A Little Secret About Her Eyes

After the incident in early March, the Hufflepuff team captain became a completely different person depending on whom she was dealing with.

She knew she couldn't pin all the team's hopes on Evita, but she occasionally found herself wanting to rely on her talented junior.

What if Evita couldn't dodge the next accident? After some painful reflection, the captain took drastic measures to whip the team into shape.

To the other players, she said, "Get training! Right now, this instant!"

To Evita, she said, "Oh, sweet Weiwei, are you thirsty? Hungry?"

"Don't be like this, captain."

"No, I have to. Gryffindor's Seeker is just as good, and though I hate to admit it, their Beaters are impressive too."

"Every year, there's only a tiny gap between our scores." The short-haired captain tugged at her hair, looking worried. "That student named Charlie can catch the Golden Snitch especially quickly in matches against the other houses, too."

"Wait-" Her eyes suddenly widened in delight. "Aren't those Gryffindor students over there? They've come here to train too, haven't they? Let me see if I can get a look at their tactics..."

"Evita," the captain urged, "it's time to put your charm to use. I know students from all four houses write you love letters every Valentine's Day!"

"Captain..." Evita clearly disapproved. "Gryffindor's score is still a little behind ours, and what love letters? How come I don't know anything about them?"

"You really don't know?" The captain's mouth fell open in exaggerated surprise. "Those sweet-smelling letters, all folded so neatly..."

"I haven't received a single one."

"But I saw them writing them." The captain was astonished. "The envelopes even said 'To Lorand.' Where else in Hogwarts would you find another Lorand?"

Seeing Evita's thoughtful expression, she suddenly understood. "I get it. They must not dare give you their love letters, since you don't look very approachable. But we all know you're kind and friendly. So, without a doubt, you're the one to find out about Gryffindor's tactics, Evita! You can do it!"

To put an end to the captain's unrealistic ideas, Evita shook her head but headed over to the Gryffindors anyway.

Charlie greeted her warmly. "Evita? Aren't you training?"

"Actually, we were training before you got here." Evita was a little embarrassed. "Do you have a note signed by Professor McGonagall? We can clear the pitch for you, or we could train together?"

The Gryffindor captain was tall and burly, but at that, he stumbled over his words a little. "Yes, of course we don't mind, but... I mean, shouldn't you keep your tactics secret?"

"We're training our reaction speed today," the Hufflepuff captain said as she walked over. "Things like keeping goal and hitting Bludgers. Want to join us?"

"Yes, of course we do," the Gryffindor players said.

"Great." The Hufflepuff captain smiled a little slyly. "Let's start with goalkeeping. Everyone else can pass the Bludgers around, and as for the Seekers on both sides... you can take the Snitch and practice on your own."

Holding her broom, Evita couldn't understand why her captain was so happy. Goalkeeping wouldn't reveal any tactics, only the skill of the two teams' Keepers.

Still, she did as the captain said and walked toward the middle of the field with Charlie.

"Evita," Charlie asked, "what happened to your eyes during the match a while back?"

As a Seeker, he naturally paid close attention to every Quidditch match, especially Evita's, not only because they played the same position on their teams, but also because they were good friends.

Naturally, Charlie had noticed that Evita's movements were no longer as quick and precise as before. He immediately guessed that it was probably a problem with her eyes, which was fatal for a Seeker.

Evita was two years older than Charlie and still had the advantage in height. She pointed to a spot not far away and said casually, "Can you see what's over there clearly, Charlie?"

Charlie looked in that direction, then shook his head after a long while. "No."

"I can," Evita said, openly revealing her weakness. "But not in the dark. I have a hard time adjusting, and I'm half blind unless there's light."

"I really hope the weather's clear that day," Charlie said. "It is the final, after all. You know people are betting on which of us will win, right? Of course, far more people are betting on you than me."

"That's because I'm two years older and have trained much longer than you." Evita smiled. "If we were the same age, who knows how it would turn out?"

"All right, let's start training," she said. She released the Snitch and was the first to mount her broom.

By the end of training that day, Charlie left in a daze, but not before taking Evita's hand in admiration.

Evita, who had no idea why: ?

Unfortunately, Charlie had jinxed it. On the day of the final, dark clouds filled the sky, and it looked as though heavy rain would fall at any moment.

As the players on both sides prepared, Charlie couldn't help saying, "You really shouldn't have told me about your eyes."

"Hm?" Evita was checking her broom and hadn't caught what he said.

Charlie looked around, and seeing no one else, raised his voice. "You shouldn't have told me about your eyes. I definitely won't be able to resist using that against you."

"But you figured it out yourself, didn't you?" Evita replied casually. "You know there's something wrong with my eyes, and I know you know there's something wrong with my eyes. That makes us even."

"I might even use that to put an obstacle in your way," she added, blinking as she mounted her broom, her tone lively. "Be careful."

Charlie didn't understand, but he soon found out why.

Evita's stamina was frighteningly good, and he had to keep an eye on two things at once: the silver-haired girl on one side and the Golden Snitch on the other.

The intense activity quickly drained his energy, but she looked completely at ease.

If Evita had known, she would have retorted that anyone who took care of more than twenty kinds of animals every day without a break, even without the most troublesome tasks of feeding and cleaning, would build up a strong physique.

She enjoyed the sensation of flying as she tried to catch sight of the Golden Snitch's tiny form.

Dark clouds filled the sky, so heavy they looked ready to fall.

It began to rain.

Evita felt the rain strike her face and cast a Waterproofing Charm on herself. In the distance, she saw a glint of reflected light in the surroundings that had already grown dark.

She narrowed her eyes, her field of vision shrinking until it was almost constricted.

Charlie spotted the tiny glint too, and the two of them rushed forward almost at the same time.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle.