AN: Many thanks to my great beta readers Verlor and udm 17! And there are some references to the FIFA video games in this chapter. Have fun!
Chapter 4 – First Match
Finally: The Quidditch Season Is Starting Once More!
By Boris Chamberlain
The moment we have all been waiting for so long has come: The new Quidditch season is finally upon us! When the first whistle sounds and the first Quaffle is thrown, new stars will rise, new teams will captivate, new stadiums will rock, new challenges will emerge, new battles will be fought. In the name of glory, in the name of honor, in the name of Quidditch, the game we love so much! Finally, our lives will have meaning again!
From outside, the patter of hundreds, maybe even thousands of feet reached them, and every step sent Harry's heart racing. However, he knew that his nervousness was nothing compared to Daphne's, who was sitting next to him on the wooden bench in the locker room, staring at the floor with a pale gray face.
"Are you all right?" Harry asked carefully.
Daphne nodded slightly but said nothing.
Before Harry could reply, the loud voice of their captain Davik Berg suddenly rang out. "Okay, guys," he said, and all the eyes in the locker room turned to him. "This is it. The first match of the season. I know Puddlemere finished fifth last year and we ... well, we didn't. I also would've liked to have a different opponent for our starting match, but it is how it is. It doesn't matter. I know we trained really hard, we progressed a lot ... and Harry and Daphne turned out to be great players too, so ... so let's just go out there and do our best. Good luck everyone!"
"Hear ye, hear ye!" shouted Jeremy and Jon, while Harry stared at his teammates in disbelief. The Cannons' mentality was even worse than he had previously feared. With such an attitude, it was no wonder they lost almost every match. Were they Hufflepuffs or what?
They grabbed their brooms and stepped outside, where they were greeted by a bright, smiling sun, and a grumpy-looking Coach Meyers. Together, they walked in single file towards the Cannons Stadium, which consisted of essentially two crooked stands on opposite sides of the field.
Thunderous noise enveloped them, which grew even louder when the Cannons fans saw them. Harry could make out Ron and Hermione among the crowd, jumping up and down in their seats and waving euphorically at him. Smiling, Harry waved back at them. There were probably more of his friends in the audience, but he couldn't see them in the sea of orange and blue. The other Weasleys were sure to be at Ginny's debut, which Harry couldn't blame them for.
"And here comes the home team," came the booming voice of the commentator. "Coach Meyers trusts his core team from last season, supplemented by the two newcomers Daphne Greengrass, Chaser, and of course our shining hero Harry Potter, Seeker. Captain and Keeper Davik Berg leads the team onto the field, followed by Beaters Joey Jenkins and Jeremy Gottwald as well as Sophie May and Jon Doyle, who complete the Chaser trio. The players are greeted by a sold-out, cheering stadium and countless listeners at home, who…"
In the middle of the field, the Puddlemere United players in their navy-blue robes emblazoned with two crossed golden bulrushes were waiting for them, and a big grin spread on Harry's face as he recognized his friend and former captain Oliver Wood, who had become Puddlemere's regular Keeper.
"Harry!" said Oliver with a laugh while slapping him on his shoulder. "I would wish you good luck, but ... well, that won't work."
"All right, Oliver," Harry replied. "Have a good match – and a hefty defeat!"
The two captains shook hands before the players mounted their brooms, looking expectantly at the referee. He opened a large wooden box and four balls immediately shot into the air: the scarlet Quaffle, the two black Bludgers, and the tiny, winged Snitch, which disappeared after just a few seconds in the bright blue sky. Then a shrill sound rang out from the referee's silver whistle, and fifteen brooms rose into the air, higher and higher, with Harry going above them all, looking for the Snitch.
"And the players race upwards," the commentator shouted amid the cheers of the spectators. "Immediately Puddlemere takes possession of the Quaffle, Rice throws to Mave, Mave to Smith, Smith throws back – No! Jon Doyle intercepts, Quaffle now with the Cannons, Doyle shoots towards the goals, pass on Greengrasss and – no, Greengrass drops the Quaffle! Quaffle back at Mave, the game goes the other way again; too bad, that could have been a promising move for the Cannons…"
Tensely, Harry watched the game unfolding beneath him.
"Mave, Smith, Mave again, Rice – damn, they are fast; the Cannons can't keep up – and Gottwald misses the Bludger – now it's just Berg in front of the goals, he's stretching out and – GOOOAAAL for Puddlemere United! The guests lead 0:10!"
A horrible groan came from the Cannons fans as the Puddlemere supporters cheered.
"Cannons in possession again, Berg throws to May, May to Doyle, Doyle to Greengrass, who starts to accelerate; Smith tries to cut her way, but he's too slow, Greengrass has the field in front of her and – Ouch! That must have hurt! A Bludger hits her right in the chest – good shot from Ricardo, but Greengrass should have seen it ... Quaffle now at Puddlemere, who stay true to their favorite approach the first few minutes of the match – and this offence also looks promising, Gottwald and Jenkins misjudge and hit each other instead of the Bludger, Mave can fly unhindered, May and Greengrass far too far away ... Mave in front of Berg – but there comes Rice! Mave on Rice and – storybook play! Rice tosses the Quaffle through the uncovered left ring! 0:20 for Puddlemere United!"
