This is Magic: Ereri Harry Potter AU! Fanfiction

Chapter 8: Try Outs

“I’m definitely gonna throw up,” the brunet informed Levi, leaning over the side of the staircase heavily. “I can feel it. There’s no way I’m eating breakfast.”

The raven rolled his eyes at Eren’s melodramatic speech, folding his thin arms on his chest. “Calm the fuck down, Eren. You’ll be fine,” he sighed. “Once we get to the Great Hall, you’ll smell the food and all of your nervousness will disappear instantly.” Eren glanced at Levi doubtfully, opting not to respond in favor of quelling the building anxiety in his stomach. Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat.

The try-outs that were occurring that day were inevitable. Levi and Eren had already signed up on Monday at the end of Professor Hanji’s lecture, and they were committed to the try-outs. Hanji had already sent out information to the contenders, explaining how the positions would be tested, the skills that were expected out of everyone, and what equipment would be provided, courtesy of the Gryffindor team.

Contrary to Levi’s predictions, Eren did not lose his queasiness when the boys arrived at breakfast. Eren slouched in his seat, staring blankly at his empty plate. His eyes were zoned out, no doubt focused on the horrible events that day. Levi scowled at the brunet and shoveled some French toast onto his plate in a last ditch effort to make him eat. “Eren, seriously. You have to eat, or you won’t have energy at try-outs.” Just the mention of the upcoming event made Eren’s face turn a homely shade of green, and Levi recoiled slightly in disgust. “You’re seriously asking for it,” the raven muttered, drinking his orange juice and slamming the goblet down on the table in frustration.

It’s not like Levi had a magical remedy to settle Eren’s stomach. This was a battle that the teal-eyed boy had to face on his own. It was hard enough just to convince him to attend try-outs. But maybe, just maybe, Levi could goad Eren into a positive mindset.

Levi cleared his throat, catching Eren’s attention slightly. The raven wiped his mouth with his napkin daintily, taking his time, before setting the cloth down and locking eyes with Eren. The brunet gulped, unsure of what Levi was thinking. “Eren,” he began, his voice uncharacteristically soft. “This is an amazing opportunity. You love Quidditch; you haven’t stopped talking my ear off about it since we first started rooming together. I can see how passionate you are about it, which is why I really want you to succeed today. I know that you’re a great Quidditch player, and I know that you can beat the other first years. But you won’t be able to do that unless you bring back the determination and confidence you have inside.” Levi leaned forwards, his silver eyes narrowing and his face becoming angry. “So stop being such a pussy and man up. Show these arseholes what you can do.”

Eren flinched at the hostility in Levi’s tone. His stance became defensive and he glared at Levi, although the raven had fixed his attention on buttering his toast. However, deep inside, Eren knew that he was right. Where had his passion gone? What about all of those days he spent outside, dodging rocks and zooming around on his father’s 1982 Sharpspeed until the sun had fallen well beyond the distant horizon? Eren sucked in a breath, gathered his strength, and grabbed the serving spoon in front of him with resolve. Levi smirked as he watched the brunet pile his plate up with sausages, eggs, and bread.

Just because Eren ate didn’t mean that his nervous disposition disappeared instantly. In Care of Magical Creatures, the brunet was unfocused and dropped his Red-Horned Frog, causing the animal to turn and angrily shoot spikes at the poor boy. Levi accompanied Eren to the infirmary, where Madam Freida efficiently pulled out all of the spikes with tweezers.

In Eren’s Herbology class, Armin picked up on Eren’s attitude, and tried to guide him through the day’s lesson. Sadly, when Armin had to focus on his own plant, Eren messed up again and cut of the wrong tendril of his Incera plant. Professor Petra was busy with another student and didn’t notice Eren’s plant in time. Within seconds, a noxious gas had filled the greenhouse and students were passing out left and right. Armin had the smart idea to grab a gas mask near the entrance of the room. The last thing Eren saw before he passed out was Armin suturing the plant’s wound.