"Mum?" a quiet voice asked as a hand touched her arm.

Nymphadora Lupin blinked open her eyes, seeing her oldest child at her bedside, his hair the same mousey brown as her natural colour. "Yes, Teddy Bear?" she said. "Did you have another nightmare?"

"No," the boy murmured. "I can't sleep."

Nymphadora scooted over and let him climb into bed with her, as Remus was currently suffering in the basement, locked in by her own wards. "Are you aching again?"

"It doesn't bother me like it used to," Teddy replied. "Mum...I was thinking about tomorrow."

Dora smiled kindly. "It's a big day for you, Teddy. Your first day at Hogwarts."

"What house should I be?" whispered Teddy. "Alex wants me to be a Slytherin, but I don't really want to be."

"Well, what's more important to you?" his mother asked. "You want to be brave, clever and sneaky, smart, or loyal and kind?"

"All of that," Teddy nodded solemnly.

His mother laughed. "Well, I know you're smart, and I know you're kind and caring toward your friends and family."

Teddy sighed in exasperation. "I can't be a Hufflepuff, Mum, can I? I'm smarter than that."

"Do you think Hufflepuffs are stupid?" questioned Dora thoughtfully.

The eleven-year-old frowned. "Are they?"

"No," Dora chuckled. "I mean, everyone should have some Hufflepuff friends. And also, Teddy, my real father was a Hufflepuff. And your father has Hufflepuff traits too—but he's super smart, and so are you."

"But you were a Slytherin, and Dad was a Gryffndor," Teddy groaned. "How will I ever know?"

"Do you want to be a Slytherin?" asked Dora.

"Well, no," Teddy admitted, "but I don't want to disappoint you…."

"This isn't about me," Dora answered, sitting up and looking at her oldest child carefully. "Not about your father—this is about what you want to make of yourself, Teddy." She reached out and smoothed his hair. "Besides, I daresay if I hadn't chosen Slytherin specifically, the Sorting Hat would have given me Hufflepuff. There's no shame in that, Teddy; Hufflepuffs are fun."

"Aren't Gryffindors fun?" Teddy asked her.

"I mean, sometimes," Dora nodded, "but honestly, they're mostly loud and obnoxious. They annoy me—but this isn't about me, remember."

"I don't want to annoy you," said Teddy, and his mother laughed.

"You're my son, and I love you no matter what," she told him. "And your dad would say the same thing. But I think you'd be happiest in Hufflepuff."

The boy considered this for a few minutes, then asked, "People are going to hate me no matter what, right?"

Nymphadora sighed. "Yes, Teddy Bear. You'll have to be very brave."

"Hufflepuffs are brave, right?" Teddy said in concern.

"Oh yes," Dora agreed firmly. "For my real dad to want to marry my Mum—he was very brave. And you know something, Teddy? I taught you those hexes so you can defend yourself, no matter who bothers you. You can be known as the bravest young Hufflepuff there ever was."

The boy wrapped his arms around his mother, hugging her tightly. "Thanks, Mum," he said gratefully, and got to his feet.

"Back to bed?" Dora mused.

"Yeah," the boy muttered. "Look: don't tell anyone, okay?"

"No one needs to know," Dora reassured him. She smiled as she watched him leave the room, then settled back into sleep.

Andromeda and her entire family gathered on Platform 9 ¾ to see the second grandchild off to Hogwarts. Alex Nott was thrilled that Teddy was joining him at school and stayed close by as they approached the train, talking about how cool Hogwarts was and how much fun they'd have together— "I'm not going to be in Slytherin."

Alex stopped, frowning at his cousin. "You what?"

"I don't want to be a Slytherin," Teddy answered. "There are four houses, you know."

"Three, actually, according to Dad," ten-year-old Desmond Lestrange grinned. "Go on, Teddy. You'll do great."

Teddy smiled at Desmond, then turned to his siblings. Squaring his shoulders, he held out his hand to Lyall. "See you later," he said, and the moment he let go of his brother's hand, he was pounced on by his little sister.

"I wish I could go," the girl pouted up at her brother.

"All of us children wish that, Hope," Desmond answered, and most of the others agreed. "We'll get our turn."

"But it's years away," the girl sighed, and her little cousin agreed.

"Yeah, he doesn't care because he gets to go next year," said Lorien Lestrange, rolling her eyes.

Her old brothers gave her a look of annoyance, and Lauren placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Good luck, Teddy," she said kindly. "Have fun and study hard."

