Not knowing where Ginny had run off to, Harry slipped out the moleskin pouch he always carried with him and took out the Marauder's Map to look for Ginny. Her dot was moving towards the lake, so Harry tucked the map back inside his pouch and took off for the lake as fast as his legs could carry him.
Ginny, on the other hand was infuriated at Harry's insolence. She had just endured a full nine months of torture, both physical and emotional, and now all Harry wanted to do was run off with the Aurors while she spent another year at Hogwarts? She had tried to be reasonable when she heard that that Harry wanted to join up with the Aurors, but her feelings of anger had overcome her and she had shouted at Harry. Now, as she sat on the edge of the lake with her feet ankle- deep in the cold water, she realised that shouting at Harry in front of both McGonagall and Kingsley may not have been the best course of action.
"Knut for your thoughts, Ginny" came a familiar voice behind her. There was the subject of her thoughts standing behind her, his facial expression revealing nothing of what was going on behind those bright green eyes of his.
Seating himself down beside Ginny, he took her hand in his and said "I understand how you feel about this, Ginny. But please be reasonable."
"I know I know" replied Ginny "I shouldn't have shouted at you but I was so angry. So are you still going to work for the Aurors?"
"Yes I am. I've got to finish it. There are still quite a few Death Eater's, and I need to find them and put them away before we have another Voldemort."
"But you said I could have you all to myself this summer. All that snogging…" replied Ginny a smile on her face. Hearing that, Harry laughed and pulled Ginny towards him and kissed her, stroking her back and taking in her flowery scent. Don't think kissing Ginny will ever get old, Harry thought as he pulled away, albeit reluctantly.
"I've got it all worked out. Kingsley wants Ron and I to become full Aurors as soon as possible, but I reckon we'll still need some training. Kingsley will be sending over some manuals for us to study over the summer and you and Hermione can help with that. We'll spend the summer together, and then you and Hermione will go off to school while Ron and I can get started on getting those Death Eater bastards behind bars in Azkaban" said Harry softly, his arm still around Ginny's waist.
Hearing this, Ginny relaxed considerably and after pecking Harry on the lips, and stood up while extending her hand for Harry to take, saying "So you want to get some dinner? Bet Mum and the others are worried sick".
"You're not mad at me anymore? I would have expected the first Weasley to be born in 3 generations to be a bit more fiery" asked Harry, a playful grin plastered across his face.
"Ha ha, you're hilarious. Now come on hurry up, I'm starving" said Ginny sarcastically, her hands on her hips.
"Though you seem to have inherited the Weasley appetite" bantered Harry as he got up, dusted his robes and took Ginny's hand before following her to the Great Hall. For that statement, Harry got a smack on the arm from Ginny while they walked, taking in the destruction of the castle from the grounds.
Making their way into the Great Hall, Harry sat down at the senior end of the Gryffindor table where the other Weasleys and Hermione were already eating. Taking a seat beside Ron, Harry began to ladle beef casserole onto his and Ginny's plates before taking a moment to glance at the staff table where he noticed a large absence in the form of Hagrid.
"Reckon we need to visit Hagrid soon. He must have been horrified to have needed to carry my body" said Harry.
"Good point, we'll go see him after dinner" replied Ron, his mouth full of food. Hermione shot him a disgusted look before nodding at Harry. Ron returned her look with a sickeningly sweet smile.
Once Harry was done eating, the four of them stood up to go to Hagrid's but not before Ron said that he needed the lavatory, and asked Harry to go with him. Telling the girls they would catch up, they walked out of the Great Hall and towards the nearest bathroom. Harry suspected that his reason was not that he needed to empty his bladder, but that he wanted to talk to Harry alone.
Once they were inside, Harry asked "So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?".
"It's Ginny…" replied Ron but before he could go any further, Harry cut in and said "You don't need to worry. I love her and don't intend to hurt her. You have absolutely no reason to worry."
"Yeah but still, Bill and Charlie were interrogating me about why the two of you seemed so cosy, so I told them, and mom and dad just happened to overhear You'll be getting a talk from dad soon, so I just wanted to give you a heads up about it" replied Ron.
"Oh that's going to be weird. But since you warned me, let me warn you that once Hermione returns her parents from Australia, you'll be getting the talk from her dad as well. Also, if you do anything to hurt her, I'll hex you"
"You have no right to say that! Hermione's not your sister!" exclaimed Ron furiously.
"She might as well be. I told you before, I love her like a sister, nothing else, so keep that in mind. You don't want the wizard who defeated Voldemort on your bad side, do you" said Harry, trying hard to keep a straight face.
"Oh just stuff it" said Ron as he led Harry out and towards the grounds, but not before he had clouted him on the shoulder. Wincing slightly, Harry looked at Ron with a 'what was that for' look as Ron said "Not so high and mighty now are you?"
Laughing, Harry walked down the cliff to where the gamekeeper's hut now stood, although the pumpkin patch and grounds were now almost unrecognisable because of the battle. There the two boys saw their girls jumping and giggling while clapping their hands together, apparently engaging in some female ritual that Harry and Ron had not heard of.
"What are you two so happy about? And where's Hagrid?" asked Ron, exasperated before saying in an undertone to Harry "I'll never get girls".
