Lost and Found...Love

Chapter 8

Afternoon Tea and Sympathy

The weather was absolutely foul: wind, rain, sleet, frigid temperatures. In short, one of those days it was just as well there was no reason for going outside. What better excuse for settling into a comfy armchair and having a nice long chat.

Harry arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom just after four on that November Sunday, having been sent a note from Professor Twigg-Jones asking him to join her for tea and that talk she had promised him on her first night at Hogwarts.

"Harry? Is that you?" Anna called from her chambers.

"Yes, it's me."

"Come on in then, you're right on time. Dobby has just delivered our tea and I'm ready to pour out a cup."

Harry wasn't quite sure what he'd find in her chambers, as the door was usually closed and the few times it had been open there was a screen blocking any view of the furnishings. He was pleasantly surprised to find that Anna was using the chamber as a true bedroom, complete with a sitting area, and not just an office/storage room as the previous male teachers seemed to prefer.

An oak and black ironwork bed had been placed against the right wall, while opposite there stood a large armoire and matching dressing table. Before the fireplace were two overstuffed armchairs with side tables and short tufted stools for putting your feet up, so as to warm them while enjoying the crackling fire. A low table was holding the tea tray; loaded with cookies and scones, a jug of juice and two glasses, the teapot and strainer, cups and saucers, etc. Anna waved him over to join her, indicating the chair opposite her.

"Dobby really must think I'm wasting away and feels the need to buck me up a bit, eh?" Anna observed with a shake of her head, leaning forward to pick up the teapot.

"Don't worry; I'll take a bit back to Gryffindor Tower with me, when I leave. That'll stop him from scolding you for not eating, or worse, giving you a lecture about your health. Takes his role as our nanny-in-residence quite seriously, Dobby." Harry laughed as he sat down, facing Anna.

"He certainly does. Well, have a cup, Harry, and then let's get started. I'm sure you made a list of questions, as I suggested."

"It's really hard to know what to ask first." Harry put his cup and saucer down on the side table and leaned forward. "What was my dad like as a kid? Where did you live? Tell me about my grandparents. And your family, too."

"James and I grew up next door to each other, just outside of a little village east of Brighton. Your grandfather, William, who I called Uncle Will, worked for Obscurus Books, the Wizard publishing company, as a senior accounts manager. Your grandmother, Annabelle, who I called Aunt Belle, was a housewife and avid gardener. She and my Mom had a friendly rivalry going about whose flowers were tallest, brightest, longest blooming, etc., etc. If you didn't find either of them in the kitchen, you looked in the garden.

"What did your dad do for a living?" Harry asked as he reached for his teacup and settled back in his chair.

"Dad worked at the Ministry of Magic, in the Transportation Department, Floo Network Division. My Mom was a Muggle, but she embraced the Wizarding world and for all intents and purposes considered herself a Squib. She had a house elf, Daisy, but they had an agreement: Daisy cleaned the house and did the laundry and helped take care of me. Mom did all the cooking, with occasional help from Daisy for parties and holiday baking. However, Mom was first and foremost a gardener; she had studied horticulture at university, till she met Dad and chucked it all to be with him.

"Your grandparents lived next door," Anna continued, "and our yards were separated by a low brick and stone wall, with a trellised gate in the center. That gate was never closed. Your grandmother's vegetable garden and ours were beyond the flower gardens, toward the rear of our properties and the orchard was behind that, then the surrounding woods. There was a huge old oak tree in our yard and Dad and Uncle Will built a tree house for both of us to use. Aunt Belle and Mom's friendly rivalry over their flower gardens also included the vegetable gardens and fruit orchards as well. Out of fairness, your grandmother wouldn't use magic to help her plants grow faster or bigger. But, both agreed to getting rid of pests with spells if Mom's Muggle tricks didn't work. Her favorite," Anna laughed, "and the one that tickled your grandmother no end, was drowning slugs in beer from the corner pub, in jars she'd countersunk in the grass around the edge of the gardens. 'If the little blighters are going to die, let 'em die with a smile on their faces' she'd say as she poured in the beer."

Harry choked on a cookie, but quickly recovered and laughed heartily. "Did it work?"

"Oh, yes." Anna nodded. "She knew her stuff, Mom did. But she and your Grandmother did have to resort to magic, occasionally, when a there was a nasty infestation of something or other. Then there was the Gnome problem; your Grandmother detested the pests, but my Mom thought they were cute and would let them run amok in our garden, even started naming them, until she realized she really couldn't tell them apart."

