I felt like a huge burden had been lifted off my back. Actually, it was more like that burden had morphed into something else. For the first time in what seemed like forever, I wasn't angry or feeling loaded down with stress. For the first time in a long time, I was happy.

Theodore and I had been sneaking out every night. The possibility of being caught rarely crossed our minds when we spent hours out on the castle grounds. And while that tiny thought - the possibility of losing him like I had lost everyone else - nagged at my mind occasionally, I pushed it aside. I'd ruined things plenty of times before and wasn't about to let that happen again.

Quidditch practice had been going well, too, and the first game of the year was approaching-Gryffindor versus Slytherin. As Katie Bell, being in St. Mungo's, was unable to play, Dean Thomas would be replacing her for the game.

I was nervous but excited as I went down to breakfast on the day of the match. Shortly after, I would head to the changing rooms to get ready for the game. I didn't eat much, mostly because of nerves, thus after eating a bit of toast I headed out of the castle.

When I left the Hall, I saw Theodore standing by the castle doors, waiting for me. When I approached, I said, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the stands?"

"I came to wish you good luck," he said.

"Oh. Well ... thanks. But don't you want Slytherin to win?"

"Of course I do. But that doesn't mean I can't wish you good luck, right?"

"No," I said, blushing but smiling. "Well, uh ... I should head down to the locker rooms. I'll see you after the match."

"Yeah, see you. Goodbye."

Our lips were about to touch, but then I heard my name.

"Lyra? Are you coming to the changing rooms?"

I looked over and saw Harry standing near us. Ron was right next to him, a nervous expression on his face along with something that may have been anger.

"Uh ... yeah, I'm coming!" I squeaked, blushing heavily. Turning to Theodore, I said, "I'll see you later."

Without looking back, I headed out the oak doors and toward the locker rooms by the Quidditch pitch. Harry and Ron walked alongside of me. Harry said, "Ginny, Demelza, Dean, and Jimmy are already down there."

"All right, good," I replied.

Then, unexpectedly, Ron blurted, "Are you going out with him?"

"Um ... yeah. Why?"

Theodore and I had decided to keep our relationship secret from the school over the past weeks to avoid prejudice and criticism, but it became increasingly more difficult to ignore each other in class and in the halls, so we gave up on that. Bit by bit, more people had begun to stare at us in the corridors as we walked and talked together, and in class the teachers looked at us with perplexity. Neither of us cared. We were used to being judged and made each other so happy that nobody could bring us down.

Ron couldn't seem to contain his anger any longer, so he yelled, "He's a Slytherin! Gryffindors can't date Slytherins! That's just common sense! How are we going to win against Slytherin today if you're going easy on them?"

Puzzled stares were one thing, however. Direct attacks were an entirely different matter in my book, and I felt the need to defend myself, not to mention Theodore. So, getting fired up for the first time in weeks, I said, "I won't be going easy on them! I'm on the Gryffindor team; why would I show Slytherin mercy?"

"Well, if your boyfriend's a Slytherin - "

"So what? That doesn't mean anything when it comes to Quidditch!"

"Ron," Harry said, "Ron, it doesn't matter - she's not going to go easy on them."

"How do you know that?" Ron spat. "It's bad enough that I can't Keep! And on top of that we have a Beater who - "

Before he could finish, I whipped my wand out, turned around, and pointed it at him. "If you think I'm going to go easy on them, then maybe I will!"

A terrified look crossed his face, and I was positive he was thinking of the day in D.A.D.A. when I had nearly attacked Snape. He didn't say anything else, so I ran ahead to the locker rooms.

The rest of the team was there when I arrived. Ginny, who was already in her Quidditch robes, noticed my sore expression and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Your brother," I mumbled.

"What's his deal now?" she asked. "What did he do to you? I can hex him if necessary."

"It's nothing."

"Are you sure? Because I can perform a Bat-Bogey Hex and Ron knows it."

"He just thinks he should be in charge of who people date, that's all," I muttered as I pulled my Quidditch robes out of a locker.

Ginny rolled her eyes and groaned. "You too? He's like that with everyone. Consider yourself lucky that he's not your brother. He always thinks he's in charge of me, saying he just wants to protect me and other rubbish. If he was really that irritating, you could always hit him with a Bludger today."

"No, we need a Keeper," I said with slight sarcasm. "Anyway, I'm going to change."

It was my first time wearing Quidditch robes, and I knew they would be hard to get used to. The robes themselves weren't as heavy as regular school robes and were obviously designed for flying with their shorter length and tighter fit. However, though Alicia Spinnet's old Quidditch robes fit me best, even they were slightly too big. The boots and gloves were tight and uncomfortable too. It would take a game or two to adjust to the outfit.

