Hermione stood awkwardly in Dumbledore's office, not knowing what to do. On one hand, she didn't feel like she was happy to be caught up in Harry's drama yet again. On the other, she knew that she wouldn't let him face whatever lay ahead without her.

She still felt awkward as Padma was shuffled in by Professor Flitwick. The two girls stood in the corner, watching, thinking. They were the most prone to overthinking, but they were also the most clear and rational thinkers of the group.

They all listened as Dumbledore explained that Voldemort wanted a certain prophecy. And wasn't very likely to show up to the department of mysteries himself to collect it. But that they didn't need to go in order to hear it.

Once they had heard the prophecy, everyone was silent for at least five minutes. Even Padma and Hermione, usually rational individuals, were too stunned to say anything.

"I don't think I'll be heading there anytime soon," Harry said once he recovered enough to speak.

"A wise choice, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore agreed.

"Couldn't he just pick someone else to go pick it up?" Ron asked.

"No Ron," Padma said. "Only a worker in the hall of mysteries or one of the people on the label can remove a prophecy from its spot. It's a rather ingenious piece of magic."

"Alright," Ron grumbled. He wasn't thrilled about being told that he was wrong.

"Sir," Hermione asked the headmaster, "are we free to go?"

"If you'd like. You certainly don't have to stay. I doubt there will be much else to discuss. And I'm sure that you have things you'd rather be doing with the rest of your time."

The headmaster gave them a knowing smile with a strange twinkle in his eye as they left his office. Hermione wasn't sure that she liked the sensation of not knowing something.

"What do you want to do?" Neville asked.

"Not study," Hermione said.

Ron feigned shock. "Not study. Whatever will the great Hermione Granger do then?"

"Struggle to not hit her friends," she gibed back at him.

Ron backed up a few inches. "No need for that. I still remember when you hit Malfoy back in third year. It sounded like it hurt."

Hermione shrugged. "I imagine so. I was so mad at him."

"Don't worry Ron," Harry stage whispered. "She's not going to hit you. Hard."

"Great," Ron moaned. "Just what I need. Another woman out for my hide."

"Ron, your mother and sister are not after your hide," Neville said.

"And you know that Hermione is just teasing you," Padma added.

"And I'm not allowed to tease back?" Ron quipped.

"Only if people understand you," Harry said.

"So, does anyone actually know what they want to do?" Neville asked.

"Nothing that involves devil's snare," Padma shuddered.

"I'm pretty sure she's feeling done with the plant as a whole," Hermione said. "And last year certainly didn't help her fears any."

"That is not my fault," Neville said.

"No one was blaming you," Ron said.

Padma shot Hermione a look that implied that she might, but only if he dragged them back out to the greenhouses. She really hated devil's snare, and would likely never get over that. But she didn't have to like it.

They all headed out to the grounds. It was a beautiful day, which felt right for a day when exams had been finished. And a day when they had managed to escape from the plans of Voldemort, if only because of some clear thinking from Neville.

They were all practically packed and ready to head home for the holiday, when the Daily Prophet dropped the biggest bombshell. After about a year of calling Harry a liar for claiming that Voldemort had returned, they had no option but to admit that they had been wrong and issue a public apology.

Harry couldn't wipe the grin off his face. He was so relieved to have people acknowledging what he had been saying for a while. And he was even more glad that his friends were alive and safe. Surprisingly, no one had gotten hurt in Voldemort's attempt to grab the prophecy.

Lucius Malfoy, Dolhov, and a few other death eaters were in Azkaban. Looking over at the Slytherin table, they felt a small twinge of pity for Draco. It couldn't have been easy to have your parent thrown into Azkaban, even if he did deserve it.

"How are you feeling?" Ron asked.

Harry frowned. "I think pretty good. I'm just glad I didn't get wrapped up in his schemes again. It's bad enough that I managed it when he wasn't even corporeal. But I guess I also feel bad that I had to be the bearer of bad news."

"I doubt anyone likes that," Hermione said.

"I'm just glad that it happened before we had to go home for the summer," Neville added. "Maybe we might get some peace next year."

Harry snorted. "Hi. I'm Harry Potter. I don't believe we've met."

Hermione stifled a laugh as best she could. She knew exactly what Harry was doing. He was essentially saying that with him around, life would never be peaceful. And he was right. It had been anything but.

"I'm just glad to be going home," Hermione said.

Everyone else smiled at that.

"You're just glad to be able to see Viktor," Ron said.

"Hey. I get to see my parents too," she said.

She couldn't deny that she was anxious to see Viktor. She desperately wanted to see her fiancé. Even if she hadn't quite told her friends that little detail. She was hoping to wait until after the summer. She had no clue how they would take it.

But she was excited to see her parents as well. They had sold their house in London, and spent most of their time in England at Grimmauld place. Hermione felt relieved that they were taking their safety seriously.

"No one said that you weren't glad to see them," Harry said.

"Just that you were more excited to see your boyfriend," Ron teased.

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him, before turning back to her breakfast. She loved Ron, but he often got under her skin. She suspected that Ginny felt the same way.

They all headed upstairs to grab their stuff before getting on the train. It was nice that they didn't have to carry their trunks down to the train themselves. Magic was wonderful at times. But each of them had a bag with more comfy clothes and things to do.

Hermione was just about to head down to the train when her sleeve slipped up an inch and she saw the end of a sentence.

I can't wait to see you, was written on her arm.

A smile plastered itself over her face. Summoning a pen out of her bag, she wrote back.

Can't wait to see you too.

A/N: I'm so glad this chapter is done! And so is fifth year. Now it's the summer. And yes, Hermione's parents are practically living in Bulgaria. They've sold the dental practice. But they do still do cleanings for any muggleborn who asks. They think they take better care of their teeth. Not relying on spells and all that jazz. And yes, I did find a way for Sirius to stay safe. It broke my heart when he died. I will my best to keep people alive, but the war will have casualties. Unfortunately.