Chasers and Keepers: A Hogwarts romance
Chapter 1
Paige was panicking. She had been panicking for at least half an hour and she couldnt see it subsiding anytime soon. It was 10:50am on September 1st , and almost every student attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was currently sitting on a train, greeting friends and sharing stories about their holidays. But not Paige. Oh no! She was standing outside the train, gazing at a wall and tapping her foot nervously.
There was nothing particularaly special about her appearance; an average height with a curvy figure, she wasn't someone you would pick out in a crowd. The only feature she thought was worth noticing was her hair. To her it was a mixture of blonde, brown, and red, but to everybody else it was nothing more or less than ginger. Not that she minded that, she loved ginger hair, she just didnt think that her hair was worthy of the label.
Paige's best friend Miya was supposed to meet her at the train station at 10:15, a time that had been repeated at the end of every letter to the girl for a month. Miya was always late, and Paige knew it,, which is why she had organised to meet so early, in the hopes they would have time to find a compartment on the train before all the first years took them up. But it had gone half an hour and she still hadn't shown up! She knew the train would leave at exactly 11am whether she was on it or not..
Six minutes past, and Paige forced herself to accept the fact that Miya just wasn't going to make it.. She sighed, turning towards the train, wondering how she was supposed to survive the long journey to Hogwarts without her. As soon as this thought had formed in her head, there was a change in the atmosphere to her right side, and a crowd of people came hurtling out of the barrier underneath the platform 9'3/4 sign. Before she knew what was happening, there was a flash of deep red, and a pair of arms were wrapped around her middle.
"I'm so sorry!" a little voice squeaked from the mass of hair. "I tried to get here quicker but i left my potions homework in my room, so we had to go back! Snape would have killed me!" Miya pulled away and looked up with nervous eyes, waiting for the annoyed reproval that she was so sure would come.
Miya was, at first sight, the complete opposite of Paige. She was shorter than her friend by a substantial amount, allowing Paige to rest her chin on the top of her head when she gave her a hug. She had a cute face and pretty eyes that were a bluey green mixture depending on the light. Like Paige however, she was also curvy, giving the impression of a small child that people tended to want to protect..
By the sight of her panic-striken face, Paige couldn't bring herself to be mad at her friend and instead bent down to pick up one of the cases from the trolley.
"It's fine, i was just worried that I'd be stuck on my own with the lads on the train!" she said "Grab your owl, we only have three minutes." She turned back to Miya as she said it and gave her a reassuring smile.
In a mad rush, they hauled the trunks onto the train and stored the owl safely away, before saying a quick goodbye to Miyas parents and brother.
"Ohh thank god i made it! I was so worried I'd miss the train." Miya sighed.
"To be quite honest I wouldnt care if you didn't make it at all you loser, i would have just gone and sat with Olvier in a compartment, and moaned about you" Paige retorted, but winked at Miya as she said it, showing the joke in the comment..
Both girls knew exactly why that would have been such an awful thing for Paige to do. Miya had had a secret obsession with Oliver Wood since their first year at Hogwarts and it had stayed with her right up until now, in their fifth year. It wasn't exactly an long distance crush however; Oliver had been one of their best friends since their second year, when Paige, sick of the loved up stares of her friend, had introduced herself one day in Charms.
"You wouldn't dare, you know I'd never speak to you again. Then who would you talk to? Yourself probably. You'd be a little loner!" she smiled at her friends appauled reaction and they both giggled as they made their way down the train.
"Reckon they would have saved us seats?" Paige asked as they tried to find a familiar face in one of the compartments.
" I doubt it, when do Oliver or the boys ever consider me!" Miya replied. She had a continous paranoia that the boys only put up with her because they liked Paige and she was just a spare. Paige never really understood where it came from, probably just a repercussion of her feelings for Oliver. It was ridiculous because everyone treated them both the same, but it was something that Paige had gotton used to over the years.
Miya was proven wrong however, when a figure came running down the corridor towards them.
"There you are! Where have you been! We've been waiting for ages, we were worried you'd miss the train." the boy stopped infront of them and stood smiling at his two friends. However it wasn't the Oliver Wood that Paige remembered. It was obvious the teenage boy had had a growth spurt over the summer, as he now stood at just over 6ft with his deep brown shining eyes peering out at them underneath a crop of brown hair. He seemed to have been working out over the holidays as his body had become broader and more muscled, giving him the athletic impression that suited his personality so well.
Paige peered over to see if Miya had noticed, and it was instantly obvious that she had. She had gone a light shade of pink and she was staring at him with a look that Paige had become so familiar to. It was a subtle adoration that she gave the boy whenever he did anything impressive or funny, that no one but the closest of her friends would have noticed. She seemed unable to answer the question in her state and so Paige stepped in.
"Oh it was Miya, she left her potions work at home, didnt you?" she asked nudging Miya out of her daze.
"Hmmm? Oh yeah it was me. Sorry." Miya chimed in, her eyes refocusing slightly.
"Why did you miss us?" Paige asked cheekily.
