Albus Dumbledore wasn't a stupid man by any standards.

It may be true that at times he was a forgetful one, but there was no one who could honestly state under veritaserum that he was a stupid one.

A person didn't get to be the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, the British Representative to the International Council of Wizards, and the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry unless they were truly a remarkable person. (Or at least that's what Albus was often told by wide-eyed Witches and Wizards).

Nor would they have a Mastery in Transfiguration if they were a simple-minded one. Transfiguration was an art that worked off one's imagination after all, if someone cannot picture the end product, then they'll end up with a pink table that oinks whenever someone surprises it.

And these two traits, his intelligence and his ability to look at the bigger picture, were all he needed to see that the plan he was being presented with was not going to work.

Not of course, that the one who came up with the plan, saw things his way.

"This is our decision Albus!" James Potter argued, "Lily and I have been thinking about this since Harry was born. This is our choice, and we're making it. It's just not safe for him anymore, Parkinson also got Mike because of him!"

"But Petunia?" Albus pressed urgently, "I remember, Lily, when you would refuse to go home for the holidays because of the abuse Petunia put upon you for being a Witch! How can you truly believe that she would look after Harry properly!"

"Harry is a squib Albus," Lily Potter denied calmly, not looking at all bothered by the memories, "Petunia will understand that he's not one of us."

Albus couldn't stop his eyebrows from raising at that claim. "As I recall, you are behind the most recent 'Squib Equality Law' that just got passed in the Wizengamot. Were you not?" he asked pointedly, watching as Lily flinched at the barely veiled jab. "In fact, you were rather insistent that 'abandoning' Squib children should be illegal, or did you forget that part?" he added simply, making her flinch again.

"Enough!" James snapped angrily, both of the Potters now glaring at Albus darkly, as if it were his fault they were planning on abandoning one of their sons. "I will not say it again. Harry is our son, and it is our decision."

"And we are not abandoning Harry," Lily added with a sniff, "We're sending him to live with my sister for very good reasons. As a squib he'll need to live close to muggle commodities, like his school and friends, and Potter Manor is just too far away. We will be visiting him, and he will very much remain our son."

Albus just sighed, leaning back in his chair as he hid the feeling of dread that rose up inside him. He didn't need to be a legilimens to know they were lying, he still remembered comforting Lily when the redhead discovered she was pregnant from an alcohol-fueled incident after she and James broke off their engagement.

They'd had an argument, and it had led them to wonder if they were getting married too quickly. The argument resulting from that thought had split them up for three months before they realised that they loved each other too much, and that with the war raging they never knew when they'd have the time otherwise. Lily's friends from her year at Hogwarts had dragged her to a club in an effort to cheer her up, and instead she'd gotten completely drunk and had gone home with another man, not realising the unexpected consequences of that night until she began throwing up.

James had blamed himself surprisingly. He had believed that it was his fault, and had sworn to treat the child as their own. And he had kept his word too, Albus recalled the love and adoration on James' face as he felt baby Harry, the emotions not faltering even when Harry's 'Irish Twin' Michael Potter had been born less than twelve months later.

But now? Now Michael Potter was the Boy-Who-Lived. And James and Lily were run off their feet trying to juggle having a famous son, their own sudden fame, and their highly stressful jobs. James was the Head Auror after all, which meant he had tons of paperwork and inspections he had to deal with, being second only to Director Amelia Bones. Lily though was a politician, her son's title as the Boy-Who-Lived allowing her to step up and start changing the flaws of the Wizarding World (With Albus' backing in most cases).

And apparently this meant that they had no time for their eldest son, who was admittedly rather self-reliant and independent, but who was still only four years old.

Albus knew better though, he knew it was just an excuse. He knew that Lily saw Harry as proof of her weakness, he knew the pain that the young woman felt over her perceived 'betrayal' of James, and about how Harry symbolized that betrayal. And he knew that James' love for Harry had faded the less like him Harry grew up to be, how the more like his biological father Harry became the more James was reminded of the guilt of his actions and the more bitter he became over the proof that Harry wasn't his.

"Can I not convince you to send Harry elsewhere?" Albus asked quietly, "I know of a squib living in muggle London who would be more than happy to look after Harry for you," he offered hopefully.

