A/N (whooooaaaaaah, Author's Note at the beginning of the story instead of at the end! Whoaaaaaah! O.o)

Heya! So I was just looking at my ceiling the other day, when I thought: "I wonder how it happened, when Grindelwald stole the Elder Wand."

Then, I thought: "Maybe someone wrote a fanfic about that! Ooh, that'd be cooowl!"

Then, I finally thought: "Ooooh, ooh, ooh! How about I write a fanfic about that?" :D

Then I stopped staring at my incredibly interesting ceiling, ran for my computer, and started writing. After writing only one page, I got bored. …Well, I'd rather say I got a little depressed, I got distracted and then went to sleep. Sorry, guys! Anyway, at this lovely Saturday night, I decided I'd finish it no matter what. So I did. It's exactly 23:23 now, and I'm DONE! :D yaaaaay!

I am so proud of myself. Thank you, thank you. *bows*

I'd like to warn you that this is not as whoop-dee-dooey as 'We're different', for which I by the way do not have any inspiration at the moment… If you have any ideas PLEASE LET ME KNOW! This story is a liiiiittle more serious. (And I almost wrote that as Sirius. Keep doing that. Stupid me. *facepalm*)

I hope it will be a little enjoyable to read, I'm not sure if I like it myself yet :P So please, please, please let me know what you think about it by clicking that pretty 'review' button down there!

For the Greater Good

I don't know if I regret what I have done. Sure, some things I regret, little things.

Like that time Albus challenged me to run around the neighborhood in only my underwear, yelling: "I'm gay! I'm gay! I love to dress up like a lady!". Wish I hadn't done that. Or that time at Durmstrang, when Ivan and Vadim told me the fire in the fireplaces was magical and wouldn't burn me. I still have the scars to prove that they in fact did.

But the things I have done, the real things. The things that matter. Or mattered. I don't know yet if I regret doing any of those. But what I do know is that there is no turning back now. There is no chance of second chance to do things different. I will just have to live with my current situation. And I will. And if I ever regret it, I will have to tell myself that it's my own fault, and my own choice. I will have to tell myself, because I'm all alone.

I wish Albus was here. Good old Albus. I wonder how his nose mended after Ableforth broke it. Looked pretty horrible to me, but hey, what do I know about broken noses? Not that much. I know about a lot of other things, but I guess if I have a flaw, it'd be knowledge of noses. Pity.

Once, once we will meet again. I'm sure of that, and I think he knows it too. I can only guess how long it will take, but it will happen. It's unavoidable. And I think we both know that when we meet, it won't be a cozy reunion. Because we're not on the same side. Not anymore.

That's one thing I'm sure I'm sorry for. Losing Albus. The only real friend I ever had. I don't know if I regret losing him, or meeting him. Regret is a word I don't know that well, I never used it before. It's complicated, but everything that happened made me think. The things that were done, words that were said. Just now, they're finally sinking in.

Regret.

I would regret this. That's what he said.

I didn't know what I was doing. That's what he said.

One day, when I was older, and, maybe, smarter, I'd realize what I had done. And I would regret it.

Strange. At the moment, I had laughed at him. How could I ever regret doing something as big, as great, as unbelievable as I had just done? Never.

But now, recalling his creaking voice piercing through the night, it's not that funny anymore. The man's voice had been filled with anger, and right was he. I'd be mad too if someone did to me what I had just done there. But there had been something else in his voice, next to the outrage and misery of losing what I now had. Still have. There had been anxiety too. And fear. But not the kind of fear you felt when someone pointed his wand at you. Or the kind of fear when you were standing on an edge, knowing that you can fall any moment. No, now that I recall the sound of his voice, I'd say it sounded like he was… concerned. Worried about my well-being. As if I should be the one to be afraid, instead of the rest of the world.

Creepy man.

I had only met him twice. The first time was when I finally got my own wand. The man had been kind of intimidating, back then. But I was a kid back then, and he was younger too. Much younger. I wonder if he owned it already, back then. He probably did.

He had been friendly to me, back then. Promised I'd do great things in my life. As if he knew… But he probably told all of his customers that. Not that I'm not going to do great things in my life, because I will. And already have. I am one of the greatest wizards in the whole world, the fear of all mudbloods. I am Gellert Grindelwald, the owner of the most powerful weapon of the wizarding world. Nothing can stop me, I am undefeatable.

