If he were honest, the thoughts flooding through his head were no more comprehensible than Elsie’s anxious explanation. He didn’t know what had happened - didn’t want to think what could have - but some of the things people had been shrieking as he’d passed them had been...
“I know,” was all he managed at first, sincerely hoping the more tightly he held her, the sooner her shaking would stop. “Me too,” he mumbled at the question of not playing. The disaster of the match he’d played in was one thing to make him glad for his Ministry career, but this. Merlin. If he had been the one to hit the bludger - well, he wasn’t sure he would ever get on a broom again, let alone pick up a bat. He only wished he had been here, sitting in the box beside her all along. It had been stupid to even make her come.
“They’ll be fine, I think I saw your brother on the way down,” Tyb assured her, swallowing in some attempt to calm himself down, not let the anxiety take hold of them both. This was madness. “I’ll apparate us out,” he breathed, realising her family might be worried for her, but that neither of them would know where to find them, and that Elsie wasn’t nearly calm enough to apparate alone. He had to exhale again as he held onto her, trying to find a moment long enough to picture somewhere else without visions of the stands and the crowds and the bludger bursting into mind. No one needed to get splinched now.
“Ready?” Tybalt warned her, holding tight and shutting his eyes as they disapparated out. Out of the stands had been the priority: maybe he should have aimed for just beyond the stadium. He had meant to take them back to his room in Bartonburg, not far for her to get home but also just somewhere comfortable, somewhere known. Away from the the panic and the people.
When he opened his eyes and loosened his grasp around her ever so slightly, it was to the shore of the Black Lake. They had never really spent time together on this side of it - somewhere across it was the spot in the grounds of Hogwarts where they had - but it was deserted here, the air was fresh, and the water was spectacularly calm today, so maybe it had been a good instinct after all.
“I know,” was all he managed at first, sincerely hoping the more tightly he held her, the sooner her shaking would stop. “Me too,” he mumbled at the question of not playing. The disaster of the match he’d played in was one thing to make him glad for his Ministry career, but this. Merlin. If he had been the one to hit the bludger - well, he wasn’t sure he would ever get on a broom again, let alone pick up a bat. He only wished he had been here, sitting in the box beside her all along. It had been stupid to even make her come.
“They’ll be fine, I think I saw your brother on the way down,” Tyb assured her, swallowing in some attempt to calm himself down, not let the anxiety take hold of them both. This was madness. “I’ll apparate us out,” he breathed, realising her family might be worried for her, but that neither of them would know where to find them, and that Elsie wasn’t nearly calm enough to apparate alone. He had to exhale again as he held onto her, trying to find a moment long enough to picture somewhere else without visions of the stands and the crowds and the bludger bursting into mind. No one needed to get splinched now.
“Ready?” Tybalt warned her, holding tight and shutting his eyes as they disapparated out. Out of the stands had been the priority: maybe he should have aimed for just beyond the stadium. He had meant to take them back to his room in Bartonburg, not far for her to get home but also just somewhere comfortable, somewhere known. Away from the the panic and the people.
When he opened his eyes and loosened his grasp around her ever so slightly, it was to the shore of the Black Lake. They had never really spent time together on this side of it - somewhere across it was the spot in the grounds of Hogwarts where they had - but it was deserted here, the air was fresh, and the water was spectacularly calm today, so maybe it had been a good instinct after all.
