Chapter 6
I stared intently at the photo of James and Abby on the dressing table. Abby had left me on guard in her dorm-room while she went to nick a pair of her roommate's shoes for me to borrow. I'd been studying the posters of women Quidditch players on the walls, when I'd spotted the photo. Abby and James had their arms wrapped around each other, and they were jumping up and down, celebrating. As I watched, photo-Abby learned across and kissed photo-James on the cheek. I felt a bit jealous, although I tried not to be. Nothing was going to happen between me and James anyway. He was an ex-Gryffindor, for a start. My family would kill me! It was almost kind-of okay for me to hang around with Abby, because we were just friends. But I could just imagine my family's faces if I brought home James and said he was my boyfriend.
The way I felt about James had kind of shocked me. I'd never thought about a boy that way before, and it had sort of crept up on me without me noticing. My head was spinning as I tried to analyse exactly why I liked him. OK, he was good-looking, but it wasn't just that. It was the way he understood exactly why I loved playing Quidditch, and how important it was to me. We were on the same wavelength.
I was still staring dreamily at the photo when a pair of black, high-heeled shoes with diamante bows were suddenly thrust under my nose.
"Just give 'em back after the wedding," Abby said with a grin. "Chloe loves them. She stuck the bows on herself, would you believe."
The shoes were a bit fussy for me, but Kate would like them, so at least they would shut her up. "Are you sure she won't miss them?" I asked.
Abby shrugged. "Nah, she's got a million pairs." She hesitated for a moment, then went on. "Listen, I hope James isn't too hard on you. Some of the girls think he's strict."
"Oh no," I said, knowing that I was blushing. "He was really nice." That sounded like I fancied him, so I quickly added, "Really professional."
I glanced at the photo again, wanting to ask Abby if she really did have the hots for him. But I was too shy.
Abby followed my gaze, and her face lit up. "Oh, I love that picture," she said. "It was taken just after we beat Ravenclaw a couple of years ago – James was our captain." Smiling to herself, she went over to her Ocu-globe and flicked her wand at it. "Come on, you've got to see this. It's wicked!"
A logo appeared on the TV screen – Women's European Quidditch League. I gasped as the picture switched to a large Quidditch stadium full of fans, watching a match between two women's teams.
"Wow! That's amazing!"
"Yeah, we don't get anything like that here, do we?" Abby muttered, her gaze fixed on the Ocu-globe.
The images were a montage of action from Quidditch matches – some mixed, some women only – and everything looked really slick and professional, about a million miles away from the Hogsmeade Horntails. I watched as one player, a woman with her dark hair tied up in a ponytail, took a penalty, feinting to the side, then blasting it past the Keeper and through the hoop.
"That's Gloria Itriwi – she's incredible. I want to follow in her footsteps," Abby told me, as the team in the globe celebrated.
We watched the scenes until the end. Abby was right – it was like a different would. I really envied her having the chance to play in Europe or even England professionally. When the scouts James had mentioned came to visit, they were bound to be interested in Abby. And what about me, whispered a tiny voice at the back of my mind. I pushed it away. It didn't matter one way or the other if the scout was interested in me. I wouldn't be going anywhere.
"So, Lily." Abby turned the Ocu-globe off and looked at me. "When are you going to tell your folks about your game?"
I groaned. "Oh, I dunno."
"You can't keep lying to them," Abby pointed out. "You're too good – "
"Abby?" Someone was calling, coming up the stairs. "Abs, darling?"
"It's Chloe," Jules hissed. "Quick, hide the shoes."
I dived across the room, and shoved the shoes into my bag. Then we both sat down on the bed, looking innocent.
"Abby?" Chloe came into the dorm, and stopped short. "Oh, you've got company."
Chloe was wearing cut off jeans and a tight blue shirt with high-heeled mules and lots of gold jewellery. She looked very glamorous. Her hair was blonde and wavy, and she was beautifully made up. Her cleavage was a bit over the top, though. Abby had told me that her roommates were all like this, and tried to make her the same. Once they had stolen all her sports bras, to try and make Abby were something lacy. A severe hexing put them off the idea, but they were still always on at poor Abby to be more girly. Chloe and the rest just didn't seem to get that Abby wasn't interested.
"Chloe, this is Lily," Abby said.
Chloe beamed at me. "Hi, babe." Then she frowned. "Lily. You're Slytherin?"
"Yeah," I blushed and looked down at the floor. "The Morgans are my cousins."
"The Morgans? That's nice. Lovely." Chloe nodded encouragingly at me. Apparently, rich, pureblood relatives made up for the fact I was in Slytherin. "Well, Lily, I bet your dorm doesn't look like this – with all these great big butch women on the walls." She scrunched up her face in disgust and waved a hand at Abby's posters.
"Chloe!" Abby groaned.
Chloe homed in on me again. "Oh, your cousin's engaged to Lucius, isn't she?" She sat down on the bed next to me. "What's she wearing for the wedding? I bet it's gorgeous. And she must have tons of beautiful jewellery. Do you think I'll be invited?"
I tried not to laugh. Beside me, Abby rolled her eyes and pulled a face.
"Cheeky bitch," Chloe said fondly to Abby. "You're a lucky girl, aren't you, Lily? I expect your cousin will soon be fixing you up with a nice, handsome medi-wizard – a gorgeous girl like you."
"Chloe!" Abby shrieked. "Stop embarrassing yourself!"
Chloe looked hurt. "I'm just being friendly, Abigail," she said. "You don't mind, do you, Lily, babe? 'Course not. Now, did you meet in classes, or are you in Abby's study group?"
I didn't have to reply because Abby did it for me.
"She's a Quidditch player," she said with a grin. "Lily is on the team with me."
Chloe looked as if Abby had said I was a serial killer or something. She was obviously shocked and disappointed, and her face fell. I was dying to burst out laughing, but I couldn't because it would have been rude. I bit my lip hard, and managed to hold it in until Abby had rushed me out of the common room after a hasty goodbye. We made it to just outside the portrait, and then we just collapsed in hysterics, clutching each other for support.
"Did you see her face?" Abby giggled.
"Abigail," I snorted, doing a crap impression of Chloe.
"Liliana," Abby joined in, and we laughed even harder.
I was in a pretty good mood by the time I got back to the common room. Even my ankle was feeling better. I bounced in through the door, beaming all over my face – and came to a sudden stop. The first person I saw was Cissa. She was standing in the dormitory doorway, a hanky clutched in her hand. Mike was standing by the fireplace looking stern, and Kate looked tearful too. Lucius's awful parents were sitting on the sofa, staring at me like I was a piece of dirt on the floor.
"Good evening, Mr Malfoy, Mrs Malfoy." I greeted them nervously, wondering what the hell was going on. The atmosphere in the common room was arctic – all the students had sought sanctuary in their dorm rooms or the library – and everyone was glaring at me, for some reason.
"Look, we're not trying to cause trouble," Lucius's dad said silkily. "We just felt it our duty to tell you. Now it is a matter for your own family." His eyes glinted maliciously as he glanced over at me.
Lucius's mum stood up too, her face even grimmer than usual.
"Listen." Mike came forward, looking upset. "You know how hard it is for our children here. All mixed up, inter-house relationships encouraged by most of the staff. Sometimes they misjudge things, make mistakes…"
Lucius's mum looked unconvinced. "All I know is that children are a map of their parents," she snapped, turning on her heel and gliding after her husband towards the door. "Good day."
I stood aside as they went out. What on earth was going on?
"You stupid flippin' cow!" Cissa yelled, charging across the common room towards me, as the door shut behind Luc's parents.
"You've ruined your cousin's life!" Kate wailed. "Are you happy now?"
I just stared at them with my mouth open. I didn't have a clue what they were going on about.
"My whole wedding's been called off because of you," Cissa sobbed.
"Me!" I couldn't believe my ears. "Why?"
"They saw you," Kate snapped. "Being…" She searched for the right word. "Filthy with a Gryffindor boy!"
"They're lying!" I gasped. "I wasn't with any Gryffindor boy."
"They saw you today outside the Gryffindor common-room kissing him," Cissa retorted furiously. "You bitch! Why couldn't you do it in secret like everybody else?"
"Kissing? Me? A boy?" I spluttered. "You're mad, you're all bloody mad!"
"Liliana, don't use those swearing words," Mike said sharply.
