"To have you by my side is what I live for." - Poets Love Her

Chapter Forty – The Lion and The Serpent

The moment Ankaa came downstairs to the Common Room, ready to head out for breakfast, Draco descended upon her like a hawk. Taking her by the arm, he pulled her away and out of the Common Room. Ignoring Ankaa's protests, he dragged her down the hall. Turning sharply, he shoved her into one of the broom cupboards at the end of the hall.

"Draco, I'm flattered, but I don't—"

"Shut up and listen," snapped Draco. "You were missing last night, and I normally wouldn't care, except for the fact that I had to teach all the fourth years by myself. That too, I wouldn't have minded at all, if you'd only just given me a warning!"

Ankaa blinked up at him as if she was in a daze. "I—sorry," she stuttered.

"Keep your sorry," snapped Draco, crossing his arms and standing away from her. "Montague was beyond pissed off, Ankaa. It was your idea to start this whole thing and when you didn't show up the others were mad. Montague was ready to throw you off the Quidditch team—"

"What!"

"—Warrington and I could barely reign him in. Warrington said something about you being a good Chaser," said Draco. "I had to make up some stuff about you needing to go to the Hospital Wing, and that it was an emergency. You're lucky that Khan and Haneda backed you up."

Ankaa eyed him warily. "What exactly did you say was the reason I went to the Hospital Wing?"

"I told them you had really bad period cramps, and that your rash ointment wasn't working properly," said Draco, grinning slyly.

"Dammit, Draco!" Ankaa punched him on the arm roughly, her guilt turning into irritation. He only laughed and moved aside, stepping out of the broom cupboard. Dejectedly, Ankaa followed after him as he led the way to the Great Hall for breakfast.

"Cheer up, Rhyther!" he exclaimed, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and giving her a squeeze. "You're still on the team, and Montague's too scared to say anything to you because he thinks you're bound to be temperamental on your period—"

"I don't need that excuse to be temperamental."

"—and you got laid last night!"

Ankaa stopped walking abruptly.

Draco came to a stop in front of her, looking down at her with a teasing smile.

"What makes you think I was with someone last night?"

He raised a brow haughtily. "Are you serious?" questioned Draco. "You were all smiley before I pulled you away this morning, even though you look like you didn't get a wink of sleep. If that's usually the case, you're ready to kill someone if they breathe too loudly."

"Maybe I'm just in a good mood. Reverse period temperamental-ness?"

"There's no such thing," chuckled Draco, taking Ankaa by the arm once more as he pulled her along. "Right, so tell me who it is."

"I never asked you who you were with that day you came in to the Common Room later than usual," Ankaa pointed out.

Draco sighed. "Fair enough," he said, settling down next to her on the table in the Great Hall. "But at least tell me, are you finally—"

"I didn't ask you for details either," Ankaa spat, but she was blushing a deep red. Draco shrugged nonchalantly, neatly cutting into his sunny side up eggs and taking a forkful.

"Alright, touchy subject I understand."

"Rhyther!" Ankaa turned to find Cassius Warrington strutting down the aisle. Her fellow Chaser stopped briefly in front of where Draco and Ankaa were sat. Quietly, he asked, "Are you feeling alright? I thought I'd be seeing you in the Common Room last night."

Draco snorted into his goblet of orange juice. "Yeah, Ankaa, how are you feeling?" He grinned at her, "Sore? Satisfied?"

Ankaa smiled tightly at Draco. She waited until he brought the goblet to his lips once more, and reached forward to tip it over so that the juice fell down the front of his robes. At Draco's glare, Ankaa just smiled sweetly. As Draco spluttered in indignation next to her, Ankaa turned to Warrington.

"I'm feeling better now, Cas. I'm so sorry I couldn't make it last night, but I promise I'll be all okay for the big game."

Warrington looked away from a grumbling Draco, who was busy wiping his face clear of orange juice. "Great!" He smiled at Ankaa, "Practice today at five, alright? Snape's got the pitch booked for us for a couple of hours. We're trying to block out Gryffindor as much as possible."

Ankaa nodded with a smile, telling him she would see him at practice. Once Warrington was out of earshot, Ankaa turned back to see a glaring Draco. Ankaa laughed at his expression before taking a bite of her food.

As Pansy, Daphne, and Blaise came to sat down at the table, Draco had just put away his wand after cleaning his robes. As usual, Blaise settled himself next to Draco, so that Pansy couldn't. Not appearing bothered at all, Pansy and Daphne sat down in front of Ankaa.

"You alright?" Pansy asked none too quietly. A few of the other Slytherins looked their way, and Ankaa glared at them, making them turn away. "I heard something about a rash?"

Draco turned to her too, ready to cause her some incredible embarrassment. "Yeah, Ankaa, how's the rash cream treating you down there?"

"Great, Draco," Ankaa smiled right back at him, matching his cheery tone, "I'll have your rash cream back to you by the end of today, no need to worry! I know you've got some serious issues."

Draco's face fell at her retort, and instead of saying anything he just pushed away roughly as Blaise cackled. Ankaa and Blaise shared a high five, which a sulking Draco tried to block since his ego had been wounded. Still, the three of them continued joking around at each other's expense, and even Pansy and Daphne joined in a few minutes after.

Ankaa was laughing at something Blaise had said when she spotted Fred entering the Great Hall with his brother. Fred's eyes caught hers the moment he walked in, and he gave her a small smile, a barely-there quirk of his lips that was just enough to tell Ankaa that he was just as pleased about last night as her. Ankaa knew she couldn't stare for long since her friends were far too observant. Ankaa just gave him a small, shy smile before turning to Pansy.

"So where were you last night?"

At Daphne's question, Ankaa groaned loudly. "Why are you all so obsessed with me?"

Pansy gasped, "You were with a boy!"

