Chapter Eight – Epilogue – One Year Later

Ginny was greeted by a flame-haired bundle as it flew down the stairs and into her arms. "Good morning Lily," she chuckled, kissing her daughter's tousled hair. She shot a glance at the memorial picture of Neville on the wall, smiled sadly, and joined her daughter at the table, where she was bobbing in her seat.

The clatter of the letterbox alerted the youngest Potter to the arrival of her Hogwarts letter and she shrieked with excitement, running to fetch it. There was a tearing sound from the hall and Lily re-emerged into, the letter in one hand, the shredded envelope in the other.

"We said we'd wait for your father," Ginny scolded as she heard Harry pad downstairs, Albus in front of him and James bring up the rear.

It had been a year since night of Neville's murder. Ginny had come home and admitted to her husband there and then that she'd had an affair. Harry had gathered her in his arms, kissing her and telling her he was sorry, he'd had an affair too and he'd known about Neville. They'd wept well into the night as they mourned the loss of their friend. It had also been a year since Ginny had neglected to tell Harry about Lily and Albus' true parentage.

Like Dumbledore had said; there are some questions which must remain unanswered.

In Devon, it was a lazy morning. Rose was reading as usual, the tassel of her bookmark in danger of dipping into the milk in her cereal bowl. Hermione reached over and plucked it out of the danger zone.

Hugo arrived, his bag behind him. His Hogwarts letter was lying on his plate on top of his toast. Hermione's brains had for once deserted her, and the action of placing it on her son's plate meant that the toast had gotten a little soggy, as had the letter. Nevertheless Hugo's eyes lit up as he ripped it open.

Gazing fondly at her son, Hermione heard a knock at the door. Sliding out from her place, she ran a hand over her daughter's hair, searching through the pot to find the back door key.

The door opened to reveal Ron, hands in pockets, slight smile on his face. "They ready?" he asked, gesturing to the children, who immediately got up, Hugo with his letter and toast clutched in his hand, to get their bags. "I see Hugo got his letter," Ron added superfluously.

Despite now separated, Hermione liked to think she had a fairly good relationship with her ex-husband. He'd been bitter at first – understandable, since it was his brother with whom she had cheated – but had eventually calmed down, and still saw his children very frequently. Besides, he himself now had a new girlfriend, and had accepted that Fred had taken his place in Hermione's life.

"Have fun yo two, I'll see you on Monday!" Hermione waved her children and their father off, before closing the door and looking forward to a quiet weekend with Fred.

In a quiet graveyard int the English countryside, six people gathered at the gate. They moved in a precession, not speaking, until they reached a gravestone.

Ginny let out a sob and Hermione squeezed her shoulders. Draco stepped forwards and laid down his bouquet of lilies, the others soon following suit. After a few moments of reflection, the six moved off again, Ginny taking one last look at the gravestone:

'Neville Longbottom 1980-2011

Taken so cruelly

Forever in our memories as a dedicated friend, husband and father

'The hero who put up a fight'

FIN

Hope you enjoyed my first foray into the world of murder/mystery. I must admit that even though it was a product of extreme exam stress, I did enjoy writing it, so there may be more. I would really love some reviews :)

North_Shadow