PRINCESS ➳ harry potter , draco malfoy (OLD VERSION)

85 || Nothing Like His Father

She didn't take his hand again but he followed her anyway — tracing her footsteps all the way to the centre of the Quidditch pitch, where Katie dropped the crate and turned on her heel to face the blonde boy. She stood still, staring at him, as though he was a magician and she was waiting for him to preform a great magic trick.

"Well?" she said finally. "Mount your broom."

Although he didn't like to be told what to do, Draco found himself subconsciously obeying Katie's command. He threw his leg over the broomstick and it rose no more than three feet into the air. Katie kicked open the crate and opened the small crest embroidered on the inside, revealing the glimmering Golden Snitch.

She opened her palm and the Snitch took off, like a dove at a wedding. Draco watched it soar away in a blur of gold and, when Katie told him to, he kicked off from the ground.

A burst of wind exploded in Katie's face as Draco bolted into the air. The Shooting Star was very jerky and considerably slower than the Slytherin's usual sleek, green Nimbus 2001. As Draco was flying around the pitch, he preformed many loops and dives, making Katie groan and pinch the bridge of her nose. Nevertheless, he caught the Snitch rather quickly and landed back on the ground with a soft thud and a confident grin gleaming on his face. Huffing, Katie shook her head in disappointment.

"You're ruddy useless, you know that?" she said.

Draco was offended; evident by his pursed lips and twisting eyebrows. "What do you mean? I caught that Snitch in twenty seconds flat!"

"Yeah, on the pitch alone. It's honestly a wonder you've ever managed to win us any games at all."

"As if you could do any better, Blair." Draco scoffed, but he couldn't stop a subtle smile from forming on his face. Katie, however, didn't notice this as she had become too caught up in lecturing Draco on his approach to Quidditch tactics.

"Your technique is shocking. Looping like that isn't going to help when there's thirteen other players on the pitch, Draco. You'll lose sight of the Snitch in a snap, get dizzy and might even crash into someone. Not only that, but you're leaning on your broom wrong. Your back is too stiff, you're going to hurt yourself and your broom won't accelerate properly if you're sitting up straight like that — and also, you should put your wand hand in front of the other when gripping the handle — it gives your turns better control. And don't even get me started on—"

Katerina didn't get the chance to finish her sentence. Draco had pressed his lips to hers, bringing an abrupt end to her lecture. Her eyes widened in shock and her breath got caught in her throat. Her head was spinning with a million thoughts and her heart was beating like a drum, but that didn't stop her from placing her hand on the side of Draco's face and kissing him back.

At that moment, a large cloud overhead parted, revealing the gleaming sun. It shone down on the Quidditch pitch and Katie felt its gentle heat as it bathed the side of her face.

Their lips parted. Katie kept her eyes closed for a few lingering moments and a smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Her eyes fluttered open and met Draco's, who was gazing down at her with an expression that the witch could not read.

The sound of distant voices caught the attention of the sixth years. Draco's hand slipped away from Katie's waist and she felt cold at the loss of contact. The two took a step away from each other, and not a moment too soon, because the Gryffindor Quidditch team came pooling onto the pitch in a stream of scarlet, led by their captain, Harry Potter.

Harry froze when he saw Katie standing all but a few feet ahead of him. His eyes danced between Katie and Draco.

"Katie." Harry said quietly, nodding his head in greeting.