Harry Potter and Responsibilities

Rated T

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related characters are in the Copyrighted statements of JK Rowling and therefore legally belong to her. All rights go to her and therefore should be treated as such (lol).

A/N: So, I've decided that it would be nice to try a piece on what happens after the Second Battle of Hogwarts at the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Tell me what you think, if it's crap, if I should go die... Just let me know.

Chapter One

Morning Glory

Harry Potter smiled when he woke up in his old Gryffindor bedroom. His friends, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, were all strewn throughout, still sleeping soundly. It took him exactly five minutes to remember everything about the events the night before.

Voldemort...the snake...Hagrid carrying me...Narcissa Malfoy...Fred, oh, no, Fred...Collin Creevey...Belatrix...So much fighting...Room of Requirement... I think I'm going to be sick.

Harry reached for the waste basin near his bed and vomitted. He was only seventeen, for Merlin's sake. How did everyone trust him to do all of this? Some old broken prophecy?

"Harry," a voice murmured after his head went into the basin again. Harry looked up at Ginny, who must have been awaken by his horrible wretching. She wiped the hair off of his sweaty forehead and got up, returning a few minutes later with a wet cloth.

"Thanks, Gin," he croaked. Harry took the towel from her and wiped his face with it. The cold water felt nice.

"Scourgify." Harry cleaned up the room and Ginny sat down beside him, studying his face.

"Are you okay?" she whispered. After a moment, he nodded back.

"Gin...Fred...I wish I could have..."

"Don't blame yourself, Harry." Ginny's voice was higher than normal, and Harry saw tears at the edges of her eyes. "It's not your fault."

The door opened, and in came Percy. Harry wasn't sure what to think of him. He had come back just in time, but yet he had spent nearly two years protesting everything his family stood for.

"They've got breakfast down in the Great Hall," he told Ginny and Harry. "It's best you let them sleep and get something for yourselves, especially you, Harry." Yeah, because dying makes you have such a big appetite, Harry thought, but he found Ginny grabbing him by the sleeve and pulling him to his feet.

"We'll be down in a minute, Perce." Ginny waited for her brother to leave.

"Are you sure you are all right?" she asked. "Don't listen to Percy, you can stay up here. You don't have to go out there and face people."

"It's not that I don't want to face them, Gin, they're my friends." Harry ran a hand through his hair. "Have they moved Riddle's body yet?"

"Just after you went to sleep," Ginny told him. "Oliver, George, and Charlie were out there all night moving the others. Most of them have been identified. They're being sent to--" Ginny's voice became high pitched. "Mum's already got Fred taken care of."

Harry shook his head a few times. He wanted to comfort Ginny, but he knew if he did he would just provoke his own sorrow. He instead took her by the hand.

"I'm not hungry," he said. "Let's go for a walk." Ginny wiped her eyes with the end of her sleeve. Her eyes went to Harry's forehead momentarily. He knew what she was looking at, and he took her hand and used it to trace the lightning bolt.

"The adventure's over, isn't it?" Ginny asked as they started down to the Gryffindor common room.

"That's what I've been telling myself every year, Ginny."

Harry and Ginny eventually ended up at the Great Hall. They had managed to find a wing of the castle that hadn't been touched the night before, but it wasn't long before they wandered down there.

"Harry, you look incredibly pale. Come now, have something--"

"No, thank you, Mrs. Weasley." Harry had released his hold on Ginny's hand by then and she sat down in between Mr. Weasley and George. George was pale, his face blank and unfocused.

"Ron and Hermione came down looking for you two," Percy said, joining the group. Harry barely paid attention, though, as George began to mutter to himself.

"Fred...Tonks...Remus..." Harry suddenly stopped as another wave of nausea hit him.

Tonks... Oh, no... Remus... Moony... Wormtail... Sirius... All gone... My godson... my GODSON... Dobby... Hedwig...

"Harry!" He felt two arms grab him and pull him away, but his head still spun with everything.

"My... my godson..." he stammered. "Teddy..." That brought even more memories, including Ted Tonks, Dumbledore, the night in the graveyard...

"Harry, look at us!" Hermione's voice brought Harry back to the real world. "What's wrong?" Her face was in his, and for the first time that morning a happy thought went through his head.

Ron and Hermione...

"Everything's a mess," Harry said clearly. "If there's not a body to move, there's part of a castle to clean, and on top of that I now have a godson to think about along with dealing with all these deaths!" He had been leaning against a wall, but now he dropped to his knees.

Neville saved my life...

"We're here for you, mate," Ron muttered.

"Neville saved my life," Harry whispered. "I keep getting little flashes of things. Neville killed the snake. Without that, I would have never been able to..."

"Harry!" a softer voice called. Ginny had made her way out there. He looked up at her.

Sitting by the lake... Birthday... She's so beautiful... Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's neck and he cried into her shoulder.

"Come on, mate, let's get you out of here," Ron said quietly. Without letting go of Ginny, Harry numbly followed Ron and Hermione out to the lake. They found a nice, quiet spot that showed no signs of war.

"Harry, you've got to talk to us," Ginny said. "You're going mad just keeping it all in."

"It all started back when Tom Riddle was born..."

A/N: So, tell me what you think, and while your at it, check out my other complete stories!