Epilogue.
The rat nosed around the corners of the room, fat and comfortable, searching for forgotten morsels or secrets. Both kinds of things whet his appetite. His fur was sleek and healthy from the good life he'd found for himself.
He deserved it, more than anyone, for hadn't he lived through hard times? Hadn't he made hard sacrifices? If anyone deserved a moment in the sun, he did. It was a well-earned pleasure to be able to just exist, to relax without having to look over one's shoulder all the time. And right now, that was just what he was going to do.
Nimbly, he scaled the covers of the boy's bed he shared. It was soft and smelled of linens dried in the open air. With a contented squeak he nestled into the plump pillow where a shaft of sunlight through the window warmed the fabric. He quickly fell asleep.
In the dream, he was Peter, wandering through a room full of secrets at Hogwarts. A room that he had never told the others about. It was his, his alone. He crouched down to examine a curious cabinet, jiggling the lock and trying to pry it open until two large shadows fell across the door.
"Hello, Peter."