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Of Earth and Stars

Chapter 12: Friends Old & New


**Be sure to read the Author's Note at the bottom.

August - September 1989

Summer holiday passed quickly for Suri Rosier-Black. Between time with Granna and with her best childhood friends, Suri was surprised to find she only had one more week before the start of her second year. The thought of returning back to school was bittersweet. She bounced with excitement at the thought of being back in her large four-poster bed, at being with Nate Avery and Mara Selwyn, and perhaps seeing Oliver Wood. But, the thought of saying goodbye to her grandmother, and to Mia, Sophia and Eloise made her wish summer would last forever.

For now, Suri soared through the air on Mia's borrowed broom, practicing quidditch drills with her older brother Geoff during a perfect Vienna summer.

"Time out," she called, and lowered her broom to the grassy yard of her friends' countryside home. Geoff followed shortly after, tossing his sandy blond curls out of his eyes.

Suri grinned at Geoff while she dabbed the sweat from her forehead with her arm. "How was that? I finally nailed that flip technique!"

"You're absolutely mad, do you know that," laughed Geoff, though he shook his head.

"What do you mean?" Suri arched a black eyebrow as they carried their brooms over their shoulders, heading back to the house.

"You're supposed to keep one hand on the broom when you're flipping, but you take both hands off when you're upside down. You're going to kill yourself!"

"I need to make sure I'm catching the quaffle," Suri protested, though she felt a rush of pride at her work. "What do you think, Geoff?"

Geoff blew out a sigh, and raised his hazel eyes, the same eyes as his sister Mia, to meet hers. "I'd say you're quidditch material."

"Great! I can't wait to try out this year!"

"You'll do great,"

"Suri!" Mia waved to her from the balcony.

"I'll take your broom," Geoff offered, since the shed was in the other direction. Suri handed him the broom before she ran up the stone steps that led up the balcony and to the rest of the house.

"We were supposed to leave five minutes ago," Mia greeted anxiously and raised a judgemental eyebrow at Suri's sweaty appearance.

"Sorry! I lost track of time. I really wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing."

"That's okay," Mia obliged. "Maybe you should shower and wait here while I get Fleur from the terminal."

"Are you sure," asked Suri, feeling bad that she made Mia late in picking up her friend from Beauxbatons, Fleur Delacour,. "I can just wash my face and be ready to go."

"I'm sure," said Mia, already heading to the front door. "Fleur is the very...proper type, and it would be best if you showered. You can wear anything from my wardrobe."

"Okay, and I'll get some tea started for when you and Fleur get back."

"You're the best, Suri" Mia quickly squeezed her hand. "Thanks for agreeing to spend some time with Fleur and me. She really is a great friend, but sometimes she can be…"

"A lot," Suri supplied when Mia trailed off.

"Yes," Mia giggled. "Eloise doesn't like her so much, and Sophia gets shy around people she doesn't know."

"It'll be fun to meet someone from Beauxbatons," said Suri. "Now hurry before you're even more late!"

With Mia gone, Suri rummaged through her friend's closet and chose a sundress. Mia, being the tallest of their group, usually had something that would fit Suri's softer shape.

After a quick shower, Suri slipped into the dress, which fit surprisingly well, and pulled her wet hair into a long braid before heading downstairs. She found Geoff sitting at a table in the kitchen eating a pastry, still in his sweaty training gear.

Treat in hand, Geoff looked up at Suri, surprised. "You're still here? I thought you went with Mia. And is that her dress?"

"It is, and we thought it would be best if I showered since Fleur is very proper." Suri wrinkled her nose at Geoff's sweaty hair that had dried on his forehead. He grinned at her.

"So I shouldn't immediately hug her when she walks through the door."

"That would be a faux pas, and Mia would kill you."

"I think she actually would," Geoff agreed. Suri and Geoff laughed at the thought; Mia and Geoff had a great relationship and occasionally argued like cats and dogs.

"I offered to get tea ready before they get back."

Geoff shoved the last bit of his pastry into his mouth and stood. "I'll help you set up some snacks," he said around a mouthful of sweets.

"You're a barbarian." Suri rolled her eyes.

"You don't have a brother," Geoff retorted as he began to pile different types of fruit pastries and biscuits onto a platter.

When the tea was ready, Suri searched the cabinets for cups and saucers, only to find them in on a shelf that was just out of reach. Standing on her toes, she managed to pull down two cups and three saucers.

"Let me help you." Geoff quickly leaned over and easily pulled down the last cup.

