SCARS.
It had been three months since the Battle of Hogwarts. Since then nothing had ever been the same. Things had changed, they changed.
Harry could already sleep peacefully at night, but since it was over, a question kept going through his head, "What do I do now?". He was the chosen one, he had already fulfilled his mission of life, but life did not end with Voldemort. And for him, life no longer had anything, no meaning. He had already made his sense of life, he had already done everything that was his turn. All he had left was Ginny. He had a thing for Ginny, but in a way, it felt like an obligation. As if being with her was his duty. As if protecting her was his last thing that means something.
Hermione was safe, no longer had to fight, or protect Harry. But she had no place to call home, no family. Her parents were far away and without any memory of her. And besides, to top it, she recently found herself with a broken heart, the person who he believed was the love of her life, pushed her away like nothing. She felt so lonely. After all, Bellatrix was right, she was a sad and lonely Mudblood.
For Ron, they won the war, but for him, it was as if he had lost it. He lost his older brother and with that his happiness. The battle had taken so much from him. And even Hermione didn't understand his suffering. He had become addict to some "happy" pills, he did not recognize it, but there was not a day that he didn't take some. Drinking made him happy, and he was ready to give it his all to at least not feeling numb.
Ginny stopped talking, lost her words. Since Fred left she lost her words and her happiness. She became a cold person with nothing. She felt there was a hole inside her as if continuing to breathe made no sense. If she spoke, they were very short sentences. She was lost in her sadness and hollow interior. She was with Harry, because it was her childhood dream and because he made her feel safe and easy. Harry took care of her, he didn't think about things much, he just did them. And that made Ginny settle.
Luna had been tortured and kidnapped, in the war. And that believe it or not leaves a trauma. She didn't want to be an easy target again ever again. She didn't want to be that girl who was always in her world. Since that happened, she stopped talking about his beloved fantastic beings, stopped visiting the nargels, and stopped dreaming. She didn't want to suffer anymore. She didn't even write in The Quillber anymore and hardly spoke to her father. Shel ost her perfect dreamy tone. She no longer saw the things that nobody saw. She lost herself.
Neville, since the war he felt strong but useless. He was sad because he couldn't do anything for his family and friends. He couldn't cure his parents, or his grandmother, who recently had fallen ill. And his friends since this was all over were all too sad and busy to hang out or ask the others who were they. So she took responsibility for everyone, she visited her parents and grandmother in the hospital every Wednesday. And he took care of his friends all the time, checking out if they ate and sleep the number of normal hours. Neville became an adult in that war.
The heroes felt like they lost, and the bad guys could rest easily.
Well, the bad guys were relieved, because their hell was over. But somehow the guilt always found them.
Draco no longer had to protect his mother, from everything. Nothing could hurt him and his mother anymore. They were safe, away from their father and the dark lord. He no longer suffered crucios, nor did he have to be a bloody death eater. That feeling of guilt flooded him, San Potter and his friends defended him in court. And he felt so stupid, all the harassment he did to them and they go and save him from a life in another hell.
Pansy, was happy because she was no longer in control of her mother. The woman was away from her, now for at least 15 years. She no longer had to marry anyone out of obligation, she could fall in love. Now she could marry whoever she wanted and be whoever she wanted. But like her dear Draco, the guilt she felt for having done so much damage was not leaving her thoughts. Pansy started to stutter, struggling to express herself. It was difficult for her to speak, her friends had a lot of patience to understand what she was saying.
Blaise was neither happy nor sad, he just lived. Don't get it wrong, he was relieved to be no longer a Death Eater. But he didn't know what to do with his life and there was also the damn guilt. That guilt kept him awake until late in the night. The guilt he felt was his first thought in the morning and he finished before falling asleep. Those horrible dreams where everything went wrong. Guilt at hearing the name of Potter and his friends in the media, they were fucking everywhere. And the shit he did to them, the jokes, the humiliations the names gosh...
And his secret, his worst mistake.
Theo started to be more of him. And not that serious boy, now you could even see him smile. But like his friends, guilt haunted him. When he went out, the street and everything somehow reminded him of suffering and evil. He hardly ever left the house, he was safer there, and there was no guilt there. He felt that evil could not stalk him at home.
Daphne was trying to close the chapter on her days as a Death Eater. But she could not, that stage had changed her, forever. Now she knew and had seen things that she would never forget. And besides San Potter and their friends saved her ass. Every night she had nightmares of those awful days. And like everyone else, guilt haunted her, why the hell they were so good. The healer had to give her potions for anxiety attacks.
Astoria was lucky not to feel guilty, as she never bothered Potter and his friends. What she felt was a deep sadness, in the Hogwarts war, she saw too many deaths. Wherever she looked at the castle, it was death and pain. The girl panicked at the idea of death, so she was always very careful with everything, she was afraid of everything. But she no longer had to marry Draco and that was a break, she loved him but not that way.