"Reparo," I said softly, pointing my wand at my head.

I leaned over towards the lake to see my reflection, a boy with platinum blonde hair stared back. Cressida crossed the line with this one. Any other color would have been fine, but why Draco's color? I scoffed, leaning back against a tree that was on the bank of the lake. The water was still, which was unusual for this time of year. Typically in the fall, there was a soft breeze, but today everything was still. Silent.

How the heck was I supposed to fix this? I racked my brain for any possible spell that could revert my hair back to its former glory, but I was coming up empty.

"Tergeo," I tried, but to no avail.

"Y'know Black, it's not necessary for you to change your hair in order to be in my fan club," Draco said, appearing from somewhere behind me. I jumped because frankly, he came out of nowhere.

"Malfoy, I'm really not in the mood for it today," I replied grouchily.

I was right, it had been a pretty bad day. First, my lovely locks were violated, then my deadbeat boggart dad didn't help.

"Not in the mood for my help? I'll just leave your beautiful blonde hair the way it is then, eh?" he said as he started to walk off.

"No, no, I accept help with open arms," I said, jumping up.

"That's what I thought," Draco said, turning back towards me, the smirk on his face was unfortunately visible.

I rolled my eyes in response.

"Reparifarge," Draco said, pointing his wand towards my hair.

I quickly ran back to the lake and peered over the side to view my reflection. The second I dropped to the ground, I was propelled forward into the water face-first. The ripples went into effect before I could get a visual on my hair.

The second I found my footing in the lake, I was at least relieved to see my dark hair sticking against my face.

Draco was doubled over laughing.

"It's really not that funny," I said, climbing out of the water. Each time I took a step, it looked as if I was being wrung out. There was a trail of water following me in the dirt.

"Except, that's where you're bloody wrong," Draco said, gasping for air. "I don't believe I've laughed that hard in a while," he said, offering his good arm to help me up.

"It looks like you've recuperated," I said, considering the fact he just pushed me into the lake.

"Nah, I've just got a strong left arm," he said with a grin that was so contagious, I caught it.

I sat down again, leaning against the tree where I had previously been sitting. Draco was still standing by a nearby tree.

"Do you care if I join you?" he asked, already sitting down.

Draco had his days, today I think was a good one.

"I guess."

"Good, because I'm too lazy to get back up and climb the stairs to the castle right now."

"So," I said, trying to start a conversation.

"So, are you okay?" he asked, his tone suddenly changing to something of a deep severity.

I was honestly confused, why did he care whether or not I was okay? "Yeah?" I responded, puzzled. "I mean, I've been better."

"I was asking because there's already rumors floating about your father being loose in Hogsmeade not to mention your boggart," Draco said, yet again his tone remained soft and serious.

"He's not my father," I spat. "He's just a man I share DNA with."

"Calm down," he said defensively, "I was just asking if you needed someone to talk to."

I looked at him for a moment, but he was looking down. His behavior seemed completely out of character for him.

"Why do you care? What are you getting out of it?"

"A friend?" he questioned shrugging. "It's not hidden knowledge that my normal group follows me because my father pays for them too."

"Why me though?" I questioned. The rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor was more intense than that between any other two houses.

"We're a lot more alike than you realize," he said standing up, he walked off from the lake, never turning back.

As the leaves darkened on the trees, and the Whomping Willow began to shed its cloak, we all anxiously awaited the season of fall. Hogsmeade visits, the aroma of butterbeer, and everyone's favorite: quidditch.

I practically leaped down the stairs on my way to the quidditch field. Oliver Wood had called a meeting and I couldn't wait to start practicing. Last season was my first year on the team. I was a chaser, so it was my job to score with the Quaffle.

I was the last to arrive in the locker room, the fall winds gently blew keeping the room chilly. Everyone was huddled around Oliver. He was a bigger guy, he had fluffy brown hair, and his brown eyes looked tired.

