4 th August 1995
Harry had found a small walled garden near to the kitchens. It was quiet and perfect for studying and Harry wandered out with his potions texts and a list of required reading Hermione had prepared for him.
She was spending the day at the DOM investigating the whole topic of the ritual, her role as avatar and the potential implications. She'd been incredibly excited and practically vibrating with energy at breakfast. It hadn't stopped her leaving him strict instructions for his study plan.
His lips quirked upwards in amusement. Hermione was determined to make sure he did well and he was happy enough to indulge her. He had insisted on a whole day off on his birthday and he had laid down some ground rules for the rest of the plan too; time off for flying and for his animagus study. He was working on his Grim form. He could easily transition to the lion, wolf and Snitch, but he wanted to share a form with Padfoot.
Harry slowed as he realised someone was already present.
There were only a few members of the alliance outside of the House of Black who were still at the Estate and he wasn't too surprised to find that the other occupant of the garden was Neville. The Longbottoms along with Blaise had decided to stay while Augusta had some renovations done to the Manor. They'd move back when Sirius and Harry left for Australia which was also when Remus intended to bring over a small contingent of his pack.
The other family who had stayed surprisingly had been the Greengrasses. Harry had determined that was politics. Daniel was consolidating his place as Sirius's right hand man since Augusta had a firm role as Sirius's right hand woman. He figured Daniel wouldn't leave until Augusta did.
It had surprisingly worked out. Daphne provided Hermione with some much needed female company to offset the number of boys in the house. Astoria, her younger sister, had struck up something of an odd friendship with Draco. Harry figured his Slytherin cousin was simply waiting to Hogwarts and being out from under the watchful eye of parents before he asked Astoria on a Hogsmeade date.
Harry smiled at Neville who was elbows deep in a flower bed. "Hey, do you mind if I join you?"
Neville shook his head. "So long as you don't mind me digging."
"Go for it." Harry said. "What exactly are you doing anyway?"
"Planting some of the cuttings Sirius wanted. Flowers mainly but there's a prickly pear bush." Neville explained succinctly. "One of the elves was going to do but…" he sighed, "I really miss my greenhouses."
So Neville had co-opted the work.
Harry winced sympathetically as he sat down on a nearby bench. "Not long now until you'll be back in your own place."
Neville nodded. "Don't get me wrong it's been great being here." He looked over his shoulder at Harry and grinned at him. "I think we needed it right after the battle and everything." He turned back to the flowerbed abruptly and Harry figured he was thinking about Hannah again.
"Are you looking forward to the new hot house you got for your birthday?" Harry asked, subtly redirecting Neville back to his favourite topic.
Neville immediately brightened and immediately began waxing lyrical about his plans. As some of Neville's experimentations were for their shared business ventures, Harry listened intently even as he began to organise his books into order.
Neville slowed to a halt and pointed his trowel at the stack of books. "Potions?"
Harry nodded. "I really need to brush up on the theory. Hermione schooled me on the brewing all yesterday but I realised I'd struggle with the essays."
It had felt strange the day before staying home from the Wizengamot and watching Sirius go off alone but it was what would usually happen and Harry had simply been happy to have the time for studying.
Neville grimaced. "Yeah, they were pretty hard in the exam we had."
"Where's Blaise?" asked Harry.
"Over at the Patils." Neville waggled his eyebrows expressively. "Doing homework."
Harry burst into a surprised huff of laughter. "Really?"
"He's pretty taken with Padma." Neville said. "Actually he wanted me to go with him. He thinks Parvati still likes me."
"You're not interested?" asked Harry.
Neville shrugged.
Harry debated for a moment before he sighed. "Not every girl is going to be pretending like Hannah was. Parvati really did have a thing for you at the beginning of the last school year."
"I know I just…" Neville shifted to face Harry. "It's difficult knowing the first girl I kissed was only in it because Crouch was weirdly obsessed with me."
Harry frowned. "Hannah was interested in you before…before he got his hooks into her." It had occurred to Harry that Hannah's interest in Neville might have even increased her worthiness to Crouch.
"Maybe." Neville said. "It doesn't matter. I'm not quite ready to get back on that broom, you know?"
"I can empathise." Harry commented dryly.
Neville sent him a sympathetic grimace in response. "Ron still on at you to do the Quidditch match?"
Harry shrugged. "It is a good idea."
"But you just don't want to go anywhere near the pitch." Neville stated matter-of-factly.
"I know it's stupid…" began Harry.
"It's not stupid, Harry." Neville interrupted him. "I don't really want to go back into the corridor where I killed that snake and where…Caroline saved Bill. I can imagine a little bit how you must feel."
