J K Rowling owns all the rights to the books and the amazing characters she created. I write only to satisfy my imagination and use my creativity and make no money from my writings.

Chapter 6 – The End

As the third task drew near there were many people who were worried. Dumbledore wasn't worried as he was positive that he would "win" one way or another.

Voldemort was confident on the outside but inside he was a bit nervous as his original plot was not working out as planned. Since Potter was succeeding in being elusive there was a good possibility that he would start the third task but not finish it as winning was his priority just his survival and escape from Dumbledore. Voldemort knew exactly how the boy felt. Therefore he had to have a backup plan just in case the boy evaded him. He developed three different resurrection plans two using a potion based on the blood of an enemy and one for blood willingly given. The third involved a quick escape and regrouping.

There were people who actually liked Harry who truly feared for his life or rather, his corruption by the "fiends" who had whisked him away from the safety of Dumbledore's protection and sought to use him for their own selfish ends. Hermione Granger was one such person. Harry had to return to Dumbledore, be freed from the obvious dark and evil magic cast on him and be brought back into the bosom of all of those who loved him, such as her, Professor McGonagall and most importantly, Headmaster Dumbledore. For all of her great intelligence she was a very, very naïve girl.

Some of the teachers were also worried for the boy but all worried differently from the others. Sprout worried because she liked the kid and had felt so bad about the things she had been forced by Dumbledore to do, especially during the Tournament. Also her very favorite student, Neville Longbottom, was missing and was probably with Potter.

Flitwick felt much the same way except he also worried about his lost Ravenclaw who he had never been able to protect from the abuse of his House again, because of Albus and his "reasons" which were never explained and never would be.

Minerva McGonagall worried most of all because she always had – really. Lily Evans had been one of her very favorite students and she thought (with good reason) that the girl had been set up and used as bait to trap Voldemort. In any event she had lost her life and died young and it was probably a miracle that Harry survived. McGonagall had protested when Albus placed Harry with the Dursleys because she knew what kind of people they were long before that fateful night in October but as usual Albus listened to no one, especially her.

When Harry had come to Hogwarts you only had to look at him to see that he was an abused child, but again she had been ordered to ignore his wellbeing and not to give him any help or comfort. This year had been the worse especially when Dumbledore demanded how the boy be treated and there were times before the boy had fled when she thought he would break from the treatment or even be killed. Although she wasn't supposed to know about such things, she had found out that Albus had cast a few hate curses on poor Harry making everybody hate him and believe any and all of the outrageous lies said about him.

There was nothing she could do about it as she shouldn't know and if she called him on it, he would only obliviate her and keep an even closer watch on her. There was no way she could help Harry and this time she truly feared that the Tournament would be the end of him. Albus "knew something" and as usual was keeping his secrets. If Harry did die, lose his magic or was irreparably harmed…well she didn't know what she would do.

Even Severus Snape worried.

Then there were those whose success and future depended upon Harry completing the Tournament, surviving it and getting back into the "loving arms of his friends and adopted family" meaning Hermione and the Weasleys. It had been made perfectly clear to Hermione that despite her intelligence, talent, dedication, hard work and loyalty, if there was no Harry Potter to "help" she would not have a career in the Magical World.

For the Weasleys, the fate of the entire family depended upon their controlling Harry and eventually Ginny marrying him. No Harry, no monthly "salary" for Ron, no free tuition, no "food allowance" for when he stayed at the Burrow, no extra perks and no advancement except that which the individual Weasley managed to earn.

Bill and Charlie had the dream job of their choosing and were doing very well at it BUT Molly didn't approve of a curse breaker (too dangerous) and a dragon handler (ultra dangerous) as "proper jobs" and, they had left the country and were out of her control. Percy had gotten a proper job but he seriously disliked Dumbledore (who ALL WEASLEYS MUST FOLLOW AND SUPPORT) and again had moved out of the Burrow and would not be influenced by either parent.

