FicWad

It was night and the streets were dark and baron. When the sun set everyone stayed inside, not daring to venture out doors with Totalitar patrolling the streets. The last few days had been hell for the village. The riot had cause the Minister to put the village on notice, installing a curfew and having Totalitar search every house, daily for anything forbidden under her rule. Arrests were common, disappearances even more so. Even George Weasley had to move shop.
Yet one old man remained, he was too old to participate in war. He would help in the ways he was able to but joining the LLR would help no one. He sat quietly in the Hogshead pouring himself a mug of tea, "Sure you don't want any tea."
"No" a voice replied causing the old man to shrug. "Fine, more for me, though to tell you the truth I've laced this with enough Firewisky that I probably shouldn't be calling it tea anymore,"
The Mug floated out of the old man's hand and into the grasp of a young Wizard. "Well when you put it that way..."
The old man grumbled. "You young people are all the same. I remember when he was a student, Albus would lace his Lemon drops with alcohol. Got the entire school hammered, including the professors."
Aberforth roared with laughter as he banged his hand on the table. Harry didn't laugh, his mind far away. The old man looked at Harry with concern. "When will you be leaving?"
"Soon." Harry uttered. "I need to do this properly. In and out, without being spotted."
Aberforth shook his head. "They have wards all over Hogsmeade, if you step one foot outside they will find you. Plus they have ways of seeing past them cloaks. No mere invisibility cloak will help you past the Totalitar."
Harry nodded. "True but this is no mere Invisibility cloak."
The barkeep coughed with frustration before he grunted. "He wouldn't approve you know."
Harry sighed as he slid his drink away from him. "Maybe he would, Maybe not. Your brother's dead Abeforth. I have to make my own choices, not what Dumbledore wanted."
Abeforth shrugged as he looked at the clock. "Then I shall wish you best of luck and hope you know what you are doing...for all of our sake."
"I hope so too." Harry quipped dryly before rising out of his seat. "Thanks Abe. If I survive this, I'll get you another bloody goat."
Harry vanished under his cloak and popped into the streets as Abeforth shouted. "You can take your goat and shove it up your backside, HORN FIRST!...And don't call me ABE!"
Abeforth muttered to himself as he went to bed. "Goats are cool, don't care what anyone says. "

Harry's words proved true, the no wards were set off, and no Totalitar spotted him from under his cloak. Still Harry was nearly caught when a Totalitar noticed his footprints in the snow. Harry was able to circle behind the guard and send him away with a powered confundus charm.
The gateway to Hogwarts was locked. Harry should have seen this coming but alas this was not what he expected. He wondered how much of a hold the Ministry had on the Castle by now. Harry frowned as he looked at the Metal doors before simply deciding to slip through the bars. Harry grabbed a nearby rock and threw it at the gate, and jumped back as the rock exploded. "Bugger." Harry cursed as he began pacing back and forth. Then he got an idea.
"I think the Minister has lost it, having us guard this bloody village." Harold uttered as the two Totalitar patrolled by the gate.
"We are not guarding per-SE, we are simply...keeping the peace." Dylan replied uncertainly.
Harold laughed. "By enforcing curfew? In this weather?! If it gets any worse they won't leave their homes in the day either. Hell we will be forced to run their businesses. No one-"
"The Minister has reason for us to be here, that is enough reason for me. Besides if the rumors I've heard are true, we will be needed soon enough." Dylan uttered solemnly
"You mean Goblins?" Harold whispered.
"No not..." Dylan went silent.
"Not what...what the hell?"
The two Totalitar stared in confusion as a Thestral-drawn carriage approached them from down along the snow covered path. The carriage moved past them before approaching the Hogwarts gates. Harold spoke first, "Well that's odd."
Dylan approached the carriage and looked inside. "No one's in there."
"Unless they are disillusioned." Harold added.
"I checked for that," Dylan replied sharply. "The question is who attached the carriage to the Thestral and released it from the stable. Most importantly...we must ask why."
Suddenly the gates began to open letting the Thestral drawn carriage through. Harold whispered. "Are you sure no one is on that carriage?"
