Potential
It had been a long day for all of them. The last of the many funerals had come and gone, and along with them, the multitudes of well-wishers shaking their hands and thanking them. And with their departure, Harry was left with a hole in his gut that slowly ate away at his insides-guilt.
How was one supposed to reply to the gratitude, when so many lives were gone, and all because he had not gotten rid of Voldemort fast enough?
"Harry, Mum wanted me to tell you to come to the Burrow for dinner tonight." Ron's voice halted his thoughts, and Harry was grateful for the distraction. If there was one good thing out of all of this, it was the fact that Ron and Hermione were still here, sitting next to him. As Ron added an invitation for Hermione into the mix, a small smile crept across Harry's face. What would he have done without them? Ron's humor in the face of emptiness and Hermione's steadfast loyalty meant everything to him.
In spite of the Weasley family's grief, they never closed themselves off to either himself or Hermione. Although it still occasionally felt like intrusion to Harry when he joined them for a meal, at other times, he felt happier and more content than he had been in years.
Those were the times when George was able to separate from the ghost of Fred, and create a joke of his own; when Arthur Weasley was given a fair opportunity to prove himself under Kingsley's fledgling Ministry. It was like the night Bill and Fleur came to visit - Fleur's stomach round with pregnancy - and Charlie told them he was moving back to England, or the first night Percy shared dinner with his family after years of estrangement.
Tonight, though, was somewhere in between. With Hermione next to him, and Ron across, Harry basked in the company of his friends. However, the table was towards the empty side tonight-George was working late, Percy had a dinner engagement, Bill and Fleur were having Charlie over, and Arthur had been called off to the ministry. Still, none of the hands on the Weasleys' enchanted clock pointed to `Mortal Danger,' as they had for the past two years. Molly had made them a delicious dinner, as usual, though some of the joy was gone in her eyes tonight-tonight she was missing Fred.
Ginny sat next to her brother, and participated in the quiet conversation, rarely venturing a glance at Harry. He had told himself they would have all the time they needed to catch up, but it was harder than he had ever dreamt it would be. How could he possibly share everything that happened with her, and even if he could, how would she understand? He had clumsily attempted to include her, but even now, it was still just Harry, Ron, and Hermione.
Ginny had been hurt at first by his failed attempts to convey all that happened, but now she was moving towards building trust instead. After all, the fact he tried to share his life with her meant something, didn't it? True, they had only kissed once since Voldemort's defeat, but he needed time to heal, and so did she. Still, neither could shake the feeling that what they had wasn't coming back, not matter how hard they tried. No, she would have to hope for a fresh start entirely.
"Have you heard from Kingsley yet, Harry? I think he's going to offer us positions as Aurors," Ron remarked, and Harry nodded.
"Yeah, he sent me an owl yesterday. Are you going to take the job?"
"Well-" Ron hesitated, glancing over at his mother, who didn't look too fond of the idea, "I might help out George at the shop for a little while. Still…to be an Auror would be pretty cool. I mean, we wouldn't even have to go back and take our N.E.W.T.S."
"Yeah," Harry agreed, "it would."
Ron nodded, and turned to Hermione, "What about you?"
"I think I'm going to go back and take those N.E.W.T.S., Ron," Hermione said, not quite able to harness the condescension in her voice. "They're very important, you know."
"Not if we can get a job without them. Besides, Kingsley would give you a job as an Auror if you wanted."
"I don't want to be an Auror." Hermione retorted. "If anything, I want to try and see if I can keep S.P.E.W. up and running for a little while first."
Harry only barely managed to avoid rolling his eyes. Ron was not quite so lucky. Neither had ever felt the strong inclination to defend house elves, especially when all of them (with the exception of Dobby, Harry remembered painfully) enjoyed their work. Ron's skepticism did not go unnoticed, of course.
"I know you don't care about House Elves, Ronald, but honestly, someone has too."
Ginny made something that sounded like muffled laughter, but it went unnoticed by her brother's almost-girlfriend, as Molly chose that moment to get up and start clearing the plates.
"Ginny dear, would you mind helping with the dishes?"
Normally, the redhead would have protested, but something about the look in her mother's eyes quashed any possibility of disobedience. With an exasperated look at the others, she got up and went to help, while Ron and Hermione continued to bicker.
Harry let them continue for a little longer, but interrupted before it could become a full-scale fight.
"Come on, let's go outside."
Slightly embarrassed, they agreed, and the three wandered out of the Weasleys' backyard. For such a trying time, the night air was deliciously mild, and the cloudless sky opened up into an expanse of stars. As they ambled along, a comfortable silence settled between them. If only for a moment, they were simply Harry, Hermione, and Ron.
Wordlessly, Harry flopped down onto the grass and simply stared up into the sky. Hermione settled down next to him, and Ron plopped down to her right.
"Teddy's starting to crawl," Harry remarked absently.
"That's great."
"Yeah. I'm thinking about getting a flat nearer to him and his grandmother."
"You'll be a good godfather, Harry."
"Yeah, just think of all the great stories you can tell him when he gets older." Ron agreed. Instead of getting irritated, Hermione actually smiled.
"He's right, you know."
Harry had no reply for this, so he remained quiet.
"Hey Hermione, when are you going to Australia?" Ron asked, much to Harry's gratitude.
"Probably next week. You'll have to send me your address when you two get that flat." Hermione added, trying to keep from dwelling too much on the painful trip ahead of her. Stray thoughts about what her parents would be like with no memory of who she was quickly overpowered her thoughts.
"Nonsense, Hermione. We're going with you." Harry quickly interjected. His `saving people thing' was coming in handy, for once.
"Besides, you'll stay with us when we all get back." Ron agreed. He hoped he hadn't made the remark sound like anything more than it was. The last thing he needed was another fight with Hermione, especially about their relationship. Lately, it was all they did. Even making up wasn't worth the arguments anymore. Maybe he needed someone a little less demanding, and a little more accepting. It was too much work to try and imitate that bloody book all the time.
"There's no need for either of you to come to Australia with me," Hermione was saying, "and as for that flat…"
"You wouldn't let me track down Voldemort alone."
"Hardly. You would have-"
"Gotten myself killed. Yeah. So do you honestly think that after all you and Ron have done, I would let you go to Australia alone?"
"Besides, we've never been. It would make a really good vacation," Ron agreed, though Harry's use of the word "I" didn't go unnoticed. That happened sometimes, ever since he had left. He regretted that decision every day of his life, and today was no exception.
"Yes, but-" Hermione was caving. She never could hold out against both of them for very long.
"So it's settled then," said Harry, "We go to Australia together."
Hermione nodded, and comfortable silence resumed its place between them. And for a brief moment, Harry felt a slightly-overwhelming sense of possibility.
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