Insomnia | Fred Weasley |

18. You're welcome

After crying for what felt like hours next to Harry over their broomsticks, Alex somehow managed to make it back to the Gryffindor Common Room with the help of Fred to have a proper shower and to get all of the mud and grime off from the match. But she just continued crying in the shower, which didn't go unnoticed by Hermione, who felt bad for her friend.

Harry spent the night in the hospital wing at Madam Pomfrey's insistence and the next morning, the entire quidditch team went back, along with Wood to see him. Alex was still upset about her broomstick and she could see that Harry was as well, so she didn't bring it up.

Wood, who looked as though he hadn't slept at all the night before, told Harry, "I don't blame you," he mumbled as though it was rehearsed, which she suspected it was, judging by the way Angelina and Alicia were looking at him sternly, "not in the slightest."

The rest of the team left but Alex stayed behind as they waited for Ron and Hermione to show up. She looked up at Harry to see that something was bothering him, causing her to grab his arm gently.

"Something's eating at you," she told him with a smirk. "I can see it behind your eyes."

Harry sighed, thinking back to seeing the Grim during the game and he knew that the only person who would give an outside perspective was Alex, seeing as she wasn't taking Divination. She most likely wouldn't think that he was going to die like Ron or scoff at the idea like Hermione would.

"What I'm about to tell you stays between us, okay?" He told her to which she nodded, waiting for him to continue. "I think I saw the Grim at the game," he told her quickly, waiting to see what she would say.

Alex's eyes widened at his statement. "What do you mean?"

Harry sighed. "I saw this black shaggy dog at the game, watching," he added. "I mean, it could've been my eyes just playing tricks on me, right?" Alex stayed silent, which didn't settle Harry's nerves.

"Right?" Harry repeated.

With a shaky breath, she looked at Harry. He had seen the same thing she saw, which made her stomach tighten with anxiety. "Harry," she whispered, glancing around to make sure no one could be listening, "I saw the same thing."

Harry almost toppled out of bed at her confession. "What?"

She could only nod. "I swear, I thought that my eyes were playing tricks on me as well, but hearing you say that, now I know that what I saw wasn't just my imagination."

Harry could only run his hand through his messy hair with a sharp breath. "What does this mean?" He asked. "Could it have to do with Sirius Black, do you reckon?"

At that moment, Alex wanted to tell him the truth. How Sirius Black was her father, but she had no connection to him because he was incarcerated by the time she was three years old. How she didn't know why he would be after her like he was after Harry, but that didn't mean she was against Harry.  Why she kept the information to keep him from getting hurt by the truth.