*Alrighty, so off the back of the Cannons game, I figured I'd treat you all to a return to the Dragons' European exploits! Once again, you've all been fantastic and I can't thank you enough for your continued support! I don't own Harry Potter!*
Harry woke up in the morning, buzzing from the moment his eyes opened. Game day had that effect on him. As he went through his morning preparations, he had that extra spring in his step.
"Master Harry is well this morning?" Kreacher asked as Harry sat down at the table, the house elf setting down a plate of Harry's usual game day breakfast.
"I am fantastic today, Kreacher!" Harry enthused. "Thank you so much for asking!"
Harry dug into his meal after that, polishing off the plate in record time.
"That was simply exquisite, Kreacher," Harry said, patting Kreacher on the side as he walked over to the sink with his dishes.
Kreacher made an indignant sound.
"Leave the dishes, Master Harry!" he shouted. "Kreacher can do them!"
"It's fine, Kreacher. I can do a few dishes. You can have the day off," Harry said.
Kreacher gaped.
"D-Day off?" Kreacher stammered incredulously.
"Yeah!"
"But, what'll Kreacher do?"
"I dunno, but here's a few Galleons!" Harry said, handing Kreacher a few golden coins. "Go buy yourself something nice!"
Kreacher let out an incomprehensible cry of unbridled joy as he jumped. He briefly wrapped his arms around Harry's leg in a quick hug before Disapparating.
Harry had a chuckle as he finished up the dishes before gathering what he needed and Apparating to Everlast Stadium. He walked into the dressing room and beheld his teammates all in various stages of preparation.
They all greeted him before he sat down at his cubicle. He got a quick kiss from Katie, who'd just walked in and passed by him to go to the washroom to change.
As he changed and was in the process of putting on his pads, he saw Ron looking at the charm for a necklace he had on. Harry could swear it looked like an otter.
"What's that?" Harry asked, causing Ron to jump and hurriedly stuff the necklace into his shirt.
Ron gave Harry a bewildered look and Harry returned a look that read I saw what you had there. Ron's shoulders slumped in defeat.
"It's this necklace that Hermione gave me this morning, as a good luck token," Ron explained.
"So you two are back together again?" Harry asked, a smile adorning his face.
Ron blushed at that, yet still smiled as he nodded.
"When did this happen?" Harry egged him on.
"Erm, day after the Cannons game. I woke up all hungover and she took care of me. We sort of talked it over and decided to get back together," Ron replied, a goofy expression overcoming him as he reminisced.
"Bell! You owe me ten sickles!" Harry called out.
"DAMMIT!" they heard Katie curse.
"Wait, you two bet on this?" Ron asked incredulously.
"We bet each other how long it would take for you two to get back together after we left. Katie bet it'd happen that night, I said the day after."
"And what if we didn't get back together?" Ron challenged.
Harry simply gave Ron a look that indicated the stupidity of the question.
"Oh, right," Ron laughed.
Katie walked back over to her cubicle beside Harry, reaching into her purse and grabbing a few sickles, which she counted out before handing them to Harry.
"Thank you kindly, dear," Harry said, making to kiss Katie on the cheek, but she squirmed away.
"Piss off, Potter," she replied in a tone that indicated she wasn't actually mad at Harry.
It was at that moment that Simon walked into the room.
The players all cheered.
"Thank you, thank you," the manager said, bowing a few times. "Right, so we're up against Die Hippogreifen. If you thought the Mandragoras were tough, this lot will put that to shame. They're an extremely efficient unit, an almost flawless style of play. They're undefeated in over thirty straight games. Now, they've got possibly the best keeper in the game in Gerd Horst. Now, the way this team have plied their trade is by hitting teams on the counter. The league they play in is another one that's very possession-based, and so their manager's devised a system where they lure their opponents into a sense of control of possession, meanwhile Horst is pulling off save after save, before they hit their opponents with a counter-attack. Their Chasers are among the best fliers in the league, so they'll outstrip you like it's nothing. It also doesn't help that their Seeker's damn good as well."
