#viktork

Every time that he flew past you, you jumped up and down, waving the flag of his team. He had become the star seeker of the team so quickly, it made your head spin. But you were nothing if not supportive. You used up your allowance to buy his merchandise, even though he could get it to you for free. It almost became a joke between the two of you, how you would always show up to his house wearing a sweater with his face on it, bright and smiling. You always made the joke that he was smiling on the sweater because it was the closest that he would ever get to your chest. He would make the joke in return that he was just smiling because he finally was looking at someone good looking - himself. He was actually very funny for a serious looking man.

You weren’t the only one high up in the stadium. Sharing a box with you was the Minister of Magic himself, and a man with his son. The boy was two or three years younger than you, you would assume by his size, and his hair was as silver as snow, just like his fathers. You had no interest in them. You weren’t here to make friends. You were here to support the best one that you had. But you did give a friendly hello and smile to the Minister, as it was better to have a friend in him than an enemy.

The other boy though, he wanted to have more than a friendly hello with you. He kept moving closer to the part of the box that you were occupying. He spoke to you with a very snobby voice, and though it would be considered rude and your parents would be disappointed in you, your direct reaction was to pretend that you didn’t know English.

“I’m Draco Malfoy,” He said, sticking his hand out to shake yours. “We’re here with the Minister of Magic. Are you here by yourself?”

Rather than shake his hand, because you honestly didn’t want to touch him for too long, you tapped yours against his in a high-five. “Ja, go fast!” You said, pointing at one of the Bulgarian Chasers who just flew past you.

The look on Draco’s face was worth it. But there was still a long game ahead of you. It could go on for hours. For days. Hopefully for the former though, because Viktor was a really good seeker. You had full confidence that he would get the snitch before it turned midnight.

Draco went and stood by his father for a little bit, and the two had quiet conversations. You didn’t pay him much attention. You were too busy watching the game. Even during lulls when it was just Chasers fighting over the ball in the middle of the pitch, you were intrigued. You didn’t pay attention to anything else - except for maybe making faces at Viktor when he passed by you on his way to catch what he thought was the snitch. He was darting back and forth so quickly though, it was hard to tell if he had seen you.

Since the World Cup was officially sponsored by Butterbeer, it kept being brought up to your box by people who worked for the Quidditch federation. It was enough to keep you warm as the game went into the nighttime. The skies seemed to threaten rain, but you didn’t care whether it fell or not. You were having fun, regardless of the weather.

The Irish scored the first goal. You booed, even though the others in your box seemed to be very supportive of the green team. You smiled apologetically at Fudge as he gave you an odd look, but didn’t pass a glance at the other two. However, the young boy came and stood beside you again, leaning over the box to look down at the people below in the lesser seats. He was sneering at them, like they had done something wrong by just existing there. That was worth a look to you at least. He caught your eye, and that sneer turned into a smile.

“Is this your first time at the Quidditch World Cup?” He asked. You shook your head, still feigning not knowing any English. “We come every year. But this is the first time that we’re in the Minister’s Box. So how did you get up here anyway? Who are you?”

He wasn’t letting up. You tried to look up at the players again, but the war for the Quaffle was going on in the middle of the pitch which meant there wasn’t much to look at right now. He nudged your side, so you finally answered, giving him your first and last name.

“Sounds exotic,” He said, which made you have to turn away and roll your eyes. Leave it to someone from England to think that your name was exotic, when it was commonplace where you were from. And not like he had the right to judge - what sort of name was Draco?

There was finally some action on the pitch, which took his attention from you for a little while. Unfortunately it was Ireland again, scoring the second goal of the game. Your eyes scanned the pitch to look for the familiar frame of your best friend and you saw him across the stadium. He was balanced on his broom, sitting on it in a way that made it look easy. Comfortable. You always admired how effortless he made it look to fly, while you were always hunched down, holding on with both hands until your knuckles had started to hurt. You waved at him when you thought you caught his eye and he smiled back at you. You chuckled as you heard a few girls in rows below you start to squeal because they thought that it had been at him.

“He’s overrated,” Draco muttered beside you.

“Krum?” You asked - before realizing this was very close to exposing yourself as a fraud.

“Yeah. He’s not even that good. In fact, I’m better than him. I’m the Seeker on the Slytherin Quidditch team. I got in second year, which is really rare, actually.”

You let his voice go in one ear and then out the other. This boy seemed to like to talk about himself an awful lot.

Ireland scored a third goal, and you groaned loudly, cutting off Draco in the middle of a sentence. “Oh, are you cold?” He asked.

Either he didn’t notice that you were shaking your head, or he didn’t care. He moved in closer to you and tried to put his arm around your shoulders. In your discomfort, you took a few hasty steps away, and ended up bumping into the Minister himself, stepping on his robes which almost pulled him down.

“I’m so sorry,” You said in horror as you realized what you had just done. You helped him to upright himself, and he gave you a wary look, like he should have expected this.

“It’s quite alright,” He said, but he did wander to the other side of the box, far away from you. You watched, feeling a bit bashful about what just had happened. At least, until there was a cheer from the fans. Ireland scored yet another goal. You sighed, and put your gaze back on the game. Viktor had moved since you had last seen him, and you began to scan for him once more, only for him to pop up not too far from you.

“I knew you spoke English,” Draco said from next to you. You almost forgot about the little twerp, but here he was, making himself known again. You never met anyone so infuriating before. He just couldn’t pick up a hint. “Come on, talk to me. Do you go to Hogwarts? I felt like I would have seen you there.”

“I don’t go to Hogwarts,” You stated. “You have not seen me before. And after this, we shall not meet again. Please, leave me alone.”

“I’ll be telling my father about your rudeness,” He said, finally turning away from you. You let out a sigh of relief. Maybe you could finally get into the game.

There had been a few close calls of Ireland getting the snitch. They were winning by quite a lot, and you could feel Viktor’s frustration from where you were standing. He kept looking at you, and you didn’t have much to offer him except for crossing your fingers.

“I think you should come to have dinner with us after the game,” Draco said, strolling back over to you after a while.

“The game could go on for hours, or even days,” You said, clenching the fence in front of you. You had never felt the urge to punch someone before but it was growing slowly and steadily. Something about his ferret like face.

“Well, we’re taking a break soon. We brought our new house elf. It’s an alright cook, it’ll do for the occasion. And you’re going to join us, aren’t you?”

“I’m fine here, thank you,” You said, scoffing at the idea of a break. You had no intention of leaving the game until it was over, even if that meant starving or peeing yourself. You were dedicated to stick it out for Viktor, at the very least.

He was flying not too far, eyes peeled for the stitch. But he looked at you. He was able to smile once more, but a hand grabbed yours and pulled you away from the fence. In your astonishment, you had let go. “Come on, we’re going to have something to eat.”

