My mother meant what she said about doubling the work load for me after I held my party.

While the boys were tasked with bringing Draco everywhere to entertain him, I was forced to sit in the library and study various readings that mother thought important to know before entering my 2nd year of classes.

And while the readings were boring, I had to admit that it at least helped me avoid Malfoy. Smaller meetings with Malfoy meant less times calling him Draco with fake sweetness and more times thinking angry thoughts about the various potions I could poison him with.

My current number of ways I could kill him were at a tolerable number of 64. If my mother had given me better books to read, maybe the number would have been far larger but alas, my mother thinks I need to relearn the history of all European schools during the medieval period, so here I was, reading that.

My mother wasn't a monster though. While she had me stay at the house to study often, there were times when she would invite me to join the party for one of her many plans.

Such plans include the time we showed the Malfoys along the shopping district of Newport, leading them around the small stores and cobbled streets, letting the boys wonder off to the Quidditch fields to see the newest brooms in action while I was stuck with my mother and Mrs. Malfoy looking at ribbon in different shops.

Utterly boring.

Or at least it was until my mother started buying me things for my new school year. Mrs. Malfoy even seemed to enjoy the time she spent with us on our shopping spree, stating how this was one of the few times she wished she had a daughter while my mother made me twirl in a satin blue robe for the two women to see.

My father and Mr. Malfoy only joined for dinners and late lunches. Otherwise they were at the MACUSA offices in New York or locked in my father's study, not allowing even Damion to enter at times. I didn't mind the loss of their company, however. I was already used to not having father in the house now that he traveled to London all the time, and we all knew I was no fan of Mr. Malfoy.

What they discussed I knew little of. And while Draco acted like he had an idea, after a short while of my brothers torturing him with questions, we learned that he was merely bluffing.

I could tell that as the week went on, Theo was getting more and more agitated with Draco. After so many hours of showing that pretentious jerk every little place in Newport, it made sense that my brother would be pulling his hair out. So, after an evening where Theo went as far as to hide with me in my room to avoid Draco, a new plan was made to invite some of our friends to reduce the tension between the boys.

It was two days before the Malfoys were to leave Newport for good and I was feeling more alienated from my home by the hour. So instead of doing some of my reading in my usual spot in the library where Edward has since decided to go to hide from Malfoy, I took my refuge to the rose garden where I thought no one would think to look for me.

How silly of me to think I could be unpredictable. Not two hours after I had made my nest among the prickly flowers when Xander came running through the lanes of flowers looking for me.

He carried two brooms on his shoulder and had his usual charming smile plastered to his face that always put me in a good mood. So, when he stopped in front of me, I was almost glad that he had found me.

"Theo wasn't kidding about you being locked away with work, was he?" He asked, eyeing the many books spewed around me. I shrugged as I closed the giant book in my lap and stood up to face the boy head on.

"How did you find me here? Did you force one of the house elves to tell you or.."

"No!" Xander said with a laugh that made my smile grow.

"Your mother told me to find you," He said pointing toward the gazebo further down the yard. I frowned and rose from the ground slowly until my gaze landed on my mother who sat with Mrs. Carmichael, Mrs. Malfoy and various other ladies from WBE.

How did they get out here without my noticing? And how did my mother know where I was?

"It's like she tracks you or something. Didn't do anything bad to cause such a thing, did you Ava?" Xander asked with a hint of humor that made me lose my annoyed expression.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Xander. I'm innocent," I said with a Cheshire grin . My gaze went from his to the brooms on his back. Reading my mind, Xander looked to his brooms and dropped them to the ground.

"One of these is for you. We need someone to play beater." I scoffed before pushing the broom away from me.

"Absolutely not. Find someone else."

"Oh?" Xander questioned, brow raised.

"So you would rather study French all day then go flying with your friends?" I frowned before turning from my books to his glittering gaze.

"Friends? If it's just my brothers, Malfoy and you, I'd hardly use that word." Xander feigned pain, placing a hand to his chest while smirking ridiculously at me.

"I take offense to that."

"Get over it," I said as I started toward my books again, my smile returning. I heard Xander sigh as I sat down stubbornly in the grass and turned back to my novel.

