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Like Harry expected, she finds Louis outside the castle, flying over the pitch.
The older girl doesn’t notice Harry’s presence immediately, too busy practicing catching the Snitch by herself, so Harry sits on the grass and pulls out her Arithmancy textbook to pass the time. She flips over to the page where she tucked her well-loved bookmark into (something Louis handmade and gave her for their one-year anniversary a few months back) and begins reading for her class later that afternoon.
It’s calming, studying outside. The castle can be too noisy sometimes—their House common room is usually filled with younger students who have a considerably lighter workload compared to the fifth and seventh years, and studying in the dorm rooms is just not helpful since Harry tends to fall asleep on her bed, books open and ink sometimes spilling onto her sheets if she passes out in the middle of writing an essay on 15 inches of parchment. The Great Hall is just as noisy, always full of activity, and even the libraries can be a bad place for studying at this time. The atmosphere is just so thick with the looming dread and despair of students working their arses off in preparation for exams. It all drives Harry absolutely mad.
Sighing, she flips the page and taps her finger against the fading ink of notes scribbled onto the side of the paper. Before, she used to study near the lakes or under one of the giant trees in the grounds where it’s more peaceful, with only the sounds of laughter from groups of friends and hushed conversations between lovers disturbing her. But ever since she and Louis got together - just a year and a half ago - Harry found herself more drawn towards the Quidditch pitch whenever she steps outside for a read. Which isn’t really bad, because no one is ever at the pitch except during practice and matches. Perfect for studying, Harry thinks.
There’s a whoosh of air, and then the sound of grass crunching underfoot reaches her ears. She glances up and sees Louis walking towards her, skin glistening slightly with sweat. Her short hair is falling out of its bun in messy strands around her face. She looks beautiful as always, the lines of her face sharp yet smooth at the same time, the early afternoon sun kissing her skin in gold and making the blue of her eyes seem brighter.
Harry’s heart skips a beat like it always does when Louis smiles at her.
She closes her book gently and sets it aside, smiling back up at the Slytherin Seeker. “Hi.”
Louis’ eyes are scrunched up at the corners with the force of her grin, and she drops down on her back on the grass, arms and legs spread out. She’s breathing a little heavily, chest rising and falling obviously, and her eyes fall shut, lashes brushing over the tops of her cheeks. Her Nimbus lays by her feet, and her left fist is closed tightly. Harry can just barely make out the fluttering of golden wings in between her fingers.
“Caught the Snitch, then?” she asks, moving to lie down as well. She turns over to her side so that she can see Louis’ face, wanting to curl up against her girlfriend’s side and cuddle, maybe offer to give her back and shoulders a rub (among other… body parts) after so she can relax.
Louis has been working herself silly these last few weeks, building up to the final match of the academic year for the Quidditch Cup. Harry is slightly worried that she might be driving herself to her limit. Not for the first time, she wishes they could just be in the same House so she could look after Louis better and make sure she’s taking care of herself, in the same way Louis looks after her and makes sure she gets breaks in between her intense study sessions.
“Of course I did,” Louis says in response to Harry’s question, eyes fluttering back open as she lifts her closed fist. She moves it carefully so that the Snitch is caught between her thumb and forefinger, sunlight catching on its golden surface. “I want Slytherin to win this year’s Quidditch Cup. It’s my last year and I’m not going out without a title under my belt. Sorry, babe.” She says this last bit with a small, almost-apologetic smile aimed Harry’s way.
Harry just laughs. “Tell that to Zayn, not me.”
Louis groans at the reminder. “Right. Zayn. Thank Merlin she’s not your Seeker or else this match might very well end our seven years of friendship.” She blinks at Harry, lips tugged down into a small frown that Harry wants to kiss off of her face. “Ravenclaw’s team is looking very good, too. Now that I think about it, I might be the only competent player in Slytherin.”
Harry makes a sympathetic noise but nods her agreement. Louis is largely the reason why Slytherin’s made it this far—she always manages to catch the Snitch just at the right time, when the tension’s high and the scores are too close, and she usually catches everyone off guard.
