CHAPTER 1

After the battle, everything seemed to be still. There was no cheering or celebration, that the darkest wizard of all time was vanquished. There was relief of course, but there was so much death in the air that nobody dared to celebrate. It was the "Summer of Mourning" the Prophet called it. The Weasley family was in mourning for their son and brother Fred Weasley who they just finished burying in their family cemetery. It was a lovely ceremony all things considered. George wasn't as sad as people expected him to be, which was a bit ominous to the people closest to him. The twins were inseparable since birth, so to see George smiling and retelling stories of their many adventures without a single tear was-for lack of a better word-odd. But everyone mourns differently, Harry guessed. So he wasn't as surprised as he perhaps should have been, when Ginny approached him after the funeral.

"Harry, I'm terribly sorry but I don't think I'm ready to be in a relationship with you…" Ginny said through tears. "I just can't…" her voice broke and Harry grabbed her in a warm embrace. "Shhh...Ginny. I understand, I really do. So please don't cry because I'll wait for you. As long as it takes. We have all summer to figure this out." Ginny looked up through her tear stained face and red-eyes.

"Harry...I'm leaving home. I'm dropping out of Hogwarts…." she said softly.

"Wh-what do you mean?" he questioned as he thought, This is a joke. Surely…

"I've been recruited by the Holyhead Harpies. Training starts next week. My dream is coming true…although albeit at the most horrible moment but…" she continued "I can't let this great opportunity pass me by, Fred would've been all for it. I know he would've," she smiled sadly up Harry. He didn't know what to say or think but he knew he didn't want to stand in the way of her dream. Even if it broke his heart to do so.

He gathered his bearings and tucked a strand of beautiful red hair behind her pink ear. Looked into her bright brown eyes and said confidently "Ginny, you go on and live your dreams! You deserve every happiness." Fresh tears fell down her eyes and she smiled warily "Harry, thank you so much! But don't forget so do you, you deserve happiness." He didn't respond, they didn't speak anymore they just held each other as if they were keeping each other from falling apart.

As the days past, they kept each other company but hardly said anything to each other until the day finally came. "You'll be great, Ginny. Show them what you're really made of!" Harry encouraged her watching as Ron loaded up her luggage into the magical blue car. "Write me sometime," he said as he leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead. There were no tears from either of them, they both made their peace. They had their closure. She smiled and tiptoed to catch his lips but he reluctantly pulled away looked down at her questioningly "For good luck," she smiled "Be happy Harry. Merlin knows you deserve it more than anyone," and with that she jumped in the car where Mr. Weasley was waiting for her. Harry watched as the car drove away and until he could no longer see it.

Summer was boring enough after Ginny and George-who return to the joke shop-left the Burrow. Ron was busy apparating back and forth everyday to Hermione, who decided to spend the summer at home with her parents after she restored their memories of her. They were beyond furious but proud of their daughter for being so brave. Harry didn't see much of Ron all summer being as he was too busy snogging and Merlin knows what else with the "love of his life". Which Harry was fine with, after Ginny left, he just wanted to be alone.

Until one day, as he was de-gnoming the garden for Mrs. Weasley, he received a letter from a majestic eagle-owl that he recognized right away. He was very much reluctant to read the dreaded letter that the owl just dropped on the floor just by his feet and flew away...What a snobby bird! Harry thought. The letter was addressed to him in such elegant font. He turned

Potter,

I know I have no right to be writing to you given everything that happened between us but, I wanted to ask a favor of you. I'm not used to this sort of thing, so forgive me for approaching this ratherly improperly. Would you be willing to write a letter mentioning how I didn't identify you to my father and aunt that day at Malfoy Manor? You see, my court date at the Wizengamot is coming up on the 10th of August and well I just thought I'd give it a go and see if you were willing to help me. I understand this is rather sudden and abrupt, so I'd understand if it is impossible. If anything, I ask that you help my mother. She has already been through so much, this I beg of you, Potter. I'll be waiting for your owl.

-Draco C. Malfoy

He scowled down at the parchment in his hands. Trembling with anger he almost ripped it up. Questions started circling around his head.

What in the hell is he thinking? Coming to me for help! Sure his mom I can vouch for since she's never really done anything to me...but HIM? He shook his head just trying to understand what made him think Draco had the right to ask him such a thing. I mean he did help me out by not ratting me out to his family at Malfoy Manor. BUT I saved his arse from the fire in the Room of Requirement, even after he tried to kill me again.

"UGH!" He screamed so loud he scared the ugly little gnomes, so much so that they de-gnomed themselves from the garden as they ran over the hill away from the Burrow and away from Harry. He was about to rip up... but he thought of how Draco's mother might be handling all this mess with the Wizengamot, Draco's possible imprisonment, and her husband on the run for his crimes of being a known henchman of Voldemort… He sympathized with her, he really did and for that reason alone he wrote the letter for Draco and sent it off with his new tawny owl, Kai.

Kai was an owl he spotted in the window of a shop that was being treated awful by the shopkeeper; he had molted most of his rusty-colored feathers, which made him look diseased, the water in his cage was filthy, and he was given scrapes of unfinished food. Harry had taken one look at this poor bird and walked straight in the shop and grabbed the shopkeeper by his shirt who was completely caught by surprise and said "How dare you treat it like that," he said pointing to the cage "I'm taking that owl! Try to stop me and you'll regret it." Dumbfounded the man slumped down on his chair and mumbled "It's Harry Potter!"

As Harry promised, he took the bird out of its cage as gently as he could and wrapped him up in his jumper as the poor bird struggled weakly as though it expected him to beat him "Shh-shh...it's alright! I'm not gonna hurt you…Let's find Hagrid get you fixed up!" He didn't plan to get a new owl so quickly after losing his owl companion Hedwig, Kai could never replace her but Kai needed him.

Luckily Hagrid was in Diagon Alley picking up Dragon Hide gloves and other supplies he'd need for his class in September. Hagrid looked over the owl and told Harry "He'd be fine. Jus needs a bit o' rest an' food an' water. E'll be good as new!" handing the bird back to Harry. "Poor thin'! I otta' stangle tha' brut! He' only bout a year ol'!" Under the care of Harry, Kai quickly became better-gained a bit of weight and its once molted feathers were grown back full and beautiful in its rustic reddish-brown colour.

"Here you go, Kai," he said as he gave the bird the letter "Malfoy Manor, please." The bird nibbled Harry's nose in adoration, grabbed the letter and flew away. "I don't owe him anything" he said convincing himself "Hope I never see or hear from him again."

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August 10th, 1998

Arthur walks into the living room where Harry and Ron were and simply says "Harry, we need to talk."