More Than Quidditch
The whole description reads:
Catriona lived her whole 17 years as a Muggle and now is going to Hogwarts. She's confused, and Oliver takes her under his wing. She's not the only one who benefits. When Quidditch doesn't seem to be an option any longer, however suspicious the circumstances, Oliver learns a bit about himself on the way.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter universe, obviously. I'm 18 and don't have a job, and therefore I don't have any money so leave me alone :P
A/N (the longest you will get from me--promise!): Ok, so an intro to begin with. Though this is not my first fic ever, this is my first Harry Potter fic. To tell you the truth...I was anti-Potter...I refused to buy into the hype and all. Finally, almost my whole family had read the books. I love to read...and they pressured me...and kept going on and ON and ON about how great it was. So, I didn't have any other books to read and gave HP a try...well...I had to admit I liked it, much to my own distaste. Ah well, now I admit readily that the books are good and I loved the movies too.
I especially am fond of the Oliver in the movies...yum yum...and so, this story comes. I found that there aren't a whole lot of Oliver fics, and the few there are, are mostly slash (not that I have a problem with that)...so I decided to make a hetero Oliver fic. It does involve a character that I made up. I don't know how much that is liked in the HP fanfic world but you'll just have to deal :) I'll make one with 2 HP characters in the future.
It *is* rated R for a reason. There will be a/some steamy scenes later in the story. I promise they will fit in and they wont be TOO detailed...but they'll be similar to a Harlequin Blaze or Desire type of thing.
Oh, the timeline is Harry's 4th year, Oliver's 7th.
And I wanted to give a shout-out to the Harry Potter Lexicon...it is the GOD of Harry Potter info...I double check my facts with this constantly! Also to this site: english2american.com which is a hilarious English-to-American dictionary and also a good source of UK English (vs. American English). I refer to it to make this seem more real as I'm not from the UK.
Ok ok, I'm done...I promise. Here's the story.
*~*
Catriona Mairi Sullivan was packing. She had been summoned. She didn't quite know what to think, all she knew was that she needed some answers and that this place may have them. She'd only been waiting her whole life, a whopping seventeen years, for this...whatever this was. For heaven's sake...she'd almost killed her own mother! That definitely was a sign that something needed to happen. A letter came for her in her room, and it was from this place...Hogwarts? They wanted her to go there. She'd never heard of it, and ...it talked about being a Wizard? Well, with all the stuff that had happened her whole life, she wouldn't be surprised....except that there is NO SUCH THING! When she'd found the letter, she'd asked her mom if she'd placed it on her bed but her mom just shook her head no. Catriona didn't ask again.
No matter what this letter claimed...wizards and such, someone from the place would be coming to talk with her tonight. She laid back on her bed and waited.
Catriona woke with a start to the sound of her windows banging open. And then a cat jumped in.
"A cat?" her brain was still a little cloudy from sleep, "How did a cat get up to the 4th floor?"
And then--the most amazing thing...the cat turned into a woman--hat and all. Pointy hat and all.
"Sweet mother of banana split sundaes, you have got to be kidding me!" Catriona rubbed her eyes.
"Oh no," the woman shook her head, lips pulled tight, "it is no joke."
"How....what....?"
"Perhaps that wasn't the best way to approach the girl..." she mumbled under her breath. "No matter. I am Professor McGonagall, from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Now, I know it must have come as a shock to you, but your existence was a shock to us as well. Somehow, we let you slip through...not completely uncommon, but still rare." McGonagall peered at Catriona through her square-rimmed glasses, "Mmmm...yes...I do believe Albus was correct. Your great-great-great grandmother was a witch. And she--" McGonagall was interrupted by laughter....laughter coming from the girl?
"Oh boy...you think you can just pull the wool over my eyes like that? Ha! I'm not gullible. Really, what's this all about now?" Catriona rolled her eyes, Witches...riighht.
"Ah, muggles." The professor took a deep breath, easing her frustrations, "I'm unable to perform magic here, except my transfiguring. I am an Animagus. That means I can turn myself into an animal, mine happens to be a tabby cat. Now that you are fully awake, perhaps I can convince you."
And with this, Catriona saw one of the most amazing and horrifying sights she'd ever seen...the woman turned into a cat...it even had markings like her glasses! Then, she'd turned back into the woman. McGonagall simply stared at the girl expectantly.
Catriona had scrunched herself up to the top of the bed and half- hid under her blankets, "I...I....I...You...You're a...I believe you!"
McGonagall nodded with satisfaction, "Now, usually all young witches and wizards are brought to Hogwarts or an other magic school at the age of 10 or 11, but you slipped through. As I was starting to explain, your great-great-great grandmother was a witch. Unfortunately, she grew up in a home where being a witch was looked upon as a curse. Eventually, she decided to integrate back into the muggle, er, non-magic world and have her magic stripped from her. Somehow, this was passed on to you, and we hadn't a clue. It is quite dangerous for a witch to run around with no schooling, as you can see from your incident with your mother, hmm?" her eyebrows rose, emphasizing her point, and then she nodded at herself to go on.
"I'm sure you have many questions for me, and equally, Hogwarts has a few questions to ask of you. This will be taken care of once you arrive. Because you are much past the critical age for schooling, I cannot lie to you and say that this will be easy. You will have a tough time, and many things you will see and do will seem nearly impossible to you and your comprehension....your mind is no longer as open and impressionable, and you did not grow up in a wizarding family, but it is of the utmost importance that you get some schooling. Your first trial comes tomorrow. You must go to Kings Cross Station and be at platform 9 3/4 at 11 a.m. sharp. If you look carefully, there will be other young witches and wizards there. After that, there will be someone at the school to guide you through the first bit, then the headmaster and I will request your presence. At that time, you will get more answers. I will expect to see you there." And with that she turned back into a cat and went back out the window.
