Y/N couldn't believe her ears. Sirius had to be lying. He just had to be. The words that kept spilling out of his mouth in the near-darkness of the Gryffindor common room, the only light coming from the flickering fireplace. No one else was around as they huddled around the dying fire, not bothering to sit on the lumpy couches and chairs around them. This wasn't the time to allow the dangerous words to float into untrustworthy ears

Of course, Y/N knew he wasn't lying. She had heard all about the horrendous acts performed against Sirius from his own family, who considered him a traitor for going against their ideals and "morals." Those "morals" were very questionable at the best of times, and downright illegal in the worst of times. 

Y/N knew that Sirius Black was going to be disowned; she knew it in her heart. But she didn't think it would happen during their Sixth Year. Where would he go now? He didn't have a home anymore. With every fiber of her being, she wished he could come home with her, live out the rest of their school years together. But her parents were muggles, and they wouldn't understand, let alone allow him to stay at their house in the first place. 

"James and I have talked it through together," Sirius said, his deep voice breaking through the mist in Y/N's head. He seemed to have grabbed her hand when she was stuck in her mind, and he kept squeezing it while talking to the rest of them. "He sent a letter to his parents the other day, asking if I could stay with them. They agreed."

"Wait, James knew about this?" Remus asked. Y/N could hear the hint of hurt in his voice; she felt it, too, in her chest. She just didn't say anything right now because her mind was still slowly trying to form thoughts. "How long has he known?"

"Just a couple of days," Sirius answered before James could shoot back a response that would turn into a fight between all four boys. "He found out a couple of days ago when he overheard Regulus telling me that he was turning my room into his second bedroom."

"How long have you been disowned?" Peter spoke up. His thick fingers were pulling at a string on his robes, over and over, around and around, like he was trying to calm his anxiety. 

"Long enough," Sirius whispered. He squeezed Y/N's hand again, but she was totally numb to everything around her. It was like her mind had stopped working once Sirius told them the bad news. "Don't worry about me, though. The Potter's are going to take care of me."

"We all will take care of you," Remus said with a nod. "We're brothers, remember?"

"Well, brothers plus Y/N," James said with a slight laugh. However, it died down when he saw the look on Y/N's face. Sirius squeezed her hand once again, trying to get her attention. She wouldn't look at him; she could only look at James. "We take care of each other," James continued. "All of us."

"Yeah," Peter said weakly. 

The five of them sat in the darkness, quiet as a mouse. There were too many thoughts swirling through Y/N's head to even notice that James, Remus, and Peter head to bed, leaving her and Sirius alone together.

"You're too quiet, Y/N," Sirius whispered, touching her cheek. She hesitantly leaned into his touch, hating that her boyfriend had noticed how much this news affected her. "What's on your mind?"

"What's on my mind?" Y/N asked softly. She pulled away from him, let go of his hand. What in the world was wrong with him for asking that so casually? "Sirius, you got disowned from your family just because you think differently than them on certain things."

"I never said my family was good, Y/N."

"You didn't even tell me when it happened!" She wasn't really sure where that anger had come from, but it was out there like a poisonous snake, slithering through her heart and out of her mouth, striking Sirius across the face. Y/N had never felt this angry before, not even when James and Sirius had stolen all her schoolbooks and hidden them from her for almost a week. "I'm your girlfriend, Sirius. You should have told me."

"I didn't want you worrying!"

Y/N shook her head. "I'm always going to worry about you," she whispered. "I care about you."

"I didn't want you to worry about this, though," he said gently. She still wouldn't look at him. There was something in her mind holding her back from being open with him right now. Maybe it was the anger coursing through her veins. Maybe it was something else. Whatever it was, she was going to let it consume her until she couldn't think anymore. "Let's get out of here, Y/N."

"It's the middle of the night, Sirius. We should go to bed."

"I'm not going to bed until I can get my hands on a butterbeer."

Y/N couldn't believe Sirius had the audacity to suggest sneaking out of Hogwarts just to get some butterbeer. Didn't he know her better than that? Apparently, he did because he successfully managed to sneak out of Hogwarts and into Hogsmeade with her. She didn't even know how they did it; she just knew that a frigid wind blew through the streets of Hogsmeade, carrying the scent of butterbeer with it. 

"I told you I could do it, Y/N," Sirius said with a smug grin. "I'm going to get me some butterbeer tonight to celebrate."

"Celebrate what?"

"Celebrate being excommunicated from my family."

"I don't think that's something you should celebrate, Sirius."

"Why not, Y/N?"

She shook her head again. She really couldn't believe that he was making light of his situation. Didn't he know that this was something important? Didn't he know that he couldn't joke about something like that to his girlfriend? 

