I know that some people are getting tired of chapters focused on Quidditch, so I won't blame you if you decide to skip this chapter. This chapter and the next one are the last Quidditch chapters for the third year. Though there are also elements about something else than Quidditch.

And for those who enjoy those chapters, well, enjoy them!


CHO VIII

He evaded her. Again.

Her attempt to cut his trajectory had failed. By now, Harry had clearly gotten used to her tactic and found several countermeasures, sometimes on Cho's very advice. He could foresee her blocking attempts and change his trajectory to avoid her as a consequence. Shouts of joy and frustration were heard from both sides of the stadium as the crowd watched their exhibition match.

"And Roger Davies scores! Gryffindor only leads by thirty points now! 130-100!"

The voice in the megaphone was different, more feminine than usual. A girl from Hufflepuff whose name Cho didn't recall made the comments today, though Lee Jordan was as present as ever, and he reminded his presence to everyone an instant later when he blew his whistle.

"Penalty to Gryffindor! Bludger sent towards their Keeper!"

"JORDAN!" Oliver Wood screamed as Cho flew close to him. "Stop favoring us! Madam Hooch will not do so in two days."

Cho burst into laughs, and she saw that most players, and even some people in the crowd were doing the same.

"Well, you heard captain Wood. No penalty to Gryffindor," the commentator declared, which brought several cheers from the students who attended the game. Cho saw that Harry, not far ahead of her, was laughing hard as well.

They were Thursday evening, two days before the game between Gryffindor and Slytherin, and they were playing their last exhibition match before the final duel. Two weeks ago, Cedric and Oliver Wood had agreed to have their respective teams train together, to enhance the practices of the Gryffindor team before the final game of the season. The evening following the first common practice of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, Cedric had gone to see Roger and suggested that the Ravenclaws could participate to the training sessions as well. After Roger discussed it with Cho and her other teammates, they agreed to the idea, and the teams of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff started training together. Over the first week of their arrangement, they drew the attention of many people in their respective houses, and even from the Slytherin players. As a result, and under the suggestion of some students, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff played an exhibition game, with a referee, a commentator and even an audience on Saturday, a whole week before their game against Slytherin. Cho had watched this game, where the Gryffindors took their revenge and defeated the Hufflepuffs.

People had then suggested that Ravenclaw and Gryffindor would play an exhibition game as well. It had taken place on the following Tuesday, and Cho had managed to catch the Golden Snitch before Harry could, earning her a large amount of cheers and congratulations from her house's comrades and friends. Harry told her afterwards that Wood gave him quite a sermon after she beat him to the Snitch. He didn't seem to have minded though.

And today, two days later, the Gryffindor team was playing a game against a team that assembled players from both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Cho was chosen to be the Seeker of that team, Cedric declaring she was clearly the best Seeker of the two of them, which she proved by defeating Harry fairly and in normal conditions, something Cedric never succeeded in doing. Roger was nominated to be the captain of this mixed team, and added Heidi Macavoy from Hufflepuff and Randolph Burrow from Ravenclaw to his line of Chasers. The designated Beaters were Maxine O'Flaherty from Hufflepuff and Jason Samuels from Ravenclaw. As for the Keeper, they chose Grant Page, who recently showed that he could compete with Oliver Wood at this position. This latest choice did not please everybody, for it resulted that Hufflepuff only had two players out of seven, and many claimed the team should be better balanced between the two houses. However, Oliver, Roger, and even Cedric decided they would keep the team as it was. Their goal was to offer the Gryffindor team the best challenge, and to choose the best players from both teams to face them in preparation for their game against Slytherin. Cho had to admit that she agreed with them. Although Cedric made the Hufflepuff team way better this year, it was still weaker than Cho's team.

Despite the disagreements, the exhibitory games took place in good humor. After the first few goals, players stopped taking it very seriously. Cho herself wasn't looking for the Golden Snitch most of the time, and Harry wasn't either. However, they took great pleasure in performing figures where each of them tried to outsmart the others, to the crowd's enjoyment, who were still eager to see more of the performance of the Firebolt, while also enjoying to see Cho give a challenge to Harry. Despite him knowing her strategies better, she knew him better as well, and she managed to outsmart him two times over five attempts. As for the Chasers and the Beaters, they put up quite a show as well. Roger tried to score many goals from impossible angles. Heidi tried to jump from her broomstick whenever she also tried to score, and Randolph even tried, and succeeded, to score by batting the Quaffle with his broomstick's tail. The Weasley brothers showed their ability at exchanging a Bludger in various situations, and Maxine and Jason tried to imitate them, with very mixed results. The girls who played Chasers for Gryffindor multiplied acrobatic movements and passes of all styles, even putting the crowds to contribution. Cho witnessed a girl with red hair, who she thought was the sister of the Weasley twins, received the Quaffle from Angelina Johnson on the rows, then throwing it back to Alicia right before she scored another goal. As for Grant, he ended up trying all sorts of ways to send the Quaffle to his teammates. Oliver Wood raged again and again, saying they should be more serious in their way to play, that they had an important game upcoming, but almost no one followed his instructions or paid attention to him.