There was a sound of awe from the crowd at the exact same time that something went soaring by your head. You just barely managed to duck before it turned around and came back. A bludger. But how in the hell did it-

It went returning the way that it had come from, flying across the pitch. That was when you saw Viktor again, a little closer to you this time, holding a beater’s bat. He tossed it back to the beater, who went soaring after the bludger, while Viktor looked over at you. You put your hands over your heart as a thank you. He had always been a little overprotective of you, but right now, you were grateful for it. You were able to snap your hand away from Draco’s grasp, who was still ducking from the bludger attack. “I said I’m fine here. And if you, or your father, have a problem with that, you can shove it up your rear!” You shouted. The Minister overheard this part of the conversation and let out a little ‘oh my’ in surprise.

You didn’t even care. Enough was enough. If he grabbed you again, you would be telling everyone that you were being assaulted, and put him on full blast. Though he looked rather shaky after the encounter with the bludger, so you had the feeling he wouldn’t actually be bothering you again. You returned back to the fence so you could overlook the pitch again, and wrapped your hands around it so no one would be able to drag you back again.

-

The game finished with Bulgaria’s loss. You were disappointed, but it wasn’t Viktor’s fault. He still managed to catch the snitch, so he had done his job. It was the Keeper that you were disappointed with, and you would be bringing that up to him later.

You descended the endless flights of stairs, blending in with the crowd after the game - many were celebrating but there were quite a few who looked the same as you felt. Damn Ireland, you were thinking to yourself. And damn the Bulgarian Keeper! He hadn’t been able to do his job properly. Even Viktor would have done a better job, and it was his least favorite position!

You managed to veer away from the crowd to go to your own little campsite. Much like the others around yours, the tent was much bigger and roomier on the inside than it appeared on the outside, thanks to a little magic. You marched on through the flaps to go inside, and change out of your clothes. It had been a long game, and you had definitely sweated at least a little bit. You wanted to be much more presentable when Viktor would come along and join you.

The flap came open once more, and Viktor strolled in, just as you were fastening the button on your bottoms. He had perfect timing - now at least, maybe not so during the game. His jaw was clenched, you noticed, and he looked very angry. He’d lost games before, but still reveled in the fact that he had been playing. This was not a mood that just came from the game.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, watching as he walked past you to the armchair that was in front of the budding fire. Thank heavens for magic - a fire and a tent would never have worked otherwise.

“That boy who was touching you-” He said, sinking into the chair, and spit directly into the fire with disgust. “What’s his name?”

“Oh, we don’t need to worry about him, Vik. I think you scared him enough with the bludger. He wouldn’t even come close to me after that. Turned white as a sheet,” You chuckled at the memory, but his anger seemed to rage on.

“No, tell me his name.” Viktor demanded. You sighed, and walked to where he was sitting. The chair wasn’t big enough for the both of you, but it had rather wide arms and you planted yourself right there. You leaned your head against the top of his, the bristly growth of his hair tickling your forehead. “Y/N...”

“He was a stupid, petulant child who I am never going to lay eyes on again, Viktor Krum. Why did it make you so mad?”

“No one should be touching you. No one should be dragging you...” He said, moodily. He was staring into the fire, not at you at all.

“Tell you what. I’ll let you know his name after you calm down, how about that?” You suggested. It would take some time - he had a temper like a bonfire that would just keep on burning until the morning.

“Fine,” He grumbled. He said nothing more, and the two of you sat in silence, staring at the fire as it crackled, and listening to some of the cheers from outside. People were still celebrating the Irish win out there, and it gave everything a joyous atmosphere. “I’m not angry anymore.” He said after a few more minutes.

You pulled away from him, and took a look at his eyes to see if he really was in a post-red mood. He still looked grumpy but the worst of it seemed to be over. “His name was Draco Malfoy. His father is friends with the Minister, which is why I didn’t do much about it myself. You took good care of me, Vik. Just be happy that it ended the way that it did and we could move on with our lives.”

“If I see him again, I’m punching him,” Viktor grumbled. You shrugged, alright with that since the likelihood of it seemed so low.

“That is a price that he will have to pay then,” You smiled, moving back towards him and fell into his lap. Before you could try to get up, his arms went around your waist and started to tickle you in the way that he knew you hated. Fingers digging into your skin, it was a horrible feeling but the closeness that it brought wasn’t entirely terrible. “Vik - come on, stop...”

“I like it when you call me that,” He said, finally letting a smile come across his usual gruff features. You smiled in return, and lightly ran your fingers across his sculpted jawline, feeling the bone beneath his skin. His breathing hitched, and he held you closer, tighter.

You grew closer, until you could feel the heat of his breath on your lips. Viktor was so close - and you hadn’t realized until this moment that this was something that you wanted. You had always been friends, and your parents had teased since the beginning that they were planning your wedding to each other. But this was the first time that you had seen what they had been seeing.

Screams came from outside, and they were far from being the joyous kind. There was serious fear in the female voice that you had heard. And then came others. More and more screaming. The tent seemed to move as people were rushing past it. You could just see it through the crack between the flaps which acted as doors.

You couldn’t have one simple year at Hogwarts, could you? Not that you blamed your brother but ever since he had come along in his first year, things have been going wrong left, right and center. First, your boyfriend Cedric had been chosen as the Hogwarts champion, which he didn’t even tell you that he had entered. You were mad about that, but then when it came to the interviews and Rita Skeeter poking around, you had enough of it. Even his friends were coming along and asking questions about your personal life, since he was the only one of the FOUR champions to have a partner. This ended up in you breaking up with him, because he didn’t see the big deal about all of the intrusive questions. It was mutual, eventually, but you had to wear him down in order for him to see that it would be better if you spent some time apart.

And then Harry, sweet little Harry Potter who couldn’t catch a break, was chosen to be the Fourth Champion, which was entirely unheard of. You had charged into the room where the champions were and you gave Dumbledore a mouthful of words, as well as the Minister of Magic, but the rules were the rules and he had to compete. You tried throwing back that the rules had stated that it was only for Seventh Years, and that there was only to be one champion per school, but they claimed that their hands were tied. After that, you took Harry’s hand and pulled him out of there so the two of you could talk alone.

You were devastated. Especially in the coming days when it became apparent that a lot of people, including his best friend, thought that he had put his name in the Goblet of Fire. It was completely far away from Harry’s personality, and you vowed to help him through everything, studying your ass off on his tasks on top of your school work. He still had Hermione, though, and that was a relief. You were more worried about him than you had been about Cedric, whom you were convinced would do absolutely fine in the Tournament, and probably didn’t need your assistance.

