Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, but I own something even better: three freshly made grilled cheese sandwiches delivered to my dorm! Aaaand in the time between typing the previous sentence and this one I ate all of them. So now I have no Harry Potter rights and no grilled cheeses.

Chapter 72

The remaining days of the summer holidays passed quicker than Harry would have liked, but he made the most of them, enjoying every second he spent at Twelve Grimmauld Place. He still had frequent nightmares and his scar would often prickle and throb uncomfortably, but he would have lived with a daily dose of the Cruciatus Curse if it meant he got to keep living with the people he cared most about; the occasional pain in his scar was barely an afterthought most days.

He and Hermione made quick work of their remaining summer assignments, and Professor McGonagall happily graded their remaining Transfiguration essays and vowed to award them a plethora of points for Gryffindor when classes began. The lack of homework to spend the afternoons working on left the two teenagers with more free time than they knew what to do with.

When he was not working out with Tonks in the mornings or eavesdropping on the Order of the Phoenix with Hermione at night, Harry had taken to reading the journal that Hermione had gifted him, which made the bookworm a combination of ecstatic and nervous that he found positively adorable. Sirius would often find the two of them sharing a sofa in the drawing-room or sitting on the floor of one of their bedrooms with their backs pressed up against the bed; Harry would be reading with a smile on his face while Hermione would read a book of her own and steal glances when she thought Harry would not notice.

"It's rude to stare, you know," Harry sighed one day in the drawing-room when he looked to his left and caught Hermione's eye, causing her to hitch her breath and turn away.

"That's usually my line," She mumbled, tucking a few curls behind her ear.

"I know," Harry grinned. "I think you've written about every time you've used it on me," He held up the journal with a wry smile.

"I wouldn't have to use it so often if you weren't so –"

"Madly in love with you?" Harry interrupted, causing her to snap her mouth shut and blush furiously. "It's your fault, to be fair. If you weren't so pretty, and brilliant, and adorable –"

"Shut up," Hermione's blush deepened even more.

"Is there a particular reason you're staring at me today, or are you at the point where you're just shamelessly checking out your boyfriend now?" Harry smirked, to which Hermione rolled her eyes.

"First of all, I've been shamelessly checking you out for ages, and the fact that you have not noticed is a testament to how infuriatingly dense you are," She huffed, and it was Harry's turn to blush. "Second of all, don't even act like you aren't at the point where you're shamelessly checking out your girlfriend. Have you gotten to the entry I wrote for December thirtieth of last year, yet? The night we went to the Prefects' bathroom to solve the egg?" She asked, arching an eyebrow.

"I…" Harry's face grew uncomfortably warm and he let out an audible gulp. "I might have skimmed it, yeah."

"Skimmed it, have you?" Hermione nudged him with her elbow. "Do you happen to remember the part where I wrote about how you –"

"You know, this weather is really –"

"How you –"

"Hermione, please don't…"

"How you shamelessly stared at my backside when you thought I wasn't paying attention?" Hermione finished, sporting a wicked smile as Harry's entire face flushed and he shifted awkwardly in his seat. "You know, I did write quite a bit on how flattered I was," She tried to appease him, giggling at his visible discomfort as she closed her book and wrapped her arms around one of his. "How far into the journal are you, anyway?" She asked, snuggling into his side and resting her chin on his shoulder as she changed the subject, much to his relief.

"I finished last night," He admitted with a shy smile. "Just rereading some parts now."

"You've finished?" Hermione gasped, looking elated at that bit of news. "Do you have a favorite entry?" She asked excitedly. "Do you have a least-favorite? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Was it a good gift? Was it too long? Did I –"

"Hermione," Harry cut her off, turning and raising his eyebrows at her. "I loved every word of it. Honestly, it was brilliant."

"I'm glad," She beamed, nuzzling her head into his arm until he lifted it and draped it around her shoulders, allowing her to nestle into him with her arms wrapped around his waist. "Do you have a favorite, then?" She asked, looking up at him with wide, expectant eyes.

"It's hard to pick just one," Harry shrugged. "It feels like I'd be doing the other ninety-nine masterpieces an injustice."

"I'd hardly call the ramblings of a lovesick bookworm 'masterpieces'," She chided him.

"Well, whether you agree with me or not," Harry rolled his eyes good-naturedly, "I think they're all amazing, and choosing just one would be impossible."

