Disclaimer: I own nothing and am making no profit, as unfortunate as that is.
Acknowledgments: Onichun and Cammiles2003 for the beta work on this chapter.
Chapter 14
Flight
The events following the second task were a blur. Harry remembered Fleur sliding away from him. She didn't spare him anything more than a curious glance before working back to her family. He also remembered someone telling him his scores. They were pretty good. He'd received points for being stupid enough to assume that the hostages were in mortal peril. But he'd lost points for initiating an attack on Merpeople.
He disagreed heartily with that last point, as the trident to the throat felt like ample cause to cast a few stunning spells. Karkaroff and Maxime had disagreed. He didn't care, though. He was only a point behind Cedric with one task to go. For the first time he thought about winning the tournament, and simply not trying to survive.
The sponsors and judges didn't mention what the final task was. The only reference to it was that they would find out soon enough. Of course, he managed to avoid the whole post-task interview by having his housemates swarm him. So that was a plus.
He barely had the time to throw his robe back on over the towels he was wrapped in before a horde of Gryffindors swarmed him on the shore of the lake. He was cheered and pushed through the crowd, being moved quickly toward the castle. He'd forgotten the scarf he wrapped around his neck was green and silver, as well. But the fact didn't escape his housemates.
"What's with the serpent scarf?" Colin Creevey asked as what appeared to be the entire Gryffindor house escorted him back to the common room. Harry really had no interest in another party with his housemates. He wanted to go and find Fleur. But he knew he'd been pushed far away from the French witch. And he doubted she was in the mood for a party right now. He hoped she was at least having fun with her parents and sister. He'd have liked to meet them.
"He's dating Daphne Greengrass," Katie Bell said, rather snottily. He was? Why was he the last one informed of this. "It's probably her scarf. I'm sure she's very thrilled he kissed the French champion."
"Why did he do that if he's dating Daphne?" Colin asked, looking incredibly confused. Harry opened his mouth, intending to refute the statement, but Angelina Johnson spoke over him.
"He was probably just overcome by her aura," she said. Harry again was going to debate that point, but the conversation continued without him.
"Her what?" Colin asked.
"You haven't noticed, Colin, how you want to do anything for her whenever she's around?" Katie asked. Again, she sounded rather irritated.
"I don't know," Colin said. "She's not really around me much." Harry debated opening his mouth to comment that whenever she was around him he certainly didn't want to do anything she wanted.
"Oh, and you don't notice how every boy looks at her the second she enters a room?" Angelina asked, scrutinizing the younger student.
"Uhm. Not really," Colin said, blushing a bit and looking confused. Harry was starting to feel bad for the kid, so he decided to really just interrupt now, despite the fact that he knew they'd try to talk over him.
"Enough. I didn't kiss Fleur because I was enamored by her aura," Harry said. "And I'm not dating Daphne Greengrass."
"I told you," Katie said. "He may have taken her to the ball, but he's not about to date a Slytherin!"
"That's not true," Harry said weakly.
"What?" Katie asked.
"If it wasn't for Fleur I'd probably date Daphne," Harry admitted.
"But she's a Slytherin," Angelina commented, as if that ended any possible debate.
"And I'm a Gryffindor," Harry said, intending to point out how little that really mattered.
"Yes, so you shouldn't date a Slytherin," Katie said. "You should date a Gryffindor instead."
"Asked them, they were all busy," Harry responded dryly. "But regardless, I'm not dating Daphne Greengrass."
"But you kissed her. And you're wearing her scarf." Katie said.
"I kissed Fleur, too. Am I dating her now? Do I have some strange harem triad thing going on? Does Fleur get Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and Daphne the other four days? Hell, I could kiss you right now, Katie. Would we be dating?" He was getting slightly annoyed about the line of questioning. Katie blushed furiously as his comment, but she recovered quickly.
"Would you want to date me, Harry?" she asked, batting her eyes at him. He paused for a moment. Harry hadn't thought about that before. Sure, Katie was pretty enough, and fun to be around when they were on the house team together. But no, he didn't really want to date her. He wanted to date Fleur.
"It could be fun, Katie. But I'm trying for Fleur," He said as diplomatically as he could. Apparently it was the wrong answer.
"Oh I see. Not interested because I'm not a Veela?" She scoffed.
"That's not it, Katie," He said. "I just really like Fleur. And it's not because she's a Veela. It's because she'd kind, caring, a fierce competitor, and is helpful and nice!" Harry argued. He realized a bunch of those fit Katie as well, but that wasn't the point.
"And you know all of that how?" Katie crossed her arms, looking skeptical.
"That's a good question," Angelina commented.
"She was his pen pal," Colin said. Harry blinked and looked over at the younger boy.
"How did you know that?" he asked. He certainly didn't remember telling many people who his pen pal was, nor did he remember simply talking about it in public.
"I asked Hermione who your pen pal was. She told me," Colin said. Harry nodded a little bit. He could picture that conversation readily enough. The over enthusiastic Colin trying to learn everything he could about Harry, even after three years in the school. Hermione probably just told him because she figured it would get him to leave her alone. Still, no harm no foul.
"Wait, the French Veela was your summer assignment?" Angelina asked.
"Yes. She was. We kept writing into the school years. I promised to write her more often too. But with the quidditch and the tournament I haven't really gotten around to it," Harry admitted.
"You idiot," Katie said.
"What?" Harry asked.
