Lyra adored Christmas. Not only because the house would smell like eggnog, gingerbread and pine trees, though it was an aroma that brought back only the happiest of childhood memories of family dinners at Twelve Grimmauld Place before all their lives fell apart. 

No, she loved it because of the feeling of family and community. Even if she was all alone, she wouldn't feel lonely during Christmas time. Nostalgic and longing for better times, sure. But lonely? That could wait until January. 

But Christmas was almost over. That means the fleeting happiness it brought her was leaving. And all she wanted was to spend that night with her child. One more night where her, Lucius and Draco could actually be a family. Those moments were very rare. 

But Dumbledore had sent her a letter. This night, the last night before Draco would leave for Hogwarts, was a night she'd need to be at Twelve Grimmauld Place to talk to Harry about something. Well, her and Snape were to talk to him about something. It was quite vague, telling her that Snape would explain everything when she'd arrive. 

She didn't want to leave Draco, but it would be nice to see Harry and his friends, along with Sirius and Remus. But she had an idea, something that wouldn't actually hurt Draco so much. 

Draco and Lucius had always had a strange relationship. Not very warm or loving, though they both loved each other dearly. But they barely spent any time together that wasn't Lucius telling him about his Death Eater escapades or talking about Draco's grades and school work. 

She suggested that Lucius could spend a night with Draco, one where he didn't try to push an agenda or push his son into anything. She wanted Lucius to listen to Draco for once and they could have a healthy-ish relationship. Though he was surprised by her support, Lucius quickly agreed. 

So she found herself sitting in the kitchen at Twelve Grimmauld Place. Snape had barely given her an explanation on what they were talking to Harry about. Occlumency. Because the Dark Lord had found ways to invade his mind they had deemed dangerous. 

But they weren't alone, though. Sirius had sat himself next to Lyra on the opposite side of Snape, as they all sat by the dining table. Sirius had refused to let Lyra be alone with him, and wouldn't leave Harry with them either. 

The door was pushed open, though none of the adults realized this. They were too occupied with the weighty, tense silence between them. Harry was quite uncomfortable, but knew he was called in there for something. "Er."

Snape turned his head slowly, looking far less happy to see the boy than Lyra and Sirius. He sneered at the young boy, and they both looked like they'd rather be anywhere else. "Sit down, Potter."

Sirius was already rather annoyed by the man and this didn't help. He refused to even look at him, leaning back in his chair and looking up at the ceiling. "You know, I think I'd prefer it if you didn't give orders here, Snape. It's my house, you see."

Snape glared at Sirius and Lyra could already tell that this was going to be a long conversation. "If the two of you are going to act like this all night then I'd rather go home. And that's saying something."

"Well, we were supposed to see Potter alone," Snape said to Lyra, showing a surprising lack of disdain for her. She supposed he just hated Sirius (maybe Harry too) more than he hated her. "But Black-"

"I'm his Godfather!" the Black man exclaimed quite loudly, looking heatedly at the man. Harry was just watching quite awkwardly, not knowing what to do. 

"And I get why you want to be here, Sirius," Lyra said before Snape could sneer some insult his way. "But if you're going to stay, then don't hinder our conversation. We all know that this is rather important."

"We are here by Dumbledore's orders. Though I believe I could have done this by myself," Snape muttered bitterly to himself, he sent a cruel glance Lyra's way before looking at Sirius again. "But by all means stay, Black, I know you like to feel... involved."

"For Merlin's sake," Lyra whispered to herself, resting her forehead in her hands in exasperation. This wasn't going to end well. 

Sirius let all four legs of his chair fall on the floor with a loud thud. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Merely that I am sure you must feel, ah, frustrated by the factthat you can do nothing useful for the Order," Snape retorted, not looking frightened by Sirius's ever-growing anger. In fact, it was like he wanted him to get angry.

"Anyway," Lyra emphasized, looking at a wide-eyed Harry. "Harry, Snape and I are here to introduce you to a form of magic you'll be learning. It's Dumbledore's wish for you to study Occlumency this term."

Harry's face went blank and obviously understood even less than before Lyra had spoken. "Study what?"

"Occlumency, Potter." Snape was obviously unimpressed with his lack of knowledge.  "The magical defense of the mind against external penetration. An obscure branch of magic, but a highly usefulone."

Harry turned completely white, looking at Lyra nervously. "Why do I have to study Occlu-thing?"

"Because the headmaster thinks it a good idea," Snape replied. "You will receive private lessons once a week, but you willnot tell anybody what you are doing, least of all Dolores Umbridge.You understand?"