Hermione simply pouted, jutting her lips out in the way that she knew rendered his brain useless. "Please?" She said softly, pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek. "How about you just name the ones that stuck out to you? As many as you want," She fluttered her eyelashes a few times for good measure, as if Harry was not already a goner.

"Alright," He sighed, smirking as Hermione let out a squeal of joy and burrowed into him even more. "I liked the first one a lot, about how we met on the train. I'm pretty sure my heart melted when I read about how happy you were that someone your age had complimented you on your teeth instead of mocking you for them. And it was nice to see that you were just as ecstatic as I was about making a friend so early on at Hogwarts," He added, smiling to himself.

"I like that one too," Hermione hummed.

"I also liked the entry you wrote from that first time we studied together," Harry continued, his smile widening. "I was hoping you would put it on there, just because I like that memory too, but I wasn't expecting that to be the day you first started to fancy me," He paused as Hermione let out a squeak and buried her face in his shoulder.

"I shouldn't have put that one in there," She groaned, her voice muffled by his shirt.

"I'm glad you did," Harry said sincerely, squeezing her shoulder reassuringly. "Honestly, it was adorable to read about how mortified you were of mucking up your first friendship because of…what did you call it? 'A silly little crush'?" He teased, eliciting another embarrassed squeak. "For what it's worth, I know how you felt. And I'm glad it wasn't just a silly little crush you had."

"Mmm," Hermione sighed, craning her neck and pressing a gentle kiss to the underside of his jaw. "Me too," She whispered against his skin, sending the best kind of shiver down his spine. "Tell me more," She murmured.

"Well, I liked reading your side of the story on our camping trip to the Forest of Dean, even if it was embarrassing to relive how you caught me staring for the first time," Harry gave a nervous smile, to which Hermione giggled. "I wouldn't mind going back there someday, you know."

"Me neither," Hermione smiled blissfully, her eyes growing a bit hazy with nostalgia. "Do you remember that sunset?"

"I'm pretty sure I'm going to remember that sunset forever," Harry said, and Hermione let out another content sigh. "Let's see…I liked reading about how much you loved the photo album I gave you in our second year. I really enjoyed reading about how you noticed how weird I was after we watched Sleepless in Seattle and your speculations as to why I was acting like that. I also loved everything you wrote about being in Cannes, especially about how you went to bed the night of our first kiss and squealed into your pillow for half an hour."

"Can you blame me?" She shrugged unapologetically, to which Harry just smiled. "Did you like reading about the night we made ratatouille?"

"Very much," Harry nodded. "I should have known from that moment that I had an insatiable kiss monster on my hands."

"Oh, when are you going to stop with that asinine phrase?" Hermione rolled her eyes, trying and failing to hide her amused smile.

"When you stop giving me a reason to use it," Harry grinned, planting a kiss on her temple. "So, hopefully never."

Hermione mumbled something incoherent that sounded suspiciously like 'shut up' before smiling again. "What else did you like?"

"Oh, after that it's even harder to choose," Harry said earnestly. "I liked reading your perspective on our Valentine's Day date, though; it was interesting to learn that snogging me in a bookstore was something you'd wanted to do for a while."

"Mm-hmm," Hermione nodded with a coquettish smile.

"Are there any other places you've wanted to snog me that you haven't already?" Harry waggled his eyebrows.

"Several. I have a list," Hermione said with such nonchalance he could only blink in surprise for a moment.

"Like where?"

"You'll find out," She smirked, and Harry did not even attempt to hide the grin that made its way onto his face.

"I'm looking forward to it," He bit back a smile, glancing back at the journal. "Hmm…I liked reading about how shocked – but secretly pleased – you were when I kissed you in front of the entire school after we won the Quidditch Cup that year."

Hermione closed her eyes and purred at that.

"And it was fun reading your side of the story the night we rescued Sirius and Buckbeak and how close you were to telling me that you loved me after I cast that Patronus."

"I probably would have if Sirius hadn't interrupted us," Hermione sighed, but she did not seem too displeased. "What else?"

"I liked seeing our dates from last summer through your eyes," Harry smiled. "Although I could have done without you writing page after page about how flustered I was when you wore that red dress on my birthday."

"It's rude to –"

"Yeah, I know," Harry sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and eliciting a giggle from Hermione.

"Anything else?" She asked hopefully.

