Chapter 1: Of Extraction and Compassion

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Of Twinkling Eyes and Shooting Stars

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Chapter 1: Of Extraction and Compassion

It had been a few hours since the great magical duel. Lu Ten, now Dumbledore, found himself in one of the many safe houses prepared for the war.

He had swiftly dealt with the aftermath, trying to make time to deal with the dilemma he found himself in.

A quick scourgify was cast on the dirty, unused room and then... Dumbledore was finally alone. Before he began looking into his situation, however, Lu Ten had something to do-

Lu Ten didn't know why he spoke out. Was it to reassure the previous owner of this body? Was it to let him rest easy, knowing that he was willing to carry his burden now? Regardless-

"From one teacher to another... From a man with innumerable regrets to another... You can rest easy, assured in the fact that I shall uphold the ideals you would have held." Lu Ten vowed solemnly.

He might not know why he did it, but to him, it felt like something that should have been done. As he finished speaking...

Immediately, twinkling blue lights started flickering around him, emerging from his body.

And... for a moment, he could have sworn that he saw the image of the old Dumbledore in them, giving him a wide, relieved smile. His face was relaxed, seemingly freed from a burden. He recognized that face quite intimately... it was the face of a content man, one who had accepted his death fearlessly.

The fading embers of Dumbledore's will which seemed to have existed inside him seemed soothed.

He gave a small, sincere smile to the kind, great man, and wizard as he departed.

This world... it was truly beautiful and magical.

**Linebreak**

[Extraction System Bound]

[Commands: Status, Extract]

[1 Extraction Available]

Lu Ten's blue eyes narrowed at the bright blue screen before him. They weren't the soft and bright eyes of a teacher anymore, but the hardened ones of a man who had fought hundreds of battles.

He looked at the system with the unique sight of Dumbledore, one he had acquired through a complex ritual in Egypt.

...Yet, he couldn't find any remotely magical property of the screen in front of him.

Regardless, he still spoke, "Status."

[Albus Dumbledore (Lu Ten)

Magical Power: Lord-Tier

Magical Skills: Charms (Master), Rituals for the Trinity (Egypt, Japan, China...), Rituals for Magical Power, Alchemy (Master), Transfiguration (Grandmaster), Herbology (Advanced), Potions (Advanced), Dark Arts (Master), Arithmancy (Advanced), Ancient Runes (Grandmaster), Rituals...

Available Extractions: 1]

Lu Ten, now Dumbledore, exhaled a breath in incredulity.

A system, one bound to his soul? Also, one capable of knowing all his secrets? Dumbledore regarded this unknown entity with the utmost caution, his blue eyes turned guarded and his body tensed.

He turned what the Egyptians called the 'Eye of Horus' in the rituals - his unique sight - to his soul. The sight he had acquired through the ritual was magical, not requiring his eyes to actually be open. He closed his eyes and reached out to the deepest parts of his conscious.

He travelled through endless darkness as an illusory projection of himself and soon reached a place where he stopped. Some ways in front of him rested a small white dot, floating in the darkness.

Dumbledore swiftly reached out a hand and touched it, quite familiar with the process. He instantly arrived just a few feet before a huge, translucent, elliptical globe which was a beautiful swirling mix of blue, black, red, and white.

It looked the same as the day he saw it, only that it had grown. Dumbledore smiled, his worries forgotten for a moment; this was the result of his hard work, and it always provided him a sense of relief, knowing that this power was his to wield; he could protect everyone, and no one would suffer a fate like that of Ariana again.

Being so close to the massive globe, he couldn't see the end of it. However, he knew it to be about a hundred meters in diameter and... with nothing but a thought, he travelled a kilometer backwards. This was his conscious after all.

With a smile on his face... he raised his eyes to take a full look at his soul and... he froze. Behind his soul now stood a massive, endless swirling vortex of blue. The colour got increasingly deeper towards the center where it was a deep, abyssal black. It resembled a huge maw, one whose size he couldn't fathom to imagine, and it stood just a few meters away from his soul.

Dumbledore, even with his self-control, couldn't stop his eyes from quivering in fear; this fear was primal, not something he could control; it came from the depths of his soul. His body was trembling and cold sweat formed on his back. Other than his soul, and that frightening vortex, there existed nothing but darkness; and this maw, which could swallow his soul in but an instant, seemed all the more terrifying because of it.

With another thought, he moved several kilometers backwards, yet, he still couldn't see the end of it. His trembling intensified.

'What is this monstrous creature?'

Now, he moved dozens of kilometers back. From his view, he still couldn't see the end of it.

'What is this? Is this the system? Is... Is this... what is bound to me?'

