What should have happened:
Ginny watched in horror as Harry hit the ground bleeding profusely from the head wound on his head where the idiot Cormac McLaggen had hit him with the bludger. She wasn't the only furious one. The Gryffindor stands were booing and glaring at the team. While Madam Pomfrey was preparing to take Harry away McGonagall took Ginny aside.
"You are temporary captain." She glared over at the smirking keeper, "Salvage what you can. I give you full authority. You know the rules."
"Yes Professor." Ginny was glaring at the keeper herself.
"Weasley has been named temporary captain, Gryffindor has called a five minute time out to…well they have a five minute time out." She huffed and watched Harry being carried off then she left to her place in the stands.
Ginny knew the rules. With an injury they could substitute a new player. She planned to stretch that rule as much as possible. She would do what she needed to do. They may not win but they wouldn't be humiliated. Then she would extract her revenge.
"Gryffindor has a five minute injury time out." the announcer repeated then added, "Weasley has been moved to captain, we'll have to see if she can fare any better than Potter. Good luck."
"Ok Dean did Seamus do as Harry asked?" Ginny started the changes by rounding on her fellow chaser.
"He did but he isn't very confident." Dean answered, "I know where he's sitting and his broom is in the locker room."
"Great go get him." Ginny turned back to the rest and began to speak but was cut off.
"Are you putting him as seeker?" McLaggen asked, "He stinks. I doubt he could catch a cold up there."
"We need one more player, any suggestions?" Ginny ignored the keeper and tried to spur their memories, "Anyone who can fly and not fall off their broom? I don't even care what position they play."
"That second year Fremont wasn't a horrible chaser." Demelza offered with a light shrug not really knowing what she was wanting.
"Go get him and put him in chaser gear and see if he has a broom. If not send someone to the broom shed and get a school broom." Ginny instructed, "If he tries to refuse tell him too bad we need him to find his Gryffindor courage."
"Weasley what are you doing? We're only allowed seven players now we have eight." McLaggen yelled, "You have no idea what you're doing. McGonagall shouldn't have made you captain; I would have been a much better choice. You are as big of an idiot as Potter. Ignore her I'll tell you what to do."
"Do not speak! You are not a choice at all for anything!" Ginny turned her furious gaze on the keeper and began to yell, "You are grounded go put up your gear. We wouldn't be in this position if it weren't for you! We had a slim chance at winning with Harry still in the air. Now we have a choice to lose or lose terribly. I'm choosing to just lose. With you in the air we would be humiliated worse than we already are. You are the biggest idiot I have ever seen."
"You're throwing away the game." He accused.
"No, that's what you did by knocking out our star seeker." She continued to yell in his face as she began to back him away from the team, "If I see your face again today it will be with a beaters bat being slammed into it over and over! Then I'll be taking out my wand!"
"You and what army?" he sneered.
"The army of Gryffindor quidditch fans!" She growled pointing at the stands, "I'd find a different place to hang out tonight if I were you. You're lucky I still have a game to play or I'd already be hexing you to pieces."
McLaggen stomped away as Seamus and Tyler Fremont arrived. The Gryffindor stand erupted in cheers as McLaggen left the field. They even began to chant either Seamus or Tyler as the two of them joined the team on the field. Seamus grinned a waved before turning back to the team.
"Where's he going?" Seamus asked.
"To hide so Ginny doesn't kill him." Jimmy Peakes chuckled, "I think we'll form a search party after the game to do some of what she promised and a few things she didn't."
"Right, Seamus you're keeping. If you save even one goal you'll have done better than McIdiot. Fremont, you weren't half bad in tryouts so you are going in to replace me as chaser. Just listen to Dean and Demelza." She instructed.
"Are you replacing Harry then?" Tyler asked.
"It's the only chance we have." she sighed, "Just do your best, it's all we can ask for."
The Hufflepuff team watched the substitutes fly up to their positions. They felt so bad for the team they didn't even grumble about the stretched rules. When Ginny flew up as seeker the Gryffindor stand stood and cheered hoping to spur their team into a better game. They were already quite far behind and she was the only hope to get at least close.
Seamus let the first few goals get past without much competition. But as he got more comfortable he was able to start blocking them. The score was already heavily in the Hufflepuffs favor but they began to catch up. Tyler was no different. He wobbled a bit as they restarted the game but he didn't drop the ball when it came his way. His first fast action play was a pass to Demelza that got them a goal.
Ginny caught the snitch bringing the score to two hundred to three hundred and twenty. They had still lost badly but it wasn't the humiliation it would have been had Cormac stayed in as Keeper. The Gryffindor stand cheered at the effort they had made. The team hit the locker room and Ginny called for their attention before they went to the showers.
"Harry will be so proud when he finds out how well we did." She grimaced, "He was sure that someone would knock out McLaggen for his mouth but… Anyway Seamus you did a really good job. If Ron is ever out again I'll make sure you get the spot. With some work you may be able to take his place next year. Tyler, you keep up the work and you'll be on the team soon, most likely year after next but I'm going to suggest we keep you on as a chaser in training."
"Way to go Tyler." Demelza slapped him on the back.
"Thanks." He mumbled with a grin, "It was a lot of fun even if we did lose."
"That's right." Ginny grinned, "It's only a game, but a fun one. Don't be hard on yourselves tonight. Two players with no practice and one with just a little and we still only lost by a hundred and twenty. That was a good effort. Hit the showers. We'll find McLaggen for some target practice then we'll go visit Harry."
