Chapter four

After meeting the Grangers, who were both very nice people, they invited Harry to spend Christmas day with them and he accepted, but he also knew Ron probably wouldn't like it. Harry figured he'd spent a lot of Christmas' with Ron and his family that he should at least spent this one with the Grangers. So the next time he saw Ron he explained, but after a few minutes Ron understood.

Harry had been working on seeing both Hermione and Ron, but separately. So he always made sure to visit the Burrow to see Ron, spend time with him and his family. Charlie had told his parents that he wasn't going back to Romania, that he was staying, but he did get his own flat. Mrs. Weasley wanted Charlie to remain at home, but Charlie was adamant that he still liked his casual lifestyle which made Mrs. Weasley purse her lips but she did remain silent. Harry visited Hermione at her parent's new house and she did come to his house a lot, but she always owled to make sure Ron wouldn't be there. Harry just hoped that by the time they all went back to Hogwarts, Hermione and Ron could be civil to each other.

Harry was again in his office going through things that belonged to his parents when there was a knock on the door. Harry opened it thinking it might be Hermione, but this time it was Ron.

'Hey Ron,' Harry let him in then closed the door before he noticed Ron didn't look happy, 'What's up?'

'Mum, having a go like always. See I've decided something and she wasn't happy at all.'

'What did you decide,' Harry asked as he walked into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee.

'First, I spoke with Kingsley and he said it will be fine. I'm not going back to Hogwarts Harry, I'm going to help George with the shop. He needs help and asked if I wouldn't mind that he knew he couldn't do it alone. So Kingsley said I can still go into the auror training without my N.E.W.T.s and that's only because of what we all did during the war.'

'Blimey, it's going to seem strange without you there. I do get you wanting to help George though,' Harry placed two cups on the table before he sat down, 'That place gets so crowded, he will need help. Is that something you really want to do though?'

'Yes and it will give me time away from Hermione. Being at Hogwarts, we would not have been able to get away from each other. But seeing George, I want him to open the shop again, it was his dream, both their dreams.'

'Yeah, it was,' Harry sighed then took a sip of his coffee. 'What about the Hogsmeade shop, is he going to open that?'

'Eventually, he's concentrating on the Diagon Alley shop first. I actually gave him a couple of ideas for some new products. So when I start work I'm going to get my own flat, I need to get away from mum. She's worse now than she was before and I do get why, but I'm not a kid anymore, she just doesn't see it.'

'No, she doesn't and I don't think she ever will Ron. So that will leave just Ginny until she goes to Hogwarts.'

'Yeah and she's not happy about that. But that is one thing dad has agreed with mum about, until she finishes her education and gets work, she remains at home. She did ask me to speak with you though.'

Harry groaned, 'Not about getting back together I hope. I thought she finally understood.'

'She doesn't like it, but she's finally accepted it. This is about quidditch and Hogwarts.'

'She wants to play professionally and I thought about that. I'm not going to play this year, she can be captain and I sent a letter to McGonagall telling her I'm not playing just in case she was going to offer me the job again. I also suggested Ginny as captain as she was the best player and wants to play professionally. I have no idea what she is going to do, probably won't until Ginny gets her letter.'

'She'll like that Harry even if I know she'd want you as seeker. You are good, why don't you want to play one last time?'

'I'm just passed that Ron, it feels like another life. There's only one reason I'm returning to Hogwarts and that's to prove to myself it was never me or Hogwarts, but Voldemort that caused all my problems. I always love Hogwarts, but so much has happened there over the years that I need to see it as just a school and bury all those other memories. I am looking forward to going back, even with you not going. I really want to see all the staff once more, Hagrid, the creatures, the grounds, everything, just one more time before I finally get on with a life that is so different from the last few years, I life I never expected to have.'

'I get it, none of us had a normal life at Hogwarts, you most of all. So what about after, still going to be an auror?'

'I don't know, when I think of a life of fighting dark witches and wizards again, I tense instantly. So I'm not sure I want to or can. Maybe I just need time and again another reason to return to Hogwarts. Hopefully after being there for a year without anything happening it will give me the time I need to work on what I want to do. How long do you think you'll stay with George?'

'I've told him a year minimum, after that it's just wait and see. If I think he's okay, then I might join the aurors, but it'll be strange if you don't. I got the idea from you then I really liked it.'

'You'll make a great auror Ron, I still might yet, I just don't know. So when is George opening the shop, or at least getting it ready to open?'

'Next week we're both going in, so hopefully in a month I'll have my own place, then you'll have to come visit me instead of me coming here all the time.'

Harry laughed, 'Yeah, I will, another adult responsibility, visiting friends at their place along with cooking, cleaning and everything else involved with looking after a home. You've had your mum do that for you, you're going to have to get used to that Ron.'

'I know and I'll miss mum's cooking, but I need my own place. I already told mum I will go for dinner a couple of nights a week which made her a little happier, not much though, but better.'

Harry and Ron kept talking for a few hours before Ron went home. Harry decided tonight he didn't want to cook and headed out to eat, but this time he went into a muggle town then to see a movie after because he knew once he was back at Hogwarts, it'd be more than a year before he could do that again.

Over the next few months, Harry visited Ron at the shop and his flat and even though he wasn't really into jokes, he did love visiting George's shop. He also visited Hermione a lot, sometimes they would go out together and since she was a muggleborn, she would go to the movies with Harry even if she wasn't interested in watching movies or the movies Harry liked to see. So sometimes Harry would take Hermione to see a girly type movie, something he didn't really like to see, but that's what friends did for each other. They got asked if they were dating, even by friends and again they had to explain they were only friends, but since they were both brought up in muggle homes, there were things they liked doing in the muggle world, so they did them together. After being so frustrated with being asked by reporters about Hermione, he finally stopped answering them at all and completely ignored them.

One day their Hogwarts letters arrived, Harry was pleased to see that he only needed to take four classes full time and one day a week he would take care of magical creatures and he only wanted to do that to spend time with Hagrid. Harry smiled because he realised it would give him some time to himself in the old castle. He had worked out with Hermione to go shopping for all their Hogwarts things. Ginny even asked if she could go with them as she really didn't want her mother to come with her and she was made quidditch captain, so Harry offered to buy her a broom and just like Ron, she said yes but she would pay it back, which Harry reluctantly agreed. So Harry and his two female friends headed into Diagon Alley to buy everything they would need, including new robs ready to return as students to Hogwarts.