The evening had arrived in Paris, and many witches and wizards of pureblooded families had made their way to the Père Lachaise Cemetery. They had gathered in an arena below the tombs of House Lestrange in a circle.
At the centre, situated lower down, there was a small platform. Garin, who had returned from Diagon Alley after his purchase, had made it to Paris again and found that both Credence and Nagini had left.
Using a tracking spell he created on the fly just there, showing again how much of a talent the Archmage was, he followed them to the cemetery. He entered the arena and walked down the steps and found a spot next to Credence and Nagini, who were both surprised to see him there.
"How did you find us?" Nagini asked.
"I tracked you, using your particular magical signal. Quite a useful little spell, I must say."
"What's that charm called?" Credence asked.
"I don't know. I just came up with it."
"What are you doing here, then? Are you also here to listen to Grindelwald?" Nagini asked.
"He knows who I am," Credence said. "He said I would find the answers I seek."
"Truly? Then this Grindelwald must be a special man. I can't wait to meet him," Garin smiled.
After a few minutes of waiting, the man of the hour arrived from a dark tunnel. The crowd started to cheer and clap for Grindelwald as he stepped onto the stage.
Light brightened the room as the man raised his arms to greet his cheering supporters.
"My brothers, my sisters, my friends, the great gift for your applause is not for me," Grindelwald said, "No. It is for yourselves. You came today for a craving and for a knowledge that the old ways serve us no longer; you came today because you crave something new... something different."
Everyone in the crowd listened to him eagerly. Garin looked around and saw the great effect Grindelwald's words had on them. There was no magic involved, which was impressive in itself.
This man had great charisma.
"It is said that I hate les non-Magiques, the Muggles."
"Vermin!" someone shouted in anger, while others murmured.
"The No-Maj, the Can't-Spells."
There was a mutter in the crowd.
"I do not hate them, I do not. For I do not fight out of hatred. I say the Muggles are not lesser, but other. Not worthless... but of other value. Not disposable, but of a different... disposition."
He was a master manipulator, using short pauses to highlight the words he wanted them to pay attention to, making them more meaningful. Whether those words were true or not didn't really matter, since what he said could be seen as one or the other.
If he said the muggles were worthless, what worth did they hold for him? Just enough to continue the economy and prevent the world from falling into absolute chaos and have humanity die out? Or maybe slaves?
"Magic blooms only in rare souls; it is granted to those who live for higher things. Oh, and what a world we would make for all of humanity. We who live for freedom, for truth and... for love."
He wasn't saying it outright, but he was implying it: wizards were superior to those without the capability of magic. This confused Garin, since he realised that if the people would listen carefully, he was contradicting himself here.
One of his female followers, a most devout one, walked up to the small stage and held out what was known as a skull-hookah for him to use. He grabbed the pipe and inhaled the smoke. Garin understood that Grindelwald had the gift of precognition to some degree, and when he used the hookah, it allowed others to experience his visions.
He exhaled the smoke, which rose into the air and began to show visions. Helmeted soldiers could be seen, and the sound of rapid gunfire. A large tank rolled over, scaring the people present. Hollowed-out buildings toppled and crumbled, while fighter planes zipped overhead, shooting at something.
Then there was an eerie scene of civilians in rags marching towards a train that awaits them. The scene almost brings a tear to Garin's eye, as he immediately recognises the moment for what it is... a terrible execution or deportation.
He, after all, had been present during such a moment himself.
Suddenly, a massively bright light fills the room. Everyone stared as a mushroom cloud rose before them in a ball of fire.
Garin observed this, flabbergasted. Such power, such immense destructive capabilities in the hands of those who hadn't been gifted with the capabilities to use magic. He understood, in that moment, he understood what this gathering was all about.
"THAT is what we are fighting. That is the enemy! Their arrogance. Their power lust. Their barbarity. How long will it take before they turn their weapons on us?" Grindelwald he questioned.
He stopped for a moment and then continued.
"Do nothing when I speak of this. You must remain calm and contain your emotions... There are Aurors here among us."
The crowd started murmuring again. Clearly, they either despised or simply disliked the Aurors.
"Come close, brother wizards, join us," Grindelwald told the Aurors.
Slowly, they walked down the stairs, while everyone was watching them with anger or malice. It was tense.
"They have killed many of my followers, it is true. They confined me and tortured me in New York; they had struck down their fellow witches and wizards. For the simple crime... of seeking the truth. For wanting freedom."
'Clever', Garin thought. He realised what was going on right away. Grindelwald was choosing his words carefully and setting up a moment of panic by provoking those of lesser mental strength to attack one of the Aurors or the other way around.
By having the Aurors attack one of his followers, those who hadn't been convinced up to that point would most definitely choose to follow Grindelwald.
"Your anger, your desire for revenge is natural."
And indeed the moment happened. A relatively young witch raised her wand at one of the Aurors. However, the trained wizard was quicker; already having his wand in hand, he fired a curse at the woman and killed her.
"No!" Grindelwald shouted dramatically.
