It took only a matter of weeks for the downfall of Voldemort to end the complete oppression of Wizarding Britain. With their leader undeniably gone, many of the Death Eaters gave up and attempted to negotiate with officials for lesser sentences. The more mature members of the Order of the Phoenix infiltrated the Ministry of Magic just three days after the battle at Hogwarts and, with the support of the remaining aurors, installed Kingsley Shacklebolt as the temporary Minister of Magic until elections could be held in three months.
Trials immediately began. The occupants of the newly-restored, Dementor-free Azkaban swelled as former Death Eaters were sentenced. Some of the more sinister followers, including Fenrir Greyback, were charged with multiple life sentences in solitary confinement to ensure they stayed away forever. Throughout this process, the legendary Harry Potter appeared in public only twice. The first was in a public statement to clear the names of several known Death Eaters including Sirius Black, Stanley Shunpike, and Severus Snape. He was the savior of the Wizarding World so his word was law and no one challenged these statements. The second time was at the trial of the Malfoy family. To the surprise of many people, he suggested a light sentence for Narcissa Malfoy and no formal jail time for Draco. In the end, they were both sentenced to a year of house arrest while Lucius received only five years in Azkaban. Since that day in July though, no one had seen the Boy-Who-Lived.
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Teddy Lupin crawled awkwardly across the rug, giggling as the toy dragon he was trying to catch hopped away from him every three seconds. With each hop, the surprised baby's hair changed another color. Harry smiled sadly at his godson as he accepted a cup of tea from Andromeda Tonks. They continued to watch the baby play and tried to ignore the heavy grief weighing upon their hearts. It had been two months since Voldemort fell, but more importantly, it had been two months since Fred, Remus, Tonks, Colin, and so many died, four months since Ted died, and not a year from so many other deaths. Countless funerals had been held since that time and only now were things beginning to resemble some kind of normality. Still, the loss of so many people weighed upon everyone.
The Weasleys, while always happy to have Harry, Teddy, and Andromeda over, were still grieving heavily over Fred's loss. George barely left his shop, becoming a workaholic in order to deal with the loss of his twin. Mrs. Weasley seemed to overcompensate for the death of one son by smothering the others more than usual, but no one complained. They were a family and right now they needed each other.
Hermione popped in occasionally as well, but she spent most of her time with her family. A week after the Ministry was reclaimed, she left for Australia to restore her parents' memories and since then was making up for the missing year. No one blamed her for not writing often. While everyone had sacrificed, Hermione paid the highest price for that year, erasing herself from her parents' lives to protect them and save them the hardship of knowing their daughter was killed, or worse, wondering where she was if she never came home.
Then there was Harry. After the funerals, he moved in with Andromeda at her invitation to begin fulfilling his role as Teddy's godfather. He was seventeen and unprepared to raise a child yet, and he knew that Andromeda needed to be a part of her grandson's life now that her husband and daughter were gone. He wasn't sure yet what his plans were, but this was temporary. They were both alone, both loved this child, and needed to have some sort of a family right now.
"Are you going to accept Kingsley's offer?" Andromeda asked distantly. Since she learned of Tonks and Remus's deaths, she'd barely spoken unless it was to Teddy. Only then did she express an emotion besides overwhelming grief. Harry used to feel conflicted towards Andromeda. Her resemblance to her sister was striking, but the more he knew her, the more it was apparent that resemblance was the only thing they shared. This woman was a caring, feeling human with a heart of gold. He no longer had to banish thoughts of Bellatrix around her.
"I can't imagine going back to Hogwarts now and being a student after everything that's happened," he replied after a few moments. Teddy finally caught the dragon and was now chewing on its tale. Andromeda said he would be teething soon. Harry looked back at the letter clutched in his hand. Kingsley, the acting Minister of Magic, had offered him a job as an auror in the new Ministry without completion of his seventh year at Hogwarts. It was the job he'd always seen himself doing, but it had always been towards the end of giving him the best means to defeat Voldemort. Now that was done. This would be a normal job. A career that had nothing to do with a prophecy or unbeatable evil. It would be a regular, go to work and go home job. This idea of normalcy overwhelmed him. He'd never been normal and although he was a celebrated hero once again, the idea of not living in constant danger was incomprehensible. He hadn't felt like that since he was ten.
"Then again, you are overqualified in my opinion." Even in this mood, Andromeda had a sense of humor. Tonks had been physically funny, but Andromeda was witty and if you weren't paying attention, it was lost. Harry chuckled a bit and played with his lemon slice. "But it would be good. It would give you something to do. A schedule. Money, not that you need it. You could start reworking your identity as an adult and not as The Chosen One or the Boy-Who-Lived." That spoke to him on many levels.
"I'm going to accept. I really don't have a choice. Right now, I can't see myself doing anything else. And you're right, I need to find a new life for myself. Plus, I have this one to take care of and want to start making a life he can fit into," he said addressing Teddy. "I hope I can be something good for him. Sirius was a better godfather than I could have hoped for even if he wasn't around a lot." Andromeda gently rubbed his shoulder.
"I saw Sirius the day your parents made that announcement. He was so excited, but he was also scared. It's only natural. Your parents, like all parents, worried about their ability to raise you I'm sure. It's natural, but we figure it out. But, at least you have me for a little while," she said, allowing her Black family arrogance to shine a bit.
"I hope you're around for more than just a little while." Andromeda just shrugged. Harry knew to end that topic. "I do have a few things I need to take care of first before this job starts though," Harry continued their previous conversation. First, he needed to retrieve his belongings from Privet Drive. Secondly, he wanted to see the Dursley's again. They might have made his life miserable for years, but right now, he felt the need to be with real relatives. Besides, Petunia and Dudley had given him some hope that he could eventually be more than a freak to them. Finally, he wanted to go back to Godric's Hollow and really see the house he'd been raised in for the first year of his life.
"You should do that then. When would you start?"
"Beginning of September. I think he wants people to have time with families and younger siblings who will be going back to school."
"You have time then." Harry resolved then and there to go to Privet Drive tomorrow. He was having dinner with Hermione and the Weasleys tomorrow night while Andromeda and Teddy visited some of her friends from Hogwarts. That would give him plenty of time tomorrow to pop in, find his stuff, and possibly repair any damage that might have befallen the house. He imagined the Dursleys would want to move back in and the least he could do was make sure it was ready for them since he was the reason they had to leave.
Harry put his cup on the side table and threw himself onto the floor to lie on his back with Teddy held up in the air. He genuinely smiled as Teddy squealed with delight and waved his arms and legs. In this moment, he was happy.
A/N: First off, I do not own Harry Potter. Just saying. Secondly, I want to write this. I read a lot of stories about after the Battle and either they're years in the future so everyone is all right, or I just don't agree with the story even if it is good. Although I cannot know what these characters feel, I want to try to portray it. This will follow cannon as close as possible. Know that I don't know everything J.K. Rowlings has said about each character's history so if it's not on the few websites I look at, I can't know about it. If things do not line up perfectly, that's probably why and don't flame me for it. However, I do love constructive criticism and welcome your suggests for improvement. Do enjoy this! Also, if you're also reading my other story "A Guiding Paw," I'm still working on it. I'm about half way into a chapter. I'm just working out a few plot details.