While Harry smiled at that and leaned in to give Ginny a kiss, Hermione said to Ron with an accusing tone "I'll tell you if tell me what you and Harry were talking about in the bathroom. Seriously, you could not have chosen a more girly place to talk"
Ginny and Hermione both were a bit pink in the face, while Ron was stuttering while trying to reason with Hermione. But before Harry could say anything, they heard a familiar voice "Hello, yeh four. I wondered when I'd be seein' yeh. Nice to know yeh haven' forgotten 'bout me"
"We just wanted to see how you were doing after… well after Harry…" replied Hermione, not knowing what to say.
"No need ter worry' abou' meh. I'll be fine. Don't gemme' wrong, I was mighty scared when yeh came ou' of the fores' lookin' dead, but now tha' You-K… Voldemort's gone, I can rest easy" replied Hagrid, leading the way into his hut and setting out rock cakes which the four of them avoided.
"That's great to hear Hagrid. How's the reconstruction of the school comin' along?" asked Harry once they were all seated with steaming mugs of tea in their hands.
"It shouldn' be much of a problem, but it'll take time. Of course, I 'spect yeh lot will see it come September" said Hagrid, taking an enormous bite of his rock cake. However, he didn't see the guilty looks the four of them were sharing, as Hagrid had no idea that Harry and Ron were not coming back.
"Um, Hagrid, just so you know, Harry and Ron are not coming back next year. The Minister wants them to become Aurors to help track down the Death Eaters who escaped after the battle" said Ginny sheepishly. When she said that, Hagrid looked slightly crestfallen but perked up almost immediately before saying " Doesn' matter, I knew yeh two weren' gonna come back, but atleas' yeh girls will be 'ere to keep an ol' man company. And Harry! Ron! Goin' ter be Aurors! I couldn' be prouder of yeh two. And Harry, I imagine yeh mum and dad would be proud too"
"Thanks Hagrid, it means a lot coming from you. And take care of our girls for us, ok?" said Ron, casting a sidelong glance at Hermione and Ginny.
"No need ter worry. Although I reckon they won' be needin' takin' care of now that yeh two are gone".
"You're probably right, you know. Now that Harry's gone, the school will finally have some peace and quiet, and I can get on with studying without the two of you distracting me all the time" replied Hermione, trying to act stern but clearly failing.
"So I'm a distraction, Hermione?" said Ron, putting an arm around her shoulders and wiggling his eyebrows. Hermione went red at that and the whole hut seemed to be laughing.
All righ' yeh four. You should be goin' back now, or Molly will have me throat. Come an' visit in the summer if yeh have the time".
As Hagrid led the four of them out the door, Harry suddenly felt as though he owed a lot to Hagrid, as he had been the one to help him first settle into the wizarding world and given him the first photos of his parents. Not knowing what made him do it, he turned around and ran up to Hagrid to give him a hug. When in his embrace, Harry felt like a first year again, but safe in the arms of Hagrid.
"Thanks for everything Hagrid" said Harry into the huge coat.
Hagrid, who could never keep his emotions in check, was crying loudly and one could hardly hear him say "No problem Harry."
Once Harry had let go, Hagrid looked down on him fondly, ruffled his hair and Harry ran off to join Ginny, Ron and Hermione.
"What was that about" asked Ginny as the four of them walked back to the Great Hall.
"I dunno. I felt as if I owed him quite a lot you know. He was my first link to the wizarding world, and has been there ever since. I just tried to convey all that in the hug" replied Harry with a bit of a shrug.
"I reckon he got the message, judging by the crying" said Ron.
"You know Ron, you still have the emotional range of a teaspoon. We have to work on that" bantered Hermione.
"Can I have private lessons with you Ms Granger?" countered Ron, trying to get a reaction out of his new girlfriend.
"Of course you can." Replied Hermione, leaning in to kiss Ron on the cheek, leaving him temporarily speechless and very red.
As they made their way into the Great Hall they saw that everyone was assembled there, considering that Professor McGonagall was going to make some announcements as everybody was going to be leaving for their homes the next day.
Once she saw that they had taken their seats she stepped up to the podium and said "Good evening to all of you. As you know, most of you will be leaving Hogwarts tomorrow to go back to your respective homes and continue with your lives after the tumultuous events of the past few months. Therefore, I would like to make a few announcements with regard to the school. Firstly, as you all know, the Board of Governors has very kindly appointed me as Headmistress and I would know that we are once again in need of a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and Mr Bill Weasley has very kindly agreed to take up the post, at least for the next year. He will also be taking up my old post as Head of Gryffindor house." Hearing that, a huge round of applause went up around the Gryffindor table, and all the Weasleys stood up to give him their congratulations. Bill got a huge hug from Ginny, as she had always looked up to Bill.
Professor McGonagall continued, "Also, non- OWL and NEWT students will be allowed to take their exams in August, and exact dates will be sent to you along with your school letters. Unfortunately, OWL and NEWT students will have to retake their years, due to the intense workload. Last but not least, anyone who would like to help out with the reconstruction of the school are to see Professor Flitwick after this. I hope to see most of the students here back in September. I wish you all a good night"
At that, there was the huge scraping of chairs as everyone began to file out of the Great Hall and towards the dormitories. As Harry walked up the staircase in Gryffindor tower, he was looking forward to a new life starting tomorrow, and wondered what lay ahead for him after the summer. But for now, he was willing to stop worrying and start enjoying time at the Burrow with his favourite people in the world. The end of the war was indeed, the beginning of something wonderful in Harry Potter's life.