"Were there any other Wizard families in your village?"

"No, just our two, but we had friends at primary school, and had them over, occasionally. Basically, it was just James and me as playmates. Honestly, I can't remember not having James in my life, both being only children. As soon as we could toddle through that gate, we were hardly ever apart. We just got on well and that was that. Oh, we'd have fights and verbally slam the gate shut, until we got bored playing by ourselves and then we'd say we were 'sorry' and just pick up where we'd left off. You know how it is with close friends, don't you Harry? I bet you've had an 'I'm never speaking to him again' fight with Ron, haven't you?" Anna tilted her head and raised her eyebrows in question.

"Yeah, Ron and I have had our squabbles, as have Ron and Hermione. But, you're right, we work it out in the end and we're still friends." Harry smiled back at her. "Why didn't you become Dad's girlfriend and marry him?"

"James was more like a brother to me, so that never occurred to either of us. We knew each other TOO well. Just friends, that's all we ever were. I did have a crush on Sirius Black for a while, but that never went anywhere. He treated me the same way James did; a bratty kid sister. Lily, well, she and James were made for each other, and I was very happy that James had found such a sweet person as Lily to fall in love with."

Anna regarded Harry thoughtfully. "You are so much like your father, Harry; it's really almost .. creepy for me. I've caught myself, more than once, almost calling you James. Actually, if I were honest, every time I see you. Your glasses are a little different but that thatch of hair and your smile; it's James all over again. I know you've probably heard this, ad nauseum, too, but you do have Lily's eyes.

"If I had a Galleon for every time someone's said that, I could make a nice fat deposit at Gringotts." Harry replied, smiling and shaking his head. "Tell me about my Mom." Harry ran his hand through his hair. "Aunt Petunia has never told me anything about her or their childhood together."

"I don't doubt that. Petunia always hated the Wizarding world and anything or anybody associated with it. Is she still as skinny and snobby as she was back then?"

"Yeah, she .. hang on .. you've met her?" Harry was flabbergasted.

"Oh, sure. I visited Lily at her home over holiday, as she did mine. They only lived about thirty miles away, outside London. Her parents, your other grandparents, were sweet and very supportive of Lily. They loved James and were thrilled with you. Unfortunately, they were killed while on holiday, train wreck I believe. About six months after you were born, actually, so I doubt you remember them."

"No, I don't."

"I met Lily here at Hogwarts, of course. Gryffindor roommates, just naturally hung out together, as girls that age do. Became fast friends and as we got older, giggled, a lot, as we watched James and Sirius make perfect fools of themselves on an almost daily basis. The two biggest showoffs in the school, trying to impress the female population in general, and in James' case, Lily in particular.

"I've compiled a list of their most infamous capers," Anna announced as she leaned over and picked up a roll of parchment from off of the table. "Look it over, pick one and I'll tell you the details." She handed it to Harry.

Unrolling the sheet, Harry started to read off of the list, " 'Fireworks from the tower.' Remind me to tell you about the Weasley twins' fireworks prank from last year." Anna smiled and nodded. " 'Trips into the Forbidden Forest.' Well, I've been in there, let's see .. 5 times, I think."

"Really?" Anna was astonished.

"Yeah. Let's see. 'Peeves vs. Filch' and they're still at it, after all this time, too," Harry laughed. " 'Feeding the masses or how to get great treats into Hogwarts without getting caught.' " Looking up, he grinned. "Bet that one has to do with the Marauder's Map!"

"How do you know about that?" Anna gasped.

"I am the proud custodian of the map, thank you; given to me by Fred and George Weasley, in third year. Passing it on, they were. Then I found out from Professor Lupin that he and Dad and Sirius and .. Peter Pettigrew .. made it. And I have Dad's Invisibility Cape. Used that a time or two or ten."

"Good Lord, are you serious?" She shook her head. "What goes around ..."

"Comes around .. to the next generation."

"So it would seem."

"Should I elaborate on the list of things that have happened to me and Ron and Hermione and let you choose? We'll swap stories."

"Stop!" Anna laughed. "Don't tell me anything and then I can deny I have any knowledge of your adventures."

