BOLD AND BRAVE.
⇱ A R R O W ⇲
━ CHAPTER 5. ━

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  CUPID AND AVENA TURNED as the sound of the door opening was heard, the action simultaneous, as if the pair were an extension of one another.

Which, in a sense, they kind of were. They pulled apart their fingers, watching with mild amusement as the Weasley family trodded on out, followed closely by the trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

  Harry looked up, green eyes catching Cupid's across the short distance between them. She smiled tentatively and he mirrored the action, just as hesitant. They hadn't talked much since the year prior, with few letters being exchanged─ and even then, their replies always seemed to come later than normal.

  Cupid felt her heart ache. She knew the reason behind it, she just didn't like to dwell on it was all. But, how could she not when it had hurt the friendship between her and Harry? One of her closest friends?

The brunette glanced over at Avena, and the Slytherin girl smiled with understanding.

  "Go on," she urged, nodding her head at the Potter boy as he and the group approached. Cupid pursed her lip with determination, joining Harry as he passed. His immediate reaction was to tense, but Cupid knew it was unintentional.

Or, rather, she hoped it was.

  "How has your summer been?" The McLean girl questioned, lacing her hands behind her back as the pair fell behind the rest of the group.

Up ahead, Avena joined Hermione and Ginny. Harry kept his eyes trained on them, and so did Cupid. Her heart gave another writhe in her chest. She did not like this.

She did not like it at all.

  The brunette caught Harry's shrug from the corner of her eye. "Same as every summer." There was a pause then as he finally glanced at her with a grimace on his expression. "Are we really doing this?"

  Cupid knew what he was talking about, even without him having to explain; they were skirting around the intentions behind her approach. Prolonging an inevitable conversation.

Cupid sighed, "No, we aren't."

  For another long moment, there was silence. Cupid kept trying to form the words in her mind, but faltered every time─ until finally, she caved in and everything came tumbling out.

"I'm sorry, I should have listened to you." The brunette felt her eyes fall as her mind was filled with the memory of countless arguments between her and the Potter boy.

  He'd warned her; told her she was chasing a lost cause. Draco wasn't going to be swayed or have a sudden change of heart, he was born into his ignorance. But, she'd realized it far too late to stop.

"I thought I could," Cupid hesitated, wracking her brain for a proper explanation. What did she think she was going to do?

  Draco was not fit for change, his upbringing had made sure of that. But, it wasn't for Cupid's lack of trying, and it was his choice to remain in his ways just as much. Of course, she hadn't been stupid enough to blindly walk into Draco's trap either.

  She saw the red flags when his attitude changed from indifferent to nice.

  And she had ignored it at first─ the polite nods in the hallway, the lack of snide comments in class. But, then he started becoming more obvious; engaging in conversation, saying hello.

  That was when she began to question him, wondering what game he was playing at until, finally, she confronted him on it.

  He claimed he wanted to get to know her, really know her. He wanted to be friends. It still seemed suspicious, so she'd warned him against whatever he might have been planning. But, he still tried, and suddenly their conversations were no longer forced and things seemed almost... comfortable.

  It was a false sense of security.

  "I was being stupid," she admitted, though she was comforted by the way Harry wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She knew she didn't deserve it, but she was glad.

  Harry grinned, "Yeah, just a little." Cupid gave him a shove and the Potter boy laughed. "Come on, we better catch up." He nodded to the group, who wasted no time in waiting for the duo and were getting further by the second.

She sighed, but followed behind Harry as they jogged to catch up. She didn't exactly come dressed for a run. Nonetheless, Cupid grinned as she tackled Hermione in a hug from behind.

"I missed you!" Hermione laughed, lifting her right arm as Cupid ducked underneath to continue the hug her from the side. Avena quickly joined from Hermione's left, soon followed by Ginny.

  "I missed you, too. How was home?"

Cupid fixed the curly-haired girl with a pointed look. "How do you think?" She demanded, a little more sarcastic than she should have been.

  But, it was hard to keep up a cheery air where family matters were involved. "Sorry," Cupid apologized, giving a sheepish smile. "It was a little rough, Castor can hardly stand to be in the same room as me. I spent most of the time just wandering the house..."

  "I can relate to that," Harry chimed in as he wrapped an arm around Cupid's free side. The smaller girl gave a half-hearted smile at the cool remark and she was reminded, yet again, of why her and Harry made such good friends.

If she was having a rough day, she knew who to call, and it was likewise for him.

  She rested her head on his shoulder. "It's a good thing family is a lot more than just blood, yeah?" Cupid's grin broadened from her smile.

  She gave the Potter boy a small shake with her arm and Harry gave his own, beaming smile in reply.

  "Cupid, it's too early to be this sentimental!" Avena cried as she pretended to wipe a tear from her eye. The group of girls chuckled, throwing in a couple of fake sniffles.