Harry cursed. They had really messed up the start – but twenty to zero was nothing you couldn't catch up with! There was still time and he could catch the Snitch. He let his gaze glide over the field, looking for any sign of the Snitch, a golden shimmer, a waft of air, anything, but so far nothing. Meanwhile, the mess continued. After another fifteen minutes, Puddlemere was leading by seventy-ten. Sophie had scored their only goal so far, which surprised her so much that she almost crashed into one of the stands afterwards.
Daphne in particular was not playing a good game. Harry wondered what was wrong with her. In training, she had always been so focused, and now she lined up mistakes after mistakes. But then Jon and Sophie suddenly released her, and she appeared in a promising position in front of Oliver...
"That must be it!" shouted the commentator, and the whole stadium held its breath. "Greengrass raises her arm, she throws and – oh ... I don't want to exaggerate, but she missed the target by miles. Terrible throw from Greengrass. With such plays, you usually send your coach to nuthouse – and indeed, Coach Meyers wildly waves his arms in Greengrass' direction. If she doesn't pull herself together soon, he'll probably replace her ... and rightly so, I must say! Even my grandma would've made that goal ... and she's ninety-seven and thinks she's the Grand Duchess of Russia!"
Damn bastard! Harry had to pull himself together not to crash into the speaker's cubicle on purpose like Ginny in their sixth year.
Worried, he looked at Daphne, who was sitting motionless on her broom, her head drooping and her blond hair covering her face like a veil – but then suddenly a jolt went through her body. She slammed her fist through the air before yanking her broom around and chasing behind Adam Rice like a woman possessed, who was heading for the Cannons' goal rings with the Quaffle.
"...predictable match so far," said the commentator meanwhile. "If Potter doesn't catch the Snitch soon, it will be the Cannons' seventh consecutive opening defeat. As if he has all the time in the world, Rice approaches the rings – all that's missing is the Cannons players applauding politely – but wait! What's this? Has she gone crazy?! Greengrass comes from behind at full speed – damn, how fast is she? – and ... oh! She rams Rice with her shoulder, he drops the Quaffle, it falls and Greengrass follows – like a falcon pouncing on its prey – and yes! She catches the Quaffle just before hitting the ground, and immediately she shoots up again – what an unbelievable move!"
Harry raised his fist in triumph as Daphne shot through the air like an orange flash, Jon and Sophie following as fast as they could.
"Greengrass with the Quaffle," shouted the commentator. The stadium shook. "Past Mave, past Smith – Bludger! No, she dodges and chases on across the field, now pass to May, May to Doyle, Doyle back to Greengrass, she dodges another fast Bludger - there are the goals; Wood circles around his rings like a mother dragon, Greengrass throws – No! Feint! Wood dives in the wrong direction, Greengrass throws and – GOOAAAL! GOOAAAL! Greengrass scores for the Chudley Cannons for the first time. Only 20:70 now. What happened there?!"
The Cannons fans erupted in cheers, from the Puddlemere supporters came loud howling ... and Harry flew somersaults in the air.
As if that second goal had flipped a switch in them, the Cannons suddenly played easily and carefree. It was as if a completely different team had put on their orange robes and stepped onto the field instead. Suddenly their moves worked, passes were caught, Bludgers hurled at the opposing players instead of each other ... and then the Cannons were seemingly matching Puddlemere in the number of goals shots.
After half an hour it was 90:120 and Daphne had scored another six goals.
"What a brilliant Chaser this Greengrass girl is," the commentator was shouting as Harry flew past her. They smiled at each other, and he opened his mouth – but then the moment was gone, and Daphne continued towards the goals. "And again, Greengrass at breakneck speed, quick pass to Doyle, pass back, Greengrass now has free rein..."
However, all of a sudden, the commentator in Harry's head fell silent, for on the other side of the field, a good two hundred meters away, he had spotted a bright flicker. Immediately he leaned forward and, filled with sudden excitement, shot toward the Snitch. That was not long hidden from the opposing Seeker, who also raced from the side, but he was too slow. Harry was faster – and in front of him, he could already see the small, fluttering ball ... only three meters, two...
Harry took his hand off the broom, stretched as long as he could – and grabbed it in a flash; he felt his fingers clench around the cold Snitch.
"Unbelievable!" the voice of the commentator suddenly descended upon him, along with the overwhelming cheers of the Cannons fans. "Just as Greengrass scores another goal for the Cannons, Harry Potter catches the Snitch! The Chudley Cannons win the match! And the fans are in each other's arms! What a magical afternoon!"
A feeling of overwhelming joy filled Harry as he bound towards the ground with the bucking Snitch high in his raised hand, along with his jubilant teammates. On the ground, Daphne hugged him tight, tears of joy in her eyes. And then, the fans ran on the pitch, leading the rowdy bunch Ron, who also hugged him without any restraint.
"I knew it!" shouted Ron. "You'll make us champions, Harry! Yes! Yes! Yes!"
All afternoon and late into the night, they celebrated their surprising victory as if they had already won the championship. And when Harry returned to Grimmauld Place late at night, he and Ginny continued the celebrations in their own way.
Life was good.
Next Chapter: The Gift of Eris
Release Date: Sunday, June 27th, 2021
Preview:
Harry took a long sip while looking at Ginny, who was already deep in conversation with the other two women. Just then, Fleur raised her head and looked in his direction, her brow furrowed.
"I guess I haven't been very smart," he muttered softly.
Ron looked at him carefully. "What did you do?"
