Changes: Hufflepuff's Cup

Revision as of 22:14, 10 December 2007

Helga Hufflepuff's Cup is a magical item created by one of the Hogwarts founders, Helga Hufflepuff. It is a small, golden cup with two finely wrought handles and a badger engraved on it. Tom Riddle, who would become the infamous Dark wizard Lord Voldemort, used the cup as a Horcrux (a container of soul). Other than that, the cup is reputed to possess magical properties, though their exact nature is as yet unknown.

History

The cup was a creation of Helga Hufflepuff, the celebrated Founder of Hufflepuff House. It was described as a shining golden cup with two finely wrought handles on either side and a badger engraved on it's surface. Apparently, Helga Hufflepuff created the cup around the time she founded her house at Hogwarts, as it displays the symbol of Hufflepuff House, the badger. The cup was said to possess many kinds of magical powers and remained with Hufflepuff until the time of her death, where it was passed down through her family, similar to Salazar Slytherin's Locket (which ironically ended up in the possession of the last legitimate owner of the cup).

The cup made its way through the centuries to Hepzibah Smith, a descendant of Hufflepuff's who kept the cup as a family heirloom. Around 1946, Hepzibah showed the cup to Tom Riddle, who was employed at Borgin and Burkes at the time, telling him that it possessed magical properties.

Hepzibah Smith was found dead two days after showing Riddle the cup and Salazar Slytherin's Locket. Her elderly house-elf, Hokey, was accused of poisoning Hepzibah's cocoa, and Hokey admitted to the crime. However, the truth was far more disturbing. Riddle had returned to visit Hepzibah again and poisoned her himself. He then incapacitated Hokey and implanted a false memory into her mind, making her actually believe herself to be the perpetrator. Riddle then absconded with both the cup and the locket in a mirror image to his earlier murder of the Riddle family in Little Hangleton in which he stole Gaunt's Ring and pinned the blame for the murders on another innocent bystander, his uncle Morfin Gaunt. Hepzibah's family discovered the cup and the locket were missing shortly after her death, but by that time Riddle had resigned his post at Borgin and Burkes and was not heard of again for a decade, taking the cup and the locket with him.

Lord Voldemort (as Riddle came to call himself in due time) turned the cup into a Horcrux using Hepzibah's murder as the tool and left it in the possesion of his trusted Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange, but did not tell her it was a Horcrux. Bellatrix stored her master's object in her family vault at Gringotts wizarding bank. It was protected by a spell which would cause it to multiply exponentially if touched by anyone other than the vault's owners in addition to a spell that burned the flesh of anyone who touched it other than the vault's owners.

Years later Dumbledore and Harry Potter, theorized that Voldemort had turned the cup into a Horcrux. After months of searching, Harry guessed correctly that one of Voldemort's Horcruxes was hidden in the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, along with Griphook, a Goblin who worked at Gringotts, broke into the vault and discovered that the Horcrux they sought was Helga Huffepuff's Cup. They managed to escape the bank's alarmed security forces by releasing and then climbing onto the back of a dragon that guarded other Gringotts vaults.

The mission was not without a cost, however, as Griphook betrayed the trio and stole the sword of Godric Gryffindor. This was a huge setback as the only way they had discovered to destroy a Horcrux was by using Basilisk venom, which the sword had been imbued with.

Harry, Ron and Hermione kept the Horcrux with them until they could find a way to destroy it. After returning to Hogwarts, Ron realized that the remains of the Basilisk Harry had fought in his second year were still in the Chamber of Secrets. Ron brought Hermione to the Chamber of Secrets, where they removed the fangs from the Basilisk to use as weapons to destroy the remaining Horcruxes. Hermione then stabbed the cup with a fang to destroy it once and for all.

