Even though Harry had gotten used to sleeping in an entirely different place than Hermione, knowing she wasn't even in the castle wasn't the best feeling in the world. It was like he was… lost. Wandering around and expecting to see her, sitting next to her at dinner, and her being absent brought back memories of second year - the only time he'd been at Hogwarts without her, when she'd been petrified. But now she was in France. With Draco Malfoy. Not much better. At least he could visit her in the Hospital Wing.

He wondered what she was doing. What they were doing. Where they were. She hadn't even told him the specifics of her trip, which was probably for the best so he didn't get desperate and try to follow her. Not that he would. Not that he was desperate. Though it was mostly her company that made him nervous, he knew it was better than her going alone. At least Draco could protect her, no matter how much the thought made him shudder.

Things had gotten better between them since the trial - the bullying he'd gotten used to had been toned down to irritating teasing, especially since he hadn't stopped flirting with Hermione. Once he'd convinced himself Draco didn't mean anything by it and Hermione wasn't reciprocating, it was a little easier to deal with.

Ron was looking at him across the table like there was something he wanted to say, but Harry was grateful that he'd decided him keeping quiet was for the better, or it probably would have been some version of I told you so.

It was Luna who ended up sitting in Hermione's usual spot next to him. "I think this will be good for you, Harry," she said softly, reaching to put a hand over his. "Separation always reminds us how much we love someone, doesn't it?"

"Tell me about it," Ron muttered, looking back down towards his food.

"I don't think that's helping very much, Luna," Katie piped up as she wrapped an arm around Ron's shoulder, rubbing it slowly. "I mean, I'm sure Harry appreciated the sentiment, but… maybe it's still a little too soon?"

Luna looked at them for a moment. "I suppose you're right. I'm sorry, Ron. I didn't mean to make you upset." Ron shrugged. "Either way, I think you're very brave to trust Draco that much."

"I don't know that I do," Harry admitted.

"Well, you should. I've been watching him for the past couple of weeks. He's had a lot on his mind."

Harry turned to her, confused. "Watching him? Why?"

Luna shrugged. "I've been watching all of you. It's been fascinating, really."

"And… have you learned anything…?"

"I've learned loads. Especially about what not to do when you're trying to avoid someone," she grinned. "It seems like everyone's trying to find someone in particular to not avoid, which I find very interesting. Though Hermione might be nervous, too, because she's not here and you've got that girl from Eeylops you can write to."

A clatter came from a couple seats down as the bottom of Ginny's goblet smacked against her plate when she tried to put it back on the table. "Sorry," she muttered. "Used to… the… glasses at home, you know…"

"Yeah, I thought you were staying home for a while," Ron said. "Is everything all right?"

"Oh! Yeah, yeah, everyone's fine, I just… thought I should… come back for a little bit. You know how Mum can be-"

Ron's eyes narrowed. "You're acting strange…" Even Harry found himself watching her carefully for a crumb of something else to distract him from Hermione being gone.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I've been fine."

"You're fumbling. You never fumble."

"So?"

"Just saying. We've had enough secrets and I'm not looking for another one."

"I don't have a secret , Ron. Bloody hell. I'm sixteen. Give me a break," Ginny insisted, going back to her food more aggressively than she'd been eating before.

"Well, now that made you sound more like you have a secret, Ginny," Ron almost laughed. "Do you know something about Malfoy?"

"No!"

Katie gasped. "Are you with Malfoy?" she asked with a smirk.

"Ew! Are you joking?! That's disgusting."

The table erupted into much-needed laughter that ended with Ginny blushing profusely into her plate, but smiling nonetheless. Harry tried to imagine it briefly - Ginny and Draco. Her bringing him to the Burrow and introducing him to the rest of the family as her boyfriend. He started laughing, too, and just wished that Hermione was there to see it.

Speaking of Lia, though, he actually did need to write to her, so as soon as dinner was over, he scribbled a quick, inconspicuous note, and headed up to the owlery to send it off with Artemis, who seemed a little too excited to go back to her. He really needed to get that owl more exercise. Just add it to the list , he sighed to himself.