-

You were sitting by the lake one day, doing your extra-curriculars. You took just the necessary classes this year, having dropped Divination and Arithmancy so you wouldn’t have to study as hard. But you were doing studies of your own, particularly in Russian. You wanted a job in which you got to travel the world, so you decided that taking languages, a course only done through talking books, was a good way to go. You were fluent in French, and learned more about pronunciation through the Beauxbatons students, but you didn’t know much Russian, so you decided to take that up so you could communicate with Durmstrang as well.

You were coming along pretty well, though your pronunciation needed some work. You were practicing in the weak sunlight of the Scottish Autumn, muttering to yourself. “Ya chuvstvuyu-” You started to pronounce, then realized it didn’t sound right, so you tried again. “Ya chuvstvuya,” You put more emphasis in, “-tvoyu lyubov segodnya.”

“Ochen khorosho!” The book praised back to you. You smiled, the romantic phases being something that you wanted to master. Okay, so maybe you weren’t entirely over the break-up with Cedric. It wasn’t him in particular, it was just having someone to care about, someone to care about you that you missed.

“Who var you talking to?” A puzzled voice said. You looked up from the speaking book to see that there was a student in front of you. You were so into your book that you hadn’t even noticed anyone approaching. The sun was behind him, casting his face in shadow, though the robes showed Durmstrang.

“Myself,” You said, then held up the book to show what you were doing. “Practicing Russian. I’m on the chapter of romantic phrases.”

The student looked delighted, and much to your surprise, he sat down with you, looking over the pages. It was only as he leaned over to take a closer look, his finger running across some of the words, which made the book giggle aloud, that you realized exactly who it was. You turned red at this realization - because it was nonother than celebrity champion Viktor Krum, who you had just seen at the World Cup. You remembered the way that Cedric had gushed over how good of a seeker he was, and how amazing his flying techniques were.

“This one good-” He said, pointing to a certain phrase and then said it out loud. You read along with it, your eyes following his finger, but he added more to the sentence, words that you weren’t sure of.

“What does that mean?” You asked, realizing that you were still as red as a rose at his close proximity. You tried to tell yourself to act natural, pretend that it wasn’t a celebrity - a very handsome celebrity - that was this close to you, but you found it impossible. It wasn’t everyday that someone came into your space like this. The last person had been Cedric, but the two of you didn’t spend any time together since the break up. Just nods in the hallways, and awkward grins if you had a class together. You haven’t tried to date anyone else since, though Rita kept coming up with stories about you cheating on him with other boys. You hoped she wasn’t snooping around now with that damn quill of hers.

“You var my paradise,” He said, in his heavily accented English. That part was in the book. “-My...” He looked around, as if having trouble with translation. He pointed up at the sky, and then did little flapping motions with his hands. When you gave him a puzzled look, he put his hands above his head, his index and thumbs together to make a circle.

“Heaven?” You asked. He shook his head so you took another guess after piecing it together. “Heaven?" He nodded, with a smile and then continued to look around. He then pointed straight towards the sun, which was hiding behind clouds. “Sun?” You guessed once more. He nodded again.

“You var my paradise - my heaven - my sun.” He said, looking quite proud of himself. And he was saying it while he was looking right at you, which just made you feel all the warmer. You hadn’t really given anyone attention since Cedric, and since most of Hogwarts thought you two were the dream couple, no one else had tried to hit on you. But here was Viktor Krum, reciting such lovely things for you in a language that you were only beginning to understand.

“Beautiful,” You muttered in his mother tongue, and he beamed as he recognized the word. Until it was no longer light enough to study, and you had to conjure up a light and keep it in a jar - thank you Hermione for that idea - in order to see anything, he helped you along with your studies. And yet, you never seemed to get past the chapter of romance. He introduced you to new phrases, and would practice with you until you had the pronunciation down perfectly. The book had been quiet for a while, having no critiques for you, you were doing so well. “Thank you so much - you taught me a lot,” You said, getting onto your feet.

“You’re velcome,” He said, bowing his head respectfully, jumping up effortlessly. You scrambled to put your book into your bag, and he helped you, holding your bag open for you. “Maybe you can help me,” He suggested. You tilted your head, questioning what this man could ever want help with. The first task had gone swimmingly for him, he was a Quidditch star, he was handsome to boot. “With een-glish.”

“Oh, of course!” You said with a grin. “I would love to help. Why don’t you meet me in the library on Saturday?”

-

Four different boys asked you to the Yule Ball, and you had said yes to only one of them - sort of. Unfortunately for Harry, it wasn’t his best friend Ron who just seemed desperate to go with anyone. When you told the two boys that you already had a date, your brother kept questioning who it was. He seemed to have a theory that you were back with Cedric, which couldn’t be further from the case. You just left them guessing, looking forward to seeing their faces when you appeared.

Thanks to the small fortune that your parents had left for you and Harry, you were able to afford a stunning dress. And with some small alterations, you could probably make it last forever. It was your favorite color, floor length with see-through sleeves and a pinched waist to really bring out your body shape.

That, along with your confident smile and you were ready to go.

Your date wasn’t in your house, in fact he wasn’t even from this school. You flushed as you remembered exactly what Viktor had done in order to ask you, and you had to applaud his trickiness. He had written out ‘Will you go to the ball with me’ in Russian, and asked you to translate it. You had done so, thinking that perhaps he wanted to ask out one of the many Hogwarts girls who had fawned after him throughout the hallways, but instead of repeating it back to you, he had said ‘Love to.’ It took you a minute to realize what he had done, and you couldn’t stop laughing once you had it figured out. You agreed with that, and your date was set.

You were going to the Yule Ball with a champion. That was what worried you the most. The attention that you were going to get since you and Viktor had to participate in a dance in front of the student body. He hadn’t had the time to practice, since his own Headmaster was keeping him busy with studying for the tasks, but you did have another willing partner. Your brother Harry. It was easiest with him since he had to do the same dance at the same time.

As you walked down the stairs with a couple of other girls who were meeting their dates, you were nervous to see if all of that practicing had paid off. You caught your brother’s eye as he went down the stairs and gave him a confident wink. He had asked out one of the Patil twins, you had heard, and you were very much looking forward to teasing him about it after all was said and done. Your date wasn’t at the bottom of the stairs in the herd like many of the other males, but further back, trying not to bring attention to himself. He stepped forward when you reached the foot of the staircase, maneuvering expertly through the people in his red suit, and held his hand out to you. You took hold of it, making many in the crowd gasp.

“Krum?” You heard your brother and his best friend say in unison.

You gave a teasing little wave to them as you were lead into the Great Hall, which had been transformed into a beautiful ballroom for the occasion. It looked like a winter wonderland in here, and it took your breath away. You were given a grand entrance, where Viktor, Fleur and Harry were also introduced, before taking part in the dance. You couldn’t help but notice that you were also getting looks from Cedric, who was here with Cho Chang, a pretty Ravenclaw.

