stardust ⋮ george weasley

seventeen :

S E V E N T E E N

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The morning of the Quidditch Cup final was absolutely gorgeous, the direct opposite from the day of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff match. Adeline could feel the excitement the moment she walked into the Great Hall that morning with Estelle and Melanie on either side of her.

The girls had barely seen Ophelia outside of class for weeks because of all the extra Quidditch practices Oliver Wood had scheduled. When they did see her, Ophelia appeared on the surface to be her normal, confident self. However, the three friends knew her well enough to notice how nervous she was about the upcoming game and how determined Ophelia was to win.

When Melanie, Adeline, and Estelle walked into the Great Hall that morning, the first thing Ophelia noticed was how all three of them were wearing Gryffindor colors. More specifically, all three girls had managed to get their hands on Ophelia's old Quidditch sweaters. Adeline had charmed her hair ribbons to be red and gold, and all three spent most of the night painting a bright and colorful sign with Ophelia's number emblazoned across it.

The Great Hall was buzzing with anticipation, and Adeline noticed that her group of friends weren't the only Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs who were dressed in red and gold. The Gryffindor and Slytherin tables were the loudest in the whole room, clearly excited for the game to come.

"I never thought I'd see the day!"

Adeline turned her head to see Ophelia standing up from the Gryffindor table, beaming at her three best friends. "Melanie's willingly wearing Gryffindor Quidditch gear!"

"This is a one time thing," Melanie joked as she stole a piece of toast from Ophelia's plate. "Next year, you'll be wearing Hufflepuff gear and be cheering me on."

Ophelia laughed mockingly. "I thought you were supposed to be good at Divination."

"Meaning?"

"You should be able to predict that Gryffindor will win the Quidditch Cup for two years in a row."

"Now listen here you Aries bitch–"

Estelle, sensing that things were about to get ugly, lunged to stand in between the pair and act as a barrier so the two could no longer see each other. "I can't believe you two manage to trash talk each other even when you're not playing each other!" She laughed. "Only good energy until after the match. Then you guys can bicker to your hearts desire."

George couldn't help but notice Adeline nearby excitedly talking to Ophelia and wishing her luck, and while he was happy to see her in Gryffindor colors, a small part of George wished that Adeline was in his sweater rather than Ophelia's. But before he could think about it too much, Fred nudged him in the shoulder, telling him that it was time to head down to the locker room.

Before George could leave the Great Hall, however, Adeline finally saw him. "Good luck, George!" She called out, a warm smile on her face.

Fred had walked a few meters ahead before realizing his brother wasn't beside him like he originally had thought. When he turned around, Fred rolled his eyes when he saw what – well, who – had George so distracted. "Alright lover boy," Fred chuckled as he grabbed George by his collar and began to drag him down the hall. "Lets go. We've got a game to win.

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When the three girls reached their spot in the front row of one of the Quidditch stands, Estelle took notice of the teacher stand nearby and hissed, ducking down behind the barrier. "Is that Mr. Malfoy?"