A/N : To all you lovely people who are following and enjoying this story, you have my thanks, this chapter must have a special mention to Salce, who gave me the platform I needed to write this chapter, either on purpose or by accident.

Also there is a little bit of swearing, I set the rating as 'M' mainly to cover my own ass, but I do like a bit of a swear, and I think it's pretty tame, but you have been warned.

I own nothing, I've not made any money, It's for the sheer joy of it, and for the people who read the first chapter and thought they'd stick around and see how it pans out. Keep reading, please review, PM, anything you like, ultimately, you keep this going.

Enough of the soppy stuff and onwards with Chapter 7. (an updated chapter 7)

Chapter Seven

Getting out of bed was an unpleasant experience most mornings, but getting out of the bed he was sharing with Narcissa was a cruel and unusual punishment, he glanced over at her sleeping form, a rookie mistake, Harry wanted nothing more than to slip back into bed but he had things to do, he settled for kissing her lightly on her shoulder, covering her back up as he straightened the duvet, he crossed the room to the chair, pulled on a pair of faded blue jeans, a crisp white t-shirt and a charcoal coloured shirt, he then hunted for some socks, and a pair of trainers.

In the dimly lit kitchen he foraged for something resembling breakfast, settling for toast and a cup of tea, Harry didn't like to call on Kreacher for every tiny thing, he was fighting a losing battle against bone idle laziness, he already apparated everywhere, or used the floo network. Fed and watered, he grabbed a light jacket and headed out of the front door.

A lot of Harry's hot headedness had dissipated as he got older, but today it was back with a vengeance, it was much earlier than he first thought and cursed himself for not having the good sense to look at a clock before leaving, he didn't want to go back inside, the temptation to go back to bed would be impossible to ignore. There must be somewhere he could go, but who would be awake, a thought popped into his head and a smile crept onto his face, he pulled up the image and vanished.

Harry found himself standing on a street corner in an attractive suburb, the house opposite looked like a picture postcard, the trellis over the gate was covered in a decorative creeping plant, Virginia creeper covered over half of the house, the garden looked wild but not untidy, he crossed the road and let himself through the gate, a light burned brightly in the kitchen, he followed the path to the stable style back door and knocked loudly.

A shockingly familiar face greeted him as the door was opened, he swallowed hard, taking in the look of the woman, soft friendly eyes, much lighter hair, cascading curls, and a smile, genuine and warm, nothing like the hard sneer of her sister, Andromeda Tonks overcame her initial shock, pulled a startled Harry into a hug and ushered him through into the cosy kitchen.

"Good morning stranger, what brings you here?"

"I thought I was long overdue a visit, I set out earlier than I intended and knew you'd be up"

"I honestly can't remember what having a lie in is like, tea?"

"Yes please, how's Ted?"

"Oh, you know, into everything, more energy than you could possibly imagine, infinitely curious, he asks about Dora and Remus all the time, he can change his appearance just like Dora, but he wants to be a wolf like his dad, he makes his hair like a wolf's coat and howls a lot, it's wearing thin, but he's a child" Harry can tell she's loving every minute.

Right on cue, a small handsome little boy came barrelling into the kitchen on all fours and pounced at Harry, he scooped up the wolf boy with relative ease, and tickled him mercilessly, Teddy laughed until he squealed, the tickle attack ends and little arms hug Harry's neck tightly

"Hey Ted, I've missed you little man, sorry for the tickles, but I thought I had to defend myself against a wild wolf attack" the little boy looked delighted

"It was just me, but I fooled you Harry"

"You sure did, are you being good for your Grandma?"

"Most of the time" he must have got that mischievous look from his mother

"I'm too young to be a Grandma" Andromeda grumbled as she handed Harry a steaming cup of tea

Teddy wriggled his way back to the floor and bounded off into the house somewhere.

"You look distracted Harry, is everything ok?"

"Yeah, well, no, not really" he took a slow sip of his tea "it's over between Ginny and me"

"I wasn't expecting that, I'm sorry to hear that Harry but how come?

