Memories of the Heart || Harry Potter x Reader

Y5 ~ Ministry of Magic

The air in the room seemed to grow heavier as they stepped further into the expansive chamber. The vastness of the space was almost suffocating, with its towering shelves vanishing into the shadows above. Each shelf brimmed with small, ancient glass orbs, their faint glimmers resembling trapped starlight. The eerie blue flames flickering in the sconces along the stone walls cast elongated, ghostly shadows that danced as if alive. The cold was pervasive, wrapping around them like an icy shroud, seeping through their robes and biting into their skin. The silence was unnatural, heavy and unbroken, amplifying the sound of their hesitant footsteps on the cold stone floor.

Y/N clutched her wand tightly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Ninety seventy!" she urged, her tone edged with nervous urgency.

The group clustered together at the end of the row, peering into the dim abyss stretching before them. The shadows seemed to pulse with unseen menace, and every breath they took felt louder than it should.

Y/N's scanned the alley ahead. Her heart was pounding against her ribs like a frantic drumbeat. "He's right down at the end," she said, her voice wavering despite her attempt to sound steady. "You can't see properly from here."

Hermione glanced at her, his jaw tight. "Are you sure? This place... it's massive. What if—"

"I'm sure," Y/N interrupted, the edge in her voice cutting through Harry's doubt. "We wouldn't have come all this way if I wasn't."

With an unspoken understanding, they followed her lead. She moved between the shelves with purpose, though her steps were stiff with tension. The orbs lining the shelves seemed to watch them, their faint luminescence casting a sickly glow on their faces as they passed. Y/N felt a hollow ache in her chest, a gnawing dread that grew stronger with every step.

"He should be here," Y/N said, her voice barely audible as they reached the end of the row. Her breaths came quicker, sharp and shallow. Her fingers trembled as she swept her gaze across the shadows. "Anywhere here... he has to be here. I know it."

Hermione touched her arm gently. "Y/N?" she ventured softly, her face tight with concern.

But Y/N pulled away, her movements frantic. Her eyes darted down the adjoining alleys as if Sirius might materialize if she looked hard enough. "Maybe he's over there," she muttered, her voice cracking.

"Y/N?" Harry called, stepping forward to grab her arm. She turned on him, her eyes blazing with frustration and desperation.

"What?" she snapped, the raw edge in her voice silencing the group.

Harry met her gaze, his own eyes reflecting guilt and uncertainty. "I... I don't think Sirius is here," he said carefully, his voice low but steady. "I think we were wrong."

Her face twisted, a mixture of disbelief and anger. "You think?" she repeated, her voice trembling with frustration. "Harry, do you have any idea what it took to get here? What we risked? You can't just stand there and say it might've been for nothing!"

"I don't want it to be true either, Y/N!" Harry snapped back, his frustration boiling over. "But look around! There's no sign of him—no struggle, no anything! Just... these stupid orbs!"

The words hit her like a physical blow. She recoiled, her shoulders hunching as if shielding herself from an unseen attack. Her gaze dropped to the floor, her lips pressing into a thin line to hold back the flood of emotions threatening to escape.

"It felt so real," she muttered, her voice barely audible. "The vision, the way he called out... it felt real, Harry."

"I know," Harry said, softer this time. "But maybe... maybe that's exactly what they wanted us to think."