Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was quite a rainy day, cool mist falling onto the streets of London providing a sense of relief from the hot summer weather. The city was filled to the brim with tourists and locals alike, all bustling around and going in and out of shops. Umbrellas that were up to protect from the weather were only adding to the tight feeling on the sidewalks. Charing Crossing Road itself was packed, the loud chatter of the people out and about contributing to the hum of the city noise. However, one building crammed in between the others was slightly different. It looked older, run down, and almost no one went in or came out. The building was passed and ignored by many, and those that did look at it didn’t stop to look twice. Except for one group.

A dark-haired man with round glasses wearing a long, black cloak was pushing three children along in the streets, accompanied by a woman with fiery red hair. Their heads were down and the kids were huddled close to each other, desperate to stay close and not be lost in the crowd. As they approached the door to the old building, the woman stepped in front and opened it discreetly, pulling the children in with her. Her husband followed them inside, but before he closed the door, he looked up for a split second to see if anyone had noticed their entry. The family had gone in so fast that almost no one even noticed they were gone, much less the lightning-shaped scar on the man’s forehead.

Unknowingly to the thousands of pedestrians on Charing Crossing Road outside, the rundown building was far from falling apart and full of laughing people. The sign on the inside read The Leaky Cauldron and had images of a wooden wand with sparks coming out of the tip. However, the customers on the inside were much different than the tourists on the outside- they were wearing their own long cloaks and some even had hats that stuck up and came to a point, and the most extreme were wearing full magic robes. Winding stairs rose from the first floor tables to a plethora of inn rooms, and owls could be heard squawking from a perch high in the ceiling. The restaurant was more than just a pub- it was a gathering for friends and family alike, and everyone seemed to know each other. Drinks were whizzing around the room, propelled by seemingly nothing, and the family of five shook the water off of their umbrellas before everyone turned to welcome them.

“Harry and Ginny Potter! So wonderful to see you again!” The bartender called from a table he was attending to, giving them a toothless smile. The pub erupted in cheers of delight as wizards and witches moved to welcome the group, shaking hands and greeting them.

Harry smiled widely as he shook the hand of a small, white-haired man in purple wizard robes. “Glad to be here, Tom.”

Tom himself had made his way over from the table to firmly grasp his hand and moved to shake Ginny’s as well. “It’s always a pleasure, good sir. What brings you here today?”

Ginny grabbed the hand of a small boy who was clutching her cloak. “These three need to go to Diagon Alley to prepare for their first year at Hogwarts,” she said playfully, nudging the boy with her leg lightly. The customers again erupted in chatter, congratulating the three children next to Ginny. The boy, who was clutching his mother’s arm, moved to grab the hand of a girl with dark hair and striking grey eyes next to him, who was already clutching the arm of another boy with dark skin and wild curls. The children all smiled nervously, a little uncomfortable with the new environment, but the girl’s smile turned quickly into a grin as she took in the scene.

Tom leaned down so he could be on the kids’ level. He turned to the first boy first, whose dark, unruly hair and brown eyes gave away his identity almost instantly. “You must be Mr James Sirius Potter,” he said kindly, offering his hand out for James to shake.

James grinned as he nodded and grasped Tom’s hand firmly. “Yeah, I am.”

Tom turned to the other two children, raising an eyebrow at Harry. “I’m assuming that these two aren’t yours?” He said, causing Ginny and Harry to laugh loudly.

“No, they’re not. This is Fred Weasley II, George and Angelina’s son, and Willow Houston, the daughter of some close family friends of ours. We decided to leave Albus and Lily at home with Will’s parents because it’s so busy, and she tagged along with us to get all of her things,” Harry explained, and Tom turned back to Will and Fred, offering them his hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you two,” he said.

Will beamed as she let go of James’ hand to shake Tom’s. “It’s nice to meet you, too.” As she spoke, the bartender noticed that she had a very prominent American accent, with only a hint of British.

Tom straightened his blazer as he stood up. “Come around back. I’ll get you guys situated,” Tom said, gesturing for the Potters to follow him. The many customers of the Leaky Cauldron waved at the family as they traveled to the back of the pub, bidding them goodbye, and with a quick tapping sequence from Tom with his wand on a great brick wall behind the building, Diagon Alley was revealed.

Diagon Alley was just as busy as the streets of London outside, packed with shoppers carrying large bags of merchandise and tugging their own eleven-year-olds and other children along. Harry turned to the kids. “Where to first, guys?” He asked.

Will’s eyes lit up. “Oh! Can we go to Ollivander’s first?”

Ginny laughed. “Sure. It’ll be nice seeing old Ollivander again, and I’m sure you guys are itching to get your wands.” On that note, they began walking down the alleyway, making their way to a small, narrow shop in the middle titled “Ollivander’s”. It was relatively empty for the time, and the Potters took advantage of this in order to get James, Will, and Fred’s wands in a timely fashion.

Harry didn’t hesitate before opening the door to the stop, which gave a small ring as the bell on the other side was moved. “Hello?”

“Harry and Ginny Potter! What a pleasure to see you again,” came a voice from the back of the area. A small, greying old man with a slight limp walked out from behind a shelf, a smile on his wrinkled face. He moved to shake Harry’s hand, and Harry could only grin back.

“The pleasure is mine, old friend.”

Ollivander turned to the children, who all had different expressions on their faces. James was scanning the room quickly, taking in every detail of the shelves of wands. Fred was staring at an open box on the table closest to them, the long, brown wood glistening even in the low lighting. Will was looking up at Ollivander, her eyes full of curiosity as she watched the exchange between the shopkeeper and Harry. “You must be James Sirius Potter, Fred Weasley II, and Willow Houston,” he said, an eyebrow raised with interest. James nodded earnestly, his attention reverted back to the wandmaker. He pulled out a measuring tape and measured James, Fred, and Will from head to toe, asking them which arm was dominant and measuring the respective forearm and hand. The children looked at each other in confusion, but Harry and Ginny, who had taken seats on a couch in the corner, only laughed. When he was finally done, Ollivander studied James for a second before moving to the back of the room without another word.

“What was that?” James whispered to Will, but she only shook her head in response. The old man had disappeared, only to reappear a few moments later, holding a short box, a deep brown color. He pulled the wand out, handing it to the young Potter. The boy looked at his parents who nodded encouragingly at him, and he tentatively grabbed it.

“Ash wood, phoenix feather core, 11 inches. Go on now, give it a wave.” Olivander smiled at him crookedly. James nodded, and with a small twitch of his wrist, a jet of yellow light shot out of the wand and shattered the vase sitting on the desk that welcomed customers. While James nearly dropped the wand in surprise, Will and Fred were laughing hysterically, while Olivander took the wand back from James, giving him a curious look. Behind him, his mother was grinning while Harry stood shaking his head. When Ollivander reemerged, a new box in hand, he said, “your father did almost the exact same thing when he was first trying wands. And if you're any more like him, we could be here all day trying to find the right wand for you.”

The next box Ollivander handed James was a deep blue. The wand inside was long and elegant, a thick handle twining upwards into a slim wand. James took it delicately and looked at his parents before he swished it again. The spell hit the wall and richoched off, bouncing around the store and singeing Will’s hair before Harry stopped it with a wave of his own wand. The young boy was staring dumbfounded at his hands as the old man laughed and took it away from him.

“So perhaps not that one, either.” Ollivander’s creaky voice echoed from the back halls. On his third return, he carried two boxes, about the same length and color, both were deep olive toned. He held one out to Will, and another to James. They both grabbed their wands, Will moving to grab hers eagerly, while James was still more tentative. Willow clasped her tightly, as she grinned, and pointed it at James in a mock duel manner. Her grin was fierce and James rolled his eyes at her before he mimicked her position. He stood relaxed, and unlike Will, held his wand loosely smirking confidently at her. Besides him, Ollivander stood watching the two with interest, but particularly James. Before they could smite each other with haywire magic, the wand maker stepped in between them and placed a hand gently on James’s shoulder, taking the wand from his hand. He put it back in its case, and wandered off, leaving the two staring at each other in confusion. For the fourth time, Ollivander returned, a long box of deep red tones in his hand.

“Red Oak wood, 13 inches, with a Unicorn Hair core. A wand particularly temperamental, but extremely loyal and a sign of a good and adaptable man or woman. Give it a try.” He handed the wand down to James who took it carefully. In his hand it fit perfectly, and as he held it up, it felt like a proper extension of himself. He pointed it carefully at Will, and with a quick flick of his wand at her, a small jet of crackling purple shot at her, and when it connected, acted like a static shot and frizzed her already crazy curls. James let out a whoop of joy and smiled widely at both his parents as Will glared at him as she brushed her fingers through her hair to try and de-friz it, eventually giving up and throwing it behind her in a french braid. The two Potters stood up from their seats in the window and came to grasp their son tightly, and Ginny ruffled her son's hair proudly.

“Aw man, of course James gets his wand first,” Will muttered under her breath as she turned to Fred. He laughed at her and gestured to the wand in her hand, “at least you got to try one already.” Will shrugged in return, she hadn't been able to get a shot off, and even then it didn't feel right for her.

“Well, perhaps we can change that, Mr. Weasley.” Ollivander had crept up behind him, and Will jumped in surprise at his sudden appearance, but he handed Fred an emerald box before walking into the back to grab a few more.

Across the street in the Magical Menagerie, another first year was staring wide eyed at the creatures surrounding her. She dashed from cage to cage grinning at each of the animals inside. “Blaise, look at this one!” The girl pointed excitedly at a sleek black cat that was staring back at them with golden toned eyes. She was wearing a tattered grey hoodie with blue jeans and was clutching her brown rain jacket tightly as she looked at the animals.

“I don’t know, Athena, I don’t think Plum would like her too much.” The boy standing behind her, who was wearing a Slytherin sweatshirt, black jeans and a black rain jacket, was referring to his own cat, a gorgeous brown Maine Coon who was highly territorial and could barely stand the other cats in the Slytherin common room.

“Hm, I guess you're right.” The girl turned around to look at him and sighed as she said, “none of these feel quite right.”

Blaise smiled at her slightly. “Do you wanna go to the Owl Emporium?” Athena’s eyes lit up and she smiled widely at him.

“Can we?” When he nodded in agreement, she grabbed his forearm and dragged him out the door to the next shop over. This shop was full of hooting noises and the rustling of feathers, and the cages and perches on the wall were crowded with owls, all different shapes and sizes.

Blaise, only twelve years old, watched his slightly younger friend stare in wonder at all the large animals. Second-year Blaise had been tasked with the job of taking his friend to Diagon Alley with her uncle to prepare for her first year at Hogwarts. Her parents were busy with work affairs, and Athena’s uncle, Rabastan Lestrange, was supposed to be supervising. Her mother, Rae Burns, was the third sibling of the Lestranges. Rodolphus, Rabastan, and Rae. However, Rabastan was trying to keep a low profile as his relations to Rodolphus and Bellatrix hadn’t really put him in the best spot with the Ministry. He trusted Blaise to keep track of his young niece while he headed to a secret bar near Knockturn Alley to stay out of trouble.

Blaise was the son of Roland Whitacker and Melody Zabini, Blaise Zabini's half sister. Melody had not been terribly close to her half brother, and because they had different fathers, they looked nothing alike, with her having pale skin and deep blue eyes in contrast to his dark skin and dark eyes, but she loved him all the same, and after his death, she named her first and only son after him. Because of the close familial relations between Athena's family and Blaise's, they were practically related and had been brought up as siblings. Blaise was the purest of the pure bloods, raised to be the best example of a Slytherin. His dark, tousled hair and striking blue eyes gave him an uninterested look, nearing boredom. However, as the small blonde girl next to him cooed at a snowy owl through a cage, someone looking closely could see the smile in his eyes.

“Blaise, look at this one!” She pointed to a great brown barn owl, who looked at her and gave a soft hoot.

“Do you want that one, Athena?” Blaise said kindly, leaning down.

Athena’s green eyes sparkled. “That would be great!”

Blaise smiled as he spoke to the manager of the Owl Emporium, a tall, lanky man in midnight blue wizarding robes, and the man nodded as he moved to take the cage with the barn owl down from its perch on a high shelf. But as he was doing so, suddenly, there was a jet of red light that came flying into the shop, appearing from almost nowhere. Blaise grabbed Athena and pulled her close to him using his wand to throw up a desperate ‘protego’ around them. The shop owner had the same idea, and cast a much larger, much more powerful one around the majority of the shop and the animals inside. Despite the great efforts to protect them from the unknown spell, the magic fizzled out almost immediately as it had appeared.

The two kids and the shop owner leaned around the shelves to see what had occurred, and saw a broken window across the street from the Ollivander’s store. There was a newly formed hole in the glass and behind it, three peeping faces of two boys and a girl, and behind them, three very concerned looking adults. Blaise still had his arm wrapped around Athena, and was positively fuming at the people across the street. The shopkeeper was rapidly walking around the shop, tending to animals that had not been protected and the singed feathers that had appeared.

“Whoops,” said Will, grimacing as she looked at the gaping hole in the Owl Emporium she had created with the wand Ollivander had given her, walking over to the shop along with James and Fred.

Despite the destruction, Ollivander had a hint of a smile on his face. “Apparently that wasn’t the right fit for you, Miss Houston,” he said, taking the ivory wand from her hand.

“She could’ve killed us!” Blaise said angrily at Ollivander.

Will raised an eyebrow. “My bad.”

Blaise let go of Athena’s shoulders and rounded on Will. “You better watch it if you know what’s good for you,” he growled, expecting Will to shrink back in fear.

However, she didn’t back down and glared at him. “Oh yeah? Or what?” She said back, raising an eyebrow.

Blaise clenched his fist, barely keeping his anger contained. “You don’t want to find out. You’re a walking disaster.”

Will grinded her teeth, still not afraid of the older, taller boy. “Oh, I’m really scared now. Watch out, James, we’re going to be murdered in our beds tonight by a twelve year old,” she said in a mocking tone, causing James and Fred to snicker.

At this time, Harry decided to intervene. “Woah, calm down, kids. Hey- what’re you doing here, Blaise?” He asked, turning to the boy.

Blaise sneered. “Hey, Professor. I was just trying to get my friend an owl before we were almost killed.”

Harry winced. “I’m sorry about that. You know how new wands are.” But, as he studied Athena and recognized her, a thought struck him. Ginny could see the pieces click together in his head, and realization dawned on him. “Wait, are you two related to-”

“-Blaise Zabini and Bellatrix Lestrange. We are, actually.” Athena had stepped from behind Blaise where she had been watching the interaction.

James took one look at her and started laughing. “And who are you?”

“Athena Burns-Lestrange. Your family killed ours, as well as some of their friends.” Athena was smaller than most other girls her age, but drawing herself up to her full height and using the piercing glare she had inherited from her family, she made quite a threat. “That being said, I don't feel like wasting the rest of my day arguing with another pretentious, privileged little boy. Come on, Blaise.” She grabbed Blaise’s arm and led him to the register, and Blaise pulled out the bag of Galleons that Rabastan had given him for Athena’s things and paid for the great brown owl. Steam was nearly coming out of James’ ears as he watched the cage be handed to Athena, and she glared at him one last time before heading out the door with Blaise’s hand on her shoulder to Flourish and Blotts.

“Well, that went well,” Fred chuckled, and Will rolled her eyes.

“Stupid Slytherin uptight asshole. Who does he think he is, threatening me?” She grumbled, stomping back into Ollivander’s with James on her heels.

“Yeah, and the girl was nasty too,” James muttered.

Will stopped and looked at him, her hands on her hips. “James, you’re just mad that she stood up to you,” she teased, and James’ cheeks flushed.

“I am not!”

Will sighed. “Well, I’ve always been envious of blonde hair. Hey, JP, maybe you’ll get married!” She said, mocking him.

James scowled and pushed her away. “Shut up. Like that would happen.”

Ollivander chuckled, following them back into his shop. “I know just the wand for you, Miss Houston,” he said, and went to the back room only to return with a long, dusty maroon box. He opened it expertly and Will sighed at the sight. It was long, slender, and all black with a simple but elegant handle. “Rowan wood with a phoenix feather core. Twelve and three quarter inches, with supple flexibility. It is a protective wand made for those who are pure of heart.”

As Will took the wand from him, she could feel it almost come alive in her hand. She turned it over in her fingers a couple times, feeling every inch before turning it on James. “Payback,” she whispered so only he could hear, and his eyes widened. Large, extravagant red sparks flew out of the tip of the wand, one landing on James’ nose.

“Hey, watch it, Will!” He said, frantically dusting off the sparks before he could get burnt.

Will erupted in laughter as Ollivander grinned, taking the wand back from her and putting it inside its box. “Karma’s a bitch,” she said quietly, and James scowled.

Finally, Ollivander turned to Fred. “Don’t think I forgot about you, Mr Weasley. I’ll be right back.” James was sitting down now, curled on the window seat by his parents, who whispered quietly to themselves about the interaction that had occured. Will and Fred II were standing, marveling over Willow's new wand as they waited for Ollivander to return. When he did finally return he was carrying a stack of wand boxes. He set them on his front desk and smiled at the young boy.

“Let’s continue, shall we?”

In Flourish and Blotts, Athena had taken her owl out of her cage and with the treats they had also purchased, she coaxed the owl onto her shoulder. Behind her, Blaise was ranting as he carried the cage and the books that Athena was grabbing and handing to him. “Stupid family, with their stinking righteousness and thinking they’re able to get away with everything. You know, ‘Thena, that if we ever did something like that, there would be hell to pay.”

“Blaise, I know that you don't get along with them, but you also shouldn’t be fighting with your professor and his family a week before school starts. You’re going to get a detention before it even begins.” The barn owl on her shoulder hooted softly in seeming agreement, and Athena grinned. The bird wasn’t fully grown yet as the shopkeeper told her, and the two had plenty of time to bond, and Athena adored her already. “I think I’m going to call her Eos. What do you think, Blaise- Blaise?” When she had turned to ask him, she found him gone from where had been behind her. Athena sighed and set the book she was carrying down on the shelf where she found it in order to look for him. “Blaise?” The young boy was sitting at the window, gazing out at the street ahead. Athena approached him tentatively. “What’re you looking at?”

Blaise jumped at her words and turned away quickly. “Nothing, nothing,” he said hastily. “Are there any more books you need?”

Athena, however, didn’t answer, as she had put herself in Blaise’s position and followed his gaze out the window. He had been watching the Potters walk out of Ollivander’s, a bag carrying three wands in Harry’s hand. All three of the children were smiling, and Will had put both of her arms around Fred and James’ shoulders. As the two watched, Will said something, and Fred let out a loud laugh and James scowled at her, pushing her. “Gross,” Athena said, turning away.

Blaise smirked. “You got that right. Look at her, she walks like she owns the world. A filthy Gryffindor if I ever saw one. Make sure you steer clear, ‘Thena. Rabastan would hate it if we were ever seen associating with the likes of those three.”

Athena nodded. “Of course.” The kids paid for the books and promptly left to move on.

Meanwhile, Will, James, and Fred were in the Owl Emporium. The shopkeeper had given them dirty looks when they walked in, but upon seeing Harry and Ginny, he quieted and showed the children the different owls. “Wow! Look at this one, guys,” Fred said, pointing at a large Great Grey.
Will looked uninterested as she turned in a circle. “I don’t know- GUYS! LOOK AT THAT ONE!” She yelled loudly, causing nearly everyone in the store to jump. James and Fred followed her pointer finger to a large Blakiston’s Fish owl. It was huge, nearly two and a half feet tall, and had a beautiful coat of black feathers. As Will got closer, she noticed that some of the feathers on its tail were singed towards the ends, presumably from Will’s wand incident earlier.

The shopkeeper noticed her interest and brought the cage down from its high perch on the shelf. “Oh no, it seems as if this one’s feathers are burnt,” he said worriedly, unlocking the cage. “Hopefully he can still fly.”

Will stared at the great owl, and he stared right back. The owl cocked his head in a look of curiosity, taking in Will’s wonder and seemingly judging her as if he knew she was the one who had injured him. He flapped his wings indignantly and took off, flying in loops around the shop. Will watched him in interest, and to finish his performance, he landed on her arm, which was outstretched in front of her. Everyone gasped as the owl stared at Will, his wings still flapping as he squawked in her face. For a second, no one dared to move, afraid that getting any closer would provoke the owl into harming her.

Will did not back down from the large owl on her arm, and to everyone’s surprise, brought it closer to her face, her arm struggling to maintain the weight of the huge bird. It seemed as if time had stopped, Ginny’s hand clasped tightly to her mouth and Harry’s mouth wide open, before Will looked the owl in the eyes and muttered nine words: “I’m sorry I burned you. It was an accident.” The owl cocked his head again, and for only a second, Will was nervous. But before she should back away, the bird hooted affectionately and nuzzled her face with his head.
James and Fred cheered as Will giggled, and Harry and Ginny sighed in relief. The shopkeeper, who had been genuinely afraid for the small girl, was impressed by her bravery and how she had tamed one of his most wild owls. “You pick this one, I presume?” He asked kindly, and she gave him a toothy smile as she nodded vigorously.

Harry and Ginny shared a smile as the Fish Owl was put back in its cage. “One down, two to go,” Ginny said, and Harry nodded. Wandering around the store, Will was cooing at her new companion as she threw out names while James and Fred searched for their own new animals.

“What about Blaze?” She asked James, and he groaned.

“Isn’t that the name of the asshole kid we met earlier?” He said, and Will made a gagging noise.

“Ew, you’re right. I think it was Blaise with an ‘s’, though,” she said matter-of-factly, and Fred raised an eyebrow.

“He made such an impression on you that you remember his name? Interesting,” he said snidely, causing James to burst out laughing and Will stuck her tongue out at him.

“Okay, so not that. Hmm, what about Flame?” Will asked rhetorically.

“What is it with you and fire, Will?” James muttered, and she rolled her eyes before it hit her.

“I’ve got it! Ember!” She said, and her owl hooted in approval. She turned to James. “By the way, James Potter, I burned this owl in an accident so I think that a fire name would be very fitting. Besides, fire is awesome.”

“Okay, I get the fire, but Ember kind of sounds like a stripper name.” Fred said, shrugging.

“Fred Weasley! You watch what you're saying, young man.” James’s parents had reappeared behind them and Ginny whacked him on the head.

“Oww, woman! I was just trying to diffuse the tension,” Fred said, smirking as he walked away to look at another owl, rubbing the back of his head.

“Don’t call your aunt ‘woman’ like that, Mister!” Harry yelled after him as he walked away.

James and Will snickered as James examined another cage. Inside was a small red owl, snuggled into his wings as his chest fluttered gently. When James clucked at it softly, the bird opened one eye and stared at him for a moment. James grinned back and the bird shifted a little, coming closer to the cage door and the two kids outside before seeming to drift back asleep. “Hey, Dad, what about this one?” Harry drifted back over to them and stared at the owl for a moment. A soft smile came to his face as he watched the little bird fondly. After Hedwig had died, Harry hadn't gotten another owl right away, and it wasn't until he had started working at Hogwarts and Ginny was drafted by the Holyhead Harpies that he got another. They had a beautiful family owl now whose name was Honor, and she was a very large and lovely Barred Owl.

“She’s pretty small, don’t you think, James? She’d look like a dwarf next to Honor,” he said.

“Yeah, I know, but still look at her little face.” When James turned to look at him, he made pleading eyes and Harry couldn’t resist his son.

“Of course, James, we’ll get her. Now we just need to help Fred search for his.”

Fred was again the last to pick and when he had decided, he chose a medium sized Spectacled owl with colorings as if she was wearing round glasses. As the kids walked out, Will had her owl on her shoulder and James and Fred had theirs on their arms.

“What are you going to name them, guys?” Will asked, and the boys shared a look.

“I think I’m going to name her Valkyrie, Val for short. It’s a perfect name for a gorgeous bird,” Fred said, causing Will to nod approvingly.

“I love it, Fred. It’s very majestic.” She turned to James. “What about you, JP?”

“I was kind of thinking of Garnet.” He said, studying his little owl on his arm.

“Why on Earth would you call it that?” Fred asked.

“Well she's a very small, very red owl, and a garnet is a red precious gem. Right, mom?” Ginny pulled her son close to her in a half hug as they wandered and she nodded her head in agreement.

The group wandered out of the owl shop and to stop for lunch at a nearby vendor and Will saw a flash of blonde hair out of the corner of her eye, immediately recognizing it as the girl from earlier. She saw the girl (Athena?) carrying her own owl on her shoulder as she followed the older boy into a now empty Ollivander’s. Both were holding bags of school supplies and she looked around before walking in, and made eye contact with Will as she entered. She held eye contact with her for a moment before smirking and walking fully inside. Will raised an eyebrow, confused at the interaction. She decided to brush it off and caught up a few steps to her family.

Inside Ollivander’s, Athena trudged in behind Blaise and was immediately hit by a darkness that was stark in contrast to the bright outdoors. The whole in the window had already been repaired and there were curtains pulled tight around the windows blocking out the sun. Athena turned to Blaise, who was already reclining in the chair by the window as Athena stared around at the shelves lining the walls. Each one was cluttered with boxes presumably holding wands, but there was no sign of the old man who ran the store. Before she could turn to ask Blaise a question, Athena saw a pair of silver eyes emerge from the back of the shop that were followed by the rest of the slouched old man.

“Miss Burns, I was wondering when I’d be seeing you.” His voice was scratchy, sounding almost like he had a cold. “I remember you around this time last year, you were with Mr Whitacker as he got his own wand. How is it holding up for you, young man?”

Blaise grinned from his seat and pulled his wand from a holster attached to his belt loops. The wand was black, it had sliver designs curling up and down the handle and had a shining crystal at the end. “Perfect, Mr Ollivander.”

Ollivander allowed a small smile to touch his lips. “I’m glad to hear it. Your wand is still one of the most exquisite I have ever made.”

Blaise gave a small chuckle. “I’ve never been happier. You told me poplar wood best fits a wizard with integrity- I do hope I’ve managed to uphold that.”

Ollivander raised an eyebrow, remembering the scene that Blaise and Will had caused earlier. “Interesting, Mr Whitacker, interesting.” He turned his focus to Athena as she watched the interaction. She had sharp green eyes that seemed far more intellectual than she was willing to let on.

“You look remarkably like your father, dear, although I must say you bear extreme resemblance to the Black side of your family. Your aunts Narcissa and Andromeda have that same face shape and smile.” Athena smiled shyly back at him, as he took out his own wand and began measuring her. Once he had completed that he stared for another moment before wandering to his back room. Athena turned to look at Blaise curiously who simply shrugged and began messing with a loose thread on the chair.

The first wand Ollivander returned with was in a rich red box, and the wand he pulled out was exquisitely carved, nearly as elegant as Blaise’s. Athena swallowed as she picked it up, worried she would somehow ruin the delicate piece of wood. At his encouragement, she grasped it and turned it over in her hands. She was no stranger to wands, both her parents had them and she had grown up with magic, but holding one for the first time truly was a whole different thing. She pointed it away from the two men and the room and before she could even move her hand a powerful jet of blue light nearly sent Athena recoiling from the blast.

“Well then, Miss Burns, I do suppose that that is not the wand for you.” Ollivander hurriedly took away the wand and bustled to the back of the shop before returning with an entire stack of potential boxes. Athena sighed and then straightened her posture, rolling her shoulder back as she grabbed the wand Ollivander was holding out to her. It was much shorter than the last one and nearly bone white.

“It's a silver lime wand, they were once rumored to only work for purebloods, and powerful ones at that. Give it a try now.” Athen waved her arm again and this time, it was a pure white light that shot out that left a singe mark in the wall. Seeing the mark she left, she winced and nearly shoved the wand back to Ollivander. He noticed this as well as how both she and Blaise avoided eye contact with him after that. He shifted back to the stack of boxes and pulled a rich blue toned one out.

“Try this one.” He stepped back and observed her carefully. While she was still a kid, she was much less exuberant trying out the wands than the Potter family had been, which he noted carefully. When she flicked her wrist this time, there was another white light but slightly darker in color. She sighed again as she lowered it and handed it back to the shopkeeper.

“I'm sorry this is taking so long, sir,” she said quietly under her breath so he had to strain to hear her.

“Don’t worry about it, dear, this isn't supposed to be a short process. One does not usually find their most important connection in only twenty minutes. That being said, I think I have the perfect wand for you.” He pulled out another box, this one a beautiful green color almost the same shade as her eyes. When he handed the box to her, she slid the lid off and revealed a deep brown wand with metal wrapped around the hilt of it where she would hold it. Past that, the wand spiraled gently, slowly turning lighter towards the tip. “It’s a Hawthorne wand, 13 inches, with a Dragon Heartstring core. This wand needs a witch with talent to handle it, as it can be temperamental and oftentimes considered ‘conflicted’.”

Athena held it in her hands and with a little more confidence, waved the wand in a circular motion, producing a circle of low blue light waves. They disappeared almost instantly and when they did, Athena turned and grinned at Ollivander. “It feels amazing, it's perfect, sir!” She beamed happily and even Blaise smiled a little as he watched the interaction.

“I'm glad to hear it my dear. I think it's a sign that you will have to be very strong, and you’ll have a very interesting path.” He smiled gently as Blaise paid and Athena’s owl fluttered back up to her shoulder. As her and Blaise left the shop, he watched them leave. “Very interesting, indeed.” He turned and disappeared, back to the far end of the shop.

Far away on the south side of Diagon Alley, James, Fred, and Will were getting fitted with new robes. Madame Malkin was scurrying around her store, trying to fit all three of them at once. Harry and Ginny had left them inside, trying to save time by getting the books while the children got their robes. Will looked over at James as Madame Malkin measured her torso. “You know, James, I think you're going to be sorted into Slytherin.”

James’ face reddened. “I am not! If any of the three of us is going to be a Slytherin, it’s going to be you.”

Fred chuckled. “Yeah, and then you can see that Blaise kid that you were so fascinated with, Will.”

Will glared at him. “Shut up, Freddie, we all know nothing is going to happen there. He’s stuck up, full of himself, and frankly a bully. I don’t know how that blonde girl can put up with him.”
Fred rolled his eyes, putting his arms up so his waist could be measured. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyways, I would be happy in any house, to be perfectly honest. I’m sure that we’re all expected to be in Gryffindor, though.”

James rolled his eyes. “Of course we are. My parents would probably disown me if I was put anywhere else.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “No they wouldn’t, JP. Your parents would be perfectly happy if you were sorted into any house.”

James shook his head. “They say that, and I know my mom would be, but my dad would be so disappointed. Albus has always been his favorite, anyways.”

Will chuckled. “I get that. Mason is my parents’ favorite by a large margin- but you guys know that already.”

Fred grinned at his best friends. “I can’t relate to you two peasants because I’m an only child. I’m simultaneously the favorite and the least favorite,” he joked, making the other two laugh loudly.

After a long process of robe fitting, the kids were getting antsy. When they had finished, Will was more than ready to leave and explore Diagon Alley some more. Harry and Ginny had paid Madame Malkin before they had left just in case the trio finished before them and gave them strict instructions to stay put until they came back, taking the three cages of owls with them. However, Will had other plans. She grabbed her bag of robes and opened the door, causing Fred and James to follow her in alarm.

“Will, we’re supposed to stay here until Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry get back,” Fred said indignantly.

Will turned back to him and rolled her eyes. “So what? I want to explore. Let’s go to Knockturn Alley,” she said, and James grabbed her arm before she could walk away.

“Will, stop. You know we’re not supposed to go over there,” he warned, but she shook her arm out of his grip.

“Does it look like I care?” She asked, and Fred facepalmed. “Besides, what’s the worst that could happen? Knockturn Alley isn’t nearly as dangerous as it was before the war, and we’ll be back before anyone notices we’re gone.”

Fred looked at her, forehead creased with worry. “What if we get caught? What then, Will?”

“The worst that could happen is we get grounded- and frankly, I’m grounded every other weekend, so it’s not even that bad anymore. Oh my god, Fred, your dad won’t even be mad! Frankly, he’ll be proud of you,” Will said matter-of-factly, and Fred’s cheeks flushed.

“You’re probably right. Alright, let’s go.” Will smiled as Fred moved to follow her, and James sighed.

“I guess someone has to go with you two dunderheads to make sure you don’t get kidnapped or enslaved,” he muttered, grabbing Will’s hand as they laughed.

Although Will was right about it not being as dangerous since the war ended, Knockturn Alley was still sinister and full of very shady people. All eyes were on the three eleven year olds as they walked through the narrow street, but Will held her head high. Her courage was paying off, as people were staring but not enough to make her uncomfortable. However, James was gripping her hand so tightly she thought she was going to lose circulation in her hand. “James, you’re not going to get abducted off the streets in broad daylight. You can loosen your grip a little,” she whispered, and he blushed as he let go a little.

“Sorry.” The trio kept walking until they reached a small bar squeezed in between two large shops. The sign was worn down so much that it could no longer be read, and Will shrugged and moved to open the door.

“Will, you’re batshit crazy!” Fred muttered, but she simply smirked at him as she pushed the door open.

The bar was dark and almost empty except for the bartender and one other man with his hood of his cloak up over his head sitting at a table, a cloudy drink in his hand. “Awesome, I’m thirsty. Let’s get something to drink,” Will said, walking to the bar and climbing onto a chair.

The bartender was a tall and lanky man who was wearing a dusty trench coat. As he took in the three eleven year olds that had just walked into his bar, he wondered who their parents were and why they had allowed them to walk into a notorious Knockturn Alley bar alone. But the more he looked, the more he was confused. The girl that had sat down first was definitely Asian or at least part Asian, and the boy on her left was black. However, the last boy that looked so painfully scared and stood so close to the girl looked strangely familiar. Something about those dark eyes, the messy brown hair- suddenly, it hit him. Trying to keep his expression neutral, the bartender turned his back on the kids, grabbing three glasses. James Sirius Potter was sitting behind him, and he knew that if any harm came to the boy, his bar would be shut down faster than you could say ‘protego’.

“Three Gillywaters, please,” the young girl said, and the bartender turned to look at her. She had pale grey eyes from afar, but as he looked closer, he found that they were so piercing that he felt like she could see right through him. She raised an eyebrow as he stared, and he quickly looked away, resting his eyes on the man with the cloak at the table.

“What’s your name, girly?” The bartender said in a rough voice, not making eye contact.

The girl hesitated, but eventually straightened her back and stared at the bartender, almost daring him to look up at her. “Will Houston. This is James Sirius Potter and Fred Weasley II.”

“Will!” James muttered, elbowing her.

“What? What’s he going to do with our names- as if he hasn’t recognized you already,” she whispered back fiercely, and the bartender smirked. Smart girl. He had started to like her more and more by the second.

“I’ll get you those Gillywaters right away,” the bartender said kindly to James, and Will smiled. Maybe this old fart wasn’t so bad after all.

However, as he was preparing the Gillywaters, the bartender saw the man move out of the corner of his eye. The man had stood up, drawing himself to his full height. With his face still hidden by his cloak, he walked over to the bar and sat down next to James abruptly, making him jump. “Make that four Gillywaters, Avery,” the man rasped.

Avery raised an eyebrow at him but did as he was told, and within the next minute, he had presented his four customers with large, skinny glasses full of greenish Gillywater. Will took hers eagerly, taking a large sip. “You kids should be careful who you give your names to. There’s people out in the world who would use that against you,” the man in the cloak snided.

Will raised an eyebrow and turned her chair to look at the man directly. She wasn’t stupid, and she had gotten a good vibe from Avery- a vibe that she could trust him. However, this man made her feel uneasy, and danger sensors in her brain were going off at an alarming rate. “You should be careful who you associate with. We’re just a couple of kids in a bar- and you are a stranger. We’re not supposed to talk to strangers.”

The man looked up ever so slightly, enough for Will to see his dark blue eyes and a long scar down the left one. She reactively put her hand up to fight, but the man only laughed. “You’re lucky that Avery is here, or else I would kill all three of you right now. Your blood is filthy because of your association with those damned Muggles and Mudbloods, and you don’t belong in the world I’m going to create. Besides, what’s the fun in a quick, easy death? I think I’ll save it for when you’re older so I can take more pleasure in hearing you beg for me to kill you faster.”

Avery dropped a glass, causing it to shatter. “I’m going to ask you to leave, sir,” he said angrily, and the cloaked man laughed.

“Oh, come on, Avery. I’m just having a bit of fun.” He slapped down a Galleon to pay for his drink along with the other three. “I’ll remember you, Willow Houston. Be very careful during your years at Hogwarts- I have eyes everywhere.” He turned to James. “Oh and James, do say hi to your dear father for me.” On that note, the man turned in his chair and promptly Disapparated. The room was silent for a second after the departure of the man, but Will soon broke it. “Well, he definitely has a stick up his ass,” she joked to diffuse the tension, and James and Fred laughed nervously.

Avery cracked a smile as he took the Galleon and wiped a dirty rag across his forehead. “I’m sorry, Miss Houston, I didn’t think he would dare bother you while I’m around. It won’t happen again.”

Will turned to the old man and smiled at him. “Honestly, I’m thankful you had my back. I didn’t really expect any friends in Knockturn Alley.”

“Any friend of the Potters is a friend of mine.We all lost family in the war,” he said bitterly, and Will nodded.

“Thank you, Avery. You’re pretty cool,” Will decided, getting off her chair and gesturing for Fred and James to follow her, grabbing their drinks.

“Goodbye, children. Do return the next time you’re in Diagon Alley,” Avery said, waving at the kids as they exited.

The trio made a quick trek back to Diagon Alley, and much to their relief, Harry and Ginny had yet to return, and they sat on a bench outside Madame Malkin’s, sipping their Gillywaters. “Thank God Mum and Dad aren’t back yet. I think my mum would’ve had a heart attack if she came back and we were gone,” James said, and Will scoffed.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. You worry too much, James- nothing bad happened,” she said, and Fred raised an eyebrow.

“You’re forgetting that while we were in that shady bar, a random guy threatened to kill all three of us and then torture you to death.”

Will laughed. “Okay, you’re right, that was weird, but nothing actually happened. Besides, anyone can make empty threats,” she responded, taking another sip of her drink.

James rubbed the back of his neck. “Should we tell my dad that some guy threatened us?”

Will spit out the Gillywater in her mouth. “Are you nuts? Of course not! Then he’ll know that we went to Knockturn Alley and Avery will get blamed!”

Fred shrugged his shoulders. “I hate to say it, but I agree with Will. We got away with going somewhere we weren’t supposed to, so we should keep it that way. Also, that bartender was really nice to us.”

James sighed. “I guess you’re right.”

Across Diagon Alley, Athena and Blaise were nearly finished with their school shopping, And were making their own way to Knockturn Alley. They were supposed to meet their uncle by 3:30 and it was almost that time when they left Flourish and Blotts with an absurd amount of quills and pens. Athena’s uncle had told them that he would meet them at The Gypsy, the pub in Knockturn Alley. Despite the gloomy exterior, the kind bartender served a lovely Butterbeer Float that the two kids adored, and had been promised upon returning from shopping. The alley really had been cleaned up a bunch since their parents' generation, and while it was no Diagon Alley, it wasn't horrible, especially when their parents had dragged them along for most of their life.

Carefully hauling their school supplies along with them and Eos perched peacefully on Athena's shoulder, the two headed towards the pub. “Afternoon, Mrs Dubose,” Blaise called out to a hunchbacked old lady walking down the street, leaving heavily on her cane. She looked up and waved at the two and smiled gently at them. Blaise’s mom was a healer at St. Mungos and visited her apothecary regularly to pick up ingredients for her remedies, and his father owned a very prestigious potion-making company that utilized small businesses for his supply. While they were almost to the bar, the two saw a man waiting outside. He had the hood to his black robe pulled down and had a cigarette hanging loosely from his fingers as he inhaled deeply. The man was tall, but slouching against the wall with his head bowed made him appear shorter. As the two kids approached he looked up, and he smiled at them as he dropped the smoke and ground it beneath his foot.

“Hey, kiddos!” He was still young, younger than the kids’ parents and his face showed it and had it not been for a long winding scar down the side of his face, he would look nearly fresh out of Hogwarts. Rabastan Lestrange had blonde wavy hair, and blue eyes so dark depending on the lighting they could look either purple or black. Upon seeing him, Athena ran away from Blaise to hug her uncle who opened his arms to pick her up and pull her into a tight embrace. “So, how was your shopping?” Rabastan asked, and Athena grinned.

“It was great! Look, Blaise got me an owl!” She said, pointing to Eos who had flown back into the cage in Blaise’s hands.

Rabastan chuckled as he put Athena down and took some shopping bags from Blaise. “Very nice, sweetheart. Now, let’s see your wand.”

Athena pulled the green wand box out of one of the bags that Blaise was carrying. She opened the box carefully and pulled out her hawthorne wand, giving it to Rabastan. “It’s hawthorne wood with a dragon heartstring core,” she said proudly, and Rabastan nodded in approval.

“Impressive. Did you guys make any friends?” He said, taking her hand as she put the wand out, leading them inside to the Gypsy where they would be getting a bite to eat.
Blaise wrinkled his nose. “No, but we did see Professor Potter and his kids. They were so stuck up and self righteous,” he said, making a gagging noise.

Rabastan raised an eyebrow. “Interesting. I saw them, too. There were three kids, right? Two boys and a girl?”

Athena nodded. “Yeah. I think their names were James, Fred, and-”

“-Willow,” Blaise finished. “She was the worst one. So bratty.” He rolled his eyes at that.

“I don’t know, you should've seen the way James was acting, he had all of the Potter snob. You should've seen the way he looked at us.” Athena chimed in, swinging her uncle's hand as they found a booth.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll meet plenty of nicer kids once you're actually at Hogwarts, ‘Thena. Blaise did last year.” He smiled down at her and ruffled her hair a bit to make her giggle. “Speaking of, Blaise, how’re your friends? I haven’t heard you speak of them much lately.”

“Oh, they’re great! We’re all trying out for Quidditch this year and we hung out last weekend to practice. Aidan and Charley are both convinced that they’re hot shit.” Blaise laughed while talking about his friends.

“First of all, watch your language, young man. Second of all, if they're anything like their parents, I wouldn't be surprised if they are ‘hot shit’.” Rabastan winked and chuckled heartily. He was referring to Adrian Pucey and Oliver Wood, both of whom were parents of Blaise’s friends Aidan and Charley.

“Don’t let them hear you say that,” Blaise said jokingly to his uncle. “I don’t think we should add to their egos.”

“I like those two, even if one of them is a Gryffindor.” The second part of that sentence was said under Rabastan’s breath. Although the school had done as much as they could to abolish the prejudices between houses, those from the War generation still carried the rivalries, especially between Gryffindor and Slytherin. He brushed it off though and kept the conversation going. “So Blaise, what position are you hoping to try out for this year?” he asked as Athena pointed out what she wanted from the menu.

“Keeper,” he said proudly. “Slytherin’s starting Keeper graduated last year, and I think I have a good shot of making the team. Also, Charley is trying out for Keeper, too. Aidan is a Chaser.”

“Well then, I'm sure Hogwarts will have a very impressive Quidditch class to look forward to this year.” Blaise smiled back happily at his uncle. Both kids adored the man they called their uncle, although he was only related to Athena by blood. Athena had a better relationship with him than with her own parents most days, as she was an only child and her parents worked more often than being home. And when they were home, they were working or arguing. So Rabastan took over the more parental role for the young girl, and when she wasn't with him, she was spending time with Blaise and his family.

“How many seventh years left, Blaise?” Athena asked.

“Two I believe, our Keeper and a Chaser. They were both a little mad at how we ended up losing to Ravenclaw for the Cup last year, but Ravenclaw lost almost half their team and they have to replace them now.” Athena nodded and considered this. “Rabastan, did you play Quidditch when you were in school?” Blaise turned to his uncle to ask the question.

“No, that was always more Rodolphus’s thing, Rae and I much preferred the library to Quidditch.” He said as Avery came over to take their order. Rabastan had already had a conversation with Avery about his previous interaction with the Potter children, and after getting paid for his silence, Avery had agreed to not speak a word of Rabastan’s threats to Athena and Blaise. Athena ordered fish and chips, her go to comfort food, while Blaise and her uncle ordered a shepherds pie to split. There were Butterbeer floats all around and the family toasted to Athena’s first year at school and Blaise’s future Quidditch prosperity. They sat and talked for almost another hour and a half before finally gathering up the school supplies for the two kids to head back to their homes. Athena was staying with her Uncle at his flat in London as her dad was on a trip for the ministry, and Rabastan’s apartment was close to King’s Cross. They were stopping at the Whitacker mansion, however, to drop Blaise off.

When they exited the Gypsy and walked back to the still crowded streets of Diagon Alley to find a place to Disapparate, Rabastan was listening to Athena’s decision to name her owl Eos. Blaise had tuned out a while ago and instead was eyeing the newer brooms in Quality Quidditch. The newest model was the Hermes 2050, a stunning mahogany design that was supposedly the best broom to ever be designed- even better than the Firebolt. While he was staring, he spotted the Potter family inside the shop purchasing a new broom for the Potter boy. Blaise turned away in disdain, grabbing his uncle and cousin and dragging them off and away. Athena yelped in confusion as she was dragged away to Blaise’s mutters of ‘spoiled children’ and their uncle just went along with it, laughing under his breath, because if anything, Blaise was the most spoiled of them all.

They finally found the designated apparition zone and were able to Disapparate from the Alley. Rabastan held on tightly to the two and they landed in front of the old stone castle where Melody and Roland Whitacker resided. The grounds were immaculately kept and the gardens were Melody's favorite place on the land as she kept all kinds of wild and rare species. She coached Blaise on the variations of plants, and it was their little secret how much they actually enjoyed Herbology. Upon hearing the cracking of apparition in her front lawn, Melody came outside to greet them, and Blaise ran up to her and embraced her.

“Hey, lovey, how was your day?” She kissed him on the top of his head and then looked up to smile at Athena and Rabastan. “Did it all go well today?” Rabastan nodded his head as Melody gestured to Athena to come give her a hug as well, and after gently setting down Eos’s cage, she ran to give her a warm embrace.

Melody was a tall woman, and her fair skin and deep blue eyes contrasted with her dark hair, especially in the sunlight. She had crinkles around her eyes that showed a woman who smiled a lot, and Blaise shared many of her features. After chatting with the Lestranges for a bit and helping Blaise carry his school supplies inside and bidding the group farewell, Rabastan and Athena Disapparated to the alley beside his apartment. Unlike most of his family, Rabastan lived among Muggles for quick access to work, and to be close to his niece. There was also a market nearby that he enjoyed taking Athena out to on occasion to walk around and pick out stuff for dinner. The two walked upstairs after a small disillusionment spell on Eos to his penthouse where they settled in for the evening and Athena turned on a Muggle TV show that they were watching.

The sun set lazily that night, the rain having cleared up towards the end of the day. As Athena looked out the window, she was fascinated with the different colors of the sky. When the sky was all the colors that it was, it always reminded her of a painting, like something an artist would design. Across the city, Will was watching the same sunset in her room at the Potter house. All of her energy had been worn out from all of the walking around Diagon Alley, but she couldn’t stop thinking about the strange man that they had met in the bar. James walked into her room, sitting next to her. Will only turned to acknowledge his existence, and he cocked his head, taking in her mood.
“What’re you thinking about?” He asked.

Will sighed deeply. “That weird guy that we saw earlier in Knockturn Alley. Something about him is just making me so anxious. He wasn’t a friend, James. There was something off about him, he felt dangerous,” she said, turning to face her best friend.

James smiled at her warmly to ease her worry. “Try not to think about it too much, Will. We’re going to be at Hogwarts soon! Let’s be excited about that,” he said, and Will nodded.

“You’re right. Just so you know, I’ll disown you if you get put in Slytherin,” she joked, and James punched her jokingly.

“Yeah, right. You love me too much to disown me.”

Will laughed. “Whatever.” The two children shared a grin as they looked out the window, watching the clouds paint the sky a million different colors.

Chapter Text

Two weeks later on September 1st, there were floods of parents flocking to Platform 9 and three quarters to send off their children for their next year of school. There were tearful mothers kissing their first years on the head, fifth and sixth years running around trying to find their friends, there was the noise of animals squawking and meowing indignantly as they were hauled into the train. Older kids scrambled to claim their compartment for them and their friends before anyone else could, and the younger kids were all staring apprehensively at the daunting train before them.

In the midst of all the chaos, Blaise was desperate to get away from his family in order to go find Aidan and Charley and get a compartment. Athena, however, was incredibly nervous to leave her mom and uncle as she knew no one else her age, and as much as he loved her, Blaise had no desire to have his little cousin sit with him and his friends. However, he had promised that he would walk her to the train and help her find somewhere to sit. The two were pretty early and there was still almost 20 minutes until the train would take off. So, Athena gave her mom and uncle yet another hug a piece before allowing Blaise to drag her off to find his friends.

They found Charley first. The tall boy was being smothered in kisses by his mother, a lovely looking woman with light brown hair that fell in tight coils and had freckles over the bridge of her nose. Once his mom relinquished him, his dad gave him a quick hug and then handed him a wrapped package that looked an awful lot like a broomstick. Blaise yelled out for his friend and Charley turned to face him, and when he found Blaise in the crowd he grinned, bid his parents goodbye, and ran towards Blaise and Athena.

“Look, my dad got me a new broom this year! He said it was for tryouts, I can’t wait to show you and Aidan-” He paused and looked around for a moment. “Wait a second, where's Aidan, and who is that?” He said after he realized that Athena was still standing awkwardly half behind Blaise.

Blaise waived dismissively at the girl behind him. “That's my cousin, Athena. I promised Mum I'd make sure she got on the train okay. And I was looking for the two of you, I just found you first, now come on, let's go get him.” Charley gave Athena a small smile before he followed Blaise off to go hunt for the third member of the group. Charley had a mop of wavy brown hair that hung down almost to his eyes, and had a large smattering of freckles all across his face. He had brown eyes and facial expressions that seemed much softer than Blaise’s sharper features. Athena trudged along behind them, holding only her owl's cage, as she already had her robes on out of no desire to change on the train. While the two boys chatted excitedly about Quidditch and this year's classes, they wove through families looking for the Pucey’s.

“I don’t see them anywhere, he must already be on the train,” Blaise said finally after searching for what seemed like forever. His cat, Plum, a gorgeous Maine coon, was resting on his shoulders as he walked, and she was ready for him to sit down so she could finally get to a good nap.

“Thank God,” Athena muttered under her breath. While Blaise turned to glare at her, Charley chuckled slightly and followed his friend, who was huffing, onto the train.

It didn’t take long for them to find Aidan Pucey alone in a compartment, saving it for his friends. “It took you two long enough! I’ve been waiting here for ages,” he said indignantly, glaring at his friends.

Charley rolled his eyes and sat down loudly, stretching his long arms. “We were looking for you, idiot. I thought we agreed to meet in front of the train and then go find a compartment.”

Aidan glared at Charley. “Yeah, well you guys are lucky I thought ahead and got us a compartment. If we had met outside like you two had planned, they all would’ve been full.” Unlike Charley’s soft grins, Aidan’s features were piercing and calculating, and as he glared at his friends, his eyes were so dark that they seemed to make his pale skin seem even brighter. However, his slanted eye shape was almost feminine in a way, and although he was clearly annoyed, one couldn’t mistake the kindness rooted deep in his features. His dark brown hair was carefully styled and he was shorter than Blaise, but only by about an inch. Aidan was a Ravenclaw, and the pride and joy of his father, Adrian Pucey.

“Who's the girl?” Were the next words out of his mouth as he referred to Athena who was standing just outside the compartment door.

“Family friend, she’s a first year, and she’s leaving now.” Blaise gave Athena a pointed look, and she rolled her eyes at him before walking away.

As she was walking, she heard Charley faintly say, “you didn't need to kick her out, you know.” She wandered down the compartments, looking for an empty one. Most were already filled up, groups of kids laughing and anticipating what they were going to buy from the trolley. Athena got nearly to the total back of the train before she found one that was empty that she could stay in. She let Eos out of her cage to stretch her wings while she had the compartment to herself and then stood on the seats to slide the cage onto the racks meant to hold bags.

While she was sliding her cage all the way up there she noticed a small carving right above the rack. They were letters that seemed to be worn down over time. Athena ran her fingers over them. They were initials. Carved haphazardly into the wall were the letters “J.P, S.B, R.L, P.P”. Each one was written in a different messy handwriting but were all close together, as though claiming this compartment as their own.

The Potters were running late. James swears it wasn't his fault, and yet had he not woken up only forty minutes before the train left, they wouldn't be scrambling to make it to the platform ten minutes before the Hogwarts express left.

“Well, I am certainly glad you three packed last night,” Ginny said as she shoved burnt bacon pieces into the kids' hands. Originally, the plan was to wake up early, eat a nice big breakfast to celebrate, and then drive to King’s Cross the Muggle way. Unfortunately, it was now twenty two minutes until departure and the kids were eating burnt bacon and buttered toast that they were told not to eat until after they Apparated. Harry was running around, scrambling to make sure all the bags and owls were in place, while Ginny did a head count of the kids. They were taking James, Willow, and Fred to the platform, and Albus Regulus and Lily Luna were staying with the Houston’s with Will’s little sister, Mason, for another evening. When they were sure that the three kids had everything they needed for Hogwarts, the group clasped hands and with a large pop, the five apparated to a shadowy alley just outside the station.

“That could’ve gone worse,” Harry chuckled as he fixed his glasses, which were askew on his face. “Now come on, let's get you guys inside.” He and Ginny linked hands as they ushered the kids inside. The group looked absurd, three kids making a mad dash for a piller, followed by two adults laughing as the kids struggled to carry all their bags and owls to make it before the clock struck nine. James was the first to go through, followed by Will, then Fred, and then Harry and Ginny Potter. Willow and Fred nearly fell onto James who was standing in awe at the train before him.

“Come on now, no time to ogle, go get on, find a compartment! We’ll get your bags loaded, okay?” Ginny pulled each kid in close, giving each a kiss on the forehead before hurriedly shooing them off. With the few lingering families on the platform, she called out after them, “Write to me at least once a week! No blowing up toilets once you're there, but if you do, send me one back!”

“Ginny!” Harry chuckled as he put a hand on his wife's shoulder. He watched his son clamber up the steps to the train, before he turned and gave his parents one last crooked smile before entering. As a promise to his son, Harry would not be riding the train with them to Hogwarts, but would instead be Apparating just outside the grounds before the kids arrived. Through the windows of the train the two could watch the kids make a mad dash for an empty compartment, peeking in doors trying to find an open space. There were three whistles that signified the train leaving the station, and with a steady chugging they watched it pull out.

“You know, James, if you had just woken up on time, we wouldn't be struggling to find somewhere to sit that isn't the floor!” Will yelled at him from where she had landed on the floor when the train lurched forward, Ember’s cage on her chest.

“Oh, shut up, you slept in too,” he sniped back at her as Fred helped pull her back to her feet.

“Not as much as you, you absolute prat!” Will said. Fred had to drag the two along as the train moved to actually find a compartment that was open.

“Goddamnit, James, there are no compartments open,” Will huffed, and James simply scowled at her in response.

“Guys, I found one.” Fred said tentatively as they reached the back of the train.

“Oh, thank God,” James went to push open the door and then saw Athena sitting inside. “Oh, hell no.”

Will rolled her eyes. “James, stop being a crybaby and get into the compartment. Would you rather sit with a horse girl?” She asked, pointing into a compartment where two girls were neighing vigorously.

James sighed. “I guess not,” he said, and Will shoved him aside to poke her head into the compartment, startling Athena.

“Hi. Athena, right?” Will asked, and Athena nodded, her eyes narrowing. “Do you mind if we sit here with you? Everywhere else is full,” she said sheepishly. Athena raised an eyebrow, seemingly mulling over all of the possible outcomes of letting the three Potters sit with her. Eventually, she came to a conclusion and nodded, and Will sighed in relief as she pushed open the door and sat down next to Athena loudly. “Sweet, thanks. Somebody-” she gestured over to James, who was struggling to get Garnett’s cage through the door- “decided to sleep in, so we were almost late.” James shot her a dirty look as he sat across from Athena and put his bag on the floor next to him.

Athena didn’t say anything as she tentatively stroked Eos’s feathers. She remembered all three of them from Diagon Alley, and she was very uncomfortable as the three made themselves at home. “Hey, Will, I think you have my owl treats in your bag. I have yours,” Fred said, offering a bag of owl treats to her that were labeled ‘WILL’ in messy capital letters.

Will dug around in her bag before pulling out the bag that was labeled ‘fred’ in slanted cursive. “At least we have them, even if they were in the wrong bag. Hopefully none of us forgot anything- we were rushing so much.” She turned to Athena, unlocking Ember’s cage so he could hop onto her shoulder. “Are you excited for Hogwarts? I know I sure am,” she chattered. “I think I’m going to be put in Gryffindor, but I’m not really sure, to be honest. My parents are American and went to Ilvermorny- we moved here when I was four so my dad could play Quidditch for the British League- and both of them were in Thunderbird. I guess that’s sort of the equivalent of Gryffindor in America, and especially since I grew up with the Potters and the Weasleys, I’m pretty much expected to be in Gryffindor.”

Athena hesitated, not knowing if she wanted to speak or not, but before she could decide, Will had carried on. “Harry- that’s James’s dad- is a professor at Hogwarts. He teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts. I think that will be my favorite class, but I’m not sure. Apparently Professor Slughorn really likes people with famous relatives, but I don’t know if he’ll like me that much. He’ll probably like James, though.”

James laughed. “According to my dad, he always asks about me. I’m pretty sure the only reason why is because my dad is famous- he probably doesn’t really care about me as a person.”

Will shrugged. “You’re probably right. I don’t know, Headmistress McGonagall is really nice, so we should be fine. Fred’s dad- he runs the joke shop in Diagon Alley- told us that he’ll give free joke products for six months to whoever loses our house the most points in the first two weeks.” At that, Athena raised an eyebrow, surprised, but Will cut her off before she got a chance to speak. “I’m definitely going to win. I have a ton of stuff planned, including certain potions that I know Professor Slughorn will help me make-”

Fred kicked her from across the compartment. “Jesus Christ, Will! You’re going to talk her ear off,” he said, gesturing to Athena with a smirk on his face. “Sorry about that- we can never get her to stop talking,” he said playfully.

Athena smiled at him gratefully as Will rolled her eyes. “So sorry, Frederick. Anyways, Athena, tell us about your family.”

All three turned to look at her expectantly, and Athena pulled Eos a little closer before she started talking. “Well, uh, my mom was a Ravenclaw-” she went to say before James cut her off.

“Wait a second, wasn’t your mom a Lestrange?”

Athena glared at him before she responded. “Yeah and what about it?”

“Well, it’s just- weren't they all, you know, evil Slytherin Purebloods.” he shrugged and his voice trailed off under Athena's glare.

“You are either incredibly stupid, or severly misinformed. Knowing you, however, I’d be willing to bet that it’s both.” When she said this with a completely straight face after looking James up and down, James turned bright red as Will and Fred lost it laughing at him. Will was laughing so hard that she was clutching her side, and even Athena cracked a small smile at that. When Will finally regained her breath, she gestured to Athena encouraging her to continue what she was saying.

“As I was saying, my mom was a Ravenclaw, and my dad was a Slytherin. However, he was a halfblood, and both my parents started Hogwarts a couple of years before your parents, Fred. Because of my dad being a halfblood he was excluded from most of the ‘purist’ bull, and my mom was a Ravenclaw and did everything she could to keep her little brother, my uncle, out of it. So in my family, Uncle Rodulphus was the only one deeply tied to the Death Eaters, him and his wife, Bellatrix.” She looked pointedly at James as she said it.

“Oh, that’s cool,” Will said, looking at Athena with great interest. “My parents always told me that the Death Eaters don’t really exist anymore, so if you’re trying to say that Athena’s a Death Eater, JP, you would be terribly wrong,” she joked, and James scowled.

“Whatever. I was just making an observation,” he said, sitting back in a pouty manner.

Will rolled her eyes before turning back to Athena. “Anyways, I think hands down the thing that I’m most excited for is definitely Quidditch. Since my dad plays professionally, I’ve been riding a broom since before I could walk and I play for Puddlemere United’s academy team, and even though I know we’re not allowed to try out this year, I can’t stop thinking about how awesome it would be to be on a team. James and his cousin Rose always play his other cousin Louis- Louis is their Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur’s son, he’s a Ravenclaw fourth year- and me in two versus two Quidditch, Chaser style. It’s really fun and Louis and I usually win, but who’s counting. James and I actually just got new brooms the other day- Harry said it was because our parents were super proud of us, but I really didn’t understand why, like we didn’t really do anything, if you know what I mean. I don’t know, I guess I’m not complaining- we both did get Hermes 2050s. I really don’t know what Harry has up his sleeve, but he’s been talking to Ginny and my dad all secretive-like and it’s really fishy, but whenever I asked what was going on, he just said ‘nothing’ and told me to go away. So, I’m not sure what was going on there. Hopefully it has something to do with Quidditch at Hogwarts- I guess we’ll find out soon,” Will finished. She had managed to say all of that in nearly one breath, and everyone was giving her weird looks. James was listening intently, Fred was mocking a yawning motion, and Athena was staring at her, mouth wide open. “What?” She asked, confused at everyone’s expressions.

“Do you ever shut up?” Fred joked, pulling a Chocolate Frog out of his bag.

“I’m sorry I actually have interesting things to say, Fred,” Will shot back, glaring at him.

Fred turned back to Athena, who was still wide-eyed from Will’s monologue. “I apologize for her. If you ever want her to shut up, just pretend to fall asleep.”

Athena shook her head. “No, no, I liked what she had to say. I liked it a lot, actually.” She looked at Will sitting next to her and shook her head. “You just talk so fast,” she said in almost a whisper, and all three cousins burst out laughing.

“I know! You can’t multitask when Will is talking to you- you’ll miss something if you don’t give it your full attention. Not to mention her terrible accent makes her nearly impossible to understand,” James said, but instead of scowling, Will only laughed harder.

“Yeah, I get that a lot.” She settled back into her chair and opened her backpack. “Man, I’m hungry. The trolly probably won’t get her until the very end of the train ride- that sucks,” she said sadly, looking at her backpack, which had no food in it.

Fred sighed. “Yeah, I just finished my last Chocolate Frog. I got Aunt Hermione’s card- it’s not like I don’t have around a hundred of those already.”

Athena stood up. “I can go find the trolley and bring some stuff back for you guys if you want,” she offered, and Will’s face lit up.

“That’s a great idea! I’ll go with you,” she said, getting up and opening the door. “See you boys later.”

The hallway of the train was mostly empty and the only noises were muffled, coming from the compartments lining each side of the hall. There was just enough space for the two girls to walk side by side down the hall, and that's what they did. Will was the first to start talking, as Athena expected.

“I know I was rambling earlier, but what about you? Do you play Quidditch?” Willow was slightly taller than the girl next to her, and the two looked an incredibly odd pair as they walked.

“Yeah, but not as much as I would like. I’m an only child, but Blaise, a family friend and the guy I was shopping with a couple weekends ago, play together. He’s a Keeper, you see, and he likes to have someone to shoot on him, and he's pretty damn good, so I’ve gotten pretty good at shooting.” Athena smiled softly thinking about it and Will grinned too. The two girls both played as Chasers and spent most of the time with their family. Maybe there was some common ground to go off of afterall.

“So, Blaise- that’s your cousin?” Will asked, trying to get Athena to talk a little more. After Fred’s scoldings, she was trying to watch how much she talked in order to try and not smother Athena with her ramblings.

“Yeah, kind of. Like, we’re not actually related but I’ve grown up with him and he acts like my brother most of the time, so we just say we're cousins.”

“Oh, so like James and I. Is Blaise as quiet as you?” The taller girl chuckled as she asked it, and Athena scowled at her.

“I’m not that quiet. And no, he’s not. He's the most loud mouthed prat I know, especially when he's with his friends.” She was still scowling as she talked but at this point it was more teasing than anything. “Actually, that's him now.” The two had walked far enough where they reached the compartment that the three boys were sitting in. “This is good- I need to refill my water bottle and he has all of the extra plastic ones.”

Before Will could object, Athena had pushed the door to the compartment open and walked inside, interrupting the conversation. “Oh, hey, Athena,” Blaise said, distracted enough to not see Will standing behind his cousin. “Anyways, I think we have a good chance to win the Cup this year, and-” But before he could finish, Athena had sat down abruptly in the open seat and was rummaging through Blaise’s things. “Hey, what’re you doing?”

“I’m getting more water. I’m low,” Athena responded, not looking up.

“Well, hurry up, then. Did you manage to find a compartment? Are you alone or did you actually manage to make some friends?’ Blaise asked pointedly, and Athena raised her head up and grinned at him.

“Yeah, I did, actually. She’s right there,” she said, pointing at Will leaning against the doorway nonchalantly. Blaise turned and as soon as he recognized her, his mouth dropped open.

Will had the biggest smirk on her face as she watched Blaise’s discomfort. Athena claiming her as her friend had caused her already high confidence to skyrocket, and as she took in the angry Slytherin boy in front of her, she stepped fully into the compartment, and the other dark haired boy immediately scooted over to make room for her to sit down. She raised an eyebrow at him, but to her observation, his smile was genuine, so she slowly sat down and gave him a civil nod.

“Will, that's Aidan Pucey, he's a Ravenclaw, and the one next to him- that's Charley Wood, he's a Gryffindor. Boys, this is Willow Houston.” Athena pointed at the two of them respectively as she finally found the water bottle she was looking for, sitting up.

Will offered her hand to Aidan and he took it to shake firmly. “My friends call me Will,” she said playfully, and Aidan laughed.

“Pleasure to meet you, Will. I like your accent.”

“I like yours, too.”

Blaise sneered at his friend’s sudden approval of the girl he had such a bad first impression of. However, since his friends were enjoying the guests, he decided not to say anything and just silently observe, stroking a sleeping Plum on his lap. Although he did give Athena a very pointed look, she just shrugged at him as she uncapped the water bottle and began drinking, grabbing another one to fill up her reusable water bottle.

“So, you two are going to be first years right?” Charley asked. He had his broom propped up beside him in a show of pride of his possession, and Will nodded.

“Yep. What position do you play in Quidditch?” She asked, getting straight to the point as she eyed his broom.

Charley’s chest swelled with pride as he answered. “I’m a Keeper. Just like my dad.”

Will smiled at him warmly. “I think my dad knows your dad. My dad’s a Seeker and he plays for the Ballycastle Bats, but he did a year at Puddlemere before that. You’re trying out this year, right?”

Aidan nodded. “We all are. Blaise and Charley are Keepers, but I’m a Chaser. Like my dad,” he added, and Will nodded.

“I’m a Chaser, too. Although I don’t think I’m allowed to try out this year,” she responded, frowning.

Charley shrugged. “You never know. There’s been rumors of a rule change at Hogwarts- maybe they’re revoking the first year rule.”

Blaise laughed. “Yeah, right. Like a first year would ever make the team even if the rule was changed,” he said, glaring at Will. It was the first time he had acknowledged Will, and she fixed a cold stare on him.

“You would be surprised. If they did let first years try out, I’m sure there would be a couple that are good enough to play,” she said carefully, and Athena nodded.

“Yeah, Blaise. Don’t be such a dick about it just because you wouldn’t have made it last year.”

“Athena, don’t start with me. It's not like you could make it,” he snapped back at her.

“And what makes you so sure you even will this year?” Athena shot right back.

Watching the exchange with great interest, Will turned to Aidan, whom she was still sharing a seat with. “Are they always like this?” She whispered, and Aidan chuckled.

“I don’t think so, but your guess is as good as mine. However, I can tell you that Blaise is not always like this. Something has put him on edge,” he said back, lips close to her ear. He smiled after when he pulled away, and she didn't hesitate before returning it. She had begun to like Aidan already, and found herself beginning to trust him even after such a short time of knowing him.

“Remind me to tell you how Blaise and I met later. It wasn’t pretty,” she said.

The two turned back to Blaise and Athena, who were still in heated debate. “There’s an open Keeper spot, Athena. I have as good a shot as anyone,” Blaise spat.

“Yeah, like Darius will ever let you on. You're about as charming as a hippogriff with a stick up its ass. Aren’t Slytherins supposed to be charismatic? Someone got you wrong.” Athena flicked him in the head as she said it and somehow his scowl deepened.

“Bold talk for someone who can’t even try out, and how do you even know who Darius is?” he said bitterly, and Athena clenched her fist.

“If the rule does end up getting revoked, there’s also an open Chaser spot. And you're loud when you talk on the phone with those two. ‘Oh, Darius, please give me a spot on the team, Oh, Darius, I’ll do anything.’” Athena put her hands together as if begging and made puppy eyes up at her cousin. Charley started laughing out loud after she said it, as Blaise was fuming at her.

“I do not sound like that.”

“Yeah, you kind of do, mate.” Aidan piped up from where he was still sitting, squished between Will and Charley, causing the two to snicker.

“Ok, ok, enough both of you. Athena, go away.” However, Plum was starting to wake up and began kneading at his lap and taking in the people around her. Plum was a very majestic cat, and similarly to Blaise, she didn’t trust anyone at first and hated most people in general. She tolerated Athena because she had been around for her whole life, but she merely glanced at Aidan every once in a while and still wouldn’t let Charley get close to her. The cat turned as she recognized the familiar voices, but her eyes rested on Will. Will was staring at the large animal in curiosity, and the cat sat up. As she moved, the whole compartment fell silent.

“You have a beautiful cat,” Will said carefully.

Blaise’s annoyance quickly turned into interest. Seeing his huge cat attack Will would be quite enjoyable for him. “Thank you.”

Aidan grimaced. “I must warn you, Will, she doesn’t like new people. I’ve gotten my fair share of bites and cat scratches.”

Will, who was still maintaining eye contact with the maine coon, simply nodded slowly. Athena turned to her cousin, eyes wide. “What are you doing? You know that Plum will hurt her,” she whispered furiously.

Blaise merely smirked. “Yeah, Athena, that’s sort of the point.” Suddenly, the cat moved. She jumped gracefully onto Will’s lap. Will had not flinched when Plum landed on her, but Athena had reached out protectively. “Don’t interfere, ‘Thena. You’ll only make things worse.” Athena glared at him. He was enjoying this far too much for her liking- Will had been very kind to her so far and she did not want to see her face clawed up by the cat.

“Hello,” Will whispered to Plum.

Blaise held his breath as he waited for Plum to attack. Why was she waiting so long? There should be claw marks on Will’s face by now. Plum stared at Will a little longer, seemingly judging her with her great brown eyes. Finally, after what had seemed like forever, the cat hissed loudly, swiping a paw across Will’s face. Athena let out a shriek, grabbing the cat from Will’s lap and struggling to get her back into Blaise’s arms as the cat was extremely large, and still squirming and hissing to get back at Will again.

The maine coon had left three shallow scratch marks on Will’s cheek, and they had already started to bleed. Will touched her face softly, staring at her bloody fingers as she pulled them away. “Well, I don’t think she likes me very much,” she said matter-of-factly.

Athena stood up angrily and pulled Will up with her. “We’re leaving. Now.” She pushed Will out of the compartment before she had the chance to say goodbye to her new friends Aidan and Charley, and Athena turned once more before giving Blaise one of the coldest glares he had ever seen before disappearing down the hallway with Will in tow.

“What the hell, dude?” Aidan said incredulously.

Blaise was stroking his cat with a triumphant smile on his face. “I don’t know why you’re yelling at me, Aidan. I didn’t do anything.”

“But you knew that was going to happen. If you didn’t want Plum to hurt her, you would’ve stopped her as soon as she had tried to leave your lap,” Aidan responded, shaking his head.

Blaise rolled his eyes. “Relax, Aidan. It’s just a scratch. An adult will heal that in a matter of seconds. The only thing I’m a little disappointed about is that it took so bloody long. You took your time, didn’t you?” He said to the cat, who was licking the claws that had sunk into Will’s cheek.

Charley raised an eyebrow. “I wonder why she hesitated so much. When that happened last year, she didn’t hesitate at all- in fact, as soon as she had left your lap, she was trying to get me. Why did she wait so long to scratch her?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t really care. She did it, and that’s what matters.” Blaise reclined back into his seat, staring out the window of the train as the sun began to set.

Outside walking around, trying to find an adult or someone to help heal her up. Will was quiet now, just holding one hand over her still stinging cut, and it was Athena's turn to ramble. “How dare he do that! God, honestly what is his issue? He wants to call people pretentious and stuck up, and I'm fine with that, especially when it's standing up for ourselves. But it is not ok when he wants to call other people that and act like it’s so below him, and then act the exact same way but like it's totally ok for him. Ugh, he can be such a prick, I’m so sorry. Can I look at it?” Athena stopped walking to turn to Will. She nodded silently and took her hand away where the cut was still bleeding a little.

“Hm, guess she got you pretty deep, sorry about that. Plum is just very territorial.” Will only shrugged in response. Athena took her wand out from her sleeve where her uncle had helped her stitch in a small loop to hold it so it would just slide out when she needed it.

“Can I try something?” Athena asked Will, but only got an apprehensive look in return. “Blaise’s mum is a healer, she uses this spell on us all the time when we get cut up from mishaps. It won't heal you all the way, but it should get it to stop bleeding.” Will eyed her for a moment, and then nodded her approval. Athena took a deep breath before carefully pointing her wand at the top point of the scratch. While making a zig zag motion over the three lines as if stitching them together, she muttered ‘terego’. Slowly, the already drying blood began to dissipate and the three scratches knit shut just a tiny bit to prevent any more bleeding. Athena grinned and Will reached up to feel her face.

“I can’t believe you managed to do that without making the bleeding way worse instead.” Will chuckled when she said it.

“Well it's not healed all the way, so don’t scratch at it, it might reopen. We should still find a teacher when we get to school to fully fix you up though.”

“Hey, is that the trolley?” Will looked past Athena at the ringing sound of the old witches' voice. She seemed to have forgotten the scratch, at least momentarily, and was now focusing on the candy trolley that was coming their way. Athena laughed as she followed her new friend forwards to bombard the poor old lady with orders of sweets galore.

But as they walked back, Will gingerly touched her face where the scabs had begun to form, and she began to sweat a little. She had no idea why, but she hated the feeling of the scabs so much and she suddenly felt the urge to rip them off and let the wound bleed openly. She shook her head, trying to push the thoughts away, blinking hard as she led the way back to the compartment.

When the girls finally arrived back at their compartment, it was practically dark out, and as soon as they opened the doors, they were assaulted by the screams of the two boys.

“Where the hell have you two been?” James hollered at them and Will nearly dropped her armful of food in response. When James noticed the lines of scratches on her cheek, he rounded on Athena. “Did you do that to her?”

“No, you moron, although I was the one who helped heal her, so if you could kindly shut that gaping mouth of yours, that would be lovely,” Athena said very pointedly and threw a chocolate frog at his face.

James scowled at her, turning to Will. However, her expression was clouded and he immediately knew something was wrong. He stood up and took the sweets from her arms and handed them to Fred before abruptly pulling her out of the compartment and back into the hallway. “What’s wrong?” He asked gently, clutching her hands.

Will looked up at him with fearful eyes. “The scratches,” she said in almost a whisper.

James’ brow furrowed as he took her face in his hands and looked at the scratches carefully. “Okay, I’ll get you a bandaid from my bag. We’ll put that over it until my dad can heal it for real.” Will nodded, and James pulled her into a hug. “Don’t worry. We’re almost there,” he said, and she gave him a weak smile.

“I’ll be fine, I just hate the way the scabs feel,” she responded, and the manner in which she said it made James laugh loudly. He opened the door to let her back in, making eye contact with Fred. Fred had raised an eyebrow in questioning the sudden departure, but one look from James told him all he needed to know. Once they were both in, he grabbed a bandaid from the front of his bag and put it on her cheek carefully. All three of the cousins always kept bandaids on them wherever they went in case Will had an episode like this.

Athena watched the interaction with great interest, trying to figure out what was going on. “I stopped the bleeding- she doesn’t need a bandaid,” she said, and James whipped his head around and glared at her.

“You don’t get to decide what she needs,” he snarled at her, causing her to raise an eyebrow. Will, who was considerably more calm with the bandaid on her face, winced. I’ll tell you later, she mouthed, and Athena shrugged, understanding that that would be the best explanation she would get for the time.

The three cousins had yet to change into their robes, so they left Athena with the sweets as they went to change into their new black robes. The sun had completely set, and it was dark as the train pulled into the Hogwarts station. The children bid their owls goodbye as they left all of their things in the train to be transported to their dorms once they were sorted.

Hopping off the train, they heard the booming voice of the Hogwarts Care of Magical Creatures teacher, Rubeus Hagrid. “Firs’ years! Firs’ years over here! Firs’ years!”

“Look, guys, it’s Hagrid!” Will said, and she grabbed Athena’s hand as they ran over to greet their old friend. “Hi, Hagrid!”

Hagrid looked down at the four children, and a crooked smile appeared on his scarred face. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite kids! How’re you doing?”

“Great! Hagrid, this is Athena- Athena Burns,” Will gestured to her friend, and Athena waved shyly.

“Pleasure ter meet you, Athena,” Hagrid said kindly, and he pointed them to the boats. “You four get by a boat together. I’ll be over in a second.” The four kids nodded and walked over to the small boats as Hagrid returned to yelling. “Firs’ years!” He waved as he walked away, still calling out to the rest of the young kids, and the group of four walked over to where he had pointed.

Waiting at the edge of the black lake, a cluster of small boats waiting before them as they were slowly joined by other first year students made them feel like they were on the brink of it all. Athena looked around, taking in the group of kids around them. Even though it was a small group, there were still more kids her age then Athena who had ever been around. Everyone looked different, straight hair and curly hair, tall and short, and Athena felt incredibly nervous. She didn’t do well in large groups of people, especially when it was people she didn’t know or without someone she knew helping her feel comfortable.

Will, Fred, and James, however, had almost no nerves at all. They were just incredibly excited. When Hagrid came over and helped the kids get loaded into the boat, people seemed to split up into groups that they had either known previously, or had met on the train. Athena, Will, James, and Fred took one together. In the boat next to them was a group of people who all looked nearly identical, two boys and two girls. On the other side was another group, this one much more mismatched looking, but all boys.

Hagrid was in the lead boat, taking up one all to himself and he called out things as the boats were propelled along. “The weather tonight is just about perfect. I don't believe we’ve had a night this clear for ya firsties in ages!” Everyone could hear him smiling. “This here is the black lake for those of yer who don't know. And inside of it is we’ve got all kinds er things. We got the Merfolk, but don’t mess with them, they’re mean ones. We’ve also got the Giant Squid, but he’s alright. Ya don’t need ter worry ‘bout him.” He said the last part, noticing the terrified looks on the group of girls faces behind him. Hagrid was right, Will thought, the night really was perfect. It was just starting to get cool outside, and there was a slight breeze on the lake. But aside from that the sky was perfectly clear without a cloud, and you could see every star. She noticed James looking up too, and when she followed where he was looking, she found the Sirius constellation. James had grown up hearing stories of his namesake and always searched for the constellation in the night sky.

It took only seven minutes for them to cross the large dark lake, and when they managed to make it across, only two kids struggled to get out of the boats. Those two kids also soaked the bottom of their pants as they stepped onto the dock, which made them blush incredulously. Hagrid chuckled at the group, most kids were nervous looking at what stood before them. The great towering school did seem awfully scary at this time of night, especially for those who had never heard about it before. But with another reassuring look, the teacher ushered them inside to the hall.

Inside, the halls were brightly lit, but still chilly with the wind blowing off the lake. Athena could almost swear, however, that under the staircase where all the suitcases and bags were placed, she could see two pairs of glowing yellow eyes. She shuddered but turned away to follow the kids up the staircase. All the faces, including her own, were turned up in wonder, watching the hallowed halls and old brick with torches lining the walls every few feet.

When they finally reached the top of the staircase, they were met by a tall, smiling blonde man. He smiled kindly at Hagrid and Hagrid smiled back, before giving the kids one last wave he disappeared into the halls. The kind looking man turned back to the group of small children and introduced himself.

“It is a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Neville Longbottom, I am the Herbology Professor and the Head of the Gryffindor house here, and I will be the one sorting you today.” A few kids relaxed, taking a liking to this man, but one voice popped up from the back. A young looking girl with tightly coiled hair that framed her face looked up to ask, “Pardon me sir, but what do you mean by sorting?” Neville gave a small grin back at her.

“Here at Hogwarts we sort students into four houses. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Here, these houses will be your homes for the next seven years, and the people you meet will be your family. You can earn and lose points for them, and while they may seem defining or confining, please don’t believe that these are what truly define you.” Slowly, more and more kids looked less and less anxious, but this time another kid popped up.

A young boy with dark hair that fell in his face raised his hand. “What house were you in, Professor?”

Neville smiled fondly at the memories and responded, “Gryffindor. Are we all ready to go in now?” When he got unanimous nods from the group of kids, he turned on his heel, cloak billowing out behind him, which made some kids giggle, he pushed open the large heavy doors, and the kids followed.

Chapter Text

Entering the Great Hall for the first time would never stop being a breathtaking experience. Neville remembered when it was his time to be sorted, he remembered the deep seated embarrassment, but also the joy that came with it every time after the fact. He also remembered the amount of pride that came after being sorted into Gryffindor. The Great Hall had changed dramatically after the war, gone were the long tables that divided kids by houses and ‘encouraged division’. Now, there were many small circular tables, similar to that of a cafeteria. Most of the kids who sat at them moved around regularly, hanging out with friends from their house one day, then their friends from other houses the next. It encouraged them to mingle with people other than their roommates. And it worked.

They reached the stool with the worn old hat on it, and Neville took his place behind the stool. Above them seated at the staff table sat the rest of the teachers, watching the small kids look around in awe. Around them sat kids who watched with interest to see which kids would go where, money passed hands of some, taking bets on legacies or looks alone, but they also watched remembering what their sorting had been like.

Near the stool, Neville tapped the hat with his wand, and much to the first year's surprise, the hat seemed to come to life. A great slit in it opened wide, as if yawning, and two smaller holes that appeared to be eyes, seemed to blink. After looking around for a moment, it opened its mouth again and began to sing a song;

“You think I may be old and gray
But my mind is bold and wise,
I’ve seen so many lives before
Although I don’t have eyes.
You can gossip all you want
About my ragged brim
But I’m the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I’ll guide you at every whim.
You could belong to Gryffindor
Where the brave and true reside
There you’ll be a champion
If you ever so decide.
You might belong in Hufflepuff
With a kind and pure heart
The loyalty of Hufflepuffs
Is an admirable art.
You might belong in Ravenclaw
Those who are wise and clever
There you’ll learn the most
If you so endeavor.
Or maybe you'll reside in Slytherin,
Ambitious and resourceful are they
The path to greatness lies here
But leadership you must display
So here you are in front of me
Awaiting to be put in place
So don’t be shy, come up to me
Adorn me and your future we’ll embrace!”

The hat finished its song and a round of applause led by the headmistress. Kids roared their approval, some in a joking manner, others not so much. Neville beamed the biggest of them all, always so proud of the kids at this moment. He stepped up to the podium and pulled out a list of names. “When I call your name, come up and sit down on the stool and I will put the hat on your head so you can be sorted.” He cleared his throat as he read the first name.

“Albany, Becca!”

A girl with mouse brown hair in the back of the group pushed her way through the first years, eager to be sorted. On her way up, she shoulder-checked Athena, and Will’s nostrils flared. “Watch it!” The girl simply rolled her eyes as she flounced up to the stool and sat down.

Neville gently put the hat on her head and after about five seconds, it shouted, “Ravenclaw!”

Amongst the crowd of students in the Great Hall, certain ones in black and blue robes cheered out while hearing this, including Aidan.

“First one of the year! Cough up those Sickles, boys,” he snickered as Charley and Blaise reluctantly handed him two Sickles apiece with scowls on their faces.

When the cheering died down, Neville returned his attention back to the list. “Brown, Jordan!”

A girl that had been standing with Becca walked up to the stool, and the hat had barely touched her head before yelling, “Hufflepuff!”

The students in black and yellow robes cheered this time, and Jordan smiled as she took a seat next to Becca at one of the circle tables reserved for first years.

Athena straightened her back, knowing that she would probably be among the next few. Will noticed and smiled at her, the band aid covering half of it, but Athena could still see her friend’s reassuring look, “Hey, you got this. I don’t care what house you’re put in- you’re stuck with me,” she joked and Athena chuckled.

“Oh, lucky me.” Will pushed her jokingly as the girls shared a grin. Sure enough, next on Neville’s list was “Burns, Athena!” Slowly Athena walked up to the front, and sat down on the stool. At Blaise’s table, although his face was neutral, under the table his hands were clenched. He was waiting for the hat to call out Slytherin immediately, but it didn’t. Athena sat there for 30 seconds, a minute, and still there was nothing. In her head, the hat was talking.

“Hm, how odd. This is not a combination you see everyday. Your loyalty is unyielding, but your desire for success and accomplishments is astounding. You are clever, and passionate, but not trusting to a fault.”

“What does that mean?” To Athena, it felt like every word of this was being said out loud.

“It means my dear, that you could go many places. Your loyalty could be Hufflepuff and your pride could be Gryffindor, but adding that to the desire for success and ambition makes you appear very Slytherin.”

Athena nodded, almost disappearing under the hat as it continued to talk. She tried to think- everyone in her family had been either Ravenclaw or Slytherin- she never thought Gryffindor or Hufflepuff would even be an option. Another minute went by.

“Is there a house that you want more than others?”

“You take that into consideration?”

“Of course.”

“Well I don’t know I guess. I think I'm supposed to be put into Slytherin and despite what people say, I don’t think it's all bad.”

“Your opinions of your father say otherwise.”

“Hey, I know you're supposed to dig around in my head, but if you could kindly stay away from the personal stuff, that would be lovely.”

“Hm, the way you fight, you seem to have lots of Slytherin characteristics.”

“I learned from the best.”

The hat seemed to laugh in her head, and then said, “I think I know where you belong.” Out loud, after four minutes and forty nine seconds, the hat yelled “Slytherin!”

Athena sighed in relief, and with Nevilles help she pulled the hat off her head and to the cheers of kids in green and silver. Blaise grinned at her from her table and Athena gave a small wave, and unbeknownst to her was watched by Professor Potter as she took a seat at an empty table waiting for people to be sorted. Next was “Chakrabarti, Jaya” who was also placed in Slytherin after a one minute jaunt under the hat. She gave Athena a small smile as she passed her table to claim her own behind her.

The list went on. “Cornett, Alyssa” and “Davison, Scott” both went to Ravenclaw. “Finch-Fletchley, Thomas” was another Ravenclaw, he sat at the table that Scott had and the two boys instantly began talking. “Flint, Mikael” was a Slytherin and beamed at the cheers that erupted for him. “Green, Braxton” joined him in Slytherin house, and at his table, the boys high fived. “Goyle, Gaston” was put into Hufflepuff, and Harry and Neville exchanged interested looks. However, there were whispers circulating now as to why there was yet to be a Gryffindor. Close to half of the twenty five first years had been sorted, and never had it been so long before someone was claimed by the Lion house.

Finally, Neville called “Houston, Willow.” Will took a deep breath, exchanging glances with James. He smiled at her and she winked at him, turning back to the front of the Great Hall. She strutted up to the stool and grinned at Harry before she sat down. When the hat was placed on her head, the hat said one thing to her- “Leadership is key, my dear.”

Before Will could ask what that meant, the hat yelled out, “Gryffindor!” and the Great Hall erupted in cheers from the students in black and maroon robes, Charley amongst them. Everyone in the Great Hall, Harry included, as he was a notable Gryffindor alumni, for Will was the first Gryffindor of the night. She grinned as she hopped down from the stool and sauntered over to sit next to Athena.

“I knew you were going to be a Gryffindor,” Athena said playfully, and Will puffed her chest out jokingly.

“Well, no shit, I belong in the best house in the school.” Athena rolled her eyes at that, making Will laugh. The two girls turned their attention back to the front of the room where Neville had called “Hussan, Yasmine.” The hat sorted her into Ravenclaw, and the next boy, “Jordan, Lucas”, was sorted into Gryffindor.

“Lucas! Sit over here!” Will waved to the boy, and he sat down across from her and Athena. “Sweet, I knew you were going to get Gryffindor,” Will said, and Lucas grinned. “Athena, this is Lucas Jordan, he’s really good friends with Fred. Lucas, this is Athena Burns.”

“Nice to meet you,” Athena said politely.

“Likewise,” Lucas replied, and they watched “Lawson, Serena'' be sorted into Hufflepuff. “Macmillian, Edward'' was sorted into Ravenclaw, and then Neville called off the four Patils- two sets of twins, two identical boys and two identical girls, and the sets of twins were cousins. Paisley Patil went to Ravenclaw, Parker Patil went to Gryffindor, Patrick Patil went to Slytherin, and Penelope Patil went to Hufflepuff.

“There’s really a Patil in every house,” Will joked to Athena, making her giggle.

After the Patils, it was finally James’s turn. When Neville called off his name, he walked to the stool hesitantly, avoiding eye contact with his father. He sat down hesitantly and the hat was put on his head. Surprisingly to most there, the Potter was not put instantly in Gryffindor. Instead, after just under a minute, the hat finally called out “Gryffindor!” James visibly relaxed in relief and after the hat was lifted, he ran over to Will and Athena’s table where he and Will began a complicated handshake. The Gryffindor kids all erupted into cheers, except for one tall, turquoise haired boy in Hufflepuff robes who cheered louder than all the Gryffindor kids in the room.

There was only a small group of kids left, and there was “Shacklebolt, Ainsley” who went to Slytherin. Cecil Ramsey, Max Sheppard, and Omar Sutherland all went to Hufflepuff. Connor Thomas-Finnegan became a Slytherin, and joined Braxton, Patrick and Mikael at what was quickly becoming the Slytherin table. Last up was “Weasley, Fred” who, after nearly three minutes, became a Gryffindor, and this time, the turquoise haired boy cheered so loudly he earned a “sit down, Mr Lupin” from Headmistress McGonagall as she rose to give a speech.

“Welcome our new students to a new year at Hogwarts,” Headmistress McGonagall gave pause as she was met with a round of applause from her students. “For our first years, it is important for you to know the Forbidden Forest is, well, forbidden.” That got some chuckles, but she continued on. “You will find your schedule on your beds this evening, and your older students will help you find your classes. But for now, enjoy the feast, and remember, students, Nitwit, Blubber, Oddment, and Tweak!” And with a large flourish of her hands as she sat down, and food appeared on the tables in a large poof of magic.

