"Miss Prewett," says my personal assistant, Lionel. He has been my assistant for a long time but still insists that he call me 'Miss Prewett' and not Allison. I think he just likes the formality. "You've got a guest waiting in the lobby. Should I send her up?"

"Yes, of course," I say. I assume that it is Sarah. This was about the time that we agreed upon for her personal orientation. Lionel walks out the door but walks back in less than a minute later.

"Oh, and," he says. "You've also got your half eleven appointment with Sarah Brighton in fifteen minutes."

I panic for a moment. If the guest wasn't Sarah, then who was it? I try to relax myself before asking, "Who is the guest?"

"Well she says her name is Elizabeth—"

"What?" I question, my eyes widening. "What is she doing here?"

"Well she—"

"Now, don't tell me you aren't happy to see you're Aunty Liz?" says a voice from behind Lionel. I stiffen and Lionel gulps at my expression before scurrying out of the office. Elizabeth slowly walks further into my office and closes the door. "How are you, Allie darling?"

"I'm fine," I say, trying my hardest not to break under the serious pressure of her stare. But I cringe on the inside when she calls me Allie. "And you know how I feel about you calling me Allie."

"Oh, don't be such a killjoy, darling!" she exclaims. "I just wanted to see my favorite niece and see how she's doing is all."

"Or are you trying to trick me into giving you more money?" I ask, arching an eyebrow. "Just like—oh, I don't know—every other time you've sought me or mother out?"

"Don't be so uptight, love. I just need a little bit and then I'm out of your hair for good."

"I'm not giving you anything, Elizabeth," I say sternly. All she does is chuckle a little bit before rifling through her bag and pulling something out that I haven't seen since it was stolen from me a year ago. My mother's locket. "Where did you get that?"

"Oh, nowhere that you need to be concerned of, my darling," she says. I can tell her intentions right away. "I just figured you might want the first pop at buying it."

"You're going to sell it?" I shout, standing up. "You planned on selling my mother's locket?"

"Well of course, love, don't be silly," she retorts. "Don't you know how much I could get for it? A locket that can—"

"Okay what do you want for it?" I crumble. As much as I hate having to buy back something that belongs to me, it beats having Elizabeth selling it to greedy wizards who have no sentimental attachment to it. Elizabeth's lips curve up to form a nasty smirk.

"I knew you'd come around."

"ARE YOU okay, Al?" asks Harry from next to me as we sit around the table for dinner. Scarlet wanted to meet some of my family so she had me invite the lot over for dinner at our house.

"You do look a bit pale, dear," says Aunt Molly. At this point all attention is on me. "What is the matter?"

"Elizabeth showed up today."

Everyone—except for Scarlet, who didn't know—at the table sighed in unison.

"Not her again," says Draco, squeezing my hand from across the table. "I remember last time she came around."

"We all do," agrees George.

"This time it was different," I explain. "She had mum's locket."

"You don't mean—"

"Yes, that's the one. She made me buy it from her," I say. Everyone gives me a sympathetic look. Scarlet still looks confused.

"Who is Elizabeth?" she says quietly. Ginny looks at me for approval before explaining to Scarlet.

"Elizabeth is Allison's maternal Aunt. Her mother's sister if you will," Ginny began. "When Allison's father died, Elizabeth shoved herself into Allison's mother, Cathleen's life. Assumed that she needed help. Convinced her, even, that she probably should conjoin their vaults at Gringott's so that Elizabeth could 'help her out'. As soon as the vaults were joined, Elizabeth ran off with all the money left from Uncle Fabian."

"Oh my goodness, that's so awful," Scarlet says. "I'm so sorry, Al."

"That's not even the half of it," I say. "See Elizabeth has a really bad habit of spending money she doesn't have, making deals with sketchy wizards, and getting herself in enormous debt. Whenever she finds herself in a bind, she came to us. Even as manipulative as she is and always has been, my mother could never turn her away. But when Mum died, she bribed the funeral director to cremate her and send me the ashes in a jar. I didn't even get to give my mother a proper burial because Elizabeth wanted to pinch the sickles that weren't even hers in the first place."

"Are you serious?"

"Yep. Today was the first time I have seen her since I confronted her about Mum. I just can't believe she would do such a thing as steal my mother's locket," I sigh.

HOW DID you know about Elizabeth, by the way?" I ask Draco as we are cleaning up. After I shared my struggle of the day, I shook off the serious mood and forced the conversation to happier topics. I couldn't bear to bring down my family. The night got happier when we discussed cute names for Percy and Audrey's baby. Currently, Scarlet is in bed, as is Stella.

"Well for a little while all I knew was that you were depressed," he started. "I sort of assumed that it was because your mother died in the war and that it was still so recent. I made a comment when I was with Blaise and Daphne about how I felt bad for you, and Daphne told me what had happened. She said that you needed our support then more than ever."

"That's a very Daphne thing to have said," I say. I stick out my tongue at him and add, "But all you did was continue to tease me relentlessly for two more years."

"But the thing is, I didn't truly understand what it meant to be there for someone," he explained. "I didn't get what it was to be completely supportive of someone. The reason I kept up the banter so much at that point was because I figured that it might lighten the mood. Help distract you from being sad. Our banter is what helped distract me from my issues all through Hogwarts, you know."

"Really?" I question. "I always thought that you hated me."

"No, I never hated you. I thought you disliked me though."

"Actually, I did not hate you," I say. "I wanted you and Blaise to think I was as cool as you thought Daphne was."

"Blaise made me promise not to tease her," Draco chuckles. "He was smitten from the start. Love at first sight as one might say."

"Classic Blaise," I smile sadly, remembering our best friends. "Stella looks just like him."

"Parts yes, but her eyes are definitely Daphne's," he says, turning to look at me. "But I think she picked up her laugh from you."

"Me?" I snort. "How do you figure that?"

"Well it's the kind of laugh that just makes you want to laugh too," he says. "It really brings light to everyone it reaches. One of the prettiest sounds in the world."

I blush a bit and suddenly realize the proximity between us. We start getting closer but I feel too guilty to continue.

"Draco what are we doing?" I ask, letting a tear fall. "You're engaged to a wonderful woman."

"I'm sorry," he says quietly, looking down and rubbing the back of his neck. "I shouldn't have tried to do that."

Before I can say another word, Draco stalks off to his room.

When I'm away and you can't sleep

Just know that it's the same for me