Major League ((Finn))

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

"GET THE BLOODY HELL OUT OF HERE!" Cass screamed as she stormed into the student lounge. Several first year students scrambled away from the large pane window that gave a perfect view of the quidditch pitch. She made her way over and leaned on the window sill. Red and yellow blurs whizzed in the sky above the large stadium. Focusing her sight on the blurs, she didn't even notice the door closing behind her as the younger students left. The gryffindor captain would be the talk of the school this evening. Her crazy attempt to take Finn out of the game was reckless. Victory was slipping through her fingers! It was a desperate attempt to win the game. Unfortunately, she only got herself ejected from the stadium. She watched the game progress. Hooch soon blew her whistle signifying the end of play. Finn had caught the snitch. Gryffindor had lost, and it was probably her fault.

Turning, she caught her reflection in a large mirror on the wall. She hadn't bothered to shower before coming to the lounge. Cass' red robes were dirty, and a huge streak of dirt crossed her forehead. A bright blue bruise was forming on her cheek where Finn had hit her with his knee on accident. Blood was trickling from the right side of her mouth in a thin line. She had looked worse after games. Most students didn't even flinch when they saw her this way. It was nothing to new to see the Gryffindor quidditch captain a bit roughed up. Still, she couldn't suppress the compulsion to pull a move out of her mother's playbook. Wetting her fingers with her tongue, she tried to wipe away the prominent streak of dirt. It didn't work.

It wouldn't be too much longer before someone would find her in here and start asking questions. Nobody would want to celebrate the letter she had received by owl this morning. God, she wondered about their reaction when they heard of her mid-air acrobatics today. She could already see the headline in the Prophet. Dropping onto the couch, she enjoyed her last few moments of solitude. Julian would probably burst through the door any minute if Oscar didn't beat him to it. She loved her vice captain, but he would definitely giver her a well deserved chewing out for this. She only hoped Finn was okay.

Finn, she thought happily while a smile crossed her bleeding lips. Just the thought of him gave her a dose of serenity.

[Finn Miles H7]

Victory is sweet. Or maybe it isn't always so great as Finn had quickly realized. Though the Hufflepuff team was celebrating around him for catching the Snitch and ensuring a victory over Gryffindor, Finn couldn't help but let his mind stay fixed on thoughts of Cass and what could possibly have gotten into her to cause her to sabotage him like she had. It wasn't like her. She wouldn't just do that without a reason, and it seemed that winning wasn't a good enough reason, especially since Gryffindor hadn't won anyways.

As best he could, he quickly made his way from the pitch to the castle, trying not to seem rude when a fellow Hufflepuff congratulated him on the catch. "Thanks," he said a million times, flashing his usual Finn-like grin to anybody who was kind enough to compliment him. Before long though, he had made it to the castle. After asking a few students who he found in the halls, Finn was informed that Cass had been headed toward the student lounge or so it seemed. This was better than retreating to her room in the Gryffindor tower. At least he could try to talk with her in the lounge. He should have known that's where she'd go though, as it gave her the perfect view of the pitch, not that she needed to have her mind on Quidditch. Something else was clearly preoccupying her thoughts.

"Is it safe to come in?" he said, attempting a small bit of humor to help ease whatever was gnawing at Cass's ability to function civilly. Taking a step into the lounge, he was happy to see only Cass and her red robes in the room. Maybe she just needed to vent some of her built up emotions, whatever they may be. "Care to explain what that was all about?" He tried his hardest not to sound angry, and since he really wasn't all that angry it wasn't too hard. He was more worried than anything, and a bit thankful that her antics hadn't produced injuries for either of them that were too serious. "You know you can tell me. Whatever it is. Just let me know. You have my attention without having to drag me from the sky in the middle of a Quidditch game." He was close enough now that he could reach out and touch Cass on the shoulder from behind. As she turned, he fully expected her face to be stained with tears.

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

The door squeaked open. Cass knew that somebody would come find her eventually; so, it didn't surprise her when she heard Finn's voice asking if it was safe to come in. It was hard to control herself. Finn didn't need to see her cry. He was probably already wondering what he had done to provoke such an attack. The last thing he needed was her crying on his shoulder. She wiped her face with her dirty hand. It made more smudge marks on her cheeks. She loved Finn, but not like she loved Julian. She could tell Finn absolutely anything, and most times he knew what she was thinking before she even did. Finn would always be what could have been. "Yes, I think it is safe. Shouldn't you be celebrating? It was an excellent win. I think I was playing for the wrong team today though." She laughed nervously and turned around. Cass had pulled herself together, faking cheerfulness. You could tell she had been crying. The only clean part of her face was where the tears had traveled down her cheeks.

Finn was directly behind her. She sucked on her bloody, swollen bottom lip. "Are you okay? I didn't hurt you, did I? It was a stupid decision. I'm just glad I didn't knock you off your broom. That was what I was aiming for. The whole game was just slipping out of my control." Her voice faltered. "My whole life is out of control." Cass' hands folded over her stomach, searching for the person who was no longer there. "The things that once mattered just don't anymore. I lost the one thing that truly mattered a few months ago. It's all my fault, Finn, and we had just chosen a name." She shook her head morosely. "You're going to think I'm crazy for what I'm about to say...," Cass finally looked at him. "I got an owl today. The Harpies drafted me. My team wants me! It was more than I could ever hope! It's major league. It, of course, hit the Prophet this morning. Damn Ludo Bagman and Rita Skeeter decided to air all my dirty laundry along with the announcement. I even learned some things about myself."