The game resumed, Roger recovering the Quaffle and making a pass to Heidi Macavoy. The Hufflepuff Chaser had to change her trajectory slightly to catch the Quaffle, and an instant later, the commentator loudly sighed in frustration.

"Ah, Alicia Spinnet recovers the Quaffle. Again!"

Cho understood what she meant. Many times since the game started, their team lost the Quaffle when Macavoy was involved, either by making the pass or receiving it. Cho didn't blame the Chaser too much. This wasn't a real match, and Heidi was playing with two Chasers from a different team who used different tactics from those she was used to. The girl still managed to score two goals since the beginning of the match. Despite this and her obvious talent, Heidi Macavoy was clearly not of the same level as Johnson, Spinnet and Bell, especially when the three Gryffindor Chasers played together.

"Katie Bell got the Quaffle…" the commentator was saying. "She avoids Davies… It seems like height, age and a captain badge are not everything at Quidditch, Roger." Cho shook her head. The commentator took a few opportunities to taunt Cho's fellow Ravenclaw teammates. These were probably remnants of resentment for Ravenclaw defeating Hufflepuff two weeks ago. It could also be explained by the fact that the commentator was a girl, and she was disposed to favor other girls on the pitch. "Bell avoids a Bludger… She is in front of the goalposts… And she scores!"

There were cheers in the crowd, and it was difficult to see who cheered and who didn't. The game was not official nor serious, so many students from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff cheered for the Gryffindor team when they scored as well. There were even people from Gryffindor in the attendance who applauded goals or nice plays from the Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw team, although Cho got the distinct impression they were fewer to do this. The game that kept approaching was far more serious to them.

Cho closed the distance between her and Harry. He had gone back to searching the Snitch. She looked closely at his position on his Firebolt. The crowd was on their left. It would have been likely for Harry to turn right eventually as they reached an extremity of the pitch. However, Cho had played so much against Harry and watched him play so often that she had become quite experimented in spotting the imperceptible movements he did right before changing directions. As a result, Cho flew on her left just in time, and when Harry abruptly turned in the same direction, hoping to fly away from her, he had to perform a barrel roll to avoid her. She had managed to block him… again. However, Harry had gotten used to her strategy, and his movements to avoid her had become much better. He accelerated and put additional distance between them, turning right and heading towards the scoring area of Cho's team. It was then that Cho realized the mistake she just did. Harry had fooled her.

The unmistakable glint was there, at the feet of the Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw goalposts. Harry had noticed the Snitch, and he was flying straight towards it.

Cho steered immediately towards the small golden ball. Her Comet was very maneuverable and could perform abrupt turns and changes of direction very well. It was almost as good as a Firebolt in that domain. However, in all other domains, whether it was maximum speed, acceleration, reactivity, and even stability, the Firebolt was better. Even when taking into account that Cho was lighter than Harry and of similar ability at flying, she knew before even heading towards the Snitch that it was a lost cause. Still, she gave everything she had. When Harry closed his right hand on the Golden Snitch, she was only a single foot away from him. Despite this, she raged loudly when it was confirmed she didn't catch the Snitch.

"Harry Potter caught the Snitch! Gryffindor wins!"

The crowd roared, and very soon, Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor team were gathering in a tight circle on the field, while Cho, smiling widely, flew towards the side of the pitch, where all the other players were gathering. Those players of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw who didn't participate to the game were waiting for them at this place, and they applauded them. Cho felt her cheeks redden a lot when her gaze crossed that of Cedric.

"Well played, everyone," Cedric said.

"A good match," Tamsin Applebee declared while patting Heidi's shoulder.

"Sorry I wasn't there," Jeremy said tauntingly. "I told you. You cannot win without me."

The Ravenclaw players laughed, and the Hufflepuffs followed as well. Far away, they could hear Oliver Wood, half complimenting, half admonishing his team.

"Well played, everyone. Tomorrow is our last practice before the match. I expect you to train seriously this time," he warned them.

However, very soon, the players of the three teams were mingling and discussing between them. Cho spent some time with Katie Bell, Heidi and Tamsin, but when she saw that Harry was leaving towards the changing rooms after he finished talking with Oliver and Cedric, Cho excused herself and rushed to him.

