Hogwarts - The New Generation

by SeteEntediados

Six Hogwarts students are involved in a prophecy about the emergence of a new lord of darkness. Meanwhile, students like Santana Lopez, Rachel Berry, Quinn Fabray, Al and Lily Potter seek to survive school and teenage problems.

26. Final battle - part 2 epilogue

It's not known why there are wizards and muggles. And even among muggles, it's not known why certain people are gifted with extraordinary abilities and not another. Nor it's known why humans are connected with elements and even creatures, to the point that it interferes with their personality. But they are things that exist, whether you believe it or not.

There were many symbologies that made Gryffindors and Slytherins antagonistic. Some of them seemed mere mythologies, but they were very real. The animals that symbolize the houses, for example. The basilisk was one of the most powerful and rare magical creatures. Possibly, Harry Potter extinguished the species by killing the basilisk in the secret chamber. Griffin was also one of the rarest and most powerful magical creatures. The existence of three griffins was known worldwide. In one way or another, what mattered was that basilisks and griffins were natural opponents. They were naturally antagonistic forces of an antagonistic nature. Griffins and basilisks were animals capable of killing themselves. They were predators of each other.

Henry Ollivander wasn't a spy for Samuel Evans or any other supremacist who wanted Santana Lopez' head. He wasn't in that war to fulfill a tricky schedule. There was what used to be called "honest mistake." That is, that mistake that was made without the intention of harming someone. It was also called by the famous phrase: "shit happens". The wand specialist didn't make an honest mistake in reusing the remains of the elder wand. Yes, it was true that the result was pale in view of the power of the original object. He was an experienced expert in the craft, but faced with a challenge like those, he made an honest mistake by focusing on the challenge itself, forgetting the user.

That is, when making a wand with a basilisk nucleus, because it was the only thing in his workshop that reacted with the small sample of thestral hair, and deliver the object to someone whose patronus was a hippogriff, that is, an original creature of a griffin, the reaction would be the worst possible. The essence of Santana's magical energy simply antagonized the energy of the newly made wand. The result? Booom!

The bodies of Santana, Henry, and Draco were hurled a few feet with the force of the energy explosion. A light was generated, spreading all over the camp, and frightening all who were there. Rachel, as well as the others inside the tents, rushed out to know what had happened. She was on alert, her wand ready, ready to fight. That was when she saw that some tents were on the floor, and people were running toward people who were lying on the floor.

"Was it an attack?" She didn't ask anyone in particular. It was a question that was being answered by several people.

"I don't know," Finn replied, also very confused.

"It's Lopez!" Someone shouted.

Rachel didn't think twice. She ran toward the group that was supposed to be surrounding her sister. She pointed her wand at the small circle. Some people were magically pushed enough that she could get to her sister without having to open her way with her bare hands. When she reached Santana, she put her hand to her mouth and was terrified. Santana was in her bloodstained clothes and unconscious.

"She..." Rachel was afraid to complete the question.

"She's breathing," Grace James replied. She was kneeling beside Santana's body, giving her first healing.

"What the hell happened?" Rachel could hear people asking.

"I don't know. Suddenly the tent exploded."

"Was it an attack?"

"I don't know."

"She is alive?"

"What will we do?"

Rachel heard all the questions around her. There were a lot of people talking at the same time: people who were closer or not. In the midst of a small crowd, she identified Quinn and also Finn, who was immediately beside her.

"We're being attacked!" Someone shouted.

Rachel looked up into the dark new moon sky, and could see the shadows that flew over the camp and attacked on top of their brooms. A sudden panic swept over her. Rachel, panting and in a fit of adrenaline, threw herself against her sister's body, hugged her, and apparated.

They disapparated in the middle of Hogsmeade. In a moment of panic, that was the only place that came to mind. Disapparated right next to the Three Brooms, giving a scare to those who passed by. A man approached.

"You... oh, Merlin ..."

"Don't come near!" Rachel pointed the wand at the man.

She didn't rationalize law and, for that matter, was even more dangerous. One wrong move and she was prepared to apparate again, not realizing that the displacement always hurt the conditions of someone injured or frail health.

"I won't hurt you," the man assured him.

Rachel didn't want to pay to see. She hugged her sister one more time and disappeared. This time, she was more aware of where they should go. She still disappeared in the region, this time in the forbidden forest, near the Hangrid's old hut. Rachel conjured up a gentler version of levicorpus, and made her sister float to the hut, which was filthy with dirt and debris. At least it was a place where she thought she was protected. She picked up a container, took out dirt and dust as best she could, and conjured up water. The liquid, as pure magic, appeared in the vessel. She remembered a saying about a wizard starving, but never thirsty. Well, she thought the saying a little bad taste, but it was true. With the water, she wiped Santana's bloody face. There were no injuries to her sister's skin that justified the blood. Rachel wondered if the blood was actually Santana's.

"Enevarte!" Rachel conjured.

Santana woke up in a fright, lifting her trunk and sitting on that dirty floor. It took a while before she realized that everything was all right and that she was safe. Then she could recognize Rachel, despite the pitch in the cabin.

"What..." Santana said still confused.

"Lumus," Rachel conjured.

"Where are we?"

"Next to Hogwarts, in Hagrid's old hut," Rachel replied. "Santana, what happened?"

"I'm not sure ... I think the wand exploded."

"The wand with the fragment we came looking for at Hogwarts?"

"Yeah ... I don't think I can use it. At least, not with me handling it. Rach, why are we in Hagrid's hut?"

"The camp was being attacked. I had to think fast to protect you."

"We have to get back." Santana got off the ground with some difficulty. Her body was very sore.

"But you can't!"

"I can and I will." Santana reached for her own wand. She found it in the expected place, tied to her jeans.

"You're in no shape!" Rachel insisted.

"And? What kind of leader am I if I fled at the signal of the first crisis?" Then she smiled slightly at her sister and stroked Rachel's face. "You can stay. I won't be angry with you. On the contrary."

Santana apparated. Rachel sighed. She closed her eyes and also apparated back to the camp.

...

"Mom!" Lily shouted.

Ginny ran to the place her daughter had called her, and arrived a few moments later. It wasn't a big place. Ginny, Lilly and Hermione were in a secret apartment in Dublin. For security reasons, they spent no more than a week in the same address. There were a number of estates throughout Ireland that were destined to be the head of government of England who was exiled in Ireland under protection and agreement with the International Confederation. Even if real estate was repeated, the occupation sequence was random. This ensured the safety of Hermione Granger and her closest allies throughout the period of European occupation of supremacism.

That particular apartment was three-bedroom apartment located on R802, a street that Lily, accustomed to seeing more playful and lively places, found it depressing. Lily had a bad feeling throughout the week. Something motivated by the stress of the exile situation in a single city, her estrangement from her girlfriend, the advanced pregnancy, and a sixth sense that worried her: something was about to happen.

"Mom!" Lily yelled again.

"What?" Ginny appeared at the door of the room where her daughter was.

The woman put her hand to her mouth when she saw the reason for the cry. There was a puddle of water on the floor, and Lily was right in the middle of it, with some of the wet dress on.

"Oh!" Ginny took a few seconds to process the information that her granddaughter had decided to be born a week or two ahead of schedule. Ginny smiled at her daughter, seeking to convey tranquility and security. She took Lily's hand and led her to the chair.

"Santana will fight tomorrow. This should not be happening. She should be here with me!"

"I know, honey. I know." Ginny smiled. "Unfortunately this is not going to happen, so let's take a deep breath because you have a lot of work to do."

"But mom..." Lily repeated tearfully.

"Lilian Luna Potter II, I didn't rise you to weaken!" Ginny's tone was harder. "Be calm, or everything will seem worse than it really is. I need you to count the time between the contractions while I clean the water from here, al right?"

Lily nodded. Ginny kissed her daughter on the forehead and smiled confidently. She took the wand, pointed to the puddle of water, and began to make circular motions. The water began to focus on a smaller puddle on the ground, forming a ball. Gradually, the water began to float and to be led by Ginny, still very focused on the spell that seemed to be simple but that actually required a good level of concentration. A vacillation and the condensed water in a shapeless, translucent ball would fall to the ground, causing more dirt than before.

"Ginny! Lily!" Hermione burst into the apartment, doing exactly what Ginny didn't want. The water fell in the corridor and ran down the hall.

"What?" Ginny asked irritably as she faced her best friend and sister-in-law.

"We need to run. Our security guards are down. There is a coordinated attack going on. Dolohan is coming here."

"But we can't run away!" Ginny said in a low tone.

"Why?"

"Because this water on the floor came from inside your niece."

"Lily is in labor?" Hermione put her hand to her mouth.

"Lily is in labor! You can't apparate with her like that. It would be too risky."

Hermione looked at her sister-in-law and then went to the room where Lily was. She found her niece still sitting in the chair, looking frightened.

"Auntie..." Lily said crying after hearing the brief conversation. "What do we do?"

"Lily, do you understand that apparate is our best chance, but also our most risky choice?"

"Yes."

"You decide."

"I think I can apparate just once."

"I'm against it," Ginny protested.

"Mom, I won't be able to run or fly. I understand the risks."

Ginny took Lily's old backpack. The decision was made. Hermione led the way, while Ginny and Lily tried to walk as fast as they could. They had to leave the building before apparated. Hermione had to act as soon as she stepped out of the building. Dolohan's agents were just eliminating the last auror.

"You couldn't beat me even when I was 17, you bastard!" She said more to herself as she did her best to bring down the five wizards who were giving her too much trouble.

Ginny joined Hermione. With all her friend's talent, she still needed coverage.

"Ginny. On three!"

Ginny turned to her daughter and pulled her out of the building. Hermione took Ginny's hand and apparated. When they disappeared, they were in the middle of an avenue on the edge of a forest in Wales.

"Oh my God!" Lily bowed at the throbbing sensation in her belly. Ginny immediately came to the aid of her daughter.

