The next few days flew by, and before I knew it, the morning of our quidditch match against Slytherin had arrived. I was used to game days now and instead of nervousness I felt only excitement. And besides, today my sister would be there. The Gryffindor side were as riled up as ever, though perhaps slightly less vicious than they had been at the last Slytherin match. Seamus had painted his face completely red, looking just as diabolical as the last time. When I came down to breakfast he threw his arm around my shoulders and roared, which was met with echoing roars from up and down the table. We were ready, and if anyone was going to take down the undefeated Slytherin side it would be us. Just had to outfly my secret boyfriend. I looked over at his table and he was smirking right back at me, and then ran his tongue along his upper lip. Oh dear lord! I looked away quickly, turning quite possibly as red as Seamus. Draco was messing with me! That was my tactic, I messed with him! Just couldn't think what to do in retaliation.

"Get your shit together Patil!" Seamus said loudly. "There's no way we lose to Slytherin twice."

"Don't you believe in me?" I said sarcastically spreading my arms inviting his judgement.

"Well, if you don't catch the snitch, at least punch him in the face, that's just as good." I rolled my eyes in response, while half the table laughed.

Down at the game tent beside the pitch Padma ran over to meet me, Anthony in tow. "Oh my gosh, I'm so excited," she said giving me a hug. She was wearing some of my old Gryffindor gear. "I can't believe you're playing! I hope you win." She surveyed the rest of the team, and gave Ginny a hug too.

"Padma, you remember Fay, she's my absolute best friend," I said and Fay smiled shyly.

"It's so great that you guys have gotten so close," Padma said warmly.

We chatted for a few more minutes with Padma and Anthony who then moved to talk with other guests who had come to cheer us on. The Slytherins had gathered in the tent with some of their guests as well. I nudged Fay, "Holy crap Marcus Flint is here," I said. She looked over, as starstruck as me. In the last year, he had become one of the best players in the professional league. Their was no doubt he would make the World Cup team this summer. Michael saw me staring and then started walking towards us with his brother.

As they got close I tried to play it cool, pretending like me and Fay weren't just gaping at the older brother like two fish out of water. "Hey, I heard you've looked out for my brother, so I just wanted to say thanks," Marcus said in his deep voice and held out his hand to me. The man was massive, far north of six feet and broad, and his hand was just as big. He did still have a hint of troll in his features. How in the world did he fly so gracefully?

My normal-sized hand disappeared into his massive one. "It's no problem, he's a good kid," I said. Marcus nodded and then walked away to chat with his old teammates.

Michael stayed behind, smiled conspiratorially at Fay and then looked at me and said, "So you going to go over there and say hello to your future mum-in-law?" Fay started laughing and I looked at him confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Malfoy's mom just walked in," Fay whispered and nodded her head towards the door behind me. I slowly turned around to glance over my shoulder, and there she was talking with Draco. She was tall and elegant, clad in black and dark green robes. Her black and gray striped hair was perfectly styled.

"Go say hi," Michael prodded me in the arm. "Don't forget to be super polite and tell her what a wonderful young Quidditch dictator she's raised."

"Shut up Flint," I hissed turning back to him.

"And don't forget to mention how talented a lover her son is," Fay added blinking rapidly like a lovestruck idiot. Flint doubled over laughing drawing attention from several people nearby.

"Fay, you are such a traitor," I blushed, but couldn't help chuckling. I mean if I said that, the older woman would probably collapse.

"Don't turn around ladies, but she is looking right at us," Michael said before raising his hand and waving to Mrs. Malfoy. I peeked over my shoulder and caught her gaze for a brief moment before she resumed speaking with Draco. "Malfoy must be shitting a brick right now. Mom and girl you boinked in the same room. Is there anything more awkward?"

I shoved him. He had grown significantly taller than me, fast approaching his brother's height actually, and he barely moved. "How in the world do you know? Draco didn't say anything surely."

"I just guessed," he said. "Malfoy's been way less horrible than usual during practice. You did my whole team a favor actually."

"Way to go Patil," Fay told me with mock accusation. I just sighed, embarassed.

"All right, guests please return to the viewing stands, it's nearly time for the game to commence," Madam Hooch announced loudly holding the door open. Ginny called us to formation. As Captain, she always led us out while as Seeker I was last in the lineup. Slytherin lined up beside us with Draco in front, leaving Mulciber in the back across from me. He looked at me and winked. Ick, maybe that towel stunt was ill-conceived.

The crowd was roaring as loud as ever and soon we were walking out to the pitch. It was a mild day, but lots of fog had lingered despite it being late in the morning. I could hardly make out the rings, finding the snitch was going to be impossible until the fog cleared a bit. This was going to be a long game. Madam Hooch released the snitch, which disappeared in the blink of an eye and the game commenced. I flew up into the fog, becoming disoriented almost immediately. I had to use the sound of the crowds to figure out where I was relative to the pitch. I could do little but fly lazy circles around hoping the snitch would appear somewhere in the twenty foot radius of visibility from my broom.

