is still recovering from his time in Azkaban. While he was a loyal member of the Order and would doubtless do anything he could to safeguard Harry, his knowledge of Dark artifacts is minimal."

"He is a Black," Sprout pointed out. "And as the eldest son, he would be the heirтАж"

"He broke with his family during his adolescence and even before that point, he had refused to have much to do with the family'sтАж activities. I doubt he will know much of use."

"If a knowledge of the Dark Arts is needed, I am the obvious choice," Snape cut in coldly.

McGonagall glanced at him fondly. "You have other, equally important obligations now, Severus. What is more, Albus, we both know that you can be a trifleтАж impetuousтАж at times. You will require a companion who is able to rein you in when needed."

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. "Just who do you have in mind? My brother?"

Minerva snorted. "This is a hunt for horcruxes, not goats. No, I think I will do nicely."

Dumbledore's jaw was not the only one which dropped with an audible click.

"You? But тАУ but тАУ" Snape sputtered.

She turned a cool eye on him. "Yes, Severus?"

Snape gulped, and rethought his immediate reaction. Actually, the more he considered it, the more he liked it. McGonagall had hidden Slytherin reserves, and she was certainly the only person who seemed able to exert any sort of control over Dumbledore. She had more than proven her ruthlessness with The Pink Toad, and having a talented animagus and expert Transfigurer could only help in the search. What's more, she and Riddle had been contemporaries at Hogwarts, and that might give her some additional insight into his behavior. "I think that is a wonderful idea," he said meekly.

The others stared at him, more shocked by Snape's docile agreement than McGonagall's wild plan.

"But, Minerva, if you accompany me, who will run Hogwarts in my absence?" Dumbledore protested plaintively. "And how could we possibly explain both our absences?"

"With the truth," Snape suggested, hiding an evil smirk. "Who would argue that Minerva is one of the few people who can ensure you remain under strict rest and recuperation?"

The others politely hid their smiles, while Dumbledore gave him a sour look. "But that still leaves the question of who would run Hogwarts in our absence."

"Oh, I believe Severus and I could share the post," Flitwick offered cheerfully. "Between the two of us we should be able to manage both the administrative and disciplinary duties."