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mastermindmiko · 7 months

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Blue Butterflies (Part two)

Pairing: Harry Potter + fem!reader

Word count: 6863

Warnings: kissing, slight angst? let me know if you find anything that I didn't

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Harry was sitting in the highest box along with the Weasleys. The match hadn’t begun yet, but everyone was waiting on the edge of their seats. Unlike most of the stadium, Harry was leaning on the edge of the railing resting his head on his hand.

He was sure that Y/N was going to be mad at him because he left without saying goodbye, but it wasn’t his fault that the Weasleys nearly kidnapped him. Mr. Weasley looked at Harry and asked, “Potter! You’re at the Quidditch world cup, cheer up!”

“Don’t be hard on him, dad. He’s just missing his imaginary girlfriend.” Fred teased, and he placed a faux sympathetic hand on Harry’s shoulder. Harry swatted Fred’s hand away, and George and Ron laughed. Harry’s face heated, and Hermione, “I believe that she’s real, Harry.”

“This is not some controversial thing, she is real, but she’s not technically my girlfriend. She’s only a friend.” Harry explained, and Ron had to hold in a laugh, but it came out as a snicker. Harry’s head snapped to Ron, and Ron stilled. Ron said, quickly, “No, I definitely believe you.”

Before Harry had a chance to reply at his unconvincing words, the match had started. The bulgarian mascots, the veelas were flying all around the stadium, showing off their beauty, capturing both the eyes of men and women. Ron was so entranced that he almost jumped off the railing, and he would have, if Hermione hadn’t grabbed him down.

Harry, much like Mr. Weasley, wasn't captured by their beauty, though Harry had to admit that they were very beautiful. Mr. Weasley kept an eye out after Ron almost jumped off, looking at all the kids with a close eye. He noticed Harry’s bored expression and clasped a hand on his shoulder, “You’re just like me, ey?

Once again, before Harry could question, the Bulgarian mascots had left, and were immediately replaced by leprechauns.Harry made a note to ask Mr Weasley about what he meant after the match. Fred and George cheered for their team, and the atmosphere that had been created by the veelas was changed into a more joyful and boisterous one.

Soon enough, the match had begun, and Harry was so taken by the excitement in the space, that momentarily he had forgotten about his sad feelings. He cheered when Viktor Krum had caught the snitch, but he was sad to find out that even with the extra one hundred and fifty points, the Irish still had one.

The twins couldn’t stop celebrating all the way back to the tent, and Harry enjoyed their songs, but what he enjoyed the most was how angered Ron looked. He snickered at his friend's expression and watched as Ron declared his love for Viktor Krum.

Soon enough shouts were heard and Mr. Weasley entered the room, panicked. “That must be the Irish!” exclaimed George, still waltzing around the room with his twin. Mr. Weasley placed a firm hand on Fred’s shoulder to get them to stop, “It’s not the Irish, we have to go.”

***

“Now that we’re all settled in and sorted, I’d like to make an announcement. This castle will not only be your home this year, but home to some very special guests as well. You see, Hogwarts has been chosen-” Dumbledore’s speech gets interrupted by Filch running inside and then whispering something in his ear.

The students wait around anxiously and Harry can already see Fred and George making bets on what the announcement will be. Filch runs back to the gate, and Dumbledore continues, “So, Hogwarts has been chosen to host a legendary event, the triwizard tournament!”

Chatter erupts in the hall, and Fred hands George two sickles. George has a smirk on his face. “Now for those of you who do not know, the triwizard tournament brings together three schools for a series of magical contests, for each school, a single student is selected to compete. Now let me be clear, if chosen, you stand alone, and trust me when I say these contests are not for the faint hearted.”

The chatter stops at Dumbledore’s eery words, and a frown settles on Harry’s face. “But more of that later, now please join me in welcoming the lovely ladies of the Beauxbatons academy of magic and their headmistress Madame Maxime!”

The doors to the Great Hall open, revealing a large group of ladies all wearing blue uniforms. Harry thought about how Y/N would love that. They walked with their hands behind their backs and leaned in on each side to show off for the boys.

They started running to the front of the hall, and Ron’s mouth was agape. Then blue butterflies erupted from around the girls, and all Harry could think about was how perfect Beauxbatons seemed for Y/N. When they were done, the headmistress walked behind them, and seamus said, “Blimey, that’s one big woman!”

A girl tumbled behind the girls, and as soon as the ladies bowed. The hall erupted in cheers and wolf whistles, Ron and Harry cheering loudly like all of the boys. Hermione and Ginny opposite them only clapped their hands politely. The ladies went to sit on the Ravenclaw table.

“And now, please welcome our friends from the north, please greet the proud sons of Durmstrang and their headmaster, Igor Karkroff!” Dumbledore bellowed, and everyone’s heads snapped to the door to see the other school’s entrance.

