A/N: Here it is, all in one compact package! : :Ahem: : This is the touching story of everyone's favorite headmaster during his days at Hogwarts (more specifically, during his fifth year). This was my first fic on fanfiction.net, and though I thought it was crap while I was writing it, recently I have gone back to read it and discovered that's it's not as bad as I thought it was. Actually, it's rather good, especially as my first attempt at writing fanfic. I've gone back through and corrected most of my errors, fixed typos, made it clearer, etc. to improve upon the general atmosphere of the story. The plot, however, remains the same. If you like this, then afterwards feel free to go read the sequel, Beyond Paradise (currently still in progress as of 4/18/01, but I'm very nearly finished!) So, thank you again. This is dedicated to Mary and Liz, my two semi beta-readers and Harry Potter confidantes.
Dumbledore:
The Headmaster's Story
@---))-------------
*Prologue*
Professor Dumbledore watched as Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked out of the Great Hall after dinner, joking and laughing. How he was reminded of his own days as a student at Hogwarts! But those days were long over, past since over 60 years before. He rested his chin on the tips of his long fingers and gazed up at the Great Hall's enchanted ceiling, sprinkled with stars. His mind drifted back to a time unspoiled with the threat of Voldemort, a time long ago…
*
Albus Dumbledore sat tapping his long fingers on the arm of his seat. He was sitting in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express. His twin brother, Aberforth, shot him a glare from the other side of the compartment. Albus returned the look and continued gazing out of his window onto Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Suddenly, there was a commotion from the next compartment. Albus's best friend, Alastor Moody, had just backed into the compartment, his wand outstretched.
"And don't you ever try to curse me again!" he yelled into the other compartment, glaring at the occupants with extreme dislike. "Filthy Slytherins," he muttered, "Constant vigilance!" He turned. "Oh, hello Albus!" he said cheerfully, collapsing into the seat across from him.
"Alastor?" asked Albus wearily, "what happened this time?"
"Oh, that was nothing," said Moody, pocketing his wand, "It was just Magrius Malfoy again, trying to curse me with some hex. But I showed him!" he said triumphantly. Albus sighed.
"You know, Alastor," he said "if you just tried working out your problems with them instead of turning around and transfiguring them… I assume it was a frog? Or a ferret?"
"The ferret," said Alastor, looking quite pleased with himself, "I do pride myself on my ferrets. And my Hovering Charms." he added thoughtfully.
Aberforth snorted.
"You honestly think you can outsmart a Slytherin?" he sneered. "You Griffindors are all talk, no action." He stuck out his tongue at Moody.
"Engorgio!" said Moody lazily, waving his wand. Aberforth's tongue immediately began growing longer. Albus shook his head, and returned his twin's tongue to its regular size with a wave of his wand.
"I'm not saying he didn't deserve that, Alastor, but could you please at least wait until we leave the station?" His best friend usually had good intentions, but just had a habit of getting out of control. Usually being the key word.
Another person entering their compartment interrupted his thoughts.
"Ah, Miss Potter!" Alastor exclaimed. "You have decided to grace us with you presence this fine morning!"
"Oh, shut up Alastor!' she said, laughing, "My mum's car broke down 3 blocks away from the station, so I had to say goodbye to her there and drag my trunk and my brother all the way here. He's just starting this year, you know, so he whined the whole way about not getting to say goodbye to Mum!" Madeleine was not very fond of her brother, Joseph. He was quite annoying and was always trying to hug everyone. Maddy (as her friends called her) and her friends always found this quite irritating.
"By the way, has anyone seen Jo yet? She was supposed to meet me at the barrier at 10:30. But then there was the car incident…"
"No, Josephine has not made an appearance yet," said Alastor, joking again.
"Oh, stop it!" laughed Maddy, "I'm going to go find her," and she walked out of the compartment door.
"Maddy! Wait!" said Alastor, suddenly looking stricken "Not through there...!" and he was interrupted as a high scream came from the other compartment. Maddy walked back into the compartment.
"Thanks for warning me that the Slytherins were on the warpath, Alastor,"
she said sarcastically, "Malfoy nearly got me with the Cruciatus Curse. But, he came off the worse…" she trailed off as a half-purple, half-green finger rolled through the door. "I think I will be using that door," she pointed as she strode through the back. As her curly, dark-brown ponytail whipped through the door, Albus and Alastor grinned at each other. Maddy was the cleverest witch in their year and tended not to panic in a crisis. That had no doubt been Malfoy's scream. Aberforth looked very panicky.
"I'd better go make sure Magrius is alright!" and he ran off to the other compartment. Maddy returned with Josephine Marks, called Jo or Joey.
"Hello all!" said Jo, sitting down next to Maddy. "So what pranks are we planning for our 5th year?" The train started to pull away from the platform, and they all paused to wave out the window.
"Well, I did have something in mind…" said Albus, grinning. And so the plans began…
*
As the Hogwarts Express sped north, Albus, Alastor, Maddy, and Jo were deep in discussion. The Four (as the other Griffindors called them) were racking their minds for pranks to pull on their rivals, a gang of Slytherins who stalked the halls. All four had had dangerous run-ins with the group, several of which had ended up with both parties in the hospital wing. Albus was the cleverest student in the school, closely followed by Jo. All four were at the top of their year, and the Slytherins deeply despised this. Out of all of the four, Albus was the only one least willing for a brawl with the Slytherins. As he saw it, pulling out their wands at each other would solve none of their differences. But that didn't mean he couldn't defend himself if he had to. Albus was especially adept at Transfiguration, which meant that any fights picked by the Slytherins with Albus usually ended with him stepping casually over a cluster of some small objects (usually rocks or toads) in place of the Slytherins themselves. It was for this reason that when the gang of Slytherins headed by Magrius Malfoy barged in, they looked slightly uneasy at the sight of Albus crouched in discussion with his wand next to him.
"So, Magrius," said Alastor, standing up. "Can we help you with something?" He reached into his pocket and gripped his wand.
"Ah, Moody, Dumbledore, Marks, and Potter," growled the tall boy with ice-blond hair and a pale face, saying the latter with a slight sneer. Maddy reached into her pocket and pulled out her wand, fingering it dangerously. Magrius' sneer stopped abruptly.
"We meet again. What a coincidence…"
"Actually, it's not," said Jo icily, "You came and barged in here. We haven't even done anything to you."
"Yet!" Alastor coughed. Dumbledore was eyeing Magrius' minions carefully. He didn't think the Slytherins would purposely start a fight while they were still on the train, but you could never be quite sure with this gang. He put his hand on his wand.
"I suggest you get on with it, Malfoy," said Jo coolly, "You wouldn't want to become a nice little toad, now would you?" She grinned at Albus, who smiled back.
"Now, Marks," said Aberforth, stepping out from behind Malfoy, "You wouldn't want to learn what the Cruciatus Curse feels like, now would you?"
Albus shot his twin brother an icy glare.
"Remember, Aberforth," he said, his eyes shooting daggers at his twin, "you wouldn't even still be attending Hogwarts if Father didn't make me help you with your schoolwork." Aberforth turned red. He was at the bottom of their class, and would fail every subject if Albus didn't help him. Aberforth turned and ran out of the compartment, embarassed.
"As touching as this little chat has been, could you please leave our compartment now?" asked Maddy, her voice growing testy, "The stench is becoming unbearable."
At this, Magrius whipped out his wand and yelled "Crucio!" Albus, Alastor, and Jo all jumped up, but before any of them could do anything Maddy said (rather lazily) "Mirrorio!" A large reflective screen jumped out of her wand in front of her, and reflected the blast of green light that had just burst out of Malfoy's wand. It bounced back on him, and he screamed and collapsed on the floor, twitching. "Any other comments?" asked Maddy, a dangerous edge in her voice. The gang looked rather menacing, and started looming towards them. All at once, Maddy, Albus, Jo, and Alastor yelled "Expelliarmus!" The rest of the Slytherins looked quite shaken and dashed out of the compartment, chased by the four jets of red light that shot towards them. The Four kicked Malfoy out into the corridor and shut the door again. They sat back down, and grinned at each other. Jo laughed.
"That never gets old."
*
"Albus! Wake up! The Sorting's over!"
"What…?" Asked Albus groggily. He was sitting in between Maddy and Alastor with his head on his plate. Jo was sitting across from them. Next to her were their other friends Ally and Jordan Ettinger. They were twins, and the worst troublemakers in the school. They often teamed up with The Four to seek revenge on a certain gang of Slytherins.
"Hey Albie, did you know you snore?" asked Ally, smirking.
"Yeah, the whole Hall almost burst out laughing. You could barely hear the hat over the snores," said Jo through giggles. Albus looked around. He had been so exhausted after all of their hours of planning that he had fallen dead asleep as soon as they had reached the table. Almost everyone in the hall was snickering and looking at him, except for the teachers, who were looking quite unamused. Albus grinned.
"Sorry everyone!" he called, a smile twitching at his lips. Maddy, Alastor, Jo, and the twins burst out laughing. He caught the eye of the headmaster, Professor Entwistle, who gave him a very stern look. Still, behind it he thought he saw a glimmer of a smile, and the Professor gave him a subtle wink. Grinning, his eyes moved along the staff table, where the rest of his teachers sat. There was Professor Dippet, who taught Transfiguration and was head of Ravenclaw House; Professor Aubergine, who taught Defense Against the Dark Arts and was head of Griffindor House; Professor Flamel, who taught Potions; Professor McCaughlin, who taught Magical Games and Sports (A/N: i.e. Flying brooms, basic Quidditch, other stuff like that.) and was head of Hufflepuff House; Professor Mystyque, who taught Divination; Professor Saviza, who taught Arithmancy and was head of Slytherin House; and Professor Davis, who taught Charms. All were looking at him, but the only face that was not smiling was Professor Saviza's. The Arithmancy professor's face showed a look of intense dislike, even contempt. Albus knew this expression well. It was the one that the professor always wore when his gaze passed over Albus. He seemed to hate Albus because Albus was always volunteering answers in class and receiving top marks, and still seemed to have time and energy to get the better of the Slytherins. While Albus saw pride and admiration in all of his other professors' eyes, all he saw in Saviza's was a deep, burning desire to fail him and laugh at his defeat. Albus couldn't ignore that glare, even after 3 years of experiencing it. His mind was on it all through the feast, and he only broke away his thoughts when Alastor pulled him out of the Great Hall toward the Griffindor common room.
"Come on Albie," pleaded Maddy, "Just ignore him."
"Yeah," said Jo, "He's jealous of you. He's just trying to rattle your nerves."
Albus tried to find it in his heart to agree with his friends, to shrug it off. But he just couldn't. His biggest weakness was his desire to be admired by everyone, to be looked up to. Even the Slytherins, in their own slimy way, knew he was the best and respected him for that. But Professor Saviza held only disdain for Albus, and because of that Albus always took every glare from Saviza to heart. He sighed as they reached the familiar circular dormitory, and his mind was at rest. He was finally home.