Blaise's head snapped up, and he stared at Ankaa with something close to hurt. Ankaa refused to meet his eyes as she sighed in exasperation. Of all people, she really didn't want Blaise to know that she had been busy last night. As much as he tried to, Ankaa knew Blaise still liked her (at least the tiniest bit).

Daphne was too busy to notice the frown on Ankaa's face.

"Tell us who it is, then!"

"Absolutely not," grumbled Ankaa, "You lot are already too involved in my life—"

"We literally only talk to you in the morning—"

"Exactly," Ankaa smirked, "So that's all we'll keep it at. A casual chit-chat."

Pansy glared at her.

"Is he here right now?" asked Daphne. Pansy and Daphne both turned, none too subtly, to glance around at all the boys sitting on the House tables behind them.

Ankaa massaged her temples as they both started listing out possible boys.

"… What about that Ravenclaw boy? Roger Davies? He's cute!"

"No, Daphne, he's too dull for her…" Pansy trailed off as she zeroed in on Warrington sitting at the end of the Slytherin table with his friends. "Maybe it's someone on the team with her."

"Oh, yes, Warrington's gorgeous."

"It's not him," Blaise stated. At this, everyone turned to him with varying degrees of surprise. Daphne and Pansy looked elated that someone knew Ankaa's secret, and they were practically shaking in her seats waiting for him to elaborate.

"Who is it!"

Blaise just shook his head and got up. He cast one look at Ankaa, a look filled with such sadness and betrayal, that it made her throat tighten. He looked towards the Gryffindor table, glaring at an oblivious Fred before marching away from the Slytherin table, and out of the Great Hall.

"What's his problem?" muttered Daphne, staring after him. Her astonished face turned towards Pansy, and then Draco and Ankaa. "Where are you going?"

"To talk to him," mumbled Ankaa, pulling on the strap of her bag.

Draco snapped his wrist in her hand before she could leave. "Ankaa, maybe that's not the best idea—"

"Trust me, Draco," she told him softly, "I know what he needs right now. I just need to say one thing, and then I'll meet you in class."

Draco took a deep breath. His eyes moved from Ankaa to the entrance of the Great Hall. Ankaa could see the cogs turning in his head as he debated whether or not to let her go. She understood his hesitation. Had she been in his place, she would have stopped the girl too. But Ankaa needed to talk to Blaise, to say one very important thing.

Finally, after another ten seconds, Draco let her go.

Later that evening, Ankaa was gearing up in her Quidditch gear, getting ready to go out for practice. The best part about being the only girl on the team was that she had the locker room to herself.

Or so she thought.

Someone knocked a tune on the door, and when Ankaa glanced up from her shoelaces, she spotted Fred Weasley making his way towards her.

"This is the girl's locker room," Ankaa gave him a cheeky smile, "Is there something about you that I need to know, Freddie?"

Fred chuckled, sitting down next to her. "Don't worry, Sunshine," he said, puffing up his chest a little bit, "I'm one hundred percent man."

Ankaa rolled her eyes as she stood up, fixing the bracers on her arms. That was such a guy thing to say. They seemed to feel so threatened at the thought of being perceived as even the slightest bit feminine. Masculinity was so fragile.

"Not that I mind, but why are you here?"

"Just wanted to wish you good luck for your practice," Fred shrugged. "Also, I might have come here to try and see what competition we were up against."

Ankaa laughed, giving his shoulder a gentle push. "I have a really tough time believing that."

"You're right," he nodded. "I actually came to talk to you about something else… I saw Zabini leaving the Hall in the morning, during breakfast… And you went after him. I was just wondering if everything was okay?"

Ankaa raised a brow at him. "Are you asking for general knowledge or do you want to know if something happened between us?"

"You just looked upset when you went after him. I was just wondering."

Ankaa stood before him silently for a moment, and just examined all his features. She noted the light dusting of freckles over his nose and cheeks and wondered if one day she would have enough time with him to count them all, to chart them. Reaching forward, Ankaa ran her fingers through his hair, under the pretense of smoothing it out.

However, both of them knew it was just an excuse to touch Fred.

"This morning, Pansy and Daphne were questioning about where I was last night," Ankaa began softly, taking a step closer to Fred so that she stood between his knees. Still softly combing her fingers through his hair, she continued, "They knew it had to be a guy because I was too happy that morning. Blaise… well, he knows about you, so he put two and two together and I think the thought of us being together really hurt him. So, when he left, I went after him. I had to tell him something."

Fred nodded, telling her to continue.

Ankaa found him on the other side of the courtyard, sitting facing the castle grounds. His head was bowed, his elbows rested on his knees and his hands pressed together. Ankaa wondered if going over there was the best option, but she knew that Blaise needed to hear what she had to say. And so, steeling herself, she walked over to him.

Blaise, who heard the crunching of gravel beneath her feet, looked up as she approached. For the first time, Ankaa looked a bit hesitant, a bit uncertain. Blaise didn't even bother turning his head to look at her when she came to a stop beside him, but Ankaa was not concerned with that.

"I know you're upset about me and Fred being together," Ankaa sighed, "But you need to know that I won't change my mind about him. Fred makes me really happy, and I think I deserve some happiness after all the shit I've been through." Shuffling on her feet, Ankaa looked out at the grounds as well, drawing strength from the fresh air and open skies. "But I know what you're going through, Blaise. You were there for me when I decided to distance myself from Fred so that I could move on and I… I realize that I never gave you that chance."

Blaise looked up at her then. Ankaa did not turn to him, however, and continued staring down at the castle grounds.

"I understand what is like to be around someone you like, someone you know doesn't feel that way for you. I know what it's like to see them every day, to be so close and still so far away. I—I just wanted to thank you, Blaise. You never left my side, even though it hurt you. But I think it's better if I stay away from you. You're my friend, and I've caused you a lot of pain. I'm sorry."

