As the Eagle Flies

Summary: This chapter we see the brewings of trouble in the Ravenclaw Four: Jamie, Ronnie, Ari, and Ema, and there are a few unexpected twists.

Chapter Eight

The days passed rather slowly for the Ema and Ari, them having nothing much to do. Within days, the common room was decorated, the dorms clean, the booby traps set, and the girls bored. Which was why they were to be found on the day before Christmas Eve, sitting in the blue armchairs, having a heated argument. And enjoying themselves immensely.

"What do you mean you've never seen Lord of the Rings?!" Ari was saying, scandalized.

"I mean," retorted Ema, "that I've never seen Lord of the Rings! And I've already told you that."

"But..." Ari was clearly shocked. Her logical mind seemed yet unable to grasp the concept of anyone being so deprived in life.

"What?" asked Ema, starting to laugh. "Ari, I don't have a...what d'you call 'em? Telly-visor."

"You don't have a television? How do you live?" screeched Ari.

"I dunno, but what's the point of a visor thingie anyway?"

"The point of it," said Ari in the tone of explaining that one plus two did not equal nineteen, "is to watch bloody Lord of the Rings!"

"All right!" said Ema. "I got that part! But you just sit there and watch shapes?"

"Yes! Oh, bloody hell, Em, you poor deprived child! Isn't there any way you could see it? Soon?"

"Nope," said Ema unconcernedly. "Elceditity doesn't work at Hogwarts."

"I know that," snapped Ari. "And it's electricity."

"Whatever. Shut up, DeLingues," she added as Ari opened her mouth to start ranting some more.

"At least read the..."

"How many times, Ari? No. I'm not reading the bloody books!"

"Then how do you know what Gandalf sounds like?" asked Ari, remembering what Ema had accused her mum of sounding like earlier.

"Because you don't shut up about the things!" said Ema irritably, shoving her mouth full of chocolate so that her next words were incoherent.

* * *

On Christmas morning, the girls were up early almost simultaneously.

"Up, Em?" asked Ari.

"Up, Ari," answered Ema. Together they jumped out of bed, grabbed their presents and raced downstairs. Ema won though only because she fell down the last five stairs.

They threw themselves into the chairs by the fire and looked at each other.

"You first," said Ari quickly, grinning slyly.

Ema sighed and opened her first present. "DELINGUES! You bloody git!" she shouted, holding up a copy of The Lord of the Rings. "Not fair, you...bleeding cheater, bloody fanatic! Arwen!"

Ari pulled out her wand. Ema looked at it nervously, but Ari just laughed and put it away. "They always say that Ravenclaw and Slytherin are alike," she said, shrugging. "So who says I have to play fair? My turn." She opened the card first - unlike Ema - and read aloud:

Dear Ari,

I got this idea from your mother, and Ema's aunt helped me make it. I hope you and Ema will enjoy it.

Love from

Ginny

"What? She sent it to you but not to me? I'm her daughter!" stormed Ema who seemed determined to be angry the rest of the day.

Ari rolled her eyes and unwrapped the present. An odd device came out from the wrappings. It looked, in Ari's opinion, like a tape recorder mixed with a large book. There was another note attached to it.

Dear Ari and Ema,

We wanted to send you a DVD player but we couldn't figure out how to adapt one. So we made this. Using unicorn tail hair and dragon blood (don't worry, no animals were hurt in the making), we managed to make this device. When we convert the DVDs -well, more remake them using bowtruckle skin - it will project the picture onto any surface using the light from a Hippogriff's eyes. You'll learn about that in your third year if you take Care of Magical Creatures.

There followed three pages of someone else's writing, explaining, in Ari's opinion, the exact mechanics of everything that could ever possibly work in the entire world.

"C'mon, Ari, we don't have to read all that," Ema grouched. "That's Aunt Hermione's work. She never finds an end to time."

Ari flipped to the last page:

Ari, your mum made us first convert this. Have fun; don't burn your brains out!

Ginny and Aunt Hermione

"No," said Ema. "They didn't." But, lo and behold, Ari, grinning evilly, was pulling out The Fellowship of the Ring on what would have been a DVD, Ari thought, except that it was square and heavy and the surfaces rough.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooo!" wailed Ema. "I don't wanna see it! No!"

"Open your other presents, then, you git," said Ari, starting to figure the device out.

Soon, she had the movie going and Ema couldn't try to ignore it any more.

When it was over, Ema turned to Ari. "Damn you and your mum," she said. "Now I'm getting obsessed, I swear! Damn it!"

"Nice words, Em," said Ari, grinning.

The two of them watched the movie again.

* * *

The break would have ended all too soon if it were not for the return of Jamie and Ronnie. And, Ema was quick to point out, the Ravenclaw vs. Hufflepuff match.