"Come on, let's go talk somewhere quiet," he said, taking her hand in his gently. 

"What about your butterbeer?"

"It can wait."

Y/N allowed him to pull her away from the glowing area of Hogsmeade toward the dark area. For a second there, Y/N thought she saw someone watching them behind one of the gnarled trees rising above the small path they were taking. However, she chalked it up to her hyperactive imagination, telling her that she was in danger when she actually wasn't. 

"Why are you taking me to the Shrieking Shack?" she asked him. 

"I go here sometimes when I'm sad," he explained softly. She looked at him but couldn't read anything on his face because of the dark. "It's quiet here, much quieter than school is. It helps me think, clear my head."

"Do the others know that you come here when you're sad?" she asked once they made it inside the shack. Y/N shivered slightly as the wind whistled through the cracks in the walls. She had only been in here a couple of times with Remus when he was changing back from being a werewolf. However, she found it too dangerous to keep doing it every week and didn't become and Animagus like the rest of them. "Or is this another one of your secrets that you like to keep from everyone?"

"Really, Y/N?"

"Really, Sirius."

The two of them stared at each other. Y/N didn't want to let her anger control her right now, but she couldn't help to say that to him. If he kept that a secret from her, what else was he keeping? Had he ever been truthful before? She wasn't really sure right in that moment. It was like everything she knew was not the truth at all, just some lie told to her to appease her. She didn't like the feeling one bit.

"I thought I'd find you two here."

Y/N whirled around and saw a woman with a mane of curly hair step into the Shrieking Shack with her and Sirius. There was something about this woman that made the hairs on the back of Y/N's neck stand on end. She knew there was something wicked about this woman just by looking at her.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, dear cousin," the woman continued, a grin slowly forming on her face. "What are you doing with a Mudblood like her?"

"I'm already disowned from the family, Bellatrix," Sirius said. He slowly walked in front of Y/N, blocking her view from the woman. "It doesn't matter what I do now, does it?"

"I should have known that the black sheep of the family would stoop so low as to fall in love with someone like her," the woman -- Bellatrix -- continued. Y/N didn't dare let her feelings get hurt by this woman; all she could really focus on was the terror in her heart. "I think someone should punish you for these unmentionable acts you've done. Don't you, cousin?"

"No. I've done things to ensure that I'm on the right side of history. I've done things to ensure my safety. More importantly, I've done things to ensure that good always prevails over evil. That, Bellatrix, is something --"

"Crucio."

---

Y/N woke with a start. Fear gripped her chest, making it hard to breathe. The place she was at felt so wrong. Why was she in the hospital wing? The last thing she remembered was her being in the Shrieking Shack with Sirius and that woman, Bellatrix. After that, the only thing she could remember in that meeting was jumping in front of Sirius when Bellatrix unleashed one of the Unforgivable Curses. Was that why she was in the hospital wing? She wasn't really sure.

"You're awake!"

Someone landed on Y/N, making her wince in pain. Their arms were around her body to hold her tightly against them, so she really couldn't see who was hugging her. However, she knew who it was. "Sirius, you're hurting me," she whispered. 

"Oh!" He jumped up suddenly and stared at her like she was some delicate little creature. Remus, James, and Peter all stood at the end of her bed, each sporting wide smiles. "I'm sorry."

"What happened to me?"

"You jumped in front of me just as Bellatrix used the Cruciatus Curse against me," Sirius explained.

"That's what I thought."

"Remus and I both bet ten galleons that you two would break up," James said with a small laugh. "We didn't expect anything like this to happen to you."

Y/N rolled her eyes. Her friends were a crazy bunch, but she had to love them. Most of all, though, she had to love Sirius as he took her hand and held it gently as the boys chattered on about Quidditch and other nonsense. 

"Why did you jump in front of me, Y/N?" Sirius suddenly asked. Everyone stopped talking and looked at him, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from Y/N. "Bellatrix was going to hurt me, not you. Why'd you save me?"

"I care about you, Sirius," she said softly. It was her turn to squeeze his hand. "I want you to have a better life than the one you were born with. And if that means jumping in front of an Unforgivable Curse to protect you, then so be it."

"I already have a better life," Sirius said with a smile on his face. He looked at each of them as he said, "You guys are my real family. I don't care what those other people do to me because I know what real love is like."

"Are you getting all mushy on us, Sirius?" Peter asked, laughing. "Y/N is really corrupting you."

"I love you, too," Y/N whispered to Sirius as the other boys all joined in on hurling complaints against Sirius. He kissed her gently, just like he had when they first got together. She knew that he would be alright because he had them to take care of him, just like she had him to take care of her. That was how family was supposed to be, after all.