"Pah! Us? Miss you? No! It was Miya i was concerned about." he replied and winked at the still blushing girl, making her go an even deeper red. "Come on then, the lads will be wondering where I've gone." He lead the way to the compartment at the end where two red headed twin boys were sitting.
The two boys were Fred and George Weasley. Their faces, as usual, shone with amusement and their mouths were placed in the permaneant grin that the girls never saw them without.. A year older than the rest of the group, the boys had taken a liking to Oliver, Miya and Paige when they caught them putting a potion into Snapes morning drink. When quizzed the children explained that it was a laughter potion, apprantely the they had wished to see what a laughing Snape would look like. Not the most imaginitive idea, but it had given the twins hope, that they wouldnt be the only trouble makers in the school.
"Where the hell have you been!" said Fred to Oliver
"Picking up some strays." Oliver replied, revealing the two girls standing behind him. "They used the 'I forgot my homework' excuse." he laughed.
"We really did forget our homework though. Its actually true this time!" Miya stated searching for a seat. There were only two left, one next to the window, opposite Oliver and one near the door by the twins. Although she liked looking outside, Paige rushed forward into the seat near the twins, leaving Miya the space near Oliver. She looked over gratefully and tried to put her bag on the rail above her head. Of course, due to her height she couldn't reach so she tried throwing it up. It missed and fell on Georges head who complained loudly and gave Miya a threatening glance.
"I'm sorry, its not my fault i have short legs." Miya exclaimed, bending down to pick up the bag. Before she could stand however a hand had swooped down and grabbed it, prying it from her grasp. She looked up and Oliver was smiling down at her obviously trying to be helpful. She released the bag and stood up, blushing again as Oliver reached up above her head and placing the bag on the rail.
"Thankyou." she whispered, smiling up at the boy.
"Don't thank him!" Fred interupted.
"Yeah, he's only showing off because he's grown over the holidays!" George continued.
"Has he?" Miya replied. "I hadn't noticed." Paige was impressed by this comment, as Miya was normally one to flatter Oliver, not insult him, whether joking or not.. Oliver had obviously noticed to, as he looked slightly affronted as he sat down.
From then on, the journey was uneventful, mainly consisting of cruel comments being passed between eachother. That was the most important thing to note between the friends. They were persistently mean to eachother, not giving many compliments at all, meaning that if a nice word was said. it was remembered. All the comments were jokes however, they weren't meant to offend, it was just something they all did. It was never serious.
"Oh thank God!" Paige exclaimed as she felt the train slowing down beneath her.
"I'm sorry have we been boring you?" Fred asked faking sadness.
"No I'm just freaking hungry!" she cried, holding her stomach.
"Your always hungry Paige." Oliver laughed "you like eating more than you like Miya!"
"Be nice Oliver, you know she hates that." Miya retorted.
"Your right." he said guiltily "I'm sorry Paige."
"Its fine" Paige replied, although it didn't totally show on her face.
After a lot of pushing and shoving, everybody climbed safely off the train and into a carriage, pulled by some sort of invisible horse. This was always the worst part of the journey for Paige, as it was so cramped in the carriage with so many people inside it.. Miya didn't mind as she was sitting by Oliver, but Paige was stuck inbetween the Weasleys who kept elbowing her on either side. She was extremely grateful when that trip ended and they could all clamber out, and stretch their legs, walking up to the castle.
The castle looked beautiful in this light. The windows were shining out against the dark walls and the torrets were mere shadows in the cloudless sky. It was home to the students, who although had perfectly lovely families, enjoyed the time they spent with their friends in the school. The entrance hall brought a welcoming warmth to the teens, who had become cold in the night air. Quickly, they walked into the Great Hall, glancing up at the enchanted ceiling, a replica of the sky outside. They rushed to the Gryffindor table, finding places together and began greeting the rest of their friends from the house. At the head of the hall, Paige and Miya found Hagrid and waved madly at him to get his attention. He noticed and grinned under his beard at them, before knocking over one of the goblets on the table. He went red and tried to dab up the mess before Professor McGonagall whipped her wand out and cleaned it within seconds. Paige's stomach grumbled loudly.
"Dinner will be here soon, dont worry!" a voice said from next her.
"What?" she snapped expecting it to be one of the twins. She soon discovered her guess was wrong. It was in fact the brother of the twins. Ronald Weasley had the same bright red hair and gleaming eyes as his brothers but he was shorter than the two. He was looking nervously at her, obviously he was afraid he had offended her by her reaction.
"Oh sorry I thought you were someone else!" she laughed.
"It's fine, don't worry. I'm hungry too." he smiled and turned back around leaving a very embarrased Paige behind him.