"What the hell, Mione? You brought us into the middle of nowhere with my daughter in labor! What do we do? Get in that forest in the middle of the night?"

"It's not the middle of nowhere!"

Hermione conjured lumus and entered the forest. Ginny, holding Lily, hesitated for a moment to follow her friend. She was afraid, angry, apprehensive. But if there was one thing she learned to do over all those years was that one could trust life to Hermione Granger.

"Mom..." Lily gritted her teeth as she felt another contraction.

Ginny stopped walking, holding her daughter to her feet. The apparation accelerated Lily's labor, and from the nearness of the contractions, she feared that Lily would give birth in the bush in the midst of all that darkness.

"Just a few more yards," Hermione said as she helped her niece. "Trust me."

"I don't know if I can walk." Lily was wet with sweat. The contractions were very close and she couldn't walk anymore.

Terrified, Ginny opened her daughter's torn old backpack, which accompanied her on a journey through the world. There was a whole house in there if they needed it.

"It's only a few yards away!" Hermione insisted.

"No way, Mione," Ginny said angrily as she heard her daughter's screams. "Accio mattress."

The air mattress flew out of the backpack. Ginny used magic again to inflate it in seconds. Lily lay down on the mattress she'd shared with Santana countless times in their travels around the world.

"Have you ever had did it in your life?" Hermione asked.

"No."

"I'll get help!"

Hermione ran to the place that was originally willing to go, leaving mother and daughter in the woods. Lily screamed. Ginny conjured lumus and lifted her daughter's dress. She was startled when she took Lily's soaked panties off. She wasn't an expert, but she had given birth to three children. She remembered every reading she'd had about giving birth when she'd been pregnant with James, and everything she'd read about during Lily's pregnancy. Lily remembered the procedures that were done.

"Mom!" Lily shrieked, clenching her teeth.

"Everything will be fine."

Ginny smiled at Lily, and without taking her eyes off her daughter, she did what she had to do: she inserted two fingers into Lily's vagina to check for dilation. It was crazy, but she was sure she touched her granddaughter's head, not to mention she managed to open her fingers in the "V" position inside. Ginny opened her eyes and looked at her daughter.

"Lily... I know it hurts like hell, but you're going to have to push. Now!"

Ginny positioned herself between her legs and hold Lily's hand, sustaining her daughter, as if Lily was doing sit-ups.

"Push, Lil, push"

"Go to hell, mom. That hurts!"

Even with the pain, Lily pushed. She screeched, clenched her teeth, and pushed. Ginny saw her granddaughter's head appear in her daughter's vagina. She didn't know exactly how to get the child, but she was there to act. Lily let out a guttural growl, and Ginny held the child's head. Carefully, she pulled the little body out. She couldn't believe that she had her granddaughter on her hands. The emotion she felt was unbelievable. Ginny cried and smiled. Despite being dirty, wrapped in sebum, and swollen, the child was simply perfect. The child began to cry well in time.

"She's beautiful!" Ginny handed her granddaughter into the arms of an exhausted, tearful, but happy Lily.

It was the time to see people approaching with lanterns in hand. They were Muggles, of course. Lily hugged the child and Ginny braced herself to defend her daughter and granddaughter. The tension was short. It was Hermione back in the company of a couple.

"Wow, you weren't kidding it was an emergency, Mione." The man said pointing the flashlight at the women. The scene was, in fact, impressive.

"These are Tom and Carla Granger. Tom is my cousin and they know about this war."

"How?" Ginny asked.

"I think we'd better take care of this situation first." Carla knelt before Lily and Ginny. "Don't feel offended. I'm a veterinarian, but I can perfectly help them if I may."

A vet was better than nothing. Lily, holding her newborn daughter, nodded. She was not even in a position to dispense help out of pride.

"Okay," Carla opened the briefcase with surgical instruments. She picked up some sterile scissors, wiped her hands with alcohol as best she could, and put on disposable gloves. Then she took the umbilical cord and offered the scissors to Ginny. "Do you want to do the honors?" As soon as Ginny cut the cord, Carla smiled. "Now let's get that placenta out!"

...

Santana disappeared in the chaos of a battle in the camp, with Rachel right behind her. The original plan was to lure the extremists with a bait-party led by Santana herself. The international force that supposedly would be in Italy, would close the supremacists and thus eliminate the offensive forces once and for all. But it was the opponents who surprised to "anticipate" the attack at an unplanned point.

It was dark, there was a lot of smoke, fire, screams, duels on all sides and bodies on the floor. The battle was spread out as a result of the open field and surprise attack. Santana had no time to compose herself. She removed the wand that was attached to the jeans holder and began to act. She looked up at the sky and noticed that there were some air strikes. Many of the Allied rebels played quidditch and a broom was like an extension of the body.

"Stay close, Rach!" She ordered her sister.

They flowed through the smoke, the fire, the dirt, and the flashes of the wands in their duels. It was necessary to be careful, because the bad visibility was bad, it wasn't easy to distinguish who was a rebel and who was a death eater. Santana wanted to look for Quinn and her friends, but first of all, she needed to do her part. She defended herself from an attack thanks to the extraordinary reflex she had. She countered with accuracy while Rachel gave her cover. The sisters acted as a team. They knocked down their opponent. Santana didn't have time to know who he was. She recognized another death eater in the nearest duel, attacked the opponent, left him out of action, and ran to see if the ally was well. It was Lupercia Potter.

"Are you hurt?" Santana asked.

"I'm fine," she said, running a hand over her face to relieve the dust.

"Stay with us."

Santana didn't know exactly what plan she should execute in the face of absolute chaos, but she understood that the scattered battle as it was would only benefit the opponent himself. She remembered the strategies of defense training with the refugees in the camp that proved successful as soon as the population overcame the initial scare of the attack. They ran to the nearest duel. They added three to two and won. They rescued Glory Watson, who had a wound in the back. Santana kept going forward, instructing the group to give her cover. They managed to reach a pair of allies who were having problems. It was Mike and Teddy.

"Did you see Quinn?" Santana asked Mike urgently.

"No! I didn't see her."

"Okay, don't break the unit, let's move like a block. I'll provide protection. Mike goes ahead and you protect the other directions.'"

They started walking around Santana, who conjured a force field that surrounded the group. Moving squarely wouldn't be good in a Muggle war, but wizards didn't use firearms, especially the supremacists, as they were vulgar instruments. With each rescue, the platoon increased and divided in another that was organizing the chaos. The group advanced among other duels to liquidate the opponent and to structure other wizards to form other blocks of attack.

When the rebels managed to regain control of the situation and territory, the death eaters retreat. Santana wasn't comfortable, much less relieved. Quinn was nowhere to be found, though close friends of her survived the surprise attack.

"Now what are we going to do?" Santana was surprised by Draco Malfoy. She allowed herself to think for a minute before answering.

"They will regroup and will come back. Albus, go with Rachel to your father. I hate to say that, but we need Harry Potter and his army. Malfoy, take care of the wounded. Arrange everything to get out of here with them. We are in the open sky and we lose our advantage."

"What about the dead ones?" Mike asked.

"There's nothing we can do for them right now."

The allies began lighting torches throughout the camp. Santana signaled the groups that should rescue the wounded and those who should be on guard. She went on to help rescue the wounded, relying not only on the notions of first aid she had but also motivated to find the people she loved and couldn't find in the midst of battle.

Santana recognized a figure crouched beside a wounded man (or would it be a body?). It was Marley. She breathed a relieved breath for a moment until she noticed that her friend was crying compulsively. Santana knelt down beside her, rested her hand on her shoulder and looked at the person lying on the floor. She didn't recognize the man Marley was crying for, nor did she care. Santana pulled Marley into a strong hug.

"He saved me... he stepped in front of me as I was somebody important. But I'm not..." Marley didn't contain the crying.

Santana looked again at the dead man in the mud. She felt guilty for not recognizing him, especially now that she knew the stranger apparently saved Marley's life, for whom Santana had high regard. One way or another, the altruistic attitude seemed to add more and more to Santana's debt and responsibility to the rebels. She broke the hug and only then can check Marley's physical condition. The Hufflepuff's girl had her eyebrow open and the blood draped over the side of her face.

"It doesn't look serious to me, but you have to see Malfoy," Santana said in a low, cautious tone. "There's nothing else we can do for him. Yet we can strive to honour him. For that, you need to get up. "

"He protected me," Marley said, unable to stop crying. "He died because he took my place."

"He died like a hero. But this is not him anymore and you need to move on. There is a battle to finish. Then we come back, we identify him and honour him."

Santana grabbed Marley by the arm, lifted her, and hugged her once more. She wanted to give her friend time to breathe. It was a war, people died, sacrificed. The reality was hard, raw.

"Lopez!" Rose ran to both. "We need to decide what to do now. They will attack again."

Santana nodded to Rose. She was right. But first, she led Marley to the improvised service station Draco Malfoy organized. Santana was impressed and saddened by the amount of injuries she had been mustering. Everything was still confusing, Draco yelled at the other healers and volunteers about sorting out the wounded. What would happen is that those injured would be severed according to gravity. While Marley was treated to the touch of magic, which consisted of throwing a mech in the cut and putting a bandage on top, Santana walked slowly among the wounded, watching closely the work of the healers.

Among the wounded were the Scamander twins and a few other Weasleys. Henry Ollivander was also still unconscious and seemed to be in poor condition. Santana understood that in the explosion, he got the worse part of it. And that part of the blood that was in her clothes was his. But Santana could do nothing for him. She couldn't afford to feel guilty. Among the other wounded, there were no signs of Quinn Fabray, which began to make Santana apprehensive about her best friend's fate.

"Let me see that." Draco approached Lysander Scamander not at all subtly and examined the cut on his arm. Santana watched the action from a distance. "It's nothing!" He just picked up some more of that gore and smeared it on the arm of the Hippogriff Order member. Then he bandaged the wound. "Hold for about five minutes and it will be brand new."