"Yes," Harry responded, not understanding anything. "Who's going to be teaching me?"

"Well, that's a complicated question," said Lyra hesitantly. She knew neither Harry nor Sirius would like the answer. "Tonight, I will be giving you the crash course. But... throughout this school year, Snape will be the one teaching you."

The young boy had seemed pretty relieved when Lyra said she'd teach him that night, but the moment his professor's name was mentioned, he quickly looked terrified and turned to Sirius for any kind of help. 

Sirius gladly obliged, glaring at the dark-haired man. "Why can't Dumbledore teach Harry? Why you?"

Snape didn't seem very happy about having been given the job, but there was a glimt in his eyes from being able to drive Sirius crazy in new ways. "I suppose because it is a headmaster's privilege to delegate less enjoyable tasks."

"Then why not, Lyra, huh?" the Black man now suggested, pointing his finger towards his cousin before crossing his arms stubbornly. "I'm pretty sure she's better than you at Occlumency. She's better than most people."

The Professor sent a distasteful glance towards the blonde woman, who couldn't believe how childish they were behaving. "Just because she knows how to use it doesn't mean she knows how to teach it. You can't teach something you've never learned." 

"Shut up, Snape." Lyra rolled her eyes. "Fine, maybe I haven't ever been able to learn Occlumency. But don't go around talking down to me because I'm a natural Occulmens. Jealousy isn't a good look on you. Never was."

"I assure you I did not beg for the job," Snape sneered, not wanting to respond to most of her comments. He got up to his feet, getting ready to leave. "I will expect you at six o'clock on Monday evening, Potter. My office. If anybody asks, you are taking Remedial Potions. Nobody who has seen you in my classes could deny you need them."

But just as he turned around (his cloak swooshing dramatically around him, of course), Sirius spoke up, his voice cold. "Wait a moment."

Snape turned his head, looking quite bored, though Lyra was sure he did just to seem cool. He did not seem cool. "I am in rather a hurry, Black. There is a reason your cousin, of all people, has been asked to teach Potter tonight, after all. Unlike you, I do not have unlimited leisure time."

"I'll get to the point then." Sirius wasted no time in standing up, easily towering over Snape. "If I hear you're using these Occlumency lessons to give Harry a hard time, you'll have me to answer to."

"How touching," Snape drawled. "But surely you have noticed that Potter is very like his father?"

"Yes, I have," Sirius responded quickly, and quite proudly. 

This exchange quickly caught Lyra's attention. There was a darkness behind her eyes as she spoke lowly, tilting her head to be more intimidating. "Be wary of your next words, Snape. They may very well be your last."

Snape seemed quite smug that he had gotten to Lyra, who had always done her best to seem aloof around him, hoping not to give him the satisfaction. "I was merely pointing out that Black should know he's so arrogant that criticism simply bounces off him."

Lyra's eyes widened in shock at how he dared speak of a dead man. But before she could do anything, Sirius had jumped out of his chair, pulled his wand out of his cloak. Snape did the same. Worried (and pissed off), Lyra quickly reached for her own, clutching it in her hand. 

"Sirius! Lyra!" Harry tried to call out for the cousins. Sirius simply didn't hear him. Lyra didn't want to hear him. 

Lyra opened her mouth before either of the men could utter a word, slowly moving towards them. "How dare you go around talking about James like that? Sure, he wasn't perfect. But neither were you! And the nerve you have to bring him up in front of not only myself and Sirius, but also his son. Don't do this in front of Harry!"

"Oh, shut up!" Snape snapped at her, which he rarely did. He quickly turned around so his wand was pointed straight at her. "James Potter was nothing more than an arrogant toerag and by the looks of it, his son won't be any better."

Sirius was quickly enraged, brining Snape's attention back to him. "I've warned you, Snivellus. I don't care if Dumbledore thinks you've reformed. I know better-"

"Oh, but why don't you tell him so?" Snape retorted, whispering softly. He was obviously reveling in the affect he had on Sirius. "Or are you afraid he might not take the advice of a man who has been hiding inside his mother's house for six months very seriously?"

Sirius took a shallow breath, trying to convince himself not to curse the man in front of him. "Tell me, how is Lucius Malfoy these days? I expect he's delighted his lapdog's working at Hogwarts, isn't he?"

Lyra stiffened, not expecting to hear that name in the discussion. He may have been a git most of the time, but he was Lyra's family. He had been for years and was currently working hard to bond with her son and protect him from the Death Eaters. "There's no need to bring up Lucius, Sirius."