"Honestly, all of them," Harry said sincerely. "Training for the First Task with your…incentives comes to mind. As does the First Task itself," He smirked down at the journal, where Hermione had written an almost unnervingly detailed description of how she had thrown herself at him lips-first in the champion's tent that day. "Just out of curiosity, do I have to find another dragon to get you to kiss me like that?" He asked teasingly.

"You could always just ask," Hermione fired back in an equally playful voice, her eyes twinkling in the way that always made Harry's pulse quicken.

"Is that so?" He closed the journal and tossed it onto the coffee table in front of their couch. "Well then, would you – MMPH!"

Over the years, Hermione Granger had developed a reputation for being patient. Being in the same Hogwarts house as the Weasley twins, assisting the likes of Neville Longbottom with Potions homework, being a member of the notoriously rowdy Gryffindor Gang, spending most of the summer under the same roof as Sirius Black, and dating one of the most reckless students in the history of Hogwarts all inherently required unparalleled levels of forbearance, levels that she displayed time and time again.

Thus, Harry could not help but be surprised when that legendary patience of hers seemed to vanish into thin air as she crashed her lips into his and pulled herself into his lap, straddling him against the couch and kissing him with enough passion to turn his brain into putty within seconds. Good things may have come to those who waited, but better things come to those who go and get them.

All at once, two wizards and two witches appeared out of thin air on Platform Nine-And-Three-Quarters at King's Cross Station a week later, on the first of September.

"I hate Apparating," Harry groaned, doubling over and clutching his stomach the second his feet hit solid ground. Next to him, Hermione did something similar as her face turned pale. "What's the point of owning a Firebolt if I still have to get squeezed through a hose every time I have to go somewhere?"

"It's daytime, stupid," Tonks snapped, flicking him on the forehead. "Be my guest when it comes to flying on a magic broomstick across the London sky, I bet that will go over phenomenally with the Muggles."

"Ugh, I don't know why I'm complaining to you," Harry sighed, standing up straight once his nausea faded. "Didn't you and your friends ride dinosaurs to Hogwarts?"

"Oh, I can't wait until you're in a different country," Tonks wrinkled her nose before pulling him into a hug while Sirius did the same with Hermione. "Stay safe, okay?" She whispered.

"I will," Harry hugged her back.

"And listen to Hermione whenever you can. She's a lot smarter than you."

"Hey!"

"Which is saying a lot," Tonks pulled back and lightly punched him on the shoulder. "Because you're a huge nerd. A nerd that I'm going to miss very much."

"Yeah, I'll miss you, too," Harry smiled before stepping away and turning to Sirius. "Try to not go insane without Hermione and I, alright?" He teased.

"I'll manage," The Marauder winked. "Try not to become too much of a buzzkill now that you're a Prefect, will you?" He ruffled Harry's hair before wrapping his arms around him and squeezing tightly.

"No promises," Harry chuckled, embracing him back as Tonks pulled Hermione into a hug.

"Moony wishes the two of you lots of luck, but he's too busy with his mission to be here right now," Sirius whispered, and Harry nodded in understanding. "Don't forget about the mirror, okay? If you ever have questions or just need to talk, feel free to use the mirror. I promise, I'm going to keep it on me at all times."

"I will," Harry murmured.

"I'll probably call you from time to time. Especially if there's something important with the Order that you ought to know."

"Thanks," Harry smiled gratefully as they separated.

"You know, things won't be easy this year," Sirius placed his hands on his godson's shoulders and sighed. "People aren't going to believe you about Voldemort, and although I don't know who it is, the Ministry has appointed someone of their choosing to fill the Defense position at Hogwarts. Knowing how desperate Fudge has become, I wouldn't be surprised if their appointee pulls something vile like holding your grades hostage in exchange for you recanting your story."

"I'll be fine," Harry said resolutely. "I've got Hermione."

"Indeed you do," Sirius grinned, ruffling his hair again. "You sure you'll be alright?"

"I'm not going to blow off a year of school to hang with you at Grimmauld."

"Worth a shot," Sirius sighed. "Fine. Then go make me proud," He jerked his head towards the scarlet steam engine. "And Hermione, make sure he doesn't do anything monumentally stupid."

"Easier said than done," The bushy-haired witch said cheekily as she looped her arm around Harry's.

"Sometimes I wonder why I put up with all of you roasting me – oh, yeah, that's why," Harry stopped his tirade in its tracks when Hermione leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. After bidding Sirius and Tonks goodbye, they grabbed their trunks and their respective familiars' cages and made their way towards the Hogwarts Express, hoisting themselves into the train.