The Twins were insisting that they would open a joke shop – totally unacceptable in Molly's point of view – and Ron….! Well Ron was Ron and wouldn't amount to anything unless he received patronage (from Dumbledore) and got a cushy, well-paid job at the Ministry. Ginny HAD TO MARRY because she was a girl and Molly didn't believe in "careers" for girls (especially her only daughter) and the only other career she wanted other than marrying Harry Potter was to be a Quidditch player and that MOLLY WOULD NEVER ALLOW WHILE THERE WAS BREATH IN HER BODY.

So much depended on Harry Potter and his surviving the Tournament and here it was the day of the third task and there was no sign of the boy. The place was crawling with Aurors looking for him and even Sirius was there in his animagus form to "sniff for Harry" and so was Remus Lupin to use his werewolf sense of smell to at least locate the boy so he could be "rescued" after the task was completed. The Aurors had gone as far as putting up anti-portkey wards – much to the horror of Alastor Moody a/k/a Barty Crouch, Jr., who had placed one on the Cup to transport Harry to resurrect Voldemort. He had nearly been caught doing it but it had to be done.

To make sure the boy was caught, Fudge had arranged for Aurors loyal to him and him only to hide in the maze and catch Potter after he entered. He wasn't going to be allowed to win as that "honor" was going to be given to Cedric Diggory the "real Hogwarts Champion" but the boy had to at least participate so as not to lose his Magic. It was cheating but "necessary" in Fudge's point of view as Potter must be captured at all costs.

Fudge would then have custody of the boy and no one would know, not even Dumbledore. It had been a suggestion of Lucius Malfoy who had been demanding custody of Potter since the deaths of his parents because his wife Narcissa was a blood relative of James Potter and thus he should have been raised and under the protection of a decent Pureblood family. Dumbledore had thwarted all such attempts to "give the boy a home" but now, with this act of rebellion and Dumbledore's inability to discipline the brat, Lucius had finally "convinced" Fudge that if the boy was to be saved at all, he had to be permanently removed from Dumbledore's grasp and "privately educated" and the Malfoys were ready, willing and more than able to take on this obligation. The fact that "a very generous campaign contribution" would be given to Fudge if his efforts were successful, helped greatly.

The task finally started and the three "real Champions" entered the maze. Fudge's Aurors waited under heavy disillusionment charms and/or wearing an invisibility cloak. If Potter entered that maze they would have him, disillusion him and sneak him out of the maze and Hogwarts and no one would be the wiser especially Dumbledore.

There was still no sign of Potter but the crowd KNEW he was here and participating. Some waited to see what trick he would use this time and/or if he would succeed. Bets were given on various outrageous possibilities because anything could and would happen. Many people actually didn't care who won the Tournament but if Potter would be caught.

When Potter didn't show or at least was seen to show, after a bit Alastor Moody entered the maze "to check on things" but in reality a polyjuiced Harry Potter had entered the maze walked around a bit, zapped a blast-ended skrewt, took a swig from his flask and then having participated enough to satisfy the requirements of the Tournament, exited the maze. He then made a report to one of the Aurors lurking around and went off to report to someone else. He then "disappeared" from Hogwarts.

Cedric Diggory did "win" and grabbed the Cup only to be whisked away to someplace unknown. A frantic Auror reported to Fudge and a very shocked and angry Dumbledore all but exploded in rage. Voldemort would probably use Diggory to resurrect himself so at least Dumbledore would have his war, but it also meant that Potter had escaped his clutches probably for good. He would now be able to flee and it would completely ruin all of Dumbledore's plans because since Harry was a Horcrux, Voldemort could never be completely destroyed.

Although it could be officially announced that Cedric Diggory had won the Triwizard Tournament, nobody knew where he was and to collect the prize he had to return the Cup to the judges' stand. That would not be happening – ever. Gringotts would sadly contact the boy's parents with the news that he was dead. They couldn't tell the how, why or where it had happened only that his death had automatically closed his trust vault.

All Death Eaters knew that their Lord was back because all Dark Marks had flared up. They just hadn't been summoned yet but it was only a matter of time. Karkaroff fled for his life that very night and naturally Snape reported the news to Dumbledore. Other than that, the news would be kept a secret and even Dumbledore couldn't announce it except to his faithful followers. There was no proof other than the Dark Mark flaring and the likes of Lucius Malfoy would move heaven and earth to keep this secret especially since he had Fudge in his control.

