Written In The Body
Poetheather
A/N: Sorry this has taken so long everyone. Between mental and physical health issues there was an unfortunate delay in writing and posting of the story. Needless to say it had to be pretty bad for me to go this long without posting anything. I can share details if you really want but most people don't really care so on to the story.
Still not JKR.
Forty-Nine
Hermione looked into the mirror and adjusted her tie yet again, trying to get it absolutely straight. She had done the best she could with her hair, makeup and jewelry and now she was hoping that she actually looked good. She was no Lavender Brown or Parvati Patil but she had paid some attention to their conversations on makeup. It was the last day of school; in fact right after breakfast they would be catching the Hogwarts Express as students for the last time. For some reason, she actually wanted to look good for this, to represent the school and position of Head Girl well for her last time. It meant something to her.
She frowned at the image. Something was wrong but she couldn't figure out what. The mirror was no help, especially as she had blocked that feature since what it had to say generally annoyed her. Ginny came up behind her, wrapping her arms about Hermione's middle and kissed her on the cheek. "You look beautiful love, stop fidgeting with that. There is nothing else you need to do in order to look perfect. You look amazing, better than this school deserves. Now, let's go. We need to head downstairs and get this show on the road."
With a bit of a nervous smile Hermione turned away from the mirror, her eyes full of gratefulness at her love's words. She felt a bit calmer, more grounded all due to a few words soothing her agitated nerves. She could do this. "Thanks Gin."
They both looked around the room they had shared for the year for one last time. Everything was already packed away, all their things loaded, and their trunks were already downstairs with the others, waiting to be taken and loaded onto the train. Topsy had taken them down after they had gotten out of their bath and grabbed their clothes for the day. They had hugged the House Elf goodbye and Topsy blushed and stammered her own goodbyes before Hermione started trying to finish up her primping. There were so many memories in here, so many good and bad things, and so much happiness. How could a simple glance take all that in and hold it tight forever? She sighed heavily, a lot of what she was feeling layered in the sound.
Ginny hugged her from behind again, wrapping her arms about Hermione's waist. Her head was alongside hers when she said softly, "I know love, but you knew that this was going to end as well as I did."
Hermione nodded slightly, her voice thick with emotion as she replied, "Yeah, but I didn't think it would be so difficult to say goodbye to our room. We went from girlfriends to fiancées in this room. This is where we first lived together. Our lives changed here so much."
After a bit of silence, Ginny said, "I know love, but while things may have changed here we can only go forward. Come on," and with that she took her hand, pulling her slightly towards the door. The two of them headed down from the Head Girl room, with Hermione taking one last moment to run her hand over the lion lovingly, remembering so much, a smile playing gently at the thought of her password and how that in a way made her feel closer to Luna. The feel of Ginny's Quidditch calloused hand in hers helped keep her calm and focused on the here and now instead of getting lost in memories or maudlin thoughts. It was so easy for her to want to freak out over all of this and over the weight of the past that was pressing down on her. They were graduates of Hogwarts, finally, and she had no idea how she had done on her NEWTs which made her a touch crazy. She knew how she had done in her classes but those tests determined a great deal about what she could do in the future. Having those results hanging over head like the sword of Damocles really drove home that life really started once they got home and had to face the rest of their lives apart from school.
Squeezing her hand, Ginny turned to her slightly, looking over her shoulder and up the stairs, commenting, "Stop fretting Kitten. Look, everything will be alright love. Trust me. Honestly 'mione sometimes you are so silly."
Blushing slightly, she said, "Sorry. I just… it's just, there are so many important things we have to decide soon, about so many important things, and I know how easy it is to make mistakes, especially on the NEWTs."
"Yes love I know and we'll be fine. Besides how many people in the school know how often you make mistakes of the magnitude needed for you to have failed so epically huge that we won't be able to manage to work things out? None, because nothing of that kind has ever happened and I doubt it ever will. You are always so careful and think things through so much that there really isn't any room for failure." The grin Ginny was wearing was filled with amusement.
