Chapter 13: Pre-match build-up...
On Friday evening, after another torturous potions lesson ended, the Durmstrang Quidditch team arrived with a substantial following. Despite Marcus's attempts to make a sharp exit back to the common room the four were soon embroiled in what was rapidly becoming a war of words between the schools. Hermionie made a quick exit to the girls toilets to avoid the testosterone being flung around by the guys, and also to avoid Viktor Krum.
"So, Greenstone, you got selected... Should be a walk over if you're in the Hogwarts team..." Krum began. Harry had almost forgotten that Marcus knew them all.
"Yeah, we'll walk over you!" Ron responded on Marcus's behalf.
"Don't even get me started on you Weasel." Krum spat the words at Ron.
"You better watch it Viktor, you'll only be left picking the crumbs from his feet by the end of the game!" Harry turned to see who the new voice belonged to. To his shock he saw Draco Malfoy. He whispered to him as Krum composed a response.
"What are you doing here?"
"Loyalty to Slytherin comes second only to loyalty to Hogwarts..." He said quietly. "In this case at least." Harry was confused, but glad that Malfoy wouldn't be helping Krum.
Krum and his band of followers seemed ready for a fight, and were fast going about getting one when Professor McGonagall entered the scene.
"What's going on here?" She began. "You should all be in the great hall, run along now..." Shooting death glares at each other the party made it's way to the hall, under the watchful eye of Professor McGonagall. Hermionie had caught up by this time, and she managed to avoid Krum for long enough to talk to Marcus about him.
"...So you see it's all in his head, I don't love him, and..." She was finishing what must have been a speech that lasted a full five minutes. Marcus finally broke in...
"Herm, I know about what happened with you and Viktor... And I also know it's in the past. You don't need to worry, I trust you completely." He sounded reassuring and calm, so Hermionie breathed a huge sigh of relief. "I just hope he realises it's in the past as well." With those words Hermionie tensed up again.
"I can't just go and tell him that I'm dating you now... He'd be devastated..."
"There is another way..." Marcus said, with a suspicious look on his face which suggested that he had developed some kind of plan in his head.
"Yes..." She answered tentatively.
"Well, he won't think that you still have feelings for him if he sees you with me, right?"
"Right..."
"So he just has to see us having some "desert", if you know what I mean..." Marcus seemed playful, and also seemed to think that the plan was perfect...
"Very convenient for you..." She responded quickly, with Marcus moving closer to her and saying, almost before she had finished...
"Very..." Giving her a little kiss as they rounded the corner and entered the hall... Harry looked back for Viktor, who seemed to be lagging to far behind to see them...
"Hate to burst your little bubble, but he's too far behind to see..." Harry told them...
"A little practice never hurt anyone..." Marcus responded as they walked to the Gryffindor table and sat down.
Later in the meal, Ron noticed Viktor taking an unusually large amount of interest in their little gang. As if on cue, Hermionie leaned across and kissed Marcus for a few seconds, almost laughing as she did. A few minutes later, Marcus excused himself to go to the bathroom. As he expected, Krum followed him. As they went out of earshot of the hall, and around a corner Krum called out...
"Greenstone..."
"Viktor..." Marcus's response was one which suggested that he was happy to see Krum, despite Krum's own call being full of resentment.
"What are you doing with Herm-own-ninni?" Marcus noted that Viktor still couldn't pronounce her name...
"Hermionie? She and I are dating..." Marcus decided to go for the straight to the point honest method... Viktor moved closer, and Marcus noticed Ron, Harry, Cho and Hermionie poking their heads around the corner.
"She is with me..." He stated as if Hermionie was his property.
"Well, last time I checked, which was only five minutes ago as I remember, she was not only with me, but thought you had missed the boat..."
"What boat?" Viktor hadn't mastered figures of speech, obviously.
"It's an expression, Vick. It means you missed your chance..."
"Herm-own-ninny loves me. She told me so herself. You will not see her..."
"Stop me!" Marcus asked, anticipating Viktor's response and bracing himself. This was obviously a wise move, as Viktor proved to have a powerful left hook. Marcus fell to the ground, and Harry had to hold Hermionie back from going to tend to him.
"That was a bad move Vick." Marcus said, getting up again. "There are very strict rules about fighting at Hogwarts."
