May 4th, 1996. Saturday.
"Did you see this?"
Selena paused mid-chew as a letter was shoved in front of her face.
She leaned back a bit, blinking up at Ivy. Her sister stood over her, a half-disgusted look on her face. "What?" Selena tried to swallow down her breakfast. "I was going to open the post after I finished eating."
Ivy took the letter back, clearing her throat. "Cody is all settled in his London flat. We were both so sad to see him off. Violet cried she was so upset. I'm sorry you girls couldn't be there to say goodbye. When you get back for summer holiday, we can all go take a trip to see him and spend some time in London. He might even be able to get us a tour of the Ministry!"
"Oh, your brother's started his job?" Elizabeth asked curiously from across the table.
Ivy made a similar face at the blonde girl. "It's a bad thing. The Ministry is bad. Right, Selena?"
Selena glanced up at the Teacher's Table where Professor Umbridge wasn't. She rarely came to breakfast - not that the students would have it any other way. As if she could feel her looking, Selena turned to find Elizabeth staring so intensely it was a wonder her eyes didn't hurt. "Well, Ivy." Selena turned back to her sister. "Erm... I don't agree with a lot of what the Ministry has said lately, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's bad." She glanced over Elizabeth who gave a subtle nod of approval.
"Either way, I don't want to go tour it come July," Ivy said, looking back at the letter from their mother.
Selena bit her lip, tempting to complain more and agree with Ivy. But that would just earn her a scolding from Elizabeth, so instead she asked a question she slightly didn't want to know the answer to. "How are you and your boyfriend?" She racked her brain trying to remember his name. "Samuel?"
"Stewart?" Ivy said, not looking up from the letter. "I'm actually dating Owen now. Stewart was just so shy."
"You have another boyfriend?" Selena asked, aghast.
Ivy looked up, folding the parchment. "Stewart and I only went out for, like, what? A couple weeks? C'mon, sissy, it's not that serious."
She turned, walking away as Selena opened and closed her mouth, searching for words she couldn't find. She turned back to her friends (well, all of them except Renee, that is, who'd slept in.) "This is madness."
"I still love your sister," Alisson said with a wide grin.
Selena arched an eyebrow. "Do you want to adopt her? She can be your problem now."
"Why are you being so protective about this?" Elizabeth asked her curiously, going back to eating her sunny-side-up eggs.
"She's my little sister," Selena said. She stabbed an egg on her plate, making Tess jump. "So I'm required to be protective."
2 Hours Later
"Ummm... it's a rabbit! No, no, it's a fish! Oh, I know! A MUSHROOM!"
"How do you get from a rabbit to a mushroom?"
"It's a cloud, it changes."
Selena giggled, staring up at the blue sky. Pearly clouds floated slowly above, enjoying the lazy, warm day. It felt good to not need to wear gloves outside anymore. Today was one of the bright, sunny days that left everything in the Scottish Highlands a little more green and a little more lively.
There were shouts from across the Hogwarts lawn as some other students played tag. Selena sat up, watching them for a moment. It was a group of First Years by the looks of it, dashing around the bottom of Gryffindor Tower.
"I think it looks more like a squirrel than a rabbit," Alisson said, squinting up at the large, puffy cloud in question.
"A mushroom, I'm telling you," Renee sighed, flopping onto her back on the picnic blanket.
Elizabeth and Tess had insisted that they should be outside on such a nice day. So a picnic was in order, which meant Tess had been squealing happily as she gathered up the blue-and-red-and-white checkered blanket she'd gotten for Easter.
"It's the first time I've been able to use it!" she'd gushed, her light brown eyes shimmering and a smile plastered on her face. None of them could bear to tell her no, obviously.
Elizabeth flicked a page in her book, grumbling to herself.
Alisson gave a guttural scoff. "Liz, c'mon, are you really studying? Now? When you could be enjoying yourself?"
"Calm down, hold your hippogriffs, will you?" Elizabeth replied, not bothering to look up as she pushed her blue-rimmed glasses up the bridge of her nose just for them to slide back down.
"What are you reading, then?" Alisson asked. She leaned over, kneeling next to Elizabeth, and reached out a hand.
Elizabeth snatched the book away. She looked up at Alisson, brows knit. "You could just ask, now, couldn't you?"
