Chapter 86 - For the Greater Good...or not
Dumbledore was shaken and pale as I said the words.
'For the Greater Good.'
It was the phrase he had coined and given to Grindelwald, who was later called as the First Dark Lord, which became his motto for the war, The Global wizarding War.
For a moment, the room became completely silent.
Professor Dumbledore stood still beside me. His blue eyes lost their usual calmness for a brief second. It was the first time I had seen him truly unsettled.
Harry looked between both of us in confusion. He clearly did not understand what those words meant, but he understood very well that something important had happened.
After a long moment, Dumbledore finally spoke, recovering from the reverie of his memories.
"How did you know it?" he asked quietly, his voice trembling slightly. "How do you know this? A child of your age should not have come around this knowledge."
I looked at him calmly.
"I have my ways, Professor."
Dumbledore kept staring at me carefully.
"And this is the reason I cannot trust you blindly. I trust you enough. I think you are a good man, a great man, even. And I deeply respect you for that. But at the end of the day, you are also a politician. A man in power."
Dumbledore stayed silent, listening to my reasons.
"And not just ordinary power, literal and figurative power. You are one of the greatest wizards alive, probably the greatest. You are the Headmaster of Hogwarts. You also hold positions in the Wizengamot and the International Confederation of Wizards."
Dumbledore did not deny it.
"Whatever you say, there are many people around the world who will blindly follow it, not just in Britain. Everywhere in the world. They trust your words completely."
I looked directly into his eyes.
"And that makes it much more difficult for me to trust you blindly."
Dumbledore folded his hands behind his back.
"How does that affect trust, Arthur, my boy?" he asked softly. "Many of those positions are not things I desire. They are responsibilities I accepted because the world needed balance. So that people don't wantonly do things which would harm many people."
He sighed lightly.
"If certain people are not restrained, the world may suffer greatly."
I nodded slightly.
"I understand that, Professor. And that is exactly the very reason. You carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. You think about wars, politics, the Ministry, Voldemort, dark wizards, international problems, everything."
Dumbledore listened quietly.
"But I don't care about all that."
I continued calmly.
"All I care about is my family. First and foremost, my family. Then my friends. Then comes the world."
The old Headmaster's eyes became thoughtful.
"If my family is not safe, if Harry is not safe, then I do not care whether the world is safe or not. I don't care what happens to the world. I only care about them first. Everything else comes later."
Harry stared at me silently now.
Dumbledore spoke after a pause.
"I understand your emotions, Arthur. But that is a little selfish."
I nodded immediately.
"Yes, I am selfish, Professor."
That answer surprised him slightly.
"Everyone should be selfish to some extent, Professor."
The room became silent again as I looked at the Mirror for a moment before speaking again.
"Had you been a little more selfish in your youth," I said quietly, "perhaps you would not carry so many regrets today."
Dumbledore froze slightly.
I could see it. That one sentence had struck directly where it hurt.
Ariana.
Aberforth.
Grindelwald.
All the dreams of changing the world.
All the mistakes.
"If selfishness is what it takes to keep my family safe," I continued, "then I will gladly be selfish."
My voice stayed calm.
"Let alone selfish, even if people call me cruel, cowardly, or any moniker others would give me, I do not care."
I shrugged lightly.
"I can live with all that. Because the world is not my priority, Professor, my family is."
Dumbledore watched me carefully.
I think those words affected him deeply.
For a few moments, nobody spoke.
The Mirror quietly reflected our images.
Harry was standing there in confusion, while Dumbledore was lost in his thoughts and mulling over my words.
And I was standing between them.
Finally, Dumbledore let out a long breath.
"You have a very mature way of thinking, Arthur," he said quietly. "Far more mature than many adults."
I shrugged.
"I simply know my priorities clearly, Professor."
Dumbledore gave a faint smile.
"And perhaps more clearly than me at your age, and even later. Even many adults do not have their priorities clear."
For a moment, the great Albus Dumbledore looked tired.
Not weak, just tired.
He was a man who had carried too much for too long.
"I am not accusing you of being evil, Professor," I said more gently now. "Nor am I saying you are a bad person. You simply have responsibilities and priorities larger than Harry. Larger than any one person."
I pointed lightly toward him.
"You think about the whole society and even the world. You think about society, peace, balance, war, politics, and the future."
Then I pointed toward myself.
"I do not. I do not have that much knowledge and neither the responsibilities which you have on your shoulders, which you have taken voluntarily or involuntarily. That is why I have a different point of view than yours, professor."
A small smile appeared on my face.
"That is the difference between our point of views."
Harry looked between both of us again as if watching a strange tennis match.
Dumbledore chuckled softly at that.
"You bear responsibilities that should belong to the Ministry, to many powerful families and great wizards who should be helping more."
Dumbledore's eyes dimmed slightly at that truth.
"That is why I respect you and admire your sense of responsibility."
And I truly did. No matter what happened, few people could carry the burden Dumbledore carried.
"But I cannot become you, Professor," I said firmly. "And I do not want to become you. I would rather have a safe and happy family than any other thing."
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End of Chapter 86 - For the Greater Good...or not