Epilogue: Beside Me… Always
"Al? Al! Are you even listening to me?"
Albus opened his eyes and smiled warmly as Ariana gave him a cute pout with her hands on her hips as she looked at him.
"I'm sorry, Ariana," he told her serenely, "I think I must have dozed off."
She puffed out her lips a little before she smiled back and asked, "You were checking on them again, weren't you?"
"Whatever do you mean?" Albus asked calmly, pretending he didn't know what she meant.
"Don't give me that," Ariana said as she folded her arms. "You can't seem to stop yourself!"
Albus chuckled a little as he leaned his back comfortably up against the tree as he enjoyed hearing the sounds of singing and laughter in the distance.
"What can I say?" he asked, "I guess I can't help but worry."
She glared at him, but he saw her fighting to keep her frown before she was laughing and he joined in with her.
"Oh! Look!" she cried out happily, and that was he noticed that she put her hands behind her back. "Can you guess what I got?"
Albus pretended to think it over as he asked, "Something slimy?" And he laughed again when she wrinkled her nose at him.
"No!" she said as she pulled out a small brown bag, and when he took it from her, she cried out excitedly, "Lemon Drops!"
He opened the bag with a flourish before he took one of the candies out and popped it into his mouth.
"Even after all this time, I swear that there is something almost… magical about candy," he told her as she giggled.
"Hey!" she cried out, grabbing his hand and trying to tug him along with her. "Let's go! Mama and daddy are waiting for us! Let's all go for a walk together again! Come on! Let's all go together!"
"Yes, that does sound nice, doesn't it?" he asked as he breathed in the sweet air that floated in on the perfect breeze. This place was so strange… yet so wonderful at the same time. It was like living in a dream where nothing could hurt you and sadness was just a distant memory. The best part was meeting with all those who had left before and how the empty ache inside him seemed to have healed right up. A feeling of happiness that he could not remember feeling seemed to flow throughout his heart and soul…
Even when seeing those who weren't happy to see him… such as Lily Potter.
He always thought that there would be hell to pay when he met with Lily in the afterlife and he was not wrong. As soon as she saw him, it took everything that James and Sirius had to hold her back as she shouted at him about how her son was left on a doorstep.
Thankfully, for him anyway, she was able to calm down, saying that he was lucky that it worked out in the end. But she pointed a single, threatening finger at him and gave him a warning that he better watch himself from here on out… she didn't care if he was her old Headmaster or not, she was sure that she could take him apart.
And Albus had no doubt about that.
"You're just lucky that my son was able to come out of this alive," she hissed, poking his chest with that same finger. "Honestly, how he did not grow up to become a psychopath thanks to the 'treatment' that my sister and that whale of a husband of hers put him through…"
He could sense the anger there and knew that she must have been watching over her son every single moment while he was growing up. And he knew that she continued to do so. He had been pleased to find that even this far from the waking world, he could still dream and see what he was missing back on earth. From time to time he could not help himself but check on those left behind. In fact, he was checking on them almost as often as Lily and James were for their son… or Remus and Dora when they were constantly checking on little Teddy…
"She's just been looking for something to take her anger out on," James whispered to him once his wife had stopped yelling. "You are just the perfect excuse to do so."
"Hell knows no fury like a woman's scorn," Sirius laughed but immediately shut up when Lily looked at him.
"Did you say something?" she asked with her eyebrows raised at him.
"Ma'am! Sorry, Ma'am!" Sirius said at once, springing into a salute. "I live only to serve! Though, that's hard for me to do because I'm dea…"
"Would you be serious for once?" she asked with a roll of her eyes.
"But I'm always…"
"Don't you dare," James warned with a teasing grin, "For a joke to get old it has to be funny in the first place! Not that you were ever right in the head since your jokes were always bad puns."
How much had Albus missed these three? More than he could ever say.
"Shut up the both of you!" Lily shot back in mild amusement as Sirius and James were cracking up.
"You're just lucky that my son seems to have forgiven you," she added firmly when she turned back to him. "Otherwise, I'll be making you pay for the next eternity, Dumbledore."