"She's probably furious with you then. You can't promise to write her more letters then just not!" Katie looked completely aghast. They were in the common room by then. A party had started without them. Harry received various congratulations from many of his housemates, but was quickly dragged back into conversation with Katie and Angelina.
"Wait, that's bad?" He asked.
"Of course. She was probably waiting for your letters and they never came. Total asshole move, Harry," Angelina said.
"Shit," Harry said. "I never thought about that."
"Obviously," Katie responded.
"And she's probably furious that you just kissed her in public too. Not only did you ruin the super-romantic first kiss moment with anyone, but you failed to realize that there was pretty much nothing else she could do other than kiss you back!" Angelina said. Harry hadn't thought about it. "And why did you decide to do it anyway?"
"Erm. No. I hadn't thought of that," Harry said. "And I got advice from a friend. He said to take an opportunity if I found one. To make her not think of me as a kid. I thought that worked."
"Who gave you that advice? That's not at all what women want!" Angelina said.
"It sounds like something that Titus Button character would have suggested. Apparently he's been with half of Slytherin. Fancies himself to be quite accomplished with the ladies," Katie said.
"I've heard of him," Angelina said. Harry just shrugged as the two girls conversed. He didn't particularly know much about Titus. He seemed to be into Tracey, but he saw very little interaction between the two. Angelina and Katie continued to debate about the Slytherin. Somehow it had changed from an annoyance that he claimed to be good with women, to the two agreeing that they wouldn't mind to have him alone in a broom closet for a while. Needless to say, Harry didn't quite understand that.
"Wait a second," he said after he decided he really didn't want to be a part of that conversation any longer. "Weren't you both annoyed a minute ago that I was pursuing Fleur?"
"Yes," Angelina said. "But then you said you were her pen pal."
"How does that change anything?" Harry asked. He was completely and utterly confused. Women were complicated.
"Well you see, before we just assumed it was the aura. But if you really were in communication well before you knew about it then it becomes so much more romantic!" Katie said.
"And if it was the aura then you'd have probably written a letter a day," Angelina said.
"I never thought about that," Harry said.
"I get the feeling there's a lot you haven't thought about, Harry," Angelina said.
"Probably," Harry responded, not knowing what else he should say. "I still don't really get it. But I'm really not interested in her because she's a Veela."
"I'll take your word for it," Katie said. "Of course, that still doesn't let you off the hook for hanging around with a Slytherin."
"Really?" Harry rolled his eyes. "Daphne is great. You'd probably like her if you ever hung out. She's happy and fun. And she hates Malfoy, so that has to count for something."
"Hardly," Angelina said. "Everyone in Slytherin hates Malfoy, except for Crabbe and Goyle and they probably do, but they're too stupid to realize that they do."
"Well regardless, she's nice. You'd like her," Harry said. The two girls looked at him skeptically.
"If you insist," Katie said. Harry knew that neither of them really had any interest in finding out whether or not he was right about that. It was a shame, really. But such was life. The girls started to converse about boys, and Harry knew that he missed any chance he'd had of getting advice from them on how to handle the situation with Fleur.
He walked away from Katie and Angelina when he realized that he didn't particularly want to hear which of the Hogwarts males had the best backside. Everyone he walked past offered him some sort of congratulation on the task, or wished him luck in the upcoming quidditch match. He smiled and thanked each person. Most of them by name, regardless of their year. He even had a few quick conversations with some of them, on a variety of topics.
It occurred to him that at the start of the year he'd have probably simply looked away and muttered something intended as a thank you under his breath, but now he was perfectly comfortable with the attention. He still didn't really want the attention. But he was comfortable enough to talk and smile now. He couldn't help but wonder what changed. He didn't think about it for long as he found Ron and Hermione a short time later.
"Hey guys," he said. Ron looked up and practically cheered.
"Harry! You kissed the Veela! What was that like!" He exclaimed. His friend found a butterbeer from nearby and offered it to Harry, who took it before answering.
"Soft, wet, and slightly salty," Harry recounted dryly.
"So no fruit punch?" Ron joked.
"No fruit punch," Harry smirked. "But in fairness she had been swimming around in a lake for a while. I'll need to try again to give a better example of the results." Ron laughed far more than that commented deserved.
"Fruit punch?" Hermione asked, looking up at the two boys. Naturally, she was reading some gigantic tome rather than joining in the party.
"Nothing," Harry said, but Ron spoke over him.
"I asked him what it was like to kiss Daphne and he said she tasted like fruit punch," Ron said in one breath. Harry glared at him.
"Oh," Hermione said, going back to her book. Harry looked down at her for a moment. He knew he probably shouldn't ask, but he couldn't resist.
"So, the thing international quidditch star Viktor Krum would miss the most. That's quite the honor," Harry teased.
"Quiet," Hermione said.
"Oh come now," Harry teased. "I thought you said things weren't serious. Next thing you'll tell me is that you're going to summer in Bulgaria with him."
"How did you know that?" Hermione asked, slamming the book shut and looking slightly alarmed.
"I didn't. But that's pretty cool," Harry said.
"You're going to spend your summer with Viktor Krum? That's awesome," Ron exclaimed. Harry looked over at him for a moment, and then looked back at Hermione.
"I haven't said whether or not I will. It would be fun but he has Quidditch nearly constantly, and I doubt my parents would let me stay with him," Hermione said.
"Well if you like him, it sounds like it could be fun," Harry said. "If you get the opportunity, I say go for it."
"Yes, but he's so much older than me. And I'm not sure if I'm ready for a serious relationship," Hermione said.
