Hey there,

I finally have a new chapter for you. The beginning is not beta read, and at some point I gave up and fed everything to chat GPT to get it translated. I'm not very happy to do it, but it means you'll get new chapters faster, and it does work pretty well.

I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, please write me a review if you do, it really helps me remaining motivated!

Enjoy

My talk with Scorpius indeed has the effect of making next week's classes more pleasant. On Monday, during the meal, Arthur asks us if we'll be staying at the castle during the holidays, and I realize that there's only one week left before it comes. I didn't plan anything, but apparently all the others are heading back home.

"You don't want to go back home, Vivian?" asks Arthur, surprised

"Not really, I'm too lazy to be bothered by Mrs Winston's questions, plus I wouldn't be able to do magic there."

"Mrs Winston?" asks Alphonse

"The housekeeper." I sigh. "She's kind, but doesn't know the concept of personal boundaries."

"Wait, you have a housekeeper? You mean you're a rich kid?"

"Not really, but my parents are relatively wealthy. They work so much that they're never home, so they hired her to clean and take care of me."

"Poor her." Al' answers, sarcastic

"So you're staying in Hogwarts?" asks Arthur, going back on track

"I don't really have a choice." I answer unenthusiastically. "I would have loved to travel, but I'm too young, blablablablabla…"

"I would have gladly proposed you to come to my place, but I should have told my parents way earlier" says Arthur, looking sorry. I can hear what he doesn't say, that his mum still doesn't feel at ease around me.

"But you could come with me if you don't want to stay in that dusty castle!" says Al' "No magic, but as long as we don't prevent him from watching his soccer games my dad will leave us alone."

"Uh, that's nice. I'll think about it, can I give you an answer later..?"

"Sure thing! My dad won't be bothered, I'll send him a SMS once you'll know."

"Your cell works in Hogwarts?" I ask, surprised.

"It doesn't, but on the other side of Hogsmeade there's one or two network bars. I own a broom and there's a window open all night in my dorm." adds Al', blinking at me.

Arthur and Ewald just stare blankly at us. I shake my head, amused, before bringing the conversation back on the obstacle course, which will happen on Friday, after 4:45, because no one will have classes then. The issue is that it means that the teachers will be free as well. But we shouldn't be too many, and holidays will be starting, so they'll probably be busy elsewhere. Plus risk is part of the fun. With the holidays in mind, I ask Arthur and Ewald to find as much Instant Darkness Powder as they can for the Firefly Hunt.

xxx

On Tuesday morning, I unexpectedly see an owl delivering me a letter. In our group, only Arthur often receives mail, and regularly writes to his parents. I must have seen Ewald at the library, writing a letter, once or twice. He receives a letter every two weeks with a mysterious regularity. Al' never receives anything but if he has a cell and network I guess it's not surprising especially since for what I know he's a Muggle born like me. For my part, I sent a letter to my parents via Miss Aster, the MWS teacher. That's her job to be a link between the school and Muggle parents.

I carefully catch the letter, not being used to that kind of interaction and being scared of being pecked. With some surprise, I recognize my mum's writing on the envelope. The owl goes away, looking pleased with itself, after Arthur gave it a thanks and a piece of meat. I don't really feel like opening my mail in front of everyone without knowing what to expect, so I put the letter inside my bag. I spend the morning with my conspiracy group and we work on the obstacle course. We're expecting about thirty persons, forty maximum. I managed to get my hands on a good amount of balloons, as well as Muggle paint, and I'm working on giant flaming hoops. Ewald found some Transformation charms that, doubled with runes, should be able to create some obstacles, maybe even a dirt tunnel, which would be absolutely cool, but he has to train. On D-Day, he'll probably have to work in a team with one or two additional Seventh Years experts in those areas. After we agreed to the idea, Ewald leaves to train. Alphonse goes to the Forbidden Forest part we'll be crossing to scout and reflect about the potential traps he could add, as well as how to mark up the way. Our Hufflepuff will be a judge again (and our first aid team). He managed to find some motivated people to help him out, which means we now have five judges and a total of almost fifty persons implicated in this project, which is a seventh of the whole school population. Which put things in perspective, knowing the Firefly Hunt will be even more ambitious.

