[a/n]Inspiration for this came from www. Fanfic tion. Net s 5679909 1 This-is-Your-Reward.
Harry Does Different CCCDXXII
The Pearly Gates
Up in the clouds there was a massive shining fence of gold. The gates were pure white and perfectly smooth. Just outside was an impressive desk with a luxurious chair. An arriving soul would see a tremendous room, other souls as far as the eye could see in every direction. A recent arrival was met by the greeter who had the appearance of a 10-year-old girl, except with large white wings and a shiny golden halo "Brian Dumbledore. You are #2,745,219 in line. This is your ticket. It is very important. Stick to your ticket!"
The status board read NOW SERVING #8,711 he gave a displeased frown "My dear child, I am ALBUS Dumbledore. Headmaster of Hogwarts, Supreme Mugwump of the Int- - -"
"You are now #3,856,320. Take your place accordingly." And with that, the apparent child went to greet the next soul.
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Elsewhere in the clouds, a quite angry soul was causing a commotion "I AM LORD VOLDEMORT AND I DEMAND TO KNOW WHERE I AM!"
"Tom Riddle." This time the winged greeter appeared to be a small boy "However, an incomplete soul. You will simply have to wait until the rest of you dies. Wait in there." He pointed to a back room.
The sixteen year old snarled and swung a fist "I am immortal and I will slay Harry Potter!"
"A day, a century, a geological age, it is merely a matter of time." The boy blocked the assault effortlessly, and flung the attacker into the indicated area without moving a finger. His voice continued "What you do with that time matters little to us. However, it will be taken into account in determining how you spend eternity."
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"Ronald Bilius Weasley. A largely productive life, good father." The great man behind the massive desk examined the scroll and stroked his beard "However you did have a propensity to jealous outbursts and often worked harder to get someone else to do your work than the work itself would have required."
The soul before the judge looked ashamed and stammered "W-w-ell what it is- - -"
"Have you nothing else to say? Hmmm…" the judge looked displeased "Purgatory for you until your wife arrives."
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The judge was particularly pleased with this soul "Luna Pandora Lovegood. Magizoologist. And repopulator of the crumplehorned snorkack."
"Hello St Peter" she replied with no fear "I trust you're well. Of course, I have missed my father, but it is Mum whom I have not seen for much longer,"
The Archangel waved a hand and the huge gate opened "The train will take you right there." He smiled as he watched her skip through.
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"Astoria Greengrass Malfoy, chose to have a child even though you knew it would end your life early. Nor was your death exactly painfree." The Archangel scrutinized this soul "Yet you continued a family that has a less than heavenly record."
She held her head high "I have no regrets sir. I love my son, and my husband."
"And if one, or both, do not earn paradise?" he pressed.
She shrugged "Any place that does not want them, does not deserve me."
"We shall see when they arrive. Meantime, you have more graces than sins. Go on through." Peter offered her the Heavenly Gates.
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This soul, St Peter had a real problem with "Montgomery Radcliffe, you started life off poorly enough, that does not give you leave to turn into a bully."
"I resent that sir." The man looked outraged.
To this St Peter slapped his desk "It is you as much as anyone! Perhaps three words will recall it to your mind? Tom Marvolo Riddle! As a teenager you abused a young boy in the same orphanage! I think a couple centuries experiencing the lives of Voldemort's victims will change your perspective."
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Molly Prewett Weasley died of heart failure in the kitchen of the rebuilt Burrow decades after the war. The first thing she said to St Peter was "You clearly do not get enough time off. Have you some place I can put together a meal? You definitely don't eat properly."
"That is exactly your greatest plus." He said from behind his desk, earning a pleased smile "However! It is also your greatest flaw. Your oldest sons moved entirely from their home country as soon as they completed school. It will be some time before Arthur arrives. You will benefit from some time in Purgatory. Please follow the guard."
An angel seemed to appear from nowhere and took her elbow.
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"Sirius Orion Black, I have to say I am not particularly impressed." St Peter tossed the scroll aside and glared.
The recently deceased convict cringed then protested "I gave my life for Harry! Send me back and I'll gladly do it again!"
"Your Godson didn't need your death!" the judge snapped angrily "I would sentence you to hell, but you have already been there. Ironically, the most just punishment for you is to reunite you in Heaven with your best friend. The train will take you to the Potter cottage. Go on through."
A confused Sirius hardly took his eyes off St Peter as he entered Paradise.
