Blaise Zabini stood outside seventeen Willow Street, a bouqet of flowers in his hands, the same kind he had given her three years ago. He felt nervous. Butterflies swarmed his stomach, his knees shook, and his palms felt sweaty.

She'd remember him, right?

Of course she would. It had only been three years. Good thing he had been able to find her address among her many letters.

She'd want to speak to him, right?

Maybe. He hadn't really responded to those many letter that were tied together on top of his nightstand in his small apartment. The letters that smelt like lavender, like her hair.

She wouldn't just slam the door in his face, right?

No telling there. There was never any way to tell what she was really thinking. She wasn't an open book like a lot of other people. . . . That's what he liked a lot about her.

But he hadn't gotten a letter from her in close to eight months. She used to send one at least once a week. But then . . . after about a year, they dwindled down to twice a month, then to once a month, then every other month . . . then they stopped.

He hadn't meant to wait so long to come visit her, but there had been things he needed to work out . . . like where he needed to be. Sure, he was only twenty, but there were things he needed to be sure of. His parents had wanted him to be a Death Eater . . . he had refused. He ran away from it, hid out. That's why most of her notes lay unanswered.

Taking a deep breath, Blaise reached forward and knocked.

After a few moments, it opened and there stood Alurea Smith. She hadn't changed a bit and for that, he was grateful. Her long brown hair was pushed back with a white headband and her large, brown eyes were opened wide in surprise. "Blaise?" she said.

"Hello, Alurea," he said smiling.

"Blaise?" she said again, this time a wide smile appearing on her face. She moved as if to hug him but she stopped, the smiling slowly fading. "What – what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," Blaise said, holding out the flowers.

Alurea stayed where she was though, stuttering silently. A voice came from behind her. "Darling, who is it?"

Blaise's arms dropped to his sides as the man came and wrapped his arm around her waist, a smug smile coming onto his face.

"Why hello there, Zabini," said Cormac McLaggen.