Harry grumbled under his breath as he stretched out upon the couch of the Gryffindor common room, all in an attempt to get comfortable. He, Ron, Hermione, and Draco had just finished their final end-of-term exams, while Ginny was in the process of completing her final OWL in charms, and due back to the common room within the hour. Draco and Ron played wizard's chess across the room and Hermione, worried for Harry, finally pushed him up and began to squeeze at the muscles in his back patiently.

"Have you heard from him yet?" Hermione whispered.

Harry shook his head and gritted his teeth, so as to prevent the stream of tears which seemed to plague him for the last several weeks. "No," he replied. Damn hormones, he thought for the umpteenth time since his pregnancy had revealed itself.

"How are you feeling?"

Harry sighed. "Stiff," he admitted, finally pushing himself up. "It's late. I'd better get downstairs to Remus before it sets in."

Hermione nodded, summoning a bottle of Wolfsbane from her secret stash at the bottom of her trunk in the sixth-year girls' dormitory, and handed it over to Harry. "Good luck," she told him, and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

Harry forced a smile to his lips. "Thanks," he said. He waved to Ron and Draco as he got to his feet, positioning his bag over his shoulder, and left the common room. On his way to Remus, he ran into Ginny, who hugged him, and told him that her charms exam had gone well, and Harry, in turn, told her that Draco was waiting for her in the common room.

Harry entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom a few moments later, and let himself into Remus's inner office, before he made his way into the man's inner rooms. It was a few hours before the transformation was due to take place, and so Harry found Remus, freshly showered, and sitting beside the fireplace. Although spring had set in over a month ago, Remus always seemed cold right before the transformation, and so he was wrapped up in a series of blankets upon Harry's arrival.

"Oh, Harry," Remus said warmly, "I should've mentioned..."

Harry blinked as the door shut automatically behind him. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh, yes," Remus assured him, a smile coming to his lips. "It's just that Sirius agreed to sit with me tonight. You look exhausted, so I think the plan is a good one."

Harry swallowed and shuffled from foot to foot. "He doesn't know, does he?"

Remus shook his head. "I haven't told him, so I don't think so."

"But he knows I'm exhausted..."

"You've just completed your end-of-term exams, Harry," Remus said. "And, given that you're best friends with the best student in your year, it's understandable."

Harry smirked, inviting himself to sit across from Remus, and handed over the bottle of Wolfsbane, and put a hand on his belly. "Well, Hermione's study schedules are murder, although I did opt not to take Divination or Astronomy..."

"Good thing, too," Remus said, taking the bottle. "You wouldn't have needed them, given that I have a distinct idea of what you're good at by now."

Harry sighed, and stiffened for a moment. "Merlin," he muttered.

"Everything all right?"

Harry sighed, sinking deeper into the chair. "She's kicking," he explained.

Remus chuckled at that. "I hear they do that," he replied, turning the potions bottle over and over in his hands. "Tonks and I were speaking earlier..."

Harry looked up, knowing that a discussion involving Remus and Tonks would prove to be a worthy distraction. "Yeah? Everything all right with you guys?"

Remus nodded at him, a slow smile cropping up upon his face. "I've decided that I'm going to ask her to marry me," he replied.

Harry grinned at the prospect, knowing full well just how good for the other the couple was. "I think that's an excellent idea," he told him.

Remus beamed. "Thank you," he replied. "I've got my mother's engagement ring, which I found in my Gringotts vault recently. Sirius and I were at the bank recently, looking into the whole Horcrux debacle, and I thought it was a perfect time to do so. Sirius already gave me his blessing, as it were, and I'm due to meet with Ted and Andromeda soon to discuss it at length with the two of them. Just hope they don't mind..."

"They know how Tonks feels about you," Harry assured him. "I'm sure that, in the end, all they want is for their daughter to be happy."

"Yes, that's what Sirius thought," Remus replied. "He's even offered to come with me to the Tonks' place to ask. I've taken him up on the offer."

Harry nipped at his lower lip then, considering. "You went to Gringotts to look into the Black family vaults?"

"In addition to the Lupin one, yes," Remus confirmed.

Harry cocked his head to one side. "Find anything?" he asked.

"Yes, as a matter of fact," Remus replied. "As Bellatrix Lestrange, her husband, and brother-in-law are wanted fugitives, and the Dark hasn't completely overtaken the ministry just yet, Sirius is permitted to get into the Lestrange family vault," he told Harry.

Harry's brows knit together. "But what about Lucius and Narcissa?"

The wolf shook his head. "Lucius is now in Azkaban for life, as you well know, and Narcissa can hardly attempt to revitalize the Malfoy name, due to her decision to stand by her husband and cast off her son."

Harry sighed. "Yes, I see."

"Which leaves Sirius, as the senior male member of the extended family, with permission to look into the vaults," Remus said steadily. "We've found something."

"Yes?" Harry asked, leaning forward.

"Helga Hufflepuff's Cup," Remus whispered, knowing full well that the walls had ears. "I used my acute sense of hearing, and discovered the distinct humming matched that of the whispers inside the locket."

