A/N:This is something I've had an idea for a while, so I really excited to finally do it! In this universe, Sawamura is a Gryffindor and Miyuki is a Slytherin. So here's how this works: if you guys like this chapter, tell me and I'll write more parts. If you don't, I'll won't write anymore. Simple as that.
Oh, some notes about this universe: obviously, House tensions are higher in this universe, and also the Quidditch teams are a bit more clique-ish. Also, Quidditch is different. Instead of competing for the House Cup, the Houses compete to represent Hogwarts in Internationals, where they compete against other magical schools all over the world.
After a year of training and struggling and mostly riding the bench, Sawamura had finally done it. He'd made it to the first string of the Quidditch team.
It was the start of a new school year, his Fifth year, and also start of another Quidditch season. Coach Kataoka announced it at the end of their first practice, that he and Haruichi were moving up.
"Haha nice job, Bakamura! You too, Kominato." Kuramochi congratulated, kicking Sawamura at the back of his legs. "Wait, are you crying?"
"No," he sniffled.
Then Chris walked up to him and said, "You've worked hard for this, Sawamura. I'm proud of you."
Sawamura completely broke down at that. As the team's Keeper, Chris was tasked with training the Seekers. In the beginning, he and Chris didn't get along at all. Now their relationship had strengthened into a strong mentor bond, so getting a compliment meant a lot to him.
"Thanks, Chris-senpai." he answered between wails.
He was still tearing up when they got back inside from practice.
"Jeez, quit crying." Kuramochi said. "You're getting on my nerves."
"Eijun-kun's just emotional." Haruichi laughed.
"It still doesn't matter. I'm still going to be the primary Seeker." Furuya reminded him.
"Don't get cocky! I'm on the same level as you now!" Sawamura yelled, which Furuya ignored.
Kuramochi smacked the back of his head. "Shut up! I wanna tell you and Kominato some ground rules, now that you're first stringers."
Sawamura fell quiet immediately. He couldn't wait to hear this.
"Number one, you sit at our side of the table now."
Both him and Haruichi straightened at that. There was always something going down at the other end of the Gryffindor table, and the tales of what went on there had been legendary.
"Two, it doesn't matter when practice ends, we practice till dinner. There's no way we're going to Internationals without doing that." There was a fire in Kuramochi's eyes, which ignited a fire in Sawamura too.
He knew Kuramochi must be thinking about last year. After years of not even coming close to Internationals, the Gryffindors finally made it to the championships. They were so close, their goal was just within their reach—and then the Slytherins beat them.
He'll never forget that feeling. He was watching from the sidelines and he could still hear the deafening silence from the Gryffindor side of the bleachers, the sobs of his fellow teammates. He'd never felt so helpless, watching all their hard work go down the drain. He didn't want to feel like that ever again.
"Three, whatever you do don't get into any fights with a—" A group of boys walking past them roughly bumped into Kuramochi. They laughed and talked without stopping to apologize.
Kuramochi righted himself and said loudly, "Watch where you're going, shitheads."
The group of boys stopped and turned around. Sawamura sees their green and silver ties and his blood runs cold. Slytherins.
These were Slytherins Kuramochi knew too, as one of them with white blond hair steps to the front. "Kuramochi. I knew I smelled something bad." His friends laugh behind him.
Kuramochi grit his teeth and took a deep breath. "Narumiya. Too busy kissing ass to look where you're walking?"
Narumiya chuckled and it sent chills down Sawamura's spine. "You bumped into us."
He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Guys, let's go."
They tried to walk away but Narumiya shouts after them, "Was that me or did I hear you talking about Internationals?"
Kuramochi stopped, then turned right back around. "Yeah, what about it?"
Narumiya and his friends looked at each other and laughed again. "That's what I love about you Gryffindors. You keep trying and trying even though there's no point. We know who'll win in the end."
He stormed up to him. "Last year was just luck."
The tension was rising fast, and Sawamura took a step forward to do something, anything, except he felt Furya grab ahold of his sleeve and shake his head.
"Stay out of it." He didn't say anything else.
Then Narumiya said, "Yeah, or your team just sucks."
That was it, game over. Kuramochi grabbed the front of his shirt and threw him against the wall. A couple of Narumiya's friends moved forward but he put a hand to stop them.