*
Albus was flying over the countryside on his Silver Arrow racing broom. He swept lower and lower over what he recognized to be Hogwarts castle. As he flew, he saw 3 people walking on the grounds towards a hut near the edge of the forest that he did not recognize. As he flew lower, he saw that the 3 people were a boy with black hair and bright green eyes, a girl with bushy brown hair, and another boy with bright red hair. They were laughing.
"Albus, come on!" said Alastor, leaning over Albus' four poster and shaking him awake. "You wouldn't want to sleep through our first day back, would you?" He grinned roguishly.
"Huh?" asked Albus groggily. He turned over and looked at his alarm clock. It was 7 am.
"Oh my god!" gasped Albus, "We have 10 minutes before our first class! Why didn't you wake me up?"
"Because you looked so peaceful and innocent," said their fellow Griffindor 3rd year Patrick Flynn slyly, coming in the door carrying a stack of toast. "Here, I knew Alastor wouldn't wake you up, so I brought you food. And your class schedule." Patrick was the nicest of the 3rd years.
"Thanks loads," said Albus, pulling on his robes and reading his schedule at the same time. "Hey look!" he exclaimed, "We have Transfiguration first! I hope Dippet teaches us some better stuff this year. I've already figured out human Transfiguration."
"Don't rub it in," moaned Alastor. "I'm still working on the match-to-needle!" Alastor was best in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Transfiguration was not his strong suit.
Patrick looked anxious. "Sorry to cut you off, but we have…" he checked his watch "…exactly 3 minutes to get halfway across the castle to Dippet's classroom!"
The three boys dashed out of the door, Albus stopping to put down his toast.
Maddy sighed. She drummed her fingers on the desk impatiently, waiting for Albus and Alastor to arrive in Transfiguration.
"Stop it!" Jo hissed, on edge, "You're making me nervous!" Jo was slightly afraid of Professor Dippet. Maddy couldn't understand this. Personally, she thought the Professor was brilliant, if not a little strict at times.
"I was just wondering," said Maddy irritably, "where Albus and Alastor could be." She looked back at the door. "It's not like Albus to miss his favorite subject, especially on the first day!" As she said this, Albus skidded into the room closely followed by Alastor, just before the bell rang signaling the start of classes. Professor Dippet frowned slightly.
"Thank you for joining us, boys," he said. "If you been 2 seconds later, I would have had to mark you tardy." A faint smile tugged at his lips. "But you weren't. So I suggest we begin." He turned to the blackboard.
"Hey," said Alastor, sliding into the seat next to Jo. "Sorry we're late, but Albus here decided to sleep in a little." He grinned at Albus, who smiled apologetically.
"Ahem!" said Professor Dippet from the front of the room. The Four looked up quickly. "Thank you," he said. "Now as I was saying, attempts at Transfiguration when performing cross-specie switches can be especially dangerous, especially when the subject is…"
Maddy sighed as she gazed over at Albus. He was battling with an especially bouncy Bouncing Bulb in their Herbology lesson. As he twisted and struggled, trying to hold on, she looked at his deep brown hair, his bright blue eyes, his strong, handsome face. She thought angrily to herself, "Maddy, get a hold of yourself. He lives across the street from you! You've known him since you were in diapers! He put a flobberworm on your head when you were 5! You cursed him with a Jelly-Legs Jinx last year when he was presenting his History of Magic Report! You play pranks on the Slytherins together! He'd never like you as more than a friend! Get over it!" But she couldn't. Every time he grinned at her, every time he touched her arm or slung his arm around her shoulders, she felt like she would die of happiness. She winced as the Bouncing Bulb flew out of Albus' hands and smacked her on the cheek.
"Oh my gosh, Maddy!" exclaimed Albus running over. "I'm sorry! It just sort of got away from me. Stupid bulb," he muttered. "But what were you daydreaming about? You didn't seem to be paying attention at all."
"Um, well, I was…" stammered Maddy, blushing furiously. Thankfully, Jo coming over to make sure she was okay saved her.
"Maddy, I saw what happened," said Jo with concern. "Do you want to go get some ice from Madam Medicin?" Madam Medicin was the school nurse. She was French and extremely irritating.
"No, I'm fine, really," said Maddy, still blushing.
"But the reason that you're all red isn't just because of the Bouncing Bulb, now is it?" whispered Alastor slyly into Maddy's ear as the rest of the group turned back to their pots of soil. She turned away quickly and grinned inwardly.
*
Professor Dumbledore sat back in his leather desk chair. He was looking at a very old copy of the Daily Prophet, so old that he had had it since his days as a student at Hogwarts. The headline read:
"Grindelwald Strikes Again!
The infamy of the reign of the dark lord continues with the recent death of a female Griffindor student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
A silent tear dropped onto the already dry tear covered paper.
*
"So Harry, from now on please remember to keep your pranks on Mr. Malfoy down to a minimum. "
"Yes, Professor."
"All right. You may return to your common room. I am sure that Mr. Ron Weasley and Ms. Granger will be wondering why it is taking you so long to dye Mr. Malfoy's owl."
Harry got up and walked to the door. He stopped and turned back to the professor.
"Um, Professor?"
"Yes Harry?""Is Sirius going to be okay?"
"Harry, I honestly don't know. We can only hope…" He trailed off.
Harry turned and walked out of the door, closing it behind him.
Professor Dumbledore looked back at his desk, where a letter to Mad-Eye Moody sat, waiting to be sent:
Dear Alastor,
I hope you are well. Thank you for sending me an owl about the situation with Voldemort in Lithuania. Please inform Mr. Lupin that I will be arriving on Saturday morning at 9:00 to help look for Mr. Black.
Sincerely Yours,
Albus
The professor thought, and added a post script:
P.S. Do you remember The Four? I was just wondering.
He pulled out his Pensieve, and added a thought to the swirling, pearly white mist.
~*~
Jo was silently cursing herself for listening to her friends. She and Maddy were trying to break into the Slytherin Common Room with a quill and permanent iridescent ink in hand.
"Password, password, hmmm…" she muttered to herself, racking her brain for any idea of what the Slytherins might make their password. "Um, snake? No, that's not original enough. Um, Mudblood? No… Pureblood? No, that's not it…" She frowned.
"Shoot," cursed Maddy. "I guess it's time for plan B." Jo nodded and stepped back. Maddy threw her Invisibility Cloak over herself and Jo. The sat down about 10 feet away from the wall that was the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room and waited for the Slytherins to return from dinner. After about 20 minutes, Aberforth Dumbledore came walking down the corridor with his girlfriend, Diane Burgess. Jo and Maddy looked at each other and quickly muffled their giggles. Aberforth marched up to the wall and said importantly "Flobberworm." Maddy burst out laughing. Jo elbowed her in the ribs. Luckily, the rest of the Slytherins burst into the corridor at the same time that she started laughing, so no one heard her. As the mob of students crowded into the corridor, Jo pulled Maddy up and they ran farther down the corridor towards the dungeons, laughing hysterically.
Later when everyone was asleep, the two girls dragged Alastor and Albus back to the wall.
"Are you sure the password is Flobberworm?" asked Albus skeptically.
"Positive," said Jo.
"Yeah, we heard your darling brother say it, and the wall slid open," said Maddy. Albus flinched visibly at the mention of his twin.
"Let's get on with this," said Alastor impatiently, and he whispered "Flobberworm" to the wall. It slid open, and the Four ran inside. They entered a low ceilinged room with high-backed green chairs clustered around a blazing fire. Over the mantelpiece there was a huge portrait of a black haired man with a goatee and green eyes. His eyes seemed to glow in the dim room, and he shot the Four a sullen glare as they hurried over to the tunnel to the boy's dormitories. They ran down the tunnel until they reached the 3rd year room. Jo opened the door cautiously and they slid in. Albus glanced around the room and shivered. There were no windows, and the room contained 5 roughly carved four poster beds with pine-colored hangings. Maddy backed up against the wall and closed her eyes. She was extremely claustrophobic. Alastor pulled something out of Magrius' trunk and got to work. After 10 minutes, he stood up triumphantly.
"I'm done," he said, forgetting to keep his voice low. Immediately, a snort came from Magrius' bed, and he called, "Who's there?" Maddy gasped and ran towards the door. She tripped over a trunk and fell to the floor, her leg giving a crack. It was broken. Albus ran over and picked her up. They ran out and slammed the door, followed by the Slytherins' angry shouts. They slid out of the room and dashed up the passageway. Once they reached the entrance hall, they finally stopped running, Albus panting from carrying Maddy all the way up from the dungeons. He set her down on the stairs and collapsed down next to her. Alastor put the ink and quill back in the pocket of his robe. Maddy looked at her leg, gasped, and closed her eyes again.
"Ow…" she moaned. Jo looked concerned as she examined her leg, which was twisted in a sickening kind of way.
"Come on, Maddy," said Alastor, "We better get you up to the hospital wing." Albus nodded in agreement and stood up.
"I think I can hop up there," said Maddy, smiling slightly at Albus. His light blue eyes twinkled, and she blushed.
Madame Medicin was not pleased.
"I do not want to know why you were up at 2 o'clock in ze morning. No, Meester Dumbledore, no excuses! Potter, sit here. You will spend ze night here after I repair your leg. And you each of you will write a 12 inch essay on why it ees unhealthful for 15-year-olds to be up in ze early hours of ze morning."
"Can they at least stay here with me?" asked Maddy, wincing as Madame Medicin examined her leg.
"I do not sink dat ees…" she said, looking stern.
"Please?" asked Jo, and she and the two boys gave Madame Medicin their most innocent looks. Madam Medicin glanced at Maddy, who was staunchly refusing to look down at her leg.
"Oh, I suppose, but only if you are sure to wash your hands every 10 minutes, and to…" But she was cut off by the cheers of the Four. She sighed and pulled out her wand. She "Potter, hold steel! Zees might hurt for a moment." And she put the tip of her wand on Maddy's leg, muttered "Reparo la jambe", there was a flash of blue light, and Maddy gasped in pain, squeezing her eyes shut. "There," said the nurse. "Now get in bed! And if I hear one peep out of any of you…" she shot a menacing glare at the Four, and walked back to her office, muttering, "Je suis ne pas mechante! Je suis tres gentille, et je…" The Four looked at each other and shrugged. Maddy rolled down her pajamas and slid under the covers, wincing as her leg bumped the side of the bed.
"Whose idea was this, anyway?" she whispered. She, Jo, and Albus all looked at Alastor.
"It'll all be worth it when you see Malfoy tomorrow. Today, actually." He grinned, and snickered quietly. Maddy looked skeptical.
The next morning, after Maddy let the nurse examine her leg again, the Four went down to breakfast. Just as they were starting on their porridge and toast, Magrius walked in and came over to the Griffindor table.
"I know you were in my dormitory last night," he growled, "But unfortunately, everyone except for my friends refuses to believe that the great Dumbledore and his little clique of Griffindor trash would ever do anything like that." He sneered. Albus stood up and pulled out his wand. The one thing that really threw him over the edge was when anyone made fun of him and his friends.