"And that's it," Ankaa shrugged, "I said bye and I left. I haven't seen him all day since he didn't come to any classes. I asked Dobby to get some food to him, wherever he was in the castle, so I suppose he's okay."

Fred took his hand in her own, his thumb running over her knuckles as he stared at her. "I didn't realize he liked you that much," he said after a while.

Ankaa laughed. "I'm sure by now you've realized that we Slytherins are far more reserved about our affections. At least," she trailed off, giving him a sly smile, "until we're behind closed doors." She leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to Fred's lips, enjoying the fact that she was the one that got to lean down this time.

"I have the feeling that you're enjoying being on top too much," said Fred. His hands were gripping her waist as he smirked up at her. "And I must say, you look breathtaking in your Quidditch uniform."

With a smile, Ankaa said, "Better not get distracted on the pitch Weasley, we're going to wipe the floor with you losers."

Fred laughed and stood up. Tauntingly, he held a hand up to his ear. "What was that, Short-Stuff? I can't hear you from down there."

Ankaa groaned and pushed him away. "Get out of here," she said, "I've got practice to get to."

"Oh, before I forget—" Fred pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her so she couldn't push him away. Leaning down quickly, he peppered her face with kisses, smiling when she laughed. "Good luck!" called Fred, walking out of the door. "Can't wait to kick your ass next week!"

A few nights later, Ankaa had another lesson with Professor Snape. Unfortunately for the both of them, her progress had been unmade due to weeks spent not practicing. Progress seemed far-fetched, given that she had just been regressing this entire time. Her complete inability to focus left Professor Snape irritable, and understandably so. He knew the moment he uttered the first spell and was almost invited into her head, that she had not been practicing.

"You seem to enjoy wasting my time," Snape jeered. "Perhaps I should just leave you be with Mr. Weasley? You seem to be quite focused on him regardless."

"Sorry, Professor," Ankaa flushed in embarrassment.

Snape gave her a look as if he didn't believe her at all. But at this point, Ankaa was willing herself to focus. She didn't need Snape seeing what she and Fred did, or what they talked about. Those things were personal, but none of that mattered if Snape was in her head. Nothing was personal then. The only way she could stop him was if she concentrated.

"Are you quite ready?" Snape asked, "Should I let you reflect? Perhaps meditate?"

Ankaa scowled at him. "Just go," she bit out, "I'm ready."

"Legilimens!"

Ankaa tried to imagine a blank slate, a clean wall of sorts that would keep Snape out of her head. There was a gentle pressure in her head, something like the start of a headache, where she could feel a foreign presence trying to find a way inside. Closing her eyes, Ankaa concentred on the feeling. Knowing that someone was trying to dig around through her private thoughts was a great motivating factor to strengthen the shield.

"You are thinking too much," snapped Snape. "Just because I cannot see inside, does not mean I cannot hear your thoughts."

Ankaa sighed heavily. Running her hand over her face, she turned to her Professor once more. "Again."

With a flick of his wand, the same feeling was back. Ankaa tried to keep herself free of emotion, and free of any thought. She put up a wall but tried not to think about it too much. She just had to believe in herself, that she had made the wall strong enough for now.

The slight throbbing in her head finally ebbed away. Ankaa opened her eyes gingerly, looking to Snape for his feedback.

"It's not the best," He admitted dryly, "But it does the job. I could not see your memories, and I could not hear your thoughts. However, you need to work on making the wall strong enough so that you can continue a conversation while still resisting."

Ankaa nodded. She knew sitting there in front of Voldemort with her eyes scrunched closed would be a dead giveaway that she was shielding her thoughts.

It surprised her when Snape elected to end their lessons after that. They had only practiced for an hour, half of which was wasted when Snape just insulted her inability to concentrate. But it made sense why he wanted to end early, Ankaa supposed. There was very little she could do if she hadn't practiced putting up her mental shields yet.

"When I see you next, Miss Rhyther," Snape called after her, "I want to see your shields perfected. I will not have my time wasted."

Of course, only Snape would part with such encouraging words. Ankaa nodded wordlessly and left his classroom.

Ankaa walked the halls slowly, not knowing what to do with herself with the extra few hours in her schedule. Usually, she had work to do but vigorous scheduling these past few nights had helped bring her on track. And now, for the first time in a while, she truly had nothing to do. Ankaa supposed she could head up to the Room of Requirement, see if the D.A. was meeting today, but she didn't feel like arguing with Smith tonight.

"Miss Rhyther?"

Ankaa turned swiftly, surprised to see Dumbledore out of his office at this hour. Apparently, he was just as surprised to see her.

"Have you got somewhere to be, Ankaa?"

"Er, no, sir," Ankaa mumbled, looking down at her watch swiftly. It was past hours, and she shouldn't have been walking around. Ankaa doubted she could lie to Dumbledore about being on Prefect duty. "I just finished my lessons with Professor Snape, I was just heading back to my dorm."

Dumbledore's beard twitched as he considered her answer. "You're heading to your dormitory? Forgive me, but aren't the Slytherin dormitories on the other side of the castle, Miss Rhyther?"

Busted.

"Yes, sir," Ankaa sighed, defeated. "I was just talking a walk. I've got a lot on my mind and I just… needed to take a break, I suppose."

Dumbledore scrutinized her for a moment, and thought Ankaa wanted to shrink back from his apparently all-knowing stare, she stared right back him. With a small smile, Dumbledore gestured to one of the little stone bay benches by the window in the hallway. "As I've said to you before, Miss Rhyther, talking to others really does help alleviate some of our stresses." Without waiting for her, Dumbledore took a seat on one edge of the stone bench. He smiled expectantly at her.

This has got to be the weirdest thing ever, Ankaa thought to herself as she hesitantly moved over to sit on the other side of the bench. She tried to put as much distance between herself and Dumbledore as she could without making it blatantly obvious. Though Dumbledore most likely noticed, he didn't say anything.

"Care to speak of what's on your mind?"

