Disclaimer: I don't own anything.....

A/N: Just in case, 'Si' rhymes with 'Free." Thought it was pretty obvious, but you never know. You Americans say ass.

Chapter Forty: Illusions

"He whom love touches not walks in darkness."

Plato

"Merry Christmas," someone whispered into Sirius's ear in a singsong voice.

He groaned. "Ann, it's too early!"

She gave him a playful shove. "Get off your fat lazy bum, old man. It's eight-o-clock and it's Christmas. I wouldn't be surprised if Harry and everyone else is already up."

Sirius groaned again. "Okay, okay, I'm getting up."

Fifteen minutes later Sirius was trudging along to the living room (rather reluctantly, of course) beside Anna who was happily humming a Muggle Christmas tune.

"So what did you get me?"

She laughed, throwing him an amused glance. "Someone's impatient."

Anna pushed open the door to reveal the living room in all its Christmassy splendour, the Weasley's, Remus, Harry, Hermione and Tonks seated around the Christmas Tree.

"Ah! Just in time!" Remus cried jubilantly. "We were just about to start without you."

Anna and Sirius quickly took their seats and began cheerfully giving and accepting presents from the merry crowd around them. Once Sirius had a happy pile of Christmas goods beside him he abandoned his seat and made a beeline for Anna, two packages in hand.

He plonked down on the floor beside her and held them out. "For you, Anna."

She grinned, a warm, brilliant smile that made her eyes sparkle in delight.

"Thanks, Si. I'll go for the biggest one first, eh?"

Anna took the medium sized parcel from Sirius.

"Greedy."

"Shh..."

Anna began to carefully tear through the red and green wrapping to uncover an old, ink-ridden book. She turned the book in her hand, her nimble fingers running over the cover, which read, in graceful, sloped writing, "Wuthuring Heights, First Edition."

"Oh my God, Sirius..."

Sirius suddenly found himself with an armful of Anna, who was covering him in quick kisses. "Thankyou so much! This is my favourite book! I love you, I love you, I love you!"

She backed up, allowing Sirius to see the huge grin plastered on her face.

"Well, if you love me after that I can't wait to see out how you feel about me after this," he mused, holding up the second present which he handed to her.

Anna slowly ripped off the gold wrapping, and a small, flat velvet box tumbled out. Her eyes widened. She lifted the lid up. Inside lay a delicate, white gold chain, off the end of which hung a beautifully carved nightingale, tear drop and treble clef.

"It's beautiful," she murmured, before standing up to give Sirius a sound hug. She stepped back and beamed at him.

"Your turn!" Anna announced, and the group of witches and wizards, now finished unwrapping their own gifts, turned to watch as Anna moved to the back of the Christmas Tree and pulled out a large, picture frame shaped package, presenting it to Sirius. "For you."

Sirius grinned and quickly ripped open the wrapping paper. Under his hands lay a browned, antique map that was intricately detailed in exquisite calligraphy and framed by dark glossy rosewood.

He looked up at Anna, who was smiling expectantly. "Er... gee, thanks Anna... I've always wanted a... map..."

Anna sniggered and hit Sirius upside the head. "You, Sirius, of all people, should know that things are rarely what they seem. Why on Earth would I buy you a map? I charmed it, dolt. Check it out."

She took the picture frame from Sirius and laid it down gently on the coffee table that was in the middle of the room. "Come here, Sirius," Anna commanded. "If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be?"

Sirius smiled. "Somewhere exotic. Somewhere sunny. Like... Bali."

Anna nodded and grinned. "Bali it is." She took her wand out and set it down to the small island amongst the clustered isle of Indonesia. "Ambitua Illusorius!"

A shaft of light shot out from Bali's place on the map, its brightness causing Sirius to close his eyes in haste. Slowly it expanded, until a dome of light surrounded the room. The subtle scent of cinnamon and sandalwood drifted through the room and it suddenly became swelteringly hot as warm sunlight filtered into the room.

Sirius opened his eyes and gasped in shock. It was like a Muggle film, only 3D. Although in the distance Sirius could make out Harry and Remus, also standing in awe, it seemed as if Sirius was standing in the middle of a tightly packed street that was bursting with hundreds of busy stalls and people who rushed by, busy buying and selling the goods of the market.

Sirius found himself to be assaulted by a torrent of colour. Directly before him stood many fruit booths, each boasting innumerable amounts of delectable produce, their vivid heus creating a rainbow of exotic colours.

In the distance Sirius could vaguely make out a stark whiteness; fine sand that was lazily lapped by cool, crystal clear water, and shadowed by fresh palm trees that swayed in the humid, sticky breeze.

"Finite Incantatem," Anna spoke softly beside Sirius.

As sudden as it had appeared, the illusion was gone, and Sirius was left standing in the gloomy living room of Grimmauld Place.

"Woah!" Ron exclaimed from the sofa. "That was one wicked bit of magic!"

Hermione looked just as impressed. "Did you do that all yourself, Anna?"

Sirius, having some experience in the matter of enchanted map-making, understood Hermione's admiration.

Anna smiled meekly. "Charms always was my best subject. After Astronomy, of course."

Remus snorted. "No, don't tell me, that would just be too perfect. Astronomy was your best subject?"

Her eyebrows furrowed. "Yes."

Remus sniggered. "And you ended up with the brightest star of them all."

The room filled with joyful laughter.

Sirius, though, still stood in the middle of the room, the scent of cinnamon and sandalwood still in his nose and the image of bargaining Balinese villagers fresh in his mind. Molly, the ever-intuitive woman, recognised that Sirius and Anna might've wanted a moment alone and quickly ushered everybody out of the room under the pretext of getting ready to go to St Mungo's.

Sirius turned to see Anna standing in the empty room, her hands twisting nervously in front of her and her eyes gazing into space.

"Ann..." he gasped, utterly speechless.

But she understood. "You can go anywhere on Earth. Just point your wand and say the words. If you concentrate solely on an exact place, or just the sort of place you want to be, you'll see it; like a market, or a beach, or a forest. I thought that... seeing as you can't go out into the world... why not bring the world to you?"

He nodded, still oddly incapably of stringing words together.

"Remember, it's 'Ambitua Illusorius'."

He nodded again, and she walked over to give him a quick, chaste kiss on the cheek.

"Merry Christmas, Sirius."

She strode out of the room, securely shutting the door behind her.

Sirius took his wand out of his pocket and point the end of the shaft somewhere in Africa.

"Ambitua Illusorius."

A/N: Does everybody like Ann's gift to Siri?? I hope you do. Not sure how much I'll be able to post in the next couple of days. Unfortunately, I am being dragged to my Dad's house (kicking and screaming, to be sure) for the remainder of our little family reunion. And yes, The Evil One will be there, but it gets worse, with her mother!!! Oh! How will I survive this cruel twist of fate!! Heh, always one for the dramatics, me.

Ambitu Latin for 'show'

Illusorius Latin for illusion.