Lyla waited…She had been for the last couple hours. Sitting hidden among the tree branches, observing her surroundings. Ever since the first sounds of battle cries and the dying of the war at Hogwarts had been heard, she had begun her march to this place. There was nothing remotely special about this part of the forest. It was just as haunting, forbidding and foggy. It was who would pass through was the reason she waited.

Crunch!

The sound of twig meeting shoe, echoed through the dark forest. She couldn't see anyone, but she knew he was here.

So she jumped down and was followed with a loud gasp of surprise. Then a young man appeared before her; bleeding and bruised and said with a voice still after all these years full of surprise,

"Lyla?"

"Every time," she says smiling. He only half heartily smiles back.

"I wondered where you had got to…I thought…you would of…you know…appeared?" Harry says disappointingly. It wasn't the first time she hadn't, for she wasn't there when Hogwarts was attacked last time.

"I was not meant to appear for that part of the battle…I had to wait here…" Lyla says gesturing to her surroundings.

"For me…right?" Harry asks.

"Yeah…"

"You know what's gonna happen don't you?" Harry whispers sadly. "You've always known…Its the reason why you never got too involved with anything."

"Yeah…so I decided to come with you. You don't have to do it alone. You know?" Lyla says with a soft smile.

He smiles a small smile back, "Just…promise me you will stay hidden?"

"I promise." Lyla said, "But, I think you should open what's in your pocket first." She smiled warmly at him, while he sends back a confused expression.

Reaching down, he pulls out the…golden snitch.

He stays confused, until his eyes light up in realisation. "I open at the close…"He whispers to himself.

"I'm going to die." He whispers and presses his lips to the snitch.

It opens up and a small glittering stone shines back, the line interpreting of the elder wand, the circle for the stone and the triangle for the cloak.

"The Resurrection Stone." Harry says in disbelief. "Dumbledore…"

"Even after death that man can still surprise anybody," Lyla said smiling in memory.

Harry agrees silently and takes the stone out of its protected compartment. He closes his eyes and turns the stone over in his hand three times.

And before them several figures appeared, all smiling. Lyla reaches over to whisper in Harry's ear, "Open your eyes Harry."

He opens them and looks around in happiness to who surrounded them.

Lyla regonised all of them, even though she had only met two. They looked solid enough to touch, all looking younger by years, very much...at peace.

"You've been so brave," Lily Potter said looking lovingly at Harry.

Harry was speechless, just staring at her. Lyla wondered if he could stay looking at her forever.

"You are nearly there," James said. "Very close. We are…so proud of you."

"Lyla…" Harry began. "This is... my Mom and Dad." Gesturing to them barely able to utter the words.

Lyla smiles, knowing that this was Harry's moment, stepping back to give him room.

"Does it hurt?" Harry almost blurts out.

"Dying?" Sirius said, "Not at all. Quicker and easier than falling asleep."

"And he will want it to be quick. He wants it over." Lupin said.

"I didn't want you to die," Harry said. "Any of you, I'm sorry- Right after you had your son…Remus I'm so sorry-"

"I'm sorry too," Lupin said. "Sorry I will never know him…but he will know why I died and I hope he will understand. I was trying to make a world in which he could live a happier life."

After that, Harry paused in deep thought, then looked up at them all.

"You'll stay with me?" Harry asks. "Like Lyla?"

"Until the very end," James said.

"Will they be able to see you?" Asked Harry.

"We are part of you," Sirius said. "Invisible to anyone else…Well, except this anomaly." He said turning to smile at Lyla.

Lyla cannot help but smirk back.

"Why can you see them Lyla." Harry asked looking at Lyla.

"Like Sirius said…I'm an anomaly," Lyla said. "I thought the whole 'being able to do wand-less magic' would of gave it a way," Lyla smirks.

Harry just smiles back.

"How did you end up in the forest?" Harry asked. She knew that he was only asking because this would be his last chance, so she provided.

"When I was four, Dumbledore put me here. It was for my protection and for everybody else." Lyla paused, having trouble saying her next words. "You...you got to understand, Harry, that before Dumbledore my life was...well-sad. I was watching my mother, slowly lose herself to an unknown fate. She was a seer. She had seen something happen in the future, something which terrified her. It...torn her apart..."

Harry's eyes shared her sympathy. He knew what it was like to lose someone you loved.

"Her last act, towards me, was giving me to Dumbledore." Lyla continued. "I still don't know what it was that scared her so much. I can remember the days when she would cry and tell me how sorry she was. She hurt me with those words. For I didn't know why. I was kept secret from everybody else. My mother knew that much. So, when Dumbledore took me in, he had no need to try to cover up my tracks, for there was none. My mother was taken somewhere. I still don't know where..."

"What about your father?"

Harry's question sounded innocent and, yet, it very much was not.

"I've...never met him. I don't even know who he is."

Harry nodded, even though the lie was quite out in the open. Instead of asking more he looked into the forest depths ahead. It was time.

"Stay close to me." He said.

And they both slipped underneath the invisibility cloak walking to Harry's end. The dead following silent as always.

It wasn't long until they found the Dark Lord himself and his supporters. Voldemort was just as Lyla had seen: black cloak, bold white head, red snake like eyes and his long bony fingers wrapped around the elder wand. That she once knew to be Dumbledore's.

Two Death Eaters appeared bowing to him, then one spoke.

"No sign of him, my Lord."

Voldemort expression did not change; instead his red eyes pierced the surroundings searching.

"My Lord-" Began a crazy looking Death Eater, but she looked up to him with the utmost loyalty.

He raised his hand stopping her from finishing. He rose from his crown chair and started to speak addressing the Death Eaters around him.

"I thought he would come…I expected him to come." His eyes search once again the scene before him.

From their hiding position behind the trees, Harry took off the cloak, giving it to Lyla and stuffing his wand deep into his pocket. Lyla hugged Harry, giving him a warm smile and then vanished underneath the cloak.

"I was, it seems…mistaken." Voldemort said.

"You weren't" Harry said stepping out from the trees, as gasps, laughs and roars erupted from the Death Eaters.

"HARRY, NO!" A voice said from the back.

And Lyla recognised the giant man, Hagrid. He was tied down with chains, two Death Eaters pointing wands to his throat.

"NO, NO HARRY WHAT'RE YEH-"

"QUIET!" said one of the Death Eaters near him, silencing him with a wave of their wand.

Everything was deathly still as Voldemort and Harry's eyes met.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort said softly, raising his wand. "The boy who lived."

Lyla's breath caught in her throat, even though she had known this was coming, she found it so hard to watch. The tension was killing her.

"Avada Kadavra!" Voldemort shouted, a green light bursting from his wand. And Harry fell to ground…unmoving.

Expect the next update to be a bit late. The Easter holiday is coming, and my teachers are making an effort to make us complete everything before Easter. So the next one should be after Easter sometime.

Give me feedback as always. Hopefully Lyla's past is starting to make some sort of sense.