Sunrise Over Britain :: Chapter 33 - Of Endings and Beginnings

Back to: Harry Potter » Sunrise Over Britain

Also available as: Epub | txt | pdf | lit | mobi

Standard Disclaimer:

Ron Weasley walked onto the stage, followed by Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape and Lord Voldemort.

"We're dead because of this story!" Ron growled. "And I never had the chance to get laid!"

"Oh, do be quiet, Weasley," snarled Snape. "Your pubescent fantasies not withstanding, I do think we should have been treated better." He pushed back his hair and stuck his nose in the air. "After all, I have been confused for that famous muggle. What's his name again? Alan Alda?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "I do believe you mean Alan Rickman, my dear boy. Would you like a lemon drop?"

"Quiet! The three of you are enough to make me want to give up my plans to take over the world and take up girl scout hunting instead!" exclaimed Voldemort.

"I always knew you were a pervert," muttered Ron.

Voldemort leered at Ron, who blanched and ducked behind Dumbledore.

Dumbledore smiled benignly, then cast a charm, making the back of robe to turn transparent. "Like what you see, Ronny? Would you like some candy?"

Ron turned green and made retching noise.

Alyx stormed onto the stage. "STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" she bellowed.

Bob looked up from the word processor. "What now? Can't you see I'm busily crafting the next 'Gone with the Wind'? 'Blowing Potter', I call it."

Alyx turned away from him for a moment to silently pray for someone to bring her husband's sanity back, then she pulled out her Frying Pan of Infinite Attacks. "ARRGHH!!" As battle cries went, she knew it needed work but was pressed for time.

Bob slid bonelessly to the floor, unconscious.

The other four eyed Alyx and her lethal kitchenware warily.

"You four were supposed to tell people how this story is fan fiction, that we make no claim to any rights and that it all belongs to JK Rowling. What were you thinking?" she asked angrily.

"Well," Dumbledore said, pointing at the others. "Ron wanted to get laid, Snape thinks he's Alan Alda and Voldemort wants to take over the world. But you seem like a very nice girl. Would you like a lemon drop? And maybe to sit on my lap and call me Daddy?"

"ARRGHH!!" Alyx cried once more and the Frying Pan of Infinite Attacks flashed in anger. Dumbledore slid to the floor, unconscious.

"Daddy that, you old pervert!" Alyx exclaimed, then she stormed off the stage, muttering to herself.

Bob lifted his head. "Next time I'm writing one disclaimer and just repeat it for each chapter," he grumbled, holding his head.

Sunrise Over Britain
Chapter 33

Anafi Island, Greece (April 20th)...

Hermione sat on a chair on the balcony overlooking the bay and sipped her tea. It was very late and the moon hung low in the sky, casting alternating light and shadows on the water. The past week had been eventful on a very personal level.

Harry was right, she thought. We needed the time here to relax and take stock of what happened.

Harry slept in their bed a few feet away. She still felt a glow from their love making.

Over the course of the week, at one time or another, each of them had broken down, but the others had been there to help. Some were quite public, like Ginny and Tonks who had both resorted to yelling and throwing crockery before subsiding into exhausted weeping. Others were more private, like Harry and Hermione, who waited for the privacy of their bedroom and the comforting arms of their loves before they broke down.

It had also been a week of surprises and jokes, some of which came from the past.

Shaking her head, Hermione smiled to herself, thinking of their second night in Anafi.

The cry woke everyone.

Harry and Hermione threw on their robes, certain that something was terribly wrong. They rushed from their bedroom only to find most of the Brotherhood joining them in the hall. There, they milled around until Susan and Terry came out of their room.

"Susan, what's wrong with the baby?" asked Harry worriedly. He was already trying to figure out the quickest way of getting a healer to the island.

Susan smiled. "There's nothing wrong with her. I don't know whose baby is crying, but it's not mine."

Harry scowled and motioned for everyone to be silent. He cocked his head several times, trying to see if he could determine where the sound was coming from. He was becoming very concerned and the longer he listened, the more sure he felt that there was a baby nearby in need of help.

"Nothing. It's the same from every direction," he muttered.

"Maybe the elves can help," Hermione offered. She was nearly as worried as he was.

Harry nodded. "Sippi, Tippi," he called.

With a pair of dull pops, the ancient elves appeared, looking very tired.

Harry knelt down on one knee to face them. "Somewhere near the house is a baby. We need to find it and make sure it's alright. Can you help us?" he asked.

Sippi and Tippi exchanged a glance, then Sippi stepped forward. "Is no baby, Master Harry. That is spell from Master James."

Harry sat down heavily on the floor. "A spell my father made? Why does it sound like a baby crying?"

"Master James wanted to invites his friends and their ladies to visit and use this house. He knew how lonely we got with no one here, so he wanted more peoples to visit. But he left the house charmed to sound alarm when someone became pregnant," Tippi replied.

Harry looked up at his friends. Almost every woman took a step back, and then rushed for their wands. Susan didn't move and Hermione wandlessly cast the detection charm on herself, which came up negative.

One by one the women returned to the group. Ginny looked a little disappointed, and Luna looked extremely focused, but she shook her head. One by one the men breathed a sigh of relief, or disappointment, it was impossible to tell.

One woman was still missing from the group.

Dan looked around nervously and Hermione gapped.

"Daddy!" she said, sounding shocked.

"Dan!" came a shriek from a bedroom.

"Oh, lord!" he muttered, then bolted for the bedroom he shared with his wife.

"Really, Hermione, it's not like they stop having sex after you were born," commented Luna. "I don't know about the rest of you ladies, but if I have my way, I'll be a hundred and forty and wrinkled like a prune before I give up riding my dragon."

Draco groaned, turned and purposely banged his head against the wall. The others tried to stifle their mirth.

Harry turned back to the house elves. "Can you turn off the alarm? Or reset it?" he asked.

Sippi nodded and snapped her fingers. The crying stopped immediately.

She finished her tea and climbed out of the chair. The day would be starting in a few hours and she needed to get a bit more sleep. She climbed into bed and settled herself just as Harry rolled over, catching her with one arm and drawing up behind her. She snuggled back into him, knowing his action was automatic.

She drifted off to sleep still thinking about the fact that she would soon have a sibling.

Harry awoke a few hours later to an empty bed. He climbed out and stretched, then rubbed his eyes. Except for one bad night, these past few days had been exceptionally healing for him. He didn't like to think about that particular night, only because it was triggered by a nightmare, leading him to believe that future nightmares could do the same thing.

Hermione had held him, and using their bond, helped him work his way through it. But for a brief moment, he had teetered on the brink of utter despair.

Dressing casually in shorts and a t-shirt, he went in search of breakfast, and his wife.

He found her in the main dining room and was shocked to see her wearing a t-shirt that read, 'My Husband invaded Britain and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.'

She looked up and smirked at him. His t-shirt read, 'Unemployed Dark Lord Slayer. Will slay for food!' and she nearly rolled her eyes, but figured it might be a tad hypocritical.

He sat down next to her and grinned. "Nice shirt, but if we want to be technical, I didn't really invade Britain. I just stormed Hogwarts," he said, then looked around at the empty room. "Where is everybody?"

Hermione calmly buttered a roll. "Oh, they'll be here shortly," she said, then picked up her wand and waved it, causing a bell like tone to ring throughout the house.

A few moments later, Emma walked in, grinning at Harry and wearing a t-shirt that read, 'I'm pregnant...'

Dan followed on her heels, wearing a shirt that read, '...And I'm surprised!'

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Harry protested.

Hermione laughed. "We've been putting up with your shirts for two years. Now it's our turn."

Tonks and Remus entered next. Tonks' shirt said, 'Don't follow in my footsteps. I walk into walls.'

Remus' shirt was an echo of Tonks'. His read, 'Official Guide Wolf for the positionally challenged.'

Luna walked in wearing a shirt that read, 'Save the whales! Trade them for valuable prizes!' and Harry nearly choked. She stopped and smiled at him before sitting down.

Harry was sorely tempted to bang his head against the table.

A moment later Draco walked in wearing a shirt that read, 'Honk if you love Slytherin'. He looked down at the bright yellow garment covered with black lettering and turned to Luna. "It would work better if this wasn't in Hufflepuff colors. And what does it mean to Honk?"

"Yes, Draco, I know. And don't worry about it," she replied calmly.

Neville stepped in wearing a shirt that read, 'One man's weed is another man's potion ingredient.'

Ginny followed wearing a shirt that read, 'Official Dark Lord Slayer Ego Deflater.'

Susan walked in next wearing a shirt that said, 'I'm the Mummy'. She was followed by Terry, whose shirt read, 'I'm the Daddy'. Then Susan held up the baby, who wore a t-shirt reading, 'I'm in charge'.

Harry groaned at the group. "Who's bright idea was this?"

"Yours, in a way, Harry. We just felt that it was such a good idea, we all wanted to do it," replied Ginny smugly.

"Right. And I'm in the line of succession for the throne," Harry replied dryly.

Padfoot Manor, One Week Later (April 24th)...

"Two weeks!" Amelia said tightly. "Two weeks you and your people have been out of contact."

Harry stared at her for a moment, his expression dark. "Yes, Amelia, we took two weeks off to rest and recuperate. There isn't a person among us who didn't break down sometime during those two weeks. We have been training for the war for nearly two years. Now that it's over, most of us, believe it or not, want to take a moment to breathe and take stock of the price we've paid."

"Seriously, Amelia," Hermione interjected, "you knew how to reach us if it was an emergency. Besides, the King himself told us to take the time off."

"You're not going to make me feel guilty over this. I left a message saying we'd be back and how to contact us," Harry said, gesturing with his arm, taking in all his friends.

They were tightly packed behind Harry with various expressions on their faces. Susan and Terry looked ashamed, while most, like Ginny, Harry and Hermione, looked irate about being called to task for taking their trip. They had just arrived back at the manor and hadn't even made it to their rooms when the Minister caught up with them.

"Look, Amelia, I've told you this before, but I'll repeat it. I'm not going to spend my life in the public eye. As soon as I can, I hope to leave the British Army and take a few years off to see the world with my wife. The Brotherhood isn't disbanding, but we all have dreams we want to follow. For me, that doesn't include being poster boy for the Ministry."

Amelia turned red. She was about to speak when Remus stepped between her and Harry.

"Both of you calm down. Amelia, Harry isn't talking about dropping everything in your lap today, but you need to see this from his perspective. Ginny and Neville were badly injured. Draco was hurt, as well. Susan and Terry, myself, even Harry... all of us have had to pay a high price victory and we're tired."

Remus took a breath and glanced around before turning back to Amelia. "I think I can safely say that none of us will shirk our duties. We all know rebuilding will take time and we'll do our part. But Harry recognized that we needed to get away for a while. That's all it was. A two week vacation so we could remember why we fought in the first place."

He looked fondly at Tonks, who had also became pregnant over the holiday. "We needed to be reminded that we're only human."

"Amelia," Harry said softly, his tone apologetic. "I can promise you we'll all be back on the job first thing tomorrow morning."

Amelia sighed and nodded, the anger draining out of her. "I'm sorry, Harry. The last two weeks have been hellish. We have nearly a hundred captured Death Eaters and we don't know what to do with them."

Susan stepped forward. She held the baby cradled in her arm. "I think Aunt needs to be reminded of what we're all fighting for," she said, as she handed Siomha to Amelia.

Amelia's hard expression softened immediately.

"I know you can't do it now, Amelia, but you need to take a break also. Find time somewhere in your schedule. You're welcome to use my vacation home. Some time in the sun by the sea would do you a world of good," Harry told her over Susan's shoulder.

Amelia glanced up from the baby and nodded.

