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High in the Pyrenees, an old man walked along a narrow path leading from the small magical community near the borders of Spain, France and Andorra, to his remote finca nestled in a secluded valley. He was quite tall, his silver white hair trimmed to his collar, and his beard short and neatly trimmed. He was wearing a set of passable muggle style hiking trousers and jacket, and did not look out of place in the mundane world.
He was muttering away to himself, complaining about the injustices that had befallen him. Albus Dumbledore, lived as Brian Dunbar, hidden away from the magical world, he had faked his death along with a little help from his acolyte, Severus Snape, leaving a transfigured body, and his own precious wand, that he knew he could not fake.
If only that stupid boy had done the honourable thing and died in the Tournament, or the Ministry. Albus had resolved to die tragically, to force the boys hand. He had expected him to burst out of hiding and get himself captured, but he had not. He had chased Severus across the school, and in a fit of defiance, Severus had left the boy alive.
His plan to sweep in at the battle of Hogwarts had gone south as he had witnessed the Potter boy defeat Voldemort. In an instance of petty temper the disillusioned Albus had cast a confundus on the Granger girl and sent her off with the Weasley boy. Potter would not get his reward in this life.
He approached his small building, noticing one of the ‘campo’ dogs lazing in the late afternoon sun, there were a few around, semi feral, but they kept the vermin numbers down, so he ignored it, and with a wave of his old wand unlocked the door.
It was still warm and the sky clear, so Albus returned outside to his table and set his drink down on it. He had received a letter from Severus, using their coded phrases, Severus believed he was being hunted. Albus had replied telling him perhaps he should stop preparing the muggle drugs he made and lie low. He was still awaiting a reply.
The dog he had noticed earlier, trotted into his yard and sat just in the shade of the Sombrere that covered part of the terrace. Albus waved at the dog and half heartedly, “Be off with you, I have no food to share.”
The black dog regarded Albus and he noted, it had red eyes. Albus could feel the magic rolling off the hound in waves, and he felt a cold hand clutch at his withered heart. It was not a dog, it was a Grimm. It spoke into his mind. “Albus Dumbledore, you have hidden well, sadly for you Severus gave you up, to save his soul from the fires of Hades. You have an appointment with the old Gods, and they are most wroth with you, for twisting the path of their champion, for denying him his family, his life, his love.” The dog shimmered and rose into a semi-human form, still dog headed, but holding a mace and flail like an Egyptian of the old times.
“Harry Potter, was destined to return balance to the world, and your actions so twisted his life, he cannot fulfil his destiny. Fate is angry, she will extract her price from you in due course Albus. The Powers that be wish to hear your defence, before they send you on to your next great adventure. The apparition folded it’s arms and regarded Albus. “Why did you sacrifice the Potters?”
Albus attempted to apparate away, and nothing happened, he tried to trigger the portkey in the watch he wore on his wrist, and the backup in his glasses.
“Stop attempting to escape, Dumbledore. Your magic has been removed, for what short time remains of your life, you are both mundane, and very mortal. Answer the questions, because if I grow impatient, then my master will be here to reap what you sowed.”
Albus sat back into the seat, and sipped at his drink, his mouth was dry. He knew, academically that this day would come, but he hadn’t stolen the philosopher’s stone to die just yet. “I do not know what you mean, the Potter’s were killed by Lord Voldemort, the Dark Lord of the Prophecy.
“No Albus, the Prophecy is about you, and it was not a he, with the power he knows not, but a she. Hermione Granger, born in the latter half of September, was the child of prophecy, her power was the love of Harry Potter, together they would rebuild Avalon on earth. The seventh month is not to the calender of the Roman egos, September, means seventh month you old fraud.”
“No, this cannot be true, I heard it myself. She said,” the Grimm held a finger up to silence Albus. The Prophecy was about you Albus, you would not hear the true version, since you are the very same Dark Lord of the Prophecy. You claim a higher power, and always believe what you do is for the best of everyone. In truth it is for the benefit of Albus Dumbeldore, a vainglorious and pompous fool, told too often that you are brilliant, and you fell for your own publicity, you actually believe in yourself, and your hubris has cost thousands their lives, or livelihoods. Had you done nothing Tom Riddle would have risen briefly and then fallen as his own followers squabbled for the pickings, it would have been a terrible, but brief era, your actiosn dragged it out over decades, and it still persists.”
“What I did was for the betterment of wizards everywhere.”
“Shame about all the witches then Albus.” The hound retorted. “You are a man of a bygone age, you are misogynistic, bigoted, you believe in the sanctity of magical bloodlines, when the truth is the very opposite. Hecate blesses the world with new witches and wizards, and you seek to control and supress them. Hermione Granger was fated to be the soul mate of Harry Potter, and together they would have been unstoppable, yet, you knew best. You in your wisdom, left Harry in an abusive home, did you want him to become an obscurial Albus.
Why Albus did you sacrifice the Potters? If you think avoiding the question will forestall the inevitable, you are sadly mistaken, we can continue our questioning, somewhere warmer if you prefer?”
“The Death Eater’s were winning, I believed that if the prophecy came to pass I could step in and defeat Voldemort, saving the wizarding world. I made a small sacrifice in order to win the larger battle.”
“Again just the wizards, and no doubt collecting the accolades of the saviour, scooping up the Potter vaults and possessions, and enjoying the fame and adulation of all, shame about James, Lily and Harry. Her destiny was to create the cure for Lycanthropy, James would have mentored Harry and Hermione politically to bring the magical world out of the dark ages you covet so much.” The creature conjured a stool and sat, “You sacrificed nothing Albus, when the wards triggered, you sat in your office and did nothing, you were afraid to face Voldemort, you only appeared at the Ministry because you expected Harry to have died by then and Voldemort to be weakened.”
