Editing Magical objects in Harry Potter (section)

== Horcruxes ==
A '''Horcrux''' is an object used to store part of a wizard's soul, which protects them from death. If the body of a Horcrux owner is killed, that portion of the soul that had remained in the body does not pass on to the next world, but will rather exist in a non-corporeal form capable of being resurrected by another wizard, as stated in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' and demonstrated in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. If all of someone's Horcruxes are destroyed, then the soul's only anchor in the material world would be the body, the destruction of which would then cause final death. The creation of Horcruxes is considered the darkest of all magic.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Horcrux|url=https://www.dictionary.com/e/pop-culture/horcrux/|access-date=2021-07-28|website=Dictionary.com|language=en-US}}</ref>

This method was chosen by Voldemort to attain immortality. J. K. Rowling uses [[Horace Slughorn]]'s expository dialogue to reveal that the creation of a Horcrux requires one to commit a murder, which, as the supreme act of evil, "rips the soul apart".<ref>Rowling, J.K. (2005). ''Half-Blood Prince'' (in English). London: Bloomsbury Publishing, et al. p. 465. UK {{ISBN|0-7475-8108-8}}.</ref> After the murder, a spell is cast to infuse part of the ripped soul into an object, which then becomes a Horcrux. In the final book of the series, Hermione finds the spell in a book titled ''Secrets of the Darkest Art''.<ref>Rowling, J.K. (2007). ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]]'' (in English). London: Bloomsbury Publishing, et al. p. 465. UK {{ISBN|0-7475-8108-8}}.</ref> Rowling has revealed that she intends to detail the process and spell used to create a Horcrux in her long-mentioned ''Harry Potter'' Encyclopedia.<ref>{{cite web|author=MuggleNet |url=http://www.mugglenet.com/books/futurebooks/encyclopedia/index.shtml |title=Mugglenet.com |publisher=Mugglenet.com |date=17 November 2004 |access-date=25 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111124042748/http://www.mugglenet.com/books/futurebooks/encyclopedia/index.shtml |archive-date=24 November 2011}}</ref>

Both inanimate objects and living organisms have been used as Horcruxes, though the latter are considered riskier to use, since a living being can move and think for itself. There is no limit to the number of Horcruxes a witch or wizard can create. As the creator's soul is divided into progressively smaller portions, they lose more of their natural humanity and the soul becomes increasingly unstable. Consequently, under very specific conditions, a soul fragment can be sealed within an object without the intention or knowledge of the creator. While the object thus affected will, like any Horcrux, preserve the immortality of the creator, it does not become a "Dark object".<ref name="pottercast166" /> For example, Voldemort has unusual control over Nagini,<ref>Mentioned by Dumbledore to Harry in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince''.</ref> and consequently Nagini is able to communicate with Voldemort about the presence of Harry in Godric's Hollow in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows''.

Horcruxes made from inanimate objects cannot be destroyed by conventional means such as smashing, breaking, or burning. The known materials or objects that can destroy Horcruxes are Basilisk venom, the Sword of Gryffindor (which contains Basilisk venom after Harry uses it to kill a Basilisk), and Fiendfyre, which is a magical flame that cannot be extinguished unless it runs out of fuel.

Voldemort's creation of Horcruxes is central to the later storyline of the ''Harry Potter'' novels. Voldemort intended to split his soul into seven pieces, with six Horcruxes and the last piece reposing within his body.<ref name="HBPp506">Half-Blood Prince (US Scholastic Hardback edition), p. 506</ref> When Voldemort attacked the Potter family, and his body was destroyed by the rebounded Killing Curse, a piece of his soul splintered off and attached itself to the only living thing remaining in the room, Harry Potter, in a manner similar to a Horcrux.<ref name="pottercast166">{{cite web|url=http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2007/12/23/transcript-of-part-1-of-pottercast-s-jk-rowling-interview |title=Transcript of Part 1 of PotterCast's JK Rowling Interview |publisher=The-Leaky-Cauldron.org |date=23 December 2007 |access-date=28 November 2016}}</ref> Voldemort went on to complete his collection of the intended six Horcruxes by turning his snake Nagini into one, thus fragmenting his soul into a total of eight (counting the one residing in his own body), not seven, pieces. By that time, though, unbeknownst to Voldemort himself, the first Horcrux (a diary) had already been destroyed, therefore all seven Horcruxes never existed together at the same point in time.

