A/N: I apologize for how long it took me to get this chapter posted. I had the first half written almost immediately but then my focus was pulled to another story. I didn't want to just crank out an 'okay' chapter when I know all my readers deserve the best I can do, so I put off writing the rest of it until inspiration struck again! Which was today!

I plan on/hope to post the next chapter in the next few days!

This chapter picks up the night James and Lily first get together, which is also the night that Luna almost gets attacked by Remus in his werewolf form so I hope there's no confusion as I backtracked just a little bit to include the steamy scene between James and Lily.

WARNING: Scenes of a sexual nature and language in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

….

The Previous Evening:

James Potter wasn't really worried about Luna. Remus, in his werewolf form, didn't get anywhere near her, really. He'd left Remus and Peter in the Shrieking Shack when he returned to Hogwarts Castle. Sirius and Luna had disappeared and James knew that if Luna was in the Hospital Wing, Sirius would stay with her all night.

When he emerged into the common room, Lily Evans was sitting on the couch with one long leg crossed over the other as she glared toward the portrait hole. "Something have your knickers in a twist?" James smirked.

"Where's Luna?" Lily asked immediately, "she's not in the dormitory. I assumed she was out you with you tossers." That confirmed his suspicions; if Luna wasn't in her bed, she must be up in the hospital wing.

"She, uh, may or may not have been injured," he winced, "but no worries! I'm sure she's in the infirmary being patched up right now. Sirius will have stayed with her, of course."

"How was she injured?" Lily Evans demanded.

Sighing, fighting with himself over this decision, James went and sat beside her. The past few weeks he had become very close to Lily Evans. Although this wasn't exactly his secret to tell. "If I tell you," he began, "you must promise to never repeat this."

"Is this about Remus being a werewolf?" she asked.

James stared at her incredulously. "How did you…"

"Severus," she said quietly, "he suspected for a while before we stopped talking in fifth year. Then, in sixth year, when you and Sirius got in really big trouble by Professor Dumbledore, Severus wrote me a note. I expect he just wanted to gloat about his theory being correct."

"He wasn't supposed to tell anyone," growled James.

"To be fair," said Lily with a smile as she reached for his hand, "he told me his theory before you almost got him killed."

James snorted, "I saved him. It was Sirius who almost got him killed."

"What?"

"Sirius thought it would be a laugh to tell Severus how to get passed the Whomping Willow. To be fair, Padfoot really didn't think that Snivellus would try it. Slytherin is a house mostly for cowards and idiots. We were getting ready to go ourselves, to the Whomping Willow. From a window in the castle we saw Severus disappear into the passage. Sirius immediately tore off after him. I think in a way, he wanted Severus to get bitten or worse. Regulus is good friends with Severus Snape and as much as you don't want to believe it, Lily, they are dark. Sirius probably thought he was doing a good thing by ridding the world of one more soon-to-be Death Eater. But in the end, he couldn't go through with it. He ran after Severus, but Professor Sprout caught him out on the grounds after curfew and escorted him back inside. I, however, had had enough sense to grab my Invisibility Cloak before going out on the grounds. I ran after Severus as fast as I could. I caught him in time, but he had already caught a glimpse of Remus transforming into a werewolf."

"I…had no idea," she gasped. "James, please don't tell me…did Remus…Luna hasn't been bitten?"

"What? No! Blimey! We might be irresponsible but we're not idiots. He charged at her, knocked her down hard, but we caught him before he bit her."

They sat in silence for a moment before Lily asked shyly, "James, please just be honest with me. Do you only like me because I'm a challenge? If I were to agree to go on a date with you, would I be less desirable to you?" she looked up at him with big green eyes and his heart melted, just as it always did when she looked at him.

"Is that what you're worried about?" she nodded. "I don't like you," he clarified, "I love you, Lily. I love you because you're brilliant, brave, loyal, and you're so damn cute with your little muggle-like quirks. I love the way you toss your hair over your shoulder when you're angry. I love the way you always smell like berries and spring. I love the way your whole face turns red when you yell at me. I love the way you are always so hung up on being good and moral. I love-"

His speech was cut off with her lips crashing onto his. As they kissed, James was shocked to find Lily making all of the first moves. She leaned her body into his with purpose, knocking him over so he was lying on the sofa. Her hands fisted into his hair, tugging it gently and he gave a deep moan of appreciation.