"Your entire family is half giant. I know I grew a couple centimeters this summer! What are you looking at?" Suri paused when she realized Geoff giving her an odd look.

"Ah.." beneath his sandy blond hair, the tips of Geoff's ears turned pink. "You smell nice."

"T-thank you," she stammered, suddenly bashful. She reached for the cup in Geoff's hand and quickly turned away to set the table.

Before he could say anything strange again, they both heard the front door open and Mia carrying on a conversation in French.

"Y-you should disappear before Mia hexes you for still being sweaty."

"I'm shaking with fear," Geoff responded, pressing his hands to his cheeks in mock terror. This simple act made him and Suri laugh, clearing away the last of the lingering discomfort.

Mia and her companion's voices drew closer and Geoff hurried to the sliding glass door to escape. "It was good training with you, Suri," he said before he disappeared into the backyard.

"Suri," Mia smiled as she rounded the corner with a friend right behind her. "What's so funny?"

"Hm, oh, nothing." she hadn't realized she was smiling after Geoff left. "I-I'm excited to meet your friend!"

"Suri Rosier-Black, meet Fleur Delacour. Fleur, Suri. She's one of my best friends, and she goes to Hogwarts."

Suri held out a hand to the other girl. Fleur was nearly as tall as Mia with pale blonde blond hair held back by a soft pink ribbon. She had blue eyes and porcelain skin, and was impeccably dressed in fabrics that looked finer than the clothes Suri wore on a regular basis. Her handshake, much like everything else about her, was delicate as she offered Suri a polite smile.

"Mia talks about you a lot," said Fleur with a heavy accent. "Good things only. I am excited to know her friends and practice my English."

"That makes me happy," Suri smiled in response. "She talked about you too."

"You set out tea for us," Mia said, looking behind Suri. "That's so nice!"

"Yes, very nice," Fleur agreed. "Thank you."

Suri and Fleur fumbled amicably through conversation as Suri attempted to brush up on her French as Fleur responded in English. With all the elegance that came from Fleur, Suri realized why Mia would consider her a good friend. It was evident, in talking about school and families (Suri only shared that she lived with her grandmother), that Fleur was very loyal to her family and also exceptionally talented at charms.

It was around shared tea and treats that Suri Rosier-Black and Fleur Delacour became friends.

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Steam billowed across the sky on Platform 9¾'s on the first day of September.

"You didn't leave anything behind at the Inn," asked Granna.

"Granna, even if I did, isn't it a little late for that now? The train is leaving in fifteen minutes." Still, Suri glanced over her trolley of belongings. She had her trunk filled with robes, books, and miscellaneous necessities. And atop the trunk was a cage that held her owl, Humphries. In her arms, Suri held her school robe for when they arrived, and on her back she sported a beautiful new knapsack which was her birthday gift from Granna this year.

"I suppose you're right," Granna said, tugging on one of Suri's wild tresses. "If you need anything, send Humphries."

"I will." Suri opened her arms and hugged her grandmother tightly, breathing in her familiar scent, determined to kill the butterflies that swarmed in her stomach and made her heart race.

"Happy birthday, Suri," said Granna and she gently touched the crystal vial that hung around the young girl's neck. "Don't forget to tell me all about quidditch tryouts."

"Thank you, Granna." Suri kissed her grandmother on the cheek once more before she pulled back. "I've got to go now."

"Be safe and behave! And have a good year!"

"When do I ever misbehave," Suri called back, a wicked grin on her lips. She locked eyes with her grandmother and saw visions of stealing from Professor Snape's closet, and his discovery of her skill as a legilimens.

"Behave," Granna repeated

"Bye, Granna," she responded and boarded the train. She pushed her trolley halfway down the train before she paused, feeling a tug at her heart. Stopping in an empty compartment that faced the platform, Suri pulled open a window and searched for grandmother.

As if her mind was read, Suri quickly spotted Granna who also looked for her. Granna smiled at her, and Suri blew a kiss and mouthed the words "I love you." Her Granna responded with the same. Feeling better, Suri pulled back from the window.

"Well look who it is."

"Nate!" Suri broke into a grin upon seeing Nathaniel Avery, his lips turned into a side smile.

"Don't just stand there, cousin, I haven't seen you all summer." Nate held his arms open. Suri smiled and hugged Nate, surprised by how tightly he hugged her back. This small action was enough to calm her anxiety.

"Why didn't you write back after I found out we were cousins?"

"I did write back, I said "took you long enough"." said Nate, shrugging his shoulders. He then looked her up and down. "You've gotten taller."