He turned to the others and gestured. They scattered to their rooms to unpack. It was a good two weeks, but now it was time to get back to work.

Hogwarts Refugee Camp (April 28th)...

Harry wore his cloak with the hood up as he walked through the tent city that had sprung up around the castle. Hermione and the others had kicked him from the castle as they oversaw the Brigade moving into Camp Hogwarts, the facility just on the outskirts of the school grounds.

He grinned to himself. Because he'd stuck his nose into everyone else's business, he had been told by Hermione to take a walk while his company commanders got everything under control. The American units were being redeployed, and for a brief time, the Brigade would return to it's Auror roots by providing police services until Amelia could get the Department of Magical Law Enforcement up and running properly.

The refugee camp around the Red Pentagram field office had grown to the size of a small city. Nearly fifteen thousand wizards, witches and squibs were now living in tents, effectively filling the space between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.

It was where the Brigade would be doing most of its policing. Despite the end of the war, human problems still existed. Husbands and wives fought, people stole - in other words, people were returning to normal - and the Brigade was needed to watch over them until Amelia could field new Aurors.

Every morning, Ministry supervisors would set up their recruitment tables in the refugee camp, taking any able bodied person capable of working. They'd earn a galleon a day, plus meals. If they had a family to feed, they would receive extra money and food based on the number of people they were responsible for.

The Muggle Government had reoccupied the parliament building in London and from their they were coordinating reconstruction efforts. Department M was continually slipping in magical help at the insistence of both Amelia and Harry. As a result of such help, several metropolitan hospitals were returned to service much sooner than expected and London had reliable power, even if they only had it for twelve hours a day.

The people seemed to take things in stride once the initial shock and celebrations were over. The BBC was back on the air, broadcasting from several locations, providing information about medical and rescue services. They also spent ten minutes every hour running a show called "Who's where?" in an attempt to reunite families and friends. Generally, people grumbled, but even the most vocal of critics could see that progress was being made.

Aid rushed into Britain from around the world. London's Heathrow Airport was turned into a huge relief and distribution center, with aircraft landing every five minutes.

Harry walked through the camp, his mind grappling with the magnitude of the problem. Suddenly it seemed like the last two years of war preparation had been a sham. All that work and when it finally came down to the end, it wasn't really the end, but the beginning of a whole new set of problems. Problems that were even more important than Voldemort and it was so overwhelming. For the first time in his life, he felt like running.

The morning staff meeting with Ministry representatives had covered topics like food distribution, crowd control and waste disposal. Sylvia August was terribly concerned that overcrowding in the camp, coupled with poor waste management, would lead to disease. What did he know about sewerage?

Harry paused in his musings and looked around. Nearby, a young woman with a wicked scar and a limp was nursing a small infant. Both looked like they hadn't eaten in weeks, although Harry knew better. Food was quite plentiful in the camp. The pair looked as though they'd been through hell, but they were recovering.

A young man crawled out of the tent and walked over to the woman, who smiled up at him. When he grinned and caressed her hair lovingly, Harry blinked and pushed back his hood.

"Stan? Stan Shunpike?"

"Wot?" asked the young man, looking around guardedly. Then he spotted Harry. "Blimey! Maggie, look! It's Harry Potter!"

Harry walked toward him his hand outstretched. "I'm glad to see you made it through the war, Stan."

Stan shook his hand nervously, while Maggie watched Harry with an awestruck expression.

"We wuz lucky, Mr. Potter. Ern... Ernie didn't make it, bless 'is soul. He tried to use the bus to escape, but the Death Eaters caught him," Stan replied.

Harry sighed. "I think we've all lost friends." He looked down at the baby, then back to Stan. "Do you have everything you need?"

Stan bobbed his head. "We're alright for now. Things have been getting better. Little Ceci has been to a healer, who cured her cough, and Maggie is fixed up well enough."

Harry nodded. Stan and Maggie were both squibs, but the infant already had a powerfully bright aura. He smiled at the pair. "Good enough, then. If you need anything, Stan, you come to the Brigade Headquarters over in the Ministry camp and ask for me. Alright?"

Stan bobbed his head again. Maggie stood and handed him the baby. Then she limped over to Harry and kissed his cheek. "My husband is a proud man, Mr. Potter, but we both thank you for everything you've done."

Harry swallowed noisily and smiled down at the woman. Then he turned and walked back toward the camp.

"Did ya see, Maggie? Harry Potter himself is looking out for us! Cor!"

Harry blushed, hearing Stan's comment.

"Hermione?" he sent.

"What?" came the irritable reply. "Are you sticking your nose in places it doesn't belong again?"

He winced. "I'm sorry about that," he replied contritely. "How much does a Hogwarts education cost?"

Their bond widened and he could feel the confusion his question had caused her. "What? Why do you need to know?"

"I ran into an old friend in the camp. Do you remember Stan Shunpike, the squib that worked on the Knight Bus? I ran into him and his wife in the camp, along with a baby girl who's going to be a powerful witch. They looked pretty banged up, but are doing alright."

"And?"

He could tell by her tone that she was no longer irritated at him.

"Well, I thought I'd open a educational trust for the baby. You know how hard squibs have it, getting work in our world is nearly impossible for them. Would say, twenty thousand galleons, be enough?"

"Damn you, Harry Potter! How am I supposed to stay angry with you when you keep doing things like this? Get your tight butt back here so I can hug you properly!"

"I'm on my way," he replied with a grin, then he apparated to her.

Hogwarts Castle (April 29th)...

Harry walked into the Great Hall and nodded in approval. The room had been scrubbed until it shone. The Ministry was putting every body they could find to work, even if it was just to push a broom. It seemed strange that the Ministry was relying on muggle methods, but that was what they were doing. Hermione explained to Harry that they didn't want people using magic, since not everyone had the same level of capabilities, even for simple stuff like cleaning spells.

Harry nodded to Arthur Weasley, who sat at the long table. David, Amelia's aide, sat in one corner, taking notes. Chuck Stanton, representing the allied nations, sat next to Arthur.

Harry grabbed the chair on the other side of Arthur and sat down. He absently noted Hermione enter the room and stand in the back among the growing crowd.

Arthur stood. "May I have your attention please?" he asked loudly.

The crowd slowly fell silent and all eyes turned to him.

"Thank you," Arthur said with a touch of nervousness. "The issue of dealing with the prisoners has been tricky. The allied nations argued long and hard over how we should approach it before we came up with a solution which we feel is suitable.

"In essence, the captured Death Eaters will be tried before a military tribunal, consisting of Colonel Potter as the ranking military officer stationed at Hogwarts. Brigadier General Charles Stanton, as the ranking allied officer, will be the tribunal president. The other officer will be Major Howard of the Canadian 5th Shamans.

"In the event that the tribunal feels it necessary to turn a prisoner over to civilian authorities, we have prevailed upon Chief Justice Okobe Umtumba of the Council of Avalon to preside over a civilian trial."

The doors opened once more and Justice Umtumba entered the Great Hall. The crowd parted instinctively, allowing him to pass. Harry's face light up, seeing his friend. He had not expected to see him here.

When Harry stood, Chuck glanced at him in surprise, then climbed to his feet. A second later, Major Howard joined them.

Umtumba stopped in front of the table with Arthur and the others and nodded in greeting. "Gentleman, I recognize your authority in all matters military. Should you need advice concerning issues of law, I am at your disposal."

"We are honored by your presence and your faith in us," Chuck Stanton replied.

Hermione was watching the four converse when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Draco grinning broadly at her.

"Do you want to see something interesting?" he asked, his eyes dancing wildly.

"Sure. What is it?" she replied.

"Come with me."

Hermione followed Draco out of the Great Hall and towards Myrtle's bathroom on the second floor. Inside, she could hear the sound of shouting.

"Come out here right now," shouted Myrtle. "Come out or I'll get the Baron! He put me in charge of you!"

Hermione blinked in surprise and moved to stand next to Luna. "What's going on?" she whispered.

"Someone's getting their comeuppance," Luna said smugly.

Myrtle ignored the humans, choosing instead to hover near the stall next to hers. "You can't stay in there forever," she screeched. "Come out!"

A head appeared through the door. "Damn you, child! Leave me be!"

"No! You're mine! The Baron said I can keep you," Myrtle shouted.

Hermione took a step back in shock and her hands flew up to her mouth. "Lucius Malfoy?" she gasped.

Lucius' head turned. Spotting her, he sneered. "Filthy mudblood," he said. Then, seeing Draco and Luna, his expression darkened. "I nearly killed you both. I was so close! You're nothing but a damn weakling, Draco, and your mother is...Ahhhhhh!"

His angry rant had been cut off by Myrtle, who had reached out and grabbed Lucius by the ear, twisting it viciously. "Manners! You are going to be respectful and mindful of your manners if you're going to be mine for eternity!"

"Is it possible for ghost to turn even paler?" Luna asked curious, looking at Lucius.

"It seems so," Draco drawled, amused.

Hermione stepped back until her shoulders brushed the wall and bit her lip hard, trying not to laugh.

Myrtle moved closer to Lucius. "You will be nice to them. Hermione is my friend. I let her have my Harry, after all. And Draco's a very nice boy. I could have had him if I wanted. Now, be a good boyfriend and behave yourself!"

Lucius twisted free from Myrtle's grasp and vanished. Myrtle groaned loudly and vanished in chase.

Hermione slid down the wall she was leaning up against, holding her sides as her laughter bounced off the walls of the bathroom. "A ghost?" she finally stammered between giggles.

"It does take some getting used to," Draco replied. His lips twisted for a moment. "Oh Gods, my mother is going to love this." He finally gave in and his laughter quickly joined Hermione's.

Luna watched them both for a moment, thinking. If she asked nicely, she was sure her father would let her borrow one of his cameras. It would be nice to get a picture of Narcissa's face when Draco told her what had become of her ex-husband.

Commander's Quarters, Hogwarts Military Station (May 5th)...

Hermione was worried about Harry. The last two weeks had been hard on everyone, but the infighting and bickering that Harry was putting up with in regard to the tribunal had been tearing him apart. The problem could be summed up in one word: execution. Most of the captured Death Eaters would be sentenced to death for their crimes, but in Britain, the muggle world had outlawed capital punishment years earlier.

The King had ordered the Ministry to move more in line with the muggles, and that was causing a lot of problems. Then, to top it off, the Ministry no longer had a means of executing prisoners. The Dementors were gone, and the veil was locked under tons of hardened lava. As it was, it was estimated that recovering the old Ministry building would take several years.

Amelia had decided it would be easier to build a new facility next to the old one, then turn the old building over to the historians to recover at their leisure.

Hermione had appealed to Amelia to start releasing the Brotherhood from their duties. She hadn't spoken to Harry about it, but she had cited Harry's leg injury as a major reason why he should not be allowed to continue as commander of the Brigade. Amelia had been non-committal, but she had at least listened.

Harry stepped into their bedroom and peeled off his tie before all but collapsing in a chair.

"You look tired," Hermione sent him.

"Tired doesn't begin to describe it. Talk, talk, talk, all day long. Merlin! I never knew talking could be so exhausting."

"Did you make any progress today?"

He looked at her and smiled softly. "I think so. Or, I should say, I think we might have come up with something that will work, if we can convince the muggle governments to go along with it."

Hermione took off her robe, revealing a very skimpy, sheer negligee. Once she had his full attention, she walked over and sat on his lap. "Well, don't keep me in suspense. Tell me what you've thought up."

He wrapped both arms around her and buried his face in her neck, breathing deeply. It was something she loved and it always sent shivers up and down her back.

"Witch," he said fondly. "How do you expect me to talk business with you sitting in my lap, wiggling your butt and looking the way you do?"

