The former Headmasters in the portraits were snoring like thunder.
They looked as though they were sleeping soundly, but all of them had their ears perked up, trying to hear the conversation between the two more clearly. It seemed that no matter where you were, gossip was a common human instinct.
Fawkes the phoenix stood on his perch, elegantly preening his feathers. Occasionally, he would raise his head and glance at Dumbledore.
"I think you've already guessed that person's name," Dumbledore said. "Although it is difficult to believe."
"Severus Snape." Eda slowly spoke the name of the Potions professor.
Several Death Eater names flashed through Eda's mind in an instant. She even thought of Peter Pettigrew, because Animagi were difficult to identify, especially when Pettigrew's Animagus form was a rat.
After thinking it over and over, Eda still settled on Snape.
The Potions professor had once been a Death Eater and later became Dumbledore's spy. On top of that, there was his complicated relationship with James Potter, Sirius, and the others, as well as his contradictory attitude toward Harry. All of this made Eda deeply suspicious of him.
Once you eliminate every impossible possibility, whatever remains, no matter how difficult it is to believe, must be the truth.
"Yes, Severus," Dumbledore said. "He overheard my conversation with Sybill and also heard the prophecy, but he only heard half of it. Aberforth roughly threw him out."
"And then he told Voldemort the half of the prophecy he had overheard," Eda said. "So that's why Voldemort went after Harry while he was still a baby?"
Eda ran her fingers through her long hair and messed it up. Although she had known that Snape was a Death Eater before this, now that she knew the truth, she still felt utterly speechless.
"That was Voldemort's own choice," Dumbledore said. "Severus merely repeated what he had heard to him. He was the one who chose Harry."
A trace of confusion appeared in Eda's green eyes. What did Dumbledore mean by saying it was Voldemort's own choice?
Judging from the contents of the prophecy, wasn't it clearly talking about Harry? Was there another candidate?
"Born to those who have thrice defied him." James and Lily were both members of the Order of the Phoenix. They had certainly opposed Voldemort, so there was no problem there. "Born as the seventh month dies." Harry had been born at the end of July, so there was still no problem.
This was obviously Harry. Even the Seer Trelawney had confirmed it. What could possibly be wrong?
"You overlooked another person, Eda, someone you know but always overlook. Neville Longbottom. You may not know this, but he was also born at the end of July."
After hearing Dumbledore's words, Eda froze for a moment. Her brain completely crashed at that instant.
Then Neville Longbottom's round little face floated before Eda's eyes. Little crybaby Neville could have had a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead... Neville was the child referred to in the prophecy. This was a possibility Eda had never considered.
The Longbottoms were Aurors and also members of the Order of the Phoenix. They fulfilled the first condition of the prophecy. Their son Neville was born at the end of July, fulfilling the second condition.
So "the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord" referred not only to Harry, but also to Neville. It all depended on which one Voldemort chose. Because "the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal," and the lightning-shaped scar left by the Killing Curse was that mark!
This prophecy was a typical example of covering both sides, the sort of trick commonly used by fortune tellers at street stalls. If she had not known what happened afterward, Eda would have thought that Voldemort had been jointly fooled by Dumbledore and Trelawney.
"Voldemort made his choice. He chose Harry, who was a half-blood like himself," Dumbledore continued, "rather than Neville, who was born into a pure-blood family."
There were no ifs in this world, yet Eda could not help wondering what if. What if Voldemort had chosen Neville Longbottom back then? What would everything have been like?
Would Voldemort still have lost his body and become an existence less substantial than a ghost?
Could Harry Potter have lived together with his parents?
Would James and Lily have suffered the same misfortune as Frank and Alice? If so, would Sirius have adopted Harry, or would Harry still have been sent to the Dursleys?
Would the same things have happened during his years at school?
Eda knew that none of this could happen because Voldemort had chosen Harry, but she simply could not stop herself from imagining all these possibilities.
"What is it?" Dumbledore asked. "Are you thinking about what might have happened?"
The Headmaster's voice was very soft, as though he were afraid of startling Eda. Eda shook her head like a little dog, as if she could shake the water out of her brain that way.
"Professor, what if Voldemort had done nothing back then?" Eda asked softly. "What if he hadn't chosen Harry or Neville and simply acted as though he had never heard that prophecy?"
The question plunged Dumbledore into silence.
After a long while, the Headmaster finally said, "There are no what-ifs, Eda. His nature determined this. He would never allow anyone capable of threatening his life to exist. Remember this: keep your friends close, and your enemies even closer."
Although he said that, Dumbledore's silence just now showed that he had also thought about something similar.
If Voldemort had not believed the prophecy and had not personally marked his own greatest enemy, the darkness hanging over Britain might have lasted for a very long time.
