Aria Black and the Prisoner of Azkaban *Re-Write*

A Hero From a Book or Something

Diggory drops to the ground, Snitch buzzing in his palm. He approaches Oliver, looking confused. "What happened?" He asks.

Oliver cannot speak. I step forward. "Harry fell off his broom as the dementors attacked him."

Diggory's brows furrow. "Before I caught it?"

We nod. "Just leave it alone, mate." George says darkly.

Diggory shakes his head. "I'll have a rematch! If Potter fell because of the dementors-"

"No." Oliver chokes out. "You won."

He turns on his heel and trudges toward the showers. I chase after him. "Oliver!"

Oliver stops in the locker room. I put a hand in his shoulder, which he swats away.

Embarrassed, I withdraw. "We did our best, Oliver." I tell him. "The rain was hard, and the dementors-"

"Just stop." Oliver snaps. "It's over, Aria. It's over. I need to-I need to shower."

I sigh. "Oliver, it's not over. If Hufflepuff-"

"Please go away." He whispers, voice catching. Oliver looks heartbroken, like his puppy just died. I can't help but feel like he blames me for the loss.

"I thought you'd want me here."

Oliver shakes his head. His head is facing downward. He cannot meet my eyes. "I didn't ask you to be here. Just go. It's over." He says. Tears fill Oliver's eyes. "It's over, and there's nothing you can do about it."

"I tried, Oliver, I tried my best." I tell him. He doesn't reply. I head for the door, dejected. Before I leave, I turn around one last time. "You could do a lot worse, you know. I'm here. That's more than everyone else."

The twins are outside the door to the male locker room. Both look defeated and let down.

I finally break down when the door closes. My eyes fill with tears and I collapse into George's open arms.

"I messed it up!" I sob into his chest. "I messed it up!"

George runs my back soothingly. "No, Ari, no." He murmurs. "You didn't mess it up. You did the best you could."

"You were playing in the pouring down rain on your third day as a Quidditch player." Fred says. "And you scored two goals. Ari, that's bloody incredible."

I lean back and wipe my tears away. "I-I just feel like I let everyone down."

"You tried, Ari." George says.

"That's what matters." His twin finishes.

I nod, trying to convince myself. I did try. I tried my hardest. With the conditions, I guess it's the best I could have done with two days of training. They're right.

Fred leans down. "Ari, you should go shower in the prefects' bathroom. Ange and Alicia are doing the same thing. They think it'd be good for you to go up there."

"Okay." I say. I move to the stairs, but whirl around. "Guys, just-" they peer up at me, ready for directions. They would do whatever I asked. My best friends. "keep an eye on him for me, will you? I'll meet you in the Hospital Wing to see Harry."