The living worked in teams of five, two to haul the bodies aboard, two to lay them out on the deck for the return trip, and one to hold the lamp steady. Most of the bodies were strangers, mangled and half-eaten, the work punctuated with the sound of sobs and retching. But Fraser was still breathing when they pulled him out, so they kept going.

Dixon stretched out and hooked the curved end of the boat hook around the ankle of another body, a shirtless boy with pale hair. As he and Reed pulled him in, the boy blinked slowly, his grey eyes staring listlessly at the light shining from Moore's lamp.

"Is he alive?" Moore said.

"He's alive," Reed said, a mirthless smile exposing the gaps in his grin. They lifted the boy's dead weight up. The Green brothers reached down and dragged the boy up onto the deck.

"Draco? Draco!" One of the strangers, a tall blonde woman holding the lamp for Bennett's team, dashed to the shirtless boy's side. She cradled the boy's face in her hands.

The boy's eyes slowly focused on the woman's face. "Mum?"

A choked cry escaped the woman as she pulled the boy into her arms.

"Mum, I'm sorry," the boy sobbed into his mother's chest.

She smoothed the boy's hair and pressed a kiss against his temple.

A man with pale blond hair staggered to them, a broken look in his eyes as he fell to his knees. She looked at the man over her son's head, tears glistening in her eyes.

He wrapped his arms around them both and pulled them into an embrace so tight, no man or magic could break it.

Lily's portrait looked no better in the sunlight than it did in candlelight, Severus mused, his fingers ghosting along the edge of her painted dress. The blush on her cheek looked warm enough to touch; the green of her eyes almost sparkled in the natural light. But it was a poor substitute for the real thing.

Minerva meowed from the doorway, her tail held high in the air.

"Use your words, Minerva," he said.

She meowed again and ran off. Severus sighed and followed.

A week of forced bed rest had not been enough to restore Severus's strength. It certainly wasn't enough to restore the color to his whitened hair. As he trailed after Minerva, he could feel his strength flagging. His steps slowed as they reached the shoreline, his feet dragged in the sand they reached a secluded spot far from the house.

Minerva jumped up the rocks and dove paws first into the waters. Severus toed off his shoes and made his way into the cold waters after her.

She surfaced in her true form and watched as he waded out to meet her. "You should have taken off your clothes as well," she said.

He stopped in the waist deep waters. "Is a cat teaching me how to be more human?"

She scowled. "Be careful, or you'll find a going-away present in your shoes tomorrow."

The waters around them began to glow. "Albus," Severus moaned, "you shouldn't have—"

"Come to say goodbye?" Albus said as he surfaced beside Minerva. He stared up at the bright blue sky. "My, it's bright out here. I think I can smell my skin burning."

"Albus—"

"Minerva said you're leaving tomorrow."

Severus nodded. "We're riding out to a place called Godric's Hollow in the morning." He looked down at the water, at the way his clothes floated up and swayed with the currents. "Harry pointed it out to me on a map the other day. It's… quite far from the ocean."

As Harry traced the lines that marked out the high mountains and thin rivers surrounding his father's home, Severus had felt anxiety grip his heart. Could a merman live so far from the waters of his birth? Could he?

Albus touched Severus's shoulder, grounding him. "Consider it an adventure," he said, his eyes twinkling. "How is Harry?"

"Harry? He's…" Severus trailed off as he thought of the young prince. Harry had stayed at his bedside for days, keeping him company as he recovered. They talked, and touched, and Severus could feel the smile forming on his face. "He's great."

"That's… unnerving," Minerva said.

"I think it's sweet," Albus reassured him. "And his father?"

The smile fell from Severus's face. "That man," he said with a sneer, "and his dog are two of the most arrogant men I've ever met in my life."

Minerva smirked. "You should know."

"What are you implying?"

"Severus!" he heard Harry calling out from the house. "Are you out here?"

Albus smiled. "It sounds like we should be going," he said. He lifted a sack from the water and held it out to Severus. "A going-present."

Severus took the sack and peeked inside. "Is this—?"

"Your tail," Albus said softly as Severus pulled out a cloak made from fish scales. "At least, what was left of it. As is it, it won't help you return, but perhaps one day, you'll find a way."

Severus pressed the cloak against his face, his eyes burning with tears.

"There's a few other things in there," Albus went on. "A tooth from that shark friend of yours—"

"A few things from your grotto," Minerva added.

"And one last thing." Albus reached inside his thick beard and pulled out a small sea snail shell tied with sinew. Even in the sunlight, it glowed as bright as a young sun.

Severus's heart began to beat hard against his chest. "A Shard? Albus, no, I can't—"

Albus placed the shell in the palm of Severus's hand before covering it with his own. "Just in case." He gathered Severus up in his arms and hugged him tight. "Take care of him," he murmured into Severus's ear. "And yourself." He gave Severus's back a hearty clap before diving away. Minerva nodded once at Severus, a suspicious shine in her eyes, before following the White King down into the depths.

Severus clutched the gifts close to his chest. In the distance, he could see Krum's dorsal fin break the surface before it, too, disappeared underneath the waves. He wiped the moisture from his eyes.

"Severus, what are you doing out there?" Harry cried out from the shore.

"Saying my goodbyes," Severus said as he waded back to shore.

Harry's brow furrowed as a melancholy look crossed his features. "Maybe I should talk to my father into letting us stay here, close to the ocean. So you don't have to say goodbye."

Severus gave the furrowed lines a kiss. "After you talked about your home for days?" Harry continued to frown. "I will always have to say goodbye to the sea." He took hold of Harry's hand, entwining their fingers.

Harry stared down at their hands. "What's that?" he said, looking at the glowing shell trapped between their palms.

"Something to protect," Severus said. He placed a kiss on Harry's wrist and another on his lips.

Harry's eyes shone bright as he kissed Severus back.

- the end