Maybe it's All For the Best
Chapter 18: Fly
"What did you think of Nate?" I asked Hermione when I saw her a couple of days later. She was the only person who had met him who hadn't told me what she thought. Ginny had been about as vocal as Roe about how much she didn't like him. I think it might have just been bias though, and Roe's persuasion.
Although Mum and Dad specifically came for coffee at Roe's to tell me that they weren't exactly happy with my choice of partner. Dad even tried to persuade me to call the whole thing off. And Avery and Fred... Fred though he was a ponce and Avery was outraged that he made remarks about my weight. It didn't look good to be honest.
There was only one person who hadn't said anything... the one person who would tell me an untainted truth... so it worried me that she hadn't even said he was nice.
Hermione leant back in the garden chair she was sitting on and crossed her hands in front of her. Ever the diplomat, our Hermione was.
"Well..." She started.
"HEADS!" Someone yelled from the sky. A quaffle came shooting our way and hit the table, disrupting our drinks.
"Sorry!" Fred yelled with a cheeky grin. I tossed the quaffle back to him and sighed. Hermione cleaned up the mess.
"Nate was nice... a little bit arrogant but nice... He seemed to talk more about himself than anything else" she continued, training her eyes on Ron in the sky. "I can tell he cares about you though"
I breathed a sigh of relief. "Really? You mean it?" She turned her head and looked at me.
"I was sceptical because I'd spoken to Roe the night before... But he wasn't so bad. Although... he's v very charming... I could see him checking both Ginny and I out every two seconds" She bit her lip.
"Yeah he does that a lot... comes from being Hollywood's heart throb" I rolled my eyes. "I also have to deal with psychotic fan girls and annoying co-stars" I shrugged.
"Well I think he's ok... but you could do better" She looked at me pointedly, then back up at the sky. I knew who she meant.
He was free-falling to catch the quaffle. The wind was blowing the hair off his face and his eyes, keen, narrowed in concentration. He looked relaxed and happy. He caught the quaffle and pulled to a stop, a huge grin on his face. He was so good looking. My breath caught in my throat and I had to look away.
"I can't go back, Mione..." I murmured.
"Why?" She asked.
"Because... I..."
"YOU!" Someone shrieked, making me jump. "You owe me a damned good explanation" Hermione and I turned and saw Sarah stalking toward us, Teddy on her hip.
"EYLEY! MOANEE!" The toddler chirruped happily.
"Hey little man" Hermione responded. I just stared at Sarah.
"What do you mean, Sarah?" I smiled sweetly. She stood in front of me and glared down her nose.
"For the other night. Why the hell were you and Nate there and why was your sister pretending to date Harry?" She was breathing heavily, her nostrils flaring in such a way that it reminded me strongly of Professor McGonagall when she was mad at Roe.
"It's a long story, one I don't have to tell you" I rolled my eyes. "Last time I checked, you didn't own Harry" I added coolly.
She opened her mouth to say something else but Harry dropped to the ground behind her.
"Sarah! I didn't know you were going to bring Teddy over today... I was just getting ready to come and pick him up" Harry smiled and took Teddy from her arms.
"Well, we just missed you so much" She cooed, turning and kissing Harry's cheek softly. She lingered a little longer than she should have. I clenched my fist and sipped my iced tea.
"That's great. Are you going to stick around for a while?" He asked, putting an arm around her waist. I clenched my jaw.
"Yeah, I think I might" She nodded with a smile. She slid her expression toward me and her smile turned smug.
"Excellent..." He kissed Teddy's head and handed him to me. "I'll be back soon... Games' almost over. We're winning" He winked at me.
"I WANNA FLY!" Teddy exclaimed, bouncing on my knees.
"Maybe later champ. I'll be back" He smiled at me and then at Sarah. Then he mounted his broom and kicked off into the air.
Sarah sat down on the other side of Hermione. "Looks like I'm staying, so you may as well tell me what it was all about" I ignored her. "Nate's pretty hot" I ignored her again. "You're pretty lucky" She paused. "Don't you worry about leaving someone that good looking alone? I mean, he's Nathaniel Carter... I read somewhere he's got a wandering eye and – "
"I trust him. He wouldn't do that and what you read in the paper is not Nate" I snapped. Her voice was just so damned annoying.
"Well I hope so. Boys that cute don't hang around forever"
"They do when you're wearing a fifty thousand dollar ring" Hermione smirked. I bit my lip and continued to train my eyes on Harry.
"Well maybe it's not Riley who should worry... Tell me, Riley... does Nate know you're in love with Harry?" The tone of her voice was triumphant as I turned my head to glare at her.
Instead of denying it, I smiled. "Tell me Sarah..." I mimicked her. "Does it kill you to know he's still in love with me?"
Hermione snorted and Sarah glared at her. "You don't live here anymore. Once you're gone, you'll be forgotten. Trust me. He is mine"
"Oh my gosh! Roe!" Hermione exclaimed, drawing my attention away from the cat fight happening between Sarah and myself. I snapped my attention on my sister who was stumbling over, clutching Draco's arm tightly.
