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BOOK FOUR: CHAPTER ONE

"Fine, Dora! I can have one more butterbeer, but then I really need to get going. Charlie's going to kill me if I'm late one more time."

Tonks chuckled as she ignored Veronica's eye rolling and ushered Madam Rosmerta over to their table. Just then, Athena came flying into the pub through an open window and landed on Veronica's arm that had been resting on the table. "What is it, pretty girl? You have a note for me?" Athena extended her leg out to her in response, and Veronica carefully removed the parchment. Her eyes widened as she read it.

"What is it, Veronica? Who's it from?"

"Emily. She wants to have an emergency Quidditch meeting right now to talk about something urgent. She wants us at the pitch ASAP." Veronica sighed heavily as she rubbed a hand down her face. "What am I going to do with Charlie? I don't have time to go down to the lake to tell him."

"Shouldn't he be finishing up Quidditch practice right about now?"

Veronica's eyes widened in realization. "Yes, of course! If I leave now, I can probably catch him leaving the change rooms. Can you do me a favor?"

"Depends what it is," Tonks chuckled.

"Can you keep Charlie company until I'm done with practice? I don't know how long this meeting is going to be. It could be 10 minutes but it also could be 3 hours. You never know with Emily. And I don't want Charlie to be alone doing nothing on a Saturday afternoon."

Tonks shrugged. "Sure, why not? Tell him to come find me here."

"Thank you!" Veronica quickly pulled her friend in for a hug, before rushing out of the pub. "I'll see you later!" She yelled over her shoulder as she ran out the door.

Minutes later, Veronica arrived outside the Quidditch pitch, breathing heavily from running all the way there. Just then, Charlie came out of the change rooms laughing about something with a few of his teammates. Once he saw her, he grinned and jogged over to her without another word to them. Veronica watched as his teammates rolled their eyes playfully and laughed at his antics before they walked away.

"What's the matter, love? Am I late?"

"No, no. You're fine, but we have an emergency Quidditch meeting that just came up. I wanted to make sure I caught you before you left."

"Oh okay, no worries. You don't know how long it'll be, I suppose?"

"No, I don't even know what it's about. But I asked Tonks if she would keep you company until I'm done, so she's waiting at the Three Broomsticks. I can come get you when the meeting's over."

"Okay, no problem. You didn't have to do that Ronnie, I could have waited for you by the lake, but thank you. I'll be there when you're done."

"Singer, hurry it up! Let's go!" Veronica looked over to find Emily standing at the entrance to the change rooms tapping impatiently at the empty spot on her wrist where a watch would typically be worn.

"I'm coming! Alright Charlie, I'll see you later." Charlie gave her a quick hug before she was practically ripped away by her teammates.

"Don't worry, Weasley!" Emily yelled. "I'll get her back to you ASAP."

Charlie chuckled before making his way down the path towards Hogsmeade.

***

"So what's going on, Em? What's the emergency?"

"Maribelle, I think you should be the one to tell them."

Veronica turned her concerned gaze to the Ravenclaw Seeker. "Everything okay, Mar?"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. It's just... I won't be playing Quidditch with you lot for a while." Gasps could be heard around the room as the team looked around at each other.

"What? Why?"

"Well... Unfortunately, my marks in Charms and Transfiguration aren't where they should be, so Flitwick is taking me off the team until I improve them."

Before the team had a chance to protest, Emily interjected. "But don't worry! We're working on getting her marks up, and she'll be back on the team before you know it. But, until then, our reserve Seeker, Walker Mathis, will be taking her place. I know he's only a second year, but you all saw him at tryouts, he's good. Not to mention, Veronica was a second year when she joined the team, and she was amazing, so we can't judge players by their age." The team nodded enthusiastically as Veronica blushed at the compliment. "Now, Walker is actually waiting for us on the pitch, and I want us to have a quick practice with him so that we can adjust to the change in our lineup. It's a big one, but we'll get through it, and like I said, it won't last long because Maribelle is going to get her situation sorted ASAP, and she'll be back playing with us in no time. So, let's go."