The Triwizard Tournament had been exciting but only because of the actions of Harry Potter and the unsolved mystery of Cedric Diggory's disappearance and death. The news media was going insane and speculation abounded but there was no answers and never would be. Only the Diggorys and their friends and family mourned and only for Cedric. Hufflepuff House had hope that their Champion would be found, or at least his body. However, he had died a hero in their minds as he had won the Triwizard Tournament and for some that was all that really mattered.

Dumbledore was beyond furious because thanks to that #*(#&$#*&# bastard NOTHING HAD GONE RIGHT AND HE HAD ESCAPED. He had even taken Neville, Dumbledore's "Plan B" and, there was a nasty rumor which he could not confirm despite all of his contacts that Potter had claimed an inheritance. It wasn't the Potter inheritance as he couldn't claim it until his 17th birthday and then only after passing certain tests and requirements which even Dumbledore didn't know about. However, he had claimed something and now probably had MONEY to finance his permanent escape.

However, Albus Dumbledore swore that he wouldn't escape him if he had to have every single member of the Order of the Phoenix hunt the entire world. HE WOULD BE FOUND AND RETURNED TO ALBUS DUMBLEDORE!

Except that he wouldn't be found at least not by Dumbledore or his minions, the Ministry or Voldemort. Actually he wouldn't be "found" but he was or rather had contacted another Magical government where he, Neville and Luna were granted asylum. Gran had arranged for it all and she would be joining them, Cassiopeia and Xeno Lovegood and they would all be starting a new life safely out of the reach of the bane of all their existences, Albus Dumbledore. Gran was staying long enough to see what the "official Ministry position" was concerning the disappearance of Cedric Diggory, what Lucius Malfoy would be "advising" Fudge and how Dumbledore would get the news out about Voldie's return.

Oh yes, just because he had no proof other than the darken marks of Death Eaters that Voldie was back, it wouldn't stop him. He wasn't going to let Tom Riddle get back his strength, recruit new followers, raise money and silently take over the Ministry and then Britain like he had tried to do the first time before Dumbledore had "outed Lord Voldemort" and turned a fairly peaceful rebellion into the destructive, bloody war it had become. Nope, Tom was going to be outed and outed as soon as possible no matter what Dumbledore had to do, what was destroyed, who it hurt or how many had to die to accomplish it.

But Dumbledore would not get his way no matter what he did. Voldemort managed to hide his resurrection from the world and despite moving heaven and earth Dumbledore could not out him no matter what he did or thought he could do. Certain things he had done in the last war to drive the brilliant Tom Riddle into becoming the crazed, murderous, unthinking beast he had become in the last few years of the war didn't work anymore because "someone" had tipped Voldemort off and produced proof.

Voldemort had regained his sanity and thus once again was winning the war which only a few such as Dumbledore and his Order of the Phoenix knew about. Within 18 months Voldemort had basically neutralized Dumbledore. Without proof that Voldie was back Dumbledore couldn't recruit anybody for the non-existent war. The members of the Order of the Phoenix who had survived the first war were picked off one by one until less than a half dozen remained such as McGonagall, Hagrid, Arthur and Molly Weasley and of course, Dumbledore himself.

The real Moody was killed before Barty Crouch escaped. Somehow Potter had found out that Barty was using Polyjuice and impersonating Moody. Barty/Moody was spelled unconscious and frozen for two hours and his Polyjuice potion stolen. After he had found out "he" had entered the maze to look for Potter, it all became clear what happened. As soon as he could he killed Moody and took his valuable trunk (because it contained all of Moody's collections , special books and some confiscated dark objects) and made his escape. As with Cedric, Moody's death was reported to Amelia Bones after his vault closed but nobody knew how or where he had met his death.

Snape had been summoned to a Death Eater meeting and never returned. It was presumed that he was dead because of his many unbreakable oaths sworn to Dumbledore.

