Ch. 111 – Sirius, Elves and Horcruxes
It's been a few days since I told Harry I'd tell him what I'd done. Today is Sunday and the family and I all had breakfast together. And now the children are all doing their homework.
I look at Alice who's sitting next to me in her adult form and smile. "Shouldn't you be doing your homework too? Hahaha."
"Shut up!" Alice says playfully as she punches me on the shoulder with enough force to decapitate a human.
I used runes to expand my office and connect it to a living room, a bedroom, a bathroom and a dining room.
As soon as one of my family members walks from my office into the living room, they turn back to their true age. Except for little Iris, as she's the only one who's actually eleven.
Just before noon, Harry knocks on the door of my office, accompanied by a man with long, black hair, a scruffy beard and grey eyes.
"Hello, I'm Sirius Black. I heard I have you to thank for my release from Azkaban, so thank you." Sirius says, introducing himself as we take a seat in my office.
"You're welcome Sirius. I'm Fenrir. I asked you here because Harry wanted to know what I did to him during the sorting ceremony. Right, Harry?" I ask Harry, who's sitting next to Sirius.
"Yes, Professor."
"Then I suppose I'll get right to it. Ten years ago, in Godric's Hollow, your mother sacrificed her own life to save yours. In doing so, she cast a very old, very powerful piece of magic." I start explaining before Sirius interrupts.
"Hang on. Don't you think Harry's a little young for this?" Sirius says with concern.
"No, I want to hear what he has to say." Harry says. He then turns to me. "Please continue Professor."
I nod and continue. "That magic cast a protective shield around you.
"Voldemort's attempt to kill you rebounded and shattered the little that was left of his soul.
"One of the last pieces remaining sought out the closest living thing it could find and latched on. It's been living off you like a parasite. Feeding off your misery and pain. Even causing some.
"I cut it out that day, during the sorting ceremony. I then did the same with Professor Quirrell."
"How did you do that? And are there any negative consequences?" Sirius asks.
I take out Hati & Sköll, my Zanpakuto, and hold it in front of me in its sealed state. "This is a sword that can affect either the body, the soul or both, depending on my intentions.
And no, there are no negative side-effects.
"But there is something you should know," I say, looking at Harry, "the magic that protected you that night is called a Blood Charm. It has been protecting you for the last ten years.
"By living in a home where your mother's blood still dwells, through your aunt Petunia, you remain protected and you cannot be harmed by the one who murdered your mother or those with allegiance to him. At least not while you're there.
"Dumbledore activated the Charm and left you with your aunt. He believed it to be the best way to protect you."
"But why? Why did I have to be protected at all? Why did Voldemort want me dead?" Harry asks, clearly upset.
"There was a prophecy, a vision, of the future. It pretty much said either you would kill Voldemort or he would kill you.
That's the thing about prophecies, they're almost always self-fulfilling."
"Self-fulfilling? What's that mean?" Harry asks.
"It means that if Voldemort had never heard the prophecy, he wouldn't have cared about a boy born between Lily and James Potter on the 31st of July, in 1980.
"But he did, and the moment he heard the news, your fates became intertwined and he started hunting you."
"So what should I do?" Harry asks, a little nervous and scared.
"Nothing, Harry. I didn't tell you any of this to spur you into action, I told you because you deserve to know why you have suffered."
"But what about the prophecy?"
"Don't worry about that. That's future stuff.
It's alway good to remember the past, and plan for the future, Harry. But you live right now, in the present, so keep your focus here.
"You're still a child. It's time to enjoy yourself. Enjoy school, have fun with your friends. Find out what you love to do and get good at it. You've suffered more than a child your age should have.
Meanwhile, Sirius will help me hunt down whatever remains of Voldemort."
"I will?" Sirius asks, a little confused. "I-I mean yes, I will."
"See? All you have to worry about is doing your homework."
Suddenly the door to the living room opens and Iris walks in. "Hey, dad? Can you help us with..." She notices the guests and looks a little surprised. "Oh, hi Harry." Iris says, smiling and waving at him.
"Hi Iris." Harry says, smiling back.
"What do you need help with sweetheart?" I ask Iris.
"Potions. Snape gave us too much homework."
"Yes, I haven't been able to finish it either. Even hermione thought it was too much. And she loves homework." Harry says, agreeing with Iris.
"Yeah, well, nothing I can do about that. He gave you homework, so you should do it. Iris, Harry, why don't you both go and get started, I'll come help out in a second. I have to talk to Sirius first." I say before Harry and Iris walk into the living room.
When the kids have left the room, I look to Sirius. "I want you to call Kreacher."
"Kreacher? Why? How do you even know abou- You know what? Never mind. This God stuff is crazy enough as it is.
Kreacher!"
*Crack!*
Suddenly Kreacher apparates next to Sirius out of nowhere.
"Master called for Kreacher sir?" The House Elf says.
"Hello Kreacher." I say, greeting the little House Elf. "I need the locket Regulus gave you. I wish to destroy the soul that dwells within."
Kreacher looks at me very hesitantly.
"Kreacher! Give it to him!" Sirius says, sounding angry.
"Of course master." Kreacher says before disapparating.
*Crack!*
*Crack!*
After a few seconds Kreacher reappears in the same spot, holding Salazar Slytherin's locket.
