He quickly put Trelawney under a complex Confundus Charm and restaged the interview in the Hog's Head. He had ensured that a Death Eater was present so that he could give the information to Voldemort. It had worked exactly as he had planned. Severus Snape had delivered the first half of the prophecy and now, Voldemort was distracted. He was searching for this boy who had the power to defeat him. The general population and the Ministry of Magic were now given little importance as he upped his attacks on two mothers who were expecting to deliver at the end of July and fit the terms of the prophecy - Lily Potter and Alice Longbottom.
There had been repeated attacks on the two families. Charlus and Dorea had been killed in an attack on their manor. Augusta Longbottom's husband had been murdered in broad daylight. There was another attack where James and Lily had escaped moments before Voldemort's arrival. Albus had also suspected that there was a spy in the Order of the Phoenix who was leaking information to Voldemort, but he didn't stop it, for the tactic was proving to be effective. The Dark Lord had diverted all his attention to the Order and was not focussed on the general population, so Albus went along with it. It wasn't too difficult for him to realise who the spy was, of course. He wasn't a natural at Legilimency for nothing. He convinced himself that the Order members were all well-trained people, so it was worth the risk. But they were slowly falling one by one.
Finally, he had decided that he couldn't wait anymore, nor risk the lives of the Order members who were being killed individually.
Voldemort had to be stopped by any means necessary before he caused more deaths. The problem was the ethics of it, but Albus had realised something.
The needs of many outweigh the needs of the few. He was the Supreme Mugwump. It was his duty to protect the magical world and keep the Statute of Secrecy intact. For the greater good of all, he had made that horrible decision.
After another attack on Potter Manor, he had convinced James and Lily to go under the Fidelius Charm. The second assault on their ancestral mansion had shaken the couple, especially after what had happened the last time, resulting in the deaths of Charlus and Dorea. James and Lily were a formidable and deadly team, no doubt, but it was difficult to fight when they had a one-year-old baby with them. The very subtle suggestion to use Peter Pettigrew as the Secret Keeper worked out perfectly.
Only he wasn't expecting the child to survive, but thankfully, Voldemort had been defeated as well, just as Trewalney had predicted.
But Albus had been bewildered.
Who on earth could survive being hit by the Killing Curse, much less reflect it back at the caster? But somehow, it had happened. The enchantments he had placed on the cottage showed him that Harry was alive. He had sent Hagrid to collect the child and bring him to Hogwarts while he informed Barty Crouch to apprehend Sirius Black. That decision was sad and it still made Albus cringe in guilt, but it was necessary. As the oath-sworn godfather, not to mention closest blood relative through James Potter, Sirius could not be denied guardianship of the child of the prophecy. Sirius was too unpredictable, so Albus had sent him to Azkaban without a trial. The deaths of all those Muggles only made it easier.
He had honestly thought Pettigrew was dead.
Albus knew exactly what he was condemning young Harry to when he placed the baby on that doorstep, but he knew that the sacrifice was necessary. The child's happiness was irrelevant at the moment. Voldemort may have been vanquished, but there were still many Death Eaters out there - some identified, others unknown - who were willing to do absolutely anything to get their revenge on the boy who had vanquished their master. He had to take a decision quickly so as to protect Harry Potter.
He had stumbled upon a very ancient form of blood-magic that linked family members together; old magic that was tied to intentions of those under its protection. Using the intent of Lily's sacrifice, Albus had collected Lily and Harry's blood, allowing it to power the charms around Number Four, Privet Drive. Petunia's blood connection to Harry would offer the best protection possible.
But there was still the mystery of the boy's scar, and how he had survived the Killing Curse.
Before dropping him off at the Dursleys, Dumbledore had spent every waking minute of an entire day, scanning the child using various obscure spells until he discovered the soul piece lodged in Harry's scar. That was when he realised with a jolt that Voldemort had not been killed like he had assumed, but only temporarily defeated. The twisted man had ignored the sacred laws of Magic and had actually severed his soul and created a Horcrux.
That begged the question - how? How could a piece of Voldemort's soul - because it could hardly be anybody else's, not to mention he could detect Tom's magical signature - be attached to the boy? He spent years finding out everything he could about Horcruxes, consulting various experts on dark magic until he finally arrived at the solution.
Voldemort must have made multiple Horcruxes, and that had resulted in his soul accidentally tearing itself apart when the Killing Curse rebounded, with the severed soul-piece latching onto the only living thing in the room - Harry.
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