The crowd roared around her, arms thrown in the air, elbows hitting against each other as cheers and yells met the loud song of sparks and small explosions from many wands around her.
"Wyne's got the Quaffle! Now Yorish – a perfect catch, that was-; Wyne again! This could be the first score of the match!" The loud voice of Eliseus Dorner echoed over the cheering crowd as three Ravenclaws in their royal blue robes flew suddenly past them at an incredible speed, followed closely by two of the Slytherins in their deep emerald green.
The crowd only yelled louder as the chasers approached the three golden goal hoops at the far end of the field.
"Come on Wyne!" Elladan suddenly yelled to her right, somehow managing to be overheard through the crowd and leaving her half deaf in the process as he clapped his hands enthusiastically.
"Wyne's thrown the Quaffle-" Dorner kept narrating just as Eowyn managed to yell at her lungs full power to her left "The hoops are too far! Don't throw yet!" As if the Ravenclaw chaser could somehow hear her from half way across the field and many meters higher up.
"—And is intersected by Sonnet. It could have been Sofina Wyne to score the first goal for Ravenclaw." Half of the spectating crowd erupted in a cacophony of disappointed murmurs and yells, while the Slytherin crowd, with their emerald scarves and giant banners, cheered all the more loudly.
Sigrid kept her eyes glued to the flying figures, which moved too fast for her to fully see what was happening. And yet, it was impossible for her not to recognize the lean girl who flew at the head of the chase, the red Quaffle safely in hand, silky dark hair tied in a perfectly neat long ponytail. One of the Ravenclaw beaters threw a bludger at Sonnet, but the fifth-year girl easily evaded it with a lighting speed turn of her broomstick before suddenly throwing the Quaffle deftly into the air.
"Alexis Sonnet scores first goal for Slytherin!" Dorner's voice was nearly drowned as the Slytherin crowd suddenly erupted in cheers. Both Elladan and Elrohir cursing loudly beside her. "Its 10-0, Slytherin at the head of the game!"
"I want to see one game where she doesn't score first." Elrohir muttered angrily at her, his long dark hair swaying softly behind his back as he shook his head in disappointment, his twin brother matching him in expression.
"And Wyne's got the Quaffle again! It's Ravenclaw's opportunity to score! Come on Wyne!" Dorner's voice continued to rear over the crowd, his tone making it perfectly clear which house he was rooting for, even if he was supposed to narrate impartially. But then again who could blame him, nobody –except the Slytherins- wanted Slytherin to win the Quidditch cup…again.
The Ravenclaw chaser dashed at full speed towards the opposite goal hoops, barely dodging the bludgers on her way. Another Ravenclaw chaser was not so lucky though, and the crowd gasped loudly as the heavy wild ball crashed against the broom, pieces of wood flying through the air as the boy collided against one of the spectating towers and tumbled towards the ground.
"This doesn't look good for Ravenclaw, with Yorish on the floor. Let's hope he can get back in the game soon. Wyne still has possession of the Quaffle, if she can get past Bouchard it will mean a goal for Ravenclaw!"
But Bouchard would not be the problem, Sigrid soon saw. She had not forgotten the clumsy boy she had seen at the Slytherin trials, and she knew that he would not be able to cover many goals even if he tried his best, yet it was one again the Slytherin chasers who intersected the goal, making poor Bernie Bouchard's job easier for him.
Sigrid let her eyes wonder higher up in the clear sky, staring at the two seekers slowly circling above the rest of the players. Even through the distance, Thranduil Lasgalen's long silver hair was impossible to miss, the pallor contrasting sharply against the deep emerald robe. The Ravenclaw seeker seemed to be following Lasganel's flying pattern, as if focusing on him instead of searching for the snitch, and she guessed Ravenclaw's tactic would be to dash for the snitch as soon as Lasgalen did. But neither of the seekers had moved all game, barely circling slowly the field or at times staying completely still in the air, with no sight yet of the golden winged ball.
This was the first time she saw Lasgalen after the spying she had done in the Hospital Wing a whole week ago. He had not gone to class either that whole following week, and she had not seen him in the Great Halls at meals, nor at the hallways nor the yard by the lake. Curiosity still gnawed at her mind, and the image of him lying feverish and pale on the hospital bed that night was hard to forget, especially when he looked like royalty at the moment, circling the field as if it belonged to him.
A cheer form the Slytherin's made her eyes return to the game. Alexis Sonnet had the Quaffle again, then passed it to Downy, then Alexis again, then Kim and much sooner than she had expected the Slytherin crowd was again roaring at their second goal, while the rest of the crowd seemed to be losing their hope of winning the game. Her stomach twisted wildly as Sonnet flew past where she stood, making her once again dislike the girl only because of the perfect gracefulness with which she flew, her porcelain skin looking as flawless as ever, every move perfectly calculated, perfectly executed.
Soon after the second the goal, the game became a clear massacre. Alexis Sonnet scored a third and fourth goal, while Downy scored the fifth. The Slytherin beaters seemed to be on top of the Ravenclaw chaser's every turn they took, aiming the wild bludgers at them with all of their strength, not seeming to care where they hit- and not seeming to be following the rules either.
Suddenly, the crowd erupted in cheers and roars around her, student's springing to their feet once more, jumping or ducking to get a better view. She found herself squished in between the twins, both of them yelling too loudly and too fast of her to catch a word of what they were saying.
"Lasgalen dashes towards the ground! I think he sees the snitch! Elarion is closely behind, he might catch up still!" Dorner nearly screamed into the enchanted megaphone, and true to his words she suddenly saw two figures darting vertically at full speed, the game seemed to have stopped beneath them just to watch. It was a competition of speed, Lasgalen visibly having the advantage but the Ravenclaw seeker remained at his heels. They darted straight towards the ground, the students in the sitting rows only roaring louder as they quickly approached the land, neither of them seeming to stop or slow down a bit, instead, they seemed to be gaining speed.
"They are going to crash." Eowyn gasped to her left, but she did not turn to see her friend, her eyes focused on the green and blue figures that indeed seemed to headed head first against the sandy ground. It seemed that Elarion had won some speed in the fall, the two seekers now shoulder to shoulder, her heart racing with the adrenaline of the game.
But neither of the seekers crashed, both turning abruptly at the very last second, Lasgalen managing the move with far more ease than Elarion, the Ravenclaw seeker losing his balance for a second and the tip of his foot dragged over the ground before he regained control of his broomstick. Yet at that point Lasgalen had enough advantage on him, having managed the turn with exact precision, and somehow now seeming to be flying even faster than before, as if he had somehow been purposely letting the Ravenclaw seeker to catch up with him earlier. And then pale slender fingers were wrapping around the golden snitch, the unhappy Ravenclaw crowd drowned by the Slytherin cheers, the rest of the team already flying towards the ground, some of them with their arms in the air in victory.
"And Lasgalen has caught the Snitch, awarding one hundred and fifty points for Slytherin and ending the match. Slytherrin wins!" Dorner declared over the crowd, managing to sound only half impartial, even though Sigrid was sure he would only go sulk and complain like the rest of the Ravenclaws as soon as he let go of the enchanted megaphone.
She could hear Elladan and Elrohir complaining beside her already, but she was no longer paying attention to them, her eyes following the figure that seemed to call all of her curiosity as of late, the golden snitch still securely caged in his fingers as he rose his arm in the air. A wide grin lighted those glacial blue eyes, already dismounted from his broomstick while the rest of the Slytherin team crowded around him, jumping and cheering and clapping. She barely even registered that the crowd around her had begun to disperse, and she found herself absent-mindedly following too, climbing her way down from the seats with the mass of Gryffindors and Ravenclaws. Tilda and Bain must have been close somewhere, but she had not seen either of her siblings for the duration of the game.
The green monster appeared inside of her once more as she saw Alexis Sonnet already perched to him, the feeling one she utterly disliked but could not force away, twisting her stomach and burning in her veins. The girl's pale thin arms were wrapped around Lasgalen's middle, and he too seemed to be hugging her, his strong free arm wrapped tightly around her tiny waist. Some of the Slytherin students had already ran towards their team, gathering around them while their wands threw green and silver sparks to the air.
"I want to hold it! I want to hold it!" She caught the soft excited voice among the cheering Slytherins down in the Quidditch field, still carrying a slightly boyish tone, and she turned to find a young light-blond boy wriggling through the mass of students, the Slytheirns letting him pass easily.
"Thran, I want to hold it!" The younger Lasgalen asked again, a wide smile adorning his still boyish features, so similar to his older brother's. Legolas reached only slightly below his brother's shoulder, with him being only eleven, but there was look of admiration in his big blue eyes that made her smile through the distance.
She saw Thranduil handing his little replica the golden ball, silver wings fluttering quickly as if trying to get away, but held securely now in the smaller hand. Legolas' grin only grew wider as some of the Slytherins cheered at him and clapped again as if he had been the one to catch it, his still short arm flying high in the air with the snitch, Thranduil shoving his brother playfully in the shoulder only to receive a hit in return.
"Sig! Are you coming?" Eowyn's call made her eyes travel to where her friend stood, one hand waving impatiently in the air, and only now did she realize that she had started to lag behind. Eowyn's log blond waves were draped messily over her shoulders, the wind having obviously twisted every curl out of place, but her friend did not seem to care less.
"Ravenclaw will need to beat Hufflepuff by at least two hundred points to recover from this game." Her friend chuckled as they descended the many steps and onto the ample green yard, the castle towering still some meters ahead. The mass of students walked all around them in the same direction, and, just like her friend, everyone seemed to be commenting on the game, the Ravenclaws being the only ones silent, eyes cast down and looking positively angry.
