His last gift – Dumbledore's thoughts as he made the Snitch that held the Resurrection Stone.
Dumbledore's heart was heavy. He had to send his brave, brilliant boy to is death. If all went well and he was right about the blood bond between Harry and Voldemort then Harry's death would not be final. The key though, the terrible key was that Harry had to believe he would truly die. Tears fell freely from Dumbledore's eyes, Harry had been through so much, experienced so much pain, seen things that were truly horrific but Dumbledore had to put him through so much more. There was only one thing Dumbledore could do to ease Harry's sacrifice. Give him the Stone, not to disturb those who were at peace but to ease his passage.
Dumbledore fashioned the Snitch, knowing Harry would not figure out its riddle until it was time.
I open at the close.
Harry would hate him, he knew. Harry would hate him and rage against him as he had raged against him after Sirius, the only true family Harry had ever known, had died. Brave Sirius. Another mistake in a long line of mistakes. Sirius' death and the cruelties inflicted upon Harry by the Dursleys were both his fault. It was a wonder, in Dumbledore's mind, that Harry did not despise Dumbeledore already for placing Harry with a family that treated him as they did, for leaving him even after Dumbledore had realised what they did to him.
Harry, Dumbledore knew, whatever Harry thought of Dumbledore now, he would hate him when Dumbledore left him with an impossible task and a seemingly useless Snitch. Dumbledore knew Harry's hatred would be justified because he was speaking, or, in this case, writing as he always did. In riddles and half-truths and Harry wanted - needed to know the whole truth. Dumbledore hoped that one day Harry would forgive him. Dumbledore trusted in Harry's good heart that one day he would be forgiven. Dumbledore knew that Harry would give him far more than he deserved.
I open at the close.
Dumbledore held the fluttering Snitch in his hand, remembering the small, determined boy who had caught, almost swallowed it in his first game. Blinking through his tears he placed it in a small cabinet that he knew would be searched when he was dead. Dumbledore turned and faced the door to his office, knowing that in a few minutes Harry would appear through it for his lesson, unaware that his beloved mentor had prepared for both their deaths.
"Forgive me." It was a plea he had uttered many times, to Ariana, to Aberforth, to Sirius and Hagrid, to so many, and now to Harry, but he knew that it was, and always had been, useless, because he could never forgive himself.
I open at the close.
A/N I think Dumbledore may have been a little OOC here, with his extreme guilt, but he did appear to feel very guilty at the end of DH and I just expanded on that. Please review with your thoughts.