Ch. 18: Quidditch

Hermione fully intended to stall as long as possible with asking Ciel and Nezumi about Malfoy's scheming, in order to keep Harry and Ron in line. In fact, she hoped they would get distracted with the preparations for the Quidditch match with the Ravenclaws and forget it altogether. If their stunt in the showers had any good sides it was to turn Michael Corner against them and they were rather desperate to win. It seemed like her plan would work out, because the game was all they could think and talk about.

While kept quiet from the general student audience, obviously the shower incident was not a secret within the Ravenclaw House. Safu told Hermione that Michael Corner was hell-bent on defeating Gryffindor in Quidditch in revenge for his "personal humiliation" in the shower. Safu highlighted that Cho Chang, who was Michael's girlfriend and who had stopped talking to Harry after the shower fiasco, had specifically used the expression "personal humiliation". She also added that maybe she was actually grateful to Harry and Ron for making complete asses of themselves, because it took everybody's attention from Shion and the atmosphere in the House was a bit better. Hermione wasn't sure if she appreciated that last comment, but she kept her mouth shut.

Somehow the tension between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw escalated as the temperatures rose and the match was drawing nearer. It went as far as a couple of students being punished with a detention for fighting in the corridors. Hermione wasn't sure how it was possible from the Ravenclaw side of the conflict, but she could witness herself how Harry and Ron egged the other students in their House on. Michael's obvious enmity helped and Ron made a case of suddenly being attacked by the guy for having done nothing wrong to him.

Sometimes Hermione wondered if that was life in a normal, boarding school, without the shadow of a threat from a mortal enemy. She tried to remember if it had been the same previously, but somehow either the whole school was against Harry or she had been so wrapped up in whatever they were trying to solve, that she nearly forgot everything else.

Except for the approaching game, nothing much changed. The teachers seemed to think that the upcoming spring was a reason to give the students yet more homework and McGonagall announced that the sixth year students would have a sort of mock exam in the end of the year, parallel to the OWLs and NEWTs for the fifth and seventh year students. She said that it was the best way for the students, and the teachers, to know if everything was on the right track to passing the NEWTs in the following year.

Harry and Ron, and most of the sixth year students really, complained about the idea and claimed that they didn't need another test, that the stress would kill their motivation to study, that they rather focused on learning new things than revising before the exam. Every single teacher pointed out that they didn't need to revise and they should treat this as a test on how much they remembered without revising because, hopefully, that would be the part of knowledge that they would not need to revise before the actual exams the following year.

After the initial euphoria of having Harry and Ron back and, on that occasion, missing two study afternoons in the library, Hermione went back to the routine. The others seemed almost surprised to see her back, but happy also. They haven't once mentioned the shower fiasco, or Harry and Ron. They didn't talk about the Quidditch game either. She found it refreshing.

On the week of the game, they decided to meet on Saturday to study. By then, the castle was nearly trembling with excitement and some students were already walking around with their House colours painted on their faces. Hermione, Safu, Shion, Ciel, Nezumi and Lizzy were the only ones in the library and even Madame Pince seemed to be surprised at their stubbornness in studying.

'I thought Ginny would throw a fit when I told her that I would be studying today,' Hermione commented as she was packing her books in the evening. The twins were already gone, saying that there was something they needed to do before the following day and Lizzy has been having a cold for a couple of days and she had given up halfway through the studying session. She said she might even skip the game if she thought that staying in bed would help.

'I know what you mean,' Safu agreed, also packing her books. Shion had offered to put the ones they took from the library back, so the girls were alone for the moment. 'The girls in the dormitory were also amazed when I told them that we actually moved the study session, but when I mentioned that we were combining efforts to manage the Transfiguration homework, they understood.'

'I wish people in Gryffindor were as understanding when it came to studying,' Hermione commented with a sigh, getting up, ready to leave. Safu shrugged.

'We were always surprised that you didn't end up in Ravenclaw,' Shion informed her, arriving back empty-handed. He picked up his bag and waited for Safu to be ready. 'Although there are some other people we wonder why they were sorted as they were, you are the weirdest actually,' he added in a casual tone. Hermione noticed that he seemed more relaxed these days. He wasn't jumping at the smallest sound anymore or looking over his shoulder constantly and he smiled more, reminding her more of the brown-haired version of him that she remembered from the fifth year.

'I was quite happy to be sorted into Gryffindor,' she said.

'Was?' Safu asked immediately. She didn't seem hopeful or anything, just genuinely curious about the use of past tense. Hermione grinned.

'I still am, really. All in all, I have no idea how things wound have gone if I had been sorted into Ravenclaw, which, by the way, I thought was the only possibility,' she admitted. For one, she thought, Harry and Ron would never defeat Quirrel and Voldemort would be back a couple of years earlier. However, she wasn't sure if mentioning her friends was a good thing to do.

'Of course,' Safu agreed easily. 'Your silly friends would have died on one of their quests,' she added, surprising Hermione by mentioning them. She laughed. 'Don't look at me like that, I told you what I think already.'