"Malfoy." Santana joined the healer. "We need to talk."

"I can't, Lopez, too busy." Draco said roughly.

"I know... but I need you to help move all the wounded as quickly as possible. You can end the treatment somewhere else."

"They won't come back."

"They can come back. It's a war tactic." Santana said firmly. "We don't have much time. They will come back and try to get us unstructured to massacre us instead. So you get the wounded who can't or don't want to fight and get the hell out of here in a maximum of 10 minutes. End of discussion."

"Who made you the leader of this, young lady?"

"I am the chosen one. I'm the leader."

The wounded people nearby watched Santana with astonishment. The chosen one was always a leader that didn't want to be one. Santana was someone forced by fate. But the front of the war forced Santana to assume her birth role. The place was dark, cold, and beginning to dazzle. But Santana looked like a being who wouldn't be affected by anything. It was as if she could convince the most hesitant to follow her. Marley watched Draco struggle against his own pride. He, a representative of one of the most traditional and respected families of wizards in history, a pure blood, the subject who became the best healer of his generation. There was Draco receiving an ultimatum from the half-breed daughter of a subaltern immigrant son who worked for him.

"I need at least 15 minutes to complete the screening."

"Do it in seven!" Santana said without taking her eyes off the healer. "And... thank you for working under these conditions."

Finn Hudson approach Santana as a gnarled tractor. He hugged Santana in the first place.

"Where's Rachel?" The tall man asked anxiously.

"She's ok. I sent her out on a mission with Albus."

"Thanks to Merlin, Rachel's fine."

"She saved me." Santana exchanged glances with Finn. It was the confirmation of what deep down everyone knew: that Rachel was an extraordinary duelist and could very well take care of herself.

The galleon in Santana's pocket began to vibrate and to warm. She took the coin and had trouble reading the message. It was a code between her and Lily. In the dim lights of torches, she tried to make sure she read the right code. Then she turned pale.

"What is it?" Finn was surprised by Santana's uneasy behavior.

"Lily... my daughter was born..."

"What now?" Finn was apprehensive.

"And now, we're going to end this war."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Win this shit." Santana raised her wand and sent out a discreet light signal, indicating that the leaders should find it.

Santana was surrounded by Finn Hudson, Rose Granger-Weasley, Scorpius Malfoy, Marley Rose, Mike Chang, The Scamander, Athena Milles, Grace James, Anya Caulfield and Gail Thomas.

"Lily had the baby," Santana informed Rose especially.

She smiled. At least good news in the midst of chaos.

"Maybe you'd better go with your girlfriend. I think it would be better to postpone it anyway. Let's retire and regroup", Athenas Milles suggested.

"No." Santana replied firmly. "If we back down, they're going to massacre us. Evans is attacking, it means that his army is here, not there. This is our chance."

"You want all these people to risk their necks because you don't know how to retreat?" Milles insisted.

"I was hiding for three years. No more."

"What's on your mind, Lopez?" Scorpius asked.

"Let's go to Hogwarts."

"Why?" Finn asked.

"Evans's wand is so powerful and faithful to him because it's essentially a Horcrux. We tried to reuse the wand fragment from the wands, but today's explosion shows that I am incompatible with the handling of that wand that Ollivander tried to do."

"Why?" Finn asked.

"I have no idea, Hudson. The point is, if Evans's wand is a Horcrux, the only weapon I know capable of destroying such an object is at Hogwarts."

"The Gryffindor sword," Rose murmured. "No one has seen this sword since the last war. Isn't illogical to run after an object that you don't even know if it's there?"

"The sword is there. It appears whenever a Gryffindor is in need. The sword attended your uncle, and later it attended Longbottom."

"Isn't you too pretentious to say it will be like this with you?" Rose challenged.

"Maybe." Santana stared at Lily's cousin. "The sword need not heed my call, Weasley. Maybe it will suit yours, or any other Gryffindor that deserve."

"And Lily?" Finn asked.

"She's in good hands."

...

Lily was exhausted. After finishing the expulsion of the placenta, Tom carried her, along with the newborn child, to the house of the small farms that the couple maintained. It was no coincidence that Lily, whose patronus was a mare, would stop at such a place. Tom put her on a double bed in a large but very simple room. Carla took clean towels to clean and shelter the baby while Hermione helped the best she could, Ginny tried to clean her daughter. She took a sweater from her backpack, cleaned Lily with a damp towel, made her decent, dignified, before returning the newborn child to her mother's arms.

"She's a very strong little girl." Carla handed the child back to Lily, already clean and dry, settled into a comfortable bed.

Lily, even exhausted, smiled weakly and held the child in her arms.

"She needs to nurse. Did the milk come down?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know. Actually, I don't even know what to do. I should have done all those classes that pregnant muggle women do, but I couldn't, I didn't have time." Lily threatened to cry. She was happy, terrified, anxious, sad. All at once.

"Calm down!" Ginny tried to comfort her daughter. "It's not a seven-headed creature. Take her mouth to your nipple and we'll see if she can get it."

"Santana should be here," Lily complained.

"Santana is resolving a war," Hermione assured her.

"Oh..." Lily gasped as the baby began to suck on her nipple. "She's strong, and she looks hungry!"

"She's perfect." Ginny smiled.

"Does she have a name?" Carla asked.

"Yes. Santana may be upset, but I think it's a name more than fair."

"Aren't you going to tell me?" Ginny asked.

"Not while Santana doesn't arrive. That's what would be fair."

"I agree."

"Mom..."

"Yes?"

"You passed the message to Santana?"

"Yes."

"So?"

"Lily, I think you need to rest. We will have answers tomorrow."

...

They arrived in the middle of the forbidden forest. From that point on it was impossible to see Hogwarts due to dense vegetation. They had to be careful, because Evans's agents could be there guarding the space. Santana motioned for them to be silent. She conjures a magic compass and pointed to the direction of the castle and led the group cautiously. As soon as the forest cleared, she and her companions were surprised by the seeming tranquility. They could see lights on and a few lookers around. But everything was seemingly normal considering there was a direct war going on. Hogwarts was a strategic place to be the heart of everyone British magic.

"I smell a trap," Mike commented to the small group.

"Rachel and I were here last week. It would be strange if they had not taken any steps." Santana pointed her wand at the castle and conjured a single ray of light. The group watched the small light being interrupted in what appeared to be a force field.

"Obviously!" Rose grunted. "Of course this obstacle is nothing. All we need is the elder wand and an army to break the barrier."

"We can try to go under," Santana said, already moving.

"Where are you going?" Marley ran to her the leader side.

"To the screaming house. There's a passage over there."

"But all the secret passages to Hogwarts have been turned off," Marley argued.

"Not all of them. Quinn, Neville and I escaped that time diving in by the old sewage system nobody knew about. The screaming house is opens. I know it."

"You can't go to the screaming house." Mike frowned. "Besides, the passage that existed there didn't lead to the castle."

"But it leads to the fighter willow, which is inside the barrier. That's enough." Santana continued to move toward the house without paying much attention to her friend's pleas.

Santana continued to lead the small group consisting of the Order of Hippogriff to the old house and then pointed to Mike, Rose, and Marley. She asked the others to stand by. The four of them advanced toward the place that still held the reputation of being haunted. Mike felt some regret at being there. The House was Teddy Lupin's informal pre-war residence. He wanted to transform the place where his father suffered the terrible pain of transformation into something refreshed. The war made Teddy leave the house, but he always told the intelligence force group how important the place was to him.

Santana and Marley didn't know this side of Teddy. They barely knew Teddy Lupin. That's why Mike felt bad when he deactivated the protection spell that had been conjured in one of the entrances. He was even more insulted when Marley began to tinker with some of those things as they entered a strangely well-kept, dusty place, as if no one had appeared for months, which was true.

"Don't touch that, please," Mike warned.

"Why?" Marley was confused by the abruptness of Mike's speech.

"Because those are Teddy's parents. This photo is very valuable to him."

"If it's so valuable, why are it here in this old house?" Marley asked.

"The house is protected if you haven't noticed." Mike replied to his younger colleague. He still found it strange to work with the refugee camp staff. They looked amateur in front of what he, Lorcan, Teddy, Rose, Scorpius and Quinn did. Unfortunately, Teddy was seriously injured and no one knew about Quinn.

"Marley." Santana caught her friend's attention. "We're here on business. Leave Lupine's things alone." She turned to Mike. "Where's the passage?"

"It's locked, Lopez."

"That's what the legend says," Santana said following her colleague.

The four of them went downstairs to the basement, and then Mike grunted. He looked very well where he was stepping. He opened a kind of trunk, which proved to be the secret passage they needed.

"All the mains secret passages to Hogwarts were blocked, except the one that connected the precise room to Dumbledore's bar." Marley was amazed at the revelation.

"Some were recovered in secret." Mike grunted, then turned to the leader. "How did you know? Teddy never wanted to wrap this place in this mess."

"My father knew. He himself helped restore this passage when Lupin was still studying at Hogwarts." Rose said almost casually. "But he never considered this passage very useful because it doesn't lead properly to the castle, but even to the willow tree."

"This is the worst-kept secret of our world." Santana scoffed. "That's why we need to be cautious."

They entered the tunnel and checked all trails for traps or any problem. Everything seemed clean. Santana signaled for the rest of the group to join her. In a few minutes, the whole group was crossing the secret passageway in single file. Santana ahead and Mike as the last man. They got safely to the end of the tunnel and smiled at their goal. Hogwarts was protected, but the area didn't include the basement. Santana conjured the spell to paralyze the Willow tree.

"What now?" Mike asked, still irritated.

"The black tower is never protected and I know all its shortcuts." Santana watched. "Marley and I are flying there."

"Marley?" Mike questioned. "With all respect, but Marley spent too much time out of the war. She's not ready."

