nothing i wont do anymore

sticky fingers.

Hogwarts, Winter, 1970

Winter made the Quidditch season much colder and more difficult, but the students enjoyed it nevertheless. The wind was icy and everyone in the Great Hall was bundled up in coats and scarves in preparation to watch the match. Gryffindor was versing Slytherin for the first game of the season, meaning tensions were higher than usual between the two houses. Andromeda sat in the dining hall with her friends. Marius was tense, he was a Gryffindor beater and there was nothing more he wanted to do more than beat Slytherin in his first match of his final year as Quidditch Captain.

"You'll get them Wood." Ted Tonks encouraged him, wearing Marius's gold and red scarf to show his support. "Slytherin has no chance!"

"We don't even know their lineup- training at night, kept it all hush hush- bet that's Malfoy's idea- you hear that he's the new captain?" Marius huffed.

"Well he is good." Rosa interjected, wearing her Ravenclaw scarf as her cheeks flushed slightly. "He's tall, and a good beater."

"Just because you wanna see him without his shirt Rosa.." Andromeda chuckled into her porridge.

"Hey! I don't!" she exclaimed. "He's been emotionally unavailable since December last year. Brown says so, she's been practically throwing herself at him, they used to, well, 'study' together. Now he's not into that apparently. Says he wont even look at her in their common room."

"Because he's focusing on Quidditch." Marius interrupted moodily.

"Maybe you should head down to the pitch then Wood, get everything organised for the team." Ted said, trying not the chuckle.

Marius nodded and got up, leaving the rest of the group at the table to finish eating.

"You are all so lucky that you won't have to deal with him in the common room if we lose..." Aurora muttered miserably.

'One of us will be miserable either way." Andromeda hummed as she bumped against her in a friendly way. "Come on, we should probably go down too. We want to be able to sit as close to the front as we can- for moral support."

The group nodded and slowly rose from the table, ambling happily down to the pitch and ascending the steep wooden stairs to the stands. They settled themselves in the Gryffindor section and looked up into the sky.

"It's going to snow." Ted said, touching Andromeda's hair lightly. "Will you be warm enough?"

Andromeda nodded. "Yes Teddy, you don't have to coddle me." she said with a smile.

He chuckled and leaned down closer to her, his lips hovering over her ear. "I know." he whispered.

"Look! It's Wood!" Aurora cried, cheering happily as the Gryffindor team shot out of the tent. Andromeda cheered with her friends, holding onto the girls hands. Marius held his bat and waved at them. Ted whistled loudly as the team took up their positions. The golden glow didn't last for two long as the Slytherin team shot out of their tent and circled the pitch. More cheers followed, especially from Rosa who's eyes were trained on the very blonde looking Beater who had pulled up beside Marius. He had done a very good job in keeping the team a secret. Malfoy was captain, obviously. His ego was big enough to hold up the badge on its own. Rodolphus, another boy in their year, was a chaser. He was lanky and dark, with sunken eyes and long dark hair. He pulled up to the Gryffindor girl who eyed him cautiously.

Andromeda's eyes swept over the rest of the team as they pulled up to their positions. The keeper was a sixth year, same as last year, the other beater was Zabini, one of Malfoy's generals. The Seeker was the same as last year- he was good, Andromeda would give him that. Gryffindor may have a hard time- oh no.