Chapter 76: A Favor
Zoey's eyes were closed and her left hand was gently on top of her pillow, healing. She had missed a detention with Umbridge and had to come back for the final day to complete her week's detention. It sucked but she had to do it. The Emeraude made a small whine in her sleep, brushing her hair away from her face. Even in her sleep her hair annoyed her. It would either tickle her nose or make her face itchy. If she were awake, she would consider tying her bangs up but now she was asleep and had to make due with the unconscious acts. The girl sighed.
The setting was simple. It wasn't in the perfect meadow nor was it in the Hufflepuff Common Room; it was just… there. Zoey had found herself back in dream world with her long lost friend, Cedric Diggory. Both Hufflepuffs wore their robes, Cedric with a toga over his, proudly as they stayed in the white room. Well, that's what they called it. Frankly, they were just there in a place with no background. If they wanted, they could make one but at the moment they decided not to. Backgrounds didn't matter, what mattered was that they could talk privately.
Somewhere deep within Zoey's subconscious, she hoped she didn't talk in her sleep
"Today, we congratulate Zoey Anastasia Emeraude – Black in successfully telling her boyfriend, Frederick Gideon Weasley, her entire past," Cedric said out loud, a humored smile on his face. "Let's give her a round of applause"
He was the only one clapping.
Zoey rolled her eyes at her friend. "It's not that of big a deal," she told him, "How did you even know that?"
"I'm dead. I know everything," Cedric said simply.
"Seriously," Zoey said
"So who are you going to tell next?" Cedric asked, avoiding Zoey's look, "Harry? Echo? Bridgit?"
"Whoa there. Hold on a minute. Tell next? What are you talking about?" Zoey raised a brow at him, stopping dead in her tracks. They were walking aimlessly before. It wasn't like there was anything there to trip them or be in their way.
Cedric looked back at her, hands in his pockets. "You know, who are you going to tell… next? It's pretty obvious what I'm talking about"
"No it isn't," Zoey shook her head, "If it was, I would know what you're talking about"
"Zoey," Cedric began, "You have to tell people. If you don't want to tell the school officials or the adults then tell your friends. I say Harry should be the next one to know, he is your godbrother"
"How'd you know that?" Zoey furrowed her brows.
"I just do," Cedric grinned, "Just… let more people in. They have to know what's been going on"
"I… No," Zoey bit her lip, "Not all of them"
"Then a handful. At least tell Harry," Cedric urged her.
Zoey took a breath and looked around. Everything was white and nothing was there except for her and Cedric. What kind of dream setting was this? It was sort of peaceful, not having anything to interrupt you, but it was also very unnerving… like there was something missing. She closed her eyes and began to think of a place, a nice place to have a talk, somewhere peaceful and calming. When she opened her eyes again, she was under a beach tree near the Black Lake. She looked back at Cedric.
"Why are you so keen on me telling people?" Zoey asked him, "I think it's enough that Fred heard my little sob story, if I tell the rest things would just get depressing," she paused, "You saw Fred. I bet that was one of his weakest moments"
Cedric slowly nodded. "I see," he said, "You don't want to see the others like that"
"Would you?"
"No," Cedric admitted, "But it's for the best"
"For the best? How is that the best for anybody? They're just going to get protective and try to keep me away from my faith. You heard all that, he wants us to run away. I know he doesn't want to run. He wants to fight but he knows I hate the violence," Zoey's voice quivered, "I… I don't want this, Cedric. I want him to just… leave it. I know what I must do. It's simple. Surrender my freedom. If everyone's on my case, that's not going to be easy"
Cedric didn't say anything for a while. He simply stared at Zoey, trying to read her. The only sounds that filled the air were the small crashing of the waves. The wind was strong enough to make the water of the Black Lake move. Zoey decided to watch it.
"It's not simple, Zoey. They love you and they don't want to let you go," Cedric finally spoke.
"If they love me then they should let me go. Isn't that the saying? When you love something you set it free and when it comes back to you it's all yours? Or something like that," she wasn't good with quotes.
Cedric understood what she was trying to say though.
"What are the chances that you're actually going to come back if they did let you go?" Cedric then asked.
"What are you trying to say, Cedric?" Zoey sighed, "What do you want me to see?"
"I want you to see reason. Zoey, you've felt hurt before haven't you?"
Zoey looked at him with wide eyes. "Of course I've felt hurt. I'm human after all"
"Physical hurt. Emotional hurt," Cedric continued, "You know what it feels like?" Zoey nodded. "Not good is it?"
"I'm not a child, Cedric," Zoey said to him. He always made her feel that way. Like she was a child. Sure, it could have been unintentional but it still annoyed the girl. Right now, it was like she was being scolded for picking on a peer. Ha! The thought of Zoey actually bullying someone…. funny.
"Answer the question"
"It's not a good feeling. It's terrible. It stings your flesh and eats you from the inside out. It tugs at your heart but not in a good way. Cedric, it's a terrible feeling to have and I wonder sometimes why we have it but then I'm reminded that it is necessary for us to know that some things just don't go our way. Some times you have to hurt to learn. It's not fair but life isn't fair," Zoey told him, taking a deep breath.
Cedric gave a small smile. "Exactly," he said, "In other words it sucks to feel it"
Zoey slowly nodded.
"And it's terrible to see other people hurting, isn't it?"
"Where are you going with this?" Zoey suddenly felt tired. Like she just wanted to give up on this conversation. Cedric wouldn't let her.
"When you leave. Your friends are going to feel hurt. They'll be destroyed. Hurt times ten," Cedric looked at her in the eyes, "Echo, Bridgit, Jane, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, George, Harry and Fred. They'll all feel hurt"
"I won't see them," Zoey whispered.
"But you'll know that they are hurting"
"There's nothing I can do," Zoey's voice was teary. She brought a hand to cover her eyes. She knew what they'd feel. She would feel the same if they were taken away from her. Heck, they have been. One way or another she and her friends were painfully separated from each other. Whether it was from a fight or an act to make the other jealous, it hurt.
Cedric placed both of his hands on Zoey's shoulders. "Really, Zoey, nothing you can do?"
"There's nothing," Zoey chocked out. She wanted to control her tears but it was a hard thing to do. The feeling, the thought, the idea, it was overwhelming.
"Well, if there's nothing you can do then what about your friends? What can they do?"
This caught Zoey's attention and she slowly brought her hand down to her side, a few tears sliding down her cheek. "They can stay out of it"
"Zoey," Cedric began
"I just don't want them to be in harms way," Zoey offered a smile, "It's for the best."
Cedric let out a small groan and Zoey's smile faltered. "Zoey, stop being nice," Cedric said slowly but with a little edge, "This! This whole sacrificing your freedom, keeping them from knowing the truth because it's the best for them! Be selfish! Just…. Just say what you want. It's not wrong. You've… you've given enough. Learn to take something. Just… just say what you want"
"I want them to be safe," Zoey told him.
"Safe? SAFE? What about you, Zoey? Are you safe? You aren't!"
Zoey winced; Cedric never raised his voice at her. She inched away from him but his grip on her shoulders hardened. She was forced to look at him.
"Tell them, Zoey. Tell them what's happening to you. Tell them you need their help. Tell them what you want," Cedric's voice changed a bit and so did his entire appearance. Zoey's eyes widened when Fred replaced Cedric, "Let us help you"
In a blink of an eye, Cedric returned.
Zoey bit her lip and looked down at her feet. She felt the grip on her shoulders loosen and she took a step back. She wasn't afraid of him, no, just cautious.
"Is it really for their best or yours, Zoey? They don't benefit anything and you don't either. They loose you and you loose your freedom and your friends. Whose best are you talking about?" Cedric's voice returned to normal.
A silence hung in the air. Neither of the two spoke. All that was heard was Cedric's breathing and Zoey's movements in trying to wipe her tears away. It was like a dream and a nightmare mashed up together. Zoey was confused. She didn't know what to think, what to believe. Whose best interest was she talking about? Why was she thinking this way? Was it really for the best or did she just want to be strong? Was this her pathetic attempt to prove her worth? Something to show that she isn't just some fragile little girl; she was someone who could handle her own problems? Was it really that or was there something more? Something different? Or was it… something else?
"A…Are you using me, Cedric?" Zoey spoke, her voice still quiet, "Are you using me for your own little repentance?"
Cedric took a step back in shock. "I don't know what you're talking about"
"I think you do," Zoey now looked at him, "You… you're feeling guilty, aren't you? You… you left me… your friends…your family and Cho behind when you died. You don't want me to do the same. You're using me to try to… to…"
"And so what if I am?" Cedric interrupted her.
"Why?" Zoey's voice was shaky.
"Because I don't want you to feel the same way I did when I left," Cedric said, "I…my departure… I couldn't prevent it but yours… you can still do something about it"
Zoey felt her tears return, they were slowly streaming down her face. She looked at Cedric as her breathing became shallow.
"I can't –"
"Yes you can, Zoey! You can do something!" Cedric pinched the bridge of his nose, "Just… think about it okay. I'm trying to keep you away from feeling all the guilt. It's not something you'd look forward to feeling the rest of your life"
"Why?" Zoey asked. She wasn't asking why she wouldn't want to feel the guilt. She was asking why Cedric was preventing her from feeling it. "You… you can be too nice at times Cedric. This… this thing you're doing for me… it's not for my own good is it?"
"Yes and no," Cedric answered truthfully, "I'm doing this for your sake and also everyone else's. I know what it feels like to be away from the people I love. To bear the torture of knowing what they're going through without the chance to help. To leave their side, knowing that you are what they needed the most. I don't want you to go through that and neither would I want your friends to go through that also."
Zoey shook her head. "There's still more to that," she told him, "Where's your selfish reason behind all this?"
"I'm also doing this for the sake of my own guilt," Cedric took a breath, "This is my pathetic way of trying to make up for what I've left behind. I see me in you Zoey. I left everyone who needed me there and you're going to leave them. If I stop you… I'll finally feel… clean…pure. I just want to stop you because no one was there to stop me"
"It wasn't your fault you died. You couldn't have prevented this"
"Exactly but you can, Zoey. Live the life that I could have had. I just want you to be happy. I don't want you to leave anyone"
"Like how you left Cho?" Zoey placed a hand on his shoulder.
"All she does is cry nowadays. I didn't mean to cause her so much pain"
"You regret it. Leaving her," Zoey told him.
"Anyone would"
"Even me?"
"Even you," Cedric sighed, "There isn't a day where I wish I was by her side. Protecting her"
"But if you were by her side, she wouldn't need protection"
Cedric took a deep breath and gave Zoey a one – armed hug. Zoey was slightly surprised by the action. Her eyes suddenly widened when she saw the Black Lake begin to disappear. The white background was replacing it once more. She looked up at Cedric. He was fading as well.
"Just tell Harry okay? If you don't want to tell everyone, tell him at least. He needs to know," his voice was becoming a bit choppy.
"But –"
"And give Cho a hug for me, will ya?"
"Ced –"
"And don't forget to take your pills!"
Zoey was woken up with a slightly strong shake on her shoulder. Her eyes snapped wide open and she saw Jane looking down at her, worry written all over her face. Zoey slowly got up and looked down at her pillow. It was wet. She placed a hand on her cheek and noted it was slightly moist. She looked at Jane. The girl was fully dressed in her Hufflepuff robes.
"Are you alright?" Jane asked, "You were crying"
"What time is it?" Zoey looked around, it was only she and Jane in the room.
"Halfway through breakfast –"
"I've got to go," Zoey abruptly got off of her bed and snatched her uniform from the top of her suitcase. She quickly entered the bathroom and after about a minute or two, she exited fully clothed and just in the process of tying her hair in a sloppy bun. She picked up her glasses and swiftly placed her shoes on, not caring that she didn't fix her legwarmers to cover part of the shoe. She needed to get out of the Hufflepuff Basement and into the Great Hall, ASAP.
