Chapter 12
Quiddax
Harry woke up. He'd been having a wonderful dream that Cho had been dancing with him at a fancy dress party. There had been snow, and oddly a lot of golden stars. It took him several minutes to realise that it wasn't a dream. No one was up early that morning, and there was a general feeling of tiredness percolating the corridors of Hogwarts. When Harry, Ron and Hermione finally got up they took a late lunch in the Hall. As Harry chewed his kipper, he was half listening to Ron, telling him about Lizzy, "She was at the buffet eating chocolate gateaux, she asked me about my shirt, and then I think it was the punch, I asked her to dance, and she said yes, and she's really nice, her favourite team is the Chudley Cannons, we're going to see a game together sometime. She's promised to write over Christmas." The other half of Harry was thinking about the magical kiss with Cho. Was she just kissing him because she felt sorry for him, or did she really like him? Hermione was rather quiet over breakfast, unobtrusively eating her porridge. When they had eaten they returned to their dormitories to finish packing. Harry felt a pang of sadness, feeling rather lonely left behind in the castle, but he tried not to show it. As he stood on the steps of Hogwarts waving sadly to them, Hermione turned and said to him, "You will be careful, won't you while we're away" "Of course I will. You have a nice time. Merry Christmas." "Merry Christmas" she replied, her eyes looking at him one last time, before getting into the horseless carriages. When they had gone, the castle felt very empty. There were even fewer students staying at Hogwarts that Christmas, as many of the families wanted to be together with Voldemort exerting his power. Sirius followed Harry back to the dormitory where he tried to concentrate on a recent addition to the library called Quidditch: The Greatest Games, which he'd been looking forward to reading, but somehow he couldn't concentrate in the deserted common room. Sirius eventually suggested a game of chess, and they went to the Turkish room where they had a vicious game of chess. Harry's chess set were now a bit more skilled, and together they managed to beat Sirius playing with Ron's chess set. At the end Sirius brought out a huge bar of Honeydukes chocolate, saying that he thought Harry needed it to cheer him up. Harry took a large piece, and felt the familiar warmth flood through his body. Without his friends, even Sirius wasn't able to make up for the loneliness. Still, it was the first time that Harry and Sirius had had a chance to properly get to know each other. With the school so empty it was possible to talk more openly, and Harry was able to fill in Sirius on his life so far. Sirius in return was able to give Harry a quick course in Magical Culture. Harry had learnt about the origins of magic through his lessons with Professor Binns, however it wasn't the same as knowing about the heroes of Quidditch matches, the major cultural centres for wizards such as the Museum of Magic in Frome and The National Quidditch Teams headquarters in Oxford.
Christmas slowly crept up. The weather was gradually getting colder. Harry often woke up to thick frosts, making the world outside an icy white. On Christmas day, Harry awoke in his empty dormitory. At the end of the bed was a small pile of presents. Dudley would have immediately thrown an enormous tantrum if he saw it, but to Harry it was enormous. He carefully opened the presents. Firstly was the annual Weasley jumper, this year it had a picture of a Quidditch player on it, and was red and gold which were the Gryffindor colours. Harry immediately put in on. The house elves hadn't lit the fire in the dormitory, so it was very cold. Harry immediately felt a lot warmer, and read the note that went with it. To Harry, This is a special jumper using a new charm. It will respond to your body temperature, therefore will cool you in summer and warm you in winter. Also I hope you enjoy the chocolate fudge. Love Mrs Weasley Harry pulled away the rest of the wrapping paper, and underneath was a huge box of home-made chocolate fudge. He broke a large chunk off, and ate it. He also gave a piece to Sirius who was making the most of the fact that Ron was home by sleeping on his bed. Sirius ate it slowly. The next present was from Hermione, he could tell it was a book from its weight and shape. Harry slowly opened it. Inside was a brand new book, Chudley Cannons, the History and the Legend. Harry smiled. He knew Ron would love to read it, after him of course. The next present was a large box of assorted sweets from Ron, and then there were three presents left. A long box, wrapped in expensive paper was the present Harry took next. A note tied with silver string said,
