A/N: Well this is it... the last chapter. I hope you enjoyed my daily updates. Many thanks to all my dedicated readers/reviewers and to my wonderful beta Acciodanrad9.

Harry couldn’t seem to calm his racing heart. He had been on edge all day and the thought of seeing Ron and Hermione again was enough to send him running to the loo to empty his nervous stomach.

He knew he had been a rotten friend. What if they could never forgive him?

After dressing in his school robes, Harry trudged down from his dormitory and met Remus in the common room.

“Are you okay?” he asked, noticing how pale Harry had become.

Harry shook his head in reply.

“Nervous about seeing your friends?”

Harry nodded, still not able to find his voice.

“It’ll be okay,” said Remus, trying to reassure him. He pulled the boy into a half arm hug and ruffled his hair.

“How do you know?”

“They’ve written you nearly everyday since you’ve come here. If that’s not proof that they still want to be your friend, than I don’t know what is.”

Remus was right. Hermione and Ron hadn’t let him down. Although their letters were sometimes filled with frustration and regret, they had never failed to write.

“Do you want to wait for them at the main entrance?” Remus asked.

“Can’t I wait here?”

“It’s customary for the students to meet in the Great Hall before going to the dormitories.”

“Please…”

“Alright,” Remus relented. “I’ll let them know you’re here, but do try to make it back for the Welcoming Feast.”

Harry nodded and his guardian released him. “Thanks.”

Remus slipped out the portrait entrance leaving Harry alone with his thoughts. He stood there staring at the fire for a long while with his arms crossed over his chest. He became so mesmerized by watching the orange and yellow flames lick at the logs that he hadn’t even heard his friends’ arrival.

But then he heard Hermione call out to him. “Harry?”

Harry turned around and unfolded his arms so that they dropped by his sides as a smile slowly spread across his face. That seemed to be all the assurance that Ron and Hermione needed. They quickly crossed the room and embraced Harry warmly at the same time. Their arms wrapped around him and he leaned into them for support. For some reason Harry couldn’t seem to return the hug himself. He still felt badly about the way he had treated them all summer and there was a lot he needed to say to them. They stood that way for several minutes, and Harry relished the feel of having their arms around him.

“We’ve missed you so much,” Hermione said softly.

Harry had expected them to be upset with him and here they were being so gentle and kind. It was more than he deserved and he knew it. Harry leaned into them a little more, his breath hitching slightly as he felt the tears prickle behind his eyes.

Ron reached up and wrapped his arm around Harry’s neck, pulling him towards him slightly as he whispered in his ear, “It’s alright, mate.”

Harry’s heart swelled at the gesture and he nodded gratefully. Ron and Hermione finally pulled back, getting good look at him for the first time. He knew he looked a little different than the last time they had seen him and he was hoping that it was for the better.

He knew they were probably waiting for him to say something, but he couldn’t seem to squash the lump in his throat. This was going so much better than he had anticipated and he didn’t want to ruin it by saying something stupid.

Hermione couldn’t seem to wait any longer and decided to begin the awful conversation herself. “Why didn’t you write? Why didn’t you want to see us?” she asked, quickly wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as the tears began to fall.

Harry looked at both of them pitifully. “I…I don’t know how to explain it.”

“Try,” said Ron firmly.

Harry was silent for a long while as he worried his bottom lip between his teeth. He looked across the room, away from them, and stared. How do you explain that you thought you were keeping them safe by pushing them away? That you thought it was better than them knowing the truth about you? How do you tell your best friends all of the awful things you had been through? How do you tell them that there was still so much that had been left unsaid?

Several minutes passed in silence before he finally spoke. “It’s just… I… I never wanted either of you to know anything about…” Harry finally said, trying desperately to swallow the lump his throat that signaled that the tears were about to come. “I…I felt… Why is this so hard?... I just… I was afraid of what you might think… or find out…”

“Why?” asked Hermione sadly. “What happened?”