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 '''Helga Hufflepuff's Cup''' is a magical item created by one of the [[Hogwarts]] founders, [[Helga Hufflepuff]]. It is a small, golden cup with two finely wrought handles and a badger engraved on it. [[Tom Marvolo Riddle|Tom Riddle]], who would become the infamous Dark wizard [[Lord Voldemort]], used the cup as a [[Horcrux]] (a container of soul). Other than that, the cup is reputed to possess magical properties, though their exact nature is as yet unknown.
-==Recent History==
+==History==
+The cup was a creation of [[Helga Hufflepuff]], the celebrated Founder of [[Hufflepuff House]].  It was described as a shining golden cup with two finely wrought handles on either side and a badger engraved on it's surface.  Apparently, Helga Hufflepuff created the cup around the time she founded her house at Hogwarts, as it displays the symbol of Hufflepuff House, the badger.  The cup was said to possess many kinds of magical powers and remained with Hufflepuff until the time of her death, where it was passed down through her family, similar to [[Salazar Slytherin's Locket]] (which ironically ended up in the possession of the last legitimate owner of the cup).
 The cup made its way through the centuries to [[Hepzibah Smith]], a descendant of Hufflepuff's who kept the cup as a family heirloom. Around [[1946]], Hepzibah showed the cup to [[Tom Marvolo Riddle|Tom Riddle]], who was employed at [[Borgin and Burkes]] at the time, telling him that it possessed magical properties.
-Hepzibah Smith was found dead two days later: her [[House elf]], [[Hokey]], was accused of poisoning her and Hokey admitted committing the crime. However, [[Albus Dumbledore]] believed that Tom Riddle murdered Hepzibah in order to steal the cup (along with [[Salazar Slytherin's Locket]]) and implanted a false memory into Hokey's mind to avert suspicion from himself. Hepzibah's family later discovers the cup and the locket are missing, but by that time Riddle had disappeared.
+Hepzibah Smith was found dead two days after showing Riddle the cup and [[Salazar Slytherin's Locket]].  Her elderly house-elf, [[Hokey]], was accused of poisoning Hepzibah's cocoa, and Hokey admitted to the crime.  However, the truth was far more disturbing.  Riddle had returned to visit Hepzibah again and poisoned her himself.  He then incapacitated [[Hokey]] and implanted a false memory into her mind, making her actually believe herself to be the perpetrator.  Riddle then absconded with both the cup and the locket in a mirror image to his earlier murder of the [[Riddle family]] in [[Little Hangleton]] in which he stole [[Gaunt's Ring]] and pinned the blame for the murders on another innocent bystander, his uncle [[Morfin Gaunt]].  Hepzibah's family discovered the cup and the locket were missing shortly after her death, but by that time Riddle had resigned his post at Borgin and Burkes and was not heard of again for a decade, taking the cup and the locket with him.
-[[Lord Voldemort]] turned the cup into a [[Horcrux]] and left it in the possesion of his trusted [[Death Eater]] Bellatrix Lestrange, but did not tell her it was a Horcrux. Bellatrix stored her master's object in her family vault at the [[Gringotts]] wizarding bank. It was protected by a spell which would cause it to  multiply exponentially if touched by anyone other than the vault's owners.
+[[Lord Voldemort]] (as Riddle came to call himself in due time) turned the cup into a [[Horcrux]] using Hepzibah's murder as the tool and left it in the possesion of his trusted [[Death Eater]] Bellatrix Lestrange, but did not tell her it was a Horcrux. Bellatrix stored her master's object in her family vault at  [[Gringotts]] wizarding bank. It was protected by a spell which would cause it to  multiply exponentially if touched by anyone other than the vault's owners in addition to a spell that burned the flesh of anyone who touched it other than the vault's owners.
 Years later Dumbledore and [[Harry Potter]], theorized that Voldemort had turned the cup into a [[Horcrux]]. After months of searching, Harry guessed correctly that one of Voldemort's Horcruxes was hidden in the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry and his friends [[Ron Weasley]] and [[Hermione Granger]], along with [[Griphook]], a Goblin who worked at Gringotts, broke into the vault and discovered that the Horcrux they sought was Helga Huffepuff's Cup. They managed to escape the bank's alarmed security forces by releasing and then climbing onto the back of a dragon that guarded other Gringotts vaults.