"Sir?" Skylar suddenly spoke up, looking for the barkeep. The snow had stopped, leaving everything looking pure outside. Making up her mind now, she was not planning on backing down until she got what she wanted.

"Yes? Would you like another pint?" He asked, eyeing her wishfully.

"No." She pushed herself out of the booth and walked up to the bar. "I would actually like to buy this pub from you. I'll pay the full amount of what you originally paid for it." She offered, quite excited at the prospects of the future.

"You want to buy this ghost town?" He looked at her strangely, as if she just sprung another head on her shoulders. "You're not going to knock it down are you?"

"No, I have a lot of good memories in this place. I'd hate to see anything bad happen to them." She reassured him.

"You don't even know how much I paid for it though." Still suspicious of her, he set down the mug he was cleaning. Though his wife was constantly nagging him about getting rid of the place, he still felt loyalty to his former business partner.

"38,643. Sirius' favorite number, and a bargain at the original value of this place." Repeating the line she had told him a year ago through a letter, she hoped this would sweeten the deal. She couldn't face seeing the pub by herself, so she had goblins in Gringotts do the job for her.

"You are…" He stopped midsentence, realization dawning on him. Sirius Black's daughter, who vowed never to set foot in the pub again, was back and wanted to take the pub.

"Yes I am. Do we have a deal?"

"But why?" He asked surprised. From all the gossip he had heard from random passers through was that Skylar Black had abandoned everything in life that would remind her of her father and his tragic death.

"This was my father's favorite place. He'd hate to see that all his friends and family have been avoiding it like the plague, over a little thing like death." She held her hand out to the barkeep. "Do we have a deal?" She asked again. Wiping a grimy hand on his apron, he grabbed Sky's and shook it excitedly.

"Yes, we do. It's nice to finally meet you. Doing business through those goblins and owls isn't as nice as doing it face to face." Babbling, he kept her hand captive, continuously shaking it. Sky laughed as she patted their clenched hands to try and release the grip.

"I know, I just couldn't face it. I'm sure you've heard the stories of how crazy I was after Dad's death." Successfully wrenching her hand from his, she flexed her hand to regain circulation in the digits.

"I'm sorry again. Like I said, he was a good man. One of my favorite men to do business with."

"I know, that's why I contacted you first about buying the place. He always spoke highly of you." Sky smiled for the second time that night.

"Yep, that's Sirius' smile right there." He laughed, reaching for her hand again. She slowly took a step back from him, hoping it wouldn't come off as rude.

"I better get going before Tim thinks I'm lying in a ditch somewhere." Tapping an imaginary watch on her wrist, she hoped he would get the idea. He nodded swiftly, still enthused at the idea of being released from this visitor barren pub. Sky wrapped her scarf around her neck and pulled the jacket back on.

"I'll be back in the morning to finish all the arrangements."

"One question," the barkeep asked as she opened the door to leave. Sky stopped and looked back at him.

"Did you know you were going to buy the pub tonight?" He asked, wondering what her motives were to come here on the anniversary of her father's death.

"No," she laughed, blood rushing to her cheeks. "I didn't know until about five minutes ago. I'll see you tomorrow." She held out her hand up to say goodbye, not wanting to risk another handshake.

"Tell your ma and sister I said 'ello." He called after her.

Skylar flew the bike back home, the roads too icy to drive on. A large weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and she couldn't wait to share the news with Tim. Tim. How would he forgive her for the harsh things she had said to him before she left? The house was dark when she arrived, signaling that Tim had stopped waiting for her. She snuck upstairs and found him curled up in bed, sleeping peacefully. She wrapped her body around his as she climbed into bed, kissing the back of his neck.

"You're cold." He murmured, taking her hand in his.

"I know. Will you keep me and my icy heart warm?" She whispered, nuzzling into his back.

"Of course." He turned over and wrapped his arms around her body. One of Tim's best qualities, in Sky's opinion, was the fact that he so easily forgave her for the stupid things she said or done. She couldn't imagine why she was worried that he would no longer love her. "Where did you go tonight?"

"Our pub."

"Ours? The Black Dog?" He asked, sitting up to look at her carefully. He turned on the bedside lamp, hoping a little light would give more clarity to this moment.

"Yeah, I bought it back." She told him, smiling.

Tim gave her a worried look. "I thought you never wanted to go there again." He specifically remembered the fights that blew up whenever the pub was mentioned before.

"I didn't, but I needed to get out of the snow, and that's where I ended up. And while I was sitting there thinking about our fight and how idiotic I've been, I thought of all the good things that have happened there."

"Like our engagement?" He winked, pulling her left hand into his.

"Exactly. I couldn't think of a single bad memory of that place, except for right then, sitting alone in an empty pub. So I had to buy it. Bring back the happiness in all of our lives."

"I think that's a good idea." Tim kissed her softly on the forehead. Skylar closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest.

"I'm sorry for being a jerk," she whispered, hugging his waist tightly.

"Don't worry darling, I know it's tough for you. I understand. It's just a good thing we have a lot of cups."

Skylar laughed and snuggled closer to Tim. There was the Tim she knew and loved, the one that could always make her laugh, no matter the situation.

"I think I'm going to retire from the Aurors and just run the pub." She told him, running her hand across his chest.

"Are you doing this for me?"

"Yes, and for me, and for everyone around us. I still want to marry you Tim. I should have never said that I wouldn't. I'll fly to Vegas right now if you want."

"No, that's not necessary. Besides, I'm sure your mother and my grandmother would disown us if we did that." Tim laughed.

"I'll pick a date, I'll decide on colors. I'm going to do the whole shebang, and turn into bridezilla." She was about to continue rattling off promises, when Tim put a silencing finger against her lips.

"Great. Now when are you going to tell me about the rest of your day? I could care less about the wedding as long as you are alright."

Skylar sighed and wrapped her arms around him again.

"Can I tell you in the morning? Right now, I just want to sleep and dream about our wedding."

"Alright, darling. Sweet dreams." Tim shut off the light, and covered the two of them with the comforter. He wasn't about to disturb the peacefulness by reminding Sky she was still dressed in her leather jacket and jeans.