"Harry, Ginny, over here!" Hermione's excited voice rang out, reaching Harry and Ginny even through the bustle of Hogsmeade. It was Christmas, and Hogsmeade was beautifully lit up—reminding Harry of the times he came here at Christmas during his school years. At least this hasn't changed, he thought with relief.
"Hey," Ginny said breathlessly, once she and Harry had reached the other couple. "Have you been waiting long?"
"Not at all," Hermione replied, shooting a fierce look at her boyfriend when he showed signs of interrupting.
"Good," Ginny smiled in reply. "So, is there anywhere in particular you guys wanted to go?"
"How about Madam Puddifoot's first? Then, I thought we could pay the Shrieking Shack a visit, and then maybe stop off in Honeydukes to finish off?" Hermione rattled through her mental list, making Harry's head spin. Hermione, who had known about this plan for a mere week, had already planned out what the couples were to do on their quiet visit to Hogsmeade.
"Sounds good," Harry replied.
"Can we go then?" Ron interjected impatiently, "I'm freezing."
"Alright, Ron," Hermione soothed, "we're going now."
The four of them traipsed a little down the road, and into a little restaurant that you wouldn't notice, unless you were heading there. It was decorated for Christmas, with an abundance of decorations outside, as well as fake snow falling from the ceiling inside. They all walked in, one after another, and settled at a table near the back of the shop. No sooner had they sat down and taken off their coats, an elderly witch tottered over, with a writing pad.
"What can I get you m'dears?" she asked, smiling at them all in turn.
"I'll have a coffee, please," Harry replied.
"Same for me please," Ginny replied.
"I'll have a cup of hot chocolate please," Hermione smiled at the witch.
"Can I have a coffee too, please?" Ron added last.
"Alright, so three coffees and a hot chocolate?" Madam Puddifoot asked.
"Yes please—oh wait! Can we also have a selection of your finest cakes?" Hermione added, as an afterthought.
"So, three coffees, one hot chocolate and a cake platter?"
"That's right," Ginny replied, smiling.
"I'll be back shortly, then," the elderly witch replied.
All four of the people sat quietly, admiring their surroundings, before Madam Puddifoot came back, bearing a tray with everything they had ordered on it. After she had handed each person their drink and placed the platter of cakes onto the middle of the table, she told them the price. Ginny began to pull out her purse, to pay, but Hermione stopped her.
"I'll get these," she smiled.
"But—"
"I said I'll get them," Hermione insisted.
"Oh alright… thank you," Ginny smiled at her oldest friend, and Hermione smiled back. They hadn't been sure of the arrangement at first, after all, all of them were best friends—and Ginny thought it could easily have been awkward. But if felt so easy, as if they had done it a thousand times.
"Here you go," Hermione announced, dropping the coins into Madam Puddifoot's hand, "thank you!"
"You're welcome, m'dear. Shout if you require anything else."
"We will," Hermione assured her.
There was another moment of silence as everyone added milk and sugar to their drinks, though Harry didn't—too lost in thought. The last time he had been in this wretched place it was with Cho Chang, his crush in his fifth year of Hogwarts. It had ended up being a disaster, of course, but Harry hoped that this time it didn't turn out quite so bad. Ron must have been remembering the same thing Harry was, because suddenly he sniggered, causing everyone to look at him.
Harry cleared his throat, drawing the attention away from Ron. "So, what have you two been up to?"
"The usual," Ron replied sullenly, "life as an Auror is much less interesting without you-know-who around."
"Ron!" Hermione hissed.
Harry, however, let out a low chuckle. "I know what you mean, mate. Life isn't as fun when you don't get to put as many dark wizards in Azkaban."
"I'll drink to that," Ron smirked, holding up his cup and taking a sip.
"What about you, Hermione?" Ginny asked, shooting a quick glare in the direction of her boyfriend, though Harry seemed blissfully unaware that he was under Ginny's gaze.
"Well we have had a couple of hard cases in the Magical Law Enforcement department, but nothing I can't handle," Hermione smiled. "What about you?"