"You know your mother wants you to play," Xander started. I barely took my gaze off my book as I scoffed in disbelief.

"My mother, letting her only daughter play the one thing she has always banned me from doing has suddenly changed her mind?" I caught Xander smiling again.

"Magical, right? You wouldn't want to upset her, now would you?" He asked, offering the broom to me again. I eyed it with dread but slowly closed my book again.

"Is she coming or what? We need to start now if we want to finish the whole game before dinner," Theo said as he appeared in the neighboring rose bush.

"Yeah, she is," Xander responded with a knowing grin before turning back to me and offering his hand. I took it and hoisted myself off the ground.

Further down our property was a hill that led to a long patch of grass with stumps of trees that father had taken off the property to create a Quidditch pitch for my brothers as a Christmas present. Wooden goal posts stood out on opposite sides of the pitch and the group of boys stood in the center picking spots.

"Draco wants to be seeker so that should make Xander the opposing one," Damion dictated as I entered the group with growing dread.

I was clueless at this game which made me dead weight. I didn't like feeling like dead weight.

"I want chaser!" Theo demanded, causing Damion to roll his eyes, before nodding to his youngest brother.

"Fine but only if Troy is fine playing keeper. I know Ralph wants chaser" Xander's friend Troy was in the middle of unlocking the Quidditch box when he turned to give Damion a thumbs up making Theo jump up happily in response and turn to Ralph who was laughing at him.

"That will make me the other keeper and Ed and Ava will be our beaters," Damion concluded.

"So basically we will have uncontrollable bludgers for this game, correct?" Troy asked from the side making Damion nod.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ed asked irritably. "I'm not bad as a beater."

"You're not any good either Ed, and neither is Ava," Theo remarked as he came to stand next to Draco.

Unlike my brother, I didn't take offence because I knew that I had better things to do then play Quidditch in the past so I had a reason for not being very good.

"Now how are we splitting the teams? Seekers choose?"

"Sure, but remember who is playing what," Damion instructed pointing at Xander and Draco. Xander grinned.

"I don't know Damion. I'm starting to see you more as our cheerleader then a keeper. What do you think, Troy?" Troy choked back a laugh followed by Theo causing Damion to shoot the boys humored dirty looks.

"Xander just lost first pick. Draco, choose your player."

I watched as a power struggle appeared in choosing the best team mates for the game. Draco was picking anyone who figured to be good, and started with the one player he was already used to, Theo. This led to Xander picking Damion and Troy moving to Malfoy's side with Ralph ending as final pick to Damion's side. Now all that was left were the beaters.

"No matter who you choose you screw the team," Ralph commented as Xander and Draco looked at my brother and me critically.

I already knew which team I wanted.

"Then let us choose. I already know which team I want," I responded simply, turning to Ed who shrugged, not caring.

"Chill Ava, I was going to choose you anyway," Xander quipped making me laugh.

"Actually I want on Draco's team. He has the better players," I said smirking Xander's way, making him frown while his friends laughed next to him. Draco looked surprised but motioned me over anyway.

Once Ed had joined the other team we broke to our sides of the pitch to warm up. Immediately Draco came my way with the bat and Theo in tow.

"You need to learn how to use this. Now." I took the bat and turned to the two expectantly.

"I'm pretty sure I know how to hit a ball, thanks," I said with sass causing Theo to flick me on the head.

"Don't be stupid. You don't know how to aim." I glared his way while rubbing my temple with the end of my new bat.

"Fine. What do I need to focus on?" Draco took a step closer to me and made me open my hand to readjust the bat.

"Hold it like this and when the bludger comes your way, swing it toward the player's broom. Not them. The bludger tends to drift upward after a hit."

"So you want me to hit them in the side? Like knock them off?" Draco frowned my way as if I was stupid before stating, "Well, obviously. That's your job."

I took my bat back from Draco and grabbed my broom, starting for the goal posts, feeling irritated and stupid while Draco and Theo walked after me, muttering about how they were wasting time helping me. I was just a lost cause.

"You lot ready? We have an hour before dinner starts!" Damion called from the opposite side of the field. Theo gave a shout back in yes and Draco brought us to form a circle.

"No one guard anyone. Just do your jobs and Ava, keep to the side and don't get in the way," He said pointing to me, making me roll my eyes.