On his way back to the dorms, he thought briefly about spending the night in Hermione's room, but that would be counter-productive. It would only make things worse if he could do nothing but smell her all night. He really wanted to do this properly. Now that he'd been trying to pay attention to the bond, he could tell there was something she still had to get over before she could be with him fully like they used to. Some speed hump she wasn't telling him about. He could see it in her eyes, feel it in her kiss, a sliver of hesitance projected in the fear in her eyes when she thought he was about to propose. Harry still couldn't get that moment out of his mind, whether he'd been actively thinking about it or not. Would they get married? This time next year, where would they be?

He really had meant what he told her - they would have ended up together at some point in their lives, and he really had been lucky that it was now. Though it would have been easier if things had started after the war as opposed to during , what they went through had only brought them closer. Maybe he'd take her camping again if they ever wanted to go. He'd love to be in a tent with her when they weren't running for their lives. He'd love to be anywhere with her.

Harry sighed heavily as he finally got to his dorm, leaning against the heavy door to be met with Neville waiting for him.

"Hey, Neville," he started with a grin, but Neville was rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "You okay?"

"I wanted to, uh… ask you. About… well… I mean it's about Lavender."

"Okay… yeah. Sure." He shed off his jacket and laid it on the bed next to him as he sat. "What's going on?"

"Um…" he was blushing, playing with the comforter and trying his hardest to avoid eye contact, "I don't really know how to ask this… and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to but…"

Harry waited a few seconds with raised eyebrows, not wanting to interrupt or make Neville feel like he was impatient.

"You've… you've slept with Hermione, right? Like… you know…"

"Um… yeah." Harry was suddenly more nervous than he had been when he was sitting in front of the entire Wizengamot, and he silently started begging that wherever the hell Ron was, he needed to be here. Now. "Do you… do you have questions? Because I'm not-"

"No! No, I… I mean I know how it works, I just… erm…" He sighed, hiding his face in his hands. "I… I kissed Lavender."

Harry waited for a couple seconds for Neville to continue, trying to understand how that statement correlated with sex. And when he didn't, Harry finally managed to mutter, "Brilliant. That's good, right? But just because you… you kiss someone doesn't mean you have to-"

"But I want to."

And suddenly, Harry was really glad Ron wasn't there.

"I want to… I know she feels really down on herself most of the time, you know, with all the scars and everything, and I don't want her to feel like that. I want to make her feel beautiful because… because she is. And I… I see the way you and Hermione look at each other and I just… I want that."

"Neville…" Harry sighed, looking around the dorm a little and running a hand through his hair. "Look, I mean, I don't have a lot of experience, but… you don't need to be… doing that with someone just because… erm… I mean normally, that's all right, but…" He took a breath, mind running through all the things he'd learned. He'd never had anyone to have that conversation with, so he really was just about the worst person for Neville to ask, but Neville trusted him enough to not judge him and to give him some kind of advice. He supposed he needed to figure out the important bits first. "Did she kiss you back?"

"I think so."

Harry couldn't help but smile. "You think?"

"I mean, it was… it was quick. The other day, she was just talking about how she felt so ugly, and I couldn't let her talk about herself like that, so I just… kissed her. And then I got nervous and pulled away."

"And what did she do?"

"Nothing. We were in one of the greenhouses taking care of some of the leaping toadstools, and after I kissed her, I just… went back to watering them. She just kind of stood there. I wasn't really looking at her."

"You know what's amazing, Neville?" Harry grinned, leaning back on his hands. "And I know we've talked about this… but the fact that girls make you more nervous than Voldemort."

Neville laughed himself. "Yeah. Pathetic isn't it?"

"Not at all. Look, all this stuff is… is hard and complicated right now. We all know that. And parts of me want to take things slow to make sure it's real, but parts of me want to jump in because I don't know what tomorrow's going to look like anymore."

"So how do you know if something's right?"

"You don't," he answered honestly. "I mean, she's probably feeling the same way you are. I'm sure she was appreciative that you kissed her, considering she didn't leave or anything. But as far as the rest of it goes, just… trust yourself. That's probably the most helpful thing I can tell you right now. The more you think things through, the more… messy things seem to get when it comes to that sort of thing. And sometimes when you just stop thinking and let things be, the path starts to get a little clearer."

Neville was quiet for a moment, and Harry's mind began to wander back to his and Hermione's time in the tent. The nights they spent together curled up on the loveseat while Ron was asleep without worrying about what it meant, listening to the snow pattering against the fabric as they read, talked, researched. When he'd slide a strand of hair behind her ear and she'd look up at him with eyes so full of questions she was too afraid to ask, because asking questions would mean having answers. His heart briefly ached, and he rubbed his chest, over the faint scar the locket had given him, the oval shape burnt into his chest. Hermione and Ron never got a scar - maybe it had been the horcruxes trying to merge into one, to come back together, to rejoin to create something stronger.