"What time is the Prefects' meeting again?" Harry glanced at his watch.

"Not for another ten minutes," Hermione answered automatically. "If we're quick about it we can drop our trunks with the rest of our friends' and say hello to them before we head over."

"Lead the way," Harry grinned, following her down the corridor of their train car. He did not fail to notice the sheer number of fellow students staring at him through their compartment windows, but he found it tremendously difficult to care.

"It's like they think you're a zoo animal," Hermione grumbled when she spotted a few Hufflepuffs unsubtly pointing and whispering as they walked by.

"Pretty sure they just think I'm a nutter," Harry snorted. "It's alright, Hermione," He reassured her as he saw her eyes darken with fury. "You don't have to burst in there and start lecturing them on my behalf."

"I wasn't going to do that," She huffed, but by the way her eyebrows scrunched together, Harry could surmise that she was weighing the pros and cons of doing so. A minute later, they found most of the Gryffindor Gang gathered in a compartment near the end of the carriage, with only Neville and Ron missing.

"Nice of you two to show up," Dean grinned as they entered the compartment. "You're not ditching us for the fancy Prefects' compartment right away?"

"The meeting isn't for a few minutes," Harry explained as he stowed his and Hermione's trunks in the overhead racks.

"Are you guys excited to be Prefects?" Parvati asked eagerly as Hermione sat down between her and Lavender.

"How can they not?" Lavender teased. "All those nightly patrols they'll get to go on ought to be super romantic."

"Oh boy, I missed this," Harry sighed as he sat between Seamus and Dean.

"You know, I've been wondering," Dean wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders and smirked, "if you two sneak off and snog in a broom closet, do you have to take points away from yourselves?"

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Harry buried his face in his hands and groaned, "but can we please talk about Voldemort?"

He had mostly been joking, but he heard a few sharp inhales at the use of the Dark Lord's name followed by Parvati clearing her throat.

"My parents agree with Padma and I, thankfully. That he's back," She sighed, and Harry snapped his head up in surprise. "They started doubting Fudge's authority back when Sirius Black's innocence was made official, and seeing him look so frantic in trying to keep the peace and slandering Harry and Dumbledore all summer pushed them over the edge."

"Must be nice," Lavender sighed, examining her fingernails while her face contorted into an uncharacteristic scowl. "My parents still believe the Prophet and all its rubbish. I kept telling them that Harry would never lie or be an attention-seeker like they say he is, but they just don't want to believe it."

Harry gave her the blonde a nervous look and she quickly waved him off. "I believe you, still, don't worry. Mum and Dad don't like that I'm still friends with you and all, but teenagers are supposed to rebel against their parents, right?" She shrugged. "It wasn't that bad, anyway. Whenever they tried lecturing me or ranting about how much of a nutcase you are, I would just go to my room and read up on Divination. I reckon I've got the whole textbook memorized by now."

Harry gave Lavender a grateful smile and she beamed back.

"What about you guys?" Parvati turned to Seamus and Dean, and both of the boys became atypically uncomfortable at once.

"Your parents believe Fudge, too?" Lavender gave an understanding look.

"I haven't told my mum," Dean admitted. "She's a Muggle, and, well…she's my mum. She'd worry too much if I told her everything she'd probably pull me out of Hogwarts. I feel bad for lying, but…"

"We get it," Parvati said immediately, and the others nodded in unison.

"We're glad you're here," Hermione added, and Dean released the breath he'd been holding since he stopped speaking.

"Seamus's mum, though…" He began but trailed off as he gave his friend an awkward look. It was then that Harry noticed for the first time that his housemate had not said a word since he had arrived in the compartment.

"She believes Fudge?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah," Seamus nodded slowly, his voice low. "She…well, she thinks Harry's off his rocker and that Dumbledore's senile and doesn't know what he's doing anymore."

"Sounds like a lovely woman," Lavender raised her eyebrows.

"She didn't want me going back to Hogwarts," Seamus continued, hanging his head. "I tried fighting her on it, saying that Harry's not a liar, but…she didn't want to hear it. At all. She demanded that I cut off all ties with Harry immediately."

Harry felt his stomach plummet and an unpleasant sense of guilt washed over him.

