Welcome to Until The End. We are a moderate Harry Potter role-playing site set in the Marauder's Era. Our plot is generally derived from details in the book, but as an AU site we do take liberties most anywhere we like. Those who died in the books can have a second chance at living, and those who lived are always at risk.
Tom Marvolo Riddle has long since disappeared and in his stead Lord Voldemort has risen, bringing a small army with him. The Ministry of Magic has thus far ignored the growing menace that is the Death Eaters and Albus Dumbledore has taken it upon himself to defend the wizarding community from an evil he knows is building. War is coming. Pick a side!
School's Out For Summer
The Hogwart's Express has pulled up to the station in King's Cross station and the summer holidays have officially begun. What mischeif will you get into in the warm summer sun?
*Coming Soon* - Summer Solstice Carnival
Travel by portkey to the biggest summer celebration in wizard society - The Summer Solstice Carnival! There will be food, games, prizes, fun and more!
Evan has serious doubts about his ability to produce a patronus, but he thinks that if he could conjure one, it would be a Persian cat. He does have happy memories, but the only one that really sticks out is the night he received the Dark Mark. He remembers his father looking so proud and openly calling Evan “his son and heir.” It was all Evan wanted, but he was (and still is) deeply conflicted about bearing the Dark Mark. So he thinks it’s pretty screwed up for that to be his happiest memory.
He sees himself standing with his father as the respected heir to the Rosier family. His father has his hand clasped on Evan’s shoulder and he looks so proud of his son. More importantly, however, is that neither Rosier bears the Dark Mark. They are no longer indebted to the dark wizard who has shaped and contorted so much of their lives. They are finally free of Lord Voldemort.
Evan fears never earning his father’s respect. He knows he will never be the son that Theodore was, but he is afraid he will always be a disappointment. Evan’s boggart turns into a gravestone where his last name is violently scratched out. Deep down he knows he’s not buried in the family plot, but is wherever the unclaimed and unwanted are laid to rest. He doesn’t even know if it has a proper name.
“They say you have three faces: The first face; you show to the world. The second face; you show to your closest friends and family. The third face; you never show anyone. It is the truest reflection of who you are.”
Evan initially heard this proverb as a child while traveling abroad with his father. At the time, he never gave it much thought, but now he thinks there might be some truth behind it.
The First Face
On the surface, Evan is all about appearances. As the spare who found himself the sudden unexpected heir, Evan has prudently cultivated a meticulous image as the perfect model son of a respected pureblood family. He feels an incredible amount of weight on his young shoulders to do right by his father and the family name. He does, however, carry the weight well and is publicly committed to voicing the Rosier family values of namesake respectability, purity of blood, and above all, tradition. Evan often times appears serious and focused, but he isn't dominating by nature. He is a thinker, preferring to speak with a quiet authority rather than fill the silence with mindless chatter like some of his classmates. Evan favors spending time on his own or in small intimate groups of people that he trusts. Trust is paramount to Evan as he would never intentionally place himself in a scandalous position where word might get back to his father or bring shame to the family. He would, quite frankly, die before something like that ever happened.
While Evan might appear serious, he is not inherently cruel despite others he occasionally associates with at school. He is not malicious in his approach to blood purity, but he does openly think he has a responsibility to maintain the Rosier claim to the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Because of that, he does not associate with anyone who is openly muggleborn or known to have direct muggle or muggleborn relatives. Also as a prefect, Evan takes his responsibilities to heart and prefers to be seen as fair and balanced -- not abusive -- in his powers.
Evan is smart, but he is not so naturally gifted that he doesn't need to crack open a book to study. Like most other things in his life, Evan works hard and takes his studies seriously. He is often seen in the library working on his assignments or studying for an upcoming exam. He tends to favor Charms, Arithmancy, and Defense Against the Dark Arts, but he also has a knack for Wizarding Art. Evan is well traveled and is familiar with other global parts of the wizarding world. He genuinely enjoys discussing other cultures whether it's food, architecture, or art.
The Second Face
To those that truly know him, Evan has a softness to him that he is desperate to protect from the conditions of his life. Evan is selective about who sees this side of him as to keep it from anyone who might report back to his father (or worse as he's come to learn). But to those in his intimate circle, Evan always has a gentle word and possesses the ability to be strong and kind when needed in the moment. He is protective of his little brother, Felix, and enjoys doting on him. Evan is also pretty fond of his Persian cat, Maximus. He inherited the cat after his older brother, Theodore, passed away and the two are rarely ever seen apart. While his father thinks his affections toward Felix and Maximus are a mark of weakness, Evan figures he can't help himself. Outside of his father, Felix and Max are the two most important beings to him.
