The Boy Who Lived.

Monday, November 1st 1999

The place was crawling with Aurors when Remus arrived. He ran up the path towards the little cottage with it's falling apart stone walls and thatched roof but was grabbed by an Auror.

"Let me go! Let me go!" he yelled, struggling against the Auror as another one came over to help control him as well. "My friends are in there! Let me go."

"Lupin."

Remus turned to see Moody wobbling towards him. His face was hard, expressionless. Remus stopped struggling and the Auror holding him back let him go.

"Are they..."

Moody shook his head. "They're gone."

Remus fell to his knees and put his head in hands. He let out a sob. Two of his closest friends had been murdered. So many people had died and he just couldn't take it anymore.

"The boy," Moody mumbled. "The boy lives. He survived."

Remus looked up quickly. "H-Harry is alive?"

Moody nodded. "Survived the Killing Curse with nothin' more than a scar."

"He - he survived..." Remus whispered. "Harry survived."

"You-Know-Who is gone. The war is over."

Remus pushed himself up to his feet quickly. "He's gone? How?"

Moody shrugged. "No one knows for sure," he said. "I'm sure Albus will have theories."

Remus looked back at the Potter's Cottage. "The war is over," he whispered, tears rolling down his cheeks. "The war is over."

"Gotta ask," Moody said. "Did yeh know who the Potter's Secret-Keeper was?"

Remus's face fell. He looked back at Moody. "Sirius was the spy..."

...

Lucy woke up and rubbed her eyes. She looked at the clock on her bedside table and did a double take. She was so late. She got out of bed quickly and ran towards her mother's bedroom but when she reached it, she found it empty. Worry flooded her. What if something happened to her mother? What if the bad guys got into Hogwarts!

She ran towards the door of the private quarters and opened it. To her surprise Minerva was sitting at her desk, looking down at some papers. Lucy ran to her. "Mum! Why didn't you wake me up? I'm going to be late for school."

Minerva didn't look up at Lucy when she spoke. "Sweetheart, you're going to take the day off school today," she said. Her voice sounded a little off but Lucy couldn't put her finger on what exactly was wrong. She didn't sound sad but she didn't sound happy and it wasn't exactly neutral either. "Remus can't take you."

"Um, okay," she said.

"Mrs. Tonks will be here to take you down to play with your friends for a while," Minerva continued, still not looking at Lucy. "I have to go somewhere and may be gone for the rest of the day. Please behave for Mrs. Tonks."

"Okay," Lucy said again. "Where are you going?"

"Go get ready for the day."

"But -"

"Please go."

Lucy stared at her mother for a while before running back to her bedroom to get changed. When she came back to the office Minerva was gone and Andromeda was there waiting for her. She gave Lucy a smile and told her that it was time for breakfast and that Tonks and her father were waiting in the Great Hall already. Lucy tried to ask her where Minerva went but Andromeda just said she didn't know. Lucy didn't think she was lying but she had an uneasy feeling.

"She didn't say goodbye..." Lucy said quietly, looking down at the floor as they walked out of the office.

Andromeda looked down at her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, love, she said that she'll be back tonight."

Lucy didn't respond. They walked downstairs for breakfast. The Great Hall was a buzz. It looked and felt brighter and warmer here than it had just the day before. Whispers floated through the air. Rumours spread like wildfire. The war was over they said. The fighting was done and Voldemort had been defeated. Lucy couldn't believe the news. She looked around and saw that she was not alone in her disbelief. Others seemed skeptical when the news hit their ears.

A hush fell over the Hall when Dumbledore stood up. Everyone stared at him, expecting him to dispel the rumours. "The rumours are true," he said instead with a smile on his face. "Last night the war was won. The Dark Lord has been defeated and the rest of his followers are being rounded up by the Auror Office as we speak. In celebration we will have a feast tonight and classes for the rest of the semester will be cancelled. The Hogwarts Express shall arrive to take anyone who wishes to take it back to London tomorrow afternoon.

"This war, though long and brutal, reminds us that love triumphs over darkness. It reminds us of the power we have when we stand together and the strength we have to fight for what is right. It was not easy, it was not quick, and it was not painless but things that matter rarely ever are. It was dragging and hopeless at time but it is over. We've gotten through it and are now standing at the edge of a bright, new world filled with tolerance and love. Today we shall celebrate for all those who fought to bring this war to an end. We celebrate all who were lost and all who have survived. Please enjoy your breakfast and enjoy the freedom and solace of knowing that you and those you love are now safe. Thank you."