“Sweet!” Will exclaimed, immediately digging into the chicken wings.

The five kids at the table didn’t talk for the longest time, all of them being occupied with their meals. When James finally spoke, they were all almost done with the main course. “Well, everyone is in the house I expected them to be in.”

Lucas raised an eyebrow. “Really? You think so?”

Will shrugged. “It makes sense to me.”

“I don’t know, I was up there for a while. The hat kept asking me what I thought- what I thought was that it was supposed to make the decision, not me,” Fred said, shaking his head and picking up another bite of mashed potatoes with his fork.

Athena nodded in agreement. “Yeah, me too. It said that I was a really interesting combination or something like that.”

Will rolled her eyes. “Man, I was up there for like point-two seconds. I remember it saying something about leadership but I can’t recall exactly what he said- it was way too fast. Anyways, I’m excited to hear about that announcement that Harry was telling us about- it has to be happening any minute-”

But as she spoke, she was interrupted by Headmistress McGonagall standing up and clicking her goblet with her fork. “Attention, students! I have an announcement to make!” Whispers erupted throughout the Great Hall, students’ voices filled with interest and curiosity. “This year, we have decided to make a change in the rules of Quidditch here at Hogwarts.” The whispers turned into full blown talking, members of the teams gossiping as to what it would be. Two boys and two girls from all of the houses had walked up to the staff table while eating was still happening. The boy in Gryffindor robes was tall with styled brown hair and a bit of a smirk as he nudged the boy next to him, who was slightly shorter, with messier black hair in Slytherin robes. The two girls were in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw robes, one with hair colored so yellow it matched her tie, while the other had darker hair and skin in contrast. All four had Quidditch Captain pins on their robes.

“I shall turn this announcement over to the Quidditch captains to explain.” McGonagall nodded her head at the captains before sitting back down.

“Well, before we get to the announcement you're all anxiously waiting for, we’re going to introduce ourselves to you lot.” Despite being met with audible groans, including Will, who sighed very dramatically, the tall brown-haired boy grinned. “I’m Xander Stott, 7th year Chaser, and the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain.” Xander turned to the boy next to him to continue.

“I’m Darius Rose, 7th year Beater, Slytherin Quidditch Captain, as I’m sure you’ve all realized by now.” He chuckled and so did some of the other kids in the hall.

“Hello all, my name's Lacie Harper. I’m a Hufflepuff 7th year, and I’m the Keeper and Captain.” She smiled warmly at the kids before everyone turned their attention to the Ravenclaw girl.

“Hullo, I’m Amaya Cunningham. I’m a Ravenclaw 7th year and I play Chaser for my team as well as Captain and I’m also Head Girl.” Once she had finished, the kids in the crowd gave a polite clap, but everyone was on the edge of their seats waiting for the actual announcement. One kid in the back even yelled a “get on with it” but was quickly silenced with a sharp look from Professor Potter.

Finally, it was the Gryffindor, Xander, who began speaking again, “this year, as a type of trial run, with much discussion between the captains and the teachers, we have decided to let first year students try out for our Quidditch teams.” Before he could continue, there was an uproar from the crowd as they heard the news. It had been centuries since first years were allowed to try out, and the fact that the rule was just now changing was a shock. The talks of changing the rule had been around since the 90s, when Harry Potter had joined the Gryffindor team his first year, but apparently they had just now been cleared by the Ministry to officially change the rule.

A sharp whistle pierced the room, and silence went around as Lacie had put her fingers to her mouth to create the shrieking noise. Darius chuckled at the sudden quiet before continuing where Xander had left off. “While first years will be allowed to try out, there will be some more rules surrounding those of you who do wish to try out.” This statement was met with audible groans from the first years who had all begun to whisper excitedly amongst themselves in this news.

“Any first year that's interested in trying out for the team must obtain a signed permission slip from your parents stating that you understand the risks that come with being a first year and on the Quidditch team,” Lacie said, and Amaya nodded.

“We will be holding tryouts in two weeks time for your respective houses. If you have any questions, please ask the four of us or the Head Boy, Teddy Lupin,” Amaya said, as a shining gold badge under her Quidditch uniform showed that she was the Head Girl. She pointed to the turquoise haired boy, causing him to stand up and wave at the crowd. He winked at Fred, James, and Will, and Will made a mental note to talk to him about the rule change later.

“Right, that’s about all we have, so cheers!” Xander smiled at the crowd, causing a couple girls to swoon and Darius to almost burst out laughing but he held his tongue. The four Quidditch captains nodded at each other and walked back to their respective seats.

The Great Hall was buzzing with excitement as the first years in the front of the room gossiped to each other about their new opportunity. “So that’s what Harry meant when he said there was going to be a surprise for us! I can’t believe that he didn’t tell us-” Will griped, but James shushed her.

“This is amazing! This is my chance to prove to my dad that I’m a good Quidditch player- maybe he got McGonagall to change the rules because it’s my first year,” he said, but Fred rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, right. There’s no way McGonagall would change the rules for one kid. My guess is that when your dad joined the team as a first year, the rule went under discussion and they finally got it approved this year. Just lucky timing, I guess,” he said, and Lucas nodded.

“Honestly, I’m not going to try out- I’m awful at Quidditch- I’m just excited to see all of the older students get upset because some younger kids took their spots,” he responded, pointing at a table of Ravenclaws. Sure enough, the students were whispering amongst themselves, all of them looking flustered and stealing glances at the tables full of first years.

“I’m going to try out!” Will exclaimed, and she nudged Athena. “You’re going to, too, right?”

Athena nodded vigorously. “Of course I am. I just need my uncle to send me my broom. It's not the newest model, but I’m used to it and it flies well.” She shrugged before reaching for some more food.

“Well, I have a brand new model, and I’ll be sure to kick your ass when we play you,” James bragged, not joking as he smirked at her.

Athena raised an eyebrow. “You act like you’ve already made the team. I think there’s a saying that goes something like ‘don’t count your chickens before they’ve hatched’ or something like that.”

James blushed furiously. “Well, my dad told me that there’s an open Chaser spot on the Gryffindor team, so I have a chance.”

At those words, Will, Fred, and Lucas looked at each other and burst out laughing. “Sorry, JP, that spot’s mine,” Will said, sipping pumpkin juice and still snickering.

“Oh, you think so?” Will turned around to see Teddy Lupin standing behind her, an amused grin on his face.

“Teddy!” She exclaimed, and he sat down in between her and James, half hugging them both and high fiving Fred and Lucas across the table.

“Welcome to Hogwarts, kiddos. I take it you’re excited about the new rule change?” He said, and Will and James nodded vigorously.

“Hell yeah! This is such a big deal! No wonder my dad got us new brooms with no explanation,” James said, and Teddy chuckled.

“I can’t wait to come to all of your guys' games even though Hufflepuff is winning the Cup this year,” he joked, making Will roll her eyes.

“Yeah, right.” She turned to Athena, who was sitting silently and paying close attention to her plate. “Teddy, this is Athena- Athena Burns. ‘Thena, this is Teddy Lupin, James’ godbrother.”

Athena looked a little hesitant to say hello, but Teddy offered his hand with a warm smile and she took it. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Athena. I trust that these four haven’t driven you crazy yet?” He said, gesturing to the Gryffindors, and Athena laughed.

“No, they’re fine.”

Teddy turned back to Will, who was shoveling pudding into her mouth. “Hey, Will- Will, what happened to your face?” He pointed at the band aid that was still on her face, and she almost dropped her fork.

“Oh, shit, I almost forgot! I had a run in with a cat that didn’t think too fondly of me. We stopped the bleeding, but do you think that Harry or someone could heal it?”

Teddy nodded and pulled her up to her feet. “Of course. Come on, I’ll bring you to our healer, Madam Pomfrey.” They walked up to the head staff table to a woman wearing white robes.

Athena turned back to Fred. “Do you think some first years will actually make the teams this year?”

Fred shrugged. “I think a couple probably will. If what James said is true about there being an open Chaser spot on the Gryffindor team, she’ll make it.” He gestured to Will, who was in the middle of explaining to Madam Pomfrey what had happened as she peeled off the band aid from her face and inspected it. “She’s one of the best players I’ve ever seen- it runs in her family, but it’s also probably because her dad harps on her 24/7 so she basically eats, sleeps, and breathes it and my cousin Louis, who is also really good, has always liked her more than he’s liked James and I. He’s over there, he’s got the famous Weasley red hair.” He pointed to a boy with Ravenclaw robes sitting at a table with a variety of other students.

Athena raised an eyebrow. “Okay, other than Will, whom I’ve come to believe is just good at everything apparently, I don’t think too many first years will actually make it. Like, you guys do realize that we have to go up against older kids who've been playing for longer than we have, have experienced tryouts before us, are friends with the captains and other players, and all that kind of stuff, right?” She waved her fork and pointed at James as she spoke. “While I'm going to try out, and I want to make it, I think it would be foolish for people to automatically assume they're going to make the team when other people have the clear advantages.” She shrugged as James glared at her from across the table.

“Hm, I hadn’t thought of it in that light.” Lucas smiled as he nudged Fred. “I like her. She doesn’t like James,” he said, making Athena and Fred chuckle and James scowl.

“Well, you're just a ray of sunshine, aren't you?” Teddy laughed as he and Will returned to the table, her face fully healed as Madam Pompfrey had scoffed and fixed it in a matter of seconds.

Will smiled as she pushed Teddy lightly. “See, I told you that she’s cool.”

Teddy ruffled her hair as she sat down. “I believe you. I’ll see you first years around,” he said, nodding at all of them as he walked back over to his table, where a girl with striking blonde hair was waiting for him, watching his interaction with a grin on her face. Teddy threw an arm around her shoulder as he sat down and the two went back to chatting with their own group as dinner continued.

The group of first years went back to their meals, mostly silent as they thought about different things. Will thought about Quidditch and her broom in her trunk. She was so excited to try out that she was almost jumping out of her seat. James was also thinking about Quidditch, but his mind was laced with doubt. He wasn’t sure that he was good enough to beat out Will for a spot on the team, much less all the other kids that would be trying out for Chaser positions, and what would his dad think if he didn’t make it? Athena was eyeing the table full of first year Slytherin boys, and each of them were incredibly loud and goofing off. They couldn’t be that terrible- perhaps this year wouldn't be as bad as she expected. Fred was reviewing his mental list of everything he had packed. He really hoped that he hadn’t forgotten anything, because it would be very embarrassing for his dad to show up here. Lucas was staring at the beautiful blonde girl that Teddy had his arm wrapped around. She was stunning, with perfect hair, perfect eyes, and a smile that seemed like it could steal hearts. He would have to ask about her later.

As the feast ended, Headmistress McGonagall stood up once more. “First years, follow your prefects to your dorms tonight. Schedules will be passed out tomorrow during breakfast at eight a.m sharp. Goodnight, students.” On that note, the children in the Great Hall began to get up, and Will and James made awkward eye contact as they looked for their prefect, whom McGonagall had failed to mention by name. A loud hollering however drew their attention and the Gryffindors followed the noise to a boy and a girl, Will waving at Athena as a goodbye.

The boy had light brown hair, deep brown eyes, and a goofy smile on his face while the girl had tan skin, bright pink curly hair, and an exasperated but amused expression. “Hello, all, my name is Landon Stewart and this is my partner, Amira Powell,” the boy said, waving at all of the first years.

Amira took in the five new students and smiled at Will, the only girl. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. If you follow us, we’ll take you up to our Common Room.” She gestured for the kids to follow, and with one last wave at Athena, Will and her friends followed the two Prefects.

Meanwhile, Athena searched for the Slytherin Prefects. There were so many noises clashing that it took her a moment to focus on the calling out for Slytherin first years. The two Prefects already had the rest of the first years gathered around them and Athena rushed over to stand behind the two other girls. The boy was the shorter of the two, with straight jet black hair and pale skin, while the girl was more tan and tall but had equally dark hair but hers fell in long waves.

“Hey guys, I’m Bailey Nieves. I’m a 6th year, and this is-”

“-Yang Hyun-Ki, I’m a 5th year.” He had a much warmer smile and appearance than Bailey who looked like someone who was completely serious all the time.

“We’re two of your Slytherin Prefects this year, so if you’ll follow us, we’ll take you to our dorm,” Bailey said. Her voice was smooth but cold, and she turned with a flip of her hair and walked away. Hyun-Ki laughed at her as she walked away and when she turned to glare at him he only laughed more as the first years stood not quite sure what to do.

“Don’t worry about her, she acts all cold and controlling but she's secretly just a softie.” He waved on the first years and with relieved smiles they followed him. Hyun-Ki caught up to Bailey and grabbed her arm pulling her back towards the first years with a mischievous look on his face.

“Okay, so the rest of the houses have their dorms upstairs, but ours are down below the lake.” He chatted happily with Bailey grudgingly being pulled along.

“The downsides are that it gets pretty cold down there, but we have this gorgeous fireplace that's always lit by magic, and we have a half glass roof and wall so we can see into the lake and sometimes the merpeople come up and mess around.” When talking about the merpeople, even Bailey began to smile and some of the first years had awed looks on their faces.

“The lake has merpeople?” The girl closest to Athena piped up. She was taller than Athena, and built like a beanpole, tall and skinny. She had short cropped dark hair and large almond shaped eyes, Athena thinks she remembered that her name was Jaya.

“Are you a muggleborn?” Bailey asked, looking at her inquisitively. Jaya blushed and looked at her feet and Hyun-Ki nudged Bailey.

“Yeah, is that an issue?”

“Not at all. Slytherin used to have a ‘pureblood’ hierarchy thing, but it's hard to be a true pureblood now so most of us are half bloods or muggleborns.” Bailey gave Jaya a small smile as she looked back at her. “And yes, we have merpeople, the lake is wayyy deeper than it appears.” The two upperclassmen continued the tour down to the dungeons, Bailey warming up to the group now. They stopped in the potions room where Professor Slughorn was resting and the older two introduced the seven first years. After they left, the two began talking about some Slytherin traditions that the house had.

“It seems dumb now, but we hold chess tournaments once a month that most off the house partakes in. It's actually really fun and we get super competitive about it, there's a leader board and everything. Then of course there's Quidditch- Bailey plays, she's a Beater. Our house takes Quidditch very seriously if you're interested.” Hyun-Ki was rambling, and Bailey was back to rolling her eyes at her chatty partner. But she did flush with pride when he mentioned Quidditch. By the time they finally reached the dorm, she finally spoke.

“We use passwords to get in so the other houses won't know how to get in. Right now the password is ‘Anguis’. It changes about once a month, so do try and remember or else you’ll be locked out.”

“Or you could just knock, there's generally someone in there for one reason or another who’ll let you in.” Bailey gave him a look and he just shrugged in return. He said the password, however, and the group entered inside.

Back upstairs, the Gryffindors were still making their way up to the tallest tower in the castle besides the Astronomy tower. Landon and Amira were chatting as they walked, and Will had struck up a conversation with Parker Patil. “Do you play Quidditch?” She asked, and Parker nodded.

“Yeah, I like Beater. I think I’m going to try out, but I’m not sure yet. It seems like it’s going to be pretty tough to make the team, especially since there’s only a few open spots,” he replied.

Landon overheard their conversation and turned to face the two first years. “I don’t know, it’s anyone’s chance. Xander is looking to replace a Beater, Chaser, and Keeper this year. I think there’s going to be a couple new people. Are you going to try out, uh-” He asked Will, not knowing her name yet.

She nodded. “Yeah, I’m going to. I’m a Chaser- hopefully I’ll be able to make the team. It’s Will, by the way- Will Houston.”

Amira smiled. “Nice to meet you, Will Houston.”

The group of seven had finally reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, and she inspected every first year before politely saying, “password?”

Amira turned to the first years. “This is the Fat Lady- she’s the portrait that’s in front of the entrance to the Common Room. To get in, all you have to do is tell her the password. It changes often, so make sure you’re always up to date. Right now, the password is ‘champagne’.” On that last word, she turned and said it to the Fat Lady, and the woman in the portrait nodded before the frame swung forward, opening to a hole in the wall.

All of the first years stepped in one by one, and they looked at the Common Room in awe. The huge room had beige walls and maroon and gold couches all around it, giving the appearance of a cozy cottage. The fireplace was lit and roaring, making the room warm, but not uncomfortable. There were twin staircases on either side of the fireplace, wrapping up to rooms that were above the Common Room. There were already students lounging on the couches, talking amongst themselves in Gryffindor sweatshirts. Will glimpsed Charley next to another boy, and he winked at her.

“Alright, there are two dormitories- the boys are on the left and the girls are on the right. Each year has their own room that all of the students share,” Landon said, gesturing to the staircases.

“So that means you’ll get a whole room to yourself,” Amira said to Will, grinning at her.

“Not fair,” James grumbled, and Will stuck her tongue out at him.

“Your trunks and other things should already be in your room, and if you have owls, I recommend taking them to the Owlery within the next couple of days. Be up and ready by eight to get your schedules in the Great Hall.” Amira looked at her partner, silently asking for confirmation that she had hit everything, and he nodded.

“Just so I don’t forget to tell you later, we and the other Gryffindor prefects are a lot more relaxed on rules now that we were ten years ago, so we don’t have a problem with students from other houses coming into our Common Room as long as they don’t make a huge mess or anything. You’re responsible for your guests. Boys, you can’t go up to the girls’ dorms, but for some reason, girls can go up to yours.” There was a bit of grumbling from the boys at that, but Will had dawned her usual smirk. “That’s pretty much all we have for you today- if you have questions, feel free to ask us. Goodnight!” Landon said to Amira and Will, and he gestured for the boys to follow him up the left staircase.

“Follow me, I’ll show you to your new room.” Amira nodded to the staircase and Will walked behind her. The girls dormitory was set up for there to be seven different rooms staggered on top of each other as the stairs went up, and Will had the topmost room. “Here you are,” Amira said, pushing open the door that had ‘2022’ carved into the wood. “If you have any questions, come and find me. Goodnight.” On that note, Amira smiled one last time at her and walked down to the third lowest room.

Will stepped into her room and her mouth dropped open. There was a large full size bed residing in the middle of the right wall that had a maroon comforter and lots of pillows on top of it, and facing the bed on the right side of the room was a huge rectangular mirror with a golden frame. Underneath the mirror was a dresser and there were two doors on either side. On the side that she had walked in on, there was a large desk with parchment already on it and a bookshelf built around it. Opposite to the wall with the desk, there was a huge bay window with pillows and a knitted maroon blanket. Opening the walk-in closet on the right of the mirror, she saw that all of her clothes and robes had been hung up, along with a brand new grey Gryffindor crewneck sweatshirt. Her trunk was already sitting at the foot of her bed, and Ember hooted and she opened the cage so he could fly around the room.

She opened the door on the left side of the mirror to a bathroom with gold granite countertops and a maroon accent wall. The bathroom had a clawfoot tub and a walk-in shower; and the tub was right under a window. One side of the wall had a porcelain sink and a mirror with a bright white light around it, and the other side had a vanity and empty shelves and drawers. Walking back out, she inspected the room once more- it was definitely built to hold more than three people, but now, it was all hers. She walked over to the bay window near her bed, and sighed as she took in the view. Her window opened up to the lake and the mountains, and in her opinion, was probably the best view in the castle. She flopped onto her bed, taking in her new room. This was going to be a great year.

Downstairs, the Slytherins stepped into their Common Room in awe. It was stunning. For being in the dungeons, the Common Room had high vaulted ceilings, and they hadn't lied when they said half the room was glass. The wall across from the door that had stairs looping up was glass and beyond it was water that seemed nearly black since the sun had gone down, but vague shapes could still be made out. Inside the room, though, was a small fireplace that had a fire of green flames flickering. The couches were black leather and had throw blankets tossed over each of the cushions as well as pillows. There were also dark oak tables with heavily cushioned chairs. Along the opposite wall to the fireplace was what looked like a bar or countertop with a few coffee makers and shelves that held tea bags and ground coffee.

The room was absolutely stunning in all manners, it was classy and elegant but still comfortable. It smelled of coffee and salt water and the lighting in the room was warmer with the light from the bright burning fire and some lamps that were on the wall.

“It's pretty great, isn't it?” Hyun-Ki grinned at the kids whose jaws were all dropped to the floor taking in the room.

“We take a lot of pride in appearances, so while it may get cold and a little drafty, everything’s way more comfortable than it looks, and your dorms will be just as nice.” Bailey promised. “Speaking of girls, dorms are on the right, and the boys are on the left. I'll take you guys up there now.” The three smaller girls followed Bailey up the stairs walking past some of the kids sitting in the common room. Like everything else in the house, the stairs were dark wood and spiraling upwards.

“So our dorms are a little different, there's little step offs, like right here,” She gestured to a platform that broke off from the spiral staircase. “This is the first year dorm, you guys have the lowest, the higher up you go the older years will have their dorms. I'm second to last if you guys need me.” Bailey smiled and gave them one last wave before walking up to the flights to get to her room. Athena and the two other girls looked at each other hesitantly before entering the room.

Each of them sucked in their breath as they walked in. The room was already perfectly arranged. There were three black four poster beds with dark green curtains draped over them. The bed spreads were gorgeous, each bed having green silk sheets that matched the curtains. There were six windows in the room, two on each side of every bed which all faced into the lake where the girls could look out and see inside the lake when it wasn't pitch black outside. There were small desks to the left of each bed and larger ones with more drawers and bookshelves next to each of them across from the beds.

When the girls could finally move from the stupor of awe they were in, they pushed into the rooms in excitement. Athena immediately claimed the bed in the furthest corner of the room, where her trunk was pushed against the edge of the bed, Jaya took the middle, and the other girl, Ainsley, claimed the one closest to the door. After Athena flopped onto her bed, she noticed a door across the room tucked into the corner. She stood up reluctantly, the bed was amazing, and walked to the door. She gasped when she saw what was inside.

“Guys, you must come see this.” The two other girls stood up from their own beds to join her and gasped equally. The room had a bathroom attached that was five star hotel worthy. All the counters were a black marble with sinks and a mirror over it that was back lit with a sharp white light that seemed almost hollywood-esque style. Aside from the stunning vanity, there was a toilet and shower, as well as a large bathtub. Ainsley pulled open the door to the shower and inside was way larger than it should be, it was a walk in with multiple showerheads and shelves for each of the girls shampoo and such. The bathtub was almost as large as the shower and was a laish tub sunk into the ground that looked like it was a jacuzzi model.

All three girls looked at each other and grinned. Jaya had found a closet that had three robes hanging inside, and shelves packed with fluffy towels for the girls. Ainsley smiled happily as she grabbed hers, and the other two followed suit. They walked back to their room and began unpacking. Ainsley had a mountain of books that she pulled out, and Athena had no idea how that many books fit in that trunk. She had only been able to cram a few of her favorites into her own and when she went to move her own out she heard a loud screaming sound. She and Ainsley turned to look for the sound and saw Jaya backing away from her trunk slowly and bright green eyes peering out at them.

“Jaya, do you have a cat?” Ainsley asked her.

“Nope, definitely not, my parents hate animals and I wasn’t allowed to get one.”

“Well I think you have one now,” Athena laughed as the small calico kitten climbed out of the trunk still mewling loudly.

“I have never had a cat before, and I have no idea how that got in there.” Jaya said she walked hesitantly forward and the three girls crowded around the tiny animal.

“Hm, well, my cousin has a cat. I can try and find him to see if he could help us” Athena suggested as they watched the cat stretch, its large green eyes blinking shut.

“No, no, you can get him in the morning, it's late,” Jaya said worriedly to her. Athena looked at her curiously but before she said anything, Ainsley scooped the kitten up.

“Well, we have to give her a name,” Ainsley said, cooing at the small animal that was squirming in her arms. The girls all put their unpaking on pause as they sat on the floor to brainstorm. Ainsley set her down and the kitten went back to wandering around, exploring their room as much as the girls had.

“So we’re going to keep her?” Jaya asked the other two as the small floof ball attempted to jump up onto one of the beds.

“How can we not, she's adorable?” Athena said.

“What about Cali for a name, she is a Calico,” Ainsley suggested. The little kitten was orange, black, and white, with vibrant green eyes that seemed to glow.

“I don't know, that one seems kind of basic,” Athena said. They debated back and forth on names for what seemed like ages, before Jaya finally picked one that they all agreed on.

“Ok, ok, Emerald. She’s not totally green obviously, but her eyes are, and it's one of the house colors, and she's kind of our mascot now…” The three looked at each other before nodding in agreement.

“We can call her Emmy for short,” Athena said and all the girls smiled happily. The name suited the house and the cat that they now had. However, it was getting incredibly late by the time they noticed, and so after picking the name, the three changed into pajamas and decided that they would work on toys, litter boxes, and the other necessities for her in the morning.

Chapter Text

It started with screaming. It was high pitched, squealy, and incredibly persistent. Jaya was the first one to wake up, as she had Emmy the floof kneading on her chest, attempting to wake her up. The small cat had been at it for almost ten minutes now, crying out for attention and Athena's guess, food. All of the girls were awake but now laying silently in their beds as though hoping that if they ignored it, the whining would go away. It didn’t.

Reluctantly, Athena stood up, and turned on the lamp next to her bed. The small clock next to it read 5:32 am. Far earlier than any of them wanted it to be. However, the newly dubbed Emerald refused to stop despite Jaya’s attempts to pet, move, and smother her, whining through it all.

“Will someone make it stop, please?” Jaya begged. She had stopped attempting to muffle the cat, and instead had placed the pillow over her own head, trying to smother herself. Athena walked over from her bed, rubbing her eyes, to Jaya’s to pick up Emmy. The small cat mewled indignantly as Athena scooped her up; she was so small that Athena could hold her in only one hand.

“I can go bug my cousin, he's a Slytherin second year and he's had his cat for years. She's probably just hungry so he can help. But I am not going alone,” She looked at the other two pointedly as the cat started batting at her loose hair.

“I’m calling nose goes, that cat has been meowing at me all morning, I’m sleeping,” Jaya said, finally emerging from under her pillow.

“I'll go with you, ‘Thena,” Ainsley said from her bed as she stepped out and put on slippers she had packed. Athena sat Emerald down momentarily as she pulled on a robe and slippers as well. Once she and Ainsley had done that, they grabbed the cat and walked out.

The stairwell was dark, barely lit with all the lamps turned on low. Outside, Athena and Ainsley had to tiptoe along going down the hall, trying to make as little noise as possible. The screeching cat was not making it very easy however. By the time they made it down to the Common Room, they were sure that they had woken at least one person up. Hesitantly, they began to creep up the boys' stairs, both having been warned of the potential repercussions of going to the other gender's dorms. When the stairs didn't turn into a slide and wipe them out, they continued up faster. The first door had a silver one on it, so they continued up to the next one.

This door had a silver two on it, so Athena figured it had to be the right one. She started by knocking softly on the door, just trying to see if anyone was awake. But after five minutes of quiet knocks, Ainsley had enough. It was early, she was tired, and the cat had not stopped meowing. Aisley moved past Athena and pounded on the door, hoping desperately that someone would answer.

Soon enough, after a couple minutes and repetitive knocking by Ainsley, the door creaked open. A stocky boy with dark brown hair and tan skin peeked out, taking in the two first years standing outside his door. “Who’re you, and what do you want?”

There was a few seconds of silence before Ainsley nudged Athena, forcing her to answer. Athena swallowed before hesitantly saying, “I’m Athena Burns, and this is Ainsley Shacklebolt. We’re looking for Blaise Whitacker.”

“Why the hell do you need Blaise so early in the morning?” The boy asked, rubbing his eyes. Ainsley pointed at the screaming kitten in Athena's arms and he sighed before opening the door. The room was very similar to the girl’s dormitory, but instead of only three beds, there were three sets of bunk beds. All six beds except for the top one in the middle had a sleeping boy in the covers, and as the mystery boy turned on the light, there were groans and objections. It was also somehow already a mess, shirts thrown over desk chairs and posters askew and half hung up on the walls. There was also a mess of cat toys, and a climbing tower shoved in the corner of the room for the boy’s cats.

“Matteo, what the fuck, mate?” The boy in the far left bottom bunk mashed his pillow over his head as he tried to escape the light.

“Can it, Finn, they’re looking for Blaise.” Matteo walked over to the middle bottom bunk and shook the boy nestled in the sheets. “Blaise, wake up. Some first years are looking for you.”

“Athena, I swear to God, if that’s you, I’m going to murder you,” he mumbled as he burrowed further into the sheets.

Rolling her eyes, Athena moved over to stand next to the boy, Matteo, and dropped the cat on Blaise. “Make. It. Stop. She hasn’t stopped all morning and none of us know what to do.” Athena said, crossing her arms.

Blaise didn’t even look up from his pillow even though the small kitten had started to scratch at his blanket in an effort to tell him that she was upset. “She’s probably hungry. There’s a bag of food in the corner by the tower. If you get close to Plum, she will scratch you up worse than she did the Houston girl yesterday for waking her up. Now fuck off,” he said, his voice muffled from all of the sheets.

Athena sighed and picked up Emmy, gesturing for Ainsley to follow her over to the corner of the room. “Thanks.”

“Whatever.”

Ainsley grabbed a spare food bowl from underneath a shelf of assorted supplies and carefully filled it with a cup of dry food. “Alright, that should be good. We can get our own tomorrow. Thanks, Matteo,” she said to the boy, and he nodded.

“You’re welcome.” On that note, the girls slunk out of the room and back to their own. As soon as they opened the door, Ainsley placed the bowl of food on the floor in the corner of the room and Athena set the cat carefully on the ground, and she immediately ran over to start eating.

“Thank God that worked,” Athena sighed, and Ainsley nodded.

“No kidding. Let’s get some sleep, we’ve got a big day in a couple hours,” she responded, collapsing on her bed. Athena exhaled in exhaustion and did the same, falling asleep almost as soon as she hit her pillow.

The following morning, Will woke up full of excitement for her first day of Hogwarts. Her alarm clock said that it was 7:00 on the dot, and she eagerly hopped out of bed to begin her morning routine. After a quick shower, she scrunched her hair to form her extravagant dark curls and quickly brushed her teeth. She was nearly jumping out of her skin with excitement as she dressed in her brand new Gryffindor robes, and she ran out of her room to the boy’s dormitory, running up the stairs until she reached the highest room. She rapped on the door loudly, and a glowing Lucas answered. “Hey, Lucas. Are you ready for your first day?” She asked brightly, and he nodded vigorously before stepping aside to let her in. Inside, the boys dorm looked much like her room, four large beds with maroon and gold decor and three large regular windows in between each of the beds. Three owl cages were sitting on desks, and an open cat crate sat in the corner, so Will assumed one of the boys had a cat. Will only saw Lucas and Parker in the room so she was willing to bet James and Fred were still getting changed so she took a seat on James’ bed until he got out.

When the two cousins finally emerged, all five of the first years were ecstatic with excitement. “Finally! Let’s go! We have to get our schedules!” Lucas exclaimed.

Fred rolled his eyes. “It's only 7:35. We have plenty of time.” However, Will grabbed his arm and yanked him out of the room. “Will!”

“Come on, Fred! I’m excited!” They rushed through the hallways to the Great Hall, where about half of the students were getting their breakfast. Will, James, Lucas, and Fred bid Parker their goodbyes and sat down at the same table that they had yesterday, and as soon as they sat down, pieces of paper magically appeared next to their tables. Will picked hers up and glanced at the words written on them.

The Gryffindors all had the same schedule, which started with breakfast before they had flying lessons with the Slytherins. Seeing this, Will pumped her fist before groaning at the rest of her schedule. Following that, they had History of Magic with the Hufflepuffs. The class alone was boring but with the Hufflepuffs, she couldn’t imagine how dull it would be. Then they had lunch, Charms, and finally Defense Against the Dark Arts before dinner. The next day their schedule would change, but then they would alternate every other day. While the Gryffindor first years were discussing their new schedules, Will and James most excited for flying first thing in the morning of course, a group of students from Slytherin walked in. In front were a bunch of boys, mixed in with a couple of girls. Most of them Will had never seen before, but after the large group passed she saw Athena arguing intently with her cousin. Damn, she had to admit he was hot. Wait. Will wasn’t supposed to think that. But there was just something about his scowl and the way his hair fell over his eyes as he argued with his friend.

As the pair walked closer, Will shook herself out of the stupor she had been in following his walk. James had noticed this and watched her curiously as Athena and Blaise walked closer.

“Athena, I don't care if you don’t know how to ‘turn it off’, and aside from the fact that you can’t just ‘turn a cat off’, if you ever, and I mean ever, wake me up before 6:00 again, I will kill you.”

“You are such a grump, but seriously, how do I get it to turn off?” Athena asked him, gesturing furiously. When they reached the table Will and the rest of the Gryffindors were at, he rolled his eyes at Athena before glaring at the group.

“We’ll discuss this later. However, I would like to thank you for putting me in a bad mood for the rest of the day, because now I have to put up with your shit at the one place that I could get away from you,” Blaise said, casting an angry stare at Will as he turned on his heel to go walk to where Aidan and Charley were sitting.

Sighing deeply, Athena sat down dramatically in an empty chair next to Will and Fred. She was already reaching for food when the scroll with her schedule appeared in front of her. Will looked at her weirdly as she began to read it. “He’s a dick.”

Athena chuckled. “Who, Blaise? Yeah, he's not always like this, I promise. But he definitely has his moments.”

Will looked over at Blaise, who had sat down next to his friends. His eyes were still full of annoyance, and he swore as he spilled some of his orange juice. He looked up and caught her eye, and she looked away quickly.

At their table, Aidan had caught Blaise’s quick glance at the first year table. “Hey, isn’t that the one girl that your cat clawed up yesterday?” he asked, following his gaze to Will.

Blaise looked away from his cousin’s friend and turned back to reading his new schedule. “Is it? I can’t seem to remember what she looked like,” he lied, even though as he spoke, he could picture Will’s piercing grey eyes with a guarded expression as his cat stared into them.

Aidan shrugged. “I remember. She’s pretty.” He took a bite of his toast, studying the girl.

Charley burst out laughing. “Don’t tell me Aidan’s crushing on a first year!” He exclaimed, making his friend blush furiously.

Blaise wrinkled his nose. “That’s gross, mate.”

Aidan threw a grape at Charley. “I am not! I was just stating a fact.”

His friend chuckled. “We’ll see about that. I think she’s trying out for Quidditch this year- word on the street is that she’s a pretty good Chaser. She might give you a run for your money, my friend,” Charley said, nudging Blaise.

Blaise scoffed. “Yeah, right. A first year would never score on me,” he boasted.

Charley and Aidan shared a look. “We’ll see about that.”

Meanwhile, Will had already begun chatting Athena’s ear off. “Man, we have our first flying lesson after this! I wonder what it’s going to be like- I already know how to ride a broom. Maybe I could ask the teacher if she would let me just fly around or something.”

Athena raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know, she might correct your form or something.”

Will stared at her, an odd look on her face. “She’s not going to correct my form.” She looked genuinely confused that Athena would suggest that she was anything but perfect on her broom.

“Are you sure? She could probably teach us all a thing or two.”

The Gryffindor shrugged. “I mean, maybe. My dad always tells me that I need to be more receptive of other people's coaching.”

Athena simply pursed her lips and went back to eating. She had yet to see her friend fly, but she was almost one hundred percent sure that she wasn’t as good on a broom as everyone said she was. She definitely seemed to think that she was pretty great, and maybe this flying opportunity would be an opportunity for her to be humbled. Will continued chattering with James chiming in about her flying skills while Lucas simply rolled his eyes at Fred and Athena. Athena stifled a laugh as she scooted closer to them. “Do you really think that she's that good on a broom?” She whispered to Fred.

“Well, don't get me wrong, she's pretty amazing, especially for how young she is, but in my opinion, there’s room for improvement in everyone, even the pros,” Fred said as they turned to watch Will gesture wildly and James nod along as he ate his bacon. Athena tried her best to stifle a grin at that, but Fred saw it anyway and frowned. “But to be fair, Athena, she was good enough to be accepted into Puddlemere’s academy at an incredibly young age and she also plays five or six age groups up regularly, depending on the day.”

“Five or six? That’s surprising that they’d let someone that young play with teenagers. Did her dad have anything to do with that?”

“I know why you think that, but no. You’ve never seen her at home- when she’s not at actual practice, she’s outside with her dad or Louis and practicing some more. All she does is fly.”

“Interesting.” Athena took a bite of a muffin and watched her friend mime out one instance when she had gotten knocked off her broom by Louis on accident, and as she told the story, she waved to a redheaded boy at a table far away and he waved back goodnaturedly. “Hey, if I outfly her or get corrected less, I think I should get a prize.” Athena muttered as Willow’s enthusiasm for Quidditch grew with her gestures and she accidentally smacked James in the face. Fred burst out laughing and James groaned dramatically.

“I’ll take you up on that. If she outflys you, though, I get the prize,” Fred said, smirking, and Athena sighed and went back to her breakfast.

The rest of breakfast went relatively the same, Athena left halfway through Will’s performance as it only got more and more dramatic as it went on. On her fourth rendition of scoring perfectly through the Weasley’s hoops during a practice game, Athena was waved over to where the rest of the Slytherins were sitting, Ainsley with an open magazine in front of her. While Will nearly tipped out of her chair talking which had Fred and Lucas dying of laughter in their chairs, Athena rolled her eyes and grabbed a piece of toast as she stood up. She waved at Will as she grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, toast in mouth as she left the table. Will looked back at her confused as she walked away, tipping her chair back even further, and actually managed to fall out. James absolutely howled as Will groaned on the floor and Athena sat down with her housemates. Fred was struggling to breathe as he laughed too hard, and Lucas pounded him on the back trying to help him breathe.

“Why do you sit with those idiots?” Jaya asked, looking distastefully at the Gryffindors.

Athena chuckled. “I don’t know. Will is actually pretty cool, when she's not off celebrating her own accomplishments,” she said, watching James help her up the floor. “So is Fred, he's the most chill out of the four, but Will was the first one who was actually nice to me.”

“She seems incredibly stuck up,” Jaya said matter-of-factly. As they watched, Will settled back in her seat and began to tell yet another story, using her arms as she spoke and confidence was plastered all over her face. “Looks like she thinks pretty highly of herself.”

Athena studied her friend as she finished her story triumphantly and beamed as Lucas applauded her. “I kind of get that vibe, too. Apparently she’s God’s gift to Quidditch- I’m excited for flying class so we can see how good she actually is.”

“Every pureblood kid says that, though, we’ve all been on brooms since we were tiny.” One of the guys sitting across from the girls piped up. Athena looked up and studied the four of them. She hadn't seen the boys since last night, and even then she hadn’t paid much attention. The guy talking had dark hair that had grown out long past his ears and was beginning to curl at the back of his neck. He had sharp features, but his smile seemed crooked, and when he smiled at Athena she saw some of his teeth had grown weird. “It's Flint, by the way, Mikael Flint.” The boy- Mikael- said to Athena, who had noticed her studying him. Athena blushed slightly and turned away, she didn't mean to stare.

Next to Athena, Ainsley studied him and said indifferently, “my dad knows yours.” Mikael turned to look at her and when he processed who it was, wrinkled his nose at her.

“Wasn’t your dad a Gryffindor?” The boy who talked this time was the more scrawny redhead next to Mikael. His hair was bright red and he had very bright blue eyes, before Ainsley could get a word in, he kept talking. “My dads were too, obviously they weren’t in your dad’s class, but they were Gryffindors.” Ainsley opened her mouth to say something, and then shut it and shrugged. “Oh, sorry! My name's Connor Thomas-Finnegan, by the way!” He had far more energy than any of the girls did this early, and Athena chuckled to herself as she cast a sideways glance at Will, who was folding her napkin into a boat and chattering away next to James and Fred. Connor and Will would probably get along.

“Okay, okay, more introductions later. Athena we have important searching to do.” Jaya grabbed Athena's shoulder and shook her till she faced her. “Ainsley found this magazine-”

“Found is a loose term,” Ainsley muttered under her breath next to Athena which made her laugh while chewing.

“-borrowed, anyways, it's a cat magazine so we can order stuff for Emmy.” Jaya finished pointing at the magazine that was displaying necessities for magical pets of all kinds. Athena nodded and scooted closer to the tables, the girls all clustering around the book. Across from them, the boys resumed talking about classes and Quidditch.

At the Gryffindor table, James was eyeing the girls suspiciously. “What do you think they’re scheming about?” James asked Will.

She glanced over at the Slytherin table, shrugging. “I have no idea, but I don’t really care.” When James still stared at the table suspiciously, she laughed and threw a sausage link at him. “Oh, come on, JP, it’s our first day of classes! I don’t know about you, but I’m not letting anyone ruin my first day.” She stood up, straightening her robe, but suddenly, she felt something knock into her from behind, causing her to stumble. “What the hell?”

“My bad.” A smirking Blaise had shoved her into the table, almost making her fall.

Will’s nostrils flared. “Watch where you’re going, dipshit.”

Blaise simply rolled his eyes, smirking as he watched the young Gryffindor straighten herself out. “I was walking. You were in my way.”

Will grinded her teeth, wanting nothing more to punch Blaise in his smug face, but she felt someone grab her wrist and she looked down to see Fred giving her a stern look, and she backed down a little. Her parents would be very angry if she got into a fight on the first day.

“Let it go, dude,” came a voice behind Blaise, and the dark haired boy that was sharing a compartment with him yesterday appeared next to him, a firm hand on his shoulder and a goofy grin on his face. He pushed Blaise backwards towards their table, and cast an apologetic look at Will. “Sorry about that,” he said, running a hand through his dark hair.

Will cocked her head, smiling back at him. “It’s alright. Aidan, right?” She asked, remembering his name, and when he nodded excitedly, she smiled at him, making his pale cheeks flush ever so slightly.

Blaise cleared his throat loudly, staring daggers at his friend. Aidan blushed some more before turning back to Will. “Do you want to catch up later? I’ve heard that you’re good at Quidditch,” he asked shyly, and Will nodded.

“That would be great! I have lunch at 2:00 that I could skip, or if it would work better for you, I have a free period tomorrow at 6:00,” she said, glancing at her schedule.

Aidan looked at his own, which was still in his hand from earlier, and nodded. “Tomorrow would be great. See you then,” he said, before grabbing a dumbstruck Blaise by the sleeve and dragging him away, hoping desperately that no one had seen his blush.

“Okay, see you!” Will called after him, waving. When she turned back to her tablemates, every single one of them, especially Lucas, were looking at her with a surprised look on their faces. “What?” She asked, her hands on her hips.

Lucas just shook his head. “You’re such a people person.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Will scoffed.

Fred laughed before throwing a napkin at her. “Don’t worry about it.”

Back at the second years’ table, Blaise was fuming. “Are you serious, Aidan? What was that about?”

The boy opposite him simply shrugged, dissecting their schedules. He had snatched Charley's and Blaise's to compare the three. “I wanted to talk to her.” He frowned at the schedules and glared at Charley. “I barely have any classes with you this year. We’ve got double Potions, Charms, and DADA, but that's it.”

Blaise had huffed and sat down angrily in his chair. “Stop trying to change the subject! Quidditch with her? That’s literally like asking her on a date!”

Aidan scrunched up his nose, looking genuinely disgusted. “Ew, Blaise, that is definitely not a date. Girls are gross. Besides, I’m just stoking out the competition. Someone has to find out how good she actually is- I legitimately had three members of the team ask me about her because they saw her in our compartment yesterday.”

Charley shook his head. “I know her dad’s a professional Seeker or whatever, but there’s no way she’s that good.”

Blaise scowled. “It’s not like she’s going to make the team, anyway. Isn’t there going to be like, four or five seventh year Chasers trying out for one spot for Gryffindor this year?”

Charley nodded. “Yeah, but I don’t think Xander is going to take them. Word on the street is he’s looking for new talent this year. He’s been the Captain for a while now- he definitely knows what he’s doing.”

Aidan cast a glance over at Will and her friends. She brushed a stray hair from her wild dark curls out of her face, a look of interest on her face as she listened to Lucas tell a story. “We’ll see, boys. We’ll see.”

At Athena's table, Jaya had pulled out a quill and was scratching away furiously at the magazine, circling the things that the girls wanted for little Emmy. Across from them, the boys were discussing the pros and cons of their classes, which seemed to be the talk of the morning for the eager first years. Mikael had a wild look on his face as he argued his excellence at Charms while the other boys scoffed at him. Athena was only half listening, more focused on Ainsley tallying the amount that they were at while Jaya picked out all the luxuries. Behind the lanky girl, Athena saw Ainsley slowly scribble out some of the more unnecessary items on the list and that made Athena laugh. It was hard to believe she had been so nervous only a couple of hours ago, the kids in her house were nothing more than just that- kids. The boys were incredibly hyper, each brimming with pride about their own individual talents, and the girls were all deeply funny and intelligent from what Athena had noticed so far, and they were all pretty easy to talk to.

Aside from a few older kids who trickled out, already preparing for OWLs and NEWTs, most students remained in the Great Hall with their new friends until the first bell. All the students gathered their things, including the Slytherins. Connor’s bag was already a mess somehow, and he scrambled to put it all back together as the class tried to navigate outside to the Quidditch pitch, the Gryffindors hot on their heels.

Behind them, Will could be heard once again telling elaborate Quidditch stories, James watching her and nodding along raptly while Fred, Lucas, and Parker merely nodded their heads whenever she stopped to take a breath. Jaya was trying to act as if she wasn’t listening, but at every dramatic scene Will depicted, she took in a small intake of breath. Athena remembered her mentioning last night that she was muggleborn, and figured she must not know what Quidditch was.

“So, you know about Quidditch?” Athena asked her jovally, but still quietly so the boys wouldn't pick up the conversation and try to explain it in an obnoxious manner. Jaya looked like she wanted to say she did, but then she shook her head.

“Never heard of it until yesterday,” she responded sheepishly.

Athena chuckled, but she did it in a manner that Jaya knew she wasn't laughing at her. “Okay, so whoever the coach is will probably explain it much better than I will, but basically...” Athena explained the odds and ends of the match to her, the flying on brooms, the four positions, and the basics of the rules. By the time they got to the pitch, Jaya was brimming with excitement, ready to try it out.

The Hogwarts grounds were lush and still in full bloom, leftover from the summer. The grass was green and still had some lingering dew, as well as drenched in the early sunlight. The light was almost too bright for Athena, and she had to cover her eyes most of the way down to the pitch until she could see without squinting and her eyes watering. The five Gryffindors and seven Slytherins arrived at nearly the same time having practically walked together, and almost every single first year was jumping out of their skin with excitement.

Walking into the stadium for the first time was jaw dropping, even for the kids who had grown up on brooms and in this world. There was something entirely different when you were viewing it from the ground of the pitch instead of the stands to watch. It felt like new beginnings to most, the start of the next ten months, and the start of the next seven years that would be full of magic.

The serenity of the field was interrupted, shockingly, by Willow. She stepped out in front of all of the other kids, still in awe of the stadium, and let out a giant whoop of pleasure. The loud noise echoed around the stands and Patrick and Mikael, who were closest to her, covered their ears at the booming noise while glaring at her. Willow was completely oblivious to the fact that she had pissed off the boys next to her and she kept spinning round and round in circles trying to take it all in.

When it was 10:10, and their coach still hadn’t arrived, the kids had assumed various lounging positions on the field. Ainsley was laying flat on her back and had her arm over her eyes blocking out the light. Some of the boys were sprinting up and down the pitch, racing each other, while Athena and Jaya chatted amongst themselves. Now that Jaya knew all about Quidditch, she was asking Athena everything she could possibly think of, teams, players, what flying was like, and Athena was happy to answer her. Fred, Lucas, and Parker were sitting in a small circle, while James and Will watched the race before Will enthusiastically asked to join in.

At 10:15, Athena decided she was bored of sitting about and waiting for the teacher. So she stood up and stretched lightly before walking away from the two groups of kids scattered around the field.

“Oi, ‘Thena, where are you going?” Jaya yelled out from behind her.

“To find the brooms, this is boring,” Athena yelled back, catching the attention of Will who had stopped to take a breath with the guys from racing.

“Ooh, can I come with you?” Will yelled, still slightly out of breath. Despite that, though, when she saw Athena nod her head, she ran over to catch up with her.

“Soo, do you know where the brooms are?” Will asked, a smile on her face that was still slightly red from running.

“No idea! But there's probably an office or something around here somewhere that stores them.”

“Too bad we don’t know any actual magic yet, we could just summon them.” Will chuckled, and Athena laughed with her. The two went walking to where the entrance to the locker rooms were, hoping to find a storage entrance. Upon seeing a door tucked into the corner before the halls that led to the locker rooms, the two girls approached it, hoping it would be unlocked and they would be able to get in.

The door was not in fact unlocked, but when the girls went to twist the knob and then knock, they were greeted by a frazzled looking woman. She had short, white, hair that was sticking up in all directions and yellow eyes that made her look somewhat owlish. Along with that, she was half dressed in Quidditch robes and looked at the girls in confusion.

“Uh, hi?” Athena said hesitantly, looking up at the tall, frazzled looking woman in front of her.

“What time is it?” She practically barked at the two girls, causing Athena to jump mildly and Will look affronted.

“It's almost 10:30?” Will said, still looking mildly shocked about the crazy woman in front of them. The lady let out a mild string of curses, as she disappeared back into the office. Curious, Will and Athena leaned into the office to see what was going on. The teacher, they presumed anyway, was digging around looking for something. She emerged in a few moments holding a bundle of worn down and beat up old brooms. Still distracted, she handed the brooms to the girls, and sent them off on their way with a “Take these back to the field, get everyone one.” before going back to bustling in her office. Stunned, Athena and Will turned and looked at each other before simply shrugging and beginning to walk back to the field where the other kids were still wandering about.

“Listen up! Everyone take one!” Will hollered at the top of her lungs, catching the attention of all the students in there. Reluctantly, half the kids stood up and stretched to come grab the brooms. The boys who had been racing glared at Will as they grabbed the brooms from her pile, mad at her for her loud and brash interruption of their fun.

Once the brooms had been distributed it took another few minutes for the woman to emerge from the office under the stands. She appeared at least slightly more put together now, although her hair still stuck up in all directions, and her eyes glowed somewhat in the sun.

“Well, I apologize for my tardiness, but we can get started now. My name is Madame Hooch, and I will be your flying coach. Now, If you would kindly set your broom down, gently please!” She paused to bark at Connor who had just dropped it to the ground. Sighing, she continued. “Set it down by your side, handle side forward, on your dominant hand side.” Once all the kids had done that, Lucas and Connor shifting the broom to their left hand side, she proceeded to talk.

“At my command, say ‘up’. Say it very loudly and very clearly, make sure to enunciate, and really convey what you want. Now, on three.”

“One.” Jaya looked around, one of the muggleborns in the bunch who had no idea what was going on.

“Two.” She swallowed hard and adjusted her stance a little, bracing herself for what she figured would be humiliation when the broom didn't do as it was told.

“Three.” Along with the others, Jaya called out ‘Up’ along with the other chorus of kids. Next to her, Athena’s broom leapt to her hands without hardly having to issue the words. On her other side, Ainsley was frowning in determination as she concentrated hard, the broom hovering a few inches above the ground but refusing to go all the way up to hers. And then she looked down at her hands, in awe of the fact that it had barely taken the command, and the broom flew up into her palm. Athena looked up and grinned at her, Jaya looking mildly shocked at how natural it felt.

The boys, who were on Athena's side, were having various levels of success. Mikael’s had hesitated a half second before flying up to his hand, and he smirked at Patrick, who was struggling a little bit more, like Connor, whose broom had flown up and smacked him in the nose. Farthest away was Braxton, who Jaya thought was a muggleborn, but the quiet boy hadn’t talked much yet. He was having more success than Connor, who was sitting on the ground, rubbing his face which was now almost as red as his hair, and had Mikael and Patrick cackling at his misfortune.

Across from the bunch of Slytherins, the Gryffindors were having much more success than the lot in front of them. Will, who was a natural flier, had had her broom fly into her hands like it was nothing. James and Fred, who had grown up playing Quidditch, had called theirs just as easily. Lucas was struggling, but only slightly, and eventually it raised up to his hands. Parker was having about as much success as his twin, which was to say, not much.

Once everyone had at least managed to get them into their hands, with few casualties, Madame Hooch called out; “Now, carefully! Step over, and mount your broom. Once you've done that, gently kick off the ground and hover.” She stood in between the two rows of students with her arms crossed as she watched the students. Athena, James, Will, and Mikael mounted the easiest, rising off the ground with ease, Will going up far higher than she needed to and getting an annoyed glare from Hooch as she did so. Fred and Jaya rose quite easily as well, Jaya being a surprise as she had never ridden a broom before, but was acting quite natural, and she beamed at Athena, who smiled back. Slowly, the rest of the class kicked off as well. Ainsley and Connor were wobbling a fair bit, but holding their own nonetheless, Braxton had taken to it quite easily and was hovering calmly, but the Patil twins and Lucas, while off the ground, were looking quite reluctant to do so.

“Now, for the next few minutes, I want you to practice kicking off the ground and landing. Nothing too crazy for now,” Madam Hooch said, observing all of the kids. Will and Athena looked at each other from across the rows, and with a grin, Will was the first to kick off, rising around six feet and then landing with ease, seemingly in her natural habitat. “Well done, Houston. Professor Potter did warn us to watch for you this year,” Hooch said approvingly, making Will smirk with satisfaction and James scowl. Of course his father didn’t tell Madam Hooch about his own son.

Seeing Will rise so easily, Athena did the same across from her and kicked off, hovering even higher than Will did. Winking at her, she lowered again to try and help out Jaya and Ainsley. Over the next hour, the professor taught the first years the basics of flying. Those who had been flying since they were little took to it easily, and the rest, while taking some more time to get the hang of it, eventually did too. Jaya especially took to it quite easily, soon soaring almost as easily as Will was doing in between the interested looks of Madam Hooch whenever she pulled off something particularly stunt-like.

When the end of the class hours approached, their professor sent them off with the task to end with five laps around a field, nothing ridiculously fast or showy, just the kids getting a feel for the brooms and what they can be like. With a sharp blow of her whistle, the group went off, Will immediately jostling her way to the front of the crowd, followed closely by James, where the two were now flying next to Mikael who had attempted to take the lead. Somehow it quickly turned into a race, and while at first Athena hung back to stay with Jaya and Ainsley, but after watching the three jostle up front she joined the competition. Jaya was keeping up pretty steadily on her own, and she kept pace with Ainsley, encouraging Athena to go catch up with the two Gryffindors who were jostling Mikael around.

“Try to keep up, Flint!” Will teased, leaning forward ever so slightly so she began to fly even faster.

Mikael’s face reddened as he began to fall behind the Gryffindor. “Shut up, Houston.”

“Not unless you catch up,” Will called behind her, her mess of curls coming loose and flying wildly as she gained an even larger lead on Mikael.

Behind Mikael, Jaya and Ainsley were whooping and yelling as Athena was catching up to the Slytherin boy, who was still neck and neck with James, but Will had pulled ahead by a full broomslength. The two boys were so close they were knocking into each other as they tried to gain a lead on the other, and Athena would’ve had to swing wide around if she wanted to catch up with Will. So, instead of going wide which would’ve taken more time, she dove down. The old Nimbus model brooms didn’t handle as nicely as her Hermes did, but it wasn’t terrible by any standard, so when she nudged the broom to go down, it listened quite easily. The boys hadn’t noticed her catching up behind her, so when they saw her streak below them, they both almost screamed. Athena was snickering at their reaction as her dive leveled out under them, and she leaned low to the broom, urging it forward.

Will was too focused to notice Athena at first, but when she felt the air rush next to her as Athena gained speed to catch up to her, she turned. When she saw her friend and the flustered boys behind her, she laughed out loud, raising an eyebrow. “Oh, it’s on,” she snarked, and Athena rolled her eyes, pulling up next to her.

The two girls stayed that way, neck and neck, bodies flat against their brooms, each trying to take the lead. From behind, the two couldn’t have looked more different, Will’s wild dark curls flying free behind her, while Athena's long blonde hair stayed trapped in a ponytail. But from the front, both had matching grins on their faces, both loving the feeling of the wind curving around them as they raced towards the end of their laps.

They had actually managed to lap the slowest on the pitch, nearly causing poor Connor to topple over much to the dismay of Madame Hooch, who despite her hardest efforts couldn’t get the two to slow down. After passing the slowest in the group, Athena and Will reached the main cluster in the group on their last lap. Will laughed loudly at the sight of some of the boys (the Patil twins) diving out of the way to avoid being hit as the Gryffindor continued on her war path to the front. Athena, on the other hand, had risen above the group of slow-flying first years only to dive back down in front of Will when she pulled ahead from the group. Her friend nearly went flying when she was forced to jerk her broom back to avoid colliding with Athena and the Slytherin only grinned at the look of intense anger that was shot her way, which made Will’s temper boil inside her and her smile faded into a sneer quickly.

Once again, after Will picked her speed back up and Athena had pulled out of the dive where the two were neck and neck again, nearly to the end of the laps, James and Mikael in front of them, but with another lap yet to go. But much to Athena’s surprise, Will leaned forward in an odd way, and the old Nimbus seemed to tap into an invisible gas tank and engage a whole new level of speed. The Gryffindor blasted forward in front of Athena, effectively cutting her off, and Athena tried to get her own broom to do the same thing, but found that she didn’t know how. Will was in a comfortable lead now, and she was going to win easily, but out of the corner of her eye, Athena could see Will readjusting her grip on the broom, moving her hands closer to the front, pulling her knees up closer, and Athena's eyes widened as she realized what she was going to do.

They were only about ten feet off the ground, but still that fall wasn’t going to be pleasant if she did what Athena did what she thought she was about to. Madam Hooch noticed it and when her yells to stop fell on deaf ears she pulled her wand at the ready, and Athena pushed all the harder as Will pulled herself up precariously. She had one hand gripping the broom, as her legs rested on the handle, and with a large kick, she pushed herself off, dragging the broom down with her. The jump off the broom, and her flailing body propelled her even more in front of Athena and she went tumbling, down to the ground a ways past Hooch, letting go of the broom at the last second.

She hit the ground and rolled a few feet, when Athena halted behind her before running over.

“Will! Merlin, Will, are you ok?” The blonde girl exclaimed as she kneeled next to the Gryffindor whose white shirt was now covered in grass stains, and knees had a fair bit of mud on them. Athena was worried for a moment when Will didn’t respond, and hesitantly put a hand on her shoulder, until Will turned to face her.

Her eyes had been cast downwards, before they turned up to meet Athena’s, and her face split into a wide grin. “Did you see that jump? Holy Merlin, we were going so fast, and I just went- woosh!” Will gestured crazily, arms thrown out as she mimed the dive she had made, and Athena sighed at her. “Gryffindor’s tits, that was amazing, and I won! I totally won!” The large smile somehow seemed to grow, as she raised her eyebrows as if to challenge Athena in the statement that Will had won their race.

Athena rolled her eyes, but couldn’t deny it. “I guess you won, but that’s only because you literally jumped off your broom. That’s probably the craziest thing I’ve seen in a while.”

Will got up and brushed herself off quickly as if she hadn’t fallen at all and raised an eyebrow at her friend. “Oh, sure, blame it on me pulling off the most picture perfect landing of my life to finish you off. It’s just payback for that shitty move you pulled earlier- but I guarantee that if we were to flat out race with no jumping and no diving I would win, ‘Thena,” she snarked, and Athena glared at her.

“Maybe. We’ll have to see.” She paused, not wanting to ask her next question but curiosity winning out. “How did you do that trick with the broom?”

Will wiggled her eyebrows. “Oh, but if I told you, it wouldn’t be a trick anymore.” She stuck out her hand. “Give me a time and place and I’ll be there. This is a formal challenge, so there’s going to be some kind of winnings involved when I beat you, just as a warning.”

Athena smirked as she clasped Will’s hand and they shook. “You’re on.”

“Willow Houston! Athena Burns!” The two girls turned their heads to see Madam Hooch running towards them, her robes billowing in her wake and an angry expression on her face.

“Uh oh,” Athena said, taking a step back almost instinctively, but Will grabbed her hand.

“Don’t worry about it. She’ll probably yell at us for a minute tops but then practically beg us to try out for the Quidditch teams this year,” she joked, and Athena relaxed a little.

“You’re probably right.”

“I’ll do all the talking- just try not to make her more mad,” Will responded, and Athena nodded before Madam Hooch approached them.

“What were you two thinking? I deliberately told you to slow down, to be careful, but you didn’t listen! Houston, you could’ve gotten seriously hurt-” she started, but Will looked up at her with a puppy eyed look on her face.

“We’re terribly sorry, Madam Hooch, we were just so excited to be on brooms that we got a little ahead of ourselves. The fall- I did that on purpose, I guess I just wanted to go as fast as I could,” she said sheepishly, and Athena’s eyes widened. She did not expect Will to pull that card, and she attempted to make herself look as regretful as possible.

Madam Hooch’s expression softened as she looked down at the two first years, and she crossed her arms. “Well, I guess you two do know how to ride a broom, so it could’ve been worse, but you must be more careful!”

Will nodded vigorously. “Yes, Madam. Of course.”

In that sentence, Athena could see that Will had Hooch exactly where she wanted her. Impressive, she thought. The more time she spent with Will, the more she seemed to like her. “Alright, I’ll let it slide this time. Now run along back to the group, class almost over.” As they moved to walk back to the group, Madam Hooch coughed once to get their attention one last time. “And girls- do make sure you take advantage of the rule change this year for house teams. I will definitely pass along some information to Xander and Darius,” she said, winking.

Will beamed at those words. “Thanks, Professor!” and Athena nodded vigorously along with her, “Yes, thank you so much, ma’am!” And with bright beaming grins on their faces ran to join their classmates.

There was an uproar as the two girls joined them, everyone talking at once, except for James who was sulking quietly near the back. Jaya and Ainsley gathered around Athena and began talking eagerly as they joined the boys at the front of the group, all bubbly laughs and then serious discussion of what Hooch had said and whether or not they had detention, and if she would be at Quidditch tryouts. Will meanwhile was surrounded by her own friends, the boys in her class all patting her on the back and encouraging her to retell the story from her perspective which Will indulged them in with great joy, loudly discussing the ever growing tall tale of her speed and nearly breaking her arm. Upon reaching the castle doors, the two groups had to split up, the Gryffindors going to History of Magic with the Hufflepuffs and the Slytherins to Charms with the Ravenclaws.

However, the boisterous Gryffindors had passed a group of waiting older students who overheard the spinning story of the ‘Great Race’ of two certain first years. Soon, the whole school was buzzing about a Gryffindor that was one of the best fliers that Hogwarts had seen in years, and Will was definitely not the person to pass up a chance to make herself known. She found herself talking to a number of different people of all ages and houses, and even though they just wanted to know about her broom and her dad, she felt like maybe she could make some more friends. And even though everyone was talking about Will and not her, Athena didn’t deny that she was the one that had raced the dark haired girl.

True to her word, Madam Hooch invited Darius and Xander to tea with her to pass on the news of the two girls she had watched fly, a smile on her face as she wrote the invitation. She had been at this for a long time, and if there was one thing she loved more than anything in the world it was children with a passion for the sport she so loved.

Long ago, it had been Minerva McGongall who held that look of wild desire to fly in her eyes. Rolanda remembered the ferocity in which Minnie and Fleamont Potter had played with, the ultimate duo and some of the greatest Gryffindor had ever seen. Then once she started teaching there had been more, a long list of names, each one becoming greater than the last. James Potter, Derek Bell, Gwenog Jones, Charles Weasley, Regulus Black, Ginny Weasley, and various others who all loved the sport more than they could admit. She had seen them all, and now their legacies would take over that passion just as they once had.

Chapter Text

At dinner time, Will was sitting with the other Gryffindors in her year while Athena had broken off to sit with the Slytherins. While she didn’t mind talking about the race, she could’ve sworn that Will’s retelling of the story got more and more dramatic each time, so she had chosen the peace of her classmates over the ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ surrounding Will and co.

Shockingly enough, James didn’t seem overly excited for his friend as he had earlier today when he went along with the stories of her daring escapes from failed dives. Now he looked as uncomfortable as Athena had felt surrounded by all the people, except he kept shooting looks her way that she couldn’t figure out. And so Athena simply ignored the too-crowded table, instead choosing to focus on the picked up conversation of what to buy Emmy. In the middle of a heated debate over what scratching post would be better and why, that Athena found quite amusing, the lively chatter was interrupted by two imposing figures.

Standing side by side, the seventh year boys looked like quite a force to be reckoned with. Darius and Xander entered the great hall on a mission, looking for the two girls they had heard about at lunch with Madam Hooch. The first wasn’t hard to find- Xander just had to head straight to the crowd surrounding a table where a girl with dark curls he remembered from yesterday's sorting was sitting. He nudged Darius with his shoulder, nodding towards the girl, and when Darius spotted her he sighed.

“Great, now there's two of you.” Darius murmured it quietly under his breath so only Xander could hear, which caused his friend to burst out laughing loudly before he walked towards the table. It took Darius slightly longer to find the girl from his house he had been told about once he realized she wasn’t sitting with the Gryffindor. He stood near the door scanning the room watching for girls in Slytherin robes with the blonde hair like Madam Hooch had said. When he did find her it was to her watching avidly as the two other first years argued over something or another. Reluctantly, he walked over to the table and sat himself in the seat directly across from the blonde girl, effectively halting any conversation.

At the next table over, Xander had shooed away most of the bystanders and was listening intently as the first year, Will, retold the story to just him, a smirk on her face as she reveled in the attention of the seventh year. At this table, Darius seemed to be in some kind of stare down with the girl across from him, each waiting for the other to say something first. Finally, the first year looked down at her food and spoke.

“I think my cousin has a crush on you,” was the first thing she said. Darius cocked an eyebrow at her, and felt the beginnings of a smile twitch on his lips. “Went on and on all summer about you and Quidditch and how much he wanted to make the team, wouldn't shut up about it really. Got kind of annoying to be honest.” The two girls next to her who had stopped talking when Darius came over erupted into snickers again, which made Darius want to smile even more, but he attempted to keep his resolve. He had been going for a ‘I heard you were good but that doesn't mean you have any guarantees’ kind of serious coach vibes.

“Who's your cousin?” Was all he said, but Athena could see him trying not to laugh.

“Blaise Whitacker, he's over there” She gestured with her fork and Darius turned around in his seat to look at where he was pointing. The boy she pointed out had hair as dark as his own and was sitting at a table with two other boys from different houses.

Darius nodded slightly as he turned back around and a plate appeared in front of him which he scowled at. He didn't want to eat here- he just needed to ask about Quidditch, but he picked at it anyways.

“I’ve seen him around the common room and such. Is he any good at Quidditch?” Darius asked.

Athena frowned. “I guess.” she paused, “Don’t tell him I said that.” Finally, the older boy laughed and Athena cracked a smile too, still eating. “So, why’re you here?” The girl on the blonde’s left had wide brown eyes that looked incredibly inquisitive, and her asking didn’t carry any malice or anything, just genuine curiosity. “You’re the Quidditch captain, right?” Darius nodded at her. He was about to start talking, finally going to get to his point of being there, when a ball of energy went crashing into Athena, nearly toppling the small girl over.

“Holy freaking Merlin, Athena, so the Gryffindor captain came over, that's him over there,” she pointed at where Xander was still sitting, talking to the first year boys. “And he came over to talk to us, well to me, because apparently Hooch really did contact him and Darius, the Slytherin captain, to talk to us about the race and tryouts! They want us to come tryout for the teams, and Xander thinks I could have a really good shot at making the team, isn’t that great!” The dark haired girl barely took a breath before going to continue. “I told him that I would definitely be at tryouts, and mate, he is so-” Finally, she seemed to notice Darius sitting in front of her, a very amused expression on his face. “Who’s thi- oh. You must be Darius.”

Darius barely stifled a laugh as he took in the first year in front of him whose personality was much bigger than she was. “And you must be Willow.”

Will grimaced a bit as she looked at Athena apologetically, a smirk on her face. “My bad. Sorry about that- I’ll catch you later, Athena.”

Athena laughed as Will got up. “See you.” As she watched, Will ran over to the table where Blaise, Aidan, and Charley were at and immediately sat in between Aidan and Charley. She began talking quickly, wearing a huge smile, and although Blaise looked at her disgustedly, Aidan and Charley had surprised and excited expressions on their faces. Athena shook her head as she turned back to Darius, who was watching Will with a raised eyebrow. “Yeah, that’s Will. She’s a bit much sometimes, but she’s pretty decent all the same. What did you want to talk about?”

Darius looked at the first year. “Actually, she pretty much summed it up. Madam Hooch brought Xander and I into her office earlier today about your Flying class, so I wanted to come talk to you about it. As you know, I’m the captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team here at Hogwarts, and Hooch seems to think that you’d be a great addition to the team. So, what happened? In your own words,” he said, crossing his arms nonchalantly.

Athena took a deep breath before beginning to explain. “Uh, well, the rumors probably make it a lot more dramatic than it actually was. We were basically done with class, I had been with these two most of the time, it was Jaya’s first time on the broom.” Athena gestured to the girl with curious eyes, “she's a natural at it though, give her a year and she’ll be great,” the girl went bright red and looked away at Athena's compliment and Darius raised an eyebrow but let her continue. “And then Hooch just wanted us to finish up class with some laps and so Will and James took off and caught up with Mikael, the Slytherin who had been in the lead to start, and Will actually passed him pretty easily. So I couldn’t very well let out house pride be defiled like that, so I left them, and just kind of took off I guess. It was pretty easy to get past the boys, they were more focused on trying to throw each other off than what was actually happening, so I just dove under them.” She looked down like she was embarrassed by the fact and Darius nodded his head for her to continue.

“So I dove under them, you should’ve heard James shriek when he saw me, it was hysterical. And then I pulled up from that and caught up with Will. We were both going really fast and it felt more fun than anything, and so it was more a race between us. But then we got to the last lap and we passed the people chilling at the back, and well, I flew up over the group, but Will just went around the inside of everyone. And then I kinda pulled a shitty move and dove in front of her while she was coming out of the group. She was going a lot faster than I was and I had more control coming out of the dive then she did trying to stop and so it slowed her down a fair bit. But then we got back to actually racing and we were close at first, but-” she hesitated, not wanting to tell the older boy that she had been bested, but eventually decided that he already knew- “then she did this really interesting maneuver with her body weight or something, and it was like the old broom suddenly had the power of a Hermes. It was actually really cool because she totally got in front of me and was winning by a lot after that, but I’ve never seen it before except in professional games. But then that dumbass pulled herself up on top of her broom, and launched herself off of it using its momentum.”

Darius’s eyes widened at this. Hooch had already told them, but hearing it from a first hand recount made it seem more real. It was honestly kind of amusing to hear about it, even though he was sure Xander would convince him to stay up all night and come up with some kind of elaborate scheme to see just how good his own girl was. The three girls across from them were all looking at him with wide eyes as they waited for his response to the story and he cleared his throat.

“Well, you tell it a lot less dramatic than what I’ve heard, that's for sure. Do you think you could pull off those dives in a game?” Athena thought about it for a moment and then nodded, and Darius cracked a large smile at her. “Well then, I hope to see you at tryouts.” The girl’s whole face brightened and she grinned at him. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the expression, and he remembered what it was like going to tryouts his second year. It felt like so long ago.

Behind the table, Xander was waving him over to where they usually sat and so Darius stood up to excuse himself, and he couldn’t help but ruffle the girl’s hair as he walked away, calling out behind him, “no guarantees though, just show up and do your best,” before joining his friend.

“So, what did you think?” Xander asked, raising an eyebrow.

Darius smirked. “It sounds to me like we have two interesting players that could be coming onto our teams.”

Xander scoffed. “Mine is better. I’m sure she told you about the jump and the move that Will pulled.”

“It sounded like it was pretty reckless if you ask me,” Darius retorted, but Xander just laughed.

“What it sounded like was fucking awesome, if that’s what you mean. But the power surge- I can’t even do that move, mate. Like, seriously, I’ve been trying to get it for years. It’s like you can tap into a whole new tank in your broom. We are so whooping you guys this year,” he said, pushing his friend a little.

Darius laid a hand on his shoulder, shaking his head with a small smile on his face. “That’s where we differ, mate. And there’s no way in hell that’s happening.” The boys laughed before returning to their dinner.

Meanwhile, Will was still telling Aidan and Charley about the interaction she had with Xander. “It was insane! He said he was looking for a new Chaser and that I have a great shot at making the team- I can’t believe that this is happening!” She exclaimed, and Aidan grinned at her.

“Will, that’s great! So you think that you’re going to try out?” He asked, and Charley rolled his eyes.

“No shit she’s going to try out, dumbass. He practically invited her to be on the team.” Charley winked at the small girl. “Can’t wait to be teammates,” he said, and Will high fived him, her grin only growing by the second.

Across the table, Blaise was glaring at Will relentlessly. Maybe he was jealous of the attention the first year was getting, or maybe something about her explosive and optimistic manner pissed him off, but he did not like her one bit. “Are you done bragging about your amazing accomplishments yet?” He said, his voice laced with venom.

Will turned to face him, her smile fading and being replaced with a glare of her own. “I was, actually, but just for you, I can keep going. It’s no problem, really,” she quipped back, and his sneer only grew.

“If I wanted to watch the Will Houston show, I would’ve bought tickets,” he snarled.

Will scoffed. “You know what, Blaise, I think I’ve finally figured out your problem. You wish you were me! Athena was right when she said that you’ve been up Darius’s ass all summer about Quidditch and you’re just jealous that Xander wants me on the team-” she started, but Aidan stood up and pulled her up with him.

“Okay, that’s enough,” he said, grabbing her wrist and pulling her away from the table. “Come on, Will, I’ll walk you to the Gryffindor Tower.” Will shot one last dirty look at Blaise before following Aidan out of the Great Hall.

Now just the two of them, Charley turned to his friend. “Was that really necessary? She was just excited about an opportunity she’s gotten,” he scolded, and Blaise rolled his eyes.

“Not you, too.” He poked at a piece of meat on his plate with his fork. “I just don't understand the hype surrounding her. She's another obnoxious little first year, just like Athena.” He scowled down at his dinner.

“Oh, come on, they’re not that bad, and from the fact that Darius was just over at Athena's table, I’m guessing she had the same conversation with him that Will did with Xander.”

Blaise whipped his head around so fast to try and find Athena, and when he did, he saw her chatting animatedly with her friends, he sunk low in his seat and groaned. “Of course. God, she’s really not even that good, this is so unfair.”

Despite his pouty attitude, Charley couldn’t help but laugh at his friend. “Hey, perk up a little, this Quidditch season is going to be damn interesting at the very least.”

Blaise just grumbled and picked at his steak. “Well, tryouts are in two weeks, so I guess we’ll see what happens.”

“Oh, we are so beating you guys this year,” Charley teased, and Blaise threw a fork at him.

Meanwhile, Will and Aidan were making their way through the castle to the Gryffindor Tower, Will griping about Blaise the whole way. “I have no idea what his deal is! Ever since I met him, he’s been on my ass about everything and it’s so annoying,” she said, throwing her hands up in the air.

Aidan laughed. “He’s interesting, I’ll say that much.” Will kept right on scowling. Suddenly, Aidan had an idea. Stopping abruptly in the middle of the staircase, Will ran into him from behind and he had to grab her to prevent her from falling. “Hey, would you want to come to my dorm for a bit? I can introduce you to my other friends and then maybe- look, I know I wanted to go tomorrow during our free period, but later we could sneak out and go flying,” he asked shyly.

At those words, Will perked up immediately and stared at Aidan with wide eyes. He was immediately uncomfortable, not knowing whether or not he had pushed it too far. “Of course, we don’t have to if you don’t want to-” he started, but Will cut him off.

“Are you kidding? That sounds awesome!” She exclaimed and his face relaxed.

“Great! Let’s go up there now- you’re going to love my other friends,” he said, and on that, they ran up the stairs to the tower opposite to the Gryffindor one- the Ravenclaw Common Room. “This way,” he said, and they soon approached a door with the only sign that they could get in being a bronze eagle knocker.

Will looked at the door with confusion on her face. “Where’s the painting? How the hell do you get in?”

Aidan chuckled as he pulled her next to him in front of the door. “Watch and learn.” As he stood in front of the door, a smooth voice came from seemingly nowhere.

“I’m light as a feather and soft as snow, but even the strongest person can’t hold me for ten minutes. What am I?” The voice said, and Will looked around.

“Where did that come from?”

Aidan only laughed. “Will, to get into the Common Room, we have to answer a riddle. Hm, I think the answer to this one is pretty easy, so I’ll let you try and guess it.” Will looked at him blankly, which caused him to laugh harder. “Okay, nevermind, I see now why you weren’t sorted here. Anyways,” he turned to the knocker, “the answer is a breath.”

Upon hearing the answer, Will smacked herself in the forehead. “Oh, dammit, I should’ve gotten that one! I’m so dumb.”

Aidan smiled and shook his head as the door opened. “Don’t worry- it takes everyone a little bit to get the hang of it. Once you’re here for a while, you’ll start getting them pretty easily. After you,” he said, standing aside to let her enter through the doorway. Somehow, the Ravenclaw common room was a combination of elegant and comfortable. The room was round and airy, and had large arched windows, and the ceiling was painted a deep navy blue, and had constellations painted on top in bronze. Bookshelves lined the wall ‘across’ from the fireplace and Will noticed the wall of postcards that decorated one section of the wall, notes scrawled on them. Everything in the circular space was colored in either that rich dark blue or the bronze.

Will stood in the doorway and looked around, her mouth wide open. “Woah.”

Behind her, Aidan nudged her. “You like it?”

When she turned around to face him, he was pleased to see her eyes filled with wonder. “This is amazing!”

Laughing, he took her hands and pulled her into the Common Room, where two girls and a boy were sitting. The first girl had tan skin with freckles all over her nose and blonde hair that was sunkissed from the summer. Twisting the colorful bracelets on her left wrist, she gave Will an award winning smile that she returned. Next to her was another girl who had far paler skin and sleek dark hair that was cut just above her shoulders, and slightly choppy bangs that stopped before her eyes. She had inquisitive dark eyes that were set into her round face with what Will considered to be the perfect nose, but she was instantly apprehensive of her. The boy next to them was actually leaning upside down on the couch, legs kicked over where his head should have been, and his floppy blonde hair touched the floor. His face was flushed red from sitting like that, and his eyes were closed as if he was asleep, and for some reason, Will thought he looked very familiar.

“Will, this is Sommer, Lucille, and Paris. They eat up here sometimes, especially when Paris is in one of his, uh, moods. Which somehow he already is,” Aidan said, giving Paris a sideways look. The boy opened one eye, took in the situation, and shut them again.

“Oh, so you’re the first year that I’ve been hearing about this whole day,” Sommer said, her dark brown eyes only making her hair look blonder. She gestured for her to come sit next to her on the couch, and Will’s face lit up as she walked over.

“Yeah, I’m Will- Willow Houston. What’ve you heard?” She asked, laughing a little.

Sommer ran a hand through her hair and smiled. “That you’re one of the best fliers this school has seen in years. You’re a Chaser, right? That’s pretty badass- you’re definitely going to make the Gryffindor team. Think you can outfly Dumb and Dumber over here?” She gestured to Aidan and Paris, making Will snicker as Aidan blushed.

“We’re actually going to sneak out later and go flying if you want to come, Som. You too, Paris,” he said, nudging the boy as he sat down next to him.

Paris sighed deeply and finally opened his eyes, turning back around to sit properly on the couch. “I’ll consider it. Houston, right?” He asked, looking over at Will.

Will raised an eyebrow, slightly uncomfortable with his careless nature. “Uh, yeah, why?”

Paris smirked and pulled out a chocolate from his robes pocket and tossed it to her. She caught it easily and looked up in confusion. “My last name is Sullivan. I’ve met you before, actually.”

Suddenly, it hit her. Her mother and Paris’s mother were good friends, and when she was much younger, she would play with Paris at his house as their mothers gossiped. “Oh! Yeah, I remember now. Nice to see you again,” she said, smiling and unwrapping the chocolate.

“Woah, Paris Sullivan is smiling? That’s new,” Sommer joked, and Paris scowled at her.

“Shut up, Sommer. You don’t even play Quidditch,” he snarked, and she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, I don’t, but I could still outfly you.”

Will turned to Lucille, who hadn’t said anything since she had arrived and was staring at the floor with a cross look on her face. “Lucille, right?” When Lucille barely nodded to acknowledge Will’s presence, she continued to press her to try and help her engage in the conversation- Will didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable. “Do you play Quidditch?”

Lucille didn’t look up as she answered. “No. Stupid sport- never found much interest in it.”

Will was taken aback. “You think so?”

Lucille finally turned to face her and looked at Will with cold eyes. “Yeah, I do. And frankly, I was having a great time here with my friends from Ravenclaw before you came barging in here, so if you'll excuse me-” she looked at the rest of the group, whose mouths were all dropped to the floor- “I’m going to turn in early. See you three in the morning.” she gave one last withering look at Will before getting up hastily and rushing up the stairs.

The group was silent for a second before Will laughed loudly. “Looks like she doesn’t like me that much,” she joked, and Aidan flushed.

“I am so sorry, I had no idea she would react that way, Will,” he said, but she brushed off his apology.

“Don’t worry about it. If anything, you should be apologizing to her,” she said, and Sommer chuckled.

“She can be sort of standoffish to new people, but she might warm up to you eventually,” she said, and Will shook her head.

“It’s no big deal. It just seems to me like she was jealous of the attention you guys were giving me, because when Aidan and I got here, it seemed like everything was about her.”

Paris snickered. “You’re definitely right.”

After dinner, the Slytherin girls made their way back to the common room. They had some light assignments from three of their classes that they needed to work on. From Charms they had to practice the ‘Wingardium Leviosa’ charm on some feathers as Ainsley and one of the boys from Ravenclaw had been the only two to successfully get it in class. They also had some reading for History of Magic that Athena had already done and was currently watching Jaya groan every three sentences as she drudged through it causing Athena to laugh and lose concentration on her feather. Ainsley was reading through some theoretical instances for Defense Against the Dark Arts where Professor Potter had told them that day one was simply an introduction to the course (which Will had booed heartily, earning her a halfhearted glare) and that he wanted them to read the theoretical instances to go over on Wednesday.

They weren't the only ones in the common room. Some of the second year boys were sitting in the corner of the room doing their own work- Blaise notably absent- Athena saw Hyun-Ki playing some chess in the corner with a boy she didn't recognize, he had waved when she came in. There was a group of girls at the bar, steaming cups of coffee and notes already spread in front of them.

On Athena's 17th failed attempt to get the feather any more than four inches off the table, she sighed dramatically and set her head on the table. Ainsley frowned at her from over her book.

“Your enunciation is fine, but put more emphasis on the flick part.” She looked pointedly at Athena until she picked up her wand and tried it, and sure enough, the feather rose steadily, following Athena's wand movements. When she finally set it down, Athena gaped at Ainsley, and Jaya was doing the same.

“How’re you so good at this?” Jaya whined, now sitting on her knees on the floor like Athena was doing. Ainsley just shrugged, but there was a small smile on her face as she went back to her reading. The girls stayed downstairs for about another hour before retiring up to their room. Ainsley pulled another book off her shelf to read casually after her bath while Jaya and Athena played with Emmy on her floor.

“Hey, Jaya?” Athena asked while Emmy followed a piece of shoelace they had untied until the ordered toys came.

“Mhm?” Her eyes followed the small Calico kitten.

“Would you wanna go flying with me in the mornings?” Jaya’s head snapped up at that as she met Athena's wide, questioning green eyes.

“Really??”

“Well yeah, of course. We would need to use school brooms until mine gets here, which I need to ask my parents to send still, and I need practice before tryouts, and you're going to be really good if you practice, I can just tell, so I figured we could do it together?” She ended it like a question.

Jaya beamed across from her. “Yeah of course I would, that'd be great!” and Athena beamed back before turning to Ainsley.

“Is that ok with you, Ainsley?” The blonde girl asked.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Was the response came back.

“Well, we would be getting up really early and I don’t know if that would disturb you.” Athena frowned and Ainsley set down her book and moved to sit on the edge of the bed.

“It's no big deal, I can get up with you guys and come to the stadium. I can watch or read or something.” The two girls on the floor grinned at her.

“Would you really be willing to do that?” When Ainsley nodded, they both basically squealed which caused the cat to scamper away, and all three descended into laughter as they saw her green eyes peeking at them from under the dresser.

Meanwhile, Will and Aidan were engaged in a furiously intense game of Exploding Snap in the boys dormitory. Both were refusing to take their eyes off the cards as they prepared for them to possibly explode, and the game was on the line. After a couple shuffles, the cards were ready to be tapped by their wands, and Will and Aidan were clutching their own respectively. Soon, the cards began to flash in front of them, and the kids were intensely looking for a pair. Finally, Will snapped her wand down on two cards that were the same, and the rest of the deck exploded in Aidan’s face. “Yes!” She yelled, fist pumping as she won the game.

Aidan scowled as he wiped soot off of his cheeks. “That’s not fair. You-”

Will rolled her eyes. “You can just say that my reflexes are faster than yours, Aidan. It won’t hurt you.”

A laugh came from the doorway and the two kids looked up to see Paris standing in the doorway, two other boys on either side of him. “You certainly haven't changed a bit, have you?” He chuckled, going over to sit next to Will on the floor by Aidan’s bed.

Will smiled at him. “If by ‘haven’t changed’ you mean still amazing at everything I do, you’re absolutely right,” she responded jokingly, and Paris shook his head but couldn’t keep the smile off of his face.

One of the boys coughed, his light brown hair covering most of his face. “Who’s this, Paris?” He asked, gesturing to Will.

“Oh, this is Will Houston, Gryffindor first year,” Paris said, and Will waved at the boys, who nodded back politely. “Will, this is Max Dawson and Jenson Murphy, Aidan and my other two roommates.”

“Nice to meet you, Will,” Jenson said, his dark eyes almost glittering in the low light.

“You as well,” she said, and then turned to Aidan. “Speaking of, do you think it’s late enough to sneak out yet?”

Aidan checked his watch. “Yeah, we should be good if we go now. Do you have your broom?”

Will grimaced. “Shit. No, I don’t- it’s back in the Common Room with all my stuff.”

Aidan shrugged. “It’s alright. We can just swing by before going downstairs- it’s not that far.”

Max cocked his head at the two. “Where are you going?”

Will looked over at him and gave him a mischievous grin. “We’re going flying.”

A couple minutes later, Will and Aidan had successfully snuck through the door of the Ravenclaw Common Room and were carefully making their way to the Gryffindor tower. Paris and Sommer had declined coming with them, but Will was still more than excited to fly freely for the first time at Hogwarts. They made it to the Fat Lady in no time at all, and after Will had muttered the password, she swung open to allow them inside. There were almost no students in the Common Room at the time, and Will gestured for Aidan to follow her as she made her way up the stairs to her room, but he hesitated.

“What’s wrong?” She asked when she realized he wasn’t behind her.

“In the Ravenclaw dorm, the boys aren’t allowed up into the girl’s dormitories. The stairs will turn into a slide if I try to come up them, and I’m absolutely sure it’s the same way for Gryffindor,” he said, and Will cocked her head.

“Oh, I forgot about that rule. Hmm- hey, maybe since you’re not from Gryffindor they’ll let you up,” she said, and when Aidan still hesitated, she walked back down and grabbed his arm. “Oh, come on. If they turn into a slide we’ll know for sure that it doesn’t work,” she coaxed, and he finally nodded, allowing her to lead him up the stairs, which didn’t turn into a slide.

“Wow. I think you’re right- we probably confused it because I’m from Ravenclaw,” he said, and she smiled.

“Good to know. My room is at the top.” After climbing all of the stairs, they finally reached Will’s dormitory, and when she pushed the door open, Aidan gasped.

“You get this all to yourself?” He asked, incredulous. His mouth dropped open as he took in the first year’s room, and he seemed to be taking in every detail as Ember hooted at him as a greeting.

Will chuckled as she walked over to her trunk and pulled out her broom. “Yeah, it’s pretty nice. But come on, we don’t have all night!” She said, grabbing his arm again and leading him back down the stairs and out the portrait hole.

The kids had no problems with Filch or any ghosts as they made their way down to the grounds, and the moon was out to give them some light so they could see. The night was relatively clear with few clouds, and the September air was cool enough for them not to be too hot but a comfortable temperature for flying. It took a few minutes to reach the Quidditch pitch, but once they arrived, Will let out a whoop of delight and hopped on her new broom, taking off and leaving Aidan in the dust.

As Will flew laps around the pitch, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, relishing the feeling of the wind in her hair and on her face. She gripped the handle tighter and urged her broom upwards, going faster and faster until she nearly reached the clouds. Slowing down, she allowed herself to hover for a second, looking at the castle. It truly was beautiful at night, all of his windows darkened and the rooftop contrasting the sky, and the lake shimmered in the moonlight, the stars reflecting in her eyes. It was so tranquil, so calm, that for a second she forgot where she was and who she was, and only wanted to take in the beautiful view. Flying was her freedom, her freedom from her overbearing parents and their expectations, her freedom from the voices and urges in her head, and most importantly, her freedom from the world. It was just her up here, just her and the sky, and her life was hers for the taking.

Finally, Aidan came to a stop next to her, his neat black hair a little disheveled from his speed. “Christ, Will, maybe a little warning before you leave me behind next time?” he huffed, making her giggle.

“Hey, it’s not my fault you can’t keep up,” she teased, and he rolled his eyes.

Taking in the view as well, Aidan sat calmly on his broom next to Will, and he turned to look at her. “It’s really cool up here.”

“Yeah, you got that right. Alright, let’s go down so I can finally beat you in a race,” she said, and much to his surprise, with a mischievous grin, she rolled off her broom completely and fell, free falling with nothing except her broom in her hand, and he gasped.

“Will!” He turned his own broom to follow her, but she was falling quickly, and her eyes were shut. But as she neared the ground, her eyes shot open, and she pulled her broom back underneath her body and shot to his left around the goalposts, barely saving herself from hitting the sand at the bottom of the pitch. When she looked up and saw his expression as he went to meet her by the posts, she laughed loudly, and he blushed. “What were you thinking? Free falling from that high up?” He scolded, and she only laughed louder.

“Oh, come on, you can’t tell me it didn’t look cool. Besides, it’s a lot more fun falling without the broom and then getting back on at the last minute- it really gets your adrenaline pumping,” she responded.

Aidan huffed. “Yeah, no thanks. I’ll stick to staying on my broom and beating you in races.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “Oh really? Alright, let’s do this. Three laps, first one back wins. Ready?” When he nodded, she counted down, and on her ‘go’, they took off. It was neck and neck at first, both of the kids trying to edge themselves ahead, but after the first lap, Will began to move her body closer to her broom and lean forward, pushing her ahead ever so slightly. Aidan began to mirror her movements, trying to gain back the ground he had lost, but Will was smaller and quicker, and her body morphed with the broom in ways he had never seen before. As the second lap ended, she had pulled ahead by almost a full broomslength, and her dark hair that was whipping behind her as she flew was just getting farther and farther in front of him. Aidan began to push his broom like he had never pushed it before, but it was too late. Once she was completely in front of him, Will eased her broom forward even more and locked into the power surge move that she had done earlier, and as she rounded the final curve with more speed than ever, she knew she had won. She crossed the finish line nearly five seconds before Aidan did, and she laughed out loud as she stopped herself and flew over to gloat.

“That’s two wins for me today, Pucey. Better step up your game,” she teased, and Aidan’s face was beet red in the moonlight.

“Shut up. You had the advantage because you started on the inside.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered, I still would’ve won,” she taunted, and he pushed her lightly.

“Alright, fine. I’ll let you brag this one time just because this is our first race. I won’t go so easy on you next time,” he said, and Will perked up.

“Next time? So can we do this again?”

Aidan laughed at her excitement. “Of course we can.”

They spent the next two hours flying and laughing loudly, and by the end of the night, Will had determined that Aidan Pucey was a boy that she could trust. Maybe it was how he always laughed at her jokes, even if they were terrible, or maybe it was how he was genuinely concerned when she pretended to fall off her broom. But as she laid in her bed after he had walked her back to the Gryffindor tower, she couldn’t stop thinking about his crooked smile and how he had let her touch his hair, the dark hair that was always so neat, and completely mess it up. She turned over in her bed and looked out her window at the moon. The same moon that Aidan was looking out in his own bed, and as the two students fell asleep, they both had smiles on their faces.

Chapter Text

At precisely six o’clock the next morning, Athena had hauled Ainsley and Jaya out of bed to get dressed and marched down to the field. Ainsley had brought a blanket even though it was still warm outside, the pre-dawn would be chilly and a book to read. Jaya was yawning tremendously, and had made a cup of hot chocolate in the common room while slowly waking up. Athena was far more awake then she normally was at this time and was bouncing around happily. The girls had passed Bailey in the common room while they were leaving who had raised a questioning eyebrow but let them pass.

Not ten minutes later they were on the field, brooms in hand with a little help of Ainsley and a well done ‘Alohomora’ they were ready to go. Ainsley sat herself in the low rows of the stadium so she could watch intently as her two friends started. Athena helped Jaya start off slower, but she really did take to it naturally, and so within a few minutes they were doing short sprints of speed followed by breaks and turns to work maneuverability. They only stayed outside for an hour or so so they could go back to shower and change before breakfast but they made the most of their time and by the end of it, both were giddy with excitement.

Walking back up to the castle after they had put their brooms back, Jaya and Athena were laughing happily together while Ainsley jotted something down in her book, which Athena realized now was a journal.

“What are you writing, Ainse?” Jaya asked, peering over the girl's shoulder as she wrote.

Ainsley wrinkled her nose at the nickname but answered her anyway. “I’m taking notes.”

Jaya looked at her in confusion. “But we’re not even in class?”

“I was taking notes on your flying. I may not be the best flier but I can help you two get better from the side lines.” Jaya’s look of confusion turned into a grin and Athena materialized on Ainsley's other side with an equally large grin as the two beamed at their friend. Jaya nudged her and began bugging her about what she had seen, and that conversation took them all the way up to the dorm, through the time they changed, and up to the Great Hall for breakfast.

James woke up at the same time that he had before the next morning, but he was surprised when Will wasn’t in the dormitory to make fun of his bed hair. He turned to Fred, who was pulling on his shirt. “Where’s Will?”

Fred shrugged. “Probably struggling to get up. She had a late night last night,” he said and James raised an eyebrow.

“What does that mean?”

Fred chuckled in response. “Her and the one Ravenclaw kid snuck out to go flying.”

James sighed. “Of course she did. Wait, which Ravenclaw kid?”

“The one that sits with Charley and the Slytherin kid,” Lucas piped in, tying his tie.

James wrinkled his nose in disgust at the thought. “Oh yeah- I think she said his name was Aidan. He seemed nice enough, but it’s the Slytherin I’ve got issues with.”

“Issues already, JP? Your dad would be so disappointed in you,” came a voice from the doorway, and the boys turned to see Will leaning on the frame, already dressed and a smirk on her face.

James picked up a pillow and threw it at her, making her snicker. “Shut up, Will. I’m not the one that snuck out last night.”

Will rolled her eyes. “Whatever- at least I’m getting better at Quidditch while you sit on your ass.” She yawned, and the five Gryffindors made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. They sat down at their usual table after saying goodbye to Parker, and Will immediately dug into the eggs even though her schedule had appeared in front of her. “What’s our first class today?”

Lucas inspected the schedule. “Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws.”

James perked up at that, the classes he had most looked forward to were Transfiguration and Charms as well as Defense Against the Dark Arts, but with his dad teaching that, so he had more of an aversion to it. Charms had been easy, he found, so he was now quite happy at the prospect of Transfiguration.

“Who's the professor for that?” Fred asked. James pointed to a woman at the table. She had dark skin and curly ringlets that were just barely starting to grey. She had a wide smile as she chatted with Professor Flitwick at the table, and slight crows feet around her eyes, giving her the appearance of a woman who smiled and laughed a lot.

“Her name is Professor MacDonald, my dad’s had her over for tea a couple of times since they work together.” Lucas and Fred turned to look at her, Will still shoveling the food. James ruffled his hair as the other two boys took her in. As if sensing she was being watched, Mary turned their way, her smile only faltering a little as she found the boys looking at her, James with his hand still in his hair. Lucas and Fred both blushed a little and turned their attention back to their plates.

“Has anyone seen the Slytherins?” Will asked, finally taking a break from her eggs. Looking around, James realized that the other first years were not in fact there yet. He scowled a little bit at that, despite knowing that the Slytherins were not inherently bad, he couldn’t help but not like them. The boys all had cold attitudes and the girls weren’t much better, Athena especially. He couldn't understand why Will liked her so much, they were total opposites. Unfortunately for him however, they chose that moment to walk in. The boys came in first, the one with the crooked teeth standing in between the short one with red curls who looked almost like a Weasley and the taller quiet boy with dark skin. Parker's twin had already split off to go see his cousins, and the girls trailed behind.

Spotting them, Will stood up and waved frantically at her friend. Athena saw and waved back, saying goodbye to her friends to go sit with Will. James scowled again. “Athena! I have so much to tell you-” Will started, but Athena shushed her.

“Give me a second to breathe before you talk my ear off, Willow,” she joked, and Will rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyways, I hung out with Aidan last night- you know Aidan obviously, he’s friends with your cousin- and I got to go inside the Ravenclaw Common Room! How cool is that? So I went up there, and I met some of his friends. Oh, by the way, James, do you remember Paris? The guy that I used to hang out with all the time when I was super young?” When James grunted to show that he remembered, Will continued, not even taking a breath.

“So he’s actually a second year Ravenclaw! It’s crazy, I haven’t seen him in so long so it was like a blast from the past when I saw him sitting in the Common Room. Also, there were these other two girls. The one girl that I really liked was Sommer, and the one that I don’t think liked me very much, was Lucille. Aidan also has two other roommates besides Paris and their names are Max and Jenson. They’re pretty cool, but I didn’t really get the chance to talk to them that much because then Aidan and I ran back to the Gryffindor tower to grab my broom and then we went out to the Quidditch pitch! Oh, Athena, it was so nice to get the chance to just fly around with no restrictions and I could do whatever I wanted. I actually almost gave Aidan a heart attack because I flew up super high and then I fell, like I actually fell, and at the last second I grabbed my broom and jumped back on. It was so cool, you should try it sometime. I also challenged Aidan to a race, and I won, which was awesome. Speaking of, we still need to do that race that we planned yesterday. What’re you thinking for the bets? Two Sickles?” Will finished her monologue just as fast as she started, and Athena just laughed.

“I will never understand how you talk so quickly, Will. Congratulations on your date, I can’t believe you make it one day into Hogwarts and already have one, kind of impressive for a glorified toddler such as yourself.” Had Will’s face not been stuffed to the brim with jellied toast, which Athena was quickly finding was the only effective way to shut her up, her retort would’ve been a lot more effective. However, there was a round of snickers around the table. “Also, what were you trying to say yesterday about Xander?”

Will swallowed, a starry look crossing her eyes. “Okay, number one, it wasn’t a date, we just went flying for a bit. Number two- oh my Godric, when he came over yesterday, ‘Thena, that man is so attractive. He is literally a walking model, and his hair, it’s just, woah.” Despite not quite seeing the appeal, Athena nodded along at Will’s antics, James looking incredibly disgruntled behind them. What did they mean about his hair? Was that something they genuinely cared about? He ran his hand through his hair again, tipping back dangerously in his hair as he watched the two girls chatter.

Their conversation quickly bored him, bouncing between Quidditch and boys and classes and back to boys. Fred and Lucas weren't much better, discussing some new book that had immediately lost James' attention, and so he was left with nothing to do but eat his breakfast and look around. His toast was buttered heavily and he crunched on it as he focused back on the Transfiguration professor at the table. She was still talking to Professor Flitwick and James tried to remember what she had been like when she had come over for tea. She was incredibly kind, and funny. When she was in school she had been a Gryffindor as well, but he didn’t remember what year she had graduated in, just that it was some time before his dad. He was genuinely looking forward to her class today. He pulled his attention away from the table at the front of the room and let his eyes scan the room. There was a table of Gryffindors and Ravenclaws a couple tables away, a couple older boys and girls he recognised from the Common Room, but no one in particular who stuck out.

Bored again, he turned back to his table watching as Athena nodded along to whatever Will was talking about now, and he noticed how her hair was slightly damp, making it darker than her general near white blonde. No wonder her and her friends had been late, they all looked like they just got up and showered. He looked back down at his food, bored still. He and the boys in his dorm had worked on their homework together last night, claiming a table towards the fire as James helped Lucas with his charms work while Fred and Parker played Exploding Snap, with it quite literally blowing up in Parker’s face more than once, so he didn’t even have any homework he could do to kill time.

“James!” Will's voice snapped him back to the current conversation as Athena stared at him amusedly.

He scowled at her before turning his attention back to Will. “What?”

His friend frowned at him, her lower lip jutting out just slightly in a pout. “Were you not listening at all?” She asked, while Athena snickered next to her.

“Clearly not, do you see how out of it he looks?” The blonde girl chuckled to herself as she carefully sipped her tea, trying not to spill any on her uniform. Before James could retort Will was already talking again, this time directed at him.

“We were talking about all of our classes and how boring it would be to just sit around and do homework during our free period today, and so we were going to try and go exploring later today, doesn’t that sound like fun?” With Will’s large grey eyes staring up at him, it was hard not to agree.

“If it makes you feel any better, I told her not to invite you.” Athena said, and James glared at her. She only smirked in response.

“Can we come too?” Lucas asked from where he was sitting and Will grinned at him, nodding.

“Of course. I think we’re going to just wander around the castle to try and get a sense for where everything is, so the more the merrier.” Lucas’s face lit up as he and Will began discussing the plans for later in the day, the attention on James fading just as quickly as it came.

Fred nudged his shoulder. “You alright, mate?” His voice was soft, trying not to distract their friends and James sighed a little.

“I think so. Being here is amazing, don’t get me wrong,” James’s voice trailed off as his cousin watched him intently. Fred’s dark eyes bored into him, knowing something was up. “It’s just that everytime a teacher looks at me, they go, ‘oh, you look just like your father’, and the amount of conversations I’ve had with people wanting to know what it's like to be the ‘son of the chosen one’- it's kind of getting old. And it's only been one day,” he groaned, tipping back in his chair as he looked at his dad, sitting next to Neville at the staff table. He couldn’t help but scowl a little in contempt.

Fred looked at him apologetically, he knew what it was like. Professor Flitwick had looked nearly in pain calling out his name yesterday. He too was a legacy of the war, named after someone he would never be but shouldered with the weight all the same. “I understand, mate. But I’m sure that the longer we’re here, the better it’ll get because we’ll start becoming our own people instead of who we’re named after.” He cast a glance over at Will, still engaged in discussion with Lucas and Athena. Both James and Fred envied Will- her parents had never gone to Hogwars and instead, they had attended Ilvermorny in America. After the war was over, they moved to England when it was safer and to pursue her father’s Quidditch career, but they both had been graduated for a long time, so Will was the first Houston to ever be at Hogwarts. She bore no responsibility to her family name and was able to come to school as her own person, and when Fred and James were being bothered because of their names and their relations, she was free to do what she wanted without any teacher doing a double take when they looked at her.

James looked at Lucas. He was also a legacy, but it wasn’t quite as terrible for him. Lee Jordan had been involved for sure, and was a crucial part of making sure George was able to go somewhat back to normal after his twin's death, but it wasn’t the same. He and Fred had grown up just as close as James and Fred however, and together they were all expected to be the next generation of Gryffindors, a lot of weight to carry for eleven year olds. Despite that though, they wanted to have freedom at Hogwarts, it was supposed to be fun, and they were supposed to mess around and get into trouble and be kids. Maybe he could make a legacy for himself that way.

Athena left them as soon as it came close to their first period, rushing to join her friends before their first class of the day, Herbology, while the small class of Gryffindor first years went towards Transfiguration. As they all wandered towards the classroom, they listened to Will talk animatedly as they nearly got lost, but Amira had been watching and kindly pointed them the correct way with a smile. Supposedly it was on the third floor, classroom 34, but the stairs kept moving and the hallways wound around on themselves making it damn near impossible to find the room. It didn’t help when Peeves the Poltergeist paid them a visit, attempting to dous the ‘ickle baby firsties’ in water balloons, leaving them a little damp by the time they stumbled into the Transfiguration room where the Ravenclaws were already sitting, but their professor was notably absent.

The three boys were sitting in two desks towards the back of the room, while the four girls sat in front of them. A girl with dark brown curls sat on top of a desk, laughing loudly at what one of her friends had said. When they noted the arrival of the Gryffindors, the girl sitting on the table, neither Will nor James couldn’t remember her name, she grinned at them, waving as if they were all good friends. Neither really responded, James giving a simple tilt of his head, while Will kept a neutral expression. Together they lead their group of five towards the desks opposite the Ravenclaws, settling down with James and Will at the back, with Fred, Lucas, and Parker sitting in front of them where they could turn and talk while waiting for their Professor to arrive.

It took another three or so minutes for their professor to walk through the door and into the classroom. Her dark curls were pinned up with her wand, and in her arm she was carrying a thick box. As she entered, James got a better view of her. She was shorter than he remembered, but still walked quickly, almost as if she had a purpose, and always a place to be. When she finally sat her box down on the desk and turned to face her students, her eyes scanned the faces of each and every one of them, carefully. Looking for something, but what James couldn’t tell. When her eyes landed on him, they stared just a hair longer, prying just enough that James felt the need to look away.

The class was completely silent, a noise far louder than any talking would've been. The room was airy and open, large windows allowing light to flood the room, the desks arranged neatly for the students to sit in, all facing towards the front of the room. The walls were lined with bookshelves and objects, globes that spun on their own, potted plants and ornate golden cages that were presently devoid of animals. All of this filled the space, but not a word was spoken, until the woman opened her mouth.

“Welcome to the first Transfiguration class of your next seven years.” The voice was clear and strong, and a youthful lit to it that instantly brought anticipation to the room. James finally looked back up, he saw Professor MacDonald leaning against her desk, a wide smile on her face as she faced her students. “I will teach you the art of altering the form or appearance of an object, which involves the alteration of the molecular structure of an object or thing.” She paused. “Transfiguration is not easy, by any means. It is the most scientific branch of magic, and to get it right, you must do it perfectly. But throughout your journey, I’ll help you learn how to transfigure as well as when you would use this type of magic and the techniques behind it. Let's get started, shall we?”

Magically, books appeared on each of their desks, flipping open to the needed pages for their first lesson. The beginning of the chapter repeated what Professor MacDonald had just said- that Transfiguration was at its purest form the rearranging of atoms at a molecular level. Even though the majority of their classmates already looked bored, Will and James couldn’t help but be excited. Something about their teacher, and the words seemed to catch onto them. And they both already loved it. Will herself had excelled at all subjects in primary school but had enjoyed science a lot, and James was incredibly interested in finding out how the magic worked scientifically. As Professor MacDonald started talking, reciting words from memory, the students hung onto every word. Casually while she was speaking, she took her wand out from her hair and threaded in demonstrations. A snow globe on her desk became an apple, a ring around her finger became a tiny dragonfly, and so on.

James was entranced. Completely and utterly entranced. He hung onto every word, following along to the best of his abilities. Even more so than any of the Ravenclaws. There was something about the casual display of magic that completely drew him in, much like charms had. It was magic at its best, and James wanted to be the best at it.

So he held onto every phrase, every piece of information for the full hour and a half. Jotting down notes here and there, but storing all the information in his mind for later reexamination. And at the end of the period, he was still fully absorbed in his own little world, only half listening to Will and Lucas’s conversation, and completely missing the first calling of his name.

“Mr. Potter.” The second time however, got his attention. As he was getting ready to walk out the door, he turned in time to catch his Professor staring straight at him. “Would you mind staying after for a bit?”

Next to him, Will started making loud ‘oooh’ noises, and Fred gave him a concerned look. “What did you do to get in trouble already?” He whispered under his breath.

“I have no idea,” was James' response, and it was the truth. He honestly had no idea what he could have done to have gotten himself in trouble. Nonetheless, he pulled away from the group of first years and turned to walk towards the desk. At this point his professor had sat down, and was organizing papers on her desk, giving James time to observe the desk closer. It was large, and he was sure the drawers had extension charms on them, but the desk itself was kept mostly clean. On one corner were two picture frames, but he couldn't see the photos from the angle he was at, and there were a few potted plants on the other end. Aside from that, only paper and pens took up space.

When she looked up, she held eye contact with James, again as if she were searching for something. Then she let out a deep sigh, and leaned back in her chair, leaving James all the more confused.

“You look just like him.” The words were so quiet, James nearly missed them. And it only made him mad, all the joy from the class dissipating, as he found himself equated yet again to his dad.

“My dad, I know. Almost all the teachers have told me that.” Across from him, he saw her open her eyes again, and then straighten up. And then she let out a loud, joyus laugh, as if he’d said the funniest thing in the world, and yet again, James was confused. How was that funny?

“Oh no, Mr Potter, I don't mean your father, although you do resemble him. No, I mean your grandfather.” She gave him a small, almost sad smile. James was taken aback. His grandfather? He had never heard that before, knowing barely any stories of him since he had died when his own dad was a baby, but now here he was, being told he looked like him.

“You knew my grandfather?” James’s voice came out far smaller than he would've liked. But it's not everyday you meet someone whose first words directly to you are about someone you’ve heard almost nothing about. Professor MacDonald laughed again, the same loud noise that made James want to smile.

“Yes, quite well- we graduated from here together. And your grandmother, actually, although they’d probably hate being called that. They would think it's far too stuffy. James and Lily just weren’t like that.” James felt his jaw dropping even more. She knew them, and from how she was speaking, knew them well. The Professor leaned forward to grab one of the photos, the larger of the two, and held it lovingly for a moment before handing it to James.

The frame was heavy and golden, and the photo itself was moving in black and white. In it were eight people, and it was worn down enough although it had been kept for years, and James had to squint to make out the faces. The back row of the photo were four boys, and in front of them were three girls, sitting in various positions. All were wearing Hogwarts uniforms and had large smiles on their faces as they moved to turn and talk to each other in the photo.

The first girl in the row was clearly his Professor, only much, much younger, looking about eighteen. She had wild curls and her expression was sheer joy, her eyes squinted shut as she grinned and turned to press a kiss to the cheek of the blonde girl sitting next to her, wrapped in each other's arms. The blonde girl looked just as joyful, her long wavy hair falling around her shoulders, wearing no robe and the first few buttons of her shirt undone. Next to her was a redhead, who was laughing gently at the antics of her friends before turning to stare up at a boy standing behind her, who had his hands resting comfortably on her shoulders. It was the boy who made James pause.

He had dark hair that was a mass of curls, styled to look almost windblown. He had on a pair of thin wire framed glasses in this one that fell low on his nose and a crooked smile that reeked of confidence and mischief, and the smile seemed to almost catch on one tooth, and all his attention was focused on the girl sitting below him. He stared at her as if she were his whole world.

James saw that same curly hair and crooked smile in the mirror every time he looked. Looking up at Professor MacDonald, he saw a sad smile on her face as she looked at him holding the image, and when she saw him looking, she nodded back down, encouraging him to keep looking. So James did.

The first boy in the back was the tallest of the lot, lanky, with a mop of what James assumed were light brown curls, and a large looking scar over the bridge of his nose. As James squinted, he realized that he looked almost exactly like Teddy, when he wasn’t donning wild colored hair and without his piercings. His dad had told him stories about this man, Remus Lupin, who had inspired him to be a teacher. Remus was staring down at a shorter boy next to him, with long dark hair and a Gryffindor tie tied around his head, who was staring up at him, large smiles on both their faces. It didn’t take much for James to figure out who this was, because he had been told a few stories about this man as well, the notorious Sirius Black, who Harry had gotten far too little time with. Despite himself, James felt himself wondering what it would have been like to meet these people, young and carefree, celebrating a moment of peace from the war circling around them.

Finally, there was the shortest of the lot, a rounder boy with fair hair who was staring at the group almost sadly, on the far right of the image. He stood there, surrounded by the happy laughing people, and looked almost on the outside of it all. James knew his name too. Peter Pettigrew.

“That was the day we graduated. We had all been through a lot already, lost friends to the war and were about to join it. But at that moment we were all so happy. All of us had applied to schools or jobs and were getting ready to buy flats and move in. I remember Sirius and the boys had stayed up all night rigging Filibusters to the roof, and somehow charmed them to spell out ‘Itinerarium Marauder’ as a last hurrah. Minnie looked so tired that day, but we all knew she would miss us.” James looked up from the photo to watch her while she was talking. Despite looking at him she had a faraway look in her eyes. Like she was remembering a different time. She blinked and gave James a real smile, all of the sadness gone in an instant.

“I didn’t mean to spring this on you, but you really do look just like him. It took me back, and for a second I had expected to see Sirius and Remus tagging along behind you.” James grinned at that. For some reason, being compared to his grandfather didn’t feel like him when he was being compared to his dad. It didn’t carry any expectations. And he wanted to know more.

“Ma’am?” James asked, and his Professor nodded at him, encouraging him to continue. “Would you be able to tell me more about him? About all of them?” The older woman broke into an even larger smile, one reminiscent of the one she wore in the photo in James hands.

“I would love to. Just not right now because I fear I've kept you long enough. You’ll be late to your next class if you don't hurry, Mr Potter.” She winked at him as she took the photo back, and James felt himself grinning as he waved at her, before taking off into the hallways to race down to the Greenhouses.

He was in fact late to class. But when he got there, breathless but grinning, Will gave him a curious look, questioning silently what had happened. James just shook his head. This was something for him, and him alone. A promise to learn more about a history no one else knew.

– – –

Two weeks later, the week of tryouts had finally arrived, and the whole school was nearly bursting with excitement. Each house was looking for new players to replace the ones they had lost the year before, and the majority of the hopeful students at Hogwarts wanted it to be them. Gossip was running through the hallways, slipping from ear to ear, and Xander was stressed. Everywhere he went, he saw Gryffindors gawk at him in awe and whisper amongst themselves as he walked by. And frankly, he was tired of it.

It was his seventh and final year at Hogwarts, and he honestly just wanted to be done. He liked school, but he had already spoken to the head coach of Puddlemere United, and he was going to sign with the club as soon as he graduated. Sure, education was important, but he knew that Quidditch was his passion and what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He had one last season, one last hurrah before he finished simple school competition and moved onto bigger and better things.

However, he hated the preseason. More than anything. He had been a captain for three years now, and every year, tryouts were the worst part. First of all, he hated the week before tryouts. He would get stares everywhere he went, and people would talk about him and almost every move me made. This year it had been especially bad because there was a specific group of girls that he had seen around the castle quite frequently, and whenever he walked by, they would always giggle profusely and wave. It was quite creepy, if he was being honest.

Secondly, he hated going to tryouts. He strongly disliked evaluating each player individually for a whole day and then playing a real game the next. It always took hours upon hours, and always ended with him in a very cranky mood and the rest of the team, especially the youngest returning player, Evelyn, a fourth year, would make fun of how stressed he was. The Gryffindor Quidditch team was stuff of legend at Hogwarts, and he got turnouts of over twenty five students every year, and the team only consists of seven. That was the last part that he hated, and he hated that aspect the most.

He hated looking at hopeful faces of new prospects and telling them that he didn’t need more players, or that they weren’t looking for someone in a specific position. And if he was being entirely truthful, nothing broke his heart more than telling a second or third year with stars in their eyes that they weren’t good enough to make the team that year and that they should try out again the next year even though he knew he would never be able to take them. When the spark in their faces died and their smiles faded, he always felt terrible and wanted to comfort them and tell them that it wasn’t their fault, but every year, to his disdain, there were always a few that just thanked him and left, which made him feel worse.

He shook his thoughts from his head as he strolled through the corridors by himself, staring straight ahead in order to make sure that he wouldn't make any awkward eye contact with students. He checked his watch quickly- only twelve hours left until the first Gryffindor tryout. He had three openings total- a Chaser, a Keeper, and a Beater, which was surprisingly a lot. He was pretty confident in his prediction for who the Beater would be, but the other two spots were up for grabs.

The murmurs in the hallways had been correct when he had guessed that Xander wasn’t looking to bring up any seventh years to the team. Based on the current players he had now, he needed new blood in order to make sure the team is successful in the upcoming years- he didn’t want to force the next captain to completely rebuild the team after he left. And besides, he had heard from the whispers around the school that there were two very young players that might fit the description of what he was looking for nearly perfectly.

By now, everyone had heard the stories of Willow Houston and Charles Wood. Charley was the famed son of Oliver Wood, Gryffindor Quidditch legend and current star Keeper of Puddlemere United. Oliver was stuff of legend at Hogwarts, and he was known for being an incredibly hardworking and passionate player that put together the best Quidditch team the school had ever seen his seventh year- the Gryffindor champions of 1994. He had gone pro right out of Hogwarts, which was what Xander was planning on doing, and rumor had it that Charley was just as good as his father. He was a skinny boy, and at first glance, one might not think that he was very athletic. But if the gossip was true, he was insane at diving and covering all three hoops, which was rare for a boy so young. Although he was only twelve, he was already getting tall, and Xander was sure that his wingspan would only grow as the years went by.

On the other hand, Willow Houston was famous for different reasons. Everyone knew her father, William Houston, as the famous Ballycastle Bats Seeker that had come from America to play professionally. However, little Will was a Chaser, not a Seeker, so the buzzing of the students didn’t know how good she would be at first. But her first flying practice at Hogwarts had put a quick end to the speculation. Xander hadn’t been there to see it, but he had heard the stories of how she flew as if her broom was an extension of her body, more fluidly than almost anyone people had ever seen. And from talking to her previously this year, he learned that he liked her outgoing nature and how she seemed to have fire in her grey eyes.

Those two were who he was really hoping to see tomorrow morning. He was wary about automatically assuming that they would make the team in order to not disappoint himself, but he was confident in his abilities as a captain to make the correct decision. Xander smirked to himself. He was going to give Darius a run for his money this year.

Similarly to his friend, Darius was also thinking of potential prospects. He only had two openings this year- a Keeper and a Chaser. He was just as stressed as Xander was about tryouts, but he didn’t show it and didn't attempt to listen to the whispers that followed him wherever he went. He had done a lot of thinking about who he was going to bring onto the team this year, and he shared views with Xander in which he was open to the idea of younger players, considering the whole team at the time was either a fifth year or above. There were two names that had been floating around the school for Slytherin: Athena Burns and Blaise Whitacker. Both were very interesting to Darius, and in contrast to Will and Charley, he didn’t know their names because of their father’s professional Quidditch careers but for other reasons entirely.

Blaise was a boy that Darius had noticed immediately during last year’s sorting. He had black hair darker than his own and tan skin that he could tell had spent a lot of time in the sun. He carried himself with confidence and had strolled up to the Sorting Hat as if he had already owned the school, and Darius didn’t think that he had seen him smile once last year. Always brooding, always cold, always commanding respect. It was impressive, especially for a first year. But Blaise’s most defining characteristic wasn’t his hair or his demeanor- it was his eyes. He had piercing blue eyes that were the same shade of blue as the sea, and wherever he looked, you couldn’t help but stare. They were captivating, and different. Blaise’s father, Roland Whitacker, was a very renowned and respected business owner, and his mother, Melody Zabini, was the half sister of the late Blaise Zabini, who Darius assumed he was named after. He hadn’t gotten the chance to speak to Blaise, and he wondered if he was as closed off as he seemed.

Athena, however, was even more of a mystery than her friend. The young girl was tall, much taller than her peers, and she had striking blonde hair and deep green eyes that contrasted with her pale skin, and if he hadn’t done research after Madam Hooch contacted him, he never would’ve guessed that she was half Lestrange. He ran a hand through his hair. His family hadn’t been involved in the war much, but he had heard many stories about Rodolphus Lestrange and his wife, Bellatrix. But it was not fair to hold a child accountable for the actions of her relatives. Athena didn’t speak much, from what he had observed, but from the one conversation that he had had with her, she was very well spoken and wiser than she seemed..

Darius walked into the Great Hall for dinner and found Xander already at their table, eating some porkchops as he was scanning some lists- presumably tryout registration forms. “Tomorrow is the big day, isn’t it,” he said, sitting down next to his friend.

Xander didn’t even look up as he flipped one of the pages over. “Yep. Can’t wait,” he responded sarcastically, making the Slytherin chuckle.

“Don’t worry about it too much, my friend. We’re going to beat you this year no matter who you bring in, so it doesn’t even really matter,” he joked, and Xander picked up one of the registration forms and hit him with it.

“In your dreams, Darius. We’re winning the Cup this year, I’m sure of it,” he said confidently, puffing out his chest with pride.

Darius shook his head, smiling. “We’ll see, Xander. We’ll see.”

Meanwhile, Aidan, Charley, and Will were sitting at the boys’ usual table and whispering amongst themselves. Athena was sitting with her Slytherin friends and watching them intently, and her confusion only grew when Will’s lips turned up into a smile and Charley began to chuckle. But her neutral expression changed ever so slightly into a small smirk as Blaise Whitacker walked into the Great Hall with his usual scowl on his face. That made more sense.

Purposely trying to piss off her friend was certainly something she could get behind. So she turned and focused back on the conversation of her classmates. Conner was talking about something his dads had said in a recent letter about his little sister accidentally nearly setting their cat on fire with some rouge displays of magic. He waved his arms about as he talked, emphasizing the point of the message, getting laughs around the table, even from Braxton, who Athena had learned to be rather quiet and stoic.

At the other table, Will had immediately groaned aloud when Blaise sat down, causing his scowl to grow. “Why are you here?” He snapped at her, and she simply rolled her eyes.

“We’re talking about Quidditch, buzzkill. All three of our tryouts are tomorrow,” she responded. The Gryffindors had the morning tryout slot, and the Ravenclaws took the field right after, so their nerves were high.

Blaise scoffed. “If you’re as good as everyone says you are, I don’t know why you’re even worrying about it. It should come naturally, but I guess you’re not as talented as you think.”

Will’s nostrils flared. “I’m not worried about tryouts, actually. I was just planning with Charley and Aidan when we were going to go flying again.”

This caused Blaise to pause. “What? You guys have gone flying? When? Why wasn’t I invited?”

Charley picked at his dinner awkwardly. “We go pretty much every other night. We sneak out after curfew. We didn’t invite you because we didn’t think that-”

“We didn’t invite you because you’re a massive pain in my ass,” Will interrupted, causing Blaise to shoot her a dirty look.

Aidan sighed. “You can come the next time we go. It’s kind of our thing now, and we need one more person to make the numbers even. Plus, you’re a Keeper, and right now the Chasers outnumber Charley two to one.”

Blaise relaxed, his bruised pride healing. “Okay, that sounds good.” He ran a hand through his black hair. “Our tryouts aren’t until two days from now, and honestly, I’m pretty stressed about it.”

Charley laughed. “Me too. I'm pretty sure everyone is expecting me to be like my dad, which is a lot to live up to.”

Will shrugged. “Same here. I just want it to be over.”

Just as she finished, Athena slid into the empty seat next to her cousin. “What’re you guys up to?”

Blaise rolled his eyes. “None of your concern. Don’t even think about it,” he said to Charley when he opened his mouth, presumably to invite Athena along with them to go flying, but with one look from Blaise, he closed his mouth quietly.

“That’s awfully rude of you,” Athena retorted. “Anyways, if it's about your flying and fucking nights that Will goes on about, I’m not interested. I’ve been getting my own practices in.” She stole a piece of chicken off Blaise’s plate before turning to look Charley and Aidan up and down. “And at least I’ve been doing it with some actual competition.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “Hey, now, Aidan and Charley are actually very good. I don’t know about him, though.” She nodded at Blaise, making him flush with anger and Athena chuckle.

“Oh he's not, don’t worry, he’ll be of little use to you lot.” Between the rapid fire comments, Aidan had frozen and Charley had nearly spit out his pumpkin juice. This girl, who they had very few interactions with, had just managed to shit on all three of them in a matter of moments. Will burst out laughing across the table and Athena gave a small smirk in return, attempting to reach for another piece of chicken before getting her hand swatted away. She scowled at Blaise, who returned it.

“You need to watch it, Athena. You think you’re funny, but you have no real idea as to what’s going on at Hogwarts, and I won’t hesitate to write to your father.” On that note, he stood up and walked out of the Great Hall.

Athena flipped him the bird as he stalked off. “Pretentious ass,” she remarked before reaching for the rest of his chicken. She gave Will a tight smile before gesturing for her to continue on with the previous conversation.

Will was not stupid. She knew the comment about Athena's father meant something. But she also knew better than to pry, at least right now. So she filed it away for later. “Who have you been practicing with?” She asked, genuinely wondering.

Athena flipped her ponytail behind her shoulder. “Jaya.”

Will scoffed at that, for she wasn’t Jaya’s biggest fan. She always felt that the Slytherin was judging her, and although she criticized Will for being “narcissistic”, she didn’t think Jaya was much better herself, for she walked around as if she owned the place in a similar fashion to the Gryffindor. “I thought you said you were practicing with actual competition.”

“She's getting there. Her broom handling is great, she just doesn’t like Chaser so we have a bit of an issue there. I might try and get the other balls out and see what she likes so we can really get to it.” Athena shrugged. “Still better than this lot, I reckon.” She gestured at the boys with chicken speared on a fork, a contemplative look on her face.

Aidan raised an eyebrow. “You seem to talk a lot more than everyone says you do.” He looked at Will and she just shook her head, smiling.

“Athena, no offense, but I’ve seen Jaya fly and I’ve also seen Aidan and Charley fly. They’re better than you think they are, and when Gryffindor beats Slytherin all three games this year, you’re gonna have to admit that they’re good at Quidditch,” she said jokingly.

“Yeah!” Charley attempted to yell with his face stuffed.

“Hm, we will see. That’s presuming I even make the team though,” Athena responded.

“You probably will. I don’t think Darius is really looking at anyone else, and if you’re even half as good as this one,” Aidan gestured to Will, “which I’m sure is almost offensive of me to even say because it’s an understatement, you have nothing to worry about.”

“Why would you compliment someone when you have no knowledge of their actual skills?” Athena tilted her head at the Ravenclaw. Almost like she was studying him. It creeped him out.

“Uh, I was trying to be nice?” He said, shifting in his seat uncomfortably.

“Makes you sound like a liar. Or naive at the very least. I could be complete and utter horseshit for all you know,” Athena said, still staring him down.

Will raised an eyebrow. “Okay, calm down, Athena. He was just trying to compliment you. You don’t have to insult him.”

Finally, Athena turned her stare away from Aidan and towards Will. “I wasn’t trying to insult him. Just speaking the truth. I really could be shit.”

Will stood up and pulled Aidan up with her. “Well, then I’m sure he’ll correct himself and call you shit to your face. Is that better?” And on that note, she grabbed Aidan’s forearm and pulled him out of the Great Hall with her, leaving Charley and Athena alone.

Charley was already mildly disturbed. From his few conversations with the small girl, he had seen two sides. One, was more open, the one that laughed and spilled jokes with her friends. But the other was much more intimidating, almost a front she put up that picked apart other people. It was freaky. And right now, he wasn’t sure which side was sitting in front of him. He looked at her, sitting across from him now, but she had already turned back to Blaise’s abandoned plate of food, quietly eating. A weird child indeed.

“So are you really shit?” Charley found himself asking, almost against his will.

Those prying eyes turned towards him. She finished her bite before speaking, not breaking eye contact. “What do you think?” Everything about this felt like a trap. And when he saw the corner of her mouth turn up just a little, he knew she was fucking with him.

He felt himself start to smile back, even though he probably shouldn’t, almost as if it would spook her. “No, I don't think you are. Will talks too highly of you for you to be shit, because we both know she wouldn’t like you if you were bad.” He watched Athena smile a little wider, and then start laughing. It was quiet, and sharp almost, kind of like how she talked, but it wasn’t cruel. When she stopped she gave him a real smile.

“No, you're definitely right about that one.” She looked away from him and scanned over the other tables. He followed her line of sight, and landed on a table of other first years in green and silver. “I should probably head back- I only really came over here to annoy Blaise. I didn’t mean to interrupt your dinner. It was nice talking to you though, Charley.” She stood up from the table, pushing her chair back and started to walk toward her friends. But then she paused. “I know I said I didn’t want to join you guys in flying, but if you ever want to see for yourself whether or not I’m shit, Jaya and I go out in the mornings. Around sixish.” And then she turned on her heel to keep walking away

After Will had dragged Aidan out of the Great Hall, they found themselves winding up in the library. Aidan had pulled out a couple Defense Against the Dark Arts books and was scanning them as Will was leaning back in a chair, throwing a ball of tape in the air and trying to get it to stick to the ceiling. “I’m sorry about Athena. I have no idea what got into her,” she said.

Aidan shook his head. “It’s alright. I didn’t take it personally, she probably just wanted to fuck with me a little.”

Will paused her tape throwing and sat up to look at him. “You’re too nice- it’s going to get you in trouble,” she joked.

He smiled at her and ripped out a page of his book, making her gasp. He balled it up and chucked it at her, and she threw up her hands to prevent it from hitting her face. “How’s that for ‘too nice’?” He said, making her laugh loudly.

“You’re going to get us thrown out! Madam fuck-what’s-her-name will go mental!” She said, but she made no attempt to really reprimand him and threw the ball of paper back at him.

“Then I guess we’ll get thrown out. Come on, Quidditch tryouts are tomorrow! I know you’re stressed- we can unwind a bit.” He sat down next to her and raised an eyebrow. “Besides, her name is Madam Pince.”

Will rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Come on, it’s getting late. We’re heading out tonight, right?”

Aidan closed the remaining books and put them back on the shelves. “Of course we are. I think Blaise is joining us,” he said, and when Will wrinkled her nose, he sighed. “Oh, come on, he’s not that bad. He just doesn’t like you because he feels threatened by you.”

She crossed her arms. “Yeah, as he should be.”

Aidan shook his head. “Your attitude never ceases to amaze me. Come on, let’s go. Paris mentioned something about wanting to ask you a question about Quidditch, anyways, so we can go grab your broom and then head to my room.”

Will stood up and smiled at him. “Sounds good.”

After a couple hours, Aidan and Will were able to successfully sneak out of the Ravenclaw Common Room and meet Charley at the pitch. Will immediately hopped onto her broom, whooping in glee. The boys followed her quickly, and soon, they were all laughing and racing each other around the pitch. Sometimes they did actual skill work, but tonight, with tryouts just around the corner, they just wanted to have fun.

Blaise watched them fly around from a shaded spot on the ground, a trio. His two best friends and a girl, a girl he didn’t like one bit. But as he watched, he began to forget why he didn’t like her. She flew around the pitch as if she was born to do it, and it was captivating to watch. He had seen Charley and Aidan play before, after all, they had been doing it all summer, and the year before that whenever they could find the pitch open. She, however, was new. An enigma. And he didn't like that he couldn’t figure her out. Huffing under his breath, he hopped on his own broom, a brand new Hermes 2050, and sped up to meet the rest of the kids, who were hovering in the air.

“Blaise! Glad you could make it,” Charley said, smiling at him.

Blaise smiled. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Have to stoke out my competition, right?” He joked, causing Will to roll her eyes.

“Okay, then let’s stoke it. Meet me at the goalposts for a little race,” she said, and with a small wink, she took off.

After earning a shrug from each of his friends, Blaise swore under his breath and kicked his broom to follow her. He was not going to let a first year beat him. When he skidded to a halt next to her, he straightened his back and raised an eyebrow at her. “Where are we racing to?”

Will didn’t even look at him, instead staring at the full moon that made her grey eyes almost glow. “One lap around the pitch. Aidan will ref.” She turned to look at the Ravenclaw, who nodded.

“No funny business,” he warned. “Tryouts are this week- your pride isn't worth an injury.” He looked at his best friend for this one, and Blaise scowled back at him. “Alright, on my mark. Ready-” Blaise ran a hand through his hair to slick it back- “set-” Will leaned forward on her broom every so slightly- “GO!”

Both of the students took off on the first curve. It was neck and neck at first, and as the wind whipped through Will’s black hair, she urged her broom to go faster. She’d be damned if she lost to a Slytherin. Blaise looked straight ahead, focusing on the second curve that was coming up. As they rounded it, he leaned in naturally, and his shoulder barely brushed hers. He looked over at her, just a little, and he was surprised to see her smirking at her.

But things were starting to go south for him. Will had used the advantage of being on the inside to inch forward. She was gaining ground as they approached the second and last straightway, and the centimeters grew to meters. Blaise was getting flustered now, and he was losing control. That could not happen.

Will knew she won as soon as she rounded the second curve, but she wanted to even further her lead. She pushed her broom harder, faster, engaging her little power surge, as she had begun calling it, and at the straightaway, her lead was significant. She blew by Aidan and Charley seconds ahead of Blaise, and she screamed in victory.

“LET’S GO! LET’S FUCKING GO!” She yelled, and Blaise flew to the ground and kicked at the sand as Aidan and Charley sighed and flew down after him.

“She had the inside- that’s a significant advantage,” Blaise griped, throwing his broom on the ground. He couldn’t believe he lost. He hadn’t lost a race since- well, ever. It was something he took great pride in, especially when he was beating his two best friends.

Will flew down with a triumphant smile on her face, and Charley swore under his breath. If she boasted at all, he was positive that Blaise would lose his shit. But surprisingly, the words that came out of her mouth next were far from it.

“Hey, listen, that was a great race. I thought you had me for a second,” she said gently as she approached the Slytherin, and he stared at her, dumbfounded. He was not expecting her to be civil after he had talked so much shit. “You’re a great flier, Blaise, and you were better than I thought you were. I guess I have my work cut out for me this year,” she said with a shy smile, and she offered her hand out.

Blaise stared at her, his mouth dropped wide open. There was silence amongst all four of them as Will’s hand hovered in the air, and for a second, he debated smacking it away. He wanted to scream at her, to tell her to stop pretending that she was all righteous and humble. But as he looked into her big grey eyes and saw the corners of her lips turn up into a grin, something inside of him snapped- no, snapped wasn't the right word for it. Something inside him crumbled, but it was in a good way. His scowl slowly dissipated and much to his dismay, it turned into a small smile. He grasped Will’s hand firmly and shook it. “Thank you for saying that. You’re not too bad yourself,” he said grudgingly.

Will smiled, her cheeks pink from the wind but also from a slight blush that had crept across her face. “I’ll take it. Come on, let’s do some 2v2. Aidan, you’re on my team.” And on that, she picked up a spare Quaffle from the ground and flew up to the hoop. Blaise sighed and mounted his broom to go follow her.

Aidan’s mouth was agape as he looked at Charley. “If you would’ve told me that that was going to happen, I would’ve drank my own piss right there.”

Charley chuckled. “Yeah, I agree. Never would’ve seen it coming. But hey, I’m not complaining- I’ll take them getting along over fighting any day.”

The game went quickly and was full of loud laughs from all four of them. There were no rules, really, but the chaos was welcomed. The teams and positions switched constantly, and Charley ended up playing Beater at one point, which didn’t even make sense because they were only playing 2v2. But by the end of the night, Blaise and Will were on the same team, and after they had positively destroyed Aidan and Charley, they flew down with neither of them being able to breathe because of how hard they were laughing.

“Mate, that was so amazing! Did you see me almost push Charley off his broom?” Will asked, landing gracefully.

“It was insane! And when I scored and you screamed- oh Merlin, that was great,” Blaise responded, hopping off his own broom and running up to her.

“We were so good! We’re such a good team, and we-” But she was cut off as Blaise raised his hand for a high five and she didn’t hesitate to slap it back. Both stopped for a second before realizing what they had done and Blaise stepped away quickly as Will brushed some hair out of her face awkwardly.

Charley landed next to them and sniggered. “Well, that was unexpected.”

Will blushed and shoved him. “Shut up, Char. It’s getting pretty late, and we have tryouts in the morning. We should probably head back.” She cast a glance at Aidan, who nodded.

“I agree. We probably shouldn’t have even come out tonight, but whatever. See you guys in the morning for breakfast?” He asked, and Charley nodded.

“It’s on. See you two later,” he said, and he gestured for Will to follow him to make the trek back to the Gryffindor tower. Will looked back once before going to follow him, and when she met Blaise’s eyes, she smiled brightly, and she waved. Blaise waved back, without a smile, but she knew what he meant either way.

Aidan and Blaise watched the two Gryffindors walk up the hill back to the castle, and when they could no longer see them in the darkness, Aidan turned to his best friend. “It was actually really nice for you two not to fight. Thanks for putting your pride away for one night.”

Blaise threw his broom over his shoulder. “No problem,” he said sarcastically. But he sighed and straightened his sweatshirt. “I hate to admit it, but I had a great time. We should definitely keep doing that.” He cast one more look at the castle where Will and Charley had disappeared to. “Thanks for inviting me, mate.” He rested a hand on his friend’s shoulder.

Aidan smiled at him. Finally, a girl he had been captivated with since he met her and his absolute best mate were starting to get along. “Anytime.”

Chapter Text

On the day of tryouts, many things began happening collectively.

First, each and every single one of the common rooms seemed to be alive with noise, eager students rushing to prepare for the day, nerves waking them up long before they needed to. Even four students in particular who had been up far later than they probably should have been were wide awake, bursting for their first year of Quidditch tryouts.

Second, Xander was running late. Perhaps the most important person of the day was running behind. And long, long behind at that. He had set the time for the Gryffindor tryouts, he was the one who had meticulously planned it, and yet here he was, late. If Darius were there, which he inevitably would be, he would never, ever hear the end of it.

Third, half the Ravenclaw house were out at the Quidditch pitch five hours before their own tryouts were set to take place. Among them, the entire class of first years, half awake at eight am, prepared to watch the Gryffindor tryouts, the first session of today's extensive Quidditch trials.

Tryouts would be four hours long. The first two hours would be skills, splitting players into groups of their positions, testing in small numbers to see how people played together, running drills and small courses in order to test mostly individual ability. After a short break, the second two hours would be a scrimmage with the few remaining players who had made it to the second round without being eliminated in the first, switching teams and positions, seeing who was best suited to what before those who remained would be narrowed down once again, this time to the seven who would make the team and those who would be kept in reserve as back ups for injured players. Tryouts would end around 12:30, and the Ravenclaws would take the field at around 1:00 and stay until 5:30. On Sunday, Slytherin would have the morning slot and then tryouts would finish with Hufflepuff in the afternoon.

Xander had specifically picked the earliest slot so it would be the coolest time of day, and it would be out of the way at least relatively quickly and some of the stress of the season would be off of his shoulders. No offense to his players, but tryouts were his least favorite part of the season and he wanted to be done with them as soon as possible. He had a good idea of who was going to make the team as he had been playing with most of them for almost three years now, but he couldn’t play favorites. The only exception was fellow seventh year, Peter Walsh. He had been threatened with “complete and utter destruction of everything he held dear” if he didn’t let Peter on the team again for their final year.

Bastard.

So at 8:12 in the morning, he showed up to the fields, robes already half on, hair askew, broom in one hand, slightly panicking at the fact that he couldn’t find keys to the closet that held the balls. Worst came to worst, he'd just alohomora the shit out of the door, which luckily, he didn’t have to do because when he skidded to a halt in front of the closet, Darius was leaning up against the door, swinging the key ring around his pointer finger.

“Forgetting something?” He teased, and Xander sneered at him, snatching the keys away.

“Shut up. My alarm didn’t go off this morning, so I’m running a little late.” He hastily unlocked the door, locating the chests of balls in mere moments, and wordlessly sent them levitating behind him.

“Lacie and Amaya are here too, just so you know, and there's kids from all four houses watching you guys.” Darius’s tone had little emotion, but Xander could practically feel him smirking at him.

“Wonderful. Come on, let’s go, asshole. And wipe that smirk off your face, it's not going to be much better for you tomorrow.” And with that, Xander set off in a sprint back to the field with Darius on his heels. When he arrived, his mouth dropped open. There were nearly forty kids waiting for him, brooms in hand and hopeful expressions on their faces. This was the most he had seen in all five years of his tryouts, more than 80% of the Gryffindor house here, standing in front of him. “Holy shit,” he muttered under his breath, so only Darius could hear. He could feel Darius smirk grow next to him, and he sighed deeply. “Shut your whore mouth, Darius. I know that I’m fucked.”

Darius put his hands up in mock surrender. “I didn’t say anything. Need any help?”

Xander lowered the crates of balls to the ground and sighed. “Probably. We’ll see how this goes, and then I’ll probably rope you into doing something.” He straightened his back to address the crowd. “Gryffindors! Over here!” There was hasty movement as the students moved to walk over to him, huddling around as they eagerly waited for him to continue. “Alright, I’m sorry I’m late, but let’s get started so we can finish somewhat on time. I’m Xander, as you all know, and Darius, Lacie, and Amaya are here as well.” He gestured to his friend, who gave a curt nod, and the two girls, who were walking down to the field, waved. “We’re going to start with some skill stuff. Let’s break up into four groups- first and second years over here with me, third years will go with Amaya, fourth and fifth over here with Lacie, and sixth and seventh will go with Darius.” The students moved quickly to their respective positions, and to Xander’s satisfaction, the four groups were pretty even in terms of numbers.

He turned to the other captains. “Okay, so my plan was to do passing and flying patterns for the first hour, and then small-sided possession for the second hour. We can switch around so we can see all four groups after fifteen minutes or so if that’s alright with you guys,” he said, and Amaya nodded.

“Sounds good.”

Xander sighed. “Thank you guys so much for doing this, by the way. It’s a huge help.”

Lacie smiled at him and nudged his shoulder. “No problem, mate. But you better be here for my tryouts,” she teased, and he shook his head, a grin on his face.

“Alright, let’s do this.”

The first drill he had everyone do was just some simple flying patterns. Nothing too complicated, just some weaving, and Xander watched the younger kids carefully. All of them knew how to ride a broom, give or take, but he wanted to see how well they really flew. Did they change speeds? How efficient were their turns? Was the flying smooth? It was pretty much what he expected- most of them weren’t what he was looking for this year for the team. Except three of them- Willow Houston, Charles Wood, and James Sirius Potter.

The three of them moved fluidly and quickly, outflying all of the younger kids. It was pretty obvious that they were real contenders, and he watched them carefully. Will was in the zone, no expression on her face was visible. She flew in and out of people with no hesitation, and it brought a smile to his face. He knew she wouldn't disappoint. Charley also was doing very well, and he worked with Will as if they had been playing together their whole lives. Frankly, it was impressive, and it was enjoyable to watch such young players do so well, especially against their peers.

The surprise to him was James Potter. He had heard stories of his professor and how he was the first first year in over a century to make the Gryffindor team, and how if he hadn’t had such a passion for teaching, he could’ve played professionally with no problem. His son had a lot of expectations to live up to that even Xander was not blind to. The question as to whether or not he lived up to those expectations, however, remained unanswered. James was good, no doubt, but regretfully, Xander knew he wasn’t ready. He saw it in the way he flew- it was timid, as if he was scared to mess up. He saw it in his body language- how his shoulders were slightly sagged and turned in as to not draw too much attention to himself. But mostly, Xander saw it in his eyes. They had clouds in them, as if he was thinking a million things at once, and they were fearful. He didn’t quite know what James was scared of, but he could guess that he didn’t want to disappoint his father. There was only so much he could do for the young boy if he couldn’t even muster up the confidence to fly like he had the potential too. Xander could see that he had the potential to be a great flier, but right now, there was something holding him back.

Fifteen minutes later, they rotated groups, meaning Xander went with the third years, Amaya went with the fifth and sixth years, Lacie went with the sixth and seventh years, and Darius took Xander’s old spot. The Slytherin was equally impressed with the younger kids, and although he didn’t show it, he knew that they were going to be a big problem for his team if Xander ended up taking them like he said he was going to. The rest of the two hours went pretty quickly, and at around 10:00, Xander called a break. It had begun to get extremely hot, and the players were thankful for the time to catch their breath.

Gulping down water, Will turned to Charley. “I think that went pretty well. What did you think?”

Charley nodded in agreement. “It was alright. I’ll be interested to see who gets called back for the next hour.”

James looked over at them, studying their interaction. Recently, Charley and Will had become a lot closer, and instead of coming to James with Quidditch questions and statements, she had started going to Charley, and he was starting to get jealous. He already felt inferior to Will because of their fathers’ constant praise of her Quidditch skills, and now, he felt that Charley and especially Aidan were starting to almost drag her away from him. Will and Fred were his rocks at school, and he felt like he could be himself around them. But now Will was hanging out with the older kids, and he felt even more inferior than he did before.

The thirty minutes were up quickly, and the four Quidditch captains had spent it discussing who they were going to call back. Xander had decided that on top of the four returning players, he was going to have ten callbacks in order to play a full game. So far, they had decided that Leon Bates and Macie Powell, the two returning sixth years, would captain the two teams as Xander’s way of showing who he thought should be the captain after he left. Macie, a Seeker, had picked Xander to be on her team and Leon, a Beater, had picked Evelyn, the other Chaser, to be on his. With the guidance of the other team captains, they were able to pick pretty even teams, and they finally flew over to the group to alert the students.

“May I have your attention, everyone?” Xander yelled, and the whispers quieted quickly. “Alright, we have the lists for the two callback teams. There are fourteen total people, and if your name isn’t called, thank you for coming out and I hope that if you’re a younger student, you come out next year. Without further adieu, I’ll let Leon and Macie announce their teams.”

Leon was a tall dark skinned boy with curls cut close to his head and a strong jaw, stepped forward with a large smile. “Hello all, I’m Leon Bates and I’m a sixth year Beater. If I call your name, you're on the gold team, so grab a gold jersey and come stand over here behind me.” He gestured to a spot of grass and straightened the list of names in his hand, hastily scrawled by Xander.

“First up, the three Chasers- Evelyn Murphy, fourth year,” The girl wasn’t tall or particularly big, more like someone who would blend into a crowd, but now, striding forward, she had all eyes on her. She had naturally dark brown hair which was currently straightened and pulled up into a messy bun, and slightly darker skin that glowed in the early morning light, her brown eyes lighting up as well. “Willow Houston, first year.” Will sighed in relief and high-fived Charley as she stepped forward, and outrage was present on many older students’ faces as she walked behind Leon. “And finally, Jayne Wong, sixth year.” A tall and skinny girl walked behind Leon as well, completing the Chaser lineup, giving him a high five as she passed. She had naturally dark hair with highlights that added even more definition to it. The smile she wore was proud and self assured, and her stride was just as confident as she went to the back of the line. Her and Evelyn also exchanged a brief highfive, knowing each other slightly from exchanges in the dorm.

“Next, the Beaters. Myself, and then Beau Smith, second year.” A lanky looking boy who was all limbs and a mess of dark curls neatly trimmed into an afro let out a loud whoop, throwing his arm around Charley's shoulders as Charley joined him in yelling. Surrounded by older classmen, the two second years were thrown quite a few disdainful looks, judging the two younger boys. Leon let out a proud looking smile from where he stood with a piece of paper in hand, the line of chasers behind him.

“Our Seeker will be Ryan Walton, fifth year.” Towards the back of the group a taller boy came forward, he had a slightly longer looking face that was covered with freckles and bright red hair who was clapped heartily on the back by a fellow fifth year before he walked forward, a slightly more shy smile on his face than his fellow teammates.

“Finally, our Keeper will be Charles Wood, second year” At this, both Beau and Will let out loud hollers from their place in line, and after getting fist bumps from three other second years who had come for tryouts, he rushed to join his friends. Smiling happily, Leon folded up his piece of paper, putting it in his pants pocket as he gestured to Macie to start her team list. In the crowd of remaining people, James was beginning to feel anxious. He hadn’t been called at all, but Will and Charley both had been and now he was standing in the group alone. Lucas, Fred, and Parker hadn’t wanted to try out, Fred saying he would rather be an announcer. So as Macie started, James listened anxiously, hoping to hear his name called.

“Hey guys, my name's Macie, I’m a sixth year, and I’ll be acting as my team's Seeker. We'll be the Red team so once your name is called, grab a red jersey to put overtop of yours.” She was pretty in a way that a pixie would be. She wasn’t much taller than five foot one, but James would be willing to bet that made her quick as a whip, and she had mousy looking brown hair cut to just below her ears that poofed up arounder her as if defying gravity, and a mischievous smile and upturned nose that made James wary. “First up I’ll announce my Chasers. Xander Stott, seventh year, our team Captain.” Xander gave a small wave and gestured for her to continue. “Secondly, Kaira Southern, seventh year.” The girl had long hair pulled into a braid that hung down her back and was dyed a light purple color that could only be achieved with magic. She had a thin face and willowy figure that looked like it would be more suited to a dancer, and an overly confident grin on her face, which she turned toward Xander who gave her a tight lipped smile in return. “Finally, first year, James Potter.” As soon as the words ‘first year’ left her mouth, James was rushing forward with excitement, much to the glares of older students, and yells of joy from Will.

Xander watched him closely. This was even more of a test for him than it was for everyone else because he wanted to see if James could snap out of his head and if playing with Xander would be able to draw him out a bit more. Macie started talking again as soon as James reached the line behind her. “Our Beaters will be Peter Walsh, seventh year, and Kester McDermott, fifth year.” A blonde boy with a round face in the back let out a “fucking finally!” as he pushed forward. When he reached the line behind Macie, Xander sighed, and he jokingly stuck his tongue out at him, earning him a smack on the back of the head from Macie. The other boy was the one who had slapped Ryan on the back when he got called up. He was much shorter than the other, and had his hair shaved close to his head in a buzz cut, and incredibly prominent cheekbones that made him look very, well, pointy.

“Finally, our Keeper will be Fintan Campos, fourth year.” The boy had longer hair that was pulled into a neat ponytail at the nape of his neck and thicker eyebrows, but kind eyes. He seemed to be the calmest of the lot.

As Fintan’s name was called, Xander stepped forward, and grumbles of outrage started to grow in volume. He had cut nearly thirty kids before the second half of tryouts, and with that, he had advanced two first years and two second years over the multiple older kids that had wanted to tryout. “Again, thank you for coming out, and I hope Macie and Leon will see you next year-” he started, but the disapproval of the students was too loud for him to be heard.

Darius, who was still standing with his friend even though Amaya and Lacie had left after they had created the teams, stepped forward. “SHUT IT!” He yelled, and immediately, it was quiet. “Listen to your captain,” he said sternly and Xander nodded at him gratefully.

“Thank you, Darius. Anyways, thank you all for coming out, and I hope Macie and Leon will see you next year,” he repeated, and the angry but respectful students walked out of the stadium.

Finally, Xander was able to turn back to the fourteen remaining players. “Alright, we can get started. We’ll just scrimmage for the next couple hours unless the game ends early- then we can think of something to do.” Macie and Leon nodded to acknowledge that they understood and the Beater gestured for his team to follow him.

“Alright, I’m not going to lie, but I don’t really have a plan for moves or anything since this is the beginning of the season and I really think Xander is just trying to see how you guys play as a team, so we’re just going to roll with that. Evelyn and I have played together before so I know her style, so Chasers, follow her lead. Beau, you’re with me, Charley and Ryan, I’m trusting you guys to know your position well enough to do your jobs.”

Across the field, the other team was in roughly the same position, Xander standing back a little to watch how Macie took the lead, and how the players naturally organized themselves- he wanted to see their natural chemistry without interfering too much. He noticed that Kaira was casually scooching closer to him while Macie directed out roles, sending the Chasers with him and letting Peter direct Kester more while she talked to their Keeper. He kept trying to step away, inching himself closer to James, at least then he could take on the role as ‘mentor’ as an excuse to stay away from her. Kaira wasn’t a bad person, but she had tried to throw herself at him on more than one occasion and he really did not appreciate the advances. He looked up into the stands, looking at the faces that remained and trying to see if anyone was noticing his plight. The majority of the kids who had been cut had opted to stay and watch the scrimmage, and there were scattered robes of green, gold, and blue in the audience as well. One in particular stood out. The other three captains were still there watching as well, Lacie and Amaya talking to a couple younger girls who had come over to ask some questions if Xander had to guess, but Darius was watching the field with intent.

Xander made direct eye contact, tilting his head just a little, and Darius noticed instantly. He cocked his head to the side, watching the lilac haired girl with just a trace of smirk. Then, he turned that expression to Xander, and with a little tiny wink he could barely make out, he turned away, watching the team across the field.

Xander was going to kill him.

Four minutes later, everyone was in the air, and the game was ready to begin. Lacie had made her way down from the stands to referee the game and at her count, the Quaffle was thrown into the air. Evelyn and Xander both raced for it instantly, digging themselves into a dive to attempt to reach it first. Will raced down beside her, flying parallel to the girl in the dive, making herself available for a pass. Above them, Peter and Kester hovered menacingly, waiting for the Bludgers to be released to protect their Chasers. James and Kaira stayed just above Xander as opposed to diving down with them, and were being stared down by an all too menacing Jayne Wong, backed by her own team's Beaters. Both Macie and Ryan had taken to hovering above the pitch watching intently as Xander emerged victorious from the scramble for the ball, Evelyn hot on his heels.

Then, everyone was moving, the first mad scramble for the ball over, making way for the true intensity and organized chaos of a match to begin. Except right now, with a completely uncoordinated team, four players who had never had played in a school match before scrambling for a semblance of the game flow. All the people who had previously played together were split up, and the rest just new. There was plenty of talent, more than, but even now Xander could feel Darius snickering from the stands. Jayne had misread a pass attempt and had way overshot, missing the Quaffle by a solid ten feet, where it plummeted into the arms of a waiting James.

Grabbing the ball, he took off down the field, racing towards Charley in the goal, only to be blocked by a Bludger sent spinning his way with insane accuracy from Leon, forcing him to swerve out of the way, right into the path of the stands. Somehow, he managed to hold onto the ball despite the careening path he ended up being sent into, however, that same path put him face to face with a blonde Slytherin, wearing full green and white with her arms crossed while she stared right back at him. She cocked an eyebrow at him, as he was still just hovering right there. Next to her were the two other girls in her year, Ainsley, with all her dark skin and dark curls had a notebook open in her lap, pen momentarily paused as she too looked at James. The other one, Jaya, was giving him the same look Athena was, crossed arms, uninterested glare, staring him down.

James froze. There was no other way to describe it than like a deer in the headlights. He had been knocked off course and was now being given three very unimpressed looks, probably more actually, and it made him nervous. Nervous enough that it gave Will plenty of time to come barreling in at him from the side to snatch the Quaffle away, effectively bringing him hurtling back to the present. Will cackled happily as she relished the feel of her first steal of the game, grabbing the ball from the frozen James and taking off towards the opposite ends of the field.

“James! Get back in the game!” Xander roared from his spot, taking off after Will and narrowly avoiding a Bludger hit towards him. Shaking his head, and trying to shake off the feeling of the eyes watching him, James went racing after his friend and the captain. The stares did not stop. Above the rest of the players, Macie and Ryan flitted about, searching the skies for any trace of the golden Snitch. They would fly the length of the field, constantly scanning, watching for motion while also following the game below.

After Willow had taken the ball from James, she darted up the field, Quaffle tucked under her arm as she pressed against the broom, flying as fast as she could. The school Quidditch robes were heavier than she was used to but with the wind whipping her hair around her face and the clear skies around her the weight didn’t matter, it was just her and blurred shapes of the people around her. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Xander, quickly gaining speed behind her, and Jayne flying just above her, waiting if she needed her. Will felt herself grin. She loved this more than almost anything. Despite having the captain quickly catching up to her, she continued to race forward, and despite knowing that she had Jayne right there, perfectly open for a pass, she kept going, pushing herself towards the hoops.

She wanted that goal.

And when she got it, the Quaffle flying into the right hoop past Fintan’s outstretched arms, she screamed in delight as the students in the stadium roared with her. Pumping her fist in the air, she zoomed back to Charley to give him a quick high five before getting ready for the face off. Xander watched her intently, a small smile on his face, and Darius rolled his eyes. This first year was definitely going to be a problem.

Will dove for the face off, her adrenaline still rushing through her veins after her well-placed goal. Had Kaira not come barreling in from her far left to nearly slam into her, right as she raised her arm to try and grab the Quaffle, she would’ve gotten it, too, but instead, she had to pull up abruptly to avoid getting knocked off her broom. Just as quickly as she had arrived, Kaira flew off, following the other Chasers on her team back up the field as Xander took possession of the Quaffle. In that moment, just briefly, Will felt like screaming. Instead she settled for smacking her fist against the broom handle and huffing, before taking off to follow the streak of gold and black that was Jayne, and narrowly avoiding a Bludger that came spiraling towards her.

The game lasted nearly the whole two hours; and finally ended when Macie pulled out of a brilliant dive to catch the Snitch. Satisfied, Xander called everyone down to the grass for some final parting words before tryouts ended. Once everyone had crowded around him, he took a deep breath and clasped his hands together. “Okay, first of all, great catch, Macie,” he said, and everyone clapped as the Seeker nodded at him respectfully, a grin on her face. “Next, thank you all for coming out. The final team list will be posted in the Great Hall tonight by 8pm, so make sure to look then. Every single one of you has an incredible amount of talent, and I’m proud of you for working hard.” As he spoke, he looked around, making eye contact with some of the players. He glanced over Will, and her wide eyed stare at him almost made him laugh out loud. The tiny girl was hanging onto every word he said, and it was very sweet. “This has been a great tryout, and don’t get discouraged if you don’t make the team this year. A lot of you still have a lot of time left at Hogwarts, and great things ahead of you. Let’s break it down.” He put his hand in the middle, and the thirteen others slapped theirs on top of his. “Gryffindor on three- loud enough so that this whole damn school knows who’s coming for that cup this year,” he said with a smirk, and Will and Charley cheered a bit at that. “Ready?” When everyone nodded, Xander took a deep breath.

“GRYFFINDOR ON THREE- ONE, TWO, THREE, GRYFFINDOR!” The last sound vibrated through the stadium, causing a couple of the Ravenclaws to startle. With the four hours of tryouts finally over, the team went back to the locker room in groups, talking amongst themselves. Xander, Macie, and Leon stayed back, watching the younger kids walk back with their brooms in their hands.

“That was a great game, Xander,” Macie said, leaning on the handle of her own broom.”

Xander nodded. “Yeah, it really was. We’ve got a lot of great kids out this year.” He turned around to see Amaya and the Ravenclaws coming down from the stands. There was a considerable amount, but nowhere near the numbers that Xander had had. “Alright, we should probably head out. Let’s meet at my usual table at around-” he glanced at his watch quickly- “three. I’ll write some notes on my list of the players that took part in the scrimmage and we can talk about it and them.”

Leon nodded. “Sounds good. See you then.”

Meanwhile, Will, Charley, and James were headed out of the Gryffindor locker room, having packed up all of their things. “I think that went pretty well,” Will said, swinging her bag back and forth.

Charley nodded. “I agree. Not the best game I’ve ever played, but I think it was pretty good.”

James, however, was walking behind them quietly, looking at his feet. Will turned around, a bit surprised by his silence. “What about you, JP? How do you think you did?”

Looking up, James sneered at her. “I don’t want to talk about it.” It was all he said before pushing past them both and storming off towards the stands.

Charley stared at the younger boy, slightly shocked. “What’s his problem?”

Will just sighed. “He probably didn’t do as well as he wanted, Charley. Come on, let’s go find Aidan before his tryouts.” Charley nodded, and they sprinted towards the group of Ravenclaws, who were preparing for the next four hours of their own tryouts.

James was still walking away, his cheeks flushed. He had made a fool of himself, and he was almost certain that he wasn’t going to make the team. There was no way that he outplayed Will for that spot, and his dad was going to be so disappointed. He stopped in his tracks. Ah, shit. His dad. What was he going to say when James didn’t make the team? He made the team as a first year, and that was without the rule change. It was just another thing that James wouldn’t live up to.

While he was thinking, he was oblivious to the students that were walking down from the stands. He was jostled around by some older students of other houses, but he wasn’t paying attention. That is, until he ran smack into a blonde haired girl. Shorter than him, but just as sturdy so that she smacked him backwards as much as it sent her reeling. Right as he was about to yell at her to watch it he processed those same green eyes that had stared him down earlier, that had made him look like an idiot.

“What’re you doing down here?” James couldn’t help but sneer down at her. She dusted off her shoulder where his dirty robes had collided with her.

“Looking for Willow, actually. And Charley if at all possible. Unfortunately, I had the displeasure of running into you before I found them.” Athena said it with such a straight face, head tilted up at him just slightly, yet in a manner that was so stony that it seemed she was the one looking down on him. James' scowl deepened as he glared down at the little girl.

“You’re a bitch, you know that. You love Will, but you can't stand me, and that makes you a bitch.” Feeling quite satisfied with himself for just a moment, seeing a tiny hint of a frown on her face, until he felt a smack against his shoulder, which sent him stumbling. In fact it was enough of a hit to almost send him to the ground. When he regained his balance he looked up to see that a person had come to stand behind Athena's back. He had been so caught up in his anger that he had forgotten they were being passed by people coming down from the stands to go back up to the castle, and probably could’ve overheard their conversation.

“Why’re you yelling out here? We just had a great few hours of tryouts, there's no reason to be calling names, now, is there?” The boy- hell, he looked like a man, standing behind Athena was built like a giant. He was tall, easily coming up on six foot, and had flaming red hair that was slightly shaggy, and the startings of a beard growing, along with heavily furrowed brows and crossed arms that made him look incredibly menacing. The red head was also incredibly beefy, shoulders alone wider than James. And it was incredibly at odds with the sweater vest, dress pants, and neatly tucked in tie that made him look like a model student. The most glaringly obvious thing though, was the bright green of the tie he was wearing, that perfectly matched Athenas, who was dwarfed by the guy standing over her.

James did his best to scowl up at him. He really did. But the dude was intimidating, and Athena now had a smirk on her face that had replaced the frown. And it just made him all the more mad. He was convinced that if he had been in a cartoon, then at that moment he would have steam coming out of his ears. He managed to get a “no reason at all” through gritted teeth before attempting to walk past them to go up to the castle. Right then, James really just wanted to go to his dorm. But before he could he felt a hand grab his sleeve.

Athena stared up at him, wide green eyes and a mean smirk. “For your question. Will at least attempts to be nice.” She stood on her tiptoes and pulled him close, and right in his ear whispered “You however, have your prejudices shoved so far up your ass, you choke on them each time you try and talk to anyone wearing green and silver.” As quick as she had grabbed him she pulled away, smirk replaced with a wide smile and innocent look before turning back to the other boy, who was still glaring.

Bloody. Fucking. Slytherins. He turned and stomped off.

When he was gone, Athena turned to the guy standing behind her. He had relaxed his posture a bit now that James was gone, uncrossing his arms and sliding his hands into his pockets. The guy really was a giant now that she had time to analyze him. Despite the Slytherin tie, Athena couldn’t remember having seen too much of him around the common room, maybe once or twice with the prefect, Bailey, who had escorted them to the common room and another few older students.

He turned to her, and stuck out a hand, giving her a small smile. “Reuben Sutton. I’m a fifth year.” She took his hand and returned his smile.

“Athena Burns, first year.” He tilted his head a little, analyzing her right back, but didn’t say anything about her name. He released her hand and looked away for a second, scanning the crowd that was still milling about around them. She followed where he was looking and saw the same crowd of older students. One of them made eye contact and let out a wave towards Reuben, and Athena watched as he grinned and waved back. Reuben turned to her again, now having located his friends.

“It was nice to meet you, Athena. We’ll be expecting you at tryouts tomorrow.” Another small smile before he turned and began walking towards the group.

“I’ll be there. And thanks for the help.” She called after him.

Without turning around, he lifted a hand to wave. “Don't mention it!” His loud voice earned him a fair few looks from kids from other houses, but Athena only smiled to herself, and took off towards a bouncing ball of energy in Gryffindor Quidditch robes that she had seen out of the corner of her eye while looking at Reuben's friends.

“Hey, Athena!” Will and Charley had just returned from the pitch, where they had met Aidan and wished him luck for his own tryouts. Will’s hair was slightly messy from all of her flying, and Charley was holding his right arm up awkwardly, as if he had gotten hit.

“Hello. I watched the tryouts- it went well, I think,” she said, and then gestured to Charley’s arm. “What happened there?”

Charley grimaced. “I think I hyperextended it trying to save one of Xander’s shots- I did end up saving it, but the dude throws like a cannon,” he joked, making Will chuckle. “So, what’d you think of the game? Think we have a decent shot of making the team?” He asked, and Athena looked back to the pitch, where Amaya was giving instructions with Xander by her side.

Despite not wanting to admit it, Athena had been impressed by the two of them. It was the first time that she had ever really seen them both play, and although she hated that she was thinking it, Will really was as good as everyone had speculated and then even more. She had played fearlessly and her speed was unmatched, exempt from maybe Xander himself. Her shots were always on target, and now that Athena thought about it, she only missed one or two and had scored countless others. Charley wasn’t bad himself- he had held his own against the three Chasers on the opposing team, and had even saved some of Xander’s shots. He dove with great fluidity and was great at distribution. The Gryffindors were going to be good this year, there was no doubt about it.

“You guys did great. I’d be incredibly surprised if you didn’t make the team,” she said, making Will grin.

“Thanks, ‘Thena. I’m sure you’ll do great, too. Your tryouts aren’t until tomorrow, though, right?” She asked, and Athena nodded.

“Yep. Speaking of, I should probably go talk to Blaise. Although he’d never admit it, he’s a huge ball of nerves.”

Charley sighed. “I have no idea why. He’ll be completely fine- he’s one of the best Keepers I’ve ever seen.”

Surprisingly, Will found herself agreeing. She had only trained with Blaise once so far, but even she couldn’t deny that he was talented. “Well, we’ve got about seven hours before teams are posted, so what now?” Will asked, and Athena chuckled a bit.

“Don’t you have homework you need to be doing?”

Will groaned loudly. “Ah, shit, you’re right. Come on, Charley. I’ll help you with History of Magic.” And on that note, the two Gryffindors bid Athena goodbye and walked back up to the castle, Will chattering away and Charley listening intently.

After saying her goodbyes to her friends, she headed back up to the stands where Jaya and Ainsley were waiting for her. Ravenclaw had long since abandoned the bleachers, heading to the fields almost immediately after Gryffindor left, and Amaya was already dividing the group up into age levels with the help of the other captains like Xander had. Ainsley had her notebook out, pen in hand, using it to point out things she had jotted down during the Gryffindor tryouts to Jaya.

“Aw, you guys started analyzing without me.” Athena mock-pouted to her friends as she plopped herself onto the seat to Ainsley's left, putting the notebook in the middle now. Jaya let out a laugh from her other side, and Ainsley merely smiled before continuing on.

“Xander is a great captain, and James works well under him, but without his guidance, he's a bit all over the place. Same with the Kaira girl, she's doing everything in her power to show off for Xander and completely disregarding the actual play style.” Her nose crinkled in mild annoyance at that. She sighed dramatically before moving on to her next line of notes. “Jayne is the complete opposite- she doesn’t really have any of the flare that I think Xander is looking for. She’s very timid in almost everything she does, which I think pissed Evelyn off a bit because she’s used to playing a more bold style. Evelyn was very experienced for a returning player so young, which impressed me."

“Fintan is good, he's big, but he’s slow. His dives are dramatic, and cover a lot of area, but he's not the best at going for the actual small balls. Charley is a lot faster than him, and he maneuvers better because of his build. So while Fintan may cover more ground, Charley naturally is just more efficient at getting there.” Ainsley had her brows furrowed intensely, black curls pushed back from her face and sleeves rolled up. Jaya was roughly the same, her own dark hair braided back and sleeves rolled up, tie hanging in two around her neck. Athena was quick to follow, only now realizing how hot it was getting. She loosened her own tie and unbuttoned her sleeves. Ainsley was still talking, but Athena was more focused on watching the field now that Ravenclaw was properly divided and now running drills.

Enraptured, she watched for a moment, her cousin’s friend especially, and she was hit with a strike of realization of the fact that she was actually there. Up until now, she had been taking everything in with her guard up constantly, but sitting in the stands, watching the Ravenclaws tryout, she finally realized that she was finally a real Hogwarts student.

Even since she was a little girl, she dreamed about getting her wand, going to the library, and playing Quidditch. And she was there- she was sitting in the stands- not as a child, but as a student. She pulled out her hawthorne wand and studied it, rolling it around in her fingers. She had waited so long for this day, and when her home life got rough, when all that was around her was the yells of her parents, she would curl up into a ball and close her eyes, picturing the Hogwarts castle in her mind. It had been her motivation for so long, and she felt that finally, it was time for the pages in her story to be turned and a new chapter of her life had begun.

That thought brought a hint of a smile to her lips as she watched Aidan complete a maneuverability drill wonderfully, and Jaya raised an eyebrow. “What’re you smiling about?” She asked, and Athena turned away quickly.

“Nothing.”

Jaya followed her gaze down to Aidan. “Oh, I get it. You think that Ravenclaw boy that your cousin always hangs out with is cute,” she teased, and Athena’s cheeks flushed furiously.

“I most certainly do not!”

Jaya laughed loudly, causing even Ainsley to smirk. “Yes you do! You were definitely staring at him and smiling just now.”
Athena’s face was burning as she scowled. The worst part was that she wasn’t even lying and they still didn’t believe her. “I was thinking about something else and just happened to be staring off into space, Jaya. I do not think he’s cute.”

Jaya rolled her eyes at that. “Oh, whatever. Besides, even if you did, it seems like he prefers Gryffindors,” she said with disgust, causing a scowl to come to her own face. Athena snickered at that.

Ainsley sighed. “Alright, back to the tryouts. Leon is really good- he seems to have a lot of experience, which is rare for a Beater. Most of the time they come in with little to no experience. Peter was alright at best, but I’m guessing he was having an off day because I was studying his movements and how he flew and it seemed very natural to him, so his skill level is sort of a toss-up for us. I’m sure Xander has already seen him multiple times already, though, because of his age, which is why I think he’ll probably make it over Beau. Beau is talented, there’s no doubt about it, but it’s very raw talent that hasn’t been developed, which is expected for a Beater like I said earlier. He’s also really young, so I’m guessing Xander will probably take Peter over him to give this year’s team an older edge and then put in a good word for him next year with the new captain. Kester was really meh, and I didn’t really see anything special when I watched him. I wouldn’t be surprised if next year Beau makes it over him.”

She flipped the page, and Athena was impressed but not surprised to see even more notes. “In terms of Seekers, Macie has Ryan beat no problem. Since she’s returning, he probably expected it, but I admire how he didn’t throw a fit about it or anything like Peter almost did, which showed us a lot about his character, which I like. That leaves Will.”

Jaya sighed. “I don’t know what’s so special about Will. I didn’t think she really stood out or anything.”

This time, Athena cut in. “Jaya, you don't have much Quidditch experience yet, so, much as I hate to admit it, Will is actually really fucking good. The way she flies, she makes it look natural, like the broom is just an extension of her body. Her ball control is advanced for someone of her age and while she can make rash decisions outside of sports, most on the field are thought through, which isn’t something I would’ve expected from someone with a personality like hers. She always made herself available for passes by finding angles and weaknesses in the other team’s defense. Defensively, she did alright, but her and Charley worked really well together.”

Ainsley shrugged and closed the little notebook. “Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

Athena leaned back a bit, satisfied. “So who do you think is going to make the team?”

Ainsley looked up thoughtfully. “Don’t quote me on this, but my bet is on Charley as the Keeper for sure.” Jaya nodded in agreement, unbuttoning her own long sleeve shirt. “The Beaters will most likely be Leon and Peter, with Macie as the Seeker, obviously. The Chasers will be Xander, Evelyn, and Will,” she said confidently.

Jaya looked up at that. “You think Will is going to make it over all the older kids?”

Ainsley nodded. “I’m sure of it. She’s better than them, and age doesn’t matter as much in Quidditch than it does in Muggle sports. Besides, hasn’t Xander pretty much confirmed that he’s going to offer her a spot?” She looked at Athena for an answer.

Athena shrugged. “I mean, yeah, I guess.”

Ainsley turned back to the field, watching the Ravenclaw groups rotate to another drill. “Then that settles it. The reserves will probably be Fintan for Keeper, Ryan for Seeker, Beau for Beater, and James and Jayne for Chasers.”

Athena laughed a little. “Well, you heard her. That’s the Gryffindor Quidditch team,” she said, making Ainsley flush a bit. A small smile on her face, she shut her notebook and all three girls turned their attention to the field to watch the Ravenclaw tryouts proceed.

Aside from Aidan, they recognized very few people on the field. There was only one first year for tryouts, Eddie Macmillian, and by the looks of it he wasn't doing too great. Not bad by any means, but certainly not the best. Aidan was tossing the Quaffle around with a boy with light, floppy blonde hair, with practiced ease. A few third years were also in the group, which brought up the total of the younger group to about six. In the older group there were about four fourth years, including one boy with bright red hair Athena thought Will had pointed out as a Weasley in the previous weeks. And probably about nine more older kids from fifth, sixth, and seventh years.

The drills were basic, the same ones Gryffindor had run previously. That was nice, because despite the monotony of it, at least Athena would know what to expect for the Slytherin drills tomorrow morning. Unless Darius, being the prick he was, decided to change everything completely. Which he probably would. She wrinkled her nose a little bit in distaste at that.

Meanwhile, Will and Charley were sitting in the library. They had gone back to the Common Room to shower and then stopped by the Hospital wing to fix Charley’s arm before deciding to knock out some of their homework, and they both had their books and parchment strewn out on the table. Whenever Madam Pince walked by, they would pick up their quills and stare at a book like they were deep in thought, but in reality, they weren’t getting anything done. Will’s leg was bouncing up and down repeatedly with nervous energy, and Charley was twisting the quill in his hand vigorously. They were trying to be as quiet as possible but still managed to get dirty looks from some fourth years sitting a couple tables over.

“I can’t take it anymore. How much longer until the teams are posted?” Will whispered aggressively, and Charley sighed deeply.

“Five hours, thirteen minutes, and forty seven seconds,” he whispered back, and she groaned loudly, earning a loud “shush” from a Hufflepuff with dark skin and green hair sitting at the other table.

“Causing trouble in the library?” A voice came from the side, and Will whipped her head around to see Blaise Whitacker slide into a chair next to her with a smirk on his face, his school bag slung over his shoulder casually.

“I’m trying to be quiet but the anticipation is killing me,” she whined, and he snickered.

“Well, considering you can barely go thirty seconds without talking normally, I’d say you’re doing pretty well,” he teased, and she gave him a dirty look before writing down another sentence for her paper on the Werewolf Code of Conduct that was due on Monday. He turned to Charley, giving him a fist bump. “How’d you guys do?” He asked.

Charley shrugged, leaning back in his chair. “I thought we did well. We both got called back, and along with James Potter and Beau Smith, we were the youngest. Everyone else was an upperclassman.”

Blaise nodded, impressed. “That’s what I heard. People have already been talking about it, you know. I heard at least three different conversations about the Gryffindor first year that’s as good as Xander,” he said, turning back to Will, who blushed.

“I wouldn’t say that I’m as good as him- he’s a lot bigger, stronger, and older than me. But I did score the first goal, which was pretty cool,” she said happily, earning a slight smile from him.

“I’d expect nothing less from the only person that has ever beaten me in a race,” he replied. And although he didn’t say it or show it, when she looked into his blue eyes she could see that he was proud of her. Which meant more to her than she thought it was going to. Weird.

“AHHH!” Charley had fallen backwards out of his chair onto the floor, making a loud crashing noise as he screamed. The table of fourth years all turned and shushed him, and he muttered an apology as he rubbed a sore spot on his back.

“Are you okay, mate?” Both Blaise and Will had sprung to their feet, and Blaise offered a hand to help Charley up.

“Yeah, I’m alright. Fuck, we better get out of here before-” But Charley couldn’t finish his sentence before Madam Pince came running towards them, brandishing a feather duster with a furious look on her face.

“OUT! ABSOLUTELY DISGRACEFUL! OUT NOW!” She screamed, and all three of them scrambled to shove their stuff into their bags before taking off, laughing as they dodged her swipes at them with the duster.

Will led the way as they sprinted through the corridors, and the other two matched her speed easily. Luckily, the hallways weren’t too busy on account of Quidditch tryouts, and they had no trouble getting out on the grounds. Soon, Blaise started to go faster, seemingly challenging Will to a race, and when she looked over to see his smirk, she grinned back and ran faster. By the time they reached the Black Lake and the large oak tree that was planted near it, Will was running faster than she ever had in her entire life, Blaise only a few steps behind her. But she managed to touch the trunk of the tree first, and when she did, she pumped her fist in victory and then promptly flopped onto the ground.

“I- won!” She huffed, out of breath, and Blaise fell down next to her, also struggling to breathe.

“You- did- not,” he managed to get out, trying to slow down his heart rate. “We weren’t- even- racing.”

“We- were- too!” She said, turning to face him. His cheeks were flushed as he looked at her, and he rolled his eyes but couldn’t help but smile.

“I will never- admit defeat,” he said, closing his eyes.

“Well, we both beat Charley,” she responded, finally catching her breath. She sat up a bit to see Charley jogging down, cheeks red with exhaustion.

“You guys are so fast!” he managed to get out before collapsing next to Blaise, making them both laugh. They sat in silence for a bit, and Will stared up at the clouds through the leaves on the oak tree. It was truly a beautiful day. A bit hot for her taste, but after her shower she had thrown on a lightweight t-shirt and shorts, so she was feeling good.

“I really hope we all make the teams,” Charley said, finally breaking the silence.

Blaise thought for a second before replying. “I think we all have pretty good shots. It sounds like you two took care of business today, so if I can do well tomorrow, I’ll be okay,” he said, but Will could hear the quiver of nervousness in his voice.

She nudged his leg with her foot. “Hey, don’t stress too much about it. You’ll do great,” she said, and when he didn’t say anything, she continued. “You're one of the best Keepers I’ve ever seen- no offense, Charley,” she said quickly, but he shook his head.

“None taken.”

“Anyways, you're one of the best Keepers I’ve ever seen, not to mention a hard worker, as well. If anyone deserves it, it’s you,” she said, and he turned his head to smile at her.

“I would say thank you, but I could barely understand what you were saying because of that awful American accent,” he teased, and she threw her hands up in frustration.

“I’m trying to be empathetic and all you’re doing is making fun of my accent!” She lamented, making him laugh. It was a cool, clear sound, like windchimes lightly moving in a summer breeze, and it made her face get warm.

“Alright, I’ll be serious. Thank you, Will. That makes me feel better,” he said with a smile, and she didn’t hesitate to return it.

“No problem, Blaise.”

Chapter Text

When eight o’clock finally rolled around, Will was practically bouncing off the walls. She was sitting with Blaise, Aidan, and Charley at the boys’ usual dinner table, and they were equally as jumpy. Blaise had a look of mild annoyance on his face at the anxiousness of his friends, but he didn’t say anything. He was too busy lost in his own thoughts, stressing about his tryout that was the next day.

Noticing this, Aidan nudged his shoulder lightly. “You alright, mate?”

Blaise nodded. “Yeah, I’m good. Just a bit stressed.”

“I get it. Try not to worry so much- we all know you’ll do great,” he said, and Blaise smiled at him sheepishly.

“Thanks, Aidan. I’m sure you all made the teams, too. The captains would be idiots if they didn’t take you,” he said, and Will grinned.

“Did someone spit in your coffee this morning? Why are you being so nice?” She teased, earning a scowl.

“I’m trying to be civil, even though you annoy me to my core.” But he couldn’t prevent the blush that had formed on his cheeks. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “Are you guys going flying again tonight?”

Charley shook his head. “I don’t think we were planning on it because we should probably rest after all the playing we’ve done.”

“Oh.” Blaise’s shoulders had visibly sagged, and Will noticed.

“If you want to, though, we can,” she offered, and as he looked at her, she caught a glimmer of hope and excitement in his eyes.

“I’m not sure it’s a good idea, Blaise. You want to be careful for tomorrow. It would be really bad if you got hurt a day before tryouts,” Aidan warned, and Blaise sighed.

“I guess you’re right.” But as Will studied him, she knew he was disappointed. But before she could say anything, Amaya walked into the Great Hall with a paper in her hand, and the entire room went silent. All eyes were on her as she made her way to the front of the dining hall to a bulletin board that had been set up. There was a place for a paper for each house’s rosters, and Amaya had been the first to finish hers. No one moved as she pinned it to the board, and as soon as she sat down at her usual table, a horde of Ravenclaws jumped up and ran to check the list.

