The Gifted Curse

Chapter 13 - Glimmer

Geneva had never flown as ferociously as she'd done during the Quidditch match between Slytherin and Ravenclaw days later. Her pent up anger and frustration toward Professor Snape became a reflection of her sportsmanship, as she donned her new robes, tied back her hair and swiped the snitch within eight minutes of the match.

"Geneva Azur has the snitch! It...is...OV-ER!"

Lee Jordan's voice echoed around the stadium as green serpent banners flew and confetti burst into the air over the Slytherin stands. Orah screamed, jumping from her seat in a wave of celebration with Billy as Geneva descended to the pitch grounds to tumultuous applause.

"It's a WIN for Slytherin!" boomed Lee, "with an additional one-hundred-and-fifty points to their current one hundred...Ravenclaw at seventy. Those Ravenclaws will have to work harder next time."

Geneva was met at once by her rowdy team mates who hit the ground and came bounding over to her, clutching their brooms. Arms were thrown around her from every direction, all except Malfoy's and a reluctant Pansy, who did so only in the name of good sportsmanship. Geneva flashed her largest smile at Malfoy, remembering his malicious comment about breaking her back at try outs. Jealously was etched all over his face, and she loved it.

As people filtered back up the stone steps to make their way into the Entrance Hall, Geneva was smothered with further congratulations, more hugs, fist bumps and pats on the back. She clutched her Firebolt tightly as she made her way through the cheers and confetti, absorbing the love.

"Gennn!" Orah burst through, throwing a serpent embroidered cloth flag over her back. "You did it! I'm so proud of you!"

At that moment, Geneva felt on top of the world, surrounded by love and admiration.

"You did great Azur!"

"Nice one Geneva!"

"Will you go out with me?"

"Come off it mate, she's mine."

Geneva laughed as Orah battled the crowd, pulling her by the arm up the stone steps, headed for the feast in the Great Hall.

"Let her through, let her through," Orah chorused as though she were her PR manager, grabbing her by the hand.

"Gen-e-VA! Gen-e-VA!" cheered the crowd of bobbing Slytherins.

Professor Snape. He was looking right at her, standing there on the stone steps in his long black overcoat, his hands tucked in his pockets, his pale face so very fitting to the misty backdrop, a light breeze sending black strands of hair across his sharp features and catching wind to his scarf. Rich, black, and made of cashmere - the Christmas gift Geneva had bought him from Hogsmeade. Her heart thudded. She couldn't take her eyes off him. He was wearing it. He gave a slight nod of the head with what she was sure was a smile, concealed at the corner of his mouth as a form of congratulations. Everything had stopped momentarily in time, colours and faces around her became a blur, noise was temporarily muted, as her aqua eyes held his deep, mysterious gaze. It penetrated her. His eyes spoke to her so deeply she felt she was having a vision, her head whirled wildly as if it wasn't real. Was this his way of saying sorry? She felt he wanted to tell her something but didn't know how; that he was afraid...

Geneva gave a mellow smile in return, magnetized to him, her heart swelling, only to be awakened when Orah pulled her on.

"Come on! What are you looking at! Let's eat!"

The feast never tasted so good, tucking in to multiple hearty dishes with her team around her singing her praises made her feel like she could burst. She even received congratulations from the other house members as she and Orah attended Lupin and Harry's Defence Against The Dark Arts class that evening. It was good to be back in the Room of Requirement and revisiting what they had been practising before the holidays during their first class. Geneva was relieved to discover she could still perform the Expelliarmus spell and disarm her opponent, this time working with Ginny Weasley, who reacted so timely that their wands whipped out of their hands in unison and collided in mid air causing them both to duck, thinking they would fly back in their faces.

"Well done!" Lupin praised, as the sounds of other wands hitting the hard floor filled the room in tappy tones. "Now, try it again, mean it. I want to see her swept off her feet. You too Geneva."

Ginny looked nervous as they picked up their wands and pointed on command, braced for impact.

"Expelliarmus!!"

Geneva flew backwards across the room on their third attempt as though being yanked back by a hook and landed hard on the floor at Neville's feet, causing his spell go to awry. Ginny had also flown back, disarmed. With a wince of discomfort at the landing, the girls pushed their hands to the ground and got back up.

"We did it!" They laughed.

"Well done girls!" Lupin applauded. "Now try stupefy. That should be no problem. Nice little stunning spell that one."

"It's one of the most useful spells in your arsenal," Harry chimed in, "Kinda like wizard bread and butter really. It'll lift you off your feet, mind, are you ready to go again?"

Geneva, now on her feet was met with Orah at her side, wanting in on the action.

"You point your wand like this," Harry said, holding it outright. "You want to mostly keep it straight for this one, no swishing. Are you ready Ginny?"

"Not really," she squinted, "but go on."

"Stupify!"

Ginny was yanked backwards again with a flash of blue light and thrown hard to the ground with a thud, much harder than Geneva had ever managed to achieve.