"Whispers," Harry whispered, a thought suddenly coming to him, and launched to his feet then, a bit unsteady, but knowing he had to have a moment to collect his thoughts. "Send Sirius my best, Remus, I've got to go," he said quickly, running from the room before he could be called back. It was as if something in his thoughts had cleared, and, as he left the classroom, he pulled out his wand and considered something happy. "Expecto Patronum!" he shouted, and Prongs made himself known, and hesitated for a moment, wondering if his caster has a message. "Find Luna, and tell her to meet me in the headmaster's office," Harry said breathlessly, watching as Prongs bowed to Harry and flitted off down the corridor.

Harry turned around then and dashed towards the headmaster's office, unknowing what he would say to the man. He'd barely managed to fend off the man's probing questions these past few weeks about how he was feeling, as he knew full well he'd barely believed him or Madam Pomfrey when it came to Harry's reported "stomach bug". As Harry rounded the corner, however, he felt a rush of relief when he saw Luna walking towards the gargoyle, and found himself throwing his arms around her.

"Hello, Harry," she said, squeezing him back for a moment before she pulled back. "And how is your daughter this afternoon?"

Harry's eyes widened. "You knew?"

Luna smiled slowly. "Of course, Harry. Your body's chemistry differs considerably whenever a pregnancy is involved," she explained, before turning towards the gargoyle. "Pixie Puffs," she said, and the stone being jumped out of the way, and Luna reached out, taking Harry by the hand and gently guiding him up the spiraled staircase.

The door swung open, and Dumbledore was sitting at his desk, tinkering with the odd Muggle gadget, which he immediately put aside upon Harry and Luna's entrance. "Ah, Harry, and Miss Lovegood," he said, getting to his feet. "How may I help you?"

"I think Harry knows the answer better than I do, headmaster," Luna replied, and turned to look at Harry with a quick smile.

"Sir, I have reason to believe that a Horcrux was destroyed already," he said, and Dumbledore gave a cursory glance at Luna, and Harry nodded, confirming that Luna was well-aware of the hunt for the Dark and cursed objects, alongside Neville.

"Oh, Harry? Do, please, tell me more," Dumbledore replied, indicating the chairs in front of his desk, which Harry and Luna took. "To what are you referring, then?"

"Tom Riddle's diary, back in the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said quickly, before he lost the Gryffindor courage coursing through his veins.

Dumbledore gave a slight nod. "Yes. I was thinking the very same thing myself."

"Which means that we need a fang from the basilisk I slaughtered," Harry told him, not looking forward to going back down into the chamber, but also knowing that he would do it, if it meant they were one step closer to destroying a bit of Riddle's soul.

"Oh, I think not, Harry," Dumbledore replied with a chuckle. "You killed the basilisk with the Sword of Gryffindor."

"Which means that it would be filled with the venom from the beast," Luna said, quickly connecting the dots, "and, therefore, a perfectly suitable weapon to destroy these objects, which have been so tainted by Tom Riddle."

"Which is why I asked you here, Luna," Harry said, and turned towards the fifth-year Ravenclaw with wide eyes. "Another Horcrux, discovered by Sirius and Professor Lupin, has been found to have been Helga Hufflepuff's Cup. I was thinking that, since another is the locket of Salazar Slytherin, that another has something to do with Ravenclaw."

"Oh, that's a rather simple one, then," Luna told him. "It has to be Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem but, unfortunately, the piece has been lost for quite a few centuries. Her portrait in the common room has her wearing it, so it couldn't have been lost for all that time..."

Harry felt something slam from within him then, and he got to his feet. "You're brilliant, Luna," he told her. "Stay with Dumbledore; I'll be right back," he said, and was dashing off again, this time with a particular destination in mind. As he arrived at the barren stone wall, outside of the Room of Requirement, he focused all he could, and, quite soon, the door made itself available to Harry, who stepped inside.

Inside the room were a great plethora of things from years' past; he noticed Fluffy's collar in one corner, back from first-year; in another, there was the cage of the Cornish Pixies that Gilderoy Lockhart had attempted to make Harry, Ron, and Hermione clear up in second-year. Further into the room, within stacks of the objects, Harry was amazed to see the axe that had been due to execute Buckbeak from third-year; from his fourth-year, behind a class case, there was Cedric Diggory's Triwizard Tournament uniform, which made him feel unsettled. Harry then found that he had to do a double-take, as he saw the pile of fireworks, emblazoned with the Weasley twins' logo, which had been used to take down Umbridge the year before.

Harry looked through the various stacks of things, knowing that the room would provide him with the location in which to search for the object, but would require him to look for it on his own, as it wanted him to work for it. As he sifted through the stacked objects, he finally found a beautiful cherry wood box, covered with a fine layer of dust, lodged in a stack which was filled with chairs and other smatterings of broken furniture. Carefully, Harry managed to dislodge it from the pile, and, upon opening it up, saw a beautiful headpiece, made of wrought silver, and boasting an impressive sapphire in the center, and a pearl dangling from it, lying inconspicuously within a bed of black velvet.

Quickly, due to the whispers emitting from the piece, Harry knew instinctively what this was, and slammed the box closed. He tucked it into his bag and stealthily left the room, hardly wanting to upset any of the makeshift piles around him. He quickly made his way back to the headmaster's office, and the gargoyle permitted him to go up the stairs without a password. He stepped inside a moment later, crossed the room, and placed the box upon the desk, before he sat back down, and took an offered cup of tea.

