AN: 1. English isn't my mother tongue, so please expect some mistakes.

2 I appreciate fair comments and reviews.

3. I don't own Harry Potter or anything in the Wizarding World. I merely play in its sandpit.

Chapter II

"And please keep in mind, Ms. Greengrass: No student should be found outside their dorm after curfew." With that, Professor McGonagall left, closing the door behind her.

"Interesting choice of wording.", Astoria said and Harry chuckled.

"Well, she might really want to make up for my first four years."

"Maybe.", she agreed. "So, I told you we'd be getting you out of Gryffindor Tower."

"That you did." Harry grinned at her and did something he'd never done before. He gave her a soft but firm hug.

Astoria sighed contentedly, her head on his shoulder. Harry chuckled again.

"What is it with you and body contact anyway?", she asked him. "First you would avoid being touched and you would stiffen in a hug. Now you initiate one." She paused. "Not that I'm complaining, though."

"It…it has to do with my relatives. They didn't really gave me a reason to enjoy being touched.", he told her. "With you though, I-I noticed how good it feels." Astoria could literally hear the blush his face must be sporting.

"Well, that's good to hear. I have you know that I'm a passionate hugger. It's good you get used to it."

They were currently standing in Harry's new quarters. More exactly in his living room. Professor McGonagall had led them to a corridor near Gryffindor Tower. One of the school's suites was hidden behind a plain wooden door, much like any broom closet would be.

The suite contained a cosy living room with a large couch, a fireplace, some bookshelves and two large windows. Opposite the windows there was the entrance, on the left side another door led into the bedroom. There was a queen sized four poster bed, a desk and another fireplace as well as another window.

A third door was the entrance to Harry's bathroom. It was nothing special but it had a shower as well as a rather large bathtub. So it certainly was way better than the shared bathroom in the dorm.

[++++++++++]

It was well past 11pm that found Astoria entering the Slytherin common room. Harry had walked her back after they had talked for a few more hours. The day really had been trying but fun nonetheless.

"There you are! I was so worried." Once again Astoria was being pulled into her sister's room.

"Hallo, Daph.", she smiled tiredly.

"You should have been here hours ago.", her sister told her. "Did something happen to you?"

"No, I'm fine." Astoria decided to ignore Daphne's comment about the time.

"I haven't seen you all day. Didn't you say you'd go to Hogsmeade?"

"Yeah, I was in Hogsmeade.", she said. "A while at least." The last part was added under her breath.

"What was that?"

"I was there. Well, kinda."

"You kind of were in Hogsmeade?", her sister inquired.

"Yeah, I came through…"

Daphne's eyes narrowed. "Talk.", she demanded.

Astoria gulped. "We went to London. Gringotts, to be specific."

"What did you do at Gringotts? You're not supposed to leave the town, you know that."

"Well, we had to."

"Who's we?", Daphne wanted to know. "Wait, it's Potter again, isn't it?"

"His name is Harry." The older girl closed her eyes for a moment.

"Why did he drag you to Gringotts?"

"I had to drag him there! He had no clue, Daphne. Nobody ever told him about his family, about the Ancient and Noble Houses."

Understanding flashed over Daphne's face. "You took him there to obtain his Heir Ring, didn't you?"

Astoria nodded. "Yeah, but I can't say anything more, Daph."

"And why are you that late, then? Fetching the ring shouldn't have taken longer than an hour or two."

"Well, we went shopping afterwards. He needed a new wardrobe…" Astoria trailed off.

Daphne rolled her eyes. "You mean, you thought he needed a new wardrobe."

"Have you seen the rags, he had to wear before?", she retorted hotly to what Daphne raised her hands in mock defence.

"You're right." A moment later her eyes widened slightly. "You said, he needed a new wardrobe. Didn't stop you from buying a new bracelet, did it?", Daphne smirked.

"Well, I didn't buy it.", Astoria mumbled absentmindedly as she played with the charms, a happy smile on her face.

"Ooooh!", Daphne suddenly squealed. "You've got it badly, Tori." She had a triumphant smile on her face.

Astoria on the other hand looked shocked. "What?"

"Oh don't look so surprised. I'm happy for you!" Astoria was being wrapped in her sister's arms. "Well it could have been someone else but…"

"Hey!"

"Oh, I didn't really mean it… So you're admitting it then?"

Was she? Could it be true? Did Astoria fancy Harry? The more she thought about it, the more she noticed that Daphne was right. "I-I guess."