"As you all know, this is my last year, my final shot," he swallowed emotionally as if it was difficult for him to discuss. "The Quidditch Cup hasn't been won by Gryfindor in seven years, which has got to be the worst bloody luck ever."

We silently listened to him speak, our respect for him was clear.

"This year," he paused, a slow smile creeping onto his face, "this year is our year!"

The Weasley twins nodded in agreement.

"You bet it, Oliver," Fred said energetically.

"We're the best team in the bloody school," George interjected.

"You're both right," Oliver said, stepping forward again. "We've got three of the world's best chasers, Katie Bell, Zenith Black, and Angelina Johnson," he paused after each of our names as claps erupted in the tent.

"We wouldn't be a team without a talented captain and an unbeatable keeper," I responded, keeping up with the Gryffindor pride that was quickly taking root in the room.

"Thank you, Zenith," Olivier said with a soft smile. "Our superb chasers are good on their own, but with the pairing of the wild Weasleys as our beaters, we can all trust that no bludger will hunt us down!"

Again, the overwhelming sound of clapping uproared in the tent.

"But," he said as we all quieted down. "We cannot forget the most important member of our team. Our seeker who's yet to lose us a game, Harry Potter."

I clapped out of respect for Oliver.

"I just have a feeling," Oliver said with a smile, "This year is going to be different."

"Zenith! Get up, get up, get up!" Ron cried, violently shaking me as I was harshly pulled back into reality.

"What time is it?" I asked groggily, coming to.

"Time for Hogsmeade! It's the 31st of October! How could you forget it's the first Hogsmeade weekend?" he asked dumbfounded.

I looked at him for a moment, or well I stared in his direction. I wasn't awake enough to process anything.

"I didn't forget, I just didn't want to go," I sat up, yawning.

"Are you crazy?" Ron asked, he was sitting on the end of my bed.

"No, I'm actually sane, unlike the lot of you wasting a perfectly good Saturday," I said motioning to the group of students bustling around, getting ready for the day out.

"So what? You plan to sleep all day?"

"No, I plan to sleep until noon, then I plan on eating lunch with someone."

Ron looked at me for a moment, "A girl?" Then he looked like he put the puzzle together, "Oh, wait. Lupin?" he asked.

I nodded, but before I could speak Neville entered our conversation.

"Zenith! May I ask you a question?"

I looked at him, "you just did?"

"Another I mean!" he said with an embarrassed laugh.

"Go for it," I said, waving him on with my hands.

"What's Cressida's favorite snack? Or sweet, sweets are fine too!" he asked, his cheeks a rosy red.

Ah didn't little Neville have a crush? What kind of brother would I be if I didn't mess with him?

"She loves anything spicy," I said with a soft smile that hid sly intentions.

"Thank you!" he said with a large grin before leaving the dorm room.

Ron turned to me and was acting like I had committed a crime. "Why would you tell him that? Aren't you supposed to be scaring boys away from Cressida? You know, keeping her best interest at heart? She's got no time for people like Neville, she's already busy with her studies!" He said in one breath, he finished the rant gasping for air.

"Uh? What?" I was confused, I totally zoned out after the first three words of his speech.

"Nothing, nothing," Ron said, turning away quickly.

There was something off about his behavior.

"Man I can't wait to see Cressida's face when Neville brings her Pepper Imps," I said, leaning back against the headboard.

"Why?" Ron asked, confused. "I thought you didn't like Neville with your sister."

"Oh, I don't," I say with a complicit smile.

"Then why tell him what she likes?" He watched me for a minute then he figured it out. I could see the lightbulb clicking inside as he put two and two together. "You lied to Neville!"

"Me?" I asked, acting innocently.

"Zenith, that's genius," he said with an excited smile.

"I know!" I said with a grin, but then it clicked, why'd Ron care so much?

"Hey, wait a minute," I said, pointing at Ron like an interrogator. "Why do you care so much?"

His face turned a deep red before his voice pitch raised, "I don't care so much!"

I looked at him suspiciously, "Sure.."

He gave me an awkward smile before looking at his arm like he had a wristwatch, "Woulda look at the time? I've gotta go!" he said before hastily leaving the room.