"You've found it?" Dumbledore asked, sliding the box towards him and opening it. "Ah, yes. I would recognize the piece anywhere."

"We've got to destroy them," Harry said quietly. "The sooner the better."

Dumbledore nodded and shut the box. "Quite right, my boy. We'll have Sirius and Remus help us with the endeavor, once the full moon is over."

~*~

It was on the final day of May, after a discussion with Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Draco about an agreement to spend the summer at the Burrow, that Harry went back upstairs to Dumbledore's office in the Headmaster's Tower. They would have met earlier, but Dumbledore had an inkling about something, and had been temporarily called away. When Harry arrived in the office, he saw Dumbledore, Sirius, and Remus standing around the table, gazing down at the cup, the diadem, the locket, and, as he stepped closer, was quite shocked to see that a ring had also been added into the mix.

"What's that?" Harry asked.

"The ring of Marvolo Gaunt," Dumbledore replied, looking up. "I was tempted to try it on, but Sirius and Remus talked me out of it."

"I can feel the dark magic from here," Harry reported. "Probably not a good idea."

Sirius, who was holding the Sword of Gryffindor, handed it over to Harry. "Would you care to do the honors?" he asked.

Harry grinned and stepped forward. He angled the sword accordingly, and promptly slashed it into the stone of both the ring and the diadem. He next moved towards the cup, slicing at it expertly, and felt altogether proud of himself. Quickly, smatterings of a deep gray smoke filled the air, along with screams of agony. Harry stumbled backwards, feeling as if someone was attempting to rip something out of him, and his scar throbbed.

"Are you all right, my boy?" Dumbledore asked.

Harry nodded, and handed the sword to him. "I think that you should do the next one, sir," he said, and nodded at the locket. "Can one of you open it?"

"We've tried," Remus put in. "It won't open for any of us..."

"Guess it has to be me," Harry replied, taking a deep breath. He stared down at the locket, and hissed, Open, in Parseltongue, and, a moment later, all hell broke loose.

The gray smoke seemed to fill the room, and an agonized wail filled the air, with Sirius and Remus diving behind Dumbledore's desk, and Harry promptly falling to his knees. Dumbledore looked at the locket, still gripping onto the sword, almost as if he'd had no idea what such an object could have been capable of.

I have seen your dreams, Albus Dumbledore, and I have seen your fears. All you desire is possible, but all that you dread is also possible... Least loved, by the father who broke the Statute of Secrecy, and was taken to Azkaban. Least loved, by the mother who had to tend to that mad sister of yours, and paid for it with her life. Least loved, by the brother who claimed that you were responsible for your youngest sibling's death...

There was a shadow in the smoke then, and a tall, blond male made himself known, and Harry squinted, although he had no idea who the man was.

Why would I ever look at someone like you? I was using you, Albus, came the cold tone from the impossibly beautiful man within the smoke. We, who wanted to take over the world together, to make Muggles subservient to wizard kind, but you had to take care of that mad sister of yours, and that brother, who never left us alone, and threatened to expose our plans, and what he called an unnatural relationship, to the world...

"Gellert..." Dumbledore whispered brokenly, his blue eyes filling with tears, as he fought to retain his grip upon the sword.

The smoke cleared slightly, and a second figure stood within it. I killed those Muggle boys to protect our way of life, and to save your dear sister, the man intoned, who appeared to be a younger version of Dumbledore, save for a shaved head, and Harry quickly deduced that this was his father, Percival, who had died in Azkaban, due to the clothes he was wearing. This is how you repay me, by ignoring your mother, brother, and sister, and allowing your sister's madness to overtake her, to the point where my beloved Kendra was killed? Or making your beloved brother suffer, when all he wanted was to raise Ariana appropriately, and you, giving into flights of fancy by entering into an unnatural relationship, and ignoring your family completely? I am disgusted of you, Albus!

The headmaster crumpled further. "Father, please... Have I failed you?"

A third figure made himself known, and Harry was taken aback, as he almost immediately recognized the barman of the Hog's Head Inn, complete with his brown beard, etched with silver, and kind brown eyes. I wanted to keep Ariana safe, Albus, said the voice, and Harry choked, shocked that this man, Aberforth, was Albus's brother. That's all I wanted to do. And you took up with that disgusting excuse for a wizard, and were content to drag Ariana across the world to fulfill your selfish dreams!

"Ab?" Dumbledore whispered, his voice a mere thread. "Oh, Ab, I'm so sorry..."

A final figure made herself known immediately thereafter; she was a slip of a thing, likely in her early teenage years, and had flowing blonde hair and intelligent eyes. Albus, came her voice, which seemed to be altogether frail, why did you let him into the yard that day? came her whisper at her brother, and Albus crumpled even further still at the soft voice of his youngest sibling and only sister, Ariana. You let him into our yard; I saw you kissing him from the kitchen window, I saw you, she carried on, and Dumbledore visibly gritted his teeth in despair. Ab came out and yelled at you, because you started talking about traveling with Gellert... Why did you want control of me so badly? I was certifiably insane, and had to access to the Dumbledore fortune because of it. Ab could have had me, kept me safe and loved, for he was, and remains to this day, my favorite brother, she continued. But you three were yelling, and all I wanted to do was stop it... That's all I wanted, Albus, was to stop it...