[++++++++++]

Astoria was sitting at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall, eating a bowl of porridge, when she heard McGonagall demanding attention. Her Transfiguration Professor stood in front of the head table.

"I am sorry, to interrupt your breakfast. I will try and keep this short." The Professor paused. "Gryffindor House meets tonight after dinner in the common room. Please make sure to tell the students which aren't currently here."

Astoria glanced at Harry across the hall. He, too, was looking at her. She could see in his happiness about finally being supported by a authority figure. He shot her one of his lopsided grins and her stomach fluttered.

"I wouldn't flirt so openly with your boyfriend, if you don't want everybody to figure you out by dinner tonight.", came her sister's teasing voice from her left.

"He isn't my boyfriend!", Astoria hissed.

"Well, do something about it, then."

"It isn't that easy. W-we both have a lot to deal with."

Daphne looked at her for a moment. "Don't you think, that's just one more reason to go with it? As you said, you are good for each other."

"I don't know how he feels about me.", Astoria whispered. "He won't know either."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

She only shook her head at that.

"Well, you won't get any further by doing nothing."

Astoria looked at her sister for a long moment, deep in thought. "You're right.", she finally said. With that, Astoria stood and strode towards Harry Potter.

Arriving where her friend sat, she plopped down next to him, what startled the boy.

"What are you doing here?", he whispered frantically.

She tried to give him a encouraging smile. "I'm having breakfast with my friend."

"B-but the whole school can see you talking to me."

"We weren't really keeping our meetings that secret, were we?"

"No but we weren't advertising it either."

She shrugged. "You are my friend and I don't care what other people think."

"But what about Malfoy? Won't he give you a hard time?" The concern in his eyes was adorable.

"I told you once that I can handle Malfoy." She paused and gave him another smile." Now eat your breakfast, so we can do something fun."

He didn't look convinced at all but didn't voice any concerns anymore. Slowly he began to eat once again.

After breakfast the two friends made their way to Harry's quarters in relatively silence.

"Stairway to Heaven."

Astoria blinked in surprise. "What?"

Harry didn't reply as he opened the door to his suite and dragged her inside. "Stairway to Heaven.", he repeated once inside. "It's the new password to my quarters."

She nodded confusedly. "What does it mean?"

"Oh, it's a muggle rock song. It's one of the greatest songs ever. The band was called Led Zeppelin."

"Well, you'll have to let me hear it then at some point." She smiled.

Harry mock saluted. "Already working on it, Ma'am." Astoria laughed at his antics. "So, what did you have in mind? You said you wanted to do something fun today."

She shrugged. "Don't know really. My plans went as far as spending time with you.", she told him with a laugh.

"Sounds like fun.", he smiled. "Actually, I was going to continue working on a project. Or did you want to do something more active?"

"No, that's alright. I need to catch up on my homework and I don't really think I'm up for much action today anyways. Yesterday was a long day."

Harry's eyes darkened at that. "I'm sorry…", he began bus was cut short by a glare from Astoria. "Well, I can help you with your assignments, if you need something.", he told her, rubbing his neck.

"Thank you. And what project are you going to work on?"

"Just working on a theory of mine… I'll tell you, as soon as I get something solid."

Astoria knew, not to press him, so she hummed affirmative.

For the rest of the morning, the two friends sat on Harry's big desk, she working on a assignment for McGonagall, he skimming through some of his books on parsel magic, making notes she couldn't read.

At lunch, Harry took her to the kitchens. She'd never even thought about where all the food was being cooked. Realizing that, Astoria had to laugh about herself.

They arrived near the Hufflepuff common room when Harry suddenly stopped. She looked at him questioningly before he spoke up. "Would you like the honour of tickling the pear?"

Completely dumbstruck she could only ask: "What?" Harry pointed her towards a painting next to her.

"Are you having one on me?"

He grinned. "No, seriously. Tickle it."

Astoria checked his eyes and saw he meant it. So she tickled the pear. When a doorknob appeared and she turned it, she was speechless once again. That only lasted a few seconds though, as one of the many house elves, she could see, literally came flying towards Harry.

"The great Harry Potter visits Dobby!", the elf squealed.

Harry chuckled at that. "Of course, Dobby. Now, could you organise some food for me and my friend?"

"Yes, Harry Potter Sir! Dobby be glad to be of assistance to great Harry Potter and great Harry Potter's Greeny!" Astoria had recovered after her initial shock and was now giggling, too.

"Harry?", she laughed. "What did you do to that elf?"