That is, I've never been defeated since I stole my precious prize. That had been the second, and last time I met Gregorovitch. Well, I wouldn't exactly call it met him, I mean, it's not like we had a civilized conversation. But it was the second time I was in the presence of the wand-maker.

It was such a great event, I enjoy thinking back to it. The feeling of glory, of victory is so great, when you look your opponent in the eye and know that you have won. The look it his eyes, that shows you that you've made his biggest fear come true. The incredible feeling of freedom when you jump out of his window after using his own weapon to send a hex at him, feeling his eyes on your back and hearing his desperate, outrageous voice in the air behind you. That last cry of defeat, the sign he gave it up, acknowledges you as the winner. The silence once you've gotten away with it, the full realization of what you just did. Of what you just realized.

Incredible.

I was young, back then. Pushed my luck more than once. Now that I think back to it, I probably should have been a little bit more careful. But here I am, still alive, after everything I have accomplished. Even though I was expelled from Durmstrang when I was sixteen, I became one of the most powerful, feared, dangerous wizards the world has ever known. Even though my ally abandoned me and our plans, I managed to build an army, lock away my enemies and steal the ultimate weapon from the nightstand of its owner.

I'd like to say he was right, that day. I have done some pretty great things. Pity it didn't turn out so great for him, though. Silly old man. Creepy old man. I wonder what he's doing now.

…

This would usually be one of those moments when Albus would say something genius. And then I'd say something to make him bugger off, because he was being a smart-ass again, like always. Then he'd come back with one of his dry comments, and we wouldn't stop laughing for hours, until my great-aunt Bathilda would come in and ask us if we wanted some cookies, which would make us crack up even more because of something Albus or I had said before.

Sometimes, it really stings me, that I had to give all of that up. Just laughing about nothing, keeping things simple. Just fantasizing how things could be, make promises we both knew we'd never really keep. I cared about those moments, and if it had been possible, I would have kept it that way. But it was a necessity. It was a choice between Albus, and a power so great that I could rule the world, finally have things my way and show the world what I'm worth. It had to be this way. Albus was my sacrifice, my sacrifice for the Greater Good.

It was cold, that night. I should have taken my coat with me, but I had been too excited. I finally knew where it was. I knew who owned it, where it had been for all those years. Typical, that the man who gave me my first weapon, would arrange me my last and best weapon too. You could say I'm a faithful customer.

Walking the street towards my victim's house, I chuckled to myself. I tried not to flinch at the silence I just couldn't get used to. You could say I missed Albus' sarcastic comments, his witty comebacks, his sparkly blue eyes that always knew exactly what I was up to. I heard he's teaching now, at that school of his. Hogwarts. Those kids should be grateful to have him as a teacher, even though he could have been much more than that.

He could have been beside me right there, ready to help me fetch what we both once dreamt about. But he was not. I was alone there, I had to do it all by myself. But it was how destiny had wanted it to be. Albus wasn't there.

I silently opened the door with my wand. This would be its last night of service. After tonight, I wouldn't need It anymore. Just thinking about the power that laid in front of me, I almost tripped over the doormat. I silently cursed myself, this had to go perfectly. I only had one chance, and I was going to use it.

I silently climbed the stairs, I could hear the old man snore in his bedroom. The second door on the right, I had done my research well. His treasure, my prize, would be in a vault in his workshop. First door on the left. I walked towards that door, as silent as I could. As soon as I reached it, I went inside and silently closed the door. This could take some time.

I quickly whispered a Silenting Charm on the room, I didn't want to wake the chubby old man on the other side of the house. Not yet. I didn't want to leave unnoticed, I had decided that a long time ago, when I first started planning this. It was too much fun to resist, I was too proud to resist. I wanted to see the face of Gregorovitch when he realized what I had done, that there had finally been someone brave enough to steal what everyone wanted to have.

I was digging through the drawers quickly, not wanting to lose any more time than absolutely necessary. And it didn't take long until I found it. The vault was heavy, and obviously charmed not to let intruders like me in. But I'm not only called one of the most powerful wizards in the world because of my weapon, I can do quite some magic myself too.

I grinned, thrilled by the tension of the moment. This was huge, so huge! I bound my blond hair back so it was in a tail in my neck. I didn't want it to distract me, this could get tricky. I sat down on my knees, and pointed my wand at the vault.