"Ariana," Dumbledore said, and it sounded as if the headmaster was begging.

...but you wouldn't stop, she went on, her tale slowly drawing to a close. And there was yelling between the three of you, so much yelling. I was tired of all the yelling—it reminded me of those boys that hurt me, that made Papa go to Azkaban, she said, her voice encompassing on a wail as her fragile mind threatened to get the better of her. But you just wouldn't stop. I ran out of the house, and even though you both told me to stay back, I didn't listen, because that dreadful boy, the one you were willing to risk what was left of my sanity for, had drawn his wand. I just ran, and ran, and ran, came her voice, barely above a whisper. There was a green light, it was from Gellert's wand, I know it, and it slashed into me—

"No!" Dumbledore yelled.

He killed me, Albus, Ariana Dumbledore declared, tears running down her cheeks. Your lover is the one who killed me. And you told him to run, to evade charges, and you're responsible for turning him into the darkest wizard Britain had ever known, before Lord Voldemort staked his claim and ruined our country once more—

"NO!" came the screech from the headmaster then, as he finally lifted the Sword of Gryffindor, slashing it through the air, and swiping through the gray smoke which permeated the office, and stabbed at the locket, the final screech heard of yet another piece of the soul of Tom Riddle being ripped apart.

Harry got unsteadily to his feet, a wave of nausea flowing through him. As he tried to right himself, the sword clattered to the floor across the room, and his eyes widened then, as another pain ripped through him, causing him to double over and vomit.

"Merlin," Harry whispered, gripping his knees..

"Harry?" Sirius asked, as Remus hastily bent to pick up the sword. "Are you all right?" he wanted to know, helping him up.

"I... I can feel them," he whispered.

"What?" Remus demanded, turning around to watch Harry.

Harry shuddered then, and slowly lifted a hand towards his scar. "I... I think I'm one," he said then, and Sirius stared at him. "I think I'm a Horcrux," Harry declared, causing his godfather to let out a noise of despair, quite like that of Snuffles, and threw his arms around Harry, almost as if he was unwilling to let him go.

~*~

The first Friday in June had arrived, and with it, plenty of sunny weather. Ginny arrived in the Room of Requirement to meet with Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco and, as she breezed inside the hidden room, immediately dashed to Draco's side and kissed him for all to see. It was then that she presented an envelope to him and giggled as Draco took it.

"Professor McGonagall gave it to us during transfiguration," she said, which was her final class of the day before dinner. "Open it."

Draco flashed his girlfriend a smile and did so, gazing at the piece of parchment. "My girlfriend is a genius!" he crowed, tossing the parchment at Hermione and grabbing ahold of Ginny's hand and pulled her up with him, whereupon he proceeded to grab ahold of her waist and dance around with her about the room.

"Transfiguration, O," Hermione read, as Harry and Ron both leaned in closer. "Care of Magical Creatures, O," Hermione continued. "Charms, E. Potions, O. Herbology, E. Defense Against the Dark Arts, O. History of Magic, E. Astronomy, E." Hermione nodded in approval, before she put the marks of Ginny's OWLs back into the envelope, knowing that she would likely want to send it on ahead to the Burrow before term ended. "That's amazing, Gin," she said, once Draco and Ginny had exhausted themselves and sat back down, before crawling closer to Ginny and hugging her tightly.

"Luna's got hers back as well," Ginny reported. "We mostly got the same, except Luna got an O in charms, Astronomy, potions, and herbology, and an E in Defense," she explained. "She also managed an O in History of Magic," she went on with a giggle.

Ron grinned. "Probably didn't try to wake up Binns," he put in.

Harry swallowed then and shifted slightly, inadvertently causing all his friends to look over at him, and he sighed. "I've got something to tell you all as well," he said quietly.

Hermione's eyes widened. "Is everything all right with the baby?" she asked.

Harry ran his hands along his stomach. "For the moment," he replied, suddenly realizing that he didn't know what he was going to do fully, and resolved to speak to Madam Pomfrey as soon as possible. "As you all know, I destroyed Tom Riddle's diary in the Chamber of Secrets, and it was a Horcrux," he began.

Ginny nodded, reaching out and squeezing Harry's hand. "We know," she told him, her voice gently, and full of patience.

"Anyhow," Harry continued, "I went to Dumbledore's office a week ago, and Sirius and Remus were there, too. We destroyed several Horcruxes. Salazar Slytherin's Locket, which was in lockup at Grimmauld Place beforehand, and easy to get to. Another was Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem, which Luna tipped me off to, and I found it in here... The third one was Helga Hufflepuff's Cup, which Remus and Sirius found in the Lestrange vault at Gringotts. And the last one was Marvolo Gaunt's ring... We destroyed them all, and I destroyed all of them, except Dumbledore did the locket..."

"Merlin, that couldn't have been easy for you, mate," Ron put in.

Harry shook his head. "It wasn't."

"Are you all right, Harry?" Draco asked.

Harry swallowed, but forced himself to shake his head. "No, Draco," he replied, forcing his voice to come through his lips. "No, I'm not all right."

