The Firebolt was a completely different beast from the Nimbus 2001 she rode at school. It\u2019s not that the Nimbus wasn\u2019t fast. It\u2019s that the Firebolt isn\u2019t trying to keep you alive, and that\u2019s the main difference. The Firebolt will happily keep accelerating or cornering hard until you can no longer breathe, until you can\u2019t see, until you pass out, and until you die. It has no safety features. It\u2019s made for the professionals, and the assumption is that you know what you\u2019re doing. She yearned for that at school, when Harry had it. She wondered if she could match him if she had it, but father said no. It\u2019s unsafe, he said. She was fuming, but his word was final.<\/p>\n
He was right. She had it now, and she gave it a proper spin, because she thought she knew what she was doing. As it proved, she was wrong. She watched Viktor and Harry perform insane manoeuvres trying to outwit each other, and she could barely follow. They were truly in a league of their own. She, on the other hand, was\u2026 wet.<\/p>\n
It was a gloomy day, with something between fog and rain hanging in the air, and it was cold. She was freezing, she was wet, and it felt nothing like she imagined. She imagined the sense of freedom, power and flight she remembered from childhood. Now, she was just wet, cold and missed her four babies.<\/p>\n
The golden snitch appeared right in front of her, and on reflex, she accelerated instantly and caught it in a blink of an eye. Yes, <\/i>the <\/i>Firebolt is amazing for that kind of stuff<\/i>, she thought. Good for the boys, but I think I prefer just walking, running or playing hide-and-seek in the practice polygon.<\/i> Doing risky things that could have her break her neck while babies are waiting for her at home and someone else is having fun with them\u2026 Am I getting old? Perhaps, but I like it that way, <\/i>she thought as she accelerated to meet the guys. \u201cGood game\u201d, she smiled, showing them the snitch. \u201cLet\u2019s go home, I\u2019m frozen on my broom and wet all the way through\u201d.<\/p>\n
They stopped and looked at each other. \u201cThat\u2019s not possible!\u201d \u201cShe cheated!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah yeah, tell me more about it over hot tea\u201d, she snickered. \u201cVictory for Slytherin\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d, they just looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was cold, wet, bored, done with it and missing my four babies, waiting for one of you to catch it and put me out of my misery, when the snitch stopped right in front of me and I caught it on reflex\u201d, she smiled. \u201cAnd thank heavens for that. Weren\u2019t you two cold and wet? We were in the same rain cloud, as far as I could tell\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were, but we just ignore that\u201d, Viktor replied and Harry nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, I thought I\u2019d feel like a bird that\u2019s been let out of the cage out there on the broom, but it was nothing like that. I tried it out for a few minutes, liked how fast it is, but I didn\u2019t feel like doing anything risky because I had babies at home and I missed them, and soon I was just\u2026 wet and miserable\u201d, she shrugged. \u201cI think I got properly domesticated\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s something else\u201d, Hermione smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSure, you did it for the thrill of it, but you mostly did it because it was a way of sharing a part of your life with Harry, when you weren\u2019t talking\u201d, she grinned wisely. \u201cIt was a way to participate in your chosen life. Now, you have your chosen life, and Quidditch is just being cold, wet, and injured\u201d, she finished.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou hate flying, so you\u2019re hardly impartial\u201d, her husband pointed out.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe also might be right\u201d, Lyra pointed out. \u201cThe best thing about Quidditch was doing something with Harry, something physical enough that I could both touch him and vent my frustrations with him by hammering him into a wall, or having him grab me and pull me off my broom. Later, as we started talking, it became something we bonded over \u2013 mostly comforted each other after our respective losses, and it felt like, well, a part of what we have now. But now, I don\u2019t have any frustrations to vent, and Quidditch is just the other stuff \u2013 injuries, being rained on, flying into a seagull, and so on. It\u2019s good that I tried it, but I might have grown out of it\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know what\u2019s the best part of it for me?\u201d, Hermione grinned. \u201cYou always say four babies\u201d.<\/p>\n
Lyra stopped to think about it. \u201cTrue. That\u2019s how I feel about them. Don\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do\u201d, Hermione nodded, \u201cBut it feels wonderful to hear you say it\u201d, she smiled.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne big reason why I\u2019m always trying to make more money is that I have four children already and they will need dowries and homes and money, and we\u2019re nowhere near done having babies\u201d, she smiled. \u201cIf you think they will get neglected merely because they came out of your womb, you don\u2019t know me very well\u201d.<\/p>\n
Hermione just hugged her.<\/p>\n
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The Firebolt was a completely different beast from the Nimbus 2001 she rode at school. It\u2019s not that the Nimbus wasn\u2019t fast. It\u2019s that the Firebolt isn\u2019t trying to keep you alive, and that\u2019s the main difference. The Firebolt will … Continue reading