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Nymphadora Tonks and Remus J Lupin sat together quietly awaiting their turn. Though both had died fighting neither suffered much and they drew their last breaths holding hands. Of any angel they saw, the couple asked two questions "Did Harry come through?" and "Will Teddy be happy?"
"You both were quite concerned about everyone but yourselves." The bearded judge said to the couple before him "Indicative of your generally selfless natures. It is with great pleasure I welcome Nymphadora to paradise. Mr Lupin, before your eternal reward, you should see the consequences of your failure to act. I sentence you to experience your best friend's son's life prior to his coming to Hogwarts."
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"Peter Pettigrew, that we share the same name makes me wish to chastise my parents, or yours at least." The haloed man behind the desk fumed "You betrayed your closest friends. Even discounting the right and wrong of the sides, you are a traitor. Your sentence will be of the most severe. You will stoke the fires of Sol for the remainder of its existence as a star."
The condemned soul was even more rat-faced than he had been in life. He started to protest his sentence, but ended up only screaming as a large hole opened under him. He would be inhabiting one of the hottest places in the universe for a verrrrry looooong time.
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"MY MASTER WILL AVENGE THIS OUTRAGE! WHERE IS THE WEASLEY BITCH!" Bellatrix LeStrange was brought before the Pearly Gates for judgment. She struggled against two massively muscled angels who were easily twice her size.
This soul was troubling for St Peter "You, child, had great potential to do enormous good in the world. Decisions, however, were made for you before you could make your own. The crimes you committed cannot go unpunished. We shall find your true self, then determine your fate. I shall see you again in a century."
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Filius Flitwick had inherited mostly goblin genes, but he was part human. Thus his soul came before the Pearly Gates for judgment. He went to his knees before the desk and said in supplication "My Lord."
"You were a largely honorable, competent, and successful teacher. You did have one blind spot that resulted in much suffering." Said St Peter.
Even decades after Harry Potter's time as a Hogwarts student, the Charms Professor and, for a time, Headmaster; Filius was stumped he could only repeat "Blind spot. What blind spot, My Lord?"
"It crops up with distressing regularity in human children." St Peter explained "And it does no good to have educators hear about it, because they almost invariably ignore it. You, at least, are less to blame with your goblin-based norms. HOWEVER, you never considered that humans are a different species."
Filius shook his head "To what is my Lord referring?"
"Some wisdom both races share 'Seeing is believing' While I think you deserving of Paradise, you can afford to miss a few trains. You will see the experiences of a number of students under your supervision. Start with Luna Lovegood. Show him." St Peter waved the part-goblin away.
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Lucius Malfoy looked around with his characteristic sneer. He was not impressed with the man behind the desk "This is where I spend eternity? A train station? And your speed of service leaves much to be desired. I died at least a decade ago."
"You did not get to bring your Galleons with you." St Peter had seen it all in sorting souls "And even had you, no such coin has value with me. As for your fate, you lied and cheated your way into a position of power. That position does not exist for personal gain, but to benefit the people. You followed a man who did not even meet the ideals you espoused all your life. You are as guilty of murder as any and shall join your cohorts."
Lucius felt the floor vanish from beneath him and yelled '"WAIT! I WAS UNDER IMPERIO! I CAN GIVE YOU NAMES!"
"The crimes you have committed are most foul, worthy of a sentence long indeed." The voice of Peter continued to follow Lucius even as he fell through the bottomless hole "But lying to me and then as easily betraying your cohorts for personal gain is beyond the pale. We shall see what your attitude is after stoking the fires of Wolf 359 for the rest of its life. Some eight trillion years. See you then Lucius Malfoy."
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St Peter knew exactly what to do with the soul now approaching his desk. High heels, gaudy pink horn-rimmed glasses. Complaining sharply as the angels urged her forward with tip of spear and sword "Ooh! Yipe! Eek! Careful with that thing!"
"Rita Skeeter, you are not evil per se." St Peter leaned over and glared down "But you did certainly accumulate far more disgraces than graces. You just never rose to the level of hellanddamnation. I think your fate should be to return to the mortal world as the daughter of Prince Harry Windsor."
The soul looked entirely delighted at her new lease on life. She vanished with a small pop.
"I'm not one to question authority." Said a soul waiting his turn "But putting HER in line to the throne doesn't seem like much of a punishment to me."
St Peter boomed with laughter "That Mr. Potter is an outrageous lie! You? Question authority? Oh NO! I'm not sure if I should deduct graces for such a falsehood, or grant them for giving me the chuckle of the decade! Step up… Now, to cover Miss Skeeter, surely you recall your own relationship with the magical paparazzi."