"Well played, Harry," she said. He stopped and turned to look at her. He always stopped whatever he was doing when she talked to him.

"Thank you. You played very well, you too," he told her.

"Thanks. But be careful with your left turns. You still make that movement with your shoulder before you turn left."

"Really? I thought I solved that."

"No. I still notice it. And you still have the habit of straightening right before you dive. It's almost imperceptible, but you still do it."

Harry sighed. "I'm lucky that Malfoy is not as observant as you."

She smiled. "Don't underestimate Malfoy, okay. I was able to block you on a Comet Two Sixty. He's got a Nimbus Two Thousand and One."

"I'm not underestimating Malfoy's broomstick. But I'm not going to overestimate the idiot who rides it."

Cho laughed. "Be serious, Harry. Malfoy is not so bad at flying." Or else she would not have lost against him in the autumn.

"Well, one thing is sure, he's not as good as you are." Cho blushed at the compliment. "I'm going to the changing rooms," Harry added quickly.

"I'm waiting for you at the exit," Cho told him.

She went quickly to change as well. During the last two weeks, she had spent a lot of time with Harry. In fact, she spent a lot of time with all the Quidditch players of Hogwarts. It was strange, and fun too, that Quidditch continued to occupy a central place in her daily life even after her season was over. The whole teams of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff participated to each and every training session of the Gryffindor team, and they had one each day. Over this time, Cho and Cedric had taken the habit to discuss with Harry on his flying techniques and the tactics he should adopt to face Draco Malfoy. This happened on the pitch during the practices, but also out of the pitch. Cho often accompanied Harry to the pitch or left it with him. Discussions were not very easy at the beginning. Even though Harry had assured her that he didn't hold her or her parents responsible for the incident with Pettigrew, she felt he was reluctant to speak with her at the beginning. She couldn't blame him. After the accident, he was really worried about his mother, who found herself at the center of the accident. Cho could imagine that he wanted to protect her. She was very close to her own parents and would do anything to defend them, so she could imagine that with only a mother, Harry might be even more protective of her. But it had gotten easier with time, and conversations between them were very fluent now.

There were only two changing rooms in the stadium. Matches only involved two teams after all, not three. As a result, the captains had agreed to make one room available to the boys, and the other one to the girls. Cho usually spoke with Katie Bell, who was in the same year as she was and with who she shared a few classes, but she quickly changed this time and headed out. She then had to get rid of her usual friends, including Marietta, in time to join Harry when he came out, his Firebolt on the shoulder. Cho still marvelled from time to time about the broomstick, despite seeing it on a regular basis for two weeks now. Harry said goodbye to a group of Gryffindors who were around him. The group in question followed him from not far away though, along with Cho's friends, resulting in an interesting mingling of students.

Cho spotted the boy with red hair, Harry's best friend, who as usual looked at her with hostility, something she gave him back without problems. This boy never appreciated her. She still heard him complaining about the fact she unfairly won the game against Gryffindor two years ago. Cho found him childish. It happened two years ago, and it wasn't her fault that Harry was at the infirmary back then. She even went to apologize to him while he was in the hospital wing back then. She would have liked to play against him. And given that the boy's little sister was the one who released the Basilisk last year that almost got Randolph killed, Cho thought that he ought to be making excuses, not the other way around. Cho had not tried to kill anybody, unlike Ginny Weasley, even if she was controlled by someone else. Common decency would require that she or her family apologize for what she did.

Still, she didn't think much about this issue as she and Harry walked to the castle. They discussed the fact that Malfoy was expected to use similar tactics to those of Cho. People who spied on the Slytherin practices reported that their Seeker was practicing blocking the trajectory of other players and tailing someone faster than him. Draco Malfoy and his teammates surely noticed how effective Cho's strategy had been against Harry, and they probably hoped that with a better broomstick, their own Seeker could succeed in winning over Harry.

Near the gates to the castle, they were met by two huge Slytherins. Cho recognized them. She saw them following Malfoy more than once. They were cracking their joints, but they barely had time to make a step forward that it seemed half the school was standing behind and in front of them, shielding both she and Harry from the two large boys. They ran away immediately, causing general laughter from everyone including herself and Harry.

"Okay, Harry. Let's escort you to our table," one of the boys of Gryffindor said, grabbing Harry by the arm. He quickly cast a look at Cho, who nodded understandingly. She walked into the castle after Harry and the group encircling him were in, reuniting with her own friends.

"I don't like these guys," one of her friends declared, obviously thinking about the Slytherins.

"Me neither. But let's go now. I'm famished," Cho said.

