The mirror of Erised :: Albus Dumbledore
Though considered one by few, but she was not a squib. It was just difficult for her to cope up with the high standards set by her parents and brothers. And why shouldnt that be? Ariana was a Dumbledore. The family name alone had commanded respect in the wizarding world for as long as people remembered. The Dumbledore scion was never a wealthy one, as the few elderlies recall, yet many brilliant minds had come from this notable linage.
Ariana was a sweet little child. She would often help her father pick out the required flowers petals from his garden. She enjoyed de-gnoming her garden and would spend most of her day running after her brothers. If you wouldnt see her through one of her outbursts, which only a few did, you would believe her to be a very amicable and innocent little girl, filled with laughter and tenderness of heart and soul.
From a very young age, Ariana's brothers were able to control and channel their magical outbursts. At the age of nine, her eldest brother, Albus, could summon flowers from the garden outside and make them dance to make his mother smile. Aberforth, her second elder brother, had a true talent with animals. When they were living in the mould, there was no animal in the vicinity that Aberforth could not understand. He was obviously prohibited by their father - Percival, to cause anything suspecious in front of the muggles. Percival himself possessed a rather rare gift with Potions. He could brew any potion to near perfection. He used this gift of his to brew potions to help cure the muggles in the town. Thought to be an alchemist of some sort, the neighbors didnt mind the visits of several strangely dressed men and women from the other side of the town to the Dumbledore residence, or the fact that Percival always worked inside a closed room and no one knew how he prepared these unique medicines of his. A little extra time after his job at the Magical Enforcement Department at the Ministry of Magic, allowed Percival to ensure his family's safety and obscurity of their true identity. He was married to his school best friend Kendra. She was a muggle born witch with an penchant liking for transfiguration. In her fifth year at Hogwarts, Kendra was able to transfigure her Owl into a cupboard, impressing the examiner so much that she got an Outstanding in her Transfiguration practical and an offer to work in the Department of International Magical Cooperation after her N.E.W.T.s. While working in the ministry, Percival and Kendra discovered each other as the perfect couple and got married.
Ariana had inherited all the magic of her family but not the control. Since always, i.e. from when she remembers, she was able to make objects zoom around the house when she was angry or upset. Once she got so angry with Aberforth for touching her doll that unknowingly she made the doll scream at him. Being the little girl of the house, no one seemed to think anything to be wrong with her. Her father kept reassuring everything (including himself) that she would learn with age. However, she did not. With her age, her magical ability grew and so did her outbursts. Sometimes the outbursts were so severe that Ariana ended up hurting herself. Kendra left her office, to significant protests of her colleagues and seniors, to take care of her children. Albus and Aberforth were instructed never to let Ariana be alone. Her uncontrolled outbursts were not only a threat to revealing her identity and breaking the statute of secrecy but also caused portential risk to her well-being and that of those around her.
Things were still good. Her brothers were her best friends and the only friends she needed. They did not fear her outburst or treat her differently. The three of them always stuck together, that is until Albus turned ten. He would be joining Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry soon. Having inherited the streak of brilliance from the Dumbledore lineage, Albus immersed himself in all sorts of books that he could find. He practiced some minor incantations and was ecstatic to see them worked. Albus's efforts and brilliance soon became a talk in the people who knew the Dumbledore family. This made Albus more determined to become better. This also made the times that Albus shared with his younger brother and sister, more scarce. It was not that he didn't care for them but he had better things to do. Suddenly, it was just Ariana and Aberforth left for each other. Close as they were earlier, Ariana and Aberforth were very young. Albus's long absence from their lives made them forget the times they earlier had spent together and to them, it appeared as if Albus had never been one of them. Ariana, though never said it loudly, found a lot of love for bother her brothers in her heart until the dreadful day. Kendra had asked Albus to look after her sister but he was busy practicing some wand work and refused. He had said "Let her grow mother. She cant always be your little girl or my little sister." What Kendra and Albus didnt know was that Ariana had heard their conversation and was now running out of the house unaware of where she was headed to. She was determined to prove to her family that she was as good and capable as any of them.
Once she stooped crying, she looked around. She had definitely come farther out of the town than she ever had had. She could see the Sun turn scarlet on top of the canopy of the thick forest, a little distance from where she stood. The anger on her brother was replaced by the fright. Ariana had no idea how to go home. The sky was getting darker with every passing minute and she wished that somehow she could communicate to her mother, Aberforth or even Albus - to let them know where she was and to ask them to come find her. Unknowingly and unable to control it, she sent out several jets of red sparks into the sky. Though scared of her actions, she hoped someone would notice the and help her find her home. Soon it would be completely dark. Her father would come back home. Surely he would notice her absence and come looking for her in an instance. Ariana tried to replace her worry with thoughts of her family coming to find her. They would come soon and she would then be safe and home in no time.