He focused all his attention on Kuramochi. "Are you gonna hit me, Kuramochi? I'm sure the Headmistress would love that. Not like your team would miss you or anything. What's one mediocre Beater from another?"
Kuramochi clenched his fist. "I'll take my chances."
He raised his hand and it looks like he was actually about to punch Narumiya in the face when Haruichi yells, "Teacher! A teacher's coming!"
"Shit." he glared at Narumiya, then released him. "Let's get out of here, quick!"
They ran quickly down the hallway, the Slytherins' taunts echoing down the hallway. Once they had gotten far enough away, Kuramochi rested against the wall.
"There was no teacher." Kuramochi stated.
Haruichi shrugged. "Aniki already told me the rules. He'd be mad if we lost another player."
"Yeah, he'd kick my ass." Kuramochi grinned. "Thanks, then. I wanted to knock him out so bad, I couldn't think straight.
Sawamura, who had been holding everything in till now, bursted with things to say. "Why didn't you punch him in the face? I wanted to! I can't believe that white haired guy said we suck, right to our faces! I know he's a Slytherin, but doesn't mean he has to be rude!"
The three of them stared at Sawamura like he was the biggest idiot on the planet.
"Stupid. You're the reason I have to spell these rules out clearly!" He cleared his throat. "Rule number three, whatever you do, don't get into a fight with a Slytherin. The Headmistress already warned us that if anyone on the team fights with anyone of the Slytherins or vice versa, the people involved automatically get kicked off."
Sawamura's jaw dropped. "You're kidding."
"The Slytherins have been picking fights to get us in trouble ever since." Kuramochi sighed. "They're smart, I'll give them that. Like Narumiya, for example. He didn't even try to hit me, he just started talking shit because he knew I'd react. That's why a hotheaded idiot like you should avoid Slytherins altogether! Get involved with them, you'll be in the Headmistress's office in a flash."
"I'm not that stupid!" Sawamura huffed.
Even an oblivious idiot like him knew about the heated rivalry between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. Their feud traced back all the way back to the beginning of Hogwarts, and it didn't seem like it was ending any time soon. He had friends who were on the receiving end of a nasty Slytherin prank and his teammates were particularly passionately their hatred of the other house.
Sawamura's never felt one way about it or the other. He had friends in other houses, but none from Slytherin (you know, because of the whole hating each other thing). He couldn't remember the last time he even talked to someone from that house. How could he form an opinion on people didn't know anything about?
"I hope so." Kuramochi stood up. "Let's go to the dining hall. It's almost dinner anyway."
He left the thoughts of fights and Quidditch, only thinking about food.
The rest of the week went by as normal. He was fully initiated into the first string at lunch when Ryousuke and Kuramochi hexed his seat, turning his hair bright green (the worst part about that was that he didn't even notice, so he spent the whole day wondering what the big joke was). He slept, stayed at practice well into dinner, argued with Furuya, the usual.
Then on Friday, the upperclassmen called him and Haruichi over from the other side of the common room.
"At midnight, come downstairs and meet us at the door." Tetsu told them once they came over.
"Why? Don't tell me we're going broom riding again! My butt's still sore from today." Sawamura complained.
Ryousuke smiled, his face giving away nothing. "It's a secret."
"Don't be late, either, or we'll leave without you." Kuramochi threatened.
Sawamura and Haruichi glanced at each other at the same time. They both knew, if the upperclassmen were keeping something secret, it couldn't be good.
"Furuya-kun, do you know what's going on at midnight? Haruichi asked once they sit back down with him.
Furuya didn't even look up from his book. "Oh yeah, that's tonight. I can't tell you."
That riled Sawamura up. "Why not?"
"The seniors told me not to." As if any more proof were needed, Sawamura turned back to see the upperclassmen staring at them.
"Are coming tonight, then?" Haruichi persisted.
"No. I'm tired. And I'm not up to do that."
"Do what?" Sawamura tried again.
Furuya didn't respond.
So later, in the dorms, Sawamura and Haruichi played cards until midnight. They tiptoed downstairs and were greeted by a bright wand light shining in their face.
"You guys took forever. We're gonna be the last ones there!" Jun said. Once his eyes adjusted to the light Sawamura recognized most of the sixth and seventh years, along with some of their girlfriends.
Tetsu hit Jun on the shoulder. "Keep your voice down. Let's go."