Suddenly, I got it. Outside the common room. Gryffindor boy. Trust Lucius's dumb parents to make a mistake like that. The idiots.
"I was outside the Gryffindor common-room today with my friend Abigail," I explained quickly. "She's a girl. And we weren't kissing or anything, for Merlin's sake." I had to convince them I was telling the truth or I'd never be allowed out of the common room again.
Mike pointed at the picture of Salazar Slytherin over the fireplace. "Swear by Salazar," he said sternly.
"I swear on Slytherin's name," I said quietly.
Everyone was silent, except for Cissa who was siting on the sofa, sobbing.
"These modern girls have such short hair," Kate muttered, sinking into a chair. "Sometimes you just can't tell."
"They must have made a mistake," Mike agreed.
"That boy's shameless parents are just making an excuse," Kate went on. "We were never good enough for them."
My knees felt wobbly with relief – until Narcissa opened her big mouth again.
"No, Kaitlyn, it's all her fault," she moaned. "I bet she was with some dykey girl from her Quidditch team. She's still been playing, you know."
"Cissa!" I hissed.
"She ain't been studying or nothing," Cissa went on hysterically. "She's been lying!"
Kate and Mike stared at me, totally shocked. I groaned. Now I really was for it.
"Oh, Salazar!" Kate wailed dramatically. "Not only a deceiving sister, but a deceiving cousin as well! What did I do wrong in my past life?"
Cissa pointed an accusing finger at me. "She's the one who's ruined my life – "
"Be quiet!" Kate broke in crossly. "Do you think I don't know you'd been sneaking out with that good-for-nothing Lucius?"
That shut Cissa up. Kate looked from me to Cissa and back again. I knew exactly what she was going to say.
"Well, that's it," she snapped. "Neither of you are leaving this common-room except for lessons and meals until you graduate!"
So that was the end of my Quidditch career, such as it was. I had to come straight back to the dorm after dinner every night, and I wasn't allowed on Hogsmeade weekends, so I couldn't get to the training sessions. I was gutted, and Cissa was as miserable as I was. The wedding was still off, even though Lucius's parents had been told the truth. Like Kate said, they were using it as an excuse to split Luc and Cissa up.
I was bored out of my mind. I kept wondering how the other girls were getting on in training, and who'd replace me in the next match of the tournament, which was coming up. And I couldn't get James out of my head. Was I ever going to see him again? It didn't seem very likely.
The whole of Slytherin was like a morgue. Kate was still mad at both of us, and she snapped at anyone who came near her, traumatising several first years. Mike was upset too. He'd taken decorations down, so all the airheads in Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were gossiping about the wedding not happening. No Slytherins did, though – they didn't want to risk Kate or Cissa's wrath. Cissa had taken a sickie from lessons, and was spending all her time in her room, crying. I was sent upstairs every mealtime to see if she was coming down to eat or not.
"Cissa?" I stuck my head tentatively through the curtains on her four-poster bed. It was a few days later, and Kate was finally starting to calm down. I'd missed two training sessions by now, and I was wondering what James was thinking. Would he be worried? Would he ask Abby where I was? I'd thought about meeting her to tell her what had happened, but I couldn't see any point. It was too painful to be reminded about what I was missing.
"Cissa?" I pushed the curtains back warily. We hadn't really made up since the row. "It's dinner-time. Are you coming down?"
Cissa shook her head. She was sitting on her bed her eyes swollen and red, clutching a wet tissue. She was surrounded by every cuddly toy and giant, schmaltzy card that Luc had ever bought her.
"Sorry I told them about your Quidditch," she muttered.
"It's OK." I gave her a hug. "They'd have found out soon enough. They always do."
I went downstairs, feeling better now that Cissa and I were talking again. Kate and Mike were waiting for me in the common room to go down to the Great Hall.
"How's your cousin?" Kate asked. "It's time she stopped crying now. She's lucky she found out what awful in-laws she nearly had."
We walked across the room in silence. None of us felt like talking. Just as I opened my mouth, someone knocked on the door.
The only people who would know where the door was, but not have the password were ex-students. Before any of us could move, Cissa came thundering down the stairs. "I'll get it!" she yelled. She was obviously hoping it was Lucius.
Cissa flung open the door eagerly. I turned round to see who it was – and nearly passed out on the spot.
"Hello," said James.