A few days passed until it was time for the decision between Neville and Ron.
"I've been watching both of you all week and I've come to a decision. I hope you won't be too upset by it but I thought it was the best move. Whoever isn't picked will be reserve for that player, so if they are ill or something; the reserve will play." Oliver explained.
Harry gave Ron a thumbs up and Ron beamed.
"So, not to waste anymore time . . . the new Gryffindor keeper will be . . . Neville Longbottom." Oliver announced.
"WHAT?!" Ron shrieked as the Slytherin's howled with laughter.
"You're so pathetic Weasley, even Longbottom is better than you!" Malfoy smirked.
Ron was shaking with anger. He was embarrassed and angry. How could Neville be better then him? What would his brother's say? They wouldn't miss a chance to make fun of him.
"Nevermind Ron." Harry said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.
Ron shoved his hand off. "It's alright for you. You can do everything!" He whined.
Hermione tutted and crossed her arms. She hadn't spoken to Ron a lot in the last couple of days.
Ron looked over at Neville being thrown into the air by Dean and Seamus in congratulations. "Just look at him, the little weed. I could be a much better Keeper then him; I know it!"
"Stop being so vain Ron. Maybe Neville will be good." Hermione said.
"Shut it Hermione, you're just mad because this is the only lesson you aren't good at." Ron snapped back.
"You know I try to be nice to you Ron, but what's the point if you're just going to make fun of me?" Hermione asked.
Ron couldn't think of anything to say so he threw the school broom on the floor and stormed towards the changing rooms.
"Why is he so mean to me?" Hermione asked Harry.
"Don't tell me you haven't figured it out yet?" Harry asked.
"Figured what out?" Hermione asked in bewilderment.
"Ron likes you."
"He has a funny way of showing it."
"He's in-denial. I asked him and he told me that he didn't like you. But I can see it in the way he looks at you. The way he gets jealous everytime you talk to me or someone else. The way he makes fun of you so he doesn't have to admit that he likes you." Harry explained.
Hermione turned away from him. "I don't believe you. You're only saying that because you don't want to hurt my feelings. Well, you shouldn't stick up for Ron you know, Harry. He's bad tempered and arrogant and I don't see why he should have any friends."
She walked towards the castle and Harry was stuck in the middle. He didn't know wether to follow Hermione or go back to the changing rooms for Ron. He decided to walk back to the castle himself.
"Harry!" Something shouted.
It was that voice again. The voice he heard the other day and the voice that had came from Seamus before he'd attacked Harry.
"Who's there?" Harry asked nervously, spinning around on his heel.
"Harry!"
"What do you want?" Harry asked.
"What do I want?" Another voice asked. A completely different voice. "I want to know why you're walking around outside by yourself."
It was Professor Snape.
"Oh . . . uh, I've just had Flying lessons and was heading back for the castle." Harry explained.
"And where are your friends? Mr Weasley? Miss Granger?" Snape asked.
Harry wondered if he should tell Snape about the voice he'd just heard. After a moment he decided not to. "They aren't changed yet. I wanted to get back up to the castle safely." Harry lied, figuring this was the best way to get out of the conversation.
"Very well then. Hurry along." Snape said.
Harry ran back to the castle. What was Snape doing outside the castle? Was he looking out for Harry? Patrolling the grounds? Or something else? Harry had never actually known wether to trust Snape or not. He had been a death-eater once.
Harry heard a cackle as he ran down the corridor and saw Peeves causing havoc as he rounded a corner. He wondered if it was actually Peeves that had taken over Seamus's body last night. Or had it actually been something to do with Voldemort? Harry didn't know why he wasn't going to Dumbledore about it, it just didn't seem right somehow.
"Whatever Voldemort is planning to do, I wish he'd just get on with it." Harry said out loud.
He went back to the common room to find Hermione and Ron arguing yet again.
"Well I'm not bothered who should be the Keeper, you hurt Neville's feelings!" Hermione exclaimed.
"What's happened?" Harry asked.
"Ron just told Neville that he wouldn't last five minutes as the Keeper. Why can't you keep your thoughts to yourself Ron? You always have to be so horrible to people." Hermione said.
"How can I not when I've got people like you giving me grief all of the time?" Ron moaned.
"Well maybe I wouldn't give you grief if you just listened to my point of view once in a while instead of making fun of me!" Hermione shouted. "I think you're just jealous!" Hermione said.
Ron stopped in his tracks. "Jealous? What the hell would I be jealous of?"
"I don't know, you're jealous of everything. Your jealous because I'm cleverer then you, you're jealous because Harry's captain of the Quidditch team, your jealous because Neville is Keeper and you're jealous because I seem to like Harry a lot more then you at the moment!" Hermione shouted.
The three of them were quiet and Hermione blushed a little. She seemed to have gotten a little carried away.
"Will you two just stop it?" Harry roared. "I'm sick of it, why can't you just both be friends. The only reason you're making fun of Hermione is because you like her Ron!"
Ron blushed a deep scarlet colour. "I don't know what you're talking about." He said, looking down at his feet.
"You like me Ron?" Hermione asked, smiling a little.
"What? No way . . . I don't know what Harry's on about." Ron muttered defensively as Hermione and Harry exchanged glances.
"Well if you do like me then why can't you just act normal around me? I would be a lot nicer to you aswell." Hermione gave a bashful smile before turning and walking up to the girl's dormitory.
Ron watched her leave, shaking his head, "That girl is crazy."
"Don't pretend like you don't like her." Harry said, grinning.
Ron blushed even more and took a sudden interest in his shoes.
The next few days passed without much out of the ordinary happening. Ron and Hermione weren't talking to each other very much. Hermione had spent a lot more time then usual in the library – she said she was studying for the upcoming OWLs, but Harry thought otherwise. Ron didn't seem to be very fazed by her disappearing to the library every five minutes, and actually gave the impression to be quite relived. Hermione had told Harry she didn't want to be around Ron unless he apologised to Neville, aswell as herself.
Neville Longbottom, on the other hand, was quite happy in his new-found fame. He was cheered by the Gryffindor's every time he entered the common room - much to Ron's annoyance – and seemed constantly to be blushing as every few minutes someone else would congratulate him. Fred and George Weasley had of course heard of Ron's fall in luck, and didn't miss a chance to tease him about it. They constantly threw stuff at their younger brother, anything from books to the house-elf that was cleaning the fireplace, and then purposely made him drop them so they could call him butter-fingers and other numerous names. They would also congratulate Neville right infront of Ron's eyes, clapping him on the back and saying how great he was.
The first Quidditch match of the Cup was soon upon them, and Harry couldn't wait to get back on his broom. The Gryffindor team had been practicing every night – under the watchful eye of a few teachers, of course – and Harry had so far enjoyed trying out new plays and tricks they could use against Hufflepuff. Alicia Spinnet, Katie Bell and Angelina Johnson – the Gryffindor Chaser's – seemed overjoyed that Harry was the new captain and not in the least bit jealous that they hadn't been picked, like he'd been worried. Neville seemed to be getting the hang of everything pretty quickly and Harry was starting to think that maybe Oliver Wood had made the right decision in choosing him.
The evening before the Hufflepuff match, Harry was sat alone in an armchair by the fire, reading a book on Quidditch plays. Hermione was in the library as usual, while Ron was playing chess with Seamus at the other side of the common room.
"Hi Harry." A voice by the side of him spoke.
Harry looked up to see Neville, "Oh, hi Neville." He smiled, "Looking forward to tomorrow?"
Neville paled slightly as he sat in the chair next to Harry's, "Uh, I suppose."
"You nervous?" Harry guessed, closing his book.
Neville swallowed, "Yeah. Horribly nervous."
"Don't worry, you'll be okay." Harry assured him.
"I dunno… maybe I should just drop out – Ron can take my place!" Neville replied eagerly.
"If you did that, you'd definitely regret it. You shouldn't worry about it, you'll be fine. I felt exactly the same way before my first match." Harry said, thinking back to the first match he played in his first year of Hogwarts. He'd been the first first-year allowed to play for a century and hadn't been too reassured when Wood told him that he'd been knocked out in his first game.
"Really?!" Neville eyes widened, as if he couldn't imagine that Harry would ever get nervous.
Harry laughed, "Of course! Just believe me, okay, you shouldn't worry about it."
Neville smiled, nodding as if it all made sense, "Thanks a lot, Harry." He replied, before standing up and going over to watch Ron and Seamus' chess game.
"That was nice." Hermione came up to him, sitting in the chair that Neville had just left, her arms full of books.
"Huh?" Harry asked.
"You reassuring Neville. It was nice to see," She glanced over at Ron and scowled slightly, "He should take a leaf out of your book."
"Ron'd do the same." Harry replied.
Hermione scoffed slightly, before absorbing herself in one of the thick, heavy books on her lap.