Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story, except for Sam Tyler and Tom Langdon, belong to J.K. Rowling. The character of Tom Langdon belongs to David Baldacci, but I'm just borrowing him for a while. Sam Tyler is my very special OC. The italicized phrase at the end of the story and the title of this story are from a song by Vanessa Carlton song, called Afterglow.

When 21-year-old Sam Tyler knocked on the door of the flat, the door creaked open, as though it had not been locked to begin with. She stuck her head inside the door, looking around the dark flat. She saw things were scattered everywhere. There were torn pictures and busted picture frames; there were ripped pieces of parchment carpeting the floor; there were the remains of a broken wooden chair and a broken wooden table, along with the remains of many a broken whisky bottle; all of these remains lie broken and useless, like the pieces of the now broken and useless friendship the owner of the single-room flat had once had.

Sam opened the door a bit wider so that she could make her way into the flat. But, when she had finally made it into the flat and shut the door behind herself, she heard a movement from the corner of the flat. She whipped out her wand quickly, pointing it at the source of the sound. She stood quiet for a whole minute, willing her eyes to adjust to the darkness that engulfed the flat. Finally, she lit her wand with the lumos spell and pointed the light at the corner.

Sitting in the corner, leaning against the wall, was Sam's closest friend, Remus Lupin. His knees were propped up in the air and his arms were on his knees, his head drooping between his arms. In one of his hands was clasped a half-full bottle of Firewhisky, and the other hand was holding a small picture. His robes were as tattered and faded as always, if not more. His hair was an absolute mess and his skin, or what Sam could see of it, was deadly pale, his figure deadly thin.

Sam extinguished the light on her wand and threw her wand to the ground. She moved forward to Remus, kneeling down beside him. She stared at him helplessly, wondering what she could possibly do to help him. She was sure that she knew what had put him in such a condition, but it pained her to see him in such a way...

"Remus..." she said quietly. Remus lifted his head slightly so that he could see her. His face, which once possessed happiness, was encased with grief; his eyes, which had once been the source of hope, were hollow and dead; his smile, which had once been the home of warmth, was nowhere to be seen. Sam felt that this poor man, however lost and alone he had felt before, had multiplied these solitary feelings tenfold in the past few days.

"Don't, Sam," Remus said in a very hoarse voice. "Don't even try. They're gone... all of them."

"Remus, I'm so sorry..."

"Don't waste your pity on a pathetic werewolf like me. I don't deserve it." Remus was now mumbling his words, as though he no longer had the energy to speak in a normal manner. His eyes, as bloodshot as they were, were now issuing tears, however silent they were. Sam had never seen Remus like this before, not even at Hogwarts. But could she really blame him? He was, truly, alone in the world now. There was no one left...

"It's my fault..." Remus murmured to Sam. He locked eyes with her, his tears and the overwhelming amount of alcohol he had consumed for the past two days now blurring his vision. "I should've known..."

"Remus you don't know what you're---" Sam began, but Remus cut her off.

"I should've known!" he shouted, standing up. He staggered past Sam and then through the bottle he had been clutching against the wall, causing it to burst into peices, sending glass and alcohol flying everywhere. "I should've known that Sirius was behind it all!!! How could he? How could he do that to our friends!? God, he was the last one... The last one I would've... I would've suspected!" Remus's shouts were now being obscured by his tears, his fury and his grief. He began pacing back and forth across the room as Sam stood up, watching Remus helplessly.

"And then Peter!!! He killed Peter, too! He betrays James, then Lily, then kills Peter! And what of Harry!? He probably would've let Harry die, too..." Remus stopped in the middle of the room, running his fingers through his hair nervously, violently. "How could I not have seen it? It was as plain as day... It couldn't have been Peter; that boy was too weak to harm a fly. And it wouldn't have been James or Lily! They wouldn't do something that stupid... Not turn themselves over... Only Sirius could've... Could've had that type of nerve, that type of strength..."

"Oh, Remus..." Sam whispered under her breath. Had he ever been this angry? She new, could tell, that over the past month or so Remus had been a bit more pale and thin... She had wondered what was bothering him, but now she knew. She knew that he had been worried for James and Lily... and Harry...What had become of Harry? The poor boy... He was only a baby, only one year old... She knew that deep inside, Remus would want to care for him. Being one of James's closet mates, he would want to care for James's son. But she also knew that deep inside Remus understood that he, being a werewolf, would not be able to care for a child...

"I should've warmed James. That's what I should've done. I should've told him to be careful... Should've told him to make Dumbledore his secret keeper... Sirius, his background... Should've seen it coming..." Remus continued to run his fingers through his hair, staring around the room wildly, as though looking for something else to disembowel... "Dumbledore knew that Sirius was a spy... That's why he wanted to be their secret keeper. Dumbledore was smart, he knew better... He knew that Sirius was a spy... Sirius..."

