Chapter 85 - The Headmaster
"Well, Professor, I think this is the right moment to stop hiding."
Harry jumped slightly and quickly turned toward the bench. But he saw nothing.
After all, unlike me, Harry could not sense him.
For a few seconds, the room remained silent.
Then slowly, very slowly, a figure appeared sitting upon the bench.
It was Professor Dumbledore.
Even Harry froze completely.
Dumbledore looked toward me with open surprise in his eyes.
But there was also pride and curiosity there.
"You continue to astonish me, Mr. Dursley," he said softly. "Every single time."
I folded my arms, "I keep hearing that from you, Professor."
Dumbledore's beard twitched slightly with amusement.
Harry looked between both of us with complete confusion.
"You were here the whole time?" Harry asked.
"Yes, Harry," Dumbledore replied gently.
Harry looked embarrassed immediately.
"So… you heard everything?"
"Most of it."
Harry's face turned red instantly when he remembered the girlfriend joke. I almost laughed.
Dumbledore stood up slowly from the bench and walked toward the mirror.
His blue eyes briefly rested upon it.
"A fascinating object," he said quietly. "And also a dangerous one."
"Yes," I replied calmly. "Especially for lonely people."
Dumbledore glanced toward Harry for a moment. Harry lowered his eyes.
The old man sighed softly.
"The happiest man on earth," Dumbledore said, "could use the mirror like a normal mirror. He would look into it and simply see himself exactly as he is."
I nodded slowly.
Then Dumbledore turned toward me again.
"But you, Arthur… you interest me greatly."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Why professor?"
"The mirror struggled with you."
Harry looked surprised again and stared at me.
Dumbledore continued quietly, "Most people are completely consumed by it. Yet you stood before it calmly. Curious, but not lost."
I gave a small shrug.
"I prefer reality over fantasies."
For a moment, Dumbledore simply looked at me silently as if trying to understand something.
Then he smiled softly.
"A wise answer," he said.
Professor Dumbledore came and stood beside us before the mirror. The room became even quieter than before.
The moonlight from the tall windows reflected softly upon the silver frame of the Mirror of Erised.
I looked at the Headmaster and asked calmly, "What do you see, Professor?"
Dumbledore smiled gently.
"Me?" he said lightly. "I see myself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks."
Harry blinked, "Socks?"
Dumbledore nodded seriously.
"One can never have enough socks," he said. "Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn't get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books."
It was exactly the same answer he had once given Harry in the original timeline.
A harmless answer which was misleading and a half-truth.
I looked at him quietly for a moment and said directly, "I know what you really see, Professor."
Harry looked surprised.
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled slightly.
"Oh?" he asked softly. "Do you?"
"Yes."
"And what is it that I see?"
I turned my eyes toward the mirror.
"You see the same thing Harry sees."
For the first time since appearing in the room, Dumbledore became completely silent. The twinkle in his eyes faded slightly.
He slowly turned toward the mirror. And there, inside it, stood the people he desired most.
His family.
His father, mother, sister Ariana who and even Aberforth, along with him.
All of them were together. They seemed happy.
Alive.
No fights, tragedy, guilt or funeral.
No broken family destroyed by ambition and mistakes.
Just peace.
Dumbledore stared at the reflection quietly. Unlike Harry, he was not enchanted by the illusion, but the longing was still there.
The regret.
The pain.
The wish that things had gone differently.
After a long silence, he slowly released a tired breath.
"You truly are a mystery to me, Mr. Dursley."
I looked at him calmly.
"Am I?"
"Yes," he replied softly. "Your actions, your understanding, your knowledge… they do not match your age."
Harry immediately looked at me again. Clearly, he had been thinking something similar for a long time now.
I answered carefully.
"I already explained this before, Professor. To you and to Professor McGonagall."
Dumbledore listened silently.
"I am Harry's elder brother," I continued. "And I have to make sure he is safe. I have to make sure he is not manipulated, endangered, or used by anyone."
I looked directly at him now.
"Whether it is Voldemort. The Death Eaters. The Ministry. Or even the Headmaster of Hogwarts."
Harry looked shocked by my boldness.
But Dumbledore simply listened.
"I don't want Harry growing up only to fulfill some predetermined role," I said quietly. "He deserves a normal childhood. A happy carefree one. Every child deserves that."
At that, I noticed something change slightly in Dumbledore's eyes. Because I had indirectly touched upon something very dangerous.
The Prophecy.
Not many people knew about it, and certainly not a little boy like me should know about it.
But Dumbledore did not question me immediately. Instead, he folded his hands calmly before him and thought quietly for several long seconds.
Finally he spoke.
"I respect your intentions, Arthur."
His voice was calm and honest.
"And I deeply respect the love you have for Harry. But you may rest assured, I have no wish to harm Harry. Nor any student in this school."
I remained silent.
"I admit," Dumbledore said slowly, "that I may wish to guide Harry. Shape him somewhat. Encourage the courage and strength within him. But I do not wish him harm."
This time, I did not argue. Because he was not being truthful. His plan was to raise Harry like a pig for slaughter.
But I could not push further, not now. Anything more I say about it, might be dangerously close toward his plans which no one should know.
So instead, I nodded slowly.
"Very well, Professor. I believe that you care for Harry."
Dumbledore smiled slightly.
"But," I added calmly, "I will still do whatever I must to protect him."
The old wizard nodded.
"That is understandable."
"And," I continued, "if any future plans involve Harry in dangerous matters, I request that you inform me beforehand."
Harry looked completely stunned now.
Probably because I was speaking to Dumbledore almost like an equal.
Dumbledore himself looked amused.
"You are asking the Headmaster of Hogwarts for advance notice of his plans?"
"I'm asking to be informed," I corrected calmly. "Not to control your actions or ask me for my permission."
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled again.
"A fair distinction."
"I simply want to be prepared," I said. "For Harry's sake."
For a moment, Dumbledore watched me carefully and then he nodded.
"Very well, Arthur. I shall try to keep your concerns in mind."
I gave a small nod back.
The old wizard then sighed lightly.
"You see," he said, "sometimes at my age, one becomes… muddled."
I almost smiled faintly. That was probably the closest thing to an apology I would ever receive from Albus Dumbledore.
"I understand, Professor," I replied.
Dumbledore looked at Harry then.
"And believe me, Harry," he said gently, "I truly wish for children to live happily. To study, laugh, and grow without fear."
Harry slowly nodded. He believed him completely.
And honestly?
So did I.
That was the problem.
Dumbledore was not evil. He simply believed too much in sacrificing today for tomorrow.
I looked at him quietly.
"I respect everything you have done, Professor," I said honestly. "Since the first war until now."
Dumbledore looked mildly surprised.
"Oh? You know of those days?"
"A little."
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully now.
"And yet," he said carefully, "you still do not fully trust me."
"No. That is the reason I cannot blindly trust you, Professor."
"Why?"
"For the Greater Good."
The moment those words left my mouth, the entire atmosphere changed. Dumbledore froze, completely.
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End of Chapter 85 - The Headmaster