The one good thing about a busy practice schedule is that I didn’t have time to think about Charlie. The match against the Wimbourne Wasps was just a week away. The Appleby Arrows were their fierce rivals (and vice versa), so this match was getting a lot of attention. But even though I didn’t think about Charlie, and even though I still thought that his accusations were crazy, time was mending my wounded heart, whether I liked it or not.
Practice was longer than usual, but the team wasn’t bothering me this time. Perhaps because they knew I could fight back, or perhaps because they were simply too tired. A day before the big game, Leo came up to me with a bundle of cloth in his hands.
“Ari! Guess what I have?”
I honestly had no clue. “What?”
Leo grinned. “Your Quidditch robes!” He handed me the fabric, and I studied it. The robes were a nice, light blue with a silver arrow stitched on the chest. I grinned and picked up my own Silver Arrow broomstick to go home.
“Now I get it,” Leo chuckled. “You only joined the team so your broom and robes can match.”
I sighed, unable to fight a smile. “I’m a girl, Leo. Girls always accessorize.”
* * *
The big day finally came. After a meal of peanut butter on toast (a meal Leo insisted would give me an energy boost) and coffee, as usual, I dressed at home. I pulled on my snug black Quidditch breeches, a powder blue cotton shirt, and my favourite Quidditch boots. Finally, I put on my new robes, which surprisingly, fitted better than my regular daywear ones. I stood back and checked over my uniform. Whoever said that fashion and Quidditch do not go together obviously didn’t have to dress for a professional game.
Professional game? I gulped nervously and tightened my grip on my Silver Arrow. People have died in professional games. I didn’t have a Hogwarts safety net anymore with Madam Hooch ensuring there was a clean game; I was on my own now. Trying to calm the butterflies in my stomach, I apparated to the stadium.
As usual, Leo was there, but he wasn’t alone. Fans were already in their seats, eager for the game to begin. This surprised me; the team had fans? Not just admirers, but people who have camped out all night to avoid the big crowd and possibly chat with the players. I stood there in shock, and then went to Leo.
“Are you nervous, Ari?” he asked, squinting his eyes due to the bright sun.
“A little,” I admitted, rubbing my stomach.
“Don’t be! I’ve seen you at practice, and trust me; you’re the most promising Beater I’ve seen in a long time.”
I smiled, hardly daring to believe it. “Really? But…I’m just Ari; I’m not that great.”
Leo shook his head. “You may think not, but you come alive in the air. That is a gift not many other people have. I saw you when you tried out.”
I was shocked. “Really?”
“Yes, and you were going against some tough competition. But that move in the end, when you took the complicated way instead of the easy way…you made it look effortless and as graceful as a ballet. You have talent, Ari, whether you like it or not.”
Any doubt and uneasiness seemed to dissolve. “Thank you,” I said.
Leo shrugged. “It’s the truth.”
A few moments later, the rest of the team arrived, their expressions stony and unreadable. When the announcer sat down at his desk, I saw that it wasn’t Noah, but Jazz Davis, the announcer from Hogwarts. Feeling happier that at least someone I knew from Hogwarts was here, I got ready on the field when the Wimbourne Wasps came to a stop in front of us.
There he is, I thought, my eyes picked him out immediately. He was the Chaser, but not just any Chaser. Joshua Coffin was the star Chaser. He was the team captain, and an unstoppable force on the field. But there was no time to dwell; the referee had blown his whistle, and the game had begun.
I flew into the air, savouring the way the wind blew across my face and played with the ends of my hair. Realizing that I had no time to think about these things, I fixed my attention on the game.
I kept out of the way, yet able to quickly act if I needed to. Someone from the opposing team had the Quaffle; I raced to a Bludger and was about to hit it in their direction when Janusz beat me to it. As much as I disliked him, I had to admit that he was good at his job. The Bludger didn’t hit the Chaser, but instead curved in front of him. The Chaser, rather started at the Bludger’s appearance, flew sharply up and dropped the Quaffle. Another Chaser from the Wimbourne Wasps accidentally flew into him, sending laughter from the Arrows fans, but murmurs of worry from the Wasps fans.
