THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES...
There’s something weighted about this day. February 20th, 1980 is nothing exceptional on the surface— it’s a colder winter than usual, and the fog clinging to the air seems to be more a commentary on the state of the wizarding world than on the weather itself. The world has dulled and fallen into a state of uncertainty, and no one knows what the next day will bring. But, at a glance, nothing is abnormal about this day. Night has fallen, and the waxing crescent of the moon hangs low in the sky over Hogsmeade, outlining the silhouette of Hogwarts in the distance. But the village is quiet.
Albus Dumbledore walks through the streets of Hogsmeade without any real hope or expectation for the meeting he’s about to step into. Sybill Trelawney isn’t someone that he has any real interest in meeting, especially since the position she hopes to obtain at Hogwarts isn’t one that he even wants to continue. But Trelawney is a name that means something, that is respected and even revered. It’s been generations since the famed seer Cassandra Trelawney, but a name is a name, and a name has power. And so he enters the Hog’s Head to interview the potential new professor.
She is as unexceptional as he had expected her to be. There are more important things to be focusing on— the work of the Order, the search for a way to destroy the horcrux— but this, instead, is what wastes his time.
“Thank you for meeting with me, but I’m afraid that we don’t think you’re the right fit for the position.”
It’s a blow that hits harder than he’d anticipated, and brings a reaction he never could’ve called. The young woman’s freezing was what he’d initially taken for heartbreak, but then she speaks, and it’s not as she had before. It’s not the ramblings of a mediocre and crack seer, it’s true, and haunting. And it will change everything.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…
born to those who have thrice defied him,
born as the seventh month dies…
and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal,
but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…
and either must die at the hand of the other
for neither can live while the other survives…
the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord
will be born as the seventh month dies...“
Outside, Severus Snape listens. Parts of the prophecy are caught before he is chased from the building by the angry barkeep. He hurries to relay what he’s heard, foolish in his desire to pass the information to Lord Voldemort, and be rewarded for his troubles. But inside the room, the future has been set. The prophecy is Sybill’s saving grace, though she is the only one who ends up happy at the end of the meeting. Albus Dumbledore leaves the Hog’s Head with a new Divination professor, and the turning point of the war in his hands. It’s odd, that the fate of the entire wizarding world will be decided by a child, an infant. It is a burden that should not be placed on anyone.
And it is one that Dumbledore places squarely on the shoulders of Lily Evans and James Potter.
The final pieces are set that night.
An emergency meeting of the Order is called together the night of the prophecy. They gather together in Fhionnuisce, the stronghold of the Order, to discuss what the next steps are. There is hope. There is one last thing the Order can do to win the war.
It has been two years since anyone has heard the name Regulus Black. He is the last person they are expecting to hear about that night, and he is the last person they are expecting to see. Older, more exhausted, longer hair, but still distinctly a teenager, Regulus has never looked more like his brother Sirius. Everyone in the room turns to see how his brother reacts to seeing him again. Sirius is frozen, staring at Regulus like someone’s playing a trick on him. Dumbledore is the one to break the silence.
“Tell them everything we know.”
So they listen. They listen to Regulus tell them all he knows of the Death Eaters, listen to everything he knows about Voldemort, listen to his quest to obtain and destroy the horcrux. At the end of it all, there are questions. At the end of it all, everything has changed.
“We should destroy it.”
Minerva McGonagall is the first to speak. She is usually silent in Order meetings, never the loudest voice in the room, but this time, she’s not backing down. She looks to James and Lily-- students she had mentored through the years, her best and brightest, her legacy.
“It is the only way to protect them.”
No one disagrees with her. It’s nearly dawn when the members of the Order of the Phoenix gather in the yard of Fhionnuisce. Regulus places the locket in the center of the circle. Albus Dumbledore holds out the sword of Godric Gryffindor-- it seems only fitting that Regulus should be the one to destroy it, after sacrificing so much to find a way to defeat Voldemort. Regulus takes the sword, and holds it out to his brother Sirius.
“We should end this together.”
It happens very quickly. Sirius stands in front of the horcrux, sword of Godric Gryffindor in hand. With a nod, Regulus speaks the words to open the locket, words it had taken him years to find. There’s a horrible scream as the spirit of Voldemort erupts from the locket. The sword swings.
The horcrux lies broken on the ground, nothing more than a necklace.
Miles away, things change. Severus Snape stands before the Dark Lord and gives him the news about the prophecy. The Death Eaters are summoned that night too for a secret meeting at the safe house Drusilla. There’s only one child the prophecy could be talking about-- the child of Lily Evans and James Potter.
“Nothing matters except that the child is--”
In an instant, Voldemort falls. It’s been years since he separated himself from the horcrux, but a part of him has still been struck down. When he comes back to consciousness, the Death Eaters are divided. Some think he has fallen for good and have fled, others wait for someone to step up in his place. It’s impossible not to wonder if any of them really believed in the cause anymore, or if they ever had at all. Loyalty means nothing. Self-preservation is the only thing that those that have survived care for.
Those still most loyal to Voldemort take up the hunt. The horcrux is destroyed, but Voldemort still lives-- weaker, closer to destruction, but even more reckless and violent than before. The war is not yet over. In fact, it has only just begun.
By the end of the war, hardly more than a year later, only a handful of the original members of the Order of the Phoenix will have survived. All that will be left is a photograph, and the stories that those survivors carry.
A little over two years ago, Veritas opened its doors for the first time. Nine people playing a total of fifteen characters on a journey that would last from 1978 all the way to 1980. We’ve grown since, into a thriving community full of talented writers and forty characters, and come so far since that first opening day. These past two years have been filled with many things— plot drops, events, joy and grief, laughter and tears. This has been an incredible and unforgettable experience-- you have built something amazing here, and we never would’ve made it to two years without each and every one of you. We would like to thank new and old members, those that have been with us from the beginning to those that have joined us for these last few thrilling months. It has been an honor and a pleasure to write with all of you, and to be your admin these past two years.
I am here to announce that Veritas will be closing its doors today after two amazing years. You are more than welcome to continue writing, but the main will no longer be updating after today. From here, the journey is your own to take on whatever course you wish, or to turn towards a fresh and exciting new chapter.
Personal life has made it too difficult for me to keep this place up and running, but being your admin has been nothing but an incredible experience. To write with so many talented people, to learn so much and grow alongside you, and to make lifelong friends has all been possible because of Veritas. I cannot even begin to express my gratitude and my pride towards all of you. You have made Veritas an experience that I know personally, I will never forget.
So thank you. Thank you for joining us, for writing with us, for laughing and crying with us, and for making Veritas everything that it was and more. And thank you for two incredible years as your admin.
Admin Emily