Chapter 7: chapter vii: fly me to the moonSummary:In which we start plotting and [trying] to stop disasters.
Notes:Hello yall!
Let me take a moment to say a big fat THANK YOU for you all for commenting. Like, I'm sorry, but how I have to stop myself from replying every hour or so, and how I had to stop myself from posting ahead of schedule just so I COULD reply- I'm boo boo the fool. Honk honk is the sound my clown shoes make when I walk around.
Urgh, I love you all. Jesus. Everyone knowing who Star's father is and addressing him by [REDACTED] or something alike- I love it. It truly is a WE DON'T TALK ABOUT [REDACTED] NO, NO, NO!
Special thanks to countesscee for making me cackle with their comment and to ShiroandBlack for giving me my first three-paragraphers' comment! I might've giggled and squirmed happily with it, but you'll never truly know, will you? wink wink wink wink wink
Anyways, enjoy this chapter! I remember having a really fun time writting it, I hope you enjoy reading it!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextSo, I wouldn't call myself a genius, but I was smart. And petty. And I held a big fucking grudge. Always had. Even in the other world.
Point being: Snivellus was going to pay.
I had a few plans, of course, most I'm sure he'd be able to avoid, so I'd need to be sneaky. Starting with befriending the house-elves, and to do so I needed to find the damn kitchens.
Now, I could ask the twins where it was, they'd probably point me there without asking many questions, but they were smart enough to link what would happen if I succeeded, to me asking for help to sneak around and want in on whatever I was about to cause. Besides, my first bit of revenge I wanted to do by myself. So that was how I was found Saturday morning telling the boys I was going to explore and that they should relax a little, since we had already done our homework the day they were assigned (Ron was very smug to say that to Hermione when she nagged them why they weren't doing their homework like most of them).
I knew it was near the Hufflepuff entrance, but I didn't know where that was, only that it was also near the dungeons?
It was a work in progress, and I had gotten lost into random passageways more than once, trying to burn them to memory so I could visit them another time to check where they went.
I was just about to give up for the day, since I had already missed lunch, when my savior arrived in the form of another known and loved character.
"Oh, are you lost?" I blinked up at pretty-boy-Cedric in surprise. He was… pretty. Like, prettier than Robert Pattinson playing him. Blushy cheeks and all.
I don't think handsome applied, he was much more delicate looking, softer. Hence, pretty.
Dear God. If he decides to be a Dark Lord, I might just sign up. Holy shite. I suddenly understood why people might have followed Riddle when he was still beautiful. Damn.
Blinking away the haze that always came with meeting a Pretty Person™, I shrugged shyly, wringing my hands and pretending I didn't notice his softening eyes.
"I was looking for the kitchens… it'll be Hermione's birthday soon and I wanted to ask if I could bake a cake- but I haven't found it yet and I really wanted time to prepare everything because I don't think people will remember it and I don't want her to spend it without a cake." I widened my eyes, blinking slowly and trying to look as innocent as I could, knowing it was always harder for me with my blanket of confidence mum had draped over my shoulders.
His posture softened even more and I bit back a smirk.
"Oh, that's really nice of you. Come on, then. I'll take you there."
Bingo.
Rushing to his side, I smiled up at him and tried not to skip my way to the kitchen.
"Thank you! How's the Hufflepuff common room? I asked the sorting hat if I could go to Hufflepuff and it said I'd like it there and could fit in but that I was too reckless and brave to not put me in Gryffindor." He smiled down at my babble, quirking a surprised brow up.
"You did? Most people ask to not go to Hufflepuff." I waved my hand away dismissively.
"Stupid, people dismiss Puffs like there isn't a reason no one actively messes with one of you. The whole loyal and hardworking thing is terrifying. You mess with one you're messing with the whole house, no sir, thank you very much. Besides, people seem to forget that most if not all competent workers from the Ministry are Hufflepuffs." He chuckled quietly as I shrugged. "I think I would've liked it, but I'm really happy at Gryffindor. We have these old armchairs that are so comfortable."
"Hm."
Honestly? Babbling like a kid felt good, and he seemed to enjoy hearing me talk about my house and Hufflepuff, making noises and laughing at my tales with Dean. Then I started telling him how the day before was weird because it was the first birthday I spent without my mum.
I don't know how we ended up where we did, with me crying on Cedric's chest as he patted my back and swayed us gently but bloody hell. Did I need that.
I blame it on his sympathetic soft eyes and on his nice hums.
"You'll- you'll- you'll m-make a g-grea-at pr-prefec-c-ft." I hiccuped, pushing my face even more on his chest when he chuckled again and squeezed me tighter.
"Thank you, can you walk a little? The kitchen is just around the corner, then we can talk some more with hot chocolate, hm?"
He guided me in front of a fruit bowl painting, and I couldn't help but snort at the pear's giggle before it turned into a knob.