"I've been handling this situation really well so far and I can continue doing this," Marley snorted. "Don't underestimate me, Chang."

"Besides..." Santana smiled a little. "I can fly, but I don't have super strength. I can't carry you, Chang. Our target is the old Gryffindor Common Room. If we can get there without being noticed, even better."

"You should have brought a second team." Mike was still unsure which was the best plan.

"The less people are better at this kind of work," Rose said. "But I agree with Mike on one point: with all due respect, but Marley is not the best option. If weight is your problem, take me. I have experience in this kind of work."

Santana thought for a moment and saw that Rose was right. After all, Rose remained active and on the front line for all those years. Santana hugged Rose and took off. Or rather, she jumped high with some direction control. It would still take a long time to control that ability. But what she had was just fine. Flying over the castle brought conflicting feelings to both girls. It was the first time Rose had returned to Hogwarts since she graduated. For Granger-Weasley, Hogwarts had nothing but good memories. For Santana, the Hogwarts takeover and Evans' ascension was a terrible event of her life. Returning to Hogwarts, effectively entering the castle, was like facing some inner ghosts.

They landed high on the black tower, exactly on the patio where the them teenagers, Santana and Lily, were having fun in a meeting before the bomb literally exploded. The memories were there, but Santana repressed them. She signaled to her colleague that she should stay behind for support. They walked down the stairs in silence and needed to hide quickly when they noticed a monitor approaching. He was a student with the Slytherin shield that seemed oblivious to every situation. They let him through and continued the journey to the old Gryffindor house.

Despite the general disgust when every Gryffindor was extinguished at Hogwarts, the action of the supremacist government wasn't a surprise. It was as if the new government wanted to eliminate the main source of opposition from the wizarding world. Ravenclaws could have dubious morality because the rationality that was natural to them rejected extremes and tended to follow a political line of center, which wasn't all bad. The Hufflepuffs have always been the glue of the wizarding world, and Evans used the experience he had right there in that house to be a more charismatic leader. The Slytherins tended to be conservative, and Gryffindors were liberal by nature.

All the veteran gryffindors were expelled from Hogwarts, the students up to the third year were relocated to other homes. The Gryffindor tower was sealed and abandoned. House-related ghosts are said to have been confined among the ruins. Santana wasn't interested in the ghosts, much less in the destiny of the house that should be destined. She needed a weapon and the best chance she would have to find it was in that ruined tower. The two waited for the move in front of the stairs to pass before they advanced.

"I wish I had your uncle's cloak," Santana whispered to Rose.

"It is possible to jump from the black tower to one of the dormitory windows. If the hippogriff flew from the willow tree down there, a jump of a few yards will be nothing."

They returned to the black tower, a relatively easy route. They climbed to the top of the tower, and Santana calculated the distance and the strength she should make. In fact, the jump would be nothing compared to what it had to do previously.

"Get ready to pop the window. I'll be busy holding you... and flying."

Santana hugged Rose and jumped directly toward one of the dormitory windows of the Gryffindor tower. Rose did her part and broke the window before they collided. As they passed through the structure, Santana swayed with shock in a glass shard and they both rolled onto the floor of what used to be the boys' dormitory. Santana bared her teeth as she took a piece of shard from behind.

"Let me see ..." Rose quickly examined her colleague.

"It was nothing."

"But you're bleeding. Two minutes of a little pressure and .. "

"Rose..."

Santana caught the attention of her colleague when they saw teenagers entering the room. It was boys and girls who seemed to be between 12 and 17 years old, that is, the age of any regular student. The difference was that they had tired countenances. Some had bruises and wounds. Others had torn clothes and were dirty. One of them approached the two young women, a 15-year-old with Indian features and hair in a military court.

"You came back! Amelia said you'd go back and you're back!"

"What's going on here?" Santana was surprised. The week before, the students didn't look so desperate.

"I know you." Rose interrupted Santana and approached the boy. "You are Parvati Patil's son. Your father is a muggle and they live in Leeds, right?"

"Yes."

"Parvati... I don't believe it! I've lived with your aunt for the past few months." Santana said again. "Padma is with the refugees along with Longbottom. She talked about her sister and her nephews. Sorry for not recognizing you."

"That's okay." The boy nodded sheepishly.

"What happened here?" Rose asked. "This tower should be sealed and abandoned."

"Yes, it should be..." The boy replied amid other onlookers. "It's just that we needed a place to take refuge. We try to resist and give change after your visit. But they were stronger."

"Where Amelia James is?" Santana asked.

"She's stuck in the dungeons."

"Did you come here to take Hogwarts back?" Asked a light-haired girl who seemed to be the same age as Parvati Patil's son.

"In part. There is a war beyond the barrier. That's where I should go after getting what I need."

"What do you need?" Padma's nephew asked.

"The Gryffindor sword," Santana replied.

"It only shows up for a Gryffindor in need. Not to mention no one has seen her since the second wizarding war. No one knows where it is."

"There are no more Gryffindors at Hogwarts, either," said a girl who seemed to be younger.

"Do you believe this?" Santana argued more emphatically. "I am a Gryffindor who was forced to stay in Slytherin because of political issues from people who interfered in my life from an early age. Who guarantees that you all aren't in the same situation? Or some of you? They have eliminated Gryffindor's house, which doesn't mean that there are no more born Gryffindors. And if some of you are here talking to us without running to sound alarms for being intruders, well, that proves my point."

"Okay, suppose you're right. Yet we don't know where the sword is. How do we find it?"

"Let's hope the magic works. And may the sword accept our cause as righteous."

...

It wasn't that difficult to walk in a castle at night without being seen. While some students had some flexibility to come and go, most of them had to be in theirs dorms at that time. Still, it was uncomfortable for Santana and Rose to wander around the castle wary of any noise or shadow. They wore the school's robe just to be sure. Santana wore Slytherin's, which made her comfortable, for it was the outfit she'd worn with pride for years. Rose wore a robe borrowed from a Hufflepuff student. She didn't care about that.

They knew deep down that game had little chance of success. That they probably couldn't find the sword before someone got caught and bared their teeth. They needed more time. That's why the plans changed. Rose entered the potions room and mixed some ingredients while Santana stayed on guard.

"I'm not sure if this will work, Lopez. It sounds crazy."

"The sword need to find you, and you do need time and a situation. I'll give one."

"He will kill you."

"I know." Santana sighed. "But this is our last trick. My last one. I'm tired, Weasley. We are all exhausted. This has to end here. Old men can settle the politics later."

Rose nodded. She finished the potion and put it in a sealed vial. They left the sneaky room in the darkness of Hogwarts Castle. They wanted to be doing different things. Santana dreamed of being with Lily, but she had an urgent job to do.

"Here's the precise room." Santana sighed through the pitch of the corridors of the castle, where only a sparse torch provided some light in the early hours of the morning. "We need to separate now."

"I will do my best, but…" Rose frowned when Santana stopped the sentence in the middle. She watched as she reached into the back pocket of her pants and took the galleon. "Lopez? What happened this time? "

"Your father and the others are on the way. We don't have much time." She said quietly.

"We can stay here. Fight here."

"I didn't want to have a fight at Hogwarts. It's not fair to bring the war once more to this place."

"What are you going to do? I mean, there's still time to abort everything. You can go stay with Lily and your daughter."

"On the contrary. I can't allow my daughter to live in this fascist world. I have to end this here and now. That's why you have to go and stick with the new plan."

"Good luck." Rose walked away from Santana.

The chosen one still watched her colleague disappear down the hall. She sighed and let a tear trickle down her face. It gave the right to stay emotional for a minute and a minute only. Then she wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and stared at the wall in front of her. A door came out like magic. Santana crossed it and smiled as she reviewed the old room where she spent hours and hours training first with Albus Potter and then with the people who would come to form the Order of Hippogriff.

She sat on the floor in an Indian position and waited.

...

Marley took the burning galleon and shivered in her pocket. She frowned as she checked the message. She thought something was wrong.

"What is it?" Mike approached when he noticed his friend's worried face.

"Change of plans."

"What?" Mike reacted disproportionately to the news. "How do they change plans? This one was very reasonable. Why change the plans?"

Marley looked once more at the galleon. There was a new message and then she looked towards the castle. There was a little more movement near the entrance bridge.

"We'll have to call the others."

...

Santana stood up calmly when she heard the first shock against the wall. She held her ebony wand and prepared herself. When the wall gave way to an explosion, the chosen one engaged in a force field, shifting the shrapnel away from her body. She put a fake smile on her face and stared at the group that entered the room. There was the headmaster and some of the teachers and even recognized one of the students who occupied the ruins of Gryffindor. She waved to the teenager.

"There's always a traitor." she said to herself.

Santana attacked with all her strength and ability. She knew at least one thing about the siege: that she wouldn't be killed there. They needed to capture her alive for Evans to kill her as a public spectacle. This would be crucial if he could assert authority and stifle the series of riots in the United Kingdom, since Europe had almost taken over again. Samuel needed a symbolic political feat. Without the "hippogriff," the international alliance that sealed off Britain would give them time for renegotiations.

Santana would have fun while she could. It was not going to be easy.

"Expelliarmus!"

"Levicorpus!"

"Stupeffy!"

"Fulgari!"

"Stupor!"

Santana heard all sorts of spells being conjured against her, but not any unforgivable curse, witch confirmed her point. She was able to divert them all. She knew that she had full powers to provoke a surge of energy capable of overthrowing all opponents, but she wouldn't. It wasn't part of the plan to win there. Santana flew over the teachers and tried to reach the destroyed wall. She managed to overthrow two teachers with counter-spells and ran down the aisle until she was hit by the back. The impact threw her forward and Santana lost consciousness even before her body hit the ground. That's it.

...

