Memories of the Heart || Harry Potter x Reader

Y7 ~ Haircuts in the Dark

A few months had passed. The morning air was crisp and biting as Y/N slipped out of the tent, her breath blooming in delicate wisps against the frigid dawn. The sky was still painted in deep hues of indigo and violet, a slow prelude to the sun's ascent. A heavy mist clung to the earth, winding around the gnarled roots of towering trees, casting an ethereal glow over the clearing. The forest, usually alive with distant howls or the rustling of nocturnal creatures, now stood eerily still. Only the occasional sigh of wind through the branches disturbed the quiet, as if the world itself was holding its breath.

She lowered herself onto the damp, leaf-strewn ground, pulling her knees close to her chest. The moisture seeped through her clothes, but she barely noticed. Instead, she focused on the way the world around her seemed to stir with the first light—branches heavy with morning dew, a distant bird shaking off the night's slumber, the rhythmic hush of the wind weaving between trunks like a wandering specter. For a brief moment, she allowed herself to feel small, as if she were just another whisper in the vastness of the woods.

Behind her, the faint rustle of fabric broke the stillness. The tent flap shifted, and from the periphery of her vision, she saw Harry emerge. Even without turning, she knew it was him—the quiet way he moved, the gentle exhale that slipped past his lips when he saw her. A sigh of relief, as if his body had only truly relaxed now that he'd found her again.

For a moment, he lingered in the tent's entrance, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, his gaze fixed on her silhouette against the misty backdrop. The space she left beside him on the bedroll was still warm, but the absence of her weight had woken him instantly. He had grown used to feeling her near, the way she draped over him unconsciously during the night, seeking warmth in the bitter cold.

Disappearing back into the tent briefly, he re-emerged with a thick, slightly tattered blanket in his arms. Its edges dragged slightly in the dirt as he walked toward her, his strides slow, unhurried. Y/N looked up as he approached, his form cutting through the fog, his hair even messier than usual from sleep. He sat beside her without a word, unfolding the blanket and draping it over both their shoulders, sealing them in shared warmth.

"You're always up before me," he murmured, pulling the fabric closer around them. His voice was thick with drowsiness, laced with the hushed intimacy of early morning.

Y/N let out a small hum of amusement. "And you always find me," she replied, tilting her head slightly to glance at him.

Harry chuckled, the sound soft, fond. "Hard not to, when you're half my body heat at night. You vanish, and suddenly, I'm bloody freezing."

Y/N let out a quiet laugh, shaking her head. "Thank you for the blanket," she murmured, pulling it tighter around her shoulders. A teasing lilt crept into her voice as she glanced up at him. "But how'd you know I needed an extra layer?"

Harry chuckled softly, his breath warm against her cheek as he replied, "Easy, just from the look of those extra rosy cheeks I'm so fond of." He leaned in to press a light kiss to her flushed cheek, a gesture that made her blush even more. Harry grinned, satisfied with her reaction, his heart swelling at the sight of her flustered expression. Y/N, caught between pouting and smiling She nudged him playfully with her hand, but he caught her hand before she could pull away, entwining their fingers. His touch was warm, grounding. Y/N exhaled, her breath a fleeting cloud in the chill.

The world around them was still asleep, and for a while, so too were the burdens of their quest. Their voices were low, their whispers cautious not to disturb Ron and Hermione, who were still slumbering inside the tent.

They talked about everything and nothing, their conversation drifting from topic to topic, small and mundane things that felt precious in their fleeting normalcy. Harry spoke about the stars he had seen through the gaps in the trees the night before, while Y/N mentioned the way the forest seemed to come alive in the morning light. It was the kind of conversation that could only happen between two people who truly understood each other.