Support me by leaving a comment, review and vote
visit my Pat**on at ilham20
you can read lots harry potter story
The echo of the reprimand lingered in the office. Dumbledore was left speechless, looking at his younger brother towering over him. Those blue eyes seemed to daze for a moment, as if seeing that familiar figure from a hundred years ago.
The teenage appearance—lean and tough, full of anger—had bravely questioned him just like this.
Dumbledore opened his mouth, his voice slightly rasping. "The soul recalled by the Resurrection Stone isn't stable enough. Here with me, Ariana can receive the best care."
As a living legendary wizard, his magical attainments stood at the pinnacle of the world. He had conducted in-depth research into various Dark Arts and souls, was proficient in alchemy, and corresponded with scholars worldwide.
Coming from his mouth, these words had legitimate reasons and were very persuasive.
Aberforth hesitated for a split second, but quickly recovered, his tone still cold and hard. "Best care? Did you take good care of her a hundred years ago? Ariana and Mother were... because of you... You have no right to say such things!"
"A hundred years ago... when Ariana was fourteen."
Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, his straight back hunching over, revealing a hint of senility. "When Mother passed away."
Aberforth remained expressionless. "Also when you graduated. Your plan to travel the world with your friend was shattered. You had to come home for Mother's funeral. As the eldest son, you had to stay and shoulder the responsibilities of the head of the household."
Even recalling that memory now, it still made one resentful.
Aberforth felt his mouth go dry. He picked up his teacup to moisten his throat and spat:
"I knew you were unwilling. I told you I didn't care about school. I was willing to stay home and self-study, taking care of Ariana along the way. What did you say to me? Hogwarts' Outstanding Graduate of 1899?"
"You must complete your education. I will take over for Mother and take good care of Ariana..." Dumbledore said heavily.
The memory was torture for both of them, like ripping open a scabbed wound to face the bloody pain once again.
"You must have felt extremely noble."
Aberforth let out a cold laugh. "That promise was a huge sacrifice for Mr. Elite, wasn't it? Hiding in a valley to take care of a half-mad sister, having to stop her from blowing up the house every few days, and with no one to give you awards!"
"For the first few weeks, I did quite well."
Dumbledore whispered, as if in defense, attempting to persuade his brother to leave Ariana here.
"You pretended quite well. Not long after, that person came, and you weren't even willing to maintain the pretense!"
Aberforth grew even angrier, speaking viciously, "Grindelwald. Just as brilliantly talented, clever, and gifted as you. You, who had been stifled for half the summer, finally had someone to talk to. Spending time with him became the thing you looked forward to most. Taking care of Ariana came second!"
The face of that blonde youth surfaced in Dumbledore's mind. He felt a slight twitch deep in his heart, a dull ache.
The room fell silent. Aberforth and Dumbledore looked at each other, speaking no further.
Melvin tried his best to diminish his presence. He also knew something about what happened next.
But whether it was distant memories or news gathered from various channels, they all seemed brief and hollow. Hearing the two parties involved personally recount that tragedy made the feelings much more complex.
Dumbledore and Grindelwald were both very young then. One had just graduated from Hogwarts, the other just expelled from Durmstrang.
Two people dissatisfied with the status quo of the world quickly became confidants, researching magical mysteries, searching for the Deathly Hallows, and ambitiously plotting to establish a new wizarding order.
"I was naive then. Gellert promised me a beautiful fantasy..." Dumbledore fell silent for a long time before whispering, "Once we changed the world, no wizard would have to hide anymore."
"So for a grand plan, for the greater good, what did it matter if a little girl was neglected?"
Aberforth stared at him, his pale blue eyes glinting cold, his tone stiff. "Before returning to Hogwarts at the end of the summer, I told you, I warned you. Ariana wasn't in a good state. You couldn't take her with you, running all over the world, going where you planned to go, making your clever speeches, and whipping up a following for yourself!"
"But I didn't listen, and Gellert didn't want to listen either."
Dumbledore murmured softly, closing his eyes, a look of pain on his face as tears dripped from the corners of his eyes. "I was full of thoughts about changing the world, so that poor Ariana could also play freely in the sunshine."