"Are you trying to make us feel sorry for ourselves?" Ron joked.
They all laughed.
"No, Weasley. I'm just giving you all a very good idea of what to expect with this lot. Here's what we're going to do, then: I want us to play their game. We're going to invite pressure onto ourselves and let them dominate possession. Weasley, you're our Horst. Show them what a real keeper's made of. Bell and Smalling, I want you to try and break up their passes so we can get those counters started. Cleverley, I'm actually going to have you on the bench. Shaw, you'll be starting with Bell and Smalling."
The team stirred as they beheld the change from the normal lineup. The youngest player on the team, Trevor Shaw, was being given his Dragons debut.
"Now, Shaw; I want you playing as a true two-way Chaser. I want you to drop deep when Smalling and Bell head to the hoops, be open for the link-up pass, but the moment the Quaffle is in one of the oppositions' hands, I want you right back in our end to defend it. This lot get a lot of their points off the counter because they're almost right away three chasers versus a keeper, so we're going to try and limit their chances of doing that. In summary, we're forcing them into an unfamiliar style of play, hitting them on the break, and then trying to disrupt them when they try to get back in their own element. Any questions?"
They all shook their heads and the starters lined up to go out onto the pitch. Before Harry could take his place at the front, Simon stopped him.
"Harry, don't forget that you're up against one of the best Seekers in the game. Go out there and show everyone who's the undisputable top Seeker in the game," Simon explained, giving Harry a thump on the back to urge him on.
With that, Harry led the Dragons onto the immaculate grassy playing surface of Everlast Stadium, the place practically shaking from the volume of the unified songs of Dragons supporters. Harry's body felt like a coiled spring from the atmosphere. He couldn't wait for the whistle. The opposition for tonight walked over and they all shook hands before they all mounted their brooms and took to the skies, awaiting the release of the Quaffle, Bludgers and the Snitch.
Time seemed to slow for a second as Harry awaited the start of the game. It seemed like an eternity had passed before the shrill whistle cut through the din, and the crowd roared its approval, as the red-robed Dragons flew into attack after Katie's receipt of the Quaffle.
Harry surveyed the field below him as he circled above, like a bird of prey. As Simon had instructed, the Dragons were inviting pressure onto themselves from their German counterparts. The opposition Chasers couldn't seem to find an opening and were resorting to cycling the Quaffle amongst themselves, until a slightly underthrown pass gave an opening for Katie to intercept the Quaffle and zoom down the length of the pitch before sending the Quaffle through the left hoop.
The crowd erupted into cheers at the point as Katie flew back diligently to join the other Chasers in their defensive duties.
The game went on as such, with Die Hippogreifen getting the occasional goal, but otherwise, the Dragons had been watertight defensively and positively devastating on the counter-attack. Trevor Shaw, the new inclusion as Chaser, was having an incredible game. He was following Simon's instructions to a 'T' and was instrumental in breaking up the few counter-attacks the other team were able to put together. The way he was linking up with Katie and Smalling made it seem as if they'd been playing together all year.
Harry caught the occasional fleeting glimpse of the Snitch before it disappeared again. Both he and his opposite number, Muller, would start towards it before retreating back to their overlooking positions once the Snitch disappeared.
Katie had once again broken free for a counter attack and gotten herself into shooting range when one of the opposing Chasers tugged back on her broom. Harry zipped in immediately to discuss with the referee, only to hear the crowd cry out. Harry's head snapped around and he saw Muller flying towards what was unmistakeably the Snitch. Harry promptly sped off towards it, going full speed and narrowly avoiding collisions with other players, both friend and foe. He soon caught up and pulled ahead of Muller, and turned sharply in front of him to correspond with the Snitch's flight path.
His manoeuver caused him to smash into Muller, unseating the both of them. The impact somersaulted him in the air, somehow registering the fact that Muller had crashed to the ground, unconscious. As he began hurtling to the ground himself, Harry noticed his broom's trajectory was going to be within arm's reach soon, so he prayed as he flung his arm out and caught a hold of his broom, instinct then kicking in as he manipulated himself back into a seating position and sped off in pursuit of the Snitch.
He vaguely registered the fact that the Hippogreifen players were livid. The Beaters were attempting to hit him with Bludgers, unsuccessfully. Harry got himself into arm's reach and closed his hand around the familiar shape of the Snitch.
He got himself down to the pitch and dismounted, grinning at sealing the win up for the Dragons. Just as the other players dismounted, a curse was sent his way by a Hippogreifen player who was charging his way. Harry drew his wand in record time and parried the curse. At the sight of this, both teams surged forward to clash.
The referee took no niceties in her dismount, running into the epicenter of the clash.
"Calm down! CALM DOWN!" she roared. "What's the issue here?!"
"He tried to curse me!" Harry shouted, pointing at the offending player.
"It's only because he purposefully took out our Seeker!" the opponent roared, writhing against the restraining arms of his teammates.
"I did not!" Harry protested. "I was trying to follow the path of the Snitch, and he didn't change direction! We crashed into each other! I was unseated too, you saw that!"
"HE LIES!" the Hippogreifen player screamed, as his teammates carried him away.
"You have to believe, I didn't mean him any harm!" Harry pleaded of the referee.
"The result stands, Potter," the referee replied curtly. "However, I'm afraid there will be an investigation into your incident with Mr. Muller. Rest assured that corrective action will be taken against Mr. Matias, though."
With that, the referee walked away and the Dragons retreated back to their dressing room.
The players all sat at their lockers, waiting for Simon to walk in. When he did, it was at a brisk pace.
"Good game. Potter, my office, now," Simon said, not breaking pace as he exited.
Harry shrugged his shoulders as he exchanged glances with Ron and Katie.
He trooped out of the dressing room and made the short trip to Simon's office. He knocked on the door when he reached it.
"Oh, for Merlin's sake, get your arse in here Potter!" Simon shouted through the door.
Harry rushed in and took a seat opposite the desk from his manager.
Simon regarded him for a good minute before he got up, walked to a cabinet in the corner and poured himself a tumbler of Firewhiskey from the bottle on top of the cabinet. He downed the liquid and slammed the tumbler on the cabinet- which caused Harry to jump- before he turned back to face Harry.
"CAN YOU NOT GO TWO GAMES WITHOUT HAVING SOME SORT OF AN INCIDENT OR ANOTHER?!" Simon bellowed.
Harry sat in stunned silence for a moment, taking in the sight of Simon breathing heavily as he leaned on the desk, staring daggers at Harry.
"Sir, I-" Harry started.
"No, you listen here Potter," Simon cut him off, pointing a menacing finger at Harry. "Reckless catches causing injuries, loss of form due to temperament, and now this. I realize that you have your own side to the story, which will very likely be heard if this issue needs to go before the European Quidditch Tribunal. The referee will doubtless be sending her memory of the incident to the Tribunal for assessment as we speak, while it's still fresh in her mind and less susceptible to second-guesses and tampering."
Simon sighed while Harry drank this information in.
"Sir, I swear it was an accident. What'll they do if they don't buy that explanation?" Harry asked.
"Well, they'll ensure that any statement you make will be of the truest nature. In this sport, you'd have players say anything to try and lessen or avoid punishments, so they've had to find means of ensuring that the players are truthful, willingness be damned," Simon explained. "Again, this will all depend on what the Tribunal gathers from the memory of the referee. If they find that memory provides sufficient evidence as to make a decision either way, they'll act then and there, if not, they'll summon you for a hearing to take statements and make the decision then."
Harry nodded his understanding.
