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chapter forty two | valentine's gal

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KAYA WAS NOT looking forward to going back to Hogwarts - and she immediately realised how much of a strange feeling this was. She'd never dreaded school, before. Sure, she'd been sad that summer had come to an end, but the girl had never found Hogwarts itself as a problem - in fact, she quite enjoyed it there. But not anymore. Umbridge screwed that one, up. Nice one, Dolores.

Everyone's seasonal cheer was now beginning to evaporate, now that Christmas and New Years was over, and the date of the teenagers' departure back to school was nearing. Truth be told, nobody had ever seemed so dull and gloomy about returning to Hogwarts as they did now. The twins were still sorrowful about the fact that they no longer had Quidditch to look forward to, and not to mention, Kaya was gutted because she hadn't been able to play against them, since getting to know them properly - and now, she never will.

Furthermore, the term after Christmas was almost a signal that they would soon be facing their N.E.W.T exams, which even the thought of sent Kaya into some kind of stress-filled frenzy. She was already loathing the amount of revision she'd have to do, which came with the price of little to no free time. Kill her.

And then, on the last day of the holidays, as if the thought of school wasn't bad enough, the sudden suspicious appearance of Snape seemed to give them a reminder that this time tomorrow they'd be under the tyranny of Dolores Umbridge. Although, seeing her old Professor made Kaya be thankful for at least one thing - and that was her decision to drop Potions after O.W.Ls. Actually, she says her decision, but it wasn't really in her control. She failed the subject - there was no way in a million years Snape would even have considered to have her in his advanced classes, thank God.

It had turned out, Dumbledore wanted the Head of Slytherin to give Harry Occlumency lessons, poor boy. This seemed to have given Kaya a brighter outlook on everything - no matter how miserable you felt, at least you're not Harry. Actually, that sounded kind of mean... but, you get the point.

However, they soon got back into the routine of things like they always did.

And there was at least one thing brightening Kaya's mood, giving her something to look forward to...

"There's a Hogsmeade trip on the fourteenth of Feb," Fred said to her with a wink, as the two headed to Transfiguration. Kaya, of course, already knew this, but still couldn't hold back her grin when her boyfriend brought it up first.

"Oh, yeah?" she said, putting on a false frown. "Fourteenth of Feb... why does that ring a bell?"

Fred laughed and grabbed her by the waist, playfully hurling her into the air (Kaya letting out a surprised yelp) before kissing her cheek, and dropping her back to the floor.

Unfortunately, a teacher dressed in clothes that were as horrid as her personality wasn't far behind the couple.

"Hem, hem," her voice rang, and the couple's beams immediately faded. They exchanged reproachful expressions, slowing to a halt and turning to face who they unfortunately had to call their Professor. Fred sighed.

"Children," she said, and Kaya felt the sudden urge to grimace. "May I remind you of the Educational Decree Number Thirty-One? We do not want any punishments for you two, do we?"

"Oh, sorry, Professor," said Fred, cooly. "I forgot, the world ends when two people from the opposite gender don't keep eight inches apart,"

Kaya bit her lip to prevent the appearance of a smirk, although she did cross her arms and scowl at the woman. She had never hated anyone before as much as she hated Umbridge. It was scary.

"Be careful, Mr Weasley, or I shall have to put you in detention. You too, Miss Bennett. You are, after all, our Head Girl. We do not want a disobedient child having such a high position in the school, now do we? And I am sure you want to keep your badge,"

She nodded to the golden pin shining on Kaya's robes.

Jokes on you, Dolores, I didn't want this position to begin with.

"Yes, Professor," she said, through a monotone that almost made her sound robotic.

Luckily that was all the two had to deal with, and Umbridge marched off, her tiny heels clicking against the stone floor. Both continued walking slowly with a fair amount of distance between them, until the sound of Umbridge's heels vanished, and they resumed their usual spots close to each other.

"She makes my blood boil, I swear, I am going punch her," said Kaya, casting a dirty look towards where the woman was last seen.

"I'd like to see it," Fred said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and giving her a playful smirk. "Now, where were we?"

"February fourteenth... ah, yeah!" Kaya said, her face lightening up, pretending to have only just realised. "Could that possibly be Valentines Day?"

"Hm..." Fred said, giving her a playful glance. "It could be... I'll have to double check, on that one,"

Kaya let out a laugh.

"But, if it was..." Fred continued smugly, his eyes fixated on his girlfriend. "Would you be up for a Hogsmeade trip for two, without the rest of the cavalry?"

"...You know, I might just be up for it, Freddles," Kaya said with a wink. He grinned.

