A/N: Ok, here it is, the final chapter to the story. Well, not really. I got a little carried away on the Epilogue and it's now in two parts. I'm still fixing the second part. I've really enjoyed writing this story and am so grateful for all the wonderful reviews. I love you, guys!
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You know, looking back, I kinda can't believe that it all happened. Without a big explosion (pardon the term), Harry and Hermione were together. I won't take all the credit, but I certainly think that I deserve some!
Regardless, theirs was a fairy tale romance. I've never seen two people more devoted to each other. Hermione hovered over him to improve him and Harry constantly had to be near her to make sure she was safe. It was no secret that dangers were still out there, but I had no worries as long as they were together.
After that holiday, Harry and Hermione returned to Hogwarts to all the cheers and catcalls that were expected. Lavender was certainly gifted at spreading the word around the school.
But all the extra publicity made Harry nervous. What would Voldemort do with this knowledge? How at risk was Hermione? With that in mind, Moony and I were brought to help with the DA organization. It made me so proud to see Harry leading this group of brave young adults. I truly believed that if anyone was going to take down Voldemort, he would be it.
For the rest of their sixth year, we prepared. We practiced, we reviewed, we kicked ass. I couldn't be sure that we were ready to defeat an entire army of Death Eaters, but I knew we could certainly give them a run for their money.
As it turned out, we didn't need this knowledge and power until the beginning of their seventh year. The summer before was spent laying low at Grimmauld Place with all the Weasleys, the Grangers, most of the Order and Harry. More training, more occulmency for Harry (poor kid) and more worrying. Could we do this?
Once Harry and crew returned to Hogwarts, everyone was on edge. When was he coming? The anticipation was killing us.
Then, on Halloween night, it happened. At dinner, all the lights suddenly went out. Screams filled the Great Hall. Without even seeing him, everyone knew what was going on.
"Harry Potter!" Voldemort called out. "Where are you? We have unfinished business! I figured it would be appropriate to kill you on the same night as I killed your parents."
I glanced down at Harry. It was easier to see now with all the lit wands. There was no fear on his face, except for Hermione's safety. They were holding on to each other for dear life.
"Trust me, even your mudblood can't help you this time. You'll need much, much more than that."
Just then, Death Eaters came pouring in from the doors and some broke through the windows.
"Well, now, Harry. Do you think you and your dear mudblood can handle all of my followers?
"Typical for you, Tom, bringing an unfair fight. But I guess that's why I came prepared," Harry replied.
Suddenly, 90% of the students raised their wands and shot off sparks.
"Meet my army. Suddenly the fight is a little more fair," Harry continued.
"Students? You want me to believe that students will defeat my Death Eaters? I think all this has had an adverse affect on your brain, boy. Now, surrender or I make the mudblood suffer."
"Never. Ever. Call. Her. That. Again. Riddle," Harry said, defiantly, forcefully. "This fight is between you and I. Tell your lackeys to stand back and we'll fight this like we're supposed to."
"Oh please. And deny them the fun I've been promising? I don't think so. But you're right, Potter. I'm saving you for myself. My loyal followers, now is the moment you've been waiting for! The destruction of Hogwarts is at hand! Attack at will! But remember, Potter is mine!"
Voldemort then disappeared, causing Harry to clutch Hermione even tighter. Soon, the curses began flying across the Great Hall. The smoke was thick and it was very difficult to see. The teachers were trying desperately to help the students.
Finally, I found Harry and Hermione.
"Harry! Where is he?" I yelled.
"I don't know. Close, I know that much," Harry replied, squinting through the pain that must have been shooting through the scar he was clutching. "Hermione, stay with Sirius."
"Harry! No! I'm going to stay with you," she replied, rather offended that he would send her away.
"Hermione, it's not that I doubt your abilities. Far from it. You could take anyone in here. But I cannot risk losing you. I cannot bear to think of what would happen if he got to you."
Tears filled both of their eyes.
"Please, Mione. Please."
She could never tell him no anyway.
"Alright, Harry. Please be careful!" She threw her arms around him. "Come back to me, please. I love you," she said through her sobs.
"I will come back. I love you too much not to. Keep yourself safe. Both of you," he said before kissing her as strongly as he could and taking off.
"Come on, Hermione. We've got to take cover," I said, forcing her to turn around and run.
"And there's the mudblood now," a voice came from behind us. It was Bellatrix. I just knew it.
"Leave her alone," I said.
"Oh, and miss the fun of killing dear Harry Potter's tramp? I don't think so," she replied. She raised her wand and pointed it straight at us. I don't think she really cared who she hit. Either one was fine by her.
But before either of us could blink, Hermione had her wand up and shouted, "Expelliarmus!"
Bellatrix's wand shot towards us Hermione deftly caught it.
"Petrificus totalus!" she said, freezing Bellatrix.
"One down," Hermione said as she magicked ropes around the stiff body and levitated it into a corner - with a not very gentle landing, I might add.
"Come on! It looks like we're winning," I said, leading her to Neville's aid behind an over-turned table.
"Neville! How are you doing?" Hermione said, coughing from all the smoke.
"Hermione! I knocked two of them down! I'm not doing too bad!"