Ankaa shot him a sideways look, trying to smile politely. Ankaa was sure it looked more like a grimace. She had wanted alone time. And even if she did want to talk to someone, Dumbledore was the last person on that list. She wished there was an easier way to talk to Remus, but he was busy with the Order, and writing all of this down in a letter would be an open invitation for Umbridge to investigate.

"Why did you get Umbridge to fill the Defense position?" the unrelated question slipped out of Ankaa's lips before she could stop it.

Dumbledore did not seem surprised by her question. His eyes remained fixed on the moon outside, and his expression remained just as composed. "The Minister for Magic suggested that Professor Umbridge would make a wonderful addition to our staff. Are you not impressed with her teaching?"

Ankaa snorted. "I'm not really sure what she does can be qualified as teaching, Professor," she admitted with an easy smile.

It was not lost on her that Dumbledore had not given her a proper answer. His response had been vague enough to make it seem like he had answered when he had really just switched the question onto her.

Dumbledore smiled at Ankaa's response. "Professor Umbridge is not the only thing on your mind," Dumbledore stated.

"No," admitted Ankaa after a pause. She turned towards the window so that she was facing Dumbledore, and her back was pressed against the cool brick wall behind her. "I… I haven't had a vision in a while. I can't help but think that maybe I'm a bit defective."

"Defective?"

Ankaa nodded. "My mom sees everything. I'm pretty sure she knows everything that's going to happen with this whole mess," Ankaa waved her hand around. "I, on the other hand, have to force my visions with Mopsus' potion."

Dumbledore regarded her from over his half-moon spectacles. Ankaa turned away from the window and met his stare head on. Whatever he was looking for, he may have found it, for the corners of his lips twitched in a small smile.

"I have found that sometimes we are our own biggest challenge," said Dumbledore finally.

"You think I'm being too hard on myself?"

"Certainly," said the Headmaster. "I think for a fifteen-year-old, you have undertaken far too much responsibility."

"You think I can't handle it?" asked Ankaa, looking slightly insulted.

"Sometimes, the question is not whether or not we can handle the circumstances, but rather, are the circumstances something that we need to be in, in the first place."

Ankaa had the feeling Dumbledore was alluding to Ankaa's insistence to meet Voldemort. Those weren't circumstances that she wanted to be in, per se, but rather circumstances that Ankaa felt she had to face for the sake of her parents, and her friends. If she could just convince him that she wasn't a Seer, he would stop looking for her Mother, and Henry could come live with them at Grimmauld place since he would have no more reason to keep Voldemort distracted.

"Do you think I'm being stupid by wanting to meet Voldemort?"

"No," answered Dumbledore, a thoughtful expression on his face. "I think it is brave of you. Not many would put themselves on the line to protect their friends and family as you have chosen to do." Dumbledore stood up then but did not move away. Staring down at her, he mused, "Though if I may, I would like to offer you a word of advice."

Ankaa nodded dubiously.

"Do not delude yourself into thinking that you can beat Voldemort by forcing years of experience into a few months of training with Professor Snape. Gifted though you may be, sometimes such perilous meetings are better left to more… experienced witches and wizards." Dumbledore gave her a happy smile as if he had just told her extremely good news before he turned and wandered down the hallway.

Ankaa sat there, in that little nook, for a few more minutes before she finally pulled herself up and started walking in the opposite direction of Dumbledore.

Dumbledore's words were still playing around in her head, and she wondered if it was better that she did not interact with Voldemort at all. After all, there was a reason her parents had pulled her out of Rhyther Manor and kept her hidden at Grimmauld Place.

As she turned the corner, she ran into someone. The person squeaked in surprise and jumped back from her as if they had been scorched.

"Annabelle?"

The Hufflepuff girl smiled widely once she realized who was standing before her.

"How are you, Ankaa?" she asked, hugging the girl. Annabelle wasn't at all bothered by the fact that Ankaa didn't hug her back. "I've just been to the first D.A. meeting! Some of the others were saying that you had joined, I thought you would have been there tonight!"

"Oh," Ankaa laughed uncomfortably, "No, I didn't join. I was just there for one meeting, that's all. Did you just finish?" Ankaa looked over Annabelle's shoulder, watching some other students rush across the hallway. Ankaa frowned in disapproval at how noisy they were being.

"Yeah, Harry said I could be one of the first to go since I have to revise for a test tomorrow," said Annabelle, looking behind her as well. "I'll see you around then, Ankaa?"

Turning back to the younger girl, Ankaa suggested, "I can walk to your dormitory if you like. I'm a Prefect, so if we get caught, I can always get you out of trouble."

"Would you really?" Annabelle smiled excitedly, "I'd love that. I haven't had a chance to talk to you in a while. Mum's been asking about you."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yeah, she misses hearing from you. I used to tell her of all the funny stories you wrote of, and she absolutely loved them. She loves hearing about anything related to magic, actually, and last time I…"

Ankaa let Annabelle continue talking. It was one of the things she found most endearing about the girl. She had the knack to continue any conversation, about any topic, for as long as she wanted to. Ankaa nodded and hummed whenever Annabelle paused, to let her know she was listening, but really, she had just been staring out at the night sky.

"That's me," Annabelle pointed to the the painting hanging a few paces away. "It was nice to catch up with you! Hopefully you'll be at the next D.A. meeting?"

Ankaa sighed. Looking down at her doe-like eyes, Ankaa found herself reluctantly agreeing. With a laugh, Annabelle gave the older girl a departing hug before she scurried off and into the Hufflepuff dormitory.

As Ankaa walked back to her own dorms, she debated whether or not she should just give up on the idea of meeting Voldemort entirely. She had lasted this lost in hiding, Ankaa could definitely last a bit longer. But there was one thing nagging at her.

