...

"We are not meant to be perfect; we are meant to be whole." ― Jane Fonda

...

September 19th, 1979

Dearest Minerva,

I hope you and your loved ones are doing well.
I don't even know where to start… I'm still so filled with emotions.
(and no, this time I'm not going to complain about this idiot of an ex-husband of mine again…)
Believe me, it's a much happier occasion – and I think congratulations are in order at this point!
After all, it doesn't happen every day that one becomes a grandmother!
It's been a really tough night, but our little girl has finally arrived in this world – I still cannot quite believe it… time passes so quickly sometimes, doesn't it?
I've left the room to give the little family their space… that sweet little girl has got her father wrapped around her little fingers already.
And the look on his face when he first showed her to me – he is so happy and proud to be a father!
I wish you could be here to see them!

I miss you & sending you all my love,
Bay

"Poppy, what are you talking about?" Minerva asked, brought her feet to the ground and in doing so stopped the little wooden swing she was sitting on. With a raised eyebrow, the witch watched how her best friend shifted nervously on the rock she was sitting on. All colour has been drained from the medi-witch's face and the rising water of the bay was splashing against the fabric of her light blue robe.

Poppy bit her lip, swallowed hard and reached out to take one of Minerva's thin hands into hers.

"It's – it's about Aurora… about what happened to her," she finally stuttered.

Hearing her baby-daughter's name, Minerva's heart contradicted painfully, and her emerald eyes threatened to fill with tears. But she took a deep breath – trying not to let her emotions get the better of her.

"It's not your fault, Poppy. Aurora died in the fire," the deputy Headmistress whispered, her voice already daring to fail her, "Aurora and Arina were both born too early… at least you managed to get Rina to breath – "

"Yes, I was working on Arina while Dorothy brought Aurora back to the infant station," Poppy interrupted her boldly and continued before Minerva had the chance to get out a single word. "But that's not the entire story."

Minerva felt like she had been hit with a broomstick over her head. Her body was trembling, and she freed her hands from Poppy's grip. She was moving her mouth, but no words came out and her wide, emerald eyes were now filled with tears.

"Wh-what a-are you telling me?!"

Tears were now running down Minerva's cheeks like rivers. Poppy's voice was hoarse and when she spoke, it was nothing more than a whisper.

"Aurora didn't die in the demon-fire that night," the medi-witch stuttered, her voice loaded with guilt and shame, "she was taken from the hospital"

She took a deep breath before she continued; her head lowered as she couldn't quite manage to look into her friend's teary emerald eyes.

"We sat the infant station on fire to cover it up."

Minerva stared at her best friend in disbelief; her emerald eyes widened, and her heart ached painfully as if it had been shattered into thousands of pieces.

.

"This said, I do hope I have answered all your questions," Albus spoke tiredly; his blue eyes scanning the still completely stunned crowd. "As Professor McGonagall mentioned earlier, tents are set up for everyone on the grounds outside. We appreciate any help we can get in order to restore Hogwarts to its former glory."

The old wizard was about to leave the stage when yet another question was voiced.

"Speaking of Professor McGonagall," Rita Skeeter announced curiously and every single eye in the hall turned towards the news-reporter.

Albus sighed, and sent a quick prayer to Merlin that the woman had not overheard any of the previous conversations. Sure, the news about his relationship with Minerva would eventually spread like a wildfire, but for now, they had enough things to take care off without everyone asking questions about their private life.

"Considering your unexpected return to Hogwarts… who's going to claim the position as Head of Hogwarts?" Rita asked, and her quill was writing down every single word.

Albus shrugged. He honestly hadn't thought about that yet. Sure, he'd spent almost a lifetime as Headmaster, but he knew Minerva was a great fit for the position as well. "That's for Professor McGonagall to decide whether or not she would like to remain with the position."

Skeeter eagerly opened her mouth, but the blue-eyed wizard held up his hand. "That's all for now, Ms Skeeter."