  The McLean girl laughed, "Sorry, sorry. I'll tone my love down and save it for later." She wiggled her brows at Avena and the Dart girl gave a suggestive wink in return.

  Harry groaned, "Yeah, that's definitely my cue to leave." He parted ways with the girl's, coming to join Ron and the twins where they walked a few paces ahead.

Cupid stood on her toes, peering over the shoulder of Harry to catch a glimpse of Mr. Weasley. He had stopped next to a large tree, accompanied by a man she couldn't recognize.

  "Come on," Cupid urged the group, breaking up the hug as curiosity got the best of her. They hurried to catch up, while the McLean girl cursed her outfit once more. At the very least, she looked good.

  As the group came to a halt by the tree, Mr. Weasley gave the unknown man a friendly clap on the back. "Everyone, this is Amos Diggory, he works with me at the Ministry."

Cupid rose her brow in surprise, but she wasn't the only one who felt the familiarity of the Diggory name.

  "Diggory?" Avena whispered to her, "As in Cedric?" Cupid wasn't listening anymore.

  As if by some intuition, her eyes flitted upwards, meeting the gaze of Cedric Diggory himself. He smiled down at her from where he stood on a branch above the group. Cupid inhaled sharply and, in the next moment, he jumped off and she felt her heart plummet into her stomach.

  Until she realized the significant growth spurt the Diggory boy had undergone over the summer. His feet met the ground easily, and without harm.

  Mr. Weasley smiled, "Ah, and this must be your son." He looked back to the group, "You all know Cedric, don't you? He goes to your school."

  Cupid was thankful he wasn't looking for an answer. She could hardly muster up a proper breath between gawking at his height and the cute, rosy blush that the cold had set upon his cheeks. Suddenly, Cupid was very thankful that she'd decided to wear the skirt.

  Avena's elbow sharply jostled her from the side, "You're staring at each other." The Dart girl's words held no warning, and Cupid was thankful that she only saw amusement in her eyes.

"You know," Avena whispered as she leaned in close, "if there's anyone I would approve of, it's him."

  Cupid felt her face warm as she snuck another look at Cedric, who was now talking animatedly to Fred and George. She made a face at the sight of the twins, "Not if he suddenly decides to befriend mortal enemies one and two."

  Avena laughed, "Come on, you said they're not that bad."

  Cupid gave her a pointed look, "Of course they aren't, until they start teasing me about my bow and arrow and he hears it." She kept her voice lowered, not particularly fond of gathering attention.

But, even as she spoke, Cupid couldn't bring herself to care much. She wasn't serious about pursuing any interest she may have had in Cedric, because Avena was right. There were more important things than boys.

Number one being that it was her sole duty to avoid Draco Malfoy as much as possible this year. Even if her stubborn attitude smarted at never getting a proper answer or apology.

  Cupid sighed, jumping out of her skin as an arm seemed to materialize on her shoulder.

"What on Earth could you possibly mean, my dear Cupid?" Fred ducked his head down to her height. Cupid swallowed down a screech as Fred burst into a wide grin, "Calm down, it's only me, cherub."

  The brunette scowled, both surprised and mildly annoyed by his appearance. If only he could pay this much attention in class, she thought bitterly. Still, she glanced over to George and was relieved to see him still distracted by conversation with Cedric.

Fred was quick to note her stare, much to the Cupid's unending annoyance. "You know, if you like him, all you had to do was say so. We can help."

  Cupid whirled on Fred faster than she thought  physically possible. "You will not!" She hissed, keeping her voice low as she stole another look at the subject of their conversation.

He didn't seem to notice her sudden outburst as he laughed at something George had said. Cupid took a calming breath, relieved.

"Listen," she gave George a pointed look, "I'm not interested, alright? We've only just met."

  Fred beamed, "Exactly, my little cherub, which gives you plenty of time to work your—"

  Cupid, exasperated with his antics, didn't give Fred the chance to finish, "I swear, if you make another cupid joke, I'll throttle you and," she gave him a hard poke in the arm, "stop calling me cherub! There's a difference between a cherub and a cupid!"

  "Who's a cherub?" Cedric asked as both he and George joined the pair. Cupid felt herself deflate. Curse my luck, she thought. George gave her a flashy grin, accompanying the look with a wink.

  "Why, only Cupid of course," the twins chorused.

  Cedric chuckled at them, while Cupid gave an exasperated sigh. She looked to the trees above, making a point of it as she tried to walk away.

"Merlin, give me the strength," she muttered, grimacing as George stopped her from escaping. With an arm wrapped around her shoulder, he pulled her back into the group.

  Reluctantly, the female turned to Cedric, keeping her eyes on a fixed point beyond his head.

George gave her a friendly shake, "I don't believe you've properly met Cupid, huh Cedric?" Cupid didn't look at him, ignoring the nudge at her left from Fred.

