#Second war with Voldemort

[pangaeaseas]

@black-sisters-microfic

Prompt for February 9: Call me

I'm about to have way too much fun with this and throw in random worldbuilding shit, fair warning.

"Fucking hell, Cissy, you could have called," Sirius said, which was probably suitable for the first thing he had said to her in a decade and a half. Though it wasn't quite fair--she hadn't had time to send any kind of warning, knowing the Dark Lord would likely have noticed her and Draco's absence by now, and she couldn't really remember how to work a Muggle tellyfone anyway. It was a miracle she had gotten away so cleanly. When the Dark Lord had killed Lucius, he had put the other Malfoys under close guard, and it had taken the best of Narcissa's remembered childhood skills at sneaking away from powerful Dark wizards to get them out.

The gravelly black stone Muggles made their roads out of was starting to dig unpleasantly into Narcissa's knees. If she hadn't had so many other concerns, she would have started to fear for her dress, which was probably the nicest thing she owned, currently. But she would worry about her dress when Sirius let her inside. She squinted through her heavy veil to try and gauge his expression.

If they had been fifteen years younger Narcissa would have said something funny back to him. But there would be time for that later, if he let her inside.

"Lord Sirius son of Orion of the House of Black, I am a daughter of your house, come to beg your protection and throw myself on your mercy," she said, as quickly as she could so they didn't waste any more time. When people had done these rituals in her childhood they had always called it the Noble and Most Ancient House, but those words had no magical significance, so she skipped them. It was ridiculous to be doing this in a Muggle street, but one of her less-clever ancestors had put Grimmauld in Muggle London and so they would have to work with it. She could feel the magic in her words already starting to work, waiting to see what Sirius would do.

"God damn you for making me do this," Sirius said. So he would keep on to his radical noble-abolition ideals to the end, then. That was her cousin and his damnable ethics. But it was make him be Lord of the House of Black in truth as well as name, or trust Dumbledore blindly, and she didn't trust Dumbledore. "You can come in without having to swear to me," he said, and she remembered that she loved her cousin for those same ethics, for giving her a choice.

"I need assurances," she said. Draco, unconscious from the Stunner she'd had to hit him with to make him go quietly, was starting to stir. She hoped Sirius would make up his mind and do his duty quickly, before her son decided to pull something that would bring the Dark Lord down on both their heads. "I don't particularly want to be a daughter of the House again, do you think I'd do this if I had any better option?"

"Fine," Sirius said. "Fair enough." And it was with those wildly unceremonious words that the magic of the House of Black sprung back to life. Even from under the veil she could see her cousin shivering, just as she did. "Everything okay with the kid? I thought you didn't believe in hexing children."

"He wouldn't have left otherwise," she said, and it hurt both to say and to face someone who knew exactly why she had made that pledge.

"Even after Voldemort killed his father?" Sirius said. "Congratulations on the widowing, by the way."

God, she had missed him. Congratulating a widow! No sense of propriety, and she couldn't bring herself to care.

"Are you going to call Andromeda? Might as well get all of us left back together?" she asked him, knowing Bella in Azkaban was likely lost to her now. So she might as well exchange one sister for another.

"Only if she wants," Sirius said. Narcissa rose to her feet, and looked up at the familiar door made suddenly strange. If Sirius didn't call Andromeda, she might well have to learn the tellyfone herself.

[sliebman10]

Beast

“No, no fucking way are you comparing me to that beast,” Remus shouted, lunging across the table at the new Order recruits. 

“Remus-” Dumbledore started, reaching out and Remus pulled away.

“Let’s step outside,” Sirius said in his ear. 

They left the Order meeting and went into the alcove under the stairs.

“I know what you’re going to say,” Remus grumbled. 

“I wasn’t going to say anything,” Sirius said mildly, running his hand in a circle on his back.”

“You weren’t going to tell me I was overreacting? That they don’t know any better because they haven’t been adequately educated about werewolves?”

“I mean…some of that is true,” Sirius allowed. “But…I probably would have had the same reaction. Not every werewolf is Greyback. The newbies need to understand that.” He pulled Remus closer. “You’re nothing like him, darling...you never have been and you never will be.” 