Jane was watching Zoey move with incredible speed in awe. She saw Zoey give the room a quick scan before waving her farewell and leaving. The girl was confused.
Zoey ran as fast her as newly awakened feet could take her. She rushed out the door and out to the halls, avoiding everyone and everything that came in her way. She was going fast, faster than she had ever imagined going. There was something she needed to do. It wasn't a promise, more like a favor. She reached the Great Hall in time.
Everyone was in their seats, eating, some were just standing up, ready to get their things for the day. Zoey's eyes quickly scanned the hall before landing at the Ravenclaw table just in time to see a girl with long black hair standing up from her seat. Zoey took a deep breath and made a run towards her.
The students who saw Zoey enter, watched her with confusion. Why was she running around so early in the morning? Cho, who had just stood up to head back to the Ravenclaw Tower, took a step back when she saw the Emeraude make her way towards her.
"Cho!" Zoey exclaimed, throwing her arms around the slightly scared Ravenclaw.
Cho knew who Zoey was, she had seen her hang out with Cedric, she just wasn't really well acquainted with the girl. The Ravenclaw slowly brought her hand up and patted her on the shoulder, signaling her to let go.
"Cedric sends his love," Zoey said in a soft whisper.
That did it.
Cho's eyes widened and quickly hugged Zoey in return. Silent tears flowing down her face.
Zoey stood on a high place. She didn't really know how to describe it. Maybe it was like a small mountain or just land a bit above the water all she knew was that this piece of earth was several feet above the Black Lake, perfect for jumping off from. It was a normal day and Zoey found herself wearing a simple fading shirt and shorts that reached her mid – thigh. Her hair was up in a ponytail and her glasses were being kept by Fred, who was sitting under a beach tree near the Black Lake with George. Echo was standing right beside Zoey.
She, Zoey, had realized that throughout her seventeen years of living she was still afraid of swimming. She couldn't swim. She knew that she could float but she never dared to move. Echo wasn't a fan of swimming either. Today, the Emeraude decided, was the day the two friends faced their fears. Zoey looked down. The water looked calm enough. If worse comes to worst, the Giant Squid could save them…. Right?
"There are merpeople down there. Don't they drag you down and tear you limb from limb?" Echo hesitantly threw a look at George.
"No point asking Mr. Boyfriend for help. He's way out there," Zoey made a gesture towards the twin, "The merpeople are in the deeper part of the lake. I'm sure they can't get to us."
Echo clutched her oversized white blouse that reached her mid-thighs, and shorts underneath them. "How can you be sure of that? They can swim fast."
"If we don't bother them then they won't bother us," Zoey placed her hands on her hips. "I think," she muttered the after thought and looked back in the lake. There weren't any merpeople swimming around.
"We jump on three?" Echo suggested.
Zoey grinned and took hold of her friend's hand, just incase the girl bailed, and nodded. "Nice to see you finally came around"
"One," Echo began
"Two," Zoey continued
"THREE," and they both jumped into the lake, a cold rush of water passing them by.
Zoey opened her eyes under water and squinted them. It was dark and murky. Hard to see anything. She turned her head and saw Echo looking around. The girl was probably looking for any signs of merpeople. When the water began to sting her eyes, Echo surfaced. Zoey remained under water and looked around. There was hardly anything to see, probably because she wasn't that far deep. She looked up and saw Echo's legs kicking so that the girl would stay above water. Zoey blew out bubbles out of her nose. She did not dare open her mouth. That would be disgusting. When the need for air became too much, Zoey surfaced as well.
The rush of water passed by her once more and she took a deep breath of air the moment her head left the water. She brought her hand up to brush her bangs away and to wipe her face.
"That wasn't so bad, now was it?" Echo smiled.
Zoey raised a brow at her friend before splashing her. "You're the one who was talking about merpeople beheading you or something!" she then laughed.
"They would've caught us by now, wouldn't they?"
"Like I said, if we don't bother them they won't bother us," Zoey paused, "Okay… we're floating. Any ideas on how to… uhm… swim back to shore?"
"Haven't really thought about that. How about paddling ourselves to shore?" said Echo. It was a moment before she realized something and spoke once more, "It would take a while and tire us"
Zoey nodded her head and looked around. They faced their fears and the next problem was doing something they had no knowledge of doing. Neither of them had their wands either. The Emeraude looked towards the beach tree and saw Fred and George leaning leisurely against it. Probably planning stuff for their next prank or merchandise for their joke shop.
"Do you think we could pull off damsel in distress?" she looked over to the Ravenclaw.
Echo smiled mischievously, "I don't see why we couldn't," and she stuck her tongue out.
"Alrighty then," Zoey grinned. "Take a deep breath," she told Echo before dunking her head under the water.
"HELP!" Zoey called out before dunking her head under the water as well.
Echo pretended to act as if something pulled at her leg, and shot down to the water before resurfacing and flailing her arms near the water. Zoey did the same. She pretended to struggle against the force tugging at her and tried to grab at something to hold her above the water.
One thing led to another and the twins had jumped into the water to save them. In the end, Zoey and Echo found themselves resting against the Beach Tree, shivering. The twins were standing in front of them, drenched, with glares in their eyes.
"It was just a harmless prank," Zoey began, tucking her legs under her as she tried to squeeze the remaining water out of her hair.
"Don't you glare at me, George Fabian Weasley," Echo spoke firmly to George, "Otherwise, someone could've really grabbed at our ankles and pulled us to the depths and never resurface"
George's glare hardened. "That wasn't funny," he told her, "Ever heard of the Boy who Cried Wolf?"
"I have," Zoey looked at him, "Didn't think you would have heard about it. It's a muggle book"
"Dad brought it home one time when we were kids. Moral of the story if you really had something tugging at your leg, we wouldn't have saved you cause we would have thought you were lying," Fred turned to Zoey, "You nearly gave us a heart failure!"