"Ooooh!" Geneva winced. Harry dashed over to Ginny who let out a groan.

"Are you ok?" He helped her to her feet. "Sorry about that. You're doing great, really. You all are."

Ginny and Geneva went at it for a while, Luna and Orah joined in too. Geneva noticed that the intensity of the spell varied on however focussed she was at the time. If ever her mind slipped and she thought of other things, like Professor Snape or winning the Quidditch match, her opponent would only raise only slightly from the ground, instead of being swept off their feet. One time, Ginny only so much as stumbled backwards. I can't believe he was wearing my Christmas gift, Geneva thought. She could still see his expression, perhaps the most readable it had ever been, yet still shrouded in mystery.

"You have to really mean it," Lupin chimed in. "Throw your whole energy into it, feel it rising..." He made a notion to his stomach, wiggling his fingers like a bubbling force.

For the second half of the lesson, they returned to the centre of the room and split into two groups adjacent in duelling pairs. Harry walked through the middle, instructing them.

"Everybody is doing really great, well done. I thought next we'd work on the Impediment jinx. It's a way to slow down the attacker or even stop them in their tracks, and it works like this..." he turned to Professor Lupin who, on cue, drew back a curtain on the far side of the room, revealing a dummy in black with a death eater mask, causing some alarm and exchanged looks of worry.

"Death eaters," Lupin announced, unafraid. "This is how we're going to practise. Each has been bewitched to come at you in full force. Your job...to slow it down using the impediment jinx. These however are dummies and therefore possess no threat, but we want you to visualise yourself in a real situation."

Neville Longbottom's adam's apple was positively vibrating at Lupin's words, before mentally convincing himself to swallow and stand tall.

The prospect of coming face to face with a death eater was something Geneva couldn't even begin to comprehend, but she was here for it and eager to learn defensive magic. She had always been fascinated by Harry's bravery and strength, throughout the years, hearing the stories that circulated Hogwarts and his unbreakable bond with Dumbledore. If anyone had the right to speak on the matter of how it felt to be a young wizard fighting against the dark forces, it was he.

For the remainder of the lesson after a demonstration from Lupin, the students got to work. The speed in which the dummies came was ferocious and at first was intimidating, but by the end, blue shielding light was illuminating the Room of Requirement as students held back the stuffed enemies with forceful determination, even Neville.

"That's right!" Lupin praised. "I have never been so proud! Excellent! Excellent!"

When Geneva left class that evening at the set time of 8PM and was heading back to her dormitory with Orah, she felt on top of the world. It was a feeling she needed - a feeling of self-fulfilment and achievement, of praise both academically and in sportsmanship; a feeling to temporarily wash away the worries of Professor Snape, her father's health, the mountain of homework building due to Quidditch practise... She felt the best she had in a long time. Orah could tell, and linked arms with her as they giddily made their way down to the bottom floor, back to their dormitory.

They had just turned the next corner on the ground floor, and there coming toward them was Billy, Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson.

"Alright you two," smiled Billy, as wide and glimmering as ever, giving a knowing look to Orah. She positively melted to the ground. Geneva could see how besotted she was with her new love interest.

"Oh it's you," Malfoy sneered, looking Geneva up and down.

"Let it go Malfoy," Billy said, in her defence. "She just won us the match today."

"I was in that bloody match you know!"

...But not as seeker, Geneva thought, smugly.

Billy shoved Malfoy's answer. "You know what I mean. Pretty good catch o' the snitch if you ask me. Nine minutes was it Geneva?"

"Eight actually," she informed him proudly.

"Hi Orah," Billy smiled, waltzing over to take her hand and kissing her with an open mouth.

"Alright, 'nuff o' that," sneered Malfoy, turning up his lip so that it almost touched his nose.

"Where have you been?" Billy asked Orah. "I was trying to find you after dinner, searched the common room and everything. Pansy said you weren't in your dorm."

"Oh, well Gen and I have been taking a walk outside."

"Are you feeling alright? It's bloody freezing out there," Billy exclaimed, half laughing, thinking they were a bunch of crazies.

Neither of them really answered because Malfoy interrupted and pulled Billy away, "Come on, we've gotta go."

"Alright, see ya Orah...Geneva..."

Orah spun around and waved to Billy in a trance like state.

"He is sooo dreamy," she melted, mimicking her choice of words and sinking her posture.

Geneva rolled her eyes with a laugh. "With the intelligence of a spanner."

"Hey!" Orah jabbed her hard in the shoulder laughing, "He just defended you. What do you mean?"

"Why is he with Malfoy? And I don't really like Pansy. She always seems like she's scheming. I don't know. Did you notice how she didn't say anything when Billy asked us where we were? She just kind of...stood there looking suspicious and said we weren't in our dorms."

Orah gave it some thought. "Well I hardly doubt she saw us coming from the seventh floor. I mean, we were careful, and everyone else who left the Room of..."

"Shhh!"

"...Requirement," Orah whispered, "left before us, so why should it raise suspicions?"

"You're right," Geneva agreed. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid."