Yesssssss, we don’t get many gray-a headcanons, and we got two this month! Wonderful.

~

Harry can’t help but feel as if every time someone calls him “The Boy Who Lived” or reports on his (lack of a) love live that they’re making fun of him or slighting him or something. Anytime someone pulls out some random fact about him he wonders how in the hell they even found out. He went from a nobody who was meant to stay out of the way or else be picked on and bullied mercilessly to a hero and a star who can’t stay out of the way and still gets picked on. It’s all very dizzying. His life is on display. It’s unsettling.

But then the war is over and he’s not the only hero anymore and people truly can begin to move on with their lives. Harry has time to learn who he is. He’s actually got time to come to grips with it, to understand it. Harry has time to just be Harry while everyone is grieving and the world has stuttered to a slow crawl even though there are things that need to be done. When he stands in front of the reporters next time, he feels like Harry James Potter, not just “The Boy Who Lived”.

Harry still doesn’t like the attention but he’s got Ron and Hermione at his sides. Luna and Neville and Dean and Seamus and all of them have his back. Ginny has his front. He feels loved and protected. He doesn’t feel like a freak on display. He feels like himself. He knows it’s not his identity on display or in question. He’s a symbol to people; he signifies hope for the future. It doesn’t matter to them that he’s demi-bisexual or gray-aromantic or a demiboy. They’ll accept and love him no matter what.

For the first time, Harry really starts to live for just himself. There’s something oddly relaxing and healing about that.

~Hufflepuff Mod