Drawing Places (Oliver Wood x reader)

Viginti

It felt like it was much too soon to be getting back on the Hogwarts Express. However, that's where we were, carrying trunks, and cats, and quite frankly, ourselves through Hogsmeade, to the train station right at the other end of the village.
Oliver slung his arm over my shoulder as we walked the length of the platform. 
"You planning for any new piercings this summer?" he asked, entirely casual. 
"They've gotta get over the shock of the nose first." Of course my parents hadn't seen the nose yet. I hadn't seen them since the beginning of last July.
"Well, if you do, can you send an owl first?" his hand squeezed my shoulder gently. "That way I'm not so shocked."

I wanted to say that he hadn't been shocked last time, but for all I know, he could've been. He likely played it off, knowing I'd gotten skittish the first time. 
Instead, I just said 'sure' and handed Ramone's cage to him,  so that I could climb up into the train carriage. On the other side of the door, Percy stood, ready to grab my arm should I fall. I didn't.
Oliver handed me the cage and climbed up. "So, I'm spending August with you, right? Your parents are still cool with it?"
I shoved his shoulder lightly. "Don't worry, they're actually excited for you to stay. And there's always a block party right before school starts, so you'll get to go to that." 
"What's a block party?" 
I looked at him, completely flabbergasted for a moment, before realising that not only did he not live in muggle suburbia, but that his dad was a pure-blood wizard, and unless his mum had said something, he wouldn't know about it.
"You'll see," I said, pushing open a compartment door.

~

It was surprisingly cool for July. In fact, I was happy to be outside, running around the garden with Brutus and throwing the neighbours ball back over the fence every time it 'accidentally' ended up on our side.
My parents had taken to the nose piercing well. They were both pretty relaxed people, and not to mention that my dad had had a mohawk and pierced ears when the pair had met. I had seen photos. However, I was glad that they were ok with it, because I had quite frankly, gotten used to it, and didn't feel like getting rid of it. 

I was eagerly awaiting the arrival of Oliver, too. With everything that happens over one summer, you'd have thought I might forget about him, but no. Unfortunately, the tall Scotsman was always taking up at least a portion of my thoughts.

"Y/N," my dad said, knocking softly on my bedroom door. It was early in the morning (well, not THAT early) so I was less than pleased to be woken up. "Your Hogwarts letter is here."
This, however, did wake me up. Starting my seventh year meant a few things. One of which was the possibility of becoming Head Girl, not that I got my hopes up, when there were heaps of girls I knew of that were completely deserving of the role, and would do fantastically.

Still, I found myself heading down the stairs faster than I normally would, and into the kitchen, slamming against the counter to stop myself.
My mum gasped, and she held my dad's coffee out of the way. All these years later, she still loved him just the same.
I was so caught up in that moment, that I almost didn't hear her scold me for running inside the house. Almost.

My dad laughed from where he had repositioned himself behind the newspaper, but didn't move. After mum had placed the coffee mug next to his newspaper, she turned to me, and handed me my letter. I could already feel that there was weight inside it, similarly to two years ago, when I had been made Prefect. Mum gave me a knowing look, and not quite having registered it yet, I shrugged.

I cracked open the wax seal, watching the red and gold badge tumble out and onto the counter. My dad lowered his paper, to get a glance at it. Even with his glasses on, he couldn't really see anything that small on a counter across the room.
"Did you get it?" he asked, leaning forward in his seat. I looked back down.
It was shiny. That was something I had forgotten about the badges. My Prefect badge had gotten pretty beat up from playing Quidditch and I had forgotten it had once been just as shiny as this one.

"Well?" my dad prompted.
Shocked back into reality, I picked up the badge and held it up for him. "Yeah, I think I did."
He put the paper down, and got up to draw me into a hug. I hugged back, tightly as he rocked me in his arms. "I'm so proud of you," he said, refusing to let me go.

Mum rushed to join the hug, and we stood there in our small kitchen for a good few minutes. Eventually, I pulled away, to read the letter. With not much ease, as my mum had started to gush. Honestly, I was surprised it had taken her this long.

"Now, we'll have to get you a reward, but just what," she hummed to herself.
"Mum, I've already got a cat." I leant against the wall, reading the long list of texts I'd need for my N.E.W.Ts.
"Not a cat, silly-" she pinched my cheek "-something big!"
"Ramone's pretty big," I countered. She huffed, and waved a dismissive hand at me.

~

It was late afternoon when an owl flew through the open living room window and onto the coffee table. In its beak was a copy of the Daily Prophet.
"That's odd," dad said, reaching forward to grab it. "We only get mail in the morning..."
I stood up to grab some knuts to pay the bird. "Maybe the Minister has died?"
"Don't sound so hopeful."

He unravelled the paper, and flattened it against the table. Across the top in bold, black letters, read 'SIRIUS BLACK ESCAPES AZKABAN'.
Glancing up at my dad's vague expression, I could tell he had no idea who this person was. I wasn't much help, seeing as I didn't know the details of the story. Just that he had ratted the Potters out to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and then killed a bunch of other people before the Aurors got to him.
I looked back down, at the image of a thin man screaming. He looked almost alien...
"Azkaban... That's- Honey!"

I could barely hear the sound of my mum's feet coming into the living room. My eyes stared, transfixed on the picture. His eyes were sunken in, and dark like scorched holes in paper. His skin looked ready to fall off. 
In the back of my mind, I could hear my mum telling dad about him. About what had happened to Harry's parents, and further, how Black had cornered Peter Pettigrew in the street and blown him, and twelve muggles to smithereens.
I grimaced but didn't look away from the paper. 

That night, dad had the telly on, as he bashed away at the keyboard on his laptop. I sat, reading about the disbandment of the wizarding council (in 1707) mostly trying to ignore his BAM BAM against the keyboard. My best guess was that he was in a writing frenzy, and when I looked up, that was confirmed by the rapid movement of his fingers.
I had not at all mastered the art of using a computer. Granted, I wasn't home long enough to need one, but over the summers, my dad had tried to teach me. He had this typing application he let me use, but I was never very good at it. The keys were in all the wrong order, and none of it made sense. 

Anyway, the sound of a news broadcast could be heard faintly over the sound of keys clicking. I glanced at the TV briefly as the woman spoke about a prison break. Immediately catching my attention, I put the book down and stared at the screen.
"A prisoner by the name of Sirius Black has escaped from a high-security prison in Northern England. The public is warned that Black is armed and dangerous. A special hotline has been set up and any suspicious activity should be reported." 

Dad reached forward for the remote, and pressed mute. "We've already heard this."
And while we had already heard this, I was far more concerned that it was a muggle news network reporting it. Knowing of the twelve muggles he murdered, it was fair enough to tell them, I guess.