It would be foolish to believe that following the Second Wizarding War, life returned to normal. As much as Voldemort's death eased the anxious minds of many, dark wizards were still about, prisoners of war needed to be released, and bodies needed be laid to rest. The clean up began the day following the Battle of Hogwarts; the victors retook the Ministry of Magic and began tracking and arresting Death Eaters. The Order of the Phoenix assisted as well as young witches and wizards who were of age. Most Death Eaters, crushed by the loss of their leader and afraid of the harsh consequences, had not resisted arrest. However, a small minority who fled Britain were scattered all over the world.
Many of the magical villages had erected war memorials in their cemeteries. The most famous was in Godric's Hollow, which, for seventeen years been inhabited by very few families, was now springing to life again as many decided to settle down and raise families. It was common for those moving in to stop and observe the residence of the late Lily and James Potter. When Harry visited, he usually found flowers and gifts decorating the sidewalk in front of the home and messages magically inscribed such as "Long Live the Chosen One". He was grateful that it seemed no one had stepped inside the house and snooped around; respect for his privacy was rare.
The house had much damage done to it but he still wanted to have a look around. Ginny had offered to go with him but he had felt as though he needed to explore the house for himself. It was surprisingly underwhelming at first. Looking around rooms he had found a few pictures, his parents old clothes, baby toys, and typical accessories and tools found around a house he didn't think he would ever use. But once he dug deeper into the house, he found himself charmed by it. The ghostly atmosphere was off-putting at times, coming back from death had given him a new perspective on living and he wanted to give the house a new life. Too long it stood as a place that represented death and the rise and fall of evil. It was June 1st when he decided that it was time to rebuild.
Of course he hadn't done it all alone; Ron would usually accompany him on his days off from working at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes to help remove the furniture. Hermione had helped cleaning the place thoroughly one summer afternoon while she took a break from studying for NEWT exams. Despite missing her entire seventh year, McGonagall had told her that if she wanted to take time to study for the exams, she would not need to return to school as a student. Hermione had took up the offer and spent much of her time in the cottage she and Ron shared studying topics described in seventh year syllabus provided via owl from Hogwarts. Next spring she would return to the school to sit for her exams.
That afternoon with Hermione had given him the opportunity to talk to one of his best friends alone for the first time in a long while. They were in the kitchen organizing and getting rid of cleaning utensils when it had come to his mind to ask:
"When are you going to track down your parents Hermione?" Her back was turned to him as she cleared old spider webs from the inside of the cabinets that reminded him of cleaning 12 Grimmauld Place. He watched her back as she sighed and turned around looking at him tiredly. She twirled her wand while she spoke.
"I haven't decided to be honest." He couldn't help but find it surprising; she seemed to pick up on it. "I've just changed so much. They're happy in Australia, they might even be happier without a daughter." Before he could respond by telling her that it was nonsense she went on. "I've just got a lot going on right now. Everyone is still grieving, I've got quite a bit of time before the N.E.W.T.s but I still just…" She trailed off, little blue bubbles floated from her wand as she twirled it. Harry nodded.
"You know you'll pass with flying colors, or bubbles I should say." She smiled at his compliment.
"Yeah, you and Ron have been telling me for weeks now."
"Because it's true and you know it." Harry encouraged. "Have you and Ron talked about it?" He hadn't really wanted to know the answer but it would have been strange not to ask. While he couldn't be happier with Ginny, a part of him missed spending all of his spare time with his two best friends. A lot of people his age, and even younger were making wedding plans but the idea of Ron and Hermione doing something so grown up gave made in a little anxious. He couldn't really understand why, it wasn't like he didn't see It coming.
"Yeah we have. He actually really wants to do it soon. Lately he's been all about meeting them." He knew what she was implying, and he knew that she knew he knew. Ron wanted the approval from her parents because he wanted to marry her, he had been dropping hints like anvils. "I just told him I needed a little more time, the war only ended a month ago." This was obviously the first time she was talking about this, she kept distractingly casting wordless cleaning spells around the kitchen, the bubbles floated all over the kitchen around and caught the light beautifully.
"Y'know Hermione," He took a second to carefully consider his words, he continued to examine the dirty oven trying to decide if he would remove it or not. "Ron just wants to be yours completely. I think now, especially since Fred is gone, he just wants to know your family just as well we know his. I think maybe he even needs you to."
"Yeah, it's not that I don't want him to meet my parents, I think they'll love each other actually. It all just seems to be moving so fast." Once the kitchen had been finished they had made their way through the entire first floor before deciding to take a break. It was a comfortable silence only broken when one of them would think of an anecdote from their school days to share a laugh over. Silence with Ginny was always tense and awkward; living in such a lively house had made her used to constant conversation and noise. Sometimes, Harry found he just didn't have much to say.
"Do you want to go for lunch?" He asked. "There's a coffee shop next to a pub Ron and I went to two nights ago but there isn't much to eat on the menu. We can go somewhere if you'd like." The summer heat started getting to them, Hermione's hair had been done up in a bun and they were dressed down in muggle clothes that they decided could afford to get dirty. He could feel the sweat dripping off his own brow and hunger taking over.
"Yeah, nowhere fancy though, I look awful." Harry nudged her playfully as he helped her off the floor where she had been sitting attempting to clear the fireplace.
"Rubbish, you're beautiful." He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth, what made him say that? It wasn't that he didn't mean it, but those types of comments were unusual for him when they weren't dressed formally. "I mean, Ron definitely would agree…" He finished awkwardly.
"Thank you." She smiled, seemingly not fazed by his remark. If she was she didn't let it on. "Let's not go anywhere to crowded, you're quite famous. Ginny would definitely agree." Her teasing put his mind at ease. They agreed to go to a diner and Hermione had apparated them to the alley behind it. For the first time in his life, he enjoyed a grilled cheesed sandwich and tomato soup, hating it for all the times his aunt made him eat that instead of the Thanksgiving dinner she would cook for Vernon and Dudley. He tried his best not to imagine himself eating without the company of her and Ron again, but in the back of his mind he could picture his two friends married, and no longer needing anyone but each other.