A sudden cheer from the Ravenclaw students made her turn her head, only to find that their Quidditch team had already joined them in their defeated march towards the castle, already out of their sapphire robes and into their black school uniforms.
"I would date her." Elrohir muttered, and Sigrid followed his silver eyes to look at the Ravenclaw chaser who was narrating something very fast to a friend some meters to their right. She was tiny in size, but her facial features were perfectly angled and refined, making her baby blue eyes seem larger, golden-brown hair falling messily from her ponytail.
"You would marry her" Elladan laughed at his twin, earning a murderous glare that seemed to encourage Elladan into singing very exaggeratedly "Sofinaa, I loooove youuuu."
"Shut up!" Elhorir gritted his teeth, smacking his brother behind his head, Elladan still laughing as he rubbed the spot.
"Who wants to go see if we can get the giant squid to show up!" Elladan suggested already pushing his brother towards the lake shore, where a bunch of students were already sitting in groups or throwing rocks and bread and even pumpkin pie into the water to see if they could manage a glimpse at least of one giant tentacle.
"I have to send my dad a letter, but I will meet you there shortly." She explained, Eowyn waving at her shortly before turning to follow the twins.
"Use our owl!" Elladan yelled mockingly as he grabbed Eowyn by the arm and pulling her into a near run before they disappeared through the crowd.
"You don't have an owl!" Sigrid let out a small chuckle, shaking her head as she hurried up the steps and into the castle, not wasting time while she wriggled her way out of the mass of students and into the long arched hallways.
The long spiral staircase that led to the tower where school owls were kept seemed to go on forever, and she was already tired from running up once she reached the top, absently pushing the lpain wooden door open and stepping into the straw covered floor.
Hundreds of owls filled the ample round room, some flying in and out the windows while others merely stood over the wooden beams holding up the pointed ceiling, their round yellow eyes staring at her. She placed a hand into her robe's pocket, confirming that her letter was indeed there, only a little wrinkled, but that wasn't a problem.
It took her a minute to decide which owl to use. Being as clumsy as she was, she was sure any owl would struggle in her hands, but she decided that the grey feathered owl resting over the window ledge looked peaceful enough. And she was wrong. No sooner had she placed her hands carefully over the owls folded wings to hold her steady when said owl tried to open her wings, forcefully beating at her hand as the head turned and quickly captured one of her finger's in its pointed beak.
"Ow!" She gasped, pulling her hands away quickly, the owl flying away from her the second she was free, and she let out a silent curse as she inspected her finger where a small – but painful – cut was left.
"Don't hold it by the wings." The voice startled her, and she turned to find piercing ice blue eyes staring at her from the newly opened door, the emerald robes from the game now replaced by the black school robes, lined in the deep Slytherin green. The green and silver scarf was wrapped loosely yet elegantly around his neck.
"Should you not be celebrating?" She asked before she could stop herself, standing up straight once more, his cold regal demeanor slightly annoying her, and yet his impenetrable blue stare seemed to be looking right through her. The wide smile that she had seen reaching his eyes only some minutes ago by the Quidditch field was gone from his face, once again a perfectly crafted marble statue, beautiful yet cold.
"Should you not be by the lake with the other Gryffindors?" Lasgalen asked in return, answering her question with a question, and silently implying that what he should or should not be doing was not for her to question.
Instead, he walked right past her and towards one of the lower cages, extending his strong arm and allowing the owl to fly for a little before perching on his forearm, talons gripping at the robe's dark fabric.
"Here." He said as he walked in her direction, his tone flat, neither cold nor friendly. Silently, and feeling the weight of his icy blue eyes on her- which pierced like a sharp January day- she hurried to tie the letter to the owls' extended talon before it took flight, quickly disappearing out the window and into the low white clouds.
She had nothing else to do in the tower after that, but she did not leave, standing there for a second as she watched him tie an envelope of his own onto another owl of his choice before letting it out the window too.
"You don't have an owl?" She asked, her voice sounder colder than she expect it, and she silently smacked herself for asking such a stupid question.
His perfect eyebrows rose high on his forehead as those impenetrable cold eyes turned to scrutinize her once more.
"It looks like you don't have one either." He finally said, voice cold again, and a harsh silence settled in the room for a second as she debated whether to just leave now.
"I have a cat." He broke the silence, his tone not exactly friendly but less cold that before, merely disinterested. Was he trying to make conversation with her? Why had he not left yet, if he had already mailed his letter? But then again she hadn't left either.
