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Alternate Reality - Rath Story

**** Seventh Year - Alternate Reality ****

If there was anything my whirlwind romance with Murphy McNully had taught me, it was that getting help to become the best quidditch player possible could come from unlikely sources. Five years ago, the handsome broad-shouldered blond had approached me, coached me, and turned me into a superstar. Most recently, he had turned me into a heartbroken mess after his graduation. Almost a year had passed since then. My heart was scarred but toughened by the breakup. My skills as a beater were improved after spending so many months whacking bludgers around, alone on the pitch in frustration.

I hadn't been the only beater who liked to practice alone. It was awkward at first, but Erika Rath and I fell into a routine of planning our solo practices around each other. She would practice in the mornings before class. I would take to the pitch late in the evening, often sneaking out of the dorms in the middle of the night. On one particularly frigid March morning, I had stayed out so late that my middle-of-the-night practice ran in to her early morning session. As I was slamming my last round of bludgers into the chests of test dummies, she was watching from behind me. "Your backbeat looks weak, Cassiopeia", her voice shattered the early morning silence.

"I suppose you suddenly want to help me improve that?" I laughed, maybe too bitterly, and raised an eyebrow while I offered her my bat. A flicker of a smile crossed her face. "What if I actually did?", the snark wasn't entirely removed from her voice, but there was an air of sincerity about her response as she took my bat. "Don't get me wrong, Cassiopeia. I don't want to help you, I just want to make sure Gryffindor doesn't win the cup. If that means finding and fixing your weak ass backbeat, then that's what I'm willing to do", she was out for blood. I couldn't blame her after the way Gryffindor played against Slytherin in her final game.

I crossed my arms rolled my eyes. We had the same goal and nothing to gain from being rivals anymore. "Fine", I agreed. This time much more than a flicker of a smile crossed her face. "Fine. Monday. My usual time", she dropped her bag onto the grass. She nodded toward the changing room as if to tell me to get the hell out of her way.

The next weeks went by with a punishing round of drills and early morning practices. The first week, I groaned and complained each morning as I got out of bed. I hated the mere thought of Erika Rath. The second week, I felt stronger and played better than ever. I still wasn't ready to admit I appreciated her help in making it happen. By our third week of practice, I was on the pitch slamming bludgers before she was even ready. She had found and fixed every possible weakness I had.

As the Ravenclaw VS Gryffinddor match drew closer, practices grew even more intense. My shoulders were buzzing with the recoil of the bludgers that had bounced so powerfully off my bat all morning and my face and chest glistened with sweat. I took a deep breath as I dismounted my broom and moved to my back to stretch. The grass on the pitch was still cool from the morning air and felt magnificent against my heated skin after the final rigorous practice Rath had put me through

"I don't see stretching", she called as she landed next to me. I rolled my eyes as I pulled my knee to my chest. She stood over me with her arms crossed. "You think I want to have spent all this time on you to see you hurt yourself? Here, move... try it like this", she grabbed the top of my thigh and leaned against me, deepening my stretch. I closed my eyes and sighed at the hybrid of pain and pleasure as the blood rushed to my aching muscle. A light breeze brushed something into my face. I laughed at the tickling sensation and opened my eyes. A section of Rath's blonde hair had fallen into my face. She smelled like lemongrass and raspberry tarts. I closed my eyes once again to focus on the stretch in my leg.

She released my left thigh and moved towards my right. "Uhhh... thanks, but I've got this one" I panted, still in a lemongrass daydream. "Suit yourself, Cassiopeia", she shrugged and began stretching as well. I watched her for a while and copied her movements. Still, the scent of raspberry tarts danced through the air. Without much warning, I jumped up and headed for the changing tent. If I couldn't stretch the feeling bubbling in my chest away, I thought maybe I could shower it off. "Damn, those broad-shouldered blonds", I grumbled as I raced to the tent.

I turned off the water and inhaled the peppermint and lavender scented steam as I wrapped my towel around me. Rath was sitting on the bench near my locker. I was surprised to find her in the tent. "You looked strong out there today. You've looked good all week. You look, really... good, KC" she was actually smiling. "Thanks. I feel stronger than ever. You've really been a big help. It has been... almost nice", I tried to return the compliment as I sat next to her. "You really only looked weak when I thought about kissing you", she left no room for interpretation.

"You really were thinking about kissing me? I thought maybe I saw that", I nodded. She narrowed her eyes. "So, you were thinking about me... thinking about kissing you, then?" she coaxed with what was the closest thing I had ever seen to a smile cross her lips.

I leaned in and kissed her gently. My lips just brushed over hers quickly and delicately. I pulled away with my eyes wide and heart pounding. My head spun and my mouth went dry waiting for any kind of response. Her fingers curled around the back of my neck, but she left her thumb on my throat, I knew she could feel my pulse racing as she pulled me to her and kissed me deeply. I grabbed a fistful of blonde hair as our tongues met and savored the explosion of raspberry and lemongrass filling my senses. I gripped her strong shoulders as she left a trail of kisses down my neck and over my collarbone.

When I opened my eyes, I was flat on my back. Her chest was pressed into mine and she was looking down at me. She smiled quickly before moving back up to my lips. I gasped as she kissed me gently once more before turning to leave the tent. As promised, Erika Rath had found my weakness.