"We are terribly sorry for acting like damsels in distress and didn't think through our plan to overcome our fears," Echo shot at Fred.
"Over come your fears?" George's eyes widened, "Isn't the fear of water usually come with the idea of drowning in it?"
"Why pretend to drown?" Fred rolled his eyes, "Why not just swim back and play damsel in distress some other way?"
Zoey pushed her hair away. "Because, Fred, George, we do not know how to swim therefore we needed to get your attention to save us," she told them.
"And you couldn't have done that… I don't know… By asking?" Fred raised a brow, the glare gone but slight annoyance replaced it.
"We knew we would have an immediate response," Echo stuck her tongue out.
"Echo, if you guys just asked us for help we would have had an immediate response anyway," George said.
"Well, yes but you would have made fun of us before you decided to save us. If we were near dying you wouldn't joke around and humiliate us for our lack of swimming knowledge," Zoey pointed out.
"Why aren't you in Ravenclaw, Zoey? We could deal with a brain like yours," Echo smiled.
"No more 'Zwei'?" Zoey grinned, "I'm too nice for Ravenclaw. I wouldn't be able to handle an argument without letting the other person win or what not"
"Hey, back to the original topic," Came Fred's voice.
Zoey looked back at him. "Can't you two just say you forgive us and we should never to that sort of thing again unless you're in on it?" Zoey asked, "I mean… you two pull pranks all the time. We just wanted to see if we were any good at it"
"Turns out you only get angry," said Echo
"You two aren't going to apologize for nearly giving us a heart failure, are you?" George then asked, crouching down in front of them, Fred followed. They were tired and they were wet. The weight of their clothes weren't helping either.
"You don't apologize when you pull pranks," Echo pointed out.
The twins were silent for a moment.
"Point proven," they said in unison.
"Now that that's settled," Zoey said with a clap of her hands, "I want to change out of these wet clothes. The Black Lake is beautiful but I rather not have its waters on me. I feel dirty"
"Same here," Echo stood up and squeezed her hair for any water. Zoey followed. The two girls then waved a farewell to the twins before making their way to the castle. The two had their fun; they finished their goal and were scolded by two people who loved to be anything but serious. Their day was productive to say the least.
Zoey stood by Fred with an expression that read disgust mixed with confusion together with a look that said 'I want to know but I also don't want to know' all packed up together and made her current expression. Fred just looked at her sheepishly. They were standing with a few of the students who agreed to be Harry's students and were all waiting for Harry to show them the new place he found where he could teach them DADA. For the meantime, Harry was walking back and forth in front of a wall.
"So you mean to say that you got the desired temperature needed for the Fever Fudge but now it also gives you these pus-filled boils?" Zoey wrinkled her nose at the thought.
"Yep," Fred popped the 'p', "Very annoying ones too."
"I don't see any boils," Zoey told him.
"You wouldn't. They're not in a place where you'd display in public," Fred made a face, "And it makes sitting on a broom a pain in the –"
"Don't tell me," Zoey held her hands up, "Please. Save me the thought that would haunt me in my dreams"
Fred laughed. Zoey stuck her tongue out at him and turned towards Echo.
"What is your opinion that Twin Number one and Number two are using themselves as test subjects?" She whispered to her friend.
"I think it's stupid. Thank you for asking!" Echo smiled.
"It is not stupid!" George's voice came
"At least we aren't creating any harm towards anyone else," Fred added.
Zoey shook her head at them. "But… your ch – chair area is… err… You know," she made a face, "I don't wait to say it"
"Their rump is covered in boils. Pus-filled, to be exact," said Echo, "I wonder what it's like to sit on a very comfortable couch."
"They would probably rupture," Zoey shuddered, "Just. No. Please."
At that moment, a door appeared before them and everyone was in awe. Harry pushed it open and let everyone enter after him. Zoey took a look around and she was extremely sure this was the perfect place to be taught in. There were bookshelves filled with books with DADA spells, dozens of devices used by Aurors and more, numerous couches and cushions around and it was just… Wow.
Soon, there was a knock on the door and more people entered. When everyone was gathered, some even taking the time to ask what certain things were, Harry began to talk. He was just about to say something when Hermione interrupted him.
"I think we ought to elect a leader," she said.
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Echo whispered to Zoey.
Zoey slowly nodded and soon Cho spoke up. "Harry's leader!" she said as she looked at Hermione like 'duh'.
"Well, yes but… uhm… Let's make it a formal voting, yes? Those who want Harry to be leader, please raise your hand," Hermione said.
Everyone raised their hand and Harry turned a little red in the cheeks. He thanks them and was just about to continue what he was going to say when Hermione interrupted him once more.
"We should promote the feeling of team spirit and unity, don't you think?" Hermione said brightly, "We should have a name. You know, this group we have"
"She has a point," Zoey whispered to Echo.
"Point taken"
Several people began to say their suggestions, some even sounded a bit silly (Fred) but after some time, they settled with the "D.A" or also known as Dumbledore's Army. When the decision was made, Harry was finally able to say what he wanted. He told them that their first lesson was going to be the simple disarming charm "Expelliarmus" though very easy, it saved his life numerous times. Obviously, Zacharias wasn't so thrilled in doing the spell but it turns out he wasn't even very good at it. Everyone split into pairs.
Zoey was with Echo.
"Expelliarmus," Zoey exclaimed and pointed her wand at Echo. Nothing happened.
"Maybe you're flourishing your wand too much?" Echo suggested.
"Flourishing?" Zoey tilted her head to the side.
"How about give me a shot?" Echo asked.
"Go ahead," said Zoey
"Expelliarmus," exclaimed Echo. Zoey's wand shot out from her hand.
Zoey watched as her wand made a small sound as it landed on the ground several feet away from her. She shot Echo a look that said 'What the? That's not fair!' before laughing a bit and walking towards where her wand landed. Zoey carefully bent down and picked up her wand and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw another wand fall beside her. It was Zacharias. He was grumbling incoherent words when he picked up his wand before walking over to Bridgit, who was laughing. Some paring. Zoey blinked at the two and watched them. Zacharias opened his mouth to disarm Bridgit but before any words could leave his mouth, his wand was shot out of his hand once more. Bridgit didn't even more a muscle.