"Wait," Harry said aloud, making Neville look up at him.

"What?"

"Sorry, Neville. I just thought of something." He stood from the bed and opened his trunk to pull out another piece or parchment. The letter could wait until Artemis was back, but he needed to know.

"What is it?"

"The.. the locket. I think the reason it affected me so quickly when I wore it was because it was like… trying to connect with me," he started, using a pen to scribble down his notes. "Why it choked me when I went to get the sword. It was protecting me. Protecting itself from harm. When I put it on, it essentially was reuniting two parts of Voldemort's soul and maybe… it may have made my connection stronger. And then as my bond grew with Hermione… it's a soul bond. What if part of the bond was attached to the piece of Voldemort's soul? That's why we lost it when I killed him. That's why it's been weaker. Because only part of it was attached to me and… oh my God. What if that's what's holding her back?"

Neville frowned. "I don't understand. Why would that hold her back?"

"Because a piece of her that's been attached to me is gone. That feeling she thinks had just developed for me was there the whole time and now it was destroyed, and… and since I killed it… do you understand?"

"...Not quite."

Harry was panting now, pacing, raking his fingers through his hair as he thought. "I don't know when these soul bonds start. I don't know if it's when we're born or when we get our magic, but if it starts when we get our magic, Voldemort already has a piece of his soul inside of me. And when the bond was created, it couldn't tell the difference between what was mine and what was Voldemort's, right?"

"Okay."

"So part of Hermione's soul bond was attached to Voldemort. That's why he knew we were together. What if he could feel her too? Indirectly? And by me killing Voldemort, I was responsible for destroying a piece of the bond, the piece that was connected to him. One side of the bond destroyed the other, and now it can't fully attach to me anymore because I was the one to destroy it."

"What, you think it's holding a grudge against you or something? Can bonds even do that?"

"I don't know," Harry answered quickly. "That's what I need to find out. To see if it's even possible to restore it."

"And what if it's not?"

Harry stopped pacing immediately, looking over to Neville with what must have been a bewildered expression. "What do you mean?"

"What if it's not?" he repeated. "What if you can't fix it? Then what? Does that mean you won't be together?"

"Of course not. I mean… no, we… once she gets back, she said we could start over, so… she wants to be with me."

It was Neville's turn to grin. "Didn't you just give me a lecture about not overthinking things?"

Harry smiled, too, finally relaxing enough to sit down on the bed. Of course all of this would happen after she just left, wouldn't it? He briefly wondered if she was thinking about all of this, too. If that was what had sparked him. Every once in a while, he'd feel the tug, like a flutter, but now, all was still and quiet in his chest except for his heartbeat.

"If you like Lavender, Neville, you should probably tell her. Straightforward. Don't make her try to figure it out," he decided to say. "And you'll never be with her if you don't try. But don't worry about all the other stuff at first, because that'll just make you more nervous, you know? Just… start with kissing her again. Or… take her on a date first. I think that's… a good first step, you know."

"Where'd you take Hermione?"

Harry paled quickly, clearing his throat. "We, uh… actually haven't been on one yet. A proper one. Kind of… got together in the middle of running for our lives, so it was kind of a weird situation."

"Oh," Neville frowned. "I'm sorry you haven't gotten to do that."

"I will," Harry promised. "I will. I just have to figure out where."

"Well, thanks, Harry. For all this. I'm sorry I kind of sprung it on you."

"Don't mention it," Harry grinned. "And… thank you for being able to trust me, too. It means a lot."

Neville smiled. "Of course. I do consider you one of my closest friends. Though, I know the last couple years have been… iffy."

"And I'm trying to fix that. I know I've been focused on Hermione-"

"You're always going to put her before any of us, Harry, don't even try to get out of that one," he teased.

"But I need to make room for you guys, too. I do know that. And I'm trying. It's just hard sometimes."

"I know. Believe me. I'm trying to date a werewolf," Neville smirked.

"You've got it, Neville. I see how she sits with you. Just… make sure she knows it's not for the wrong reason and she'll be yours."