Tetsu opened the common room door and they walked through the school, without a light or anything. Sawamura kept asking if they were almost wherever they were going. The fifth time he asked Kuramochi whispered that he was going to try a new wrestling move on him if he didn't keep quiet, effectively shutting him up.
Nori bumped his shoulder. "We're almost there. Trust me, it's worth the wait."
Sawamura smiled. "Thanks, Nori-senpai."
After basically forever, the group finally stopped in front of a door Sawamura swore he had never seen before. "Brace yourself," Jun said, and Sawamura shook in anticipation.
Once they all stepped inside he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
There was a banner hanging up that said Quidditch with cartoon Snitches flying across the word. There were balloons floating in the air of the House colors (all except Slytherin, that is) and a punch table complete with juice and chips. Music was playing from a speaker somewhere and people from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were already there. The upperclassmen immediately dispersed and integrated into the crowd.
Sawamura craned his head around to look at the entire room. "What is this?"
Haruichi did the same thing as him. "I think it's a party."
"You're right, it is." Chris said, appearing at his side from nowhere. "We always have one at the beginning of the Quidditch season, a few throughout the year, then after the championship match."
"Whoa, I didn't know that!" Sawamura exclaimed.
"It'd be bad if any teachers found out, so it's only primary members from each respective Quidditch team and their dates. Keeps the party size down."
Sawamura didn't know what to do first. This was his first real party with people he didn't normally see and he had to admit he was a little nervous.
Chris smiled as if he could read his mind. "Just have fun, Sawamura. That's the most important thing." With that, Chris disappeared into the crowd as well.
Sawamura took his advice and mingled with people from other houses. He tried dancing with a girl but only ended up stomping all over her feet, as she let him him know angrily. He got into a friendly argument with some Ravenclaws about Quidditch teams (the Holyhead Harpies rule always. Always.) and drank some of the punch, which he almost pretty positive wasn't just punch. He was in the middle of a conversation with his friend, a Hufflepuff named Raichi, when the Slytherins showed up.
One minute the party was in full swing and everyone was having a good time, and the next the door swung open and everything screeched to a halt. Even the music skidded to a stop.
Despite the confused and bewildered looks from everyone, the Slytherins didn't back down. In fact, they looked cool and confident.
He recognized Narumiya from the other day. "I told you guys, we really needed to party."
The Gryffindor seniors moved to the front and everyone cleared the way for the two rivals.
Raichi laughed nervously. "Are they gonna fight?"
Sawamura wondered that too. He also wondered if he should be standing over with them too, ready to get into a brawl if need be. Haruichi hadn't moved either, so he stayed put with Raichi.
"What the hell are you guys doing here?" Jun growls. "You weren't invited."
A big, hulking guy named Harada steps to the front. "It's a Quidditch party. We're a Quidditch team, the same as everyone here. We should be invited like everyone else."
"None of us want to party with scum like you!" Jun spat.
"Who are you calling scum?" Narumiya spoke up, but Harada silenced him.
"All we're saying is, it's not fair."
"Like you guys know about being fair!" Kuramochi moved forward menacingly. "Everyone knows you have to be a liar to get into your house."
Narumiya moved forward too. "So hiding invitations is what you call truthful? For all you Gryffindors talk about being honest and noble, you're just a bunch of hypocrites."
The tensions in the rooms were rising fast and it seemed like a fight really might break out. Sawamura wanted to go back to having a good time, but he was powerless to stop either group from fighting.
Then Harada put a hand on Narumiya's shoulder and Tetsu did the same to Kuramochi.
Harada said, "Stop trying to provoke them. That's not what we came here to do."
Tetsu said, "Calm down, Kuramochi. You get worked up too easily."
Kuramochi shrugs his hand off. "Sorry."
Tetsu turned to Harada and said, "You should stay," much to the outrage of his friends.
"Tetsu, are you out of your mind?!" Jun said.
"He's right. It's only fair that if we're going to have party about Quidditch, we invite all the Quidditchteams. Besides, we don't talk to talk to them."
"Wise words, Yuuki." This time, a slight sarcasm could be heard in Harada's voice.
If Tetsu was irritated, he didn't show it. "Then, let's get back to it."
The music was turned back on and Sawamura let out a deep breath. "Man, that was nerve wracking!"
Raichi had already moved on. "Finish your story! Did you win the stickball game?"
