At six-thirty that evening, the entrance hall was packed with students and parents as they began to arrive for the Assembly, all milling around waiting for seven o'clock, when the doors to the Great Hall would be thrown open. Lily was edging through the crowd trying to find someone familiar. She found Hermione, whom she remembered from Arthur as Harry's other best friend. Her parents were there too, standing nervously behind her. Lily walked over to them.

"Hermione, is it?"

"Oh, Hi, Mrs. Potter!" Hermione said, beaming at her. "This is my mum and dad…" She introduced her parents to Lily who smiled and shook their hands.

"You look beautiful, Mrs. Potter," said Hermione.

"Thank you," said Lily delightedly and eyed the crowd. "You haven't seen my son, have you?"

Before Hermione could respond, Harry and the Weasleys entered the oak front doors. Harry saw Lily and the Grangers and waved at them as they approached. Lily smiled brightly and hugged her son.

"It's so good to see you again, sweetheart."

"Did you finish what you have to do, Mum?" said Harry, hugging her back.

"I did. That's why I came here early. I don't want to miss the Assembly for my son, of course."

Harry smiled.

"Thank you, Arthur," said Lily, as Arthur came slowly into view behind Harry.

"Oh, no worries…" he said and whispered behind her ear. "Before we Portkeyed over here we got a message from Dumbledore. Is everything okay?"

Lily shook her head and replied as quietly as possible while Harry chatted away with Ron and Hermione. "That bizarre dream I had… it's happening, Arthur."

Arthur looked at her anxiously and said, "Is that why Dumbledore called for an Order meeting after the Assembly?"

Lily nodded.

The doors to the Great Hall opened and everyone went inside and sat in their respective tables. Harry looked around and saw Dumbledore smile as the guests settled in. The House tables had vanished; instead, there were about a hundred smaller ones with golden plates, each seating about a dozen people.

Harry and Lily found themselves seated at one table with the Weasleys and Grangers. Ron sat beside Harry, very keen to stay as far away from his parents as possible on the other side of Lily.

Albus Dumbledore looked momentarily over their table and saw Lily seated beside Harry. He cast a knowing look at Lily and gave a worried glance at Harry, before standing up and addressing the crowd.

"To our students and parents who are gathered here tonight, I'd like to welcome you all to our Recognition Assembly. I am proud to present another batch of students who excelled in this academe," He beamed at all the students. "Not only did they show wit and talent, but also dedication to pursue their dreams and ambitions. But before that, let us tuck in!"

"About time," said Ron, seizing his knife and fork and looking expectantly at his golden plate.

No sooner than he said it, dishes filled magically before their eyes.

And before Harry knew it, Lily was already piling a bunch of food on his plate. "Eat as much as you can, okay? You look way too skinny."

Harry stopped her from getting some more. Looking embarrassed, he said, "Mum… stop force-feeding me. I can do it."

Arthur chuckled. "You can't deny, Harry, you're Lily's one and only baby."

Harry blushed. Lily nudged Arthur in his side. "Oh, shut it. I just want to make sure my son gets the proper nutrition."

Harry rolled his eyes and started eating as much as he could.

Hermione, meanwhile, was looking glumly on a piece of paper that appeared on the table while they were eating. It was the list of students and their standings in school.

"Oh, look!" Ron pointed below the paper that Hermione was looking at. "Harry got the top mark!"

Harry looked over and saw his name: TOP 1: Harry James Potter, and below him was Hermione as top 2.

Hermione scowled at Ron and smiled at Harry half-heartedly.

Lily was reading the paper as well and smiled brightly. "Way to go, sweetheart. I am so proud of you!"

"I don't see your name on here, Ron," said Mrs. Weasley indignantly, scanning the paper. Ron hid and sat so low behind Harry, murmuring something that no one could hear.

They finished eating after a while and the babble of talk diminished. Dumbledore had gotten to his feet, beaming up at them once again.

"Now that we are all fed and watered, let us begin the Recognition Assembly. If you would please refer to the piece of paper that appeared on your tables," Dumbledore gestured the guests to take a look, his eyes shining brightly behind his half-moon spectacles.