In the afternoon, Ewald and Arthur use their time at the Potions club to create a kind of fluorescent liquid that we'll use to mark up the path in the forest and tunnel (Ewald and his team found a good place to do it, near the exit of the forbidden forest). In the meantime I go to the library to do my homework, as usual. Arthur joins me there after the club to show me the result of their brewing. We find a room away from people, and he uses his wand to draw a smiley on the wall. As soon as he turns of the light with a Nox, the drawing on the wall starts shining with a beautiful greenish glow, and I congratulate him for his work. He turns the light back on and puts the potion back in its vial, before casting me an odd look. I rise an eyebrow and ask:

"What's going on?" Arthur lightly blushes, and admits:

"I would have liked to have your opinion on a poem I wrote for a friend."

"Sure" I answer, curious "Do you have it here?"

My friend nods and after a brief hesitation puts out a neatly folded parchment he had tidied inside a book.

"Please don't make fun of me, okay?"

"No worries. Who is it for?"

"Cian…" answers Arthur, his blushing increasing. Seeing that I don't recognize the name, he adds: "She's in year six, in Ravenclaw, and… I like her. I'm going to ask her out."

"Alright, let me see." I answer, with a smile, even if inside me my heart aches, thinking about Quentin. Arthur looks a bit like him, and he used to write poems, too. I don't love him anymore, not really, but I can't forget him, and I still miss him as strongly as ever. I forcefully push those thoughts deep inside of me, behind my walls, and I lock my mind with a hint of Occlumency, just to be sure. I read.

"It might sound crazy but you're the only one I see
I have a life to build, may it be with you
The time I spend in your company
Is the brightest and most precious of my life

"I like how curious you are and your serious looks
I like your distracted smile when you're reading
Your laughter erases my worries
In short, I love you."

Seeing me raising my head, Arthur asks me anxiously:

"So, do you think she'll like it?"

"It's well written, and your feelings are feelable. I don't know her, but I don't see any reason why she wouldn't."

I give the poem back to my friend who carefully tidies it, smiling. He then raises his head, and ask me in a falsely light tone:

"You still didn't reconcile with Scorpius?"

I should have expected that. I shut down my annoyment and give an honest answer, for once.

"No. He came up to me, and we talked, but we won't be friends again."

"But why?"

"What he blames me for makes sense, and those are problems we'll keep having, so it hardly make sense to reconcile just to argue again right after. I have you, I have Ewald and Alphonse, and that's enough for me. I don't need to have a link with other people."

"But we're all much older than you, wouldn't it be nice for you to have friends your age?"

"I'm much more mature than people my age, and I'm happy with you. But if you don't want to be friends with a kid, I'm not holding you back."

With this, I turn tail and walk towards the door. It slams shut. I turn towards Arthur. His wand is in his hand. He lets out a sigh before walking closer to me.

"I have no problem with our friendship, and I don't see you as a kid, far from that! You were smarter than me when you were six, and when we speak I feel like we're equal, maybe even like I'm talking to an adult sometimes. What I'm meaning to say is just… You shouldn't exclude people from your life like that, and I think you shouldn't limit yourself to us."

He stares at me tensely, hoping that I'll understand.

"I know what I need." I answer, coldly. "But thanks for the advice."

He stares at me again, with a hint of surprise. I just wanna go. I always ruin everything. But I don't want to be nice. Yet, he lets out another sigh before shrugging.

"I said what I had to say." He unlocks the door, then smiles. "Are we going to eat or what? I'm hungry and I think it's time."

"Sure!" I answer, faking enthusiasm.

As we go downstairs, silence settles back between us, and I fight to not run away for the second time today, playing the conversation in my head again and again. Finally, I stop, before there's too many people around. Arthur does as well, looking questioning.

"I'm sorry for the way I reacted, I shouldn't have. I'm happy to have you and I guess I'm afraid that you'll get bothered spending time with a first year. It's so frustrating having to talk with kids and being treated like a baby all the time! But I know that I reacted like a child on that one."

"Don't worry, we won't let you down." smiles Arthur "It's okay."

He quickly hugs me, and I see that he needs to bend down a bit. It's weird. I tense up, as always, but it doesn't last long and as soon as he sets me free I hate how I want him to hug me again, to reassure myself, to feel better. I'm still thinking about Quentin.

We keep on walking towards the Great Hall, and join Ewald at the Slytherin table. He smiles when he sees us, and I seat next to him. I feel like I'm pretending well that nothing happened, but Ewald curiously looks at us. He ends up asking:

"Did something happen?"

"N-no." I answer, taken aback "Well, Arthur wrote a poem, and wanted my opinion about it."