Poor boy, Zoey thought as Zacharias once again walked away to retrieve his wand. Zoey squinted her eyes and saw from a distance, Fred and George taking turns pointing their wand at Zacharias' back. The Emeraude rolled her eyes before walking back to Echo.
"I wish I could join the twins," said Echo.
"Don't," Zoey shook her head, "The poor bloke already had Bridgit and the two of them bullying him"
"Yeah, but he's still a git. I want to strangle him"
"Make peace not war," Zoey said, "Expelliarmus!"
Echo's wand flew out of her hand.
"You did it!" Echo said before going to retrieve her wand.
"I did it," Zoey smiled.
Time passed and soon October came and went in a blink of an eye. The cold November air soon rushed in and Quidditch Practices were becoming more and more frequent. The D.A meetings were canceled because the captains of each team wanted to devote their time to practice. No one minded though, ever since Hermione's spectacular idea and brilliant magic work each member of the D.A were given a fake Galleon that would tell them when the next meeting would be.
Hermione was absolutely brilliant, being able to perform magic from NEWT level.
Zoey, as were the rest of the DA, were working hard to perform each spell Harry had given them and frankly, everyone was doing well. Neville was finally able to do the Disarming Charm perfectly, Colin was able to master the Impediment jinx and Parvati Patil was able to perform a very good Reductor Curse that turned a table into ash within a second. Everyone was doing well.
Each and every house was training hard for the Quidditch season. Gryffindor had practically booked the Quidditch pitch for the entire week but the other houses still had their time to practice. Zoey remembered the first time she went to meet the rest of the team. She was one of the three newbies of the team. It was scary to her. Sure, she saw how Fred, Echo, Bridgit and George trained but it was different. It was her turn. She was there in the air with the Beaters Bat in her hand, flying around and protecting her teammates. It was scary but thrilling.
Today was the day Gryffindor and Slytherin went against each other on the Quidditch Pitch. Their games were the most epic of them all for the two of them couldn't be more aggressive. Both wanted to win, everyone wanted to win, and they would do anything to get their points and the snitch. Slytherin would do everything in their willpower to win, even harm those they were against, and Gryffindor worked with pure skill and talent.
It was like watching Muggle Soccer.
The Quaffle going from Chaser to Chaser and the Bludger zooming around, trying to throw people off and with the Snitch. Well, you know how it goes.
Zoey looked up from her breakfast, she was now sitting with the Ravenclaws, and looked curiously at Luna Lovegood who was chatting with the Golden Trio. She wore a Lion's head on top of hers.
It was interesting.
"I see Luna is on team Gryffindor," Zoey said to Echo as she watched Bridgit enter the Great Hall and made a beeline towards Luna, talking to her.
"I suppose she is," said Echo
"Very interesting," Zoey then looked over to the Slytherin table. She squinted at their robes. Several of them had crown shaped badges on their chests.
WEASLEY
IS OUR KING
It read.
"I didn't know the Slytherins were pro – Weasley, did you?" Zoey asked Echo.
"I think they're pro – shallow. Picking on Ron, and the twins and Ginny, I suppose. They're just four, compared to the lot of them. They don't do well alone, Slytherins. Imprudent cowards, they are," Echo glared at the table.
Zoey blinked at her friend before looking back at the Slytherin table. "Interesting perspective," she then looked at the Gryffindor table, "We should probably save our seats in the Quidditch pitch right now"
"We should," Echo then stood up from the table, Zoey followed.
Zoey pushed her glasses up further up her nose before tapping them with her wand. It's been ages since she watched a Quidditch game, one from school, and she wanted to catch every detail. The crowd's cheers were loud but when she concentrated hard enough, she could hear singing. Why would someone be singing in a Quidditch game? Before the girl could wonder further into the thought, the players from both teams came and entered the Quidditch pitch.
"Captain's, shake hands," Madam Hooch said and Zoey could guess that the Slytherin's Captain was trying to crush Angelina's hand. She did not wince. "Mount your broom," came the next order.
The whistle was then blown and the balls released.
The game began.
The Quaffle was thrown into the air and Slytherin had gained the ball. Montague, playing along with Warrington, passed the Quaffle while Angelina and Katie were chasing after them. Alicia was gaining and was about to steal the ball from Montague when he passed it to Warrington. He threw the ball into the middle hoop and Ron missed it by an inch.
"10 points to Slytherin," Lee said, his energy quite low as he said so.
The Slytherins cheered on the stand, and as the game was going on...they began to sing a song
"Weasley cannot save a thing,
He cannot block a single ring,
That's why Slytherins all sing:
Weasley is our King."
The Gryffindors on the stands booed at the Slytherins, while they continued to sing. The game went on, and this time the Quaffle was in the hands of the Gryffindor team.
"Alicia Spinnet has the ball, passing it along to Katie Bell," Lee announced, and he was getting even more hyped up as time passed. "Katie passes it to Angelina Johnson, and she scores! Angelina Johnson scores! 10 points to Gryffindor!" He shouted, and all the other houses cheered.
"Weasley was born in a bin
He always lets the Quaffle in
That's why Slytherins all sing:
Weasley is our King."
The Slytherins began to sing again, but no one paid them mind. Ron was getting a tad but irritated, despite the nervousness he was feeling, and so were Fred and George, but they did their best to ignore it. Nothing good came out of lashing out. They needed to focus on the game. If they won, no, when they won the Slytherins would feel rather stupid for trying to throw them off with the insulting song.
Crabbe and Goyle, being the annoying arses that they were, hit the Bludger and sent it towards Katie's direction. She missed the blow by a centimeter and glared at the two beaters.
The Slytherins were playing dirty, what else is new?
The game dragged on and Harry had finally spotted the snitch. He made a dash for it, but he also had an irritating Malfoy on his tail.
