A/N: This chapter involves spoilers for The Cursed Child. If you haven't read/seen it yet and want to stay spoiler free, I'd advise you to skip the section between the 'xxx's and the last little bit of the chapter. :)

The commotion at his appearance died almost immediately, silence falling abruptly as the full realisation of what was happening fell over the crowd. They watched, looking between Voldemort and Potter as they stared unblinkingly at the other. Almost as though it was planned, they began to circle each other at precisely the same moment, like caged lions stalking their prey.

"I don't want anyone else to help." Harry ordered the assembled witches and wizards, sensing, rather than seeing, that most of them were reaching for their wands. "It's got to be like this. It's got to be me."

Voldemort hissed, a cruel smile twisting his lips. "Potter doesn't mean that. This isn't how he works, is it? Who are you going to use as a shield today, Potter?"

"Nobody." Harry told him bluntly. "There are no more Horcruxes. It's just you and me. Neither can live while the other survives, and one of us is about to leave for good…"

"One of us?" Voldemort sneered. His eyes were narrowed and his body was taut, like a coiled snake. "You think it will be you, do you, the boy who has survived by accident and because Dumbledore was pulling the strings?"

"Accident, was it, when my mother died to save me?" Asked Harry angrily. "Accident when I decided to fight in that graveyard? Accident that I didn't defend myself tonight and still survived and returned to fight again?"

Momentarily glancing away from the pair, who were still slowly circling each other, Regina gasped as she realised that Henry was no longer by her side. She looked around wildly and out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a slight figure slipping out of the Great Hall. She knew instantly who it was. Feeling sick to her stomach, Regina turned away from the circling figures that had drawn everyone else's attention and hastily traced her mother's steps as she made her way out into the Entrance Hall. Cora was already disappearing through the double doors and into the early morning light when Regina caught up with her.

"Mother!"

"What?" The older witch spat, whirling round and fixing her with a venomous scowl. "What do you want?"

"Where's Henry?"

"How should I know?" Cora sniffed, pulling a disdainful face. "He's too much like you and that excuse for a father of his to be of any interest to me."

Regina stiffened at her words. "Where are you going? Bella… she's dead!"

"I know that, stupid child. Killed by a Weasley…" Cora snorted mirthlessly, shaking her head. "I'm getting away from here; even your sisters turned out to be disappointments in the end."

xxx

Cora smirked. "Now, though, there is a new hope for the continuation of our great name."

Regina narrowed her eyes, her mind immediately jumping to her son. "What are you talking about? You're not getting Henry. I'll–"

"I don't want your son. He's useless to me. No, Bellatrix had a child; a daughter. The Dark Lord is the girl's father and through her we shall reclaim our world."

"Bellatrix had a… what?" The younger woman blinked several times, trying to get her head around her mother's claim. "No. I would have… I'd have known if…"

"Delphini." Cora informed her. "She was born in April."

xxx

"I don't believe you."

Her mother snorted. "It doesn't matter to me what you believe anymore, Regina. You are nothing to me… less than nothing."

"Bella would have… Cissy would have told me."

"Ask her." Cora shrugged. "See what she says. As I said, it no longer concerns me. I wash my hands of all of you. None of you have ever been worthy of your names… so many regrets. Four daughters, four disappointments."

Seeing red, Regina raised her wand to send a curse in her mother's direction. Cora, however, was faster. She conjured a Shield Charm that completely protected her from the barrage of curses and hexes her daughter sent at her. Laughing, Cora put one hand on her hip, maintaining the protection with very little effort.

"Is that all you've got, Regina?" She tilted her head to one side. Widening her eyes and clapping her hand to her forehead theatrically, Cora smirked. "Oh… I almost forgot…"

Flicking her wand, she turned and looked towards the castle. Unable to help herself, Regina followed her gaze. She felt as though her lungs were about to explode, her heart beating painfully in her chest as she stared with horror at the scene unfolding in front of her. Wide-eyed, she stumbled forwards several paces, her hands outstretched and grappling wildly with the air that hung, thick with tension, in the space between her and her mother.

