The Werewolf's Child

The Old Synagogue and the Hairy Heart

"And expecting a child, if I am not mistaken."

At this Remus colored and nodded in affirmation.

"Yours?" asked the Rabbi, turning to Sev.

"No," said Sev.

"Might as well be," said Remus, which caused Sev to look at him sharply for a moment, with a question in his eye, and then shake his head and look away. They couldn't afford to be distracted by the baby right now.

"Children are a great blessing," commented the Rabbi blandly.

Both men just sat and stared at him. Remus took another sip of the awful wine.

"What can I do for you?" asked the rabbi.

"Reb Eleazar, we need you help," Sev said. "It......it seems obvious to say it, but we are here on a mission that requires the strictest confidence."

"You are both members of the Order of the Phoenix?" asked the Rabbi.

"Yes," they answered in unison.

"I am aware of the role both of you have played over the years," he said.

"You are?" asked Sev.

"Dumbledore kept me informed about those whom he considered his allies," the Rabbi said, with a wry smile. "You can trust me."

So Sev and Remus told him about Dumbledore's theory, of the horcrux that was lodged inside Harry. About Dumbledore's theory that Harry had to die. About their fruitless search for an alternative solution. About their hope that the Kabbalah could provide the answers that they were seeking.

"Does the boy know?" asked the rabbi when their tale was done.

"No," replied Sev. "Dumbledore did not want him to know, not until the other horcruxes had been destroyed."

"And how many are gone?" asked the rabbi.

"Three," said Sev softly. "The diary, the ring, and the locket. And we believe there are three others. One is probably Nagini, the Dark Lord's snake. The others are unknown."

"And you believe that a seventh horcrux resides within the Chosen One?""

"Dumbledore believed that," replied Remus. "And I think he was probably right. But we do not know if the Dark Lord is aware of that one's existence."

"And although you are the Dark Lord's trusted confidante, he has never told you about the horcruxes?" asked Reb Eleazer, turning to Sev.

"No," replied Sev. "He has not."

"And you have tried to get him to reveal...."

"Of course I have," replied Sev, sharply, cutting him off. "I haven't gotten anywhere, unfortunately."

"The world is a place of deep mystery, is it not?" commented the rabbi. He rose creakily from his seat, and went over to a wooden stand where an ancient looking scroll lay open. He touched it with his wand, and it rolled itself to the place he sought. He kissed the wand tip and then touched it to the scroll, his lips moving silently as he read a passage. He then went over to a glass encased bookshelf and removed a volume. He flipped through for a minute, then laid the book on the table.

The volume was an ancient copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard. Remus breathed in sharply, when he saw the title of the story the rabbi had turned to. "Of course!" he said, looking at the heading at the top of the page. "The Wizard's Hairy Heart. We were so focused on The Tale of the Three Brothers. We forgot about this one!"

"As you will recall," said Reb Eleazar, "this is the tale of a man who was afraid of love, so afraid that he removed his own heart and had it encased in a crystal casket in the cellar of his house. Of course, things did not go well for him after that. Do you remember what happened?"