Aside from Felix and Maximus, if Evan loved anything, it would be art. He is actually a rather decent artist who likes to draw with different mediums, but it is a hobby that he's learned to keep away from his father. The senior Rosier deemed it to be a waste of time and a skill not worth developing. So Evan mostly draws when he's at school whether it's his fellow students, the unique architecture, or anything else that catches his interest. He finds it to be relaxing and one of the few moments where he is truly happy. Sometimes Evan also likes to draw and animate little cartoons for Felix. His brother is still young enough not to be too concerned with their father's opinion and the joy it brings him makes it worth whatever wrath is incurred.
The Third Face
Beneath it all, Evan is desperate for his father’s approval. He feels an immense pressure to please his father by acting as the ideal son, but feels as though he is failing miserably. His father thinks Evan is weak and not the heir he envisioned for the Rosier family legacy. And deep down, Evan knows it's true. Maybe not so much the "weak" part, but he knows he will never climb out of Theodore's shadow. Where Theo was fierce and ruthless, Evan is mild-mannered and gentle. Evan is reminded quite often about these differences, but it still doesn't make his desperation for his father's approval any less wanted. The closest Evan feels he has ever gotten is the night he received the Dark Mark from Lord Voldemort. It was the first time that his father looked so elated -- so proud of his son to have joined the ranks of such a noble quest. His father actually told his fellow comrades that Evan was his "son and heir", and it was in that moment that Evan realized the terrifying depths he would go to appease the man and hear those words again.
Although despite Evan's hunger to impress his father, he does question the legitimacy of the Dark Lord's quest. He recognizes that much of his family's welfare these past 37 years has been directly influenced and manipulated by Voldemort. Regardless of the ask, the Rosier family has always answered the call to serve the dark wizard, and Evan is beginning to wonder if it really does serve their best interest. Evan has no issues maintaining his family's purity of blood and feels like it is an honor to be among the Sacred Twenty-Eight, but cracks are beginning to surface in the Dark Lord's violent rhetoric. Of course, Evan would never dare speak of this out of respect for his father, but it doesn't silence the gnawing feeling that the Rosiers might be nothing more than cannon fodder for Voldemort's cause.
So really when it comes down to it, Evan doesn't think his issues really lie with the muggles and muggleborns. No, he isn't going to marry and bear children with one, but he doesn't think they're necessarily the black stain on the wizarding world as the Dark Lord suggests. Some muggleborns have brought great advancements to the wizarding world or produced even greater offspring who did wonders for their kind. Muggles, despite their lack of magic, have created marvelous works in literature, art, and architecture. As a child, Evan recalls visiting some of the greatest museums with his tutor, Wesley, and being amazed by their artistic works. "How can they do this without magic? They're just muggles," he asked as he stood beneath the dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore. His tutor would ruffle hair and shrug his shoulders. "I think we sometimes don't give them enough credit. But imagine what we could accomplish if we worked together?" Evan remembers that day quite vividly and finds himself reflecting upon it more often now. He still has a copy of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde hidden at the bottom of his school trunk -- it's his favorite book and the last gift he received from Wesley before his father had him removed.
Lastly, if things had gone differently for Evan, he likes to think he would have done something in the art world. Maybe he would have been a struggling artist who was working to secure his first gallery, maybe he would have been a museum curator highlighting his favorite works, or maybe he would have been a patron of the arts -- someone who supported and protected the artistic works of others. It's a fine thing to think about, but Evan doesn't care to dwell on it for long. It's not the life he was meant for and it doesn't change the brand that’s now burned into his inner left forearm.
History
If asked to consider his life’s most defining moments, Evan believes there are eight events or people worth mentioning. They are not all happy moments nor are they some of his proudest, but they are moments that have helped to define who he is and to understand the direction his life has taken.
1. The Preamble 1st of September, 1938
Evan Rosier will never know a life without Tom Riddle.
Or, as he is now known: Lord Voldemort. There is a history, however, when the Dark Lord was simply a boy by the name of Tom Riddle. Like other wizards before him, Tom attends Hogwarts and gathers a small, but loyal group of friends. Among them is an ambitious boy – one year Tom’s senior – named Charles Rosier. He is enthralled by Tom’s presence and their talks about purity of blood. Despite being older, Charles becomes one of Tom’s most devoted companions and is never far from him side. They conspire with plans for the future and Charles promises to always remain faithful to his friend.
It is a promise that will dictate much of Charles’s life for the next 37 years.
