After the Battle
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, and as much as i wish I did, I still won't.
A/N: This will be edited, I promise.
Chapter 1: The Next Day
Harry woke up in his fourposter, still reeling from the events of the previous day. Voldemort was officially gone, and he still had Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. All though, to what extent he had Ginny was still to be determined. He recalled with sadness their break up at the end of his sixth year, and the kiss on his birthday only a month later. Since then, they hadn't had much interaction; of course, how could he interact with her when he was out destroying the dark lord?
Deciding these were thoughts for another time, he climbed out of bed and pulled on his clothes for the day. The dormitory was empty, so he headed down to the common room where he found Ron and Hermione cuddling in one of the arm chairs.
"Ginny went to breakfast with mum and dad. There's a service later and then we all leave. Odd though, leaving here," Ron said spotting Harry.
"Oh Ronald, we don't have to leave forever, we can come back for our seventh year, McGonigal already said so. You know your mum willll want that, and it will be good for you to get your NEWTs," Hermione said, exasperated.
"What's the point? We already know what we need, and I'm sure NEWTs won't count so much for the three of us." Ron looked at Harry for support.
"I don't want to do another year. I've done enough. I don't want to come back, not now at least. Let's go to breakfast," Harry replied starting towards the portrait hole. Ron and Hermione followed him down to the great hall, bickering about NEWTs and the use of them all the while. His eyes searched the four house tables for the group of red heads that were the Weasley's. He finally spotted them at the end of the Gryffindor table.
"Harry! Morning dear, come sit. Eat. You need it" Mrs. Weasley said, patting a spot between her and Bill, and across from Ginny, he noticed.
"What's going on today?" Harry asked.
"Memorial service later, and rebuilding," Bill replied. "Service starts at nine."
Harry grabbed a few pieces of toast and ate while the others around him laughed and joked around him. He avoided Ginny's gaze as much as possible, knowing it would be too painful for him if he looked at her, only to see her looking at someone else. It wasn't that he didn't want her to be happy, it was just that he wanted to be the one to make her happy, especially after all of the fighting and the deaths that surrounded both of them. Everyone in the hall was celebrating to a point, all being happy that the war was won. There were the occasional mentions of those lost, and the somber mood that proceeded, but then everyone moved on and turned the conversation to happier topics.
Around nine, everyone started to swarm to the grounds for the memorial service. The grounds were set up with rows of chairs with seemingly no organization of where people sat. Finding a group of chairs near the front, the Weasley's Harry and Hermione waited for the service to start. It didn't seem like a great day for a memorial; the sun was out and it was reasonably warm for spring.
The service was short, with Kinsley Shacklebolt reading off the names of the dead, on both sides of the fight. Throughout the whole service, Harry felt a heavy sadness coming over him. So many people died because of him, because of the prophecy, because of Voldemort. He knew it wasn't his fault that Voldemort decided to fulfill the prophecy, but it still felt like his fault.
After the service, Kingsley divided up able bodied and willing witches and wizards into teams to help rebuild the castle. The hard work kept Harry's mind off of everything that happened, except for Ginny. He missed Ginny. He missed being with her and being her boyfriend. He knew she was attractive, and that a lot of Hogwarts aged boys liked her. He would have to do something, but for today, he just wanted to bework.