CHAPTER 15: QUIDDITCH

Harry decided to get a head start on Quidditch practice. He wanted to start holding practices early, so that his team would have an advantage in the House Cup. Harry also decided to use his Invisibility Cloak and scope out the other teams. He would attend some of their practices, observe their strengths and weaknesses.

Harry announced to his teammates that there would be a practice the very day he found out he was captain. Of course, Malfoy had heard the news that Harry was the new Gryffindor captain, and had to "congratulate" him.

Malfoy approached Harry immediately after breakfast.

"Hello, Potter, or -" Malfoy chuckled. "Or should I say, 'John McMalton.'"

"What ever are you talking about, Malfoy?" Harry donned an innocent expression.

Malfoy guffawed. "Honestly, Potter, you can be soooo immature. Anyway, I came over to congratulate you on becoming Quidditch captain. In fact…" Malfoy sneered. "I am the new Slytherin captain!"

Harry laughed. "You? A leader? Ha!" He pointed at Malfoy and said with ferocity, "You're only the new captain because your father paid your way onto the team in the first place, and now he's given even more galleons to make you captain!"

Malfoy narrowed his eyes viciously. "And you're only captain of the Gryffindor team because you're famous. That old bat McGonagall just wants people to be amazed by -" Malfoy twisted his face into a horrid mess and pronounced in a mocking, high-pitched voice, "The wonderful Harry Potter! The amazing Harry Potter! The-" Malfoy began to sound precisely like Hermione Granger, "The oh-so-adorable, enthrallingly beautiful dream-boat, Harry Potter." Malfoy returned to his normal self, which was, unfortunately, equally as disgusting. "So there." There was an awkward pause. "Well…" Malfoy shifted uncomfortably.

Harry blinked several times. His face was emotionless. Then Harry pivoted on one foot, and, fuming internally with anger, walked calmly away. He heard Malfoy 'tsk' in repugnance behind him, but he continued to his first class.

After dinner that evening, Harry assembled his Quidditch broom, but noticed something new at the foot of his bed. It was a box. On the top of the box was a small card, upon which the following was scrawled in messy letters:

Dear Harry~

I know I said I would give you your birthday gift earlier in the year (when you first arrived) but as you can see, it is now two weeks into the school year and you have yet to receive it. You have been good and patient, and you've of course been your usual valiant self. (I know about everything that's happened, Harry. J ) I wanted to wait until you found out you were the Quidditch captain to give these to you. I hope you shall find them useful. Enjoy. Happy (extremely) belated birthday.

~ Sirius ~

Harry smiled. Sirius was always so sly about giving Harry gifts. His very Firebolt broom had been an anonymous gift that Harry had later found out was a gift of Sirius'. To be perfectly honest, Harry had forgotten all about his belated birthday gift. He had been too engrossed in everything else that had happened. Still, it was considerate of Sirius to remember.

Harry gently unclasped the metal hooks that locked the case. He lifted the lid tenderly. Then, Harry stared in awe at his beautiful gifts. The four standard Quidditch balls (a red marble Quaffle, two granite Bludgers, and most importantly, the Golden Snitch) lay magnificently in the wooden case.

The balls were strapped in firmly to avoid flying out of the case. The Quaffle, large and crimson, lay beside the two shiny, heavy Bludgers and the tiny, superlative Golden Snitch, which Harry could tell was made from solid gold.

"Thanks, Sirius." Harry whispered, though he knew Sirius couldn't hear him.

Harry doted over the beautiful balls until he realized that he, the very captain of the team, was going to be late for practice.

Harry closed the case and scooped up his broom. He thought of running to practice but then had a better idea. Harry stared out the window and grinned.

He grabbed his knapsack and placed the case with the Quidditch balls in it. Then he swung the knapsack around his back.

Harry mounted his broom, and instead of running to practice, flew.

Harry was a very fast flyer, being a Seeker, and therefore arrived at practice at around the same time as everyone else began to turn up at the Quidditch field.

