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Chapter 22-  An Improbable Appearance

A week had passed since Tom appeared at Nurmengard seeking the Elder wand. Gellert had made sure to warn the man. Despite his insistence on gaining control of the object of the legends, he knew that the wand brought bad luck. He was witness to the fact that the wand was not all-powerful.

The wand, if a person was a bastard of the highest order. He always doubted that the wand had a mind of its own, but it only confirmed so when he was at his highest. The wand always fails when you trust it the most. Knowing that you are winning would make the wand unbeatable every time you go into a battle. Going into a fight knowing that you have the Elder Wand in your hands makes the wand nothing more than every other ordinary wand. The wand is powerful as much as your ability is. The more you depend on the wand and rest easy knowing that you possess a legendary artefact, the more useless the wand becomes.

Had the man waited a few more seconds, he would have given him the answer he sought. As much as the man’s abilities might be, he could never take a wand out of Dumbledore’s hands. Albus can never be disarmed.

His thoughts returned to his friend. If Tom had appeared this far and sought a wand that was supposed to be a well-kept secret, things might be happening in Britain. Albus would be at the centre of it. That was always how they had planned for things. Gellert would be the face of their plan, but Albus would remain behind the scenes. He was never a man who wanted to be in the spotlight. Eyes followed him involuntarily, which he hated.

He had found it very funny that the man who hated power, hated the attention, was getting so much after being given high positions that he would never have thought he would occupy.

He felt somebody approaching his cell. He hoped it was not the deformation again. He had no wish to see him again. A moment later, he realised that this was not the Dark Lord. It was somebody else.

He peered out of the blasted doorway, which had been the same since the last time the man visited. Nobody had bothered coming here for a long time now, and he had stopped bothering to get out of this place. What was the point of it?

A short, rotund man stepped up near the open doorway, glancing warily at the damage.

“Uhm…the door is blasted apart. Not one of your activities now, is it, Gellert?” The man questioned as he sat down against the man. Gellert observed the man for a while before sighing.

“The nerve to show up after all these days. You disappear for days on end, and you turn up now. To what do I owe the misfortune of your arrival?” Gellert mocked the man as he leaned back.

“I see that you have yet to curb your arrogance. Same old Gellert Grindelwald. The arrogant sod who thought nobody could touch him, and yet, here we are.” The newcomer gestured to the worn-down prison cell.

“Are you even being appropriately fed, Gellert?” The man questioned as he conjured a chair with a negligent hand wave. “This place is different from when you built it—the dreaded Nurmengard, the abode of the enemies of Gellert Grindelwald. Yet, here we are, with Gellert Grindelwald himself being locked up here for all the atrocities he committed.”

Grindelwald could just snort. “Atrocities?” He shook his head. “A stretch. I orchestrated a war. Nothing more. Nothing less.” He shook his head. “And for your information, I have an elf who continues to deliver some food to my cell.” He clarified. “What do you want, Endrick? What are you doing here?” He questioned, staring at the man with interest.

“To give you the news.” The man shrugged. “I believe the news has not reached you for some reason.”

“What are you talking about?” The man frowned questioningly.

“So you don’t know.” The man muttered. “Your friend is dead.” Gellert frowned. “Albus Dumbledore is dead, Gellert.”

Gellert reeled back as if slapped when he heard the news. “Al..Albus is d…dead?”

“Yes. It has been close to a year since Albus passed away.” Endrick answered. “He was killed at Hogwarts last April.”

“No,” Gellert whispered, shaking his head in denial. “Albus being killed? That is impossible. Albus cannot be killed. There is not a single person in this world that can kill Albus Dumbledore.” He scoffed. “You must be mistaken. Someone must have led you on.” He chuckled. “Albus Dumbledore being killed? I know Albus better than any. I know Albus better than anybody else, and believe me, Albus Dumbledore can only die of his advanced age. He cannot be killed.” He answered confidently.

“You should pause, Gellert.” Endrick cut in. “Dumbledore is dead. He was killed. News from Britain has stopped getting out, so there has not been a big mess around the Wizarding World. The war is at its peak, and that place is crumbling.”

“Everything has changed, and Dumbledore dying was the catalyst for the mess.” He took a deep breath. “The way into and the way out of Britain has been shut down unless they are favourable to the Dark Lord. The only thing that is going around is one that he wants. The entire Ministry is in his hands. Hogwarts as well."

“Not Hogwarts,” Gellert mumbled. Albus loved Hogwarts. That was one place that he always looked up to fondly. The school was all he loved ever since they parted ways. He had been vocal in telling him so. Ever since becoming the Headmaster, he felt he was in the right place. Teaching students day in and day out was precisely something that would endeavour to Albus.