Anna Martel looked out the window and saw the strangely moving in Hogsmeade as the first rays of the sun set in the rainy autumn of northern Scotland. The villagers and shopkeepers of the little wizard village were headed down the main boulevard drawn by the hustle and bustle of Hogwarts. Still uncertain, the owl-mail administrator rushed off to talk to Clara Hamilton, who worked at the sporting goods store.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Lopez was caught at Hogwarts. Evans is on his way."

"He'll kill her," Anna said with a sigh to the woman who knew she sympathized with the rebellious cause, but who didn't have the courage to go to the front.

"At least this war will come to an end," the girl said wistfully.

"It will be?"

"We need to get on with our lives." The woman finished and walked into the store. I wouldn't want to be in the crossfire.

...

Santana had her fists tied with her arms back behind her. She was on her knees looking toward the school entrance bridge where she could see a small crowd approaching. Of course, that asshole would want to do that at Hogwarts. The way the group moved showed that the protective field around the school had fallen, which for her was a good sign. It was early in the morning at the time it was possible to see the brightness of the star rising from behind the mountains that surrounded the castle. Beside Santana were the headmaster and some of the teachers. Behind her were the students, including the rebels. Some apprehensive, others eager to see the final show.

Samuel approached with the next death eaters, led by Noah Puckerman. The moment had come.

"Finally." Evans paused in front of his opponent and pointed his powerful wand at Santana, the tip a few inches from her face. "It would be so simple. It's tempting, but that's not how I'm going to beat you."

Samuel signaled to the Hogwarts' headmaster, who handed him the ebony wand. He took the object with a little contempt. He quickly scanned the material and wrapped the wand in both hands, which proved to be sturdier than normal.

"It was you who did it? Not that it really matters. I'm just curious."

"It was a gift," Santana replied, trying to control her own emotion. For her plan to continue to work, she needed to play.

"Interesting." Samuel threw the wand in Santana to humiliate and belittle her. "You can take your wand, Lopez. You'll need it if you want to survive five minutes."

It was an invitation to a duel. Of course Samuel couldn't murder her in cold blood, because that would demoralize him. It was a lesson he learned from Voldemort. No, he had a controlled situation there. He thought he had crushed the rebellion in England by having the camp attacked. There wasn't much help left for Santana. And even if there was, he had the contingent's own elite waiting for any surprise attack attempt. In many ways, that was the final line that the prophecy referred to. It would be Samuel's affirmation as the dictator of the region of the planet with the greatest magical energy.

Santana wiggled her fingers and the wand flew to her hand tied back. In a rapid movement, she managed to free herself and got up already prepared for the duel.

"If I die..." she tried to speak.

"Don't worry, Lopez, your death will be a blessing. You won't even be here to witness the end of your lineage."

Santana's chest filled with fury. She was willing to give her life, but Samuel had just made it clear that Rachel and her newborn daughter would be next. He would not stop with both. Who would be next? The Potters? The Weasleys? The Longbottons? The Scamanders? Quinn? No, Samuel was addicted not only to political and financial power. He wanted the power to decide between life and death.

Santana was the first to attack.

"Expelliarmus."

It was a correct stroke, well applied, but the wand remained in Samuel's hands. He smiled.

"You're not as strong as they say." Samuel scoffed.

"Everete Statum."

Samuel was surprised by a very strong shock wave that threw him backwards, even going to make a somersault on the ground. Santana smiled when she saw that her opponent was frightened. As if long ago no one had affected him that way.

"Then you're still bleeding," Santana said as she saw Samuel's flayed hand from shock and friction with the ground.

"Avada Kedavra!" Samuel attacked with hatred, but Santana defended herself, causing the powerful green energy to be divided and diverted from the tip of her wand.

There was a commotion in which witnessed the duel: part of the villagers, students and teachers of Hogwarts, as well as Samuel's elite guard. Santana was the first person to be able to defend herself against the fatal curse by Samuel since he built his own wand.

That's when Harry Potter and his army along with the order of the hippogriff arrived. Just in time.

"The joke is over," Samuel shouted.

Harry Potter attacked Samuel just to get his attention. The first chosen one stood beside his daughter-in-law and faced Samuel.

"What are your orders, Lopez?" Harry told Santana.

"It ends here."

It was the order for the great direct confrontation between the two groups to finally begin. Many of them had their own questions to solve. Glory Watson, for example, was fighting bravely against minions and eyeing Noah Puckerman, who raped her during the first world cup of school Quidditch. There was also Rachel and Finn fighting side by side, Albus and Scorpius repeating the old partnership, Marley, Mike and Teddy Lupine working together. Some of the students, especially the older ones, reacted in favour of the Order, turning to their classmates who were their repressors inside the school. The older ones also fought: Ron Weasley with his brothers, nephew daughters and nieces contributed to the duel.

International forces were also there, signaling to Samuel and the Allied allies that that story would come to an end.

Glory finally stared at Puckerman.

"Do you remember me?" She asked with fire in her eyes and chewed in her mouth.

"Of course. It was the worst blow job I ever got. "

"Sectumsempra," Glory conjured up the attack that was rarely used by a wizard. Puck fell and screamed as he felt the various cuts being opened in his own flesh. "Just die, monster," Glory said as she passed Puckerman and moved on into the battle, leaving the terror of her life behind him, dying of bleeding.

Rachel was a fabulous duelist. Finn, who for years received training from Neville Longbottom, was also very skilled. They found a maddened Amber Nox ahead. The death eater was about to interfere in the central duel, but Rachel was faster and pushed her before she had a chance to conjure an unforgivable curse on Santana's back.

"Watch out little girl. You don't know who you're getting into."

"If you get near her, I'll kill you!" Rachel raged.

But it was Nox who struck first, causing a stunning energy to hit Rachel's chest, making her fall to the ground with shortness of breath. Finn took the lead, facing the experienced witch. He popped the window of the castle and conjured up for several objects to fly toward the witch. Without being able to divert all, Nox was hit right in the head by the largest and most heavy encyclopedia on the inventions of the British muggles from the legend of King Arthur. The death eaters fainted, which allowed Finn to go to Rachel.

"Are you ok?"

"Just very sore." Finn helped Rachel to her feet.

"You should..."

Finn didn't finish the sentence. He was hit by green energy and fell on top of Rachel. He was dead. Rachel despaired of the situation. Her husband was dead. She didn't stop calling him by name, but Finn didn't answer. He had already gone. In the blurred field of vision, she saw none other than Netunus Black. The young man who once sympathized with Santana and the rebels, began to hate them after being held prisoner for weeks by Juan Lopez. It ruined him inside the Ministry of Magic. Killing Finn Hudson for him didn't represent anything. But beneath Hudson's body was a tearful, desperate, helpless Rachel Berry. That would be an important death he could boast about. After Rachel, he would drink wine with Kurt Hummel, who offered him food, water, among other things, while in captivity. They were both close.

Before Netunus could conjure up the unforgivable curse, someone struck him with pieces of broken glass. Netunus, wounded, had no choice but to take refuge. Athena Milles pulled Finn off Rachel and helped her to her feet.

"Finn..."

"Fight now and cry later," the Auror said harshly. "Your sister is holding Evans all this time and I don't know how. If she is not weakening, you can't either."

Even if the international side was stronger, important allies fell during the battle. Heidi Macavoy, Anya Caulfield and Greil Thomas succumbed. But the death that would be most felt, besides Finn Hudson, would be Mike Chang's. He died as a result of an iron bar that was stuck in his chest during the crossfire. He wasn't the target. The bar found him when Albus Potter turned away from the object thrown at him. There was nothing to do.

In the central fight, Samuel took Harry Potter out of the duel by hitting the other chosen one with a strong blow, leaving Santana staring at him alone.

"Expelliarmus!" Samuel said in a moment of disregard for Santana.

Santana reached for her wand to get back to her, but Samuel deflected the route from the object, which was eventually destroyed in the air. Santana had to protect her face, yet a splinter of her wand wounded her arm. It was a toothpick-sized wood that entered the flesh of her right arm. Santana took the wood out of her body and stared at Samuel. She was without a wand, tired, and he still had the Horcrux wand that obeyed him like a faithful dog.

In Samuel's first attack, Santana defended herself with her free hands. The impact was so strong that she was sure that some of the bones of her hand were displaced. Another attack from Samuel, and Santana needed a great deal of effort to stay safe without a wand.

"It's over, Lopez!" Samuel smiled with satisfaction. "I'm going to kill you so slowly, you'll come to the other side traumatized, begging for mercy. Your mother died in no time. She didn't even know what hit her. But your father... oh, I had fun with your father before I cut off his head to give you as a gift. Do you want to know what he felt?"

Another attack that made Santana defend herself with conjuring wandless protection. No matter how extraordinary her ability to conjure complex spells without needing the wand, the warning she received from the teachers was true: it was highly tiring, and the physical wastage unavoidable. One more attack, one more defense and Santana fell to the ground in the middle of the main courtyard. Samuel smiled and pointed his wand at his own neck.

"My friends, you are privileged to witness here the beginning of an era when we wizards may be sovereign in our own world. One era when a pure wizard will no longer be subjugated by an inferior mudblood wizard. We will no longer accept orders from such people. It is the era that we will no longer have Hermione Grangers commanding our society nor a gay half-blood like this girl as the chosen one. It's time everyone knew what we know. That these people are, in fact, symbols of repression. Symbols of our repression. That ends now."

When Samuel turned his body to turn against Santana again, he was struck in the face by a bird.

A hawk.

Samuel screamed in pain. One of the hawk's claws struck his left eye. After the surprise attack, some death eaters pointed their wands towards the fleeing bird, but the allies gave cover to the small animal, restarting some of the confrontations.

In the midst of the new crossfire, Rose Granger-Weasley (under the effect of the polyjuice potion) ran through Samuel's back, drawing a sword from within the death eater robe. She seized the unique opportunity she would have and struck the wand with the Gryffindor sword. The explosion caused by the Horcrux threw her body, Santana's and all the people close to Samuel because of the powerful impact. There was a momentary silence. As the smoke dissipated, Ezra Goyle knelt down to the faithful friend, whose side of his face was bleeding and visibly dazed. The same thing happened on the other side. Rachel ran to her sister's side.