"Mister Diggory!" Squeaky voices started to pipe up while I was still sniffling and being steered into the closest table. A few elves squawked at the sight of me in tears, fluttering around us and jumping from one foot to another, wringing their hands nervously as I tried calming down.
"Is Missy hurt!? What does Missy need!?" One of them finally asked when Cedric smiled their way.
"I'm okay, thank you- actually…" I flushed, shooting a look at Cedric as he settled in front of me while I leaned closer to the eager house-elves and whispered. "Do you guys still have leftovers from lunch? I was walking around and missed it-"
"Leftovers!?" They shrieked and I jumped back in surprise as the one that spoke up first glared at me and placed his skinny hands on his narrow hips. "We elveses will not serve young missy leftovers."
"Oh, I didn't mean-"
"Just let them do their thing." Cedric chuckled and I sighed, smiling down at the still glaring elf.
"Thank you… what are your names?"
I spent some time learning most of the names I could, I even actually made a request for a small cake that four could eat (just us girls) and if they could send it to our dorm on the night of Hermione's birthday.
Cedric kept himself quiet, just watching as my mood slowly started to lift with the house-elves. They were just… so… good. Genuinely. And a little sassy too!
I was in the middle of having my late lunch when I finally smiled embarrassed at the older boy, seeing him look at me amusedly from over his tea.
"I'm sorry for breaking down on you, Diggory."
The boy waved a hand dismissively, a smile on his face when he lowered his mug.
"It's no problem, McKinnon. We all went through our homesick phase. It'll get easier, and… well, I'm sure someone already told you, but- if you really want to talk with someone that isn't a student, Sprout has her office open for Slytherins and Gryffindors too. It's a… open secret that you guys don't really get any support from your head of houses."
"Well- she's not, you know, bad it's just-"
"No need to make excuses for McGonagall. Again, open secret." He shrugged and I pursed my lips at the sharp edge in his eyes while he studied me, taking a sip from his tea before nodding to himself. "You'll do just fine."
"Hm?" Cedric smiled like he knew a secret, but offered no explanation besides a shake of the head.
To be honest, I don't have much memory of Book-Cedric. He had never been a big character to me besides that time where he offered a rematch and when it was clear that Harry had a crush on him, but otherwise, he just seemed like a chill dude.
He was decent, for one. And for poor Harry, that wasn't the norm. But I remember reading and just being- unimpressed?
Not with him! Just that Cedric simply was… a normal… decent kid.
But I don't remember him ever being this pragmatic or distant.
Yeah he listened to me and he comforted me (great hugs by the way), but it still felt like he was keeping me at arm's length.
Either way, it didn't matter. I doubt I'd cross paths with him like this again.
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah. Thank you for- you know."
"Forget it, McKinnon."
"You're the first boy I ever cried over, I think you've earned calling me Star."
Cedric chortled at that, snorting in his tea and making me giggle when he spilled it over the table, coughing as I finished my food. I watched amusedly as the elves fussed over him, cleaning the table with a snap of fingers and offering beverages.
Soon, after a long calculating look at me, Cedric said his goodbyes.
Looking around, I took notice of how they all worked; most were already making the dinner, others were working on cleaning the tables and cutlery, some were popping out to do whatever around the castle.
Finishing up my food, I took a deep breath and plastered a smile on my face. Time to get started.
★★★
Let it not be said that Lilium Marlene McKinnon was just a swot that spent all her time studying for the sake of school.
Raising my eyes from my Silly Charms book, I waited for Harry to speak his mind about all the groaning he had been doing when he finally plopped down by my side.
"We're having flying lessons with the Slytherins." Oh. Right.
That.
I… completely forgot we would get to ride brooms.
"You didn't seem to have a problem with the Slytherins at Potions." I cocked a brow at him when he groaned again while Ron dropped on my other side, peering curiously at what was in my hands before making a face and leaning over to look at Harry.
"They weren't that bad, but they aren't the problem." Laughing at his grumble, I finally closed my book to give him my full attention. "It's Malfoy. I don't want to make a fool of myself on a broomstick in front of him!"
"Is this about all the flying talk he makes?" It was true, the blonde ponce couldn't shut up about it. He wasn't the only one, of course, but God was he one of the most annoying ones. I liked quidditch as much as the next gal, but these weirdos lived for it and don't even get me started on Oliver Wood.
I made the mistake of sitting next to him once, and I had to sit through breakdowns of moves and techniques from the Curupiras, because Ron (the blabbermouth) told the twins my favorite team, and the two cretins spoke about it in Wood's vicinity and I had to be the one to listen about how it was a good team cheer for, just not the best. I did not ask which was the best, didn't even get a chance to when he started talking about the Gryffindor team and his woes of losing to Slytherin over and over again.
Seriously, these people are nuts.
Malfoy was almost at the same league as Wood, talking to anyone who would (and wouldn't) hear about his amazing flying skills, and oh just how unfair it was that they wouldn't let him bring his broom! He whined so. Damn. much.
