"What's the birthday boy doing sitting all alone?" Ron asked loudly as he plopped down in the armchair in Harry's study.
"Not brooding, I hope." Hermione added, shooting a disapproving glance at the glass in his hand.
"It's just pumpkin juice." Harry told her, then a little defensively asked. "And why would I be brooding?"
Ron and Hermione gave him knowing looks.
"Harry, Harry, Harry," Ron tutted in a dramatic fashion. "The fortieth is an earth-shattering explosion, like our new Fakequake Wheeze, especially for the faint of heart such as yourself, who don't have all my hard-earned wisdom." Ever since his great leap into the forties, Ron, heavily influenced by George, had leaned into the whole 'Wise Old Dumbledore' talk, despite Hermione's reminders that he was nowhere near half of Dumbledore's age or have half his wisdom for that matter, she added to Harry privately one day.
"Like I say every year, I feel lucky to have lived this far." Harry insisted, though the churning in his stomach told him otherwise.
"Then why did you make Ginny exchange that comfy armchair she bought you for that new Dragon Taming Kit?" Hermione asked slyly.
"I need it! It could be useful on a case." He defended.
"Yeah, right." Ron snorted. "Unless you have the sudden desire to go on one of Luna and Rolf's expeditions or developed a sudden, secret crush on Charlie-"
"Fine," Harry cut him off. "Maybe I am a little upset but it's still nothing compared to your I'm-Still-Not-Minister-Yet or Where-Did-My-Thirties-Go crisis."
"It was a very understandable crisis!" Hermione said indignantly. "I was behind on my life plans by two months!"
Harry and Ron shared a look. Hermione's life plan had been the catalyst to many fights and the butt of many jokes over the years.
"Love, you know our plans never really work-" Ron began.
"You mean your plans. My plans work out perfectly as long as you two don't interfere." She said with a pointed glare at Harry.
"No work talk on my birthday." He grinned.
"Fine, but I want those papers back first thing tomorrow morning." She said with a half smile.
"We should start our plans for today though. Don't want to be late for Ginny's big party." Hermione said briskly while Ron's face broke out into a huge grin at Harry's confused look.
"What plans?"
"This is ridiculous!" Harry spluttered as they stood at the entrance to Honeydukes. A few people were milling about the streets but it was nothing compared to Hogsmeads' usual bustle during the school season.
"Come on, it'll be fun. Just like old times." Ron chuckled, pushing him forwards.
"I can't believe you're going with this." Harry said to Hermione.
"It was her idea."
"What?!" Harry exclaimed as Ron burst into laughter.
"Don't look so shocked, Harry. I've come up with just as many silly ideas as you two. Or have you forgotten about Christmas 2002?" Hermione asked with a self-satisfied smile.
Harry shook his head, grinning.
"Still seems a bit childish."
"It's supposed to be childish, mate." Ron said, slapping his back.
"So you don't forget what it's like to be young." Hermione said, before rummaging through her bag and pulling out a silvery cloak.
"Where-" Harry began.
"I borrowed it from James. What's an adventure without the invisibility cloak?"
She threw it over them, and they trued to squeeze themselves together. Harry suddenly had a flashback to the last time the three of them had been in a similar position in the town and felt a rush of gratitude that the two situations couldn't be more different.
"Our feet are still outside." Ron grunted, trying to stretch the cloth.
"Don't rip it Ron!" Hermione exclaimed. "We can just cast invisibility charms on our feet."
"Yeah, now it seems like a good thing that you quit the Aurors. You'll get your feet blown off with those kinds of ideas." Harry teased.
Ron made a rude gesture before Hermione dragged them both down the hidden one-eyed witch passageway. It was a lot longer but considerably less dirty than they remembered it.
"Must be the kids. They sneak out to Hogsmeade at least twice a week." Ron whispered.
"If they ever found out about this after all the grief we gave them about sneaking out-" Harry started.
"Bit rich coming from you, isn't it?" Ron snickered.
"As if you're one to talk."
"Yes, yes, we were rule breaking hooligans and have descended to stuck up hypocrites. But what they don't know won't hurt them." Hermione said.
"You've been spending way too much time with politicians." Harry said to which she rolled her eyes.
Ron suddenly yelped as he knocked right into the exit. Harry cracked the door open and peered outside. Now that they were actually there, his heart was thudding frantically, a sort of exhilaration and nostalgia hitting him. A part of him had always missed it, the adventures with Ron and Hermione.
Hermione laughed quietly as Ron made an exaggerated show of tiptoeing outside. It was strange. They were adults, getting older by the second but at that moment, it seemed as if time had been reversed back thirty years, and they were the same giggling children they had been when they had first set foot in Hogwarts. That inexplicable feeling of remembering all the moments of happiness, bitter sweetness and everything in between, and knowing that they had not only made it out together but were still as close as they were back then, closer even, and that despite everything Hogwarts would always be there to welcome them home was all he needed.