She kissed down his jaw, his neck, her nimble fingers loosening his tie and pulling it over his head, discarding it to the floor. Worried about making a move that would scare her away, James contented himself with resting his hands on her hips, and making sure he was vocal about how he was feeling.

When Lily sighed into his ear, James groaned. When she rocked her hips against him, he growled and flexed his fingers, wanting so damn badly to guide her body but restraining himself. "James," she murmured after a while, when her whole body was tingling in anticipation and her panties were wet with her desire.

"Hmm?" he hummed in response, his eyes barely open as he gazed up at her with lust in his eyes.

"I want you," she told him.

His eyes snapped wide open and he sat up quickly, almost knocking her to the floor, "Lily…do you mean what I think you mean? You mean you want me to…to…" he gestured to both of their bodies, "with you?"

Lily bit her bottom lip and nodded. "Yes, James, I want you to fuck me."

James smirked at her cockily, "I'm not going to fuck you," he said as he leaned forward to gently suck on her neck, "I'm going to make love to you. I'm going to be sweet and gentle and take my time worshipping your body with the devotion it deserves."

"Oh James," Lily gasped. Bravely she reached down and stroked the large bulge in his trousers.

"Not here," he told her. Without waiting for a response, he jumped to his feet and pulled her with him up to his dormitory. When they arrived, he was quick to assure her, "No one's here."

She jerked her head in assent as they continued kissing. His hands made quick work of her top, dropping it to the floor. Somewhere in his mind he was curious if one of his dorm mates would come in the next morning and see the blouse. Part of him hummed with pride at the thought. He wanted to shout from the top of the tallest tower that he was finally going to have Lily Evans.

In the darkened room, they could hardly see each other, but the light from the full moon was enough. James led her to his bed and fell onto it with her on top of him. She gasped and he grunted as her body moved deliciously against his.

Suddenly the brave girl from downstairs was gone. Lily squirmed so she was lying beside him, with her arms protectively in front of her chest, hiding her black bra from James's hungry view. "Not shy in bed are you, Lily?" he teased as he reached out a hand to stroke along the tops of her breasts.

"No," she said but her actions said otherwise. She looked away from him, up at the canopy of the bed. "I'm just not exactly sure what to do."

"Lily, love, you've never done this before?"

"No. And so help me, James Potter, if you make one jab about this or tell anyone I will-"

He was kissing her with passion he'd never kissed her with before. His body was aching to be inside of her. That one simple secret. The one sentence made him almost explode in his trousers. To know that he was going to be the first bloke to touch her like this. The first one to see her like this. It was making him crazy with lust.

Her lips parted open in surprise at his insistence, allowing his mouth more access to hers. "I'll teach you," he told her sincerely, "and not breath a word to anyone. If you're still sure you want this, of course?"

"I'm sure."

"Alright then. Roll onto your back and relax," she did as she was told. He put his hands on her knees and slowly separated her legs enough so his body could slide between them. He laid his chest against hers and continued to kiss her while his hands stroked her body everywhere.

He pulled down her odd muggle pajama bottoms and let his eyes take in the scene in front of him. Lily Evans lay in nothing but her black bra and matching black panties on the bed before him. She wasn't looking at him, probably too embarrassed, but her body was trembling and there was a damp spot on her panties.

He covered her body with his again and reached under her back, urging her to lift herself up as he reached for the clasp on her bra. It came open under his skilled touch and he tugged it off. If he could see properly, he was willing to bet all the money in his Gringotts Vault that she was probably blushing as red as her hair.

Before touching or tasting her exposed breasts, as he soon planned on doing, he pressed his chest against hers again and ran his fingers along her jaw, "You're beautiful," he told her before pressing a chaste kiss to her forehead. Then he let his lips move farther south. Kissing, licking, and nipping at one breast while his hand played with the other, pinching her nipple while she squirmed beneath him in pleasure.

Merlin he could do this forever. He slid his fingers down her body into the hem of her knickers before tugging them down her legs. She assisted him in getting them off of her and onto the floor. James kissed and licked his way down her body until he reached her sex. His mouth was about to taste her when she said, "James, we can do that later," her hands were tangled in his hair again and he loved it. "I just want you inside of me now, okay?"