It was then that Remus collapsed. He fell to his knees breaking his fall with his hands; he almost looked like a child pretending to be some type of animal. He sobbed, his tears now flowing freely.

Sam ran forward and kneeled down beside him, helplessly watching the poor soul. She did not know what to do, or what to say for that matter, to make Remus feel better. But, before she knew what she was doing, she flung her arms around him and held him close, holding him as tightly as possible. He wrapped his arms around Sam and hugged her loosely, continuing to sob.

"I should've known..." Remus whispered in her ear.

"Remus..." Sam whispered back, still holding her friend ever so tightly. "You couldn't have known... It isn't your fault that they are dead and there is nothing you can do now. But, James and Lily wouldn't want you to waste away like this, and neither would Peter. They loved you, and would want you to keep on with your life. And..." Sam stopped as she released Remus. Remus let her go as well and moved back slightly, staring directly into her eyes.

"What?" he asked hoarsely, his eyes seeming to clear slightly. Sam did not answer immediately, in fact, she was prepared not to answer at all. But, she finally said something...

"Oh, nothing... I just know that none of them would want you to waste away here in this flat. They would want you to move on with your life." She smiled bleakly, and wiped a few of Remus's tears from his cheeks. He, too, forced a smile.

And I want you to keep on with your life, because I love you too.

Dear Remus,

I haven't heard from you in a while. I miss you. I was wondering if you would like to come over on Christmas Eve, that is, if you don't already have plans. I was hoping we might even be able to have dinner at the Three Broomsticks on Christmas Day; you know, just like old times.

If you would like to come, be at my flat at 7:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

Love,

Sam Tyler

Remus Lupin sat at a table in the Leaky Cauldron. A bottle of Firewhisky sat on the table in front of him, accompanied by a shot glass. The pub was practically deserted except for himself, Tom, and a few other men who simply had no where to be this Christmas Eve.

Clutched in his left had was a piece of parchment: the letter from Sam inviting him to spend Christmas with her. For the past two hours now, since 6:00 p.m., Remus had sat at the same table reading the letter over and over... and over.

Remus reached his right hand forward, grasped the Firewhisky bottle, pouring some of the amber liquid into the shout glass. Then he took a long swig out of the bottle. Finally his lips broke away from the nozzle of the bottle, and he sat the bottle down on the table. Then, he simply sat at the table, gazing at Sam's letter. He had sent a reply, saying he would come. But now, he did not intend to be leaving the pub that night...

"Is this seat taken?" a voice asked from the left of Remus. Remus's gaze drifted from Sam's letter up to the stranger. This man seemed to be much older than Remus, at least in his early forties. He had a rugged look about him; his hair was sandy and tussled, his hazel eyes possessing a slight twinkle. The man smiled. "It's not much fun to drink alone, especially on Christmas Eve."

Remus nodded his head, motioning to a chair beside himself. The man sat down in the chair, placing a large mug of mulled mead down on the table. He nodded in the direction of Remus's now half-empty bottle of Firewhisky.

"Hitting it pretty hard there, eh?" he asked in a casual tone. Remus nodded silently, taking up the shot glass and drinking its contents in one swift drink.

"You lose a girlfriend or something?" the stranger questioned, taking a small swig of his own drink.

"I really don't know," Remus croaked, his voice hoarse and hollow; his tone the result of acquiring his new hobby of being an alcoholic.

"Well, what do you mean, you 'don't know'? If you lose a girlfriend, especially if she's a good one, then you know." The stranger looked down at the letter clutched in Remus's hand. "That a letter from her?"

Remus made eye contact with the stranger, though this was not a very impressive thing for Remus, as his once handsome eyes were now blood-shot and cold.

"Who are you?" Remus asked quietly, pouring himself another glass of Firewhisky.

"Tom Langdon," the stranger said, raising his mug slightly. "And who might you be?"

"Remus Lupin," Remus answered, draining his shot glass as he did so. Tom eyed the young man carefully, and then sat up squarely in his chair.

"Well, Remus, is that letter from her?"

Remus looked down at the letter, and then handed it over to Tom. Tom read over the letter and then looked up at Remus again, passing the letter back. He took a small sip of his mead, and then sighed heavily, staring over at Remus.

"Sounds like you missed a worthwhile date," Tom said evenly.

"Yeah, I probably did..." Remus sighed. "Then again, she's probably better off without me. I'm not the kind of guy who is good to have in a relationship..."

"She seems to think otherwise," Tom stated, placing his mug back down on the table and gazing at Remus wistfully. "Who is this girl?"

Remus did not answer immediately. At first, he simply stared at his shot glass as though he was not going to answer. But then, he opened his mouth and began to speak, his voice now misty with remembrance.