Until Dumbledore found a way to completely defeat Voldemort, or until another prophecy appeared that could make Voldemort believe it...
So, in the end, Voldemort really had been fooled by Dumbledore and Trelawney working together. It was just that this time, the deception was the trickery of fate, the arrangement of destiny, or perhaps simply the will of Gods/Merlin.
Superstition really was best avoided. Choosing not to take Divination had indeed been a wise decision. Eda comforted herself inwardly.
"What happened after that?" Eda asked after composing herself.
"Afterward, Severus came to find me. That was when I learned that my carelessness had caused the prophecy to be leaked," Dumbledore said. "Severus told me that he had overheard part of the prophecy and repeated it to Voldemort, and Voldemort chose the Potters and Harry."
Curiosity sparkled in Eda's eyes. She asked, "Professor Snape and the Potters..."
"The past between them is not something I can reveal. You'd better ask Severus yourself, if he is willing to tell you." Dumbledore immediately strangled Eda's budding curiosity.
Eda helplessly pouted, then said, "You used the leaked prophecy to recruit Professor Snape, strengthening the protection around the Potters. But you didn't expect there to be a traitor in our ranks."
"Yes, I used Severus and had him gather information about the Death Eaters and Voldemort's movements." Dumbledore admitted it frankly. There was no reason to hide it.
Eda already knew what happened afterward. Peter Pettigrew betrayed the Potters, Voldemort came to kill them, and when he tried to eliminate his greatest enemy, he was defeated by a one-year-old baby.
Voldemort lost his body and his magic, and the war ended. Peter Pettigrew escaped, Sirius was falsely imprisoned, and the Longbottoms were driven insane after being tortured with the Cruciatus Curse by the Lestranges...
Then, in 1991, Harry Potter entered Hogwarts.
"Professor, was what happened to the Longbottoms also related to this prophecy?" Eda asked.
There were so many Aurors in the Ministry of Magic, and quite a few members of the Order of the Phoenix as well. Why did the Lestranges have to choose the Longbottoms?
Dumbledore shook his head. He said, "We cannot be certain. Voldemort trusted the Lestranges very much, but we do not know the extent of that trust."
"It's getting late. Is there anything else you want to ask?" Dumbledore said. He was getting a little tired.
"Yes," Eda said. She had an idea she wanted to confirm, completely failing to take into consideration that Dumbledore was already a hundred-year-old man.
Eda said, "You said you wanted to reduce your contact with Harry. Is it because you were worried that Voldemort and Harry had formed some kind of connection, and you were afraid Voldemort would use that connection to cause trouble, right?"
This was the result of Eda's deep thought throughout the entire holiday. She had reached this conclusion from Harry's dreams about Voldemort.
"That is basically correct," Dumbledore said. He was not surprised at all that Eda had figured it out. It was nothing unusual for her.
"Any other questions?" Dumbledore asked again. He felt that Eda should understand the meaning hidden in his words.
Eda understood that the Headmaster was asking her to leave, but she really did have one more question she wanted to ask. This question had also troubled her for half the holiday, and she had forgotten to ask Dumbledore about it the last time they met.
Seeing Eda's reluctant steps as she left the office, Dumbledore still called out to her. "Are you really sure there are no more questions?"
With that simple sentence, Eda immediately came to life. She shot back from the doorway to stand in front of Dumbledore, startling him.
She asked, "Professor, during the summer, you told me to come back as soon as possible, so I came back. But aside from going to Privet Drive to protect Harry and helping him at his hearing, why didn't you arrange anything else for me?"
Hearing this, Dumbledore looked at Eda strangely, as though he did not quite understand what she meant.
"Me? Tell you to return to London as soon as possible?" Dumbledore asked. His blue eyes were filled with confusion. "No! I don't remember ever writing you such a letter."
"Then you found me immediately after I returned to London?" Eda pressed. Dumbledore's reaction had already made her understand the situation. Now she was simply preparing the nails for the coffin.
"You suddenly came back, and I was worried that you were planning to cause trouble for the Fowley family, so I went to see you!"
Eda silently gathered her strength. She understood everything now. Fred and George had sent her a fake message, and because she trusted the twins too much, she had never thought to confirm it with Dumbledore and had hurried back.
As for why Fred and George had sent the fake message, perhaps they wanted to trick Eda into coming back to help with the cleaning... After all, Number 12 Grimmauld Place had quite a large area.
"Falling into the same ditch twice is really quite inappropriate," Dumbledore continued.
"That's right, Professor. You're absolutely right," Eda said through gritted teeth. "When I get back tonight, I'll fill in that ditch. I guarantee they won't see the sun tomorrow!"
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