“Our Chasers are quite good, yeah. Other than Zayn, there’s Jade and Leigh-Anne. Eleanor is a good Keeper, too. I’m not so sure about our Beaters, though. And don’t tell Perrie this, but you’re definitely a better Seeker.”
Louis nods, brows drawn together. She still looks bothered despite the compliment Harry just gave her. “I’ve got Jesy, at least. And Josh. The others, though… I don’t think they’re as serious about wanting this as I am.”
Harry pushes herself up into a sitting position and scoots a little closer to Louis. “Don’t think too much about it, yeah? You’re stressing yourself out enough as it is.” She frowns a little, concerned. “You even missed lunch today.”
At that, Louis smiles apologetically. “I’m sorry.”
Instead of answering, Harry just moves closer until she’s hovering above the older girl. Louis reaches up with her free hand, tucking some of Harry’s hair behind her ear before cupping her cheek. Harry nuzzles into her palm, before turning her head and pressing a kiss against the skin there. “Don’t apologize. I understand how much this means to you. I just want you to take care of yourself, yeah?”
“I will,” Louis says, and her voice is softer now, almost a murmur. “Hey, give me a kiss?”
Harry presses one more kiss against the skin of Louis’ palm before she’s leaning down for a proper one, lips fitting against Louis’ in an easy and familiar way. She feels Louis’ hand move to her waist, curling around her school robes and tugging until Harry gets the message, shifting until she’s straddling Louis. She’s perfectly aware of how they’re out in the open in the middle of the day, but she can’t really bring herself to care at the moment. It’s been so long since she last got to touch Louis like this, both of them having been busy with academics and sports to get any proper time alone together, and her body is lighting up quickly at the older girl’s touch.
She opens up to the slick touch of Louis’ tongue, making a sound that’s something like a whimper when Louis pulls her closer. Harry tugs on the Slytherin’s robes, shuddering when Louis nips at her bottom lip. She feels Louis’ arm sneak around her waist, and then her world’s spinning as Louis flips them over, hand cradling the back of her head gently so that she doesn’t hit it on the ground.
Harry’s legs part easily so that Louis fits between them, mouth parting in a gasp as the older girl bites down softly on the side of her neck. Harry’s eyes flutter shut, and she’s just beginning to wonder if they can manage to sneak in a quick one without getting caught when Louis abruptly pulls away, cursing loudly.
“The Snitch!”
Harry blinks, slightly dazed. “What?”
“I forgot I was holding the Snitch, it fucking got away,” Louis exclaims, though there’s laughter in her voice.
Harry, despite getting interrupted in the heat of the moment, finds herself giggling. “Guess you have to go catch it again, then.”
Louis lifts an eyebrow, grinning mischievously. “Race you to it?”
“You know I can barely balance myself on a broom,” Harry deadpans.
Louis laughs, loud and bright and wonderful. Harry is so in love.
* * *
Harry still remembers sitting on the stands halfway through her second year, watching Slytherin against Gryffindor. It had been one of the most intense matches she has ever seen in the five years she’d been at Hogwarts, the tension only heightened by the long-standing rivalry between the two Houses.
At first she had been ready to support Gryffindor since Niall (a Hufflepuff in her year who she shares a few classes with) had told her that Liam Payne, one of the Gryffindor beaters, was her friend. So Harry came out to the pitch, ready to cheer with the sea of red students waving a giant flag of a roaring lion.
But then.
But then she saw Louis walk out into the pitch, looking strong and confident in her green robes, and well. It turned out that Harry would be cheering along not with the students in red, but rather with the students in green holding a banner of a coiled silver snake ready to pounce, instead.
During the entire match her eyes had been trained on the Slytherin Seeker, watching as she dodged Bludgers and zoomed around the pitch in search of the Snitch. Louis has always been amazing to watch, is the thing, even back then. The focus and determination on her face was clear, but all the while she had this grin that seemed permanently etched onto her face that showed she genuinely enjoyed being out there, lips always pulled up at the corners even as a Bludger came flying her way. There’s a certain elegance to her as well, something almost effortless in the way she rode on her Nimbus and maneuvered her way around the pitch.
