"Just wear it." Hermione was situated on my bed, twirling her Gryffindor scarf in her fingers.
I shook my head. "I can't." I took the scarf around my neck off swiftly, throwing it into the open trunk at the end of my bed.
"Why not?" Hermione asked. The look on her face was one of annoyance.
We'd been in my dorm room for about an hour, debating back and forth whether or not I should wear George's scarf to the upcoming Quidditch match.
And by upcoming, I mean about 30 minutes.
It was Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor, and seeing as I didn't really have any friends in Ravenclaw, I'd have to settle with supporting Gryffindor.
Not that I minded. Both Harry and Fred were on the team, great players too.
It was George that worried me the most.
I feared he'd be bloody pissed, more so than he already seemed to be, that I would have the audacity to wear his scarf when we were no longer on speaking terms, possibly no longer friends.
I grabbed my grey wool coat from the shared dorm closet. I quickly pulled it on over the white jumper I was wearing, hoping that if I got ready quick enough, Hermione would drop the whole scarf thing.
"I'm not wearing it. That's final." I said, my tone stern.
Hermione shrugged her shoulders and sighed, finally understanding the losing battle she was fighting.
"Alright, but if you get cold, you're not borrowing mine." She stood up from the bed, walking over to me. We linked arms and set out for the Quidditch pitch.
By the time we arrived, both teams were already in the air, getting in a bit of extra practice. I looked up towards the few Gryffindor players in the air, hoping to see George, but to no avail.
The wind was a bit more on the vicious side and it whipped against Hermione and I wildly as we made our way up the stands to where the rest of Gryffindor was sitting.
Hermione and I squeezed past Ron to our normal seats whenever Gryffindor played someone who wasn't Hufflepuff. I took a seat on the chilly wooden bench, almost shooting right back up from how cold it was to the touch.
I looked down towards the pitch, scanning for George, but was shocked to see Emmie happily chatting with Fred, a scarlet and gold hat placed neatly upon her head. It was obviously a little bit too big, as she kept having to adjust it every time she moved her head. A scarf of the same color was wrapped around her neck. No doubtley both clothing items belonged to Fred. She giggled as he said something, then dashed off towards the stands, waving goodbye as she did.
I smiled. At least one of us was getting somewhere with the Weasley's.
The few players in the air swiftly landed, walking towards their separate teams.
Both teams huddled around one another, no doubt taking the last few seconds to talk strategy.
After a minute or so, Madame Hooch blew her whistle and both teams made their way towards the middle of the field.
That's when I spotted George.
It felt weird seeing him for the first time since the fight. He looked tired, worried even. I thought about how hard Oliver had been working the Gryffindor team. Maybe that's why he looked so worn out.
He scanned the crowds, for what I wasn't sure. His eyes darted back and forth, but never once landed on me.
I sighed and Hermione patted me on the shoulder, although I was sure she didn't understand why.
Still, it was nice to know I had support.
The two teams mounted their brooms and flew into the air, taking their normal places before the match.
Madame Hooch looked up at the players smiling. She opened the set of Quidditch balls, letting the snitch fly into the air. It zipped around Harry, then the Ravenclaw Seeker before flying off and out of sight.
She unlatched the clasp on the two Bludgers and quickly threw the Quaffle into the air, hoping to not get whacked by the Bludgers.
The Chasers on both teams quickly dove for the Quaffle, starting the entertaining commentary from Lee Jordan.
"Alright folks! Who's ready for another great match today?!" Cheering erupted from the stands. "That's what I like to hear! And right off the bat we've got Angelina Johnson with the Quaffle! Oh and Roger Davies is right on her tail!"
I, as well as everyone else around me, watched with anticipation as Angelina raced down the field, doing her best to stay out of Roger's reach. Just as Angelina was about to throw the Quaffle towards the goal post, another Ravenclaw Chaser t-boned her, sending both Angelina and the Quaffle flying.
"Excellent defense by Randolph Burrow!" Lee's voice echoed through the stands. "And Randolph Burrow's got the Quaffle! And he's passing to Roger Davies and- oh! Nice interception by Katie Bell!"
Katie circled back towards the Ravenclaw goal post. She looked back, checking for anyone behind her. In her distracted state. she didn't notice the Bludger heading straight for her.