.

"Dad!" Hermione exclaimed happily when she spotted two familiar figures at London Heathrow Airport. For a moment, both adults looked a bit irritated as to where the voice was coming from, but once they had spotted their daughter along with Aidan, Arina, little Arielle and Ron, they grabbed their luggage and walked right towards them.

Once he reached the little group, Liam Granger immediately dropped everything he carried with him and pulled his daughter into a tight embrace. "I'm so glad you're okay," he mumbled and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Don't you ever do that again, Kiddo. Deleting our memories and sending us halfway around the world… If I wasn't that happy to see you, you'd be grounded for the rest of your life."

"Don't be so hard on her, Liam," Arina spoke, although tears glistened in her sparkling blue eyes upon seeing the family-reunion and she clutched Arielle, who sat on her arm, closer. "Your little girl's a heroine, you know."

"In his mind, Hermione's still his little girl," Jean replied and also hugged her daughter once her husband had released her.

Arina nodded, and exchanged a glance with her husband. His brown eyes told her that he was thinking the same. If something had happened to Hermione… the tall, emerald eyed man would have been devastated.

"You just wait and see how fast Ellie grows up," Liam mocked and hugged first his brother-in-law before he headed over to Arina.

The blue-eyed witch nudged him playfully. "Oh shut it."

Liam smirked and held out his hands; his old silver ring with the 'W' crest on it sparkled in the airport's neon light. Laughing, the dark-haired witch handed little Arielle to her uncle. "You'll be a troublemaker, won't you, Ellie?" he whispered to the toddler, "Yes, Uncle Liam is going to teach you all the funny things, little Mermaid."

Arina rolled her eyes at the nickname. She watched as Dan only smiled, while Jean and Hermione wore the same amused expression. However, upon seeing Ron's confused look – who so far had kept quiet – the witch chuckled.

"Ronald, right?" Liam asked the ginger, checked the boy out with his emerald eyes before he shot him a silent 'don't you ever dare to hurt my daugher'-glare.

Ron nodded wordlessly, extended his hand to the older man to shake and an unspoken agreement was closed between the two men.

They stared into each others eyes for a couple of seconds longer before a slightly exasperated "Dad," from a blushing Hermione reminded them that there were still other people around.

"You see, Ronald," Hermione's father continued, and smirked at Arina while he was still holding the little girl, "They decided to name their little girl, Arielle. It's not my fault that her name is identical with Disney's The Little Mermaid."

Arina rolled her eyes once again, and she was about to argue that they had actually named their daughter 'AriELLE' after Jean – since her middle-name was 'Ellen' – but she knew better than to argue with Liam. Additionally, Ron's confused expression was far more enjoyable than to argue with her brother-in-law.

"Dad," Hermione saved her boyfriend with a laugh, "I doubt Ron has ever seen 'the little Mermaid'… But," she said and turned to Ron with a teasing smile on her face, "I dare say it's as famous in the muggle world as 'Rabbity Babbity."

"I doubt that…" Ron mumbled and the adults laughed.

Eventually, Hermione took pity on him and gave him a sweet kiss. "Don't worry, there's enough time now to catch up on that."

Arina had trouble hiding her laugh when she glanced at Liam. The sight of his only daughter kissing her boyfriend was apparently something he still had to get used to.

'I have to tell Tori about this," the witch thought, still smirking rather stupidly while she imagined the future conversation she was going to have with Liam's mother. 'She's probably going to enjoy this even more than I do right now."

.

Xemerius took a deep breath and shook his head as he made his way out of the Great Hall.

He hated politics – or rather the people who made it all overly complicated. He was glad when Albus had rescued Minerva from all these questions, though apparently Rita Skeeter hadn't changed a bit during the war. She was still the same, annoying know-it all. Especially after today, it wouldn't take her long to sprint yet another scandalous article. The silver-eyed wizard just wasn't completely sure about the topic… so far, he was quite certain that Skeeter had not caught up with the recent development considering Minerva's marriage… nevertheless, Albus re-appearance would probably give her enough reason to dig further into the matter.