Not two seconds after he walked away, I remembered that we didn't wear watches in the wizarding world.

After Ron left, I left myself once again be consumed by the comfort of my bed. My mind slipped into the depths of slumber, and I didn't even realize time had passed til the sun was glaring down at me.

"Zenith?"

I sat up, rubbing my eyes to see who had questioned me.

"Colin?" I said, taking notice of the small blonde.

Colin Creevey, a second year who was absolutely obsessed with Harry Potter, was staring straight into my soul with his large, beady eyes.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Hogsmeade by now?" He asked, his iconic camera hanging around his neck.

"I'm not going," I said, climbing out of bed, and looking for socks in the trunk underneath my bed.

"Well, why not?" Colin inquired, squatting down so he was directly in front of me.

The kid had an issue with personal space.

"I don't need anything from the shops."

"Oh come on," Colin whined, "Why would you pass up Honeydukes' sweets?"

"Because I don't fancy sweets," I replied, getting slightly annoyed with the constant questions.

"Why not?"

I took a deep breath and exhaled before placing my hands together and turning to face Colin. "Colin," I said calmly.

"Yes?"

"If you ask me one more bloody question, you'll need a new camera," I said, eyeing the prized possession around his neck.

He looked at me, then his camera, and then at me again. "Got it," he said timidly before leaving the room.

The corridors were empty, and as I walked to my father's classroom, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of my feet on the soft, stone floor.

The door was open, and the lights were on, so I figured it would be okay to just walk in.

"Papa?"

"Yes?" I heard him shout from behind a stack of books that was towering on his desk.

I crossed the room and saw a large tank of water on his desk. Around the tank, the desk was covered in water as if there had been a small struggle. There were many open textbooks that were painted with water droplets.

"What is that?" I asked, pointing to the tiny, humanoid-looking octopus that angrily watched me.

"Grindylow," Papa said proudly, he stood to the side of the tank holding his hand out like it was some sort of prize that he had won. "It's a water demon, but it should be no feat since we've already managed to conquer boggarts," he said proudly.

"Yeah, about that," I said, fidgeting with my hands nervously. "I wanted to talk to you about Sirius Black."

At the mention of my blood relative's name, Papa froze, his face showed a variety of emotions: pain, anger, fear.

"What is it you want to know about him?" Papa asked, he didn't make eye contact.

"Who was he?"

I watched as he closed his eyes, and exhaled only once as if he was trying to sort through memories.

"When he was young, he was a Gryffindor through and through; he was brave and passionate," he spoke softly as if the words were painful. He cleared his throat before continuing, "He was a man of unwavering loyalty and fierce determination. Despite the darkness that was a curse to his family, he possessed a rare resilience and a contagious spirit that could make even the darkest of days bright."
"Papa, you seem to know him quite well. Did you know him closely?"

He stared at me for a moment as if he was deciding how to answer, "He was friends with all of us Zenith, we had our own group amongst the Gryffindors, we were kind of notorious."

"Who's we?"

"The Marauders: Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, James Potter, and myself," he smiled softly, reminiscing over his childhood.

"What happened to them? I know James died, and well I know what happened to Sirius," I trailed off.

"Peter Pettigrew died as well, I'm the last of us," Papa said with a soft smile, the scars of his face visible in the light of the room.

"I'm sorry Papa," I said solemnly.

"Sirius betrayed us, he betrayed everything we stood for. He sold out Harry's parents to the deatheaters, and cost them their lives, Peter's life, and the lives of 12 muggles. I never understood why. He had so many other things to fight for, there was no reason to give up. He gave up, he quit, and he left," Papa said, his voice cracking.

"Papa, he was more than a friend wasn't he?"

"Not to him, but to me, yes. I could never jeopardize the bond we had, our friendship meant everything to me. It was always hard for me to make friends because of my condition, even harder for me to find someone like Sirius. I was never the most important person to him though. It was always James, but even getting to follow Sirius was enough for me."