Selena stifled her laugh, sharing a look with Tess.
"If you must know," Elizabeth huffed, "I'm reading about the history of the Ministry of Magic."
"Oh," Alisson said, wrinkling her nose as if Elizabeth had just she was brewing up an Armadillo Bile Mixture (which Selena had seen before, and it was as pretty as it sounded.) Alisson sat back on the heels of her trainers. "I'm sorry I asked."
Elizabeth sat the black-bound book onto the picnic blanket. She held down the page as a warm breeze swept over them, ruffling the leaves of the tree above them and the pages of the book. Elizabeth tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "It's actually more interesting than it sounds. I'm just curious about how relations between the Ministry and Hogwarts have been in the past."
"Well, what have you found out?" Selena asked. It was an interesting question, and one she hadn't thought of. Leave it to Elizabeth to ask the important things. It was a fair point. Had the Ministry always been so hostile with the staff at Hogwarts?
Elizabeth sighed. "Not much. Just a lot of problems with goblin and werewolf revolts."
"I'd like to meet a werewolf," Alisson said, tilting her head a little. "Can you imagine? Being a wolf every full moon?"
Selena shrugged. There didn't seem much nice about being a werewolf.
"Professor Lupin..." Tess began before trailing off.
"No, not like him," Alisson said. "Like... a proper werewolf. As a wolf."
"You'd get killed," Renee argued.
Selena didn't say anything. Her mind had turned towards the kind, scarred face of their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. He had been the only teacher they'd had that they truly enjoyed having class with, but when news came out about him being werewolf, Hogwarts was flooded with letters from parents. Selena's mother had even been concerned about her having a werewolf for a teacher. But none of them had even met Professor Lupin. Selena frowned. They would've let him stay if they had only met him. Wouldn't they?
Elizabeth cleared her throat as if she wasn't about to let them continue to derail what she'd been on about. "The Ministry did get more involved the year before our first. Minister Fudge tried to send Professor Hagrid to Azkaban. He claimed he'd opened the Chamber of Secrets."
Tess gasped. "What? I didn't know that! That's madness! Who could think Professor Hagrid of all people would've done that?"
Elizabeth shrugged. "Well, Fudge did, apparently. But that's where the book ends, it was published in the summer of ninety-three, so it's not completely up-to-date."
"We're so lucky we weren't here for all of that," Renee said, shaking her head as she still lay on her back, looking up at the clouds. "Can you imagine what it was like? Having a basilisk slithering around Hogwarts, trying to kill students?"
Selena shuddered. It was a good thing Cody had graduated before then as well.
"Well," Elizabeth said, fisting her hands on her hips. She looked at them all. "The basilisk is dead. We don't have to worry."
"But there is another snake in the castle," Alisson said darkly.
"Not for long," Selena said simply. Two more months. Just two more months before she and Anne would present their case and get Umbridge sacked.
"I wish that were true," Tess lamented, picking at the edge of the blanket.
"INCOMING!"
The girls all turned.
A blue ball rocketed towards them, flying through the air.
Selena screamed and ducked, throwing her arms across the back of her head as her friends shrieked. The ball thudded heavily into the nearby grass. Selena peeked out, heart racing. There didn't seem to be any more things flying at them. She slowly took her arms off of her head, whipping to look at where it had come from. A muscular, pale boy ran towards them, long black hair pulled into a ponytail.
He stopped in front of their picnic blanket as the girls uncurled from shielding themselves.
"Are you alright?" he asked, dark brows drawn. "I'm so sorry, we were just playing bowls and I think we got a little too enthusiastic with our Depulso charm."
"Do you actually know how to play bowls?" Tess asked skeptically, glancing back at the blue ball behind them, laying innocently in the grass.
"Play what?" Selena asked, frowning.
Tess waved her hand. "It's a Muggle game."
"I'm really sorry," the boy said again, shaking his head. Selena noticed a few scars on his face. "Are you sure you're alr-"
"Hang on," Alisson said, standing up. "You're Darien Kinomoto, right? One of the Beaters for Ravenclaw?"
"Oh," the boy said, his face morphing into surprise. "Yeah."
"You're the best Beater Ravenclaw has had in decades," Alisson said, laughing a bit. "But, you're not as good as Gryffindor."
"Alisson," Elizabeth hissed in warning.
