Chapter 5: Quidditch Tryouts

Chapter 5: Quidditch Tryouts

"Welcome, class. My name is…" he paused a moment, writing his name on the board with a deeply scarred hand, "Professor…Moody… There. It's not a hard name to spell or say, so I expect you to use it when addressing me, rather than my seemingly famous moniker."

The whole class was silent, just staring at the many scars that etched his face, his grizzled mane of gray hair, or the large blue eye in constant movement that had given him the nickname 'Mad-eye'.

"Well, I see a few of you remember my, er, likeness from two years ago. I assure you, I don't truly act like that. Most of the time." His normal eye fell on Harry, "Don't look so pale, Mr. Potter. I promise I won't try to kill you."

A few people laughed weakly.

"So, you're all here to learn about using magic in the home, I assume. Or to get girls." He smiled and though it caused many of his scars to look deeper, there was something reassuring about it.

"This, unlike some of your other classes, is a course that you will use almost every day of your adult life. Some witches and wizards have had to resort to common muggle methods because they didn't learn these simple spells. Not a good idea, considering most have little knowledge of the workings of an oven. Believe me, taking this class is a lot better than making your house a raging inferno."

Most of the class gave a little laugh this time. By the end of the lesson, nearly all of the class was comfortable around Moody and memories of two years ago gradually began to fade.

"That wasn't too bad," Harry commented as they left the classroom and headed for Gryffindor tower.

"Yeah, it might actually be fun," Hermione smiled, "I must say, though, it was kind of weird to see Moody without him roaring 'CONSTANT VIGILANCE!'"

"I wonder how different he is from the other Moody," said Ron, putting on a dreamy sort of smile, "I wouldn't mind seeing Malfoy the amazing bouncing ferret again."

"I'm actually starting to wonder if we'll ever see Malfoy again."

"With double Potions tomorrow," Harry said glumly, "we'll probably see too much of him."

But to the trio's great surprise, Draco wasn't there at the beginning of Potions. Despite his constant feud with him, Harry was actually getting worried. He kept expecting Draco to walk in late, but to no avail.

"Individual potions today," Snape said in his usual sour mood, "We'll see what you remember from last year."

Harry quickly got to work, his memory surprisingly fresh. He had just removed the cauldron from the fire, preparing it for the vial, when he heard a small plop.

"Wha…?" he said faintly, peering into the liquid contents of the cauldron.

Big mistake. With a loud POOF! the cauldron spewed an enormous amount of black smoke into Harry's face. He stood up sharply, coughing. His bangs had been blown back and were standing straight up from his face, which now looked extremely dirty, and he couldn't see because of all the soot that had layered on his glasses.

"Potter!" Snape yelled, storming over to him, "What did you do?!"

"Nothing, Professor," he managed to splutter, cleaning his glasses on his robes, "I heard a small splash and…"

Snape stuck a spoon in the potion, and brought out a small circular object that Harry recognized as a wet-lighting smoke bomb from Zonko's Joke Shop.

"Your own practical joke backfire on you, Potter?"

"No, sir, I-"

"Ten points from Gryffindor for the attempt."

"But, Professor-!"

"Be quiet while you're ahead, Potter. It should have been more, but your display was most entertaining."

All the Slytherins chuckled to themselves, along with most of the Gryffindors. Harry could see Ron and Hermione were trying hard not to laugh.

"Can I at least wash-"

"No, you may not. Wash up on your own time."

Harry went back to his potion, a little angry but more amused. He had to admit, it wasn't too bad of a joke. Who had pulled it was the only thing he wanted to know. He glanced around, hoping to see someone who could have done it, but no one stood out.

He sighed, pulling out a vial. Suddenly, from behind him, he heard a quiet, mocking laugh; a very familiar laugh. He spun around quickly. Paravati was the only one he saw. She waved at him gleefully, and he quickly turned back to his potion.

Class finished without any more interruptions and Harry told Ron and Hermione to head off to lunch without him. He had to find a sink.

"You look like a raccoon, Potter," a voice whispered behind him.

Harry turned quickly around, but no one was there. He waited a moment, very confused, then headed off for the bathroom. He may have imagined it, but as he left, he thought he heard someone laughing.

****

Weeks passed uneventfully, much to Harry's relief. Quidditch try-outs for Gryffindor were going to be held that night. Harry was hoping Ron would be good enough to play, because he didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. It was all he thought of while eating breakfast.

"I'm gonna head back to the dormitory," Harry told Ron and Hermione as he got up from the Gryffindor table, "I need to grab a few things."

He had walked no more than fifteen steps when he was intercepted by Paravati Patil.

"Hello, Harry," she said in a voice that oozed with false coyness.

"Er, hey, Paravati."

"I simply love your new haircut," Paravati cooed.

"Uh…I didn't get a new haircut."

"Really? No matter. So, we're taking 'Magic in the Home' together. What do you think of the class?"

"Pretty good…I guess."

Harry was trying to edge his way around her, but Paravati knew only too well how to prevent a boy from leaving.