Arthur Weasley was the only source of information Dumbledore had at the Ministry of Magic but since his job was basically a joke, he wasn't of much use. All Aurors who had been members of the Order "died in the line of duty" while carrying out their usual Auror duties or in freak accidents. Little by little the Ministry was taken over by Voldemort's forces and the war was won before anyone knew it had started.

Dumbledore had made many enemies both in Britain and in other countries and after the fiasco of the Tournament and the death of Cedric Diggory he lost a lot of popular support in Britain. He was voted out of his positions as Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. He lost all of his positions on Boards of Directors until he only had his position as Headmaster of Hogwarts left.

Eventually some of his best kept secrets concerning his running of "HIS SCHOOL" were revealed and "the public" demanded that investigations be made. At the end of what would have been Harry and Neville's sixth year, Dumbledore was forced to retire as Headmaster due to the results of all of those very thorough investigations. If he didn't voluntarily retire, he would be put on trial to explain certain things which happened at Hogwarts ever since he became Headmaster and even he knew that he would not survive the investigation especially since he had lost so much power and so many people who "owed him" or he had power over due to special oaths or blackmail were dead or had fled.

He had also been audited by Gringotts regarding the handling of the inheritances of certain orphaned heirs and that had been the final blow. Fortunately for him he had inherited a house from his Mother's Muggle spinster sister which even his brother Aberforth didn't know about. He had it under a Fidelius charm and had kept it well-stocked with food, drink, potions and other supplies he had "acquired" during his career and had even hidden much gold and other valuable things there just in case he ever had to flee.

But the very worst thing to happen to Albus Dumbledore was that he had "accidentally" lost his wand – the Elder Wand – when he had been disarmed by an Auror when he was being "interrogated" about certain things he didn't want to tell. When the interrogation was done, Albus demanded his wand back but apparently it had been removed from the safekeeping area of the Ministry. A very thorough investigation was made including the Auror being dosed with Veritaserum, but the great and magical wand was never found.

In the end he did have to flee in a way as some (but not all) of his many indiscretions and a few crimes were revealed to the public. His career and his legend were ruined, which was truly the worst thing that could happen to him. That was the only reason Voldemort hadn't killed him as he knew that letting Dumbledore live in disgrace and obscurity was the one thing Dumbledore feared the most.

All of the lives which he had seen sacrificed or ruined for his version of the "Greater Good" was all for naught. The things he had done or tried to do were in ashes and his legend and acknowledged accomplishments would soon fade and he would become a mere footnote in the history books especially since history was written by the winners and this time, Dumbledore had lost.

History would say that a wizard named Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore had attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, had obtained very high marks and honors until others bested him. He had once apprenticed under Nicholas Flamel and was said to have discovered 12 uses for dragon's blood but whether he had personally discovered 12 uses or merely aided in the research was never really proven because it had only been his word that he had discovered them. Apparently no one had heard from Nicholas Flamel since around the time Albus Dumbledore was said to have been his apprentice so without the confirmation of his mentor, one only had the word of an apprentice.

Albus Dumbledore did have a Mastery in Transfiguration and became the Professor of that subject at Hogwarts. He became Deputy Headmaster and eventually Headmaster of Hogwarts. He was noted for two verifiable accomplishments. The first was the defeat of the Dark Lord Gellert Grindelwald for which he was awarded the Order of Merlin First Class and which started his political career.

Due to this feat he rose to the positions of Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the British Wizengamot. He acquired great fame and but many enemies and his time in these posts were…controversial. After certain revelations were made, he was forced out of office due to several scandals.

The second thing he would be remembered for was that in its 1,000 year history he was the worst Headmaster Hogwarts ever had and his actions and personal agenda had nearly destroyed that once great school.

There were many other things that the public would never know because such things were too fantastic to believe. But there is a saying that truth is stranger than fiction and in one case, this was correct. It was perhaps the worst thing Dumbledore had ever done.

He had risked much, especially the lives and happiness of many people, was the real reason many family lines were ended and many traditions disrupted or done away with, but Voldemort had been blamed for these actions and always would be.