I say to draw his attention away without exposing the Hufflepuff's feelings. Ewald probably knows, but I'm not sure, and this secret doesn't belong to me. Lucky for me, it seems to be enough, and I let the Seventh Years to their bickering while my mind wanders.

xxx

In the evening, I remember the letter I received, and take it from my bag to read it.

"Dear Vivian,

I hope this letter will find you. As you must have seen, we bought an owl to be able to communicate directly with you. It's better than bothering your teacher or waiting for you to remember to write us. Your dad insisted on calling the owl Batman."

I stop reading while a quick smile escapes me. My dad, in this life, is a fan of comics, and since bats can fly he probably thought this was a perfect name for a bird.

"I was writing to have some news, you haven't written to us in a while. I'm sure you already read the whole library.

I don't really know how to bring up the topic but we need to have a serious talk with you. Mrs Aster informed you of the problems you encountered in Hogwarts. I know that you're independent, but it's the kind of thing we have a right to know ! We're your parents, and we won't be punishing you for defending yourself. Of course, I would have preferred you not to resort to violence. Your dad is still suck with his superheroes stories and seems to think that magic works the same way. He still reminds you that with great power comes great responsibility.

The real issue is something else, but it isn't something we should discuss on paper. We must see you as soon as possible, and even if I assume you didn't plan on heading back home for the holidays I think we shouldn't wait. Please send me a confirmation. I want you to know that I love you, we both do, and we are proud of our daughter.

Hoping I can see you soon,

Mommy."

I fold back the letter, worried and annoyed at the same time. My life is none of their business, although I intellectually understand why they think it is. My worry comes from the fact that my mum seemed so shocked in her letter while she usually is direct and efficient. Here, it looked like she was afraid. What happened to put her in that state ? I guess the quickest way to know is to ask. I pick up a quill and some parchment paper, and draft a short answer.

"Hi mum,

I received your letter. You can tell dad that the name he gave to the owl is perfect.

Regarding the holidays, I'd like to know what this is about before taking any decision. I wasn't planning on going home and a friend invited me.

Love you,

Vivian"

It's a bit late to post it, so I do it the morning after before breakfast. I receive the answer on Wednesday morning. My parents sent Batman again. This time, Arthur asks where the owl is coming from, and I tell him that my parents bought it to communicate with me. Al' find the name pretty amusing. I read the letter quickly, anxious to find out what this is all about while the others start a convo about pet names.

"Sweetheart,

I know you're stubborn, but I really would have preferred to speak to you directly about it. Anyway, the reason why we would like you to come is before we learnt from Mrs Aster what happened when we sent you in that summer camp five years ago. We need to talk to you about it.

A friend, who is it?

Hoping we can see you soon, we're sending you a big hug.

Mommy"

"Vivian, are you alright?" asks Ewald

His voice brings me back to reality. I push down, as deep as I can, the shock and all the emotions the letter brought into me and tidy it inside my bag, looking as relaxed as I can. I put my brightest fake smile on before answering:

"Of course, and yourself?"

"You're looking rather pale" points out Arthur

"I'm fine."

"Is it because of the letter?" insists the Hufflepuff

"I said I'm fine." I answer, a bit drily.

I can see Ewald staring at me. Lucky for me, Alphonse isn't there, else he probably would have insisted too. I take one or two bites more from my breakfast, noticing that Arthur looks unhappy. Well, if we all know that something is happening, I see no use in pretending anymore. I pick up my bag and leave.

I barely left the Great Hall when Arthur catches up to me. He extends his arm as if to stop me but I turn on my heels, avoiding his move.

"What?" This time, the anger can be heard in my voice that I no longer control.

"Let's look for a quieter spot, then we'll have a talk."

"I don't want to talk."

"I noticed. That's precisely the issue."

I can see that some students, having finished their breakfast, stare at us while exiting the Great Hall, so I let him lead me further.

"Do you remember the talk we had, about how you never say anything important?"

"I do." I answer, halfheartedly.

"I don't know what this letter was about, but you're clearly upset. And instead of being honest, you just shut down and lie? We're friends, we're not only there to have fun when everything's fine."

"I'm well aware. But it's my business, and I wanted to take in the information first."

"Then you should have been truthful. Your first reflex was to hide what you were feeling."

"My mum learnt what happened with the pedophile." I answer, harshly.

It has the merit of silencing the Hufflepuff, who blankly stares at me.

"How?"

"That's all the thing. Mrs Aster told her apparently. It means that the teachers know and I have no clue how."

