What was death?
Among the people John knew, four had actively sought death.
The first was his teacher, Nicolas Flamel, the greatest alchemist, who had lived for 665 years.
The second was Flamel's wife, the equally great and gentle Perenelle Flamel. They had spent centuries together.
The Philosopher's Stone could grant them long lives, but it would also wear away their bodies and emotions.
They decided to destroy the Philosopher's Stone. After setting aside enough Elixir of Life to settle their affairs and arrange their legacy, they lay in bed, holding hands, and calmly passed away.
It was a death seasoned by the years, following a long journey lived as human beings, with a loved one by their side.
To them, death was a chance to lie comfortably in bed and rest after a long journey.
This was a death of acceptance.
The third was Albus Dumbledore, a man with a spirit of devotion and self-sacrifice.
He was willing to make his death a bargaining chip to defeat evil and awaken someone's conscience.
Perhaps that was why he and Nicolas Flamel could become friends. Hundreds of years separated them in age, and Dumbledore was not famous for alchemy, yet he followed the law of alchemy.
Equivalent exchange.
The death of a great man would awaken the rise of a hero.
That was what he wished to see.
John had once been someone Dumbledore was willing to awaken with his death, but John had refused that exchange.
He had left that great man, who was willing to face death calmly, stranded on an isolated island to this day.
Dumbledore sought a death for a greater cause.
The fourth person was unusual. He was a Dark Lord, but also a revolutionary.
Gellert Grindelwald, a man who intended to change both the Wizarding