Stay - Theodore Nott

Chapter 20

Kirra smiled widely and pulled her friends in for a hug when they wished her good luck outside the locker rooms the afternoon of the quidditch match, it was Hufflepuff v Gryffindor, which meant that she would be versing her brother which only made the game more nerve racking, but also more exciting.

Kirra hardly heard a word of Blythe's pep talk as she pulled on her yellow and black Quidditch robes and picked up her Nimbus Two Thousand.

Rudy and Adira, meanwhile, had found a place in the stands. "This game is going to be absolutely great, everyone has been waiting for it, they were even more excited for this match than the Gryffindor v Slytherin match. The two Potter siblings going head to head, showing everyone who the better seeker really is," Adira exclaimed excitedly as the Hufflepuffs around her were already cheering for their house's new seeker.

"Well if I had any money I would be placing it all on Kirra, she got this in the bag I'm sure of it," Rudy said excitedly, glad to watch his friend play the match, he had hope in the girl and was sure that she would be the one to win the match for Hufflepuff, she was going to catch the snitch.

"Don't brag. And stop drooling," Adira said with a smirk and Rudy raised his eyebrows at her with a sarcastic look on his face as she continued, "I mean, obviously she going to win, but everyone already knows that, there is no need to rub it into the poor lions," Adira said with a grin on her face as she waved her Hufflepuff 'Kirra Potter has caught the snitch' poster that she had made, high up in the air.

Back in the locker room, Blythe had taken Kirra aside. "Don't want to pressure you, Potter, but Hufflepuff hasn't won the quidditch cup in years, I know you can do this, just forget about the fact that your brother is out there okay! You can do this!" Blythe said with a proud smile on his face as he pats the small girl on the back

"I'll try my best, I promise," Kirra says and gives the captain a determined nod, the nerves getting to her as she felt like she was going to chunder everywhere.

"The whole school's out there!" said Cedric Diggory, one of the team chasers (we will just pretend he is a chaser) peering out of the door.

The teams marched onto the field, the size height difference between Kirra and the rest of the players was amusing as people in the crowd pointed it out. Cedric had given her a reassuring pat on the back, "don't worry Potter, you are going to do great out there. I know it."

"My god she looks so tiny" Rudy muttered out with a grin but then notices the angry look that Snape had on his face, "I've never seen Snape look so mean," he told Adira. "Look — they're off. Ouch!"

Someone had poked Rudy in the back of the head. It was Theodore. "Oh, sorry, Maybank, didn't see you there." Theodore grinned at the two Hufflepuff's antagonising, a large smirk on his face.

"wheres the rest of your little posey?" Adira snarled and Theodore shrugged his shoulders, the grin still on his face

"Off bothering those Gryffindor idiots probably," Theodore said "Wonder how long Potter's going to stay on her broom, just by looking at the size of her, I wouldn't be surprised if the wind blew her away? Does anyone want a bet? What about you, Maybank? You seem to fancy her," Rudy didn't answer; Snape had just awarded Hufflepuff a penalty because George Weasley had hit a Bludger at him.

Kirra began to circle the field, looking for the familiar golden blur, she noticed that Harry was doing the same as her, but she was on the opposite side of the field. She continued to look around, not paying much attention to anything else that was happening as she looked for the

"You know how I think they choose people for the Hufflepuff team?" said Theodore loudly a few minutes later, grinning down at the Hufflepuff team who was clearly struggling. "actually, it wouldn't even matter, I mean they all suck anyway."

Kirra continued to watch the field and then she saw it, the little golden blur near the bottom of the ground almost right under Harry, she went for it, full speed straight towards the snitch, Harry didn't notice his sister at first but when he did he looked down to where she was diving at.

Kirra was ahead of Harry and the two raced for the snitch, basically head to head which caused gasps and cheers from the crowd. Adira stood up, her crossed fingers in her mouth, as Kirra and Harry streaked toward the ground like a bullet.

"Well I knew that Potter was a bloody psycho always staring off into space, but I didn't know the poor unintelligent thing was hallucinating too! Why don't we just watch as she flys straight into the ground and makes a pancake out of herself," said Theodore with a smirk, but as he watched the Potters going head to head, he couldn't help but cheer internally for the girl, hoping it would be her that caught the snitch.

Rudy snapped. Before Theodore knew what was happening, Rudy was on top of him, wrestling him to the ground while Adira paid no mind to the boys next to her, instead keeping her eyes on the field.

"Come on, Kirra!" Adira screamed, leaping onto her seat to watch as Kirra and Harry sped straight at the ground near Snape — she didn't even notice Theodore or Rudy rolling around under her seat as they punched each other, both of them bleeding, Rudy had a cut lip and Theodore had a cut going across his cheek

Up in the air, Snape turned on his broomstick just in time to see something scarlet and something yellow shoot past him, missing him by inches on both sides — the next second, Kirra and Harry had pulled out of the dive, Kirra's arm raised in triumph, the Snitch clasped in her hand.

The stands erupted; it had to be a record, no one could ever remember the Snitch being caught so quickly, and especially from Hufflepuff. "Rudy! Rudy! Where are you? The game's over! Kirra's won! We've won! Hufflepuff is tying with Gryffindor!" shrieked Adira, dancing up and down on her seat.

Kirra jumped off her broom, a foot from the ground. She couldn't believe it. She'd done it — the game was over; it had barely lasted five minutes, Harry jumped on the ground next to her and pulled her in for a hug.

"Good job sis!" Harry congratulated her and hugged her tightly, she wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his neck to conceal her tears of excitement.

"You too Harry," Kirra grinned and the twins pulled apart and gave another smile at each other but Kirra turned when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into Dumbledore's smiling face.

"Well done," said Dumbledore quietly, so that only Kirra could hear. "Nice to see you haven't been brooding about that mirror...been keeping busy...excellent..." Kirra looked up at him with wide eyes, but he only smiled at her

"Proff-"

"it's alright," he told her and then walked off as the Hufflepuff team ran to her and lifted her into the air excitedly and cheered loudly for her and the rest of the Hufflepuffs piled out and cheered loudly for her, they would never forget it.

Kirra left the locker room alone some time later, to take her Nimbus Two Thousand back to the broom shed. She couldn't ever remember feeling happier. She'd really done something to be proud of now – no one could say she was just a famous name any more and she had made her house and her friends happy.

The evening air had never smelled so sweet. She walked over the damp grass, reliving the last hour in her head, which was a happy blur: Hufflepuffs running to lift her onto their shoulders; and the two Weasley twins, who were disappointed they lost, were extremely happy for the girl and lifted her excitedly in the air and cheered her on. 

Rudy and Adira in the distance, jumping up and down, Rudy cheering through a heavy lip bleed. Kirra had reached the shed. She leaned against the wooden door and looked up at Hogwarts, with its windows glowing red in the setting sun.

Hogwarts is my home.