nineteen years now, ever since the war.
Natalia glanced at Nicolette. She hoped it would be easy, and it was her subject too. Professor Brown waved his wand and the tests flew to everybody's desk. "You have the whole period, begin!"
Natalia looked down at her paper before writing her name at the top, her quill making the big, swooping letters and looked at the questions.
Name: Natalia Nott
Defense Against The Dark Arts - Test One - Dark Creatures
Write T for true and F for false in the space provided next to each question.
a.) _ There is a cure for werewolves.
b.) _ A werewolf transforms when a moon is waning.
c.) _ Anybody, magical or muggle, can become a werewolf.
She paused and wrote in her answers. F for a, F for b, T for c.
"Hey guys, its False, False and True right?" Nate asked.
"Thats what I have for the first section, a, b and c." Natalia replied.
"Same." Nicolette said.
Natalia went back to her test.
2.) How tall is a average gnome? Circle your choice.
a.) four ft. b.) 12''
c.) 2 ft. d.) 56''
She circled c and went on to the next question.
3.) What is a ghost? Define it.
_.
She paused for a moment before writing.
3.) What is a ghost? Define it.
A ghost, once a wizard or witch, that decided to stay behind on earth, separated from his body. Ghosts can stay for various reasons. One example is Nearly Headless Nick of Gryffindor House. He chose to stay behind because he is scared of what lies beyond such as death. Another example here at Hogwarts is Moaning Myrtle who had no choice but to stay because she was involved in a Dark Wizard killing. A final example is Professor Binns, our History of Magic teacher. He died as a result of a staff room fire but wanted to stay behind and continue teaching History of Magic. Ghosts are made of a mist of their memories, an essence of their soul. They are not solid and you can walk through them.
She finished with a flourish. The rest of the test went by rather quickly. She checked answers with her siblings before turning it in. They made sure they all turned them in at different times to make sure he didn't suspect them of cheating. But then again, it wasn't common for twins or triplets to have telepathy, it just ran in their blood, being related to the Blacks. When the bell rang she gave a sigh of relief. She hated listening to the nervous silence of the classroom, quills scratching desperately as they tried to remember what they had learned. She walked out of the classroom, ready to ditch the uniform and get into work out clothes and go flying.
Only the first Friday and she already could barely being stuck in class all day.
"Come on!" Nate shouted as he ran past her, still shoving papers into his bag, Nicoletta right on his heels. Laughing Natalia chased them, her converse slapping against the stone. She bounded up the stairs to their dorm before flinging open the door and dumping her bag on the ground, unbuttoning her shirt with a hand. Nicoletta shut the door and start changing as well.
In no time they were out flying the ThunderBolt's, swooping through the sky as they passed the quaffle around.
"I bet you can't score on me Nat!" Nate challenged her as he took the keeper position out on pitch.
"You really wanna go?" She taunted before doing a quick feint to the right and chucking it through the hoop on the left. It just grazed his fingertips but still went in. He retrieved it and flew past her, and dove into a Wronskei feint. She dove down after him, hand stretched out like a seeker before leveling out just in time. She felt the swoosh of wind and knew Nicoletta had leveled out behind her. She speeded up, pushing the broom to it's max, her feet hitting the top of the long grass. Nate was coming in closer. Suddenly he pulled up and she turned to the left sharply, already angling up on him to steal the quaffle. With the wind against her face, her cloak fluttering in the wind, she felt invincible. She slowly gained on Nate as they zoomed across the field. Finally she was level with him. She shoved him hard right on his ticklish spot. He laughed and dropped the quaffle. She flew under and caught it, Nicoletta right beside her. Nicoletta gave her a hard shove before kicking one her feet out of its spot. Natalia attempted to do a barrel roll but fell off her broom.
The wind was on her face as she flipped so she would land on her feet. She kept rolling as the ground came in closer and closer. Suddenly the ground was close, ten feet, nine feet, eight feet. She centered herself and finished rolling and landed in a squat, her knees bent to absorb the shock.
"Nice landing Nat." Nicolette called up to her from up in the air. Natalia grinned. "Nice steal yourself Nic." She got back on her broom and flew up, unbuttoning her cloak as she went before dropping it out onto the grass. She was getting warm. The sun beat down on her pale skin, making her grin. How she loved to fly.