"Well, I got asked to be a seeker on the Holyhead Harpies team! Isn't that great? So I start in a couple of weeks, training mostly—just to get a feel for the team and the other team members."
"Oh Ginny that's wonderful news!" Hermione exclaimed, "How come neither you nor Harry mentioned this before?"
"Waiting for the right time I guess," Ginny smiled, taking a sip of her coffee.
"Shame you didn't get picked for the Chudley Cannons," Ron said under his breath. Harry, who was taking a sip of coffee tried to swallow too quickly and ended up choking, much to Ron's amusement.
"What was that, Ronald?" Ginny asked, her tone was polite but her eyes stated otherwise.
"Nothing… nothing, just talking to myself again," Ron replied, chuckling.
"Well, congratulations! I'll bet it won't be too long before you're made the captain," Hermione smiled warmly at her friend.
"I'm not that good Hermione," Ginny smirked.
"Of course you are," Harry interrupted quickly, "they don't pick people to play on international teams if they aren't extremely good players," he reminded her softly.
"Well I'm nothing compared to the great Harry Potter," Ginny laughed, nudging her boyfriend. "I'm surprised they didn't ask you to join!"
"No, everyone knows Harry's real place is with the aurors," Ron interjected, "he's a natural. It is his rightful place, after all. Even Skeeter reckons he's revolutionised the department."
"She's still writing?" Harry asked, chuckling, "thought she went out of business years ago."
"Don't be stupid, Harry," Hermione replied briskly, "people like Skeeter never go out of business, they just hide—waiting for the perfect opportunity to pounce," she sniffed.
"Yes, well, the less to be said about that the better," Ginny smiled. "How is mum, by the way? I haven't seen in her in a while…" Ginny trailed off, looking slightly downcast.
"She's fine," Ron smirked, "a bit put-out that you haven't come to visit us recently. She doesn't seem to realise you have your own life now…" he finished quietly. No sooner had Ron finished what he was saying, Ginny shot an accusing glare in Harry's direction.
"It's not my fault!" Harry replied, bewildered.
"I didn't say it was," Ginny replied, shrugging, "but I think we should go back for another visit soon. We'll get mum knocking on our door otherwise."
"She has threatened to do that already," Hermione laughed.
Silence settled in again, the four companions feeling as comfortable as they could in each other's presence, not feeling the need to talk. Ginny reached out and grabbed a couple of cakes, passing one to Harry and nibbling on the other one herself. Ron's eyebrows rose, as he watched the look exchanged between Harry and his sister. Hermione, wanting to diffuse the tension she thought inevitable, put her hand softly on Ron's forearm. He turned to her and smiled softly, pulling her in for a hug.
"So, how is the house progressing?" Hermione asked Ginny, who's eyes shone brightly with apparent excitement.
"It is going great! I think we'll be done soon. You have to come around and see it once it is finished, perhaps we can make an evening meal out of it," Ginny gushed—sounding much like her old school-girl self than she usually did, Harry noticed. Then again, she was often like this around Hermione, reverting to her old self, a less controlled version of who she was now. Harry preferred this side of Ginny to her other side—the side that had lost her big brother and faced a war, of which she did not expect to survive. But she had. It had damaged her, of course, much like it had Harry; but within each other's company they were learning to move past it, to accept what had happened and to look to the future, not the past.
"Yes, we definitely should!" Hermione beamed back, also glad at her best friend's enthusiasm.
"How long are we going to stay here?" Ron asked, breaking the silence.
"Not sure mate," Harry shrugged, "the girls need to do some catching up."
"Oh shut up, Harry," Ginny chided, poking her boyfriend in the ribs, "we'll go in a minute. We're not on a tight schedule here."
"Well, if everyone has finished their drinks…" Hermione added tentatively.
"Don't feel pressured by the guys, Hermione," Ginny laughed, "they're just impatient. Besides, there are still cakes left."
"Best get eating then," Ron grinned, pulling a cake off of the platter and demolishing half of it with one bite. "Wow, these are just like mum's cakes!"
"I know," Ginny agreed, "it makes me miss her cooking."
