“Harry!” said a distant sounding voice Harry heard cry, followed by the sting of a hand slapping his face hard. Harry opened his eyes and saw Ron standing over him. He immediately pushed him out of the way, turned to face the floor, and vomited.
“You okay, mate?” Ron asked, his face gone white.
Harry stood up shakily, wiping his mouth. “What do you think?” he asked in an irritated voice. His legs almost gave away, but Ron caught him.
“Pretty obvious that Voldemort’s angry,” Ron said, letting go after Harry shrugged him off.
“Not just angry,” Harry began. “Really, really angry. More anger than you usually get from the death of a pet.”
“So that’s good news,” Ron started. Harry immediately clamped his hand over Ron’s mouth.
”Shut it!” he hissed, as another pain shot across his scar. Harry did his best to clear his mind, but not with much success. Even though Harry also thought that Voldemort’s level of anger meant Nagini must have been a Horcrux, they couldn’t say it out loud. It was vital that Voldemort not even get a hint that Harry knew about his Horcruxes. And with Voldemort’s mental defenses against Harry down for the moment, he could easily find out with a just small peek into his mind.
Ron nodded, and Harry let go. “Let’s get out of here,” he said, “that snake smells.”
Harry looked, and indeed saw that Nagini’s charred body was lying nearby. He also noticed that two people were missing from the room. “Where are Hermione and Slughorn?”
“Took him to St. Mungo’s,” Ron said. “We felt a pulse, so he was still alive. She told me to stick ‘round and wait for you to come to.”
“Then we’d better follow,” he said, ignoring another stab of pain.
Harry closed his eyes and envisioned the waiting room at St. Mungo’s. He stepped forward with Ron, and after the pressure subsided he found himself inside the large room with the reception desk at the other end.
When they got to the reception witch, she gave Harry a surprised look, and asked, “What in Merlin’s name happened to you? You’re all green.”
“I’m fine,” Harry cut in. “Horace Slughorn was brought in not too long ago. Where is he right now?”
“Let’s see,” said the witch, running her finger down a list. “He’s being taken to an operating room on the first floor. Number nine.”
“Thanks.”
Harry and Ron made their way up the stairs to the first floor and ran along the hallway in search of the operating room. Then they finally found Hermione outside a room with a bronze nine over the door.
“I got him here just in time,” she said at once. “The Healers told me they have to stop all the bleeding before he could speak again.”
“D’you know when we can talk to him?” Ron asked.
“They said probably not until tomorrow morning,” she answered.
“Perfect,” Harry said, throwing his hands into the air in frustration. “And what are we supposed to do until then? This just sets us back.”
“We should wait in the tea shop,” Hermione suggested. “We could get a bite to eat, and wait it out there.”
“All night?” Ron responded skeptically.
“Well, we’re not going back to Grimmauld Place without the information we came looking for,” Harry declared.
When they reached the top floor they bought themselves tea and as many biscuits they could carry. It was after nightfall now, and outside the purple night sky could be seen. They didn’t talk at all, and hoped to fall asleep so that the morning could come faster. But it wasn’t until Ron’s head hit the table and started snoring around one in the morning that Harry and Hermione also fell asleep.
“Ms. Granger?”
Harry was woken up by the sound of the voice that belonged to a Healer trying to wake up Hermione. He brushed off crumbs that were sticking to his face and rubbed his eyes awake. A weak sunlight was pouring in from the window; the sun had just risen.
“Huh? Wha’ d’you want?” Ron said when Harry jerked him awake.
“Ms. Granger,” said the Healer again, “Horace Slughorn is awake and able to speak to you.”
“Thank you,” Hermione said stretching her arms. “Which ward is he in?”
“The Dai Llewellyn ward.”
The name of the ward had the effect of waking up Ron. “The Dai Llewellyn ward?” he said to Harry, watching the Healer leave. “Isn’t that where my dad was?”
“Well, that ward is for ‘serious bites’,” said Hermione, shoving a stale biscuit into her mouth.
“Let’s go,” Harry said, standing up and stretching out his stiff back.
They went back down to the first floor and made the same trip to the ward that Mr. Weasley once resided in. Slughorn was lying in his bed reading the Daily Prophet, which had another story about the murder of another Ministry official. His bed was between a wizard that had a large leech stuck to his chest, and another wizard covered in strange looking bites that had turned green.
“Harry, m’boy, you’re here!” Slughorn cried joyfully, despite having half of his walrus mustache covered in dried blood and being wrapped in heavy bandages. “The Healers only told me that a young, bushy-haired girl brought me. That means I have to thank you and Ms. Granger for saving my life!”
“Ron was there too,” Hermione said, looking at Ron’s sour expression at not being mentioned. He was just as visible as Harry was.
“Of course, of course, you too,” Slughorn added with less enthusiasm. He then dropped his joyful attitude and looked at them suspiciously.
“How did you know where to find me?” he asked quietly.
“Well”um”we asked Professor McGonagall where you lived,” said Harry.
“When I went to the Order of the Phoenix and asked them to hide me, I had confidence that they would not reveal my location anybody,” Slughorn said bitterly.
