CHAPTER TEN:

QUIDDITCH BLUES

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      Absentmindedly, Nova fiddled with the fake Galleon Granger had passed out at the last D.A. meeting. She twisted it back and forth between her fingers, staring at the coin in the Slytherin common room as Theo relentlessly answered Charms questions Greengrass was throwing at him. Nova knew the magic behind the Galleon (and as one of the members had pointed out, it was a N.E.W.T. level spell) but even she couldn't help but stare at it in awe. Granger had outdone herself this time.

      "What is the official name of the Amplifying Charm?" Greengrass asked as Theo ran a hand through his messy hair, his eyes looking up, as if the ceiling would provide him the answer. 

      "Sonorus," Theo said after a moment of thinking. Greengrass gave him a wide smile and nodded her head enthusiastically. "You're serious? I got that right? Oh, thank Merlin."

      "I told you you'd be fantastic, Theodore," she commented, giving him another wide smile when he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "I think we deserve a break. Want to take a walk?"

      Theo sent a wave to Nova, who lazily waved back as the two headed out of the common room. Once they were gone, Nova slid the Galleon back in her pocket. It was a lazy Saturday for her, spent in bed for the most part. Granted, that was before Parkinson had started stuttering on and on to Bulstrode about how Malfoy had officially asked her out and she "didn't understand what had changed his mind."

     Needless to say, Nova hadn't been able to fall asleep after that moment.

     "Nott," Blaise Zabini said, plopping down into a seat next to her. For once, she was grateful for the distraction. Zabini didn't annoy her nearly as much as her other housemates did. "You going to the game today?"

      She would have liked to say that she had no idea what game he was talking about, but it was all anyone could talk about for the past two weeks. Everyone in Slytherin was mentioning it; Nova couldn't get through a meal without hearing the words "Slytherin, Gryffindor, or Quidditch." It was getting on her nerves.

      "Do I have a choice?" Nova replied, rolling her eyes. She knew either Theo of Malfoy would drag her out there anyway, though her bet was on the former, since the latter was actually playing. 

      Zabini shrugged. "Suppose not."

      Nova guessed going to the match wouldn't be the worst thing. From her limited conversations with Granger, Potter, and the Weasley siblings in the D.A. meetings, it was Ron Weasley's first Quidditch game. She didn't want to admit it (and she never would, out loud) but she felt a rush of excitement when she thought of the game. Maybe Weasley would surprise her and be an amazing Quidditch player.

      "C'mon," Zabini said, offering his hand to her. She gripped his fingers and pulled herself up off the couch, smoothing down the Slytherin green dress she was wearing. Her black trench coat was next to her, so she grabbed it and swung it over her shoulders. With a raised brow, she realized Zabini had also grabbed her hat and mittens and was offering them to her with a smirk. 

      "Attentive of you," she mentioned, rolling her eyes.

      "Just making sure you're alright," Zabini replied. When Nova turned to look at him, confusion written all over her face. "Malfoy mentioned what happened a few weeks ago."

      Nova had assumed. She had pretended not to notice the stares the Slytherin students had been sending her way all week. It was proving to be difficult, especially when most of the stares came from her brother, but she was doing her best to ignore them.

      "Of course he did," Nova said, rolling her eyes as they made their way out of the common room and towards the Great Hall. She and Zabini sat at the Slytherin table and loaded their plates with food. 

      "Morning," Malfoy said with a nod in Nova's direction. The Nott girl nodded back, hating how cold the exchange was but knowing there was no alternative unless she wanted to give up that last little piece of freedom she was determined to keep close. If she gave in (because she knew that while Malfoy said Pansy was probably the best he was going to get, Malfoy was the best Nova would get), it would just be verification of what her father wanted.

      She was determined to not let her father's choices be her own.

      "Excited for the game?" Theo asked Malfoy once he and Greengrass had returned. Greengrass smiled and sat directly next to Nova, her demeanor entirely too chipper for that early in the morning. 

      "Very," Malfoy mentioned, a smirk overtaking his features. He reached underneath him and pulled out a basket full of decorated crown badges. Nova couldn't see exactly what was written on them, but by the malicious expression on Malfoy's face, it wasn't words of encouragement. Still, she ignored them and took a sip of her orange juice. "Got these to celebrate Weasley's first game. Can't believe they actually let that weasel on the pitch. Oh, well. Johnson will regret that decision later."