"Expelliarmus!" Someone came from inside the castle. She conjured loudly, for attention. She was a beautiful woman who was almost completely naked. Quinn Fabray, wearing a Hogwarts robe she was loaned, was commanding a small group of animagus.

"Now!" She shouted.

Suddenly, other people rushed out into the arena. It was ordinary people, the population tired of being exploited and coerced, attacking the death eaters and allies with everything they had. But Samuel was also very well protected.

"Can you walk?" Rachel asked as she managed to help her sister through the crossfire.

"I feel like throwing up..." Santana said groggily. "My legs are soft and my hands..." Shee said and actually vomited almost on top of her sister. Santana was trembling.

Rachel glanced sideways, hugged her sister behind her armpits, and dragged her into the castle and as far as possible from the confusion. A death eater was on the way. Rachel knocked her sister to the ground and pointed her wand against the attacker. The first blow was missed and the following was defended. She was surprised when the death eater was attacked by a second person. It was Ron Weasley, who was running to get his brother-in-law, Harry Potter, off the scene before he was killed by an opportunist. Rachel nodded gratefully and turned back to her sister.

"That was close." Rachel commented as she found a more secluded spot and sat down next to her sister.

"I need to stop this..."

"You're going to be a hero in a bit. Now, rest for five minutes, okay? You can't stand up! I'll protect you."

While Santana was completely drained of energy for the amount of time she needed to sustain the barrier of protection horribilis, Samuel looked like a rabid dog. With his face dirty with his own blood and dust, he took the wand of an ally and began to attack everyone in front of him. He proved that even without the instrument itself, he was still a highly trained and powerful wizard.

"You won't get through!" To everyone's surprise, it was James Potter who stepped in front of the Dark One. Rachel took advantage of the cover and ran with Santana to a more sheltered place.

"I don't know if it's my bad eye, but for a moment I thought Harry Potter's cowardly son was willing to face me." James held himself in place, causing Samuel to make a false laugh. "What was that, Potter? You're the loser one. That you thought you would be a Quidditch star, like your cousin, and turned out to be nothing. A cowardly idiot who has chosen to live on another continent putting refugees on a train. Do you really think you can face me? You're nothing!"

James attacked first and was surprised that the coup was easily deflected by Samuel. The compromised view should compromise him with notions of depth, which he should fail to see from a certain angle. James should have a theoretical edge, but that wasn't what was happening. He was having trouble restraining Samuel's attacks: quick and precise. Worst of all, Samuel seemed to enjoy himself.

"Destruccio." Samuel conjured and managed to break James's nose, which brought his hand to his face because of the pain. "Destruccio," Samuel repeated, this time breaking his arm, which caused James's wand to fall. "Destruccio."

It was James's leg breaking, causing him to lose his balance and fall to the floor, banging his head against the parapet of the bridge.

"Get it over with," James said with the courage he had left.

"Destruccio." Samuel pointed his wand at the other leg. "Destruccio." The arm was still good. "Destruccio." He pointed to the rib cage. "Desdruccio." He pointed at the neck.

Samuel left James dead body on the ground. He looked around and was worried to realize that the death eaters were at a disadvantage. The death eaters were suffering to maintain their position. Albus and Scorpius did their best against the more experienced duelists. Albus hadn't even realized what happened to his older brother. But Rose was there. She screamed for the pain of seeing her dead cousin and tried to attack Samuel with the Gryffindor sword, but she was struck and flung away.

Marley was fighting the Hogwarts headmaster. Being able to cope and even gain some advantage showed how well she was prepared. Ron, in turn, was upset. He saw his nephew fall and wasn't holding on. It was the pain of the loss of the son who was revived. Rachel continued to see the duels between students and the explosions that occurred while protecting Santana. They were at the main room, where no one was. The point is she wouldn't be able to hold their position for long.

Samuel advanced toward the great hall. He knew Santana was in a vulnerable position. It was the best chance he would have to liquidate a person who was more powerful than he, especially when he no longer had the horcrux, the wand that was his conquest in a position of privilege in the Order of the Pure.

He killed a person he loved. As much as Brittany loved Santana first, and as much as he, Samuel, was obsessed with Quinn Fabray, he loved Brittany. That was the condition for the victim's choice: love. He attracted Brittany, made it easy for her to be hurt by the relationship between Santana and Lily, strangled her, killed her and plucked her heart. He dissected the muscle and at the right time performed the second stage of object construction. He cut an alder, the tree whose wood he chose to be great for unverified spells and for his loyalty to the owner. He killed a thestral. He went to Romania, killed a dragon with exquisite cruelty to make sure the animal would suffer using only a sword - a step that mentor Zabini never managed to complete and eventually gained the scars that made him become a recluse.

Samuel irrigated the dissected heart and wood in the blood of the mighty animal with his own and ate part of his own flesh in a macabre ritual. He formatted his own wand, then sent Henry Ollivander to sculpt to satisfy his own vanity. So the horcrux was made. The piece held a part of his own soul. Now that it had been destroyed, he felt he had nothing more to lose.

"You won't go one step further." Rose, already without the potion's effect, stepped in front of the mighty wizard, challenging him to a duel.

"Weasley. I'll love to shed your mudblood."

"No you won't." Scorpius stood side by side with his girlfriend to face the dark lord.

Samuel smiled and with an emphatic wave of wand, caused a shock wave that knocked the couple down, hurling their bodies back yards. There was an intensification in the movement of the bridge. The battle spread through the patios and internal spaces. One could see some spreading the duels up outside the castle.

Among the people who were fighting duels around the castle was Draco Malfoy. Draco had reached a peculiar refinement as a duelist. As a healer, Malfoy made some oaths about the code of ethics of the profession, but that was a war, after all. Probably the last great battle in a century. Instead of bombardments and stupefaction, he used hexes that left his opponent out of combat without seriously injuring him. It made some agents stand with their legs soft, unbalanced, unconscious. The duels didn't go unnoticed by the villagers, especially by Anna Martel. She followed the fearsome agents and saw that one of them was going to attack Draco from behind and decided to act.

"Stupefy," she said, saving Draco's life.

In the meantime, Harry Potter was awaken despite being very injured. Still, he was willing to wipe out Samuel Evans with the same pain the dark wizard had inflicted on his eldest son. It was as if many of the parallel duels were stopped just to see the clash. Samuel smiled and attacked, being blocked by Potter. They paused for a moment. Potter winked at Samuel to challenge the young man. Samuel began a sequence of attacks in which he varied the unverified commands of stupefaction, confringo, and expulsion. Harry, always on the defensive for now, managed to block everyone.

Samuel caused some wreckage in the castle results of other duels to fly against the elder wizard, but these were diverted. Samuel was losing his temper. Potter was making a fool of himself before an audience and that was unacceptable. Tired of playing fair, or as clean as he could. He began another round of attacks on Harry, more furiously, forcing the Auror chief to take several steps back. Harry was also trying to attack, but he didn't expect Samuel to be so skilful at that time of events. Much more than he ever dreamed of being younger.

Smiling at the advantage he knew he had made, Samuel decided to make the duel more interesting and turned one of Harry Potter's attacks directly to Albus. He saw the other son fall to the ground and completely disengaged from the duel, being hit in the chest by a strong confringo. He fell unconscious and blood quickly spilled through his white shirt beneath his thick coat.

Samuel approached the old man and looked at the others who had stopped fighting, too perplexed by the scene.

"It's about time your generation left this world. Avada Kedavra!"

The spell bounced off, narrowly missing a ravenclaw student. Samuel looked up to see the source of the protection that saved Harry Potter. Santana was on her feet.

"I thought you wouldn't come back to the party."

"I needed to breathe for 30 seconds." Santana replied without really putting humour in the sentence.

"I see we're on an equal footing now." Samuel said sideways, forcing Santana to do the same, and thereby opening a larger circle for themselves, like a human ring. "Ironic we come to this stage without our wands. Yours from filthy Griffin's and mine made with the dissected heart of Brittany Pierce."

Santana didn't know. She could suspect and speculate that Brittany's killer was Samuel Evans. Until then that was a mystery she chose not to invest. Or didn't even have time and opportunity. Anyway, that shocked her. As much as she loved Lily, body and soul, and as much as she loved Quinn Fabray, Brittany would always have a place reserved for being her first love and girlfriend. It shocked even more that he had the ability to transform Brittany, or her heart, as a constituent part of a Horcrux. How could he turn something luminous into a piece of darkness? Santana was mad at him.

"What is it, Lopez? You should be happy. The death of our first love was cleared. Different from what happened to your father. Or how I raped your lover for days in every possible way simply because I could."

"Shut up!" Santana cried out, her vision blurred with tears.

"What? I have to celebrate my victory."

"You didn't get any shit."

"No?" Samuel smiled. "If I kill you, I'm going to kill your child, I'm going to rape your wife and your sister, I'm going to eradicate Potters and Weasleys from this world just for pleasure. If I die by your hands, yet the victory is mine because I will have marked your soul permanently."

"I'll pay the price!" Santana squeezed Rachel's wand in her hands, despite the terrible pain she felt, and attacked with everything she had.

It was Samuel's turn to erect a barrier around him to protect himself from the impact. The attack was so strong that their feet slid onto the dusty floor. Santana knew that even physically exhausted, she was stronger and more skilled than Samuel. That she had special abilities. She didn't deny this fact to herself. But it was just such abilities that made her have to try harder not to succumb to her own pride and arrogance. Was Samuel right? Was that a lost fight regardless of the outcome? Santana attacked with violence and didn't allow the opponent to do anything other than defend himself.

