Disclaimer: JK Rowling and Warner Bros. are the owners of all things Harry Potter. I just bring them out to play for my own amusement.

Everybody in Gryffindor Tower is up bright and early on the day of the match. Katie is bustling about the dormitory looking for her gear while the rest of us paint our faces and bring out pompoms and noise makers. I wear the jersey Fred sent me for Christmas, earning quite a few whistles and catcalls when I walk into the common room and Fred puts an arm around my shoulders.

"I'm never going to forgive you for this," I smile as Collin Creevey takes a picture of us.

"Yes you are."

"Hey, Collin, can you take a picture with mine?" I ask, holding out the camera. After the first picture, the team decides that they all want a picture with me, and I'm left crushed between the Weasley twins while Collin takes a dozen pictures with his own camera.

The entire school seems hyped up about the match, including the teachers. This match decides who plays against Slytherin for the Cup, as my friends have been kind enough to remind me every day since the term started.

At ten thirty, the teams get up and head toward the locker rooms. Shortly after, the entirety of Gryffindor House gets up and starts to walk out toward the grounds in a sea of red and gold. With all my friends already out by the pitch, I'm left to follow the crowd. As I walk through the front doors, somebody knocks into me.

"Oh, sorry," says Ginny Weasley.

"It's alright," I smile. She looks so much like Fred it's uncanny, "Everybody seems excited, don't they?"

"They sure do. I wish I was on the team," she answers, looking wistfully at the pitch. I look around us. She doesn't seem to be walking with anybody.

"Are you going alone?" I ask. She nods, looking at the floor, "Well, I am, too. Why don't we go together?"

"Alright," she smiles shyly. We walk a few yards more and the crowd starts to disperse as the ground becomes more open, "Can I ask you a question?"

I bite my lip. What's the worst thing she could ask? "Go ahead."

"Are you dating my brother?" she goes slightly red in the face and lowers her head to hide in her hair.

"What?" I laugh, "Me and Fred? Oh, Merlin, no! I mean, he's absolutely brilliant but we're just friends. Best friends."

"Oh," she says, looking disappointed, "I just thought…since he got you that shirt."

"Oh, yeah," I smile, "Well, you know how your brothers are. They make a joke out of everything and I was the punch line for this one."

"Yeah," she smiles, "You know, it's a shame you're not."

"Not what?"

"Dating," she says like it's incredibly obvious. I guess it is, "I mean, you're really nice, and it looks like you're the only one who can tell him what to do. Or make him take things seriously."

"He takes you seriously," I point out, remembering last year.

"But that's different," she says, "I just thought it would be nice, is all."

"Well, I'll take your opinion into consideration if I ever fall in love with him," I joke and she giggles a bit, "Come on. Let's try to get good seats."

We take the hills at a bit of a jog, and by the time we arrive at the Quidditch Pitch there are only a few Gryffindors taking up the front seats. There are two empty ones to the right. A perfect position.

"Come on, Ginny," I take her hand to lead her through the crowd as fast as we can to the two front seats and manage to beat a pair of sixth years to it when they get distracted by a friend.

The Ravenclaw team comes out with Davies in the lead, and Chang following right behind him. I pull up my binoculars and zoom in on her broom. A Comet Two Sixty.

"I don't care how good a flyer Chang is. She doesn't stand a chance against Harry," I say to Ginny.

"That's Cho Chang?" Ginny says, squinting until I hand her the binoculars, "She's pretty."

"Don't let that fool you, Gin. There's a whole lot of ugly hidden behind all those beauty products," I scowl. Ginny stares at me with a slightly frighten expression before shaking her head and turning back to the binoculars, "Do me a favor and look at the commentator's box, won't you, Ginny? Lee's supposed to give me thumbs up when the Gryffindor team is coming."

She turns the binoculars up and to the left. I pull out my wand and pull out the contents of my pockets: more than two dozen fireworks that I've been working on since Christmas.

"What are those?" asks Ginny.