Aidan was no exception, scrambling towards the list with Charley hot on his heels, and Will and Blaise waited outside the mob. As they watched everyone try to push their way to the front, Will nudged the Slytherin. “We can go flying later. Just you and me,” she whispered, before adding, “if you think you can stand being alone with me for more than five minutes.”

Although he tried to hide it, he couldn’t help but smile. “I think I could go for an hour before losing my mind,” he said sarcastically, and she laughed.

“Oh, it’s on.”

Meanwhile, Aidan had finally made his way to the front and the list was in sight.

RAVENCLAW QUIDDITCH ROSTER 2015-2016
Chaser: Amaya Cunningham (C)
Chaser: Louis Weasley
Chaser: Aidan Pucey
Beater: Addison Lawrence
Beater: Phoebe Duncan
Keeper: Remy Hendrix
Seeker: Derek Zhang

Reserves: Danny Copeland, Paris Sullivan, Jaiden Ross, Alivia Esquivel, Meg Kaye

The second year stared at the roster in disbelief as Charley roared with approval. “You did it, mate! You’re on the team!”

Aidan’s mouth had dropped open as his friend shook his shoulders, and seeing the commotion, Will and Blaise pushed their way through the grumbling crowd that had departed after the excitement wore off. Looking at the list, Will jumped up and down when she saw Aidan’s name. “Holy Merlin! You did it, Aidan! Congrats!” She screamed, and Blaise hugged his friend, a huge smile on his face.

“Well done, mate! I knew you could do it!” He said, and Aidan finally started to grin as the realization sank in.

“I can’t wait to tell my dad,” he said happily, and they were still congratulating him as they walked back to the table.

“What happened?” James came running into the Great Hall, his hair disheveled.

“Aidan made the team!” Will said enthusiastically, and James nodded in respect.

“Congrats, man. Knew you could do it,” he replied, but when he said it, he wasn’t looking at the Ravenclaw, instead staring at the bulletin board.

“The Gryffindor list hasn’t been posted yet,” Charley said after following his gaze.

“Do you know when it will be?” He asked, and Blaise glared at him, his mood having immediately soured after James had arrived.

“If we did, we wouldn’t still be sitting here,” he said, and James whipped his head around to give Blaise a dirty look.

“I didn’t ask you.”

But Blaise didn’t back down. “Well, someone had to respond to your stupidity.”

James’s nostrils flared and Will jumped up, grabbing his arm and pushing him towards their usual table. “Okay, that’s enough. Excuse me, I’ll be right back,” she said to the older boys as she dragged James away.

“Bye?” Aidan said, waving a little.

“What the fuck is his problem?” James griped, sitting down abruptly next to Fred and Lucas.

Will crossed her arms. “I’ve got a better question- what is your problem?”

“What do you mean?” James asked, confused. “He started it!”

“Just because you don’t like him doesn’t mean you retaliate,” she scolded. “We’re actually sort of friends now, so please try not to ruin it for me.” And on that note, she turned and walked back to where the boys were sitting, sliding in next to Aidan.

“Her, too?” He moaned, slamming his head onto the table.

Fred rolled his eyes. “Don’t stress too much about it, mate. She’s just trying to figure some stuff out.”

“If she ditches us I’m going to be so pissed.”

“She’s not going to ditch us. She’s just making new friends,” Lucas said, but James only grunted in response.

Back over at the second year table, some students were coming up and congratulating Aidan. He wasn’t really paying attention, only saying thank you every so often, but a tall Ravenclaw girl with silky blonde hair and striking blue eyes walked up and sat down, making him stare. “You must be Aidan,” she said kindly, smiling to reveal straight white teeth.

When Aidan didn’t respond, Will kicked him under the table, and he winced before answering. “That’s me,” he said, managing to not stutter, but the blush that was starting to form over his pale cheeks was quite obvious.

The girl offered her hand out and he shook it. “I’m Addy Lawrence- sixth year Beater. I’m a returning player.” She paused, brushing a lock of hair out of her face. “I was really impressed with your tryout- especially since you’re so young. I’m definitely looking forward to having you on the team this year,” she said.

“Oh- uh, thank you,” Aidan said, his face so hot that he felt like he was burning up.

She nodded before getting up. “If you need anything, let me know. I’ll see you around, Aidan,” she said, flashing that perfect smile again before walking back to her own crowded table where a girl with dark skin and brown hair scooted over to make room for her.

The four younger kids sat in silence for a second before Charley broke it. “I heard that Addy Lawrence was beautiful, but I didn’t think she was that beautiful,” he said, and Aidan nodded.

“She’s amazing.”

“Ooh, someone’s got a crush,” Will teased, making the two other boys blush.

“Shut up, Will, I do not have a crush on her,” Aidan said with a scowl, but it didn’t deter her from cackling. Cheeks still flushed, he turned to his best friend. “Come on, mate, back me up here. She’s gorgeous.”

Blaise only shrugged, having turned back to watch the bulletin board as two older Hufflepuffs went up to check the Ravenclaw roster. “Not my type.”

Charley’s mouth dropped open. “How is Addy Lawrence not your type? She’s everyone’s type!”

The Slytherin drummed his fingers on the table, amused. “I don’t know, I’m just not really into blondes. Dark hair is prettier.” But before anyone could respond, Xander Stott walked into the Great Hall, flanked by Macie and Leon on either side of him. The entire room fell silent as they watched him, the only sound being the soft noise of their shoes on the floor. He pinned his own roster onto the bulletin board and turned around before scanning the tables, almost daring someone to get up while he was still standing there, but no one did. He kept looking around before finding Will in the crowd, and before he turned to go sit down next to Darius, he held eye contact with her for a split second, and her heart leaped. Finally, he sat down, and there was nearly a stampede as nearly half of the Great Hall stood up and ran to the bulletin board. Will was amongst the first ones up there, James right behind her, and she had to push her way to the front a bit, but she finally was able to see the list that she had been so anxiously waiting for.

GRYFFINDOR QUIDDITCH ROSTER 2015-2016
Chaser: Xander Stott (C)
Chaser: Evelyn Murphy
Chaser: Willow Houston
Beater: Leon Bates
Beater: Peter Walsh
Keeper: Charles Wood
Seeker: Macie Powell

Reserves: Kaira Southern, James Potter, Beau Smith, Fintan Campos, Ryan Walton

Will stared, not processing the words on the paper, but suddenly large arms grabbed her and pulled her backward out of the crowd, and Charley was screaming in her ear. “WE DID IT, WILL! WE BOTH MADE IT!” He was clutching onto her so tight that she could barely breathe, but as she blinked a couple of times, she began to smile.

“Holy shit,” she whispered, and Aidan and Blaise came running up.

“Did you make it?” Aidan asked frantically, and when she nodded, his face broke into a huge grin. “First first year rostered since Harry Potter! Congratulations, Will!” He whooped, and she was practically vibrating with excitement as she held onto Charley’s arm which was still wrapped around her.

“Let’s fucking go! I knew you could do it!” Blaise exclaimed, his arms outstretched for a hug, and she let go of Charley’s arm to jump into his. He held her tightly, a gentle hand on the back of her neck, and she closed her eyes as she grinned into his shoulder. She was content to stay like that for a while until she remembered James. Oh, fuck. James was going to be so upset.

“I have to go check on James,” she said into his ear, breaking the hug to pull back and look him in the eyes, but he nodded in understanding.

“Okay. Meet me down on the pitch at around midnight?” He asked, and when she nodded, he smiled at her one last time before turning to congratulate Charley, who was in the middle of a very complicated handshake with Aidan.

Will turned back to face the crowd, frantically searching for James. It wasn’t until the crowd had died down a bit when she saw him, standing at the front and still staring at the roster. She gingerly walked up to him to stand next to him, not saying anything for a couple seconds.

James was trying so hard to not show it, but he was heartbroken. As he stared at his name penciled in by Xander’s sloppy handwriting, all he could think about was how disappointed his dad would be. His eyes began to water, and when he noticed Will’s presence next to him, he hastily wiped his face.

“How’re you feeling?” She asked quietly, and he didn’t answer, so she leaned her head on his shoulder the way that she used to when they were younger. He leaned his own head on top of hers, and they just stood there like that for a second, neither saying a word. Finally, Will broke the silence, picking her head off his shoulder. “I’m sorry you didn’t make it.”

But James took a deep breath and managed to smile weakly at her. “Don’t be. You deserved it. Besides, I’m a reserve, so I might get to play a little bit,” he said, and she blinked.

“I just wish you could’ve made it too.”

He shook his head. “Seriously, Will. There was only one open Chaser spot, and you outflew me by a mile. Xander would’ve been blind to take me over you.”

“Stop it, James. I’m trying to be sympathetic and all you’re doing is inflating my ego,” she joked, getting a laugh out of him.

Before he could respond, Fred and Lucas walked up with Parker, all three seeing that the crowd had died down. Judging by their expressions, Fred had correctly deduced that James hadn’t made the team, so he didn’t say anything at first, instead pointing at the list when Lucas opened his mouth. “Don’t stress too much, James. You’re still young and you’ve got six more years left. Plenty of time to play,” Fred said, putting a hand on his cousin’s shoulder.

James sighed. “I guess you’re right.” He glanced over at the teacher’s table where his father was sitting, staring at him to see if he could try to read his son’s emotions. He looked away quickly. “My dad is going to be upset.”

Lucas scoffed. “No he won’t. He understands that there were limited spots available. To be honest, he’ll probably turn it into an opportunity to get good grades.”

James groaned. “Fuck, you’re right. He’s going to be on my ass about my Potions grade now,” he said, earning a laugh out of all the kids.

Meanwhile, Athena, Jaya, and Ainsley had quietly slunk into the room, going undetected since the rest of the Great Hall was buzzing with the news. Sitting down at their usual table, Athena searched the room for Will. Once she found her, she studied her as the Gryffindor walked over to Blaise, Aidan, and Charley before sitting down with a huge smile on her face, talking excitedly and using her hands to tell a dramatic story.

“I think the rosters are out,” Jaya said matter-of-factly, and Ainsley turned to see a couple older Gryffindors walk up to the bulletin board.

“I’ll go check.” Athena stood up, her eyes not leaving Will as she walked to the board to see the rosters. She wasn’t surprised to see Will, Charley, and Aidan’s names all listed. From what she had seen, she had underestimated them- Will especially. The girl was very loud and very brash, but Athena couldn’t deny that she was incredible at Quidditch. However, she was slightly pleased to see that James had been made an alternate. Maybe that would knock his ego down a few pegs. “You were right, Ains. Will and Charley both made it and James is an alternate,” she said, sliding into her seat with a neutral expression on her face.

“Knew it,” Ainsley said, picking out the tomatoes from her salad.

“I can’t believe they actually rostered her,” Jaya huffed, crossing her arms.

Athena rolled her eyes. “Jaya, I know you mean well, but we have to remember that you know next to nothing about Quidditch. As much as I hate to admit it, Will is insane.” But the part that she left out was that she knew that Will was better than she was.

“Athena!” Speaking of which, Will had spotted her friend and was waving her over to her table with enthusiasm.

She sighed, nodding at the two other Slytherins before standing up and making her way over to the table. “I assume you made the team?” She asked nonchalantly, and Will nodded happily.

“All three of us did,” she said, gesturing to the boys, who nodded at Athena politely.

“Not surprising.” She crossed her arms. “When’s the first game of the season for you guys?”

Charley gestured to himself and Aidan. “We play each other. I think it’s in two weeks, so that’s enough time to prepare.”

“We’ll definitely be there to support,” Athena said, and Will nudged her gently.

“You technically haven’t ever seen me play in a real game before, ‘Thena,” she joked, and the Slytherin shrugged.

“You looked alright at tryouts, but I thought you could improve on a couple things before you actually play against the other Houses,” she said, raising an eyebrow, and Will’s smile immediately disappeared.

“Really? I’d love to hear your opinion about my play, then,” she responded, eyes narrowed.

Athena immediately started to blush as all four of them, including Blaise, turned their gazes on her, expecting an answer. “Oh come on, that’s not fair,” she said, but when Will laughed, it wasn’t the happy laugh that Athena had become accustomed to- it was shrill and hollow.

“Maybe so. But I already know what you’re going to say- I’m too brash and not good at defense. There’s nothing you can tell me about my play that my dad hasn’t already told me himself,” she snapped, crossing her arms. But as Athena stared at her, she could see something hiding behind Will’s piercing grey eyes. It was like the mention of her father had muted her spirit, which reminded Athena of herself.

“I’ll talk to you guys later,” she said, suddenly uncomfortable as she turned to go sit down again with her Slytherin classmates. Will watched her go without uncrossing her arms, her gaze blank of emotion. Blaise noticed this, and had read her reaction the same way that Athena did.

“You alright?” He whispered, and she shook her head.

“I’m fine,” she responded as she pulled out her Werewolf paper and quill to attempt to work on it, but when Blaise studied her, he noticed she only stared at the page, not writing a single word.

Later that night, when Blaise walked down to the Quidditch pitch, Will was already there, sitting on the smooth grass that had taken a beating from a whole day of tryouts. She wasn’t doing anything, only resting her broom in her lap as she stared at the mountains surrounding the school.

“Will, come on,” Blaise said, sitting down next to her. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m alright,” Will said after a pause, but she yanked a fistful of grass from the pitch and slowly let go, watching the blades drift through the soft breeze.

“That’s twice now you’ve lied to me. I’m going to ask again, and this time you’re going to tell me the truth. What’s going on?” He said, turning to face her.

Will didn’t say anything for a second, avoiding eye contact. “I don’t know.” She took a deep breath before answering truthfully. “I guess Athena criticizing me just reminded me of my dad,” she said, and he nodded.

“Go on.”

“It’s not her fault, and I know she means well and I’m not a perfect Quidditch player by any means so I should take all the help that I can get, but it’s just bittersweet. I get all defensive whenever it happens because I’m afraid of disappointing my parents.”

Blaise leaned backwards on his hands as he studied her. “I get that. Your dad is a professional Seeker, right?”

“Yeah, you’ve probably heard of him. He was pretty successful in America, but after the war had been over for a couple years and it was safe, he began to look for opportunities in Europe because everyone knows that Quidditch is better in the British League than in the American League. We moved over here when I was four and my sister was eighteen months.” She paused, trying to remember everything her dad had accomplished. “He spent his first few years at Kenmare and one year at Puddlemere United, but he’s been with Ballycastle since I was nine. I don’t expect that he’ll sign somewhere else anytime soon- he loves it there. But as you might guess, he got me into Quidditch before I could walk. I’m not kidding- I learned how to ride a broom before I took my first steps,” she said with a grin on her face, and Blaise chuckled.

“Anyways, I’ve been in Puddlemere’s academy for almost eight years, now. My dad said it’s good for me because that’s the direct path to the league, but sometimes my coach is really mean to me. A lot of my old teammates have quit because he used to yell at us if we ever made a mistake. He never really bothered me too much because I’m so much younger than them, but after every game, when I walked out of the locker room to meet my parents, my dad would always be waiting for me with the entire game on film and we would spend the next few hours analyzing every move I made during the game and how I could improve,” she said, picking at the grass again, and Blaise was dumbfounded for a second.

“Wow. That’s- wow. That's a lot to take in,” he said, and she laughed.

“Yeah, sorry, didn’t mean to overwhelm you on the first day we hung out by ourselves. I guess I just feel a lot of pressure.”

“Well, I’m sure your dad will be proud that you made the team,” he said, attempting to reassure her, but she sighed.

“He expected it. He started tracking the different house teams on my eighth birthday so he could see which house would have an opening for a Chaser when I got here, and Harry told him about the rule change as soon as it happened. He got me a new broom and everything,” she said, and he blinked hard.

“That’s at least considerate of him to check all four houses for you,” he mused, and she nodded.

But she picked her legs up and turned her body to face him, crossing them as she looked at him with a lopsided grin on her face. “Alright, you officially succeeded in getting me to talk about myself, which is an incredibly hard task to accomplish,” she joked, and he laughed.

“Yeah, right. I could sit here and say nothing and you would still find a way to talk for hours,” he teased, and she crossed her arms.

“Okay, fine. Enough about me- I want to hear about your dad. I’ve heard of him, too- aren’t you guys like mega-millionaires or something?”

Blaise chuckled. “You could say that. My dad is the CEO of a company that creates medical potions, so he sells a lot of ideas and products to St Mungoes and hospitals all around the world.” He paused, gathering his thoughts before continuing. “He’s alright, I guess. I’m his only kid so it’s not like he dislikes me or anything, he’s just really busy all the time. I don’t really get to see him a lot, which sucks, but I’m always comfortable.”

“You don’t have any brothers or sisters?” Will asked, cocking her head.

“Nope. Just me, my parents, and a bunch of house elves.”

“Any cousins?”

“None. My dad was an only child too, and my mom’s half-brother died in the war. She named me after him,” he said, and Will looked dumbfounded.

“Wow.” She paused, having a silent debate with herself before asking her next question. “Do you ever get lonely?”

Blaise thought about it for a second. “Sometimes. When I was younger, I used to ask my mom if I could ever have a brother or a sister so I could have someone to play with, but she used to tell me that I was all she needed, so I eventually just stopped asking. Besides, I hang out with Aidan and Charley a lot over the summer, and they keep me on my toes. Aidan’s my best friend and I get to spend a lot of time with him because my mom and his dad know each other from school.”

“So you live in this gigantic mansion all by yourself.”

He rolled his eyes. “My parents don’t abandon me for weeks at a time, Will. They just get busy because they have demanding jobs. Also, I just told you I have house elves that used to play with me. When I didn’t want to do that anymore, I played Quidditch. I’ve played for Tutsill’s academy since I was six,” he said, nudging her playfully.

“I’m sorry,” was all she said.

“Sorry for what?” He asked, confused.

“I’m sorry you get lonely sometimes.”

He sighed. “It’s not your fault. I know my dad cares about me, but sometimes he just has a funny way of showing it.”

“Mine too. I love my dad so much and I really want to be like him when I’m older because he’s touched so many people and he loves my family and I more than anything- it’s just hard sometimes.” They sat in silence for a bit after that, both just thinking about what the other had said, before finally, Will broke it. “So you’re a total momma’s boy, huh?”

He shoved her as she cackled, his cheeks flaming. “I am not!”

“Are too! I bet your mom babies the fuck out of you,” she teased, and he groaned before snatching his broom and standing up.

“You were quiet for maybe fifteen seconds. It’s incomprehensible.”

“Ooh, that’s a big word! Did mommy teach it to you when she read you a bedtime story?” Will said, a grin full of mischief plastered on her face as she mounted her broom.

“Oh, you are so dead,” he said as he mounted his own before zooming full speed at her, her squealing as she shot up in the air to avoid being rammed into.

“Catch me if you can!” She screamed at him with delight, and he tried to hide his grin as he sped after her.

They flew circles around each other for what felt like hours, and to Will’s satisfaction and Blaise’s annoyance, he wasn’t able to catch her- only listen to her throw insults at him over her shoulder as she flew nearly a million miles an hour around the pitch. He hurled them right back, but by the time they descended down to the pitch, they were both breathless with grins on their faces.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to come watch your tryout- Slughorn asked me to help him reorganize some of his storage bins. He’s such a mess it’s insane,” he said bitterly, and Will laughed.

“That’s alright, there wasn't really much to see. But I’m planning on coming to yours tomorrow,” she said playfully, nudging his shoulder. “I have to stake out the competition somehow.”

He rolled his eyes. “You guys are going to get crushed by us this year, Houston,” he said, but Will shook her head as she smiled.

“You wish, Whitacker,” she said back, and they walked back to the castle, Will chattering away, but this time, instead of complaining about her never-ending plethora of things to say, he listened to every word.

Chapter Text

Much to Jaya’s dismay, Athena woke up the next morning three hours before tryouts were scheduled to start. The blonde girl was anxiously going through her Quidditch bag, making sure she had everything even though she had laid out her clothes the night before and she had done the whole routine more times than Jaya could count.

“Athena, it’s five in the morning,” she groaned, smashing the pillow into her face. She too was nervous about the tryout, but Athena was on a whole new level of anxiety.

“I know, I’m sorry, I just wanted to make sure that I had everything,” she said hastily, picking up her broom and putting it down quickly.

“The broom isn’t going to suddenly not be there when you turn around, you know,” Ainsley said, sitting up. She was much more of a morning person than Jaya, and the latter was still trying to smother herself with her pillow in an effort to block out the light.

“Yeah, you’ve gone through that bag about a million times. Give it a rest,” she said, her voice slightly muffled.

Athena put down the bag slowly, embarrassed. “I’m sorry,” she repeated. “This is just super important to me.”

“I understand. It’s good to want to be prepared, but you’re only going to stress yourself out more by going over it more and more. You’re going to start overthinking.” Ainsley got out of bed and stretched before taking Athena’s bag and broom and placing them by the door, where Jaya’s own bag was sitting.

“I guess you’re right.” Athena’s shoulders sagged as she sat back down on her bed.

“Don’t stress so much, ‘Thena. You’ll make the team,” Jaya said, finally taking the pillow off her face and sitting up.

Athena shot her a look. “You don’t know that.”

“Didn’t Darius basically confirm that you’re going to be offered a spot?”

Throwing her hair into a ponytail, the blonde shook her head. “No, he said he was looking forward to seeing me at tryouts. Nothing is certain yet.” Ainsley, who had gotten up to put a scoop of food in Emmy’s bowl, blew a puff of air out of her nose. “What’re you laughing at?” Athena asked indignantly, but Ainsley only shook her head in amusement.

“You’re worried that you’re not going to make the team and everyone is going to know that Will is better than you.”

“That is not true! I am worried about it for many other reasons,” Athena snapped, but when the other girl raised an eyebrow, she sighed. “Okay, you’re right, that’s definitely one of the things I’m nervous about. Growing up, I was always the best in my league and it was comfortable for me. I knew when I came here that there would be a ton of older kids here that are better than me because they’re, well, older. They have experience playing for their house and they all didn’t make the team their first year. But now, being here and meeting Will, who literally might be the best Quidditch player this school has ever seen and who is also my age, I’m just super insecure about myself as a player. I know that Will’s better than me- she’s better than me by a very large margin. She eats, sleeps, and breathes Quidditch, and not to mention, she’s a genius, too. And everyone loves her.” She faltered at that last bit.

“I don’t like her,” Jaya said matter-of-factly, which brought a small smile to Athena’s lips, but Ainsley crossed her arms and leaned against her bed frame as she responded.

“Athena, I don’t think you should be worried about what other people think of Will. You and her have completely different personalities, interests, and hobbies, and the way people react to her versus the way they react to you doesn’t determine how liked you are- from what I’ve noticed, people like Will because she’s loud, easy to talk to, and outgoing. People are drawn to her because she’s different- and you’re different, too, but just not in that way.” She sat down as Athena hung onto her every word. “You have got to stop comparing yourself to her. She’s a great player, student, and person, but that doesn’t make you any less than that. You guys are just different people.”

Athena was speechless for a moment, but finally, she started to smile. “Thank you, Ains. Seriously- that makes me feel a lot better.”

Jaya rolled her eyes. “I still don’t understand the hype about Will. Yeah, she’s good at Quidditch and she’s smart and she has a lot of friends and all the teachers love her and she’s one of two first years to ever make a house team in almost two centuries and-”

“Okay, that’s enough, Jaya,” Ainsley said sternly, and Jaya huffed before getting dressed.

“Whatever. Let’s just go down to breakfast- it’s probably not a good idea to skip a meal the day of tryouts.” And at that, they walked downstairs to sit at their usual table, not surprised to be alone in the Great Hall, but they didn’t mind it.

At first, Blaise was not nearly as uptight about tryouts as Athena was, waking up at a normal time and getting dressed with ease. He and his bunkmate, Matteo, were the only boys in their grade that were trying out for the team- their other roommates all had varying reasons as to why they didn’t want to. Wesley Holland had had too many concussions as a child and healers absolutely refused to let him play again, but he wasn’t terribly upset about it. Asher Hendrix’s older sibling, Remy, had just been rostered for Ravenclaw, but Ash himself was much more artsy and disliked sports. Rocco Massey’s parents had forbidden it, and he had accepted that he wouldn’t be able to play a long time ago. Finn Stott was indeed the younger brother of Xander, and he had taken one look at his brother and decided he wanted nothing to do with it.

Matteo himself was a Chaser and even though he wanted to make the team, he knew the chances were slim and was more focused on using the tryout for experience and wouldn’t be too upset if he wasn’t rostered. However, Blaise was a completely different story. He tried to appear calm, but as the time for tryouts neared, he could feel the pressure starting to bubble up in his chest. He had to make the team because his two best friends had already made theirs, but more importantly, he wanted it so bad. He had been working his ass off day and night to get better so he would have a decent shot at the spot, and he only prayed that it was enough.

Sliding into his seat at his usual table, he waited for Charley and Aidan to come down for breakfast, but once he remembered that they had mentioned wanting to sleep in, he gave up and just began eating by himself. The Great Hall was buzzing with lingering excitement from the announcements of the previous day and with anticipation over the next day’s events, but to Blaise, it still felt quiet. Quiet enough for him to be alone with his thoughts, and the longer he sat there, chewing on a piece of toast, the more anxious he became.

Will was in the process of picking at a sausage on her plate as she yawned deeply, still worn out from all the flying she had done in the past twenty four hours. Her Werewolf paper still wasn’t done and it was due the next day, and she had it sitting out but had made no attempt to write anything down. Fred and Lucas were practically still asleep, and James was pouring over their Transfiguration textbook, reading every word of the first chapter. She sighed, bored out of her mind, and she scanned the room for Athena. The blonde Slytherin wasn’t at her usual table, nor was Jaya or Ainsley, so she assumed they had already gone down to the pitch. She checked her watch- 7:10. There were still fifty minutes before tryouts officially started. Well, better early than late.

Will was just about to go back to picking at her sausage before her eyes locked onto a figure with black hair sitting alone. “I’ll see you guys later,” she said, shoving her parchment into her bag as she stood up hastily, and Fred only grunted in response while James and Lucas said nothing. Sliding down in the seat next to Blaise, she snatched a strawberry off his plate and popped it in her mouth with a grin on her face. “How’re you feeling?”

Blaise had jumped a bit at her sudden arrival but couldn’t help but smile upon seeing her own smirk. “Confident. This is going to be a breeze,” he said, puffing out his chest.

Will only laughed, taking another strawberry. “Yeah, right. You’re a ball of nerves right now.”

“Alright, you got me.” Blaise had gone back to eating his toast but hadn’t protested as Will helped herself to the strawberries, which was very unlike him. “I’m a bit anxious right now.”

“That’s fair. All that flying we did last night didn’t tire you out, did it?”

Blaise had half expected her to say that as a challenge and his first reaction was to respond with an insult, but the tone of her voice caught him off guard. She genuinely sounded worried- like she didn’t want to mess up his chances at getting on the team. “Oh, don’t get all soft on me now, Houston. You know I can handle your little races no problem,” he joked, and she blushed slightly.

“Shut up, Whitacker. I was flying laps around you- seemed to me like you were having a tough time keeping up,” she teased right back, earning a laugh from him. There it was- still reminding her of soft wind chimes in a cool breeze. She decided that she was going to try and get Blaise to laugh more so she could hear it more often.

Blaise checked his watch before standing up, grabbing his bag and broom. “It’s 7:25- I should probably get going. It’ll take me ten minutes to walk down there and I would really like to not be late,” he said, but to his surprise, Will grabbed one last strawberry before flinging her school bag over her shoulder and standing up with him.

“I’ll come with you- I want to watch the tryouts anyway and I could maybe try to finish this stupid paper by the time you’re done.” She paused. “That is, if you can survive ten more minutes of listening to me talk, of course,” she challenged, and the boy rolled his eyes.

“You know, I genuinely thought it would get easier. But it never does,” he teased, and she laughed as they exited the Great Hall together, earning a weird look from a half-asleep Fred, but he only shrugged and shut his eyes again.

The pair talked the whole way down to the pitch- well, it was more like Will did all the talking and Blaise just listened, but he didn’t mind. It was honestly relieving for him to not have to think about tryouts and instead hear about a time Will, James, and their family friend- what was his name? Aleksander? Adrian? Aleksi? One of those names- had snuck out during Christmas and built the biggest igloo ever to throw snowballs at their parents when they got back from a fancy dinner, only for the snowballs to be bewitched and sent zooming right back at them. And to be quite honest, he had started to enjoy listening to Will talk. Yes, it was incredibly fast and yes, sometimes he found her hard to understand because of her accent, but the way her face lit up when she spoke about something that she was passionate about or the emotion she would tell a story with was addicting. He found himself hanging onto every word, and he didn’t even realize that they had arrived at the pitch until she stopped chattering mid sentence.

“Well, we’re here,” she said, staring at the small cluster of Slytherins already assembling on the grass. She turned her gaze towards Blaise, and felt pity when she saw him swallow hard. She nudged him softly. “Hey, don’t be nervous. Just do your best. I know it’s cliche, but that’s all you can ask of yourself right now, and maybe your best today isn’t your best ever, but that’s all you can do,” she said, and he smiled at her weakly.

“Thanks, Will.” He looked back towards the locker room, gripping his broom tighter as he prepared himself to walk in, but before he could do so, he turned to make eye contact with her one more time. “Meet me down here after?”

She nodded, a grin coming easily to her lips. “Of course,” she said, shoving him slightly towards the locker room after that. “Now, hurry up! You’re going to be late.”

“Alright, alright, I’m going,” he said, chuckling.

Before he pushed open the door, he looked back at her once more to hear her yell, “go get ‘em, tiger!” as she waved at him with a toothy grin.

He shook his head, cheeks flushing. “Never say that again!” He yelled back before taking a deep breath and walking inside.

Darius Rose was already waiting outside on the pitch, talking to Xander, Amaya and Lacie. His best friend was still chattering away about his new team, and frankly, after Darius had heard about Will’s skill on a broom for the thousandth time, he was getting annoyed. “You know, today is my tryout, right, not yours,” he reminded the Gryffindor, but Xander only rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, my fault. I’m just excited about the new talent we have on the team this year,” he said, and Amaya nodded.

“I agree. This year I feel like Xander and I both added very valuable members to the teams.”

Lacie only shrugged. “We’ll have to see what’s in store for us, then. Right, Darius?”

“Right.”

As Will had predicted, Athena and Jaya were already down on the pitch awaiting their upcoming tryout with a lot of nervous energy. Jaya tried to play it off, but now that she was standing on the pitch surrounded by older players, she couldn’t help but be anxious. She had only been playing for about two weeks- she was worried she was going to make a fool out of herself. But Athena was nervous for an entirely different reason.

She was worried that she would disappoint Darius. It was obvious that he was expecting her to do well, even outfly some of his other prospects, but she was terrified that she would let him down. She looked up at the stands, finding Ainsley first, who gave her a reassuring smile, but her eyes drifted up to see Will alone in the stands, writing on a piece of parchment. It seemed like Will hadn’t noticed that Athena was looking at her and was off in her own little world, but slowly, Will looked up, and when she saw Athena was looking at her, she waved with enthusiasm and a huge grin of her face, making Athena hastily wave back before turning away, cheeks pink.

“Nervous?” A presence had appeared next to her, almost making her jump, but she could recognize Blaise’s voice anywhere.

“A little,” she admitted. “You?”

“No,” he said, but she wrinkled her nose at his obvious lie.

“You know, you can admit that you’re anxious. No one is going to think of you differently,” she said, eyebrow raised.

“I’m not anxious.” Blaise stared at her, malice in his expression.

Athena only sighed. “Ever since we got here, you’ve turned into a real dick.”

At that, Blaise’s shoulders slumped, and regret painted his sharp features. “I’m sorry. I’m just stressed out about a lot of things.”

“Not my problem. Don’t say anything unless you have something nice to say,” she said, walking away and leaving him steaming.

Once eight finally rolled around, it only took Darius a clap to get the attention of all of the Slytherins. “Welcome to tryouts. I’m Darius, as most of you know, and I’m the Slytherin Quidditch captain, and this is Xander, Lacie, and Amaya- they’re going to be helping out today. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone show off their talent, and I wish you all the best of luck. We’re going to start by splitting up into four groups divided by age, and we’re going to do some flying patterns, agility drills and ball work for the first hour and then a couple small sided matches for the second hour. After that, we’ll take a quick break, recuperate, and then we’ll have callbacks to play a full 7v7 match. So, let’s begin.”

The tryout structure was very similar to what Xander and Amaya had done, and Darius decided to end with the youngest group instead of starting with it like his best friend had. Most of the older kids showed promise, and Darius thought back to his mental list of the team. There were five returning members of the team- two Chasers, both Beaters, and the Seeker. The Chasers were Reuben Sutton and Theo Nieves, both fifth years who had been on the team since they were in third. Reuben was a monster of a man who had flaming red hair, a full beard, and a very heavy Scottish accent. Theo, on the other hand, had long, wavy dark hair that he wore in a messy bun pulled into place at the back of his head and tan skin that matched his eyes, which were nearly black. The Beaters were himself and then Theo’s older sister, Bailey Nieves, and she was the prefect that Athena had met a few weeks prior that mirrored her brother's looks. The youngest returning player was Felix Moore, their Seeker, who had a mop of pin straight blonde hair but a smattering of freckles across his pale features that accentuated his brown eyes.

To be completely honest, Darius was not completely sure what he was looking for this year. He definitely wanted at least one younger player to help build a legacy after he was gone, but he wasn’t sure if he was going to take two younger kids. For the next four years, he had someone lined up to be a captain, and if he took maybe a second year, they could be captain twice if necessary. To Darius, it was all about leadership- if there was someone that was willing to learn from the older, more experienced kids now and had potential to be a leader in their older years, he was more than willing to give them a spot on the team. But the question was, who would that be?

From his spot, he eyed Xander, who was standing casually as he watched the group of younger students fly around. There were more than he expected- four first years and two second years. Athena was there, accompanied by a girl with dark skin and hair that looked inexperienced, but she seemed passionate. The other two first years were boys- Darius recognized Mikael Flint, the son of one of Slytherin’s most famous Quidditch captains. Flint reeked of arrogance, over exaggerating turns and dipping and rising when unnecessary. Darius wrinkled his nose as he turned to the last boy, a tiny thing with red hair that was practically orange, and wobbly skills at best but he looked like he was having the time of his life. The second years were both boys, and there was one that looked new to both him and the sport, but the other he recognized- Blaise Whitacker.

He had been watching the boy over the past couple weeks ever since Athena had brought him up to him, and he noticed that more recently, he had started sneaking out more to do god knows what, which Darius was hesitant about, but he hoped that it wasn’t to do anything bad. But from what he had seen, Blaise was a good kid- he helped out Professor Slughorn often with small chores and his grades were top notch. The boys he hung out with the most were from other houses, and the three of them were inseparable. He had also started sitting with Will Houston a lot more, and the young boy tried to make it seem like the girl and her never ending stream of words annoyed him, but Darius saw the way that he listened when he pretended not to.

Blaise’s skill on a broom was incredibly downplayed by Athena. She had said that he was alright, but as Darius watched him fly, he did so with poise, assertiveness, and purpose. Every turn he took was nearly perfect, and he did it without any emotion on his face. The captain smiled a bit to himself at that. He was very much looking forward to watching him play his actual position.

By the time Darius had rotated to the younger group, the sun had started to come out and was bearing down on the players, and Athena was a giant ball of nerves. If she was being honest with herself, she wasn’t doing well before, and now that the captain had come over to watch, she felt herself slip up doing simple tasks more than once. She cursed. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She took a deep breath and tried to regain her composure, but she rounded a corner too wide for the third time, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Darius wrinkle his nose and turn away, which made her blush intensely. She was letting him down, which was even worse than just not doing well.

The break came faster than expected for most of the players, and they all gulped down water thirstily. Jaya wiped the sweat off her forehead with her sleeve. “I think that went pretty well. Obviously it wasn’t perfect, but I thought I did okay.”

Connor nodded. “Yeah, I’d say it wasn’t too bad. What did you guys think?” He gestured to Athena and Mikael.

Mikael puffed out his chest as he responded. “It was a breeze. I’m surprised they had us do such basic drills- I personally feel like I’m ready for more advanced things, but Darius probably did it like that to accommodate the more inexperienced,” he said, side-eyeing Jaya, who fortunately didn’t notice because she was staring at Athena.

The blonde girl was sitting cross legged on the ground, staring off into space and not having taken a sip of her water. “Athena, are you okay?” Jaya asked, eyebrows raised in concern.

“I’m fine,” she snapped back, and Jaya put her hands up in surrender.

“Alright, whatever you say.”

Meanwhile, Darius had pulled the other captains and the Nieves siblings aside to pick who would be invited back for their full game. It was decided that Theo would captain one team with Darius, and Bailey would take the other team with Reuben and Felix. It was a difficult task, narrowing down the group of kids, and Darius certainly did not appreciate Xander’s random comments about the overwhelming amount of other students that were watching in the stands, even pointing out Will herself, who had been joined by her friends. But after nearly twenty five minutes, they had figured out the two teams and decided to relax for the last five minutes.

Xander immediately started walking around and talking to the older Slytherins, and he was met with apprehensive glares and annoyance, but he didn’t seem to notice. Darius decided to copy his friend and looked around, trying to decide who he would talk to first. His gaze landed on Blaise, who was talking to the other boy from his year, a nonchalant look on his face.

“How did it go, boys?” Darius asked as he walked over, and Blaise quieted as he thought for a second.

“I thought it went well. What about you, Matteo?” He gestured to the other boy.

The second year- no, Matteo- shrugged. “Went okay. Could’ve been better.”

Darius crossed his arms. “Well, I thought you both looked good. Room for improvement, yes, but no one is perfect.” Blaise looked up at him with his deep blue eyes full of wonder, and Darius had to force himself not to smile. “By the way, I have a question for you, Whitacker.”

Blaise blinked at the sudden change in mood. “Yeah?”

“Where have you been sneaking off to at midnight for the past couple of days?” Darius didn’t want to scare the boy, but he did need to know the answer, especially if he was going to bring the young Keeper onto the team.

“Busted,” Matteo whispered as Blaise immediately paled.

“I- uh, I-”

“You’re not in trouble, Blaise. I’m just curious. You can be honest with me,” Darius tried to reassure him, and the younger boy sighed as he came clean.

“I started going flying at night with my friends. We don’t do anything bad, but we all love Quidditch and it’s super fun to hang out with them like that. We go late because my friend Will likes to look at the stars and no one else is there, which means we can do whatever we want,” he admitted, and when Darius heard that, he felt a rush of pride. Turns out Blaise was everything he had hoped. But he had also caught the way that Blaise had referred to Will as his friend.

“That’s pretty cool. Do you do it every day?”

When Blaise realized Darius wasn’t upset, the corners of his lips turned up into a small smile. “Not every day, but we go a lot. It’s nice to be able to have a break from classes, and we’re all pretty competitive so it can get pretty intense, but in a good way.”

“Sounds like fun,” Darius said, catching Xander waving him over frantically out of the corner of his eye. “Alright, stay turned for callbacks. See you soon,” he said, and Blaise smiled for real this time, corner to corner, and it made Darius involuntarily smile too.

Once he had reunited with the other captains, he clapped his hands to gather everyone’s attention. “Thank you for your patience, everyone. We have the lists of the two callback teams, and they will be captained by Bailey and Theo Nieves. If you aren’t on the callback list, don’t be disappointed- you just might not be what we’re looking for this year. I hope to see all the younger students come out next year and try out again if they don’t make it. Alright, Bailey, whenever you’re ready.” He stepped aside to let the dark haired girl come forward as she cleared her throat.

“Okay, so my team is the silver team, and the Chasers are Reuben Sutton, fifth year, Kaydan Thorton, seventh year, and Lindsay Pennington, third year.” Reuben casually walked behind her and leaned on his broom, a smirk on his face as he looked at the younger kids. Kaydan had curly brown hair that rested on top of his forehead and deep brown eyes that just looked safe, and his posture was casual yet the stony expression on his face said that he was there for business. Lindsay had similar colored hair, but her eyes were hazel, and they shone with a multitude of emotions, the most prominent one excitement as she skipped behind Bailey happily. Athena sucked in a breath at her name not being called, but tried to steady her trembling hands with the thought that there was still another team to be called.

“The Beaters will be myself and Chandi Cooke, sixth year.” Chandi huffed as she flipped her blonde hair behind her shoulder, ignoring her friends congratulating her. “The Seeker will be our own Felix Moore, fourth year, and the Keeper will be Blaise Whitacker, second year.” Blaise had been clenching his fists so hard there were nail marks in his palms to prevent himself from shaking, and when his name was called, he finally was able to relax as he took his place behind Bailey, with a slap on the back from Matteo.

From the top of the stands, Will, Charley, and Aidan had been watching intently, and when they saw Blaise step forward, Will jumped into the air with joy. “YES! HE DID IT!” She screamed, earning a few glares from other students a couple rows down as she accidentally knocked into Aidan, making him spill some ink on his half finished essay on hags for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

“Will, be careful!” He protested weakly, and she sat down quickly to help clean it up.

“Shit, sorry,” she said, trying to soak it up with her sleeve, but it had done barely any damage to the actual writing.

“It’s alright, we’re all excited.” Aidan wiped his hands off on his pants before deciding to just stow away the essay and focus on the tryouts. “And he’s not done yet- he has to show up for this game.”

“Oh, he’ll be fine. The worst part is over- now he can just do what he’s good at,” Charley said, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked down at his friend.

Back on the pitch, Theo had stepped forward to name his own team. “Alright, my team, which is the green team, is as follows- Chasers are myself, Ellis Morton, fourth year, and Athena Burns, first year.” Ellis, a blonde haired blue eyed twig of a boy had gotten up excitedly and sprinted behind Theo, but Athena just stood there, not even registering that her name had been called. It took a push from Jaya for her to realize that Theo was waiting for her to join him, and as she hastily scrambled behind him, she became aware of the whispers of anger at the fact that a first year had been called back, but a wave of relief rushed over her as she realized that she still had a shot to fix her tryout.

“Anyways, the Beaters are Darius Rose, seventh year and Captain, and Kyal Fletcher, fifth year.” Kyal looked to be south Asian and had very thick black hair that was spiked up and he had a considerable amount of acne, but the smile on his face was the only thing anyone really noticed about him. “The Seeker will be Charlene Markham, third year, and last but not least, our Keeper is Rhys Roberts, seventh year.” Charlene was very small and lithe, and her hair was split dyed- one half was a very pretty emerald color and the other half was deep black. Rhys also had colored hair, but his was bubblegum pink, which was a nice contrast to his ice blue eyes. They both were pale but were almost glowing with pride as they stepped behind Theo.

“Alright, that’s everyone. Again, if you weren’t called back, I hope the rest of the team can see you next year. You’re more than welcome to stay and watch if you so please as well, and have a great rest of your day everyone,” he said, and although there were quite a few grumbles, the cut Slytherins packed up and headed to the locker room to change and then go to the stands to watch the rest of the tryout go down.

Meanwhile, both teams had huddled together on opposite sides of the field, the captains going over the game plan as the others, especially the younger kids, hung onto every word. However, it didn’t take long for the respective teams to fly to their starting positions, and in the middle, Athena found herself face to face with Reuben, who wiggled his eyebrows a bit at her, making her blush. She gripped the handle of her broom so tightly that her knuckles turned white, not daring to move her gaze from the Quaffle, which was going to be thrown up by interim referee Xander. And just like that, with only a shrill whistle, the game had begun. Theo and Kaydan instantly raced towards the falling ball, and Athena was surprised to see that Kaydan had come out victorious, rocketing towards the goal where Rhys bobbed in anticipation. It took her a second to engage her mind, but once she had shook her head a couple of times, she zoomed after Reuben, who was flying alongside Kaydan and screaming for the ball. She inched closer and closer to the older boy, but as soon as she thought she could jump in front of the pass, Reuben dove underneath Kaydan as the brown-haired boy recognized the move and dropped the Quaffle down to his waiting hands. Reuben only winked at a dumbfounded Athena as he pulled up from the dive and flew towards the goal, scoring brilliantly and putting Bailey’s team up ten points.

“Wow, that was fast,” Charley said from the stands, his elbows resting on his knees as he studied the green and silver jerseys zooming around below.

“Eh, it was about the same amount of time it took for Will to score the first goal,” Aidan responded, his hand shielding the sun from his eyes.

“Dude, Reuben just totally broke Athena’s ankles,” Will said, dumbfounded at the way her friend had just looked so recreational.

“Yeah, she definitely wasn’t ready for the game to be this fast paced,” Charley responded, biting his lip.

“She’ll be fine, she just has to adjust a bit to the speed and hopefully it’ll get better after that,” Aidan said.

But down on the field, Athena’s cheeks were flaming red as Theo flew up to her, beckoning Ellis to come as well. “Alright, we’re switching marks. I’ll keep Kaydan but Ellis is going to take Reuben. Athena, you can guard Lindsay.” And without another word, he flew back to the starting position as Rhys got ready to put the Quaffle back into play, which made Athena blush even harder. She had disappointed Theo, which was even worse than letting Reuben best her defense.

As Theo took the ball from Rhys, he zipped in and out of the other team’s formation, accompanied by Darius hitting a well placed Bludger at Kaydan to prevent him from jostling into the other boy. Ellis made himself available on the left side, and Blaise took a deep breath as he steadied himself on his broom in preparation for a shot. He watched Theo intensely, and the older boy turned his head and outstretched his arm in attempt to pass the ball to Ellis, who was slightly in front of Reuben, but at the last second, Blaise saw his eyes flick back to the right goalpost, and he faked a pass to shoot a beautiful curved shot to the post. When Darius saw the shot, he even blew a bit of air out of his nose at how perfect the fake was, but Blaise was ready. He had read Theo like a book and dove, covering a very large amount of space for his size. He went with one hand instead of two, and that gave him just enough stretch to push the Quaffle out of the way with his fingertips, deflecting it to prevent Theo from scoring and Lindsay dove down to catch it and launch her own attack on Theo’s team.

“HOLY SHIT, THAT WAS AMAZING!” Will screamed, jumping up and down, but this time, she was joined by the rest of the Slytherins as nearly everyone was on their feet and hollering in admiration at Blaise.

“Oh my god, that was one of the best saves I’ve ever seen,” one of the older Slytherins said, and his companion nodded.

“How old is he?”

“Second year. Blaise Whitacker is his name,” the older student responded, and his friend nodded.

“He’ll make the team no problem. Look at Darius’s face!” They pointed at the field, where Darius was hovering on his broom.

Aidan, Will, and Charley followed the Slytherin’s outstretched arm to see Darius studying Blaise intensely, almost no emotion on his face, but when Will squinted, she could see the corners of his lips were turned up into a smile and the tips of his ears were red. She grabbed Aidan by the shoulders and shook him excitedly as she grinned. “Oh, he’s got this in the bag,” she said, and Aidan smoothed out his hair, shaking his head with a smirk on his face.

“Yeah, I never doubted him for a minute. Let’s just keep watching the game- it still looks like Felix and the one girl are still looking for the Snitch.”

The game lasted a little bit longer than the Gryffindor tryout, and it was pretty eventful. Blaise had many more good saves, impressing Darius more and more every time. The second year had originally wanted to try and stay in the zone as much as possible, but after he saved one of Athena’s shots with ease, he looked up at his friends in the stands, and when he saw all three of them on their feet and cheering him on, he couldn’t keep the smile off of his face.

Athena, however, was getting more and more frustrated as the game went on. She had misread quite a few of Theo’s play callings while Ellis had not, and even though she was easily better than Lindsey, she found that it was getting harder and harder to track her flying patterns with all of the swirling thoughts in her head. It also didn’t help that Blaise was doing so well, and she hadn’t managed to score a single goal on her friend. Every time she missed or the goal was saved, she risked a glance at Darius, who refused to make eye contact with her, only turning away and zooming after a Bludger. She cursed to herself as she tried to keep up with Theo, attempting to copy some of his moves, but it only made her feel more discouraged.

By the time the game had ended, on account of Felix pulling out of an incredible dive with the Snitch clutched in his small fist, there was a flurry of different emotions from the different players. Blaise flew down to the grass with a grin on his face, and even though the extra 150 points had put Bailey’s team on top by a sizable margin, he had prevented a large sum of goals from going in. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he sprinted into the locker room to strip off his tryouts uniform so he could go find Will, Aidan, and Charley.

Athena watched him go, not saying a single word. She had blown it- there was no doubt in her mind. And the worst part was, even though the tryout wasn’t her greatest performance, she didn’t even know if her best day could get her on the team. She cast a sideways glance at Darius, who was engaged in a discussion with the Nieves siblings, and she looked back down at her feet in shame, cheeks burning. All she wanted to do at that moment was curl up in a ball and cry, but she took a shaky breath and walked towards the locker room to get changed.

“Hey. How’d you think you did?” Blaise was waiting for her, pretty much all changed, but he had waited nonetheless.

“I don’t really want to talk about it. I didn’t score on you once,” she whispered, and he frowned.

“Scoring isn’t everything, ‘Thena. I saw you do some good stuff on defense- you really locked Lindsay down and prevented her from being an option,” he responded, but she gave him a grim look.

“I couldn’t keep up with Theo. He probably thinks I’m just a stupid first year.”

“I doubt it. You showed up at the beginning of tryouts, too. You’re too hard on yourself- I thought you did good. Will told me earlier that you can’t expect yourself to do your best all the time- just the best you can at that moment. You’re a good Quidditch player, Athena. Everyone knows it, and one bad day isn’t going to change your skill level,” he said, reaching out and putting a light hand on his shoulder, which for some odd reason, almost made tears come to her eyes.

“Thank you, Blaise,” she mumbled, not making eye contact with him so he couldn’t see her cry.

“Of course.” He paused. “Listen, I really am sorry if I’ve been mean to you lately. I’ve just been really stressed about this whole thing, which I’m sure you’ll understand. I’ll try to be nicer, not only to you, but to your friends, too,” he said, shifting a little.

Athena blinked, dumbfounded. “Why are you being so agreeable today? I almost miss the douchey Blaise,” she said, managing to crack a joke, and he smiled, looking down at his feet.

“I don’t know. I guess I just thought about what you said and I feel bad about how I’ve been acting. I’m not totally an asshole.”

She nudged him lightly. “Well, it seems like you’ve already started getting along with my friends. You’ve been spending a lot of time with Will Houston lately.”

He blushed slightly. “Yeah, Aidan and Charley both really like her so I sort of got roped into it. But she’s cool- I think we’re friends now which is nice. She talks a lot, though.”

“No kidding.”

“Do you want me to wait for you to get changed before we head out or are you alright by yourself?” He asked, and Athena shook her head.

“I’m good. Go see your friends. I’ll catch up with you later, maybe. When the roster comes out,” she said, and he nodded, waving slightly before bolting out of the locker room, a huge smile on his face.

Will, Aidan, and Charley were standing outside of the room waiting for him, and as soon as the young girl saw him, she started jumping up and down in excitement. “Holy Merlin, Blaise, you did amazing! You’ve got that spot in the bag no problem,” she said, and he grinned at her.

“Thanks. I thought it went pretty well.”

Aidan put a gentle hand on his best friend’s shoulder. “It went more than just pretty well, mate. You’re all everyone is going to be talking about for the next couple days at least.”

Blaise blushed slightly. “Potentially.”

Will tapped her foot a little. “What do you guys want to do for the rest of the day? We have a lot of time to kill.”

Blaise bit his lip. “Not sure. I finished all my homework- do you guys have any ideas?”

Charley grinned. “Exploding Snap?”

Will clapped her hands together in delight. “Yes! Oh, be prepared to lose, boys. I’m the best Exploding Snap player you’ll ever see touch the cards.”

Aidan sighed. “Why am I not surprised?”

Meanwhile, Athena spent the next eight hours trying to distract herself from her growing anxiety about the results of her tryout, busying herself with schoolwork, Emmy, and tidying up her room as much as possible. As they walked to dinner, Jaya was mostly unfazed by her lack of a callback, chattering away about seeing a mermaid- an actual mermaid- in the glass in the Slytherin Common Room. “She was beautiful! Definitely not what I was expecting when I thought of a mermaid, but she must’ve noticed that I was staring because she waved at me! She actually waved at me, ‘Thena!” She explained, and Athena managed to smile.

“That sounds super cool, Jaya. I’ve heard around the house that they can communicate with us through the glass with sign language,” she said, and Ainsley nodded nonchalantly.

“That’s true. I actually attempted to talk to one the other day, but I don’t know enough to have a coherent conversation. I already checked out a couple books on sign language if you want to borrow them, because even if they don’t talk to us much, sign language is a good skill to have.”

“Agreed,” Athena said.

The Great Hall was buzzing with students anxiously waiting for the Slytherin and Hufflepuff rosters to be hung up on the board next to the other two houses. The first year Slytherins slid into a table, and Athena scanned the room for Will, but she wasn’t at her usual table. She shrugged her shoulders and began eating, trying to distract herself from the anxious thoughts that were creeping into her head at the sight of the empty board.

Only a couple moments later, the doors to the Great Hall opened again and Will walked in with Blaise, Aidan, and Charley. The little first year was dramatically telling a story, emotion all over her face as she made large hand gestures, and much to Athena’s surprise, Blaise was smiling. He was walking next to her and hanging onto every word, and when her eyes became huge with the excitement of something she said, the older boy even laughed along with his other two friends. They all sat down together at the boys usual table, but Will looked around after a few seconds and locked eyes with Athena. She began waving excitedly, causing Athena to blush and wave back. Will said something to her friends and then got up, walking over to Athena’s table with a smile on her face.

“Hey! Sorry, I didn’t get to see you after tryouts- the boys wanted to play Exploding Snap and I could never pass up an opportunity to win at a card game,” she said, sliding into a chair across from the three girls.

Athena shook her head. “That’s alright, you didn’t miss much.”

“What’d you do after? Just hang out?” Will asked.

“Homework in the Common Room. Trying to distract myself.”

Will shrugged. “Sounds fun.” She paused. “I thought you did well today, Athena.”

Athena’s expression immediately soured at the mention of her performance at the tryout. “Don’t lie. You’re better than me and now everyone knows it.”

Will cocked her head, confused. “What? Who said anything about me being better than you?”

“I already know you’re going to mention it, so I figured I’d save you some breath.” Athena had a stony look on her face, and Will was genuinely taken aback.

“Athena, this isn’t about me. I just wanted to compliment you because I genuinely thought you did well. My mom said that’s what friends do- they pick each other up when one is feeling down,” Will responded.

Athena’s glare softened a little at that, sensing Will’s sadness at being turned away. She sighed. “I’m sorry, I know you mean well.” She fiddled with a stray thread on her sleeve. “I’m just on edge right now.”

Will nodded. “I get it. It’s stressful, and I know how you feel.”

Athena scoffed. “I doubt you know how I feel.”

Will only smiled. “You’re afraid of disappointing someone, right? Afraid that they were counting on you and you couldn’t give them what they needed?” When Athena sat there, speechless, the Gryffindor smiled wider. “That’s me every day of my life, Athena. I would genuinely rather die than disappoint my dad. So I know how you feel.” When Athena didn’t respond, probably trying to think of a witty reply, Will stood up. “I’ll see you around, Athena. Good luck with the results- I’m rooting for you.” She patted her gently on the shoulder before getting up and returning to the table of boys, and Aidan greeted her with a huge smile as she sat down.

“I can’t stand her,” Jaya huffed, causing Ainsley to chuckle.

Athena cocked her head. “Why not?”

“You don’t get the sense that she thinks she’s all high and mighty? She’s on a team, Athena. I personally think she brought up the tryout on purpose so she makes sure that you know that she already made the team.” Jaya went back to eating her mashed potatoes, and Athena scratched her head.

“You really think so? I got that vibe at first, but once she explained, I thought it was fine.”

The other girl scoffed. “She did that knowing that it would make you feel bad after you said that she was going to say that she was better than you. She tries to come off as a sweet little Gryffindor, but every move she makes is calculated. I guarantee it,” she finished, casting a glare over at Will.

Meanwhile, the Gryffindor was picking at her own food. “I’m worried about Athena. She seems really stressed out about her tryout.”

Charley shrugged. “We all were- it’s normal. Did she say anything specific to you?”

“Not really, but she did accuse me of bringing it up so I could rub it in her face that I was better than her or something, which I didn’t like,” she responded. “I guess I just didn’t expect her to be so defensive.”

Blaise scoffed. “You don’t know her well enough yet, then. Whenever she does something wrong or something happens to her that she’s insecure about, she’s always on the defensive. It’s a habit that she got into a while ago, and even though I’ve brought it up to her, she doesn’t try to open up any more than she already does.”

Will frowned. “That’s kind of sad. She must get lonely- I feel bad that I haven’t been spending as much time with her.”

Aidan shook his head. “Don’t feel bad- all the first years are still trying to figure out where they belong. Give it a couple weeks and I’m sure everything will work out.”

But as soon as Aidan had finished talking, a hush fell over the Great Hall as Lacie and Darius walked in side by side, both clutching papers and looking straight ahead. It seemed as if Blaise’s heart stopped beating as he watched them pin up the papers in silence, and as soon as the captains had sat down, there was a mad rush of people running to the front.

“Blaise, come on, we have to go check the roster!” Will said, pulling at his arm to get him to stand up.

“Okay, I’m coming,” he said jokingly, but he was nearly shaking with anticipation. Will was basically sprinting along with the other people, but Blaise trailed behind, not wanting to seem like he was nervous, but he felt like he could barely step forward. He had had one of the best practices in his life at the tryouts, and he was so worried that that still wouldn’t be enough. He didn’t think he could stomach it if all of his friends made the team and he didn’t.

When Will pushed her way to the front, the list was finally in view.

SLYTHERIN QUIDDITCH ROSTER 2015-2016
Chaser: Reuben Sutton
Chaser: Theodore Nieves
Chaser: Kaydan Thorton
Beater: Darius Rose (C)
Beater: Bailey Nieves
Keeper: Blaise Whitacker
Seeker: Felix Moore

Reserves: Athena Burns, Ellis Morton, Kyal Fletcher, Rhys Roberts, Charlene Markham

Will whooped out loud as she turned away from the list, pushing her way out of the crowd to find Blaise, who was still standing on the outskirts of the gathered students. “YOU MADE IT!” She screamed, jumping up and down, and once Blaise heard that, he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and started to smile.

“I did?”

“Yeah, you did! This is amazing!” She exclaimed, and he ran a hand through his hair, cheeks red.

“Awesome,” was all that he was able to say, and Will high fived him before grabbing his arm and dragging him over towards their table.

“Well?”Aidan said, eyes bright as he asked for an answer to the question he and Charley were both thinking.

Will was practically vibrating with excitement but didn’t say anything, only looked at Blaise with a grin plastered on her face, and he grinned back. “I made it,” he said happily, and Charley stood up to engulf him in a bear hug.

“Congrats, mate! We knew you had it in the bag,” he said, and Aidan nodded.

“We never doubted you for a second,” he said, and Blaise smiled at his friends.

“Thanks, guys. First practice is tomorrow.”

Will nodded. “Same here. Man, I can’t wait until we play each other,” she said, and Blaise smirked.

“Good luck beating Slytherin this year. We’ve got a really solid team,” he said, causing Charley to roll his eyes.

“Yeah, right. We’re way better.”

“No you’re not, but even if we can’t agree on that, we can all agree that Ravenclaw is going to be the worst team this year,” Blaise said, and Aidan nearly exploded.

As the friends were playfully bickering, Athena hadn’t gotten up from her table. She had watched Will and Blaise go over and read the list and seen everyone’s reactions, so she knew that Blaise had made the team, but something in her body literally refused to let her move from her chair.

“Are you going to go up and check or what?” Jaya asked, her eyebrow raised.

Athena jolted back to reality, and she blushed slightly. “Yeah, I’m just waiting for the crowd to die down,” she lied, and Jaya shrugged before returning to her plate.
Athena was trying so hard to not show it, but she was so nervous she practically couldn’t function. All she could think about was how she had blown her tryout and how she didn’t want to go up to the list and look. Everyone had been talking about her because of how good of a Quidditch player she was supposedly, but she hadn’t been able to live up to expectations and she couldn’t be more angry at herself.

“Athena!” Suddenly, Will came barreling into the blonde girl like a hurricane. “Do you want to go up and check the list? I’ll go with you! I'm not going to lie- I didn't actually look at the list that well when I went up with Blaise. I mostly only looked at the Keeper spot, so I didn't see if you made it or not.”

Athena sighed, knowing she couldn’t get out of it this time. “Alright, let’s go.”

Will dragged her up to the front, pushing other people out of the way so her friend could go through first. Athena only stared at the list for a second before turning away, fighting back tears when she saw her name listed in black ink next to the reserves. “I didn’t make it,” she said, walking back over to the table with Will behind her.

“Oh.” Will’s energy diminished a little, and she followed her friend. “Well, that’s okay, though. You’re still a really great player, I watched your tryout. I’m sure you’re a shoe in for next year, especially since you’re on the reserves this year. You might get to play in a couple games!”

Athena shook her head. “Don’t try to be optimistic, Will. I didn’t make it. You’re better than me and everyone knows it.”

Will was a bit taken aback at that, but she huffed before responding. “Athena, why do you always have to make this a competition between us? Why can’t I just be your friend?” Athena didn’t say anything, so Will continued. “I’m just trying to support you in a hard time, but if you don’t want it, that’s okay. I’ll still be here for you if you need it, and I want you to remember that. You’re always welcome to talk to me if you ever want to get something off your chest.” Athena blinked hard, trying not to cry, and Will put a hand on her shoulder. “You’re one of my best friends, Athena. You’re stuck with me for life,” she joked, earning a smile from the blonde.

“Lucky me,” she said sarcastically, and Will laughed.

“See you in flying tomorrow?”

“Of course.” But as Will turned away, Athena called to her one more time. “Will?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

The Gryffindor smiled one last time. “You’re welcome.”

Chapter Text

Drumming her quill on her fingers, Will blew a piece of hair out of her face. It was the day before her first ever Quidditch game, and Defense Against the Dark Arts was her last class before she was free to focus on the upcoming match between her team and Ravenclaw.

“Will, can you please stop that?” Athena whispered, and the Gryffindor blushed.

“I’m sorry, I’m just really anxious,” she whispered back, and Athena shook her head but grinned.

“Don’t be. You’re going to do great.”

Will smiled back at her. “Thanks, Athena.”

“Ladies, is there anything you’re discussing that needs to be shared with the class?” Professor Potter was staring at them, an eyebrow raised, and both girls’ cheeks reddened.

“Sorry, Professor,” Athena said, and Harry only shook his head exasperatedly before returning to his lecture.

“Alright, moving on to our next topic,” he started, but when Will’s leg continued to bounce, he turned around again. “Will, come on, there’s only two minutes left in class.”

“I’m sorry, sir, I’m just excited for tomorrow,” she responded, and the rest of the Gryffindors nodded vigorously.

He sighed. “Alright, I guess we can just end early today. I don’t think we have enough time to begin talking about the Knockback jinx next week.” There was a rustling noise as both the Slytherins and the Gryffindors scrambled to get up, and Will and Athena were one of the first ones to reach the door. “Remember, you still have the essay on Kappas due on Monday! If you write it the day of or the night before, I will know!” Harry called after them halfheartedly, and when they were all gone, he slumped into his chair and sighed deeply.

“Do you want to go play Exploding Snap after dinner?” Will asked Athena, nearly bouncing off of the walls with all of her energy.

Athena shook her head, looking apologetic. “I wish I could, but I can’t. I need to keep writing that essay for Defense Against the Dark Arts.” Athena raised an eyebrow at her overly enthusiastic friend. “Speaking of, have you even started that?”

“Nope.”

Athena sighed. “Will, Professor Potter literally told us he would be able to tell if we wrote it last minute. You should at least start it sooner rather than later.”

Will laughed a little. “That’s where you’re wrong, Athena. Professor Potter likes to scare us by saying he can tell if we procrastinate, but I do procrastinate, and he gives me O’s every time. He kneels before my throne of essay writing, unaware that it was born from lies.”

Athena smacked her face with her hand in exasperation. “You never cease to amaze me.”

“I’m going to do myself a favor and take that as a compliment.” Will wiggled her eyebrows at her friend, making Athena bite back a smile.

When the two girls entered the Great Hall, they were not surprised to see it buzzing with students preparing for the weekend. The opening Quidditch games were just around the corner, with a matchup between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw on Saturday and Slytherin and Hufflepuff on Sunday. Groups of friends were exchanging friendly banter about their houses and how they were going to win, and Will was so excited she was practically jumping out of her skin as they walked over to where James and Fred were sitting.

“Woah, there,” Fred said as the two sat down, smiling. “Someone’s excited for something.”

“You bet I am, the first Quidditch game is tomorrow!” Will said, her eyes full of delight.

“Are you nervous?”

Will shrugged. “A little bit, but I’ve been practicing really hard and Xander said that we’ve been working really well together as a team. I think we have a pretty good shot of winning.”

“Well, no matter what, we’ll be there.” Fred took a bite out of his chicken.

Athena nodded in agreement. “And when you inevitably mess up at something, we’ll be the first to tell you and make fun of you for the rest of the weekend,” she teased.

Will raised her eyebrow. “Gee, thanks,” she said sarcastically.

“What’re you planning on doing tonight?” Fred asked.

“I don’t know. I have homework, but I usually save Sundays for it. How about you?”

“Probably homework,” he responded.

“Hm, okay. I might ask Aidan and Charley if they want to do anything,” Will said, her leg bouncing again.

Athena noticed. “Do you ever sit still? You’re always moving in some way or another and frankly, it’s incredibly distracting,” she joked, but to her surprise, Will looked down at her feet, stilling her leg and holding her hands tightly together.

“Sorry.” But as Athena watched, Will started to rub her hands together, potentially without noticing, but still moving all the same.

James, who had sat silently the entire time, glared at the two girls. “Can you guys shut up? I’m trying to work,” he said, scowling.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize this was the library where everyone has to be silent,” Athena said, wrinkling her nose.

“Well, it was perfectly fine before you guys got here.” James was giving her a dirty look, but Athena didn’t care.

“We’re allowed to talk in the Great Hall, James. Go somewhere else if you want peace and quiet, because you’re not going to find it here,” she said, and James huffed before shoving his work into his bag and standing up.

“Fine. I will.” He nodded at Fred before giving Athena one last look of loathing and storming off.

“What’s wrong with him? Did someone spit in his coffee this morning?” Athena asked Fred incredulously.

Fred sighed. “I have no idea. He’s been pretty moody lately. I think it was because he didn’t make the Quidditch team and all this talk of the games is reminding him.”

Athena went quiet at that. Her and James definitely didn’t get along, but that was something that she could relate to. The entire school was buzzing with excitement at the first games of the season, and every time someone brought it up, it made her remember her failed tryout and the way her heart dropped to her toes after she saw the list with her name written until the reserves section is Darius’s careful handwriting.

“I feel bad. I shouldn’t be talking about it in front of you guys. I know how upset you were about it,” Will said quietly, and when Athena turned to look at her, Will was still staring down at her feet and rubbing her hands together absentmindedly.

“It’s okay, Will. You’re allowed to be excited about something. Your time just happened to come before his,” Fred said, and suddenly, Athena felt a little nauseous.

She stood up quickly. “I just forgot about something I left in my room,” she lied. “I’ll see you guys later.”

As she walked away, Will turned to Fred. “Shit, Fred. I just need to realize when to close my stupid mouth,” she said, and Fred shook his head.

“I think it’s just a sore spot. But it’s been two weeks- they’ll get over it eventually,” he reassured her, but Will couldn’t shake the sinking feeling in her stomach as she watched Athena walk away.

Athena was starting to get really pissed about the whole Quidditch thing. It seemed like every time she was around Will, she would be reminded of it in some way. She knew it wasn’t Will’s fault because she never actively brought it up, but she was starting to get sick of her regardless. She felt like everyone was whispering behind her back about the first year that was supposed to be amazing and didn’t even make the team, and she hated them for it. And Will just didn’t pay attention to the whispers because she had made the team and Athena hadn’t, and it made her constantly feel like she was lesser than Will.

Once she reached the common room, she said the password quickly before heading up to her dorm, which thankfully was empty. It seemed as if her anger at the situation was starting to turn into anger at Will. Every time Will moved with hyperactivity, Athena got annoyed that she couldn’t just sit still and listen like she was supposed to. Every time they walked in the corridors together, Will would point out the stupidest little things about the castle that Athena had no interest in hearing about. It was like she was completely oblivious to how Athena was hating what happened.

She decided to start the essay for Defense Against the Dark Arts. She really didn’t want to, but then she remembered that Will had mentioned that she hadn’t started, so she did it anyway. Then she could at least beat Will in something.

Meanwhile, Aidan, Charley, and Blaise had headed to the grounds where they sat underneath the familiar tree and stared at the lake. Aidan was leaning up against the trunk and reading his Charms textbook, Charley was sitting cross legged on the ground and folding an old page of notes into a paper airplane, and Blaise was laying on the grass with his hands behind his head as he stared up at the sun. The first month of school was almost over, and the temperatures were starting to drop with the coming winter, but right then, it seemed perfect. The sun was warm but not hot and there was a light breeze that moved his hair ever so slightly.

“Are you guys excited for tomorrow?” Blaise asked.

Charley nodded vigorously. “Heck yeah, mate. We’re going to kick some Ravenclaw ass,” he joked, throwing his completed paper airplane at Aidan.

Aidan scowled and knocked it out of the air into the grass. “Whatever, man. It’s going to be a good fight.”

“The whole school will probably be there,” Blaise said.

“Yeah, probably. It’s the first one of the season. Wait, why are we playing on Saturday and not Sunday like we did last year?” Charley asked.

“It’s because Ravenclaw won the Quidditch Cup last year. The defending champions play the first game, but the schedule is the same matchup wise. Basically, opening weekend is always Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw and Slytherin vs Hufflepuff, but whoever won the year prior plays first on Saturday and then the schedule is made after. Who plays who is always consistent, it’s just when that changes,” Aidan explained, and Charley nodded.

“Oh. That makes sense.” Charley propped his head up on his elbow, thinking. “You guys were solid last year, mate.”

Aidan sighed. “Yeah, we were pretty good, but we lost over half our team. We’ve been doing well in practice, but I’m a little nervous to see how we match up against the other houses. How many people did you guys lose?”

“Three. A Chaser, a Keeper, and a Beater. So a lot, but not as much as you did.”

Aidan turned to Blaise. “What about Slytherin?”

“We only lost two, a Chaser and a Keeper, but we finished last in the Quidditch Cup last year, so we’ll have to see how it goes,” Blaise said, shrugging. “Apparently Hufflepuff is really good this year. I heard they’re the favorites to win it all.”

Charley scoffed. “Yeah, right. We’re taking it all this year.” He puffed out his chest, and Aidan rolled his eyes.

“We’ll see, mate. I’m excited to see Gryffindor and Slytherin battle it out this year- that’s always a good game.”

“House relations may be way better than they were fifteen years ago, but the rivalry runs deep,” Blaise said, smirking. “I think my parents are coming this weekend. What about you guys?”

Aidan nodded. “My dad is coming. My mom sent me a letter because she has a work event she can’t miss, but she said my dad is really excited to come watch me,” he said happily.

Charley grinned. “Both of my parents are coming. My mom is pumped because she’s never seen Hogwarts before.”

“Man, I would be excited, too.” Blaise sat up. “Did your parents tell you about the International Quidditch tournament?”

“The what?” Charley asked, cocking his head.

“Your dad doesn’t know about that? Seriously?” Aidan shook his head. “As soon as my dad found out, it’s all he’s been talking about. It’s a pretty big deal.”

Blaise nodded. “Mine, too.”

“Uh, hello, can someone fill me in?” Charley raised his eyebrow.

“Basically, every one hundred years, six Wizarding Schools from all over the world meet up to play in a tournament. Each school takes a team of twelve- seven starters and five reserves,” Aidan explained.

Blaise smiled. “The schools that participate are us, Ilvermorny, Castelobruxo in Brazil, Beauxbatons in France, Durmstrang which is in like Norway or something, and Mahoutokoro in Japan. It’s not supposed to happen until the spring of 2020, which is when we’re sixth years, but it’s still pretty cool that we have a decent shot of going and representing the school.”

“Are you kidding? That’s amazing!” Charley said incredulously.

Aidan closed his book as he grinned. “Yeah, it’s going to be a great opportunity. It’s supposed to be held in Tokyo this time, which would be awesome to travel to. It’s a great opportunity to build camaraderie amongst individual schools but also bring the magical community closer together.”

“Wait, so the last one was in 1920?”

“Yeah. It was at Beauxbatons, and I think Castelobruxo won. McGongall was one of the chaperones that went along with the current headmaster, which was Phineas Nigellus Black. Apparently McGonagall was super pissed because we got second, so she’s going to be out for blood this time,” Blaise responded.

“That’s going to be amazing. We better start training now for it if we want to go,” Charley said, and Aidan shrugged.

“Well, it is four and a half years away. We’ve got plenty of time to work.”

Charley had a sparkle in his eyes. “My dad is going to go nuts when he finds out.”

The next morning, Will had so much energy she slightly resembled a hurricane as she ran around her room, making sure she had everything in her bag. She had braided her curly black hair into her gameday french braid that was long down her back, and she had rearranged her things nearly a hundred different ways as she nearly shook with nervous energy. She was just checking that she had her broom polish for a third time when there was a knock on her door. She rushed over to answer it to reveal a disheveled looking girl with blonde hair and very pale skin.

The girl had clearly just gotten up and didn’t look too much older than Will, and she rubbed her eyes at the light from Will’s room. “You’re Will, right?” She asked sleepily, and Will noticed a very heavy Scandinavian accent.

Will immediately blushed. “Yeah, that’s me. Am I making a lot of noise?”

“A bit, but I’m just a light sleeper. Did you drop something on the floor?”

“Yeah, it was my Quidditch bag. Sorry about that, I didn’t mean to wake you,” Will said sheepishly.

“No, it’s alright, I just wanted to make sure everything was okay. I’m Astrid, by the way. Astrid Jakobsson. I’m a second year.” Astrid yawned, but she smiled at Will goodnaturedly after.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Will Houston. I’m really sorry about making all the noise.”

“Don’t worry about it. I should be getting up around this time anyways.” Astrid turned to walk back down to her dorm, but she looked back over her shoulder to grin at Will one more time. “Good luck today at the game, Will. Make us proud,” she called as she made her way down the stairs.

“Thank you! I will!” She said, and Will couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear as she shut the door to finish getting ready.

To no one’s surprise, the Great Hall was lively with students when Will walked in. It was mostly filled with Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, but there was a sprinkle of Slytherins and Hufflepuffs in the mix, and Aidan immediately saw her and waved her over to the table where he sat with Charley and Blaise.

“Hey, Will. Excited for today?” Charley asked, wiggling her eyebrows at her.

Will grinned. “You bet.” She turned to Aidan. “Are you ready for an ass whooping?” She joked, and Aidan rolled his eyes.

“I’ll let our play do the talking.”

Blaise took a sip of his orange juice, enjoying the banter. “I can’t wait to watch this go down. Athena and I were planning on heading down when it gets closer to game time, but we were going to try and catch some of the warmups.”

“Sounds awesome,” Will said happily.

The four of them ate for a bit together before Charley checked his watch. “You guys want to head down?”

Aidan pushed his empty plate away, smiling. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

Will stood up with enthusiasm, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “Let’s do this.”

“Good luck!” Blaise called after them as they made their way out, and Will turned to wave at him before they headed to the grounds.

Once they finally got to the locker rooms, Charley and Will bid Aidan their goodbyes before they stood in front of their own, staring at the door with their house crest on it. “Man, I can’t believe we’re about to play our first Quidditch game,” Charley said breathlessly.

“I know, it’s almost too good to be true,” Will responded.

“Are you nervous?”

Will thought for a bit before answering. “To be completely honest, yeah, I am. All of these kids are a lot older than me and I haven’t played a real school game yet. I’m a bit jumpy.”

“Yeah, me too. I’m afraid I’m going to mess up and the entire school is going to see it and laugh at me,” Charley sighed.

Will shook her head. “Yeah, the thought has definitely crossed my mind, but we worked hard for this. We’re bound to make a couple mistakes, so we just have to move onto the next play.”

“You’re right. Are your parents here? My dad was wondering.”

“Yeah, both my mom and dad wanted to come, and I think they brought my little sister with them,” Will chirped happily.

“Awesome. I’m sure they’ll sit together.”

“Oh, absolutely.”

Charley turned his focus back to the door. “Well, we should probably go. You ready?”

Will grinned, nudging him a bit with her shoulder. “Let’s kick some Ravenclaw ass.”

Over the past two weeks, the locker rooms had been renovated based on the designs of the captains and the players had used the standard, house neutral locker room for practices. When they entered the one that had been made for them, Charley and Will both gasped. The space inside was much larger than what they had previously thought it would be, and there were seven lockers spaced on the right wall. The left wall was filled with pictures, a shelving cabinet for supplies, and in the middle, there were red couches and chairs on top of a golden rug that shimmered. The lighting was pretty standard, but there were streamers hanging every which way. On the back wall, there were smaller banners that were as old as the school itself, and they surrounded a large banner that hung in the middle of the wall that had the crest and listed all of the years Gryffindor had ever won the Quidditch cup.

Charley grinned as he looked at three different banners that were hanging slightly to the side, dating to 1820, 1520 and 1120. The first one read 1820 International Quidditch Tournament Champions. Highlands, Scotland, United Kingdom. Underneath, there was a list of the three Quidditch players that had gone that were in Gryffindor, and since it was on their home turf, it must have been a pretty big deal. The other was similar, reading 1520 International Quidditch Tournament Champions. Amazon Rainforest, Brazil. There were only two Gryffindor players that year, but their names were still perfectly stitched in gold script on the banner. The last one was the oldest but had been preserved wonderfully, and it read 1120 International Quidditch Tournament Champions. Tromso, Norway. There were a record five players from Gryffindor that year, and Charley felt his face flush with excitement as he thought about the upcoming tournament.

Leon, Evelyn, and Macie had already settled in and were putting their gear on for warmups, and they smiled at the two younger kids and gestured to the lockers that now belonged to them. Will was practically skipping as she and Charley walked over to the first ones. The lockers themselves were essentially closets, and there was a section for jerseys, one for practice tops and warmups, and one for regular clothes. There were also storage compartments separated for boots, pads, and other protective gear, and on the right side of each locker, there was a hook for their brooms to be hung up.

Each cubby had a nameplate at the top with the player’s name, hometown, and number, and Will smiled as she stared up at hers. Willow Houston. Manchester, England, United Kingdom. 2. In the back of the locker, there was a picture collage of previous Gryffindor team moments and some of the players that had come before the current ones that shared the same number. In Will’s case, there were pictures of a ton of people she didn’t recognize, but one stood out to her.

“Woah.” She touched the picture that she recognized as James’s grandfather- the original James Potter. It was an action shot of him on his broom, concentration all over his face as he held the Quaffle, streaking towards the goalposts. Every so often, his jersey would flicker in the wind to reveal the number two on the front. But there was something else that caught her attention even more- the red and gold jerseys hanging in her locker.

Will put her bag down to touch the fabric, seeing her new number on the front with the Gryffindor crest over the left chest. She turned it around gingerly, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw her last name across the maroon cape in neatly stitched capital letters. Seeing that made everything feel so real- this was it. It was actually happening. She grinned as she opened the bottom storage compartment to start transferring her things into her locker, officially making it her own.

“This is awesome!” Charley said, poking his head over to her locker. As a Keeper, he had inherited the number one, and his cheeks were slightly flushed as he held the picture of his dad, Oliver Wood, wearing the same number from his locker. His nameplate read, Charles Wood. Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom. 1.

“I know!” Will finished putting her stuff away and immediately stripped down to her team designated black form-fitting tank top and compression shorts before pulling her uniform off the hangers. She started with the matching black pants and long sleeve shirt that both had red and gold stripes on the side before pulling on her knee pads and boots. Despite being brand new, they fit well, and even though the gear was a little stiff, she just had to walk around a little bit before they molded to her body. Once she had her pads securely strapped on and her boots laced up in the superstitious way she always did it, she turned to her jersey. It wasn’t quite time to put it on yet, for they wore basic red tops for warmups, but she couldn’t help but try it on.

As she pulled on the red uniform, she sighed with a huge smile on her face. She was admiring it and the way it felt on her fingertips before there was a loud hooting and hollering coming from the door to the locker room, and she turned to see Xander walk in, his Quidditch bag thrown over his shoulder. “Happy game day!” He yelled, banging on the sides of the lockers, and Peter trailed in behind him, shaking his head but grinning.

Xander slid into his locker next to Will’s, shoving his bag into the storage compartment and leaning up against it. “That looks awesome, Will. Fits you perfectly,” he said, smiling.

She blushed. “Thanks, Xander,” she said, pulling it off and hanging it back up as she grabbed the warmup top.

“So? Are you excited?”

“Oh, yeah. I’ve been bouncing off the walls for the past couple days,” she responded, and he grinned at her one more time before turning to his locker and beginning to put his own uniform on.

“This is going to be epic. Ravenclaw won’t know what hit them.”

As the players put on the rest of their gear including arm pads, gloves, and Charley’s shoulder pads and chestplate, Xander hooked up his phone to a speaker and blared pump up music throughout the locker room. Every player was singing and dancing as they got ready, and it stoked the energy in the room more and more with every verse.

Once everyone was ready, Xander gathered them all in the middle of the locker room. “Okay, the warmup is going to be just like we practiced. We have thirty five minutes, so we’ll start with some flying drills as a team and then break up into groups.” He pulled out a piece of wrinkled paper. “Peter, Leon, and Macie- you all are a group and then Charley, Evelyn, Will, and I are the other. We’ll regroup back in the locker room with eight minutes left on the clock and put our jerseys on. That sound good to everyone?”

There was a chorus of nods and murmured yeses, and Xander clapped his hands before returning to his locker and grabbing his broom. “Alright, let’s go.”

There weren't a ton of people in the stadium yet, but it was still early. Ravenclaw was already on the pitch, taking up their half of the field to warm up, as well. Will followed behind Xander as they started with some basic flying drills to go over the patterns that they had worked on in practice.

On her broom, Will felt right at home. She felt a smile come to her lips as she perfected her form, racing through the obstacles with ease. This was when she really felt alive. She was nervous, of course, but the unease was quickly replaced by excitement as she remembered that she had worked hard for this, and this was the beginning of her chances to really do something special and leave her mark on the school.

“There they are!” Fred scrambled up so he could lean over the rail and watch the team, and James looked up as the Gryffindors around them cheered.

“Man, they look ready. This is going to be a great game,” he responded, waving a little red and gold flag. James was still a bit upset about the whole roster thing, but he pushed the feelings away so he could allow himself to be excited for not only Will and the opportunity she had, but also his first time watching a school Quidditch game.

“Will looks great. Her flying is pretty crisp,” Fred said, and James nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I know she’s been working really hard.” He turned his attention over to the Ravenclaws, who were breaking up into their own groups, and he laughed out loud. “Fred, look at Louis!” He exclaimed with glee, pointing at their cousin.

Louis Weasley was staring at Will as she flew with Xander, Charley, and Evelyn, a scowl on his face. Fred snickered. “He’s probably plotting all the ways he can knock her off her broom without getting called for too many fouls,” he said, and James grinned.

“That’s definitely going to be fun to see.”

The thirty or so minutes came and went pretty quickly, and before she knew it, Xander was beckoning for everyone to fly back down to the locker room. Will touched down and followed the rest of the team into the tunnel, and soon, she was pulling her practice top off and putting on her jersey- for real this time. She adjusted it a little to make sure it was straight before pulling the cape off its hanger. “Hey, Charley, can you put this on for me? I always have issues with it,” she said, slightly embarrassed, but he laughed and took it, gesturing for her to turn around so he could snap it in place.

“No, I have the same issue. Can you help me with mine?”

“Of course.”

Once everyone was suited up and ready, Xander called them back into the middle and gestured for everyone to sit down. “Alright, team. This is it,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “First game of the season. I’ll try and keep this pep talk short, but I just wanted to say that I’m super proud of the way that everyone has come together over the past two weeks. We’ve all worked super hard and I’m really excited to see everything we accomplish this season.” Macie and Leon clapped a bit at that, and he smiled before continuing. “We’ve got a really solid team this year, guys, and I know that if we want it bad enough, we can win the whole damn thing. Let’s just play our game the way we know how and take care of business.”

Will and Charley cheered, and they were joined by the rest of the team whooping and hollering. “This is going to be awesome,” Will whispered to Charley, and he nodded vigorously in agreement.

“Everyone grab their things, and let’s get lined up in the tunnel. Go by number order, but I’ll be at the front as captain.” There was a shuffling as the team walked out of the locker room into the tunnel, everyone jumping up to smack the plaque reading Gryffindor Quidditch above the door as they exited.

Inside the tunnel, all four doors of the different locker rooms were visible. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw were on the left, and Slytherin and Hufflepuff were on the right, but the other three doors were shut. Music could be heard slightly through the Ravenclaw door, but the Gryffindor team lined up without paying too much attention to it. Xander immediately went to the front as the number three stood out under his last name on the back of his cape, and Charley was right behind him, followed by Will. Evelyn was number four, so she went behind Will, and Peter, who was number five, was behind her. Leon, who was six, followed, and Macie was at the back of the pack, number seven stitched into her cape.

“Okay, first walkout of the season. Just like we practiced, but to the beat of the song. The one I picked this year is pretty awesome,” Xander said, rubbing his gloved hands together as he stood at the front of the line. Will poked her head out from behind Charley to raise an eyebrow.

“We get a walkout song? Like baseball?”

Xander turned back to look at her, a puzzled expression on his face. “What’s baseball?”

Will looked taken aback at that, but Evelyn rolled her eyes and put a hand on Will’s shoulder from behind her. “He’s kidding- he knows what that is. But yeah, it’s like baseball.”

“Oh, that makes sense. That’s super cool! What song is it?” She asked, and Xander wiggled his eyebrows at her.

“You’ll see. Alright, here we go, team.”

“And now, the moment you all have been waiting for- The Gryffindor Quidditch team!” The announcer yelled. It was currently Rafael Duhram, a seventh year Hufflepuff, but Lucas Jordan was standing next to him with an excited expression on his face as he trained with Rafael to take over the position next year.

The Gryffindors mounted their brooms, and Xander held up his hand as the music started to blare through the speakers. It started with a deep hum that repeated as the lyrics started, and Will started to smile, for she recognized the song.

"You’re like an empress, you’ve got fire running down your cheeks. You burn everything you see…”

“Alright, go on my signal. There’s a sick beat drop that I want to wait for, and that builds the anticipation,” Xander said, and Leon rolled his eyes.

“Okay, Xander.”

“Gold are your fingers, leaving traces everywhere you go. Diamonds in your skin, my blood flows…”

“Here we go,” Xander whispered, his hand still up as he started to smirk.

“Bring the lion out, bring the, bring the lion out. Bring the lion out, bring the, bring the lion out.” And at that, Xander put his hand down and took off as the deep bass of the hums started again, the rest of the team following him.

Xander, Will, Leon, and Macie went right, and Charley, Evelyn, and Peter went left as the stadium erupted in cheers. They flew a lap around the pitch in line as the chorus of the song continued, causing the crowd to go crazy. They met in the middle of the pitch and regrouped into their original line that they had formed in the tunnel, and the cheering almost overwhelmed the song as Gryffindor students and families waved flags, banners, and scarves in the cool September breeze. Will smiled as she scanned the arena, just taking in the emotion that came with the rush of her first game. She felt an immense sense of pride as she could nearly feel her last name stitched in gold onto her red cape burning into her back, reminding her that she had worked hard to get to this point, and it was worth it.

“Okay, I’m not going to lie, that was pretty badass,” Blaise said, his arms crossed as he stared at the Gryffindor team. He was wearing a blue Ravenclaw hoodie that he had borrowed from Aidan but a maroon and gold beanie that Charley had given him covered most of his black hair. The combination was a little bizarre, but Blaise had a grin on his face as he watched his Gryffindor friends.

“Does everyone get to do that?” Athena asked. She was wearing her school uniform instead of any casual clothes, but she didn’t stand out too much in the group of Slytherins they sat with.

“Yeah. Last year, their song sucked. It was Livin la Vida Loca by Ricky Martin- I have no idea what was going through Xander’s head when he picked that one.” Finn Stott was sitting behind Blaise, and he scowled as he watched his brother and the Gryffindors wave to the adoring crowd.

“What was ours last year?” Jaya, who was sitting on Athena’s other side, wondered, and Matteo Callahan turned to face her.

“No Diggity. Easily the best one of the year.”

"Eh, I thought Ravenclaw’s was good. Theirs was Gangsta’s Paradise- they usually try to do a 90s or early 2000s rap song as long as the captain goes through the song and makes it clean before the first game.” Asher Hendrix’s older sibling, Remy, was on the Ravenclaw team as their Keeper, and they had constantly raved to their brother throughout the year about how cool their walkout song was the year prior.

“You’re totally biased, Ash,” Wesley Holland said, nudging his friend a bit. “I just think we can all agree Hufflepuff’s was better than Gryffindor’s. It was Season of the Witch by Donovan,” he informed Jaya and Athena.

Athena nodded in respect, watching the Gryffindors fly down to their bench and huddle up as they waited for the Ravenclaws. “Classic, I like it. But yeah, I agree. Anything is better than Livin la Vida Loca.”

“Look, Athena! Ravenclaw is coming!” Jaya said, pointing at the tunnel. They were pretty far away, but they could see directly into the tunnel if they squinted, and Athena would have to be blind to not recognize Amaya in her blue uniform as they waited for Rafael to announce them.

“And now, your defending champions of the Quidditch Cup, Ravenclaw!” Rafael yelled into the microphone, and there was cheering from the Ravenclaw student section as P.I.M.P. by 50 Cent started blaring on the speakers.

“I don’t know what you heard about me, but a b**** can’t get a dollar outta me. No Cadillac, no perms, you can’t see, that I’m a motherf****** P.I.M.P.” The chorus replayed once more before the Ravenclaw team took off out of the tunnel and flew around the pitch twice as one solid line. The Ravenclaws were going crazy across the stadium, and some of the students were even holding mini trophies to remind everyone of their victory the previous year.