      Weasley.

      The name made Nova's head whip around to face Malfoy once more, and her hand reached out on its own accord to grasp one. When she brought it back to her body, she saw the words 'Weasley is Our King' written across them in scrawled script. Nova's  mouth opened just slightly in shock, but Malfoy took this as a sign that she was impressed.

      "Genius, aren't they?" Malfoy asked, accepting the high-five from Nova's twin. Her eyes found her brother and she stared at him. "Theo was the one who came up with the idea. Says your father did something like this to Potter's dad when they were in school."

      Theo grinned, Greengrass letting out a peal of laughter as she snuggled closer to her boyfriend's side. Meanwhile, Nova was staring at Theo with disbelief in her eyes. She knew the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor was getting worse as the years at Hogwarts went on, but the fact that her own brother was behind something like this made her sick to her stomach.

      And made her feel even worse when she realized if she had never joined the D.A., she might have done the same. Laughed at the genius of it and worn it proudly at the match.

      "Father did this when he was in school?" Nova asked, her voice small. Theo looked over at her and gave her an apologetic look. "Did he encourage you to do this?"

      "Don't get upset, Nova," Theo stated, pulling away from Greengrass only slightly. "He just mentioned it, and I set the idea to action."

      Father mentioned it. Father was the reason Theo had made those stupid badges. Theo thought that Weasley was a blood traitor.

      Just like she had.

      But that was before she had known him. Sure, Weasley was a bit thick at times, but he wasn't a bad bloke. And the twins - wasn't she friendly with the twins? Or, as friendly as she could get, anyway? And though she hadn't spoken to Ginny Weasley much, they got on alright.

      Looking at Theo now, smirk on his mouth, reminded Nova of how she used to think just a mere two months ago.

      "I'll see you on the Quidditch Pitch. I just remembered I had to do something."

      Theo gave her a confused look when she stood, raising his brow when she gave him a one-armed hug and made her way out of the Great Hall. Luckily, she found the two she wanted to see without any trouble, Potter lugging along Weasley by the arm. The latter looked like he was going to be sick, and the former looked angry. Nova assumed he had seen the badges.

      "Potter! Weasley!" she called. The two twisted around and Potter gave her a meek smile. Weasley just looked like he was going to vomit any second. "You alright, Weasley?"

      "'M fine," he mumbled out, looking the opposite of what he was saying.

      Nova raised a brow. "Right. You look it." He gave her a glare, but she rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to say good luck. Slytherin's got Crabbe and Goyle, so I think you'll be fine, but still." Suddenly remembering she had a leftover badge in her hand, she made sure to hide it. "Look, Weasley, Slytherin's known for doing nasty things to the other Quidditch teams, so I just wanted to warn you. If they do something-"

      "Don't worry," Potter said, clapping Ron on the shoulder, "we've got this. Right, Ron?"

      Weasley looked like he was going to pass out, but he nodded at Potter's statement. 

      "Good. I'll be, er, in the stands then," Nova said, turning to walk away. The two watched her start to leave, and then straightened a bit when she faced them once more. "Weasley, I know this is your first game, so, erm... I'll be, er... rooting for you."

       He looked surprised before a small smile spread across his face. "Thanks, Nott."

      She nodded before walking away for good this time. When Ron looked up, he noticed Harry grinning down at him with the same expression that Fred and George had been flashing around all week. Ron groaned. "Not you, too!"

      "I didn't say anything," Harry replied, but he was still smirking when they made their way to the Quidditch Pitch. "Nothing at all."

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      Nova didn't mind Quidditch games. She wasn't crazy about them, but she didn't complain when Theo had used to drag her out. He could play if he wanted, but he mentioned several times that he preferred watching the game to actually playing. 

      She wished it were warmer outside. The sky was clear, so seeing the game wouldn't be hard, but she was shivering in her coat. Greengrass was on her right, giggling at something Theo said and Zabini sat on Nova's left. He looked down at the Nott girl every time she cursed underneath her breath when a particularly cold wind struck her. 

      The four houses in the stand erupted into screams and chants when the game started, and Nova watched the two captains waited for the Quaffle to be released. Once it was, the game began. Greengrass was shouting loudly, her voice shrill, but when Nova looked over, she had never seen a bigger smile on Theo's face. She figured a few hours of listening to Greengrass squeal was worth that sight. 

