The mood in the common room that night was mixed. On the surface, everyone was pleased that the castle reparations were largely finished and Hogwarts had been restored to its former glory. Hermione, for one, was pleased with her contribution towards fixing the library - it really felt like they were making progress and maybe, just maybe, were finally on the road back to normality. But on the other hand... the absence of work to do was definitely contributing towards the sense of dread for the memorial service. Tomorrow, they couldn't continue to live in denial of what had happened. Tomorrow, they would have to face up to everything.
Tonight, however, Hermione was sitting with Harry and Ron in their favourite armchairs by the fire, just like old times. It certainly wasn't the warmest day of the summer so far, and since the sun had gone down, Hermione had started shivering. Ron had offered her his jumper, which she had taken gladly, and she was now huddled up inside it, enjoying the way it smelled like him. The three weren't speaking much, but Hermione didn't feel they needed to - just being in each other's company again was enough.
"You okay?" Ron asked Hermione after a while, noting her uncharacteristic silence. She nodded. "Warm?"
Hermione laughed. "Of course."
"You do realise you aren't getting that back, Ron," Harry commented, grinning. Ron looked confused, so he continued. "Girls never give back jumpers. It's a fact of life."
Ron looked as though he was going to protest for a moment, but then said, "Oh well. I have about six others at home. Nothing wrong with you going around with a big 'R' on your front to show everyone that you're mine," he added, winking at her.
Hermione glared at him, pretending to be angry. "I'm not a possession, Ron," she scolded.
"Then why do you want my jumper?" he asked, making a face at her.
"Because it's comfy," she told him, unable to suppress a smile. "Anyway, shush - we're ignoring Harry," she pointed out. She'd been trying not to let herself and Ron act like a couple too much around Harry; she felt bad leaving him out, and she was trying to restore normality for him at any rate.
But Harry shook his head. "Oh, I don't mind, this is quite entertaining, to be honest," he admitted. "And I think this is the longest you've stayed on speaking terms for a while."
"Hey!" Ron protested, trying to kick him but unable to reach. "That's not true!"
"Whatever," Harry shrugged. Ron scowled, but Hermione smiled; she was happy to have her friend back again.
The common room was filling up even more and the noise level was rising to something that would rival your average Saturday evening during term time. It felt so natural that Hermione's hand was starting to feel empty without a quill in it - she felt like she should be working. It was funny, really. Instead, she rested her head against Ron's shoulder and enjoyed the unusual feeling of security.
"We'd better go and find Kingsley," Harry said suddenly, after checking his watch. Professor McGonagall had approached them at dinner and told them that Kingsley wanted to speak to them later that night.
"Merlin, is that the time?" Hermione asked incredulously. Time really did seem to fly by at moments when you didn't want it to - everyone was dreading the next day.
"So what do you reckon he wants?" Ron asked as they descended the stairs to the Entrance Hall, where they were meeting Kingsley.
"Dunno," said Harry, shrugging. "Could be anything, really, seeing as he's Minister for Magic now."
"True," Ron said. Conversation between the trio stopped while they walked the rest of the way down to the Entrance Hall: all three of them were engulfed in their individual thoughts. There was a lot to think about.
Finally, they arrived, and Kingsley was already waiting for them.
"Hello, how are you all?" Kingsley asked immediately. "Recovering?" They all nodded and he continued without trying to make any more small talk; that sort of thing wasn't in his nature after all. "The reason I've brought you here," Kingsley began, "is because I was wondering whether you'd given any thought to what you'll be doing after the summer."
Hermione looked round at Harry and Ron. It was all looking very uncertain at the moment.
"Well... to be honest, I'm having trouble looking past tomorrow," Harry admitted, and Ron and Hermione agreed.
Kingsley nodded. "Understandable. Well, in that case, I have a proposal for you. How about joining the Auror department?" Hermione saw Harry's eyes light up. "Now, normally, of course, you'd need NEWTs, and very good ones at that," he added, "but in this case, we're willing to make an exception. You've definitely proved yourself capable during the last year, and... well, to be frank, we're kind of desperate for replacements." Kingsley paused, failing to disguise the pain from his eyes. It made sense that the Auror department had been hit hard by the losses from the battle. "We'd put you on an accelerated training course so that you could start as soon as possible - those last few Death Eaters need rounding up quickly." He paused to look at the three of them expectantly, but got no reaction; they were all deep in thought. "I'll give you some time to think about it," Kingsley finished.
"I don't think I'll need to think much," said Harry, grinning.
"Glad to hear it," said Kingsley, laughing. "Don't feel pressured into anything, though," he added, looking round at Ron and Hermione too.
"It's okay, you're not pressuring us," Hermione assured him. "Thanks, Kingsley."