"Sam Tyler... She's a good friend of mine. I met her in my first year at Hogwarts, on the Hogwarts Express. I didn't really know what to think of her at first... But, by the time we were at the sorting ceremony, we were practically glued to each other. We both landed ourselves in the same house, and I think, because we ended up spending so much time together, she knew more about me than anyone else." Remus paused, feeling that he should stop talking to this Tom Langdon. After all, he didn't know anything about the man, and why should he spill out his feelings to a total stranger? But, whether it was because of the large amount of alcohol he had ingested or because he was just plain crazy, Remus felt that it was feeling good to finally talk about Sam to someone else...

"Sam was there for me... Always. She always listened if I had a problem, always stood up for me no matter what the circumstances were, whether it be a smart-elic Hufflepuff or an entire gang of Slytherins, and always put up with all of the mocking she received from hanging around with me..."

"Sounds like you and this Sam were really close," Tom remarked, watching Remus's every move.

"Oh yeah... My friends always said we should try a relationship, but we never did."

"How come?"

"I guess it was because we were afraid that if a relationship didn't work out then... well, we'd end up hating each other..." Remus knew this was a lie. He did not know if Sam had ever wanted a relationship with him, but his reason he had given Tom had been the reason he had never asked Sam about her feelings.

"You never take a chance, then nothing could ever happen..." Tom murmured. Remus looked over at him slowly, intently.

"I guess..." Remus whispered, fingering his shot glass.

"Guess nothing. Name one of the worst things that ever happen to you," Tom said forcefully. Remus looked at him questioningly, but Tom merely repsponded with a vigorous, "Go on!"

"Well... there was a time when a very close friend of mine played a joke on this Slytherin boy, Snape, and nearly got him killed... And it would've been my fault. Put me in a right state, because it made me sick..." Remus thought over the event, remembering how he had been sick for almost a week. He had been nauseous, unable to walk... He had thought that he was going to die.

"What did Sam do?" Tom inquired. Remus thought for a moment, and then smiled, which was something Remus hadn't done in a long time...

"First, she punched my friend... Told him if he ever did anything like that again then she would have to jinx him. Then she came and stayed with me in the Hospital Wing the entire week... Never left, not even for class. Supposedly Professor Dumbledore let her slide..."

"Name something else," Tom said quickly.

"Well..." Remus's eyes clouded. "My 3 closest friends died in October, and my fourth closest... Killed them..." Tom eyed Remus.

"What did Sam do?" Tom whispered. Remus looked directly at Tom and made eye contact.

"She came to my flat... She told me that my friends wouldn't want me to waste away... They would want me to get on with my life."

"I'm going to have to assume that you didn't take her advice, then," Tom remarked, indicating the Firewhisky bottle. Remus nodded looked over at the Firewhisky bottle, nodding silently, continually fingering his shot glass.

"I... guess... not..." Remus said slowly. He looked down at the letter lying next to his left arm.

"It's a shame... By not trying a relationship with Sam Tyler, it seems like you're wasting away just as much as by crawling up inside that Firewhisky bottle." Tom took a swift drink of his mead, finishing off his drink and then standing up. "And, if you ask me, it seems that Sam Tyler isn't going to give up on you until she dies... Pity, that she will never know that you love her." Tom turned and began to leave, but he only made it a few steps before Remus stood up.

"Who said I loved her?"

"It doesn't take a genius to figure it out, kid," Tom said, only turning his head so that Remus could see a profile of his face. "When you talk about her, you can tell it in your eyes and in your voice. But she'll never know, will she?"

Tom then continued to walk until he had left the pub. Remus sat back down at his table, and began fingering his shot glass again. Many thoughts were rushing through his head, but one stuck out so far that he voiced it aloud to himself.

"I do love her."

Sam Tyler lie on her couch in front of the fire, tears in her eyes. She had hoped... No, she had prayed that Remus would show up. She missed him dearly, and feared for him. Over the past month or so she had wondered if he was still drinking, if he was still in London, if he was still alive. He had been in such a condition when she last saw him... she wondered if he had been depressed enough to take his own life...

As Sam's tears began to fall down her cheeks, she stared up at her mantle, where several picture frames resided. One contained a picture of Lily Evans Potter, James Potter Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin and herself, all on the Hogwarts Grounds. Another was a picture of herself and Remus- Remus's arm was around her waist, and her arm was around his neck. We looked so happy, she thought. Another picture was of Remus-just Remus-and he was waving at the camera.

Sam turned her head and pressed it into the couch cushions. The sight of Remus made her want to cry even more... All she wanted was to know he was still alive; that he still had a chance of moving on with his life. Even though she loved him, she didn't care if his feelings were mutual. All she cared was that Remus would, one day, be all right again...