"Back then, Mrs Pomfrey know some things, since I was meeting with a Mind Healer regularly, but she's bound to medical confidentiality. Mac Gonagall knows about it as well, but I don't see why she would have talked about it, and I'm not even sure that she knew who you were…" thinks Arthur out loud, his anger forgotten.

Mine is still there, but slowly fading away, I can feel it.

"I see. Well, I guess I'll learn more about it when I'll see my parents."

"Will you be alright?" asks Arthur with concern

"Of course." is my falsely cheerful answer.

Arthur shakes his head, not buying it, and sighs.

"You really have to learn to share your problems."

I pretend I didn't hear anything and leave him to go work at the library. At noon, I tell Alphonse I'll be joining him for the holidays. Arthur casts me an intrigued look, but thankfully seems to understand that now isn't a good time to talk. Apparently, Al' lives in Oxford, so I'll find a way to go to my parent's place for a day. But I really don't want to spend the whole holidays at their place.

The rest of the day, as well as the two next days is dedicated to preparing the obstacle course. I don't speak again with Arthur about the letter, and we mostly pretend like nothing happened, even if I can see him watching me closely. Ewald does it too, but Ewald always does.

xxx

My Friday evening is free of classes, and I exploit that fact to finish up the last arrangements. The Seventh Years and Ewald installed the tunnel during lunch break. It isn't that long, only about four meters, with a diameter of about three meters, but it's an interesting obstacle. A kind of bottleneck that will spice up the race. My idea of flaming hoops has been discarded because it is too complicated and visible. Too bad. I bring the stuff that we'll need little by little under the Quidditch stands, where no one will be looking, hopefully, then follow the race path on feet to finish setting everything up.

The beginning is simple, it's just a long stretch of grass going to the lake. This part will be spiced up by water and paint bombs, and spells will be allowed. The players will be able to fly high, because it'll be Flight Club time, and teachers will expect seeing people flying there. Then, we'll have to fly over the black lake, on a larger portion than last time. Casting spells will be forbidden, but not throwing things. Two judges are supposed to care about spicing up that part, and I have no clue what that means since I'm supposed to take part in the race. A Seventh Year specialized in rune installed during lunch break some small pillars materializing the compulsory crossing points, which will allow to control that everyone is following the right path. He explained quickly the idea of his system, I think it's more or less the same thing as the electronic bibs we have on the Muggle side. Each participant will have a small bracelet with a rune on it, which will activate upon crossing pillars, which will change the color of the fabric once the right number of activations will be reached. It's still possible to activate the bracelet many times with only one pillar, but the judges are here to avoid that kind of issues, and well, it wouldn't be very sneaky.

The pillars are in place on this side of the lake. I cross the water using my broom, taking joy in brushing against the water until a giant tentacle almost hits me. I instantly take more altitude. The squid! Those who will try to fly low during the race will be in for a surprise! This simple thought makes me laugh while I check the pillars on the other side of the lake. Here again, everything is well in place. Next is the part in the forest, where spells will also be forbidden (avoiding hitting trees at full speed will already be hard enough). I have to use the fluorescent potion to indicate the limits. The day will still be bright during the race, but the forest is dark enough to make the use of the paint worth it, and we don't really want people to get lost here and meet the mysterious creatures who inhabit this place. We don't want to make enemies of the creatures either, which is why we'll stay on the very edge of the forest. Even with the help of magic and the fact that this section is barely a hundred meters, I need almost one hour to complete my task. Once I'm finally done I have very little time left to check the rest of the course. The tunnel uses all the potion leftovers I had. The end of the course consists in flying to the Whomping Willow, turning around it, then flying back to the Quidditch Pit. Of course, as soon as we'll be back on open ground, the spells will be allowed again until the Whomping Willow. After the tree, we want to see a true speed race, and the end will fair and square (except for the projectiles and the judges' surprises, that is). The finish line will be materialized by a string of fire on the ground, between two stands.

The first participants start arriving a few minutes after I'm done with my check. Al' is among them, with three players from the Gryffindor's Quidditch team. The Flying Club members (about ten persons between the third and seventh year) arrive right after them, as well as Ewald and some seventh years, including two Slytherin Quiddith players. Arthur arrives with Scorpius, to my surprise. Seriously? He even brought Albus (or Severus) as a bonus. When he sees me, my first year mate has a big smile, and I sigh insightly. I still smile back at him, since he did nothing wrong.

The participants form a line, and Arthur faces us with a fourth year, a sixth year and the two seventh year that helped Ewald out with the tunnel. They will be our judges. Arthur takes a deep breath before presenting the course quickly as well as the runes system and explaining the rules of the game. The spells must not be dangerous enough to make someone fall off their broom. The only spells authorized are those that make the victim lose focus, for instance via a sudden hair growth, or a change of color, etc. The shield spells are allowed as well. The only projectiles allowed are the water bomb that each participant will get before the departure as well as those we will find on the course along with some foam balls. I frown. No one told me about that. But it's a cool idea. Arthur also tells us to be aware of the judges, who prepared "surprises" for us and will be allowed to cast non authorized spells at us. They're here to make sure everything goes well, but also to complicate our race.

He eventually cuts the explanation short and asks if anyone wants to give up. No one reacts, so he asks if there's any questions while the judges distribute the runic armbands and one water bomb per person. I tidy mine in my school bag that I emptied for the race. Some do the same as me, putting their books where they can. Some others refuse the water bomb or keep it in their hand. A voice rises somewhere on my left, but I can't identify who's asking the question:

"What do we get, if we arrive first?"

Arthur answers that we didn't plan anything but we can barely hear him over Alphonse, shouting enthusiastically:

"Eternal glory!"

The group bursts out laughter. He adds

"Last instruction: If the teachers arrive, it's every man for itself! We all gathered here randomly and didn't recognize anyone!".

We all shout in approval, more or less exuberantly and Arthur concludes:

"To your brooms! And good luck!".

I smile to myself. He almost forgot how stressed he was to speak in front of so many people. I quickly regain my composure to focus. Everyone is on their brooms now, and the judges are starting to fly. Only Arthur remains close to the starting line.

Ewald is on my left, a few spots away from me. Scorpius and the twins are on my right side, next to an older, black-haired Ravenclaw girl that they seem to know. I think her broom is the latest model, but I'm not quite sure, I don't know much about brooms yet. Scorpius smiles at me and we wish each other good luck. Arthur raises in the air and starts the countdown. At this moment, I stop looking at my opponents to focus on my start. I'll have to pass between two stands to reach the plain, and I can't see from here how it looks like there. I decide to keep my water bomb for later, for the lake, when most people will probably have used theirs. Ideally, I'd like to pick up some from the plain, but I don't really want to lose time. Arthur raises his arm, casts a small light that explodes with a popping noise… The game's on!

I instantly start flying, rushing very close to the ground, which doesn't prevent me from being pushed around by others who had the same idea as me. I think about going higher, but the sky above me is filled with capes and brooms, and I regret my positionnement choice. I should have gone higher. I'm even almost forced to stop because some dumbass swoops down right before me. I can hear surprised exclamations and suddenly see flashes of light tearing up the air. The fun began. Maybe the ground was a good idea, in the end, because I don't get hit by any spell.

When I reach the plains I take back some height to have a better point of view. The group is still packed, but I managed to place myself in the lead pack, which lets me some range of motion. There's about five and six people around me, and the Ravenclaw I saw on the starting line is in the lead. She's flying very well, dodging with ease the… Bludger about to hit her?! What the fuck. I quickly realize that there's not one, but three Bludgers set free on the plains. Two judges, armed with bats, enthusiastically swing them at us as much as they can. Of course, both spells and water bombs are still being cast and I catch one in the face that makes me lose some precious seconds. I slow down, just the time to quickly retrieve my wand (that I've been smart enough to store in a holster tied to my wrist) and clean myself up. I use the opportunity to cast a vicious Expeliarmus at my nearest opponent. Between his dignity as a wizard and the race, he makes his choice and dives after his wand. I smirk, and it gets wider as I notice a table resting about ten water bombs. Two of my opponents try to snatch one in front of me, but they're flying too fast, and I don't want to slow down too much. I try casting an Accio, but it works too well. Two of the bombs explode on my broom, almost bringing me to a stop. At least three people get ahead of me while my vision is blurred. In addition, I get hexed and my fingernails start growing quickly, so much that I almost lose grip on my wand. Lucky for me, I have the time to cast a finite that saves me, even if my nails remain long. I use a diffindo to free my right hand, just to be able to keep on holding on to my broom. I cut a deep gash on my thumb in the process. I swear. Around me, people are passing me by, but I still take the time to cut my nails on the left hand too, since I'm already late anyway. Then, I realize two things. I'm almost unmoving and there's still some water bombs left nearby, and I know the Disillusionment charm.