While turning to look at the entrance of the Great Hall, he saw a familiar face sitting at the Ravenclaw table, standing up to be able to see the Durmstrang boys more clearly. Harry’s eyes widened as he noticed Y/N in the blue Beauxbatons uniform. His thoughts were interrupted by Ron saying in awe, “Blimey, it’s him, Viktor Krum!”

Harry looked to where Ron was looking and noticed that it was in fact Viktor Krum, standing next to the headmaster, Igor Karkroff. The two headmasters embraced and Igor placed a soft kiss on madame maxime’s hand. Harry slapped Ron’s shoulder and he pointed to where Y/N’s sitting, “Look, Look! That’s Y/N!”

“Right!” Ron scoffed, as he looked at the Beauxbatons’ girl sitting next to a Ravenclaw boy who was clearly flirting with her. Three blue butterflies flew around her as several boys looked at her in awe. “It is her!”

Ron rolled his eyes, and Hermione and Ginny looked at Y/N. Harry noticed and said, “Hermione, tell Ron that you believe me!” Hermione bit her lip then looked back at Y/N, “Even that does seem a bit far fetched Harry.”

“What’s all the racket about?” Fred asked, and George beside him. Ron pointed to where the Ravenclaw was and said, “Harry expects us to believe that that veela over there is Y/N!”

Fred and George looked to where Ron was pointing and they started snickering. Ginny couldn’t help but join in on the laughter. Harry’s face turned red and he shouted, “That is her!”

“Wasn’t she a muggle, Harry?” Hermione asked, trying not to join in on the infectious laughter. Harry looked at her and replied, “I thought she was, but apparently not.”

The whole table started laughing as Ron told Seamus and Dean about Harry’s claim. Fred then told George through laughter, “How about you give me a hundred galleons if that’s actually Y/N?”

“You really want to lose a hundred galleons, Fred?” George countered back, and soon enough Harry had had enough of the teasing and he started to leave the Great Hall.

At the Ravenclaw table, Y/N was laughing along with her friends, grateful that madame Maxime allowed the ones with the highest grades in each year to join in watching the triwizard tournament. She was about to continue chatting when she saw a familiar mop of hair.

“Hey, Terry. Could you tell me who’s that?” she asked, and Terry looked at where she was pointing, and he replied to her with an awestruck smile, “That’s Harry Potter!”

She gives him a quick smile as thanks. She walks towards Harry and starts to call out his name. She was beyond excited, if this really was her Harry then she’d be on the moon for the rest of the year. It would truly be brilliant if the guy she liked was also a wizard.

Back at the Gryffindor table, “You all should be ashamed of yourselves, he’s your friend, you shouldn’t tease him like that!” Hermione scolded as Ginny started poking her shoulder with a surprised look on her face. “What?!” Hermione shouted, and Ginny pointed to where Y/N was standing, talking to Harry.

Ron, Dean, Seamus, Fred and George all looked to where Ginny was pointing and they all gave each other a quick look before they ran towards Harry. They all stood behind the boy and they watched Harry and Y/N hug. She opened her eyes to see five boys looking at her excitedly and so she moved back from Harry’s embrace, shy.

Harry looks behind him, and gets startled by the boys behind him. She gives them all a wave with a small “Hi.” They all wave back like idiots, and Harry folds his arms. He turns back to look at Y/N, and he asks, “You never told me you were a witch!”

“You never told me you were a wizard!” She counters back, and her excitement leads her butterflies to flutter around them. One of them stands on Ron’s nose while the other two stand each on one of Dean’s shoulders. “This is so exciting!” She exclaims and brings Harry to another hug.

Seamus clears his throat, and she looks at the group of boys still looking at her. She moves away from Harry and faces the boys. She notices Ron’s red hair and says, “You must be Ron, Harry’s told me about you!”

Ron flushes under her attention, and he mumbles, “Uh huh.” Fred pushes Ron to the side and asks with a cheeky smile, “Well then, darling, you must know who we are.” He points to himself and George.

“Oh! You’re Ron’s brothers, George and Fred.” She says, excited that she remembers all of Harry’s friends. “That’s right, gorgeous.” George replies, and Y/N is unphased by the pet name, having received many of them over the years, yet she’s never heard one from Harry. She doesn’t let that thought bother her as she turns to the other two boys and notices that one of them is very good looking, he doesn’t make butterflies erupt in her stomach, but still she blushes, “I’m sorry, I don’t remember Harry telling me who you two are.”

Seamus and Dean stare at her without a thought in her head, and Harry taps her shoulder. She looks at him and he says, “It’s the veela-ness.”

She notices and says, “Oh, I’m sorry you can blame my grandmother for that!” She chuckles as she tries to suppress the veela powers, leaving only one butterfly, still on Dean’s shoulder. “I’m Seamus Finnigan.” seamus holds his hand out for her to shake and she does so.