"I'm sorry you lost him, Papa," I said, hugging him.

That was a big move for me considering I was never very physical, Papa wasn't either, but he accepted my hug.

"Zenith, you lost him too," he said softly, reminding me of the fact that he wasn't my blood father.

Suddenly, Harry burst into the room, disrupting the moment. What was he even doing here?

"Professor? Professor!" he called.

Papa dropped his arms, and walked away, leaving me alone, so that he could go off and tend to Harry.

I stood there for a moment before walking out, as I walked past the two of them, Papa had his arm wrapped around Harry's shoulder. Harry always ruined everything.

After a few hours, I returned to the Defense Against the Dark Arts room in search of Papa. We had agreed yesterday to eat lunch together. Upon arriving at the darkened room, I heard laughter.

"Papa?" I asked, before entering.

"Yes?"

"It's me, Zenith. I'm here to eat," I said excitedly, we always had the loveliest conversations when we ate.

The door swung inward and I saw Papa standing there, he had an expression on his face. I knew how to read it very well. He had forgotten.

"Zenith, I'm sorry, I forgot about that," he said, scratching his head.

"Well, it's okay," I said with a smile, "I'm okay with eating and just talking with you."

Papa's face looked torn. "Zenith, I'm not free right now, I'm working on something for another professor-"

"Professor! I think I've done it," Harry Potter shouted, cutting Papa off, and revealing his lie.

"Ah I see Papa, I hope you are able to complete all the things for the other professors," I said before walking off, the anger in my voice evident.

"I'm back! Did you miss me?" Ron asked as he dropped an armful of candy onto the Gryffindor table.

"Yeah," I said with a soft smile. "You know Ron, I never say thank you enough."

"For what?" he asked, confused, sitting down next to me.

"For treating me like a person, and not the son of Sirius Black," I said, bumping shoulders with him playfully.

"You know, same here," Ron said with a large grin. "I'm not just another Weasley to you, I'm Ron, and that's enough."

"One Weasley is enough, you're right," I said laughing.

"I thought we were your friends, Zenith," George said, walking by.

"Yeah, you've never been hit with a bludger on our watch," Fred said, saluting us as he walked step-in-step with his brother.

"Get your own friend!" Ron shouted at his brothers as they snickered, sitting farther down the table than us.

As more people joined us in the Great Hall, I took a moment to enjoy the Halloween scenery. Instead of the typical candles that illuminate the room, the ceiling was full of small pumpkins of all designs. A soft haze of clouds blanketed the pumpkins, and bats could be seen flying around in between.

The feast went by rather quickly, not to mention how amazing the food was. Even though Ron had brought me all the sweets, I still managed to eat double my weight in the main course.

Ron and I walked out of the Great Hall together, we enjoyed small talk as we made our way to the Common Room, but once we arrived, we met a large group of people flocked outside.

"Why isn't anyone going in?" Ron questioned.

"I'm not sure," I said, equally as confused. We were both short so there was no way for us to see what was causing the hold-up. I jumped a few times, but once my feet hit the ground. I would be accidentally stepping on someone.

"Watch it, Black!"

"Zenith, look!" Ron shouted, he could see one of his elder brothers pushing through the crowd from behind us.

"Excuse me," Percy said, splitting the body of students to the best of his ability, "Pardon me, yes, yes, I'm Head Boy!" he answered as he made his way to the portrait.

There was a silence for a moment after he had pushed past everyone. I'm sure you could have heard a wand drop.

"Oh great heavens," Percy muttered, "Someone get Professor Dumbledore! Quick!" he barked at the crowd.

I saw a first-year boy run off toward the Headmaster's office. I think his name was Nigel Wolpert.

"That can't be good," Ron said, a concerned look quickly spreading across his face.

Not a moment later, Professor Dumbledore arrived. The students moved out of the way much faster than they did for Percy. I held back a chuckle as he threw his hands up in annoyance. Ron and I moved closer to the front to see what all the commotion was about. Not much to my surprise Hermione was in the front.

