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As Marlene entered the hotel that her team would be staying in for the next 48 hours, the roar of the crowd on either side of her rang in her ears.
She sped up, almost bumping into Lily Evans, the team's star player, alongside Marlene of course. Marlene tried to smile at the cameras being shoved in her face, but all she really wanted was to pass out in her room.
Marlene McKinnon was one of the best players on the Godric Gryffon team. She always played in the forwards and almost always guaranteed a win. Now they were in the final, against the most ruthless team in the league, the Salazar Snakes. The Snakes were notorious for their rough plays and fouls. Their back line was strong, and could take a beating.
The captain of the Snakes was a centre back named Dorcas Meadowes. She was quiet on and off the pitch, but packed a punch. She was quick and nimble, but strong and stood her ground. She also just so happened to date Marlene.
When Marlene got to her room, she jumped onto her bed. She was sharing her room with Lily, and her girlfriend, Mary Macdonald, who came to every game to support. Lily was openly a lesbian and had come out three years ago. Marlene remembered finding out when Lily had cornered her in the changing room to tell her. Marlene herself was queer but had neither the guts nor had she seen the point of telling the public. But the fans had their suspicions.
Just like any fandom, they loved shipping players with close friends or even rivals. Recently, there was a rumour that Marlene and Dorcas Meadowes were together. Marlene laughed when she heard it first but was against revealing that it was the truth.
Let them have their fun, she thought.
Marlene thought it was funny how much the world loved her. On the pitch and in interviews, she could make herself interesting and sociable. But in general, she thought herself to be full and quite uninteresting. She didn't have many hobbies, other than soccer. But yet, every day she saw edits of her on social media, or even people running up to her asking for autographs.
Marlene woke from her daydreams and looked over to Mary and Lily. They were cuddling each other on the bed, watching TV. Marlene looked at them for a bit longer, before getting up.
"I'm going down to the pool for a bit," she decided, grabbing her swimsuit and hat.
"Hm? Oh, alright, have fun! Don't forget that interview we have tonight!" Lily called out to Marlene as she left.
Marlene didn't stay in the water for long. She did a few laps, then sat in the sauna for a bit. When she got back up to the room, Mary was lying lazily on the bed, while Lily tore everything out of her suitcase looking for some missing item of apparel.
"Are you sure you packed it, love?" Mary drawled.
"Yes! I know I did! It has to be somewhere!" Lily cried, flustered.
"Well you won't find whatever it is in my suitcase," Marlene pointed out.
Lily looked up at Marlene, and let out a noise that sounded like half a laugh and half a groan.
"Oh I am so sorry Marls."
"It's fine Lily," Marlene grinned. Lily was so graceful on the pitch, but was as clumsy as an elephant in any other aspect.
After more rummaging, Lily and Marlene finally made it to their interview with less than a minute to spare.
Halfway through, Marlene felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She left it until the interview was done, and then went into the bathroom to check it. It was from Dorcas.
It read:
U at the hotel? Come to room 205, we gotta talk.
Marlene answered with:
K. Coming now.
She ran up the flights of stairs, until she found the right floor. She made her way to room 205 and knocked. The door opened, and Dorcas looked at Marlene from inside the room. Dorcas was tall and well built. She had long dark brown hair that was braided. Her brown eyes were soft and inviting.
"Hi," Marlene said.
Dorcas answered with,
"Hey."
Marlene stepped inside the door and shut it. Then Dorcas bent down slightly and gave Marlene a quick peck.
"So, we're playing each other tomorrow."
"Yeah, and we'll beat you hollow."
"Hmph, likely."
"More likely than you winning."
"Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about that 'Dorlene' rumour"
"So? What of it? Fans make silly ships like that all the time. Remember when they thought Lily and Pandora Lovegood from the Ravens were snogging?"
"Yeah but, what if they actually find out."
"Dorcas, look at me. Don't worry about it. We'll just play tomorrow as if it's just a normal match, the Gryphons will win, and we're gonna have sex."
Marlene took Dorcas' hands, a shine in her eyes.