Dear Harry,
Thought you'd like these,
Love Cho
xxx Harry carefully undid the string. Inside there was a set of fine quills that wrote in gold and silver, and another that wrote in special fonts. His breath was taken away. They were quite exquisite and lay on a bed of cream silk. Harry knew immediately that they were very expensive, and suddenly felt awful that he hadn't got anything for Cho. Would she want to see him again? Sirius seeing the look on his face said, "It's alright, I expect she'll understand. We'll go to Hogsmeade and get her something for when she comes back." Harry looked relieved and studied the two presents that were left. The small grubby one he guessed was from Hagrid. He took off the wrapping and found inside a small bag that said wand holder. Inside was a thin belt that had a small holder on it, just the size for a wand. "Discreet and Useful" said the bag. Harry looked rather bemused, however not wanting to offend Hagrid he put it round his waist. He looked down and he couldn't see the belt or his wand, yet he could feel it. He took it out and it became visible. When he put it back into the holder he could feel on his hip, but not see it. Harry noticed a scruffy little note attached to the wrapping remains, These are all the rage in London. Thought you'd like one, Merry Christmas from Hagrid. Harry gave a sudden grin, and then proceeded to examine his final present. It had no label on, and was by far the largest present of the pile. It was about two feet high, and about three feet long. It seemed to be very knobby. Harry hadn't a clue who it was from. Sirius, Hagrid and all his friends had already given him his presents. He looked at Sirius questioningly. Sirius nodded, and Harry removed the paper. Inside was a large Quidditch pitch, complete with hoops. With it was several sets circular metal rings about the size of a head. Harry looked at it confused. "It's a Quidditch Simulator," Sirius told him. "In the wizarding world it's known as a Quiddax. You put one of those rings on your head, and then you can either watch one of 1000 famous Quidditch matches, or you can use it for practice. So you can pretend to be any of the players, or play against or for your fantasy team. I thought it might make up for missing the Quidditch practices." "You mean you gave this to me?" Harry asked in amazement. "But you already gave me that shirt, you can't give this to me as well. It's too much" "Well I bought it, but Dumbledore, Hagrid and even Professor McGonagall and Dobby put some money towards it. You've got a lot of friends. I suggest you give it to the Gryffindor Common Room. Then all the Gryffindors can play it, and maybe have a match. Do you want to try it?" Harry opened his mouth but nothing came out. He stood, his mouth open like a goldfish. Sirius understood however. He took one of the golden rings, and Harry copied him. As soon as he put on the golden ring he heard a little squeaky voice. "Hello Harry Potter, and welcome to the Quiddax 3000, Would you like to play a game, or watch a game from Quidditch history, one of the thousands available to the new owner of this highly sought after Quiddax set, produced exclusively from only the finest materials, and using only the latest wizarding inventions." Harry heard Sirius telling him to ignore the sales talk, and say what he'd like to do. Harry, feeling rather foolish said, "Play a game," immediately he was answered, "Which position and which team would you like to play for?" "Seeker and English world cup team" "Which year?" Harry remembering his famous Quidditch robes given to him said "1879" "Training, match or final?" "Final" "Player 2?" Sirius answered "Keeper." Harry suddenly felt the warm humid air around him. He was in the changing room of a huge stand, around him were standing men and women looking nervous, but very strong and athletic. They were wearing red, blue and silver robes. Harry was wearing