Harry walked down an un-cleared path of stones and sand towards the level ground below. There was a wide, rushing river that sliced through the middle of the rocky ground.

Hermione came just behind him, struggling a bit because of the dress shoes she was wearing. She had on a black skirt and blouse whose fringes were tugged on by the wind. She made it to the bottom with Ron behind her, dressed in regular clothes like Harry was.

The rest of the Weasley family appeared above and in a long line they filed down the mount and to the rock strewn ground below.

Harry walked to the rivers edge, wondering why he was brought here, but figuring it had something to do with the fact that it was the 16th anniversary of his parent’s death.

He watched the rivers steel grey water rushing rapidly in one direction, listening to the sounds around him. He looked directly below at the shallow water near his feet and his reflection looked back at him, expressionless. Harry heard a new voice behind him and turned to see Lupin, Tonks and Moody coming down towards the small crowd by the river.

Harry stood between Hermione and Ron as Ginny stood near the twins, Fred and George. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley greeted Lupin and moody while Tonks was conjuring up the most beautiful flowers Harry had ever seen.

The trees that were swaying had stopped moving and the cold gray skies got a bit darker as a Man in the center of the group cleared his throat. Harry had not even noticed him arrive, but his heart felt warm the second he saw Sirius’ face.

For a second it looked as if Sirius was about to smile, but he dropped his gaze to the ground. No one spoke. Everyone had their eyes on Sirius, and were waiting for him to speak. Harry could tell that everyone else knew exactly why they were there, he also noticed Ron look at him, but he did not return the glance.

“As you know,” Sirius said in a far away voice. “It has been 16 years since James’ and Lily’s…” He coughed. “Murder.” He said as if it caused him literal pain to do so.

Harry looked down, the river in view, feeling like everyone was staring at him. No one was, however, and they continued to watch Sirius with unbroken attention.

“And each day without them…” His words faltered. “I miss them so much more everyday. And I know…” Sirius stopped talking and Harry dared not look up at him.

Molly went up to Sirius and hugged him. She, of course, was crying, and Harry believed that Sirius must be as well. Harry felt his own eyes water and though his vision was blurred, he noticed Hermione moving her foot awkwardly and Ron drying his sweaty palms.

Sirius’ voice broke the silence. “Thank you Molly. Harry,” he said and Harry looked up to see that Sirius had indeed been crying. “We…” He stopped mid-sentence, shaking his head as if he had chosen the wrong word. Harry could see that although he was smiling at Harry, his tear strewn face showed a deep anguish.

“Your parents and I brought you here when you were very, very young. We used to come here, see, and we were hoping…” Again he seemed to lose his voice and a tear rolled down his cheek.

Harry felt another sensation of warmness, and though Sirius looked very weak, Harry was looking at him as though he were the strongest man on earth.

Sirius sniffed loudly onto his sleeve, and continued. “We had hoped at that time to bring you here every year. We loved this spot and we had so much fun here many years ago. Your parents were so happy when they first brought you here and, as I said, they wanted you here every year. Not for this reason, of course…”

Harry wasn’t expecting anything to happen as suddenly as this, on the contrary, he felt as if time were moving slowly and he felt almost out of body, emotionless. He gasped in an abrupt wave of tears as he thought about his parents here with him. He could almost see it, as if it were a forgotten memory.

Molly cried out and seized Harry in a tight hug so that he was swung around. Through his sopping eyes he saw a white owl on a tree across the river. Molly had not let him go and Harry half wished she never would.

Lupin walked over and patted Molly on the back and Harry was let loose. He looked up and saw that Hermione and Ginny were embracing each other, each crying and hiccoughing as they looked at Harry. Ron seemed to be on the verge of tears himself. Harry knew that Ron didn’t cry easily, though he wished he would because aside from Sirius, Harry was the only male crying.

Lupin led Mrs. Weasley to her husband and he approached Harry with a look of distress. He pulled something out of his pocket which Harry wasn’t looking at because he was drying his eyes and glasses. Lupin cleared his throat and breathed in loudly through his nose.

“Harry.” He croaked quietly so that everyone bent closer to listen. “I found this in my attic and knew that you would want it.”

Harry looked at what he was holding: a picture frame.

Harry squinted his eyes as he looked at it. The silver edge of the frame was decorated with many shells and stones, and Harry noticed that there was no picture inside. Instead, a small circle about the size of a knut was glowing weakly in it’s center. Alastor Moody stepped forward and looked at the frame with awe usually reserved for the blind given sight or the poor given riches.

