#dark!dumbledore

[lostincider]

a concept : They never broke up and built the world they always wanted

twitter @ove_youwould

[morreganmistressofthorin]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald, Merope Gaunt/Tom Riddle Sr. | Tom Marvolo Riddle's Father Characters: Albus Dumbledore, Gellert Grindelwald, Tom Riddle | Voldemort, Merope Gaunt, Marvolo Gaunt, Tom Riddle Sr. | Tom Marvolo Riddle's Father, Ariana Dumbledore, Aberforth Dumbledore Additional Tags: Grindeldore, Dumblewald, Dark Comedy, Alternate Universe - Dark, Alternate Universe - Gellert Grindelwald Wins, Dark Albus Dumbledore, Evil Co-Emperors, two men and a surprise baby, married Grindeldore, Gellbus, Slice of Life, Established Relationship, political takeovers, Voldemort will be loved, squishy imperator Grindelwald, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, in that he has manipulated the world into thinking he's the soft one, And also manipulated the political world into making him and his husband emperors, Merope did not need love potions, Tom Riddle is Not Voldemort, yet - Freeform, The Greatest Good!verse Summary:

The path of fate is forever changed when there are not one, but two casualties in the aftermath of the Dumbledore Brother's fight. The early days and rise of the Global Wizarding Empire, married Grindeldore, and a surprise baby!

[thoughtsaboutsnape]

Thanks for answering my ask about Lily bring interesting in the Dark Arts. To to be ( slightly ) fair to Dumbledore, the spell that killed Voldemort WAS questionable. It basically traps you in a purple magic dome, which then disintegrates you. So he was kinda right being put off by it. Then again the victims was Voldy and his cronies and Dumbles is a hypocrite so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I'm a huge fan of Lily being into the Dark Arts. I can see her low-key being as fascinated as Severus is by it all. Dumbledore is such a hypocrite, he was totally into Grindelwald's rhetoric and then much like Severus, something happened which affected him personally and suddenly it Got Real.

They say that Dumbledore was one of the most power wizards and I do have a headcanon (for which I cannot remember, but I'll see if I can find the link) where the only reason he was against Voldemort was because Dumbledore wanted to take over the wizarding world (but was doing it the quiet sneaky subtle way).

[ladylynse]

3 sentence fic for the role reversal Dumbledore & Minerva AU because I think it's cool. "anything for you."

For this AU.

-|-

“I’ll do anything for you,” Minerva had assured him, and she had. She’d spoken lies, broken ties, even turned in other spies, but she still feared that it wouldn’t be enough, that they’d see through her.

It wasn’t until both boys were in her class that she began to believe she might not fail in carrying out her part of Dumbledore’s plan after all.

-|-

see more fics | have me write a longer ficlet

[wisteria-lodge]

Dumbledore vs. Grindelwald: HOW DUMBLEDORE WON THAT DUEL

Kindred spirits. Equals in power and magical knowledge. Evenly matched in underhanded manipulative-ness - so no one’s getting the upper hand with a trick or trap. The first time they dueled, no one won. Even if Albus was “a shade more skillful” by 1945, if Dumbledore and Grindelwald walked into that duel with normal wands, it could have gone either way. 

But Grindelwald was the master of the the Elder Wand. That’s going to tip the balance. 

I mean. Ron and Dumbledore call it “the unbeatable wand” and in Beedle the Bard it is “the wand that must always win duels for its master,” but that could be poetic license. If Dawlish the Incompetent Auror fought Merlin with the Elder Wand, he’d probably still lose. But it’s still a really CRAZY powerful wand. Dumbledore wasn’t that much better. So how did he win? 

Rita Skeeter mysteriously says, “Don’t be so sure there really was the spectacular duel of legend. After they’ve read my book, people may be forced to conclude that Grindelwald simply conjured a white handkerchief from the end of his wand and came quietly.” I bring this up, not because Rita Skeeter is a good source, but because this means the details of the duel are not common knowledge. Unlike the Harry/Voldemort duel, I seriously doubt there was anyone within shouting distance of Dumbledore or Grindelwald while they fought (and if this was anything like the Dumbledore/Voldemort duel in terms of size and power, the witnesses SHOULD have been on some hilltop a mile away, for their own safety.) 

On Wand/Wizard Loyalty

Wand lore! (this is honestly some of the best worldbuilding J.K. Rowling ever does, total treat to read.) She says: 

“One would expect a certain amount of loyalty from one’s wand. So even if you were disarmed while carrying it, even if you lost a fight while carrying it, it had developed an affinity you you that it won’t give up easily.” 

Different things influence wand loyalties. Spruce wands stop being loyal when their wizard gets too cautious. Black Walnut wands betray you if you start lying to yourself. Blackthorn wands won’t start being loyal until you’ve been though some hardship or danger. And the Elder Wand specifically: 

“... knows no loyalty except to strength. It’s completely unsentimental. It will only go where the power is... [it] is simply the most ruthless of wands.” 

This idea is all through the text. Dumbledore wanted to die the wand’s last true master, so he needed to find a way to make his murder the truest expression of his own dominance and power. He spent years making absolutely frickin’ sure that he owned Severus Snape body and soul - so when Snape eventually kills him, the wand won’t have any doubt over who’s the “strongest.” 

But the Malfoy thing happened, and Dumbledore briefly ceded power to a kid. He doesn’t want to scare Draco, he wants Draco to realize that he has a choice - but in that moment,  Draco is calling the shots (and it probably didn’t help that Dumbledore is on the verge of death due to the ring/locket curses.) So the Elder Wand switches loyalty to the stronger wizard.

