The English countryside, all brown and murky green, rushed past Harry's face as he stared out of the window of the Hogwarts Express. Ginny shifted beside him.
'This time last year, it was just me, Neville and Luna...that is, until the Death Eaters…' she trailed off and sighed, rubbing her palms together anxiously. 'Well, that's all behind us, I guess.'
'I'm so sorry I left you there, Gin. I had no idea...no clue of what'd happen to those who stayed at Hogwarts that year,' Harry immediately apologised. Once again, he felt guilt clench his stomach. Ginny, however, shook her head.
'It's not your fault. You know I don't blame you, not in the slightest. I was just remembering, that's all,' Ginny said, leaning into him and slinging an arm around his shoulders.
'I'm just glad of a quiet year,' Hermione said from across them. She petted Crookshanks in an almost distracted manner - Harry could tell that she was trying not to think about their escapades from previous years. 'Finally, I can focus on my studies without worrying about a crazy lunatic trying to kill my friends - speaking of, don't you two get yourselves into too much trouble. I do want a quiet year, you know,' she teasingly wagged her finger at Ron, sitting next to her, who made a vague sound of protest, and Harry.
'Hey, what about me?' Ginny asked jokingly. 'You know I can pull pranks to put Fred and George to shame.' she added, her voice catching slightly on the name. Ron bit his lip.
'To be honest…' Ron's voice was rather quiet and his eyes subdued as he stared down at the floor. 'I feel awful saying this, but I'm glad to escape the Burrow for a bit...I'm sick of Mum crying constantly, G-George not saying a word, all of it…I just wish…' He shook his head and broke off. A slightly heavy silence followed his words as Harry and Hermione shifted slightly, unsure of what to say. They hadn't lost siblings, after all.
'No, I get it. I feel the same, and I feel so bad every time I think it. ..I think it's because I...I just miss him.' Ginny's voice sounded choked, and when Harry turned to look at her he saw that her eyes were a little too bright, her lip starting to tremble.
Harry sighed slightly. They hadn't discussed Fred much, but when they did, the conversation tended to get out of control very quickly. And here, in the small carriage, with at least five hours left to go until they reached Hogwarts, there was no escape. 'I know, Gin. I know,' he murmured softly.
'I just..I don't know how we're going to manage, back at Hogwarts. Not after all this.' she said.
Harry let the silence stretch out before replying, choosing his words carefully. 'I'd been thinking the same. But then I thought, what would Professor Dumbledore have wanted me to do? Wanted us to do? He did all he could to shelter me from the knowledge that I was...I was a Horcrux,' Harry saw Hermione wince slightly at that, but pressed on, 'so that I could live a happy life for as long as possible. When it was all over, when I finally defeated Voldemort, he wouldn't have wanted me to throw it all away.' Hermione nodded, seeming unable to speak.
'You'll get through this, Gin; we all will. Honestly, I wasn't sure how me, Hermione and Harry'd cope either, seeing as we were on the run for a whole year.' Ron said, eyeing Ginny in case she objected to his use of her nickname. It was a testament to how shattered they all were that she ignored it.
'We've all wondered, Ginny. But we're here. And we can get through it.' Hermione added reassuringly, following Ron's train of thought.
'Yeah, I'm sure you're right. I'm just being silly,' Ginny sighed, rubbing at her eyes. 'Let's not talk about this anymore, I don't want to keep dwelling on the damn past.'
Harry looked sideways at Ginny. She seemed strained, tired. He badly wanted to cheer her up. 'I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!' he proclaimed. 'I love Molly's food, but it's been so long since we last ate that I think my toes are about to drop off.' He grinned at his girlfriend, who was so taken aback at his jaunty manner - also, toes? - that she smiled weakly back.
Hermione stretched and got up from her seat, still clutching Crookshanks. 'Well,' she began softly, 'I suppose it's up to me to locate the trolley lady?' She placed Crookshanks carefully on her seat, kissed Ron and left the carriage.
When she returned a while later - bearing cauldron cakes, pumpkin pasties and assorted sweets - she wasn't alone. Luna and Neville followed her into the carriage arm in arm.
'Hiya,' Neville said. He looked drawn - like all of them, really, if Harry cared to think about it - but was grinning all the same. A round of greetings followed, and the carriage was soon filled with a warm atmosphere as the friends ate and talked of the days to come.
'I wonder who our new Defence teacher will be?' Neville mused, tapping his feet on the ground as he spoke.
'At least we know they probably don't want to kill you, Harry,' Ron joked.
'Maybe Professor McGonagall hired an Auror,' Hermione suggested practically, entwining her fingers with Ron's as she spoke.
'Weren't they all in league with Voldemort?' Harry asked. 'Although...I guess there's got to be
some good ones.'
Luna shrugged from her seat in the corner. She'd mostly just sat and watched them talk since she'd arrived, Harry noticed. There was an almost hungry look in her large pale eyes, as if she was drinking in every moment.
'Hey, Luna,' Harry called, endeavouring to keep his voice light, 'How's your dad?'
'Oh, he's certainly been better,' Luna replied vaguely. 'But he's not as bad as he was. You know, me getting kidnapped really shook him. I'm sure all will be well, in the end. It always is.' She frowned. 'Is George doing alright?'
As Ron replied, Harry leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes. Letting the conversation drift over him, he wondered what Hogwarts would look like now. He supposed it wouldn't take long for several trained wizards to repair it using magic, but the wrecked state that he'd last seen the castle was so ingrained into his memory that part of him struggled to believe it was possible.
He tried not to think about the Resurrection Stone that he knew was somewhere in the Forbidden Forest, probably buried under dirt and mulch.
Shaking himself sharply out of his reverie, he returned to staring out of the window, listening to the others' conversations - which had turned to speculating upon McGonagall's possible staffing choices - and watching the blurred shapes streak past the windows as the sky darkened and the train travelled closer and closer to its destination.