Hermione rolled her eyes as she nudged her love as they reached the Common Room, making Ginny giggle a little at her. Lucy looked over at the sound from where she was sitting with a few of her friends and talking near the fire. She stood up and came over to stand by them bouncing a little on the balls of her feet. "Are we heading downstairs?"
"Yeah Mini-Me," teased Hermione. Since the start of the New Year, when everything had changed and Lucy had appeared, she had started acting even more like her big sister than she had been doing previously, which was saying something. Lucy seemed to enjoy the nickname, only smiling in response most of the time, so Hermione was happy to use it. Her sister really was good bit like her, in the way she acted more than anything else, and it was kind of adorable. Surely she had never been that cute while she had been studying. Ginny might disagree but she pretty much expected that.
Shaking her head in amusement at the new siblings as they walked, Ginny lead the way out of the Common Room. They waved goodbye to the Fat Lady before Ginny asked, "So who do you think is going to complain about things first, my family or yours?"
"My guess is that your Mum will not be pleased with us staying with my parents over the summer and will say something about it pretty fast," guessed Hermione. "My folks don't have much to complain about at the moment. After we have been there a while that might change. Your Mum wants everybody to be at her house in one big happy Weasley family."
"Okay… I can see that happening," said Ginny with a slight chuckle. "That is so like her that there is little doubt that's how it's going to play out. We don't get to see them enough."
"You know that will change soon," commented Hermione, pointing out the obvious.
"Yeah. True enough. Oh, I guess we need to find a place near where you are planning to go to school that has a good floo connection to Holyhead if I get picked up by them," mused Ginny thoughtfully.
"I love that you're going to be a professional Quidditch player," commented Lucy, throwing her two knuts into the conversation. "You are just so good it's not a surprise."
"It's not a guarantee that I'll get picked up Lucy," replied Ginny. "I still have to try out and hopefully impress them with how I do. Professional Quidditch is not the same as School Quidditch."
Hermione rolled her eyes in exasperation. Sometimes Ginny's lack of belief in herself rivaled her own and it was frustrating to deal with. Was this how Ginny felt in dealing with her and her own insecurities? Perhaps she should apologize to her later for making her love put up with her acting like that. "Ginny, you're the best player in your year, the closest person in flying ability to you in the previous few years is Harry and he has no intention to play. Face it love, right now you are probably the best flyer of your age group there is. They would be fools not to snatch you up when they had a chance. I'm just surprised other teams haven't tried to swoop in and steal you."
"Well, I guess I can agree with you." Ginny smiled happily. "And I have heard from other teams but who cares when compared with the chance to play with the Harpies?"
Hermione rolled her eyes upward in amusement. This was taking her mind off leaving but did Ginny have to be such a prat in doing so? Not telling her something that important? She kind of wanted to swat her but before thought turned to action a voice broke in, aborting that plan. "Miss Granger?"
Turning, Hermione spotted Professor Cottington heading towards her, striding purposefully in that way of hers. She raised an eyebrow as she looked from Ginny back towards her. "Yes Professor?"
"A moment of your time please." Professor Cottington asked politely once she was closer.
"Certainly Professor. Gin, could you make me a plate when I'm gone?" asked Hermione sweetly.
"No problem love." Ginny kissed her on the cheek and turned away before Hermione headed off towards their Head of House.
"Yes Professor?" Hermione was curious as to what she might want as she walked up to the former Auror. To Hermione's knowledge she had done everything she was supposed to do except for the last duties with the train, so she was at a loss as for what she might want from her. She stood in front of her waiting.
"I just wanted to say my goodbyes to you personally. It was a privilege having you in class this year. You certainly helped me push my teaching and I appreciated that. I may know the subject but I was far more used to teaching recruits rather than students. And on top of all of that, you were an excellent Head Girl who helped all the Perfects do their jobs well." This was all said with a smile.
"Thank you Professor." Hermione blushed a little, still a bit uncomfortable with the praise. She had grown to like their new Head of House quite well over the year and it made her feel good to hear this. Getting praised for doing what she had considered to be her job was a bit strange but she did her best to roll with it.
"Octavia please. Once you leave here we are effectively peers and we might as well start acting like that now, since you are already graduated and a train ride away from no longer being a student. I also want to say that it was lovely getting to know you and Ginny as well. The both of you make a wonderful couple." Octavia seemed a touch amused at her reaction.
