Smoke-Novel

"And yourself?"
"I took Arithmancy, Divination, and Runes for the O.W.L.s, and Arithmancy,
Charms, Defense, Divination, Potions, Runes, and Transfiguration, why?"
"I never took Divination. It has always seemed the most inexact of all magical
areas of study."
"It seems as if that is a common opinion amongst Arithmancy and
Transfiguration specialists," Russell said drily. Vector and McGonagall were
often loud on the subject.
"True," Dumbledore acknowledged. "Still, I now regret I did not formally study
the subject. It might have allowed me to feel my way forward with my instincts.
I find my intuition pushing me as much as my knowledge and logic at the
moment."
"Magic does bring us closer to the currents of magic and fate," Russell agreed.
"I'm not asking to know the details of the Prophecy, because I am sure you
know it. However, by trying to prevent it from coming true, Voldemort has sown
the seeds of his own destruction. Correct?"
"That doesn't surprise you?"
Russell snorted. "I read Oedipus in the original Greek when I was twelve. The
Greek and Norse Muggles, among many other cultures, believed that we have a
fate, Albus. In struggling against that fate, we bring it upon us. How we struggle
against it defines our character. Why would I be surprised to see such things
happening in real life?"
"I suppose you would not," Dumbledore acknowledged.
"It was Riddle's fate to be tempted by the Dark Arts, but it was still his choice to
pursue them. It then became his fate to be presented with someone -- Harry
Potter, shall we say? -- as a possible adversary. It was his choice to make Harry
his enemy. It will be Harry's choice if he wants to fight or run away from it."
"Harry will never run," Dumbledore stated.
"Then that is Harry's fate," Russell stated. "The question now is how Harry
deals with his fate."
Dumbledore sighed. "I regret to say, you are correct. Now, I need to consult with
you on how to break through some defenses on an object. . . ."
"You have found the Horcruxes?" Russell said excitedly.
"Harry destroyed one, when he destroyed Riddle's diary," Dumbledore said. "I
have discovered one other."