Word Count: 147

@wolfstarmicrofic

[augureysfeather]

Moja rambles about the British Ministry for Magic and the Auror’s Office during and after the Second War (and a bit about her fic…)

While writing yesterday, I had some thoughts about the consequences of the war on the ministry. Canon says that the ministry was re-structured to fit Voldemort’s ideology during the second war and this happened quite efficiently and quickly, imo. Voldemort installed his own puppet minister, he outright bullied the lower-ranking employees into using toilets to enter the ministry (I don’t need to talk about the symbolism of such - it’s outright shit - ba-dum-tish), there was constant surveillance, a complete change in attitude regarding muggle-borns (registration office, anyone?), an aura of constant fear and suppression and all Aurors - pretty much the executive of the ministry in peace times -  were decommissioned and stripped off their wands. Essentially, Voldemort made them fair (and easy) game to hunt. 

And this is something I wanna focus on, because I have a weak spot for the Auror’s Office. (It shows in my fic…)

Unfortunately, we do not know how many Aurors were there before the second war. But extrapolating from the dwindling numbers of Order of the Phoenix members (the next best thing to the Auror’s Office the British wizarding society has - and I’m not going to analyse what that means), the Auror’s Office might have lost a lot of people during the second war. We know they lost Moody - a goddamn veteran of the first war and probably one of the most powerful wizards below Dumbledore  - they lost Tonks and they lost their former head, Rufus Scrimgeour. 

I often think about the kind of Auror’s Office that Harry and Ron trained under, after the war. And as a logical consequence, I have a lot of headcanons about his head - who has turned into a not-so-secret fav of mine.

We know precious little about Gawain Robards, but I have gathered what we know, what we can conclude. He’s the next Head of Office after Rufus Scrimgeour, who personally appointed him. He took over in summer 1996, which is right on the doorstep of the second war. He was not mentioned anywhere during the first war, so - and this is my conclusion, he was not an active auror during the first war. He could have started his career in general later, but I headcanon him as too young during the first war. (Starting as an auror ~1981) Which would mean that the oldest he could have been as he took over the office in 1996 was 33. 

Thirty-three. I remind you, Harry was called the youngest head of auror’s office at the age of 26/27. Gawain could have been not much older. And he was dunked right into a war. As head of the auror’s office. With his mentor and predecessor just dying about a year into the position. 

And Gawain survived canonically. 

Granted, he could have fled the country, but likewise, he could have been badass enough to survive the entire war even though he was likely a target for the DE. (Maybe even without a goddamn wand.)

I have a lot of feelings for this guy. 

Likewise - returning to the fact that a lot of powerful wizards and witches died during or shortly before the second war - Dumbledore himself, the former minister Scrimgeour, Moody, Lupin, Amelia Bones…and a lot of personnel of the ministry replaced and this happening on BOTH sides of the war (on the baddie side, we have Voldemort dead, Grindelwald if you wanna count him, Bellatrix, maybe Greyback, probably a few more DE…)...I took all of this and realized, there was a serious power vacuum on both sides after the end of the war. Shacklebolt was installed as interim minister (and canon is not completely clear on how long he stayed minister, but potentially until 2019, so about 21 years! The longest a minister stayed in office was, I think something about 38 or 39 years.), why? Because - and this is my headcanon - he was one of the strongest surviving wizards and the one with the most political and leadership experience. Shacklebolt, who was at the time probably ~40 (knew James Potter, so had to be born around the 1960s). In a society where wizards and witches can get up to 130+ years. 

Yeah, I think they had a serious shortage of experienced personnel. 

And I’d like to see that explored more in after-war fics (and do that myself, lol). And I’d like to hear your opinions and ideas, for this is a topic that really fascinates me. :D 

[pangaeaseas]

Battle of seven potters was such a bad idea in retrospect it makes me really wonder for the intelligence of snape or Dumbledore or whoever came up with it

It's crazy that before the Battle of the Seven Potters, Moody had them all transform into someone with terrible eyesight therefore disabling them when he was suspicious they would literally be attacked by Voldemort. What if someone's glasses fell off in the air. They'd die because they can't see

[tedwardremus]

Blood Purity and a Declining Birth Rate

Voldemort’s promise to restore pureblood supremacy isn’t just a call to arms; it’s a lifeline for a community terrified of its own obsolescence.

The wizarding world is haunted by more than just literal ghosts; it is a world that seems to be shrinking, its former grandeur fading into memory. Signs of decline are everywhere: Hogwarts, once a bustling center of magical education, has unused classrooms and seemingly fewer students than one would expect for the only magical school in Great Britain and Ireland. Diagon Alley, supposedly the heart of the magical community in one of the world’s largest cities, consists of just a few streets. Even wizarding media is centralized in a single newspaper.