"Lizzie's Loopy Lighters!" I proclaim, "The name is a work in progress. I've been working on them for two months and I think they're ready to make their debut. Check on Lee for me, won't you?"

She points the binoculars at Lee. By now the cheers for the Ravenclaw team have died down, and everybody is waiting for Wood to bring out his team.

"Now!"

"And now, the Gryffindor team!"

The doors open and they walk out to tremendous applause.

"As Captain and Keeper: Oliver Wood!" I light the first firework with my wand and toss it up with my hand. It's just a small red spark that shoots up and then fizzles out. I continue doing the same with each name, alternating between red and gold, until… "Playing Seeker on a brand new Firebolt: HARRY POTTER!"

The crowd erupts in applause and yells and sounds from noisemakers, but it's all drowned out by the next firework that I set off with my wand. It shoots off with a loud lion roar, heading straight above the heads of the players and showering the team in stars with a tremendous BOOM.

"Brilliant!" Ginny yells over the crowd, whose excitement has been heightened even more by the fireworks.

The match goes on rather long, with my fireworks going off during the end of one of Pavarti Patil's cheers and directly after every Gryffindor goal. Chang spends the game trailing Harry and cutting across him. I take a couple of pictures of the team in action and cheer along with my classmates.

"Knock her off her broom, dammit!" I yell when he lets the Snitch go in order to not crash into her. He goes into a dive, feigning that he's seen the Snitch. Then, he seems to actually see it, because he pulls out of the dive and heads for the Ravenclaw side.

"What's that?" somebody yells from behind me. I turn toward the Gryffindor side of the field and spot three hooded figures.

"Dementors!" Ginny yells.

I expect myself to lose my balance or feel dizzy, but don't. I grab the binoculars from Ginny and look closer, "No! Look, they have feet!"

Harry seems to have taken a quick look behind him and seen them, but he doesn't stop. Instead, he pulls out his wand and casts something silver-white out of it. It's mostly shapeless, but for a second I think I see a pair of antlers protruding from it. The people in the Dementor costumes topple over when it runs into them. At the same time, Harry reaches out his hand, Madame Hooch blows the whistle, and I light and toss up all my remaining fireworks over deafening cheers.

"He got it!" Ginny yells and hugs me.

Romilda Vane grabs my arm for a can-can line, Lavender asks me for a firework, and Dean Thomas grabs my hand to spin me. The entire sky lights up in red and gold stars. I set off the final firework with a great BANG as it explodes into a great gold lion head fifty feet in the air.

Ginny walks back to the castle with the crowd of screaming Gryffindors, and I stay behind to wait for my friends. Wood and Harry walk out together, their euphoria so strong that they don't even notice me. Alicia and Katie walk out behind them, babbling something about preparing the common room for the party, and sprint off. Angelina, George, and Fred are the last to exit the common room.

"We did it! We did it! We're in second place!" Angelina hugs me and jumps up and down.

"Congratulations," I detangle myself from her, "Wood's madness paid off after all."

"Always knew it would," says George.

"We just like messing with him," Fred finishes.

"Now, what's this about a party?"

"Just a small celebration of our victory," says George, "Angelina and I are heading to the kitchens now."

"Lizzie, can you take care of the music?" Angelina asks.

"Sure."

"Excellent. See you two in a bit." With that, they walk off toward the castle.

I turn toward Fred and smile, "You played well."

"Well? Please. My playing was superb," he blows on his fingernails.

"No, Harry's playing was superb," I say just to spite him, "Did you see how fast the broom was?"

"The broom," he says, taking a step forward, "The broom was excellent but Harry played the same as always. Besides, it's not his name I see on your shirt."

"There was a mistake at the shop," I say simply, matching his step and drawing closer.

"Well, next time why don't you ask Harry to give you a jersey for Christmas?" he steps forward again.

"Maybe I will."

I take the last step, and suddenly I'm aware of our proximity. His nose is about two inches from mine. I can feel his body warmth radiating in the harsh cold. If he were to tilt his head down just a bit…sort of like he's doing now…and I could tilt my head…and…

"Ahem."