Constantly.
About everything.
He was one of the characters I expected a big difference from how he actually was to how Harry viewed him; the biggest difference was that while Harry viewed the boy as the embodiment of evil, the brat was just spoiled, insecure, and whiny.
There's a joke there about not getting enough attention from his parents, but I was saving that for a rainy day.
It was clear that Harry projected his hatred for Dudley, one of his abusers (even if he too was a child, he still had a part in it), onto Malfoy, who was also blonde, spoiled, whiny, and antagonistic. To my friend's defense, the kid really could be annoying.
Not to me, surprisingly.
Even though I was clearly Harry and Ron's friend, the boy had yet to taunt me or say anything. Not even about my height, something he could've easily made a jab at. I'm not saying it would have any effect besides a flat look, but it was there. Just like the information of mum being a squib, I had no shame in telling that to others when asked and I didn't fucking care how uncomfortable it made them.
"I bet that's all talk, mate," Ron reassured him, and I decided not to call him out on also talking smack. Bumped into a hang-glider my arse.
"Yeah, besides, how hard can it be? You just sit on a broom and let it do the work."
"I wouldn't say it's just sitting on a broom-" Ron cleared his throat when I glared pointedly at him, looking up to avoid my glower before I slowly turned back to Harry, who still looked too miserable for his own good.
"Cheer up, Harry. If you're bad I'll try and be worse than you so he'll focus on me. Maybe I'll even start a fistfight." Both boys slowly looked back at me in silence as I opened my book again, smiling down at the pages.
"You'd do that?"
"Sure. I'll pop Malfoy in the mouth for ya if you need me to." I chirped, glancing at him quickly and seeing his eyes narrowed as if trying to figure out if I was being honest or not. I didn't give him a chance to further interrogate me once I spotted the twins, jumping from my seat to skip their way with an innocent smile gracing my lips.
"Boys!" The twins turned to look at me in sync, smiling down at me when I finally caught up to them. "How are my favorite twins on this lovely day?"
"Favorite twins, ey? We're the only twins you know." Twin 1 snorted, one brow raising as his brother laughed at me rolling my eyes.
"Not true, Parvati introduced me to her twin the other day- anyways, I actually need some help from my useful and kind upperclassmen." The twins chortled, shoving each other once I started to lay the pleading on thick.
"We'll help you-"
"Oh, thank you-"
"-If!"
"Ah."
They exchanged amused looks before looking down at me with equally mischievous smiles.
"If you get us right."
There was a moment of silence as I stared at their identical faces. I could see some differences, twin 2 had a little scar above his right brow, and twin 1 had more freckles on the bridge of his nose instead of on the tip of it, but I still didn't know the difference between their names, and it had only been a week.
"Your own mother can't tell you apart and you expect me to do it with only a week of you pestering me under my belt?" Twin 1 laughed harder while twin 2's smile stretched even further. "Besides, even if I was to get it right, you could lie to me and I would be none the wiser!"
"Do you have that little trust in us?" Twin 2 leaned closer, eyes shining with mirth as I scoffed. Please, these bitches were born on April fools for a reason. "Must not need our help that much if you won't even try, then."
Menaces.
"I take it back, you two are the worst. Just you two wait."They laughed as I grumbled back to my seat, waving away their calls annoyedly.
Gotta add those two as test subjects, now.
For the next five days, I got to watch with immense amusement as the first-year Gryffindors turned into nerve wrecks and watched my test fail. Even Ron, who already knew how to fly but was picking up on everyone's mood.
"You haven't flown before, how are you not nervous?" Swallowing my tea, I shrugged at Harry's question and side-eyed Hermione, who was giving everyone an unwanted lecture about the safety protocols on brooms and how to check if they were at work.
"If I'm good, I'm good, if not…" I shrugged again, reaching for across the table and grunting annoyedly at the coffee escapee. There were a few options to drink in the morning, tea, milk, juice, water, and coffee. But unfortunately, that last option wasn't available for first and second years, nor were the teas with caffeine in it. Whenever one of us reached for it, they'd swiftly slide away from our grasp. Even when I asked a fourth year to pour me some, once I touched the mug, the coffee had turned into disgusting pumpkin juice. "Besides, seeing everyone nervous means that I'm not the only one without experience."
"I guess you're right…"
"I thought you had already learned that I'm always right." Ron rolled his eyes while Harry glared at me halfheartedly, making me smirk smugly even as he huffed. So cute.
It was only the arrival of the morning post that finally cut Hermione's recital of Quidditch through the Ages short. The muttering was what took my attention away from my hearty breakfast, following people's eyes to the two owls carrying a big package into our table.
I tapped Harry's shoulder when it seemed to be coming our way, and the boy blinked in surprise at their approach.
