The Last Year

Diagon Alley

  Harry and Hermione entered the Leaky Cauldron. They were pleasantly surprised to find it crowded with people walking in and out and many having drinks. They had hoped to sneak through, but with it being so busy, and their recognizable faces they were soon surrounded by witches and wizards hugging them, shaking their hands, and begging them to have a drink. They finally relented and had one pumpkin juice with the crowd before pushing their way to the back. They walked up to the brick wall and tapped the brick that opens the gate to Diagon Alley. 

  As the bricks rearranged themselves, they saw a little village of people and lights. Stores had reopened left and right displaying beautiful animals and bright-colored objects. Gone were the boarded-up buildings and wanted posters. What had been a ghost town was once more a well-populated shopping district. The only thing that still appeared to be closed was Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. George was still struggling with Fred's death and could not bring himself to open it again.

 The other building closed; Gringotts. The bank was still closed from their break-in. Many of the goblins had been killed by Voldemort following the robbery, and the ones left alive had been too afraid to rebuild it. Hagrid had been allowed to enter and extract some money from Harry's vault, allowing him to buy supplies for the next school year. While they were very happy to see Diagon Alley flourishing once again, their heart hurt to see Fred and George's store closed.

Hermione patted Harry's back and directed him towards the book shop. Harry was still studying to become an Auror and so was required to take Potions, Defense against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms, and Herbology. Each class required a book, and he needed a completely new set of potions supplies. It took about an hour to collect all the required materials, plus new robes. It felt good to be able to purchase some new things, and just have a day out on the town happy and carefree.

Harry and Hermione returned to Number 12 Grimmauld Place and began packing up their supplies. Once they had finished packing up, they informed Kreacher they were leaving for a while and apparated to the Burrow. They knocked on the door and were taken into a large bear hug by Mrs. Weasley.

"Oh, hello dears! It is so good to see you, we had started to think you forgot where we lived."

'No ma'am, we just needed some time. I went to find my parents, and we have just been resting and trying to prepare for the upcoming school year." Hermione replied as they were led to the living room.

"It's alright dear. I'm just glad to see you all are doing okay. The last few years have been tough. Ron and Ginny should be down in a few minutes, they are packing up."

"Ron is going to come this year?" Harry asked excitedly.

"Yes, he decided a few days ago, he said it just didn't feel right not finishing out at Hogwarts. Said he would like to enjoy one year without chaos."

"Well, let's hope he is right."

A few minutes later, Ron and Ginny descended. Each came and gave Harry and Hermione a big hug. Despite the tangled histories of the four, the past year had built a bond between them that could not be broken. Soon, George, Percy, and Mr. Weasley appeared at the door, and they gathered around the table in the garden, large portions of food covering the table. Mrs. Weasley explained that for the past few weeks, George had been assisting Percy at the new ministry as they tried to reset the wizarding world. They sat and ate, enjoying the night of Summer before they ventured into their final year of Hogwarts.

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I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 10 will be out soon hopefully! Who's excited to go back to Hogwarts?

Until Next Time,

-JRich