It wasn't like she'd ever been good-natured anyways.

  "Um, no. I haven't." If he noticed her unfriendly demeanour, Cedric chose to ignore it as he stuck out a hand. Cupid, against her better judgement, felt her eyes drawn towards his friendly smile.

"It's nice to officially meet. You were Ravenclaw's Chaser last year, right?" As she took his hand, Cupid couldn't help her wince.

  Of all the things she most wanted to forget (besides Draco, of course), it was her position on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. It wasn't that she was bad, per say. But, Cupid hadn't exactly put forth her best effort the year before.

She thought back to their last game against Slytherin at the end of the year, and how hard it had been not to take a Beater's bat to Malfoy's head as he taunted her.

  She curled her fingers into a fist, nails digging into her palm. "Yeah, not this year though," she said quickly, averting her eyes.

Still, she caught Cedric's confused frown. "Why not?" He inquired, "You were a good player. You definitely gave us a run for our money."

Cupid swallowed the urge to scoff. She'd been at the top of her game at that point in the season, because she'd been foolish enough to believe that everything was fine in the world. That things would work out.

  Things were different now.

"I don't know. I lost interest, and I don't play the same." Cupid ignored the way the white lie seemed so bitter on her tongue.

It was true, for the most part. She definitely wasn't interested in seeing Draco anytime soon, on or off the pitch, and she wouldn't play right knowing that he might be watching somewhere in the stands. Even at the mere thought, her stomach was already knotting.

  What would she even say if she saw him again?

  "Tell you what," Cupid was drawn from her thoughts as Cedric spoke.

She peered over at him, mildly interested as he leaned in close, "If Ireland wins, you join Quidditch again. If they lose, I'll let you give it up."

Cupid was silent, brows raised in surprise. It was a bold thing for him to say, given that they hardly knew each other. What did it matter to him if she gave up Quidditch?

  Cupid turned to face him, eyes narrowed. "You'll let me give it up? Who's to say I won't do it anyway?" She smirked then, as she walked away. The pair were beckoned by Mr. Weasley, calling for them to, 'get a move on.'

It was only when she turned around that Cupid discovered both Fred and George had abandoned her and Cedric at some point during the conversation. They were now joined by Avena and Ginny who stood a small distance ahead and, for every look the group stole, the McLean girl shot them a glare in return.

  Cedric soon caught up and easily matched her pace, "I trust you to keep your word."

  Cupid almost laughed at that, but settled for a smile instead. "Thanks," she replied, "but I'll pass."

It wasn't that she was afraid of losing. She was confident in Bulgaria's win. But, somehow making bets with Cedric felt a little too friendly, and she didn't trust her heart to keep only friendship in mind. 

  The truth was, there was a part of Cupid that fell in love with all of her friends.

  Cedric gave a thoughtful hum. Then, he sighed and the shrug that followed made it clear that he had given up. "Fine, I guess I'll just have to resign too."

Cupid halted, whirling her head to look at him in surprise. Cedric raised his hands as he passed, as if to say that the decision wasn't of his own making. "I mean, it would be too easy a win if Ravenclaw lost its best Chaser."

  Cupid narrowed her eyes on his retreating figure, "You're bluffing."

  Cedric smiled, "Am I?" Before she could reply, he turned to catch up with the rest of the group.

Cupid took a moment, flustered beyond comprehension. Finally, she blew out a sigh. Somehow, the atmosphere seemed to deflate without his presence. She shook her head and told herself that she would ignore him.

He couldn't have possibly meant what he'd said. He was the Hufflepuff team Captain. There was no way he'd give that up because of her.

  Slowly, Cupid followed after the Diggory boy, finding that the forest seemed to end at the bottom of a hill. At the crest, the group had gathered to stand above her, and Cupid blushed as she realized that they were all waiting on her.

The brunette hastened her footsteps. "Sorry," she apologized upon joining the group.

  Mr. Weasley clapped his hands together, "All right, now that we're all here." He gestured to something at their feet with a flourish. Cupid rose a brow at the sight of the old boot before them. It seemed that everyone aside from her and Harry were far too eager to kneel down and grab hold of it.

  Mr. Weasley gestured for them to come closer, "Come along." He insisted just as Cupid and Harry met each other's eyes; a momentary glance of mutual understanding.

Cupid held up her thumb as a hesitant smile bloomed on her lips. "To trying new things," she offered as Harry pressed his own thumb against hers.

  Harry grinned. "Wizard things," he corrected, completing the ritual before the pair knelt down beside the group.

It had always been a promise between the two that they'd experience this new world together, whenever they could─ and thus their own tradition began. Whenever encountering something odd, they would do it together. Side by side. No matter how absurd, wild, or seemingly extreme.

  After all, while they had their differences, Cupid and Harry understood each other in a way that stemmed from their Muggle roots and orphaned backgrounds. It was comfort.