Despite being called the "Champion of the Muggleborns" Dumbledore had used them for his own purposes and they ended up losing. Tom Riddle was thought to be a Muggleborn but he had managed to not only survive but prosper in Slytherin before it was revealed that he was the last descendent of Salazar Slytherin.

However, due to Dumbledore "changing the world, customs, rites and rituals to make the Magical World more friendly and attractive to Muggleborns (and wouldn't confuse them or scare them away), he caused the Purebloods and many Half-bloods to hate them and who really could blame them. That was one of the reasons Voldemort had started his crusade.

Tom Riddle's life had been ruined by Dumbledore out of jealousy and Dumbledore's need to create another Dark Lord for him to defeat. In the beginning Tom Riddle tried to stop Dumbledore's "New Order and the Path of the Light" by legal means. He had given a very good speech comparing what Dumbledore was actually doing using Muggleborns as the Conquistadors had done when conquering the New World. Naturally Dumbledore wasn't present as he hadn't been notified for very good reasons.

"The Conquistadors came flooding in bringing with them their customs, religion and things which the indigenous peoples never saw such as horses, cannons, guns, etc. They conquered using these things as well as bringing the Old World's diseases which those people had no immunity to and much of the population died and their civilization was weakened allowing a much smaller force to conquer them."

"Then the priests and monks 'converted' those who remained, threatening them with the White God's hell and burning all the books they could find while the Conquistadors melted their golden artifacts down so it could be more easily shipped back to Spain. Stone and wood carvings were destroyed and as much as possible was done to wipe out all trace of their religion and culture."

"Then they started on the Magicals, who they considered devils on earth. Until the Conquistadors, Magicals were considered blessed beings but once the Conquistadors took over, there were worst persecutions than we had in Europe. Their culture, heritage and religion was all cast aside and nearly destroyed. This is what Dumbledore is attempting to do with his 'championing of the Muggleborns' and…."

But Tom Riddle never got to finish his speech as Dumbledore had been tipped off and using his power as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot demanded that Tom be arrested for (1) lying; (2) attempting to spread panic; (3) slandering the Great and Honorable Hero Albus Dumbledore; (4) prejudice against Muggleborns; (5) stirring up a mob mentality to cause rioting against Muggleborns; and many other things which would be printed in the Daily Prophet.

Tom managed to escape arrest but he was now a wanted wizard. He was slandered in the press especially after Dumbledore "revealed all that he knew about Tom Riddle" – most of which was conjecture on Dumbledore's part and some which were out and out lies. It was one of the things which caused Tom Riddle to transform into Voldemort.

With Dumbledore's fall, "Tom Riddle" finally got his revenge for a ruined life and being forced into a darker path than he would have taken had it not been for Dumbledore's manipulations. It was better late than never but so many lives (and reputations) had been ruined or lost all for one old man's ego and plans for glory.

Now Albus Dumbledore was the one ruined and…alone. Without his wand as well as access to the many things needed for the rituals which kept him not only alive but vibrant and healthy, the once "Greatest Wizard since Merlin" simply faded away. He died from a stroke, all alone, without even a house elf to tell of his passage or give the body a decent burial. Gringotts had closed his vaults so they had no way of knowing of his passing. Since his home was under a Fidelius with him as the secret keeper, the house and he would never be found. Inspects and vermin "saw to the body" leaving only bones, which without care would soon turn to dust.

Thus ended the life of a once great man, an intellectual and an awesome and powerful wizard. He had been famous for some of the things he had done in life and infamous for others.

Did he have any regrets for the things he had done – other than getting caught and losing – or did he still scheme to the very end hoping to get all of his power back as well as the Elder Wand. He left no written record, no diary or journal and even if he had, no one would find it.

Had it all been worth it? Would he have done things differently or just covered his tracks better? We will never know and I personally don't care anymore than Harry Potter or Tom Riddle.

FINIS

P.S. – Anyone who knows of my computer problems (if not see my profile) knows that it has a mind of its own and does what it wants. I've noticed that this week, it is for some reason duplicating sections of writing. I went over this chapter four times to correct it and HOPEFULLY it is posted correctly but if not, I apologize in advance. Hoped you liked the story and thank you for reading it.