"Oh, it's horrible!" she cried, latching onto Ron's arm, he looked at me with a plea for help.

The Fat Lady was missing, and in her place was a scene of destruction. Her portrait had been slashed, and strips of her once beautiful canvas hung down in shame. Large sections were missing entirely, I could only imagine the factor that caused it.

Dumbledore didn't spend very long acknowledging the painting, instead, he immediately turned and started to leave, but was paused by the other professors who had made their way to the scene.

"Finding her is our number one priority," Dumbledore said, speaking to the group, "Professor McGonagall, can you run and tell Mr. Filch to search every portrait in the castle. Tell him the Fat Lady is missing," he spoke diligently.

There was a distant chuckle that caught Dumbledore's attention, "You won't be able to talk to her if you find her."

Dumbledore turned and saw the owner of the voice, Peeves the Poltergeist, "And why's that?"

"She's so ashamed. She's a mess, and doesn't want to be seen by anyone. I saw her running through landscapes on the fourth floor, as she dodged in and out of trees she kept blubbering, and continued to trash her elegant dress. Poor girl," Peeves said, completely and utterly unsympathetic.

"Did she tell you what happened?"

"Oh of course! The Fat Lady has always been a stickler for the rules, so you know she had to deny him access!" Peeves said mysteriously. "But you see, he didn't like that very much, Sirius Black has a temper you know!"

It felt as if the world had stopped turning momentarily.

"Blimey," I cursed, under my breath. I felt my pulse race, and I backed out of the crowd, so that my back was against the cold wall. I grasped my chest as I struggled to breathe. It was as if an invisible hand had wrapped itself around my heart. My palms were sweaty, and my face was pale. A wave of dizziness rushed over me, and I felt my knees giving out as someone rushed to my side.

"Zenith!"
My vision was blurred but I knew that kind voice anywhere. "Cressida," I croaked horsley, still struggling to breathe.

"Stop talking, and try to breathe," she ordered, sliding her arm under mine, supporting me so that I could stand. It wasn't supposed to be this way, I was her brother, the man. I was supposed to be protecting her, it was my job.

I closed my eyes, and tried to calm down my breathing, eventually, I was able to grasp air that filled up my lungs, as if I had been undersea diving for two long and I had finally come up for air. Each breath was welcomed like an old friend whom I hadn't seen in ages.

My sister smiled at me, her worried brow not subsiding.

"I'm okay," I said softly, not wanting to push my luck.

"You need to stop scaring me like this," she said, wrapping her arms around me tightly.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, wrapping my arms around her.

"Where's everyone going?" I asked, noticing the large herd of Gryffindor students leaving the corridor.

"There you are, Zenith!" My favorite redhead greeted me. "Oh, uh, Hi Cressida!" he said, a soft blush mixed in with his freckles.

"Hello Ron," she greeted.

I stood awkwardly between the two of them as they stood awkwardly across from each other. I cleared my throat to divert the silence.

"Ron, did you need something?" I asked, prompting him to finish his thought from earlier.

"Oh, yeah! We need to go," he said, talking off down the corridor in a jog.

Cressida looked at me and laughed, then took off after him, leaving me to be the last student in the hallway.

I took one more glance at the Fat Lady's destroyed portrait before balling my fist and following after my sister.

Students of every house were standing at the entrance of the large room; Cressida, Ron, and I snuck in quietly, joining them.

"An exhausting exploration of the castle is in order. For the safety of the students, it has been decided that you shall stay the night in here," Dumbledore spoke, his arms opening up to the room. "Prefects, it is your duty to stand guard over the entrances of the hall, only myself and the other professors shall enter and exit. I'm leaving the Head Boy, and Head Girl in charge," he turned towards Percy who seemed extremely prideful at the thought of being in charge.

Dumbledore started to walk out, then paused, looking back at the room, "I guess you'll be needing these," he said, waving his wand.

The tables that were set up for the feast flew to the edges of the walls, and hundreds of purple sleeping bags covered the floor.