"Theo, use Flint's strategies from last year if you can and Troy focus on the posts their chaser likes to favor." Troy nodded, looking up at his posts expectantly.

"I've played Ralph enough to know he favors the left."

"That would have been helpful to us if we actually had a decent beater who can aim that way," Theo muttered making me hit him with the bat before he took off on his broom, breaking our circle apart.

The rest started to shoot up in the air, leaving me with the sudden fear of trying to figure out how I was going to be able to fly up that high.

Gripping my bat in one hand, I stepped around my broom and looked around helplessly up above me.

"Ava! Get up here!" Draco called from up above making me shake my head absently.

This was a bad idea. I shouldn't have agreed to do this. I felt a whoosh of wind followed by Draco landing next to me, giving me a frustrated look.

"Do you know how to fly a broom or what?"

"I do!" I called back agitated. "I just haven't gone that high before. I always avoided Madam Hooch and her flying class when I could." Draco gave me the stupidest look that had me look away, now close to tears.

"Of all the classes to ditch, you had to skip on Flying?" I remained silent, unsure if opening my mouth would release the flood gates.

"Well I'm not losing because you don't know how to fly," He said after a silence. He got off his broom and walked up to me again, this time taking the bat away for good.

"Grab the broom with both hands. It's easier this way." I did as he asked without hesitation and looked back at him expectantly. He's expression looked like he too was trying to figure out how to break apart such a simple task to him for me.

"You're going to have to kick off and lean forward. Don't think about how high off you're going to be. Just do it."

"What if I fall?" I asked worried. Draco gave me another weird look before responding, "then you fall. You'll be fine. Now do it". I gulped as I looked away from him and after a moment of hesitation I kicked forward and felt his hand push me forward, and then came the cold swept of wind as my feet left the ground and I soared forward, up in the air to join the rest of the team up above.

"Ah, look who decided to join us," Theo commented making me glare angrily.

"Where's your bat?" He asked, looking on my person.

"It's here. Take it," Draco commanded, now hanging out next to me casually with both hands off the handle. I slowly lifted one hand from the handle and took the bat from him quickly before returning to grab the handle with both hands.

"She's so screwed-" "Shut up Theo!" I squeaked, before shifting my weight forward again, flying off to the side, away from the middle of the field.

I could feel my heart beating very fast, my hands were sweaty and I was having a hard time not looking down to the ground.

"Let's start!" Theo called from the center making the lot of us to get into position. I stayed where I was because screw it.

Draco and Xander came to the front and took the quaffle together and counted down before throwing the ball up into the air together before disappearing.

We heard clapping from the side as our mothers in the gazebo rooted for us. Ed dropped to the ground and unleashed the bludgers and the one golden snitch before returning to the field and the boys started their game.

I watched as Theo and Ralph immediately started to fight over the Quaffle while Draco and Xander started to race around the field in search of anything gold.

Slowly I started to push myself to move, sometimes forcing myself to do so in order to avoid the incoming bludger that seemed to gravitate toward me.

On the opposite side of the pitch I could see Ed having a similar problem in dodging the incoming bludgers.

Theo scored once followed by Ralph scoring twice. Damion was doing a good job keeping his little brother out of the goals. Theo grabbed the quaffle again and was heading toward the posts when Ed tried out his bat, just barely nicking the bat with the bludger. I watched as the bludger zoomed right in front of Theo, making him halt and causing Ralph to roll around him, taking the quaffle back.

Theo cursed before racing back after Ralph.

"Ava do something! Throw your bat at him if you have to."

Feeling a bit more comfortable on the broom I shifted myself in the air again before flying down the pitch near an incoming bludger.

Aim for the broom. Aim for the damn broom, I thought as I took my bat out and slammed with all my might at the bludger, just touching it enough for it to run its course. It went toward Xander who quickly dodged and flew off laughing my way.

"So close, Ava. So close."

I flew off, this time feeling a bit more confident in my ability to hit a bludger and started to look around for my next target.

I watched as Ralph came down the field, coming toward our goals and so I started forward, in search of a bludger to hit.

"Incoming Ava!" Draco called out from above me as he switched around me so that he was to my side where a bludger followed after him.