"Fair enough," Harry conceded. "Tell you what, I'll look this over and pick one that sounds really intriguing. Then you can spill the beans on Dad. But first, I need to ask you about something that's been on my mind."

Harry rolled up the parchment and laid it on the table.

"Anything, "Anna answered softly, seeing how serious Harry had become.

"Professor Lupin told me about some of the things that went on when all of you were here together and I've .. well .. I saw, in a Penseive, an incident with Professor Snape. Were he and my Dad really bitter enemies, or was I just seeing, from Snape's perspective, how much he hated Sirus and my father?

"What did you see? If you don't mind my asking." Anna leaned forward, staring at Harry.

"Well, Sirus and Dad hung Professor Snape upside-down, Dad was trying to impress Mom and she just got mad at him. I don't remember seeing you there, but you might have been.

"No, I know the incident you're talking about and I was inside the school. It was over by the time I showed up .. late, as usual." Anna sat back with a frown on her face. "They were such idiots some times."

"Dad and Sirius, you mean?"

"Severus, too. He was no slouch at trying to jinx them, but it was two against one and he usually got the worst of it. Young and foolish, the lot of us." Anna shook her head. "You and Mister Malfoy carry on about the same as they did; just an honest instinctive dislike for each other."

"Then my Dad and Professor Snape really were that nasty toward each other. Why?" Harry inquired.

"Actually, I think Severus was more hostile towards Sirius, perhaps because of the fact that Sirius was in Gryffindor and all of the Black family had always been in Slytherin. But, James and Sirius were so close; they both became the target of his anger. Why? I have never been able to find out. Probably never will, although I have my own theory. Lily used to yell at James and Sirius to grow up and stop being so childish and I yelled at Sirius and Severus to do the same, to no avail.

"As we neared our last year here, we could all see what was waiting for us out there in the real world. Voldemort was getting more powerful, picking up followers. We started getting ready and then Sirius' brother, Regulus, was killed. Foolish boy. Sirius became obsessed with getting out there and fighting Voldemort. Severus, who was to become a Death Eater, started avoiding everyone, except for classes and meals. I hardly saw him and when I did, it really scared me to think what was happening, and might happen, to all of us once we left Hogwarts."

"It must seem like you're having a deja vu episode, with what's going on now, huh?" Harry gave her a cockeyed grin.

"What goes around .. comes around .. the bad stuff, too." Anna agreed. "Severus and I had an unspoken mutual agreement not to discuss what was looming in front of us. We stayed friends, despite everything. We all knew that some of our friends would die. We were well aware of that fact."

"Why him? You two weren't even in the same house. And he's .. well .. Snape." Harry leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "I know you trust him, now, but how did you become friends in the first place?"

"I don't really understand it myself, Harry, we just clicked. Soul mates, as strange as that sounds. I remember at our Sorting Ceremony, I was looking around at all of the other first years, most of whom looked scared to death. I thought it was funny, really, as there wasn't anything scary about it. I've got a slightly off beat sense of humor."

"We've noticed," agreed Harry, with a grin.

"Yeah, well, anyway, I saw this boy with black hair, standing a bit away from me, his arms folded -as usual- with a haughty, but slightly perplexed, look on his face. He was glancing around and had obviously come to the same conclusion as I; these other kids were so stupid - it was only the Sorting Ceremony - they were scared of nothing. We locked gazes and I crossed my eyes and then winked at him and smiled. He looked thoroughly startled but smiled slightly and nodded at me. He knew I felt the same as he about the whole thing. Bit silly, but that was the start of our friendship.

"We were sorted into different houses, but learned each others name at the Sorting Ceremony, so never really introduced ourselves, just started talking the next time we met. We did have classes together, of course, and true to form, my first class - Potions, don't you know - I came running in late and the only seat left was in the back, sharing a bench with Severus. 'Anastasia, are you always late?' he whispered at me. 'Almost always,' I puffed back at him, trying to catch my breath. 'I'll save you a seat, then,' he replied. And he always did."

"What did Dad and Mom have to say about it?" Harry inquired. "Weren't they upset with you?"

"Well, James thought I should be sitting with the other Gryffindors and not with a Slytherin, but I told him I could sit where and with whom I pleased. I finally worked it so I sat at the end of the bench and James was across the aisle at the next desk, even though I was sitting with Severus. The things we women do to keep the peace.