As Santana struck, she came closer and closer to the other. Until she managed to disarm Samuel. Not with expelliarmus: it was with a kick in the hand of the supremacist when she approached physically in a moment of imbalance of the opponent, then gave him a kick that made Samuel fall on his back, completely surprised by the combination of magic and physical strength he hadn't imagined that a six-foot-six-inch girl was capable.

Samuel knelt down and faced Santana standing in front of him with Rachel's wand pointed at his face. She was panting and he was fearful for his own life for the first time in a long time.

It was just two words. Two small words and everything would be done. Two words. Avada Kedavra. Simple command and will. Nothing more, two words. Will. Two words and a green light would emerge from the end of that wand. Instant death. Painless. Clean death. Two words. Will and nothing else. Two words. A command. A will and everything would be solved. Two words.

Samuel killed Brittany, made her an orphan, raped Quinn. He was going to kill everyone she loved. It wasn't just a question of power. It was personal. It had to be done. It was necessary to feel like it.

There were no more duels around. There was silence. Expectancy. Wait. It was as if time was moving so slowly that it was possible to observe in detail the flapping of a pixie's wings. Santana pointed her wand, Samuel was waiting, waiting.

"Stupefy," Santana conjured, leaving Samuel unconscious.

She looked around. That part of the castle wasn't badly damaged by the duels, there were people on the ground and she didn't know if they were alive or dead. They were as much agents and death eaters as students and allies of the resistance. Nobody moved.

"Lock that guy up." Santana said particularly to Athena and the ex-Aurors who had allied with the resistance. "May he and his partners be judged appropriately."

"Don't count on it." Ezra Goyle screamed and stepped through the little confusion that settled between some death eaters who rushed out to try to escape. He pointed his wand at Santana.

"Avada Kedavra!" Ezra Goyle was struck in came by the unforgivable curse before he could conjure it in Santana. The chosen one turned toward the wizard and saw Quinn Fabray pointing her wand.

"Quinn..." Santana said softly.

"Says a very good reason why I shouldn't do your job with this one too!"

"Wasn't piercing his eye enough?"

"No, I did it to save you. Now I'm going to do something for me."

"Then let me save you now." Santana approached her best friend. "This guy doesn't deserve our mercy." She reached Quinn without touching her. "This death, this righteousness with his own hands is his mercy and our ruin. Our work is done."

"If you put him in Azkaban, he will escape and will do it all over again. Are you going to risk the life of your daughter, of all, because you can't say the words? It's your responsibility, Lopez. Yours!"

"I know. And I'm taking responsibility now. I can't do that, Quinn. Evans was right. If I kill him that way, intentionally, my soul breaks down and he wins. If you kill him, the same thing happens. He has abused your body and will still stay with your soul. Don't let that happen. Do not let him win."

Santana took her best friend's hand and held it carefully and cautiously. Quinn seemed to relax her body a little. She lifted her hand to Santana's face and kissed her on the lips. It was a brief kiss, but full of meaning.

"You were the only person I could love." Quinn whispered to Santana.

"I know. That's why I can't let you do this."

In a subtle movement with Santana's wand, it was Quinn who was unconscious. Santana trimmed Quinn's fall and placed her gently on the floor. Meanwhile Samuel awakened. He took advantage of the moment when Santana was turned away, taking care of Quinn, to reach the wand. Samuel wasn't subtle. He grabbed his wand, pointed it at Santana, even without the precision, and spoke the two unforgivable words.

"Santana!" Rachel shouted in the distance.

It was a moment of tension, when the green ray that came out of the end of the wand failed to reach the target, and returned, striking the offender himself.

Santana calmly turned to Samuel, lying on the floor, lifeless. She stood up, walked five paces to the opponent, and watched him. He was paler than before, his eyes wide, his expression frightened. Was this the reflection of death in someone who sold his own soul in search of power? Santana looked once more at Samuel dead body and thought that when her time came, she would be serene, happy to have fulfilled the mission on Earth.

"How?" Rachel asked when she finally reached her sister. "I saw him shoot."

As it was said, Samuel wasn't at all subtle, which allowed for Santana's anticipation. She dropped Rachel's wand and non-verbally conjured protego horriblis. Without the wand, the spell can't be directed, causing the energy to surround her body. What no one could have predicted, not even Santana, was the mirror effect, which made the unforgivable curse fatal to ricocheting back to Samuel himself. It wasn't something new, though. The world had known that protegos could take on a mirror effect when, over 40 years ago, Lilian Potter used her own body as a shield to protect her son. This was made possible by a fundamental ingredient: love.

Unlike the opponent, Santana was filled with love.

...

Ron Weasley and Santana Lopez disappeared at Hermione Granger's cousin's stud farm three hours after the events that had taken place at Hogsmeade. Both were in a pitiful state: skin and clothes soiled with blood, soot and dirt. They both stank. They both looked like they were going to collapse at any moment. Both had open wounds in some part of the body. They were both sad, even if victorious.

"Where's Harry?" Ginny ran into her brother's arms. She was thrilled to know the nightmare was over. But Ron brought her sister the worst news he could for a mother. James was dead and Harry was badly injured. Her son was dead. Her James.

Ginny collapsed.

Minutes later, Albus, Rose and Rachel disappeared at the stud farm. The feeling was conflicting. There was the relief of victory, the joy of a new birth, but the sadness of mourning. James Potter, Mike Chang, and Finn Hudson were just a few of the names that would be on the war casualties memorial.

Santana searched the room where Lily and her daughter were. She found them with some ease, for that house wasn't so large or sophisticated. She opened and closed the door so her girlfriend wouldn't witness the commotion that was happening in front of the house.

"I knew you'd do it." Lily smiled.

"I came as soon as I could."

Santana approached the bed, but was afraid to touch Lily or the child, given her physical state that was. Her body ached completely, especially her hands and arms. Santana hardly knew how she was still standing.

"She's beautiful." Santana smiled at the baby. "You were great, Lily. Thank you."

"Thanks for leaving this alive and... almost in one piece."

Santana laughed and grunted at the pain that laughter could cause at that moment.

"You chose her name?"

"I thought of a name, but I wanted to hear you first. What about Clarie Shelby Potter-Lopez?"

"How about Clarie Marie Potter-Lopez?"

"You're really reluctant to pay homage to your mother."

"On the contrary, Lil. We both have Marie as our middle name, and it would be an honour if our daughter continued the tradition."

"Clarie Marie Potter-Lopez sounds perfect." Lily smiled.

Santana knelt beside the bed.

"A perfect name for such a perfect little girl. I can't believe we did it, Lil. The muggles are right: this is surreal."

"Sometimes I don't even believe you had the nerve to drink that potion."

"I would do it again, Lil. For you, I would do it again."

"Come here."

Lily kissed Santana's chastened lips.

"How was there?"

Santana sighed.

"San, what is it?"

"Lil, I need to tell you something."

...

(THREE YEARS LATER)

Santana took the Daily Prophet who had entered through the fireplace. The headline was about the award of the British magic minister Hermione Granger to the International Confederation of Wizards for the fight against extremist advances. She received the award from the hands of Adila Amandi, who became Angola's ambassador. The story drew attention to how strong the minister survived the exile, the death of a son and her husband (Ron Weasley died six months later the last battle due to a heart attack caused by a cancer discovered too late to be treated). There was other news that sparked some interest from Santana, such as the construction of the war memorial coordinated by Hannah Longbottom. The museum had an educational purpose and would bring not just objects and photographs, but a whole structure for events. Santana had signed an authorization to have the image placed in the museum. It was an honour to have her picture as the last of a line of heroes protagonists, like Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Sirius Black and Harry Potter. The point is that Santana didn't feel she really deserved it. There was a mix of opinions about what happened. Some admired her that she had tried to be merciful, others criticized her for not having the courage to kill directly. Technically, Harry Potter didn't kill Voldemort either.

Harry Potter barely survived the double blow he took from Samuel. He was hospitalized for weeks and underwent surgery to stop internal bleeding. His hospitalization was nowhere near mourning the loss of James Potter. The war profoundly affected the ex-chosen one. He became a bitter subject, turned away from the surviving wife and children due to depression. He blamed himself constantly for not being able to save his son, because it was the least he could do. Harry didn't like family gatherings because he could not stand being in Santana's presence. He didn't blame her directly, but he remembered the entire time James died trying to save the current chosen one. Ginny suffered from this, but she had no choice but to go back to her own life. She returned to the career of a sports journalist and had become an cute grandmother. Ginny was proud to say that she was the grandmother of two grandchildren and another on the way. She was referring to little Clarie, little James Jr., son of James, and Marley Rose's pregnancy was announced a few weeks ago. Marley and Albus Potter tightened their bonds of friendship after the war and ended up becoming romantically involved.

"San, help me out here with Clarie."

Santana set the paper on the table and went into the kitchen. Clarie Marie Potter-Lopez had done some damage with breakfast. The little girl had spread papaya, milk and cereal on the floor.

"When are you going to learn how to eat like normal people?" Santana lightly pinched her daughter's cheek before picking her up.

"Clean her up while I sort this out," Lily ordered without much thought. It was more or less the routine of the house.

"Yes ma'am."

"We need to get dressed fast or we'll be late."

"I know."

"She'll never forgive us if we're late."

"I know," Santana said louder as she wiped a wet towel over her daughter's face. "We need to change that outfit, Clarie. Do you have any idea what you want to wear? "

The little girl went to the wardrobe and pointed to the Frozen costume. Santana had to admit that she was responsible for that, as she succumbed to the properties a cartoon had to make a child quiet for a few minutes. She saw Frozen so many times with Clarie, who lost count.

"Elsa again?" Lily frowned when she saw her wife and daughter again after working the kitchen floor.

"I know... it's my fault."

"You shouldn't do her will every time, San."

"I know Lil, but look? Clarie doesn't look cute dressed as a queen?"

"It's better to change, San. Some people may feel offended."

"But Elsa is a queen with magic powers!"

"Created by Muggles."

"Let it go!"