"And I missed you as well, dear Lily," he said sincerely.
Hearing her name seemed to bring everything back to her and after a moment of silence, she sighed before wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug, which he was only too glad to return.
"He'll be fine, Lily," Albus reassured her, "He's as strong as you and James. I cannot promise anything, but I believe that the rest of his life will be a happy one."
Lily gave a shuddering sigh, as if fighting the urge to cry, before she buried her face into his shoulder and he heard her mutter, "I certainly hope so."
"He'll be fine. Damn handsome bloke like him? What can't he do?" James asked with a smirk.
"Poor thing," Sirius sighed dramatically, "Being stuck looking like you… well, that's life. Harry just has to live with that face."
"HEY!" James called back and suddenly the two were having a mock wrestling match as Lily looked torn between laughing and cracking their heads together.
Albus soon settled into a routine… there was just peace and the days just seemed to pass like a never-ending summer. This particular day he was resting in a sparkling field full of wildflowers and was looking up at the calmly swaying leaves of the tree he was relaxing underneath when Ariana had found him. She seemed to have appointed herself as his personal 'minder' and was more than happy to go tracking him down so that they could have something to do together.
"Let me guess, you wanted to see if he was doing alright?" Ariana said knowingly.
"Whatever do you mean, dear sister?" he asked calmly.
"Don't play cute with me," Ariana told him. "You were checking on Harry again, weren't you?"
He smiled warmly at her.
"You can read me like a book," he confessed to her. "I cannot seem to help myself sometimes. You see, the new term at Hogwarts just started and they were just getting ready to leave the house."
"And you are just so proud," she laughed knowingly as she twirled around happily.
"I'll meet up with you all very soon," he promised her. "Just let me check on them for a little longer."
"Alright! Just don't take too long!" she scolded lightly as she went skipping off into the distance with the sunbeams dancing around her.
Albus shook his head fondly as he looked after her before he shut his eyes once more and drifted off. Once again, he found himself standing outside a warm-looking cottage with a beautiful garden full of growing herbs and flowers next to a large, green lawn. At first glance, the house seemed normal enough, but if you looked closely, you could see an old Cauldron sitting out on the front porch and the little bits of lights coming from a nearby Flutterby bush.
Sitting in the driveway there was a normal-looking car with a motorcycle parked right next to it. Arthur had saved most of Sirius's old bike and once he studied it and put it back together, he gave it to Harry as an early Christmas present one year. Something that Harry took great pride in and insisted on driving it to work rather than Apparating in to the Auror Office.
Today, however, the bike would remain home for the family was taking the car to King's Cross. Afterwards, they were going to take Lily out for some ice cream with Ron, Hermione, and Hugo after they waved the others off to school… to help take their two children's disappointment out of not being able to go just yet.
At that moment, the front door opened and Harry came out dragging a trunk behind him and the younger of his two sons was at his side as he carried a cage with an owl tucked safely inside, asleep with her head under her wing.
"Albus," Harry called when his son was busy searching his pockets, "Don't worry, I have your ticket with me."
Albus smiled at the pair, where it was obvious to see the family resemblance… for these two looked even more alike than Harry resembled James. Al's bright green eyes, just like his father's, briefly closed in relief at those words before he quickly followed.
Once they reached the car, Albus watched at how Harry looked around real quick to make sure no one was looking before he pulled out the faithful, old phoenix wand and silently used a Levitation Charm to lift the heavy trunk into the back of the car.
"Dad…" Al said slowly, "Is it true that they chain the students up in the dungeons if they get into detention?"
"You're taking everything James says so seriously," Harry told him kindly. "I told you, there's nothing to worry about. You'll have Rosie with you too, you know. She'll be there to keep you company…" he then added under his breath, "And hopefully keep James in line."
Albus chuckled as he said, "Not very likely, Harry."