She glanced down the table hoping the exchange had gone unnoticed. The look on Miyas face told her instantly that it hadn't. He eyebrows were raised in a 'why-was-he-talking-to-you' kind of way. Paige shrugged and suddenly became very interested in the fork on the table. She'd never spoken to Ron before , and she now wondered why. He always seemed to be quite nice, not as funny as his brothers, but friendly enough. He sat infront of her in Charms, but he never seemed to be doing the work, but instead he chatted and laughed with his friends. Her train of thought was interrupted suddenly, by the great hall doors being pushed open and a hoard of small children came bustling inside looking very nervous. Miya liked the sorting, she sypathised with the new students, remembering how scared she was the day she got sorted. She was so pleased to be put in Gryffindor, she always thought she would be a Hufflepuff because of her kind nature. She liked the Hufflepuffs, but she always thought Gryffindors were so much cooler. If you were a Gryffindor, everyone knew you had courage, and that you were a proud and strong person. She liked to be viewed that way, it made her feel like she was a somebody in the world.
"When i call your name, you will step forward and place the hat on your head. Once you have been sorted, go and sit at your alotted house table." Professor Mcgonagall exclaimed.
"Urgh get on with it!" Paige mumbled, resting her head on her arms. She hated the sorting, she found it boring and drawn out..
"Shush, i want to see who gets into Gryffindor!" Oliver whispered.
"Why? Planning on becoming buddies with a first year?" Paige hissed back.
"No ta, I've got more than enough vertically challenged friends to be getting along with thanks." he laughed.
"Oh Ha Ha, you're so funny." Miya interjected, narrowing her eyes in Olivers direction.
Twenty long minutes later, Gryffindor had gained six new students, four girls and two boys. Dumbledore stood up and smiled widely.
"Welcome students to another year at Hogwarts! Before you tuck in to our deliecious feast, I would like to intorduce to you all our new, although not unfamiliar, defense against the dark arts teacher, Professor Lupin." he paused smiling, as a tall man in shabby clothes took a few steps forward from his place in the shadows, and found a seat next to Hagrid. There was a huge amount of applause at this, especially from the Gryffindor table, who had taking a liking to Lupin when he had taught them in their third year. Dumbledore raised his hands for silence. "Also I would like to point out that the Quidditch cup will be returning this year, after its absence due to the Triwizard Tournament,." There was more cheering from the older students. "Considering this, I am sure that you will all be eager to apply for spots on your respective teams, and to do so you will need to consult your new Quidditch house captains." His eyes flickered to the Gryffindor table towards Oliver who looked down at the table quickly. Miya stared at him, obviously intrigued, but he just shook his head and smiled. "Well i think thats all." Dumbledore continued. "May this year at Hogwarts be enjoyable and successful for you all. Tuck in!"
"Thank God!" Paige exclaimed loudly as the plates suddenly filled with food. She began grabbing everything she could reach and shovelled it onto her plate.
Miya turned to Oliver slowly, taking advantage of Paiges distraction. "What was with you when Dumbledore mentioned Quidditch?" she asked him quietly.
"Nothing. Dont know what you mean." He replied quickly.
"Don't lie, i saw you get all jittery. Whats going on?" she asked.
"It's nothing... i just..." he said slowly.
"You just?..."
"I've just been made Quidditch captain this year." he replied very quickly and shoved some food in his mouth.
"What!" Miya exclaimed. "Why didn't you tell us!"
"It's not a big deal." he replied,
"Of course it is!" she squealed excitedly. "Congratulations!"
"Thanks." he murmered.
"Are you not excited? At all?" she asked quietly.
"No I am..." he answered slowly. "I just don't want the house to lose the cup, and it to be on my head. It's a lot of pressure." he admitted. Miya laughed in spite of herself.
"Oliver are you mental? You are the only person on that team who has any chance of making them win. They are all brilliant players, but you'll be a better leader. If you couldn't do it, you wouldn't have been chosen." she said smiling. He put his hand gently on hers and smiled slowly.
"Why is it that you always know what to say?" he laughed.
"Because i'm amazing." she replied. She was suprised how calm she sounded, when inside her heart was going mental against her chest.
"Not as amazing as me... OW!" George yelled as Paige kicked him from underneath the table. Olivers hand pulled away fast from Miyas, and they both laughed awkwardly. Miya glanced at Paige, who was looking daggers across the table at the boys.
"So your our new captain eh?" Fred continued. "Shall we salute you?" they jibed.
"Shut up Fred, i notice they didn't pick you!" Paige fired.
"Ohhh big loss there!" George retorted laughing.
There was a moment silence before the plates were cleared and pudding arrived. By the time they had stuffed themselves with as much cake and ice cream as they could, they dragged themselves up to the Gryffindor common room and, saying goodnight to the boys, made their way up to their dormatories.
"Dont think i didnt see your hands touching across the table at dinner." Paige said as they climbed into their four poster beds.
"Whose?" Miya asked innocently.
"You know whose! Yours and Olivers! The boys didn't notice though, they are too unobservant.." she laughed
"Good. I was worried they'd say something. He looks nice doesn't he? Oliver. He's really had gotton taller."
"Yeah not to mention more good looking." Paige said cheekily.
"Well yes that helps." Miya said and the two friends giggled into their pillows, trying to muffle their laughter so they wouldn't wake the already sleeping girls, with whom they shared the dormitory.
"Night Miya." Paige said
"Night Paige." she whispered back smiling to herself.