But, Kaya knew being back at school wasn't going to be all sunshine and smiles, and this was promised by the next issue of the Daily Prophet Milo received at breakfast.

"I'm so hungry, I'm fucking starving," said Kaya, sitting down, unaware of the unusual silence settling over her group of friends as they all leaned over to read the newspaper. "My tummy's eating itself,"

"Hey, K, read this-"

"Do you ever feel like your tummy's eating itself?"

"Yeah," Jaeden said with a nod and a grin.

"Oi," Milo added, kicking Kaya and causing her to shut and and frown, eyeing him questionably. "Read this,"

So, she did - and the girl's bright mood was immediately put out once she'd taken in the large words printed out across the page.

MASS BREAKOUT FROM AZKABAN
MINISTRY FEARS BLACK IS 'RALLYING POINT' FOR OLD DEATH EATERS

"Oh, fuck," Kaya spoke, her naturally cheerful tone darkening as her eyes ran over the letters.

"The Ministry of Magic announced late last night that there has been a mass breakout from Azkaban," Milo read, slowly. "Speaking to reporters in his private office, Cornelius Fudge–"

"–Prick," Jaeden added.

"–Minister for Magic, confirmed that ten high-security prisoners escaped in the early hours of yesterday evening and that he has already informed the Muggle Prime Minister of the dangerous nature of these individuals,"

"Sucks to be the muggle Prime Minister,"

"'We find ourselves, most unfortunately, in the same position we were two and a half years ago when Sirius Black escaped,' said Fudge last night. 'Nor do we think the two breakouts are un-related. An escape of this magnitude suggests outside help, and we must remember that Black, as the first person ever to breakout of Azkaban, would ideally be placed to help others follow in his footsteps,"

"Right," said Kaya, in an annoyed tone. "Because that makes sense. A 'notorious mass murderer' that has practically vanished from the public eye is to blame, not the fact that You-Know-Who came back or anything,"

"They take the piss," Jaeden nodded with a frown.

"We think it likely that these individuals, who include Black's cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, have rallied around Black as their leader. We are, however, doing all we can to round up the criminals, and we beg the magical community to remain alert and cautious. On no account should any of these individuals be approached,"

There was a short silence in which the group processed what they were reading - all feeling a huge sense of enmity for Fudge and the Ministry.

"We're fucked, let's be honest," said Maisie with a huff, crossing her arms. "If a huge breakout from Azkaban isn't a sign of You-Know-Who's return staring right at Fudge in the face, then what is? The Dark Lord might as well invite himself round the Ministers house for a cup of tea, and he'll still say he's not back,"

Maisie was right - the Ministry of Magic was nothing more than a joke, at this point. And if these were the people leading their community through a war against dark wizards, then the red-headed girl could not have been more correct.

They were indeed fucked.

As if the news of ten more Death Eaters joining Voldemort yet again wasn't depressing enough, the entire group now had to endure a moping Jaeden who was in a very ugly mood after learning his favourite teacher, Hagrid, was now on probation. Kaya didn't know the full story, since she didn't take Care of Magical Creatures, but what she did know was that it most likely had something to do with the troll that called herself Dolores Umbridge.

Even the teachers were conversing in low, urgent whispers in the corridors, breaking off their conversations the moment they saw students approaching. Maisie suggested it was because of the fact that they couldn't talk freely in the staff room anymore, what with Umbridge being around.

And then, of course, the pink toad had to get herself involved somehow, considering she was still technically apart of the Ministry.

BY ORDER OF THE HIGH INQUISITOR AT HOGWARTS

"High Inquisi-twat," Kaya had corrected.

Teachers are hereby banned from giving students any information that is not strictly related to the subjects they are paid to teach.

The above is in accordance to Educational Decree Number Twenty-six

Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor

"Surely these are, like, crossing the lines of human rights, now?" George had said.

"I reckon," Jaeden agreed. "I mean - does she really think she can stop teachers from talking about something different than their subjects?"

"Yeah," Kaya nodded. "I don't think her telling me my skirt was too short the other day had anything to do with Defence Against the Dark Arts. Technically she can't tell anyone off now, if they're doing something unrelated to her subject,"

The words had ever so carelessly rolled off Kaya's tongue, but they did not go missed by the three infamous troublemakers - and they all grinned mischievously at each other as they entered the classroom.

Kaya and Jaeden exchanged raised eyebrows, wondering where this could be going.

They didn't have to wait too long for an answer - Fred and George started playing Exploding Snap in the middle of the lesson, and so when Umbridge called them out on it, Lee did not miss his chance in speaking up.