You ignored all of those looks, focusing on Viktor, and Viktor alone. He remained the stiff, very concentrated man that you had gotten to know through your studies, though once in a while, when no one was looking, he smiled. The dance went off without a hitch, which was amazing considering he had to lift you. That’s the part that you were nervous about, but his strong arms managed to do the task and you felt safe throughout. You did feel a little better once both feet were on the ground.

Once the dance was over, and the band began playing something less traditional and upbeat, you were able to blend more into the crowd. “I get us drinks,” Viktor winked, giving you a thumbs up as he departed from your side for the first time of the night. You felt even more flushed by the wink than you did by the dance, so you leaned back against one of the columns and took a glance to see who had brought whom.

You smiled as you watched Harry and Ron sitting, refusing to dance with their dates. An older Gryffindor had asked Hermione, and the two of them were out on the dance floor. For the first time, it seemed like the school was entirely at peace. Houses with other houses and schools with other schools. You couldn’t help smiling as Hagrid danced with Madame Maxime. Even Dumbledore had a turn on the dance floor.

“May I have a dance?” A familiar voice said from next to you. You turned to look into those honey colored eyes that had made you swoon the year before, but now - now you just felt nothing. And it was great to just feel nothing.

“I don’t think so,” You said, smiling through your rejection. “Viktor will be back any minute with some drinks. I’m absolutely parched.”

“He wouldn’t let you dance with an old friend?” Cedric asked, raising an eyebrow. You saw through what he was doing, unfortunately. Playing the nice guy. You realized that him seeing you with Viktor must really have gotten under his skin.

“I’m sure he would,” You said, demurely. This was like something right out of a book for teenagers. A love triangle - but you weren’t going to let it be that way. That required feelings for the third person, and you no longer had that. Still, you felt like some sort of Queen with all of the attention that you were getting. “But I honestly just want to save every dance for him. He’s a wonderful dancer, must come with being a professional athlete. Did you see him out there?”

“I did,” Cedric conceded. “And I saw how happy you were - so I’m happy for you, y/n.”

“I’d hope so,” You said, spotting Viktor coming forward. You excused yourself from Cedric, and went to meet him, taking the glass of punch from his hands. You noticed that for the first time in the night, he wasn’t looking at you, but was scowling over at Cedric. You had told him about your past with Cedric, and about your brother being Harry. It hadn’t worried him at all that you were close with two of the other contestants, or at least it hadn’t until now. “Thank you,” You said, laying your hand upon his arm as you took a sip from the glass goblet.

“Vhat did he vant?” Viktor asked, pointing his chin towards Cedric, who was still standing by the column, looking at you solemnly. You shook your head as the ugly beast called jealousy made an appearance.

“He wanted to tell me that he’s happy for me, that I’m here with you,” You said, smiling, since it was a truth, though maybe not the whole truth. “And I must say, I share the feeling.”

The stoic look remained on Viktor’s face for a moment more. You didn’t like it. This was supposed to be a happy occasion. You leaned in and pressed a kiss onto his stubbled cheek, and grew excited as it seemed to light up. He was finally smiling once again, and you both turned so your backs were towards your ex. “Vant to dance?” He asked, draining his own cup.

“It is a little small,” Viktor said, arms crossed in front of him. His loyalty was obviously to Durmstrang, and its own towering peaks. But you were used to his gruff behavior and just ignored him, focusing instead on the sights that were around.

You had no plans of entering the Triwizard Tournament. You were just there as a part of reaching out to other schools, building a sense of community, making friends, trying to see things from another’s perspective. So you did not go in with the dramatics of the seventh year boys, but rather lingered and stepped in after the displays, making yourself at home at a table with a Snake motif. It’s not as if you and the others were going to be noticed once Viktor had come in at your headmaster’s side. All eyes were on him, and conversation immediately erupted upon seeing his face. That grouchy Viktor face.

He slipped in across from you as the Beauxbatons students came through, and immediately started to put food on his plate. There hadn’t been a wide variety of food available on the ship that brought you here, so you were starving, loading your own plate up high. But you paused when you saw that Viktor had. He was looking down the table with a glare in those dark eyes. “Is that-?” He questioned with a motion of his head.

You looked down in the direction that he was staring at and it became very apparent just whom he was glaring at. Draco Malfoy. How could you forget that name when he had drilled it into your head during the World Cup? You couldn’t forget that head of silver hair either. You wrinkled your nose and nodded a yes. It was. Viktor started to stand, but you reached out and grabbed hold of his arm, fork dropping onto the table with a clattering sound. It had happened just as the Headmaster of Hogwarts had paused in his speech, and many eyes went to you and to the Quidditch Star. Or at least the ones that weren’t there already. You smiled uneasily and took your hand off of Viktor’s arm. “Not here,” You muttered.

“He disrespected you, he deserves to be punished,” He said, still standing, still glaring, despite all of the attention on him. Draco, on the other end of the table, looked like he was about to jump out of his skin. It almost seemed worth letting Viktor go, to see that expression on his face when he would come hulking over. The young boy must have put two and two together. He recognized you, and that’s why there was that fear. “Y/N...”

The teachers were looking at you as well. Only Karkaroff would be able to understand what you were both saying, since it was still in your native tongue. He looked furious that you two were causing such a ruckus, and it made your cheeks redden in shame. “Please. Later.”

Viktor finally seemed to notice all of the eyes on him, still standing, fists down on the table. He held a hand up to excuse himself and sunk back down onto the bench. You let out a breath of relief, and Dumbledore continued on with his speech about unity. All Viktor was thinking about was uniting his fist with Draco Malfoy’s face, no doubt. While you focused on uniting this amazing food with your stomach.

-

Viktor had been chosen as Durmstrang’s Representative in the Triwizard Tournament. You were both proud and deeply worried about him, but promised that you would help him along every step of the way. The first task was dragons, as he had found out from Karkaroff. He was growing distracted with trying to figure out ways of defeating a dragon, fighting a dragon, winning over a dragon, that he had nearly forgotten about Draco Malfoy. But Draco Malfoy had not forgotten about you. How you had turned him down, humiliated him in front of his father and the Minister of Magic. And he managed to catch you alone as you were heading back to the Durmstrang dormitories after a study session in the library.

“No bodyguard to protect you this time,” He said with a smirk, pushing himself away from the wall that he had been leaning against. There was no reason for him to be in this hallway, so far as you knew. So this crazy kid must have been waiting for you. He made you feel extremely uncomfortable for the second time in months.

“I do not need a bodyguard,” You said, in slow and careful English. “I need to get to my room.”

“Let’s go then,” Draco said, standing beside you. “I’ll go with you. I’m still waiting on that apology.”

“An apology? I’m waiting on one too, from you. You have been a pest since the World Cup. I would hate to have to report you to Karkaroff.”