There was a sigh of relief as everyone in the Hall let out the collective breath they had been holding. Lucy looked around and saw people crying tears of joy and hugging family members. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were hugging their children and smiling. Tonks was wrapped up in her father's arms and Andromeda kissed her forehead. The uneasiness in Lucy's stomach eased up a bit but it was replaced with something else she couldn't explain. She looked around more and saw no one she wanted to hug or talk to. No Remus, no Sirius, no James, no Lily, no Daniel, no Nina, and no Minerva. She had no one to celebrate the end of the war with. Andromeda pulled Lucy into a hug and kissed her cheek too but it still felt strange. She felt like she didn't belong. Like she was intruding on the Tonks family's celebration. She wanted her own family celebration but she was all alone.

After breakfast, Lucy followed the other children to the daycare classroom. The children ran around and played but Lucy wasn't really feeling up to it. She told Tonks, Bill and Charlie to play while she sat at a desk and did homework that she had been putting off.

Many families were already packed and ready to leave Hogwarts. Some parents had picked up their children, not wanting to wait for the Hogwarts Express tomorrow. The Weasleys had made plans to head back home right after the feast. The Tonkses were also leaving but they were thinking to leave before dinner. They missed their cottage and wanted nothing more than to have their house back. They headed out after lunch.

Lucy was hoping that she would see Remus, Sirius, James and Lily at the feast but they were nowhere to be found. Other Order members had come for the celebration but those four did not. Raj and Amelia came though. Amelia's younger brother, Steven, and his family came down to the feast as well. Steven had a wife named Poppy and a year old baby named Susan. Lucy sat with them at dinner and felt a lot better when her Aunty Amelia and Uncle Raj hugged her.

A lot of magic danced throughout the Hall. Wizards and witches were celebrating the best way they knew how. Fireworks were sent up to the ceiling. Candle flames changed colours. Glowing butterflies, birds, and fireflies flew through the Hall. One of the blue glowing butterflies came over and landed on Lucy's nose. She smiled and touched it but as soon as she did it bursted into a spray of blue sparkles. Toasts were made very loudly and more incoherently as the night went on and the adults drank more. Lucy thought she heard a toast to Harry Potter but she must have heard wrong. Harry Potter was just a baby. Why would they be toasting to him?

After the feast many more families left. The Weasleys headed out and so did Steven and Poppy Bones. Amelia and Raj stayed behind. She told Lucy that Minerva had asked them to stay with her until she came back.

They left the Great Hall while people kept partying as Amelia thought that it was time for Lucy to go to bed but when they got back to Minerva's private quarters Lucy refused to sleep until Minerva came home. She sat on the couch with her arms crossed and a grumpy look on her face.

"Come on, love," Amelia said for what felt like the hundredth time. "It's quite late. You need to go to bed."

Lucy shook her head. "No."

"Lucy -" Raj tried.

"No."

Amelia sighed. She sat down on the couch beside Lucy and said, "your mother is going to kill us. Will you please go to bed so that won't happen?"

"No."

"Come on, Princess," Raj said, sitting down on her other side and poking the grumpy little girl in the arm annoyingly. "Don't you want to help us not be murdered by your mother?"

Lucy smacked his finger away. She looked up at him, face softening a bit. "Yes but I need to talk to Mum before I go to bed," she said, uncrossing her arms. She sighed and lifted her arms up towards Raj. Raj smiled a little and picked her up into his lap. "I... I just need to talk to her."

"What's wrong, love?" Amelia asked, moving closer.

"Nothing, I just -"

"You can't lie to me, Lucy," she said with a knowing smile. "I know that something is wrong. Why aren't you happy? The war is over and you will probably get to go home soon."

Lucy sighed and looked up at Amelia, still hugging Raj's chest. "Where is she?" she asked. "Why isn't she here? If the war is over, why isn't she here celebrating with me like Mrs. Tonks and Mrs. Weasley were with their kids?"

Amelia sighed and put a hand on Lucy's back. "Your mum had some really important business to attend to," she said. "She wanted to celebrate with you but she said that she had something very important she had to do first."