When the Ravenclaws arrived in the middle, they waved goodnaturedly, and Blaise stood up and waved his arms vigorously. “AIDAN!” He yelled, and after some jumping up and down, Aidan finally saw his best friend. He grinned so big it went from ear to ear as he waved back.

The Ravenclaw team flew down to the bench, huddling up for a minute before both teams flew up to their starting positions on the field. “It looks like both teams are ready to kick off the first match of the season. Xander Stott and Amaya Cummingham, the captains of their teams, are getting in a few more words, but we will be underway very shortly,” Rafael said into the mic.

Seeing that both teams were in position, Madam Hooch mounted her broom and flew up to meet them, clutching the Quaffle. “Now, I want a nice, clean game, today,” she said, looking at Xander and Amaya.

Xander nodded. “You got it, ma’am.”

Madam Hooch gave him a look before holding the Quaffle out and putting her whistle in between her lips. “On three,” she said, and she nodded three times before throwing the Quaffle up in the air, blowing her whistle, and there was a flurry of movement as the Chasers dove for it. As soon as the ball had left Madam Hooch’s hands, the Bludgers and the Snitch were also released, and Macie and Derek Zhang, Ravenclaw’s Seeker, took off.

“And we have started, folks! Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw- who will start their season off with a bang and who will be disappointed?” Rafael yelled. The stadium was full of energy as the game kicked off, and everyone was excited to watch this first game happen.

As soon as the Quaffle had been put into play, Will had rocketed upwards instead of going for it. Xander had created a game plan, and since Will was the smallest and also the quickest, they decided to have her be an outlet for if the other two Chasers had success. Louis, the player that was marking Will, had dove in as well with the Ravenclaw Chasers, so she was alone for a second, and when Xander emerged victorious, the Quaffle in his hands as he rocketed towards the goalposts where Remy Hendrix was bobbing in the air, Amaya hot on his heels. Will zoomed out a little ahead of him, making herself an option in case he needed to pass. Louis had realized too late that she had stayed out of the initial fray, and he was racing after her to try and make up for the headstart she had gotten. Evelyn was behind them a bit, but she was moving in and out with experience, throwing Aidan off her trail.

“Xander Stott, the Gryffindor captain, takes possession of the Quaffle, racing towards the Ravenclaw goalposts. He is being closely followed by Amaya Cunningham, and Gryffindor is looking like a serious threat as they move together.” Rafael was pointing as he spoke, showing Lucas how to recognize what was happening during the fast paced game. “He is nearing the end of the pitch-” Suddenly, the crowd let out a loud OOH as Addy Lawrence hit a well placed Bludger right at Xander, causing to dive to avoid being knocked off his broom. “And what a well hit shot by Addy Lawrence! She throws Stott off his course, and he is forced to change direction.”

Xander looked around wildly, and he was pleased to see that both of his teammates were available for a pass. He threw the Quaffle to Will, and she caught it with ease as she cut quickly and raced towards the goal.

“Xander makes an excellent pass to Willow Houston, the youngest member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team- well, any team for that matter. She is ahead of Louis Weasley, and she is picking up speed quickly.”

Will tucked the Quaffle underneath her arm as she weaved in and out the different projectiles on the pitch. She only had one goal in mind, and that was for her team to score by any means necessary. Xander was still recovering from his dive, so Evelyn was accompanying her, but as she looked over at her, the older girl nodded with a smile on her face and slowed down only slightly to cut Louis off. Louis nearly crashed into her, but he managed to stop himself in time, and he threw his head over to Aidan and Aidan understood immediately. He took Louis’s place and raced after Will, trying his best to catch up to her, but he was too far behind.

Will ducked underneath another Bludger that had been hit at her by Phoebe Duncan, another Ravenclaw sixth year, but it did little to sway her as she approached the goal. Remy stared at her as they tried to read when she was going, but she feinted right and they bought it, diving that way as she chucked the Quaffle through the left hoop.

“YES!” Will pumped her fist in the air as she turned, the stadium erupting with cheering as she flew back to give Xander and Evelyn high fives.

“Gryffindor gets on the board first, off of a beautiful goal scored by first year Willow Houston!” Rafael yelled, and Lucas was jumping up and down as he cheered along with the rest of the fans.

“Great job, guys. Will, nice goal, and Evelyn, nice offensive play by blocking Louis. Way to make yourselves available for me when I got into trouble with Addy,” Xander said, a huge smile on his face.

Will grinned at him. “Thanks, Xander. Let’s keep scoring,” she said, and Evelyn gave her a fist bump as they returned to the pitch to defend.

Ravenclaw’s Chasers were still huddled up, but they didn’t look upset, Louis had a hand on Aidan’s shoulder and it looked like he was reassuring him, and Aidan gave them a grin. “Ravenclaw, the defending champions of last year, have lost over half their team to graduation. We’ll have to see how they do with their new players- which include Derek Zhang, a third year Seeker from Brighton, Phoebe Duncan, a sixth year Beater from Southampton, Remy Hendrix, a third year Keeper from Oxford, and their youngest new member, Aidan Pucey. Pucey is a second year Chaser from Newcastle, and he is the son of Slytherin legend Adrian Pucey, who graduated from Hogwarts in 1995,” Rafael said, filling the crowd in on the team in the transition moment.

Aidan blushed a little as the Ravenclaws and Slytherins cheered alike, but as he flew back to his starting position to launch the attack, he found a glimpse of his dad in the crowd. Adrian Pucey was wearing all black like he usually did, but he had a Ravenclaw scarf draped over his shoulders, and when he made eye contact with his son, he gave him a huge smile and a thumbs up. With newfound confidence, Aidan turned his focus back to the game, and with a blow of Madam Hooch's whistle, the action started again.

Louis took the Quaffle first, and he immediately rocketed towards Charley and the Gryffindor goalposts, but Will was right on his back. “Go away, Will,” Louis said jokingly, ducking into a little dive to try and throw her off, but she resisted, soon becoming shoulder to shoulder with him.

“Not likely,” she said back with a smirk, and Louis rolled his eyes as he turned sharply to the left and she lost a little bit of ground, but she raced after him and caught up just as he passed the ball to Amaya.

Amaya caught the Quaffle and turned towards the goal, but as soon as it was in her hands, Leon hit a Bludger right at her, and she was forced to roll over in the air to avoid being hit, dropping it in the process, and Evelyn swooped underneath her and caught it.

“That was Leon Bates for Gryffindor, folks, and he hits a Bludger at Cunningham, forcing a Ravenclaw turnover. Gryffindor regains possession as Evelyn Murphy takes the Quaffle and is racing towards the goal.”

Evelyn was flying fast with Will and Xander on either side, but out of nowhere, she felt something- no, someone, come up behind her, and with a well placed punch, Aidan knocked the ball out of her grasp, sending it flying down as he recovered it with skill and quickly whipped his broom around to zoom the other way.

“What a steal by Pucey!” Rafael exclaimed as the Ravenclaws roared. “The second year Chaser knocks the Quaffle out of Murphy’s hands and takes back possession, and they are off towards the Gryffindor defensive.”

Will and Xander came to a screeching halt and turned back to chase Aidan, but Amaya and Louis quickly blocked them and Evelyn was left to try and minimize the gap between her and the young Ravenclaw. But Aidan had caught her off guard and he was going too fast, and as he approached Charley, he stared right at the left hoop. Charley thought recognized the move from things that they had done in their practices, but at the last second, Aidan changed direction as Charley went to the left, and the ball went soaring through the middle hoop.

“Ravenclaw scores! A wonderful shot from Aidan Pucey ties the game ten to ten,” Rafael yelled over the screaming Ravenclaw fans, Blaise amongst them.

Charley cursed as the Chasers flew over to him. “Sorry, guys. I should’ve gotten that one,” he said, but Xander shook his head.

“Don’t worry about it, mate. You’ll get the next one.” He turned to the two girls. “Let’s try Flicker,” he said, referencing a play they had drawn up in practice about a week before. Evelyn and Will nodded, and with a couple fist bumps all around, they signaled to Leon and Peter before they regained their positions to attack. The whistle blew once more, and Charley passed the ball to Evelyn to start the play again.

“The Gryffindor Quidditch team has also lost a few players- bringing in three more to replace the class of 2015,” Rafael said as everyone got set up. “Each new player is a different position, similar to Ravenclaw, and one of which includes Peter Walsh, a seventh year Beater from Newport, Wales. Walsh is the only member of the squad from Wales, and he has been representing his country wonderfully so far.” Peter was currently in the process of hitting a Bludger at Louis to get him off of Will’s tail as she flew to the left of Evelyn, and Louis careened out of the way to avoid being hit, allowing Will to shake him off. “Another standout on the team is Charles Wood, a second year from Edinburgh, Scotland. Wood is the son of Oliver Wood, former captain of one of the most legendary Gryffindor teams in years. Mr Wood graduated in 1994 and is the current Keeper of Puddlemere United.” Oliver was in the crowd with his wife, and when the eyes turned to him, he gestured to his son instead, a hand over his heart as he glowed with pride.

“But the talk of the school so far has been Willow Houston, a first year Chaser. Houston is the first and only eleven year old to make a house team since the rule was officially changed, and the second first year in a century to represent her house in Quidditch- the first being Harry Potter in the 1991-1992 school year.” Harry flushed a little at that as he felt the fans stare at him. “The Houston family is originally from America, but moved to Manchester in 2008. Houston is the daughter of the famous Ballycastle Bats Seeker, William Houston. But even though she’s a Chaser, Houston has shown us some exemplary flying skills that resemble her father’s technical and tactical prowess.” The crowd oohed and aahed as Will took the Quaffle off of a pass from Evelyn, careening to her right to drop it down to a waiting Xander in a perfect show of flying patterns. Xander put a glorious shot in the goal, just inches away from Remy’s fingertips.

“Stott scores for Gryffindor! The lions retake the lead twenty to ten, and the Quaffle is put in the hands of Louis Weasley.” Louis flew upwards to draw Will along with him, and she had no choice to follow him. As they gained height, Louis chucked the Quaffle to his left, where Amaya appeared out of nowhere to catch it and get a quick shot off on Charley, but Charley anticipated it and dove to his right, glancing the Quaffle off of his fingertips and into the hands of Evelyn. The crowd roared, and James and Fred were jumping up and down with excitement as they waved their mini flags.

“What a save by Wood! Gryffindor fends off a brilliant chance from Ravenclaw, and Murphy takes the Quaffle back to the Ravenclaw end,” Rafael yelled, and Lucas had the biggest grin on his face as he studied the game.

“That was brilliant, Fred, absolutely brilliant!” James exclaimed, his cheeks red with excitement.

“Charley is doing awesome right now! I hope we can keep this momentum up,” Fred responded, and there was more cheering from their group as Will put another shot past Remy into the center goal, causing Gryffindor to extend their lead.

Meanwhile, the Slytherins were intensely studying the flying patterns of each team.

“I think Ravenclaw is just nervous- they’re usually a lot more offensive,” Asher said, but Blaise shook his head.

“They’re probably still adjusting to the new dynamic of players since they lost so many last year. Besides, Gryffindor has been doing well defensively.”

“I agree. But for a first year, Willow has been doing pretty well meshing with Xander and Evelyn’s playing styles,” Matteo said, and Finn scoffed.

“She’s alright, nothing special from what I’ve seen so far.”

“Finn, she’s scored three quarters of Gryffindor’s points,” Rocco Massey said with a raised eyebrow as Will scored once more, making the game forty to ten.

“Whatever. I just hope Ravenclaw can get out of whatever funk they’re in.”

“I think Gryffindor is doing really well,” Jaya said. “I don’t know a whole lot about Quidditch, but they look very fluid, and the new Keeper has made some pretty good saves.”

Athena watched as Amaya attempted to rip a shot, but a Bludger sent from Peter caused her to hesitate for a split second and the Quaffle ended up safely in Charley’s hands. “Yeah, you’re right. Gryffindor is definitely outplaying Ravenclaw by a mile right now.”

Evelyn scored her first goal of the match, and it was an impressive one. She shot it from far out, but the amount of force she threw it with caused it to curve at the last second and soar into the left post, and she clenched her fist in pleasure as the Gryffndors cheered once more.

“What’d you think of that one, Athena?” Matteo asked, turning to face her.

“It was a great shot, but did you see the way Will and Xander blocked Louis and Amaya from helping Aidan once Leon hit a Bludger at him? It was a great team goal, and Evelyn polished it off,” she said, and Matteo nodded.

“Definitely. But did you see the curve on that shot? There must’ve been a lot of power in the way she threw that,” he responded.

“Yeah. All three of the Gryffindor Chasers are super fast, which makes sense for Will and Evelyn since they’re smaller, but for his size, Xander is incredibly agile.” Louis took the Quaffle and shot to his right, and Xander took off after him, causing Will to take Amaya as her mark. “The Beaters are also doing really well helping them out, and it looks like Leon and Peter work well together. I can’t say the same for Phoebe and Addy, since it’s clear that Addy is loads better, but I think Phoebe was just nervous because it looks like she’s adjusting quickly.” As she said that, Louis scored a brilliant goal after Phoebe knocked a Bludger at Xander, giving him an open shot that he put in the right goalpost. The Ravenclaws erupted with cheering, and Will took the Quaffle from Charley to race off in the other direction. “No sign of the Snitch, it looks like.”

Jaya looked around for the Seekers. Macie and Derek were both hovering high above the action, and they were both pretty stagnant as they scanned the pitch. “How long does it usually take to catch it?”

Wesley shrugged. “It honestly depends on the day. Sometimes games can be super quick, but I think the longest recorded one was a month long or something. It’s a pretty clear day, though, so they should probably be able to at least see it soon. If it was cloudy or rainy, it would be completely different.”

Athena opened her mouth to say something, but she was interrupted by Blaise standing up abruptly. “BLOODY FUCKING HELL, REF, COME ON!” He yelled, for Will had just gotten slammed into by Louis and had been sent flying through the air, holding onto her broom for dear life. But fortunately, Madam Hooch saw the contact and blew her whistle, awarding Gryffindor a penalty shot.

“Blaise, language?” Matteo said weakly, but Blaise only rolled his eyes as he sat down.

“It was a clear foul.”

Louis had immediately stopped and went over to check on Will after he had fouled her. He grabbed her arm to steady her, grimacing as she adjusted herself. “Sorry about that, kid. It was an accident,” he said sheepishly, and Will dusted herself off a little.

“That’s alright. What’s a Quidditch game without a little contact?” She said, grinning up at him, and he shook his head but couldn’t keep his smile hidden.

“Yeah, you’re just a lot smaller than the people I’m used to marking. Last year, I had to mark a Gryffindor dude that was practically a giant,” he joked, and she laughed.

“Well, you know I can take it. But thanks for the penalty, though,” she responded, wiggling her eyebrows at him playfully.

He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Go take the stupid shot.”

“I appreciate the good luck wish,” she called over her shoulder as she flew towards where Xander and Evelyn were gathered around Madam Hooch.

“I hope you miss!”

“Will, you take this one,” Xander said, holding the Quaffle out to her.

She took it with a puzzled look on her face. “Are you sure?”

Xander nodded without hesitation. “Of course. You get fouled, you take the penalty. You got this,” he said, and she grinned at him as she flew over to take her position in front of Remy.

“Ravenclaw foul on Louis Weasley, and Willow Houston is at the line to take the penalty,” Rafael announced, and the Ravenclaws started yelling and otherwise just causing mayhem to distract her, but Will tuned them out. When Madam Hooch blew her whistle, Remy guessed right and she went straight down the middle, causing Gryffindor to go up sixty to ten.

“Houston puts it away easily, and Gryffindor extends their lead even more.” Rafael looked over at the playsheet that Lucas had been keeping for him as he commentated. “Houston now has forty of Gryffindor’s sixty points, and the lions look to be in a good spot at this point in the game.”

But Amaya had pulled the entire team into a little huddle after the penalty, and the momentum shifted. Ravenclaw soon started to find their groove a little more, and the score became less skewered as time went on.

Soon, the score read one hundred and ten to eighty, and although Gryffindor had the lead, Xander flew up during one of the transition moments to talk to Macie. “How’s it looking?”

Macie shook her head. “I haven’t seen anything so far, and neither has he,” she said, gesturing to Derek.

Xander sighed. “Okay, that’s fine. Just be on the lookout, because this is going to be a touch game.”

She nodded. “You got it.”

When play resumed, Gryffindor took back more of their lead again. Remy was doing the best he could, but he was no match for Xander, Evelyn, and Will, who resembled a well oiled machine as they executed perfect passes and flying patterns. Louis, Amaya, and Aidan were fighting hard, but Leon and Peter were making it hard for them to take control of the game. Xander scored another goal, causing Gryffindors to cheer, and Rafael looked at the playsheet.

“Stott scores once more for Gryffindor, making the score one hundred and twenty to eighty, and- IS THAT THE SNITCH?”

Macie had taken off into a dive right through the middle of the action, and Derek was only a few meters behind her. Will turned her head for a split second, and she caught a glimpse of the golden ball, and Macie was gaining on it rapidly.

Addy had looked, too, and instead of hitting a Bludger at Evelyn as she approached the goal, she instead directed it to the Seeker, and Macie saw it only seconds before disaster, and she was forced to roll out of the way, losing the Snitch in the fray. But luckily for Gryffindor, Macie’s roll had cut into Derek’s flight path, and he too lost his angle on the golden ball.

There was a collective sigh of disappointment from the crowd as Macie clapped her hands together in frustration, taking off towards Charley’s goalposts as Derek climbed back up to his previous position high above the action. “A great defensive play from Lawrence stops Macie Powell from catching the Snitch, but in the chaos, Ravenclaw Seeker Derek Zhang also loses his window. Two goals from Murphy and Houston and a screamer from Weasley make the score one hundred and forty to ninety, in favor of Gryffindor,” Rafael said.

Macie had decided to change her approach, instead circling the lower part of the pitch whereas Derek stayed high. It was definitely more risky, as this put her in the path of the Chasers as well as the Bludgers, but she split her focus into looking for the Snitch and making sure nothing and no one hit her. A few more plays went by as the score heightened, but soon, Macie saw her saving grace.

The Snitch was hovering near the bottom of the field, underneath the Ravenclaw goalposts, and she immediately shot towards it. Derek recognized her movement and dove after her, but she had gotten too much of a head start. She dodged a Bludger sent by Phoebe and ducked under Louis, and she reached out her hand to grab it. It saw her too late, and as soon as it tried to fly away, her fingers wrapped around the tiny ball, and she skidded to a stop, holding it high above her head as the Gryffindor fans nearly exploded.

“MACIE POWELL HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! I REPEAT, MACIE POWELL HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!” Rafael yelled, and Lucas was jumping up and down in excitement, his playsheet forgotten for the moment. “Gryffindor wins the game, with a final score of three hundred and ten to one hundred and twenty! Gryffindor wins!”

Will was screaming as she and the rest of the team flew down to give Macie a huge group hug, and they floated up to the middle of the field. Charley threw his arm over Will’s shoulder as they cheered along with the crowd, and in the fray, she caught a glimpse of her family. Will’s mom and sister were jumping up and down enthusiastically, but her father was smiling. When she made eye contact with him, he clapped and grinned at her, and she felt a rush of pride.

Xander flew over to both of them and pulled Charley and Will into a giant hug. “We did it!” He yelled, and when he pulled away, he kept his hands on Will’s shoulders. “I’m proud of you, Will,” he said, and she flushed.

“Thanks, Xander. You did great, too.”

He pulled her into another hug before the entire team got into a line and grabbed each other's hands, and when they raised them in unison, they and the crowd both yelled, “GRYFFINDOR!” loud enough for the world to hear.

Chapter Text

After the Gryffindor victory, a few of the players had stayed back to talk to their families. Will was among them, flying over to where her family was sitting and hovering on her broom as she talked to her father about how the game went. William Houston had pointed out a few things that she could fix, but more importantly, he congratulated her on the victory and the success she had during her first Quidditch game. Will’s mom, Marietta, had given her daughter a huge hug and promised that they would try and attend as many games as they could throughout the season. Her little sister, Mason, a tiny girl of eight, had jumped up and down and begged Will to let her ride her broom, but after a stern look from her father, she had relented and instead reveled in the glory of being at Hogwarts for the first time.

Will had told her parents that she loved it at Hogwarts, which was somewhat of a relief for them. Since they had both graduated from Ilvermorny, they had no idea what to expect of the European school, and they were pleased to hear that things were going well. It was their first time on Hogwarts grounds as well, and they were quite impressed with the culture of not only the Quidditch, but the school’s camaraderie. They asked her about school, and she professed her love for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Will had wanted to be a professional Quidditch player like her dad since she was a little girl, but she was a very talented witch, and the Houstons always stressed to her about the importance of academics, and they were pleased to hear that she was excelling in school.

Will didn’t stay for long, only catching up a bit before she bid her family goodbye and flew back to the locker room, where her team was waiting. Xander was blaring music through the speakers and the six other players were singing and dancing as they took their gear off.

“There she is!” Charley said, poking his head out from his locker as he pulled off his shoulder pads. “Did you talk to your parents?”

Will hung her broom up and took off her cape. “Yeah, I did. My parents have never been to Hogwarts before, so they were pretty impressed with it. How about you?”

“I talked to mine, too. My mum is a Muggle, so she hasn’t been here either, and she was in awe of the castle,” Charley responded, chuckling a bit. “What did your dad think of the game?”

“He was pleased, I think. He gave me some pointers on some stuff I could work on, but overall, he said I did a good job,” she said happily as she pulled off her arm pads and gloves.

“Ditto. My dad said I did great, but honestly, I think he was the happiest after Rafael talked about him in the commentary,” he joked, earning a laugh from her.

They talked a bit more as they got undressed, and as they exited to go see their friends, the whole team had one more celebratory dance to Livin la Vida Loca. “We’ll take tomorrow and Monday off to recover a bit,” Xander said after the music ended. “See you all on Tuesday!”

When Charley and Will got out of the locker room, Blaise, Athena, James, and Fred were waiting for them outside. It was sort of an odd pairing, and James and Athena were definitely avoiding talking to each other, but Will was delighted to see her friends together. “Hey, guys,” Athena said, and Will immediately ran up to her.

“Hey! What’d you think of the game? It was intense, for sure, but it was awesome! I’ve never played a game with a commentator before- Rafael did a really good job. Lucas is training to be the next one, because his dad was one when he was here, and I think he had a really good time, but I’ll have to ask him about it when I see him later. Ravenclaw was really good- the Chasers were really fast and it took a little bit to adjust, but I was marking Louis, and I train with him a lot whenever he comes to the Potters, so I was pretty comfortable with it. Addy, the Beater, is really good! She definitely has been playing for a while. She hit a ton at me! Thankfully, I didn’t get knocked off my broom.” Will had resumed her usual chattering, and Athena only shook her head as she just stood there, listening to her talk.

James shook his head. “I can’t believe Louis didn’t actually knock you off.”

Fred nodded, grinning. “I agree. When he fouled you that one time, I thought for sure you were a goner.”

Will shook her head. “Believe me, I did, too. He’s done it plenty of other times before- I think my adrenaline helped me out just enough in that moment.”

“You and Charley both did great,” Blaise said, coming over after talking to the other boy for a bit. “However, it won’t matter in a month, because Slytherin is going to defeat you in a very dramatic fashion.”

Will rolled her eyes. “Oh, whatever, Blaise. We’ll see how well you guys do against Hufflepuff tomorrow.”

But as soon as she finished, she felt something knock into her from behind, and suddenly, she was being lifted into the air in a giant hug. “What the-” She craned her neck to look behind her, and her face lit up when she recognized the red hair of Louis Weasley. “Louis!”

Louis put her down before ruffling her hair. “Great job today, kid. You certainly gave me a run for my money.”

She blushed a little. “Thanks. You did great, too- you scored some pretty awesome goals.”

He chuckled. “Likewise. Sucks that we lost, but your Seeker had a great catch. We’ll get you guys next time.”

Will laughed. “In your dreams.”

Louis ruffled her hair again before turning to Charley. “Charley, right? You’re a great Keeper- you had a ton of saves today. Respect.” He offered his hand out for a fist bump, and Charley didn’t hesitate before returning it.

“Thanks, mate. You all have a strong team. I’m hoping you’ll beat Slytherin very decisively next month,” he said, casting a glance at Blaise, who rolled his eyes.

Louis smiled. “We’ll see. How are you two doing?” He pulled James and Fred both in for a hug, and both younger boys resisted, but when he let go, they both had slightly red cheeks.

“Pretty good- classes are so so,” Fred said.

James nodded. “I really like Transfiguration.”

“Great choice. Professor MacDonald is pretty cool. These your friends?” Louis gestured to Athena and Blaise, and Athena and James immediately wrinkled their noses.

“No. They’re friends with Will, and we were both just waiting for her after the game,” James said.

“Like I’d ever willingly be friends with you,” Athena muttered under her breath, but luckily, James didn’t hear it.

The Ravenclaw chuckled. “Well, I better get going. A couple friends and I are going to Hogsmeade later to get some drinks at the Three Broomsticks. I’ll see you all later,” he said, turning and waving as he left.

Athena turned to Will. “Is that your cousin?”

“Nah, he’s not actually related to me. He, James, and Fred are all first cousins, but since my family is so close to theirs, we grew up together once we left the States,” she said, pulling her backpack up a little more over her shoulder.

“He seems nice.”

“He is. He’s really good at Quidditch- I think he wants to try and go pro after he graduates.” She dropped her voice into a whisper. “Don’t tell James, but he’s probably my favorite out of the Weasleys.” Will smirked, and Athena couldn’t help but return it as James’s cheeks flushed.

“Hey, I heard that!”

Fred had a look of disgust on his face. “What am I, chopped liver?”

“Aidan!” Blaise exclaimed, and they turned to see the Ravenclaw slink out of the locker room. He looked a little down, probably still a little miffed at the loss, but when he saw his friends, his face lit up.

“Hey. Nice hoodie, Blaise,” he said, grinning at his friend.

“I think his beanie is a lot more attractive,” Charley said matter-of-factly, and Blaise chuckled.

“I couldn’t pick a side. As a Slytherin, I’m obligated to stay neutral when my friends are playing each other. You all did awesome, though. It was a super fun game to watch.”

James shrugged. “It was a good one to start the season off with. It was a bit longer than I was expecting, though.”

Aidan sighed. “Yeah, but thankfully, it wasn’t too long. I was beginning to get a little worried when Gryffindor hit a hundred and fifty points and there was still no sign of the Snitch.”

Will nodded. “I agree. But luckily, we weren’t there all night. That would’ve sucked. Did you get to see your dad?”

The mention of his father brought a smile to Aidan’s face. “Yeah, I talked to him a bit after. He said he was proud of me.”

Blaise grinned. “That’s great, dude. You had some nice goals.”

“Thanks. It was weird trying to score on Charley, but I think we both had some good moments.”

“You really got me with that first goal,” Charley groaned. “I totally thought you were going to go left because you do it all the time when we go flying.”

Aidan chuckled. “Yeah, that’s exactly why I didn’t go left that time.” He turned to Will. “Your walkout song was pretty cool.”

She smiled. “I thought so, too. Xander did a pretty good job of picking it. I liked yours a lot, too. Do you always do 2000s hip hop?”

“We try. It’s sort of our thing, I think.”

Athena smiled, remembering what Finn had said about Gryffindor’s song last year. “Yeah, well, it’s loads better than Livin la Vida Loca.”

Will and James both looked incredibly offended at that. “What are you talking about? Livin la Vida Loca is a classic!” She exclaimed.

Blaise rolled his eyes. “Keep telling yourself that, Will.”

They walked back to the castle, Will and James still insisting that the Ricky Martin song was a great choice. “Tacky? What do you mean, it’s tacky? It was totally a hit in 1999!” James said.

Will nodded in agreement. “Not to mention, it was played over an amazing ending in the 2004 cinematic masterpiece Shrek 2!” She said indignantly, and Blaise shook his head.

“The fact that it was in Shrek 2 is a crime in itself.”

“No, I agree with Will. Shrek 2 is a good movie,” Charley said.

Athena groaned. “Not you, too.”

Fred crossed his arms. “Athena, I’ll have you know that the Fairy Godmother’s rendition of Holding Out For A Hero was a pivotal moment in pop culture.”

Aidan, who was a pureblood and hadn’t ever really been indulged into Muggle media besides music, had no idea what they were talking about. “Shrek 2? What is a Shrek?”

Will’s mouth dropped open. “You’ve never seen any of the Shrek movies? Oh my Godric, Aidan, we have to watch it as soon as we get back. In my opinion, Shrek The Third is the best one, but we should start with the first and we can work our way up.”

The Ravenclaw winced. “Right now?”

“Yes, Aidan, right now. This is of utmost importance,” Charley said seriously, and Blaise facepalmed.

“Good job, Athena, now that you got them all wound up, they won’t stop.”

Athena looked mildly offended. “Me? All I did was mention their lame walkout song from last year!”

“It was enough.”

“Excuse me, wound up? What are we, puppies?” Will said indignantly, and Charley crossed his arms.

“Yeah, basically. You lay around and eat my food until I say the word ‘walk’ and then you get all excited and go crazy,” Blaise said. He pulled a long, curly piece of black hair off of his sweatshirt, holding it out so Will could see. “Also, you shed.”

Will nearly exploded. She and Blaise continued to bicker for the rest of the way up to the castle, but Athena actually found it quite entertaining. It was nice to see Will and Blaise spend time with each other- they both had very strong personalities, but for some reason, they seemed to compliment each other. Athena also didn’t mind Aidan and Charley. They both were pretty down to earth and friendly, which was a nice contrast to Blaise’s sometimes standoffish nature. And she hated to admit it, but she was starting to warm up to James and Fred. She definitely still wasn’t James’s biggest fan, but Fred was funny and he always kept it real. She had also accepted that if she was going to be friends with Will, she would have to be civil to James, and she’d be lying if she didn’t think that teasing him about Shrek 2 was pretty entertaining.

Once they reached the castle, Charley had immediately grabbed Aidan and started dragging him towards the Gryffindor Common Room, and Blaise groaned. “See you later, ‘Thena,” he said before following them. Athena gave a little wave and Will started to walk after them, but she paused.

“Do you want to come, too? Just warning you though, we will be watching all four Shrek movies and maybe even the holiday special and a Puss-In-Boots spin off as well, though, so I won’t be offended if you don’t want to,” she said, her cheeks flushing a little.

Athena laughed before waving her away. “I think I’ll have to pass- I’ve still got some homework I haven’t started yet. Also, sorry to admit it, but the Shrek movie series is not my favorite in the world,” she joked, earning a laugh from Will.

“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow for the game. Actually, can I sit with you?” She asked.

Athena nodded. “Sure, if you don’t mind hanging out with a bunch of Slytherins,” she said, and Will grinned.

“Of course not. See you later!” And with that, she gave one final wave before running after the boys, and Athena was left with James and Fred.

Fred turned to her. “Defense Against The Dark Arts essay?”

Athena sighed. “Yeah. You guys working on it too?”

He nodded. “Yep. We’re probably going to go to the library if you want to join us.”

Athena hesitated, thinking it over. She wasn’t super excited to spend the rest of her day with James, but she was planning on going to the library anyway and it might be helpful to bounce off some of her ideas with her classmates.

As she was thinking, James cleared his throat. “I actually had a question that I’ve been meaning to ask you, Athena.”

The Slytherin was incredibly surprised by that. “What? You do?”

James shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah. Will mentioned that you were doing your essay on the ethical methods of preserving Kappas in their natural environment. I’m actually doing mine as a persuasive piece that talks about why hunting Kappas in Japan should be illegal. I was going to see if we could compare some of our research- if you want to, of course.”

Athena hesitated for a second, but she recovered quickly. “That sounds good. Let me head back to the common room and grab my bag, and I’ll meet you in the library.”

Fred grinned. “Okay, we’ll see you then.” He waved once more before he and James turned and followed Will, Blaise, Charley, and Aidan to the Common Room. Athena watched them for a second before making her way to her own room. It was a bit odd to want to hang out with James and Fred willingly, but it had been nice of them to include her.

Additionally, she had been caught off guard at the question that James had asked. To be completely honest, she was a little impressed at James’s intellect. She had sort of written him off as just another Gryffindor that cared more about Quidditch than school, but the topic that he had chosen for his essay was pretty interesting, and she wouldn’t have guessed that he would have thought of an idea to do something radical and persuasive. She shook her head before entering the Common Room, but she couldn’t deny that she was excited.

Once they had gotten to the Common Room, an unsuspecting Will and Charley were both immediately grabbed by their shirts and thrown into the middle of a party. The Gryffindor Quidditch team was all in the middle celebrating their win, and although the party had been in the process of dying down, the two youngest additions to the team had revamped it immediately.

Xander picked Will up and put her on his shoulders. “Youngest Chaser in centuries!” He yelled. “Seven goals in her first match!”

Will blushed as she held onto his shoulders for dear life and the Gryffindors cheered. “Gryffindor!” She screamed, and the Common Room screamed with her.

Blaise and Aidan were pressed into the very corner of the room, and although some students were giving them dirty looks since Aidan was still wearing his Ravenclaw gear and Blaise still had on Aidan’s sweatshirt, they were mostly going unnoticed as everyone celebrated in the middle. “Are Gryffindors always this dramatic?” Blaise asked, his nose wrinkled as he watched the party with his arms crossed.

Aidan sighed. “I hope not.”

Peter had grabbed Charley and was giving him a dramatic noogie. “Six saves and two assists!” He yelled, and it was Charley’s turn to blush as more cheering ensured.

Will patted the top of Xander’s head. “Can you put me down?”

He chuckled before gently placing her on the ground. “Not in the mood to celebrate?” He joked, and Will flushed before responding.

“Oh, no, I am, but my friends are here.” She gestured over to where Blaise and Aidan were standing, and Xander nodded in understanding.

“Okay, no worries. But the next time we win, be ready, because we’re partying all night,” he said, winking at her.

Will’s cheeks were flaming now, and she was sure that if the lighting wasn’t so dim, she would be making a complete fool out of herself. “Sounds good,” she managed, and he grinned at her before turning back to the party.

Will grabbed Charley from Peter’s grasp and pulled him over to where Blaise and Aidan were standing. “Sorry about that, guys. I had no idea they’d be here,” she said sheepishly, and Blaise shook his head.

“Is everything always a party here?”

“Actually, no. Today is an exception because we just got done kicking Aidan’s ass,” Charley teased, wiggling his eyebrows.

Aidan scowled. “Oh, whatever.” He turned back to the crowd. “Where are we going to watch these movies if everyone’s down here?”

The four paused for a second, thinking it over before Will was struck with an idea. “We can go to my room! I’m the only girl in my class, so I get a room to myself.”

Charley hesitated. “Will the stairs let me up?”

“Oh, shit. I didn’t think about that.” Will paused. “Let’s just try it and if not, we can think of something else.”

The four of them squirmed their way through the crowd to eventually reach the stairs of the girls dormitory. Will, Aidan, and Blaise got up the stairs with no problem, but Charley waited at the bottom before trying. When he took his first step, he was expecting the stairs to turn into a slide and send him sprawling into the party below, but the stairs stayed steady, and he raced up them before they could change their mind.

“I was not expecting that to actually work,” Will said as Charley reached the top of the stairs.

“Yeah, me neither. Maybe it’s confused because of the party,” he responded.

“Or maybe it doesn’t change into a slide anymore,” Aidan suggested.

“Or maybe Charley has a secret vagina he’s not telling us about,” Blaise added, and Charley scowled.

“I will throw you down these stairs without hesitation.”

Will laughed, unlocking her door and pushing it open. “Well, we got up, so let’s take advantage of it.” The four of them walked in, and Blaise and Charley immediately stopped to stare for a second. They had never seen a room that was only for one person before, and they also had never been inside a Gryffindor girls dormitory. “Don’t mind the mess- I’ve been meaning to clean up, but I keep forgetting,” Will said sheepishly. Her bed wasn’t made and there were a couple articles of clothing on the floor, but she kicked them under her bed and sat on a couch. Charley immediately dropped his stuff and sat next to her and Aidan sat on the other side of him, and Blaise made himself comfortable in a maroon chair.

“This room is amazing, Will,” Charley said, still in awe.

She shrugged as she pulled out a laptop from her bag. “Yeah, I’m pretty lucky that I get it all to myself.”

“I wish I had a room to myself,” Blaise grumbled. He had to share his room with five other boys, and even though he liked all of them, it was sometimes a little cramped.

“Well, Blaise, if you become Head Boy, you will,” Aidan said.

“That’s, like, six years away,” he responded dully, and Charley chuckled.

“Don’t give up hope, mate.” He turned to Will, who was logging into a movie streaming service. “Have you talked to your parents about the International Quidditch Tournament?”

She looked up. “The what?”

“You don’t know about it?” Blaise asked, turning to face her.

“Wait, what? An International Quidditch Tournament?”

Aidan nodded. “Yeah. Apparently, every one hundred years, there’s this giant Quidditch tournament that’s hosted by one of the six major wizarding schools. The next one is supposed to happen in 2020, which is when Blaise, Charley and I are sixth years and when you’re a fifth year.”

Will was dumbstruck at the news. “Wait, you’re serious?”

Blaise nodded. “Totally serious. The participating schools are us, Ilvermorny, Durmstrang, Beauxbatons, Castelobruxo, and Mahoutokoro. It’s supposed to be in Japan when it happens, and even though it’s a while away, the four of us all have a pretty decent chance of making the school team since we’ll be older,” he said, and Will slowly started to smile.

“That’s amazing! Holy freaking Merlin, I have to tell my dad about it. And Athena! I’m sure she’ll want to know, too! Oh, we are going to destroy Ilvermorny-”

“You got a personal grudge against Ilvermorny?” Aidan joked.

“Oh, definitely. My parents went there,” she said, and Charley cocked his head.

“Did they really? I mean, I know you have a weird American accent, which means you lived in the US at one point, but I had no idea your parents went there,” he said, and she nodded.

“Yep. I was born in Chicago, if you guys know where that is. My parents graduated from Ilvermorny in the 90s, and we moved to Manchester in 2008. My mom was a Pukwudgie and my dad was a Horned Serpent.”

Charley looked at her blankly. “I’m going to pretend that I know what those words mean.”

She laughed. “They don’t really have a Hogwarts equivalent, or else I’d compare them. Basically, Pukwudgie is the house of the healers, and Horned Serpent is the house of the scholars.”

Blaise raised an eyebrow. “That sounds a lot like Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw to me.”

Will shook her head. “No, it’s actually a lot different, and I know this because if my dad went to Hogwarts, he would definitely be a Slytherin.” She pulled up the first Shrek movie. “Alright, someone make some popcorn because Aidan’s life is about to be changed permanently.”

Blaise groaned, moving over to sit next to her so he could see the screen. “We never should have brought this up.”

Athena had gotten to the library much quicker than Fred and James, and for some reason, she was beginning to think that they weren’t coming. Her face was flaming red as she thought about the possibility that they had set her up to look stupid- she wouldn’t put it past James. She was so stupid! She never should have trusted him.

Just as she was about to sweep her things back into her bag, the door to the library opened and James and Fred walked in. “Hey, sorry we’re a little late. The Quidditch team is having a party,” Fred said, sitting down.

Athena felt her face redden again, embarrassed at the thought that she was actually convinced that they had stood her up. “Oh. That’s okay.”

“It was crazy- the whole house is in the Common Room, pretty much. However, I think Will and Charley actually made do on their promise to make Aidan watch all the Shrek movies, because they weren’t there,” James said as he pulled out his books and some parchment.

Athena shook her head. “What a terrible, terrible fate.”

Fred snickered. “Athena, you can deny it all you want but you know in your heart that those movies were a true cultural reset.”

“Most of them are older than we are, Fred. We aren’t old enough to even know if they had that big of an effect.”

“No, but it’s the principle of it.”

“Can we finish these papers, please?” James asked. “I don’t want to be here all night.”

Athena nodded. “To that I agree. What did you want to ask me about, James?”

James pulled out another book and slid it across the table to her. “I found this book on the poachers of the magical community. It kind of talks about the ethics behind it in chapter two- I figured you would want to take a look at it and maybe use it as a source.”

Athena was surprised. James Potter, helping her? That wasn’t something you see everyday. “Thank you,” she managed, picking up the book and flipping through it a bit.

“Man, you guys picked some in depth topics. I did mine on the functionality of their water filled head,” Fred said, writing down a few more sentences.

“I wish I would’ve picked an easier one, but my dad always grades my stuff harder than everyone else’s, so I had to do something impressive.” James opened another book to a specific page, running his finger down the words until he found a specific quote.

Athena shrugged. “I’ve always kind of been interested in magical creatures. I think they’re really awesome to study.”

“So you think you’ll take Care of Magical Creatures our third year?” Fred asked.

She nodded. “Yeah, probably. I’ve been thinking about that and Arithmancy.”

“Isn’t that like Muggle math?” James asked.

“I think so.”

“Oh. I definitely won’t be taking that one, then. I suck at it,” James said.

Athena cocked her head. “How do you know?”

“Will’s parents put her through Muggle school for her first five years or so. She brought home math homework a lot, and I would always try to do it too, because I was like ‘anything she can do I can do, too’ but it was really hard. She’s pretty good at it, though, so maybe you guys will take the same classes.”

“I’ve thought about Arithmancy, but Divination sounds kind of fun,” Fred said.

James wrinkled his nose. “Have you learned nothing? My dad, Uncle Ron, and Aunt Hermione all say that that is the worst class that’s offered at this school.”

“Just because Uncle Ron got a T on his OWLs, your dad got a D, and Aunt Hermione dropped the class doesn’t mean it’s a bad class, James,” Fred retorted back. “Maybe it just wasn’t for them.”

Athena was mildly confused. “What? I haven’t heard anything bad about it.”

“My Uncle Ron said the professor is bonkers,” James said.

“Actually?”

“Yeah. They did not get along. He says Divination isn’t a real form of magic.”

“Divination is actually a real thing, James. Some people just don’t believe in it because it’s not as black and white as regular magic,” Fred said, annoyed.

“Whatever. I’m probably going to take Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes. That at least sounds interesting.”

Athena, who had found a couple pieces of information from the book James had given her, slid it back across the table. “Thank you for this, James. I found some good stuff in it.”

“No problem.” He paused, like he was going to say something else, but then he closed his mouth and resumed writing.

“I’m actually pretty much done, so if you want me to proofread yours after you finish, I can,” Athena said hesitantly, and James only nodded without looking up.

“That sounds good. Thanks.”

They worked in silence for a bit, not really speaking as they all tried to finish up. It was peaceful, almost- something that Athena wasn’t really expecting, but not really opposed to. Occasionally, they would bounce ideas off of each other and correct each other’s grammar, and by the time they were done, all three of them had essays that they were sure were going to get top marks in the class.

As Athena carefully put her books back into her back, she turned to the two Gryffindors. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow?”

Fred nodded. “Sure. Care if we sit with you for the game?”

Athena bit back a grin. “You’re welcome to- if she’s as bad as Blaise when it comes to watching Quidditch, I don’t know if I can sit through an entire game with Will,” she joked, earning a chuckle from James.

“Yeah, she gets pretty into it.” He stood up. “No offense, Athena, but my money's on Hufflepuff. They’re the favorites this year.”

Athena sighed. “I heard. I have faith in Slytherin, though. It’s going to be a good game regardless.” She checked her watch. “I should probably get going.”

Fred gave a friendly wave. “See you around. Thanks for the help with the essay, by the way.”

This time, Athena did smile. “Likewise.”

Chapter Text

Blaise was having an absolutely horrible morning.

For starters, he woke up late. He planned on getting up at around 8:30 or 9:00 and going down to the Great Hall with Theo, Reuben, and Felix, but instead, he was shaken awake by Matteo at ten til ten. “Hey, mate, aren’t you supposed to be down at the field by 10:15?” He asked, concerned.

Blaise jolted upright and swore so loudly Matteo winced. “Fuck! I slept through my alarm!” He cursed, grabbing his phone that was on his night stand and vibrating softly.

Matteo scratched his head sheepishly. “You’ve still got time.”

“No, Matteo, I don’t.” Blaise tore off his pajamas and threw on his ratty practice shirt. “I was supposed to eat breakfast an hour ago and now I have to eat nothing before the game,” he said, running around the dorm and grabbing all of his Quidditch supplies, which he thankfully packed the night before, his words slightly muffled as he shoved his toothbrush in his mouth.

From across the room, Finn groaned loudly and rolled over in his bed. “Some of us can actually sleep in, Blaise, so stop yelling so loud.”

“Shove off, Finn,” Blaise said, chucking a pillow at him as he frantically put his contacts in. Finn only groaned once more and yanked the blankets over his head, mumbling about how Blaise was making too much noise. “I’ll see you guys after the game.” Blaise was shoving his bag over his shoulder and preparing to sprint out of the door, but with one last glance, turned back. “Thanks for waking me up, Matteo,” he called over his shoulder, but by the time Matteo had raised his hand to wave, Blaise was already gone.

When Blaise left his dorm, it was 10:01 and he had fourteen minutes to get down to the field. That was plenty of time, but he still moved at a brisk pace to eliminate the possibility of being late. But that was only the beginning of things that were going wrong for him.

It was absolutely pouring as he speed-walked down the stairs toward the pitch, and he swore once more as he hoisted up his jacket to cover his head. Playing a Quidditch game was hard enough already- the terrible conditions were going to make it even worse.

He made it down to the locker room with nine minutes to spare, and he breathed out a sigh of relief as he approached the building. There were a few kids walking into the stands with umbrellas open, and they were mostly Slytherins and Hufflepuffs, but he saw quite a few Gryffindors and Ravenclaws despite the conditions. But just as he was about to walk inside, he heard a yell from a group of kids nearby.

He turned around to see four students sprinting at him, and he barely had enough time to brace himself before two of them knocked into him. “Hey, guys,” he grumbled, shoving Charley off as Will immediately started drying him off with a towel.

“Where have you been?” Athena asked, crossing her arms. She was wearing her uniform, the same as yesterday, but she had on a black rain jacket instead of her robe that had the Slytherin emblem over her chest.

“I overslept.”

Aidan, who was holding a very large umbrella over the five kids, sighed. He was wearing one of Blaise’s sweatshirts that he had borrowed the night before in similar fashion to Blaise yesterday. “I told you to set more than one alarm, Blaise.”

“I did! It just didn’t make a loud enough noise, I guess, because when Matteo woke me up, my phone had been vibrating for an entire hour.”

Charley couldn’t help himself. “Are you serious? I knew you were a heavy sleeper, mate, but I didn’t know you went into comas,” he joked, grinning at his friend as he adjusted a green beanie that was covering his sandy hair, and Blaise scowled.

“Ha ha, very funny, I’m laughing so hard right now. Can you see me laughing?” He gestured to his face, which was void of all emotion, and that only made Charley chuckle even more, wiping his face with the sleeves of the Slytherin sweater he had borrowed. “Anyways, since I woke up late, I didn’t have time to grab something and eat,” Blaise said, shaking his head.

“Oh, don’t worry, I have an extra bagel.” To Blaise’s surprise, Will offered out a bagel that already had jelly spread onto it. Will was wearing one of Athena’s emerald green Slytherin sweatshirts and had a backwards black Slytherin baseball cap covering her wild hair as she held the bagel out.

Blaise hesitated. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” Will physically opened his hand and placed the bagel into it, smiling goodnaturedly. “You need it more than me, and I already ate today. I had already put the jelly on it before I realized I was full, so believe me, it’s not like I’m giving you my only food. Besides, you have to have fuel if you’re going to kick some Hufflepuff ass.”

Blaise looked down at the bagel in his hand. “Thank you, Will.”

“No problem.” She turned back to Aidan, holding a hand out from underneath the umbrella to feel the rain. “It’s really coming down, huh?”

Aidan nodded. “For sure. I don’t think it’ll last for too much longer, though, so you should be good later. It may get a little wet during warmups, but I’m sure it’ll be fine for the game.”

Blaise sighed. “Finally, some good news.” He checked his watch. “Well, I should get going. I’ll meet you guys here after the game,” he said, and the other four waved.

“Good luck!” Will exclaimed, before grabbing Athena’s arm and leading her towards the stands with Charley and Aidan hot on their heels, chattering away.

Blaise was a little nervous as he walked in the locker room, preparing himself for a verbal lashing because he overslept and missed breakfast. However, when he stepped inside, he was surprised to see Reuben and Theo shirtless, both vigorously strumming air guitars as they headbanged to You Shook Me All Night Long by AC/DC.

“Hey, you made it!” Felix exclaimed, coming up from behind him and grabbing his shoulders. “We were getting worried when you didn’t show up from breakfast.”

Blaise blushed. “Yeah, sorry about that. I accidentally slept through my alarm,” he said sheepishly, but Felix waved his hand in reassurance.

“Don’t worry about it, mate. Happens to everyone. One time, Darius slept through his alarm and he didn’t show up here until two minutes into warm ups.”

From across the room, Darius scowled. “We’re not talking about that.”

Theo laughed, pausing his headbanging to change the song. “That was a good one! He couldn’t get mad at us for the rest of the year after that because we kept bringing it up.”

Darius threw a towel at him. “Shut up, Theo.”

Bailey, who had been relatively quiet the whole time, shook her head in exasperation. “Don’t worry about them, Blaise. They’re all a bunch of idiots.” She walked over and placed her hand on his shoulder, pointing at one of the lockers. “This one is yours. The game starts at noon, but we go out for warm ups at 10:45 and then we come back in after around thirty five minutes and go back out at 11:40. So, take all the time you need to get ready and we’ve got about thirty minutes or so before we head out.”

“Hopefully the rain will stop by then,” Kaydan Thorton said as Blaise walked to his locker, and Bailey nodded in agreement.

“It is so not fair that the Gryffindors and the Ravenclaws got such good conditions yesterday but it just decides to open up on us,” she said, scowling.

“Agreed. But we can’t do anything about it now, so let’s just get our minds right,” Darius replied, pulling some more pads on.

Blaise tuned them out and stared at his locker. It was relatively the same as Gryffindor’s, with a nameplate on top reading Blaise Whitacker. Birmingham, England, United Kingdom. 1. He ran his fingers over the engraving, his chest warming. He placed his bag down in the locker, and in the back of it, there was a large Slytherin crest. On the sides of the locker, there were headshots of every Keeper that had ever worn the number one jersey, and underneath, there was their name, graduation year, and some significant stats. He stared at the empty space next to the previous Keeper, where his headshot would go. He had six years to make his mark- why not start now?

The jersey hanging up was emerald green, and he ran his fingers over the hem of his cape, staring at his last name embroidered in silver letters over his number. Touching the jersey finally made everything seem real to Blaise. He wasn’t playing his club games with Tutshill’s Academy team anymore- this was for real.

“You getting ready there, mate?” Reuben called over his shoulder, and Blaise snapped out of his thoughts to start putting his pads on.

“Yeah, I’ll be ready in a second.”

“No rush- take it all in. This is a big deal!” He walked over and clapped a heavy hand onto the younger boy’s shoulder, grinning as Blaise blushed ever so slightly. “Besides, you’ve still got thirty minutes or so, but if you want to get taped or anything, you should give yourself about fifteen extra minutes.”

“That’s a good idea,” Blaise said, looking down at his hands. The extra pads that Keepers wore definitely did a lot to protect him, but he had started taping his wrists when he was young after dislocating one on a bad collision with a goalpost. The tape jobs were probably not of the utmost importance, but he liked to be prepared, and he knew that a lot of football goalkeepers tape their joints in order to maintain stability. One could never be too careful.

Meanwhile, Will, Athena, Aidan, and Charley had made their way up to the stands, where the bleachers were wet, but not soaking. It seemed as if the rain was slowing down, becoming more of a sprinkle instead of the downpour that they had had to walk through to get down to the pitch. Will poked her head out from underneath the umbrella to stare up at the sky. “It looks like it’s slowing down. Hopefully it stays like that,” she said.

“Let’s not jinx it. The one thing Blaise doesn’t need during his first game is a hurricane,” Charley retorted.

“Oh, he’ll be fine. He’s a big boy,” Athena said, and Will cursed as a rain droplet fell directly into her eye.

“Alright, let’s start betting,” she said after wiping her face, a smirk plastered over her lips.

“Betting? Isn’t that illegal?” Aidan asked, and she rolled her eyes.

“This isn’t the US, dipshit. I thought you grew up in England. Besides, we don’t have to put actual money down. We can just do bragging rights or something.”

“Doesn’t that defeat the whole purpose?” Charley asked, but Athena laughed, pulling out a copy of the Daily Prophet.

“No, that’s a good idea. It’ll keep us occupied until the game starts. Maybe we can throw in some chocolate frogs too.” She opened up the newspaper and skimmed through the sports section.

“Aha. The Daily Prophet always publishes odds and lineups for professional Quidditch games, and a couple years ago, they started doing it for Hogwarts games, too. Looks like Hufflepuff has -120 odds and Slytherin is +115.”

Aidan stared at her blankly. “What does that mean?”

“It means that Hufflepuff is the favorite, but only by a little bit.” A voice came from behind them, and when the group turned around, they were happy to see that the second year Slytherin boys had arrived. Rocco Massey pointed at the paper as he continued to explain. “Odds are calculated based on the percentage of winning. If the odds are negative, that means that team is favored to win. Positive odds means the team is the underdog.” Massey was a huge fan of football, so he loved watching the English Premier League and betting on teams to win. He was actually quite good for a thirteen year old, and even though he couldn’t bet legally, he and his father always talked over odds together. Being from London, he was a diehard Tottenham Hotspur fan.

“Wait, so what do the numbers mean?” Ash asked, scratching his head.

“It’s how much money you could win, and those numbers are called the moneyline. Most Quidditch bettors use Muggle currency, which is a bit weird, but it makes it a little easier to explain. For example, if Tottenham is playing Brighton and Spurs odds are -150, that means in order to win one hundred pounds, you’d have to bet one-fifty. That’s because they’re the favorites. But if Spurs play Manchester City and their odds are +250, that means if you bet one hundred pounds, you’d win two-fifty if they upset City,” Massey explained.

Aidan stared at him blankly. “I’m going to pretend that I understood that.”

Wes shrugged. “Yeah, everything you just said went in one ear and out the other.”

Will laughed. “He explained it well. Especially the part where City is -250 to beat Spurs,” she said, winking. Will’s family also loved football, and they had been Manchester City fans since before they moved to the UK. “Also, the numbers can be divided to find out the percentage of winning. Since Hufflepuff is negative, which means they’re the favorites, you just do the odds divided by the odds plus one hundred and then multiply it by one hundred to get the percentage. What was it? -120? They have a 54% chance of winning.”

Massey nodded. “Right on. And since Slytherin is positive, making them the underdogs, you do one hundred divided by the odds plus one hundred and then multiply by one hundred. They’re +115, so they have a 46% chance of winning.”

Charley blinked. “That’s too much math for me.”

Will laughed. “You’ll get the hang of it, don’t worry.” She turned to Massey. “I’m Willow Houston, or Will for short, by the way. Gryffindor first year,” she said, offering her hand out for him to shake.

He smiled at her before shaking her hand. “Rocco Massey, Slytherin second year. They all call me Massey. We watched you play yesterday- you were amazing,” he said, causing the tip of her nose to redden slightly.

“Thanks!”

Massey gestured to the rest of the Slytherins. “That’s Asher Hendrix, Wesley Holland, or Wes, Matteo Callahan, and Finn Stott.” All of the boys waved politely, except Finn, who barely even looked over. Naturally, that was the person that Will wanted to talk to the most.

“Stott? Are you related to Xander at all?” She asked brightly, and Finn looked incredibly annoyed as he turned to face her.

“He’s my brother.”

“Wow! That’s awesome- Xander is the best.” Finn didn’t respond, turning back to the field where warmups were being set up, but Will didn’t notice and moved to continue talking. “Do you like Quidditch at all like he does? I swear, he eats, sleeps, and breathes it-” she started, and Finn was about to tell her to shut up and leave him alone before Matteo jumped in, sensing a potential conflict.

“Quidditch has always been more of Xander’s thing- Finn doesn’t care for it much. We just force him to come with us most times, and we’re here to support the house and Blaise,” he said kindly, and Will nodded, noticing how Matteo stopped her from asking more questions but brushing it off.

“Oh. That’s cool!”

Athena looked back at the newspaper. “It also says the game is ‘O/U 350.5’. What does that mean?”

“O and U is over/under. That’s how many points both teams expected to score combined. If the game has a total of more than 350.5 points, and you bet in favor of the over line, then you’d win money,” Will said, and Massey nodded.

“Why is there a half point? You can’t score half points in Quidditch,” Charley said, scratching his head.

“It’s to cancel out ties. In some sports, like baseball, if a score is even to the line, they’ll cancel the bet entirely, and sportsbooks don’t like doing that because they don’t make money,” Massey said.

“I think I get it now,” Ash said, nodding as he processed the information.

Will smiled at him before turning to Athena. “Is there anything else listed?”

“Yes. It has odds for all the positions, too, and they’re O/U, too. For the Slytherin Chasers, Nieves and Sutton are listed as O/U 5.5, and Fletcher is O/U 3.5. There's a moneyline for those, too, but we don’t care about the money, right?” She said, and Massey nodded.

“Yeah, money doesn’t matter as much. That’s called a prop bet, and it means that the standard for Theo and Reuben is five goals, and Kaydan’s is three, since he’s new to the team. Just out of curiosity, are they plus or minus?”

Athena looked closer to the paper. “Theo and Reuben are minus over, but barely. Kaydan is minus over by a lot.”

“Good for him. What about the other positions?” Will asked.

“The Slytherin Beaters are both O/U 55.5. What does that measure?”

“Bludger hits. I’m sure they’re minus over by a little,” Massey said, and Athena nodded.

“For Keepers, Harper is O/U 12.5, and Whitacker is O/U 6.5. That’s saves, I’m assuming? Lacie is -120 over, but Blaise is -160 under and +230 over. Those are pretty drastic,” she said, and Matteo shook his head.

“It’s just because Lacie has already signed a pro contract with Kenmare and Blaise is a second year. It would be cool if we could bet money, though, because I’m pretty confident that he’ll go over seven.”

“You got that right. The Prophet might lose a lot of money on that stat,” Charley joked.

Athena turned back to the paper. “The Seekers are a bit different- there’s no O/U for them and there’s only a moneyline,” she said, and Ash looked at the paper over her shoulder.

“Wait, I think I understand. Let me explain that one- the moneyline is for who’s more likely to catch the Snitch,” he said, and Massey nodded, looking proud.

“Good job, Ash. Who’s the favorite?”

“Whittle has -150 and Moore is +150.”

“Wow, really? I thought Felix was supposed to be really good. It’s weird that he’s not favored to catch the Snitch,” Wes said, scratching his head.

“He is really good. Finn Whittle is just older than him and has more experience. Also, Hufflepuff is the favorite,” Matteo reminded him.

“I guess you’re right.”

Charley sat back, staring at the cones being set up in the Slytherin half. “Well, looks like we’ll see how accurate those odds are.”

“I’m assuming that they’ll probably be the least accurate right now because it’s the beginning of the season,” Wes said, and Will nodded.

“Absolutely. Hey, Athena, can I see that?”

“Sure. Why?” Athena asked, handing Will the paper.

“I want to check the odds for our game yesterday.”

Aidan sighed. “Of course you do.”

Will skimmed the section quickly. “We were the favorites according to the moneyline, Charley. We had -160 and Ravenclaw had +140.”

Charley pumped his fist in the air. “Nice! What do the individual stats say?”

Will read a little more. “I was O/U 4.5 goals with an under -115 and over +190. Wow, somebody made some money yesterday- I scored seven goals,” she joked. “Charley, you were O/U 5.5 saves, under -140 and over +210. How many did you have?”

“I think five on the dot, so I was close.”

“Someone was probably pissed,” Aidan said, laughing. “What about me?”

“O/U 4.5, with an under -110 and over +120. Pretty even,” Will said. “How many goals did you score?”

Aidan sighed. “Four. That’s unfortunate.”

Athena snatched the newspaper back from Will. “You guys definitely should not be checking these odds until after you play,” she scolded, and Will glared at her.

“This is after we played, ‘Thena.”

“Well, for future reference,” she said, crossing her arms.”

Massey chuckled. “She’s right, Will.”

“Whatever,” she said, turning back to the field, but before she could say anything else, there was cheering throughout the stands as both teams flew onto the field, the warmup clock starting to count down. Will immediately zeroed in on Blaise, who wore an expression of no emotion as he flew laps around the Slytherin half of the field to warm up. He looked as if he was in the zone- cool, collected, and confident. “Look at Blaise!” She exclaimed, pointing.

“Oh, he’s locked in,” Charley said, squinting. “That O/U is getting destroyed today.”

Ash nodded. “For sure! Slytherin all the way!”

Matteo sighed, but he was smiling slightly. “I don’t know, Ash. Those odds aren’t even.”

“54% vs 46% isn’t bad, though,” Wes said. “I’ll take Slytherin.”

“Alright, all in favor of Slytherin winning, raise your hand,” Massey said, and Ash, Wes, Athena, Charley, and Aidan all raised their hands. “All in favor of Hufflepuff?” This time, Massey, Will, and Matteo raised their hands.

“You’re a terrible friend, Will,” Charley joked, pushing her gently, and she shook her head, grinning.

“I’m just realistic. The Seeker odds are a bit more skewered. Besides, if I could, I’d bet my life savings on Blaise getting over 6.5 saves.”

“Still,” he said indignantly.

She turned back to the pitch, watching Blaise do some handling work by himself as the Chasers practiced passing. “I’ll apologize to Blaise later. You’ll owe me a chocolate frog when it’s over, though.”

Athena was slowly tuning them out, staring at Theo, Reuben, and Kaydan as they started shooting at Blaise. She felt her heart drop down to her stomach, envious of the players, and all she could think about was how she had completely blown her tryout. As she heard Will chatter away behind her with Aidan, Charley, and Massey, she was filled with jealousy, and she felt her face get hot. She kept her gaze turned towards the pitch in order to hide her blush.

“You wish that was you, huh?” A voice came from her right, and she was surprised to see James slid into the seat next to her.

Her expression immediately turned into a sneer, believing his tone was condescending as she whipped her head around to face him. “Excuse me?”

“You wish that was you.” He turned back to the pitch. “I get it- I do too. I just can’t stop thinking about how bad my tryout was and how I ruined my own chances.”

Athena was speechless. When James spoke, she thought he was making fun of her, but she was very surprised to hear him be sympathetic, not accusatory. Her anger faded, and she blinked before following his gaze to watch the Chasers again. “Yeah. I do.” Her words were quiet, quiet so Will, who was sitting next to her, wouldn’t hear them, but James understood.

“I keep trying to tell myself that it’s fine, and that it’s my first year and I shouldn’t expect to make it onto a team that has eighteen year olds on it. But every time someone talks about Will and how amazing she is, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth,” he said bitterly.

Athena nodded, for that she could sympathize with. “Me, too. I’m tired of hearing how amazing she is and how she’s the best at everything she does. It’s exhausting to be around her sometimes.”

James narrowed his eyes a bit, not expecting Athena to talk about Will like that. He had been trying to get at the others around the school putting too much pressure on Will and inconveniencing the rest of them by talking about her, and what Athena said made it seem like Will was responsible. “It’s not her fault.”

Athena suddenly realized what she said and tried to back track immediately. “No, I know. It’s just hard to listen to, that’s what I meant,” she said hastily, and James turned away, his eyebrow raised but satisfied.

“Okay. Well, what I was saying is that we’ll get our chance. Xander and Kaydan are graduating next year, so we’ll have spots open that we can take.”

“Yeah. I don’t think anyone here is good enough to take those spots from us- at least, not the people that showed up to tryouts,” Athena responded.

“Unless a first year comes in. Wouldn’t that be ironic,” he muttered, and Athena fought back a smile.

“I doubt it. Will just got lucky.”

James narrowed his eyes once more. “She earned that spot, Athena.”

“If that’s what you think.”

Before James could interject, Will jumped up and pointed as Rafael’s voice rang out through the speakers. “Look! It’s starting!” She exclaimed.

“Welcome, everyone, to the second game of the 2015-2016 Hogwarts Quidditch season!” Rafel’s voice boomed, and everyone cheered. “Today’s matchup, a highly anticipated one, is between the Serpents of Slytherin and the Badgers of Hufflepuff!” There was more yelling from all sides of the stands, and Massey and Ash nearly jumped out of their seats as they hooted and hollered.

“First up, the team that many consider the favorites to win this year’s cup, Hufflepuff!” Rafael put this microphone down and gestured towards Lucas and Fred, who were both now training to become commentators next year, and Lucas hit play as music began to play throughout the stadium.

BOOM BOOM CLAP.

BOOM BOOM CLAP.

The fans went absolutely crazy at the immediate recognition of the song, no matter what house they were supporting, and everyone was on their feet stomping with the music.

“Buddy, you’re a boy, make a big noise, playing in the street, gonna be a big man someday, you’ve got mud on your face, you big disgrace, kickin’ your can all over the place, singing-”

The entire stadium, even the Slytherins, all sang with the chorus.

“WE WILL, WE WILL, ROCK YOU!”

“There is literally no way the Slytherin’s song is better than this,” Aidan whispered between words to Will.

“You got that right! This is a classic. It’s going to be hard to top it,” she replied, and after the second repeat of the chorus, there was loud screaming and cheering as the Hufflepuffs flew out and did laps around the field, their yellow and black uniforms shining in the sun that was just beginning to peek out from behind the dark clouds.

“Wow! Look at them!” Charley exclaimed, pointing at Lacie, who was leading the pack as the Hufflepuff captain. They did another quick lap before flying to the middle of the pitch and forming a line, all of them hyping up the crowd.

“Don’t get all excited now, we still have to see Slytherin!” Ash said.

As if right on cue, Rafael took the microphone back again, turning the music off as the Hufflepuff players flew down to their bench. “And their opponents- I present Slytherin!” Rafael yelled, and Lucas pressed play once more.

Much to everyone’s surprise, there were no words at first in the music. Only a loud electronic melody joined by heavy bass as Freaks by Timmy Trumpet, a very popular EDM song, blared throughout the stadium, and the students started to go crazy.

“The bass and the tweeters make the speakers go to war, ah, the mighty trumpet brings the freaks out to the floor.”

“I love this song!” Will yelled over the bass that was quite literally shaking the entire stadium.

“I’ve never heard it before!” Aidan yelled back.

“All that you have to know is that it’s badass!”

The chorus repeated a second time, the song climbing in energy as it neared the beat drop, and as soon as it hit, the Slytherins zoomed out of the tunnel, their emerald green uniforms nearly glittering as the crowd went wild. They met in the middle just as Hufflepuff had just moments before, and they all grabbed hands together and threw them up as they yelled, making the Slytherins go even crazier.

Aidan and Charley were both waving frantically as they screamed for Blaise, and he was scanning the arena looking for them. Once he finally saw them, he grinned, and Will nearly knocked Athena over as she jumped up and down.

“Will, can you please calm down? He sees you,” she said exasperatedly, but Will shook her head.

“It’s his first school Quidditch game! This is a huge deal!”

Athena only rolled her eyes, turning her attention back to the field. “Gryffindors,” she muttered under her breath, casting a look at James as the Slytherins made their way to the bench.

Darius and Lacie both met Madam Hooch in the center for the pregame formalities, shaking hands politely and then going back to their teams to set up formation. Will, her friends, and the second year Slytherins all watched intently as Blaise flew up to the goalposts, his expression again drained of all emotion as he adjusted his gloves.

Madam Hooch ran one more check to make sure that everything was in place before counting down, blowing her whistle, and throwing the Quaffle up in the air, and the crowd cheered as the action finally started.

“And the first whistle has been blown with the Quaffle thrown into the air!” Rafael yelled.

At first, there was a huge mess in the middle, as all six of the Chasers had flown in to try and grab the Quaffle, but soon, Theo Nieves ended up victorious, racing through the air as Talia Sharp, a Hufflepuff fifth year, raced after him. “Theo Nieves emerges with the Quaffle and he is racing towards the Hufflepuff goalposts!” Rafael exclaimed as the Slytherins cheered.

Theo had one thing on his mind and it was scoring. He pushed his broom harder and faster, and he began picking up speed as the shouts of his teammates faded. He ended up going so fast that he didn’t even hear his sister scream for him to look out before a Bludger hit him square in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and causing him to drop the Quaffle as the entire crowd let out a loud OOH!

“Now that’s a beautiful hit from second year Ivy Bastian of Hufflepuff! Her Bludger takes T. Nieves out and the Quaffle falls into the waiting hands of Philip- better known as Pip- Alexander as he quickly changes direction to charge towards Slytherin’s defense,” Rafael said excitedly. Pip was Rafael’s best friend, and even though he prided himself on his unbiased commentary, he couldn’t help but become excited as his house changed the momentum back into their favor.

Theo grinded his teeth as he steadied himself, somehow preventing himself from being knocked off of his broom as Reuben and Kaydan shot after Pip. The Hufflepuff Chaser ducked and dodged, barely avoiding shots taken at him by Bailey and Darius, and he was nearing the goal. In his peripheral vision, he could see Talia and the other Chaser, Jake Alexa, on either side of him, waiting for the perfect moment as they tried to get in the way of Reuben and Kaydan. Closer and closer the goalposts were seeming as he advanced, and Blaise lasered in his focus on the three Chasers. Pip started to throw his arm back to take a shot, but out of the corner of Blaise’s eye, he saw Talia dropped away from her pursuit of Reuben and shot upwards, and he felt his gut nagging at him.

Pip faked a shot and instead passed it across the goalposts to Talia who punched it first time towards the left hoop, and the Hufflepuffs thought for sure that they had beaten the young Keeper with Pip’s feint, but out of nowhere, Blaise came hurtling out of nowhere and stretched out, deflecting the Quaffle with his fingertips into the hands of a waiting Kaydan, who took off the other way.

The crowd went crazy as Talia cast a dumbfounded look at Blaise, only causing him to smirk at her. “WHAT A SAVE BY BLAISE WHITACKER! The second year Slytherin pulls off a fantastic dive to thwart Sharp’s plans at an early lead, and the Quaffle is repossessed by Slytherin’s Kaydan Thorton as he launches the next attack!” Rafael pulled the microphone a little bit closer to him with a smile because Lucas and Fred, although not really knowing Blaise that well, were cheering just as loudly with the Slytherins.

“OH MY FUCKING GOD!” Will screamed. “DID YOU SEE THAT FUCKING SAVE?”

“THAT WAS BLOODY INCREDIBLE!” Charley yelled right along with her, and even Athena and James couldn’t pretend to not be impressed.

Kaydan flew in and out of the Hufflepuff defense, avoiding shots from Ivy and the other Beater, Daniel Downes, and he quickly saw a pass and chucked the Quaffle up to Reuben, who caught it easily and streaked towards Lacie and the goal, shaking off Talia in the process. He reared his arm back to take a shot, but he was too far, and it was somewhat of an easy save for Lacie. The Slytherins let out a sigh of disappointment as the Hufflepuffs cheered.

“JAKE!” Lacie yelled, and the Chaser knew immediately what she wanted to do. He ducked under Kaydan and she chucked the Quaffle downwards. He caught it, barrel rolling to avoid a hard shot by Darius, and zoomed straight up to enact the next play.

“Reuben Sutton’s shot is saved by Hufflepuff captain Lacie Harper, and she distributes it quickly to Jake Alexa as Hufflepuff attack once more,” Rafael said as the play progressed, going back and forth. “Hufflepuff, the chosen favorites this year for the Quidditch Cup, only lost one member from last year’s team to graduation- Ashlea Patrick, a Beater who has signed a rookie contract for the Quiberon Quafflepunchers of France. The majority of the current team are seasoned veterans, except their newest and youngest member, Ivy Bastian. Thirteen year old Bastian is from Cambridge, and she is the only player on the team under fifteen. She seems to be doing very well as she hits a Bludger at Thorton, effectively causing another Slytherin turnover.”

The game was still zero-zero at this point, but that wasn’t to say there hadn’t been a lot of action. Slytherin and Hufflepuff were both very defensive teams preferred to Gryffindor and Ravenclaw’s aggressive attack systems, and there had already been many great plays to keep the score even. As Blaise pulled off another save, this time an easier one shot at the right hoop by Pip, he threw the Quaffle to Theo as Bailey knocked a Bludger at Jake to throw him off of his path.

“Slytherin, on the other hand, lost two players this past year- Fallon Walter, one of the Chasers who is now a member of the U20 Holyhead Harpies squad, and Keegan Lewin, their former Keeper, who decided to hang up the broom after Hogwarts to pursue a healing career at St Mungoes. They have been replaced by number three Kaydan Thorton, a seventh year from Norwich, and second year Blaise Whitacker from Birmingham, who wears number one. Thorton and Whitacker both are legacies from Hogwarts, but neither come from Quidditch families, so they are ready to leave their legacies on the Slytherin program this season. Whitacker currently plays two years up for the Tutshill Tornados Academy program, allowing him to begin to dip his toes into the water of professional Quidditch, and based on his performance tonight, he has shown us that his future is very bright,” Rafael said, showing Fred and Lucas the papers that had all of the players background information on it.

The game had been going on for nearly fifteen minutes at this point and there had yet to be a single goal, something that was very odd for a Quidditch game. But it only showed how strong both teams’ defenses were, and a Hufflepuff turnover allowed Kaydan to snatch the Quaffle and make a quick pass to Theo, who raced towards the goal. This time, though, he made sure he knew where Ivy and Daniel were, and when he saw Ivy hit a Bludger at him, he chucked the Quaffle to Reuben and then dived out of the way, Bailey zooming toward him to answer Ivy. Darius hit the other Bludger at Jake, who was hot on Reuben’s tail, and he succeeded in knocking him out of the way as he was forced to dodge it, allowing the redhead to get off a quick shot and catching Lacie off guard. Finally, after sixteen minutes, Slytherin had scored the first goal of the game.

“And the first goal of the game is scored by Reuben Sutton for Slytherin!” Rafael roared over the screaming Slytherins, and Lucas flicked the scoreboard down to read ten to zero.

“LET’S FUCKING GO!” Massey screamed, and Matteo was too excited to protest his language.

“Finally!” Charley exclaimed as Lacie called a timeout. “I can’t believe it went this long without a goal!”

“Well, it looks like Lacie is calling a timeout,” James said, pointing down at the bench.

“I’m sure she wasn’t expecting it either,” Athena replied.

There was a quick discussion between each team before the play was resumed. After the pause, the momentum shifted entirely, with both teams becoming a lot more aggressive in their attack and focusing more on scoring goals than stopping their opponent. The sun had come out fully now, the dark clouds drifting away with a light breeze, and the score was growing, slowly but surely.

“Another goal from T. Nieves ties the game up at fifty to fifty,” Rafael announced. “Contrary to what most people were expecting, this game has been incredibly low-scoring. All that does is add more and more respect to the Slytherin and Hufflepuff defenses, especially Lacie Harper and Blaise Whitacker. Harper is leading the pack with ten saves so far, and Whitacker is closely following her with nine. Still no sign of the Snitch, however-”

As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Finn, who was scanning the pitch from above the action, dived, causing the crowd to gasp. Felix was right behind him, and although no one could quite see what they were flying at, it seemed as if Finn had seen the golden ball.

“Whittle makes a deep dive, Moore following him closely! The Snitch has officially been spotted!” The commentator said excitedly, Lucas and Fred straining to catch a glimpse of it.

Darius, seeing this, recognized how close Finn was to the Snitch as he reached an arm out, and he immediately abandoned his window to stop Pip’s attack and hit a Bludger right at Finn. The crowd let out another loud OOH as it smashed into Finn’s outstretched arm, knocking him off course and right into Felix, causing them both to spin out of control.

“An incredibly aimed shot by Rose hits Whittle just as he’s about to secure Hufflepuff’s victory, and the Seeker loses his view on the Snitch and crashes into Moore!” Rafael said, practically screaming over the outbursts of the Badger fans, crying out for a penalty. Madam Hooch blew her whistle, awarding them a penalty, much to Darius’s dismay.

“Are you serious? That was a perfectly legal shot!” He yelled, flying over to argue with her.

“I am not entertaining that, Mr Rose. It was dangerous and you put your own Seeker in danger by targeting Hufflepuff’s,” she said sternly, gesturing to Felix, who was surrounded by the Slytherin Chasers as they checked to make sure he was okay.

“That doesn’t matter! I hit a Bludger at him legally and it made contact!” Darius exclaimed angrily.

“Looks like Slytherin captain Darius Rose and referee Madam Hooch are getting into a bit of a disagreement,” Rafael said. “Rose seems to be protesting the award of a penalty to Hufflepuff, arguing that the shot taken at Whittle was legal. Madam Hooch’s counter is that it was dangerous, putting both players in danger, and doing harm to Whittle, as he nurses his arm.”

Finn seemed to be okay, holding his arm close to his chest but shaking Talia off as she tried to look at it. “I’m fine. I don’t think it’s broken or anything, he didn’t hit it as hard as he could have. Probably just bruised- give me a couple minutes and I’ll be fine,” he said, and she huffed.

“It was still a dangerous play. Felix was right behind you- if you two would have crashed into each other any differently than the way that you did, you both could have fallen off your brooms.”

“It’s alright, Talia. All’s fair in Quidditch.”

Meanwhile, in the stands, the Slytherins were heated. “That was not a bloody fucking foul!” Massey raged, and Ash nodded.

“Yeah, are you kidding? It was just a good hit! I cannot believe Madam Hooch is giving Hufflepuff a penalty for it!”

Aidan scratched his head. “Are you sure? It was pretty dangerous.”

Will crossed her arms. “I have seen much worse perfectly legal shots than that. Hooch has gone soft,” she complained.

Darius was still arguing with Madam Hooch, but even if she was going to rescind that call, she definitely wasn’t going to now. Bailey came over to pull Darius away, but he continued to yell as she put her hand on his shoulder. “Darius, you know Madam Hooch isn’t going to change her mind,” she said.

“I don’t care! That was a bullshit call and everyone here knows it!” He raged, his usually calm and collected demeanor gone, and the others on the team flew over to meet the two.

“You’re right, it was a shit call, mate. But I don’t think Hooch has rescinded a call ever while being a teacher here,” Theo said. “Let’s just forget about it- Hufflepuff’s going to take the penalty and then we can continue to play like normal.”

All eyes turned to Blaise, who was floating next to Kaydan. He looked at Darius, who was still hopping mad, and he blinked once. “I’ll save it,” he said nonchalantly, and the captain sighed.

“Don’t expect that of yourself, Blaise. Just do your best. If you don’t and they score, we’ll only be down by a goal and it’s still early. Alright, let’s get ready,” he said, dismissing the huddle. However, as Blaise flew back up to the goalposts, he knew he had to save it. And once he decided that he was going to do something, by Merlin, he was going to do it.

Pip was given the penalty shot and he took the Quaffle from Madam Hooch, lining up at the spot to take the shot. Blaise, his face devoid of all emotion, stared him down, something that Pip was not expecting from the second year. The Hufflepuff Chaser shifted his weight, and Blaise continued staring at him, taking in every detail of body language that he could. He had trained for this- he could do it. He knew he could.

Hooch blew the whistle and Pip began to rear his arm back to take the shot. Blaise didn’t immediately move, still bobbing up and down in the air slightly, and he watched every angle, every small movement that Pip took. When the shot finally came, soaring towards the left hoop, Blaise read it like a book, diving tremendously and actually catching the shot.

The crowd went absolutely nuts. The Hufflepuffs were silent, in shock as they realized that the second year Keeper had just saved their penalty shot, a shot that was scored almost every single time. The Slytherins couldn’t be contained, hooting and hollering as Will, Charley, and Aidan screamed Blaise’s name.

“AND THE PENALTY SHOT IS SAVED BY WHITACKER!” Rafael yelled, beside himself at the feat that he had just seen, out of both respect for Blaise and shock for Pip.

Darius, calmness completely abandoned, was screaming at the top of his lungs as Blaise passed the Quaffle to Theo, who took off towards the Hufflepuff hoops. “THE BALL DOESN’T LIE! THE BALL DOESN’T FUCKING LIE!” Thankfully for him, he could barely be heard because of the extreme amount of noise coming from the stands, but Blaise heard, and even though he didn’t smile, his cheeks turned pink.

Blaise’s save turned the tide for Slytherin, and they began to pull away. Lacie Harper was an insanely talented Keeper, but she was getting no help on the defensive side from Pip. He couldn’t get out of his head after his penalty was saved by a thirteen year old, and he wasn’t covering Kaydan as well as he should have been- allowing the seventh year to become a huge playmaker for Slytherin. Soon the score became ninety to fifty, and Hufflepuff was starting to get frustrated.

“Another goal from Thorton lengthens Slytherin’s lead to forty points, and the Badgers are in shambles as the momentum stays in the Serpents’ favor-” The crowd let out a gasp as Felix suddenly dove. He zoomed in and out of the action in the middle of the field, barely avoiding a Bludger shot inches away from his head by Ivy, and Finn, who was on the opposite side of the pitch, dove in to join him, and although he didn’t see the Snitch, he just caused general chaos, flying in front of the Slytherin Chasers and drawing Bailey and Darius’s focus away from the Hufflepuff Chasers and to him. However, a Bludger hit by Bailey at him narrowly missed and instead hit Jake, who was knocked out of his path of pursuit of Theo and directly into Felix’s. Felix had to shoot downwards to avoid colliding with Jake, losing his view on the Snitch, and Finn’s opportunity opened.

He shot upwards, catching a glimpse of the golden ball trying to dart away from him, and he was close, very close. Ivy and Daniel, seeing this, knocked the Bludgers as far away from Darius and Bailey as they could, sending them both out of the fray and towards Blaise. The second year had to abandon the goalposts for a second, trying his hardest to not get smashed, but luckily, the Quaffle was still in Theo’s hands as he raced towards Lacie. Unluckily, though, Felix was trying his hardest to recover from the interference from Jake and wasn’t making up ground quickly enough, and Finn stretched his arm out. This time, Darius wasn’t close enough to the Bludgers to stop him, and his fist closed around the Snitch, trapping it in his hand as the Hufflepuff stands erupted.

“FINN WHITTLE HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! FINN WHITTLE ENDS THE GAME, CATCHING THE SNITCH AND MAKING THE SCORE TWO HUNDRED TO NINETY! HUFFLEPUFF WINS!” Rafael screamed into the microphone over the roaring of the stands. The Hufflepuffs all gathered around Finn in the middle of the field, hugging him and hyping up the crowd as the Slytherins watched, disappointed at both the loss and the shortness of the game.

The Slytherins all flew down to the bench, somber expressions on their faces as they watched their opponents celebrate. All were angry, and all were upset that they were starting the season off with a loss, but every single one patted Blaise on the shoulder before exiting towards the locker room, telling him that he did well. That was enough for him, and even though he was disappointed with the loss, he knew he had done his job. As soon as the Slytherin Quidditch roster was posted in the Great Hall two weeks ago, he knew he had the opportunity he had been waiting for since he had started playing Quidditch. His fate was in his hands now, and as he watched Hufflepuff cheer, he just knew they were able to turn this season around. They just had to get back to work.

He took one last look at the scoreboard before turning away, walking towards the locker room and feeling the number one embroidered into the back of his cape practically burn into his back, but it was a burn that he welcomed.

Chapter Text

The Slytherins didn’t stay very long after the game. Spirits were lower than usual, and even though music was playing in the background as everyone was getting undressed, no one was dancing. They were all very disappointed in the outcome of the game, and Darius felt like he had lost control over the momentum and was more embarrassed than sad. But they talked to each other regardless.

They didn’t speak about the game, which was a rule that Darius had implemented years ago. It was easier for everyone, leaving the Quidditch talk for the next practice so they all could process their emotions instead of taking them out on each other accidentally. Instead of talking about the game, they talked about school, friends, Hogsmeade- anything to get their minds off of it. By the time they left, everyone was smiling and laughing again, because even though they were disappointed, they were a team, and they were more than just wins and losses.

As they exited, they made their way to the stadium entrance, only around the corner from the locker rooms, where most of their families were waiting. Theo and Bailey were met by their mother and their older sister, Maddie, who had graduated from Hogwarts a year prior and pulled them both into a huge hug. Reuben was met by his father and his uncle, who were both very drunk but incredibly excited to see him, and the laughs from the three of them could be heard from anywhere on the grounds. Both of Felix’s parents were there, and his mother was so happy to see him play that she nearly knocked him over as she pulled him into a warm embrace, his father clapping his hand on his shoulder. Kaydan’s entire close family had made the trip, ecstatic that they were able to watch his first Hogwarts game. Darius was the only one who was alone, his parents both working and his older sister out of the country for university, all three sending their regrets, but Xander was there to meet him and hug him, earning an eye roll from the Slytherin but making the tips of his ears turn pink.

Blaise’s mom and dad were waiting for him, and his mother’s face broke into a huge smile when she saw him, opening her arms up for a hug. He obliged without hesitation, smiling as she kissed the top of his head. “You did amazing, lovey! We are so proud of you,” she said, making him blush slightly as he looked around to make sure no one heard.

“Thanks, Mum. It sucks that we lost, but it was awesome to play my first ever game!” He said brightly.

Roland Whitacker tousled his son’s hair gently, grinning at him. “How’s the new broom? Giving you any troubles?” He asked, and Blaise shook his head.

“No, it’s smooth as butter.”

“Good to hear.” He paused. “You really kicked some ass today, kid. Certainly put on a show.”

Blaise smiled so big he thought it might get stuck on his face. “Thanks, Dad!”

Melody looked over to see a very large group of kids making their way through the crowd of people, and she saw a dark haired girl see Blaise and light up, grabbing the sleeve of Aidan Pucey and pointing at them. Athena was with them, and when she saw Melody and Roland, she smiled slightly. “Looks like your friends want to talk to you, honey,” she said kindly to Blaise, and he looked over to see the group walking towards them, his face bursting with excitement as he recognized his friends.

“Hey, guys!” He said, waving them over, but only Charley, Aidan, and Athena came.

“You killed it today, mate! Did you take some type of drug or something to make you superhuman?” Charley asked enthusiastically, his eyes sparkling.

Blaise laughed. “Nah. Just a regular bagel.”

“Maybe you should start waking up late again more, if you’re going to perform like that during all the games,” Aidan said, smirking, and Blaise rolled his eyes but couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

“Don’t tempt me.”

“Sorry about the loss. You guys played well- the Hufflepuff Seeker just pulled off a lucky catch,” Athena said, her tone even.

“Yeah, we’re all pretty disappointed.”

“What if we nick some ice cream from the kitchens later? Will that cheer you up?” Charley asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

Blaise shot him a look as he looked at his father nervously, but Roland only shook his head, the corners of his lips turned up ever so slightly. “Go have fun.” His son was pleasantly surprised to hear that, and he gave his dad a big hug, startling him a bit before he laughed and patted his back. “We’ll see you in about a month, then? Fall break?” He asked, and Blaise nodded.

“Yep. The week after that is Slytherin vs Ravenclaw- we have the Sunday game again, same time as today,” he said happily before hugging his mother tightly.

“Bye, dear,” she said, kissing his head one more time before letting go and waving at the other kids. “We’ll see you soon, Aidan- send our regards to your parents,” she said kindly, turning to Athena and Charley next. “You two stay out of trouble, now,” she joked, and Charley laughed while Athena blushed.

“Don’t worry, Mrs W. We’ll make sure Blaise doesn’t do anything stupid,” the Gryffindor responded, and Athena shook her head.

“You mean I’ll make sure you three and Will don’t get expelled,” she whispered under her breath, but Blaise was already waving at his parents and walking towards the others.

“See you in a month!” He called, and the Whitackers smiled as they watched him walk over. The same dark haired girl that Melody had seen earlier immediately jumped into conversation with Blaise, and although she was dressed in Slytherin gear, she didn’t remember hearing about any Slytherin girls that Blaise was friends with besides Athena. The girl was talking very animatedly, using her hands to act out different scenes in the game, and it seemed as if her mouth never stopped moving even to breathe. Blaise only laughed as he listened, occasionally saying a few words, but the other Slytherins cut in to talk to him and congratulate him on his performance before leaving Will, Charley, Aidan, James, Blaise, and Athena to talk.

“Who is that girl, Roland?” Melody asked, nodding in her direction. “ I don’t think I’ve ever seen her before.”

Roland studied her for a second before shaking his head. “I know who she is- that’s William Houston’s daughter- the Quidditch star from America that plays for Ballycastle. I think her name is Willow. Read a couple articles about her in the Prophet- apparently, the whole family was blessed by God and they’re all Quidditch prodigies.”

Melody nodded in recognition. “Oh, right. She’s very eccentric,” she said, watching Willow throw her arm around Athena. “Seems as though Athena is tolerating her, weirdly enough.”

“I’m sure Blaise finds her incredibly annoying,” Roland said jokingly, putting his arm around his wife’s shoulders.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Melody said under her breath, watching as Blaise rolled his eyes and crossed his arms at something she said, but he didn’t turn away, instead still listening to her talk.

“All I’m saying, Blaise, is that penalty save is the best thing to come out of Birmingham in years,” Will said seriously, causing Blaise to roll his eyes once more.

“Plenty of good things have come out of Birmingham, Will. You just don’t realize it because you’re American.”

Will looked incredibly offended at that. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Say this word.” He pulled out his phone, quickly writing something on a blank screen and then showing the word aluminium.

“A-loo-mi-num.”

“Wrong.” Blaise barely contained his grin as Will scowled, Charley, James, and Aidan howling with laughter behind her.

“What do you mean wrong? That’s what the word says!”

“It’s pronounced a-lu-mi-ni-um, Will,” Aidan said, trying to contain himself.

“That’s stupid! Why would you say extra syllables? Where does the second i come from? There should only be one,” she said indignantly, and Athena shook her head, biting back a smile.

“Will, you’re pronouncing it the American way. We spell stuff differently in England.”

“Well duh, I know that, I was top of my class in primary school, but I pronounce things differently because I-” she paused, her cheeks turning red.

“Why, Will? Finish the sentence,” James joked.

She sighed. “Because I learned how to speak in America,” she said quietly, giving them all a dirty look as Aidan, James, and Charley laughed even harder, Blaise and Athena both smiling deeply. “Oh, shut up, all of you. I moved here when I was four so I barely even remember America, plus I have dual citizenship and that’s more than you guys.”

