Disclaimer: I don't own it, so Hnn! .

A Shattering Revelation

Harry watched as the couples formed within the school's walls. Most of the children were repeating their years because of the war. He was happy Voldemort was defeated. But...

"Harry!" Hermione's joyful voice called out to him, waving ink-stained hands in excitement. Her hair was tied up in a practical bun, a severe knot in the back of her head, a habit picked up from the war to keep her hair out of her eyes. Never more had she not looked like McGonagall. She was with Ron now (finally), and couldn't be happier. The radiance that the relationship had brought her was a visible glow of health and vitality. She had grown up. They all had. Harry watched her run over to him and drag him up from the tree he was sitting under.

"Harry, you won't believe this! McGonagall brought in the Soul-mate Basin! We're going to see who our soul-mates are! Oh, I hope mine is Ron..." She continued to stare into space dreamily as she dragged him into the Great Hall. Harry didn't think she would be disappointed. It had always been easy to see that her and Ron had been meant for each other. And their fights when they were younger had always seemed like that of a married couple. Lovers spats. It was hard to imagine a world where those two weren't together. The only other person Harry could honestly say would be a good match for 'Mione was Draco Malfoy, not that he would ever say such a thing out loud within the hearing range of either of them or Ron. Or at all.

At last they made it to the Great Hall. It was crowded with excitedly chattering students, each of them packed around the center dais like sardines while a disorderly line had formed consisting of primarily seventh and eighth years. Some sixth and fifth years also seemed to tentatively join in, though some with less enthusiasm than others. He couldn't see past the crowd for a long while, but craned his head, cursing his short stature, and looked around the younger years to catch a glimpse of what it was deciding such an important thing.

Eventually, he was able to see it. It looked like a pensieve, reminding him sharply of the time he had seen Snape's worst memory. It was a large stone basin, but instead of silvery swirling liquid, it was filled with with gold light that actually moved like liquid. It was old and cracked, made of what looked like granite, and had silver runes carved into it that gleamed, seeming to draw in shadows the way a black hole would, making them all the brighter in the flickering light of the hundreds of floating candles above them. It was placed where McGonagall's podium usually was, the center of attention. Harry tore his eyes away to look at all the people. Couples were scattered throughout the Hall, some looking confused, such as Neville Longbottom and Susan Bones, others were merely accepting, like Luna Lovegood and Draco Malfoy. Harry wondered how that had happened...

The line was dwindling, turning Harry's attention to the people waiting for their turn. Ron was currently looking into the bowl, and the grin on his face gave away the fact that he had gotten Hermione. Harry sighed, and waited for his turn. Hermione was in front of him, after all. So he watched as more and more people paired off, and found himself uneasy. He had an inkling in the back of his mind he wouldn't like the answer to his very much at all.

He was the last one to look in. The light glowed calmly, as if to say, 'it's going to be alright'. But as the image came together, the face Harry saw made him freeze in shock and despair. Glittering obsidian eyes stared up at him. The face of Severus Snape swam before him. Harry pressed his lips together firmly, biting his tongue and not allowing himself the tears he wanted to shed right there. He shook as he straightened his spine. There was one problem that Harry had with Snape being his Soul-mate. Severus Snape was dead.

He looked away from the swirling image, and up at McGonagall, who looked at him with sad eyes. Then, without stopping to see Ron or Hermione, he silently left the Great Hall, not really missed because of all the couples talking together. He was going to the one place that he would see his soul-mate. His grave.

Harry looked at the plain marble headstone. It was polished to gleam in the sunlight, surrounded by shrubs and undergrowth that hid Severus Snape's final resting place from view. It had nothing more than a simple name carved into it. Severus Snape. Hands shaking Harry took out his wand from the holster on his arm, and carved an inscription into the stone. Beloved Soul-mate, Great Headmaster, and Excellent Potions Master. He held back his tears, and patted the earth beneath him with a wan smile. Severus had chosen to be buried in the Forbidden Forest, in the grove that grew the Hawthorn blossoms. But he was in Hogwarts. His only real home.

It was a beautiful spot, even though no one visited it. Harry would make sure he would every day. So he conjured a small candle, set it on top of the stone, and lit the wick. He closed his eyes, and curled up on the ground right there in pain, but also with that same small smile. "I always wanted a family." he murmured. "It's too bad I won't have one. But I'd rather have none now anyway." The leaves rustled, and he closed his eyes, just laying there above the earth where his soul mate rested.

Some time passed, and it was several hours before Harry knew he should get going. The candle had gone out, but its remnants had run down the side of the grave marker, and had dried there. Not wanting to erase the evidence he had been there, Harry left it. He got up and brushed the dirt from his pants before he turned, beginning the long walk back to the school. He knew he would have to get used to being alone when he was younger. They said no one loved freaks. He would never have a family. He was only now realizing how true that was.

Apparently, the forest had other ideas. The ground where Severus Snape lay trembled a little. But it went unnoticed. As did the pale hands that clawed their way to the surface.

Harry found himself once again under his tree that night. With a start, he realized that this was the same tree he had seen in Snape's pensieve that day. He couldn't seem to keep his own thoughts away from the man, even subconsciously. And he was hardly going to sleep anyway. Nightmares of Voldemort, and all he had seen during the war had haunted his nights. Now he would see Snape's death all the more clearly. "You have your mother's eyes." Somehow, Harry felt that those words had been a deception, keeping him from Snape's truth. Harry closed his eyes and leaned back against the trunk, heaving a heavy sigh. He would never know, either way. "Fate's a bitch." he mumbled.

"Language, Mr. Potter." said a voice from directly behind him. Harry was up immediately, spinning around, wand out to face... Obsidian eyes. He dropped his wand in shock.

"What...?"

The End

(You get to make up your own ending, and if you submit it to me, and I like it, I'll post it up as the last chapter. How's that? Don't forget to review!)