The Witch's Mates (on pause)

Hogwarts

Seeing Hogwarts for the first time since the battle was nerve-wracking and despite it being back to its former glory, all Raven can see is the broken towers and stone, the fire and all the bodies that lay scattered around the castle and its grounds.

Raven clenched her eyes shut as she stopped in front of the castle, she could hear the amazed whispers of her friends and mates and yet, flashes of the disaster that occurred drowned it all out. She didn't realise she was crying until she felt someone touch her cheeks, making her flinch back. Her breathing became heavy and those around her watched in concern, especially her mates who were being told by the headmistress not to touch her. Minerva had dealt with a lot of the students who fought in the war and their suffering from nightmares and PTSD, she knew that when someone was in a memory, touching them was the last thing to do.

"Mistress" The smooth voice became clearer, his magic wrapping around her like a comfort blanket which allowed her to control her breathing somewhat.

"That's it, breathe little one" She slowly peeled her eyes open and came face to face with Mortem, who looked down at her with a soft smile, though she could see the concern in his eyes.

"I'm sorry" Her voice came out shakily before she wiped the tears off her face furiously, hating how the war was still affecting her, despite feeling as though she had finally moved on from the chaos she went through.

"You have nothing to be sorry about, little sister" Her head whipped around and her face grew red in embarrassment, finally remembering that she wasn't alone. Neville smiled down at her knowingly, he had also suffered from the war, and he still does.

"Come here, my love," Niklaus said softly, making Raven tilt her head for a few moments before slowly walking into his embrace. She felt his arms wrap around her as she buried her face into his chest, inhaling his calming scent until she felt herself being passed to her other mates. One by one, she was comforted by those who loved her and she couldn't fight the smile that formed on her face.

"You're a brave woman, Miss Potter. Your parents would be proud" Minerva said softly as she placed her hands on Raven's shoulders, looking down at her with such softness in her eyes that it made her finally feel better.

"Thank you, Minnie" Minerva sent her a half-hearted glare, making Raven giggle which brought a smile to everyone's faces. With slight hesitance, Raven entered the castle with a smile on her face because even though a lot has happened at Hogwarts which caused her pain, there were still times when she was happy and to this day, Hogwarts was still her home.

"It's beautiful" Elijah whispered to himself, though they all heard and nodded in agreement, not being able to put together words to describe how they were feeling.

"Now, it's September first tomorrow and the students will be returning for a new year. I was hoping that you would all perhaps stay the night and we could take a tour of the castle and see how the students were doing throughout the day" Raven was a little hesitant, she knew how people reacted to her fame during her time at Hogwarts which means it would most likely be a lot worse now that she had killed Voldemort off for good. However, when she looked over at her friends and mates and saw the excitement in their eyes, she couldn't find the heart to deny them such an experience. So, with a tired sigh, she nodded her head with the best smile she could master, though from the looks of her mates and those who had known her for many years, they could tell it wasn't real.

Minerva escorted the group to the great hall for some food, and all questions they had were either answered by her or Raven, the twins, Draco, Blaise, Theo, Luna and Neville. George was walking behind with Bonnie, who had been rather quiet since entering the castle and he had grown quite worried, especially after the short talk they had outside Gringotts.