The Gryffindors had trained along with the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws before dinner. The Slytherins had the pitch right after them for the rest of the evening. One of their Beaters nudged Cho on his way out of the Great Hall. Many Slytherins were targeting Gryffindor players, but they didn't hesitate to target players of the other houses since they were helping Gryffindor this time.

Dinner went in a lively manner. Today's game had not been official, and everyone loved it. Plus, this time, even Ravenclaws had reasons to be happy that Gryffindor won, because that's what they wanted to happen against Slytherin in two days. Cho had very good conversations with her friends, and most turned around Quidditch. Almost all conversations turned around this topic lately. Everyone was on edge as the final match between Gryffindor and Slytherin was approaching. Incidents multiplied across the castle. A few students even found their way to the infirmary. While most clashes simply consisted in exchange of insults, mockeries, perhaps of fists in the air, some did deteriorate into physical accidents. They were often only nudges or crushed toes, but there were also tripping and even brawls, not to mention the curses and spells cast upon an opposite house. Most of these accidents involved Gryffindors and Slytherins, but Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were not spared since most of them officially supported Gryffindor in the upcoming game.

As a result, when the members of the Gryffindor team stood up at the end of dinner, all at the same time like always lately, Cho chose to follow Katie Bell. Most Gryffindor players were escorted wherever they went in the castle, although the one who got the best protection was Harry. He was probably surrounded by about twenty people, not only Gryffindors but also Hufflepuffs and a few Ravenclaws, most of them from the same year as he was. The Beaters of Gryffindor, the twins, also accompanied him. Cho thought he already had more than enough protection, so she followed the Chaser who was in the same year as she was.

"Sometimes, I wish this was already over and we could focus on our exams," Katie declared as Cho walked next to her.

"You would rather prepare for exams than play Quidditch?" she asked the Gryffindor girl. Cho couldn't imagine another Quidditch player preferring the first option.

"No. But it's the tension. To be honest, I'll be glad when all of this is over. Especially if we win."

The journey to the Gryffindor Tower was eventless. No Slytherin tried anything this time. Cho then went back to the tower of her own house, where she studied for some time with her friends. Then she went to bed.

The following morning, when Cho sat down for her breakfast, it was to hear Michael Corner, a third-year student, talking about another incident that happened yesterday.

"No one really knows what happened," Michael was saying, "but somehow they both ended up in the hospital wing with leeks growing from their ears. The Gryffindor was in fourth year, and the Slytherin in sixth year. That must have been funny to watch," he commented.

Cho looked towards the Slytherin table right at the moment when one of them made an obscene gesture towards Angelina Johnson who just arrived at the Gryffindor table. The Chaser didn't seem bothered very much by it, and shrugged, looking away.

"Hey, Cho." Another third-year student, Anthony Goldstein, had arrived. "Well played yesterday."

"Thank you," she replied as she took some broiled eggs.

"Do you think that Harry will win against Malfoy?"

"Yes, I am," she replied after an instant.

"Cool. I made a bet with Zabini. He's going to owe me a lot of Galleons."

Cho wasn't sure if it was a good idea to place bets on the match's results. She definitely thought that Harry could win. The odds were pretty in his favor, especially with his new broomstick, but victory was never sure. She looked at the Gryffindor table. He wasn't there yet.

"I never thought I would appreciate the Gryffindors so much," Marietta said all of a sudden, with a sigh. "And it's not normal. Make sure we win the Quidditch Cup next year, okay Cho?"

"I'll do my best."

"Oh no. Win," another girl said. "We've spent enough time without the Cup as well. And you deserve it as much as Potter does."

Harry arrived about that time, heavily escorted like always. Cho had to leave not long after. Classes were about to begin.

During the whole day, nervousness was plain across all the castle. Harmony only held up by a thread. In Cho's classes, Slytherins and Gryffindors were clearly on edge, and Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws fared little better. Cho herself had a lot of trouble focusing on what teachers were saying. In Defence Against the Dark Arts, a Gryffindor threw a burning spell that caught a Slytherin in the back. He claimed it was an accident, but whether it was true or not, the Slytherin almost counterattacked. It was only the timely intervention of Professor Lupin that prevented things from going further. Cho was glad they had this teacher. He was very good, much better than the ones she previously had. In Transfiguration, her feather got turned into a needle and she almost stung herself when she unconsciously took it, unaware of the change. Professor McGonagall removed ten points from Slytherin for the student who did this.

As she made her way to the Great Hall for lunch, Cho realized how lucky she was to have so many friends who followed her everywhere. Some Slytherins had begun to take her as a target because she helped the Gryffindors practice. Cedric confided that Slytherins, even those he managed to get along usually, gave him the cold shoulder as well, though they never tried anything on him. Cho suspected that they saw her as an easier target due to her small height. It was an advantage on the pitch, but not outside of it.