"Lily was appalled, but even she admitted Severus was very gifted at potions and to sometimes being jealous of my having him as a partner in class. I learned a lot more from Severus than from the Potions Master we had. He told me his mother was very good at it and he had just picked it up from watching her as a child. Severus hadn't realized how far ahead of everyone he was until he came to Hogwarts. It was his one joy here at school: that he out shone James and Sirius, well, everyone for that matter, at Potions. Tops in the whole school come to that."

"No wonder Professor Dumbledore hired him, even as young as he was, to be Potions Master, if he was that good as a student." Harry observed, with a shake of his head.

"That's one of the reasons. Anyway, after that first meeting, I spent years trying to get him to laugh, getting in trouble in the process, too, mind you, but if I got a smirk or saw a twinkle in his eyes, at least I knew he appreciated my silly efforts, and I knew it would make up, slightly, for the persecutions heaped on him by Sirius and James."

"Were they that awful?" Harry asked soberly. "I know that they weren't saints .. but."

"Not any worse than you, Ron, Neville and Seamus are towards Draco, Gregory, Vincent or Theodore. School boy stuff; you'll laugh about it when you're older, hopefully. If we survive this war, that is." Anna added, with a sigh.

"Do you think it's going to be as bad as last time?"

"Probably worse. Voldemort has had plenty of time to rethink his strategies. That's why we have to have some new tricks up our sleeves. Things his Death Eaters won't expect you students to know or use. Plus some things they won't know how to deal with. We'll get to that soon in class. Shhhhh!" Anna looked furtively around and then giggled. Harry laughed and put his finger to his lip, nodded and winked.

After taking another sip of tea, Harry put his cup down and looked at Anna, with his eyebrows knit in question. She waited, knowing what was coming, knowing she'd have to tell him the whole story.

"I know my folks and others in the Order of the Phoenix were killed or hurt, but .. how did you survive?"

Anna took a deep breath and sighed. "If I tell you about this, I'll have to do a memory charm on you. It's not information you want floating around in your head, unless you're very skilled at Occlumency."

"No, I'm rather bad at it, but I'd like to hear what happened, even if you do have to administer a memory charm." Harry replied.

'Arcanum Commence'. She waved her wand, and then laid it on the side table

Best Kept Secrets

"I .. well .. I was in St. Mungo's, in a coma, during the worst of it. But, I need to back up and tell you about the week before your parents were betrayed. It's complicated and one thing led to another, I just got knocked out of the line of fire, so to speak. Our families weren't so lucky." Anna hung her head.

"My folks, you mean?"

"Yes and no. Also your grandparents, James' folks, and my father, were killed."

"What?" Harry was stunned. "All of them, your mother, too?"

"No, my mother died in my sixth year, a freak accident. Ironically, a week later, Severus mother died, well, was murdered, actually. Two tragic losses, another bond that we shared." Anna added, softly.

"Murdered? By whom?" Harry asked.

"At the time, everyone thought his father had done it. Went insane, you see, was sent to Azkaban and died there a few months later."

"And your mother had just died a week before?"

"Ah, well, that was a stupid accident. Lorry blew a tire, driver lost control, ran up on the sidewalk and hit and killed her. She was walking back from market. When I came back to Hogwarts after the funeral Severus was gone, dealing with his mother's funeral and his father's arrest and trial. He had to handle everything, all the arrangements, himself. He returned the next weekend.

"We were all at breakfast on that Saturday morning, when he came to the door of the Great Hall. Everyone knew what had happened, of course. Severus just stood there. I looked at him and knew he needed me. I got up and walked over to him. He looked down at me, and then he took my hand and we walked out of the school and started down the path that runs along the lake. He didn't speak, even once, and we spent the entire day walking; first out to the south point and back and then to the rock outcrop on the other side of the lake and back again."

"All day," Harry asked, astonished. "Without stopping?" Anna nodded.

"We didn't say a word to each other until sunset. It was getting dark quickly and when Severus turned to go down to the point again, I knew it would be too dangerous for us to be out there alone. So, I dug in my heels and he turned and looked at me as if he suddenly realized I was there. 'Enough,' I said. 'Come inside. We have to get on with our lives, Severus.' "

"Did he say anything, or just walk away?" Harry was on the edge of his seat, a half eaten cookie in his fingers.