I got behind, but when I start flying again my bag is now six water bombs heavier, and I'm barely visible. My charm is far from optimal, but the people won't instantly spot me as a player. I'm now among the last ones of the middle pack, and I reach the second obstacle of the race: the Black Lake. In front of me, two concurrents are getting ejected from their brooms by enthusiastic tentacles, and a judge is casting spells at anyone flying too high for their taste. I decide to fly higher to avoid the Kraken, and my strategy works out rather well. I throw a water bomb that explodes in red on a dude's face, who I overtake at full speed while a tentacle interrupts him. I manage to start catching up on the head pack using my water bombs. As a result, I'm on the head pack's heels as I reach the forest. Al's there and he throws a water bomb at me with an evil grin. My Disillusionment charm won't have lasted very long. My friend is almost within my reach, but the others are already entering the forest, and I can't waste any time. I secure my bag in my back before leaning forward on my broom, taking up more speed. I know I'm going too fast, but it's my chance to catch up on everyone. I rush into the forest, at about mid-height of the trees in order to avoid as many branches and bushes as I can. I'm very focussed, my veins pulsating with adrenaline. Some twigs whip my arms but instead of a cry of pain, it's a laughter that exits my throat. I may crash into a tree or get decapitated by a branch at any second. I feel free, alive, and my laughter is screaming out my insanity. Suddenly, I'm out of the forest. I can only see two people before me, leaving the forest as well, and two more, further away. We can start casting spells again. I get out my wand, barely slowing down, and aim at the back of the girl before me. Both my expelliarmus fail. She turns to me and casts a spell that works well. All my hair starts growing at a crazy speed. I cast a finite, it stops. I dive into the tunnel, slightly too close to a wall, and the adrenaline keeps on coming. I didn't slow down.

I emerge from the tunnel, nearly catching up to the two people ahead of me. I pass over them. The girl notices me and waves her wand in my direction, slowing me down slightly. I secure my position by sacrificing my second-to-last paint bomb, which explodes in her face, causing yellow paint to drip over her glasses. I forget about her. The next person to catch up to is Al. It seems he's also made progress in the forest and hasn't wasted time because of other players. He manoeuvrers well in open space, and we're almost neck and neck at the Whomping Willow. He's more skilled than me, but I'm lighter. Our speeds are evenly matched. Ahead of us, there's only the brown Ravenclaw I saw at the beginning of the race and a blond Slytherin. The latest, before our eyes, attempts a tight turn that ends abruptly when the willow decides to demonstrate why it's called a "whomping" willow. The Ravenclaw, cautious, has kept a greater distance for safety. I see my chance and dive toward the trunk. Al does the same after casting a quick shield charm. He's right behind me. For a moment, I think it's going to work. Making a turn around the base of the tree is risky, but it will save me a lot of time. The tree attacked the Slytherin farther away, and its branches are far apart. I hear Al warning me to be careful, he casts a spell that I don't have time to identify, and I see a branch coming straight at me. I don't have time to dodge it, just to minimize the blow. Al curses. The branch hits the shield spell he cast for me, breaking it, but it's enough to allow me to escape. I glance behind me. Al is forced to make a strange loop that costs him precious seconds, but he manages to escape as well. However, he's lost too much time and is no longer a threat to me.

Now, I'm almost on par with the Ravenclaw. I have one water bomb left. The field isn't completely clear, as I still see a bludger lurking, but it's not interested in us for now. I do my best to meld with my broomstick. The Ravenclaw glances at me. She's spotted me. However, she seems more focused on her posture than on finding a way to stop me. I suppose she has nothing left to throw at me. We still have half the field to cover. The bludger charges at us. The girl effortlessly dodges it, as if she's been doing it her whole life. Fortunately for me, the bludger doesn't target me, because I don't think I could have avoided it. The girl flies better than me, but I'm just about to close the gap and overtake her. I could almost touch her. We come into view of the finish line. If I'm going to do something, it's now. I reach into my bag to grab my last water bomb. I take aim and throw it. It lands in my opponent's hair, streaming blue into her eyes. The throw unbalances me a bit, but she slows down more than I do, afraid of hitting a stand. It's a good thing for her, because we're passing them in an instant, brushing past. I start to overtake her. She angrily wipes her eyes. The finish line is there. Ten meters. She pulls ahead. Five. I'm still in the lead, but barely. The line is crossed!

