"Elizabeth, wake up," I heard someone whisper above my head.
I sat up from the leather sofa in the common room where I had fallen asleep the night before, too tired to make my way up to the girls dormitory. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and, yawning, looked at the person who had spoken.
"Draco? What time is it?" I asked after recognizing who was standing over me.
"It's early, let's just put it that way. Come on, go get your broom," he said.
"What for?"
"Remember? The tryouts are tonight. Since we didn't get to practice last night, I thought we could work on your skills this morning before class."
"Oh, okay."
I stood up and faced Draco.
"So you don't think I'm doing all the burnings?"
Draco sighed, looking at me earnestly.
"I'll admit that the circumstances are rather weird, but no, I don't think you would do all of those things."
I smiled, "Draco, I'm so glad to hear you say that. I thought you were mad at me like everyone else, and I don't think I could bear that."
"I was a little freaked out at first, but if you say you're not doing them, then I believe you."
"Thanks," I said, smiling wider, "I'll be right back."
I ran to the girls' dormitory and grabbed my broomstick from underneath my bed. I found Draco still standing in the common room, holding his broom in his hand.
"Hey, let's get practicing," I said.
Draco looked at me for a split second, then smiled.
"What?"
He kissed me on the mouth.
"Nothing," he said, smiling as we left the common room and made our way to the Quidditch pitch.
Once we were down on the pitch, we practiced for quite a while. After what seemed like an hour after the sun came up, we flew down to the bottom of the pitch and decided to go back inside. We ran to the common room and found the dormitories deserted. Changing robes quickly, we soon realized that we had been out practicing longer than we had thought; even the Great Hall was empty. Draco and I gave each other a worried look before turning and running hurriedly to the dungeons for our Potions lesson.
By the time we arrived, class had already begun, but, fortunately, there were several available seats left in the very back of the room. Snape stood at the front of the class, writing on the blackboard with his back turned. Draco and I sank down into the nearest chairs and pulled our supplies from our bags, trying to be as quiet as possible. Moments after we sat down, Harry and Ron came into the room, sneaking in a manner similar to ours only minutes before. They took seats at the desk directly in front of ours and began removing quills and various other needed materials from their bags.
"It seems," Snape replied, still facing the blackboard, "that some of you feel as though the concept of being on time does not apply to you."
Draco and I looked warily at each other, sure that we would be in trouble, not to mention we might lose house points. Snape turned around and stared directly at us.
"Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley, do you know what time class starts?"
"Yes, Professor," said Harry meekly, Ron obviously too frightened of Snape to say anything.
"Then why, may I ask, were you late to class this morning?"
"Well, you see, Professor--"
"I don't want to hear it, Mr. Potter! Fifty points from Gryffindor!"
"But Professor, we came in right after Malfoy and Elizabeth!" Ron suddenly exclaimed.
"But Mr. Malfoy and Miss Silverlio aren't the ones I caught arriving late. Perhaps you are mistaken, or perhaps you are merely attempting to get others in trouble when clearly you are at fault. Maybe a detention will remove that notion from your head?"
"But Professor..."
"I'll see you after class, Mr. Weasley."
Ron and Harry both turned and glared at us; Draco gave them an evil smile, while I merely raised my eyebrows. Class proceeded as normal, and Ron waited after class to speak with Snape; the rest of the day passed as it usually did, transfiguring various animals into other objects and levitating different materials from the desk. Most Slytherin students could speak of nothing other than the Keeper tryouts that were occurring later that night, and many were conversing as to who would be the new Keeper; only once during dinner did someone mention a girl trying-out, and the idea was immediately disregarded. Draco merely looked in my direction, locked eyes with me, and smiled.
"Come on, Elizabeth, you have to eat something," he said, noticing that I had hardly eaten anything.
"I can't help it, Draco. I'm too nervous," I replied.
"What are you so nervous about?" Pansy asked from across the table.
Draco and I looked each other in the eye.
"Big test tomorrow in Transfiguration," he said, thinking quickly.
"A test?! What do you mean there's a test?!?!" Crabbe suddenly exclaimed, rising from the table and practically running from the Hall.
I couldn't stifle a small giggle, which was okay, since Draco couldn't either.
