Chapter Two: The Holiday of a Life Time

Harry didn't know when he made the decision that he needed to get away. He didn't know if it was the reporters camped outside the Burrow every day or the way people called him the Chosen one of The Savior, but one night a week after Ginny and Harry's talk, Harry Potter packed his trunk, took Hermione's little red sequined bag and snuck down the stairs of the burrow.

"Going somewhere," Charlie Weasley leaned against his door frame.

"Oh… I… was just," Harry stuttered.

"It's okay Harry I get that you need time to grieve to mourn, to find out who you are now that the war is over. To get away from this house and this family where you must feel so guilty. Plus you need to work out what you want out of life and who you want to spend it with." Charlie hit the nail on the head.

"Yeah something like that." Harry chuckled meekly.

"I suggest you go somewhere muggle and isolated. Somewhere they would never think to look." Charlie gave Harry a knowing look.

"Thanks Charlie. I'll keep in touch." Harry smiled.

"Owl if you need anything," Charlie replied before softly closing his door and returning to bed.

Harry apparated into muggle London, he had his trunk shrunk in his pocket as he went about finding a nice place to stay. He had already swapped some Galleons for muggle money and booked a room at a hotel for 3 nights. He thought that would be enough time to plan what he would do next.

Harry spent his first day of freedom in bed. He refused to leave the comfort of the soft feather down. He had never got such comfort form his bed in his cupboard nor his one in Ron's attic. This bed was even better than the one in his old dorm at Hogwarts. Harry could get used to such comfortable bedding.

I bet Draco has a bed this comfortable.

The thought threw Harry he had not thought of Draco in the month since the battle. Shortly after the battle all death eaters had gone on trial. Harry had obviously vouched for Draco and this mother. They were as much victims of Lucius' Death Eater alliances as Harry himself.

It wasn't until the second morning that Harry bound out of bed having the best night's sleep he had ever had. He had a little over 2 months before school went back and he had no desire to mope around the Weasley's until Ron and Hermione got back. Charlie's advice came back to him.

I suggest you go somewhere muggle and isolated. Somewhere they would never think to look

Maybe London had not been his best choice. Somewhere more exotic, more isolate, more remote. And then it his him. The forest of Dean. It wasn't too far to apparated he knew that after the war not many muggles went to the forest of Dean because of ghost stories told about silver does and flashed of light. Loud cracking of branches in the middle of the night. Harry wanted somewhere comforting, he remembered fondly the whispered words he and Hermione had shared after Ron left. Their plan to stay in the forest forever and never come out. Grow old and die. It seemed simple to him then, to simply grow old with Hermione, he guessed he thought it would be easier than facing the things he knew. The reason he didn't try very hard to get a girl, the reason he didn't hold onto Ginny, the reason he never thought about Hermione as anything but a friend.

Harry thought he should probably stop lying to himself since he no longer had to save the world he should be able to quite literally come out of the closet. Harry smiled fondly at the thought.

Harry was glad that they hadn't unpacked Hermione's little beaded red bag. He had spied it in the corner of Ron's room. He was going to go and spend some time alone.

It was the very next day Harry checked out of the hotel and apparated to the most remote part of the Forest of Dean.

Harry used a small swish of his wand to erect the tent, he had purchased a new magical one by mail order under Ron's name. On the inside there was the equivalent to a one bedroom apartment with wooden floor and running water in the ensuite. Harry went about setting up camp which involved detection wards and protective wards as well as privacy wards and many others he had learnt from the dark books then had managed to steal from Dumbledore and others along the way.

It was Lunch time before Harry finally settled in to his new home for the next few weeks. Harry wasn't sure what his plan was but he knew he had some serious thinking to do about his life. He knew he was hiding from himself some serious stuff from himself. He could no longer deny that he was gay. There was a reason he had never done more than kiss a girl but spent hours secretly ogling the boys at Hogwarts as they walked down the hall. There was just something about a broad set of shoulders and long strong legs that got Harry's cock harder than any pair of breasts could.

Harry flopped down on the large winged armchair with the takeout he conjured. It had been an exhausting few hours he was glad that he had this little slice of peace. The rest of the day consisted of Harry carefully going through all the books that he now had and stacking his newly acquired bookshelves by subject. He would start with the charms books and then the potions, the study would do him good for all the years he had missed while fighting off Voldemort.

He would work his way through the years of gaps in his knowledge, he hadn't had time to really enjoy being a wizard and find out exactly what that meant to him and what kind of wizard he wanted to be. He had been living up to everyone else's expectations and not making his own and that stopped now.

Harry called kreacher to bring him food supplies for at least a week and got to making dinner, he was glad for all the years he had spent cooking for the Dursley's as he had the skills to make delicious food. Harry made a feast fit for a king, glazed ham and backed vegetables with cream sauce and he topped off the whole thing with a large glass of firewhisky.

The first charms book was a third year book. That seemed about when his knowledge that he acquired started lacking. He managed a measly 20 pages before natural light failed and the candles burned brightly. It had been a rather magically harrowing day with warding the place so Harry decided to go to bed early. Little did Harry know the next day would change his life.