Different

dances

"Yeah, I'm just excited," Claire lied, putting on a fake smile. She waved bye to Leo before he could come over and make a big fuss and then followed the girls. Ginny and Hermione started talking about what type of dress they wanted while Daphne and Claire hung back.

"How's things with Leo?" Daphne asked, gaining the attention of the other two.

"You guys are so cute," Ginny gasped wistfully.

"It's great," Claire replied with a soft smile. The past few weeks had been great, but also a little overwhelming. Leo seemed to want things to be a lot more serious than she did.

"He seems so sweet," Hermione agreed. "She almost always comes back with chocolates or flowers."

Claire smiled at the ground while the other three girls gossiped about Leo. Daphne thought that Ginny was pretty, so the girl tended to ignore Hermione for the redhead. Claire stayed silent as they walked, her head spinning with new information.

The three other girls seemed to be getting along as they looked through the dresses. They would occasionally show ones to Claire and she would simply nod or smile, rarely giving an opinion. She had a limited wardrobe, so this wasn't exactly what she was good at. It took them almost a full hour before they had all picked out dresses. Claire had almost given up hope when she found the perfect dress hiding in the back, and it made her feel a little better. As if she knew everything would work out.

"Let's get a butter beer," Ginny suggested.

"Claire, is that okay?" Hermione asked. She had noticed how quiet the girl had gotten, but she wasn't going to say anything in front of the others.

"Yeah," Claire assured her. But as soon as the doors opened Claire knew something was wrong. Her eyes immediately went to the dark corner when they met with a man she hadn't seen in months.

"Claire, let's go."

She didn't even know that Harry was in the Three Broomsticks, but he was trying to guide her out of the building. Her feet couldn't move and she felt frozen as they made eye contact. 

"He's here, Harry," Claire whispered. Their eyes stayed latched onto one another and her feet wouldn't move. Harry saw the smirk on the man's face and just picked Claire up, basically throwing her over his shoulder. She couldn't look away. She couldn't blink.

"I've got you," Harry said softly, putting Claire down and wrapping an arm around her until they were hidden away. She was surprisingly calm, almost like she was numb. Like she had nothing left to give.

"How is he there? He's banished," Claire whimpered, wrapping her arms around herself. Harry draped his jacket over her shoulders but she wasn't cold. She was shaking from fear.

"Your uncle never seemed to play by the rules," Harry said bitterly, pulling Claire closer to him so she could rest her head on his shoulder.

"He's not supposed to be here," Claire whispered, a single tear falling down her face. "It's just too much. It's too much."

"I've got you," Harry promised.

And that was the only thing she was sure of.

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The morning of the Yule Ball had approached sooner than Claire thought was possible. She had yet to talk to Draco but she had been able to convince the girls not to worry, but of course Hermione still did.

The girls were all in Ginny's dorm to get ready. She was the only girl in her year who had been asked, so it was empty. Daphne was with Pansy to get ready, so the three were mostly quiet as they did their own makeup and hair. Claire was basically helpless, so she just did what she knew how to do. Ginny and Hermione both gave her their seal of approval, only adding or changing a few things.