"Henry! How… why…?"

"Come here, Henry, darling." Cora ordered. Almost like a zombie, he walked towards her, standing beside his grandmother and staring blankly at Regina as though he didn't see her at all. "There's a good boy."

"Please, Mother–"

"What better way to ensure you don't meddle in my departure than to use the one thing that'll get you to do as you're told."

"Please… Mother… don't…"

"Beg, Regina." The older woman demanded coldly, her lips curling up in a cruel smile. "Beg me to spare your son's life."

Tears coursed down Regina's cheeks as she nodded fervently, stepping forward with one hand outstretched in her mother's direction. "I'll do anything. Please… anything…"

"Not good enough."

Regina didn't think twice. She dropped to her knees in front of her mother, looking up at her with eyes brimming with tears. "I beg you, Mother. Leave Henry alone. I will do anything you want if you just, please, leave him alone."

The castle doors opened once more and Emma stepped out into the dawn light. She stared in horror at the sight that met her eyes. It was almost as though Regina, kneeling on the stone floor in front of her mother, had regressed in front of her eyes. She was trembling, terror etched all over her features as she gaped at Cora. The brunette was suddenly the eighteen-year-old she had once been, cowering under her mother's sharp glare as she had done all those years ago. Emma knew that she was remembering Daniel's death, replaying it over and over again in her mind as she stood on the brink of losing someone else she cared about to the same cruel, vindictive woman.

"Regina!"

Cora's face twisted in rage at the appearance of the blonde, ruining her moment. Regina took advantage of her distraction. She rose to her feet swiftly and aimed her wand. There wasn't a single ounce of emotion in her voice as she spoke the incantation to the one spell she had vowed never to use.

"Avada Kedavra!"

The jet of green light burst from the end of Regina's wand and shot towards her mother. It hit Cora square in the chest. With a shocked expression, the older witch turned towards her daughter, her mouth opening and closing wordlessly. Then the light was extinguished from her eyes and she crumpled to the stone floor in a lifeless heap.

"Mom?"

Pulling her son into her arms, Regina held him tightly. She sobbed and pressed her face into his neck, unwilling to let go. Emma sprinted towards them, gathering them both into her embrace and holding onto them as though she was never intending to let them go. For a long while they stood like that, pretending that the world outside their little bubble didn't exist.

When they finally felt able to talk again, Emma informed Regina that it was over. Potter had triumphed over Voldemort and the battle had been won. Now that Regina thought about it, she could hear the triumphant cheers from inside the castle. As they watched, a few Death Eaters limped and hobbled through the double doors making their escape before the witches and wizards inside stopped celebrating and started rounding them up.

Emma led them back inside and over to where the Weasleys had congregated. She spoke to Molly in a low voice, explaining what had happened outside with Cora, before heading away to help with the Death Eaters who were still fleeing from the castle. Kingsley Shacklebolt had been named temporary Minister of Magic and when Regina pulled herself together, she began helping with the clean-up effort. It wasn't just at Hogwarts that things seemed to be righting themselves. News was pouring in from friends and family members outside that people were coming round after being put under the Imperious Curse, that innocent witches and wizards were being released from Azkaban and that things in the Ministry of Magic were starting to go back to normal.

Minerva had replaced the House tables in the Great Hall, giving the injured somewhere to sit and rest while they were treated. No one paid the slightest bit of notice to the House colours, sitting together with no regard to status or species. Teachers and parents mingled together, treating pupils, centaurs and house-elves alike while the ghosts drifted among them, helping where they could. Regina glanced up, pausing briefly in tending to a nasty wound on the leg of Alex Stebbins, a sixth year Hufflepuff – assisted by Viola Penderghast, a sixth year Slytherin – just in time to see Henry throwing a handful of something or other through one of the smashed windows and into the mouth of the half-giant, whom her son had informed her was Hagrid's brother. She avoided looking towards the rows of bodies where Tonks, Lupin and Fred Weasley lay, amongst a great many others.