Xem sighed again; enjoying the faint smell of a lovely breakfast in the air. Looking around, he spotted Aberforth, Augusta, and Rolanda, who proudly glanced at the tall white tent next to the transfiguration yard. In front of the tent, a gigantic table was set up, bearing – amongst freshly baked bread and baskets of fruits – the most delicious of things. He felt how his mouth started to water and a foolish grin appeared on his face as he approached the others.

"Looks good, doesn't it?" Augusta asked, smiling smugly.

Xemerius laughed. "It does," he answered with a smirk, "seems like Ro outdid herself. Though I've only ever seen her bake that much after her third divorce… or was it the second? – OUCH!"

Rolanda neatly folded the apron which she had used to give the silver-eyed wizard a small slap. "I merely wanted to support the poor house elves," she defended herself and high-fived one of the elves that passed by. "And to your information, I threw the dinner party after my first divorce."

"Sorry… a bit hard to keep track, you know… OUCH!"

Augusta laughed. "One day, you will learn to just keep your mouth shut, Xemmi."

Complaining and rubbing his head at the same time, the Ilvermorny-Headmaster only shrugged. "Yeah, well, I guess it's too late for that… It appears one gets used to it… Just make sure you don't hit that poor thing," Xemerius added, and pointed to Batty, who seemed to be enjoying the scene from its place in Xem's chest pocket. The little bat's head was stuck out far enough and it looked like it was smirking at the scene.

"I almost forgot about the poor thing," Rolanda exclaimed, looking a bit guilty.

Aberforth chuckled, stepped closer and patted Batty on the head. "Nothing knew about that, Rolanda. Rumour has it you never had a lucky hand with pets – or husbands… OUCH!"

This time, the younger Dumbledore-brother was hit by Augusta's handbag, and the witch shot him a disapproving look. "Just be careful, or I'll have Minerva transfigure you into a pet, which I'm sure Rolanda will be happy to take care of."

Augusta's attempt to sound serious failed miraculously when Xem mumbled something about "ask Alastor and his ferret-experience…".

"Yeah, well, I'll make sure it won't come to that," Aberforth mumbled, "besides, one pet's enough work for now, don't you think?"

Xemerius brushed his finger over Batty's head and smiled. "Ah, I'm quite happy with this little one."

"Well, then," Augusta continued with a small smile," I guess we should let everyone else know breakfast – or brunch, considering the time – is ready."

"Yeah, or Xem's gonna eat it all by himself," Rolanda joked, but the silver-eyed wizard only shook his head and stuck out his tongue.

"Nah, I'll pass," he said, and three pairs of eyes stared at him as if he had just grown a second head.

"What? You? Skipping a meal?" Augusta asked, stunned, but laughed, nonetheless.

Xemerius shrugged, fished out a set of ancient looking keys out of his other pocket and held it right into her face.

"That's the McGonagall crest," the yellow-eyed flying instructor said excitedly and pointed towards the 'M' that was craved into the metal.

Xem nodded. "My spare key to Min's Manor," he said, and smiled proudly at seeing Rolanda's jealous look, "I had a quick talk with her and Albus earlier… I'll go ahead and prepare things at the Manor, so at least the bedrooms will be set up before the lot of you arrives."

This said, he made sure Batty was sitting safely in his pocket, before he lifted his arm to wave a quick good-bye and apparated away.

.

Harry hesitated; his first-formed hand only inches away from the front door of Privet Drive.

Ginny – holding the Mablomi in one hand – put her other hand on his shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly, before she took the lead and knocked.

Only seconds later, footsteps were heard and Petunia Dursley stuck her head out.

Her pale blue eyes widened immediately.

"Harry," she said, and her voice cracked a bit.

The-boy-who-lived nodded politely. "Aunt Petunia," he acknowledged her and gestured towards the red-haired woman next to him. "This is my girlfriend."

"Ginny Weasley," Ginny introduced herself politely. Petunia nodded shortly.

Then, Harry held up a piece of paper. "I – erm, got your letter."

For a moment, the elderly woman looked puzzled, but eventually, clarity replaced her confusion and she gestured for the two young adults to come inside.

Harry noticed that the house looked different. Brighter colours, more flowers and plants and apparently there was only one TV left in the living room.

"Vernon… he … well... we decide to live in separate houses for some time," Petunia clarified.

"Oh," was the only thing that came to his mind, "sorry to hear that…" he added after a moment of consideration.

Petunia raised an eyebrow. "Are you?"

Harry shrugged, and decided to be straight honest. "Well, not really," he admitted and sat down next to Ginny on the sofa. "I never cared much for him, but I guess that feeling was mutual."

A mixture between shame and embarrassment was mirrored in Petunia's blue eyes, and her bony fingers started to play with a black velvet box that rested on the living room table.

"Nevertheless," Ginny broke the rather awkward silence, "we're not here because of your husband… you asked Harry to come here?

The woman nodded.

"You know, I'm sorry how everything turned out between us," his aunt admitted, and for a moment, Harry was taken aback by the honest regret that she displayed. "I loved my sister – I really did…"

"Hard to imagine…" Harry mumbled, but apparently loud enough for the muggle woman to hear. Ginny raised an eyebrow.

She sighed, and looked down at the box in her hand. "I was jealous – only a bit at the beginning… but then she started spending more and more time with that Snape boy… and when she got her letter to that school of yours…"

Harry nodded. He had seen parts of it in Snape's memories already. "You tried writing to Dumbledore, didn't you?"

Petunia looked surprised.

"Long story," Ginny added.

"I did," the blonde woman admitted sadly. "I was afraid to be alone. My father was a drunk, my mother obeyed to his every wish and the only one I could talk to was about to leave me."

Harry wasn't quite sure what to say and he sighed. "Mum was happy, you know… living with Professor McGonagall."

"And I don't blame her for that," Petunia whispered and for a moment, she seemed to be lost in her own memories, "I remember the day she arrived here… how father made her choose… how broken I felt when Lily decided to leave me. But I guess a part of me wished that your Professor had just taken me with her."

Silence fell over them. Harry had never been good at Leglimency, but now he understood what Hermione meant with her constant reminders that he should try to shield his thoughts. As if he was able to look right into her head, Harry could basically read what Petunia left unsaid.

'I lost my sister to magic once, and then she gives her lives to save you. I never meant to treat you the way I did, Harry. I was afraid magic would kill you just like it killed Lily.'

A moment of silence fell over them and Harry let the words sink in. He was still angry about how he was treated during his childhood – especially about Uncle Vernon. But as he looked at his aunt's thin and broken form, he finally got to understand why she was so eager to keep him from Hogwarts. It was no excuse, but at least he knew the truth.

After some time, the elderly woman spoke once more.

"Lily continued writing, but she never came back. But I guess that's no wonder considering father never failed to remind her of how she didn't fit into the family."

Ginny shook her head, and the famous Weasley-temper started to surface. "I cannot believe how a father could treat his own daughter – his flesh and blood – like an outcast."

Petunia flinched for only a second, but Harry caught it.

"Aunt Petunia?" the black-haired wizard asked sharply, and he realized that the month of war had left their traces.

The woman sighed and handed the black velvet box to Harry. "Open it."

"What?" Harry asked confused and eyed the box, "what does this have to do to with…?

"Just – just open it."

Doing as he was told, Harry carefully lifted the lid and removed the protection paper.

Immediately, his emerald green eyes widened when his glance fell upon the elegant golden necklace with the heart-shaped ruby pendant.

.