These clues suggest a world that was once much larger than it is now. There are references to better days and implications that Hogwarts isn’t what it used to be now that Dumbledore is in charge. This decline is tied closely to the waning influence of pureblood families, who are becoming a smaller and smaller fraction of the wizarding population. Muggle-born and half-blood students outnumber them at Hogwarts, a shift that threatens the social and political dominance Purebloods have held for centuries.

What’s particularly interesting is how purebloods respond—or fail to respond—to their declining numbers. Unlike other extremist groups like Christian fundamentalists or white nationalists, who often promote large families as a "sacred duty" to maintain their cultural dominance (Hitler gave medals to women who had five or more children), pureblood families in Harry Potter are remarkably small. This lack of larger pureblood families raises questions about their long-term strategies for survival. If blood purity is their highest priority, why don’t purebloods prioritize reproduction as a means to preserve their numbers?

Draco Malfoy, the prime school-age pureblood antagonist of the main character,  is an only child. Sirius Black and Regulus Black come from an ancient family with an extensive family tree, yet they have no siblings beyond each other and only three cousins. Bellatrix Lestrange, one of the most fanatical proponents of blood purity, didn’t have children until her late 40s—and even then, it is a single child (and only if you accept Cursed Child as canon).

Harry Potter himself comes from a pureblood family, but his only living relatives are his Muggle aunt and cousin. Neville Longbottom is raised by his grandmother, and while he mentions elderly relatives, there’s no indication of cousins his own age. Even the Weasleys, the exception to the rule with their seven children, seem to lack extended family—there are no Weasley cousins attending Hogwarts during Harry’s time.

The First Wizarding War can partially explain the small size of Harry’s generation: people were afraid to have children during Voldemort’s rise to power, and the violence of that decade wiped out much of a generation. However, this alone doesn’t account for the decline. Something must have happened in the previous generation as well. For several generations now, pureblood families haven’t been having enough children to maintain their population.

Another explanation could be that their intense focus on lineage and prestige means they are selective about marriage and procreation, limiting family size to maintain "purity" rather than expanding it. Marrying within a shrinking pool of acceptable partners likely leads to fewer unions and, consequently, fewer children. Additionally, inter-family rivalries, societal pressures, and a rigid class system may discourage collaboration between pureblood families to ensure survival. 

While we see pureblood families of different economic status in the series it is also worth noting that smaller families may be a deliberate choice to consolidate wealth and maintain power within a single branch of the family, ensuring that resources aren’t dispersed among too many inheritors. By keeping family sizes small, they can preserve their status and influence in a society where lineage and financial stability are critical markers of power.

Alternatively, external factors not mentioned in canon could help explain the dwindling pureblood numbers. Perhaps a catastrophic outbreak of dragon pox ravaged Britain at the turn of the century, disproportionately affecting pureblood families due to their insular communities and close intermarriages. An economic crisis could also have made it difficult for even wealthy families to support large households, especially given the high costs of maintaining pureblood status and reputation. Such events would compound the social and cultural pressures already discouraging large families, contributing to a steady decline in pureblood populations.

The decline in a pureblood population creates a simmering panic among purebloods. They perceive that their traditions and way of life are changing, and instead of adapting to demographic shifts and embracing a more inclusive future, they cling to fear and resentment. They blame Muggle-borns for their loss of power, projecting their anxieties onto those they perceive as outsiders for “stealing” magic.

When those in positions of power feel their dominance slipping, they often construct narratives in which the oppressed will rise up and do to them what they, the ruling class, have done to others. This paranoia leads purebloods to double down on their exclusivity, believing that maintaining their power is the only way to avoid losing everything. Their refusal to adapt blinds them to the potential benefits of inclusivity: a larger magical community, a stronger economy with more people working wizarding jobs and purchasing wizarding goods, and a broader cultural foundation to sustain their traditions.

This fear and resistance to change create fertile ground for Voldemort’s rise. He exploits the purebloods’ anxieties, offering them a roadmap for radicalization. Instead of addressing the root causes of their decline, purebloods embrace the Dark Lord’s extreme methods, leading to catastrophic consequences.