Old Gregorovitch sure looked after his treasures well. The vault was guarded by so many spells that I might have been sitting there for over an hour. It took incredibly long to disarm all of them, but I calmed myself, told myself not to lose my temper, this was all for the Greater Good. It was worth it. That turned out to be a little disappointing, though.

After sitting in front of the vault for over an hour, getting a few cuts and I even getting burnt once, I had finally lifted the last curse. I took a deep breath. This was it.

This. Was. It.

With one movement of my wand, the vault slowly opened. I ran my hands over the stacks of parchment, the books, the small amount of money that were to be found in the vault. But I couldn't find what I was looking for. There was no Elder Wand.

I cursed loudly, this was not part of the plan. Out of frustration, I kicked the wooden chair that was set under the workbench. Chunks of wood, sawdust, little bottles, pieces of parchment, a few quills and three silver colored unicorn hairs fell on the floor.

"Stupid wand-maker!" I swore. " Stupid, STUPID vault!" I kicked the workbench again, hitting my toes so hard in the process that it hurt. "And stupid workbench!" I roared, pointing my wand at the damn thing. With the incantation to set it on fire already on my lips, I came back to reality again. I lowered my wand immediately, breathing deep through my nose.

Thank Merlin I had used a Silencing Charm when I entered, otherwise I'd be caught by now, and my only chance would be gone.

I forced myself to calm down, I still had plenty of time to find what I was looking for. I closed the vault again. I have to admit, it was a clever trick from the old bugger. Any thief would believe that the biggest prize would be behind the best protected vault. Now, I was faced with a dilemma. What should I do? Keep searching in this room, or look for it in the rest of the house? Who knew, maybe Gregorovitch slept with it. The only thing I knew was that the wand was in the house. I had checked that before planning to sneak into his house.

I was tempted to just try to summon it, but I was sure that wouldn't work. The wand had its own protections, and if just exclaiming "Accio Elder Wand!" would actually work, someone would've found that one out a long time ago. No, I'd have to search for it. But that didn't matter, I was prepared to search for it. Hell, I was even prepared to fight for it. I don't think I'd even mind killing for it. It would all be For the Greater Good.

I checked the rest of the room, but the rest of the drawers and cupboards didn't have anything interesting in them. I even checked out the cuckoo-clock, but I couldn't find anything. Then, I remembered that I was in the house of a wand-maker, looking for the most powerful weapon in existence. I could have slapped my own face right there, I should have thought of looking for it magically a long time ago.

Just a few words, a few flicks of my wand and then I realized it. The workbench. The surface was, because of my kicking it earlier, empty, but I felt like I was pulled towards it. So I walked up to it, and placed the tip of my wand on the empty surface. For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then, the bench slowly became transparent and in the middle I saw a long, thin piece of wood: the Elder Wand.

Brilliant. Hiding the wand inside the wooden workbench, a solid vault around it. Completely safe, not one would even think of looking there. That is, except for me. But luckily for both him and me, there aren't that many people who are as genius as I am. Maybe Albus would have figured it out. I quickly shook my head to get the thought out of my head. No Albus. Just me.

I had to focus now. The Elder Wand was lying in front of me, right there, within my grasp. I slowly extended my hand. My breath quickened, this could not be possible, I was so close.

Almost in slow-motion, I wrapped my fingers around the most powerful wand on earth. Even slower, I pulled my hand out of the workbench, and to my surprise there was nothing that held me back. That old man must have thought that it didn't need more protection, since no one should be able to find it.

This was it. I was holding the Wand of Destiny in my very own hands. I could feel the power radiating from the wood, almost dazzling me. I put my old wand in my pocket, and held my prize up. The way I looked at the wand must have been almost hungry, taking in every inch of the precious wood. This was it. This was my key to what I wanted. To a world where wizards didn't have to hide themselves from muggles, where they would rule them. Where I would rule them. The ultimate power was now mine.

I must have been standing there for almost ten minutes, just adoring the beauty, the glory of the Elder wand. Then, I blinked twice, and tore my eyes from the deadly weapon. I'd have plenty of time to look at it later, I first had to get away. But I couldn't leave just yet. I had to make it mine. Entirely mine. I'd have to conquer Gregorovitch.

Luckily, when Albus and I had been doing research together for the last time, we had found out that I didn't actually have to kill the man. I'd just have to beat him. Stun him, that was what I was going to do. But first, I'd have to wake him up.