"Roe, oh my merlin, are you ok?" I exclaimed, shooting to my feet, clutching Teddy tightly to my hip.
"Yeah Riles I'm ok" She nodded. "I just got a little light headed... I need to sit"
Harry, Ginny, Theo and Ron thundered to a stop behind the couple that was moving into the shade.
"You right Roe?
"Do you need some water?"
"Are you gonna get back on the broom and play?"
"Ginny!" Hermione exclaimed. Ginny shrugged.
"What? We're tied at a draw. Whoever wins this gets the others as slaves for a MONTH!" She grinned impishly.
"Well obviously the game is over" I shook my head with a smile. I brushed Roe's sweaty hair off her head.
"NO! We need to know who wins..." Roe shook her head viciously. "There is no way I'm being his slave" she pointed a finger at Draco.
"Babe. Obviously it's our team who's winning" Draco grinned. Roe narrowed her eyes.
"Hell no... let me go play, let's finish this" she started to get up but sighed and sat quickly again. "In a minute" She mumbled.
"I think I better get you to a mediwitch" Draco bit his lip, his face full of worry.
"No, no I'm fine. I haven't had enough water that's all" She waved him away. Then she glanced at me. "Riley, you play"
"No way... I suck at flying and catching a quaffle at the same time is totally beyond me" I shook my head.
"Come on Riles! Please... It'll be fun!" Ginny urged me.
"Ginny, you've seen me fly... I can't!" I laughed. I glanced at Harry and he grinned.
"Please Riles" He begged. "Come fly with us"
I bit my lip, my cheeks flushing slightly. "I would if I could coordinate flying and catching" I mumbled.
"Double up then?" He suggested. My heart beat doubled.
"Double up?" I raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, you sit on my broom and concentrate on throwing and catching. I'll do the flying" He cocked his head toward his Firebolt 660 and winked.
"Then your teams will be uneven" I pointed out, crossing my arms across my chest. "You've lost Draco too"
"Hermione can double up with Ron, Theo's on our team, Ginny's on theirs" He grinned like he'd thought this out. My jaw dropped open slightly.
"I'll do it" Sarah spoke up. Everyone turned and looked at her, surprised that she was even there. I narrowed my eyes at her pathetic expression.
Like hell you'll do it.
"No. He asked me. I'll do it" I stepped toward Harry. "I'm playing... Hermione?" I gave her a pointed look and she stood. I handed Teddy over to Sarah with a smug look on my face. "Look after Ted will you?"
She shot me daggers with her eyes. I turned and looked at Harry uncertainly. "Let's do this?" my voice wavered. He laughed and wrapped an arm around my waist.
"We're gonna go inside guys... win for me Riles, ok?" Roe sighed as she stood.
"I'll... do my best" I sighed. Draco looked at Ginny.
"You better win Weasette" He said seriously. They really took this Quidditch stuff too far.
Harry's hands on my waist guided me to a clear spot. "You remember how to do this right?" He said in my ear. His breath was hot against my ear. I shivered but nodded.
"Of course. A girl doesn't forget moonlit broomstick rides" I answered. "The only thing I'm worried about is catching a ball" He chuckled, wrapped an arm around my hips and kicked off from the ground.
My stomach was left behind on the ground as we soared high in the air. I buried my face in the crook of Harry's neck and closed my eyes. He laughed.
"Open your eyes Riles" He murmured. He tightened his grip on my hips.
"No" I muttered, breathing in the oh-so-familiar musky scent of him. My heart and stomach did simultaneous backflips – pretty sure they were for two different reasons though.
"Baby, open your eyes" He kissed my temple.
His sudden gesture shocked me and my eyes flew open, locking onto his green ones instantly. A slight wind ruffled our hair, blowing honey coloured waves over my face. Harry centred his balance and removed his hand from the broom handle to tuck the stray hair from my cheek.
It felt like forever that we sat in silence, just staring at each other. My heart thumped erratically in my chest. "I love you" I blurted out. His eyes widened in surprise.
"Still?"
I nodded. "Always" My voice was a whisper.
He smiled and brushed his lips against my ear. "I never stopped loving you" He whispered, hot breath puffing against my skin, sending chills up my back. Then he plummeted toward the ground. I shrieked and wrapped my arms tightly around him. He laughed loudly.
"Let's play this game" He shouted. I was a little taken aback by the sudden change but we were in the middle of our friends. There would be a time and a place to talk about this.
I was surprised at myself, how I had just blurted it out like that. Did I regret it? Possibly. But that didn't mean it didn't feel good to tell him again.
The game went well into the afternoon, my team winning by one goal. I think Hermione and I forgot the whole point of the game a few times... we were too busy keeping a hold on our broom mates.
I wasn't exactly complaining.
We touched down to the ground when we could no longer see the quaffle in the dim light. Harry's arm kept a firm grip around my waist.