James had never seen this side of Lily. Normally she knew exactly what she wanted and was so fucking confident about it. Now, however, she was shy about telling him what she wanted and timid about expressing her desires. "I'm going to absolutely ruin you and love every moment of it," he said suddenly, "I'm going to make love to you tonight until you're screaming at me what you want me to do."

Lily's lips, which were swollen by his kisses, formed an O of surprise at his words, but she didn't argue. "Why am I the only one of us who is naked? I may be a novice with this, but I'm pretty sure you need to take off your clothes as well."

"Is that what you want?" he inquired innocently.

"Bloody yes," she exclaimed. James smirked, already he was starting to see more confidence in her. James sat up, leaving her body open to the chilly air of the dorm room, as he pulled his shirt over his head and dropped it to the floor. Lily ran her hands up and down his chest, reveling in the muscles she'd never bothered to notice before.

His hands tugged at his belt, the button, then the zipper, of his trousers. He pulled them down his legs along with his boxers, kicking them to the foot of the bed. James Potter was in front of her now entirely naked with his protruding erection wanting to be inside of her so badly it was twitching and pulsing.

Lily wrapped her hand around it timidly. James brought his hand over hers and tightened her grip significantly, groaning at the sensation. With careful movements, he showed her how he liked to be stroked and she caught on quick enough. Soon she had him thrusting into her hand. "James, I can't take this anymore," she begged, licking her lips and looking up into his eyes. The forest green eyes he loved were dark with desire. "I need you," she whimpered.

Not trusting himself to speak, he simply nodded, and pressed her down into the mattress. Preparing himself to enter her, he took hold of his cock and positioned it at her entrance. "It's going to hurt," he told her, "but not for long. Just for a few moments. Don't be scared, alright? I'll try to hurt you the least amount possible. Then, I promise, I'll make it up to you," His meaning was clear and the look in his eyes guaranteed pleasure.

Lily threw her head back onto his pillows and arched up into him as he slid himself slowly into her. When his tip reached her barrier, he kissed her hard on the lips and sank even deeper into her. She squirmed again, this time in pain, and instinctively tried pulling her body away from his, but James had a firm grip on her hips and drove in until he was fully sheathed inside of her. He stayed like that, not moving, for several moments that felt more like eternity.

Never had anything felt this fucking good. She was so fucking tight and so fucking wet and so fucking his. "Alright," she panted after a moment, "it doesn't hurt as much," she rocked her own hips against him, causing friction against herself and when James felt her shiver in pleasure, he knew it was time for him to continue. With deep meaningful strokes he quickly had her on the verge of orgasm. His lips were everywhere, his hands moved from his hips to her breasts, squeezing them with expertise. He was panting in her ear, the hot breath tickling her in a positively sinful way.

Knowing she was close, feeling her walls clenching rhythmically around his cock, he whispered raggedly, "Fuck, Lily, I love you, come for me, love," and she did. Her body convulsed around him and she screamed her pleasure to the canopy above them.

James followed two quick thrusts later, finishing deep inside of her. Lily felt it within her and almost finished again at the hot sensation. James collapsed on top of her, both of them fighting for breath. "Oh James," she finally said, "that was wonderful."

Normally he would have smirked and teased her about this statement, but Lily meant so much to him that he wouldn't dare risk embarrassing her after what she had given to him. "You're wonderful," he corrected with sincerity, "and I love you."

He rolled himself off of her and pulled her naked body against his, wanting to feel her skin against his all night. "James?" she was the quiet shy girl again and he quirked a curious eyebrow down at her. "I think…that I love you, too."

"Are you sure that's not just the sex talking?"

"I'm sure. I've been thinking it for a couple of weeks now."

Being happier than he'd ever been in his life, James Potter snuggled against his love, fully intending on sleeping. Until the mischievous redhead in his arms started tracing patters on his chest lightly with her nails and asked, "Can we do that again?"

…..

Six times. That was how many times James finished inside of Lily before she finally seemed sated. James thought he could sleep for the rest of the week he was so bloody tired. But he didn't want to stop making love to her and she very obviously did not want him to stop. They'd tried a variety of positions, speeds, and dirty talk. As the dorm room began to lighten with the first rays of sunlight, the content witch cuddled against him and fell asleep.

James followed immediately. They were awoken by an angry yelling bint only an hour later. James was torn between the feelings of being amused by Luna and wanting to hex her for waking him. After she yelled at him for having sex with another girl, Lily piped up and told her the truth.

Luna and Sirius got dressed and left the dormitory afterwards, leaving James and Lily quite alone. They promptly fell back asleep. But not before Lily had time to grumble, "Thank Merlin it's the weekend."

…

When Lily Evans finally managed to drag herself out of James Potter's bed she didn't know what to do. She simply could not picture herself descending the boys' staircase with her head held high.

"Here you are," it seemed that James could read minds as he promptly threw his Cloak of Invisibility around her shoulders.

"What..? Oh! Oh...my! My body is gone!"

James did not think he would ever tire of surprising her. Nor would he ever tire of hearing that infectious giggle or seeing that breath taking smile. Not if he lived to be a thousand years old.

She snuck silently through the common room to her dormitory, showered and cleaned up, then re-entered the common room feeling much better. The only difficulty, however, was the soreness between her legs. It was tender to the touch and she could barely sit on the cushions on the sofa.

Luna glanced over and noticed the way Lily winced as she sat down and barely held back a chuckle. Like a good friend, she ran up to her dormitory and returned with a vial of a cream-colored potion. "Apply this to any place you might be...hurting," she whispered with a wink.

Lily understood what she meant and sent her a quick look of thanks before running off to give the potion a try. "Come on, it's time for dinner!" Luna stood and slapped Sirius's knee. They had been snuggling on the sofa as he read aloud to her.

"Lily Luna Granger?" asked a timid second year as Sirius stood and stretched.

"Yes?"

"Professor Dumbledore asked me to give you this," the shy boy handed over a rolled up piece of parchment and scampered.

With trepidation she unrolled the scroll.

...

Dear Sirius,

Every day I am more and more afraid that I'll wake up in my own bed at home and never see you again. The fear is even more of a reality since I received the parchment from Professor Dumbledore asking me to meet with him this evening after dinner. If I don't come back, I want you to know that I am happy and healthy but also far away from here.

I suppose there's no harm in telling you now that I was from the future. I won't say anymore than that. In my day you're a hero. Everyone knows your name and your story. But nobody knows you the way I know you now and I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with you and all of my other friends. Please tell James and Lily that I love them. Tell Mary and Alice that in the short time I knew them I felt like we were sisters. Tell Remus and Peter thanks for including me and making me feel welcome.

If I return to you tonight, then you'll never read this letter. Quite honestly I'll be happy if that happens. I don't want you reading these words and me being nothing more than a memory to you. I want to be real. I'm so scared and so sad but I wouldn't have changed a thing. Well, maybe, I would have given into my feelings for you a bit sooner. Maybe we would have had a longer time of happiness. I hope you know, Sirius Black, that I love you. I will love you forever.

Yours,

Lily Luna Potter

Luna looked over her note with a frown. She knew she shouldn't tell him, but a part of her felt that he had to know. He deserved to know. Perhaps he would think she was James's daughter? It didn't matter. Not really. Dumbledore had requested her presence that evening and she knew it had to do with the Time Turner.

Halloween was tonight, too. Normally every Halloween night she visited her grandparent's graves in the cemetery in Godric's Hollow with her parents and brothers. Even when she was at Hogwarts, she was released immediately after the feast every year for a few hours. Harry Potter could pull strings like that. Tonight, however, she would either be back in her own time in her own bed, or in her dormitory bed. Because those graves didn't exist yet.

The sun was just coming up and could be seen from the window of her dormitory. Mary mumbled in her sleep before rolling over. Lily Evans wasn't in the dorm and everyone knew she had taken to spending almost every night in the boys' dormitory, sleeping in James's bed. Alice sat up and stretched. Merlin, it was like that girl had an internal alarm clock. She knew when the sun started shining and that was when she woke up. Every morning. Which also meant she was starting to sleep in a bit later as winter approached and the days shortened.

After almost killing her, Remus was now avoiding Luna like the plague. Despite the efforts of James, Sirius, and Luna herself all trying to tell Remus that she was fine and there was no need for him to feel so guilty, he couldn't even look her in the eye. Luna wished she had time to change that before she left.