Harry sighed and put his book down. "It's not so much knowing he and Crouch were killed there…" he paused before giving into the urge to confess something he hadn't confessed to anyone outside of Sirius and his healers, "I died there."
"When you saved us from Crouch's bomb." Neville said quietly understanding immediately.
"I died and…and I think I was with my parents but then…" Harry gestured towards the house, "my bond with Sirius brought me back."
Neville got up and moved to sit beside him; a solid comforting presence by his side.
"I haven't really talked about it much." Harry admitted quietly, his fingers playing with the edges of his book.
"Sirius knows." Neville said.
"Yeah," Harry said, "and the healers." He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair. "I was pretty messed up when I woke up. I didn't talk to anyone for weeks. I think mostly it was because I knew I'd have to tell Sirius about dying and I was scared to tell him…" he shook his head, "turned out, he just knew." He had a suspicion that Death hadn't been joking when he'd called them his Grim and his Raven – and who knew what that meant? "A lot of the time at the clinic was me coming to terms with it. I mean, there was a lot of other stuff too but…I didn't even admit it to myself until I started talking."
Neville nudged his shoulder gently with his own. "Most people would have drowned just with the other stuff."
Harry shrugged. "I think I may be in therapy until I'm thirty." He said dryly.
Neville laughed. He poked at his boot laces with a dirt streaked finger. "I think we're all going to be in therapy for a while." He lifted a shoulder at Harry's mildly questioning look. "It's not just Hannah or what happened. I haven't really ever talked about my parents before." He ducked his head down.
Harry placed a comforting hand on Neville's shoulder briefly. He wondered if he should ask but then went ahead anyway knowing Neville would tell him if he was being too nosy. "Is it helping?"
"I think so." Neville said a touch hesitantly. "I mean, I think I get why I am about some things now. I don't think I ever really thought about it before."
Harry nodded in understanding. "The first time I was at the clinic it took a while for me to get how much growing up the way I did affected everything I did." He shook himself loose from the thought. He really didn't want to think about the Dursleys.
"That's just it." Neville said. "I guess I realised I was really stuck on Hannah, on my relationship with her, because you know everyone talks about how my parents were this perfect couple who got together at school and I thought I should have the same."
Harry nodded. He sometimes had wondered the same about himself and Hermione, and he was honest enough to admit that some of his want for them to make the distance was to emulate his own parents.
"I think I was more wrapped up in wanting that dream than wanting that dream specifically with Hannah." Neville continued. "So, then I think why am I so upset at her lying to me?"
"Different thing, Nev." Harry said softly.
Neville shot him a quick sad smile. "Yeah. I know." He sighed heavily. "It's awful what happened to her; awful what he did to her. It's weird thinking I'm never going to see her again."
"I just hope she gets better and starts over new somewhere fresh when she's served her time." Harry said diplomatically. He thought the sentence was a good compromise.
"Anyway," Neville said in a stronger voice, "I think maybe I need to get my head around everything first before dating someone else."
"Sounds like a plan." Harry said supportively.
"And maybe," Neville said darting a look at Harry, "you need to get your head around everything before you can play Quidditch at Hogwarts again."
Harry snorted but he conceded with a sharp nod. "Yeah."
Neville's eyes stayed on him though speculatively, as though he could read Harry's impatience with himself, his shame that it was still a problem. "You said you didn't talk for a while. Maybe this is like that. Maybe you just have to wait and one day you'll be ready."
Harry nodded slowly, agreement and acceptance stealing over him. "Thanks, Nev."
"Hello!" Luna's voice heralded her arrival as she poked her head around the entry to the garden.
"Hey, Luna!" Harry waved her forward. He vaguely remembered Sirius telling him at breakfast there would be reporters over to do an interview about the Estate becoming a werewolf sanctuary. Luna had probably come over with her father.
Neville grinned at him and went back to his gardening with a shy smile of welcome for the bubbly blonde Ravenclaw.
Luna settled into Neville's vacated spot and picked up the text book. "Studying?"
"Potions." Harry made a face. "You want to quiz me?"
Luna nodded and pulled up her legs, sitting cross-legged on the bench. She reached for his first book and opened it up, and tapped the author's name. "Did you know Professor McGonagall convinced Pierre Fume to be our new Potions Professor?"
"She might have crowed about it a bit at dinner last night." Harry said with a laugh. He was just happy it wasn't Snape. He was grateful to the other man for everything he'd done to help defeat Riddle and keep Harry safe in the effort, but he couldn't forget Snape had pointed Riddle at them in the first place.
"I'm going to be the Care of Magical Creatures Professor." Luna said matter-of-factly. "And you'll be the Defence Against the Dark Arts before you become Headmaster."