"Don't let anybody tell you what to do," Laverne told his nephew.

"—except your teachers," Remus cautioned, making Dora laugh.

"You'll do well," she said confidently, looking up when the first train whistle blew. "Go on now."

Alex had already gone to the train as Remus stepped forward. "Let's go find you a seat, Teddy," he said.

The two walked forward as Dora's other two children leaned in to her sides. "Mum, do you think he'll be okay?" Lyall asked.

"Yes," answered Dora with a smile. "I believe he will."

One afternoon years later, Lamont Lestrange entered his father's study only to find his grandmother standing by a Pensieve, several glass vials nearby. "What are you doing, Grandmum?" he asked.

Andromeda looked up at him, watching him for a long moment before she finally answered, "I'm preserving memories."

"Do you mind if I write a letter here?" he asked, walking to the desk and taking out a quill, parchment, and ink.

"That's fine," Andromeda said. "You won't bother me." She knew he was probably going to write the girl both of his siblings teased him about.

Lamont took a seat at the desk and began to compose his letter. He had not gotten far, however, when he looked up to see his grandmother brushing away tears. He wondered if he should say something, but instead, packed up his things and left the room to go find his father.

Laverne was in the sitting room, chatting with his nephews Teddy and Lyall, Desmond also sitting nearby. "Dad," Lamont said when everyone acknowledged him. "I think something's wrong with Grandmum...she's crying in the study."

Teddy immediately looked concerned, and Laverne frowned. "Did you ask her what was wrong?"

"No," said Lamont quickly. "I don't like seeing women cry: it bothers me. But she told me she was preserving memories."

"Oh dear Merlin," sighed Laverne. "Poor Mother." He got to his feet and addressed Teddy and Lyall. "I'm going to check on her," he said. "Feel free to amuse yourselves."

"May I come with you?" Teddy asked, making Lyall look alarmed.

Laverne hesitated, then nodded. "But if I ask you to leave, you do not hesitate," he said sternly. "Do you understand?"

Teddy nodded, and followed his uncle from the room. When they entered the study, the older woman turned to look at them. "Yes?" she raised an eyebrow.

"Lamont said you were upset?" Laverne said cautiously.

"He did?" Andromeda mused. "I didn't think he noticed things like that."

"He doesn't like to see girls display emotion," Teddy said simply. "So, are you okay, Grandmum?"

"He's like Rabastan." Andromeda looked back at the two men and gave a weak smile. "I haven't let myself think about these things in years, and I didn't know it would still hurt. I'm fine."

Laverne sighed. "Perhaps you shouldn't be doing this alone, Mother," he said gently.

"Yeah," Teddy agreed. "It's probably not a good idea to do this alone. Being lost in your own thoughts, in the past, is dangerous. That's what Mum always says."

"It's just...I was looking at memories from my childhood, and also of your grandfather." She smiled at Teddy. "Do you want to see him?"

"If you want me to," the nineteen-year-old boy answered.

"Don't show him anything too nasty," Laverne cautioned his mother.

Andromeda gave her son a reproving look. "I'd like to believe I have good judgement still," she said. "I separated the bad memories into vials already."

"Besides," Teddy sighed, "I've seen Mum's memories of the war and I'm fine."

"Did you see her kill my father?" Laverne asked him curiously.

"Yeah," Teddy muttered, and looked disturbed. "She's a lot like Bella, isn't she?"

"She is," Andromeda agreed. "Here..." She pulled a memory and placed it in the Pensieve.

Teddy disappeared into the memory, and Laverne turned to his mother. "You're sure you're okay?" he questioned.

"Yes," Andromeda replied. "I'm just trying to remember if I got everything...there's been so much trauma in our family."

Laverne listened to his mother recount some things, then interrupted carefully. "It seems we only like death, torture, and abuse, doesn't it?" he said quietly. "But we built a real family out of all that. Most of us are okay now."

"There are some things you never get over," Andromeda breathed, and Teddy, who had just come out of the memory, nodded in agreement.

"That's true," Laverne said gravely. "I've killed people...that still bothers me, and I think it always will."

"I don't think it bothers Mum," Teddy frowned. "I guess everyone reacts differently."

Andromeda sighed. "Dora's a bit more callous because of what she's been through," she said. "She likes to ignore what's happened. That's her way of handling her past."

Teddy nodded. "You should put together a collection of fun family memories," he said. "It would be fun to see what everyone remembers from their childhood."

