"Buried, almost tangible secrets filled the space between them, and so, without a second to think, she closed it."
The scars of war opened more wounds than Harry Potter thought possible. As he returns to Hogwarts for his eighth and final year, he le...
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FINALLY, THEY ARRIVED AT HOGWARTS. Harry felt instantly comforted by the sight of the great castle and breathed in the air coming in from their cracked window. It smelled like pine and rain, happiness and parchment, all at once. He was home.
"I'm excited Hagrid's back as a professor," Luna Lovegood said excitedly to Harry. "I was talking to him about some Crumple-Horned Snorkacks in Scotland, and he seemed really interested!"
"That's great, Luna," muttered Harry as he stepped off the train into the crowd of people now migrating towards the castle.
He had been adding in sentences like these, short and meaningless, every now and again to prove that he was still listening. In reality, he had drifted off ages ago.
Every time she said something particularly odd, he would open his mouth just to receive a heated glare from Ginny, and instantly closed it. Harry was not sure why she was being so protective over Luna, he had not thought their friendship was that close, but decided he did not want to test it. An angry Ginny was a force to be reckoned with.
"Firs' years, this way! Don' be shy!"
Hagrid rattled his lantern, calling out as a terrified-looking first year clutched his arm.
"Oh, 'ello there. You lost or summat?"
The tiny first-year nodded and continued to tremble at Hagrid's side. Her robes were disheveled and messy with a knotted, curly mess of chocolate hair. She gasped when she saw Harry and again when Hermione showed up, sinking further into Hagrid's moleskin jacket. Her eyes, a stereotypical hazel colour, gazed at him reproachfully.
Harry tried to give her a wave, but she whimpered and pushed herself deeper into Hagrid's jacket.
"Don' be scared," said Hagrid reassuringly. "It's on'y Harry. Wouldn' hurt a fly, good man."
In one fell swoop, he scooped the first year up into the air. She seemed to instantly cheer up as he swung her over his back, and she clutched at the back of his neck, holding on as if for dear life. Fellow first years stared up at her in awe, and she looked down at them triumphantly, clearly finding Hagrid's back to be a place of high importance.
Hermione bounded up to Hagrid, and he smiled brightly at her. "'Ello, Hermione! An' Harry!"
"Hello, Hagrid!" they both called out.
Ron was trying to wave from behind Harry, but Hagrid had already turned around towards the boats with the first year still on his back. The rest had to sprint to catch up with his long strides, chattering excitedly and nervously.
Harry watched them run after Hagrid, feeling a slight sting of nostalgia and jealousy in his heart.
They would be coming to a war-free Hogwarts; they would only ever hear about the war in their classes, maybe even be forced to write essays on Harry himself, and never experience it first-hand.