"I don't think you understand Albus," James corrected coldly as he stood up, pulling his cloak off the back of his chair. "Harry's fate is nothing to do with you. The only reason we even came to tell you is because we know you're fond of the boy. Besides, nothing you say would matter, he's already at his Aunt's as we speak. Now, if you don't mind, I need to get back to work."

As James swept from the room, Lily slowly rose to her feet as well, watching her husband go with a guarded expression before turning back to Albus guiltily. "This is what's best for Harry. I know you care about him, you're one of the only people outside of the family that he actually talks to. But every day he spends in the magical world, the more likely something is going to break through the binding on his… gifts," she explained hesitantly. "And you know what's going to happen if he's discovered," she added unnecessarily, "Just… just leave Harry alone. This is for his own good."

Albus slumped back in his chair as Lily followed James out of his office, the portrait beside the door murmuring out a confirmation that they had left as it checked its other frame in the hallway outside.

What was he going to do? He knew he couldn't allow Harry to live unwanted in the muggle world, not if Petunia Evans was still the cruel-hearted woman he had been introduced to at Lily's coming of age party. But then again, it was not like he could just take Harry away either, he was neither the boy's parents nor his guardian. He couldn't just leave Harry either, his instincts were telling him that leaving Harry with Petunia was a really really bad idea, and he hadn't lasted one hundred and three years by ignoring his instincts.

Maybe the only thing Albus could do was to-

Pausing as an idea struck him, Albus reached out absently for a lemon drop and stuck it in his mouth, his mind racing around this new thought. Turning it around and studying it from as many angles as he could, Albus realised that this idea wasn't exactly a perfect one either, in fact it had the potential to go disastrously wrong without any warning at all.

But maybe… maybe it was truly the best thing for Harry?

As Lily had mentioned before, Albus was one of the only people Harry spoke to, the inverted boy turning mute around people he didn't know or trust. But when he did talk, Albus found that he showed the same potential that his mother must have shown when she was younger. Harry Potter was truly a brilliant child, and while going to muggle school and perhaps university could do marvelous things for him, he had to wonder if that life was the best one he could have.

There were two questions though. Did Harry know the truth? And, would Armaros be willing to accept guardianship of Harry?

"There's only one way to find out," he murmured to himself as he pushed himself up out of his chair and headed towards the door at the back of his office, entering his quarters. "Now where did I put you?" he asked out loud, scanning the bookcases covering two entire walls for a very specific book, "Ah, there you are."

Pulling the book from the shelf Albus drew his wand and with a flick, had the book floating in mid-air as the pages flew past, finally landing on the page he was hesitantly looking for. Taking a deep breath, Albus scanned over the list of ingredients and the chant required for the ritual, his mind already cataloguing what he had in his personal stores and what he'd have to get from the dungeons. Thankfully the ritual itself didn't look all too difficult, he should be able to get it all ready tonight, having it ready for if he was right about Petunia.

Directing the book to his coffee table, Albus shook his head and headed back towards his office. He'd have to tell Minerva that he was leaving the school grounds for a bit. And then he'd have to go 'visit' Petunia, and discover if the uneasy feeling in his stomach was well-deserved or not.

After all, if Petunia had managed to let go of her bitterness towards magic, then Albus wouldn't need to go so far as to summon Armaros and risk having himself turned inside-out and bright green.

Albus wouldn't know whether his old… friend… was in a benevolent mood or a malevolent one until the man was standing right in front of him. It was a risky thing indeed to summon a Trickster.

Mischief

Based off Dis Lexic's Dumbledore's Favour challenge.

Now I know that 'Armaros' is actually the name of one of the Fallen 'Grigori' (That's the right word right? Grigori?), but whatever, I thought it was a cool name. If I were to continue this then Armaros will be a Trickster and only a Trickster, he won't be a 'Gabriel'.

And if you hadn't picked up on it. The reason Harry is a 'Squib' is because when they figured out that Harry was technically part dark creature, they bound his abilities instead of risking him accidentally using them and hurting someone.

I don't own Harry Potter.

(And is it really necessary to have a disclaimer in every chapter? Like is that actually a rule that I have to? Or am I allowed to just state it once at the beginning and leave it at that?)