The Greater Good: Dumbledore and Grindelwald

The First Day of the Rest of his Life

It was Saturday morning and the sun rose over London, filling the sky with a glorious light. For most people, it meant a chance to sleep late, relax and wind down after the hectics of the week.

For eighteen-year-old Albus Dumbledore, this was a day of purpose.


Albus and his best friend Elphias had spent the night at the Leaky Cauldron inn, which was not a place that was full of promise of bigger and better endeavours, but their stay at the pub was only temporary. After graduating from Hogwarts in a blaze of glory (winning the Barnabus Finkely prize for Exceptional Spell-Casting, Prefect, Head Boyship, being instated to the mantle of British Youth Representative of the Wizengamot), Albus and Elphias had made plans to embark on a Grand Tour of the world, starting with Sicily.

Lying in his room in the Leaky Cauldron, with the curtains drawn, Albus decided that the room shouldn't have been so dark - not on a day such as this one. It was the beginning of the rest of his life, and all of Albus' best days were ahead of him. Not only had he left his mark upon wizarding history before he'd even left school, but he had greater challenges to best before his life neared it's end.

Albus swung his bare feet out of his bed, grabbed up his wand from the bedside table and gave it a sharp flick. The curtains drew themselves and sunlight blazed through the windows, illuminating the room instantly. Albus smiled. Much better.



Albus quickly showered and dressed in eccentric purple robes that reflected his joyous mood before traipsing downstairs to the pub. The barman, Tom, spotted him drawing closer and smiled. "Albus...what can I get ya?"



Albus smiled back. "Two Butterbeers, Tom."


Tom cocked his head at Albus' unusual choice. "Celebrating are we, Albus?"




"Certainly," Albus smiled. "Today, my friend, is the first day of the rest of my life. Today, Sicily and tomorrow...who knows? Who knows where life will take me? To the furthest reaches of the globe, perhaps. Perhaps I will uncover secrets and push the boundaries of Magic further than they've ever been pushed before. I need to leave my mark, Tom, and so I shall.

"For years to come, people will know my name. Will I be Albus Dumbledore, youngest ever Minister for Magic? Or Albus Dumbledore, Greatest Wizard of His Time?"



Tom passed up the bottles from underneath the counter. "I fink someone sounds exci'ed," he grinned toothily. "I wish ya good fortune on all your future endeavours, Albus."



Albus smiled. "Thank you, Tom. That means a lot to me."



Albus took up one of the bottles and then suddenly remembered why he'd ordered two. Albus glanced around. "Say, Tom...you haven't seen Elphias around, have you?"


"Old Dodgy Doge?" Tom cackled. "He was in 'ere a few minutes before yourself. He left to read a private le'er, I fink it was. He should be just outside."


Albus nodded and threw a few galleons onto the counter before taking the two bottles and exiting the pub, eyes scanning the London street.




He wasn't hard to find. Elphias Doge was standing twenty yards away on the other side of the road, a scroll of parchment in his hand and a horrified expression on his face. Albus frowned and began to cross the road. "Elphias," he called. "Elphias, what's wrong?!"



Elphias looked up as he saw his friend drawing nearer. "A-Albus...I-I'm so sorry!"



"What for?" Albus asked, bewildered.





It was then that he noticed the name on the envelope in Elphias' hand. 'Albus Dumbledore'.




"Hey!" he blurted. "You opened my letter!"







"And good thing I did!" Elphias hopped onto the defensive. "Albus, I am so sorry, but...but there's been an accident."




Albus blanched and suddenly, he didn't feel like celebrating anymore. "Is it...is it Ariana?"








Albus had known that his sister was unstable. She'd been so ever since the...incident. Albus had tried to convince himself that it was all behind them, that his mother and brother were capable of handling her. But in truth, he'd never truly believed it.



Elphias nodded solemnly. "She and Kendra had...they had a fight. And...Kendra....she..."




Elphias swallowed the knot in his throat before continuing. "She's dead, Albus. Your mother's dead. This letter is from Aberforth...it says that you need to return home immediately to take care of your family."





Albus' face went even whiter and he dropped the butterbeers, which smashed on the pavement. "No..." he said in a deathly whisper. "We can't...we were going to see the world, Elphias-"





"They're your siblings, Albus," Elphias implored. "You can't just leave them. It has to be you. If anyone else were to find out what happened...Ariana would end up in Azkaban, and you can't let that happen."




"But," Albus pleaded. "But we...but I...we were going to....I have to-"





"You have to go home, Albus," Elphias said firmly. "It's over."