He ran his hand through his hair, what made her feel butterflies in her stomach again. "Well, I freed him from his previous master… Needless to say, he's rather happy about that."

"That's one way to put it."

By then, Dobby had already started leading them towards a small table in the nearest corner. As she saw the feast, the elves had prepared for them, she really felt how hungry she was. Astoria had never finished her breakfast as she'd been to nervous sitting at the Gryffindor table.

"So, Dobby er… how have you been", Harry asked the elf, who was still standing next to the table.

"Great Harry Potter Sir asks how Dobby bes! Dobby is very happy. Most happy, when Dobby can serve Great Harry Potter!", the excited elf exclaimed.

"That's good, Dobby. But just call me Harry." Astoria could see how uncomfortable Harry had become and that made her giggle again.

"Dobby, I believe I have seen you before…", she piped up once she had stopped laughing.

The elf gasped at that. "Great Harry Potter's Greeny remembers Dobby?", the elf only became more excited, clearly having no intention to call her friend just Harry. "Yous maybe has seen Dobby with bad, old Master. Yous always be kind to Dobby." Harry gave her a beaming smile at that, which she returned with a small one of her own. "Great Harry Potter's Greeny must be a very great witch herself!", Dobb tod them finally, what made them both laugh.

"Well, Dobby, I believe you are right.", Harry said, grinning.

Astoria and Harry spent the afternoon much like they had the morning. Harry worked on his secret project and Astoria did her homework. At least for a while. After finishing her Charms essay with a few pointers from Harry, she went to grab one of his many books. Harry had filled most of his bookshelves overnight. Astoria didn't really know where he had hidden all the books but she didn't mind as she loved muggle literature. Trailing her fingers over the spines of some of the books, she stopped on one of the thickest ones. It was called IT, written by Stephen King. Pulling it out, Astoria made her way to Harry.

"Harry?", she addressed him and he looked up from his work. "What's this book about?" His eyes lit up at that.

"Well it's horror, so it's rather creepy…", he began only to be interrupted.

"I know what horror is, Harry.", she laughed. "What is it like?"

He grinned at that. "You will have to find out yourself. It's rather dry at the beginning, but when you get into it, you will not want to stop again." She nodded, intrigued.

"Where did you get all those books?", she asked him.

"As you know, I always liked learning… well, I always loved reading for fun, too.", he paused. "When I was younger, I would grab books, Dudley had been gifted with. He wasn't interested in them, so he threw them into a corner of his second bedroom. When…" Harry gulped. "When I was cleaning his room, I often sneaked them into my c-cupboard." Harry had told her about that and she was yet to fully process it. When he first told her about it, she had hugged him tightly. She'd tried to give him all the love he had never gotten with that one hug. The topic was still uncomfortable for him.

"Later, I would summon the Knight's Bus while the Dursleys were on one of their weekend trips. I'd change a few galleons out of my trust vault into pounds. With that money I would buy a few books in London." There was a tiny smile playing around his lips now. "In my third year, while reading about magical creatures, I found out how valuable basilisk hide and venom are… so I had the goblins harvest the corpse in the Chamber last year. Knowing, I was to receive a large amount of money, I spent a lot more this summer." He snorted. "Well, I really only bought books. A lot of them, though."

Astoria was baffled. That was why there hadn't been much left of the basilisk.

"Why didn't you buy new clothes then? If you knew, you could spare the money?"

He rubbed his neck again. "The Dursley's would have noticed instantly and would have wanted to get their hands on the money. Books, I could hide in my trunk after I found out how to magically enlarge it."

Swallowing hard, she quickly embraced him. "It's a good thing, you won't have to return to your relatives, as you are emancipated now." Harrys eyes grew wide at that. He clearly hadn't thought that far.

"You… you're right." He started chuckling, which quickly developed to full, hearty laughter. She squealed, as Harry swept her off her feet and twirled her around. The butterflies in her stomach were back in full force.

"Where will you go?", she asked him after he'd set her back down.

"I don't know… I mean I could live with my godfather but Dumbledore would easily find me there and make me go back to the Dursleys."

Astoria thought about it for a moment. "Well, I would have advised to go to Potter Manor, but it has been destroyed by Voldemort in during the war…" She trailed off.

"How do you know?"

"As a pureblood, you are supposed to know the history of the most important families. Daphne and I have been tutored since we were seven years old.", she told him.

"I guess it makes sense. Your knowledge has to come from somewhere after all." Harry chuckled.

[++++++++++]

The two friends had eaten dinner together in the Great Hall. Astoria once again sitting at the Gryffindor table. As Harry had to attend the House Meeting, McGonagall had announced at breakfast, she had left the Great Hall with Daphne.