Certainly, someone had seen the sparks. Three boys, well older than Albus, were rammaging just by the forest when they saw the red sparks in the sky. Curious, they came looking for the source of the sudden fireworks. They saw a little girl move in direction away from the town. She looked lost. Just then, one of them swore to the others that he saw the leaves fly away from the girl as she walked. The three of them decided to go and check, hoping for nothing more than a few laughs.
Ariana had not seent he boys arrive until they were quite close to her. At first she felt happy at being rescued and ran towards them. 'Could you take me to my home?' Ariana asked innocently. The boys were looking surprisingly at her feet. She noticed that she had been making the leaves fly without meaning to. Their expressions meant that they were muggles and which meant that she had just broken a law. Now, she would be sent to Azkaban and would never be able to return to her home or go to Hogwarts and be with her family again. She took a step backwards. She had heard stories of how muggles were cruel to witches and wizards. Before she could take another step, the boy on the right smirked and said 'Lost eh? What is your name gal?' The boy in the centre nudged the boy on the right and said 'She'z 'a witch. Let'z go away.' 'She is only a little girl Will.' the one in the left pointed. The one on the right was not taking his eyes off Ariana. He broke off his friends and started coming towards her. He was circling her and she couldnt think of where to run. 'Got a name eh?' he asked. He was grinning at her flashing his dirty yellow teeth. 'Ariana.' 'I saw you do magic Ariana. Show us more.' 'We dont want trouble Lee. Where there is one, there will be more.' said the one on the left. Lee didnt stop grinning. He looked at Ariana in a way that reminded her of some hungry wolf. He sat down in front of her and held her shoulders. 'Lost eh? Tell us about your home? We'll take you there' he said. Ariana began telling about her house, its color, the church around the corner and the flowershop next to her house. As she was telling, she realized that Lee was holding her tightly. She tried to break free but couldn't. Will then said 'Whatz you doing?' Without looking backwards, Lee replied 'Some fun. Come and have.' The other boys started laughing as Lee started pating her on her back. It was not the gentle pats her mother gave while putting her to bed each night. The other two boys came and joined him. Ariana didnt like them being so close to her or touching her. She felt very helpless and very scared. 'Please... stop... let me go... dont...' she kept pleading them as they continued. Will had removed her socks and was pressing her legs. Ariana was crying and pleading them to let her go between her sobs. They didnt stop. What seemed like forever of enduring that, she became really angry. She remembered feeling very hot and the only thought in her mind, now, was to hurt the boys. Suddenly, she had a lot of strength. The boys let her go in an instant and fell down to the ground. She saw scars coming on their faces and bodies. The scars cut deeper and started bleeding. Lee got lifted in the air and then dropped suddenly. He was unconcious and the other boys were trembling with fear. It was their turn now.
'ARIANA' a deep voice called her. She turned around and saw her father standing at some distance. All the anger and fear disappeared. She smiled back at him and she was herself again. There were two boys bleeding and trembling in front of her and the third one was unconcious. Her head was spinning very fast. She tried to reach her father but dropped to her knees and fainted.
When Ariana woke, she was wrapped inside her mother's arms. Her father was packing everything. 'She is awake, dear' her mother called out. Percival rushed to her daughter's side and hugged her. Tears poured out of his eyes as he held her tight. She noticed that her mother was crying as well. Before she could ask them, her father spoke 'Dear, you were very brave today. Forget everything that happened like a bad dream. I just want you to concentrate on yourself and what is coming for you in future. Always stay happy and never get upset or angry. Learn alot and always listen to your mother. Wherever I will be, I will always be looking over you dearest.' Kendra let out audible sobs after listening to Percival. He started consoling his wife 'You know it is for her good and it is the only way.' Ariana understood that they were moving away.
Within minutes, Ariana, Aberforth and Kendra were on the knight bus with all their luggage. Albus was staying.
Ariana never quite understood the reason but they had shifted to Godric Hollow. It was a small village far from where they had lived. There were many people here who knew the Dumbledore's. They didnt have to entirely hide the fact that they were wizards. For some reason that Ariana never found out, her father didnt come with them. Her mother had forbidden her to speak about the same. Kendra also forbade Ariana to go to Hogwarts. The neighbors were led to believe that she was a squib and that her letter never came. No matter how hard Ariana tried, she could never remember how or why they had shifted. She remembered being in the Mould and then moving to Godric Hollow. Her brothers also never told her anything.