"Give it up, Potter!" Malfoy shouted, and Harry just dashed forward. Fred and George were hitting the Bludgers in the other direction, protecting Harry and giving him a gateway to safely catch the snitch.
Slytherin scored another goal, even if Gryffindor was in the lead, and the song continued.
"Weasley is our King,
Weasley is our King,
Weasley will make sure we win
Weasley is our King."
When the Slytherin's sang the last line, Crabbe had sent a Bludger towards Harry and the ball of fury had hit the poor boy right at the square of his back lurching him forward. It hurt Harry but it was also to his benefit for when he was lurched forward, he was able to grab the snitch.
Gryffindor had won.
A Slytherin idiot had helped them win.
This little fact irked Malfoy and the whole Slytherin team, and population, to a degree.
The Gryffindor team, and everyone else who was not a Slytherin, rejoiced and flew back to the ground. Angelina was jumping with joy, also sending glares towards Crabbe, telling Harry that they won. Harry grinned at his team but all the joy seemed to wash away when Malfoy snorted.
"This can't be good," Zoey muttered from her place in the audience. She tapped her glasses once more and zoomed into the Gryffindor Team who were rejoicing for their victory.
"Nothing's ever good with a Slytherin," said Echo.
Zoey nodded in agreement and zoomed in further. She saw that Malfoy was saying something to them, something very offensive. Figures, the boy was a sore loser. Zoey then saw Ron slowly dismount his broom and headed to the changing room. She felt a small pang in her heart. Whatever Malfoy said had hurt the boy. She focused her attention back at the rest of the team.
Harry had ignored Malfoy and turned to celebrate with his friends. Zoey saw Katie and Alicia give Harry a hug while Malfoy continued to say things that she could not hear. She then saw Angelina give Malfoy a disgusted look as Harry moved towards Fred and George. The twins shook his hands.
"I have a foreboding feeling. Malfoy hasn't left the pitch yet," came Echo's voice.
"He hasn't," whispered Zoey
Malfoy said something else and Fred and George stiffened before looking over to Malfoy, glares in their eyes. Zoey then saw Angelina take hold of Fred's arm, telling him something. What was going on? Malfoy had said another thing and Harry took hold of George while Alicia and Katie were holding onto Fred as well. Zoey felt panic rise within her.
Zoey saw that Malfoy was laughing now. Harry was looking towards Madam Hooch who was scolding the Slytherin Beaters. Malfoy then said his final sore loser line and Zoey's eyes widened. Harry had let go of George and the both of them leaped towards Malfoy, tackling him to the ground.
"That slimy git, I'll have his head in the next meeting," Echo snarled
Zoey didn't reply, she just watched George and Harry begin to beat up Malfoy.
"Harry! HARRY! GEORGE! NO!"
Zoey actually heard the girls screaming at the two as they continued to try to restrain Fred from joining them. Zoey winced when Madam Hooch came along and waved her wand at them, separating the three. Madam Hooch had yelled something at the two before George and Harry marched away from the pitch. Zoey tapped her glasses once more. She did not want to see this.
"BANNED?" Zoey exclaimed with wide eyes as she sat with Fred under the Beach Tree near the Black Lake. The ground beneath them was covered with snow and the lake looked a little frosted. Bridgit was inside, probably playing pranks, while George and Echo disappeared, he was probably telling her the same thing Fred had told Zoey. Fred nodded solemnly, confirming Zoey's exclamation.
Zoey blinked her eyes in disbelief. "For… for how long?" she asked, her brows knitted together.
"Hmm… well… let's see. There's now, the next game, the game after that… how many left are there?" Fred was moving his fingers as if her were counting the days, "Oh, wait. No… no… This is a Life-time ban"
"Life-time," Zoey breathed out, "But why? You didn't do anything wrong!"
"It's not my fault I didn't do anything," Fred grumbled, "If I wasn't held back I would have punched Malfoy right in the kisser"
"The Kisser?" Zoey asked
"The Kisser," Fred confirmed.
Zoey nodded her head and bit her lip. She didn't know what to say. She wasn't really good in comforting. She was nervous. Fred was in a rather bad mood and she didn't know what to do. She sneaked a glance at him and saw that he was looking up at one of the towers. The Gryffindor Tower. One of its windows was open. Fred then brought his hands to the ground and began to make a snowball.
"Tell me, Zoe," Fred began as he was shaping the ball, "Are any of your Beaters good?"
"What do you mean?" Zoey looked at him oddly.
"Gryffindor is going against Hufflepuff next. With me, George and Harry gone I was just wondering if we stood against your players. So, any of them good?" Fred looked at her with a grin.
"The Beaters? Are any of them good? As in, could they go against you and George?" Zoey asked, squinting at Fred as he nodded his head, "Well, I guess… yeah, maybe"
"Really?" Fred's brows rose, "So if me and George were on the team, would they be a challenge"
Would you hit your girlfriend? "Probably," Zoey smiled at him.
"I see," Fred nodded slowly, tossing the snowball in his hands a bit before adding more snow, "Do I know them?"
"Probably," Zoey repeated as her smile widened, "I don't know who you know"
"Well, what are their names?" Fred asked.
"There's –" but Zoey was interrupted by George's voice. She and Fred turned to see Echo and George standing not to far from them, a snowball in George's hand. Zoey blinked.
"Hey you two!" George called, "Ickle Ronniekins is up in the Gryffindor Common Room all cooped up. Why don't we send him a little present from the outside?"
Fred grinned at his twin's suggestion and got up with the snowball ready in his hands. He quickly trudged towards his brother, a familiar mischievous twinkle in his eye. Zoey gave a sigh and got up as well, patting the snow of her clothes and moved to stand beside Echo, watching as Fred and George began to throw the snowballs at the open window. At one point, Ron stuck his head out and got hit in the face.
"You know, you're making him feel miserable, and this is not the way to cheer him up," Echo crossed her arms over her chest.