Everyone cheered and headed to get cleaned up. Ginny was the last one ready and they all headed out together. They were headed to their dorms to drop off their brooms when they found Cormac in the common room sitting by the fire with a smirk on his face. Most of the Gryffindors were in the room scowling at the idiot but he either didn't notice or ignored them. Ginny was going to put her broom away first but the idiot had to open his mouth.
"Lost to Hufflepuff." He sneered, "How pathetic."
Anyone around the room that wasn't glaring at the older student turned to do so. Ginny slowed and tried to count to ten to calm down before she walked on, but the idiot just had to opened his mouth again.
"I would never have lost to such ahhhhhhhhh." His cry of pain was met with a standing ovation as Ginny hit him with her best curse.
"We were behind by one hundred and fifty when we kicked you out!" She added stinging hexes to the bat bogeys already attacking him, "We only lost by one twenty. We not only kept up with them we gained. You are an idiot. I promise you this is only the beginning!"
"Get'm off." He yelled trying to block the bogeys.
"No." she added a jelly legs curse.
From off to the side someone added the curse for making boils grow on your face and soon everyone had added to the mix. When he finally passed out on the floor in front of the fire no one moved to help him remove any of them. One of the first years snuck over and kicked him in the ribs when they thought no one was looking. Ginny saw and gave him a wink as he slipped back to his friends. She got a big grin in return. With that she headed up to her dorm to drop off her gear. On her way back through the common room she added one more curse that Fred and George had taught her to the lump on the floor. It was only to hurt rude boys it shrunk their boy parts by half and kept them cold. The rest of the team had been waiting and they joined her for the trek to the hospital to visit Harry.
"What was that last curse?" Demelza whispered.
"Fred and George call it the pride crusher." She answered and explained what it did.
The boys in the group cringed as she gave a detailed description of the effects. They arrived in the wing a few minutes later to find Hermione talking to Ron while Harry was still unconscious on the bed next to them. Neither of the two occupants noticed them for a few moments since Harry was on the far side of Ron and they were both looking at their friend.
"How are you feeling?" Ginny called as they approached.
"Fine." He answered, "How did the game go?"
"Didn't Hermione tell you?" she asked looking at the bushy haired girl.
"I left with Harry." She shrugged.
"We lost." Ginny shrugged, "But it wasn't by as much as I feared it would be."
"Did Cormac get his head on straight?" Hermione asked.
"Not hardly." Ginny scoffed, "However I did rearrange it for him."
"What did you do?" Ron asked with a giddy grin.
"I took him out of the game." She explained, "We put Seamus in as keeper and he wasn't bad. We actually gained on them a bit, still lost by one twenty thought."
"You were farther behind when I left." Hermione pointed out.
"No seeker and you only lost by one twenty?" Ron asked.
"I was seeker and Tyler here came in as chaser." Ginny patted the back of the younger boy, "He had several assists and even made a few goals."
"Way to go!" Ron nodded at him, "Good job Seamus, but I'm not giving up my spot."
"I wouldn't dream of trying to take it." He sat on the bed next to Ron's, "Backing you up is as far as I'll go and that's pushing it. I don't know how you got past the nerves, if we hadn't already been so far behind I would have panicked."
"That wasn't as mean as I thought you'd get." Hermione observed, "Kicking him off the team was rather mild."
"That wasn't all she did." Demelza snickered, "Let's just say he should probably be in one of these beds but no one was willing to bring him and he was in no shape to bring himself."
"I wish I could see it." Ron grinned with a faraway look in his eyes.
"Don't worry. Collen was taking pictures all through it." Ginny grinned, "I'm sure we could persuade him to share some of them with you."
"I'll frame them and hang them on my wall." Ron laughed, "Then we can throw spells and darts at them for a new game."
"Ten points for his nose." Seamus chuckled.
"Twenty points for the eyes." Dean added.
"No points for the mouth but we'll cheer loud for you." Ginny added with a grin.
"That is cruel." Hermione was trying not to laugh.
"Fifty points if you can hit the spot on his forehead that hides his brain." Demelza snickered, "It so small it's the hardest spot to find."
Tyler was laughing and trying to keep the noise down by covering his mouth. The rest weren't trying in the least and therefore it wasn't long before the group was chased out of the hospital wing. When they returned to the common room McLaggen was still in the same spot. Ginny sent several more stinging hexes and an itching curse as she walked past.
Later that evening McGonagall entered the common room, "Just letting you Harry is… what is that?"
"Is Harry ok?" Ginny asked.
"Yes he's awake." She was still staring in confusion first at the body on the floor and then around the room, "This isn't… McLaggen… is it?"
"Don't know." Ginny shrugged, "Last time I walked through it was just sitting there."
"I see." She tried to hide a grin, "I better take him to the hospital."
"If you must." Ginny followed McGonagall to the Hospital hoping to visit with Harry.
"What is that?" Harry asked as the two of them arrived in front of the blob.
"McLaggen." Ginny shrugged, "He ran into a problem of some sort."
"I'd say." Harry watch as McGonagall placed him on a bed, "Looks similar to Malfoy after the DA was done with him."
"Pretty much." Ginny grinned as Pomfrey came out and began to work on removing the curses, "Even Hermione got a hit or two in."
"Good." Harry nodded.
"How's your head?" Ginny turned back to him.
"Cracked skull." He shrugged, "Nothing too difficult for Madam Pomfrey to fix but I have to stay overnight."
"At least you have Ron for company." She nodded at her brother who was nearly giggling as he watched the curses coming off.
"How many are yours?" Harry asked quietly.
"Fifteen or twenty." She shrugged, "I'll leave a few more stinging and itching curses as I leave.