Leo had caught the Quaffle, and I clutched my broom until my knuckles were white, desperately wanting him to score. Jazz Davis’s commentary was ringing out across the stadium:
“And that’s Adams with the Quaffle “ nice move dodging that Bludger “ ooh, stopped by another Bludger “ Coffin in possession of the Quaffle; he’s going to sc “ no, stopped by a fantastic move by Whills “ Quinn with the Quaffle “ ouch, hit in the side by a Bludger sent his way by Perry “ Adams with the Quaffle “ he avoids the Bludger, - Bloom dives “ misses “ ARROWS SCORE!”
I let out a shout of joy at Leo’s accomplishment, and partly my own for managing to hit Taye Quinn with the Bludger.
As the game went on for a bit longer (Leo scored once more, Scott scored twice and Joey scored four times), the score was now 80-20. I was flying higher than the rest of the team, so I had a bird’s eye view of the game. So when I saw Brett Royals hit a Bludger towards Phil Oberman, as much as I disliked him, I shouted out, “PHIL! FLY UP!” Acting on my advice, Phil took a sharp turn up, and the Bludger ended up smacking Max To in the arm.
I wasn’t so lucky with Leo. I tried to warm him, but it was too late; the Bludger struck him in the ear. I suppose that is what made my blood boil. Leo was my FRIEND. He stuck by me through training and parties. We talked about everything under the sun. No one, NO ONE, was going to attack him and get away with it.
I held onto my bat tighter than ever, my arm muscles ready to spring into action. Mike Line “ the same person who had hit Leo “ had hit a Bludger towards me. I swung my bat so hard at that ball that it cracked a bit. The Bludger was a blur of fury and power as it shot through the air.
As all Beaters know, one of the most sensitive places “ and therefore, the one most frequently aimed at “ is the back of the neck. However, it is very rare that one does manage to hit that spot.
It is there that my Bludger hit Joshua Coffin.
Caught completely off guard, he slid off his broom and fell thirty feet to the grass below.
I didn’t know what was more astonishing: that a rookie like me had single-handedly taken out a star Chaser or what came next.
The Bludger, after striking its victim, continued to soar through the air. It collided with the Snitch, which soared into the hands of Wasps Seek Todd Brisbane.
I hovered there in mid-air, stunned. That wasn’t possible! A Bludger could never hit a Snitch, let alone bounce it into the hands of a Seeker. But how can I deny it? It was right in front of me. Fate had played out a one-in-a-million shot.
And it was my fault.
I couldn’t help but feel guilty. I had hit that Bludger last, so it was technically my fault.
I landed and was ready to go back home when I heard a shout. Phil Oberman and Ben Whills were chanting while Joey Lems and Scott Novel were running towards me. Great, I thought. Now I have my own person angry mob.
But what were Phil and Ben yelling? I listened intently until I heard it:
“PE-RRY!! PE-RRY! PE-RRY!!!”
I took me a moment to realize that they were chanting my last name. In that time, they had caught up with me. Ben and Phil kept yelling while Joey slapped my back and Scott hit my hand.
However…they weren’t violent. They were…celebrating?
“Fantastic play, Perry!” Phil yelled.
“Bloody brilliant!” added Joey enthusiastically.
I was lost. “But…we lost the game!”
“Who cares about the game?” roared Ben. “You just did what no one else in the league could do in years; you got Coffin!”
“You took care of him for the rest of the season!” cackled Scott. “I didn’t know you had it in you!”
And the happy gang skipped off, leaving me alone, even more confused than before.
For the first time, I looked at the crowd. It was torn emotionally. Wasps fans didn’t know whether to rejoice at the win or be solemn for Joshua Coffin. Arrows fans were mostly…cheering?!?
Suddenly, Janusz appeared in front of me. At that moment I was painfully aware of exactly how much taller he was than me. After what seemed like forever, his stone face broke out into an unnatural smile. “Good jahb, Pehry.” he finally said with his thick accent, and walked away.
My head was spinning, and I was convinced that this was a dream: I had lost the game, and the team wasn’t mad; they actually accepted me!
As the crowd cleared, I saw a familiar mop of flaming red hair. Almost instantly, my heartstrings were pulled, and I realized how much I missed him, and how truly sorry I was that I said all those things during the fights. Time was a fantastic healer, and it healed my pain. I bit my lip, and walked over to him.
Charlie began walking towards me almost immediately, so we met halfway. He stood in front on me, chewing his lip. Finally, he said, “Ari, I am so, so sorry.”
“What?” I asked, surprised, as none of this crazy day was making any sense.
“I just…I…I don’t know what got into me. Seeing you sharing this bond with a guy I hadn’t heard of….” He shook his head. “It can do some crazy things to your mind.”
“I’m sorry too,” I admitted. “I’m sorry that I said…what I said at the end of the fight.” I paused. “Both fights, actually.”
Saying these things out loud was like taking a huge weight off of my shoulders. I could tell Charlie was sorry and, well…his position was understandable. “Charlie…I forgive you.”
Charlie smiled. “I forgive you too, Ari. I also owe you an explanation.” He took a deep breath and continued. “They do crazy things to you in Romania . The newbies have to guard the dragons at night, while go through strength training during the day. I…I didn’t have time to sleep. I didn’t have much time to eat. But this…if you survive this, you’re on the fast track to making it big.”
I nodded. “I understand,” I whispered.
Charlie smiled. “Thanks Ari.” He sighed. “So…where’s Leo?”
My eyes widened in alarm. “Leo!” I yelled, distressed at how thoroughly I had forgotten him.
I turned around to look for him, and my mouth fell open in shock. A petite blonde in a fuzzy pink sweater, light blue pants, and matching silk blue scarf was already by Leo. Actually, in front of Leo was more like it. Leo seemed to be enjoying her company; he couldn’t seem to keep his lips off of hers.
Charlie and I looked at each other. We were both stunned; Leo Adams had a girlfriend?
Noah Lords looked embarrassed at the couple’s energetic reunion. When he saw us looking, he waved us over. By the time we got there, Leo and the blonde had broken from their lip lock.
“Hey, Ari!” Leo cheerfully greeted. He glanced at Charlie with a small glimmer of unease, but since Charlie and I were together and not fighting, he figured everything was okay.
“I’d like you to meet Zan Lords,” he said with a smile. I nearly fell over in astonishment. This was Zan…the fan girl that was fawning over Charlie in our sixth year!
“Nice to meet you,” I managed to sputter out.
“Nice to meet you too,” replied Zan with a smile. “Are you that girl from Skeeter’s article? That was the most absurd thing I’ve ever read!” she laughed.
“Yes,” agreed Charlie, going pink in the face. “Simply absurd.”
After everyone was introduced to each other, I pulled Leo aside. “Zan is your…girlfriend?”
“Fiancé,” replied Leo with a blush. “I met her while she was still in Hogwarts through her brother -”
“Her brother?” Then I realized…Noah Lords, Zan Lords, the same blonde hair and jade eyes….
“Noah is a Quidditch announcer,” he explained. “I proposed a month ago, before Zan left for Paris to pursue her dream as a fashion designer for the Golden Quill. Oh, Ari, I wish I could have told you, but you know the media these days….”
“I understand,” I assured him quickly, before returning to the group.
“As I was saying,” said Noah, “we should host an engagement party. A small party,” he added quickly after seeing the look on Leo’s face. He turned to Leo. “I wonder who you’re taking?” he asked sarcastically. “You always manage to bring the most beautiful women.”
“Oh, shut up!” snapped Zan. “That was funny the first few times, but after that….”
Charlie pulled me away from the crows just before Noah got the full blast of Zan’s ran. “Zan and Leo,” he mused. “Who would have predicted it?”
“You know what the crazy part is?” I asked, glancing over to see Noah cowering, Zan fuming and Leo trying to calm her down. “I think that they’re really in love.”
Charlie grinned. “So am I.”
I rolled my eyes. “Another corny line in another corny story.”
“It’s not that corny!” he protested.
“It’s rather predictable.” I admitted, folding my arms across my ribs.
“Not really. I mean, that twist at the end with Zan really blew me away.”
“But that’s expected!” I pointed out. “Stories always follow the same structure: in the beginning there is always a type of challenge, then -”
Charlie interrupted me with a kiss: the first one we shared in what seemed life forever. I inwardly sighed with content, realizing how much I missed moments like this. Charlie leaned over and whispered:
“And they always end with a kiss.”
Ultimate by Ivona Queens
Chapter Notes: The last chapter. =( I'm sorry for making you guys wait for sooo long! Trust me, I'm punishing myself by watching bad soap operas...*shudder*
A HUGE round of applause for fireflower for Beta-ing this chapter...the whole fic, actually! Without her, this would just be a gramatical nightmare.