94 hp Diagon Alley

The old man slowly controlled himself.

"Then Grindelwald escaped, as no one but I could have predicted. He disappeared with his plans for power, his plot to torture Muggles, and his dream of finding the Deathly Hallows, and I Encouraged and helped him with these dreams. He ran away and I stayed to bury my sister and learn to live my life with guilt and utter grief, and that was the price of my shame."

"Many years passed. I heard some rumors about him. It was said that he had acquired a wand of great power. At that time, the position of Minister for Magic was offered to me, not once, but many times. Of course I Refused. I already know that power cannot be given to me."

"But you're better than Fudge and Scrimgeour, much better!" cried Harry.

"Really?" said Dumbledore heavily. "I'm not so sure. Power is my weakness, my temptation, as I have shown in my youth. Strange to say, Harry, perhaps the most suitable The ones who hold power are those who never play tricks, like you, who are forced into the role of leader, put on the jersey when the situation forces them to, only to be surprised at how well they dress."

"And I'm safer at Hogwarts, I think I'm a good teacher—"

"You are the best--"

"—you're kind, Harry. Grindelwald raised an army while I was busy raising young wizards. People say he's afraid of me, maybe, but I think I'm more afraid of him."

"Oh, it's not that I'm afraid of death," Dumbledore replied to Harry's questioning gaze, "not that he might harm me with magic. I know we're evenly matched, and maybe I'm a little better. What I'm afraid of is the truth. Do you understand? , I never knew who actually cast the spell that killed my sister during that horrible melee. You'd probably say I was a coward, and you'd be right. Harry, my deepest fear is Knowing that I caused her death, not only through my arrogance and stupidity, but because I delivered that fatal blow to her."

"I think he knows, I think he knows what I'm afraid of. I put off seeing him until the end, and it would be a shame not to show up. People are dying, he seems unstoppable, and I have to do my part."

"Well, you know what happened afterwards. I won the duel. I won the wand."

Again there was silence.Harry didn't ask Dumbledore if he knew who shot Ariana.He didn't want to know, and he didn't want Dumbledore to have to tell him.He finally knew what Dumbledore would see when facing the Mirror of Erised, and why Dumbledore understood the attraction of the mirror to Harry in that way.

Finally, Harry said: "Grindelwald tried to stop Voldemort from going after the wand. He left taunts in the prison - I mean, he had a chance to tell Voldemort where the Elder Wand belonged."

Dumbledore nodded, looking down into his lap, tears still glistening on his crooked nose.

"I heard that he showed remorse when he was locked up alone in the Nurmengard cell in his later years. I hope this is true. I hope he can feel how horrible and shameful what he did. Perhaps, he wants to make up for it ...wanted to prevent Voldemort from obtaining the Hallows..."

"...Or keep him from breaking into your 'grave'?" Harry interjected, and Dumbledore wiped his eyes. "I don't think he knew your death was fake."

There was another short silence, and Dumbledore blinked.

"I'm proud of you, Harry. Faced with a temptation I couldn't resist, you made the right choice. You know the world, but you feel sorry for the grass and trees—this is what a friend of mine from the East said."

Dumbledore patted Harry's hand, and Harry looked up at the old man, a smile on his face.He couldn't help it.How could he be angry with Dumbledore now?

Harry left the headmaster's office.

A figure appeared from behind the complicated cabinet.

"Since when have you been hiding there?" Dumbledore asked without looking up.

"Since you started confessing," he said.

The portraits all held their breath, and although they still couldn't hear the conversation, they all stared intently at the rare scene in the office.

After a long silence, someone came to speak.

"What are your plans for me, Albus?"

"What are your plans?" Dumbledore asked.

The old man sat carelessly on the chair opposite the principal, looking at the candy wrappers and sequins all over the floor with distaste.I don't know if it was a joke or said seriously, "I will go back to Nurmengard and spend the rest of my sinful life."

Dumbledore finally looked up, and he shrugged. "You know, I was going to pretend I didn't know about the escape. But since you're all about confessing..."