"Well, he looked up at Hogwarts and then at me. 'This is my home now. I'll NEVER go back there, to that place, and I have nowhere else to go, except here. No family, except you, Anastasia. Please excuse me, but there is something I must do, alone.' He gave me a kiss on my forehead, turned, went inside and I didn't see him until class on Monday.

"Blimey." Harry muttered and popped the cookie in his mouth. "What did he have to do?"

"I always wondered, but never pried. He told me later that he went out on one of the balconies, overlooking the greenhouses and gardens and scattered his mother's ashes, so that they settled down in a place he thought she would enjoy, and that way, he believed he would sense she was always near him."

Anna sighed and continued, "He wasn't the same from then on. I think that was when he decided, once and for all, to become a Death Eater. Somehow, Voldemort convinced him that he was the only one who really cared. That Dumbledore only cared about the school and the students, as long as they were students. Who was going to care about him once he graduated? Voldemort said he would always be there for him, he would show him what was important in life."

"How do you know that?" Harry questioned.

"Severus told me, just recently. We had a long talk about what happened back then; about your parents, Voldemort, Sirius, your grandparents .. everything."

"But why were my grandparents and your father killed?" Harry inquired.

"Uncle Will and Aunt Belle were tortured and then killed, on Voldemort's orders, when they couldn't tell the Death Eaters where your parents were hiding. It was Rosier and Wilkes. They were killed trying to escape, injuring Mad-Eye Moody during the battle."

"And your father?" Harry asked quietly.

Anna took a deep breath. "Lucius Malfoy killed him when he tried to help your grandparents. Lucius was standing lookout and killed Dad as he went running to their house. Your grandparents' house elf, Toby, had escaped to our house, badly wounded, to raise an alarm. My father alerted the Ministry and then went to see if he could help. Lucius ambushed him in the back yard. He never had a chance. Daisy ran out to help but he killed her, too."

"How do you...know what happened?" Harry asked, although he thought he had already guessed the answer.

"When word came into the Aurors office, I overheard what was going on. Mad-Eye didn't see me in the hall, so I ran to the nearest fireplace and took the Floo Network to my folk's house. I heard someone outside, coming toward the back door, so I Disapparated to our old tree house. My father and Daisy were lying on the ground below me, dead. I could see both houses from there and heard yelling and screams from the other house. Lucius was walking toward our kitchen door. He looked inside, saw your grandparent's house elf on the floor, killed him and then started back to the garden gate, heading for your grandparent's house. He walked right under me and I did something REALLY dumb. I jumped right down on top of him."

"You didn't!" Harry gasped.

"Too right, I did. We went rolling down the lawn, all tangled up, his wand went flying. I was hitting him, biting him, scratching and screaming at him. I went a little crazy, I guess. All I know, it was certainly nothing he was ever expecting to happen. It took him a minute to push me off and start to crawl toward his wand. But I knew the territory, so I ducked behind the oak tree, ran back to the edge of the orchard, turned right and came around the garden shed at the side of the vegetable garden before he could even stand up and disentangle himself from his robe. He couldn't find me. Lucius figured that more Aurors would be showing up any minute, so he turned to yell a warning but I shot him with a silencing spell. Unfortunately, that gave away my position. So .. we dueled."

"You against Lucius Malfoy! Bloody hell!" Harry was leaning forward, listening intently.

"I was so crazy mad, I didn't care who I was up against. I kept him too busy, between dodging my spells and then throwing his at me, to get a chance to reverse my silencing spell. So for a few minutes, Rosier and Wilkes didn't know anything was happening in the garden next door. We were both taking hits, but he was slowly getting the upper hand. And this is the strange bit; I was getting really mad at Mad-Eye for being so slow getting there!" Anna paused and smiled. "I remember, distinctly, thinking that if I survived I would NEVER tolerate anyone giving me a hard time about being late, ever again!"

"So, what happened when he did show up?" Harry asking, urging her to continue.

"I heard, before I saw, someone in my house. There was a loose floorboard by the back door, you see. I thought, 'About bloody time!' But, it was Severus."

"Snape!" Harry gasped. "He was there when my grandparents were murdered?"