"Take that back," he hissed, pointing his wand directly between Malfoy's eyes. Professor Entwistle, who could spot trouble very quickly, stood up at the staff table and started walking quickly down towards the two boys. Malfoy glanced at him. He hissed, "You'll pay for this, Dumbledore!" and slithered over to the Slytherin table. Professor Entwistle reached the table.
"Was there a problem here, Mr. Dumbledore?" he asked sternly. Albus shook his head.
"No, Headmaster," he replied, "Mr. Malfoy was just asking for some help with human transfiguration. I was going to give him a demonstration, but he suddenly felt a head cold coming on, I think. There was no trouble." He smiled innocently at the headmaster.
"Good," he Professor, "then make sure it stays that way!" he snapped, and turned back to the staff table. Albus shook his head.
"What's his problem?" he muttered to Maddy, staring indignantly after Professor Entwistle.
"He's actually a witch in disguise," hissed Maddy, grinning.
Jo looked over at Maddy and Albus across the table, who were sitting close together and whispering. She nudged Alastor. "Wouldn't they be so cute together?" she asked. Alastor nodded.
"The problem is, neither one of them will admit that they like each other. But you're right, it is fate."
"What is?" asked Albus, glancing across at his best friend.
"Oh nothing," said Alastor, looking slyly at the pair across from him, "But look at Malfoy! He doesn't even know." He was referring to the iridescent lettering on the back of his robes that read "I am a 5th year loser." The four started laughing hysterically, Albus with his arm slung around Maddy's shoulder.
*
Albus was sitting in History of Magic, staring out the window at the thick snowflakes falling from the puffy gray clouds above the school. As he began to doze off and dream about mugs of hot chocolate and presents under a tree, Maddy hit him with an Every Flavor Bean in the back of the head. As he turned around, she looked away and pretended to be extremely interested in Professor Binns' lecture about the Salem Witch Trials. Albus, however, was not fooled, and retaliated by balling up a piece of parchment and bounced it off of her head. Maddy looked mock-horrified. As a small war waged between Maddy and Albus, Alastor was sitting carving something into his desk. Jo looked over his shoulder and read it.
"Ooh, they're gonna KILL you!" she squealed. Maddy and Albus looked up from their war.
"What?" asked Maddy, looking over Alastor. She stared in horror. "You are going to PAY!" she shrieked, and chased him out into the corridor, brandishing her wand. The class woke up and all turned towards the hall, where Maddy could be heard cursing Alastor and chasing him towards the entrance hall. Albus and Jo ran after them. Professor Binns continued writing features of the Witch Trials on the board.
Professor Dumbledore was conducting his annual observation of the classes. He went into the History of Magic Classroom, where he saw Harry, Hermione, and Ron gazing out of the window with their eyes half-open. As he passed an empty desk, something drew his attention to a certain engraved carving in the desktop.
Albus + Maddy = Love Forever
The Four were outside Saturday, engaged in a snowball fight with Patrick Flynn, and their fellow Gryffindors Samantha Meade, Jonathan Wood, Steven Ward, and Marie Delacour, who was an exchange student from Beauxbatons Academy in France. About half of the school population was outside, due to the fact that it had snowed again just the night before. Albus snuck up behind Maddy and put a handful of snow down the back of her cloak. She shrieked and spun around, shoving a handful of snow in his face. He reached for some more snow and began to make a ball. Maddy dashed off towards the lake, with Albus hot in pursuit. Maddy tripped over a snowdrift and rolled over in the snow. Albus tackled her, and they rolled around in the snow, laughing hysterically. They finally got tired and lay motionless next to each other.
Jo and Alastor grinned at each other. The rest of the group stopped and stared after the pair.
"Did something just 'appen 'ere?" asked Marie, looking bewildered.
"I think so," said Jo slyly. They watched as Maddy leaned over and poked Albus in the side, who doubled up laughing.
"Hello all!" called Jordan Ettinger, who trotted over to the group with Ally, a group of Ravenclaws in tow. "Come on! We can have a snowball fight, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw!" The group turned around, with one last look at Albus and Maddy's tickling contest.
~ ~ ~
Christmas Vacation was a welcome break for all the students at Hogwarts. The Four always stayed over the holidays, the more opportunity to play pranks! Christmas Day was quite relaxing.
**The Four's Christmas**
7:00 AM- Albus and Alastor are roughly woken by Maddy and Jo jumping from bed to bed, yelling "Oi! Presents!"
7:13 AM- The boys finally are persuaded to get out of bed. They begin to open their presents.
7:30 AM- Maddy decides to test out her cosmetics that she received from Jo on Albus.
7:45- Maddy and Jo decide that Albus looks best in purple eyeshadow. Alastor backs into his bedside table as they round on him, brandishing lipsticks and wands.
8:00- The Four head down to breakfast, Albus and Alastor makeup free. They are greeted by a gang of Slytherins in the Entrance Hall, 5 of whom end up in the hospital wing.
8:45- Maddy and Alastor are stuffed, while Jo and Albus are getting fifth helpings of smoked sausages.
9:00- The Four take a walk around the ice-covered lake.
1:00 PM- Albus is sitting lazily in the common room, conjuring random objects and transfiguring them into clusters of mistletoe. Maddy walks by on her way to the library and shakes her head. She doesn't even want to ask.
3:00- Alastor is caught putting whoopee coushins on all on the seats at the Slytherin table. He is dragged to the caretaker, Ergus Falton's office, where he is rescued from being hung by his ankles from the ceiling by Albus armed with a dungbomb.
4:00- Jo is sitting on the marble staircase in the entrance hall, trying to think of ways to hook up Maddy and Albus.
5:30- Aberforth Dumbledore is caught trying to sneak into Gryffindor Tower with his girlfriend. Professor Aubergine sentences them to two weeks of cleanup duty after dinner in Great Hall, using no magic.
6:30- Albus receives an angry letter from his father, demanding an explanation for why Aberforth's grades are dropping. He throws it into the fire and thoroughly enjoys watching it shrivel up and burn.
7:45- Jo, Alastor, and the Ettinger twins attempt to lock Maddy and Albus in an empty classroom together. They fail horribly, and somewhere in the attack everyone ends up covered in green slime.
8:30- Another attempt. This time, the "cupids" are successful.
9:45- Tired of waiting for Albus and Maddy to come out, the "cupids" go to bed.
10:55- Maddy and Albus walk out of the classroom, very close together. Maddy shivers and Albus wraps his arm around her.
~ ~ ~
The next morning, Alastor and Jo grin at each other when Albus and Maddy arrive together in the Great Hall for breakfast.
*
Professor Mystyque was crystal gazing in her empty classroom at the top of North Tower when she saw something that shocked her. It was a mysterious prophecy, appearing in red letters inside of the Orb.
He will succeed, he will defeat
And the Dark One he will beat
But hence, beware
His true love there
She could be the one true heir
But she will suffer at the hands of darkness
And die
The Orb was picked up and smashed against the table by a gloved hand. The professor fell to the floor in a dead faint. A cloaked and hooded figure swept out of the room.
~ ~ ~
The holidays were over. This was an unwelcome event for everyone except Maddy, due to the fact that her birthday was January 14th. She was excited, but she felt the best present of all was that she and Albus were now going out, if sneaking around the castle and a few hurried "snogging" sessions after they finished their homework was considered going out. The first trip of the new year to Hogsmeade was the day before her birthday, so her friends made her stay in the castle while they went out to pick out her presents. She was catching up on her Divination homework, which she had put off to the last minute, in the Great Hall (she found it easier to work at the Gryffindor table when the whole hall was empty, for some strange reason.) when she was ambushed from behind by someone.
"Argh!" she screamed, as a hand covered her mouth.
"Ha ha, you fell for it!" giggled a familiar voice. Maddy turned her head and saw the familiar identical devilish grins. It was Ally and Jordan Ettinger. She bit Ally's hand and she uncovered her mouth.
"That was so not funny you guys!" she exclaimed, though she was holding back giggles. "I seriously thought it was one of the Slytherins or something, trying to attack me!"
"Yeah, well, sorry about that," said Jordan, looking apologetic. "We just saw you in here and couldn't resist."
Maddy shook her head. "Well, I'd better put this up in the dormitories, dinner is about to start." On her way up, she met up with the rest of the Four coming back down.
"Hey, Maddy!" said Jo, "You're coming to dinner, right?"
"Yeah, I just have to put this upstairs, then I'll be right down. Save my spot?" Albus nodded.
"Of course." And he kissed her on the cheek before continuing down the corridor. Jo winked at Alastor.
Albus and Maddy seemed to be going for the make-out record.
"For two people who a month ago wouldn't even admit they liked each other, those two seem to have gotten over the awkwardness barrier," Jo observed lightly.
"Get real, Joey," said Alastor, looking up from his book on Animagi. "They've know each other since they were in diapers. Maddy has been friends with Albus even longer than I have. They live across the street from each other, for crying out loud! There was never any awkwardness between them. Plus, we both know it was fate."
"Those two seem to be busy," said Patrick, coming over.
"Yeah, they're going for a record," said Alastor sarcastically.
Professor Aubergine walked into the common room. Her eyes scanned the room. "Potter! Dumbledore!" Maddy slid off Albus's lap quickly. "I need to see you both in my office." Maddy and Albus exchanged a glance. They hoped this wasn't about the kissing.
When they got to Prof. Aubergine's office, they sat in chairs opposite from her, in front of her desk.
"Now, this may come as a shock to both of you, but we have reason to believe that there was a prophecy made some years back."
"So?" asked Albus impatiently. He seemed to be quite perturbed that the professor had interrupted their make out session.
"Well," said Professor Aubergine, looking solemn, "We believe it might be about you." Albus and Maddy gave her questioning looks. "I can't tell you why right now, but for safety reasons, I must insist that you stay inside the castle at all times, except if you are in classes. Do you understand me? And no more nighttime wanderings around the castle either!" Maddy stood up to reply back angrily, but Albus just said, "Come on, Maddy," and he pulled her out by the wrist. The professor sighed and stared at the closed door, thinking.
"I still don't understand why Aubergine thinks that prophecy was about us!" said Maddy indignantly. "And now we can't even go out in the snow anymore!" She pushed away Albus, who was trying to kiss her again.
"Come on, it's not so bad…" said Alastor, trying to make his steaming friend feel better.
"Easy for you to say!" she snapped, "Some birthday this is."
"It's not even your birthday yet," said Albus soothingly.
"Yeah, wait until you see what Albie got you!" exclaimed Jo. "You'll forget all about not being able to go outside. Plus, it's probably only temporary."
"I guess," said Maddy, "but she could have at least told us the prophecy!"
"Well, we have Divination on Monday, don't we?" said Alastor. "We can ask Professor Mystyque then."
"Yeah," said Albus, and he grinned at Maddy.
~ ~ ~
Maddy was watching the men through a small window. There was a man dressed in dark, forest green robes, and a hooded man wearing all black. They seemed to be discussing something. Maddy thought the room looked familiar, it looked like one of the Hogwarts classrooms. The man in black bowed to the other man and strode out. The man in green turned towards the window, and Maddy gasped as she saw his face. He had red eyes.
Maddy's eyes snapped open.
