A/N: This is probably only going to be a two or three part story. I'm still working on Dumbledore: The Dawn, which might change names. You can read this story without reading my series first, but you might not understand a tiny bit. But you'll probably pick up on it pretty fast.
Beyond Paradise
"Is it always this boring here?" Maddy looked up quickly, startled. Her best friend Jo, who had gotten back a few minutes before from a pickup game of Quidditch with a boy named Cedric Diggory, was addressing the girls' semi-companion and mentor, Mr. Andrew Dumbledore. He was reading a book, which, as Maddy amusedly observed, was titled Heavenly Magic for Dummies.
"Yeah, well, you get used to it." The older man smiled at Jo's impatient expression. "You have to learn to slow down. You know, go with the flow. I'm surprised you haven't learned by now. You're going to be here for quite a long time. Forever, you know." Jo scowled.
"Just my luck! I'm doomed to be stuck in this boring place forever. Forever and beyond." She frowned slightly. "Oh well."
Mr. Dumbledore grinned again. Maddy almost felt a pang of sadness as she saw the all too familiar smile. It was the same one that Albus had always worn. Her Albus. She felt an almost relieving wave of depression wash over her, but it was quickly extinguished. A warm, contented feeling swept across her, making her feel sleepy and blissful. Feeling sad was not allowed in Heaven, and longing for mortal life and for Earth was most definitely frowned upon. Still… Jo pulled her up off of the white velvet cushioned chaise that she was lounging on. Pushing away Maddy's copy of Teen Angel Today, she dragged her best friend away toward the golden pavilion that stood a short distance away.
"Come on, Mad," she said, rather determinedly. "We're gonna find some action if it kills us."
"Too late," said Maddy sardonically, but that didn't stop Jo from pulling her away.
The Pavilion was quite empty. On Meeting Day it was filled to the brim with people and angels, all clad in white. One blinding mass of ivory. Another thing Maddy missed about Earth was the abundance of color. Heaven wasn't a bad place to be, over all, it certainly was strikingly beautiful, but everything was so white. White clouds, white clothes, white furniture, white buildings, white everything. Maddy often wondered what would happen if one day someone appeared wearing a fluorescent orange hat or something. The Senior Angels would probably go ballistic. Jo was dragging Maddy towards a large globe shaped object at the front of the Pavilion. Maddy suppressed a gasp as she realized what her friend was intending to do. The Orb of Sight stood gleaming in front of her. She had often seen the Senior Angels peering into it, oohing and aahing, gasping collectively. It had the immense power of seeing between worlds, between Heaven and Earth. Jo stood on tiptoe and peered into the transparent swirling mist.
"Oooh," she whispered, "Maddy, you have to see this! It's amazing!" Maddy walked over cautiously.
"I'm not quite sure we're supposed to be doing this," she said uncertainly, but Jo pulled her closer, eyes still glued to the contents of the orb.
"Don't be such a fraidy cat! It's just like Divination, except bigger and a bit more, er… real." Maddy glanced in and found her gaze drawn in. There was a spinning image of the Earth, surrounded by a great expanse of sparkling stars. Maddy found that by concentrating on a person in her mind, the Orb would instantly change from the image of Earth to that person, wherever they were and whatever they were doing. Her thoughts immediately flashed to Albus. Beside her, she could hear Jo muttering, "Alastor… Alastor…" softly under her breath. She turned her attention to Albus. In her mind she pictured him as she had last seen him. His brave, strong face swept into her mind, his slightly shaggy auburn hair, bright blue eyes, never lacking light. His gentle arms, the way he held her softly for the last moments of her mortal life… Instantly, the orb brought a vision of Albus. Maddy gasped audibly in shock. A sight quite unlike the teenager she remembered greeted her. It was Albus, considerably older. He looked about 150 years old. Where the auburn hair should have been was long white hair. He had an equally long moustache and beard, and wore half-moon spectacles. But there was no question that this was her Albus. The light blue eyes were the same, and his smile… his smile was as sincere and caring as she could ever remember. At that particular moment, he was speaking to a boy with untidy black hair and bright green eyes in his… office? Maddy was taken aback. She recognized Albus' office, having been lectured in it on numerous occasions by Professor Entwistle. Albus was… the headmaster of Hogwarts? She had apparently been in Heaven much longer than she realized. What had seemed like a few years to her had actually been closer to 60 or seventy, at the least. And the boy… she saw a strange familiarity in his features. The untidy black hair, the bright eyes… she realized with a shock. Her brother Matthew had the same untidy black hair, standing up slightly in the back. The same bright eyes, full of adventure. But this boy's eyes were a brilliant shade of green. As she watched in a dazed sort of way, she jumped as someone tapped her shoulder.
"Erm, excuse me? Miss?"
Whirling around, she looked guiltily at the white-clad pair in front of her, biting her lip. A tall, thin man with untidy black hair and deep brown eyes shining behind glasses stood in front of her, accompanied with a pretty woman. The woman had long red hair and… Maddy looked again with a shock of realization. The woman had the same eyes as the boy she had just seen with Albus. This pair of people must be closely related to the boy (Maybe to her?), due to the fact that the man had Matthew hair also.
"Er, we were just wondering, could you tell us where the Main Gate is? We haven't been here very long, and I'm afraid we haven't quite gotten used to our surroundings yet…" The woman smiled apologetically. Maddy could only stare.
"Er, sir? Can I ask you something?" The tall man nodded, looking a bit confused.
"Sure. Ask away."
"Are you in any way related to Matthew Potter? Son of Elizabeth and William Potter?" The man smiled slightly.
"Yes, in fact. Matthew is my father. Why, do you know him?" Maddy swayed slightly, ignoring his question.
"Your mother is Eva? Eva Waterbourne? Your sister's name is Olivia?" The man nodded.
"But how do you know so much about me?" Maddy's knees gave out. She sat down hard on the golden steps, pulling Jo, who's eyes were was still glued to the Orb, down with her.
"You're… you're… James!" The man nodded, confused. Maddy took a deep, steadying breath. Jo looked as if she was in shock.
"I… I… I suppose I'm your aunt." Now it was James' turn to stare.
"You're… you're Aunt Madeleine? Maddy?" She nodded weakly. James spluttered.
"My father always talked about you! When you died, Mum said he was never the same. I wasn't born at the time, of course. I remember, Grandpa sometimes would forget and call Olivia "Maddy". Most everyone would break down crying. It was horrible. My parents named me James… on your request." Maddy nodded.
"I always loved that name. Did you know…" she gulped, "a man named Albus Dumbledore?"
"Yes, of course! Dumbledore was like a second father to me. Good man, Dumbledore." Maddy looked over at Jo. Jo looked as if she wanted to cry, but of course she couldn't, as that would be a direct display of sadness.
"He's all right then? Albus?"
"I suppose he is, though I haven't seen him since we died. Greatest wizard in the world, Dumbledore is." Instantly, a memory sparked in Maddy's mind. It was from the day she died.
"Don't worry Maddy," Albus whispered in her ear, "I won't let anything happen to you." She shook her head and gripped him by the shoulders.
"Listen to me, Albus," she whispered back. "You need me to defeat Grindelwald. That's more important than my life." She gripped his hand, a burst of energy running from her palm to his. The magic. He raised his wand at the same time that Grindelwald did.
"Fool," said Grindelwald coldly, "You think you can defeat me? I am the greatest wizard on earth!" Maddy fixed him with a penetrating stare.
"You're wrong," she hissed. "The greatest wizard in the world," she stood up straight, looking Grindelwald directly in the eye, " is Albus Dumbledore."
@----))--------
Maddy and Jo had left James and Lily Potter (as they had found out the red haired woman's name) chatting with Mr. Dumbledore. Now Maddy was the one dragging her friend along. Jo seemed to be in shock. Try as she might, Maddy couldn't coax any information about what her best friend had seen in the orb. She had already told Jo all about Albus, how he was headmaster, how he had aged so much, and about the boy. She had forgotten to ask Lily and James about the boy, who she suspected was their son. Now she was half leading, half-pulling Jo to one of the most important places in Heaven, the Ministry of Administration and Inter-World Exchange. They reached the cherubim at the doors, who bowed lazily to them as they rushed past. Panting, Maddy yanked Jo to the white marble counter. The angel at the desk, a pretty woman with chin length blonde hair, hazel eyes, and a pair of feathered, shimmery white wings, smiled politely at the pair.
"Hello, welcome to the Ministry of Administration and Inter-World Exchange. How may I help you?" Maddy was still struggling to catch her breath. Jo was slumped against the counter, frowning, her eyes gazing off into space. The angel peered into her eyes, frowning, and gave a wave of her hand. Jo's eyes immediately focused and she gave a small, contented smile.
