A/N: Thanks to WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot, who beta-ed this, to SaintRidley and NezalXuchitl for their reviews, and to ABBA for coming up with the cheesiest musical goodness ever in "I Have a Dream".

And...a very merry Christmas to you all!

4

Albus

"I Have a Dream"

Every day the Order of the Phoenix perseveres is another time they put their lives on the line. Even Albus – whom people have come to assume is invulnerable, perhaps even invincible – has had to come to terms with the fact that if fate decides his time is up, he will have to leave this world. As mighty as the Elder Wand is, the only guarantee in this magical world is that there are no guarantees. One must somehow simultaneously hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Turning the wand over in his fingers, he thinks of the other mighty, but flawed Hallows – a stone that calls back shadows, not souls, and a cloak which can be permeated by a variety of spells, including Homenum Revelio. What is the wand's weakness? The Beedle legend implies that it is the weakness of the bearer more than anything else – the lust for power that will inevitably lead to defeat. If this is true, then he, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, Order of Merlin First Class, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Grand Sorcerer, is actually one of the weakest wizards alive.

On particularly low days, he sees not only the lust for power in himself, but a thousand other ones. In fact, if the Seven Deadly Sins were true to their name, he would be dead by now. Indeed, he'd never have lived past his teens, given that he committed all seven of them one stupid, shallow summer, in the name of Love.

Pride – thinking himself to be morally infallible. Envy – for Elphias' life, free from family or adult responsibilities. Wrath – the countless times he lost patience with Aberforth. Sloth – his shameless neglect of Ariana. Greed – for the three Hallows, and everything that he thought they would lead to. Gluttony – that one night when he had consented to "French Lessons" under the influence of Firewhiskey. And Lust – as he'd never known it before – not just the racing heart and sweaty palms that made concentration difficult – but every inch of his body crying out for another.

It's enough to make him think Tom Riddle has one thing right – that "Love's" purpose is to make fools of us all.

From time to time, Albus allows himself a glance in the Mirror of Erised, because it helps to convince him that he has been successful in shutting Grindelwald inside Nurmengard and out of his life. What he sees in the Mirror is Ariana, surrounded by the rest of her family, since at the end of the day, blood is thicker than water, and Dutiful Love for one's family is the deepest, purest love – the only type that does not corrupt.

And yet, that other kind of love, the silly, superficial kind that epitomises human folly, it still taunts him when he lies asleep in his tower, without consciousness to act as a sentry.

He's in Godric's Hollow – by the stream at the bottom of Bathilda's garden – shallow enough for him to wade across – only it swells and starts to swallow him up – wandless and defenceless here – before a winged creature known to muggles as an angel rescues him – white-winged and yellow-haired – and then he looks more closely at the face –

Another of Albus' guilty pleasures is children's books. Dr Seuss' tales, for a muggle example. Or Beedle's, for a more well-known one. Mostly as a result of the copy he procured while still at Hogwarts, with its childish annotations on the aged pages – a reminder of the time when they all believed in fairy-tales and happy endings – which make him smile (in superiority, in wistfulness, who knows?). All he knows is that Riddle and his followers will have nothing to do with such simple things, and so it helps him define himself against them.

"Why should it have to be deep and meaningful for it to matter?" ask the demons in his dreams. "Just because it's not the deepest, most desperate desire of your heart doesn't make it insignificant! Isn't it the little things we fight for in war? Like our children being allowed to sleep safe and sound in our beds at night? Things like the right for a witch or wizard to marry whomever they choose – muggle or magical? Isn't the side you fight against the side with all the empires and absolute power? What have you got? You're supposed to work on things like Courage, Justice, Prudence, Temperance, Faith, Hope...and you have Love if you want it...for better or for worse..."

It takes Albus a long time to realise that if his own side shuns love, then evil will surely find a way to use it for its own purposes – much like it has the Dementors and the Giants. Better to provide sanctuary to lovers before the torment turns them into monsters.

It takes him even longer to accept the simple truth that love is not simple. It is impossible to categorise it or to make statements like "platonic love is superior to non-platonic love". Love makes people do the most unspeakable things, and it makes people do the most wonderful things. At the end of the day, all one can do is believe that the better kinds of love will win out in the end. Prepare for the worst, but believe in the best. That is part of its magic.