"Thanks, Harry. I guess I'll be going to bed now… Do you know where Ron is? Getting late, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is." Harry frowned, moving to his trunk to pull out the Marauder's Map. He didn't use it for finding anyone except Hermione, and usually he knew exactly where she was, so it took him a couple seconds for his eyes to scan over the entire map for Ron's name. "Oh my God…" His eyes widened as soon as he spotted it: Ron's little dot nearly meshed with the one that read Katie Bell next to it. In a broom cupboard, of all places, on the fifth floor. Harry quickly folded the map back and threw it to the floor, trying to rid himself of the mental image he'd subconsciously conjured. "He's just fine. Don't think we should bother him."

"Uh oh. That's not a good sign," Neville laughed.

"I really don't want to talk about it. Or think about it. Or see Ron before the morning, honestly," Harry explained, getting up from the bed and moving to the bathroom, where he briefly contemplated rinsing his eyes out with mouthwash or a scouring charm. "My brain needs a few hours to reset itself. Night, Neville."

"Night, Harry."

Hermione was an hour ahead of him - was she already asleep? He needed to tell someone about what he'd seen, but he couldn't tell Ron that he'd been spying. Or looking. They could have at least used the Room of Requirement. But what did he know, really? He'd never even been in a broom cupboard with Hermione. Maybe he should. As soon as she got back. He really shouldn't miss her this much already.

"Pathetic," Harry muttered to himself as he spit his toothpaste into the sink. He wasn't fourteen. He was nearly an adult. An adult who was desperate to be able to be with the woman he loved again. That wasn't too much to ask, right? At least he was able to have that revelation about the bond - it was something he could look into while she was gone, and maybe do some of the work for her by the time she got back.

He really tried his hardest not to stare too much at Ron and Katie at breakfast the next morning. He'd managed to avoid him, but he didn't want Ron to think something was wrong, especially with the eggshells they'd been treading on. Thankfully, Artemis swooped in to drop a letter in front of him - properly this time, he noticed, which was a nice surprise, with a response from Lia. She'd agreed to meet with him since she had the day off and had planned to be in Hogsmeade anyway.

"Anyone fancy a visit to Hogsmeade today?" They hadn't been out as a group in a while for anything fun, and they might as well take the opportunity to go whenever they wanted while they had it.

A couple hours later, Harry was elated to see nearly everyone following him to the Apparition point, including Luna and Ginny. He had to think about his mission to not be upset that it was Ginny traveling side-along with him and not Hermione, but once they got there and the sickly sweet scent of Honeydukes washed over him as the sun warmed his face, he let his guard down and allowed himself to relax. Spend some time by himself. And with Lia.

He was shocked she hadn't met them as soon as they showed up, based on the enthusiasm in her response letter, and he was glad he wasn't alone, if Hermione's jealousy had been any indication. Had Lia thought this was more than a meeting? He started second guessing himself. Maybe he should have suggested her coming to Hogwarts or something, somewhere that wouldn't be too date-like. Maybe he shouldn't have wanted to meet her alone. Ron had immediately dragged Katie off to Zonko's with Luna following close behind while Neville and Lavender told Harry they were going to look at a couple of things at Dervish and Banges. That just left Harry and Ginny standing awkwardly in the middle of the walkway. They hadn't been alone in a long time, and Ginny hadn't brought up the kiss. She was probably trying to forget about it, too, but there was definitely a different dynamic between them now. At least for the moment.

"So, did you come for anything specific or just to walk around?" she finally asked.

"I'm meeting someone, actually. To… well… figure out a couple things-"

"Harry! Hi!" Lia was heading out of Zonko's with a bag from Honeydukes in her hand. "I saw Ron going in, so I figured you'd be here too. Hey, Ginny."

"Hi," Ginny nearly whispered.

"You two know each other?"

"Sure do! She stopped into Eeylops a couple days ago to get some treats for Pig. Couldn't stop talking about you," she teased, winking at Ginny.

"Oh, er-"

"I'm teasing, Harry. Really, we barely talked about you at all. Glad to see you out and about. Your letter last night was incredibly vague, though. Something you're trying to hide?"

"No! No, not at all." Harry glanced at Ginny, and noticed Lia did, too.

"Are you trying to talk about me now?"

"No! I just… I mean, this… I wanted to talk about Hermione, so…"

"And, what, you think I'll be jealous?"

Lia was smirking silently.