"It does not matter. Hogwarts rules do not apply to me. I do not study here."
"Shame. It'd be fun to watch Harry beat you to the Snitch on a weekly basis." The on-lookers smiled, but Marcus got floored again. He got up quicker this time, eager to carry on the argument... "Really Viktor, two free punches and I still feel nothing. You temper hasn't improved since last we met."
"You are a traitor to Durmstrang." Krum announced.
"Really?"
"You dishonour Herm-own-ninny and yourself."
"That's what this is really about, isn't it Vick. Because I dared to go against you, twice... Well why don't we settle it, right here, right now?"
The on-lookers smiled, but soon felt a huge sense of concern for Marcus. He may have been a good beater, but he didn't seem like he could do much in a fight...
"Not now..." Viktor said. "We must finish the feast."
"Very well..." Marcus replied. "Sunday then... 3 o'clock, in the field outside "The Three Broomsticks"... Sound fair?"
"Fine..." Viktor looked at Marcus with an obvious hate. Marcus made a small motion to Harry and the others, who sprinted back to the hall, and Marcus himself started to walk past Viktor, whispering to him as he passed him.
"Be there, friend..."
Viktor elected not to respond, and took another route back to the hall.
In the Gryffindor common room later, it seemed like the whole house was listening to Harry and Ron recite the story, with Marcus and Hermionie sitting with each other, laughing when Harry exaggerated too much. When it got to the part where Viktor threw punches (five, according to Harry) Hermionie called out "My hero!" and gave Marcus another kiss. Ron seemed particularly impressed by the part where Marcus joked about Harry and the Snitch. Harry only hoped that he could make good Marcus's boasts about his talent...
Needless to say, the house was brimming with excitement over the match. So much so, in fact, that nobody got more than two hours of sleep that night.
The morning was a beautiful sight to greet the players, but most didn't notice, intrigued by the gift that had appeared, courtesy of O-Mail, on the end of Ron's bed...
Harry, being the first awake, was the first to notice... He immediately woke Ron and together they read the message, addressed to Ron, Harry, Marcus and Hermionie...
Dear Ron, Harry, Marcus and Hermionie,
I heard about the Quidditch team from Harry, and I decided that Ron could use a little extra help in the game... You've all got your work cut out for you today, but I know you'll do great... There may be some more good news on the horizon, but I can't give anything away yet... Keep well, and good luck for the game...
Your friend,
Black Dog
PS To Harry, Marcus and Hermionie - I hope you like the gifts I'm sending to you before this evening... They'll be on your beds after the match...
Ron literally tore through the wrappings of the package, and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the contents... A Nimbus 2002... He almost fainted... The 2002 wasn't quite as good as a Firebolt, but it was a hell of a lot better than the old piece of wood he'd been practising on...
"Ron, wow!" Marcus had woken up due to the excitement being shouted about from Ron.
"Man, Padfoot sent you a Nimbus... I thought he'd just give you his old thing..." Harry started. Obviously he had told Sirius about Ron's old broom.
"Harry, you're the best..." Was all Ron could manage... He went down to breakfast nearly ecstatic, and for the first time in a while, he completely forgot about Hermionie...
After breakfast, the entire team assembled in the dressing room for the Hogwarts team. It had been decided the week before that they would meet at exactly noon, giving themselves two hours to mentally prepare. As it turned out, they sat in near perfect silence for an hour and a half, with fifteen minutes spent talking tactics in the middle...
Fifteen minutes to go... Madam Hooch came and announced. Then as was anticipated, Dumbledore came in... At Hogwarts, it was not usual to stand when a teacher entered, or indeed when Dumbledore entered, but it showed the tension and apprehension that every member of the team stood to attention as Dumbledore spoke...
"As you know, this Quidditch match marks the beginning of a new era in the School Quidditch level. Hogwarts has always prided itself on producing excellent players, and it is now your chance to show the Wizarding World what you can do... So be proud, be honourable, and be courageous. This is your game... Make it your victory..." He spoke with a compassion, yet a driving force into the hearts of every player. After he had finished, he didn't wait. He turned, left, and shut the door behind him. Thirty seconds later he heard loud, fired up yelling from the room. Lions ready to face any opponent... Dumbledore smiled, and remembered the same enthusiasm in himself when he was playing... Madam Hooch peered around the door.