Alisson glanced down at the blonde, raising an eyebrow, lips curved into a half-smile, daring her to contradict her.
"I guess we'll see how true that is in a couple weeks," Darien said with a wry smile.
Kinomoto. Selena pursed her lips. Why did that name sound familiar? Who did she talk t- "You're Raven's brother!" she blurted, standing up as well.
Darien nodded, smiling at her. "Yeah, you know her?"
"She's friends with my little sister," Selena said, grinning. "Ivy Malast."
"Oh yeah!" Darien beamed, his eyes lighting up. "She's told me all about her. They're kind of inseparable. Every day, I see them in the Common Room together. They're always laughing or reading together."
"She was the one who had the snowball fight with us, right? Back before Christmas holiday?" Tess piped up. She held her hand over her eyes, shading them as she looked up at the others.
Selena nodded. "Yeah!" She had a momentary lapse back into that day, the Hogwarts grounds all blanketed in sparkling snow. It was getting warmer now, with the sun shining today.
"DJ!" someone yelled from further away, walking over the crest of the hill. The dark figure waved, dim from the sun behind him. "DJ, c'mon! What's taking so long?"
"Coming" Darien yelled back. He turned, smiling at Selena and her friends.
Selena smiled back.
Darien went and collected the ball, waving to the girls. "I might see you around, then. Have a good day!" And with that, he was jogging away, dark ponytail streaming behind him.
May 7th, 1996. Tuesday.
"Do you want to come with me to the Owlery later?" Renee asked.
Selena nodded, putting away her Intermediate Transfiguration book. "Sure." She slung her burlap messenger bag over her shoulder, the two walking out of the Transfiguration classroom with other students.
"I'm missing Shorty," Renee pouted. "He needs some company."
"I'm sure he's been enjoying having other owls for company," Selena offered, trying to give Renee a smile. After Shorty ate another one of Tess' seashells on Sunday, it was decided that it was probably time to move him to the Owlery (after a quick visit to Madam Pomfrey.)
"Alisson was pestering Tess to move Spice to the Owlery all morning after you and Elizabeth left for breakfast," Renee sighed. The two girls paused in the doorway, watching the corridor outside Classroom 1B fill with a flood of students. "Spice was hooting at seven o'clock. I thought owls were nocturnal. Why is that one so crazy?"
Selena adjusted her cloak hood. "Honestly though, I think Spice might be ready to move to the Owlery too. He's going to outgrow his cage pretty soon, and we can't have him flying around the dorm with Crescent and Sierra there."
"We should've all brought toads," Renee sighed, shaking her head.
Selena giggled as they walked out into the fray, pushing through black-robed students until they reached the Middle Courtyard. Selena looked down at her black Mary-Jane's as they walked through the grass, the din of students chatting around them. She wasn't looking forward to Potions. Her essay was sure to disappoint Professor Snape. How was someone supposed to write two feet about Wideye Potion? Well, anyone who wasn't Elizabeth, who had to revise her homework to fit in all the details she wanted.
Alisson hadn't even known there was homework, so there was that.
Selena sighed as they passed the large Armillary Sphere and left the courtyard. It would be so nice to have Charms next like Renee. The two girls walked into the Viaduct Entrance, wooden double-doors open wide to allow the spring air in.
Selena waved goodbye to Renee as they passed the Hogwarts crest on the stone floor. "Have fun in Charms!"
"Hope you survive Potions!" Renee joked, grinning. She turned and headed up the the large staircase.
Selena sighed, going right through an archway, dreading the cold Potions classroom the whole way.
Just as she turned into the spiral staircase leading down to the Dungeon corridor, Rolf emerged, looking up in surprise. Selena knew her face mirrored his own stunned expression, but it didn't last long.
"Pardon me," she said quickly, trying to go around him.
"Wait!" Rolf said, catching her by arm.
"I have to get to Potions, Rolf," Selena said, trying to jerk her arm away.
Rolf let go but stepped in her way. "Selena, c'mon, I've been trying to talk to you."
Selena froze, frowning up at Rolf. "What? No you haven't! You've been speaking through Hazel!"
"Well I knew you wouldn't talk to me!" he retorted.