"Well, I… no, I just… I think, er, Ron might need you."

"In Zonko's? With Katie?"

"Yeah."

"Uh huh. You do realize I'll be seventeen in like, three months, right?"

Lia snorted softly while Harry just frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I dunno," Ginny shrugged. "Thought you might be talking about something inappropriate that you think I'm too young for."

"No, no, not again. I'm not talking about sex any more than I already have-"

"Wait, what?!"

"Pretend I didn't say that. Ginny, just…" Harry nodded over in some random direction. "I'll catch up with you in a minute, yeah?" He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. Could he not even function without Hermione during basic conversation?

"Fine. Come get me whenever you're done, I guess. Don't listen to a word he says about me, Lia."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Harry didn't open his eyes until Ginny was out of sight, but Lia was still smirking.

"You weren't this awkward three weeks ago, Harry."

"I was less stressed three weeks ago."

"Less stressed before your trial? And you wanted to talk about Hermione? Everything's okay with you two, right?!"

"Yeah," Harry breathed out with a smile. "Yeah, they're fine. Well… she's currently in France with Draco-"

"Malfoy?"

"Mmhmm."

"Huh."

"Tell me about it."

"Okay… can I ask why? That sounds like it needs a drink," Lia laughed, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards The Hog's Head.

Harry grinned in response. "I'm not eighteen-"

"You're Harry Potter. The Ministry just let you run free after casting an Unforgivable. You think you don't deserve a drink if you want one? Especially considering your current situation."

He hated that Lia made him go up and very nervously order a drink, but before too long, they'd secured a table in the corner, away from most of the other patrons, and Lia leaned forward on her elbows.

"All right," she began, "start from the beginning. Why did she go to France?"

Harry swirled his firewhiskey around in the glass, watching as it stuck to the sides for a moment. He'd never had it before so... casually, and the last time had been with Fred and George. "She went to find her parents." He took a sip, wincing at the slight burn, before deciding it would be best to dive right into the story. He quickly explained the bond, too, since Lia seemed to be looking more and more confused by the second as to why they weren't still together. He left out the nasty parts, trying to keep things brief, but Lia was nearly in tears by the time he was done.

"That's horrible, Harry. I couldn't even imagine my mam and dad not remembering me. I don't want you carrying that burden, though, yeah? She's the one that made that choice."

"But it was my fault-"

"No, it wasn't. That train of thought is going to make it worse for you if things go wrong and she can't fix it. That's not going to be your fault. You're not about to carry that for the rest of your life. That was her decision. Got that?" Harry just nodded. "Now why the hell is she traveling with Malfoy? Always thought he was a little shite."

"Still is," Harry grinned. "For some reason, after my trial, I was given some… stipulations, I suppose, instead of a real sentence."No leaving the country for six months. No working for the Ministry without a psychological evaluation at the time of application unless it had been over a year since the incident. Only certain positions available for him until otherwise proven capable and competent. Traced for three months. "So I wasn't technically let off without at least a slap on the wrist."

"And the Ministry thought it would be in their best interest to punish you but not him?"

"They've done a lot of things I don't understand, lately. There's probably some rubbish going on behind the scenes but remember, Draco's mum took his sentence on top of hers? I can't imagine what they'd give him if she hadn't."

"Oh, yeah. That takes a lot of love."

Harry took a deep breath. "She saved my life because she loves him. Just like my mum did. I can't help but feel bad for her, you know? Part of me wonders if she was almost as much of a victim of all this as Draco was." He took another sip of his drink and shook his head. "Anyway, he said he wanted to protect Hermione. That's why he went with her. That there are still a lot of people out there that she should be wary of."

Lia rested her chin in her hand. "Takes one to know one, I suppose," she muttered before taking a sip of her beer. "And she trusts him?"

"Debatable."

"Do you?"

"Also debatable. I mean, he knows she can handle herself, and I'm not worried about anything romantic going on, but it just feels weird, you know?"

"Well, you're not going to forgive him overnight. You've spent seven years at odds with him, yeah? It's natural. How long are they going to be gone?"

"No idea," Harry said with a shrug. "Hermione's not sure how long it'll take to find her parents, and she didn't want to give me her schedule so I wouldn't go try looking for her."

Lia laughed quickly. "That's a brilliant idea. Good on her. She's making you trust her, Harry."

"I know…"

"Is that all you wanted to talk about?"