“Why are you here?” Gellert grumbled as he stepped away from his seat, facing away from the man. “I did not know of your presence for years, and you turned up at Nurmengard for some reason. What do you want, Endrick?”

The man held up his hands in surrender. “I am here to meet the man who was my leader on the battlefield. We are friends, Gellert. Me being away should not and will not change a thing.”

Gellert scrutinised the man briefly before turning away without a word. Endrick smiled. “Now come on.” He began walking out of the room.

“Where to?” Gellert questioned. The other man chuckled. “The doors to your prison cell have been blasted apart, and there is nobody here guarding the most dangerous man on the planet and yet, here you are not even bothering to step out. How long has it been since you stepped out? Fifty-odd years?”

“Come.” Endrick nodded to the outside. “We will go visit your friend.”

Gellert stiffened slightly. “Didn’t you just tell me that all routes to Britain are sealed and monitored?”

The man scoffed. “Come now, Gellert. Did you forget what I could do so very quickly? Now I am slightly hurt by that.” He continued out of the door. “Come.”

Gellert followed the man without any hesitation. He was still yet to come to terms with the fact that Albus was dead. He would have just felt sad and moved on, but the fact that he was lonely. Ever since in forever, this was the first time that he felt genuinely lonely.

He had always imagined him dying before Albus did. He was sure that he would get bored of his life one day, and he would die in the prison he built with his own hands, and yet, Albus had died before him.

“Where were you all these days, Endrick?” Gellert questioned as he fell into step with the man.

“The last thing I know, you disappeared off the map. I guessed Potter chased you off the map or killed you.”

“You can say that,” Endrick whispered, looking away. “I should be considered very lucky that I managed to escape him. I was shown mercy. Let me correct that,” He snorted.

“I begged mercy, and in a moment of madness, which I never fail to thank my fortune every single day for granting me, I escaped. It was challenging. It was very, very difficult, but I got away.” He smiled, facing the man.

“Do you think that we underestimated the man? Do you still regret not finishing Potter sooner?”

He did. He regretted every single day ever since he was imprisoned for his war crimes. He regretted not taking the man seriously despite a lot of warnings. He had always chalked him up to every other man who held his position and failed to beat him.

The war was lost not by tying his hands, literally speaking, but it was lost by having his hands tied figuratively. He had been accustomed to the opposition focusing more on him than his army could make inroads. They wanted to stop him. Charlus Potter, on the other hand, was more focused on cutting down on his arsenal. Charlus ensured he had cut down every support he could count on as days passed. Gellert’s army dwindled in numbers.

Gellert had to have worked towards holding his fort down instead of looking for the next place to hold up his fort. That worked right into Potter’s hands. The result, here he was, in the jail he built with his own hands.

“We did.” He agreed after a long, contemplative few minutes. “We underestimated the man and what he could do despite many of our friends telling us otherwise. In the end, that was what led everything downhill.”

The two men stepped out of the castle, and Gellert had to close his eyes briefly to adjust to the light. It was the first time in half a century that he stepped foot outside of Nurmengard. He rarely saw the light through the small opening in his cell, and when facing the sun for the first time after decades in the dark, it did not help him.

“How is freedom, Gellert?” Endrick questioned, chuckling at the man’s reaction. “Come. Let’s keep moving.” The two men walked some distance for a while.

Endrick reached into his robe and pulled out a wand. “This should do for a while.” He said as Gellert took it in his hand.

“No.” He shook his head, looking back up to the man. “This won’t do.” He replied immediately.

“This wand won’t suit me. The wand is barely syncing with my senses.” He complained, staring at the wand in his hand.

Endrick couldn’t help but scoff. “I am not Gregorovitch or Ollivander, Gellert. I did not spend years trying to procure a good wand for you. I found a spare, and you need one. Just keep it with you for the time being. You can do whatever you want afterwards.”

“Just follow me.” He disappeared with a pop, leaving Gellert behind, who had still not managed to look up from his hand.

“This is wrong.” He muttered to nobody but himself. Gellert closed his eyes and lost himself in the feel of his suppressed magic rushing through his veins. Gellert felt himself being refreshed after years of suppression and lethargy. His magic hummed in approval as he basked in the feeling of fulfilment.

He sighed once again as he focused his magic on holding on to the tendrils of magic that just popped away from his surroundings. The next moment, he felt his stomach turn as he disappeared without a sound.