"Harry, what happened?" Hermione whispered.

Harry raised his eyes to all of theirs, and sighed. "There's a reason I can feel them. The Horcruxes, because they're pieces of him," he said softly. "I think I've known about the connection for a while..."

Ginny let out a gasp then, catching on rather quickly. "Harry... Harry, no..." Her voice was begging him, as her eyes shed tears.

"Harry, please tell me that this is a joke," Ron demanded.

"And, if it is, it isn't funny!" Hermione snapped, although her eyes were filling with tears as well, due to her coming to the conclusion as well.

"Harry," Draco whispered, "no..."

"Yes," Harry replied, straightening up then, although he didn't have the energy to do so. "I'm a Horcrux, too," he said, and allowed his four best friends to crowd around him and hug him over and over again, and he shut his eyes when his vision became too muddled to see, for he was not about to push them away to wipe his tears.

~*~

The final full moon of term had brought the news that Draco had written to Molly and Arthur some weeks ago, asking them for Ginny's hand in marriage. Ginny, shocked, had immediately accepted the proposal, once Molly and Arthur had given their blessing, and was now feeling comfortable with wearing her ring—an emerald beset with tasteful diamonds on either side—in front of them all. Ron immediately began rolling up his sleeves, but Hermione considerately distracted him for a moment, to the point where he was willing to accept his only sister's engagement, albeit begrudgingly.

"It'll be a long engagement," Ginny had informed them, and that had seemed to ease Ron's ruffled feathers a bit.

A week after the final full moon saw the fivesome in the library, in the Restricted Section, after having been given a pass by Remus, to scour the books in the hopes of a potential cure for Harry's Horcrux. Hermione had refused to believe that Harry's death was the only way to remove such a thing, and looked deeply into the Dark Arts section of the provided books. The ancient tomes were stuffed full of outdated information and thinking, as well as layer upon layer of dust, causing Harry to sneeze more than twice so, understandably, he kept his distance as much as he could from the research.

Hermione, on her last ounce of patience, pulled out a gigantic tome from the mid-seventeenth century, which was called Potions in the Dark Arts, which was a peeling brown color with faded gold lettering. Pursing her lips, she put a light Dusting Spell upon it, which thankfully made the worst of it vanish, and opened up the book, scouring through the Table of Contents and Appendix in the hopes of finding something of value.

"Passion Philter," she whispered after about a quarter of an hour of searching through the ancient tome, and her brown eyes darted from one direction of the page to the next, and her face turned into one of rare euphoria, one which Harry hadn't seen in a very long time. "Eureka!" she shouted then, and Madam Pince glared at her from her desk across the room. Hermione took ahold of the tome and placed it before Harry, ignoring the librarian, and showed him the page that she had found.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Hermione sighed. "A potion," she said, pulling the book back towards her to read. "Passion, which is another word for soul, is utilized here in this very rare and very complex potion to remove foreign objects from a person's body, only in circumstances of Dark Magic that has been unlawfully connected to one's soul."

Harry sat bolt upright in his chair. "What?" he whispered, as Ron, Draco, and Ginny all gathered around the table.

"Harry, if what we know is true, Riddle implanted the Horcrux within you when you were only fifteen-months-old, and far too young to consent to such a thing," Hermione told him.

Harry made a bitter expression. "Not that I would..."

"No, of course not," Hermione said quickly, shaking her head. "The potion, while it does possess rare ingredients, only takes an hour, at most, to brew. The recipe is as follows: Two handfuls of shredded Five Finger Grass, otherwise known as Cinquefoil, for the five blessings of Health, Money, Love, Power, and Wisdom, which must be shredded with care and the utmost respect; a handful of Orris Root, which must be diced, and bequeaths the charms of Love, Persuasion, Popularity, Charisma and Success to the drinker; Horehound, which must be minced accordingly, and will provide Mental Clarity, Dispelling Illusion, and Healing; a generous handful of Devil's Claw, smashed with a mortar and pestle, to provide Protection, Exorcism, Banishing Spells, Keeping Away Evil, and Confounding Enemies; and three handfuls of powdered Blue Vervain, which symbolizes love and advancement as well as initiation, which the drinker will need to formally begin anew..." It was with a deep sigh that Hermione broke off, and put her head into her hands.

"What is it, 'Mione?" Harry demanded.

"Blue Vervain is native to North America, Devil's Claw to Southern Africa, Five Finger Grass to Eastern North America or Canada, Orris Root to the Balkans and Italy, and Horehound to mainly North Africa and Central Asia," she moaned in despair.

"You don't think Professor Sprout will have them in the greenhouses?" Ron asked.

Hermione sighed. "I don't know."

"Well, we have to try!" Ginny shouted, taking out her wand. "Expecto Patronum!" she yelled, and her horse immediately flitted out of the tip of her wand and whinnied, causing Madam Pince to walk towards them. "Go find Neville, tell him we need Blue Vervain, Devil's Claw, Five Finger Grass, Orris Root, and Horehound!" she ordered, and the horse scoffed, before bowing its head and cantering out of the library.

"What do you think you're doing, unleashing a horse in my library?" Madam Pince demanded, her dark eyes flitting from one student to the next.

"Well, erm..." Ron said.

"What the issue at hand is..." Draco tried.

Hermione launched to her feet then, and glared at the librarian. "This is a matter of life and death of the Savior of the Wizarding World, the Boy Who Lived, and the Chosen One!" she yelled, her hackles officially on the rise. "If you don't like it, then perhaps you're a Death Eater in disguise, in which I think I should inform the headmaster immediately!"

Madam Pince looked justifiably taken aback by Hermione's outburst. "A matter of life and death, you say?" she asked.

Hermione nodded, struggling to breathe normally again. "Yes," she replied.

Madam Pince's gaze flickered momentarily to Harry, before coming to rest upon Hermione once again, and nodded. "Let me know if you need anything, and I'll do my best to see it is done," she declared, before going back to her desk, and Hermione, heart pounding, struggling to remain calm, although it was becoming more and more difficult for her to do so.

~*~

It was a devastating blow when the greenhouse only had Horehound, but, once Professor Sprout got the short, Dumbledore-approved version of what it was for, promised that Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Draco could have as much as they wanted. Neville, meanwhile, had begun scouring potions and herbology catalogues from across the globe, in the hopes of finding the rest of the potion ingredients for the potion that could potentially save Harry's life. Hermione and Luna helped in the research as best they could, and Luna even wrote to her father to figure out if they had any leads on foreign potions ingredients.

"I feel so helpless," Hermione had said more than once over the last three days. "I'm the brightest witch of my age, and the best in our year—everyone says so. And even I know that I cannot brew this potion."

"Neither can Slughorn," Draco replied, looking over the recipe and shaking his head. "I don't even think I could either."

Harry, who couldn't stand listening to them literally counting down the hours until his death if the Horcrux couldn't be removed, left the Gryffindor common room for a walk down the corridors and such. He had the map with him in his back pocket, but he wasn't looking at it. It was almost as if a part of him didn't particularly care who he ran into now, as the hours didn't wholly matter anymore. He meandered towards the Room of Requirement, and he shut his eyes, just wishing for Severus, before pushing open the door.

"Harry?"

Harry's eyes snapped open then, and he let out a gasp at the sight of his lover, kneeling upon the ground, clutching at his neck. "Severus!" Harry shouted, running across the room and seeing that his neck had been slashed. "No, no, no!" he cried out. "What happened?"

"No time," Severus whispered, and nodded towards the table which had appeared beside them, and two crystal-cut bottles were there. "Give me the green one first," he wheezed, and Harry made a grab for it, uncorking it and giving it over to the man. Severus visibly winced as he tipped the bottle over the gaping wound, which seemed to smoke for a moment, black clouds leaving it immediately, leading Harry to believe that there was Dark magic associated with the deep cuts on his lover's neck. "The gold one, Harry—quickly!" Severus said, and Harry handed the second bottle over, once he had uncorked it, watching as the wounds steamed clearly, and the wounds managed to close up.

Harry, thinking quickly, took his wand out from his pocket, and whispered, "Scourgify," which caused the blood on Severus's hands, neck, and robes to vanish.

"Thank you," Severus breathed. "I was punished, as Riddle found out that I was truly on the side of the Light all along. Nagini tried to kill me," he said quietly.

"That snake?!" Harry spat.

"Yes," Severus said with a nod. "Although I did try to kill her first..." He hesitated. "You know she is a Horcrux, don't you?"

"No, I didn't know," Harry replied, suspecting that Dumbledore must've written to Severus about Slughorn's memories. "That leaves two, then."

"Two?" Severus asked.

Harry sighed, shutting his eyes then, no longer capable of holding his emotions back. "Nagini and I are the final ones," he replied.

"You're what?!" Severus demanded.

Harry's eyes snapped open. "Yes," he said softly.

"No!" Severus yelled then, yanking Harry into his arms. "You... You can't... I won't let you go, Harry, I won't!" he declared.

Harry pushed himself out of Severus's arms, glaring at him. "How am I to believe that when you don't want a future with me?!" he spat.

Severus shook his head. "I was never meant to survive, Harry," he whispered. "Albus sent me on a very dangerous mission, when our affair came out. I believed that, by pushing you away, you would seek to find someone more appropriate for you, in all ways..."

Harry gritted his teeth. "I told you that I didn't care about the age difference or the controversy surrounding our relationship, and I still don't care, because I love you!" he shouted, tears flowing out of his eyes, all composure gone. "I'll always love you, and there will never be anyone else, because we're going to have a daughter together a month from now—!"

"A-a daughter?" Severus stammered, shaking his head. "You...? Harry, you're pregnant with our child?" he whispered.

Harry swallowed then, and slowly unclasped his robes, showing off his girth, which Harry had frequently called 'massive', as he just seemed to keep growing and growing at an exorbitant rate as the weeks ticked by. "Yes, I'm pregnant," he said, and let out a small gasp as Severus reached out, gently caressing the stomach.

"Male wizards can only become pregnant in extremely rare circumstances," Severus whispered, truly awed at the situation.

"Yes, we're very powerful," Harry snapped impatiently.

"Also if the two wizards are in love, so deeply that the only logical conclusion is that they're soulmates," Severus whispered, slowly looking up at Harry.