“I’m Dean.” Dean says, shyly, and Y/N couldn’t help but blush at how cute he is. Harry notices their weird interaction and he frowns. Y/N notices the butterfly on Dean’s shoulder and she walks closer to him, effectively cutting off his breath. She takes the butterfly and it flies above her again. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s nothing!” Dean nearly shouts, and seamus snickers behind him. “If you guys don’t mind, I want to do some catching up with Harry.” Y/N says, as she grabs Harry’s hand and leads him out of the Great Hall.

The boys watch as they exit the Great Hall and as soon as they’re out of the hall, Fred turns to George and says, “Pay up, git!” George looks at Fred, appalled, “I never agreed.”

“You never disagreed either, now give me my money!” Fred says, and George points to behind Fred and says, “Oh, what’s that?” Fred and all the boys turn to look where George was pointing, giving George just enough time to run away towards the Gryffindor table.

Outside the Great Hall, “So your dad was a student at Beauxbatons?” Harry asked, after Y/N shared more about her life. She hummed in agreement at his words, and she pulled him into a hug again. “I’m sorry, I’m just so happy, you’re a wizard!”

“No, don’t be sorry.” Harry said while pulling her closer to the point where he lifts her toes from the ground for a bit. He’s about to let go of her when she wraps her arms around him tighter, “Can we just stay like this for a bit?”

Harry doesn’t answer, but he pulls her back into an embrace. Once she’s had enough, she pulls back and looks at him. A frown settles on her face, and Harry gets confused. She takes a bit of his hair between her fingers and she asks, “Harry?”

He hums in acknowledgement, looking into her eyes. She looks back at him for a second with a sweet smile, and his heart races. That’s new, he thinks. She pulls that strand of his hair that she was holding, and shouts, “What have you done to your hair?”

He moves away from her and rubs his head in pain. He grimaces and looks at her angry expression. “What do you mean?” She walks closer to him and holds his cheek, making his face effectively turn red. “Harry, you know that I mean this in the kindest way possible, but your hair looks disgusting.”

“What’s wrong with it?” He asks, confused but not focused with her hand holding his face. She pats his cheek sympathetically and says, “The question you should be asking is what is right with it?”

“You really think it’s that bad?” Harry asks, and she bites her lip, and his gaze shoots down to her lips. She doesn’t take notice and says, “Well, it’s bad, but it’s not awful because it’s you.”

He blushes and smiles at her. They get interrupted by Viktor Krum walking outside the great hall, and he spots Y/N. He puts one hand around her waist and says in a thick Bulgarian accent, “Madame Maxime wants to see you inside.”

Y/N’s face forms an ‘O’, and she gives Harry a kiss on the cheek. She wonders if he knows that he’s the only one that she kisses on their cheek, and says, “See you later, Harry.” He nods while looking at Krum with an angry expression. Krum gives him a nod and then leads them back to the Great Hall. Harry stares at Krum’s hand around Y/N’s waist and he walks inside the Great Hall to sit back on the Gryffindor table.

He sits back next to Ron and he mumbles, “I hate Viktor Krum.” Ron gasps from beside him with a spoonful of food in his mouth. Harry notices that the feast has begun and he starts to fill his plate with food. “You take that back!” Ron gasps.

“No.” Harry says, shortly. Halfway through dinner, a boy from Beauxbatons comes near Harry and asks, “Are you Y/N’s friend?” Harry nods and the boy says, “I’m Elliot Dupont, Y/N told me that you wanted me to cut your hair.”

He looks at the Ravenclaw table to find Y/N missing, and he scans all the tables to find her sitting next to Viktor Krum on the Slytherin table. He nearly seethes when he finds that on her other side Draco Malfoy is talking her ear off. She makes eye contact with him and she notices Elliot. She gives him a big thumbs up with excitement.

Harry turned to Elliot and said, “Yeah.” Elliot surveys Harry’s hair with disgust and grabs his arm. “Let’s go!” Harry didn’t have time to protest as he was pulled out of the Great Hall into the boy’s bathroom. Elliot conjured up a chair and a pair of scissors. He opened and closed the scissors and looked at Harry with an evil grin, “Let’s start.”

***

“He’s such a git.” Harry mumbles, frustrated. “Why is he acting like this?” He groans and puts his head in his hands. Y/N shuffles closer to him and says, “Maybe, he’s just feeling overshadowed.”

They’re sitting together in the courtyard after Ron had another fight with Harry, also after Professor Moody had turned Draco Malfoy into a ferret. They’re in a far off corner where no one can see them, and where Harry can’t see the ‘Potter Stinks’ Badges.

“I think you should try to forget about Ron for a bit and focus on something other than him…” She trails off, trying to plant an idea in his head. She sticks to his side and plays with his, now trimmed, hair. “Are you thinking about who you’re going to ask?”

“Ask who to what?” Harry asks, confused. He’s looking at the ground, and Y/N grabs his face to make him look at her. “There’s a ball coming up, and you have to have a date.”

