Quidditch Practice

By corset-rebellion-follower

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter

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Hermione sat in the stands around the Quidditch pitch, watching Harry and the Gryffindor team practice. She hated flying, so she preferred to watch from the safety of the ground. Ron was on a date with Lavender, so she had no choice, unless she wanted to hang out with Parvarti Patil, which today she particularly did not. So she settled for watching Harry practice and working on her Potions homework.

"Hey, Hermione!" She looked up from the parchment she was writing on. Fred and George were floating a few feet away from her. "Why don't you grab a broom and come join us?" Fred offered. "You may be the world's greatest Quidditch player and not even know," George yelled.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "No thanks. I'd rather keep my feet on the ground," she yelled back. "Why are you so against flying?" George asked. "It's probably because she can't bring her books and homework up with her," Fred teased. Harry flew over to them.

"Wood's getting pretty mad because both beaters are letting the bludgers go right past them," he warned. Both the twins shrugged and flew back to the practice. Harry flew next to Hermione. "You shouldn't listen to them. They're just teasing." "I know. You don't have to worry about me," she insisted, scribbling something down on her homework. Harry smiled, then flew to where Wood was lecturing the twins on staying focused.

Hermione paused for a minute. Why do I hate flying so much? She shook her head and turned back to her homework. She tried hard to concentrate on that instead of Fred and George's remarks. But it was getting harder and harder every second. Why did the twins always seem to get to me? She looked at where Fred and George were flying. They were laughing at something. Probably me. I wish they wouldn't pick on me so much. They probably think that Ron and I like each other. Even though he and Lavender are dating. She giggled a little at the thought.

A rush of wind hit her in the face. She looked up. Harry was chasing after the snitch, going as fast as his broom would take him, which was very fast. He closed his hand into a fist. She grinned. He got it! Harry flew back down to her. "Look what I have." He opened his hand to reveal the golden snitch. She smiled. "Good job. But I've seen you catch the snitch a million times at games," she reminded him. "I know. But this is the first time you've come to watch a practice," he argued.

Wood flew over to them. "Great job, Harry." Harry nodded. "How come Harry gets to talk to Hermione and we don't?" George asked. "Because Harry's actually paying attention and practicing while you two are goofing off," Wood yelled. Once Wood looked away from them, Fred made a face at him.

Hermione and Harry couldn't help but giggle. As soon as everyone went back to practicing, Harry turned to Hermione. "You want to ride once around the pitch? I'm sure Wood wouldn't mind if I took a break," he offered. "Um, no thanks, I really don't like flying," she insisted. But Harry pulled her on his broom anyway. She gripped tightly him around the middle, not wanting to fall to her death. "Just don't look down, you'll be fine," he reassured.

She looked at the back of Harry's scarlet Quidditch robes instead, pressing her face into the soft fabric as she gripped him. They had a familiar, comforting smell. She relaxed her grip a little. Another rush of wind hit her as Harry rocketed forward. After a while, she pulled her face away from his robes and looked down. They were high above the Quidditch pitch. She couldn't see any of the rest of the team. But she did see someone else. Draco Malfoy was coming up at them, heading straight for her.

"Harry, look out!" Harry turned his head just as Malfoy knocked Hermione off the broom. "Oh, I didn't see you there, Potter. Sorry about your girlfriend," Malfoy sneered. Harry looked down. Hermione was falling at a fast speed toward the ground, screaming.

He took off for her. Just as she came back into view of everyone else, Harry flew under her and caught her in his arms. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck until they landed. The rest of the team landed and ran over to them.

"Are you two alright?" Fred asked, out of breath. "How did Hermione fall off your broom?" Wood asked. Harry put Hermione down and she let go of him. "It was… it was Malfoy. He pushed her off the broom," Harry answered, trying to catch his breath. Wood looked up. Malfoy was still floating up there, laughing his head off. He shook his head. "That boy needs a serious attitude adjustment. Not to mention a few detentions," he said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

At that moment, Professor McGonagall rushed over to them. "Is everyone ok? I just saw Miss Granger take that fall." "We're fine, Professor. We're not the only ones, either," Harry said, looking up at Malfoy. McGonagall's face turned bright red from anger.

"Mr. Malfoy! Get down here this INSTANT!" she yelled.

Malfoy landed and come over to them. "Yes, Professor?" he asked innocently. "Did I just see you push Miss Granger off Mr. Potter's broom?" she asked angrily. Malfoy looked at his shoes. "Well, um, I…" Malfoy didn't get to finish his sentence. Professor McGonagall cut him off.

"Fifty points from Syltherin. And you will be serving detention with me for the next month." She walked off the pitch. Malfoy walked up to Harry. "You got lucky this time, Potter. But you and your girlfriend better watch yourselves." He stormed away. "I think that's enough practice for today, considering what happened," Wood declared.

"Ending practice early? Wood's never done that before. Hermione, can you fall off a broom every practice?" Fred joked. She shot him a dirty look. Everyone headed back to the dorms, except for Hermione. She caught Harry's arm as he went by.

"Thanks for catching me, Harry. I really don't like flying, and Malfoy pushing me off the broom didn't help me like it any better. But when I was flying with you, I felt a lot safer on a broom than I ever have. So thank you."

He smiled at her. "I would never let you fall. The last thing I want is for you to end up in the hospital wing," he said quietly. She smiled back and kissed his cheek. His cheeks turned a bright pink. He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. She sighed happily and wrapped her arms around his neck. They both broke off, staring at each other with wide eyes.

"Want to fly around the pitch one more time?" Harry asked. Hermione paused for a second. "Why not? I've already nearly died today. Once more couldn't hurt." Harry smiled and grabbed her hand.

They mounted the broom and took off toward the skies.

The End

A/N: Just so everyone knows, this takes place in their second year because that was the first year Malfoy was seeker for the Slytherin Quidditch team. Holla!