A/N: Double-update for the weekend? Sweet! I've been up since 6am (ungodly for a Sunday, I know) to watch the gold medal game (Go Canada!), and then just stayed up for the day - I'm crashing out pretty soon though. Anyway, this is the last chapter before we dive into the massive, memory-laden backstory I have planned for these characters (seriously, the next chapter is something like 6000 words, so editing it is going to take a while). So since that will be the only update next weekend, I thought I'd throw 2 updates at you lovely readers this weekend. :)

*** 13 – The Relaxing Night ***

As predicted by Remus, Molly's dinner was nothing short of spectacular. It wasn't just the amount of food that was sitting on the table (which was quite large considering that there were 16 of them in the house that night), but the taste of it all was simply unbelievable. It was the best meal that Liz had ever eaten, and she proceeded to tell Molly that many times over the course of the meal.

She couldn't believe the wonderful time she'd had at dinner. George, Ron, Harry, Blaise and Draco had taken it upon themselves to regale everyone with tales from their time at Hogwarts, and everyone couldn't help but laugh hysterically at some of the trouble they'd all gotten themselves into. From Draco challenging Harry to a duel in first year, to Draco being turned into a ferret by Professor Moody, to George and Fred's escape from Professor Umbridge's reign of terror, they were howling with laughter the entire time. The only time the laughter died was after George's story, because everyone was remembering Fred who had passed during the final battle. To try to brighten the mood, Liz had raised her goblet of water in Fred's honour, and everyone wholeheartedly joined in. After that, the stories resumed, and everyone was chuckling as Molly and Ginny cleared the table. It was then that Remus stood up, an excited look on his face. He glanced at Liz, and then began to speak.

"It has been a very long and stressful day for everyone here today," Remus began. "And I believe that we are all in need of some frivolous fun. Enough with the stress, enough with the worrying. It can all wait until tomorrow."

"Remus, what's this all about?" Draco asked curiously. Liz glanced around the table. The faces she saw showed a variety of different emotions. There were curious ones like Draco, mischievous ones like Tonks and George, and excited ones like little Isabel.

"If you will all follow me to the backyard, all will be explained." With that, Remus swept from the room, with a group of anxious and excited people behind him. Molly cast a spell for the dishes to self-clean and put themselves away, and hurried to follow.

"Oh, before I forget," Remus began, just as they were about to step outside, "You'll need these." He waved his wand, and a white mist settled over them all. When it dissipated, they were all bundled up in sweaters, jeans, scarves, gloves and hats.

"But Remus, it's summer," Molly argued.

"We'll roast in these outfits," Ron agreed.

"Trust me," was Remus' only reply. With that, he threw open the doors to the backyard, and they all stepped out.

Liz, who was the last one in line behind Tonks, heard the gasps, but couldn't see the reason. "Oh my," and "Merlin's beard," were only some of the comments made by the crowd in front of her. She wondered what all the fuss was about. As the group dispersed themselves, she finally got a clear view of the sight before them all.

The backyard to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place was much, much bigger than she expected, and it was currently covered in a beautiful blanket of white snow. Liz could see two large snow forts to her right, a fairly tall hill directly in front of her, and a large ice rink to her left. There was also a beautiful fountain made out of ice, and several ice-covered benches were scattered around the yard for people to sit. But the most intriguing part of the yard was the large crystallized carousel that spun proudly at the forefront of all this excitement. It was made purely of ice, yet had such intricate detailing that she had never seen before. Her eyes glistened with tears as she felt the soft snow hit her cheeks. Winter was her favourite season…

"Liz! Come play with me!" Isabel's voice floated over to her, and Liz looked over to see the little girl heading towards the ice rink. Blinking back the tears in her eyes, Liz went over to the girl, and knelt next to her.

"What shall we do first?" Liz asked her.

"Skating!" she exclaimed happily.

"But we haven't got any skates," Liz argued.

"I think I can fix that," Harry said, appearing behind them. He took out his wand and gently waved them at the girls' shoes. Suddenly, Liz's feet were warmly encased in a pair of silvery skates, while Isabel's were pink.

"Thank you Uncle Harry!" Isabel shrieked with glee.

"You're welcome kiddo," he said, smiling. He then dashed off to join George, Ron and Neville on the hill. They appeared to be conjuring sleds out of thin air, ready to dive down the slope. Isabel grabbed onto Liz's hand, and practically dragged her out onto the ice.

Once they were gliding along the smooth surface, Liz felt a warm sense of freedom float over her. She watched Isabel skate awkwardly, but happily. Her eyes shone with childish delight, and her giggles brought a smile to Liz's face. Isabel's hair, so much like her own, whirled around her head as she tried to spin, and fell to the hard surface. Before Liz could even go to help her, Isabel was back on her feet, and ready to go at it again. The girls spun in circles together and raced across the ice against each other.

There were a few pair of eyes on them the entire time they were on the ice. Dumbledore and McGonagall had settled themselves on a bench, and spent the majority of their time outside, gazing at the girls on the ice, happy that they finally had a chance to make things right. Remus pulled himself away from the snowman he had been making with Tonks, Luna and Ginny, and came over to talk to them about Liz being willing to try some of their techniques to regain her memories, and their smiles grew.