Hermione was not as uncomfortable with this notion as she thought she might. Calling a teacher she barely knew by her first name might not be a struggle. Certainly it would be different with the Headmistress which was something she was a touch afraid of. "Same here Octavia. We both really enjoyed getting to know you. Our chats were enjoyable. They were always interesting, on the whole."
"You take care of yourself and your fiancée. She is a handful and I certainly don't pity you that task. Also let her know that I wish her luck at the training camp. Gwenog promised that she was going to treat her just like everyone else."
"Wait, you got her onto the Harpies?" Hermione stared at Octavia as if she had just grown a second head.
The DADA Professor just chuckled and said, "Hardly. Gwenog and I have been close for a while and when I mentioned that she absolutely had to see Ginny play she came to watch a match. And Ginny had to go and get herself seriously hurt before Gwenog could talk to her. She decided to see if she could bounce back from that injury before offering this to her and obviously Ginny did her usual great job. It was all Ginny. I just got Gwenog here."
Hermione beamed at her, "Thank you for that. You really have made her dreams come true. The Harpies are her favorite team and she adores Gwenog Jones."
"Not a problem Hermione. It was my distinct pleasure. Taking care of my students is like taking care of my Aurors, only with more hugging. And do remember that I am always here if you need some assistance or you just want to talk." Octavia then hugged Hermione. "Be well Hermione."
Hermione waved at her and walked off, a touch dazed by what she had learned. That was wonderful and had been just what Ginny had needed. If only Slugworth had used his connections for that instead. That was fine because he had given her a letter of introduction to the head of the program she wanted to start, so he wasn't completely useless. Between his, Flitwick's and McGonagall's she should be just fine. She headed towards the Great Hall for her last meal at Hogwarts, at least for the foreseeable future letting her thoughts try to drift away. Even if she intended on returning to teach it wasn't going to be a quick return to the school as she had several things she had to accomplish first. Ginny was at their usual spot at the end of the Gryffindor table with Luna and Lucy and they were eating and chatting away quite happily. The redhead spotted her heading in and grinned at her, her face filling with joy. This made Hermione overjoyed, to see such clear signs of love from her Vixen. It warmed her heart, widening her own smile. Her love had already prepared her a plate and even made her a cup of tea. She passed them over as she asked, "Anything important love?"
Hermione shook her head as she turned to her meal, determined to keep some things a secret for a while. "No, she just wanted to say goodbye and to remind me that we can call on her whenever we wanted."
"That might be fun," pondered Ginny. "Having tea with her was always pretty interesting. I did like her idea of House check in's with the Prefects and me just to see how everything was going. I think it helped pull us together as a House even more."
"We'll have to do that after things settle down, see her for tea," said Hermione, taking another sip of her tea and enjoying the flavor. Ginny got the right balance of honey and milk making the cup practically perfect.
"Sounds good to me. That really would be a lot of fun. Also, I am so glad McGonagall said all those nice things about you last night at the leaving feast. You deserved them, everyone. To think you made it through this school with the best grades overall in the history of Hogwarts, even with Snape going after you, well done. I really am proud of you Kitten. You're just amazing."
Hermione cheeks colored some. More praise. It really wasn't all that easy to deal with but she knew that Ginny meant it sincerely. She was not a fan of having her cheeks heat up like that but what could she do? "Thanks."
She focused on her meal, savoring the food, even though it was simple breakfast food. This time she had no need to rush as Cameron was the one heading down to the train and she would follow behind after all the students were out of the school, making sure everyone was on their way to the train. Leaving people at school was not going to be workable over the summer after all, since there was still apparently work to be done in a few places. Besides, from what she knew there was no one in the school at the moment who might need to stay as Harry wasn't here and it had been a while since Tom Riddle had been here as well. There were no orphans that had nowhere good to go that she knew of currently, or at least no one had told her of any.