“We told her it was important for us to talk to you.”
“And why is talking to me important to you all of a sudden?” he said, possibly already knowing the answer.
“We wanted to ask you about Hor””
“I said I know nothing!” Slughorn shouted. “I told you before that I don’t know anything about those”those things. Now leave or I’ll have the Healers will drag you out for disturbing me!”
“Professor, please,” said Hermione, “all we want””
“You two are involved in this as well?” Slughorn asked, looking from Hermione to Ron. “I thought that after that night, Harry, you would have given up on this. But, no, you had to get your two friends involved.”
“It’s because of those things that night happened!” Harry said quietly, but very fierce. “Dumbledore found another source for the information you wouldn’t give, and we went to search for one of Volde”I mean, You-Know-Who’s you-know-whats!” He didn't think that it would help to tell Slughorn that he got him drunk.
“You-Know-Who had more than one of those things?” he said hoarsely, his eyes wide with shock and fear.
“He made six!”
Slughorn went white. He put his hands to his face and groaned through his fingers. “This is my fault. I was the one who told young Riddle about them.”
“You told Riddle about those things?” Harry asked, trying to sound surprised. “Well”um”it’s not your fault that he used the information, is it?” he said rounding to Ron and Hermione, looking for their vote of confidence.
“Absolutely not,” said Hermione.
"Course not,” Ron said bracingly.
“If you still feel bad about this,” Harry said, turning back to Slughorn, “you can fix it by telling us how to destroy them.”
Slughorn removed his hands and they could see that some color came back to his face. “I knew that if You-Know-Who asked me about Horcruxes, he must have made at least one, but I’ve been in denial…fine,” he said, looking into Harry’s eyes, “I’ll tell you what you need to know.”
“Thank you,” Harry said gratefully, extremely relieved that he was going to get the information he needed. “So…how d’you destroy them?”
“Well,” he said, lying back in his pillows, “if that ring I saw Dumbledore wear last summer was a Horcrux, and he told you about it, Harry, it should be obvious that you shouldn’t try and blow them up. The soul would still be in those pieces and that would be a bad thing…”
“Yeah, but in my second year,” interrupted Harry, “I already destroyed a Horcrux. It was Riddle’s diary. And all I did to destroy it, though I didn’t know what it was, was drive a basilisk fang through it.”
A small frown appeared on Slughorn. “Hmm…was there anything peculiar about this diary?”
“It did try to suck out my sister’s life,” Ron said bitterly.
Slughorn thought for a moment and said, “Maybe to a certain extent there was more than a soul in that diary and after you killed that, Harry, it died along with the soul.”
“Would the same thing go for snakes?” said Harry, trying to keep down his fear that he made a horrible mistake.
“He used a snake as a vessel?” Slughorn said, his face turning a fine shade of sickly green. “To think that I taught him makes me sick. But yes”if you killed that snake the soul would die as well.”
“And how would you destroy a Horcrux that was a locket or a cup?” Harry gulped and asked, “Do I have give up a limb to destroy it?”
Slughorn looked up at him and said, “No. If you’re referring to Dumbledore’s hand. It was a curse that took it. No, no. Actually retrieving the Horcrux, which is most likely protected by dark spells, is much more dangerous than destroying it.
“If you want to destroy the piece of the soul inside the vessel you will need the proper environment; an anti-You-Know-Who setting. Keep it with you and the soul inside will eventually whither and die. You will know that it’s properly destroyed when the vessel itself show signs of physical deterioration such as rusting, cracking, or anything else.”
A few seconds followed Sluhorn’s explanation.
“I’m telling the truth!”
“That’s it?” Harry said, trying not to feel too happy in case the explanation was false. “That’s what we have to do to destroy a Horcrux?”
“Yes, you see””
But he was interrupted by the sound of the door of the ward banging open, and the entrance of Professor McGonagall and Mad-Eye Moody.
“What happened?” Professor McGonagall demanded. “I got word from a Healer that you were attacked, Horace. I only had time to retrieve Alastor.”
“I’m fine, Minerva,” insisted Slughorn. “But if it wasn’t for Potter and his friends I would already be dead.”
“Potter?” she said, looking as though she only just noticed him, Hermione, and Ron standing close by. “So you three brought him here after I gave you Horace’s address. I forgot I gave it you in my rush to get here.”
“What did they want his address for?” growled Moody. “That information was supposed to top secret”we were supposed to tell no one outside the Council.”
“Potter said it was urgent, and that I would find out about the night that Albus was murdered. Is it safe to assume,” McGonagall said, turning to Harry, “that I will be finding out now what you were up to?”
“Yes,” Harry answered heavily. “Professor Slughorn can easily answer your question, it he’s willing. If you need us, we’ll be back at Grimmauld Place.”
Harry beckoned Ron and Hermione forward and they left without asking.
“Thanks again,” Slughorn called to them before the door shut.
“So, what now?” Hermione said while they were headed for the ground floor.
“Obvious, isn’t it,” Harry said. “We finally have to go to the Muggle orphanage where Riddle stayed.”