Ginny happily announced that the Slytherin Chaser Vaisey had taken a Bludger to the head and wouldn't be playing in today's match, and apparently Malfoy was out sick. A sudden mix of feelings hit me - sure, Malfoy was not a bad Seeker, therefore the game would be easier. But on the other hand, I would be pleased to no end to defeat him in Quidditch - maybe hit a Bludger to his head - and give myself something to mock him with forever.

Five minutes later, I was walking onto the pitch with the team. I was feeling extremely nervous as I walked through the grass carrying my Firebolt in one hand and my bat in the other, but my heart soared as soon as we entered the stadium. The Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws cheered as the Slytherins booed. We took our positions, ready to play, as Madam Hooch stood over the crate containing the Bludgers, the Quaffle, and the Golden Snitch. Opposite us was the Slytherin team, wearing Quidditch robes of emerald green.

Harry walked over and shook hands with the Slytherin Captain, Urquhart. Madam Hooch blew her whistle and we all kicked off. I flew up on my Firebolt, soaring through the air and monitoring the Bludgers. I was fully prepared to deflect any that came near and hit them toward the Slytherins.

The Bludgers were on the opposite end of the pitch when I heard the commentator's voice speak - and it wasn't Lee Jordan (who had previously commentated but had left Hogwarts last year). I recognized the voice as Zacharias Smith, the Hufflepuff who had been in the D.A.

"Well, there they go, and I think we're all surprised to see the team that Potter's put together this year. Many thought, given Ronald Weasley's patchy performance as Keeper last year, that he might be off the team, but of course, a close personal friendship with the Captain does help ... " [*]

The Slytherins cheered happily at this. Glaring at Smith, I thought maybe a Bludger to his head would do nicely.

"Oh, and here comes Slytherin's first attempt on the goal, it's Urquhart streaking down the pitch and ... Weasley saves it. Well, he's bound to get lucky sometimes, I suppose ... " [**]

Without warning a Bludger shot right at me and nearly snapped off my broom handle. I swung the bat and hit it toward a Slytherin Chaser. Before flying off, I scanned the area to see who had hit it. Peakes! He was on the team; why had he hit a Bludger at me?

I zoomed over to him and yelled, "What were you doing?"

"Sorry, I lost my aim!"

"You idiot! You're supposed to hit it at the Slytherins!"

"I know; I just missed it!"

I rolled my eyes at him but quickly remembered what I was doing - a Bludger shot right toward us. Both of us swung and he hit it, though he almost knocked me in the head in the process.

"Watch it!"

"I'm sorry!"

"You need to work on your aim!"

I felt bad about yelling at him as soon as I flew off, but I was still fired up about what Ron had said before the match. I guess it was a good thing, because my Beating skills were best when I was maddened.

"It looks like the Gryffindor Beaters had a small quarrel," Zacharias said. "Of course, that's to be expected; we're dealing with Lyra Lestrange here. I think we all know who she's related to. She tends to get easily incensed - "

"SHUT UP!"

I didn't think he could hear me, but the crowd read my lips. The Slytherins began to laugh. As I glared at them in the stands, a Bludger sped toward me so I hit it at the nearest Slytherin player. It was one of their Chasers. The Bludger smacked him in the side and he fell to the ground. The Slytherins booed as Madam Hooch ran over to make sure he was okay. Now the Slytherin Beaters turned on me, preparing to hit a Bludger in my direction.

Then I heard it - someone from the Slytherin side had stood up and yelled, "Go, Lyra!"

I turned, surprised, toward the stands. Theodore! He was standing up in the ocean of green and silver; several wands were pointed at him. I smiled as Zacharias said, "What's this? A Slytherin is cheering for a Gryffindor! Has he gone mad, or is there some inter-House love going on here?"

I heard several laughs and boos as my face turned red. My anger reached an even higher point so I flew toward the nearest Bludger and aimed for the Slytherin Keeper.

I flew high into the air and took a moment to take in the surroundings. Gryffindor was winning by several goals. Ron was actually defending the goals well. Then the moment came. I saw Harry grab the Snitch in his hands and lift it into the air excitedly. The Gryffindors cheered and I noticed Ginny suddenly crash into the podium where Zacharias stood. She said something to Professor McGonagall happily.

I swooped to the ground with the rest of the team. We all ran over and exchanged hugs and congratulated each other.