During lunch, another incident happened when Alicia Spinnet tumbled as she headed towards the Gryffindor table. The whole house immediately accused the Slytherins of trying to injure her, and most professors had to intervene to prevent things from going nasty. Spinnet didn't have anything finally. It seemed she had slipped on some pumpkin juice that was inadvertently spilled on the floor, but the hostility between Gryffindors and Slytherins had grown even further nonetheless. When Harry left the Great Hall, Cho thought he was even more surrounded than usual.

The afternoon was long. Between the upcoming match of tomorrow, and Cho's own impatience for the last day of the week to be over, her only wish was for her last class to end so she could head to the Quidditch pitch. Oliver Wood had managed to get it for his team for the last evening before the game. The Slytherins had the pitch for the previous Friday. Cho, her teammates and the whole Hufflepuff team would join the Gryffindors one last time for their final practice before tomorrow's match.

Cho was relieved when finally her last class was over. She immediately went back to her common room to take her Comet and headed towards the pitch. Half her own team, Cedric and all Gryffindor players were already present when she arrived on the pitch.

"… you only repeat your passes and your tactics. Nothing too stringent or risky. The match is tomorrow. I don't want to risk having any of you injured. Fred, George, you only practice on dummies." Wood then turned to Cedric and Roger as he continued giving his instructions, and said something that completely contracdicted what he just instructed. "If it doesn't bother you, I would have your players try to avoid Bludgers to practice Fred and George. You're not playing tomorrow."

"I can live with that," Cedric declared after a moment. Roger agreed, though with more hesitation. Cho understood why. It wasn't very rewarding to be used as target practice for Bludgers.

"I want your best Chasers to throw everything at me. And Harry, review your flying tactics, but nothing too exerting. We need everyone in top shape tomorrow."

And so the last practice before the final match began. Cho and Cedric challenged Harry in turn. Cho had way more success than Cedric in blocking Harry or forcing him to change his flying pattern, although Cedric still managed to put up a good fight. The practice didn't last long, maybe an hour maximum. Again, Wood didn't want his players to be exhausted for tomorrow.

Cho remained behind a little longer than the others. She and Cedric wished good luck to Harry. Then she left the two boys on the field as she went to the changing rooms. She was done changing when she realized that she couldn't find the clip holding her hair while she played Quidditch. It belonged to her mother, so she couldn't lose it. She must have let it drop after she landed on the ground at the end of the practice. So she went back to the pitch.

The pitch was now empty, and sunlight was decreasing. There was only one other person on it. It was Harry, still clad in his Quidditch robes, holding his Firebolt vertically, close to the central circle. She headed towards him. Perhaps he had seen her clip, or he could help her to find it.

"Harry, you're still there?" she asked as his back was turned on her. He turned very quickly towards her. "Sorry, I didn't want to scare you."

"Oh, no. That's… That's fine," he replied.

"I thought you would be back at the Gryffindor Tower."

"Yeah, I'm leaving soon."

His voice was quivering. Cho had totally forgotten about her clip. "Hey, Harry. Everything is fine. You're going to win tomorrow. You're better than Malfoy, you too."

Harry laughed nervously. "Thanks. You too."

"I know. You already told me."

They stood there without saying a word for some time. Cho looked around her. It was unlikely that she would find the clip only with her eyes. The light of the sun was diminishing, and despite being very good at spotting a very small object like the Golden Snitch, she doubted she would find it with that reduced luminosity. She finally raised her wand.

"Accio Clip!"

Nothing happened. Nothing came her way.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked her.

"I'm looking for something. I must have dropped it when I left the pitch. But it doesn't seem to be there."

And yet, she was certain that it was there. She used it to arrange her hair into a ponytail during practices, and she remembered clearly removing it after she landed on the ground.

"I can help you find it if you want," Harry said.

"Thank you, but… I don't think we're going to be able to find it. My Summoning Charm didn't work, so it's probably not here. Perhaps I left it in the changing rooms." She turned towards the entrance to them, then looked back at Harry. "Well, good luck tomorrow, Harry."

"Thank you. I'll need it." She turned and made her way towards the changing rooms. She heard Harry walking not far behind her. "Hey, Cho. Thank you by the way… for helping me."

She smiled at him. "Oh, it was my pleasure."

"If I can help you, some time, don't hesitate."

"Thanks."

They had reached the entrance of both changing rooms, and they had stopped walking. And then, Cho thought about something. The thought came to her as she laid her eyes on Harry's Firebolt.