Fred and George continued to throw snowballs.
"I don't think they heard you," Zoey gave a small laugh before bending down and making a snowball for herself. "Have you ever played?"
"No, I haven't since I was a child," said Echo.
Before the Veela knew it, a cold force met her face. She wiped the snow away from her face and glared at Zoey who was busy laughing.
"You're still a child, Echo," Zoey said with glee before running away, seeing Echo bend down and collect snow for herself.
"I am not!" exclaimed Echo as she chucked the ball at Zoey, hitting her smack at the back of her head. Zoey shook the snow off and continued to laugh, quickly bending down, making a snowball and throwing it at Echo, it hit Fred. One thing led to another and soon they were all involved in a snowball fight.
The day ended with the four teens covered with snow, shivering and laughing.
December came quicker than a speeding bullet and soon more snow had covered the Hogwarts' grounds. Homework pilled up and the Christmas feel was in the air. It made it harder for the students to concentrate yet they were still given more homework. Sometimes, teachers were just unforgiving. It was like they were never students before and if they were, they probably enjoyed all the homework. D.A meetings were becoming more enjoyable for everyone but the news that it would have to stop over the holidays saddened them.
Harry, who told this to Zoey, even said that it, the D.A, was the last thing that was worth looking forward to. He even said that he didn't want to spend Christmas in Hogwarts anymore. Zoey patted his back sympathetically. Majority of the students were coming home for Christmas. Hermione was going skiing with her parents and Zoey was going to spend her first, to her memory, Christmas with her father back at the Noble House of Black. Ron and the Weasleys, together with Echo of course, were heading back to the Burrow and much to Harry's relief so was he. All seemed well.
It was now the day after the last D.A meeting and the day Zoey was going to leave Hogwarts for the Holiday and return to her "house". Nothing much happened during the last D.A meeting, harry had just let everyone review the spells they've learned so far. It was no use in learning a new spell if they were all going to be separated for a vast amount of time. Well, Zoey thought nothing much happened. Apparently, Harry had an important milestone in his life after the meeting.
"My little godbro is finally growing up," Zoey feigned a sob as she brought her handkerchief to her eyes. She was sitting on her suitcase with Harry and Bridgit standing in front of her.
"It's not that big a deal, Zee, it was just a first kiss, right, Harry?" Bridgit said, and Harry's cheeks darkened. Bridgit laughed at Harry's obvious embarrassment.
"But still!" Zoey pounded her hanky on her leg, "He's so young and to get his first kiss under mistletoe as well!"
"Young?" Harry tried to turn down his blush, "When did you get your first kiss?"
Zoey waved her hand in the air. "It's not a big a deal. It wasn't as cute as yours," she told him.
"Like I'll believe that," Harry scoffed.
"She got it at sixteen for sure," Bridgit answered, and laughed at now Zoey's darkening cheeks.
"No, that was the first official kiss," Zoey said, covering her face, "I got my first brush of lips in my fifth year"
"Official kiss? Brush of lips?" Harry laughed, "Are you ten or something?"
"It matters!" Zoey exclaimed.
"Still fifteen just like Harry!" Bridgit exclaimed. "And she scolds you…" she added, sharing a high five with Harry as well.
Zoey rolled her eyes. "I wasn't scolding him," she muttered.
"Sure you weren't, Mum," Harry whispered, making Bridgit laugh and Zoey whack his head lightly. "Sorry"
"If I must play the 'mum role' then I would have to go with you and Cho on your first date," Zoey told him, sticking her nose in the air.
"I feel so sorry for you, Harry," Bridgit said, patting his back. "But I'd help if you like," she then said, and winked at Harry. Harry suddenly remembered Bridgit's 'persuasive skills'.
"Please don't, Zoey, or else I'll have to tail your dates with Fred and take pictures," Harry suddenly said, shocking Zoey.
Zoey's shock soon dissolved and was replaced with nonchalance. "You want to be our little paparazzi? Fine. I would love to see pictures of our dates. You know for memory and for snogging record," she said to him, "I want a picture for every kiss we have and every time we snuggled into each other's arms and I want you to write down all the mushy things we say to each other" Zoey began to bat her lashes and make kissy faces. "If you're willing to do that, I mean"
Bridgit suddenly whispered into Harry's ear and she smirked. Zoey was suspicious what Bridgit had said, but Harry spoke soon enough.
"Sure I'll do all that, but when you do come on Cho and I's first date you'd have to do the same for us, and more even if we do go in to a broom closet you have to record every sound that comes out."
"Hmm? Sure why not?" Zoey shrugged, "Counted that you'd do the same for me and Fred and you know how… dominant he is"
"Oh so Fred is the dominant one? I always thought that it would be you… hmm… gotta give him props," Harry continued still pushing the subject.
Zoey snorted a bit and wrinkled her nose. "Garsh, Harry. How do you even know these things?"
"George," Harry answered, then pointed a thumb to Bridgit. "And Bridgit"
"Hey!" Bridgit said, suddenly speaking.
"Uhuh," Zoey sent Bridgit a look. Sure, George she would understand. Heck, she would understand that both he and Fred actually talk about that stuff but with Harry? That's something different. Bridgit, who seemed to be naïve on the subject actually joining in…
"I swear I never told him anything!" Bridgit said, and Harry raised his shoulder at her. "I only told him what Natalie said in the letter," Bridgit added.
"Lies!" Zoey exclaimed, "He heard what she said, the entire school heard what she said what you did was actually explain what she meant"
"Okay, yes I did, but he's fifteen he's supposed to know these things!" Bridgit answered, now hiding behind Harry, who was taller than her by a few inches, afraid of Zoey's wrath.
"Come on, Prince Harry, save me from the wrath of the mean witch," Bridgit added, still hiding.
"Prince Harry?" Harry asked, facing her.
"Yes, Prince Harry… since your name is Harry and you're very popular in our world like the third Prince of England," Bridgit answered.
"Going back to the original topic," Zoey clapped her hands to gain their attention, "When did you learn about those kinds of stuff, Bridgit?"
