Harry

When Remus and Tonks died, Harry hadn't known what to do. He was obviously greiving, for Fred, for Remus and for Tonks, and he was the latters' son's godfather. He knew that little Teddy still had his grandmother, but was she in any fit state to look after him? She was, frankly, not all that young any more and she had just lost her husband, daughter and son-in-law. And so Harry had been faced with the prospect of being a good godfather. Sirius had been a very respectable godfather, in Harry's opinion, but he hadn't, admittedly, been around for very much of his life. Harry wanted to be there for Teddy, but at the same time he was scared. Petrified, in fact. He had no experience with babies, and suddenly he had to look after one? But then, a few days after the end of the war, Harry had been at the Burrow. Tonks's mother, Andromeda, had come by and introduced herself to him - Harry rather thought that their first encouter didn't really count; he had, after all, mistaken her for her sister and made himself look rather stupid, as well as insulted her. But as soon as he held Teddy in his arms, he forgot all his silly worries - that he would drop him, that Teddy wouldn't like him - and he knew, in that moment, that he would do his utmost to look after him, and that he would love him like a father.

But in that same moment, Harry also vowed that he would never replace Remus, because he could never replace Teddy's father. And it pained Harry to know that, no matter how hard he tried, he would never fill that gaping hole in little Teddy's life, and that Teddy would carry the hurt around forever. And Harry knows this because he carries that hole with him, every day, and he doesn't want Teddy to experience that pain. But he also knows that, with time, the gap won't go away, but will smallen slightly, as Teddy aquires other things in his life which will help him cope.

The Burrow is Harry's favourite place in the whole world. Not Hogwarts, nor his family home in Cambridge; although they both come a close second. The Burrow was where he first knew a proper family, where he first realised what it was like to be loved, and where he found everything he holds most dear.

James' birth was the most stressful day in Harry's life. And also the most frightening. He hated to even think was Ginny was going through. It was early December, and it had been snowing, and there was a fierce storm raging outside. Crisp white covered their garden, and the door was almost completely covered. They had been snowed in when Ginny went into labour. Harry had frantically tried to bash through the door, but to no avail; he had also tried smashing the windows, but all he ended up with was a very wet floor and a shattered window. And they were still stuck. Ginny couldn't Apparate or use the Floo, and in any case, they were out of Floo powder. Harry was just starting to get extremely panicked, thinking that he was going to have to deliver a baby, an actual baby, when, almost six hours after Ginny's first contraction, Mrs Weasley coincidentally Flooed by with a steaming vat of onion soup to keep them going through the storm. Harry never, ever, took Mrs Weasley for granted after that.

Harry was thrilled when Lily was born. He hadn't told anyone, but after two rampaging boys he had longed for a little girl; he had hoped and prayed all through the pregnancy that his wish would be granted. He wanted a girl to protect and worry about, to give away on her wedding day - although he hoped that wouldn't be too soon. And when he first held little Lily in his arms, and she stared at him with those enormous chocolate eyes, just like her mother's, and grasped his finger with in her tiny fist - he was finally complete.

Harry hates that he still has nightmares. He curses himself when he wakes in the night, drenched in a cold sweat, images of Voldemort and Fred's body still floating around in his head. He hates the fact that although long gone, Voldemort still has a hold on him, a certain control. He hates that he has everything he ever wanted, but he is still haunted by the war. He hates that his memories will never go away. He hates it.

Harry still had the horcruxes in a box in his attic. Well, they were no longer horcruxes, and of course he didn't have Nagini or himself in the box. But he had the others; the locket, the cup, the ring, the diary and the diadem. He was disgusted at himself, even though he knew Voldemort wasn't in them, and he knew that he shouldn't have them, because every single one brought back horrific memories. But he coulnd't bring himself to get rid of them, because he was terrified that the moment he let them go, Voldemort would somehow materialise back inside them, and his whole nightmare would repeat itself. He knew that it was stupid, not to mention impossible, but he just couldn't make himself throw them away. So they stayed, in an old Weasley's Wizard Wheezes cardboard box, gathering dust in his attic.

The guilt of the lives lost in the war was still lodged in him, even after all these years. If he had given himself up earlier, they wouldn't have died; they would still have Fred, Teddywould still have his parents. Maybe, there wouldn't have been a battle at all. Ginny wouldn't have that long white scar down the side of her neck; Hermione wouldn't have lost her right thumb; Neville wouldn't have his untreatable (though slight) limp; Lavender Brown wouldn't be a werewolf. And everytime he catches sight of the impact the war was had on his family, his friends, the permanent weight of guilt he carries around with him raises its ugly head.

Harry had lost count of the number of times he had been offered the poistion of Minister for Magic. And each time, he said, no, thank you, and still, they asked him again. No - he wanted a quiet life, and anyway, he didn't know the first thing about being Minister. So, they kept on asking him, and he knew that he would never accept.

Harry Potter was finally happy. Despite the guilt, and the nightmares that still plagued him, Harry was able to live his life freely, for the first time. He had wonderful friends, a gorgeous wife, and three beautiful children, and he wouldn't change anything for the world.