"It's called baseball! And okay it's the bottom of the ninth, meaning the game is almost over, and this huge monster of a guy steps up to the plate. I'm not one to back out from a fight, so I wind my arm back real far and then—"
"Raichi," Sanada interrupted, walking up to them.
"Sanada-senpai!" Raichi said brightly. "Do you wanna hear Sawamura's stickball story?"
"Baseball!"
Sanada reaches a hand back to scratch the back of his head. "Maybe later. Actually, I wanted to know if you wanted to dance or something."
Raichi looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He stood there gaping at Sanada long enough for Sawamura to realize that he should probably leave the two alone.
So he moved to the punch bowl, unsure of what he should do now. Haruichi was locked in an intense conversation with two Ravenclaws, the seniors were playing a rowdy drinking game with the other houses, and Raichi and Sanada were swaying together sweetly. He had nothing to do.
He kept himself busy by swishing around the drink in cup and pondering whether magical alcohol was different from regular alcohol. Did it get you drunker? Would you see literal stars?
"You know, I'm pretty sure the point of a party is to dance."
Sawamura jumped. There was a guy standing next to him who wasn't there before, and when he turned to respond the words died in his throat.
The first thing Sawamura thought was that the guy in front of him was really, really attractive. He had messy hair and sharp brown eyes hidden behind dark glasses, not to mention a deep voice. He racked his brain trying to figure out if he'd ever seen this guy anywhere before, and if did how he could forget it.
Hot Guy waves a hand in front of his face. "Hello? Is anyone there?"
"Huh? Oh, sorry!" Sawamura cursed at himself inside his head. "I don't feel like dancing."
The guy leaned against the table as a fast, poppy song comes on. "Why not?"
"I'm not good at it." His friends already made fun of him for practically trampling the first person he danced with. He didn't want to go through that again.
Sawamura expected him to shrug his shoulders and walk away. But Hot Guy said, "You're in luck. I'll dance good enough for the both of us."
Sawamura didn't even get the chance to think a simple, What?, before he's pulled into the middle of the crowd without a warning.
"What are you doing?" Sawamura asked frantically. He tries to pull away but the guy has a tight grip on his hands.
"We're dancing. All you have to do is move your feet."
When Sawamura's feet stayed glued to floor, he sighed. "I came here to have fun. What about you?"
Their eyes meet, and Sawamura's worries melt away. Cautiously, he begins shuffling back and forth.
Hot Guy laughs, light and happy. "That's the spirit!"
They dance to a couple of songs. Sawamura couldn't help but notice how rough the guy's hands were, probably from broom riding. He liked the way his hands fit in the guy's as they move together. At one point the guy twirled him and they both started laughing.
They slowed down and stopped after the fourth or fifth song. They caught their breath from all the laughing, and Sawamura felt like he's just come down from flying and he didn't know why. It was once they stopped that Sawamura came back to himself and realized where he was and what he was doing, practically in the arms of a stranger. He removed his hands, blushing.
The guy didn't notice. He only smiled and said, "Hey, what's your name?"
It only struck Sawamura as weird right then that they had shared that whole experience and hadn't even exchanged names. "Oh, I'm—"
"Sawamura!"
At the same time he heard someone say, "Kazuya!"
Kuramochi came up in a hurry and grabbed his arm. "What the hell are you doing?" He wasn't looking at him when him asked, but instead at the guy (whose name had still failed to learn).
Hot Guy simply grinned wider. "Kuramochi. I thought you were going to spend the whole night avoiding me."
Before Kuramochi can respond, Narumiya comes up and grabs the guy's arm as well. "What the hell, Kazuya?"
"Is there an echo in here?" The guy muttered to himself. Out loud he said, "What did I do now, Mei?"
Narumiya looked pissed. "I want to know why you're dancing with him." The way he said that made Sawamura feel like dirt.
"If you can dance with other people, so can I."
"Tetsu-san was nice enough to let you stay. The least you could do is behave yourself." Kuramochi cuts in.
Sawamura knew that was the wrong thing to say, because the air around them turned even chillier.
"Oh, I didn't know Yuuki was my master now." The guy's words were sharp now. "Just because you follow him around like a dog doesn't mean we all should be forced to."
Kuramochi was about to explode, and it was up to Sawamura to stop him. He shook off Kuramochi's hand and stepped in front of him, blocking him from the guy.
"Why are you so mad? We were only dancing." Sawamura reassured him.
