Flying Lessons
I was gossiping with Katie, my best friend, about the new shop she'd found in Hogsmeade, when he walked up to us.
"Excuse me, you're Angelina Johnson, right?" The boy asked, almost shyly. He was only a year younger than me, in Hufflepuff, but widely recognized as one of the cutest boys in Hogwarts.
I raised my eyebrows at Katie, who looked as surprised as I felt, and nodded. Since when did fifth-year Hufflepuff heartthrobs approach us – or more specifically, me? He was standing there looking relieved, so I motioned with my hand to get on with it.
"Um, sorry to bother you, but my father is adamant I get on the Quidditch team this year, and I haven't actually been on a broom since first year. So I was wondering, would you mind giving me some pointers? I've seen you during the matches and you're really good. I could pay you, if you want-" I already knew my answer, and I cut him off before he could finish.
"Fine, but only if you're going for Chaser or Seeker. I don't do Beating or Keeping. And no money, alright?" No way was I passing up free time with Cedric Diggory!
"Oh, brilliant! I'm going for Seeker. Thank you so much! I'll owl you with times and days?"
I nodded as confirmation and he walked back to his friends, beaming widely.
Katie raised her eyebrows at me. "You realize Oliver's going to go ballistic when you tell him, right?"
I smiled smugly. "Oliver isn't the school heartthrob, nor is he willing to pay me money to spend time with him. I think Cedric has a bit of an edge on this one."
"How could you, Angelina? You're betraying us, you're willingly giving the enemy an advantage! You're… you're risking the Quidditch Cup for a boy! And him, no less!"
"Why, Oliver, you sounded almost jealous for a second there," Katie piped up from her chair by the fire. I shot her a grateful glance as Oliver spluttered, fumbling for an excuse. Katie kept insisting he had a crush on me but until now I hadn't taken it seriously. Maybe there was some truth to her claim after all. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. Not bad, I thought to myself. He certainly wasn't ugly, and he was a good friend. I'd had a crush on him since third year and only recently got over it, but I always wondered if there was a chance at something more.
Rolling my eyes at Oliver's feeble defenses against Katie's grilling tactics, I grabbed a roll of parchment and started on my Herbology essay.
"No, not like that! Put your hands here, it'll help you grip the broom better." I demonstrated on my own broom and Cedric copied unsuccessfully. I took several deep breaths to try and calm myself down. It was his fifth flying 'lesson', and he still hadn't mastered the take-off position. It was endearing in an extremely annoying way. It was testing my patience to say the least. We carried on for about half an hour before I gave up. We started to trudge back to the castle together, and I could see Oliver coming towards us with a determined expression. Just as he stopped before us Cedric turned to me and said, "Look, Angelina, it's a Hogsmeade weekend this Saturday. Can I buy you a drink at the Three Broomsticks? I really appreciate all the help you're giving me; I know I'm not the best student." He gave me a winning smile and I could feel my annoyance melting away.
"Yes, of course, Cedric! I'd love to. You've been getting much better." A blatant lie, but still. I had a date with Cedric Diggory! I turned to Oliver just in time to see his heartbroken look morph into a not-quite-perfect poker face. "So, got a date with Diggory, huh?" he said flatly.
"Yep! I'm gonna go tell Katie," I said breathlessly, and ran off before I could embarrass myself further by squealing in front of him. Squealing over hot dates was something only two best friends did.
Later that evening, I got a heavy letter. Several Galleons rolled only the floor as I slipped the parchment out of the envelope. I recognized Cedric's graceful handwriting from our previous correspondences.
Dear Angelina,
I'm so sorry, but my girlfriend Milly was quite suspicious when I told her about out meeting in Hogsmeade, and I really don't want to give her cause to worry, so I can't come. Here's five Galleons for the drinks I would have bought you, though!
Kind regards and many thanks,
Cedric
I was disappointed, but when I showed it to Katie she got a gleam in her eye and jumped up from her usual chair. She bent down to whisper something in Oliver's ear, winked at me then promptly ran up the staircase into our dormitory. Oliver ambled over to me, apparently trying - and failing - to act casually. "Hey Katie, would you, um, take a walk with me? I need to talk to you about something."
I agreed and we walked out of the portrait hole together. We only walked a short way through the corridors before he stopped. I followed suit, leaning against a window with a view of the Black Lake. "What was it you wanted to talk about?" I asked, curious.
He took several deep breaths before continuing. "AngelinawillyoupleasecometoHogsmedewithmethisweek end?" He said in a rush.
"Um, what? Sorry, I didn't quite hear what you said."
"Uh… Angelina, will you please come to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?" He swallowed nervously as I stared at him, stunned. "I guess that's a no, then… Wow, this is really awkward-"
"Of course I'll go with you, idiot!" This time he was the stunned one. "Now shut up and give me a really cliché kiss," I told him sternly.
Hufflepuffs are wimps, anyway.
Written for –
The If You Dare Challenge, Prompt #127 – Several deep breaths
The Pairing One Hour Challenge, e1H, Prompt – Flying Lessons, Pairing – Cedric/Angelina/Oliver