When Ariana was fourteen, one evening, Aberforth's friends from school visited Godric Hollow. Aberforth had been her best friend and her only friend. He had always treated her as an equal and took care of her. But that day, Ariana heard him tell his friends that she was a squib and preferred staying at home. This was a life. Ariana had got her Hogwarts letter which her mother had replied to and after that, there was no letter or no one seem to bother why a student had failed to attend school. That evening, Ariana decided to know the truth. She went to her mother and asked her. She knew that her father's disappearance and their moving to Godric Hollow was connected. It certainly had something to do with her not being a good witch. Just no one seems to tell her. She asked her mother over and over again and like always, her mother refused to talk about it. Ariana couldnt remember being so angry. She remembered her feeling very hot and then her mother got lifted in the air and fell down instantly. It was all so sudden that before Kendra could shout for help, her neck was already snapped. Hearing the commotion, Aberforth rushed into the room and found a demon inside her sister hovering over their dead mother's body. Unsure of what it was, he just shouted and called Ariana.
Like the last time, Ariana became herself. Her head was all spinning and she collapsed. Aberforth wrote to Albus who was staying with his friend Elphias Doge after completing school. Albus returned immediately to their home and refused to answer any of Aberforth's questions about Ariana.
'You Knew Al. Didnt you?' Aberforth asked his brother. Albus, trying to sound calm rather than the peckish self that he had became being trapped in the house rather than fulfilling his dreams 'Doesnt matter. And its best Ab that you forget it too.'
After days of repeated dialoge, Albus convinced Aberforth to allow Albus to wipe his memory of having seen Ariana as she was. Albus found his mother's pensieve and extracted that bit of memory from Aberforth.
No one knew what had happened that evening after Ariana had fainted till Percival brought her home except for Percival and Albus Dumbledore. After bringing his daughter to the safety of their home, Percival went to Albus and closed the room. He told Albus that Ariana was an Obscurial. It was an uncontrolled bit of magic trapped within underage wizards and witches. If not tamed, the Obscruial becomes highly dangerous and harms not only the people outside but the host as well. As an obscurial, Ariana did something tonight which needs to be kept a secret. For the same, Percival had broken his wand and would take the blame. The rest of the family needs to move away so as to be safe from the fate that awaited himself. Albus understood being an Obscurial was not a good thing but he didnt understand the need for his father to take the blame or to break his wand. 'One day you will understand Albus. With a mind like yours, it was just a matter of time for when you would find out the truth. It was only fitting for me to have said it to you myself. I only ask you one thing, take care of your family and never let anyone know Ariana's truth, not even your mother or your brother' Percival explained. 'I promise father' Albus promised. With these last words to his father, Albus saw his father away for the last time.
After Kendra's death, Albus was forced to stay in his home for Ariana so to allow Aberforth to continue his studies. It didnt help him feeling helpless at being stuck to babysit his siblings when he could be on his way to greatness. If things were rough, they deteriorated significantly after Ariana's death. Aberforth left the house and left Albus to whine and rot in his own misery. What if it was the curse from Albus's wand that killed Ariana?
One day, the guilt got better of him. He looked for his mother's pensieve and started looking in the contents, hoping to relive some of their happy days. What Dumbledore saw, was not happy. The pensieve contained only three memories. The first was the one he had extracted from Aberforth's mind and never seen - Ariana becoming an Obscruial and hovering over the dead body of their mother. The second memory was of their father who was crying, Ariana tightly clutched to his chest. They were on the outskirts of the Mould and he raised a wand and cursed the two trembling muggles to be white as the third beside them. Instantly the two became pale and it was obvious that they were cursed beyond cure. The third memory was Ariana's - overhearing Albus's conversation with their mother, running away from the house, encounter with the boys, how they assaulted her and how she cursed one of them, injuring the other two.
Albus knew that there was something dangerous about her seemingly sweet sister but he didnt know what. After meeting Grindelwald, he came across Obscruials and now knew why did father had to take the blame. If Percival wouldnt have cursed the other two boys and taken the blame, the ministry would have captured Ariana and treated her like some experiment, damaging her beyond repair. All the final words of his father, echoed loud and clear in Albus's mind. He now understood it all. He was the only one who did.
Whenever these thoughts and memories clouded his mind, Albus liked to come to the Mirror of Erised and spend hours there. His sister was the first to always come and greet her. He regretted treating her the way he did and knew that he was the only one to blame. He was the reason why she turned into an Obscurial and yet, she was the first one to always come smiling to him. Next was his mother and his father who seem to have forgiven him being being a knowledgeable fool and irresponsible son. Last came his brother, who was no longer angry with him. Things were perfect.
Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi :: I show you not your face but your heart's desire
