Clarke ran her thumb across the face of the small red pin, admiring the small golden letters that spelled out 'Captain'. A knot in her stomach tightened as she turned the small token over in her palm. Most people would probably be overjoyed at being team Captain, even of a team that had lost three years in a row. However, it wasn't the prospect of leading a losing team that was making her nervous. It was thoughts of the previous year that caused her to pause. It was the way her heart raced as the Bludger collided with the side of her head. It was the fading feeling in the back of her mind as she plummeted toward the ground.
"Clarke! Breakfast!" Her father's booming voice rang up the stairs from the kitchen.
Clarke pulled herself from her thoughts and remembered that he was taking her to Diagon Alley where she'd meet her friends and spend time with her father. Suddenly, even the prospect of telling everyone about her new position couldn't dampen her spirits. Bounding down the stairs, her Captain pin safely in the pocket of her jeans, Clarke took her seat at the table and smiled up at her father. Jake Griffin smiled back and placed the plate of pancakes in front of her.
"Who says you need magic to make breakfast?" laughed Jake.
"Mom," said Clarke with a smile.
"I will have you know that I can cook breakfast just fine without magic," said Abigail Griffin, walking into the kitchen from the living room. Clarke was a little disappointed that it wouldn't just be a father and daughter day trip.
"No work today?" Clarke poked at the sausage on her plate.
"I'm going to head in later, when we're done shopping," said Abby.
"Is it because of what happened?" asked Clarke, not looking at her parents. She knew they were looking at each other and she swallowed down another mouthful of pancakes before either of her them spoke.
"I would just feel better knowing you were both safe," said Abigail.
Jake being a muggle meant that if someone were to attack him and Clarke the only defense they'd have is Clarke who isn't even supposed to do magic outside of school except for dire emergencies. While Clarke was sure that protecting herself and her father was a good enough reason to use magic, it would still be better if it was her mother protecting them and not her. So, on the plus side, Abby going with them would make Clarke feel safer but on the down side, her mother could kind of be a buzzkill. Though, this situation did present itself as the perfect time to tell her parents at the same time about her new position.
"I got my letters from school today," said Clarke, pushing her plate toward the middle of the table.
"We know, sweetie. That's why we planned the shopping trip for today," said Abby.
"Well," said Clarke. "Did you know I got this?"
The Captain's badge shined up at all of them from the spot on the table where Clarke placed it. Her father looked puzzled for a moment before registering the word on the badge while her mother looked visibly upset almost immediately.
"Clarke, do you really think it's a good idea?" asked Abby.
"I don't know. Obviously Headmaster Kane thinks I can do it or he wouldn't have sent it to me, right?"
"Well, I will certainly be talking to Marcus about this," said Abby. She reached for the pin but Clarke quickly snatched it up and shoved it back in her pocket. "Clarke you don't have to do this. At the beginning of the summer you weren't even sure you wanted to play Quidditch anymore."
"Maybe I want to," muttered Clarke.
"What'd you say?"
"I said, maybe I want to." Clarke met her mother's eyes and head her gaze. "I mean, if I quit playing it just makes me look weak, right? It makes it look like the guy who jinxed that Bludger got to me. So, maybe I don't want to quit. If I do this, if I'm team Captain, then it gives the impression that no one can scare me away. No one can just threaten us."
Both of Clarke's parents watched her for a moment and Abby looked like she was about to argue with her daughter but Jake quickly interjected.
"If that's the case," he said while collecting the plates and putting them in the sick. "Then I would say a congratulatory present is in order for our new team Captain."
Clarke and Abby both looked at Jake with questioning eyes.
"How about a new broom?" asked Jake with a smile. He might not understand everything about the magical world his daughter and wife inhabited but he understood that Quidditch couldn't be played without a broom. Clarke smiled and jumped up to hug him while her mother sighed and started the dishes on washing themselves.
It was a little before noon when the Griffin family made their way inside the Leaky Cauldron. The bartender smiled at them as they passed to the alley out back and entered the magical gateway into Diagon Alley. Before Clarke could even pull out her school supply list, she was being pulled into a warm, enthusiastic hug. Looking over the shoulder of her attacker and seeing Bellamy Blake sitting in a chair outside the ice cream shop waving at her told her the identity of the hugger and Clarke quickly reciprocated Octavia's affection.
"Hey, O."
"We've been waiting here all morning, Clarke," said Octavia. She pulled out of the hug and held Clarke away from her at arm's length. "Where in the world have you been?"
"There was traffic getting into the city," said Clarke.
Turning to her parents, Clarke didn't even have to ask before her parents nodded her off to hang out with her friends. As they walked away, Clarke smiled as she heard her father making comments about Bellamy's age in relation to the two girls while Abby just brushed him off saying he's just Octavia's brother.
