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BOOK TWO: CHAPTER TWELVE

As Veronica set her quill down, she glanced over to her right where Charlie sat writing frantically. While she rather enjoyed the year-end exams, Charlie absolutely despised them. She had no idea why; he was so smart, and he always did well. But for some reason, he would spend much too much time stressing about them and would rush to finish, worrying he would run out of time. And each time, he would complete it with plenty of time to spare and would always be pleased with the outcome. Veronica could tell Charlie was on the last few questions of his exam, so she quietly made her way to the front of the Great Hall, which had been cleared of the long house tables and turned into an exam room with many rows of individual desks and chairs.

Snape knew without even looking up from his work that it was Veronica coming towards him; she was always the first to finish. Taking the parchment from her, he smiled warmly at her, taking advantage of the fact that all the students were distracted, and nodded. Veronica returned the gesture before turning and making her way out of the Great Hall.

As Veronica leaned against the wall of the Entrance Hall right outside the doors, she beamed as Bill came strolling casually towards her. He opened his arms for her, and without hesitation, she fell into them. She loved Bill's hugs; they were very brotherly and protective.

"Hiya Ronnie, just finished an exam?"

"Yup, Potions. I'm waiting for Charlie, but he looked like he was almost done."

"Nice, do you have any more left or is this it for the year?"

Veronica shook her head against Bill's chest. "That's it. Just in time for the big game next week. Emily is planning on working us to the bone everyday leading up to it, so I'm not gonna have time to do much of anything else to be honest."

Bill shook his head and sighed. "I hope she's planning on at least giving you Friday off. She can't bombard the team with practice up to the last minute and expect you all to perform well. You need at least one day to rest."

Veronica chuckled. "Oh yeah, don't worry. Friday's off, but she'll be sure to make up for it the rest of the week."

"That was way easier than I thought it would be!"

Veronica's eyes crinkled as she smiled and shook her head softly, pulling away from Bill and turning to look at Charlie. "I told you! You always freak out for no reason!"

"I do not 'freak out'."

Bill and Veronica exchanged looks as they rolled their eyes, but chose not to say anything; this conversation was a lost cause.

As the trio made their way to the courtyard to get some fresh air and enjoy the weather, Veronica couldn't believe it was already the first week of June. The last five months were a complete blur. She had continued to work on phase three until finally mastering it a week earlier. She could now perform non-verbal wandless magic perfectly, and she was so excited. As for Quidditch, both the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw teams had gone on to win their respective games against Slytherin and Hufflepuff, which meant that the final game of the season, the game that would decide the winner of the Quidditch cup, would be between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. Veronica was not looking forward to competing against Charlie, but she knew she didn't have a choice. Sooner or later, she would need to accept the fact that she had to put her friendship aside when on the pitch and treat Charlie like any other player. That, of course, was easier said than done.

Throughout the following week, Veronica found herself more and more glad everyday that Dumbledore had ensured exams finished a week early for students to enjoy the week leading up to the Quidditch final stress-free, not that it was very stress-free for the players. Veronica had practice for hours multiple times a day, often causing her to miss meals and return to her dormitory exhausted and muscles aching. If it weren't for the house elves, who started leaving her actual food along with the desserts on her bed, she probably would have starved to death.

Charlie and Bill had been very worried about her, but she brushed them off, saying she was fine. But she knew the lack of sleep and food was getting to her, which was why she was relieved when Friday rolled around, and she could finally sleep in and eat meals with her friends in the Great Hall. Charlie and Bill made sure she ate, and Charlie held her against his chest as she lay between his legs under their tree on the shore of the Black Lake and napped with the giant squid that they had begun calling Squish lounging in the sun nearby.

It was all Veronica needed, and when she awoke on Saturday morning, she felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the world. She was confident Ravenclaw would win the Quidditch cup, and despite Gryffindor putting up one hell of a fight, they were no match for the Ravenclaw team. Once Veronica managed to put her friendship with Charlie aside and play to her full potential, there was no stopping her, and Charlie couldn't be prouder.

That evening, the students and staff gathered in the Great Hall to celebrate the awarding of the Quidditch cup. The hall was beautifully decorated with the Ravenclaw colors and the crest adorned every wall. There were Ravenclaw banners hanging from the ceiling, and all four house tables looked like they could be the Ravenclaw table. It was wonderful, and the celebrations lasted late into the night. Veronica's favorite part by far was getting to accept the Quidditch Cup from Dumbledore with her team; their smiles lit up the room.

After a relaxing Sunday where Veronica met with Snape and Dumbledore for their final meeting of the year and the end of year feast on Monday evening where Ravenclaw also won the House Cup, Veronica, Charlie and Bill awoke on Tuesday and made their way to Hogsmeade station and onto the Hogwarts express by 11 AM sharp. The summer break had finally begun, and they planned to make the most of it together.

However, as soon as they stepped foot into the Burrow, they knew that would be easier said than done. Arthur had picked up the trio from King's Cross Station and drove them home, using magic to send their bags straight up to their rooms so they could be free to go inside. Once the Weasley children heard the door open and spotted Veronica, they rushed at her all at once and began pulling her in a million different directions, arguing over who would get to spend time with her first. Ginny was ecstatic to have another girl around and wanted Veronica to braid her hair and have a tea party with her and her stuffed animals. Ron was eager to hear another one of her stories with the funny voices she always made. Fred & George were thrilled to have someone to bounce prank ideas off of as she was the one that taught them about pranks after buying them a book about harmless pranks for Christmas and got them hooked. And Percy was delighted to have someone around that liked learning as much as he did and wanted to conduct experiments with her on the gnomes in the garden.

As Veronica was pulled into the house, she could hear Charlie yelling behind her. "Guys, stop! She's MY best friend, I should get to hang out with her first! Can I please just- I never get to see her! You guys don't let me- Bill!"

Veronica couldn't help but giggle at the defeated look on Charlie's face as Bill patted him on the back and smirked before climbing the stairs to his room, leaving Charlie alone in the doorway to sulk. This was going to be a hectic and crazy summer, just as it always was at the Burrow, but Veronica wouldn't have it any other way.