Harry remembers holding her breath every time someone aimed a Bludger Louis’ way, remembers murmuring quiet encouragements under her breath whenever Louis’ face lit up as though she’d caught sight of the Snitch, remembers cheering whenever she heard that Slytherin had scored a goal.
And most of all, she remembers the moment she first made direct eye contact with Louis.
All she did was blink for a second, and then suddenly the Snitch was right there in front of her, golden wings fluttering. She gasped, and then a second later Louis was there as well, tiny fist closed around the Snitch, and.
And that was that.
Game over.
Harry had stared in awe, eyes wide as she looked up at Louis who was still hovering in front of her. Louis had stared back for a moment, and Harry remembers wanting to memorize the color of her eyes, the exact shade of blue, just in case they never get to interact again. It feels a bit like every cliché Harry has read in the Muggle books she grew up to, from the lighthearted fairytales Anne told her at nights to the Young Adult novels she snuck from Gemma’s shelf at the age of eleven. Seconds stretching into minutes, the rest of the world screeching to a pause, as though she’s under a spell.
Which, now that she thinks about it, isn’t too far off. Magic is real, after all.
And then Louis had winked at her, breaking the spell and setting everything back into motion, before flying off and leaving Harry flushed and just a little breathless.
Harry thought that that would be the first and last time Louis Tomlinson ever looked at her, but she was wrong. As it turned out, Louis and Zayn (a half-blood and one of Ravenclaw’s Chasers two years above Harry who she’s managed to befriend by striking up a conversation about Muggle authors one afternoon, when the older girl had walked into the common room and saw Harry curled up in front of the fireplace holding a collection of the Grimm Brothers’ fairytales) have been good friends since first year despite coming from different Houses. Zayn introduced Louis and Harry one day, Harry had blurted out something vaguely embarrassing about how amazing she thought Louis was in the match the other day, and Louis had smiled at her, the kind that made her eyes crinkle at the corners.
And that was that.
* * *
Louis shows up to breakfast two days before the match with shorter hair.
Like, really short.
“Figured I’d rather not risk it getting in my face while I’m flying,” she says in response to the question no one really asked but Harry knows Louis knows everyone is thinking, before sliding into the empty space on the bench beside Harry.
They’ve got this routine now—since the five of them all come from different Houses, they rotate which table they eat at everyday. Everyone’s gotten used to it, though some of the first years still throw them confused looks whenever Niall just sits beside Harry on the Ravenclaw table and greets her with a very loud, “Wey hey, morning Hazza!”
Today they’re at the Gryffindor table, and Liam is staring at Louis’ hair in confusion, her thick eyebrows furrowed. Zayn simply smirks into her goblet of pumpkin juice while Niall whistles lowly, says, “You’re really serious about winning this thing,” before going back to devouring her third slice of meat pie.
Harry, for her part, can’t quite stop looking at Louis. It’s not even that it looks bad, because it doesn’t. It really doesn’t. Louis still looks as stunning as ever, her fringe sweeping across her forehead that she pushes back with clever fingers (Harry would know firsthand just how clever those fingers are) and the tips curling just slightly at the nape of her neck. Everything else is neatly trimmed, reaching just below her ear, and it makes her look older. More mature. Harry feels a tug of arousal in the pit of her stomach.
But the thing is—it’s like what Niall said. Louis is really serious about winning the Quidditch Cup. Harry had been torn enough on who to support at the final game to begin with, since it’s a match between her House and her girlfriend’s, but now it’s just intensified because she can tell that Louis really wants this and Harry wants nothing more than for Louis to be happy.
Yet at the same time, she also wants to remain loyal to her House and hope for Zayn to win. She can’t even begin to imagine how Louis and Zayn must be feeling right now, both of them captains of their teams and both of them in their final year. It must be incredibly stressful.
Louis notices Harry staring, and she glances over, looking a little self-conscious now. She brushes her fingers over her fringe again, before pushing it back from her forehead and chuckling nervously. “Um, do you not like it?”
Harry blinks, shaking her head to herself and plastering on a smile. “No, I love it. You… you look great.”
Across the table, Niall snorts. “Louis always looks great to you.”
