Unreal Love ~ jp

9. Quidditch and punching

Kate had absolutely no idea what was going on. Frank Longbottom was commentating on the game before their eyes. Kate was stood shaking from the cold with her blonde hair in braids with a red and yellow ribbon tied at the end. The numbers 07 painted on her cheek.
"James potter scores another 50 points for Gryffindor!" He shouts into the microphone and the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw towards burst into cheer.
Kate turned around to Remus.
"Are we doing good?"
"It's 250-100."
"Oh good." She replied.

"Amos Diggory has snatched the quaffle from Potter. Dirty play!" Frank exclaimed throwing his hands into the air.
"How much longer is this game?" Leaning over to Dorcas. "It should be illegal no make us come out in this freezing cold." Kate said.
"Well either, half an hour or when Marlene or Goldstein catches the snitch." She answered.

Luckily, it was a clear day so seeing the players whiz around on their broomsticks around the stadium wasn't a problem. However, the air was just cold, with a light skin biting breeze. Causing the tips of noses and cheeks to redden.
"James potter is in possession of the quaffle and is making a streamline for the hoops." Announced frank with a hopeful tone.
James threw the quaffle right past the Hufflepuff keeper and flew a lap around the stadium in victory.
"WOOO!" Kate felt like she might have been going a bit to hard on the "supportive girlfriend" act. She turned back to Remus once again biting her lip and looking down.
"Do you think the ribbons were too much?" She asked and shyly looked up through her eyelashes. "James hasn't seen me yet."
"No, I don't think it's too much. James will like it." Remus replies with a small smile.
"And he has seen you, he keeps looking over when he scores and is doing that stupid smile."
"Good, I was worried that I'd done too much." Kate smiled.

After Remus had turned his attention back to the game, Kate turned around to see exactly what she was expecting. Lily and Alice had taken the two spots directly behind Kate and Dorcas. She knew that James was purposely showing up Amos to get Lily's attention and distract her from Amos. She didn't seem to be too impressed with Amos's dirty playing, pursing her lips and glaring up at the sky.

-

James loved the feeling of the wind in his hair as he raced another player for the quaffle. The first game of the season was always important to all of the quidditch teams, showing the others what they were up against. Right now, Gryffindor was giving off the impression that their team wasn't to be challenged this year. He felt as if he was on cloud 9, having scored the majority of the points this game and from the looks of it Lily wasn't impressed by her boyfriends playing.

What he hadn't realised was the girl right in front of the girl of his dreams, wearing his team colours in her plaits and his jersey number painted on her cheek, who was cheering louder than anyone in the crowd.

"McKinnon and Goldstein have spotted the snitch. Flying head to head." James could only just make it out through the wind whistling through his ears, trying to intercept the quaffle as a bludger thundered just over his head. He flew up into the sky and dove down, snatching the quaffle away.
"Potter has gotten the quaffle and has passed it to Black. He flys toward the hoops. 50 points for Gryffindor! Oh my god! McKinnon catches the snitch. 150 points" Frank shouted excitedly into the microphone.

All of the players flew down to the pitch as the game was announced as finished.
James saw Kate then, bounding towards him, the ribbons in his hair and paint on her face. He had the wind knocked out of his lungs as she body slammed him into a hug. Smiling down at her and deciding to lift her off of the ground by her waist and spinning her around and giving her a kiss.
"You look-" He said, struggling to find the words.
"It's not too much?" Kate looked up at him as he held her face.
"No, no." He pretty much shouted over the bustle of the crowd. "It's good, you look pretty."
Her face lit up.
"Thank you."

Kate looked over her shoulder to her friends.
"I'll be back." She whispered in James's ear and bounced away to see Marlene.
"Congratulations! You did amazing." Kate beamed and threw her arms around Marlene's neck.
"Thank you." She said. "You and Potter are disgustingly cute."
"You changed your mind."
"Yes, yes I did." She said with a smile.
"Go and see Dor." Kate winked, her face dropped and turned bright red.

Kate walked back over too James and his friends and he wrapped an arm around her waist.
"I've got a surprise for you." He whispered into her ear.
"What?" Kate looked at him in confusion.
He placed his fingers under Kate's chin just as the fireworks lit up the sky. Yellow explosions flew up in the air. This was followed by lavender rockets, glittering and reflecting in her eyes.
"What's this for?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows.
"Alice said you were doing something special for my game, so I thought I'd do something for you." He said wrapping his arm around her tighter.
"She's going to be so into you soon." Kate smiled up at him.
"And she'll be incredibly lucky."
"And Amos-" James started.
"Amos doesn't matter anymore, we're doing this for you now."
Kate placed a kiss on James's cheek.

He watched her walk away, following the crowd back up to the castle and into the warmth.

-

The girls were back up into their dorm and Kate immediately kicked her shoes off and jumped into bed.
"Warmth!" She said dramatically and pulled the duvet all the way up to her chin. "It was so cold out there."
"We've told you to get a scarf." Alice said and threw an extra blanket onto Kate.
I need to pay my rent." Mumbled Kate snuggling into the covers.
"But why? You don't live there most of the year." Marlene asked.
"I'll loose my flat, and then be homeless when we finish school." Kate rolled her eyes. "I don't get to inherit an estate and my parents don't like me. So I have to pay to live somewhere and not be homeless."

Kate knew that they didn't really understand the situation with her family, which was partially her fault as she hadn't told them the entire story on why she'd finally left.
They hated that she could do magic.

-

"You're a freak!" Her father had shouted at her.
"I'm not a freak, if I have to remind you, it's your fault I'm like this!" Kate shouted back.

The two had heated, violent arguments about her magical ability every time she came home. They believed she was a vessel for the devil and had even taken her to a church to be exorcised when they had  found out she was a witch. Her mother wasn't confrontational, often just chirping in when she felt as if her opinion was necessary.

The last time she had seen her parents was christmas of 6th year.
"How dare you lie to me."
"I'm not lying!"
slap

Kate felt the years of anger and pain come to the surface in that moment.
She watched as her father fell the the floor, knocked clean out, nose gushing blood.
"You monster!" Her mother shouted as Kate ran up the stairs and packed as much of her stuff as she could into a backpack and suitcase. Ripping up the floorboards and taking out the wads of cash.

Kate had seen this coming for years, getting a job as a waitress and saving up all of the money that she could to eventually get a place away from this hell.

She had left then, her mother was crouched over her father trying to get him to wake up. Going to the leaky cauldron for the next weeks of the holidays and signing up for a muggle newspaper with a housing section.
Kate spent Christmas alone that year.

-

"Lils, are you alright?" Kate asked her after seeing Lily staring off into the distance.
"Yea, yea." She said obviously not really listening.
Marlene sat down on the edge of Lily's bed.
"Amos problems?" Marlene wrapped her hand around Lily's shoulders.
"Yea, he's annoyed that I didn't support Hufflepuff earlier and that I didn't dress up."
"That's because he's an asshole. You don't have to dress up if it's not your style." Kate said.
"He's not an asshole."
"Yes he is. Haven't you heard what people say about him?"
"He told me that he's changed. He's not about being a "player" anymore."

He'd said that to Kate too.