Title: Fate And Destiny

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related characters, names, etc. are property of J.K. Rowling, all publishers concerned and Warner Brothers. The only things owned by the author are the plot and any names not featured in the official Harry Potter books or movies. No money is being made from this, and no copyright infringement is intended.

Any newcomer entering Privet Drive would have the first impression of a normal street in England. With the houses as they were, all rectangular shaped and painted the same peach color, it wasn't too difficult to imagine the lives of the occupants of these identical houses. They all probably had sweet little children running around the place, with their daddies going off to work every weekday mornings and their mummies bustling around making breakfast and then gathering together for the latest gossip.

If someone were to enter house number four on this particular street, everything would still be normal. Had they taken the chance to explore a bit, and happened to have entered the smaller bedroom on the second floor, they would find numerous things in there which would make them wonder just how ordinary Privet Drive is.

However, in the dead of night, no one need explore anything; they were happier getting their well-deserved sleep. One boy on the whole street though, couldn't fall asleep no matter how much he tried or how much he wanted to.

Harry Potter, an extraordinary wizard, sixteen years of age, didn't have the heart to fall asleep. Even in his dreams, the death of his godfather haunted him in his dreams and the cruel laughter of Lord Voldemort rang out in his ears.

It had been two days since his return from Hogwarts, and Harry had tried time and time over again to revive Sirius. To revive, meaning to revive Sirius within himself, to just be able to talk to him…

Harry had tried. He'd called out Sirius' name over and over again while he spoke directly to the two-way mirror he'd received from Sirius himself. Nothing had happened. His own reflection had stared back at him, getting more frustrated by the second.

Now, as Harry lay awake on his bed, with the mirror in his hand, he thought for the first time since his discovery of this mirror, about his father. Harry had inherited this mirror from his father too. Sirius had been kind enough to give it to him last Christmas, but it was useless. He couldn't talk to Sirius and he had no desire to talk to anyone but him. Well, maybe his father.

"James!" Harry whispered to the mirror, afraid that he would wake the Dursleys up.

Nothing happened and Harry let out a sigh. Suddenly, his hopefulness turned to anger. If only Sirius had never given him the mirror, Harry wouldn't be beating himself up over it. Him and James shouldn't have been using it in detention anyway. At the thought of his father causing mischief, Harry remembered his mother. He was sure his mum had known about this mirror, and he also had an inkling that she probably had tried to discourage his father from using it.

Maybe he could talk to his mother…

" Lily" Harry whispered. A gray swirl formed in the mirror and just as Harry started to get hopeful, it stopped. " Lily Potter," Harry repeated. The same gray swirl occupied the mirror, this time a little longer and then it too stopped. " Lily Evans Potter," Harry whispered, getting more hopeful and excited by the moment.

This time something did happen. The gray swirl turned into blue, and then green, just as Lily's face appeared in the mirror. Harry gaped. The mirror worked. There she was, Lily Potter, Harry's mum, in the mirror, with that beautiful smile on her radiant face, looking not a day older than she had in the picture in which she'd held Harry.

" Mum?" he whispered, unsure of what to do.

" Harry, oh my goodness! I can't believe this mirror still works!" Her smile suddenly turned into a frown. " How many times had I told James not to use it!"

Harry smiled. His assumption had been correct.

" So how are you Harry? I don't' expect Petunia's been taking good care of you?" She smiled sadly.

" I'm fine. Where are you? Are you d-dead?"

" Harry, I am dead, and nothing can change that. It's a fact. This mirror however, works in more ways than one, Harry. That's part of the reason why I told James to get rid of it. It's quite efficient, but sometimes can also be dangerous."

" That still doesn't answer my question. What am I talking to?"

" Harry, you're talking to me. You're talking to my spirit which is floating behind the veil. Now, you might ask why you weren't able to talk to Sirius and James' spirit and the answer is simple. They've used this mirror before. The dead who had in their life had the opportunity to use this mirror and not allowed to take advantage of it in their death. I, of course, never used it, but I did however, research it thoroughly. You would have been able to contact other spirits, but I don't suppose you know them."

Harry's face fell. " So Sirius is dead?" he let out meekly.

" Yes Harry. Sirius is indeed gone. He's right here standing next to me with James on my other side, and they can see you, but it's a shame you cannot see them. Now, I suggest you hurry up with what you want to ask as this mirror will only work for an hour. You will have the chance to talk to me again two more times if you call my name into this mirror, but it will have not be anytime before next year."

