The Daily Prophet

2 May 2018

The Battle of Hogwarts

For the twentieth anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts, we are putting together a series of events in the second Wizarding war, from when Voldemort was claimed to have tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone in 1992 to his defeat to Harry James Potter in 1998. Details are from what has been heard by Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore and Harry Potter. Note that it focuses on Harry James Potter, the defeater of Voldemort.

In 1992, Lord Voldemort, believed to be dead (more on that later), was living in Albania as a ghost, when he was come across by Quirinus Quirrell, who was touring the world at the time. Voldemort deceived Quirrell and managed to possess him, residing on the back of his head. Quirrell hid him with a turban, and went to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He attempted to steal the Stone all year as an attempt to give Voldemort back his life, but was suspected and confronted by Severus Snape, who was teaching Potions. At the end of the year, he succeeded in breaking into the corridor where the Stone resides, getting past a three-headed dog, Devil's Snare, catching the correct key to get through a door, a giant chess set, and a Potions test to get to where the Stone was hidden. The test he could not pass was Dumbledore's, where he had to get the Stone from the Mirror of Erised, a mirror that shows the person's deepest desire. He was followed closely by Harry Potter, Ronald "Ron" Bilius Weasley, and Hermione Jean Granger, though. Ron sacrificed himself in the chess set, and only one could venture past the potions task, so Hermione went back while Harry went forward. Harry faced Quirrell, and passed the Mirror task. Apparently the person who could get the Stone had to want it but not want to use it. Harry lied to Quirrell but Voldemort saw through his lie, and Quirrell took off the turban, and Harry faced Voldemort for the second time. Harry narrowly escaped because Quirrell/Voldemort couldn't touch him without their hands burning, and Harry put his hands on Quirrell's face. Voldemort left Quirrell's body and escaped, and Quirrell died. Harry had no lasting damage.

The next school year, the fabled "Chamber of Secrets" was opened, and a basilisk was set upon Mrs. Norris, Mr. Filch's cat; Colin Creevey; Justin Finch-Fletchley; Sir Nicholas De Mimsy Porpington; Hermione Granger; and Penelope Clearwater, in order. Harry was also proven a Parseltongue in a Dueling Club set up by Gilderoy Lockhart. Finally, Ginevra "Ginny" Molly Weasley was taken into the Chamber, and Harry Potter ventured down with Ronald Weasley and Gilderoy Lockhart. Lockhart gave sufficient evidence for his published works to be a hoax, and upon trying to Obliviate Harry and Ron was Obliviated himself by Ron's wand, which was broken earlier in the year. There was a small explosion, and Harry and Ron were separated. Harry was on the side of the Chamber, so he continued forward. He confronted Tom Riddle, a sixteen year old Voldemort, and Riddle summoned the Basilisk to kill Harry. Harry was saved by Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix, with the Sorting Hat, and Fawkes wounded the Basilisk. But it lived, and it attacked Harry. He pulled the Sword of Godric Gryffindor out of the Sorting Hat, and stabbed the Basilisk. He was caught by a Basilisk fang, but was healed by Fawkes. Riddle taunted him, but Harry grabbed the Basilisk fang and stabbed Riddle's Diary, the object in which Voldemort's soul was concealed (more on this later). Riddle was destroyed, and Ginny woke up. Only mental damage was suffered.

The next year, Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban, the first to do so. He has been proven innocent, but only in death. He was in Azkaban for giving up the Potters to Voldemort, and for the murder of Peter Pettigrew and thirteen muggles. But Peter had killed the muggles and escaped in his animagus form (he was unregistered), a rat. Sirius escaped when he recognized Peter's rat form in a newspaper article, with the Weasley family, who had just won 700 galleons in a lottery and were in Egypt to visit the eldest, Bill. Sirius broke into Hogwarts, and tried to kill and kidnap Peter. He succeeded at the end of the year, but he took Ronald Weasley with him, and Harry and Hermione went after him. They went through the Whomping Willow into the Shrieking Shack, and they faced Black. The group was joined by Remus Lupin, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at the time, who understood Sirius' innocence and was on his side. Remus and Sirius explained the story to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and the trio believed them. But they were joined by Severus Snape, who was a schooltime enemy of Lupin and Black, and planned on turning all five in. But Hermione and Harry both used the disarming charm on him at the same time, rendering him unconscious. After that, Black and Lupin revealed Pettigrew, and they were bringing him up to the school, but Lupin revealed himself a werewolf, and he hadn't taken his Worlfsbane potion that night. Pettigrew managed to escape, while Sirius protected Harry, Ron, and Hermione from Remus. Remus ran away, and Sirius was confronted by Dementors, who were at the school to protect it from him. Harry managed to produce a Patronus and drove them away, and Black was apprehended by Snape and brought to the school, but he somehow escaped on a Hippogriff that was sentenced to death that day for attacking a student.

A couple months later, at the Ireland-Bulgaria Quidditch World Cup, at night, a group of Death Eaters burned down the campsite. The Dark Mark was fired off and they fled. The Triwizard Tournament was put on that year, and the champions are the following. Durmstrang: Viktor Krum. Beauxbatons: Fleur Delacour. Hogwarts: Cedric Diggory and Harry Potter. Harry was the fourth champion, and his name coming out of the Goblet of Fire was a complete surprise. He had to compete, though, and he faced the dragon and went into the lake and the maze, staying in first the entire time. But when he came out of the maze, he was clutching Cedric Diggory's body and claiming Voldemort had returned. Apparently the cup was a Portkey set by Barty Crouch Jr, a Death Eater who had been disguised as Alastor Moody the entire year. The cup had transported him into a graveyard in Little Hangleton, and he was met by Pettigrew and the feeble form of Voldemort. Pettigrew killed Diggory, and brought Voldemort back to life. Harry and Voldemort dueled, and Harry and Voldemort's wands twin cores reacted with Priori Incantatem, bringing back feeble imitations of those whom Voldemort had killed back to Lily and James Potter. Cedric asked Harry to bring his body back, and the ghosts all distracted Voldemort while Harry ran. He ran to Cedric's body and summoned the cup, bringing him back to Hogwarts. Crouch Jr was apprehended, and Cedric Diggory is forever remembered as the first death in the second Wizarding War.

That summer, Harry is attacked by dementors at his home in Little Whinging, Surrey. It is later found out by him that Dolores Umbridge set them upon him. The Order of the Phoenix was started by Albus Dumbledore once more, as the Ministry of Magic didn't believe in Voldemort's return. The members at the start were Sirius Black, Fleur Delacour, Dedalus Diggle, Elphias Doge, Aberforth Dumbledore, Albus Dumbledore, Mundungus Fletcher, Hestia Jones, Rubeus Hagrid, Remus Lupin, Minerva McGonagall, Alastor Moody, Sturgis Podmore, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Severus Snape, Nymphadora Tonks, Emmeline Vance, and Arthur, Bill, Charlie, and Molly Weasley, and Fred and George Weasley later joined. At school, a resistance was also put together, named Dumbledore's Army by Ginny Weasley. All the members throughout its days were Hannah Abbott, Katie Bell, Susan Bones, Terry Boot, Lavender Brown, Cho Chang, Michael Corner, Colin and Dennis Creevey, Marietta Edgecombe, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Seamus Finnigan, Anthony Goldstein, Hermione Granger, Angelina Johnson, Lee Jordan, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Ernie Macmillan, Parvati and Padma Patil, Harry Potter, Zacharias Smith, Alicia Spinnet, Dean Thomas, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, Ginny Weasley, and Ron Weasley. These organizations continued for a while, until Dumbledore's Army was broken up by Dolores Umbridge, who was Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher (and later headmaster) at the time. After exams, Harry had a vision that Sirius Black was kidnapped and tortured in the Department of Mysteries, and him, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, and Neville went to the Ministry. When they arrived they found that it was a hoax by Voldemort, and several Death Eaters arrived and forced Harry to give them the Prophecy made about Harry and Voldemort. The students and Death Eaters got into a fight, and all but Harry were injured, but then they were joined by several members of the Order of the Phoenix, including Black. Tonks and Moody were injured, and Sirius Black was the second death in the war, killed by Bellatrix Lestrange. After that, Dumbledore arrived and rounded up the rest of the Death Eaters, but Harry ran after Bellatrix, hoping to kill her. He Cruciatused her, and was about to kill her, but Voldemort arrived, and Harry was unable. They taunted him until Dumbledore came up, and started a duel with Voldemort. Dumbledore but Harry out of danger and trapped Bellatrix, and dueled, but Aurors and the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, arrived, and Voldemort grabbed Bellatrix and fled. Everyone had seen him, however, and Wizarding Britain was now sure he was back. Fudge ended up resigning from position as Minister, replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour.