"My dad still doesn't like that you're an old fart hanging out with young impressionable teens," laughed Clarke. She sat down across from Bellamy and Octavia plopped herself down on the chair between them.
"Because the highlight of my day is babysitting my sister and her underage pals." Bellamy rolled his eyes with a smile. Clarke knew he would never mind watching over Octavia but he had to keep up his tough guy exterior.
"Where's Raven and Finn?" asked Clarke while a server came up to take her order. She got a simple chocolate sundae.
"They went to find Jasper and Monty," said Octavia. She was enjoying her own multi-flavored ice cream concoction. "Those two knuckleheads said they'd be back from the joke shop almost an hour ago."
"Raven is going to be really upset that you let your mom leave before she could say hello." Bellamy chuckled and leaned back in his chair. "You know she thinks your mom is hot."
"I am aware and it's as weird to think about as it always is," shuddered Clarke.
Halfway through finishing her sundae, Clarke noticed Raven walking up followed closely by Finn, Jasper, Monty, and Nathan. The group pulled chairs from the empty tables around them and everyone fit themselves at the small round table.
"Hey Clarke, when'd you get here?" Raven looked around at the shops nearby while Bellamy laughed. Clarke rolled her eyes.
"So, how's everyone's summer been so far?" Monty pushed Jasper over for more room between him and Nathan.
"Monty, we all hung out last week. I'm sure nothing exciting has happened since then," said Raven, rolling her eyes before going back to scanning the s beyond the shop windows.
"Not true," said Clarke. She pulled the pin out of her pocket and placed it in the middle of the table for her friends and teammates to see. Raven whooped while Octavia choked on her ice cream. Everyone seemed really excited for her, not as quick to remember the attack. Everyone except Finn. Clarke noticed the way he withdrew slightly from the group as they all offered her their congratulations.
"I knew you'd get it!" shouted Raven. "I told Bell and O. They didn't believe me."
"This is so great!" said Jasper.
"Yeah, maybe we'll get to see Gryffindor actually win the cup this year," added Monty.
"The cup? I'll be happy if we win more than one game," sighed Nathan.
"I keep apologizing. I thought the kid would do better than that as Captain." Bellamy felt terrible for being the one to nominate their previous Captain as his own replacement when he left Hogwarts back in Clarke's first year. "Turns out he's just good at talking big and hitting a Bludger or two."
"Speaking of," said Octavia. "Does this mean I get to be a Beater with Raven now?"
"Absolutely not," snapped Bellamy, worry quickly crossing his face.
"I'd hate to agree with Bell on anything but I need you with me Octavia," said Clarke. If Octavia wasn't a Chaser anymore, Clarke would have to find someone she had enough playing chemistry with to get anything done.
During almost all of their summer practices, Finn had seemed distant and while he was still playing proficiently it just wasn't the same for Clarke when it came to playing with him. He just hadn't been reading her movements like he had before the game when Clarke was attacked. She knew he blamed himself for not being able to help her but she was starting to tire of the way he was acting about it. She wasn't his to save. She wasn't his at all. And it was no one's fault but his own for any inferiority issues he was currently going through.
"Yeah, O," laughed Raven. "You're the only one crazy enough to go through with half her schemes. Not even daredevil Finn would touch the crazy dives and twists you two pull."
"What about Jasper?" Bellamy slapped a hand on Jasper's back and the scrawny kid lurched forward.
"I don't know what would break Jasper first, the Bludger or Raven," laughed Monty.
"Oh, definitely me." Raven grinned mischieviously at Jasper before winking.
Suddenly, Finn stood and slammed his hands down on the table and the motion knocked his chair over almost taking Raven with it since she was closest to him.
"Are we all really going to just laugh and pretend like Clarke didn't almost die last year?" yelled Finn. A couple of people that were also enjoying ice cream outside of the shop turned to look at the commotion. "We're all going to act like her being Captain isn't just going to paint a bigger target on her back."
Everyone was quiet for a moment. Finn just stared Clarke down.
"That Bludger wasn't jinxed to attack me because I play Quidditch, Finn," said Clarke. She carefully stood but didn't break eye contact. "I was targeted because of my parents. I was attacked because I'm Abigail Griffin's daughter not because I'm Clarke Griffin. Me being Captain isn't going to suddenly change the shape of the target on my back. It's there. It's there whether I play Quidditch or whether I never touch a broom again. And if you want to keep playing on this team you're going to get over whatever it is that has crawled up your ass."
Having said her piece, Clarke turned and left, heading down the alley and hoping to run into her parents. No one followed after her but she was more than okay with that. Everyone had babied her at the end of the year and it drove her insane. All she had wanted was to put the attack behind her and most people were more than happy to oblige but not Finn. He just wanted to keep dragging it up acting like she needed to be shielded and protected from everything.