Once they were done eating Hermione hugged Luna and Lucy and kissed Ginny before the three of them left. She knew it wouldn't be long but parting for any reason was a great excuse to kiss her hot redhead so she was good with it, knowing that it might make some people jealous which she was okay with. Those three joined the stream of students headed out of the school and to the carriages, Lucy waving at her briefly. Hermione stood in the entrance way and did her job, solving the occasional issue that some of the students had, most often Firsties or Second years, but primarily she waited for everyone to finish eating breakfast or just too simply get out here. There was still time until the train was scheduled to leave but she wanted to get back to Ginny sooner rather than later. A voice cleared behind her and she turned.
The Headmistress was standing there with a smile on her face, her hands clasped in front of her. "I'm not sure I said it before but thank you for returning Hermione, the school was much livelier with you here than not. And I was so very proud that you finished your education with such flair and that you did so well with your classes overall."
With reddening cheeks, Hermione replied, "Well, I didn't want to leave things undone. I really hate that. And this school has been such an important part of my life that is it any wonder that I wanted to return for my last year? It was like coming home for just a little bit longer before you set out into the wide world."
"I understand and it's little wonder. You have done some wonderful things while you have been a student here Hermione, and I do hope you seriously consider the idea of returning at some point to join the staff. You would be an amazing asset wherever you worked but I still believe that writing and teaching are where you would most thrive, find your greatest enjoyment." Minerva looked at her fondly. "Besides, on top of everything else you have a rare skill that it would be a shame to see stifled in any other setting, such as the Ministry."
Hermione was a bit confused at that. She had no idea what McGonagall was talking about? She was aware of her knowledge and was at a loss. "Which skill would that be?"
"Your pranking abilities. I must say they are on par if not a touch better than the Marauders or the twins, but as I gather you learned from them both is it any wonder you had such skill. But you do have a lovely flair with your pranks that really gets people thinking as well as laughing." The grin that the Headmistress gave her was very feline; the kind a cat might give a trapped mouse.
Swallowing nervously, feeling very much like said trapped mouse, Hermione asked tentatively, "How long have you know?"
"Oh, almost since the beginning actually. It took me a short while to figure it out, no more than a few weeks, but there were a number of clues that did point in your direction. Between you not walking patrols but still doing so well at keeping the halls safe and secure, which was something James and Lily were notorious for I might add, and some of the nuances of the pranks pulled which seemed to have a bit of your touch for magic. Once I put these facets of the problem together it could only be you who was behind it or one of the others in your coterie. Besides, who else in this school had the sheer magical talent and knowledge to do some of the things you achieved." She actually sounded amused and proud which did not help with the flush of embarrassment that burned Hermione's cheeks. The Head Girl was a bit mortified at what the Headmistress had said and kept saying, "Besides, you reminded me of better times and happier days with these. The pranks were all playful and clever, so how could I really be angry? And from what my Heads of Houses told me, they were actually amusing the students and seemed to be drawing them together. What could I do to you since that was the case, seeing as that was one of my goals?" explained Minerva patiently, obviously enjoying Hermione's discomfort.
"I didn't want to upset you." It was difficult to look up and meet the Headmistress's eyes, so was so embarrassed. She had meant to have fun with her pranking but there was of course the secondary effect of disrupting the school to a degree. Of course the Headmistress would be upset with her over that.
"And you didn't. Your pranks were certainly geared to being more playful than harmful. Albus loved these and Severus found some of them rather amusing as well when he heard about them, so you clearly did quite well with them. No, I am not angry with you at all Hermione, on the contrary. I think your pranks helped break the ice and allowed the students to get back to being kids again, to get away from the memories of war and death." McGonagall seemed amused with how worried Hermione was over all of this.
Hermione sighed in relief, feeling the tension that had been building release. She wasn't going to have her graduation pulled or anything and it was certainly a bit too late to expel her. She smiled a bit sheepishly, "That was my hope but I wasn't sure how it would go over with the staff."
"You did well." McGonagall reached out and patted her arm. "Now please tell me you will stay in touch while you are going after your Doctorate? I do want to keep track of one of my favorite students."
"Absolutely. I do like the idea of coming to work here so don't be surprised when that happens," replied Hermione, feeling that it wasn't that impossible of a dream anymore. She could probably pull this off. After all, the Professor she looked up to more than any other had faith in her so perhaps she should as well.