"Well, tell him that. I'm sure he'd still love to have you visit. And who knows what may change in six months," Harry said. "I know I'd do it with Fleur."
"You're male, of course you would. Oh, and you and Fleur have a relationship now?" Hermione teased. "After an awkward forced kiss?"
"Oh, you've kissed Krum more?" Harry asked.
"Indeed I have," Hermione responded dryly.
"You've kissed Viktor Krum? How was that?" Ron asked. Hermione opened her mouth to comment, but as she did the Weasley twins came over and started to ask Ron questions about something or other. Harry was glad they did, he didn't really want to know what kissing Viktor Krum was like. But still, something bothered him.
"What was up with him?" Harry asked.
"Oh. That. I told the twins how he'd been acting this year and they said they'd do something about it if he looked like he was going to get super jealous again," Hermione said.
"What did they do?"
"Well the second you kissed Fleur he got this strange look in his eyes, and then they both hit him with a Cheering Charm at the same time. And he's been like that ever since," she explained. Harry was glad he hadn't been drinking the butterbeer at the time.
"Oh that's too good," he said.
"I don't know. It seemed rather mean," Hermione admitted.
"I think it is classic," Harry countered. Hermione decided to change the subject.
"So how furious is Fleur?" she asked.
"Why does everyone think she's going to be mad?" Harry scowled.
"Because you grabbed her and forced her to kiss you," Hermione said. "Girls don't like that."
"Well, I thought it was nice," Harry said, crossing his arms.
"I'm sure you did, but that's not the point," Hermione said. "You removed her choice in the matter."
"She could have moved away," Harry said.
"The crowd probably would have reacted poorly to that," Hermione said.
"Well, maybe," Harry said. "But she doesn't strike me as the type to care overly much about what people think."
"Oh come on now, Harry," Hermione scolded him. "Everyone cares what other people think. Would you want to be booed and jeered by a crowd as large as that one was today? Because that's likely what would have happened had she simply pushed you away."
"I guess not," Harry said, looking down at his feet.
"Well you should keep that in mind when you finally talk to her. And I would suggest talking to her soon," Hermione said. Harry nodded a little bit. That sounded like good advice. He already knew what about he would say too. That he was carried away in the moment, but it wasn't her aura. He knew perfectly well what he was doing because he cared for her. He'd cared for her since she wrote him the letters over the summer. And he was sorry that he hadn't written to her since she'd been here. And that they hadn't spent much time together. Hopefully she would accept that.
"I will. I'll find her tomorrow after practice," Harry said. "Thanks Hermione. I really do think you should give Krum a chance. He's a pretty good bloke."
"From a school that wouldn't even accept me as a student, Harry," she responded. Harry felt she had a point. But then again he'd just argued that not all Slytherins were evil, so he should probably be willing to argue the same thing with Durmstrang students.
"People are different, Hermione. Just because he goes to Durmstrang doesn't mean he hates Muggle-Borns. He certainly doesn't act like he hates you. And he's been nothing but nice to me."
"So what, you think I should just run off with him?" She spoke rather sternly.
"No. But I don't think you should dictate any of your actions based on the fact that his school has a history of bigotry," Harry said.
"You're probably right. I don't know, though. I don't want to just be some quidditch groupie girlfriend. But I do like him." She said.
"Well, talk to him about it. If he doesn't understand, you'll know it wasn't meant to be. And if he does, then you'll work something out," Harry said, giving the most generic advice he was capable of thinking of.
"I know. But thanks, Harry," she said. He nodded and was going to comment further when Cormac McLaggen came up. The reserve keeper smiled a little too much at Hermione for Harry's comfort, but that was irrelevant.
"Hey Harry, Davies wants to do a quick scrimmage tonight to prep for tomorrow's match," Cormac said.
"You have to be kidding me. I'm exhausted," Harry complained.
"I know. But he needs you to play beater. I have to go find Alicia and the twins now," he said, moving off. Harry just groaned and made his way away from the party and toward the pitch.
Harry rather disliked playing beater. He'd have much rather been on one of the chaser lines, like Cho was. But he'd proven he was significantly better with a beater's bat than she was, which made it seem closer to a real match. Still, he didn't do much. He mostly flew around, put himself near a bludger, and wacked it at Titus, who used it as a lethal weapon against Alicia, Lilly, and Ginny.
It was somewhat amusing. But it would have been more fun if he was better. It certainly didn't help any that he was exhausted, and his body hurt from swimming far below the lake for far too long. So mostly he floated by the hoops and chatted with Herbert while the chasers were in the other zone.
He could tell Roger was getting slightly annoyed with his behavior. But it was getting late, and he felt like he was dead. Every fiber of his being just wanted to crawl into bed and go to sleep.
When Titus was otherwise busy tracking down both of the bludgers like some kind of beating machine, Harry floated idly by the stands and chatted with some of the people who showed up to watch practice. Most notably Tracey and Daphne. Of course, Tracey was less than receptive of his presence.
"You're blocking my view of my boyfriend's ass, Potter," She spat at him as he flew by. He decided to float next to Daphne instead. She was silent for a moment, then looked up at him.
"Shouldn't you be playing?" she teased.
"Yes, I should be. But I feel like I'm going to fall off the broom, and every time I hit the bludger I feel like my arms are going to fall off," he said.
"Weakling," Daphne commented.
"Hey now. I've had a rather busy day," he said.
"So I noticed. Just this morning you were too cold to walk down to the lake. I had to give you a scarf," she teased. "Which I notice you aren't wearing now."