Finn looked confused. "I was happy, but all I could think about was what happened at Christmas. I just got so upset, and then they were calling me to the pitch. I shouldn't have gone out there. I should have told Oscar to go on ahead without me." Cass caught the first sob as it came out. "Aren't you sick of seeing me crying?" He didn't answer right away. "Did you know the Healers had talked to Pyro and Julian about taking away my wand? Hell, I didn't even know about that. I knew I was a bit nuts after what happened, but they wanted to lock me away on the fifth floor of St. Mungos." She looked at him meaningfully. "Sometimes I wonder what if it had all gone right." She stood up and threw her arms around his neck. "Sometimes I wonder what if I had made a different choice."

[Finn Miles H7]

As she turned, Finn saw no tears but simply the evidence that they had been there moments before. Cass' humor was clearly indicative that she was trying to hide her true emotions behind the Gryffindor wall of bravery. It was just like her to do that, but Finn didn't blame her. "I'm fine," he said, giving her a smile to help convince her of what he was saying. "It's fine. We weren't hurt... badly. Let's just pretend you never did it." He laughed, realizing that it was probably going to be one of those moments that they'd look back on in years from now and laugh at how silly the whole thing was. But it wasn't time to laugh now, and so he stopped after a quick chuckle, hoping that the slight bit of humor could help lighten the mood. That was when Cass became serious again, clutching her stomach and letting out the news that made Finn hesitant to respond.

"The Harpies?" He was proud of her, but he couldn't tell if she was happy about this or not. "That's great..." he trailed off. Anyone who knew Cass knew that she should probably be jumping up and down as she shared this information, but she wasn't. She was standing there with a terrified look on her face, completely opposite of the Cass that Finn knew a few months prior. The entire Christmas incident had done a lot to her. Jumping off her broom in the middle of a Quidditch game was just the start. Cass wasn't the same Cass as before, but Finn was able to look past that. He saw a damaged and scared Cass that she was clearly trying to hide from everyone else. While she said she was happy, her actions said otherwise.

Tears came again, and Cass finally let them win the battle. Along with the tears came the sudden embrace that Finn wasn't expecting. He let himself hug Cass back though, knowing that she probably needed a good hug right about then. "You're not crazy," he said, shaking his head. "What you had to go through.... it was.... it was awful. Nobody should have had to endure what you did. I can't even imagine how you must have felt then. How you feel now." It was true. Cass had been through a lot. And so what if she was a little bit crazy. Who wouldn't be a bit shaken up after the things that had happened to her? Her last words confused him though, and so he flashed her a puzzled look. "What do you mean, a different choice? Obviously it wasn't the best choice to jump on my broom, but you clearly weren't in your right mind at that point." He smiled

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

What am I thinking?, Cass thought at Finn's words. "I just wonder sometimes what would have happened if I had never married Julian." Her words became softer. "What if I had chosen someone else?" She backed away from Finn nervous about what she thought she was about to confess. "I've made all the wrong choices. I've made nothing but bad decisions, but I have always stood firm when I have been questioned about them. I have always been firm in my convictions. Now, I'm standing here in front of one of my best friends, doubting everything I have ever done. You make me question myself, Finn." She took a shaky breath, and took her eyes away from the floor. "So, I stand here wondering why I feel that way? It's finally obvious to me. You ground me. You heal me." Without fear, she continued even as shock began to cross Finn's face at this outburst of emotion. Breathlessly, she finished, "So, in a round about way, what if I made the wrong decision? What if what I need is standing right in front of me?"

"I don't think Julian is the one for me anymore. It has been nice for the most part. I married into a rich, pureblood family. Julian gives me anything I want, but I don't have what I need." She took a hesitant step toward Finn trying to impress upon him her ferocity. A fair bit of dread hung around her though. What would Finn think? What would he say? She was bearing a fair bit of her soul, and it made her oddly vulnerable.

An odd, heavy silence filled the room. She could only hear their breathing.

"I"m sorry." Cass whispered. "I know this is heavy. It's not fair to you, but I feel like I need to know." Heat flooded to her cheeks as she looked back at a dumbstruck Finn Miles. "Please, don't be mad. I - I..." she started to stammer thoughtlessly as a rush of fear made its way up the Gryffindor's spine. Cass wasn't used to the feeling, and she didn't like it. However, this rush forced the young woman to run towards the door that led to the hallway. "I'm so sorry. Just forget I ever said anything. This isn't right."

[Finn Miles H7]

Finn stood for a second, frozen as he allowed Cass’s words to make sense in his mind. Was she really saying what he thought she was? Was this her way of telling him that she wished she’d have chosen him over Julian? It was absurd. Well, maybe it wasn’t that absurd, but Finn was hardly expecting this of all things. Primarily because he was almost certain that Cass loved Julian, but more confusing was the realization that he hadn’t explored these feelings that Cass’s words suggested. What if she loved him like she loved Julian? Was Finn supposed to love her back? Could he love her back? He wasn’t sure.

In the moment that Cass seemed to regret sharing her feelings, Finn found a way to reply. Whether it was the right reply, he wasn’t sure, but it was a reply. “Wait. Don’t go.” He followed her to the door, grabbing her arm gently before she could get away. Finn saw the fear in her face, the scared feeling that mirrored his own thoughts right about now. But, he wasn’t as able as Cass was to express what he was thinking. He was confused, and therefore he felt the need to sort through his thoughts before trying to tell her how he was feeling.

“I like you Cass… I really do. As a friend.” Was that all?

He placed his hands on her shoulders, wishing that she’d have the strength to look at him. He just wanted her to understand that he couldn’t really give her an answer. At least not now. “I’m just not sure that I really am what you need. I mean… maybe it seems that I’d be what you need, but maybe you’re jumping to conclusions?” He hardly wanted to sound accusatory, but he realized that he probably was. “I don’t really know what struggles you have with Julian, but maybe you need to give him another chance?”