"I shan't dear girl." Minerva hugged her warmly and moved off.
Hermione was a bit surprised at the revelation but not too much now that she had a moment to think about it. She knew McGonagall was quite smart and thus was more than able to figure out whom was behind the pranks, proof was always the sticking point with this sort of thing and they had always been so very careful to avoid leaving any of that. At least she wasn't getting punished for them, which made her sigh in relief once again. As she looked around, it seemed as if the last few stragglers were making their way to the carriages and so she drifted outside to wait in the sun for her turn to ride down to the station, after it was obvious that there were no more students heading down. She blinked a few times at the brightness but then her eyes acclimated and she was fine. It really was a lovely day with only a few clouds in the sky and a light breeze.
While the last few students trundled up to the carriages, a few reminding her heavily of Ron, Madam Pomfrey came up to her, a friendly grin on her face. "Miss Granger, it was nice to work with you over this year but please take care of yourself now that you won't have we there to watch over you."
"Yes ma'am." Hermione could only snicker in agreement because she knew the Healer was being very sincere, if a touch funny.
"It is a good thing that your treatment is over but do take care. There will always be remnants of this with you through all your days, so problems might crop up now and again. Please watch out for yourself." She looked at Hermione with a great deal of concern.
"Thank you, Madam Pomfrey. You have taken great care of me." And it was nothing but the absolute truth. Madam Pomfrey had done an amazing job caring for her the entire time she had been at this school and deserved all the thanks she could manage. She needed to check to see if Harry had done anything to express his thanks to her, given that he had the unfortunate distinction of being the student in her ward more than anyone else.
"It was my pleasure Miss Granger. You take care and try to take care of Miss Weasley as well, won't you." Madam Pomfrey gave her a slight smirk before walking off.
Hermione shook her head in amusement and walked towards the carriages. She hadn't seen any more students for a few minutes so it was quite possible that it was time to go down to the station herself. She turned to face the school and looked at it, at what had been her home for so many years. So much of her life had happened here that it was rather amazing to think of it. This school had been central to her life for the last eight years and now she was leaving, perhaps not to see Hogwarts for a number of years to come. That notion made her rather sad as she had not been lying when she had said this school was like her home in a way. To know she wasn't going to be walking these halls anymore, that she wouldn't be seeing the Professors, having Topsy sit and talk with her for a while telling her about House Elves and life at Hogwarts, sitting in the Common Room watching the fire, trying to devour the library, it hurt. She wiped a few tears from the corners of her eyes and walked around the carriage, to the front, where she pet the thestral a few times. Luna had been correct; they were rather docile creatures once you got past their gaunt appearance. Heading back to the door of the carriage she looked at the great doors of the school one final time and her chest was tight and she could feel her lip quivering. This was not a goodbye she wanted to make. To not be returning here after the summer, that would take some getting used to. She smiled briefly, forcing it onto her face before she climbed into the carriage and closing the door.
The carriage lurched forward slightly as the thestral began to take her to the station and Hermione struggled to hold in her tears. It really did hurt to be leaving this place that had been so much more than a home to her over the years. She was glad she was alone because it would have been a touch embarrassing to have a few tears slide free, like they were doing, in front of someone she did not know. Having Ginny here would have been perfect but she knew she couldn't have everything. The further the carriage drew from the school, the more tears fell. The ride was both blissfully short and agonizingly long yet all too soon she was stopped at Hogsmeade station and the Hogswart Express. She wiped her eyes carefully and checked her face to make sure she didn't look like a raccoon thanks to smeared makeup. It was time.
With a final glance back towards the castle, she checked the platform and entered the train, moving towards the Prefect carriage with a focus. This would be her last time doing this and she was kind of nervous. The meeting was thankfully brief and the other Prefects all agreed that she and Cameron really did not need to do anything on the ride back to London unless there was an emergency. It was a goodbye gift from all of them. Both of them appreciated it and said their thanks. With that taken care of, Hermione headed down the train in search of her love.