Nearly a hundred years hadn't washed away the shadow in his heart.
They argued during their conversation. Unknown who drew their wand first, but soon everyone began casting spells, fighting in a chaotic melee. Gellert even used the Cruciatus Curse. Flashes of light and loud bangs attracted Ariana.
"Ariana wanted to help in the end, wanted to stop us, but she didn't know what she was doing, didn't know the power of those spells..." The color suddenly drained from Aberforth's face too, as if he'd received a fatal wound. "Gone, gone forever!"
Compared to Dumbledore, Aberforth's emotions were more intense. He slumped into the chair with a thud and began sobbing regardless of his image, tears streaming down his face.
Dumbledore looked at his weeping brother, got up, walked over to him, and tried to wipe his tears, but Aberforth turned his head to dodge.
"You were free! Weren't you? From then on, without the burden of a sister, you could go be the greatest wizard without any cares!"
Dumbledore used his own cuff to wipe Aberforth's nose and sighed. "In the long years since, I have never been free."
Two centenarians, one weeping silently, the other crying out loud... The scene of an older brother comforting a younger brother was truly undignified.
Melvin lowered his head and focused on tasting his pumpkin juice.
When their emotions calmed down, the room fell into a deeper silence, seemingly tinged with some awkwardness.
Dumbledore sat back in his seat, silent.
Aberforth stared at his veiny hands, squeezing slightly until his thick knuckles turned white. He still wanted to find a chance to give this man a hard one.
"Cough cough..."
Melvin silently took a sip from his teacup, cleared his throat, and broke the silence. "Gentlemen, Mr. Dumbledores, your longing and guilt for Ariana are understandable, and the desire for reunion is normal. But you must understand, this is the world of the living. It is inconvenient for the souls of the deceased to stay for long."
Aberforth had regained his reason. He turned to look at his brother. "You said the same thing just now. What exactly is the effect of the Resurrection Stone on Ariana?"
"I can take care of..." Dumbledore whispered. "We three siblings can meet again."
"What exactly is it?" Aberforth frowned.
"Whether it's Harry's parents who died thirteen years ago, or Ariana who passed away a hundred years ago, they were all brave and deserve to be remembered and missed. But they should stay in the world of the dead for their own journey, not be summoned as blood relatives. They are like birds on land sinking into water, or fish in a lake coming ashore."
Melvin spoke extremely slowly so that the dropout tavern owner could also understand. "Even moving only around the Resurrection Stone, with the protection of Death's magic, is just an expedient measure for them."
Aberforth looked at Dumbledore, not reacting for a moment.
"If Ariana stays in the mortal world, her soul will gradually weaken, so she needs rest!" Aberforth suddenly understood, his eyes widening.
"Headmaster, when Harry was obsessed with the Mirror of Erised in his first year, you once told him that the departed are worth remembering, but one should not dwell on memories and give up one's own life."
Melvin paused briefly, but said it anyway: "Find a time to say goodbye to Ariana."
A look of struggle appeared in Dumbledore's eyes. The night he got the Resurrection Stone, he had already discovered this drawback. Just like in the story of the Deathly Hallows, this wasn't a hallow to help reunite with loved ones, but a curse.
Ariana couldn't taste the candies and snacks in the drawer, couldn't breathe fresh air. Only images and sounds could bring some comfort.
He already had similar thoughts, but now that Melvin brought it up, he could no longer ignore it.
The centenarian wizard sat silently in his chair. He knew this was correct, but making such a choice was difficult.
"Hey! You are all learned philosophers, but what does this have to do with me? You spent so much time with Ariana, and now you know what's right and what's wrong. I'm willing to give up my life! I don't have many years left to live anyway!"
Aberforth protested, "Stop spouting high-sounding words. Give me the Resurrection Stone, I'll take care of Ariana!"
"Aberforth... Melvin is right. I can't be selfish anymore."
Dumbledore called out to him. "Making Ariana endure the discomfort of the soul to cross the boundary of life and death to accompany two old guys—it's not about whether we are willing to give up our lives, but that Ariana shouldn't give up another journey."
