𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑢𝑝𝑜𝑛 𝑎 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚 \\ 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗷. 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿

𝐿𝑋𝐼𝐼𝐼.

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙞𝙭𝙩𝙮-𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —

CAROLINE STOOD OUTSIDE of her old house, watching the new family move in. Her bedroom was being turned into an office, and a little girl was moving into Jacob's old room. Caroline had left it untouched when she left the house the summer before, but her grandmother had torn it apart, donating and selling practically everything. Caroline took what she wanted, what couldn't be replaced, before the new family moved in. Caroline knew this wasn't her mother's decision, to sell their house and never look back, but she didn't stop her grandmother from doing it. This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

        "How much longer are we gonna stand out here?" Harry asked, watching the house like Caroline did.

        Caroline shrugged. "Until it makes me feel better." she answered, and Harry sighed. Her hand twitched uncontrollably at her side, Harry catching it in his grip.

        The little girl ran into the house with a box of toys and her parents finally noticed Harry and Caroline. "Can we help you?" the man asked, confused, his wife beside him.

        Caroline looked away from her old bedroom and at the couple. "Oh, sorry. I-I used to live here. My grandmother sold the house to you." she explained briefly, Harry unsure of what she was doing.

        "Oh, the Jones family. It's a great house." the woman smiled, holding a box of kitchenware.

        "Why you'd guys move? Wanted a bigger space?" the husband asked.

        Caroline couldn't stop her mouth from moving. "No, my little brother was killed while I was tortured and forced to watch, on the same day my dad was kidnapped and tortured for six months by the same people. My mom kinda went nuts and tried to kill herself, so..." Caroline said, Harry glancing down at her, a questioning look on his face. She shrugged.

        The couple was terrified. "Oh, we're so sorry." the woman stammered, looking to her husband for help.

        "Enjoy the house. The floorboards in the second floor hallway are very creaky." Caroline said, pulling Harry by the hand and walking away from the house.

        Harry flicked the side of her head gently. "Why did you do that? It was funny, but kind of scary." the boy said with a smile, peering down at his girlfriend.

        Caroline smiled, lacing her fingers with Harry, the way they fit. "I don't know." Caroline said shyly, the two of them walking on the sidewalk on their way back to Remus's house. It was mid-July, the best summer Caroline had had in a long time. For Harry, it was the first summer he wasn't alone, and he cherished every moment.

When they got back, Remus and Tonks weren't home, which meant they could break one of Remus's ground rules; no Harry in Caroline's bed. They kicked off their shoes and settled on her bed, Caroline's head on Harry's chest, playing with her long braids, her tremor induced hand in her lap. Harry noticed her quietness. "What are you thinking about?" he knew her so well, better than anyone.

        Caroline sat up. "I want to change my hair." she said suddenly, going to her desk and opening one of the drawers, pulling out a pair of scissors.

        "You said you wanted to keep your braids." Harry reminded her, sitting up on her bed.

        "I changed my mind," Caroline said. There were bad memories surrounding both her braids and her shoulder-length coils, and she wanted something different. "Come help me." she spoke, moving into the nearby bathroom.

        Harry sighed and joined her, kneeling on the ground behind her while she sat on the floor. "I don't want to cut your hair. What if I mess it up?" Harry said, the scissors in his hand.

        Caroline rolled her eyes, lifting up a braid. "It's fake. As long as you don't cut here, you're fine." she said, showing him where the extensions met her real hair.

        Harry nodded and started cutting all of her braids until all that was left reached her shoulders, and they started unbraiding her natural hair. "Am I doing it right?" Harry asked, nervous.

"Yeah," Caroline said with a smile. Once all of her braids were undone, her hair was a frizzy mess, and her chopped extensions were in a pile on the floor. "Get out so I can shower." Caroline said, and Harry nodded, awkwardly closing the door behind him.

Caroline fixed her hair up and coiled her curls until they stood up around her head, free and natural, using her left hand entirely. It was better that way. Caroline changed and disposed of her hair before entering her bedroom, finding Harry sitting on her desk chair, petting Marie. He smiled when he saw her. "You look beautiful." Harry said, and Caroline flushed.

        She put the scissors back in her desk, placing a kiss on Harry's lips. "Thank you." she said shyly, stroking Marie's soft fur.

        Harry started writing in his journal and Caroline placed Penny on her bed, brushing her fur carefully. When Remus came home, he inspected Caroline's room, satisfied with what he saw. "Your mother loved to wear her hair like that." Remus said, and Caroline smiled.

        Tonks arrived and they ate dinner, playing cards before everyone went to bed. Harry left Caroline's door open as he came back from changing, moving to the trundle he slept in. Caroline was already in her bed, her hair protected by her satin cap, falling asleep while reading a novel. "Go to sleep." Harry took her book away, placing it on her nightstand, kissing her and her twitching hand before he shut the lamp off. He had Penny, Caroline had Marie.

        They had a system that worked well. It was inevitable that the nightmares plagued each of them every night, so they held hands through their sleep. Caroline's left hand hung over the side of the bed, reaching Harry's. When they woke up and felt that the other was there, it was calming. It was enough.

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —

REMUS AND TONKS checked on Harry and Caroline before they left the next morning. Once they saw that they were still asleep, they left, using the Floo network to leave the house. Caroline and Harry pretended that they were asleep, and when they were sure Remus and Tonks were gone, they opened their eyes. Caroline moved towards the wall, leaving room for Harry to enter her bed, instantly taking her into his arms, her head on his chest.

        "It would really suck if they came back." Caroline mumbled. It was summer, so they slept in.

        Harry smiled, fixing Caroline's cap. "Yeah, it would." he whispered back, his eyes falling shut. Caroline relaxed in his arms, falling back to sleep immediately. It always went like this.

— ✩ ☽ ✩ —