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THE SUMMER OF nineteen ninty-two was undoubtedly a remarkable one.
Inside the colossal walls of Nurmengard Castle, resided a young witch and her grandfather. They had spent the past few months doing undetected magic and telling stories, just as they did for the first eleven years of the girl's early life. It was puzzling how the concept of family could remain cardinal to even the wickedest of the world.
Gellert Grindelwald had finally learned all about his granddaughter's first year at Hogwarts, nearly losing it when he'd found out about how she was attacked in the forest. He'd even deliberated on whether or not to send her back after that, but eventually came to his senses.
Valerie Grindelwald had turned twelve on the twenty-fourth of August. She had received greetings through letters, from friends and even a few odd acquaintances. They would come and go, delivered by Harriet nearly every other morning. However, there was one letter that had yet to come, and it confounded her to no end.
Since the summer began, she hadn't heard a single thing from Harry Potter.
Valerie wondered if she'd weirded him out or scared him away with her last letter. A gut feeling was telling her that something else had happened, but maybe it was just her mind trying to ease her guilt.
But at the moment, she was far too busy to be thinking about that.
"Stupefy!"
The spell was deflected as Gellert Grindelwald cast an effortless Protego Charm. With a swift flick of his wrist, Valerie was sent falling backwards, her legs locking together as the result of a successful, yet irritable curse.
"I thought this necklace was supposed to protect me," she groaned frustratedly.
"From near-death situations, Valerie. Are you in a near-death situation?"
"Feels like it," she murmured, "How am I supposed to know what to do if you use non-verbal magic?"
"Use it yourself," her grandfather simply said, "Be more observant. Look for the warning signs. Sometimes, you can see a person's motives right in their very eyes."
Her curse was reversed, and Valerie quickly stood to her feet, "I still don't stand a chance against you."
"Well, then that says something, doesn't it? You can't even beat a withered old man," Gellert shook his head with a hoarse laugh.
Valerie sent him a joking glare, "Have you ever even a lost a duel, grandfather?"
Gellert Grindelwald paused for a moment, unreadable emotion flashing across his pale blue eyes, "Once."
"Once?" Valerie asked incredulously, "That's it? Well, whoever that was, I desperately want to ask them for tips."
"You do that," Gellert answered with a small smile.