Again, he moved dozens of kilometers back, and he raised his grim eyes to find the edges of the blue vortex. Yet, it remained an exercise in futility.

From the point he was at, his soul looked like nothing but an blip in the distance. However, the vortex remained endless. His soul, his power, was nothing but an ant in front of the vortex. It felt small... he felt small...

He had never felt this helpless and powerless since... his wife and Ariana.

However, Dumbledore (Lu Ten) wouldn't have reached where he had with such a weak will.

He took a deep breath, steeled himself, and peered at the endless abyss steadily, focusing his sight carefully, and looking for the smallest of hints which he knew he could find.

'Just what are you?'

As though the maw could feel his gaze, a blue screen once again shimmered in front of him.

[Do you wish to extract?]

Dumbledore turned his bright blue eyes to this screen, no longer as startled. This would determine what future his life would hold, he could tell.

"Yes." Dumbledore's voice was steely.

[Extracting...]

His jaw clenched and his eyes burned like the flames of his tempered will.

[Congratulations! Since this is your first extraction, an additional extract will be given]

His eyes narrowed at the screen suspiciously. Yet, he waited for the result.

[Extraction Successful! Received:

Inner Peace - Oogway's Staff

Demon Armor Incursio]

As soon as the blue screen shifted in front of him, two silver lights shot out of the maw, just behind his soul. Dumbledore was mesmerized by the silver lights which shot out of the maw; they looked so similar to the Shooting Stars he dreamt of all his life.

The two silver lights abruptly stopped near his soul, then started revolving around it. It looked as though they were guarding his soul, gliding and revolving like the brilliant shooting stars which had once soothed his broken heart.

The wooden staff, which he assumed was the extracted item named "Inner Peace," let out a bright yellow light, forming a rapidly swirling and expanding Taichi Diagram between his soul and the maw. Then, a massive dragon-like creature emerged right in the middle of the array.

It had red-colored lightning blazing around it's incredibly muscular and sturdy-looking body, and brutal power rolled off of it in waves. It let out a roar, as though establishing it's dominance over wherever it found itself. Yet, appearances were quite often deceiving.

The frail wooden staff, the one he assumed was called "Inner Peace", seemed to casually spin once, and the Taichi array, which Dumbledore now identified, grew exponentially, easily eclipsing the dragon-like creature. The dragon let out more roars, flailing around as the array suppressed it, yet, it could do nothing before it was sucked into the array, settling at one of it's edges as a green orb.

Soon, the two items were sucked into his soul, very similarly to a whirlpool, shrinking as they did so; he assumed that they were now bonded, much in the same way the system was to him.

Dumbledore felt an influx of information suddenly appear in his mind, easily bypassing the Occlumency walls he once thought immoveable. Yet, he knew they weren't really immoveable; he was now Lu Ten, not Dumbledore, and Lu Ten knew that all kinds of mystical phenomenon existed in any world, regardless of their origin.

Despite the incredible artifacts Dumbledore now possessed, he wasn't happy at all. In fact, his face was grim. He knew that there exist no accidents and free power, especially one without consequences, in this world. He was far too matured and tempered to naively believe so.

This power, even in the hands of an amateur, could bring out devastating effects. If he, with all his power, was still receiving this...

"What exactly is it for? What threatens me so... that I would have need of such power?"

Dumbledore speculated that there existed a force strong enough for him to gain more such power. After all, the balance of a world was not so easily altered. If he received a power of this level, then there had to be a situation where it would have to be put to use.

Why give a power which would never be used, forever remaining stale, for no reason whatsoever?

And... if there existed such a threat... Dumbledore's eyes narrowed.

Well... let it be known that teachers could be the one of the most terrifying beings to exist, if ever provoked.

Dumbledore took a deep breath, gave one last threatening glance to the massive maw that loomed over his soul before he shut his sight. As soon as his eyes opened, they found the warm, rustic, and orange-tinted room he called his cabin. He breathed out a sigh of relief. The shelves in his room were filled with books with quite a few tattered covers, and they smelled faintly of wood.

His room looked quite frugal yet cozy.

"What an experience..." Dumbledore let out a small chuckle.

While the experience was quite daunting, Dumbledore found it quite informative. One couldn't expect to grow, being satisfied with what they had. He recognized this now.

No matter how feared and intelligent he was, Lu Ten still lacked strength. Now that he had so much of what he once lacked, he had made the mistake of being satisfied with current him.

This was what every self-aware, driven person feared - stagnating. He had realized it now, being forcefully reminded by the massive maw that stood behind his soul - the system.

Yes, therefore, he found the experience informative. He wouldn't make this mistake again. Self-discovery and learning were important, never-ending journeys. To assume that you were the best "you" you could think of, was a folly. Lu Ten had grown wise over his years, not letting his ego impede his learning. One could never be too old, or too wise to learn something new, and Lu Ten was the same.