"Good game... Does that mean you're my slave for the next week Ronald?" I grinned at the red head who was kissing his girlfriend.
"No. You weren't officially on the team" Ron shook his head.
"I totally scored the last goal!" I exclaimed with a laugh.
"More like you almost fell off the broom and Harry scored the last goal" Ron rolled his eyes.
"Ha whatever" I shook my head. "You're the losers, so you put the brooms in the shed" I poked him in the chest. Hermione and Ron rolled their eyes. Ginny and Theo slunk away quickly.
I turned to Harry (who was still holding me firmly by the hip). He looked down at me with sparkling eyes. "Come home with me tonight... I'll put Teddy to bed, we'll have dinner... We'll catch up" He slipped his fingertips under the hem of my shirt. I jumped at the sudden contact. I had to concentrate hard just to breathe.
"Harry... I shouldn't..." I murmured. He glanced around quickly before he ducked his lips to mine. The kiss was quick and light but enough to leave me wanting more. "Let's go" I murmured as he broke away.
He chuckled and nodded. "I have to get Teddy first... from... Sarah" He sounded slightly guilty. I laughed and brushed my hair off my face.
"Oh yeah. Her" I murmured. I stepped away from him and went inside, Harry close behind me.
"DAD! Look what I drawed!" Teddy exclaimed from the table.
"That's great champ... Where's Sarah?" He asked Roe. She shrugged and watched us with an amused smirk.
"Dunno... she came in here in a huff, left Teddy with us and then left" She gave me a pointed look. "She seemed pretty pissed off about something though... I would hate to be on the receiving end of that psycho bitch" She shot another amused look in my direction and I felt my cheeks redden. She couldn't know we'd kissed... could she? We were outside and it was dark and...
Draco sat forward beside her. "Got plans tonight Riley?" He smirked. If my face wasn't red before, it was now. I moved to the sink to get a drink of water. I didn't look at Harry. Roe and Draco knew though. They'd seen us... They totally knew.
Damnit why couldn't I have a secret this time?
"HARRY! IT'S SIRIUS FOR YOU!" Someone yelled from the living room. I glanced at Harry but he was already hurrying into the other room. I followed him.
"Harry. There you are. I need you and Ron to come in tonight. There's been attacks on muggles in London. It looks like Death Eaters Harry, so we need all hands on deck tonight" The face of Sirius spoke out to Harry from the fire place.
My stomach dropped. If that wasn't a sign that I should not have dinner and catch up with Harry then I don't know what was. He turned and glanced at me, his eyes showing annoyance. I chewed my lip.
"Are you sure you need us?" He asked.
"Yes Harry. Get Ron and meet at Head Quarters" Sirius barked. The flames exploded before settling down to nothing. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
"I better get Ron" he muttered, pushing past me. He didn't look at me but the annoyed look on his face said everything. "Roe, do you mind looking after him tonight? It's just for the night and you have a key to my apartment to get his things"
"Of course Harry" Roe nodded. "Stay safe" He nodded and walked toward the back door.
"Harry..." I said after him but he'd already left the house. Roe and Draco were watching me expectantly. "What?" I asked them, folding my arms across my chest.
"Why are you still in here when he is out there?" Draco shrugged tilting his head toward the door Harry had just exited through.
I couldn't help the smirk that touched my lips as I practically ran out of the door. "Harry, wait!"
He turned and stopped. I trotted over to him. "I'm so sorry Riles" He muttered, shaking his head. He was obviously annoyed.
I pressed my body into him and kissed his lips lightly. "It's fine. There'll be another time" I nodded. He growled something unintelligible in the back of his throat. Before I could fathom what was happening, Harry was threading his fingers through my hair and hooking his arm around my waist, hitching my body flush with his. Our lips collided and I saw stars… literal stars.
The kiss was the kind of kiss girls describe in the movies. The kind that makes your lips tingle, your breathing stop and your foot pop. It was amazing. It was exactly how I remembered it.
"Ahem?" A small cough made us jump apart like we'd been electrocuted.
"Ah... Ron... We're uhm... needed at Head Quarters" Harry muttered awkwardly, looking slightly more than guilty.
"You sure you're not needed somewhere else?" Ron raised an amused eyebrow.
"Shut up and come on" Harry muttered before apparating out of sight. Ron winked at me before following him.
"Well... I can't say it's a surprise" Hermione beamed, linking arms with me and walking me back into the house. "It just sucks he's working tonight"
Yeah.
Totally sucks.
Plea's Note:
You didn't think it'd be that easy did you? Of COURSE it's not that easy ;) BTW FOR ANYONE WHO IS INTERESTED... I have an AIM account to chat to people... You can find me by searching Pleaof Insanity in first and last names or my screen name pleaofinsanityhp... Hope to talk to some of you soon... I'll have MSN in a few days. I ALSO HAVE PING CHAT ON IPHONE... My screen name is supermegafoxyawesome You should ping me :)
Xo Plea