“I’m not going to some ball.” Harry said, and Y/N rolled her eyes, “It’s mandatory for the champions to go, Harry.” He groans, even more frustrated. She hums telling him to tell her who he’s thinking of taking. “Maybe Cho, she seems nice.”

“I heard she fancies Cedric.” Y/N said, ignoring the pang of jealousy she felt in her chest. Harry rolls his eyes, remembering Hermione and Ginny’s reactions to Cedric back at the Quidditch World Cup, and says, “Everyone fancies him.”

“I don’t.” Y/N says firmly and so she continues, “Anyone else you want to ask?” Harry shakes his head, and he sighs, “I’ll think about it when we get told about it.”

“You know, I coloured my dress crimson red.” Y/N said, still not giving up. Harry’s face brightened and he said, “Oh! That’s my favourite colour-” as if she didn’t already know that, “How do you know about the ball anyway?”

“We were told before we came here, so we can get our dresses from home.” Y/N explained, the Durmstrang boys also found out, considering that Viktor Krum had already asked her, she declined, but he’s been trying to get her to agree. Truthfully, the only person she wanted to go with was Harry, and if not Harry then maybe Dean.

“I don’t have a date, you know.” Y/N says still playing with his hair, once he had looked away. Harry looked at Y/N sympathetically and patted her shoulder while saying, “Don’t worry Y/N, you’re going to find one.”

She rolled her eyes at what he was implying and she grabbed her bag. She slung it around her shoulders, “You’re really thick, you know that.” she huffed and walked away towards the castle. She found some of her friends from Beauxbatons and she stayed with them. Harry was left confused in the end of the courtyard.

"Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?" Fleur asked, asking Y/n what’s wrong. She pointed towards Harry and replied, “cet idiot là-bas ne comprend pas que je veux qu'il me demande d'aller au bal”

The group looked at Harry at the mention of him not understanding that she wanted him to take her to the ball, and Harry stood still under the glares of several, older Beauxbatons students. He looked around him to see if they were looking at anyone else, but he was the only one there. He gave them an awkward smile then promptly ran away.

Soon enough, the Yule Ball was announced to the population of Hogwarts. Y/N got asked to the ball more times than she could count, and because of that she had decided to use all her energy to suppress her veela powers considering that almost all the boys who asked her didn’t even know her name.

Suppressing her powers was very draining, but not more draining than waiting for Harry to ask her. She turned down Viktor Krum two more times before he decided to ask Harry’s friend, Hermione. The Yule Ball was in two days, and Harry didn’t ask her.

During breakfast, Y/N decided to ask Harry to be her date, why should she wait around for him to ask her. According to her knowledge Harry didn’t ask anyone which means that he has no date. “Harry, considering that you have no date, I was wondering if-”

“But Harry does have a date.” Ron interrupted with food in his mouth, and Y/N breath got caught in her throat. Harry was eating, only listening to the conversation. “Oh, that’s great! Who is it?”

“Parvati Patil.” Harry said, and he looked at Y/N to ask, “So, who are you going with?” She rolled her eyes and huffed, she couldn’t have made it anymore obvious. For the second time, she grabbed her bag and left the Great Hall.

She was walking in the corridor, heading back to the carriage. The Yule Ball is in two days, of course everyone has a date, she might as well go home for Christmas rather than spend it alone here. Tears involuntarily began to fill her eyes, and she wiped them away with her hands. She wasn’t going to cry because of some boy who didn’t want her.

“Y/N!” seamus called out her name, and she turned to look at him, praying that her eyes don’t look red. Seamus pushed Dean towards her and she could hear Dean whisper, “She’s not going to say yes.”

“Hi Dean.” She said with a smile. He’s very shy with a blush on his face, he clears his throat and looks her in the eye as he asks, “Would you um would you like to go to the Yule Ball with me?”

“Yeah.” She replied with a wide smile, she rushed to give him a hug and she said, “Thank you so much for asking me, Dean!” He’s positively flushed when she releases him from the hug. He gives her a crooked smile, and he says, “I’ll pick you up at 7:30?”

“Sure, I’ll be waiting outside the carriage.” She confirms, and she gives him a kiss on the cheek before leaving, “See you then!” She turns around and nearly skips back to the carriage. She couldn’t deny the disappointment that she felt that she wasn't going with Harry, but she was excited to go with Dean. It felt weird kissing someone on the cheek that wasn’t Harry, but she ignored that feeling.

***

Harry was waiting outside with Parvati Patil and they were just about to make their grand entrance. Harry was waiting to see if he could find Y/N, considering the fact that he was about to puke from nervousness and she was the only one who could calm him down. Hermione’s talking with Viktor Krum so he wouldn’t want to disturb her, and Ron’s on edge because Hermione’s talking with Krum.

Professor McGonogall walks up to him and says, “Are you ready, Potter?” His eyes widen and he looks at his watch, 8:05, the ball was supposed to start 5 minutes ago. “Professor, can’t we just give it a few more minutes?”

“I’m sorry Potter, but we can’t hold off everything for some reason, only you know.” Professor McGonogall shook her head, and headed inside to tell Dumbledore to start to announce the champions. He headed inside with Parvati holding his arm.

They walked inside behind all the other champions, on his right he saw Ron with Padma. Parvati waved to her sister, and beside Ron, he could see Seamus, beside Seamus there was Dean, and who was Dean’s date? Y/N. He looked away quickly and focused on walking towards the centre of the hall.

The music started and Harry started to fumble with dancing, he clearly had no practice. It was painful to watch, and right beside him, all of the other champions were dancing gracefully and elegantly. Luckily for Harry, no one really focused on him and they all focused on Fleur who was looking even more beautiful tonight than usual.

Once the torturous dance ended, Harry went out looking for Ron who was sulking on one of the tables. He sank into the chair beside him, and Padma asked, “Aren’t we going to dance?” Parvati nodded along to her sister’s question looking at Harry hopefully.

“Not in the mood.” Ron said, and both the twins sat next to their dates, doing nothing. Ron watched angrily as Hermione danced with Viktor Krum. He whispered, heatedly to Harry, “I hate Viktor Krum.”

“Welcome to the team.” Harry offered back to him, and he watched as Dean twirled Y/N around, watching her bright smile. Of course, she wouldn’t want to go out with him. He sighed and sank deeper in his chair. He watched her the entire night, it was involuntary really. All he wanted was to forget that she didn’t want to come to the ball with him, but all his eyes wanted was to look at how beautiful she looked in that crimson red dress.

Parvati stood up to dance with some boy from Durmstrang while Padma stayed beside Ron, the entire night. Right when the night was near ending, Ron had a spat with Hermione. Y/N got alerted by the sight of her new friends shouting and so she heads towards them.

“What happened?” She asked, looking at how Hermione was running out of the ball. Ron said, grumpily, “She was with the enemy!”

“The enemy, you mean Viktor Krum? Well, I’m from Beauxbatons, why wouldn’t I be considered the enemy.” Y/N asked with her hands on her hips, Ron fumbled and pouted, then he sank inside the chair more.

“Hmm?” Y/N turned to Harry and he shrugged his shoulders and raised his hands in surrender. Harry noticed that on the other side of the hall, Dean was looking around. “Aren’t you too busy with your date to care about what’s going on here?” Harry seethed.

“I always have time for my friends, Harry, and you know that.” Y/N answered, firmly. Harry stood up to be face-to-face with Y/N, and he spat, “Not since you found that new boyfriend of yours. You haven’t talked to me in two days!”

“Oh, I’m sorry that I haven’t been in the mood to talk to you, Harry.” Y/N hissed back at him, and he grinded his teeth against each other, “Why not?”

“I didn’t enjoy the thought of spending time with someone who didn’t want to go to the ball with me.” She explained, then she headed towards the entrance of the Great Hall to find Hermione, leaving Harry standing very confused. Dean came up from behind her and tapped her shoulder, “I’m going to go hang out with Seamus for a bit.”

She nodded her head, and said, “I was actually thinking of going to bed, but I had a great time Dean, really.” He smiled, and pressed a kiss on her hand that left her blushing at the gesture. He went back to the centre of the crowd to find seamus.

She went outside and looked around for Hermione to find her crying on the stairs. She climbed the few flights till she was beside her, and she sat down. “They’re the biggest idiots in the world.” Y/N told her, and Hermione couldn’t help but chuckle as she wiped away her tears.

“I just think that Ron’s jealous of Viktor more than anything else, really.” Y/N said, sympathetically. She had picked up on her crush very early on. Hermione rubbed her hands over face, and said, “Don’t give me hope, he’s hopeless.”

“Harry, on the other hand, really does like you.” Hermione said, and Y/N shook her head, she took off her heels, the same way Hermione did. “That’s not possible.”

Y/N folded her knees near to her chest, careful that her underwear does show. She folded her arms on her knees then rested her head on her forearms. She sighed, and Hermione mirrored her actions, exactly. Hermione expressed, “They spoiled the night.”

Y/N hummed in agreement, and she said, “I think I’ll go back home tomorrow.” The only reason why she wanted to stay after in the beginning of the year was because she’d thought that Harry would be her boyfriend after the ball, and they would spend the break going on dates. That didn’t seem to be happening.

“No, come on! You can’t let him ruin your holidays.” Hermione said, and Y/N just shook her head. She pressed her face tightly against her palms as she said, “I’ve liked him for nearly two years now, and it’s not like I’ve been subtle! He doesn’t like me, that’s the only explanation.”

Hermione said nothing as Y/N picked up her heels and stood up. She brushed the dirt off the back of her dress, and decided not to wear her heels, she’d wash her stockings when she got back home.

