Daphne looked at Axel, who suddenly appeared in front of her in alarm. This was the second time they had met like this out of nowhere, and the second time had nearly had her heart jump out of her throat.
"What are you doing here?!" She had blurted out in surprise.
Daphne considered running away. She was in a bad mood right now. She was angry, mostly with herself. And confused. She had always considered Axel a scumbag and womanizer. But it turned out that she had only been making wrong assumptions.
"What I'm doing here?"
Axel looked at her with his hands inside pockets. "Just… enjoying the Greenery?"
"?!"
'What's that supposed to mean when you're only looking at me?!' Exclaimed Daphne in her mind.
"You saw the interview?" Asked Axel, making Daphne roll her eyes.
"Is there anyone who didn't? Of course I saw it."
"Well?" Axel looked at her intently, as if expecting something.
Daphne started. What does he want?
Axel rolled his eyes. "Do you still remember the last time we were here?"
Daphne's eyes widened. The last time they were here, Axel had actually asked her to be his friend. But the stupid her, who still thought he was a scumbag going after multiple women, had rudely rejected him in a moment of fluster. She had even called him a scumbag to his face and ran.
Now that she recalled the event, Daphne wanted to plant herself in the soil and die. She didn't think Axel would keep it in mind and even mention it now.
"That... I am really sorry. I was completely wrong about you. I feel terribly ashamed of myself —" Daphne began apologizing but Axel raised his hand with a frown, stopping her.
"The fuck are you doing? Daphne Greengrass is apologizing? Something is really wrong with you."
?
Daphne looked at the guy in front of her in bewilderment. If he didn't want an apology then why did he even mention it in the first place?
Seeing her bewildered look, Axel sighed in annoyance. "I just want to know if doing that was enough to clear away all your misunderstandings. Just to make it clear to you, I don't have that kind of relationship with any girl. And neither will I be free enough to have one in the foreseeable future," he said straightforwardly, putting his hands on her shoulders for emphasis.
It was pretty important for Axel to clear things now. Or this girl might once again get needlessly hurt after misunderstanding she hears more rumors.
"Daphne. Do you completely believe it now? Or do I need to have the girls talk to you? Martina, Akiko, Patricia, and others, whoever they are. They'd say the same. Get it?"
Daphne's eyes were shaking. Inexplicable emotions were running through her when she heard him say all that. She really hadn't been able to believe it. Even after the interview. She just didn't want to have hope, only to see it dashed when he ended up with someone else later.
But right now, when she looked into his eyes, somehow, she could tell. That whatever he was saying, it was all true. "I believe it," she said in a small, shaky voice.
"But… why?" She asked. Now, only one thing clouded her mind. Why? Why did it matter to her so much? Why was she so relieved right now? Why were tears running down her eyes, and… why… why the hell did he care enough to go so far for her?
But when she tried to remember why, all she could get in return was emptiness and pain.
Looking at the confused and crying Daphne who had finally believed in him, for a moment, for the first time in a long while, Axel's face softened. He stepped closer and wrapped her in a hug. "Why?" He mumbled, his mouth very close to her ear. "Because I don't want you to suffer because of me again. Just… don't try to think about it," that was all he could say for now.
It was rare for Axel to even initiate physical contact, and completely inconceivable to actually hug someone on his own initiative. But this time, he did. He just felt really bad seeing her struggling with her memories and feelings all because of him.
And somehow, it actually helped. As soon as she was embraced, Daphne froze. The pain and confusion she was feeling was suddenly gone, only leaving an incredible feeling of warmth and safety. Daphne felt blissful. Her body, which was all tense, slowly relaxed into Axel's embrace.
"Are you alright now?" Asked Axel after a while.
??? Daphne came to her senses as she realized that she was tightly hugging Axel right now with her face buried in his chest. And she barely knew him!
Daphne panicked.
"I… I need to leave," she said, separating from him with extreme effort and hurrying to leave the place.
"Oi!" Axel called out to her, making her stop.
"Can we be friends already?" He asked in exasperation. "I did a whole fucking interview for you."
Even with her face burning, a smile came to her face as she shook her head. But then turned around and looked at the guy. Even though she couldn't remember it, she had heard that they used to be close. He's currently the most popular guy at Hogwarts while she's just another witch. Merlin knows what he even sees in her. But if that's what he wants, then. "Fine, I'll be your friend."
Saying so, she ran away.
Axel watched her go, but did not stop her. He had made progress. He had cleared up all future misunderstandings with her. He shouldn't be too greedy. He can't just instantly have their old relation back.
Besides, what can he even do after getting their friendship back? He can't really be seen together with her, not with the Kraken as his enemy.
….
Days passed uneventfully at Hogwarts. But the atmosphere was volcanic. The anticipation for the Hogwarts vs Mahoutokoro match was almost palpable throughout the castle. And Axel couldn't go anywhere without having students of Hogwarts cheering for him left and right.
The magi-hive was also filled with discussion and speculations about the match, with each side having a lot of support.
Axel was currently the most skilled Quidditch player in the world. He was skilled to the point that he could decide the outcome of the match by himself, no matter what. That is to say, if he were to play the Quidditch World Cup, he would win the Quidditch World Cup.