The two sisters walked in silence for a bit, before Daphne spoke up. "I guess, I told you to do something about it. But I had no idea, you would storm off, to announce your… friendship so publicly." She sighed.

Astoria glanced at her while walking. "I have nothing to lose."

"I-I guess you don't. But the people who love you do." With that, they stepped in the common room, where all conversations instantly died down.

"Well, well, well.", Malfoy drawled. Astoria's head snapped in direction of his voice. "If it isn't Scarhead's bitch."

Her eyes narrowed. "Didn't your mother teach you how to talk with your betters?", Astoria mocked, copying his voice.

"Malfoys do not have betters!", he snarled. "Especially not some family of cauldron stirrers. You should be grateful, if you would be allowed to walk around on my arm."

Daphne stood next to her. "Our family has already been at the peak of British magical society, when the Malfoys where nothing more than a minor house in France.", her sister shot back.

"Why you little!" Malfoy had crossed the distance between himself the two sisters while Daphne had spoken and was now about to slap Daphne across the face, when Astoria grabbed her sister's arm.

CRACK!

Before Malfoys hand could hit Daphne's face, he was being thrown back and crashed into one of the couches. Groaning the Malfoy Heir tried to stand up but clearly hadn't enough energy left to do so.

"Are you all right, Daph?", Astoria asked frantically. Her sister looked at her, shocked, but nodded nonetheless.

Sighing in relief, Astoria pulled Daphne into her room.

"What did just happen to Malfoy?", Daphne asked after a few moments.

"I-I'm not sure.", Astoria replied. She then absentmindedly began fidgeting with her new bracelet. Daphne's eyes followed her hands movement to her wrist. Astoria was about to ask what her sister's problem with her bracelet was, when Daphne's eyes grew wide.

"Charms… of course.", Daphne mumbled.

"What?"

"A charms bracelet. Literally." Now Astoria's eyes became huge. "You think…"

"Yeah, it must be charmed to protect you. And since you touched me, intending to protect me, it has done so."

"Well, Malfoy will think twice before attempting something again.", Astoria stated to what Daphne nodded.

"Seems, you boyfriend makes up for how dangerous it is to be associated with him by being thoughtful.", Daphne laughed.

"Oi! He isn't my boyfriend!"

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that."

[++++++++++]

The rest of the month of November passed rather quickly, as did the first two weeks of December. For Astoria, they had been quite uneventful. Harry had managed to keep himself out of trouble. He seemed not in the slightest interested in Umbridge's baits.

Astoria had continued meeting with Harry. Now almost daily. Either they studied or talked. Sometimes they would go flying. Well, not anymore, she reminded herself, as she walked towards Harry's suite. The only major setback had been Harry's first quidditch match of the year. They had played Slytherin a few days prior and Harry had beaten Malfoy, once again.

The victory, however, didn't last long, as Harry let Malfoy provoke him right after the match. Harry broke the ferret's nose and Umbridge, in turn, banned Harry from quidditch. For life. Not just that, though, as the toad also confiscated his Firebolt.

Astoria only learned later what Malfoy had said to Harry. Not exactly, though. The Weasley twins, who she liked since they had welcomed her at Gryffindor table instantly, told her about the nasty comments Malfoy had made about her.

On one hand, she was happy, that Harry would defeat her, even her honour. On the other hand, she didn't like that he took the bait and jumped heads first into a fight. Astoria sighed. Well, at least Harry didn't seem to be as downcast as she had anticipated him to be. He had quickly gotten himself back together and went on with his life.

Other than that, she had explored her feelings for him further. She was sure, she was in love with him and his eyes told her that he felt something similar. Why he never acted on it, she didn't know. He always appeared to be confused when she saw those emotions in his eyes. As the weeks went by, she found herself thinking about it more frequently.

As she rounded the corner and was only a few steps away from his door, she stopped in her tracks. What if he didn't want to be with somebody, he knew was dying by the time they were only around thirty years old? Tears shot into her eyes. Could that be it? Why hadn't he said anything?

A sob escaped her lips, as she stood there in an empty corridor.

She turned around, to return to… Of course! He had his own problems to deal with. She knew, there were things, he didn't tell her. Astoria could see in his eyes, how weighed down his soul occasionally was. Until now, she had chosen to ignore it, wanting to stay in their happy little bubble, which guarded them from the rough environment that was life. Maybe, it was time to face, what they had to face. She would stand by him, would no longer ignore, what was troubling her friend. Didn't he dare to shut her out.