"Many reasons, we married too young, I just don't love her that way any more, we hardly see each other because she's away playing Quidditch, the list goes on and on"

"Have you told anyone else?"

"No, only you, and I hadn't even planned on doing that"

"I wish you luck, I'm sure everyone will understand"

"A wise man once said that sometimes you have to choose between what's right and what's easy, I chose easy, I felt it was expected of me, but now I need to do what is right"

Andromeda placed her cup on the side and hugged the young man. They spent an enjoyable hour chatting and catching up, a quick look at the clock and Harry decided that it was time to leave

"You come back soon, you're always welcome, Teddy loves you, and I do miss adult conversation"

"Thanks for the tea, and I won't leave it so long next time"

Harry waved at the woman stood in the doorway until she was obscured from view, he thought about the house he shared with Ginny and vanished again. It was a handsome looking single storey building, with a nice garden, set right on the outskirts of a sleepy muggle town, high hedges surrounded it on all sides, providing complete privacy, it was one of the reasons they had bought it in the first place.

Stepping into the hallway the house seemed empty, his suspicions were confirmed when he checked the bedroom, the bed didn't even looked like it had been slept in, he pulled some suitcases from under the bed and filled them with all of his clothes, a few personal items got thrown on top and that was the bedroom cleared, he dragged the cases out into the hallway.

Pictures lined the wall, Harry and Ginny smiled out from most of them, their wedding day, holidays, family ones, well her family, he should've felt devastated but didn't, the weight he imagined carrying seemed to be lessening, and he was feeling lighter all the time. His gaze fell upon his favourite picture, Himself, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Luna and Neville smiled down on him, he removed it from it's hook and stowed it in the nearest suitcase.

The living room was spacious, there wasn't anything in here that he felt inclined to take, moving to a side room, he entered his study, his old school trunk sat in the corner, with a few flicks of his wand the room's contents were neatly packed into the trunk, it was mostly paperwork, newspaper cuttings, odds and ends he'd collected over the years, satisfied, he dragged the trunk to the hallway. For a split second he considered leaving a note and just going, he decided that was unacceptable behaviour and that Ginny deserved better, and as a proud Gryffindor he should be better, he headed into the kitchen to make a drink.

The kettle whistled a shrill note, boiling water was poured into a cup, the clink of the spoon was the only sound, the front door opened and closed, he heard footsteps stop abruptly in the hall, Harry's heart jumped to his throat, a few moments later, the footsteps resumed and Ginny stepped into the kitchen, they managed to smile weakly at each other, struck by an overwhelming need to busy himself, Harry made her a coffee and set the cup on the side, this part of the kitchen had a raised counter with tall stools, he sat himself on one and she did the same.

"I hoped this day would never come" Harry was so glad she spoke first, she held her mug in both hands and stared into the black liquid

"Me too, I'm so sorry Gin"

"I know, we married far too young, it worked for mum and dad, and I hoped that it would be the same for us, maybe if we hadn't rushed, things would have been different"

"Maybe, I've been telling myself for months that it was just a rocky patch"

"Does it have anything to do with Narcissa Black?" the question shocked Harry, he just sat, dumbfounded "Well?"

"Yes, in a way, among other things" he couldn't bring himself to meet the red head's eyes

"That night in the Forbidden Forest, you never told anyone about it, but she knows?"

"Yes"

"Why her? What the fuck makes her so damn special?"

"It's not like that, she made it possible to defeat Voldemort, without her intervention I would have died right there in that clearing" the anger slowly faded from Ginny's face.

"I wish you could have opened up about it to me" she sounded completely dejected

"I'm sorry, I can't, I couldn't"

She closed the space between them and hugged him, after a time, he awkwardly hugged her back, it was done, they both knew it was over, the relief he felt was tangible.

"You can keep this place" she looked up, surprised

"Really?"