"No, actually, I… well, you know we're not together-"

"Uh huh. Still trying to wrap my head around that, but go on."

"It's complicated," Harry chuckled, taking another sip. "Anyway, we've agreed to kind of… start over, in a sense, when she gets back. And I was just maybe wondering if you… could give me some advice."

Lia leaned back in her seat with a small smirk on her face. "You're asking me how to woo a woman?"

"Well, considering you are one. I don't have many people I'd… be able to take seriously. That's why I didn't want Ginny to come. I…" Harry sighed deeply and ran a hand over his face. "She's great, I mean, but… I think she fancies me. I mean, I know she does. She kissed me because she didn't know Hermione and I were together at the time, and I've felt really awkward around her since."

Lia bit back a smile, taking a long sip of her beer while she contemplated her answer. "I don't think you've got to worry about that, Harry. I mean, we really did talk about you a little bit the other day, but from what I could gather, it's… pretty safe to say that she's… looking to move on. She doesn't talk about you like she fancies you anymore, at least."

"Really?"

"Mmhmm."

"Oh, well, that's brilliant. I just didn't want to hurt her feelings by constantly talking about Hermione, you know."

"She also told me that Hermione thinks I fancy you."

Harry's cheeks turned bright red and he quickly averted his gaze into his glass. Maybe this wasn't a good idea at all. If he hadn't been able to tell she was flirting with him before, should he even be here having a drink with her?

"She's not worried about me making a move on you while she's gone?"

Harry cleared his throat a little more aggressively than he meant it and took another drink. "Guess she trusts me."

"Imagine that," Lia grinned. "I don't, by the way," she quickly corrected. "Fancy you, I mean. Ginny wanted to keep Hermione on edge, but I think it's safe to make sure you don't have to worry about it."

"That's a relief."

"Wait, hang on. Hermione thought I fancied you and yet you thought it would be a good idea to ask me for dating advice? Wow, you really don't have a bloody clue what you're doing, do you?"

"Well, you don't have to make me feel like an idiot about it."

"I'm not!" she laughed. "I'm not, I swear. It's just funny, that's all. Women can be complicated. It's not all your fault. I'm sure she's just as confused about it all as you are."

"It's even worse when you're dating them because they only tell you what they want to tell you, not even everything!"

Lia raised her eyebrows in agreement as she took another sip. "Tell me about it."

Harry paused, glass on the way to his lips. "Wait, what?"

"Do you need a refill?"

"No, I just… I didn't… I didn't know."

"You didn't ask. Would have saved Hermione a lot of trouble."

Harry laughed, imagining how absolutely not hilarious Hermione would have found this. He didn't have to worry about Lia feeling any sort of way towards him at all, and Hermione realizing she was wrong was always entertaining. The only other girl friend he really had was Luna (and Ginny, but she was practically family in his eyes), who he loved, but he couldn't talk to her about everything, and he was worried that asking her about how to date Hermione might warrant some not so helpful suggestions that he could only imagine would involve some type of creature that would literally steal Hermione's heart right out of her chest and deposit it at Harry's feet.

"Brilliant, considering I've only ever been with Hermione and haven't actually dated her, which I keep being reminded of lately-"

"Well, there's your first problem."

"We were hunting down Voldemort!" Harry laughed, to which Lia just waved him off dismissively.

"You still had to do something romantic for her, Harry, come on. I know you've got it in you."

"Well, yeah, I got her flowers and… we made one of those blanket forts a few nights to sleep in."

"Adorable."

"She doesn't like big spectacles, though. So for dates, she'd probably like-"

"Somewhere more intimate. Dinner, picnic, walks, that sort of thing, yeah?"

"Yeah."

"You're a lucky man, Harry. You find those types of girls, you don't let them go. I imagine she's pretty easy to impress. Just an attempt at romance will make her happy, but don't make that mean you only do the bare minimum, got it?"

"Got it."

"And when she gets back, she's probably going to be exhausted, so don't overwhelm her. Let her relax and get back to normal before you start going all out. It might be good to go one some Muggle dates, too, you know. To remind her why you and her work so well together, even without all the magic."

"That's… brilliant, actually. Just what we need. The magic is what's gotten us into all this mess."

"I'll drink to that," Lia laughed.

"So how long did you plan to be at Hogsmeade today?" Harry asked as they finished up, holding the door for Lia on their way back out to the main street with Harry feeling much lighter thanks to the two glasses of firewhiskey in his system.

