Saturday came and the Hufflepuff team was ready to go. Cedric gave them a speech about going out and giving there best. Mackenzie looked a little worried and Dominic winked at her. They wanted, at the very least, to go in the game with high spirits. The balls were released and Ariadne got the first hit on the bluger to keep it away from Cedric. The Slytherin team came down hard. They hit and physically beat nearly all the Hufflepuff player on the team to a pulp. Cedric called a time out to help Mackenzie take care of her bloodied broken nose and Dominic took a bat to the back of the head and was seeing stars. Ariadne looked up in to the crowed for Oliver. He was sitting with the twins and two Ravenclaw girls who the twin's were talking to, Margaret Shaw and Alexia Anderson. He smiled and waved at her she blew a kiss back. The Hufflepuff chasers had scored 40 points but were still losing by 20. They finally resumed play and Slytherin scored another 10 points right off the bat. The Slytherin Beater bashed a Bludger towards Cedric and it hit him in the shoulder, breaking it instantly. He winced in pain but kept going. Draco Malfoy the Slytherin's seeker was right on his tail. Cedric tried to push Malfoy off his broom but the pain from his shoulder limited his movement. Malfoy reached down and pull on Cedric's broom, they were neck and neck. Cedric could barely move his arm to get the snitch and Malfoy was able to reached out farther catching the snitch. They lost horribly 220 to 40. There chance for the Cup was gone. They played hard but could not beat Slytherin. Cedric had broken his shoulder blade and clavicle. Madam Pomfrey fixed him up quickly muttering about how dangerous Quidditch was. Their yellow robes were cover in mud. Oliver went to the hospital to see Ariadne who was with Cedric.
"Belle, you played really well out there. I know you lost but you had a great game," he told her.
"Thank you," she replied They all talked for a while and Oliver decided Cedric wasn't such a bad person, but still wouldn't forgive him for beating Gryffindor. Also Cedric decided Oliver was good enough to date Ariadne.
Monday stated the week as normal. Gryffindor was playing Ravencalw on Saturday. Oliver was worried about his seeker Harry, after the incident with the dementors he hoped Harry could still play. Harry assured him everything would be all right but it didn't help. Oliver had his team practicing during all their free time. On Friday the Gryffindor team walked into the Great Hall exhausted and sore. Ariadne went over and sat with Oliver at his table. She hadn't seen him all week and missed him terribly. He was hardly eating anything because he was too worried about the game. "Oliver, don't be so worried you team will do wonderfully," She told him while nipping at his ear, "Mmm meet me in the Hufflepuff's Quidditch locker room in a half and hour. I think you need a little tender loving care to help calm your nerves. Don't worry I've talked to Cedric you have full permission to go in." Oliver smiled
"Only if you insist," he replied playfully. The talked a little longer and a hushed tone while looking up and laughing. Ariadne then left to get ready. And the twins went to talk to Oliver.
"So what was that all about," the asked him.
"Ari just wants to give me a little tender loving care after dinner." He told them with a small smile. "To calm my nerves before the game." The twins looked at each other and gave Oliver a knowing look.
"Hmm I see and what were you talking about."
"She was just talking to me about... Um Quidditch. Well any way I've got to go." Oliver left and went out towards the Quidditch locker rooms. Oliver reached the Hufflepuff locker room and went in. Ariadne had light the room softly with candles and put relaxing music on.
"Oliver darling," she said, "Do you know how to meditate?" "No," he replied, "I can't say I do."
"It's really easy. You sit and concentrate on the game tomorrow and your breathing. Relax your body and mind. I'll show you." She placed two mats on the ground and told him to close his eyes. He frowned; he wasn't expecting her to teach him to meditate he expected something else. "Now sit cross legged and breathe in and out. Good. Now focus your mind on winning the game. You can and will win if you believe you can." Oliver focused on his plays. The meditation was helping and it relaxed him. While he was concentrated on the game Ariadne gave him a back massage to relax his body and muscles. He was very grateful to her for helping him. His nerves were shot and her soothing voice and massage made him feel good as new.