"Even though I wasn't actually, I told her I would stop being friends with him. Just to get her off my back and so that she wouldn't pull me out of school," He continued, still staring down at the floor. "But then, she saw my order form for Harry's birthday gift near the end of last month and she…" He trailed off, shutting his eyes.

"They had a pretty nasty row," Dean explained in a morose voice, noticing that Seamus was not up to speaking any longer. "She kicked him out of their house that night." All three girls gasped, and Harry felt even worse than he had before. His organs felt as if they had been turned to ice and he slumped in his seat as if he had been literally deflated. "He took the Knight Bus to my place and stayed with my mum and I for the rest of the holidays," Dean finished with a sad sigh.

"Oh my god…" Hermione placed a hand over her chest. "Seamus, I'm so sorry –"

"It's fine," Seamus waved her off, sitting up straight and wiping at his eyes. "Well, no, I guess it's not fine," He admitted with a sigh. "I do wish my mother would believe her own son over a bloody newspaper, but..."

"I'm sorry, mate," Harry said sadly, wishing now more than ever that he possessed more eloquence than he actually did. "I'm sorry that all of you have to deal with this," He turned to the rest of the group and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "Being at odds with your parents…I can't even begin to imagine how difficult it must be. I…I'm sorry. I wish it didn't have to be like this, that you didn't have to fight with the people you love because of me."

"Harry, you don't have to apologize," Dean said earnestly. "This isn't just about you, no matter what the Ministry is saying."

Lavender nodded in agreement. "This…out there, it's bigger than any one person," She gestured vaguely to the window. "Do you really think that after being friends with you for four years I wouldn't want to fight the good fight once I got the chance? You think any of us would rather curl up into a ball and pretend everything is fine and call you a liar?"

"We're not defending you just because we're your friends," Seamus added in a determined voice. "We're Gryffindors for a reason."

There was a heavy pause as Harry let the weight of his friends' words wash over him, a wave of gratitude coursing through his entire body as none of the steely expressions that surrounded him wavered under his gaze.

"Honestly, Harry, not everything is about you," Parvati smirked as she rolled her eyes, and after a beat of silence the present Gryffindors all burst out laughing.

"Thanks, Parvati," Harry smirked in between chuckles. "After a whole summer of getting smeared by the biggest newspaper in the Wizarding World, I really needed someone to knock my ego down a peg."

"Here to help," She grinned back.

At that moment, the door of their compartment slid open and the last members of the Gryffindor Gang came stumbling through.

"I'm never traveling with the Weasleys again," Neville huffed as he entered, dragging his trunk with one hand and carrying a potted plant that looked suspiciously like a cactus in the other.

"We're not even that late!" Ron protested as he sauntered in after Neville, barely managing to balance his trunk as well as Pigwidgeon's cage in his arms. "So what if we had to sprint across the platform? That's half the fun, anyway."

"You got taller," Lavender mused, tilting her head as the redhead began storing his belongings on the overhead rack.

"Thanks?" Ron blinked, taking a seat next to Dean.

"What's with the cactus?" Dean asked as Neville sat between Parvati and the window.

"It's called mimbulus mimbletonia," He explained eagerly, brandishing the plant as if it were the House Cup. "It's really rare, and it does all sorts of cool stuff."

"I'd hardly call drenching my room in Stinksap cool," Ron grumbled, eyeing the plant warily.

"Based on how clean Ron keeps his part of the dormitory, I'm guessing the Stinksap smell was an upgrade."

"Oi!" Ron reached across and punched Harry in the shoulder while the remaining Gryffindors snickered. "Don't you and Hermione have boring Prefect responsibilities to take care of?"

"It's not boring, thank you very much," Hermione snapped before turning to Harry. "It might be a good idea to head to the carriage now, though. That way we won't risk being late."

"Good idea," Harry nodded, standing up and extracting his badge from the pocket of his letterman jacket. "We'll probably be back later," He turned to his housemates. "Don't burn the whole train down while we're gone, okay Seamus?"

"Yeah, yeah," The Irish Gryffindor shooed him off, the wry smile on his face depicting how much better a mood he was in now than just a few minutes prior. "Have fun learning how to be a stickler," He added.

"No premarital hand-holding, you two!" Parvati called after them, causing both Prefects to roll their eyes as they entered the corridor. A couple minutes later, they strode into the Prefects' carriage and immediately smiled when they saw who had been selected as Head Boy.