"Caught you," Draco said flying up next to me about twenty minutes into the game. I smiled at him.

"You know no one can see us up here," I said. He leaned over, pulled me close, and kissed me. Just a few hundred feet below us were hundreds of our classmates, professors, and family. He was brazen.

"You smell like orange blossoms," he said.

I smiled, "You are so distracted, I am totally going to win this today."

"I don't think so," he said cockily. "Anyway we won't find it for a while. Let those chasers wrack up their useless points." He nuzzled into my neck and I had to push him away. "I'll catch the snitch when it chooses to reveal itself."

"What has gotten into you?" I asked.

"Nothing, I'm alone with you, I can't help it."

I sighed, "You'll be watching my back when I catch it."

"As nice as that view is, we both know I'm faster."

I flew away then and he flew next to me. I would occassionally dart down to the pitch, but the fog just hadn't lifted yet and even the chasers were having a hell of a time trying to run plays with only partial visibility.

More often then not, Malfoy would find me and we'd spend the time talking with eachother. After about an hour I asked him, "So your mom is here today, that's sweet."

"Yeah she's never been to a game before, my dad used to come," he said.

I was about to say something else when out of nowhere a Bludger knocked me clean off my broom, and I managed to hold on with just one hand.

"Shit," Draco said before pulling me up. "You okay?"

I had just regained my seat before the Bludger returned and hit Draco, who had been leaning over to help me, square in the chest and clear off his broom. He disappeared into the dense fog immediately, his broom dropping uselessly after him.

"NO!" I screamed and dove down. Completely blind. I prayed I was flying straight down, if I was off by even a degree I would miss him. "DRACO!" I called out but the wind took my voice away at the speed I was flying. They wouldn't see him in this fog. Madam Hooch wouldn't be able to stop his descent. He would smash straight into the pitch. I only had seconds left to find him. My heart rate trebled, my panic was so complete. Finally I saw his robes flapping in front of me and then his face. His wide eyes met mine, I reached my hand out to grab his, we couldn't be more than a hundred feet above the ground now and the fog was still thick. I pulled on him with all the strength I had but I couldn't slow us down fast enough. We were both going to hit the ground hard, too hard. Draco tried to shake my hand loose, but I tightened my grasp. No, this wasn't going to happen. In my mind, I tore open all the barriers I had been building around my sight during my practice sessions. I poured all my power into amplifying it. I know I didn't die today, I had seen it.

I looked in the mirror and I could see every detail of the room reflected in it now. A tear built up in the corner of my eye. My dress was an ivory satin, the lace and embroidery looked old fashioned, like a perfectly preserved heirloom. I met my sister's eyes in the mirror. Her hair was different, she had cut it shorter. "Don't be sad Parvati," she said gently, arranging Aunt Seeley's necklace around my neck. "It is possible to learn to love someone, give it time."

I already love someone I wanted to scream.

I smiled weakly, and Fay appeared in the ornate doorframe behind me, the red of her dress bringing out all the red highlights in her hair. Her hand on the doorframe sported a ruby engagement ring. Dust danced in the bright sunshine streaming in the window. "It's time," she said smiling happily. "He's waiting." Padma pulled a delicate veil down over my face. "You're ready," she said gently.

I wanted to scream: Ready for what? Who is waiting? Where is Draco? The vision started to fade and I grabbed back onto it and wouldn't let go. I felt my grasp tightening as power surged through me.

The vision came back into focus. I stood up and walked to the doorway, where Fay and Padma patted my arm reassuringly before walking away down the hall. Seamus was standing there in his dress robes, he held out his arm and handed me a bouquet of lavender and ivory roses. "You sure?" he asked. I wanted to cry. "He'd better love you or I'll bloody kill him." My strength was fading fast, I didn't have a drop of power left. I blinked looking at Seamus' face, heard my name being screamed and blacked out.

Mrs. Malfoy entered the tent without a lot of enthusiasm for the upcoming match, but at first sight of her son her heart lightened tremendously. He greeted her as usual, but she noticed he was looking over at Marcus Flint, who had become quite the celebrity of late.

"Who are those girls the Flint boys are talking to?" she asked.

"Just some of the Gryffindor players. Their seeker is friends with Michael Flint," Draco answered.

"She's a pretty thing, isn't she? Well good luck my boy. I hope she doesn't present too much of a challenge to you," Mrs. Malfoy said.

"What do you mean by that?" Draco asked, and at that moment Flint, Parvati, and Fay all burst out laughing across the room.

Mrs. Malfoy raised an eyebrow, "In catching the snitch dear. I hope she doesn't present a challenge in catching the snitch."

"Oh right."

She looked at him curiously but was sent out to the stands with the other visitors before she could ask any more questions.

