Harry sat in the stands with his face in his hands, watching the match through his fingers.
It was the worst Harpies deficit in at least three seasons: 30 – 180. The Keeper, Mountcastle, took a Bludger to the head about four minutes in. One of the Beaters was stationed near the Harpies' goalposts but that wasn't going well. Dismally, really. Harry watched as one of the Tornadoes Chasers used a Finbourgh Flick to officially put the game out of reach. As the Quaffle soared past the Beater's outstretched bat, Ron shouted,
"Now you're just showing off, you bloody tosser!"
30 – 190.
Ginny forced open the top button of her shift to reveal the thermal underneath. In a slight fit of rage, she pulled her broom up and soared a good ten metres up in the air. Harry frowned because that wasn't like her at all. She was aggressive on the pitch, sure, but never really showed her frustration in that way. Ron was turning purple in the face, but Dean Thomas, sitting to Harry's left, was unbothered. He shrugged and said,
"I've got a good feeling about this one."
Ron asked, "Are you a Seer, now?"
"'Course not," teased Dean. "But I've known Ginny long enough to say that she'd hit her own Seeker in the face with a Beater's bat to keep her from catching the Snitch until they are within 140."
Harry nodded and conceded, "Fair."
Ginny flew back down to the action with her shift buttoned and jersey pulled up over everything, tucked into the neck of her thermal. Dean frowned and admitted,
"Not sure what sort of fashion statement she's making."
Over the wind, they could just make out Ginny shouting the words,
"DO IT NOW!"
Just as one of the Tornadoes' Chasers was about to sling the Quaffle through the goal yet again, van Ravensway popped out of nowhere to intercept it. Ginny pumped her fist and zoomed forward to intercept a Bludger with the back end of her broom. She rocked back and forth, but instead of steadying herself on the handle, her hand went up toward her neck.
Harry couldn't hide his smile. His girlfriend was brilliant and mad and fucking amazing. She always seemed to have a way to turn a loss into a win. Harry glanced at the Tornadoes' Seeker, whose eyes were still darting about for the Snitch. He found himself mumbling,
"God, I love her."
Ginny sped forward, forcing the opposing Chasers out of the way and clearing a path for van Ravensway. Ginny darted to one side, forcing the Keeper to leave the right hoop wide open. Van Ravensway threw the Quaffle through the hoop with ease.
40 - 190
They all clapped, but the energy throughout the VIP box was still rather melancholy. If the Harpies lost this badly to the Tornadoes, the rest of their season would be a laughingstock. Harry watched the Tornadoes' Keeper throw the ball to the nearest Chaser. Ginny and van Ravensway shared one silent glance before rushing to slam into either side of the Chaser.
"Body blow," mumbled Ron. "Nice."
The Chaser tried to hold on, but van Ravensway rammed her shoulder into his arm just as Ginny spun around to whack him in the face with her broom's bristles. In all the confusion, the Chaser dropped the Quaffle … And the third Harpies Chaser, Knighten, was there fifteen feet below to catch it. Ginny sped upward toward the Seeker just as Knighten flew toward the goalposts.
"What is she doing?" asked Ron.
Harry revealed, "She's pulling a Plumpton."
"What?"
Harry watched the realization dawn in Ron's eyes. He grinned.
"No way! That's bloody brilliant."
They all stood up and began pounding on the banister in front of them. Shouts of,
"GO, GO, GO!"
Rang out as Knighten nearly outpaced van Ravensway on their path to the goal. Just as the Keeper flew to block the throw he believed was coming, Knighten feinted and tossed the Quaffle back to van Ravensway who threw it into the hoop with ease.
50 – 190.
Every head swiveled to look up at Ginny just in time to see her pull the jersey out of her neck and open the top two buttons of her shift. The Snitch popped out and the Harpies' Seeker grabbed it before it had the chance to fly off. All at once, the entire stadium went mad. Dean wrapped and arm around Harry's shoulders and pumped his other fist in the air. The VIP box couldn't get enough of it. There was screaming and jumping and singing … Ron was somehow doing all three at once.
200 – 190.
The captain of the Tornadoes was in deep discussion with the referee, but Harry could barely take his eyes off Ginny. This match was such a great encapsulation of who she was. A team player with an innovative spirit, always there to make things happen but never stepping on anyone's toes to take credit. Athletic. Hot. Hilarious. Everything Harry could ever imagine, and somehow so much more.
The referee announced, "The Tornadoes have challenged the win on grounds that the Plumpton Pass is grounds for Snitchnipping. Upon review, the Snitch never touched Chaser Weasley's skin. Challenge denied. Winner: Harpies."
Harry felt like his heart might jump out of his chest. He hadn't seen a comeback this amazing in years. And only Ginny could've done it. Harry stood on top of his chair and shouted,
"YES! THAT'S MY FUCKING GIRLFRIEND!"
As if she heard him, Ginny sped over to the VIP box on her broom. She hovered right at the edge, looking every bit as satisfied as Harry felt. He jumped off the chair and leaned against the banister. There was a sheen of sweat lining Ginny's hairline, with wisps stuck to either side of her face. She was breathing a bit heavily, still processing the excitement. He looked into her eyes and said,
"Hey, Weasley."
"Hey, Potter." Her eyes were twinkling with something more than adrenaline. "I wanted to win this match more than I've ever wanted to win any match I've ever played."
Harry raised his eyebrows and half-shouted, "Why?!"
Ginny floated there on her broom, right in front of him, and grinned. She glanced over at Dean and winked.
"Because I said that if we won, I'd finally do something I've wanted to do for a long time."
Ginny unlaced her left glove and Harry wondered,
"Did you hide another Snitch in there?"
"Better."
Ginny pulled out a gold ring then tossed her glove onto the floor of the VIP box. The entire world stopped turning. Harry knew the entire stadium was looking at him. Not at Ginny, at him. How could one of the best Chasers in the game ask Harry Potter to marry her? He couldn't breathe, his heart stopped beating, it felt like his brain might explode.
"One day many, many years from now, I'm not going to be able to play Quidditch anymore. The only person who has ever made me feel as good as winning a match, as amazing as I feel right now, is you. Everything is better when I'm doing it with you. So, I figured, life is going to be better with you, too."
The words tumbled out of Harry's mouth.
"Oh my God. Holy shit. Is this happening?"
"Only if you want it to."
What was happening? How was this happening? Ginny's eyes were full of all the confidence Harry didn't feel in himself. Was he worthy of this? Being her boyfriend was great, but husband? Could he really be good enough for that? For Ginny? Harry winced as Ron elbowed him in the side. Then Ginny made the official ask.
"Harry James Potter, will you marry me?"
Harry nodded and managed to say, "Yeah. Yeah, I think that sounds like a good idea."
"HELL, YES!"
Harry didn't know if it was Dean or Ron who shouted it, but they crushed him in a hug. Harry couldn't stop smiling. Ginny shouted,
"Oi, boys! BOYS! Are you gonna snog him for me, too?"
Dean and Ron stepped back. Ginny tugged Harry forward by the collar of his jumper, just enough so he was leaning over the banister, and kissed him. The entire stadium erupted in cheers. When Harry pulled back the slightest bit, he saw even the Tornadoes' players were clapping. Ginny was smiling as wide as Harry had ever seen.
"I love you," she said.
Harry kissed her once more, a chaste kiss that lingered. An unspoken promise for more to come later that evening. He shook his head and said,
"You're the coolest person I know, Weasley."
She laughed and replied, "For the rest of your life, Potter."
"I'm counting on it."