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I didn't show up to the quidditch match the next day. 
                          
I heard we lost, anyway. A bunch of pissed off Slytherins weren't necessarily the best company to keep - so I was kind of glad I skipped on that one. 
                          
At first, Wren was quite annoyed when she realised I wouldn't be cheering in the stands next to her, but she dropped her attitude as soon as she realised I just really wasn't in the mood. 
                          
She was furious when she came back, of course, but that had little to do with me. She was muttering various insults under her breath, most of them directed at Ron Weasley himself. 
                          
I wasn't going to be the one stopping her. 
                          
"He had to be cheating," Wren pointed out, her voice still annoyed while she let herself fall onto her bed. Parkinson entered the room right after her, the look on her face just as foul as Wren's was. 
                          
"Weasley's always play dirty," Pansy pointed out, agreeing with Wren probably for the first time in her life. My best friend nodded furiously, pointing at Parkinson in agreement, too. 
                          
"It's not like we always play by the rules. I've seen enough games to know that much," I chimed in, both of their heads shooting in my direction in an instant. Their glares almost identical. "Okay, never mind," I laughed dryly. "I'm just gonna go for a walk." 
                          
Before either of them had the chance to attack me with their words or, possibly, spells, I quickly fled the room. I wasn't quite sure where to, but anywhere I didn't have to endure the constant blabbering about Quidditch would do just fine. 
                          
It was dark outside by now, but it was still before curfew; so I found myself walking the halls of the old castle. I admired the way the moonlight danced in the long, wide corridors, reflected off of the large windows. The way it was so eerily quiet, yet I felt completely at peace.
                          
I didn't know where my feet would bring me. I didn't have a destination in mind, and I only stopped walking once I made out Harry's and Hermione's distant voices. 
                          
I listened for a second, locating where they were coming from, and then hurried down the spiral staircase. 
                          
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything?" I asked with a smirk on my lips as soon as I saw them; Hermione's head resting on Harry's shoulder while they were closely huddled together. 
                          
Harry's posture stiffened a little while Hermione buried her head deeper in his shoulder. They looked cute. 
                          
I jumped past them, positioning myself in front of the pair with a wide grin on my face. It fell as soon as I took a look at Hermione. 
                          
"Oh, Merlin, Hermione-" I gasped as I realised, quickly taking a few steps towards her and kneeling in front of her. "What's wrong?" I tilted my head as I asked, but the girl just sobbed louder. 
                          
She was such a sweetheart, it almost made my own tears threaten to spill. 
                          
I looked at Harry, waiting for him to explain. He mouthed a silent "Ron," in my direction, and I rolled my eyes. Of course. 
                          
I refrained from asking what exactly happened for Hermione's sake. But I was sure to beat Ron's ass the next time I saw him. 
                          
"Come on now, Hermione," I huffed. Seeing her cry was making me emotional, too. "Ron has two perfectly fine brothers, you know, maybe-" I began, wiping the tears off her cheeks with a small smile on my lips. 
                          
It was a desperate attempt to lighten the mood. 
                          
"Y/n!" Harry interrupted, lightly hitting my shoulder with a shocked expression on his face. Though, it seemed to work as Hermione cracked a small smile before an amused huff left her lips. 
                          
"She's right," The girl sniffled, her hand ruffling through her own hair once. "Moping around isn't going to get me anywhere." 
                          
"Exactly," I nodded in agreement, taking a seat on her right and wrapping my arms around my own legs in an attempt to keep me warm. 
                          
"There are other perfectly fine boys around Hogwarts I can go to Slughorn's Christmas party with," She stated, the regained confidence prominent in her voice. "And I'll probably have more fun with them, anyway." 
                          
I nodded once more while Harry just watched the two of us with an awkward smile. Ron was still his best friend, after all. 
                          
"Just don't ask that Cormac guy, please," I said, a hint of amusement in my voice, though the advice was serious. "I saw the way he looked at you at Slughorn's dinner, just-" I interrupted myself as I visibly cringed at the memory. "Don't," I stressed once more. 
                          
She nodded, knowing exactly what I was talking about. 
                          
Harry's brows furrowed. "How did he look at her, exactly?" He wondered, the confusion prominent in his voice. 
                          
We both shook our heads quickly, and I waved him off, not feeling like we should explain the things he did. If only I could get the picture of him licking his fingers out of my head, my life would be a lot more pleasant. 
                          
I didn't want to know how Hermione felt about it. 
                          
We sat and talked for a while longer, and while the other two grew visibly tired before it even hit curfew, I was still wide awake. 
                          
"Are you feeling better?" I asked, rubbing Hermione's arm with a smile on my lips as our previous conversation wrapped up. 
                          
"Much better," She sighed before a yawn escaped her lips. "I think I should sleep now. We shouldn't be out past curfew, anyway," Her voice hitched slightly as she realised she only had a few more minutes to get to her common room. 
                          
She stood up quickly, stopping in her tracks when she realised Harry wasn't following her. 
                          
"I'll catch up with you in a second, Hermione," He said, his voice soft in hopes she wouldn't grow irritated by him breaking the rules. 
                          
She scoffed and quirked an eyebrow, but then disappeared towards her common room. 
                          
My brother and I shared a comfortable silence for a few minutes, my head resting on his shoulder just like Hermione's had. 
                          
"I hate how there's always something going on between us. We always fight. When we don't fight, we are annoyed with each other. And if it's not that, either, we just ignore each other for whatever reason we can find," Harry stated after a while, his voice so low it was almost a whisper.
                          
"Where is this coming from?" I didn't move, and my voice was just as quiet as his. 
                          
"I don't know. I just miss you, Y/n," He sighed. "We don't spend nearly as much time with each other as I'd want us to. We're the only family we have left now."
                          
There was a weird feeling coming up in my stomach as the words left his mouth. They made me think about what happened again. Made me think about Sirius, how we lost him, and why we lost him. 
                          
Harry and I never really spoke about it before. He never brought it up, and neither did I. It seemed like we just both wanted to forget it ever happened. 
                          
"I still have nightmares, you know." I could feel my heart beginning to beat faster in my chest. "About that night." 
                          
He nodded. "Me too." 
                          
He silently wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me closer towards him with a deep sigh. "I'll always be there for you. You know that, right?" He whispered, and I nodded. "No matter how much we fight, or how annoyed we are by each other. I will always be there if you need anything." He sounded guilty; like he just now developed a conscience for all the fights we've had over the past three years. 
                          
I gulped, nodding once more. "I know. Same goes for me." 
                          
I don't think his words could've come at a better time. 
                          
A/N: If I read one more alabama comment when Harry and Y/n are having a cute moment I'm going to personally come to ur house and knock u out <333