She wasn’t even sure if her parents would be thrilled if she came home. She had told them that she wasn’t coming back after Christmas, so they might have organised a trip somewhere. She knows that they’ve been wanting to take a trip for a while.

She sighed and she was nearing the carriage when her name got called out. She was far enough that she didn’t recognise the voice, so she turned and saw Harry. She turned back around and started walking at a faster pace. She could hear his footsteps picking up too.

She reached the dim carriage, alerting her that there were no students inside. It’s miserable how everyone was having a good time, and she’s the only one who will spend the night in the carriage all alone. She placed one foot on the first stair of the carriage when Harry grabbed her wrist.

She looked back at him and shoved her hand out of his grasp again. She started to climb up again, when Harry wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up. She squirmed and slapped his arm, “Put me down, I don’t want to see you.”

“I won’t until you listen to me.” Harry said, and he didn’t at all seem bothered by the fact that she was hitting him. She noticed that he didn’t seem to be getting tired at all from carrying her, and her frustration grew. “Put me down, you git!”

“I did want to go to the ball with you.” Harry squeaked out, and she stopped moving. He slowly set her down, and he kept an eye out for any sudden movements she might do. She didn’t do or say anything for a moment, and Harry saw it as a chance to talk to her.

In a flash, she hurried up the stairs and reached the door. Her hand was nearly on the handle when Harry stood in between her and the door. She huffed out angrily, and grinded her teeth against each other. “I’m a seeker, you can’t outrun me.”

She looked away and she started to descend the stairs again. He grabbed her wrist again, and that was the final straw. “Just leave me alone! I don’t want to talk to you or see you.” She shouted, and he was left unfazed. She shoved him, and he said, “Just listen.”

“No, I won’t. I don’t owe you anything.” She seethed, and stepped away from his grasp. She stepped off the stairs and sat on a bench on the side of the carriage. She thought that if she stayed long enough, he’d get bored eventually then leave her alone.

She sat down, and he followed her. Just as he was about to sit, she lifted her legs up, so she took up the entire bench. She avoided his gaze even though she could feel him looking at her attentively. She started to play with her hair out of boredom, and looked at the lake.

“Why did you want to go to the ball with me?” Harry asks, and she scoffs, he truly is oblivious isn’t he? He doesn’t even know about her feelings, and he didn’t want to go to the ball with her, so why should she confess her feelings. She sighs, “You’re my friend.”

“You’re friends with so many people, why me?” He pressed and she tucked the strand of hair that she was playing with behind her ear. She started to shiver from the cold weather, and she said, “I enjoy spending time with you.”

He hums, unsatisfied, she can tell because she knows him like the back of her hand, but he doesn’t ask anymore questions. Snow began to fall, and she started to absolutely freeze. She got up and made her way towards the stairs again. “You should get back, you’re the champion and all.”

“Are we…fine?” Harry asks, and she lets another sigh escape her. She nods her head with a smile, even though she knows that she’ll never be fine until she moves on. He beams, and turns around to head back to the ball. She couldn’t help the way her eyes watered.

She climbed up the stairs for the final time that night and she didn’t bother changing her clothes as she reached her bed. She fell on her bed, and stayed there. She started sobbing, knowing that it was alright since no one was there anyway, that made it all more miserable.

***

It was the middle of the night when she heard knocking on her window. She took out her wand, and held it tightly. She was just about to go to sleep, so she stood in her pyjamas. She heard the knocking once more, and she made her way to the window cautiously.

She had the window open so she didn’t understand why the intruder would knock in the first place. She quickly pushed the curtain aside, and pointed her wand at whoever was there. Harry gasped as he saw the wand pointed towards his nose, and she lowered her wand with a sigh of relief.

“You scared me to death.” She said with a stern look, as Harry entered her room. He closed the window behind him, and then the curtain. He looked at her with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, and he pulled her in for a hug. Harry said, “You wouldn’t be scared if I was able to use the front door.”

She tucked her bottom lip between her teeth, and she sighed. Ever since Cedric Diggory died in the triwizard tournament, and Harry said that Voldemort had returned, her parents forbid her from seeing him. They thought he was a lunatic and a bad influence.

They still didn’t allow Harry to see her even after the ministry had published Voldemort’s return. They thought Harry was dangerous. He had been sneaking into her room for a while now. This was the first time she’d seen him after the summer. He had just arrived from Hogwarts.

They sat on her bed, and she said, “I’m glad you’re back.” He nodded his head, and looked to the floor. The room wasn’t lit considering that she was just going to bed, so she opened her small bedside lamp. It lit the room in an orange way, but it was then that she noticed Harry’s tear stained cheeks and puffy eyes.

She cupped his cheeks with her hand, and asked, “Harry, what happened?” She could see tears begin to collect in the corners of his eyes again, and he choked out, “Sirius is dead.”

