This is the longest chapter so far (though that's not saying much :-P). Hopefully you enjoy it!

When Albus fell asleep that night he opened his eyes to a dream-world. Sun shined through a fine mist which lay over the paved roads and roman marble arches. It was coldly beautiful. Albus turned to see Tom standing behind him.

"Tom!" he exclaimed, their last, painful meeting rising to the forefront of his mind. Tom turned and smiled cockily.

"Hey, Albs," he said. "You're still alive, then."

"I'm pretty sure I am," said Albus. "Where is this? Why are you here?"

"Well, Alby-poo, this here place is Heaven, Elysium, Nirvana, and Valhalla all rolled into one. Paradise, basically." Albus looked at the painfully white buildings and shivered. Tom chuckled. "I know. Disappointing, right? You come here expecting a garden or the Emerald City or some such bull and instead you find an Eden of stone, with the Council of Light playing Big Brother and blinding everyone to it with their so-called goodness. Hypocrites, the lot of them," said Tom. He was far more bitter than Albus had ever seen him before, and that was saying something.

"It's sure better than Hell, though," said Albus. "Or Purgatory, for that matter. Where ever I was before I got reborn."

"True dat," said Tom. "Now, believe it or not, I actually have some reason to be here with you, Ally."

"You do? I thought you just showed to make up embarrassing nicknames."

"Well, that is my primary purpose," said Tom. "I've actually been sent by Sally. He's worked on the Council of Light and now has something to show for it."

"Sally?"

"You know, Salazar. The Great Snake. Running on his errands sure beats being Dumbly's court jester."

"Oh," said Albus as the waked through a tunnel into a giant Colosseum-like space. Walls of seats sat in a circle around him. In the centre was a man with a thin, hawk-like nose and a neatly trimmed salt-and-pepper beard. He turned toward Albus, revealing his sharp, electric-green eyes, which tit up as he saw them enter.

"Tom, you brought Albus. Your timing is most fortunate." Tom gave a small but utterly sincere bow that made Albus quirk an eyebrow.

"I had to wait until he got some sleep, Professor, but otherwise it all went off without a hitch. We had the most amusing talk about the architecture of Heaven."

"You had better leave. The Council of Light will be meeting soon, and you know how Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore would take you being here." Tom gave a grimace.

"Right. Good luck, Alby," said Tom, jogging back through the tunnel. Albus looked up at Slytherin.

"Why do I need good luck?" he said.

"You gave me a difficult task, Mr. Riddle. The Council of Light is not inclined to listen to evildoers."

"What am I here to do?"

"I think I have a slim majority convinced of Rose's villainy. They're going to vote on whether to get involved and they want a statement from you. After the vote I'm hoping to reveal Godric. Both votes could prove crucial to your efforts."

"How could you get a majority?" Slytherin raised an eyebrow.

"I have my ways," he said. "Godric, however, is an accomplished orator, and his good reputation might ruin things for us yet." Albus rubbed his forehead.

"All these politics make my head ache," he complained half seriously.

"You don't have to worry about that. Just concentrate on giving a convincing speech and let me care for the difficult parts." as they spoke the seats began to fill. Albus looked around at the greatest and goodest wizards as they chatted and, eventually, took their assigned places. Some he recognised, some he did not, but there was not a single Muggle among them. He frowned.

"Where are all the-"

"Even in the afterlife, the hierarchy must be maintained," said Slytherin with an admirable hint of snark. "What do you think of it?"

"I think," said Albus, "that they would be mortified to know that this is exactly what I envisioned when I was Voldemort." Slytherin didn't reply, he just glowered at the white robes of the Council and pulled his own green ones closer.

Quite suddenly the wizards, who had been chattering happily up to this point, fell silent. A man stepped up to a podium. Albus studied him as he looked haughtily around the arena. His hair and beard looked like wild wisps of cotton, and his nose was quite stubby and round. His eyes were sunken and an odd sort of blue that was almost limpid. His robes were not like the others, for instead of plain white they shimmered with light shades of every colour imaginable, and a few that were not. Albus got the impression that he quite like this effect, as he swished around his robes far more often than was really necessary. The wizard cleared his throat.

"Witches and wizards of the Honourable Council of Light," he said in a crackling voice. "Merlin calls for your attention." The people lining the stands were already paying attention to the old wizard. "That's... good," said Merlin. "Now, we all know why we've been called here today. I seems there's a bit of a situation down on Earth."

"That is an understatement, Merlin," said a voice to Albus's left.

"Quiet," said Merlin. "Now, we have brought one of our own that we happened to have on Earth to debrief us on the complexities-"

"One of our own? Ha!" said the same person. Merlin turned, frowning disapprovingly at the short, dumpy old wizard that had interrupted him twice.

"Whatever you may believe, Godric Gryffindor, Tom Riddle is in a fortuitous position considering recent developments. We should accept the unique advantage it gives us-"

"He is Voldemort and a Slytherin to boot!" said Gryffindor. "His House shows us clearly that he obviously hasn't changed with his second chance-"

"Might I remind you, old friend, that it is a member of your House that is the problem this time," said Slytherin acidly. Gryffindor bristled.

"What do you mean? My House is defending the wizarding government from a militant minority that want to take over by force."

"Then explain why this minority includes half the population of Britain and all sapient magical creatures."

"They don't count," said Gryffindor quickly. "They don't have wands."

"Only because the government doesn't allow it," said Slytherin dryly.