Suddenly, outside, there was a loud CRACK! Sam sat up, looking towards the direction of the door. She knew that the crack had been the result of someone apperating, but she did not know who. Then again, she lived a little ways outside any city, so she did not know of anyone wizard or witch who would want to come around her house... except for...

Sam got off of the couch and made her way to the front door, wiping the tears away from her eyes. She tucked her hair behind her ears and, as she reached the door, closed her eyes in one silent prayer that Remus would be outside, standing in the middle of the falling snow, waiting for her to come out to him. Finally, she grasped the door knob and opened the door quickly, rushing through the doorway and out onto the porch. As she looked out into the snow she saw...

Nothing. There was no person or no item out in the foot of still falling snow. Sam was alone.

Carefully, she moved out into the snow, out in the middle of her front yard. She looked around, seeing the mailbox, the thick trees and the porch, but that was all.

Tears began to fall from her eyes once more as she turned back to the porch. She must have been hearing things, wanting to see Remus so badly. She took a few steps, but then was stopped by the sound of a voice...

"Sam..." the hoarse voice said. Sam stopped, but did not turn. She simply stood still. If she was hearing things agian, she did not want these imaginary voices to go away. She wanted them to stay... for eternity...

"Sam, I'm sorry..." the voice behind her said. It was Remus's voice, this Sam was sure of. But was it really Remus? There was only one way to know.

Slowly, Sam turned around and saw Remus, standing in the middle of the snow. His hands were thrust into his robe pockets and he seemed to be shaking. Sam felt that she should run to him, embrace him, say that she forgave him. But she couldn't move. The anger inside her would not let her move.

"You stood me up," she said quietly, a slight edge to her voice. It was eerie, the way that there was no other sound in the air except for her voice and Remus's voice; it was eerie the way that there was no other being around except for herself and Remus. It was almost picturesque. And yet, Sam did not feel painted on an elegant canvas, but merely smeared on a wall. "You said that you would come, and you stood me up!"

"Sam, I'm sorry... I was drunk, and I still think I am. But... but my head is a bit more cleared now... In fact, I don't think that things have ever been more clear." Remus stared helplessly at Sam. He looks so pitiful there in the snow, all alone, thought Sam. So alone. And I've always been there for him, but I don't know anymore...

"Remus... I just don't know..." Sam whispered, though Remus heard her clearly, as there was nothing within a mile that could possible drown out her voice. Her voice, that she so longed for Remus to hear...

"I'm sorry, I really am. I've been a jerk, and I've been so wrapped up in myself lately... But, I've been thinking a lot." Tears were now forming in Remus's eyes. "I've been thinking a whole lot, and someone finally helped me clear my mind. And... they showed me that I can't curl up inside a liquor bottle to make my pain go away. I have to face it head on... and accept whatever help I can get." The tears were now running down Remus's cheeks.

"Remus, I want you to know something."

"Sam---" Remus began, but she cut him off.

"No! I want you to listen to me, now. Remus Lupin, ever since we met on the Hogwarts Express, I've always loved you. I listened to all of your problems, stood up for you, been there whenever I could. I wanted to be there for you, because I knew that you had it harder than anyone else and I knew that it-wasn't-fair. I never expected you to return the feelings. But now..."

"I---"

"NO! Remus, now I feel I deserve something!!! Some kind of explanation, some appreciation, something!" Tears were now streaming down Sam's cheeks, as well as Remus's. Remus moved forward swiftly until he was inches away from Sam. He grabbed both of her hands and held them up close to his heart. She tilted her head down and closed her eyes, but he placed his forehead against her forehead and his nose slightly above hers. He held her close, despite both of their tears.

"Sam, I'm so sorry," Remus said, his voice a quiet whisper. "I never meant to hurt you. I've always loved you too, but I've been afraid. Afraid that if we ever had a relationship that was more than just beings friends, and it didn't go well, that if we broke up we would never be friends again. I didn't want that to happen! I wanted us to be together, forever, whether we were just friends or... or more than that... But you and I... it seems that we would never do anything to hurt each other. I know I would never hurt you, and I'm ready to show you that. I love you, Sam Tyler."

And with that, Remus kissed Sam. He had expected one of two reactions: one, for her to shove him away, to say that she did not forgive him, that she didn't want to see him again; or two, for her to break off the kiss quickly, to say that she loved him too, but it was too late for the both of them. Neither of these occurred.

Instead, the kiss lasted what seemed a lifetime. Neither of them broke apart.

It was like a painting. The perfect couple kissing in the snow on Christmas Eve. At that moment, both of them knew that the relationship would not last, that it was too good to be true. But, they both also knew that, for however long it lasted, they would both enjoy it. They would both love each other until the other died, no matter how far away or how soon that moment may be. And, no matter how it ended, there would always be the memory... the Afterglow.