House-elf Hokey

"Poisoned?" Wizet said. "So the Ministry of Magic thinks Hokey did it?"

"Just as you thought..." Dumbledore nodded. "Hokey had direct access to Hepzibah Smith, and the Ministry charged her with one crime—maliciously poisoning her own mistress."

"However, after a series of interrogations and trials, the Ministry ultimately ruled it an accidental killing. They believed she was too old, perhaps too dim-sighted, and had mistaken poison for a tea bag."

Wizet frowned slightly. "They may not know enough about House-elves. Even if they could no longer carry a tray, they would not mistake it for a cup."

"It seems you have gained much recently." Dumbledore's words carried a deeper meaning. "In fact, you must have been speculating... that the one who poisoned Hepzibah Smith was Voldemort..."

Following Dumbledore's line of thought, Wizet said, "After poisoning Hepzibah Smith, he shifted the blame onto Hokey..."

"In fact, that is what I believe as well..." Dumbledore said. "Borgin and Burkes did not only have information regarding Hepzibah Smith's whereabouts."

"Professor Dumbledore, you mean..." With Dumbledore's words, Wizet thought of a possibility.

"Voldemort once worked at Borgin and Burkes... Was that how he learned about the locket?"

"That locket belonged to Salazar Slytherin, and it must have been quite valuable... If he was merely an employee, could he have come into contact with such things?"

"When Voldemort worked at Borgin and Burkes, he had not yet become what he is now..." Dumbledore knew what Wizet was thinking. "At the time, he was strikingly handsome and kind to others..."

"So he quickly gained Caractacus Burke's favor and was specifically tasked with dealing with stubborn customers, persuading them to bring out their treasured valuables and consign them to Borgin and Burkes."

"Strikingly handsome?" Wizet had seen Tom Riddle's appearance. With Dumbledore putting it that way, he