"Does Harry not cook?" Ron asked, smirking at Harry from across the table.
"I do!" Harry protested. "It's not my fault if my food doesn't live up to Mrs Weasley's!"
"Nowhere near," Ginny muttered, to which Hermione laughed.
"It isn't surprising," Hermione added, "I didn't think Harry would be very good at the domestic side of life."
"I'm sat right here!" Harry grumbled.
Ginny laughed. "We know you are, sweetie."
"So who does the majority of cooking out of you two?" Ron asked.
"Gin," Harry replied instantly, "I guess there is only so much of my cooking she can take…"
"That's true," Ginny replied, smiling, "but I'm not the best at cooking either," she admitted.
"I think you're better than you give yourself credit for," Harry replied slowly, "at least your food kind of tastes like your mum's… and yours has never given me food poisoning," he added on the end, albeit reluctantly.
"You gave Ginny food poisoning?" Hermione asked, eyebrows shooting into her bushy hair. "Your cooking can't be that bad, surely?"
"It sounds it," Ron sniggered loudly.
"Maybe you should get some advice from Mrs Weasley," Hermione suggested.
"I think mum would kill him," Ginny replied, laughing.
"I know she would," Harry muttered under his breath.
"Anyway," Hermione interrupted, "should we go?"
"I'm up for that," Ron replied.
"Yeah, if everyone's ready," Harry replied.
"I'm good to go," Ginny replied, smiling.
The four stood up, and walked towards the door. They all chorused 'thank you' to Madam Puddifoot before stepping out into the chilling winter air. Harry watched, amused, as Ron caught hold of Hermione's hand, and she sent a soppy look in his direction. He had to hold back the laugh that threatened to escape—after so many years of seeing Hermione and Ron at war with each other and each concealing their true feelings, seeing it displayed so outright was a little unnerving.
Ginny took hold of his hand then, entwining her fingers through his, bringing him back to reality. Automatically he turned, placing a gentle kiss on her cheek. When he turned back to face the other couple, he found Ron scowling at him, his eyebrows raised. Harry shrugged, sending an apologetic smile over to his friend.
"So," Harry said, breaking eye contact with Ron. "Are we off to the Shrieking Shack now, Hermione?"
"Only if you and Ginny want to," Hermione fidgeted, obviously uncomfortable.
"I think it is a great idea," Harry assured her. "We haven't been back for a while…" he trailed off; the words that he meant to say getting caught in his throat.
"No, well, that's what I thought," Hermione smiled tentatively, "and I thought it might be a place you might want to go back and visit."
Harry threw a grateful smile in Hermione's direction, but his grip tightened on Ginny's hand until it was uncomfortably tight.
"Ouch, Harry, you're starting to hurt!" she exclaimed, pulling her hand out of her boyfriend's grip and rubbing it.
"Sorry Gin," he mumbled.
She flashed Harry a brief smile, before turning to Ron and Hermione, who were stood watching. "Why don't you guys go on ahead? We will catch up with you in a minute."
Ron opened his mouth to protest, but Hermione elbowed him none-too-discretely in the ribs. "Sure, see you guys in a minute."
As they began to walk away, Ginny turned back to Harry, her eyes gentle but curious. "What's wrong, Harry?"
"It's nothing," he replied quickly, "let's go; it's freezing out here."
"Harry, I know there's something wrong. Please, just tell me what it is."
"It's the first place I met Sirius," Harry said abruptly. "Okay? It's where he asked me to live with him for the first time and…" he trailed off, his eyes fixed on Ginny's, begging her to understand.
"Do you want to go somewhere else, instead? I'm sure Ron and Hermione will understand, we'll just meet them when they're done there."
"No, no," Harry shook his head, "we should go. I said we would."
"Harry…"
"No Gin, it will be fine, honestly. Now let's go before Ron starts to think I've whisked you away," he chucked to himself, although to Ginny it sounded strained, and painful.
"He's already thinking it," Ginny assured him, which earned another quiet chuckle—though this one sounded more genuine. Ginny reached out and took Harry's hand in her own once again, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.