Harry flushes, slightly offended on Louis’ behalf. “Excuse you, Niall, but Louis is one of the most stunning people this school has ever—”
She’s cut off by Niall loudly laughing, and Harry feels slightly miffed. She’s calmed down when Louis pulls her in against her side, though, pressing a kiss against her temple and murmuring, “Thanks, babe,” into her ear, voice just soft enough for Harry to hear.
Harry turns her head for a kiss, one that Louis gladly gives to her.
“Please don’t start making out while we’re sitting at my House’s table,” Liam says, and Harry has a feeling that she’s not even looking at them.
Louis hums against Harry’s lips before pulling back, grinning at Liam over Harry’s head. “Jealous, Payno?”
Liam scoffs, but when Harry turns to look she can see that the Gryffindor is fighting a fond smile. It’s a losing battle and Harry knows the feeling all too well. They’re all a bit smitten with Louis, to be honest. It’s really impossible not to be.
“You better be prepared, Malik,” Louis says after a short while, reaching over the table so she can poke at her best friend with her fork.
Zayn just grins. “Oh we are. The real question is, are you?”
Louis sniffs. “That Snitch is mine and you know it.”
“You can have it,” Zayn says, waving a hand. “We’re after the Cup.”
“That, too.”
Niall suddenly slams her hand on the table, causing everyone within a five-meter radius to jump out of their seats and glare at them. The Hufflepuff doesn’t seem bothered in the slightest, however, her grin only intensifying when she says, “Match prediction! Ravenclaw will win, but Louis will catch the Snitch.”
Liam lifts an eyebrow, grin tugging at her lips. “Wanna bet on that?”
Which somehow leads to Niall taking out a roll of parchment from seemingly out of nowhere while students from all Houses swarm around her, listing bets on the match’s outcome. Zayn looks a little startled while Liam just pulls a bag from also out of nowhere to start collecting Sickles.
Louis taps at Harry’s shoulder. “Want to come to the pitch with me?”
Harry glances back at the chaos now occurring at the table and makes a quick decision. “Sure.”
* * *
Watching Louis fly takes Harry’s breath away every time.
She just looks so free, like she’s completely in her element. Like she truly belongs up there in the skies, one with the clouds and the birds and the sunlight, someone to look up to and just worship. The way her body moves so effortlessly, the way the sunlight brushes over her already-golden skin, the way the air seems to carry her—all of it just makes Harry want to watch Louis like this all the time.
And what’s even better is that she gets to join Louis up there sometimes, just like today.
Harry isn’t much of a flyer, to be honest. Though all of her friends are players for their respective Houses’ teams (with Liam being a Gryffindor Beater and Niall being a Hufflepuff Keeper), Harry has always preferred to watch instead. Sports has never really been her thing, even though she knows every rule by now with how many matches she’s been to (“With my knowledge and understanding of the Quidditch game, I feel like I should be a lot better at Quidditch,” she once told Louis after the five of them decided to pass a Quaffle around while twenty feet in the air, “but I’m not.”).
There’s also the fact that Harry’s got the grace of a newborn centaur on most days. It’s hard enough for her to balance on land, she honestly has no intentions of doing it in air.
But with Louis behind her, she just feels… safe. Protected. Like she’s invincible.
With that thought in mind, Harry swings her right leg over Louis’ broomstick, straddling it. She grips onto the handle tightly, fingers curling around the smooth wood. Seconds later she feels Louis slipping in behind her, arms settling on her hips to keep her steady, small yet talented hands closing over her fists in a touch that’s both guiding and reassuring.
“Ready?” Louis asks, breath tickling the nape of her neck (she had to pull all of her hair up into a bun) and making her shiver. She just nods once in confirmation, eyes slipping shut when she feels Louis press a gentle kiss against the side of her neck.
Then she feels the small shift where Louis bends her knees and gets ready, and then the older girl is kicking off the ground, and they’re off.
The first second of being in the air always knocks Harry’s breath away, the wind blowing past her face and rushing in her ears. It gets easier once they get into a smooth pace, though, just floating around aimlessly while Louis keeps her safe in her arms.
Harry loves these moments with Louis. Looking down and around her, she gets an odd feeling of serenity that’s not quite like the feeling of being in her study back at home, surrounded by shelves upon shelves of books. Maybe it has something to do with feeling peace even while being completely out of her element. Or maybe it’s because of Louis’ guiding presence.