"It wouldn't go well with the uniform," Harry said. "And Roger probably wouldn't be happy with me for wearing a tie with the uniform."
"It doesn't look like Roger is particularly happy with you now, anyway," she said, glancing over to where the Captain had just scored. He flew past them, then.
"Get into the game Potter, or so help me I'll start Chang tomorrow," he said as he sped off. Harry just groaned.
"He's tense," Daphne said.
"Very. It's not helpful," Harry said. "I'll act like I care about being a beater for a few minutes, that should appease him." So he flew back up into the game.
It didn't particularly matter, though. Amazingly, Titus was more than fine playing by himself. Harry spent the majority of the time chasing after one of the bludgers, hoping it didn't turn and smash him square in the face. Whenever he finally caught it he just hit it in the general direction of either Titus, or an opposing group of chasers, and hoped for the best. Usually it didn't work out.
When his chaser side had a fifty point lead, he floated back down toward Daphne.
"My arms hurt more now," he said dumbly.
"Swimming all day and then hitting an iron ball around will do that to you," she responded dryly.
"You're right. It will," Harry responded. "But I would have preferred some sort of pity followed by a nice relaxing massage to sarcasm."
"Well, if you want to give me a massage, that's fine. But I'm not sure how that would help your arms. And I doubt the French witch would like that much."
"Probably not. Of course, everyone seems to think that she'll be furious with me for kissing her," Harry said. Strangely, it never even seemed like a faux pas to be talking about this with Daphne.
"Well she might be. I wouldn't be, though," Daphne said.
"You wouldn't?"
"Oh no. I'd have thought it was hot. You can grab me and kiss me whenever you like," Daphne said.
"I'm not sure the French witch would appreciate that," Harry said, figuring it was his turn to use that excuse.
"Probably not. You never know, she may get jealous and decide she wants you," Daphne said.
"For some reason I highly doubt that," Harry said.
"Oh? How would she react then?" Daphne asked.
"Knowing her? She'd probably gaze at me with an amused smile and feel happy for me," Harry admitted. She may come off as cold at times, but that was how he expected Fleur would have reacted to that situation.
"So, you're telling us that the French champion would react pretty much exactly how Daphne reacted when she saw you frenching the Frenchie?" Tracey asked. Harry noticed she had her arms crossed over her chest and still looked like she didn't care for his presence.
"That's how you reacted?" Harry said, looking over at Daphne.
"Pretty much," she admitted. "I was happy for you. I could tell, ever since I watched you dance with her at the ball, that you were hung up on her. I will admit, I hoped she'd slapped you, cursed you, and otherwise made a mockery of you so I could step in. Unfortunately not so much."
"So every Slytherin does really want something embarrassing to happen to me at any given moment?" Harry teased.
"Naturally," Daphne responded. "We're cunning, you see, and we tend to find ways to make those situations benefit us."
"And how would you have benefitted from that, Daphne?" Harry asked, although he had a feeling he already knew the answer to that question.
"That's easy. Granger was busy and Weasley is an idiot, so I'd have been the first to your side. It would have been oh so easy to wrap my arms around you, say something mean to the French girl had she not left, and simply comforted you. I could have easily made you feel like the only person in the world that matters. And after that? Well after that you're mine Harry Potter," she smirked at him when she finished speaking. Harry couldn't help but be a little taken aback. And perhaps just a touch worried.
"That would have probably worked," Harry admitted.
"I know it would have worked, Harry. That's not the point. The point is that she didn't slap you, and I think she may actually not think you're just an immature kid overcome by her aura. It's disappointing, but I can live with it," Daphne said.
"I'm glad. You know, Daphne, I'm rather glad I asked you to the Yule Ball," he said.
"You mean you're rather glad that Titus conveniently got us together for the Yule Ball," she countered.
"If you want to put it that way, sure," he said. She just nodded in agreement. She didn't speak for a moment, choosing to let her gaze focus on the practice match instead. Harry turned the broom so he was watching as well. Nothing too unusual seemed to be happening.
"Promise me one thing, Harry?" Daphne asked.
"What's that?" Harry's eyes followed the quaffle as one of the chasers completely outmaneuvered Roger and scored easily past McLaggen.
"When things don't work out between you and the French girl you give me the first shot at winning your affections."
"I can agree to that. Although, I'm not sure how hard you'll have to try if that point ever comes," Harry said.
"That's good to know," Daphne responded. "So we're just friends, then?" she asked.
"I'd like to stay friends. I'm not sure we were ever really anything more than that," Harry said.
"We weren't, Harry. But we would have been," she paused for the briefest of moments. "You know, there are plenty of guys that would be crushed to simply be in the friend zone with me."
"I'm sure. But you've made it pretty clear that I can get out of it rather easily if need be," Harry responded.
"I suppose you're right," Daphne laughed. They chatted for a few more minutes. Harry focused more on watching the practice then. Roger was struggling, but there wasn't much he could say about that. Lilly and Alicia were playing incredibly well. As were Fred and George.
His eyes followed the Weasley twins for a moment. He watched Fred pass a bludger brilliantly to George, who had a much better vantage on the opposing chasers. George nailed it perfectly with his bat and it shot into the fray of chasers. Harry saw its path and winced. He knew what was coming.
The iron ball flew in very quickly, Alicia never had a chance. Harry would never forget the loud crack it made as it impacted on the back of her head. She slumped to the side and fell off of her broom. Harry heard screams from the crowd. He pushed his broom into a dive in her direction, momentarily forgetting just how weary he felt. He didn't think there was any chance that he would catch up.