"Of course there is. Let's talk about your husband, Lyra."  Snape smirked, strangely using her first name for once before looking at her cousin. "Did you know that Lucius Malfoy recognized you last time you risked a little jaunt outside? Clever idea, Black, getting yourself seen on a safe station platform... gave you a cast-iron excuse not to leave your hidey-hole in the future, didn't it?"

Sirius raised his wand once again, which brought a formerly silent Harry into a big panic. He rushed to get up from his seat, trying to get between the two men. "No! Sirius, don't-"

"Are you calling me a coward?" the Black man yelled in the Potions professor's face, looking even angrier than before (if that was even possible). Lyra grabbed Harry's arm, trying to hold him back but Harry was stronger than her and wouldn't budge. 

"Why, yes, I suppose I am," Snape agreed. 

Lyra could see that Sirius was about to explode and probably hex the other man. The petty part of her really wanted to the see that happen. But she was going to have to suck it up because someone in that room should be acting mature, and she didn't want to put that on the fifteen-year-old she was holding back. 

"Harry! Stay back, this is adult business," Lyra hissed loudly at the young boy before turning to the grown men. "Yes, adult business! For adults, which you are! Now act like it! I don't care what you've got against James, Snape. And I sure as hell don't care what you've got against my husband, Sirius. Not right now."

"We're not here to argue about this or to bring up old petty feuds from when we were teenagers." Lyra pointed her wand away from Snape and towards Sirius, who seemed surprised she would point her wand at him. "We're here to help Harry. Not to boost our egos or piss each other off. I am more than ready to take this wand and shove it up each of your-!"

The blonde was interrupted in the middle of her sentence by the whole Weasley clan (along with Hermione Granger) opening the door to the room, looking like they were in the midst of a celebration. Lyra suspected it had something to do with Arthur's recent stint at St. Mungos.

"Cured! Completely cured!" Arthur announced, grinning widely. Well, until he saw that Lyra was holding Harry back, pointing her wand at Sirius's face (as he pointed his wand at Snape and vice versa). "Merlin's beard. What's going on here?"

Both Sirius and Snape glanced at Lyra, who was raising a threatening brow at each of them. Slowly, they both lowered their wands, though looking at one another with the utmost contempt. Neither of them looked very happy with her either. 

Snape quietly put his wand away. Then he dramatically (of course) turned around, passing the Weasley family without greeting a single one of them. He only spoke once he was halfway out of the door, looking at Harry. "Six o'clock Monday evening, Potter."

Then he was quickly gone. Arthur still looked quite confused. "But what's been going on?"

"Yes, Sirius... What has been going on?" Lyra asked sharply, thinking that he shouldn't have lost his temper like he did. Snape may have egged them both on, but that was no excuse for being the first to draw his wand. 

"Nothing, Arthur. Just a friendly little chat between old school friends." Sirius flared his nostrils, breathing heavily as he glared at Lyra. He then turned to Arthur, obviously forcing himself to smile. "So... you're cured? That's great news, really great."

"It really is," Lyra agreed. She made eye contact with her cousin once again, giving him a scolding look. She could see that he was still angry and it was the only way she could think of to tell him to calm down. 

"Yes, isn't it?" Molly agreed, though looking at Arthur the same way Lyra was looking at Sirius. "Healer Smethwyck worked his magic in the end, found an antidote to whatever that snake's got in its fangs, and Arthur's learned his lesson about dabbling in Muggle medicine, haven't you, dear?"

"Yes, Molly, dear," the Weasley patriarch answered meekly. 

Lyra felt like she would be quite the party pooper if she brought up her duties to the Order while everyone else was talking about Arthur's recovery, but she had no other choice. "I'm very happy for you, Arthur, but I do need to speak with Harry privately. Dumbledore's orders."

"Right, of course," Molly agreed, starting to usher the children out of the room. Sirius and Arthur followed when she gave them a stern look. "I'll be making dinner soon if you'd like to stay."

The blonde smiled politely at the redhead. "No, thank you, Molly. I should be getting back to my son as soon as possible. But thank you for offering."

The Weasley woman nodded understandingly. This was the last night before the children left for Hogwarts, after all. She smiled slightly at Harry before leaving the room, closing the door behind her. 

"Sorry about that whole ordeal, Harry," said Lyra sofly, turning to him with a slight smile. "Sirius and Snape are never going to get over their grudges against one another. I'm not a big fan of Snape either but something's got to give."

"It's fine," Harry nodded, he was more interested in finding out what that whole Occlumency thing was about. "So... Occlumency. You're going to be teaching me that now?"