"Exploding Snap's got nothing to do with Defence Against the Dark Arts, Professor! That's not information relating to your subject!"

Kaya and Jaeden were lucky they were so experienced when it came to hiding their heavy sniggers from teachers. Perhaps it was the only thing they'd gained from having Snape for five years.

But, anyway, Lee had gotten a detention. Surprise, surprise.

On the bright side, the DA was still up and running, and everyone seemed to have grown a lot more motivation since the news of the Azkaban breakout. Kaya herself definitely felt more determined than before, and this seemed to contribute to her ability to now produce jinxes and charms more swiftly.

The Hufflepuff Quidditch team were back in training throughout the majority of the week, since their match against Gryffindor was soon approaching and Zacharias Smith was learning the huge pressures of being Captain. Kaya was also busying herself with her Prefect and Head Girl Duties, and so with that on top of Quidditch, hanging around with her friends and having to make time to do a little studying, she soon found her nights and weekends completely crammed.

And Valentines Day had seemed to appear out of nowhere - though, that wasn't a bad thing. It had been something to look forward to, and Kaya's day out at Hogsmeade with Fred had been one of her favourite days ever. It might have even passed the time she and Maisie went to see Kylie Minogue (and that was a smashing day, so that says a lot).

The two had ventured about the village hand in hand - which was pretty obvious, because there was no way Fred Weasley was not going to show his girlfriend off on the designated day that was practically made for it (not that he didn't do it every other day of the year - the boy always had an arm wrapped around Kaya, or his hand softly holding onto hers, as if it were a constant message to anyone who passed 'Hey, look! This is my girlfriend! Look who I managed to pull! Isn't she so amazing?'

Of course, it wasn't one sided either. Kaya enjoyed showing off her boyfriend as much as Fred did her. Who wouldn't, let's be honest?

But, anyway, they'd ventured around Hogsmeade for the day - Fred generously taking her to the tea shop rammed with lovers because although it might not have been his kind of place, he remembered how sweet Kaya had thought it was, and so there was no chance he wasn't taking her there.

The two had battled over who paid (again) and Fred eventually won, but Kaya had planned to pay for him wherever it was they went next. And so she did, when they went shopping and she noticed Fred's face light up at the sight of a brand new Zonko's product displayed on the shop's window. She'd bought it and shoved it into his hands before he could even blink.

"As long as you don't use it on me," she'd joked.

But the two had been absolutely ecstatic the whole day - and it hadn't even really mattered where they went, they just enjoyed it because they were together. In fact, Kaya was convinced if they'd just gone for a walk in the woods, or something, she'd have still had the best time, just because it was with Fred.

Kaya had only ever spent Valentines Day with someone romantically once before - she was fourteen at the time, and although in the moment she'd felt it was special, looking back on it, it was nothing compared to what she had now. The boy was in the same year as her, and they had been together for about eight months before they broke up. She'd gotten him a card for Valentine's Day (he hadn't gotten her one - bit awkward) and they had spent a couple hours in Hogsmeade, but he'd stated,

"It's a bit boring here, isn't it? Shall we go back?"

Kaya didn't have the heart to say she wanted to stay a bit longer, and so agreed. Jaeden had called it from the start, when she said she was getting with this particular boy - he'd told her he was a prick.

"Don't do it," he'd told her. "He went out with Clara Eaton - the one that sits behind us in Potions - she had to dump him because he kept calling her weak and kept annoying her,"

Kaya should've probably taken that thought into more consideration, but instead thought 'yeah, but they went out months ago... he might've realised what he'd done and changed...'

So Kaya had still given him a chance, however Jaeden's statement turned out to be true, and she and this boy ended up breaking up just before the summer holidays.

OK, so her friend was right. That was the last time she ever ignored what he had to say.

Yeah, Kaya was heartbroken, but she got over him. Especially when her friends had brought to light what the boy was really like, instead of the romanticised image of him Kaya had created in her head.

He unfortunately was still around at Hogwarts, but thankfully Kaya had only one or two lessons with him, and he was a Ravenclaw, so it was easy to avoid him. She hadn't noticed the several jealous glances he'd sent her and Fred's way when the rumours had spread about them both, and when the two sat together in Transfiguration. She'd have enjoyed seeing that. But, whatever, he was her first relationship and the majority of those weren't going to be perfect. In fact, Kaya was a strong believer that if you find the one on the first go, you must be extremely lucky.

"He was just a trial run," Kaya could remember Maisie saying, when they'd broken up and the brunette was on the road to moving on. "Yeah, you think you were happy with him, but you will definitely be a lot happier when you find someone who knows your worth,"

Maisie hadn't lied either.