Hermione and Ron were deep in discussion as Harry and Ginny approached them. Harry, unwilling to interrupt their conversation, began to slowly back away, but Ginny pulled him forward once more—coughing lightly to signal their arrival. Hermione spun on her heels, her face tinged with pink, but her smile fixed in place none-the-less.
"We're back," Ginny announced.
"So we noticed," Ron smirked, raising an eyebrow.
"We were just talking," Hermione began nervously, "about the Shrieking Shack. We can go somewhere else, if you'd like?" she asked, turning her eyes to Harry. However, it wasn't him that replied.
"Harry and I talked about it," Ginny started, giving her boyfriend a slight nudge. "There are a lot of memories that come with that place, but we want to make new memories with you two."
"Are you sure, mate?" Ron asked, glancing in Harry's direction.
Harry smiled, thankful for his best friend's concern. "Yeah, I'm sure. I've got to face up to it sooner or later," he shrugged, "it might as well be sooner."
"Yeah…" Ron replied, nervously looking around. "Should we go, then?"
"Yeah, lets," Hermione beamed, glancing around at the group. Grabbing hold of Ron's hand, she began to pull him forward. Ginny and Harry exchanged glances, smirking. It was still a slight shock to see them together; happily walking hand-in-hand through the snow. Harry often found himself wondering what took them so long to figure out that they were perfect for each other. Then again, it wasn't until his sixth year that he realised that he liked Ginny.
They reached the Shrieking Shack a few minutes later, where Hermione and Ron were waiting for them. Ron rolled his eyes at their approach which Harry noted, but dutifully ignored. In silence, all four companions walked up to the fence surrounding the area, and looked upon the Shrieking Shack, a little into the distance. Everyone was lost in their own memories, both happy and sad. Harry felt an overwhelming sense of grief, but as he moved to walk away Ginny slid her hand into his, grasping it tightly. He bought his eyes up to meet hers, and was surprised to find her eyes were full of tears. Before he could ask she shook her head slowly, indicating that he wasn't to ask.
"It hasn't changed, has it?" Hermione breathed.
"No," Harry replied, "no it hasn't."
"Can you remember when Sirius bit me here?" Ron snorted, "I thought he was trying to kill me!"
"Why would anyone want to kill you?" Ginny replied sarcastically, sticking out her tongue at her older brother. "He was only after the rat."
"Pettigrew," Harry amended. "His name was Pettigrew."
The four of them lapsed back into silence, their memories once again getting the better of them. Surprisingly, the longer they looked, the better they felt. Especially Harry.
"It's like I'm forgetting," he whispered out loud.
"I know," Hermione replied, her eyes shining with unfallen tears. "Just being here… it's like the wounds are healing."
"Yes," Harry agreed. "I remember it all, being here. I was so excited to go and live with Sirius—I had no idea what the future held."
"None of us did mate," Ron reminded him. "Had we known—"
"Everything would have been different," Ginny finished, tightening her grip on Harry's hand. Harry smiled, mostly to himself.
"I'm glad I don't have to face this alone," he murmured, mostly to himself. He was surprised when Ron turned around, walked over and slung his arm over his shoulder.
"You're never alone," Ron smiled. "Everyone has seen things here—things they wish they hadn't. But we are here now. We can make memories. Happy memories." Harry smiled, thankful he had such good friends. He knew that they would help him in times like this. It had been a few years since the war, but Harry often found himself lost in thought and grief, wondering if he could have changed things; if he could have spared innocent lives. Ginny was often the one to pull him out of his thoughts. But sometimes, he needed the two people that understood that hardship the most. Hermione and Ron. His best friends, and his family. Years after the war they called the three of them 'The Golden Trio', saying that they were all heroes—and they were placed on chocolate frog cards, much to Ron's amusement. But Harry didn't want that. He didn't want fame and acknowledgement for his bravery. He wanted to bring back the lives of the people that had died. He knew, above everyone else, that Ron and Hermione understood that need the most.
"Harry?" Hermione's voice cut through Harry's thoughts like a knife, and he slowly attached himself back to Earth.
"Yeah?"