the same. On the other side of the room was Sirius with the same colours. He gave Harry an encouraging smile. Harry smiled back weakly. Outside he could hear the muffled cheers of thousands of people. I am not going to let my country down, thought Harry. We are going to win. We've been practicing for months. This is it. We are going to win. Spain don't have a chance. The players were making their way out of the door into a room full of coffin sized boxes. Harry instinctively went to his box and took out a Ravensbeak 250. The best model on the market. Around him the players were mounting their brooms. Harry followed, and before he knew it was following the men out onto the Quidditch pitch. The stand was huge. The sky incredibly clear, and the sun was beating down without mercy. The heat and the humidity hit Harry like a wall after being in the cool changing rooms. He could vaguely hear the announcer "Here come the English team, Captain and Beater Doyle... Beater Forrest ..chasers, Douglas .. Rhead . Packer. Keeper Black and the world famous seeker, Mr Harry Potter. Harry circled the huge stadium, waving as the crowds roared. Within minutes the game had started. Harry delighted the crowds by showing off many moves such as the Alexander Drop and the Fenchurch marking. The game was hard fought. Sirius had to be constantly vigilant, as the Spanish players were good, hitting the bludgers towards him without pity. Harry was watching the sky closely for any sign of the snitch. His advisers had been right. The snitch would be hard to see with the shimmering heat and the sand coloured pitch. The game was getting rougher. The Israeli Referee awarded a penalty to England because the Spanish beater had flown deliberately into Sirius, knocking him off his broom. Harry circled a little lower than would normally. There was no point in straining his eyes too much. The match had been going for over an hour when Harry first spotted the snitch. He raced towards it, and was miles in front of the Spanish seeker, however the snitch disappeared just as his fingers touched it. Cursing his luck Harry returned to the sky. England were wining three hundred to one hundred and eighty when the snitch was spotted for the second time. It was very close to the Spanish seeker, who hadn't seen it. If Harry made any move towards it, he knew the Spanish seeker would see it and grab it. Instead Harry plummeted towards the ground pretending he'd seen it. The Spanish seeker followed. By the time Harry had pulled out of the dive the snitch had gone. After another half an hour a break was called to allow everyone to take a drink. Harry had never needed a drink so much. The cool Herb fizz was soothing to his parched throat. Before he knew it however, he was back in the air, the winking binoculars pointed at him were distracting him, but he ignored them. It wasn't long before he spotted the snitch a third time. He dived one last time, this time successfully, the snitch struggling uselessly between his triumphant fingers. He soared round the pitch in a state of ecstasy. The rest of the team swooped towards him cheering and screaming, but were drowned out by the thunderous roar of the crowds in the stands. England had won by five hundred points. A massive victory! Harry went to the platform, and hand in hand with the captain took the enormous cup. What a win! The crowds would not stop cheering. English flags and England rules signs were flashing madly in the stands. The English mascots, which were fairies riding little sledges pulled by flying bulldogs, were leaping off their benches and flying round like little balls of light. The keeper stepped towards him, Harry ignored him, savoring the atmosphere, this is what all the weeks of training had been for he thought ecstatically. It had been worth every minute. "I think we'd better be going to dinner," said the keeper. What? thought Harry. We've just won the Quidditch World Cup. What's he going on about dinner? We're having a special feast courtesy of the Spanish Quidditch Association anyway. "Come on Harry. It's time to go," said Sirius again. He disappeared from Harry's side on the platform. Harry was just looking at the smiling face of Doyle, when suddenly everything went dark. Harry blinked, he was standing in his dormitory. Sirius was standing next to him in his usual black robes.