The halls were just as Harry remembered it. This time tough, they brought back more than just their memories. They were mixed with several new anecdotes of the children and their escapades, with the three of them convincing themselves that they were definitely not hard teenagers while struggling to maintain straight faces. They had just entered the courtyard when they bumped into Neville.
"What are you guys doing here?" He asked, surprised.
"Oh, just, reminiscing." Hermione said nonchalantly.
"By breaking into Hogwarts?"
"That's the way we did it back then too, wasn't it?" Harry grinned.
"How'd you know we broke in, by the way?"
"The Headmistress said the portraits said something about a secret passageway. I was just dropping off some forms for Hannah's potions and said I'd check it out. Didn't expect to see you guys." Neville laughed.
"Oh, Happy Birthday, Harry!"
"You already wished me at midnight." Harry said amused.
"Yeah, but I was knackered after the party. Can't say I remember it." The other man grinned.
"Particularly strong firewhiskey, mate. I had to take two doses of sobering potion in the morning." Ron said sheepishly.
"You really shouldn't have done that, Ron." Hermione admonished.
"I know but..." Ron argued.
"Merlin! It's like we're really back at school again!" Neville exclaimed.
"Tell me about it." Harry muttered, with an exasperated look at his best friends.
"Oi! We're here to celebrate my birthday. You can have your weird foreplay after the party."
"Ha ha, very funny." Hermione rolled her eyes.
"He's not wrong about the foreplay though." Ron said, kissing her cheek.
"See what I have to suffer through?" Harry sighed to Neville.
"Like you haven't done worse with my sister in front of me." Ron said with a mock-glare.
"Why isn't Ginny here, anyway?" Neville asked.
"She's making the last minute party arrangements." Hermione said.
"She's going berserk trying to make it perfect." Ron added.
"Funny she says it's for me but threatens to hex me if I get five feet near the decorations. I'd have hidden in the attic with a butterbeer if she hadn't invited the whole PU team."
"Harry has a crush on their seeker." Ron teased.
"Who doesn't?" He shot back, knowing Ron had Quidditch Weekly articles stacked away in his trunk.
"Well, I've got to go. I'll see you at the party." Neville waved.
"Don't rat us out, Neville. Or Hermione'll have to stun you again." Harry called, earning him a light shove from the brunette.
They made their way down to Hagrid's hut and Harry was reminded of the many afternoons spent in a similar fashion.
"Looks like he's not home." Hermione said, noting the relative silence, that was only broken by a flutter of wings.
Harry whipped around to find Buckbeak standing there, looking at them curiously. He bowed and slowly egged his way closer to the majestic creature.
"Hey Buckbeak." He said softly, petting the hippogriff. "Want to go for a fly? For old time's sake?"
Harry turned around to find Ron sitting on Featherwhite, another hyppogriff, Luna had gifted to Hagrid, trying to get Hermione to get on as well.
"Come on, Hermione." Harry called, mounting Buckbeak. "It's my birthday."
"There really should be a limited number of times you can use that to convince me." She said, waving a finger at him but wearily got on behind Ron.
They took off and their laughter, and in Hermione's case, shrieks, filled the air. Flying over the Quidditch Pitch, Harry promised himself to have a hippogriff race with Ginny as soon as they both had time.
They landed by the lake with Hermione swearing that she was never getting on one of those again.
"That's what you said last time." Harry reminded.
"And the time before that." Ron added.
"And the time-"
"All right. All right." Hermione laughed, shaking her head fondly.
They plopped down by the lake and watched the squid make a strange clapping motion with three of its tentacles.
"Even the squid's wishing you a happy birthday." Ron snorted.
"Even the squid wouldn't believe a forty-year old could fly like that." Harry boasted.
"Even the squid can't handle two generations of Potters and Weasleys so close together." Hermione said solemnly.
They chuckled and then descended into a comfortable silence, just enjoying the sunlight glinting over the still water. Harry thought back to the sunny days with Ginny in sixth year when the future he now had seemed like something out of a dream, and he realised that he was lucky, not just to alive but to be surrounded by the people he loved and who loved him.
A little while later, they strolled by the edge of the forest, talking about nothing and everything until they reached the whooping willow. Hermione was searching his face nervously while Ron casually suggested taking another exit. He knew they didn't want to bring the mood down, especially on that day, and there might have been a time when he would have been too caught up in bad memories to even consider it. But now, all it reminded him was the thrill of flying a car to school in second year and the time he first met Sirius and the many, many, stories told by his kids. After all this time, he finally knew when and how to look for the silver lining until it outshone the black. They made their way out of the Shrieking Shack and walked towards the apparition point.
"That was..." Harry began.
"Oh, Harry! We're so sorry if you didn't like it. I just thought you would because you missed the field work so much and-"
"Hermione," He cut her off. "It was amazing. The best birthday present I could ask for."
"Don't let Ginny hear you say that." Ron interjected.
"Seriously, I loved it. I didn't even know I needed it. Thank you." He said, hugging her.
"A bit too sentimental, don't you think?"
"Oh, get in here, Ron!" Hermione laughed as they pulled him into their embrace. It really was one of Harry's best birthdays and it was only going to get better.