A lot of things in her life are because of Louis nowadays, Harry thinks.
They land after a while, and Louis somehow convinces Harry to fly on a separate broom all by herself. Harry’s done this only a handful of times outside of the required classes when she was still in her first year, but she knows Louis won’t let anything happen to her so she agrees.
With a wave of the wand and a quick spell, Louis’ spare broom comes flying towards them. Louis helps Harry get on it first, and then with a deep breath they’re kicking off and flying once more.
Flying on her own is a lot different. For one, there’s no one guiding her—no arms keeping her steady, no firm grip over hers on the handle, no solid presence behind her to remind her that she’s not going to fall. Yet somehow she still feels safe, connected to Louis even, as she watches the older girl fly a little ahead of her.
The small grin Louis shoots over her shoulder makes Harry giggle. “Looking good!”
Harry smiles, wide enough that she feels her cheeks dimple. “Thanks.”
They’re not flying that high, Louis keeping their pace slow and steady because she knows that’s what Harry is comfortable with. Harry’s chest blooms with warmth and love.
Louis decides to show off a little (not that she needs to, honestly; Harry is already highly impressed just by her mere existence), flying a little higher and doing turns and spins. Harry laughs, and then a second later Louis is right there, hovering upside down right in front of her.
Harry’s breath catches a little in her throat.
Louis smiles at her, soft and fond, before asking, “Spiderman kiss?”
Harry somehow manages to narrow her eyes playfully at the older girl, even while her heart rate picks up. “Zayn’s been showing you her comics, I see.”
“And movies, too,” Louis says, still upside down. “Muggle culture is very interesting.”
“Perhaps you’d like to come to mine this break, then?” Harry asks. It’s completely out of the blue, surprising even herself.
Louis looks like she didn’t see it coming, either, eyes widening slightly. “You mean that?”
And now that Harry thinks about it—imagines Louis sitting in her home’s living room curled up on the couch while Marvel movies play on their telly, or maybe even on her laptop (Harry’s got the best of both worlds, really), imagines taking a walk around Holmes Chapel while holding Louis’ hand and just showing the older girl what Muggle life is like—the more the idea appeals to her.
Introducing Louis to her world, to her family—Harry finds herself smiling at the thought.
“Yeah,” she breathes out. “I do.”
Louis smiles. “Okay then. I’d love to go to yours.”
And then Louis leans in and kisses her, upside down and all. It feels a little something like fireworks, Harry thinks.
* * *
“Over here, Harry!” Niall calls, waving her arms in the air. Beside her stands Liam, eyes fixed on the grounds, waiting for the players to come out. Harry thinks it’s a little odd, seeing yellow and red in a sea of blue. Both of them are also holding little Ravenclaw flaglets.
“You’re both here,” she says when she finally reaches them.
Niall grins and shoots her a thumbs-up while Liam nods seriously. “No offense to Louis, since she’s probably the best Seeker this school has seen since Harry Potter, but I’m with Ravenclaw on this one.”
“What made you change your mind?” Harry asks, remembering their conversation at breakfast the other day where it seemed like the Gryffindor was betting on Slytherin to win the Quidditch Cup.
“Devine got an injury from practice just yesterday and they had to replace him with Lucas,” Liam answers, shrugging. “Louis’ probably driving herself mad right now.”
Harry bites her lip worriedly at that. She didn’t get the chance to go see Louis earlier, since the players were all busy doing whatever it is players do on the morning of a match. She barely even got to talk to Zayn, only managing a quick “good luck!” earlier when they passed by each other on the way out of the Hall before the Ravenclaw captain had to run off.
Thinking about Louis stressing herself out at a time like this… Harry is worried.
Niall must’ve sensed this, because the Hufflepuff throws an arm around her shoulders and says, “Louis will be fine. Honestly can’t say the same for Slytherin in general, but Louis will do great.”
Harry only nods, hand moving up to grip at the pendant of her necklace. It’s a silver ‘L’ engraved on a bright green jade stone, a snake entwined around the letter, something she got made with Louis just three months ago (Louis has her own matching necklace, a bronze ‘H’ engraved in the center of blue wings).