There were a few yelps and I might've ' eep-ed ' when they dropped it over our heads, it was Percy who stopped the box from falling over Harry and me, and I might've blushed a little when the redhead raised a brow at me after looking down, still holding the big thing over our heads.
Damn.
Ahem.
Yeah, anyways. Uh. Package. Right.
I coughed and tried to pretend I didn't see Percy's tiny amused smile nor the little twinkle in his blue eyes when he carefully placed the box in the middle of the table for us before sitting back down and carrying on with his eating.
The students around us were awe-ing at the box when Harry gently took the card.
"Uh, it's for you, Star." I blinked at it in confusion before Harry handed me the card, Neville had yet to open his own package, waiting to see what I had gotten before opening his own.
Happy Birthday, my little Star.
I hope you enjoy this gift and make much use of it to bring some joy around you.
- Love, Mum.
A smile broke out on my face as I read the note, tossing it in my bag before I finally tore the wrapping paper off, squirming eagerly on my spot when I finally lifted the lid.
My breath was sucked away from my chest at the sight of the most beautiful pink guitar after opening its case.
There were some excited noises and I'm sure I made about half of them as the Gryffindors curiously watched me lift the instrument from the box.
"Wuts that?"
"Do you play, Star?" I gently brushed my fingers on the curves of my present, smiling down at Harry and nodding my head before I looked at Ron peering curiously at the acoustic guitar.
"It's a guitar. I've been using my neighbor's old one for years. He's the one that taught me." Plucking a few cords, I ignored the few awed noises from the non-muggle raised.
"Are you allowed to have that?"
Ignoring Hermione, I gently set the guitar back in the case, clearing away some of the paper while the excitement died down a little.
"I'll play for you guys one of these days." Harry smiled at that, nodding and helping me clear away the rest of the papers while Neville finally opened his own package.
"It's a Remembrall! Gran knows I forget things- this tells you if there's something you've forgotten to do. Look, you hold it tight like this, and if it turns red- oh…" I bit back a giggle when the Remembrall glowed red, his face falling before scrunching it thoughtfully. "...you've forgotten something…"
I followed Draco's form as he passed the Gryffindor table and snatched the Remembrall from Neville's hand, not paying mind to Harry and Ron jumping to their feet to start a fight as I spoke with the boy for the first time.
"You know, if you asked, Neville would have shown you. You don't have to take from others just because you can't afford your own." There was a beat of silence as the boy opened and closed his mouth, flushing an angry red as those steel grey eyes widened down at me.
"I can-"
"What's going on?" The boys jumped at Professor McGonagall's sharp voice, and I raised a brow at the blonde boy.
"Malfoy was looking at Neville's Remembrall, Professor. He was just about to give it back, wasn't he?" The boy glared at me, a scowl on his face before he dropped the glass ball back at the table, turning around and being followed by his lackeys as I rolled my eyes. "So dramatic."
The boys slowly sat back down, still blinking in confusion at what had happened while I all but ignored McGonagall's sharp gaze, sipping my tea and smiling at Neville when the boy whispered a quiet 'thank you'.
"Three points to Gryffindor for de-escalating a fight, Miss McKinnon." I nearly choked at that, finally lifting my eyes to her, but the Professor was already moving to the high table. I scowled at Snape when he glared at me, nearly snickering at the angry flashing of his eyes before I moved my eyes to Professor Flitwick. He had an amused smile on his face and I swore he smiled cheekily at me before I briefly made eye contact with Dumbledore.
He made me nervous.
Honestly, the old man seemed sweet and frail, but even when he wasn't flexing, I could feel his raw power pressing against the back of my neck and clogging up my chest. Urgh.
"What did I forget?" Looking Neville over, I wondered if any of the theories I've read about what he'd forgotten had been true, they hadn't been canon approved, after all, as far as I could remember. No better time than now to test it.
"Was it your robes?" The blonde boy jumped on his seat, looking around him as if searching for them before groaning quietly, cheeks red as I sent him a sympathetic smile when the Remembrall's smoke turned white again.
"I forgot them at my dorm."
"C'mon, I'll walk with you. I have to put this away, anyway."
The classes were good that day, we had History of magic, which most used to sleep off to compensate for Astronomy the night before while I worked on charming my string. Harry was sleeping while Ron was lazily thumbing through my notes, and they had taken my evil smile as a response whenever they asked what I was doing.
It was some stupid intricate work, the fucking prank.
I mean, it was simple, but Snape is the man that survived through the Marauders and the Weasleys. The boys had yet to do a successful prank on him, the man had sharp senses. He checked his food, his mail, his classrooms, his seat.
Which is why I needed the extra mile. Until then, with the unknown help of Parvati, I was able to charm a thread and lazily weave it into Twin 1 robes and watch with immense satisfaction as he continuously looked over his shoulder at the sound of a chick tweeting every time he tugged or justled on his sleeve (which he did a lot).