I take a huge step back instantly and feel my face burn bright red.

"It would appear that this stunt of your Slytherin classmates has caused me to miss the rest of the team," says Dumbledore, "Mr. Weasley, do send them my congratulations once you get up to the common room. And Miss Black, may I say that your firework display was quite impressive. I cannot wait to see what you have in mind for the last match."

"Er…thank you, sir," I kick the ground awkwardly and pull on my ponytail.

"I will return to the castle now, as I am sure that you are both eager to celebrate," he pauses and looks over his glasses with that piercing gaze that could kill weaker wizards, "with your classmates."

"We, er, we were just heading there, sir," says Fred.

"Of course," says Dumbledore with a subtle wink. We stare at him as he walks away, too dumbstruck to say anything.

"What's that?" Fred asks suddenly, looking toward the trees. I turn around to peer at them.

"What's what?"

"I thought I saw something. A pair of eyes." He says, then shakes his head, "My mind must be playing tricks on me. Come on. Let's party!"

"Hey, Lizzie, those fireworks were amazing!"

"Thanks," I smile and keep walking with the records in my hands.

"That was brilliant, Lizzie!"

"Thank you!"

I change the record on the old record player that we managed to sneak up from an empty Charms classroom and turn it up. A few girls and some of the braver boys have gone to dance in the center of the room. I find a seat on the window sill and sit down to people watch.

"May I have this dance?" I look up to find Cormac McLaggen staring down his nose at me like I'm a piece of meat.

Lucky for me, the Portrait Hole opens to allow my two best friends in and I quickly answer, "I have to go help Fred!"

I get up and almost run to my friends' sides. I realize leaving McLaggen standing there was rather rude, but he's always rude to everyone. Not to mention he's creepy.

"McLaggen giving you trouble?" Fred scowls in the boy's direction as George tosses sweets at everybody.

"Nothing I can't handle," I answer smoothly, "He just wanted to dance."

"No, he wanted to you say yes to a dance so that he could do a few other things," Fred turns toward me, blocking me from Cormac's sight and taking a step closer.

"What are you doing?" I ask as he tucks a strand of lose hair behind my ponytail.

"Keeping him off your tail," Fred says simply.

I huff in frustration, "I don't need protecting from a teenage boy, Fred."

I slip away from Fred and go to sit in front of Hermione's book fort.

"Why are boys such idiots?" I huff, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I don't know," Hermione answers distractedly from behind her book.

The party goes well into the afternoon and night, by which time Fred and I have made up, and he's even gone as far to kissing my cheek in front of everyone and making a show of singing a muggle song called "You Are My Sunshine" while standing on the coffee table. At around one in the morning, Professor McGonagall walks into the common room in her night gown insisting that we all go up to bed.

"Honestly, we haven't even won the Cup yet! Off to bed, all of you!"

I walk upstairs so exhausted that I can barely get my pajamas on before falling into bed without a single drop of Dreamless Sleep Potion.

My dreams are fuzzy that night, but there are no nightmares. A boy with red hair walks towards me, a large golden trophy in his hands. He smiles, and I walk closer until we're close enough to touch. His face tilts downward, he licks his lips, and…

"AAAAAAGH!"

I wake groggily as the scream dies down. The others seem to have woken up as well, and are looking about in confusion.

"What was that?" Katie asks.

"Maybe one of the boys had a nightmare," says Romilda.

The sound of doors opening and people walking down the staircase in a hurry reaches us.

"Should we get up?" I ask, not sure what we're supposed to do.

Voices start to drift upward, and the rest of the girls nod and get up, pulling on their dressing gowns as they go. At least half the students are back in the common room, all dressed in their sleeping clothes. Professor McGonagall is also back, and is currently rounding on Percy, who has pinned his Head Boy badge onto his own pajamas.

"Percy, I expected better of you!"

I spot Ginny near the staircase and go stand next to her while Percy tries to defend himself, "What's going on, Ginny?"