2. The Heir and the Spare 2nd of January, 1958
Charles Rosier marries demure pureblood, Adele Selwyn, in 1950. They are pressured to immediately start a family as Charles is the last remaining male heir to the Rosier name and Adele is the youngest daughter in need of financial security after her family’s business goes belly up post Grindelwald. After several attempts, Adele gives birth to Theodore in 1954. Then she has a second son, Evan, on January 2, 1958.
Charles is elated to have an heir and is satisfied to have a spare. It quickly becomes apparent, however, that he has a favorite and it's not Evan. He dotes on his eldest while leaving the care of his youngest to the nannies. Evan learns that his place in the family is to be seen and not heard. Adele cares for both of her sons, but her involvement with them is limited.
Despite Theodore and Evan having two very different temperaments (the former is fierce while the latter is gentle), they are close. Evan looks up to his older brother – following him wherever he goes and mimicking everything he does.
It's the easiest way, he figures, to learn how to make their father happy. It doesn’t work very often, but Evan keeps trying.
3. The Rabbit 18th of May, 1962
The Rosiers make their fortune through calculated real-estate investments both locally and internationally. Charles often takes his family with him while traveling on business. It makes for a lonely childhood due to the constant movement, but Evan is also limited to making friends under his father’s firm policy that he is not to associate with offspring of unacceptable wizarding stalk.
Aside from realty affairs, Charles conducts business on behalf of Lord Voldemort. Evan recalls the wizard as a frequent visitor to their family home and hotels, but he always avoided the man. Something about him isn’t right. Luckily, Voldemort is completely uninterested in the boy’s existence and Evan is okay with that. He does, however, know that when Lord Voldemort gives orders then the Rosiers are to follow. Sometimes it’s a meeting with a business contact, sometimes it’s a networking event with other likeminded individuals, and sometimes it’s financial support for an unspoken agenda.
During one such event, Charles invites several old friends and interested acquaintances to dinner at the family home. After the men retire to Charles’s study for drinks and cigars, Theodore persuades Evan to sit with him outside the door. They listen as the men talk and laugh, and both boys wonder about the fun they are having on the other side. There is no time to react when their father opens the door, but instead of admonishing his sons, he invites them inside. It is an exciting moment for Evan – so exciting that he doesn’t even mind the smell of the cigars. His father is including him, much like with Theodore.
Theodore and Evan’s attentions are quickly drawn to a group of men gathered around a table near the back of the study. On the table is a rabbit – much like the ones Evan sometimes sees in the family’s gardens. One of the men tells his companions to watch and mutters an unfamiliar word with a flick of his wand. The rabbit immediately seizes and snaps into unnatural positions, but it is the scream that shakes Evan to his core. He didn’t know rabbits could make such a noise and he doesn’t know why the men are laughing. When the wizard flicks his wand again, the rabbit shudders twice and then stops moving altogether. Theodore watches in earnest fascination, but Evan starts to cry. He doesn’t even realize he has wet himself until his father yells at him to act like a proper Rosier. The nanny, however, is nice enough to soothe Evan as she scoops him up from the study and carries him to the washroom. Theodore chooses to remain with the men and his father closes the door behind them.
That night is Evan’s first introduction to the Cruciatus Curse although it will be years before he learns its name. It is also that night Charles decides Evan is truly soft, weak, and unfit. He is not Theodore and never will be.
4. A Kindred Spirit 25th of March, 1964
Charles hires a new tutor, Wesley Roberts, to nurture his sons’ educations until they start Hogwarts. Wesley travels with the Rosiers and becomes a confidante to Evan (or as much as one is to a young child). Wesley recognizes a creative spirit in Evan and introduces him to different arts. Evan discovers that he quite likes drawing – it’s not only a way to express himself, but it allows him to forget his worries and to create something wonderful. He’s also not too bad at it either.
For the next three years, Wesley exposes Evan to wizarding and muggle arts. Sometimes they visit museums and galleries and other times explore ancient ruins and stunning cathedrals. They openly discuss music and literature – both the classics and the modern contemporaries. On Evan’s ninth birthday, Wesley gives him a first edition of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He says Evan might be interested in reading a book about the unpredictable dual nature in man: usually very good, but sometimes shockingly evil.
It is with great sorrow when Charles discovers Wesley’s unconventional and free-thinking lessons. His father is furious that his son is learning about muggle culture and promptly ends it. While he doesn’t discover the book, Charles removes any traces of Wesley from their lives.
To this day, Evan doesn’t know how his father found out about Wesley. He also doesn’t know what became of his friend and mentor.