You could have sworn that he grew a little paler, not that you thought it was possible with how white his skin already was. That made you feel a little better. Your headmaster as an intimidating man. “You won’t be getting any apologies from me, when you have been the little tease-”

“You’re one to talk about little, fourth year,” You taunted, since clearly being polite, and being avoidant wasn’t working. So you had to make sure that he wanted nothing to do with you. “If you do not leave me alone, I will tell Viktor, and the rest of Durmstrang, and Karkaroff - and they will all believe me about the annoying gnat you are. And then the word will get to Beauxbatons. Do you really want those pretty ladies laughing at you? If not, then you better back off.”

Malfoy took three steps back and you let out a breath in satisfaction. You hurried forward, slipping into the shadows of the castles to make your way back to your dorm. Once you were safe in there, you decided to write a letter to Viktor and tell him what had happened. Malfoy seemed like the sort of boy who liked to retaliate, and you wanted to be prepared in case he got any ideas. Maybe you did have a bodyguard after all.

-

Viktor started going with you everywhere, even after he was chosen as the Durmstrang Champion. It really was almost like being at your own school, and things were normal. Viktor was the person in this world that you were closest to, even more so than your parents. Nobody from Durmstrang batted an eye when you say beside each other at meals, or went for jogs together or went to the library. There was some people from Hogwarts and Beauxbatons who wanted to know about your relationship with the handsome Quidditch star; Viktor always answered them by putting his arm around your shoulders and grunting. He wasn’t a man of very many words, this Viktor Krum.

Whenever Malfoy was around, Viktor went in full shark mode, like he had when you were taken to the bottom of the lake and he had to rescue you as one of the tasks. He snarled and bared his teeth at the boy, and you usually ended up having to drag him away before he would put the blonde in the hospital wing. You always told him that he wasn’t worth it, and that after Viktor would win the Tournament, they would go back to Bulgaria and would never have to think of that rat-faced bastard again.

English slang was really starting to rub off on you.

When the Yule Ball was announced, you thought that perhaps Viktor was going to ask the cute, brunette fourth year that was always in the library, but he hadn’t. He asked you. And you, of course, had said yes. Not only just because him being around you had scared off any other potential suitors, but because you knew you would be comfortable enough around him to actually dance and have fun. Just another day, but he would be letting loose in front of other people as well.

You dressed up. And so did he. Though he definitely looked good - most Quidditch Players did, it was in their fitness regiment, he looked especially great tonight. And by the smile on his face, you thought you must have made a pretty picture yourself.

“Are you prepared to dance, Mr. Krum?” You asked in your native tongue, slipping in beside him and walked towards the winter-wonderland that the Great Hall had turned into. You waved and smiled at your friends, none of them surprised at who you were with. In fact, bets had been taken for who was going to ask who. Very few people lost a few galleons that night. “Because I am so ready.”

The Ball was a blur of fun, punch and music. Your feet were sore from all of the dancing. As were Viktor’s, because he did most of his sport above the ground. You definitely wore out your dancing shoes, and would have to awkwardly tell your parents that you needed a new pair for formal events. Once you explained that it was because of Viktor, you were sure you would have no problem getting more.

But the ending of the night wasn’t as fun, and it was because of that Ferret, Malfoy. He was pushing every last button that you had, which meant that he was poking at Viktor’s as well. All it took was one smug comment to his friends about how you had been ‘all over him’, trying to get all cozy during the World Cup, and Viktor saw red. You hadn’t seen that kind of anger in him before.

He went straight after Malfoy the way that a bull went after a matador. Nose blowing smoke. If he had horns, Malfoy would have been pinned to the wall by them, without a doubt. But as it were, all Viktor had was his brute strength - he didn’t even think about magic. Straight in with a punch to that self-approving face. Malfoy went down like an under-inflated balloon, sinking under the weight of that hit. But that didn’t stop Viktor - and neither did the other fourth year Slytherins trying to have their friends back. You even got involved, trying to pull Viktor out of the developing dog-pile.

It didn’t take long for the chaparones to notice that there was a fight going on, and you were all torn apart from each other by magic. You were now against the wall, feeling like someone had just cast petrificus-totalis on you. Your eyes rolled to find Viktor, only to see that he was beside you, with a bruise developing over one eye. One of those boys must have got him good. You wished you could see how they had come out of the fight. Viktor was sure to have given out twice as good as he got.

“What is the meaning of this?” Professor McGonagall, one of the teachers here at Hogwarts, demanded to know. “A champion? Taking part in a physical altercation?” She looked between you and Viktor, and then to the three Slytherins.

“My fault,” You said, giving up on the struggle against the magic. “I - tripped - fell on boy - Viktor defend me.”

Your English was still a bit rough, but that seemed to be working in your favor. You didn’t have to use as many words if they thought you didn’t know them. But obviously you were going to jump in and lie so that Viktor wouldn’t get in trouble. This tournament meant as much to him, if not more, than Quidditch did. You weren’t going to let him get kicked out just because of some rat-faced boy.

“Well,” McGonagall said, fixing her robes. Your mood perked just a little. She wasn’t even going to ask for the boy’s side of the story? She barely even looked at him now, except to give a hard stare. “20 points from Slytherin.”

“But Professor-”

“And be thankful that it isn’t more!” She said, and with a wave of your wand you were all set free. “I suggest you spend your time on different sides of the Ball this evening.”

“We will, thank you,” You said with a nod, taking Viktor’s hand and pulling him to the left side of the room. “You need to learn how to control your temper, or you  might get kicked out of the tournament. What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking he needed to shut up,” Viktor said. All of the good mood had been sucked out of the both of you by the encounter.

“I hope he learned his lesson,” You said. “I hate liars. It should be obvious I would never be all over someone like him.”

“Good,” Viktor said. “He makes me see red.”

“Makes me mad too,” You nodded. “But let’s not think about him, and enjoy the dance. Shall we?”

“Vat are you doing?” A voice said from beside you, making you nearly jump inside your skin. You held your hand to your chest, feeling your heartbeat start to calm down from the scare. The surprise wasn’t over though, for you had never before spoken to the young man who was beside you. Viktor Krum - star of Durmstrang and the Bulgarian Quidditch Team. “I did not mean to scare you-”

“It’s alright,” You said, regaining your composure, and gave him a smile. Of course you knew that he was famous, and well, incredibly good looking, but those things didn’t make you nervous in the slightest. “I was hiding. If I got caught, I would have been in big trouble.”

“Vas that Professor looking for you?” Viktor asked with concern. You nodded solemnly, turning to make sure that he wasn’t coming back. “Vat did you do?”

“Professor Snape, that is,” You said, wondering if he had heard any of the rumors around Hogwarts, such as which teachers to avoid and all that. “I skipped his class this morning, and if he finds out that it wasn’t because of an emergency, well, he’ll be using my body parts for those potions of his.”