Dylan cursed as the two Totalitar chased after the carriage, trying to stop it from reaching the school. By then Harry had already sneaked through the closing gates under the Invisibility cloak and headed towards his true destination.

Flowers had been enchanted to last here, even in the dead of winter. Many flowers had been left here since the fall of Voldemort. More would have been left before, but people were afraid, at least now they could mourn Dumbledore in peace, even if things were as bad as ever before. Harry approached the tomb hesitantly, it was as white as ever, standing out from the snow. Despite Harry's words to Aberforth he knew Dumbledore's opinion mattered, it was how Harry had designed it.
Harry raised his wand to the coffin and drew a onto the dust covered tomb. First he drew a triangle, then a he drew a circle inside the triangle. Harry took a deep breath before steeling his nerves and cutting a line down straight through the symbol, creating the fabled image of the Deathly Hallows.
A bright white light shined from the tomb before fading, just enough to reveal the stern ethereal figure of Albus Dumbledore. Harry bowed his head. "Professor Dumbledore."
The ghostly figure chuckled. "As you are no longer a student and I am no longer a professor, may you please just call me Albus?"
Harry smiled as he looked up with a smile. "It's been too long."
"It has been four months, you were speaking to my portrait in my office. Of course since I am a portrait and not the actual Albus Dumbledore, I was never your professor to begin with. I always found portraits to be rather odd, and becoming one has not helped dissuade my opinion of them." Dumbledore hummed merrily.
"How are things in Hogwarts? what is the Ministry doing in there? Are the students safe?" Harry asked quickly.
"The students are going on a field trip in the morning, they will be heading to the Ministry of Magic so they have a better understanding about how the Wizarding world works. Unfortunately it seems only Wizarding families were sent a permission slip." Dumbledore finished sadly before perking up as he said. "The Totalitarian have replaced the Aurors as the guards of Hogwarts, however the students have continued what is quickly becoming a yearly tradition. The new DA have been most ingenuous, finding ways to frustrate and befuddle the faculty. If the rumors are true, a certain Weasley is hiding in the castle, helping them with their pranks."
Harry sighed. "You think just for once Hogwarts could be a proper school for education."
"Allas, I doubt Hogwarts will ever be such a thing." Dumbledore uttered wearily. "It is a truly wonderful and magical place, and I feel that as long as there is darkness in the world, Hogwarts will never have a true place in the world. Yet that Hogwarts is not a part of this world is truly what makes it so special. It is more than a school, it is an escape from the hardships of the world. At least it was for me."
Harry nodded as he looked longingly at his home. Hogwarts stood tall in the dark, full of candlelight which was causing the building to glow. Dumbledore's voice returned Harry to the present. "As much as I enjoy speaking with you Harry, I doubt you summoned me here to speak of school."
Harry slowly nodded as he stood with conviction. "I am here to fulfill my destiny."
Dumbledore chortled. "Maybe my old age has affected my memory but last I recall you already have fulfilled your destiny."
"That was the hand fate gave me. The only prophecy guiding my actions is my own freewill." Harry stated with conviction.
Dumbledore frowned where he stood. "I recall you were very hesitant to use the Stone of Resurrection a mere five months ago. Now you wish to wield the Elder wand like you were destined to wield it. Be very careful Harry. Those who speak of such things do not wield the Death stick for long."
"I have the cloak with me, and next is the Stone." Harry uttered calmly letting the statement sink in.
"Dumbledore's ethereal visage seemed to pail. "You wish to become the Master of Death."
"I don't wish it, but it is something I must do." Harry retorted as he looked into the forest to where the stone resided.
"If you plan on wielding the Elder wand, you will have to inform me as to why. Remember it was your design that gave me this right. I could refuse you, and the only way to reach my wands would be to destroy my tomb, my final resting place and destroy the wand with it." Dumbledore warned.
"Luna's been captured by the Totalitar. I have to rescue her, the Wizarding world is at war and it's only a matter of time before it descends into total chaos. Luna is the only one who can stop this-"
"And you love her." Dumbledore whispered quietly.