"Well, now that I think about it… Could I try your Firebolt?" Harry seemed taken aback by her request, but Cho continued quickly when she saw his reaction. "Not this evening, of course. But… Some time, after the match is over."

Harry stayed there, looking at her with an expression that Cho couldn't decipher. She was almost afraid that he might not only refuse, but also lash at her, or something worse. She had to admit that a Firebolt was something. As a fellow Quidditch player, if she had the chance to own one, she may never allow anyone else to ride it. She had the very same attitude when her parents gave her the Comet Two Sixty. But instead, Harry removed the Firebolt from his shoulder and let it hover in the air in front of him.

"You… You can try it now if you want."

Cho was stunned for a long moment. She wasn't expecting that.

"You're… You're serious?"

"Yes." He nodded very quickly, frantically.

Cautiously, timidly, something which happened rarely to Cho, she approached the Firebolt. Harry stepped back, and soon she was closer to the broomstick than Harry was himself. The Firebolt then lowered in altitude, not that much, but enough so that it was at a perfect height for Cho to climb on it. So it was true. The Firebolt really hovered at the right height for its rider to mount it. She looked back to Harry, silently asking for permission, and he made a gesture that seemed to indicate she just had to help herself. Carefully, she seized the handle with her right hand, then straddled it, and the next moment, she was climbing quickly through the air.

The feeling she had as she flew was something she never experienced before. Cho had gotten used to her old Comet which, despite its high quality, was beginning to show its age and had its fair share of flaws. Cho had learned to use these flaws to her advantage. The Firebolt was entirely different. There was no delay of reaction between the commands she gave the broomstick and its movements. She dove down at angles and speed she could barely hope to achieve with her own broomstick. She crossed the distance across the pitch in mere seconds.

She didn't know for how long she stayed in the air. It looked to be both an eternity, and way too short. However, after zigzagging between the towers for the seventh time or so, she noticed Harry, looking at her from the central circle. And he wasn't alone.

There had to be about a dozen figures around him now. Cho decided it was time to land, and she did, though at a good enough distance from the gathering. In no time when she had landed, a group of students was approaching her, but they stopped, and Harry came to see her alone.

"So, you liked it?" he asked her with an uneasy smile.

"Yes, very much. I can see why you were reluctant to let me try it."

"It's not that. It's just… Since the match is approaching, I'm getting paranoid. I'm always checking on my Firebolt. I verify it is in his case at each pause we have between classes."

Strangely enough, Cho understood. "Well, take good care of it. Thank you again." She gave him back his broomstick.

"Well… You'll be there for the match tomorrow?"

"Of course," she answered with a laugh. "All the school will be there."

"Well… Have a good night, Cho. I've got to go now."

"Have a good night, Harry. And good luck for tomorrow."

He walked away, and a few students followed him, but some stayed behind. To Cho's surprise, she realized it was Marietta and two of her other friends. They must have waited for her.

"Harry Potter let you try his Firebolt?" Marietta asked her, incredulous, as soon as they were close enough.

"Yes," she replied, trying to sound casual.

"Wow! You made quite the impression on him," another one of her friends said.

Cho wasn't sure what she meant, but by looking at the wicked smiles on her friends' lips, she quickly realized what this was about.

"We're just friends."

The three girls, even Marietta, obviously contained their giggles. "Maybe he would like to be a little more than your friend," Cho's best friend declared.

Cho shrugged it off. She went back to the changing room to recover her stuff, then walked back to the castle with her friends who waited for her on the other side. Marietta still had that knowing smile that Cho ignored.

Most of the other students had already dined. The few students still at the Ravenclaw table in the Great Hall were discussing tomorrow's game, of course. This was now the only topic of discussion in all Hogwarts, she guessed. Even after leaving the Great Hall, she and her friends couldn't talk about anything else. And their common room was no different. All conversations were about tomorrow morning.

Cho began to feel stressed as well. She shouldn't. She wouldn't be playing tomorrow. However, she spent the last two weeks with twenty other players who trained together with only one goal: make sure that seven of them would win the Quidditch Cup this year, ending the series of Slytherin victories. No one was working, which was something almost impossible in the Ravenclaw common room, especially in a period of exam preparations. Cho really hoped that Gryffindor would win tomorrow. She invested so much time, involved herself so much with them recently, that a victory for them would almost feel like a victory for her own team as well.

Her sleep was somewhat agitated, although she did manage to sleep all the same. She remembered the injury she sustained against Slytherin and hoped that the same would not happen to Harry. She wanted to see Malfoy and Flint crushed. Cho wasn't prone to hating someone, but she did hate Malfoy and a part of the Slytherin team. They spent their time mistreating the others. Even some of Cho's friends had suffered at their hands in the past, and the Head of House, Professor Snape, protected them all the time.

