i "You're right Ron, Harry Potter did die three years ago inside Riddle House." The man said. Immediately all the wands in the room were pointed at the man. Hermione took some comfort in knowing she was not the only person who had held out hope against everything. "But his spirit lived Ron, and that was enough for him to come back." The man finished. /i

b Harry Potter and the Curse of Riddle House /b

by arukas

The room was silent as everyone stared at Ron, then at the man, then at Ron again.

"Don't you come in here and disgrace his memory!" Ron cried, anger spilling over and consuming his normally cold and calm exterior. Hermione mused for a moment that the old Ron was showing himself again. The man seemed unfazed by Ron's comment though as he continued to stand still, his face devoid of all emotion except for a calm smile that didn't reach past his lips. It was like he was smiling only as a façade, something Hermione remembered Harry doing all too often in the months leading up to the final battle. "How can you be so sure this isn't Harry?" She asked, looking at the man as she spoke. Ron looked grim.

"Because, in the final battle Harry Potter lost his left a…" Ron suddenly stopped talking and everyone in the room let out a collective gasp as the man raised his arm out from inside the protection of his cloak. The shirt he wore was sleeveless and allowed the arm to be easily seen. From the shoulder the arm continued down almost six inches before cold black metal plates cut off the flesh. The arm itself was the right shape and size and the metal appeared to have been made by a true master craftsman. However it was just that, a metal arm replacing where the man's left one should be. It was black and made of metal plates that rotated around each other as it moved. There were intricate gold patterns traced down and around the different plates, some connecting and others looking like they would connect to other lines when the arm moved. The man made no sound as he held the arm straight out in front of him for all to see, however the smile had faded from his face. In its place was a scowl Hermione had come to associate with Ron.

"Merlin…." Fred and George whispered at the same time as they too stared.

"Harry?" Remus asked, standing up from his place at the table. The man's smile returned slightly and he lowered his arm again.

"Alright Remus?" He asked softly.

Hermione couldn't stand it anymore as she burst into tears and flung her arms around Harry. He had been alive, he had visited her rather than anyone else and now here he was standing with them all. Hermione felt the cool touch of his black metal arm trace over the lines of her face as Harry hugged her back gently.

"Harry." Ron said, suddenly bringing Hermione back from her own little world. She realized what she was doing and released Harry, allowing him to turn slightly to look at Ron. As she too looked at Ron she was shocked to find him with tears welling in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry mate, I didn't want to leave you there!" He cried, tears now flowing freely down his face. "I… I wanted to carry you out, bring you back here so we could all say goodbye. But I couldn't, I could barely walk and I just couldn't lift you." Ron continued. Hermione's heart panged, as she suddenly understood the guilt Ron must have harbored for the past three years. As he saw it he had abandoned his best friend in that place. And for Ron, someone whose life was so focused on friends and family, that could only have seemed unforgivable in his eyes. "And I'm sorry I kept it to myself. It was wrong.. I just didn't know how to say it." Ron finished. Harry reacted slowly; first he ran his right hand, the one that was still his own, through his hair and then he sighed. What he did next though was completely unexpected as he walked over to Ron and punched him in the face. Ron stumbled back and looked up at Harry, the emotional hurt clearly showing on his face.

"Do you feel better now Ron? I can't hate you for what you did; it was the right thing to do. But if it makes you feel better, I'll blame you just for a few moments so you can enjoy a little self pity." Harry said. The tension in the room was tangible as the silence became heavy. Hermione gulped as she watched the two men face off against each other. Then Ron's face softened and he laughed, softly at first but soon he was holding his sides as he laughed so hard. Harry joined him and the two friends shook hands vigorously. There was a collective sigh around the room, followed by Ginny shoving her brother out of the way so she too could hug Harry. Then Mrs. Weasley stood before Harry, a hand covering her mouth as she ran her fingers over the bandage that covered Harry's eyes, then down to where his arm became the cold black metal. Emotions were running high in the room as everyone wanted to say something and just enjoy having Harry back among them after so long of thinking him dead.

"Do you think a guy could get something to eat and a warm bath?" Harry finally asked. "Of course dear, I'll fix you something right away." Mrs. Weasley said excitedly as she pushed her way to the kitchen. After Mrs. Weasley had left Harry smiled at everyone before turning himself and heading upstairs. There were several concerned and interested looks as everybody seemed to wonder at once how a blind man would be able to move around freely, however Harry showed no signs of needing help as he walked very normally up the stairs of Grimmauld Place.

Later in the day Hermione sat outside the bathroom door, her back leaning against the wall and her legs tucked up to her chest. She could hear Harry moving around in the bathroom, doing what she wasn't sure. She had heard the bath water empty almost ten minutes ago and was becoming curious as to what he could be doing for so long in there. Just as she was about to call out to him though the door opened and he stepped out.

"Uh, hey Hermione." He said, obviously slightly surprised to see her sitting there. Hermione gave an embarrassed smile and stood up.

"Feeling better?" She asked, giving her best friendly smile at the same time. Harry returned the smile she was giving him, making her heart warm slightly.

"For sure. It's been a while since I've been nice and clean." Harry replied. There was then a long silence between the two as both stood very still. Hermione knew she was staring at Harry and could only guess he would be doing the same were the bandages not over his eyes. At this point she also noticed that he had replaced the old bandages with clean white ones.

"I've missed you so much Harry." Hermione finally said, sadness weighing heavy in her voice. Harry gave her a sad smile in response and pulled her into gentle hug. Hermione choked back the tears that threatened to fall and enjoyed the warmth Harry was giving off, likely because of his recent bath but still it was comforting all the same.

"I missed you too Hermione." Harry replied