As the Second Wizarding War ended, many students decided to go back to Hogwarts to finish their studies. Anne-Leigh Conway was one of them.
While she attempts to come to terms with what's happened, she gets entangled in an effort set forth by Headmi...
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Chapter 15: Hogwarts' Newest Quidditch Celebrity
She let herself be pulled up from the grass, quickly retracting her hand once she was on her own two feet. She brushed her hands across her robe before picking up her things. Fred had shoved his hands into his pockets, and the two of them were soon walking across the open space.
The breeze softly moved around them, and Leigh found herself looking curiously as Fred guided a strand of his hair back behind his ear. She looked around, slowly coming to the realisation of where they were heading.
"Are we walking towards the quidditch pitch?" She asked with a bemused tone.
He glanced at her slightly, giving her a look from the corner of his eye. "Shush."
She rolled her eyes, yet with a small smile, grasping the book tighter to her chest. "Are you sure this is for me to relax? Not just an excuse for you to play around on a broom?"
He glanced at her again, shrugging childishly while the corner of his mouth turned upward. "What if it's both?"
Leigh couldn't help but shake her head slightly. She could think of plenty of more relaxing things to do than watch Fred Weasley shoot around on a broom. She had had a lifetime of watching quidditch at Hogwarts, many games of which the man beside her had actually participated in, and she couldn't say she felt the need to watch yet another performance.
"Oh, come on, it'll be fun!" He claimed as the two of them eventually entered the pitch, the hoops looking massive above them. Once she was here Leigh realised she had probably never actually been on the pitch. On the stands, yes, but never on the pitch. She was reminded of how high up in the air the game was played.
Fred looked around the pitch with a faint smile, basking in the memories. He couldn't count how many hours he had spent in this space - before he got banned, that is. The structure of the stands and goalposts had been rebuilt, but still provided him with the feeling of nostalgia. He quickly uttered the words 'accio broom' and patiently waited as he could envision it leaving the outside of the shop in Hogsmeade. At least he thought that was where he placed it last time.
Soon enough the broom shot through the air in his direction. Making sure Leigh was out of the way, he braced for impact and swiftly caught the broom once it reached him.
"Didn't nick one from Hooch this time?"
He grinned at her. "Not this time. Got an old one from home. It's not great but it'll do."
His eyes ran over the broom before he turned his gaze to her expectantly.
Leigh frowned, catching onto what he meant. She quickly lifted one hand in the air, palm facing him, the other holding her book. "Me? I'm not flying."
He raised an eyebrow, looking at her with shining eyes. "Yeah you are, that's the whole point."
"Look, I'm plenty relaxed here with my feet on the ground," she defended. "I haven't been on a broom since 2nd year and I prefer for it to stay that way." She lowered her hand, closely gripping her book. She wouldn't admit it, but the thought of being on a broom was horrifying. She wasn't usually scared of heights, but as she looked up at the goalposts, envisioning being on a broom at that height, a shiver ran through her body.