Clarke stopped at the broom shop and looked inside for her parents before quickly turning to leave and almost running right into John Murphy. He was a year younger than her but he already had a reputation at the school for starting fights and generally not being a pleasant person.
"Watch where you're going Princess," he sneered. She hated that nickname sometimes. Finn started it during their first year and every once in a while someone used to get on her nerves and it always worked. Rolling her eyes at his comment, Clarke pushed passed him toward the book store.
Considering how many of her school supplies were books, there was a good chance her parents were in Flourish and Blotts. As she stalked the aisles full of people shopping, she realized how crazed she must have looked, stomping through the store. Finding an aisle that looked empty at a glance, she pressed her back against the books on the shelf, looked up towards towers of books touching the ceiling, and inhaled deeply. The long sigh that followed seemed to just release all the anger and annoyance she'd been feeling since Finn's comments.
"I would hate to be on the receiving end of that anger."
Clarke turned and looked for the owner of the voice. When she didn't see anyone, she started to look up seeing as how it could very easily have been something magical if it wasn't another person.
"Try again."
Turning toward the voice, Clarke almost jumped when she noticed that she was being watched from an adjacent aisle. A pair of vibrant green eyes peered at her from above a row of books. Anger was beginning to bubble up in her chest again and she quickly headed into the other aisle. She didn't want to give the intruder a chance to get away. However, as soon as she came around the end of the shelf and got a good look at the person she froze.
"You," whispered Clarke.
"Me."
After Finn's blow up, Clarke would have wished nothing more than to push the memory of the Bludger attack to the back of her mind where it belonged. However, seeing Lexa Woods standing in front of her at Flourish and Blotts made avoiding the subject absolutely impossible. Well, that wasn't true. Clarke could run full speed out of the book store and as far away as possible but the thought didn't even cross her mind as green eyes stared at her questioningly.
"Are you okay?" asked Lexa. She didn't move from where she stood but she tilted her head and looked Clarke over in a way that made the blonde flush.
"Yeah. I just wasn't expecting to run into you."
"I understand." Lexa turned back to the books on the shelves and traced a finger over the spine of one of the larger books before heading further down the aisle, away from Clarke.
However, Clarke found herself following Lexa down the aisle. Swallowing hard against the knot in her throat, Clarke wiped her palms against her jeans. She hadn't expected to run into the Slytherin Chaser that day but she wanted to take full advantage of the chance to thank the person who saved her life.
"Thank you."
Lexa turned and inspected Clarke before shrugging and going back to her browsing.
"There is no need to thank em," said Lexa. Clarke noted the proper way Lexa spoke. While she had played against the other girl multiple times and had even shared a few classes with her, Clarke had never actually heard her speak for any length longer than yes or no answers.
"Yes there is," said Clarke. "I wanted to thank you sooner but everything was so crazy before…"
"I was merely doing what was right," said Lexa. This time she didn't turn and Clarke watched the other girl shift awkwardly on her feet. "Really, Clarke. There is no need to thank me."
Clarke was about to speak again when a hand landed on her shoulder and she turned to find her father standing behind her smiling.
"Hey kid," said Jake. "Just passed by and noticed you. Who are you talking to?"
"Oh, dad this is Lexa…" Clarke turned to see Lexa was gone. "...Woods. She left."
"Woods?" Abby joined Clarke and her father. She was carrying a broom shaped package that Clarke couldn't help but smile at. "As in Washington Woods?"
"Who's he?" Clarke reached toward her new broom and her mother handed it over reluctantly. As entranced as she was by her gift, Clarke still noticed the worried look on her mother's face.
"Washington Woods is one of the main opponents to my proposition," said Abby as she looked down the aisle even though Lexa was long gone. "He's a very stubborn man who would rather see the magical world stay in the dark ages than embrace muggles and any technological advancements. I know he has two daughters at your school. I didn't know you knew either of them."
"Well, I mean, we aren't friends or anything," said Clarke. "They both play on the Slytherin team."
"Ah," said Abby. She rest a hand on Clarke's shoulder and gave her daughter a worried smile. "Just promise me you'll be careful around them, Clarke. I know you're a strong young woman and I trust you, I do, but I worry about you. You know I love you."
"We both love you, kiddo." Jake smiled at Clarke and wrapped an arm around his daughter's shoulder. "Now lets pay for this stuff and get out of here. I'm sure you want to unwrap that thing already."
Clarke hugged her father back and smiled up at him. As she followed her parents up to the front counter, she glanced back toward the mouth of aisle where she ran into Lexa and saw her standing a few aisles down looking back at her. Those piercing green eyes met hers for a moment before disappearing behind a tower of books. Memories of Lexa standing between her and the Bludger speeding toward her head flashed to the front of her thoughts and she fought to push them to the back of her mind. Instead she tried to focus on the broom in her hands and the feel of her father's arm wrapped around her shoulder as they walked.