Disclaimer: Anything that rings a bell is JK Rowling's

Trigger warning: talk of sexual assault

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Chapter 43: Of Quidditch and Quarrels

Harry's POV

Ky froze. I couldn't tell what was going on in her head, "Ky…I-"

I moved to hold her and she swatted my hands away weakly. I scrambled forward,

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I just need to know-"

She looked at me confused, "But you do know. You know all the details."

My eyes turned dark, "Yes I do. I know all the details-"

"Then what else is there to know Harry. He didn't take anything from me and you know that. I'm not…I'm not…I'm not damaged goods."

Her voice was hard and fierce and I shuddered at her words. I could never think that of her, even if he had been successful in his awful attempt, she would never be damaged.

I knew the details of course; it was the details that haunted me at night. It was the details that made my arms ache with the need for vengeance when I saw her hurt. It was the details that had notched a special place for Bastian Blishwick in my mind, a place where he burned and screamed and died a thousand deaths. But Ky was wrong. He may not have taken anything away from her physically but emotionally…she was different. Already such a layered being he had made her add a few more coats…

"You think I'm damaged goods." I didn't realise that her previous statement was a question, distracted by my thoughts. I quickly grabbed her and made her look me in the eye.

"Of course I don't. Even if…even if…he was successful, you would never be damaged. I would never think of you in that way. I just need to know that you're OK with all of this. With all of the things we're doing."

"I think I've been quite clear about how I feel about the things we're doing." There it was, she was trying to dismiss the situation with a flirty smile and a taunt.

"No such luck Thornton, I may want you physically but I need you emotionally right now." Her smile dropped and her eyes turned hard, she scrambled to her feet.

"What are you doing?" I crossed the room and pushed the door she was about to open shut again, "Don't do that. Don't run away, you were the one that wanted to speak."

"Yes!" She shouted, "About the insipid scenarios of me and Corner that plagued your mind."

I grabbed her arms and shook her, "You think that's the only thing I thought about! I wish it was! I see him! I see every feature of a man I have not met before! I see everything! And it hurts! It makes me want to physically feel the life leave him. It makes me so furious that I can't even…breathe! Or…or-" I let go of her, the feelings I kept to myself all these months coming out in gasps and shouts. "If I feel like that…you must-"

"I don't! I don't!" Her eyes shone with tears and her outline blurred with her trembling, "I don't think of him…I don't want Linus and Len to hunt him down and kill him and I don't want you to spend your time wanting to kill him. I don't…" She took a deep breath, clutching her chest, "I can't…think of him."

I grabbed her and pulled her trembling figure into my arms, "I don't want you to think of him either Ky. I wish I could take it all away. But you need to deal with this. You need to-"

She pulled away from me, "I can't Harry. Not now. I can't deal with this now. I don't want to deal with this now…I just want it to stay in the box…right at the back."

I looked down at her, her eyes begging me to stop and I sighed in defeat, knowing I couldn't make her open up the box that she so solidly shut and hid away. I pulled her back into my arms, holding her until the trembling stopped, feeling utterly useless.

-x-x-x-

I dug through my trunk for the second time, old pieces of parchment and quills strewn everywhere. I looked at my watch and went in deeper, knowing I was cutting it really close. I heard the door open and I whipped around, "Ron, have you seen my-"

I stopped mid-sentence at the sight of my girlfriend. She was wearing those black shorts that consumed my attention to such an extent I knew how many times she had worn them this year.

Six.

But it wasn't the shorts that stole my attention this time; Ky was wearing my quidditch jersey, the one from my previous years kit.

Of course it looked completely different on her, she didn't shrink it but chose to make some sort of knot that made it stop at her waist, the sleeves enveloped her sides but the cloth constrained against her chest in a way that made me completely forget what I was about to say.

"Seen your?" She had a huge grin on her face and walked into the room, kicking Dean's football whilst doing so. I literally shook my head trying to shake away my x-rated thoughts.

"You're wearing my quidditch jersey."

She cocked an eyebrow at me and shrugged nonchalantly, "I figured, why not? You have a problem with it?" Her eyes glinted up at me, brimming with mischief,

"No." I shook my head, "No. Not at all. It's just that," I tossed the socks I had in my hands into the trunk, "That's what I've been looking for. I was going to give it to you this morning." I shrugged and tossed more stuff into the trunk and laughed lightly, "I had a speech prepared and everything."

I heard her laugh and tossed her a glare; she had the decency to stop, "A speech…you can still tell me your speech Harry."

"Just forget about it."

I felt stupid even mentioning it. I closed the lid and straightened up.

