(58 : A GREATER POWER . . .
THAN WE CAN CONTRADICT)

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PERCHED ON THE KITCHEN COUNTER, Juliet was half-heartedly flicking through the pages of a muggle book when Regulus returned from a Death Eater meeting. Within seconds, she tossed the book to one side and found herself grateful for the boy's company since Sirius was working more than usual with the rise in dangerous activity. In truth, her time in hiding was tedious and she was on the brink of insanity considering the last time she had left the apartment was for James' wedding — or his not-wedding, she supposed.

     Regulus flashed her a sad smile, taking in how utterly normal she looked in spite of her recent heartbreak. No dark circles or tear stains marred her face as she bounded towards him, dressed in a muggle band t-shirt that probably belonged to his older brother. But Regulus knew her better than anyone — he might have been invisible for most his life to her, but she had always been transparent to him. He saw through her picture perfect image. After all, it was Regulus who heard the shattering of glass and frantic 'reparos' when she thought everyone was asleep. Just like it was Regulus who noticed how she pressed her nails into her palm until blood was drawn each time Sirius stopped talking about Lily and James because she entered the room. And it was Regulus who knew exactly how much harder people like Juliet Fawley had to fight to be good.

"You look nervous," she observed evenly. "Bad meeting?"

Indeed, he was twisting his ring around his finger — something she had come to learn was an anxious tick of his. "The Dark Lord wasn't in a particularly good mood."

"Is he ever?" Juliet snorted, unbothered. "What happened now? His nose job fell through?"

     "Juliet, this is serious. Snape overheard part of a prophecy. 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 . . ." Regulus told her, reciting the harrowing prediction that had been whispered through the wizard's inner circle. "Something — someone — is coming and the Dark Lord won't stop until they're dead. You can't breathe a word of this, but I think it's about —"

     "James," she spluttered, concern lacing her voice. "At least his child. Lily's due the end of July."

     Grimacing, Regulus nodded. "There are two possible options for who the prophecy is about, but I'll be honest . . . Evans and Potter are the more likely targets. If I had to guess, he would view the Longbottom couple as less of a threat because they're both of pure blood." He shot his friend a meaningful look, half pleading. "I needed to tell you, to warn you. What the Dark Lord did to you will look kind compared to what he is planning to deal with this new threat. No matter what, I need you to stay away from Potter. I know how you feel about him —"

     Affronted, she interjected, "That's over. I haven't seen him since the wedding."

     "You're wrong, Juliet," Regulus declared coldly and it chilled her to the bone. "You'll fight, and you'll scream, and you'll be in love until it kills you both. You can hide away and pretend that you resent him all you want, but it's not over, it'll never be over!"

     "I'm not having this conversation again," she claimed tartly. "He's with Lily now."

     Regulus scoffed. "Out of convenience."

     "Out of choice."

     "I want you to promise me that you won't seek him out, you won't endanger yourself for him again." Regulus huffed and begrudgingly added, "If you promise that, I'll tell you. When the time comes, I'll tell you when the Dark Lord is about to make his move and you can let the resistance handle it."

     A deceptively sweet smile formed on her face as she crossed her fingers behind her back and said, "I promise."

Distrustful, Regulus stared at her intently and Juliet cocked her head innocently. Neither of them wanted to be the first to break eye contact, but it was Regulus who ultimately shifted his gaze when there was a knock on the door. In triumph, Juliet smirked. Heartbreak aside, she had no intentions of giving up on James Potter — even it was starting to feel like he had given up on her.

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     Albus Dumbledore sat across from the two Slytherins, dressed in flamboyant purple robes and sipping a cup of tea. Despite Regulus' efforts to turn away the man at the door, their old headmaster was a stubborn soul and he flounced in, insisting he wanted to speak to Juliet about a matter of great importance. Although she reluctantly agreed to hear the man out, it was on the condition that Regulus could stay in the room, meaning the two of them were able to maintain a united front against the elderly wizard whilst he made idle comments about the apartment's muggle decor.

     Slamming her own teacup against the saucer, Juliet finally had enough of the awkwardness and snapped, "You're awfully casual for someone who should think I'm dead. Would you care to share with the class why that is?"