Harry choked on his own words, only able to nod. Dumbledore sighed. "Love can make cowards of us all, yet it also makes heroes of us. However if you are not careful, it will blind you and leave you with only death."
"I am blind!" Harry shouted as he desperately pointed into the forest. "Somewhere in the Forbidden Forrest is the stone of resurrection. If I take the wand I will go there and I will use it. I don't know who will come out, what if it's...what if I summon her from the stone!? What if I'm already too late, what if Luna's..."
Dumbledore sighed as he knelt down and rested a ghostly hand on Harry's shoulder. "I understand your need for this power, You are the only one I would trust with this power, however I do not believe you are ready, to bear the burden."
Harry looked up at his former mentor and spoke. "No...I'm not. Unfortunately I don't have that luxury."
"Neither did I, nor did I ever truly learn to handle it. I never possessed all three Hallows simultaneously as you wished to do. Atlas I'm afraid my answer must be no." Dumbledore uttered sadly.
Harry let out a harsh breath. This was it, his only plan, without it Luna was doomed. He nodded as he turned and hastily began to retreat from the white tomb. Harry suddenly felt completely and utterly lost.
"However..." Harry looked back as Dumbledore mused. "I suppose you would just go after Luna with or without the Deathly Hallows...and you do have a rather noble cause. Most importantly of all, you accepted my choice. loathed as you were to do so, you accepted my refusal and were prepared to leave empty handed."
Dumbledore grinned . "I'll make a deal with you, give me one more good reason that you should wield the Deathly Hallows and I shall relinquish the Elder Wand to you."
Harry walked back to Dumbledore. "I named a lot of good reasons."
Dumbledore smiled. "I'm sure you can think of something. You are not as hotheaded as you used to be. You would not hold such conviction to your cause unless you truly believed it was the right thing. Even if you do not consciously know it, Where did the Idea come from."
"Nicholas Flamel, he kept trying to convince me to embrace my power." Harry yelled with excitement.
Dumbledore's eyes rose. "You met Flamel? I thought he was dead."
"He somewhat is sir." Harry muttered before an image entered his head. "Wait there is something else. Luna and I were in Pandora's lab. She had all these images on the walls."
Harry looked at Dumbledore's transparent eyes as he spoke in hushed whispers. "The Deathly Hallows was among them. Inside the Circle were the words Devils Night and Inside the cloak were pictures of castles burning."
Dumbledore was definitely pale now. Harry finished by saying. "The Words carved at the ends of the wand were Pandora's Box."
Suddenly Dumbledore vanished in another burst of bright light. It faded leaving behind a glowing wand that shined in the dark of night, levitating before Harry's eyes. He reached out and grasped the Elder wand and felt power surge through him. Suddenly Harry felt invincible, like he could take on the entire Ministry of Magic, The Goblin's, the LLR, even the Muggle armies. He felt like he could conquer the-"
"Harry we don't have time." Dumbledore's voice cut through the air and startled Harry from his thoughts. Harry stared at the wand wearily before uttering, "Yikes."
"Listen close Harry." Dumbledore continued hastily. "You were not brought here tonight by chance Harry Potter, you are here because it was meant for you to be here. Pandora has knowledge beyond belief, and things are becoming all too clear. Go into the woods quickly and retrieve the Stone. Then summon her and speak of what you have seen. If my fears are true, you will be needed."
"What about Lu-"
"She can wait others can't. You will need to warn them if what I fear is true." Dumbledore hissed under his breath.
"What is it?" Harry asked but was silenced when he foots steps drawing nearer.
Dumbledore's image vanished as Harry threw the cloak over his head. Harry saw a group of Totalitar marching through the gates of Hogwarts. Harry was tempted to follow them but remembered the words of his mentor and instead ran into the forest.

Harry stood in the center of the burning pentagram, the stone was firmly in his hand as he vanished the fire and other traps he and Hermione had created to protect the stone. Harry spun the Hallow three times and tapped the elder wand to the stone. Harry spoke roughly as his throat had suddenly gone dry, "I lay claim to the Deathly Hallows and to the power of Death."
The forest seemed to disappear into darkness, Harry could see nothing past his own outstretched hand. Then he heard a dark evil voice let out a ghastly wail.. "So you wish to Master Death?"
Harry bowed as he shook his head. "I wish to have the power to protect those that I love. I have no desire to Master Death, for death can have no master... Peverell."
Harry heard laughter that sounded far more human. "Peverell's would be the more fitting description."
Three figures appeared from the darkness. They all had the same blues eyes and white hair, in fact they looked almost exactly alike. One had more scars, and another looked more crazed, the third looked both younger yet older than the other too. They spoke as one. "Despite what legend may leave others to believe we are not the victims of Death's creation. We are the inventors, the three sacred artifacts that have become known in modern lore as the Deathly Hallows."
Harry nodded as he looked at what he assumed were not just brothers but triplets. "Yet it is far more powerful than modern magic."
"We put a halt to our own creation's progress before the Hallows could be replicated. Though the idea of halting progress sounds sinful to us inventors, when said invention can cause such destruction, it is best for it to never see the light of day." The Brothers spoke reverently.
"Are you saying the power I ask for could bring about the end of the world?" Harry asked stunned.
"Of course not, but imagine if there were an army of Wizards armed with the Deathly Hallows. The Muggles never learned this lesson. They created the Nuclear bomb which caused unspeakable destruction, yet even it could not destroy the world on its own. They now have hundreds of them. If only this weapon's progress could have been stopped. But enough of this, you wish to wield the power of the Deathly Hallows, do you not?" The Brother's eyes fixed him with a look of curiosity.
Harry nodded as he uttered with conviction. "I do."
The Brothers shared a glance before they preached. "If you speak true then raise the stone and embrace that which you fear. You shall only get one chance, for if you fail then the Hallows three shall serve you no more."
Harry raised the stone and waited. The Brothers seemed to vanish into the darkness and Harry felt his eyes close on their own accord.

Suddenly he woke up to the sound of a loud rapping sound on the door. Harry shook his head and rubbed his eyes as he tried to take in his surroundings. Harry saw light as a large figure grabbed him by the neck and lifted him out of his cupboard. Harry was dropped to the floor and quickly looked up to see the face of Vernon Dursley looking down at him.
Harry scooted backwards as the larger Vernon yelled. "We swore when we took you in we'd put a stop to all this rubbish. Now look at me!"
Harry looked up and saw his uncle was bald, and looked green, like he did before he was killed. "We should never have taken you in boy. We were fine before you came along, we were happy. You could have been happy too, but instead you had to be so.. abnormal!"
Harry rose to his feet and realized he was somehow 11 years old again as his uncle stood over him like a Mountain Troll. Harry went to speak when another voice croaked. "I knew from the very beginning you would be the same, you're just like your Mother. You freaks are all the same, I knew it was only a matter of time before something blew up and of course it had to be my family that paid the price."
Harry backed way as Petunia swung a frying pan at him. Narrowly dodging it, Harry stuttered. "I..I sorry... I.."
Harry felt like he had been shot when a fist socked him in the stomach, he looked up to see his cousin Dudley. Unlike Harry he was not an 11 year old and seemed bigger and wider than the whole room. "You killed my Father! You said if we left we would be safe!"
"I thought you would be." Harry gasped as he tried to make it to his feet, only to feel Dudley press a fat hand on his shoulder to hold him down. "I never wanted anything to happen to you, despite everything."
"What do you mean, "despite everything." Vernon growled. "We should have sent you to a bloody orphanage, we should have left you in the gutter. We fed you, we clothed you."
"I fed you, I ate your scraps, and the clothing I got was Dudley's hand me downs." Harry snapped out of instinct, earning another punch from Dudley.
"You deserved far less!" Vernon shouted as foam spewed from his mouth.
Petunia shrieked. "You and your freaky friends of yours are an insult to nature and normal folk like us. It only puts us in danger, like when you blew up Vernon's sister, or when those filthy red heads attacked my Dudley."
"The Weasleys are my friend! They are better people than you will ever be!" Harry roared as he causing Dudley to let out a squeak and back away from him.