"Patience, Harry," she said primly. He knew she was deliberately teasing him, but two could play that game.

He gently pushed her off his lap and stood up. Then, taking her hand, he led her into the bathroom. Normally, the bath would have been a copy of every other bathroom they had set up for couples in the Brigade camp, but Hermione decided the commander should be allowed a little leeway in what his or her bath was like. Harry didn't mind. He wholeheartedly approved of the fact that Hermione like to share baths with him.

She had sunk the tub into the floor and, rather than spigots to add water, one side of the pool sized tub had a continual rain storm dropping water at a constant rate. The water temperature and various additives could be changed by adjusting the cloud above that end of the pool.

Harry stripped down and slid into the pool. Then he looked up at Hermione, who stood undecided.

"Well? If you want to listen, you'll have to get wet," he said with a grin.

She laughed, catching his double meaning, then slipped out of her negligee and climbed in.

Harry leaned back his head and sighed for a moment. Hermione knew he was organizing his thoughts before he spoke.

"You would be surprised how many countries have ways of executing prisoners and just how gruesome some of them are," he said softly. She had to strain over the sound of the falling rain to hear him. He opened his eyes and looked at her. "When the allied nations realized we were without a method, they began to step forward with ideas and it ended up becoming a diplomatic nightmare. Poor Chuck didn't know what to do. He's in charge of a military tribunal, not a conference on capital punishment."

He paused and reached down in the water to knead his calf.

"When I left the court tonight they were taking a serious look at the idea I had, but I could tell a number of the allied nations weren't happy with it. They aren't happy with anything that leaves the prisoners alive."

"Alive?" she blurted. She knew he had been working on his own solution, but had not expected him to suggest anything that would let Death Eaters live.

"Yeah. I suggested we bind their magic, then do a total memory wipe before handing them over to the muggle authorities as normal prisoners. Believe me, it's better than what Argentina wanted us to do. They were in favor of a public flogging, followed by a private hanging."

Hermione pushed his hands away from his leg and took up the job of massaging his calf. She stopped for a moment and shivered. "That's barbaric," she muttered.

"People are angry," he explained. "The real numbers are starting to come in and they aren't good. Amelia thinks we lost nearly a third of wizarding Britain - that's over twenty thousand people - and the muggles are looking at numbers that far exceed our own. Everyone wants to make an example out of these prisoners so that no one will join the next dark lord that comes along."

"I can understand that, Harry, but we've won. There's no need to sink to such brutal behavior. I'm surprised you suggested what you did, but it's the best idea I've heard yet. And it leaves them alive, even if they are powerless."

He smiled at her. "I thought you'd approve. How are things otherwise?"

"Well, Minerva has roughly half of the school elves working at the castle. You've probably seen them."

"Seen them? You can't walk ten feet without tripping over them. They're running around, scrubbing and shining, putting up portraits and making lists of things that don't work anymore. I think she's determined to have the castle ready to receive students by September," he replied, then he stretched out a little more. Her massage had moved from his calf to other spots.

"Did you know she's roped Flitwick into putting a team together to see if they can salvage the Express and get it working again?"

He pulled her into his lap and she clutched at him while his hands worked their own miracles on her body. It was a game they played, one she'd never been able to win. Mutely, she shook her head. He was capable of holding a normal conversation and still love her to distraction.

"That," she gasped, "sounds interesting... oh..."

He grinned against her neck, then he lifted her easily in his arms and out of the tub. A simple gestureless charm and they were both dry when he laid her on the bed. She grinned and held out her arms for him, laughing when he fell into her embrace.

There would be time for talking later.

Hogsmeade Station (May 20th)...

Professor Flitwick climbed up onto the ladder until he was high enough for everyone to see him. The station was packed with at least eight hundred people, all waiting in silence.

Flitwick cast the sonorus charm on himself and looked around, beaming at the anxious faces.

Harry stood not far from Hermione and he couldn't help but laugh, seeing the surprise on Flitwick's face. Two days ago the small professor had circulated a sheet in the camps asking for volunteers to help him fix the Hogwarts Express. The response to his flyer had been overwhelming.

"Can everyone hear me?" Flitwick squeaked loudly.

"Hear you, yes! See you? No!" shouted Remus, to the amusement of the crowd.

Flitwick nodded, then flicked his wand at Remus, who quickly stopped laughing when he found himself hanging upside down from the edge of the station roof. The crowd laughed even louder and Tonks sat down heavily on the ground, giggling at her now sputtering husband.

"Now that I have your attention," Flitwick continued merrily, "listen up. We have several tasks ahead of us, so we're going to break into groups. The first group will extract the engine and coal car from the wreckage and move it to the clearing behind the station. They will assemble over by what remains of the engine.

"The second group is the fabrication team. They will be looking for small parts and items. Some of them will be repairing the items, others will be working on fixing the engine itself. The second group will set up in the clearing behind the station.

"Finally, we have the track group, who will be cleaning up the remainder of the mess and working to fix the tracks. You know who you are. You'll start about two miles south of us and work north. We have several miles of badly damaged track that needs to be checked, cleaned and repaired."

He paused and grinned widely at the crowd. "Let's get to work!"

As the crowd broke up, Harry walked over to Hagrid and Flitwick. He and Hermione had volunteered to help extract the engine from the wreckage.

The Express had been demolished in a train collision when Voldemort had taken over. The engineer had moved the train onto the main track from it's protected siding, where it was slammed into by commuter rail train.

"Most of the two trains are in pieces. We need to figure out what belonged to the commuter train and what belonged to the Express," Flitwick was saying. "Fortunately, the commuter train was made mostly from aluminum. The Express is much heavier iron."

"Well, let's get to it then," Hagrid said. "We ain't got all day." Turning away, he led the large group over to a huge pile of twisted metal.

Flitwick ran to keep up with everyone. In front of the pile, he stopped and turned. "We'll start by levitating those top pieces," he said, pointing to several huge chunks of metal on top of the pile. "Remember, it's Wingardium Leviosa. And don't forget the swish and flick!"

Harry looked at Hermione and they both broke into laughter. The last time Flitwick told them that, they ended up destroying a bathroom while fighting a troll. It was the start of a lifetime relationship, although they didn't know it at the time.

Harry pulled his staff from its holster and expanded it to full size. Pointing, he raised it slightly and one of the commuter rail trucks lifted high into the air.

"Oh, my goodness!" exclaimed Flitwick. "Excellent work, Mr. Potter! Marvelous!"

Harry, distracted by the little Professor, let his control on the spell slip slightly.

"Harry!" screamed Hermione.

He turned and looked around wildly. The heavy truck was rapidly shrinking as it rose into the air.

"We don't want to put things into orbit, Harry!" Hermione exclaimed.

He blushed and brought the train truck back down to a reasonable height. "Sorry," he muttered. Around him, the crowd laughed, then turned to lift the pieces apart from the wreckage.

Even with the use of magic it was hard work. Flitwick ran from one place to another, helping people figure out what part went into what pile.

Several hours later, Harry found himself leaning up against the base of a tree, staring at several large piles of metal. Hagrid walked over and put a large tub filled with ice and drinks on the ground before sitting down next to it.

"I don't know how they hope to put the Express back together," Harry said dubiously, eying the large piles of twisted metal.

"They're going to try," Hagrid said with a shrug. "The Headmistress an' Professor Flitwick have a bet goin' on. She doesn' think he can do it so she's arrangin' fer portkeys to be made to send to the students... Not tha' they'll be a lot o' 'em this year."

Harry reached into the tub and pulled out two bottles. He opened them, then nudged Hermione, who was dozing against his shoulder. She blinked and accepted the bottle of butterbeer gratefully.

"Yehr parents would've been very proud o' yeh. I know most o' the Hogwarts Professors are. They are constantly usin' yeh two as examples," Hagrid said with a grin, then he nodded to the people milling about. House elves were delivering food and drink to the workers. "Yeh did good work out there. I know Professor Flitwick is pleased. He didn' think we'd get this much done today."

"It beats sitting around listening to the representatives from wherever tell us what they think we should do with those prisoners. I was relieved when Chuck Stanton asked for a week's recess to confer with Washington," Harry replied.

Hagrid chuckled and shook his head.

"As it stands, they'll need to find a substitute for me come June first. Our NEWTS are starting then."

"That'll be too late to graduate with your class," Hagrid said in a low rumble.

"We know, but we'll have taken them, Hagrid," Hermione replied. "I'm sure we'll work up a private little celebration, even if we don't attend the graduating ceremony."

"I'd rather attend that ceremony than all the others they keep trying to get me to attend. Fortunately, work here keeps me to busy," Harry said smugly.

Hermione chuckled. He had been dodging Amelia's attempts to turn him into some sort of international hero by refusing to get involved in planning a multinational award ceremony. Hermione knew Harry wouldn't be able to avoid it forever, but he was going to put it off as long as he could.

"You can't run forever, Harry. Amelia has already spoken to Caleb about awarding unit citations at the end of next month," Hermione said.

Harry frowned, knowing that he couldn't avoid that. The people who fought for him came first.

"So, what will you be doing, Hagrid?" asked Hermione.

The large man grinned at her. "I'm goin' back to my old job. I'll rebuild my house an' spend half my time at Haven an' half here at Hogwarts. The Irish were kind enough to award me an official Mastery in Magic Animals fer my work with the Angels."

Harry grinned. "That's brilliant, Hagrid!"

Hagrid nodded. "Surprised me right down to me boots! And now I can do what I wanted. With Professor McGonagall's permission, I'm offerin' two different Care classes this next year. The regular one, an' one fer exotic animals. Yehr friend, Luna, is supposed to be helpin' me in tha' one. She's workin' on her own Mastery."

Harry leaned back in the warm spring sun, pleased for his friend. Hagrid always seemed to be a bit of a problem, but he was finally getting the recognition and praise he deserved.

Haven School, Graduation Day (June 1st)...

"There you are!"

Millicent turned toward the voice and watched as Deneb walked over. She'd been sitting on a secluded bench in the garden for nearly an hour. The graduation ceremony was over and students were milling around with their families, but she'd felt the need to be alone. Her family had done their duty by showing up, but had left almost immediately after the ceremony ended. They'd expected her to remain neutral during the war, but had found out about her work at the school and had made their displeasure clear.

"I've been looking all over for you. What are you doing out here?" Deneb asked as he sat down beside her.

"Thinking," she said with a shrug.

"About?"

"A lot of things, but mostly this." She passed him a letter she'd been holding in her hand.

He scanned the letter quickly and smiled. Reaching into the pocket of his robe, he drew out a letter and held it up. "I got the same offer."

Taking her letter back, she folded it and shoved it into her pocket.

He frowned when she didn't speak. "What's wrong? I thought you'd be happy about this. I am. So were my parents. I bet yours will be too."

"You'd lose that bet," she growled.

"I doubt that. I saw your parents at graduation. They looked pleased."

"You saw their public face, Deneb. Privately, my parents are furious with my involvement in the war. They know about this job offer and have already told me that I'll be disowned if I take it."

"What? Disowned? Millicent, what's going on?"

"My parents may have remained neutral during the war, but they're Slytherins through and through. Many of their friends and business associates were Death Eaters and they're far from pleased by the outcome of this war.

"My actions in the war were a slap in the face to them, but they were willing to chalk it up to inexperience on my part and a lack of familial education on theirs. They were in the middle of telling me that they'd graciously forgive my actions and accept me back if I rededicated myself to the family when an elf popped in to deliver the letter. I'd barely finished reading it when my father snatched it out of my hands and read it. He then informed me that if I took the job, I'd be disowned, publicly."

Deneb scowled. "Wouldn't it be a bit difficult to put a polite, public face on something like that?"

"My father will think of something. He always does. And here's a bet you can take to the bank. Whatever reason he comes up with will be designed to cause me the most pain and embarrassment possible."

"So, the tough Millicent Bulstrode is going to cave in and be a good little girl, is that it?" Deneb asked scathingly.

"You don't understand, Thorntree. You weren't raised in a Slytherin household," she told him quietly.

"Oh, please," a quiet voice said from behind them. "What's next, Bulstrode? Tears?"

Jumping to their feet, Deneb and Millicent spun around, wands drawn, and watched as Draco Black stepped out from the shadows of the garden.

"How long have you been listening?" Deneb asked as he put his wand away.

"Long enough," Draco said, walking over to join them.

"You were spying on us!" Millicent accused, her wand still pointed at him.

He shrugged, held up a hand and disarmed her with a muttered word. "It's not very politic of you to point your wand at your future boss," he told her as he handed it back to her.

"You're assuming I'll take the job. And what's this about you being my boss?" she asked, tucking her wand away.

"Of course you'll take the job. You're a lot of things, Millicent, but stupid isn't one of them. As for being your boss, the Ministry has appointed me Head of Operations."

"You're leading the department?" Deneb asked curiously.

"No. They feel I'm too young for that, which suits me perfectly. You couldn't pay me enough for that job. They've tapped Jonathan Collingsworth for the position. He's been in politics for years and is used to the machinations of the Ministry."

Deneb frowned. "My parents know a Robin Collingsworth. Any relation?"

"They're brothers," Draco confirmed.

Millicent shook her head. "Why a new department, anyway?"

"That's partially your fault, I'm afraid. Well, yours and Deneb's," Draco told her with a sly grin. "Minerva told Amelia just how well you two performed during the war. That led the Minister to the idea that perhaps separating the police force from the intelligence gathering force might be a good idea, and the Ministry of Magical Intelligence was formed. When the political maneuvering started to try to limit the actions of the new department, the King stepped in and put the squeeze on the opposition."

"It must be nice to have friends in high placed," Deneb said, grinning.

"No doubt," Draco said, rolling his eyes. "So, how about it, Millicent? Are you going to be one of the gainfully employed? Or do I put your name on the list of people to watch?"

She shook her head. "Piss off, Black. You're not going to intimidate me into accepting the offer."

Sighing, Draco sat down on the bench and watched her carefully. "What, exactly, is the problem here?"

When she turned away, Deneb scowled at her. "Her father told her if she accepts the job, he'll disown her."

"And?"

"You know how important family is in our world, Draco," Millicent muttered as she turned back to face him. "How long do you think I'll keep any job, let alone one with the Ministry, after my father is through with me?"

Cocking an eyebrow, Draco shook his head and stared at her for a moment. "You really are out of the loop, aren't you? Things don't work that way anymore, Bulstrode. It's ability that counts now, not family connections. The King has ordered the magical government to more closely pattern itself after the muggle government and in the muggle world, ability will take you far."

"Even without family?" she asked doubtfully.

"For Merlin's sake, Millicent, you have family. You have me!" Deneb told her angrily.

If Draco was surprised by the outburst, he didn't show it. Remaining silent, he watched the pair before him with interest.

Reaching out, she brushed her fingers across his cheek gently. "That's sweet, Deneb, but..."

"No," he snapped, reaching up to take her hand. Pulling her close, he stared down at her. "Don't you get it? I've worked too hard to bring you into my life and to earn your trust. I love you and I know damn well that you love me, too, so don't bother denying it."

Her eyes widened and she stared at him silently for several moments. "I love you," she finally blurted out. "Gods, I never let myself admit it, but I do love you. But what about your family?"

"They'll welcome you with open arms," he told her, then brushed a light kiss across her lips.

"This is all very touching, I suppose," Draco drawled, "but there's something else you should keep in mind, Bulstrode."

Turning in Deneb's arms, she scowled at him. "And what's that, Black?"

"Do you honestly think Harry would let you face anything alone? Even if Deneb weren't with you, Harry would be." Seeing the shock in her eyes, he grinned cockily and buffed the nails of his hand against his robe. "Then there's the little matter of the life debt Neville Longbottom owes you. He'd never allow anything to happen to you if it was in his power to stop it. As Ginny is his wife, that would bring in the Weasley family. Your parents have never met the twins, so they'd never understand the utter chaos their lives would quickly become until it was too late."

Seeing she hadn't considered that, either, he shook his head. "Minerva would stand beside you and Deneb against anyone who'd dare threaten you. So would Remus and Tonks. Then there's me. I may no longer be a Malfoy, but the Black family isn't without influence."

Standing, he smiled gently. "If your parents want a fight, they'll get it. I think you'll find that they back down very quickly, once they realize just whose standing beside you."

"Draco, I..." She trailed off, not knowing what to say.

His eyes shone with understanding. "It's a lesson that took me awhile to learn, Millicent, but one I learned well. With people like Minerva and the Brotherhood behind you, you're never alone."

Nodding once to Deneb, he turned and walked away. "Oh, and I'll expect your letters of acceptance within the week," he called before disappearing back into the school.

Deneb's arms tightened around Millicent and he leaned down slightly. "Well, what do you think?"

She scowled. "I never did like the name Bulstrode. I'll be glad to get rid of it."

Laughing, he hugged her quickly, then release her. "Come on. I want to introduce you to my parents!" Grabbing her hand, he dragged her back toward the school.

"Oh, gods. Your parents? Deneb, maybe we should wait."

"Stop worrying. They'll love you!" he exclaimed.

"Why do I doubt that?" she muttered.

"Because you're a pessimist and a cynic by nature, of course," was the cheerful reply.

She rolled her eyes, but allowed herself to be led back into the school.

A few minutes later, the door to Minerva's office opened and Draco walked in.

"So, did you hear everything?" he asked.

Nodding, Harry stood up, stretched and flicked his hand at Draco to dispel the eavesdropping charm. "Yes. I'm glad she's alright."

"Why didn't you speak to her?" Draco asked, waiting for Harry by the door.

"I figured you'd get through to her easier," he said as he walked out of the room. "Do you think she'll take the job?"

Closing the door, Draco turned and walked beside Harry. "She'll take it. Deneb will talk her around if she's still having doubts. I've a question for you though, and not about Millicent."

"What is it?"

"Did the Weasley twins have anything to do with the naming of the new department?"

Harry looked at the blond, puzzled. "No, why?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, Potter! The Ministry of Magical Intelligence? MoMI?"

Harry blinked, then grinned. "It does sound like something the twins would come up with."

"Merlin, why couldn't they have stuck with 'Department', like everything else at the Ministry?" Draco grumbled.

"I don't know. Look, I need to find Minerva and let her know that Millicent's okay. I'll see you back at the manor."

Nodding, Draco walked toward the exit, still muttering to himself.

Padfoot Manor (June 7th)...

It was a subdued Brotherhood that arrived in the foyer at Padfoot. They had just completed their final examination, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and were done with the testing phase of the NEWTS.

"Someone tell me again why we thought this was a good idea?" grumbled Neville. "I didn't feel this tired after the battle."

His comment caused them all to agree. To the group, "the battle" was now a phrase they used to describe what would be forever burned into their memories.

Dan and Emma, who hadn't taken the exams, bustled into the foyer and started pushing them towards the large dining room.

"Come on, you lot. I know you're tired, but food and drink will help wake you up," Emma said cheerily.

Harry wanted to kill her.

Moved into the dinning room, Ginny snagged the first empty seat and placed her head down on the table. "I never want to do that again," she murmured.

Harry collapsed into his own chair, wincing in pain. The practical portion of the exam had been a duel between himself and multiple opponents. It was the only way the examiners could figure to test him. No one wanted to duel with him, so they tapped some of the Ministry's training people and set him against four of the best duelists the Ministry had. They were the same people who'd helped train him in the first place, and they knew his weaknesses.

He had to fend off several attacks that took advantage of his injury, and he hadn't been completely successful.

Harry glanced over at Terry and they exchanged a sympathetic look. Terry's injury hurt his mobility, but didn't really cause him much pain. On the other hand, his leg could suddenly go numb on him with little warning.

Elves bustled around the table, filling plates and glasses. The wonderful smells drifting around the table was enough to wake them enough to eat.

"So, you're done testing now?" asked Dan.

Hermione roused herself enough to nod. She had been staring at her drink, exhausted. "Yes. We should know the results in a week or so."

The doors to the room burst open and Remus and Tonks stepped in, pushing a cart with a large cake on it. The cake, they all saw, was shaped like a newt. A series of candles shot sparks from the their tips and made a screeching noise that caused Fuzz to whirr loudly and vanish from Luna's shoulder.

A second later, a pair of yellow eyes blinked and looked down at the ruckus from one of the overhead gas lamps. The Snorkack glared distrustfully at the sugary confection and whirred warningly.

Harry looked at the smiling Tonk, all bouncy and full of energy, and thought about killing her, too. But the thought of having to expend energy to complete the task made him sigh tiredly.

"Congratulations on taking your NEWTS!" Tonks cried loudly.

Then again, Harry thought, glaring at her. The world might just thank me.

"Someone tell me again why this was a good idea?" Draco said from the other end of the table.

"So you could be good adults and lead productive lives," Remus said smugly.

As a group they turned to glare at the werewolf. He would never know how close he came to dying that day.

Luna turned back to the table and rested her head on one hand. With a tired sigh, she raised the other hand and held it, palm up. Seconds later, a small green man with a horn protruding from his forehead appeared, standing on her palm. He blinked in shocked surprise and turned to stare at Luna incredulously.

"Yes, I can summon you, so it's time you grew up and started acting like you take your job seriously," she told him.

He huffed at her and made a few crude gestures.

Luna frowned at him. "You know, that isn't nice. He's my protector and mate. Besides, you're too tiny, no matter what enchantment you use. Now, go back and tell Gaia that her Angels are doing very well. Thank her for me, for all of us, actually," Luna said sternly.

The little man looked at her uncertainly. He wasn't used to her being so commanding. Finally, he sighed and nodded, then vanished after farting hard enough to send him airborne for a second.

"What the devil was that?" exclaimed Hermione, rousing from her stupor.

"Oh, him? That's Gaia's messenger," replied Luna airily. "I meant to call him earlier, but I forgot with all the studying we've been doing."

Luna then stood and turned to Draco. "I'm going upstairs to take a bath. If you don't spend too much time down here, you might get lucky tonight."

Then she turned and left the room, leaving Draco staring at her retreating back, and the rest of the Brotherhood snickering in their seats.

Draco shook his head ruefully. Turning to face the others, he opened his mouth to apologize but Harry waved him to silence.

"Don't say anything, Draco. She's Luna, that's all that needs to be said. Besides, no matter how outrageous she can sometimes be, you wouldn't change her for all the galleons in the world and we all know it," Harry said.

"Of course I wouldn't," he replied haughtily. "She's even more Slytherin than I am." Standing, he nodded arrogantly to the others and followed his wife from the room.

Harry stood unsteadily and leaned against his staff. "I think Luna has the right of it. I'm off to go soak before this leg pulls up totally lame tonight."

"Do you want me to come with you?" Hermione asked.

"Finish your meal and relax for a bit. I'll probably still be soaking when you're done. If I run into any trouble, I'll send Dobby to fetch you," he replied.

"Those must be some tests," Dan said, watching Harry hobble from the room.

"Horribly exhausting," mumbled Neville, then he grinned and nudged Hermione.

She turned, then choked back a laugh. Ginny was dozing and her nose was about to drop into her soup.