“That is not he case.”
“It is Albus, your life is an open book to us. “Why did you place Harry where he would be abused. Why did you place him in a house where verbal abuse was the norm, where the fear of physical abuse was a constant. A house where his cousin hit him at every opportunity. This is how you prepared the child destined to save the magical world, exactly what were you preparing him for Albus?”
“I thought that family would be the best of him, I do not believe he was that badly treated.”
“You are delusional Albus, here, why don’t you live his memories of his childhood, and see if you still think he was exaggerating?” With a wave of his hand he cast Dumbledore into the memories of Harry Potter as a child. Albus’s eyes rolled up in his head and he slumped back on the chair. Next to the creature, a hooded figure shimmered into being.
“Having fun Padfoot?” the figure asked.
“Just getting started Pup. Did you see his memory of sending your girl away with the Weasley boy?”
“I did, I think I will get him reincarnated as a dairy cow, and leave him in the field with the bulls.”
“We can do better than that,”
Death looked at the Grimm, his green eyes speaking volumes, “This time I happily give you free reign, do to him, anything you can think of. The scheming and deceit he used, harmed many more people than I, the demons can have their fun, I don’t think I can hurt him enough to feel any satisfaction.”
“Destroy his reputation Harry, make his name a byword for a backstabber, a false icon.” Death looked at the dog, and nodded. He faded from view.
With a sharp intake of breath, Albus snapped out of his trance. “Enjoy your time in the cupboard Albus? Vernon passed away a couple of years ago, heart trouble, truly nothing to do with us, I am sure he will welcome a freak such as yourself to his afterlife.”
Albus shuddered, “I never believed his life was so bad, I made a grave mistake.”
“Really, no shit sherlock. You made almost no good decisions. Did you never consult with a curse breaker about Horcruxes? Egyptian tombs are riddled with them, no pun intended, the Pharaohs and their priests thought they were a good idea for a couple of thousand years, and then someone learned how to use them to control the host. If you had talked to Bill Weasley, he could have used Harry’s scar to end Voldemort and free Harry in half an hour.”
“I am sure you are mistaken. If it were that simple, I would have known about it.”
“Nope. Nopety nope nope NOPE.” Sirius shook his dog head. “You just don’t get it, do you old man? You, completely and utterly failed. Every choice you made, someone else paid in blood.”
“If you want to ever see the other side of Hades, you need to realise what a complete and utter mess you made of the fight to rid the world of the minor inconvenience of Tom Riddle. You empowered him. Your idiotic ideals, cost the lives of law enforcement officers, and your hot chicken club members. Unless you truly repent your utterly unfounded conviction that you had a damned clue about what you were doing, other than to maximise the glory of Albus too many names and titles Dumb as a door, then you are going to roast over an open fire for millennia.”
“Surely there is forgiveness in the hearts of the gods.”
“Not for you, you were quite set that the only way to defeat one Wizard was to sacrifice the lives of an entire bloodline, and anyone who stood in the way of you doing so. You killed the Potter’s, two generations, you killed Sirius Black and the Lupins as surely as if you fired the killing curse yourself. You engineered the end of the Prewitts, Cedric Diggory, Lavender Brown, The Creevey brothers, the Tonks, countless mundane born wizards and witches killed before they even knew what magic was, alongside entire families. Delores Umbridge, you allowed her to torture pupils in your own school.”
“But the Ministry.”
“Has no jurisdiction with in Hogwarts.”
“I truly failed so badly.”
“Worse, you still think you are great, you stink of arrogance and entitlement. Even after all you have seen and heard, you are angry that Harry Potter lived and Tom Riddle was not yours to defeat. In petty revenge you ruined his future.”
Death faded into view. “Albus Dumbeldore, your heart has been weighed on the scales of Anubis, and found to be heavy with the guilt of your many crimes, there is no mercy for you, you are cast down. Goodbye.” As he said the last Harry flicked the hood back. “As the last Peverell, the true holder of the Hallows, I can admit to enjoying the moment when I cast my tormentor into the pits of Hades. I would wish you well, but I am unable to lie.”
Albus’s face finally showed the fear of his final adventure. Around him a swirling black chasm opened and a pack of Hell-Hounds grabbed him and fighting over the body they descended and the chasm closed.
Sirius morphed into human form, as did Harry. “Pup, I need a drink? Shall we see if Hecate is up for a visit?”
“I need something. Just to take the bad taste out of my mouth.”
Sirius grabbed Harry’s shoulder, “Now you know she didn’t choose the Ginger Wart over you, are you going to forgive her, and yourself? She is lonely, you are both incomplete.”
“I am broken Sirius, I do not know if I am capable of loving anyone.”
“She is your god created match Harry, talk to her, find her, meet her, forgive her, let her talk. You are not supposed to be in hell. Open yourself to her again, then we can set about fixing the clusterfrack that Britain has become. I think appearing in the Wizengamot and reaping a few of the evil old bastards might catch their attention, what do you reckon?”
“Maybe. I need a rest, I want to have a little peace.”
“OK. Lets pop back to the villa, we can have a bit of a break, there are only a handful of his followers left, and all minor players.” Harry nodded and the pair faded from view, a disembodied voice was heard to say, “The Lovegood girl is in the Andes, you always liked her……..”