Breaking Free (Book 3 of the Lost Potter Series)

Peacetime at the Dursleys'

The three teenagers had finally given into sleep the night before, with Harry giving up his bed for Olivia's sake and the two boys sharing very separate blankets from their respective spots on the floor. Olivia hadn't wanted to sleep on the bed (knowing it was Harry's and feeling rude about it) but had passed out on top of it before the sun had even set. The boys wordlessly agreed that she would have that spot while Harry gave an extra blanket to Draco, took one for himself, and did his best to sleep on the rug.

Waking up the next morning, Harry and Draco were a little stiff and sore from the floor but neither complained aloud as they struggled to wake up. Harry quickly excused himself to the bathroom and promised to return afterwards with more food for the three of them. Draco stayed silent as his mind battled between being appreciative/respectful and being harsh/insulting.

Olivia, however, hadn't slept more than 6 hours before the nightmares had seized her. To try and get more sleep (and to try and prevent waking either of the boys) she elected to simply cocoon herself in the duvet and cry until she had fallen back to sleep. She managed to get another two hours of fitful, spaced out sleep before her body could no longer manage to return to the sleeping state. She kept up her cocoon and continued to cry as her emotions overwhelmed her, fruitlessly hoping that she could sleep again and wake up refreshed.

It was Draco who noticed the girl's mostly quiet sobbing minutes after Harry had left. He couldn't quite tell if she was crying or not, but he knew she was no longer asleep and moved to sit on the side of the bed.

"Olivia, are you alright?" Draco asked, a hand out to attempt to grab on to her shoulder.

"Leave me alone," Came the muffled response.

Draco had never been one to be the best at empathy or knowing what to do in these situations, but tried his best anyway, "You know I can't do that."

"Yes you can." Olivia protested once again, leaving Draco to sigh.

"If you'd rather talk to Harry about it, he'll be back in a moment with more food." Draco's mind had figured it must be him who was the issue, for he couldn't fathom a reason why a girl would cry without wanting some sort of attention.

Olivia remained silent, though her breath wasn't as hurried as it had been.

"Are you sure you're alright? Was it a nightmare?" Draco asked again, trying to soften his voice as to not sound accusatory.

Suddenly Olivia sat up and uncovered her face from the cocoon, revealing quite the tear-stricken sight. She half-glared at Draco as she kept trying to steady her breath, "I've been through a lot of shit, so nightmares are a regular occurrence for me. But now that I can't remember anything, I don't know who these faces are or why I feel certain ways! It's like there's just been pages ripped out of my head," She covered her face with her hands.

The amount of guilt that washed over Draco was overwhelming. Yes he had always felt tremendously guilty for inflicting such harm on Olivia, but it all came crashing back on to him as she sat beside him in such a broken state.

"Olivia, I can't even express to you how sorry I am—" The door opened to reveal Harry carrying various snacks and other foods. Draco couldn't decide if he was angry or relieved at the sight.

"Ah— Sorry, am I interrupting?" Harry asked awkwardly, shifting the food in his hands.

"Not at all, just waking up a mess as per usual," Olivia tried to brush everything off, dabbing at her eyes, "You're perfectly fine to come in."

Harry was still hesitant but entered anyway, placing the food on his desk and trunk, "Anything I can help with?" Or maybe helping you contact Padfoot?