Santana gave in to Lily's arguments, not least because the wife was right. There was every effort to balance the yearning for the European population of wizards, especially the British, after the war. Whether she wanted to or not, she had to take into account many of the conservative longings to strike a balance. The war was still fresh in everyone's memory. If Santana turns up with her daughter dressed as a Disney princess at an event with the press there, it would surely spark unnecessary gossip. They got ready for the engagement. Lily chose a knee-high grená dress and opted for a pointed hat. It was the costume of an executive witch. From the ease she had with potions, and from the experience of life, Lily was specializing and healing potions. She worked at St. Mungo's hospital, and was already talking about studying for six months in Russia to specialize her skills.

"I hate it." Santana complained as she put the Puddlemere United's robe around her black dress. "It's not even an official event. I don't know why I have to wear it every time."

"Because you're the biggest star on the team and signed a contract." Lily kissed her wife's face. "Don't complain. You always wanted a career playing Quidditch."

"It even sounds like your mother talking."

"If I earned your salary, I'd even wear the Puddlemere panties at any time."

"You can wear Puddlemere panties tonight, if you want."

"Santana... Clarie in the area."

"She won't call. She doesn't understand these things. "

"For a while."

Lily and Santana exchanged a passionate kiss on the lips, picked up the little girl, and left the house. They lived in a house in Basingstoke, England, in a suburban neighborhood with lawn and a car in the garage. Santana and Lily usually fly on their brooms, or catch the Knight Bus or even simply apparated to go to work. But when little Clarie went out with them, they preferred to use the good old muggle transport, especially the train and the subway. The car was very little used. It was usually Lily who drove it to shop at the town's grocery store, or leave the little girl in the nursery.

The journey to London by train took almost an hour. All for the safety of the little girl. They walked the streets of London to Diagon Alley. Santana smiled and waved to the team's fans and to the press on the way to the theater. They entered the small place with the capacity for up to 300 people and went to the dressing rooms. Santana saw her sister nervously, pacing back and forth.

"Rach!" She took her sister's hand.

"San, it's good that you have arrived. I'm so nervous."

Rachel wanted everything to be perfect. She had invested almost all the money she inherited from her mother and grandmother to buy a small building in Diagon Alley. Rachel reformed it and transformed it into a theater school that would finally be inaugurated that day. She planned a few numbers with Marley Rose and Kurt Hummel for the premiere and at that moment needed to control her nerves. Rachel picked up her goddaughter and hugged her.

"My lucky charm!" Rachel said, hugging and kissing the little girl's face.

"Looks like everything's in place, Rach," Lily commented. "And the bar you set up at the front desk is a charm."

"It was inspired by the off-Broadways theaters my mother used to frequent." Rachel smiled faintly. Santana nodded to her sister. That business meant so much to her.

Another half hour and the front of the theater, just like the bar and reception, was already full. The Daily Prophet's press was circulating there, in addition to the special guests for the inauguration. In addition to the Potter-Lopez family, Harry and Ginny Potter, Marley Rose and Albus Potter, Scorpius and Rose Malfoy, the Longbottoms, the Patil, the Scamanders, and a host of guests from Hogwarts, the remnants of the Order of Hippogriff and politics. Quinn Fabray came in discreetly. She greeted gracefully the acquaintances who crossed her path.

"Your other wife doesn't know what punctuality is." Lily mocked the fact that Quinn arrived just as the theater lights blinked.

Santana frowned and sighed. Lily was definitely sarcastic, but Santana couldn't say she was being ironic. It wasn't easy or simple when Santana, Lily, and Quinn reached a silent agreement about the love triangle. Santana married Lily and was happy with her, but Quinn was definitely in their lives. It was something Lily always knew would happen eventually.

"Lily." Quinn smiled falsely.

"Quinn," Lily returned in the same tone.

"Hi Clarie!" Quinn bent over to talk to the little girl, and she was genuine. Yes, even with very little contact, she liked Clarie. Quinn thought the girl was smart and intelligent, what Clarie really was.

"Explosive ice cream," the little girl said, teasing Quinn's smiles and exchanging tense glances between Lily and Santana. The chosen one would have to explain a few things later, like the fact that she and Clarie and Quinn had had explosive ice cream together the week before, over and above the fact that Lily was radically against sugaring her daughter.

"Explosive ice cream is only served on special occasions, like birthdays," Quinn explained gently.

"Well..." Santana thought it best to cut the discomfort. "You know how Rachel is. She's going to lock the door in our faces if we don't come in soon."

Quinn spent a year recovering from depression and post-war trauma. Santana played an important role in her recovery. But she wasn't the only one. Rachel and Athena were also central in Quinn's emotional and physical recovery. There was a period in that year when Quinn disappeared for three months, during which time she spent exclusively as a hawk. When Quinn was able to overcome the depression and control the anxiety attacks, Athena recruited her to the auror department, where she went on to do CSI and bureaucratic work most of the time. Quinn rarely had to get involved with direct action. The work she did to perfection gave her security and a sense of normalcy.

The relationship between Santana and Quinn was more emotional and loving than sexual. Sex did happen sometimes, because of the moment and the love they felt for each other. But it was never planned, by day and time, or forced. Lily knew that. She could count on her fingers the times when Santana and Quinn actually slept together over those three years. It wasn't easy Lily knew everything, but it wasn't the end of the world either. For Lily, it was better to have everything clear than to see things happen behind her back. Besides, Lily and Santana continued to have a good relationship. The "official" wife didn't let the sheets cool, and Santana loved Lily's adventurous and light side.

The three-way relationship had some rules, of course. Quinn didn't go to Santana and Lily's house. The encounter between the three of them only happened on occasions like that, which wasn't very easy either. Quinn didn't interfere with Santana's marriage, and Lily didn't mess with Quinn's life. Santana was an engaging wife and mother, and that was an argument in favour that the chosen one had whenever she went to London solely to be with Quinn. They're good that way.

When the lights flashed for the last time, the last guests entered the small theater, completely taken. Quinn sat down next to Marley, while Santana, Lily, and Clarie took seats ahead. Rachel went ahead of the audience, cast a spell to amplify her voice and spoke.

"My friends, dear guests, thank you for coming. Exactly three years ago, the European wizarding war ended. I can't say that I was fully involved in the struggle for freedom, but I was there in the final battle. I've seen blood spilled, dear friends perish in a soil I consider sacred. But what I saw after that was the rebirth of a society. It's been three years since the war is over, my friends. But it's been three years since wizards of all ideologies started sitting at the same table and talking about their differences. For three years, I have seen a collective effort to find a fair and balanced way to lead our society. I can say that I witnessed closely this part of the events, and what I see and our society becoming a strong and united community, with the traditional families, the half-bloods, the muggles born like me. What I have witnessed in the last three years is a rebirth. It's a rebirth that needs to be celebrated.

The last wizarding theater was closed more than 50 years ago because the school of music and dramatic arts came down with the death of the founder Elfivra Hornby. In these 50 years of absence, witches and wizards with skills for the dramatic arts were forced to leave the community itself to venture among the muggles. Many have had successful careers, but at the cost of practically living as exiles. No more. That is why we are here inaugurating this theater that is also a school that will give the opportunity of wizards and witches who want to follow what they love can do what they love without having to live as an exile. I see this theater as another step we have taken to reintegrate our society. To make it stronger. That's why I invite everyone to participate in this dream and this project with me. Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the New Directions Theater."

Rachel had to tear a tear away from her face. She was thrilled by the speech, but also by the support of so many dear friends. Rachel was also touched by the memory of an anonymous heroine, a victim of the war, who stared at her with dignity: her mother, Shelby Corcoran.

The guests saw for half an hour a brief and exciting musical performance by Rachel Berry, Marley Rose and Kurt Hummel with the special participation of Aurora Bloom on the piano. Kurt was a traitor during the war, but most of all, he was a survivor who lived to repair many of the evils he caused.

"This place looked beautiful," said one of the journalists covering the event after the presentation. Then he noticed the names being given to the classroom and theater places. Shelby Corcoran, as the stage name, and also Finn Hudson, Mercedes Jones, Blaine Anderson, Hugo Weasley, Brittany Pierce. "Why did you decide to pay homage to these people?"

"Because all these people have shared dreams with me and will never leave my heart."

Clarie became restless, causing Santana to leave the theater with her daughter. She herself preferred to take some fresh air and give her wife space to talk to friends and relatives while enjoying the cocktail. Mother and daughter walked down Diagonal Alley and looked at the window of used clothes. There was an old Quidditch uniform from Gryffindor offered for a bargain. Santana smiled. Gryffindor's house had been reopened, and things were getting back on track too at school. Nearby, the wall that led to an alley in the corner shop had posters of wanted by justice. Dolohov was the main one. Santana didn't care about them. The Aurors were sweeping the wizard temples and had discovered information about the Order of the Pure. It was a matter of time before these fugitives were caught and the Order that was behind the extremist movement fell once and for all.

The world wasn't perfect, life still had dozens of problems to solve. Well, what fun would it have been if everything were wonderful? Santana looked at Clarie and smiled. She kissed her daughter on the cheek.

"Look, Mommy. Hippogriff."

Santana looked up, watching the magical beast fly above the rooftops of the diagonal alley. It was a strange, temperamental, hybrid, but formidable being. Santana returned to the theater. She saw her family interacting. She saw Rachel being celebrated. She saw Lily talking with Marley and Albus with a smile on her face. She saw Quinn talking to the Scamanders. She watched Ginny and Hermione continue their lives despite the loss of their children. Mainly, she saw the group who were destined to maintain the stability of the wizarding world for the next hundred years. It was a tremendous responsibility. But it was how things should be.

FIM

…

Author note:

Well guys. Hope you enjoyed my last Glee fanfiction. I will hardly ever write another Glee fanfic. Never say never, but it is now the time to turn to other interests, themes, stories with other characters. Thank you to all who accompanied you. One kiss in the heart and until the next.