Chamber of Love

Chapter 61

Unedited

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  Sun shone bright from behind the towers of the Quidditch Pitch, but the harsh cold still penetrated the uniforms of the players. Moving between and around the floating practice barriers helped, but those who waited for their turns were left with clenched teeth.

"We should play more aggressively this year. I've been watching our team for a long time now, I think it's high time we changed our approach. The enemy team won't expect it, which will be to our advantage." Olivia presented her idea, sounding like she's been thinking about the team tactics for a while.

"Olivia, this is the fifth time you're saying this." Matthew replied from where he was sitting on his broom, flying slightly above the ground as he watched the performance of his team. Olivia didn't leave his side once since the training started, pestering him about new tactics that she's been thinking of. She definitely had a passion for the sport. Juliette, on the other hand, was sitting on the empty seat right below a tower with Draco's broom next to her, placed against the railings, as she cluelessly listened to their dialogue. Her new uniform was slightly altered to her measurements, and it fit way better than before. Her number was still the same, 3, only this time her last name was added right above it. She tried not to smile too much when she first noticed it in the changing room, but it was an impossible task. She loved it so much that she wanted to wear it all week long instead of her school uniform.

"You know I'm right. It'll especially be effective if we're the last to play. The rest of the teams will be tired by the time they get to us. Do you know who's playing first?"

"No, I don't. It should be announced soon. And if we play last, it also means the other teams will have already be warmed up before they get to us." Matthew replied.

"But we'll get to see how they play. I heard there's been some changes in every team."

"I hear you, Olivia. But we'll have a meeting where we discuss our play style after the announcement happens, so save all of these for that. Alright?" Juliette admired Matthew's patience. If it was her, she'd break under Olivia's endless suggestions and questions. Fortunately, she liked her enough to quickly get used to her chattiness. Olivia had no ill intent and just wanted the best for the team.

"That's a good idea." She replied, and didn't say much after that except for approving or disapproving comments about their practicing teammates from time to time.

Juliette hid her hands underneath the warm fabric of her sweater, waiting for her turn so she could get one step closer to going back inside the castle. After finishing all of her homework the previous week to be ready for the training, she was understandably tired. A yawn kept climbing to the surface each minute and the cold weather didn't do anything to fend it off. Fortunately, Matthew looked over his shoulder at her and gave her a nod, announcing that she could join in. Letting out a relieved sigh, she grabbed Draco's Nimbus 2001, which was well maintained. It was clean and polished, even though he used it just the other day for his own practice. From up close, a few small scratches could be seen, which indicated that it's been used for a while now. For something that was a few years old, it was in great condition, and somehow Juliette wasn't even surprised.

She mounted the broom without leaving the stands, kicked it off the wooden floor, and grabbed it a little tighter when the unexpected speed carried her to the center of the pitch. She was more scared of losing the Nimbus 2001's control than she was of the Shooting Star. And Draco joking about killing her if she were to break his broom didn't help, because it sounded suspiciously like a real threat at the time.