Shaking his head in amusement, Neville stood and picked up Ginny. She blinked sleepily, then snuggled closer to him. "G'Night all," he said quietly.

"I think you were right," Remus said to Tonks. "We should have waited until tomorrow to celebrate the end of their NEWTS."

Tonks nodded, eying Terry, Hermione and Susan. "How are you three holding up?"

"I'm just glad it's over," Susan replied. "But I'm not exhausted like the rest. I thought I'd never take them after the baby came along, but Harry's idea of passing the information via communing worked like a charm."

Terry shrugged. "I'm fine, although if you ask me too many questions my head might explode," he said with a grin.

"I'm a little tired. This test wasn't as bad as my ancient runes test. And Harry's tired, but I think he's more sore than anything else. He was the last one to run the practical and they tested him against four opponents," she said with a grimace. "I know his leg has got to be hurting after that."

"He'll call if he needs help dear," Emma said complacently. Hermione looked at her mother and wondered if she'd be this calm when she became pregnant. Emma was nearly a month and a half along and other than exhibiting an extreme calm, seemed to be unaffected by her pregnancy.

She hoped she would inherit her mother's reactions. Her father's reactions ran to instant panic whenever Emma so much as sneezed.

Padfoot Manor (June 21st)...

Harry bolted from his bed hearing Hermione scream. He stood for a moment, confused. He'd returned from Hogwarts very late last night after a impromptu conference and was confused by his surroundings until he remembered he was spending the night at Padfoot.

Blinking rapidly, he summoned his staff and hurried to the door. Just outside he collided with Hermione, who was coming in. Both crashed to the floor.

Hermione looked at her nearly naked husband in shock. His hands were glowing with magic and his staff was pulsating. It made for an interesting sight, considering he wore nothing but boxers.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

Harry's magic dropped back to normal and he rolled over and sat up. "You screamed," he said accusingly.

"Oh, that."

Hermione looked suitably ashamed, but Harry wasn't buying it.

"Yes, that," he replied dryly. "Woke me out of a sound sleep."

Hermione looked down for a moment, then she remembered why she had screamed. "Our NEWTS are here!" she blurted.

He sighed and shook his head. "Love, you know you passed everything. In fact, you probably got outstandings on every exam."

Harry climbed to his feet and offered her a hand up. She latched on and let him pull her to her feet. She followed when he turned and reentered the bedroom.

"Aren't you the least bit curious what your scores are?" she asked. She found his lack of reaction disappointing.

"Right now the only thing that interests me is sleep."

Hermione frowned. He didn't sound tired, he sounded depressed.

"Harry, my heart, what's bothering you?" she sent softly. She widened the bond between them and sent him all the feelings of love and support she could.

He sat on the edge of the bed and leaned against the bedpost. "This week has been awful. You know about the debate they're having on how to execute the captured Death Eaters?"

She nodded.

"Some bright chap in the American delegation came up with the idea of reviewing the ideas by seeing the actual executions in a pensieve. Since Wednesday we've been viewing executions. It's awful, Hermione. What some of our allies do to their condemned prisoners is barbaric..."

He trailed off and looked at her. Seeing his expression, she came to a decision. She would be talking to Amelia as soon as possible. She placed the NEWT scores on the night table and sat next to him, wrapping her arms around him.

"Why isn't the Ministry doing this? Why isn't Caleb doing this? Or Arthur? Or Amelia?" she demanded.

Harry snorted in disgust. "Caleb's over in Canada right now. He's making a tour of the allied capitals, thanking them. And Arthur hasn't returned from his honeymoon with Melinda."

"So they expect you to help with the reconstruction and formulate the Ministry's capital punishment policy?"

He nodded unhappily.

She pulled him further onto the bed and pushed him down. "Why don't you get a few more hours sleep? I'll wake you in a few hours and we'll do breakfast and look at our results together."

He smiled and reached up to caress her face for a moment, then he closed his eyes. Hermione stayed with him long enough to make sure he was asleep, then she rolled out of bed and quickly got dressed.

Ministry of Magic, Haven, Office of the Ministry...

"Minister, Lady Potter is here. She asks to speak with you."

Amelia looked up in surprise. She hadn't been expecting anyone this morning, let alone Hermione. "Alright. Send her in, David, and bring in some tea."

David nodded and opened the door further. Amelia could hear him say something, then Hermione stepped into the office.

Amelia looked at the young woman and instantly knew this wasn't a social visit.

"Hermione, how nice of you to visit. How can I help you today?"

"You can start by weaning yourself off of my husband," Hermione snapped angrily as she sat down in front of Amelia's desk. "It's not his place to decide the capital punishment policy for this government. If anything, it's yours! Do you know that group has spent the last three days reviewing pensieve memories of executions from other countries?"

"I beg your pardon," Amelia said frostily.

Hermione shook her head. "You know I'm right. It's not his job to do this. He's fought the war, he's done his part and he's helping with the reconstruction. But it's not his place to figure out what to do with your condemned prisoners, especially when he already gave you a good solution for it."

"His solution was unacceptable! The people want to see these people pay for their crimes."

Hermione opened her mouth, but then stopped herself when the door to the office opened and David entered, carrying tea for both of them. She waited patiently while the drinks were served. Once David left the room, she placed her cup on the desk and looked at Amelia.

"He's making himself sick over this, Amelia, and if you're not willing to start letting go, I'll take this little disagreement of ours public. Right now he's home in bed, exhausted and heart sick over having been forced to watch dozens of executions!"

"Why should it bother him?" Amelia snapped. She knew it was a crappy job and she had complained about it in front of Harry, knowing full well he'd reluctantly volunteer to help her. "He's killed hundreds."

Hermione went rigid and her expression darkened. "Yes, he has killed Amelia, and afterwards I've held him while he cried. He's killed to defend himself and others. But there's no defense involved in an execution. It's state sanctioned murder!

"You really don't see the damage you're doing, do you, Amelia? How will you feel if he finally decides one day that all these emotions that are causing him so much pain aren't worth it and he does away with them? Do you want someone as powerful as he is running around without any regard for human life? He's clinging to his humanity and you're tearing it away from him piece by piece. And why? Because you're too lazy to do your job when it can easily be passed on to someone else!"

Amelia eyes widened and her monocle fell into her lap. She stared at Hermione in shock. "I didn't... it wasn't..."

Hermione shook her head. "It's time to give us some space. That's all. It's time for us to be what we are, a young married couple trying to find our place in the world," she said, then she shrugged. "I don't see us being uninvolved forever, but we need time for ourselves."

Hermione stood and headed for the door. She paused in front of it and turned to look at the older woman. "Don't let this escalate into a fight between us, Minister. I'll do everything to protect my husband, including financing the people who will be opposing you in the coming elections and taking this public. Don't force me to remove you from office. Harry considers you a friend and I really don't want to change that."

Amelia nodded weakly from her chair. Satisfied, Hermione turned and slipped from the room. She practically ran to get out of the outer offices and once she found herself a quiet corner, she shivered at the thought of what she had just done. Narcissa's lessons had paid off.

Padfoot Manor, (Several Hours Later)...

After a bit of shopping, Hermione returned to the manor. She was removing her cloak when Winky appeared with a small pop.

"Missy didn't tell Winky you would be going shopping today," she admonished.

Hermione sighed to herself. She was really regretting telling Winky she could behave any way she wanted to. "I just needed to go out on an unexpected errand, then I picked up a few things while out," she replied.

Winky sniffed. "Well Mumsy and Miss Narcissa would like to see you in the sitting room," she said, taking Hermione's cloak and packages.

"Thank you, Winky, I'll go right in. Could you bring us some tea, please?"

Winky nodded. "Don't you be longs with Mumsy and Miss Narcissa. The Master needs you. Him dreaming bad dreams again."

Hermione frowned and reached across their bond. Instantly she was assaulted with a cacophony of sounds and faces of people.

She pulled out of Harry's dream with a sharp intake of breath and a shiver. She reached again, only this time at a lower level, below his dream. She had touched many of his dreams, both before and after his fight with Voldemort, and she was always struck by the fact that in his dreams, he was always a small child being chased by monsters.

Some people had nightmares about going to work and discovering they were naked, or forgetting their speech, or of falling. Harry had to dream of monsters, of men in black robes and white masks. She knew exactly what to do. She reached out and touched him, sending him all her feelings of love and support. She could feel his initial shock and surprise, had been expecting it, actually, as it was always the same. He was shocked to discover that he wasn't alone, then, as always, he latched onto her for a moment, as if needing to be reassured he wasn't alone. Finally, she could sense him releasing her and drifting away. She had a quick glimpse of Harry as a child, chasing a butterfly through a backyard garden and smiled.

She breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed their bond just enough. He could still feel her and she would know if he got into trouble. Then, squaring her shoulders, she went in to speak with her mother and Narcissa.

Emma looked up and smiled when she entered the room. "Hermione, just the girl we wanted to see. Come in, dear, and sit down. Narcissa has a question for you."

Hermione took a seat opposite Narcissa. A moment later, Winky popped in and served tea and a platter of biscuits.

"What is it?" Hermione asked once Winky left.

Narcissa looked at the young woman with an unreadable expression for a brief moment. "Did you really threaten Amelia Bones, saying you'd finance her opposition's campaign?"

"How?" Hermione gasped.

Narcissa smiled thinly. "Amelia fire called a short while ago while you were still in town. She accused me of teaching you strong arm politics."

Hermione straightened in her chair and lifted her head defiantly. "Yes, I did threaten her. Why? Is she going back on her word?"

Narcissa took a drink of tea, then placed her cup on the table. "No. She wanted you to know she'd keep her promise. If it isn't too much trouble, may we know why you took it upon yourself to set yourself up as her enemy? She's a powerful politician with formidable allies."

"She wasn't doing her job. She somehow burdened Harry with the job of setting the Ministry policy for the captured Death Eaters, and that means the Ministry's policy for all future capital crimes. He told me he's spent the last three days reviewing execution methods used by other countries using a pensieve. It's making him sick."

The edges of Narcissa's mouth twitched several times.

"Is he alright?" Emma asked worriedly.

Hermione turned to look at her mother. "He's upstairs sleeping now. He didn't get in until late. When I spoke to him this morning he reminded me a little of what he was like after he was sick two summers ago. He'll help in the reconstruction, but Amelia has to stop throwing him the bloody work no one else is willing to do."

"Excellently done," Narcissa said, smiling with approval. "Amelia needed to learn where her limits were and she needed to learn that you put family even above the government. Amelia isn't really angry at you, she's too much of a politician for that. Harry, for all his abilities, is still somewhat naÃ¯ve when it comes to dealing with her type. I suspect that Amelia spoke about how she had no one to help her with that unsavory task and he realized she was asking him in a round about way so he told her he'd handle it."

Narcissa paused, watching her for a moment. "I'm pleased to see you stand up for what's yours," she said finally. "As Lady Potter, you, my dear, are a very powerful woman. Keep that in mind in your dealings with politicians, even Amelia. And don't be afraid to step on her toes if she threatens the welfare of the family again."

Hermione stayed and talked with her mother and Narcissa for a while longer before leaving them to go check on Harry. To her relief, she found him sleeping peacefully. She looked at the still sealed NEWT results and decided they could wait. Quickly undressing, she climbed into bed to join Harry for a nap.

She had just pulled up the covers around her when Harry rolled and snuggled up behind her. He slid one hand up under her shirt to rest against her belly. She smiled and snuggled back against him. Within minutes, she was sleeping soundly.

St. Mary's Church, not far from Haven (July 1st)...