Cupid grimaced as her knees touched the ground. She hoped that the dirt wouldn't stain her knee socks.

  "I truly regret thinking that a skirt was the wisest fashion choice," Cupid muttered as she took a grip on the boot.

  From across the weathered shoe, Cedric met her eyes with a smile. "I think you look nice," he said and Cupid was thankful that, at that very moment, Harry decided to grab hold of the boot as well.

The group was sent flying into the air, and Cupid tried to keep her screams to a minimum as the ground seemed to disappear from beneath her. The wind roared in her ears, tearing through her hair and nipping at her skin. But, all the McLean girl could focus on was the feeling of flying; the rush that came with the ascent and the wonder as they whirled through a turbulent sky.

"Let go!" The shout from Mr. Weasley was shocking, in that Cupid had almost forgotten anyone was with her at all. In a brief moment of courage, she let go of the boot.

  The plummet came fast and wonder turned to fear. Cupid screamed as the ground rose to meet her. The impact wasn't gentle, but she thanked every God imaginable as she was sent rolling across the grass.

When the world finally seemed firm under her back, Cupid groaned and kept her eyes tightly shut.

"Bet that cleared your sinuses!" Mr. Weasley called out with a laugh.

Not a single soul could bother with a reply.

  The McLean girl sighed, "A warning would have been nice!" She called out as she blinked her eyes back open. Cupid heard a chuckle from above and squinted at the sight of Cedric leaning over her, a humored smile on his lips.

  "Need a hand?" He asked, grinning when Cupid hummed a half-hearted reply.

  "You know," she mused. "I think I might just lay her for a quick minute. Catch my breath and all." She shrugged, perfectly content to admire the Diggory boy from this specific angle.

He had a very defined jawline and Cupid swore she could have traced it with her eyes for hours. She stole this moment for herself, saving it in memory.

  Cedric smiled and the mischievous glint in his eye was one that could have rivalled even the Weasley twins.

"Understandable," he replied, "I've been known to have that affect on people."

Cupid couldn't help it, she laughed at the absurdly arrogant comment as she pushed herself into a sitting position. To hear such words was unexpected─ and from a Hufflepuff no less. Though, she told herself that his confidence was only in good humor.

"Careful there, or you and your swelled head might fly away on us." Cupid took his hand in hers and allowed him to help her up. Once she was on her feet, she quickly took to dusting herself off. "Thanks," she said, keeping her eyes on her clothes.

  In the short silence that ensued, Cupid figured that if there was any moment to escape casually and with her dignity intact, it was right then and there. She looked up, giving Cedric a small wave before she turned to join Avena.

Cedric made a sound, as if he wanted to say something more, but Cupid resisted the urge to turn back. She had made a promise and, though Avena had made her approval clear, there was no way she was giving in that easily.

  It was time to change; no more head-over-heels, blinded by passion.

  Cupid exhaled a breath. She needed to focus, this was her year. She paused then, footsteps ceasing, and she knew that it was about more than just keeping up with her studies. It was about taking care of herself as well.

Cupid couldn't help it; she thought back to Draco, his cruel words and the way he'd made her feel so small. She curled her fingers into fists, suddenly ashamed of her own reaction. How could she have ever let him do that to her?

  Her mind was drawn to Quidditch then too, the way she felt when that score was hers. The rush she got when the game was on and she felt unstoppable. The wind in her hair, the Quaffle in her arm, the adrenaline of dodging a blow from the opposing team's Beater.

It was her pride and joy. On the pitch, she was capable of so much more than just her academic skills and her passionate work. She was skill crafted from practice after practice; capable of more. She was never lesser than anyone.

  All at once, Cupid couldn't remember why was she letting that go. Surely not for a boy who she'd wasted useless tears on. Surely not for Draco Malfoy─ who had made her feel like less than what she really was.

Was she truly going to give up on what she loved just to avoid Malfoy; a boy who was too afraid of looking past the prejudice ingrained into him?

  Cupid turned to face Cedric, who hadn't yet taken his eyes off her, and she knew the answer.

Draco was done toying with her life. "If Ireland wins, I'll keep playing for Ravenclaw." As soon as the words left her lips, Cedric's expression broke into a beaming grin. Cupid smiled at his enthusiasm, turning away before she could change her mind.

  With the decision made, Cupid McLean knew that she was done being a coward.

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AN: YES, she is my angel baby. I love her so much. Also, please point out any mistakes that include; misspelled words or incorrect information, thanks! I have no issue with corrections when they're not obnoxious. I'd like to add that Cupid joining Quidditch has nothing to do with Cedric... I feel like that should be made clear. Cupid decides to continue playing for herself, because she's finally fed up of being so afraid of Draco and letting what he did (👁👁) affect her life. Anyways, vote, comment, let me know what you thought! ♥️