"You're welcome," he told her. "Let me know what you decide. Also, one other thing, and this is mainly for you, Harry - the Daily Prophet keeps pestering us for interviews with you. We're telling them no at the moment, but this is just a warning that they'll probably approach all three of you tomorrow, so either tell them to bugger off, which I don't think anyone could blame you for doing, or try and think about what you might say."
Harry looked uncomfortable. Hermione knew that he was wondering how much they should be revealing to the public. "Okay, thanks for the heads up," he said finally.
"Unless you have any questions, I'd better be getting back to the Ministry," said Kingsley, checking his watch. "I suppose I'll see you tomorrow."
They said their goodbyes and Kingsley left the Entrance Hall, leaving the three of them to talk.
"We don't have to tell them anything yet," Ron said reasonably, observing Harry's unhappy expression.
"If you're not ready to talk, don't," Hermione agreed. She was worried about him, honestly. There were times when she looked at him and his face just looked lost; expressionless. Of course it was understandable for him to be affected by what had happened, but she was really hoping that it wouldn't last for too long. At least he had Ginny. She was good for him.
Harry shrugged. "I'll have to sooner or later, so why delay it?" he asked sadly.
"Really, Harry, are you sure?" Hermione asked, still concerned. "Doing a full interview on a day you're bound to be upset as it is?"
"I'll be fine. It'll be better to get it out of the way," he decided, brightening up considerably. "I'm going to go and find Ginny; tell her about the Auror training. I think she went to play Quidditch with a couple of people," he said, gesturing out of the oak double doors as he started towards them.
"See you later," Hermione called after him as Ron waved.
"So are you going to go for it? This Auror thing?" Ron asked Hermione as they started walking up the stairs back to the common room.
"No, you know that Auror training has never appealed to me," she said, and it was true - she'd been reconsidering while Kingsley was talking, and she didn't think she could stand a lifetime of pretty much the same thing as what they'd been doing for the past year. "How about you?"
"Yeah, I'll do it - why not?" Ron said casually. "I mean, it's not as if I've ever thought about doing anything else."
Hermione frowned. "You can't just make such a big decision without thinking about it first," she told him disapprovingly. "This will affect the rest of your life."
Ron looked slightly hurt. "Well it's not like I only decided two minutes ago," he argued. "I've wanted to be an Auror for years, you know that."
"Yes, but..." Hermione began. She wasn't sure whether it would be better to say this or keep it in. But, even if she wasn't sure Ron would want to hear it, it might benefit him more in the long run if he did. "I always wondered whether you just... wanted to do it because Harry did," she finished finally.
"So you're saying I'm like Harry's... sidekick, or something?" Ron demanded, his ears beginning to go red. "You're saying I'm following him like a sheep, I'm incapable of making decisions by myself?"
"No! That's not what I meant at all!" Hermione protested, feeling guilty - that hadn't come out the way she'd intended it to. "I just meant... maybe you deserve to spend some time out of Harry's shadow. Become your own person, maybe. Get the chance to shine in your own light."
"So now you're saying I'm not good enough?" Ron asked, no longer angry, but still looking upset.
"No. No. Never think that," Hermione urged him. "You're just as good as Harry. I mean it," she insisted as Ron scoffed. "You were absolutely phenomenal during that battle." Ron grinned despite himself, and Hermione continued. "What I meant is that... well, people are always going to look more highly on Harry, because he's been famous since before he could even talk. Maybe some time away from Harry would do you good."
Ron seemed to consider. He sighed. "Well, I don't know... I'll think about it. I don't know what else I'd do," he said worriedly.
"Well Kingsley said you don't have to decide right away," Hermione pointed out. "The spot will still be open in a couple of weeks."
Ron nodded. "I guess so," he said. He fell silent for the rest of the way back to the common room, lost in thought.
Hermione decided to think about her own future. She really didn't know where she wanted to end up. She'd thought about becoming a Healer when she was younger, but after helping Madam Pomfrey immediately after the battle, she thought she'd had enough of that sort of thing for a lifetime. She didn't want to end up with an office job, but there were more practical positions in the Ministry. She decided she'd do some further research into that. But... she didn't feel complete without NEWTs. It was silly, really - she knew that none of it would be beyond her level, but she just felt like she needed something to show for all those years she had spent at Hogwarts. She resolved to speak to Professor McGonagall about it all in the morning.
Although maybe the morning wouldn't be the best time to seek out her former professor. Everyone was going to be a bit preoccupied tomorrow.
A/N: Sorry for the horrible delay, again... rewatching DH part 1 and 2 was what finally made me get off my arse and write this because OH MY GOD THERE IS SO MUCH ROMIONE IN THERE. There's this bit at the end of Part 2 that I never really noticed before when Ron and Hermione come in holding hands, and then Hermione does this little smile and I thought I would explode from the cuteness. :)
Thank you to kci47 for betaing!