"Here we go," said Heather. "Feeling good?"
Cassie tied her hair back and bit her lip. "I don't know if I -"
Mona slapped a hand on Cassie's shoulder before she could continue. "Sure you can. You caught the snitch last game, didn't you?"
I felt a smile coming but tried to suppress it as I listened.
"Only because -"
"Well, we're not allowed to foul so often anymore, but that doesn't mean you can't catch the snitch. Malfoy's broom is a lot faster than Beard's. For sure." Mona gave Cassie a sure smile and then turned to me. "Speaking of Malfoy. Don't get changed just yet, Esther. He's outside waiting for you."
"Scorpius?" I asked.
Mona nodded. "Wants to see you." She smirked. "Apparently it's urgent."
I folded my Quidditch robes back up and walked out of the room. Scorpius was waiting for me outside the locker rooms, his arms crossed over his chest.
"Hey," I said. "If you weren't aware, I've got an important match soon and I'm not yet in my robes."
"It won't take long," he said. "I just wanted to say that I was rooting for you. Good luck and that."
"Thanks. Any particular reason you needed to tell me this, though?"
"This is the semifinals, Esther."
"Yes?"
"If you win this, you'll be through to the finals. Slytherin slipped up against Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor is undefeated, remember? That means either you or Ravenclaw is going in to the finals."
My eyes probably tripled in size. "Oh."
"Were you not aware?"
"Not completely."
Scorpius smiled. "You really are a Hufflepuff."
"Through and through. In what way are you saying this time, though?"
"You want to win so badly but are so caught up in diligently working out strategies that you are in no way aware of the rankings or the enormity of the upcoming match."
"Okay, you're freaking me out now," I said. "I liked it better when you were rooting for me."
"Still am," he said. "I don't care about Ravenclaw too much and want Albus Potter's head bashed in by a bludger."
I raised my eyebrows.
"Metaphorically speaking," said Scorpius, grinning.
"Nice metaphor."
"Not entirely sure what it's a metaphor for."
"Me neither."
"Reminds me," he said. "Holly sent a message."
"Oh? Something about Ravenclaw's superiority?"
"You got it." Scorpius stuck his hands into his pockets. "You should probably go play some Quidditch, you Hufflepuff."
"Go watch some Quidditch, you Slytherin. You have to get a good view of the incredible playing that's about to happen."
"I look forward to it," he said. "Later, Dursley."
He raised his hand and saluted me before disappearing.
~~~
In a sentence; my team was working together seamlessly.
In a paragraph; Yellow streaked across the pitch, followed by a blur of blue. Cassie was the seeker being followed rather than the seeker following for once. Geronimo swooped close by, but not to foul. Instead, he inched in the way of the bludger just in time to send it spinning away, allowing Cassie to keep her focus on the snitch a few feet in front of her. Heather intercepted the bludger and targeted a Ravenclaw chaser, causing him to fumble his shot on target, making it an easy save for me. Mona soared in an arc, the quaffle landing neatly in one hand. Hugo and Oliver flanked her, driving straight through the Ravenclaw chasers and I felt ready to burst with pride.
I knew that we had won our game against Slytherin fairly dishonestly, but apparently a single victory had been enough to boost everybody's confidence enough to play an incredible - and more importantly, clean - game. True Hufflepuff fashion.
Rehmat was firing off comments so fast, I could barely keep up with him. "Looked like a good clean pass to Weasley, but perhaps that's only the angle. Unfortunate for Hufflepuff there as Ravenclaw's Henson regains possession. Meanwhile, it looks like the seekers have lost sight of the snitch again. That's the third false alarm in this game alone, each and every one led by Hufflepuff. It seems that after she caught the snitch when Hufflepuff played Slytherin, Klein simply cannot be stopped!"
It was true. Maybe it was the confidence boost that our victory had given her, maybe it was because the weather was the clearest it had been in a long time, but she was suddenly more capable at seeing the snitch than she ever had been before. Even though we were using our same old World Cup inspired tactics, Ravenclaw was either falling for it or incapable of defending against it, and Cassie seemed to be gearing up to catch the snitch regardless.
When the quaffle was heading away from me again, I risked a quick look up into the stands. There was a sea of yellow directly to my right, the group along the edges waving their scarves enthusiastically. I could make out Holly's blue sweater and head of unruly curls among the yellow and, through processes of deduction, noticed Sawyer's darker hair beside her. Though he looked fairly unhappy about the whole affair, I was glad he had at least shown up.
"Nice shot by Dice makes the score ten to one-fifty with Hufflepuff leading. It's Ravenclaw's Ludwig to Henson, a nice toss up to Rush who dives down. Dunlop can't quite intercept but that was a valiant effort and it's between Rush and Dursley now."
I kept one hand on my broom, one ready to block the shot. When Rush threw the quaffle, I dodged right, my hand outstretched, but wasn't quick enough. My fingers skimmed the material of the ball and while it started a topspin, it didn't knock the quaffle off course. It sailed through my right hoop, the telltale ding ringing out across the stadium. Cursing, I spiraled back and caught the quaffle, tossing it up to an expectant Hugo, who pointed his broom up to dodge a bludger.
