What's wrong with me? She thought.

"Hey, Crys. You okay?" Karen asked.

"I...I don't know." Crysta replied.

"Well, do you wanna talk about it?" Karen asked, trying to help her friend.

"I guess. You see, well, you know that I had been engaged to Severus, right? Well, you also know that I'm not anymore. But I don't think you know why, do you?" Crysta said.

"Yeah, why DID you break up with him? I mean, I would never go out with a guy like that, but you two seemed so happy together." Karen said.

"We were happy together, but you see the thing is…" Crysta started but was cut off by a sudden voice that she recognized all to well.

"Hey, Crysta. "

The two girls turned around and Crysta had to tackle Karen down to the floor to keep her from screaming.

"What are you doing here?! How did you get in?! You're not allowed on the Hogwart's grounds?! HOW DID YOU GET IN HERE?!!!!!" Karen screamed.

"Karen, calm down, it's ok. It's ok!!" Crysta said, trying to calm her friend down.

"How is it ok if that homicidal maniac is running free from Azkaban. He should be sent back!" Karen shouted.

"He's with me." Crysta said quietly.

"WHAT?!" Karen said, spinning around to face Crysta.

"That's what I was trying to tell you when he walked in. Sirius was my boyfriend back when we went to Hogwart's. When he escaped Azkaban, he wandered around, looking for a place to stay. He got in touch with his godson, Harry. And…"

"Wait – Sirius Black is Harry Potter's godfather?!" Karen asked.

"Yes, and Harry and his friends mentioned that I was here at Hogwart's and he came to see me. So that's why I broke up with Severus." Crysta said.

"So you broke up with your fiancee to go back to some high school fling, who happens to be a mass murderer?!" Karen asked, obviously surprised.

"Yes." Crysta simply replied.

"Oh ok then." Karen said.

"And he's not a murderer," Crysta called after her friend.

"Oh, ok, so killing 13 people with one curse isn't considered a murderer? I guess it would have to be 14 people, right?" Karen shot back.

"NO! He didn't kill them. Peter Pettigrew did." Crysta replied instantly.

"Petey killed all those people?" Karen asked, shocked.

"Yes," Crysta replied.

"You know I always knew there was something wrong with that boy." Karen said, finally understanding the whole thing. "Well, I should get going. I've got to go meet some friends."

With that, Karen turned around and began heading for the door. Just before she reached it, she spun around and said, "Oh, and Sirius? I'm sorry I blew up on you. It was just a shock seeing you here after all those…rumors."

"Perfectly understandable," Sirius said.

****************************************************************************************

"Look there's another one." Crysta said, pointing to another falling star in the cloudless sky.

"yeah, they're beautiful, huh?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah." Crysta replied dreamily.

There was a long silence and then Crysta rolled over to face Sirius, who, like her, was lying on the grass and stargazing.

"Sirius, I hope what Karen said today didn't upset you."

"No, of course not. She was probably just startled to see me walking about since those reports in the news." Sirius replied.

"Well, despite what people say, I have never once regretted my decision to leave Severus for you. You know that right?" Crysta asked.

"Yes, I know." Sirius said.

That said, the two snuggled closer together to shield themselves from the strong wind that began to blow. My life couldn't be more perfect, Crysta thought. And with that, she fell asleep in Sirius's arms.

At last, Christmas came, along with the acceptance of Sirius Black, and for the fun of it (and by Hermione's suggestion) Dumbledore decided to let the students, and teachers, have a party. Hermione took turns dancing with her two best friends, Ron and Harry. A slow dance began, and Sirius, winking at Harry and Hermione dancing, took Crysta in his arms and they began to dance to the soft tune. While both of them were incredibly happy, someone else did not share this optimistic feeling. Near a corner of the room, a tall, shadowy-looking man stood, watching the couple dancing and smiling lustfully into each other's eyes. Only 3 weeks ago, she was mine. Then HE showed up and stole her from me but I WILL get her back – I just HAVE to. Severus Snape thought to himself before giving the dancing couples, a specific one particularly, one last look before leaving the Great Hall and walking down toward the dungeons where his private chambers were. He HAD to devise a plan to get her back back, he just HAD to. She was everything to him. When she was with him, he was actually happy. Even Harry, Ron, and Hermione agreed he looked quite…cheery. And now she was gone, but not for long. He would get her back, no matter what.