Molly and Arthur Weasley decided to stroll around the winter wonderland that Remus had created, and though their walk was silent, the pair kept glancing over that the ice rink. Molly had a hopeful look on her face, and Arthur wrapped his arm around her shoulders, as if he could hear her thoughts and was offering his support to her.

But the pair of eyes that never once left the two females on the ice belonged to the grey-eyed blond man, settled on the bench closest to the door, who could not have been more emotionally conflicted at that precise moment. Draco watched them, his girls, dancing together on the ice, and it brought a tear to his eye. He swiped it away, but didn't lose the feeling he felt. This is the way it should have been…

Liz glanced up, and caught Draco's eye. She shot him a brilliant smile, which he weakly returned. Sensing that he wasn't enjoying himself the way he should be, Liz turned to Isabel.

"Isabel, would you mind if I stopped skating for a bit? I think your dad could use some company."

Isabel smiled brightly at her in response. "Sure. I want to make a snowman next!"

"Well, why don't you go see what those other crazy ladies are up to over there," Liz said, nodding to where Ginny, Tonks and Luna were working on the snowman. Isabel nodded rapidly, and trudged over to them, nearly slipping in her skates on the snow.

Liz moved rather awkwardly through the snow towards Draco, her skates still attached to her feet. As she reached his side, she slipped, and started to fall. Draco instantly whipped around and his arms went tight around her waist to stop her descent. She gasped at his closeness, but could not ignore the sharp shivers that coursed down her spine at his touch. She gave him a soft smile in thanks, and he eased her onto the bench next to him.

"Sorry," she whispered. "It's been a while since I've been on these things."

"You seemed to be doing quite well on the ice," he replied, giving her a strained smile. "You kept up with Izzy better than I have in the past."

Liz couldn't help but giggle at the instant mental picture she now had of Draco slipping and sliding along the ice as he tried to keep up with his daughter. When he gave her a quizzical look, she explained, and he let out a soft chuckle.

Things suddenly got really quiet between the two. Liz, who had never been a fan of awkward silences, decided to break it.

"I'm sorry about earlier," she told him.

His eyes locked on hers. "For what?" he inquired.

"For running away after finding Isabel. It wasn't fair to you."

"You've been through a lot over the last few days. It's understandable."

"Maybe, but it still wasn't right, and I'm sorry for that."

"But you didn't do anything wrong. I would have done the same thing if I was in your position."

"Why won't you just let me apologize?"

"Because you have nothing to apologize for."

"Has anyone ever told you how stubborn you are?"

"Every day," he replied proudly. Liz laughed out loud at this. "Look," he began, "Why don't we forget all the awkwardness, and the insecurities, and just have a little fun tonight?"

Liz gave him a genuine smile. "I think that's the best idea I've heard all day." She started to stand up again, and promptly felt her feet slide out from under her. Once again, Draco caught her easily, and she felt the shivers return as she was pulled to his chest once more.

Their faces were side by side, and she was sure that he'd be able to hear the blood pounding in her ears. "Why don't we get rid of these," he whispered to her. The feeling of his warm breath on her skin caused her eyes to slide shut in unexpected bliss. She quickly regained her composure, but before she could answer, she felt him lower her back to the bench, and then bend over. She was confused for a second, but when she saw his wand out, she knew what he planned. Muttering something under his breath, Liz felt a warm feeling on her toes as the skates were once again replaced with a pair of tall black boots that went almost to her knees.

Draco pulled himself upright, but when he looked at her, he almost gasped at how close their faces were. If he thought for a second that she would let him, he would close the gap in between them and do something he'd been dreaming about for five years now.

Liz wanted him to give in to the desire that she could see in his eyes, but knew that he didn't want to scare her. And she was too scared to do anything herself. Instead, she mouthed a quiet 'thanks', and stood up properly. She didn't want him to think that she was trying to escape his company, so she held out her hand to him. "Would you like to join me on the carousel, Mr. Malfoy?"

Draco looked stunned for a moment, but recovered himself quickly. He stood up, and gently clasped her hand in his as he nodded. She giggled softly and pulled him over to the giant, icy, magically moving machine. They jumped on it as it spun, and immediately found horses to climb onto, finding out as they sat that the horses were charmed to stay warm despite their icy exterior. Liz felt like a kid again as they rode, and closed her eyes to savour the feeling. Draco watched her innocence, and felt a rush of emotions again. But before he could act on it, he saw that everyone else had decided to follow their lead. He saw Harry help Isabel onto one of the ice horses, and keep a hand on the small of her back so she didn't fall. He gave him a nod in thanks, which Harry immediately returned. Ginny and Tonks were giggling like schoolgirls as they rode, and Ron and Neville were pretending to race their horses.

Liz basked in the warmth of the friendly company, and made sure to enjoy herself as much as possible. Remus would be starting her memory retrieval tomorrow, and she knew that it would not be nearly as fun as this night. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she grinned as she realized that even Molly, Arthur, Blaise, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Remus had joined them on the ride. Everyone was acting like big kids, and Liz felt more relaxed than she had in a long time.