For a moment, you're at a loss for what to do. You look at Sirius, who looks even more adrift, and he says quietly, "How likely is it that you're mistaken?" with small hope in his voice.
"That there is a foreign soul is beyond doubt," Solus says. "The only matter in question is identity, and of that I would say that I am ninety to ninety five percent certain. I do not forget a soul that I have seen, but it is but the smallest fragment I have ever encountered, so it is difficult to be sure."
You say, "Harry has been known to have visions of Voldemort in his dreams - he had one just recently, that's how we were able to get to Arthur in time." You don't need to say that a soul bond would explain it; it's obvious to everyone at the table, and it makes you sick to put it into words.
Solus just says, "Confirmation, then."
Sirius says, "Did you actually meet him?"
"Once, at the height of his power," Solus says. "My father was a devoted Death Eater and presented me to him for initiation. I refused, Voldemort attempted to force my compliance, and the official story is that your gang of rebels and Aurors arrived around then and he was forced to flee. My father was tragically killed in the crossfire."
Sirius says, flatly, "How tragic indeed."
You say, "I remember the account of that. Alastor Moody was in charge of that raid. Three wizards and one Muggle dead, two Muggle captives freed. I didn't realize you were there - I take it Moody let you sneak out without so much as being charged?"
Solus says, "And I owe him no small debt for his part in it, because my father was dead and Voldemort fled well before he arrived. I did not need help in that regard."
You and Sirius share another look then, a longer one, the same thought in both your skulls. The only wizard Voldemort flees before is Albus Dumbledore.
You say, "I find that a bit hard to believe."
"Believe it or do not," Solus says. "Voldemort was unsettled by my calling him exactly what he is - a half-being with less than half a soul - before his followers, and unsettled more by my shrugging off his Cruciatus. At first he desired me all the more for it, and then he attempted to kill me for it. When that failed, he fled."
Sirius says, "When he decides to kill someone, he reaches for the Killing Curse first. Everyone knows that."
Solus replies, an almost sweet smile on his face, "The Killing Curse works by cutting the soul free of the body. And the soul is my domain."
It's the same kind of soft, casual feeling of power that radiates from Dumbledore. From what you've heard, all the great wizards, the true titans of whatever age, have it. It prickles along your own magic, a whisper of a warning, a feeling all its own. Do not cross me, for I am death itself.
Nominative determinism, indeed.
Sirius gulps air, and there's silence for a moment before he says, "So, Harry?"
"You're his proper guardians according to the wishes of his parents," Solus - Hades - replies. "Therefore, it is your decision what is to be done."
Sirius says, without hesitation, "Get it out of him," and to that you can certainly agree.
no subject
"That there is a foreign soul is beyond doubt," Solus says. "The only matter in question is identity, and of that I would say that I am ninety to ninety five percent certain. I do not forget a soul that I have seen, but it is but the smallest fragment I have ever encountered, so it is difficult to be sure."
You say, "Harry has been known to have visions of Voldemort in his dreams - he had one just recently, that's how we were able to get to Arthur in time." You don't need to say that a soul bond would explain it; it's obvious to everyone at the table, and it makes you sick to put it into words.
Solus just says, "Confirmation, then."
Sirius says, "Did you actually meet him?"
"Once, at the height of his power," Solus says. "My father was a devoted Death Eater and presented me to him for initiation. I refused, Voldemort attempted to force my compliance, and the official story is that your gang of rebels and Aurors arrived around then and he was forced to flee. My father was tragically killed in the crossfire."
Sirius says, flatly, "How tragic indeed."
You say, "I remember the account of that. Alastor Moody was in charge of that raid. Three wizards and one Muggle dead, two Muggle captives freed. I didn't realize you were there - I take it Moody let you sneak out without so much as being charged?"
Solus says, "And I owe him no small debt for his part in it, because my father was dead and Voldemort fled well before he arrived. I did not need help in that regard."
You and Sirius share another look then, a longer one, the same thought in both your skulls. The only wizard Voldemort flees before is Albus Dumbledore.
You say, "I find that a bit hard to believe."
"Believe it or do not," Solus says. "Voldemort was unsettled by my calling him exactly what he is - a half-being with less than half a soul - before his followers, and unsettled more by my shrugging off his Cruciatus. At first he desired me all the more for it, and then he attempted to kill me for it. When that failed, he fled."
Sirius says, "When he decides to kill someone, he reaches for the Killing Curse first. Everyone knows that."
Solus replies, an almost sweet smile on his face, "The Killing Curse works by cutting the soul free of the body. And the soul is my domain."
It's the same kind of soft, casual feeling of power that radiates from Dumbledore. From what you've heard, all the great wizards, the true titans of whatever age, have it. It prickles along your own magic, a whisper of a warning, a feeling all its own. Do not cross me, for I am death itself.
Nominative determinism, indeed.
Sirius gulps air, and there's silence for a moment before he says, "So, Harry?"
"You're his proper guardians according to the wishes of his parents," Solus - Hades - replies. "Therefore, it is your decision what is to be done."
Sirius says, without hesitation, "Get it out of him," and to that you can certainly agree.