Dorcas rolled her eyes and smiled.
"Have you had dinner yet?"
"Nah, not hungry."
"Marls, you need to eat. Here, I'll order some chips and we can eat them here and watch a movie."
"What about your roomie?"
"What? Oh, I have this room all to myself! Great, innit."
They cuddled up to each other and ate their chips while watching Lady and the Tramp. Marlene slept in Dorcas' room that night. She texted Lily:
Sleeping in Dorcas', see u in the morn
Lily responded with:
Have good sex!
Marlene snorted and turned her phone off.
Dorcas' alarm woke them both at six am. They groaned and got up. Marlene successfully snuck back to her room, had a shower, and put on her kit. They had gotten a new kit recently, maroon and gold stripes with the claw of an eagle on the crest.
Lily eventually emerged from somewhere, carrying a waffle for Marlene, and they went down to the foyer to meet the rest of the team. Their goalkeeper, Alice Longbottom greeted them. They all piled into their private bus and drove to the soccer field. By now, it was nine. The game started at eleven.
They settled into the changing room, putting on boots and jerseys. They had a quick warmup before deciding on a strategy.
Marlene was to stay forward of course, with Lily and Molly Prewett in mid field to help in case she needed it. They had a good back line and Marlene was feeling confident. That was before she thought of Dorcas. Would she be able to play properly? She pushed it out of her mind. This was just any regular match. She would be fine. As the team got called out, she took a deep breath and jogged onto the pitch.
The two teams exchanged pleasantries and started the game. Within the first ten minutes, it was clear that Dorcas was playing to win.
The ball could not go near the Snake's goal, however hard Marlene tried. Two and a half minutes before half time, the Snake's scored, putting them in the lead.
The whistle blew and the teams jogged off to catch their breath and get some water. Marlene sat alone in a corner. She was determined to win this. She was doing it for her Mum, her Dad, her little brothers, every young girl that looked up to her. Lily grabbed Marlene's shoulder before they went out again and said,
"Deep breath, we're gonna win this."
And with that, they started the second half. With her new found burst of confidence, Marlene ran like a March hare, and leaped like a mountain goat. Within ten minutes, she had already scored a goal. For a split second, she locked eyes with Dorcas. They were both determined, but Dorcas was tiring quickly.
The ball went back and forth. The two goalies were knocked to the ground continuously. Alice even managed to save a penalty that came as quick and hard as an asteroid. Both teams were breathing heavily, as they approached the final five minutes. It was 1-1. The final whistle blew but six minutes of additional time was awarded. Marlene looked over to Lily, and she nodded.
Marlene surged forward, passing every player. She looked up, the goal was right in front of her. With one mighty kick, she sent it flying right towards the top left corner. She watched as the Snake's goalie reached out to save it, but it skimmed the top of her glove and flew straight into the goal. The whistle blew, and the crowd went wild. Marlene felt a burst of happiness and ran around the pitch like a madman. Her teammates joined her, chanting her name. The crowd was chanting her name too. The announcer shouted,
"MCKINNON WITH THE FINAL GOAL, PUTTING THE GRYPHONS ONE POINT AHEAD OF THE SNAKES! GODRIC GRYPHONS WIN THE CUP!"
Marlene was surrounded by her friends and teammates, as they hugged her, and patted her on the back. She looked up, and saw Dorcas approaching her. At first she walked, then that turned into a jog, then a sprint. The crowd that was around Marlene parted, making space for Dorcas. They stood, looking at each other for a few seconds, before Dorcas hoisted Marlene into the air. Marlene laughed with pure joy. Dorcas lowered her slightly, until they were face to face once again. Then she leaned in, and kissed Marlene in front of the tens of thousands of people. Marlene held on to Dorcas tighter, and followed Dorcas' movements. When they pulled away, there was a slight chatter from the crowd, but Marlene didn't notice. She was focused on Dorcas.
"Good game," whispered Dorcas into Marlene's ear.
"Do it again," Marlene whispered back, arms tightly wrapped around Dorcas' neck.