"She's a very busy woman, you know that," Raj said, giving Lucy a small smile. "Sometimes that means she has to do things that she doesn't want to do instead of things that she really does. She said that as soon as she was done, she would hurry home so she could be with you."

"What did she have to do?" Lucy asked.

"She didn't tell us," Amelia said.

"Is what she's doing dangerous?" Lucy asked, fear in her eyes.

"Oh no, don't worry, love. It's not dangerous anymore," Amelia said with a smile. "She'll be fine and she'll be back soon."

"Okay," Lucy mumbled though she didn't seem very convinced.

"Hey, come on," Raj said, pulling her up so she was now standing in his lap. "You know your mum. She's a real badass -"

"Raj!"

Lucy giggled as Amelia gave Raj a look. Raj smiled. "Sorry," he said. "She's... a very strong and intimidating person. I wish any Death Eater luck crossing her!"

Lucy smiled and nodded. "Mum would beat them up!"

"Yes, she would," Raj said. "She doesn't like them, you know that. She would beat them up and then probably make them have a time out."

"Make them think over all the bad stuff they did," Amelia said with a smile. "Maybe make them write lines."

Raj laughed. "Arch her eyebrow at them," he said. "You know the look she gives us whenever we do something she doesn't like? It scares you doesn't it?"

"No, not me!" Lucy said, shaking her head. "I'm not scared of anything! Like Mum. Mum's not scared of anything."

Amelia smiled and shook her head as she moved closer and leaned into Raj's chest. Raj smiled at her and put an arm around her, the other still around Lucy. Lucy sat down in his lap properly again and they talked a little more. Lucy's mood had finally improved. She forgot all about her loneliness and excitedly told her godparents all about what she was going to do now that the war was over.

...

Minerva got back to Hogwarts quite late and heard the commotion still in the Great Hall. She shook her head and walked in the opposite direction. There was only one place she wanted to be right now. She walked up the stairs of Gryffindor Tower until she reached her office. She walked through the office and into the hidden door to the private quarters.

In the sitting room, Amelia and Raj were sitting on the couch talking quietly amongst each other. Lucy was fast asleep in Raj's lap. He had one arm around her and one around Amelia. They looked over at her when she came in and smile.

"She refused to go to bed," Amelia whispered as a greeting. "Wanted to see her mother before she did."

Minerva smiled a little before her smile disappeared and she sat down in an armchair with a sigh. "It's all true," she said softly. "They're dead."

Amelia sighed and Raj gave her a little squeeze. "But the boy..." she said quietly, looking at her friend intently, "is - is he...?"

"He is alive," Minerva replied. "He survived the killing curse with nothing more than a lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead."

"Wow," Amelia whispered. She looked up at Raj. "That's never happened before," she explained to him. "No one has ever survived the killing curse."

"Wow," Raj said. "How did he survive?"

Minerva shook her head slowly. "No one really knows," she said quietly. "Albus said that Lily sacrificed herself in order to save him. He said her love protected her."

"In one night, Harry Potter has probably become the most famous wizard in our world right now," Amelia said. "Where is he going to go? Who is going to raise him? Sirius?"

Anger flashed across Minerva's face. "You forget, Amelia," she said dangerously, "who the Potter's Secret-Keeper was."

Amelia's eyes widened. She stood up quickly and was about to yell when Raj grabbed her hand and motioned to Lucy with his head. Instead in an angry whisper she exclaimed, "Sirius was the spy!"

Minerva sighed, tears filling her eyes, and nodded. "They're looking for him now," she mumbled, looking away. "But yes, he was the spy. All the safe houses that fell, all the missions that they knew about, all the people that died... all because of him."

"I - but - Sirius!" she exclaimed as quietly as she could muster right now. Lucy stirred a little and Amelia tried her best to lower her voice more. "Of all people... I never suspected... His best friend!"

Minerva nodded, tears falling down her cheeks now. "His best friend... his godson... he sold them out to his lord."

"He was great with Lucy," Raj said darkly, putting a hand on her arm protectively. "We let him near her. We left him alone with her all the time."

"I know," Minerva said. "I know. I trusted him with her. I thought he was... I thought he was different from the rest of his family... but I guess he wasn't."

