Hi people! Yet another chapter, and I'll hopefully reach the 300 review mark with this one. Speaking of reviews, I think that was what my dream was about. The dragon was me, and the reviews were the gold…~_~* Okay, I'm a hog. I admit it. This chapter is slightly darker, and the next one is darker yet. I won't be able to update for approximately two weeks after this one because of the family holiday, but I'll try to get another chapter up before we leave to make up for it. BTW, is anyone else not able to view the book category selection page, or any of the others? I think it might be because of AOL, but it doesn't work on the school computers either, which spells out bad news for me. BTW, I'd just like to say to anyone in America that I'm real sorry about what happened, and I hope the bastards who did it get what they deserve.
Chapter Eleven
"Wow, do you think I would qualify?"
"Who do you think will get the position?"
The crowd outside the Gryffindor Common Room muttered excitedly around the piece of parchment stuck on the wall. Harry, Ron and Hermione, who had just finished Care of Magical Creatures glanced at each other, then pushed through the crowd, their faeries following slowly. Harry was the first to reach the parchment.
"As many of you are aware, we will be needing two new players on our quidditch team…blah, blah, blah…Tryouts are tomorrow evening…more useless information…The new Captain for the Gryffindor Quidditch team will also be selected as well as a new commentator, as Lee Jordan will not be able to fulfil his duties this year," Harry read.
"Lee's mother isn't going to let him commentate this year because of the amount of letters she received from Hogwarts about him last year."
Fred and George had come up behind him, and were looking at the announcement.
"Hey Ron, are you going to try out for keeper?" Fred asked. Oliver Wood had graduated from Hogwarts two years ago, leaving the position of Keeper vacant.
"No, I don't think I will," He said. Everyone looked at him in surprise. It wasn't like Ron to turn down a chance like that.
"I think I might try out for commentator instead," He explained. Fred and George shrugged, before heading into the Common Room. Harry understood though. Ron had always felt overshadowed by his brothers, and if he managed to get on the team it wouldn't be that big a deal, because Fred and George were already on it. No one in his family had been a commentator yet though, and Ron probably felt that it was something that his parents would be proud of.
Harry jerked awake as he felt a tugging on his hair. The faerie that had chosen him as its partner drifted into view. He looked around, and realised that it was the middle of the lesson. It was History of Magic, and Professor Binns was droning on about some kind of war between the Leprechauns and Veela. Harry remembered the Quidditch World Cup, and realised that there had not just been animosity between rival countries, but species as well.
"
Harry listened to what Binns had to say for a moment, before zoning out again.
As soon as he started drifting off to sleep however, the faerie tapped him on the side of his head. He groaned quietly, and turned to it as Sebastian, who was wrapped around his arm as usual hissed vaguely. Four of his seven heads had been dozing, and were not very happy at being woken.
"Can't you let me and Sebastian get a little sleep?" Harry pleaded. The faerie giggled and shook its head, before landing on his ear.
"Well then, we'd better think of a name for you, hadn't we? I can't just keep calling you 'faerie'…" The little being nodded enthusiastically, before settling itself beside his quill on the desk.
"So, what kind of name do you want?" Harry asked it. He really had no idea how they were going to go about this since he couldn't understand the language they spoke in.
The pint-sized being frowned slightly then held her hands as wide apart as she could.
"You want a long name?" Harry guessed, then smiled as the faerie nodded enthusiastically. "Okay, how about Serenity, Arabella or Claudia?" The faerie shook its head, frowning again, then more violently as Sebastian made a few suggestions. Apparently the Faerie could understand Parselmouth, although Sebastian couldn't understand its speech. Harry sighed. Another snippet of Professor Binns' lecture caught his attention.
"―And the leader of the Veela, named Echo, was celebrated as a hero for years to come―"
Harry, tuning out Binns' droning voice, turned back to his little friend to find her jumping about excitedly.
"What?" He asked confusedly. The faerie rolled its eyes before pointing at the ghostly Professor, then at itself.
"Did Professor Binns say something you'd like as a name?" Harry asked it, and watched amusedly as it began to jump around on the desk.
"Umm…Leader? Veela? Hero?" Harry guessed, then frowned as it began to shake its head quickly. He thought for a moment.
"Echo? Is that it?" The faerie nodded, before holding its hands apart again.
"A longer form of echo? A word that starts with echo?" The faerie nodded at the second question, and danced about impatiently as Harry frowned.
"Echo, echolocation, echolalia?"
The faerie shook its head at the first two, then began nodding vigorously as he said the third.
"Okay, Echolalia it is. Now, are you…um…a girl or boy?"
The faerie began to do an extremely hilarious imitation of a girl fluttering her eyelashes and blowing kisses. Harry laughed.