"Thank you, Viola." Regina smiled gratefully as the girl handed her a roll of gauze. "You were lucky, Alex. This could have been much worse. Make sure you keep it clean and dry."

"Thanks, Professor." He smiled at her warmly. Regina nodded at him as he stood and headed away with Viola, motioning for the next patient in the queue to take a seat in front of her.

"D'you need some help, Professor Mills?" Luna asked, appearing beside her and fixing her with an intense look.

"I would appreciate that, Luna, thank you."

Her teenage assistant refilled the bowl beside her and handed Regina a clean scrap of cotton while she examined the scratch that ran length of the side of the girl's face. She would definitely be left with a scar and Regina shook her head at the injustice and stupidity of the whole situation. It wasn't right that such a young girl with her whole life ahead of her would be marked and reminded of this day for the rest of her life.

Glancing up to ask Luna for another clean scrap of fabric, Regina realised that the girl was no longer beside her. She was a little way off, talking to Harry Potter. Understanding why she had been distracted, Regina reached across for what she needed herself, returning her attention to what she was doing.

"Oooh, look, a Blibbering Humdinger!"

Regina frowned at Luna's sudden exclamation, but found her gaze drawn in the direction the teenager was signalling anyway. There was nothing there. Turning back, she shook her head. Moments later Luna was at her side again, apologising and asking what she could do to help. Regina shot her a quick smile as she explained how she could clean and bandage the cut on the arm of the young wizard next in the queue to be treated.

Time seemed to fly, but finally Regina and Luna managed to reach the end of their line of injuries. Stopping beside Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout, who had been dealing with the more serious injuries, Regina shook her head tiredly as they tried to condole with her. News of Cora's death and her part in it seemed to have spread around the castle. With the added loss of her sister, niece and nephew-in-law, no one seemed to know what to say to her or even want to look at her.

With Henry distracted by his friends and Grawp, Regina meandered slowly between the four tables and the witches and wizards standing around in small huddles. She glanced across at Molly and Ginny sitting close together at one of the tables. The teenager had her head on her mother's shoulder and Molly was slowly running a finger through the long, red strands of hair that partially blocked Ginny's face from view. Regina wanted to approach them, but both seemed so wrapped up in their own thoughts and she didn't really know what to say, anyway. The witch knew that anything she could say would sound hollow and would bring absolutely no comfort, so what was the point?

She continued through the Great Hall until she spotted the three Malfoys. Hesitating for a moment, Regina made up her mind and walked purposefully towards them. She took a seat on the hard wooden bench beside Lucius, barely sparing him a second glance as she reached across the table and took Narcissa and Draco's hands in hers.

"Gina…"

"I know, Cissy."

"Mother. You…"

"I know." Regina felt tears welling up in her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." The harshness of her tone caused the younger woman's head to snap up and their eyes to meet. "I would have done the same. If she'd laid a single finger on Draco… If she'd dared to use the Imperious Curse on my son… How is he? Henry?"

"Resilient." Regina shook her head sadly. "All those wasted lives… all that needless killing and violence…"

"I never wanted this…" Narcissa almost whispered. "All I wanted was for my son to be safe." She looked over at her sister imploringly. "Surely you can understand that, Gina?"

Nodding, but not speaking for a moment, the witch carefully formulated her next words. "We've lost so much… too much… our family has been decimated by this war. Mother, Bella, Ted, Remus, Dora… we cannot let it pull us apart too. You, Dromeda and I must pull together now… for the sake of our children… for Dromeda's grandson."

xxx

"Regina… Bella had a daughter."

"I know. Mother told me before I… before she died."

"We cannot leave her in Rodolphus' care." Narcissa stated firmly. "She needs a proper, loving home or she'll turn out exactly like Bella. I think you should raise her, Regina."

"What about you?"

Narcissa looked over at Lucius coldly. "There are some important decisions to be made about our home and our family."

Regina glanced at her brother-in-law and saw that he was looking down at his hands to avoid seeing the fire in his wife's eyes. Standing up, she nodded. "Where is she?"