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Harry felt his mind drift for a mont.
He had just been listening to Darren summarize what each of the six Horcruxes might be, marveling at how frighteningly smart Darren was, when his thoughts suddenly scattered.
Then—
when he ca back to his senses—
he heard Dumbledore say, "I already have a clue about the next Horcrux."
Harry imdiately raised his hand.
"Headmaster, can I go with you to find the Horcrux?"
He felt he could help with this matter.
Darren smiled as well.
" too, Headmaster. If you're willing, take and my brother with you."
Dumbledore stared at the two of them for a long mont.
Finally he nodded.
"Yes. I think you are both old enough."
Harry felt his heart leap with joy.
But he still asked anxiously, "When a Horcrux is destroyed, does Voldemort feel it?"
Dumbledore shook his head.
"Probably not. According to the information I have, when the diary was destroyed in your second year, he didn't notice.
And when the soul in this obsidian ring was destroyed, he didn't know either.
He has split his soul so many tis that he can no longer sense it…
Perhaps only at the very end, near death, might he feel sothing."
"If all the Horcruxes are destroyed, can Voldemort be killed?"
"Yes."
Harry nodded happily.
Just as he and Darren were about to leave Dumbledore's office, Dumbledore suddenly asked:
"Harry—without that prophecy, would you still choose to kill Voldemort?"
Harry fell silent.
He thought of the voices of his parents he had heard in mories.
Of the parents he saw in the Mirror of Erised.
Of Sirius.
Of Darren, abandoned since childhood.
Of Mr. Diggory.
Finally, standing there, he answered softly but firmly:
"Yes."
...
This lesson truly helped Harry a great deal.
At least he finally understood one thing—
in the matter of killing Voldemort, he was not passive, but active.
He had a goal.
He would make Voldemort die because of the very thing he despised—love.
Of course.
In Charms class, he told Ron and Hermione about it.
Ron and Hermione were stunned.
"Dumbledore actually agreed to take you to destroy Horcruxes!"
Ron looked at Harry with envy.
Hermione was worried instead.
She pulled Darren aside again and again, telling him to be careful and safe, as if he might vanish the next second.
Harry and Ron then talked about Romilda.
"She broke up with and started dating McLaggen.
She even told him I liked Malfoy…
Now the Slytherins all look at like I'm insane…"
Ron looked depressed.
But then he laughed again.
"But I discovered sothing from this—
as long as you have no sha, no one can hurt you!
So when Malfoy mocked , I pretended to confess to him right on the spot.
He was so scared he ran away!
I almost threw up watching him flee, but these days whenever he sees , he avoids like the plague—honestly, it's brilliant!"
"Flitwick!"
Harry suddenly interrupted.
Ron instinctively looked up.
Sure enough, Professor Flitwick was standing right beside him with a smile that was not a smile.
"Co, my boy, let see the results of your practice."
This class required them to turn vinegar into red wine.
Ron pretended to cast the spell, then took a sip of vinegar and stubbornly told Flitwick he had succeeded.
Flitwick sneered and made him drink the whole thing.
Ron was nearly sour to death.
Only after he gulped down several glasses of water did Flitwick finally laugh.
Wednesday—
Katie finally returned from St. Mungo's.
Her return put Harry in a fantastic mood.
It ant his Quidditch team no longer needed Dean to replace her.
Naturally, he rushed to ask Katie who had given her the necklace.
"I've answered this countless tis," Katie said helplessly.
"I'm certain I went into the bathroom… after that I don't rember anything.
But I'm sure it was the bathroom."
This made Harry's certainty about Malfoy waver.
Because Crabbe and Goyle could easily have done the sa.
With a whole cauldron of Polyjuice Potion, hiding outside the girls' bathroom and passing the necklace to soone was completely possible.
Harry could only flip through the Half-Blood Prince's Potions book again, hoping the Prince had written so useful spell.
Unfortunately, the Prince couldn't help him with this.
However, Harry noticed a spell marked "for enemies"—
Sectumsempra.
His heart pounded.
He secretly morized it, not daring to make a single mistake.
Apart from that, life revolved around Quidditch.
Harry had never been so confident before.
He believed Gryffindor would absolutely win this ti.
Days passed quickly in that atmosphere.
Until one day—
Harry went downstairs to the bathroom and suddenly heard Malfoy's voice from inside, along with Moaning Myrtle's attempt to comfort him.
"If you have sothing, you can tell … Darren asked to comfort you…"
Harry almost cried out in shock.
Why would Darren ask Myrtle to comfort Malfoy?
And… was Darren still in contact with Myrtle?
"I don't need your concern, and I don't need his either!
No one can help … I can't do it…
He will kill … he will definitely kill !"
Malfoy sobbed.
Harry's heart trembled.
It felt like an explosion in his chest.
He saw Malfoy—actually crying.
Seeing an enemy cry—
Harry didn't know what to do.
But the next second—
Malfoy noticed him.
He whipped out his wand and aid at Harry.
A red light shot from the tip.
Harry dodged and imdiately cast:
"Levicorpus!"
But Malfoy blocked it.
Bang!
The rubbish bin behind Harry exploded.
Harry suddenly rembered the spell he had seen—
Sectumsempra.
Without thinking, he aid at Malfoy.
Blood burst from Malfoy's chest and face.
Myrtle scread.
"Murder! Murder!"
Harry was horrified.
"No—!"
He rushed to Malfoy's side and fell to his knees, trying to do sothing—anything—
but he realized he had no idea how to save him.
At that mont, a hand shoved him aside.
"Fuck off, let co!"
It was Snape.
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