"Oh, I'll tell you something about your mother," Andromeda said to Teddy. "When Athena was born, Dora would entertain her by morphing for hours on end. That's when Dora first began to use black hair a lot—because Athena's was natural."

"What happened to Dora's Colour-changing pillows?" Laverne chuckled as he remembered them from their childhood.

"Arielle has them, I think," Andromeda frowned. "I think she passed them on to Islie."

"Hope has some," Teddy grinned, "but I don't think she actually plays with them anymore."

Laverne smiled. "We should make a collection," he said. "But not today. Mum, put the vials away, and let's go be with our family."

She nodded slightly, flicking her wand and organising the vials and putting the Pensieve back. "Yes, Mr Lestrange."

Andromeda led the way down the hall, still lost in thought over the memories. Yes, her children had survived to adulthood, made it through the war, and had started families of their own, but Andromeda knew that they had all been effected by the things that had taken place. She was glad that she had managed to stay at Lestrange Manor and raised her four children in spite of what Rabastan and others had done to them.

Dora had grown to love the man who had taken her in, and the two had three beautiful children: Teddy, Lyall, and Hope, who were already making their own marks on the world. Teddy was in training to become an Auror, and Lyall was about to begin his seventh year at Hogwarts. The girl, Hope, had seemed to be a sweet little Hufflepuff for the most part, but had recently shown that she had quite a temper as well.

Athena's family was doing well, almost unaffected by the war. Her husband never went to Azkaban after the Battle of Hogwarts, and their family had seemed to recover easily after that. Their son Alex was engaged to be married, and their daughter Meira was about to start her final year of school as well.

Andromeda had obviously been at Lestrange Manor and watched Laverne and Lauren raise their three children. They were not without their difficult times, as the oldest boy, Desmond, was fairly easygoing, like his father, but the second child, Lamont, was a bit more rough.

They had discovered a few years ago that Lamont had Metamorphagus powers, but most of them were impaired by the Seeing abilities that he was genetically able to pass on to his firstborn son eventually. It was rare that Lamont ever displayed those powers, because it had made him extremely angry to learn about it all, and he only settled down when befriended by his older cousin Lyall, who taught him how to use the powers he did have.

Laverne's youngest child and only daughter was named Lorien, and she was the family pet for quite a few years after her birth. Lori, as most of her cousins called her, started out life rambunctious and full of energy, but since she'd started Hogwarts, she was much more reserved and thoughtful.

Arielle had just recently moved out of Lestrange Manor and married a halfblood. Unfortunately, this had resulted in Arielle leaving her eleven-year-old daughter at Lestrange Manor. Aislinn Lestrange had no contact with her real father, as Arielle had refused to reveal his identity so far, and the poor girl had basically been adopted by her uncle and aunt, Laverne and Lauren.

Andromeda took a deep breath before entering the sitting room and smiling at her grandsons, greeting them quietly. It was true that trouble never strayed far from their family, but as long as they helped each other and remembered how to forgive, they would be fine. She sat down next to her son, listened to the boys talk for a little while.

It was nice to have the fulfillment of her family all grown up and making their own ways in life. She loved to see Teddy visit their home in his training robes, loved to see Lyall with his girlfriend, or Alex with his fiance. She had made it to her reward: her children happy and content and, most importantly, safe. It had been worth all of her pain and suffering, and she could only hope that she had given some good to her family that they would carry throughout the following generations.

It is done.

Trixie Black Lestrange

The Real Author's Note: I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S ALL OVER! Also I'm super relieved that I made it to the end of the story xD There are some tiny little scenes and some things I left out because I decided they didn't fit in.

If you've been here the whole time or read the whole thing, congratulations, and if this is the only chapter you've seen, why do you only read the last chapter/why do you read the last chapter first? Love you and read the whole thing: it's nothing but drama, pain, suffering, and a bit of family bonding. ALL. of the trigger warnings, and Merry Christmas. (it's currently the 29th of December)

ANYHOO. Thank you, everyone. I dunno if I'm going to start a personal story on this account soon because I'm currently obsessed with Rodolphus (when am I not?) but I'm stuck on some stupid scene (from a co-write) that doesn't involve him. The struggles of a writer (and a fangirl).

If you have questions about stuff, just ask. I know I left the Arielle thing a bit open-ended and I might touch on that in a couple of oneshots or something if people are interested.

Thanks again,

Trixie Black Lestrange