"Tuck your knee's in more on the barrel roll." Nate instructed her. "Like this." He demonstrated, spinning across the air. She attempted and hung on this time, even if it was sloppy and would never work in an actual game. She tried it a few more times before quitting. It would come in time. After they got bored of tossing the quaffle around they raced.
"I bet a slice of grass Nicolette is gonna win again." Nate joked. Natalia laughed as she took her place on the starting line.
"READY, SET, GO!" She called out before zooming off. She took a higher position above Nate and Nicolette so she wouldn't run into them. She flew through the hoops, completing one lap. They were doing ten. She rounded the corner, fighting gravity as she clung onto her broom, soaring through the air. The way the cold air bit into her skin, the chills racing down her spine. The twisting, the spinning, the pain, the blood, it was all worth it. She completed another lap, Nate a tiny bit ahead of her. She paced herself, her breath already coming in short, uneven, gasps. She knew Nicolette was even with her, she had to keep pushing herself. She rounded another corner. And another.
By her ninth and final lap she wasn't even breathing. It was one her many issues. Once she started pushing herself, she would forget to breathe.
She was on the final stretch. She bent down as far as she could go over her broom, cold air on her face, goggles etching lines into her face. She passed Nate and looked ahead. Nic was already at the finish line! With a laugh she dove down, cutting Nate off. He growled and followed her, twisting to avoid her. Not caring about the race anymore Natalia flew off the course and back onto the game pitch. She flew south towards the hoops and flew through them, Nate right on her heels.
With a cry Nicoletta threw a quaffle up into the air as high as she could before letting it drop. Natalia knew what it meant. She ducked into a Wronskei Feint. She fought gravity, trying to keep from falling off the broom. She sped up even more as she fought for footing. The quaffle was just ahead, 3, 2, 1, BAM! Natalia caught the quaffle with an audible smack as it hit her chest hard. Natalia leveled out just in time, her face mere centimeters from the ground. She flew back up into the air as Nicoletta cheered. "Yah Nat!"
Nate laughed. "Good catch Nat. You still can't do a barrel roll as good as me though!"
"I accept that challenge!" Natalia passed the quaffle to Nate before throwing her weight over. Just as she was about to come up she felt something hard hit her leg and she fell to the round. "Hey! That ain't fair!" She yelled up to Nate.
"Bludger hit!" He caroled. "Anything can happen in a game!" Before Natalia could shoot something back another voice spoke. "Well, now that we all know that Natalia is horrible at quidditch can you get off the pitch?"
Natalia sighed as she mounted her broom and flew back up into the air. Nate's eyes were bright with anger.
"And your talking?" Nicolette responded cooly.
"For your information I am the star seeker for Gryffindor and have won us the cup two years in a row." James Potter replied haughtily.
"Your realize how stupid that sounds right?" Nate told him, disbelief evident in his voice.
"Your just jealous. Now get off our field." One of Potter's friends said. Natalia glared at him. "No."
"I'll call Peeves." Potter threatened.
"I'll get Noel." Natalia watched with satisfaction as Potter paled before he tried to brush it off. "I only ask her to go out with me because she is the only girl in the year who hasn't."
"Awww thats cute. Little wee James is trying to live up to his namesakes!" Nicolette cooed. James turned bright red. Sadly, his friend saved him. "Well I guess you know nothing about expectations. Your grandparents death eaters and your parents shunned into disgrace. No wonder you take it out on people who have more than you."
"Well if we are disgraced than why do you chase Noel?" Nate countered. His hands were curled into tight fists, his knuckles white.
"I am a gallant hero. I am simply trying to save the girl from such a horrendous family." James replied as his face returned to its normal tan. Natalia snorted in disbelief. "No, your just an arrogant fool."
"Oi! James! Your gonna be late for your date!" Somebody called from the ground. All five of them turned to the person. Fred Weasley stood just outside the castle doors, dark brown hair rumpled every which way from running. James sighed before to the triplets. "Next time." He warned. "Any of Rose's friends are my enemy."
They fooled around for a bit more before heading back to the castle with wind blown hair and their brooms over their shoulders.
"Where were you guys?" Rose pounced on them the minute they walked into the common room. "They posted the dates for tryouts! First years are at eight am sharp tomorrow! We need to practice!"