Harry's eyes prickled with tears that went down his face. "But... But, you don't love me," he said, almost as if he was still attempting to convince himself of that. "You don't love me, or want me, or want to have a future with me..."

Severus lunged forward then and pressed a possessive kiss to Harry's lips, never wanting to let the younger man go. "I love you," he declared, as soon as they had come up for air. "I love you more than anything, my Harry. And I couldn't be happier that you're carrying my child, because it means that you love me as much as I love you."

Harry trembled then, not completely ready to forgive him. "What... What was this dangerous mission that Dumbledore sent you on?"

"A cure for lycanthropy, in addition to all my spy work," Severus said softly. "I found the cure, and was able to send it to Remus days ago. I've no idea if he's received it yet, but I know that the trusted source I gave it to will ensure he gets it."

"You can make potions," Harry breathed, awed.

Severus blinked. "Of course I can," he replied. "What's this about?"

Harry looked around the room then, and said, "I require a sustainable table, an acceptable cauldron, the book called Potions in the Dark Arts from the Restricted Section of the Hogwarts Library, and all the ingredients necessary to complete the Passion Philter," he said.

No sooner had his command been given, than the bare room was suddenly filled with a cherry wood table, a pewter cauldron with a low flame beneath, the book he'd requested, and the ingredients, in various bags or platters dispersed about the table, alongside a potion master's kit, and a mortar and pestle. Harry got to his feet, Severus immediately following him, and gazed at the potion ingredients, while Harry tapped the book, which opened immediately to the recipe of Passion Philter.

"Severus," he breathed, getting the man's attention again, "I really need you to brew this for me," he whispered.

Severus sighed, looking over the recipe. "Normally, I would ask you to say 'please'," he replied, but turned and looked down at his lover, "but I've put you through hell, my Harry, and I swear to you, I shall never let you down again."

Harry nodded. "Thank you," he breathed.

Severus got to work, using the dexterity that he had picked up over the years in potions and independent research to make the potion as perfect as possible. "It must now simmer for a total of ten minutes," Severus announced at the end, fifty minutes later.

"Why did you think pushing me away would work?" Harry asked.

Severus sighed. "Perhaps because I believed I had no hope of a future with you, my Harry. And also because I had fully convinced myself that I would die, eventually, and I didn't want to leave you alone."

"You won't die," Harry said firmly. "I won't let you."

Severus smirked. "I think Merlin would disagree," he said quietly.

"I know they're coming, you know," he said, and pointed to his scar. "They are coming to attack the castle tonight, aren't they?"

Severus gave a short nod. "Yes. They are."

Harry swallowed. "Well, we'll just have to make the best of it, then," he said, his shoulders slacking then. "I'm not giving up on you."

"I'm not asking you to."

"Good," Harry replied, extending his hand, and Severus promptly took it. "Because when this is over, I do want a life with you."

Severus smiled genuinely down at Harry. "Expect a marriage proposal before the summer is out, then, my love," he said.

Harry looked up at Severus. "I love you," he whispered.

"I love you, too, Harry," Severus responded.

Severus ladled the potion into the provided goblet once it had finished simmering, and Harry took it into his hands. He smiled at Severus before lifting the goblet to his lips, forcing himself to drink all of it, even though it tasted like a mixture of dirt, rubbish, and haggis. Harry didn't even know he knew what haggis tasted like until he tried the potion, but knew that it had to be something that tasted as foul as the dark brown liquid did.

"Harry?" Severus whispered, peering at him. "Harry?"

Harry set the goblet back onto the table and gripped ahold of it; his eyes were watering as he attempted to focus, and he momentarily went blind as something seemed to rip out through his subconscious, and felt something dripping down his forehead. His knees buckled then, and he would have hit the floor, were it not for the pair of strong arms which grabbed ahold of him. It was several more moments before Harry's eyes fluttered open, and Severus was staring down at him, as awed as he had been when he'd discovered Harry's pregnancy.

"It's gone," he whispered.

Harry blinked. "What is?"

"Your scar," Severus said softly. "It's gone."

Harry lifted his hand to his forehead, only slightly clammy with sweat, and was surprised not to feel the rough edges of his scar. "Merlin," he breathed.

There was an almighty bang from somewhere deep in the castle then, and Severus promptly pulled Harry closer into his arms. "The blaggard have gotten in," he whispered.

"Secret passageway," Harry said softly, and Severus's eyes snapped to his. "There's one from the basement Honeydukes in Hogsmeade into the castle, via the hump of an old witch statue," he whispered.

"Fuck," Severus whispered, shaking his head. "Are you okay to walk?"

Harry nodded, pushing himself upwards, relieved when he didn't go crashing down. "Come on, Severus, I've got to kill him—"

Severus grabbed ahold of Harry's robes then, not willing to let him go. "I'm not going to risk losing you, Harry, not when I've just got you back!"

"Severus, you have to let me go, just for now!" he shouted. "One night. I need to kill him tonight and, once he's gone, we've got forever!"

Severus looked torn, before he yanked Harry fully towards him then, kissing him passionately upon the mouth. "I love you," he declared.

"I know," Harry whispered. "I love you, too."