A couple Ravenclaws appeared behind them, seeming disgruntled at the people blocking the staircase. Selena and Rolf stepped aside, Rolf sighing and lowering his voice. He took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry," he breathed. "I shouldn't have snapped like that."
Selena was quiet, watching him instead. She didn't speak yet, hoping he'd offer an explanation. They hadn't spoken for about two weeks, and she had to admit that she was missing him a little... as much as she didn't like to admit it. "I would've gotten over it soon," Selena mumbled stubbornly.
Rolf raised his eyebrows so that they went under his green fringe. "Really? You held a grudge against Wendy and Alisson and Tess for half a year."
Selena flushed, crossing her arms. "Okay, so maybe it would've taken a little bit longer..."
"Can you forgive me?" Rolf asked, his eyes searching hers. "Please?"
It was difficult to stay angry when he looked so sorry, and hopeful that she'd say yes.
Selena sighed, letting her arms fall to her sides. "Okay, I forgive you."
A grin split Rolf's face. "Brilliant."
Selena swallowed her pride, taking a large breath. "And I'm sorry if I overreacted."
"Don't be, I... I am sorry for what I said. It was stupid of me."
Selena smiled a tiny bit at her Hufflepuff friend. "Don't worry about it."
"So we're mates again?" Rolf asked hopefully.
"Of course," Selena answered, smiling at him.
"I'd hug you, but I have to hurry to Muggle Studies. I'll see you at dinner." Rolf waved with a smile, leaving just as quickly as he'd appeared.
May 30th, 1996. Saturday.
Quidditch Pitch
Selena tucked some of her hair behind her ear as it fluttered around her face.
The chatter around her seemed nearly deafening. All of Hogwarts was out for the Quidditch match, the last of the school year - Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. After Slytherin lost to Hufflepuff (much to Hazel and Rolf's delight) the match was all that stood in the way of Gryffindor winning the 1996 Quidditch Cup.
Somewhere in the Ravenclaw section, Bronwen was probably cheering. Selena couldn't find her friend in the sea of bronze and blue. She could see, however, Luna Lovegood's eagle hat as its wings magically flapped. Luna may have been rooting for Ravenclaw, but it was still impressive that she made it.
"The team will never be the same without Fred and George," Avery sighed from a row below.
Wendy nodded beside her. "Honestly. It's all Umbridge's fault, anyway."
"You would blame the Wizarding War on her if you could," Elizabeth deadpanned from Selena's right as she watched the pitch, waiting for the teams to emerge.
Wendy glanced back a bit over her shoulder, arching an eyebrow. "Are we sure she wasn't involved somehow?"
Selena giggled as Wendy turned back around. The day was lovely, and everyone seemed to be in high spirits (even if their chances for the the Quidditch Cup were lower without the Weasley Twins and Harry Potter.) The sky was a pure blue, a warm breeze blowing around the Scottish Highlands. Even the Black Lake seemed brighter today. The murky water was shimmering as the Hogwarts students had trooped out to the Quidditch Stadium.
There was a flash of scarlet. The Gryffindor team made their way onto the field.
The Gryffindors exploded into cheers, waving their scarlet-and-orange pennants. Selena clapped, heart thrumming with excitement.
"And on the field are the Gryffindors," Lee Jordan announced from the Teacher's Box, his voice ringing out across the stadium. However, his tone lacked its usual effervescence, Selena noticed. The boy had been even mopier than Anne since Fred and George left Hogwarts. Selena couldn't really blame him, though. She'd be upset if Renee or Hazel or any of her other friends left school. "Johnson... Ramirez... Kirke... Weasley... McCalaster... Sloper... Weasley..."
The team went to the center of the field, along the lines, holding their brooms.
Selena squinted, watching Ginny Weasley pull her red hair up into a ponytail. She said something to Jack Sloper, one of the replacements for the Weasley Twins.
Not a moment later, the Ravenclaw team appeared, their blue robes flowing around them.
"Chambers... Kinomoto... Bradley..." Lee began in a bored voice.
Selena's thoughts went back to the day earlier that month, when Darien Kinomoto had talked with them. She hadn't spoken to him since, and Ivy seemed too busy with her new boyfriend to give Selena any updates. Selena glanced at the Ravenclaw section, scanning the mass of blue-clad spectators. Ivy and Raven would be over there.
