Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters, places, etc. etc. J.K. Rowling does.

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Recap:

She barely had time to scream before the flash of green light nearly blinded her, and she heard the two words she'd prayed never to hear again.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Harry walked out of the bookshop into the sunlight, a small grin plastered on his face. It had only taken him a moment to find what he had been looking for. The owner of the shop had only been too happy to fill a special request from the Harry Potter. Ana was going to love it. Or at least he hoped she would.

At the reminder of Ana, he looked up in the direction of the carts to find her. Some people were currently blocking his view, but they moved on after a moment, and she finally came into sight. He started to smile and move towards her when he noticed the look on her face. Something was wrong.

She was white with terror, her gaze fixed on something in front of her.

His smile vanished instantly, and he turned his head to see what had turned her to stone. There, from across the street, a man in a billowing black cloak was making his way towards her, and Harry's heart turned to ice when he saw the wand outstretched in his hand… pointed directly at Ana.

He didn't need to think. Didn't have time to wonder where Lupin was or who the man could be. Didn't have time to reach for his own wand. He merely followed his instincts and obeyed the command his brain gave him at the sight of Ana in danger.

Run!

He dropped the bag he'd been carrying without a second thought and launched himself towards her, silently praying he'd get there before the spell hit her.

At almost the exact moment as she heard the terrifying words, Ana felt something massive collide with her body. She felt herself falling towards the earth, and she closed her eyes, anticipating the pain she would almost certainly feel when she hit the hard ground. Much to her surprise, however, the pain never came, and she felt herself land on something much softer than the cobbled street.

Am I dead?

She was breathing hard and fast, her senses slowly returning to her. Her heart pounded against her chest at an unnatural speed, but as she slowly opened her eyes, she realized that her own heartbeat was not the only one she'd been feeling.

Harry held her atop him with his arms enclosed protectively around her body, and he stared back into her eyes with a fierce intensity that Ana couldn't look away from. She was pressed tightly against his chest. He held on to her for dear life, so close she could hear his heartbeat easily matching the pace of her own.

Harry looked into her eyes, concern growing in him as he saw the slightly dazed, out-of-focus look in them. Was she hurt? He had felt the whoosh of the powerful spell fly past as he grabbed Ana. It had just missed them, instead finding its mark on the vendor cart behind them (which was now smashed to pieces). He'd twisted his body around in mid-air in order to prevent her from feeling what he was now. The air had been knocked out of him, and his head ached from where it had hit the ground.

But at least she was safe. She was safe right?

"Are you all right?" he asked finally, still piercing her stare with his own.

Ana looked down at him, slowly coming out of her trance. "Yeah…" she whispered, barely audibly. "I…I think so."

What the hell had just happened? She remembered being terrified about something…A man. There was a man. He had tried to…to kill her? But why? At this thought, her mind returned to Harry, and she stared at him as though seeing him for the first time.

He'd saved her life.

Before she could ponder this further, a voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. It was laced with worry and concern. "Merlin…Are you both okay? Are you hurt?" It was Lupin. He helped Ana to her feet (she was still atop Harry), and Harry slowly rose as well. His hand immediately went to the back of his head, rubbing it.

"Fine," Harry said distractedly. He was too busy staring at Ana. She looked shaken. Her face was still deathly pale, and she was trembling slightly. He was by her side in an instant, gathering her into his arms comfortingly. She welcomed the embrace and felt her pounding heart calm slightly.

"What the hell happened?" Harry asked Lupin angrily as he held the frightened girl in his arms, though it wasn't directed at Lupin. He was more furious at himself than anything else. He shouldn't have left her alone.

A guilty look swept over Lupin's face at the question. He opened his mouth to answer when Tonks suddenly appeared at his side. "We got him, Remus," she said quietly.

Surprised at her sudden appearance, Harry turned to look behind her, noticing for the first time the small scene that was taking place in the middle of the road.

