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You and Marlene were walking back to your common room; professor Jigger had said that you both needn’t continue the lesson, for you had faced one of the Darkest powers already that day.

“Man, you weren’t kidding” Marlene huffed. “you have to do all these stairs every day??”

“Yup. And the best part is: when you’re finally at the common room you have to more stairs to get to the dormitories.”

She laughed. “The brave and mighty Gryffindors, brought to their knees every day by their greatest, most ancient enemy; the stairs!”

“Are you laughing at us?” you asked incredulously.

She cackled. The sound bounced off the walls, sounding strangely pleasant. “I guess I am.”

Shock was all over your face. “YOU’RE A HUFFLEPUFF! Aren’t you supposed to be kind or something?! Here, carry my books- or better, I’ll carry the books, you carry me!”

You both burst out laughing. She fake fell down and yelled: “Aaaaah! They’ve beaten me! Quick, my brave Gryffindor!! Save me!!”

You laughed even more, and hadn’t quieted down yet when you - finally - reached the common room some minutes later. “Semper fortis” you said, still giggling a little.

“Could your password be anymore Gryffindor?”

“Could yours be anymore Hufflepuff?”

“We don’t have a password.”

“Exactly” you remarked as you crawled through the hole, making her giggle behind you.

“Nice” she commented her surroundings as she straightened up. “Not as cosy as ours, but it’s more… Dunno, mature? Like ours is butterbeer and yours is wine or something.”

“Nice description.”

“Thanks. I try” she said as you both dropped down on the couch in front of the fire. You fell into an easy conversation, talking about anything that came to mind, and had been talking about Hogsmeade when three figures suddenly blocked your view of her.

“(Y/N)!!”

“ARE YOU OKAY??”

“WHAT HAPPENED??”

“ARE YOU HURT??”

“I SWEAR TO MERLIN IF THAT BOGGART HURT YOU-“

“Ouch!” the three of them exclaimed as you pushed them off with Remus and Marlene’s help.

“Guys, we talked about this on the way here” Remus sighed.

“We’re just worried” Peter sighed as he rubbed his behind, sore from landing on the ground.

“I’m fine” you reassured them.

Remus sat down next to you – calmly, thank Merlin – and held out a small package. “Chocolate?” he offered.

“Ooh, yes please” you said and gratefully took some.

“Sharing is caring, Remus” Marlene replied on your other side, and he handed her some.

“Oi mate, how about us?” James said bewildered.

“Get your own” he grumbled, making you and Marlene laugh. You snuggled into the comforting warmth that was the fuzz ball next to you and sighed contently.

After a minute of silence, Sirius spoke up. “So, you’re Marlene, right?”

“Yup” she said.

“Sirius.”

“James.”

“Peter.”

“I know who you are” she chuckled. “Everyone does.”

Sirius grinned. “Still nice to introduce, though.”

“It’s also nice to share your food with your friends, but nooo, …” James muttered under his breath, making you laugh.

“Aww, is Jamie dear hungry?”

“Shut up” he muttered.

“Poor Jamie dear” Remus sighed.

“Meanies” he pouted and got up. He stomped to the boys’ dormitories and mounted the stairs as he muttered what were probably profanities under his breath.

“I’ll go make sure he doesn’t eat all of our food instead” Sirius sighed, got up and stalked after the hungry creature.

When they were up the stairs, you snuggled back into Remus’ side and nibbled your chocolate contently.

“Soooo, are you a couple, or…?” Marlene said, looking at you and Remus, making Remus stiffen, Peter go red with a speed that would have made Lily proud, and made you choke on your chocolate.

“What makes you say that??” Remus flushed as you were still coughing.

“Look at yourselves” she deadpanned, referring to your comfy position.

“Uhh” you stammered, and looked at Remus with an incredulous look on your face. True, you cuddled a lot, but he was just a friend!

“(Y/n), I hope you already know this” he said slowly, “but you’re like a sister to me. Purely platonic.”