Viktor looked horrified by the concept of that, but then slowly grew amused. You could tell by the little smile on his face that he was cooking up some questions for you. Oh boy - here we go. “Vhy did you skip class, and vhy are you sneaking out now?” Here he was, a famous Quidditch player, asking you about skipping class. This certainly was not how you thought your day was going to go. You looked around again before you began to answer.

“Well, you see...” You stammered, trying to figure out  how to say this without coming across as seeking attention. There wasn’t really anyway around it. “It’s my birthday today and double potions first thing in the morning is not how I wanted to spend it. So I turned off my alarm clock and I slept in. Until about an hour ago actually. It fell on a weekend the last few years so there wasn’t a problem but... well, obviously, this week it’s my enemy. And I snuck out because I’m off to go and see Hagrid, the groundskeeper. I’m helping him to take care of the Abraxans.”

That was evidently not what Viktor had expected to hear, but he found it curious nonetheless. “You English are so strange,” He said, shaking his head. “You skip class ... to vork ... on your birthday?”

“Oh, it’s  not really work! I love to do it. I was honored that he and Madame Maxine approved of me for the task. Only the best Care of the Magical Creatures students were picked. I get to groom them, give them their barrels of whiskey - once I even took a sip for myself before they got their snouts in. Nasty stuff. Not sure why they like it, but that’s creatures for you,” You ranted, barely realizing that you were doing it. Social interaction was not something that you got a lot of. Not that you weren’t liked or anything, you just didn’t have many friends. By the time you started to come out of your shell, all of the cliques had been formed, and had been for years.

It was a little hard for Viktor to take in. He was far from perfect at English, though he understood the basics. Though some of your words were rather rushed, he was able to get the general idea. The light in your eyes and the smile on the corner of your lips was enough for him to see how you were passionate about working with the animals. “Strange,” He repeated.

“Oh Merlin, you’re not going to tell on me are you? Because that would be a very cruel thing to do to me on my birthday,” You said, realizing that you had just admitted your rule breaking to a stranger. “I just really messed up, didn’t I?”

“How could I tell on you, vhen I don’t know your name?” Viktor asked. Immediately, you introduced yourself, saying your name out loud, and you were about to tell him that he didn’t have to introduce himself because everyone and their mother knew about Viktor Krum since the World Cup but -

“Oh Merlin,” You groaned once more. “I really am thick, aren’t I? Now you know my name and you could definitely go and tattle on me. Go on then. Might as well tell Filch to get the thumb-cuffs ready.”

Viktor chuckled, which stopped you from admonishing yourself even more. “Vhat I was going to say vas - happy birthday, y/n. Did you get any presents?”

“Oh, well, thank you,” You blinked. You reached into the pocket of your robe and pulled out the letter that your parents had sent you. You liked to carry it around with you on your birthday, because it made you feel like they were a bit closer to you. “My parents sent me a bit of money to get myself a treat at Hogsmeade tomorrow. I was thinking perhaps a cake-”

“I would not count on that, y/l/n.”

The voice of the person that you dreaded came from the end of the hallway.

You had been out in the open for too long.

You closed your eyes and winced as footsteps came closer, and  you could smell the musky scent that came from being around potion ingredients all of the time. Professor Snape always smelled like an apothocary. Even Viktor stood silent as the dark haired professor came in closer. It was like the dementors that he had heard about - like all joy was sucked from the corridor because he had entered in.

“Does this corridor lead to the hospital wing?” Professor Snape asked you. Keeping your eyes closed, you shook your head. “Well?” He prodded.

“No, Professor.”

“I see. It appears that you’re standing, which means that you did not lose your legs. So it is seeming like you had no excuse to miss out on your lesson this morning.”

“No professor,” You repeated. You had learned your lesson against arguing with Snape very early on. He had it in for you, ever since you accidentally spilled the porcupine quills upon him and they had stuck into his cloak and poked his backside.

“That means ten points from your house, and you lose tomorrow’s Hogsmeade privileges,” He said, clearly and concisely so there was no chance of you misunderstanding.

“But Professor, it is-” Viktor said, starting to stand up for you but one look from the Slytherin head made him shut his mouth. The only person who came close to being this intimidating was his own headmaster.

“Do not make excuses for y/l/n. I will not hesitate to get Karkaroff involved.” Snape threatened. Viktor looked like he wanted to say more once the threat was made, but you inched yourself between the two men.

“I’m sorry Professor Snape, it will not happen again,” You said, cutting off Viktor before the first syllable came out of his mouth. This was your way of paying him back for trying to stand up for you. You didn’t want him to get in trouble, especially for your own sake. You put on your most humble expression, your shoulders slouching, your eyes downcast and all. You really were disappointed. This was not turning out to be a good birthday at all.

“We will see.”

-

You sat by yourself in the Great Hall, Most of the other students hadn’t made it back from Hogsmeade yet, but a few had and were sharing what they had bought not too far away. You sighed, and rested your head against the wooden surface of the table, trying to cool your headache. Your birthday had not been a good one, since Snape had made you go to your afternoon class, then make up for what you missed in his. You didn’t get to go help with the Abraxans and worst of all, you didn’t even get to go to Hogsmeade for a Butterbeer and a slice of cake. “This is the worst year ever,” You grumbled to yourself.

You heard someone parking themselves across the table from you. Expecting it to be some worrisome first year, you said, “I’m fine, I don’t need the Hospital Wing, I’m just miserable.”

“I vould be too,” Viktor’s now familiar voice and accent rang out. “- if my birthday had been like yours.”

“If only it was something a doctor could make better,” You said, rising up to sit with your back straight. You took in the opportunity to drink in the appearance of the good looking man’s face, but became distracted when he put a bag onto the table. It bore the undeniable stamp of Honeydukes on it, making you miss the village even more. Oh Honeydukes - you could barely stand the thought of all of those treats without you being there to admire them, to love them, to pick up a cauldron cake lovingly and take a little bite. “Have you come to rub it in that I couldn’t go?” You asked, feeling more miserable than before.

Viktor looked confused, trying to figure out what you were saying. He almost looked like a lost little puppy when he did that. “It is ... not lotion.” He said, blankly. Then it was your turn to be confused, before realizing that he had taken ‘rub it in’ more literally than you had meant it.

“Right, sorry,” You said instead of explaining. “What goodies did you get for yourself, and won’t you get in trouble for it? Don’t Quidditch players have to be highly disciplined and fit?”

Viktor chuckled at that, reaching into the bag. “Is not all for me,” He explained. He pulled a box out of the bottom of the bag. It was wrapped neatly with a colored ribbon - the same color theme of your Hogwarts house. You gasped as he pushed it towards you, and you were able to see through the plastic top to the contents. Inside of it was a cake, custom made from Honeydukes. It was covered in a chocolate icing with ‘Happy Birthday’ and your name on it. Well, almost your name. It was misspelt, but you imagined it was how Viktor had pronounced it. The icing matched the ribbon, and it had magical swirls on it that looked almost like the sky in Van Gogh’s Starry Night. “Happy Birthday!”

