Horcruxes and AKs: A theory of everything?

[Geoff]

No: HPFGUIDX 191187

Geoff:

I have been pleased to see that the post I sent a few days ago has 
triggered quite a lot of discussion; I have often posted in the past 
and the thread has fallen flat with no responses.  What I want to do 
here is to use my thoughts plus the supporting messages from Steve 
and a number of other members to try to draw this thread together 
and tie up loose ends if that is possible – a "theory of everything" 
for Horcruxes and AKs so to speak.

I am going to try to collate all the facts we have from canon before 
looking, perhaps again, at some of the conclusions members of the 
group have drawn.

Firstly, as someone reminded us only today, and as Slughorn explained 
to the youthful Tom Riddle, a Horcrux is the object or being in which 
the soul fragment is stored: 
`"Just so you understand the term. A Horcrux is the word used for 
an object in which a person has concealed part of their soul"' 
(HBP, "Horcruxes" p.464 UK edition). 

He continues to explain that committing a murder rips the soul but 
for a wizard intent upon creating a Horcrux, there is Dark Magic 
involved by encasing the torn fragment: 
`"Encase? But how-?"
"There is a spell, do not ask me. I don't know!" said Slughorn, shaking 
his head like an old elephant bothered by mosquitoes. "Do I look as 
though I have tried it – do I look like a killer?"' 
(ibid. p.465).

So I shall  refer to the contents of the Horcruxes as "soul fragments" to
try to make it clear to what I am referring. 

It appears that there are three variations in the way in which Voldemort's
soul fragments behave. It would seem that there are some which remain 
dormant if undisturbed. I think that fragment in the Ravenclaw diadem 
and in the Hufflepuff cup come into this category. A second set of soul 
fragments seems to be able to interact with people of their own accord. 
The soul fragment which manifested itself as teenage Tom Riddle in GOF 
was obviously able to influence Ginny and try to do the same with Harry 
and there was the fragment in the locket which, if worn for long periods 
could affect the wearer psychologically as we saw in DH. The third 
category was where a living Horcrux was made. Dumbledore tells Harry 
in HBP that making a living Horcrux is inadvisable and there was little 
evidence of it having been done often, but Voldemort had turned Nagini 
into one. 

But then of course there is Harry... Someone wrote recently that Harry 
can't be a Horcrux because he wasn't turned into a Horcrux by the 
planned use of Dark Magic. As Dumbledore put it:
`"You were the seventh Horcrux, Harry, the Horcrux he never meant to 
make
 He left more than his body behind. He left part of himself 
latched to you, the would-be victim who had survived."'
(DH "King's Cross" p.568 UK edition)

Inevitably, poor old Harry seems to be the exception to the rule in
everything that happens.

We have established that the soul fragment can only be destroyed by 
the use of certain powerful magical weapons or forces. A Basilisk fang 
was used for the diary and the cup, Gryffindor's sword for the locket 
and the snake, Fiendfyre finished off the diadem and an AK curse the 
fragment in Harry. I'm not sure whether we have been told how 
Dumbledore destroyed the soul fragment in the ring. In the case of 
the inanimate Horcruxes, every one suffered serious damage or 
destruction during the killing of the soul fragment and, of course, 
Nagini wasn't very well after Neville had a talk with her.

A thought that has recently occurred to me is whether Voldemort was 
actually aware that Harry was a Horcrux. The fact that he and Harry 
shared a mind link might not be what was to be expected and that 
perhaps he thought it was some quirk related to the Godric's Hollow 
incident. Did he actually know that Harry spoke Parseltongue? If he 
had known, I wonder whether he might have taken other measures 
to control Harry.

One point which has been under discussion is why Voldemort failed 
four times with an AK to kill Harry. and it would seem that in every 
instance, the situation was different. At Godric's Hollow, Voldemort 
later acknowledges that "His mother left on him the traces of her 
sacrifice
 this is old magic. I should have remembered it. I was 
foolish to overlook it." (GOF "The Death Eaters" p.566 UK edition). 
On the second occasion, the spell wasn't completed because Harry 
broke the link and the "shadows" of the wand victims blocked 
Voldemort long enough for Harry to get away. The third saw 
Voldemort cast an AK with no resistance from Harry and the last 
saw another rebounding effect, this time fatal.

With regard to the third duel and final duels, it was my discussion 
of my take of them which triggered the current series of posts and 
I feel that perhaps I might just repeat part of what I said in  post 
191160 instead of rewording it:
When Voldemort cast the spell in the forest, I believe that Lily's
power of love was still latent in Harry and forced the spell onto the
Horcrux fragment in him. It was destroyed in a kind of reversal of
what happened in Godric's Hollow where Voldemort's spell 
rebounded and disembodied him leaving the Horcrux fragment to 
latch onto baby Harry. There was obviously some sort of reaction 
because Voldemort was apparently knocked out judging from 
what Harry could determine without daring to open his eyes.

Now, what about the Great Hall duel at the very end? I believe that 
the Elder Wand came into play here. The sequence of holding the 
Elder Wand was that Draco disarmed Dumbledore on the Tower 
but did not take possession because the wand was buried with 
the Headmaster.

However, because he had disarmed him, the wand's allegiance shifted
to Draco although he did not have the wand in his possession. When
Harry disarmed Draco at the Manor, the Elder Wand was not physically
involved but, since Harry had defeated Draco, the wand's master had
been defeated and so it's allegiance moved again – to Harry, Voldemort
being ignorant of this change.

So when Voldemort rather foolishly attempted an Avadra Kedrava for
the third time on Harry, this was someone who was not the master of
the wand attempting to defeat the real master without the authority
to do so and the wand therefore responded to Harry's Expelliarmus
and went to him while Voldemort's spell rebounded – yet again! and
this time he had nothing left with which to cushion or reduce the spell.

The way in which Horcruxes are created and the way in which the soul 
fragments are sealed is perhaps more complex that I thought when 
these strange objects first speared in HBP and add to that the way in 
which the "ownership' of the Elder Wand was progressively transferred 
in a very short space of time – and the misinterpreting of these transfers 
by Voldemort have produced quite a puzzle for us innocent readers. 
I hope that that by trying to get all the evidence correctly marshalled 
as it were "under one roof", we may be able to satisfactorily understand 
the events of 2nd May 1998 at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and 
Wizardry.

I now wait for you to have fun picking holes in my theorising.