Jude Porter and the Chamber of Monsters
Two months had passed since school had ended, but in Jude's mind, it felt like two years. Hannah and Neville did put restrictions on him; which meant no quidditch practicing in his free time and no contacting his friends for a month. He was just glad they didn't ban him from going to the world cup with the Potters, Weasleys, and Emma. That would've broken his fragile heart.
He was still waiting for the day to come. The tickets had said sometime in late August, and each day that passed he could feel his body shake in anticipation. And so, after waiting and waiting, the day before the world cup finally came.
Which meant Emma was coming to sleep over.
"Jude," Hannah called from the stairs, breaking the boy's concentration on the spell he was currently reading about. "Emma's here for you."
Jude perked up, setting his wand on his nightstand quickly and bolting out of his room. He grinned when he saw his red haired best friend, "Emma, hey! Come on up."
Emma smiled at him before thanking Hannah and following her friend up the stairs. Jude fell back on his bed once they both entered. He grinned once more, "Welcome to my humble abode. I know it's not much to you, but…" His grin softened as he gazed around his room. "It's home to me."
"It's fine," Emma replied with a wave of her hand. "I'm not gonna judge you on your room, Jude. You're my best friend and friends don't do that."
"That's good," He murmured before grabbing the book he had been reading. "I've been catching up on some spells since Hannah and Neville grounded me. They didn't let me practice on my broomstick so I didn't really have much to do."
She groaned, sitting on his bed with him, "Tell me about it. Mum and Dad don't let me practice either. As much as they love me and accept me being a witch, they don't really want me flying all around the backyard."
He frowned, "That just sucks." He stretched, lying back on his pillows. "So for the sleeping arrangements; do you want to get another room, or you can take my bed while I sleep on the floor? Whichever one is fine with me."
"I don't want to rid you of your bed," She stated with a shake of her head. "You should have a good night sleep before the world cup."
"Emma," He began with an incredulous gaze. "I literally slept in a room that had a hole in the roof and my mattress was the size of a newspaper. I'm sure I can survive sleeping on the floor just once while you're here."
She gave a small shudder, her nose scrunching in disgust, "I don't like hearing about the man who took care of you before. It's horrible to think that you were treated that way."
"Yeah well," He shrugged, pushing his glasses up. "I don't really remember anything, so I guess I was just glad I some kind of roof over my head." He patted her back reassuringly, "Come on. Let's do something fun."
By fun, he meant flying and practicing on their broomsticks. Emma was glad she had brought hers, but, unfortunately, it would never compare to Jude's lightning bolt which was still the fastest broomstick. With him being on that plus him being as skilled as he was, he easily beat her on any race they had.
They were called inside later on where they ate dinner with Hannah and Neville and talked about how excited and happy they were to be able to go to the world cup which they thanked the couple once more for the tickets.
After helping Hannah with all the dishes, they got ready for bed. Emma had taken his bed while he set up some blankets and pillows on the ground next to it. Once settled in, lights off and everything, they closed their eyes and waited for sleep.
"Emma?" Jude whispered from his spot below the bed. "You still up?"
A beat of silence passed before she answered, "What is it, Jude?"
He swallowed, playing with his fingers timidly, "What…what are your parents like?"
He glanced up when he heard shuffling from his bed and saw her green eyes peek over the bed. She let out a small smile, "They're great parents, Jude. They accept me for who I am, and love me more every day."
"That's good," He smiled back, feeling tears swell his eyes. "I just don't know what it's like, and since I wouldn't ask James because I don't like Mr. Potter, I wanted to know what yours were like."
"It's fine, Jude," Emma whispered in reply.
"Yeah," Jude sniffled. He cleared his throat lightly, "Hey, E-" He cut himself off when he glanced up at Emma's sleeping face. His face softened into a smile, "Goodnight, Emma."
"It's okay, Jude. It'll pass," Hannah soothed, rubbing the boy's back when he dry heaved once more after they apparated onto the Weasleys lawn.
Jude breathed deeply, hoping any kind of air would soothe his heated throat. Emma rubbed her head, hoping to right the world back. She was taking it better than Jude even though it was her first time. He'd be embarrassed about it later.
"Ooh, ooh, ooh," Mrs. Weasley came running out, a wash cloth in her hands. "Oh, Jude, deary, are you alright?"
Jude laughed shakily, nodding, "I'm alright, Mrs. Weasley. I just still haven't gotten the hang of apparation yet." He cleared his throat and put his hand on Emma's arm, giving her a push forward, "I'd like you to meet Emma Thorne. She's mine and James' best friend."
Mrs. Weasley smiled widely, bringing a startled Emma in for a hug, "Oh, it's nice to meet you, Emma. James has told me a lot about you."
"He has?" Emma blushed. She gave a small kick to Jude when he snickered into his palm.
"Jude! Emma!" James called out as he ran out of the house. "Are you ready?"
"Sure am," Jude grinned, forgetting about his almost upchuck no less than a minute ago. "How are we getting there? Are we flying?"
James shook his head, "Too many broomsticks. We're going by portkey."
"Portkey?" Emma perked up excitedly.
