"Let's see the fallout and what happens when we talk tot he authorities," Hermione says with a tight smile. "And we'll go from there. Together."

They ate, they tried to stay calm, but the dinner was tense but it was a few hours and a few muggle drinks later before Harry and Hermione made their way back to Grimmauld Place, hand in hand.

Once inside, the wards up and the doors locked, Hermione collapses on a couch in the parlor with a sigh. "I feel so free and so scared at the same time," she announces. To herself. To Harry and Kreacher. To the world, she guesses. "I hope Ginny's going to be okay."