It wasn't everything I wanted to do with Snape, but I just needed to know the charmed thread worked. Plus, Twin 1 was seriously getting half-crazy about the sound, jumping around every time in search of the damn bird. I had a feeling that Twin 2 figured out I had something to do with it, because I could hardly hide my amusement at his reactions and he seemed to always be waiting for them whenever the sound echoed when I was around.
But I couldn't just charm Snivellus' clothes and hope for the best, no, no. I had to time the trigger perfectly, I doubt he'd be able to undo the charm when he couldn't find the fucking thread.
Hence, my studies and continuous modifications of the simple sound prank charm.
Charms was more enjoyable if you don't take into account me stressing over Ron and his wand. Not only was it halfway broken, but it was unicorn hair. The thing about wands choosing the wizard? Yeah, way worse for the ones with unicorn hair as their core. The wands won't even consider swaying their allegiance. It was very much still firmly loyal to Charlie.
It was not only upsetting, seeing my new friend so disheartened by his lack of progress, but also stressful. I never knew when I'd have to tackle my friend down if that thing blew up in his face.
"Very good, Miss McKinnon! One point for Gryffindor for perfect incantation!" Flitwick was hands down my favorite Professor. Not just because he seemed to vibe with me, but he was also just such a great fucking teacher! His classes had been enough to brighten my days.
I beamed at the Professor and turned to help an increasingly frustrated Ron.
"Stop. Deep breath, Ron." Said boy glared at me, but ended up huffing at my raised brows before doing as told. "It's not your incantation or wand movement, mate. It's the wand."
"What do you mean?" He hissed back, eyes narrowed into angry slits and I quietened my voice down, patting his arm and smiling at Harry when he too leaned over.
"It's unicorn hair, Ron. The core doesn't let the wand change loyalty." Our green-eyed friend bobbed his head while Ron scowled down at his wand. "It's still loyal to your brother."
"Mr. Olivander said something to me about the wand picking its wizard."
"The wand doesn't want to work with you, it's not compatible with your magical core. That's why you're having a harder time, it is not because you're bad at magic."
"Well, it'll have to bloody work with me." Exchanging looks with Harry, we both leaned away from his angry waving, and I kept an eye out for any dangerous sparks before turning back to take more notes about the nature of charms.
After lunch and one last class (transfiguration), we were finally making our merry way to our flying lessons.
The Slytherins were already there, and while we waited for the teacher, I walked up to the nice Slytherin trio and struck conversation. As had been the norm, Theo kept quiet, but paid vapid attention and silently snickered whenever something funny was said, while Zabini and I bantered and Daphne pretended to be annoyed before giving up and pulling Harry into a conversation. She had taken to telling everything she learned about the Potter house when she realized that we had no education about the wizarding society, and Harry drank everything up greedily. Daphne promised to study about the Clan McKinnon (we weren't considered a House, no fucking clue what it meant, didn't ask) and would be teaching everything I needed to know about it soon.
Ron had twisted his lips and nearly made Harry reconsider learning about it until I put my foot down and had a talk with the ginger.
Mainly, that while he knew everything about his family and the pureblood world and didn't care, we knew nothing , and would like to know more about it before dismissing it.
Of course, we had to promise not to turn into ponces like Malfoy, but now he merely sighed and let us do our thing while sulking in the background.
Besides, he would never admit it, but he seemed to enjoy Theo's quiet company. They didn't say anything, just watched silently side by side, and sometimes they'd play chess while we did our thing.
"As usual, you are so dramatic, McKinnon." I scoffed, throwing my hair over my shoulder and sticking my nose up in the air in a perfect imitation of Malfoy.
"You're just a coward who won't admit that the Goblin Treaty is a bloody scam."
"Excuse me? "
"You're excused." There was a moment of silence on the whole ground where the Gryffindors were holding back their laughter and the other Slytherins didn't seem to know if they should jump in to defend their house-mate or keep quiet and let it happen (it had happened before when our bickering had gotten loud and he called me a harpy looking wench and I said his hairline would disappear before his beard came in). Luckily it had been Professor Sprout who found us laughing while a few Slytherins started a shouting match with Harry, Parvati, and Lavender when one of them made a comment about me.
Almost a week later and I still don't know what was said, only that Blaise and I had to be holding each other up while chaos ensued around us. Who would've thunk that Ron would be the smart one and not even look over his shoulder when it happened. The boy was starting to see a pattern of me starting shit without meaning to (most of the time), and that Harry, the stupid hothead, would come bulldozing to back me up.
Either way, Professor Sprout seemed too amused and elated by our friendship to actually take any points, and the Slytherins seemed to pick up that we just talked like that.
It was great exchanging barbs with Blaise and then just turning around and talking about an assignment like he hadn't just cursed my whole ancestry dumb by allowing me to come into existence.
He was a doll.