I make a wide U-turn to stop, and Arthur rushes towards me to hug me, "You won!". I look around, trying to see the Ravenclaw, maybe I'll finally find out who she is. She's being congratulated by the second judge present and looks at me with a tense expression. I want to walk towards her to congratulate her when someone halfway invisible crosses the finish line. He becomes fully visible. It's Ewald! I smile at him, and he joins me while Arthur and the judge refocus on the finish line.

"Did you go through the whole course invisible?" I ask my friend.

"Yes, even though my spell wasn't perfect, it was enough to keep me out of trouble. Poor Alphonse didn't understand where the water bomb came from that he got hit with coming out of the Whomping Willow…" Ewald says with a far too satisfied smile, probably mirroring mine.

The Ravenclaw approaches us as a new participant (the girl I had seen near the tunnel) crosses the finish line, closely followed by Alphonse. We applaud, and while Alphonse slows down, I take the opportunity to congratulate my competitor:

"You fly really well; I would never have beaten you in a traditional race! What's your name?"

"Indeed," the girl says a bit coldly. "You'll excuse me, but I'm still not over that water bomb. Ten meters from the finish line, seriously? Lily Potter, pleased to meet you. And you, you're the girl who hangs out with Scorpius and my chaos-serving brothers, right?"

"Vivian Eris. You pick one of the names, and you forget the other forever, or else I'll move on to something more aggressive than water bombs. By the way, I'm sorry, but all's fair in love and war."

"I don't really hold it against you," my interlocutor sighs, "but you have to give me time to digest it. You fly really well for a first year!"

"She's our reserve seeker!" Alphonse intervenes, joining us with a big smile on his face. "So, Miss Potter, I didn't get to see the end of the race, who won?"

"She did."

"I sense a little tension in the air…?"

"Water bomb right before the finish line, when up until then I had a perfect run. It's quite frustrating."

"I couldn't have beaten her without that," I add. "She flies really well."

"Pursuer for Ravenclaw since her first year, Mammy's a flying instructor and a professional player, and her dad needs no introduction," Alphonse enumerates.

Lily punches him on the shoulder. Since she's smaller than him, it looks a bit odd, but she doesn't hold back, and I'm not sure if my friend's grimace is entirely simulated. She then extends her hand to me, which I shake, as she concludes.

"Make sure to fly when our houses face off in Quidditch. I'll beat you, fair and square this time. And I'll call you Eris. The name of the goddess of discord suits someone who uses such underhanded techniques."

"A pleasure," I say, making an ironic bow.

Lily walks away with a smirk, joining another group of participants who have just landed and are settling near the finish line to applaud the following arrivals. Ewald puts his hand on my shoulder, and I turn around, trying to conceal my tension.

"Let me see your thumb. I'm not as effective as Arthur, but I should be able to fix that. And unless you're a fan of your new look, I can also shorten those hair and nails."

Oh. I had forgotten. Most students remove the marks left by the race themselves, but for me, it's more complicated. I don't know any healing spells, and my cleaning spell isn't very efficient. Not to mention the various counterspells. Alphonse is currently getting rid of purple pustules on his neck, for example, something I wouldn't be able to do. Anyway. Ewald makes me sit down and starts by cleaning me up, getting rid of paint marks and bloodstains. He then heals my injured thumb, which I couldn't even feel because of the adrenaline, before restoring my nails and hair to their usual appearance. As he finishes the treatment, a Gryffindor I recognize from Quidditch practice rushes towards us, shouting:

"The teachers are coming! The teachers are coming!"

As a wave of panic starts to spread, Ewald puts his wand to his throat to amplify his voice and says:

"Only members of the flying club stay put. The rest, disperse and erase the evidence and conceal your brooms! Judges! One of you should keep an eye on the arrival area. Arthur, it must be you since you can heal the injured. Jared and you, from Gryffindor, take care of the runic pillars. Hannah with me, we need to make the tunnel disappear!"

And just like that, everyone calms down and gets to work. Since I'm part of the flying club, I stay with Arthur and help him make the flaming finish line disappear using an aquamenti spell. There aren't many people left in the game anyway. Maybe three or four, according to Arthur, who informs me that four were forced to abandon at the beginning of the race or on the plain, not counting the three people that the giant squid ejected.

Less than a minute after the commotion, Ginny Weasley arrives, flying on her broom and closely followed by Archibald Lewis, the caretaker, and Selena Magster, the DADA professor.

"What's going on here?" asks the flying professor, addressing the Seventh-year in charge of the club.

"We have club, professor," he replies with an admirable poker face.

"From the castle, we've seen people chasing each other and casting spells. So unless the club has changed a lot, there's more to it than that. Don't take me for a fool!"