Harry couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Where – Where did you get this?" the young man asked, still staring at the so familiar looking golden necklace.

Petunia folded her hands neatly on her lap. "It belonged to your mother. She's had it ever since she was a child – and she wore it every day."

"It's beautiful," Ginny said gently and carefully traced the small heart-shaped ruby with her fingers. "But how did it come into your possession?"

Harry didn't say anything. The sight of the necklace, and his heart that had skipped several beats at seeing it prevented him from getting out a single word.

The elderly woman sighed. "A couple of days after I heard the news about her death, a package arrived with a letter attached to it. I never figured out who sent it."

This said, she grabbed the little box, and retrieved a piece of paper that was glued to the lid.

Ginny took it.

"I know this ruby-heart meant a lot to your sister. Pass it on to her son. Lily would have wanted him to have it. – S."

Harry felt the tears welling up in his eyes and he swallowed hard to keep his emotions in check.

Ginny on the other hand put the paper back in the box, and balled her hands into fists before she glared at Petunia.

"Why didn't you pass the necklace on?" the witch demanded to know, and the famous Weasley temper surfaced. "Whoever sent this clearly knew her well enough to know – "

"Snape," Harry whispered as his eyes skimmed over the black ink, "It was Snape."

Ginny looked at him questioningly.

"He was the one who found her body – in Godric's Hollow," Harry explained, a lonely tear escaped from his green eyes and he made a mental note to thank the potions master for saving the last piece he had left of his mother. "He loved her. He probably knew how much this necklace meant to her."

Petunia sighed sadly. "I should have known."

"You should have given the necklace to Harry," Ginny snapped and glared at the woman.

Pale blue eyes looked away in shame. "I meant to," she explained, "I just – I wasn't ready… to see that little boy wearing the thing she held so dear albeit knowing that I'd never see her wearing it ever again… I wanted to let some time go by first… to process that she was really gone."

"And?"

"I put it back in the velvet box, and hid it in our childhood home, so Vernon wouldn't accidently stumble upon it." She sighed. "Days turned into weeks… weeks into years… I still couldn't bring myself to give it up. And eventually, I forgot I still had it."

A moment of silence passed. Then Harry jumped up; fire burning in his green eyes. "You forgot?" he asked angrily. "You forgot to give it to me, although you knew very well that all those years, all I wanted was to have something from her to hold on to?"

A window shattered somewhere in the background and Petunia flinched.

"I'm sorry."

Harry wasn't able to keep his tears in check anymore, and he tried – in vain – to brush them away. Ginny put the Mablomi down on the table, got up and pulled him into a close hug.

"You've got something of hers now," she whispered into his ear, and held him even closer.

Harry buried his head in her shoulder, and savoured the feeling of her body against his own. Eventually, he had calmed down.

Ginny brought her hands up to his face, and cupped his cheeks before she got on her toe-tips and kissed him lovingly. "Your mother is always with you. Right there," she said and placed her other hand on his chest.

"I love you," Harry whispered into her ear, before he turned around to face his aunt again.

"I'm really sorry," she repeated quietly.

"I know. And I'll be back to talk – mend some things… But I – I need some time first," the wizard chocked out and carefully picked up the precious velvet box. "Thanks, for giving it to me now, though."

Petunia only nodded and wordlessly guided them back to the door.

Harry held on so tight to the necklace as if his life depended on it. But whenever he thought about it, his heart started to beat faster and his head started spinning. He had seen the little ruby-necklace before in one of Professor McGonagall's memories…

"One more question," Ginny added as she and Harry were already half way out of the door. Harry was torn out of his own thoughts and turned around with one eyebrow raised.

"Yes?" Petunia asked, slightly irritated.

"You said that Lily had the necklace ever since she arrived here as a baby?" the red-haired witch asked suspiciously. "It's a rather odd way to phrase it, isn't it?"

To Harry's surprise, Aunt Petunia just shrugged.