"Yes, I insist, it's the least I can do, I'll deal with the rest, if that's ok" he couldn't bring himself to say divorce

"I'll do what needs to be done, I won't fight you, you've had your fair share of hardships, I couldn't add to that"

"I'm grateful, I'll send Kreacher for my things, bye Ginny, Sorry"

She didn't cry, and nor did he, her strength always impressed him, he looked back at her one last time before stepping outside, Harry apparated blind and found himself outside the Leaky Cauldron, it was clear that his mind had a plan for him. He stepped inside the familiar building, he's greeted immediately by Tom, the toothless barman, all drinks ordered by the Golden Trio were free while he drew breath, that's what he had said the first time he'd seen them after the war, Harry declined the offered drink, it was still far too early for that, although his nerves were screaming for a little something to take the edge off.

Out in the back, he tapped the bricks in the small courtyard and the archway to Diagon Alley formed, and he proceeded through and onto the familiar cobbles, Florean Fortescue refused to let him past without trying his latest creation, how could anyone turn down free ice cream? As usual it's sublime, the man truly was a genius.

He was tempted to pop in and see Ollivander, but not today, a trip to Gringotts was also on the cards, that would not be a happy event, though largely forgiven, there was a distinct atmosphere whenever he set foot into the place. Constantly being patted on the back and congratulated as he travelled towards his destination was starting to wear thin, at last he made it to his destination and practically fell into the Weasley joke shop, the place was heaving with customers.

Harry can't help browsing, winding his way to the back of the shop, a tall, gangly man, with ginger hair had his back to him, in a loud, fake posh accent, he called out to his friend.

"What in the name of Merlin's baggy underpants, do you have to do to get service around here?"

"Listen here you jumped up little git, you'll get thrown out with that attitude" the reaction from Ron upon spotting Harry was epic, he tripped over a stepping stool and pulled several shelves of goods down on him in the process.

The swearing got louder as Harry magically repaired Ron's handiwork. With a face as red as his hair, Ron emerged, he flicked Harry an incredibly rude hand gesture then motioned for him to follow, before he stepped into the office he yelled an order for someone to mind the shop, Harry assumed there were others working and his best friend hadn't just left the place to be run by the customers.

The office was nice and cosy, it contained a desk and a few comfy chairs, a drink was thrust into Harry's hand before he could mount a protest, he shrugged slightly and took a sip, he figured that the sun must be over the yardarm somewhere in the world.

"So what I have I done to deserve this unexpected pleasure, mate?"

"I was in the area and thought I'd drop in"

"Bollocks, I know you better than that, you always let me know when you're about"

"It's over, Me and Ginny I mean" he just blurted it out, his mate was stunned but quickly recovered

"Oh bloody hell Harry, I'm sorry, was it the uncontrolled magic thing? Mum and dad don't blame you, Ginny never blamed you either"

Ron had changed so much since school, there was a time when he would have been the last person Harry confided in, he still expected the old Ron to resurface, she was his sister after all, but instead Harry was just faced with Ron, his best friend, and that was a blessed relief

"It was a lot of things Ron, too young, too busy in our own lives, we just drifted apart"

Ron laid a big hand on Harry's shoulder and turned it into an awkward manly hug, he didn't mind.

"How about we go and visit mum and dad, they will understand mate, mum will probably blame herself for piling on the pressure, you'll be hugged to within an inch of your life, she'll notice that you're still a scrawny little git and force about three meals down you, but it's best not to dwell, and they'd appreciate hearing it from you"

"Ok, let's do it"

"Meet me outside, I need to make sure there's someone in charge before I head off"

Ten minutes later, the two men stood on a tall hill looking out over the small magical community of Ottery St Catchpole, the Burrow was clearly visible, they were barely through the gate when the instantly recognisable form of Molly Weasley came marching out to greet them, Ron's muffled 'Gerroff mum' made Harry chuckle, it was just like old times. Soon enough he found himself pulled into a similar embrace, the closest thing he ever had to family, he really hoped they took the news as well as Ginny and Ron had.