      "And it's Johnson," she could hear Lee shouting, "Johnson with the Quaffle, what a player that girl is. I've been saying it for years, but she still won't go out with me -"

      "JORDAN!" McGonagall yelled.

      "Just a fun fact, Professor, adds a bit of interest," Jordan continued as if McGonagall hadn't just ripped into him for being stupid. Thanks to the D.A., Nova had gotten quite used to Lee Jordan's antics. "And she's ducked Warrington, she's passed to Montague, she's - ouch -" Nova saw that Crabbe had smacked a Bludger in the direction of the Gryffindor captain, hitting the back of her and making her swerve, "been hit by a Bludger from Crabbe... Montague catches the Quaffle, Montague heading back up the pitch and-" George Weasley smacked his own Bludger into Montague, and Nova tried to hide her smirk, "nice Bludger there from George Weasley, that's a Bludger to the head for Montague. He drops the Quaffle, caught by Katie Bell, Katie Bell of Gryffindor reverse passes to Alicia Spinnet and Spinnet's away..."

      "C'mon, c'mon," Nova whispered underneath her breath.

       Suddenly, she heard the Slytherin crowd break into a song. Nova looked around, watching as everyone's mouth moved with the lyrics she obviously hadn't received. 

      Weasley cannot save a thing.

      He cannot block a single ring,

      That's why Slytherins all sing:

      Weasley is our King.

      Weasley was born in a bin,

      He always lets the Quaffle in,

      Weasley will make sure we win,

      Weasley is our King.

      "She dodges Warrington, avoids a Bludger - close call, Alicia - and the crowd is loving this, just listen to them! What's that they're singing?"

      Nova shook her head, her mouth dropping open in horror. She desperately wished at that moment that Lee Jordan was her twin instead of Theo, so she could use the telepathy twins were supposed to have and tell him to talk over the chant. Her face scrunched up in worry when she realized that Weasley must have heard the chant. Seeing that Greengrass was singing, Nova moved over just slightly and twisted her body so her elbow lodged into Greengrass's stomach.

      "Ouch!" Greengrass complained.

      "Oh, I'm so sorry," Nova replied with a fake smile. "I didn't know I had moved over that close to you."

      "It's alright," Greengrass said, desperately wanting her boyfriend's twin to accept her. By the time Greengrass had turned back to the field, Lee Jordan had caught onto what was happening and was talking over the singing, his voice hurried.

      "Alicia passes back to Angelina! Come on now, Angelina - looks like she's got just the Keeper to beat! SHE SHOOTS, SHE - aaaah -" Bletchley had saved the goal from Johnson's powerful throw, and Nova felt herself frown. 

      Weasley is our King,

       Weasley is our King,  

He always lets the Quaffle in,

Weasley is our King.

"And it's Warrington with the Quaffle, Warrington heading for goal, he's out of Bludger range just with the Keeper ahead -"

Weasley cannot save a thing,

He cannot block a single ring...

      "Don't listen to them, don't listen to them," Nova pleaded underneath her breath. Why wasn't Lee making stupid small talk, like he always did?

      "So it's the first test for new Gryffindor Keeper, Weasley, brother of Beaters Fred and George, and a promising new talent on the team - come on, Ron!" But Lee's voice was drowning underneath the victorious screams of the Slytherins, for Weasley had let the Quaffle through Gryffindor's hoops. "Slytherin score!" Lee shouted, but his voice was less than pleased. "So that's ten-nil to Slytherin - bad luck, Ron..."

WEASLEY WAS BORN IN A BIN,

HE ALWAYS LETS THE QUAFFLE IN...

      Nova turned to Zabini and noticed he wasn't singing. When she raised an eyebrow towards him, he shrugged. "The lyrics are awful," he mentioned, "wouldn't be caught dead singing them."

WEASLEY IS OUR KING, 

WEASLEY IS OUR KING...

WEASLEY WAS BORN IN A BIN...

      "I'm gonna kill Malfoy," Nova mentioned to Zabini, leaning close so he could actually hear her over the roaring of the Slytherins. "I can't even pay proper attention to the game."