Harry was dismayed to find that he was not the only Quidditch captain hoping to hold practice. Standing before him, with his Slytherin team, was Draco Malfoy.

"Ah, we meet again, Mr. - uh - McMalton." Malfoy mocked. The rest of the rather tall and robust Slytherin team, gathered menacingly behind him, shared a hearty laugh. Harry assumed Malfoy had told them all about the John McMalton incident. Harry shifted uncomfortably.

"Er - look, Malfoy, I've scheduled practice here." Harry stared at the ground.

"As have I, Potter." Malfoy frowned. "Oh, but I've an idea! How about a scrimmage game. Slytherin vs. Gryffindor." Malfoy grinned crookedly.

Harry pursed his lips and considered the offer. "I don't know, Malfoy, we haven't even practiced yet… my keeper, he's brand-new. He's never even played Quidditch before."

"Yes, I have!" Colin Creevey piped up from behind Harry. "I've played before. Just not on the Gryffindor team." He smiled from ear to ear.

Harry sighed. "All right, then… let's play, I suppose. Wait! We need a referee."

"Oh, well that's easy." Without another word, Malfoy kicked off the ground and flew off.

Harry stared after him, confused. He turned back around and faced the Slytherin team, who looked equally as puzzled.

"Hey!" Colin nearly yelled. "Where's he going?!"

Harry sighed. It was going to be a long season if Colin was involved.

Angelina whispered, "Hey, Harry!" She beckoned to Harry, who flew slowly towards her.

"What's with Colin?" Angelina looked annoyed. "He - he told me I was pretty."

"Well, you are!" Harry smiled kindly.

"Oh, come off it, Harry. He's a fourth-year. Do you honestly think I'd return his affections?" Angelina giggled.

Harry glanced over to Colin. He was zipping around on his broom. But what was worse, Colin was whooping and hollering like a cowboy as if there were no tomorrow.

Harry shook his head. Angelina raised an eyebrow. The two looked at each other and laughed.

Just then, Malfoy returned with Madam Hooch. Malfoy smirked at Harry as he flew triumphantly up upon his Nimbus 2002 broom. Harry noticed that the entire Slytherin team boasted Nimbus 2002's.

"Harry, Draco tells me there's a disagreement over who gets to use this field? He says you asked for me to settle the dispute?" Madam Hooch looked annoyed, as if Malfoy had taken her away from important business.

Harry furrowed his brows angrily at Malfoy. "I didn't ask for you, Madam Hooch…" He looked at the professor and said quickly, "Though, I am glad you're here. Perhaps you'd be interested in refereeing a little scrimmage game? Slytherin and Gryffindor. It'll give you a sneak peek on the season…" Harry grinned hopefully at Madam Hooch.

"What a splendid idea, Harry!" Madam Hooch said, elated. Her mood lightened considerably.

Malfoy mumbled, "It was my idea…" but Madam Hooch didn't hear him.

"Oh, but I've got to go back and get a set of balls…" Madam Hooch prepared to fly off again but Harry stopped her.

"No need, Madam Hooch. I've only just received these as a gift." Harry extracted the set of balls from his backpack. He unclasped the latches and displayed the set to his team and Madam Hooch, as the Slytherin team craned their necks to catch a glimpse.

"Ooh… Harry, they're lovely!" Madam Hooch said in awe.

"Aahh!! They're not even chipped or anything!" Colin declared.

"Where'd you get them, Harry?" Katie Bell inquired.

"Oh, um… nowhere… just a birthday gift." Harry was reluctant to say that he had received his most expensive gift ever from a teacher at Hogwart's who just happened to be his godfather.

"Well, it's getting dark, so let's get started." Malfoy seemed immensely jealous of Harry and his wonderful Quidditch ball set.

"Shake hands, then, captains," Madam Hooch ordered.

Harry took Malfoy's hand as though it were a nasty bit of rubbish. Malfoy limply returned to handshake, a disgusted scowl upon his face. He retracted his hand. Then Malfoy said,

"I've got quite a seeker this year, Potter," He declared, staring at Colin Creevey in antipathy. "Which is more than you can say." He kicked of the ground spitefully as the rest of the Slytherin team prepared for a vicious Quidditch match.

