The Changeling Horcrux Hypothesis (Long)

[hokus7]

No: HPFGUIDX 133871

Hey all, I'm trying to post more here now - I'm a longtime 
potterplotting hobbyist, and HBP drew me out of my lurkdom :).  I 
posted this over on tinglinger's potterplotting group, but with no 
replies so far, figured I'd bring it on over to the "big leagues" to 
get thoroughly giggled at. I've also edited it a bit upon further 
reflection, and by no means is this my final word or an immutable 
conclusion - I just love the discussion :).

I've always been a fan of the Changeling Hypothesis, as put forth 
here:

http://www.redhen-publications.com/Changeling.html

Now when I read HBP, and came to the part about Voldemort's 
Horcruxes, I immediately thought "Well, there goes that idea."

Then, I started thinking more about the Horcruxes, how they're made,
and, since we aren't sure of the identity of at least one, whether or
not Dumbledore could be wrong about his list or have missed one right
under his nose - i.e., Harry. Dumbledore himself said that a part of
Riddle went into Harry when the AK failed, and that it was likely
Voldemort was going to use Harry to make his final Horcrux.

This is idea is not unique to me - there have already been several
posts on various forums concerning Harry being a Horcrux. They've
been met with mixed approval, as there are a few major hurdles in the
theory, and they have a lot to do with questions about how a Horcrux
is made, how one is destroyed, and so forth.

I propose that to use the "soul split" as it happens when you kill,
you have to be ready, have to be prepared, to channel the piece of
soul into the host object. The idea of being able to "kill now,
horcrux later" doesn't appeal - I'm pretty sure stashing a piece of
your soul in the ether to use later isn't akin to putting the rest of
the casserole in the fridge.

So, let's assume then that LV was all ready, and prepared, to make 
his final Horcrux when he murders baby Harry. Wand raises, AK fires,
Horcrux enchantment goes off, and...uh oh. He definitely got a piece
of his soul split for killing - too bad it was for killing himself,
and too bad he's not able to corral that piece of soul to where he
wants, being rather uncorporeal, in "pain beyond pain", and perhaps 
somewhat less than focused. 

Admittedly, this part of my theory is hazy, since it rides on
a lot of assumption, both about Horcruxes and what 
constitutes "killing/murdering" (since Voldemort did not, in
actuality, die.). Is it the intent behind the killing, or the 
killing itself that provides the right "stuff" to facilitate the 
splitting of the soul and creation of a Horcrux?  Aurors were 
permitted by Crouch to fight Unforgiveable with Unforgiveable, but 
there didn't seem to be a big to do about soul splitting, though 
maybe not many know that's what happens, either.  At any rate, until 
I have something better and more substantive, the assumptions must 
be made.

Harry is going back to Godric's Hollow, as far as we know, after he
bids goodbye to Privet Dr. for good and attends the sure-to-be-
difficult-due-to-a-pretty-redhead-in-a-gold-gown wedding. If, upon
his arrival and subsequent browsing of the grounds, Harry happens to
find an object which he believes is/could be used as a Horcrux, 
alarms, at least for me, will sound. I believe if Harry finds such 
an object, I think it will be what LV will have been GOING to use 
for the final Horcrux. 

Moving on, we now see the issue Harry runs into when he discovers 
this little secret - namely, how the heck does he get a piece of 
soul out of himself, without doing himself serious damage, i.e. 
death? We've got to assume that next book, should Harry be carrying 
out his plan, he'll learn how to dispose of Horcruxes without 
destroying the object (Dumbledore did it with the ring - 
incidentally, where did that ring get to? Harry noticed it gone, and 
then we were inclined to just forget it.).

This is where the Changeling Hypothesis comes back in - in that
theory, the soul (now soul piece) of Tom Riddle has intertwined with
Harry's soul. Things just got even harder. How to get a piece of
soul apart from your soul and...oh wait, I think by now we know that.
A Horcrux.

Yup, Harry's got to make a Horcrux. Harry has to kill and split his
soul. Can you think of anyone at all Harry might like to off,
especially once he knows how much it could help? A certain Half-Blood
Prince comes to mind. I don't care if it turns out Snape is a good
guy, I don't care if Harry finds this out - one way or another, if
this crazy theory pans out, Snape will be Harry's Horcrux killing,
thus giving Snape a redemption of sorts, no matter what, and a 
purpose in the overall narrative as well.

Now, how does Harry get the right piece of soul? I doubt he'll be
able to look inside himself and see that his soul has a dotted line
marked "Do not cut above this line", like a bag of frozen peas.
Things again get hazy here, as I'm honestly not sure - could be this
is where LV using Harry's blood comes into play, and their souls are
so compatible or some gibberish that it really doesn't matter, or
maybe the soul piece actually WILL have stayed separate - heck, maybe
it's in the scar, I honestly don't know for sure, which is why this 
is a theory.

Boom - Harry kills Snape, sacrificially if he's good (after an 
intense battle wherein Harry learns the truth, but Snape is too 
injured to survive), or with much pleasure if he's not, and makes 
his own Horcrux, which is now technically LV's final Horcrux as 
well. One more wild connection between them. Harry destroys it, 
and...oops.  Another thing...

<unlikely but fun plot device>

Harry was a squib until he got LV's soul piece. That gave him
powers. Now, suddenly, Harry is magicless, and basically running for
his life from AK after AK that Riddle is throwing at him. What to
do? Harry's thoughts turn to everyone he loves, who has loved him,
and so forth, as his life flashes before his eyes like all the good
cliches say it will.

Remember JKR mentioning someone learning to do magic later in life,
under extreme circumstances? Remember Dumbledore's claim that love is
the most powerful and ancient type of magic of all? No clue what form
it takes, but Harry destroys LV with said magic, under extreme
circumstances.

</unlikely but fun plot device>

Alright, alright, I personally don't put a lot of stock in that last
little bit. I think Harry is a bonafide wizard, I hope that someone
would've made the connection between the transfer and him being a
Squib otherwise (i.e. DD), though since Lily and James were hiding 
and babies don't often show magical ability right away, it's 
possible no one knew.  Still, I think Harry must sacrifice SOMETHING 
here, even if it's just the powers that came along with Tom's soul 
piece.

One last thing - I still think LV plans to make Harry his final
Horcrux killing. I don't think, assuming the validity of this 
theory, he knows he already made his final Horcrux, and that his 
target  actually became his vessel. I don't think he used Nagini 
like DD  thinks - Bryce was a muggle, no chance Tom was gonna use 
THAT murder for one of HIS Horcruxes. I think the main reason LV 
still wants to kill Harry personally is not just to prove he can, 
though that's a nice bonus. Nope, I think he wants to pick up where 
he left off, and cement his immortality in the most fitting and 
symbolic way he can.

This Changeling Horcrux Theory is, if nothing else, decent stuff to
think on, I believe. Go ahead and expand, critique, laugh, yawn,
whatever. I've got 2 years before I can be genuinely laughed at for
such foolishness :).


Hokus