"Yeah, we were only dancing." He could hear the mocking tone in the guy's voice. "Don't tell me, you've already given up on Kominato?"
Before Kuramochi could lunge at him, Narumiya interrupted by saying, "What about you? Why in the hell were you dancing with a Gryffindor?"
The guy scrunched his eyebrows. "When was I dancing with a Gryffindor?" Then his eyes widened and he addressed Sawamura. "Aren't you a Hufflepuff?"
Sawamura turned around and shook his head. "No, I'm a Gryffindor." The wheels started turning in his own head. Narumiya's weird possessiveness, Kuramochi's sudden hatred… "Wait, aren't you a Ravenclaw?"
Narumiya burst out laughing. "Kazuya's smart, sure, but he's too evil to be in Ravenclaw!"
"Mei."
"What, it's true!"
Kazuya, he guessed the guy's name was, sighed. "That's why you were so bothered. I apologize, Kuramochi. If I'd know he was a Gryffindor I wouldn't have gone near him. Now I'm afraid I might've caught something."
Narumiya gave him a onceover. "Stupidity, most likely."
Sawamura clenched his fist. He was so mad he was practically shaking. Gone was Kazuya's playful smile and gentle eyes, replaced by a cruel smirk and a carefully blank gaze. What happened? What changed? he wanted to ask him. But Kazuya wouldn't look at him, and he already knew the answer anyway.
He was a Gryffindor, and Kazuya was a Slytherin. It didn't get any simpler than that.
"You got your wish. We're leaving, this party sucks anyway." Narumiya grabbed Kazuya's hand. "Let's go."
Kuramochi crossed his arms. "Good. Don't come back next time." Once they were completely out the door he said, "Dammit, they make me wanna puke."
Sawamura stormed over to the punch bowl and drank a full cup of the mystery liquid in one cup. He was about to go for another round when Kuramochi stopped him.
He stole the drink from Sawamura's hand. "Slow down! We've still got practice tomorrow."
"I'm so mad! He was so nice when we were dancing, and then he turned into a huge asshole! Just because we're in rival Houses, we have to hate each other?" Sawamura let all his frustrations out.
"Those were his true colors. All Slytherins act like that, that's why we hate them." Kuramochi narrowed his eyes. "I leave you alone for five seconds and you've already managed to break one of the rules! I can't babysit you everywhere, Bakamura!"
"I told you I didn't know he was a Slytherin! Besides, we weren't fighting." Sawamura even tried to defend him. He definitely was the idiot in this situation.
"Let me say this clearly, in case you haven't managed to pick up on the most basic rule." Kuramochi held up four fingers. "Rule number four: no getting involved with Slytherins, if you know what I mean."
Sawamura did, and he blushed. "It wasn't like that!"
His face was grim. "It better not have been. I'm serious, Sawamura. You fall for one of them, and the team won't like it."
Kuramochi was wrong about him. That day he picked up on something without even having to ask: if he broke any of the rules, especially the last two, there would be consequences.
"Don't worry, Kuramochi-senpai. All Slytherins are horrible, right?"
If his heart twinged while he said that, he didn't feel it.
"-and if you want make me jealous, pick an actual Hufflepuff next time!"
Kazuya was only half listening, he admited, but he managed to catch that part. "How many times to I have to say it? I didn't know! And if you weren't giving me the cold shoulder I wouldn't have been dancing with anyone in the first place."
Mei scowled. "Don't act so innocent. You know what you did."
No, he didn't. All he knew was that Mei could hold a hell of a grudge. He didn't even think he was gonna be let in on the party crashing plan until Mei called him over. Kazuya thought that was a sign of forgiveness, then he caught him dancing with some random boy. Kazuya thought, Two can play that game. And here they were.
"I didn't think you noticed me." Mei said quietly.
This was it, a way in. "Of course I did. I'm always watching you, Mei."
Mei gave him a tiny smile. "Alright, I forgive you. Just don't do it again."
Whatever it was. "I won't."
Mei kissed him on cheek and he mentally cheers inside his head. When Mei iced him out that meant he was cut off from everyone, including his so called "friends". He'll finally have a place to sit at lunch again and people to walk to class with. But somehow, his joy is restrained by one thing.
He couldn't stop thinking about bright, golden eyes.
Both Sawamura and Miyuki tossed and turn in bed, unable to find a peaceful sleep.
They didn't realize it yet, they were changing inside, little by little.