Strangely enough they were not in a compartment at the very back of the train, but rather towards the middle. This was an interesting development but she did appreciate the shorter walk, as it also meant she got to see Ginny sooner. Her emotions and thoughts were still a bit jumbled when Hermione slid the door open and walked in. Luna glanced up at her from an old copy of the Quibbler and frowned. Hermione quirked an eyebrow at this and asked from the doorway, "What?"
Luna spoke slowly, kind of like how a normal person might talk to another in the presence of a dangerous animal. "Ginny, I don't wish to alarm you, but your fiancée is in need of a treatment."
Before Hermione could say anything, Ginny bound to her feet, grabbed her, and kissed her soundly, turning her into a bit of a dip. The kiss made Hermione a touch light headed and she swooned ever so slightly thus she sort of fell into Ginny's lap when she was pulled gently down at the end. Luna grinned brightly and said approvingly, "Much better. The Wrackspurt infestation is gone."
Hermione stuck her tongue out in response to this as Lucy giggled. Giving her a questioning look, Hermione then asked, "Honestly Luna, did you really need to see me snogged?"
Luna looked up at her innocently, no guile anywhere on her face, "I was only looking out for your health Hermione, like any good friend should."
Ginny snickered at the slight scowl on Hermione's face before she said, "So, another year gone. It's so hard to believe that it's over and we're out of school for good, well most of us."
"All things come to an end, you know that Ginny. But since this comes to an end new things get to start, like your Quidditch career," commented Luna looking dreamily out the window at the rolling Scottish countryside.
"As well as our lives together," stated Hermione rather happily. This was the part she was most excited about. She and Ginny, living together, forever, in their own place and able to do what they wanted, that notion boggled her mind in such a lovely manner, to have no one telling them what to do or where to be and no rules but their own. She did like the sound of that. "We can either get a flat or buy a house or something. We can certainly afford it."
"Do you still plan on getting married this summer?" asked Lucy with a great deal of interest.
Hermione and Ginny turned to face each other with a grin, each of their faces lighting up in pleasure. "Absolutely. We have it planned for the middle of August. We just have to let our parent's know the exact date so we can get planning. Thankfully magic will make this all so much easier to pull together than it is in the muggle world."
Luna snickered, shaking her head at them, obviously tickled by something she said. Her eyes sparkled with amusement as she asked, "Let me guess, it's set for a year and a day after you two got together?"
Ginny and Hermione looked at her a bit surprised while the blond just shook her head and continued, "You really are a touch predictable Hermione."
"What? I thought it was romantic," protested Hermione, trying to defend her point of view.
"Did I say it wasn't? It just happens to be romantic in a very you sort of way," pointed out Luna. "You really do like things to be symbolic if you can get them that way. It's not a bad thing."
Lucy giggled again. There was no doubt that her younger sister was enjoying all of this, the banter, the teasing between the three older girls. She had enjoyed it ever since they had met her.
Hermione just rolled her eyes, unsure what to say in order to argue against what Luna was stating or if that would do any good. There was some truth to that but she didn't think she was that predictable. And it was romantic. Ginny had thought so when she had brought it up and had snogged her senseless so clearly it wasn't that bad of an idea. Ginny seemed to ignore the whole thing at the moment as she turned to Luna and asked, "You're still going to be my Maid of Honor, right?"
"Unless Nargles steal me away beforehand, absolutely. I am also looking forward to seeing Harry in his Maid of Honor dress. He will look so lovely with flowers in his hair and everything," said Luna rather dreamily, the faint smile curling up the corners of her lips.
The other girls started snickering at that, as they could sort of see the image Luna was talking about themselves and it was painfully cute and a touch wrong in all the fun ways. Hermione shook her head to clear it. She hadn't planned on doing that to her brother but maybe making it seem that way would be fun, at least for a little bit. Luna would certainly enjoy it and the slight panic in Harry's eyes was a sight she had sort of missed this year. Maybe if it was done for one of the fittings? Magical dresses were easy to alter and that would make for a good laugh. She was sure Harry would grumble but go along with it just to make her and Luna happy. He was awesome that way. Who cared if it scandalized the adults, it was her and Ginny's wedding so they could be as playful as they wanted.
"Did we want any other bridesmaids?" asked Ginny, thinking over things, being actually a touch serious at the moment, which drew Hermione's attention quickly.