Astoria turned back around, walking toward his door.

And maybe, just maybe. Their love, she knew was there, was one of the things they would face together.

Wiping the tears off her face, she knocked on Harry's door, before whispering: "Stairway to Heaven."

The door opened and Astoria was greeted by… music. Loud music. She quickly closed the door behind her, to keep the noise in.

A heavy riff was the first thing she could process. Of course, she knew what a guitar riff was, Astoria was fan of the Weird Sisters, after all. That, though, was something entirely else.

The vocalist had started singing. Again. She assumed, not to be hearing the beginning of the song.

The singer's voice, in contrast to the powerful riff, sounded almost lovingly. It was… beautiful.

*Oh, pilot of the storm who leaves no trace

Like thoughts inside a dream.

Heed the path that led me to that place with yellow desert stream.

My Shangri-La beneath the summer moon, I will return again.

Sure as the dust that blows high in June, when movin' through Kashmir.*

Only then, did Harry notice her. She was startled when he approached her, as she was engrossed in the tunes. With a wave of his hand, the music was quiet. Almost like background music in a restaurant.

He looked concerned. "Have you been crying? What happened? Was it Malfoy again?"

Astoria shook her head and smiled at him. Hoping he would see the truth in her eyes. "It's fine, he didn't do anything." As Harry stared into her eyes, she saw him relaxing.

"Tell me about the music.", she demanded.

Grinning, he led her towards the couch and pulled her down with him. "I told you about Stairway to Heaven, obviously.", he grinned.

Astoria gasped, wanting to hear that song, ever since he'd told her about it. "Is that it?" The excitement bright in her eyes.

"No.", he stated and Astoria pouted cutely. "But it's a Led Zeppelin song, too. And I like it just as much, as I like Stairway to Heaven, if not more so.

"Well, how is it called?"

"Kashmir." Harry smiled.

"Kashmir?"

"Kashmir."

"Let's listen to it again. I want to hear it from the beginning this time around.", Astoria said. "And afterwards, you can play Stairway to Heaven for me." She knew, she had gotten him with her puppy eyes. Harry hummed happily as he flicked his wrist and that great riff could be heard again. This time even louder than before.

*Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face, with stars to fill my dream.

I am a traveler of both time and space to be where I have been…*

It was about an hour later, when they had heard both songs and had discussed them thoroughly.

"Where did you discover muggle rock anyway?", she asked him after some time.

"Well, you have to blame my godfather for that, really."

"You mentioned him once before, but you never told me more about your godfather.", she said after a moment of silence.

As Astoria looked into Harry's beautiful green eyes, she could see, that what he was about to tell her should stay between them.

"You remember what happened in your second year?"

She thought about it for a moment. Finally she nodded. "Yes. Sirius Black was freshly on the loose, apparently trying to kill you." She gasped at the look in his eyes. "No way!"

"Even so.", he sighed. "He never betrayed my parents…" With that, Harry proceeded to tell Astoria about what had happened in his third year, what he had found out. He told her, how Sirius came back to Britain as Harry's name had come out of the Goblet of Fire. He told her, how Sirius was currently staying at his family's home in London.

"I was so angry, so devastated this summer. After Ron and Hermione let Dumbledore forbid them to write to me, after what happened with the dementors, the hearing…" he trailed off. "Sirius was there for me. We talked a lot. About my parents, life itself… He introduced me to rock. My father and Sirius went to some concerts together. One of the bands they saw, was Led Zeppelin, by the way." He smiled at that. "I guess, it makes me feel like they are with me, when I listen to it." He paused. "Anyways, after picking up the enchanted record player in Diagon Alley…"

"That's that thing?! It plays the music?", Astoria exclaimed excitingly.

Harry chuckled at her eagerness and nodded his head. "Yeah, it's a muggle device, enchanted to work with magic… Anyways, I wrote to Sirius and he got me a huge amount of records. They arrived today. I've been listening ever since." She smiled at him, glad it made him happy like it did.

"Where will you go during the Christmas Break, Harry?"

"Don't know yet…", he trailed off. "Probably going to stay with Sirius. The problem is that the Weasleys will probably be there, too."

"Why don't you look into a place for yourself? You could invite Sirius there, too."

"I doubt it would be safe with Voldemort back on the loose… Sirius' house is under the Fidelius Charm"

"Talk to the Goblins.", Astoria suggested. "They offer quite superior warding services. The Fidelius included."

