Fifty Shades of Erised
A visitor from a foreign land, he blinks as he stands before the mirror, stroking his wispy beard whilst contemplating his reflection. Like all alchemists, he desires knowledge, wealth and above all, he yearns to know himself.
The fabled mirror will grant him this wish.
For what is he really, it not the sum of his greatest desires and failures?
He's spent years devising a means to infiltrate Hogwarts, to seek within its hallowed halls for the treasure of Rowena Ravenclaw herself. Finally, his opportunity has arisen and he has travelled across the English Channel within a carriage the size of a small house, drawn by steeds the size of elephants. The Triwizard Tournament has come as a godsend during his final years of studying.
After all these long years, he has arrived.
He wonders what he will see, his face inches away from the glass as he studies its smooth surface, his fingers running over the ornate carvings, hoping to devise its secret. Perhaps, if he knows how to create this, he will be able to create his own treasure to stand the test of time.
His reflection blurs and he furrows his brow, thinking that perhaps he will see Perenelle, the maiden who holds his heart in the palm of her hand. Perhaps they will have a family, two boys and a girl, living together in a cottage by the sea.
He likes that thought. He likes it very much.
Instead, his breath hitches as he sees a swirling vortex of colour, his eyes widening as he catches glimpses of stars and animals, people and the river of time, gods and angels and the earth itself, flitting within the turbulent kaleidoscope of colours.
He sees everything that ever was, everything that is and everything that ever will be.
It solidifies into amber like stone and he gasps, realising what it is that he is seeing within the mirror.
Eternity, captured in a single gem, bound to mortal hands.
The joys of immortality, held in his own grasp.
He wants to live forever.
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-Reviews are appreciated-
-Also Written for the Greek Mythology Mega-Prompt Challenge: Apollo (Write about the Philosopher's Stone)-