"Wench." I laughed at his hiss, patting his arm and beaming at him before moving back to our side, waving at Theo and winking at Daphne when the boys joined me at the Professor's approach.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Everyone stand by a broomstick. Come on, hurry up."
I moved closer to Neville, Harry on my other side as I looked down at the old broom, excited at the prospect of flying.
Honestly, I had never been an adrenaline junkie, but heights had been my thing. Perhaps because my father from Before hated it, and going high up was a great way to either avoid him or have him show any kind of concern for me. Now I understood that he wasn't really concerned, he was just squeamish with it in any way, shape, or form, and having me near edges in high places just triggered his own fear.
Or perhaps, liking heights and mocking him for getting weak at the knees was just a subtle and only way to lash out at him. At least those were my therapist's words. Not that it mattered anymore.
Right. Flying.
Sticking my hand up, I looked at Madam Hooch, waiting for the go-ahead before I snapped a strong "Up!",smirking when the broom slapped into my palm.
Harry shared a beaming smile with me before I continued to pay half attention to the lesson and half to Neville, who was palling the more Madam Hooch explained how we should mount the brooms, ignoring the boys' delight at Malfoy's flaming red cheeks at being corrected about his wrong grip on the broom.
"Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard." I stopped pretending to listen to the Professor, getting ready and paying close attention to Neville. "Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet and then come straight back down by leaning forwards slightly. On my whistle, three, two-"
My hand snapped to the side to catch Neville's broom, and I yelped at the pain in my hand at the slides of the bristles on the soft skin before I was able to properly grip his broom, jumping with mine and ignoring the shouts from below as I clamped my knees shut to not slide off, holding his broom back from going faster while following his ascent.
I pressed one of my palms on his back, not letting him slide off before I was finally able to get higher than him, and yanked the bristles, ignoring the pain as I finally got Neville horizontally again.
Neville was pale, yelping, eyes filling with tears and I could see his tense hands ready to pull the broom up again once I rounded to his side.
"No! Neville! Hey! Calm down, you're ok! You're ok!" The boy turned his blue scared eyes at me and I gave him a shaky smile, gliding closer to him and clamping my bleeding hand above his so he wouldn't rise more. "I'm going to take us down, ok? You need to bend forward slightly."
"I- I- ca-can't ." Not giving him much choice, I gently pressed his hands down, pushing the broom while I did the same with mine, chancing a look at the grass to see Madam Hooch waiting looking thunderous. Honestly. These people are so fucking incompetent .
Most Slytherins were trying not to howl with laughter, but a few outside of the worried snake trio were also nervously waiting for us to reach the ground.
Perhaps it was Neville's pale face and my bleeding hands that softened the Professor, because she quickly helped Neville off his broom, supporting his weight while I allowed a worried Ron to hold my wrist and pick my broom once I stepped away from it.
Madam Hooch then approached me, letting Harry keep Neville up with Parvati while most people circled me worriedly, hissing in sympathy at my bleeding palms and mumbling under their breaths.
"Let me see." I controlled my scowl and did as told, looking over at Harry with raised brows and he nodded his head, letting me know Neville was ok for the moment. "They'll need to be wrapped up." Her voice was quiet, and she was almost as white as Neville before she cleared her throat. "Five points to Gryffindor for safely returning a colleague to the ground."
There were a few angry grumbles from the Slytherins, which went mostly ignored as the Gryffindors were buzzing around me like worried bees.
"None of you is to move while I take them to the hospital wing! You leave those brooms where they are or you'll be out of Hogwarts before you can say "Quidditch". Come on, dear."
Ah, fuck.
I looked at the ground, searching for the fucking Remembrall and sighing in relief at the memory that Neville had left it in his dorms in turn of grabbing his robes.
Lucky! No Remembrall, no Harry getting into the Quidditch team, no getting into the Quidditch team, no assassination attempt, no overhearing Snape and Quirrell, no almost dying to save the stone, and no Voldemort finding out about Lily Potter's love shield or whatever it was called.
I moved closer to Neville, pressing my cheek on the top of his head while we walked when I noticed how he was still shaking and silently crying.
"You're ok, Nev." He hiccuped, shaking his head while Madam Hooch tutted gently, squeezing his shoulder while I pushed my cheek more forcefully into his blonde hair, keeping my hands down to avoid getting blood up to my sleeves, not particularly caring about it getting on the stone floor. There was a slight tug on my heart at every drip, and I had a slight feeling that something about that was Hogwarts' magic, it didn't feel bad, and I doubt I would've noticed had I not spent a life without magic.
Neville didn't say anything else, and I let him be once we finally reached the hospital wing.
Madam Pomfrey was terrifying . The woman shot a heated glare at Hooch when she caught sight of us, and the flying professor jutted her chin stubbornly before she pushed me forward first.
"Miss McKinnon had bristles tearing and Mr. Longbottom went through quite a scare.