'Yeah, you did,' Hermione muttered and shook her head. 'So are you looking forward to the game tomorrow?' she asked, mainly to change the topic. Safu laughed and said that she was looking forward to seeing the Gryffindor red and gold butts kicked the following day. Pretending to be insulted, Hermione replied that they would surely kick the Ravenclaw blue and bronze butts instead because they were the best. Both of them laughed out loud, drawing curious glances from the students that were passing by on the corridor.

'I think we shouldn't be seen together with Hermione tonight, Safu,' Shion commented with a grin. 'I think people are starting to think that we are betraying our House,' he added and Safu's eyes widened in a theatrical expression. She opened her lips and closed them pouting.

'Damn it, I don't remember any of Nezumi's quotes,' she complained as they reached the Great Hall, where most of the students were already having their dinner. 'Are you going to join us Hermione? To further confuse the others?' she asked. Hermione glanced to see the twins already sitting there. It meant they would all sit at the Slytherin table and that was something Hermione refused to do.

'Not this time,' she said. 'I get indigestion when I'm too close to Malfoy,' she added. She bid her goodbyes and went to the Gryffindor table, where Ron was green with worry.

})i({

Ciel has never been a fan of sports. Actually, that was understatement, especially concerning Quidditch: he hated it. He hated flying on a broom. He hated the idea of willingly putting oneself in risk of being hit by a Bludger or by the bat of the other team's Beater. He thought that anybody who wanted to play Quidditch must have mental problems.

Running, going to the gym – those kinds of things he could understand. He knew that keeping in shape physically was important. But Quidditch? The very thought made him shudder. Even watching the sport was not agreeable, with the draughty platforms and the sweating crowd.

Consequently, when the whole school was trembling with excitement for the game between the Gryffindor House and the Ravenclaws, he was calmly having his breakfast, sitting at the Slytherin table. He wasn't even planning to go, especially since Elizabeth, who insisted that socialising was important, was down with a cold. She had sent him a message, earlier in the morning, saying that she would be staying in bed, sneezing into her pillow.

'I was thinking to go to the game,' Nezumi, sitting next to him, said casually. Both Ciel and Shion looked up at him in surprise. 'Well, whoever gets their asses kicked, I'm going to enjoy that,' he explained. Ciel rolled his eyes.

'I was thinking to skip it,' he said. As though on cue, they both looked at Shion, who blushed at the sudden attention focused on him. Tough luck, Ciel thought, you should have stayed at the Ravenclaw table with Safu and Loony or Luna or whatever-her-name-was.

'Are you going to make me decide if we go?' Shion asked. 'You know I don't really care. I wish this game was in the end of the year and that it kept the attention of everybody longer than until today,' he added. There was, of course, a chance that Michael Corner would not go back to his little investigation after the game, but none of them were too optimistic about that.

'I say we go,' Nezumi repeated stubbornly. Ciel could understand his point of view. It was true that watching Potter or Weasley fall of the broom, or Corner being hit with just about whatever, could be funny. But was it really worth the cold wind and the annoying cheering? Was it really worth being squeezed between other students that were shouting and jumping and generally being a pain?

'I say we don't,' Ciel countered without a second of hesitation. 'Lizzy says we don't as well,' he added, making his brother roll his eyes.

'Well Safu says we go,' Nezumi countered, continuing their childish argument.

'You guys,' Shion sighed. 'Exactly how old are you?' he whined. Ciel knew that he hated taking decisions for more people than just himself, always worrying that it will not be a good decision he would take.

'Sixteen,' they both answered promptly. Ciel could see Nezumi trying to put his most charming and inviting smile on his face. With a sigh, Shion looked back to the Ravenclaw table. Last year he would have been there, with Safu and the others, excited about the game. He looked back at them and Ciel knew that he won. For once, just for once he won over Nezumi.

'I suppose we can keep Lizzy company,' Shion said. Ha, Ciel thought, in your face Nezumi! He of course didn't let his thoughts show, as opposed to his brother, who was obviously disappointed at his antics not working. 'She must be pretty lonely,' Shion added, not looking at either of them. For a moment, Ciel thought that he was fighting a smile. Was he only checking how much Nezumi would follow him? That sly thing, Ciel thought, we taught him too well.

'She is sneezing her brains out,' Nezumi protested, looking at Shion incredulously, but Ciel knew that he would follow, and he knew that Shion knew that too. Shion looked at him with his best pleading look. 'Fine,' he agreed grudgingly. As they left the table, Ciel was sure that he could see Shion biting his lip to stop himself from laughing. Unfortunately for Shion, so did Nezumi, if his narrowing eyes were any indication.

'You should still practice,' Ciel whispered as they made their way towards the Hufflepuff basement. Shion grinned at him brightly.

'I was just testing a theory,' he whispered back. 'Just something you said another day,' he added cheerfully.

'I still hear you,' Nezumi growled from behind them, but he didn't sound angry.