"Thought I wouldn't have to hear about that. Being dead and all." The still bespectacled, but utterly bald man groused.
To which St Peter nodded amiably "Then consider how much attention the Queen of England will get, from the day of her birth. Now, to your case. Would you care to guess at the number of prayers that have been received petitioning for your Canonization, and Damnation?"
"No doubt I could spend a noticeable fraction of forever reading them." Harry Potter quipped sarcastically "But with regard to Rita, I take your point."
The gates opened and the ultimate judge waved a hand "Well, go on through. And …uhhmmm… I've been at this for several centuries, think you might want to give it a try? After you've had a decade or two off?"
"You couldn't think I'm qualified to decide someone's eternal fate!" Harry looked aghast.
St Peter just smiled, a little condescendingly "You have a history of complaining about dynage deficiency, only to be matched by your record of delivering when put under pressure. Now, off you go. Come back when you're ready, give a guy a break."
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"Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, O.M. (First Class), Grand Sorc., D. Wiz., X.J. (sorc.), S. of Mag.Q" after quite a lengthy wait he was brought before St Peter whose voice seemed to resonate even under his feet "For the sake of Heavenly records, it would clarify matters if you would confirm the name you were actually christened with by Percival and Kendall."
The soul to be judged looked unhappy as he acknowledged "My parents referred to me as Brian until their deaths. I never felt comfortable with that afterward, and would prefer Albus."
"I think you will agree it is important to cover all bases? Especially with paperwork." The keeper of the gates held two large scrolls "As you may imagine, Albus, my job is to decide whether a soul goes to eternal Paradise or eternal Damnation. Most are quite easy. There are saints like Pope John Paul II, Ghandi; then there are sinners like Adolph Hitler, Mao Tse Tung. Quite a few have disgraces outnumbering their graces, yet these are minor. Such people spend time in Purgatory before moving onto Heaven. Then there comes you. Defeat of Grindlewald, leader of the movement against Voldemort. Important advancements in medical treatments. Yet, so many disgraces, failure to get Sirius Black a trial which WOULD HAVE cleared him. This led directly to the awful treatment of Harry Potter - - -SILENCE! - - - And, fact is, there were MANY viable alternatives to the Dursleys. You did NOT know better than his parents. Throughout your reign, that was your hubris. Albus Dumbledore knows what is best for the world."
Albus looked disapproving "It all worked out in the end and it was- - -"
"For the Greater Good" St Peter finished with him, highly annoyed "and as for that look, I have seen literally thousands of headmasters for judgment. People are more than chess pieces. Yes you did defeat Grindelwald, but you were central to his rise as well. Some time in Purgatory, I think."
This was not what was expected. Albus blinked and his eyebrows rose to his wizard's hat. "How long a time are we talking?" he asked, then "Perhaps I should discuss this with your superior. Especially considering the length of time I was waiting."
"Perhaps you are acquainted with these words from the Bible No one comes to the Father except through me. And, closely linked, Upon this Rock I shall build my Church." St Peter did not offer a length of sentence, but simply waved a hand, banishing the less than cooperative soul.
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The door opened on teenage Tom Riddle after five years had passed on Earth. Assembled before him were the other segments of himself. All appeared quite different, based on when they split off from the original and how much soul there was at the time. He looked at the parts and complained "What? You FAILED? How could YOU let this happen?"
"I shall not be lectured by you, boy!" declared the most snake-like Lord Voldemort.
In reality the guard angels were unnecessary, but each Voldemort stood between two impressive, stony-faced angels who gave the definite appearance of willingness to commit mayhem. St Peter looked at the reunited pieces of the same soul with distaste and declared "The eight of you and your minions killed and tortured for no good reason. As the leader you are responsible for everything from the baby you possessed to reclaim corporeal form, to the mass destruction and deaths at Hogwarts School. A suitable punishment was not easy to devise."
"By what right do you judge me?" eight voices spoke as one.
St Peter waved a hand and ruled "All these pieces, different portions, different powers. There, now all of you are as strong as the original Tom Riddle, with all of Voldemort's knowledge."
They all smiled evilly and inhaled the power surge greedily.
"Tom Marvolo Riddle, you will spend eternity in this room you have waited for your other parts. No one will ever enter, none of you will leave. You have the immortality you craved." St Peter's tone boomed over them all.
The now physically and magically identical Voldemorts were herded unceremoniously into the room and no amount of protests or attempted resistance prevented the doors from being closed. Imprisoning all eight of them. Forever. For eternity.