Alisson elbowed Selena gently. She pointed down at the field as the two teams approached one another. Madam Hooch stood with her fists on her hips. The crowd quieted ever-so-slightly. On the pitch, the two Captains shook hands. Selena could see the determined look on Angelina Johnson's face all the way from the stands. Angelina stared at Roger Davies as they shook hands, her gaze unfaltering. And then they broke apart, all the players mounting their brooms.
Selena saw Alisson clench her gloved fingers.
Madam Hooch blew the whistle, and the Quaffle was thrown into the air. The stands exploded into sound.
"And they're off! And Davies takes the Quaffle immediately, Ravenclaw Captain Davies with the Quaffle, he dodges Johnson, he dodges McCalaster, he dodges Ramirez as well... He's going straight for the goal! He's going to shoot - and - and-" Lee loudly swore. "And he's scored."
Selena groaned along with all the other Gryffindors.
On cue, the Slytherins began their song:
Weasley cannot save a thing
He cannot block a single ring!
Alisson huffed, muttering words Selena knew she wouldn't say around Professor McGonagall. Elizabeth just rolled her eyes mumbling "predictable" to herself. Selena could've screamed she was so sick of hearing that chant.
"Why can't McGonagall take House points from them?" Tess said, shaking her head.
Selena shrugged. She curled her fists as her sides. Gryffindor had to win. They had to, if only to make Slytherin shut it.
"We need Fred and George back," Renee said as the players circled back around the field.
"We need Ginny to get that Snitch now," Alisson countered. "Does anyone else miss Oliver Wood?"
No one said anything as the crowd began to cheer louder, drowning out the Slytherin song.
"GO, GO GRYFFINDOR!"
Selena chanted along with the rest of her House. A warm breeze swept over the high stands, tossing her hair.
"And now it's Bradley, Bradley has the Quaffle," Lee Jordan announced. "Bradley passes to Chambers, and - OH!" Lee groaned. "Ramirez nearly stole it there and - oh, watch it Danny, there goes the Bludger. And now Chambers passes back to Bradley, and Bradley is going up the pitch, he's going up the pitch and - c'mon Ron! He's going to the goal, Weasley is at the goal!"
The Gryffindor section became deafening. Selena cheered so loud her throat began to hurt.
The Ravenclaw Chaser soared down the pitch, blue robes flapping behind him, Quaffle tucked under his arm. He headed towards the left goalpost.
"BLOCK IT, RON!" Alisson shrieked.
Suddenly Ron flew right, and not a moment later the Quaffle hit the back of Ron's broom, bouncing off and away from the goalpost.
The Gryffindor section burst into rounds of cheers and whistles.
"GO, GO, GRYFFINDOR! GO, GO, GRYFFINDOR!"
"And that's a score for Gryffindor!" Lee Jordan called, his voice notably happier.
Selena beamed as Renee grinned at her. On the field, Roger Davies gave a quick motion to Cho Chang as she flew up higher, turning her head for the Snitch, dark braid snapping over her shoulders.
The match continued in a series of near goals and screaming. The Slytherin section tried to start their song again, but it was drowned out by the cheers of the stadium as the Gryffindors cheered louder and louder, battling with the Ravenclaws.
Five minutes later, Chambers sailed down the center of the field, clutching the Quaffle.
Selena's heard pounded. The Ravenclaw section was screaming, waving their eagle flags. Selena couldn't even make out Lee Jordan's commentary above the noise and the sound of her own blood thundering in her ears.
"LET'S GO, WEASLEY!" Wendy bellowed.
Chambers dodged Sasha as she came up behind him. He turned on his broom, Angeline Johnson coming so close her fingers seemed to have brushed the ends of his robes. And then he was near the goal post with Ron Weasley facing him.
It happened so fast, Selena could've blinked and missed it.
The Quaffle flew towards the highest post. Ron's hand caught it a foot from the hoop.
The stadium roared with Gryffindors cheering and Ravenclaws booing.
"WEASLEY IS OUR KING!" someone above Selena's row yelled.
"WEASLEY IS OUR KING!" someone else screamed.
"HE DIDN'T LET THE QUAFFLE IN!"
Suddenly the chant spread across the Gryffindor section:
Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in!