"I'm not sure. If you can get another one then Lucy here can be one of mine. We can also use Amy as a flower girl," stated Hermione, smiling at her sister.
As Lucy looked excited at the prospect, Ginny grinned at the young girl and said, "I think I can manage to scrounge someone up just so we can make that happen."
"Really?" squeaked Lucy, vibrating she was so excited.
"Really." Ginny could only smile at that.
"This is so not how I thought my year would go when I left for school," commented Lucy, shaking her head in wonder.
The other three laughed knowingly. They were very familiar with that idea. Hermione had such high hopes only to have them dashed and then to have them raised again and that was only in her first two months. So, yeah, she understood what Lucy was talking about. "Yeah, we get that."
Luna looked thoughtful for a moment as she contemplated something before sharing. "I wonder if Lucy's year even comes close to some of the years we've had in terms of how much things changed, you know, how different things were from the beginning of the year to the end."
"Well I have to admit that Lucy certainly has a seriously lead in that category. Harry is the only one whose life might be as insane, if not more so, on a year to year basis," said Ginny as she pondered the notion as well.
"Says the girl who opened the Chamber of Secrets." tossed back Hermione with a smirk.
"I happen to recall that a certain someone was part cat thanks to a potions mishap that year as well?" riposted Ginny with a wink.
"Really?" asked Lucy. Hermione knew she had never heard this particular story before as it was one she was loathe to share.
"Oh yes. Only Harry, Ron, and Madam Pomfrey ever saw her afterwards but from what I heard she was quite the catgirl after taking the polyjuice potion with the cat hair in it. It took a while to sort that mess out."
Luna snickered, hiding her face in her magazine. Hermione stuck her tongue out at Ginny who raised an eyebrow in interest, which drew a slight blush from Hermione. This earned more snickers.
"So, school is finally over. We need to find a place to stay and get things started from there. What are you planning on doing Luna?" asked Hermione, trying to move the topic away from her yet again.
"I'm going to do a bit of traveling with Harry. Then after we return and I move in with him, I'm going to start the Quibbler up again. My father messed things up a good bit with what he did during the war and the magazine got all but destroyed but I think there are still interesting stories to be told that the magazine would be the perfect format for. Besides, it lets me explore and write about it. How much fun is that?" Luna grinned excitedly.
Hermione smiled. Luna really did have a drive and an interest in the unknown that was almost impossible to smother just like her interest in knowledge. As for her creatures, they certainly begged scrutiny and study before disregarding them as mere fancy. There did seem to be some kernel of truth to her stories and if for no other reason that would be enough to warrant further study. "Well, make sure to save a subscription for me. I don't want to miss a single issue."
Luna leaned forward and hugged Hermione. "Thank you."
Their talk wandered all over the place as the day wore on and they barely stopped when the lunch trolley came by, though they did get a good selection of both food and sweets to tide them over until supper. And as the countryside rolled by taking them ever closer towards London others came by to say goodbye to the Seniors as they would not be returning come the fall. Hermione had not realized how popular she was as it seemed like most of the school stopped by to talk briefly with them and say their goodbyes. There were even a few Slytherins in that mix besides Cameron which was a touch surprising. All in all it was a lovely last ride of the Express, especially given that it was sans Malfoy and company to muck things up with their nonsense. That was one of her favorite things from the year, to be honest. True the bullies had been annoying but at least they had been sneaky and not constantly in your face.
Before too long they pulled into King's Cross station and slowly came to a stop, the train settling into place. They exited the Express for the last time behind the greater portion of the wave of students and they could easily see the bright red of the other Weasleys in the crowd. It was such a distinguishing feature that how could anyone miss it even from a distance? They spotted Fleur pretty fast, as her blond hair was like a beacon amongst that sea of red. Harry took a little bit more effort to spot given his height disparity amongst some of the Weasleys but his wild hair did help with spotting him. Her parents were off to the side talking to the elder Weasleys and that seemed perfectly normal to her. Life was good. Lucy grinned when she saw them and took off running, yelling, "Mum!"
Amy turned at that sound, eyes going wide when she spotted her and yelled, "'mione!"
