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Prologue

Nurmengard Castle, Austrian Alps.

1981

The mountain ranges stretched vast and imposing, the snow blanketing the proud peaks rooted in pure rock. Ancient pines, some hundreds of years old, stood tall, filtering the sunlight.

The Austrian Alps, also known as the Central-Eastern Alps, were home to various magical and non-magical creatures, the most famous being golden eagles, Graphorns, mountain trolls, and Yetis.

The air was cold and thin, carrying the sharp aroma of pine trees.

On the edge of a mountain stood a stone fortress. It featured a square tower with a cone-shaped top, connected to a narrow building with windows. The fortress also had a courtyard, flanked on both sides by prison cells with black bars, clearly used for decades.

"FWAP!"

A sharp crack echoed as a woman in her fifties appeared, dressed in a black cloak that covered her face and leather gloves.

Walking through the soft snow, the woman entered the building, which was in a state of disrepair—cabinets overturned, golden chandeliers damaged, tables and chairs broken, and the walls vandalized or crumbling. She ascended a staircase connected to the corridor, reaching the top of the tower.

At the top, she found only a small cell. The room was dark and foreboding, furnished with a hard bed and a thin, tattered blanket.

Sitting on the bed was the prisoner of this cell, a frail, skeletal figure with a face resembling a skull. Deep-set eyes, wrinkled cheeks, and a mostly toothless mouth completed the haunting image.

"I've already eaten. I don't need your company, guard," the man sneered without turning, his gaze fixed on the wall.

The weak, raspy voice reverberated throughout the silent tower.

"I'm here for a different reason, Gellert," the woman replied.

The familiar voice reached Gellert's ears, making him turn his head to look at her. Slowly, he rose from the bed, standing before her with only the black bars separating them.

"So, it has been quite some time…" Gellert murmured, his eyes glinting for the first time in decades.

"Yes."

"I presume Voldemort has been defeated," Gellert said, already knowing the answer.

"He was defeated by the Potter boy. They're calling him The Boy Who Lived for surviving a Killing Curse, which, in my opinion, is a complete exaggeration."

"A Potter! Even having foreseen his defeat in my visions, I never imagined he would fall to a Potter." Gellert chuckled, revealing his nearly toothless grin.

The woman removed her hood, letting her long, light blonde hair cascade over her shoulders. Her blue eyes and slightly wrinkled skin were revealed, prompting a nostalgic look on Gellert's skeletal face.

"You have the same resemblance as our great-aunt," Gellert remarked, reminiscing about his youth.

"And you, like a skeleton, in a cell within a fortress forgotten by all." The woman replied.

"Yes, forgotten by almost all. Or should I remind you that you still remember, my dear sister?"

"Hmph."

"Ah, Lydia, your indifference remains as striking as I remember." Gellert chuckled again, his laughter faint and broken.

Lydia Grindelwald, the sister of Gellert Grindelwald—the most powerful and infamous Dark wizard of all time—now stood before the man who had been rotting in his own fortress for decades.

Unlike her brother, who had walked the path of darkness and built a reign of terror across the globe, Lydia had taken a different route. She had graduated from Durmstrang Institute, the same magical school from which her brother had been expelled years prior. Although she was notably less talented than her brother, Lydia excelled in various fields of magic. After graduation, she became a successful Healer in Bulgaria.

Witnessing her brother's growing power and the strength of the Grindelwald name, Lydia soon became a target for those opposing him. Unwilling to take sides in the war, she erased all traces of her identity and appearance, hiding in a remote village.

"So, my dear sister, what brings you here after all these years?" Gellert asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm pregnant."

For the first time in years, Gellert Grindelwald displayed a look of surprise, only to quickly regain his usual expression.

"I… met a man in a remote village in Britain. He was kind, though a bit clumsy, I admit. He came from a recently established pure-blood lineage, only two generations old. We grew close, discovering how much we had in common, and soon became intimate. But during a Death Eater attack, he was killed defending a Muggle-born child before we could marry."

"I see, but I cannot help you, my dear sister," Gellert said, frowning briefly.

"I only need your consent."

"Oh, my sweet Lydia, what is it you wish?"

"To carry the Grindelwald name forward," Lydia said, her words making Gellert's skeletal face grimace.

"Do you realize the burden this child will have to bear?" Gellert asked upon hearing Lydia's request.

"The burden of your idealism and ambition, which forever scarred our family. It was your idealism that triggered the Global Wizarding War, and you, Gellert, spread our name arrogantly to the far corners of the world."

"I am paying for my sins. I have spent decades reflecting on the errors of my past, consumed by remorse and shame," Gellert said sincerely to his sister.

"But if you are so determined to make this child bear our family name, then my consent hardly matters." He continued, locking his eyes on her.

Satisfied, Lydia turned to leave, but her brother stopped her.

"Wait. When the child is nearing his eleventh birthday, enroll him at Hogwarts."

"Why?" Lydia asked, confused, turning her head back to him.

"At that school is the only man I ever loved and respected. I am certain he will care for my nephew."

With that, Lydia left, leaving Gellert Grindelwald alone once more in his prison, which had once been his untouchable fortress. Sitting back on his bed, Gellert had a vision of the near future, causing him to laugh for several minutes before abruptly stopping. A macabre smile formed on his face—something others might find deeply unsettling.

"My dear Tom, it seems it won't just be Albus and the Potter boy you'll have to deal with."

I always wanted to do a Harry Potter Story. Well, I took courage, I hope you like it and I'm sorry if there are spelling mistakes.

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