The determination to "purify" the wizarding world and maintain their position of power ironically accelerates their downfall. As Death Eaters enact Voldemort’s vision, their crusade doesn’t simply target individual Muggle-borns but entire families—wiping out, or nearly wiping out, powerful, established wizarding lineages like the Bones, McKinnons, Longbottoms, and Potters. This destructive cycle ensures that even the pureblood families themselves suffer massive losses, further accelerating the population decline they sought to prevent.

Purebloods who embrace the politics of purity in an attempt to stave off extinction ultimately hasten their own downfall, prioritizing exclusivity and radicalization over growth and adaptation.

(thanks to @livelaughlovetoread for reading this over and beta reading!)

[changetheprophecy81]

Hate the whole 'Dumbledore created a child army!!!' thing. He absolutely didn't

The marauders joined on their own, and yes, he raised Harry as a pig for slaughter, and yes, it was obviously not right morally, but a) what choice did he have, save 1 person over the whole ww? and b)he hardly did it out of spite, he did what he had to do for them to win the war. Again, it's not moral but it is what it is. Ig it's understandable to hate him for it, but the claim that he created a child army is simply not true

But uk who did create a child army? Tom fucking riddle, ur uwu misunderstood baby who was traumatized by Dumbledore

He literally wanted to apply to be a teacher just so he could radicalise children

So much of his forces consisted of people who were either just out of school or not even of age yet

Snape, Avery, Muliciber, Rosier, Barty Crouch jr, Regulus (who became a DE at 16 btw), someone named 'Wilkies' (acc to Sirius in gof), and it's said that he tried to recruit james and lily too, and later Draco(even if it was only as a punishment)...

Lyk... that's a surprising number of fresh graduates. I don't mean to say that all these characters didn't have varying degrees of agency in signing up to be a part of his army, or that they're completely absolved of any responsibility, but given that his initial plan was to teach at a school just to recruit children, this is hardly a coincidence

[tardiskater]

okay but like is there a fic that is more tragic then remus' canon? because like I think it's pretty damn hard to beat growing up alone because you were bitten when you were five and are afraid of hurting anyone, going to school during the start of a war, being thrown straight into fighting with your best friends as newly graduated teenagers, losing trust in eachother and coming home more and more tired, 'three' of your best friends dying all in one day and your boyfriend being the traitor who gets sent to askaban, having to survive alone for the next twelve years and endure the moons alone for the first time as a child because your pack is dead, becoming a teacher at the same school you grew up in and having to endure the ghosts of your past while trying to make a better future, having your deads best friends son be in your class who you saw on the day they were born but haven't seen since James and Lily's death, finding out that your traitorous ex boyfriend has escaped from prison and is near the school, finding out that one of your old best friends is still alive and that your ex boyfriend was never the traitor, reuniting with your ex boyfriend and feeling sixteen again, being thrown from the only job you have ever loved because you've been exposed as a werewolf, fighting in the second war with your boyfriend only to have him die a mear two years after you finally got him back, picking up the pieces and trying to find love again, marrying the cousin of your former boyfriend, having a child with her and then dying in the final battle of a war you've been fighting your whole life and being unable to see your son growing up.

[rodolphus-lestrangex]

Art by @makanidotdot

The way Lucius is holding Narcissa. And Bella and Rod standing there uncomfortably, unable to say anything to the Dark Lord but they’re their family - heartbreaking. 💔

[rogata453]

The scene where Harry comes back to life and calls Voldemort „Tom” just screams:

„So I leap from the gallows and I levitate down your street / Crash the party like a record scratch as I scream / Who’s afraid of little old me? / You should be.”

[hollowed-theory-hall]

The Riddle of Tom Riddle: Part 1/?

(Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7)

The Death Tool of Voldemort's Wars

So, I did say I'll make this post somewhere, so here it is.

When trying to make sense of Voldemort’s behavior in the books, I noticed that the two wars were actually very different. How they were waged, how many people died, and who was most targeted along with Voldemort's goals.

(Because I mentioned it, I'll just say Voldemort’s behavior in the book is really weird and somewhat contradictory, but I found a way to explain that. Consider this the second post on my way to analyze Voldemort after the Horcruxes one)

The Wizarding Population in the UK

The first step to figuring out how bad the wars with Voldemort actually were is to know the size of the wizarding population in the UK. Numbers of deceased don't mean much without being able to calculate percentages.