Luna wiped away the tears streaming down her face with the back of her hand. Today was going to be a good day. If it was her last one here then it was sure as hell going to be a good one. Tomorrow was supposed to be her first real date with Sirius, to Hogsmeade. Now she might never get an actual first date with him.

As she made her way to the Great Hall for breakfast, Luna was startled to find that Severus Snape was the only other person up this early. "I might be going home today," she told him.

His eyebrows rose until they disappeared into his hair. "I thought you would be happy about that."

"I thought I would be, too."

"It's because of Black, isn't it?"

"No," she answered honestly, "I mean, he's a part of it, yeah, but everyone here I'm going to miss so much."

"Isn't anyone still alive in your day? Or did the Dark Lord wipe out our entire generation?"

"Can you keep it a secret?"

"Obviously," was his snippy retort.

"Alice is the only one," Luna whispered, choking back a sob as she covered her mouth with her hand. "And she's in St. Mungo's. I've never actually met her."

"What do you mean she's in St. Mungo's? Does she work there?"

"No, she's a patient. The Lestrange's tortured her and Frank into insanity. They don't recognize anyone as far as I know. They've improved over the past forty years, but from what I've heard she still can't string together a whole sentence."

Snape's face gave away no emotions. "I see," he said simply.

"I'm sorry," Luna smiled through her tears, "I must seem quite silly to you. Crying over people who are alive and well just because I know someday they won't be."

"It's not silly at all," Severus hesitated, glanced around nervously, and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. "I'm not really sure if this makes you feel better or not, but it looked like you could use a hug and this was really the best I was willing to do," he explained stiffly.

Luna laughed then threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "I don't have anyone else I can talk to about this."

"About what, exactly?" Sirius Black stood, rigid, in the doorway of the Great Hall, watching his girlfriend hug a Dark scummy Slytherin Voldemort supporter while confiding in him. Confiding in him things that she refused to confide in Sirius.

"Sir-Sirius," she stuttered, pulling out of the embrace. "Let's eat before we leave for Transfiguration, yeah?"

"I'm not hungry all of a sudden," his voice was cold, distant, and it worried Luna. "You can tell him and not me?" he snapped.

"I didn't tell him exactly," she winced, "he sort of guessed."

At these words, Sirius's eyes blazed in anger. How had Severus figured out her secret when he couldn't figure it out himself? "Does that bother you?" Severus taunted as he lazily picked up a glass of pumpkin juice and took a sip. "That your girlfriend can talk with me about things she can't talk about with you?"

Sirius lunged for Severus, wands forgotten, just wanting to pummel him with fists. His way was blocked by a short curvy girl who was pointing a finger at him. "Don't you dare," she hissed, "just because Severus guessed my secret doesn't mean that he has something on you." She was quick to round on Severus also, "And you had better stop baiting my boyfriend like that or I'll stop hanging out with you."

"What a shame," said Snape sarcastically, "I did so enjoy spending time with a goody-goody Gryffindor who spends her days trailing after Potter and her nights with her legs wrapped around Black."

This time it was Luna who pulled a wand on Snape. "How dare you! I thought we were friends!"

"We are," he explained casually, "but I can't stand them," he narrowed his eyes at James, Remus, and Peter, who just entered the Great Hall.

"Hmph," Luna turned away from Snape and strutted back to the Gryffindor table. In that moment, her resemblance to James Potter was uncanny. Snape laughed out loud. She strutted just the way her grandfather did. Her face tilted up toward the ceiling, her stride confident and purposeful, her eyes wide and daring, and Snape couldn't believe how idiotic those boys were to not have figured out her secret yet. To him it was so bloody obvious.

Sirius wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her body closer to his, even though he was so much taller than her. "I really don't like that bastard," said Sirius, talking about Snape.

"He doesn't like you, either," she replied.

"It really does bother me that you told him something you won't tell me."

"Sirius, I explained this already, I didn't tell him, he guessed."

"Maybe you could give me a hint."

"I give you hints all of the time, you just never catch them," she thought of all of the slip-ups she had made so far. Knowing so much about all of them. Her resemblance to James. How close she was to Professor McGonagall.