A crowd was gathered around a tangle of people in the street. People were speaking in hushed whispers as they looked on.

"Did you see that?" "Tried to kill that girl, he did!" "In broad daylight, too." "Can you believe it?"

At first Harry couldn't make out who they were, but when a few of the onlookers moved to the side, the men in the middle of it all came into view.

Two Order members were holding the wiry looking man (currently thrashing violently about) in place while Shacklebolt stood in front of him, looking furious. Harry noted with some satisfaction that the thin man currently had a bloody lip, no doubt from a punch he'd received from Shacklebolt by the looks of it.

But Harry didn't think it was enough. Anger filled him as he stared at the man who had tried to hurt Ana. He fingered his wand, seriously considering showing the man some of his own wrath. Before he could even finish deciding which hex to torture him with, however, Tonks' voice sounded once more.

"He's definitely a Death Eater. And a fairly new one from the looks of his arm. Probably explains why he'd be so rash and attack in broad daylight. Not a very smart one," she told Lupin. Her eyes drifted back towards the apprehended man, who seemed to be yelling something now.

"Let go! I'll kill all of you for this! There's no point trying to protect the girl…even if you catch the Carrows, the Dark Lord will finish her off! He'll finish all of you! Every last—"

His voice died abruptly when he received yet another hit from Shacklebolt, this time in the stomach. He hunched over, his face screwed up in pain.

"Shut up. You're in no position to be making threats," Shacklebolt hissed.

Ana had moved even closer to Harry at the man's words, if that was at all possible, and buried her head into his shoulder. Harry's gripped her tight against him. His eyes darkened, throwing daggers at the man.

"Get him out of here," Lupin said to Tonks. He looked even more drawn and tired than usual. "Take him into questioning. Find out anything you can," he told her, running a hand over his face.

Tonks shot a concerned glance at him and looked as if she wanted to say more. She thought better of it, however. Instead, she simply put a comforting hand on his shoulder and nodded. She gave him one last meaningful look before she turned away to tell the others.

Harry was too busy with Ana to notice anything else. She was trying to loosen herself from Harry's grip, feeling slightly embarrassed about how she was reacting, but he wouldn't let her.

"You're not getting away, Ana, so stop trying," he told her with a grin, knowing what she was thinking. He released her enough to see the slightly shocked look on her face and laughed.

Ana, too, laughed a little at this. He wasn't fooling anyone. He was trying to make her feel better by lightening the mood of a very dark situation…and boy was it working. Appreciation shone in her eyes as she smiled up at him. "Thanks for that," they seemed to say.

Their little moment was interrupted by Lupin when he came walking up to them after seeing the others off. "Let's get you both back to Hogwarts. Enough excitement for today, eh?" he said, trying to smile but failing miserably at it.

Harry and Ana were just about to agree when an old, kind faced woman approached them. "Young man, I believe you dropped this," she said to Harry. In her hand was the bag from Flourish and Blotts that he had dropped. The one with Ana's surprise in it.

He took it from her gratefully. "Thank you," he said.

The woman merely gave him a wink, grinning as she walked off. Ana looked at the bag, then at Harry in question.

"Later," he told her, smiling.

He grabbed her hand and led her towards The Leaky Cauldron, Lupin trailing behind. They made their way up the stairs and into the room once more, where their bags of supplies were waiting. Lupin turned to them both, though addressed Ana.

"I am very sorry, Ms. Brighton. I'm afraid I let you down today. It was my job to make sure nothing happened, and I allowed myself to be distracted. I know I have no right to ask, but please forgive me for my lack of judgment. I can't tell you how much I regret what just happened out there." Lupin spoke calmly and sincerely. His tired and worn face spoke volumes about how truly sorry he was. He needn't have said a word about it.

Ana was slightly taken aback at how stricken he looked over the whole thing, not to mention the fact that he had just referred to her as "Ms. Brighton" instead of Ana like he had before. He's blaming himself, she realized. No. There's no way she could allow that.

"Professor, please, it wasn't your fault. There's nothing to forgive," she told him pleadingly. She didn't want anyone blaming themselves for the mess she had gotten herself into. They were her parents, after all.

Lupin merely gave her a sad smile and said, "You two should get going. Tell Dumbledore what happened and that I'll contact him when I get back."

"You're not coming with us?" Harry frowned.

"I'm afraid not, Harry. I promise we'll get back to our lessons tomorrow. Now go," Lupin said, looking a bit distracted. Like he was trying to sort out too many thoughts at one time.

Harry just nodded and let Ana go ahead of him. When she vanished into the fire, he turned to look at Lupin one last time before leaving. The man was staring out the window with a frown, looking a bit lost and oblivious to Harry's stare.

Ana had been right. It wasn't his fault. But knowing Lupin, he'd probably beat himself up about it anyways. None of them could have foreseen this.

Harry had faith in Lupin. In the Order. Despite what happened today, he knew they were doing the best they could to catch the Carrows. He just hoped their best was good enough.

Lupin's determined face was the last thing he saw before the green flames engulfed him.

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Sirius was going mad.

Not only did he have to stay cooped up in his family's creepy, old house most of the time, he was also forced to feel absolutely helpless whenever something big happened.

Like right now, for instance.

He paced up and down in the living room, unable to keep still. Every now and then he would run a hand through his long, black hair. The constant movement, however, was doing little to calm his nerves. The heavy, moth-eaten curtains were drawn, leaving the musty room almost as dark as the moonless night outside.

He had known Harry and Ana were going to Diagon Alley today. His lesson with Harry had had to be put off because of it. He never liked it when Harry had to leave Hogwarts, no matter what the reason was. It made him worried as hell.

He wondered briefly if this was what a parent felt every time they weren't in sight of their child. If so, he didn't understand why anyone in his right mind would want a child. This constant state of worry was something he could definitely live without.

It didn't help that Harry was the target of quite possibly the most evil wizard ever to walk the Earth. No, that didn't help at all.

Oddly enough, however, Harry wasn't the main focus of his thoughts at this moment. Harry could take care of himself. He'd proven that before. But Ana…

Ana was a different story. When Dumbledore had contacted him earlier and told him what had almost happened today he'd panicked slightly, cursing himself for not being there. Harry had been the first thing he'd asked about, and after being reassured of his safety, his thoughts turned to the frail, shy girl he had met yesterday.

She wouldn't stand a chance against a Death Eater. If Harry hadn't been there…

No. No use in thinking of that. They were both safe at Hogwarts once again, and that's all that mattered.

Perhaps she could sit in on some lessons…Obviously she needed to learn defense in any form she could. He had a feeling this wouldn't be the last time her life was threatened. Not with the Carrows still out there.

His musings were interrupted by the sound of Lupin's footsteps drawing nearer. He must have just come in, Sirius thought. Thank Merlin. Now he could set his mind at ease a little and find out what happened.

Lupin appeared in the doorway, not even meeting Sirius' eyes as he immediately made for the couch. He sat down and closed his eyes, leaning his head back as he did so. He looked terrible. It wasn't even a full moon tonight, and he looked terrible. Sirius went to the cabinet and poured out a glass of Firewhiskey before offering it to his friend.

Lupin peered out of one eye at the glass, shaking his head at it.

"Drink it, Remus. You look like you need it," Sirius said gently, but gave him a look that said he wouldn't take no for an answer.

Lupin sighed and grabbed the glass, downing it in one gulp. It tasted awful, but he made no face as the liquid burned down his throat.

When Sirius was satisfied that a little color had returned to his cheeks, he asked Lupin the question he'd been dying to ask all day.

"What happened?"

Lupin heaved another sigh and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. "It was a disaster. Hardly got any information at all from the man."

"Who was he? Anyone we know?" Sirius asked eagerly.

