Word count: 481


Hannah swallows down the anger she feels when she sees Susan on the couch in the common room. Her girlfriend's neck has an angry red mark on it, and it's easy enough to see the outlines of the fingers. Carrow's fingers. That bastard. Hannah has never wanted anyone dead until that moment.

She takes a deep breath. Susan is safe, and that's what matters.

Ernie looks up and offers Hannah a small, shaky smile. "I'll let you take over," he says, saluting before climbing to his feet. "Let me know if you need anything. Here."

Susan accepts a Sugar Quill, her favorite sweet, but her face doesn't light up the way it usually does. She just whispers a muttered thanks, nodding her appreciation. Hannah feels her blood boil. Everything in the world always delights Susan. Now, thanks to the Carrows, that has been taken away.

Another deep breath. It does nothing to steady her nerves. "Susan," she says with a sigh, taking a seat next to her girlfriend. "I'm so sorry he hurt you."

"He was going to hurt a first year," Susan whispers. "I would rather it be me, if I'm being honest."

Of course she would. Susan is one of the kindest people Hannah has ever met. Of course she would take on someone else's burden, even if it means she would get hurt in the process.

"I'm scared," Susan admits.

Hannah wishes she could say it would be okay, that of course Harry Potter will find a way to save the day. Over the last few months, she's come to realize that they need to stop waiting for a hero. Maybe Harry will come, but she has to accept that there's a chance he won't.

"I know." Hannah kisses Susan's lips, a soft, chaste kiss. "Me too."

This isn't the Hogwarts she knows and loves. It's become a hellscape, a Death Eater's playground. They're still fighting, of course. Neville has really stepped up, and he has given them so much hope in the darkness.

Still, she wishes things could go back to normal, not that she even remembers what normalcy was. It hasn't been the same since Cedric died, and it feels like everything has just gone downhill ever since.

"Sometimes you're the only thing that keeps me holding on," Susan admits.

And Hannah understands. It has been such a dark time, but then there's Susan, and sometimes Hannah can convince herself that everything is going to find a way to work itself out and be okay. As long as she has Susan by her side, she can dare to hope, however impossible it may seem.

"We're going to get through this," Hannah tells her. "I don't know how, but we'll figure it out. Together. I promise."

She will continue to hope because Susan loves her, and that is all she needs to carry on in the darkness.