Written for the Qudditch League Fanfiction Competition by Beater 1 of the Appleby Arrows
Prompts:
(quote) 'Just have a little faith.' - Michael Scofield, Prison Break
(word) brush
(dialogue) "You're crazy!" / "Were you ever under the impression that I was normal?"
Dumbledore/Harry
Disclaimer: I do not own anything.
There were places Harry had never been able to bring himself to go after the Battle of Hogwarts because of horrible events that had happened. Godric's Hollow, Gringotts, and Hogwarts were the main offenders. It would be years before he would even step back onto the grounds of Hogwarts, a breeze in the air carrying the scent of the Forbidden Forest and the saltiness of the Great Lake's water. It reminded him of what the Great Lake tasted like, after almost drowning in it during the Triwizard Tournament.
When he entered the Entrance Hall, it was as if it was his very first time being at Hogwarts. He could see all of his fellow first year students on the staircase leading to the Great Hall. He could remember Minerva giving them a stern look before walking away, leaving Draco Malfoy to charmingly introduce himself to Harry. He shuddered at the thought of what would have happened if he had become friends with Malfoy. The world would be a very different place.
Instead of going to the Great Hall where he had had countless meals (and where he defeated Voldemort - but he tried not to think about that), Harry made his way up the castle and towards the Headmaster's office since it was why he decided to make the trip out to an old home filled with so many good memories, as well as terrible ones.
When Harry finally stood in front of the Headmaster's door, he hesitated going in. He knew that Minerva had said that he could come and visit whenever he pleased, but he was trying to keep his trip unknown. It was the middle of summer so he didn't need to worry about running into children and Harry had kept his eyes on the Marauder's Map to make sure no stray staff members were lurking about.
Harry took a deep breath and opened the door, slowly walking into the room. He looked at all the little knickknacks in the room. There was glowing yarn, dancing dolphin figurines, and a tattered, rainbow scarf he felt brush against him as he walked past. Then his eyes went directly to the cupboard he knew held the Pensieve that had given him more information within a couple minutes than he had ever been told by someone else in seventeen years of his life. It angered him of how much time he had wasted even more trying to defeat Voldemort and win the war when it could have ended so much faster if people had just kept him in the loop.
"Was there something you wished to relive?" An all too familiar voice asked behind him.
"No," Harry answered. "There's not much I want to relive." He turned around and flinched at the piercing blue eyes staring back at hm. Even in a portait, Albus Dumbledore still managed to be intimidating.
Dumbledore frowned. "I'm sorry Harry, I wish I could have given you the normal childhood you deserved. Filled with goofing around with friends, teenage fights with your parents, the only worries in the world being your schoolwork and Qudditch."
Harry's nostrils flared and he crossed his arms. "That's the thing - I could have had that! All of that!"
"Harry..."
"If my dad hadn't gave you his Invisibility Cloak... they could have hid from Voldemort when he broke into our house. They could have slipped out and disappeared. Why did you need it so bad? What could have possibly been more important for you to have the cloak than a family who was in hiding from one of the most dangerous wizards that ever lived?"
"I understand, my boy, but you can't think that Voldemort would have ever stopped looking and Lily and James would have never stopped running to keep you safe. What happened was horrible, but things could have turned out worse if they hadn't died that night."
"I can't believe you're trying to justify the death of my parents. You're crazy!"
"Were you ever under the impression that I was normal?"
Harry grabbed his head, massaging it. There was so much anger and confusion and regret that had been building up inside him all of these years, but he didn't want to ruin a relationship with someone he trusted. He felt the overwhelming need to sit, so he plopped himself down in a chair.
"I'm sorry Harry, for everything that has ever happened to you, I'm truly sorry. But I need you to know that every decision I made, every action I took - I thought it was for the best and always kept you in mind." Dumbledore sighed and tugged at his beard.
"So that's why you left me with the Dursleys? A family who hated me more than Voldemort and his lousy followers did?" Harry accused the old man, raising an eyebrow.
"You needed to be raised away from the Wizarding World and I knew that you would be safer with Muggles than in a place where Death Eaters could try and get revenge for their master. Maybe I was wrong to put you with them, but I had faith it was the right choice."
"Your 'faith' ruined my childhood," Harry retorted.
"Harry, I'm sorry. But you're married now! You have two beautiful children - a third on it's way from what I've heard through the portrait vine, and there is no more Voldemort. Just have a little faith that nothing else bad is going to happen - I know that's what you're really worried about. I know that's why you're here. You don't want to make the same mistakes as I did, right?"
Harry nodded, silent.
"Right, then don't. Learn from my mistakes, then make your own. After that, you will learn from your mistakes. But, my boy, I think the storm has passed. Enjoy the time you have with your loved ones. Enjoy the good days and the bad days. You never know when you could end up dead with your conscience connected to a moving, talking portrait of you."
"I'm sorry, I know it must be weird for you. I can't imagine knowing I was dead in the real world."
"Honestly? It's life changing. Or I guess in my case: death changing. But I know that it's something you won't have to experience for a very, very long time."