If there are 40 students a year at Hogwarts in 1990s → 400 wizards and witches between ages 10-19

Account for fewer births during and right after the war with Grindelwald in the 1930s-1940s, and the war with Voldemort in the 1970s

Account for longer life acceptancy (Average of 130)

And we get an estimate of something like this:

With wizards being around 0.01% of the muggle population in any country.

The population in Britian in 1991 was 57,359,454, making the wizarding population 57,359*0.01% =~ 5,700

The population in Ireland in 1991 was 5.1 M, making the Irish wizarding population about 510.

So as a rough estimate, we'll say there were ~6,200 wizards and witches in the UK and Ireland together in 1991

Probably less though considering JKR killed most of Harry's grandparents' generation with Dragon Pox....

By the same logic above in the 1970s the Wizarding population in Britain and Ireland was ~5,600 + ~300 = ~5,900 wizards and witches.

So, now we have the estimated size of the population and we can gage how much damage these wars actually caused.

So, I may have compiled a list of all war casualties from both wars. I will not place the full details here (like the exact year each died), but I'll mention sides, who they were killed by, and any other information relevant to understanding the war's influence on wizarding society, and what we can learn from it about Voldemort's intentions.

For these lists:

(M) - muggle (MB) - muggleborn (PB) - pure-blood (HB) - half-blood (O) - other $ - Death Eater or affiliated ^ - Order of the Pheonix member or affiliated Italics - killed against Voldemort's orders

The First War: Surprisingly Targeted

Killed By Voldemort Personally:

~4 unnamed goblins (O)

Dorcas Meadowes (PB/HB)^

James Potter (PB)^

Lily Potter (MB)^

Killed by Death Eaters:

Mr. Bones (PB)^

Mrs. Bones (PB)^

Robert McGonagall (PB)

Marlene McKinnon (PB)^

~4 more unnamed McKinnons (PB)^

Mrs McGregor (M)

Douglas McGregor (M)

2 McGregor Children (M)

Caradoc Dearborn (PB/HB)^

Dean Thomas’ Father (PB)

Edgar Bones' Wife (PB)^

Edgar Bones (PB)^

~2 Edgar Bones' children (PB)^

Benji Fenwick (PB/HB)^

Frank Longbottom (PB)^ - Not dead, but counts

Alice Longbottom (PB)^ - Not dead, but counts

Fabian Prewett (PB)^

Gideon Prewett (PB)^

Killed by the Order of the Pheonix & Aurors:

Evan Rosier (PB)$

Wilkes (PB)$

+ 13 muggles killed by Peter Pettigrew on October 31st, 1981

+ Regulus Black who died in the cave with the Inferi

This lands us at 45 casualties (including the Longbottoms) for the first Wizarding War. Now, let's look more closely at the numbers.

Not counting the muggles and creatures other than wizards lands us at 24

24/5,900 =~ 0.40% of the wizarding population was killed in the first war.

And did you notice anything interesting about the names on the list? There is only 1 muggleborn and 1 muggle family, whose death wasn't even on Voldemort's orders. What does it tell us about the war?

Well, first off, Dumbledore's idea of morality and not using dark magic and lethal curses kind of sucks. This is hardly a war, it's a massacre. 19 Order members and their families die compared to 3 Death Eaters, one of which was killed by Voldemort's creations. Moody and Mr. Weasley aren't kidding when they say the first war was rough in the fifth book. It really was, but only for their side.

The innocent casualties of people not belonging to any side in this war stand at 19 (including the 13 muggles killed by Pettigrew), and 6 (not including Pettigrew).

It's just wild how Peter Pettigrew has the most kills in this war, more than Voldemort. And it tells you a lot about Voldemort's priorities.

His priorities clearly aren't to kill all muggleborns, we can see that much. So what are his priorities? What is he actually waging a war for if it's not to kill all muggleborns like all the characters tell us?

Well, I will post a full rundown of the timeline of the first war at some point, but for now, what we know is that Voldemort is targeting the Order of the Phoenix, who opposed him. And he is in general causing chaos for the Ministry of Magic.

We know that by 1981, Voldemort practically won, with the ministry having more spies of his than any other group. The ministry was made up of Death Eaters. But we don't know of any rules he passed in this time, or moves to legalize dark magic or outlaw muggleborns — nothing like that happened.

What did happen, was that Voldemort made a cave filled with Inferi and experimented with potions (he invented the potion of despair in the cave).

