Disclaimer: Don't own, at all.
AN: Just a thought on how Harry's generation turned out. Mostly because it seemed like all the battles were fought in school, more so than in the last war. The only adults we see fighting are the Order, and there weren't many of them.
They are the "Lost" generation. The generation that adults failed to protect. The generation that faced dangers most older wizards would have cowered from, who faced division that no adult could feel. The generation that made harder, tougher decisions than their elders.
No one came out unscathed. Family members were lost, on both sides of the war. And sometimes their lives were lost.
Cedric was the first, but he wasn't the last. When it comes time for the Battle of Hogwarts Remembrance Day, his is the first name mentioned. The adults don't understand, he wasn't there. His parents won't complain, but they're confused as well. But all the Lost generation shake their heads at the adults.
He was the first from Hogwarts to die. He caused the loss of their innocence. His death lead to the formation of an army, an army of children, determined to protect themselves and others. Or get closer to the boy-who-lived, but that soon changed.
Some would have you believe that it started earlier than that. It started when they had to fear being in school, when the Chamber was open. Sure, no one died, but it was a long year. And the rumors... a basilisk? 12 year olds' doing the teacher's work?
By Harry's fourth year, the generation just accepted that Harry would protect them from the monsters in school. Not the adults. What had they ever done? Nothing, not really. They taught and pretended everything was good and well until Harry fixed the problem.
Well, the escape of Sirius Black wasn't considered one of Harry's finer moments, but he did rid the castle of those damned dementors. And really, after a year of exposure to them, who would still be innocent? Who should have to worry about losing their soul from just going to a Quidditch game? There was a reason dementors guarded the guilty, and were regulated by the Ministry. Clearly, the Ministry didn't give a damn.
So Cedric died, and everyone knew. Slytherins knew that their time of safety was over, and soon they'd have to make a choice. The others, well, some of them had that choice to make too. Everyone had to make a choice. There was going to be a war. The only question was when it would happen. Not where. Every Hogwarts student knew that it would be at Hogwarts. Even if the adults didn't think so, they knew. Everything bad happened at Hogwarts.
They had Umbridge as a professor. If that doesn't kill innocence, not one member of the Lost generation knows what does. She talked down to them, and openly favored those with political clout. Slytherins used that to their advantage, because they knew their bubble would soon be burst. Those who decided to ignore the problem of Cedric's death, well, they were annoyed that she wasn't teaching! They could read useless books on their own time, didn't she get that? And every time she made a rule, she made another enemy. Dumbledore's Army may have been the largest secret group out there, but it was by no means the only one. The football club would meet, despite her deeming the sport "too muggle", even if it was at dinner time, in one of the unused classrooms. And it might not be the same, but there was no damned way they were letting her take away what they loved. And those who believed Harry, well, some will bear the scars for all their life.
That year killed innocence, but so the one were Snape was headmaster. At this point, sides were chosen, and people knew everything (well, not everything). What's more, they knew the real fight was happening at Hogwarts. The DA banded together and grew, and protected who they could. The Slytherins acted as they should, enjoying the time they could. Everyone knew that this would be over in a year. After all, Harry Potter solves all problems in a year, and Voldemort had been around for a couple years now.
Is innocence knowing how long you can be under the Cruciatus without breaking? Is innocence being able to throw off the Imperius because it's used on you so often? Is innocence learning to heal physical wounds through books and trial and error, because they were not allowed in the Hospital Wing?
The Lost generation lost their innocence, even while their parents buried their heads, or fought as well.
The Lost generation had to make the hard decisions, to see who was on their side and who was not.
Those Slytherins who aligned with the Dark Lord, well, they lost innocence too. He was not a pleasant master.
Those who didn't find the Dark Lord's propaganda appealing lost innocence because of their housemates.
Everyone else, well, they watched torture, they watched bravery, they lost their innocence and made decisions.
When the final battle came (to Hogwarts like they all knew), they faced the difficult choice. Fight or flight?
Many chose fight. Even if they would likely die, they wanted revenge for their childhood. Even if they were forced out of the castle, those few knew that they would have fought. Brave, they were.
Some chose not to. Some weren't seventeen, but all those in the Lost generation somehow learned to tell what choice you made, even if you weren't at the battle. Those who were seventeen, it would haunt them through out their life, as the older generations died out and the Lost generation came into being. Cowards. The word would rebound in everyone's head, and those cowards would find their once promising career, dead.
Some were forced to leave, but even if they weren't, they would have anyway. Their parents were out there, fighting. Their teachers were there fighting. Those who weren't for the Dark Lord but whose parents were, sighed in relief at the excuse to leave. The Lost generation sensed that too. Forgiven. That was their word, forgiven for not choosing between family and belief, because everyone knew that was hard. The Lost generation didn't want brothers to fight brothers, or sisters sisters, or even children parents. So they forgave.
And some were not shamed in who they sided with, and left under protest (or for fear of McGonagall. She always was a scary teacher). Scum. That was their word. Scum. They might have been powerful once, but after the war, and joining the world, they were not. The Lost generation closed them out. The older generations noticed, but on a whole the Lost generation never bothered to explain. When people mentioned the former prominence, the lack of marks, the generation snorted and said 'and that proves?'. Nothing the older generation could do would fix the cold shoulder the Lost generation gave them.
They were the Lost generation, who were never really kids. Who knew what was happening in the wizarding world better than their parents. The Lost generation, who was hard and cold when dealing out justice, and vicious to those who weren't there.
They were the Lost generation, and even though it included both sides of the war, they were united in their loss.
They would always nod to one another in greeting, because really, the only people who understood the Lost generation, were the other members. The members may not have approved of their punishment, put knew they couldn't argue.
After all, they were the Lost generation. They knew better than to put their hopes onto the shoulders of adults. Adults never fixed the problem. They were the Lost generation. They knew that actions had consequences, and knew that they would have to bear theirs. They were the Lost generation. The ones that no one else tried to help. So, after the war, they picked themselves up, and decided to change the world.
And they did.