"Don't forget that crazy old loony Bumblefork. From what he spoke, you are even more of a freak than the rest of your lot. A freak among freaks, if only we knew..." Vernon coughed out.
"Say one more word about Dumbledore." Harry yelled as he rose to his feet.
Vernon laughed. "You will never be one of us, you will always be a freak. You don't belong here, you don't belong anywhere!"
"ENOUGH!" Harry shouted and the room went silent. Harry rubbed his eyes as he started to speak not realizing he had begun to grow taller. "Fine, have it your way. I am a freak. I'm a freak and I'm proud of it damn it. If being normal is being like you lot, then I never want to be anything like you!"
As Harry glared at the Dursleys he realized that with every venomous word he uttered he had grown another inch. He continued to verbally attack his former tormentors as his pride filled his voice. "You know what, I am a hero in my world. Loathed as I may be to admit it, I'm famous and loved for the things I have done...and other stupid things like being scared. I have fought evil and I won. I have saved the lives of thousands of Wizards. I have given my life for those I care about. I am happy there, I have friends, and I even have someone who loves me."
"Who would love you." Dudley snorted as he sneered at Harry.
Harry smiled. "The strangest person you could possibly imagine. Maybe it does take a loony to love someone like me. If this is true then that's fine with me, I already have her."
Dudley and Vernon seemed to be gagging from this, well, Dudley was. Vernon seemed to be to be dying all over again. He still gasped out. "Where is this weirdo then, in your head?"
Harry seemed to grow an inch taller as he spoke. "She's in danger, and she needs my help. I don't know why I'm even bothering with you. You mean nothing to me, you don't matter anymore. I hope you have a wonderful life...oh...and rest in peace Uncle. I'm out of here."
Harry walked past the Dursleys, including his Uncle who was now twitching on the floor. Harry walked up to the door and opened it, stating almost to himself. "I'm done with you."
Harry walked through the doorway and had to blink.

He was back in the Forbidden Forrest, holding the stone in his hand. Harry doubted a second of time had gone by.
"So Potter, this place must have a special meaning to you. After all this is the second time you have been reborn in this clearing."
Harry recognized that voice and grinned as he saw the small ghostly Goblin looking up at him. "Filius!"
The Goblin chuckled. "I must say you have gone a long way from vowing to even use the stone. Now you are its Master."
"Yes hail to the Master of Death." Flamel's ghost uttered. "I must admit if I was given a chance to leave Xanadu, this forest would not have been my first choice."
"Beggar's can't be choosers." Dumbledore uttered as he looked at Harry. "Though as we are dead, we have not really begged for much."
"I'm not dead, I'm am a spirit doomed to haunt Xanadu for all of eterin-"
"Give it a rest and try to smell the Roses." Sirius Black barked with Fred Weasley at his side replying. "But we can't smell and there are no roses."
"He did say try, it's all you can do when you're dead, but there are worse things than death." Remus joked as he and Tonks flew over Harry's head.
"So you are no longer a werewolf then Professor?" Cedric asked as he looked for any sign of a full moon through the many branches.
"Shut up, and I am not you Professor. I quit that job...and we're both dead." Remus growled.
"We are all dead, accept young Harry here." Said a voice that caused Harry to gasp.
Harry ran up to the ghostly forms of his parents Lily and James Potter. "Mum? Dad?"
"Yes dear we are both so proud of you." Lily whispered. "As much as I would like to say otherwise it is not us you should be speaking to."
"Who?" Harry frowned, Lily just pointed behind him. Harry looked and saw-
"Dobby's here too." Dobby squeaked.
"Behind the elf son." James chuckled as he pointed above the elf. Harry's parents backed away as two figures stepped out of the ghosts. Luna should be speaking to you both, not I."
Pandora nodded, "Yes but you are in more dire need of our words than Luna. She will need your help after all."
Xenophilius was looking around in wonder. "I've always wanted to go to a Death Day Party but there must be millions of ghosts in this forest."
Harry looked around and took in the sight. Ghosts, in every direction as far as the eye could see. Pandora nodded as she hummed.
"Ghosts, Ghosts everywhere and all the living did shriek,
Ghosts, Ghosts everywhere and none among them speak."