“I’ll keep that in mind whenever I want to visit America, which will probably be never,” Blaise said, hoisting his bag over his shoulder. “Come on, we should head back. I’ve got some homework I have to finish.”

Charley sighed. “Me too.”

“Make that three of us.” Will turned to Athena. “You coming with?”

“No, I’m okay. I finished everything yesterday. I think I might hang out with Jaya and Ainsley later.”

She nodded, looking over at James. “What about you, James?”

He shook his head. “I’m in the same boat. Might go catch up with Fred and Lucas and ask about the commentator job or something.”

Will shrugged. “Okay, see you guys around!” And with that, Will, Blaise, Charley, and Aidan began walking towards the castle, leaving James and Athena alone together.

There was a bit of an awkward silence between the two of them as they watched their friends walk back to the castle, neither of them knowing what to say to the other. “Did you end up finishing that essay for Defense Against the Dark Arts?” James asked, finally breaking it.

“Yes, I did yesterday.” They were plunged into silence again as Athena checked her watch. “I should probably head back- I’m getting kind of hungry. Are you coming?”

James shook his head. “I’m going to stay and figure out where Fred and Lucas are. See you around, Athena.” It was obviously a dismissal, so Athena nodded at him politely before walking back to the castle herself, thinking about the Quidditch game.

Two hundred to ninety was a much lower scoring game than she expected, especially compared to the Gryffindor vs Ravenclaw game yesterday. She had expected to see a dominant Slytherin front that was relentless with their attacking and scoring a ton of goals, maybe losing because of the Snitch but going very back and forth in terms of score. But she was incredibly surprised to see that the Slytherin Chasers were much more defensive, focusing more on quick counter attacks and strong coverage than set plays and recovery.

The Gryffindor team was much more offensive, their style of play using fast, quick passes and a lot of solo drives, where it wasn’t uncommon for a play to only involve three or four passes before a shot was taken. The only reason why this style worked was because Xander, Evelyn, and Will were all abnormally fast on their brooms and could catch even the longest passes, but none of the other teams had that kind of speed and reliability, so they had to focus more on building. This was super evident on the Slytherin side, where the three Chasers would make ten, eleven, twelve passes between themselves and Blaise before taking a shot. This proved helpful because their accuracy was better in terms of percentage than the Gryffindors, but their constant possession made turnovers much more common compared to their rivals.

Athena, however, didn’t mind this style of play at all. She was used to playing a much more defensive style anyways, gradually working up the pitch to score after thought had been put behind it. She also was much better at defending than she was at attacking, and maybe it was an unpopular opinion, but she loved the rush of stopping an opponent from scoring perhaps a little more than the exhilaration from scoring herself. She figured that if she did ever get to be on the team, she would be a great fit into their style of play, and it only made her more excited for the future.

The next couple weeks passed by mostly uneventfully, much to Will and Charley’s dismay. The two of them had started spending all of their time with Aidan and Blaise, doing whatever came to their minds at any given moment- whether it be schoolwork, flying, or even just causing general chaos and accumulating a couple detentions each as a consequence of their fun.

Although they often procrastinated and were almost always seen in the library until late on Sunday nights trying to finish the week’s worth of schoolwork, all four were doing well in school. Aidan was top of their class, followed closely by Blaise in second and Charley was doing much better than he did last year. Will was currently third in her class- first being Ainsley Shacklebolt, second being a girl from Hufflepuff that she hadn’t talked to much. James was fourth, and Athena was fifth, and she was positively steaming at having worse grades than Will and James, even if it was by a few points.

What bothered Athena the most was how smart Will actually was. Sure, she goofed off most of the time and didn’t put nearly as much time and effort into her work, but she still was so insightful and deep with her thoughts that she was able to complete assignments and contribute to discussions like it was nothing and go right back to making a paper airplane or whatever stupid thing she was hyper fixating on at the moment.

Athena felt like she couldn’t keep up with Will most of the time. Her mouth almost never stopped moving, an endless stream of words always pouring out and she had stopped wanting to study with Will because frankly, her brain was too hyperactive. Will thought at such a high speed that it was nearly impossible to focus and follow everything she said while still trying to learn. Even by regular tween standards, Will was seriously ADHD. Athena was much more comfortable studying with Ainsley.

But she still sat next to Will in all the classes they shared together, and while they were in Defense Against the Dark Arts one time, the Gryffindor had listened to a lecture about the Green Sparks Spell for about ten and a half minutes before completely zoning out. Athena was trying to write notes, listening intently to Professor Potter explain the arm movements, the purpose of the spell, and how it could be used in a defensive situation.

Soon, it was time to practice the spell itself, and Athena and Will both jumped at the opportunity to show their skill. Both girls got the hang of it on the first try, not to their instructor’s surprise, and it didn’t take long for them to start experimenting on their own after Professor Potter helped some of the weaker members of the class.

“Okay, wait, let me see if I can try red,” Will said, biting her lip as she pointed her wand at the ceiling. Her face screwed up for a second as she didn’t even say an incantation, but red sparks shot out of the tip of her wand, sizzling as they fell and then disappeared.

“How did you do that?” Athena exclaimed, watching the remaining sparks fizzle out.

Will shrugged. “I don’t know. I just thought really hard, I guess,” she said, laughing. “You try. What about blue?”

“Okay, if you say so,” Athena said, trying to hide the nervousness in her tone, and she mirrored Will’s movements. She scrunched her nose up tightly as she thought about blue sparks coming out of the tip of her wand, but much to her dismay, nothing happened. “I don’t think I’m doing it right,” she said, trying not to sound glum, and Will cocked her head.

“That’s weird. Let me try.” Athena felt anger grow in the pit of her stomach as she watched Will perform the spell, and when royal blue sparks were raining from the ceiling, she curled her lip in disgust. “That one was a little bit harder. Maybe think more about the color instead of the result. I’m sure you’ll get it this time!” The Gryffindor said cheerfully, and Athena had to keep herself from rolling her eyes as she got back into position.

“Hopefully this works,” she muttered under her breath before closing her eyes. This time, instead of thinking about the sparks, she thought about the ocean, the sky, and flowers. The color blue flooded her mind, until everything she thought of was blue, and she only opened her eyes after hearing Will whoop in excitement.

“See, I knew you could do it!” She said, pointing.

Athena followed her gaze and saw the blue sparks drift slowly down through the air, and she smiled a little to herself. “I still think I like the green the most, though,” she said, and Will pursed her lips.

“I thought the red was the best, but to each their own,” she said playfully, nudging Athena with her shoulder lightly.

“Alright, good job today, everyone. No homework this weekend, but just as a reminder, you need to read the next chapter of the required text by next Friday, so I recommend getting that done sooner rather than later,” Professor Potter said sternly, eyeing his students as they all nodded enthusiastically. “I’ll see everyone on Wednesday.”

Athena and Will were some of the first students out of the room, excited for their fall break. It seemed like they hadn’t been in school for too long, really, but the days were slow and the weeks were fast. The first Quidditch game weekend had been the last weekend of September, and the week before the second round, which was mid October, the students at Hogwarts got an extra long weekend in the form of no class Monday and Tuesday, so most went home to spend some extra time with their families.

“Have you finished packing yet?” Athena asked Will, and the Gryffindor nodded her head.

“I sort of just threw everything into my suitcase, which I’ll probably regret later, but I only need four days worth of clothes.”

“And pajamas,” Athena interjected.

“That, too.”

“And a toothbrush.”

“Yep.”

“And soap, shampoo, and conditioner.”

“For sure.”

“Don’t you need four days worth of contacts, too?”

Will pushed some hair behind her ear. “Yeah, unfortunately. I hate my contacts- they’re stupid little plastic ovals that I have to put in my eyeballs every day so I’m not blind.”

“Why don’t you just wear your glasses, then? Blaise and James wear theirs a lot more than you do.”

“Okay, number one, I got my glasses when I was eight and my mom won’t let me get a new pair until my prescription changes, so they’ve got huge lenses with these dorky sparkly blue frames and they make me look like a goldfish. Blaise and James’s glasses are normal. Also, glasses suck even more in my opinion. They get foggy and sometimes dust gets on them and you have to constantly wipe them off, you can’t play sports in them, and also they can fall off and get damaged and then you’re basically screwed for the rest of the day.”

Athena stifled a laugh. “You’ve got some pretty passionate feelings about this, huh?”

“Let’s just say you’re lucky you have twenty-twenty vision.” Will and Athena stopped at the staircase, where their paths would diverge to take them to their common rooms. “I’ll see you on the train?”

Athena nodded. “Of course.”

Will gave her a wave. “Alright, catch you later!”

The three Slytherin girls were already packed and ready to go, and Athena changed out of her uniform to put on a dark green sweatshirt with some jeans, brushing her hair a bit before stowing her hairbrush away again. “What are you guys doing over break?” Jaya asked, swinging her feet over the ground as she sat on her unmade bed.

“My dad and I are going to go see a play tomorrow and sort of play it by ear afterwords,” Ainsley said happily, picking up Emmy, their tiny kitten, and putting her into a little bag that she had had an older student transfigure for her in order to make it cat-friendly. “What about you?”

“My parents will probably want to hear all about school,” Jaya responded. “Other than that, nothing much. We might have some of my extended family over for dinner or something. Athena?”

Athena paused for a second, wondering how she was going to answer that. “I don’t know, I guess. My mom and I will probably get lunch or something with my uncle. Maybe I’ll go see my dad for a day.”

“Sounds like fun,” Ainsley said, checking her watch. “We should probably get going- the train leaves in forty five minutes. I’d like to get a compartment if at all possible.”

“Good idea. I can’t believe we still had our last class today. They should have canceled it so we wouldn’t be getting back to London so late,” Jaya grumbled.

Athena hoisted her trunk onto the ground and blew a piece of hair out of her face. “After you guys.”

Meanwhile, Will had dragged her trunk down the girls dormitory stairs and sort of just left it in the common room, pushed out of the way so it wouldn’t block anyone trying to exit, but there was no way she was lugging it up the stairs to the boy’s dormitory as well. She sat cross legged on James’s bed, wearing a black hoodie, black joggers and a backwards black baseball cap that covered her curly hair that was pulled into two buns at the nape of her neck. Her friend rushed around the room, double and triple checking that he had everything.

“James, for the thousandth time, you have enough socks,” she chastised him when he looked once more.

“And underwear,” Fred added, scrunching his nose at the amount of pairs of boxers that his cousin had shoved into his trunk. He was donning a plain maroon sweatshirt and jeans as he crammed the last few things in his bag. “We’re going to be gone for four days. You don’t need eight pairs of underwear.”

“Hey, you don’t know that. What if I piss myself every day, twice a day? What am I going to do then? Because I am not borrowing yours,” James shot back. His hair was disheveled as usual and his glasses were slightly askew, adding to his already frantic look. He was wearing a grey hoodie with a Gryffindor emblem on the chest as well as black pants.

Fred shook his head. “Only you would think of a scenario like that.”

“What are your plans?” Will asked, rubbing her fingers together absentmindedly as Parker, done with packing, sat down on James’s bed next to her.

Parker scratched his head. “Not sure. Hopefully Patrick and I can get some peace and quiet for once- I thought that since we’re all in different houses, we wouldn’t have to see our cousins all the time, but somehow, we’re always together. Don’t get me wrong, I love Paisley and Penelope. It'd just be nice to spend time with just our parents. Pais is oblivious as usual, but I think Penna thinks the same.”

Fred nodded. “I get that for sure. I feel like I see someone I’m related to every five seconds at this school. Wait, let me count. First cousin wise, there’s James, Louis, Victoire, Dominique, and Molly. I’ll throw Will and Teddy in there, too. I think our family is having dinner at my grandparents’ house on Sunday, so I’ll see them all again. Plus all of the kids that aren’t old enough to come to Hogwarts, like Albus, Lily, Rose, Hugo, Lucy, and Mason. It’s a lot of people in one house.”

Parker’s mouth was dropped open. “How do you keep track of everyone?”

“Honestly, I have no clue. But we’re all super close, like you and your cousins are, so it’s nice to have that many people in your corner, you know?” James said, and Lucas nodded.

“I think my dad and I are coming to that dinner, too. He said something about going with Fred’s dad to see a grave.”

Fred pursed his lips a bit, his expression falling a bit. “Yeah. I heard about that. They’re going to see my uncle. My dad’s twin. He died during the Second War, here at Hogwarts. I was named after him, actually.”

Parker shook his head. “I can’t imagine losing my twin.”

“Yeah. Some people tell me that my dad was never the same after it happened. Part of me wishes I would have been able to meet him back then and see what he was like when Uncle Fred was still alive.” Fred looked slightly discouraged at that, so Will cut in.

“Well, at least Mr Jordan will be there with him. And your mom,” she reminded him, and Fred straightened his back before shutting his trunk.

“You’re right. Hey, what are we going to do this weekend besides the dinner?”

James shook his head. “No idea. Can we stay the night at someone’s house or something, though? I’ve been dying to get away from my dad for a bit,” he said, and Will laughed.

“Yeah, I can ask my parents if we can crash at my place. Maybe we can go see a movie or something downtown on Monday.”

“That would be awesome.”

It didn’t take much longer for the five of them to lug their trunks down the stairs and through the castle. The one unlucky thing about being a Gryffindor and a Ravenclaw was walking down many flights of stairs to get to the train station, whereas the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs had easy access to the ground floor, but none of them complained. They were too excited to see their families.

Students left and right were rushing about, making sure that they had all their belongings. There were some hoots and annoyed meows from animals being jostled around in their cages, creating more noise to add to the hullabaloo of boarding. Some of the younger kids were getting help with their trunks from teachers, giving some hugs to their favorites and avoiding the opposite. The older students crowded the platform, craning their necks to look for their friends as others frantically looked for compartments on the train.

Luckily, the train wasn’t as busy as it was when school had first started because a few of the students chose to stay at school, but some of them were still saying goodbye to their friends and helping with their belongings, Xander and Darius among them. Both older boys had elected to stay and get caught up on schoolwork, and when that was done, work on more Quidditch plays. Xander was delighted to see Will and the rest of the Gryffindor first years, helping them with their bags and finding them a compartment before giving Will a hug as he exited.

“She’s a cute little kid, isn’t she, mate?” Xander asked Darius upon his return, throwing an arm over his shoulders casually.

“I think you only like her because she’s you but as a small girl,” the Slytherin responded.

“That is so not true. She’s just adorable- like a little baby bird. I just felt the need to take her under my wing.” Xander paused, laughing at his own joke. “Get it?”

“Yes, Xander, I get it.”

“I don’t know, Darius, you might be right. She does sort of remind me of first year me a little bit. She’s so bright eyed and full of energy, and she’s so excited about everything. I guess I’m just thinking about the reality of us graduating soon and having to be adults. I don’t know how ready I am for it.”

Darius was a little surprised at his friend’s confession. “We are adults, Xander. You’ve been an adult for almost a year now.”

“Yeah, I know, but I mean a real adult. I consider myself a baby adult right now because I’ve only been an adult for a year. It’s like a toddler- when you become an adult, your age cycle resets. It’s like how a baby has only been a person for a year. I’ve only been an adult for a year so I have no idea what I’m doing.”

Darius leaned ever so slightly into Xander’s shoulder, blowing some of his own dark black hair out of his face. “I don’t think you should worry too much, Xander. I know it’s scary. I’ve thought about it too. It’s really weird to think that we’re never going to be kids again after this, and that we’re never going to come back here for school after this year. School is everything we’ve ever known our whole lives, and it’s odd to realize that we’re going to have to let it go. But we’re starting a new chapter soon. You’re going to sign for Puddlemere, I’m going to sign for Tutshill, and we’re going to get that apartment that we’ve been looking at in Oxford and live together. We dreamed about this when we were kids, Xan.”

Xander smiled, itching some of the scruff on his face. “You never call me Xan.”

Darius’s pale skin flushed as he pushed the Gryffindor’s arm off of his shoulders. “I try to cheer you up and this is what I get.”

The other boy laughed. “I’m just giving you shit, Darius.” He nudged him lightly. “Thanks for that, though. I feel better now. Growing up is probably always going to leave a bad taste in my mouth, but we’re leaving here to make way for the little Wills that come after us, right?”

Darius nodded. “Yep. And the little Blaises and the little Athenas.”

Xander shook his head. “I don’t know where that Blaise kid came from. His game for you guys last month was insane.”

“I know. I lucked out with him. If the rule had been changed earlier, I think he would have given Keegan a run for her money.”

“That’s really bold of you to say, there,” Xander teased, and Darius rolled his eyes.

“Whatever. Listen, Jamie, Ben, Stanley, and Garrick are going home this weekend. Wanna stay a night or so with me?”

Xander broke into a wide smile, causing Darius to blush. “Oh, you’re inviting me to a sleepover, huh?”

The Slytherin’s face was so red that it matched Xander’s maroon Gyrffindor sweatshirt. “I hate the word sleepover and you know it.”

“What would you like me to call it instead? Because I can call it exactly what it is, right here in front of everybody-” Xander started, but Darius clapped a hand over his mouth.

“Shut up before I uninvite you.”

Xander couldn’t wipe the smirk off his face as Darius took his hand away slowly. “Aye aye, captain.”

Meanwhile, Blaise, Charley, and Aidan had settled into their compartment, only two down from Will, James, and Fred. Blaise had Plum, his gigantic maine coon, out and she was sleeping soundly on his lap as he messed with his hair, listening to music. Charley had decided to take a nap, his beanie pulled down to cover his eyes, and Aidan was reading.

Blaise was very excited to go home. As much as he tried to hide it, he was a momma’s boy. His mom had written to him multiple times since the last Quidditch game, asking him what he wanted to do over the weekend. His dad had to work on Monday and Tuesday, but he had promised that the three of them could go out and do something as a family, which was rare. He had asked if they could go to the Puddlemere United game on Sunday together, and his dad had agreed. But secretly, though, the only thing he really wanted was some of his mom’s home cooked food.

Charley was also going to the Puddlemere game, but he was going with his mom to watch his dad play. It was one of the things he looked forward to the most- seeing his father do something that he was really good at and hear hundreds of fans scream his name. He wanted to be just like his father when he grew up. His father was the hero to all of Bournemouth and most of England, and that’s what Charley wanted to be, too. But more importantly, away from the public’s prying eyes, Oliver knew he was Charley’s hero, and it felt like he was saving the world over and over every time his son gave him a hug.

Aidan wasn’t really sure what he and his family were going to do over fall break. He hoped that he could spend time with his father, but honestly, he wanted to relax. He had been using a lot of his energy at school on homework and Quidditch and his social life, and he was excited to get a weekend where he could just do nothing and no one would judge him for it. Plus, his older brother, Marshall, who was attending university in Oxford, was coming home for the weekend. Aidan didn’t see him too much and they weren’t the closest of siblings because of their nine year age gap, but Marshall loved his kid brother and always made time to see him as much as his busy schedule could afford.

The train lurched a bit as they started moving, causing Plum to meow as if the movement offended her, but Blaise patted her head gently and she laid back down on his lap. He looked out the window at the teachers and the students staying behind waving. The sun was just starting to set, creating a yellowish haze that streamed through the window as the train left the station. It was a very long trip and they wouldn’t get back until late, so Blaise leaned his head back and closed his eyes, figuring he’d try and get some sleep while he still could.

The Gryffindor first years were not sleeping. All three of them had earbuds in, but Will was playing a card game by herself, her feet tucked underneath her on the seat as she scrunched her nose up in concentration. Fred was watching a movie on his laptop, similarly quiet as his eyes widened at every scene. James was staring out the window as he listened to music, watching the Scottish Highlands race by as they rapidly became harder and harder to see. When the night sky rendered the mountains essentially pitch black, he stared anyway, watching his reflection in the window look back at him.

James didn’t know why he wasn’t excited to go home. He missed his mother and his siblings, but for some reason, he didn’t feel the rush he was expecting at the thought of sleeping in his own bed. At first, he thought it had to do with his father. For a lot of his friends, including Will and Fred, school was where they could go to have some time to themselves and not have their fathers watching their every move like a hawk.

It’s not that his dad was a bad father. He was great, actually. Harry Potter was one of the best fathers around, and James knew he was incredibly lucky because not everyone grew up with a good father, much less a great one. But for some reason, the more he saw his dad in the hallways and the more he had to listen to his lectures in Defense Against the Dark Arts, the more he wanted his dad to leave him alone. He wasn’t sure why.

Maybe it was because he was so famous. He knew his father was “The Chosen One” and “The Boy Who Lived”. He knew he had ended the Second Wizarding War by killing Lord Voldemort and dismantling the organization of Death Eaters. He had seen probably a hundred of his dad’s chocolate frog cards- honestly, it seemed like he had seen a chocolate frog card for about every single one of his relatives. He had heard the stories, read the books, listened to the podcasts, and watched the documentaries. But James wasn’t alive for the war. He didn’t fight it, and he certainly didn’t have to live through it. It just seemed a bit unfair that he was lumped in with an event that was before his time.

When James was born, the media was all over their family. As he grew up, it wasn’t uncommon for reporters to come up to him and ask questions or hear the telltale snap of a camera from a distance. He and his siblings had grown up being bombarded with fame for something they weren’t even alive to witness, and it was a bit draining for an eleven year old to navigate.

Additionally, it seemed as if the media knew everything that was happening in Hogwarts, as well. Lucas had a subscription to the Daily Prophet, and the week after the Sorting Ceremony, sure enough, there was an article written about how James had “followed in his father’s footsteps” to become a Gryffindor.

But what was even worse was when the Quidditch rosters had come out. Will had been the top story that week, as she was the youngest Chaser in almost two centuries to make a house team and her father was a very famous and prestigious Quidditch player, but James hadn’t forgotten asking Lucas to read the copy and saw three sentences that made his heart sink- Unfortunately, the opening of only one Chaser spot on the Gryffindor team created a conflict between some of the first years. Houston managed to edge out James Sirius Potter, oldest son of the famed Harry Potter, for the honors of being rostered, and Potter was named a reserve. Perhaps he’ll see some time, but for now, keep your eyes out for Houston and the rest of the Gryffindors on the house team.

Even in an article about Will, the reporters had managed to throw him into the midst. None of the other reserves were even mentioned- only him, and it made him sick to his stomach. He wished sometimes that he was born into a different family, perhaps just a normal one. It was shameful, he knew it, and almost every time he thought it, he pushed the idea out of his head and kicked himself internally, but he couldn’t help it. It was a lot for an eleven year old to handle. And unfortunately, he was pretty sure he would never escape it.

Little to James’s knowledge, Harry had noticed that his son was becoming more closed off towards him. He thought that it was something he had done at first, and he had traveled back home over a weekend once to ask Ginny what her thoughts were, and they had both sat on the couch at their home, Harry’s arm around his wife as they enjoyed each other’s company. Both of them loved their children equally, but as the first born, James had always been Ginny’s baby. She adored her son, and she knew he had a good heart and a strong mind.

“He’s almost a teenager, Harry. Everyone goes through a phase where they’re embarrassed of their parents no matter how cool and hip they are,” Ginny had said, looking up at him.

“Actually-” Harry started, smirking, but she smacked him with a pillow.

“That’s enough of that.” She leaned into him. “He loves you, and you know it. He’s just trying to figure himself out right now- he’s not sure where he belongs yet and it’s going to take some time for him to get there.”

“I just feel bad. I didn’t think that me teaching at his school was going to have that much of an effect on him, but I feel like he’s constantly trying to avoid me.”

“That’s because he probably is. I did the same thing to all of my older brothers when I was in school- especially Percy. Don’t even get me started on Percy.”

Harry sighed. “I just wish I could help him. I hate seeing him so moody.”

“The best thing that you can do for him is give him space. I promise.”

Back in the train, Athena was walking up and down the corridor as she looked for Will. She and the rest of the first year Slytherins had decided to stop on their way down to the train at the Great Hall to get some snacks for the trip, but unfortunately, they hadn’t timed their excursion right and had almost missed the train entirely. At first, she, Ainsley, and Jaya were able to squeeze in with Serena Lawson and Yasmine Hussan, both first years and the former a Hufflepuff, the latter a Ravenclaw. However, after a while of the five of them squeezed into one compartment, packed in like sardines, Athena decided to search somewhere else for room, saying that she would just look for Will and sit with her.

Unfortunately, though, she hadn’t had much luck so far, wandering the train until finally, she found the Gryffindors. She knocked once, waiting for them to acknowledge her, but none of them heard her through their headphones, so she sighed and decided to just let herself in.

Will looked up when she saw some movement in the corner of her eye, and her face brightened immediately when she realized it was Athena. “Hey! Took you long enough,” she said, taking out one earbud and moving her cards so Athena could sit down.

The blonde girl sighed as she plopped down on the seat. “Don’t even get me started. We wanted to go get dinner to-go from the Great Hall, but we lost track of time and almost missed the train completely.”

“Well, it’s a good thing you didn’t!” Will said brightly. “Well, miss the train, that is.”

Fred had barely noticed that Athena had entered, nodding respectfully but not speaking, too invested in his movie. James, however, was staring daggers at Athena and she gave him a dirty look right back before turning to Will. “What are your plans for this weekend?”

“Not sure. I think I might go to the Puddlemere game with my dad and sister since he has an bye weekend from playing, and later that day, the Weasley’s are having this big family reunion dinner that my family is going to. There’s going to be so many people- earlier, when we were talking to Parker, Fred listed all of their cousins. Okay, wait, let me see if I can do it.”

Athena only smiled as Will sat back and counted on her fingers as she explained. “James and Fred’s Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur have three kids- Victoire, Dominique, and Louis, and they’re all here at Hogwarts. Victoire is a seventh year Ravenclaw, Dominique is a sixth year Slytherin, and Louis is a fourth year Ravenclaw, but you know him. Their Uncle Charlie doesn't have any kids, but their Uncle Percy has two- Molly and Lucy, and Molly is a third year Gryffindor but Lucy is a year younger than us so she’ll be at Hogwarts next year. Chronologically, after that, there’s Fred, who’s an only child, and then their Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, who have two kids, Rose and Hugo, who are both younger than us. James has a brother and a sister, and his brother Albus is the same age as Rose and Lucy so he’ll be here next year, and his little sister Lily is the same age as Hugo, and they’re four years younger than us. Also, I guess my little sister Mason and I are considered family, too, and Teddy Lupin, who you’ve met. Plus, Lucas and his parents are going to be there. It's a lot of people, but I like it that way! What are you doing this weekend?” Will finally finished, barely breathing as she spoke at nearly the speed of light.

Athena shook her head at her friend, trying to process everything she had just said. “I think I understood about half of that.”

Will laughed. “I figured you would. Don’t worry, I think it would be hard for anyone to be around that many people and remember all their names without being part of the family. Luckily, they don’t all look alike like James’s mom and all of her brothers. All of the little sub-families or whatever had their own distinct thing- Bill and Fleur’s kids are half French and an eighth Veela, Percy’s daughters both have light brown hair, Fred is half black, Rose and Hugo have really bushy red hair, and James and Albus look a lot like their dad and Lily looks almost exactly like her mom.” Athena burst out laughing at that. Will raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I just think it’s funny that you were listing all of their unique characteristics and Fred’s was that he’s half black.”

Will crossed her arms and sat back into her seat. “Well, he is. I’m half Asian- I’d say that’s my unique characteristic. When you’re going to a dinner with a bunch of full-white people, you kind of stick out like a sore thumb.”

Fred, who had been tuning them out mostly, had caught the last exchange and laughed a bit. “She’s right, Athena. My thing that makes me different from all my cousins is that I’m half black. It's kind of like how James is half stupid.”

James shot him a dirty look but didn’t say anything, only turning up his music as Will continued. “Anyways, what are you doing this weekend? Got anything fun planned?”

Athena shook her head. “Not really. I’m just sort of playing it by ear as of right now.”

“That’s cool! Are you staying at your mom’s?”

“Yes. I think we might spend some time with my uncle if he doesn’t have plans, which I’m looking forward to,” Athena responded happily. “You should meet him sometime- he’s super cool.”

“Sure sounds like it. You hanging out with Blaise at all?”

“I don’t think so. His dad has something planned for the weekend, I’m pretty sure, and he’ll probably go over to Aidan’s house or something on Monday. What about you three? Are you going to be attached at the hip like you usually are?” She joked.

Will shook her head. “Probably not. Besides the dinner and the game, we really don’t have any plans, andd Mason might want to hang out with me. But James asked if we could stay at one of our houses or something one day, so maybe we’ll have a sleepover. Hey, if you’re not busy, you should come!” She said brightly.

Athena and James both immediately locked eyes at that. Will was oblivious to what she had just suggested, but they both came to the agreement that there is nothing they would like to avoid more than to have a sleepover together, even if Fred and Will were there. “I don’t think my mom will want me to go to Manchester, or else I would. Thanks for the invite, though,” Athena said, trying to keep her tone as even as possible so Will didn’t detect the hate in it for James.

Will shrugged, turning her attention back to her card game. “Figured I’d ask just in case.”

Athena had pulled out a book once Will had quieted, but she found herself blankly staring at the page instead of reading. All she could think about was how offended that James looked when Will had invited her to sleepover with them, and how the same emotion was mirrored on her own face.

Why did she hate James so much? Sure, he was annoying, but Will was annoying, too. Fundamentally, they were the same, but Athena had always gotten along more with one than the other. What set Will and James apart?

Will was nice to her. That was the easiest explanation- when they had been looking for a compartment and asked Athena to sit with her, she had said yes because Will had asked nicely. And then, she asked Athena questions about herself and seemed genuinely interested in what she had to say. Even when she had accidentally blown a hole in the Owl Emporium at Diagon Alley, she hadn’t been cruel or looked down on Athena. All she had really done was defend herself against Blaise’s aggressive remarks, which she did well. Will was kind, and even though Athena wanted to hate her for her extraordinary Quidditch skill, her outstanding brains, and her perfect personality, she couldn’t. Will was a good friend, a loyal friend. Athena would perhaps consider her her best friend. But James was a different story entirely.

James had inherited his parent’s prejudice. Even though Professor Potter tried to hide it, Athena knew he was hesitant about her being a Lestrange. She didn’t blame her teacher- if she had gone through the things he had, she might be a little wary about a girl related to Bellatrix and Rodolphus too. But whereas Professor Potter was an adult and didn’t treat her differently, James was a child and acted like one. Their first interaction had been all she needed to chalk him up. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized they might not be as different as she thought.

It was very obvious that James had very deep insecurities about his family. He was afraid that he would never live up to what his father had done for the Wizarding community, and he was afraid that he would disappoint his parents and everyone that had put a spotlight on him at such a young age. But Athena also was insecure about her family.

Her parents had divorced a little over a year ago. She loved her parents and she truly thought that her parents loved each other at the beginning, but in the last six months of their relationship, it was clear that they probably shouldn’t have ever been married. It was hard, at first, because she had to force herself to get used to them fighting until suddenly, the fighting stopped and then she had to get used to packing all of her belongings every week and moving back and forth.

Her mom remarried not long after, to a nice Muggle man that Athena loved. He was a great father figure, as was her uncle. It wasn’t that she didn’t love her dad, but her dad had some issues. He was troubled in the way that he didn’t really know how to be a dad. He loved Athena, and he made sure that she knew it every chance he got, but he made mistakes. Athena felt a lot of pity for him whenever she went over to his house, because she knew he was trying, but it was still hard. It didn’t help that whenever she got the chance, her mother would talk so badly about her father that Athena didn’t know what was true and what was a lie.

Part of her wanted to say yes to Will’s offer and stay overnight at her house, but she didn’t really want to be around their family for that long. From the way Will talked about her parents, they were strict but they babied her, and nothing bothered Athena more than watching Will get handed everything she wanted. But little to her knowledge, what happened in Will’s home was the complete opposite of what she thought.

Will’s parents loved her. There was no doubt about that. She was their oldest daughter, the bright, shining star of their family. Her parents knew how brilliant she was, but that didn’t come without expectations. Will had grown up being shoved into a multitude of different activities just becaue she was above average at most of them, and forced to do things she didn’t want to do in order to make her more “well rounded”. Both of her parents had gone to Northwestern, a very prestigious school in America, and they expected her to follow in their footsteps. Everything that she did was to make her more marketable to universities or future employers. But they also pushed her as much as they could, putting her in classes two or three years above her grade level and she trained with a Quidditch academy team. Not only was getting into a Quidditch academy connected to the British-Irish league incredibly difficult, but she was also playing a few years up.

While Athena’s dad was absent in the more literal sense, Will’s dad was there, but very hard for her to read. She didn’t like to talk about it, but she had always had an inkling that her father liked her little sister more than her. Well, not necessarily like, because she knew he loved them both equally, but the way he interacted with them was very different. Even now, while she was at school, she didn’t talk to her dad that much except answering a few questions about her play and classes. She knew her sister was playing games and doing things with her dad back at home that he had never expressed wanting to do with Will.

Will loved her dad. She looked up to him- he was her hero. He did everything right and always stood up for her, and he pushed her because he loved her, too. Her father was just so reserved and unemotional around her that sometimes it didn’t feel like it. But she thought there was an explanation for that, though.

Will’s parents were the epitome of opposites attract. Her mom was bright and bubbly, a loyal person and a peacemaker. She didn’t have it easy growing up, so she had to work at everything and it made her value the things she accomplished that much more. She was empathetic, kind, and she could be a little stubborn when she wanted to. She was the kind of person that made sure everything was planned and that everything had a place. However, her dad was nearly the complete opposite. He was reserved, more dry, and fiery. He was gifted in so many ways that it made him almost lazy when he was a child, and he didn’t learn the lessons that his wife had until he was in his twenties. He was a little closed off and cocky, but he cared for people deeply, especially his family, and just didn’t show it the way people would expect. He did whatever he wanted to do in that moment and hated authority, and while he was tough on the outside, he was loving and protective at his core.

Will and her sister Mason were near carbon copies of each of their parents with one twist. Will was exactly like her father, almost to a T, but the only difference was that she was extroverted whereas her father was introverted. Mason was the same as her mother but introverted when her mother was extroverted. The similarities between them all usually created a wonderful home life for all of them, but if Will said they didn’t have familial problems, she’d be lying. Her mother and sister often clashed in big fights, screaming at each other, whereas Will and her father never fought but he sometimes had difficulty talking to her, closing himself off to the point that Will wouldn’t even try to interact with him.

Will’s biggest insecurity was that she was disappointing her parents. She had never been one to care about what other people thought, but her parents were in a completely different category. The amount of pressure that was put on her could be considered abnormal, but her parents just told her that it was because they knew what she was capable of. To Will, it felt like if she made a mistake, she wasn’t doing what they expected her to. It kept her up at night, sometimes- she would get a grade that wasn’t perfect or make a bad pass in Quidditch and all she could think about was how her dad would shake his head and the train ride back to their house from wherever they were would be completely silent.

Will shook her head a bit, trying to get the anxious thoughts she had out of her head. She knew that thinking about it too much would only make her feel worse, and she was on her way home to see her family and sleep in her own bed. Besides, nothing was better than a long weekend with no homework. And as she reshuffled her cards to start another game of solitaire, she smiled a little bit to herself.

Chapter Text

Blaise loved Hogwarts, there was no doubt about it. However, he would never get tired of the feeling of flopping down into his own bed. Sure, he loved his roommates. Sometimes Ash snored and when Matteo rolled over on the top bed of the bunk they shared, he would practically shake the whole thing, but they were his friends, and in his mind, it was like having a nine month long sleepover with his best mates. But living with five other boys in a dormitory was definitely tough sometimes, and he was thankful to be alone in his own room for a weekend.

He stretched out on his bed, staring up at the vaulted ceiling of his bedroom as Plum purred next to him. It was easy for him to slip back into his life at home, where there was an abundance of peace and quiet. It was nice for today, but he knew he would miss waking up and hearing Finn cuss as the alarm went off. But he was here, and he was home with his parents. That was what mattered now.

As Blaise fell asleep upstairs, his mother sat in an armchair by the fire. The weather hadn’t quite changed yet, and it was a bit too warm to be running the fireplace, but Melody liked to say that she ran cold. She sipped on some red wine as she stared at the flames, the light flickering on her face.

“What are you thinking about, my love?” Roland slid into a chair across from his wife, his own glass of wine in his hand.

Melody smiled, turning to face him. “I’m not sure that I’m thinking at all.”

Roland chuckled, swirling the wine in his glass. “I understand.” They sat in silence for a bit, just taking in the domesticity of it all before Roland broke it again. “It seems as if Blaise is making some new friends at school.”

Melody looked up. “The Houston girl?”

“And one James Sirius Potter.”

She sat back, the corners of her lips turned up into a smile. “I have to say, I didn’t expect that one.”

“I didn’t either.” Roland paused. “I don’t mind it.”

“What is there to mind about it?”

“I don’t know, I guess nothing. I just didn’t expect him to want to be a part of the fame that came with it.”

She sighed. “That’s true. I don’t think he does, or if he does, he didn’t think about it at the beginning. We have never been ones to thrust him into the press.”

“Merlin knows the press wants him. Do you remember when he was born?” He smiled slightly. “It seemed as if the media was down our throats.”

She laughed. “Yes, the first son of one of the oldest pureblood families in Europe and the heir to a fortune. It sure was something to talk about.”

Roland swirled his cup a bit more. “Do you think we spoil him?” There was a bit of uneasiness in his voice.

Melody reached over and took his hand. “Yes, I think we do,” she replied, grinning. “But not enough for him to become a brat. Believe me, we would know if we babied him too much.”

“I just worry.”

“Worry about what?”

“That we’re handing him everything.”

“Of course we hand him everything, he’s our son. We’re his parents. It’s our job.” She squeezed his hand. “He is wiser than we think he is. He knows that we work hard, and he respects it. He works hard, too. At Quidditch. At school. Did you know he’s second in his class?”

Roland sat up a bit straighter. “He is? Who’s first?”

“Who do you think?”

He chuckled. “Aidan, of course. That kid is something else.”

“In a good way. He’s a good kid.”

“That he is. He’s a good influence, too.”

“Yes, every group of three needs the responsible one, and Merlin knows that it wasn’t going to be Blaise. Or Charley, the sweet thing.” They shared a laugh before returning to silence. Once again, it didn’t last long before Roland broke it.

“Do you ever wish we had another child?”

Melody paused, a little caught off guard at that. “Not really, no. It may be selfish of me, but I don’t think I could go through giving birth a second time,” she joked, but Roland stayed quiet. “Why? Do you wish it?”

“I don’t think so. Parenting is hard enough as it is. Besides, we have Blaise. He is a handful sometimes, but he’s perfect in his own ways.” Silence. “He has never spoken about wanting a sibling.”

She thought for a bit. “He did once.”

“When?”

“When he was six. He mentioned one time that it would be nice to have a little brother.”

He pondered that. “What did you say?”

“I told him maybe.”

“Hm. He never brought it up again?”

“No. He went over to the Pucey’s the next day and didn’t say a word after. Hasn’t since then.”

“That doesn’t surprise me. He’s always been one to focus on the moment.”

“Indeed. He has Aidan, Charley, all of his roommates, and Athena. I think that perhaps that is all he wants.”

“Perhaps.”

They sat by the fire a bit more before deciding to retreat to the comforts of sleep, walking up the golden staircase to the bedroom across from their sons. Before going inside, they peeked into Blaise’s room, and he was dead asleep, his breathing even as his cat purred next to him. They exchanged smiles before quietly closing the door and curling up next to each other in their own bed.

Outside the door, house elves tidied and dusted off some of the hard-to-reach shelves. Melody had hated the idea of house elves, but when she moved into Roland’s family home, she found after a short amount of time that it was too much for two people to constantly keep clean while working and raising a child simultaneously. The first thing she did was make sure that Roland knew she didn’t like the idea of slaves, no matter the species, and he had agreed and freed his family’s house elves as soon as she mentioned it, but they were generational elves. They loved Roland and Melody so much that they stayed anyway, and after a lot of insisting, they even were paid and had the opportunity to take days off if they wanted. They did good work, and they were treated fairly. It was more than what they were expecting, and the elves were content.

Cleaning the house was no small task- the Whitacker’s house was a mansion. Blaise denied it, but the first time Charley and Aidan came over, both of their mouths dropped open at the size of it, and Aidan lived in a manor of his own. It was no secret that his family was rich. Everyone knew it- his father was the head of a company that built and sold medicinal machines and products to hospital giants like St Mungoes, and his mother was the owner of an apothecary that specialized in creating lavish and expensive medical ingredients. To say that they were well-off would be an understatement.

Even then, to add to their assets, his father was the only child of a long line of generational wealth, and his mother had been the sole inheritor of the entire Zabini fortune, which was to say, an unthinkable amount of money. But Blaise knew to never talk about his mother’s inheritance around her. He knew she had a lot of mixed feelings about it.

Before Melody’s last name had been Whitacker, it had been Zabini. And before that, it had been Gibbon. Her father had been Malcolm Gibbon, a wizard that had come from a long line of prestigious purebloods. Her mother, who she never got the chance to meet, died giving birth to her, so she was raised solely by her father.

Her father was not a good person. He and his older brother, Stephen, had always been interested in the Dark Arts, and soon, it took over every fiber of their being. Malcolm paid barely any attention to his daughter, and when he did, it was to scream at her for making the smallest of mistakes, like leaving a stuffed animal out in the living room when she was only four. As she got older, the screaming turned into beatings, and Melody grew to resent him. If her father knew this, he did not care, using next to none of his hefty fortune on his daughter’s upbringing and leaving her to fend for herself.

However it wasn’t long before her father remarried, to another pureblood when Melody was six. The woman was Zara Zabini, one of the most gorgeous witches of her time, and she had been widowed four times over. When Melody first met her, she was in awe of, and honestly a little scared of her beauty. Zara had deep, dark skin and beautiful curls that fell past her shoulders, and her eyes were the most gorgeous shade of chocolate brown. It was no wonder that she was so sought after.

Melody was hesitant at first to trust her, hearing the rumors of what happened to the people she was involved with, but overtime, she grew to respect her, and eventually, to love her. Zara was painted to be incredibly vain and snobby by the tabloids, but in reality, she was kind, caring, and she took one look at Melody, a wiry girl with knobby knees, pale skin and baby fat still in her cheeks, and took her in as one of her own.

Zara was the mother that Melody never had. She would take her shopping and buy her fancy clothes, style her thin hair, and she always made time to see her when Melody wanted, no matter how busy she was. Zara was like a breath of fresh air to her, and even though Melody looked completely different from her, she would swear that she was her own daughter.

Melody and her stepbrother Blaise also clicked immediately. Blaise was a year older than her, and he was very quiet, but it was easy for them to transition into a homely lifestyle. Both of them were only children that craved a sibling, and to say that they got along would be an understatement. Sometimes, Melody would come home from an outing with her stepmother to find Blaise sitting on the couch eating orange slices, a full plate next to him meant for her. Sometimes, Blaise would enter his room to find his clean laundry folded on his bed and heard his stepsister humming to herself as she put her own clothing away in the room next door. Blaise loved his little sister, and she loved him. And when her father yelled at her, Blaise yelled right back at him before grabbing her hand and leading her up to his room where they would sit in a silence that neither of them minded, reading books.

Zara and Blaise were part of the reason that Melody learned to love, not only other people, but herself. Zara would run a brush through Melody’s dark, pin straight hair and tell her that she was the most beautiful girl that she had ever seen. Melody would blush and say that she thought that Zara was the prettiest person in the world. She was envious of her dark skin, because hers was so pale, and she wished that her hair was curly and luscious like her stepmothers, but Zara always shook her head. “Your hair and skin are perfect. You don’t have to look like me to be beautiful, Melody. Beauty comes in all different shapes and sizes.” She turned Melody so she could look at herself in the mirror. “Your eyes are so gorgeous. Look at the different colors in them.” Zara kissed her on the forehead before tucking her into bed. “I love you, my darling.” It was easy for Melody to say I love you back.

Malcolm and Zara were only married for ten months before Malcolm mysteriously passed away. Of course, Zara inherited all of his fortune, something that his brother Stephen was furious about up until the moment he died, minutes before Albus Dumbledore did at Hogwarts. Melody remembered standing at her father’s funeral, shaking the hands of people that had known her father, and when they offered their condolences and told her they were sorry for her loss, she felt nothing. She did not cry at the loss of her father, for he was an evil man and she was finally free from the suffering she had faced at his hand. The only thing that she was fearful of was losing Zara and Blaise.

One night, a couple days after her father’s death, she broke down in tears, causing Zara to come running in. Melody had been inconsolable, crying and asking Zara that now that her father was dead, would she still be able to live with her? Zara pulled her into a hug and told her that she could live with her as long as she liked and she would never leave her. She was her daughter, after all.

As soon as Zara met Malcolm, she knew what Melody had faced at his hands, and from the start, she swore to herself that it would never happen to her again. And only two months after that, Zara officially adopted Melody, and her last name was changed from Gibbon to Zabini.

Ten years later, Blaise passed away. He had fought bravely in the Second Wizarding War alongside his friends and his classmates, but unfortunately, he was hit by a killing curse sent by a Death Eater and died instantly at the age of eighteen. His death nearly broke Zara and Melody both, for they cared about him more than life. Sitting through his funeral was the hardest thing Melody had ever had to do. But she stayed strong for her mother, and they made it through it together.

When Melody got married to Roland Whitacker, Zara walked her down the aisle. There was an empty seat in the front row next to her mother for her brother, and in Melody’s speech, she spoke about him and how she wished he was there. But both Melody and Zara knew that he was watching, somehow and from somewhere, and when the two of them danced together for the bride’s second dance, they could practically feel his presence and see his smile.

Melody gave birth to her son a year later, and Zara was there to hold her hand through it all as Roland clutched the other. And when Melody told her mother that her baby’s name was Blaise, Zara cried. He looked nothing like his uncle, of course, but as the late July sun set outside, the sky was the most beautiful shades of pink and orange.

Zara died when Blaise was nine. She had been sixty seven, and her life had been made full by her son, her daughter, and her grandbaby. It was hard for the entire Whitacker family- Roland had been very close to his mother in law and little Blaise was heartbroken by the loss of his beloved grandmother. She was buried next to her son, the headstones nearly identical. Melody always made sure to go to their graves on every holiday, including their birthdays and the anniversaries of their deaths. She brought two bouquets of tulips every time, and she sat next to them in silence, staring up at the sky. They had saved her, the two of them. She would never forget it. And when she looked at her son and listened to him laugh, she could sometimes almost feel the two of them laughing with him.

– – –

The Puddlemere United game was packed. Wizards and witches from all over the country had traveled to Bournemouth to watch their beloved team take on the Holyhead Harpies, and Will was practically jumping out of her skin.

She was no stranger to professional Quidditch games- she had grown up going to almost every single one of her father’s, so she was used to the environment, but man, it would never get old. She was decked out in navy blue, the colors of the home team, and her eyes were huge as she watched the stadium slowly fill up with people. Even though her father played for Ballycastle, his favorite place to be had been Puddlemere- a team that he had admired even while he was in school back in America. He only spent one year there, and he didn’t ever say it, but Will knew he was happiest there. He had left after the coach that season, Grant Bishop, had decided to leave the club and sign a new contract, and her father had followed him to Ballycastle. He and Coach Bishop got along really well and Mr Houston loved his playing style, but Will knew that Puddlemere had been his dream. Perhaps he would go back someday.

Will, her dad, and her sister all sat side by side, waiting for the game to start. She swung her feet back and forth a bit before rocking on the chair she was sitting beside as her sister ate some popcorn and her father scrolled on his phone. “Will, sit still,” he barked, and she blushed before trying not to move.

“Sorry.” But it was really hard to stop once she noticed she was doing it, and eventually, she just got up. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back,” she said, and her dad nodded.

“Be careful. There’s a lot of people down there, so make sure you’re safe.”

“Okay, Dad!”

As she was walking down the stairs, it was hard to navigate through all of the adults trying to make their way up them and find their seats, and when she accidentally bumped into a couple people, they gave her dirty looks, but she persisted, pushing her way through. When she finally reached the bottom, she stood and looked around.

“Will!” A voice came from the crowd of people. “Hey, Will!” She turned to see Charley and his mother walking up to her, and her face broke into a smile.

“Hey, Charley! Fancy seeing you here,” she joked, and the older boy grinned.

“Mum, this is my friend Will. She’s a Gryffindor first year, and she’s a Chaser on the house team with me. Dad is friends with her dad,” Charley explained to his mother, and she smiled.

Charley’s mother, Hazel, was a pretty woman with an athletic build and brown hair with an auburn glow, and her freckles matched her son’s. “It’s very nice to meet you, Will. I’ve heard a lot about you and your family,” she said kindly, and Will smiled brightly.

“It’s nice to meet you, too! Wow, I can’t believe that I’m actually getting to meet you- you’re a legend!” She said, and the older woman smiled.

Hazel Hancock had been famous before she married a professional Quidditch player, but she was famous in a much different way. Hazel was a Muggle, and she grew up in the streets of Leeds before she signed a professional contract with the AFC Bournemouth women’s football team at age sixteen. She had always been an incredible footballer, and she was widely regarded as one of the best outside backs that had ever touched a ball. She got her first cap for the senior English team when she was sixteen and a half, only two months after she signed her contract with Bournemouth, and by the time she retired at age thirty nine, she was a two-time Euros champion, a world cup winner, national team captain, and had the record for most caps by any English player, man or woman.

She met Oliver Wood when they were both twenty one, at a gym in Bournemouth. Hazel had been working on legs that day and he was the only other person in the gym at that time, so she asked him to spot her while she was back squatting. After, they struck up a conversation and hit it off almost instantly. They both shared passion, determination, discipline, and hunger for the things they wanted to accomplish.

At first, it was hard for Oliver to open up to Hazel because she was a Muggle, but after he got to know her, it was almost impossible to keep such a huge part of his life a secret from her. She took it surprisingly well, only asking questions occasionally, and it wasn’t long before she was helping him draw up plays and practice exercises for Quidditch and he was timing and encouraging her while she did technical ball work. They started attending each other’s games and even though Oliver was Scottish, he couldn’t help but cry when Hazel won the world cup for England.

Oliver and Hazel dated for three years before they got married and they had their son three years after that. Oliver insisted that he was going to be a wizard when he was born, and Hazel used to shake her head at him, but she was excited regardless. She would love her baby no matter if he was a wizard or not, but part of her was so interested in the stories that her husband had told her about his school and how he grew up that she couldn’t help but hope her child got to experience those things, too. The first time she stepped foot on Hogwarts grounds, she was in awe. It was unlike anything she had ever seen, and she was so excited to watch her son do what he loved in such an amazing environment.

Will was still gushing over getting the chance to meet such a legend for England’s national team. “I’m still in shock, wow- man, when I saw you score the game winner for England in the Euros last year, I went crazy! To be fair, I knew you guys were going to win, Italy doesn’t even come close to the amount of talent on the English team, but wow, it was incredible to see. You’re just genuinely one of my idols, you’ve done so much for women’s sports- okay, so technically, I’m American in terms of FIFA eligibility for football, but I had a poster of you hanging up in my room when we first moved to Manchester!” Will was talking a mile a minute as usual, but Hazel found it quite amusing.

“Did you, now?”

Will nodded vigorously. “Yeah! Man, the only thing I wish happened is that you signed for City a couple years back since that’s my club, but I think it’s super cool that you decided to retire at Bournemouth. Respect!”

Charley, who was slightly blushing at the interaction, pushed his friend slightly. “Okay, okay, that’s enough, you’re gonna talk her ear off,” he joked, and his mother swatted at him.

“Be nice.”

“Sorry, mum.”

“Where are you guys sitting?” Will asked.

“We have seats in the maroon box,” Hazel responded.

“Oh, wow, me too! My dad and my sister are up there now. Hey, I’ll tell you what- I’m gonna run to the bathroom real quick and then I’ll see you there!” Will gave them one more toothy grin before sprinting off into the crowd, her black hair disappearing between robes of navy blue. Hazel smiled to herself, shaking her head as she took her son’s hand as they made their way up to the stands.

Meanwhile, Blaise and his father were fighting the crowd to try and reach their own seats. They were seated on the opposite side of the stadium, so the chances of them running into Charley and Will were low, but Blaise enjoyed the time with his dad. Sometimes he felt like he rarely got to see him and he wanted to make sure that the time he did have was spent as wisely as possible.

By the time they had made it up and were seated, the game was almost beginning. There was a quick break for the national anthem and a presentation of the starters of the game, and then it was underway. Puddlemere was taking on the Falmouth Falcons, and they were heavily favored to win.

The crowd roared at every goal and booed at all the penalties, and Blaise couldn’t keep his eyes off of Charley’s dad. To say that Oliver Wood was thriving at Puddlemere would be an understatement- he was racking up records left and right and now, as a captain, he was leading his team to the top of the table almost every year. He looked so comfortable there- like he was born to wear navy and Blaise would have to be blind to not see the passion that he brought to every save and every pass.

As the crowd roared as Oliver saved another shot, Blaise couldn’t help but picture himself in his place. He could practically feel it- the adrenaline rush from saving a shot, the screams of his name, and the thrill of playing for the best team in all of England. He knew he wanted to play at Puddlemere. And when he wanted something, by Merlin, he was going to work his ass off until he got it.

When a Puddlemere Chaser scored a brilliant goal, he turned to his father after the cheering had died down. “Hey, Dad, do you think I could play for Puddlemere?”

His father smiled at him. “I think you can do anything if you put your mind to it.”

Blaise blushed. “Okay, thank you, but I mean right now.”

“Right now? What do you mean?”

“I mean their academy team. Do you think I could try out?”

“What’s wrong with Tutshill?”

“Nothing’s wrong with it, but I think I might want to switch to Puddlemere’s team.”

Roland was slightly confused at the change in heart. As far as he knew, Blaise loved Tutshill. He had a good coach, and there were some kids on the team that he had really bonded with. It didn’t really make sense that he suddenly wanted to switch teams. “Well, if you want to, we can look into it. But can I ask, why do you want to change all of a sudden?”

Blaise propped his elbow up on the bar in front of him and rested his head in his hand. “I don’t know, really. Maybe it’s because I’ve always wanted to play for Puddlemere. I know it’s far, but I’ve heard some good things about their teams.”

“Don’t your friends Charley and Willow play for Puddlemere?”

Blaise perked up a bit. “Oh, yeah, they do! Maybe I can talk to them about it.”

Roland ruffled his son’s hair a bit. “Okay. I’ll look into it for the winter season, how does that sound?”

Blaise grinned so big his cheeks started to hurt. “Wow, thanks, Dad!”

“Of course.”

– – –

Athena was bored. At first, she thought she would be thankful for some peace and quiet, but she realized very quickly that she had become accustomed to the hustle and bustle that was the Hogwarts lifestyle and it was very odd to just stop.

Her owl, Eos, hooted goodnaturedly from her perch in Athena’s room. Surely the bird was feeling a similar sense of loneliness as her owner- she was used to being surrounded by others up in the Owlery and was now sitting by herself in a room much too quiet. Athena opened up a new bag of treats and gently fed her one, earning a happy squawk from the bird.

Athena was just about to open a book but jumped a little at the sound of her door opening, and she turned her head to see who it was.

“Hello, Athena,” Rabastan Lestrange said, smiling at his niece.

“Uncle!” Athena jumped up and ran over to give him a hug.

He picked her up and swung her around a little, giving her a squeeze as he set her down.“How are you? I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages,” he joked.

She grinned. “It hasn’t been that long.”

He ruffled her hair. “Sure feels like a while. How does lunch sound?” He pulled out a piece of paper, and when Athena unfolded it, her eyes widened. “I got us a reservation at that place you like with the seafood for lunch.”

“Wow, really?” Athena was bursting with joy as Rabastan grabbed her jacket.

“Really. Come on, I brought my car. We can drive.”

The car in question was a 1998 silver Camaro- not the nicest she had ever been in, but the worn leather of the seats and the cool scent of pine from the air fresheners was a comfort. Athena pressed her hands against the window, staring at the streets of her hometown, Colchester, as the countryside whizzed by. The town was one of the bigger settlements in England, located on the east side of the country, but Athena lived with her mother on the outskirts closer to the coast. The seafood restaurant was small but cozy, right along the River Stour. The fish was always fresh and the drinks were always hot, and even though the October weather still hinted at some warmth from the summer, the seasons were changing and Athena was grateful for the fireplace right in the middle of the dining room.

Athena ordered crab legs, her favorite, and Rabastan got a lobster tail. Normally, Athena would be wary at the price, considering this restaurant was pretty high-end and her mother didn’t approve of pricey meals, but when the check came, Rabastan paid in cash. Her uncle had been the sole heir of the Black fortune- Sirius and Regulus’s deaths put an end to the direct male line of the family. Sirius had managed to give most of it to his godson, Harry Potter, but there was a large majority of it that he had no idea about, leaving it unclaimed for the most part. It would've gone to one of the three female Black cousins next, but all three weren’t able to claim it. Andromeda had been disowned from the family after marrying a Muggle, and Narcissa left the family on her own after the Second Wizarding War to alienate herself from the Dark Lord. That left Bellatrix, who had died during the Battle of Hogwarts along with her husband Rodolphus. But Rabastan, a pureblood and Bellatrix’s brother in law, stepped up after getting out of Azkaban, and legally, he was able to worm his way into the close entirety of the Black estate, which was, to say, an ungodly amount of money and property.

The one thing about the fortune that Rabastan disliked about it was the fact that his sister would touch none of it. Rae, younger than Rodolphus by ten years and older than Rabastan by one, wasn’t close to her brothers growing up, and that did not change once they reached adulthood. When Rodolphus and Rabastan got involved with the Dark Lord, Rae had held them away from her with a nine foot pole. But she wasn’t necessarily on the other side- she just wanted to stay as far away from the conflict as possible. She had an odd relationship with her family, to say the least.

Rae loved her brothers, but she didn’t understand them. Her brain worked differently, as she would say, and she spent most of her time alone, but she liked it that way. She was sorted into Ravenclaw, not Slytherin like the rest of her family, and while it had brought some tension, her brothers were okay with it for the most part. Her time at Hogwarts had gone by quickly and without a fuss, but once she had graduated, she realized that she had no idea what she wanted to do. Since then, she had hopped around from job to job before finally settling in sales. Working for a Muggle company wasn’t what most people had foreseen in her future, but she was happy. She got to work her own hours and her pay was stable for the most part, so it seemed alright to her.

Rae married Michael Burns at age thirty three. He was a halfblood wizard that she had met while on vacation in Scotland, and they had hit off instantly. Their whole relationship was full of fireworks and speed, moving so quickly that half the time, Rae didn’t even know what stage of it she was supposed to be in. They married after a year and stayed married for eleven more, and Rae gave birth to Athena when she was thirty seven.

However, Athena’s birth was the downfall of her relationship with Michael. It had many cracks in the basis to begin with, and it wasn’t built on the healthiest of foundations at the start. Another person in the house just brought out the flaws in it that they had pushed to the back of their minds, and this time, they were unable to be ignored. They had rushed into whatever relationship they had way too quickly, and the cracks were turning into gaping holes that crumbled with the slightest breath of wind.

Rae and Michael had gotten divorced when Athena was six, and it was a miracle that they had made it that long. It had been hard for everyone, but for Rae, it mostly felt like relief. She figured that she was better off by herself, raising her daughter on her own, and now, the time that she had spent fighting with her husband could be better spent reconnecting with her family.

Rabastan and Rae had stopped speaking right before and during the war, and he had spent four years in prison for the crimes he had committed while affiliated with the Dark Lord. Rabastan had always idolized his older brother, following nearly whatever he wanted him to do, and that had been part of the case that he pleaded for his parole. Once he was released, he went straight to his sister to make things right. The discussion that they had lasted hours, ending with both siblings crying as they reminisced on their lives and promised to each other that they would be better in the future. And when Athena was born, Rabastan was involved from the beginning, helping his sister and his niece with whatever they needed, which was sometimes just being there.

But even though the Lestranges were much closer than they had been at the beginning, Rae still would accept no financial help from Rabastan. She was proud like that, wanting to break the stereotype of a single mother raising a daughter. But when Rabastan insisted, sometimes she would relent like she did that day, allowing her brother to spoil his niece on occasion.

“So, how has school been so far?” Rabastan asked as he took a bite of his lobster.

“It’s pretty good. Classes have been going well,” Athena responded, scooping some meat out of a crab leg.

“Good to hear. Which is your favorite?”

Athena thought for a second. “I’m not sure. I really like Potions, but Charms is fun, too.”

Rabastan chuckled. “I knew you would enjoy Potions. Is Slughorn still the teacher?”

“Yep. Was he always that weird?”

“Ha. Yes.” There was a pause as they ate a bit more. “What about other things?” He asked.

Athena stopped peeling the crab legs apart to give him a weird look. “What do you mean?”

“Friends, hobbies.”

“Oh.” She put the crab legs down. “Good, I guess. I’ve met some cool people so far- Ainsley Shacklebolt is in my house, and Jaya Chakrabarti, who’s a Muggleborn, is in Slytherin, too. The Slytherin boys are all idiots, but they’re funny sometimes.”

Rabastan raised his eyebrow at her. The older man wondered why she had failed to mention her friends from Gryffindor. According to Roland and Melody Whitacker, Blaise had made friends with James Sirius Potter, and by direct association, Athena did, too. That little tidbit of information was what Rabastan had really wanted to hear about. “What about from other houses? Any annoying Gryffindors or know-it-all Ravenclaws in the bunch?”

Athena laughed at the joke. “Yeah, there’s a couple, actually. There’s this one girl, her name is Will- Will Houston. She’s been pretty nice to me throughout the year and even though I’m not really sure why, she seems to consider me her best friend. I like her, I think.”

“I remember you mentioning me to her before you got to school. You only think you like her?”

“Well, she’s a new person and I’m just not sure if I trust her yet, you know? She’s cool, but she’s really loud and somehow perfect at everything she does. It is a bit annoying, I guess, because she doesn’t even try and everyone worships her. But I like hanging out with her.”

“Well, it’s good to hear that you’re meeting brand new people. I’m happy for you.”

“Thank you. She’s definitely brand new- did you know that her dad is a professional Quidditch player?”

Rabastan thought for a second. “I don’t really follow Quidditch much, but the last name sounds familiar.”

“Yeah. They’re Americans- Will and her little sister were born in the US before they moved over here so he could play Quidditch. Speaking of, they’re pretty good friends with the Potters and the Weasleys.”

Finally, what Rabastan was really wondering about had come up on its own. “The Potters, huh? Don’t they have a boy around your age?”

Athena nodded. “Yeah. His name is James.” She scrunched her face up. “I don’t like him very much.”

“Why not?”

“Well, for starters, he’s annoying. He has sort of a superiority complex and when we met, he treated me differently than Will did because I told him I was a Lestrange.”

Rabastan winced. “I figured. His father is not a fan of our family. We were on opposite sides of the war.”

“Well, I don’t see how that’s my fault! It just makes me angry because he’s so self righteous and jealous of everything,” Athena huffed.

Her uncle laughed. “Well, you certainly don’t have to like him if you don’t want to.” He paused before asking his next question- not sure if he should bring up the sensitive topic. “I heard you didn’t make the Quidditch team. Are you doing alright with that?”

Athena quieted a bit at that. “I guess so. They took a seventh year instead of me, so I can’t really get mad at it, but it was just a little embarrassing. Blaise made it, and Will made it, too. The first first year to make it since Harry Potter,” she said glumly.

Rabastan rolled his eyes. “Gryffindors. They always have to make a statement,” he grumbled, causing her to laugh.

“Yeah. I was mostly just disappointed because I wanted to make it really bad, but I never played for a huge academy team, so I wasn’t ready for the pace like Will and Blaise were. I got nervous during the tryout, and it wasn’t the best flying I’ve done. But James didn’t make it either- Will got the spot- so that made me feel a little better,” she joked, and Rabastan ruffled her hair.

“I understand. Hmm, how does it sound if we talk to your mum and see if you can try out for Norwich this winter? I know that their franchise and their team is on the newer side, but it’s close to home and I’m sure it would give you better training and competition if you wanted that,” he said, and Athena lit up.

“Seriously?”

“Of course. Let’s talk to your mom once we get home,” he said, and she grinned so big her cheeks ached.

“Thank you, Uncle!”

Once their lunch was finished, they made their way back to Rabastan’s Camaro and started the drive home. It was mostly silent, with soft music coming from the old radio that Athena hummed along with, but Rabastan had other things on his mind.

After he had been released from Azkaban, he had done a lot of reflecting. Mostly about what he had done to get himself landed in prison, but also why he had done it. He had attributed most of it to Rodolphus and his family’s pressure of purity, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that it was more than just that.

He did believe in what the Dark Lord had stood for to some degree, but he had realized very quickly during his time in prison that the way that he had gone about it was completely wrong. His motive was too evil, too self-centered, and he held his followers to him with fear of what he would do to them if they didn’t agree.

Rabastan didn’t want to live forever. Creating Horcruxes and living by a thread was not what he wanted for himself. But he did have a thirst for power, a need to be in control and mold the world to his liking. After years of deliberation and reflection, he had finally created a plan to merge the Muggle and Magic communities. Living like cowards, barred from the rest of humanity all because they were more powerful? That wasn’t the way that things should go.

There were already activists that existed within the magic community that protested for the combination of the two societies, but Rabastan hated them. They weren’t ambitious enough, weren’t hungry enough. There would be no “equality” in his new world. He refused to force himself down to the level of a Muggle when he knew he was worth so much more. He didn’t care that Muggles would become oppressed because their technology wouldn’t be able to compete with magic. He cared that the increase of resources would allow wizardry to become more progressive.
Wizards had the gifts of the gods that Muggles prayed to. They could become the highest members of society, forcing the resources used for trivial things such as most types of Muggle technology and corporations to advance magic, pushing the boundaries of the universe. Who cared if the Muggles would be pushed to the bottom of his new society? He would have the power. Not them.

The only thing that he was struggling with was when he was going to start. This was his life’s work, and bad timing could mean the downfall for him and his beliefs. But now, even though Athena didn’t know it, he had access to some of the most powerful people in the Wizarding community- the Potters. If Athena, and Blaise, too, became close enough with James Sirius Potter, the foolish boy would tell them everything about his family- the strengths, the weaknesses, and they would know when there was turmoil and when the best time to strike would be.

Athena and Blaise were only small parts of his plan. He had already started recruiting others to join his cause, such as the remaining followers of Lord Voldemort and lesser members of the Wizarding community, such as werewolves and vampires, and a number of new people who were angry at the dwindling numbers of wizards while Muggle populations were soaring. Magic was sacred, and they were willing to do whatever it took to make sure it didn’t die out. But his plan was finally coming together, and it would be time soon to make the first ripple.

Rabastan had decided to finish what the Dark Lord had started, but better.

Chapter Text

Once Will had stepped foot on Hogwarts soil again, she had made a beeline straight for the Quidditch field.

Fall break had been awesome- she had slept in every day and had gotten some really nice homecooked meals. She and her sister had also been working on putting together a lego set since the summer- and they had finally finished it.

But Will would be lying if she said she didn’t think about Quidditch every single second. She had become a girl possessed- when she woke up, she would think about the upcoming Quidditch practice. In class, she would draw flying patterns in her notebook. Even when she was at home, she asked her father to help her with some drills, which he gladly said yes to.

It wasn’t like Quidditch was a new thing to her- she had been playing it since she could walk, for Merlin’s sake. But the thing that was new was the feeling of playing for her school. Will had gone to a Muggle primary school for the majority of her life before she came to Hogwarts, something very uncommon for purebloods in England. But where her parents grew up, in the suburbs of Chicago, it was customary for all young witches and wizards to go to Muggle school anyways, instead of being homeschooled by their parents. Will was actually very thankful for that. James and Fred had not gone to public school, instead learning about the Wizarding society from their families, but Will thought she had a better grip on the outside world than them. She knew what money was, she knew how the government worked, and she knew how to do math. You’d be surprised at how many wizards had no idea how to do math.

But the drawback of a Muggle primary school was that no one knew what Quidditch was. Sure, Will loved football. Growing up in Manchester meant that it was practically a requirement. She had played a lot of it in her youth, which was helpful because it was something that she could talk to her classmates about, but she never was as passionate about it as she was about Quidditch.

She suspected that part of it had to do with her father. Will idolized him, begging to go to every single game that he played no matter how far away or how late it was. She loved the roar of the crowd and the celebrations that the Chasers did after they scored an amazing goal. Not only did she love the feeling of winning, but she loved the process and craved the rush that came with it. Will was an athlete, there was no doubt about it. In her mind, she was made to play Quidditch.

The weather was a lot chillier than it had been at the beginning of the year, but the seasons had not quite changed yet. The October weather was very pleasant, the bright, shining sun not too hot and a soft breeze causing the branches of the trees to sing. Will loved the colors of fall- the oranges and reds and yellows reminded her of fire.

Mounting her broom, Will zoomed through some cones that she had set up. There was something so peaceful about flying by herself- she could go as fast or as slow as she wanted and there would be no one to tell her what to do. Will was the farthest thing from a creature of habit. She did what she wanted when she wanted, and although she absolutely adored Xander, sometimes it was relaxing to take some shots without him telling her to do it again until he liked it.

She had asked Athena if she wanted to come with her, but the Slytherin had politely declined, telling her they would catch up later. That was okay with Will. She loved her friend, but she had realized that Athena sometimes needed a break from her. She understood. She was a lot sometimes.

One of Will’s biggest fears was that she was actually really annoying. For some reason, she always needed to be speaking, and while she was trying really hard to stay quiet, she would have to move in some way shape or form. Her mother liked to say that if her mouth wasn’t moving, her leg had to be, bouncing up and down repeatedly until she could get up and walk around.

Part of that hyperactivity is what made her good at Quidditch. Since her brain moved so quickly, she could react to something in an instant, making her a damn good Chaser. She couldn’t even remember the last time a Bludger had landed a hit on her. But outside of sports, it was sometimes a problem, causing her to be reprimanded for not paying attention more often than not. But she shook those thoughts out of her head as she flew faster, practicing some maneuverability.

“What’re you doing out here?” A voice came from the ground, and she skidded to a halt to see who was speaking. Blaise Whitacker was staring up at her, one hand covering his eyes from the sun and the other clutching his broom, his Quidditch bag slung over his shoulder. “We just got back.”

Will laughed, flying down to meet him. “You’re here, too. Looks like I beat you.”

He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. I just wanted to get some flying in since I haven’t in a while.”

She nodded. “Me too. Care to join me?”

“Love to.”

She nudged him gently. “It's nice to be out here in the sunlight, isn’t it?”

Blaise cracked a smile. “Yeah. Almost feels wrong for us to be here during the day.”

Will mounted her broom again and flew up. “So, want me to take some shots on you?”

Blaise followed suit, pulling on his gloves. “Sure. But be careful, though, there’s been a lot of birds flying through here. I noticed them as I was walking through here and didn’t know if you had seen them.”

Will looked around. “I haven’t seen any. Are you sure?”

“Yeah. They’ve been getting awfully close to the pitch, which they haven’t really done before.” He grinned at her. “You were probably flying too fast to see them,” he said playfully, causing her to blush.

“Maybe. Come on, let’s get started.”

The two of them got into it pretty quickly, and there was a good divide of drills that they thought up that worked on skills for both of them. Will was happy to have someone to shoot on, and Blaise was grateful to have some shots to save. The Gryffindor and the Slytherin had fallen into a very comfortable dynamic throughout the past month or so- even though they had gotten off to a bit of a rocky start, they enjoyed each other’s company.

Will liked Blaise a lot. He was brutally honest, hard working, and ambitious. He knew what he wanted and he was going to get it, which is something that she admired. He also kept it real. He always said exactly what he was thinking and didn’t care if it hurt your feelings or not, which some people weren’t a fan of, but Will appreciated it. She was tired of people just telling her what she wanted to hear. When she wanted to know the truth, she went to Blaise, and he was happy to give it to her.

Will also- maybe- sort of- had a tiny crush on Blaise. No one could deny that he was good looking- with his dark tousled hair and his deep blue eyes. However, not only did she find him attractive, but she really liked spending time with him. He had goals for his life and passion for what he did, and he loved Quidditch just as much as she did. But she hadn’t told a soul about her infatuation with him. James would not approve, and she was worried that Athena would be weirded out since she was so close with him. It was kind of like if Athena had a crush on James- going after your best friend’s brother. Not the worst thing in the world, but a little odd. Besides, no one had to know. It’s not like it would go anywhere. Probably.

On the other hand, much to his surprise, Blaise really liked being around Will. She was funny, smart, and really good at Quidditch. He didn’t mind that she talked a mile a minute and never really sat still. She was cool, for a Gryffindor, at least. At first, Blaise had been outraged that his friends just started hanging out with a new person, especially one that he didn’t really get the best first impression of. But the more he was around her, the more he decided he liked her.

Not only was Will athletic, but she was also brave. One of those basic Gryffindor traits, he supposed. But she stood up to people without a second thought. Will was a fighter, and she would never let someone talk down to her or her friends. She was also a bit of a firecracker- a lot of personality packed down into a tiny body. He liked that about her. Even though she was headstrong and reckless, she was fiery and charismatic. Blaise had never really given a whole lot of thought to chivalry, but he had begun to realize what it really looked like.

“Come on, England, keep up!” Will called over her shoulder playfully as Blaise fumbled a shot a little before grabbing the Quaffle safely in his gloved hands.

He rolled his eyes, chucking it as far as he could as she chased it. “Whatever you say, America.”

Will laughed, diving before catching it with ease. She lazily hovered in the air as she looked up at him, the Quaffle tucked underneath her arm as her eyes shone brightly in the sunlight. “Hey, I have an idea.”

“What?”

Will opened her mouth to say something, starting her ascent to fly over and meet him quickly, but all of a sudden, there was cawing that was much too loud, and Will’s smile dropped.

A flock of nearly ten gigantic ravens flew right through the field, and Will was going too fast to avoid them. She dropped the Quaffle to throw her arms in front of her to cover her face, their claws and beaks nipping and scratching at her, and suddenly, she lost her balance.

The force of the birds colliding with her pushed her off her broom, and she let out a startled shriek as she fell, the bird that hit her making a protesting squawk as it flapped its wings to regain its balance before flying off with the others. Blaise jumped into action immediately, diving rapidly to try and catch her, but it was too late and her body hit the ground with a nauseating thud.

“WILL!” Blaise screamed, touching down quickly next to her and running over, his broom and the Quaffle discarded.

But thankfully, it seemed as if they had hit a streak of luck. Since Blaise had thrown the Quaffle so far away from her previously, she had to fly low to catch it, and when the birds flew through, she was still pretty close to the ground- maybe only fifteen to twenty feet high. Blaise let out a sigh of relief as Will groaned, and he realized that although she had probably gotten the wind knocked out of her, she was perfectly fine.

“Ugh,” Will said, woozy as her eyes started to straighten out. “Where am I?”

She propped herself up on her elbows and her vision focused enough to see a cross-armed Blaise standing above her, slight disappointment on his sharp features. “Heaven,” he replied sarcastically, and Will laid back down and closed her eyes.

“Oh.” There was a pause. “Didn’t think you’d be here.”

Blaise opened his mouth to respond, a disgusted look on his face, but he seemed to decide against it as he shut it and instead carefully helped her stand up. “They got you pretty good, huh?” He said, gesturing to a bunch of small cuts that littered the uncovered parts of her face and arms from the birds.

Will held onto him as she regained her balance before looking down at her hands and forearms, which were slowly beading with blood. “I guess they did,” she responded glumly. “Man, I thought you were kidding about the birds.”

He shook his head. “Unfortunately, I was not.” He grabbed her fallen broom and his own that he had discarded a little to the side, holding them in one hand. Then, he picked up the Quaffle and put it under his arm and offered out the other arm for her to hold onto. “Come on, you should probably go see Madam Pomfrey. Don’t want those to get infected.”

Will had hesitated at taking his arm at first, but her body was aching with every movement because of the fall so she accepted it graciously. “It’s just a couple cuts, Blaise,” she said, an amused look on her face, but he rolled his eyes.

“You can barely walk, Will. You have a game this week.”

Will couldn’t help but smile at that, a slight blush forming on her cheeks. “Look at you, making sure I’m alright. Did your mommy teach you how to do that?”

Blaise was so close to pushing her off of him at that, but he relented and settled with hitting her with one of their brooms lightly. “You should be grateful. If I hadn’t been here, you’d be stuck walking up to the castle all by yourself, which surely would’ve taken you ages. Besides, we talked about the jokes about my mum.”

Will couldn’t help but smile, nudging him with her hip slightly, which caused her to wince a little but it was worth it to see him stumble for just a moment. “Okay, whatever you say, momma’s boy.”

“Shut up, Houston.”

Will went quiet at that, focusing on taking even steps in order to keep away the worst of the pain. “Thank you, Blaise.” He only nodded in response, so she decided to push a little more. “No, I’m serious. I know I made a stupid joke and your ears got all red because of it, but thanks for looking out for me. And for warning me about the birds even though I didn’t listen. And for flying down to check on me after I fell. And for walking me back to the castle-”

Blaise shushed her, trying but not succeeding in keeping the smile off of his face. “Okay, okay, I get it, you’re eternally grateful to have such an amazing and wonderful and incredibly attractive friend.”

Will blanched at that and prayed to Merlin that he didn’t notice, but thankfully, he was staring ahead as he navigated the two of them up the path. She gathered her thoughts before responding. “We’re friends, huh?”

Blaise chuckled. “Well, we’ve hung out almost every day for the past few weeks besides this past weekend, and this might be a shot in the dark or something, but I’d say we both enjoy hanging out because we keep doing it, so yeah, I’d say we’re friends. Got a problem with that?”

“No!” Will’s response was rushed and shrill, her cheeks burning red. “No, that’s awesome.” She paused, trying to formulate a sentence in her racing mind. “I’m happy we’re friends.”

Blaise shook his head in amusement, grinning at her. “Me too, Will. Me too.”

– – –

Athena was grateful to be back at school.

As soon as she had returned to the Slytherin dormitory, she had flopped down on her bed, still almost fully clothed, and just pressed her face into her pillow. It smelled like fresh linen and lavender and if not for Emmy the kitten mewing loudly, she probably would’ve fallen asleep right there.

“Sorry, Athena,” Jaya said sheepishly. “I think she’s hungry.”

Athena sat up, rubbing her face. “It’s alright. Here, I’ll grab her bowl if you get the food.”

Jaya gave her a grateful look, hoisting the cat up and placing her gently on her shoulder. The tiny kitten let out a little scream, clinging to her owner with sharp claws so she wouldn’t fall off. “Thanks.” She hoisted the bag onto her bed, thankfully not getting any crumbs on the sheets, and Athena placed the bowl on the little pad by her bed. She scooped some of the kibble into the bowl and the cat jumped off of Jaya’s shoulder to make a beeline for the food, planting her face right into the bowl and causing the three Slytherins to laugh.

“She sure was hungry,” Ainsley said, cracking a smile. “What about you guys? Are you hungry?”

Athena shrugged. “I could eat.”

“Me, too. Want to go get dinner?” Jaya asked, and the other two nodded.

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

The three of them made their way to the Great Hall. The corridors were hustling and bustling as the students settled back into their routines at school. Dinner itself wasn’t completely packed, but there was no shortage of people there either. Athena, Ainsley, and Jaya settled into their usual table, and immediately started chowing down on their food.

“Hey, Athena,” came a voice from behind her, and she whipped her head around to see who was speaking and almost fell over in shock.

James Potter was standing there, looking slightly awkward, but there nonetheless. “How was your break?” He asked, clearly uncomfortable as he refused to meet her eyes, but he was patiently waiting for her to answer.

“It was good. How was yours?” She asked back pointedly, and he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Alright, I guess. I just wanted to ask if you wanted to come study with me for Transfiguration sometime this week. We have that big exam coming up, and I figured that we could help each other out.”

Athena was slightly taken aback, but she recovered quickly and nodded. “Sure.”

James visibly relaxed. “Okay. Great. Er- just let me know.” He paused, looking around. “Have you seen Will anywhere? When we got back here, she mentioned that she was going to ask you if you wanted to go flying with her.”

She shook her head regretfully. “Unfortunately, I haven’t seen her. I didn’t end up going with her.”

James shrugged. “Maybe she’s still out there.”

“Maybe.”

James hovered for a few more seconds before turning around to go back to his table, casting a glance at her over his shoulder. “See you around, Athena,” he said, before walking away.

Athena only offered a wave that she wasn’t even sure he saw, but she didn’t have time to think about the interaction before Jaya was making a loud gagging noise. “Gryffindors, dude,” she said, giving James a dirty look as he walked back to sit down with Fred, Lucas, and Parker. “They’re so self-righteous.” She turned to the other two. “Haven’t Gryffindors and Slytherins hated each other for years?”

Ainsley’s expression didn’t change as she stabbed a piece of chicken with her fork. “I don’t know where you learned about that, Jaya. After the Second Wizarding War, house relations got a lot better. That’s why there’s circle tables in the Great Hall now.”

Athena nodded. “Yeah. You used to have to sit with your house, which was nice, but now, we can sit with everyone. According to my mom, it’s a lot more common for there to be friends in between houses now than it was back then.”

“Well, that doesn’t mean that I have to like Gryffindors,” Jaya huffed, looking back down at her plate.

Ainsley looked like she was going to say something, but ultimately decided against it and only took a bite of her chicken.

The next week or so, classes were back in full swing. Midterms were awfully close, and the library was packed as students tried to cram in studying in preparation for their exams.

Of course, Aidan was always studying. His friends teased him for being such a stereotypical Ravenclaw, but he didn’t mind it, really. He enjoyed his classes a lot and it didn’t really feel like a chore for him- it was more like he was just learning. Which he liked. When he wasn’t in class or at Quidditch practice, nine times out of ten he had his nose in a book as he poured over material. The only unfortunate thing was that since Quidditch practice was right after one of his classes, by the time he got out, there were practically no seats left in the library besides the one right next to Madam Pince’s desk. And that was a seat that no one wanted to be in.

Even the Ravenclaw common room was packed. All of the couches were covered in parchment and textbooks, the students completely losing track of time as they sat there for hours. Aidan’s room was no better. He was thankful that he only had three roommates compared to Charley’s four and Blaise’s five, but a Ravenclaw dormitory was completely different than a Gryffindor or Slytherin one when it came to exams. Their room, which to be fair was usually messy because four boys lived there, was exceptionally dirty at the moment. With the amount of papers, books, and extra quills and ink pots thrown around, it slightly resembled the aftermath of a tornado. Aidan was the neatest person that lived in the second year dormitory, and even though he wouldn’t consider himself a neat freak by any means, the state of the dormitory drove him insane. He could barely focus on his work because he could barely walk from the door to his bed.

Fortunately, Aidan had some pretty good friends. Blaise and Charley had let him come over more often than not to sit in silence as they all studied. It was nice to have a change of pace from the commonly accepted Ravenclaw test anxiety. But Will was who he ended up spending the most time with.

It wasn’t intentional, at least not at first. Aidan had just gotten pretty desperate after putting in a really late shift at the library one time. He had finally managed to get a table nearly thirty minutes after Quidditch practice ended, and after he sat down to study Defense Against the Dark Arts, he had completely lost track of time. Once he had noticed he was yawning more than usual, he checked his watch, and he was astonished to realize that it was nearly two in the morning. Aidan had been so invested in the material he was studying that he hadn’t even noticed the slow trickle of students leaving the library to go to bed, and he was pretty much all by himself besides some older students he didn’t recognize.

He was so tired that he didn’t even remember packing his things up or even making the walk to the Ravenclaw common room, but he did remember hearing the riddle and being completely dumbfounded. Maybe it was because his brain was fried or because he was already stressed out because he wasn’t going to get a whole lot of sleep that night, but the voice that came from the door went in one ear and right out the other.

He tried knocking on the door to see if someone would come answer it and let him in, but there was nothing. He had a feeling that there were still quite a few people in the common room studying, but no one came to answer the door. He waited and waited and waited, but no one came out. After knocking for what felt like forever, he gave up, hoisting his backpack over his shoulder as he tried to figure out what he was going to do next.

The thing that he was the most concerned about was where he was going to sleep. He technically had everything he needed for the next day in his backpack already, besides maybe a toothbrush, so he didn’t have to go back to the common room. But he couldn’t just sleep on a bench outside the stupid riddle door, so he would have to find an alternative.

Thankfully, the Gryffindor tower was just down the corridor. He knew it was late, but he hoped someone would let him in and then he could figure out what to do next after he was in a common room. And he had a backup plan. If no one answered, he’d try the Slytherins in the dungeons, and if no one answered there- well, he would cross that bridge if he got to it.

After a short walk over to the tower, he stood in front of the Fat Lady and mustered up the courage to knock. Thankfully, she stayed in deep sleep, but the knock was loud enough that he prayed to Merlin that someone had heard him. And thankfully, his prayers were answered.

A disgruntled Will opened the door, shielding her eyes as the light from the corridor was a stark contrast from the darkness of the common room. “Shouldn’t you be asleep? What are you doing here?” She asked, squinting at him as she stepped aside to allow him to come in.

“Lost track of time at the library,” he said, undoing his tie.

“Yeah, but why are you here?” She asked again, shutting the door and rubbing her eyes as she gave him a weird look.

He sat down on one of the overstuffed couches roughly. “I couldn’t solve the riddle to get into the Ravenclaw common room,” he sighed defeatedly. “My brain is too fried- I can’t even process words at the moment, really. It’s a miracle we’re even having a conversation right now.”

“Oh.” Will was more awake now, sitting down next to her friend. “You need somewhere to stay tonight?”

He nodded. “Preferably. I was going to ask Charley if I could sleep in his room.”

She laughed. “You don’t want to stay there. Those five are not the cleanest bunch. I mean, unless you want to sleep on top of a bunch of dirty clothes and old History of Magic assignments.” At his disgusted look, she brightened suddenly. “Hey, I have an idea. Want to crash in my room? I’ve got it to myself, you know, and there’s a pretty comfy couch that you can use.”

Aidan looked up at her. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, of course.” She stood up. “Come on. It’s late, we should be getting some sleep.”

They walked up the stairs all the way to the top of the girls dormitory, where Will lived all by herself. Her room wasn’t spotless by any means, but definitely a step up from the Gryffindor boys dormitory or even Aidan’s own room. The dark haired girl hastily pushed some dirty clothes under her bed and grabbed some parchment and her backpack off the couch, walking over to the closet to put it away and grabbing some things for her friend.

“Why are you awake right now? I don’t think I asked,” Aidan said, taking his jacket off.

“I’m sort of a night owl,” Will called from the closet.

“Why were you in the common room?”

“I got hungry,” she responded simply. “There’s some snacks down there for all the Gryffindors, and I was really craving some crackers. Besides, I like to say that I do my best work at night. It’s when my brain is the most alive, really.” She emerged from the closet, handing him a fluffy blanket and a few pillows.

He took it and gave her a grateful look, sitting down. “Do you always stay up this late?”

She chuckled. “Not usually this late, but I tend to go to bed around twelve thirty or one.”

“That would mean that you only get six hours of sleep a night,” he said, giving her a funny look.

Will shrugged. “I guess so. I like to take naps, though, so it works out.” She went to the bathroom to brush her teeth, and with her sparkly blue toothbrush hanging out of her mouth, she poked her head back into the bedroom. “Do you want some clothes to change into? I have some of James’s old stuff that probably is around your size.”

Aidan smoothed out the blanket. “That would be nice, actually.”

“Got it.” She dug through her dresser with her toothbrush still dangling from her lips, grabbing a t-shirt and shorts that did not match in any way but did look big enough to fit Aidan. “When’s your first class tomorrow?” She asked, putting the toothbrush away and spitting in the sink before going over to sit on her bed.

“Not until nine- double Charms with the Slytherins,” he said grimly, going into the bathroom to change but cracking the door slightly so they could still hear each other.

“Yuck.”

“What about you?”

“Transfiguration with the Slytherins. That’s part of the reason why I was up so late- we’re doing a Q&A for the exam in a couples days tomorrow- well, I guess it’s today, now- and I wanted to study to make sure that I knew the material before I went to class so I could ask Professor MacDonald questions.”

Aidan nodded. “That makes sense.” As he settled down onto the couch, he turned to look at her. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you study before,” he jested, and she chuckled a little.

“Yeah. I’m not really one to look over notes. But honestly, Aidan, I’m not really a good test taker. I have a really hard time memorizing and reciting information, for one, and also, I can’t really sit still and focus on something like that for that long.” She sighed. “It’s because I’m super ADHD. I have trouble focusing on a lot of different things. It’s not that I’m not smart enough, because- forgive me for tooting my own horn- I definitely am, I’m third in my class right now, but I always struggle with exams. I can do regular work and essays just fine- you’ve seen me fly through assignments. I just haven’t really figured out good study strategies for tests.”

“You’ve got ADHD? Never would’ve guessed,” he said jokingly, but when she didn’t respond, he winced. “Sorry. Bad joke.”

Will managed a smile. “No, it’s fine. You’re right, it is pretty obvious. No one is ever surprised when I tell them.”

“Well, I owe you one for letting me stay here, so maybe we can study together more often,” he tried, and she lit up.

“Really? That would be great!”

“Of course. Maybe we can figure out a way that helps you remember more things for tests.”

“Thank you, Aidan.” She flicked her wand at the door to turn the light off. “You’re always welcome here, you know. I’m sure roommates are a little annoying.”

He chuckled, staring up at the ceiling. “Sometimes, but they’re alright. Sure, Paris is a slob and Max and Jensen barely talk to anyone besides each other, but they’re good friends.” He paused. “You’ve got this huge room all to yourself. Do you ever get lonely?”

She thought for a second. “Sometimes, actually. I wish there was another girl occasionally- my class specifically is just really tiny. I feel like I’m missing out on some solid female friendships- a lot of my friends are guys. But I have Athena, and I really like this one girl from Ravenclaw. You might know her, actually- her name is Alyssa, but she goes by Dylan, which is her middle name.”

He nodded. “I think I’ve seen her around before. Real small, dark hair?”

“Yep. That’s her. I sit by her in a few classes and we hang out in the library sometimes. But other than that, I don’t really get a chance to talk to a lot of the other girls in my year. They have kinda formed their own little groups already. But it’s okay. I have friends, don’t get me wrong. Sometimes I just wish that I had a few different ones.” She laid back down on her pillows. “Well, it’s pretty late. We should get some sleep. Want to go to breakfast tomorrow?”