Madam Hooch released the balls from the case and Harry rose up to Malfoy's level. He awaited the familiar sound of the whistle. Harry could feel Malfoy's eyes boring into him like fire. He knew Malfoy was bitter from the Hermione incident as well as the encounter in the hallways, but Harry was ready for a fierce game, even if it was only a scrimmage.

Harry heard the familiar phrase from the bottom of the court coming from Madam Hooch,

"Now, let's play fair." She was about to place her whistle in her mouth when she stopped and said, "It's just a scrimmage game after all." She blared her whistle and the game began.

Harry watched with pride as Angelina got the Quaffle. She raced along on her broom, towards the Slytherin seeker. She hurled the Quaffle at the goal with a loud grunt. The Slytherin seeker attempted to get to the hoop in time, but he was too late. Angelina scored, making the score 10-0, Gryffindor lead. Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet flew over to give Angelina a high-five. Angelina scored twice more, Alicia Spinnet scored two times in all, and Katie Bell scored once. The score was 60-10. The outlook looked good. If only Harry could find the Snitch…

Harry heard Malfoy curse in frustration several times throughout the game. Slytherin had scored only once. Colin Creevey had really surprised Harry by deflecting over 19 attempts at goals. His eyes gleamed with determination, and Harry was very satisfied with his team. He kept an eye out for the Snitch, but saw nothing.

Harry's head began to hurt. At first it was simply minor discomfort, but as time went on, the burning grew to immense pain in his scar. Harry wondered if Voldemort was near…

Suddenly, Harry saw a bludger being heaved towards his head. Just in time, George Weasley darted in the bludger's path and deflected it. Harry gave him an appreciative nod.

A cheeky Slytherin chaser had the Quaffle. Harry really hated this chaser in particular; he had run into Angelina purposefully several times all through the game. Abruptly, the chaser changed his path, and threw the Quaffle towards the goal. Colin tried his hardest to get into the route of the ball in time, but he simply couldn't. The Slytherins had scored.

Malfoy cheered. As Harry stared at him, a gleam caught Harry's eye. The Golden Snitch hovered directly behind Malfoy. Malfoy was cheering so furiously for the goal that he was oblivious to the Snitch. He flew over to his team to congratulate them. Harry took advantage of the situation.

As soon as Malfoy flew off, Harry moved in. He seized the Snitch and held it triumphantly above his head. Harry made a nose-dive down to Madam Hooch and showed her the Snitch.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle.

"Since capturing the Golden Snitch is worth 150 points to the team who does so, and Harry Potter has succeeded in this task, the game is over and Gryffindor wins with a score of 210-20."

The Gryffindors erupted in cheers. The celebration lasted for quite some time. The Slytherins sulked. Even though it was just a scrimmage game, the Gryffindor team knew that they would have an advantage going into the season. Harry approached Colin.

"Good show, chum!" Harry smiled genuinely, patting Colin on the back. Colin beamed.

"Th-thank you, Harry! It was so exciting!" Colin was very excited.

"Yes, yes, it was." Harry laughed merrily. He and his teammates returned to the Hogwart's castle. Before Harry fell asleep that night, he decided to check his book for any new clues.

Harry, still grinning, gently opened the cover of his book. He flipped the pages until he saw the nearest blank page. The image showed the scrimmage game. Harry wrinkled his eyebrows in confusion. He watched as the game went on, then something caught his attention.

A small, shrouded figure stood in the stands of the Quidditch field. Harry hadn't noticed him during the game, but now recognized him to be none other than Voldemort himself. Harry was worried, but not necessarily surprised. But he couldn't help wondering why Voldemort had been at the game…

************************************************************************

*********************************

The next morning at breakfast, when Harry walked into the Great Hall, the entire school was fighting. The Slytherins were yelling at the Gryffindors for winning the scrimmage game, accusing the Quidditch team of having cheated their way to victory. The Gryffindors were screaming back that they simply had more talent on their team, and that they were going to win the house cup this year. The Ravenclaws were shouting at the Hufflepuffs, who shrieked back at them.