"Uhm… m – me?" Bridgit stumbled, now coming out from behind Harry.
"Yeah, you," Zoey said, "I mean… Harry learned from you and the twins. I had to learn it without a choice seeing as Aunt Maria talks about it a lot. Much to the annoyance of Dad and discomfort of Uncle Moony," she paused, "Also I have male housemates. Just because they're Hufflepuffs doesn't mean they're entirely innocent"
"Well, it was the opposite for me, I had to give some of my housemates the talk when I was fifteen," Bridgit whispered, but sadly Zoey and Harry both heard it.
"But aren't you a Ravenclaw?" Harry asked, "Surely they must know that"
"Uhm… we're smart, yes, but academically smart, Harry," Bridgit answered, thankful for the topic change.
Harry slowly nodded his head. Suddenly, there was a sound of a door opening and Professor Sprout began to beckon Zoey over. Zoey waved her hand at her Professor before standing up from her suitcase and taking hold of it.
"Well, I'm of to go to dad's now," she told her friends, "First Christmas with him. I'm sort of nervous"
"Don't be. We'll meet up with you before breaks ends anyway," Bridgit said, patting her friend's shoulder.
Zoey gave her a smile before bringing Harry into a hug. She messed up his hair before waving at them and entering the office. She was going back to 12 Grimmauld Place without the knowledge of her friends coming soon after.
"OUT!"
Zoey heard her father roar, waking her up from her slumber. The groggy Emeraude looked around her surroundings and rubbed her eyes. It was still nighttime, what was her dad shouting about? She went back to her pillow, closing her eyes until she heard a couple more shouts after about a minute or two had passed. Zoey shot back up and quickly wore her glasses, throwing her legs of her bed and grabbing her night robe. She simply placed it on top of her pajamas before swiftly leaving her room and making her way downstairs. She could still hear shouting. Zoey quickly made her way to the source of the voices.
"Easy for you to say, stuck here!" she heard Fred bellow, "I don't see you risking your neck!"
Zoey stopped in her tracks, eyes wide. What was Fred doing here? Why was he shouting? Who else was down there? Why were they all shouting? What was happening? Before Zoey could advance, she saw a couple of Butterbeers float passed her. She eyed them curiously before following them. Her dad probably summoned them for their unexpected guests.
The Emeraude entered the room and was surprised to see the Weasleys and Harry sitting down on the chairs, all looking angry, confused, sad or unsure. Zoey licked her lips and looked to her dad.
"What happened?" she mouthed to him, no one besides Sirius had took notice of her presence yet.
Sirius slowly shook his head, as if to say later.
Zoey accepted his reply and moved away from the rest, sinking into a dark corner, watching everything unfold She rather them not see her first.
Suddenly, there was a burst of flame followed by a letter and a golden feather. Sirius picked it up and gave it to George. The boy read it out loud.
"Dad is still alive. I'm setting out for St. Mungo's now. Stay where you are. I will send news as soon as I can. Mum"
"Still alive…" George said slowly, looking around, "but that makes it sound…"
Zoey watched as Ron simply stared at the parchment while Fred took it from George and read it for himself. Time passed and soon Fred and George slipped into a doze, Ginny curled up like a cat and stared into the fire, Ron sat with his head in his hands, making it hard to tell if he was asleep or not while Harry stayed away, sneaking looks at Sirius. Zoey took this time to come out.
"Zo –" Harry began but stopped when Zoey placed her finger to her lips, telling him to be quiet. Ginny didn't hear Harry nor did Ron or the sleeping twins.
"Hey, dad?" Zoey began placing a hand on Sirius' shoulder, "Mind if I do Mr. Weasley a little favor?"
"What favor?" Sirius asked before his eyes widened with realization, "No, I won't let you do that"
"Why not? It's just one little feather"
"Feather?" Harry then joined in, "You're going to give Mr. Weasley part of your soul?"
Zoey nodded. "If it would help, then yes"
"I'm not going to let you do that," Sirius said, "What if you end up giving more than you intend to?"
"If that happens then I'm giving him what he needs," Zoey said seriously.
"I forbid it," Sirius folded his arms across his chest.
"Why?" Zoey asked; she was glad that they were in a room filled with sleeping people. If it were in any other place Sirius would have been shouting at her.
Sirius didn't answer her; he just gave her a hard look. Zoey squinted her eyes at him. She knew why. He didn't want her to be in danger. He knew how her wings worked and feared that she would end up giving more than she intended to give. Zoey was the one who broke the gaze.
"I'll be fine, dad," She told him before making her way to the floo network, already getting a handful of Floo powder. "You have to trust me," she smiled at him before throwing the powder and making the green flames appear.
"St. Mungo's!"
And she was gone.
Okay! Sorry for the wait and a rather shorter chapter than usual.
Summer is almost ending and I'm kinda bummed out at that fact.
Also, I've been trying to get out of the house more. I'm just wasting away... Not a good thing.
I want to thank ZoomSkater14 and HayleyParadox for the help
and to all my readers, reviewers, favorite-ers and alerters. I love you all. :)
About my little "both my parents are dead" thing Zoey said in the last chapter, I apologize for not making it clear to you all.
Lucy - Dead
Sirius - Alive but he wasn't really there for Zoey in the past years so it was like he was dead. She loves him but he wasn't there. She doesn't blame him... You get the picture.
This chapter had a lot of events mashed up into one... dang.
GAH Brain dead I don't really know what to say.
Oh yeah. NO Zoey did not steal Sirius' motorcycle. You know how Natalie is. She's crazy. She just wanted to say the same thing Mrs. Weasley said to Ron but they didn't own a car and yeah.
Natalie's weird
But we love her anyway.
Well, I guess that is all. I have nothing more to say except
I hope you enjoyed the chapter
Please tell me what you thought
Excuse my typos and the like (Even though I beta-ed it already)
Don't forget to review and the like
Stay tuned for the next chapter
And
I only own what I own