Inside the house he shook hands with Arthur while Molly made herself busy in the kitchen. The men moved into the living room, Molly bustled in with a big tray of drinks and biscuits.

"What brings you both here today?"

"Harry's got a bit of bad news, wanted to tell you himself" Harry cringed, that was more like the old Ron, complete with crumbs flying from his mouth as he spoke

"Yes, I thought you'd want to hear it from me, Ginny and I, well, we, it's over, I'm sorry"

The silence was deafening, he didn't dare to look at the faces of the people around him, Mr Weasley coughed but didn't say anything, Harry could feel his face becoming very warm, and before he realised what was happening Mrs Weasley had him in a bone crushing hug.

"Of course I blame myself, dear, Arthur and I, we married almost straight out of Hogwarts, I feel dreadful, all that pressure I must've placed on you, war forced you to be adults, but you were both still so young, I shouldn't have rushed you"

This went on for quite some time, Harry's heart swelled for this utterly amazing family, he saw Arthur rolling his eyes at his wife, suggesting she let the boy breathe.

"Thank you both for understanding"

"You're a good boy Harry, a fine man, you've done so much for our family, we'd never bear any ill will towards you, these things happen"

"Thank you Mr Weasley, you've no idea how much that means to me"

"Of course you'll stay for lunch, you're looking awfully thin Harry, are you eating well?"

"Yes Mrs Weasley, Kreacher makes sure I remember to eat"

Lunch was fantastic, it reminded Harry of the time before Voldemort's second rise to power, before the loss of so many people, he glanced over at the wonderful clock, Fred's hand still pointed out at nothing, the only other change to the clock face was the removal of 'mortal peril' label, it was either a sign that peace was here to stay for good, or that during the war it was constantly occupied, and no one needed to be reminded of that.

Feeling way too full, Harry said his goodbyes and got ready to leave, Ron protested but to no avail, Hermione was the last person he needed to visit today and he already felt awful that she would be the last to know, he contemplated sweetening the deal by telling her something the others didn't know, but he wasn't sure how ready or willing he was to share his secrets.

By the time Harry reached the top of the hill, sweat was running down his face, salt burnt his eyes, he sat down heavily on the tufty grass, catching his breath and mopping the sweat from his face, when he had cooled down, he stood and apparated to Hogsmeade.

The town had hardly changed, it was mostly untouched during the battle for Hogwarts, Zonko's was now the Hogsmeade branch of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, and their stock list probably doubled as the list of forbidden items that Filch had pinned to the wall in his office. The town was moderately busy, a few students were wandering around, a few of the more observant ones nudged their friends and pointed at Harry as he walked towards the castle.

Passing through the gates and protective barriers without incident surprised the young man, there was a figure coming out of the main doors and down the steps to meet him, that told him that they were at least aware someone had entered the grounds. As they got closer, he noticed the way they were dressed, the way they moved, it could only be Minerva McGonagall.

"Potter, to what do we owe this pleasure?"

"Hello Professor, you're looking well, I've come to see Hermione"

"Of course, I take it you know the way?"

"I hope so, it's been a while since I had to attend Transfiguration class, I think I was only late once and that was in my first year"

The old witch's mouth curled up at the corners, she left him at the main staircase and went off on her way. Harry walked familiar halls, lost in memories, occasionally dragged back into the now by a surprised pupil, the famous Harry Potter had returned to Hogwarts, he chuckled to himself. Eventually he stopped outside a classroom, memories rushed back to him, he smiled at nothing in particular and banged on the door. He heard boots stomp across the floor, the door was wrenched open with so much force he was amazed it still hung on its hinges, a very irate and bushy haired woman stared at the person who dared disturb her, and then he was being squeezed to death once more and suffocating in wild brunette curls.

"Please let me breathe, between you and Mrs Weasley I may be the first person to be hugged to death" she looked a little sheepish as she released him and stepped back, he straightened his glasses

"Harry, sorry, I was busy, you know how I hate interruptions, this is most welcome, please come in"

The room had barely changed, apart from an impressive number of bookshelves, it looked to Harry as if Hermione had relocated the entire school library.