While her Mum hugged Lucy, Hermione had to deal with a six year old missile of excitement. It was a bit of an effort but she was able to lift her so she could hug her more firmly and keep her aloft. "Hey there Amy, I missed you."
"I missed you too. Pepper was sad and cried a few times but I told her you would be home soon so she has been trying not to miss you too much." reported Amy quite seriously.
Hermione's heart melted just a bit more over the young girl and she hugged her again, saying, "Well, I will be at home for quite a while this summer. Ginny and I need to find a place for us to live together and we decided to stay at our house while we did so. That means you and I get to spend more time together all summer long."
This was clearly great news for her youngest sister as she threw her hands ups "Yay! We can do all sorts of things. We can read stories and play and go to the park and you can show me the Patroro spell again and everything."
Ginny came up and took Amy from a chuckling Hermione, who couldn't help but notice that Hermione's arms were trembling slightly under the weight of the six year old. Hermione was sure she had less trouble holding her, given her greater upper body strength, something Hermione did like. She grinned at her sister who was now hugging the redhead. "You bet. It will be all sorts of fun."
Harry walked over from where he had been snogging Luna hello, hugged Hermione warmly, and said, "Hi sis."
"Hi Harry." She beamed at him, so happy to see him out and about in a crowd like this. Clearly the treatment had also worked well for him.
"So you're all done with school." It was a statement more than a question.
"At least for now." She replied. "Have more important things to take care of this summer than school."
"What could be more important than school?" teased Harry.
"Prat," replied Hermione with no heat. That was a perfectly fair question coming from Harry.
"Look can we talk later, I've been thinking about me and Luna and I could sort of use your advice." Harry looked a bit nervous as he watched the blond talk with the Weasleys.
"Absolutely Harry. What's family for after all." She reached out and patted his arm comfortingly. Was Harry actually that serious about him and Luna? But they had barely spent any time together. Yes, they would have to talk. She had no problem with them together but she felt that the two should spend more time together before Harry did anything rash like propose. But then again it was Harry and rash was what he did best.
"Thank you. Now let's get you all home and settled. Your parents and I made reservations someplace nice so the whole lot of us can go eat together. Dinner should be nice and fun if a bit chaotic."
She narrowed her eyes as she looked at him, trying to suss out what he had in mind. "The whole lot? Harry… what do you have planned?"
"Me? Why would I have planned anything?" protested Harry, trying to assert his innocence.
"Because I have met you before Harry James Potter and I know the way you are," countered Hermione, trying to run various scenarios through her head to determine which one was most likely. Honestly there were too many for her to figure it out with the data she had.
"It'll be fun. Trust me." He grinned his usual smile at her and she rolled her eyes before hugging him. He really was hopeless but she did love him anyway. There wasn't much she could do about the fact that he was a git but at least he was less of a git than Ron for the most part. However, there were times when Ron came across as the rational one, which was always terrifying. It was like they enjoyed switching places sometimes just to be infuriating.
They headed towards the rest of the mob that was their family and Hermione thought to herself, while watching Ron talk to Luna as Ginny took her in her arms that she did know her place and it was most definitely here with those who loved her. Bellatrix had been nothing but wrong in the end, thought Hermione as she glanced at her left forearm, because she knew who she was and it was not the identity this scar written in her body had tried to foist on her, but rather it was written in the love that embraced her and surrounded her. This was the truth it had taken her a while to learn, a truth that, amusingly enough, Bellatrix had set her on the course to find. Despite everything they had gone through, all the pain, all the joy, all the struggle, the ring sitting on her fiancée's finger symbolizing her love and the look of devotion in Ginny's eyes was all the reminder she would ever need of what was really true, of the love written in her heart.
A/N 2: This is the last chapter of the story. The epilogues will be coming out and there will still be 3 of them. I just stumbled onto an ending point I couldn't argue with and decided to wrap it up there. The epilogues will not be posted at the same rate as other things so don't expect one next week, but potentially the week after. I will try to put one out every two weeks, but since these are extras there may be gaps. But there will be three epilogues and you will know when we have reached the absolute final end. There won't be any way to miss it.