"Let's go to Honeydukes, it's too cold to be stood out here." Harry glanced at Ginny who was shaking, her teeth chattering together. He placed her hands tenderly within his and began to rub, hoping to warm them up.
"Okay," Harry replied absent-mindedly, still attempting to warm Ginny's hands. He took off his coat that he had thought to wear, and wrapped it around Ginny's shoulders. She leant back into the warmth and hummed from the back of her throat appreciatively.
"Thanks," she smiled. "Won't you be cold?"
"I'll be fine," he assured her. He waited for her to thread her arms through the sleeves, before taking her hand in his and moving away from the fence, and from the Shrieking Shack. All four walked, idly chit-chatting as they made their way to Honeydukes. There was no need for big, meaningful conversations—the four were at ease with each other, there was no need for anything other than idle chatter.
As they approached Honeydukes, they found themselves amidst a larger crowd of people than there was when they arrived in Hogsmeade. Children of various ages clung to their mother's arms as they went in and out of shops, carrying bags as proof of their purchases. Many of the children were carrying Zonko bags, full of merchandise that would be used to irritate siblings and frustrate their mothers. Harry smiled, remembering what mischief the twins used to cause, back when Fred was alive. Ron must have been remembering the same, because when Harry glanced across, Ron's face was pale and he looked downcast. As they attempted to navigate through the crowd, a boy of about eight stopped dead in front of Ron, his mouth hanging open. He turned around and shouted for his mother, who came hurrying through the crowds and took the boy's hand.
"Come on, we're going to be late!" she scolded him.
"But mum look, it's Ron Weasley!" the boy exclaimed, pointing at Ron. Harry's mouth, as did Ron's and Ginny's, fell open with shock. Hermione just smiled to herself. The mother raised her head to look at Ron, but shook it shortly afterwards.
"That's not Ron Weasley," she sighed.
"But it is mum, look!" the boy pulled out a chocolate frog card and pushed it into his mother's hands. The mother looked at it for a few seconds, before glancing up at Ron. Her mouth fell open. "I told you didn't I?" the boy asked, "it's Ron Weasley, Harry Potter's best friend. Do you reckon he's here mum?"
"Of course not!" the mother exclaimed, growing tired. "We have to go Evan." She turned away at the exact same moment that Harry turned towards Ginny.
"Let's go, quickly!" he remarked. He tried to slip past the boy undetected, failing.
"Mum, mum! It's Harry Potter, see, I told you he would be with Ron! And that must be Ginny Weasley, and you—" he pointed at Hermione. "You're Granger… uh… Hermione Granger! You're The Golden Trio, and Ginny is Harry's girlfriend, isn't she?" the boy was beaming now, excited. His mother had turned around and was regarding the four with a look of approval. The boy moved forward and approached Harry. "Can I get your autograph, Mr Potter sir? And yours too, Ron. Can I just get all of yours?" he turned to face all four of them, smiling happily.
"Uh… well… uh…"
"Harry's probably too busy to sign autographs dear," the mother reminded her son gently, taking his hand. "Let's go, we're late enough already."
"I'll do you an autograph," Harry shouted over the sound of the wind. "I'm sure everyone else will, too," he smiled, glancing around at his companions, who all nodded.
Five minutes later and the autographs were complete, and the mother had taken a picture of her son with the Golden Trio plus one. Harry, who hated public visibility, was beginning to grow tired of the attention, wanting nothing more than to be at home curled up on the sofa with Ginny. Ron, however, was the opposite. He was bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet—excited and joyful that he was recognised before the great Harry Potter. It was something he wasn't used to, so when it happened, it was a big deal. He knew that Ron had felt overshadowed by his brothers and Harry himself all of his life—so the fame for him was well welcomed. And well deserved, Harry reminded himself.
They slowly manoeuvred their way through the ever growing crowd into Honeydukes. The smell of chocolate and sweets hit their noses immediately, reminding Harry of the first day he was here. Back then he was not allowed out as there was a so-called killer on the loose. Now, Harry was free to do as he liked and his godfather was no longer. Tears threatened to break out, but Harry forced them back. Today is not the day, he told himself sternly, I will have fun with my friends.
Ginny tugged his hand, pulling him swiftly away to the Sugar Quills that she adored so much. Ron had dragged Hermione away towards the huge pile of Chocolate Frogs—his weakness.
"Everyone looks so happy," Harry remarked to Ginny, glancing around at the people milling around the shop.
"Hmm?" Ginny asked, still admiring the Sugar Quills.
"Everyone looks happy," Harry repeated. "When I was here before, everyone looked miserable. Probably because Sirius was on the loose, and everyone was scared about Voldemort. But now… everyone looks so relaxed."
"It's because Voldemort's gone, his Death Eaters are either in Azkaban or in hiding and the Wizarding World is safe once more, Harry," Ginny replied, turning to face her boyfriend with an armful of Sugar Quills. She laughed when she saw Harry's shocked expression. "What? They aren't all for me," she stuck her tongue out and then glanced down at the miniature pile she held in her arms. "Well, most of them aren't. Someone my mum knows has just had triplets and I thought I would drop some of these in for them and for her other son and daughter."
"Okay," Harry laughed. "You have me convinced."
"Good," Ginny replied. "Are you getting anything?"
"I might get some Crystallised Pineapple," Harry replied, licking his lips. It had been a favourite of his ever since he had tried some of Slughorn's.
"That's over there," Ginny pointed towards a shelf over the other end of the shop. "Pick me up a box too, would you please?"
"Sure," Harry replied absently, as he moved towards the shelf. He noted Ron and Hermione stood a short distance away, discussing something. As he reached the shelf he picked up two boxes, and then began to move towards Hermione and Ron. "Alright?" he asked Ron as he got closer.
"Alright," Ron replied, grinning. His arms were full like Ginny's, except his were full of Chocolate Frogs. Ron noticed Harry eyeing up his pile and his ears reddened. "They're not all for me! My mum's cousin has just had triplets and I thought I'd drop these by for the babies and for her daughter and son."
"I'm hearing a lot about triplets today," Harry commented idly, "Ginny said she was dropping sugar quills off to that family too."
"Oh she did, did she?" Ron muttered, scowling in the direction of his sister, though she was turned away from him.
"Yeah," Harry replied. He turned to face Hermione, who was smiling softly at him. "Alright 'Mione? Are you getting anything?"
"Sherbet Lemons," Hermione smiled, holding the bulging packet up. "Dumbledore asked the owners if they would kindly stock them, so he wouldn't have to go so far for them. They found it funny, as they are Muggle sweets, but they obliged… apparently they're very popular here."
"Well," Harry remarked, holding back a laugh. "Typical Dumbledore I suppose."
"Yes," Hermione agreed, smiling.
"How many Chocolate Frogs did you want, Ron?" Ginny asked as she reached the trio, raising her eyebrows slightly.
"I'm taking some round to visit mum's friend," Ron replied quickly. "I heard you are, too."
"Oh…. Uh… y-yeah, I am," Ginny stuttered in response, the signature ear-reddening of the Weasleys kicking in.
"You can't use that," Ron hissed at his sister. "I said it first."
"I don't think so," Ginny laughed, "I told Harry first."
"And I told 'Mione first," Ron replied curtly.
"Told us what?" Hermione and Harry asked together.
"About mum's friend," Ginny and Ron replied in unison.
"What do you mean by Gin can't use that, Ron?" Harry asked, confused.
"It's nothing," Ron replied, scowling.
"Gin?" Harry asked.
"It's nothing. It's your fault, Ron! You can't just use it the same day I do!"
"Well it was only meant for use around mum, and we could all get away with that!" Ron shot back.
"Well you said it was 'mum's friend' too, if you had said someone else it wouldn't have been so bad!"
"That's going nothing to do with anything," Ron replied angrily.
"Well if Hermione and Harry ask mum about this friend then they're going to know that it's an excuse because there's not going to be a friend with triplets and two young children already, is there?" Ginny scowled, before her expression turned to one of shock, and her hand jumped to her mouth.