Harry sat wearing his best muggle suit. Next to him sat Hermione, wearing a very elegant dress that screamed of class. Harry hadn't seen the dress until this morning and his reaction had been exactly what Hermione had hoped for. He'd sat on the edge of their bed and stared for a moment as she put on her jewelry. Then he'd stood, walked up behind her and helped her fasten her necklace before bending over and kissing her neck.

"You're beautiful," he murmured. That caused her to blush over a significant portion of her body, but pleased her no end.

Behind them in the church sat other members of the Brotherhood. They were all on the grooms side, but they could have easily sat on the brides side, as well.

Harry glanced up to look at Arthur Weasley, standing tall and proud in his muggle tuxedo. He loved the outfit, but had been more intrigued by the limo that Harry had arranged for. Harry had decided that the brides parents had enough reasons to save their money, so he jumped at the chance to help the wedding happen.

Arthur spotted Harry grinning and he smiled back.

Arthur Weasley had always been a fairly laid back individual, Harry thought, but now he was more laid back than ever. Arthur had married Melinda McKinney in the middle of June and had only recently returned from his honeymoon.

Harry glanced around the church, noting the amount of security, not that he thought it would help much. The security was for Amelia and Brogan Mallory, who had been invited. Harry didn't think it was necessary. At least sixty percent of the audience today had been trained in combat by the Ministry. Anyone attacking the church would need an army.

Brogan Mallory, the Irish Minister for Magic, had offered the services of his brother, an Irish Catholic priest, to officiate the service. That had allowed many more guests from the magical world to attend the service than had been originally anticipated, since the priest was obviously aware of the wizarding world.

Harry glanced over at Hermione and grinned. She was wiping her eyes with a handkerchief and service hadn't even begun!

"You know, we can still have a church wedding if you want," he sent to her silently.

She looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks, but I've got what I want already. A fancy church wedding would have been nice, but in another month our handfasting becomes permanent. Besides, Tonks suggested that, instead of getting married in a church service, we should do what she and Remus plan on doing. In a few years, they'll renew their vows in a church service."

"The year ending can't happen soon enough, if you ask me," he replied.

She grinned at his smug tone. "And what are you so smug about?"

His grinned widened and he sent her an image that left her momentarily breathless. She was shocked and pleased by what he had sent. It was a simple image, but powerfully expressive. It was of them together, in bed, just holding each other and whispering and laughing in the dark. It was some of their best moments, she thought, and was pleased that Harry seemed to think so also.

She hugged his arm tighter and looked up at the altar. "Fred and George sure look nervous."

"Can you blame them? If I were in their shoes, I'd be nervous too," he replied.

She looked back at him and arched an eyebrow. "You were nervous about marrying me?"

He shook his head. "No, not really. I was more nervous about messing something up and disappointing you. But Fred and George aren't nervous about getting married. They're nervous about the possibilities of pranks."

Hermione looked up at the twins who stood next to Arthur, shuffling their feet and tugging at their collars. "Oh...OH!"

She looked around. Remus, Ginny, Neville and Tonks were all staring at the twins with evil looks. Others in the church seemed to think the joke was already being played out, as if the twins getting married was a prank on the twins.

"And you don't have anything planned?" she asked.

"Well, sorta, and Remus or Ginny might have something in mind, too. I know Ginny still thinks she owes them for what they did to Neville on their honeymoon. I like a good prank, but there are times to be serious and times to have fun. Besides, I've got their first night taken care of. It will be a night to remember."

She turned and stared at him hard. "What did you do?"

Harry shrugged. "I've arranged for them to be interrupted several times, finally climaxing with a small fire that will require the evacuation of the hotel."

"You what?"

Harry winced and shook his head, then he looked at her reproachfully. "Not so loud. I am sitting right next to you. Look, love, I had to do this. It was the only way I could talk Ginny out of hitting all four with a confundus charm. Can you imagine the havoc that could have caused? They could have gone to bed with the wrong people and not known about it until the morning when the charm wore off. Besides, it's only going to be a very small, very controlled fire."

Hermione leaned back on the pew and sat silent for a few moments. Harry was starting to get worried when he felt her shake and shudder. With a start, he realized she was laughing!

"Oh, Harry... you are truly evil!"

"Dark Prank Lord Potter," he replied haughtily, buffing his nails on his jacket.

She grinned, then turned when the music started. The doors opened and Sven stood with a daughter on each arm. Even Harry had to admit they looked like Nordic Angels. The only thing missing were the wings.

"Oh, they look so beautiful," Hermione said silently. She looked down at her soaked handkerchief in dismay.

Harry smiled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a fresh, dry handkerchief to hand to her. He saw Dan reach into his own pocket and do the same thing with Emma. The two men shared a knowing smile.

The Johansen twins were preceded down the aisle by Robert and Linda, the youngest of the Johansen's adopted children. Linda carried a basket containing flower petals and fairy dust, which she took great joy in throwing around liberally. Robert, on the other hand, looked as though he wanted to be anywhere else but there.

When Robert stopped and stared, Harry groaned. He knew what was coming and from the laughter bubbling up his link from Hermione, he knew she was aware of it as well.

"It's Harry Potter!" shouted Harry's number one fan. His cry echoed through the church.

The assembled guests broke out in laughter, except for the section of small children sitting with Olga. As one, they all turned to look at Harry in awe.

He blushed and ducked his head while his friends snickered around him.

Linda tugged on Robert and got him moving again. Sven, a few steps behind with his daughters, could only shake his head in amusement and shrug an apology to Harry.

Harry turned his attention back to the Weasley twins standing up by the altar with their father and their brothers. Both looked like they wanted to bolt, but he knew better. Like any man, Harry knew they wanted to get married, it was the fancy ceremony that made them nervous.

The grooms were dressed in tuxedos, Fred in white, George in black. When picking out their suits, they'd both been intrigued by the option of tails, so that's what they'd ordered. Now, even as nervous as they were, they fiddled with the tails of their tuxedos and Harry shook his head.

Maybe it's not the tuxedo tails they're fascinated with. Maybe they're just reminding themselves that they'll be getting some tail tonight? That would keep me calm enough to get through a circus like this, Harry thought to himself. Then he winced and tried to jerk his arm away from Hermione, who had just pinched him.

"I heard that! Pay attention and stop thinking dirty thoughts," she sent him with a glare.

"Yes, dear," he replied meekly, turning his attention back to the service.

"... And if anyone should know why these couples should not be joined in holy matrimony, let them speak now or forever hold their peace."

The crowd of onlookers glanced around, but no one expected anyone to say anything.

"Wait!" shouted a voice.

All eyes turned to the back of the church and a hush fell in the room. A woman laboriously climbed to her feet, obviously in the advanced stages of pregnancy. Tears rolled down her cheeks. She looked up at Fred and George and sobbed into a tissue.

George looked stunned, then he turned and hit Fred, knocking him unconscious.

"Isn't that Amy? Their lab assistant?" Harry murmured to Hermione.

Hermione's head was bouncing between the front and the rear of the church, not sure where to look next.

George stood over the unconscious Fred, his fists clenching. "How could you?" he said in a voice that carried throughout the church.

"GOTCHA!" shouted Amy, then she waved her wand and her belly deflated with a loud, flatulent sound.

"But we all saw her yesterday at the Weasley barbecue. They know she wasn't pregnant!" Hermione exclaimed, still swiveling her head back and forth.

"Shows you what nerves can do to a guy," Harry muttered through tight lips as he tried very hard not to laugh.

George stared at Amy in astonishment, then he looked down at his brother in horror. Inga knelt next to Fred and began to weep.

Harry gave up and sank down on the pew trying to muffle his laughter, but he couldn't hold it for long. Hermione tried to glare him into silence, but her heart wasn't in it. A moment later, she leaned heavily against her husband, her laughter mixing with his.

Ginny and the rest of the Weasleys were trying in vain to stand and be serious. Ginny was the first to fail as she unceremoniously sat on the altar steps in her bridesmaid gown. Charlie tried for a little more decorum by hiding inside a confessional. Unfortunately, the small room only amplified and echoed his mirth.

In less than a minute the entire church, except for the brides and grooms, were laughing. One groom was looking mighty sheepish, while the other was still taking a nap on the floor.

Arthur stepped forward and managed to get his laughter under control enough to work his magic. He pointed his wand at Fred, hitting him with a stream of cold water.

Fred sputtered under the onslaught and bounced to his feet, fists balled up and ready for a fight. Unfortunately, he had no idea what he was fighting and settled for simply glaring around the church, looking for a target. Then Inga hurled herself into his arms and he suddenly found himself holding his weeping bride to be.

The priest stepped around the pair and looked at the assembled congregation. "I think we'll take a ten minute break to give the two couples a moment to collect themselves," he said, which only caused the rest of the church to break out in laughter again.

Harry leaned forward so that he could speak to the person in the pew in front of them. "Now you understand why Arthur suggested a simple and quiet ceremony for you two," he said to the new Mrs. Weasley.

Melinda turned on the pew and smiled at him. "I'm still getting used to it. When that family is together they only know two volume levels, loud and louder."

"They've always been that way," Hermione added. "But it's always been a good place to be. They may be boisterous, but they know how to take care of each other."

"How are you doing?" Harry asked her.

"Better than I thought I would. I don't mean there's anything wrong, but the sheer number of them are intimidating. And I'm not really that great a cook, which I understand Molly was. However, Dilly more than makes up for that. Sometimes I think she's happier than I am, if that's possible. She has a large family to love and take care of now."

"Excuse me," Arthur interrupted.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"Melinda, can you do anything for a black eye? At least temporarily?" he asked quietly.

She nodded and stood, then turned to Harry and Hermione. "Excuse me. Family emergency," she said, then she followed Arthur into one of the side rooms.

Harry leaned back chuckling and shaking his head. Hermione turned to look at him. "What are you laughing about?"

He leaned closer to her. "Don't spread this around, but I know for a fact that the twins are planning to quit Q branch and they've recommended that Amy take over as head of the department."

Hermione leaned against him, shaking her head. She didn't think anyone would soon forget the Weasley/Johansen wedding.

Padfoot Manor (August 5th)...

"Come!" Harry called absently. He was reading a report written by one of the field medic's concerning conditions in several magical communities and wasn't paying much attention to what was going on around him.

"I'll be with you in a moment," he said, still reading.

"Take your time," said a voice.

Harry's head jerked up to stare into the grinning faces of his wife, the Minister for Magic and the King.

Harry jumped out of his chair and it fell over behind him in a crash. He barked his knee against the edge of the desk and winced, just managing to stifle a rather rip curse.

Hermione stepped over and pulled the chair upright. "Really, Harry. There's no need to start abusing the furniture," she said with a grin.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting... I mean... I was reading..." Harry paused and mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" asked Hermione, still grinning.

"I said, just shoot me and get it over with," he grumbled.

The King and Amelia laughed, then sat down in front of Harry's desk. Hermione took her customary chair near his desk and looked at him. He frowned at her for a moment before it dawned on him that she was waiting for him to sit back down.

He did so as quickly as he could and without breaking anything.

"Colonel, I've spoken to Amelia, and to your good wife, as well as several others. I have been reliably informed that while you were needed to fight the war, your injuries really aren't conducive to a career in the military," the King said softly.

"But..."

The King held up a hand silencing his protests.

"The 24th regiment will continue as the military arm of your Ministry for Magic. It will also be part of our Ministry of Defense. You will be recorded in it's ranks as it's first commander and I am reserving the right to re-activate your commission should the need arise. However, Colonel, you and your companions will be released from service at the end of this year."

Charles paused and looked at Harry closely for a moment. "Harry, you have done us a service that we can never properly repay, you and all of your companions. But I have spoken with your healer, as well as having been advised by the best physicians we could find. The simple fact is, a soldier in the SAS should be able to run five miles, then run an elaborate obstacle course. You can do that, then spend the next two days barely able to walk.