"Oh, you're probably talking about the people who decided to have a race... I didn't really see who it was, but a group of fifth-years started a chase before I arrived, but I don't know much about it since I didn't see them leave..."

Weasley sighs.

"That's two hours of detention with Archibald for you."

"But why, professor?"

"Let's see... I suppose 'taking me for a fool' isn't a regulatory reason, so we'll say it's for not stopping this little race as soon as you became aware of it, or informing a professor. It was irresponsible. Alright! What about the rest of you, I assume you don't know anything?" the professor asks, including me in her gaze along with the three or four other people present. No one says a word. The professor stares at Arthur.

"You're not part of the flying club, why are you here?"

Knowing my friend's disastrous skills when it comes to lying to protect himself, I speak up in his place:

"I was trying to convince him to join, professor."

"Yes, but it's a bit too lively around here for my taste," Arthur adds, nervously.

"What do you mean?"

"Just that I didn't expect people to misbehave and to be interrogated by a professor during my first session," my friend stammers, blushing a little.

The professor sighs again and orders her colleagues to climb on their brooms and help her search the area. I cross my fingers that no one shows up at that moment and that Ewald won't get caught. Once the teachers are gone, there's a collective sigh of relief, and Arthur apologizes to the club leader, who waves it off, saying the punishment could have been worse and that he also had fun during the race. We quickly disperse so as not to be there if the teachers come back to ask more questions. I volunteer to stay behind, just in case I run into any remaining participants. Being a first-year, I'll seem more innocent than the others, and I'm part of the flying club so I have the right to be there.

I don't see anyone anymore until dinner time, except for the teachers in the distance supervising two students, but I can't see who from this distance. I just hope Ewald isn't in trouble. I confirm this at dinner when I meet my friends at the table. None of us got caught. We decide to meet at the headquarters after the feast to discuss the race quietly. Once there, I learn that Ewald and the others managed to make the tunnel disappear in time and hide in the Forbidden Forest as the teachers passed by.

"As for the participants, the race was a success," Arthur declares. "One person crashed into the stands at the beginning, but it wasn't serious, three got caught by the squid, but the only seriously injured one is a fifth-year Gryffindor who hit a tree at the forest entrance; the teachers caught him with his best friend. He'll be under potions all night."

"On that note," Ewald interrupts. "Vivian, I saw you speeding into the forest, that's where you overtook me, in fact. You were going way too fast!"

"Not that much," I protest. "I know how to fly, and I didn't hit any trees."

The Slytherin shakes his head, but doesn't insist. That's when Alphonse takes over.

"And at the Whomping Willow? If I hadn't protected you, you would have at least broken ribs. Even I did cast a shield charm on myself!"

"What did you do?" Arthur asks, looking ready to panic.

"And you know how to use shield charms too, very well even for a first-year..." Ewald adds.

"I just didn't think about it, okay?" I say. "Thank you very much, Al', by the way, you saved me."

"Yeah, well, don't pull a stunt like that again. I haven't been that freaked out since the astronomy tower. Speaking of things not to do again, Ewald, do I have you to thank for the water bomb at the Whomping Willow?"

"I can't hide anything from you," the Slytherin says ironically.

"The astronomy tower?" Arthur asks.

Oh shit. I feel like if I stick around I won't like what's coming next. Already, the reproaches have erased much of my enjoyment, and I decide to leave before it gets worse.

"I'm going to bed," I cut off Alphonse, who was about to reply to Arthur.

"It's not even eight o'clock," the Hufflepuff remarks.

"The day has been eventful, in case you hadn't noticed," I say with a forced smile. "And I need a shower."

The boys wish me goodnight, and I hurry back to my tower. I wash hastily with an aquamenti (the water is cooooold) and a few spells before returning to my hammock to sleep. All in all, it was a good day, the obstacle course was great. But I'm afraid the others are starting to notice too many things. Ewald is freaking me out. And tomorrow, I'm going to Al's... I hope it goes well. I massage my arms to relax. Ewald didn't see or didn't have time to heal the wounds I received from the branches in the forest, and they're burning.

xxx

« I was born to burn
Like a flame, high and bright
Fast and shiny light
Consume my bones, it's my turn

Cause I was born to disappear
I have no right to live
And no will to breathe
Death I will never fear »

-Extract from Vivian Eris' blue notebook-

And that's it!
So, what do you think will happen now that everyone is getting suspicious?

See you soon!