"It's time..."
On Friday evening, after another torturous potions lesson ended, the Durmstrang Quidditch team arrived with a substantial following. Despite Marcus's attempts to make a sharp exit back to the common room the four were soon embroiled in what was rapidly becoming a war of words between the schools. Hermionie made a quick exit to the girls toilets to avoid the testosterone being flung around by the guys, and also to avoid Viktor Krum.
"So, Greenstone, you got selected... Should be a walk over if you're in the Hogwarts team..." Krum began. Harry had almost forgotten that Marcus knew them all.
"Yeah, we'll walk over you!" Ron responded on Marcus's behalf.
"Don't even get me started on you Weasel." Krum spat the words at Ron.
"You better watch it Viktor, you'll only be left picking the crumbs from his feet by the end of the game!" Harry turned to see who the new voice belonged to. To his shock he saw Draco Malfoy. He whispered to him as Krum composed a response.
"What are you doing here?"
"Loyalty to Slytherin comes second only to loyalty to Hogwarts..." He said quietly. "In this case at least." Harry was confused, but glad that Malfoy wouldn't be helping Krum.
Krum and his band of followers seemed ready for a fight, and were fast going about getting one when Professor McGonagall entered the scene.
"What's going on here?" She began. "You should all be in the great hall, run along now..." Shooting death glares at each other the party made it's way to the hall, under the watchful eye of Professor McGonagall. Hermionie had caught up by this time, and she managed to avoid Krum for long enough to talk to Marcus about him.
"...So you see it's all in his head, I don't love him, and..." She was finishing what must have been a speech that lasted a full five minutes. Marcus finally broke in...
"Herm, I know about what happened with you and Viktor... And I also know it's in the past. You don't need to worry, I trust you completely." He sounded reassuring and calm, so Hermionie breathed a huge sigh of relief. "I just hope he realises it's in the past as well." With those words Hermionie tensed up again.
"I can't just go and tell him that I'm dating you now... He'd be devastated..."
"There is another way..." Marcus said, with a suspicious look on his face which suggested that he had developed some kind of plan in his head.
"Yes..." She answered tentatively.
"Well, he won't think that you still have feelings for him if he sees you with me, right?"
"Right..."
"So he just has to see us having some "desert", if you know what I mean..." Marcus seemed playful, and also seemed to think that the plan was perfect...
"Very convenient for you..." She responded quickly, with Marcus moving closer to her and saying, almost before she had finished...
"Very..." Giving her a little kiss as they rounded the corner and entered the hall... Harry looked back for Viktor, who seemed to be lagging to far behind to see them...
"Hate to burst your little bubble, but he's too far behind to see..." Harry told them...
"A little practice never hurt anyone..." Marcus responded as they walked to the Gryffindor table and sat down.
Later in the meal, Ron noticed Viktor taking an unusually large amount of interest in their little gang. As if on cue, Hermionie leaned across and kissed Marcus for a few seconds, almost laughing as she did. A few minutes later, Marcus excused himself to go to the bathroom. As he expected, Krum followed him. As they went out of earshot of the hall, and around a corner Krum called out...
"Greenstone..."
"Viktor..." Marcus's response was one which suggested that he was happy to see Krum, despite Krum's own call being full of resentment.
"What are you doing with Herm-own-ninni?" Marcus noted that Viktor still couldn't pronounce her name...
"Hermionie? She and I are dating..." Marcus decided to go for the straight to the point honest method... Viktor moved closer, and Marcus noticed Ron, Harry, Cho and Hermionie poking their heads around the corner.
"She is with me..." He stated as if Hermionie was his property.
"Well, last time I checked, which was only five minutes ago as I remember, she was not only with me, but thought you had missed the boat..."
"What boat?" Viktor hadn't mastered figures of speech, obviously.
"It's an expression, Vick. It means you missed your chance..."
"Herm-own-ninny loves me. She told me so herself. You will not see her..."
"Stop me!" Marcus asked, anticipating Viktor's response and bracing himself. This was obviously a wise move, as Viktor proved to have a powerful left hook. Marcus fell to the ground, and Harry had to hold Hermionie back from going to tend to him.
"That was a bad move Vick." Marcus said, getting up again. "There are very strict rules about fighting at Hogwarts."
"It does not matter. Hogwarts rules do not apply to me. I do not study here."