“You’re crazy,” You said, unwrapping the ribbon. You took it off slowly, making sure not to rip it, then tied it around your wrist as a sort of bracelet. You would take every little bit of this as a present, even the wrapping. When you opened up the box, the smell of the freshly baked cake took over your senses, making your mouth water. The buttery goodness, the icing which was just the perfect amount - not too much, the flavors mixed in with the cake. It could not have come cheap. You’ve bought cakes from there before, and even just a small plain one with no decoration could be a couple galleons. “You didn’t have to do this.”

“If I didn’t stop to talk, you vouldn’t have been caught,” Viktor said, a little bit of pink coming through his immaculate facial hair. “It’s my fault.”

“Oh no, I didn’t want you to feel guilty. Talking with you was the best part of my birthday actually,” You fingered the ribbon on your wrist, looking down at the cake. It was so beautiful that the thought of cutting into it was almost physically painful. But it wasn’t all that you were given. Viktor brought out more things - Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Sugar Quills. A bit of everything, actually, and soon you were surrounded by all of the treats. “You’re absolutely mental,Viktor Krum.”

“I’ve never had theez-” He said, ignoring your comment and opened up a pack of the every flavored beans. “Are they good?”

“It depends on what you-” Before you could stop him, he pulled a green bean out of the packet and popped it into his mouth.

You winced, knowing that it could have been a variety of flavors, most of them not nice. You had your lime, swamp, broccoli, celery, watermelon, gingerale, kiwi...

Viktor’s face screwed up in unpleasantness, and he forced himself to swallow. “It tastes like - like - grass!” He announced loudly and with disgust. You couldn’t help but laugh at how his face had contorted like that. You patted his arm comfortably, and pushed a pumpkin pasty in his direction.

“It really does mean every flavor. Here, this should help get the taste out of your mouth.” You watched as Viktor opened up the packaging quickly and shoved half of the treat into his mouth. He seemed relieved when it helped, sinking down and his eyes showing gratefulness.

“Thank you. English are strange.”

“Yeah, we are,” You said with a nod and with a shrug. You took the Bertie Bott’s Beans from him and shuffled around. You pulled out one that was a nice golden brown color. Earwax, toffee, tea, mud? You bit off half of it, then let it roll onto your tongue to get the flavor. “Here,” You handed him the other half. “It’s caramel, and not half bad. I promise.”

Viktor took it and rolled it between his fingers. He wasn’t ready for another bad experience, but he trusted you so he put it in his mouth and bit down. The sweet taste of caramel, velvety and rich, filled his mouth, mixing well with the pumpkin. “I get it now - some good and some bad?”

“Exactly. That’s the fun of it.” You took the cake from in front of you and moved it off to the side for now. “Thanks for all of this. My birthday tanked so this was like ... actually really awesome of you.”

Viktor didn’t understand what tanked meant, but he did know awesome so he smiled, brightening up immediately. He took hold of your hand, which startled you, and squeezed it. It was so large compared to yours. And so strong. And so calloused and rough. “You have better birthday today.”

Madam Promfrey had given him a pain relieving position until she had an open minute to do the quick spell that would undo the sprain. He grimaced when he took it, and made a disgusted face as he set the empty bottle down on the counter. You chuckled, moving the thermometer around with your tongue, which caught his attention. Crap. Here you were in your button up pajamas, which were grey with pink bunnies on them. Why bunnies? You had no idea, but they were warm and they were the most comfortable items of clothing you owned and the best thing for these awful hospital visits.

“I had to take that one a couple of times, it’s awful, isn’t it?” You said, once he managed to catch your eye. His own lit up as he realized what you were saying, and he continued the conversation.

“It iz,” He said with a nod. “It taste like - rat piss.”

That made you laugh again, almost choking on the thermometer. That got Pomfrey’s attention and she walked over and took it out of your mouth. She checked the results with a sigh. “Another fever, y/l/n. I might as well get your name engraved in your usual bed.”

“No potion for me this time?” You said with your best pout, the one that usually worked on your friends and your parents. But the nurse had seen it time and time again.

“You cannot rely on magic all of the time, it’s not good for you, you’ll build up a tolerance.” She scolded. “You’ll just have to ride it out the natural way. Don’t look at me like that, you’ll be back in class in three days.”

“And spend my last year behind on school work, again.” You sighed. You looked over at Viktor, gave a weak smile, and got to your feet to be lead to your usual bed. She was right, you might as well put your name on it.

“Vait - you are staying?” Viktor followed, limping on one leg. Once you were situated on the bed, you looked at him with your head tilted.

“That’s what happens when you get sick a lot,” You said with a half-smile. “If you’re worried, I always turn out alright - eventually - and I don’t think that I’m contagious.”

It took Viktor a moment to translate what you said into his head. He opened his mouth to say something else, but Pomfrey noticed that he had gotten up from his chair. “Sit down, Mr Krum! I said that I would get to you in a moment!”

Swinging into action, Viktor hopped up onto the end of your bed, sitting down with his feet flat against the floor. His back was entirely straight, and he looked at Pomfrey like he was waiting for further instructions. You were amazed at how disciplined he was, though it made you giggle to see the nurse’s angry face, though he had done as she had asked. She sighed dramatically, in the way that she always did when the Weasley twins came in, and did a quick spell on Viktor’s leg. “There, you should be good as new now.” The look that she gave him very much showed that she was waiting for him to leave now.

He stood up slowly, lifted his once sprained ankle, and wiggled it in the air before deducing that it was indeed fixed. He gave Madam Pomphrey a curt bow of the head, which caught her by surprise. “When is - um-” He smacked his lips, thinking of what to say. “Visiting?”

“Visiting hours?” She asked. “Until seven o’clock - sharp.”

“Ahh, very good. I visit.” He sat back down on your bed and gave her a dazzling smile. The nurse didn’t seem very affected by it, just tutted in a ‘very well’ manner then went to check on the rest of her patients. He looked back at you, and his grin turned more shy. “I am Viktor Krum.” He introduced.

You said your name back to him and he repeated it to make sure that he got it right. You liked the way that your name sounded in his thick Bulgarian accent. It made it sound more ... tough, almost. “You don’t have to stay and visit me, I’ll be fine,” You assured him, in case he felt some sort of obligation.

“I want to,” He said, seriously. It seemed easier for him to be serious than to smile, but you didn’t mind. Even while straight-faced, he was incredibly handsome. It was just the prescription that you needed, though Madam Promfrey didn’t order it. “You get better faster with company, my mother says.”