Nobody spoke for a very long time. Minerva rubbed her temple with her hand and tried her best not to cry. She had been crying on and off all day and she didn't want to anymore. Amelia finally sat back down and Raj put his arm around her again. She leaned in closer to him and put a hand on Lucy with a sigh.

Finally Amelia broke the silence, looking up at her friend once again. "So where will Harry Potter stay?" she asked. "With Remus then?"

"No," Minerva muttered. "I wish. Remus would give him a much better home but he wouldn't take him even if Albus asked. I know he wouldn't." Minerva shook her head and looked away from Amelia. "Albus gave him to his aunt and uncle. Lily's sister. They're Muggles and... and I watched them. They seem terrible."

"That's where you were?" Amelia asked. "Spying on Muggles on a day where you should have been celebrating with your daughter! You could have been here with her or in Canterbury with Daniel and Nina but you chose to spend the day spying on them!"

"I couldn't let Albus give him away to people we had no idea about!" Minerva replied. "I had to see for myself how they were!"

"And what did that do?" Amelia retorted. "You thought they were terrible and Albus still gave him to them."

"I tried to stop him."

"You should know by now that Albus is going to do what he wants whether you like it or not," Amelia muttered.

"Okay, okay," Raj said quickly, trying to calm everyone down and lower the volume of the room as Lucy stirred again. "Let's just calm down a little."

"Why are you so angry that I wasn't celebrating?" Minerva snapped, ignoring Raj. "How can I celebrate? James and Lily are dead and they're dead because of someone they loved and trusted! Someone I loved and trusted and let around my family! No wonder they found us in Rochester and knew when to come when I wouldn't be home!"

"And James and Sirius just happened to be running late that day..." Raj said quietly, glaring at nothing in particular.

"But he was the one who sent word to you and Albus, wasn't he?" Amelia said, still having trouble believing this. "He and James got there in time to stop them."

"He probably couldn't stall James long enough and then had to act as if he were still on our side by that point," Minerva muttered darkly. She looked down at Lucy and sighed. "I let him near her. I let him play with her and look after her."

"It's not your fault. You didn't know," Raj said reassuringly. "I met him too. He was very convincing in his act."

"We all trusted him," Amelia whispered, tears filling her eyes. She turned away and buried her face in Raj's chest. He hugged her tightly. "He's - he's the reason Edgar... Karen, and the children... are dead! The reason Marlene, someone I thought he absolutely loved, and the rest of her family is dead! So many people are death because of him!"

"He came asking for another assignment right after her death," Minerva mumbled, wiping the tears off her cheeks and glaring at the ground in front of her. "I thought he just wanted to keep busy but now I think that he just wanted more information to give You-Know-Who. And everytime he tried to convince us Remus was the spy... he was probably just trying to get us off his trail. He never cared about any of his friends."

No one said anything and there was silence again.

Amelia looked down at Lucy, still fast asleep and unaware of what had happened. "She missed you," she mumbled. "Asked me why her mother wasn't here celebrating with her like Andromeda and Molly were with their children."

Minerva sighed. "I wanted to be here with her. I did." she said. "I just had to find out about these people."

"I know," Amelia said with a sigh. "How were they horrible?"

"Lily's sister, Petunia, has always disapproved of Lily's magical abilities," Minerva muttered. "I think she was envious, to be completely honest. She's always been very judgemental and nothing has changed now. Most of the day while I was watching, she was just spying on her neighbors or doting over her son. Dudley is his name and he's only a year old but already a very nasty little thing. Throws a lot of tantrums and is very violent towards his parents. They don't say anything to him. They reinforce this horrible behaviour. Spoiled him rotten already."

"Wow," Raj said. "The man as well?"

"Oh, yes. He's quite an angry man," Minerva replied. "Doesn't do much at all. Petunia will be running around, caring for the child, cooking dinner, cleaning the house, and he will be just sitting on the couch watching the news."

"Sounds wonderful," Amelia muttered sarcastically. She looked at Raj. "If you ever -"

"You don't have to worry about it, love. Never going to happen," he said with a smile. "There will be no child for you to take care of. Cooking and cleaning though..."

Amelia smacked his arm and Minerva smiled a little. "You two are crazy," she said. "I can't believe I wanted to combine your crazy."

"Yes, you're not allowed to complain," Amelia said. "This is what you wanted."

"I'm not complaining," Minerva said with a smile.