"And they can fight and they will," said Albus. "You said that I am Voldemort. Remember how effective the giants and the werewolves were during both wars?"

"Are you threatening me boy?"

"No, I'm requesting that you take a step back and look at what you're saying. I know you have only the good of everyone at heart, but this has gone on too long."

"The only thing that has gone on too long is the bigotry of the Slytherin brats!" Gryffindor's savage shout would have made most people quail before him, but Albus just smiled softly and stood a little taller.

"Bigotry," he said. "That is the core of this all, isn't it? Muggles fear and hate us because of our magic, Slytherin's good intentions turn to hate against Muggleborns through the centuries, noble opposition of my bigotry has been twisted into more. The more we try to correct our course, the more hat and prejudice seem to fill the world. Eventually, someone has to end this, and that person isn't going to be Rose."

"Rose?" Gryffindor sputtered. "What does your fair cousin have to do with your evil?"

"Say what you like, Gryffindor, but Rose is central to this because of a friend she found who turned her into a weapon that enjoys inflicting pain on others so long as she believes that the pain is justified."

"Her goal is to destroy all evil."

"Yet, because of this friend of hers, she has become the very evil she wants to destroy." Albus glared at Gryffindor, daring him to argue. Gryffindor's mouth hung open in shock, as he couldn't believe someone would dare argue with him. The seats above Albus were silent, waiting for one or the other to make a move.

"Oh, and I suppose you think that the Council will support your evil once you tell them who you cousin's friend is," said Gryffindor. "They'll never believe your blatant lies."

"I believe him," snapped Slytherin. Gryffindor snorted.

"And that makes all the difference? You are the cause of this problem! If it wasn't for you and your House-"

"What, Professor?" said Albus. "What would be any different?"

"Your evil wouldn't exist! Rose wouldn't be forced to end you and-" Albus's expression hardened and Gryffindor faltered. The corner of Albus's mouth pulled back.

"You heard what he said," Albus whispered. Everyone strained to catch his words. "If it wasn't for me and my House, Rose wouldn't be trying to murder us. Maybe if I didn't exist, she wouldn't be. But we are not the only ones to make mistakes. Does the name Peter Pettigrew ring a bell, Professor? If I'm remembering correctly, he was a member of your House."

"He was an abnormality," said Gryffindor. "The Sorting Hat made a mistake and everyone paid because they trusted him."

"And yes Merlin, the greatest wizard of all time, was a member of Slytherin."

"Another abnormally!"

"You are condemning every Slytherin to die! You would condemn even Merlin?"

"It's better to be safe than to allow another man like you to survive!" Gryffindor screamed. Silence fell over the arena. Gryffindor was panting and smiling in victory. His eyes glittered madly. Albus opened his mouth, and then he closed it into a grim line. He knew that he couldn't argue against the ravings of someone so blinded by their dark hatred. Albus bowed his head, about to take his leave. It was obvious that the Council of Light would never be on his side, no matter how right his cause, and he wasn't quite sure he wanted them.

"No," said a familiar voice behind him suddenly. Albus whirled around and felt his stomach clench. It was Harry Potter. Albus stared at his father, his heart beating much too quickly than was normal. This was his father and his death was his fault and for some reason he was defending him and... Albus took a deep breath, trying to steady himself.

"Will you condemn the innocent along with the guilty?" said his father in a clear voice that sounded almost scolding. "If it was only one innocent, I might find your actions justifiable. Maybe. But I have no doubt that the majority of them have never even considered what you applaud Rose for."

"Ridding the world of evil? I have no doubt of that, Harry Potter." It may have been Albus's imagination, but the founder looked a bit afraid.

"Mass murder, Gryffindor, at least call it what it is."

"Murder is what killing good men and women is called. When they are evil, the preferred term is capital punishment."

"Either way, it ends the same: with a dead body and broken hearts." Harry Potter glared at Gryffindor with an expression that was as close to hatred as he had ever gotten. "You know, I was once proud to be a member of your House. You repel me now. I wish that I'd let the Sorting Hat put me in Slytherin." Albus's father looked down at Albus. His son felt his chest ache.

"Thanks, Dad," Albus whispered. His father nodded, understanding what had been said even though there was no way he could have heard. Albus looked up at Gryffindor. "You said that the Council will never believe me when I tell them who caused all this horror. That might be true. After all, who would expect murder and bigotry from the man who was a symbol against it? A member of the Council of light? Of course, the Council has bigotry in it already, no friend needed." The assembled muttered among themselves.

"What bigotry? How can one of the Council be less than good?" said Dumbledore, enraged into speaking for the first time.

"You are all less than perfect," said Albus, "but the bigotry I speak of has a source. Who was it that made it so that, eventually, one of the first things any of us hears is how all bad things come from Slytherin, despite the evidence on the contrary? Who has been abusing my cousin and helping her destroy eleven-year-olds and people who have against all odds put their lives back together? He is here, he will attempt to justify his horrible deeds, but I will call him out, even if no one else will." Merlin leaned foreword.

"And who is this man?" he said, though he and everyone else already know. Albus look a deep breath.

"Godric Gryffindor!" he bellowed, pointing to the accused Founder. The Council of light erupted.

Hmm, I actually quite like this chapter. Please review if you bother to read this. I know there are people who are, they just don't seem to like typing "Good chapter" or "Nice" or even "This sucked" into that little box right under this slightly annoying AN. Next: I attempt to write a battle scene.