Slytherin's Locket

Loren copied the Rune, finishing the last stroke to connect the entire character end to end, like a coiled ouroboros.

Several similar Rune were displayed on the parchment, with complex, twisted, and convoluted strokes. The whole sheet looked messy, but the ink of each character was deep black, staining the edges of the paper with a bluish tinge, emitting a faint plant fragrance, and exuding a mysterious beauty.

He copied seventeen Rune from the locket, recognizing thirteen of them. He could only trace the other four by comparison, and tried to outline them several times with Unicorn Hair, but the result was unclear, and he could not determine the magical reaction.

Salazar Slytherin may be the last user of these ancient Rune. Even Flamel could hardly recognize them, only saying that he had seen them in a notebook about Ancient Magic ruins. He was now hiding in the Fantasy Book, searching for information.

Loren rubbed his temples. Destroying the Horcrux was easy enough; he could chop it with the Sword of Gryffindor, burn it with Fiendfyre, or use the Basilisk Fang. But as an Alchemy, he wanted to figure out what kind of Magic Power this locket held.

Furthermore, in the gap in time, Daisy Dodridge, the owner of the Leaky Cauldron, mentioned Salazar Slytherin, who knew about the buried history and Prophecy about war, and might leave some clues or revelations in the locket.

Damn Voldemort, damn rituals, why did he have to make this into Horcrux...?

Beside the desk, Hermione leaned closer to examine the locket, lost in thought, "Slytherin's Locket doesn't seem special at all, which is strange. Sword of Gryffindor can absorb Magic Power, Ravenclaw's Diadem enhances wisdom. Given Slytherin's character, his locket couldn't be this ordinary... There must be something hidden inside, Loren. How do we open it?"

"Use Parselmouth."

Loren answered casually, turning his head to see her fair fingers poking at the locket. His eyebrows twitched involuntarily. If this thing hadn't been in Kreacher's hands for over a decade without any problems, he certainly wouldn't have dared to touch it so casually.

"Parselmouth, just like the Slytherin style. The Chamber of Secrets of Secrets was opened with Parselmouth, and the Basilisk was controlled with Parselmouth too..." Hermione picked up the locket chain and shook it. The rings clinked together, producing a faint metallic sound, like a snake flicking its tongue. "Did you decipher those Rune? Did they reveal what was hidden inside? Does it matter?"

"Deciphering..." Loren paused for a moment, then glanced down at the spells on the paper. Thirteen were known, and four were of unknown meaning. The deduction was intermittent, like a linear algebra problem that made one's brain ache.

"Just consider it as me deciphering it..." Loren mumbled, trying to brush it off. "I don't know what's hidden inside, but it's probably nothing good. Besides, the locket can subtly affect a person's emotions, making them irritable and easily angered..."

"No wonder Kreacher is always grumbling..." Hermione withdrew her hand from the locket, shrank her neck, and her expression was no longer as calm as before. "I hope Dumbledore gets back soon."

Loren, however, felt that the House-elf's condition had nothing to do with the locket. Having been brainwashed by erroneous ideas for a long time and spending more than a decade with a portrait of a madman, it was normal for its psychology to be distorted.

"George, Fred! Don't think I don't know you're hiding in Harry and Ron's bed. I knocked on your doors! Go back to your rooms and sleep right now! I've told you so many times, don't meddle in adult matters. I really don't know what you're thinking. There's a ton of work to do tomorrow, and you're never here for the big cleaning. You're hiding in your rooms playing those pranks... And you two, what are you doing up so late with them?"

Molly's voice boomed down the corridor, and a surge of teleportation Magic Power rippled through the next room—it was obvious that the Twins had just learned Apparition. As the footsteps faded into the distance, the old house gradually quieted down.

"I should go back now."

"Hmm, so Ginny won't wake up and find you gone, I'll copy down the four Rune separately and then go to sleep too—"

Loren's words were cut off, his eyes widening slightly.

He didn't know when Hermione had gotten up and moved closer, pressing her lips to his. They were so close that he could even see the smile in her eyes.