Heather flew in to redirect it. "No worries, Esther. Couldn't quite get the bludger over in enough time to intercept," she called, assuaging my nerves. "And Cassie's on top form. Think we'll get another one fiifty from her?"
"Fingers crossed," I shouted back.
I hovered in front of my goal posts, feeling slightly awkward as I always did after letting in a goal. The game moved quickly. I saved three more shots, though one was a close call and I had to deflect it using my head. That one got some laughs from the crowd, as well. Mona scored twice and I held by breath as Oliver's shot went awry, only to be fumbled by the flustered goalkeeper and accidentally knocked through a hoop.
That put us far enough ahead for anybody to catch the snitch and have us win.
I watched as Hugo dove underneath a Ravenclaw beater and passed backwards to Oliver - a move they had been working to perfect during practice. As the most active of our seekers, Mona knew that the opposition would worry most about her, so she hung back, distracting two of the Ravenclaws long enough for Hugo and Oliver to slip through and approach the hoops.
Unfortunately, though, the beaters in blue weren't so easily caught off guard. A burly seventh year glided into place, using both hands to whack a bludger towards the oncoming Hufflepuff chasers. The smack resonated across the pitch, making me wince.
I winced harder when I saw the damage the bludger would do, but not as bad as Hugo would.
The Hufflepuff crowd was sent into a noisy panic and Rehmat's commentary was cut off as they watched what happened. The bludger hit the broom right where Hugo's hand was positioned and the force pushed him hard enough that he slipped right off, tumbling head over heels towards the green beneath, the quaffle falling after him and the pieces of his broken broom.
"Well," said Rehmat. "That doesn't look good."
Despite myself, I directed my broom and zoomed as fast as I could toward him, dodging a Ravenclaw beater and catching up with others in yellow trying to rescue Hugo. One of the Hufflepuffs peeled off to the right, but I took no notice, my attention on Hugo and the quaffle.
I was forced to skid to a stop as fast as I could to avoid colliding with Geronimo, who had reached the scene first. He swooped underneath Hugo, awkwardly grabbing his robes. Hugo was able to grab at Geronimo's broom. The two of them began descending quickly from the added weight as they struggled to get Hugo securely on to the broomstick, but I approached at a more controlled speed and secured them enough.
Rehmat had started up again, at an even faster pace than before. "In the aftermath, Ludwig secures the quaffle, bringing back towards Hufflepuff defense, but Dursley is halfway down the pitch, concerned with the state of her chaser at the moment. It's Ludwig...Henson...back to Ludwig, with Henson and Hufflepuff's Dunlop following behind."
As he spoke, I was hit on the head from above, where Mona was hovering. "Esther! What the hell are you doing? Get back to your posts! We can't let in a goal now!"
She pointed urgently at the chaser with the quaffle. I looked to Hugo, whose face was white.
"My broom," he whimpered. "That was a gift."
I wanted that beater's face bashed in with a bludger. Metaphorically speaking, of course.
Geronimo also gestured towards my posts, breaking me out of my furious thoughts. "I'll get him to the ground. Get moving!"
I saw sense and obeyed, swooping in an arc and flying back as fast as my broom would take me. Luckily Heather and Oliver were still focusing and kept the chasers back long enough so I could dive in front of the incoming quaffle. I didn't have enough time to get close enough to catch, but by throwing out my hand and hitting with my palm, I knocked it off course enough that it bounced off the hoop and didn't fall through.
Oliver whooped. "Nicely done, captain!"
I had to sit still on my broom and take a breather after that, using the time to think through what had happened. We were going to be forced to play a man down until the rest of the match, because Hugo's hand was most likely broken and his broom smashed to pieces as well. Mona and Oliver's options were more limited and the job of the defense was made easier as there was no longer a third person they could pass to. A pass was intercepted and I could see Mona cursing under her breath as she flattened herself against her broom and darted between the Ravenclaw chasers as they headed back towards me.
"-and in the midst of all that commotion surrounding Weasley, Klein has found sight of the snitch once again! Ravenclaw seeker Xander Beard is struggling to keep up as they move quickly towards the Ravenclaw section of the stands. I can definitely see a blur of gold and...did she do it?"
The blue robes overtook the yellow. Cassie sat on her broom as Beard rocketed forward, snitch in hand.
The game was over, so I was able to safely leave my three posts undefended and land as quickly as I could, running across the field to the locker rooms, where Hugo had been escorted after Geronimo dropped him off. The rest of the team joined me, whooping and cheering.
"Esther! Esther!"
Mona tried to throw an arm around me but I pushed it back off.
"Where's Hugo?" I asked. "How badly is he hurt?"
"Nothing permanent," said Mona. "We'll all go up and bring him chocolates in a minute."
"Aren't you concerned?"
"Of course we are," said Geronimo, "but we just won the match, Esther."