"Good night," Dumbledore said before taking his leave.

The second he stepped out of the room, the mouth of every student erupted. Rumors of all kinds began to spread throughout the room, but the majority of it was Gryffindor students telling the others about the flight of the Fat Lady.

"Alright, alright, settle down," Percy shouted, "Lights out in 10 minutes."

Ron, and I waved our goodbyes to Cressida as we found the rest of the Gryffindor students. Harry and Hermione were standing off to the side. They had already pulled a few sleeping bags away from the middle of the room. I was heavily thankful for that.

As we buried ourselves in the small purple sleeping bags, I heard Hermione whisper.

"Do you think it's true? I mean, that Sirius Black is really here. In the castle?" she asked Harry, her voice soft as to not be heard by Percy who was patrolling the room like a bloody dementor.

"I don't know," Harry said coldly. A tone I often spoke with myself.

"I mean Dumbledore must think he's here, considering the measures he's taking to search! That can't possibly be good for you Harry. I guess we're just lucky that he picked tonight of all nights to attack!" she rambled, barely pausing to breathe.

"Sure, we're lucky," Harry mocked, rolling away from her.

Unfortunately, there was no escape from the questions, everyone around us was asking the same thing. How'd he get in? Was he still here? Who's he after? The questions filled the once-calm air of the Great Hall until Percy shushed us yet again.

"The lights are going out now, and that means you all are going out as well, good night," he said before waving his wand and extinguishing the candles above our heads.

As the silence in the room grew over a span of several hours, I lay awake, staring at the stars in the ceiling. I named the constellations in my head, something that had always come naturally to me. The stars were a source of peace for me, never changing, their beliefs eternal.

I heard footsteps approaching, so I squeezed my eyes shut and held my breath in an effort to feign sleep.

"Have you had any luck, Professor? Any sign of him?" Percy asked, I could tell from his voice.

"No. Is everything alright here, all students accounted for?" Dumbledore asked. "I'll have all the students move back to their common rooms tomorrow, there's no point in it now as the sun has long been set," Dumbledore said elegantly.

"What about the Fat Lady, Professor?" Percy asked concerned.

"She's distressed, but okay, Filch found her on the third floor hiding in a map. She said Black demanded entrance, but she refused to tell him the password, so he attacked."

I softly exhaled as I heard the footsteps grow farther away, but then I heard the creaking of the door. I anxiously listened.

"Headmaster, we've searched the third floor, no sign of him. Filch has checked every inch of the dungeons as well," Professor Snape stated.

"I didn't expect him to stay," Dumbledore said calmly, "but for the wellbeing of the young wizards and witches who placed their trust in us, I figured we owed it to them to check every known and hidden passageway."

"But Headmaster, have you not taken a moment to ponder how he got in? This place is guarded by Azkaban's finest. It is nearly impossible that Black managed to get in on his own, I have no doubts that old loyalties played into this affair," Snape said, a tone of anger in his voice.

"I do not believe anyone in this castle would have aided Black, regardless of their past affiliations."

It was at this point, I realized they were talking about Papa.

"Past affiliations? Headmaster, are you really that blindsided? There is nothing about his favoritism for Black in the past! It's clear as day, he's still Black's dog!"

"Unless you have visible proof, this conversation is ended," Dumbledore said. I could tell he was walking away, the sound of his footsteps slowly faded away.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Seamus Finnigan shouted, "He's a complete lunatic, Percy, could you not have found anyone else?"

Percy Weasley stood very composed, and flattened the ruffles in his robe before answering, "Sir Cadogan is very brave for taking such a position!"

Sir Cadogan was an interesting pick to say for sure. He challenged every individual who attempted to enter, and even tried to change the password multiple times.

I walked up to the portrait to enter the common room, but before I was even given the chance to mutter the password, Percy grabbed my arm.

"Professor McGonagall was looking for you, you ought to swing by her classroom, she said it was important," he said subtly, as to not draw any more attention to me.