The wizards who were closest to the Auror aimed their wands at him. Grindelwald climbed the stairs towards the witch's dead body. He carefully knelt at her side and lovingly stroked her hair.
"Take this young warrior back to her family," he said.
As he stepped away from the woman, several people gathered around her dead body and prepared to take her with them. Grindelwald then looked around.
"Disapparate. Leave this place. Spread the word. It is not we... who are violent."
All around the arena, the witches and wizards used apparition, shooting upwards in puffs of smoke, vanishing. As that takes place, Grindelwald returns to the stage in front and waits patiently.
The arena was now almost completely deserted, with only Grindelwald, some of his supporters, and the Aurors remaining.
"Let's take him," Theseus Scamander, a young wizard and Auror, told his fellow Aurors.
Then, Grindelwald held out his wand before him and spun in a circle. He created bluish-white flames all around him. Garin could feel the danger the flames projected and smiled widely at the show of a new spell he hadn't known yet.
The woman, and most devout of Grindelwald's followers, stepped through the flames, standing next to her master. Several more of his loyal followers joined him on the stage, before disapparating.
One of Grindelwald's followers tried to do the same, walking into the flames, but something went wrong. His body glowed bright blue and white, before disintegrating.
Garin recognised what had happened for what it was: a loyalty requirement. The spell seemed to be able to distinguish friend from foe and read minds, or at least emotions.
"Aurors, join me in this circle. " Pledge to me your allegiance, or die," Grindelwald said. "Only here shall you know freedom, only here shall you know yourself."
Several of the Aurors chose that moment to rush up the steps and make a run for it, as the flames chased them and disintegrated them.
"Play by the rules! No cheating, children."
The flames caught everyone who tried to run, just like he said. Meanwhile, Garin looked at Credence, who had stepped forward. Nagini caught him by the arm, trying to prevent him from going.
"He knows who I am," Credence said.
"He knows what you were born, now who you are," she argued.
She sobbed lightly and looked at Garin, trying to get him to say something. But Garin felt the conflict in the young man's heart and knew that there were some things a man had to do, even if it was the wrong choice.
"This is your choice, Credence. I am aware that you know he has been manipulating you, and yet you still think about going. But this is your choice. If you wish to do it, then do it."
...
"No!"
Credence turned and walked down the steps, making his way through the fire and reaching Grindelwald. The wizard welcomed him with open arms and then lovingly embraced him.
"This has all been for you, Credence," Grindelwald whispered.
After the last of those who would join him had disapparated, Grindelwald started to control the flames like a conductor, shooting them up the stairs and killing many of the Aurors present.
One of the flames' tongues shot towards Garin and was about to disintegrate him too, when he waved his hand. It appeared as though he had slapped the flames with his bare hands. And this caught Grindelwald's attention.
Garin clapped his hands and nodded.
"Quite an impressive show you put on here, Mr Grindelwald."
"And who might you be?"
"Garin, Prince of Chroyane. My pleasure."
"Prince, eh. And what does a prince want here tonight?"
"I was looking for my acquaintances, Nagini and Credence. But I believe you already know that. Still, it was worth coming here."
"Oh, and why is that?"
"I learned a lot tonight. You are an incredible man, Mr Grindelwald and have a way with words that few can claim," Garin praised.
"Why thank you. coming from a prince, that means a lot to a simple wizard such as myself," Grindelwald said, touching his chest and bowing lightly.
"I also believe that's your strongest quality."
"My charm?"
"Indeed. It allows you to manipulate the people around you by feeding them pieces of truth, wrapped around promises of power and superiority."
"... Do tell."
"I shall tell you, yes. After the visions you so graciously shared with us, things were crystal clear," Garin said, shaking his head.
"Oh, were they? Would you enlighten me as to what you believe to have figured out?" Grindelwald asked, holding his wand with a stronger grip.
"Naturally. I guess you were born to a family with a witch for a mother and a 'muggle' father. And if my guess is correct, your father most likely mistreated or even abused you and your mother. That's where that old hatred comes from. Because you do hate them, no matter what you tell everyone or even yourself.
You see them as lesser, but you also see those who don't see it the same as you as lesser and as weak, which is hilarious and hypocritical, since you also fear them and their potential for violence and destruction. Your talent for precognition only further enhanced what you already felt when you probably saw the last war coming."
"..."
Garin saw the disgust on Grindelwald's face and knew he was on the right track.
"You were honest, partially, that you were fighting that war that you showed everyone. But you are in a hurry now because it will probably arrive sooner than you would have liked."
"That's quite a tale. And what do you think about the muggles?"
"I think they are equally capable of great things and advancement, as they are of death, destruction and hate. But what you and everyone so cleverly seem to ignore is that they don't differentiate themselves from us in that regard. How many so-called 'Dark Wizards' or Witches' have there been in the history of this world?
You and some of the wizards and witches are as capable of bigotry as they are, whether you like it or not."
"..."
"I do understand, though, that the political parties involved wouldn't help you or believe you if you told them about your visions. So in a sense, I can respect what you're doing. The ends, however, don't always justify the means. So make sure you don't forget why you started this fight in the first place, lest you turn into what you hate."