But when Harry takes the wands from Draco, Harry has an escape plan, is surrounded by allies, is completely sure of himself and his cause. Draco is bloodied up, cowering in the corner, conflicted about his life and choices. He’s also just put himself in mortal danger to assist Harry. The Wand’s got an easy decision. 

But back to Dumbledore and Grindelwald

So here’s what I think happened. Here’s what’s simplest and makes the most sense. 

Dumbledore and Grindelwald walk into that duel. Grindelwald’s scared, but Dumbledore’s terrified. Honestly, if Grindelwald had just shouted “You killed Arianna and I saw it!” I think Dumbledore would have knelt down and let Grindelwald execute him. But Grindelwald doesn’t do that. He fights fair, and he wins, because he’s got the Elder Wand. 

So he’s got Dumbledore incapacitated - maybe in a petrificus totalus bind down on the ground. He has to kill him. He knows this. If he doesn’t, Dumbledore will keep fighting, Grindlewald’s reputation will be ruined. This is the only thing standing between him and world domination. The only thing between him and the “greater good.” There is no other way. 

But he can’t do it. He can’t kill Dumbledore. He’s in love with him. 

And in that moment, even though Dumbledore is paralyzed on the ground, the Elder wand knows which wizard holds the power. And switches allegiance. 

Dumbledore breaks though the (now much less powerful) spell, slaps some magical restraints on a Grindelwald who doesn’t have any fight left. And locks him up in his own prison. Because that’s Dumbledore. 

And we know (the book tells us) that 53 years later, a new dark wizard comes to town. He has the same plan young Grindelwald did. And he wants to know what happened to the Elder Wand. If you’re Grindelwald, this is an opportunity for revenge, for escape, for not getting tortured to death. 

But Grindelwald lies. Says he never had the Elder Wand. He says, “Kill me, then. Voldemort, I welcome death! But my death will not bring you what you seek... that wand will never, ever be yours.” Grindelwald knows what Dumbledore had to do to win it, how strong he had to be and how strong he still is. He knows this little snake-faced upstart doesn’t stand a chance. He doesn’t give up Dumbledore. 

(He’s still in love, after all.) 

(and yes, chances are good that Fantastic Beasts #3 will somehow negate this, and JKR has talked about the Dumbledore/Grindelwald relationship being one-sided - love for Dumbledore, narcissistic academic crush for Grindelwald. But if that were the case, Grindelwald wouldn’t have been so self-sacrificial there at the end. He’d want some revenge for Dumbledore ruining his life. And we - we just don’t see that) 

tl;dr

The Elder Wand gives its loyalty to whoever is the strongest, most powerful, most dominant wizard during  a conflict. The situation where that loyalty switched from Grindelwald to Dumbledore is: 

Grindelwald winds their duel

Grindelwald can’t make himself kill Dumbledore - even though he HAS to - because he loves him

Dumbledore is the one with the power in this new dynamic. The wand’s loyalty switches to him, ice-cold bastard that he is, and he is able to capture Grindelwald. 

Grindelwald dies in Nurmengard 53 years later, refusing to give Dumbledore up. He’s still in love with him. Still.

[ladylynse]

Related to that Dumbledore and Minerva 3 sentence fic. "trust you"

Related to this fic in the Dark!Dumbledore and Dark!Minerva AU I haven’t looked up yet.

-|-

“They won’t believe I’ve changed,” insisted Minerva. “Even if they can’t connect anything to me, they’ll never let me near the children, and I won’t be able to carry out your work.”

“I trust you, Minerva; if anyone can play at being a double agent and get away with it, it will be you.”

-|-

see more fics | have me write a longer ficlet | related

[ladylynse]

3 sentence Harry Potter fic. Based off a post I saw about an alternate universe with Dumbledore being the Dark Lord and Minerva being his most loyal follower, kinda like Bellatrix. "loyal"

I don’t know this AU at all so I just made it more AU.

-|-

“Tell me, Minerva, do you think I made a mistake?” Everything was in place; both children would be raised without their parents, and neither would find the strength in their families to defy him when the time came.

“You are far wiser than I, my lord; I see no fault in your workings here, and I daresay I never will, just as I will never have reason to follow another.”

(see more fics | related)

[thoughtsaboutsnape]

Dark!Mauraders where a prank on Severus goes TERRIBLY WRONG

(okay not quite what you asked for…)

- James saw Severus heading towards the Whomping Willow on their map. He caught Sirius’s eye and grinned. 

- “Told ya he’d take the bait,” Sirius said with a wild look in his eye.

- “Okay so in a few minutes he’s going to be meeting Moony.” James checked his watch.

- “And then that greasy little oddball is no longer our problem. Moony said he was looking forward to it. Wormtail’s in position by the tree to freeze it.”

- in the morning, Severus Snape lay dead in the tunnel leading from the Whomping Willow to the Shrieking Shack. Remus played grief-stricken and Albus Dumbledore told him not to worry.

- with Hagrid’s (reluctant) help, Albus carried Severus’s mangled body into the Forbidden Forest. He told the school there had been a tragic accident and to remind them all that the Forbidden Forest was forbidden for a reason.

- later, Albus discreetly congratulated the boys for eliminating their ‘little problem’. James & Sirius just grinned and reminded Albus of the promise he’d made to them all.

- after Voldemort’s defeat, Albus Dumbledore took over the wizarding world with his trust lieutenants James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew and his werewolf enforcer, Remus Lupin.