As Harry approached the office door, he heard Professor Bronte scrambling around in it. The door was once again ajar and he slowly opened it to see her hurrying to pack her many trunks with her many books. "Professor?" He asked. She stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him. Her hair was tied up on top of her head, but it was laying in an untidy way and her face was flushed, slightly.
"Harry, what are you doing up here? I thought you would stay down there with Sirius."
"I wanted to ask you something."
"This really isn't a good time." She said, going back to her packing.
"You're not staying?" He asked, seeing all of her trunks laying opened on the floor.
"As much as I would like to, I can't. I have other responsibilities to attend to."
"Where are you going to go?"
"I'm going to stay with my father for a bit and sort some things out." She crossed back and forth in front of him a few more times which was beginning to make him dizzy. He decided to bring up Sirius before she was fully packed and was hurrying to leave.
"I'm surprised you're not talking with Sirius. I would think you wouldn't have left him alone." She threw him a slightly icy glare, which he noticed, but did't let it bother him.
"I'd rather not talk about that, right now, Harry."
"But, why? You said that you loved Sirius more than anything and would give anything to see him alive again. You told me that you two were so in love when he was taken away, that…" He stopped as she let out a long sigh and threw a couple of books into the trunk at her feet.
"Harry!" She exclaimed. "Don't you get it? I lied!" She took a seat in her chair and put her head in her hands. Harry gave her a surprised look.
"What do you mean, you lied?" He asked. "You mean, you were never in love with him?"
"It's not that, Harry. I did love Sirius and at times I still do. But, when I gave Sirius the ring, it wasn't for luck." He gave her a confused expression.
"I don't understand."
"Harry, Sirius and I were always fighting when we dated. There was always an argument about something and the night your parents died, we had just had enough. I broke off the engagement before he left to go help… I felt so terrible… I felt like it was all my fault."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Dumbledore." She said.
"What does Dumbledore have to do with this?"
"Remember when I told you that Dumbledore didn't want you to know about my relationship with Sirius?" He nodded. "He told me, that if you asked me about it, to say that I have given the ring to him for luck."
"Why?"
"Because, my life is more difficult than it seems, though most people don't seem to see that." Harry was going to ask what was so bad about her life, but he decided not to. He decided to ask another question instead.
"Don't you think you should at least talk to Sirius about it; make amends?"
"It's not that easy, Harry. I wish I could, but both of us are too stubborn to admit when they're wrong." Harry gave her an angry look.
"So, what are you going to do? Are you going to give up on true love?"
"I wouldn't exactly call it 'true love'."
"I would! Sirius loved you from the first day he met you!… I can't believe you would give up on someone who loved you for you, not for what you are, or what you have? That's the coward's way out!" With that, he quickly left so he could finally get cleaned up for the Farewell Feast.
She didn't bother to call Harry back. He was right. She was taking the coward's way out. "It wouldn't work out." She told herself, though not believing it. "He doesn't love me anymore. Even if he did, he'd never forgive me."