"No. He had only just joined a month ago. Name's McKracken," Lupin told him. He was getting frustrated all over again just thinking about it.

Sirius looked impressed. "How'd you get that out of him?'

Lupin frowned a bit as the memory of the questioning came back to him. "Shacklebolt used some rather…unconventional methods to get him to talk," he said carefully.

Sirius grinned. "I always liked Kingsley. Good man," he said wistfully. He wished he'd been there to see it.

Lupin scowled at him, though wasn't the least bit surprised at Sirius' words. He knew what was going on in that head of his, too. "It was completely against standard procedure," Lupin said reproachfully, ever the rule follower.

"Come now, Rem, you can't tell me you wished he hadn't. The man tried to kill an innocent girl! He deserved everything Kingsley gave him," Sirius said firmly, challenging Lupin to disagree.

Lupin held his ground for a moment, staring determinedly back into his friend's eyes. But then he sighed and relented, nodding almost imperceptibly to show he agreed. There's really no room for rules when an innocent life is at stake, is there?

Sirius softened as he looked at his exhausted friend and decided to change the subject. "So did he tell you anything about the Carrows?"

"Nothing at first. But it didn't take long for him to open up. Apparently he's not on very good terms with them. Kept going on about how they thought he wasn't good enough, or something. At any rate, he said he didn't know where they were hiding, but he knew that they'd been sniffing around Hogsmeade recently. That's all he could or would tell us. He's awaiting his trial now," Lupin told him.

"Hogsmeade? Did you go?" Sirius asked, feeling slightly ill at ease. Hogsmeade was within walking distance of Hogwarts. Not good.

"Yes. That's what took me so long to get back. I had to question the whole village it seemed like, and even after all that, I hardly learned anything. The only person who seemed to have seen any sign of them was Madame Rosmerta and thank Merlin for her. She said a suspicious looking fellow came in yesterday asking about a girl."

"Alecto?" Sirius wondered.

"Had to be. Anyways, she told me she had a feeling something wasn't right about the situation. Why would a grown man come into taverns to ask about a girl? She said she got the feeling that whoever this girl was, she didn't want to be found, so she thought quickly and gave him a false story. She told him she had seen a strange girl come into town a few days ago and get a ride on one of the many carriages that pass through all the time. She told me he seemed to buy it, and that she was glad I had come in, because she was just about to contact Dumbledore about it. Apparently he told her to keep an eye out for anything suspicious, though he failed to be specific about it, since she seemed to have no idea about Ana."

"Always one step ahead that Dumbledore, isn't he?" Sirius marveled, shaking his head.

Lupin nodded in agreement. "Yes, well, at least that should keep them off Ana's trail for a little while. That was a close call."

Sirius nodded silently, looking lost in thought. So they didn't know she was at Hogwarts. Well, that was comforting. How long would that last, though? Would they be able to catch them before it was too late and they did find out? He sighed. All he could do was hope.

And not a whole lot else, he thought ruefully.

He looked over to Lupin and smiled slightly at the sight. His friend looked as though he would nod off at any moment.

"Get some rest, Rem. You've had a long day," he told him gently and patted him on the back. He made his way to the door; intent on going up to his room and getting some sleep himself. Just as he was about to walk out, however, he paused and turned to him once more.

"You did well today, my friend," he said, meaning it.

Lupin just looked up at him from where he was still sitting on the couch, saying nothing. Sirius turned to go when his soft voice stopped him.

"Sirius?"

Sirius turned round again to look at Lupin with an inquiring glance.

Lupin sat still for a moment, saying nothing, and then, "You're doing well, too. Here, I mean. James would be very proud of you." He said it quietly and with certainty.

He knew it wasn't easy for Sirius to stay here, forced to be completely helpless. He knew Sirius would give his right arm to be right out there with him in his search for the Carrows, or any Death Eater, for that matter. What he'd said was true. James would be proud of him. Proud of his sacrifice.