"Being a student can be difficult." Dumbledore could hear murmurs of agreement from the students. "You have to balance your schoolwork with your other responsibilities, which may include work or time with friends and family." He paused and smiled.

"I am very happy to announce that we have a great number of students who took such an active role in their learning for their academic success. They've shown huge efforts and hard work." His eyes lingered at Harry's direction. "We also have a few outstanding students who exceeded our expectations." He winked at him.

Harry could feel all the eyes in the Hall looking at him as well, while Ron patted him on the back.

"I believe the awarding is in order," said Dumbledore as he laid his eyes upon a table with trophies, plaques, and some badges that twinkled under the hanging candles.

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The rest of the awarding rolled in a blur. At least twenty-five students were awarded, all of whom beamed with delight as their parents attached badges on their chests, received plaques and trophies.

The majority of the students and guests in the Hall erupted in cheers and applause and were eager to see Harry when his name was called last. He stood up with Lily beside him and crossed the stage to Dumbledore to receive the award.

Ron, Hermione, and the rest of the group at their table congratulated them.

Harry smiled widely. His heart was full. It was the best day and evening of his life.

The Assembly ended shortly after that.

They were gathering outside the Great Hall when Dumbledore approached Lily and said in a whisper, "I will talk to the Order tonight and have them patrol Hogsmeade. Continue what you are supposed to do."

All the excitement that Lily felt that night was turned suddenly to fear. Lily looked at Dumbledore worriedly, but Dumbledore put a hand on her shoulder and said, "Do not worry. Everything will be okay."

Lily took a deep breath and nodded, still unsure.

Dumbledore gestured for Arthur to follow him for the Order meeting while Molly stayed behind with the kids.

"Where's dad going?" Ron asked his mother when he saw Dumbledore and Arthur walk away.

"He's got business to attend to with Dumbledore, Ron," Molly said. "We'll go on ahead without him."

"My mum and dad will be having a little celebration at home," said Hermione. "Would you like to join us?"

Lily was starting to look anxious as the minutes ticked by. It was only when Harry called her out of her stupor that she became aware.

"Mum, are you alright?"

"What?" asked Lily.

Hermione asked her again but Molly interjected after seeing Lily's worried look. "That would be lovely, Hermione, dear. But may I suggest a better plan? We could all celebrate on Harry's birthday tomorrow at the Burrow."

"Oh yes!" said Hermione brightly. "I think that's brilliant, Mrs. Weasley." Mr. and Mrs. Granger nodded their agreement as well.

"Mum," said Harry quietly. "Is there something wrong?"

Lily was sweating but she just wiped the sweat off and said cheerfully that took Harry by surprise, "No, nothing's wrong, sweetheart. Where would you like to go?"

"Oh… uh," he thought for a moment. "We could go to the Three Broomsticks and have dessert…"

Lily gulped some air. The Three Broomsticks… that's in Hogsmeade…

"… I wanted to try their new –" continued Harry but was cut short.

"Would you like to go somewhere else?" Lily wanted to add "not in Hogsmeade" but thought better of it.

"We could probably try Madam Puddifoot's Tea shop…" Harry unwillingly suggested, but hastily added after some internal deliberation, "but I'd prefer the Three Broomsticks better…"

Ron couldn't help overhearing and interrupted before he could stop himself. "Again? I know that's your favourite restaurant Harry, but –"

His favourite restaurant? Lily said under her breath. She never knew that. As much as she'd wanted to stay far away from Hogsmeade as possible, she couldn't do it. This was Harry's night after all, and she wanted nothing but to make him happy.

"Okay," she said after some time. "Let's go to the Three Broomsticks."

Harry smiled. They said their goodbyes to the group and made their way out the oak front door.

They arrived outside the Three Broomsticks half an hour later. Lily was eyeing the streets nervously. The Order members weren't there yet. Harry pushed the door open and they went inside.

There were crowds seated in the room, some of which were guests from the Assembly earlier. Lily suggested they sit near the window so she could see what was going on outside.

Once seated, Madam Rosmerta came over and they ordered two butterbeers, freshly baked apple pie and the new chocolate trifle that Harry wanted to try.

