Alexa loved nights at Hogwarts.
She didn't have a foster sister asking her to walk her to the bathroom so she could scare the monsters away.
She didn't have a foster mother asking her to get up early and make everyone breakfast.
She didn't have foster brothers running up and down the halls, refusing to put on their pajamas.
She just had quiet, peaceful conversation with the other Gryffindor girls, and a nice peaceful common room to go into when Lily Evans got on her last nerve.
On one particular night in her second year at Hogwarts, Alexa went down to the common room late at night to see that someone was already there.
"Hello Sirius," she said, grinning. She hated to admit it, but when she looked at Sirius, she couldn't help but notice how good looking he was.
"Hi Lexi," he said, not taking his gaze off the fireplace. "What are you doing awake?"
"Marveling at the nights I spend at Hogwarts," she answered, sitting down next to him and leaning her head on his shoulder.
He felt his entire body tense up, but she didn't notice. "What about you?" she asked.
"Couldn't sleep," he said. "So how is nighttime here so different than at home?"
She sighed, then told him the tales of her past.
When Alexa was four, she left the orphanage to go to her first foster home.
She was so excited when Ms. Elwen told her that a family wanted her. She was so happy that a mommy and daddy were going to take her in.
The first week was fine. The first month even. But after that, they started fighting. Her new mommy would yell at her new daddy and say that he had to put Alexa to bed. He would storm out of the house.
He would come back late at night. One day, they got in a huge fight, and he hit her.
The next day, Alexa couldn't understand why her new mommy took her back to the orphanage.
"Oh," Sirius said. Alexa nodded. "It's not so bad really. I mean, it's better than being stuck with that, right?"
It was two years later when Alexa found another home. She was six. A middle aged lady and her husband took her in. After her incident, she could never call them Mom and Dad.
It never felt like home. And after she'd been there for a year, her foster parents decided to put their giant house to use. They brought in many other foster kids. They came and went, except for Alexa and a small girl named Luanne. Luanne was two when she came, and was now four.
Alexa was always close to Luanne. The two of them were alike. They didn't know their birthparents.
"Awexa?" a soft voice calls from outside her room.
"Yeah Lulu?" she says, rolling off her bed and opening the door.
"Will you come to the bathroom with me?" she asked, looking down the long, dark hallway.
"Why?" she asked curiously.
"I'm scared of the monsters," she said. "But you're so brave, they monsters won't try and hurt me if I'm with you."
"But you're brave too Lulu," Alexa said. The little girl shook her head sadly. "No I'm not," she said. "So will you come with me?"
Alexa smiled and took Luanne's hand. Together they faced those monsters. And not one of them was crazy enough to mess with Luanne and Alexa.
"Wow," Sirius said. "You're such a great sister."
Alexa grinned. "Well, I can't say I'm the greatest to the rest of them. We get along I suppose, it's just that I never really feel close to them."
"How many others are there?" he asked curiously.
"Um, let's see…the twins, Jacob and Leslie, that's two, then me and Luanne, four, and also Zeke and Julia, so six. Oh, and Bebe, so altogether there are seven of us."
"Wow," he said. "I have one brother, and I can't even stand him!"
"Well, it does get hard some times," she said sleepily.
"You sound tired," he said. "You should go to sleep now."
But she didn't hear him, because she'd already fallen asleep on his shoulder.
Not that he was complaining.