"Thank you," I said softly before making my way to the Transfiguration classroom.

I knocked twice before entering, "You may enter," McGonagall offered.

"You asked for me, Professor?" I asked nervously.

She sat behind her desk, and motioned to a chair that was near it. I sat as she requested.

"Well as you've most definitely heard by now Sirius Bla-"

"Yes, I'm well aware that my father was here," I said abruptly, cutting her off. I meant no disrespect, but I was tired of hearing about the man all the time. This was my life, not his.

"What I'm about to tell you might come as a shock, but Potter received the same warning, but as I told him, I know you understand that I did not come to this decision lightly."

I nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"It has been decided that you and Potter are not to practice with the team in the evenings. It is too dangerous for the both of you to be exposed with only the members of the Quidditch team."

"But Professor-" I attempted to argue, but she cut me off.

"No Buts, Black," she said sternly.

I walked out of the room defeated. I guess my father managed to but into my life yet again. I wasn't paying attention when I was walking out into the hall wall, and ran straight into Draco Malfoy. He dropped the books he was carrying with only his left hand, his right hand was still in a sling. I noticed he wasn't with his usual crowd.

"Sorry," I hastily replied, squatting to the floor to pick up his books.

"What's got you in such a foul mood, you were walking as if your mind was somewhere else," he said, accepting the books as I handed them to him.

"Something I'm probably not supposed to tell you."

"What am I gonna do? Tell the school?" he paused, and before I could answer he answered his own question. "Yeah, never mind I see the hesitation."

"You excited for the big game Saturday?" I asked, aiming for small talk since it seemed we were both walking in the same direction.

"What do you mean?" Draco asked, confused.

"The Slytherin-Gryffindor game? The first Quidditch match of the season."

"Oh, Zenith, you haven't heard?" he said tauntingly, "Slytherin isn't playing that match, you know because of my injury," he said, lifting up his arm.

"Say what?" I asked, I looked at his arm and then at the grin that was spreading across his smile, "I'm sure if you tried to use your arm it would be absolutely fine, it was only a few scratches," I said looking for a solution.

"A few scratches? Oh, no, no, no! I nearly bloody died! I want to make sure I'm nice and recovered before we beat Gryffindor into the ground."

I chuckled, "Beat Gryffindor eh? So that's the reason we're not playing you guys, it's because you don't think you can win."

Draco paused before saying anything else, I grinned as I turned and walked off, it was my comeback from the lake incident.

The morning of the big game came faster than I suspected. I mean, I guess time flies when you're not doing the things you love. Harry and I were only able to practice when Madame Hooch was monitoring us, this meant we had significantly less time than our opponent- Hufflepuff, but that didn't matter. We had something Hufflepuff didn't have- pure determination. Every hour we were able to practice was with one hundred percent effort. We didn't dare waste a second, yet even with all our preparation, Oliver looked down.

"Come on Oliver, we've played in far worse weather," Katie Bell said, bumping shoulders with him in an effort to cheer him up.

"Yeah! It's just a little rain," Angelina pitched in.

Oliver pulled back the tent flap to reveal what Angelina declared 'a little rain', it was practically flooding. I couldn't even see the people in the stands through the wall of rain that was pouring down. The occasional lightning strikes would allow me to see bodies, but not near light enough to see faces.

Harry rubbed his scar, I had picked up that he did that when he was nervous.

"You okay, Harry?" I asked.

He nodded.

"Good, because I kinda told someone we were gonna win this, so we have too now," I said with a grin.

"I'll do my best," he affirmed, he pulled off his glasses and wiped the few water droplets that had managed to get through the tent.

"May I?" I asked, reaching for his glasses.

"Ah, sure," he said, handing them to me.

I pulled my wand out from my sleeve, "Impervious," I said, pointing my wand at the lenses.

Harry looked at me confused.

"It's a spell Cressida taught me, It'll allow them to reflect water, therefore you will be able to see," I said, handing his glasses back.

"Thanks, Zenith," he said smiling, "I owe you."