The cheering gets louder, suddenly, and they all look down at the grounds to see Madam Hooch step out onto the field, closely followed by the players from both teams. Harry watches as Zayn and Louis step up to each other and, instead of the usual handshake from both team captains before the start of a match, the two share a tight embrace right there in the middle of the field. They bump fists when they pull away, something that Zayn probably taught Louis, and then they’re walking back to their team and mounting their brooms.
The entire pitch goes silent as Madam Hooch releases the Snitch, both Louis and Perrie watching it fly off. The Bludgers are released next, and then it seems as though everyone collectively holds their breaths as Madam Hooch holds the Quaffle in her hand for a second, glancing at both teams, before throwing it high in the air.
“And they’re off!” comes the booming voice of the commentator, Ed from Hufflepuff, and the cheers start again. “Ravenclaw’s off to a good start, Pinnock in possession of the Quaffle, passes it to Thirlwall—ooh! Good dodge on that Bludger from Smith. Ravenclaw still in possession, Thirlwall going in for a point, she’s going in, she’s throwing it, and—oh, saved by Nelson!”
Slytherin erupts into cheers as Jesy raises her fist high in the air after blocking Jade’s shot, while Ravenclaw collectively groans. Harry glances briefly down the stands and sees Louis hovering close to the ground, eyes shifting between the players and Perrie, who’s flying somewhere higher.
“Okay, Slytherin now in possession! Lucas has the Quaffle, he’s passing it over to Daniels—Daniels passes it back after dodging a Bludger, Lucas going in for a point, Calder on guard at the goal, and—Malik steals!” A groan from Slytherin, a cheer from Ravenclaw. “Malik zooms past Daniels and Lucas, dodges Smith, dodges another Bludger from Hann, and—and score! Ten points go to Ravenclaw!”
Zayn high-fives Leigh-Anne and Jade as she flies back, and Harry can see that she’s enjoying this. Harry shouts a cheer at her friend, cupping her hands around her mouth and grinning when Zayn winks at her.
This goes on for the next several minutes, and when Harry glances at the scoreboard she sees that their House is leading. By a lot. Her first, natural reaction is to be delighted by this, but when she glances back at the pitch and sees Louis’ gaze fixed on the scoreboard as well, expression crestfallen, Harry feels the smile disappear from her face as quickly as it had formed.
Her eyes are now fixed on Louis. The Slytherin Seeker seems to shake herself out of it, and then she gets a determined set to her jaw. She starts flying around the pitch, blue eyes alert. More minutes pass, and it seems as though Louis was right—none of the Slytherins seem to want this title as much as Louis. The Chasers seem like they’re giving up, which is just oddly and very much un-Slytherin of them. Jesy seems to be the only one as determined as Louis, blocking as much shots as she can and shooting glares at her teammates.
The score’s at 180-30 now, in Ravenclaw’s favor.
They’re winning. Harry’s eyes go back to Louis, just in time to catch the grin that spreads over Louis’ face, and at first Harry is confused because Slytherin’s going to have to make fifteen goals just to catch up, but then she realizes the reason behind Louis’ smile.
She’s found the Snitch. Louis’ found the Snitch.
Harry looks back at the scoreboard. Slytherin’s scored a goal, making the score 180-40, and if Louis were to catch the Snitch now Slytherin would win by ten points. Harry honestly isn’t sure who to cheer for at this point—she’s already gotten a few glares from some of the people standing around her because she might’ve shouted for Slytherin a few times, but. Oh well. Harry doesn’t care about them right now.
“It seems that Tomlinson’s found the Snitch!” Ed says, and Harry sees Perrie snap into action. “Yes, Tomlinson’s spotted the Snitch, and—oh, it seems that Edwards is trailing right behind her!”
Everyone’s attention is on both of the Seekers now. Harry knows now what she has to do, makes up her mind in a split second, the reactions of her Housemates be damned—she stands a little higher, takes a deep breath, before shouting, “GO, LOUIS, GO!”
She gets startled looks from all the Ravenclaws around her, and they’re all probably going to hate her for this, but. Harry wants Louis to catch the Snitch. She wants Louis to have this. Niall and Liam follow her lead, shouting encouragements at Louis, and Harry glances around her quickly to check what the Ravenclaw’s reactions are. Most of them look mildly annoyed, but others look like they’re smiling resignedly, like they expected this would happen.
Oh well. Harry’s in love. Sue her.
The entire Slytherin stands is cheering with them now, and Louis flies past Harry, blowing her a kiss. That at least earns a few laughs from the Ravenclaws standing near her, and Harry pretends to catch the kiss in her hand and clutches it to her chest, close to her heart. She hears Louis’ laughter, now in her element, while the game continues on with the Chasers trying to snatch the Quaffle from each other, the Beaters aiming Bludgers at their opponents, the Keepers blocking the shots aimed at the goalposts.
Louis is now oblivious to all of this, only one goal in mind. Her eyes are focused, grin quirking up the corners of her lips. She’s got this. Harry knows she’s got this.
Another score from Slytherin. 180-50.
Louis swoops down abruptly, leaving Perrie, who had been trailing close behind her, in mid-air. Gasps erupt from the Hufflepuffs when Louis suddenly shoots up in front of them, and Harry catches a faint glimmer of gold flying just a few feet in front of Louis.
A score from Ravenclaw. 190-50.
Louis reaches out, fingers just barely brushing the Snitch. Perrie catches on to what’s happening at the same time the Ravenclaw Beaters do, and then all of their attention is on Louis. Harry gasps when a Bludger gets aimed at Louis, flying towards her, and if she doesn’t move now she’s definitely going to get hit. Harry opens her mouth to scream a warning even though she’s so far away, but then Louis ducks out of the way last minute.
The Snitch flies farther from her reach.
Perrie is suddenly flying towards it, her arm stretched, but then Louis is shooting up in front of her like a bullet, making her pull her hand back. At the same time a Bludger catches on the end of Perrie’s broom, causing her to go off balance in the middle of the air for just a second, but it’s enough for Louis to get closer to the Snitch.
“Tomlinson is closing in on the Snitch, she’s going to catch it, she’s going to—wait, wait, hold on, Malik is—Malik scores!” Ed shouts. “200-50, Ravenclaw!”
Everyone’s going wild by now. Harry’s almost leaning half of her body out of the stands, hands gripping tightly onto the edge of the wooden rail. She’s bouncing on her feet, her blood pumping in her veins, and then she sees Louis’ fingers closing around the golden glimmer of the Snitch just as Ed shouts, “Malik gets another goal in!”
Ravenclaw explodes. It’s deafening, everyone around Harry shouting, and she can barely hear Niall screaming, “I told you! I fuckin’ told you Lou’s gonna catch the Snitch!” at Liam. Harry blinks, glancing at the scoreboard, and sees the final results of the match.
210-200. Ravenclaw wins.
Everyone’s hugging each other all around her, and down on the grounds the players are flying down. Ravenclaw quickly throws their arms around each other, screaming at their victory, while Slytherin gives Louis claps on the back.
Harry starts fighting her way off the stands, breaking free from the mess of limbs, everyone just overwhelmed with their victory. Harry ignores Niall and Liam calling after her, ignores some of her Ravenclaw friends trying to pull her into a hug, ignores the annoyed stares she gets from students she bumps into. Her mind’s set on one thing, and it’s get to Louis, get to Louis, get to Louis.
She eventually manages to make her way down the stands, and then she’s running towards the pitch, towards the players dressed in green robes. Jesy spots her first and shoots her a grin, tapping Louis on the shoulder and pointing at Harry. The other Slytherins step aside, and Harry doesn’t really think about it much when she throws herself at Louis, arms moving to wrap around her girlfriend’s shoulders.
Louis catches her easily, arms wrapping around her waist. “Hey there, love. Your House won!”
Harry ignores that, instead says, “You were amazing out there. You were so… you are so incredible.”
There’s a flush on Louis’ cheeks, though Harry can’t tell if it’s from the compliment or just the rush of the game. Either way Louis looks incredibly pleased, and she cups Harry’s face in between her hands and kisses her right there and then on the field.