"That was excellent!" Dean exclaimed. "Great game, everybody!"

We all hurried off to the locker room. Smiling to myself, I pulled off my gloves as Demelza Robins said to me, "That was brilliant when you knocked that Slytherin to the ground."

"Thanks," I replied cheerfully, now removing my boots.

Once I was back in my school robes, I went to the grounds. Dean had announced a party in the common room, but I wasn't really up for it. There was someone else I wanted to meet ...

He was waiting for me outside the changing room. I didn't notice him, but when I heard his voice, I jumped and turned to face him, slightly red in the face but happy nonetheless.

"Congratulations, Lyra. You were great," Theodore said.

"Thanks," I replied.

"I assume there's a party in Gryffindor Tower?"

"Well, yes, but I have no interest in going."

"Then shall we go walk around the lake?"

"Sounds great!" I said.

"Perfect." He put his arm around me and began to lead me around the pitch toward the lake. "We'll go this way so we don't get caught. People are still leaving the stands and we're really supposed to go to the castle."

The grounds were growing dark as we walked along the water's edge. Stars were beginning to appear and the forest on the opposite side was now a dark obscurity. I hoped nobody could see our figures from inside the castle. Part of me wished I had gone up there first to put my Firebolt away as it was difficult to carry, but then I decided that once in Gryffindor Tower, there was no way out. As I had seen with previous post-match parties, nobody would let any of the players leave.

"This is good," Theodore said after several minutes of heading in the direction of the forest. We were in a darker spot where the trees by the lake hid us well. We were quite a distance from the castle, so there was no way a teacher would spot us.

"So, um ... " I began, "what was the deal with you today? Why did you stand up during the match and shout my name?"

He shrugged. "I thought you needed a bit of support."

"Oh," I said. "Well, thanks. But weren't you afraid of being cursed or something? All those Slytherins pointed wands at you."

"Do you think I cared? Hey, I do have something to say, though. Malfoy isn't sick. He was perfectly fine this morning. Well, he did look kind of pale, but it looked more like nerves. I know Quidditch doesn't make him nervous. I'll say this again: I know something's going on with him."

"You never know with him. Actually, I kind of wanted to beat him today. Shame he wasn't here."

"Speaking of which, you played really well. I mean it."

I looked at the ground, feeling ashamed, and muttered, "Only because I got angry." Looking back up at him, I said, "I'm really, really trying to work on that. And I've been doing better since you and I ... "

"You'll get it under control. You still played well."

"Well ... thanks." I hoped he was right. Though my fiery temper was far from being doused, there was something about today that had taken it all away; something about the way I slammed the Bludgers with my bat relieved the rage that burned inside me. And then there was Theodore. Something about him - the warmth in his eyes or the gentleness in his voice - made all my resentment fade into nothing.

"I have something to tell you," I said after a few moments of silence.

"Go on."

"Right after the war started and Sirius - well, I made a promise to myself. I told myself I would search for my family's past and learn about them. I planned on discovering what I could while at Hogwarts. I was going to check the trophy room and was wondering if you might come with me. Perhaps tomorrow night?"

"Sure. It's a date. And now I have a question for you. Earlier today, what was the deal with Ron Weasley when he saw us together?"

I rolled my eyes. "He doesn't think I should be dating a Slytherin."

"Blood traitors!" he spat. "What did you tell him?"

"I blew up at him, actually. But please ... please don't call them blood traitors. I've met the Weasleys and they're wonderful people."

Understanding appeared in his eyes, but I knew he would only stop trashing blood traitors because I didn't want him to. No matter what I thought, Theodore would still think the same things about the Weasleys. It was to be expected, I assumed-he had grown up with a Death Eater for a father.

"All right, then. I won't say a word about them."

"Thanks. Actually ... in the Death Eaters' books, I'm a blood traitor."

I thoughtful look appeared on his face. He smiled. "Yeah, I suppose you are. And therefore, so am I." Then he leaned in kissed me, something that always put butterflies in my stomach.

I supposed it wasn't necessarily the actual gesture that got to me, but the feeling of knowing someone was there, someone who actually wanted me and saw me as more than ‘the Lestrange girl.' I hardly cared how the rest of the world viewed me anymore: previously an invisible wall, a raging monster that couldn't control herself, or the daughter of Lord Voldemort's most faithful followers, because really, why did it matter? I wasn't alone anymore.

Therefore, feeling more at ease each time it happened, I kissed him back. I wanted him to know someone was there for him as well.

Once we were apart I stared at the stars reflecting in the lake, realizing how truly beautiful the night was.