Suri paused to notice that she stood eye level with Nate. "I might've had a growth spurt...and that's not a proper letter."

"Funny, I had a growth spurt too." Nate helped Suri push her trolley further along the train, stopping at an empty compartment. Other nearby compartments hosted more Slytherin students chatting excitedly about their summer holidays. Nate and Suri wordlessly decided to share their own compartment and hoisted their belongings into the overhang bins before shutting the sliding glass door and sat across from each other.

"You knew all this time that we were cousins? Why didn't you say something?"

"Because it was more fun to make you wait," he said drily, smiling at Suri's irritated expression. "But I only really knew at Christmas time. I went through the family tree books my mother has."

Suri cocked her head to the side and studied Nate's features. Where his hair was dark brown, hers was inky black. Where his eyes were hazel, hers were the color of a stormy sea.

"I'm told I look like my dad," said Nate, as if he could read Suri's mind. "And the only trait your mum really shared with my dad was hair color."

"It makes sense why we get along so well, I guess." Suri smiled. A thought occurred to her. "You told me that you have a stepfather. Why don't you have his last name?"

"My mum didn't want any kids after me, and since Evan Rosier was too busy working for the Dark Lord, she had me keep my last name. Besides, only an Avery can inherit the Avery fortune, and I am the last Avery male."

"Sounds like a lot of pressure. Do you get your stepfather's fortune too?"

"I don't, but my mother gets security by being married to Philippe Durfort, from the most noble wizarding family in France and primary financial funder of St. Mungo's hospital for the past three centuries, or at least his family is. He's much older and has children at least ten years older than me."

"Oh," Suri wrinkled her nose and Nate snorted.

"It's as horrible as it sounds. I don't think Mum loves Philippe. At least not the way she loved my dad. But she loves the security the Durfort family offers her."

"Do you like him?"

"He's alright. He's often away, busy with his other children so I don't see him much." Nate shrugged his shoulders, his expression blank.

Suri had more questions, but Nate quickly rose from his seat and ran out of the compartment before she could ask any. He returned a moment later with Mara Selwyn behind him. Mara held a small gift bag as she sat beside Suri.

"Nate came just in time," Mara said, by way of greeting. "The older ones had been talking about quidditch for fifteen minutes, and I can't stand quidditch talk for very long." Mara rolled her eyes before taking a breath. "Happy birthday, Suri. This is for you!"

"Good to see you too, Mara," Suri laughed, accepting the gift. She shook it once before opening it. "Oh, this is pretty." From the bag, she pulled out a grey scarf that felt incredibly soft in her hands.

"We saw it at Madam Malkins and decided to split the cost," Mara explained, nudging Nate.

Tossing her hair over her shoulder, Suri draped the scarf around her neck and imagined herself wearing it when the weather got colder. "I love it. Thank you."

"I wanted to get you chocolates as well, but Mara reminded me you don't like sweets," added Nate.

"I really love chocolate," Suri defended, removing her scarf and placing it carefully in the bag. "I just don't eat them a lot. Granna says I have to be very careful about my weight, especially if I want to play quidditch this year."

"I heard there were three spots opening up," Nate said excitedly.

Mara groaned. "Oh, not you too."

"Really?" Suri leaned leaned forward, both her and Nate ignoring Mara's disdain. "Wouldn't it be great to be on a team together?"

Nate and Suri became so engrossed in their quidditch conversation that they hardly heard the knock on their compartment door.

"Anything from the trolley, dears," asked the old witch with a cart full of snacks.

"Anything that doesn't involve quidditch," Mara muttered as she browsed the selection. "Nate, Suri, do you want anything?"

"Ah, Miss Suri Rosier-Black, there you are!" The trolley witch smiled kindly.

"I don't think I need anything," said Suri while Nate picked out a couple different pastries. She raised her eyes to the trolley witch. "You were looking for me?"

The kind, old witch rummaged around the trolley and produced a wrapped, chocolate cauldron cake and passed it to her with a note on top of it. "For me?"

"A young boy informed me that it was your birthday and asked me to ensure that this got to you. I usually don't do favors for the students, but he was so insistent."

"Who was it," asked Suri, unfolding the note, though she had a strong suspicion of who it was.

"Oh, I don't remember his name," said the trolley witch, doling out change to Mara. "He has a very charming Scottish accent, and is sitting two cars away on the right." The witch smiled at the group once more before continuing down the train, announcing her presence.

"What does the note say," asked Mara, peering over Suri's shoulder.