"Happy birthday!" Albus, Jo, and Alastor yelled, and she shook her head and put her pillow over it.
"Come on!" said Jo, "Don't you want to open your presents?" Maddy perked up.
"Presents?" she asked, and jumped up to see a pile of gifts at the foot of her bed. She hopped up.
"There's the Maddy we all know and love." Said Alastor, and he shoved a parcel wrapped in silver paper into her hands. She eagerly pulled off the paper, revealing a book. The title was "1000 Magical Jokes and Pranks". She laughed.
"Great, this'll come in handy against the Slytherins." She opened Jo's present next. It was a charm bracelet with 3 charms on it – a star, a tiny book, and a cat. "A cat?" she asked curiously. She loved cats, but didn't have one of her own. Jo smiled mysteriously. Maddy decided to save Albus' present for last. She opened a present from her parents (a new bag and a small birthday cake), one from her older brother, Matthew, who was already out of Hogwarts and was married (a necklace with a miniature rose inside the pendant), and a present from her younger brother, Joseph, who was in Hufflepuff (a book on advanced Transfiguration). Finally, Albus gently picked up his box and handed it to Maddy. It was a red box with holes in it. She opened the lid and squealed with delight. Inside was a calico kitten, fast asleep, with a gold bow around its neck. "Aww, this is the best present I've ever gotten!" She hugged Albus and kissed him on the cheek. "I think I'll name it Lucky, because I'm so lucky to have such a sweet boyfriend!" Albus beamed.
*
The notice was posted on the wall opposite from the entrance to Great Hall. Jo, as the tallest of the Four (5'11), stood on tiptoe to look over the clusters of the groaning students in front of them. She read it out loud to the other three.
"From now on, no students are allowed outside unsupervised by a teacher. This is in effect as a safety measure. Thank you for your cooperation." Maddy groaned loudly.
"You know why they're doing this, don't you? It's because of that stupid prophecy! I wish Aubergine would just give up on that!" She made a violent motion towards the Great Hall, where Professor Aubergine was eating breakfast. Albus and Jo held her back.
"Maddy, it's okay!" said Alastor with concern. "We won't have time to go out anyways. Remember how much homework we have?" Maddy relaxed slightly. "Come on, I'm starving! Let's go eat!" he said, and they walked inside.
Sitting in Arithmancy, Albus could hardly concentrate. When Professor Saviza growled at him for the answer to a particularly hard question, he blinked and looked down at his paper. "Um, the ratio of y plus r5 equals 345x minus 677." Saviza growled and nodded slightly. Albus couldn't keep his mind off of the prophecy. He didn't even know what it said, but he got a very strange feeling about it. Maddy poked him.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Albus didn't want to stir up Maddy's temper by mentioning the prophecy, so he just said, "Oh, I was just thinking about the best way to play a prank on Saviza." Alastor and Jo leaned over and cheered. Saviza shot daggers with his eyes at the Four. Just then the bell rang, signaling the end of class. Albus jumped up and dashed out the door. "Divination is next!" he called, dragging Maddy behind him.
It took the Four quite a while to get Professor Mystyque alone in the class. She seemed quite jumpy, and was not her usual airheaded self. She was very shifty, and kept glancing around the room, as if she was looking for an intruder lurking in the dark corners. After she had instructed the class to read and interpret their partners' palms, she retreated to her gauzy-lace covered desk. There, she was cornered by the Four.
"Er, can I help you Mr. Dumbledore, Miss Potter?" she asked, looking cross and worried at the same time.
"Yes, Professor," said Jo, elbowing Albus as he began to reply harshly. He was looking dangerously fierce, which was unusual for the usually most peaceful member of the Four. The expression on Maddy's face was one of bitterness, probably at the fact that Mystyque had been the one to reveal the prophecy. Jo was rather good at Divination, unlike the other three, who excelled most at the more academic subjects like Transfiguration and Arithmancy. She felt bad for the professor, who at the time looked quite defenseless. "We would like to know about the prophecy that you discovered a few days ago." Mystyque shuddered.
"Why is that of any importance to you?" she snapped, sounding quite unlike herself. She was still shaking slightly.
"Because we were told that it was about us!" growled Albus, rapidly losing his patience. He was anxious to find out what was such a big deal about some stupid prophecy.
"Yes, I might have surmised that," said Professor Mystyque, sounding much more serious. She straightened up and shuffled through some papers on her desk. "Let's see, I wrote it down here somewhere…" Alastor sneezed. He seemed quite allergic to the perfumed smoke that filled North Tower. "Ah, here it is. I found it quite disturbing." She handed a scrap of parchment to Albus. He read it out loud.
He will succeed, he will defeat
And the Dark One he will beat
But hence, beware
His true love there
She could be the one true heir
But she will suffer at the hands of darkness
And die
After he was done, Mystyque shuddered again. "Professor?" asked Jo, "If you don't mind me asking, why were you so disturbed by this? It doesn't have anything to do with you…"
"Well, there is something I haven't told you," said the professor, sounding scared once again, "You have heard on the dark wizard Grindelwald?" The Four nodded. "Well, we have reason to believe that this prophecy is about him. Meaning that he would be "The Dark One" mentioned."
"Is there anything else?" asked Maddy, regaining composure.
"Actually, yes." The professor looked uncomfortable. "I was crystal gazing when this appeared in my orb. As soon as I had finished reading it, someone came from behind me and smashed my orb."
"Did you see who it was?" asked Alastor eagerly.
"No," said Mystyque. "But I do remember thinking that no one except a member of the staff or a student could have gotten up here to my room… the ladder is charmed to let up only people that are supposed to be here."
*
"Master, they know of the prophecy."
"What? How did this happen?"
"I do not know master. The Divination witch told them."
"You were instructed to destroy the orb and erase her memory!"
"There was no time. When I smashed the orb, it attracted people… "
"I will not tolerate excuses!"
"Master… I am sorry…"
"Crucio!"
~ ~ ~
"I still don't know what that has to do with us!" Maddy whined. She was becoming quite unbearable.
"Maddy, stop being such a brat!" yelled Alastor, and she shrunk back. Albus and Jo looked shocked. Alastor never blew up at anybody. But no one seemed more surprised than Alastor himself.
"Maddy, I'm so sorry," he said, with a look of disbelief, "I'm just feeling so stressed, you know? Everything is happening at once!"
"Yeah, I can relate to that!" said Jo, and Maddy looked at her, surprised. "We're just worried about both of you!" Jo exclaimed. "If you'd seen what I have in the Orb…" she trailed off. Maddy and Albus looked at each other. Jo was excellent at Divination, and her predictions always seemed to come true.
"Joey?" asked Maddy tentatively, "What exactly did you see?" Jo shuddered.
"There are dark days coming," she said softly, "And…" she gulped, "One of us will not survive them. That is all I have seen. I do not know who, but I heard someone's voice saying 'One of the Four'."
Albus, Maddy, and Alastor stared.
Albus was lying on his four poster, thinking about the prophecy. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he remembered his grandmother saying something to him, when he was about 8 or 9.
"No matter what happens to me, remember one thing- you have the potential to be the greatest wizard who has ever lived. A great destiny awaits you."
Albus remembered with a shock that those had been the last word his grandmother had ever spoken. She had died moments later of cancer, which even magic cannot heal. Alastor walked in.
"Hey, what's up Albie?"
Albus shook his head to rid himself of the memories.
"Nothing."
Albus shook his head knowingly. "You're worried about the prophecy. I can tell."
"You know me too well."
"That's why I'm your best friend. Oh, the reason I came up here is that Maddy wants to talk to you. I think she wants to apologize for acting like such a brat lately." Albus got up and went downstairs. Alastor glanced around the room. He sat on the floor between his and Albus' beds and pulled out a quill. He absentmindedly scrawled something on the wall next to Albus' bed, near the floor.
Maddy and Albus were making up rapidly. Jo watched with interest for about 10 minutes, until she was interrupted by Marie Delacour.
"Jo, I have somesing I wish to tell you," she said, looking shiftily around the room. "But not 'ere. Can we go up to ze dormitory?"
Jo was surprised, but she got up. "Er, sure Marie."
They reached their dormitory. The walls were painted lavender, and the beds were brass with dark blue velvet hangings. There were 5 armoires and a large full-length mirror. A door led of to the bathroom on the side.
"What is it, Marie?" asked Jo, sitting down on her bed. Marie looked around to make sure there was no one else in the room.
"I have never told anyone zis before, but I cannot keep zis to myself any longer. My sister is… a veela." She gulped. Jo looked relieved.
"Oh, that's okay Marie," she sighed, "I thought you knew something about the prophecy."
"Prophecy?" asked Marie, looking quite confused.
"Oh, it's nothing," said Jo, "Just a stupid prediction." Marie nodded and left. Jo wished she could believe what she had said.
Albus and Maddy were still making up when Albus' owl flew in with a letter from his mother. Albus said, "One second Maddy, this won't take long," and ripped the open the envelope. The letter read:
- Dear Albus,
Your father is very ill. I have written to Professor Dippet, and he has agreed to let you and your brother come home for a week. You are to go to the Hogsmeade station on January 30th at 9 AM.
Love From,
Mum
Albus felt shocked. Even though he was frequently mad at his father for yelling at him for getting such good grades (quite a stupid reason to disagree with someone, over good grades!), he still loved him and was becoming increasingly more worried. It was impossible for anyone to not love their father, even a little. He sat back and stared at the fire, as though he was trying to stare through it. Maddy noticed, and peered into his eyes with concern.
"Albie, what's wrong?" He just looked at her and handed her the letter. She read it quickly, and looked back up at him, her hazel eyes wide in her face. "Oh, Albie…" She wrapped her arms around him, "I hope he's okay…" Maddy had known the Dumbledores since she was a baby. They were like second parents to her. She remembered going over there during the summer when she was little and eating breakfast with them. Mr. Dumbledore always seemed to like her, even though he was frequently annoyed with Albus because he thought he was showing off. He called her "Little Miss Maddy" and treated her like his own daughter, especially when Matthew had been going through his especially rough adolescence and she was scared of all the yelling. Also when Joseph was a baby and she tired of the crying. The Dumbledores were always there for her. And now Mr. Dumbledore was extremely ill. "Albus, will you be okay for a while?" she asked. He nodded silently. "I'll be back soon!" And she dashed out of the common room. She ran around twists and turns, through corridors and up staircases until she reached the gargoyle that blocked the entrance to the Headmaster's study. She knocked sharply on the gargoyle's chest.
"Hello?" she called through the stone, "Hello? Headmaster? Can you hear me?" The gargoyle sprang to life and moved aside, revealing Professor Dippet standing there, eyes twinkling.
"Miss Potter?" he asked, "Can I help you?"
"Er, yes," she said, "I need to speak to the headmaster." The professor nodded.
"I assume this is about Mr. Albus Dumbledore's situation?" he asked. Maddy nodded.
"I was going to ask the headmaster if I could go home with Albus. I mean, Mr. Dumbledore is like a second father to me. And I live right across the street from them too, so I can stay with my family. I just want to make sure he's okay." The professor looked like he understood.