As Dumbledore ruminated over the experience, a soft crooning entered his ears. He looked to his left, mostly by muscle memory, knowing that his faithful companion awaited his arrival there, as he always did.

And indeed, a small chick, barely larger than his fist, sat there, looking at him with it's big black eyes.

He gave a soft smile as he moved around his desk and towards him, his feet softly thumping on the wooden flooring. He reached out a hesitant hand to it, awaiting it's approval; as Fawkes bowed, his hands instantly found themselves softly patting it.

Dumbledore closed his eyes and enjoyed the silent warmth that existed between them. Yet, he knew he had to do something important...

"I am not your 'friend', you know?" Dumbledore spoke after taking a small step back.

"He's no longer in this world. And here I am, taking his place." Fawkes' eyes didn't change, still looking at him with it's warm black eyes.

"...You're no longer obligated to stay here." Dumbledore's face had a small, sad smile.

He didn't wish to lie to Fawkes in a twisted sense of compassion. That was what a hurtful coward would do. Even if it meant losing a great, powerful asset... Dumbledore would still do this in a heartbeat. Fawkes was a great, faithful companion to Dumbledore... and he wouldn't spit on their bond by pretending to be someone he was not.

Fawkes, and the deep bond he had with Dumbledore were deserving of much, much more. Yet, he couldn't revert whatever had happened and bring the Old-Dumbledore back, so the least he could do is make sure that Fawkes knew the truth.

"Dumbledore was an impressive man - humble and kind. He was also the greatest teacher I had ever seen. Still... most importantly, he was a brave hero, and he left this world fighting for what was right."

Dumbledore's voice was thick with emotion, and his eyes were moist. He couldn't help but grieve. After all, he was a teacher at heart. Hence, he wished for nothing more than for his students to grow into the dazzling stars they could be, be it in this world or the previous. And he was sure that Dumbledore would have done a magnificent job at that, changing the world through his teachings. Now that he had robbed the world of such a brilliant, precious presence... He felt grief as a teacher and person.

A soft chirp brought his eyes back to Fawkes. It, no- He, flapped it's still underdeveloped wings in an attempt to fly. However, it ended up floating for a bit before falling back down. Panicked, Dumbledore hurriedly brought his hands up and caught Fawkes.

Dumbledore looked at Fawkes through his moist eyes, unable to understand what he was trying to do. He brought Fawkes up to his face... and was promptly pecked on the forehead. Despite the burning sensation he felt, he looked at Fawkes in confusion.

Was he trying to harm him in a show of hostility? No, Fawkes was far too kind for that-

Just as he was figuring out what Fawkes was up to... Fawkes sang.

It was a soothing, calming lullaby that his wife always sung to him after he constantly pestered her to do so. And he couldn't believe his ears for a moment... hearing the song again, in this world. He was reminded of his days as a henpecked husband. It felt like he was once again in the loving embrace of his wife; He remembered her gentle strokes and sweet voice. He remembered the rare, warm, small smile the stern woman used to give him whenever she sang it to him.

This song was all Dumbledore needed to understand what Fawkes' answer to his question was. And, despite being a man who was once called a wise sage... he cried.

Who would have imagined? An immortalized wise sage, one who was transmigrated, would be comforted by a strange magical bird, in a strange new world. The sage, however, felt a warmth in his heart, feeling gratitude for the compassion of his new friend (nobody could convince him otherwise), despite the ridiculous situation he was in.

Listening to this song from his dearly loved, late wife was something he loved. And, despite how bad he sounded with his cracked voice, he couldn't help but hum it together with Fawkes.

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are... Up above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky..."

So, like this, he finished his first day in this beautiful, magical world, feeling the long-lost warmth of his wife's embrace, and imagining the twinkling stars in the sky.

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[AN]

Hey guys! This was entirely a trial chapter (this whole story was, in fact).

I'm inclined towards making it a crossover. You know, get some mystery, fantasy and action in.

How do you like it? What do you think about making it a crossover? Maybe DC, Marvel or some other anime which suits it well? Or do you not want a system at all? Do you want a purely Harry Potter fanfiction, no crossover? Let me know your reason if you want it so.

I'm accepting all suggestions since I just have a vague idea of the plot in my head. Nothing conclusive. I'm open to change, as long as the story might become more interesting bcuz of it.

I'm trying a particular premise, and I want reviews!

Thanks for reading!

Ciao!

PPS: Ignore the grammar errors I might have made, or just let me know about them if it's alright with you. Since I have exams now, I haven't proofread it yet. I'll update it in a few days.

[/AN]