"Shut up, you cunning old fox." Grindelwald interrupted him, miraculously found Dumbledore's collection of zizi honey candy, and threw it into his almost toothless mouth. "Phypocritical, obnoxious old fox."

Dumbledore's beard moved, and after a long time, he quietly moved the honey candy on the table to his face. "I'll give you a present every Christmas, Gellert."

"You really going to do that?" said Ron.He looked at the Elder Wand in Harry's hand, with a hint of reluctance in his voice.

"I think Harry's right," said Hermione softly.

"This wand has caused more trouble than it's worth," said Harry. "And, to be honest." He picked up the fallen statue, thinking only of the four-poster bed that awaited him in Gryffindor Tower, wondering if Dobby would send him a sandwich , "I've had enough trouble in my life. Wait... Shhh, keep it down!"

He suddenly put the invisibility cloak on his body, stopped Ron and Hermione, and walked towards the window next to the principal's office alone.

"...I shouldn't be so happy, George, but we won! And we, our family, our friends are well—"

"Gwen dear, I know there is a way to express our feelings at the moment." Brother Ron's voice came from his dating sanctuary. "As it happens, we're back in this place again. And without pesky gargoyles peeping."

Sure enough, Harry saw a tall wizard with red hair "having a good time" with his fiancée.

Yes, he meant lingering kisses.

Thinking back to one morning in sixth grade, how George had scared himself and Ginny at the Burrow.Harry's anger rose from his heart, and the evil grew to his guts.He tiptoed to the side of the couple.

"Good morning." Under the pink morning sun, Harry, wearing the Invisibility Cloak, greeted them cordially.

【Extra】Christmas Extra

A new house at 1998 Diagon Alley, December 12, 25.

"Good morning, Mr. Weasley." Gwen brushed George's too long bangs back and touched his nose.

"Good morning, the beautiful lady who hasn't become Mrs. Weasley." George didn't even open his eyes, and put the quilt on the heads of the two of them, refusing to get up without saying anything.

"Stop making trouble..." Gwen was itchy and giggled. "Get up, we have a lot to do today."

"Oh—" George wailed, "this is the only day I don't have to go to the store."

"That's why I didn't call you until ten o'clock." Gwen quickly pecked the man's lips, and then opened the curtains involuntarily. "Don't stay in bed, George. Come and open the Christmas presents."

George yawned heavily and climbed out of bed barefooted onto the thick carpet.

Gwen was already waiting for him under the Christmas tree in the living room on the second floor.

"How's the weather?" George sat down next to her, unpacking his most familiar package. "Mom knitted us two more sweaters—come here."

Gwen was pulled into a ginger sweater knitted by Mrs. Weasley. "It's a rare sunny day." Then she looked at herself, then at George. "We're like a pair of gingerbread men."

"Mom specially wrote a note asking us to take Garrick there at noon." George took out a corner of parchment from under the collar of his sweater.

"It's so kind of her to invite my grandpa to spend the holiday together." Gwen got up and looked at Ollivander's wand shop across the street. All the shops in Diagon Alley were closed today. "Garrick is awake, and I see smoke coming from the chimney. We'll go by the fireplace over there."

"This is the first Christmas after the victory, of course everyone has to be reunited." George opened the second package. "Harry and Hermione will be here too."

"Happy festive season, I'm still surprised Hermione chose to go back to Hogwarts to finish her studies - huh, Bill and Fleur sent us a bag of lavender seeds, and I'm getting ready to do some yard work."

"I suggest you be careful," George flipped open the card inside the package, "It says that these lavenders have an extraordinary hypnotic effect."

Gwen also looked over, "It's okay, as long as I don't let the dog out."

"What did we give them?"

"A pair of baby shoes." Gwen thought for a while, "Silver ones, matching Fleur's hair."

"Bill said he had a dream about a little girl," said George.

"Does your family have prophetic blood?" Gwen reached for a small box with blue wrapping paper and a yellow ribbon. "Merlin, Cho and Cedric are planning to get married next January!"

"I don't know for sure. Before Ron was born, my mother was sure that he would be the first Weasley girl." George glanced at the letter in Gwen's hand, "We'd better send out the invitations to everyone quickly, There are too many people going to have a wedding recently