„He´ll sleep ´til dawn and snore like his father – it´s you who needs me tonight."
Tonks to Lupin about Teddy
An orange-red glowing line grew over the wafting morning sky as a dark violet robed wizard appeared in the fields near a small house with a quit "Plop". His observing eyes scanned his surroundings while he picked his wand out of his pocket and started to walk. There were no sounds except the rustle of the straws he stroke on his way and this state of near silence seemed ridiculous to him thinking about the tumult he had experienced in the past hours. He nearly reached the garden wall of the house as his senses suddenly observed a motion. His wand rose, he was ready to fight back some deatheaters who were able to escape, seeking for revenge through some last attacks on witches and wizards. He was holding his breath, muscles painfully tensed as he heard the voice of a witch:"Who... who is there?!"
He relaxed relieved and answered calmly:"It´s me, Kingsley Shacklebolt."
Kingsley left the field and watched directly into the light from a wand. He shot a dark glare to her and rumbled:"Andromeda, you should have stayed in the house! I could have been a deatheater!"
He climbed over the low garden wall build out of pebbles and reached Andromeda Tonks who lowered her wand, sending the light to the soil.
"I could have handled a damn attack!", Andromeda retorted nimble-witted and pressed her hands into her hips. "Where are Nymphadora and Remus?"
Her hopeful glance made Kingsley feel uncomfortable and his eyes avoided hers. He did not want to tell her the bad news so soon. She just lost her husband a few months ago and he wanted to inform her her daughter and son in law had also become victims of the war against Lord Voldemort as gently as possible. He mildly put a hand on her shoulder and guided her to the house.
"Let us go inside, Andromeda. Where is Teddy?"
A warm smile appeared on Andromedas face as he mentioned her grandson and while leading him to the back door she answered:"Teddy is in the living room. He is so cute when he is asleep."
The living room was dipped into a dim light caused by the few burning candles. Next to the couch Kingsley saw a cradle he slowly and quietly approached as he heard a low snore from inside. He watched inside and saw little Teddy just turning around, a smile on his small face while his hair colour changed from grass green to candy pink. Kingsley swallowed hard and needed a few moments to get his thoughts straight again. It hurted him seeing the baby that showed such a big similarity to its parents and the pain increased on the thought of Teddy growing up without Dora and Remus. He sank down on the coach and noticed Andromeda had left the room as she came back with a tablet carrying a pot of tea, cups and a bowl of cookies giving him a smooth smile.
"I never heard a baby snoring before", said Kingsley hoping she would not observe how hard he was trying to appear relaxed.
"Yes, he is unique!"
Andromeda filled the cups with the hot tea and handed him one of it. She sat down on the couch next to him and watched him for a few seconds, then she murmured:"It´s over, isn´t it? The war is over?"
Kingsley nodded, happy about the fact she was not immediately asking about her daughter again.
"Yes, Harry made it. The Dark Lord is dead."
"You can´t believe how happy I am to hear that... And it is forever this time?"
"Yeah, he is really dead. All parts of his soul have been destroyed, there is no chance even someone like Voldemort could have survived that."
He nervously slipped around on his place as he noticed that Andromeda seemed to expect more reports concerning the Great Battle in Hogwarts. He grabbed his cup and took a sip that burned his tongue, but Andromeda did not seem to see how he struggled with his feelings. She had bowed over the cradle and smiled inside. She sounded relieved as she whispered:"Do you know what that means, little one? You will grow up in a world without war, sweety. Everything is ok."
Kingsley drove his palm over his face and could not manage to hold a sigh inside. She turned from the cradle and moved towards him.
"What are you concealing from me, Kingsley?"
He lightly shook his head and his look wandered through the room and stopped at the ledge of the fireplace were he saw a picture from the wedding of Dora and Remus. He felt Andromeda taking his hand and he pushed it a bit as she asked:"The battle... it was horrible, right?"
"There were a lot of losses on each side... but in the end it was all on Harry. And he did it."
"Who... who is under the victims on our side?"
"Andromeda..."
"Please, Kingsley! Tell me, I can stand that!", begged Andromeda and gazed at him forcefully. Kingsley needed a moment to think about the right words before he took a deep breath.
"The battle was very chaotic, I did not see much of my surroundings... But everyone died fighting... Fred Weasley, he was killed in an explosion... Severus Snape..."
"What?", Andromeda harshly cutted him off. "Why are you are you naming him together with those on Dumbledores side?! He betrayed him, he killed him..."
"That is a very long story, but for now the most important thing is that he always was on our side. Voldemort himself killed him..."
Kingsley paused, thinking about how to go on. He would have rather ran into a fight over life and death, but there was no way he would be able to steal away from confessing on two other victims. He felt bad in his skin and it was hard for him to find any words.
"You... there are more, right?"
Andromedas voice was shaking, as if she was suspecting that he had even worse news.
"I... I am so sorry, Andromeda..."
"No...", she whispered as she realised what the look on his face meant. Her eyes began to fill with tears and she shook her head in disbelief. "No... this... this can´t be real, please tell me this isn´t real..."
"I wished it wasn´t... but..."
He helplessly shrugged his shoulders and for the first time he felt completely lost and groundless, believing he could not go on.
"Who...", Andromeda gasped while she restrained a sob. "WHO?! Who killed them?!"
Kingsley drove over his eyes with the back of his hand and grumbled:"Bellatrix, she... she killed Dora. Others who were near them heard how she laughed, screaming the family needed to be cleared from all these blood traitors..."
Some loud sobs escaped Andromeda and Kingsley did not know what else to do than to pull her into his arms.
"I... I am so sorry... if... if I had been around..."
"Please... don´t talk like that...", Andromeda murmured while she tried to fight against the ever recurring tears on her cheeks. "And... And Remus?"
"He had a duel with Dolohov and when... when Dora... He was distracted for a second and Dolohov took the advantage."
"So... that means Teddy... he will grow up without his parents... he will never remember them..."
Andromeda send a sad and teary look over to the cradle and sniffed. Kingsley took a deep breath and answered:"But he will know that they died for something good and that they were very brave. They died for freedom and liberty. And I think one day, when he is old enough to understand, Teddy is going to be very proud of what they were fighting for."
"Freedom and liberty...", Andromeda whispered and stood up tottering a bit. "Yeah... It´s... It´s just... first Ted, now Nymphadora and Remus... why... why our family?!"
Kingsley sank back on the couch and watched her as she carefully took Teddy out of his cradle and carried him around the living room.
"He is everything that is left for me now..."
"Andromeda, if you´ll ever need any help... I´ll be there!"
"Thank you Kingsley, but... but for now I would prefer to be alone..."
"I understand that...", he replied and rose from the couch. "Send me an owl if you need anything."
He patted on her shoulder before he left the house to apparate to the ministry. Andromeda looked down at little sleeping Teddy and gave him a loving kiss on the candy pink hair.
"I will never leave you alone, sweetie..."
She sniffed once again before sitting down in an armchair and looked down at the baby that smiled in sleep. The pain chaining her heart was nearly unbearable. She lost her husband just a few weeks ago when Ted Tonks was caught by death eaters who killed him because he was from a muggle family. And now the war had also taken her daughter, her only child, and her son in law from her.
The shock of the message went deep and prevented her from feeling the whole degree of her pain and the sorrow, but she already knew it all would crush down on her in the next few days. But she was not afraid of the chaos in her head any more. She had Teddy and she would be holding on to him, just like she found support in Dora and Remus after Teds death. And one day she would be telling her grandson about his parents, what for a big sacrifice they gave for him, that they offered their lives for every ones safety. And then, he would feel the same pride she was feeling right now, beneath the grief she had when her fallen family came to her mind.