"If only it was that easy," the blonde chuckled. "Snape, unfortunately, was right that I don't know how one learns Occlumency. I'm a natural Occlumence so I was born able to shut people and potions out of my mind. But I do have some expertise at how it feels and works anyway."

Harry raised his eyebrows expectantly. Lyra sighed and realized that the faster the explantion started, the faster she could go home and spend the night with Draco (and Lucius, for that matter).

"Your mind is completely clear of all distractions, so there is nothing for them to read. You have to be calm and try to keep your mind quiet, if that makes sense," Lyra explained, though feeling like she didn't do it well. She hadn't read up on it since she was a teenager. 

Surprisingly, the young boy only nodded along. "Yeah, I think I understand."

She sighed and sat down in one of chairs. "Snape will be able to teach you. He may be a git but he's smart. And he's a rather good Occlumence as far as I've heard. And he's had to learn it from scratch."

"That doesn't mean that I'm really excited to be spending my time with Snape, trying to keep Voldemort out of my head." Harry ignored the way she winced after he mentioned the Dark Lord's name. 

"You'll do great. You're a very good wizard, Harry," Lyra assured him before reaching into a pocket in her robes. "Actually, it's a good thing I'm here. It's Christmas and everything and I wanted to give you this."

She handed him an envelope. He hesitated before opening, looking guilty. "Sorry, I didn't get you anything."

She thought it was quite sweet how he worried about it. In that moment, she could really see a hint of the kindness his mother always showed the world. "It's fine, Harry. It didn't cost me as much as a sickle."

He finally opened it, pulling out a moving picture, one that Lyra had recovered only a few days before. He recognized several of the people instantly, though he was shocked at how young they all looked. 

His father looked almost just like him (only drunk and blushing bright red), while a young Lyra kissed his cheek. She hadn't changed much, only that her hair was a bit longer and she wore clothes that must have been more fashionable in the 1970s.

A boy which must have been Sirius had his arm around James's shoulder. Except this man looked young and healthy, with a mischievous glimt in his eye. Sirius was winking at the camera and Harry felt the sudden urge to watch his back and make sure there was nobody there to prank him. 

In front of Sirius, James and Lyra, was two other boys. Harry realized quickly that the sandy-haired boy with scars on his face must have been Remus Lupin. That meant the plump, frail-looking boy was Peter Pettigrew. 

Harry tried to ignore the surge of anger from seeing Peter and instead focused on the four he actually cared about. They all looked so happy. He wasn't sure if he'd ever seen any of them be truly happy before. 

"It was taken on James's birthday. His seventeenth," Lyra revealed, smiling fondly. It was a night she would never forget. "We had recently become some sort of couple. I loved him already, of course, but there was no way I was going to admit that. To myself or to him."

Harry couldn't take his eyes off James and Lyra. "You looked so happy."

"We were." The blonde then remembered one piece of information the boy might have liked about the picture. "Your mum took it, actually. I think it was Remus's camera but we just handed it to Lily. She was happy to oblige, of course."

"I thought you two weren't friends," Harry whispered, feeling the photograph in his hands. His mother had taken this. He had several connections to his father, but very few to his mother in comparison. 

"We were acquiantances. She was there for me at a really hard time for me, even if she didn't have to be. I'll always appreciate that about her," she mused. They had barely known one another and Lily Evans had still found a reason to stand up for her. A true Gryffindor. 

"Thank you so much," he said, trying to keep tears from building up in his eyes. For so long, he had been angry at the world. But sitting there with Lyra, looking at a picture of his father taken by his mother, he felt a bit happy. "Don't you want this back?"

"I've had this, and a bunch of other things, in a box under a bunch of locking charms. I have more memories of him," she said vaguely. "And things are getting dangerous nowadays. It would be trouble if... You-Know-Who found out about my past."

He looked up at her teary-eyed. He hesitated for a moment, but quickly decided to wrap his arms around her. He had no idea how to tell her how much he appreciated not only this, but everything she had done for him. "Thank you, Lyra."

Lyra smiled as he hugged her, trying to keep from crying herself. She was glad she could make James's son happy, but she had also grown to love Harry as his own person. Seeing him as happy as he was was a gift in its own. 

She quickly dried her eyes as he pulled away from the hug. She chuckled softly. "Well, I've got to get home. Good luck with your Occlumency lessons. And keep that picture close, it means a lot to me."

"I will. I promise."

Lyra gave him one last smile before walking out the door, returning to her own family. 

▹▹▹

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I always love some Harry and Lyra bonding. I know some of you feel like she's been neglecting Draco, but she is trying her hardest. In not too long, there will be A LOT of Draco.