"And--" Ema started to chant "--we're going to wi-in; we're going to wi-in!"

"Ema!" said Ronnie. "Will you shut up? I'm trying to work! You see, unlike some people, I do not have inordinate amounts of leisure time."

"We're going to wi-in..."

"Bloody hell, Em, don't you know the meaning of 'shut up'? Or GO AWAY!" shouted Ari, bending over her Transfiguration work.

Over in the corner, a small cluster of Ravenclaws were huddled around Ari's Movie Box, as they'd grown to call it, watching Monty Python.

"Yeah, Em, why don't you go watch the killer bunny?" said Jamie, disapprovingly.

It must be something with being Muggle-born, thought Ema, that they don't obsess over movies. And she went to join the movie watchers.

* * *

As the match drew nearer, Ari found herself getting more and more nervous. After all, she and Ema were the only first years on the team. Admittedly, first years often became Seekers, so Ari didn't know why she was so worried. I'll be okay, she thought to herself. It'll be fine.

But she didn't feel it. Ema was good. Ema was too good. And how well could Ari play? Well, she hadn't fallen yet, but...

How could time have gone by so quickly? How could it have already been the day of the match?

Ari felt as though she were moving in a dream. The Hufflepuff team had no first years on it.

"I'm dead," said Ari, eyes wide as she stared unseeingly at her breakfast. "I'm apologizing now because I'm going to lose the game for us."

"Bo, doo on't. Ur ot at wad," said Ema, mouth full.

"Ema! Please, I beg you, STOP talking with your mouth full!" said Jamie, burying her face in her hands.

"I said, Ari, no you won't. You're not that bad."

"Thanks, Ema."

Ari and Ema departed shortly afterwards to the locker rooms to change into their royal blue Quidditch robes. Ari quickly sought out Joey Moralez and pulled her aside.

"Joey, I can't do this. I'm not good enough," she said, feeling on the verge of tears.

Joey was quick to react. Though quite a bit shorter than Ari, she gave the appearance of being tall and put her arm on Ari's shoulders.

"Hey, Ari, don't worry," she said easily. "You're in bloody Ravenclaw. We've never won the bloody cup so we're used to it. Even if you blow it, which I doubt, we'll only hate you for a day or two. I was joking, by the way," she added as Ari's eyes widened.

"Right. Right. Okay, I'm fine..."

Joey squeezed her shoulder and went to give the team a prep talk. "Right, Eagles, don't stress yourselves out. Hufflepuff is good, but we're better. We can do it. And, if we can't, we'll live. Okay, Ema, attempt not to kill teammates, please. Ari, remember to look near the edges of the stadium as well, that's where your weakness is. Attention all chasers, keep your positions please. No random clumps, right? Okay, everyone else just remember what I told you last practice. And fly like the Eagles."

"Fly like the Eagles," repeated the team as though it were a prayer.

"Let's go."

And they were walking out onto the field.

* * *

"Oh no, Ari looks like she's going to hurl," said Ronnie, looking through her omnioculars that she'd stolen from her mother before term. She'd also taken a pair for Jamie.

"She'll be fine," said Jamie, looking like she was about to faint. "She has to be."

"But Hufflepuff's good," said Ronnie. "I mean, they've won the cup the last three years."

"Yeah, but Ema's really good too."

"What? Have you seen them?" Ronnie was surprised.

"Yes," said Jamie. "Ema's great."

"And?"

"And...what?"

"And...how is Ari?" asked Ronnie.

Jamie looked down.

"Oh," said Ronnie, nodding.

"Yup," said Jamie. "We're screwed."

* * *

"Mount your brooms!" The whistle sounded and they were off. Ari rose quickly, looking around. Ema began attacking Bludgers. No doubt about it, she was excellent. Though it looked as though she swung randomly, not caring much about what - or whom - she hit, she had impeccable aim; able to literally hit the Quaffle out of the other teams' hands.

"And it's Letina with the Quaffle, Noah Letina of Raven...ah, no, never mind, intercepted by Bruns of Hufflepuff. Cally Bruns streaking up the field, neat pass to Nora Tyler, she shoots...and ah! Saved by a good move from the Ravenclaw Keeper." Kevin Jordan was commentating, a job that her father apparently used to do when he was at Hogwarts. She was an incredibly biased Slytherin and so tended to root for Ravenclaw. It was the Slytherin way.

"Moralez with the Quaffle...she shoots...score! 10-0, to Ravenclaw."

Just then, the Hufflepuff Seeker dived. Ari followed, looking for the Snitch. Her broom was faster but, hell, she couldn't see what she was chasing. Ema did, though. She wacked a near-by Bludger.

Oh, Ema, thought Ari. Just when we most needed you. That's completely missing the other Seeker.