Ginny Weasley flew in front of the Gryffindor section, arm outstretched as a golden glimmer zipped ahead of her. Cho Chang rushed by, not even a foot behind her. Ginny pulled up short before she ran into the grass, Cho throwing her arm out as Ginny reached forward. Ginny yanked her arm back, slowing down, hovering there. She held up her gloved hand, the gold Snitch struggling to break free.
The stadium grew louder as Lee Jordan yelled "Weasley has done it! She has the snitch! GRYFFINDOR WINS!"
Wendy burst into tears of joy. Alisson threw her arms around Elizabeth. Selena cheered despite her raw throat.
Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in,
Weasley is our King!
The players began to descend onto the field. The Gryffindor players raced to each other, hugging in a great, scarlet pile, brooms held up over their heads. The Ravenclaws were slower to descend, their expressions as gloomy as the their House section. Cho Chang threw her broom onto the grass, wiping her eyes, her face notably red even from the stands.
"Cho doesn't seem very happy," Alisson laughed.
"Who cares," Renee replied.
Madam Hooch walked out onto the fields, the large, silver Quidditch Cup glinting in the sun. She held the Quidditch Cup out to Angelina Johnson. The Gryffindor Captain kissed the cup, a grin blazing across her lips. The she turned and handed the cup to Ron Weasley. The Fifth Year held the Quidditch Cup up in a triumphant pose. The Gryffindor section cheered, beginning to rush down out of the stands.
Selena laughed and cheered as her House pooled at the bottom of the Quidditch pitch, jumping and hugging and whistling.
Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in!
Some of the older boys took Ron Weasley before he could go back to the changing rooms, lifting him up over the crowd. Ron held the Quidditch Cup, raising it over his head for everyone to see. Together, all the Gryffindors walked up the hill back to Hogwarts. They sang the whole way. Selena smiled so much her cheeks hurt. Surely, with how loud they were, even the merpeople in the Black Lake could hear them.
Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in,
Weasley is our King!
Weasley can save anything,
He never leaves a single ring,
That's why Gryffindors all sing,
Weasley is our King.
Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
He didn't let the Quaffle in,
Weasley is our King!
There was shuffling at the grand doors to the castle. As they all tried to enter the door, Ron smacked his head on the lintel, still clutching the Quidditch Cup. Nevertheless, the students didn't put him down, and they all sang their chant. Selena squished herself between some other students and Renee, everyone fitting through the doors and carrying their song into Hogwarts. They sang all the way into the Common Room and, even after, the Gryffindors cheered.
3 Hours Later
The Great Hall
The Quidditch match was all anyone would talk about at dinner.
The Ravenclaws were mopey, glaring over at the Gryffindor table. Even Ivy didn't come over to say anything. But Selena didn't mind. She was elated. It was like her insides were all fizzy, like sparkling soda had been poured into her blood.
"Well done, I say!" Sir Nicholas said as he floated past the Gryffindor table. The ghost gave a friendly tip of the head (or, in his case, pulling his head nearly off.)
Selena beamed back at the ghost. All of the Gryffindors would be in good spirits for a week, even with exams coming up.
As they left dinner, stomachs full and chattering brightly (Anne and Wendy in particular were regaling each other over and over about the final moments of the match) Selena felt like even some of the paintings were cheery.
"I really thought that Cho might get the Snitch," Tess said as they walked towards the Grand Staircase. "Did you see how close she was? I'm still kind of stunned Ginny got to it first."
"I think Cho was too," Alisson snickered.
"Too bad it was kind of the last hurrah before exams," Selena pointed out. Not that they had as much to complain about, being Third Years. It was the Fifth Years who were going to have to spend the week revising for their O.W.L.s.
Elizabeth shrugged a shoulder. "We still have one more day before the week starts up. After that, we can all plan out some groups for revision, if you'd all like. I was thinking we could revisit Potions on Thursday."
Renee sighed heavily. "Give us a few more days to think about it, okay, Liz? I'm going to have class notes coming out of my ears."
The girls all giggled as they turned towards the staircase with the swarm of Gryffindors going up for the night. Just as Selena turned her head, a familiar face caught her eye. She paused. Someone bumped into her shoulder. "I've forgotten something," she blurted to her friends. They all turned to glance at her, the tide of students making them take a few steps up the stairs. "Go on ahead!"
"You'd better hurry," Renee said, a bit of a smile on her lips. "I've got some Bertie Bott's Beans, and Alisson might get to them all first."
