Life After Death - An Erica Black Continuation (4)

Thirteen

"Take your seats quickly now please, we have a lot to cover today. Does anyone have any questions for me about our last lesson before we start?"
A few hands flew up. "Yes miss Thomas?" She pointed at a Gryffindor student.
"Why did Voldemort care so much about blood purity if he wasn't even a pure blood?"
Erica smiled at the girl,
"That's a very good question! Thank you Ms Thomas. The answer is that he hated his family, specifically his muggle father for abandoning his mother. He hated what he saw as weakness and the only thing he knew about his father to hate, was his blood status."
Most of the other students hands fell, except for one.
"Yes Mr Jones?"
"So I get that Voldemort was into blood purity and all that but why did so many people follow him?"

"Well, a lot of people had a lot to gain from the way he thought. If people believed in magical blood supremacy then those of magical blood would have more power in society. The purest and longest standing family lines would've been particularly much better off. This includes the sacred 28."

"Now, we ended our lecture last class with the first opening of the Chamber of secrets in 1943. For a bit of backstory, the chamber was built by Hogwarts founder Salazar Slytherin, for centuries the legends said that he placed a basilisk inside with intentions to cleanse the school of impure blood. He locked it up safely to ensure that only a true heir could reopen it. Many Headmasters of Hogwarts attempted to find it but not a single one was successful and so it was dismissed as a legend. That is until Tom riddle, a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin through his mother, a member of the Gaunt family, found and opened the chamber in his sixth year. That was the first time it had been opened since the middle-ages and would be the last time until 1992- but we'll get into that later."

"Tom Riddle soon began the process of achieving immortality. He did this by creating his first Horcrux. During this topic there are very few things I will not be blatantly honest about and even less that I will refuse to touch upon at all however, horcruxes are one of those things. A despicable act of deeply corrupt and dark magic. Tom Riddle, in the end, made seven, splitting his soul into eight pieces. This had not been his original intention, he had planned to make six.
Theses horcruxes were: his own diary, the Gaunt ring, his beloved pet snake, Nagini, Harry Potter, Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup and the Lost Diadem of Ravenclaw. Each were, eventually, destroyed."

"It was around this time, when he was sixteen, Tom Riddle abandoned his muggle fathers name and created an anagram that only his closest friends would call him; Lord Voldemort. He went on to commit multiple atrocities not only personally but through the vast following he had secured. "

"However, it wasn't until the early 1960's and 1970's that his reign of terror reached it's peak. The news was filled with stories of murder, torture, arson and terror attacks in London and across Britain as a whole. Tom Riddle and his death eaters went around Britain killing homeless muggles and using necromancy to turn them into Inferi- his did this until he had built an army. Albus Dumbledore founded the Order of the Phoenix in retaliation and recruited young witches and wizards, many of which were allies he had formed both as a teacher and during the Grindelwald conflict. Order members would regularly risk their lives to fight again the death-eaters whether duelling them or protecting others, but this was no easy feat, the Order of the Phoenix was once described as 'out-numbered 25 to 1' - Yes Miss Bletchley?" she cut herself off, noticing the mousey girl at the back of the class with her hand timidly raised.
"Who was in the Order of the Phoenix Professor?"

"Quite a few people ;
Albus Dumbledore- founder
Arabella Figg-  a squib
Aberforth Dumbledore
Alastor Moody- Auror
Frank and Alice Longbottom- tortured to insanity by Bellatrix LeStrange and others
Lily and James Potter- murdered by Voldemort himself
Fabian and Gideon Prewett-  fought and was murdered by 5 death-eaters
Dorcus Meadowes- murdered by Voldemort himself
Marlene McKinnon- murdered along with her whole family
Peter Pettigrew-  thought to be murdered
Remus Lupin
Sirius Black
and Emmeline Vance amongst others. And that is just the first war, however many who survived went on to fight in the second Wizarding war too. "
She girl, Miss Bletchley, nodded in understanding, lowering her hand.
"When the war ended, the order members tried to mourn their loses and rebuild their lives... the Death-eaters one the other hand, some did, of course. But others searched for their leader... wanting to know where or why he'd gone, he disappeared without a trace after all- no one knew what had happened. That's why what happened to the Longbottoms is considered one of the most disgusting crimes in British Wizarding history, because the war was over. Bellatrix LeStrange, her husband and brother-in-law and Barty Crouch Jr tracked down the Longbottoms and tortured them, with the Cruciatus curse, to insanity. All because they wanted the whereabouts of someone who was, assumably, dead and would stay so for the next 14 years; Tom Riddle."
Some muttering broke out across the room, mostly students expressing their shock or horror.
"On another note, can anyone here think of another name for Harry Potter?" Her eyes briefly scanned the room "yes miss Finnigan?"
"The boy who lived"
"Very good Adeen.  Yes, Harry Potter was also known as the boy who lived because of how he defied death and survived the killing curse in 81.  However, it was very almost another who took that title. There was a prophecy..."
Taking a deep breathe she glanced down at a piece of parchment in her hand
"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..."
"Can anyone tell me what this means?"
A thick blanket of silence covers the room as everyone's eyes glance around, avoiding their professor's, avoiding the question, avoiding the fact that they didn't know the answer.
"Okay well, this prophecy was made back in 1980 by Sybill Trelawney, descendent of the celebrated Seer: Cassandra Trelawney. All this is really saying is that a baby would be born, at the end of that July. That baby's parents would've defied Voldemort three times. Now, there's been a bit of discussion surrounding how the Potters defied Voldemort but it is widely, agreed upon that the first time was when he asked them to joined his ranks, they refused. The other two times could've been anything, they killed his followers, they fought against his cause, they hid from him... But Harry Potter's fate was not written in stone in the same way many believe it was, there was another boy... Anyway! that's time! I want you each to think of one question to ask me at the beginning of our next class. "