In the middle of the action were Malfoy and Hermione. The Gryffindors were, of course, backing up Hermione. Malfoy was supported by the Slytherins.

Harry sighed in frustration. Was this all over the scrimmage game, or had that occurrence merely pushed everyone over the edge? In any case, the culmination of fury was disastrous.

Harry folded his arms and prepared for a rude comment as he saw Cho Chang approaching him.

"Hi, Harry." Cho looked sad. Harry looked confused. That certainly was not the greeting he expected.

"Hello…" Harry said slowly.

"Isn't this terrible? I always hoped we could all be friends." Cho donned a disappointed look about her.

"Yes. It is terrible. Er- Cho? Can I get back to you? Looks like trouble…" Harry rushed over to Hermione, who had pulled out her wand.

"All right, Granger, you Mudblood. We'll settle this right now." Malfoy narrowed his eyes at Hermione, who was preparing to duel.

"No, Hermione!" Harry grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her away.

"Stay out of this, Potter, it's personal." Malfoy shouted.

"I know! And I'm going to make sure it stays that way." Harry turned to Hermione. "Look, you can't do this. You'll get in trouble." He stared at the expectant crowd, who were all awaiting a wizard's duel. Before Harry could say another word, however, a booming voice filled the hall.

"YOU WILL ALL RETURN TO YOUR SEATS IMMEDIATELY!"

Silence fell. Professor Dumbledore's eyes were filled with rage as he commanded order in the hall.

Everyone sat down without a word.

"What is the meaning of this?" Professor Dumbledore hissed angrily. "I will not tolerate this in my school." He sighed and held his face in his hand. "I suppose there is only one thing to do…" He looked up. "I hereby declare that if there are any more disturbances, the House Cup will be cancelled without further warning. Now, everyone, please, sit down, relax, and eat. And, I beg of you, do not fight anymore…" As the Professor sat down, he mumbled, "Never in my days…"

************************************

The weeks dragged on. Gryffindor won its first games against Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff, and the season looked good. As Halloween approached, and talk about the Halloween Ball spread throughout the hallways like wildfire, Harry grew more and more anxious. The news about the Ball was that it was a turnabout. The girl had to ask the boy to the dance, instead of the traditional other way around.

Harry wondered if Hermione would ask him to the dance. Madeline had already asked Ron, who had earnestly said yes.

One day, in the hallways of the school, Harry was approached by Hermione at last. She looked nervous, and, prompted by Madeline, she slowly walked towards Harry. She cleared her throat.

"Er- Harry… as you are perfectly aware, I am sure, the Halloween Ball is fast approaching, and, as it is the rule that the girl must ask the boy to the dance, and I certainly would like to attend, and… er… Would you like to go with me?" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Of course, Hermione!" Harry breathed a sigh of relief, as did Hermione.

"Thank you!" She squealed, as she and Madeline walked off, giggling.

Harry smiled as he turned. Just then, he heard a voice behind him.

"Harry?"

Harry whirled around. Standing behind him was Cho Chang, and she was smiling.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go to the Halloween Ball with me." She grinned.

Harry's smile dropped from his face. A Ravenclaw asking him to the dance?! Harry stopped himself. He was beginning to sound like Ron, who had come to hate all Slytherins and Ravenclaws. But this was Cho Chang, Harry's crush only the previous year. But there was Hermione, Harry's crush this year…

"I'm very sorry, Cho, but I'm going with someone else." Harry smiled the tiniest smile and looked at the ground.

"Hermione?" Cho demanded. "I thought as much… fine then… you'll see why-" Cho stopped. She sauntered away without another word.

Harry bit his lip. He was confused. What was going to happen? What was Cho going to do? Could anything else possibly go wrong? Why did every good day in the school year so far have to be spoiled by something horrible? Harry groaned as he walked to class. He was no longer looking forward to the Halloween Ball. He wasn't particularly looking forward to anything.

**************************************************************************************************