Oliver woke up very early the next morning. His Quidditch play kelp running though his head. Ariadne sat with him at breakfast while snuggling close. While his team changed into their robes, Oliver insisted on making sure Harry would be able to play in the game. Oliver's pride got the best of him and he went out with his head held high. This would be the deciding game on weather or not Gryffindor would have a chance at the Quidditch Cup. He would show no fear. He flew out on his broom and looked for Ariadne, she was sitting with Mackenzie and Cedric. She blew a kiss towards Oliver and held up the boom stick pendent he gave back her. The game stated and Oliver blocked all but one of the shots that came at him. Angelina and Alicia both had two goals apiece and Katie had one. Harry was a red blur on his firebolt, and although the Ravenclaw's seeker, Cho Chang, was a very good flyer. He wouldn't let her catch up. Oliver screamed to Harry to push her down and to not be so polite. It was a Quidditch game after all. Harry and Cho were both going after the snitch when Oliver looked down and saw two dementors coming on to the field. He then looked towards Harry and gasped, out of Harry's wand came a wispy stream of white fog that almost looked like a deer. Cho fell back and Harry, unfazed by the dementors, caught the snitch and Gryffindor won 200 to 20. Oliver looked towards the dementors and saw Marcus Flint, Malfoy, and a couple other Slytherin's he didn't know. Oliver's blood was boiling, but then he saw Harry with the snitch and ran over to celebrate with his team. Ariadne ran down and gave him a big kiss and celebrated with him.
After the game Ariadne waited by the looker room for Oliver to come out. She was looking up at the sun set when Marcus Flint walked by to get his things out of the Locker room. "Ari, hello," he said in his gruff voice.
"Oh hello Marcus how are you," she answered and then saw his lip bleeding. She reached up to wipe the blood away, "What happened to you, why are you bleeding."
"I got in to a fight you know me."
"Yes I know you we dated for at least four months."
"Why did we ever break up anyway"?
"You know perfectly well why, your house didn't approve of their Quidditch captain dating a girl from another team. Also you found out I wasn't a pure blood and you didn't approve of that. So you broke up with me, and it was probably for the best anyway. We were not right for each other, different as night and day."
"Your right, but I still miss the look in your eyes when we kissed."
"Marcus please I'm seeing someone else now and we've been broken up for more than a year now. It's not that I never had feelings for you because I did but more of a physical thing, and I was just attracted to your bad boy attitude. I'll admit the ruggedness was a turn on. But anyway whom did you get in to a fight with"?
"Oh that damn prideful, git, Oliver Wood. But trust me babe he's worse of than I am. He got one good shot at me before the rest of my team mates came and held him down while I punched him." Ariadne went pale and butterfly's rose up in her stomach. She knew that Oliver was very upset about him trying to sabotage the Quidditch game, but she didn't think he'd try to fight with Marcus.
"Please be joking Marcus, please tell me Oliver's alright."
"I'm not joking but Wood's probably fine I just banged him up. That'll teach him to pick a fight with me. He should know by now I'll never play fair. Why do you care anyway?"
"Are you so blind I've been going out with Oliver for over a month now?"
"You going out with Wood," Marcus got angry, "Why do you want anything to do with that do gooder anyway. If you wanted fun you should have come back to me."
"You are such and insensitive arse you know that. You don't ever care about me anymore cause I'm not a perfect pure blood. Like it matters anyway." Ariadne yelled at him. He smacked her really hard leaving a red mark across her cheek on her face.
"Don't talk to me like that." He yelled in her face
"You know what Marcus forget you, I hate you now anyway, so bugger off," and with that she ran in to the Gryffindor locker room. Everyone had left but Oliver was still sitting there holding his chest. Ariadne ran over to him and put her arm around him. "Oliver darling, are you ok?" She asked him. He winced in pain and coughed. Blood dripped from his split lip and nose.
"I'm fine," he replied with out even looking up towards her. He had been beaten up pretty heavily, but his ego was more bruised than his face. She looked at his face, and dabbed at his bloody nose. She then put a freezing charm on some paper and put it on his bruised eye and cheek. He looked up and touched her cheek. She held his hand there. "My Belle what happened to your face"? He asked.
"It's nothing I ran into the door. Don't worry about me. But what were you thinking getting into a fight with Marcus? You know he never plays fair in anything."
"I wasn't thinking, I was angry. I didn't realize it until I was pinned down with fists the size of blugers pounding down on me."
'How badly did they hurt you?"
"Maybe a few bruised ribs, also a black eye that'll probably be swollen shut by tomorrow. Nothing I've not dealt with before."
"Maybe you should go see Madam Pomfrey."
"No, I'd get in trouble for fighting. I'll be in severe discomfort for about a week or two but I'll be fine I know some charms to help." Ariadne went to hug him, Oliver pulled back in pain. He lifted up his robes and exposed a huge dark black bruise on his chest. "I'm just going to go to bed. If anyone asked just tell them I wasn't feeling well from all the stress." He gave Ariadne a small kiss and left clutching his chest in pain.
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Love it hate it... please let me know. Thanks -- Arendi --