      Zabini nodded in agreement as Lee continued to announce what was happening. "Warrington again, who passes to Pucey. Pucey's off past Spinnet, come on now Angelina you can take him - turns out you can't - but nice Bludger from Fred Weasley -" the twin in question looked over at Lee and threw his arms in the air, "I mean, George Weasley, oh who cares, one of them anyway. And Warrington drops the Quaffle and Katie Bell - er - drops it too. Montague with the Quaffle now, he's off up the pitch, come on now Gryffindor, BLOCK HIM!"

      However, even with Lee's encouragement, Weasley let the Quaffle through the hoop once more. Nova groaned.

      WEASLEY CANNOT SAVE A THING...

THAT'S WHY THE SLYTHERINS ALL SING:

WEASLEY IS OUR KING.

      Twenty-nil now. Nova debated on ripping off her mitten and knawing on her fingernails, but she figured being nervous for the Gryffindor team wouldn't exactly be normal for her, so she fought the urge. Never before had she experienced being this interested in a Quidditch game, but she expected it was because of what had happened that morning, with the badges.

      Maybe if she supported Weasley today, it would calm some of the guilt in her stomach.

      He was making it extremely difficult, however, considering he let in two more Quaffles. Nova wanted to throw herself off the stand. Granted, Nova's spirits brightened a bit when Angelina Johnson made a fabulous goal that Bletchley couldn't have even dreamed of saving, and she hissed out a sound of encouragement underneath her breath. When she had gone to Quidditch games in the past, she hadn't paid much attention to Johnson, but even Nova had to admit that she was brilliant at the sport.

      "Pucey throws to Warrington, Warrington to Montague, Montague back to Pucey - Johnson intervenes, Johnson takes the Quaffle, Johnson to Bell, this looks good - I mean bad - Bell's hit by a Bludger from Goyle of Slytherin and it's Pucey in posession again -"

WEASLEY WAS BORN IN A BIN,

HE ALWAYS LETS THE QUAFFLE IN, 

WEASLEY WILL MAKE SURE WE WIN...

      "Oh, it's about bloody time, Potter," Nova muttered underneath her breath when she saw him dive towards the Pitch, Malfoy following closely behind. Nova waited on baited breath as they flew directly next to each other, flying after the Snitch that was too far away and moving too fast for Nova to actually see. It was only when Harry clasped his hand that Nova realized he had caught it. 

      The Gryffindors erupted into loud cheers and screams of happiness, and Nova had to bite her lips to keep from smiling. However, as most of the Gryffindor team was jumping in excitement after the news that they had won actually registered, she spotted Weasley walking off the Pitch, towards the changing rooms. Without saying goodbye to Theo or Zabini, she climbed down from the stands and rushed after him, which wasn't hard, considering he was walking forlornly and slow as a snail.

      "Weasley!" she called out, jogging to catch up with him. He didn't turn around at the sound of her voice, so she had to reach out and grab his shoulder. "What are you upset for? Gryffindor won." He had stopped when she had grabbed him, but he was still looking towards the ground.

      "I didn't block a single pass. The only reason we won is because Harry's brilliant. I should just quit the team-"

      "Are you insane?" Nova asked sharply, a bite to her words. "That would be incredibly stupid of you."

      "Yeah, well you heard what your house was singing," he replied, equally cold, "I was born in a bin, remember?"

      "Don't you dare think that I was singing that along with them. You know I would never-"

      "Yeah, well you didn't try too hard to stop it, did you?"

      His words were like a slap in the face. He was right, of course. While she had complained about the singing distracting from the game, she hadn't even told her own brother to stop singing. Her mouth opened and closed, staring at Weasley's hardened face with an apology ready, but she couldn't spit out the words.

      "That's what I thought," he muttered, stalking back towards the changing rooms.

      Once he was too far away to hear, she realized the words "I'm sorry" came easily. And once more, she wondered why she could never swallow her pride and let people know what she was really feeling.

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      "She did what?"

      "Banned for life," one of the twins muttered, jaw clenched in anger. "Or, as least for as long as she's here."

      When the twins had walked into the kitchens that night, she hadn't expected them to be seething. They had explained that Umbridge had banned them from playing in any more Quidditch matches, and had even gone so far as to confiscate their brooms. Potter was included, but Nova imagined he was off drowning himself somewhere. Quidditch was his life.

      "What did the two of you even do?"

      Fred's - or, she thought it was Fred, she was still trying to figure out to tell them apart - face darkened. "Why don't you ask Malfoy?"

      Nova gave him a confused look.