“It’s private, okay?” Harry pleaded desperately. “I’ve had an awful time of it for a very long time and I don’t want to go into it. At least not right now…”

“But-“ Hermione began. Ron had cut her off.

Putting a hand on Harry’s shoulder he said, “We understand Harry. But you never have to be afraid to tell us anything. We’ll never think of you differently. We care about you mate, we always will. But you have to understand how scared we were… we didn’t know what to think when we saw… you know….”

Tears finally sprung to Harry’s eyes, as he realized that Ron was indicating the self-inflicted cuts that they had found on his arms. He was still so embarrassed that they had seen all of that. “Everything… everything was so messed up. I didn’t know how to deal with it…”

Ron pulled Harry to him in a rough embrace, and said, “It’s okay, Harry. You can tell us when you’re ready.”

Harry relished the comfort of Ron’s arms around him thankful that his friend knew better than to push him to talk right now. A warmth spread across his chest and for the first time in a long time, he felt almost happy.

Hermione joined them once more, wrapping her arms around Harry as well and resting her head on his shoulder. Harry leaned into her embrace and rested the side of his face against her soft hair. Nothing had ever felt so right.

“Please don’t push us away again,” she pleaded.

“I won’t,” Harry said softly and he really meant it. He was lost without his friends. “I’m sorry…”

Harry finally raised his arms and pulled his friends closer to him. He had never been comfortable giving affection, having been raised without ever feeling the comfort of a simple hug, but his time spent with Remus had begun to remedy that. He held his friends tightly, knowing already that they had forgiven him.

Although it was unspoken, all three of them could feel it. They weren’t truly whole unless they were all together. This was how it was meant to be. They stayed like this for a long while, until Hermione realized how late it was getting. Someone would eventually see that they were missing and come looking for them.

“We should be getting to the feast,” said Hermione, always the sensible one. “Someone will notice that we’re gone soon.”

Ron and Harry both nodded, knowing that she was right. They stepped out into the hallway, but couldn’t seem to pull themselves apart. They walked with their arms around each other until they reached the Great Hall.

Ron quickly led the way to the Gryffindor table and the threesome sat down at the end, ignoring the looks from their curious house mates wondering about their tardiness. Ron sat across from Harry and Hermione. When it was clear that they were still at the center of attention, he gave the others a glare as if to say, “Mind your own business.”

Thankfully, it was enough to stop their inquisitive stares, at least for now. As everyone started to help themselves to glorious food, Harry felt a rough hand slip into his own. He looked down and saw that Ron had reached under the table and had secretly taken not only his own, but Hermione’s hand as well. He gave them both a reassuring squeeze before pulling away and grabbing a turkey leg from a nearby platter. Harry’s heart swelled once more, not quite sure why the touch of Ron’s hand would bring him so much pleasure.

Then the red head shot the both a million watt smile and said, “Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s eat!”

Harry and Hermione laughed at that and shared a smile. Together they both began adding the delicious food to their plates, thoroughly enjoying being in each other’s presence. Harry’s nervous stomach was feeling much better now and seemed to appreciate having food in it once more.

Midway through their meal, Harry looked towards the staff table and saw that Remus was watching him curiously. His guardian smiled reassuringly at Harry and then nodded, silently telling him that “See, I was right. Everything was going to be okay.”

And it would be too. Hermione and Ron would see to that. He knew in his heart that he would never be alone again. He was with them now, where he should be.

A/N: I know that last chapter was a lot like chapter 8 of the original story, nearly identical, but it felt right to end it by showing their reunion from Harry’s perspective. I hope you enjoyed this little story. I have a few ideas of some one shots, or maybe a short chapter fic, that explores the trio's possible romantic realtionship a little more in a sequel, but nothing definite. If you have any ideas about what you might like to see, please let me know. Sorry, but it may be awhile before I writing anything so don't expect anything any time soon. Thanks for reading.

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