"No! No!" I screamed ferociously. I was trapped in the centre of the wooden room with the werewolf prowling slowly around the perimeter. I whipped my head around. There was no door. Where was the door? Where was it?! Panic injected itself into my body and took hold of my limbs. The monster was inching closer and closer with each lift of its clawed paws. I could hear the quick outbursts of its breath and smell a lingering scent of sweat.
"Get away!" I screeched painfully, suddenly moving my hands to pat my robes. But all I had on was my pyjamas. Where was my wand?!
My feet jerked downwards and I fell onto my backside as they sunk further into the floor like quicksand. Fuck. Fuck.
"Help! Please! Help!" I cried out as my hands started to sink into the surface as well, trapping me. I was ready made bait. It could only be seconds until-

Raising my head, I meet those golden eyes and shrieked as a claw lifts above my head-

I scream and scream into the darkness, unable to work out where I was or how I'd got there. A thin layer of sweat covered my entire body. Wand. Wand. I need my wand. Help. It was going to kill me.

A bright light appeared out of nowhere as the curtains of my bed are ripped back. My hands fly to shield my eyes as I cry out again. Through squinted eyes, I can see Lily standing there with her wand lit, wide eyed and a face full of fright.
"Erin! My god!" She crawled onto my bed and took my hand.
I could only pant and swallow sorely, feeling the thumping of my heart in my chest. It's not here. I'm fine. Just a dream.
Figures behind Lily come into the light and I see the other girls from my dorm standing in their pyjamas, biting their lips and whispering.
"Are you okay?" Lily asks in a gentle voice, stroking my hand.
She stays silent as I catch my breath enough to answer.
"J-just… Just a dream. I'm sorry. I'm sorry," I wheeze, wiping my damp hair off my forehead.
"Don't be sorry, it's alright. You just gave us a bit of a fright. Need me to get McGonagall?"
"N-no," I said as my teeth start to chatter. From being sticky and warm, I was abruptly feeling like a chill had wormed its way into my veins.

"I t-think I just need some water," I whisper and Lily shuffles to reach for the glass and jug on my bedside table.
She passes me the glass and as I take a sip, I see Cece's head pop over the top of Lils.
"You alright Erin?"
"Yeah, thanks. Sorry to worry you all. Just- Just a dream. You can go back to sleep."
She gave a small smile and nodded, "You know where to find us if you need anything."
"Thanks," a whisper escaped me and I took another sip of water.

Lily stroked my hair back off my face more and sighed, her lips pulled in a tight line.
"I wish I knew how to help you," the girl murmured.
I drained the glass, loving the feeling of the refreshing water running down my throat.
"My fault. Forgot to take the dreamless sleep potion Pomfrey gave me."
"But that won't last forever. You can't take it every night."
"…I know."
"It's been 5 nights now since you came out the Hospital Wing. You've grown reliant on the potion, Erin. I'm sorry, but look what happens when you don't take it."
I passed my empty glass back to my friend and looked sheepishly at her face. She was speaking the truth. As usual.
"If you would just open up and-"
"Lils," I interrupt. She had been bugging me all yesterday about telling her what happened the night I ended up in the Hospital Wing claiming it would help me. She had even brought me a book from the library about dealing with nightmares and trauma, but I had shunned her away claiming that it didn't bother me that much. I hadn't ended up going to McGonagall after Sirius's and I conversation because he distracted me enough to make me forget and I hadn't been able to build up the courage again. So my terrors were all still bottled inside me, just waiting to burst out.

Yet again, I'm choosing to ignore this building fear bubbling in my stomach. However instead of Snape, this time I'm now hurting my closest friend.

"I'm sorry. I love you. I do," I said sincerely, squeezing her hand, "And I could not be more thankful for you looking after me, honestly. But I'm finding it- it- it's just so difficult for me to recount it all. I'm so sorry."
Instead of grumbling and getting irritated with me, Lily showed once again just how brilliant she is.
"Well, when you do eventually get there, I'll be here. Always. And if not me, then at least… someone else. Okay?"
Flinching slightly at her casual reference to who I assumed meant Sirius, I then nodded.
"Okay. I promise. When I'm ready."
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around me tightly. As she leant back, she shrugged her shoulders brightly and sang, "Right! You'd best get back to sleep and rest up, it must be about 2 in the morning. Want me to stay with you?"
I shook my head, "I'll be fine. Thanks though, Lils. I mean it."
With a sunny smile, Lily rolls off my covers, her long hair trailing her like a cape. She pulls my curtains shut and I listen in the darkness as she climbs back into her own bed.

I waited patiently in silence for a good ten minutes until I could hear steady breaths coming from all sides of the room before slipping out of my curtains. Pulling on a hoodie and a pair of socks, I tiptoed to the exit. As I slipped out the room, I thanked the well-oiled hinges of the door for not creaking.

Once in the common room, I strode with less care and made my way over to one of the large windows looking out over the hills. I unlocked the latch and pushed the glass outwards, breathing in as the cold night air hit my face. Running my hands through my hair, I perched on the window seat and stared out at the partially full moon. The calming flutter of wind every so often did wonders for my nerves. As my eyes readjusted, I caught the sight an owl swooping out of the Owlery. It flew out over the forest, wings outstretched, silhouetted in the light of the moon.