Soon, both the Slytherin team and the other hopefuls rose from their chairs and made their way to the common room; Draco and I both got up and followed. Once in the common room, the team members huddled in a small group, speaking in hushed tones; finally Montague stepped forward.
"Everyone, the tryouts will begin soon. If you haven't already done so, make sure you have your broom, and we will meet all of you down at the pitch in about ten minutes," he said, glancing at a watch on his wrist.
The crowd quickly dispersed, with most students either heading towards the boys dormitory to retrieve their broomsticks or towards the Quidditch pitch to watch. Draco waited for a few moments before coming to speak to me.
"Just wait until theres no one around, then go get your broom and hide under your cloak. After everyone else is done, I'll come find you, okay?"
"Okay," I began, looking towards the entrance to the common room, where Pansy had suddenly appeared with an evil look, "see you then."
Draco caught my gaze and kissed me before smiling secretly as he left the common room with the rest of the team. Pansy's mouth opened in surprise as Draco passed her without a word or look; she sent me a look of contempt before turning and following the team with her friends at her heels.
I waited until almost everyone had left the common room before I went up to the girls dormitory; I grabbed my broom from its place and hid under my invisibility cloak. Invisible to all others, I made my way down to the pitch, and by the time I found myself on the sidelines near the Slytherin locker rooms, most of the other hopefuls had already auditioned. One was still in the air, with Montague aiming a practice Quaffle at the hoops high above the field. After several throws and only a few blocks, the two flew down to the bottom of the pitch, where Montague made his final announcement.
"Okay, I think that's everyone. If all of you could please go back to the common room, we will decide which one of you will be our new Keeper. We will inform whoever that person is tomorrow, and practices will occur at secret times. Please do not ask who the new Keeper is if we do not contact you. You will all find out at the game this Saturday."
Those who had tried-out nodded in acknowledgment and left the field directly, followed by all those who had appeared to watch. Draco moved towards the locker rooms where I was hiding and began looking around. I was just about to remove myself from underneath my cloak when Pansy appeared and attached herself to Draco's arm.
"You're not looking for her, are you?"
"If you mean Elizabeth, then yes, I am."
"Well, I haven't seen her down her at all. I suppose she had more important things to do."
"Come on, Pansy, come off it, alright?" Draco said, removing his arm from Pansy's grip before walking away and into the locker rooms, where he knew Pansy wouldn't follow.
Pansy merely frowned and walked away swiftly. Too bad she ran right into my fist. She fell back onto the ground, looked all about her, then stood up quickly and practically ran to catch up with her friends.
"Nice, Elizabeth," I heard through someone else's laughing breaths.
I pulled the cloak from over my head and made my way to the doorway to the locker rooms where Draco was standing, still laughing.
"How did you know it was me?"
"Who else would have had reason to hit Pansy? Not to mention the nerve?"
"True," I said, smiling.
Draco flashed me a bright smile before speaking, "Come on; theyre waiting for you."
We made our way onto the Quidditch pitch, where the rest of the team still remained, deliberating over who was the best player. They stopped talking when Draco and I walked up to them.
"I'm surprised you showed up," Warrington said.
"Why?" I asked.
He seemed somewhat unprepared for my reply, "Most girls wouldn't have the guts to even try to get on our team."
"Well, I'm not most girls," I replied, staring straight at him.
"I don't know about the rest of you, but I have no intention of spending the entire night out here. Let's just get this over with," Montague said, interrupting the staring contest.
"You're right," I said, handing my cloak to Draco, "and don't take it easy on me."
I mounted my broom and kicked off from the ground; within seconds, I was soaring above the team, flying around the gold hoops. Montague soon followed with a Quaffle tucked under his arm and took his position in front of me. He darted to and fro on his broom until he almost became a blur with a small speck of red in the center. I focused all my energy onto the Quaffle, hoping I could at least manage to not make a fool of myself.
He continued to fly about the hoops, and I almost began to think I had missed the Quaffle, when he came zooming towards me, the red Quaffle aimed right behind my head. I darted forward, and before I knew it, I had the Quaffle in my hands. I threw it back to Montague, who aimed at the hoop ten feet below me on my left; I caught that one, too, and sent it back to him. For what seemed almost half an hour, Montague threw the Quaffle, and every time, I caught it before it passed through a single hoop; he finally signaled me to stop.