"Aim for Ralph!"

I brought my bat back and made contact with the bludger, sending it circling toward Ralph. Theo saw it coming and turned over it letting it sail right at Ralph hitting the tail end of his broom, making him lose his grasp on the quaffle.

I laughed in relief as Theo went after the quaffle and Draco clapped his hands together in a not-bad sort of way before racing off after the spark of gold in the horizon.

"Did she really just hit him?" Damion called out in disbelief from the other side of the pitch while I raced off in search of another bludger. I could feel the energy pumping through me and I felt a sudden understanding of how this game could be fun. And then I looked down and my stomach lurched.

We went on like this for another half hour, all the time I spent looking for and then hitting bludgers. Most of them missed but some grazed certain players, one being Theo that pissed him off greatly.

But by the time I landed on the field again, the game was over with Draco triumphantly holding up the snitch.

He landed with a large grin on his face, gloating to Xander who had a very sour expression on his face.

"I would have gotten it if Troy didn't get in my way!"

"Get in your way? I was trying to dodge one of Ava's rogue bludgers!" Troy fought back.

"Maybe you deserved it, Troy," Damion played out as he came up to me smirking.

"How did it feel to play for once?" I couldn't help but grin before tossing the bat at him.

"I think I'm better on solid ground, thanks."

"Ava!"

I looked up to the shout to see one of the mothers in the gazebo motioning me to join them. My grin faltered as I slowly got off the broom and handed it to Xander.

"What do you think they want?" He asked, eyeing me curiously. I shrugged, muttering, "nothing good".

I left the boys to argue on the pitch while I ran up to join the mothers who sat finishing the last of their sparking wizard bubbly.

My mother sat in a orange red summer dress with matching white sandals that made her skin paler than usual. Her green eyes were scanning me with humor as I appeared in front of all the ladies completely out of breath from running the hill.

"You played so well, Ava! I was surprised to see you keep up with the boys," Mrs. Carmichael commented, making me smile happily to myself. I couldn't help but feel proud of my work.

"It looked like Draco helped you," Mrs. Malfoy added, turning her steely gaze my way, making me nod quickly.

"He and Theo taught me how to use the bat. This was my first time playing Quidditch."

"First time playing? Why is that?" Mrs. Hadley, Troy's mother, asked in surprise.

"Because I have told her not to in the past," My mother's French voice stated simply, making the women turn her way. She kept her gaze on me as she took another drink from her glass.

"I have another letter for you," My mother went on, exchanging her drink for a white letter that had my name written out in Sam's recognizable cursive. I took a step toward it excitedly but stopped when mother drew the letter away from me.

"Where are you in your studies?" I gaped, trying to think on the chapter Xander interrupted me on when Mrs. Carmichael came to my rescue.

"Honestly, Emmeline. Let the girl have her mail. It's summer after all!" My mother did not like that, and showed it through her pursed lips and a glare Mrs. Carmichael's way.

"I never asked for your thoughts on my parenting style, Tessa," my mother responded coldly, letting her French accent flare up again. Remembering my place, I spoke up, cutting the unpleasant air short.

"I'm on the thirty second chapter, Mamen in Witches Ways of Etiquette and am on page 482 or 83 on the History of Beauxbatons academy." My mother's gaze returned to mine and seemed unfazed by my work.

"What about the last book?"

"I finished Lack Luster Potions two days ago." My mother nodded subtly while the women around me acted impressed by my answers. Mrs. Malfoy was watching me closely with her blue eyes that reminded me strangely of her son.

"Finish the Beauxbatons history tonight and I'll give you the rest of the letters I have. Here," She added, handing me the letter casually. I snatched it quickly and thanked her before running to the house, excited to read my new treasure.

The events from earlier on Quidditch had completely left my mind. 

-

Hello there!

Apologizes on the day long delay in updating. I am on an unexpected trip to Quebec and had no internet on Friday. But now I do as I am taking a quick power nap before i go out again for dinner so I thought I would post before another day goes by. As for what is to come in this book, I know this has been a few chapters of introduction but we dive into Ava at school two chapters from now! I can't wait to post the chapters on Beauxbatons. It's going to be great!

Lots of Love,

-WG-