Harry makes a surprised noise in her throat but she responds to the kiss eagerly, pulling Louis closer to her and kissing her with all she’s got. She’s out of breath when they part, cheeks flushed and eyes wide as though she’s the one who’s just played a match.
“I love you,” she breathes out.
Louis’ eyes are crinkling at the corners with how much she’s smiling. “I love you, too.”
Zayn suddenly appears, then, throwing herself against Louis’ side. “You did it again, Tommo!”
Louis laughs, turning away from Harry for a moment so she can hug Zayn. “Speak for yourself, Zayn! You’re the one who made the winning goal for Ravenclaw, you fucker.”
“I was just lucky,” Zayn grins, blushing. “Had I hesitated for even a second it would’ve been a draw.”
Both teams turn to each other, then, exchanging friendly thumps on the back and even a few hugs here and there. Slytherin only moves aside when Madam Hooch approaches with the Quidditch Cup, handing it to Zayn with a smile.
“The winner of this year’s Quidditch Cup, Ravenclaw!”
Loud cheers erupt from the sea of blue, and Zayn gets lifted onto the shoulders of her teammates as she raises the cup above her head. Harry watches all of this unfold off to the side of the grounds, smile threatening to split her face in half, Louis’ fingers entwined firmly with hers.
* * *
Everyone’s celebrating Ravenclaw’s victory at the Great Hall, all students from all Houses sharing in a feast. There’s loud music and laughter, the sounds of goblets clinking and forks clattering against plates drifting all throughout the halls, and everyone’s just in a brilliant mood all in all.
Harry and Louis choose to not participate in the celebration.
Instead, they sneak outside.
Naturally, they find themselves by the pitch, giggling and talking in hushed voices even though no one’s around to hear them. Harry lets herself get tugged down on the grass, curling up against Louis’ side and blinking up at the night sky. “Want to look for constellations?”
Louis wrinkles her nose. “Ah, I’m rubbish at Astronomy. All stars look the same to me, to be honest.” She turns her head and grins, a twinkle in her eye that Harry thinks looks brighter than any star out there. “None of them are as bright as you, though.”
Harry barks out a laugh, lightly punching the older girl on the shoulder. “I was just literally thinking of the same thing!”
“Yeah?” Louis asks, laughter evident in her own voice.
“Yeah,” Harry confirms, letting out a breath. “No star can shine as bright as you.”
Louis’ expression softens. She pulls Harry closer against her side with the arm wrapped around the Ravenclaw’s waist, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. “Must be a soulmate thing, then.”
Harry’s breath hitches slightly, her hand curling into a fist where it’s resting on Louis’ chest for a second, before she uncurls it and rests her palm over the older girl’s heartbeat. She nuzzles her face into Louis’ neck and feels the Slytherin’s pulse flutter beneath her lips, before she’s breathing out, “Yeah. Must be.”
There’s a few beats of silence, and then Louis’ saying, “I’ll be leaving soon.”
Harry hums, though part of her feels sad by the reminder that this is Louis’ final year in Hogwarts. “I have two more years to go.”
“I’ll be waiting for you,” Louis says, placing her other hand over Harry’s where it rests just above her heart.
“I know you will.”
“Think I can make it professionally? Like, me being a Seeker, I mean.”
“Of course,” Harry says, quick and sure. “You’re incredible. You’d make a great professional Quidditch player.”
There’s a smile on Louis’ lips, small but grateful. “Thanks, love. What about you, though? Still want to be a teacher here?”
“Definitely,” Harry answers, smiling. “I’d love to teach Charms or—or maybe Transfiguration, even.”
“Zayn can be a Potions teacher,” Louis muses.
“True. But I think she wants to write, more than anything,” says Harry.
“Liam could be an Auror, and maybe Niall could be a Healer.”
Harry laughs at that, snuggling closer to Louis. “I just hope that, wherever we end up at after all of this, we’d all still be friends. The five of us.”
Louis’ hand squeezes hers reassuringly, and she sounds so sure when she says, “Of course.”
Harry chooses to believe that, letting her eyes fall shut, small smile on her lips. She drifts off to the sounds of Louis’ even breaths, calmed by the steady rise and fall of the older girl’s chest, and she thinks, of course.