Ron answers my questions before Ginny even opens her mouth, "IT WASN'T A NIGHTMARE! I WOKE UP, AND SIRIUS BLACK WAS STANDING OVER ME WITH A KNIFE!"

I become suddenly aware of how still the common room is. A couple dozen heads turn my way and scowl, while others try too hard not to look at me. Ron insists that Professor McGonagall ask Sir Cadagon, and everybody goes extremely quiet to listen.

"But—but the password!"

"He had 'em. Had the whole week's, my lady. Read 'em off a little piece of paper."

I hold my breath as even more suspicious faces turn to look at me. What was it I said last time? Oh yeah, I said I would have given him the password if I wanted to help him in. Fred and George suddenly appear on either side of me, their hands on my shoulders. I feel pathetic for needing body guards, but right now their hands are the only things keeping me standing. The angry stares last only a minute, before Neville Longbottom raises his hand in admittance to having written the passwords down.

Nobody goes back to bed that night. Everybody who was still in bed has gotten up and come down to wait for news of the search. I've stolen Hermione's study corner to hide behind the piles of books and haven't spoken or looked at anyone in hours. I would love to run upstairs and scream into my pillow, but if I went off alone I'd probably be accused of helping him escape from my dormitory. At dawn we're told that the entire castle has been searched, but Sirius Black has escaped again.

A few people go back to bed, but I can't even seem to move. Katie and Ginny have to work together to get me upstairs, even lifting my feet for me at some point. I haven't spoken a single word. I'm vaguely aware of my entire body shaking uncontrollably. My teeth even start to chatter on the last few steps. Despite my shaking, I feel completely numb to the core.

I slip into the bathroom for a long shower. If the water is hot or cold, I can't really tell. I just let myself stand there while it runs down my skin, wishing that it could wash away the events of last night like the specks of glitter that are still in my hair from the victory party. After forty minutes I step out in my underwear and bathrobe, looking for something to change into. It takes me twenty minutes to choose something, and I don't even know what I throw on in the end. Katie asks me something at some point, but I don't answer. I don't speak. I barely even move.

I don't dry my hair or put on any make-up. I walk downstairs without saying a word. In the common room, some people watch me though narrowed eyes, while others look at me with pity. Harry doesn't even look at me. I walk through the Portrait Hole with nowhere to go. I have no appetite for breakfast, so I let my feet drag me wherever they want.

I run into a few students, who move as far away from me as possible, until I finally stop walking and decide I ought to figure out where I am. Surprisingly, I know exactly where I am. I'm at the entrance to Uncle Remus' office. I look around and find the corridor to be completely empty. If my feet and subconscious brought me here, I might as well go inside. I walk up and knock twice, wondering what I'm supposed to say.

I don't get a chance to say anything, because the second my uncle appears at the door, I'm shaken by a wave of sobs. Moony wraps an arm around my shoulders to guide me in, and the tears start to stream so heavily from my eyes that I can barely see. I let him guide me into his quarters and sit me on the couch.

"I don't…"

"Just cry, Rosie," he whispers, taking me in his arms like a child, "Just cry."

Everything that I've held in, everything that I've felt has come tumbling down and decided to escape by way of tears.

The tears get heavier and my sobs get louder, until I'm screaming into my uncle's shirt.

I hear him call my name distantly…I'm vaguely aware of his shaking me. But all I do is cry, and scream louder, and I'm fairly certain that I'm kicking, too…I'm kicking like a three year old having a tantrum.

I can no longer control any of my actions…I hear my own screams from afar, as if they're coming out of some other place. They sound like a strange wounded animal, or something beyond human.

A biting cold comes over me…I can no longer hear anything but screams that are either coming from my mouth or howling in my head…I'm no longer sure.

I can't see…I can't hear…I vaguely feel myself fall to the floor. Something bright and green flashes before my vision, and the screams get louder.

And then everything goes dark.

Well that certainly took a turn for the worst quite fast. I hope I did Lizzie's breaking point justice. It's hard to write somebody in first person having a full on breakdown.