She pulled him into a hug, and then he started sobbing. He had his arms wrapped tightly around her waist as he continued to cry. He had his head resting on her shoulder, and every so often she would place a comforting kiss on his head.

She knew all about Sirius Black, at first she thought he was a murderer, but back in their fourth year, she saw him talking to Harry in the fireplace, and he explained everything to her. He told her how he was the only family he has left, and the biggest connection to his parents.

He told her that when his name got cleared, he’d go and live with him, and he’d invite her over because he knew that he wasn’t going to be able to spend the summer without her. He even told her how he had a small suitcase packed in his closet, ready for him to take when Sirius’s name got cleared.

She couldn’t imagine how he must be feeling at the moment. She was sure that he wasn’t going to feel well for the rest of the summer. Harry cried for an hour, and then his tears began to escape silently. She lifted his head up from her shoulder and grabbed a box of tissues from her nightstand. She handed him a few and he wiped away his tears.

“Sorry for ruining your night.” Harry said with a guilty look. “You didn’t ruin anything, I’m glad you’re back. I really missed you.” She reassured him, and he hugged her again in thanks. Harry expressed, “I thought you were going to be mad at me.”

“Why?” She asked, confused. She can’t remember anything annoying or rude that he did. “You never replied to my last letter.” Her heart sank, she remembered now. He had told her that Cho had kissed him after one of their DA lessons last Christmas. She forced out a chuckle, “I must’ve forgotten.”

“You’re still my favourite girl.” Harry teased, and she chuckled out, “I thought that was Hermione.” A blush coated Harry’s cheeks as he said, “You’re both my favourite girls just in different ways.”

“Oh, so you like Hermione, now?” She asked, trying as much as possible to shield away any negative emotion that she might be feeling. He shook his head, and her eyes widened. He couldn’t possibly like her, could he?

She blushed and she said, “What do you mean?” She had to hear him say it because she was terrified that she’d kiss him, and he wouldn’t kiss her back. He turned to face her completely, and he said, “I like you.”

She blinked a couple of times before she jumped on Harry, pressing her lips to his. His back hit the mattress as he lifted his arms to her waist to kiss her back. She cupped his face, and kissed him until she felt him smile against her lips, effectively ruining it.

She smiled, and giggled. She climbed off him, and blushed, “Sorry, it’s just that- I’ve wanted this since I was thirteen.” Harry’s smile widened and he replied, “You don’t have to be sorry, I’ve wanted this since you kissed me when we were eleven.”

She was smiling like a maniac after his words, and involuntarily a group of blue butterflies swarmed around the room, and a bunch of them landed on Harry causing him to laugh. She suppressed her powers once more, and they all disappeared. A question popped into her head and she voiced, “Why did my powers never affect you?”

He blushed and he explained, “I wondered the same when in the Quidditch world cup everyone was drooling at the Veelas, Ron was about to jump out of the top box while I was acting normally. I asked Mr. Weasley about it after the match and it turns out, I can’t be affected by Veela powers because I was already too in love with you.”

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cypher2 · 8 months

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2023 Women's World Cup records

In addition to breaking numerous worldwide social media and viewing records, the 2023 Women's World Cup set and broke a number of unique tournament records as well. The players and teams that participated in this WWC should all feel extremely proud for the history they have made. Their performances continue to show the world that these athletes are capable of so much more than they are ever fully recognized for.

First team from their nation to qualify for a men’s or women’s senior FIFA tournament: Vietnam WNT 8 nations had their debuts for first time appearing in a FIFA women’s World Cup: Haiti, Portugal, Zambia, Vietnam, The Philippines, Republic of Ireland, Morocco, and Panama. Canadian midfielder Quinn starts for Canada and becomes the first non-binary athlete to play at a FIFA World Cup.

Christine Sinclair (Canada) and Marta (Brazil) become the 3rd and 4th players in history to appear in 6 World Cup competitions men or women, with Homare Sawa (Japan) and Onome Zeno (Nigeria) being the other two. The player with the record for most world cup appearances in history remains Brazil’s Formiga, the only player to compete in 7 world cups (men or women).

Kristine Lilly still holds the record for most WC appearances by men or women with 30 games played - a record set and held since 2007. Followed by Formiga with 27 as of 2019 and Lionel Messi with 26 as of 2022. Brazil’s Marta still holds the all time leading record for most goals scored across all World Cup competitions with 17 goals in 23 appearances across 6 tournaments.

Zambia’s Lushomo Mweemba scores the fastest goal of this year’s tournament in group stage at 2min 11 sec, also marking Zambia’s first ever world cup goal in their debut. The fastest goal in a FIFA Women’s World Cup has stood for over 30 years - it remains the goal scored by Lena Videkull of Sweden, who scored after just 30 seconds against Japan in the inaugural 1991 tournament. Zambia’s Barbra Banda scores the 1000th goal in WWC history. Nouhaila Benzina of Morocco becomes the first Women’s World Cup player to wear a hijab.