And it was, of course, for that was not what Ema had been aiming for. The black Bludger hurtled downwards, straight at Ari, causing her to swerve to the left. And she saw it. The Snitch, right in front of her face, where she'd never have seen it if she hadn't been forced to move. She reached out her hand and caught it.

* * *

Ravenclaws poured onto the field, shouting and screaming their approval. They crowded around Ema, hugging her and lifting her onto their shoulders. Jamie and Ronnie came to Ari.

"You okay?" Jamie whispered. Ari shook her head, the tears welling up in her eyes. Jamie nodded understandingly and ushered Ari quickly back to the common room where a party was already waiting, God knows how. Jamie turned to Ronnie, who had followed them, and whispered, "Tell Ema she's feeling sick and she'll be down in a bit." Then she pushed Ari up the stairs. Ari collapsed on her bed and sobbed.

"I can't play this anymore, Jamie, I just can't! Did you see? I couldn't even see the bloody Snitch. That's my job. Bloody hell, I don't even know how I got on the team in the first place."

Jamie put her arm around her friend's shoulders and soothed her. "Oh, Ari, it's not as bad as that."

"Yes it is!" wailed Ari. "It is. I'm rubbish, damn it, I'm just complete and utter bloody RUBBISH!" She shrieked the last word and then started crying in earnest.

"I feel so selfish," she confessed through her tears, "because Ema won the bleeding game and all I can think about is how I could've won it myself. Or maybe I just feel stupid that I'm the Seeker and I needed the Beater to win the game for me. Or maybe..." she broke down again.

Jamie just sat, like a true friend, and let Ari cry. Which, of course, Ari did. For a long time, she lay there, thinking angry thoughts to help her through.

When, finally, she had cried herself out, Ari and Jamie went downstairs to congratulate Ema. Ari had Shadow in her hand to comfort her. The kitten didn't seem to mind being carried like a stuffed animal constantly; she was purring contentedly.

"You okay, Ari? You don't look so good," said Ema, looking concerned. Which, for anyone who cares to know, is a big thing for Ema.

"She's fine," said Jamie. "She just got really bad cramps from that dive, you know, she hadn't practiced it that much."

Ari nodded.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry, Ari. Maybe we should tell Joey that you need more work on that," said Ema, completely un-mockingly. "I mean, we don't want you hurt."

"I'm fine," said Ari quickly. "I just shouldn't have done it on an empty stomach, that's all."

Ema still looked slightly uncertain but disregarded it. "Okay. Hey, Ari, good game."

"And you," said Ari, somehow managing to smile. "Thanks. Wouldn't have won without you."

Ema, to her credit, did not rub it in.

"Oh, go on," she said. "I just gave you a little help, that's all."

"Hey! Hey! Look at this!"

Shadow meowed loudly as the foursome looked up. In the window was an eagle with a scroll in its beak.

"Wow! Who does that belong to? I hear they're almost impossible to train!" said Kenzie Little, looking awestruck. To everyone's surprise, the eagle fluttered over to Ronnie and dropped the scroll at her feet before setting down on her shoulder.

"Ronnie? Is that yours?"

"N-no," said Ronnie.

"Well, go on, read the letter!" someone shouted. Ronnie unrolled it, scanning the contents quickly before reading aloud:

Dear Veronica,

I hear that your family life is somewhat less than satisfactory. I also hear you are in Ravenclaw. Your grandfather would not approve of that, nor, I suppose, would your parents. However, I would like you to have this eagle. She will have to either stay at Hogwarts or go to a friend's house over the summer, but I'm sure you can work that out. Have fun with her. She is already trained, and her name is Magic.

Love from,

Grandma Narcissa

"Oh, my God," said Ronnie, dumbfounded. "What...how...? I can't believe this."

"You get an eagle?" said Ema, looking jealously at the bird.

"Where are you going to keep her?" asked Ari.

"She's beautiful," said Jamie.

"Keep her...I don't know..."

"She's so...majestic," said Ari, awestruck.

Ema left quietly, muttering something about needing to turn in early.

"Not the kind of bird who would consent to going to the Owlry, right?" Ari continued.

"Magic...Well, the Owlry's the only place for you, unless you want to go the Forbidden Forest," said Ronnie.

The eagle gave her a look.

"Didn't think so. Owlry, then?" she said, addressing the bird who bobbed her magnificent head as though in modest consent.

"Where's Ema?" asked Jamie suddenly.

"Er, I think she went up to the dormitory," said Ari, uncertainly.

"Can't blame her, really," said Ronnie, tearing her eyes away from Magic. "She's probably tired of people jumping all over her...Sorry, Ari," she said quickly as Ari stiffened.

"Oh, don't worry," said Ari sarcastically. "I haven't had nearly enough of remembering that I did absolutely nothing."

