Thankfully, the incessant bothering about Cedric was temporarily replaced by the anticipation of Gryffindor's game against Ravenclaw; and Harry's new broom.
Part of me was relieved that the game against Hufflepuff had already passed since I was wary about Cedric facing off against Harry on his new broom. Of course, I had confidence in my boyfriend's flying abilities, but I wasn't ready to be in the middle of that feud between him and my brother.
I had been able to watch the super-coveted Gryffindor practices, much at the insistence of my friends and brother against Oliver Wood. Oliver was convinced I might be a double agent for Ravenclaw, despite only knowing Luna from that house, but in the end I had agreed to sign a contract written up by Hermione that would disallow me from telling anything. This was a compromise to Oliver's initial unbreakable vow suggestion.
"Well everyone looks fairly sure of themselves," I greeted everyone as I sat down to join them for breakfast.
"It's a shoe in with Harry's new broom," George replied confidently.
I noticed everyone digging into their breakfast with a lack of their usual uneasiness on game day.
"Don't let it get to your heads!" Oliver Wood chastised from down the table.
The Gryffindor captain was currently sitting on the other side of Alicia and was the only one who still had a full plate of food, left untouched. He looked more of the usual green colour and seemed overly anxious towards the others.
"I agree that we have an edge against Ravenclaw, but we can't get ahead of ourselves. We need this win or we are out of the running," he said sternly.
I felt bad for the bloke. He hadn't won the quidditch cup since he took the captain's mantle from Charlie Weasley, and this was his last attempt for it. But his passion had since become an obsession which I felt masked the fact that he was a fairly handsome bloke who probably had a lot to offer. I mean, all of my friends are on the team, my brother is the youngest seeker in a century, and I'm also dating the seeker from a rival team, and none of them are as driven about quidditch as Wood seems to be. It's scaring off a lot of potential.
I shook my head and served up my own plate. It was nice to see everyone in a more chipper mood than they usually were before a game. Plus, I had to admit I was a little excited at the prospect of Harry beating Cho Chang. She had since left me alone after Fred told her off in the hallway right before Cedric and I started dating, however she wasn't above sending me a glare once in a while in the corridors or from across the Great Hall.
Everyone was also ogling over Harry's broom since he had graciously placed it in the middle of the Gryffindor table. I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes when everyone came to gush over the new Firebolt. Even Percy Weasley brought over his now proclaimed girlfriend, Penelope Clearwater, the Ravenclaw prefect. The twins still had a hard time letting it go that Percy was actually showing affection for someone other than his prefect badge, but I thought they were cute.
"Ready to go?" I heard a familiar voice ask, causing me to look up from my breakfast.
I smiled at Cedric who was daringly wearing a Gryffindor coloured hat and looked all set to head out to the pitch.
"Yup!" I replied happily, forcing myself not to leap out of my seat.
I still found it hard to remain calm whenever he was around. Butterflies were running rampant in my stomach. Excitedly, I took his outstretched arm and wished everyone good luck as we walked by. This incited many smiles from my friends and a hardened glare from Cho Chang who had boldly even come over to ogle Harry's Firebolt. I couldn't help but also notice the sheepish look Harry had on his face and I returned it with a raised eyebrow. But he just shook his head and shrugged, erasing all evidence of the previous expression. I didn't give it much thought though as Cedric led me out towards the pitch. It didn't appear that Cedric had even noticed Cho's look, or if he had, seemingly didn't care about the unwarranted scowl.
Cedric was hasty to lead us to the front-centre of the stands and looked as if Christmas had come early.
"I don't think I've ever seen you this excited," I said, unable to stop myself from smiling in amusement.
"I love watching the other teams play! Plus, I must admit, I am eager to see Harry fly," he answered candidly.
I continued to smile at him, feeling the infectiousness of his excitement. Of course, I was always eager to watch my friends play, but it must be different to watch a game when you were a player for another team. I supposed none of my friends were really any better.
"That's not true though," he said without taking his eyes off the pitch where the players were now assembling.
"What do you mean?" I asked blankly.