When morning came and she woke up, she went down to the Great Hall with the other Ravenclaws. Excitement reigned in the air. Cho herself wasn't immune to it. This morning, she took her breakfast with her teammates from the Ravenclaw team. This was the very last match of Hogwarts' Quidditch season, so she saw it as appropriate. As they discussed the game that would begin in a few hours, Cho noticed how the players of the Gryffindor team looked tensed, and the players of Slytherin were no better.

"Let's hope that practicing with us was enough," Roger said.

"They can win," Cho said. "They defeated Slytherin for the last two years, even when Slytherin was better equipped."

"Perhaps, but I heard that Flint is planning to play in quite a brutal way today," Grant pointed out. "I think the Gryffindors will be in for quite a challenge."

Cho wasn't surprised. Slytherin played roughly all the time, and this year they had been worse. She worried for a moment about the players of Gryffindor, especially Harry. He would be the main target of the Slytherins today.

"Well, as long as they crush Slytherin, I'm fine with any injury they might have," Duncan said. "But anyway, I don't think Slytherin will win either. Angelina, Alicia and Katie have been playing together for three years now, and their chemistry is unrivaled. I don't want to insult you, Roger, but they have the best trio of Chasers in Hogwarts."

Duncan sounded as if he wanted to convince himself. All around, everyone was talking Quidditch, opposing the agility and speed of the Gryffindors, their team spirit, opposing it to the brute strength and merciless playstyle of the Slytherins. She heard a couple of girls discussing about the Keepers, and they agreed that Wood was way better than Bletchley. Many seemed to think that Slytherin had the advantage when it came to Beaters. Theirs were stronger. And of course, the Firebolt was still heavily discussed. Cho was surprised to hear that someone missed her game against Gryffindor, the first where Harry's broomstick was displayed. Apparently, the student's parents forbade him from attending the game after Pettigrew had managed to sneak inside the castle. But despite their forbidding, he was going to watch the last game without fault.

Cho noticed all of a sudden that Cedric had gone to wish good luck to Wood. And a few players from Hufflepuff also went to wish them good luck. She was just thinking of doing the same when Cedric left the Gryffindor table and headed in their direction.

"Hi, Roger," Cedric said to her captain.

"Hi, Cedric. Do they look in good shape?" Roger asked, pointing at the Gryffindors.

"Yes. They're stressed, of course, but who wouldn't be." He then turned to Cho. "Hi, Cho. Forgive me. I found this on the pitch yesterday. Is it yours?"

Cho opened her eyes wide when she saw the clip Cedric took out of his pocket.

"Where did you find it?" she asked, momentarily forgetting that he already told him.

"On the pitch, near the boys' changing rooms. I waited for you some time outside the stadium, but you must have already left."

It wasn't true. She had not left at all. In fact, she left much later because she was trying Harry's Firebolt. She felt guilty for making Cedric wait for so long.

"Thank you. Thank you very much."

He gave it back to her. It was really her clip. Her mother gave it to her when she was eight-years-old. She made it when Cho was a child and still lived in Korea. Cho had always loved it. It was very precious to her.

It was at this moment that Cho heard a commotion. Then it was followed by loud applauses. She then noticed that everyone was standing and clapping. Due to her small height, Cho struggled to see what was going on. Then she noticed that the seven players of Gryffindor were leaving.

Cho was sitting near the heavy doors of the Great Hall, so she wasn't far when they got through it.

"Good luck, Harry!" she called.

He looked back at her and smiled. For a moment, she thought that his face had taken a slight shade of red.

"Oliver must be bringing them to the pitch to see its state before the game. That's what I would so if I was him," Cedric commented.

Cho nodded. She agreed.

"And here are the serpents leaving," another student said loudly. And indeed, the Slytherin players just rose up, this time under boos and hisses. Only their table applauded. They had also booed and hissed for the Gryffindors. On their way, Malfoy looked at Cho and Cedric.

"Be ready to comfort Potter after he lost," he shouted at them.

"Don't worry, Malfoy." It was Maxine O'Flaherty who spoke up. "I'll be ready to console you. I have a very good method. It's with a bat."

Malfoy was hurried outside by his captain, who shot spitting glares to both the players of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. "Bye, losers," he shouted.

The rest of the breakfast was more or less the same, tension and excitement filling the Great Hall. Finally, around ten-thirty, the tables began to empty. Cho headed with her team to the stadium, letting Cedric go with his own teammates. On their way to the pitch, Cho's friends from outside the Quidditch team joined her, resulting in herself being in the middle of two very different groups of Ravenclaws. Today though, no matter your age or your interests, the only subject everyone was talking about was the game.