Harry looked thoughtful for a moment. "I might actually do that."

"That's good. I'll have to talk to my parents first, but I'd like to see you over Christmas. Maybe you want to visit some time?" She bit her lip, worrying about his reaction.

His eyes, however, lit up at that. "I'd love to. It wouldn't be a good holiday without you." Harry gave her a smile, which she returned beamingly.

"So. Tell me, what's bothering you, Harry.", Astoria demanded softly, after a minute of silence.

"W-what?", he looked gobsmacked.

"I can see it, you know. Thanks to our little connection." She sighed. "I can see something is bothering you. One day it's worse, the other it seems like it's nothing at all. Just… just don't shut me out, okay?"

When he didn't reply, she got nervous. "You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to. It's just I-I want to help.", Astoria mumbled, not daring to look at him. Had she overstepped?

"Harry? Ple…", she began, when she was being pulled into a soft but firm embrace. Her head on Harry's chest, she nearly sat in his lap, as he hugged her.

"I don't know, what I did to deserve you.", Astoria heard him mumble quietly. She didn't know what to say, so they stayed like this for some time.

"I have dreams.", she heard him say.

"Dreams?" Astoria was confused.

Harry took a shuddering breath. "Visions, more likely. I had them first in my fourth year. Didn't understand it at that time…" He paused. "After… well, after Voldemort's resurrection it only got more frequently, worse." Astoria squeezed his chest, as she was holding onto him. She would be there for him.

"I still don't understand them, don't understand why I have them. I only know, it has to do with Voldemort. A-and it scares me.", he admitted.

"Oh, Harry!" She could feel tears wanting to escape her eyes.

"I'm not really scared because of me… I'm scared of what it could mean." His voice was shaky. She understood his fear, as she seemed to understand everything about Harry. He was scared that he could cause his loved ones pain. Directly or indirectly. It tormented him. Astoria squeezed Harry tighter.

Silence was reigning, once again. She could feel him calming down, could hear his heartbeat getting slower again, as her head still rested against his chest.

"I-I think Dumbledore has suspicions about it. He knows about the visions.", Harry began once more. "But he hasn't really talked to me s-since we went home this summer."

Astoria could literally feel, how his gaze was now on her, as if he wanted her, pleaded her to make his dark thoughts go away. "Why doesn't he talk to me? Is he afraid of me because of this… connection to Voldemort?"

Her tears, by now, were streaming freely. How could this boy hurt so much and still be such a beautiful soul? How could everybody keep disappointing him and still, Harry would keep on fighting? Not for himself, though, for everybody else.

She wouldn't disappoint him. She was meant to be there for him. They were meant to be there for each other. And Astoria knew, they would be.

"Harry?" She lifted her head off his chest to look at him. His eyes were closed, a look of pain on his face. "Harry? Please look at me."

A few minutes, it seemed, but maybe only a few moments later, Harry slowly opened his eyes. His beautiful, emerald eyes were, for the second time as far as Astoria's count went, extinguished.

She slowly lifted a hand from where it had rested on his shoulder and gently placed it on his cheek. He didn't stiffen, didn't shrink back. He didn't react at all. Her thumb caressed his cheek, before wiping away a lonely tear, which had escaped his green orbs.

Locking eyes with him, she took a deep breath before speaking. "Remember, when I told you how I was going to die? Remember, what you said to me?"

She waited. One moment, then another. Slowly, ever so slowly, Harry nodded his head. "I said, you would live a long, happy life… I still mean it." His voice was still shaky but she could see something return into his eyes. There was a spark. Determination, maybe?

Astoria smiled at him through her tears, nodding. "You know, I didn't believe it, when you said it to me… I still don't really believe in it."

Harry wanted to say something but she placed a finger on his lips.

"I don't need to believe in it. You do. You believe for me, let me believe for you." She paused, willing her feelings through her eyes into his. Into his soul. "I believe in you, Harry. I believe, we will get through this. You will get through this…"

She shrugged. "You don't need to believe in it yourself. Let me do it for you."

With that, she kissed him. And after his initial shock had faded, he kissed her back.

Astoria knew then, he had understood.

ANII: Another little disclaimer: I obviously didn't write the text marked by * * in this chapter. To repeat myself, it's part of the song 'Kashmir' and was written by the members of LED ZEPPELIN (my specific guess would be the great Robert Plant, but don't hold me onto that.)

If you guys haven't already heard the song, I would strongly recommend doing so as soon as possible.

Anyways, thanks again for reading. [11-29-2021]