"And it was" Harry spoke "I've only done that ritual once since that moment, with Slytherin's basilisk after I killed her"
"Harry, I...wait...that was a girl?" Dumbledore asked, a bit surprised at that information
"Of course it was, don't be an idiot" Harry shook his head at Dumbledore, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world "anyway, as I was saying. That was the only time I did the ritual since"
"Harry, I don't know what that ritual is but it cannot be good for you. It is likely..."
"Oh trust me Dumbledore, it was very good for me" Harry interrupted "power through pain, yes, I admit that. Though to be fair, there'd have been a whole lot pain if I chose something less wild...like a parrot...or a horse. Anyway, before I get down to the last memory, I want to know something. Answer me this honestly and I will show you the memory. When you saw me get hurt in those memories, what did you feel?"
"What?"
"You heard me, what did you feel when you saw me get hurt?" Harry asked with a serious expression "What did you experience when you saw me get hurt? Pride? Happiness? Boredom? Glee? Joy? A boner?"
"No! None of that!" Dumbledore said quickly
"Thank Merlin" Harry said with a relieved expression and his hand over his heart "if you had experienced a boner then I would've killed you where you stand"
"Harry, those memories cause me nothing but misery, guilt and regret. Please stop this"
"I don't know, what do you think Tom?" Harry asked. Dumbledore's eyes widened as he saw an eleven year old Tom Riddle walk out from the shadows and stand beside Harry
"Voldemort" Dumbledore breathed
"Not quite" Harry waved a hand in front of Tom's face and Tom didn't react at all "you see Dumbledore. I've always known more than I let on, including your theory about me. Am I correct in saying that you believe that there is a piece of Voldemort's soul in me?"
"How did you know that?!" Dumbledore demanded
"Maybe another time, but that is your theory, yes?" Harry asked. Dumbledore, not seeing a way out of this, reluctantly nodded "Well, much like how you think you're a genius..." Harry aimed his hand at the young Tom Riddle and Dumbledore watched as Tom disappeared into a pile of ash "you're wrong. I don't have anything from Voldemort"
"You're lying!"
"If you don't believe me then ask Gringotts, their goblins have done extensive tests on me and didn't find a soul piece" Harry smiled. Dumbledore couldn't believe it, he didn't believe it. He had scanned Harry that night and there was definitely a soul piece within him "though what they don't know, is I did get something from Voldemort that night. More specifically, I gained his memories"
"His memories?!" Dumbledore blurted out in shock as were many outside of Harry's mind
"Yes" Harry's smile disappeared as he looked at Dumbledore "you see, little Tom Riddle was bullied in the muggle orphanage he grew up in. He used his magical powers to keep the bullies away, then you came and offered him the magical dream of Hogwarts. His first home. Every year, he begged you to not send him back but you did so. You sent him back to that orphanage every year, you even talked the headmaster at the time out of letting him stay. Why? Because you thought he should stay there and lord forbid the great Albus Dumbledore from being wrong"
"Harry, Tom was..."
"A monster, he is a monster" Harry cut him off "maybe he was always going to be a monster, I can't say for sure. However, you helped make him one. Instead of teaching him right from wrong, you sent him back because your naïve beliefs led you to think he'd eventually overcome his hatred. You never stopped the bullying that happened to him so he had to learn how to bully others to get respect. You're negligence and inability to believe that you can be wrong, helped create Voldemort. Your most famous monster...but not your best"
"What are you talking about?!"
"Is it not obvious? I was referring to me" Harry said calmly "you created me Dumbledore. Yes, my decisions were mine, but I am who I am because of three reasons. The first being I was too stubborn to die, the second being your monster and the other one was you."
"ME?! HOW DID I TURN YOU INTO THIS?!"
"Let's see" Harry gestured to the memory that was playing "let's see Dumbledore"
James Potter was sitting with Lily Potter in the living room of Godric's hollow, both parents watched happily as their twin sons played with each other and Dorea Potter. Suddenly James tensed up and jumped to his feet, drawing his wand.
"The ward! He's here!" James shouted
"But how?!" Dorea Potter said, grabbing baby Adrian and picking him up as Lily did the same with baby Harry.
"Wormtail! He must have betrayed us!" James deduced "Take the kids and go! I'll hold him off!"
"James that's insane!" Lily said
"She's right!" Dorea agreed
"JUST GO!" James commanded, the two women shared a look before doing as they were told and ran upstairs and into the children's bedroom just as they heard the sound of spell fire downstairs.
"Sweet Gordic!" Dorea whispered to herself as she and Lily put the kids in the crib
"It's alright" Lily said, giving a kiss on the forehead to a crying Adrian "everything's going to be alright" She repeated the kiss with Harry
"No matter, what happens, we are not letting him lay a hand on these kids" Dorea promised.
....
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