To Minerva McGonagall
" Dear Minerva,
If you are reading this then I am dead, killed by Harry Potter. There are many possible paths the future could take after this, and I am loath to write a separate letter for each one. Intelligent though he may be, I do not wish to overburden Fawkes with too many choices of letters to deliver.
Firstly, given that I have had many years to come to know you, perhaps better than any other, let me say this: Put down the firewhisky(doubtless the cheapest and harshest bottle you could find). A drunk Minerva McGonagall will be of no use to anyone right now.
Secondly, I want to deal with two main possibilities: Of Voldemort either taking control of Hogwarts or of Hogwarts remaining free.
If Voldemort takes control of Hogwarts, then I must ask you to do something that you will find most difficult. I must ask you to stay at Hogwarts, to not fight or defy the new rulers. The students will need someone who will be looking out for them, who will be holding their best interests in mind. Do what you must, swear whatever oaths they desire, but be that person. Bravery comes in many different forms. And sometimes it requires one to stay silent in the face of atrocities.
If Hogwarts remains in the hands of the just, then I ask you to continue running the school. Add however much security you can. Allow Gellert to use it as a base. But continue educating and teaching the next generation.
Hopefully, my portrait will be able to give you much advice, once it awakens and adjusts. I estimate a few weeks before it is capable of coherent speech.
Regarding Gellert. Trust him. He is one of the best possibilities of winning this war.
Trust him, but do not trust him blindly. Watch him. Do not make an enemy out of him, but beware if he seems to slip into his old habits.
Do not hate Severus. He is a complicated man in an impossible situation. If you face him in battle, he will show you no mercy, and you should respond in kind. But try not to hate him.
Protect the students, Minerva. I can do so no longer. The yoke has passed from my shoulders. I wish you better luck with it than ever I had.
Let the world hear the roar of the lioness. Protect the students.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.
P.S. Never have I seen one more suitable to take my role as Headmaster. Headmistress, in your case. Do not doubt yourself. You are the best person for the job"
To Neville Longbottom
" Dear Neville,
If you are reading this, then I am dead, struck down by Harry Potter's betrayal.
You have wondered, I know, why I taught you so much about Voldemort's past. Why I educated you about his method of immortality. Why I told you almost all I knew about his Horcruxes.
You asked me, repeatedly, why I was teaching it to you. And I brushed you off.
But you deserve an answer. The world needs you to be given the answer.
But first, allow me to digress.
What is prophecy? How does it work?
Is a prophecy by its very nature a self-fulfilling promise? If I tell you that you are going to have a bad day, and as a result, you spend the whole day anxious and afraid, was that an inherent truth? Or was that merely the result of my informing you?
Does prophecy perhaps, tell the truth? Not of what may be, but of what will certainly be?
Empirical evidence would suggest not. There have been thousands, if not myriads of prophecies that went unfulfilled.
So how does it work? What is prophecy?
My own beliefs on this subject have changed. I used to believe that prophecy functions as a result of self-fulfillment. However, as of the time of writing this, I no longer believe such a thing.
Nor do I believe that prophecy speaks a complete truth.
I believe, that prophecy, Divination, soothsaying, and foretelling, all tell of potential. Of a potential for something specific to occur. Something beyond the ordinary.
Whether this potential is ordained by fate or destiny, by some god or gods. It does not matter. What matters, is that there is a potential for something above the norm.
And it is due to this potential, that I have educated you.
Many years ago, before you were born, a prophecy was made. This prophecy spoke of a child who would have an extraordinary ability to defeat Voldemort.
Two children were born who fulfilled the requirements of the prophecy. One was Harry Potter. The other is you.
Let me be clear. Let there be no uncertainty. The prophecy does not claim that only one of you two and no other person could defeat Voldemort. Neither does the prophecy state that either of you will with a certainty defeat him. But the prophecy does state that the two of you, by your very nature, have the potential above all others to defeat him.