"Woah, woah, woah! Look ou-" The Bludger hit Katie hard, and her broom spun wildly, sending her tumbling towards the ground. "Oooo." Lee, as well as all the spectators, cringed. "That'll leave a nasty mark."
Ravenclaw now had the Quaffle and with one of the Gryffindor Chasers being out of the game momentarily, Ravenclaw had the upper hand. Ravenclaw's third Chaser, Jeremy Stretton, raced towards Gryffindor's goal post. Oliver was the last line of defense.
"Come on Wood! You've got this! And- YES! Look at that defense! Have you ever seen a better Keeper!?" McGonagall shot Lee a stern look. "I mean, nice defense by Oliver Wood." He said calmly.
The game went on, back and forth, as both teams scored points. Lee's commentary boomed through the stands, making the game that much more exciting.
"And look at that amazing hit by Fred Weasley! Merlin, what I'd give to have muscles like those!" Fred playfully winked at Lee, and Lee winked back and laughed. "And a nice hit back by Jason Samuels!"
I watched as George chased down the Bludgers as it sped towards Alicia Spinnet. He got in front of the Bludgers and smacked it so hard with his bat, an audible crack was heard across the pitch.
"And look at George Weasley being a knight in shining armor for Alicia Spinnet. Hey George, wanna be my knight too?" George nodded and laughed before continuing on with the game. "And McGonagall's giving me a look so back to the game!"
I looked up to see Cho Chang nervously sitting atop her broom, scanning the field for the snitch. She suddenly dove, as did Harry.
"And looks like we've got a snitch sighting!" Everyone watched as the two Seekers zipped around the field. They both eventually slowed and resumed their place above the field. "Better luck next time Seekers."
The game continued until both teams were finally tied up. Surprisingly, neither Seeker had seen the Snitch. There had been false sightings, but it seemed as though the Snitch had completely disappeared from the game.
So far, Duncan Inglebee had been knocked off his broom by a Bludger, Fred had narrowly avoided being knocked in the head by Jason's bat, Grant and Oliver were both wonderfully defending, and almost every Chaser had almost been knocked from their broom.
Currently, Jeremy had the Quaffle, Alicia and Katie chasing him down. They both slammed into him from either side, knocking the Quaffle from his hand.
"That'll be the closest Jeremy ever gets to a woman, but look at that amazing catch by Katie Bell!" Lee said quickly, distracting from his rude jab at Jeremy.
Katie made a sharp turn, racing back towards the Ravenclaw goal post. Roger sped across the field from where he was, quickly catching up to Katie.
He slammed into the back of her broom as if they were bumper cars, and she was knocked forward from the sudden momentum. The Quaffle flew from her hands and everyone watched with anticipation, wondering who would catch it.
George, who was situated by the Ravenclaw goal post, was oblivious to what had just happened. He hit a stray Bludger, sending it Roger's way.
The Quaffle, still soaring through the air, almost reached the Ravenclaw goal post. George turned around at the last minute and the Quaffle landed with a thud in his arms. The crowd gasped.
The game seemed to freeze.
George had the Quaffle in one hand, bat in the other. All the players on the field looked around, wondering what should be done. They all looked at each other, quite confused. I'm sure they were all thinking the same thing.
If Weasley scores, does it count?
The match was tied up, both teams needed only one more score to win. George could easily make the goal from where he was, there was no doubt about that.
But would the points count?
With everyone's confusion, George threw the Quaffle towards the goal post. In Grant Page's confusion, he didn't even try to block the Quaffle.
With that, everyone looked to Lee.
He stuttered and stammered into the microphone for a moment, turning to look at the professor's situated around him. They all shrugged and Lee looked down to where Madame Hooch was standing.
I don't think anyone but Lee could see her face, but Lee's suddenly broke into a smile. "And with the final point coming from Mister George Weasley himself, GRYFFINDOR WINS!"
The Gryffindor spectators, as well as those supporting them, burst into a cheering fit. The stands were overwhelmingly loud, and students rushed onto the pitch as the players all landed. Hermione and Ron pushed past me, leaving me alone in the stands.
Students surrounded George, hugging him, slapping him on the back, congratulating him. He looked around, the biggest smile on his face.
He looked up towards the stands, his face becoming somber for a moment. He scanned the crowd, once again looking for someone.
But he quickly turned away, smiling once more at the adoring crowd around him.