     "Forgive me if I am being terribly presumptuous here, but poison didn't quite strike me as your style," Dumbledore answered patiently. If he was offended by her acerbic tone, he didn't show it. "It seemed to lack the, ah, flare that I have come to know you possess. Whilst I could not be certain, Mr Black — er, the other Mr Black — informed me of your predicament when prompted."

     "Regulus," muttered Juliet, her breaths shallow and her voice low, "how would you feel about being an only child?"

     "Do not blame him, Miss Fawley. Sirius was doing what he thought was right, what is right. Rest assured, I will not disclose your location to anyone, but I must impress on you how critical this conversation is." Dumbledore paused, his keen eyes flitting between the two friends as Regulus placed a comforting hand on her thigh. "If I may be so bold, I assume that by now you are aware of the prophecy that has been made about the fall of Lord Voldemort."

     Cautiously, she narrowed her eyes and replied, "Yes. How is that relevant to me?"

"I have come with the request that you do not interfere with fate," the wizard finally settled on. "It is to my understanding that you were, ah, involved with Mr Potter and quite frankly . . . that was unforeseen. Lily Evans and James Potter were always meant to play a larger role in this war, their child — chosen or not — will be important and it has come to my attention that you could be a liability if not appropriately deterred." He hesitated, dipping his chin as he carefully continued, "Personal attachments aside, this prophecy is meant to mark the end of the war and it is imperative that you do not disrupt what has been predetermined by a greater power than we can contradict."

     "You have no authority over what I do or don't do because I am not and I will never be part of Dumbledore's army," mocked Juliet, leaning over the coffee table. "Lily and James are people, not chess pieces to be moved at your discretion. There are other ways to end the war, ways that can be found before their baby is born. If I'm being honest, I think your 'greater power' is bullshit."

Dumbledore exhaled. "In the simplest of terms, our fates and our futures are malleable. I recall once telling you this already and I do believe you proved it to be true, but the birth of our saviour is a fixed event, Miss Fawley. There is no other way," he explained rather calmly. "The course of their life is not changeable because it has been planned by a higher magic and what will become of them is the result of circumstances beyond their control."

     Furious, she jumped up. "What does that make me? A mistake? If this was always meant to happen, why is it not me who's having his child?"

     "I must admit, I was rather blindsided by your presence in James Potter's life." A dark shadow briefly passed over the older man's face. "You see, Lily and James are fated. Even their patronuses complement each other as the doe and the stag. And I'm afraid that as long as you're part of their lives . . ." His wise voice trailed off as he seemingly changed his mind, slowly shaking his head. "Fate needs to run its course, for the greater good of our world."

     "You're saying fate is the reason my boyfriend cheated on me?" Disbelief was evident in her words. "Well, fuck fate, Albus."

     Taken aback, the man responded in that kind, placating tone of his, "It still could be the Longbottoms. Voldemort has made no decisions —"

     "Voldemort is relentless," she spat with such venom that even Regulus flinched. "He won't be satisfied until that child is dead and James would die before that happened. And that's what will happen, isn't it? If you thought he would pursue the Longbottoms, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

     Regulus tugged on her wrist, his eyes widening when she pulled out her wand. "Juliet, be reasonable."

     Her hands were shaking as she pointed her wand at Dumbledore. "Follow your rules! Break them! It doesn't matter! Everyone loses with you." There was an unrestrained anger to her as the lights in the room began to flicker. Dumbledore remained impassive, not even blinking as one of his previous students threatened him with magic. "James has done everything you asked. He idolises you. And you're telling me that the almighty and heroic Albus Dumbledore is sending him to his death?" Juliet checked, breathless laughter bubbling from her throat. "Salazar, and you say Voldemort is evil?"

     "You can't change fate, Miss Fawley," he reaffirmed, stern and unwavering.

     "Watch me," she hissed, walking away from the wizard and slamming the bedroom behind her.

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A.N: And so it begins . . . This chapter was meant to be a lot happier originally, but I messed up my timeline and I had to swap 58 and 59 around. Next chapter James is back though and a certain birth occurs. I really enjoyed Juliet telling Dumbledore off in this chapter. As usual, thank you all for reading. I love seeing what people think.

Question, what are your thoughts on fate? Are some things meant to happen?