Harry and Severus ran out of the Room of Requirement and down the corridor, hearing a smattering of shouts as they went. They went down the main staircase and into the Entrance Hall, which was filled to the brim with chaos. Professor McGonagall was dueling Dolohov, while Flitwick was besting Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange, and Sprout was sparring with the Carrow siblings. Remus was dueling successfully with Peter Pettigrew, hurt and betrayal imbedded in each curse he threw at his once close friend, A little further down, both Ron and Hermione were throwing spells at Fenrir Greyback, and Bill Weasley suddenly rushed from the Great Hall to help them, with Tonks dashing out a moment later, and rushing to Remus's side, wand held aloft.

Almost a full thirty seconds later, there was suddenly an outpouring of witches and wizards from the Order of the Phoenix flowing from the Great Hall and into the Entrance Hall—Arthur, Molly, Charlie, Fred, and George Weasley, with Sirius just behind them; Elphias Doge, who had been a member of the Advance Guard to escort Harry from what had proved to be his final summer at 4 Privet Drive; Kingsley and Moody, who immediately threw curses at Corbin Yaxley, a particularly bothersome member of the Ministry of Magic; Hestia Jones came out just behind Moody and Kingsley, and almost immediately began battling with Rookwood.

Harry looked down the other direction of the hallway, watching in shock as Luna and Neville took on Avery Jr. in a manner most heroic, but his jaw dropped as Ginny saw Bellatrix Lestrange coming out into the open. Dumbledore was suddenly there, about to duel her, but he didn't spot the Killing Curse in time, and it was in that manner in which he died, his old body crumpling to the stone floor of the Entrance Hall. Ginny let out an enraged scream then, her great mane of red hair plumed out from behind her as she rushed forward, sending a Stinging Hex the Dark witch's way, but Bellatrix only laughed, and attempted to immobilize Ginny before killing her, were it not for Draco grabbing ahold of her and dragging her out of the fray. Bellatrix looked positively shocked at the developments that had just come to pass, and glared at the two of them.

"No nephew of mine shall marry a Blood Traitor!" she yelled, and held her wand aloft once again, but her curse was deflected by Molly, who suddenly stepped forward.

"Not my daughter, or my son, you bitch," she growled, and Bellatrix laughed, and they proceeded throwing curse after curse at one another.

A lump rose in Harry's throat as he looked out of the doors of the Entrance Hall, where he saw a herd of Dementors flying over the Hogwarts Grounds and coming into the vicinity. No one was looking, and so Harry believed that there would be no one there to save them. However, someone did appear, and the great beam of a powerful Patronus, this one in the form of a goat, took flight, banishing them to the edges of the wards of the castle. Once they had all dissipated from the skirmish, the wizard turned around, and it was none other than Aberforth Dumbledore himself, looking saddened as he took in the broken body of his brother.

Harry looked behind their duel then, and saw Riddle coming out of hiding at the edge of the burning courtyard. Without turning back to look at Severus, Harry moved through the crowd and out of doors, keeping his robe tightly around him as he evaded the Ford Anglia and Aragog's many children, scurrying along the cobblestones. He drew back for a moment, spotting that Hagrid and his half-brother, Grawp, had rallied the giants of the Forbidden Forest, and they were clobbering at the Death Eaters who had opted to stay outside to protect Riddle.

Harry knew that he could be walking to certain death, but he wanted, more than anything, for all of this to be over for good, with no more resurrections of any kind. As he completed the distance between the two of them at long last and faced down Tom Riddle himself, and the man looked visibly shocked. It was almost as if the man expected him to be that little fifteen-month-old who could not yet speak to himself, or perhaps the young teenager in the graveyard at Little Hangleton in the wake of Cedric Diggory's death, or the enraged young man at the Department of Mysteries, when he had put all their lives in danger once more.

They could've lost so many more people, and would continue to do so, if this Dark wizard continued in his reign of terror. Harry knew then that it had to end now, and even mattered more than getting the House and the Quidditch Cup. It mattered more than laughing with his friends, although he would've given anything to hear them laugh once more before the inevitable. And it even mattered more than his future with Severus, no matter how much he may have wanted it, and although he could practically taste it in the hour which could turn out to be the hour of his death, he knew that he could consider it all when he was hit with the curse.

"Hello, Tom," he said.

Riddle regarded Harry for a moment. "Ah, yes. Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived, come to die at long last," he declared then.

Harry distinctly heard a clink of something from beside him, and saw that the Sorting Hat was on the floor of the Entrance Hall. Neville, having spotted it, rushed forward, and grabbed the hilt of the Sword of Gryffindor, gleaming from inside it. Nagini hissed as Neville proceeded to taunt her expertly, staying one jump ahead, waiting for her to strike. When she did, Neville easily slashed the air with the sword, lopping off the snake's head.

Riddle let out an enraged sound then, and pointed his wand at Harry without hesitation, and screamed, "Avada Kedavra!"

Harry saw the bolt of green light, and didn't have the opportunity to counter it with his standard Expelliarmus. Turning slightly, he saw Severus, rushing forward and through the crowd, his wand already drawn, his blasted black robes billowing around him.

"No, no!" his lover was shouting as he surged forward.

"It's all right, Severus," Harry attempted to assure him. "I love you," came his final whisper as the green bolt hit him, and he immediately crumpled to the floor of the Entrance Hall, his body just beside that of Dumbledore's.