Harry was starting to feel anger again. Why had Dumbledore never mentioned this to him? Completely ignoring the fact that he won't be able to speak to his mother again until next year, Harry focused on what he had for the moment. " How are Sirius and my dad?"

" Sirius and James are fine! Sirius seems furious that he had to go so soon from you life, but he is taking this as a good thing. He's expecting you to get his revenge for him."

" Of course!" Harry said fiercely and then smiled. It was just the thing Sirius would do. Harry didn't know what else to ask. He just wanted to look at his mother, but he knew time was short. " Did you know about the prophecy?"

" Yes, we did Harry dear. Part of the reason Dumbledore sent us into hiding. He sent the Longbottoms into hiding too, but it was evident to him that Voldemort wasn't going to come looking for dear Neville. Thus, he focused more on protecting us, and you see where that led Frank and Alice Longbottom?" She gave a sympathetic look.

Harry started wondering just how much the dead knew. " How much do you know? I mean to say, how do you know the present as it happens?"

" Of course, we even know a bit of the future!" She exclaimed in a whisper.

" What's in the future? Do you think you can tell me? How much into the future do you see?" He knew better than to ask such questions, but his curiosity got to him. Even before his mother could reply, Harry knew what she was going to be saying. " No problem!"

An uncomfortable silence followed. Harry just stared at his mother, surprised beyond his imagination. Dumbledore had lied to him. He had told him there was no way to talk to the dead, but here she was, Harry's mother, giving him all that he asked for.

" Tell me about how you and dad met?" Harry asked.

" Well, it was the first day of Hogwarts, you know. I hated him from the first time I saw him. He was there, with Sirius, Remeus, and Peter already and he seemed to be making fun of Snape. I saw him as a bully and nothing more from that point on. Of course he defended me against Snape quite often, but I still hated him…" His mother went on and on and Harry got tired of listening about Snape.

" Tell me how you fell in love?" Harry interrupted her.

" Well, it was an awkward experience. It was in the winter if you'll believe it. I was sitting out in the snow because Snape had once again bothered me, and I was shivering. I hadn't thought about bringing my winter cloak. I'd just ran out of the library in tears. Then, suddenly I'd felt this strong pair of arms on my shoulders and looked up to see your father…." She continued and Harry barely heard what she said. He just enjoyed the sound of her sweet voice.

He'd heard it before, but in panic, now as she talked and re-visited that cold winter day, her eyes seemed lost in wonder.

" Everyday after that, I wondered how I could have hated him so much."

All was silent was a minute or two. Harry was lost in thought about what the future could be while he supposed his mother was still lost in a winter day, some twenty years earlier.

" Harry, we're running out of time. We've only got ten minutes left. Ask me what you have to now."

" Right. Tell me how much you know about the Order and Voldemort."

" I'm afraid I don' t know much more than you do. Well, I know some things, but I can't tell you those things, can I? You must know Harry, that Voldemort doesn't know one thing in this world, and you have been surrounded by it all your life, whether it be out in the open or hidden inside your heart."

" Do you when what the outcome of the final battle is?" Harry blurted out.

" I'm afraid not! No one can know the outcome of that battle except for the stars, but then again, you can change the outcome if you wish. Don't confuse fate and destiny to be the same thing Harry. Your destiny is in your hands. It's your fate you can't change."

As time ticked by, Harry remembered what she' d said earlier. He wouldn't be able to talk to her for another year, considering of course, that he managed to survive that long.

" Goodbye Harry," his mother whispered, and five minutes before their hour was up, her image started blurring.

Harry watched as her image, moved from side to side. Acting on a sudden urge he said, " I love you mum. Tell dad and Sirius I love them too, and take care of them."

" I love you too dear." Harry looked into his mother's eyes, which reflected his own, emerald green, and filled with tears.

Soon after she disappeared. Harry put the mirror safely back in his trunk, wrapping his around an old sock to keep it from breaking. He hit his bed and fell asleep, this time no deaths or laughter haunting him. He supposed it wouldn't be happening for a while now, as he'd done something about Sirius' death. Before closing his eyes and falling into a deep sleep, Harry made a mental note to check with Dumbledore about why he hadn't bothered to inform Harry of the workings of a two-way mirror, and he made a point to check the library and ask Hermione about the centaurs and the stars that outlines his fate and destiny.

Finis