Ankaa remembered what Mopsus had told her the first day she had met him. It was quite possible to alter the future from her visions. If she wanted to, she could choose not to leave Hogwarts and therefore, reduce the risk of her death. She could avoid meeting Voldemort at all, and stay at Grimmauld Place for Christmas. But, Mopsus had also said that the while the minor details might change, the subject matter, or the nature of the vision, would still stay the same.

Shaking her head, Ankaa got into bed.

Ankaa decided that she would settle the matter with Mopsus tomorrow, and ask him about his advice on the circumstances. For now, there was little she could do but sleep.

The morning of the match dawned bright and cold. Fred and George followed Angelina, Katie, and Lee as they all went to the Great Hall for breakfast. The Slytherin table was filled with students, more so than Fred was used to seeing early in the mornings. Undaunted, he and his friends continued to the table filled with red and gold and settled down next to Harry.

"You all right, Ron?" asked Alicia, giving the younger boy a once over. He looked like he was just minutes away from throwing up everything Harry had forced him to eat.

"He's just nervous," said Harry when Ron did not answer. He was far too busy staring into the dregs of milk at the bottom of his cereal bowl.

"Ah, I remember our first game," said Fred, looking over at George, "Knocked Warrington straight off his broom, didn't we?"

George nodded proudly. "Ron if you do good in this match, Fred and I might just accept that you're our brother."

Ron just paled even more. Ignoring his brother, Fred cast his eyes towards the Slytherin table. He scanned the students, looking for that familiar head of curly hair. He could not find Ankaa and wondered briefly if she was still playing. He had not seen her for the past few days, as she had been swamped with her Prefect duties and Snape's lessons to meet at the Room of Requirement.

"Okay, I've only just found out the final lineup for Slytherin," said Angelina once the team was all changed and settled to listen to the pre-match talk. "Last year's beaters, Derrick and Bole, have left now but looks like Montague's replaced them with the usual gorillas. They're two blokes called Crabbe and Goyle—"

Harry and Ron let out a noise of disgust simultaneously.

"They're the same as Derrick and Bole," Harry assured the team, "Can't fly particularly well."

Angelina nodded. "The Chasers are Warrington, Montague and Rhyther—" She paused abruptly, blinking down at the parchment with an expression of severe irritation before turning back to the team, "—Bletchley as keeper, and Malfoy as Seeker. Remember, guys, don't get distracted. We've practiced a thousand times, we can beat them."

Fred had the feeling Angelina was talking just to him. He was not completely oblivious to the tension between Angelina and Ankaa. Though Ankaa was particularly well versed in the art of ignoring hindering presences, Angelina wasn't as much. He felt slightly awkward, given his position, but he wasn't about to let Ankaa distract him from winning. If anything, Fred was beyond excited to engage in a friendly competition with her.

Ankaa was always so much more fun when she was raging.

"C'mon everyone… good luck."

The team rose as one, shouldered their brooms, and marched single file out of the change room and into the dazzling sunlight. Fred could hear the roar of the crowd, the thundering of hundreds of feet on the bleachers, as the Gryffindor team stepped out onto the lush crass.

The Slytherin team were already on the pitch, watching the red-clad team make their way over. Fred's eyes widened when he noticed Ankaa, standing between Montague and Warrington, looking like a vision. She had straightened her hair, something Fred had never seen on her and had it up in a high ponytail.

Focus, Fred told himself, squashing the urge to run his hands through her hair.

Ankaa raised a brow at him, giving him a teasing smirk, but refrained from saying anything.

"Captains shake hands," ordered Madam Hooch.

Angelina watched as Angelina Johnson and Graham Montague stepped forward and took each other's hands. Ankaa watched, ever so slightly satisfied, that Montague gripped Angelina's hand a little too tightly. A small part of her wished Montague would succeed in crushing her fingers. But of course, Angelina was resilient. She did not let any flicker of emotion pass on her face. Turning away from Montague, Ankaa noticed Angelina give her a look, and she matched the older girl's glare with a teasing smirk.

He's mine now, Johnson, Ankaa wanted to say, but it was hardly appropriate.

"Mount your brooms…"

There was a moment of tense silence. Ankaa and Angelina continued staring at one another, willing the other to look away first. Warrington and Montague took their place on either side of Ankaa, getting ready to take off at the sound of the whistle. To Ankaa, it was quintessential that she, or any Chaser from the Slytherin team, reached the Quaffle first. There was no way on this godforsaken Earth that Ankaa would let Angelina show off on her pitch.

From the corner of her eyes, Ankaa say Madam Hooch place her whistle in her mouth. A split second later, she blew the whistle.

"And it's Rhyther! Rhyther with the Quaffle, the newest addition to the Slytherin team is actually one of the fastest as well, it seems. Spinnet from Gryffindor goes for the Quaffle—Rhyther passes backwards to Warrington."

Ankaa moves to Warrington's right as he takes the centre stage and heads for a terrified Ronald.

"Warrington dodges a Bludger, passes to Montague, Montague winds up to take the shot and—ouch—been hit from behind by a Bludger from one of the Weasley twins—such talents if I do say so myself."

Ankaa glances up at George, giving him a slight glare with no real malice behind it. George only waves his Beater's bat at her and smiles.

"And they're off again—Johnson with the Quaffle, what a player that girl is, I've been saying it for years but she still won't go out with me—"

"JORDAN!" yelled McGonagall.

"Just a fun fact, Professor, adds a bit of interest—she's ducked Warrington, passed Montague, she's—intercepted by Rhyther, Rhyther's moving along with the Quaffle—"

"Ankaa, duck!"

Hearing Warrington's command, Ankaa immediately drops down as a Bludger whizzes past her. Ankaa is so focused on the game, that she can hardly hear Lee Jordan's commentary anymore. She banks right, ducking under Angelina's broom and then whirring back towards where Ronald looked on.