"Oh, I've got all day, really. I mean, I had a few errands, but I'd much rather be here with all of you than cleaning my flat or something productive like that," she laughed.

"You've got your own place?"

"Not entirely, no. I've got a mate that lives with me who's going to uni, so I don't see her much but in the evenings and on weekends when I'm not working. I love her to death, but I think it works out better that way sometimes. She was in my year."

"She's a witch? And she goes to university?" Harry asked, eyebrows furrowing a little. He'd never heard of that before. Usually everyone he knew in the Magical world worked Magical jobs. He'd briefly thought about becoming an Auror, but that was years ago, and frankly, after the past one, the thought of doing that for the rest of his life was quickly becoming more daunting than exciting. He'd had enough adventure for one lifetime, if he were being honest.

"Mmhmm. She's studying English. Wants to be a teacher. I was thinking about doing it, too. Going to uni. Once I figure out what I'd like to do, that is. It's mental they make you pick what you want to do at seventeen, isn't it?"

"Yeah. I haven't even really been able to sit down and think about it, but I don't want to do anything right now, if I'm being honest. Just going through a year of school without someone trying to kill me will be a good enough of a start."

"That's fair, I think. Luckily, I got two of those before you showed up," Lia laughed. "Come on. Let's go find the others. I'd like to meet Ron, too. That's Katie Bell with him, right? I think I recognize her from the Quidditch team."

"Oh, yeah," he answered as he started to lead them back in the direction of Zonko's. It was just after lunch, but the snacks Lia had bought for them at Hog's Head were enough to tide him over. "Yeah, that's Katie. That's kind of a… recent development."

Lia smirked. "I know about those. It's a good time for people to get together, isn't it?"

"Now that everything's settling down, we're starting to realize what's important to us and how important those things are."

"Like Hermione?"

"Exactly. I mean we've both made mistakes since we've been together. I think it'll be good to start over. Start fresh, you know?"

"Sometimes it can be what saves a relationship," she grinned. "Hopefully that'll be the case for the two of you. And, of course, I'm free for advice."

"Thanks. I appreciate it. Honestly."

"Just… either don't tell Hermione or tell her I've told you I'm interested in someone who's not you," she smiled.

Harry grinned back. "Are you?"

"I think so, yeah. You don't want to hear about it, though."

"Why not?"

"Harry, you have your own girl problems to worry about; there's no way you can help me with mine."

Harry nudged her shoulder a little. "Well, you're really cool. I can't imagine someone not wanting to be with you who wanted to. And you're… you're really pretty, if I'm allowed to say that?"

"Thanks," she laughed. "Is that the firewhiskey talking or you?"

"Both," Harry admitted. "You are, though."

"You sure you're not flirting with me?" Lia teased.

"There'd be no point, would there?"

Lia wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Sorry, Harry. You being you only goes so far. Save it for Hermione."

Their first stops at Zonko's or Honeydukes came up empty; Neville, Lavender, and Luna were finishing up at Madam Puddifoot's and they ended up finding Ron, Katie, and Ginny in Gladrags.

"There you are!" Harry announced. "Sorry, we took a little longer than we thought."

"Your date went well, I take it?" Ron teased, turning over a pair of shoes that he'd never actually buy.

"Not a date," Lia quickly corrected with a grin. "But yes. Harry just wanted some girl advice. And he's had a couple drinks."

"Oh no," Ron interrupted. "Last time he drank, I found out a lot of inappropriate things about him and Hermione both that I've been trying to get out of my brain since. Sorry you've been subjected to it."

"Not quite my area of expertise," Lia smirked. "But thanks for the warning."

"Hey, I told you all of that in confidence, Ron! I just wanted to brag!"

"I don't want to hear about any of it!" Ginny piped up. "Especially from either of you. Any of you. Actually, I found something you 'd enjoy, Lia."

"Yeah? What's that?"

Ginny motioned her over to another section of the store, and Harry found Katie staring at him, arms crossed over her chest.

"What?"

"You ask her for advice about Hermione and not me?"

"Oh, well… I… er…"

"Look, I know you're not the best at these things, but I am a girl that has had enough interactions with Hermione that I consider her a friend. And I'm plenty qualified for dating advice."

"That's debatable," Ron joked, to which Katie smacked him on the shoulder.