And such a player had declared that this would be his last match.
That's why, people from all over the world were eager to watch this last match.
—The day of the match—
—Slytherin Changing room—
The atmosphere in the room was quite heavy. The whole world was going to have their eyes on this match, and they were going to represent Hogwarts. The cheering of the audience was so loud that they could hear it even from the changing room.
With such a situation, there was no way they wouldn't feel pressured. Everyone appeared nervous. Even Patricia didn't seem her usual confident self. Well, everyone except for a certain indifferent guy.
"Aren't you nervous?" Asked one of his teammates, attracting everyone's attention.
Axel shrugged. "What's there to be nervous about? Why do you guys look so edgy?" He asked casually, putting on his gear. If they went out looking like this they would make him look bad.
His teammates looked at him incredulously.
"You—"
"You're asking us that after getting us into all this?"
They were all speechless. Axel was the main reason they were all nervous.
He was the one who won all the matches with overwhelming scores, causing them to have a match against another school.
He is the one who displayed overwhelming skills, causing the schools to change the format to [Unrestricted] so that Mahoutokoro would stand a chance against them.
Then he pissed off more than half the students of Mahoutokoro, causing them to put together their most offensive team for the match.
And, he is also the reason why such a huge number of audience is going to watch their match.
And now, the guy himself, looking completely unconcerned, had the gall to ask why they were all nervous.
Patricia raised her hand, calming down her teammates who were about to erupt. She just looked at Axel. "How confident are you?" That's all she inquired.
Axel laughed as he took off his tshirt in order to change into his Jersey. His sculpted muscles were revealed, covered with various types of scars. It showed that he had been through far more than they could imagine.
"I just need to think how much I have to hold back," he said, putting out his jersey which read
"Hogwarts"
"7"
"Hunt"
Tension drained from Patricia's shoulders. She trusted him completely. If he said he was confident, then they were winning. She nodded at him. "We'll help you hold back as much as we can."
Patricia turned to look at her teammates. "Alright, you heard him. Leave the points to him. We would just handle the spell casting. We will be Axel's shield. I know I might not have picked up the best Quidditch players, but each of you are a capable witch or wizard! Let's show them that Hogwarts Magic is not inferior to Mahoutokoro's magic!"
"""Yes!"""
With that the whole team was fired up.
....
"WITCHES AND WIZARDS WATCHING FROM ALL AROUND THE WORLD… THE DAY HAS FINALLY ARRIVED! WELCOME… TO THE MOST AWAITED MATCH OF THE YEAR!!!
*CHEEEERSS*
"I am international commentator Lee Jordan, and I have with me, The Captains of English and Japanese Quidditch teams, Travis Davison and Jin Dai, who have graciously accepted our offer to commentate on this match!"
There was another applause for the two captains of the two international teams. The presence of the two players was a testament to the level of attention this match was garnering.
"Thanks, Lee," said Travis. "But I have to say, it is instead our fortune to get the opportunity to spectate this match from here and express our views, right Jin?" Said Travis enthusiastically.
Jin, who had a dignified look and shaved head, nodded seriously. "You are right, Travis san. I need to see him play in person.
"Of course, witches and wizards, the one Jin is referring to is none other than Hogwarts' seeker, Axel Hunt!" Said Lee, drawing another, bigger cheer from the crowd. "Travis, I have to ask, and the viewers want to know, what are your thoughts about Hunt? He is currently being termed as the best seeker in the world. What do you have to say about that?"
Travis chuckled. "Well, let me tell you Lee, the skills are very much real. You have to give credit where it is due. And in my whole professional Quidditch career, I have never seen anyone even remotely close to the boy's level. So, I don't care whether he is actually the best in the world or not. I only have this to say: Axel Hunt, the English team is going to Hunt for you until you join us!"
"OH! So that is what Mr. Davison has to say about Hunt. Axel, you better watch out! You might not be able to retire just yet!"
"What do you guys think the outcome of today's match will be? Who will win?"
"Well, this is where things get interesting," said Travis. "In a normal format, my money would have definitely been on Hunt. But since this is the unrestricted format, that changes things. Hunt is in his second year, so we can't expect much magic from him. And to outfly Mahoutokoro while defending against their magic… the result is unpredictable."
"Axer Hunt can not win. We have powerfur magic," said Jin.
"So, those were the opinions of our two experts. But we can find out the result for ourselves! Let's call out the teams!"
"First, representing Mahoutokoro School of Ninshu and Ninjutsu, under the leadership of captain Asuma Takeshi, Team Mahoutokoro!"
Under intense cheers, Team Mahoutokoro flew out from one corner, looking quite intimidating, which was not surprising since they were all ninjas. They all flew in a formation, with Takeshi in the middle, performing stunts for the audience.
"And now, the home team, representing Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, under the Leadership of Captain Patricia Afonso, Team Slytherin!"
!!!!!
This time, the cheers were deafening. Everyone's eyes were transfixed on the entrance as one by one, the Slytherin players flew out, led by Patricia and performed the tricks they had prepared. Too bad, the applause slowly died down. They couldn't see Axel among the players!