Ary Borges of Brazil scores a hat trick in her WWC debut and the first hat trick of the tournament. First Caribbean nation to reach the round of 16 in WWC history - Jamaica First Arab nation to qualify for a WWC and reach the round of 16 in WWC history - Morocco Of the eight debutants, Morocco was the only one to advance to the round of 16. Two teams reached the round of 16 having conceded no goals so far in the tournament- Japan and Jamaica.

First time four African nations have been represented at a WWC with three of them qualifying for the knock out stage at this years competition - South Africa, Morocco, and Nigeria. 3 of the 4 African nations appearing in this year’s WWC all finished 2nd in their groups (Morocco, South Africa, and Nigeria). The US suffered its earliest elimination in WWC history, getting knocked out in the round of 16. The U.S. has never finished below 3rd place in all previous editions of the competition. Sweden’s Zećira Mušović sets a new record for most saves in any WWC 2023 game with 11 saves vs the US in the round of 16.

First manager to lead two different nations to a World Cup final (Netherlands and England)- Sarina Wiegman First goalkeeper to take and convert a PK in a WWC penalty shootout - Alyssa Naeher

Golden ball (best overall player of the tournament) - Aitana Bonmatí Silver ball - Jenni Hermoso Bronze ball - Amanda Ilestedt Golden boot (most goals scored in the tournament) - Hinata Miyazawa (5 goals) Silver boot - Kadidiatou Diani Bronze boot - Alexandra Popp Golden glove (best goalkeeper of the tournament) - Mary Earps

FIFA young player award (best player of the tournament under 21 years old) - Salma Paralluelo FIFA fair play award (team with best record of fair play during the tournament) - Japan Best mascot of the tournament (unofficial) - Waru Longest penalty shootout in World Cup history (20 penalties taken) - Australia vs France quarter final

The 2023 competition was hosted by Australia and New Zealand, making it the first edition to be held in the Southern Hemisphere, the first Women's World Cup to be hosted by two countries, and the first FIFA senior competition for either men or women to be held across two confederations (Asia and Oceanic).

First edition of the women’s tournament to feature an expansion to 32 teams and 64 matches, and largest women’s sporting event in history with 32 teams and 736 players. Only team to play all matches (group stage + knockout) undefeated with a 6-0-0 record - England All 4 previous winner nations (US, Germany, Norway, and Japan) were eliminated before the semifinal stage, marking the first time this has happened in the competition’s history.

For the first time in its 32 year and 9 tournament history, the WWC has a new champion (Spain) and new runner up (England) in 2023, with both nations never having made it to the final stage before. Only the 2nd nation in history to win both a men’s and women’s World Cup - Spain Top scoring country at the 2023 WWC - Spain with 18 goals First time a senior English football team has made it to a WC final in 6 decades - England WNT

First time advancing past quarterfinals in their WWC history and first host nation to advance to semifinals in 20 years - Australia placed 4th place for best in all 8 WWC competitions they’ve participated in and broke attendance records through all stages of the tournament, with an overall stadium attendance across all matches at 1.978 million. More than 1.5 million tickets were sold for the WWC, surpassing the entire tournament’s projected target in the first 5 days alone.

Two attendance records were broken for both host nations on day one of the WWC - largest crowd ever for a men’s or women’s football game in New Zealand (42,137) and largest crowd ever for a women’s football game in Australia (75,784).

Brazil's opening match v Panama was simulcast live on TV Globo and SporTV, delivering a combined audience of 13.9 million viewers - higher than any audience in the territory during the 2007, 2011, and 2015 WWC. China v England produced the highest audience for a single match, reaching 53.9 million viewers, becoming the highest in any global market so far. 17.15 million people tuned into the Australia v England semifinal cumulatively across Channel 7, Optus Sport, venues, and live-sites, comprising approx 64% of the entire Australian population - the biggest television event not just in any sport in the country, but in Australia’s television history.

The record for highest single match attendance still remains the 1999 WWC final between the US and China with 90,185 in attendance - a number that hasn’t been reached since the men’s tournament at the 1994 WC final between Italy and Brazil at 94,194.

The largest 2023 attendances were at Stadium Australia in Sydney, which saw four capacity-crowd fixtures, including Australia's opening win over Republic of Ireland and the final between Spain and England. The crowd of 75,784 was a record home audience for a women's football match in Australia and the third largest individual crowd attendance in Women's World Cup history. Over 50% of all matches had near sell out or at stadium capacity with a total of 1,977,824 fans in attendance at the 64 games in total, setting a new record for highest overall attendance in Women’s World Cup history across all 9 editions of the tournament. Highest grossing Women’s World Cup in history with a revenue of over half a billion dollars ($570 million), surpassing the projected revenue estimate by $100 million.

#wwc23 #wwc 2023 #fifa women's world cup #woso #attendance and records #wwcedit #I had to throw the waru one in there #for my own heart #waru 🥺

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