But he did, just a couple of meters off of the ground he pushed his broom under her falling body. She impacted onto him and forced them both to the ground.
The blood was the first thing he noticed. The next was that, at the very least, Alicia was still breathing. He pushed her slumped body off of him so he could stand. He felt like he was in one piece. His broom appeared to have survived too. He had no idea where Alicia's flew off to. Frankly, he wasn't particularly concerned about that at the moment.
His teammates landed next to him, each looking shocked. George looked the worse of all of them. No one did anything more than look frightened.
"Someone levitate her. Keep her level, we have to get her to the hospital wing," Harry said. "And we have to do it as quickly as possible!" Roger snapped out of the frightened daze first and did what Harry asked. The entire team followed suit. Harry lagged behind, feeling a bit dazed himself, but otherwise no worse for the wear.
He was the last member of the team to arrive at the hospital wing, moving slowly on his sore muscles. Madam Pomfrey had already stabilized Alicia. She was magically cleaning the blood out of the girl's hair as Harry entered.
"Don't tell me you managed to hurt yourself as well, Potter," the nurse said. Harry shook his head.
"No more than normal," he responded. Pomfrey laughed.
"If that's the case then I better check you out. Apparently nearly being stabbed by merpeople wasn't an exciting way to spend your day, you have to catch a falling chaser as well?" she scolded him, shaking her head. "Why is it always you, Potter?"
"I don't know. But in fairness, I didn't do much catching, she just sort of landed on me," he admitted.
"Yes, I gathered that. I should probably look you over, just in case," she said.
"Alright," Harry responded, figuring it was easier than arguing that he was okay. The nurse scanned him with her wand briefly.
"Well you're in one piece. Pretty beat up, but otherwise intact. Which is better than usual," the nurse said.
"How's Alicia?" he asked.
"She's stable. But that's the best I can say," the nurse looked around at the quidditch team. Harry realized she probably hadn't explained the diagnosis yet. "I'm assuming she has a concussion, and that her brain is swelling from the impact. It will likely affect her vision."
"Isn't there something you can do?" Roger asked.
"I've done what I can do, Davies. I closed the wound and made sure she's stable. She should recover, but it will take a great deal of time."
"But isn't there something more you can do? You can fix a broken bone in a second!" Roger looked rather desperate.
"Re-grow them pretty efficiently, too," Harry commented.
"Yes, but bones are easy, they simply need to be put back together. Brain injuries are considerably more serious," she explained.
"But there has to be something more that you can do," Roger begged.
"There are things I could do, Davies, but I'm not going to attempt them when she's in stable condition. The magic could have drastic effects on her brain. It's far too dangerous for me to attempt them now when I know her recovery will simply be a few months."
"A few months?" Roger groaned. "We have a match tomorrow!"
"And she will likely not even be awake for that. Unless you're willing to front the bill for an incredibly expensive, and incredibly dangerous magical brain operation. Since I know you're not, you should just trust me that letting her recover naturally from something like this is best. So you better just deal with it," Pomfrey said. Roger looked around.
"Well, you're starting then, Malcolm," he said. Preece just nodded. No one was in the mood to talk. Ginny looked slightly disappointed that Preece got the nod over her.
"Yes, deal with the team on your own time. For now get out of the hospital and let Alicia sleep. I've already notified her parents. They'll likely be here soon."
"Okay, let's go," Roger said, he spent another moment glancing at the injured, sleeping chaser before he left. The team followed him out.
"Harry," Pomfrey said as the others left. He paused and looked back at her. The nurse was rummaging through some potions. She found the one she was looking for and gave it to him. "It's a numbing draught. Take it tonight and you shouldn't feel like death for the match tomorrow. It's perfectly legal, too. Only you would think to break someone's fall with your own body. Saved her life, you know."
"Thanks," was all Harry could think to say. He wouldn't ever admit that his plan had been to try to catch her, he'd just absorbed the blow instead. Still, he was glad Alicia would be okay, even if it took a couple of months. They'd just have to win tomorrow so she'd get a shot to play against Durmstrang in June.
Harry stepped out of the hospital wing in time to hear Roger tell the rest of the team to go to bed. The captain's words seemed weak. Harry, for one, thought the situation could be considered his fault. They probably shouldn't have even attempted the practice that night. But Roger was just trying to make sure they wouldn't be bounced from the tournament by Beauxbatons.
Harry started to walk back to the common room. He intended to chug the potion Madam Pomfrey gave him and sleep like a rock. His only real concern was waking up in time for the game. But he figured someone would come and get him if he didn't. He let out a large yawn and started to walk back toward the Gryffindor common room.
"'Arry?" a familiar French accented voice said from behind him.
"Yes Fleur?" he said, turning to look at her. She looked mostly disheveled. Her hair was everywhere, she wore a robe wrapped tightly around her body, and slippers on her feet. Harry thought she looked like she'd just gotten out of bed. But at the very least, she looked relieved to see him. That had to count for something.
"Zey said zat one of ze 'Ogwarts chasers fell and was seriously injured," Fleur said. "Zey did not know who. Zey also said zat you saved her." Her accent sounded even worse than normal. Harry realized why she was concerned.
"It wasn't Lilly. It was Alicia," Harry said. "She got hit by a bludger in the back of the head. She's doing alright now, though."
"What 'appened?" Fleur asked. She looked visibly relieved.