Harry's lips twitched amused. "What about the others?"
"Draco will be the Charms Professor." Luna said. "He wants a wand subject and Charms is his best. Sue will take over from you. She'll be in the Aurors until then."
"And Ron?" Harry prompted.
"Will help revolutionise physical education." Luna said cheerfully. "He'll take over from Madame Hooch but he's going to introduce lots of new things even though he'll still be obsessed with Quidditch."
Harry felt nothing but a warm contentment at the idea of the future.
"I think I'm a little envious." Neville remarked. "You all have everything planned out." He grimaced and wiped his sweaty brow. "I don't know what I'm going to do."
"Don't be silly, Neville," Luna said dreamily, "you'll take over from Professor Sprout once you're done being Minister of Magic."
Harry and Neville exchanged a shocked look but by the time Harry looked back at Luna she was already blinking and turning to the book.
"Are you ready for your first question?" Luna asked brightly.
Harry stretched exaggeratedly and nodded. "Bring it on." He pushed thoughts of Quidditch and dying to the back of his mind. He had exams to prepare for if he wanted any kind of future.
o-O-o
11 th August 1995
Sirius watched as Cornelius revealed the memorial in the Ministry reception hall with a flourish.
It took centre stage, replacing the awful statue of the magical creatures. The main part of the memorial was a wall. It stood eight foot wide by six foot tall, and a foot thick; a solid grey granite speckled through with gold. Etched upon the surface of one of its wider sides were the names of everyone who had lost their lives in the fight against Riddle on the side of the Light. Sirius had requested both his grandfather's and brother's names be included along with the Potters.
On the other side of the wall, the surface was etched with all those who had taken part in the battle on the night of the solstice eve. Every being who'd fought – whether werewolf, elf, wizard or witch was mentioned. They'd insisted much to Cornelius's distress that neither he nor Harry were given any special treatment – just that their names were included with the others. Cornelius had reluctantly agreed. The only thing Harry had requested was the inscription at the top – Where there is love there is life.
Cornelius had also reluctantly agreed to postpone any reward ceremony until much, much, later. Sirius had been firm that everybody needed to heal first before they started congratulating themselves. The award recipients could be told in private to ensure they understood their contributions were being recognised but a public ceremony would wait.
He knew Cornelius wanted to give him and Harry an Order of Merlin. Personally Sirius wasn't fussed about the award and he knew Harry just felt a great deal of distaste at the idea of being rewarded for defeating Riddle. Harry was still recovering emotionally from the battle; he and Ron had argued badly a few days before about the proposed Quidditch match. Ron had apologised the next day – Ron presumably getting a lecture from everyone about not pushing Harry – and Harry had forgiven him as Harry was apt to do with Ron. Sirius suspected Harry had finally confided in Ron about just how much healing Harry still had to do. Ron had certainly been more sensitive about the entire topic since.
Harry shifted beside him, sending him an inquiring glance. Sirius offered him an apologetic grimace. Harry was far too tuned into him. He wondered if the tether had something to do with that. They needed to talk about it at some point but Sirius had put it off, focused on getting Harry through immediate concerns such as his physical recovery, then their return and the trials, and finally Harry's delayed exams which would determine his schooling. But they were going to have to have the discussion some time. Maybe after their Australian vacation and before Harry returned to Hogwarts.
Sirius brightened at the reminder of their imminent trip. They were due to leave later that evening, arriving into Australia in the early hours of the morning. They'd go to bed and aim get up around lunch time. Sirius had a feeling the time difference was going to take some getting used to but it would be worth it.
It would be good to catch-up with Simeon, Anna and Jason. He knew Simeon hadn't been too pleased to have been kept out of the battle but they had needed someone safe in case the battle hadn't gone the way they had wanted. Simeon had requested some time to speak to Sirius one on one, and Sirius had a sneaky suspicion that Simeon was going to tell him that he was planning on transferring back to Britain.
"…and now," Cornelius announced, dragging Sirius's attention back to the memorial, "I'd like to ask Director Bones and Director Croaker to light the Everlasting torches. The flames will never die and their presence will remind us of all who sacrificed and fought for our peace."
Sirius watched as Amelia and Bertie stepped up, one at each end of the wall. The gold holders were simple in shape – almost like oversized candlesticks. They were ornately etched though with beautiful calligraphy which told the story of Riddle and his downfall. Amelia and Bertie raised their wands to the cup part of the torch holder and silently lit them in unison. Two strong flames immediately sprang into life.
It was a fitting memorial.