"If worse comes to worst, I'll go to that world to find her." Aberforth was extremely indignant.
"Ariana wouldn't agree to you doing that. Do you want her to blame herself?"
"But..."
Aberforth grit his teeth in hatred.
Again, always like this. This brother was still so hateful. Clearly, he had spent so much more time with Ariana, yet now he was saying irrefutable words to him.
"I know I can't persuade you."
Dumbledore stood up and patted his shoulder. "Then go see Ariana. Us three siblings together."
"Ari... now?" Aberforth was stunned.
Watching him summon the black gemstone, clutching it in one hand and resting the other on his shoulder, the tavern owner suddenly felt panicked.
Minutes ago, he was crying without caring about his image, reckless, indifferent to anyone's thoughts. But now he felt flustered, mixed with some shyness.
Perhaps out of a brother's bad taste, Dumbledore didn't give him time to tidy up. Before he finished speaking, he turned the Resurrection Stone immediately.
Glimmering moonlight flowed in from the window. The night mist enveloped the two old wizards. One leaned back in the chair, one stood by his side. Unknown when, they closed their eyes.
This room was crossing the boundary between life and death.
Looking from the side, it was a hazy mist. In the mist was the figure of a girl with long hair and a sweet smile.
"Ariana..."
The tavern owner murmured softly. Unknowingly, tears streamed down his face again.
...
Deep in the night, Melvin stood by the window, looking in the direction of the Forbidden Forest and the Black Lake, killing time.
Melvin didn't spectate the reunion of the three siblings across life and death, nor did he leave rashly. The conversation lasted for half an hour. The tavern owner cried and laughed. If there was a boxing match after the show, he could still help pull them apart.
Dumbledore had a smile on his lips, seeming to listen all the time, rarely speaking.
A quarter of an hour later, the moonlight and mist in the room dispersed.
"How was the chat?" Melvin turned around.
Dumbledore slowly opened his eyes, silent for a moment, and returned to his seat. "We agreed. After celebrating one more birthday for Ariana, we should say goodbye."
Before Melvin could reply, Aberforth sighed first.
"..."
"To ensure no damage to the soul's state, every time Ariana appears, she needs to rest for two days. There are three months left. Every two days, I will take the Resurrection Stone to the Hog's Head." Dumbledore put the black gemstone back into the silver vessel.
"Since we're meeting at the Hog's Head anyway, why not give the Resurrection Stone to me?" Aberforth retorted.
Dumbledore pondered briefly. "Actually, the Resurrection Stone isn't my property. I borrowed it from someone else too. I need to ensure the stone's safety."
"?"
Melvin gave the Headmaster a deep look, his expression somewhat complex.
The bushy-browed, big-eyed Headmaster actually started lying too, and to his own brother.
"What do you mean? The Hog's Head isn't safe?" Aberforth glared and asked.
Dumbledore avoided his own professor's gaze and cleared his throat. "I didn't mean that. But things lent to me by others, it's inconvenient for me to lend out again."
"You just want to get close to Ariana behind my back, you want to badmouth me!" Aberforth roared.
It was evident when he just met Ariana. When she was alive, Ariana clearly liked him, the second brother, more, not that guy Albus. But talking again after so many years, she was closer to Albus than him.
Obviously, he had spent time alone with her behind his back some time ago and said a lot of bad things.
"Then what do you want to do?" Dumbledore's expression was calm.
"..." Aberforth was speechless for a moment.
Only Melvin narrowed his eyes to size up the Headmaster, seeming to smell a hint of calculation.
"If you're worried..." Dumbledore looked up and said unhurriedly, "You can live here. Hogwarts has empty rooms for guests. You can even stay overnight in my office to eliminate the chance of me meeting Ariana alone."
"You think I dare not?" Aberforth slammed the table. "That's settled!"
Melvin turned his head, staring thoughtfully at the Headmaster, a peculiar expression on his face.
For the sibling reunion, the old wizard's methods were slightly despicable.