"You're complaining?"

"Not at all."

Harry had a brief memory of Ron and Katie's dots in the broom cupboard and quickly felt the firewhiskey trying to not agree with his stomach. "Okay, well, thanks, Katie. I'll, uh… I'll keep you in mind, too. Sorry for not thinking about it before."

"I'll forgive you. This time."

"Hey, do you reckon George would fancy this?" Ron asked, pulling one out from a drawer and holding up a bright orange and blue polka-dotted tie.

"I think he'd love it."

They returned to Hogwarts a few bags heavier, but their hearts a little lighter. Harry was glad he'd invited everyone, as it had ended up being a much-needed outing for everyone. He sent Artemis out with his letter to Ollivander, hoping he'd have some of the answers to his revelations. By the time dinner came, everyone was in much better spirits, and conversation and laughs flowed freely between everyone. Harry hadn't been that happy in the Great Hall in a while, and for the first time, it was the freest he'd felt at all, minus Hermione's noticeable absence.

The next morning at breakfast, Artemis returned with another issue of The Daily Prophet , which had yet again plastered an image of Hermione and Draco heading out of the train station in Paris accompanied by the headline, "HERMIONE GRANGER FLEES ENGLAND OUT OF EMBARRASSMENT, SPOTTED IN PARIS WITH DRACO MALFOY".

"Why do you keep bringing me these, Artemis?" Harry laughed into his coffee. But he couldn't stop staring at the picture of Hermione in Paris. Where he should be with her. She looked tired and annoyed, keeping a few paces ahead of Draco, but she was beautiful, and he missed her. Even Crookshanks had managed to find him last night, curling up in the crook of his legs as he slept. Her hair was in a mess on the back of her head, and her clothes looked different in black and white, but he remembered how they'd felt under his fingers as he kissed her.

It didn't seem like Hermione had even noticed who had taken her picture, and he kept reading as he drank to see why they had reporters in Paris in the first place. Apparently some over eager employee was on vacation and managed to snap the picture once they noticed Hermione and Draco together. Nothing much was actually reported, mostly speculation that she was running from Harry's jealousy after their "explosive argument" - which he hadn't been aware of - that resulted in her running away with Draco in order to be able to have a relationship in peace. It was a load of bullshit that he was unfortunately getting used to at this point, but Harry held onto it just for the picture. He could cut Draco out if he needed to.

"Hey, Harry?" Ron asked carefully as Harry used his wand to separate the picture from the rest of the paper and pocketed it. "Do you think… well, Katie and I were thinking-"

"It was Ron's idea," Katie corrected.

"All right, fine. I've been thinking… since there are only a few of us and we don't really have much to do, maybe we could start a Quidditch team? Or… just a recreational one at least? Ginny's already on board, and you've got me and Katie, and you, and a couple of the Ravenclaws and one Hufflepuff. They've never been on a team before, but they like playing, and I kind of talked to McGonagall about it already, too. We just need a captain."

"And you want me to do it?"

"You're a really good captain, Harry," Katie muttered. "Everyone knows that. And I think it would be good for everyone, you know, to have something to do. I don't think McGonagall realized how many people would be here."

"I know… I've been trying not to bother her too much. She just always looks so stressed and I'm not even sure what I can do to help."

"Well, at least a game of Quidditch now and then would be a good distraction. And Artemis could be the Snitch, even. I've been thinking about what you said about, you know, flying with Malfoy and all that, and maybe he could join the team or something once he and Hermione get back if he wants to."

Harry's eyebrows raised, his eyes flicking between Ron and Katie. "You're serious?"

"I mean I'd obviously rather not fly with him, but maybe with a whole team, he'd be less likely to be such a git."

"Wishful thinking, but I appreciate it," Harry chuckled. "I'll think about it. I know I've got a lot of my plate and I'm trying to figure everything out with Hermione and-"

"I know. But we're here for you, mate. Katie and I want you and Hermione to get back together nearly as much as you two do."

"We will," Harry said, also to himself, because sometimes it was just good to hear it. "I know we will. I've got some dates planned when she gets back that I think will just really help us connect and… forget about everything that's been going on for a second. Back to the core of why we got together in the first place. Not the locket, not the bond, not because we didn't have anyone else, but…"

"Because you love each other."

"Exactly. Because we always have. And I want to make sure she can see that sometimes it's just that simple."