This is important. If you were the only one with the ability, it would be entirely immoral for you not to do everything in your power to kill him. But that is not the case. If you wish, you could leave. Run to Africa or Australia. I would advise Africa, as they will still accept refugees, and are more likely to hold out longer against him. But if Voldemort does not fall, if his Horcruxes are not destroyed, eventually Africa too, will fall.
Is it fair of me to do this, to place the fate of the world on one man's shoulders? And you are a man. I have watched as you grew from a frightened young boy to a brave, strong young man. True, Remus, Alastor, and Gellert have helped you, but every step along the way it has been your choices that pushed you.
Is it fair? Is it fair of me to speak of escape, when I know that you will do no such thing?
No. But the world is not fair. And we sometimes have to make decisions that horrify us, that leave us in tears.
Gellert will help you. Trust him, as you trusted me. He knows about the Horcruxes and will maintain the secrecy of your hunt. Nobody can know that you are hunting Voldemort's ties to immortality. Excluding your close friends, of course. I have purposefully met with you throughout this year in secrecy, to ensure that you are not suspected.
Trust your friends. Trust Ronald, and Hermione, and Ginevra and Luna. Trust Gellert. But tell nobody else. Secrecy must be paramount.
And there is another thing. If you are going to do this, there is another thing you must know.
I spoke to you about almost all of Voldemort's Horcruxes. But there was one I left out. Voldemort's accidental Horcrux, and his most dangerous.
A living Horcrux.
When Voldemort attacked Godric's Hollow when Voldemort killed the Potters and attempted to kill Harry, a piece of his soul broke off. And this piece sought refuge in the closest living body.
Harry Potter is a Horcrux. And he must be killed for Voldemort to be mortal.
Voldemort certainly knows this. Based on what I have heard, he treats Harry with more care than any other follower of his. And Voldemort feels no emotion for other humans. Voldemort knows this.
Does Harry?
Perhaps. Voldemort could have used this, instilled fear of me into Harry. He would have told Harry that I would surely kill him. And when Harry was feeling despondent, Voldemort would have shown him compassion.
What I ask of you is much, I know this. It is far more than what should ever be asked of anyone.
And yet I have no choice. For the world to survive, I must ask you to destroy the Horcruxes. While Gellert and his army fight and distract Voldemort, I must ask you to cut the viper's head off. Destroy the Horcruxes, and Voldemort will be mortal. Destroy the Horcruxes, and perhaps, there can be peace.
I wish there had been another way. I wish I did not have to place this burden on your shoulders.
I am sorry, Neville. I am so, so sorry. But I wish you luck.
Good hunting.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore"
To Gellert Grindelwald
" Dearest Gellert,
You once accused me of not being able to do what was necessary.
You were right.
One and a half weeks after Alastor was killed, I received my second communication from the spy. He had most disturbing news to give me.
He had discovered that Harry Potter was a Death Eater. Not merely a Death Eater, but referred to by Voldemort as his protege.
At first, I refused to believe it. I could not allow myself to consider it. But he had evidence. He had heard this from numerous sources within the Death Eaters. And it had only been kept from him for so long because Voldemort feared a spy discovering that fact.
And it all made horrible, brutal sense.
It was only a few days later that Harry's muggle relatives were killed in such a terrible manner. And I met with him afterward.
And his acting was subpar. I knew it with a certainty.
And I held my wand, the Wand you now possess and tried to speak the two words that would destroy him. Destroy him, and the fragment of Voldemort's soul within him.
And I could not do it.
My guilt held me at bay.
The knowledge that it was I, in my many mistakes, who had set him on this path held me back. Self-doubt reared it's ugly head, preventing me from acting.
And I could not do it. Even though I knew it was necessary, even though I could morally and ethically justify it a thousand times over, I couldn't do it.
And I let him live.
And if you are reading this, then he was the one to kill me. Doubtless, you are furious. Furious at him, furious at me, furious at yourself.
Take your fury, and use it.
I could not do what was necessary. You must. I was too weak. You must now be strong. I was too kind. You must now be ruthless.