"I hope Bole will receive a Bludger right in his face today," Marietta was saying.

Cho felt something very slightly in her hip, as if it reminded her the injury that Beater of Slytherin inflicted upon her months ago. Indeed, that was one of the reasons why she hoped so much to see Slytherin lose today.

"He could also ram himself into a tower. It's just as likely to happen," Duncan declared.

To that, everyone laughed. But the laughter was nervous. Bole and Derrick indeed looked like idiots, but they could be just as dangerous as they were stupid. Cho tried to reassure herself with the fact that these Beaters never managed to cause major injuries to the Gryffindors in the past, but it was a poor relief thought. The Slytherins knew they would be playing for the Cup, and she expected that they would play rough, even more so that anytime before.

Once on the attendants' rows, Cho realized how electrified the atmosphere was. Everyone was shouting, and it looked as if half the students of her own house brought flags, banners, towels, hats, gigantic gloves or any other item to the colors of Gryffindor. Facing them, on the other side of the pitch, the Hufflepuffs were just as loud as they were, and displayed exactly the same colors. Someone even brought a banner displaying the lion, the eagle and the badger of the three houses, slaughtering a snake live. To Cho's left, at the extremity of the pitch, the section of the Gryffindors was literally covered in red and gold. All this contrasted with the extremity on her right, where the silver and green of the Slytherins who, despite being a minority, made their presence loudly and visually known to everybody. Cho waited as parts of the crowd sometimes burst while the others remained waiting in great anticipation.

"HELLO EVERYONE!"

The voice of Lee Jordan, already amplified by the magical megaphone, thundered through the stadium as he yelled. It was welcomed by cheers all across the pitch.

"Hello everyone. I am Lee Jordan, and I have the pleasure to comment the last of this wonderful Hogwarts' Quidditch season. Today… Slytherin…"

The stadium was filled with boos and whistles, but despite this, the quarter of the crowd that supported the team managed to make itself heard under the cacophony of students who made themselves clear that they hated Slytheri, and wanted nothing more but to see this team be crushed. Cho joined the din that lasted for several minutes.

It only turned worse when the seven players with green robes flew in the air. All the frustration, the hatred, the contempt felt for this house surged, and this time the supporters of Slytherin couldn't make their voice heard through this chorus.

"VERSUS GRYFFINDOR!"

Right when Lee Jordan said the words, seven new figures took flight, this time dressed in red and gold, and the ambiance of the crowd changed immediately. The sounds were even more deafening. Cho participated to it.

"Good luck, Harry! Don't miss him!" she shouted to him as he flew near them, though Cho doubted he heard her.

"For the Slytherin, their captain, Marcus…"

Jordan didn't have time to finish the name, as the crowd booed again, burying his amplified voice. Anyway, everyone already knew who the players of Slytherin were and how they preferred to win. Flint, Pucey, Montague, Derrick, Bole, Bletchley and Malfoy.

It was only a minute later that Jordan managed to make himself hear again.

"AND FOR GRYFFINDOR!"

The crowd turned again to cheering, but much louder than before, and Cho could barely make out the names of the players, despite the fact that Jordan was almost screaming to make sure they were known. Cho suspected he allowed the crowd to bury the names of the Slytherin players, but that he wanted to make those of his house audible. Anyway, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell, Oliver Wood, Fred Weasley, George Weasley and Harry Potter were all present, gathering around the central circle, same as the Slytherin players. They faced each other, and slowly, the crowd quieted down enough for Madam Hooch to speak loudly, so loudly in fact that Cho suspected that she amplified her own voice with magic.

"Now, I want a nice fair game, all of you!"

She looked at each player in turn, and Cho even got the impression that she stared at the crowd as well.

"Now, captains, shakes hands!"

Flint and Wood did so, but even from afar, Cho could tell neither of them was enthusiastic. Cho had a lot of respect for Madam Hooch, but she was afraid that she knew, as well as all other students, that this game would be anything but fair. The provocations and accidents between the two houses had been way too many in the weeks preceding the game. Today's winner would get the Quidditch Cup. And even if the Gryffindors were more prone to play fairly, Cho knew that they wouldn't hesitate to use dirty tactics or to replicate if the Slytherins played their usual brutal way. And Cho didn't see any reason for Flint and his players to play any differently today.

Madam Hooch suddenly counted to three. At the moment her whistle blew, the Quaffle rose in the air, and Chasers from both sides rushed on it.

"LET THE GAME BEGIN!"


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Next chapter: Harry (and the final Quidditch game)