"I knew it!" Cedric Diggory leapt to his feet and grinned, rubbing his hands together excitedly as he gestured for Harry and Hermione to sit down. "I knew it was going to be you two for Gryffindor. Oh, this is going to be so much fun."

"It's a Prefect meeting, Cedric," Cho Chang rolled her eyes as she fiddled with her own Prefect badge. "It's never fun."

"Yeah, whatever," The Hufflepuff jokingly waved her off. "Have a seat; we'll start the meeting in about five."

Harry and Hermione obliged, quickly taking a seat just as the door opened once again, revealing two of the few people Harry had not missed over the summer holidays.

"Well, well, well," Draco Malfoy drawled as he strolled into the compartment, Pansy Parkinson hot on his heels. "I see they're just giving the badges to any nutcase they can find," He sneered at Harry.

"You do realize you just insulted yourself, right?" Hermione arched an eyebrow. The pale Slytherin's eyes widened in realization and he quickly clenched his fists in fury.

"How dare y–"

"Sit down, Malfoy," Cedric said frostily, causing the blonde to close his mouth immediately. "Cooperating with your fellow Prefects is one of your most important responsibilities. If you cannot put aside petty differences for the good of the school, you'll be asked to step down."

Harry felt his eyebrows climb towards his hairline as Cedric sent a glare towards Malfoy that was frigid enough to freeze an ocean. Enraged, the blonde threw himself into the nearest seat and settled for scowling at Harry and Hermione in silence, with Pansy throwing them dirty looks of her own.

"I'm going to have to do that a lot, aren't I?" Cedric muttered out of the corner of his mouth as he sifted through a few pieces of parchment in his lap. Harry snorted, to which the Hufflepuff groaned. "Maybe I can get him kicked off sooner rather than later," He mumbled, and Harry grinned at the prospect.

For all the potential grief the coming year might have in store for him, Harry could not stop thinking about the good things he had going in his life, from the people he cared about back home to his friends and support system at school. As Hermione unconsciously intertwined her fingers with his and leaned into his side, he felt surprisingly content amidst the chaos and rotten luck the universe had thrown at him lately, content enough to smile and dare the fates to try and make him miserable when he had the girl by his side with him.

"Game on," He whispered under his breath, giving Hermione's hand a squeeze.

A/N: The reports of my abandonment of this story have been greatly exaggerated. I have no intentions of abandoning Strangers on a Train, and I doubt I ever will. Yes, this chapter was published a whole thirteen days after its predecessor, and there was a time where I could have pumped out thirteen chapters in between the two. But that was back in the spring, when I did not have to worry about school, or my social life, or anything, because COVID-19 had uprooted my entire life. That is not the case anymore. For those of you who do not know what it is like to be an architecture student in college, I'll sum it up for you here: I spend anywhere from three to seven hours in the studio every day working on projects. I spend the time in between those hours attending my other classes, eating meals, and sleeping. Time for hobbies like writing is limited, and as much as I cherish this story, my education is far more important to me than maintaining my once-rapid updating schedule for this fanfic. I hope you all understand. It was really entertaining to see how many of you thought I had abandoned this story, and how I was making you wait 'ages' for an update. Like…what the fuck? It wasn't even two weeks. I understand I used to update daily, but I have a life now. Sorry, I'm not going to sacrifice following my passion and studying architecture in favor of writing this, even though I do love writing it.

Okay, now that I'm finished with my TED Talk, there's only two references that I consciously made: when Hermione tried to utter her catchphrase "It's rude to stare," only for Harry to say "Yeah, I know," in exasperation. That was inspired by the scene in Avengers: Endgame during the Captain America versus Captain America fight, where there is a very similar verbal exchange between the two. And the other is the chapter title and Harry's last line of the chapter, which hail from the West Wing episode of the same name.

Thank you all for your support. I know one of this story's biggest allures in the past was how frequently I updated it, but now that that is no longer feasible I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me that you all still enjoy this story and deem it worthy of your time and attention. Thank you all, and stay safe!

Also, there's a community out there dedicated to the pairing of Harry and Hermione and it is full of wonderful people with wonderful talents, from writing to memeing to drawing to everything in between. If you're interested in discussing the Harmony pairing, meeting similar-minded people, and immersing yourself in a community that appreciates the greatest fictional pairing of all time, then feel free to join the HMS Harmony Discord server. We'd love to have you. The link is here: discord dot gg/2GcXw8R