All of Voldemort's deliberately created Horcruxes were made using objects that had been important to him or that held some symbolic value. He hid some of them carefully so that no one could find and destroy them, but used Nagini to do his bidding on several occasions, and the diary was always intended to be a weapon to carry out Voldemort's plan to remove Muggle-borns from Hogwarts. In ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'', the discovery of Voldemort's diary is revealed as the proof that led to Dumbledore beginning the hunt for other Horcruxes, as it not only gave absolute proof that Voldemort split his soul, but also that there were likely other, better-protected artifacts.

J. K. Rowling revealed on [[Pottermore]] that [[Quirinus Quirrell]] served as a temporary Horcrux when Voldemort's soul possessed his body during Harry's first year at Hogwarts. A notable difference, however, is that the piece of soul within Quirrell was able to exist without its container, as it abandoned Quirrell and left him to die in the underground chambers.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Rowling|first1=J.K.|title=Professor Quirrell|url=https://www.pottermore.com/writing-by-jk-rowling/professor-quirrell|website=Pottermore|access-date=7 May 2017}}</ref>

=== Tom Riddle's diary ===
Tom Riddle (later known as Lord Voldemort) created his first Horcrux during his fifth year at Hogwarts, using his own school diary. In order to cast the spell, he murdered his fellow student [[Supporting Harry Potter characters#Moaning Myrtle|Myrtle Warren]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=10 October 2017 |title=Everyone you didn't realise was connected to Voldemort's Horcruxes |url=https://www.wizardingworld.com/features/everyone-connected-to-voldemorts-horcruxes |access-date=2021-07-28 |website=Wizarding World |language=en}}</ref> In ''Chamber of Secrets'', [[Ginny Weasley]] becomes possessed by the fragment of Riddle's soul that is encased in the diary, which compels her to open the Chamber of Secrets. At the end of the novel, Harry saves Ginny and destroys the diary by stabbing it with a [[Basilisk (Harry Potter)|Basilisk]] fang.
[[File: Tom Riddle's Diary.jpg|thumb|right|200px| Riddle's Diary Carver]]

=== Marvolo Gaunt's ring ===
Within the narrative, Voldemort created his second Horcrux using a ring owned by his grandfather, Marvolo Gaunt. He murdered his father to make this Horcrux, which is later destroyed by Albus Dumbledore, using the sword of Gryffindor. The ring contains the Resurrection Stone, one of the three Deathly Hallows.

=== Slytherin's locket ===
Voldemort created his third Horcrux using a locket that once belonged to his ancestor [[Salazar Slytherin]]. He murdered a Muggle to make the Horcrux.<ref name="RowlingWeb2007">{{cite news |date=30 July 2007 |title=J.K. Rowling Web Chat Transcript |publisher=[[The Leaky Cauldron (website)|The Leaky Cauldron]] |url=http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2007/7/30/j-k-rowling-web-chat-transcript |access-date=30 July 2007}}</ref> Albus Dumbledore and Harry obtain the locket in ''Half-Blood Prince'', only to discover that it is fake. Later, Harry and his friends infiltrate the [[Ministry of Magic]] and steal the real locket from [[Dolores Umbridge]]. Ron then destroys it with the sword of Gryffindor.

=== Hufflepuff's cup ===
Voldemort created his fourth Horcrux using a cup that once belonged to [[Helga Hufflepuff]]. In ''Deathly Hallows,'' Harry and his friends break into [[Gringotts Wizarding Bank]] and steal the cup from the vault of [[Bellatrix Lestrange]]. Hermione Granger later destroys it with a Basilisk fang.

=== Ravenclaw's diadem ===
[[Rowena Ravenclaw]]'s daughter, Helena, stole her mother's [[diadem]] in an attempt to become more intelligent than her. Helena hid the diadem in [[Albania]], where it was eventually found by Voldemort. The Dark Lord turned the diadem into his fifth Horcrux, and later sequestered it in the Room of Requirement in Hogwarts.<ref name="Deathly Hallows (Amazon)">{{cite book |last=Rowling |first=J.K. |author-link=J. K. Rowling |title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows |date=21 July 2007 |publisher=Bloomsbury |isbn=978-0-7475-9105-4 |edition=Children's}}</ref> In the novel ''Deathly Hallows'', the diadem is destroyed by a Fiendfyre spell cast by [[Vincent crabbe|Vincent Crabbe]]. In the film adaptation, Harry stabs the diadem with a [[Basilisk (Harry Potter)|Basilisk]] fang before Ron Weasley kicks it into the Fiendfyre. 