James Sirius Potter… he had all but written his first-born son's personality when he chose that name. James the second was a born trouble-maker and he wasn't the least bit ashamed of that… and to make matters even more interesting, his best friend was his cousin, Fred Weasley… George and Angelina Weasley's son…
He laughed once more at the irony of it all… for those two seemed to carry all the most noticeable traits of some of the most infamous trouble-makers that Hogwarts had ever seen.
Maybe it was because of that that Minerva had finally decided to retire from Headmistress at Hogwarts.
"It will be alright," Harry promised as he took the cage with Al's owl inside and tucked her safely inside next to the trunk. "I promise you will have some of the best times of your life there. It will be scary at first, but the first step is always the hardest."
Al gulped a little and Albus chuckled as he watched. Al really was his father's son… not just appearance-wise either… but his shy and gentle personality was also just like Harry's. Like father like son…
"And Fred also said that you have to wrestle a troll when they sort you into Houses! That's not true is it?" Al asked quickly.
Albus burst out laughing at the innocent question, along with Harry. However, strangely enough, Harry stopped almost right away before he suddenly turned to look up at him and Albus froze for a moment as Harry was unknowingly looking directly into his eyes.
"Dad?" Al asked as he looked up at his father. He looked to see where Harry was looking before he looked back, clearly not seeing anything as he asked, "What are you looking at?"
Harry did not answer for a long moment as he continued to look up before he turned back to Al and answered reassuringly.
"Nothing," he said, patting his son's shoulder. "For a moment there… I thought that I could feel someone watching me."
"Who?" Al asked as Ginny just came out of the house with Lily and James, who seemed to be breaking into an argument when James had teased her that she was still two years away from going to Hogwarts but she probably wouldn't be allowed in anyway because she was so puny.
"What's that got to do with anything?!" Lily demanded hotly as she threw a Bertie Botts Every Flavor Bean at his head, which James caught in his mouth…
Which he came to regret for he suddenly choked and cried out that it tasted like dirt.
Yes… you have to be careful with those… when they say every flavor… they mean every flavor…
As Ginny scolded him, Harry just laughed a little to himself before he glanced back up, and for a moment, Albus could have sworn that Harry could see him.
"I was just thinking of an old friend for some reason," Harry said, still smiling as he was gazing unintentionally at Albus, who was smiling back warmly despite the fact that he couldn't be seen.
"Who?" Al asked again curiously as Ginny told James to get his trunk into the car… or else.
"Just a very old friend," Harry declared mysteriously as Lily let go of her mother's hand and went running up to Harry at that moment. "Someone… who was always right there… and maybe… still right here beside me…"
Albus's could feel happiness coursing through his heart at those words as he watched little Lily jump happily into her father's arms before James's trunk and owl were put into the back next to Al's. He then watched as the three children jumped into the back seat while Harry and Ginny got up front. And Albus also stood there and watched long after the little family started up the car and pulled out of the driveway as they left the house.
It wasn't the first time that Harry seemed to sense his presence there… that wonderfully big heart so open that he could even feel him there beside him…
"Always…" he vowed softly to himself before he opened his eyes once more and popped another Lemon Drop into his mouth.
THE END.
(I thought that it was going to take a lot longer to write this chapter, but it was surprisingly easy so I thought to get it down now and finish off the old year with this chapter. Anyway, at long last this story is over, and while I'm a little sad to see it end, I'm relieved that it's finally over. It was because I had this idea in my head of Albus watching over Harry and seeing how he gave one of his sons his name made me think of this story. I had those words planned out since the very first chapter… beside me… always… so that's where I came up with the title. You know, when I did the first chapter, I only planned on doing the parts where Dumbledore and Harry had those sweet father/son heart-to-heart talks and somewhere along the way, I just could not stop myself from writing out all these long chapters and giving myself endless headaches along the way. But I'm really proud of how it turned out. I want to thank you all for keeping with the story for so long and I hope that the ending here was as good as you thought it would be. I never would have finished this story if it wasn't for all the reviews of kind words and helpful bits of criticism. One more thing… I just want to say to you all again… THANK YOU! AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!)