"—close call Alicia, don't run into your own team, Rhyther heading for the goal—dodges Johnson, passes to Warrington—gets clear of Spinnet, Warrington passes back to Rhyther who's open on the other side—SHE SHOOTS—SHE SCORES! So that's ten-nil to Slytherin—bad luck, Ron…"

Ankaa and Warrington share a high five as they move away from Ronald. Montague, who was busy keeping Katie Bell occupied, races back and gives Ankaa a nod.

"Guess you're not half bad, Rhyther."

From beside her, Warrington just laughs. "Just admit it, Montague, she's one of the best we've had."

Montague doesn't answer. Instead, he jets off once Katie gets possession of the Quaffle. Warrington and Ankaa share a look before they too, shoot off behind him. Ankaa naturally draws her position behind Warrington, seeing as she was always the last line of defense.

"—and Gryffindor back in possession, and it's Katie Bell tanking up the pitch—"

WEASLEY WILL MAKE SURE WE WIN,

WEASLEY IS OUR KING…

Ankaa startles, noticing the singing coming from the stands. She had not noticed it before, but many of the students were singing the song now. And despite Jordan's effort to drown out the words, they were going strong.

WEASLEY IS OUR KING,

WEASLEY IS OUR KING …

"ANKAA!"

Ankaa blinked and ducked at the last moment when a Bludger soared through the spot where her head had been moments before. She glanced up at Fred, the one who had warned her of the impending Bludger, and gave him a nod. She was still a little shaken up.

"—and it's Warrington again," bellowed Lee, "who passes to Rhyther once more, Rhyther dodges Spinnet, come now Angelina, you can take her—turns out you can't—Rhyther dodges a Bludger from Fred Weasley, I mean, George Weasley, oh who cares, one of them anyway, and passes off to Warrington—oh he's dropped the Quaffle and Katie Bell—er—drops it too, okay then—Rhyther's back in possession of the Quaffle and she's racing up the pitch."

The other chasers in the Gryffindor team were lagging behind, but to Ankaa's dismay, in the time that the teams had been fumbling with the Quaffle, Angelina had regained her bearings and was now racing straight towards her.

Mind racing, Ankaa tried to figure out what possible way she could win this. Warrington and Montague were too far off to pass the Quaffle, and if Ankaa tried, Gryffindor was sure to intercept. She had no other choice but to meet Angelina head on.

With a quick glance behind her, she saw Fred revving up to swing his bat.

Perfect, Ankaa mused.

Ankaa sat up straighter on her broom, trying to block Angelina's view of the Bludger that was racing up right behind the Slytherin girl. As Angelina reached for the Quaffle, Ankaa tipped over the side. Her legs tightened around the broom, and for a moment she was flying upside down with only her legs holding onto the broom.

"A beautiful dodge from Rhyther—almost thought she'd fall off her broom for a moment there—Angelina takes a Bludger to the shoulder but is still following Rhyther, Rhyther's heading straight for the goal, stop it, Ron! Slytherin scores! They lead Gryffindor twenty-nil. Always knew that Rhyther girl was terrifying. A sight to behold she is."

THAT'S WHY ALL SLYTHERINS SING:

WEASLEY IS OUR KING

Soon enough, Slytherin was leading Gryffindor seventy to twenty, and Ankaa had scored most of the goals. Warrington and Montague had drilled it into her head that the Chasers needed to maintain a lead enough so that when Potter caught the snitch, Slytherin would be the one winning.

"—Rhyther throws to Warrington, Warrington to Montague, Montague back to Rhyther—the Slytherin team is on the move again—Johnson intervenes, Johnson's got the Quaffle, passes to Bell—intercepted by Rhyther, once again…"

WEASLEY WAS BORN IN A BIN,

HE ALWAYS LETS THE QUAFFLE IN,

WEASLEY WILL MAKE SURE WE WIN—

Ankaa blinked at the lyrics she was hearing. It was one thing to taunt Ronald's lack of concentration in the game, but to bring his upbringing and family into it, was another. Ankaa was not much concerned for Ronald, but she did not like to think of any Weasley, especially not Fred, George, or Ginny, to be hearing such lyrics about themselves. Ankaa had a feeling this was Draco's doing, for he had seemed entirely too joyous before the match.

"—Rhyther getting ready to take the shot—Ron's saved it! Gryffindor in possession of the Quaffle, Bell to Spinnet—"

Before the game progresses, however, there's an angry uproar from the stands that almost drowns out the sound of Madam Hooch's shrill whistle. Still, it's enough for the Slytherin team to realize that they had lost. Harry caught the snitch.

From beside her, still in the air, Warrington sighed. "I don't know why I had hoped that Malfoy would catch that blasted thing."

Ankaa only looked on as the Gryffindor team gathered around their Seeker, all overjoyed that they had won. Ankaa looked to the other end of the field, where Crabbe was getting chewed out by Madam Hooch for a foul hit.

"That doesn't look good," muttered Warrington, looking down at the pitch wearily.

Both Ankaa and Warrington sped off to where Draco was standing a few feet away from the Gryffindor team.

"—I've never seen a worse Keeper," Draco was sneering. "But then he was born in a bin… Did you like my lyrics, Potter?"

Ankaa doubted the Gryffindor team even heard him. Both she and Warrington stepped forward.

"Draco, what are you doing?" She hissed at him, taking him by the elbow and trying to tug him back, "Let's go! Let them celebrate."

Draco gave her a glare before pulling his elbow from her grasp roughly. "We wanted to write another couple of verses!" he called.

Ankaa cast a wide-eyed look to Warrington, who only shook his head. "Malfoy," he warned, "It's done, leave it. At least have some grace. Get your broom, let's go back."

Malfoy continued to stand there and taunt Harry, who was not at all bothered. Giving up, Warrington shrugged and tugged on Ankaa's sleeve.

"Let's go," he told her. "He won't listen. I don't want to stay here when it gets ugly."

"Cas, he's going to get beaten into a pulp!"

