Harry landed back on the floor of the headmaster's office. Dumbledore was seated behind his desk, Skool rubbed his chin in thought from an armchair, and Harry (Anne) found another for herself. They all waited for Dumbledore to speak.
"I've been waiting a long time for this proof," Dumbledore began. "It confirms my theory, shows I was right, but it also tells me the path ahead remains long."
"Sir," Anne said, "I believe you realize how important that memory was. At your age, Tom Riddle was already obsessively seeking how to never die."
"So you think he succeeded?" Anne asked. "He made a Horcrux? That's why he didn't die after attacking me? A fragment of his soul is safe somewhere?"
"A fragment… or more," Dumbledore said. "You heard Voldemort ask Slughorn: what if a wizard made multiple Horcruxes by splitting his soul further? To date, no wizard, so far as Voldemort or I know, has ever split his soul beyond one fragment."
Four years ago, Dumbledore revealed, he obtained proof that Voldemort had split his soul.
"That proof, your diary, Harry," he said, pointing to the memory Harry retrieved. The diary wasn't mere writing, it had the power to act, to kill, a piece of soul inside.
"It served as a Horcrux," Dumbledore explained. "The fragment inside was safe and could sustain its owner. But Riddle intended it to attach to whoever opened it, so he could unleash the Basilisk again."
Anne nodded. "He wanted recognition as Slytherin's heir."
"Exactly. Yet he misused that fragment, casting it like a time bomb. As Slughorn said, a Horcrux is a secure storage of your soul, not to be carelessly dropped where it might be destroyed, like the diary was."
Dumbledore grew grave. "This mistake shows Voldemort likely made, or plans to make, more. Losing one wouldn't matter to him much."
Anne remembered the night Voldemort returned. "He said, 'I have traveled farther along the path of immortality than anyone.' That must mean his Horcruxes. I believe he made multiple, his soul was more broken than mere evil."
"He killed to avoid death," Anne said. "Why not use a Philosopher's Stone?"
"He did," Dumbledore confirmed. "But dependency on a stone is risky, running out, theft, deactivation. Voldemort despises dependence. Horcruxes offered freedom from such constraints."
"Okay," Anne breathed, "but how many?"
"Seven parts," Dumbledore replied. "Six Horcruxes, plus the seventh piece remains in his body, the part that revived him."
"Six? We've already destroyed two, the diary and your ring," Anne said, recalling past battles.
"Yes. The ring with the ominous curse, destroyed with Snape's help, costing me my hand. A small price for one-seventh of Voldemort's soul."
"But how did you find it?"
Dumbledore paused. "The ring was hidden in the ruins of the Gaunt house, enchanted heavily but traceable to Voldemort's past. Vigilance and an old ruin revealed it."
"So that leaves four Horcruxes."
"Likely items with magical and historical significance," Dumbledore stated. "Voldemort loves relics tied to Hogwarts history."
Anne said, "The Hufflepuff cup! The Slytherin locket!"
Dumbledore nodded with a pleased smile. "Those are strong candidates. The remaining two are tougher, but yes, Ravenclaw's and Gryffindor's artifacts could be involved."
"So the final four might be the cup, locket, Ravenclaw's diadem, and something else, maybe Gryffindor's sword?"
"Indeed. I believe the last is likely Nagini, Voldemort's snake, an unconventional but dangerous choice."
Anne was stunned. "He used a living creature?!"
"A Horcrux requires an object that will last," Dumbledore explained. "Nagini's bond to Voldemort made her uniquely suited, she accompanied him and obeyed him in ways few creatures could."
"Which Horcrux remains?" Anne pressed.
"Of the four, Hufflepuff's cup and Slytherin's locket likely. The sixth is harder, and the seventh, the body itself including Nagini, is vilely clever."
Anne's eyes widened. "So, were you searching Hogwarts artifacts after leaving?"
"I've been searching for months," Dumbledore admitted. "But now I have clues pointing to the next."
Anne's voice filled with hope: "If you find one, can I help destroy it?"
Dumbledore studied her. "Yes. You've earned that right."
Anne beamed, then suddenly asked: "When a Horcrux is destroyed, does Voldemort feel it?"
"Interesting question," Dumbledore replied. "I doubt it, he's so fractured and evil, he lacks connection to those fragments. He didn't even notice the diary's destruction, Slughorn confirms that. Only later, in fury, did he ask Lucius Malfoy."
Anne remembered. "He had Lucius sneak it back into Hogwarts, didn't he?"
Dumbledore nodded. "He trusted Malfoy absolutely. Voldemort hid behind excuses to avoid suspicion, but Pride ruined him."
Anne sat in silence, digesting this. "If all Horcruxes are destroyed… can Voldemort be killed?"
"Yes. Without Horcruxes, he is mortal, though still powerful. It will take extraordinary ability and bravery."
"I don't have extraordinary ability," Anne said softly.
"You do," Dumbledore answered firmly. "You have what Voldemort never did, you have love."
Anne looked confused.
"Yes, Anne, love. The Prophecy spoke of a power Voldemort doesn't understand. But that power only matters if he acts on it, he focused on the prophecy, and in doing so shaped you into his adversary. That choice was yours, not his."
He paced. "If he hadn't been told you could defeat him, he might not have tried. But he did, and he made an enemy who could resist him."
Anne's eyes lit with determination.
"I understand now," she said. "I'll destroy him."
"Yes," Dumbledore said, voice ringing with encouragement. "You can."
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