"With the lighting of our torches, our main ceremony is now concluded." Cornelius said loudly. "I'd like to invite you all to stay. The Ministry ballroom has been opened for refreshments and sitting." He stood down from his lectern and led the way out to the open door just behind him.
Sirius wasn't surprised when Harry lingered in his seat rather than getting up immediately. He finally nudged him into motion and they walked over to the wall. Harry reached out and gently touched his parents' names. Sirius swallowed hard against the lump in his throat.
Bill stood at the other end of the wall. His eyes were pinned to Caroline's name. Sirius was pleased to see that there was more acceptance in Bill's expression than guilt. Bertie moved up to the young Weasley Heir and Sirius let his own gaze drift back to the wall.
There were so many names; so many had given their lives.
Hermione walked up to Harry and took his hand, resting her cheek momentarily on his shoulder. "You OK?" She asked lowly.
"Yeah." Harry sighed. "It's a good memorial; it just doesn't seem enough." It was his turn to nudge Sirius. "Ready to head into the ballroom?"
Sirius cast one final look at the wall and nodded. He glanced back to see the Delacours approaching Bill and wondered what that was about.
"Fleur's teaching him French." Harry explained, making Sirius realise he'd asked the question out loud.
"Really?" Sirius drawled, amused despite himself. "She's the new Gringotts' employee?"
Harry nodded, and a small smile flitted over his lips. "I think Vivien's planning to match-make once they get to France. Apparently it's rare a Veela finds someone who doesn't have a reaction to their allure."
Sirius agreed absently. It would be a good match if Bill allowed himself to fall for the girl. The Delacours were well placed in French society and she would make a great addition to the House of Weasley.
The ballroom was a press of people and Sirius guided them through the crowd to the table Andy had staked out at the back. Theo sat sandwiched between her and Ted. Narcissa was in attendance as the baby had been left in Dobby's capable care. Dora had also insisted on attending despite being very pregnant.
Sirius grimaced. Baby Lupin was due at the end of September and since Narcissa had effectively taken part in the ritual during her last month, Dora had been insistent that attending a memorial was a piece of cake by comparison. Remus hovered at Dora's side as though he was anticipating her going into labour at any moment regardless. It would have been hilarious if Sirius wasn't also a tad nervous about the same thing.
He was really going to miss Reggie during his vacation and on his return when they'd head home to Griffin House. Narcissa and Draco were moving to a newly purchased Black property near to Andromeda. Malfoy Manor was being locked down until Draco was old enough to take ownership. While Lucius was the Head of the House, the wards would allow him to enter freely and Narcissa wasn't prepared to place herself and her children into such a vulnerable position. Draco had accepted the move with surprising equanimity.
He excused himself from the table once Harry was settled – sending his son a sympathetic look as Hermione started to quiz him again on how his final exam had gone the day before – and started to make the rounds.
He had barely said hello to three people before he turned around and found himself face to face with Severus Snape.
"Black." Severus sneered.
"Snape." Sirius drawled back. He raised his glass. "How's your new position?"
Severus inclined his head, his heavy fall of black hair almost obscuring his face. "Acceptable." He glanced around swiftly, eyes landing on Harry. "You do not have to be concerned. I will not approach him."
Sirius sighed. "He doesn't hate you; he just doesn't forgive you."
"Like father like son." Severus stated.
Sirius almost bit his tongue in the effort to stop himself from snapping back. "I haven't had a chance to thank you yet for what you did in the graveyard so: thank you."
Severus looked as though he'd been slapped.
"Our paths may cross in future." Sirius pointed out. "We may still not like each other much but we managed a civil and even grudgingly good working relationship there at the end. I'd like to think we can continue to be adults about this and leave our past in the past."
Severus gave a slow nod. "A reasonable suggestion."
Sirius breathed out slowly.
"I should return to my work." Severus said, looking around with barely hidden horror.
"Shanghaied were you?" Sirius asked, keeping his amusement well hidden.
"Director Croaker is very much like Albus in some ways." Severus admitted dryly. He gave a short bow of his head. "Lord Black."
"Unspeakable Snape." Sirius let him go with some relief. His interactions with Snape were never going to be easy regardless of their mutual attempt to maintain civility. And Snape was right. He was never going to forgive him for telling Riddle the prophecy; his efforts to defeat Riddle, to keep Harry safe – they didn't wipe away that act. He figured Snape rather felt the same himself.
Sirius took a sip of his drink and made for Daniel at the wizard's signal to join his group. It didn't matter in the end. Any of it. Their school-hood angst was buried in the past. Snape's sins – well, he'd answer for those when he met Lily in the afterlife. And while their paths might cross with Snape's new position with Bertie, Snape was gone from Sirius's every-day life, from Harry's.
It was time to move on.