Mrs. Malfoy spent much of the game quite bored, and the fog obscuring the view didn't help. Every once in a while she'd see her son do a circuit of the pitch, looking for the snitch to no avail, and she had little appreciation for the complex plays being carried out by the others on the field. After a while she saw two figures descending precipitously in the middle of the field, maybe only fifty feet up. They were just about to slam into the ground when suddenly they slowed as if they were stuck in water, gray light encompassing them. It was then she recognized one as her son and screamed. He had no broom and was holding on to the arm of the other seeker. Within seconds the gray light snuffed out and Madam Hooch had withdrawn her wand to control their descent. Draco grabbed onto the girl and landed with her cradled to his chest. Their brooms had fallen uselessly near them on the pitch.

Professors streamed onto the field to check on them. Draco seemed okay, so Mrs. Malfoy sat back down and calmed herself. She watched as he held onto the unconscious girl, the professors hadn't yet taken her from him, or was it that he hadn't released her? Well, he must be in shock. What kind of magic had they used to slow them down and keep them from crash landing? She had never seen anything like that before. Professor Rosier finally took the girl and was carrying her off the pitch, while Madam Hooch summoned over Draco's broom. They were talking about something and then he mounted and took back to the skies to cheers from Slytherin. The Gryffindor side had quieted in dismay.

She leaned towards Marcus, who was seated next to her, "Oh my, that was worrying. Thanks goodness Draco is okay."

"Yeah, he said. I hope the Patil girl is uninjured," he added. "She's been such a help to my little brother."

"What do you mean?" Mrs. Malfoy asked him.

"She's looked out for him against some of the other students, and she had some sort of vision about him that might have just saved his life," he said.

"A vision...so she's a Seer?" Mrs. Malfoy asked intrigued. "Is your brother sweet on her then?"

Marcus laughed, "Teenage boys, who can tell? But a Gryffindor...I don't think so."

As soon as he fell, Draco realized he was in mortal peril. No one would see him in time, he grasped around for his broom and it wasn't there. And then suddenly Parvati was flying towards him and grabbed his arm, but it was no use. He was falling too fast. Stupid girl, let go he wanted to scream. And then her eyes went gray and they slowed, they were still surrounded by fog, she's slowing time he realized. He wanted to cry because it was no use, whenever her vision ended she would be spent and they would both fall anyway. God damn it, why hadn't she just saved herself?

Her eyes started to go back to their normal color, her gripped loosened, and they began falling again. This is it he thought and pulled her closer, hoping he might be able to cushion her and maybe just maybe that would allow her to survive the impact. Then her grasp suddenly tightened crushingly and her eyes glowed completely purple and gray light encompassed them in a bubble. Time slowed to a crawl. He gazed at her in amazement and realized the fog around them had cleared and they were only fifty feet above the ground. She collapsed suddenly and they were being lowered by Madam Hooch's Arresto Momentum incantation. He pulled her to his body and cradled her. She wasn't asleep like she usually was post vision, but was totally limp. She had saved him. But was she breathing? He lowered his face to hers. He couldn't feel the air stirring near her mouth or nose.

"No no no no no," he muttered.

"Mr. Malfoy, are you unharmed," Madam Hooch asked. He didn't answer but shook Parvati.

"Wake up, wake up!" he said desperately and was soon surrounded by Professors.

"Let me see her," someone said.

"No no no no no," he muttered again and held her to him.

"Draco please," Professor Longwood said putting an arm on his shoulder. "Let me give her this." He held out a Pepperup Potion that they had been working on, enhanced with moonglow root, specifically for Parvati or those with Mermish blood. "She is breathing, just very shallowly." Draco nodded and Professor Longwood placed a few drops into Parvati's mouth. She began to breath more deeply. Draco finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Let me take her," Professor Rosier said holding out his arms and Draco finally came back to himself. He squeezed her to him one more time before handing her over.

"She saved me."

"Malfoy, can you fly?" Madam Hooch asked.

"Yes."

"There is still the matter of the snitch, are you ready to rejoin the game?"

Draco nodded and Madam Hooch handed him his broom and he quickly took off. Adrenaline pumping through his veins. She would be okay, she would. He owed her his life, a tear escaped his eye, then another and another. It's just the shock he told himself as he wept far out of sight. And then as if the Gods of Quidditch had taken pity on him the snitch appeared in front of him and actually moved to settle in his open hand. He composed himself before flying down and presenting the snitch to Madam Hooch, the Slytherins cheered and the Gryffindors groaned, but Malfoy couldn't care less. He fled across the field to chase down Professor Rosier.

She was already in the hospital wing when Draco finally found her and tore back her curtains to see Professors Rosier and Longwood as well as Parvati's sister and Goldstein standing next to her bed. He wanted to order all of them out, but then realized that he was the one who shouldn't be here. "Madam Hooch sent me to check on Patil," he tried to dissemble.

At the sound of his voice Parvati finally came to and reached for him weakly, "Draco" she whispered. Padma looked from her sister to him abruptly as understanding dawned on her face. She couldn't have looked more appalled. He considered fleeing, or pretending he was confused by her seeking him out. Instead he took a deep breath, removed his quidditch glove and reached for her hand. "I'm here," he said and she sighed before falling asleep again.

"What the hell is going on here?" Goldstein asked after Padma grabbed his arm in dismay.