Ariana Dumbledore
| Basic Information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Birthday | Between late summer 1885 and summer 1885 | |
| Blood Status | Half-blood | |
| Marital Status | Single | |
| Birthplace | Mould-on-the-Wold, England, Great Britain | |
| Hair Color | Blonde |
Overview
The only girl and the youngest child of Percival and Kendra Dumbledore, born in 1885, Ariana Dumbledore was a half-blood witch. She was the younger sister of Aberforth and Albus Dumbledore, and the family lived in the village of Mould-on-the-Wold in England. Ariana was attacked by a group of Muggle boys who noticed her practicing underage magic when she was around six years old, which severely traumatized her, resulting in a consequent loss of control over her magical abilities. Subsequently, Ariana became an Obscurial after the incident.
Her father, Percival Dumbledore, was locked up in Azkaban for attacking the boys, which resulted in her mother moving the family to Godric’s Hollow, where Ariana was secluded from the rest of the community owing to the fact that her magic was uncontrollable as an Obscurial. Her mother, Kendra Dumbledore, was killed by a magical explosion caused by Ariana during a fit when she was around fourteen years old. Even though her older brother, Albus Dumbledore, took on the role of her guardian thereafter, she was eventually killed during an accidental three-way duel between Gellert Grindelwald and the two Dumbledore brothers.
Prior to the initial attack Ariana had to face, she was known to be a sweet and kind girl. After she became an Obscurial following the attack, she was described as strange and sometimes dangerous, as she could release magic in uncontrollable situations, similar to the incident in which her mother was killed. According to her older brother, Aberforth Dumbledore, she was known to be a brave and helpful girl who used to help feed the goats at times. She had tried to intervene and stop the three-way duel between the three wizards, which quickly failed, resulting in her death.
| Family | |
|---|---|
| Percival Dumbledore | Father |
| Kendra Dumbledore | Mother |
| Albus Dumbledore | Older Brother |
| Aberforth Dumbledore | Older Brother |
| Aurelius Dumbledore | Biological Nephew |
| Honoria | Aunt |
History
Early Life
Ariana showed early signs of being a witch. In 1891, when Ariana was six years old, three boys had been spying on her without her knowledge and noticed her uncontrolled magical abilities while she was playing by the hedge in the back garden. Considering the unusual circumstances, the boys questioned her and forced her to show them the “trick” she used, which Ariana was unable to reproduce as she was too young at that point to use controlled magic. As a result, the three boys attacked her, which terrorized her to the point that she developed an Obscurus, causing phases of accidental magical catastrophes and explosions whenever she lost control.
Her father, Percival Dumbledore, was imprisoned in Azkaban for attacking the boys who had traumatized Ariana. The reason for his attack, however, was not made public given the risk of Ariana ending up in St. Mungo’s, as it posed a threat to the Statute of Secrecy.
In 1892, their mother, Kendra Dumbledore, moved with the family to Godric’s Hollow with the intention of keeping Ariana’s condition a secret. Naturally, Ariana was secluded from the general community and was never sent to Hogwarts, which led to many stories circulating about her existence, with some questioning whether she was a Squib. It was known that Kendra often used to make Ariana’s favorite soup to calm her down whenever she was having an episode.
When Ariana was fourteen years old in 1898, she suffered a fit that escalated into a magical explosion, eventually causing the death of her mother when her “favorite” brother, Aberforth, was not at home to help calm her down. In light of the accident, Albus Dumbledore, Ariana’s oldest brother, cancelled his plans with his friend Doge and decided to stay in England to attend his mother’s funeral and take responsibility for the family. Albus insisted that his younger brother stay in school until he graduated, as Albus became Ariana’s legal guardian at such a young age.
Death
Gellert Grindelwald, who later grew to become one of the most influential dark wizards, returned to Godric’s Hollow to stay with his great-aunt, Bathilda Bagshot, after being expelled from Durmstrang Institute due to his experiments concerning the Dark Arts. Even though Albus and Gellert had shared a difficult history, both decided to forget the past, ultimately helping them become excellent friends who were talented, ambitious, and like-minded. Both wizards worked together on a plan that eventually helped them seek dominance over the wizarding world and control over Muggles under the slogan, “For the Greater Good.”
However, Aberforth, Albus’s younger brother, questioned their plans, stating that Ariana was not in a position to accompany them as they chose to follow their ambitions. Grindelwald, however, argued that their plans would ultimately benefit Ariana, as the point was to subdue the Muggles, after which there would no longer be a need to seclude her. This disagreement started a three-way duel between Gellert, Albus, and Aberforth, which Ariana tried to stop despite having no proper understanding of magical control, ultimately resulting in her death.
Post-mortem
Following Ariana’s death, Grindelwald immediately escaped the scene, and as a result, he lost his long-term friendship with Albus. Aberforth continued to blame his older brother for Ariana’s death, causing him to break Albus’s nose and argue with him during her funeral. Ariana’s body was buried near her mother’s in Godric’s Hollow, sharing a gravestone that bore the epitaph, “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
Aberforth never forgave his brother, whom he believed was accountable for their sister’s death, and neither did Albus forgive himself, describing the guilt as “torture.” What Albus saw in the Mirror of Erised was also related to the incident: himself together with his family, including Ariana, using magic. His experience with Ariana’s struggles as an Obscurus, and how it gradually consumed her, helped him understand his cousin, Credence Barebone, who was also an Obscurus, which he later explained to Newt Scamander in 1932.
Credits/References
Written by Dione Carrington
Base code by Andrew Sutherland, edited by Iselin Merilä and Desmond Gray.