"That's wonderful, Neville. Keep up the great work! If you can, freeze them, tie them up and send them to that corner behind where the teachers normally sit. We'll wait for the authorities to get them," she told him.
"Ok. Where's Harry?"
"I don't know. He's going after Riddle. I hope he's ok."
"He will be. He's got love on his side," Neville said, squeezing Hermione's hand.
She smiled slightly and told Neville to be careful.
Then, she stood and went to help others. I followed quickly, knowing that she was going to need support.
I glanced up and saw Dumbledore taking on three Death Eaters at once. He was blocking and firing spells like mad. And just like that, all three were flat on the ground. Bloody brilliant. Then he ran off and took care of another two. For such an old wizard, he was kicking ass and taking names!
Hermione and I continued from student to student, making sure they were ok and helping them fight.
It was right after we left Susan Bones that I saw it.
"Hermione! Look!" I yelled over the flying curses.
A silver stag came running towards us. It stopped directly in front of Hermione and stared into her eyes.
"It's him! He's ok! He's done it!" she screamed and began running after the Patronus to the door of the Great Hall.
"Hermione! Wait!" I called after her. Just because Voldemort may have been dead, didn't mean she wasn't still a target. Suddenly, Draco Malfoy was in front of her.
"So, mudblood. Did you think you were going to make it out of this alive?" he sneered at her.
"Go to hell, Malfoy. You're precious lord is dead. Go whimper back to your bloody Slytherins," she spat.
"Not this time. If the dark lord is dead, then I will help him take everyone dear to Potter with him. Avada -"
He never got to finish that curse, because a great blast came from behind him. I don't even know what spell Harry used, or if it even was a spell. All I know is that Draco Malfoy flew 50 feet.
Harry was practically glowing. His eyes were an eerie shade of green and he was covered in cuts and bruises.
"Harry!" Hermione cried as she ran towards him. "Oh, thank Merlin, you're alive!"
He ran to her as well and they just held each other.
"Hermione, I killed him. I had to. I can't believe I did it. I used the unforgivable curse. What if they take me to Azkaban?"
"Azkaban? Harry don't be ridiculous. You saved the world! And you're alive. If they want to take you away, they'll have to get through me."
They were both crying as hard as they could. From behind me, I could still hear the fighting going on.
"Harry, I hate to break you up, but there's still some Death Eaters in there," I said.
Harry said nothing, but walked to the entrance and held up his hands. A bright light filled the room and all the Death Eaters fell to the floor.
I was speechless. I had no idea what he just did, but it worked! We won!
There were very few causalities on our side and a couple on their side - but most importantly Tom Riddle. We caught all of his minions and they were hauled off to Azkaban. Took the ministry a bloody long enough time to get here and save us!
Nothing was asked about how Harry won. It seemed obvious enough by the lack of a body. He later told me that he lashed out on Voldemort's dead body. Kicking it and screaming. Finally, he blew it up, so that there would never be a trace of Voldemort left.
Madam Pomfrey instantly tried to escort him to the hospital wing to take care of his injuries. He wouldn't budge, however, until Poppy agreed that Hermione could go as well.
I went back into the Hall to survey the damage. Those who did not survive were carried out and trained Healers were brought in for those who did survive. The Hall was in shambles. Dumbledore looked around, clapped his hands three times and raised his hands. The Great Hall began to repair itself. I couldn't believe how well that man fought through the battle. For an old man, he was a great soldier.
Suddenly, it occurred to me, Harry would want to know about his friends. I ran through the crowds to find Ron and the rest of the Gryffindors. When I found Ron, my heart sank. He was under a fallen table and looked terrible.
"Ron! Ron, are you ok?" I asked.
"Oh yeah, Sirius, never better," he weakly replied.
"We need help over here!" I called to a Healer. "Ron, where's Ginny? Or Lavender? Any one?"
"I dunno. I lost all them all in the fight. Find them for me, please?"
"Of course. You hang on, Ron!"
He nodded and I went off again. I found Lavender and Ginny crying in a corner.
"Lavender! Ginny! How are you?"
They were both as well as could be expected. As it turned out, Ginny killed someone in battle. She tried to blast them back and they fell off a table, broken neck. She was practically hysterical. I called over another Healer and requested a counselor as well.
I found all of Harry's dorm mates as well, though I was concerned that Seamus might not make it. I went back to Ron and told him that everyone was fine. And that Harry and Hermione were fine as well.
"Thanks, Sirius. You're such a great guy. I love your hat," he replied.
"My hat?" I asked. I wasn't wearing a hat.
The Healer turned to me and said, "We've given him some very strong potion. He may be a little out of it."
"I see that. Ron, I'm going to see Harry and Hermione now, ok? We'll come see you at the hospital."
"Ok, silly," he said.
With that, I ran to the hospital wing, anxious to report to Harry.
When I found him, he was lying in bed with Hermione tucked under his left arm, her head lying on his chest.
He met my eyes and brought his right hand up. He put a finger to his lips and pointed to Hermione. She was fast asleep.
I crept to his bedside and conjured a chair.