"I'll go up with you." He said. "The headmaster tends to get moody at this time of the day." They stood on the spiraling staircase that moved slowly upwards. As they entered the headmaster's office, he stood up.
"Ah, Miss Potter." He glanced at her, seeming to read her mind. "This is about Mr. Dumbledore, isn't it?" Maddy nodded. She was thinking - Is this published somewhere, or am I that easy to read? She told him about her idea.
"I quite understand, Miss Potter," he said, "You will be excused from all classes next week, the week of January 30th. I will inform your professors of your absence." She nodded and got up to go. "One more thing, before you go," he said suddenly, rather sharply, "I will not tolerate any reports of misdemeanor from either of you while on the train. Is that understood?" He looked stern.
"Yes Headmaster," she said, and walked quickly out of the office, Professor Dippet following her and closing the door behind them. She sighed with relief that they had gotten out before Entwistle's mood swing had taken full effect. As they reached the entrance out through the gargoyle, Professor Dippet said, "You might want to go up to Gryffindor Tower and start packing now, Maddy. The train leaves tomorrow at 9AM. I wish you the best of luck." Maddy ran back up to the common room to tell Albus.
*
The train ride was unusually solemn. The train was full of wizarding families with little children going on holiday. As the sounds of children running past their compartment and laughing, Maddy squeezed Albus's shoulder. He looked at her, and spoke for the first time since he had gotten the letter.
"He has to be okay," he said slowly, "He just has to! I don't know what I'll do if…" and he trailed off and rested his head on Maddy's shoulder. She kissed the top of it, and stroked his auburn hair.
"It'll be okay," she said, wishing she could sound more reassuring. Albus looked up at her, his bright blue eyes filled with worry.
"I sure hope so."
*
Harry was sitting in his dormitory, looking at his picture album of his parents. Suddenly, something caught his eye. It was a small message, written on the bottom part of the wall next to his bed, near the floor. It read:
The Four Forever
*
"Have you fulfilled your task?"
"Yes, Master. The man has been taken care of."
"Now it is only a matter of time?"
"Yes, Master. He will die."
"Excellent. We grow closer to the boy."
~
Mrs. Potter picked up Albus, Maddy, and Aberforth (who had been alone in another compartment) at Paddington Station. The entrance to the platform there for the Hogsmeade Railway was hidden in a janitor's closet that no one else could see on the upper level. Maddy's mother seemed almost as upset as Maddy, because she and Maddy's father were also very good friends with the Dumbledores. Maddy gave her mother a tight hug, and Mrs. Potter gave each of them a kiss. Aberforth stiffened visibly.
"I'm sorry your mother wasn't here to greet you, boys," she said with regret, "But she's been quite distraught ever since your father became ill." Albus nodded to show he understood, but Aberforth just looked away, glaring at the train coming in at the platform across from them. She turned, and they followed her out to the parking lot. The ride home was very solemn and quiet. Albus was arguing with himself mentally.
He'll be all right! he thought I know he will! But another voice seemed to have awoken in the back of his brain. Then why do you have such a bad feeling about this? And is it just a coincidence that this is happening right after you learned about that prophecy? Albus felt his immense weariness overtake his mind, and he fell asleep, his head leaning on Maddy's shoulder. She sighed and stared out the window, not really seeing the buildings flashing by.
Jo was flying over London. She could see the Dumbledore's house. As she flew closer and closer, she could hear the sound of sobbing. She flew down into Albus' house. Maddy and Albus were there, along with Mrs. Dumbledore, Aberforth, and Maddy's parents. Albus was hugging his mother very tightly, while she sobbed uncontrollably. Suddenly, the scene melted away. Jo was now seeing an underground room. Two men were there, discussing something. Suddenly, one of them turned around and stared straight at Jo. She screamed. He had glowing red eyes. Jo screamed again as he raised his wand and bellowed a curse.
"Avada Kedavra!"
"Jo?" She opened her eyes. She was lying on the floor of the Charms classroom. She tried to stand up.
"Maddy… Albus… Help…" she gasped. She felt her knees go weak, and she was shaking violently. She felt someone catch her as the floor seemed to tilt and her knees buckled.
"What happened?" "Is she okay?" "What's wrong?" Jo saw the concerned faces of her classmates crowding around, trying to look at her.
"Come on, Joey," said a familiar, slightly gruff voice. Alastor. He half dragged, half carried her away from all of the concerned whispers and questions. After moving quickly through the corridors, they reached the hospital wing. Alastor knocked awkwardly with his elbow on the door.
"Madam Medicin! A little help here?" The nurse opened the door.
"Mon Dieu!" She pulled Jo, who still could not see straight, to a bed. As she gently placed the covers over her, she interrogated Alastor.
"What 'appened?"
"I don't really know. We were just sitting in Charms, and Professor Davis stepped out for a moment to speak with Professor Dippet. He instructed us to practice our cheering charms. Jo fell asleep, which is quite unlike her to do in class. She just sort of nodded off. I didn't really want to wake her; she's been so worried about Albus and Maddy lately. Anyway, she screamed and fell out of her chair. That was when I brought her up here."
Professor Davis came in the hospital wing door, closely followed by Professor Dippet.
"Mr. Moody? Miss Marks? What happened?" Madam Medicin explained it in a hushed voice.
" 'e says 'e does not know what 'appened to 'er," said the nurse, sounding unconvinced. As Alastor looked indignant, Professor Dippet walked over to the bed that Jo was lying on.
"Miss Marks? Jo?" She opened her eyes wearily. "Can you tell me what you saw, what you dreamed about?" Jo shook her head, trying to rid her mind of the thick fog that threatened to engulf it.
"Maddy… Albus… Help…" she repeated hoarsely. The professor looked concerned.
"Was it something about Miss Potter and Mr. Dumbledore?" Jo nodded. With extreme effort, she tried to explain.
"Maddy and Albus… something to do the prophecy… Mr. Dumbledore is sick, saw after he died…" she stopped for breath, and Madam Medicin moved over to the bed.
"Professor, I must insist zat you leave at once!" she hissed. "Marks is my patient! She needs-" The Professor held up his hand to silence her.
"Was there more?" Jo nodded again.
"Two men… talking about Mr. Dumbledore, I think… one turned… saw he had red eyes… I screamed… he shouted the killing curse…" She stopped and looked up.
"Avada Kedavra?" said Professor Davis, looking surprised. Madam Medicin flinched. Professor Dippet looked thoughtful.
"Red eyes?" he asked, seeming to talk to himself. He straightened up. "I am going to speak with the headmaster," he said, striding towards the door. "I will see you all later. Jo, I hope you feel better. Alastor, if you wish to stay here with Jo you may." He walked out, followed by Professor Davis. Madam Medicin shook her head. She poured Jo a glass of water and handed it to her, along with a pill.
"Take this, and zen go to sleep!" she ordered, and stalked back to her office. Alastor leaned back in his chair, watching Jo.
"You saw something?" he asked, "And you think it has to do with the prophecy?" She nodded, her vision clearing.
"I just can't shake this feeling that something really bad is going to happen soon," she said quietly, "And the prophecy and visions aren't really helping." Alastor looked thoughtful.
"Well, you'd better take a nap," he said, "Otherwise, I think Medicin is likely to attack us." Jo grinned, and settled back onto her pillows.
~
"Oh Albus!" Mrs. Dumbledore ran and threw her arms around her son. Aberforth had already raced upstairs to see their father.
"What's the matter with Dad?" asked Albus, sounding muffled.
"We don't know! One day he just came home from work looking ill. The doctor said it might have been in something he ate… we've tried antidotes to every poison that we can think of … they just seem to make it worse." She wiped her bright blue eyes, which Albus had inherited, with a sodden lavender handkerchief. "And he's been getting worse. I think you had better go up and see him." Albus nodded and slowly climbed the stairs up to his parent's room. Aberforth was there, sitting in a chair next to the bed, quietly talking with his father.
"Albus!" called Mr. Dumbledore hoarsely to where Albus was standing awkwardly leaning against the doorjamb. Albus walked over slowly.
"Aberforth, I need to talk to Albus alone. Remember what I said." He gave Aberforth a weak smile, and motioned Albus to the chair next to the bed. Aberforth scowled and walked out of the room.
"Son, I know we haven't always gotten along." He started. In spite of himself, Albus snorted, and smiled slightly. "Okay, more like never. It's just that, you are so different from me. I can just relate more to how your brother feels, to what he's going through." Albus was not surprised. His father had been in Slytherin, and not one of the best students in his year. "You are so much like your mother. Did you ever wonder how we fell in love?" Albus nodded. He had always wondered why his parents had married. His mother had been in Gryffindor, and at the top of her class at Hogwarts.
"When I was a student at Hogwarts, the rivalry between the Houses, especially Gryffindor and Slytherin, was even fiercer than it is now. If you even talked to or looked at a person from a rival house, it was the deepest of shame. So, I never had a chance to meet your mother. And even if we had met, she probably would have looked down on me because I was a poor student. It wasn't that I was stupid or bad at magic, I just couldn't be bothered to turn in assignments or study, and I was what the teachers called 'a troublemaker'. Still, I could have easily been top of my class.
After we graduated, everything changed. The playing field was leveled, so to speak. Everyone was basically the same as everyone else. Houses didn't matter anymore, nor did grades. I was immediately offered a job at the ministry, due to the fact that the one time I had actually studied for a test had been before my N.E.W.T.s. I had received top marks, to everyone's surprise except my own. Anyway, I began work right away in the Department of International Magical Cooperation. I moved up through the ranks until I finally reached the position that I am at today, the head of the department. But that's not the point. The fact is that I met your mother one cold day in the Leaky Cauldron. I was on assignment to research flying carpets in Diagon Alley, and your mother was writing an article on broomsticks. She was an intern then at the Daily Prophet. We met at the bar; we were both drinking butterbeer. I don't really remember the details. She made a comment, I laughed and replied. We made a date, one thing led up to another, and next thing we knew we were married and had two twin boys." He leaned back against his pillows, seeming to be finished.
"Wow, I never knew," said Albus, feeling shocked. "I always figured on a love potion or something…" His father laughed.
"Your mother always joked about me, saying I must have put a love potion in her butterbeer that day. But, I regret to say, it was all purely natural attraction." Albus and Mr. Dumbledore laughed together, for the first (and perhaps last) time. They stopped quickly, though, for Mr. Dumbledore started coughing. Albus handed him a glass of water, and he stopped.
"This brings me to what I was going to tell you." He said gravely. Albus looked up. "When I am gone, it's up to you to take care of Aberforth. And your mother too. I love her more than life itself." Albus motioned as if to question him, but his father silenced him. "It is because I know I can trust you. You are loyal, independent, intelligent, brave – all of the things I never was. It is because of this that I want you to do this for me. And take care of your mother especially. I can't bear to think of what will happen to her after," he paused, "After I am gone." Albus shook his head.
"No, Dad. You aren't going to die. You can't leave us now." He stared down at the floor in defiance.
