The rest waited. A soft...feeling swamped them, from a distance, and they heard the muted sound of voices.
Then Albus returned. He did not say much, but stood near Ariana.
They watched Harry wake up (the crowds - and Peter - gasped, confused, the gang cheered in relief and Albus looked pleased) and pretend to be dead; Voldemort took him up to the castle to gloat after Narcissa Malfoy's surprise. "Huh, so she does have some good in her," Sirius muttered.
Tonks answered, "Every loving mother does. Regardless of blood bias."
When Neville killed the snake in defiance they all cheered. "Harry's got a clear shot at Voldy now!" James exclaimed. An oldish man who looked similar to Frank Longbottom said, "You go, Nev.! Knew you were a Gryffindor! Where's Augusta watching..."
They watched as the fighters raced up into the castle again, flooding the Great Hall.
Regulus cheered loudly when he saw Kreacher leading the house-elves in the fight.
They saw Harry trying to get to Voldemort freely (they could still see him under the Cloak, a quirk of the Lake) and then were very annoyed when they saw Bellatrix nearly kill Ginny.
The curses changed to vindictive laughter when Molly Weasley began duelling her. The laughter was squashed briefly by fear, then returned again when 'Trixy' was killed at last.
Tonks triumphantly said, "Hah! I knew she'd be killed by a mother!"
The gateway opened; Lily did not turn, as she was so focused on the Lake. A few seconds later, she felt the effects of a Notice-Me-Not Charm.
They all fell silent as the Shield Charm was cast, and Harry faced Voldemort a final time. While they talked, the tension grew.
Until, finally...
The sun rose, the spells were cast, and Voldemort was finally dead. They all gasped as Harry caught the wand in his other hand.
Remus was the first to the break the silence, a large grin unfurling on his face. "Well, that's definitely going to be his trademark spell now," he remarked dryly, his words holding a double meaning only he knew of.
Then, at last, after so many months, so many years, they began laughing and cheering. In the midst of the noise, Ariana's voice broke through. "Hey Al!" the crowd turned to her, and she faltered, seeing all the faces. But she focused on those she new, especially the encouraging smiles of April, Cedric and Albus.
Ariana took a deep breath and continued, "Al, when you arrived... You – you said you'd reconsider changing your age after the war ended. It has ended now. Will you change?" She looked incredibly nervous; this was practically her first proper attempt at speaking in public (let alone in front of a large crowd), instead of just in the presence of those she completely trusted.
Albus beamed at her. "You know, Ari, I think I might." He concentrated, and suddenly Albus Dumbledore's hair and beard were auburn, and slightly shorter. He looked about forty; the only lines on his face were those from the ending of his dalliance with Grindlewald.
The people clapped and cheered.
"Party in the Great Hall!" Fabian said.
Gideon looked at Fred. "Got any fireworks on ya?"
Fred laughed. "Do w- I ever."
Lily smiled and looped her arm through James'. After everything, finally, they were free. She watched Ariana head up with April and Cedric, who were holding hands.
Nearly everyone was turning away from the Lake towards Hogwarts and the Great Hall, to celebrate and renew old friendships. It would be a time for healing, for new beginnings, even for reconciliation, perhaps, as Peter watched the Potters from a distance.
Tonks was still staring down at the Lake. She was watching her mother and her baby.
"Come on Dora." Remus said softly, pulling at her hand. He glanced into the Lake and sighed. "We can't watch forever." Though I'd love to...
Tonks turned to face him. "I know. But - but - I miss him. Mum and Teddy are just sitting waiting for us to come home, and - we won't. He'll need us and we won't be there. We won't see him grow up in all his little ways..."
"Oh Dora." Ted said, "Listen here now. You won't be there in person, but you'll be there in spirit." he looked her in the eye, "He will miss you and want you. But people will take care of him. And - look at it this way. The way I see it now, in There, people essentially wait to come and then go. But up here in On, all we have to do is wait for them to come back."
They all looked at him. "And then we'll have forever." Lily finished softly, thinking of Harry.
Albus Dumbledore smiled. "An excellent analogy, Ted." he smiled gently at Tonks and Remus. "I agree. In the meantime, all we can do is... enjoy the party." he gestured towards Hogwarts and turned to go there after giving them all a piercing twinkling look.
Tonks headed off to the castle with Remus and the other Marauder pairs. She smiled. She could tolerate watching from afar. After all, as the others had said, one day, hopefully a long day away, he'd join her.
All she had to do was wait.
Tonks paused and whispered towards the Lake, "I'll check later Teddy. Sweet dreams, little one... I'll wait for you."
In the Lake, Teddy stirred gently and tucked a small thumb into his mouth, which twitched into a tiny smile.
Ah, Remus and Tonks. Do not despair! This is P'v 1, of course, but still, there is always P'v 4. And that star. Check out the Power of Love!
Also, that extra bit about the gateway has to do with my own canon. I might write a oneshot about the meaning of it later. Though some of the more cluey of you may realise…