"We are incredibly grateful, Colonel, and we do intend to show that. You and your Brotherhood have been added to this years honor list, for unspecified military action," he said with a wry smile. "Our way of saying you did something really good, but we can't talk about it. The public will merely assume it had something to do with the war."

Harry grinned back at the king. He knew all too well about keeping secrets. He had been hoping something like this would happen and a New Year starting date was perfect for his plans.

"What are your plans after you leave the military?" Charles asked.

Harry glanced over at Hermione, nodding to her.

"Well," Hermione began, "Harry hasn't traveled very much, so we thought about a world tour, but we're thinking about taking our time. A friend of ours has invited us to visit him in Egypt. He's the Deputy Minister of Antiquities and he's also in charge of the project to rebuild the library at Alexandria. He's offered me a posting as a librarian, while Harry spends some time working with a master enchanter," she said.

The king looked to Amelia for an explanation.

She smiled at him. "They're phenomenal opportunities for someone straight out of school, Sir, and I think they will fit in well with your plans."

"Plans?" asked Harry worriedly.

The King smiled reassuringly. "Nothing to cause you any worry, Colonel. It's just that, while your country might not be able to use your services in the military, we can still use your services elsewhere. Your role as an Ambassador without an assigned station will allow you a great deal of flexibility. And while I understand you're hoping for an extended world tour, possibly taking several years, you'll still be able to pop back home, or whatever it is you call it, for consultations. The PM has told me that he'll spread the word that you're to be considered my personal friend and emissary."

Harry blinked in shock. A personal emissary of the King? Him?

"It seems we can't run away from responsibility entirely," Hermione said in a dry mental voice.

"Indeed. But this is unreal. I can't turn down the King, Hermione! He's... well, he's the King!"

The King turned to Amelia. "I think I now understand what you meant. It is a useful talent for them to possess."

Harry blanched and turned white. Even Hermione looked ashamed of herself. They had been caught communicating mentally. Talk about rude!

"Your Majesty, I apologize. I meant no disrespect," Harry stammered.

The King dismissed his concerns with a wave. "Not at all, Colonel. In fact, I think it's a marvelous ability to be able to communicate like that. It will be a talent that I think will help you quite a lot in the coming years."

Harry looked to Hermione for a moment longer then he turned back to the King. "Alright, we'll do it. We had hoped to maintain a low profile and hopefully slip back out of the public eye, but it's becoming apparent, even to me, that it was never more than a pipe dream."

Hermione turned in her chair and leaned over to place her hand on Harry's. She had come to that realization long before he had, but she knew he'd have to figure it out for himself.

"I'm sorry we have to do this to you and Hermione, but we still need you both," Amelia said gently. "There is so much work to do, and while you'll be getting away from that, there are things that you can still help with elsewhere. The war has disrupted everything."

Harry nodded and turned back to the King. "I'm curious, Sir. How will you be able to keep the wizarding world secret?"

Charles leaned back on his chair and grinned. "We've stolen a page from our cousins across the pond. We've been funding several fringe groups who will loudly proclaim the existence of magic. Then, in the same breath, they will inform the public in all seriousness that magic is a gift from aliens. The government, of course, will have no official statement on the subject.

"The Yanks have been using this technique for years as a way of hiding their secret aircraft development behind a cloud of UFO believers. It works surprisingly well," he finished, shaking his head in amusement.

Hogwarts (September 1st)...

Minerva McGonagall looked at the crowd filling the much expanded Great Hall and tried to suppress her tears. The summer had been hellacious on everyone who helped out, but they had accomplished the impossible.

Hogwarts was open and receiving its first group of students since the evacuation over a year ago.

The Express had been repaired, although that had been touch and go. They nearly didn't finish on time. Then they found they had no one to run the machine. Amelia finally found an engineer in Germany who was happy to come run the train, and teach someone how to use it. All he wanted in return was a signed photo with him and Harry Potter.

When Amelia and Minerva carefully presented the request to Harry, his response surprised everyone. He wanted to know if he could ride in the engine and maybe learn how to drive the large machine. Hermione had rolled her eyes and muttered something about men and their toys.

The number of returning students was only a fraction of the school's normal size - just around two hundred - but it was enough for Minerva to start with. She had agreed to Amelia's proposal concerning a standardized educational system, but she insisted that she be allowed to be Headmistress at Hogwarts, at least for this critical year.

She smiled broadly at the students. Room had been made for visiting dignitaries like Amelia and Harry's Brotherhood, who'd ridden up from London on the Express. The press stood shoulder to shoulder along the back of the hall.

Harry sat with Hermione off to one side at a table reserved for his group and for some Ministry members. At the Head table with Minerva were a few familiar faces and a few new ones, hired from around the world to fill the gaps. Some of Hogwarts old staff elected to remain at Haven School, rather than return to Hogwarts.

Another change in the structure of the school was apparent by the number of older, adult students. St. Mungos was still being rebuilt, so Sylvia August decided to move the Magical College of Medicine to Hogwarts, where they would provide a permanent magical medical facility for Scotland.

The doors to the rear opened and Pomona Sprout led in the batch of new students, all forty of them. Then she picked up the sorting hat and placed it on the stool. The hat straightened and turned to bow towards Minerva, then it broke into song.

"Were we ever that small?" Harry sent to Hermione.

"We were smaller. But I understand the Headmistress has accepted several ten year olds this year," she replied.

"Really? Why?"

"She told me that several families asked that she take them early so they could help in the reconstruction. She agreed because she thought that the children, having lived through such a terrible experience, could benefit from an extra year of schooling. Besides, not all areas have magical schools up and running yet."

"Makes sense," he replied, then he looked up. "The sorting is over. It's always over so quickly." He smiled, feeling her amusement bubbling through their bond.

Minerva stood and a hush fell over the hall. The ghosts of Hogwarts, including one very unhappy Lucius Malfoy, entered the hall and stood silently next to one wall.

"Students, parents, honored guests and representatives of the press, welcome to Hogwarts. We have many to thank for the hard work that enabled us to reopen on time. Hogwarts has a long and proud history, but I dare say even the founders have trouble comparing to the group of students that led the way to giving us back our school and our country."

Minerva smiled fondly down at the table where the Brotherhood sat.

"It seems like it was only yesterday that all of them were first year students, as small as some of you are today. Representing every house of Hogwarts, they have brought honor upon themselves and their houses. Now, I am going to turn the rest of this evening over to Madam Bones, our Minister for Magic."

Minerva sat down and Amelia stood. She walked around the table to face the assembled students and guests.

"Thank you, Headmistress. Like you, I rejoice in the reopening of Hogwarts. This school, in a way, signifies our very society. The past few months have been difficult, but rewarding. Thanks to Gringotts, Diagon Alley is once again open and businesses are returning to fill their place in the alley. No one was more pleased than I when Ollivanders returned to Diagon Alley, or the new joke shop run by the Weasley brothers.

"Around the country, muggle and magical alike are slowly getting things back in order. London has power full time now, as well as telephone service. Parliament has reopened on a temporary basis and the muggles, like us, will hold free elections come the new year. Much has been lost and many will mourn for years to come, but much has also been regained and for that we are thankful.

"One group has led the effort and paid with their blood to get us where we are today. They have lost loved ones, suffered injuries and still they pressed forward."

Amelia turned. "Mr. Potter, would you and your Brotherhood please come up here?"

Harry frowned. He had been doing everything he could to avoid getting into this sort of situation and now it looked like he couldn't escape it.

Hermione latched onto his arm and dragged him reluctantly forward to the great amusement of his friends.

Amelia smiled thinly. She had been struggling to get some sort of award ceremony for Harry for a while, but he kept dodging her efforts. Now he couldn't run.

"Harry, it wouldn't be right for me to say that our society is grateful for your actions because your actions extended far beyond just our world. It gives me great pleasure to tell you that each of you will be awarded with an Order of Merlin, First Class. And come Christmas, in a private ceremony, you will be invested into the Order of the Bath at Buckingham Palace."

Amelia handed out small velvet covered boxes containing their awards, along with the formal citation on glowing parchment. The group arrayed itself behind Amelia, who turned back to the students in the hall.

"When I went to this school, there were five role models; the four founders and Merlin. Now I present to you a dozen more. Following in the tradition of our worlds finest, I give you the Brotherhood of Druidic Knights," she exclaimed loudly, then quickly moved to one side.

The applause was thunderous. Students, parents, visitors and even the press stood to signal their appreciation. The light from many flash bulbs began to strobe through the hall.

When Harry blushed and looked at the floor, Hermione slipped her hand into his. "I'm proud of you, my heart," she sent him.

"I'm proud of all them, love, and mostly thankful that I have you. This wouldn't have been possible without your love and support," he replied.

Then it was Hermione's turn to blush and look at the floor. When the applause finally died down several minutes later, Amelia stepped in front of the group again. She motioned for them to retake their seats, which they all gratefully did.

"And now, please, let us all enjoy the feast and the fireworks, supplied by Weasley Wizarding Wheezes in honor of the reopening of this institution," Amelia called.

Minerva clapped her hands and the food appeared on the tables. Above them, in the newly rebuilt Astronomy tower, a pair of red head pyromaniacs lit off the first of a collection of abnormally large rockets.

Hogwarts was open again, and life was returning to normal.

Epilogue...

Harry stared up at the dark ceiling of the master bedroom at Padfoot manor and smiled to himself. He and Hermione had not lived in the house for over six years, but they both considered it home, as did most of the Brotherhood.

He and Hermione had traveled, just as they'd always wanted to. After a year, they'd settled in Egypt, where Hermione became a librarian at the Library at Alexandria. Harry studied under Ahmed, a master enchanter, between running political errands for the King, putting out brushfires whenever possible in his capacity as Ambassador at Large. Last year he'd gained his Mastery and had begun to teach others.

In their second year in Egypt, Hermione had given birth to their daughter inside one of Alim's tents beside the ruins of Karnak two weeks before her due date. She'd been less than pleased when her labor began while visiting the Sheik, but the woman in his family had taken over and helped her through her labor and delivery. She blamed Harry, of course, for tempting her out of the library that day with an offer to see a portion of the temple no muggle had ever seen.

Alim, breaking with custom and tradition, entered the tent several hours after the birth to bless the child. With the child in his arms and her parents beside him, he'd taken her outside. And there, under the setting sun, surrounded by the ancient sands and holy temple of Egypt, and raised her high above his head and asked God to welcome the girl and grant her a long, joyful life filled with love.

When he'd lowered her back into the crook of his arm, he'd smiled down at her. "She's as beautiful as a water lily," he exclaimed.

And that's what the Potters named her: Water Lily. They figured she'd kill them for it when she got older, but if that's all she had to worry about in life, they would be well pleased.

They'd wanted their daughter to be born at Padfoot, but her early birth had changed that. They were simply thankful that she was healthy. They'd returned to the manor two days later to introduce her to her Brotherhood family.

Susan giving birth to Siomha in the manor had set a precedent, for the most part. In the years after the war, every woman in the Brotherhood had chosen to give birth at Padfoot, though not in the library, thankfully. And for every birth, the Brotherhood returned to celebrate the continuity of life.

Emma Granger had been the first to give birth, post war, presenting her husband with a new daughter named Cassandra. She came into the world looking quietly contemplative.

When Hermione heard what her parents named her new sister, she had rolled her eyes. Her comment of, "What? One seeress in the family isn't enough for you?" had sent her parents into a fit of laughter.

Tonks had been next and managed to surprise everyone. All the tests Narcissa and Melinda had run before the birth had indicated twins. The two girls were born minutes apart, screaming their displeasure to the world. Melinda had barely caught their brother in time. He came swiftly and quietly, like a wolf sneaking up on prey.

