Harry, Ron and Hermione exited Dumbledore's office and, as if by some silent consent, paused in front of the fallen gargoyle. As one they gazed at their surroundings, taking it all in. Hogwarts hadn't changed. Apart from the obvious evidence of combat it was still the building they knew and loved. As they walked along the corridor, passing scorched paintings, damaged suits of armour and smashed windows Harry felt peculiar, as if he was a stranger in this building that had been his home for six years. He noted that some of the portraits had been removed; no doubt they had depicted notable Muggle Born wizards. He was only drawn out of his thoughts when Ron turned in the direction of the Great Hall while he and Hermione automatically headed down the corridor that would lead them to Gryffindor Tower.

"Where're you going?" asked Harry. For the first time he noticed how pale Ron was.

"I – I just want to – you know – see him again. You know we didn't have much time before, what with – everything."

Harry didn't need to ask what Ron meant and he had to admit, his short visit to the Great Hall hadn't afforded him much time and his mind had been on other matters. Without replying he and Hermione followed Ron down the staircase, Hermione taking Ron's hand as they descended.

The Entrance Hall was the most damaged area they had seen so far as the majority of the battle had taken place there. Most of the windows had been broken, the walls were covered in cracks and craters, remnants of spells that had missed their targets and the Slytherin emeralds were scattered at irregular intervals across the hall having been kicked about in the chaos of the fight. A number of covered bodies lay abandoned in one corner, no doubt the bodies of the Death Eaters. His eyes lingered for a moment on the pale, long fingered hand that was showing from underneath one of the covers. His eyes then fell on the arm of the body next to Voldemort's and his heart leapt. He'd recognise those black robes anywhere. It was then that he remembered that he was the only one who knew what Severus Snape had done, what he had sacrificed and he knew that he could not allow him to remain abandoned next to those Death Eaters.

"Accio Pensieve!"

"Harry, what - ?"

"Professor Snape's over there," he said meeting Hermione's eyes. "I can't have him lie there among those Death Eaters. He deserves better."

The Pensieve flew down the stairs they had just descended and landed neatly in his hand. Snape's memories still swirled within them.

"Potter!" Professor McGonagall was striding across the Hall having just exited the Great Hall. Harry approached her and handed her the Pensieve. "Potter? Why are you giving me this?"

"It contains some of Professor Snape's memories. I hope you'll agree that he doesn't deserve to lie with Death Eaters after you've seen them."

Professor McGonagall considered him for a second, a small crease on her brow. Without a word she strode swiftly into a near by class room and closed the door.

"I'll show you later," said Harry as Ron and Hermione stared at him, confused. Without another word he moved towards the Great Hall followed closely by his friends.

The Great Hall was filled with the sound of grief. Since Harry had last been there the families of those who had fallen had arrived and were grouped around those they had lost. They headed towards the group of red hair discernable through the crowd in the middle of the Hall. George still had Fred's head in his lap, Harry had a suspicion that he hadn't moved from his brother's body since he had seen him last. He seemed beyond tears now, although his face was streaked with wetness his eyes were dry. He simply stared numbly down at his twin, his hands gripping Fred's shoulders. Mr and Mrs Weasley were kneeling on either side of their son. Mrs. Weasley, dishevelled with a sizable gash gleaming on her left arm was sobbing once again, clinging to her son as if her life depended on it. Mr. Weasley was gazing at Fred's still face, silent tears dripping onto the pale hand he was holding. The rest of the family stood around them comforting one another.

At their approach they all turned. Mrs. Weasley stood up and hugged Ron fiercely as if to confirm that he really was there, that he really had survived. Ron's shoulders shook as he clung to his mother. It was strange to see Ron crying like that, let alone consenting to let his mother hug him. A lot of things had changed. Ginny's eyes met Harry's but she didn't move from her brother's side. Hermione gave a strangled sob and Harry felt hot tears spring to his eyes as he gazed down at Fred's body. The circumstances had allowed for little more than numb shock, he'd had to concentrate on what needed to be done, despite the fact that he wanted more than anything to pause and mourn the loss of such a close friend. He seemed to be making up for lost time as his tears joined all the others. He glanced at Hermione who seemed unable to speak through her tears. She seemed lonely standing there when everyone else was being comforted by another. Before he knew it Harry had pulled her into a hug and she sobbed audibly onto his shoulder.

He had no idea how long they'd all stood there. It seemed an age, centuries. Then a strangled voice interrupted the silence.

"Oi, that's my girlfriend you're hugging."

Harry and Hermione parted. Ron was watching them; evidently Mrs. Weasley had released him from her embrace, a weak smile curled at the corners of his mouth. Harry tried to smile back but his muscles refused to respond. Within seconds Hermione had switched her attention to Ron just as Harry's attention was caught by the sounds of a baby crying. His heart leapt as he remembered who had been lying next to Fred.

With one last look at the Weasley family, Harry walked a few paces to the right and his eyes fell on the two figures lying next to each other and the solitary figure kneeling next to them clutching her grandson to her chest. Andromeda Tonks gazed down at her daughter, tears pouring ceaselessly down her face and little Teddy Lupin squirmed in her arms, unaware that his parents were lying cold and still, close enough to touch.

Tonks' hair had returned to her natural mousey colour making her look less colourful than Harry was used to and she was covered in the marks of her fight. Remus lay next to her; he looked asleep, just like his wife. It seemed to Harry that all he needed to do was to shake them gently and they would wake. Yet he knew it couldn't be so. He remembered the first time he met Tonks, standing grinning up at him from the hallway of Number 4, Privet Drive a whirl of colour, gently mocking Mad-Eye for his warning that Harry may lose a buttock. His stomach clenched as he remembered that Mad-Eye too had been lost in this war.