"Wait, what?" Hermione asked, her expression bemused but confused.
"Oh Merlin," Ginny mumbled through her hands.
"It was an excuse?" Harry's eyebrows rose as a laugh threatened to break out.
"Yeah," Ron replied heavily. "We made it up when we used to go to the sweet shop with our allowance and buy lots of sweets. It was mum that scolded us, so Ginny, Fred, George, Charlie and I came up with this idea. We were going to tell mum that our friend's mum had a baby and that we were going to drop sweets and stuff around for it," he grimaced. "But really we would eat all the sweets ourselves."
"So why use an excuse? You're not 10 years old anymore," Harry laughed.
"Dunno, just natural I guess," Ron shrugged. "But she—" he pointed towards Ginny, "used the same excuse that I did. Now we're busted."
Harry and Hermione exchanged glances, before bursting out in uncontrollable laughter. In between laughs, Harry managed to choke out "you genuinely believe you're going to get into trouble, don't you?"
"Not really…" Ginny replied carefully, glancing between Hermione and Harry.
"What do you think, Hermione? Should we tell Mrs Weasley about the fact that her grown-up children are using excuses to buy lots of sweets?"
"No!" Ron interrupted, his eyes wide. "Don't do that!"
"Well, Harry… I think naughty children deserve to be punished," Hermione smiled, before breaking out into a fit of the giggles once more.
"All right, laugh it up," Ginny glared at Harry. "But you're in trouble tonight, mister," she laughed.
"I don't think I want to know," Ron grimaced, looking slightly sick, which sent Harry and Hermione into a new round of laughter, with Ginny joining in. Eventually Ron joined in, too. Harry could only imagine what the four of them looked like—four grown adults in hysterics in the middle of a crowded sweet shop.
"It feels good to be able to do this again, doesn't it?" Hermione said, once the laughter had stopped.
"It sure does," Ginny replied, smiling. The four had seen each other frequently since the war had ended, but they hadn't visited Hogsmeade before. Harry supposed it was because there was too much history there for all of them but all the same—it felt good to revisit with his best friends, and his girlfriend.
Once everyone had paid for their confectionary they trooped outside, each clutching a paper bag with their choice of sweets inside. Whilst Ron and Hermione were talking, Harry turned to Ginny.
"What are we doing now?" he asked.
"I thought this was it," she replied softly. "I have some stuff to sort out before my first Quidditch practice…"
"Okay," Harry replied, smiling. He knew that Ginny was taking her new position on the team very seriously, though she doubted her abilities often. "Hey, Hermione," he called over the din that the other shoppers were making. "I think we are going to go."
"Already?" Hermione looked downcast.
"Yeah, Gin's got some stuff to sort out before her Quidditch practice starts, so."
"I can't believe it. My little sister, a Quidditch star," Ron sighed wistfully, no doubt remembering his own position on the Gryffindor's team.
"I'm not a star yet, Ron," Ginny replied casually. "But you wait. I'll bet I'll outshine all of you, even Mr I-defeated-you-know-who," she nudged Harry playfully.
"I have no doubt you will," Harry replied, laughing, as he leant over and kissed Ginny lightly on the cheek.
"Well that's just put me off my food for a week," Ron commented as Harry moved back into his former position.
"Don't be immature Ronald," Ginny sighed. "Anyway, we must be going. But we'll see you soon okay?"
"Sure," Hermione replied, beaming. "Don't leave it too long. And you have to come and visit Mrs Weasley soon; she keeps dropping hints about going around to your place and dragging you around for dinner."
"I don't doubt it," Harry muttered under his breath. "But we'll see you real soon. See you guys later," he waved, taking Ginny's hand in his own and focusing on his destination—his and Ginny's little home. The last sight he saw before the familiar squeeze of apparition kicked in was Ron putting his arm around Hermione's shoulder, and Hermione moving in and leaning her head on his arm. Harry smiled and held Ginny's hand a little tighter. Everyone was happy—and that was all that mattered.
Sorry this chapter was so long! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you all have a fantastic week :) next chapter will be up next Sunday. Thanks for reading!