      "Called our mum fat and ugly, called our dad useless, and then started on his normal tangent on how our house was a barn and Harry was only used to it because his mum was a muggleborn."

      Her blood was boiling. It had started when they confessed he had called Mrs. Weasley fat and ugly, but when it came to Potter, she was seething. "How dare he," she said in an eerily calm voice that made the twins look in her direction. "I'll bloody kill him."

      "We wanted to. Harry and George got a couple of good hits in. I would have, but Angelina and a few others were holding me back."

      At this information, Nova's eyes went down to George's - again, who she assumed was George - knuckles, laced with dried blood. She assumed it was Malfoy's. "Winky, get me a bag of ice, please," Nova called out, then remembered. "And three mugs of pumpkin tea."

      "Pumpkin tea? Our mum makes that when we aren't feeling well," George mentioned, then noticed the look on Nova's face and smirked a little. "But you already know that."

      "Weasley mentioned it once. I didn't care for the taste at first, but it grew on me." Fred and George were grinning at her statement, and Nova raised a brow. "Yes?"

       "Oh, nothing," Fred stated, shrugging his shoulders, "we've just got something in the works, is all."

      Winky returned before Nova could comment. Nova took a sip of her tea before handing the bag of ice to George. "For your knuckles. I hope you at least got a few good punches in."

      "Pomfrey's probably got him all healed now, but I'll remember his bloody face for the rest of my life. That will be the comforting bedtime story I tell to my children. They'll love it."

       He placed the ice on his knuckles and let out a sigh of relief, throwing an appreciative glance her way. The three sat in silence, Nova continuing to sip on her pumpkin tea as George situated the ice on his knuckles once more.

      The door to the kitchen swung open once more and Weasley walked in, head hanging dejectedly. When he noticed the three, he sighed and sat down, keeping silent. The twins looked back and forth between Nova and their little brother before George tossed the ice towards Nova's fingers.

      "Thanks for the ice, Nott-"

      "- but we've got to get going," Fred finished, waving goodbye. "We'll see you crazy kids later."

      They were gone before Nova could blink, leaving her alone with Weasley. She hadn't seen him at dinner, but then again, she wondered if that was his intention. She pushed one of the twins' untouched pumpkin teas towards him and he gave her a confused look.

      "You remembered," he said, not exactly a question but his tone wondering.

      "I got myself some too," she mentioned, holding up her own mug as evidence. 

      He nodded, taking a sip.

      "Look, Weasley," she said, hating how cold her voice sounded. It was just normal for her. "I'm sorry for earlier," she continued, trying to make her voice seem kinder. "You were right about everything. I should have stopped them from singing it, I should have stopped them from making the badges-"

      "You couldn't help it, and I knew that," he interrupted, shaking his head. "I was just in a rotten mood."

      "I noticed," she replied, hiding her smirk behind the mug of pumpkin tea.

      "Funny."

      "So the game was bad," she mentioned, rolling her eyes, "it's not the end of the world. And it's certainly not the last game. If you feel bad about this game, you should see me try and play. I'm a decent Chaser, but everything else I'm awful at."

      "You're just trying to make me feel better."

      "You're right. I'm bloody brilliant at Quidditch. I just couldn't handle having Montague as a captain and being on the same team as Malfoy."

      Weasley laughed, taking another sip of pumpkin tea. He seemed to be doing better now, less doom and gloom. "Didn't you and Malfoy used to date?"

      "If you want to continue whatever this is-" she gestured back and forth between the two of them - "you won't ever bring that up again."

      "Noted." He cleared his throat then. "What is this, then? Are we friends?"

      "I don't really do friends," Nova admitted.

      "But?"

      "But this is the closest I've ever been to having one. You, your siblings, Potter, Granger. You all treat me like an actual human and not just some ice queen that doesn't have any emotions."

      "No emotions my arse," he said, rolling his eyes. "I've never seen anyone get as angry as you."

      "Yeah, yeah." She caught a glimpse of the clock in the kitchens and sighed, standing from her seat. "I'm off to bed. Remember that it was just a game, Weasley. The next one will be better. And they'll still be singing that stupid song, but... just know that I'm not."

      "Thanks, Nova."

      It was only when she was out of the kitchens and back in the Slytherin common room that she realized that it was the first time Ron Weasley had called her by her first name.

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im so emo for them