However, his eyes were drawn more powerfully to the body of Remus Lupin, last of the Marauders. Voldemort's evil campaign had wiped that fun loving group of friends into oblivion. Two years ago he had lost Sirius leaving Remus as his only link to his father, the only remaining person who had known his father intimately. Now that too was gone. Memories flooded Harry's brain in quick succession, the first time he met Remus on the Hogwarts Express, tackling the Boggart, suspecting him of assisting the murderer Black, the realisation that he and Sirius had been his dad's closest friends, Grimmauld Place, Christmas at the Burrow, discovering that Tonks had fallen in love with him, even, his stomach clenched, calling him a coward for considering leaving Tonks and their unborn child. All that seemed to have been forgiven, although Harry wished that he'd had an opportunity to apologise to him for his behaviour. Perhaps it didn't need to be put in words, the way Remus had embraced him at Shell Cottage, gleaming with happiness at the birth of his son, suggested that he knew that Harry was right in a way. Perhaps not to call him a coward but that his place was with his wife and child. Andromeda was Teddy's only immediate family now. It was with a rush that Harry remembered he'd been made Teddy's godfather. He made a silent promise to Remus and Tonks that he would be there for their son, just like Sirius would have been there for him had circumstances been different.

Andromeda had seemed not to notice Harry as he stood there, now however, she looked up and met his eyes. He moved to kneel next her, close to where Remus and Tonk's heads were resting on the cold stone floor.

"I tried to tell her not to go. Told her that if Remus died at least Teddy would still have his mum to look after him. She was always stubborn."

Harry wasn't sure why Andromeda was telling him this, perhaps she just needed to say these words aloud. Her gaze fell, once again on the still form of her daughter.

"Harry, would you mind terribly if I gave you Teddy for a bit? I – I need some fresh air."

Harry nodded and clumsily took Teddy in his arms; he'd never held a baby before. Andromeda adjusted his arms a little so that he was holding Teddy a little better murmured a quick thank you and exited the hall swiftly, head bowed.

Harry gazed down at his godson. His godson. It was strange thinking of him like that. He suddenly felt older than he'd ever felt before, not in a bad way, he simply realised that he would be leaving school soon, entering the world of work, of independence. He was no longer required to return to the Dursley's, he could do what he liked. It was then that he realised, more strongly than ever before, that nothing else had existed beyond his confrontation with Voldemort. His whole life had been leading up to that point and he'd been unable to see anything after that. More than that, for many minutes he had believed that there wasn't anything for him, that he was going to die and leave all this behind. For the first time he could see a Voldemort-empty future ahead of him. A life devoid of the pressure of being The Boy Who Lived. The Chosen One.

Teddy gurgled and reached down towards his mother snapping Harry abruptly out of his thoughts. The baby's hair was blue today, Harry couldn't say exactly what shade because it kept changing every few minutes. He squirmed in Harry's arms, gurgling and reaching for Tonks. Harry imagined for a second that he was trying to say 'Mummy' although he suspected that Teddy was too young to have begun to speak yet. He didn't know of course, he had no idea about babies; perhaps he really was attempting to speak.

A gentle hand touched Harry's shoulder. He started slightly and looked around. Hermione had left the Weasleys alone for a second. She slowly knelt beside Harry and stroked Teddy's hair.

"Are you alright?" she asked softly.

"No, but I will be," he answered, his voice was a little hoarse.

"I can't believe it," she whispered, tears glittering in the corners of her eyes, "Remus and Tonks. And they'd only just had Teddy." She paused to gaze sadly at their still forms. "I was so happy when I found out Remus had married her. I'd always felt so sorry for him. I understood why he refused to allow himself to be attached to Tonks. He'd lost too much in the past, he was so used to being hurt and losing the people he loved that he didn't want to risk it happening again. After being alone for so long I was so happy to see him with a family. Remember his face when he came to tell us about Teddy being born? He was so proud and happy to be a father. And just when his life seemed to be going right for once, just when he glimpsed happiness and the end of his loneliness it was torn away from him once again. It's so unfair."

Teddy was squirming even more insistently; Harry lowered him slightly so that he could reach his parents. He reached down and grasped a tuft of both his mother and his father's hair, in one hand he held the mousey brown shade of his mother's, in the other the greying brown of his father's. Hermione, who had been trying her best to stop herself from crying again, burst into tears.

"It's like he's saying good bye to them," she choked before becoming overcome with sobs.

There was a movement and Harry looked up to see the Weasley family beginning to move out of the hall. Harry stood up too, Teddy began to cry. Andromeda, who had just returned from her walk, silently relieved Harry of him and began attempting to calm him. Harry was quite pleased about this only because he hadn't a clue how to attempt to make a baby feel better.

"We're going to go home to get some sleep," said Mr. Weasley with some effort. "You three should get up to your dormitories." Harry nodded and began to move. Hermione, however, was staring at Tonks.

"I can't bear to see her with that hair colour. The only time she had it like that was when she was so upset she couldn't control it. I'm sure she'd hate it if she knew." She bent down over Tonks' head murmuring a quick incantation and when she finally moved Tonks' hair was the shade she had favoured when she had lived, a bright bubblegum pink. It was amazing the difference that hair colour made, she was as bright and colourful in death as she had been in life. It made her look so much more like Tonks. Andromeda burst into tears, passed Teddy back to Harry and hugged Hermione tightly sobbing endless thank yous through her tears.