Come now children, what in the name of Merlin could possibly make you believe I own Harry Potter after dozens of disclaimers at the top of every story I write?

I felt sick to my stomach. We had our match against Ravenclaw today, and it was already November 15th. I knew that soon enough it would be the Christmas holidays and I would be able to go home, but for now, this was the last match of the season.

I pulled my gear on and slipped a pair of lucky socks on my feet. I had never failed to win a match in these socks. Not taking in a word of Sean's pep talk, the team made our way out of the locker room and onto the pitch to tumultuous applause.

Madam Bell gave her usual pre-game speech, about a nice clean game, and blew her whistle. The fifteen people on brooms soared upwards as Aaron Jordan's voice filled the stadium.

"And that's Wood with the Quaffle! Cassandra Wood, Gryffindor third year and sister to the captain! Many people wonder if the team Sean Wood, Captain, has put together is based strongly on friends, but I can assure all of you doubters out there that the Gryffindor Quidditch team is holding strong! And that's still Wood with the Quaffle, who passes it to Potter, back to Wood! Wood drops it, NO! Oh wait! Defensive maneuver there, Wood dropped it on purpose! Weasley in possession, zooming on a Firebolt towards Boot! She throws… and…. It's in! Gryffindor in the lead 10 to 0!"

There was a roar from the crowd in red and gold, and a groan from the blue and bronze supporters. I continued to soar far above the ground, searching for any sign of the Snitch. Swerving this way and that, I was momentarily distracted as a Bludger whizzed pass my face.

"James what the hell?" I screamed as he went flying by, chasing after the Bludger.

"Sorry Lily!" he yelled, knocking it towards the Ravenclaw Chaser Joans. "I wasn't looking!"

"That's obvious," I muttered as he flew the other way where the other Bludger was attempting to send Cassie soaring off her broom.

"And Potter (the Beater that is) doesn't see a Bludger as it heads straight for Potter (the Seeker)! Right pretty girl that Lily is! Look at her hair! And her perfect lips! But watch out all you Lily lovers out there, James and Al don't let her go that easy! It's alright though for all those Lily guys out there, her pretty face is just fine, thanks to that fantastic older brother of hers! PROFESSOR ALRIGHT I'LL TALK ABOUT THE GAME!" I was blushing furiously and waving a hand with only one finger (I think you can guess which…) in the air at Aaron. Professor Longbottom had threatened to take the megaphone away if Aaron didn't broadcast the game and stop talking about my face. "And there goes Joans, who passes it to Weasley (the Ravenclaw boy) who passes it back to Joans, and is headed towards Wood! YES! A spectacular save from Wood! And it's back to Potter…"

The rest of his words were drowned out from my mind as I spotted a tiny flicker of gold a few feet ahead of me. Nobody else took any notice as I zoomed towards it, that is until Aaron shouted it to everybody within a 200-mile radius that I had seen something. But by then I was too close for anybody to do anything.

I stretched my arm out, but it wasn't quite long enough, the tiny ball was still fluttering just beyond reach of my fingers. Taking a deep breath and swallowing my fear, I gently stood on the handle of my broom, earning gasps from the watching crowd below. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Fred, Sean, and James all flying towards me, but I paid them no attention. I flung my arm out just a little farther, and felt my fingers close around the Snitch.

But the match wasn't over. My last swipe had taken me just a little too far. The momentum carried me over, and I tumbled off the broom, falling down, a hundred feet in the air. I heard screams and shouts, but then everything went black. Normally, I would usually think something like: Damn that little habit of fainting due to overwhelming emotions. But in this case, I'm quite thankful for it.

~O-O~

Hours later I opened my eyes to a face swimming in and out of my vision. My body ached all over, and I felt my head pounding. On the table next to my bed lie my thankfully unharmed Firebolt, and all my Quidditch clothes. Glancing down, I saw that I was tucked into pajamas and a curtain drawn around me. James was holding my hand, staring into my eyes, and Al was sitting just beyond him.

"Did I miss dinner?" I muttered sleepily. James let out a soft chuckle upon seeing that I was okay enough to care about food.

"Nah, but you're on bed rest for two weeks," he said. I felt a warm weight on my foot, and was rather surprised to see Athena curled up on top of me. Upon seeing the inquiry on my face, James laughed again. "The cat did her nut when you didn't come back," he said. "Madam Pomfrey finally let her in the Hospital Wing, she was just sitting out there whining before."

I laughed lightly and felt my head get a little bit dizzy again.

"What happened?" I mumbled, slurring slightly on the words.

"Well you just sorta tipped off your broom," Al said. "You know, you went for the Snitch, lost your footing, and we couldn't catch you. Professor McGonagall managed to slow you down just a bit, but you still hit the ground from over 100 feet in the air, and hit the hard ground. Broke your back. And your leg. And your arm. But it's okay!" he cried, as a look of horror had crossed my face. "Madam Pomfrey's got your leg and arm fine, but it takes a little bit longer to fix backs."

At that moment, as I groaned and leaned back farther in the cushions, there was a commotion in the Hospital Wing. I heard the door slam open and a few pairs of feet hurry in.

"Where is she?" a man was yelling. I bit back a grin, this really wasn't funny. Not at all. But it seemed hilarious. "Where's my daughter!"

"Over here Dad!" James called, and a second later the curtains were yanked open and my dad appeared, looking worried, with my mother right behind him.

"Oh Lily!" Mum cried, hurrying over to my side as my dad stood by my bed, smiling upon seeing that there wasn't anything too major.

"It's alright Mum," I said, awkwardly patting her arm. "I'm okay."

"Why would you stand on the broom like that?" she said, looking at my father as if he encouraged me to do it. He laughed at her expression.

"I wanted to catch the Snitch," I stated matter-of-factly.

Dad opened his mouth to say something, but just then Madam Pomfrey hurried over, her face not happy.

"It seems that the damage is more severe than we thought, nothing to worry about though!" she said, upon seeing my parent's horrified faces. "She just happened to entirely splinter the part of her spine she broke, and will need to be in here for three weeks. You'll be out a week before holidays," she added kindly to me.

"Skelegrow?" I cried as she pulled the bottle out of her apron. The witch nodded and poured me a cup.

"Yes, now drink up!" and she hurried over to attend to a student with a bad head cold.

"It's not too bad," Dad said, handing me the glass. I sighed and squeezed his fingers before trying not to spit out the disgusting liquid that seared my throat.

Like it? Hate it? Review? Favorite? Alert? You tell me!