I shook my head, making my blonde locks get loose from my neck and frame my face again. It just felt better that way. Then, I lifted the Silencing Charm. Checking if the window was open, which it was, I opened the door and walked towards Gregorovitch' room. A huge grin slowly spread over my face, I was absolutely going to kick him while he was down. Kick him with his own foot, to be precise.

I politely knocked on the door, and called "Roomservice!" in a cheerful voice. I waited for a few seconds, hearing some stumbling noises coming from the other side of the door, and then waltzed inside.

"Well, hello, dear Sir," I chimed. "Rise and shine, wakey wakey! Isn't it a beautiful night for doing some exercising? I just did some in your workshop, you don't mind that, I presume?" I leaned against the doorpost, twirling my newest treasure between my fingers. My grin grew even wider when I saw the old man's body freeze, and quickly turn my way. His eyes widened in shock when he noticed the wand between my fingers, and I felt pride and power flow through my veins.

"You… You didn't… You-" the old man stuttered, weakly pointing at his- no, at my wand. I chuckled. "I am afraid, Sir, that I did. Smart trick, with the vault and the workbench. Sadly for you, I am even smarter. It didn't even take me that long." Okay, so I lied a little. I just loved seeing him suffer. All for the Greater Good!

"Anyway, I should be going. Things to do, people to rule. You know, the usual." I shot him a vicious smirk, and then slowly retreated from his room. "Enjoy the rest of the night, Sir."

I took my time walking back towards his workshop, and I heard him coming after me. Just what I wanted. "You, boy. Give it back. Now." The man said. That's the part where I started laughing at him. I saw the man frowning, and then pouncing at me, a lantern in his hand.

I laughed while I ran for the window. He didn't stand a chance against me. With his precious wand in my hand, I balanced on the windowsill for a few seconds. The man looked for me, but didn't attack me yet. I have to admit I was surprised at that, I had expected him to shoot hexes at everything that moved. Maybe, this wand wasn't that precious to him at all. Now that I look back, it had been quite easy.

As the light fell on my face, I'm sure he saw my look of delight and victory. Then, I stunned the former owner of the Elder Wand with his own weapon, and a warm feeling in my arm told me that it had worked. The Wand of Destiny was now rightfully mine.

That truth hit me with an incredible force. I was now the owner of THE Elder Wand. It was mine. Nothing could stop me now.

Not my family, not the muggles. Not Albus. And especially, not the stunned man who was now lying on the floor in front of me. Dazed with satisfaction and roaring with laughter, I let myself fall backwards, out of the window. The pure power of the Elder Wand kept me from smashing on the ground. A few inches above the surface, I stopped falling. I put my feet on the ground and walked away with a grin still plastered on my face. It took all of my willpower not to start running and yelling and singing and dancing out of happiness. That would have to wait. Behind me, I heard the man screaming at me. I would regret this, I didn't know what I was doing, what kind of fate I damned myself with. I ignored him, and as the distance between us grew, his screaming became softer and softer, until I didn't hear anything anymore. I kept chuckling once in a while, and as soon as I was out of the neighborhood, I disapparated.

Only one second, I thought of what Gregorovitch would do to me if he ever found me. Maybe, I should build a prison especially for my enemies. After all, every great wizard had his enemies. Yes, a private prison would be a good idea. It would be grand, and terrifying. Something with a catchy name. Something to show everyone that was not to be trifled with. But that would come later. I had all the time, and power I needed now. I had done it. I was free.

That is how it happened. That night, I did what nobody else dared to do. I stole my ultimate weapon. Normengard is being built as we speak, its first prisoners are already awaiting. My army is gathering, and growing. My power is growing, too. I think do not regret what I did that night. Soon, I will gain power in more than one way. I will put those muggles where they belong, and our magical kind won't have to hide anything anymore. I will take over land, cities, governments. I will be feared and worshiped.

I am sure I will meet Albus again. He won't be on my side this time. He'll be on their side.

We'll have to fight. To death, maybe. Maybe not. I don't know that. But what I do know, is that all that I did, all that I do, and all that I will do, is all For the Greater Good.

A/N: Sorry, I know I'm babbling too much, too much! Sowwy :P I just like y'all so much! :P Just wanted to say that I stuck as close to what I know from the books as I could. So I'm sorry if you see something that isn't right according to the book, but my copy is kinda Dutch so it's possible that I didn't get all the details right...

Kay that's all folks! Review and all that jazz!

Hugs and butterfly kisses!
-Nebiza