Chapter 1268: A Clue
Chapter 1268: A Clue
"Mom has always wanted to stop us," Ron whispered, glancing at the closed door. "They all want to know what we're up to."
"But Dumbledore isn't..." Hermione began, only to be interrupted by Harry.
"That's not surprising. Curiosity is human nature. Besides, it's normal for them not to trust me fully, especially since I'm not Albert and don't have his abilities. No one would be foolish enough to pin all their hopes on me." Harry understood the situation better than anyone.
He took out his notebook, tore out a few pages of notes, and used his wand to set them ablaze, watching as they turned to ashes in the flame.
"Don't say that, Harry," Hermione said anxiously. "Everyone wants to believe in you. And I think Mrs. Weasley's intentions are good."
"I know," Harry sighed softly. "Mrs. Weasley is just overly concerned for everyone's safety. But she doesn't realize that sometimes, well-meaning actions can have terrible consequences."
The room fell silent.
They all understood the importance of keeping the Horcruxes a secret. If Voldemort learned that his biggest secret had been exposed, who knew what horrors he would unleash.
"I think you know how foolish they're being," Harry continued. "He will kill anyone who knows about the Horcruxes unless the secret is already out."
Harry knew Voldemort's modus operandi all too well; he would never allow anyone to know about his Horcruxes.
"So, that secret must be kept at all costs, not just to defeat him but to protect the lives of others." Harry was sending a message not just to Ron but also to anyone eavesdropping outside the room. He knew he had to give them some hints to prevent certain people from making a mess of things.
"You're right, Harry," Ron said, looking at the closed door. He didn't argue because he knew it was the truth. After Professor Bubbage's tragic end, they had all realized that they should heed others' advice, especially Albert's. If only Professor Bubbage had taken Albert's suggestion to leave the country, she might not have met such a grim fate.
Professor Bubbage had died just yesterday. Soon after being admitted to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries by the Ministry of Magic, she had been killed by Death Eaters. The appearance of the Dark Mark above St. Mungo's had shocked the British wizarding community.
Everyone knew this was the Death Eaters' revenge and a direct challenge to the Ministry. The Death Eaters were sending a clear message to British wizards that the Ministry was weak and vulnerable.
"Mrs. Weasley has left," Hermione said, turning to Harry. "Do you really think this will work?"
"I don't know," Harry shook his head. "But I hope so. I'll make time to talk to Sirius and let them understand the seriousness of the situation. Keeping them in the dark will only cause problems later on, and I'll use this to convince them."
As he spoke, Harry glanced at the nearly empty bottle of potion.
"We're running low on Felix Felicis," Ron said, eyeing the golden liquid in the bottle and licking his lips. "If we had more, our upcoming tasks would surely be smoother."
"Fred said Albert's supply is almost gone, too," Harry agreed, wishing they could get more of the luck potion, but its complex brewing process was a hindrance.
"Don't forget about the side effects," Hermione reminded them.
"That's the best joke I've heard all year," Ron said dryly. "You're worried about side effects after drinking a luck potion."
"I think you're missing the point," Harry said, putting the bottle of Felix Felicis back into his lizard-skin pouch.
"Don't worry, Harry," Hermione said comfortingly. "Just explain things to them clearly, and it'll be fine."
"If we can't resolve this smoothly, the coming days won't be pleasant," Harry said, reflecting on his decision to share some information with Sirius.
"Actually, Harry... I still think we should make this place our base," Ron suggested, noting the looks from his companions. "I mean, we can't stay out there gathering information forever. We need a place to relax and rest, and there's nowhere safer than here at the Order's headquarters."
Harry glanced at Hermione, who remained silent, and he didn't refute her either, choosing to remain temporarily quiet.
"We do need a place to rest and recuperate." Harry finally spoke up after a long silence.
Ron and Hermione heaved sighs of relief.
None of them had much experience with outdoor living, and as Ron had said, they needed a base, a safe place to fall back on, and there was nowhere safer than the Order's headquarters.
Speaking of which, they had Albert to thank for noticing the issues within the Order and prompting them to address them in time. Otherwise, Harry's accommodation arrangements during his adulthood could have become a big problem.
"Our biggest problem right now is that we still have no leads on the Horcruxes." Harry couldn't help but mock himself, "Sometimes I feel like passing the 'Savior' title to Albert, but that guy doesn't want it."
The best idea they could come up with was to seek Albert's help, which left Harry feeling helpless.
"Don't say that, Harry. You're doing great," Ron consoled.
"Harry, don't we already have an obvious direction to work with?" Hermione frowned.
It was obvious that their long discussion would not be entirely fruitless.
However, even with some ideas, they couldn't be sure they would work because even Dumbledore hadn't been able to locate the remaining Horcruxes.
So, all they could do for now was to rely on luck.
After much deliberation, they unanimously decided to search for clues and take their chances at places Tom Riddle had lived and worked: Diagon Alley, Hogwarts, Riddle Manor (crossed out), Borgin and Burkes, and Albania.
If they were lucky, they might just find a Horcrux, especially since they had Felix Felicis on their side. Even though the potion couldn't bring them true luck, acting on its guidance might lead to unexpected gains.
However, this plan still carried some risks. If they acted too conspicuously, they could easily attract the attention of Death Eaters, which would bring about unimaginable trouble.
In fact, Harry had a better solution in mind—to ask Albert to predict the location of the Horcruxes.
But Hermione disagreed, reasoning that if it were truly possible to find the Horcruxes, Dumbledore would have already asked Albert for help in searching for them.
Although Hermione made sense, Harry still felt that Albert could be of assistance. That guy had always left Harry with the impression that he knew everything.
Sometimes, Harry even doubted if he could find the Horcruxes himself, even if Albert couldn't. His rational mind told him that exchanging information and searching for the Horcruxes together was the most sensible course of action.
Harry shared his personal thoughts with the other two, and Bill's wedding presented an opportunity to approach Albert.
"Do you think Anderson will agree?" Ron expressed his doubts.
"He will," Hermione asserted.
"If only he could predict where the last two Horcruxes are."
At the moment, Harry had no clues at all, and he hoped that Albert could succeed in his prediction, although the probability was likely low.
If Albert could predict the location of the Horcruxes, they would have been found and destroyed already.
"What if Anderson can't provide us with any help? Do we proceed with our plan to investigate the whereabouts of the Ravenclaw Diadem at Hogwarts?" Ron suddenly asked.
Based on their analysis, the last Horcrux was most likely a relic left behind by either Godric Gryffindor or Rowena Ravenclaw.
As far as Harry knew, the other known relics of the four Hogwarts founders were the Ravenclaw Diadem and the Gryffindor Sword.
The Gryffindor Sword was still in the glass cabinet in Dumbledore's office, but the Ravenclaw Diadem had been missing for centuries.
However, if Voldemort had been able to find the Chamber of Secrets, why couldn't he find the Ravenclaw Diadem?
Perhaps the diadem was hidden in the Chamber of Secrets.
"If we don't have any better leads, I do intend to take some Felix Felicis and go to Hogwarts to try my luck." Harry agreed, "I'll start by trying to get information from the Ravenclaw ghost. If we're lucky, we might uncover some unexpected clues."
Harry indeed suspected that the last Horcrux was the Ravenclaw Diadem, but even if it wasn't, it didn't matter. They hadn't found any better leads anyway.
(End of Chapter)
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