"I'll just have to start paying closer attention," he whispered into her hair before lightly nipping at her ear. She giggled and knew he was just trying to avoid an argument. An argument about her friendship with Snape. An argument about her secrets. They both just wanted to spend a nice day together. Only she knew it might be their last day together.

...

After knocking three times on the solid door to Dumbledore's office, Luna heard his voice call, "Enter."

She pushed the door open and felt strange to find the place so similar and yet so different from what it looked like in her own time. Professor Dumbledore sat behind his desk looking exactly like every portrait and picture she'd ever seen of him.

Professor McGonagall was there also, sitting on the opposite side of the desk from the Headmaster with her lips thinned into a tight line. "You wanted to speak with me, Headmaster?"

"Yes, as I assume you already know, it's about your rather unique situation."

"If you're sending me back now, just spit it out," she begged.

"You don't wish to return home?" her depressed tone had not gone unnoticed by either professor.

"I don't think I can give you a simple answer to that question."

"Does this have anything to do, perhaps, with Mr. Black?" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he asked the question.

"To an extent. But also with the other friends I've made here. I find that I love them all very much, Professor, and I'm sad to leave them. Especially Mr. Black."

"If I may?" Professor McGonagall spoke for the first time, "I see nothing wrong with your relationship with Mr. Black. After much study on the subject and asking you many questions, I am inclined to believe that nothing you do in this time will effect the future, Ms. Potter. It is my belief that in your own time, you'd already been here."

"I quite agree, Minerva," said Dumbledore, "however the fact remains that I also believe it is your destiny to return home at some point. What do you think?" They both turned to her expectantly.

"I believe that I must return home at some point. For many reasons which I will keep to myself, if I may."

"That day," said Dumbledore gravely, "is not today. You can relax, Ms. Potter, because the Time Turner devices are not yet ready. I called you in here to inform you that progress has been made but much slower than I anticipated. I wish to asked you if you recalled reading any inscriptions on the Time Turner you possessed?"

"Yes," she recalled immediately, "I don't remember much of it. Albus read it aloud to me and I-"

"Albus?" Interrupted McGonagall.

"My brother," she explained hastily, "something about the sun and counting hours...it rhymed, if that helps."

"It does indeed help," said Dumbledore as he scribbled down a few notes. "You are adjusting well, I take it?"

"Oh yes. Hogwarts has always been like home to me and the people in it are, well, I was going to say 'like family' but some of them really are my family."

"If there's nothing further you wish to discuss, you may return to your dormitory, Ms. Granger," said the Headmaster.

"Is there anyway you could possibly give me a time frame, Sir?" she asked in quiet voice.

"Months," he sighed, "it's quite possible that you might graduate here."

"Graduation! That's in June!" This news both thrilled and horrified her.

"I'm well aware what month graduation is in," he replied politely, "but there's nothing else I can do that I'm not already doing. As it is I have been to the Ministry at least twice a week since you first arrived and have had countless visits from Ministry officials on the subject."

"I didn't mean to imply that you weren't trying your best, Sir, I was just surprised."

He appraised her silently over the tops of his half-moon spectacles while she fidgeted uncomfortably before saying, "I said it before and I shall say it again; it's my firm belief that you will return to your own time, I just do not know when."

...

Beside herself with joy, Luna was exceptionally vibrant during the Halloween Feast. Talking, laughing, and spending time with people she'd grown to love caused her to be almost overwhelmed by her emotions.

"Happy Death Day, Sir Nicholas," she sang to the Gryffindor Ghost as he floated by.

"My dear!" he cried, very obviously delighted that someone remembered his Death Day, "Who told you?"

"I'm afraid that's one secret I have to keep to myself," she chided teasingly. The ghost bowed in her direction then glided on down the table.

"One secret?" Sirius scoffed, "you keep many more secrets than just one, Sweetheart."

"All girls have secrets," Lily defended her friend. It was a joke amongst the Gryffindors that ever since Lily Evans shagged James Potter she was in a much better mood. But whether that was attributed to the shagging or their new relationship, Luna wasn't sure.

