PROFESSOR

7.1/2 - Dwelling & Dueling

The temperatures dropped, the children went home, the castle grounds became coated in fluffy white snow as the winter season rolled in. Classrooms were empty, the halls of the school were quiet, everyone was home with their families. Everyone but Gellert, who still had no idea where Albus went, or if he were safe. One day turned to two, two turned to three, three to four, until a week passed and still, there were no sign of his beloved boy. Gellert felt hopeless. No matter where he looked, or who he spoke to, Albus was nowhere to be found.

He paced in their home, trying to think of anything else that may lead him to his love, though nothing came to mind. He'd tried everything, or so he thought. "Albus, where are you.." he whined to himself, knowing Albus wouldn't hear him but still hoped that somehow, somewhere, he just might. Gellert flopped down into a chair in their room, grabbing the broken blood troth that Albus had kept even after it were destroyed. Seeing it hurt Gellert almost as much as it did the day they watched it break. He sighed.

Turning his head to look out of the window, Gellert let his mind race.

"YOU hurt him, not me!" "You've already lost him." "How does it feel to be alone?"

Some thoughts in his mind where that of his own, but others were memories of what was once told to him.

"He's in love...but not with you."

Gellert shook his head, closing his eyes to try and make the voices in his head stop as he gripped the necklace tight in his hand.

"He's fallen for someone else" "...hurt Albus." "He's gone." "Gone."

Gellert finally snapped out of it, taking a deep breath as he opened his eyes. His fear and sorrow quickly turned to anger. "I'll kill him."

In a fit of rage, Gellert stormed out of their home, the necklace tucked safely into his pocket. In the darkness of the night, he found his way to the Forbidden Forest, disregarding anyone or anything that got in his way. "Show yourself!" Gellert yelled. "I know you're here!" he continued to shout, looking about his surroundings with his wand drawn. His breathing picked up slightly, his anger and nerves taking over his body. "I'm here, right where you want me!" he shouted once more before feeling the cold drop in temperature come that told him he were no longer alone.

"Come to meet your end, Gellert?" the voice laughed.

"Where's Albus? What have you done with him?" Gellert snapped.

"Where's Albus?" the voice repeated. "What, no 'hello'? No 'how are you'? No 'I'm ready to die, mister voice man!'? It's always Albus Albus Albus."

"Where is he?" Gellert snapped again, continuing to look around for any clue as to where the voice may be coming from.

"I told you! I have nothing to do with him. HE chose to run off. HE chose to leave you. HE chose his own fate."

"Is he alive?"

"How should I know? I'm not his keeper." the voice taunted.

"Don't play games with me. You know where he is. You know if he's safe. If I'm gonna die tonight, I at least deserve to know if the man I love is alive."

The voice laughed. "Though he doesn't love you, remember?"

"Albus loves me! We were going to have a life together! I left everything for him."

"And yet he still left you. Didn't he."

Gellert stopped looking around, realizing the voice was right.

"No note, no letter, no in person talk explaining anything. Albus ran away, Gellert. He ran away to be with the one he loves and it isn't you."

Gellert stood silent, thinking back to the classroom where he was shown Albus and Newt hugging. He thought of every time he's noticed Albus being friendlier with Newt than his other friends. He thought of every time one of Albus' students thought Albus were married to someone other than him, yet Albus still blushed. He thought of the lines that continued to haunt his brain. "He loves someone else." "Albus doesn't love you."

His heart broke as he looked down at the broken troth that now laid in his hand.

Gellert looked back up as he felt someone walk close behind him, speaking close to his ear. "He's dead."

Rage filled his body once more. The feeling of heartbreak and anger overtook his entire being. With the voice now showing in physical form, the two were able to properly fight.

"Everte Statum!" Gellert shouted, turning to start the duel as the necklace fell to the ground.

"Finite - Bombarda!" the man fired back.

"Pretego - Confringo!"

"Depulso!"

"Stupefy!"

"Fulgari!"

The two fought for what seemed like hours, dancing around the forest as their spells flew all around. Massive holes were being blown into the ground, trees set on fire, magical creatures fleeing their homes in search of safety. The men were finally dueling head to head, and their hatred for one another showed more now than ever.

"Petrificus totalus!" Gellert finally called, making the man stiffen and fall to his back. He watched as the man laid flat on the ground, not making any noise or moving a muscle. Both were tired, and out of breath. Burn marks from certain spells shined on their faces and arms, dirt and mud covering their clothes and skin. Convinced the fight was over, Gellert turned his back and began to walk away.

"Incarcerous!" the man yelled after standing back up.

The blast from the spell pushed Gellert to his knees. The man smirked as he watched the wizard fall, incapable of fighting back. "Did you really think you could win? You can't even win the heart of another."

Gellert remained on his knees, his breathing heavy. He felt defeated. He lost this fight, he lost all he wanted in life, and he lost Albus.

The man smirked at him once more. "Crucio." he fired, laughing a deep evil laugh as he watched Gellert fall to his stomach, twitching in pain and gasping for air. "Not to worry! You'll be with him soon." he spoke, using his foot to turn Gellert onto his back. The two locked eyes as he fired his final spell at Gellert. "Sectumsempra."

Gellert stopped twitching, but his breathing remained heavy. He laid on the cold hard ground of the Forbidden Forest, watching as the mysterious man walked away. Though he were in his physical body, Gellert still wasn't able to make out his face, leaving him, still, with no idea who the man is.

As time moved on, Gellert's was running out. The final spell placed on him caused his body to be lacerated all over, leaving his blood to pool around him. His vision began to fade, his hearing focused on his own heartbeat, his body grew too tired to fight any longer. Memories of his past flashed before his eyes. He saw himself as a young boy falling in love with a young Albus Dumbledore. He saw the two of them in the barn creating their promise. He saw the two of them reconnect time and time again, including the last time when they were together and happy. He saw Albus with the twins - a sight he'd never see again as his time neared his end.

His eyes began to close as he saw a blurry figure walking toward him.

"Vulnera Sanentur" the figure whispered, placing their wand over his wounds. His blood began to replenish, his wounds began to heal, the color and warmth of his body slowly started to come back as he began to breathe normally once more.

Once healed, Gellert remained on the ground, opening his eyes as he watched the figure walk away. The figure that just saved his life.