Dumbledore gazed at the group of Hogwarts alumni; sorrow was heavy on his heart as they made their report. Peter reported what he and Genre had found at the camp, with Remus there to confirm, mission forgotten. He reported that they had been attacked, and he had been stunned off Genre's back before they knew what was happening.

Remus alone had seen them take her. He'd tried to curse them, he cried at first. But he didn't get there in time. He sat now, tears dried on his cheeks, staring stonily into the space between Dumbledore and McGonagall. Lily still snuffled in another sob every few minutes.

"She's still alive, Remus," Dumbledore told the young man. "She's not gone forever."

"But her wand is broken," Remus muttered. His eyes were glazed over, though no one could say if it was exhaustion or shock that marred his expression.

"Her wand," Dumbledore said gently. "Not Genre."

"We'll get her back," Lily sniffled. "Right?"

"Mister and Miss Pokeby have proven to be quiet slippery, before," McGonagall said. She paused, and then added, "But then, so has Genre, I suppose. We'll all do our best to find her."

"Can I have it?" Remus asked, sounding for a moment like the child he'd once been. "Her wand? Until she comes back."

If he'd been looking at Dumbledore, he'd have seen the brief hesitation followed by a flicker of pity, but he had eyes only for the splintered wand. When Genre came back - when, not if - she would fix it. Dumbledore passed the box with the pieces of wand to Remus who clutched it to his chest like a lifeline.

Everyone else crowded close, offering what little comfort their presence could. No one wanted to say it aloud, but blame lay heavy in the air. Remus, for having left her, Dumbledore and McGonagall for allowing - no, encouraging - her to take risks, and the others for coming up with the plan that put her in harm's way.

"What's in it?" Remus asked, his eyes glancing to the side. He couldn't bring himself to look in the eyes of the Headmaster - the man who'd sent Genre into danger again and again until finally she didn't make it back. He lifted a piece of the wand in a shaking hand. "At the wand's core? She never said."

A distant look spread over Dumbledore's face as he looked at the open box in Remus's hands and recalled information from long, long ago; long before Genre ever had the wand, in fact.

"One feather from an occamy's plume," Dumbledore said.

A faint smile ghosted across Remus's face. "That's about right, inn't it?" he said. "She found a place that needed filling and made it her own."

The end.

Author's Note: I'm happy I finally finished this story; I've had the end written for years, I think, but was still working on getting the story from point B to C, so to speak. I'm also sad, though - even when I wasn't actively posting to FanFiction, Genre and her friends were in the back of my mind. I'd hear or see something that would spark a little idea about what kind of shenanigans they might get up to. I'm a little sad their adventures are done. But, even though the story is over, Genre isn't dead, and neither is Remus. And, as we know from the books, Remus will find love again someday. So all is not lost!

For anyone who wants to know what happens to Genre after this, I did have a separate story started (not a sequel) that will indirectly address this. Maybe I'll post it at some point, but I'll give you a synopsis: Genre never succumbs to her siblings' attempts to just keep her with them where they can "protect" her. As such, they keep her stuck in fox form and she is unable to use magic. It's not really a happy ending, but as we know from Harry Potter, this generation doesn't get much of that happiness later in life. But as far as At the Wand's Core goes, the Genre's story has come to an end and none of her friends or colleagues will really have a straight forward answer as to what has become of her.

Thank you for sticking with me to the end, and for your patience in the years it took for me to start the story, rewrite that part, and then continue forward. I really appreciate that you took the time to travel through this story with me :)