"No, no please tell me-"

"No it's no use, you already have-"

For the second time this morning Ky made me stop mid-sentence. The first when she was wearing my quidditch jersey, the second when she wasn't. I gulped loudly and stared at her, vaguely processing the jersey she was holding out to me.

"There, go on. Take the jersey and give it to me and let's hear your speech Potter."

I was hypnotised and Ky laughed. The sound cut through my trance and I suddenly looked up shocked, "Ky…put your top on. The boys might come back."

She shook the jersey at me, the sun shining off her bare tan shoulders, "Well I guess you better tell me that speech if you don't want the boys to see."

"I can't tell you the speech. Just put the jersey on!"

"Tell me the speech!"

"I can't!"

"Tell me!"

"I can't even remember my middle name right now let alone a speech!"

The room filled with Ky's laughter and I pulled my face at her. She jumped on me, swinging her arms around my neck, "Are they that distracting?"

She kissed me softly, "Let's just say I've never contemplated missing a quidditch match before."

"We can't have that now can we?" I kissed her again, running a finger across her back.

"You better put my jersey on if you want to make it to your first school quidditch match."

She laughed and jumped off me, loping the jersey back over her head, "Why do I feel like that wasn't the speech." She knotted it at her side again and I led her out of the room.

"Well forgive me; I desperately did not want my roommates seeing my girlfriend half-naked."

She rolled her eyes, "Ron, Seamus and Dean are at breakfast already, Neville was on his way to the greenhouses. "

"So you just let me panic for nothing?"

I shook my head at her, "Not for nothing. I like to see you squirm!"

"Well that's a comforting thought. I have an exhibitionist and a masochist as a girlfriend."

"Let's not forget my fetish for asses." She spanked me and my broom almost fell from my hand.

"Did you just spank me?"

"Damn right I did. Ky likes her men to know how it goes."

My eyes popped open at her attempt at sounding gangster. I shook my head at her, "Please don't do that again."

"Why Potter. Scared you might just like it?"

"Oh oh I know I don't like being spanked. Butt just wasn't made for it."

She stopped and looked at my bum playfully, "I wouldn't say that. It's slightly on the bony side but nothing I can't work with."

"Bony? My butt is bony?"

"A little but that's OK, I don't need a guy with a firm butt like some kind of Roger Davies."

"I thought you hate Davies."

"I do, but there's no denying he has a fine ass. Oh don't look so cross, I much prefer your butt to his. It's like an acquired taste. Like escargot."

"You just called my butt snails."

"Well I happen to like snails." We stopped at the great hall staircase. I smirked at her.

"Well if my butt is bony, yours is the opposite."

She cocked an eyebrow at me, "Tread carefully Potter."

I laughed and leaned down, "I find that I quite like the opposite."

"Well you better, because these buns are not going to look like pancakes anytime soon."

"Will you two stop talking about food, I feel sick as is."

We turned to see Ron leaning against the banister, or more like hugging it, his posture was so defeated. I walked forward, "Ron, it's going to be OK. Let's just get some breakfast."

Ky slung a hand around Ron's waist, "And even if it's not OK Ron, I have pictures of Nessie in a bathing suit I've been saving for your birthday."

Hermione's POV

I smiled at my best friends as they walked in and our table erupted in cheers. I shook my head, recalling that Ky had helped herself to Harry's jersey. I was pretty sure the sentiment was lost if it was stolen rather than gifted but it seems like Harry had no complaints. My smile fell when I saw Ron. He looked like he hadn't slept a wink. Dean and Seamus said that he headed down to breakfast with them but had made up some excuse before they could enter. Poor thing. They reached the table and I gestured to Harry, "Pancakes or hot cross buns."

The two of them laughed so care-freely I couldn't help but chuckle as well, even though I was clueless as to what the joke was. "Hot cross buns." Harry forced some food on Ron and started convincing our best friend that he would be OK.

"THAT looks so freaking awesome Luna!" I turned to see what Ky was talking about; Luna was standing behind us with a weird roaring lion hat on her head. Actually, it was quite brilliant, she must have had to use at least five charms to make it work. Weird conspiracies aside, she was a Ravenclaw. She wished the boys luck and then walked off. Wait…. she didn't wish the boys luck, she wished just Ron luck. Why did she do that? My internal monologue was cut short by the boys rising from their seats, I followed suit.

"Good luck Ron." I stood on my toes and pecked him on his cheek.

My heart beat a mile a minute, why did I do that. Why? It's not weird though, is everyone looking? It's not weird, we've been friends for ages, right? Is my face red, oh gosh I can feel it going red, "And you too Harry!" Should I kiss Harry just to make it look less weird? No, I can't just kiss Harry now that he is dating Ky. As my internal conflict sparred on, the boys walked away.