"I can't believe that that man is teaching it. He really ought not be allowed, don't you think?"

"Well, I-"

"Harry!" Azar called, rushing over to them.

She stopped a moment, catching her breath, then went on. "I'm so glad I found you! You gotta come quick! It's important!"

"What's important?" he asked, furrowing his brows.

Harry saw Azar ever so slightly roll her eyes. "Uh…I'm not sure. But, uh…that person needs to see you right away!"

"Oh… Oh! That person. Well, I really need to go, Paravati. Been a pleasure talking to you."

Azar snatched his hand and they both ran out of the Great Hall, leaving an extremely wide-eyed and slack-jawed Paravati. When they got into the Entrance Hall, they looked at each other and burst out laughing.

" 'That person needs to see you'?" Harry chuckled, "Boy, you are creative, Azar."

"Ah, what can I say? It's a gift," she smiled back, "Besides, I needed to do something to get you out of her clutches. You looked about as happy as a mouse cornered by a sleeping cat."

"Er…interesting analogy."

"A bit…annoying, isn't she?"

"What? No, of course not. One of my most adorable fans," Harry said, putting on his best Lockhart accent.

"Oh yes. Well, I've got to go to my dormitory. See you in Defense, Harry."

"'Bye, Azar."

Grinning, Harry walked to the Gryffindor tower, the knot that had been writhing in his stomach all day having disappeared.

"Okay, quiet down!" Harry called over the small crowd of quidditch team hopefuls, "Now, everyone has a number, right?"

The dozens of heads bobbed in agreement.

"Okay, good. Now this is how we're going to go about this. We'll call three chasers and two beaters up at a time. Chasers, all you have to do is try and score on our keeper, Jamison Knight. Beaters, see those targets?"

Harry gestured at a seven bull's-eyes suspended in midair around the field.

"Those represent the opposing team. Not only must you protect your three chasers, but you must try to hit one of the targets in doing so. Everyone understand?"

Again, the heads bobbed.

"Okay. Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet will be judging you from the ground. Jamison will judge from his position as keeper and I'll be the aerial judge. Right. Okay, the first team is chasers, numbers 1, 4, and 7; beaters, numbers 2 and 3. Mount your brooms. We're off on my whistle."

Harry gave Ron, wearing the number seven, a quick thumbs-up and then they were off. Ron wasn't that bad, but Harry knew he'd have to be better than that to beat the competition.

The try-outs went by pretty slow, but soon enough they were on the last team.

"Okay," Harry said, glad it was almost over, "last team. Chasers, numbers 21, 23, and 24; beaters, numbers 22 and 25."

Harry didn't know the three chasers, but Neville was one of the beaters, along with…Hermione?! Harry gave her an astonished look, but she simply grinned back. Shaking his head, Harry blew the whistle.

Neville's attempt was a bit of a joke, but Hermione more than made up for his inability. Harry was astounded by her accuracy, and not a single player was hit with a bludger. Apparently he wasn't the only one who noticed, because nearly all of the other players clapped for her when she finally dismounted her broom.

"Where did you learn to fly like that?" Harry asked her before heading for the judges' table.

"I got some…personal training," she said, blushing with pleasure.

Harry wanted to ask her more, but Katie was calling him over. The judges discussed quietly while all those that tried-out talked nervously amongst themselves. It wasn't long before they had their decision.

"Attention, everyone!" Harry called, causing instant silence, "I'd first like to thank you all for trying out. You all did wonderfully, but sadly we only have three spaces to fill. I hope there won't be any bad feelings and that all of you will try-out again next year."

"Hey, Harry!" someone called out, "We'd like to know before the season starts!"

A small laugh went through the crowd and Harry smiled. "Well, okay then. Our new beaters are Hermione Granger and Tyron Thatcher!"

A cheer came up from the crowd as the two stepped forward. Hermione blushed happily and Tyron, a fourth year, was ecstatic.

"And our new chaser," Harry went on, "is…Bella Arroz!"

The fifth year girl stepped forward to the Gryffindors joyous shouts, her dark brown eyes shining. Harry glanced at Ron, who looked very putout.

"Okay, you three," Harry said, a little glumly, "practices start on Monday the week after next. Be there at seven. Team dismissed!"

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were the last to leave the field.

"I'm sorry, Ron. There was only one chaser space to fill and…Bella was just the best," Harry said, feeling uncomfortable, "But you'll definitely be on the team next year. Hey, why don't you be a reserve? You never know when we'll need you, and you could come to practices."

"Yeah, that sounds great," Ron said, though his smile was forced.

They walked on a little longer before Harry turned to Hermione. "What did you mean by 'personal training', Hermione? Don't tell me you visited Krum over the summer!"

"What? No!" Hermione laughed, "I spent much of the summer at Ron's house, actually. I never really had a chance at flying over the summer before, so that was fun. Then one day I was trying to show Ron, Fred, and George how to play cricket. My family loves cricket. At one family reunion, my mum even scored a century."

"A what?" Ron asked.

