A/N: Hello! Welcome to my first intentionally multi-chapter fic. Please note that as this is a WIP I may change the rating as it goes... I will clearly note that if that happens.
Enjoy!
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Giving up never felt so good.
Harry was flat on his back in the yard of Grimmauld Place. He'd inched his way across the yard all afternoon keeping his head in the shade of the tree while the rest of him soaked up the warmth of the sun. Currently, this had him half in the dirt of the long-neglected rose bushes.
A contented hum came from behind him where Ron had been strategically lying within the thin shadow of the tree trunk for the few hours they'd been outside.
They lay in silence for a bit longer, Harry catching and releasing his snitch, contemplating how high the invisibility charms reached above Grimmauld Place, whether an undetectable extension charm could be applied to partially open space, what would happen if you cast an undetectable extension charm in outer space, and then whether he should attempt to revive these rose bushes and whether a small doghouse in the corner of the yard would be if not in good taste at least humorous albeit a bit dark.
Harry heard the faint yet distinct pop of apparition telling him someone was 'round at the front door. There were very few people who could apparate directly to Grimmauld Place though so he didn't bother getting up. A whole building between them and it's not like the row of townhouses had little alleys between for the sound to float around the house. He didn't think that he should have actually been able to hear that pop of apparition. Maybe it was one of those quirky things that had come with owning magical property. They'd come across a few odd things since moving in a couple years ago.
The back door swung open and still, neither man moved to look to see who it was. Harry thought he may have just heard Ron snoring.
"Is this really what you're going to do with your time now that you've quit?"
Her heels scraped against the brick steps and Harry could see without looking how Hermione must now be standing on the edge of the patio in her work clothes, a few curls loose, arms crossed. She was probably leaning forward just the slightest bit, wanting to get in their faces about it but also not wanting to get her heels stuck in the grass.
Harry peeked open an eye, slightly tilting his head over. He was right.
"You're just going to lay about," she said.
"Yep," Harry said. He knew she'd been itching to give them the 'You've got to do something with your lives!' speech. She held out until Friday so far - a whole (work) week. Not bad, actually.
"Isn't that called being a gentleman of leisure?" Ron asked.
"It's called wasting your life."
Ah, there it was.
"Not necessarily," Harry argued. He didn't really plan on doing nothing with his life, but he also wasn't going to waste an opportunity of having a go at Hermione. "If someone's life ambition was to lay about doing nothing, then they'd have accomplished all they wanted in life simply by doing nothing."
"Mate, what?" Ron rolled his head back to try and look at Harry upside-down.
"Besides," Harry continued, "can I really waste my life? I mean, this is kind of a second life, really. I fulfilled my first life's duty, can't I waste the second?" He was pretty sure he heard Ron mumbling something that sounded suspiciously like "Oh Merlin, not this again." Harry stifled a chuckle.
"Harry, of course you can do anything you want to with your life," Hermione sighed. "I just think you can do better than lying in the yard playing with a snitch all day."
"Oi, we haven't been doing this all day!" Ron objected.
"Yeah, we started on the other side of the lawn."
Hermione sighed loudly again, took off her heels, marched across the lawn and peered down at the pair. Before she could get another word out, Ron reached up and pulled her down onto the grass between them.
"Just relax for a bit, Hermione," he said.
As she settled in between them, the trio sprawled out like three points of a star, heads together, Harry felt his magic settle a bit more within him. Rarely did his magic bother him or feel out-of-sorts; it never felt wrong or as if something was missing, but it always felt better when they were all together. Spend enough time with people, make them your family, and your magic grew accustomed to it, he supposed.
Harry dropped the hand holding the snitch to his side and reached out his other arm. Half-way extended, his fingers brushed up against Hermione's and they linked their hands together. He knew without looking that she was doing the same on her other side with Ron.
It had been the three of them together against the world for so long. Now it was still the three of them, but against nothing.
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A/N: thanks to my wonderful betas, for-witchcraft-and-wizardry and praireengineer!
If you'd like, you can also find me on tumblr. Don't be shy!
Also, this fic is on AO3 in case you prefer reading or checking tags there. 3