PART FOUR
Recap:
**
Evie
**
Bored? Binns can be that way. Skip the rest of the day and come with me and Fred to the quidditch pitch. The sixth years are having a little party. We'd love to see you there.
George.
PS Bring your broom.
Ha—George obviously didn't know my clumsiness, and lack of hand-eye coordination. But I was desperate for some fun, and fresh oxygen. So, as soon as Professor Binns dismissed us, I ran out of the room, getting my broom and running toward the pitch.
****
Fred, George, Katie Bell, Angelina Johnson and I were all flying around the Quidditch pitch. I had always reveled in the feeling of the wind in the air, and being weightless in the air, looking down 300 feet to the ground. I also could fly on a broom much, much better than I could actually play Quidditch.
Much to my dismay, Fred discovered the Quaffle and started passing it around. I avoided it at all costs.
"Are you scared?" George teased.
"No," I replied. "I just have absolutely zero hand-eye coordination."
George laughed. Soon, it was fairly uncontrollable.
"It's not funny!" I yelled at him, wishing I could smack him.
My lack of Quidditch skills sparked a conversation about the sport. I'd learned it back in the States, but had failed that unit.
The Quidditch conversation, in turn, sparked another one, this about Viktor Krum, international Quidditch star. This took to talking about the Triwizard Tournament, because apparently, Krum had participated in the Tournament. I made them explain the whole deal to me, about the four tasks, and the Portkey, and everything. Angelina and Katie supplied most of the story, with several comments from Fred and George. I felt proud to be Harry's friend after they'd explained it all. He'd been through a lot, and didn't want to lose his friends, no matter how new they were, which explained his protectiveness toward me.
"They're having a Triwizard reunion," Angelina said, seeming to just remember.
"Already? It's only been a year," Katie replied.
"They decided they liked having the schools together, so they're throwing a masquerade ball and inviting them to stay for a while," Angelina replied. "I overheard it would be a few months, and I don't see why they would have them stay for that long."
"The students want to be able to forge new friendships," Katie said, offering a suggestion. "And they want to see their old friends for more than just...one night."
"When is it?" I asked. I was intrigued by this Triwizard Tournament and this reunion deal.
"October," Angelina replied. "The ball will be right before Halloween, and the reunion will last through the Christmas holidays."
I was studying in the common room when George suddenly took my hand and swept me out the door.
"George, I was busy!" I protested.
"You've got to see this, Evie."
He led me hurriedly to the quidditch pitch and stopped.
"What—?"
"Look." He pointed out toward the pitch.
The sunset. It was absolutely amazing! The great ball of fire splashed red, pink, orange and gold across the canvas of the sky. The clouds reflected a dark fuchsia. One ray of light shone right onto George. We looked at each other at the same time.
George laughed. "You're glowing," he said, turning toward him.
I smiled. My fingers itched to touch him. I wanted it so badly that it hurt to look at him.
My hands started to shake slightly as I went to tuck a piece of hair behind my ear. I didn't know what to say.
"Sorry for taking you away from your work," George said, emphasizing "work" with a goofy face. I laughed. "But you were the first person I thought of."
"Thanks," I managed, my heart about ready to burst. I looked up into his brown eyes.
There was a silence. The sun was almost gone below the horizon, the vivid colors now reduced to watered-down pastels.
"You're beautiful," George whispered, barely audible. If I hadn't seen his lips move, I wouldn't have known he'd said it.
My fingers trembled as I reached to brush a piece of his hair out of his eyes.
I wanted to touch his face. I wanted to take my hand, and feel my lips on his. I briefly wondered whether or not I was merely infatuated.
I brought my hand down slowly.
George's hands found their way to my, and pulled me to him by my waist. I lost my balance and found my hands on his chest. I had to tilt my head up at a rather uncomfortable angle to see him smile at me.
With George's hands clasped around the back of my waist, and mine on his chest, we watched the sun set, the moon rise, and the stars begin to twinkle. I rested my head on his chest and felt like nothing bad could ever happen to me.
***
Tasha
***
I woke up, showered, got dressed, and headed down to breakfast. Some of the Slytherin girls were huddled around the bulletin board. I saw the Parkinson girl and her posse leave once they saw me, looking at me disgustedly. I saw a big poster on the board that read:
Triwizard Reunion! The delegates from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving October 30th and welcomed with a Masquerade Ball on Halloween.
I shrugged. What was a Triwizard? I'd have to ask Evie if she knew what that was.
I headed down to breakfast and took a seat next to Theo and Adrian.
"Hey Tasha, you hear about the Triwizard thing?" Theo asked.
"Yeah, what is it? I don't think we have anything like it in the States," I said.
"Well, it brought together the three major European wizarding schools: Beauxbatons, the all-girls school, Durmstrang, the all-boys school, and Hogwarts," Theo said.
"That's us," Adrian put in, teasing. I rolled my eyes and motioned for Theo to keep going.
"Three champions, one from each school, is selected to compete in three tasks. Last year, there were four. Someone put Potter's name in the Goblet of Fire. The first task was retrieving a golden egg from a dragon. Nasty business that was, what with the Hungarian Horntail.... The egg they got gave them a clue to the next task, which was rescuing someone of great value to them from the bottom of the Black Lake."
"That led to the Maze," Adrian cut in. "The Cup was at the center of the Maze. Cedric Diggory, a seventh-year Hufflepuff, and Potter got to it, and it turned out to be a Portkey. The Dark Lord got them then; Potter almost died, and Diggory actually did."
"Yikes!" I said. "Sounds dangerous."
"Well, yeah. And now they're bringing them all back. Those Beauxbatons girls, oh man..." Adrian and Theo shared a knowing look. I didn't even want to know.
I let them talk. I'd heard of Durmstrang—our school in the States had its fair share of competitions with Durmstrang. I left for class when I saw Malfoy come into the Great Hall, but I did overhear him asking Adrian if he was holding Quidditch tryouts. Yes! This weekend. This was my chance to show Slytherin, and Draco Malfoy, what Natasha Marissa Michaels could do.
