Things are unstable at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A chilled feeling of unease has replaced any sense that the castle could remain a safe haven to teach and learn magic.
With the misfortunes of the previous year behind them, Fred an...
The cloaked man glanced back at Aberforth, as the younger of the two brothers cradled Ariana's battered head. His gaze faltered. "I will not tell them that he attacked a wizard with an Unforgivable Curse... but he must pay the price for killing three Muggles! He must!"
As the cloaked man continued walking away, Albus ran forward, pounding his fists on the man's wounded chest.
"You cannot take him!!" the boy wailed. "I won't let you!!"
"There is light and there is dark... your father chose the darkness."
"They're just Muggles!!!"
The stranger shook his head. "They still matter."
"Albus... stop...!" Kendra begged, falling to her knees.
"NO!!!" the boy shouted, his voice cracking as he pummeled the man who was taking away his father. "I HATE YOU!! I HATE YOU!!"
Aberforth sped over and pulled Albus off of him. Then the man in the cloak turned back to his companion. "Stay with them, love. I shall return."
Albus threw off his brother, as the man reached for his broom, slipping it out of a leather sheath that hung across his back, like a gallant knight removing his sword before the battle. Their father looked thunderstruck, as he was tugged onto the back of the broomstick.
"Percival!"
"I'm sorry," he swallowed, eyes full of regret.
And then the family watched them take flight over the scattered trees, cutting through the dusk. Kendra turned to see that the woman in the gray hooded robe was caring for Ariana.
"Get away from her!"
"You must understand. What he did was wrong."
"I do not understand!" Kendra said, quivering. "That man was dead... I... no one can survive the killing curse! How...?"
"Right now you must think of your daughter. That is what matters in this moment," said the woman gently. "You must protect her. You know that she would have been punished, even in this state, for showing magic to Muggles. Be thankful that your husband is serving her sentence as well."
Kendra pulled back. "That's why you can't Apparate... and why you care about what happened to them. You aren't a witch."
"I am not, and that is why I understand the law far better than you... and your husband."
"Where is he taking him?" Albus demanded, rushing toward the woman. He thought of all the terrible stories of the wizard prison he had heard from the other boys in the village. "Anywhere but Azkaban..."
She would not answer him, but he could see it in her eyes.
"NO! NOT AZKABAN!!!"
The boy swiveled in place and thrust his stick at the man who was flying away with his father.
"Albus, stop..." said Aberforth, sobbing. "It won't work."
"YES, IT WILL!!!"
The stick shuddered in his hand. After several breathless minutes, he threw it to the ground and let loose a furious scream. Albus swirled to face the woman, a shocking snarl on his lips, his eyes going completely black.
"Who is that man? Tell me now!" Albus commanded.
The woman blinked, her neck went rigid and she spoke instantly, feeling unable to stop herself from responding.
"His name is Nicolas Flamel."
Albus swiveled his head back at the departing broomstick. Taking deep, heaving breaths, he stared in anger at Flamel. The woman leaned away and looked warily at the boy. Some sort of magic was happening, something unfamiliar. She felt warmth coming off of him, the grass withering at his feet. And, in his frustration, the boy almost seemed taller. That's when she noticed that his feet weren't touching the ground — he was hovering.
"The Muggles are a defenseless people. This was the right thing to do," she said, watching his expression worriedly. The woman pulled back her woolen robe, reached to her waistband for a pouch that was hanging there, and tore off the covering. "I am sorry for you. Truly. Your father chose the darkness."
The boy glared back at her, his jaw set.
"Remember what happened today," she said fearfully, grabbing hold of the item inside the pouch. Then, in the blink of an eye, she vanished from sight.
Unswayed by such impressive magic, Albus Dumbledore grit his teeth and cocked his head at the flicker of light that burst out high above them, like just another star.
"I'll never forget."
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