A/N: Ok... so sorry my chapters seem to be getting shorter... I promise to try to not let them get any worse than this. School is crazy, but all of your readership and support is very encouraging. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed! As I'm sure you can all tell, there are only a few more chapters of this left... so let's all hope it ends how I want it to -which is a way that I am inclined to think everyone reading will enjoy. Anyhow, no more of my nonsense. Onward!
This chapter has been edited and hopefully the mistakes have been fixed. Thanks to that loyal reviewer for pointing out my mistakes! :)
Harry and Hermione appeared in the Leaky Cauldron, startling the bartender, Tom.
"OH! Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, how good to see you! What can I get for you, anything?"
"Tom, I've asked you a million times: call me Harry. It's just Harry," Harry said, shaking his head at the man. Hermione smiled warmly at the exchange. So few people treated him like a normal person. He'd always been 'just Harry' to her.
"Yes, of course, Mr. Pot –Harry."
"And we're just headed to Diagon Alley, Tom" Hermione said, smiling at the man. He nodded vigorously and went back to wiping glasses with a dirty rag.
Hermione took Harry's hand and led him to the brick wall behind the pub. She tapped the appropriate bricks and the wall disintegrated, revealing an archway that led to Diagon Alley. Still hand and hand, they made their way up the winding street. Many shops had not reopened and those that had looked as if they could still use some repairs. Many people gaped and pointed at Harry and Hermione as they made their way; some went so far as to attempt to stop the pair and chat. They, to the best of their abilities, ignored the pointing and politely excused themselves from those who were bold enough to stop them. Finally, they arrived at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Luckily the shop wasn't too busy, and Ron spotted them almost immediately.
"Harry! Hermione!" He called as he made his way to them. They all smiled at one another, and Ron hugged Hermione warmly and half-hugged Harry in the way that men hug one another.
"Blimey Hermione, I didn't know you were back. When did you get back? You been hiding her from us, Harry?" Ron asked, smirking at Harry. Harry blushed lightly and shook his head but said nothing.
Mildly confused and wildly curious about the exchange, Hermione said, "I only got back yesterday…. Or early this morning, I guess. It was much too late to owl; Harry's not been hiding me away," she teased back, earning a deeper blush from Harry.
"Oh, well that's ok then," Ron replied, clapping Harry on the shoulder. "Let's go find George; I know he'd love to see you both."
The pair followed Ron, who nodded at the girl working at the register, to the back where George was tinkering with a small, heart-shaped object at a desk.
"Oy, George! Look who's here."
George turned in his seat, a smile forming upon seeing Harry and Hermione standing behind Ron.
"Harry!" he said, standing and moving to clap Harry on the shoulder. "Good to see you, mate. And when did you get back, Miss Granger?"
Hermione smiled as she hugged the tall redhead. "Just last night. I promise we couldn't have come any sooner," she said, glancing at Harry to see if he would blush again. Unfortunately for her he was looking away from her, inspecting rather interestedly an object on a table. Shaking her head slightly, she returned her attention to George and Ron.
"Well, we're glad you came here first," Ron said, seeming genuinely pleased. Her initial reaction to his happiness at seeing her (which was to always internally cringe because she knew he harbored a long-time crush on her and didn't want to lead him on –she was, after all, madly in love with Harry) was suppressed by his prior teasing of Harry for keeping her to himself. Instead, his excitement to see her made her realize that she'd missed him while she'd been away; he always seemed to lighten the mood.
"I knew you would be," Harry said, finally deciding he could join the conversation again.
"Well, not that you're here why don't I show you all the latest products?" George said, standing and walking towards the front of the shop.
After giving Harry and Hermione a tour of the new products out for sale, they returned to the back of the store where George showed off the items he was working on. There were a few items he was making in collaboration with the Ministry, an attempt at a new creature similar to a Pygmy Puff ("Since that one was such a hit with the little ladies"), a whoopee cushion that glued itself to the sitter's butt and continued to emit a foul odor for an hour, and several other items sure to make parents and teachers everywhere cringe.
Harry found himself chuckling several times at Hermione's tsks of disapproval until she realized he was chuckling at her and elbowed him in the side, a smug smile on her face. Once everything had been shown and demonstrated or explained, the four sat in the back of the shop chatting pleasantly until Ron's stomach growled loudly.
"Hungry, Ronald?"
"He's always hungry," Harry said, not allowing Ron a chance to answer.
"Go on then, you three go get some lunch. It's not too busy around here just now, anyway," George said, moving back to his workbench. With a chorused "thanks" from the trio, they exited the front of the shop and made their way back to the Leaky Couldron for lunch.
"So, you know mum is going to want you over for dinner as soon as she hears you're back… probably tonight," Ron said, leaning back and sipping his butterbeer.
"I figured as much. I do think I'd like to go home for a bit before heading to the Burrow, though. I didn't have much with me, but I would like to unpack and write to mum and dad to let them know I'm back safely."
"When are you going to tell us the whole story about your parents, again?"
"Ronald! I told you I'd explain to everyone at dinner tonight. It took me hours to tell Harry last night, and I don't fancy repeating it more than necessary," she replied, shaking her head at him.
"All right, all right. I'm just curious, is all."
"I know, it's just better this way. Do you think you're ready to head back, Harry?" she asked, turning her attention to her other best friend. "We didn't get much sleep, and I think I might fancy a nap before I start unpacking and doing all of that."
"Yeah, ready when you are," he said. When he glanced at Ron, Hermione noticed, Harry got a peculiar look on his face and blushed again. She turned her attention to Ron but he'd stopped whatever he'd been doing. Her interest piqued again at what had transpired between the two while she'd been gone, she made a mental note to ask Harry about it later.
"Ok. We'll see you at the Burrow tonight, Ron? Around six?"
The ginger just nodded in reply before standing and hugging them both. They said their farewells, and Ron watched as Harry took Hermione's hand and disapparated then back to Grimmauld.