"I don't know," she mumbled honestly, "Back then, mother talked about another child for quite a while… I guess it was an attempt to get father to drink less, but look how well that worked out. And one day, she just stood there, on the front porch, with a little green-eyed girl in her arms who had a ruby-necklace tumbling from her neck."

Both Harry's and Ginny's eyes widened.

"And before you ask," Petunia interrupted before either of them was able to speak, "I was only four years old… I have no idea where my mother got the baby from. But when Lily's magic started to surface, father partly blamed mother for 'arriving' with this freaky child."

Harry didn't know what to say. A thousand thoughts ran through his head and it felt as if he was hit by a ton of bricks. Why didn't Petunia tell him this earlier? Was he even related to his Aunt? What about the Blood-protection that made him return to Privet Drive for all those years? He quickly mumbled a "thank you, and take care" to his Aunt, before he grabbed Ginny's hand and apparated straight back to Hogwarts; Ginny's hand wrapped around the Mablomi, his own was holding on tight to his mother's necklace – that remined him so much of the one Athena McGonagall wore in the memories.

Outside, underneath the great oak tree in front of the living room window, a rather ugly looking garden gnome blinked with his eyes, and only seconds later it morphed into the human form of Lucius Malfoy.

He brushed the last pieces of dirt from his cloak and threw up his arms in desperation.

Not only had he failed to gather any more information that might help him to keep his head, but in addition, he let Potter and Weasley escape. Damn these gnome-transformation. He had not taken in consideration that there was a prescribed amount of time before one was able to re-gain human form.

Pearls of sweat were forming on his forehead, and his heart was beating in an unhealthy rhythm. He had failed. Again.

Nervously, he ran his fingers through his blonde hair while he quickly walked through the garden on the street.

He felt his blood rushing through his veins with desperation, and his pulse was speeding up.

The fear was slowly suffocating him.

Lucius looked down at his trembling fingers, and when his pale eyes fell upon his silver wedding band, he had made his choice.

For once, he would not follow the old man's orders.

With one last breath, he apparated away – probably straight towards his downfall.

"So… married, huh?" Aberforth mumbled into his hot chocolate while he handed another cup to his brother.

Albus sighed but nodded, then sat down next to his brother on the bench and watched as Augusta and Rolanda coordinated breakfast and showed everyone who entered the transfiguration yard where to take a seat. Soon enough, the tables next to the tents filled up and chattering filled the air. It provided enough distraction for the two Dumbledore brothers to have their long overdue conversation.

"Ana would have been happy to see that," Abe continued and watched, like his brother, the hungry crowd.

Albus slightly turned his head, a small smile gracing his features. "I'd like to think that, too."

A moment of silence passed between them.

"You know, after Lavinia – "

Albus groaned. "Don't mention her – "

Aberforth' lips twitched in amusement. The one and only Lady Lavinia LaRôche – Albus' sweetheart during their own days at Hogwarts – was always a good topic to tease his brother.

"After Lavinia…" the younger brother continued with a smirk on his face, "… I always thought you had a thing for this girl… you know… the exchange student in your seventh year? Lovely blonde, emerald eyes… What was her name? Hildegard…?"

This time, Albus smirked. "Esmeralda."

Aberforth clapped his hands together. "Yes, that was her! The last thing I remember is that she attended your graduation and – what's so amusing?"

The elder of the two brothers only chuckled.

"You want to know how Minerva fits into the picture?"

"I guess," Aberforth shrugged. "… and – don't get me wrong – Minerva's quite a catch, but I was always under the impression that you were looking for this Esmeralda girl for quite a while back then… never dating anyone serious after her…"

Albus continued watching the people with a small smile on his face. "They were one and the same."

Aberforth raised an eyebrow, confusion written all over his face. "Say what?"

