The Quidditch Pitch - Oliver Wood Love Story

In the End

Serena nodded and they bolted back to the common room to tell their friends.

"Whose skeleton?" asked Maggie as Serena and Jade just finished explaining what they saw. The four girls were sitting in their dormitory. Jade wasn't ready to go back to the seventh year dormitory just yet.

"We don't know," said Serena. "That's all we saw. But, it's bad news."

"What's going to happen now?" asked Olivia. Their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Come in," said Serena. The door opened and Marcus Flint was standing there.

"Professor Snape wants everyone in the common room," he said. Without another word he headed down the stairs to the common room. Serena and her friends exchanged glances before following the rest of the Slytherins down the stairs.

Professor Snape was waiting for them by the fire. The students gathered around. Serena tried to read his facial expression and from what she gathered, he was not about to tell them good news. Everyone was quiet waiting for him to speak.

"You all are to start packing up your belongings. The Hogwarts Express will be here tomorrow morning to bring you all home. I'm afraid due to unforeseen circumstances, the school will be closing," said Snape. The whole common room burst into chatter.

"Closing!" shrieked a seventh year girl. "But what about my N.E.W.T.s?"

"I can't go home yet!" yelled a second year boy. "My parent's aren't back from holiday!"

"I don't want to leave!" yelled another girl.

"I thought they'd caught the monster!"

"What about our exams?"

"What's really going on?"

Professor Snape held up his hand and the chatter has ceased.

"You all are to go straight up to your dormitories, pack your things, and stay there. There will be no wandering the corridors tonight and you shall be escorted to the train station tomorrow morning. Off to bed."

Snape had left the common room without another word. Serena was suddenly thinking about Oliver and what he must be doing at this moment. This wasn't how she wanted the school year to end. She wanted to spend the last few days with him before they went home for the summer. Was Professor McGonagall in the Gryffindor common room telling the Gryffindors the same thing?

"Come on, Rena," said Olivia as they were making their way back to the common room. "We should gather up our things."

Packing up her trunk was a dull affair. She didn't want to leave. She had devoted her whole year to Quidditch and she only ended up playing one full match. She was utterly disappointed and she wouldn't be able to spend any time with Oliver.

Serena lie awake in bed that night thinking about Oliver and whispered back and forth with Olivia and Maggie.

"At least there's always next year," said Maggie. "Poor Jade won't get another chance, though."

"She's probably having a celebration," said Olivia. "As much as she was not looking forward to her N.E.W.T.s."

"Half of my year was spent in the bloody hospital," said Serena. "I can't believe they're just sending us home like this."

"And who know if we will be able to come back next year," said Olivia. "If this monster is still on the loose, we may never get to come back."

Serena rolled over not wanting to think about it. She had really made a mess of her first year as Captain of the Quidditch team and now it was all over. If they wouldn't be able to come back to school, her opportunities of making it as a professional Quidditch player would be nothing more than a dream.