Harry Potter lay wide-awake, thoughts churning over and over in his restless mind, the hospital wing growing darker with every second.
Why hadn't he been able to catch the snitch?? So many times it had fluttered in his direction. He knew he had had more then one opportunity where he could have easily reached forwards and grabbed it. His Firebolt was definitely the broom of choice - the snitch may be fast but he could easily outstrip it.
Another thing his Firebolt could easily outstrip was Cho Chang's Comet Two Sixty. That ancient broom was nothing compared to his own, Cho should have been no competition for him, yet it was matches against her he feared the most, even more then matches against Malfoy.
Harry turned his head to the side. Cho was lying in the bed next to his.
Both of them had come tumbling of their brooms in the last Gryffindor VS Ravenclaw Quidditch match, and neither of them had managed to catch the snitch.
As Harry looked at her lying silently next to him, the thought he had been trying to ignore for hours drifted back into his mind.
"She's the reason you couldn't catch the snitch."
As much as Harry tried to deny it, he knew it was true. He could have easily won that match if he had wanted to, but the picture of himself winning wasn't what he kept imagining - it was the picture of Cho loosing.
Seeing a disappointed Cho flying sadly back to the ground, seeing her teammates throwing angry looks at her, wasn't what Harry wanted to see.
Even worse, what if he beat her, and she resented him for it?
"That's stupid," Harry told himself. "You beat her before in third year remember? And she never thought twice about it. And what about Cedric? He had versed her in the Ravenclaw/Hufflepuff matches, and she didn't let that get in the way of her relationship with him"
Harry's stomach gave an uneasy lurch - "her relationship with him."
Harry couldn't forget the way they walked hand in hand up the corridor with each other, the way they danced so gracefully at the Yule Ball, but that was before……
Maybe that was another reason he had failed to catch the snitch. Maybe Cedric was still in the back of his mind. Maybe he felt guilty for liking Cho when Cedric's death had only just passed.
Harry sat up and put on his glasses. Cho looked so beautiful lying there beside him, the moonlight from an open window dancing across her face.
"Are you awake?" he said suddenly.
Cho stirred and mumbled quietly under her breath. Harry thought it best to just leave her alone, but Cho was still mumbling and moving around, and before Harry could stop her, she had rolled a little too far to the right and toppled straight of her bed, onto the hospital wings cold hard floor.
"Ouch!" she moaned, clutching her hand to the part of her forehead that had collided with the ground.
Harry jumped out of his bed to help her.
"Are you OK?" he asked, helping her back onto her bed.
"What…oh…yeah……hey!" Cho suddenly realised who has helping her. "Harry! I forgot you were in here too!"
Cho had a few bruises on her arm and some particularly nasty scratches on her elbow and above her left eye, souvenirs of the fall from her broom.
Harry had received a cut down his left arm and a bruise around his right eye. Luckily both of them were flying quite low to the ground when they had collided into each other and neither had any serious injuries. Madam Pomfrey, however, still found reason to keep them both in the hospital wing overnight.
As they both sat down, Cho reached up and brushed away the hair that was covering Harry's bruised eye. His stomach gave another one of its funny jolts as her skin brushed against his.
"Sorry about that," she said.
"Don't worry," said Harry "It was as much my fault, and besides, it looks like you came out of it the worst." He looked at the scratches on her arm.
"They're nothing," said Cho smiling.
Why hadn't he been able to catch the snitch?? So many times it had fluttered in his direction. He knew he had had more then one opportunity where he could have easily reached forwards and grabbed it. His Firebolt was definitely the broom of choice - the snitch may be fast but he could easily outstrip it.
Another thing his Firebolt could easily outstrip was Cho Chang's Comet Two Sixty. That ancient broom was nothing compared to his own, Cho should have been no competition for him, yet it was matches against her he feared the most, even more then matches against Malfoy.
Harry turned his head to the side. Cho was lying in the bed next to his.
Both of them had come tumbling of their brooms in the last Gryffindor VS Ravenclaw Quidditch match, and neither of them had managed to catch the snitch.
As Harry looked at her lying silently next to him, the thought he had been trying to ignore for hours drifted back into his mind.
"She's the reason you couldn't catch the snitch."
As much as Harry tried to deny it, he knew it was true. He could have easily won that match if he had wanted to, but the picture of himself winning wasn't what he kept imagining - it was the picture of Cho loosing.
Seeing a disappointed Cho flying sadly back to the ground, seeing her teammates throwing angry looks at her, wasn't what Harry wanted to see.
Even worse, what if he beat her, and she resented him for it?
"That's stupid," Harry told himself. "You beat her before in third year remember? And she never thought twice about it. And what about Cedric? He had versed her in the Ravenclaw/Hufflepuff matches, and she didn't let that get in the way of her relationship with him"
Harry's stomach gave an uneasy lurch - "her relationship with him."
Harry couldn't forget the way they walked hand in hand up the corridor with each other, the way they danced so gracefully at the Yule Ball, but that was before……
Maybe that was another reason he had failed to catch the snitch. Maybe Cedric was still in the back of his mind. Maybe he felt guilty for liking Cho when Cedric's death had only just passed.
Harry sat up and put on his glasses. Cho looked so beautiful lying there beside him, the moonlight from an open window dancing across her face.
"Are you awake?" he said suddenly.
Cho stirred and mumbled quietly under her breath. Harry thought it best to just leave her alone, but Cho was still mumbling and moving around, and before Harry could stop her, she had rolled a little too far to the right and toppled straight of her bed, onto the hospital wings cold hard floor.
"Ouch!" she moaned, clutching her hand to the part of her forehead that had collided with the ground.
Harry jumped out of his bed to help her.
"Are you OK?" he asked, helping her back onto her bed.
"What…oh…yeah……hey!" Cho suddenly realised who has helping her. "Harry! I forgot you were in here too!"
Cho had a few bruises on her arm and some particularly nasty scratches on her elbow and above her left eye, souvenirs of the fall from her broom.
Harry had received a cut down his left arm and a bruise around his right eye. Luckily both of them were flying quite low to the ground when they had collided into each other and neither had any serious injuries. Madam Pomfrey, however, still found reason to keep them both in the hospital wing overnight.
As they both sat down, Cho reached up and brushed away the hair that was covering Harry's bruised eye. His stomach gave another one of its funny jolts as her skin brushed against his.
"Sorry about that," she said.
"Don't worry," said Harry "It was as much my fault, and besides, it looks like you came out of it the worst." He looked at the scratches on her arm.
"They're nothing," said Cho smiling.