The girls all burst out laughing as Alisson elbowed Renee lightly and rolled her eyes. Selena grinned and turned from her friends, skirting around the loud students. She managed to extricate herself from the lot, a feat in and of itself. The young witch walked towards the portal that separated the Entrance Hall and the Grand Staircase. Damon leaned casually against the wall, head tilted back so that his blonde hair stayed out of his eyes. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his tawny trousers, a Slytherin scarf thrown lazily over his dark green sweater.
Selena suddenly found herself touching her hair, hoping it didn't look messy.
Next to Damon was a tall, lanky boy with a slight overbite.
Damon nodded to him as they spoke, and the boy quieted as he noticed Selena walking closer.
"Hello," Selena said to Damon, giving the other boy - also with a Slytherin scarf, she noted - a nod.
Damon smiled at her. "Congrats, Malast."
Selena laughed. "I thought you'd be upset Gryffindor won."
Damon shrugged. "Your team is a little more bearable now without Potter."
"I'll see you later, Damon," the other boy said.
Damon gave him a quick nod. "See you, Theodore."
Selena tried to not smile wider. It was nice having Damon to talk to just by herself. "Is he a friend of yours?"
Damon shrugged a bit. "He's okay." He hesitated a bit. "His father was outed earlier this year as a Death Eater, so not as many people talk to him now. He was always a bit of a loner, though, so we get on."
"Oh." Selena's smile fell. She glanced over her shoulder as Theodore headed towards the staircase that led down into the Dungeon Corridor. She turned back towards Damon. "That was in the Quibbler, wasn't it? Back around March? Annabeth Black mentioned it to me briefly, but it didn't seem that surprising. Draco Malfoy and his two friends, Crabbe and Goyle had their fathers in that article too."
Damon nodded. "I don't think much of anyone was surprised. Anyways, Theodore doesn't care much. Other people care more."
"Well, just because his father did something wrong doesn't mean Theodore did," Selena offered.
Damon didn't say a word, just blinked and looked over at the Grand Staircase. Less and less students were there, just some grumbling Ravenclaws. He turned back to Selena. "You're all probably going to be up all night celebrating."
Selena smiled. "Jealous?"
"Not even a bit," Damon replied with a matching smile. "Don't get arrogant, there's always next year. You'll see, Slytherin will win. This was just a fluke."
Selena laughed. "Uh-huh, sure."
"I've been trying to recruit some new people for the team next year," Damon said. His blue eyes got a bit brighter when he spoke, a rare moment of excitement that made Selena's smile wider. "I might not like him, but there's a possible Chaser that would be good. His mother is kind of mad, but he's alright. Usually. When he isn't around Malfoy, that is."
"It'll be your last year playing for Slytherin," Selena pointed out.
"True," Damon sighed, shaking his head. "What'll the team do without me?"
Selena laughed. She had missed this, talking with Damon. Suddenly she wanted to stay and talk with him and forget her friends and their Bertie Bott's. But they'd be wondering what took so long, and she didn't feel like telling. "I have to go. I'll see you soon?"
He nodded. "Have fun at the Gryffindor party. Remember - Slytherin will win next year."
Selena took a step away, beaming. "We'll see!"
She turned, walking towards the steps and the frowning Ravenclaws. It took her awhile to stop smiling after that. Damon's smile stayed in her mind.
That took a while to write! Almost 5 months... yikes, sorry guys. I've been having writer's block with all my stories it seems. I've been really busy lately as I'm studying abroad in the UK (crazy, I know!) But I hope you liked this chapter. :)
So, hopefully I can update soon but I'll have to see. I'm excited - we're getting closer to the end of the year! And then it'll be Selena's 4th year, and plenty of things with Death Eaters, Slughorn, and lots of other things I have planned. I'm pretty thrilled to get to all that, but first we have to wrap up this one. I hope I can do it justice.
I think there will probably only be one more chapter, and then we'll have the final chapter with all the action (though I may have to split that into 2 chapters.) After that, the epilogue for the year, and then we'll be onto the next year.
I hope you all have been doing well and are staying warm!
Thanks to our reviewers:
CharmedMilliE- Karry Master
SakuraDragomir
See you next time! Thanks for reading!
~Meghan