I have supped full with horror.

[wand_wavers]

For a moment, the briefest of moments, Hogwarts is silent. It's the silence of surprise, of blank shock; even as deep below the castle, a wizard perhaps more powerful than any other in the building raised his hands and prepared to fell them, Voldemort's Inferi crumpled lifeless to the ground, every one. No wizard did that - nor any magic worked by an Old One - and for a moment, the briefest of moments, the fighting stutters to a halt as the combatants stare at the fallen bodies.

The silence of surprise, of blank shock, and - as something tenses in the air - the silence of a great, indrawn breath.

And then -

The explosion is bigger than it should be, bigger than it was ever supposed to be, and only in the furthest, deepest places of the castle will it not be heard.

Comments

[gramarye1971]

Merriman nods thoughtfully, and he too glances over at Harry -- lying in bed now, with his glasses off and his eyes closed.

'The hands of the young will shape the future,' he says quietly, watching Ron and Hermione keep vigil over their resting friend. 'Their world now, to live in and live for. And may they have joy of it.'

He gives Dumbledore a wry and slightly lop-sided smile. 'But now it is over. And all of you can rest for a time, and a well-earned rest it is, I dare say.'

[apwb-d.livejournal.com]

"It's all over for now. I pray they have good long time before the next Dark wizard. I thought Grindelwald would be the last for a great long while, but I was wrong."

He sinks back against the pillows, looking every one of his one hundred and fifty-seven years.

"We have not succeeded in driving out the darkness. We've merely chased it into hiding for a while."

[gramarye1971]

'Perhaps.' Merriman clasps his hands together, resting them on his knees. 'But you have plenty of good people here who are willing to work to rebuild this world, and who have seen the folly and madness that those of Voldemort's ilk will always preach. A world entirely without darkness is a world entirely without choices...and that would be a world far worse than anything that a Dark wizard ever planned.'

He tilts his head slightly to one side, and one eyebrow goes up a fraction of an inch. 'After all, I seem to recall a wise man once saying that it is choices that show men and women for what they truly are, far more than their real or perceived abilities.'

[wand_wavers]

Madam Pomfrey has been busy fussing over Harry, but she's been keeping a close eye on the pair, as they talk.

When Dumbledore sinks back onto the pillows, she leaves Harry and comes over.

"That's enough," she says to Merriman, sharply. "He needs to rest now."

[gramarye1971]

Merriman blinks a little at the sharpness of the command, but he puts on a rather contrite expression and gives the infirmary's matron a meek nod.

'Of course, Matron,' he says, sounding more than a little chastised, but he darts a quick look at Dumbledore as he stands -- just long enough for a flicker of amusement to show in his eyes.

[apwb-d.livejournal.com]

He is not so weak that he can no longer chuckle. Watching Merriman get a scolding from Poppy Pomfrey is not something you see every day.

"I am rather tired. I'm glad you could be here, Merriman. I'm glad you were part of this. It's a day that will be remembered."

[gramarye1971]

'I am glad that I came, Albus.'

For more reasons than one. Merriman has seen enough service in battle to know the way of such things, and something tells him that not all the physic of the wizarding world will avail Albus Dumbledore -- not for much longer, anyway. And so he steps forward, and takes Dumbledore's good hand in his.

'Go well, my friend,' he says softly. 'And if I may be permitted a moment of vagueness and Latin...finis coronat opus.'

The end crowns the work.

[apwb-d.livejournal.com]

"Thank you, old friend. Perhaps I shall see you again one day. I should like that, very much."

He grins, and some of the familiar twinkle reappears in his blue eyes.

[wand_wavers]

The twinkle is, in Madam Pomfrey's opinion, encouraging. But Dumbledore still needs to sleep. Still, she's less sharp with Merriman as she show him out.

"And you, headmaster," she says, coming back over and looking at him, "need to sleep."

[apwb-d.livejournal.com]

"And you, my dear, dear Poppy, need to scold Merlin more often. That may very well have made my night."

He chuckles and closes his eyes. His dreams, when they come a short time later, are peaceful and filled with those he's loved who have gone on before him.

Perhaps he will be seeing them sometime soon. It's time for a rest and then the beginning of a new sort of adventure.