"Albus, look at me." Albus raised his eyes very unwillingly and met his father's gaze. "I will always be with you and our family. Forever." He pulled him into a hug, and Albus closed his eyes. He couldn't believe this was happening. This was the sort of thing that happened to other people, and you pitied them but never thought it would happen to you. He felt like running outside into the snow and yelling I've got news for you all! Everyone who thinks this won't happen to you! It can! It happened to me and it's no fricken party! His father shook his head wearily.
"Oh, Albus," he said hoarsely again, "Make sure your brother graduates from Hogwarts. Just so he can get a fresh start after." Albus nodded fervently.
"I will, I promise."
"Please get your mother. I have one last thing to say to her."
"Last…?" he choked, and ran out of the room. "Mum! Mum, come quickly! It's Dad!" His mother tore up the stairs and into the bedroom. Aberforth skidded out of his room.
"This whole thing has something to do with you, I know it!" he hissed at Albus as they watched their mother cry softly and throw her arms around their father's neck.
"Jules? Julianne, honey," Mr. Dumbledore said, lifting her face up. "I will always be there for you. Heaven will not separate us. I love you." He kissed her, took a last shuddering breath, closed his eyes and lay still. Aberforth ran into the room, to his side. Albus ordered his legs to move and go in the room to comfort his mother, but instead he found himself running down the stairs and outside. There was a low garden wall in front of his house. He sat down and buried his head in his arms. He was gone. He was really gone. Albus hadn't cried since he was 8 years old and Aberforth had pushed him out of the tree house in the backyard and he had broken his arm. But he felt himself breaking down, sliding down the cliff that was his soul. He felt someone tap his back. It was Maddy. He looked up at her, his light blue eyes filling with tears.
"He's gone," he choked. Maddy gasped.
"Oh, Albus! I'm so sorry."
"I am too." He wrapped his arms around her as she laid her head on his shoulder. They sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Snow began to fall, dusting their shoulders and hair with a white translucent powder. Albus closed his eyes and from somewhere inside of him, heard his father's voice.
"Go inside. Be with your mother now, to comfort her." He stood up.
"Albus?" questioned Maddy, wiping her eyes.
"Mum. She needs me." he said, and strode back into the house. He found his mother upstairs, sobbing uncontrollably into a blanket. He shot a look at Aberforth, who was just sitting and staring at her. He motioned to him fiercely, and Aberforth awkwardly patted her on the arm. She sobbed harder. Albus shook his head angrily and walked over to his mother.
"Mum?" he asked tentatively. She stood up and threw her arms around his neck.
"Oh Albus!" she sobbed, "I loved him so much! And now he's gone forever."
"It'll be okay Mum. We can get through this." Maddy walked in slowly, followed by her parents, looking concerned. The six people stood there, Mrs. Dumbledore's sobbing being the only sound heard in the room.
The funeral was very grim and silent. Many people came, including Professor Entwistle and Professor Dippet, Alastor, and Jo. Jo seemed the least well of anyone, and she started shaking uncontrollably when the eulogy was read. Albus had been asked gently if he would go up and say a few words to honor his father. His hands were shaking as he reached the podium, but as he stood before the whole solemn group, his voice was even and steady; though his face was grim. His eyes lacked their usual sparkle.
"My father was a great man," he started, "Though he and I did not always get along, I came to realize this during the last moments of his life. He overcame pressure, obstacles, and shame to get to the place where he was. I made him a promise to take care of my family, and I have every intention of keeping it. I ask you all to honor my father's memory." Maddy wiped her eyes and looked up at Albus. He looked strangely fierce, unlike his normal self. An expression of cold fury was etched on his face, fury at whoever had done this to his father. He looked more and more like a man as he paused on the podium, gazing out at the crowd and then walked back down to his seat next to his mother, who hadn't stopped sobbing since her husband had died. Maddy thought, Jo is right. This is the beginning of dark times ahead.
*
Albus didn't speak for a week after the funeral. He returned to Hogwarts with the professors and the rest of the Four, all of whom tried to cheer him up the whole way back on the train. But it was no use, Albus refused to speak to or even look at anyone, even Maddy. Once they got back to Hogwarts, however, his spirits seemed to lift a little as he was distracted by the enormous workload that the professors were pouring on the third years. Still, late nights in the common room were depressing. All Albus would do is sit and stare into the fire, as if daring it to blaze up and bring him to times when things were better. But the worst, as Jo foretold, was yet to come.
~
"Master, we are currently working on the details of the next phase of your plan."
"Excellent. You are prepared for the kidnapping?"
"Yes. All we need now is the portkey."
~
Jo and Maddy were eating lunch in the great hall on Saturday. Alastor was in detention with Professor Saviza for setting off some Filibuster's Fireworks in their Arithmancy class. Albus was taking a walk outside around the ice-covered lake. Maddy was worried, however. She hoped that he wouldn't do anything drastic, like trying to drown himself or take a stroll through the Forbidden Forest. Jo looked at her best friend, who's face was full of concern.
"Don't worry Mad, he'll be okay. Albus isn't the irrational sort, the kind who would do something drastic."
"I just can't shake this feeling, like something is going to happen to him. I better go check."
"Okay, if you're sure that this is necessary. But I don't think he'll like the fact that you are checking up on him!" She called, but Maddy was already walking quickly out into the entrance hall. She strode out of the big oak doors, shivering slightly at the cold. She scanned the grounds and saw Albus sitting on a rock, staring at the frozen lake. She jogged over and tapped his shoulder.
"Albus?" He looked up at her and fixed her with his penetrating light blue stare. She shivered. Albus took off his cloak and wrapped it around her. She continued.
"Are you okay? It's awfully cold out here."
Albus stared some more.
"No, I'm not okay! I'm never going to be okay! I'm really sick of everyone asking me that!" Maddy stared.
"I didn't mean… I was just… I know you must feel terrible…" Albus got his fierce look again.
"How do you know how it feels! You still have both of your parents! My father is dead! I'm never going to see him again! You have NO IDEA what I'm going through! So don't try and pretend that you understand!" Maddy looked hurt. For a second, Albus felt bad for yelling at her. But it's true; she could never understand what I'm feeling right now! He told himself. Maddy stood up and glared at him, her hazel eyes flashing.
"You know what, Albus, I'm really sick of you snapping at everyone! You're being a first class brat! Everyone is just trying to make you feel better, but you don't want anyone's pity! Everyone is making allowances, even the teachers! 'Oh, poor Albus! His father is dead, so now we have to make him the teacher's pet, excuse him from doing his homework!' That was fine for a while, but now I'm really tired of it. I knew your father too! He wouldn't want you to mope around and snap at your friends! He'd want you to get up and get on with you life!" Albus' ears turned red.
"I am going through a hard time right now!" He snapped, " I have every right to act the way I am!" Maddy snorted.
"Fine then, owl me when you get a clue!" she said, her voice cold. She tore off his cloak and threw it in a ball at his feet. "Goodbye, Albus." She marched off towards the castle. Albus softened.
"Maddy! I didn't mean to… You don't know how much you mean to me! I don't want to lose you!" Maddy turned sharply.
"Well it's too late now, isn't it? You just did!" She ran up the stone steps and slammed the huge oak doors behind her. She tore through the entrance hall and collapsed next to the marble banister at the end of the staircase, crying. She buried her face in her hands. Her kitten Lucky walked up to her (She liked to roam the corridors on weekends) and mewed at her feet.
"Oh Lucky," Maddy wept, "What will happen now?" She picked up her kitten and stroked her, though she was reminded of Albus because he had given her to Maddy.
After Maddy walked out of the Great Hall to check on Albus, Jo sat eating her soup and worrying about her friends. A voice that sounded like Maddy's called to her.
"Jo! Come here! Quick!"
She got up, concerned, and walked out into the Entrance Hall.
"Maddy? Where are you?"
"Down here! The corridor to the dungeons!" The voice sounded muffled. Jo ran towards the door. She pulled it open and walked into the corridor. It took her a second to realize that all of the torches in the corridor had been extinguished.
"Maddy?" asked Jo, her voice shaking. Suddenly a gloved hand covered her mouth. She tried to scream, but her attacker hissed "Stupefy!" and her world went black.
Alastor was coming down to lunch from his detention when he saw Maddy holding her kitten and crying. He ran down the last few stairs.
"Maddy? What's wrong?" He sat down next to her and buried her face in his shoulder.
"I blew up at sniff at Albus sniff broke up with him sniff he was being a sniff a jerk sniff I don't know what's going to sniff happen now that I- that we-" She started crying again. Alastor patted her head awkwardly.
"Hey, whadda ya say we go find Jo and then sneak out to Hogsmeade? We can get some butterbeer."
"Don't you want Albus to come?" asked Maddy, wiping her eyes.
"Nah, he's starting to get to me also. Anyway, even if we asked he wouldn't come. He's too busy wallowing in self pity." Maddy laughed and they stood up.
"The last place I saw Jo was in here." And they peered into the great Hall, where it was immediately apparent that Jo wasn't.
"Maybe she went up to Gryffindor tower?" asked Alastor.
"Okay, I'll check there, you check the library. Meet back here in 15 minutes, okay?" replied Maddy, and they split up. They returned shortly, both having found nothing.
"I checked the hospital wing too, she wasn't there either," said Maddy, worried now, "I don't know where else she could be!"
"Well, let's wait and see if she shows up." They sat on the staircase again. Albus walked in, still holding his balled up cloak. Maddy and Alastor looked down at the floor. Albus didn't say a word to either of them, just marched into the Great Hall and sat down by himself at the end of the Gryffindor table. Alastor looked at Maddy as she gazed at Albus.
"You know, you are really pretty. And really funny and smart too." He commented. Maddy stared. "You could go out with any guy in this school. The only reason that loads of boys haven't run up to ask you out is that Jo and I have been scaring them off because we wanted you two to be together. But now…" He glanced back at Albus. "You can take your pick." Maddy laughed.
"So nice of you to notice!" she giggled, and Alastor started laughing too. For the first time in a while, Maddy felt the weight of recent events lift slightly off her heart. Alastor knew just what to say to cheer her up.
Alastor and Maddy sat for hours on the marble staircase, joking and laughing. Students passing by looked at them as if they both had grown a few extra heads or something. Yet, as time went by, they began to grow more and more worried about Jo.
"Where could she be?" asked Maddy, after she had run back and checked the common room again. "No one says they've seen her since lunch." The Ettinger twins walked by and spotted Maddy and Alastor.
"Hey, what's up?" asked Jordan, sitting down next to Maddy.
"Has either of you seen Jo? She's been missing since lunch," said Alastor. The twins shook their identical dirty-blonde haired heads.
"Nope," said Ally, "We haven't seen her since she went to meet Maddy during lunch. What was wrong anyway, Maddy? You sounded really scared, sort of."
"What?" asked Maddy, confused.
"You know, you called Jo from the Entrance Hall a couple minutes after you left. It sounded important," said Jordan.
"I was outside," said Maddy slowly, "I was outside breaking up with Albus for at least 15 minutes."
"Well, we definitely heard somebody who sounded like you call Jo into the Entrance Hall. It sounded like you were calling from over by the corridor to the dungeons."