“Oh thank goodness” you sighed and immediately relaxed again. “Yeah, you’re kind of like a brother to me, nothing more.”

He nodded, and you snuggled back into his side. Marlene laughed.

“Be careful, you two. Before you know it people will start rumours.”

“Pfsh, then Remus should get a date or something and put an end to them” you muttered.

“Hey, why should I find a date?” he protested.

“Because I don’t want to. Besides, you’re melting hearts everywhere already.”

“Wha- I’m not! And I don’t want to either! How about you ask someone! Frank maybe?”

“Longbottom?” Marlene inquired.

“Yeah, him. Why not?”

“Because Frank is obviously smitten with Alice.”

“How about Regulus?” Peter asked. “You two get along, right?”

“We talk a bit every now and then” you shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean I like him. And even if I liked him and by some strange coincidence he would like me back, I’m a ‘mudblood’, remember?”

Marlene cringed. “I never knew Regulus was such an arse.”

“He isn’t” you defended him, “his ideals are all messed up, but that’s how he was raised. If he were raised by other people, or if he would get away from those bad influences, he would be a cool kid. He already is actually, except then the ‘messed up morality’ part.”

“Sirius ended up just fine” Peter protested.

You shrugged. “The exception that proves the rule. Hey I’m not justifying the wat he looks at blood status, I’m just saying that other than that part of his personality, he’s kinda sweet. At least, he is to me.”

You remained silent for a while until Remus spoke up.

“Is it me, or have those two been suspiciously silent?” he said as he glanced at the stairs.

“Hmm, you’re right, normally you can hear them shouting form here” you said, narrowing your eyes.

He and Peter got up. “We’ll go take a look” the latter said, and they left. You and Marlene talked a little more, until a horrible shriek sounded from upstairs.

“MY GELLY SLUGS!!” Peter howled.

“I WAS HUNGRY OKAY” James replied.

“SIRIUS YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO STOP HIM NOT JOIN HIM” Remus barked.

“HE MADE ME HUNGRY TOO, IT’S NOT MY FAULT!! HE’S LIKE THE DEVIL!!”

“HEY!!”

“THEN HOW ABOUT YOU GO TO THE BLOODY KITCHEN NEXT TIME??! WE PAID FOR THOSE!”

“BUT THE KITCHEN IS SO FAR AWAY” he whined.

Meanwhile, you and Marlene were on the floor laughing, until you realised…

“JAMES POTTER AND SIRIUS BLACK IF I GET UP THERE AND MY PIXIE PUFFS ARE GONE I SWEAR TO MERLIN I WILL TIE YOU TO THE WHOMPING WILLOW AND RELEASE TEN BLUDGERS AT THE SAME TIME AND IT WONT. BE. PRETTY!! DO YOU HEAR ME?! DO YOU HEAR ME??!!”, followed by a frantic rustling upstairs.

As Marlene sat bewildered in the couch looking at where you had just disappeared up the stairs, a new voice caught her off guard.

“Yes, they’re always like this” Lily sighed from the doorway.

~ What’s this? What’s this? It’s covered everywhere! What’s this? A time skip’s in the air! ~

You, Mary, Remus and Marlene were hanging out on the grounds; finals were over, and tomorrow you would leave Hogwarts. You four had already packed, but of course James, Peter and Sirius hadn’t.

You threw some toast to the Giant Squid. “I can’t believe the year is already over” you muttered.

“I know” Remus sighed. “It’s strange; we’re almost halfway there.”

“Stop it guys” Marlene said. “You’re freaking me out.”

“Yeah,” Mary added, “we’ve only just finished our third year. Stop talking like that.”

“Talking like what?” a voice said behind you. As you turned around, you saw Lily and Severus standing there.

“Hey Lil’s” you greeted. “Hey Severus.”

“Hi guys” she said, and Severus greeted you as well – perhaps a little strained when it came to Remus. *Ahem understatement cough*

“So, what were you talking about?” she asked sitting down as well.