Amelia smiled a little and shook her head. Then her smile faded and she got serious again. "Anyways," she said. "Why is Albus leaving the boy with them if they're so terrible?"

"He wants Harry away from the wizarding world for now," Minerva said with a sigh. "He wants him to have as normal a childhood as possible for now. Probably doesn't want the fame to get to his head right away but if those two treat him like they do their own son, I fear he will already be entitled and arrogant by the time he gets here."

"Not unlike his father," Amelia said with a small smile.

This made Minerva smile a little. She shook her head. "I do not need another James Potter at Hogwarts."

"You will love him. Even if he is like his father. No, especially if he is like his father," she replied with a shake of her own head.

Minerva smiled and shook her head again. She then looked down at Lucy in Raj's lap and sighed a little. She got up and moved over to the couch beside Raj and ran her fingers through her baby's hair.

"She was worried about you, you know," Raj said with a small smile. "Thought you might be off doing something dangerous. We made sure she knew how badass her mother was and how she could handle her own against any Death Eater that might try something."

Minerva smiled a little bit and shook her head. "I hope you used a some more appropriate language," she said.

"Of course," Raj said. "I'm great at knowing how to talk to children, you know that."

Amelia gave him a look. "Lies."

"No, lies," he said innocently. "Only truths."

Amelia shook her head. "Lies."

Minerva smiled and gently picked the still sleeping Lucy up from Raj's lap. Despite Minerva's attempt at being careful, Lucy opened her eyes and looked around groggily.

"Mommy?"

"Yes, darling," Minerva said with a smile. "You fell asleep on the couch."

Lucy yawned and rested her head on Minerva's shoulder. "Where were you?"

"I had some work to do but I'm back now and it's time for you to go to sleep in a proper bed," Minerva said with a smile. She looked over at Amelia and Raj. They had both stood up now too. "Thank you for staying with her, Amelia, Raj. I really appreciate it."

"Of course," Amelia replied with a smile.

"It's always a pleasure to spend time with this little princess," Raj said with a smile, moving closer and kissing Lucy on the cheek. "Goodnight, love. We'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Lucy nodded. "Night, Uncle Raj," she said. "Night, Aunty Amelia."

Amelia walked over and said goodnight to Lucy as well. They both said goodbye to Minerva as well and Minerva watched them walk hand in hand out of the private quarters with a smile before walking to Lucy's bedroom with her still in her arms. When she got there she put Lucy down on the bed and pulled the blankets up around her.

"The war is over," Lucy said, looking up at her mother and giving her a sleepy smile. "Uncle Abus said so."

Minerva smiled and nodded. "Yes, love," she said. "The war is over."

"It was long."

"It was," she replied, sitting down on the edge of the bed and pushing Lucy's hair from her face before resting her hand on her cheek. "But it's over. The bad people are gone and we can finally go home. Just in time for Christmas too."

Lucy smiled. "I'm glad that it's over."

"Me too, " Minerva said with a smile. "I'm sorry I didn't get to see much of you today but tomorrow I think you can take another day off school and the two of us will go down to Canterbury to deliver the good news to Nina and Daniel, alright?"

"Okay," Lucy said. "I can't wait to see them. We haven't gone since September."

"I know, love. Get some sleep now. I'll see you in the morning," Minerva said. She leaned down and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Goodnight, my darling."

"Goodnight," Lucy whispered.

...

Minerva and Lucy appeared on the welcome mat of Nina's Canterbury apartment and knocked on the door. It was late in the day, Daniel and Nina were done their classes now so Minerva thought now would be a good time to stop by. The door opened and Nina smiled down at them.

"Hello! We were not expecting you two today," she said with a smiled.

"Nina!" Lucy exclaimed. She ran to her and hugged her legs.

Nina laughed and kneeled down to hug her properly. "Hey, Lucy."

"Hello, Nina," Minerva said, walking into the flat too and closing the door behind her. She looked around. "Where's Daniel?"

"He's not home yet. Had to hand in an assignment but he should be home soon," she said, straightening up and leading Lucy by the hand further into the flat.

"Nina! Nina! The war is over! We get to go home now!" Lucy said excitedly.

Nina stopped and turned. "R-really!?" she looked over at Minerva who smiled and nodded. "That's great! How? When?"

"The night before the last," Minerva said. "Ah, something happened and You-Know-Who lost all his power and disappeared."