Catriona stared out that window for a moment...then two....and that turned to three...and that turned into half a night of staring, trying to comprehend what her mind was telling her not to believe. She finally accepted the fact that it is possible she's a witch, and it would explain quite a bit of things in her life. Sighing, Catriona decided she must go to this school. In order to do so, she'd have to say goodbye to her mother and father.
She sat and wrote:
Mum and Dad,
I'm sorry to have to do this but I feel it is for the best. I am sure you have noticed some very odd things with me, and have wondered what went wrong. Especially after this latest incident. Well, I have found a place I think has the answers.
She stopped and erased.
Well, I have found a place that has the answers. I am going away to a school where I can learn more about myself. I don't know when or if I will see you again.
Chewing on the end of her bright yellow pencil, she thought it over. "Hmmm, no...that might not be such a good idea. Let's give them confidence. I'm sure something could be arranged," and erased again.
I will be able to see you again, and most certainly by the summer holidays. I will try to contact you but if I don't get the chance to, I do know I will be in good hands.
Catriona sure hoped so.
Don't worry a fig about me, I'll be just fine.
At this point she didn't know if she was reassuring herself or her parents.
I will miss you, but this has to be done.
Lots of Love, Smooches and Hugs,
Your daughter,
Catriona
Taking a deep breath, she read the note over once more, was happy with what she wrote, and folded it up. Catriona gathered her things and prepared herself for leaving. Kings Cross station would require quite a bit of a walk, and she had to leave before her parents woke. She stepped quietly outside of her door, sniffled while whispering a quiet good-bye to her home, and started on her path to the unknown.
***
There was platform 9...and there was platform 10 ...there was no 9 3/4.
"I'm so stupid, so bloody stupid!" Catriona hit her fist to her forehead. How could she have ever thought that all that had happened was real? Tears stung her eyes. She leaned against the column behind her.
"Ughhh...what am I to do now?" She looked around, trying to figure out the destinations of the trains around her. Perhaps she'd just go away somewhere for a while. Then, something whizzed by her...make that two somethings. They were boys, she thought...they ran by so fast she'd hardly been able to tell...a blur of red hair. They were loudly celebrating some glee with laughter, that was for sure. And...they had gone through the bricks in the column directly across from her? She blinked a few times, and was pretty sure she had just seen what she had just seen.
9 and 3/4...9 and 3/4...her brain was itching to put facts together.
A younger boy came up behind her, scaring her half out of her wits, "George and Fred, they always have to be SO loud. Sorry about them," he said.
Catriona took survey of this boy, also with red hair.
"Are you...?" she pointed to the column in front of her.
"Hogwarts? Yes."
"I don't know...um...to get in there?" Catriona felt like a dolt.
"Oh, must be a transfer student. All you do is face it and run straight into it. Just like this. See you!" and with that he took off running and disappeared.
"9 and 3/4…of course! Between 9 and 10. Anyone should know that!" She rolled her eyes.
"Ok…through the wall," Catriona took a deep breath, filling her chest with air, and pumped herself up. "Alright, I just run right at it. Ok, alright, here I go."
As her legs moved, the wall came closer, or was she getting closer? She wasn't quite sure at this point. Her hands shook, her whole body shook, the air she was breathing didn't reach all the way into her lungs; in fact, it seemed to just go the opposite way: out. She was going to go into a wall. A hard, cold, brick wall. Willingly. "Oh dear chocolate flavored ice lollies, save me!" Catriona squealed and veered to the right, smashing into a man who looked to be in a hurry, by the searing look he gave her.
"So sorry, very sorry, sorry...sir." He just continued on his way.
She doubled over and rested her hands on her knees, breathing heavily. An official stopped to make sure she was alright but she waved him off. Shakily, she walked back to the column of platform 10 and stared at 9 3/4 like she would stare an enemy down. Time was ticking away. Definitely going fast. Running her shaking fingers through her long, dark brown hair, Catriona squared her shoulders, lifted her chin and took a positive stance once again.
"3...2...1...ok, perhaps not," her feet wouldn't move.
She took a deep breath, "10...9...8...7...6...alright...3...2...1..."
Every beat of her foot touching the concrete sounded loudly in her ears. She could count the times her feet touched the ground. With 2 inches to go, she slammed her eyes shut and kept on going. She felt a small pull and then she stopped. Her eyes opened carefully and she could see she had made it through.
"Ohhh, I think I'm going to be sick." Moving her head to get a good look around, she found a dustbin and promptly threw up in it. As she razzed her whole breakfast and probably most of her internal organs into the rubbish, a well-built guy with chocolate-brown eyes walked by, then stopped.
"You alright there?"
Catriona blushed, who would want to be seen in a state like this? "Mmhmm...fine," she mumbled as she waved him off.
"Happens to the best of us, hey?" he pat her on her back lightly and continued towards the train.
Catriona knew it was just going to be one of those days...erase all that--make it a year.
Reviews....reviews....reviews....REVIEWS...I MUST HAVE THEM...BWHAHAHA!!! :D Tell me what ya thought, okie dokes?
BTW- just for info--Catriona is pronounced Cat-ree-OH-nuh..not Cat-REE-oh-nuh...if that makes sense :P