BREAK-

“Well…” Endrick said as the two popped in out of nowhere. “Gellert, welcome to Hogwarts.” He said, pointing ahead. Gellert Grindelwald witnessed the majestic Hogwarts for the first time in his life. No wonder Albus loved it here. The place was as magnificent and peaceful as it came.

Gellert understood why Albus raved on and on about Hogwarts all the time. This place was all one would need for a man who wanted peace. For a man who was content with life, this place was everything he would need.

“Currently, this place is in the Dark Lord’s hold.” Endrick continued. “Don’t say his name.” He added quickly. “The man is a psycho. He has a taboo on his name.”

‘That is something.’ Gellert thought to himself. “The moment his name is uttered, they would be on you before you can breathe.

“As far as I know, this is one measure to track down the people who oppose him, mostly the followers of Dumbledore who are actively fighting the Dark Lord—something known as ‘The Order of the Phoenix’, which is said to have been Dumbledore’s vigilante group.”

He was aware of it. He had heard the man speak of those who looked up to him for ending the Dark Lord in Tom’s first stint.

“You are telling me we should get into the school grounds?” Endrick nodded. “He is buried here. He never had anything apart from the school, they said. Three whole generations of witches and wizards were groomed into what they are under the tutelage and care of Albus Dumbledore. There is no place better than Hogwarts to place him, and that was what was done. That was it. The entire school has, from then on, been in the control of the Dark Lord and his stooges.”

The two men made it as close to the school as possible when Gellert stopped. “Wards.” He muttered. “They will be out here looking for us in seconds.”

“Give me a few minutes,” Gellert asked as he twirled his wand and waved his wand in intricate patterns. Gellert hummed as he dropped his wand arm. “Come.” He motioned for the man to proceed.

They continued until they came across the Great Lake, where the tomb of Dumbledore was situated. A white marble tomb was located at the banks of the lake, and the two made their way out to the tomb.

Gellert stepped closer to the tomb and knelt next to it. He placed his hand on top of the tomb.

“Hello, Albus,” Gellert whispered as he sat beside the tomb. “I was annoyed that you stopped visiting. I used to look forward to speaking with you, and suddenly, you decided not to show up.”

“I was angry. Very angry that you were not visiting. You had promised that you would keep visiting me until one of us died. I never thought that I would live longer than you, Albus.”

“Hope you are peaceful on the other side,” Gellert whispered. “I just wanted to see you with my eyes to believe that you are dead.” He pointed out. “Now that I see it, I have nothing else to say. What can I say?” He shrugged.

Gellert stepped away from the marble structure and took a few steps back, about to leave when he remembered something. He retraced his steps towards the structure.

“It was my spell.” He whispered. “It was my spell that did it.” He clarified. “All these years, I did not have the face to tell you the truth, Albus. I was the one that killed your sister.”

“I am sorry.” He apologised. “The only thing I could offer you is my apology. There is nothing else I could give you.” He wiped away a stray tear.

“I apologise, Albus. I am sorry. I have always been sorry. I will always be sorry.”

He stepped away from the tomb and, with one last glance, turned away from the place and walked away. “Sorry, Albus.” He muttered to nobody in particular as they added some distance from the place they had been for a while now.

“Let’s leave,” Gellert muttered. “This place is not the same anymore. Our purpose is done, and there is no point in loitering around anymore.”

“If you are adventurous enough, we can see a portrait of Dumbledore,” Endrick suggested. “The Headmaster’s office is said to have portraits of former Headmasters.”

“Are you stupid?” Gellert hissed, glaring at the man. “Can you hear yourself?” He questioned.

“Calm down, Gellert.” Endrick spoke calmly. “It was just a suggestion. I could see you were looking to talk to the man again. I just gave a suggestion.” He held up his hands in surrender.

Gellert looked away from the man, sighing softly. Endrick was right. His heart was wishing for one last conversation with his friend.

“How different thongs would have been had we possessed the Stone of Resurrection.”

Gellert Grindelwald stiffened in his stride. “What?” He questioned only for Endrick to speak back. “The stone of resurrection, The one mentioned in children’s books. The tale of three brothers?” Gellert nodded, familiar with the story.

How could he not know? It was all that was their objective in their childhood, and it was one material that he had been looking forward to possessing but to no avail.

“The stone can get somebody back from the dead. It would have been a massive help in this instance.” Endrick walked away, but not before he ensured Gellert would play right into his hands. Sure enough, the words, Resurrection stone, were sufficient to stir up the man now lost deep in thought.

‘Well, that went better than I expected.’ Endrick thought to himself as they continued down the path with a thoughtful Gellert in tow.

TBC—----

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