"That you've never seen me this excited," he replied easily, now turning to face me.
I continued to give him a questioning look.
He smirked. "I was definitely much more excited when you agreed to go out with me," he replied with his eyes almost shimmering.
I could have sworn I blacked out for a couple seconds. But when my senses finally reacted somewhat sensically to his ridiculous answer I still couldn't say anything.
"Marnie, nothing makes me happier than you. Not even flying," he added, kissing me on the nose as if what he had just said was easily plausible.
I kept staring dumbfoundedly but was snapped out when Cedric turned his gaze at the sound of the whistle. Harry was already whizzing around the pitch before any of the others had even reached their positions. It was incredible to see him fly.
My focus was interrupted though when I felt the warm pressure of Cedric taking my hand. I tried to press myself to maintain focus on watching Harry, reminding myself that he had almost died during the last match. But then again, so had I…
It was truly impressive watching the game and Cedric's excitement was now palpable, causing me to sneak sideways glances at him during quick lulls in the game. It was also amusing to hear Lee's commentary since he kept rambling on about details of the Firebolt. It wasn't until McGonagall threatened to demote him from his announcer position that he was able to refocus.
"Spinnet has the quaffle. She makes an easy pass to Johnson who was waiting to make the catch. Nice one ladies!" Lee boasted, despite the watchful glare from McGonagall.
"Potter sees the snitch!" he added before the professor could make any hasty decisions.
This caused the whole school to watch as Harry flew downwards towards a gleam of gold.
"Wait, what is that?" Lee said over the excited jitters of the stands who were all still watching Harry.
Everyone started looking around, myself included, who looked around towards the opposite end of the pitch. I instantly gasped, along with everyone else. There, on the outskirts on the pitch, was a Grimm standing and seemingly watching the game.
"Harry had been right!" I thought anxiously.
Despite listening to Harry and agreeing on the possibility that his paranoia had some grounds, I had never really believed a physical Grimm was stalking him. But no dog was that size and this big, black beast was looking pointedly towards Harry as he dove.
I heard the chaos around me but was still transfixed by this creature. It was like my stare had now become stuck and I couldn't pry my eyes to see how everyone else was reacting. Startlingly, the Grimm eventually turned its pointed gaze and landed on mine, as if it had sensed my stare. We looked at each other for what felt like several moments before it all of a sudden stood up and quickly ran out of sight. I had half a mind to get out of my seat and run after it, but Cedric was now standing up beside me and jumping up and down enthusiastically.
"Marnie, they won! Harry caught the snitch!" he said excitedly, somehow causing me to smile even though my insides were shaken.
He was already leading me by my hand since he was still holding onto it. But it wasn't until we reached the pitch and saw the entire Gryffindor team was laughing hysterically that I figured out why everyone else had gasped; four Slytherin students, including Flint, had dressed as dementors during the game. McGonagall was furious, spewing out different sorts of punishments while the boys fought to untangle themselves from their robes.
It was pretty funny…
But that meant no one else had seen the Grimm.
"Marnie, we won!" Angelina came up and scooped me into a hug.
Katie and Alicia joined in, forming a loose circle as we all jumped up and down. Their excitement was catching.
"Party in the Gryffindor Tower!" George shouted, inciting a roaring assent from the assembled Gryffindors.
Fred was the next to scoop me into a hug and lifted me up into the air.
"Put me down, you prat," I ordered, trying to suppress both my amused smile and the concerned frown I still had from the Grimm sighting.
"You alright Hare?" Fred asked without missing a beat.
"Yea, I just want to make sure you get enough butter beer for the party," I replied quickly.
Fred gave me a thoughtful look before replacing it with a boastful smile.
"Don't worry, George and I never disappoint!" he said confidently before bowing in an exaggerated manner and rushing off with George towards the school; no doubt towards the statue of the one-eyed witch.
Finally, I saw Harry through the herd of people.
"Marnie!" he exclaimed, already approaching me from where Fred had set me down before disappearing off towards the castle.
"Congrats little brother!" I said obligingly, pride evident in my voice.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, just as perceptive as Fred.