Everyone looked curiously at the frame as Moody said, “Remus, you think it wise to…?”

“I think he deserves to see.” Interrupted Remus. “He can handle it, and no doubt would appreciate it.”

Everyone turned their gaze to Harry, who looked at the frame, bewildered.

“Well!” Fred barked. “What in the world is it?”

Tonks laughed lightly and Harry looked closer at the frame, not having the faintest idea what it was supposed to do for him and half expecting for it to turn into Voldemort.

Lupin looked at the frame and said, “It’s a memory frame. It shows us one memory we put in it.”

Ron stepped forward, sniffing loudly and peering under the frame in Lupin’s hand. “Well,” he said. “Doesn’t a regular frame do that?”

Sirius appeared behind Harry and he answered, “Well, this frame brings the memory to life, I guess you can say.”

Arthur Weasley’s ears were no longer red and he added, “Plus, I’ve heard that there’s only one way to trigger the memory. What’s the secret to this one, Sirius?”

Harry wiped away more forgotten tears and he looked up at Sirius, an excitement building in his chest.

Sirius took the frame and set it on the ground in the middle of everyone as Lupin walked briskly over to the rivers edge. He returned to the frame with a water droplet he carried from the river.

Harry did not know how Lupin managed to keep the droplet on his finger as he asked, “Ready, Harry?” Harry nodded and as if on cue, the drop of water left Lupin’s touch.

Harry watched the drop fall, holding his breath and knowing everyone else was doing the same. The drop landed in the center of the frame and after a second of silence, the river flowing and the sky watching, the frame began to shake, violently.

Four basketball sized stars bounced out of the frame and hit the ground, exploding gently into four ghostly figures. James, Remus, Sirius and Lily who had a baby in her arms that was certainly Harry were sitting happily in a circle around the frame.

Hermione gasped along with a few others who Harry couldn’t identify- he wasn’t really listening, though. Everyone watched, stone still at the five vaporous people were carrying on and laughing with no notice of the 12 people who were standing around them.

Harry’s heart stopped as he watched himself safely tucked in his mother’s arms, singing and lifting him up to look at him properly. Though it was hard to see details clearly, Harry could tell that his eyes, even as a baby looked remarkably like his mothers.

Lily turned the baby over and James smiled at him, making a funny face and putting his hand on Harry’s little head, trying to mess up the already fast growing hair on Harry’s head.

The ghostly Sirius seemed to be talking to Remus- Harry had just noticed that the figures weren’t making any noise, though in his head he had been hearing the memory, the laughing, the singing.

The Remus of the past, they could see, was looking down at the frame. It was the only real looking thing about them all.

Ron’s mouth was hanging open as he watched the silent ghosts laughing and talking. Molly had grabbed Arthur’s hand and it seemed that one by one they all began to grin.

Harry could feel his eyes watering again, yet his lips remained curved and smiling. Sirius, himself began to bawl again and Moody patted him on the back, his magical eye wielding around to the trees across the river.

The ghostly people soon faded away and Lupin picked up the frame and handed it to Harry, who held on to it, hoping he would never have to let it go.

Tonks eyes were puffy from crying and she passed out the gorgeous flowers that she conjured up earlier. Harry felt the soft scent of the petals touch his nose as a drop of rain fell from the sky.

“Alright.” Tonks said dreamily. Harry felt the flowers leave his grip as he tossed them into the river. Everyone else had done the same and they all watched silently as the flowers drifted softly and gracefully on the surface of the flowing torrent.

A long stream of tears painted Harry’s cheeks and he felt Hermione hugging him. He looked down, surprised and felt her warm tears on his neck. He buried his face into her bushy hair and held on tight, crying harder. “I love Hermione.” He thought. “…Ron too.” He opened his eyes and put his arm out to Ron who had been crying at the sight of everyone else weeping. Ron was pulled into the hug and it began to rain steadily now.

It would have seemed ridiculous to a passerby to see all these people standing in the rain, but all of this was out of Harry’s mind. He still had Ron and Hermione in his arms not to mention Sirius, Lupin, the Weasley’s, Moody, and Tonks… He did not pull himself from Hermione or Ron and he tasted salty tears and felt cold rain on his head. He felt a kind of magic that he needn’t lift a wand for. A mixture of emotions no potion could provide. A kind of magic no incantation can speak for; friendship and love that Magic is made from…

~LO
The End