It seems, more than anything, the war was there to distract the ministry or weaken it, and less about accomplishing a specific political goal. And if he was after a specific political goal, then it isn't blood purity as he isn't rounding up muggleborns like in the second war.

The low death count overall (especially when compared to the second war) is because Voldemort is there. Voldemort does not approve of unnecessary death, even muggle one:

“Nice costume, mister!” He saw the small boy’s smile falter as he ran near enough to see beneath the hood of the cloak, saw the fear cloud his painted face. Then the child turned and ran away. . . . Beneath the robe he fingered the hand of his wand. . . One simple movement and the child would never reach his mother. . . but unnecessary, quite unnecessary. . . .

(Deathly Hollows, page 295)

Voldemort himself does not like unnecessary death. He considers it and killing in rage below him at the end of the First Wizarding War. He doesn't do it himself and doesn't let his followers kill unnecessarily up until the night he kills the Potters.

What exactly Voldemort was trying to accomplish is a question I've pondered and have a few more posts about. But understanding he wasn't really after the death of all muggleborns and neither was he after control of Magical Britain, which is made very clear by the second war, is the first step to understanding him.

The Second War: Chaos Galore

Killed By Voldemort Personally:

Bertha Jorkins (PB)

Cedric Diggory (PB)

Bathilda Bagshot (PB)

Charity Burbage (PB/HB)

Alastor Moody (PB)^

Rufus Scrimgeour (PB)

German-speaking child #1 (M)

German-speaking child #2 (M)

German-speaking woman (M)

Mykew Gregorovitch (PN)

Gellert Grindelwald (HB)

Peter Pettigrew (PB/HB)$

2 Unidentified Death Eaters (PB/HB)$

Severus Snape (HB)$

Killed by Death Eaters:

Bodrick Bode (PB/HB)

Emmeline Vance (PB)^

Sirius Black (PB)^

Amalia Bones (PB)

Florean Fortesque (PB)

Mrs. Abbott (PB/HB)

Igor Karkaroff (PB)$

Montgomery (PB/HB)

4 Unidentified Muggles (M)

Gibbon (PB)$

Albus Dumbledore (HB)^

5 Unnamed muggles in Gaddley (M)

Gornuk (O)

Edward Tonks (MB)^

Dirk Cresswell (MB)

Dobby (O)

Lavender Brown (PB)^

Camelia (PB/HB)^

Vincent Crabbe (PN)$

Colin Creevey (MB)^

Remus Lupin (HB)^

Nymphadora Tonks (HB)^

Fred Weasley (PB)^

Killed by the Order of the Pheonix:

Bellatrix Lestrange (PB)$

Killed by Golden Trio:

Bogrod (O)

Tom Riddle (Voldemort) (HB)$

+ 42 more casualties for the Battle of Hogwarts.

What we see here is that this second war was much deadlier. The Battle of Hogwarts alone had more casualties than the entirety of the First War. Even if I'm generous and add 20 more dead to my estimate of the First War, it doesn't come anywhere close to the death tool of the Second War.

Now, I ask myself, why?

The Second War was much shorter, officially ongoing between May of 1996 and May of 1998 (2 years), with the First War officially waging from 1975 to October of 1981 (6 years). What was so different between the wars that caused this kind of escalation in the second one this quickly?

We see the Second War unfold, we watch how quickly the Ministry of Magic falls and the Death Eaters take over. They quickly make laws such as the Muggleborn Registry — things that didn't happen in the first war.

“Attendance is now compulsory for every young witch and wizard,” he replied. “That was announced yesterday. It’s a change, because it was never obligatory before. Of course, nearly every witch and wizard in Britain has been educated at Hogwarts, but their parents had the right to teach them at home or send them abroad if they preferred..."

(Deathly Hollows, page 182)

Lupin is talking about the Muggleborn Registry and compulsory attendance to Hogwarts — completely new things, never seen before in Britain. They weren't around the first go-around even if Voldemort had the same amount of control over the ministry (it being made up of his followers even in the 1970s). So, what changed? What's the difference?

I pondered this question, and I realized what the main difference is — Voldemort. He is different. His priorities are different.

In the second war, Voldemort doesn't show any care for the ministry, government, or unnecessary death the way he did in the First War. In the First War he limited his Death Eaters, focusing them on targeting only Order members, but in the Second War, not only did he let them loose, but he let himself loose as well.

And I'll prove just how unconcerned he is with Britain and the war during Deathly Hollows and Half-Blood Prince.

