It was late, but you couldn’t sleep. The weight of your memories was pressing down on your chest.
Then you heard the soft, quiet footsteps of bare feet and the gentle click of a controller.
Mattheo.
He didn’t say anything at first, he just plugged in the console. “Come on,” he said softly, flashing a crooked grin. “I’m not letting you go to bed until you beat me at this.”
He always chose your favourite game, even when he was terrible at it. You scooted closer and, within minutes, the two of you were laughing together.
You stepped into the darkened tower, expecting quiet, but instead…
“Surprise!”
Candles floated above, soft music played, and a crowd of familiar faces smiled at you. But what caught your eyes first was Theodore.
He walked over to you. “Come here, baby girl. We have to have fun.”
You blinked back the tears. “But why?”
He shrugged, but his eyes were warm. “Because we’re lucky to have you.”
The sun was just beginning to set when Lorenzo pulled you by the hand into the courtyard.
“Dance with me.”
You blinked. “I don’t know how.”
“Good,” he smirked. “That means I get to teach you.”
He guided you gently, step by step. “You’re doing fine,” he said. “Better than fine.”
For the first time in a long while, you felt free. Not just surviving—living.
You opened your eyes to find a note on your bedside table. Tom must have slipped it in while you were asleep.
“The sun’s up. I’ll be waiting at breakfast with tea—just how you like it. -Tom”
And he always was. Sitting at the end of the table with that unreadable expression that softened only when you arrived. He never said much, but he always looked at you like you were worth the world.
A folded piece of parchment slid beneath your elbow. You glanced at Draco, who was sitting on the other side of the room. He pretended not to look, twirling his quill between his fingers.
You opened the note:
“If the professor gives us one more essay, I’m going to hex him. But if you need help, I’ve got you. -Dray”
Regulus sat beside you. “I used to think I was alone too,” he said. “But we’re not broken just because we’re hurting.”
You looked at him, and he offered a quiet nod. “You don’t have to be whole to be loved.”
You had lost everything once. But now, you were finding pieces of yourself again—through laughter, quiet companionship, morning tea, and starlit dances. They weren’t your family.
But they had become your new one.