"Now, that's being a bit harsh," said Jamie. "You caught the thing, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but I didn't see it," said Ari. "But never mind. Doesn't matter. Ronnie, if your family can't ever know you have her, what are you going to use her for?"

"Well, when I spend time with her, we'll keep up the pretense that she belongs to Ema, if Ema agrees. Sorry you two, but she's the only one with wizard parentage, so it'll be easier with her."

"And over the holidays?" asked Jamie curiously.

"I guess she'll have to go to one of your houses. Dunno which, though."

"I'd take her," said Ari, "But only if she won't eat Shadow." She held up the kitten who meowed happily at the eagle. Magic put her great head down and nudged Shadow's.

"Looks like they'll get along well, won't they?" said Jamie. "Sorry, Ronnie, I can't take her, I've got four younger sibs hanging around the place."

Ari and Ronnie looked at her.

"You do?" said Ari. "You never told us. Who?"

"My younger twin brothers," said Jamie. "They're eight. Then my younger sister who's nine and my youngest sister who's three. What?" she added, seeing Ronnie and Ari stare at her.

"Never knew that," said Ari. "How do you manage to talk without going, 'and then my sister was so annoying...' or whatever siblings do?"

"Because my siblings don't annoy me," said Jamie, shrugging. "And the twins live with my mum."

"Okay, now I'm really confused," said Ronnie. "You've got four siblings at 'home' you say. Then the twins aren't at 'home' so what the hel - heck are you talking about?"

"Oh, god, never mind," said Jamie. "It doesn't matter." But she looked a bit sad when she said it.

* * *

If anyone but Ari noticed a change in Ema over the next week, they didn't say anything. Gryffindor played Hufflepuff that Saturday. Gryffindor lost, to nobody's surprise, but Ari was shocked to hear--or to not hear--Ema's silence.

She wouldn't speak unless spoken to anymore, she didn't participate in class unless required to, and she did her homework alone in the dormitories.

"Have you two noticed a change in Ema?" whispered Ari one night.

"No," said Jamie. Ronnie shook her head.

"Am I mad? She's not been talking with us, she's really quiet, she does her homework upstairs and, to top it all off, she's been drawing. Ema has been drawing. Little pictures of eagles. I don't know if they're the Ravenclaw Eagles or just random eagles or what," said Ari in one breath.

"Oh, gosh, you're right!" exclaimed Jamie. Ronnie muttered something about Astronomy and scurried away."And to think I never noticed it before," added Jamie. "Where'd Ronnie go?"

"Upstairs to get her Astronomy homework, she said. Exams are coming."

"I know that. Must you scare me even more?"

"Yes," replied Ari without missing a beat. "Yes."

* * *

"Ema, what's up?" asked Ronnie, coming into the dormitory. "You're really quiet lately."

"Am I?" said Ema shortly, scribbling feathers onto an eagle she was drawing.

"Wow, I didn't know you could draw so well," said Ronnie, peering over Ema's shoulder. She was telling the truth, too. What had started out as little scribbles with a vague eagle shape had now turned into authentic eagles. Ronnie could have been mistaken, but the one being drawn now looked suspiciously like Magic.

Ema hid the drawing. "No, you wouldn't, would you?" she snapped.

"Em, what's up?" repeated Ronnie. "Why're you so cold all of a sudden?"

"You wouldn't understand," said Ema coldly, turning her back on Ronnie.

"I bet I would," retorted Ronnie. The door opened and Jamie and Ari walked in just as Ema rounded on Ronnie.

"Alright! I'll tell you, okay? I'm jealous because you got an eagle and I've been wanting one for ages but my parents won't get me one. Okay? I told you. I'm bloody jealous. And you won't shut up about the thing!" Ema screeched.

Ronnie looked as though she'd been hit in the face.

"Well, you're being a bloody git, if you ask me," spat Ronnie. "You are jealous of my eagle? Who grew up in a loving family? Who gets almost everything she wants? Who's a sodding spoiled brat?!"

Ari clapped her hands to her face and Jamie whispered, "Ronnie!"

"I told you!" shouted Ema. "You asked what was wrong and I told you!"

"Yeah, well, it was a right bitchy reason to turn on all three of us!" screamed Ronnie. Now Jamie had her hands over her mouth and Ari looked frozen.

"Get out!" shouted Ema. "Just get out! All three of you!"

"You don't have the right to send me anywhere!" shouted Ronnie. "Why don't you get the hell out of here and, for all I care, you never have to show your damn face again!"

Ema drew her breath in quickly and slapped Ronnie across the face.

Ronnie looked shocked. Jamie burst into tears. Then, without missing a beat, Ronnie smacked Ema right back and, turning on her heel, marched out of the room. Ema drew her curtains around her bed and there was silence except for Jamie's sobs.

Thus, the Ravenclaw Four was split