“And where would that be?” Ron asked, curious to see if Harry somehow had the answer.
“No idea,” Harry simply answered. “All we can do is rest up and look up old records somewhere in London for this place.”
“That’s going to take ages,” Hermione groaned. “There has to be an easier way.”
“Are you actually complaining about having to do a bit of studying?” Ron said with a smirk.
“Yes,” she said flatly.
They didn’t talk the rest of the way. Once inside the reception area they Apparated and found themselves, once again, outside Grimmauld Place.
Dinner that evening was mostly spent talking about where they should start their search, and if searching in old records would prove a waste of time. London was a big place, and there was a very good chance that the orphanage didn’t exist anymore.
“It’s been fifty years since Voldemort lived at the orphanage,” said Ron, setting down his fork. “For all we know it could be torn down and a thrift store could have been built over it.”
“I don’t think so,” Hermione said. “If the orphanage does contain a Horcrux, Voldemort would have found someway for Muggles to leave the building alone.”
“I agree,” Harry said, pushing away his plate. “Voldemort’s ideal hiding place for a Horcrux isn’t under a pile of rubble or a store. He’d want””
“Hey!”
The three of them jumped and turned to look at the fireplace, where Lupin’s head had appeared amongst the flames.
“What is it?” Harry said urgently, sitting down on the hearth.
“Did something happen?” Hermione asked, sitting next to Harry, who was followed by Ron.
“Don’t worry, everybody is okay,” Lupin said in an assuring tone. “I’m calling upon you three for Order business. You see, Slughorn told McGonagall and Mad-Eye everything he know about those Horcrux things and what you told him. Now they have relayed this information to the rest of the Order and we decided unanimously to take over your search.”
“WHAT!” Harry yelled standing up and staring right at Lupin. “What do you mean the Order is taking over the search?”
“I mean that the we have voted and decided that this matter is too important for three teenagers such as yourselves to handle.”
“We’re of age!” Ron shouted, offended. He stood up right beside Harry.
“In case you haven’t noticed,” Hermione said in the same offended tone, “we have grown up since our third year!”
Lupin looked abashed, recovered, and said, “I never””
“Well, it sounded like it,” Harry cut in. “Besides we didn’t tell Slughorn everything! There are still loads of clues that could lead us to the Horcruxes that you don’t know!”
“That is exactly why,” Lupin said calmly, “you are going to tell us everything you know. Frankly, I’m surprised that not one of you came to the Order after Dumbledore died and told us about these things.”
“Well I’m not telling you anything!” Harry said fiercely. “This is my responsibility!”
“And we’re coming with him!” Ron said, for he seemed to see Lupin was about to point out him and Hermione.
“Of our own free will. Harry knows that he can’t stop us. Right?” Hermione asked Harry.
Harry paused for a second, and said, rather reluctantly, “Yes, they are.”
“You three are impeding Order business!” Lupin half-shouted.
“Fine,” Harry said, coming to a conclusion. “If the Order wants to get involved in the search for the Horcruxes, then you all will just have to induct me,” he said, looking right into Lupin’s eyes.
There was a moment of silence where everybody’s eyes were on Harry.
“We would never allow that. You are far too young….”
“You told me that to join the Order you have got be of age and out of school”and I fulfill both qualifications. In case Mrs. Weasley didn’t tell you, I’m not going to study at Beauxbatons.”
“And neither are we,” Ron said, indicating himself and Hermione. “If we want to join, the Order has no excuse to reject us.”
“True,” said Hermione. “If we don’t join, than we will be impeding our separate searches. With our information and your resources we can do this much faster.”
“Ron,” Lupin pleaded, ignoring Hermione, “think about your mother””
“Don’t bring her into this,” Ron said. “Mum has got to accept that I am not a child anymore!”
“Well, you sure are acting like one!”
Harry could see that the only thing stopping Ron from kicking Lupin’s head were the hot embers. Lupin tried to steer the argument in another direction.
“This is not a game. If this is about pride, or whatever, that shouldn’t be reason to put yourselves in danger. This is important. In fact, I was pulled off my mission to reach out to werewolves to do this!” ”
“We know this isn’t a game and that it’s important!” Harry said, taken aback by Lupin’s complete misunderstanding. “I’m doing this because I have to! Because Dumbledore meant for me to do this.”
Lupin now turned to Hermione. Before he could start she said, “There is no way you could change my mind. Either induct us into the Order, or we’ll be having two searches that could be more effective as one.”
Lupin looked at each of them as if he was seeing them in a whole new light. He frowned and with a pop, head vanished from the fire.
“Bright and early tomorrow morning,” Harry said suddenly without looking at Ron or Hermione. “If we stick around here for too long we’ll be easier to find. Anyway, we have all of London to search for that orphanage.”
The argument unhinged Hermione and Ron so much that they didn’t have any objections. The three of them left the kitchen and went up stairs for an early bed, leaving their unfinished dinner to turn cold over night.
A/N: My explanation on how to destroy a Horcrux is based purely on the fact that Dumbledore did not blow up the ring.