"Harry," I whispered. "Everyone is fine. Ron, Ginny, Lavender, Dean, Seamus, Neville, all of them."
"That's wonderful, Sirius. I'm just glad we all made it out alive," he said, sighing.
"Harry, do not blame yourself like I know you're doing. The Death Eaters are in Azkaban, Voldemort is dead, Hermione and your friends are alive. Not a bad day's work."
He nodded.
"Sirius, do you think my parents saw me?"
"Yes and they are so proud of you."
"I doubt that. They saw me kill someone."
"Harry, you did that to save the school. Hell, the whole world. You've avenged their death now. They are so proud of you! Do not begin to think this way. You did exactly what you had to do."
"Harry, please don't do this to yourself," Hermione's small voice said.
"I'm sorry we woke you," he said.
"It's ok. I wouldn't sleep through this anyway. Don't beat yourself up because of this Harry. You had to kill him. He would have killed, you, me, Ron, Ginny, the entire school, my parents, and anyone else he could get his hands on if you didn't save us. Harry, you're a hero, not a monster."
"I suppose," he muttered.
"Harry, she's right. Aren't you at least happy to know that you've brought your parents' murdered to justice?" I asked.
"Of course I am. I'm just scared of myself. I had the ability to take a life and I did it."
"Don't be scared of yourself. Be proud that you had the courage to do it. You're a Gryffindor for a reason. And this is it. Harry, I love you. I love you more than I can say. And I need you to believe me. I'm not scared of you. And neither is Sirius," Hermione said.
"Well, I've always been scared of him. But that's just because my one of my first memories of him is of him throwing up on me," I said, hoping to lighten the mood.
"Ugh, with the way I'm feeling, don't get too close, Padfoot. Unless you'd like a repeat performance," Harry said.
"Ok then. On that note, I'm going to St. Mungo's and check on everyone there. I'll owl you when I know more, ok?" I asked, standing to leave.
"Yeah. And Sirius?" Harry said, quietly.
"Yes?"
"Thanks … for everything."
"You're more than welcome, Harry. You're more than welcome."
And with that I left the two lovebirds alone. I knew Hermione would need more time to completely bring Harry out of this shell, and their privacy would be important to that.
A week later, most of the students had returned to school. Classes weren't set to resume for another two days, but a memorial was set for those students who were lost in the great battle for that night.
Dumbledore gave a wonderful speech as did Harry. He encouraged his fellow students to "remember those lost for what they did and to not take their sacrifices for granted. Always live on the side of light and never forget the consequences of turning to the dark arts."
I was honestly brought to tears by him.
The year went on as normally as it could. When graduation rolled around, Hermione, of course, was the Valedictorian and gave another moving speech.
After the ceremony was over, Harry was offered the Defense Against the Dark Arts teaching position. He accepted gratefully. Hermione was offered the Arithmancy position. She accepted it as well.
Right after that, Harry pulled Hermione aside. I saw him do this and smiled. I knew what he was doing. He was proposing to her. He discussed it with me a week before.
"Sirius, I think I want to ask Hermione to marry me."
"Ok. I think it's a great idea."
"But I'm scared."
"Of what?"
"What else? Rejection! What if she tells me no?"
I laughed.
"I don't find it funny, Sirius!" he said, obviously offended.
"I'm not laughing at you, Harry. I'm laughing at the fact that this is the second time I've had this conversation. You're father said the same thing."
Harry just looked at me.
"Yes, that's right. Mr. Cool and Suave feared rejection from the woman that loved him. Harry, let's be honest here. Hermione was willing to stand up to Voldemort with you. She has never left your side since that incident with the troll in your first year. If she hasn't gotten rid of you yet, chances are good she's stuck with you."
"Gee, thanks for the pep talk," he said sarcastically.
"Harry, just ask her. She will not say no. Didn't we basically go through this in the beginning of your sixth year? You wouldn't ask her out and look, she loved you then. Now you're stalling at proposing even though you know she loves you. You are a Potter, I'll give you that."
"So she won't tell me no?"
"Harry, if she tells you no, I'll eat my wand."
'Don't let me down, Hermione. I love this wand,' I thought.
Of course she said yes (sure was going to be strange having two Professor Potters running around) and they planned for a Valentine's Day wedding. And was it a beautiful wedding! Hermione was in a stunning white gown with white robes and Harry had his black tux with black robes. It was a pretty good mix of Muggle and Magic traditions.
Dumbledore officiated the ceremony in the Great Hall. The Hall was never as full as it was that day. Seemed like everyone in the magical community wanted to see Harry Potter and Hermione Granger get married.
I was quite honored to serve as both co-Best Man (with Ron) and father of the groom. After the ceremony, the Great Hall converted into a wonderful reception hall. The night was spent dancing and celebrating. It was wonderful to be able to breathe easy again.
On their one-year anniversary, Harry took Hermione on a fantastic second honeymoon. They were so happy when they returned, but little did they know what was right around the corner …
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A/N2: I added a little bit more of Dumbledore fighting in this since it was mentioned that it seemed to be lacking. I did mention that he was a great fighter, but I added more anyway. I didn't really want to get too much into the final battle other than to show it happened, though. Sorry!