"A bludger caught her in the back of the head," Harry repeated.
"No. After zat," she said.
"Oh. She kind of slumped on her broom," Harry said, demonstrating briefly with his body. "And then she fell off."
"And you caught her?"
"Well no. I got under her and then wound up slammed into the ground. My back actually really hurts," Harry admitted. "But Pomfrey, the nurse, thinks that I cushioned the fall enough that she'll be okay in a couple of months."
"You are very brave," Fleur said. Harry shook his head.
"No. Just very reckless," he replied.
"Do you make a 'abit of saving defenseless people?" she asked.
"Well it's not intentional," Harry said. "Usually it's a case of right place at right time. Or wrong place, if you prefer."
"You really are a strange one," she responded. Harry just shrugged. His conversations with other women coming back to him quickly. He decided to simply say what was on his mind.
"I'm sorry, Fleur," he said. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him.
"For what?" she asked.
"For not writing to you again, even though I said I would, and for just kissing you in public. I was operating on some mediocre advice, there," he said, looking straight at her. Fleur looked rather amused.
"Well, I did not write back to you either. It 'as been a very busy year, 'as it not?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.
"To say the least," Harry said.
"Yes. You do not need to apologize for zat. I am curious, what advice were you operating under?" She tilted her head to the side. Harry decided that it would probably be the best if he just told her.
"Well I talked to my godfather. He said that if I saw something that could be a chance I should take it. He said that it would take something like that to prevent you from thinking I was just a kid. I rather like you, Fleur. I have since we exchanged letters," he explained, figuring it would be best if he simply put it all out on the table.
"Interesting advice," Fleur said. She took a few steps closer to him.
"Tell me, 'Arry. Why did you save my sister in ze lake? Was it merely an attempt to get closer to me?" she asked.
"To be honest, Fleur, that thought never occurred to me," he admitted. He wouldn't say it, but he was disappointed she would even think that. "I saved her for the same reason I tried to save Alicia. I never thought about not saving her. Hell, I tried to save all of the hostages when I got there."
"Zat is what my friends said. You are very noble," she responded. "Of course, zat was only after zey finished making fun of me for being caught off guard as you kissed me."
"I did apologize for that," Harry pointed out. Still, the idea of Fleur's friends taunting her about it was fun to think about.
"As you should," Fleur said. "If it occurred in private I would not 'ave reacted ze same way," she admitted.
"What would you have done?" Harry asked. She slapped him. Rather hard. It stung quite a bit for a moment, but it didn't hurt nearly as much as his back or arm. Still, he rubbed it gently as he turned back to look at her.
"Zat. But now I must ask you something," she said.
"Well you have my attention," Harry replied, still rubbing his cheek a bit.
"When you asked me to ze ball. Did you really do it because you were worried I would not be able to find a date?"
"No," Harry laughed. "Was that the excuse I gave, I can't even remember. I asked you, Fleur Isabelle Delacour, because, as I said, I rather like you. I understand you think I'm an immature kid. I disagree. But that's that. Now, if you'll be kind enough to excuse me, Fleur, I'm exhausted." He turned to leave. Fleur followed him for the first two steps.
"Wait," she said. He turned back to face her, giving her the most attentive look he could muster at that point.
"I do not feel zat you are an immature kid," she said. "I realized around ze ball zat you are more zan you seem. I often think about your offer to ze ball. It certainly would 'ave been a better night."
"Probably," Harry admitted. He figured it would be bad form to admit that he'd had a great time at the ball regardless.
"Do not interrupt me," Fleur scolded. "Where was I? Oh yes. I am accustomed to people wanting to do zings for me. I assumed you followed Rodger because you simply wanted to save me. But I now realize you would 'ave probably done the same for any girl."
"Probably," Harry said again. He hadn't really thought about that before, but he certainly did have a record for saving people who were in otherwise precarious situations.
"You would 'ave. It is just who you are. Now. Zair is a rather large gap in our ages. We 'ave quite a few different zings that we must deal with in ze future. So I do not know if zis has any chance of working. But if you would like, 'Arry, I would love for you to accompany me to zat town ze students go to next weekend," she said. Harry noticed she appeared to choose her words carefully. She also blushed a little bit as she spoke. Fleur Delacour couldn't be nervous about asking him out, could she?
"Are you asking me out on a date, Miss Delacour?" Harry teased. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a cold stare.
"I would have assumed zat much was obvious," Fleur said.
"If I say yes can I brag that I'm dating Fleur Delacour?" he asked. She shook her head in annoyance.
"Only if you feel zat it will make that blonde witch you associate with jealous," Fleur said. Harry laughed a little bit.
"I think it would. Although what an ego boost it would be for her to think you're jealous of her," Harry said.
"I am jealous of her, 'Arry. Ze ball she had should 'ave been ze ball I had. Now will you go to dinner with me in ze town or not?" she said.
"Of course I will, Fleur," Harry responded.
"Good. Come by ze carriages at seven. Now, one more thing," she said, stepping closer to him.
"What's that?" he asked, tilting his head to one side. She didn't respond with words, but rather kissed him, very softly, right on the lips. She tasted wonderful. Harry's eyes closed as he kissed her back for a moment, until she pulled her lips just a few centimeters from his.
"Now we are even for surprise kisses," she whispered against his lips. Her breath was tantalizingly hot on his skin. All he wanted to do was kiss her back. "I would wish you luck tomorrow in ze quidditch match. But I feel I must pull for my school. Good night, 'Arry."