She nodded her head, turning her eyes to look outside the window as both of them stood there in the awkward silence, the slight breeze making his long silver hair dance slightly at his back. She could see his slender fingers drumming lightly over the wooden window ledge, and she could not help but notice his left hand trembling slightly, while his right one seemed completely steady. He seemed to catch her staring, for he suddenly hid both of his hands inside his robe's pockets.
"I need your help." He suddenly spoke, making her eyes fly up once again to meet his, focusing on holding his penetrating yet enchanting gaze. That took her by surprise, and for a second she forgot that he was waiting for some kind of answer from her part.
"What for?" She asked, her voice cautious, distrustful. She wasn't even sure he knew who she was, let alone want her help?
"I need your class notes. Your potions class notes." He said after a moment, his piercing eyes never once leaving hers, holding her perfectly in place. Yet something in his tone had changed, making it sound softer somehow, as if admitting to something that he did not want to admit yet had on other option but to do so. The request surprised her once more, yet it somehow angered her and fed her curiosity.
"Why do you want my notes? Do you even know my name?" She pushed him, knowing perfectly well that he had been absent from class for two whole weeks, yet feeling slightly insulted that he would expect she would just give him her work for free for him to earn a better grade than her.
"Do you take me for an egocentric or an ignorant?" Once again he answered her question with a question, but she understood that he must have known who she was, and once again a harsh silence settled in the room, interrupted only by the sporadic fluttering of wings high above them.
"Will you lend me your notes, or not?" He pressed after a long silence, and she felt completely trapped under that iced stare, her own eyes staring coldly back at him.
"Is it because you missed two weeks of class?" She pressed back, asking the obvious question. "I saw you at the Hospital Wing. Are you all right?" She added, wanting to get information on the question that had gnawed at her mind for a while now.
His expression hardened. "I don't know what you're talking about." He denied her. Oh, he knew. He had caught her looking at him from behind that door, had nearly murdered her with his eyes. And yet his suddenly hostile demeanor let her know that she had touched a sore spot. Yet she did not add that she overheard Professor Dumbledore indicating to transfer him to St. Mungos. Had he been there all week? Why was he trying to hide it so badly?
"You do." She added, ager rising inside of her at his dismissive tone. "You know I saw you that night."
"You saw nothing that night. I don't know what you're saying." He spoke harshly, his eyes burning through hers as she stood as tall as she could, still a whole head shorter than him.
"You skipped class for two weeks. Was it because of that?"
"What I do is none of your business." He answered back at her, his tone dripping ice. "I need to pass the class, and for that I still need your notes, can I have them or not?" He seemed to be losing his patience.
"Why mine? Why not ask for your Slytherin friends' notes?" Why was she being so hard on him?
"Would you trust their notes?" He asked in return, raising his eyebrows at her and suddenly once more looking regal, powerful.
"No" She muttered. "But why not someone else notes? Why mine?" She pressed again.
"Because…" He started, but then stopped talking and instead, pursing his lips.
"Because I saw you in the Hospital Wing, is it not? Therefore I would believe that you skipped class because you had to and not because you think it's fun to skip class, and it would make me more willing to share my work with you." She guessed, and by the way in which his icy eyes turned to focus on the window without an answer she knew she had guessed right. He hardly knew her, they had never really spoken before, there had to have been a reason for him to ask her specifically.
"Yes." He muttered, his voice barely audible while his eyes did not turn to look at her. And yet, even after he had admitted what he had seemed so intent in denying before, she did not feel any better, she did not feel victorious at all. In fact, she felt horrible, if he had been ill for whatever reason or trouble or fight, she had no business in forcing it out of him.
"Fine." She sighed after a while, his impenetrable ice blue eyes turning once again to look at her. He had helped her in Hogsmeade after she had lost her money, and she had not even asked it of him, and just right now he had helped again with the owl, she could at least help him with sharing her notes. Especially when they had a potions paper due in two days that she was now positive he had not even started.
"You can have my notes." She continued, watching him nod his head slightly. "Meet me at the library tomorrow after class and you can copy them all, we can even go over the paper." She decided she would not let him take her notes with him - after all some Slytherins were known for borrowing notes from peers and then sharing them among all of them, ensuring them all an undeserved Outstanding in class. She would not have her notes shared among all the Slytherins in her potions class.
"Thank you." He said in a gentle, yet still cold tone, turning then and heading towards the door.
"And thank you for the sugar quill. I owe one of those." She added at last, making him turn to look at her once more as he opened the door his lips curving up in a barely visible half-smirk.
"After trying the one you recommended, I would say you owe me two, Sigrid Bowman." He said, turning around and silently closing the door behind him, leaving her alone in the company of the school's owls, making her feel more ashamed and stupid than before. Perhaps she was the egocentric and ignorant after all.
Here I leave the next chapter! I hope you enjoy it!
Thanks to Amsim for your wonderful comments :) Mystery is building and there are some things that our girl here still needs to find out! But I won't spoil it!
Love,
Elena