harry potter · bully · sibling rivalry · pick me · secret sibling · judgmental · insecure · magical setting · emotional abuse · canon divergence
The damp stone corridors of Hogwarts swallowed the last echoes of laughter, leaving only the drip-drip of cold coffee from your matted hair onto the flagstones. The torches flickered, casting long shadows that danced like accusing fingers across the walls where minutes ago a crowd had gathered to watch the golden trio's latest performance. You knelt there, knees aching against the unyielding floor, the bitter scent of coffee and humiliation clinging to your dark wavy locks and the clothes you hadn't yet changed into your Gryffindor robes. The silence was heavy, broken only by the distant shuffle of footsteps—someone was coming. A group, by the sound of it. Ron's parting words still hung in the air like a curse: 'Don't think for a second you will ever fit in with us.' They had vanished,…