passing paradise │oliver wood

chapter 11

Chapter 11

I looked up at the sky and it had turned grey. My eyes scanned the Slytherin stands and realised that Snape, just a few seats behind us, was holding the crystal ball I had gotten from the Room of Rewards. I knew then that this was his doing.

"Professor Snape!" I hissed, catching his attention. He hid the crystal ball behind him and eyed me suspiciously. "You can't cheat-"

"I suggest you keep shut Miss Torres if you don't want to be expelled," He warned. "It's part of the plan."

He looked at me with stone hard eyes making me shiver and forced myself to look back at the front. I tried concentrating on the game instead but with each passing second, the hairs on my nape stood up. The skies were getting darker and darker.

Oliver caught another Quaffle from Adrian's try. He smirked at Adrian who was looking at him with the eyes of a greedy monster. Just like any other goal he caught; his eyes automatically looked at me. He gave me that look. The one with an eyebrow up and an amusing smile. Butterflies. Beautiful butterflies.

But then, just within a snap, the smiles on our faces fell. I don't know which one came first. I don't know which one broke me first. I don't know which one I heard first.

The hitting of the bludger by Theo...

Or the rumble of thunder by the great dark grey sky.

The bludger hit Oliver straight at his stomach. The rain broke free from its cloud cages and dropped hard ice and heavy droplets on us. Oliver clutched his stomach in pain.

The first thing I felt was the icicles and rain hitting my head and skin. The next thing I heard was the screaming of the first years. Then I saw a flash of lightning hitting the middle of the playing field. Then I saw Oliver struggling to fight against the wind. He was about to pass out from the pain. The colour on my face drained.

"Oliver!" I screamed, standing from my seat. "Get out of there!"

He couldn't hear me. Of course, he couldn't. He was busy making sure his teammates were flying into safety as the hail storm got stronger. But there was no one to make sure he was getting himself to safety.

"Oli!" I shouted, clutching at the ends of the railing. He glanced to where I was but it had become foggy. "Just get out of there, please. It's not safe!"

I faintly saw him start falling and losing his own balance against the wind. I was about to jump off the railing not until Adrian flew right in front of where I was.

"Don't," He said in a scary tone. He grabbed my arm, pulling me close to him. "C'mon. Let's go."

It was noisy now. The rain hitting different surfaces and the panic of the crowd to get into safety. There were students pushing past me but Adrian was still holding my arm. He motioned for me to get on his broom but my mind wandered to where Oliver was.

"Go!" Zara suddenly shouted beside me. There was fright in her voice as she climbed on Terence's broom. "We have to go. We're going to get hit with the ice falling, Ali. I'm sure Wood's going to be fine."

I jumped when a piece of ice cube hit my arm. Pain shot up my body for a second. The wind was now stronger and faster, blowing our hair away and it was harder to see. I forced myself to look at the running crowd and I saw Snape run to the stairs. I knew what I could do.

"Okay, fine," I said. "But you have to drop me when I say drop me."

I glanced back to where the fog had accumulated where Oliver should have been before climbing onto Adrian's broom. I watched as the students squished themselves into the skinny stairs. Everyone was pushing each other as the storm got stronger. The stands were shaking, barely holding on with the number of students and teachers. The echoes of screams grew louder and louder with the storm getting bigger and bigger. It was foggy, dark and dangerous. Adrian tried flying at a low level, dodging the hail but it was difficult.