“Sure. Let’s stop by the Ravenclaw tower first, though, so I can brush my teeth.”

She laughed. “Yeah, that’s probably smart. Goodnight, Aidan.”

“Goodnight, Will.”

– – –

The next Quidditch game was rapidly approaching, and Will and Aidan were ready for it. The morning after Aidan stayed in the Gryffindor dorms, they went to breakfast and class and then immediately met on the Quidditch field during their free periods.

“I really hope you guys beat Slytherin,” Will said, pulling on some of her gear.

Aidan grimaced. “Me, too. Not really a good look if we won the Cup last year and then go 0-2 for the first few games of the year.”

She tossed him some athletic tape after she had finished taping up her wrist, it still a little sore from when she tried to break her fall a couple days ago with Blaise. He caught it easily and started taping his fingers. “Well, even if you don’t win, it’ll be fun to play against Blaise, right?”

“Oh, yeah, but I’m just worried because we have trained together so much that he knows my every move.”

“Didn’t you trick Charley during our game by changing up some shots?”

“Yeah, but- and I mean this with no offense- Blaise is better than Charley. Charley is really good, don’t get me wrong, especially for a second year, but Blaise is just on a whole different level. He reads the game so well. You saw how he read Pip and Talia last game like a book,” Aidan said grimly, and Will mounted her broom.

“Don’t worry about it that much. He’s a good Keeper, but you’re a good Chaser, too. You made the team for a reason,” she said with a grin before rocketing upwards.

Aidan couldn’t keep the blush off of his cheeks. “Thanks, Will.”

“No problem.”

They stayed out there for quite a while, and even though they went out with the goal in mind to get some good training in, they ended up just messing around for the second half of their little practice.

“Come on, Will, I’m not going to catch you,” Aidan said exasperatedly, watching as Will got close enough for him to think that he could reach out and brush her arm with his fingertips before zooming away, just out of his reach.

She laughed. “You were so close that time, though!”

He sighed. “I wasn’t, and you know it.”

Will flew down to dismount her broom and sat down roughly as she ripped the tape off of her wrist and began taking off her gear. “Okay, okay, I’ll stop. Wanna go get some food? I’m starving.”

“I could eat.” Aidan took the tape off of his fingers and stood up, offering his hand to her and helping her up.

The walk back to the castle was mostly uneventful, with the two of them maintaining a meandering pace. When they entered the Great Hall, they weren’t surprised to see it bustling with students, everyone winding down for the day with a nice homecooked meal.

At their usual table, Blaise was looking over his notes from double Transfiguration. “I can’t believe we have to take that test on Thursday,” he complained. “Everyone else is saving their exams for next week.”

Charley took a sip of his pumpkin juice. “You’re lucky- Aidan and I have to take it tomorrow. But it’s honestly easier to have them broken up. Then you don’t have to worry about having three exams on the same day.”

“No, I get that part, and believe me, it is much appreciated, but she could’ve had it next Thursday! All of the other exams are Monday and Tuesday!”

“Complaining about school again?” Aidan said, sliding into his usual seat with a grin on his face.

“Oh. Hey, mate,” Blaise said, scooting over for him.

“Seems like someone isn’t preparing carefully enough,” came a voice from his other side, and Blaise was startled to see Will sitting down next to him, a grin on her face.

“Oh, whatever. At least I am preparing. You two smell like grass,” he said, wrinkling his nose, and Will chuckled.

“I like to call it taking a healthy brain break.” In front of her, the daily meal appeared on her plate, and she dove in excitedly. “Man, I’m starving. All of that flying wore me out.”

Charley shook his head, grinning. “You’re always out there, huh?”

“I guess you could say that.” For Will, the Quidditch field was her safe space. It was an easy way to relax after she had exhausted her brain while studying, and a place to escape from everyone’s feelings around her. She prided herself on not caring what everyone else thought of her, which was true, but trying to remember everything that happened to everyone around her in order to be able to sympathize with or avoid them was pretty tough. Another great thing about the Quidditch field- she could scream swear words and pretend-yell at people as loud as she wanted and no one would hear her.

Blaise took a bite of his chicken. “So, how’re you all feeling about the games this weekend?”

“Pretty good. Hufflepuff is solid, for sure, but we played well last month. Hopefully we can keep the momentum going,” Charley said.

Will nodded. “I agree. It’ll be nice to learn more about them so we can continue to improve throughout the season. And honestly, I’ve been itching for a good game.”

“I for one am excited. I get to score a bunch of goals on Blaise and everyone gets to see it,” Aidan said snarkily, and Blaise rolled his eyes.

“Or, alternatively, I get to save every single one of your shots and everyone gets to see it.”

“That would really ruin some parlays,” Charley said, chuckling.

“I guess we’ll just have to find out.”

The night passed by quickly, interwoven with their chattering and friendly banter. After a few hours, they decided to get some sleep, preparing for the upcoming long work days full of studying, Quidditch practice, and the Transfiguration exam.

Aidan woke up the next morning ready to go. He didn’t have Transfiguration until eleven, having to go to Herbology first, but once Professor Longbottom released them to their free period, he sat right outside the Transfiguration classroom, studying. The Slytherin and Hufflepuff fifth years were in there now, taking their midterm exam furiously and leaving once they were finished, and as soon as the last Hufflepuff turned in their paper, Aidan was through the door and sat down at his seat.

“Someone is excited,” Professor MacDonald noticed, smiling gently.

Aidan blushed. “Sorry, Professor. I’ve just been studying a lot, so I’m really confident about this exam.”

“Confidence is a good thing, Mr Pucey.” She stacked all of the completed fifth year exams and placed them on her desk. “But I think you will like the format of this exam. The first half is group spellwork- you’ll get a certain amount of time to conduct a spell and bring me your transfigured item. The second half is a multiple choice portion, asking about techniques and facts about the art of transfiguration.”

Aidan lit up. “Group spellwork? That’s a lot better than what I was expecting!”

“What were you expecting?”

“Something where I would go up to your desk and have to do the spell right in front of you,” he said, his cheeks flushing.

Professor MacDonald laughed. “That would be quite amusing to watch you all squirm. It would take quite a while, too.”

“True.”

Just then, a bunch of his classmates shuffled in, and Charley dropped his backpack and slumped into his chair next to Aidan. “Are you ready for this?” He asked, and Aidan nodded.

“Yeah, I think so. What about you?”

The Gryffindor sighed. “As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.” He noticed Aidan’s textbook out on his lap. “Hey, can I skim that a little bit? I just had double DADA with the Slytherins- Professor Potter had us learn all of these techniques and I’m afraid my brain forgot some transfiguration stuff to make room for that.”

Aidan laughed. “Sure, dude.”

When the clock struck eleven, Professor MacDonald explained the formatting and the way the exam would be graded, and after all questions had been answered, she handed out the exam and Aidan got right to work.

The first section was a breeze. He turned his beetle into a button on the first try, and did the same thing with his porcupine, taking almost no time to change it into a pin cushion. It took him a little bit longer to change his rabbits into slippers, but once he was done with that, he rushed all three items over to Professor MacDonald. When he handed them to her, she inspected them for a second before nodding at him and writing down his score.

Charley was still working on the rabbits when he got back, but he gave him a nod of confidence as Aidan sat down. The Ravenclaw flipped the paper over to the multiple choice, and he was pleased to see that there were only twenty five questions, not fifty like what he’d been expecting.

He didn’t speed through the questions, really, but he definitely went a little fast. He had to catch himself once he got to the last question and forced himself to reread the questions and his answers. Once he felt like he was confident enough on all of the answers, he got up to turn in his test. He was the first one done, not to Professor MacDonald’s surprise, and when he handed her his paper, she tapped her quill gently with her wand, and the feathered pen marked every single answer right or wrong depending on the answer key. When it was finished, she stacked his spellwork portion on top of it and wrote his final score.

“Have a pleasant rest of your day, Mr Pucey. Good luck at your Quidditch game on Sunday,” she said, her eyes sparkling.

“Thank you, Professor. You too!”

When Aidan emerged from the classroom, he was a little surprised to see Will waiting for him. “What’re you doing here?”

She grinned at him. “Free period. I wanted to come and wait for you and Charley to finish so we could get lunch.”

Aidan blinked, pleasantly surprised. “That’s…thanks.”

“You’re welcome! How’d you do on the test?”

Aidan actually hadn’t looked at his score yet. He liked to wait until he was out of the room- he thought it was weird to let people see his reaction to his scores. And honestly, he thought it was a little rude to stare at his result right in front of the Professor, too. He peeked at the paper he was holding. “O!” He said brightly, and Will jumped up and down.

“That’s amazing!”

He wiped his brow. “Man, it feels good to be done with that.”

“I know what you mean. Hey, let’s do something tonight. Do you want to stay over at my place tonight and we can watch a movie? I had a great time showing you Shrek and I can’t help but wonder what other amazing movies I can introduce you to,” Will said, smiling at him.

Aidan tried so hard not to blush. “Uh, sure, that sounds great,” he managed, and Will gave him a thumbs up. “Well, we might as well sit down. It might take Charley a little bit longer,” he said, swimming his bag to his feet and sitting down against the wall.

Will slid down next to him. “He is a slow reader. Do you think he’ll do well?”

“Eh, he’ll be fine.” Aidan paused. “I think.” Another pause. “I hope.”

She laughed out loud. “Well, glad to know you’ve got no faith in your friends.”

“Hey, I have plenty of faith that he did a great job studying.”

“You liar.”

“Me? Never.”

“You lied about eating Charley’s toast this morning.”

“...I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Whatever you say, smart guy.”

Chapter Text

Gryffindor was ready for their game against Hufflepuff. Xander was basically bouncing off the walls at the chance to upset the favorites, but it was definitely not going to be an easy task.

Lacie and the Hufflepuff squad were the favorites for the Cup for a reason- they had come in second last year to Ravenclaw, and they had only lost one member to graduation and were essentially coming back this year at full force.

As the Gryffindor team suited up for the game, the tension that hung in the air was a little different than the last time they had played. They were the favorites against Ravenclaw, and even though Xander didn’t like to pay attention to that kind of stuff, it was always nice to know that you were expected to come out on top. It meant that others had confidence in you, and that it was entirely possible to play a semi decent game and still win. But Hufflepuff was different- they were expected to beat the socks off of Gryffindor, and that just wouldn’t do. Everybody loves an underdog, especially Xander, and he wanted to prove whoever was behind picking who would come out on top wrong.

Warmups went by quickly, the weather perfect for a Quidditch game, and even though every single player on the pitch was stressed about school and the onslaught of exams that were coming up the following week, the energy surrounding the stadium was electric.

A bunch of students had shown up to watch the two undefeated teams rough it out, knowing that one of them would leave the pitch undefeated no more. James sat next to Parker, talking about who they think would catch the Snitch or score the most goals, and some of the other Gryffindors floated around them.

“You guys excited?” A voice came from above them, and James and Parker whipped their heads around to see their fifth year prefect, Landon Stewart, smiling at them with a Hufflepuff boy close to him.

“You bet! This is going to be a great game,” James said, and Landon patted him on the shoulder.

“I know.” Next to him, the Hufflepuff boy coughed, and Landon smacked his forehead. “I almost forgot. James, Parker, this is Riley Stewart, fifth year Hufflepuff. Riley, this is James Potter and Parker Patil, two of the Gryffindor first years.”

The boy gave them an interesting look, like he was sizing the two of them up, but when James stuck his hand out, he only hesitated for a few seconds before shaking it. “I’ve heard a lot about you two.”

“All good things, right?” Parker joked, and even though his tone was light, Riley didn’t smile.

“Yes, I heard about how both of you tried out for the Quidditch team and neither of you made it.” That killed the mood instantly. James’s expression went from shock to hurt to anger in half a second, and Parker was just bewildered.

Landon’s cheeks flushed as he grabbed Riley’s arm, pulling him away from the two first years. “Well, it was nice seeing you! Hope to catch up again soon!” He yelped, yanking Riley after him. James and Parker watched them climb the stands a little more, witnessing Landon start speaking in a hushed tone as Riley rolled his eyes. James thought he caught a few words, some of them being “blend in”, “under the radar”, and “following”, but Parker had brushed off the interaction quickly and turned his head back to the pitch, so James pushed the conversation out of his head and focused on the upcoming game.

The walkout songs stayed the same, as they would for the rest of the season, and with a quick whistle blow from Madam Hooch, the game was on. Gryffindor employed the same tactic that they had last time, sending Xander and Evelyn into the fray with Hufflepuff’s three Chasers and keeping Will as an option outside of the chaos, and when Evelyn emerged victorious, the Gryffindors roared. The fourth year rocketed towards the Hufflepuff goal where Lacie was bobbing up and down, Talia hot on her heels.

“And with the first possession going to Gryffindor thanks to Evelyn Murphy, the game is on! Murphy races toward Harper and the Hufflepuff goalposts, Talia Sharp right behind her,” Rafael said into the microphone, Lucas and Fred at his side in similar fashion to last month. He was letting the two young boys take care of statistics, a quite difficult task, but as Lucas and Fred scribbled on their parchment, it was easy to see that they were having the time of their lives.

Evelyn was moving quickly, dodging a Bludger that Daniel Downes sent at her and looking for a pass. Xander was open on her right, being tailed closely by Jake, and Will was a few meters ahead of Pip to her left, but in front of her, only Lacie stood in her way. She decided to take the shot, and pumped her fist in the air as Lacie dove but couldn’t reach it, the Quaffle sailing through the left hoop.

“Gryffindor scores! Murphy sends the first shot of the game through the Hufflepuff goal, and the lions are up ten to zero!”

Lacie shook off the goal quickly, calling out plays as action resumed. Jake took the Quaffle this time, weaving in and out of the air as he tried to shake Xander, but the Gryffindor was surprisingly resilient and still hot on his heels.

“After last month’s games, currently in terms of the Quidditch Cup, Gryffindor sits in first place on goal differential with Hufflepuff following as a close second. Both teams are undefeated, and one of those perfect records will fall tonight,” Rafael said as he watched Jake fly. “As we look into the matchup today, it is very interesting to see who Xander Stott and Lacie Harper have against each other. Talia Sharp and Evelyn Murphy are guarding each other, a matchup seen in last year’s round play, so no surprise there. But Stott is marking Jake Alexa today, a stark contrast to previous years as formally he would be seen on Pip Alexander. This go around, Alexander has been tasked with keeping up with first year Willow Houston, the newest addition to the Gryffindor squad, and might I say, she is doing an incredible job so far.”

Will had intercepted a pass from Talia to Pip mid air, causing the crowd to let out a roar, and before Pip even realized that the Quaffle wasn’t in his hands like he had expected, Will was already halfway down the pitch.

Xander was open below her, a simple pass for her to make, but like Evelyn, Will wanted more. She knew she could score on Lacie, and by Merlin she was going to. And when her shot went through the right hoop, the Gryffindors went nuts.

“Houston puts a beautiful shot past Harper, doubling Gryffindor’s lead!” Rafael yelled over the screaming crowd.

The Slytherins in the stands, although not as rowdy as their Gryffindor counterparts, were still very impressed. “Man, Gryffindor came out hot, didn’t they?” Massey said, and Ash nodded.

“If I’m being honest, I thought Hufflepuff was going to crush them.”

Blaise shook his head, smiling. He was wearing a red Gryffindor sweatshirt loaned from Charley and next to him, Aidan was wearing a black Gryffindor long sleeve, and oddly enough, Blaise had never seen Charley wear anything like it. He wondered where he got it. “Gryffindor’s specialty is hot and fast. When they set the pace, it’s hard for other teams to keep up with them.”

Below him, Athena studied the action. “It certainly seems like they’ve got Hufflepuff on the defensive end.” As she said that, Xander scored, making the score thirty to zero. “It’s barely been three minutes and already they’re up three goals.”

Matteo chuckled. “There’s still a lot of game left to play. For all we know, Whittle could catch the Snitch right now and it would be over.”

Aidan sighed. “I hope that doesn’t happen. I really want to see how Hufflepuff responds.”

After Will had scored once more, Lacie called a time out. “That’s probably smart of her,” Athena said. “Causing the game to stop temporarily will give them a chance to change the momentum.”

During the break, Blaise leaned over to his Ravenclaw friend. “Where’d you get that shirt? Is it Charley’s?”

Much to his surprise, Aidan flushed a deep red. “No.” He dropped his voice to a whisper. “It’s Will’s.”

Blaise was astounded at first, but then his smile grew. “No way, really? Did you ask her for it?”

“No, she offered.”

“When did that happen?”

“Yesterday. After dinner, we went back to her dorm and watched a movie.”

“Since when have you been hanging out with her so much?”

“A couple of weeks ago, I lost track of time in the library and I couldn’t solve the riddle for the stupid door, so I went to the Gryffindor tower since it was only a few corridors away. I was hoping to stay with Charley, but she was awake and offered me her couch. It was nice to not have to sleep on the floor.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, it was really cool of her. Since then, we’ve been spending a lot more time together.”

Blaise sat back as the action resumed. “Do you like her?”

If it was even possible, Aidan blushed even more. “Dude!”

“What? It’s a fair question!”

Aidan put his head in his hands. “I don’t know. Maybe?”

“That’s great!”

The Ravenclaw scowled at his friend. “I’ve only known her for about two months. It’s too early to tell.”

“I guess that’s fair.” Blaise nudged him. “You guys would look cute together.”

Aidan avoided his gaze, his cheeks still pink. “You suck.”

Before turning back to the action, Blaise shoved Aidan to the side so he could lean down. “Psst! Athena! Guess what!”

Athena turned around, a look of extreme annoyance on her face. “Why are you whispering at me?”

“Guess what!”

“Blaise!” Aidan’s face was back to beet red as he buried his head in his arms.

“Calm down, it’s just Athena!” Blaise said.

“It’s embarrassing!”

“Oh, come on, it’s fine! She won’t tell anyone!”

Athena cleared her throat loudly. “Ahem! Tell anyone what?”

Before Blaise said anything, he looked at Aidan for a final sort of confirmation, and when Aidan nodded slightly, his face burning, he turned back to Athena. “Aidan likes Will!”

“Blaise! I said it was a maybe!” Aidan cried out in embarrassment.

Athena gave him a look tinged with disappointment. “Is that seriously all you had to tell me?”

“Tell him that they would look good together,” Blaise insisted, and Athena sighed before turning to Aidan.

“You would look good together.”

“See, Athena wouldn’t say it if she didn’t mean it,” Blaise reassured his friend.

Aidan peeked out at her through his arms. “Why do you not sound surprised?”

This finally made Athena crack a smile. “You’re not serious, right? I thought it was common knowledge- when Will’s not with me, she’s either in class, at practice, or with you. I’ve seen you two interact a bunch, and the tips of your ears always turn red when she talks to you, like they’re doing right now.” Aidan buried his head back into his arms as Blaise howled with laughter, and Athena couldn’t help but chuckle with him.

“I didn’t know it was that obvious,” Aidan said, his voice muffled.

“Oh, please, Aidan. I like you- you’re the most normal out of all of Blaise’s friends,” Athena said, ignoring Blaise’s cry of outrage. “But you’re not really the most subtle. Plus, you’re wearing her shirt.”

That caused both of the boys to whip their heads around to face her. “What? You knew that this was her shirt?” Aidan asked, his eyebrows furrowed in a mixture of shock, embarrassment, and awe.

“Well, yeah.” When they still looked impressed, Athena sighed. “Am I the only observant one? Will wears that shirt all the time! I haven’t seen anyone else wear something like it, either.” When Aidan still looked unsure, she patted him on the arm awkwardly. “Look, Aidan, if it makes you feel any better, she very obviously likes being around you, or else she wouldn’t hang out with you as much as she does. You guys haven’t known each other that long, so maybe just keep being friends and see what happens. Also, Blaise is right- I won’t tell anyone, especially not her. But in the meantime, there’s a Quidditch game going on, so let’s pay attention to that, shall we?”

Aidan shot Blaise a look, who in return gave him a sheepish grin. “That’s a good idea, isn’t it, Blaise?”

“Oh, whatever. You’re just mad that I’m right.”

Back on the pitch, the time out that Lacie had taken seemed to have its desired effect. Hufflepuff had wrestled back the reins from Gryffindor, putting a few goals up to even the score at forty to forty. But even though the game was full of excitement, Pip was getting frustrated.

When Lacie had told him that he was going to mark Will, he had scoffed. It was almost insulting, really. Him, marking a first year? Please. He didn’t care that she was the daughter of some hotshot American- he was twice her size and had more Quidditch experience than she had years alive. And even though he had watched her play last month against Ravenclaw, he had expected it to be a walk in the park. He was horribly wrong.

Even though the score had progressed into Hufflepuff’s favor, Pip had scored a total of zero goals. In fact, it felt like he had touched the Quaffle a total of zero times. Every time he yelled from Talia and Jake to pass to him, Will was suddenly there, snatching the pass out of his hands and racing away as he was left to chase her in a very humiliating way. If Lacie hadn’t made a few brilliant saves, Gryffindor would be crushing them, and he was starting to get really angry.

As he raced after his teammates on offense, Will right next to him, he felt his ears turn red. First his penalty last week gets saved by some Slytherin second year, and now a first year was rendering him useless? That would not do. He was already having a not-so-good start to the season, and he refused to let it continue. “Daniel!” He yelled, getting the attention of his teammate. The Beater paused, looking up. “Get her off of me!” He gestured to Will, and Daniel nodded.

An incoming Bludger that he usually would have sent at Xander, who was following Jake closely and trying to steal the Quaffle away from him, was instead redirected right at Will. She heard the whistling of the ball coming at her, and she cursed as she was forced to slow down in order to not be hit. Pip relished in his freedom, catching a pass from Jake and sending it to Talia, who put it through the left hoop as Charley tried and failed to cover lost ground. The Hufflepuffs cheered, but their triumph didn’t last long as the Quaffle was sent right back into play as Evelyn raced off to the Hufflepuff goals, not giving the badgers a lot of time to celebrate.

“Gryffindor definitely did their homework,” Ainsley said.

“What do you mean?” Jaya asked.

“Well, they know that when it comes to speed, Hufflepuff can’t compete with them. Hufflepuff is more of a defensive team, working on buildup like the Slytherins instead of just going as fast as they can. Gryffindor has the advantage because of this- if they ramp up the pace of the game, they know that their opponents can’t keep up. See?” She pointed as Evelyn scored, and as the play restarted, all three of the Gryffindor Chasers were hot on the Hufflepuffs, giving them little to no room to breathe.

“You know, for someone who isn’t a player, you know a lot about Quidditch,” Athena said, grinning at her friend.

Ainsley only shook her head, giving a slight smile. “Quidditch is a little too dangerous for me. I don’t enjoy flying that much- I prefer to have both of my feet safely on the ground. But I do appreciate the mechanics of the game. It’s a great way for people to figure out how to work as a team.”

“You never played?” Jaya questioned.

“Nope. My dad tried to introduce it to me when I was younger, but I made it very clear to him that I wasn’t interested.” She thought for a second. “But if I did play, I think I would be a Keeper. They see the entire pitch, and they give direction from the back. They’re the leaders.”

“Spoken like a true Slytherin,” Athena joked.

The game was fast paced, and it gave the illusion that it had been going on for a while, but it was actually quite the opposite. The sun had just begun peeking out from the clouds and the score was still neck and neck, but it seemed as if Gryffindor had control. Hufflepuff just wasn’t ready for how quick the game would be, barely having any time to gather their thoughts before the Gryffindors were pressuring them into a hasty game decision. The Gryffindors were still ramping up the pace, and the Hufflepuff Chasers were starting to get frustrated.

The badgers prided themselves on having the cleanest play out of all of the house teams, but gradually, they were bringing in more and more contact as the game went on. Bludgers were being sent left and right at Gryffindor Chasers, some of them connecting and others being very near misses, forcing Xander, Evelyn, and Will to be incredibly careful. Also, Jake, Talia, and Pip weren’t shy about pushing them, shoulder checking and shoving to throw them off their game. But that didn’t deter them, the three still pushing the pace of the game faster and faster, as Hufflepuff tried their hardest to hold their own.

When Xander scored once more to put Gryffindor up by ten points and break the tie, Daniel and Ivy realized they were going to have to pick up some of the slack. Instead of focusing on the Chasers like Leon and Peter were doing, they turned their attention to the Seekers. Finn and Macie hadn’t seen the Snitch yet, but both of them were zooming in and out of the action as they searched for the tiny golden ball. Daniel and Ivy began sending every Bludger that they came across at Macie, throwing her off her path numerous times.

However, just as they thought they were getting to her, the small girl saw something out of the corner of her eye. Down below the action, the Snitch was fluttering by the bottom of the Hufflepuff goalposts, and she dove as the stands and Rafael roared, knowing what it meant. Finn was right behind her, but it seemed as if he had reacted slightly too late.

Will currently had possession of the Quaffle, racing towards Lacie as Pip followed behind her, and Ivy saw an opening. With all her might, she sent a screaming Bludger right at Will, in hopes that it would knock her off path enough to throw her into Macie’s.

But the hit that she sent was off target by a hair too much. Instead of going towards Will’s midsection like she had intended, it was zooming right towards her head. Will heard it coming, and as she turned to see where it came from, both she and the crowd gasped. The speed of it would knock her out at the very least- throwing her off her broom and sending her into a fifty foot free fall where she was in serious danger of certain death. But in the nick of time, she reflexively dodged it, allowing the crowd to breathe a sigh of relief, but it kept going- and it was headed right for Macie.

Just as Macie was about to reach out and grab the Snitch, the Bludger came at her, and she was forced to dip down in order to not get hit, and Finn took the opportunity to surge in front of her. Just as Macie recovered, Finn’s hand closed on the Snitch, and the Hufflepuffs roared, the game theirs.

Up in the stands, the Slytherins were in shock. “What the hell just happened?” Massey said, incredulous.

“I knew Hufflepuff was going to win,” Finn Stott said snidely, crossing his arms.

“That was Will’s fault, wasn’t it?” Jaya asked, and Athena pursed her lips.

“She could’ve taken the Bludger for Macie and Gryffindor would’ve won. Sort of hard to see it differently, yes?”

Aidan shook his head. “No way you actually believe that. That Bludger would’ve hit her square in the head- it would’ve knocked her out. No one can blame her for dodging it.”

Blaise sighed. “You’re right, Aidan, but that is so unfortunate for Gryffindor. They were playing well, and to lose like that? That has to suck.” He watched as the Gryffindors flew down to return to the locker room as the Hufflepuffs rallied with their fans. “They put up a great fight.”

“Yeah, they did.” Aidan checked his watch. “That was a really short game.”

Blaise stood up, gesturing for Aidan and Athena to follow him. “Come on, guys. Let’s go wait for Charley and Will.”

Athena stood up, waving at her housemates. “See you guys later,” she said, and she headed down the stands with Blaise and Aidan following her.

As they passed the Gryffindor section, Aidan called up to the first years. “James, are you coming? We’re going to go wait for Will and Charley,” he said, and James looked around for a second as if he wasn’t sure that he was the James that Aidan was speaking to.

“You want me to come with you?”

Aidan gave him a funny look. “Well, yeah. You’re their friends, too, right?”

James jumped up to follow them. “Yeah, yeah. See you, Parker,” he said hastily to his roommate, and Parker gave him a little wave before walking over to sit with his Hufflepuff cousin, Penelope.

In the Gryffindor locker room, the air was thick with emotion. No one had said anything when they had first gotten in there, but it was clear that everyone was pissed at the outcome of the game.

Across from the Chasers, Peter threw his broom down angrily. “That loss is your fault, Will!”

Will, who was in the process of taking off her pads, looked at him with surprise. “Me? What did I do?”

“You should’ve taken that Bludger that Ivy sent at Macie! You dodged it, and it went at her instead and made her lose her grip on the Snitch!”

Coming to Will’s aid, Evelyn looked astonished. “There’s no way you’re telling an eleven year old that she should’ve let a Bludger hit her in the head.”

Peter ignored Evelyn. “It’s called sacrifice for the better of the team! Sure, it would’ve hurt a little, but you shake it off and keep going!”

Leon crossed his arms. “Honestly, I agree. I’ve taken plenty of hits for pretty much everyone on the team- yeah, they hurt, but we won. That loss takes us out of first place.”

Macie shook her head. “No, this is different! That Bludger would’ve knocked her out!”

Peter still looked livid, rounding on Will as his face turned beet red. “We had the chance to win, and you let them get the best of us! It’s clear you’re an amateur!”

Will’s temper roared as she didn’t back down, meeting Peter head on. “Um, excuse me, but number one, I am not letting a Bludger knock me out and send me into a fifty foot freefall, no matter the circumstances. Number two, what makes you think you can speak to me like that? Last time I checked, you’re not the captain! We’ve been on the team for the same amount of time, buddy!”

Steam nearly came out of Peter’s ears. “You little-”

“That’s enough!” Suddenly, Xander was there, pushing Peter back as he got in between them. “We are a team! We don’t blame each other for a loss- it’s on all of us!”

“She-” Peter started again, but Xander cut him off.

“What about that time when you sent a Bludger at Jake and it nearly hit Charley instead? We all made the same number of mistakes!” He yelled, and Peter backed off, his face returning to a normal color. The tension was so thick it could be cut with a knife, and Xander turned to face the rest of the team, all of them looking guilty.

“One play doesn’t make or break a game. Yeah, we lost, and it sucks, especially since we lost in that way, but we all could’ve played better, and if you think that you did nothing to contribute to that loss, then you have some serious reflecting to do. I know that we really wanted to win that game today, guys, but shit happens. We can’t win every one, and Hufflepuff gave us hell out there. They deserve that win. But one thing that I will absolutely not tolerate is blaming each other for something that we were all a part of. We win together and we lose together. End of discussion.” He paused. “Practice on Monday. We’re not talking about the game until then, okay? Find a way to shake it off and study for midterms. I’ll see you all then.”

The rest of the team was silent as they continued to take off their gear, and once they were finished, most of them hastily left. Soon, it was only Xander, Will and Charley still in the locker room, and once Evelyn had told the three of them good job and exited, the captain turned to where the two youngest stood.

“You two played well today,” he said, sitting down in his locker next to Will’s.

Will winced. “It wasn’t my best game.”

“Me neither,” Charley said, shaking his head.

“That’s okay. You can’t expect yourselves to have the best game of your life every time you step on the pitch.” When the two of them still looked unsure, he smiled. “I’m proud of you.”

Charley smiled. “Thanks, mate.” Will, however, just turned away. After stowing his broom away in his locker, Charley nudged Will with his shoulder. “You ready?”

Will only nodded, casting one last glance at Xander before hoisting her bag over her shoulder and walking out of the locker room.

Outside, Blaise, Aidan, James, and Athena were waiting for the two of them. “Hey, guys!” James called, waving them over. “Hell of a game!”

“Thanks, mate. It sucks that we lost, but Hufflepuff is crazy good,” Charley responded, and Blaise nodded.

“I told you- their offense is nuts. We have really different playing styles and somehow they adapted enough to beat both us and you. Not to mention, Finn Whittle is really fucking good.”

Athena crossed her arms. “You can say that again. His vision is insane- he always seems to know what to do, even when Bludgers are being sent at him left and right.”

“You played well, though, Charley,” Aidan said, grinning at his friend, and Charley managed a weak smile back.

“Thanks, mate. I’m excited to watch your game tomorrow,” he said, and Blaise nodded.

“Hopefully it’s a good one.”

There was an awkward silence as everyone gathered their thoughts, and something was off. Aidan turned to face Will. “You’re awfully quiet,” he noticed.

Will, who had been staring at the ground during the entire conversation, looked up at him, her expression unreadable. “I guess.”

“Aren’t you going to say anything about the game?” Athena asked, but Will shook her head.

“I don’t really want to talk about it.”

Blaise rolled his eyes. “Come on, Will.”

“I told you I didn’t want to talk about it,” she said, a slight bit of annoyance present in her tone.

“Why not?” James asked.

Will clenched her bag tighter in her fist. “I just don’t.”

Blaise scoffed. “You’re not really giving us an answer,” he said, pushing her farther.

Will averted her eyes from her friends, her temper sparking as she desperately tried to keep it quelled. “Well, I don’t know what to tell you,” she said between deep breaths. “I just have nothing to say, I guess.”

Athena managed a laugh. “Never thought this day would come. Come on, guys, let’s cherish it while it lasts.”

Deep in her stomach, Will’s tempter snapped, and she sneered as she turned to face her friend.. “That’s such a funny joke, Athena. Do you see how hard I’m laughing? Is it evident on my face?”

Athena was taken aback. “Woah, what’s your problem?” She hesitated. “Is it because of the game? You dodging that Bludger and letting it go after Macie-”

“Oh, shut up, Athena. I don’t want to hear what you think I’m not good at or what you could have done better than me,” the Gryffindor snarled, causing Athena’s temper to flare.

“Just because you played like shit doesn’t mean I was going to tell you so.”

Will laughed, but it wasn’t happy or joyous- instead, it was shrill and hollow. “Glad to hear what you really think.”

The four boys’s mouths were dropped open. “Uh, Will, I don’t think-” Charley started, but Will whipped her head around angrily, causing him to falter.

“What? What were you going to say?”

James wrinkled his nose. “Hey, chill out!”

“Don’t tell me to chill out.” Will cast a glance at the rest of her friends, their emotions plastered on their faces- Athena’s anger, Blaise’s shock, Charley’s concern, James’s embarrassment, and Aidan’s disbelief. The looks that they were giving her made her falter ever so slightly, and she felt a pang in her chest. “I told you guys I didn’t want to talk about it,” she whispered, a hint of sadness in her tone. And with that, she turned away from her friends, hoisting her Quidditch bag over her shoulder again and walking towards the castle.

For a second, Athena, Blaise, Charley, James, and Aidan sat in silence, processing what had just happened and watching Will walk away from them by herself, her head down. None of them knew what to say, and it was James that broke the awkward silence. “I should go after her. She’s just being difficult,” he said, but Aidan hesitated.

“Maybe I should go, James.”

“You think? I’ve dealt with her before-”

Aidan shook his head. “I don’t doubt it, but maybe I could try this time.”

“That’s a good idea,” Blaise said, not taking his eyes off of Will and her ascent up the stone stairs to the castle.

“See you guys later, I guess?” Aidan said hesitantly, casting an apologetic glance at Athena before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking quickly after Will.

Charley looked at Athena and Blaise sheepishly. “Uh, I should go too. Roommates,” he said, gesturing to a group of four Gryffindor boys who were waving him over.

“Me too,” James said, casting a glance at his own roommates waiting for him.

Blaise nodded. “See you guys at dinner.”

Charley gave him a thumbs up. “Yup. Later, Athena.”

“Uh, am I invited to dinner?” James asked awkwardly, a hint of red creeping over his cheeks.

“Yeah, sure,” Blaise said. “Six thirty at our table.”

“Okay. See you then,” James said, giving a little wave before he walked over to where Fred, Lucas, and Parker were standing.

As the Gryffindors left, just Blaise and Athena remained, standing by themselves in front of the Quidditch pitch. “Okay, what just happened?” Blaise asked, turning to the younger girl.

Athena crossed her arms, still sneering. “Will was a bitch, that’s what happened.”

“Well, yeah, I got that much, but why?”

Athena shook her head at him. “You’re an idiot. She played like shit and then decided to take it out on us.”

Blaise rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, to be fair, she said like five times that she didn’t want to talk about the game and I kept pushing her.”

“So it’s your fault, too.”

“No- I mean, yes- you know what, I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

Athena scowled at him. “Yeah, well, I don’t either, so good talk.”

They sat in silence for a second before Blaise spoke again. “She just needs some time to cool off. That was a tough game, and she probably has a lot of feelings about the last play with Macie and the Bludger. I’m sure she’ll gather her thoughts and then say sorry.”

“Well, until she says sorry, I’m not speaking to her.”

“That’s fair, I guess?”

“Whatever. Let’s go.”

“Don’t tell me what to do.”

Meanwhile, Aidan had caught up to Will just as she entered the castle. If she noticed that he was there, she didn’t show it, just looking at the ground as she made her way up to the Gryffindor tower. Aidan, to his credit, didn’t say a word, just following her with his hands in his pockets, which she was grateful for. When they reached the Common Room, Will said the password quietly and held the portrait open for Aidan to climb through after her.

There were a few students in the Common Room, and all of them noticed Will immediately. The first year didn’t look at them as she made her way up to her dormitory with Aidan behind her, but she could hear their whispers and knew that they were about her. That only made her walk fast, nearly racing up the stairs as Aidan scrambled to keep up.

When they finally reached her room and the door was shut and locked behind them, Will threw her Quidditch bag across the room and sat down roughly on the couch. Aidan still stayed silent, sitting down next to her, and she finally said something. “Aidan…”

But Aidan only shook his head. “We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

Inside of her chest, Will felt her temper sink back down into her stomach, finally not demanding her to yell and scream. Her shoulders sagged as she looked into Aidan’s brown eyes, and her own started to well up as her lip quivered.

Aidan let out a breath, his gaze sympathetic, and he opened his arms just in time for Will to burst into tears and fall into them. He just let her hold onto him as her sobs shook her entire body, not saying a word until she had let it all out.

Once she had cried out all of her tears, she pulled away, sitting back against the couch and pulling a pillow into her lap to hug tightly. “I’m so sorry, Aidan,” she whispered, but he laughed in response.

“Sorry for what?”

She looked down. “I was really mean earlier.”

“It’s okay, I get it. That was a rough game.”

“I shouldn’t have yelled at everyone.”

“Well, Blaise shouldn’t have kept bugging you.”

Will managed to laugh at that, causing him to smile. “It’s not his fault.”

“Hm, agree to disagree.” He paused. “You’ve got quite a temper.”

She winced, hugging the pillow tighter. “Yeah, I guess. I wish I could control it better, but I just get so mad sometimes.”

Aidan cocked his head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“I’m just really quick to anger. I feel emotions so strongly, and I have a really hard time controlling them. Especially in Quidditch- I have this standard that I hold myself to. I have to be the best, or else all the work I’ve put in will be for nothing. I wasn’t really mad at you guys, but more so at myself. I expect more. Everyone expects more. My parents, my coaches, Xander- I just hate disappointing them. And then people will be like ‘but Will, you can’t expect yourself to be the best, you just have to be the best you can be’, but they just don’t get it. I know my potential, and I haven’t reached it yet. And when shit like that happens, games where I play below my standard, it lowers my value. It makes people think that I can’t be great. But I know I can be great. And it just makes me so mad that no one else understands that,” she said sadly.

Aidan took a second to process, but then he shook his head. “I actually understand completely.”

She looked up at him. “You do?”

“Yeah, of course.” He chuckled. “It makes me angry too when people say to just be the best version of yourself. Like, yes, but I want to be better than everyone else.”

Will smiled. “Totally. But that’s not an excuse- I shouldn’t take it out on my friends,” she said, her face falling.

“Hey, it happens to the best of us. We’ve all been there,” he said kindly. When she still looked unsure, he scooted closer to her and pulled a pillow into his lap to hug in a similar fashion to her. “I’ll tell you what. Let’s chill out here for a bit- we can do homework-” at her disgusted look, he chuckled- “okay, maybe not homework. But we can watch a movie, play some Exploding Snap, whatever. After you feel better, we can find Blaise, Athena, James, and Charley, and you can say sorry to them. Does that work?”

Will grinned at him. “You sound like my mom. But that sounds great. What movie do you want to watch?” She asked, hopping up to grab her laptop from her bed. “Want to do another animated one?”

Aidan thought for a second. “What about that Disney princess movie you were telling me about? The one with the blonde girl with super long magic hair?”

She brightened at that. “Tangled?”

“Yeah, that one. It seemed interesting.”

“Okay! You’ll love it, I promise. It’s hilarious.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

Before Will hit play, she turned to face Aidan. “Thank you, Aidan.”

He smiled at her. “You’re welcome.” As the movie began, the Ravenclaw shifted a little, still clutching the pillow. “I actually have a question for you.”

“What is it?”

“Can I keep this shirt? I actually quite like it.”

Will shook her head but she couldn’t keep the grin off of her face. “No way. I expect it to be washed, folded, and returned to me in pristine condition,” she joked.

He shrugged. “Worth a shot, I guess.”

– – –

When dinnertime rolled around, Blaise and Charley met up at their usual table with Athena and James in tow, but none of them were really in the mood for talking. Blaise picked at his food, pushing the chicken around on his plate with his fork, while Athena barely even touched her meal and was instead reading a book for Potions. James was working on a study guide for the History of Magic midterm that was rapidly approaching, stealing glances at Athena’s Potions book every now and then when he thought she wasn’t looking, unbeknownst to him that she was doing the same thing with his study guide. Charley was shoveling food in his mouth, not really paying attention to the empty seats belonging to Aidan and Will.

“Mmph mmph mmph mmph?” Charley said, his voice muffled by the food in his mouth.

Athena wrinkled her nose. “Don’t talk with your mouth full. No one can understand you.”

Charley sighed before swallowing. “Are you guys going to eat?” He tried again.

Blaise gave him a weird look. “I am eating.”

The Gryffindor rolled his eyes. “No, you’re not. You’re just pushing your chicken around on your plate like a sad gnome.”

“Did you just call me a gnome?”

“Yeah.”

“What about me resembles a gnome?”

“The way you’re pushing your chicken around on your plate.”

“Have you ever even seen a gnome? Because what I am doing is not gnome-like whatsoever-”

A screeching noise came from next to them, causing both boys to stop mid conversation and turn to watch Aidan and Will pull out the bench to sit down in their usual spots. “Why are you arguing about gnomes?” Aidan asked, confused.

Blaise scowled. “Charley said I was a sad gnome.”

“Um, no, I said that what he was doing resembled a sad gnome,” Charley corrected.

“No, you called me a gnome.”

“I didn’t! James, Athena, help me out here.” Charley looked over at the two first years, and James shrugged.

“He didn’t technically call him a gnome. Right, Athena?” All eyes turned to the blonde girl, but she wasn’t paying any attention to their conversation and was instead staring pointedly at Will.

Silence fell over the table as Will took a bite of food, not noticing Athena’s glare until Aidan nudged her with his shoulder. “Ahem!” He said, and when she looked at him, he gestured to their friends.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt,” the dark haired girl said, looking down.

“No, that’s okay, I would love for you to interrupt, actually. Blaise is misinterpreting me,” Charley said seriously.

Blaise threw his hands up in the air. “I am not-”

“Okay, okay! I’ll interrupt!” Will said, cracking a smile. When the two boys had quieted, she took a deep breath. “Look, guys, I’m really sorry. I was really mean to you after the game, and it wasn’t fair. I was pissed about the game and I didn’t really play how I wanted to but I shouldn’t have taken it out on you. What I mean to say is thank you guys for coming and supporting me, and I hope that you can forgive me for yelling at you.”

Charley immediately waved her away. “Don’t worry about it, mate. We all get mad sometimes, and it was just the wrong place at the wrong time. All’s well.”

Will gave him a weak smile. “Thanks, Char.”

“I agree with Charley. Nothing I haven’t seen before,” James said, giving her a smile, which she returned gratefully.

“Well, I personally wouldn’t have let a Bludger go after my Seeker-” Blaise started, half joking, but when he glanced at Will, who was not amused at all, he chuckled. “Kidding. It’s okay, Will. Shit happens. We forgive you.”

“Thank you.”

The only person who hadn’t said anything was Athena. She was still staring at Will, her expression unreadable. Will squirmed a little under her gaze, the silence awkward and uncomfortable. Athena seemed to be deciding if her apology was actually genuine, and apparently, it was a tough decision. Will didn’t really know what else to say to convince her friend that she really was sorry, but she guessed that if Athena didn’t want to forgive her, she didn’t have to and that was totally valid. However, the thought that she had ruined her friendship with who she considered one of her closest friends over a five minute interaction after a Quidditch game made her heart ache.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Athena finally spoke. “I accept your apology and I forgive you.”

Will let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Thank Merlin. You were starting to make me anxious.”

Athena managed to smile. “Sorry. There was a lot to process.”

“I get it. I really am sorry, you know. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.”

“You’re forgiven.” Will gave Athena a small grin, and the blonde girl didn’t hesitate to return it.

Charley clapped his hands in excitement. “Okay, now that that’s over, let’s talk about tomorrow.”

“What about tomorrow?” James asked, looking up from his study guide.

“Uh, the Quidditch game?”

Blaise scoffed, taking a sip of his pumpkin juice. “We’re going to kick Ravenclaw’s ass.”

Aidan rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right. Maybe in your dreams.”

“I want to know what everyone else thinks. Hey, Will, who do you think is going to win?” Charley asked.

“Like, for real?”

“Yeah. Complete honesty,” Aidan chimed in.

She thought for a second. “Hmm. Well, statistically, it’s going to be Slytherin.”

Blaise whooped in delight as Aidan put his head in his hands. “Yeah! Take that, Pucey!”

“Are you serious? Even you?” Aidan moaned, and Will winced.

“I’m sorry! You asked for honesty! I’m just going off of statistics!”

“That doesn’t mean I wanted to hear it,” he said, sighing.

“Well, I want Ravenclaw to win!” She said indignantly, and that caused Blaise to give her a look of disgust.

“What do you mean you want Ravenclaw to win? You’re supposed to be neutral!”

“I am never neutral. Besides, it would be better for us if Ravenclaw won because we beat them already. Plus, Aidan is more likable than you, Blaise,” she said without thinking. This caused both Aidan and Blaise to start arguing again, and Will hung her head in defeat.

“Honestly, I agree one hundred percent, Will,” Charley said, taking another bite of his chicken.

James shook his head. “I only agree with the wanting Ravenclaw to win part. Slytherin is about to be zero for two this season, and I can’t wait.”

Will looked at Athena in desperation. “Athena, help me. Please.”

Athena chuckled. “You just need to learn when to close your mouth, Will.”

“I’m working on it, okay?”

The Slytherin shook her head before turning to the boys. “Both of you, shut up. One of you is going to win tomorrow, and one of you is going to lose. So, in the meantime, can we eat in peace for one meal? Please?” Aidan and Blaise quieted, looking sheepish as Will let out a snicker. “Thank you,” Athena said, opening her book back up. “And fyi, Slytherin is going to win.”

This caused Aidan to open his mouth, but before he could say anything, Will shoved a piece of bread into his mouth, preventing any sound from coming out. He took a bite and scowled at her as he chewed, and Will, Blaise, James, and Charley roared with laughter, Athena chuckling to herself as she began reading again.

Chapter Text

The next day, Aidan and Blaise sat at the breakfast table across from each other, neither one of them speaking. The air between the two boys was tense, and as Will, Charley, James, and Athena sat and watched the two of them avoid eye contact with the other, they were a little freaked out.

“Is he always like this before games?” Will whispered to Athena, casting a glance at Blaise.

Athena nodded, scooting down a little so all four of them were out of the two boys’ earshot. “Yeah, pretty much. He doesn’t like to talk to anyone before unless he absolutely has to, usually, but the competition doesn’t so much as get a glance. We didn’t get to see it when he played last month because he was late and didn’t eat breakfast with us, but this isn’t super out of the ordinary, I guess.”

Charley scrunched his nose up. “Well, it’s making me uncomfortable. They’re best mates, and they won’t even look at each other.”

James nodded. “I agree. Like, I get knowing that your friend is your competition, but I don’t think it warrants all-” he gestured to the two boys- “this, I guess.”

Athena took a bite of eggs. “They’ll be fine after today, it’s just before the game that things are going to be weird, I guess. Is Aidan like this usually? It makes sense for Blaise even if you haven’t known him for as long as I have, but I kind of pinned Aidan as having a different vibe.”

Will shrugged. “He’s been pretty anxious about the game recently and he wasn’t as bad last month, so maybe it’s just this one. You know how it is- you’re playing against your best friend and you want to do well, but you also don’t want to do well and they do bad and then you feel like an asshole and they’re embarrassed, but you also really want to win and playing better than them is the only way you can do that, and your friend is really fucking good at his position, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. It adds up for him to be a little out of it right now.”

“That actually makes a lot of sense, especially for Aidan,” Charley said, giving her a weird look.

She scowled. “Why do you sound so surprised? I know stuff!”

Athena laughed. “I don’t think that’s what he meant. Since when have you and Aidan been so close?”

Will immediately flushed, looking down at her food. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

James’s eyes widened. “Woah, what? When did this happen?”

Charley rolled his eyes. “Since, like, the entire school year. But I have noticed that you two have been getting a lot closer recently.”

“That’s not true,” Will insisted, but her protest was weak.

Athena nudged her with her shoulder. “Oh, come on, Will, we’ve all noticed it. Even Blaise said something.”

Will looked mortified. “Blaise said something about what?”

“About you two hanging out a lot recently.”

When Charley saw her look a little embarrassed, he grinned. “Chill, mate. We just want to hear the details. We’re glad you’re getting closer.”

Athena nodded. “I agree. I don’t know him that well, but Aidan seems like a really cool guy. And from what I have seen, your personalities complement each other. That’s always a good thing.”

James crossed his arms. “I don’t like that this is the first time I’m hearing about it.”

Athena rolled her eyes. “Are you serious, James? You’re not her dad. Just admit it- they would be cute together, wouldn’t they?”

“I guess so…”

Will blushed even more, throwing her hands up in exasperation. “Okay, fine, yes, we have been hanging out more! But it’s not because I have a crush on him- it’s just because exams have been stressing us both out and there’s strength in numbers!”

“You sure you don’t like him?” Athena teased, and Will put her face in her hands.

“Ew, Athena, no!”

“She totally likes him,” Charley told Athena seriously, and the Slytherin nodded.

“Totally.”

“Can you two shut up? He is sitting right there!” Will whispered furiously, and their attention was turned back to the silent standoff between Aidan and Blaise. However, unbeknownst to the rest of her friends, Will let her gaze rest for a second, but not on Aidan- instead, she was looking at Blaise.

“It’s fine, they didn’t hear us,” Athena pointed out, but Will still glared at her, causing the blonde girl to stifle a laugh.

“Whatever.”

Charley looked down at his watch. “Hey, guys, it’s five til ten. Don’t you have to be down at the field by ten fifteen?” He said, speaking up so the two boys could hear him, and it seemed to snap them out of their funk temporarily.

“Right. We should get going,” Blaise said, pushing his plate away from him.

“Agreed,” Aidan responded. He turned to face the four others. “See you guys after.” And without even saying or looking at Blaise, the two boys turned and walked out of the Great Hall side by side, the silence between them resuming as if it had never left.

Athena stared at the door where they had exited. “Well, I guess it’s a good thing that they walked out there together.”

“It’s actually crazy that they won’t even look at each other,” Will said, dumbfounded.

Charley shook his head. “They’ll get over it. But let’s finish up here and then we can follow them, if you guys want.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Down at the Quidditch field, the mid October weather was pleasant- not too hot but not too cold, either. Athena was wearing her uniform yet again, this time with a sweater to keep the wind from becoming too chilly. The Gryffindors were sporting different combinations of both Ravenclaw and Slytherin apparel, trying to seem as unbiased as possible before the big clash.

“What are you doing after this?” Will asked, snuggling up to Athena slightly as she asked, causing the Slytherin to blush at the soft form of affection.

“I’m not sure. I might study a bit- we have three exams tomorrow, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous for at least the History of Magic one,” Athena responded sheepishly.

Will sat up straight abruptly, her face paling. “Oh, shit. I completely forgot about History of Magic.”

Charley shook his head at his friend. “Are you serious? That’s the one that I’ve been studying the most for, and mine isn’t until Tuesday.”

“Well, I hate History of Magic! It’s a stupid class with stupid homework and I hate the way that Professor Binns just talks at us instead of interacting with us!” Will said indignantly.

“It’s a lecture based class. That’s how it works,” James said, raising an eyebrow.

“I don’t care if that’s how it works. It’s dumb and I hate it. I can’t learn like that.”

“History of Magic is arguably the most important class that we take at Hogwarts,” Athena countered.

James pursed his lips. “You think so? I think the most important one is Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

Will gave him a weird look. “You hate Defense Against the Dark Arts.”

“Yeah, because my dad is the teacher. You would hate any class your dad taught.”

Charley shook his head. “Yeah, I’ll vouch for that statement. My dad was my Quidditch coach until I finally convinced him to let me play for an academy, and even then, he didn’t let me go far. I ended up at Puddlemere and still have to listen to him moan and groan about everything I do.”

“Shit, dude, you can say that again,” Will said under her breath.

“Anyways, Defense Against the Dark Arts is the most important for sure,” James said indignantly. “Learning how to fight against the Dark Arts is the skill that’s going to keep Wizardry from extinction. Just look at the Second Wizarding War- have you ever noticed how small our class is? Charley, your class has over forty students and Will is the only Gryffindor girl in our year!”

“Forty is average, isn’t it?” Charley asked Will, and the dark haired girl nodded.

“Yeah, that’s like ten per house. Now that he says it, though, our class barely has twenty five kids. Is that really abnormal?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s not because of the war- it’s just that more people are practicing abstinence.”

“I just feel like there’s a lot more wizarding kids in the UK than forty per year,” Will said, puzzled.

“I think my dad mentioned that there were other schools popping up that aren’t boarding schools like Hogwarts,” James said. “Hogwarts is like, more exclusive, I guess. There’s a bunch of other regional ones that aren’t run the same exact way but teach the same stuff.”

“How did we get into Hogwarts, then? Legacy?” Athena asked.

“What’s a legacy?” Charley asked.

“It means at least one of your parents went to the same school, I think,” James answered.

“I’m not a legacy, then,” Will pointed out. “My parents went to Ilvermorny.”

“There’s probably an application. I wouldn’t doubt that your parents going to Ilvermorny had a factor, I guess. I’d put it in the same category as Hogwarts,” James responded. “Plus, not every parent wants to send their kid to a year round boarding school in the middle of nowhere, Scotland.”

Athena held her hands up. “Okay, that doesn’t matter. Let’s go back to the original discussion- I disagree with what you said about the war, James. You’re assuming that the downfall of magic is going to come from wizards- what about Muggles?”

“Athena’s got a point, James,” Charley said. James opened his mouth to protest, but then he closed it and decided to think harder.

“You think Muggles are capable of wiping out magic?” Will asked, curious.

Athena twisted her ring around her finger, deep in thought. “I don’t know, actually. I’ve never really thought about it- I was mostly just playing devil’s advocate.”

“As the only person here who has a Muggle parent, I think the answer to that question is yes. One hundred percent yes,” Charley said.

“Why do you think so?” Athena asked.

“Well, I don’t necessarily think that it’s Muggles, specifically, but large groups of people together learning about something that they had no idea existed. Think about it- if you had no idea that magic was a thing and suddenly found out how wizards and witches can use it and then, as a cherry on top, you find out that you can’t use it at all and you’re basically at the complete mercy of those wizards and witches? I’d probably be pretty scared,” Charley explained. “And when large groups of people are really scared of stuff, bad things tend to happen.”

The three first years stared at him in disbelief for a moment. “You know, Char, you’re a lot smarter than people give you credit for,” Will said jokingly, causing her friend to scowl at her.

“Hey, I’m smart. I’m just not good at school like the rest of you.”

“Yeah, that’s what I meant. Don’t let people underestimate you.”

Athena pondered Charley’s words, thinking about her earlier point about History of Magic. The first thing she thought of was the Salem Witch trials, something they had just learned about and would probably be on the exam on Monday. Hive mind was the reason why so many people had died- just like what Charley was talking about. But when she really thought about it, she couldn’t bring herself to think of Muggles as dangerous, at least not compared to what a wizard could do. The destruction a single Muggle could do compared to a wizard? Even when numbers were added to the mix, she just couldn’t see it. If it really came down to it, she was almost certain she would bet her life on wizards coming out on top.

In fact, Athena didn’t really consider Muggles a threat to magic at all. Strangely enough, she agreed with James- in a sense that if magic was going to be destroyed, it would be at the hands of a wizard.

The roar of the crowd and Rafael’s welcome to the game disrupted her train of thought, and Athena pushed the idea of the extinction of magic out of her brain. The Slytherins and Ravenclaws were emerging from their locker rooms, and the game was finally beginning.

“Yeah! Woo!” Will was on her feet, cheering along with the rest of the crowd, and Athena couldn’t help but shake her head, amused at how quickly the conversation that they had just been having was pushed into the back of her friend’s brain.

“Merlin, I hope Ravenclaw wins,” James muttered under his breath, and Athena scowled at him.

“And why is that?”

“Do you want an answer you’re going to like or the honest one?”

“He hates Slytherin, ‘Thena,” Will cut in, still clapping as the game began.

Athena rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re still stuck in the past.”

“I don’t hate every Slytherin, just most of them,” James said jokingly, but Athena either didn’t hear his tone or completely disregarded it.

“Right, because in order to uphold your sense of superiority, you have to tear your competition down,” Athena snarled.

James was slightly taken aback, but his temper sparked and he met Athena head on. “Oh, yeah, I’m the one with a superiority complex, yet you always talk down to everyone, like we’re stupid and you’re all knowing. Ever noticed that?”

“That is such a lie-” Athena started, but James wasn’t finished.

“Really? Well, then, let’s play devil’s advocate like you love doing. A lot of people have completely valid reasons for disliking Slytherin as a house,” James said, but Athena only scoffed.

“Like what?”

“Okay, well, number one, almost every single villain in modern wizarding history has been a Slytherin,” James insisted, and Charley nudged Will with his shoulder.

“That’ll probably be on the History of Magic exam,” he said, and Will sighed.

“I’m screwed.”

Athena glared at James. “History is written by the winners, James. Just because one source paints someone as a villain doesn’t mean they were a terrible person through and through.”

“I don’t know, Voldemort was pretty shitty,” James argued back.

Athena rubbed her temples in annoyance. “I knew you were going to bring him up. That’s such a generalization- it’s like saying Slytherin is a racist house because the biggest racist ever happened to be in that house. In fact, you could say the same about Gryffindor because I’m sure the biggest idiot came from there-”

James ignored her last comment, focusing on his earlier point. “I don’t know about you, but that makes a little bit of sense to me. Almost every single one of the Death Eaters- aka the racist guys- were Slytherins, proven fact.”

Athena was dumbstruck. “Are you five years old? Merlin, this is your problem- you’re too self righteous to see your own prejudice! Does that mean that you think I’m a racist and a terrible person? Or Blaise? Or Ainsley, or Patrick, or Connor?” James opened his mouth to respond, but Athena wasn’t finished. “You know what, James? This might sound crazy to someone who idolizes Gryffindors, but it could definitely be argued that Albus Dumbledore wasn’t that great of a guy either.”

James’s cheeks turned fire hydrant red at that. “I can’t believe you would say that. My brother is named after him!”

“That doesn’t mean that he was the reincarnation of Jesus, buddy! He raised your father like a pig to slaughter,” Athena snarled. At James’s shell shocked look, she managed a chuckle. “I would think that you of all people would know about that.”

James shook his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe- fine, do you want to know the real reason why I’m not the biggest fan of Slytherins? It’s because you’re ambitious. You can’t even argue with me about it, because it’s the main quality of the entire house. I don’t trust people who are too hungry for power, because I have too many dead relatives who suffered because of the struggle for it. And you can hate me all you want for it, but I remember to grieve and I protect my own.”

Before Athena could respond, Will jumped in, grabbing James and yanking him to his feet before dragging him down the steps. “Okay! Time to take a break from each other!” She chirped, and although James protested, he let her take him down from the stands.

Athena only crossed her arms, leaning back into her seat and turning her attention back to the game in front of her. She was slightly disappointed that her interaction with James had taken away time that she could have been watching the game, and the score was fifty to twenty, Slytherin in the lead. “What did I miss?” She asked a dumbfounded Charley, who was staring at her in disbelief. When he didn’t respond, she sighed. “We’re not talking about it. It’s in the past.”

Charley shook off his shock, adjusting his hoodie before turning back to the game. “Uh, I mean, Slytherin is up,” he managed, and Athena chuckled.

“I can see that. What I meant is how are Blaise and Aidan doing? Anything big from either of them?”

“Aidan’s scored once. Blaise had come up with a few pretty big saves, though.”

Just as he said that, the crowd roared as Blaise caught an easy shot from Amaya Cunningham. He directed his team for a second, letting the Chasers get into position, before passing the Quaffle into the waiting hands of Theo and the older boy zoomed towards Remy and the Ravenclaw goalposts.

“Seems like a pretty even game so far, though,” Athena noticed.

“I guess you could say that. Honestly, Slytherin should be up by a lot more. Reuben and Kaydan have both missed some pretty big shots.”

“Well, that’s unfortunate.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it. There’s still a lot of game left to play.”

Meanwhile, Will and James were below the stands by the bathrooms, and James was pacing.

“She’s just so frustrating! It’s like I can’t say anything around her or else she’ll dissect everything I say and spin it back on me!” He griped, throwing his hands up in the air.

Will, who was leaning against the wall casually, nodded. “Yep. Let it out, buddy.”

He stopped and faced her. “Why didn’t you defend me?”

She laughed. “You really think I wanted to throw myself into the middle of that?” James opened his mouth to respond, but decided against it and returned to pacing. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. Why do you hate her so much, anyway? You didn’t like her when we first met and we didn’t even know her then.”

“She was mean!”

“James, in hindsight, she had every right to be pissed. I almost blew up the building they were in. Plus, you laughed at her when she started talking.”

“Yeah, because she barged into the conversation when no one asked her to and it was funny because she thought she was being all big and bad.”

“That’s- no,” Will chuckled, shaking her head. “You know what, let’s move on. I thought you guys have been getting along recently. Haven’t you been studying with her and Fred?”

James cast her a look. “Yeah, only because you ditched us to study with Aidan all the time,” he responded, causing Will to blush.

“Don’t try to change the subject. Answer the question.”

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I mean, yeah, I guess. She’s smart, and she’s a good person to bounce ideas off of. She also actually cares about school, a lot more than you do.”

Will rolled her eyes. “Okay, whatever.”

“I don’t know, Will. I just feel like every time I’m with her, there’s a timer counting down until one of us- usually me- says something that makes the other- usually her- mad and then we fight. It’s kind of tiring.”

Will put her hands on her hips. “Well, I don’t know what to tell you. Maybe just ask her questions about herself- learn more about each other and try and hold your tongue sometimes. I’m not forcing you to be friends or anything, but I feel like you guys genuinely could get along pretty well if you just don’t say every single thing you’re thinking all the time.”

James scowled at her. “That’s rich coming from you, Miss Big Mouth.”

Will stuck her tongue out at him. “Cry about it. Come on, we’re missing the game. If you still want time to cool off, you should sit with Parker and his cousins. We can meet back up at dinner and reevaluate.”

James wanted to protest, but despite himself, he did want to watch the game, so he nodded. “Fine. Let’s go.”

When Athena saw Will climbing back up the stairs alone, she was curious as to what had happened down below, but she held her tongue, only offering a nod as her friend sat back down next to her. “What’d I miss?” Will asked.

“Not much. Slytherin is still up, eighty to forty, but there’s still been no sight of the Snitch,” Charley responded.

“Did Blaise or Aidan do anything big?”

“No, but Louis almost sent Kaydan into next week with a huge hit. Hooch didn’t call it, either, so some of the Slytherins are pissed,” Charley said, and Will chuckled.

“Good old Louis. Love that guy.” When she noticed Athena hadn’t said anything since she had gotten back, she turned to face her friend. “Want to talk about it?”

Athena hesitated. “I don’t think so, but if it slips out, don’t judge me.”

Will laughed. “Don’t worry, this is a no judgment zone.”

“Where is he?”

“I sent him to go sit with Parker and his cousins. Figured you guys should cool off a little more, and that way we can all enjoy the game without unnecessary tension. We can reevaluate at dinner.”

Athena nodded in approval. “Smart.”

“Thanks, I have good ideas sometimes.”

“Sometimes?” Charley joked, and Will shoved him playfully.

“Shut up, Wood.” She turned back to Athena. “Anyways, what are your thoughts?”

“I don’t know, Will. I just get so mad at him sometimes.”

“Hey, you’re talking to the right person. I do, too.”

“Well, it’s different for you guys. I get mad at Blaise a lot too.”

“Which is normal. You’re not going to get along perfectly with everyone you meet.”

“What do you think I should do?” Athena asked, and Will chuckled.

“Asking me for advice? Not sure that’s a great idea,” she joked, causing Athena to smile.

“Well, you know him the best out of everyone, besides maybe Fred. When I see him at dinner, what should I say?”

“Well, maybe you should be the bigger person and apologize first. Ever thought of that?” Will asked pointedly, causing Athena to blush.

“I never apologize first.”

“I’ve noticed that. No offense, ‘Thena, because you’re my best friend, but that’s not really a great quality to have.”

Athena scowled. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean that sometimes just putting your pride aside and apologizing for making someone feel bad goes a long way, even if you think they were in the wrong.”

“If you’re trying to say that I was in the wrong and James was one hundred percent right-” Athena started, but Will shook her head.

“I’m not saying that. Honestly, I think you guys were both right, but you were both wrong, too. You both said things that made sense and you both probably said some things that you shouldn’t have.”

“I don’t see how anything I said was wrong.”

Will managed a smile. “Dude, this is what I’m talking about. It doesn’t matter if you think you’re right or not. You said stuff that hurt his feelings, point blank period. You don’t have to apologize for everything you said- just maybe say sorry for making him feel bad. Then we can put this behind us and move on.”

Athena thought about that for a second. “You think I hurt his feelings?”

Will scoffed. “When you’ve known James for as long as I have, you tend to figure out what makes him tick. He’s one of those guys that wears his emotions on his sleeve and thinks he has a pretty strong moral compass, even though we really haven’t lived long enough to develop one. When he gets angry like that, he’s upset.”

“Huh.” Athena paused. “I thought we were making progress. I mean, he’s been asking me to study with him, and we’ve been sitting together during meals, but I guess we’re back at square one.”

“You think so?”

“I just find him insufferable sometimes.”

“I get that. But James is a good person, no matter how annoying he is. Maybe you guys didn’t click at the very beginning, but give it time. I’m sure you’ll figure each other out sooner or later.”

A roar of the crowd interrupted their conversation, for the Snitch had been spotted. Felix and Derek Zhang were racing through the chaos of the Chasers and Beaters, both trying desperately not to lose the Snitch in the action as the noise level went up by ten. The little golden ball was fluttering desperately, trying to evade the two boys, but when it cut to the left to throw Derek off of his course, Felix was waiting, closing his fist around the ball and securing Slytherin’s victory.

The Slytherins erupted, screaming with pride at winning their first game of the season, and Will, Charley, and Athena were on their feet with them, cheering as the rest of the Slytherin team converged on Felix, hugging him and pumping their fists with the crowd. “Felix Moore catches the Snitch and Slytherin wins, two hundred and fifty to seventy!” Rafael roared over the noise, and as the Ravenclaws slunk back to their locker room in defeat, the Slytherins rallied, cheering as loud as they could.

After the game, Will, Charley, and Athena headed down to the locker rooms to wait for Blaise and Aidan. James was noticeably absent, but all three of them thought it was probably for the best for now, at least. Thankfully, Blaise and Aidan returned to normal after the game was done, both of them looking relieved that it was over. Aidan congratulated his friend on the win, and Blaise accepted his hug with grace.

Aidan wasn’t too upset about the game, which all of them were very grateful for. On their way back up to the castle, he mentioned being satisfied with how he played overall, and playfully teased Blaise about how he had saved a few good shots, causing the Slytherin to smile and keep quiet.

After that game, Hufflepuff sat in first place in the standings, with Gryffindor in second thanks to goal differential. Slytherin was third, and Ravenclaw was fourth, but there were still seven more games of round play to go before the finalists would be determined. But the students of Hogwarts were much more focused on the rapidly approaching Halloween.

“The Gryffindor team is throwing a party,” Charley said.

“How’d you hear about that?” Athena asked.

“Xander was pretty loud about it. Will and I are invited because we’re on the team, of course, and we’re allowed to bring whoever we want, so obviously we wanted to ask you guys,” Charley responded with a smile.

“I’m down, of course,” Blaise said.

“Count me in, too. I’ve never been to a party before,” Aidan added.

Athena, however, looked a little more hesitant. “When is this party?”

“October 31st. It’s a Saturday.”

“Where is it at?”

“Gryffindor Common Room.”

Athena paused. “I’ll think about it.”

Will let out a dramatic sigh. “Oh, come on, Athena, you have to come! It’ll be fun!”

“Large groups of drunk people I don’t know aren’t really my forte.”

“Well, we’re not going to be drunk,” Aidan said. “Uh, right?”

Will chuckled. “Nah, Xander made that very clear. He said you have to be of age to get alcohol from him, at least.”

“That’s probably smart.”

“I’m scared of alcohol, personally,” Charley added, causing the others to laugh.

Athena still looked unsure, so Will threw her arm around her. “Look, I’m not going to force you to do something you don’t want to do, or peer pressure you. But maybe just come for a little bit, feel it out, and then if you hate it and the vibes are off, you can totally leave. No questions asked. But aren’t you at least a little excited at the thought of dressing up with me?”

This caused the Slytherin to crack a smile. “I guess I could stop by for a few minutes.”

“Great! I already have so many ideas of things we can be!” Will said, clapping her hands together excitedly.

“I get final say on the costumes.”

“Ugh. Fine.” Will turned to face the other three. “Have you guys thought about what you’re going to be yet?”

Charley grinned. “I think we decided, right, guys?”

Aidan nodded. “We’re gonna be ghostbusters!”

“I already called Venkman,” Blaise said.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I think I’m going to be Stanz, and Aidan’s going to be Spangler,” Charley said.

“That weirdly makes sense,” Athena noticed.

“I talked to James and he’s doing the Avengers with Fred, Lucas, and Parker. James is going to be Iron Man, Lucas is Captain America, Fred is Thor, and Parker is the Hulk,” Will mentioned.

“What is an Avenger?” Aidan asked.

Will facepalmed. “Merlin, Aidan, you’re really killing my vibe, here.”

“Hey, it’s not his fault he’s been living under a rock,” Blaise said, grinning at his friend.

“I know, I know, I need to get caught up in pop culture,” Aidan said, his cheeks reddening a bit.

“Hey, speaking of James, his birthday is actually the 31st. It’s Scorpio season,” Will reminded them.

“Oh, for real? We should see if we can get him a cake or something,” Charley said.

Aidan and Blaise immediately noticed Athena quiet at the mention of James, and the former looked to Will for an explanation. The Gryffindor shook her head, mouthing 'I’ll tell you later'.

“Is he going to meet us for dinner?” Blaise asked.

“I think so. He mentioned that he was going to maybe try and study a bit more with Fred and Lucas because we’ve got three midterms tomorrow,” Will said.

Charley facepalmed. “Why do you keep reminding me about that? I just want to have one day without worrying about school- one day- is that too much to ask for?”

Athena cracked a smile. “At this school, it’s unlikely.”

“Maybe we should all be doing that,” Aidan said, sighing. “What are your plans until dinner?” He asked the group.

“I have to go help Slughorn with some stuff for next week,” Blaise said, groaning. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the guy and I’m really glad he picked me to help him out with things, but sometimes it’s a chore.”

“It’s a good resume builder, though,” Athena commented.

“I’m twelve years old. I don’t need a resume.”

“Fair enough.”

“Denahi, Beau and I were going to try and clean our room,” Charley said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck as he referred to two of his roommates. “Cy and Danny have been getting on us about it for a while now and I feel kinda bad.”

Will laughed. “Dude, they’re right. That place looks like a tornado has been through there at least a few times.”

“Shut up, Will. Not everyone has a room to themselves,” he responded, sticking his tongue out at her.

“Ainsley and Jaya wanted me to come back after the game and look over some Charms stuff again, so I’ll probably head back to the Slytherin Common Room,” Athena said.

“That leaves me with you, Aidan,” Will said, smiling at her friend. “Want to go to my room and study?”

Aidan brightened at that. “Sure, that sounds great.”

“Oh, yeah, go study together, I’m sure that’s all you’ll do,” Charley teased, making obscene kissing noises at them, causing them both to blush fiercely.

“Charley, shut your mouth,” Will said, fighting the redness of her cheeks.

“Oh my Merlin, you’re blushing, Will! Look at her!” Blaise exclaimed, pointing. “Aidan, you are too!”

“Stop it right now,” Aidan protested, but his tone was weak.

“Will and Aidan sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!” Charley and Blaise chanted together before Will shoved them away. “You guys are groooooooss!” Charley said, laughing.

“I’m going to kill both of you,” the dark haired girl said, putting her face in her hands.

“Yeah, real mature, guys,” Aidan said, his glare shooting daggers at his friends. “Come on, Will, we can see those losers at dinner.”

“Don’t have too much fun!” Blaise called after them.

As they walked away towards the Ravenclaw tower for Aidan to drop his bag off, Charley and Blaise continued to screech and squeal at them, causing Will to flip them both the bird before turning the corner and finally out of their view.

Athena was trying incredibly hard not to smile, but she was failing as she couldn’t help but grin at the older boys’ antics. “That was kinda messed up, guys,” she said, trying desperately to keep a straight face.

“You’re just no fun, Athena,” Blaise said. “That was hilarious.”

After Aidan had exchanged his Quidditch bag for his backpack, he and Will headed up to the Gryffindor Common Room and thankfully missed Charley. Once the door had finally shut behind them, Aidan finally got the chance to ask Will something that had been on his mind since the game ended.

“What’s going on with Athena and James?” He asked, putting his bag down and flopping on the couch.

Will sighed, grabbing her own backpack from its place against the wall and sitting down next to him. “They got into another huge fight during the game.”

“About what?”

“Oh, stupid shit, as usual. We were talking about History of Magic and how much it sucks, and then Athena said that it was arguably one of the most important classes that we take at Hogwarts.”

Aidan nodded. “Smart.”

“Then James was like, ‘well Defense Against the Dark Arts is harder’ because we have to protect magic from its downfall by defeating dark wizards and blah blah blah, and that brought up the question of how the downfall of magic would happen, so we had a good talk about that . They disagreed but there was no yelling or accusing the other of stuff so I thought it was fine, but then James said something about hating Slytherins, which was very obviously a joke, but Athena didn’t think so, and they got into an argument about that.”

Aidan sighed. “I’m sure that just went swimmingly.”

“Yeah, it went about as well as expected. I had to haul James down to the bottom of the stands to separate them because it was getting pretty heated.”

“So what’s the plan now? Are they just going to try and avoid each other at all costs?”

“Well, I told them both to just chill for a little bit and cool off, maybe get their thoughts together. Once they’ve had some time to regain their composure, I suggested that we all meet up again for dinner and then try again.”

Aidan sat back. “Very good plan, if I do say so myself.”

“Thanks. I have good ideas sometimes.”

They were quiet for a second, Will pulling out a few books and her notes for History of Magic and Aidan watching her. “Serious question.”

“Go for it.”

“Do you really think they’re going to be friends?”

Will paused, her quill mid-air. “I mean, I want them to be, for sure. And that’s not me just wanting my two best friends to be friends. Like, I think once they figure each other out, they could be really close. They’re both pretty hesitant to open up, though, which is the problem, or at least I think it is. The rest of us have definitely opened up to each other, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I guess. We all get along pretty well. Even you and Blaise are friends now, which I wasn’t really expecting to happen as quickly as it did.”

Will threw a pillow at him playfully. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Aidan dodged it, smiling at her. “It’s not a knock on you, or him. I just mean that you both have- how do I say it- very strong personalities. In my experience, Blaise doesn’t usually get along with people like that.”

“Why’s that?”

“I don’t really know. He’s just got this need to be the biggest, baddest kid on the block, I guess.”

She chuckled. “That makes sense. I think he didn’t like me at first because I’m pretty out there. Like, when we first met, he sort of came at me, and don’t get me wrong, he definitely had every right to be pissed, which I realize now more than ever, but I didn’t let him bully me. Sorta just laughed in his face when he tried to intimidate me.”

“Merlin, I would’ve paid good money to see that,” he sighed wistfully.

“Be glad you didn’t. I’m just happy we’re all friends now. It makes my life easier.”

“And what about my life?”

She gave him a confused look. “Is your life- not easier?”

“I’m kidding. It is. I like being friends with you, Houston.”

Will grinned. “Right back at you, Pucey.”

Once dinner had finally rolled around, Aidan and Will got there first. Blaise and Charley were right behind them, and the four of them sat in anticipation, waiting to see what would happen when James and Athena showed- that is, if they both showed.

“Okay, does someone want to fill me in here?” Blaise said, crossing his arms. “I feel like I’m missing something very important.”

Aidan gave Charley a funny look. “You didn’t tell him?”

Charley scowled. “I hadn’t even seen him until about five minutes ago when we walked down here! That’s hardly enough time for a debrief!”

“Five minutes is enough for Will,” Aidan said, smiling. “She’ll get in three times the amount of words the rest of us will in that time.”

Will swatted at him, blushing. “Shut your mouth. Okay, since no one else is going to say it, I will. James and Athena got into a huge fight, and I had to separate them during the Quidditch game because it felt like they were going to bite each other’s heads off, and they’re both going to come to dinner and attempt to apologize to each other, which has a very high chance of ending poorly for everyone.”

Blaise put his head in his hands. “Why do you guys keep trying to force them to be friends? They clearly don’t get along.”

“Hey, we’re not forcing them to be friends. James is our friend and Athena is our friend, and they both hang out with us, mostly at the same time. But we’re not giving them an ultimatum that they have to be friends or else they can’t hang out with us- we’re just trying to make them not want to kill each other every time they’re in the same room,” Will retorted.

“Will’s right. No one is making them be friends. We just think that it’s better to have someone that you’re on at least good terms with than an enemy, and if they’re enemies, it makes life a lot harder for us, so why not at least try and help them see that the other isn’t totally evil?” Aidan added.

“I’m telling you guys, this is a bad idea. I know Athena better than all of you combined, and once she gets it in her head that she doesn’t like someone, there’s no turning back,” Blaise warned.

“I don’t believe that. I think Athena is a good person, and that she really does want to have good friends. Maybe her and James won’t be best mates, but if she’s as smart as she says she is, wouldn’t it be in her best interest to have James as at least an acquaintance?” Charley asked.

“I mean, yeah, I think that James is a good guy and I don’t really know him that well but he seems cool. But Athena holds grudges, guys. I have never once heard her apologize first for anything in her life.”

Will sat back in her chair. “Well, I told her that maybe she should apologize first sometimes. Putting your pride aside and admitting you hurt someone’s feelings is more important than being right sometimes. Believe me- I would know.”

“I don’t know. I guess we’ll see how this goes, but if it goes poorly, I’m going to one hundred percent say ‘I told you so’,” Blaise shot back.

“Okay, fair. And when we’re right, we’ll say ‘I told you so’. All of us,” Charley joked.

“Talking about me?” Just as Charley had closed his mouth, Athena slid into her chair next to Will, catching all four of them off guard. At their dumbstruck looks, Athena managed to smile. “I figured you would be.”

“We were just talking about what’s going to happen when James shows up,” Will said, taking a bite of her food.

“Well, what do you think is going to happen?”

“That depends on what you do,” Will said, winking at her friend.

Athena wasn’t given much time to think about what Will said before James appeared, awkwardly standing behind Charley and not saying anything. “Hey,” he said nervously, and Will barely even looked up at him, still focused on her dinner.

“Hey. Want to sit down?” She scooted closer to Athena, gesturing to the open spot next to her and Aidan.

“Sure, I guess.”

Once James had sat down, there was a very uncomfortable silence. Aidan, Charley, and Blaise seemed to be hyper focused on what was going to happen, and Will, sitting in between the two of them, was just happily scooping spoonfuls of soup into her mouth. James didn’t look at Athena, only staring down at his plate, and Athena sighed deeply, knowing what she had to do.

“James?”

“Yeah?” The Gryffindor looked up, his hazel eyes full of hope.

Athena almost didn’t do it. She almost said ‘nevermind, this is a bad idea’, and got up and left. But next to her, Will raised an eyebrow at her, almost daring her to walk away, and she couldn’t let Will be right about her. “I’m sorry,” she blurted out, catching everyone by surprise. Aidan and Charley both sighed in relief, and Blaise dropped his spoon into his bowl of soup. James looked dumbfounded, and Will only winked at her, giving her a small smirk that made Athena want to strangle her, but in a somewhat good way.

“Look, when we got into that fight earlier, I probably said some things I shouldn’t have. If I hurt your feelings, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

James recovered quickly, giving her a small smile. “Thank you for saying that. I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have said all that stuff about Slytherins. I don’t think you’re a bad person, and I don’t think all Slytherins are bad. I just got mad and started saying things I didn’t mean.”

James’s apology and forgiveness finally made Athena relax. She felt better for some reason, even though she still thought she was right and James was wrong, but at least in this moment, they had both sort of come to the same conclusion- that the fight that they had got into was pointless and they were leaving it in the past. She wished so badly that Will wasn’t right, but it turned out that her Gryffindor friend had made the right call on this one.

“Okay! Now that that’s out of the way and we’re all good again, is everyone ready for exams?” Will said brightly, looking at the second years.

Aidan rubbed the back of his neck. “I think so. I’ve got four tomorrow, though- Herbology, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and Astronomy- my brain is going to be fried,” he said sadly.

“Don’t worry about Potions, mate. I snuck a look at the exams because Slughorn left them sitting out on his desk, and it’s easy stuff. You just have to make a Strengthening Potion, and you can ask questions if you need. It’ll be a breeze,” Blaise said between chews.

“Blaise, did you seriously cheat on an exam you haven’t even taken yet?” Athena said, shaking her head at him.

“Hey, it’s not cheating. I just happened to be right next to his desk while counting snake fangs, and the wanker left the tests out on his desk right for me to see. I can’t just turn blind,” he said back jokingly. “Besides, the first year ones were out, too. Yours is a cake walk- you just have to name all twelve uses of dragon’s blood.”

Will sat back in her chair. “Oh, thank Merlin. I was scared that it was going to be something super hard, like preparing a Draught of Death or something like that.”

James shook his head. “He wouldn’t make us do that. That’s a NEWT level potion.”

“Yeah, but we talked about how to make it, though. He did say that everything we talked about in class had a chance of being on the stupid test.”

“Anyways, the one I’m really worried about is History of Magic. Those are always the ones that I do the worst on,” Blaise said.

“That makes two of us. Aidan and I crammed for a bit before we came down here, so I’m confident, I just have such a hard time remembering everything. Didn’t Binns say that the exam was going to have two hundred questions?” Will asked.

Charley groaned. “Two hundred? I’m going to die of boredom.”

“At least you guys get another day to study. We all have to take it tomorrow,” Athena responded.

“Yeah. Apparently it’s going to take so long that he combined our two sections and all of the first years are taking it at once so we have both class periods to do it,” James said.

“That blows!” Charley exclaimed.

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

Once the next day had rolled around, Will, Athena, James, and the rest of the first years finally had to take their History of Magic test after a long day of taking other midterms. Brains fried, they sat in the lecture hall with their peers, anxiously scribbling away at the exam, trying to finish as fast as possible so they wouldn’t have to worry about it anymore.

Ainsley Shacklebolt finished first, taking her test up to Professor Binns for grading and then promptly heading towards the Great Hall for some much needed relaxation. James finished second, and once his test had been graded, he didn’t look at it, instead choosing to sit outside the hall and wait for his friends to check them together. Athena and Will finished at the same time, meeting James outside.

“Man, that sucked,” Will said once she was out of the hall, sitting down roughly.

“It actually wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be,” Athena noticed. “I thought there would be more questions on the Gargoyle Strike of 1911.”

“Thank Merlin there wasn’t. I can’t remember shit about that.”

“How did you think you did, James?” Athena asked.

“I don’t know. Good, I guess? At least I hope so,” he said nervously. “What about you?”

“I’m confident. I think I got at least ninety five percent of them.”

“That’s good.”

Finally, Fred walked out, his graded test folded up in his hand. “You guys ready?” He asked, sitting down next to them.

“As ready as we’ll ever be,” Athena responded. “Okay, on three?” The others nodded. “Alright, one- two- three.” All of them unfolded their exams, and a multitude of reactions burst from each of the four.

“Aw, shit, dude! I got an E!” Will said, throwing her test down in frustration.

Athena picked it up, studying it. “You missed four points.”

“Apparently four points too many! Did any of you get Os?”

James, Athena, and Fred exchanged looks. “I got an A, mate,” Fred said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

“I got an E, too. I missed the same questions you did,” Athena said after handing the test back to Will.

“I missed one point, and I got an E?” James looked confused. “Did you have to get a perfect score to get an O?”

Will angrily shoved her test into her bag, not bothering to fold it or put it in a folder. “Well, whatever you had to get, this sucks. Binns gives us a two hundred point exam and then if we don’t get all two hundred points we get an E- that’s insane!”

“An E is still a good grade, Will,” Athena said, amused.

“Dude, you don’t get it. My dad is going to kill me.”

“Seriously?” Athena turned to Fred and James for support, but the two boys just shook their heads.

“No, she’s right. She’s screwed,” Fred said seriously.

“You’ve got to be kidding. She missed four points,” Athena said, astounded. “An E is OWL level.”

Will sighed. “While I appreciate your support, Athena, you’ve never met my dad.”

“He’s going to get mad at you for one midterm E?”

“An E is an Asian T!” Athena couldn’t help but laugh at that, and even though it wasn’t intended to be a joke, Will cracked a smile at her friend. “Okay, yeah, that was a little funny, but I’m being serious.”

“Yeah, Will’s dad is pretty hardcore. He graduated valley- valeh- help me out here,” Fred said desperately.

“Valedictorian.”

“Right, valedictorian- of both Ilvermorny and his university. I’m not sure how well-versed you are in Muggle schools, but valedictorian basically means top of your class. And when top of your class means you had better grades than ten thousand people, you tend to expect a lot from your kid.”

Will let out a groan. “Plus we lost on Saturday- I’m going to get a Howler.”

James chuckled. “I doubt it. You played well, and this isn’t really your fault. Missing four points on a two hundred point exam is an A+ for Muggles.”

“Man, I hope you’re right.”

Thankfully, Will didn’t get a Howler for losing or for her History of Magic grade. Mr Houston wasn’t angry about those things at all. Instead, she got one from her father after Professor Potter had to call him- letting him and his wife know that she, Charley, and James had snuck seven Weasley Wildfire Whiz-Bangs into the prefect bathroom and accidentally almost set Landon Stewart’s books on fire. Landon called it a happy accident, but all three of them got quite a reprimanding from the teachers and their parents. However, once George Weasley had gotten wind of it, he had sent them each a box of chocolate frogs and fourteen more whiz-bangs, telling the kids to keep it just between them. Many more fireworks were set off after that.

Chapter Text

James was not excited for his birthday.

For some reason, everyone always made it a way bigger deal than it seemed. If he was being honest, he hated being the center of attention, and it was pretty much impossible not to be on your birthday.

Just another perk of being Harry Potter’s son, he supposed- every time he aged another year, the press would publish this big story and stick it right on the front page. To anyone else, a special birthday article in the Prophet probably sounds amazing, but James just found it weird and intrusive. When he was seven, the picture they used was of him getting his face shoved into the cake by Louis Weasley and then bursting into tears because he got a sprinkle in his eye, and it was quite embarrassing.

But the invasiveness of the newspaper wasn’t the only reason James hated his birthday. Every year, without fail, people would come up to him and tell him how big he was getting and how much he looked like his father. It seemed as if the older he got, the more people turned him into his father, complimenting his glasses or his messy dark hair. Frankly, it was exhausting.

Sometimes James felt as if he wasn’t his own person at all- just another younger version of the Boy Who Lived for people to fawn over and remember the old glory days from when they defeated Voldemort. That’s not me, he would think. I don’t know you. I don’t know Voldemort. Please leave me alone. But no matter how hard he wished for them to go away, his father’s admirers would always spin their birthday wish into stories of what they were doing when they found out his father survived a killing curse, how they resisted the Death Eaters, and how they celebrated when Voldemort died. Sometimes it was too much for him to comprehend.

But regardless of how he felt about it, James’s twelfth birthday was rapidly approaching, and it didn’t help that Will and Fred reminded him of it every day. “Have you decided what you want to do for your birthday yet?” Will would ask.

“No,” James would reply.

“Why not?” Fred would ask.

“Haven’t thought about it,” would be his answer.

“Why not?”

They would go in circles for what felt like forever, and while James appreciated that they cared, he sometimes wished they just got the message and left him alone for a little.

“What about a costume party?” Will had suggested one day on their way back to the Common Room, and James had never shaken his head faster.

“No.”

“Oh, come on, why not? Your birthday is quite literally October 31st and we’ve never had a costume party for it.”

“Costumes are stupid.”

Will placed a hand on her chest and sarcastically gasped. “Excuse me?”

“They’re stupid. Costumes are for babies.”

She shook her head. “Tell that to Americans, JP. Halloween is one of the biggest holidays of the year.”

“Well, this isn’t America, is it?” He snapped, and when she faltered, he felt a pang of regret, but he shoved it down and walked faster, leaving her in the hallway.

James figured he’d have to apologize for blowing her off later, but that was the one thing that annoyed him to all hell about Will- she had a really hard time reading the room. The dark haired girl had a need to always be speaking, therefore saying every single thing she was thinking all the time. He knew he shouldn’t take his anger out on Will- she really did care about him, and the fact that she was trying to plan something for his birthday when he was resisting it at all costs showed that much. But when he was in a sour mood, she sure knew how to push his buttons.

“Where are you going in such a huff?” A snide voice came from next to him, and James nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw Athena sitting on a bench, a heavy book open on her lap. Great.

“I was headed to the Common Room. Thought I’d get started on the Potions essay from earlier,” he remarked, stopping to talk just to be nice.

“Good for you for staying on top of things.

“Uh, thanks. What are you doing?”

"Oh, just brushing up on some astronomy before tonight. I’m trying to really get the hang of the map of Jupiter,” she responded, closing the book.

“That’s cool.”

All of James and Athena’s conversations looked like that in recent days. James felt as if he was always walking on eggshells around her, so he thought it would just be easier to keep conversations surface-level. But at the same time, Athena might be the only one of his friends (if he could even call her that) that would tell him the truth, not just what he wanted to hear.

“Can I tell you something weird?”

Athena raised her eyebrows. “Um, sure, I guess. What about?”

James shifted uncomfortably. “About- well, about my birthday.”

“Yes, I heard it was coming up. Got any plans?”

