Flame || F. WEASLEY

Chapter 11 - Stella

Author's Note: This is a side chapter about the characters Stella and Adora. It's not necessary for the story and more something fun I wrote. Enjoy!

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After the chaos caused by Harry Potter's name being spit from the Goblet of Fire, Adora and I decide to spend our weekend relaxing. The Hufflepuff common room is wonderful for that but during the weekends, it easily gets crowded as people bring their friends in from other houses. I've seen Amelia there a number of times with Nora. But the common room was extra packed as everyone mooned over Cedric Diggory, Hogwarts' true champion.

    Adora suggested a picnic out on the grounds when we woke up and found the sky a bright blue and perfect white clouds drifting across it. The temperature continued to drop as the school year went on, but in the sun it was almost warm.

    An old blanket is draped over my arm as I stand in the common room, waiting on Adora to return with her basket full of food. My sister strides in, looking stricken and whispering in Nora's ear. Despite my best attempts, she hadn't told me about her vision. The dark circles under her eyes and the knots in her hair told me enough. It wasn't good.

    Everyone is calling her the next prophet. I doubt she'd heard anything about it yet. The longer she doesn't, the better. She has enough to worry about, like that stupid boy she has a crush on. I'm forever thankful I don't have to deal with men anymore.

    At that thought, Adora appears in the doorway. The basket hangs heavily on her arm and her cheeks are tinted pink against her bronze skin. I narrow my eyes at her. The kitchen isn't that hot.

    "You ready?" She asks.

    I nod and follow her out of the common room, through the castle, and out onto the grounds.

    The crisp fall air whips around me, stirring my scarf and hair. I'm half tempted to wrap the blanket around my shoulders instead of laying it on the ground. But Adora leads me to a sunny patch of grass directly on the edge of the Black Lake.

    "This is perfect," she announces, a smile on her face.

    We switch items and Adora lays the blanket out on the grass. I sit and start pulling things out of the basket. There are small jars of jam and perfectly baked bread already cut into slices alongside a huge block of cheese. Red apples shine next to green pears and yellow bananas and a bright peach. There's even a bowl of sugar-crusted strawberries.

    I look up and see Adora approaching me, a wild grin on her face, and something hidden behind her back. It looks like a stick... My stomach drops at the realization.

    "No," I say, "No way am I getting on that thing."

    Adora brings the broom around, holding it loosely in one hand.

    "Don't knock it till you try it."

    "I have tried it!"

    "Not with me, you haven't."

    I frown at her, crossing my arms over my chest. "I've already gotten the food out."

    "One quick trip around the lake." She gives me the puppy eyes that she knows I can't resist.

    "Fine! But if I die, then I'm haunting your arse."

    She grins wildly and quickly mounts her broom. I leave all the delicious food sitting on the blanket with a rueful glance before settling onto the broom behind her. I wrap my arms tightly around her waist, feeling the muscle bunched underneath. My thighs grip the wood as hard as they can. My cheek rests against the soft sweater she wears.

    "Ready?" Adora asks.

    "No."

    She pushes off the ground with a quick kick and I snap my eyes close, clutching her even harder. My feet leave the ground, dangling in midair. Oh, how I hate flying.

    "Open your eyes."

    How she even knew they were closed is beyond me but I crack one eye. We're hovering only a few feet off the ground.

    "This isn't so bad--"

    I barely get the sentence out of my mouth before Adora sends us rocketing forward, out over the lake. My last word becomes a scream in my throat. The water ripples below us as we soar through the air. Adora pulls up and we draw away from the lake's surface. It quickly becomes a glittering black mirror beneath us.

    Adora lets out a whoop as she circles one of the islands. The wind whips our hair out behind us. It'll be hell to try to yank my hairbrush through the knots later. A smile starts to stretch across my face as we race along the bank of the lake. A few other students yell at us, waving their hands as we rocket past.

    We come back down until we're barely skimming the lake with the tips of our feet. I throw my head back and laugh, finally enjoying the exhilaration running through my veins. Adora throws a quick glance over her shoulder at me. Her cheeks and the tip of her nose are pink from the bite of the wind.

    She loops around another island before heading back to our picnic spot. She slows, letting us lose speed until we're stopped right next to our blanket. She lets me get off first, my knees wobbly and weak.

    "Wasn't that fun?" She asks, setting the broom down next to the blanket.

    I give her a smile before flopping down. She settles in next to me and pops a strawberry into her mouth. I pull a piece of bread away from the loaf as well as a piece of cheese. I chew it slowly, letting my stomach settle from the ride I let her drag me on. The lake's surface is still rippling from our flight.

    "I'm never doing that again," I announce.

    Adora simply smiles at me.