November 1
2:30 am
"What is a horcrux, Albus?" asked Lily.
"A horcrux is an object in which a person can encase a part of their soul and so even if the person is killed, a part of their soul lives on, and through various forms of Dark Magic, they can be resurrected from that soul piece. I believe that Voldemort has created a horcrux - or rather several horcruxes. So while they exist, he cannot be destroyed. So, in order to defeat him, we must get rid of all of his horcruxes," explained Dumbledore.
"So, how do you destroy a horcrux?" asked Remus.
"The container of the horcrux must be damaged beyond repair. There are only a few known ways of doing this. One is using Basilisk venom, one is the use of Fiendfyre and the third is the use of the Avada Kedavra curse, the latter two of which are Dark Magic. However, we have in our team, someone who has researched far into the depths of Dark Magic, and magic in general," said Dumbledore.
"Severus," said Sirius quietly. Severus inclined his head.
"So, in order to complete this mission - which, I warn you, will take a long time, and will be dangerous, we will be, within this group, again, dividing into separate factions with their own role. Severus will, of course, continue to work as a spy within Voldemort's ranks, but he, Lily, Alice, Frank and I will be working on developing a spell to destroy horcruxes - or rather, drive out the soul pieces from the containers, and recombine themselves, so that perhaps…" Dumbledore shook his head. "I'm sorry. I got carried away. Meanwhile, James, Sirius and Remus will be working on finding and collecting the soul pieces and containers. I have good reason to believe that there are five of them - so far."
"FIVE!" said Sirius loudly. "He split his soul five times?"
"Yes, Sirius. In fact, I also think that he may be intending to make seven - the most magically powerful number." said Dumbledore heavily. "Tom was certainly a bright student."
"You taught him?" asked Frank in surprise.
"I have been at Hogwarts for a long time, Frank," Dumbledore smiled.
"But…he's…like…fifty five years old! You've been at Hogwarts for more than FORTY-TWO years?" asked Alice incredulously.
"And I intend to stay for much longer."
"Wow," said James. "That's…a lot."
"Sir, where do you think we'd be able to find these horcruxes?" asked Remus. "And what could they possibly be?"
"Sit down, everyone. I've got a long tale to tell you," said Dumbledore, conjuring several plump neon yellow armchairs, and settling quite comfortably into one. The deep purple and neon yellow clashed horribly. They all sat down, Severus discreetly rolling his eyes.
Dumbledore went on to explain Voldmort's past as Tom Riddle, and his Slytherin heritage, and his love for Hogwarts and its history, and his attacks on the Riddles, the Gaunts and Hepzibah Smith, and Dumbledore's own theories about a small black diary that Voldemort had always carried around with him and another horcrux - something that had belonged to either Rowena Ravenclaw or Godric Gryffindor - but was more likely to be Ravenclaw's because Dumbledore had the only known relic of Gryffindor's - the sword - in his possession.
"So, let me get this straight. There are five known soul pieces: Helga Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's locket, something of Rowena Ravenclaw's, a ring, and a diary. And we don't know where any of them are," summarized Remus.
"Yes, that is the gist of it," sighed Dumbledore. He retrieved a sheaf of parchments from a briefcase on the tea table between them, and spread out five papers on the table. "This is what I suspect they look like." The seven order members looked over the drawings.
Severus frowned at the drawing of the cup. "I've seen this before."
The others looked up. "Where?" asked James.
"I think Voldemort ordered for it to be put in the Lestranges' vault. But I'm not sure how we would get it out of Gringotts - I don't think any of us have authorization, and they've set up curses. And you know what the goblins are like," he elaborated.
Sirius grinned. "I've got authorization!" The others stared at Sirius.
"I'm a Black," he said simply. "So is Bellatrix, originally. I've also got access to the Malfoy vaults."
"We can start with that one, then," said Dumbledore. "Does anyone have any other suggestions for other places where Voldemort could have hidden Horcruxes?"
"The Gaunt shack?"
"Any of his followers' homes?"
"The cave! The cave on the island!"
"Hogwarts?"
"Why Hogwarts?" asked Frank.
"Well, he was there for a long time, and considered it his home. He never liked the muggle orphanage he was brought up in, and had another chance to visit Hogwarts, too, when he came back asking for a job," pointed out Remus.
"That is a valid point," said Dumbledore. "I will search at Hogwarts as well. In the meantime, Sirius can search the Lestrange and Malfoy vaults, the three of you can investigate the houses of known Death Eaters, and then I will accompany you to the Gaunt shack and the island."
"That's settled, then," said Alice. "For the spell development project, let's meet every other day starting tomorrow. We've got a big lab in the basement, so you can come here."
"Excellent," said Dumbledore.
"We can go to the vaults tomorrow morning," said Sirius. "They'll let you two in if you're with me."
"Alright," said Remus. "Nine, tomorrow, then?"
"Works with me," said James.
"Alright, everyone. I've got one more thing to talk about," said Dumbledore. "I am telling you because I completely trust everyone in this room." Snape tensed up. This was it.
"James, Lily, I'm sure you remember the prophecy made about Harry?"
They nodded.
"While Tom seems convinced that it's Harry in the prophecy, it could also apply to another boy. Neville."
Frank and Alice looked at each other. "Excuse me, but what is this prophecy?" asked Frank.
Dumbledore took a deep breath. He waved his hand, and a Pensieve appeared in front of him. He cast a memory into it, and beckoned them all forward. One by one, they ducked into the silvery fluid and landed in Dumbledore's memory.
"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..."
- Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix
Frank and Alice's faces went white.
"So…" said Frank. "It means that when the time comes, either Harry or Neville will have to defeat Voldemort."
James nodded grimly.
"Well, it doesn't mean that we can't help them out as much as possible!" said Alice fiercely.
"That's exactly what I thought, and I've been researching a charm that could make it easier; I'll talk to you about it after the meeting," said Lily.
"This prophecy means that Voldemort will likely come after you as well. And that is why I suggested putting the Fidelius Charm on your houses. However, it proved inefficient in the case of James and Lily, and I had been working on a variation of it, in which you can make yourself the Secret-Keeper of your own home. Do not, ever leave Harry or Neville alone at home, or anywhere for that matter, even if it is just for a minute, not even with protective spells. Always ensure that when you are outdoors, you are somehow physically connected to them."
"Right," said Lily.
Dumbledore opened the door and stuck his head out of it. "Everyone's gone. Let's start working on the enchantments."
A/N: Hey, it's Moony. So when we say 'If the Potters Were Smarter', it's primarily about the Potters themselves (and Sirius, 'cause he's an honorary Potter anyway, as well as Remus, because at this point of time, who else does he have, really?), but it also involves Dumbledore being more intelligent, because assuming that he'd had all those memories for quite a long time, he'd probably had something figured out, even if it was a sketch. Because otherwise, the war could've continued for a very VERY long time. Which is bad.