5. From Spare to Heir 19th of July, 1969
Evan and Theodore discover a small lake just outside the Austrian village where the family is residing for the summer. While swimming, the boys find a cliff overlooking the lake and dare each other to jump off. Evan decides he is too scared, but Theodore offers to go first and show him it's okay. Evan watches as Theodore dives off the cliff head first. It takes a moment before he realizes something is wrong. When Theodore fails to surface and the water finally stills, Evan runs to find help.
Theodore’s death is one of the biggest turning points for Evan. Aside from losing his eldest brother; Evan is now the heir to the Rosier family. His father, sick with grief, makes it clear that this is not how things were supposed to be. Theodore should be standing next to him – not Evan. Riddled with his own guilt, Evan promises to make his father proud and be a proper Rosier.
It’s a promise he has been desperately trying to fulfill ever since.
6. A Magical Education 1st of September, 1969
The excitement Evan should feel on his first day at Hogwarts is marred by Theodore’s absence. He’s known at the start of his magical education as the “kid whose brother just died.” He finds some children are sympathetic, some are curious, and others keep their distance. Evan is thankful his father allowed him to take Maximus with him. The Persian cat is the last tangible connection he has to Theodore and he enjoys his company. Max doesn’t ask questions or awkwardly stare – all he wants is sleep and the occasional ear scratch.
Evan is sorted into Slytherin after some debate with the Sorting Hat. Despite his rocky start, he finds his place among his peers as the model son of a respectable pureblood family. He agrees to help his father keep an eye on his associates’ children. Some are friendly while others are downright vicious, but Evan plays the dutiful role without a fuss. He takes to voicing the Rosier family values of namesake respectability, purity of blood, and above all, tradition. Evan decides to remove himself from any genial associations with muggleborns or those with known muggle or muggleborn relatives. It’s easier this way and it’s something that would please his father. Evan studies hard and does well in his courses – he even manages to make prefect during his fifth year.
And, as always, it’s not enough. Charles still manages to find fault and reminds Evan of his failings. Evan feels he will always live in Theodore’s shadow.
7. New Hope 3rd of June, 1970
Adele gives birth to a third son named Felix. He is the new unexpected spare to Evan’s heir, but Evan doesn’t care. He is besotted by his baby brother. Felix is a brief respite and some much needed joy in the Rosier household after Theodore’s death. Holding his brother, Evan promises to be the best big brother he can be. He assures Felix that he will do right by him and help provide whatever affection his parents could not. He would do what Theodore did for him as the discarded spare, but better. He would protect him.
During school, Evan remains in touch with Felix and his nannies. He often arranges visits at Hogsmeade whenever it is possible.
8. On a Dark Path 2nd of January, 1975
Charles starts to include Evan on business matters – family and other – right after fifth year. Evan assumes it’s a good sign that his father is teaching him about the real-estate business and their family’s other affairs. He wishes, however, that it didn’t include Lord Voldemort.
But Evan swallows his trepidations and does not tell his father that the Dark Lord makes him uneasy. Over the years talk of blood purity and the vile pollution of the wizarding world has taught Evan not to cross the man. This is simply another part of the Rosier family legacy and one he intends not to screw up.
So Evan makes a gamble and confronts his father. He internally fights with himself not to choke and say the wrong thing – that Voldemort is wrong and not in the best interest of their family. Instead, he tells his father that he wants to be part of the war the Dark Lord has planned. He wants to help usher them into the new world order.
Charles is silent; Evan knows he’s deciding if his son is strong enough. Evan wants to be and he knows he can be.
For Evan’s seventeenth birthday, Charles brings him to see Lord Voldemort and his associates. When Lord Voldemort removes his wand and points it at him, Evan feels his heart race as he remembers the night with the rabbit. Instead, however, the dark wizard mutters a spell and taps it to his inner left forearm. It is a physical pain unlike any other, but Evan watches in amazement as a red scarring pattern begins to take shape. It's the Dark Mark; Evan is now indebted to Voldemort much like his father.
After the ceremony and the associates’ masks are gone, Evan realizes half of these people are his father’s friends and business contacts. He even sees the man who killed the rabbit all those years ago. They have always been a part of his life. Suddenly, Charles grips his shoulder and announces, “For those who don’t know, this is Evan. He is my eldest son and heir. Tonight, he became one of us.” It is the first time Evan can honestly say his father looked proud of him – sounded proud of him. After all these years, Evan did it. It was and still is the most gratifying feeling.
This isn’t the life Evan expected, but it's the one he was dealt. He thinks he can do it and serve the Dark Lord’s cause. If not for him then he can for his father, for his brother, and for his family’s legacy.