In Half-Blood Prince, when the Death Eaters break into Hogwarts to kill Dumbledore, arguably their biggest achievement in the war thus far, and where is their leader? Off, somewhere. Researching wands so he could kill Harry Potter.

And where is Lord Voldemort, leader of the Death Eaters when his followers take over the ministry and start passing the aforementioned rules? He's in Germany, tracking down the Elder Wand.

“That’s—that’s pretty, Dolores,” she said, pointing at the pendant gleaming in the ruffled folds of Umbridge’s blouse. “What?” snapped Umbridge, glancing down. “Oh yes—an old family heirloom,” she said, patting the locket lying on her large bosom. “The S stands for Selwyn. . . . I am related to the Selwyns. . . . Indeed, there are few pure blood families to whom I am not related. . . . A pity,”

(Deathly Hollows, page 225)

Voldemort is so unaware and un-present in Britain during the time he supposedly rules it, that Dolores Umbridge can strut around the ministry with the locket that is his Horcrux and holds a piece of his soul and is his Slytherin family heirloom and claim it to belong to the Selwyn family and to be hers. And she wasn't tortured horribly to death.

Yeah, Voldemort never stepped foot in the Ministry throughout Deathly Hollows. At least, not until he retrieved the elder Wand and was convinced he could kill Harry.

In the First War, Voldemort had intentions, unrelated to blood purity as they were, but intentions nonetheless. He was actually leading and had goals for the war. In the Second War, it looks like he gave up. Like he decided killing Harry Potter is the only important thing and he isn't even bothering with anything else and lets his Death Eaters do as they please.

Conclusions:

Voldemort didn't really plan to win the Second War, he didn't really care what happened to the Ministry, as long as he could kill Harry Potter whom he is quite obsessed with. Like, he's really weird about Harry Potter, and maybe I'll talk about it more in-depth, but he's obsessed with being the one to kill Harry with a wand of his own, to the point of ignoring literally everything else.

If you are going to fight an opponent that is trying to kill you, you should probably be just as willing to be lethal in turn or you'd end up massacred like the Order of the Phoenix from the 1970s....

[atlasdoe]

"Who's afraid of little old me is about Regulus!!!!"

Have y'all ever heard of Peter Pettigrew????

[pangaeaseas]

@black-sisters-microfic

Prompt for February 7: Miss Me?

In the green light of the dark mark, the house looks diseased, as though it might be sick any moment. The Death Eaters are doing their level best to make it happen, casting curses at the foundations. Tonks has managed to put out the fire the Death Eaters tried to start, but if the rest of the Order doesn't come quickly she might have to abandon ship, so to speak.

It's a pretty house. Reminds them of their father's parents house, which is probably why the Death Eaters want to destroy it so badly.

"Stupefy!" someone shouts. Tonks ducks the stunner easily. Beneath the mask, all they can see is light hair. The voice sounds vaguely reminiscent of someone she knew in Hogwarts--decent guess, they're probably young. Not calling your attacks is one of the first things Moody teaches in Auror training.

Tonks is surprised when the young Death Eater lets out a gasp of pain. They haven't cast any hexes--someone on the Death Eater's side must be punishing the troops for incompetence.

She manages to get a stunner of her own to hit. The young Death Eater crumples. But Tonks' own shield breaks immediately after. They duck the curse and swear under their breath.

"Don't be wasting time with swears," comes a cry of contempt. For a heart-stopping moment, Tonks is certain it must be Sirius. The voice sounds so similar.

Then they remember.

She casts a spell to break Disillusionment. By some miracle, it hits.

This resemblance is worse. It takes half a second for her to remember that no, these are the wrong features, this isn't her mother. Andromeda has never smiled quite like this, with blood on her teeth.

Bellatrix takes advantage of that hesitation. Tonks winces in pain as they're struck by--schoolyard hexes? Painful, yes, but nothing like the magic they know Bellatrix is capable.

"So good to see you again, Nymphadora," Bellatrix says, her voice strangely soft, like a caress. It contrasts obscenely with the bright light of her spellcasting. "If your mother had done her duty, you would have called me Auntie."

"Don't call me Nymphadora," Tonks says, and casts another Stunner. Bellatrix ignores it, as though she's brushing off a fly. She must be holding back. Tonks doesn't like the thought of that. They try to suppress it. Fight the fight you're in, not the fight you want, Moody had always said.