"Kreacher did as master asked. Now Lord Wizard, do what you promised please." Kreacher said as he handed me the locket.
"Off with you now, Kreacher!" Sirius says.
"No, wait. Leave him be. He deserves to witness this." I say, before I take out Hati and Sköll, throw Slytherin's locket in the air, and slash the sword through it twice before it drops to the floor.
The first slash severing Voldemort's mangled soul from the locket and the second one cuts that piece of soul in half, destroying it.
"T-That was a Horcrux, wasn't it? I can't believe he actually made one, that crazy bastard." Sirius says with clear disgust in his voice.
"No Sirius, he made six of them." I say matter of factly.
"Six?! Merlin's beard! That's horrible. Wait a second, that piece of his soul in Harry's-"
"Yes, Harry was an unintentionally made Horcrux. Although the required rituals and charms were never performed, so he was an incomplete Horcrux.
And now two of them are destroyed, leaving four remaining."
I pick up the locket and give it to Kreacher. "Here you go. Now you can destroy it, fulfilling your master's orders."
Kreacher snaps his fingers and the locket explodes in tiny shards, falling to the ground like golden snow.
Kreacher looks to me and bows. "Thank you Lord Wizard."
"You don't like him much, do you?" I ask Sirius as I notice his dislike for the little Elf and wonder from where it stems.
"We never got along, since I was a young boy. My mother once got sick, so she couldn't beat me. She ordered Kreacher here to do it instead."
I conjure a sock out of thin air and hand it to Sirius. He looks at me as I nod towards Kreacher. Realizing my intentions, Sirius hesitates a little before he looks to Kreacher and hands him the sock.
"No! Kreacher lives to serve House Black!" Kreacher says, distraught at the prospect of being set free.
"Take it, Kreacher." Sirius says sternly.
Kreacher slowly takes the sock with a trembling hand.
"It's alright Kreacher. You're an Elf, you were never meant to serve Wizards." I say as I put my hand on Kreacher's head and pour some magic into him and manipulate his entire genetic makeup, returning Kreacher to his natural state.
Kreacher falls to the ground, unconscious as his body glows in a bright, white light and grows taller. As the light slowly fades, Kreacher lies before us, now two meters tall with long, blonde hair.
"Merlin's beard! What did you just do?" Sirius asks, shocked at Kreacher's new appearance.
I snapped my fingers and conjured a screen of Cosmic Crystal and started displaying images of Elves fighting against Wizards and Witches.
"A few thousand years ago, Wizards and Elves waged war against each other." I say before the images show Elves slowly overpowering the Wizards.
"After a few decades the conflicts got out of hand. There were too many casualties due to the Elves' more powerful magic." The images then change again, showing a group of Wizards preparing a ritual.
"So a large group of Wizards got together and performed one of the most powerful rituals this world has ever seen." It then shows one Wizard sneaking around, tampering with the preparations.
"Its purpose was to completely wipe out the Elves, but one Wizard did not agree. He did not feel right committing genocide, so he tampered with the ritual." The images then show the ritual being performed and how the Elves changed.
"Instead of killing the Elves, the ritual twisted their bodies and minds. Turning them from tall, proud and handsome people, to forever be smaller, uglier and subservient to the Wizards who performed the ritual.
I just undid the magic and made Kreacher what he was always supposed to be." I say, before I snap my fingers again, disintegrating the Crystal screen.
"Unbelievable, we turned them into slaves. But what now? If you turn them all into this," Sirius says, pointing at Kreacher, "they'll retaliate."
"No. They no longer have a place in this world. In a few years, when I leave, I'll be taking them all with me."
"All of them? Not everyone is going to like that." Sirius says.
"I don't really care if people object, 'cause I'm not asking. Now, Sirius, I want you to go to the Gaunt shack outside Little Hangleton in Yorkshire. Take Remus as well.
Inside, you'll find Marvolo Gaunt's ring hidden somewhere. It's gold with a black stone.
Once you have it, take every precaution you can. It's a Horcrux and has lethal defenses.
Then I will need you to go to Malfoy Manor, where Lucius has Voldemort's diary. It is a leather-bound book and has, seemingly, nothing written inside.
It is also a Horcrux, so be careful."
"Oh, is that all? That'll be easy." Sirius says sarcastically. "Malfoy Manor is a thousand year-old house. It has defenses I've never even heard of."
"Either you get the diary from Malfoy, or you can get Hufflepuff's Cup from the Lestrange vault in Gringotts."
"Gringotts?! ... Malfoy Manor it is." Sirius says.
"Good, then I'll get the Cup."
"Do you have a plan?" Sirius asks a little worried.
"A plan?"
"Yes. To get the Cup."
"Uh, sure. It's a three-step plan. First, I walk in. Then I get what I want. And third, I walk out."
"That's not a plan. That's suici- ... right, you're a god. I almost forgot.
Alright then, I'll get Remus. Good luck in gringotts." Sirius says as he stands up and walks to the door. Before he walks out, he turns around. "Wait, that's three Horcruxes. What about the fourth?" Sirius asks.
"That one's right here in the castle. Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem. We should just get the others first and destroy them all at once." I say to Sirius before he nods and leaves.
I then spend the next two hours helping the children with their homework before I leave for Gringotts.