"How have you been Hermione?"

"Great, I mean, McGonagall has left some pretty impressive boots to fill, and I'm head of Gryffindor, it's a lot to live up to"

"You could do it in your sleep" she blushed and waved a hand, dismissing his compliment

"So, what brings you here?"

"I just had lunch with the Weasleys and thought I'd come see how you are"

"I've known you for years Harry, you didn't come here for a social visit"

"Do I have something written on my face? Everyone has said something similar to me today"

"We just know you, who else have you seen today?"

"Andromeda and Teddy, Ginny, Ron, Mr and Mrs Weasley and you"

"I'm glad you remembered me" she shoved him playfully, he smiled at her, the brains of the Trio, Harry knew he'd have died a long time ago without her "you see Ginny all the time though, why did you need a special trip to see her" her eyes widen as the puzzle pieces slot into place.

Once again Harry was trapped in a hug, trust Hermione to work it out in no time at all, he let her get on with it and wondered if it was too soon to tell her about Narcissa, although, if anyone could deal with that little nugget of information, it would be the woman in front of him, maybe he could tell her about the events in the Forbidden Forest, once she knew that Narcissa was his saviour, would she make the connection, he was lost in thought until he heard his name called, the hug had ended.

"So why, what happened, are you ok, how's Ginny, does Ron and his parents know?"

"Hermione, slow down" she smiled apologetically and mimed zipping her mouth

"It was a long time coming, I didn't love her any more, Ginny took it better than expected as did Ron and his parents, you reacted as expected" he smiled at her, she wrinkled her nose at him

"How are the nightmares?"

"Still there, less frequent but much more vivid, How about you?"

"Occasionally they come back, I've made peace with most of it" Harry couldn't help notice her holding her arm, her hand covered the spot where Bellatrix's mark was, he made a mental note to ask Narcissa about it, every attempt to heal it had failed, it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"Where will you live?"

"12 Grimmauld Place, I let Ginny keep the house"

"That's nice, I know she loves that place, How are you coping?"

"It's not that bad, Walburga no longer screams at me, Kreacher is like a different elf and by degrees the house is looking good, I'll have to invite you and Ron round for dinner"

"I'd like that, I haven't been there since the day Yaxley followed us from the Ministry"

"You'll be pleased to know that I actually fend for myself and give Kreacher time off"

"I'm so proud of you"

"If anyone else said that, I'd swear they were making fun of me"

Hermione convinced Harry to stay for a while longer, her next class would be thrilled to meet the famous Harry Potter, Harry was not keen on the idea at all, but the young witch persevered, eventually changing tactics and whining the word please, followed by a generous helping of emotional blackmail.

He finally agreed, his resistance was expected, he despised being in the spot light, but there was no way he would actually let Hermione down. The students filed in, the busy chatter stopped almost immediately, replaced by whispering and furtive glances.

Harry had never seen Hermione in teacher mode, she effortlessly channelled her inner McGonagall, and he doubted the class would ever dare step out of line. Once allotted their tasks for the lesson a few of the braver ones asked him to sign pieces of parchment and the occasional book, some just wanted to talk, all in all it wasn't nearly as bad as he first imagined, in fact he quite enjoyed himself, they were a polite bunch, he almost wished he'd put in an application for the Defence Against the Dark Arts job.

With class over, the two friends chatted easily, Harry talked about his plans for Grimmauld place and Hermione talked about school, it was fast approaching dinner time, the great hall would be filling up.

"Why not stay? I'm sure we could find you a room"

"There's no need, I'll just floo home"

"Do you have to work?"

"No"

"Then stay, Neville would love to see you"

She wouldn't give up, she was like a dog with a bone, Harry was feeling fatigued after a long day, he was desperately grasping for a cast iron excuse

"I can't Hermione, Narcissa is coming round later"

The words had left his mouth before his brain could stop it, shit!