I froze. "Did we?"
Cassie grinned and gave me the thumbs up. "I kept pretending I had seen the snitch to put Xander on edge. When I actually did see the snitch, I purposefully missed it. He was panicking enough to catch it while we were still far enough ahead with the points."
I raised my eyebrows. "And you didn't tell me?"
Cassie frowned. "We weren't sure whether or not it would work, and didn't want to worry you."
"My idea," said Mona, beaming. "You're welcome."
~~~
I stopped in front of Hugo's bed, letting out an involuntary, "Oh."
Rose Weasley looked up from where she was sat, in the chair besides her brother's bed. She had pinched one of his chocolate frogs and had the card on her lap. "Hello, Esther. Hugo's asleep."
"Right."
There were a few moments of silence.
"I'll come back later," I said.
"Do you have something to tell him or are you just here to see him? There's no need for you to rush off because I'm here." Rose pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, looking awkward. "I'll leave if you'd prefer to see Hugo alone."
"No, it's okay. It was stupid of me to not realize that family would want to visit him. I've already been over once with the Quidditch team. You take all the time you need."
Rose gave a small smile. "He's got a broken hand, Esther. Nothing Skelegro can't fix."
"I know. Sorry, Rose. I'm...nervous, is all."
"Because of me?"
I faltered.
Rose's shoulders slumped and she glanced at Hugo, who was drooling in his sleep, one arm throw up over his face. "You and Hugo get along so well nowadays. I don't know why it should still feel awkward between you and I."
"We've never spoken very much," I said, "and I hadn't had any reason to talk with Hugo extensively until he tried out for Quidditch this year."
"That's true," said Rose. "Maybe we should start to talk more, Esther, and we stop having awkward, unpleasant meetings."
It was strange; how when somebody else voiced their problems, ones so similar to mine, I always had a solution or explanation right on hand. Yet when I thought about the problems in context with myself, they always seemed inconquerable. Was that the root of my issue with the Potters? That we had never interacted enough to get to know each other beyond our preconceived notions that we inherited from our parents?
Watching Hugo sleep, I was starting to think that that was it all was after all.
"I'd like that a lot," I said.
"It's funny," she said, "that my feelings towards you have always been an involuntary reaction, I think. You seem like a very nice person, someone I could get along with splendidly. But because of the relationship our parents had, I feel like wanting to be your friend would be taboo."
"I understand. It's how I feel, too."
"I got over Scorpius's family baggage very quickly, but never made it to you. That's inexcusable."
I shrugged. "Don't blame yourself. Like you said, it was involuntary, and I wasn't exactly helping matters by acting the same way."
"Well," said Rose. "It's good that we're on the same page."
I grinned. "Yes."
"You've done wonders with Hugo," she said. "I never would've expected him to be such a great Quidditch player." Her eyes widened. "That's not what I meant. I never expected him to be as confident and assure in his skill as he is. Oh dear. That still doesn't sound right."
"You didn't expect so much of Hufflepuffs," I said, shrugging. "It's fine, Rose. I am a badger myself. It's not like I haven't heard it before."
"I didn't mean that either. You're putting words in my mouth, or false meaning to my words. One or the other. I would never underestimate a Hufflepuff. There are lots of great people from your house. Newt Scamander, for one."
Rose passed me the chocolate frog card on her lap, though Scamander had long since found more interesting places to be, leaving his picture empty. Rose turned red when she had to pause and think of more Hufflepuffs.
"Cedric Diggory," I offered. "Helga Hufflepuff herself."
"Artemisia Lufkin" said Rose, perking up. "She was the first female Minsister for Magic and a Hufflepuff! The Hufflepuff Bridget Wenlock was first to realize that the number seven has magical properties and the least number of dark wizards and witches come from your house."
I nodded. "In some views, that makes us boring."
"Or just better people."
"Not quite," I said. "When Hugo got injured on the pitch, I wanted to smash that beater's face in. Metaphorically, I suppose, but all the same."
She laughed. "That's loyalty right there, and dedication to your team." She patted Hugo's hand and smiled. "You badgers are through to the final, then."
"Who are you rooting for?"
"Now my own house has been knocked out, I'm not sure," she said. "I never had to choose like this before."
"No," I said. "When was the last time Hufflepuff went to the finals?"
"Teddy Lupin brought the team there," she said. "That was the first time in a long time, though. That team wasn't led by a muggleborn, either."
I turned red around the ears.
"That was meant as a compliment, Esther," she said. "I think it's incredible what you've done. You hadn't touched a broomstick until first year and you didn't know what Quidditch even was but now you're captain of a Quidditch team that's made it to the finals. You should be proud. I know Hugo has tons of respect for you."
I turned even redder. "Thanks, Rose."
"Any time."
I finally sat down, perching on the edge of Hugo's bed, watching his chest slowly rise and fall with sleep. Rose and I sat together in companionable silence until we were shooed away. We weren't looking at each other or saying anything, but it was nice all the same, knowing that the chasm we had both saw between us had been a mirage all along.