Mary shrugged. “(Y/n) and Remus were merely freaking us out with the fact that we’re almost halfway when it comes to being here.”

Lily laughed. “Don’t you guys worry about that, we’ve still got all the time we want.”

“Thank Helga for that” Marlene huffed. “I haven’t got the slightest idea of what I want to do later. The more time I’ve got the better.”

“You have to know what you want to do before sixth year” Remus said. “You have to take your owls and newts, remember?”

Marlene groaned as she laid back on the grass. “Poomp…”

“Oh come on” you giggled, “you must have some idea of what you want to do?”

“Not everyone is like you, (y/n)” Severus said. “You’re one of the few who already know what they want to do later – and that is mostly because of ‘special circumstances’.”

“M’kay I get what you mean” you shrugged. “But still, you can already have some idea of how you want your life to be?”

“Nope.”

“None.”

“No.”

“Sorry, none.”

…

“Mary?” you asked, turning to her in a final attempt of making a point, since she was the only one who hadn’t answered.

“Well, I’m not really sure if it qualifies” she muttered, “but I guess I always wanted to see France.”

“That counts!” you cheered.

“It doesn’t” Marlene said.

“It so does! It’s an idea of her future, therefore it counts!”

“Does not!”

“Does too!”

“SO YOu were talking about France?” Lily intervened in order to avoid the upcoming argument.

Mary shrugged. “Yeah, it seems nice.”

“They eat snails” Marlene deadpanned, making you laugh.

“I always wanted to see Italy” Lily mused. “I think Rome and Vatican City have to be beautiful. The church really did some great things when it came to architecture-“

You snorted. “Yeah, their holy-water fonts are really nice, especially on the inside.”

When you noticed them looking at you with strange looks, you bit your tongue. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to offend you.”

“What do you mean?” Lily asked.

“Dunno, just, if what I said was mean then I’m sorry-“

“Not that, the holy water thing” she said.

You frowned. “I was raised at an orphanage, remember?”

“Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?” Marlene chimed in.

A confused look spread across your face. Had you never told them about your time there? Now that you thought about it, you realised that you never had. “Oh, uhm, they were pretty religious, I guess? I mean, not catholic but Anglican, sure, but still…”

The three girls still looked confused, but realisation quickly dawned on the faces of Remus and Severus. “They abused you” the latter stated.

“Well, no, I wouldn’t really call it abuse-“

“What did they do to you?” Remus asked.

You swallowed nervously, looking down to the ground. You were torn between sadness and anger whenever you thought of that place. “Well, when they found out about me, she pushed my head in a fond of holy water.” Shock spread across their faces. “S-she dragged me to the chapel by my hair, tried an exorcism on me.” You rubbed your hands. “It was only once, and sure, they called me names, but it wasn’t-“

“(Y/n)” Remus stopped you. “Once is enough. Name-calling is enough. Verbal abuse is a thing too, you know. You ran away when you were eleven years old so that you could be happy; that says something about you, but about them as well.”

You kept your eyes to the ground, plucking at the grass beneath you. You felt a presence next to you and a slender arm being slung around your shoulders.

“You deserved better” Lily said quietly. She was right, you had deserved better. A flare of bitterness took over for a second, but you quickly pushed it down. Lily’s arm around you reminded you that you were okay, you were happy, had great friends and family, and that sorry excuse for a human being would never have any say over you again.

“Thanks guys” you muttered, blinking rapidly. You had cried too much already over this woman, you’d be hexed if you’d do so again.

“How old were you?” Mary asked.

“Six” you muttered. “I accidentally smashed a vase without touching it.”

“That’s horrible” she gasped.

You shrugged. “It wasn’t that bad, the bloody thing was fugly...”

A small moment passed before you all simultaneously burst out laughing.

Bitterness and sorrow for now forgotten, you stayed with your friends until the next day, when you left King’s Cross with your father and brother to go home.