"Good night, Fleur," he said, attempting to move his lips back to hers, but she'd stepped back away and was moving back to the carriages. He was too tired to do anything but watch her go.
The somber mood of the locker room prevailed over everyone inside. Only Malcolm expressed any excitement for the game, but he was smart enough to not act too excited around the rest of the team. Harry was sure that Malcolm, like the rest of them, could feel the loss of Alicia's presence. There did just seem to be something missing.
Of course, Harry may have also attributed that to the pain potion he'd consumed the night before. Yes, it had worked, he certainly didn't feel any pain when he woke up. Of course, he was so groggy he barely remembered where he was and that he had a quidditch match to play. The icy air had woken him a bit, but the warm locker room was lulling him back to sleep.
He inspected his broom, simply to make sure that nothing was wrong with it after the fall. It appeared to be in perfect working order. Cho had volunteered to let him use hers for the match, just to be safe, but he thought his looked fine, so he'd simply had her look it over as well. Neither of them could find any fault. And really, if something was wrong he could always just call a time out and switch brooms.
After he finished with that he simply paced around the locker room. He intended to keep moving in order to keep himself awake. He took note of the team as he walked around. George looked pretty worn out. Harry doubted he slept much. They all knew the bludger wasn't his fault, but he was sure the twin felt terrible about it. And George knew that Alicia would want him to go out and play his heart out and get her a win.
Eventually, Roger led the team onto the pitch. The cold air helped rouse Harry a bit, as did the booming voice of Ludo Bagman.
"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Ludo yelled over the crowd. "Today we have the final qualifying match in the Quidditch tournament. Hogwarts and Beauxbatons will play to determine who gets the pivotal rematch against Durmstrang!
"But this match needs no build up. You all know why we're here. So let's introduce the French team! We have team captain and keeper Bourdais, followed by Rousseau, Besson, Ardant, Morin, Garron, and Sinclair!" Harry watched the blue robed players fly out over the pitch as the Beauxbaton's contingent cheered loudly. The Hogwarts team mounted their brooms then and waited to be announced.
"Same as last time, just fly out when your name is called," Roger said.
"And now for the Hogwarts team! I present you with Fleet, Weasley, Weasley, Davies, Preece, Seslion, and Potter!" Harry shot across the pitch, following closely behind Lilly. He rolled the opposite way as her when they reached the opposing hoops and looped back toward his own goal as Bagman continued.
"Preece is subbing in for the injured Alicia Spinnet. She took a dive off of her broom during a practice session yesterday. Word is she's out with a concussion, but in very good condition. We hope her the best," Bagman finished for a moment. Harry flew around their defensive zone, enjoying how the rush of wind through his hair made him feel much more awake. He noticed some of his friends in the crowd as he flew by. Ron looked slightly dazed as he sat next to Hermione. Harry wondered if that Cheering Charm had finally worn off. He flew back toward the rest of the team after a moment.
Of course, it may have just been because Viktor Krum was seated on the other side of Hermione. Harry could only imagine what was going through Ron's head as he was about to watch a quidditch match with his idol.
"Alright, let's give this all we've got and win," Roger said. Clichéd words, but that didn't particularly bother Harry. They lined up and waited then. Harry floated above Fred, diagonally from where Sinclair lined herself up.
"The official is in position!" Bagman yelled. "And we're underway! Seslion wins the draw from Garron. She passes it to Preece. He relays it to Davies who takes the shot! It's batted away easily by Bourdais.
"Garron with the quaffle now. Passes it back to Morin. Returns it to Garron. Garron passes it across the pitch to Ardant. Seslion tries for the steal but an excellent bludger from Besson got into her path. Morin with the quaffle now. He shoots! Saved by Fleet. But there's no one there for the rebound! Garron into the center ring! What a save by Fleet! But no, Morin gets it back, Fleet is too far away to stop that one. 10-0 Beauxbatons.
"Seslion on the inbound to Davies. Davies moves down toward the center of the pitch. He tries to dump it blindly to avoid a bludger but Seslion isn't there! It's picked up by Garron who's all alone! Wait, Fred Weasley hits a bludger toward George, he goes for the shot on the speeding Garron! He misses badly! Garron scores 20-0 Beauxbatons! This Hogwarts line is looking a tad skitterish at the start of the game," Bagman announced.
Harry couldn't help but think he was right. Even from his vantage the chasers looked slow and slightly outmatched. Obviously the Beauxbatons team wasn't going to roll over and just let Hogwarts advance. But he could already tell this match was going to rely on his ability to catch the snitch. He cut between a group of Beauxbatons chasers as he looked for the snitch. It created enough of a distraction to allow Roger to score the first goal of the game for Hogwarts.
Lilly followed it with a wonderful steal on the inbound. She relayed the quaffle quickly to Malcolm who tied the game up. But after that the tide quickly tilted back for Beauxbatons. Confusion on a play call from Malcolm led to another Beauxbatons break away. This time they scored easily.
Harry focused on finding the snitch as quickly as he could. When it suited his location on the field he helped out the chasers as much as he could, but Bourdais was playing exceptionally well in the hoops for Beauxbatons.
Thankfully, Fleet was also playing well, as the Beauxbatons team was getting an incredible amount of chances. Harry realized quickly that they weren't playing nearly the defense that they had against Durmstrang. Part of the problem, Harry noticed, was that George looked afraid to hit the bludger at anyone. His shots were all a few feet off, and the Beauxbatons team noticed it. They constantly attacked the area of the pitch he was defending.
Davies scored another goal for Hogwarts to tie it up, but it didn't matter. Beauxbatons had found their weakness and they exploited it. Before Harry even had time to react he noticed that the scoreboard near the announcers booth read Beauxbatons: 60 Hogwarts 30. He watched as Roger got nicked by a bludger on the arm, and Lilly dove out of the way to avoid another. It led to a turnover, though. Thankfully Fleet saved the shot.
Harry saw that the two chasers weren't ready to join back into the play, though, he darted over toward the official and called time out. He joined the other players near the bench in time to hear Roger speaking to George.
"Come on man. You have to be better out there. Get your head in the game. I know yesterday sucked. But it wasn't your fault. We need you!" the captain said to George. Unfortunately, George remained completely passive. He muttered things like 'I know' and 'alright' but Harry could tell he didn't want to be playing. Fred was trying to help his brother as well, but it didn't appear to be working. Harry looked toward the bench. Only one other player didn't look shell-shocked like the rest of the team. In fact, he looked as focused
"Screw it, Roger. Titus, replace George for the rest of the game. George, you're still the starter, but that accident yesterday was hell. Sit this one out, we'll get you the rematch against Durmstrang." Harry spoke as firmly as he could. Titus stood and grabbed his broom and bat, looking toward the captain. Fred looked like he wanted to argue with him, but George just shook his head and sat next to Ginny on the bench. Roger nodded a bit to Harry. The official stopped by to tell them their time out was up. They kicked off as a group as play resumed.
"Well, we're back to the action now," Bagman announced. "It looks like Titus Button is replacing George Weasley at beater. That's obviously an attempt to bolster their defense. Interestingly, it looks like Potter made the call on the substitution. We'll see how that pays off for them.
"Looks like its starting off well. Button completely broke that play up with a well placed bludger. Hogwarts recovers it. Another well placed bludger, this time from Weasley, distracts Bourdais and Davies scores!"
Harry felt relieved the second the quaffle went through the hoops. He went back to focusing on the snitch and ignoring everything else. Sinclair seemed perfectly content to follow him by then. He paid little attention to her. If she made a rapid move he'd consider adjusting, but, unlike the previous match, this time he was confident he could out fly the opposing seeker.
The Hogwarts team started to mount a comeback. But Beauxbatons managed to stay a couple of goals ahead at nearly all times. Harry took a moment to see how Titus and Fred paired up as beaters. It was certainly a downgrade from Fred and George when they were both in top form, the teamwork just wasn't there. The two seemed to have decided to defend their own zone as best they could. They appeared to have little interaction with eachother. But the Beauxbatons team was getting fewer shots, so Harry decided it was a plus.
He kept flying. Searching for any sign of the magical golden ball that would seal the win. Finally, he saw it. Unfortunately, it was speeding straight toward him. But he knew it would be out of his reach. He just hoped Sinclair wouldn't spot it. If she did, she'd have nearly the perfect line to it from following him. He banked away from it, hoping that the French seeker would take the bait. She did.
He pulled the broom as hard as he could the other way, knowing that Sinclair could probably maneuver easier than he in the tight space, but he wasn't going to put himself into a position where he needed to completely outmaneuver her. He placed himself where he thought the snitch was going, and forced the Lotus to full speed. Sure enough, he ran it down quickly, and had a large gap over Sinclair. It tried to cut away from him, but he anticipated the move and blocked it. Again it tried to cut back and resume, but Harry caught up with it and a simple swipe of his arm ended the match.
"Potter has the snitch!" Bagman yelled over the cheering fans. Harry circled up and around toward the center of the pitch where he met his teammates as Bagman continued to shout. "Hogwarts wins 240-120. Hogwarts will face Durmstrang in the final match of the year!" Harry was swarmed by his teammates. Everyone hugged him at least once.
When they finally let him breathe he looked through the crowd. His eyes found Fleur quickly. She was smiling at him despite her friends looking rather upset about the outcome. Next he saw Daphne, who sat next to Tracey and cheered enthusiastically. Finally, his eyes found Ron and Hermione, both of them cheered for him as well. But perhaps most telling was Viktor Krum, still setting next to Hermione. He wasn't cheering or clapping, instead he was simply staring at Harry, with a smile on his face. Harry could tell he wasn't the only one excited for the rematch.
Author's Note: Not much to say about this chapter really. It sets up what everyone already knew would happen, with the final quidditch match. And, it only took them like six months, but Harry and Fleur are finally almost sort of a couple. More on that next chapter.
There's all sorts of things I want to say about reviewer comments on Daphne/Fleur, but I think I'll hold off on that until Fleur's character appears as more of a main force. It comes back to the reason why Lilly's role was significantly reduced from the original plan. I always knew that the other girl would be far more appealing for a large chunk of the story. Hopefully, by the end, everyone likes Fleur just as much. But we'll see.
I did, as referenced in the last chapter, write the first chapter of a different fanfic. However, due to site errors, I can only upload new content via use of different hyperlinks, and cannot create new content. Otherwise, I'd have posted that already. Oh well. It'll be up when the site is fixed. Until then, I need to think of a better title for it.
Next chapter will probably be a tad shorter than the previous few installments. I have less planned for it than I usually do per chapter. But that's subject to change based on whatever I think of while writing.
Other than that, thanks for all the reviews on the last chapter, I appreciate them all. As always, the best way of contacting me with any questions or comments is through PM. I hope you enjoy the update and have a happy racing season, as both major series start on Sunday!