"What happened?" Lucy asked.

"No one really knows for sure," Minerva replied.

Nina gave her a look but Minerva just shook her head slightly when Lucy wasn't looking. Nina understood that she would be told the real answer later and so looked down at Lucy with a smile. She led them into the sitting room and brought out some tea and cookies for them while they waited for Daniel.

When Daniel returned Lucy told him about the end of the war too. He was just as excited as she was. He dropped his backpack and pulled her up onto his back, bouncing her up and down. She laughed while Minerva rolled her eyes but smiled.

"So... we can go back to Rochester?" Daniel said.

"Yes," Minerva said. "If you would like to. I thought that you might like staying on -"

"Let's pack up now and go!" Daniel interrupted, moving towards the bedroom. Lucy smiled and marched behind him. "Oh my god, I can't wait to be back home where I can actually have enough room to stretch my legs and we'll have a yard that I can sit in and actual windows that don't face other buildings and..." He saw Nina raise her eyebrow at him and quickly added, "not that your flat isn't great, love, I just... I'm just used to... It's not..."

"It's alright," Nina said with a laugh. "I get it. You've been slowly suffocating here, I know. Don't worry, you won't hurt my feelings."

Daniel smiled. "Thanks, Nina," he said. He looked down at Lucy. "Do you want to help me pack, kid?"

"Okay! I've learned a lot of new spells. Wanna see?"

"Sure. Just... maybe don't hurt my things," he said as they walked into the bedroom.

"I won't!" she exclaimed, following after him.

Minerva smiled and shook her head. She looked over at Nina and said, "We'll take the charms off of this place and I was thinking that if you wanted to, you could 'officially' move into Rochester Mansion with us. You would no longer have to pay rent for a flat you don't spend a lot of time in."

Nina smiled. "I would really like that. Thank you."

"Of course," she said. She reached out and took Nina's hand. "You've really become part of the family, Nina. I think of you as my own daughter now."

Nina smiled even wider. "Thank you, Min," she said. "I'm really glad that you do. You're like the white mother I never had!"

Minerva rolled her eyes but laughed. She let go of Nina's hand and got up so she could help them pack up their apartment as well. She was ready to get back to Rochester after so, so long.

...

"'Last night broke the record for the most breakages of the International Wizarding Statute of Secrecy'." Nina read out loud from the article clipping that Minerva had given her with a small smile. They were back in Rochester now, sitting in the sitting room. Raj and Amelia were there too, of course. They had brought celebratory pizzas for dinner. Lucy was in bed so now was the best time to talk about the war. Daniel was sitting beside Nina with a beer in one hand and his arm around her. Raj and Amelia were sitting in a loveseat and Minerva was sitting in an armchair, all with cups of tea that may or may not contain a shot of whiskey in hand. "'Minister for Magic Millicent Bagnold defended her citizens by asserting their "unalienable right to party".'"

Daniel smiled. "I like this Minister."

"So do I," Raj said with a laugh. "She sounds a lot more fun than the Muggle politicians we've got."

"It's ridiculous really," Amelia said, shaking her head though she smiled. "People are going absolutely insane. You'd think they'd never seen a wand before, they're all so crazy."

"They reported it all on the Muggle news as well," Minerva said. "Flocks of owls during the day, shooting stars down in Kent, people walking around Muggle streets in their robes and hats. Imagine, the day the war ends is the same day Muggles find out about wizards."

Nina laughed. "Oh, it'll be okay," she said. "It was the day after Halloween. People are used to weirdos around that time."

"Also you just see all that in London on a normal day," Raj said.

"Yeah and people might just think people are celebrating bonfire night early this year," Daniel said with a smile.

"So are they giving everyone who does magic in front of muggles a free pass then?" Nina asked, putting down the newspaper clipping and picking up her own beer bottle from the coffee table.

"They're being more lenient than usual," Amelia said.

"How did it actually end?" Daniel asked, smile fading.

Minerva sighed and leaned back in her chair, her smile also leaving her face. She told them the story of Harry Potter. Voldemort had found the Potter's home and, after killing both James and Lily, turned his sights on the baby. He tried to kill Harry with the killing curse but for reasons no one could explain the spell did not work. It backfired and Voldemort lost all his power. He disappeared. His body was not found in Godric's Hollow but he was no longer leading the a rebellion against everything they believed in. The Death Eaters were being rounded up and trails were being scheduled. After she finished the story, she sighed again and went into Sirius's part in all this.