"There," said the angel, smiling, "Much better. Now, what did you need?" She switched her soft gaze to Maddy, who stood up straighter.
"We would like to see if we could possibly take a visit Earth," she said. The angel frowned slightly.
"Why would you want to do that?" she asked, "Are you discontent here? Do you find Heaven boring?" Jo stood up.
"Ye-" she started, but Maddy clamped her hand over her mouth.
"No, it's not that, we just wanted to see it again, you know, see how it's changed. It's been so long since we've been there." The angel looked suspicious.
"Are you positive there isn't any other reason?" Maddy crossed her fingers behind her back.
"Yes. We're just curious, is all." The angel pursed her lips. After what seemed like twenty minutes, she pushed a pair of thick pamphlets across the counter.
"Fill these out, one for each of you. These are your applications for IWVs, or Inter-World Visas." Maddy took the pamphlets, handed one to Jo, and sat down at the ivory-cushioned bench to fill hers out.
"Name: Madeleine Elizabeth Potter. Age: Erm, 15? I suppose so… Angel Association: Wizard and Witches Foundation. Temporary Mentor or Guardian (If under 21): Mr. Andrew Dumbledore. Place to Visit: England, Hogwarts Castle, Godric's Hollow, Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, London, Chipping Sodbury. Favorite Food: Now really, this is irrelevant!" The pair filled out their forms and handed them to the formidable angel behind the counter.
"This seems to be in order. Here are you visas, Transportation Dust, assigned departure time, and rules for you to follow while you are on Earth. These rules are not to be broken on any costs. Please be punctual." They walked back to the place where they had left Mr. Dumbledore and the Potters. They raced the last few meters, laughing excitedly.
"Why are you two so excited?" asked Mr. Dumbledore, smiling.
"We're going to visit Earth!" squealed Jo, unable to hold in her excitement any longer. The three adults smiled.
"That's great!" exclaimed Lily, "I wish I had the guts to do that. But it would be so heartbreaking. To see Harry, grown up and all. Knowing I could never be with him again." Maddy remembered.
" Harry! That's his name? I saw him in the Orb, he was talking to Alb-" She cut off abruptly, but it was too late. A stern look had already crossed Mr. Dumbledore's face.
"You were looking into the Orb of Sight?" he admonished.
"Well, yes, but I saw Albus! You'd be so surprised to see him, Andrew, he's so old! Much older even than you! But he's still the same, I just know it." A flicker of a wistful smile passed over Mr. Dumbledore's face briefly.
"Well then," he said, "You're visiting Earth. I'll come to see you off."
"We will too," said Lily kindly, roughly pushing James (who was trying to play with her hair) off the chaise they were sharing. In retaliation he pulled her off with him and they lay on the ground, laughing.
@---))--------
"Next! Miss Josephine Marks to Hogwarts Castle, Scotland!" Jo stepped up to the golden Transportation point, holding her white duffel bag.
"Bye Jo!" called the Potters and Mr. Dumbledore.
"See you!" called Maddy, who was next after her. Jo smiled and threw the dust above her head. As it settled down, she vanished.
"Next! Miss Madeleine Potter to Hogwarts Castle, Scotland!" Maddy stepped up, swinging her white backpack over her shoulder. She was still dressed in her Heaven robes, but would change when she got to Hogwarts. Mr. Dumbledore and James waved as she raised her arm to throw the dust, but Lily ran up suddenly.
"Maddy? Can I ask you to relay a message for me?" Maddy was startled, but agreed.
"Can you tell Harry that James and I love him? And that we'll be waiting for him up here?"
"Sure, Lily. And I'm positive he loves you too, even if you can't be there." Lily smiled and gave Maddy quick hug. She stepped back to James.
"Good luck." Maddy threw the dust above her head and vanished from sight. The ride to Earth was a swirling mass of wind and color. As she landed with a thump next to Jo on the Hogwarts grounds, she felt almost blinded. After being in Heaven for so long, the strong wave of color was quite unexpected. Maddy felt dizzy, but stood and brushed herself off. There was mud on the knees of her white robes. Jo gripped Maddy's wrist.
"We're back."
@----))--------
Disclaimer: Return of the crappy disclaimer writer! I don't own anyone, okay?!? Even if I do!