"A century. One hundred runs, remember? You should have seen those three trying to play, Harry. I almost couldn't bowl I was laughing so hard. Well, when I had batted a couple scores, Fred and George wanted to see me do it on a broom. So we flew around a bit, and one would throw the ball at me and I'd bat it. Apparently they were impressed."

"And with good reason," Ron grinned, "She didn't let a single ball hit the ground."

Hermione smiled with pleasure. "Well, after that, Fred and George kind of took me under their wings and showed me the finer points of being a beater. They said I was a natural for it."

"Well, you sure seem like it," Harry said.

They hadn't even reached the double doors when Hedwig landed on Harry's shoulder. On her foot was tied a note and long, thin package. Harry quickly took it off, stroking Hedwig's neck.

"It's from Sirius!"

Ron and Hermione looked over Harry's shoulders and read:

Harry-

How's my favorite godson? I hope Hogwarts is as fun as ever and you're enjoying your second year as Prefect. I never congratulated you on that, so I've enclosed a little something for you. It could come in handy. Enjoy! Oh, and you might be seeing a bit more of me. I won't say more.

-Sirius

P.S. How's Professor Connerly doing?

"Huh?" Hermione looked puzzled, "Why does he want to know how Professor Connerly is doing?"

"Well, he is human, Hermione," Ron grinned, "Open the package, Harry."

Harry quickly ripped off the paper. Inside was a navy blue velvet box, like one that would hold an expensive bracelet. He opened that up with a snap.

"A quill and ink well?"

"Oh, I have one of those!" Hermione said eagerly, pointing at the paper on the box lid.

It read:

The Perfect Prefect's Quill

Specially designed for the over-achiever, the Perfect Prefect's Quill is handy for your prefect duties. Simply fill your Quill with the Special Prefect Ink provided and put the Quill in your school bag, along with some paper. If ever you see a school rule broken, the Quill will automatically write down the name of the person who did the infraction along with the appropriate amount of points to take from his or her house. The Perfect Prefect's Quill remembers all, so you won't have to!

Harry and Ron looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Write him back!" Ron laughed, "Say 'thank you so much for the wonderful gift. I'm sure I'll use it wisely.'"

"What's so funny?" Hermione huffed, "It's a very handy quill."

"Oh, of course," Ron said, "Especially for an 'over-achiever' like Harry."

They had just reached the portrait of the Fat Lady when it burst open and out tumbled Neville. He spotted the trio and went pale.

"Ah, oh…er, uh…um… Hi, guys!"

"Hello, Neville," Hermione said, giving him a quizzical look, "Where are you going this late?"

"Oh…ah, er…the library."

"The library?"

"Er…yeah. There's a…book that I-I need to get. Well, bye then."

Before they could say anything, he rushed off down the hall.

"I have a feeling he's hiding something," Hermione said as they climbed into the common room.

"No, really? I would have never thought."

"Oh, come off it, Ron."

They grabbed a couple of seats around the fire, talking late into the night. Hermione headed off to bed, soon followed by Ron.

"Coming, Harry?"

"No, I think I'm going to wait for Neville. I want to find out what's going on."

"Good night, then."

"'Night, Ron."

Harry stood up, looking around. He was the only one in the common room, except for Dean's little sister who had fallen asleep on a long couch. He paced the room a bit but soon sat down on the couch. He might as well be comfortable while waiting for Neville. After all, how long could Neville possibly be?

Harry felt himself coming slowly out of sleep. For some reason, he heard giggles from all around. Groggily, he opened his eyes to find a group of Gryffindors grinning down at him. Confused, he moved to stand up, but found something weighing him down. He looked down and saw a head of black hair on his chest.

"Ahhh!" he yelled, giving a large jump.

"Ahhh!" Sarah Thomas screamed, sitting up abruptly.

The two looked at each other with wide eyes and exchanged quite a number of screams. The Gryffindors around them were literally rolling with laughter.

"What are you doing here?! You weren't here when I fell asleep!" Sarah cried.

"I fell asleep on the couch! What were you doing sleeping on me?!"

"I move around in my sleep!"

"I think you've traumatized my poor little sister, Harry," Dean said, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Anyone seen Neville?" Harry asked, standing up.

"He's asleep in our dormitory. Why?"

"I'm finding out once and for all what this is all about!"

Harry stomped up the staircase, followed by an extremely confused Dean.

~*~*~

A/N: And that's the end of that chapter…

I hope you guys aren't too angry with my teacher. I hadn't even thought of Snape when quite a few of you suggested him. I mulled it over in my mind a while, then decided Snape would be too busy with teaching Potions and spying. So I went with my gut. Well, actually, not with my gut but my second thought. I first wanted Krum to be the teacher, but the more I thought of Moody, the more I liked it. Anyways…

I didn't put Ron on the quidditch team because everyone else does that. I know I may get a few flames for that…

I won't do personal 'thank you's this time (though I must say Low Zhen Lin's cracked me up. ^_^) Just thank you all for your reviews!

And I definitely wouldn't mind more reviews… ::hint, hint::

Be excellent to each other.

-Ady