"Um," Nate began sheepishly. "We hadn't heard. We have been on the pitch since class ended."
"Well thats great! What positions are you guys trying out for?" Rose answered, obviously excited. "I'm trying out for keeper like my dad." She added proudly.
"Were chasers." Nicolette told her as a group of boys walked down the staircase and stared at them. Natalia hated being a veela. And the age change at Hogwarts. You had to be thirteen to be a first years at Hogwarts now. They changed it after some student nearly killed himself with magic. They wanted to take safety precautions afterwards. Because of this all years were allowed at Hogsmeade now and Yule Ball was open to third year and up instead of fifth and up. The boys recovered themselves and kept walking as the painting opened up and another Weasley stepped in. They stopped and drooled again. Dominique Weasley and her brother Louis. Dominique had brown hair and blonde highlights with cool tones. She had light blue eyes and was tall and willowy. Like Dominique Louis was tall and had blue eyes but he had added muscle and blond hair.
"Rose! Did you hear yet?" Dominique, the quidditch captain demanded, her eyes showing signs of being gold, she was a veela. Without waiting for Rose to respond she rolled on like a steamroller. "Jackson and Blake are on academic suspension. They're all failing DADA and Transfiguration. Now we need two new chasers!" She noticed the triplets and gave them a quick nod of recognition. "None of the fourth years are suitable and Professor Mcgongall had given the okay for first years to try out."
Rose looked unbothered by the news and turned to the triplets. "You guys gonna try out?"
"Do you guys think we should?" Nate asked telepathy.
"I think we should. We would be a good asset to the team and I can bother James more." Natalia answered happily.
"You are incorrigible Nat." Nicolette told Natalia.
"Thanks!"
"So thats a yes?" Nate questioned, steering them back onto the conversation.
"Mhmm."
"Sure." Nate said aloud and shrugged. Dominique looked at them skeptically. "You guys think your up to play against seventh years?"
"Have you seen us play?" Natalia challenged. Louis looked at them and smirked. "They'll do. With them we will have the upper hand.
"You sure?" Dominique asked her brother.
"They're telepaths, James had a problem with them and I saw them play earlier. They're not bad." At the James remark Dominique brightened considerably. "James only has problems with those he see's as challenges. So they can't be too shabby." She turned to the triplets. "Be on the pitch for try outs by seven am sharp tomorrow. No slacking." With that she marched up the staircase to her dorm.
"Is she always that fast?" Nate asked aloud. Rose laughed. "Ya she is. She is a very busy person and stressed this year. She's trying to beat Victiore on her NEWTs."
"And then I have to beat Dominique." Louis said glumly while they all laughed.
"Tough luck man." Nate replied.
"Nic, Nat, come on! Lets get ready!" Rose cheered.
"For what?" Natalia and Nicolette answered at the same time before giggling. Rose rolled her eyes. "Honestly! I would think one of you would of found out what was happening tomorrow night!"
"Whats happening?" Nicolette asked earnestly.
"The back to school ball! Everybody gets to go!" Rose crowed while Natalia stumbled to regain her footing. "I''m not going." She answered imeaditily. She hated gatherings or balls or events. Anything she had to wear a dress.
"Yes you are!" Rose shrilled.
"No! I am going to be at quidditch try outs!" Natalia growled back. It least she had an excuse.
"Your going. Try outs are in the morning." Nicolette objected.
"They can take a while." She replied while crossing her fingers behind her back.
"Nah, your definitely going." Louis smirked.
"Hey! Since when did you side with them?" Natalia turned her galore at him.
"Since I would rather keep my bollocks intact. You learn to fear the Weasley woman." Was Louis's simple reply. "Chow." He walked off.
Natalia turned to Nate. "Your going to agree with me? Please?" She pouted.
"Sorry Nat. Mum's newest orders are to be followed." Nate answered and pointed to the window where their parents owl was trying to get in. Sighing Natalia trudged open and ripped the letter from the owls beak. She gave it a quick once over. She had to attend. "Noooooo!" She wailed and tossed the letter to Nate as Rose and Nicolette quickly started chatting about what they were wearing.
"Sorry sis." Nate shrugged. "You know I hate this stuff too." He told her as Rose quickly pushed her up the stairs. Natalia gave in and grumbled, "and to hell I go."