Before Sirius could make a retort, the students were dismissed for bed. After giving her boyfriend a kiss goodnight, Luna went upstairs and pulled on warmer clothes. Whether the graves had been filled yet or not didn't really matter. Going to the cemetery on Halloween night had been a family tradition for years and Luna couldn't shake the feeling that that was where she needed to be.

When she snuck back down through the common room, she didn't even notice that Sirius was hiding in the corner. What she had said earlier really made him think. He was dying to figure out her secret so he decided to be a bit more stealthy about it. A Slytherin had figured it out, so perhaps like a Slytherin, he would have to be devious.

This assumption paid off when he caught sight of her, dressed in dark midnight blue clothes and a matching winter cloak, dodging out of the portrait hole. Using magic and his own natural talent, me managed to follow her unnoticed all the way out of the grounds of Hogwarts.

When she was just barely passed the gates, she stopped, squared her shoulders, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. He knew what she meant to do a split second before she did it. She was going to Apparate. Throwing caution to the wind, he lunged toward her and barely managed to catch hold of her cloak before being squeezed into darkness.

Their destination, he realized with a jolt, was a graveyard. "Sirius!" she squealed, "Did you follow me?"

"No," he teased as he straightened up to his full height, "I just happened to be lurking around the castle gates when you wandered through them."

"Well, I would appreciate it very much if you returned to Hogwarts now."

"And let you go galavanting through a graveyard in the middle of the night on Halloween? Are you barmy? Why the bloody hell did you come out here by yourself in the first place? It was a dangerous and stupid thing to do!" Sirius Black stopped there in surprise at his own words. He'd never scolded anyone like that before.

"Aw," Luna noticed this and wrapped her arms around his middle, "you care about me."

"Of course I care about you," he grumbled as he returned the embrace, "and it drives me batty that you don't seem to care about yourself."

"This," she changed the subject gently, "is Godric's Hollow. Where I grew up. Several members of my family are in that graveyard and when my parents were around every year we would come here and visit their graves."

"Why on Halloween?"

She shrugged in a way that was too casual for him to believe the words that followed, "It was just our tradition."

They linked hands and Sirius pushed the kissing gate open to allow them entrance into the silent cemetery. The only sounds that could be heard were the crunching of leaves beneath their feet and the occasional dog barking in the distance.

Her feet followed the path she knew so well. When they reached the place where her grandparents bodies would lay in a few short years, she fell to her knees. It impacted her more than she had thought it would to see the unmarked grass.

"Are you alright?" he asked worriedly.

"Fine," her voice was a hoarse whisper. Sirius clamped his hands onto her shoulders and hoisted her up to her feet.

"You said you visited graves," he pointed out, "there are no graves here."

With a curt nod she turned from the place that she knew would give her nightmares for years to come and led him a little ways over to the grave of Ignotus Peverell. "An ancestor of mine," she said vaguely.

"Huh," Sirius rocked back on his heels and glanced from her to the headstone three times before continuing his thought, "James claims to be descended from Ignotus Peverell, too."

"Strange," Luna said airily, "perhaps he and I are distantly related."

Sirius gave a jerky nod, "Most witches and wizards are. All purebloods are if you go back far enough, and didn't you say your mum was a pureblood?"

"Yes," said Luna, jumping at his explanation, "I'm sure you and I have similar relatives somewhere along the line as well."

He gave a bark of laughter, "I'd love it very much if you never said that again."

Although she didn't point out any other relatives of hers, they weaved between the headstones for another hour, commenting on many surnames they recognized. "Blimey," said Sirius as they made their way back to the kissing gate, "I had heard of Godric's Hollow of course, but I never realized just how steeped it was in magical history."

"Mmhmm, even more so -" she stopped. She'd almost said, 'even more so in my time,' and had barely managed to catch herself.

Sirius gave her a sideways glance but didn't comment otherwise. "I'll figure it out eventually," he assured her, "and soon." He tugged her close to his side and asked, "Ready to go back to school?"

Luna smiled up at him, "With you, I'm ready to go anywhere."

"Oh, well in that case I will Apparate us directly to Three Broomsticks. I hear the bedrooms they have available are quite nice, really, though we'll probably have to put a silencing charm on the room so we don't traumatize poor Rosmerta."

Luna rolled her eyes as he Apparated them away, the only thing remaining was Sirius's echoing laugh for a few moments in time.