"Can't sleep either, huh?" An unusually quiet voice says from behind me.
I let out a squeak of surprise and have to clutch the windowsill to stop myself falling out. About to turn and shout at the offender, I turn my head, my open mouth failing as I look upon the familiar face of Sirius Black. He seemed more ruffled than usual, with dark bags under his eyes. His trademark smirk replaced by a thin lipped smile. His hair was sticking up in places, like he'd been tossing and turning in his sleep.
Saying nothing, I shift over so that my back is facing the open air and pat the space of window seat next to me. Sirius traipses over and falls down onto the ledge beside me like a puppet without strings. I watch on as he leans his elbows onto his knees and runs his face through his hands. I felt like I was watching a stranger. This utterly private behaviour was so surreal to me, it made me momentarily stumped.
"Shit night too?" I finally whisper out, clutching my hands in my lap tightly.
Without raising his head, Sirius replies, "You could say that yeah."
"Want to talk about it?" I offer gently, kicking myself at how much I sounded like Lily did with me earlier.

Sirius sighs and rubs his eyes, "I don't know what to do any more."
If this were Sirius and I talking normally, I'd elbow him and tell him to stop being such a drama queen. But this was not normal. Sirius was completely drained and tired and… a mirror of myself, if I had to be honest.
What I chose to do was lean my head on his shoulder, twisting in to face him more. We sat there for a while in silence; I even closed my eyes, feeling a lot calmer than I had done in my bed. The minutes ticked on, broken only by the occasional hoot of an owl or whisper of wind.

Eventually, it was Sirius who spoke first, his voice cracking under strain.
"It's my brother."
Dazed, I lift my head and blink at his face. "Your brother?" I ask softly, not wanting to break the charm of the past minutes.
"Regulus. You know him, he's in Slytherin," Sirius continued, still with his head in his hands.
"Yeah…"
"He sent me a letter tonight. It's the only way he'll speak to me after I left home. It's like I'm invisible in person, no matter how hard I try. I thought-" Sirius broke off shaking his head. I placed my hand on his closest knee.
"He's your brother, you're family," I tried to comfort him with wide, sad eyes.
"That's just it- This letter- He's told me that he's finally doing what my fucking parents have been trying to force him to do for months. He's cutting me out of his life. Said he wants no contact. And to not bother seeing him over the summer either."
I struggle but can't help letting out a soft gasp of dismay. It wasn't news that before we started this year, Sirius had decided to run away from his family and camp out at the Potters. But Regulus was the only one Sirius could count on to have his back when he was at home. He was the only family he had left.
"I'm so sorry," is all I can muster.
"I just didn't think he'd cave so easily. You'd think that I'd mean more to him, right? No. Not after those bastards wormed their way into his mind. And now my brother is going to walk past me in the corridors like we're strangers who've never met."

Sirius leant up, revealing a completely shattered expression, then moved his hands to curl into tight fists on his knees. As he did, he felt my hand under his and loosened his grip to worm his fingers so they were interlocked. He kept his eyes on our hands and fell silent.

"There's always hope, Sirius," I told him, my heart pounding against my ribs. "Regulus is your brother – he knows how much you care about him. This letter could just be a way to appease your parents. If they are pressuring him to cut you out, then it might not be his choice. Don't give up. I'm sure he'll come around eventually…"
Sirius turned his head to look into my eyes. He was viewing me curiously, as if he'd never seen me before. I was so very aware that our faces were not a great distance apart.
I stuttered in an attempt to ignore this, "A-and if not, then it's his loss, right? You have more family than you think. You've got James, and his parents. And Remus, and Peter. I'd doubt they'd ever let you be on your own for too long! And then there's me-"

I was cut off suddenly because Sirius leaned forward and lightly pressed his lips to mine.

For a moment, I didn't quite believe it and stayed frozen in shock. But as I felt Sirius about to lean away, I kissed him back, so, so terrified. I lifted my free hand to the back of his head, curls poking through the gaps in my fingers. In all of my daydreams since I figured out that I had a crush on Sirius Black, I never thought it would end up feeling this good, or this daunting. He moved his mouth against mine, now confident that I would return the feeling. His nose kept nudging mine and I grasped his hair, pulling him closer. My heart was surely going to leap out of my rib cage at any moment. His lips were so soft, and when his tongue met my bottom lip, I opened my mouth wider, willingly.

When we broke away, breathing hard, I let my hand fall from his hair to his neck. His thumb was stroking the back of our interlocked hands. I didn't know where to look or what to do. My face was burning and, damn- Sirius Black just kissed me. For real.

He leant in again and gave me a soft peck on the lips, as if it check it wasn't a fluke before sending me one of those wide grins that drives me crazy.
"Well, hey…" He breathed out hard, as if a thought had just come to him. He was looking a lot brighter than he had all night, with an added gleam in his eyes. "I never realised that."
"Never realised what?" I tumbled out, still in a daze, my jaw feeling a lot heavier than it normally did.
"You've always been here."
"What- the common room?" I raised my eyebrows as if he was mad.

Sirius grinned again in amusement.
"No, you've always been here. Next to me. Always had my back over everything."
"That's what friends do, right?" I replied, gulping and longing to kiss him again. My fingers tickled the back of his neck.
Sirius's eyes watched as mine flickered to his lips and back again, and as if he read my mind, he mumbled, "Well I don't do this with all my friends," before his fingers cupped my jaw and pulled me in again. I was much more desperate this time, pushing myself against him as we locked mouths. I could feel him smiling against me and it made my stomach do flips.

After a short amount of time, Sirius, still with his eyes closed, leaned back an inch and let out a laugh that tickled my face.
"Nice pyjamas, by the way."
"Shut up," I accosted, before kissing him again. I was feeling far too full to be even the slightest bit embarrassed.