"How did I do?" I asked, breathing heavily once we were back on solid ground.
Montague was out of breath and perspiring profusely.
"What did I tell you, guys?" Draco said, obviously proud of me.
"I'm not so sure we should let her on the team. I mean, we've never had a girl on the team before, and we did just fine," Warrington replied.
"Maybe so, but if she doesn't play for us, who will? None of those other players could catch every single throw like Elizabeth just did," Draco said, defending me yet again.
"He's right, you know," Goyle piped up.
By this time, Montague had fully recovered, and spoke up, "Let's put it to a vote, shall we? All those in favor of Elizabeth being on the team, say I."
"I," was the reply from Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, Pucey, Montague, and, after a few seconds reluctance, Warrington.
Montague then turned to me, "Congratulations, Elizabeth. Welcome to the Slytherin Quidditch team."
The next several days seemed to be a total blur; almost every night, I snuck down to the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the team and we practiced until we were too tired to sit on our brooms straight. A regular schedule of classes, meals, Quidditch practice, and little sleep began to weigh heavily on the rest of the team, myself included, but Montague assured us that we wouldn't have to practice so much once I got into the swing of things.
Most of the Slytherin students who had tried-out were far too like Slytherins to keep their mouths shut. When all of them compared notes and found that none of them had been named as the new Keeper, they grudgingly talked to Montague constantly, each one of them still hoping that they might be named the winner and yet still upset that no one had been decided upon. How little did they know.
Unfortunately, Montague once said in a flurry of annoyed anger that they already had a new Keeper and that everyone would have to wait until the rematch that Saturday to find out who it was. For the life of everyone else, they couldn't figure out who was the new Keeper, since none of them had been spoken to about practicing.
"Maybe he's so good that they don't need to practice..."
"Maybe Bletchley's all better now..."
"Maybe the tryouts were so horrible they decided not to have a Keeper at all...!"
Out of all the silly answers to the one question around the whole school, no one ever suspected that the new Keeper was a girl. Every time someone got onto the subject of the Quidditch team, I couldn't help but smile secretly to myself, knowing who the new Keeper was the whole time.
By the time Friday evening rolled around, I'd almost forgotten about my meeting with Dumbledore. It wasn't until after darkness descended on the castle that I remembered while working on my Charms homework in the common room with Draco. Once I remembered, I dropped my quill onto the parchment, exclaiming that there was somewhere I had to be, leaving Draco staring behind me, wondering where my head had gone to. I ran through the corridors all the way to Dumbledore's office; when I arrived in front of the stairs, I found Dumbledore standing there, waiting for my arrival.
"Sorry...Professor...I...forgot..." I said through gasping breaths.
"It's all right, Elizabeth. I won't hold it against you, but next time, I expect to see you by nine o'clock."
"Yes, Professor," I replied, still trying to catch my breath.
"Lemon squares," he said, and the stairs began to revolve; he climbed onto them and I followed.
"There is someone I would like you to meet," Dumbledore said once we reached the top and he had opened the door.
"This is Norbert," he finished, pointing to a small dragon perched upon the seat of a nearby armchair, "he is going to help us this evening."
"How is he going to help us?" I asked.
"Norbert is obviously a dragon, Elizabeth. He can breathe fire."
"I know that, Professor, but I can start fires, too, so how is Norbert going to help us?"
"Tonight, Elizabeth, I don't want you to start any fires; I want you to put them out."
I continued to look at him.
"Norbert is going to help us by breathing fire, and I want you to absorb it as soon as it leaves his mouth."
" I don't know if I can, Professor. I mean, I've done it before, but it always hurt a little. Wouldn't absorbing that much fire kill me?"
"Elizabeth, you are one of only four people in our world who have powers such as yours. You are capable of standing in a burning building without harming yourself, just as your friend, Analese, could survive a flood if she put her mind to it. It is only painful because you have not focused yourself as you should. When you do it correctly, it will not harm you at all."
"So what is the right way to do it?"
"You must concentrate, Elizabeth. Think of yourself as an enormous sponge that could absorb anything."
I stifled a small giggle upon imaging myself as a giant sponge with legs, arms, and a wand in my right hand.
"Concentrate on allowing the fire to become a part of you, a part of your very skin. Only then will you be able to survive the flames without a single burn."
