Harry had managed to escape his friends and find solace in this secluded spot on the cliff overlooking the Black Lake. They had been hovering over him since the truth about Sirius Black was revealed. Christmas had long since passed and even though Harry knew he wasn't supposed to be alone, since it would leave him vulnerable, he just needed time to sort out his thoughts.
The Black Lake had a thin layer of ice, broken in several places, and the trees in the Forbidden Forest were covered in a pristine layer of snow, the branches weighed down by the heavy snow that continued to fall on this crisp December afternoon.
His thoughts were as turbulent as the snowflakes that danced through the air, and he was consumed by the anger and hatred that he felt.
As he gazed across the expanse of the icy lake, a figure approached. It was Hermione. Her rosy cheeks contrasted against the wintry backdrop and her soft smile thawed Harry's icy exterior.
She said nothing as she approached. All she did was pull out a red scarf and then drape it gently on Harry's neck and sit down beside him in the snow. Harry had his knees pulled up to his chest, his chin rested on his knees, his eyebrows furrowed, and a frown on his face.
"Smiling won't actually kill you, you know?"
Harry rolled his eyes, but the corner of his mouth did tick upward, "No, but it might strain my muscles, so best not," he snarked.
"How long have you been out here?" Hermione asked, worried. The temperature was steadily dropping, and she didn't want her friend to get sick.
Harry pushed up the sleeve of his red Weasley sweater and looked down at his watch, "Closing in on two hours."
"Come to any conclusions?" she asked after a moment of silence.
"Not really," Harry admitted. He honestly felt a storm of emotions. The most prevalent was that he wanted to find the man who betrayed his parents and kill him. Hurt him more than he hurt. But he knew that that wasn't something that he could do. He couldn't stand the thought of anyone else getting hurt just because he went off half-cocked and put himself in a dangerous situation.
So instead, he was stuck in limbo. Unable to act despite desperately wanting to.
"Are you doing alright?" she asked.
"Yup," Harry nodded emphatically.
"I want to believe you, but I can't," Hermione said sarcastically which made Harry, for the first time in days, laugh.
"I needed that," Harry said and reached up to wipe away a stray tear that escaped his eye.
Hermione pulled Harry into a side hug and said, "Just remember that we're here for you. Anything you need."
"Thank you," Harry said, his voice tinged with gratitude. Even after everything that had happened over the past couple of years Hermione and Ron had never wavered.
"Wanna head inside?" Hermione asked as she checked her watch, "supper starts soon."
"Yeah," Harry nodded, the heaviness in his heart diminished slightly. He stood up with Hermione, shook off the snow that had accumulated on his jacket, tucked the red scarf tighter around his neck, and wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulder.
"Let's go before Ron eats everything."