Every now and then, Lily would look out the window, trying to see through the darkened streets. She was getting paranoid. Once or twice she thought she saw Death Eaters and would do a double-take, only to realize it was just a family walking by, or couples laughing together.

"Do you like this place?" Harry broke the silence and looked at Lily who had a worried expression on her face.

Lily looked around the room, trying to calm herself. She smiled at Harry and said, "This is actually my favourite, next to the one in Godric's Hollow."

Harry made a sigh of relief. "I thought you'd hate it, Mum. You really looked worried a while ago."

Lily chuckled. "Oh, that's nothing sweetheart."

Harry smiled and remembered, "Minus the nervousness, you looked really confident at the meeting earlier."

Lily frowned slightly and said, "But you didn't come to work today. I mean, I didn't see you."

"I brought you the blue folder but you already had it… so I slipped away."

"Oh…" Lily was embarrassed to tell her son her little freaked out incident in front of the Ministry officials so she talked about something else instead that really mattered.

"I want you to have this," she said quietly, thrusting a small wrapped package into Harry's hands.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

"Something I should have given you a long time ago."

Harry unwrapped the package and saw what looked like a pendant on a chain. The front of the case had a brass lid. He opened it slowly.

"A pocket watch!" Harry said, beaming. He was fascinated with the dials inside.

"It was my father's," said Lily. "He passed it down to me when I started school at Hogwarts."

Tucked inside the lid, Harry saw two pictures with five people in it. He could easily recognize the first three as his parents and himself still a baby while the other two – "That's…"

"Your grandparents… yes." Lily said, smiling. She observed Harry with so much warmth in her eyes. "It's yours now."

Harry looked up, unable to speak for a moment. He closed the lid and said softly, "Thank you, mum."

Madam Rosmerta came back with the two butterbeers and desserts. She laid it gently on the table and left.

Lily looked tenderly in Harry's eyes and started, "I am really proud of you, Harry. You're doing better than you think you are. You've overcome things that no one even knows about and you've done most of it on your own."

"I haven't been honest with you and with myself for all these years." She looked at him sadly. "You've been through a lot… you never let anyone see your darkest moments. I shunt you away and yet you keep going." Her eyes were welling with tears. "You have a beautiful heart, Harry.

"For all those years of rejection and judgement that I am not proud of doing, I wish I could still prove to you that you deserve more credit than you realize."

"We could still do it, mum," Harry said. "Just like what we did in Godric's Hollow."

Lily smiled sadly. I really wish I could give you more time… more love… more happiness…

She held his hands tightly, choked back some tears and said, "I'm… I'm really sorry, Harry. I – I am such a horrible mother –"

"No, you're not –"

"– I didn't give a lot of my time for you –"

"You did –" Harry could see the pain in her eyes.

"– I didn't care for you as much –"

"You cared –"

"– I… I couldn't make you happy…" Lily cupped her hands to her face and sobbed.

"Please…" Harry said sadly, as he reached for her hands. He did not understand why Lily kept apologizing and saying things as though there was not enough time left.

"Please… mum… You are enough for me. That's all I want. You've cared and loved me more than I could ever dream. You are not horrible. You've made me so happy and I am grateful for that… please…"

Harry stood up, went over to her and hugged her. "Please… it hurts to see you cry like this. I don't know what is going on but you've been really emotional. You've cried at least a dozen times today and it's breaking my heart, mum."

"I – I don't want to lose you," Lily was crying so hard in front of Harry.

Harry rubbed her back gently to comfort her. "You're not going to lose me… mum… please stop crying…" He held her for a long time until she calmed down to a mere hiccup.

Lily adjusted herself and wiped away some more tears. She looked a total wreck once again but Harry hugged her, not wanting to let go.

"I'm sorry," said Lily quietly after a while. Harry sat back down on his chair and they looked at each other.

He pushed the apple pie in front of her. "Please cheer up, mum…"

Lily smiled a bit and said, "I'm sorry if I ruined your celebration."

"You are more important to me," he said. "The desserts can wait."

"You've really grown into the amazing young man I dreamed you'd become," she said, her eyes full of love.

"Okay, mum… let's eat before you start crying again."

Lily chuckled softly.

"I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you, mum."