"In her seventh year, Minerva was given a time turner and one day, she accidently jumped back a lot further than she anticipated," Albus explained, his blue eyes lost in memories. "When she arrived in 1935, the time turner broke, and it took her some time to get back to 1954. Her father Apollo knew all about it and thought it best to just let her continue to live in the past under the name Esmeralda Pendragon."

Albus sighed, and watch as Aberforth repeatedly opened and closed his mouth.

"I completely fell for her, Abe. Head over heels. And yes, I did search for her, although, the more and more time I spent with Minerva… babysitting her, helping her with school projects… animagus training… I felt so guilty that I started having feelings for this young witch, when I promised Esmeralda that I would never stop searching for her."

Aberforth scratched his head, trying to follow his brother's line of thoughts.

"And how – when – did you find out that – you know – they were one and the same?"

The corners of Albus' lips twitched upwards once more. "Before she travelled into the past, Minerva was about to get dressed for her own graduation. When Apollo managed to send her back to her own time in 1954, Minerva still wore the dress Rose McGonagall had borrowed her for my graduation."

Aberforth shook his head, surprised, amused and shocked at the same time. "That must have been one hell of a revelation."

Albus chuckled and with a wave of his hand, both their cups re-filled with hot chocolate. "You have no idea…"

Draco had woken up quite early in the morning and since he has always been an early riser, he had quickly glanced at his mother who slept contently in his godfather Severus' arms, before he sneaked out of the Hall.

At first, he only wandered the grounds, his grey eyes skimming over the ruins that once formed Hogwarts. For some reason, he couldn't quite forget Astoria's words, and the way her dark blue eyes looked at him.

"We all make mistakes. What matters is what we do once we come to terms with all the things we have done wrong."

Draco shook his head. He couldn't quite name it, but there was something about this girl that kept him thinking. She was only a year younger, but the words she chose were selected carefully, and a lot wiser than anything a girl her age should say.

The special thing about her was, that her words moved something in him. But before he was able to continue the conversation, the brunette had turned around and left without as much as a goodbye.

Now, after having searched for her all morning, he finally spotted her, and his heart skipped a beat.

Dressed in a simple white shirt and a pair of jeans, she leaned against the trunk of a tree. A sad and forlorn look was on her face as her dark blue eyes were focused on the people waiting patiently in line to get some breakfast.

For a moment, he hesitated, but eventually, the blond man made his way towards her.

Carefully, in order not to scare her, he put a hand on her shoulder.

Nevertheless, the girl jumped.

"Heavens, don't ever do that again!" she whispered, and when she turned around to face him, she brushed away a lonely tear from her cheek.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, and hesitantly put an arm around her shoulders.

Astoria shook her head. "It's nothing, I'm fine," she whispered, but the tears that formed in her eyes told the opposite.

"Doesn't look like nothing," Draco mumbled concerned.

The brunette swallowed hard. "I don't want to talk about it."

The blond man thought for a moment. Then he simply nodded and sat down underneath the tree.

"What are you doing?" she asked confused and with an eyebrow raised.

Draco shrugged. "What does it look like?"

Astoria brought her hands to her hips and tried to glare at him, though he could see the corners of her mouth twitch. "You're occupying my spot."

"It's a lovely spot," Draco replied, "and I'd rather sit here and not-talk with you, then stand over there." He pointed towards the crowd.

Astoria's lips formed into a small smile as she brushed away the last of one of her tears. "So… we'll just sit here and not-talk?"

Draco nodded, shrugged, and smiled at her.

.

First of all, thank you all for your kind reviews! My personal life was kind of messy the last year, and I didn't really get the chance to write anything at all... but thanks to you all, I haven't yet given up on this story! And once I get my love-life a bit less messy, I promise I'll update more regularly... or well, at least a bit more often than once a year *I hate myself for that... I've got so many ideas in my head, but I just don't have the time to write them down...*
Anyways, I still hope you enjoy this new chapter! Let me know what you think! And I really really hope to get the next chapter out soon!

lot of love,

Lexi