A.N. First pairing is from the Harry Potter series/Fantastic Beasts movies.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Fantastic Beasts movies, just the plot.
"Knew you would be here."
Was the first words that came out of Albus Dumbledore's mouth as he walked carelessly to where the other man stood. When he was standing right next to him, he turned to look at those mismatched eyes he had once loved (but if he was being honest to himself he still loved them). Gellert Grindelwald merely looked at him; there was no malice or scorn in his eyes, though, so Albus counted it as a win.
"Where else would I go after your little Scamander destroyed my plans?"
His voice hadn't changed at all, had it? Dumbledore thought distractedly as the once lovers looked at each other. They just stood there and watched the other. But what was there to say? They were on separate sides of a war that could, and perhaps already had, split the world's population into two. And seeing as they were both the martyrs of their own sides didn't allow them to run, no matter how much they wanted to.
"His name's Newt, Gellert-"
"Don't call me that!"
Gellert didn't shout or even raise his voice even a little bit but it did harden and his glare solidified. Albus, however, didn't flinch, or even falter, he was too accustomed to the blonde man's moods to act that way; although even before he and Gellert became friends, Albus had never shown fear in the face of an outburst by the other man and it was something that earned him respect.
Albus sighed quietly after a short period of looking into the other's eyes and chuckled softly, despite there being nothing funny about the situation they were in. Lowering his head, he looked back up at the slightly taller man and commented dryly,
"You're the same man you've always been, huh."
"As I recall, you used to speak of me with fondness and pride."
"I said that you were the same man you've always been, not the same man I thought you to be."
They fell into silence, but it wasn't uncomfortable, more like a silence of thought. A time period to think on what has been said. After awhile, Gellert laughed and Albus soon followed.
"Who would have thought, that the great Albus Dumbledore would not at least attempt to apprehend the fiend that is Gellert Grindelwald, the current Dark wizard of the magical world."
"Well, I don't see you attacking me either."
Gellert regarded Albus for quite some time before waving his wand over himself and his entire appearance shifted and changed. Blonde hair became light brown locks pulled into a ponytail, pale skin darkened into a heavy tan, light eye darkened into the same shade as its pair. His clothes changed as well and gone was the immaculate suit and in its place was a white shirt with dark brown trousers and black shoes.
"I heard that New Zealand has the nicest mountains in the summer. I'm guessing it would be a nice place to stay at, far from war if only for a short amount of time. Care to join me? For old times sake?"
Albus couldn't find any deceit in those dark eyes but he didn't expect to find any. As strange as the request might be, and as untrustworthy as it may seem, Albus knew for a fact that Gellert didn't want to kill him anymore than he wanted to put his old lover behind bars, it was just the cruel hand that war had dealt them. So, in a sudden wave of craziness and exhaustion Albus waved his own wand over him and felt the spell take place.
Without looking down at himself, Albus knew that his hair had lengthened by about an inch and was a dirty blonde while his eyes turned into a piercing green. His clothing became a purple tank top with blue jeans and orange shoes with green jacket (what? His older self had to get his erratic fashion taste from somewhere).
"It's a crazy idea but people say I'm a crazy person. And, after all, it is the summer holidays."
The older man scoffed a bit, unprofessional for a moment before grabbing onto Albus' arm and apparating away. But as they did so, Albus couldn't help but imagine and wish for a better ending for the two. Maybe, just maybe, he could pretend that nothing had changed, that Ariana hadn't died, that the two aspiring 'masters of death' hadn't parted. Just maybe...
A.N. This was written by someone running on 24 hours of being awake, one coffee, and a mind with a crazy idea. I have no idea what this story was but I was thinking about New Zealand (for reasons I don't even know) and then I unintentionally made Grindelwald bring up the idea of going to New Zealand. I'm just hoping that I have better luck tomorrow. So yeah, thirty minutes of writing while exhausted gives you... this. Hope you enjoyed it... somehow... Happy New Year!