"Okay, you're a girl. Now that we've got that sorted, I suppose we should start to at least pretend to pay attention to Professor Binns…"
Harry sat through the rest of the lesson waiting impatiently for Binns to dismiss them. The same sensation of unease he had felt the day before caught him in its grip again for a moment, and the slightest sliver of pain ran through his scar.
"Settle down students!" Professor McGonagall's voice echoed through the still evening air. The students who had been chattering and flying about, practising for the try-outs quietened immediately and headed over to where the Professor was standing.
"Alright. Those of you who are trying out for the Keeper position go stand over by the hoops, and those of you going for Chaser stay here. Those of you who wish to be Commentator, head over to the stands." As Professor McGonagall spoke, people headed off in the direction she had pointed, carrying their brooms with them.
"Now, firstly I would like to see your skill at catching the Quaffle. Alicia and Katie will try to stop you from scoring, while you try to make it down the field and score. You'll be working in pairs at first, before trying individually."
The students trying out for Chaser nodded, before pairing up and heading out onto the pitch. McGonagall watched as each duo worked their way up the field, and occasionally made notes onto a piece of parchment she had brought with her. Soon all of the students had been dismissed apart from a sixth year girl called Trys Calibane, and Colin Creevey. Soon Trys had also been dismissed, and Colin was welcomed into the team as the new Chaser. Harry was not sure whether to be happy that they had found, surprisingly, an extremely good Chaser, or to be upset that he would now have to spend all his training sessions being gawped at. Soon after a new keeper, Neville Longbottom had also been selected. The majority of the other students were extremely shocked at the outcome, but Harry was not. He had seen Neville training the night before.
"I must go and test the students trying for commentator now. I trust that I can leave you alone to choose a captain without having to come back to break up fights and such?" McGonagall asked. The question was directed mainly towards Fred and George who grinned at her, albeit a tad sheepishly, and nodded. The rest of the team nodded as well, and watched as the professor headed off towards the stands.
"Well…I don't think it should be Fred or I," George said. He shook his head as the others started to protest, and held up a hand. "No, listen. We'll just leave next year, and you'll have to select another captain." The protests died, and Alicia and Katie nodded.
"I guess the same goes for me and Alicia then," Katie said. Alicia agreed, before turning towards Harry, Colin and Neville.
"No offence to you two, but you haven't had any experience on the team yet, so it would be pretty foolish to make either of you captain," Alicia said. Neville nodded fervently.
Harry could understand why Neville was so pleased not to be nominated captain. It would be awful, to have all that pressure put onto you all at once.
'So, Katie, Alicia, Fred and George aren't going to be the captain…and we've just ruled out Neville and Colin, so that leaves…oh no!'
He turned towards the others to find them all looking expectantly at him.
"Oh no. No way am I going to be captain. I'm not experienced enough. There is no way…uh-uh…" Harry backed away from them all slowly, shaking his head.
"Harry, it's the logical choice. Neville and Colin can't captain without any experience, and even if one of us became captain, you'd just have to select another next year, and it would most probably be you," Katie pointed out reasonably. Harry looked at them all for a moment, then sighed.
"Fine. I'll be captain. I'm warning you though," Harry said, beginning to grin devilishly, "I'm going to work you harder then Oliver ever did."
As Harry finished his sentence, a jolt of pain stabbed through his scar. He gasped and clapped a hand over it, before sinking to the ground as the pain began to wash over him in waves. As he fell to the ground, a screaming voice began to echo in his ears, and his vision blurred, before clearing to reveal something out of a nightmare.
Harry was in a dark room, lit only by a candle as all the lanterns on the walls were shattered. A woman was cowering in a corner beside a man's body. She was crying, and Harry realised that the man was dead. A dark figure stood over the body and woman, cackling madly.
"Don't you dare, you monster! Don't come any closer or I
"Avada Kedavra," A high voice drawled.
Harry tried to look away as the green light flashed from the figure's wand, but found that he could not move.
'It's Voldemort,' He realised, fear and horror sweeping through him. As this occurred to him, Voldemort began to speak again.
"Such a pity really. I wish that Potter could have been here to see this. Oh well. He'll know, as soon as poor, poor little Colin Creevey receives this," Voldemort cackled, holding a letter close to the candle. Recognition filled Harry, as his vision began to blur again, and the sound faded from his ears.
Harry opened his eyes slowly, and blurred figures slowly came into focus. There was one particular figure that stood out, and as the memories came rushing back, he closed his eyes in an attempt to block them from his mind. He could not stop them from coming however, and he opened despairing eyes to focus on the figure again.
"I'm sorry, Colin," He whispered, before slipping gratefully into darkness.
So there we are! I personally hated the name choosing bit, but my brother liked it so I kept it for him. Blame him, not me!
And remember to join my groups. Please, they aren't just about my fanfic or HP fanfics, they're just about fanfics in general.
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Thanks, and chocolate or carob (whatever you prefer) Harry's and Draco's all around! Thanks to the three people who joined my lists, by the way…