We followed Oliver out of the tent with our brooms in tow. The wind was so strong I had to fight to stay standing up. I wasn't sure how the crowd was because the thunder booming was so loud the normal cries and cheers were drowned out. As we walked to the middle of the pitch, I could see the Hufflepuffs walking out.

Cedric Diggory, the captain of Hufflepuff, walked out and shook hands with Oliver, who looked like he was going to be sick. After their handshakes were done Oliver returned, and we all followed his lead by stepping onto our brooms.

"Mount your brooms," Madam Hooch called, and she raised her arm high into the air. I never saw her arm come down, only the whistle's cry, as I pushed off of the ground and into the air.

Once into the air, I was unable to see anything, I was relying on my other senses heavily. My hands gripped the handle of my Comet, and I lowered my head in order to gain more speed.

"Black, above," I heard Katie cry from behind me, I knew exactly what she needed.

I pulled back on my broom, sitting straight up, and holding my arms out, I saw her streak past, a Hufflepuff chaser following right behind her. I grinned as I felt the familiarity of the quaffle land in my hands. It was an old trick of ours, she'd do a barrel above and drop the quaffle at the same time before jetting down. Typically, no one ever saw through the passoff.

I race just above the ground before pulling up in front of the hoops that Herbert Fleet, the Hufflepuff Keeper guarded. I was coming from his blind spot so he never saw me until it was too late. I came up the left side, and threw the quaffle through the hoop, securing ten points for Gryffindor.

Before I could even have a chance to celebrate, I was nearly knocked off my broom by a bludger flying straight at me.

"Duck!" George shouted, racing at me from the other side.

In a moment of panic, I threw myself flat to the broom handle and I felt the hair on my head raise as the bludger flew straight over my head.

The air sent a chill down my spine as I flew above the ground level to see if I could get a better visual. The second I climbed to a higher altitude, I saw Cedric Diggory fly by chasing a small glint of gold. I could only assume it was the snitch.

I searched for Harry aimlessly, the rain continued to pelt my skin, each droplet burning with the speed I was flying at.

"Harry, Cedric's after the snitch!" I shouted, pointing to the right end of the pitch.
Harry must've heard me because I heard his broom go by as it sliced through the air perfectly. I'd kill to have a Nimbus 2000. I mean, sure my Comet was nice, but a Nimbus was almost the best you could get!

I looked up as the sky flashed and could see Harry flying straight into the clouds, Cedric was nowhere to be found. Neither were the other chasers. I flew a circle around the pitch passing Oliver, asking for a score update.

"We're up fifty," he said with more energy than he had at any point yet today.

"Got it," I said, flying off.

I passed Angelina who was empty-handed, and as I was watching her, I flew right past a Hufflepuff chaser with the quaffle. I stopped and turned as fast as I could, dashing off in the direction that I had just come from.

"Angelina," I called out, she saw me immediately as I pointed to the chaser in front of me. We closed in on both sides of the Hufflepuff chaser, Angelina flew a lower level than me, so the chaser only ever saw me, the poor guy didn't even expect the hook from underneath. Angelina's punch knocked the quaffle up, and I grabbed it. As I had gone above to catch the quaffle, she had dropped below to circle back, so I passed it to her.

I wasn't sure where she went, because the second I passed her the quaffle, I heard many people screaming. It wasn't the typical audience tone, it was a cry of panic. I looked up and I could swear I saw something coming toward me from the sky. It appeared tiny, and irrelevant, but I flew towards it nonetheless, as if something was drawing me towards it. The more the distance closed between me and the falling object, the more I realized it wasn't an object at all. It was Harry.

I reached forward to grab his arm, and I felt everything start to spin as my hold on my broom was forced free by the water. I tried to grab my broom as it fell beside me, but I was too slow. My arms flailed as I quickly plummeted towards the ground.

k.rae & agc here ! we're so thankful for 1k reads, and we're so happy to read the comments that you guys leave every week! we hope you enjoy this long chapter this week. <3 we love you guys (the readers)