The next school year, Voldemort was at large once more, and many died, but nothing relatively exciting happened for the Order of the Phoenix (Dumbledore's Army had disbanded), until the end of the year. At the end, Dumbledore was killed by Severus Snape after being disarmed by Draco Malfoy at the top of the Astronomy Tower, as multiple Death Eaters find a passage into Hogwarts. Dumbledore was a great leader.

In the final year of the war, Voldemort had taken over the Ministry, and Harry Potter had gone into hiding with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Unknownst to all alive but them, they are looking for Voldemort's Horcruxes. A Horcrux is an object in which someone has concealed a part of his or her soul by killing. Voldemort's horcruxes were the Diary from year two, Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem, Salazar Slytherin's locket, Helga Hufflepuff's cup, his snake Nagini, and a ring passed down as a family heirloom. Harry had destroyed the diary in his second year, so there were five left. They received the locket from breaking into the ministry but had no means of destroying it, until a silver doe Patronus led them to the discovery of Gryffindor's sword, which had Basilisk venom (a way to destroy horcruxes) on it. Ron had fled due to exposure to the locket, and he saved Harry from almost drowning trying to get the sword. Ron destroyed the locket. The three were captured, though, a little while later, by snatchers, and were identified and moved to Malfoy Manor. Draco lied to save them, and they met up with Luna Lovegood, Dean Thomas, and Ollivander in the basement, all of whom had been captured. They were saved by Dobby the house elf, who Apparated them away. But they were in the same room as Bellatrix, Narcissa, Draco, and Lucius when the Apparated, and Harry stole the wand of Draco and Bellatrix, along with stealing their own back. Harry's wand had been destroyed, and he used Draco's for the rest of the war. They Apparated as Bellatrix threw a knife at them, striking Dobby in the chest. Dobby died saving his friends. They ended up at Shell Cottage, where Bill and Fleur were residing. At this time the rest of the Weasleys went into hiding as well, as it was confirmed that Ron was with Harry. Also, at school, Ginny, Neville, and Luna had restarted Dumbledore's Army. Luna had been kidnapped and Ginny, left, so this time Neville led the rebellion. Harry, Ron, and Hermione left Shell Cottage and broke into Gringotts to get the Cup Horcrux, and they flew out on a dragon. They also lost Gryffindor's sword, so they had no way to destroy the cup. They Apparated into Hogsmeade, and were smuggled into Hogwarts by Aberforth Dumbledore of the Hog's Head, a member of the Order. They met with Dumbledore's Army and called multiple members of the Order in. Ron and Hermione ventured into the Chamber of Secrets and got multiple Basilisk fangs and destroyed the cup. That left the diadem and Nagini. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were able to get the diadem during the Battle of Hogwarts, and they destroyed in with Fiendfyre. That left the snake. Voldemort called back his followers and the injured and dead were gathered into the Great Hall. The total defenders of Hogwarts dead were 54 (see page four for names). Harry went up and put Severus Snape's (he had just been killed by Voldemort) memories into the Pensieve. The only people who know the contents are Harry Potter, Ginny Potter neé Weasley, Hermione Granger-Weasley, and Ron Granger-Weasley. They proved, though, that Snape was on the side of Hogwarts and was a spy, and Harry learned that he was the final Horcrux from when Voldemort failed to kill him. He sacrificed himself for everyone in the Forbidden Forest. Voldemort brought his body back to Hogwarts, where the people fought once more, and Harry, proven still alive, shielded everybody else from harm and faced Voldemort for one last time. He disarmed Voldemort and Voldemort's Killing Curse rebounded on himself. Voldemort was dead.

So today we remember all the death of the Battle of Hogwarts, and know that the lost gained what they fought for.

Harry set down the paper and looked at Ginny. She, like him, was crying. They cuddled into each other's sides and cried, remembering Fred and Tonks and Lupin and Colin and Snape and…