"Oh, but that's your name, the name your mother gave you. Haven't I a right to say it? You must never forget your name, dear," says Bellatrix. She follows this up with a blood-boiling curse Tonks is barely able to block--but they do block it. Sirius had thrown around curses of that caliber sometimes, when they were training together. Bellatrix is clearly a very talented fighter. If she weren't so terrifying, this could almost be a training match. Tonks could almost be having fun. They feel like a traitor.

"You're not my family," Tonks says. A waste of breath, but it must be said, so they feel like themself again.

"Shame," Bellatrix says. "Haven't you missed me?"

[sliebman10]

Stay the night?

(Fleur/Tonks, 105 words, @sapphicmicrofics )

Shell Cottage looked calm and deserted but the two women walked the property with their wands out just in case.

"Clear," Tonks said, holding her lit wand over her head.

"Thank you for coming by with me," Fleur said, letting them both into the dark house.

"I'm just glad you're safe," Tonks said softly.

They stood awkwardly as the moment stretched between them. "Stay the night? I don't want to be alone," Fleur said.

"Where's Bill?" Tonks asked.

"On a mission," Fleur said. They both knew what that meant. It meant secret orders. Lonely waiting. Fearing the worst.

"Of course," Tonks said, taking Fleur's hand.

[greenerteacups]

Hi GT! Congratulations on the last chapter, as always! Lately my brain has been fixated on a detail that I find very interesting. I can't help but think that any adult in LH who is preparing for war has at least once thought while looking at Draco "ok, this could definitely help us in the future". And I find it almost hilarious because I love the way you characterize Artur and Molly and their protective instinct towards the kids... but let's be honest, Hermione, Ron and Harry have ensured the heir of the greatest house in the wizarding world to the cause.

One of the interesting parts about the Harry Potter series is that both sides of the conflict use child soldiers, and you get to see a realistic range of reactions to that from the adults around them. There's Molly, who's reasonably unconditionally opposed to it on the grounds that They're Children, and then Sirius, who unreasonably supports it on the grounds of being himself a stunted teenager, and then Mad-Eye, who reasonably supports it on the grounds of "they're going to have to fight anyway," and Dumbledore, who is some combination of these viewpoints depending on the situation — most protective of Harry when the danger is real, but perhaps necessarily the most realistic about Harry's role in ending the war. Lionheart has a slightly different cast of adults, because it's a different POV, but you still see a range of opinions from Narcissa ("you'll harm my son over my dead body, but also he needs to be able to defend myself") to Snape ("careful, Draco") to Moody (the same, arguably more so, because he's thinking of the long game) and Dumbledore (again, some situation-dependent combination of viewpoints). The kids are often so caught up in their own part of the conflict that it doesn't occur to them the strategic decisions that are happening over their heads — when you're a teen and an adult tells you you're too young for something, the kneejerk reaction is "fuck off" — but there are always conversations happening in other rooms, especially in Grimmauld Place.

[sc0rpiflow3r]

Snippet for my Tomarrymort fic 🖤

So... I have 25,000 words of my Tomarrymort fic. I'll edit the chapters and post them soon!

But here's a snippet (of a very confused Harry glancing at Voldemort in the mirror):

(---)

The mirror reflected a strikingly masculine and muscular figure before him. The form was captivating, every muscle sharply defined beneath the sleek, form-fitting robe that barely covered him.

Harry’s gaze was riveted, the reflection stirring a potent, primal sensation coursing through his veins.

As he watched, a shiver of something ran through him.

His breath grew shallow, caught between the stark desire to claim and the gnawing sense of conflict twisting within him.

This was Voldemort?

Harry’s fingers twitched, longing to touch the reflection, to feel the solidity of the body before him – Voldemort’s body.

The candle’s flame flickered, casting a wavering light that made the reflection shimmer with a dark allure.

Harry tried to look at the face, but he couldn’t make it out. It was as if he were without his glasses; the image blurred every time he tried to focus on Voldemort’s face.

The face was obscured by shadows, the only thing Harry could see clearly was those red eyes, staring directly into his soul – a hungry, dark, famished look that seemed to pierce right through him.

What are you doing, Harry? The voice echoed in his mind, startling him.

(---)

[regulusblack-mybabe]

I've been a harry potter/marauders fan for so long but I never get why voldemort was so into the pureblood supremacy while being a half-blood himself. Can someone explain?