Remus, on hearing he was the proud father of triplets, had fainted. It was something Harry loved to tease him about.

In their third year, the Lupin triplets had managed to surprise them all once again. Their oldest daughter, Andie, and their son, Sirius, had inherited their mother's metamorph talents.

All three children had spent the day with Harry and Hermione, who were back for the birth of Susan and Terry's second child, a boy they named John.

That night, when Remus and Tonk were chasing their children around their bedroom, trying to get them changed into pajamas, Sirius had stopped suddenly, morphed into a small version of Harry Potter, and informed his parents that they were not the boss of him.

Seeing their parents slack jawed and frozen in place with shock, Andie had followed her brother's actions and morphed into Hermione. "Yeah, what he said!" she exclaimed, her chin thrust forward belligerently.

Since then, the two had taken great pleasure in surprising their parents at every opportunity. Their ability was limited to human form, something that greatly relieved their parents.

Minerva, their youngest daughter, had felt left out for several weeks. Then the girl discovered her own ability, nearly giving her father a heart attack in the process. He was in his office at Padfoot, finishing up some paperwork for the day when the three children barged in, arguing loudly. Sirius had stolen Minerva's doll, but the boy denied it. Andie, unable to take either side, egged them both on.

Exasperated, Remus had pushed away from his desk and stood up, preparing to break up the fight, when Minerva morphed into a wolf pup, growled rather menacingly for one so small, lunged and bit her brother on the leg.

The shrieking, yelling and war cries that followed was enough to bring Tonks sprinting into the room.

Once again the Lupins were frozen in shock as chaos reigned around them. Tonks was the first shake it off and had shouted for quiet. Remus, shaking his head, had reached down to grab the still growling wolf pup that was his daughter, only to be hit with another surprise.

Minerva, understanding her father's intent, and morphed into a kitten and pelted from the room, screeching like a scalded... well, cat, really.

Tonks had turned to her husband with narrowed eyes and glared. "This is your fault."

"What?" Remus had yelped. "How do you figure that? They've inherited your ability!"

"I don't know how, but I'll figure it out sooner or later," she'd muttered. "You take care of these two. I'll hunt down the cat!"

The proud parents had been happy to share the memories with the other members of the Brotherhood using a pensieve.

Now they were all back at Padfoot once more, waiting for the birth of Neville and Ginny's first child. All children born to the Brotherhood family had been marked with the same Celtic cross as Siohma. It was the first thing each new parent looked for, and something proudly displayed when the child was introduced to the rest of the family. It was Eocho's last gift to them and something to be cherished.

Beside him, Hermione rolled over and threw a leg over his thighs, disrupting his thoughts. He reached up and combed his fingers gently through her hair, then reached down and caressed her stomach lightly. There, beneath his hand, lay their second child. She was three months along and looking forward to the time when her morning sickness eased away.

They'd announced the pregnancy at dinner last night and were surprised when Luna began to cry. Hermione, alarmed, had jumped up and rushed to her side. Luna whispered something to her and Harry had bolted to his feet when his wife began to weep.

"It's okay, Harry," Hermione had said, waving him back to his chair.

Luna had looked up and given him a watery smile. "It's just that I'm pregnant too. Hermione and I will give birth about a week apart!" Then she'd fallen into Hermione's arms and the two celebrated their joy by crying all over each other.

Tonks, Emma, Susan and Ginny had joined them a few moments later, leaving the men to stare at each other in puzzled concern.

Remus had proposed a toast to the couples once the women had calmed themselves. The rest of the night had been spent in laughter and love.

A small popping sound in the bedroom drew Harry's attention and he frowned when he saw the house elf standing at the foot of the bed.

"What is it, Dobby?" he asked quietly

"I is sorry to be waking you, Master Harry," he said softly, so as not to awaken Hermione.

"You didn't. What's wrong?"

"Yous asked Dobby to wake you when Miss Ginny wents into labor."

"She's started, then?" Harry asked, gently untangling himself from Hermione.

"Yes, Master Harry."

"Has Narcissa and Melinda been informed?" he asked, reaching for his pants.

"Miss Narcissa is with Miss Ginny now. Dilly is fetching Miss Melinda. House elves is waking the others. We's have tea, coffee and a light breakfast waiting for the family."

"Excellent. Thank you, Dobby. What time is it?"

"Oh four thirty, sir," Dobby said, snapping off a salute with a cheeky grin.

Laughing, Harry shook his head. "I'll wake Hermione and we'll be down soon."

Nodding, Dobby popped away.

Slipping into a t-shirt, Harry then leaned down and kissed Hermione softly on the forehead. "Wake up, sleepyhead."

She mumbled and rolled onto her back.

"Hermione, you need to wake up, love," he tried again.

"Go 'way," she muttered.

"Alright. I'll let you explain to Ginny why you weren't there when her first child was born," he said. Then he stepped back from the bed and waited. It didn't take long.

"What?" she cried, sitting upright. "Her labor started? Why didn't you...Oh!" Her hand flew to her mouth and she all but flew out of bed and into the bathroom.

When the door slammed behind her, Harry sighed and sat down on the bed. Putting on his shoes, he eyed the door worriedly. She didn't like him to witness the vomiting her morning sickness sometimes caused her, but he hated being unable to help her.

The door to the bathroom opened a few minutes later and she came out, shaking her head. "False alarm that time. I'll be glad when this blasted nausea are gone!"

"Did you take the potion Melinda gave you?" he asked as he stood up and walked toward her.

"Yes. It helped."

He wrapped his arms around her and held her for a few minutes. "I wish I could help."

"You do," she told him, rubbing her check against his chest. "Why don't you check on Lily while I get dressed?"

He tightened his arms around her for a moment, then released her and walked toward the nursery door. Opening it quietly, he entered the room and approached his daughter's bed quietly, not wanting to wake her.

Gazing down at her, he couldn't help but smile. Her bushy hair came from her mother, though its color was as black as a raven's wing. Her emerald eyes were her father's, but she'd gained her mother's intelligence. At nearly four years of age, she was fluent in English, Arabic and could read Egyptian hieroglyphics as if born to it. And she had been, in a way. Being raised in Egypt, surrounded by the history of an ancient culture, her natural curiosity had been an excellent teaching tool for her parents who had exposed her to everything the Library at Alexandria had to offer.

Watching her sleep, Harry felt his heart flutter. Here, in this house, was everything he'd ever wished for during his lonely years as a child. He had an extended family he could always count on, a wife he loved beyond life, and a child who would never know the heartache of being unloved and unwanted.

He turned slightly when he felt a touch on his arm.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked quietly.

He glanced at his daughter again, then turned to his wife and wrapped her in his arms. "How could I not be? I have everything I've ever wanted."

FINIS

Author's Notes:

Alyx wiped away a tear and looked at Bob, trying hard to control her emotions. "So, it's all over?" she asked. Her lower lip trembled.

Bob sighed and nodded. "Just this story, love. There will be others."

"B-b-but we worked so hard on this," she cried.

"That we did and it's been fun. Now it's time to turn to other stories and other projects," he said gently.

She nodded unhappily. "Do we really have to say goodbye now?"

"No, not really. We're not saying goodbye, we're saying see you soon in another universe."

She brightened and smiled, hearing that. "So, what now?"

"Now we take a bow," he said, taking her hand.

Alyx and Bob bowed to the audience, then walked off the stage and the curtains closed.

Harry stood and turned to Hermione. "Not a bad run, actually," he said with a grin.

"Yeah and I got the good guy instead of the goofy one this time around," she replied.

"Remember, tomorrow is Monty Python Night," he said, picking up her coat and helping her into it.

She grinned. "And now for something completely different!"

Bob's note:
A lot of real world factors came together to contribute to the lateness of this chapter. For one thing, getting motivated to write the final chapter was difficult. It was like we were saying goodbye to an old friend. I apologize for the delay.

When we started the series with Sunset, we never dreamed it would span over a million words. Nor did we expect it to draw the following it did, something which really made it feel like our effort was worth it.

All kidding aside, if you've reviewed our story, we humbly thank you. If you've never reviewed, nows your chance.

Many have asked what we'll be doing after this. Well, not to fear, we still have plot bunnies attacking and we have several story lines in progress, both single and multi-chaptered works, including an as yet unnamed Harry Potter/X-Men cross over that is already over 200+ pages and still going.

Alyx's note:
It's strange, really. The end of this series is like saying goodbye to an old friend. It's been hard to let go.

In crafting this chapter, we agonized over how much detail we should go into on the rebuilding process. In the end, we limited ourselves more than we had originally planned. This was done for one very specific reason. The rebuilding process will take years and if we weren't careful, we'd spend another six months to a year pumping out chapter after chapter and that just wouldn't work. It had to end eventually, and this was the natural point to finish the tale.

There won't be a sequel. The Sun series is officially over and it's time for Bob and I to let it go.

We want to thank you all for coming with us on this journey and for all your support and encouragement along the way. Your reviews and comments have been helpful, witty, thought provoking and humbling. We appreciate you more than you'll ever truly know and hope that you'll join us on our next adventure. You'll always be welcome.

Joint AN:

A lot of people have asked for Dumbledore's Army and Spiritus Crystalus to be posted here on FFA.net. I'm sorry to say that it's not going to happen. Those stories were our very first works of fiction and it shows. The writing, compared to our other stories, is just not up to the quality of work that people have come to expect from authors like Jeconais, Ishtar, Musings, Viridian and all the other authors on this site. We could spend the time to bring them up to snuff, or work on new material. Personally, we want to forward, not back.

Gardengirl — We'd like to apologize, but we're under a contract to use apostrophes as much as possible. Don't blame us, it's not our fault really!

JSX — Percy was being controlled. Dean wasn't. He was convinced that Voldemort would leave him and his family alive. In other words, he was tricked into supporting him and once in, he couldn't get out.

Particle_Accelerator — The leader of the Brotherhood passes the knowledge of how to imbue the stones from leader to leader until such time as the Brotherhood begins to die, as it has in the past and will, inevitably, do in the future. It does not mean Harry will put himself into the stones.

As far as ships go in future stories, we like to be flexible. Healing Harry was a H/G ship, and we will write other H/G stories, as well as H/Hr and H/Other.

James Mariner — Not to fear, we will be back with other stories. We have several under development, although we're not totally sure which will see light of day first. We're especially pleased that we've been able to provide you guys with an escape from the daily grind. We both hope that real soon you guys will come home safe and sound.

Biblios — We've tried hard to keep the story clean enough that a older teen could read it. And we appreciate you recommending the story.

Crys — As we closet Klingons say... Heghlu'meH QaQ jajvam (Today is a good day to die.)

Kyle Bisset — The Blackwatch was used to secure the airport in Inverness where the main muggle invasion came from. From there, they worked with the muggles as they swept south. Considering the formidable size of the battle chapter, we were forced to limit their exposure.

BrinkL — Good Fan fiction does exist. We heartily recommend anything written by Jeconais, or for that matter, any of the authors on fanficauthors.net.

Selma — We're well aware of how difficult potato farming is. After all, we're writing this from Idaho. The point is Harry doesn't know how difficult it can be. It's that whole grass is greener thing.

If someone has printed this monster out, drop us a note letting us know how many pages it is. We're interested in knowing.

Back to:: Harry Potter » Sunrise Over Britain

Sunrise Over Britain
Chapter 33 - Of Endings and Beginnings

By Bobmin

Sunrise Over Britain Chapter 33 - Of Endings and Beginnings

By Bobmin

Sunrise Over Britain
Chapter 33 - Of Endings and Beginnings