A/n: Alright, fair warning this deals with the aftermath from the last several chapters. Tissue warning!

*+ovo+*

Harry knew that something else beyond the pain of loosing Hedwig was wrong almost the moment he woke and looked at Sn... his father. The way that he was still cuddled in bed with Voldemort and Nagini but his father was standing at the edge of the bed, fully dressed with bits of soot, told him that Severus had been away and come back. The medium wooden box, coffin, in his hands told Harry that they had retrieved Hedwig so that he could say good bye.

"Hedwig wasn't the only thing they took... was she?" Harry croaked, swallowing to try and get some moisture going in his mouth.

"No," Severus said softly. "Professor McGonagall kindly transfigured the box and Professor Flitwick charmed it with... preservation spells. We can discuss anything further to do for her later today once you've eaten and dressed. As to your other things... I was able to retrieve the enchanted parchment and your invisibility cloak but the rest were destroyed. Those who destroyed your things are being punished by my standards and the one who killed your owl is being reported to the Aurors. I do, however, believe the pointed letter to his mother about the young idiot potentially starting a blood feud with our houses will have more of an impact than the murder charge. I am sorry Harry."

"We will replace what we can," Voldemort told him as he was dragged upwards into a proper hug while Severus set the beautifully transfigured coffin box on a small nearby table.

"Can we... bury her? Maybe near my... James and Lily?" Harry requested as tears began streaming down his face.

"Of course," Voldemort agreed. Nagini hissed her own agreement. She knew one of the only reasons that she understood this need to say good bye and grieve was because of how long she had been a spirit serpent attached to various human members of the Slytherin line. A mortal snake would have only seen food in the form of the dead owl rather than a lost family member.

That afternoon the family stood in front of the statue that represented Harry and his birth parents from that fateful Halloween night. Hedwig was laid to rest at the foot of the statue with a granite carved owl, permanently transfigured, placed over her grave. The foot of the small statue read: Valiant in death, Hedwig died defending her wizard, HJP.

Harry had thought this was fitting after his small family had explained what they had found out about Hedwig's death and why she should have shown up the same day they had arrived. To say that Harry had been upset was an understatement but he had been proud of his winged friend too when he realized what it meant that he wasn't crippled. Hedwig had protected his mind and sometimes his body at Private Drive during the summers. That she had died doing so one last time just proved to him that she had been the best owl in the world.

"~Come,~" Voldemort hissed after they stood over the new grave for half an hour.

Harry, still somewhat dazed from finally being able to let go of Hedwig properly, followed docilely with Severus, his father, at his back. A quick trip and they were back at Malfoy Manor, once more heading for the Dark Lord's suite. Staggering, Harry was kept from falling on his face by the sure potion stained grip that he was coming to trust for more than just potions and detentions.

"What is wrong with you?" Severus asked with open concern.

"I dunno, feel weak, tired," Harry answered dazedly. Severus frowned and checked him with a quick diagnostic charm. Before Harry could notice he was swept up into his father's strong arms and being rapidly carried to bed.

"Foolish brat! You've nearly drained your magic fueling that owl's rebirth," Severus scolded sharply. He hadn't even known that a wizard could drain themselves in an attempt to help a familiar to their rebirth!

"How bad?" Voldemort asked with a frown.

"From the amount of magic that was drained down the broken link... she might very well be reborn within the year, presuming she didn't pick a fairly powerful new form," Severus admitted with a grimace. "The healer will most certainly be upset and I am not best pleased with the imp myself. He could have killed himself with that stunt!"

Voldemort scowled. He had no idea when he had agreed to take only Harry and Severus instead of the other students that the imp had such trouble simply staying alive! Not that he regretted it considering everything he had learned and his own now much more stable sanity. The removal of Dumbledore and its ripple of effects, while pleasant, was more of a bonus to him. No, the real prize was securing the safety of his small family for all that they hadn't actually been family at that point beyond sharing the serpent tongue.

"~You need to care for the hatchling very carefully this night,~" Nagini hissed in worry. "~He needs to know he is not alone, that he is still a part of our nest. Wrap around him so that he knows we are here.~"

"As much as I hate to say it we also need the rest," Voldemort grimaced at the thought of the time lost to recovery that they desperately needed. "I have pushed us too hard and too fast after the health check to be safe. Seeing him limp in your arms only proves how stupid I've been. He wont complain, I can see that now, but I need to take better care of both of you."

"~I have been warning you of that for days!~" Nagini snapped at him as she settled on her warm spot in front of the fire. She knew her lack of natural body heat wouldn't help once she had hustled the trio back into bed.

"Hot chocolate with a serving of bangers and mash, I think. The sausage will provide a solid base combined with the mashed potatoes to settle him for a bit," Severus muttered as he set Harry down on their bed.

A quick bit of spell work had Harry switched into clean nightwear without being exposed to the cool air of the room nor the two older wizards themselves unnecessarily. Harry just wearily closed his eyes and cuddled into the older two wizards when they joined him in bed. His next meal would in fact be hot chocolate with equally hot bangers and mash. They would rest for three days before an owl arrived requesting a meeting to officially collect their respective memories. Dumbledore was being charged with Attempted Murder against the entire school and Abuse as well as Accessory to Abuse against Harry himself with further charges pending.

The wizarding world wanted answers and Harry was the only one with enough of them all at once to get anywhere quickly.

*+ovo+*

A/n: We are finally dealing with his "adventure" memories next! Bets on how horrified everyone is going to be?