“That’s the thing. This is the first year that my parents aren’t planning something for me, you know, since we’re at school and all, and Will and Fred are trying their hardest to take over that duty and figure something out, but I don’t know how I feel about it.”

“Feel about what? Your parents not planning something or Will and Fred trying to parent you?”

“Both, kind of. I guess I would be okay if they didn’t do anything at all. That’s it, pretty much,” he concluded, and Athena laughed, surprising him. “What?”

“You hate your birthday.”

James was slightly taken aback. “How did you know?”

“Oh, please, James, you look like someone ran over your puppy. Ever since Will and Fred brought it up at dinner a few days ago, it’s been obvious.”

He sat down next to her roughly. “I guess I’m not subtle about it.”

“Not in the slightest, but it’s okay.”

“I just hate being the center of attention.”

Athena pursed her lips. “I’m confused. I thought you loved having everyone’s eyes on you."

He managed to chuckle. “You don’t really know me at all, do you?”

She quieted, thinking. “I guess I just thought that since you grew up in the limelight, with everyone worshiping the ground you walk on, it would rub off on you a bit. Maybe make you a bit stuck up.”

James shook his head, smiling. “Nah, being the center of attention has always been a thing I associate with Will. You should’ve seen her when she was a kid at her dad’s Quidditch games- she’d wave and blow kisses and everyone just ate it up, and how could they not? She was adorable.”

“Sounds about right.”

“But it’s not me. My entire life, people have just seen me as Harry Potter’s kid. They follow me around and take pictures of me and ask me questions, but they never really seem to want to get to know me for me, not just for my dad. I guess I started hating it as soon as I realized as much.”

Athena was speechless. “I had no idea you felt that way.”

“Well, you never asked,” James said, a hint of sadness in his voice as he smiled weakly at her and stood up. “I’ll see you around, Athena."

“Bye…” She called after him as he walked away, his words leaving a heavy feeling in her throat.

Athena wasn’t sure what to think. The image she had created in her head of James Sirius Potter was the perfect Gryffindor- loud and obnoxious, self absorbed, and most importantly, always commanding every room he walked into. But that night, when she arrived for Astronomy class ten minutes early like she normally did, she focused on the Gryffindors as they walked in.

When the door flew open, signifying their arrival, Will was the first in the room, almost sashaying and not paying attention to anyone else, only focused on her own path to the seat next to Athena. Will couldn’t help but capture the attention of everyone, even when she wasn’t trying to. She just had that air about her.

But this time, Athena looked closer, past Will’s presence, and turned her gaze to the other Gryffindors filing in the room after her friend. Fred and Lucas were right behind Will, joking around with each other before parting ways at their respective seats. Parker was next, not paying attention at all and running into a table as he stumbled over to sit next to his twin brother. But James- James was the last person in the room.

As Athena watched, she realized that he almost seemed to hide- hide behind Will’s assertiveness, Fred and Lucas’s humor, and Parker’s clumsiness. He slunk in the room so quietly that anyone who wasn’t looking wouldn’t have even seen him, sitting down next to Fred and immediately opening his book but not uttering a word.

This did nothing but confuse her. Everything that she had heard about the Potter family placed them on pedestals high above everyone else, so she had assumed that James would act accordingly. Even in the first couple interactions that she had had with him, he had been loud, confident, and utterly insufferable. But now, as she watched him stare at his open book but not read a word, she began to wonder if she had sized him up correctly the first time.

“Whatcha doing, ‘Thena?” Will asked as she sat down loudly next to the blonde, brushing a few dark curls out of her face.

Snapping back to reality, Athena blushed slightly and flipped open her book to seem like she was doing something. “Nothing. Just trying to get ready for the lesson.”

“Really? Because I saw you staring at James,” Will said, a small smile on her face as Athena blushed even more.

“I wasn’t.”

“You totally were, but it’s okay. You’re just trying to figure out what to do for his birthday, right? I’ve been trying to figure something out for, like, three weeks now.”

Athena let out a breath of relief as she dodged the bullet. “Yeah,” she said quickly. “Do you have any ideas?”

“I was going to ask you that. I already got him a gift, but I’m not so good at the party stuff. What even is there to do for someone’s birthday at this school?”

Athena chuckled. “Yeah, my mom said she used to always go to Hogsmeade for any birthdays, but it’s not like we can do that.”

Will sighed. “I know, right? Well, since the Halloween party is the day of his actual birthday, I was thinking that maybe we could do something during the day. Got any ideas?”

Athena thought for a second. She hadn’t really considered doing anything for James’s birthday in the first place, but now she was wondering if maybe she should have. What he was saying about not wanting to be the center of attention and everything else honestly really reminded Athena of herself. She too didn’t really like making a big deal of any milestones, and she supposed it was because her family had just never really paid any attention to that stuff.

In some ways she wished they would have. It was nice to have one day out of the year that was dedicated to you and just you alone. It was the one day that you could be selfish and no one could hold it against you. Athena may not be James’s biggest fan, but she could at least offer something for his day.

“What about raiding the kitchen and just throwing him a little party where it’s just you guys? A few close friends and that’s it,” she suggested, and Will lit up.

“That’s a great idea! I’ll talk to Louis and see if he can get me and Charley in there and we’ll nick all of his favorite foods. Hmm, where should we do it- oh! I’ve got it! We can have a picnic by the lake!” She said brightly, and Athena smiled.

“That’s a great idea. Hopefully it isn’t too cold,” she added, and Will thought for a second.

“You’re right. Well, our Plan B can be my room. Shit, I’ll have to clean it…”

Athena couldn’t help but laugh. “Sounds like you figured it out.”

Will grinned. “Yeah, with your help. Okay, does twelve on the 31st work for you?”

The blonde looked confused. “What?”

“I said, does twelve work for you?"

“Why?”

Will gave her a weird look. “Uh, because you’re invited?”

Athena wasn’t expecting that. “I am?”

“Well, yeah. Athena, come on, I wouldn’t talk about a special lunch in front of someone if I wasn’t going to invite them. I’m not that dumb. Or heartless.”

“But why?”

“Because you’re James’s friend, and you helped come up with the idea. Honestly, you should get a special chair and everything.”

“Oh.” Athena didn’t know James considered her a friend. “Yeah, twelve works.”

“Okay, sick. I’ll keep you updated on if we go with Plan A or have to resort to Plan B,” Will said, dropping her voice to a whisper as Professor Sinistra walked in to begin class.

“Sounds…good.”

Athena could not focus on Astronomy at all for the next hour. She had wanted her suggestion to come off as an intimate gathering for mostly just James’s family. She considered Will a part of that, and obviously she would be there, but other than that, she really only expected Fred, Louis Weasley and his sisters, Teddy Lupin, and maybe Molly Weasley as well. That was already a lot.

But Will inviting her made it seem like she was a part of that group, too, and the thought made her a little uncomfortable. She knew that not everyone was a Gryffindor, but if a family was Gryffindor, it was James’s family. They were everything that her uncle had warned her about before coming to Hogwarts.

But at the same time, she sort of wanted to go. Will inviting her made her feel accepted, as if she was one of them, and she didn’t even know that she wanted to be one of them until now. Will, James, and Fred’s lives seemed to be perfect- two parents still together, a big family, more money than they knew what to do with, and long lasting friendships, ones that seemed more like they were siblings instead of friends. Athena had Blaise, and they had grown up together like the three Gryffindors had, but what she and Blaise had was different from them. Sometimes, it seemed like Blaise treated her as a sibling but more in the way that she was a bug buzzing in his ear that he swatted away. She supposed she wouldn’t know if she and Blaise had a sibling relationship anyways- neither of them had actual siblings.

Athena had decided that she just needed to come to terms with her life, but she couldn’t help but compare everything she had with everything they had. Once, when she stayed after class to complain to Professor Longbottom about how certain classes got different amounts of homework, he smiled and told her that comparison was the thief of joy. But how could she not compare herself to everyone else? It seemed as if she was always wanting something and they had never wanted anything in their lives.

But regardless, she still didn’t know what she was going to do about the damn party.

A piece of paper slid her way, snapping her out of her head. Written on it, in Will’s messy handwriting, was “what are you thinking about?” Athena looked over at her friend, who was grinning, and she sighed as she wrote her response and passed it back.

Nothing.

ur such a liar

I’m not lying.

yes u are
no one can think of nothing it’s impossible
i’ve tried

I think that might be just a “you” thing.

touche
anyways
answer my question

Ugh. Fine.

It’s about the party.
I don’t know if I should go.

what? why not

Well, I was assuming that it would just be family.
And James has a lot of family here.

nah
vic, dom, and molly are too posh
the only ones i can think of are fred and louis
teddy too i guess idk
that’s only 3

So it’s just going to be you five?

no it’s going to be us 5 plus u, blaise, char, and aidan
and his roommates

So eleven.
I suggested a FEW close friends.

technically “few” is undefined
besides he wants you there

Athena rolled her eyes.

And how do you know that?
Did you ask him?

did brutus ask caesar before killing him

I really don’t think those two things are comparable.

yeah ur right sorry bad joke
but still

I don’t know.

oh come on it’s literally just lunch
stop thinking about it and just put it in your calendar
it was literally your idea

Fine.

“Miss Burns? Miss Houston? Anything you’d like to share with the class?” Professor Sinistra asked with pursed lips.

Athena blushed. “No. Sorry, professor.”

Professor Sinistra gave them another look before turning back to teaching and Will and Athena shared a grin.

– – –

When James’s birthday finally rolled around, he braced for impact.

As soon as he woke up, he was expecting Will, Fred, and numerous other people bombarding him with confetti, streamers, and other assorted crap that he would have to clean up later. Instead, he opened his eyes to a completely empty room.

All three of their beds were made, something incredibly uncharacteristic for them, and there was no note. He checked his phone. 9:19 am. There were some texts from his family and his siblings, but radio silence from his friends. That was unusual- he usually woke up around eight, and it was incredibly rare that the other three would wake up before him.

Figuring that they just headed down for breakfast early and didn’t want to wake him, he got dressed quickly. The Common Room looked normal, so he knew that he hadn’t been accidentally transported into another dimension, but Will wasn’t waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. In fact, this had been the longest he had almost ever gone without knowing where Will was, as she had a tendency to indirectly announce her presence wherever she went. Very strange, indeed.

The Great Hall was bustling as usual, the windows and ceiling decorated with spider webs and pumpkins for Halloween. James thought that all the decorations were a little tacky, but the ghosts seemed like they were having a good time floating through them, so he decided to just ignore it.

The table that usually held all of his friends was completely empty. No Will, no Fred, no Blaise, Charley, or Aidan. Even Athena was absent. He sat down, deciding to get to the bottom of it, quickly tapping out a text to the group chat that he had with Will and Fred and asking them where they were, but there was no response.

James honestly had no idea how to feel about the absence of his friends. On one hand, he had been wishing for almost an entire month that Will and Fred would just drop their ideas of an elaborate party to throw him and just leave him be, and it seemed as if they had finally got the message and left him alone. Giving him some peace and quiet was honestly one of the best gifts they could have given him.

But a tiny little voice in the back of his head was sad. He knew he didn’t want anything big for his birthday because he hated being the center of attention, but he had expected them to be there, at least. Had they simply forgotten? Not likely- Will and Fred had been talking about his birthday for what seemed like forever. Maybe they were avoiding him on purpose. He racked his brain for anything that he might have done to offend them, to make them want to make plans for breakfast and not include him on his birthday, no less, but he couldn’t think of anything. So why were they nowhere to be found?

His thoughts were interrupted by the soft sound of footsteps behind him. He turned to see none other than his father, smiling and holding a small wrapped box. “Happy birthday, son,” Harry said, giving him a hug and placing the box on the table as he sat down next to him.

James gave his father a weak smile, taking the box gingerly. “Thanks, Dad.”

Harry looked around. “Where are all your friends?”

James blushed, looking down. “I don’t know. When I woke up, Fred, Lucas, and Parker were all gone, and I haven’t been able to get a hold of them all morning. I texted Will, too, and she isn’t responding.”

“That’s weird.”

Suddenly, James felt the urge to cry. He hated his birthday- that had been established a long time ago. But here he was, sitting alone for breakfast with no friends in sight and only his father there, the one person that he had been trying to avoid while he was at school. How pathetic.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Harry asked, noticing his son’s demeanor change.

“Nothing. I’m fine,” James said, wiping his face and turning away.

“You can talk to me, you know,” he said kindly, and James sighed, looking around at all the other students who were watching their professor sit at a student table- drawing even more attention to his humiliation.

“Dad, you’re embarrassing me.”

“What?”

“Teachers aren’t supposed to sit here.”

Harry blushed, thinking back to the conversation he had had with Ginny a few weeks ago.

“He’s almost a teenager, Harry. Everyone goes through a phase where they’re embarrassed of their parents no matter how cool and hip they are,” Ginny had said.

“Actually-”

“That’s enough of that. He loves you, and you know it. He’s just trying to figure himself out right now- he’s not sure where he belongs yet and it’s going to take some time for him to get there.”

“I just feel bad. I didn’t think that me teaching at his school was going to have that much of an effect on him, but I feel like he’s constantly trying to avoid me.”

“That’s because he probably is. I did the same thing to all of my older brothers when I was in school- especially Percy. Don’t even get me started on Percy.”

“I just wish I could help him. I hate seeing him so moody.”

“The best thing that you can do for him is give him space. I promise.”

Space, she had said. But here his son sat, alone on his birthday with his friends gone. How was he supposed to just give him space?

“Listen, James, I know you don’t want to see me all the time. You’re at school, with your friends, and part of the experience is figuring out your life away from your parents, and having your dad here all the time is probably not fun for you. But I want you to know that I want you to be able to spread your wings, but at the same time, you can talk to me about whatever you’re feeling, whatever problems you’re having, even if they’re with me. No judgement.”

James slowly turned back around, looking up at his father shyly. “You mean it?”

“Yep. Even if you get in trouble and you just need help, I’ll be there to listen.”

“So you won’t get mad if I told you that Will, Charley and I blew up a fountain in the courtyard a couple days ago-”

“Wait, that was you?!” Harry started, but after James gave him a look, he sighed. “Right, right, no judgement. Merlin, why am I surprised? I have to talk to George about your supply of fireworks…”

“You can’t tell anyone. We got away with it,” James said seriously, and Harry couldn’t help but smile.

“That’s true. You’ll have to tell me how you did it,” he said, and James couldn’t help but grin back.

“Maybe later.” He sighed, trying to muster up the courage to say something. “I just don’t know how I feel about today.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I’ve been telling Will and Fred for weeks now that I didn’t want to do anything for my birthday because I hate my birthday, and they kept insisting over and over that they wanted to throw some big party in my honor, and I just wanted them to leave me alone. But now, the day has come and I guess I got my wish, because they completely ghosted me, but I can’t help but be a little…”

“Disappointed?” Harry offered, and James nodded.

“Yeah. I guess I was just expecting them to at least say something and eat breakfast with me.”

Harry’s heart twisted in his chest. What James was saying only reminded him too much of himself- his son had seemingly inherited Harry’s own hatred for being the center of attention and followed around by the press all the time. He had no idea that James hated his birthday. It made him wonder if he was failing as a parent. But on the other hand, where were those kids? He knew Fred and Will a little too well- he had basically helped raise them, and they wouldn’t just do something like that to James. He decided to see if he could track them down later and see what they were up to.

“I’m sorry that this is making you feel this way, James,” Harry said. “Is this an instance where you want advice or just for me to listen?”

“Just listen. I don’t need help.”

“Okay.” Changing the subject, he pushed the present closer to his son. “Why don’t you open this? There’s more on the way, but this one is from just me.”

James gave him a suspicious look, gingerly taking the box and slowly unwrapping it, but the boy couldn’t contain his excitement when it was revealed to be a Lego set of the Hogwarts castle.

“Woah! Is this Hogwarts?” He asked excitedly, holding it up to look at it closer.

Harry grinned. “Yep. It’s got a lot of pieces, so it’ll probably take a while to put together, but I thought it would be something fun for you to do.”

“Wow, Dad, this is awesome! Thanks!” James put the box down and threw himself into his father’s arms, causing Harry’s heart to warm. “Do you think we could build it together?”

This was more than Harry could have asked for. “Of course, bud, that would be great. Want me to put it in my office, and you can come by whenever and work on it?”

“That sounds amazing!”

With his son’s spirits lifted at least a little, Harry felt much better. “Okay. I’ll do that.” Just as he was about to leave, however, hooting soon filled the Great Hall as owls came to drop off the daily post to all the students, and there were quite a few owls holding huge boxes heading straight for James. “Looks like you’ve got some deliveries,” he said, pointing, and James barely had time to look up before what seemed like a million gifts plopped down on the table.

“Merlin’s underpants.”

“Language.”

“Sorry, Dad.” James rifled through them, looking at the tags. “Look, this one is from Mum, Albus and Lily! Uncle George and Aunt Angelina sent this one- uh, it says to not open it in front of you,” he said sheepishly, and Harry rolled his eyes. “Uncle Percy and Aunt Penelope, Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur, Uncle Charlie, Mr and Mrs Houston and Mason, Mr Jordan, Grandma and Grandpa- wow. I have no idea how I’m going to get all of these back to my room.”

Harry laughed. “I’ll help you.”

With the help of a little magic, they managed to get all of the gifts to James’s room, which was still uncharacteristically empty. As James opened his presents, Harry pulled out his phone, selecting Fred’s name as discreetly as possible and texting him to figure out where he was. When there was no response from his nephew, he texted Will, and she too was radio silent. What was going on?

But Harry decided to not worry about it for now and just spend time with his son, and he was glad he did. James looked so happy as he read all of the cards and opened boxes upon boxes of sweets, Quidditch supplies, and playthings, showing each one to Harry proudly as he described how he would use it and how much he loved it. Soon, the entire morning had almost passed, and Harry had work to do, but he couldn’t just leave his kid by himself on his birthday. Not until he figured out what was going on with his friends.

Just as he was trying to figure out what to do, there was a knock on the door, and James, thinking it was his roommates, rushed to open it only to reveal his cousins Victoire, Dominique, and Molly, each holding a card and a box of sweets. James tried to hide his initial disappointment and gave all three girls a hug, letting them in.

“Happy birthday, James,” Dominique gushed, putting the card and sweets down on his bed and giving him a hug.

“Thanks, Dom. Thanks, all of you. You didn’t have to get me anything,” he said, and Molly rolled her eyes.

“It’s your last birthday being a cute little kid, James, of course we’re going to get you a box full of stuff that’s going to rot your teeth. Next year, you’ll become a teenager, so don’t expect the same treatment,” she warned, but when James gave her a toothy grin and a big hug, she couldn’t help but blush and smile back. “Hi, Uncle Harry,” she said when James let go, and he nodded at the three girls, proud of them for making the trip for their cousin.

Victoire was the last to give her gift, and she picked James up and spun him around, making him giggle. “Happy birthday, James!”

“Thanks, Vic!”

When she set him down, James realized that she was holding two cards, not one, and the second one had no writing on the envelope. “What’s this?”

Victoire gave him a knowing smile. “That one isn’t from me- I’m just the messenger.” James raised an eyebrow, opening it to reveal a blank card, but the handwriting on the inside he would recognize anywhere- Will’s. “What does it say?” Vic asked. “When Will gave it to me this morning, she wasn’t really clear on anything except to give it to you before twelve. She came and went like a tornado.”

“It says, ‘Black Lake, Noon’. She didn’t even sign it,” James said, showing it to them.

Harry checked his watch. “It’s a quarter till, so you better get going, then,” he said, and James, realizing that his friends hadn’t forgotten his birthday after all, lit up.

“You’re right, I gotta go!” He grabbed his coat and threw the door open, ready to run down to the lake, but before he left, he turned to face his family. “Thank you guys. Thank you, too, Dad. This has been a great birthday so far,” he said, his eyes sparkling with the joy only a child could have.

Harry smiled. “Of course. Now go. Your friends are waiting,” he said, and James gave him one last grin before shutting the door and sprinting down the stairs.

He ran the whole way, through the corridors and down the stairs, and even though it was a little chilly, he didn’t even feel the cold, too focused on his excitement. Finally, when he reached the lake, his heart swelled as he saw a blanket laid out and all of his friends sitting there with a grand lunch set out. Will and Fred were there, that much he expected, but so were Lucas and Parker. Blaise, Charley, and Aidan were also waiting for him, all three grinning with paper party hats on. Louis, his favorite cousin, was there too, and Headboy Teddy Lupin was also sitting on the blanket holding a present with bright pink hair. Even Athena was there, looking slightly uncomfortable but wearing a party hat regardless. That was all for him.

“Happy birthday, James!” Will yelled as he approached them, jumping up to give him a hug.

“Thanks, guys,” he said, giving Fred a hug next. He barely had time to smile at Blaise, Charley, and Aidan before Louis and Teddy were grabbing him, messing up his hair as they laughed. “Hey! Cut that out!”

“Sorry, but it’s not every day your kid cousin turns twelve!” Louis exclaimed, and Teddy nodded.

“It’s a big day- your day.”

“My day,” James repeated, grinning so hard his face was starting to hurt.

Once everyone had greeted him appropriately, they sat down and revealed his birthday lunch. “Woah, hamburgers? Chips? Mac & cheese? Diet Coke? These are all my favorite foods!”

“Yeah, we know, that’s why we got them,” Fred said, rolling his eyes jokingly.

“Also, those are called fries,” Will added.

“Shut up, Will.”

“What? They are.”

“Fry- what a stupid word.”

“Um, excuse you, but they’re called that because you put them in the fryer-”

“Sorry we weren’t there when you woke up, James. We wanted to make sure everything was perfect for lunch,” Parker said, and James brushed him off.

“Don’t worry about it, this is amazing.”

“Were you surprised?” Lucas asked, and he nodded.

“Yeah, I was. Honestly, I thought you guys forgot.”

Will feigned shock, putting a hand to her chest. “Forget? Us? Never.”

“Yeah, they’ve been talking about this for weeks, mate,” Charley said.

“That’s true. I just thought that since I said I didn’t want to do anything, you guys just didn’t do anything.”

“Oh, come on, James, everyone knows that when you say you don’t want to do something for your birthday, you actually do want to do something, you just don’t want to ask for it or plan it,” Louis said.

Teddy wrinkled his nose. “That just might be a you thing.”

Athena turned to Will. “I literally said that to you on Monday.”

“That had a completely different context!”

They talked for a little while longer as they ate, the food still warm even though it was chilly. As he looked at his special lunch that his friends had done just for him, James decided to reevaluate his thoughts on his birthday. Here, there was no paparazzi, no reporters shoving themselves in his face and asking him questions, no old geezers using him as an excuse to relive their glory days- it was just him and the people that he loved the most. They had put so much thought into creating something special for him, and it made him feel seen. It made him feel appreciated. It made him feel loved. Maybe birthdays weren’t so bad after all.

“Time for gifts!” Lucas exclaimed, pushing forward a wrapped box. “This one is from me and Parker.”

“You guys seriously didn’t have to get me anything.”

“James, presents are the best part about your birthday,” Blaise said, rolling his eyes. “Just open them.”

James couldn’t help but grin as he tore the wrapping paper off. Lucas and Parker had gotten him a box of chocolate frogs and a poster of his favorite movie, Iron Man. Louis had gotten him a Skiving Snackbox and an Aviatomobile from Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. Teddy had given him a miniature broom that flew around, causing general mischief. Blaise, Charley, and Aidan had combined their money to get him a custom England football jersey with his name and the number one on the back. Will and Fred presented him with a new pair of Nike trainers, ones that he had been admiring for a while. Even Athena had gotten him a gift, a fancy new red quill with golden ink.

“Wow, I don’t know what to say, guys. Thank you,” he said, almost welling up as he looked at his friends and absorbed all of the thought and love that they had put into his day.

“You’re welcome! How does cake sound?” Will asked, pulling out another box, but this time, it was a chocolate cake with buttercream icing, his favorite, and written on the top in red frosting were the words ‘Happy Birthday James Sirius Potter’.

“Was my full name really necessary?”

Charley chuckled. “Sorry, mate, the house elves insisted. They said that you’re a full name type of person.”

“House elves say that about everyone,” Teddy joked as he pulled out twelve candles, placing them on the cake and lighting them with the tip of his wand.

“Okay, let’s sing,” Aidan said, and James raised his hands up.

“No, no, no, you don’t have to sing, I can just blow out the candles, there’s no need for singing-”

“Not knowing what to do while people sing at you is part of the experience,” Fred said, smiling, and James sighed in defeat.

“Fine. Get it over with.”

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear James, happy birthday to you!” The group sang in unison, and even though everyone was singing at a different pace, key, and tone, it sounded perfect to him. He didn’t have to think twice about what he was going to wish for- more days like this. He blew out the candles in one go.

“What’d you wish for?” Teddy asked.

“You know I can’t tell you.”

“Eh, it was worth a shot.”

They enjoyed cake for a little bit longer, talking, laughing, and making fun of the students passing by who were giving them weird looks. The late October weather had little effect on them at first as they sat close to one another, only paying attention to each other. But when it finally became too cold for them to stay outside, they cleaned up quickly and Will, Fred, Lucas, and Parker helped James carry all of his gifts up to his room.

“Holy shit, James, did you win the lottery or something?” Parker asked when they opened the door, revealing the pile of presents he had already opened.

James blushed. “I have a big family.”

“You can say that again.”

They spent the rest of the time messing around with his new things and pretending to help clean up, and when night fell, Will exited to get ready for the upcoming Gryffindor Quidditch Halloween Party.

James was going as Iron Man, to no one’s surprise. Lucas was Captain America, and he had gotten Professor MacDonald’s help with transfiguring the shield. Fred was Thor, complete with the hammer, and Parker had elected to be the Incredible Hulk, and the majority of their time getting ready was spent painting his entire body green. James was almost one hundred percent sure that the paint was going to stain his skin, but he decided not to tell Parker that.

Meanwhile, Will and Athena were getting ready in the former’s room, donning their costumes of zombies. Will had had about a million different ideas for their outfits, but Athena had vetoed almost all of them due to monetary restrictions, difficulty, and some of them being just lame. But as Will expertly applied zombie makeup, Athena was thankful that her friend had convinced her to participate.

“Where’d you learn how to do this so well?” Athena asked as Will wielded another brush with purple eyeshadow.

“I spend a lot of time with James’s family. His cousins Victoire and Dominique- you know, Louis’s sisters- are one eighth Veela. They used to make me sit down and do all of these super elaborate makeup looks on me to practice for themselves, and I just kinda got the hang of it after a while.

“Oh.” Athena paused. “Do you think you could teach me?” She asked shyly.

Will looked startled at first but her surprise quickly morphed into glee. “Sure, I’d love to. Okay, I’m finished. What do you think?”

Athena looked at herself in the mirror and was surprised to see that she did in fact look like a real zombie. “I like it. I definitely look undead.”

“Perfect. You ready? I’ve been hearing music for the past thirty minutes, so I’m assuming that we’re good to go down there.”

“Yep. Let’s go.”

To say the Gryffindor Common Room was packed would be an understatement. It seemed as if almost every student had shown up, and the bulk of costumes were not making it any less crowded. Will and Athena tentatively walked down the stairs, searching for their friends, but they didn’t make it far before Xander appeared with Darius in tow, grabbing Will into a bear hug. “Hey, you made it! Love the costumes!” Xander said, clearly already wasted with his Michael Myers mask sitting on top of his forehead.

“Thanks! I like yours, too!” Will responded brightly.

“Turn out was great this year- if we get any more people, the floor is going to fall out from under us,” he joked, swaying a bit as Darius grabbed him to steady him, sighing in annoyance.

“Sorry about him, girls. He’s already had a lot to drink,” Darius said, adjusting his Freddy Kruger claws in order to not stab Xander in the face as he wiped some spare liquor from his lips.

Athena smiled. “That’s okay. Gryffindors are going to party, aren’t they?”

“That’s for sure.”

Xander recovered quickly, grabbing two cups from Leon as he passed by and shoving them into Athena and Will. “Here.”

Athena looked at the contents inside, unsure. “Do these have-”

Darius chuckled. “No, I made sure of that. The cups that Leon’s got are just sparkling grape juice.”

She relaxed. “Phew. Thanks.”

“No problem.”

Xander leaned down close to whisper in Will’s ear, his breath smelling of the sweetness of cocktails. “You know, tonight, some girl is going to have incredibly mediocre sex with a man in a ghostface mask,” he said seriously. “We should give her a moment of silence.”

Athena and Will looked at each other before bursting out laughing, and Darius groaned.

“Seriously, Xander, they’re eleven years old. Not a great joke to make in front of them,” he scolded, holding Xander up by his jumpsuit. “Now, I’ve gotta get him to the bathroom before he pukes on you guys, so I’ll see you around.”

“I’m not going to puke, Darius, I’m not a pussy ass bitch-”

“Okay! Again, not in front of the first years! Bye, girls,” Darius interrupted, sighing again as he dragged Xander away, and Will and Athena couldn’t help but giggle as they watched them exit.

“In six years I’m going to be the one dragging you to the toilet, you know that, right?” Athena said, and Will rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, right. I’ll be able to handle myself.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Meanwhile, James, Fred, Lucas, and Parker had found Blaise, Charley, and Aidan. The three older boys had managed to get their hands on not only the Ghostbuster jumpsuits, but also had made the guns out of cardboard and duct tape. “Hey, guys!” James said excitedly. “Those costumes look great!”

“Thanks, mate,” Aidan said before leaning down to whisper. “I did most of the work.”

“I heard that,” Blaise said, rolling his eyes. “Don’t forget about who financed this project.”

Charley scoffed. “Yeah, with Daddy’s money.”

“Shut up. Your dad is rich too.”

“Yeah, but not CEO rich-”

“Shut up!”

Before they could quarrel more, Will and Athena suddenly appeared, holding cups of grape juice that they got from Leon. “Woah, sick guns,” Will said, admiring Aidan’s.

“Thanks. Made them myself,” the Ravenclaw responded, and Blaise immediately reddened once more.

“I HEARD THAT-”

Athena laughed, electing to hand Blaise a cup to distract him from yelling. “Here. Keep yourself busy.”

“What’s in this?” Aidan asked, holding his up after Will and Athena had passed out the rest of them.

“Sparkling grape juice. All the ones that Leon is holding are non-alcoholic.”

“Oh. Good.”

They decided to walk a couple laps around the party, looking for other people that they knew. Naturally, the entire Gryffindor Quidditch team was there, grabbing Will and Charley into bone crushing hugs. However, even though all of them except Leon (who was passing out drinks) and Evelyn (who was fourteen) were wasted, they all wished James a happy birthday, and his soul warmed knowing that they remembered.

The Slytherin Quidditch team had also shown up, most likely following Darius’s lead, and even though they were huddled together in the corner of the Common Room, they too were a little tipsy and delighted to see Blaise and Athena.

Dominique, Molly, and Louis were also present, saying quick hellos before continuing to dance and sing at the top of their lungs. But funnily enough, Victoire was nowhere to be found. “Dom, where’s Vic?” James asked.

Dom shrugged. “Dunno. She’s here, she came with me, but she ran off earlier looking for other friends and I haven’t seen her since. Why?”

“Just wondering. I wanted to say thank you for the bajillion sugar quills she got me, and try and convince her to take some back. I can’t possibly eat them all.”

“Well, if you find her, let me know. She borrowed my lipstick earlier and I want it back!”

Will turned to Athena. “Hey, have you met Vic?”

The Slytherin shook her head. “I don’t think so. You’ve mentioned her, but we’ve never formally met.”

“Oh, you have to meet her, you’ll love her. Wanna go find her?”

Athena nodded. “Sure.”

“Hey, Aidan, you should come, too. She’s a Ravenclaw, do you know her?” Will asked.

“I don’t think so. I’d love to meet her, she sounds great.”

“Okay! Let’s go!” Before running up the stairs to the dormitories, Will cast a look at the others. “Anyone else want to come?”

James shook his head. “I’m good. I think I’ll see if I can find prefect Landon- I wanted to ask him about some Charms stuff.”

His roommates nodded. “We’re good here,” Parker said.

“Blaise? Charley?”

“We’ll pass. Charley said something about wanting to meet some of the Slytherin team, and I told him I’d introduce him to at least Reuben and Theo,” Blaise said.

“Okay, suit yourself. We’ll be back down if we find her, but if we don’t see you until it’s over, meet in the first year boys’ room?”

“Works for us.”

At the approval of her plan, Will immediately raced up the stairs, causing Athena and Aidan to stumble slightly as they tried to keep up. “Will, why are we going up here?” Athena asked as they reached the seventh year boys’ dormitory.

“Uh, I gotta tell you that after I know James isn’t listening,” she whispered, a bit of pink coloring on her cheeks showing through her zombie makeup.

Aidan sighed. “This can’t be good.”

Will knocked on the door, and after a little shuffling behind it, it swung open, revealing Xander, Darius, Teddy Lupin, and Victoire with the window open and smelling strongly of weed. “Will! What are you doing here?” Teddy asked, frantically blowing smoke away from his face.

“I was looking for Vic.”

Victoire smiled. “Well, you found me, but either come inside and shut the door or shut the door in general,” she joked, and Will grinned as she beckoned Aidan and Athena inside.

The seventh year dormitory was almost the exact same as the first year one, but it looked much more adult in other ways. Bottles of vodka and firewhiskey floated in the ceiling similar to the Great Hall’s candles, and there were posters of half-naked models and old cars covering the walls. Xander’s roommates were nowhere to be found, and the Quidditch captain was curled up in his bed, his head on Darius’s chest as he took a long hit of a joint. Darius, who passed when it was his turn, nodded at Athena, his arm gently resting on Xander’s shoulder. Teddy and Victoire were wearing matching costumes, Vic as Starfire with Teddy using his metamorphmagus powers to make his hair black and narrow his face until he almost exactly resembled Robin.

“I really like your costume, Victoire,” Athena said shyly. “I’m Athena Burns, first year Slytherin.”

Victoire tapped the joint in the ashtray to get rid of the excess before passing it to Teddy, offering her hand out for Athena to shake. “It’s really nice to meet you, Athena. I’m Victoire Weasley. I’ve heard a lot about you- this one never shuts up about how great you are,” she said, causing Will to blush as the older girl turned to face Aidan and shake his hand as well. “And you must be Aidan Pucey- I can’t believe we haven’t formally met! Besides what Will has told me about you- all good things, don’t worry- others in our house have told me all about you. Top of your class and a Quidditch star, eh? Looks like you’re on track to be one of the best Ravenclaws yet.”

Aidan flushed a deep red, in awe at Victoire’s beauty and embarrassed by the praise. “Th-thank you,” he stuttered, causing her to grin. “I’ve heard a lot of good things about you as well.”

Vic rolled her eyes. “What did you tell them? That I snore when I sleep or something?” She asked Will, causing her to giggle.

“No, I just told them that you’re great. I wanted to introduce you because I think you and Athena would really get along because you like a lot of the same stuff, and Aidan because you’re in the same house.”

“You flatter me.”

While Vic talked to Aidan and Athena, who were both already starting to like the older girl, Teddy pulled Will over for another hug. “Hey, great party for James today. You did a good job.”

“Thanks, Teddy. He kept saying over and over that he didn’t want to do anything, but I wanted to make him feel special.”

“Well, you certainly succeeded in that.”

Xander, who was now almost completely gone after the combined effects of both the alcohol and weed, turned his head slightly to look at Will. “Wait a second, how did you know he and Vic would be here? You’re too young to smoke weed,” he slurred, and Will chuckled.

“I know he deals to pretty much every student here, Xander. I’ll never forget when Vic’s Uncle George found his stash.”

Teddy groaned. “Don’t remind me. I had to beg him not to tell Harry and Ginny and even though he said he would keep it a secret, he still roped me into working at the shop for an entire summer with no pay. He still makes fun of me when no one else can hear.”

Xander laid back down. “Oh. Cool of you for not snitching.”

She scoffed. “I would never.”

Athena turned to Will. “Why weren’t you allowed to tell us why we came here?”

“Because James doesn’t know that Teddy sells weed and he also doesn’t know that Teddy and Vic are going to get married.”

“What?”

Victoire giggled. “Yeah, James is pretty much one of my only cousins that doesn’t know, and our parents don’t know yet, so he can’t know. Will might not be a snitch, but James would have it plastered on the front page of the Prophet by tomorrow morning.”

“Wait, you’re engaged?” Darius asked.

“No, not officially, but we know that it’s going to happen in the future for us. We’ve already picked out a flat in Liverpool for when we graduate,” Teddy said.

“That’s great, guys,” Xander called, snuggling closer into Darius’s chest. “Congrats.”

“Thanks, X.”

They talked for a little while longer, the older students blowing all the smoke out of the window so the younger kids wouldn’t breathe it in. Xander fell asleep quickly, partied out for the night as Darius discreetly stroked his hair. After about a half hour or so, Will, Athena, and Aidan decided to give the four of them their space, and they said their goodbyes before exiting back to the party and finding their friends.

The nine of them had fun watching drunk older students stumble around the rest of the night, sipping their grape juice and pointing out their favorite Halloween costumes. When it was late enough for them to call it a night and the party was winding down, Blaise, Aidan, and Athena said their goodbyes before heading back to their own Common Rooms for the night, promising that they’d see everyone at breakfast the next day. Charley also decided to head up to his room, waving as he opened the door quietly to not disturb his sleeping roommates.

James, Fred, Lucas, and Parker decided to go to their room and Will tagged along as they all disassembled their costumes and got ready for bed. But before Will left to go to her own room and fall asleep, she turned back to look at James. “So, how was your birthday?”

James grinned at her. “It was amazing. Best one yet, if I do say so myself. You’re going to have a hard time topping this next year.”

She rolled her eyes, scoffing. “Oh, please. Next year you’re becoming a teenager. That’s going to be the mother of all parties.”

He chuckled. “I’ll believe it when I see it.” As she opened the door, he sat up in his bed. “Will, wait. Thank you. Seriously, you didn’t have to do all of that for me and I kept saying that I didn’t want to do anything, but you still made me feel special. You, Fred, and everyone else. Genuinely, thank you.”

She smiled warmly. “Of course. We love you, James. It was really no trouble. It’s easy to celebrate you. Now, it’s late, and I should get to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow for breakfast, yeah? Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Will.”

Chapter Text

The week after Halloween kicked off a new sort of fun at Hogwarts- hate week. At least that’s what the Quidditch teams liked to call it- normal people referred to it as the first of the three rivalry weeks. The week was full of trash talk, pranks, and general mischief that aged the teachers at least ten years. After all that, on Saturday, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw would face off, and on Sunday, Gryffindor and Slytherin would play.

It began with the Gryffindors spray painting a lion onto the door that led into the Slytherin Common Room, and whatever they had used took Darius four hours to scrub off by hand. Xander had gotten an earful about that one.

The Slytherins had retaliated by breaking into the Gryffindor locker room and thoroughly trashing it- leaving all of the furniture beyond repair and stealing the 1993-1994 Quidditch Cup Champions banner, which was regarded as the trophy of the best Gryffindor- no, Hogwarts- team to ever win the cup. It was a very grave mistake, as the next day, the Slytherins found all of their brooms superglued to the center hoop on the field, which was well over a hundred and fifty feet off the ground, and the ‘94 banner flying above them. Blaise had to call Athena and ask her to lend her broom to help get them down.

Ravenclaw was getting their licks in against Hufflepuff as well, beginning by defacing all of the Hufflepuff practice jerseys with blue eagles, forcing them to practice in their opponents colors. However, Hufflepuff got them back by temporarily disabling the riddle on the Ravenclaw Common Room door specifically for the Quidditch players, causing Aidan to have to crash in Will’s room for a few days.

Harry Potter and Mary MacDonald were getting sick of hate week. “Is it just me or does it get worse every year?” Harry asked, sipping a cup of tea with his coworker in her office.

Mary chuckled. “No, it’s definitely not just you. It’s as if they have to top their pranks every single time.”

“And to think there are still two more rivalry weeks left in the year.”

“At this rate, we should start hoping that the final doesn’t end up to be a rivalry.”

The two of them had developed a routine of drinking tea with each other every Friday evening, in Mary’s office. It had started when they first met, a few years after the Second Wizarding War. At first, it had been awkward, because Mary could barely look at Harry without tearing up and Harry had a need for more information about his parents that was driven by his youth. But slowly, they warmed up to each other, and Mary told Harry everything that she remembered, thankful that she didn’t Obliviate herself all those years ago.

She told him about the first time that James met Lily, recalling the starstruck look he wore for hours afterwards and how he knew that moment that he was going to marry her. She told him how Lily hated him at first, disgusted by his overconfidence and superiority complex, but also how they slowly became acquaintances, then friends, and then lovers. She told him about the Marauders and their unbreakable friendships, leaving out no details, especially their vow of silence for a month while they were becoming animagi, proclaiming it as the best month of her life. She even told him about how all of her friends died- breathing life back into Marlene McKinnon, Dorcas Meadowes, Pandora Rosier, and even her twin brother Evan, Barty Crouch Jr, and Severus Snape as she recalled what led to their demise. She told him about her pain, her heartbreak, and her vow to forget everything and disappear, ending with her healing journey and her return to Hogwarts.

When Mary had no more stories to tell, she asked Harry to tell her about everything she had missed. He began with Hagrid and his first trip to Diagon Alley, remembering the first time he saw magic. He told her about Ron and Hermione and all of their adventures, recapping all six years of his time at Hogwarts and their fights against each Dark Lord threat. He talked about his year on the run, finding the Horcruxes, breaking his wand, his fight with Ron. He told her about each of his friends that lost their lives in the Battle of Hogwarts, and how baby Teddy Lupin was looking more and more like his father every day.

It was healing for both of them, in a way, giving Harry the closure for the past that he had yearned for his entire life and reminding Mary that even though older generations were lost, their children would continue in their place and learn happiness, perseverance, and love in the same place their parents did. But today, they only sat and drank tea, enjoying watching the young students play pranks on each other no matter how annoying it was.

“The average on my fifth year midterm was a P,” Harry said grimly. “I’m worried that this batch won’t do well on their OWLs.”

“Give them time. The first few months of Defense Against The Dark Arts is always the hardest for them,” Mary reminded him.

“I guess you’re right. I’m happy I changed my NEWT requirement from an E to an A.”

“That was a good decision. I’ve always thought, ‘if a student can get a passing grade on an OWL exam, why can’t they take the advanced class if they want to?’ They should be allowed to continue studying no matter what grade they get in a class.”

“Much less one exam- I remember when I was a sixth year and I had my heart set on being an Auror. I needed to take Potions, but Snape only allowed students with O scores to take his NEWT class and I got an E on my OWL. I cried myself to sleep. Thankfully, Slughorn took over that year, but I didn’t even need to take Potions because I ended up here.”

“That’s exactly what I mean. An OWL is one test- one bad day shouldn’t have that much influence on a student’s future.” She took a sip of tea. “Speaking of students, how is your son doing?”

“He’s doing great. He’s been scoring really well on both homework and exams for my class, even while I’ve been grading his things a little harder than the rest of my students.”

“That’s good. He’s incredibly bright- he excels at Transfiguration and I know Flitwick has been calling him a Charms prodigy. Has he thought about what he wants to do for a career?”

“Well, he’s a twelve year old boy, so naturally he wants to play professional Quidditch, but I’ve been trying to remind him to keep his options open. Honestly, he could do anything he wanted with brains like his, and I’m not just saying that because I’m his father.”

Mary laughed. “I believe it. He’s a very promising young lad. Takes after his father in that way.”

“You think of me too highly.”

“I’m not so sure about that- you’re the Boy Who Lived.”

“I thought I told you not to call me that.”

“Seems as if I forgot that little detail.”

On Saturday, Aidan and the 0-2 Ravenclaw Quidditch team had done what almost no one expected them to do and upset the undefeated Hufflepuff team 310-140. The Ravenclaws were ecstatic that their first victory of the season had come at the expense of their bitter rivals, and the Hufflepuffs were forced to order new practice jerseys to replace their previously defaced ones from hate week after their embarrassing defeat and the ruin of their perfect record.

However, the main event that the entire school was watching was Gryffindor vs Slytherin. Xander and Darius were treating it like another game due to their closeness, but the rest of the teams were a different story.

Will, Charley, and Blaise weren’t necessarily having problems, but on Sunday morning at breakfast, Blaise refused to look at them, speaking to no one as he turned his headphones up full blast to drown out the loudness of the Gryffindors. Will and Charley took this as a challenge, exaggerating their movements to the point where Blaise would have to look up every time they spoke because they were waving their hands dangerously close to his face.

“Will you two cut that out?” Blaise said, finally snapping as he took off his headphones and glared at them.

Will grinned. “He speaks! Tell us something, O Great Slytherin,” she said eagerly.

Charley nodded. “Yes, how do we beat you today? Should we run a special route in your honor? How exactly do you win against a team full of higher beings such as yourself?”

Blaise groaned, putting his headphones back on. “You are the most annoying people that have ever graced this school.”

“High praise from the superior player,” Will said seriously, causing James to chuckle in spite of himself.

“Is all of this really necessary?” Athena said, massaging her temples.

“You’re no fun, Athena,” Charley joked.

“Yeah, it’s part of the fun. It wouldn’t be hate week if we didn’t make Blaise want to kill us,” Will said, and Athena sighed.

“He’s going to be so mad at you if he loses.”

“I think I missed the part where that’s my problem. Besides, next year, when you’re on the team, we’re going to be doing the exact same thing to you, so you might as well enjoy it now while you’re an innocent bystander,” Will reminded her.

“You mean if I’m on the team.”

“No, ‘Thena, I mean when. If you don’t get Kaydan’s spot next year, I’m going to have to intervene.”

“And do what exactly?”

“Intervene. I just said that.”

Aidan checked his watch. “You guys should probably get going. We’ll see you down there?”

“Sounds good. Come on, Your Majesty,” Charley said, tugging at Blaise’s sweatshirt, and the Slytherin only rolled his eyes and got up, not waiting for the rest of them as Charley ran after him, still talking even though Blaise couldn’t hear him.

Will stood up to follow him, but before she left, she turned to Athena. “Hey, when we’re done with this, do you want to do something, just me and you?”

“What?” Athena asked, a little confused.

“We could go sit by the lake and build a snowman. Or we could stay inside if that sounds better,” the dark haired girl offered.

“Uh, sure, but why are you asking?”

Will sighed, sitting back down. “I just feel like I haven’t been a very good friend. I’ve been spending a lot of time with Aidan, Charley, and Blaise and while they’re great, you’re my best friend, not them. I know you’ve been hanging with Ainsley and Jaya, and if you want to go with them instead, no offense taken, but I just want you to remember that if I have a choice between anyone else here and you, I’m going to pick you. I don’t want you to forget what you mean to me.”

Athena was shocked. She wasn’t expecting that at all- especially on a day where no one would fault Will for thinking about herself. But at the same time, it warmed her to her core to hear Will’s loving words and her value of her, even if she already knew it. “That sounds great, Will. I’d really love that.”

She brightened. “Great! I’ll see you after the game and we can talk about it?”

“Sure.” As Will got up to leave again, Athena grabbed her sleeve. “Just so you know, you’re my best friend, too,” she said, not making eye contact, but Will grinned anyway.

“Glad we’re on the same page. Meet me by the locker rooms after.” She cast a look at Blaise and Charley, who were exiting the Great Hall. “Shit, I gotta go. See you later!”

“Bye, Will. Good luck.”

“THANKS!” Will yelled over her shoulder as she sprinted after the two older boys, making Athena shake her head with a smile as she returned to her breakfast.

The winter weather of November marked the first month where there would be four Quidditch games. After McGonagall had become Headmistress, her passion for Quidditch and a lot of begging from some of the captains allowed her to expand the season, changing the standard three matches a year to nine, seeing that all house teams played each other three times instead of just once. By doing this, student morale skyrocketed with more games to attend, and the Quidditch players seemed much happier spreading out their schedule throughout the year instead of containing it to a few months. But the only problem that that came with was some months, like November, each team played twice- once at the beginning of the month, and once at the end- causing a lot of extra traffic around the area.

But regardless, Will, Charley, and Blaise walked through the snow down to the Quidditch pitch, the two Gryffindors still chattering away while Blaise tried his hardest not to lose his marbles. The rest of the school was noticeably absent, as it had finally become too cold for them to stomach watching warmups and most deciding to just get there at the start, but there were a few die hard Gryffindors and Slytherins fighting to get the best seats in the house.

“We’re here. Can you two leave me alone now? It’s making me want to hex you,” Blaise said, taking off his headphones again and giving them a look.

Will smirked. “Of course, your Royal Highness. Anything the mighty Slytherin commands.”

“This is exactly what I’m talking about.”

“Oh, come on, it’s hate week. You had to have been expecting this,” Charley joked, and Blaise sighed.

“I literally was. But it’s still pissing me off.”

Will laughed. “Alright, alright, we’ll lay off. Just a bit of banter, right?”

“That’s only funny when I say it.”

“Sure. Well, we’ll meet out here after regardless. Good luck, Blaise. I mean it,” Will said, and there she was again, staring at him so intensely that he could’ve sworn that she looked right past his eyes and gone straight into his soul.

“Thanks. Uh, good luck to you, too,” he said hastily, his cheeks turning red slightly as he turned away.

“See you out there!”

Blaise closed the door to the locker room without responding.

The Gryffindor locker room was full of life, as per usual. The stolen banner that they had won back was hanging right in the middle of the ceiling for everyone to see, and the bass from the music was so loud that the room shook. “Hey, kids! You ready for this?” Xander yelled over the sound, and the two younger students smiled.

“Sure am! Slytherin is going down!” Charley yelled back.

“Hell yeah! Let’s kick some Slytherin ass!” He screamed at the room, and the Gryffindors cheered right back at him.

The stands filled slowly, but once the game had started, they were almost overflowing with students, teachers, and fans alike. Gryffindor had gotten off to a strong start, pushing the pace as usual and forcing Slytherin to try and keep up if they could. A goal apiece from Will and Xander had put the lions on top for the moment, leading Slytherin 20-0.

“Yeah! Woo!” James cheered, his face painted red and gold as he waved a Gryffindor flag in the stands.

“We’re two minutes in and this is already the best game I’ve seen yet this year!” Aidan said excitedly, his nose slightly red for the cold. To show his support, he had decided on a red Gryffindor sweatshirt with a green Slytherin scarf and beanie, painting his own face half red and half green.

“Did anyone tell you that you look like a walking Christmas ornament?” Athena asked, rolling her eyes as James accidentally elbowed her with the flag. She was wearing a more traditional outfit as usual, with the school Slytherin sweatshirt along with a black winter coat and a green beanie. Her face was painted, too, but just barely- she had elected to go with a few stripes on her cheek instead of staining her entire face green for two days.

“Yeah, my roommates actually did tell me that before I left, but I decided to just go with it anyway. I put too much face paint on to just wash it off real quick.”

“I respect the commitment.”

“Athena! Aidan! Stop talking! You’re missing it!” James whined, pointing at the action.

The Gryffindors had possession of the Quaffle again, racing down the pitch as the Slytherins struggled to keep up. Evelyn had the ball, Kaydan hot on her heels, but Leon hit a particularly well struck Bludger at him, causing him to swerve off course. Evelyn shot forward, seeing the opening to get a good shot, and Reuben cursed as he was forced to abandon Xander to pursue the fourth year, but it was too late. Evelyn ripped a shot towards the middle hoop, and Blaise knew that he finally could turn the tide of the game.

Stretching out, he managed to tip the Quaffle up over the middle hoop and into Theo’s waiting hands as the older boy shot towards the Gryffindor defense with Will right behind him. The Slytherins roared, chanting Blaise’s name as Bailey hit a Bludger at Will to divert her from her brother and Will was forced to slow down, allowing Theo to pass to Kaydan for a quick goal. The Slytherin fans got even louder, screaming as the scoreboard changed to 20-10.

“Slytherin is back in the game with a goal from number three, Kaydan Thorton! And of course I have to mention the beautiful assist from number four, Theo Nieves, and the Bludger hit by number five, Bailey Nieves! What a great day to play some Quidditch, am I right, folks?” Rafael yelled into the microphone, and the stadium cheered in agreement.

“Of course, as soon as you actually start paying attention, Slytherin does something good,” James groaned, glaring at Athena.

“I bring a sort of luck that they appreciate.”

“Well, by all means, don’t let us distract you!” Came a voice from above them, and the three of them turned to see the second year Slytherin boys climbing towards them. “Hey, ‘Thena!”

“Hey, guys!” Athena hadn’t been too sure of Blaise’s roommates at first, and there were some that she still couldn’t get a read on, but she had studied with them in the Common Room a few times and they seemed nice enough, so she brushed some snow off the bleachers so they could stand.

“Great play from Blaise,” Massey said, pointing at their friend, who was yelling plays to the Chasers.

“I’ll say. He just keeps getting better,” Aidan said. “It’s a little frustrating.”

Matteo chuckled. “At this rate, he’ll be the next Oliver Wood.”

Finn rolled his eyes. “Oliver Wood is overrated.”

James whipped his head around, glaring at the older boy. “No way.”

“Um, yes, way. Why are you even arguing? Your dad was better than him!”

“Excuse me, but Oliver Wood is the true GOAT of Quidditch. He has passion, work ethic, and leadership. He was captain of the 1994 Gryffindor Champion team- you know, the best team in Hogwarts history?”

Massey laughed. “He could have beaten Voldemort himself but he was too busy being a student of the game.”

Aidan grinned. “Yeah, during the Battle of Hogwarts, he came back to defend the Quidditch pitch.”

“You’re lying. That’s true?” Ash gasped. “That’s fucking hilarious!”

“He told me himself.”

“Shut up, guys! I’m trying to watch!” Wes said, and they quieted to turn towards the game, the score 40-10 in favor of Gryffindor.

“I swear we looked away for thirty seconds,” James said in disbelief.

“The Gryffindors are doing what Gryffindors do best- pushing the pace,” Massey said grimly.

“Yeah, the Slytherin team isn’t designed to play this fast. They tend to want to slow the game down and make more passes, breaking down defenses and they make almost every shot because they put in work before they even take it. Their defense, too- they man mark but they don’t get too close so they can’t be quickly beaten- they hang back a little and force their opponents to make a mistake,” Athena explained, and Wes gave her a weird look.

“You know a lot about Quidditch.”

“Well, yeah. I play.”

“Why aren’t you on the house team, then?” Finn asked, his amber eyes droning into her green ones as she squirmed.

“Chill out, Finn, last time I checked, you won’t even get two feet near a broom because you’re too scared you’ll fall and mess up your precious face,” Matteo joked to diffuse the situation, and when Athena shot him a look of thanks, he winked at her.

“Shut up, Matteo,” was Finn’s only response.

Massey chuckled before moving the conversation back to the game as they watched Will race towards the hoops, moving so fast that she was almost a blur, and while Blaise tried to block her shot, he couldn’t reach it in time, and the score became 50-10. “Gryffindor knows that if they quickly make a statement and take control of the game, they can push the pace up until it’s faster than what the Slytherins can play their style in. They gain the advantage because then they get to play their style and Slytherin has to adapt, instead of doing it the Slytherin way and potentially making mistakes that lead to turnovers.”

Aidan nodded. “Look at how Blaise is holding the ball after Will scored before putting it back into play. He’s letting his team get set up but he’s also trying to slow the game down and wrestle some control back from the Gryffindors.”

“Is it working?” Ash asked.

Blaise fired a pass to Kaydan, but Evelyn was instantly putting pressure on him, preventing him from moving forward. Darius knocked a Bludger at her, but as she dived to escape, Will and Xander closed in on Kaydan, forcing a turnover that ended with Will rocketing towards the hoops and putting another goal on the board.

“As of right now, not really,” Aidan said, wincing.

Darius called a time out after that, hoping that the hard stoppage of the game would give them a better opportunity to try and change control. The Gryffindor fans took this opportunity to cheer as loud as they could, filling their team with good vibes going into the break so they could come back out swinging.

“So, what do you think, Athena?” Massey asked, and she cocked her head.

“What do you mean?”

“What do you think Darius is saying to them right now?”

Athena decided that she liked Massey. He respected her and actively looked for her opinion when most boys would just brush her off. “Well, I think that he and Bailey are getting too caught up in Beater play. They’re focusing too much on where the Bludgers are and trying to gain control from Leon and Peter that they’re leaving the Chasers to get pummeled by the Gryffindor defense.”

“I agree. They have to do a better job of splitting their attention, or else this is going to get ugly.”

“Why don’t you play Quidditch, Massey?” James asked suddenly, and Massey winced.

“My parents forbade it. They’re Muggles, so they didn’t grow up around it, and they say it’s too dangerous.”

“That sucks, mate. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, I accepted it a while ago. I’m okay with just watching- did you know how many former Quidditch players have injuries that basically disable them?”

“Yeah. My mom plays, and she’s told me a lot of horror stories.”

The game had resumed, with Slytherin in the first possession, and it seemed as if the time out worked. They passed the ball back and forth fluidly, waiting for the Gryffindors to make a mistake. When it finally came in the form of Evelyn reaching out to intercept a pass and missing by a fingertip, Kaydan grabbed the Quaffle and raced towards the hoops, getting off a quick shot and stopping Gryffindor’s run.

The Slytherins cheered, waving their flags around as the Chasers flew back without celebrating in order to get into position to combat Gryffindor, who were already advancing towards them at a rapid pace.

The game went back and forth for a bit, both sides wrestling for control, and it seemed as if Slytherin could make a comeback, slowly closing the deficit until it was 110-90 with Gryffindor in the lead. The Snitch had been seen twice at this point, once by each Seeker, but the Beaters had done a good job of distracting them so it could quietly disappear.

“Macie! How are we doing on the Snitch?” Xander yelled during a moment of calmness.

The sixth year shook her head. “I haven’t seen it in a while! Tell Peter and Leon to focus more on me instead of the Chasers!”

“You think that’s a good idea?”

“Yeah! I need to be able to actually look- I’m spending too much time dodging chaos instead of actually trying to find it! Besides, you guys can take them by yourselves, we’re starting to wear them out! Let’s finish this!”

“Roger that!” Xander flew over to convey the message, and soon, Leon and Peter had completely abandoned Quaffle play and were focusing entirely on keeping the Bludgers and players away from Macie so she could look properly. Darius noticed this, deciding to counter by sending Bailey up to combat the two of them and shake things up while he stayed with the Quaffle, essentially getting free range to do as he pleased with the Gryffindors.

A Bludger sent from Darius whizzed past Will’s head as she dodged it by a hair, shaking Theo off her tail. Darius’s plan was a good one, but Macie had been correct in her assumption that the Slytherins were starting to get tired. The Gryffindors just moved too fast, and Darius hadn’t had enough time to study how well Xander, Evelyn, and Will worked together and develop a plan to contain three of the fastest fliers in the school. Gryffindor started to extend their lead, frustrating the Slytherins, and Darius eventually had to call Bailey back to Quaffle play in order for them to try and claw their way back.

Poor Felix was dodging Bludgers left and right, Leon and Peter sending them at him to prevent him from searching for the Snitch and following Macie. But the fourth year was incredibly swift, still finding ways to evade them and try to find the golden ball.

The anticipation kept building and building as the Snitch remained invisible, and everyone began to wonder how long the game would actually be. But just as Blaise pulled off an incredible save, the Slytherin cheers were silenced by a collective gasp from the crowd as Macie dove, finally locating the Snitch. Felix was right behind her, but he was slowed as he swerved around Bludgers that were hit at him but Leon and Peter. Darius and Bailey were quick to respond, sending them towards Macie, but they were too late, and her fist closed around the Snitch, winning the game.

“MACIE POWELL HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS! I REPEAT, GRYFFINDOR BEATS SLYTHERIN 300-110! THE FIRST HATE WEEK OF THE YEAR ENDS WITH THE GRYFFINDORS ON TOP!” Rafael screamed into the microphone over the erupted stadium, and Fred and Lucas were too busy clapping to copy down the stats for Macie’s catch.

James was also cheering, waving his Gryffindor flag and jumping up and down. Aidan was clapping too, getting a few cheers in, but the Slytherins were silent. Massey had his head in his hands and Ash and Wes just looked dumbfounded. Finn rolled his eyes, mumbling that it was about time the game ended, and Matteo and Athena just stared at the scoreboard. “This sucks,” Wes decided.

“I hate losing to Gryffindor,” Matteo groaned. “We basically lost a week’s worth of hard work pranking them.”

“We’ll get them next time,” Ash said softly. “Ready to go?”

“You’ll have to carry me. Honestly, just put me in a casket and carry that. Here lies Rocco John Massey, born February 3rd, 2003, died November 7th, 2015. Cause of death: Slytherin Quidditch team loses to Gryffindor,” Massey moaned, his head still buried in his lap.

“Oh, shut up, Massey, you can walk.” Wes dragged his friend up as he protested weakly, wrapping an arm around his shoulder as he supported him.

“See you guys around,” Matteo said, waving at James, Aidan, and Athena.

“Bye.” Athena watched them go. “Well, we better head down to meet them. Will and I have plans later.”

James opened his mouth, and Athena braced for impact. She was expecting a flurry of insults and a statement of his own superiority as a result of Gryffindor’s victory, but he surprised her. “What are you doing?” The worst part was he seemed genuinely interested.

“Probably watch a movie or something. Maybe gossip. Girl stuff.”

James wrinkled his nose. “Gross. I can’t believe you have time to do that. We have homework due tomorrow.”

“I already finished.”

“What? How?”

“Yeah. It’s called scheduling and not procrastinating. Ever heard of it?”

Aidan smiled. “None of the Gryffindors know what that is.”

“So true.”

James rolled his eyes. “Oh, whatever. Wait, is Will done, too?”

Aidan laughed. “Of course she isn’t. She hasn’t even started her Charms assignment.”

Athena sighed. “Unbelievable. That assignment took me an hour.”

“She’ll get it done. She always does, somehow.”

“That’s what makes me mad.”

“Next time, tell me when you’re going to do homework, will you?” James huffed, and Athena was surprised once more.

“Why should I?”

“Uh, because we study together a lot? I thought we had a pretty good system going when we do that,” he responded, his cheeks a little pink from the cold.

“Oh. Right. Well, I will next time, then,” she affirmed, and James grinned.

“Great, thanks. Now, let’s go make fun of Blaise.”

Chapter Text

The Gryffindor Quidditch team was still ecstatic over their victory after the game had ended. With this latest victory over Slytherin, their record improved to two wins and one loss, putting them in a good spot going into the winter months. Will was the first one out of the locker room when they had finished changing, her broom in her hand and looking for her friends frantically as Charley hung behind to talk to Xander about some plays. James and Athena had promised to meet her when the game was over at the front of the pitch, but she was surprised to see no one at their usual meeting spot. She dropped her bag on the ground and bent down to tie her shoe, which had come undone in her sprint over from the locker room, and when she heard someone approaching her, she sighed as she caught a glimpse of a Slytherin sweatshirt.

“Took you long enough. Have you seen James? He’s supposed to be here, too, and I assumed he’d be with you. Did Aidan leave?” she asked, standing up and turning to face who she assumed was Athena, but she was taken aback to come face to face with Blaise Whitacker.

Blaise’s blue eyes were cold as he looked at Will, taking in her messy hair and breathless expression. He was still incredibly pissed about the Slytherin loss, and as he looked at the first year that had scored on him multiple times, he scowled. “I have not seen James. Have you seen Athena?” He asked shortly, and Will rolled her eyes.

“No, genius. I wouldn’t be waiting here alone if I had.” She turned away from him, uncomfortable with him being so close to her.

“Well, she’s supposed to meet me here and before the game she talked about finding you after, so I assumed she had found you,” Blaise retorted.

Will sighed. “Well, she obviously didn’t. Plus, she told me she would meet me here, so maybe you’ve got a screw loose or something. I didn’t find her.”

Blaise scowled as the Gryffindor began to get on his nerves. “I can see that. I’m not blind.”

Will snickered at that and turned back to face him. “That’s actually news to me, because based on the game we just played, you might need to get your eyes checked,” she mocked, and Blaise’s nostrils flared.

“You listen here-” he started, but as he got close to her face to snarl something back, something caught his eye. “What the hell?” Will whirled around to follow his gaze only to see Landon Stewart, the 5th year Gryffindor prefect, run towards the Forbidden Forest with a blonde haired boy from Hufflepuff, both turning to look behind them to see if they were being followed. Landon had a stressed expression on his face, and the Hufflepuff boy almost looked afraid. Blaise and Will were silent as they watched the boys reach the woods and disappear, and when Will turned back around to face Blaise, an unspoken agreement passed between the two, and without a word, they dropped their Quidditch bags on the ground, mounted their brooms, and took off to follow the boys.

The wind rustled Will’s hair as she flew low to the ground to avoid being seen with Blaise hot on her heels. As the two neared the forest, they began to rise to fly through the trees, and when they heard voices, they slowed down, finding a tree to land on so they could eavesdrop without being spotted. Will was closest to the trunk of the tree that they were in, and she inched forward so Blaise could sit next to her, both students clutching their brooms.

Will’s grey eyes met Blaise’s blue ones as Landon’s voice got louder, and the Slytherin brought a finger to his lips to gesture for her to be quiet. She nodded, turning her head back to Landon and his companion, who were engaged in a heated debate.

“-don’t know what he wants us to do, Landon!” The Hufflepuff boy was saying frantically.

“I have no idea either, but we can’t let him know that we messed up his first order! We’ll get in so much trouble!” Landon responded, and Will could hear him begin to pace.

Will looked at Blaise, confusion written all over her face. He looked back at her, just as bewildered. Who could he possibly be? The two began to sense that what they were hearing carried a lot more gravitation than they had thought.

“Listen, we still have the rest of the year to figure out what we’re going to do. We don’t have to hurt anyone, we just have to try and get people involved.” Landon kicked a rock.

The Hufflepuff boy sighed. “Okay, so we should continue with the village plan?”

“That’s probably the best idea.” Sitting down, Landon pulled out his wand and studied it. “I tried talking to Xander about it, but I don’t think he’s going to help. I mentioned integrating Muggles into the magic community and he just laughed and said they wouldn’t understand Quidditch. God, he is such an airhead.” Will’s eyes widened at that. She turned to Blaise, who looked steely at the statement. Integrating Muggles? She mouthed, and he shook his head. What Landon was saying was starting to sound more and more dangerous to the students at Hogwarts. “I had to Obliviate him so he wouldn’t blabber about it, too. That made him even worse than usual.”

The blonde boy's mouth dropped at that. “You Obliviated him? That’s super risky, Landon.”

“I know, I know, but I had no choice. We need older students to help us- we still have the Trace on us and the Ministry could find out if we did it ourselves. Who else could we get to help us?”

The Hufflepuff boy shook his head. “I don’t know, mate. We could try asking Freya- she’s smart. I’m not sure where she stands on it, but I guess it’s worth a shot, right?”

Landon cocked his head. “That’s a good idea. Alright, you talk to her tomorrow about it, and we can start the removal of the spells in a couple months if she agrees. We can tell him about it if all goes well.”

Paling at the sudden deadline, the Hufflepuff rubbed his face. “If McGonagall finds out-”

“She won’t find out! We just have to be more careful.”

“How? We can’t just walk in and ask people to break the statue of secrecy outright!”

At that, Will stumbled a bit in surprise, causing a few leaves to fall. Blaise grabbed her arm to prevent her from falling, but the damage had been done. The two students on the ground fell silent, and Landon whispered something to his companion. Will looked at Blaise with wide eyes, beginning to fear that they would be discovered, when the Hufflepuff boy said something.

“Who’s there?” When there was no answer, he turned back to Landon. “There’s nothing. It was probably just a stick or animal.”

Landon shook his head. “We have to be sure. We can’t afford to be overheard. Incendio!” He yelled, and much to Blaise and Will’s surprise, a jet of orange flame shot up into the tree that they were sitting in, and Will barely had time to shield her face with her hands before the jet grazed them and hit a branch about five feet above them, lighting it. The branch burned brightly, the heat of it wafting down on the two kids. Immediately pulling her hands back from the light, her skin began to sizzle, and Will let out a reflexive shriek of pain before Blaise clapped his hand over her mouth. Hands badly burnt and tears in her eyes, she looked up at the older boy, who pulled her head close to his chest as he stared down at the forest floor. Luckily, the blast had caused a large owl to fly away from the tree they were in, its tail feathers singed.

“See, it was probably just that owl,” the Hufflepuff boy said, pointing at it as it flew away.

Landon was still unsure. “That sounded a lot like a girl screaming.”

“Landon, it’s a fucking screech owl.” There was rustle as the Hufflepuff sat down. “I guess we’re both just paranoid.” He waved his wand at the now fallen and sizzling branch, dousing it without a word before shooting another jet of water at the burning tree, drenching both Blaise and Will in the already frigid weather.

However, the Gryffindor prefect still wasn’t convinced. He peered up at the tree, and Will shut her eyes as she buried her head in Blaise’s sweatshirt and struggling to hold back tears, his hand still clamped tightly over her mouth. Blaise wrapped his other arm that contained both of their brooms around her waist, pulling her close to him, and although he didn’t want to show it, he was terrified. He shut his eyes as well and pressed his nose to Will’s hair, the smoke making his eyes water, praying that Landon would walk away.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Landon shook his head and sat down next to the Hufflepuff. “You’re probably right. This whole situation is making me jumpy. Come on, we should head back to the castle. The game ended almost half an hour ago- everyone’s going to be wondering where we are.” There was more rustling as the boys got up, and Blaise and Will could hear them walk away. But the two in the tree didn’t move a muscle until at least five minutes after the boys had left just to make sure, and Blaise finally peeled his hand away from Will’s mouth.

“Whatever they were talking about, it can’t be good,” he said, looking out at the castle. Night wasn’t quite there yet, but it was dark enough that they could fly back without being detected.

“Yeah, did you hear what they said about Xander?” Will responded, and at the end of her sentence, she sniffed quietly as she shivered. Her hands were burning and tears were streaming down her cheeks from both the pain and how goddamn cold she was, but she didn’t want Blaise to know that she was crying. Unfortunately, he noticed almost immediately.

“Hey, are you alright?” He asked, and he balanced their brooms on some tree limbs and brought out his wand, trembling a little himself.

Will began to turn away. “I’m fine, I’m good-” But before she could shield herself, Blaise grabbed one of her wrists and whispered ‘lumos’ to light up the tip of his wand, and he flipped her hands so he could see her palms.

“Oh.” The palms of her hands were red and glossy with moisture, and as Blaise inspected them, he could see layers of skin on the side that had been burned away from the spell. He touched her hand gently with his finger and she winced. “These look like second degree burns.”

Will looked up at him, her grey eyes wet from crying but still curious. “How do you know that?”

“My mum owns an apothecary, remember?” Blaise extinguished his wand quickly and began to mount his broom. “Come on, we have to get you to the hospital wing.”

Will shrugged. “Okay, give me my broom.”

Blaise laughed at that. “Very funny. You’re not flying with your hands all burnt like that. Come here, I’ll carry you.” He gestured to the back of his broom.

“Seriously?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yes, seriously, unless you want to stay out here and freeze to death,” he replied, his teeth chattering. With a sigh, she gingerly wrapped her arms around his neck and he pulled her legs around his waist. Both were completely silent as Blaise kicked off from the tree, flying smoothly back to the castle with Will’s broom on his lap. The wind did help Will’s hands feel a little bit better, even though it didn’t help with how cold she was, and when Blaise landed, he grabbed both of their bags from where they had left them near the pitch and they ran up to the castle.

Meanwhile, James and Athena had already returned to the castle and were sitting at their usual table, both waiting for Will. James was glaring at her, and Athena was glaring right back, neither of them touching their food. Charley and Aidan were sitting in between them awkwardly.

“So that was a good game, huh?” Charley asked, trying to break the tension. The glare from Athena silenced him immediately.

In the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey had looked at the two soaking wet young students with confusion when Will showed her her burnt hands, but after she pushed them both for an explanation and still received none, she simply sighed and began to heal. Burnt hands were among the least strange of the injuries she had seen from unknown situations, and she had learned it was almost better to go with it. Both Will and Blaise were keeping their mouths shut, as she had expected, but she would definitely still bring it up with Minnie and Mary at lunch. It was a relatively short process, but she required Will to wear bandages around her hands for the next couple of hours to make sure she didn’t reinjure them.

The two were itching to get out of the hospital wing to go find their friends, and although Madam Pomfrey was incredibly suspicious, she grudgingly let them go, forcing them to at least change out of their wet clothes before they scurried off. As soon as the doors to the hospital wing shut behind them, Will and Blaise made eye contact and immediately sprinted down to the Great Hall. It was a little awkward when they walked in, for everyone had already sat down and was eating, but when the Gryffindors saw Will, they all began to cheer, bringing a smile to her face and a scowl to the Slytherin’s.

Looking around frantically, Will searched for Athena and James with Blaise at her heels, but she was stopped in her tracks by a very enthusiastic Xander. “Will! Hey, I know I said it earlier, but great game!” He smiled at her, and suddenly, all of her need to tell Athena and James everything she had seen disappeared.

“Thanks, Xander. You did great, too,” she said, blushing a little.

“Thanks, but you definitely earned player of the game. The flying patterns that you do- insane! We’ll have to run them at practice sometime.” Xander didn’t know it, but Will’s heart was exploding, and Blaise was getting annoyed.

“Will, we have to go. Landon? The Hufflepuff? Any of that ring a bell?” He whispered in her ear furiously, and Will’s ecstatic expression faltered immediately, remembering how Xander had been violated by Landon and how he had no memory of it. She felt a sharp pain in her chest at the thought, feeling so sorry for him.

“We can definitely talk about the flying patterns later, Xander, but I have to go. Good job again!” She said quickly as she turned away with Blaise right behind her, causing Xander to raise an eyebrow but shrug and walk away himself, missing the dirty look that Blaise shot at him while he was moving towards the table.

Athena couldn’t believe her eyes as Will and Blaise slid onto the bench at their table together, both looking worried. Will had a clouded expression on her face and bandages on her hands, and Blaise was hovering at her shoulder in a way she had never seen before, his stony eyes scanning the Great Hall but returning to Will every time and looking at her almost protectively.

She put her fork down and narrowed her eyes. “Okay, can someone update me, because I obviously missed something. What are you wearing?” She asked, gesturing to the both of them. Will was wearing a much too big black sweatshirt of Blaise’s that he had stowed at the bottom of his Quidditch bag for “emergencies” and a pair of plaid pajama shorts, and Blaise was donning an old Puddlemere t-shirt with a few holes in it and shorts that were so long they almost reached his ankles, reminding Athena of Adam Sandler.

Blaise and Will exchanged looks, weirding Athena out even more. Will sighed, all of her adrenaline from the Quidditch victory ruined from the interaction, and she took a deep breath before beginning to explain. “Athena, I’m so sorry, I know we had plans, but something came up. Like, something really came up.”

The blonde raised an eyebrow. “Do tell. It must’ve been important for you to stand me up.”

“Believe me, it was. After the game, Blaise and I were both looking for you, but we saw Landon Stewart and this random Hufflepuff dude run off into the Forbidden Forest. Both of them looked stressed, so we decided to follow them.”

James facepalmed. “Of course you did,” he said, but Charley shushed him.

“Shut up, James! What did they do? Was it bad?” But as he looked at Blaise and Will and their serious looks, his smile faltered. “Oh, it was bad.”

Blaise grimaced. “Yeah. It was bad. They were going on about failing this dude’s first mission or whatever, and then they mentioned bringing Muggles into the magic community.”

Athena’s eyes widened. “What? Integration? But that’s breaking the statue of secrecy!”

Will nodded grimly. “I know. The worst part was that Landon mentioned talking to Xander about it because they need older students or something to help, but Xander didn’t want to help so Landon Obliviated him.” She cast a sad glance at the Quidditch captain, who was laughing loudly as Darius scowled next to him and picked at his food.

Aidan gasped. “That’s illegal! A fifth year Obliviating someone, especially Xander? So many things could’ve gone wrong- he’s lucky he didn’t give Xander permanent brain damage!”

Blaise shook his head. “That’s not even all of it. They’re going to ask Freya Halliday- seventh year Hufflepuff- to help them and they’re going to start something they called ‘the removal of spells’, which can’t be good. And Landon burned Will,” he said regretfully, and he gently grabbed her wrists and pulled them up so the table could see her bandaged hands.

James’s blood boiled as he looked at not only the bandages, but the Slytherin’s hands around her wrists. “How did he burn her?” He said through gritted teeth, and Blaise gingerly began to unwrap Will’s hands.

“Heard us move in the tree we were hiding in and shot fire into it. Really reckless, if you ask me. Plus, while putting out the tree, they shot us with water, which is why we’re dressed so weird. We didn’t really plan on needing an extra set of clothes.” Once Will’s right hand was visible, he brought it up close to his face and studied the pink skin on her palms. “How are you feeling? Does it hurt at all?” He asked, and she shook her head.

“It feels fine to me. Madam Pomfrey did a better job explaining what I was supposed to do than you telling me to not touch anything,” she teased, and he scowled, but his cheeks turned pink.

“Whatever. Just don’t get hurt again,” he responded, wrapping it back up. “Do you need help eating?”

Will laughed. “I’ve got bandages on my healed hands, Blaise. I’m not crippled.”

He rolled his eyes. “Shut up and eat your pork chops.”

Athena, who was watching this all go down, was very confused and also suspicious. One minute, her two friends would be arguing about anything in particular, but now, he was almost looking after her, making sure that she was alright. She had never seen Blaise be so protective of anyone- not even her. She wished she had been there so she could’ve seen everything, but she decided that now wasn’t the best time to bring it up.

“Should I tell Xander about Landon?” Will asked the group, breaking Athena’s train of thought.

“I don’t know. If you tell him about it and he tries to remember, something bad could happen if Landon didn’t Obliviate him properly,” Aidan said grimly. “Maybe in the future we could tell Darius, but right now, we don’t know how badly it affected him.”

She sighed, pushing her porkchop around on her plate. “Ugh. You’re right. I just feel so bad- someone messed with his brain and he doesn’t even know about it.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine, Will. He’s been pretty normal all year- I haven’t seen any big personality changes, so it must’ve worked out okay,” Charley reassured her.

“I’m a little more concerned about breaking the statue of secrecy,” James whispered, thinking. “Who out there would want to do such a thing? Who would even gain from it?”

Athena thought about what James had said. Breaking the most ancient law of wizardry was not just something some D-list criminal decided to do- no, this had to be planned. Meticulously planned. “Why would someone ask two fifth years to break the state of secrecy?” She thought out loud, and Blaise pursed his lips.

“Because of Hogwarts. This school is where the largest number of wizards and witches are present at all times, and unlike the Ministry, the majority of its population is kids who don’t know a whole lot about magic yet. Plus, kids are impressionable. You offer the right price and they’ll do anything- and it’s not like the teachers would help at all. If I was going to do something drastic like integrate Muggles, especially if I wanted to do it in a shocking way, I would set my sights on Hogwarts, and I would use the students.”

“Why would it have to be shocking?” Charley asked.

“That’s the only way enough people would believe it. You tell one No-Maj- sorry, Muggle- Merlin, what a stupid word- everyone else writes them off as crazy. You tell a hundred, maybe something weird happened but there’s no proof. But if you show thousands of Muggles a magic school where hundreds of witches and wizards live almost year round, shit starts to happen,” Will said grimly.

Athena watched her two friends work together seamlessly. She knew that Will and Blaise had gotten closer recently, with Blaise even considering her a good friend of his, but the way that they put their heads together now- she had never seen Blaise work that well with others since- honestly, ever. She wasn’t expecting them to mesh this well at all.

“You guys are right,” Aidan said softly. “I think whoever is doing this is trying to start something. There’s almost no outcome where Muggles find out about Hogwarts and don’t freak out.”

“Aidan, you’re talking about a race war,” James said anxiously.

“I know. That’s what scares me the most.”

“Alright, what are we going to do about it?” Will asked, and Athena thought some more before speaking.

“Unfortunately, right now, I think our best option is to do nothing.”

“What?” Charley asked. “How does that make sense?”

“Athena’s right. It’s Landon and the Hufflepuff’s word against Blaise and Will’s, and Landon is a prefect. Plus, we have zero evidence right now, especially about Xander,” James replied.

“Also, if we say something now, they’ll know we’re onto them and maybe completely change direction, and we’ll have lost our only lead,” Athena added.

“Yep. Our advantage right now is that no one knows that we know about this. We should wait to say anything until we find out more,” James said, nodding at Athena with respect.

Athena was once again surprised, this time about how easy it was for her and James to think out loud with each other. He had said almost everything that she was thinking exactly how she would have said it, and for some reason, she liked that he was on the same page as her, not feeling her usual pang of annoyance at him saying something smart. This day was just full of surprises.

“The concept is good, but I don’t like the idea of doing nothing,” Blaise said grimly. “If we’re right, and we don’t pursue this-”

“No, we definitely have to pursue this,” Athena agreed. “I’m thinking more like tailing Landon, the Hufflepuff, and Freya for a little while to see if they’re acting weird. Maybe it’ll give us more clues.”

“That’s a good idea,” Aidan said. “The Gryffindors can take Landon since he’s one of their prefects. Blaise and Athena, you guys should watch Freya, so that leaves me with the Hufflepuff boy.” He turned to Will. “Do you think you could point him out if you saw him again?”

“Oh, absolutely. Wait, maybe he’s here- Blaise, come on, we have to take a lap,” she said, scrambling up and dragging Blaise with her.

“I can help you with him too, if you need, Aidan,” Charley offered. “That way it’s two per person.”

Aidan nodded. “That sounds good. We should start with figuring out their class schedules so we know when they have free time to meet up and plan stuff.”

James drummed his fingers on the table. “Agreed. We should also note if they spend a lot of time at a really specific place in the castle- maybe like the library or-”

“-The Room of Requirement!” Athena’s eyes lit up, and the three boys turned to give her funny looks.

“Uh, yeah, obviously, but I’m kind of assuming that we’re missing something else,” Charley said.

“My uncle used to tell me this story about a painting in there- a painting of Albus Dumbledore’s sister. I’ve only been to the Room of Requirement once so I’ve never seen it, but if it’s real, apparently it opens up and is a tunnel of some sorts- leading to a pub in Hogsmeade. Maybe that’s how they’re communicating with whoever their boss is,” she explained, and James grinned.

“That’s right, I forgot about that story! We should definitely remember that if we see them up there,” he said.

Suddenly, Will and Blaise sat down again roughly. “We found him,” Will said softly. “Don’t everyone look at once, but he’s sitting with Landon, a Ravenclaw boy, and a Slytherin girl in the back, two tables from the right.” James, Athena, Aidan, and Charley all immediately turned to look, seeing the blonde boy casually eat his dinner like nothing had ever happened. “Guys! I said don’t everyone look at once!” Will protested weakly, but Athena waved her off.

“It’s fine, they didn’t see us. But we’re in luck- I know who that is.”

“Who?” James asked.

“His name is Riley Cartwright. He’s a fifth year, too. I’m not sure about the Ravenclaw, but that girl that’s with him is the fifth year Slytherin prefect and he’s dating her- shit, I can’t remember her name- Abigail something? But that’s besides the point- I met him in the library a few months ago because I was struggling with some Charms homework and he helped me out. I see him there every so often, and he always comes by and asks how I’m doing and offers to help and whatnot.”

“The Ravenclaw’s name is Evan Lloyd. Also a fifth year. I’ve seen him around the Common Room- he’s friends with some of the Quidditch team,” Aidan offered.

“Maybe you should tail him instead, then, Athena, since you know him,” Charley said, but Blaise shook his head.

“No. He knows who she is, so if he starts seeing her a lot more than he usually does, it could put him on edge. Let’s stick to the current plan for now, but that’s good to know, Athena.”

They ate the rest of their meal in complete silence, the information that they had gained heavy in everyone’s minds. Even Will and Charley, who arguably had the most to talk about after brutally defeating their rivals in Quidditch, hadn’t spoken about the game at all, as they were too busy trying to get to the bottom of whatever was happening.

Who could possibly gain anything from breaking the statute of secrecy? Sure, many wizards in the past had spoken about integration, but the laws were there for a reason. The greatest wizarding minds had tried to come up with a reasonable solution to allow for Muggles to learn about magic, but in every scenario, it was foretold that the Muggles would react violently and the only outcome was war. It was still a possibility, but based on the current state of the world, a compromise was not in the near future.

The most logical conclusion was that whoever was behind this wanted bad things to happen. But who that person was was the mystery- almost all of Voldemort’s old followers that had survived the war were rotting in prison, and the ones who had been released were keeping incredibly low profiles, not to mention the Ministry had tabs on all of them. There were a few rogues, but as Athena racked her brain, she couldn’t think of anyone who was a significant threat during the Second Wizarding War and had the smarts and the ambition to pull something like that off. Most of Voldemort’s followers had been just that- followers. A good leader was hard to find. What were the odds that a new one had just materialized out of thin air?

Will was having similar thoughts. Sure, she goofed off a lot and gave off the impression that she didn’t really care about things happening in the real world because she was too focused on her own life, but it was actually the opposite. Growing up in America and having two parents from Chicago meant that she had been radicalized at a very early age, and she was always conscious of what was happening in the world around her.

The best case scenario was that the six of them could somehow figure out how to prevent a war from starting, which was a pretty tough job for a bunch of eleven and twelve year olds. But Harry Potter had done it, multiple times, nonetheless. However, the worst case scenario involved Hogwarts getting attacked by Muggles. And Will knew that that could not happen- especially not with how much Muggles had progressed in only eighteen short years. Will didn’t want to think about it, but she had agreed with Charley a lot more than she had let on a few months ago about Muggles- wizards constantly underestimated them, and that could be the fatal blow in the future.

Whoever was doing this wanted chaos. It was hard to believe that someone would be confident enough to risk a race war to come to power, but when looking at the current state of the wizarding world, an event as big as that one would put the cracks in the foundation of the Ministry on full display. When the Houstons had first moved to America, it had taken Will a little to adjust to the new way of life. Her parents had combatted that by teaching her almost everything they could about England and the Ministry, and even though she had thought it was incredibly boring at the time, she sent a mental thank you to them. It was a good thing that her mom and dad were overly critical of all governments because she knew for a fact that after the Second Wizarding War, there had been almost zero Ministry reform. How crazy was that? Voldemort had quite literally overthrown the government and placed his own puppets in the highest positions of power available with low difficulty and the Ministry had done nothing to prevent something like that from happening again. Who else knew about that? Who had the motivation to take advantage of it?

Will was starting to stress herself out, so to distract herself, she nudged Athena with her shoulder. “Psst.”

“What?”

“When we’re done eating, want to go to my room and watch a movie?”

Athena was slightly taken aback. “What?” She repeated.

“We had plans to hang out, remember? I’m still going to follow through- but if you don’t want to based on what happened and what we now know, I understand,” she whispered, and Athena felt her cheeks turn slightly pink at Will’s remembrance of their plans.

“Sure. That sounds great. It’ll help us get our minds off of this for a little, because I have a feeling that we’re going to be talking about this a lot for the next few months,” she said grimly, and Will nodded.

“Yeah. But hey, at least we’re doing something about it. There’s probably a lot of students at this school who would just brush it off and pretend everything’s fine up until it’s too late.”

The rest of the meal was mostly uneventful due to the fact that no one really felt like speaking. Each of the six of them was wrapped up in their own heads, trying to figure out what was going on and how they were going to help. But slowly, one by one, they each finished their food and said soft goodbyes.

Will and Athena headed up to Will’s room, neither of them saying anything, but it wasn’t awkward. They were more invested in their own thoughts, of course, but they both also were much more aware of their surroundings. Athena noticed a chip in the railing of the staircase on the way to the Gryffindor tower. Had that always been there? Will kicked an upturned corner of a runner rug in the corridor and was surprised to see it flip back over again. How many times had she done that before without realizing?

Once they finally arrived, Will flopped onto her bed and stared up at her ceiling. “I know I said I wanted to watch a movie to distract us, but I genuinely cannot stop thinking about it.”

Athena sighed, sitting on the couch. “Yeah, me neither. How are we supposed to not think about it?”

“I don’t know.” There was a bit of silence, both of them still thinking, but Will suddenly got a nagging feeling deep in her gut. “Why do I feel like I’m forgetting something?” She asked herself out loud, and Athena cocked her head.

“About Landon and Riley?”

“No, I told you guys everything I knew about that. Plus, if I had forgotten anything, Blaise would’ve filled in. It’s something else.”

Athena pursed her lips, trying not to smile. “Maybe your Charms homework that’s due tomorrow? Aidan said you haven’t started.”

“That’s not it either. I’ve been consciously forgetting about that because I don’t want to do it.”

The blonde shook her head. “I’ll never understand you Gryffindors.”

Will got up and rummaged through her bag, pulling out a tattered notebook. “Maybe…”

“What’s that?” Athena asked.

“Sometimes I write down important stuff here so I don’t forget it. Most of the time I forget to write in it, but it might be what I’m looking for.” She flipped through the pages, revealing Quidditch plays and flying patterns, old due dates for homework, and tallies of chores. “No, no, no…” Finally, she landed on a page that had names scrawled on it in her messy handwriting. “Oh, Merlin’s underpants. I remember now.”

“What? What’s wrong?” Athena got up to look over her shoulder, seeing her name along with Blaise’s, Aidan’s, and Charley’s. Next to their names were their birthdays, favorite colors, Quidditch positions, and more basic information. It warmed Athena’s heart to see her information written in Will’s book of important things.

“Aidan’s birthday is on the second of December. That’s this Wednesday. I completely forgot because of Hate Week.”

“Oh, shit.”

“Oh my Godric, Charley’s birthday is coming up, too. It’s on the thirtieth, which is essentially a month from now.”

Athena furrowed her eyebrows. “We’ll be gone for winter break then.”

“What if we did a joint party for the two of them? Do you think they’d like that?”

“I don’t see why not.”

“Okay, good, because that gives us more time to actually plan something. Also, it’ll let us celebrate Charley.” Will let out a breath. It was nice to have something else to focus on besides the sense of impending doom that had been swirling around the pit of her stomach. She knew she probably wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about Landon, Riley, and the statue of secrecy entirely, but worrying would do no good. It was better to focus on her friends for now, and cross that bridge when she got there.

“Okay, so let’s aim for a party next week. What exactly did you have in mind?” Athena asked, a twinkle in her eye.

Will grinned. “I’ve got a few ideas…”