"Are you not able to go a year without bringing me some poor hurt first-year!?" I bit back a laugh at her shriek and allowed the medi-witch to pull me gently but firmly into a bed by the forearm. "Set the boy over there, I'll be giving him a calming draught soon. Don't you have other first-years to look after? Or did you leave them unsupervised? Again ?"
Hooch narrowed her yellow gaze angrily at the medi-witch before huffing and turning on her heels, stomping back to the training grounds. I finally snickered when the door shut quietly behind her, despite her best attempts at slamming it in her wake.
"Now, dear, let me take a proper look."
"Actually- can you give Neville his potion first? It'll be quicker, right? I can wait." She paused, looking up at me, eyes widened slightly before she quickly lowered them again, blinking rapidly and turning around to a sad-looking Neville.
"I- I- I'm rea-a-lly sor-r-rry, St-Star." His lip wobbled again and I smiled gently, shaking my head and trying to keep my hands from staining my clothes while Madam Pomfrey went through her cabinet.
"Don't worry, Nev. You're my friend, friends protect each other, right?" We both jumped when the witch dropped a potion, looking at me in horror as if she was seeing a ghost. Honestly, that was the norm sometimes. Most of the time. It was kinda funny, actually. I never knew I looked that much like my aunt, but a few of these reactions were too unique to be anything but. "Madam Pomfrey? Are you ok?"
The woman blinked again, shaking her head as if to rid herself of her thoughts before waving her wand and cleaning the mess she made, reaching for another vial and handing it to Neville.
"Down the latch it goes, lad. You can take a nap and I'll wake you up in time for dinner." Neville gave her a wobbly smile before following the instructions, and I watched with curiosity as he sagged on the bed, completely relaxed and laying down lazily. "Now, time to take care of those. Would you like to tell me what happened?"
I shrugged, letting her open my palm with a minimal wince and trying not to blanche at the sight of the tears from the sharp and rough bristles.
"I saw him jump too hard and tried to hold down his broom, could only catch the end of it, then I went up and brought him back down." She hummed quietly, waving her hand and summoning what she needed to clean the tearing.
She worked in silence, gently but with precision, cleaning and wiping away the pieces of skin torn away from my hands so she could check for any bristle or dirt in my cuts.
"I apologize for my reaction, when you said what you did to Mr. Longbottom- I was reminded of a pair of students from a few years ago," I smirked, noticing she only sent me a glance before pointedly looking back at what she was doing, a tad paler than before.
"It's ok, you haven't been the first one. I have to wonder what kind of chaos this student caused, though. It seems most Professors are waiting for me to follow right up where it was left." She laughed quietly, a tad warmer than she had been before while she reached for an essence in one of the drawers near my bed.
I sighed in relief once the burning and pain disappeared, only a soothing cold on my fingers and palm before she started quietly shooting spells at my essence-lathered hands. The skin seemed to grow back in or glue itself together, it was more pink-ish than my natural skin and it looked thinner and shinier from what I could tell before she started to wrap my hands.
It was amazing watching the soaked bandages fly by themselves, the big ones went around my palms while the thinner ones enveloped each finger, letting me keep my mobility.
"Yes. He was a piece of work." My head snapped up in confusion, but the witch had already turned around and was talking before I could ask who she was talking about, that wasn't my aunt. "You can take them off Saturday. Don't worry about getting them wet or dirty, they're spelled not to. They'll unravel Saturday and Saturday only, Miss McKinnon. Now, you can either return to your flying lesson or wait with Mr. Longbottom if you don't make a ruckus."
I snapped my mouth shut, settling better on my bed and making it clear that I wouldn't leave Neville to wake up alone.
With that, she hurried away without giving me a chance to ask who she was talking about. I took the time to practice my grip on my wand with the bandages and to think of the music I could play once my fingers were completely healed.
If there was something I missed from my time, it was the bloody music. Urgh, what I wouldn't do to have Spotify again. It sucked that I couldn't even be sure it would get invented! God knows what's different between this world and my last one. I, for one, was not keen to wait 30 years to listen to my favorite music.
I was making pink butterflies fly above Neville when the door opened quietly, twisting to see who was there. I beamed at my Slytherin friends and Ron once they finally entered and spotted me.
"Hey, guys! Aww, did you come to check on me?" I batted my lashes as Blaise rolled his eyes, pushing me to jump on the bed by my side as Ron frowned down at my wrapped hands. "It wasn't that bad, they'll unravel Saturday and I think it's just so it doesn't scar." Looking around, I frowned at the lack of Harry, shooting a glance at a worried-looking Ron, who exchanged glances with Daphne.
The silent conversation happened right in front of me, and the only thing that distracted me was Theo's gentle hand on my wrist. My head snapped at him in surprise, the boy had never approached me before, always keeping a safe distance and I respected that, not pushing when I knew he got uncomfortable with questions directed at him.