Sirius stilled, a look of sadness filling his eyes. But it was gone in an instant, and instead he looked at Lupin with what could only be described as appreciation. He forced a small smile onto his face, and with a slight bow of his head, he was gone.

Lupin sighed yet again and settled back into the cushions, his mind drifting to the past. To better days. Days when the Marauders ruled the school known as Hogwarts. Days when all that mattered was seeing how much trouble they could all get into when others were asleep in their dorms. Well, more like how much trouble Sirius and James could get into. Days when James was still alive…days when they were all happy and carefree.

The clock struck the late hour with an echoing tone. The minutes flew by, but Lupin hardly noticed. His mind was somewhere else, refusing to slow down enough for him to sleep.

It was going to be another long night.

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Hogwarts loomed silently out of the starlit night, looking for all appearances to be asleep at this late hour. Only one sight betrayed the fact that this was not entirely true.

From the grounds outside, a single light high up on one of the many towers could be seen burning from within the imperious castle. There, a window framed the small figure of a girl alone with her thoughts.

The Gryffindor Common Room was bathed in the glow of the soft firelight, sending rippling shadows dancing across the walls. All was silent and still. The only sound that could be heard was the faint breathing of the girl staring out over the darkened grounds from her window seat.

Ana, however focused she appeared to be on the outside, studied the dark night with unseeing eyes as she hugged her knees to her chest on the cushioned seat. She hadn't said much since her return from Diagon Alley. Everything that had happened was far too fresh in her mind to talk about. Harry must have sensed this, because he had allowed her to retire to bed early without trying to get her to open up to him.

Now she almost wished she had. After getting settled in what was to be her dorm room for the entire school year, she had tried to get some sleep in the hopes that her mind would be clearer in the morning. But sleep never came.

She had come down to the Common Room instead to try and sort out her thoughts. There was something very comforting about the room. She felt more at ease here, unlike in her dormitory, which seemed far too…empty. Here, she could relax and think freely about the day's events…well, maybe not relax. There was hardly anything 'relaxing' about the thoughts that whirled through her now.

She had almost died today. That man, whoever he was, was going to kill her. Wanted to kill her. Dumbledore had told her he was a Death Eater…just like them. Her parents. What had happened today had made the danger she was in terrifyingly more real. The past few days had lulled her into a false sense of security. They had made her believe she was safe. She'd almost begun to think that maybe her parents would forget about her. Maybe they wouldn't come after her after all.

She couldn't have been more wrong.

How could she have been so foolish? They still wanted her dead. Of course they did. And they had almost succeeded today. If it hadn't been for Harry…

Harry.

She closed her eyes at the reminder of what he had done that day. He'd saved her life. If he hadn't been so quick on his feet…she'd be dead right now. Dead.

She opened her eyes and found herself staring back at her own reflection in the glass of the window. She studied her face with a frown. Why had he done that? He'd risked his life for her…The spell could just as easily have hit him.

Oh Gods! What if it had?

This terrifying thought sent chills running up and down her spine. She would never forgive herself if something happened to Harry because of her. Never. The thought alone of him dead…

No…no she couldn't even bring herself to finish that thought. It was too painful. Harry couldn't die. She cared too much about him.

With a start, her mind went back to this sudden thought. Cared? Where had that come from? Did she really care for him? The answer came to her easily.

Yes. Yes, she did care for him. She cared for him very much. He'd been more than kind to her. He'd made her feel at ease here. He'd showed her that there was more to life than fear.

He saved my life.

Perhaps in more ways than one, she mused. Before she could take this thought any further, a gentle voice interrupted it.

"Couldn't sleep?"

She looked up in mild surprise, easing when she found herself staring at Harry's tall form. He was leaning casually against the stair banister, a small grin on his face. How long had he been standing there? She hadn't even heard him come down.

She shrugged and gave him a sheepish smile.

Harry nodded and started making his way towards her. "Yeah, me either."