The wand swayed, and the girl vanished from the spot, leaving only the lingering echo of Apparition.

A pale blue ray of dawn first appeared on the eastern horizon, as if a white-gray canvas was gradually replacing the deep blue night sky. The sun, radiating brilliant light, slowly rose into the sky, and the heat and brightness of late summer descended upon the world once again, awakening the sleeping Grimmauld Place.

Thump, thump, thump.

After the knock, Molly's gentle voice came through. "Get up, Loren. If you want to sleep a little longer, breakfast is in the Kitchen. After you're done, come to the living room and do the spring cleaning with us."

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley ..."

Loren answered subconsciously, opening his somewhat dazed eyes. He saw the mottled, oxidized ceiling and a ray of sunlight shining through the window onto the desk against the wall and the parchment on the tabletop. The musty smell of the old room seemed to have faded a lot, or perhaps he had already gotten used to it.

It took him a few seconds to focus his eyes as he recalled the hazy, eerie dreams he had had the previous night.

Four incredibly long, thin snakes twisted themselves into the shape of Rune —the same four unfamiliar Rune discovered yesterday—their mouths tightly gripping their tails, writhing and cycling incessantly...

The scene was quite bizarre. Loren was certain it was a nightmare until the aroma of milk and oatmeal wafted into his nose and he heard some leisurely, dragging footsteps in the corridor. Only then did he fully come to his senses.

After spending some time changing clothes and washing up, I went downstairs to the Kitchen and found Hermione and Ginny already sitting at the dining table, with Arthur, Bill, Lupin, and Sirius Black next to them.

"How did you sleep last night?" Hermione casually handed him the cutlery and cup.

"Not good, I had a nightmare..."

Hermione frowned. What did he mean by that? Was he implying that her goodnight kiss had given him nightmares?

But Loren didn't pay attention to that. He looked around and found that Tonks and Mundungus were not there. He turned to look at the stove and asked casually, "Mr. Weasley, are we the only ones living here?"

Arthur looked up from the newspaper. "That's how it is right now. Actually, at first only Remus and Sirius Black lived here. Later, for the sake of communication, our family moved here... However, other members sometimes stay here for one night when it's inconvenient for them."

"It's not just for easier communication, but also because Molly understands that Sirius Black and I are basically unable to take care of ourselves and always make a mess of this place," Lupin smiled gently.

"Dumbledore? Will he come here?"

"Many people are watching Dumbledore's movements. In order to deal with the Ministry of Magic and the Death Eater, who have ill intentions, Dumbledore usually only operates in Hogwarts and Godric's Hollow. However, after establishing this place as the Order of the Phoenix headquarters, he comes here at least once a week to exchange intelligence and issue follow-up orders."

Loren nodded thoughtfully and asked again, "Has he come this week? When can we see Dumbledore?"

"No need to rush. Dumbledore specifically instructed that he would come over as soon as you arrive."

"I see..."

"Dinner's ready."

Molly, who came out from the stove, brought a pot of hot milk to the table, and the rich aroma of milk filled the room.

The wait was longer than Loren had anticipated. For the next few days, Molly led them in cleaning the house. Harry claimed that it wasn't a big cleaning, but a tedious and complicated war, with strange magical artifacts and magical pests putting up a futile but tenacious resistance.

It took them almost an entire morning just to eliminate the Doxy in the living room curtains.

The Doxy is a Beetle -like creature with shiny wings that make an annoying buzzing sound when they flutter. It has tiny, needle-like teeth that protrude from its body, and its small, delicate body is covered with thick black hair. When disturbed, it clenches its four little fists as if it will angrily punch you at any moment.

Shaking the curtains will disturb the Doxy hiding inside. Molly said that while they fly out to attack living people, you should spray the Doxy with the spray for at least three seconds to paralyze them for a short while. While they are paralyzed by the pesticide, you can throw them into the trash can.

Loren suspected that the Doxy had choked and fainted, and that it had nothing to do with any insecticide added to the spray.

It wasn't until after noon that Molly took off her protective scarf and plopped down in an armchair with a concave center.

The curtains no longer hummed; they hung damply, soaked from the excessive spray. Beneath them, countless unconscious Doxy lay in the tub, their black eggs in a bowl beside them. Crookshanks sniffed around, while Fred and George watched them with longing.

They need the Doxy's venom to develop Instant Escapism Candy. They've heard there are already Fainting Fudge and Nosebleed Nougat candies—non-toxic, harmless, with realistic symptoms, controllable duration, and guaranteed to leave Madam Pomfrey undetectable...

In the afternoon, while cleaning out the old items in the display case, many things seemed reluctant to leave the dusty shelves, protesting in their own way. Sirius Black was bitten hard by a Silver Snuffbox.

Ginny turned on a Music Box, wound it up, and it emitted a faint, ominous tinkling melody. Then, several people nearby found themselves inexplicably weak and drowsy. Fortunately Ginny was still clear-headed and quickly closed the lid.

The formal gowns in the closet might try to strangle a lone person, and the dusty old clock might fire hard screws at passersby...

This gloomy and dark Pure-blood Families mansion was gradually cleaned and renovated. The Ancient Magic artifacts that were removed were like parasitic growths, but no one knew whether they would be reborn or completely destroyed in the coming wave of destruction.

Lupin, who once served as Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, was a key member of the cleanup team, but he didn't stay in the house all the time. Occasionally, he would disappear for whole days to do some secret missions for the Order of the Phoenix.

Group meetings were infrequent, but members of the Order of the Phoenix would always rush in, say a few words, and then leave in a hurry. Whenever the doorbell rang, it would awaken the Witch's portrait behind the Entrance Hall valance curtains. After being repeatedly honed by the shrill screams and wails, George and Fred claimed that they could now face the Banshee without fear, and would not be affected even without their wands.

Snape made a few more brief, fleeting visits, but thanks to Mrs. Weasley's various attempts to stop him, they never met face-to-face. Professor McGonagall also made a few brief appearances, dressed in Muggle clothes and a coat, looking quite strange...

Tuesday, sunny.

The Black family manor was relatively quiet today. The spring cleaning was mostly finished, and with the start of school approaching, Molly stopped employing child laborers and told Loren and the others to focus on their homework.

Ron sat on the sofa with a Transfiguration textbook in his hands, intently studying Harry's essay assignments hidden within the pages. Every now and then, he would pick up a piece of parchment lying beside him and scribble on his assignments.

Harry and Ginny got together, ostensibly to have an upperclassman help them with their studies.

Loren sat to the side, curiously fiddling with several exquisite magical items while casually making notes in his notebook. The old house was full of strange and wonderful things, and the ingenious ideas inside always inspired him.

Hermione was previewing the textbook for the next school year when she encountered a problem and casually asked, "Loren, is it easier to understand the basic definition of the Presence Charm using classical Magic Power principles or modern Magic Power principles? The book says both are correct."

"This spell needs to be understood in conjunction with the previous Summoning Charm. The two principles are not fundamentally different; the only difference lies in the concept of 'existence'..."

Harry and Ron looked up when they heard the question, exchanged glances, their expressions slightly different, but their eyes were both blank.

"Are you reciting some kind of tongue twister? I recognize each word individually, but I can't understand it when they're put together." Ron couldn't help but scratch his head, as if he were under some kind of spell, and he couldn't even concentrate on copying his homework.

"Are we really in the same year?" Harry chimed in.

"This is the key content for the next academic year, and also an important test point for the OWL exam." Hermione said without looking up, her voice indifferent.

Harry and Ron stared wide-eyed, their expressions filled with horror.

Loren couldn't help but chuckle. Just as he was about to say something, a jingling doorbell rang from downstairs. The young wizards instinctively covered their ears, bracing themselves for the "Howling Witch's " attack, only to find that instead of the expected shrill screams, they heard Molly's warm greeting:

"Dumbledore! You've finally arrived. How long are you staying today? Will you be staying for dinner?"

Loren and the others were slightly taken aback, then stood up in unison, casually tossing aside their books and pens, and ran towards the Entrance Hall.