I thought about lying to him, but knew we had a promise to never keep secrets.
"Not now," I answered in a whispered tone.
He nodded understandably before Ron came and whisked him back into the celebratory crowd.
XXX
I had luckily been able to sneak Cedric into the party. Being friends with the entire team had its privileges and he surprisingly looked right at home sitting beside me on one of the couches. I was snuggled into his shoulder while we sat with the rest of my friends. Angelina was on my other side but was keeping a respectable distance from us. Katie and Lee were also taking up most of the other couch as they not so secretively cozied up together. I guess they were no longer hiding their affections, even though we had all known for ages. The bootlegged fire whisky bottle George was passing around seemed to give them a confidence boost. The bottle made its way around our group again and this time I took a deep swig of the burning liquid. The alcohol stung the back of my throat as I tried not to cough when I swallowed. Cedric rubbed my back before I passed the bottle to him. He declined another sip and instead passed it along.
"Are you okay Mar?" he asked concernedly.
"Of course," I answered, focusing deliberately on the pronunciation of each word.
Cedric just smiled and pulled me closer into his shoulder. I even think he briefly took a moment to smell my hair as I settled back into his chest.
"I think our little Marnie is drunk," George said chidingly, despite his own slur.
"Leave her alone, it's about time Marnie let her hair down," Alicia answered, coming to my rescue.
I gave her a wide grin.
"Plus, Cedric won't let anything happen to her," Angelina said encouragingly.
I could feel Ange patting my arm affectionately and I swung my own back to return the gesture. I ended up tapping my hand on her stomach.
"So, are you two officially a couple now?" Alicia asked, looking pointedly between Katie and Lee.
"No idea what you're talking about," Lee answered swiftly, turning beet red in the process.
Katie however nuzzled closer into Lee but remained silent.
"Hopeless," I heard Ange mutter under her breath.
Cedric started to run his fingers through my hair as I lay my head on him. It became harder to stay focused as the alcohol clouded my thoughts and Cedric's movements lulled me to sleep.
"Goodnight my love," I heard someone whisper in my ear but I'm pretty sure I was asleep.
I couldn't hear anything else around me and I was stuck in a blackened abyss.
"Marnie. I have to protect you Marnie. I'm so sorry, please forgive me sweetheart," I heard an anguished voice whisper.
I didn't know when I had actually fallen asleep or what time it was now, but my head was spinning, and I felt groggy. I peeked my eyes open and knew it was still dark. What had woken me up? I knew I had been dreaming… about the sad voices.
Then it hit me, as abrupt as the initial occurrence. I had woken up to the sound of screaming. My eyes then shot open, despite my pounding head. It took them a few moments to clear but I suddenly realized I was face-to-face with a pair of frenzied gray eyes.
I was stunned, and felt as if a spell had hit me, but I knew it hadn't. These are the same eyes from all of my dreams. The same eyes from the Azkaban poster. I was staring at Sirius Black.
The screaming was getting closer which finally broke his gaze from mine.
"I have to leave you," he said surprisingly, with anguish cutting through him.
I hadn't expected him to say anything. Especially in such a somber yet husky tone. I knew he was conflicted about something and all of a sudden I felt my own wave of anxiety and sadness, but not because a mass murderer had just been standing over me. I was so confused but didn't have time to comprehend everything because the next thing I knew Sirius Black was already gone and several Gryffindor's were piling into the common room which had previously been empty. Fred was at the front of the crowd.
"Hare!" he shouted anxiously.
I looked up to see him sprinting towards me.
"Are you alright?" he asked, surveying me for any clues.
"Umm, yea, I guess," I answered in a hoarse voice.
My throat was dry from the alcohol and I think I was in shock.
"Did you see him?" Fred asked hastily, still looking in my eyes for some apparent answers.
George had joined us now, giving me the same paranoid look.
"Who?" I asked dumbly.
"Sirius Black!" Fred almost shouted.
I could hear someone who sounded like Ron whimpering from somewhere close by. This probably meant Harry was around, if not already beside George.
"Yes. I saw him."