He sighed and sat down next to her on the window seat, relaxing against the glass. Ana still had her back to the wall, so she was now facing Harry's profile. He stared straight-ahead, and Ana watched as the fire reflected off of his glasses, smiling slightly at the sight.

"Bit of a boring day, huh?" Harry said, breaking the silence in an attempt to be funny.

It worked. Ana laughed and immediately her previous thoughts were washed away. How does he do it, she wondered. He always seemed to know how to lighten her spirits.

Harry turned his head to stare at her while her soft laughter echoed throughout the empty Common Room. She's beautiful when she laughs…The firelight gave her face a rosy glow, and her smiling eyes gleamed with the flames' reflection.

He had come down hoping that he would find her there, though not really counting on it. Whenever he couldn't seem to fall asleep he would come down here sometimes, finding the atmosphere comforting somehow. When he had descended the stairs and saw her curled up on the window seat (his favorite spot), he was pleasantly surprised. But from the way she was forlornly staring at nothing out the window, he knew she could probably do with some cheering up.

Which is why he was so glad he decided to bring the surprise with him, just in case she was down here. He fingered the now small object in his pocket, suddenly feeling nervous for some reason. He hoped she liked it.

He turned to her and noticed she was staring up at something through the window. He shifted slightly to do the same, and it was then that he noticed the night sky for the first time since sitting down. It sparkled with hundreds of stars, which were even more bright and beautiful without the harsh light of the moon to impede on them.

He smiled, an idea forming in his head. "Hey," he said, turning to Ana suddenly and rising from the seat. "Come on, I want to show you something."

He offered her his hand, and Ana stared at it for a moment, confused. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"Just…trust me. Please?"

Ana looked into his pleading eyes, and she relented. She gave him her hand, allowing him to help her off the window seat. He grinned at her and began leading her out the portrait hole and into the deserted halls.

The silence of the corridor was deafening, save for the soft tread of their footsteps. "Harry, won't we get into trouble? I don't think we're supposed to be wandering the halls in the middle of the night," she whispered apprehensively, looking around as if half-expecting a teacher to pop out of nowhere and discover them.

Harry chuckled at this and squeezed her hand comfortingly. "School hasn't started yet Ana. We're not going to get in trouble. Don't worry."

"Easy for you to say. Something tells me you're quite used to late night excursions. Am I right?" she asked with a grin.

"As a matter of fact, you are! Fancy that," he laughed and looked back at her with an evil grin that made her laugh.

They made their way up until they reached a steep, spiral staircase to what had to be the tallest tower in the castle. What is he up to?, she wondered. She tried working her mind to see if she could remember from her readings what was in the tallest tower, but came up with nothing. She was too curious to think clearly, anyway.

They came to a large wooden door, and Harry opened it to lead her inside. Soon they were standing on an open balcony. The summer air wafted over them, bringing with it the sweet, dewy fragrances of the night. As her surroundings suddenly became clear to her, Ana gasped.

"The Astronomy Tower," Harry explained needlessly with a small smile.

Ana slowly walked to the parapets of the balcony in complete awe. Above her was the most beautiful sight her eyes had ever seen. The night sky was alive with the light of the stars, pulsing with beauty. What a difference it made being up here, rather than seeing it from the Common Room window. It was breathtaking. She'd never seen anything quite like it.

"Oh, Harry…it's beautiful!" she breathed, still entranced by the night sky above her.

He smiled and moved to stand beside her. He gazed up at the glittering heavens and nodded. "I thought you might like it. I've been coming up here a lot lately whenever I can't sleep. It's funny…it never fails to calm me down. Make me feel better," he said quietly, turning to face her as he did. "I figured you could use something like that after today."

Ana tore he gaze away from the stars above to look him in the eye. "Harry, about that…I…I wanted to…to thank you," she began hesitantly as she stared down at her hands. "If it wasn't for you…You saved my life. And I…I just wanted to thank you. You always seem to be there when I need you," she smiled. She lifted her head to look at him and gave a small laugh.

Harry blushed and was thankful that it was dark outside. "Yeah, well, you're pretty good at finding yourself in sticky situations, aren't you," he jested, grinning and earning another laugh from Ana.

She batted him playfully. "Shut up," she told him, still smiling.

Harry smiled at her affectionately and was suddenly reminded of the main reason he had brought her up here. Again he fingered the small item in his pocket, as if he was afraid it had somehow vanished on the way up to the tower. But no, it was still there, and so was his slight nervousness. Here goes…

Ana noticed immediately that Harry seemed flustered about something. She watched in curiosity as he pulled a small object from one of his pockets and held it in his hand.

"I, uh, I got you something. I wanted to give it to you earlier, but…well, with everything that happened today…I guess I got sort of side-tracked, and there never seemed to be a good time…until now, that is," he stopped, realizing he was babbling a bit.

Ana just stared at him, slightly confused. He had gotten her something? All of a sudden she was reminded of his mysterious disappearance back in Diagon Alley, and the old woman who had handed him a bag he had dropped.

Harry took a deep breath and looked down at the object in his hand, pulling out his wand as he did. "Engorgio," he said.

And with that, the item suddenly grew in size until Ana finally recognized what it was.

A book. Harry had gotten her a book? But why? He'd done way too much for her as it was.

He stared down at the book in his hands for a moment, and then lifted his head to meet her eyes with a small smile. "I wanted it to be a surprise. I thought since you lost yours when you ran away, you might like it." He handed her the book a little unsurely, hoping she'd like it.

Ana took it in both hands and felt her heart swell when she read the title.

Hogwarts, A History

She looked down at it affectionately, running a hand over its cover. "Harry, it's wonderful…" she said, looking up at him with gratitude in her eyes.

"There's more. Open it," he told her. This was the part he was nervous about.

She furrowed her brows at him, and slowly did what he said. She opened the book and turned to the first page. There, in a golden script, were words that brought tears to her eyes.

In Loving Memory

Of

Barnaby Brighton

She read the words over and over again, imprinting them into her mind forever. A tear rolled down her cheek, but she made no move to wipe it away.

Harry watched in growing apprehension as Ana continued to stare at the words in silence. It was only when she lifted her head that he noticed she was crying.

"Oh Gods, you hate it, don't you? I didn't mean to upset you, honest. Here, I'll take it back—"

Ana, who hugged the book close to her when Harry reached for it, cut his distressed words short. "No! No, Harry, I…I don't know what to say," she told him through her tears, which were now flowing freely. She sniffed. "It's…it's the most beautiful gift anyone could have ever given me," she whispered.

Harry felt his heart warm at her genuine words, but before he could respond, he felt himself thrown back a bit as Ana rushed forward into his arms. He was surprised, but he welcomed the embrace and wrapped his arms tightly around her, smiling.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I love it. More than anything."

"I'm glad," he replied, still smiling. "And you're welcome."

Slowly, she stepped back from him, clutching the book close to her. Her eyes shone with warmth as they stared into his, the starlight bathing them both in its soft glow. She wanted to remember this moment for the rest of her life, so perfect was it.

He was perfect.

They sat there together on the tower for some time after that, pointing out each shooting star that shot across the sky above. Every now and then, Ana would look over at Harry as if she expected him to vanish any moment, and she would wake up to find that the past few days had been a dream and nothing more. But he was still there each time she did.

He was always there. And a small part of her wished secretly that he always would be.

She watched as a grin spread across his face as he excitedly pointed out another falling star to her. She grinned, too…though it had nothing to do with the heavens above.

Perfect.

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AN: Yay! Here it is. And no terrible cliffie this time! I'm trying to redeem myself :). So what'd you think? I hope you liked this chapter, and I just want to say thank you to all my reviewers! You guys brighten my days, seriously. Your comments inspire me. Thanks again everyone and have a great day!