"Shame. It'd be fun to watch Harry beat you to the Snitch on a weekly basis." The on-lookers smiled, but Marcus got floored again. He got up quicker this time, eager to carry on the argument... "Really Viktor, two free punches and I still feel nothing. You temper hasn't improved since last we met."
"You are a traitor to Durmstrang." Krum announced.
"Really?"
"You dishonour Herm-own-ninny and yourself."
"That's what this is really about, isn't it Vick. Because I dared to go against you, twice... Well why don't we settle it, right here, right now?"
The on-lookers smiled, but soon felt a huge sense of concern for Marcus. He may have been a good beater, but he didn't seem like he could do much in a fight...
"Not now..." Viktor said. "We must finish the feast."
"Very well..." Marcus replied. "Sunday then... 3 o'clock, in the field outside "The Three Broomsticks"... Sound fair?"
"Fine..." Viktor looked at Marcus with an obvious hate. Marcus made a small motion to Harry and the others, who sprinted back to the hall, and Marcus himself started to walk past Viktor, whispering to him as he passed him.
"Be there, friend..."
Viktor elected not to respond, and took another route back to the hall.
In the Gryffindor common room later, it seemed like the whole house was listening to Harry and Ron recite the story, with Marcus and Hermionie sitting with each other, laughing when Harry exaggerated too much. When it got to the part where Viktor threw punches (five, according to Harry) Hermionie called out "My hero!" and gave Marcus another kiss. Ron seemed particularly impressed by the part where Marcus joked about Harry and the Snitch. Harry only hoped that he could make good Marcus's boasts about his talent...
Needless to say, the house was brimming with excitement over the match. So much so, in fact, that nobody got more than two hours of sleep that night.
The morning was a beautiful sight to greet the players, but most didn't notice, intrigued by the gift that had appeared, courtesy of O-Mail, on the end of Ron's bed...
Harry, being the first awake, was the first to notice... He immediately woke Ron and together they read the message, addressed to Ron, Harry, Marcus and Hermionie...
Dear Ron, Harry, Marcus and Hermionie,
I heard about the Quidditch team from Harry, and I decided that Ron could use a little extra help in the game... You've all got your work cut out for you today, but I know you'll do great... There may be some more good news on the horizon, but I can't give anything away yet... Keep well, and good luck for the game...
Your friend,
Black Dog
PS To Harry, Marcus and Hermionie - I hope you like the gifts I'm sending to you before this evening... They'll be on your beds after the match...
Ron literally tore through the wrappings of the package, and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw the contents... A Nimbus 2002... He almost fainted... The 2002 wasn't quite as good as a Firebolt, but it was a hell of a lot better than the old piece of wood he'd been practising on...
"Ron, wow!" Marcus had woken up due to the excitement being shouted about from Ron.
"Man, Padfoot sent you a Nimbus... I thought he'd just give you his old thing..." Harry started. Obviously he had told Sirius about Ron's old broom.
"Harry, you're the best..." Was all Ron could manage... He went down to breakfast nearly ecstatic, and for the first time in a while, he completely forgot about Hermionie...
After breakfast, the entire team assembled in the dressing room for the Hogwarts team. It had been decided the week before that they would meet at exactly noon, giving themselves two hours to mentally prepare. As it turned out, they sat in near perfect silence for an hour and a half, with fifteen minutes spent talking tactics in the middle...
Fifteen minutes to go... Madam Hooch came and announced. Then as was anticipated, Dumbledore came in... At Hogwarts, it was not usual to stand when a teacher entered, or indeed when Dumbledore entered, but it showed the tension and apprehension that every member of the team stood to attention as Dumbledore spoke...
"As you know, this Quidditch match marks the beginning of a new era in the School Quidditch level. Hogwarts has always prided itself on producing excellent players, and it is now your chance to show the Wizarding World what you can do... So be proud, be honourable, and be courageous. This is your game... Make it your victory..." He spoke with a compassion, yet a driving force into the hearts of every player. After he had finished, he didn't wait. He turned, left, and shut the door behind him. Thirty seconds later he heard loud, fired up yelling from the room. Lions ready to face any opponent... Dumbledore smiled, and remembered the same enthusiasm in himself when he was playing... Madam Hooch peered around the door.
"It's time..."
