The Lost Horcrux

Unwilling Defenders

"Ginny helped him along with that. She started a whispering campaign against you, started to really poison Ron's mind where you were concerned. That's a Dark Art in and of itself, and Ginny is an expert at it. Then, after that first slap for you talking back one too many times, the physical abuse became easier ... but I cant talk about that, or I'll break something.

"But physical abuse wasn't enough. He had to try and break your spirit, your very will to resist. He had to remove all your hope, which is why he tried to stop you hosting those anniversary parties on my Deathday. But he couldn't do that, either. He tried, with all the magic he possessed .... but apart from being a joke of a wizard, he couldn't break through some curious internal shield you'd cast on yourself. He didn't know what it was, had never seen magic like it before ... and because he couldn't shift it he ... he ..."

Harry had to steady himself ... the windows were vibrating dangerously with his boiling fury.

"He had Riddle curse you ... in person."

Hermione swore so violently it was she who broke the window.

"Riddle cursed me?" Hermione breathed, angrily.

"Oh yes," Harry nodded, fighting a losing battle for calm in his mind. "You and Tom Riddle have a far more intimate relationship than you have ever been aware of. He finds you fascinating, you know ... he has ever since this episode ... and this spell that you'd cast on yourself was the trigger to his borderline obsession with you."

All colour sped from Hermione's face.

"Riddle has an obsession with me?" Hermione whispered in abject sickness. "But why? Because of this enchantment?"

Harry nodded. "Even he couldn't crack it, you see. And he tried on multiple occasions. But you kept repelling him until, during one duel, this spell you'd cast decided enough was enough, and consumed whatever new curse Riddle was trying on you to break through. It ate through part of your heart ... it would have done irreparable damage to you if he'd carried on, rather than give in.

"But he didn't. He wanted to know more about it. This was new magic, and he wanted it for himself. But he couldn't touch it, couldn't beat it. And that just made him even more curious about it ... there was that aspect of it ... but also because the spell was all about me."

The room was heaving in its silence now. It sat dense and heavy in the air as Harry took another breath to continue his confession.

"You don't remember it," Harry went on. "You wiped your own memory ... but you cast a spell on yourself, to stop yourself falling in love with me. But you were already in love with me, and I was already in love with you, but we were both avoiding the topic in our own ways. But we were alchemically destined to be together, and so nature decided it wasn't having any of that us-not-being-in-love nonsense. It wouldn't even let us have any say in it! So it changed your spell ... drew power from my love for you because it was just that potent a force ... to do what you wanted, and protected you from getting hurt by anything to do with me.

"And because the spell was about us, and was charged with my intent and magical force... and I would do anything to stop you being hurt, too ... and because my parents had gone to such extraordinary lengths to make sure that Tom Riddle's magic couldn't hurt me ... in any way ... even by hurting the girl I loved without knowing it ..."

"It protected me from him!" Hermione was crying freely now. Harry just nodded his response.

"It reacted to the threat and stopped it," said Harry. "But you'd been damaged, and I thought that's what the hole was until I detected Dolohov's signature in it. Then I realised that it wasn't your physical heart that Riddle thought he had damaged ... but your metaphysical one. Riddle could never have your unswerving devotion while this enchantment was in place - which he demands in all his followers - and my magic would have stopped you being able to feel at all, rather than allow Riddle to poison you against me.