Harry looked at Xenophilius. "I'm sorry about what happened, I was never very kind to you..."
"Relax son, I am sorry too. I lost faith in the people I love. I may have lost my life, but I saved my soul."
Pandora answered Harry's unasked question. "It is not fire or brimstone but regret that haunts the soul through eternity."
Harry looked at Pandora as he spoke. "And what about you, do you regret."
Pandora noticed the ice in his voice and she met his gaze. "Yes...I regret a great many things. I don't regret my actions, only that they were needed."
"Why then, why did you not tell her about her real Mother." Harry retorted remembering the look on Luna's face when her world was shattered.
Pandora glared with eyes of fire as she shouted passionately. "I am her real Mother. I may not have given birth to her, but I raised her, I fed her, I loved her. I dedicated my life's work to her and when the time came I died for her. That Witch is not her Mother, and I will never call her otherwise!"
Pandora calmed down as she looked at Harry sadly. "How could I tell her otherwise...I knew she would find out, even without my knowledge, but...I was too weak, I didn't want my daughter to hate me when I died. I needed her love to do what had to be done."
"Pandora looked at Harry seriously. "I have done regrettable things Harry, I have done horrible things. I set things in motion that are still happening to this day. You standing here before me is a part of my grand design. You see the world is just a giant math problem. I have delved deeper into Arithmancy than anyone could possibly imagine. I have seen the future, know how to alter it. Yet the farther from my death time progresses, the harder it is to predict. Sometimes I was forced to rely on my faith in You and Luna, even though I would never meet you in life and Luna would only be a child when I left this world. I was forced to lie and manipulate you all. Even in death I have lied to you, and for that I am sorry."
Harry looked at the two Lovegoods as he pondered. "Why...all this for Luna's magic, she would have chosen family over that. Your plans led to your husband's death!"
Pandora nodded as a ghostly tear fell from her cheeks. Xenophilius wrapped an arm around her as he spoke. "She did not do such things lightly, she did not do this for Luna, for the Squibs or even for the Muggles."
Pandora whispered gravely. "I did it for the world."
Harry felt a cold wind graze the back of his neck. "What do you mean?"
It was Filius who spoke. "Haven't you noticed anything rather odd going on, beyond the Totalitar."
"Like what?"
"Unexplained explosions," Filius replied. "First the Hogwarts Astronomy Tower, then Gringotts. A lot of Muggle missiles have been missing their intended targets and hitting very prominent Magical ones. You don't find that suspicious."
"It's just a cover." Harry said dismissively. "The Totalitar have been covering their actions. Muggles make for a good patsy."
"You are not wrong." Pandora replied fearfully. "However I know for a fact that the Hogwarts Astronomy tower was not brought down by the Totalitar or Muggles."
"Then who...wait, it was you?!" Harry shouted as he backed away from Pandora's spirit.
"Of course not. Pandora has been dead for years. I did it." Filius exclaimed.
"What?!" Harry gaped at Filius. "Why would you, we could have been killed."
"Pandora left me a letter, I received the night before." Filius recalled verbally. "I had faith that she knew what she was doing."
"I knew you both would be safe." Pandora uttered. "I made sure you were on that tower for two reasons. One was so you would successfully cast the Imaginatio Potestatem charm. The other was so you would know the Ministry would be lying about the Missiles."
"Why blow it up in the first place!" Harry yelled getting very confused.
"To delay the inevitable. We needed more time, you both needed more time." Pandora whispered. "The Ministry was forced to make a choice. Admit that someone blew up the tower from the inside mere days after letting Aurors into the school, or say it was an outside influence, and expand their energy in covering up the fact that the wards had been lowered."
Filius shouted. "They were forced to raise the wards before anyone noticed, this bought you time, now however, time is up."
Harry looked at all the spirits and saw that they all had the same worried look. It was Dumbledore who spoke. "Tragedy is about to befall us, you must save all that you can."
"From what!" Harry yelled as Flamel uttered. "Now you are asking the right question."
Pandora placed both hands on Harry's head as she uttered. "First there will be fire, fire begets war, war begets Armageddon and the end of the world."