"Aren't you going to kiss him good luck?" I snapped around affronted, ready to tell Lavender off when I realised that she was talking to Ky. Lavender had taken it upon herself to teach Ky proper girlfriend etiquette.

Ky swallowed hard, "I already did that." She smiled to herself at some secret memory. Her smile dropped and her eyes narrowed suddenly, "Look at those damn snakes. Yeah, you better watch out Anderson!"

Ky shook her fist at the tall blonde boy, and he looked at her shocked, scuttling away.

"You do know that Anderson is in Ravenclaw, right?" I smiled at her haughty look.

"Oh…well I get confused on the weekends! There are no ties to remind me…"

"Well just remember our teams the one in red and gold."

"Well considering she's wearing the jersey; I doubt she'd forget." Parvati smiled at her, "When did Harry give it to you?"

"Never mind that!" Lavender leaned in closer, "What did he say when he did. These quidditch boys always say something?"

Ky gestured at the two with bacon hanging off her fork, "He didn't give it to me, I took it."

"YOU WHAT!" I moved away from the united shriek.

"I don't get what's the big deal. He was going to give me it anyways, he said so this morning."

Their shocked faces dispersed at the chance of new gossip, "So? What did he say?"

Ky wiped her mouth on a tissue and smiled coyly, leaning in conspiratorially, the girls being pulled forward by the very action. She looked to her left and then her right, and bit her bottom lip in a thoughtful expression.

"Go on." Lavender whispered in encouragement.

"Well…He told me to meet him in his dorm before breakfast. I figured it was to, you know, wish him good luck for the match. And then…I walk in and he's…"

"He's what?" Parvati was so close to Ky she was almost off her bench.

"He was on bended knee. He looks up at me, with the folded shirt in his opened hands saying, 'Please do me the honour of taking my name-'"

"He proposed!"

"And with his quidditch jersey too! That's soooo creative…kind of cheap, but innovative none the less."

I bit down my laughter. These two were such slaves to gossip they couldn't even see how Ky was toying with them as she nodded her head emphatically, doing a good job of averting my eyes knowing that it would destroy her act. Not to mention her story goes against the fact that she just announced that Harry didn't give her the jersey.

"And then..."Ky took on a serious face, "Caught in a fit of passion we made love right there!" I chocked on my orange juice, Ky leaned further onto the table, "I can feel…" She took a deep breath, her face flushed, clutching her tummy, "I can feel his son move inside me as we speak."

"You guys didn't use-"

"We were caught up in the moment, the spells just evaded me at the time."

"Oh, how romantic." Parvati whispered into her bacon.

Your classmate being impregnated at the age of fifteen…romantic? "Of course, we want to keep it as quiet-"

"Yes, yes of course, we won't breathe a word." Lavender hurriedly added in. I shook my head at her and rose from the bench, gesturing for the doorway. Ky followed suit, gesturing for the girls to keep her 'secret' with a finger on her lips. How did Ky manage to tell the exact same lie to these two in the same week. More baffling was how they managed to fall for it.

"Why do you have to do that? Don't you two have enough rumours spread about you as it is?"

She chuckled, "Aw Mi, it's just like one big game of telephone isn't it. I want to see what the rumour mill sends back! Aren't you curious?"

"Not at all! You are psychotic!" We continued down to the pitch. Ky sent a trip jinx at a boy in a Slytherin scarf, she'd been doing that all week. "You two…haven't?"

"Haven't what?"

I rolled my eyes at my best girl friend as we made our way to the seats.

"Oh! Oh, you mean sex!" She shouted the last words and a few first year Gryffindors that I had shown to their dorms at the beginning of the year looked up at her, fresh faced shock jutting above their scarlet and gold scarves.

"KY!"

Ky looked down at the kids and rolled her eyes, "I didn't say sex. I said…hex. But even if I did say sex, it's cool, because it's a natural process that occurs between two consenting individuals to express-"

I shooed the children away glaring at Ky as we took our seats. "I hope you and Harry are not two consenting individuals."

"No. Well not yet. Salazar sword Mi if I shagged Harry, I'll tell you right afterwards. I mean like RIGHT afterwards. I will literally wake my naked ass up-"

"OK OK, I get it." I looked around nervously at the bustling crowd, thankfully most of everyone around us was too busy talking quidditch to listen in. "But you guys are…engaging in activities that might make you lose yourself in the moment and you might regret-"

"Woah woah woah Mi. Relax. Don't worry, we got this. I am not going to make you an aunt anytime soon. WOW GO HARRY! THAT'S MY BABY DADDY RIGHT OVER THERE!"

The players had just taken off and the surrounding supporters laughed at Ky's outburst.

"Why do you HAVE to do that!"

"Because she's an attention seeking ho Hermione. You know that."

"Ahhh! Ginny! I was wondering where you were! Come sit, watch Harry bash some Snake-heads."

Ginny laughed and sat down on the other side of Ky, "You do know quidditch is a non-contact sport?"

"I beg to differ, what are those clubs for then?" Ky's grey eyes were rooted to the sky, but Ginny didn't care that she was barely paying attention to their conversation.

"They are there to defend the players from the bludgers-"

"By hitting them at other players. I don't know about you, but that seems quite violent to me."

"You sound just like Michael." Ginny's brown eyes took a loop around her sockets, "He is such a girl about these things, I swear he thinks there's only one position in quidditch and that's keeper."

"GO GEORGE! BASH HIS SKULL IN! LEFT! LEFT! Oh no, he missed his skull, he hit Marlborough's hand."

"That's what he's aiming for Ky! You are such a Neanderthal!" I turned to Ginny, "You and Michael are fighting?"

She shrugged, "I wish we were fighting, he's so clingy. Every time I want to call it off, he changes the subject!"

"HARRY SAW THE SNITCH! GO HARRY! HARRY SAW THE SNITCH! GO!"

"Get down from there! You are going to fall you ninny." I pulled Ky back down from the railings she was climbing up.

"Seems like Harry isn't the only one sporting new glasses Dean."

Seamus' voice floated over from two rows above ours. Ginny and I turned to the boys while Ky screamed 'go on the offensive!',

"New glasses?"

"Yeah…" Dean smirked at Seamus, "Love goggles."

"Oooh, I agree Dean! I've noticed too!" Lavender shouted from down the row. "Is he singing in the shower as well?"

"No, it's not come to that yet, but I definitely heard him humming the other day, didn't think the boy even knew how to do that."

"I saw Ky skipping…to defence against the dark arts!"

"I saw Harry smile- at Umbridge."

"No, you didn't, that's a lie." Dean shrugged with a flirty smile on his face. I shook my head, were these two actually flirting over whose roommate was more love struck.

"GODRICS GOBSTONES! HE'S GOING TO CATCH THE SNITCH! HE'S GOING TO-"

"KY FOR THE LAST TIME! DO NOT CLIMB THERE!"

"WILL YOU TWO STOP SCREAMING IN MY EARS!" Ginny clapped her hands over her ears.

"ALL OF YOU STOP SHOUTING!" Neville who was sitting quietly next to Seamus bellowed. He blushed has everyone looked at him, "Do you hear that?" He added quietly.

We listened as the chant got louder. Ky hopped down from the railings and Ginny rose from her seat.

"I don't get it…I thought Fred and George are the beaters. They don't have anything to do with the quaffle."

I glared at Parvati "They're talking about Ron!"

"Ohhhh…" Parvati shrugged, already bored with that fact. The chants from the stands on our left got louder, more and more people catching the tune and the words. All traces of Ky's previous engagement with the game disappeared.

"That's what those badges they're wearing are about." Muttered Seamus, "You think Ron can hear it all the way up there?"

Everybody turned to the keeper's goal post, it was evident that Ron definitely heard the chants of "Weasley is our king."

"Those bastards." Ginny sat back down with a huge thud.

"What are you doing?" Ky looked at Ginny confused. "Get off your arse! We've got some bashing to do!"

"Ky! You can't just go and start a fight with those people. I know it is despicable, absolutely underhanded, and terrible sportsmanship, but you and Ginny going over there and biting off their heads would get you nothing but detention. It's best to just ignore them! Anyway, there's so many of them…"

Ky turned away from me and looked at Ginny, the redhead remained seated.

"Fine. You're perfectly right Mi." I had my next rebuttal on my lips but let it fall away in shock at her acceptance. "We don't want to get in detention. I mean it's not like Ron would do the same for us. It's not like Ron would sneak off to dark, dark lord infested chambers with ten-foot basilisks to save our sorry-"

"Ginny!" Ginny had shot off her seat and made for the stairs. I followed, tossing Ky a look of admonishment which she returned with a triumphant smile. "Ginny, don't listen to Ky, you don't have to do this!"

A/N: A long chapter but I hope you enjoyed it. I don't know if you noticed but Ky is different with Harry than she is with everyone else, she gives of a softer side, whilst Harry is a lot cockier. I'm enjoying writing Ginny and Ky interactions. There's a lot of ribbing each other, but also a lot of fondness in there. Any guesses of what Ginny ran off to do?

Thanks for reading,

Reviews are always appreciated!

Kalina