Warrington raised a brow. "It'll be his own doing."

Ankaa opened her mouth to reply but stopped abruptly when she heard what Malfoy was saying.

"—we couldn't fit in useless loser either—for his father, you know—"

Beside her, Warrington let out a great big sigh, as if he knew this was the last straw. He took Ankaa by the sleeve once more and tried to pull her away.

"Draco!" Ankaa tore her hand free from Warrington and pulled Draco by the back of his shirt. The boy in question stumbled back a few steps and turned to look at her in great irritation.

Draco did not turn his gaze to Warrington. Scowling at Ankaa, he spat, "I can handle myself, Rhyther. Why don't you go celebrate with the Gryffindor team? Isn't that where all your friends are anyway? Mudbloods and bloodtraitors."

Warrington's arms were around Ankaa in the next moment, and he had roughly hauled her up and pulled her away.

"WARRINGTON!" Ankaa was kicking in his grip, "Let me go!"

"Don't be stupid, Ankaa," sighed Warrington, "You don't want to fight him here. Umbridge is watching in the stands."

Warrington set her down a few feet away. Both Slytherins looked up to see Umbridge, dressed in her usual garishly pink attire, looking down at the Gryffindor team with narrowed eyes. Ankaa felt her stomach drop in dread. If Draco said something stupid, which he was guaranteed to do in a short amount of time, Ankaa had no doubt that it was the Gryffindor team that would get blamed.

"—but you like the Weasleys, don't you, Potter? Spend holidays there and everything. Can't see how you stand the stink. Perhaps you can remember what your mother's house stank like, Potter, and Weasley's pigsty reminds you of it—"

There was a split second where Warrington's grip on Ankaa went slack, as he too was surprised by how far Draco had taken this whole thing. In the next second, Ankaa was sprinting towards Malfoy. Not to hit him, but to stop Harry and George, who were upon him and throwing punches.

"GEORGE!" Ankaa was screaming, trying to pull grab his arm and pull him back. "STOP IT, GEORGE! HARRY! STOP!"

But both boys were far too enraged to listen to reason. Ankaa finally managed to grip George's waist and pull him back, but his elbow came back and hit her in the nose. Momentarily blinded by the pain, Ankaa doubled over and stepped back. Warrington and Montague were in the fray now too, and had finally managed to pull George away.

"IMPEDIMENTA!"

Ankaa looked up to see Draco and Harry thrown back. She tried to hear what was going on, but there was a ringing in her ears, and her eyes were watering. Someone pulled her hands away from her face, and through her watering eyes, Ankaa spotted the abundance of red on her hands.

"I'll take her to the Hospital wing," said Warrington, wrapping an arm around Ankaa's shoulder pulling her away from the other students.

Warrington, much to Ankaa's annoyance, decided to stay with her in the Hospital Wing as both of them awaited Madam Pomfrey.

"Warrington, you really don't have to wait," Ankaa said, "I'm sure I'll be fine. Pomfrey can patch this up in a heartbeat."

Warrington only gave her an indulgent smile. "I'm sure she can," he said, "If it's, all the same, I'd like to stay. You have a habit of getting yourself into trouble."

Ankaa only glared at him. Soon enough Pomfrey descended upon the girl. She gave her a potion to stop the bleeding, and a Blood-Replenishing Potion to compensate for all the blood that was lost and had soiled Ankaa's Quidditch uniform.

As the two Slytherin players left the Hospital Wing, Warrington speculated about what George and Harry would have received in punishment.

"I don't think Umbridge went easy on them," he shook his head. Stuffing his hands into his pocket, he gave a nonchalant shrug, "Then again, they probably deserve it."

"They didn't do anything wrong," Ankaa snapped.

Warrington gave her a side-eyed glance. "You're thinking as their friend. Think as a Slytherin, though. Or rather, think as a player. If another team had taunted you, would you even have given them the time of day? Those two let their emotions get the better of them."

Ankaa shook her head, stubbornly refusing to listen to Warrington. She knew that given the opportunity, she would have beat Malfoy too. If he had talked about Ankaa's family that way, she would have left him a bloodied mess. Ankaa sighed, realizing she was becoming far too incautious due to all the time she spent around her Gryffindor companions.

"I thought McGonagall made the decision though," said Ankaa, almost as an afterthought. "This falls to their Head of House, right?"

Warrington only snorted. "If Umbridge decides not to stick her nose into their business, then yes. Otherwise, I highly doubt it."

Ankaa came to an abrupt pause in the hallway. She muttered something to Warrington, about needing to go see, before she sprinted off towards McGonagall's office. Unfortunately for her, George and Harry where nowhere around.

"Miss Rhyther?"

McGonagall raised a delicate brow, looking the Slytherin girl up and down once. Ankaa pinched the stitch in her side and stood up straight before the Professor.

"George and Harry," she huffed, "What happened?"

McGonagall frowned slightly. "They have just left," she pointed down the hall, "I'm sure you can ask them yourself." With a wave of her wand, McGonagall removed the blood from Ankaa's robes.

"Oh, er, thank you, Professor."

Once again, Ankaa turned and ran towards the tower.

Thank Salazar for the Marauder's Map. Otherwise, Ankaa would be none the wiser as to the whereabouts of the Gryffindor Dormitories.

As Ankaa rounded the corner, she spotted the entirety of the Gryffindor team standing a few paces away. They were all in a heated discussion about whatever their punishment was, no doubt. Fred was glowering at the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. Ankaa had never seen such an ugly expression on his face, given that he was almost constantly smiling or laughing. Even George seemed highly antagonized.

"Back for more, are you?"

Ankaa raised a brow at Angelina, who was the first to spot her. At her question, the entire team turned to face Ankaa. The girls were all glaring at her, whereas Fred, George, and Harry were just looking upset.

"No," Ankaa retorted with just as much attitude, "I just came to find out what happened with McGonagall."