"Peter went after him," Minerva said sadly. "Yesterday, he found him in London. Witnesses heard them shouting about how he had betrayed the Potters and then... then Sirius - he - he blasted Peter away. All that was left was a finger... He blew up the whole street. Killing twelve muggles as well. Apparently when they found him... all he could do was laugh! He laughed after betraying his best friend and killing thirteen people!"

Amelia sighed and shook her head. "I don't know why that boy did that," she whispered. "He's always been so... skittish... so nervous. How could he have though he could take on Black all on his own?"

"Sirius? Really? Are you sure?" Nina said, furrowing her brow. "He's so... he was so... nice!"

"There has to be a mistake," Daniel said with a frown. "Sirius wouldn't do that. He loved James and Lily and Harry. He would never do anything to put them in danger. James was his best friend. He would rather have died than betray his best friend."

"That's what I thought too," Minerva mumbled, looking away.

"No, really. There must be a mistake," Daniel said more forcefully. "We knew him! He was never like them. Why would he talk to Nina and I if he believed that Muggles were less than wizards? Why would he be so nice to us?"

"It was him, Daniel," Amelia said softly. "He refused to defend himself when we asked him. He refused to talk to us at all. Innocent people don't just sit back and let themselves be charged with the death of their friends."

"We trusted him," Daniel said quietly. He looked over at Minerva. "Lucy loved him. We... we let him play with her and be around her."

"I know," Minerva said with a sigh. "I brought him here. I let him meet you all. See you and get information about you back to him."

"It's not your fault, Minerva," Raj said. "It really isn't. He fooled a lot of people."

"He'll be thrown in Azkaban," Amelia said. "He'll get what he deserves."

"It's still so hard to believe," Nina said quietly, moving a little closer to Daniel. "That someone would do something so horrible. To their best friend. To a one year old baby."

There was silence for a while before Raj leaned forward and said, "Well, what happened happened and we may never understand it but it's over. The war is over. It was long and brutal but it's over and all of us can finally relax."

Minerva smiled. "It was so long," she said. "I'm so glad that I decided against waiting for it to end to come back home."

"You're the one that kept saying that you can't let the war put your life on hold," Nina said with a smile.

"Wise words. It just reinforces my belief that I'm always right," Minerva replied with a smile.

"Oh god," Amelia said with a shake of her head.

Raj, Daniel and Nina all groaned too. Daniel got up and shook his head. "Maybe you should have just stayed away."

Minerva laughed.

"You two staying the night?" Daniel asked, looking over at Raj and Amelia.

"Shouldn't be Apparating now with all you've drank," Minerva said. "Stay the night."

"We've not drank that much," Raj said defensively.

"Still," Nina said. "Not like your room's gone anywhere."

"I don't think you have much of a choice," Daniel said with a laugh.

"I suppose we don't," Amelia said with a smile.

Minerva smiled and watched her children, Amelia and Raj get up and get ready to go upstairs to go to bed. She watched them say goodnight and head towards the stairs to go to their rooms. This was her life now. Relaxing at home with her children and after years of war, it felt right. She was still sad for how it ended but she was glad it was over. She stood up as well and Amelia gave her a smile. She let go of Raj's hand and walked towards her.

"It's over," she said quietly as the others left the room.

"It's over," Minerva agreed with a smile. Amelia smiled and pulled her friend into a hug. Minerva smiled and hugged her back. "It was long but it's over."

They pulled away and Amelia put an arm around her as they walked out of the room as well. Minerva smiled and walked up the stairs. They said their goodnights before going to their separate bedrooms. Minerva laid down in her nice warm bed and had a good night's sleep for the first time in a very long time.

Author's Note:

It was long but it's over.

I am sorry for the long wait but here is the last chapter of this story! It's so weird to have completed this story. I've written thirty three chapters which I think is kind of amazing. I've never written and finished something before. I'm actually quite proud of myself for sticking with it.

Anyways, thank you so much for sticking with me through the whole story! You have read so many of my words, thank you! Please leave a review letting me know what you thought about my story in large and if you have any critiques or suggestions for my writing. I am happy to hear it.

As for any upcoming writings in this series, please stay tuned.