Memories of the Heart || Harry Potter x Reader

Y6 ~ Deceit in the Kisses

The castle halls felt colder than usual, the air thick with a lingering unease after the Katie Bell incident. Whispers of speculation floated through the corridors, and every hushed conversation seemed to circle back to the same question—who had cursed her? The answer, at least in Harry's mind, was clear: Draco Malfoy. But that answer had driven a wedge between him and Y/N, and though they were surrounded by Ron and Hermione, the group felt fractured, incomplete.

Hogsmeade visits had been banned, a punishment for something none of them had done, and while most students groaned in frustration, Y/N barely cared. Her world had already been limited enough, caught between strained friendships and aching silence she always received from Draco. Every time she sat with the others, Ron and Hermione carried the conversations, filling the void left by the quiet tension between her and Harry. Every time she sat with the trio, the room felt suffocating. If she spoke, Harry would shut down. If Harry spoke, she found herself biting her tongue, wanting to lash out, wanting to fix things, wanting to—Merlin, she didn't even know anymore.

But truly she had missed him. Merlin, she missed him. Harry had been her best friend, and now he felt unreachable, just a few feet away yet on the other side of an invisible wall. The worst part? He wasn't just the only person that filled her up with frustration. Her frustration with Draco coiled deep in her chest, twisting between anger and hurt. She had defended him, stood up for him when Harry accused him of cursing Katie, and yet Draco had left her to face the fallout alone. He had been distant, avoiding her like a guilty secret, and she was exhausted from the emotional tug-of-war between the two boys.

So she stopped trying.

She avoided Harry. She avoided Draco. She let herself breathe. She spent more time with Hermione, soaking in the comfort of girl talk and shared smiles, hoping that, for a moment, she could forget the boy drama. At least for a while.

But Draco made that impossible.

...

Y/N sat curled in her usual corner of the library's secret study room, books stacked high around her, a quiet barrier between her and the rest of the world. The scent of parchment and ink should have calmed her, but the moment she heard the chair scrape against the floor in front of her, her entire body tensed.

Draco.

He didn't speak right away. Just sat there, staring at her, as if willing her to look up. When she didn't, he exhaled, his fingers tapping lightly against the wooden table.

"Y/N," he said finally, his voice lower this time. "I know you're angry. But you don't get to shut me out like this."

Y/N's grip on her quill tightened. She should answer. She should look at him. But she couldn't—because if she did, she might see the regret in his eyes, and she didn't want to give in.

After a long silence, Draco leaned forward, voice barely above a whisper. "I miss you."

Her chest ached.

Still, she turned a page in her book, ignoring the way her vision blurred slightly.

This time, he didn't try to be subtle.

His expression taut with frustration. "Enough, Y/N. You can't keep avoiding me forever."

She crossed her arms, staring at a point just past his shoulder. "I don't know what you want me to say, Draco."

"I want you to talk to me!" His voice was sharp but quiet, meant only for her ears. "I want you to stop pretending like none of this matters."

Y/N scoffed, shaking her head. "You're one to talk."