"Okay, Professor."
"Now, there is a special spell for times such as these. While you imagine yourself absorbing the flames, say the words comedo absorbeo," he instructed, "Are you ready to try it?"
I nodded.
Dumbledore took a few steps back from me, "Now concentrate, Elizabeth."
He motioned to Norbert, who opened his mouth wide and released a ball of flames. I held my hand out to it, as if to hold it steady, and I concentrated all my thoughts on absorbing it with my eyes closed. I spoke the words Dumbledore tole me to use, still holding my concentration. I remembered my earlier thought of the giant sponge dancing to unheard music, and I imagined it being subjected to the same ball of fire. Without fear, I visualizedthe flamesbeing assimilated into the pores of the sponge.
"Very good, Elizabeth," I heard Dumbledore reply. I opened my eyes.
The ball of flames that Norbert had breathed was nowhere to be found, and I had felt no pain in the process of depleting it.
"Nicely done. Now, let's try something slightly larger," he nodded to Norbert again.
Norbert signaled his understanding and looked back to me. Again, he opened his mouth, and, without much warning, breathed a steady stream of heat in my direction. I quickly tried to focus on the dancing sponge, and I was able to hold the idea for a few seconds, but I began to get scared, all of a sudden worried about burning to death in Dumbledore's office. Suddenly, the flames stopped, and I fell to the floor.
"Elizabeth, you must concentrate. You must find an image that you can hold for a long period of time. Imagine yourself standing in front of someone you love; imagine yourself protecting them," he offered.
I nodded my approval and immediately I focused my brain as I sensed Norbert's fiery breath again. I saw myself standing in front of Draco, a shield from harm, absorbing the flames that came, aimed steadily for him. I held the image, forgetting every other thing. My homework, my classes, even my parents disappeared from my thoughts; I concentrated on saving Draco from a fiery death. I lost track of time and space, and it seemed that mere seconds later, I heard Dumbledore's voice again.
"Elizabeth," he began--I opened my eyes--"absolutely marvelous."
I stared back at Dumbledore, attempting to retrace the events of what seemed mere moments.
"How did I do, Professor?"
"You did wonderful. You absorbed everything that Norbert threw at you. However, this meeting is over," he replied.
"Why?" I asked, quizzically.
"Well," he said, gesturing to the dragon, "it seems that you've tired poor Norbert out."
I looked over in his direction and found where Norbert still sat, panting heavily with small bouts of smoke escaping from his nostrils every few seconds. I smiled at Dumbledore, who returned the grin.
"I expect to see you on time next week, Elizabeth."
"Yes, Professor."
"And, I hope you play well tomorrow. The Slytherins have always done well when it comes to the Quidditch Cup," he said, smiling with an air of importance.
"But Professor, no one knows I'm the new Keeper..."
"Then, I suggest we keep this just between you and me," he replied with a wink.
Fierce anxiety kept me awake for several hours that night; no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't help but picture myself free-falling to the bottom of the pitch. By the time I finally fell asleep, it seemed as though only minutes had passed when sunlight was streaming through the windows. I grabbed my wristwatch from my bedside table to see what the time was, and with that known, I scrambled out from underneath the covers and dressed quickly. I practically ran down to the Great Hall in order to eat breakfast before the rest of the team headed down to the pitch. Once inside the Hall, I quickly spotted Draco's face at the Slytherin table and sat down next to him.
"Where have you been? The rest of the team has been waiting for you," he said.
"Sorry, I overslept. Just give me five minutes, and I'll be ready," I replied, reaching for the nearest platter, piled high with slices of buttered toast.
"Sorry, Elizabeth, no time," he replied, grabbing my arm and pulling me from the table.
I seized another slice of bread and took a brief sip of orange juice from a nearby glass. I swallowed as Draco continued to pull me from the Hall. Once we were in the entry hall, he motioned for me to follow him to a small niche. I merely continued to eat my meager breakfast with relish.
"Now, Montague told me this morning to make sure that you make it down to the pitch long before the game and to make sure that no one sees you," Draco explained as I swallowed one final time.
"Okay, lead the way."
Draco grabbed my hand and pulled me along. Fortunately, most of the students were in the Great Hall eating breakfast, making it much easier to find our way to the Quidditch pitch before anyone had time to fill the stands. Once on the pitch, Draco showed me where I could change into my new Quidditch robes, forest green with silver running through the threads.