"Son, if they find you guilty for whatever reason, they could potentially ban you from Quidditch," Simon admitted in a sober tone. "As it stands, they'll want you out of the side until a verdict's reached."
Harry slumped down in his seat, rolling the Snitch over in his hand.
"At least it's a hell of a way to go out if they decide to ban me," Harry commented.
"How's that?"
"This Snitch," Harry said, holding it up. "It's the record consecutive catch. So, either way, my name goes down in history."
"Oh, because defeating one of the greatest dark wizards of all time wasn't good enough," Simon muttered.
They both looked at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing.
"Such an inappropriate time to be laughing," Simon managed through his chuckles.
Harry was laughing too hard to speak, so simply opted to nod his head.
"Anyways, let's get back to the team. This was a huge win, no matter the circumstances surrounding it. We're getting together for a team celebration. I figure as manager, it's my turn to host. I just hope Weasley passes out again! The look on his face when he woke up with the bottle outline was priceless!"
They trooped back to the dressing room and once in, Harry walked straight to his locker, grabbing his toiletries to have ready and sat down.
"Alright, sorry about that, just had to speak to Harry about how things are going to pan out for the incident that happened at the end," Simon explained to the team.
They all started protesting at the same time.
"That's totally unfair!"
"He didn't mean it!"
"The other bloke tried to curse him!"
"QUIET!" Simon shouted over the babble.
Everyone promptly shut up.
"Everyone has a different view on the matter. A lot of us may see it from a biased perspective. The only person who had an impartial view of the matter has sent their memory into the European Quidditch Tribunal for inspection of the incident. Until a decision's reached, Harry is going to be suspended from playing. Now, all we can do is wait and hope that Potter's side of the story is the one they see to be the truth. We can't let this set us back, however. We're off to the best start to a season that this club has ever seen!"
They all cheered.
"We've got a shoe-in for the Chaser of the Year in our talented Katie Bell!" Simon cried out.
Harry and his teammates roared their approval.
"Our captain is the best Seeker in the game, and damn it, has shown tonight he is a human wrecking ball on a broomstick!"
Laughs mixed in with the cheers.
"In Ron here, we've got a keeper with the rawest talent seen in centuries of the game!"
Cat-calls of "Weasley!" bounced around the dressing room.
"That's only the start," Simon declared. "Each and every member of this squad is incredibly gifted. As seen by Trevor's performance today, each person in our team is capable of slotting in and maintaining the status quo."
They were all nodding at this, and Harry got up and stood beside Simon.
"Don't worry about me, you lot," Harry said. "Rook's going to be brilliant, I know it. I'll be up for a fight for my place when I come back, as I've been from the moment I got here."
As he said this, he looked over to Rook, who smiled and nodded back to Harry in thanks for his support.
"Good luck getting it back," Rook joked.
"Let's get cleaned up and changed, everyone! Party's at Simon's!" Harry called out, earning whoops of approval from his teammates as they leapt into action.
Harry went over to his locker and began taking off the outer layers of his Quidditch uniform when he felt a presence behind him.
"You're awfully calm considering you're being led up to the potential guillotine on your career," Katie remarked.
"To be honest, Katie, I'm terrified. Nothing is more liberating than flying for me. Playing Quidditch has just brought me so much joy from the moment Wood taught me the basics. To lose that would be like losing a part of me," Harry replied, spinning around and giving Katie a kiss before heading off to the showers.
Once under the hot stream of water, Harry couldn't stop the images that flashed through his mind. Memories from Hogwarts; from walking into the great hall for the first time to his lessons with Dumbledore's Army. The memories that came back to him the most were either of Quidditch or of Katie. Even then, both seemed to go hand in hand for the most part.
He couldn't lose Quidditch as much as he could lose Katie. Of that, Harry was certain.
*Much as I know it seems like something dramatic is happening every other game for Harry, I figured something like this issue would bring some balance and some tension since things have been just so great and rosy for Harry and the Dragons up until now!*