Alastor and Maddy dashed over to the corridor and pulled the door open. It looked quite normal. The torches were flickering merrily and everything was silent. Maddy glanced around.
"There's nothing here. That's really strange, that someone who sounded like me called her and then no one saw her after that."
"Hmmm. Well, maybe we should look for her again?" asked a bewildered Alastor. Maddy nodded, and they jogged off. Ally and Jordan just shrugged.
Maddy and Alastor were skidding into the corridor that led to the Gryffindor tower portrait hole when Maddy, in the lead, smacked directly into Albus on his way to the library. They fell over.
"Um, hi," he said awkwardly, clambering up and staring at the floor.
"Hello Albus," said Alastor, a bit cooly. "You haven't happened to have seen Jo, have you? She's missing."
Albus shook his head, looking slightly remorseful.
"Well then, we have to be going," said Maddy sharply, and she pulled Alastor over to the Fat Lady.
"Wingardium" she said, and she pulled Alastor through the portrait hole as it swung open, slamming it closed with a sharp snap. Albus shook his head and continued to the library.
Jo moaned and rubbed her head. She opened her eyes blearily and saw that she was lying in some sort of underground chamber. She sat up abruptly.
"Ah, you are awake," said an icy but suprisingly familiar voice. "My master wishes to see you immediately." A man wearing a hooded black cloak and gloves reached down and yanked her to her feet. Jo seemed to find her voice.
"Who are you?" she squeaked.
"I am a humble servant of the greatest and most powerful wizard alive. But you know me, Marks."
"What…?"
"Be quiet, or I will force you to," Hissed the man, and he dragged her roughly down a cavernous corridor to another room with a crackling emerald green fire blazing in the fireplace. There was a single chair sitting front of the fire. "Master, I have brought the girl." An deep, reverberating growl filled the room.
"Very good, Saviza. You will leave me here with her, and then continue the next part of my plan."
The man who had brought her nodded. Jo didn't know why, but the voice made the hairs on the back of her neck prickle. She stared as the hooded man turned the chair. Sitting in it was a man wearing an emerald green cloak. The hood was pulled down over his face, shielding it from Jo's view. As he reached up to push the hood off, Jo wanted to run, but she felt frozen to the spot. He pulled the hood back and Jo screamed. It was the man with red eyes.
Albus woke up with a start. He had fallen asleep over his Charms homework in the library. He didn't know why he had woken up, but he got the feeling that Jo was in trouble.
"I have to talk to Maddy and Alastor," he said to himself, and jogged to the common room, where they were involved in a game of Exploding Snap.
'What do you want?" asked Maddy irritably. She looked worried, about Jo probably.
"Jo is in trouble," he blurted. Alastor and Maddy looked disbelieving.
"And you know this how?" asked Alastor. Albus shrugged.
"I just have this weird feeling…" The other two looked at each other and shrugged.
"Will you just help me look?" pleaded Albus. Maddy and Alastor followed him out of the portrait hole.
"Right, now how about we split up?" I'll check the top floors, you check from the 4th floor to the second, and, you check the two bottom floors. Got that? Let's go!" He dashed off, leaving Alastor and Maddy looking confused. They shrugged again and walked off to search their floors.
"Who are you and what do you want with me?" Jo managed to ask, her voice shaking.
"I am Lord Grindelwald. You are an essential part of my Master Plan."
"And what plan would that be?" asked Jo, trying not to look at Grindelwald's glowing red eyes.
"I am to become the greatest wizard in the world, and everyone, magic and muggle alike, will bow down before me." Jo stared. "It is in my blood! I am a direct descendant of the great Salazar Slytherin himself." He sneered at Jo. "And you are a direct link to the only threats to my rise to power."
"Albus and Maddy," Jo gasped in realization.
"Yes."
Alastor was walking down the third floor charms corridor, checking classrooms for Jo.
"Alastor!" He whipped around.
"Jo?" he called.
"Alastor! Come quickly! Help!"
"Jo, where are you?" He spun around, trying to locate the source of the Jo's voice.
"Over here, I'm in the classroom!"
"I'm coming!" He sprinted to the classroom at the end of the hall. He raised his wand and lit the end.
"Jo?" he asked tentatively. A gloved hand covered his mouth.
"Stupefy."
Maddy was checking the second floor when she paused by the gargoyle leading to the headmaster's office. Should I tell the teachers about Jo? She asked herself. But just as she thought that, Professor Saviza strode into the corridor from the direction of the staircase leading to the third floor.
"What are you doing here Potter?" Maddy jumped.
"Oh, Professor, I was just, er, going for a stroll around the castle." The Arithmancy professor glared at her.
"Get back to your common room! And ten points from Gryffindor for wandering around at night!" As she was walking back, Maddy hoped that the professor hadn't caught Alastor too.
*
Albus was collapsed on an overstuffed chair in the common room, waiting for Alastor and possibly Jo to return from their search. Maddy was sprawled on the couch across from him, avoiding his eyes. She was sucking on a sugar quill and staring into the fire. At about 10 o'clock, Albus stood up.
"I'm going to bed," he said shortly. Maddy didn't respond. "They'll probably come in later. Good night." He stalked up the boy's staircase. He didn't notice the tear run down Maddy's cheek.
Jo had been brought back to the room where she had been before. She shivered and wrapped her robes tightly around her. Suddenly, the door opened and Alastor was forced through, limp and unconscious. Jo rushed over to his side as the door clicked shut.
"Alastor! Oh Alastor, wake up!" She shook his shoulders, and he moaned and opened his eyes slightly.
"Jo? Where are we?" He rubbed his head and tried to sit up.
"No, Alastor, lay still for a minute. I don't know where we are, but they took me to see this dark wizard, Grindelwald, and Maddy and Albus are in danger, I think." Alastor looked confused.
"What? What do you mean, they're in trouble?"
"Yeah, it's something to do with the prophecy…" Jo struggled to remember it. "Er, it was 'He will succeed, he will defeat'… Does that mean Albus?" Alastor shrugged and rubbed his head again, where a lump was forming.
" 'And the Dark one he will beat'! Albus is going to defeat Grindelwald! 'But hence beware, his true love there'… Maddy?"
"Er, you didn't know this, but they broke up," commented Alastor. Jo stared.
"What? Oh well. The next lines were 'She could be the one true heir. But she will suffer at the hands of Darkness'…" Jo gasped as she realized the last line of the poem. " ' And die'!" Suddenly, the man came back in and tied up and gagged Jo and Alastor, ignoring their yells of anger.
Albus was laying on his back on his four-poster, fully dressed. An owl swooping through the window gave him quite a shock. It landed on his night table and he pulled off the letter. It read:
Albus-
Sorry, there's no time to explain. Meet me at the one-eyed hag statue on 4th floor at 8:15 tonight. I'll explain there.
-Alastor
Albus looked at his clock. It was 8:10. He sprinted down the dormitory staircase and out into the common room. Maddy looked up from her Ancient Runes textbook, which she was holding upside down.
"Where are you going?"
"I gotta go meet Alastor. He sent me an owl." Maddy looked confused.
"I'll come with you." Albus made a motion as if to protest, but Maddy was already setting down her book and standing up. Not wishing to get into another fight, he led her out towards the hag statue. They walked on opposite sides of the hallway all the way there. They reached the statue 5 minutes late. Albus looked around. There was no sign of Alastor. Maddy gasped in horror and pointed, shaking, to the hag's hump, which was slowly creaking open. A hooded face was just visible inside.
"ALBUS!" she screamed, as a gloved hand reached out to grab Albus' arm. He wrenched it out of the hand's grasp and both he and Maddy backed up and drew their wands. As the hump opened still further, a head emerged. They started when they saw that there were two of them, and quickly disappeared back into the hump, closing it. The hump, however, didn't shut completely, but their attacker was too busy getting away to notice.
"It was a set up," hissed Albus. "I bet they got Alastor and Jo too!" Maddy was still shaking.
"Should we tell the teachers?" she asked timidly. Albus shook his head.
"In the time it takes us to do that, who knows what they could do to Jo and Alastor! We have to go after them!" Maddy nodded, and with slight hesitation they slid through the hump. They ran down a narrow passage that seemed to go on forever. Finally, they reached some steps leading up. Creeping slowly, they snuck up the stairs and through a trapdoor at the top. Maddy looked around the room they were in, a kind of storage room. She looked down at the cartons surrounding them.
"Chocolate Frogs," she whispered, "Fizzing Whizbees! Every Flavor Beans! We're in the storage room at Honeydukes!"
"Well, if that's true, we certainly can't go out the front," whispered Albus. He looked up and saw a ladder that looked like it led to the roof. He motioned to Maddy and they climbed up and stood. It was the roof, and they could see the rooftops of Hogsmeade spreading out around them. Maddy pointed.
"Look! It's them!" The man, cloaked in all black, was running towards the mountain that stood next to Hogsmeade.
"Come on! We have to follow them!" They scrambled down to the ground and dashed off in quiet pursuit of their attacker. As they watched from behind a bush, the person tapped an old trunk with his wand 3 times and muttered "Salazar". The hump popped open, revealing a hole large enough for a person to fit through. They slid through and closed the hump behind them.
"We better make sure that they get far enough ahead first," hissed Maddy. It was now almost completely dark out. After about a minute, they snuck over to the stump and opened it as they had seen the person do. They slid into a large cavernous hallway. They began what looked to be a very long trek and started talking.
"Listen, I'm sorry about what I said earlier," said Albus softly. "I didn't mean to be mean, I just was feeling really depressed about my dad."
"I'm sorry I snapped at you," said Maddy, "It was kinda inconsiderate of me to talk about your dad. But I really did like him, and he would want you to get on with your life." Albus nodded.
"We're still friends?"
"Yeah, sure. Why not?" As they approached a doorway, Maddy gave him a little peck on the cheek.
"How sweet," hissed a cold voice. "Puppy love." A hand reached out from the doorway, grabbed Maddy roughly by the wrist, and pulled her into the chamber, slamming the door shut. Albus could hear Maddy's scream of surprise, and he pounded on the door.
"Stop it! No! Albus, help me!" Her cries were quickly muffled.
"Let me in!" he yelled, "Don't hurt her!" The door opened suddenly and he fell through.
"How nice of you to join us, Mr. Dumbledore," said the cold voice, "The party is just beginning." Albus looked around the room. There was a crackling emerald green fire and deep green velvet tapestries on the walls. Albus yelled as he saw Maddy, who was bound with ropes and gagged. He whipped around, but not fast enough to stop his own arms being bound to his sides with long, thin cords. Maddy's eyes were wide, and she struggled against her bounds. The owner of the cold voice, a tall, thin man with glowing red eyes chuckled coldly.
"Patience, Miss Potter, patience is a virtue. Saviza, bring the others!" Albus gasped as he realized the identity of their attacker.
"It's you!" Albus yelled at the other cloaked figure, who pulled off his hood. It was their Arithmancy professor. Saviza laughed evilly, and yanked open a side door, pulling two similarly bound figures through. Jo and Alastor. Maddy let out a muffled scream. Saviza yanked them over in front of the fire, not bothering to pull them upright.
"What do you want from us?" yelled Albus, his being the only mouth that was not gagged.
"First things first. As your friend Miss Marks here already knows, I am Lord Grindelwald. I need you because you are a threat to me. You know of the prophecy?" Albus stared.
"That was real?"
"Yes." Grindelwald raised his wand and swept it through the air. Bright green writing hovered in midair, forming the prophecy.
He will succeed, he will defeat
And the Dark One he will beat
But hence, beware
His true love there
She could be the one true heir
But she will suffer at the hands of darkness
And die
Maddy managed to spit her gag out of her mouth.
"I still don't see what this has to do with us." Saviza motioned towards Maddy, but Grindelwald held up his hand.
"No, we have all the time in the world. She can speak, while she still has the chance." Jo shivered involuntarily from her position on the floor. "I will show you." He waved his wand over the prophecy. A misty looking figure of Albus rose out of the word "He". A figure of Grindelwald rose out of "The dark one". A figure of Maddy rose out of "His true love".
"So you see," hissed Grindelwald, "This is indeed about you. And according to this, young Mr. Dumbledore will defeat me. And you," he pointed at Maddy, "Are the heir that would provide the source for him to destroy me." Maddy looked puzzled.
"Heir? And what do you mean by source?"
"You really don't know," Grindelwald murmured in surprise, "You are a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin." Albus gasped. Maddy looked shocked.
"No, I can't be! I'm not like that, I'm in Gryffindor…"
"You certainly must be, if my master says so, though I don't relish the thought of you as Dumbledore's source," Saviza hissed. Albus and Maddy jumped. They had forgotten that their Arithmancy professor was there. Albus' eyes narrowed.
"You!" he spat. "You work for him! You did this to us!" Saviza grinned evilly.
"You'll get what's coming to you!" he hissed menacingly, "All of you! Filthy Gryffindors, running around the school like you owned it!" From her position on the floor, Jo kicked him. He winced, glaring at her. Grindelwald ignored him and continued.
"And you don't know what I mean by source? Dear dear, I can't imagine what they are teaching at Hogwarts nowadays. Defense against the dark arts rubbish, I expect." It was Maddy's turn to glare.
"Yeah, now we can see why!" she hissed, "To teach us how to deal in times like this! Against people like you, if anyone would call you a person!" Grindelwald walked over and slapped her sharply across the cheek. She winced and Albus shouted out.
"Get away from her you evil… evil snake!" he yelled. Grindelwald turned away from Maddy, whose long thick brown hair was hanging in her face, his red eyes flashing at Albus.
"A source is a magical person who radiates a special form of magic. Only one person, the source's true love, can use that magic. That person, with the help of their source's magic, is very nearly invincible. However, the source cannot use most of their own special magic. And," he gave Maddy a quick glare, "she is your source. And it has been foretold that you will use the magic to defeat me." Albus forced a laugh.
"I am going to kill you," he said, "And there's nothing you can do about it, if it has been foretold." Grindelwald smiled, a frightening, cold-hearted smile.
"Oh, but there is, Mr. Dumbledore. Your source cannot provide the magic," he smirked slightly at Maddy, an expression that seemed to freeze the air in the room, "if she is dead." Jo spat out her gag and screamed.
"No! Not Maddy! You'll never get away with this!" Grindelwald turned in a flash and raised his wand.
"Avada Kedavra!" Jo screamed again. She froze as the blast of green light hit her, and slumped down, pale and lifeless. Her dark blonde hair framed her face, her blue-gray eyes open and blank. Her mouth was open, frozen in a look of horror. She was dead. Maddy stared, not wanting to believe it.
"Jo," she whispered, "You killed my best friend." Her dark eyes shot daggers at Grindelwald, who smirked again.
"Your glares will do nothing for you," he hissed. "Saviza! Untie her! It is time."
*
Maddy was shaking uncontrollably as Saviza untied her. She leaned against the wall, exhausted from struggling against her bonds. Saviza walked back in front of the fire, purposely treading on Alastor's face. Maddy ran over to him and pulled out his gag. He was staring at Jo's lifeless body.
"She never knew," he whispered, "She never knew that I loved her. You and Albus have to beat him, Maddy. For Jo." Maddy nodded, hugged him, and ran over to Albus. Grindelwald watched, with an expression of slight amusement.
"Yes, say your goodbyes now, Potter," he called. She didn't turn around, just threw her arms around Albus' neck. She quickly pulled off his bonds.
"Don't worry Maddy," he 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. Alastor got up and ran on the other side of Albus, blocking Saviza.
"Fool," said Grindelwald coldly, "You think you can beat 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."
"I have decided that you, girl, will die slowly," spat Grindelwald, "And you, Mr. Dumbledore, will watch her." Albus felt frozen to the spot. Grindelwald pointed his wand at Maddy. Her dark eyes opened wide.
"Avada Kedavra Wols!" The blast of green light shot towards Maddy, rather slowly than it should have. She backed up and Albus threw his arm in front of her, but it was too late. She collapsed as the spell hit her.
"NOOOOOOOO!" yelled Albus. He reached down, gripped Maddy's hand, and bellowed "Expelliarmus!" at Grindelwald. Grindelwald flew backwards in the air and hit the stone wall behind him. A resounding crack filled the room as his head hit, the glow in his eyes going out. He hit the ground and fell over, raising his arm.
"You may have conquered me, but the war is not over," he hissed, "My heir will come, and they will defeat you." He died.
Albus turned and looked at Maddy, who was still gripping his hand. He knelt down and held her close to him.
"What does it feel like, dying?" he asked. She looked into his light blue eyes, which were filling with tears.
"It's not so bad," she said, "It just feels like I'm slipping away, trying desperately to hold on to life. It doesn't hurt at all, everything just feels kind of numb." She rested her head on his shoulder.
"I'll miss you," he whispered. "Wait for me, in heaven?"
"I will." Maddy looked back up at him.
"Albus? Could you tell my brother one thing for me? Tell him that if Eva has another baby, to name it James. I always loved that name."
"I will," he promised. At that moment, Saviza, who had been crouching in a corner, lunged out at the pair huddled on the floor. Alastor yelled, and tackled and Stunned him. Albus and Maddy didn't look up. They sat there in silence, trying to savor their last few hours together. When it seemed to have become morning, Maddy spoke.
"Say you love me, Albus."
"I love you, Maddy." He kissed her, and she relaxed. Her last smile light her ashen face up, the light of the Heaven waiting for her seeming to shine through. Maddy's eyes closed and she fell limp in Albus' arms. He closed his eyes and buried his face in her hair. "I love you."
*
For Albus, the funeral was agonizing. Even though he had attended Jo's the week before, having to sit through a service looking Maddy's lifeless body was unbearable. He sat between his mother and Alastor, both of whom looked to be in a state of shock. Albus tore his gaze away from Maddy and looked at her family sitting in the first row of chairs. Mr. Potter was staring at the floor in front of him, gripping the arms of his chair. Mrs. Potter was rocking back and forth next to her husband, sobbing silently. Joseph was sitting in between his mother and his older brother Matthew, looking surprisingly calm. For a second, Albus thought he saw a flicker of a smirk on his face, but the next second he was sure he had imagined it. Next to Joseph was Matthew, who was gripping his wife Eva's hand. On Matthew's lap was their 3-year-old daughter, Olivia. She looked confused. The preacher announced that everyone could come up to pay their respects to Maddy. Mrs. Potter walked up slowly with Maddy's father and stared for a long time at Maddy, who wore a peaceful expression on her face. Olivia walked up slowly in between Matthew and Eva.
"Daddy, what's wrong with Aunt Maddy?" she asked, "Why won't she wake up?" Mrs. Potter gave a great sob, and Matthew led his daughter away. When it was Albus' turn, he too stared a long time at Maddy. Memories were rushing through his mind, memories of kissing Maddy in the common room, of snowball fights on break, of carrying Maddy in his arms after she had broken her leg, her arms around his neck. Then more memories came rushing into his mind, the ones that he was dreading. The face of Grindelwald, Maddy tied up and gagged, the curse that killed her, their last kiss, and her promise.
"Wait for me in heaven, Maddy." He tore away his gaze and walked out of the room, out of the building. He kept walking, not knowing when or where he would stop.
***
*Epilogue*
~ A few years later ~
Matthew Potter was glowing with pride as his wife Eva placed his newborn son in his arms. The baby had a tuft of jet-black hair that stuck up and a slightly smirking smile.
"His name is James."
*
Professor Dumbledore was shivering slightly. It was his first day as the transfiguration professor at Hogwarts. Old Professor Entwistle had passed away, and the new headmaster was Professor Dippet. Albus faced the class, a group of first year Slytherins.
"Hello, my name is Professor Dumbledore. Our lesson today will be to turn a match into a needle." Albus had received a phoenix for his birthday the year before from Alastor, who had become an auror with the Ministry of Magic. He had christened the bird Fawkes, and had recently given two of his tail feathers to Mr. Ollivander.
*
Tom Riddle sat in his first Transfiguration class, tying to turn his match into a needle. Professor Dumbledore looked at him, fixing him with a penetrating light-blue gaze. Tom shook it off and concentrated on changing his match. Professor Dumbledore turned to the window and looked out, staring at the endless blue sky.
*
Maddy's shimmering white robes rustled and her thick brown hair swirled around her face as an light breeze swept through Heaven. She was standing next to Mr. Dumbledore. They were both watching Albus, who was standing in the Transfiguration classroom, gazing out the window. Mr. Dumbledore turned away.
"Hey Miss Maddy, fancy a game of chess?" he asked. She nodded and they turned. She looked back.
"I'll wait for you Albus." she whispered as the breeze swept through her hair again. "Forever."
*
I'll wait for you forever
You'll be there
In my dreams
Save a spot up there
Wait for me
You're my hero
Don't forget me
I'll miss the days when
We could play
Not knowing what the future
Would bring for us
I love you
You'll always be my hero
Forever
*
There's a hero
If you look inside your heart
You don't have to be afraid
Of what you are
There's an answer
If you reach into your soul
And the sorrow that you know
Will melt away
And then a hero comes along
With the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
And you know you can survive
So when you feel like hope is gone
Look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
That a hero lies in you
It's a long road
When you face the world alone
No one reaches out a hand
For you to hold
You can find love
If you search within yourself
And the emptiness you felt
Will disappear
And then a hero comes along
With the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
And you know you can survive
So when you feel like hope is gone
Look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
That a hero lies in you
Lord knows
Dreams are hard to follow
But don't let anyone
Tear them away
Hold on
There will be tomorrow
In time
You'll find the way
And then a hero comes along
With the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
And you know you can survive
So when you feel like hope is gone
Look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
That a hero lies in you
That a hero lies in you
That a hero lies in
You
-Mariah Carey, "Hero"
A/N: Well, there's the whole thing. I hoped you loved it! Even if you didn't, please write me a nice review. Keep watching for the last part of Beyond Paradise (coming soon to a fanfic near you!)