He had a tiny worried frown, eyes big as he gently rotated my hand to see the bandages, tugging on them a little and nodding once he realized they didn't loosen. Then, he reached into his bag and gave me a fucking sugar quill and a smile.
I- I can't.
Blaise howled a peal of laughter when I sniffled and pulled Theo into my arms, squeezing him tightly while he awkwardly patted my back, making me rub my cheek on his shoulder as he huffed a quiet laugh, finally hugging me back.
He was so fucking sweet. He cared. Theo cared!
Pulling back, I accepted the extended sugar quill and pulled him to also sit on the bed, helping him clamber up and settle behind Blaise while Daphne groaned and sighed dramatically, snapping at Ron and turning to glare at me.
"Fine! After you got sent here for pulling that stupid Gryffindor move-"
"-Hey! "
"-Malfoy started talking about Longbottom and how stupid it was for the Head of the McKinnon Clan-"
"-still don't know what it means, by the way-" She glared even more, carrying on as if I hadn't interrupted her again while Blaise wheezed a laughter by my side and Ron pocked at the butterflies still fluttering around.
"-to risk herself for- For- I'm not going to say it, unlike him, I have class!" We had to quieten our laugh when Madam Pomfrey peeked her head out of her office to narrow her eyes at us, a silent warning that had me bending over and shaking with laughter while Ron had his mouth covered with his hand. "And as you know Potter-"
"-Uh oh, so he's Potter, now, huh?"
"-just had to go and make things worse!" She huffed, arms crossed and a deep scowl on her face before Ron finally approached, looking nervous and laughter all forgotten while Blaise rolled his eyes.
"Calm down, you two. You really think McGonagall is going to expel the Boy-Who-Lived because he flew like he was born on a broom?" My head snapped at him, the breath stolen from my chest and a pressure building on my head, my lips frozen in an unfeeling smile and my brows raised waiting for an explanation. "Malfoy found your ring."
I rubbed my thumb on my pinky and my eye twitched at the lack of metal, I can't believe I hadn't noticed. Blaise snorted at my frown, a delighted smirk on his lips while Daphne snickered and Theo's shoulders shook with his silent laughter.
"What?"
"I don't think he was going to say he found it, but the ring burned him." A smirk of my own stretched on my face while Ron snickered.
"It was brilliant! He almost cried!"
"Yes, yes, but the best part? So, he's playing hot potato with your ring, screaming like a banshee, Harry sees your ring, right? And he's all like, 'oi! Give it back! It's not yours!', that way only you Gryffs can do," I smothered my laugh while Ron wheezed at Daphne's impression of Harry. "Then the stupid boy goes up in the air! And of course, your own personal hero follows him, and we get to see Harry's ability to spot your ring flying Merlin-knows-where."
I don't like it.
In fact, I hate it.
Why, oh, why didn't leaving the Remembrall away change things? Fuck. FUCK!
"I don't know what was the best part, when he caught it, or when it didn't burn him." Ron smiled and I couldn't help but mirror it. "Malfoy looked ready to throw a fit.
"I have no clue what defenses are on that thing, might ask mum."
I rubbed my pinky again, used to having the ring as a comfort, still peeved with myself that I hadn't noticed the absence of it.
"Yeah, that was great but now Harry's in trouble." I snorted at Daphne's worried voice, waving away her glare and handing my sugar quill to Blaise so he could unwrap it for me. The boy rolled his eyes, but did so and I shared a smile with Ron at these worried snakes.
It had been something the three of us had talked about before, how the Slytherins worked differently than us. We Gryffs were 'all in' or nothing at all since day one, but the trio still had their reservations and if it wasn't for me pointing out what they did to show that they wanted to be our friends, but were just showing in their weird sly ways, I think the boys would've dropped them.
But honestly? The trio did us good.
One a week of friendship, and I shit you not, Harry was already showing his sly ways that hid under the suffice, and they were great with egging on our ambitions.
And they were protective, apparently. Who would've thunk?
"Don't worry, Daph." I ignored the rush of red on her face and the way her eyes shone a little, smiling smugly at Blaise when he handed me the candy back. "He's probably getting recruited to the Quidditch team. Morgana knows Wood has been crying a bloody river about his losses to anyone who would listen."
"Do ya' reckon?" Nodding at Ron, I kicked my legs out, smiling at my still scowling Slytherin friend when a butterfly landed on Neville's nose.
The boy woke up with a sneeze, looking at the five people watching him lazily sit down before eloquently speaking.
"Wut' happened?"
Notes:What do we think???
Also, let's take a moment to appreciate Star the dumbass McKinnon going "heheh yes yes my AUNT must've made such a BAD impression hehe". We stan an oblivious bimbo.
By the way, it is canon-divergent, but it's something that Star will only begin exploring once she figures out HOW to.
As is the norm, lemme know your thoughts and theories! And if you catch any mistake or odd spelling, let my Brazillian ass know, please! See you Wednesday!