Anyways, moving on - Fred had given her a proper Valentine's Day, and that was what had mattered. She'd returned to the common room practically glowing, and Maisie had been waiting to hear every little detail of it, which Kaya had given her, and she'd 'awed' and squealed at almost everything, because she absolutely adored the two together.

And then, on Monday evening Kaya learned from joining the Gryffindor cult in their common room (let's face it - nobody sticks to their designated rooms anymore if you have friends in other houses) that Harry had done some kind of interview with Rita Skeeter for the Quibbler, which had everyone who supported him feeling excited.

However, not matter how supportive Kaya was of the boy - and she was, she always would be - she still felt uneasy about the whole thing, all the same. In fact, she felt quite sick, truth be told. Because she was still reminded everyday, that Cedric was not here with them, anymore. And to read about the actual moment in which he was killed? Kaya wasn't so sure how she felt about it...

Yes, getting the interview out would help to change people's views and get Harry more supporters, but still. It was Cedric.

Fred had dragged the girl over to wrap his arms around her waist and to kiss her on the cheek, knowing perfectly well what was running through her brain She forced a smile, but it was useless anyway, when it came to Fred. He sees right through her.

"Ron and Ginny not here?" He asked, the group heading over to Harry and Hermione, who looked like they were trying to get through some Astronomy homework. Harry shook his head. "Good. We were watching their practice. They're going to be slaughtered. They're complete rubbish without us,"

"Come on, Ginny's not bad," said George, fairly, sitting down on Fred's other side. "Actually, I dunno how she got so good, since we never let her play with us,"

"She's been breaking into your broom shed in the garden since the age of six and taking each of your brooms out in turn when you weren't looking," Hermione said casually, from behind a pile of books.

Kaya laughed.

"Oh," said George, looking impressed. "Well - that'll explain it,"

"Has Ron saved a goal, yet?" Jaeden asked.

"Well, he can do it if he doesn't think anyone's watching him," said Fred, rolling his eyes. "So all we have to do is ask the crowd to turn their backs and talk amongst themselves every the Quaffle goes up his end on Saturday,"

"I mean, we could try that," Milo shrugged, as Fred got up from where he was sitting and moved restlessly to the window, staring out across the dark grounds.

"You know, Quidditch was about the only thing in this place worth staying for," he said.

Kaya raised an eyebrow at him.

"Well, and you," he added quickly, giving the girl a sheepish grin. "But I'm keeping you after Hogwarts, so-"

"You've got exams coming!" Hermione said, casting him a stern look.

"Don't remind us," said Milo glumly.

"Told you already, we're not fussed about N.E.W.T," said Fred. "The Snackboxes are ready to roll, we found out how to get rid of those boils, just a couple of drops of Murtlap essence sorts them. Lee put us onto it,"

George yawned widely and looked out disconsolately at the cloudy night sky.

"I dunno if I even wanna watch this match. If Zacharias Smith beats us, I might have to kill myself,"

"Kill him, more like," said Fred.

"Oh thanks," said Kaya. "I'll make sure our team lose, then,"

"Will you?" George asked, hopefully.

"No," the brunette pulled a face. "It's my last year of Quidditch, too, knobheads. You better be cheering me on,"

"Of course, lovely," Fred said, giving his girlfriend a soft smile, before saying in a fake anxious voice. "But... if Gryffindor score, I might just slip up and cheer for them, too..."

The girl grinned, and playfully rolled her eyes. "Well, perhaps I'll just have to let that slide,"

"See, that's the trouble with Quidditch," said Hermione. "It creates all this bad tension between the houses,"

She looked up from her book and caught, Fred, George, Harry, Jaeden and Kaya all staring at her with looks of mingled disgust and incredulity on their faces. Maisie and Milo exchanged glances.

"Well, it does!" she said, impatiently. "It's only a game, isn't it?"

"Leave it, 'Mione," said Maisie. "I've been trying to tell them that for years, they don't listen,"

"Hermione," said Harry, shaking his head. "You're good on feelings and stuff, but you just don't understand about Quidditch,"

"Maybe not," she said, darkly, returning to whatever piece of work she was currently finishing. "But at least my happiness doesn't depend on Ron's goalkeeping ability,"

Kaya snorted. She wasn't wrong.

Still, she was excited for the upcoming match

She hadn't played Quidditch in school for over a year now, and even if Cedric wasn't here playing alongside her anymore, there might still be a comforting feeling about soaring across the Quidditch Pitch in Hufflepuff robes for what will be one of her last ever games at Hogwarts.

All Kaya had to do now was continue training until Saturday rolls around.