Suri looked down at the quickly scribbled note and read: "Happy birthday, Suri! Everyone deserves sweets on their day!"

"Who's it from?"

"I'll give you one guess," said Nate, his face full of mischief while Suri felt her cheeks turn pink.

"Oh! That Gryffindor boy, the one you fancied last year," said Mara, nudging Suri.

"I didn't fancy him," Suri defended.

"You spent every day in the hospital wing with him!"

"That's because I was there in detention because of you." Suri glared. She rose to her feet and took the chocolate cauldron cake with her. "I'll be back."

She left her friends and ventured two train cars down, and sure enough, on the right side she saw a familiar face, accompanied by a familiar voice.

Oliver Wood was in the middle of a conversation about none other than quidditch. He looked up, and his face broke into a smile. "Happy birthday!" He rose from his seat and stepped out of the compartment.

Suri held out the chocolate cauldron cake. "This is from you?" She asked, feeling dumb.

"Er, yes it is," Oliver responded, rubbing the back of his neck. Before he could add anything else, two heads peeked around the compartment.

"Oi, is this the girl you tracked down the trolley witch for," asked one of the heads. It was hard to tell the heads apart, since both were redheads and identical. Immediately, Oliver's ears turned pink.

"She was already on her way here," Oliver fumbled.

"Have we met before," Suri asked, her eyebrows knit together in concentration.

"Have we," asked the second redhead. He looked at his brother. "I dunno. Fred and I are very good with faces."

"Fred and…"

"George. Weasley. Fred and George Weasley," George supplied, grinning. "You are?"

"Suri Rosier-Black," supplied Suri, and she trailed off. "Oh, I remember now! We played together when we were very, very little. You're both first years, right?"

"Rosier-Black, Rosier-Black," Fred muttered. "Doesn't ring a bell."

"That's okay," Suri smiled, tugging at her necklace. She had a distant memory of going with her mother to visit this family once or twice. She at once felt disappointed that they didn't recognize her, but also relieved when they didn't cringe at her name. She wouldn't be the one to explain why they played together when they were little anyway. Instead, she turned back to Oliver who watched the exchange.

"The cake is from you," she said, "you know I don't eat sweets."

"Did you read the note? Everyone deserves something good on their birthday."

"But I'm trying out for quidditch," Suri continued, feeling bashful since Oliver already played for a team.

"And one cauldron cake is going to ruin your chances of playing?" Oliver's eyebrows shot into his hairline. He sighed. "I don't get girls. My sister Lauren is the same way."

Suri looked down at the cake in her hand. It really was a thoughtful gesture and she felt horrible she was treating it this way.

"We'll take it if you won't eat it," said Fred.

"No!" Suri surprised herself by how sharply she answered. Fred and George exchanged a look before they smiled wickedly at Oliver and retracted back into the compartment, leaving Suri and Oliver alone.

"Weasleys are bound to be in Gryffindor," said Oliver, shaking his head at the two young boys. "They ended up in our compartment when Percy Weasley kicked them out of his."

"I can see why," Suri responded drily, smiling when Oliver laughed.

"Let me see the cake." Oliver took the small treat from Suri, unwrapped it carefully and broke it in half. "Let's split it."

"I think I can do that." She took one half of the treat and bit into it, enjoying the chocolate goodness.

"So, you're trying out for quidditch," said Oliver around a mouthful of cake. "What position?"

"I think I'd be a good chaser," Suri answered shyly. It felt weird talking to Oliver about this, and she figured it was probably because he was on a team.

"Chaser," Oliver said thoughtfully. He glanced at Suri, as if quickly assessing her physical build. "I guess we'll see when your name shows up on your team's roster."

"Yeah," Suri said. She smiled again. "Thank you for remembering my birthday."

"No problem," said Oliver. "It's not a hard birthday to remember. Besides, my sister told me that you hung out in the hospital wing while I was out, so I figured I owed you."

"Oh, sure," said Suri. She waved at Oliver before she left. "Thank you again!"

As she retreated, she heard Oliver's voice in his compartment. "She's not in Gryffindor, she's a Slytherin. I think it's weird too."


Author's Note:

Hey friendly faces! Thanks so much for reading this story. I am honestly so excited to write it. With that being said. The next few chapters will have a lot of quidditch, so bare with me. I promise it's for a purpose and it will get us there. That doesn't mean STOP READING, because if you do, you'll miss important story plots along the way. Unless you want to miss them, then that's up to you.

Your reviews are love!

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