Post by restless ADMIN on May 23, 2010 10:59:08 GMT -5
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What we have to offer:
It was the summer of 1976. School had just let out for the year, and students,
both magical and muggle, were enjoying the school year. Voldemort’s reign of
terror had only barely begun, and few witches and wizards believed that the dark
lord was a real threat. That is, until he killed Dumbledore.
The Order of the Phoenix, only in its infancy, was temporarily lost as it scrambled
for a leader. The group missed its opportunity to eliminate Voldemort in the few short
weeks as the Dark Lord’s power grew. The aurors, too, did nothing as Voldemort
began to assert his influence. It was only a matter of weeks before the minister of
magic, Reginald McKinnon, was dead.
Everyone was shocked when letters began to arrive from Hogwarts, sending
students their materials list as if nothing had happened. Seeking a sense of
normalcy, many of the students eagerly bought up their supplies and readied
themselves to board the Hogwarts express in the coming months. Only the few
remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix, which had reorganized since the fall
of their leader, imagined the massacre that was to come.
With only days before the new term was to start, the fledgling organization
hurriedly visited the families of muggleborn and halfblood students. Some agreed
to stay behind, while others stubbornly refused to believe that anything bad could happen
inside Hogwarts’ walls. Boy, were they wrong.
Within weeks of the students return to Hogwarts, stories began to trickle to the outside
world about the disappearance of many of the muggleborn students. Parents didn’t
hear from their loving children for weeks, and their worried letters from Hogwarts returned
unanswered. Unanswered, that is, until death eaters, sorry, make that aurors, arrived at
their homes. Strangely enough, these muggle or muggle-associated parents were
never heard from again.
The Order had to do something. Even away from Hogwarts, muggle borns, halfbloods,
and muggle sympathizers were not safe. Every week, new stories of mysterious deaths
after auror visits appeared. Something had to be done.
Thus, the house of the phoenix was born. A safe house, located far away from England,
far from Voldemort’s prying eyes. Not a house, exactly, but a series of old buildings converted
from farm houses and barns. Not comfortable, but safe. Soon, it wasn’t just muggleborn
students that could be found there. As the days went on, more and more students
arrived. For some, though, there was no escape. Students from influential
pureblood families, no matter what their allegiance, were watched like hawks.
So, some are safe. For now. But as the days go on, students are getting restless.
They can’t hide forever.
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What we have to offer:
