Heavenly Waters||Sirius Black

Chapter 20

Gwen's melancholy did not ease following her discussion with Dumbledore, though she had a rather good explanation for why. 

The weather. 

Unfortunately, the sky had taken the same shade as the set of eyes she longed to see. Grey, tinged with the faintest potential of blue skies. Grey that felt like a blanket of secrets, shrouding her and the rest of Hogwarts castle. Though today, the grey felt unkind. Greenish mist mocks the rich emerald of the grass that stretches across the middle of the quidditch pitch. Rain has turned the sand a shade of beige that reminds her of the sand she would scoop up from the shallows of the sea, letting the water and grains drip from her hands and form castles that were far more rugged than the one she called home for so long. 

She frowns when a drop of rain slips between her eyes, unable to resist crossing them to watch the droplet of water race down her face. A puff of warm air causes her to right her gaze, her head turning to the side slightly to catch the affectionate smile on Minerva McGonagall's face. Gwen's relationship with the Professor's of Hogwarts had felt strained those first twenty four hours after the fat lady's portrait had been vandalized. It hadn't lasted long though. In fact, Minerva and Pomona Sprout had insisted on having tea during their free periods the following days. It was helpful, to have company. Remus was sick, recovering from the full moon, and when Gwen was alone, she found that she spent most of her time staring at her favorite painting in her office. 

"Lovely weather for a quidditch match," Gwen bites back a grin at Filius' begrudging tone, lifting her chin over her shoulder to find him bundled up on the seat above hers. She can't resist saying plainly, "Couldn't agree more. I know how you love the rain, Fil." 

The head of Ravenclaw crinkles his nose, lips twitching into a reluctant smile. Gwen turns back to the pitch, eyeing the students that zip by on their brooms. She can't resist it any more. She smiles, too easily recalling a time where a certain Slytherin had worn her Ravenclaw scarf and shared whiskey with her and her friends. Little. Merlin, she hadn't recognized this feeling for twelve years, at least not when it came to Remus and Regulus. She missed them, missed the way they used to be. She couldn't help but hope they would get back to that place soon. 

It takes her less than a second to find Harry, her heart warming despite the cold. He looks energized despite the dreary weather, he flies with ease despite every hard gust of wind. The professors around her jump when theres a sudden loud crack of thunder, the lightening so close she can feel the ground humming with energy. Her smile grows. 

Harry dodges a surprisingly aggressive Hufflepuff, shouting something to a young witch Gwen couldn't quite recognize through the curtains of rain. Harry takes to the skies above the stands, and when he spins past them, close enough for Minerva to gasp and for Dumbledore to peer around the edge of the stand, she nearly lets out a laugh. She couldn't wait to go to sleep. James would be thrilled to hear that his son had most definitely inherited his affinity for flight. 

Gwen loses track of him in the thick clouds, only catching glimpses of red chasing yellow, the Hufflepuff seeker evidently closest to the snitch. She frowns a little, tilting her head slightly to the side. Theres another crack of lightening, and the hairs on her arms begin to stand. Something settles in her chest when thunder rumbles the stands. Panic. Another zip of white that illuminates the darkening clouds, and then Gwen sees it. 

Falling rapidly towards the ground is that flash of yellow she'd seen earlier. The Hufflepuff seeker is unconscious, his body slumped over his broom and barely hanging on. For a moment, she forgets Harry, caught up in the chaos as someone casts a spell to halt the rapid descent of the student. She exhales shakily when he's safely brought to the ground, beginning to nod as Minerva scolds, "We should call the match! It is far too dangerous--"