"No, Harry. He had just gotten there himself, on Voldemort's orders, to tell the Death Eaters to leave. Voldemort knew the Aurors would be showing up any minute. Seeing him distracted me, giving Lucius time to reverse the silencing spell. He went to hit me with the Avada Kedavra spell but turned his head when he spotted Severus coming out of the kitchen door. That gave me a split second to dive over the garden wall. Lucius was walking toward me, laughing, and then Rosier and Wilkes came out of the house and I was right in front of them, against the wall, an easy target - I was dead. Then Mad-Eye showed up with Frank Longbottom and Kingsley Shacklebolt and the others and basically, all hell broke loose. Lucius ducked behind the oak tree, but I wasn't about to let him get away. So, I did another stupid move; I jumped, well, rolled back over the wall and started dueling with him again. He got me with a ricochet off the wall, knocking me sideways, breaking about three ribs, but I stumbled back toward the oak tree. I was trying to catch my breath, not an easy task with broken ribs, when I heard him yell, 'Kill her!' Then I heard him Disparate. Pop! Gone."

"Coward." Harry muttered

"Yes, but sensible, from his standpoint. Anyway, I started to take a look around but got blasted, again. Lifted off the ground, this time. I landed about twenty feet away, the wind knocked completely out of me. I had also hit my head on the brick edging of one of the flower beds, so I was seeing stars. Someone was walking toward me, wand out. The noise of the battle at your grandparent's house was getting fuzzy; I was passing out. I forced myself to focus on the person bending over me. It was Severus.

"The oak tree was between us and the house, so no one could see what was happening. I knew I was going to die. Severus knelt down next to me and grabbed my jaw, turned my head toward him and looked into my eyes. I knew he was using his powers of Legilimens on me, but I didn't care. I was ready to die. I felt very peaceful. My thoughts, which he must have picked up immediately, were, 'Hello old friend. I'm glad it's you and not Lucius, who is going to kill me. I know you'll make it quick and painless.'

"He looked startled. I saw all kinds of emotions playing across his face, but then he stood up and pointed his wand at me. I closed my eyes and waited. Then he said, 'This is the end of it for you, little girl.'

" 'Little Girl!' Something in me snapped; I got mad...well, livid. My eyes popped open and I would have jumped, correction, struggled to my feet but there was a flash and I was paralyzed; just lying there, looking up at him. I thought, 'This is dead? Oh .. well .. it's not so bad, really. No pain.. ' Severus smiled grimly down at me. 'No, you're not dead. And now I know you're going to live; you still have some fight left in you. Goodbye, little girl.' FLASH, bang, colors exploded in my head and everything drifted away."

"What happened? What did he do to you?"

"Put me in a coma. I woke up 10 days later in St. Mungo's. It was all over; James and Lily were dead, you were at the Dursley's, Frank and Alice were in the ward upstairs, Neville was with his Gran, Peter was 'dead', Sirius was in Azkaban, but Voldemort was gone. Everyone was deliriously happy! And Lucius and Severus were walking around free! I couldn't comprehend any of it. I was SO mad; at the world, at Severus, at Lucius, but mostly, at myself. I hadn't been any good to anyone. I should have been there, I could have helped! James, Lily, Frank and Alice. I let them all down." Anna was clenching her fists and a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Don't be foolish, you'd have been killed with them," Harry pointed out, reasonably.

"Maybe, but what if, between James and me, we'd have slowed Voldemort down just enough to have given Lily time to get away with you?"

"But, it didn't happen that way and you shouldn't blame yourself."

"In my head, I know that, Harry .. but in my heart .. and I would have been with Frank and Alice .. "

"And in St. Mungo's, just like them. Or dead. Look, survivor to survivor, you're not to blame, anymore than I am. I was a toddler, but it was because of me that all of this happened. All I can do is accept that reality .. you need to accept your reality and forgive yourself. Then you can drop all of this emotional baggage you've been dragging around for fifteen years. Let it go, Anna."

Anna stared at Harry, and then she smiled. "Thank you, Harry. I really don't know why, but you telling me that makes all the difference. You, of all people, really understand. That stupid old cliché about 'a weight being lifted' should do nicely here, but that's too worn out. Tell you what, let's toast to the past, the people we miss and to the future, may we live to see it and make their sacrifices mean something."

They clicked their tea cups.

"To all our loved ones and friends."

"Here, here!"

They sat in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts and memories. Suddenly, Harry sat up, with a puzzled look on his face.

"Hold on .. I just realized what you said."

"Which bit, Harry, we've covered a lot of territory." Anna smiled at him.

"You said something about 'everyone thought' Snape's father killed his mother. Something isn't right with that part of the story. If he didn't, who did?"