Within a short matter of time, I was dressed and more than ready to play. Draco guided me to a spot where he told me to wait, which I did for what seemed like decades. I hid in the shadows until I could hear the immense roaring of the growing crowd of students, faculty, and other guests. I mused at the thought of Lucius sitting in the faculty box, no doubt already knowing that I was the Keeper. Before long, I was joined by the rest of the team, all six of them in the same robes as me, all carrying their brooms, and all more than ready to win the match.
"It's a great day for a Quidditch match!" I heard Lee Jordan announcing.
"Let's do this," Montague said, mounting his broom.
I and the rest of the team mounted our brooms, all of them but Draco sending me a look of contempt. Moments later, the team shot from behind our hiding place, and I darted out to keep up. The roar of the crowd was deafening for several seconds, before everyone saw who the seventh player on the team was. A hush fell over the crowd quickly; even Lee Jordan stopped talking into the loudspeaker, which rarely ever happened for Lee Jordan. I tried my best to ignore the silence, but it was difficult. Before long, Lee Jordan found his voice again.
"Well, it appears that the Slytherins have found a replacement for Bletchley after his injury last week. And, might I say, it looks as though either the Slytherins have gone soft or a girl was the best player available!"
Every Slytherin within hearing distance glared at Lee Jordan for the remark, and over the crowd's chatter, I heard McGonagall reprimanding him.
"And Madame Hooch steps out to begin the game!" Lee Jordan announced, trying to recover from McGonagall's reproaches.
At the bottom of the pitch, Madame Hooch could be seen walking onto the field towards a large wooden chest, which she opened. She released the two Bludgers and the Snitch, and then picked up the Quaffle and headed towards the ring of hovering players in green and red.
"Now I want a nice, clean game…from all of you."
With that, she threw the Quaffle into the air. Both Harry and Draco rose high into the sky, no doubt getting out of the way to look for the Snitch, while Ron and I darted to our goal hoops at either ends of the pitch, and the rest of the players fought for the first ten points.
"And it's Spinnet with the Quaffle. She's racing towards the Slytherin goal. Let's see what the new Keeper can do…and stolen by Slytherin captain Montague! He heads to the Gryffindor posts, and a narrow miss by a Bludger from Kirke. Montague continues to the goal and…ten points for Slytherin! Now Katie Bell has the Quaffle…almost taken by Warrington. Another near miss! Bell still has the Quaffle…she's nearing the Slytherin goal now…she throws…and saved by Slytherin Keeper Silverlio! Montague has the Quaffle again…stolen by Spinnet! She aims at the lower goal post…saved again by Silverlio!"
When I had tried-out for the position, I never realized just how much fun Quidditch really was. I'd only played a game or two with Draco and the rest of the team, but I'd never played a real game before. It was exhilarating. Every time Katie Bell or Alicia Spinnet or Angelina Johnson came at me with the Quaffle, I caught it, while Ron caught many, but not nearly all, of the throws by Montague, Warrington, or Pucey. Before long, the score was seventy to zero, and we were winning.
"What's this!?! The Seekers are making a dive!" I heard Lee Jordan announce with enthusiasm.
Sure enough, both Harry and Draco were diving towards the bottom of the pitch, the two of them flying almost vertically downward on their Firebolts in a flurry of red and green. The rest of the game seemed to freeze in time as everyone turned to watch the Seekers, wondering who would catch the Snitch first. All the while, Draco and Harry continued their descent, neither of them appearing to slow down. Without warning, the two barreled into the ring around the edge of the pitch, and flames quickly erupted from the spot.
Completely disregarding the game, I bolted down to the area on my broom, hoping that Draco wasn't seriously hurt. Without even bothering to stop and drop my broom, I ran to the spot of the fiery carnage. I held out my hand and shouted the words "COMEDO ABSORBEO!" and watched as the flames leapt from the wooden frame and decorative fabric and into my outstretched palm. I closed my eyes and held the image of myself shielding Draco from the flames, absorbing it all. I felt the fire coursing through my very veins to the point where I thought I was no longer human but a living flame. Red light invaded the darkness of my closed eyes, and I knew nothing more.