"Portkey?" Jude echoed confusedly.
James nodded before turning to Mrs. Weasley and kissing her on the cheek, "I'll see you later, Grandma."
Mrs. Weasley smiled and hugged him, "Oh, you kids have fun. Tell me who wins this year."
"Of course," James smiled back.
Hannah grabbed Jude by the shoulders, "Okay, you've got everything right?"
"Yes, Hannah," Jude nodded, his lips twitching into a smile. It was nice when someone cared for him. He could feel warmth bursting in his chest. "We double checked before we left, remember?"
Neville patted his head with a smile, "She's just making sure. You have fun now, alright? Don't worry about anything other than the game."
"Right," Jude replied.
Hannah kissed his head quickly, "I'll see you in a few days. Be safe." They quickly said hello to everyone before Disapparating.
"Come on," James grabbed them by their arms and dragged them quickly to the back of the Burrow. "We're just about to leave."
They went to the back where the Potters, the Weasleys, and Teddy were waiting. "Right," Harry said, gesturing to the boot in the middle of the backyard. "Shall we then?"
Jude frowned, "What are we supposed to be doing?"
James rolled his eyes good naturedly, shoving his best male friend forward, "Just follow my lead."
Jude followed James as everyone lay on the ground, all touching the boot. Right as he put his finger on the boot as well, being the last one, he felt a sharp jolt in his stomach before they were suddenly being transported.
He shouted out in the air as the boot slipped from his grasp. He was surprised it lasted that long seeing as how there were so many of them touching it. His body slammed on the floor roughly, as did most of the others around him.
He groaned at the pain pulsing through his back. After getting his bearings in check, he stood up, hissing at the sharp pain radiating in his back. As he brought his gaze back to the sky, he could see the adults in the group easily running down from the sky.
"Alright-y then," George grinned, already running down the hill. "Let's unpack and get ready for the game."
Jude followed James and Emma as everyone else began running down the hill. He gaped in shock at all of the tents that were on the ground. So many people were camping out for the world cup. He wondered if they were gonna find a place big enough for all of them. After all, there were at least 25 of them all together.
"Hey, Jude," A slightly familiar voice greeted him.
Jude blinked, glancing up at the voice and was met with the familiar blue hair of Teddy Lupin. He smiled in greeting, "Hey, Teddy. How are you?"
"I'm fine," Teddy grinned back. "You excited for this? I know it's your first time here."
Jude nodded sheepishly, feelings his cheeks heat up a bit, "Yeah. I really don't know that much about the wizarding world, but if there's one thing I understand, it's quidditch."
Teddy chuckled, "That's good to hear."
Jude furrowed his brow when he gazed around, noticing the unfamiliar landscape, "Where are we anyways? I don't think I've ever seen this place before."
"We're in Brazil," Teddy answered, snickering at Jude's gaping face. "Yeah, I know. Portkeys can really take you far." He patted the younger male's shoulder. "Come on; we're sharing a tent with the other guys."
Jude blinked at the tent they had stopped at, watching as Teddy, Louis, and Fred went inside easily. Wasn't it going to be super cramped in there? Bracing himself, he walked in slowly and almost fell over at how big it was on the inside.
James laughed at his flabbergasted face, taking his bag and putting it next to his, "Hurry, Jude. The first game is about to start. It's Poland vs. New Zealand."
After everyone was ready, they were rushed to a large stadium where Jude could only gape in awe. The first game went by quickly with New Zealand winning. The games kept on until the quarter finals.
The next day was the quarter finals. Jude was a bit bummed that England lost while James was angry that Bulgaria lost to Ireland. When Jude asked, James explained that it was because they won last year and he got to meet Viktor Krum; one of the best seekers of their time. He then jokingly said Jude would probably make it to the world cup as well which made the boy blush modestly.
The day after that were the semi finals where they watched while biting on their nails anxiously. Jude was sure Emma burst his ear drum from her excited scream when Brazil and Japan were in the finals. He had told Emma just that when she told him it wasn't her that screamed. Fred only laughed sheepishly beside him.
The day of the finals, he was sure they had screamed themselves hoarse. He wasn't sure who exactly they were rooting for. In the end, Brazil just barely beat Japan with 50 points in the lead. The entire stadium was rocked by the cheers of the fans. Jude thought to himself that he was going to have to start looking up professional quidditch teams to get with the program.
That night, they were all tuckered out and almost passed out on their beds. Jude stared at the top of ceiling, wondering when sleep was going to claim him. He frowned, knowing it wouldn't come anytime soon, and stood from his bed, tiptoeing out of the tent quietly.
He walked out, smiling at the people who were still awake. He wandered out in the clearing where no one else was at and stared at the stars. A part of him wondered if this year was going to cut him slack.
As he brought his gaze down from the stars, he felt his body stiffen when he caught sight of a black creature staring back at him, ways away from him. He swallowed roughly, wondering what it was then cursing himself for barely knowing anything about the wizarding world.
He thanked Merlin when the creature ran back into the large trees behind. He let loose the breath he was holding and quickly made his way back to the tent he was residing in. He was going to take that as a sign; Lazarus was still out there and out for his blood.