Like Magic : Harry Potter x Reader / OC One-Shots ▼

1. Take Two [Seamus]

[First request done!  I apologize about the wait.  Have a few paragraphs of Colin Creevey being sweet as compensation. ;-; ]

Relief washed over me as Professor Umbridge dismissed her Defense Against the Dark Arts class. That period had been particularly difficult for me, and, from as far as I could tell, my fellow fifth-years. The O.W.L.s were coming up, and all the teachers had been dumping us with truckloads of homework in preparation. It was only natural for them to want us to do well, but I didn't think any of the professors exactly remembered what it was like to be a student, and I knew for a fact that none of them knew what it was like to be a student with the issues of the Ministry of Magic on the rise. On top of all the real-world stress, we had to deal with the stress of heavy preparation and knowing that your future lay just weeks ahead of you, determined by nothing more than a few tests.

Maybe I was taking it too far. My friends considered me a perfectionist...and, well, I couldn't say I disagreed. I'd gotten quite upset at the fact that I hadn't been chosen as a Prefect. I thought that I'd had everything in place...excellent grades, never a procrastinator, a genuinely hard worker, and truly interested in many things that would most likely bore other students. It had taken me a while to realize that becoming a Prefect hadn't just relied on your skills related to school. Personality seemingly played a larger role in it than I'd assumed, but I did know from all my previous years at Hogwarts that students given that honor had to have a strong sense of leadership, and a calm face in the face of danger. I never wanted to have to lead anybody - far too complicated, and even if I messed up just a bit, it could result in horrible outcomes, and the people I was leading would say it was my fault. Not to mention that dealing with all the responsibilities would've only added to my load of work.

My bag had slid down my arm a bit, and as I readjusted it, I remembered that I had Muggle Studies next. It wasn't an easy class by any means, but it captured my attention more than most of my other classes. I'd always taken interest in unconventional things of the sort. Whereas most of my friends wanted to be learning how to defeat the wraths of evil and win wizarding battles and practice Quidditch, I would've rather spent my time studying the history and ways of other people, enjoying the differences between magic beings and non-magic beings, but also taking solace in knowing that we weren't all that different. Muggles had their own sort of magic; the kind that most would be oblivious to unless they really looked for it. We were all living, breathing creatures. Neither one deserved more praise or respect than the other.

Lost in my thoughts, I rarely picked up on someone yelling...something. They hadn't said my name, and, considering that all the other times I'd perceived something as being meant for me I'd been dead wrong, I ignored it.

Of course, the one time that I didn't think something was meant for me, it was. Just my luck.

"Sorry, sorry, gotta go!" The sound of pounding footsteps accompanied the male voice, and, before I even had time to comprehend that someone was nearing me, he smashed into my arm, catching me off-balance. As he flew up the stairs, not bothering to look back, I toppled down, suppressing a squeal as I realized that the staircase had moved – where there had once been ascending stairs, there were descending, and the impact sent me tumbling face-forwards. I tried to put my arms out to protect my face but came to no avail. My bag obscured my vision, and I landed with a painful crash, skidding down a few more steps before an agonizing pulse shuddered through my wrist. In the attempt to save my head, I had rolled my arm on the edge of a step, and tears pooled in my eyes. My possessions were scattered everywhere...my wand was at the bottom of the landing, my bag spewing books from a few stairs below me. And there was no doubt that now I was going to be late.

I sort of just wanted to lay there and wait for someone to find me. My mind was clouded with fear and agony, all sense of rationalization gone, and the dam on the waterworks broke for a moment. The hallways were practically empty now...okay, okay, I just had to keep breathing. Shove myself up into a sitting position, at least. Then get my things...then go to class...I couldn't afford to miss any more information than I already had, so going to Madam Pomfrey was practically out of the question....