“Smart woman,” You smiled. He kept you company until it was time for him to leave for dinner. He talked about Quidditch, slipping into his native every language every once in a while. Though you didn’t understand him when he spoke Bulgarian, you liked the way that he grew enthusiastic with hand motions and everything. You talked to him a bit about some of the Quidditch games that you had seen, though you weren’t much of a player. You liked the sport though, and the World Cup had made you change your favorite team to Bulgaria because you admired how they played together. “Thanks for staying with me,” You said, when he got up to leave.

“I come see you soon.” He gave you a more curteous bow than he had given to Madam Pomfrey, leaving you smiling as he departed. You couldn’t wait to tell your friends about how you had become friends with Viktor Krum while in the Hospital Wing! No longer could they complain about how you missed out on everything because you were always sick. The doors closed and you settled comfortably against the pillow, preparing yourself for the rest that the hopefully quiet night was going to bring you. Though hard to tell if it was going to be that peaceful, since the aged Weasley twins were still arguing only a couple of beds away.

-

True to his word, Viktor came to visit you each day that you were in the hospital. You were beginning to understand that it was an escape for him. Nobody in here stared at him or approached asking for an autograph. You did your best to treat him like a normal person, though it became difficult because you realized that you were increasingly falling for him. There was a constant flush upon your cheeks and you couldn’t fully blame your illness for that. You were feeling better at an increasing rate though, and perhaps it was like his mother said, the company was helping.

You were released shortly after Viktor left, when Madam Pomfrey did some tests and figured that the flu was entirely out of your system, and you were good to return back to your dormitory. You rushed back and greeted your friends with big hugs, and loved returning to your own four poster bed. As you laid there at night though, you wondered how things were going to work with Viktor. Was he still going to want to see you when you were healthy? Was he going to pretend that he didn’t know you outside of these visits? It was a bad idea to fall fast, you realized, and said to your friends. Half of them agreed with you while the other half told you that he wasn’t just going to stop seeing you now, not after visiting you every day.

You didn’t have a choice except to wait and see how things were going to go the next day.

In the morning, you put on your uniform for the first time in a while. The tie gave you problems as it normally did, but your friends were there to help with a quick tie spell. “Are you excited for a normal breakfast again?” One of your friend asked as you went down one of the moving staircases to head to the great hall.

“So excited,” You said, feeling your stomach growling. “All I’ve been able to eat was oatmeal and dry toast. Bring on the pancakes!” You rubbed your hands together, thinking of a high stack of food, doused in syrup.

“Good morning,” A heavy voice said, clearing his throat as you walked inside of the Great Hall. You looked over your shoulder to see Viktor standing just inside the large doors. In his hand was a single rose, though it was a rather large size, like magic had flowed through the stem rather than just water. You could feel eyes on you - not just from your friends next to you, but from the students sitting at the tables.

“Good morning,” You said, looking into his dark eyes. His jawline was to die for, and the facial hair that he had seemed to contour it to look even better. You remembered from when the other students came here that first night that the Drumstrang men sat with the Slytherins most of the time. You were not in that house, which was why the Hospital Wing was your first meeting with Viktor - it was a little shocking to see that he wasn’t there now. “Are you not going to have breakfast?”

“I am,” He said with an affirmative nod. So straight to the point, that was one of the things that you liked about him. “I vas vaiting for you.”

“Oh, that’s really very sweet,” You said, smiling widely. You couldn’t help but look back at the flower, then at his eyes. He held it out to you, and you took hold of the stem with your fingers. He didn’t let go. Your skin was brushing against his.

“This for you,” He said, finally letting go of the rose. “Good to see you feeling better.”

“It’s great to be out of that Hospital Wing,” You nodded. “Though I will miss our visits.”

“Can I join for breakfast?” He asked, looking past you to your friends who were waiting. They quickly grabbed onto each other’s arms.

“We forgot something-” One started.

“- at the dormitory!” Another finished.

“We’ll go get it now - see you in class!” The first one said again, and they dashed out of the Great Hall, shooting smiles over their shoulders at you. You shook your head at how obvious they were being, but they were still the greatest friends that you could have asked for.

“It looks like I’m free,” You said, chuckling. Viktor offered you his arm and you took it as he walked you towards your table. There was some free space close to the teachers, since most students didn’t like the idea of Snape or McGonagall eavesdropping on their conversations, so you two sat there. Well, rather, you sat down, then Viktor jogged around the table so he could sit across from you for easier conversations.

He first inquired about your health, making sure that you were okay. And even then, he didn’t seem to believe you until you made it through the meal without coughing or looking pale. “So why did you come to the hospital so many times?” You asked the question that had been on your mind for so long.

“I vanted to see you,” He looked surprised that you asked such a thing. Then he leaned in closer, saying something quietly so that no one else could hear. “Did you not vant me to see you?”

“No, no, I mean yes, I wanted to see you,” You stumbled over your words. “You came to see me more than my friends did. I was just asking because we didn’t know each other.”

“But we do now.” He smiled as he piled eggs onto his plate, as well as a handful of bacon. You supposed that looking like that required a lot of protein so you said nothing, only got your own breakfast together.

“You’re right, we do,” You said. It was hard not to think about the fact that you were friends with THE Viktor Krum, though when it was just the two of you, he didn’t seem like a Quidditch star. He was surprisingly down to Earth.

The two of you ate together in comfortable silence. You let the rose lay beside your plate so you could keep admiring it whenever you went to take another bite. It was one of the nicest gestures that you had ever received.

“So Viktor-” You started at the same time that he said your name and cleared his throat. “Go ahead,” You smiled, resting your hands on your lap once you have finished eating.

“You’ve heard about ball?” He questioned. Your heart started to beat faster as he had mentioned that. Word had even gotten to you in the Hospital Wing that there was going to be a grand ball to celebrate the tournament, despite the fact that the winners hadn’t even been chosen yet. There was no such thing as a secret in Hogwarts. Some girls had already started to order their dresses.

“A little,” You admitted.

“You - go with me?” His voice piqued at the end, as if he were nervous that you might reject him. You were glad you didn’t have food in your mouth when he asked that, for you surely would have choked. You picked up the rose and twirled it between your fingers, breathing in the hefty scent.

“I’d love to,” You smiled. “As long as I’m not in the Hospital Wing when it actually happens. I’m a bit clumsy and I get sick a lot so-”

“I be-” Viktor stopped you, putting his hand up as he thought about the word. You waited patiently as he thought hard for a moment, the word seeming to be on the tip of his tongue. When he finally got it, his whole face brightened up. “Prescription! Medicine!”

You were beaming so hard, you just hoped to Dumbledore that you didn’t have any food stuck between your teeth. You nodded enthusiastically, speechless for once. He reached over the table and took hold of your hand, rose and all, and squeezed it.