=== Harry Potter ===
{{Main|Harry Potter (character)}}
When Voldemort attempted to murder Harry as an infant, he inadvertently sealed a fragment of his soul within him in a manner similar to a Horcrux. Rowling has stated that Harry never became a proper "Dark object" since the Horcrux spell was not cast.<ref name="pottercast166" /> Regardless, as with all Horcruxes, Voldemort would remain immortal so long as his soul fragment remained within Harry.<ref>Rowling, J.K. (2007). ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' (in English). New York City: Scholastic, et al. pp. 686. "And while that fragment of soul, unmissed by Voldemort, remains attached to and protected by Harry, Lord Voldemort cannot die."</ref> That portion of Voldemort's soul is unintentionally destroyed by Voldemort himself in ''Deathly Hallows''.

As a baby, Harry was in the room when Voldemort's fatal Killing Curse backfired. Voldemort's soul had been weakened and destabilised by his continuous murders and the creation of his previous Horcruxes. Harry became a Horcrux when a fragment of Voldemort's soul attached itself to him after the unsuccessful curse. The lightning bolt-shaped scar on Harry's forehead is a direct result of this attempted murder, and the connection that formed as a result is used to explain several important plot points. Throughout the series, Harry is able to receive insight into Voldemort's mental and emotional states, allowing the reader to eavesdrop on the series' primary antagonist. This insight is usually accompanied by pain in the scar on Harry's forehead. Through Voldemort, Harry also inherited many of Voldemort's powers and the ability to speak and understand [[Magic (Harry Potter)#Parseltongue|Parseltongue]]. It is also revealed by Rowling in an interview that Harry's frequent pain in his scar when Voldemort is either active, nearby, or feeling strong emotions, is really the trapped bit of soul yearning to depart from Harry's body and rejoin its master's soul.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080917115036/http://pottercast.the-leaky-cauldron.org/transcript/show/166?ordernum=2 PotterCast 130: The One with JK Rowling Transcript Part 2 (16:09 - 32:17) (Archived copy; original  website no longer valid)] ''web.archive.org copy of pottercast.the-leaky-cauldron.org'', accessed 29 March 2020</ref>

This yearning was one of the reasons why the Killing Curse used by Voldemort on Harry in the Forbidden Forest does destroy the fragment of Voldemort's soul within Harry, but only sends Harry's soul into a near-death state. Harry could return to his body despite being hit by the Killing Curse from the Elder Wand because Voldemort had used Harry's blood to regain his full strength in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'', and because the actual master of the Elder Wand, Draco Malfoy, had been defeated by Harry, making Harry the new master of the Elder Wand. Harry's ownership of the wand used for the curse and the Horcrux-like connection between Voldemort and Harry diminished Voldemort's curse and protected Harry from irreversible death.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rowling |first=Joanne Kathleen |url=https://archive.org/details/harrypotterdeath00rowl |title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows |date=21 July 2007 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing, plc. |isbn=978-0-545-01022-1 |location=United Kingdom |url-access=registration}}</ref>

While Voldemort did learn of Harry's [[Telepathy|telepathic]] connection, Voldemort was never aware that Harry was inadvertently carrying a fragment of his soul. With this destroyed, the connections between the two were also broken, and Harry never again felt pain in his scar. Rowling revealed Harry has also lost the ability to speak Parseltongue, though he regained the ability to understand it in ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'' after his scar began to hurt again following the rise of Voldemort and Bellatrix's daughter Delphi whom Harry, his son Albus, and his allies defeated and sent to Azkaban.<ref name="RowlingWeb2007" /> In the epilogue of the last film, the scar has faded to an ordinary-looking scar on Harry's forehead.

=== Nagini ===
{{Main|Nagini (Harry Potter){{!}}Nagini (''Harry Potter'')}}
It is revealed in the story that the sixth Horcrux is Nagini, the snake Voldemort had with him constantly. This Horcrux is created by Voldemort when he is hiding in the forests of Albania; the murder victim whom he used for its creation was Bertha Jorkins. He found Nagini, and becoming smitten by the snake, turned it into a Horcrux, being connected with it.<ref name="RowlingWeb2007" /> In the last chapter of ''Deathly Hallows'', Nagini is killed by Neville Longbottom using the sword of Godric Gryffindor. The destruction of the last remaining Horcrux made Voldemort mortal.