"Still..." Dumbledore started. He wasn't concerned about what the young married couple might be doing in Harry's room and he was glad to hear that the young man was at least being reasonable in regards to staying secure but he was concerned about the possibility of Harry leaving Grimmauld Place without his knowledge. "Maybe Arthur is right and Harry understands the dangers, but a notification spell on the front door of Grimmauld would probably be a good idea," He glanced back at the fireplace and said. "Well, I'm glad Harry understands the dangers. I guess we can try it your way," Dumbledore paused and then continued. "Please let Harry know I'll be there first thing in the morning to escort him to the Ministry. We don't need another confrontation with Death Eaters."
"I'll tell him," Arthur replied and his head disappeared from the fire. Once the green fire had vanished from his office fireplace Dumbledore leaned back in his chair and let out another long sigh. From his thoughts on Grindelwald, his mind naturally moved to Riddle, the second failure of his life. Another set of 'if only' regrets flowed through Dumbledore's mind. Dumbledore knew he should have kept a closer eye on the young man after bringing him into the magical world. "If only it had been any other period of time..." Dumbledore thought. Riddle had attended Hogwarts during the very years Grindelwald was at the height of his powers and the magical world was crying out for Dumbledore to challenge him...to take on the man he'd loved in his youth; the only other man who could confirm if Dumbledore had been responsible for Ariana's death. But Dumbledore had been distracted and Riddle had become who he was; a man or creature who was responsible for countless deaths.
"And now Harry," Dumbledore thought. "I must not fail in regards to him."
The Headmaster remembered Harry's threat to tell Voldemort the prophecy and shuddered. "Riddle would bring about the destruction of both the magical and muggle worlds, making Grindelwald's crimes pale in comparison. I can't let that happen. I must find a way to keep Harry contained and to guide him."
"What can I do though? What can I offer him?" Dumbledore pondered. It was several seconds before Harry's own words came back to him.
"I want to work with you, but are you willing to work with me?" Harry had asked.
"Yes, that's the way through this," Dumbledore realized. "I need to let them believe they are helping like they did when they found the Diadem. I can let them accompany me in search of a Horcrux. Hopefully that will settle their contentiousness and allow me to re-establish some control of the situation in regards to Harry."
The thought of his search for Riddle's Horcruxes caused Dumbledore to give a wistful glance at the cabinet where he normally stored his pensieve. He'd tried twice more to have it returned but Amelia Bones had been steadfast in her refusal. With the admittance of Voldemort's return she'd been able to exercise greater powers to keep it from him. Dumbledore knew he couldn't openly fight for its legal return because he could not show that his requirement was much greater than the prosecution of a few Death Eaters without mentioning the Horcruxes he searched for.
"And I desperately need it now," Dumbledore thought. He'd spent the last several weeks searching the area around Little Hangleton. He was now positive Riddle had hidden one of the Horcruxes in the Gaunt's family home but so far the search for the hovel had met with little success. Every magical detection spell had failed to this point.
"Tom has hidden the shack magically, that is obvious," Dumbledore thought. "Fortunately it is not the Fidelius since I remember it exists, but still it is escaping my magical detection spells. If I could just see Bob Ogden's memory once more, I could follow his path and know exactly where to search," The Headmaster sighed but then an idea came to mind; a particularly excellent idea.
"If I approach Harry and Hermione about the Pensieve and the need for it to locate the next Horcrux, I'm positive they will insist on accompanying me in my search as a requirement to approach Madam Bones on my behalf. So, I give them what they will see as a major victory while at the same time I only have to give up what I was going to offer them anyway."
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