Angelina snorted. With a truly hateful expression, she said, "You'd be happy to know that George, Harry, and Fred are all banned from Quidditch. For life."

Ankaa looked to Fred. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," glowered Fred, "And that's the problem."

"Umbridge said that he would have fought too if he wasn't being held back," said Harry angrily, rolling his eyes. "She's confiscated our brooms."

"You're not going to be playing at all?" echoed Ankaa, "All for a stupid fight?"

"Stupid?" Angelina repeated. "Malfoy was insulting their family! He deserved what he got and much more."

"Okay, one, calm down." Ankaa held out her hand to Angelina, giving her an exasperated expression. "I'm not here to fight with you. I agree that Malfoy crossed the line, but there was no need to jump on him either."

"You think we shouldn't have?" asked George incredulously. "He insulted our Mum, and Harry's Mum!"

"I heard what he said, George, I was there," sighed Ankaa. "But you have to admit, jumping on him did him no harm. If anything, he's probably happy right now that he got you three off the team."

"Why are you defending him?" asked Fred. Ankaa noticed his glare had now switched onto her. She could sense a fight brewing between herself and the Gryffindorks, and so she tried to choose her wording very carefully.

"I'm not defending him, I'm just saying that the situation could have been handled better."

Angelina snorted. "Oh yeah? You wanted us to handle the situation like you would? Curse him when his back was turned, like a coward?"

Ankaa bristled at the insult. Glaring hatefully at the girl, she moved to take a step forward, but Fred took a hold of her arm as if to make sure Ankaa wouldn't hurt Angelina. Unflinchingly, Ankaa meet Angelina's glare head on and sneered, "I can curse you right now, if you want. Show you exactly how Slytherins fight, Johnson."

Fred squeezed her arm in warning. "Ankaa, stop," he whispered, pulling her away slightly.

But neither Ankaa nor Angelina were having it.

"I saw you on the pitch," said Angelina, "You didn't even try to help—"

"Just because I wasn't throwing punches like an animal doesn't mean I wasn't helping—"

"Oh, that's easy for you to say, isn't it?" spat Angelina. "How do we know you weren't the cause of all this—"

"Angelina," it was Fred who spoke this time. His hand tightened on Ankaa's arm marginally and he pulled the Slytherin girl away from the enraged Captain. "That's enough. Don't talk to her like that."

Angelina seemed surprised that Fred had chastised her in front of the whole team. For the briefest moment, she seemed embarrassed. But then, her eyes narrowed at the Slytherin girl and she gazed at Fred.

"I'll see you guys at the common room," said Fred, as he turned away from his team and pulled Ankaa along with him in the opposite direction. Ankaa cast one last glare towards Johnson before following after Fred.

He walked a few paces ahead of her, and Ankaa made no move to catch up to him. If she was in his position, she would want some space now too. And so, Ankaa followed after him quietly, trying to calm herself down and expel all thoughts of Angelina Johnson from her mind.

Ankaa could tell Fred was still upset, but she could not be sure at whom his anger was directed. He was obviously still angered by the fact that Umbridge had the authority to banish students from playing Quidditch, but Ankaa could not tell if he was upset with her for all but verbally assaulting his ex-girlfriend.

Not that Ankaa minded.

Finally, Fred slowed down once they rounded the Charms hallway. There was a beat of silence, before Ankaa bit the bullet and spoke.

"Look, I'm sorry for picking a fight with Angelina," said Ankaa, albeit begrudgingly. She did not mean her apology one bit, but if it helped appease Fred, she did not mind it.

"She started it," shrugged Fred. He seemed nonchalant, but he still did not look in her direction. "She shouldn't have said those things about you."

Ankaa nodded. She was glad Fred was defending her, even though she didn't need it, but the thought that he defended her was slightly heartwarming.

"I'm sorry you got banned from Quidditch," murmured Ankaa, a step closer to Fred. "That really was unfair. If you like, I can help you prank Umbridge? I've already thrown up in her office, so she's none too fond of me at the moment, but I'm sure we can work around it."

Fred's irritation dissipated momentarily. With a smirk, he wrapped his arms around Ankaa's shoulders, pulling her into a hug. Burying his face in her neck, he mumbled, "I would have paid to see that." Both of them stayed silent for a few minutes, just soaking up one another's presence. Although the turn of events was less than pleasant, Fred was glad that at least he could find some comfort in Ankaa.

"Are we still meeting tonight?" Fred asked, drawing away from Ankaa to look down at her.

Pursing her lips, Ankaa said, "We don't have to if you don't want to. You and George can take the day off, you've had a rough day."

"Are you sure?"

Ankaa nodded. "We can meet next week. I've got some work to do anyway."

They had been meeting in the Room of Requirement, along with George, for a few days now. Fred was adamant about helping with the research process to try and find anything they could pertaining to Ankaa's 'Death Day' as George had so nicely dubbed it. Usually, George would look around, help for a few hours and then wander off to bed. Fred would stay behind for a little while longer before Ankaa would kick him out for distracting her with constant kissing.

Noticing his worry, Ankaa leaned up to kiss him. She was not as tall as she liked to imagine, but Fred was never going to reject a kiss from her, and so he leaned down to meet her halfway.

Holding his face in her hands, Ankaa pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, murmuring, "It's okay, Freddie, we'll be okay."

"If you say so," Fred murmured back just as gently, his lips brushing hers as he spoke. He pressed one more kiss to her lips, trying to convey how content he felt. Being banned from his favourite game was the least of his worries at the moment. He was mad, but Fred would get over it.

Finally, after a long minute, the duo drew away from one another. Ankaa gave his hand a gentle squeeze before kissing his cheek.

As she walked down to the dungeons a few minutes later, Ankaa plotted on how exactly to enact revenge on Umbridge for upsetting some of the most important people in her life.

Notes

#RHEASLEY