Show the world Gellert Grindelwald. Show Voldemort why you were so feared.
You have the Elder Wand. Along with this letter, you have the Resurrection Stone. And Harry Potter is in the possession of the Invisibility Cloak.
Show the world what Gellert Grindelwald, Master of Death, can do.
Do not make my mistakes.
Raise an army. Raise them.
And show the world who you were, who you are.
Für das größere wohl.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.
P.S. There was never another. Not after you"
To Severus Snape
" Dear Severus,
As you know, I had a spy other than you in the Death Eaters. And in many ways, he proved far more useful than you.
And he told me of a rumor, of news spreading within the Death Eaters.
That Severus Snape had sworn an Unbreakable Vow to his master.
Understandable, I suppose. You were surely threatened, told to do so or to die. Perhaps you even thought that you could find a way out.
But you haven't, have you? He has you tied, unable to disobey him.
An interesting thing about the Unbreakable Vow. There is a way to escape it. There are numerous ways, to be sure, but the safest is a Transference Ritual. The safest, and the surest. It cannot be blocked against, not unless the Vow is specific against it. With the Transference Ritual, the Vow itself would be removed from you, and placed upon another.
I would advise performing this ritual on a captive, one who will be executed. And then you will be free, free to aid in the battle against the monster who destroyed your love.
But perhaps, you have resigned yourself to your fate. Perhaps you have chosen to once again, serve Voldemort willingly.
If that is the case, I only have one thing to say to you. I want you to look into Harry's eyes, to look at the shape and shade of them, and think if this is truly the life you desire.
Make your choice, Severus. Make it, and live with it. I remember how you wept. Do you?
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore"
To Harry Potter
" Dear Harry,
If you are reading this, then you have killed me. Congratulations are in order, I should say. You have successfully avenged yourself on those who so wronged you. I, who placed you with your muggle relatives. Your muggle relatives, who placed you in that orphanage. Sirius, who abandoned you for his own vengeance. You have achieved your revenge. Well done.
Have you though? Or is there still one person, the one who, in truth, caused you all of your grief and pain? The one who killed your parents, who left you orphaned and forced to live elsewhere? The one who forced us all to make such stupid, horrible decisions?
Surely you would wish to avenge yourself in such a person first. Surely you would wish to destroy the source of all your pain before turning to others.
Perhaps not. Perhaps he has convinced you that he loves you, that he cares for you.
Do you truly believe so? You are far too intelligent to fall for such blatant lies. Voldemort cares for no person other than himself, and surely you know this. Surely you have seen, how once his followers die, he no longer thinks of them. He does not mourn them, he does not miss them. He does not care for them, he never has, and he never will.
Perhaps you are different. Surely you must think so. Perhaps he has told you the truth about what you are. That you are a Horcrux. You know this, I think. I have seen how your fists clenched at the mention of the word, your tension around me during our meetings.
Perhaps you think he cares for you. He doesn't, not truly. You are nothing more than a tool to him. And if your death serves him better than your life, he would kill you in an instant. He would not even have to think about it.
Let me ask you something. Is this what you wanted from your life when first I met you?
When first I told you of the magical world, did you dream of one day being a boogeyman, being the fear in everyone's mind? If so, then you deserve further congratulations .
If not, then you have my pity.
In fact, you have my pity regardless.
You might say that it was I who turned you into what you are, into the monster you have become. Truthfully, I played a part and not an insignificant one. But the responsibility is yours. Your choices were yours. It is no one's fault other than your own.
Nevertheless, I am sorry. I am sorry for what I did, and for what I didn't do. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, and my life is nothing if not an example of this phrase.
But the choices were yours, and the responsibility lies with you. You can shout it over and over again, you can scream and cry and laugh and moan, but it will not change the fact. The fault lies with you.
I failed you. But you failed yourself even further.
Again, my congratulations on achieving your vengeance. I hope that you may one day achieve a total vengeance.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.
P.S. No man is beyond redemption. But the choice to be redeemed from darkness must come from you. No one else can make that decision for you"