"Well, what did you think of your present then?" Sirius asked with a grin. "You certainly got a bit carried away." "Was that, the game, was that all in my head, you mean it wasn't real" Harry stuttered. "Pretty good aren't they? Very realistic. Now we'd better get down to Christmas dinner before Dumbledore thinks you've been kidnapped." Harry was still feeling a bit disorientated. He was sure he'd just been in Spain, playing the home country, and they'd won. Now he was back at Hogwarts. The confusion, however soon wore off, and Harry couldn't wait to try the Quiddax again. In the Hall, the usual long tables were gone, and instead a large circular table replaced it. However although it seated twenty people it was dwarfed by the large hall. Apart from Harry there were two Hufflepuffs and a Ravenclaw staying. Harry didn't know any of them as they were all younger than him. They seemed averted their eyes if Harry looked at them, which Harry found disconcerting, but ignored it. The teachers and the three other students were already sitting at the empty table. Sirius apologized for their lateness, which Dumbledore accepted graciously, Snape looked at them both with pure loathing. "Did you like your presents then Harry?" asked Dumbledore. Harry knew he was referring specifically to the Quiddax. "It's great sir," grinned Harry. "Good, good, Now let's begin." The goblets filled with steaming punch, and the golden plates were full of Christmas Fayre. Hot sprouts, tender turkey, steaming gravy, glistening chipolatas, golden roast potatoes and crackling bacon. Flaming Christmas puddings followed with huge jugs of thick cream. After the meal Harry was feeling incredibly full, and was quite happy to spend the rest of the day lounging in the warm common room playing wizard snap and chess, but only half-heartedly. The following days went very quickly with Quiddax to play, and Sirius to talk to. Before he knew it, it was the day that everyone came back. Hermione and Ron came rushing into the common room, and for the next half an hour everyone was speaking at once telling him about their Christmas presents, what Fred and George had done to the Christmas Pudding, and where they had gone on Boxing Day. It was sometime before Harry could tell them about the Quiddax set. Ron and Hermione couldn't believe Harry's luck, "A real Quiddax set" "You are so lucky" "Wish I had one!" "Can we play on it?" However before Harry could get it from his room, there came a strange sound from the ceiling. It was a sort of splashing and roaring sound. This was followed by a dripping through the roof, which soon became great streams of water through the common room roof. "What is that?" Ron asked. Water was pouring from at least ten places in the ceiling, and had already made large puddles on the floor. Everyone was soon soaked, and people started frantically clambering out of the portrait hole. Water had reached ankle height when Ron, Harry, Sirius and Hermione were able to get to the portrait hole. They scrambled out only to find that the corridors were flooded also. Professor McGonagall slipped towards them,
"Peeves has upset the water pipes. You'll all have to get out while we sort it out. Third years and above can go to Hogsmeade, the rest of you, you'll have to wait outside on the Quidditch pitch, just keep away from the castle." Harry delighted at the prospect of visiting Hogsmeade despite his ban, waded down the corridors. As they reached the ground floor the water reached nearly waist height and Ron tried swimming. At last they managed to get to the main entrance, but as the steps had turned into a roaring waterfall, they climbed out of a nearby window. They paused to wring out their sodden cloaks, and tip the water out of their boots. Hermione and Harry conjured up a fire to dry themselves out. Looking back they could see Peeves floating in a yellow duck rubber ring in the lake that had formed on the front lawn. He was cackling loudly. "I'm glad we can go out to Hogsmeade, it's freezing, I don't fancy waiting about on the Quidditch pitch," Harry told them. Luckily Ron and Hermione were still wearing their outdoor clothes and Harry was wearing Mrs Weasley's magically warm jumper. Then they headed down the country road to Hogsmeade. As Ron was talking to Sirius about Quidditch, Harry slipped back to tell Hermione about Cho's present, "So I don't know what to get her?" he concluded. Hermione smiled. "I know just the place. I saw it advertised in The Daily Prophet. It's a new shop- it's called The Witches Cauldron, You'll be able to find something there." They soon arrived at the twisting main street of Hogsmeade. There were already clusters of students, still looking slightly damp wandering up and down the street. Hermione made an excuse to visit The Witches Cauldron, and Harry followed her. Inside the brightly-lit shop were shelves and shelves of ornaments, wizarding gadgets and a few odd looking garments. Hermione studied the shelves intently before picking a small twisted silver ring. It was covered with intricate patterns and in the middle was a glowing milky pink stone, that was swirling. Hermione considered it, and then told Harry, "It's a bit forward isn't it, you've only kissed once," Harry blushed, but Hermione had already moved to the next shelf. She was now considering an ornate goblet. Harry began looking round the shop. There were some other students from the school, all girls however. Sirius was waiting outside. Some of them were looking at Harry oddly. Harry blushed again, and then pulled on Hermione's arm, "Why don't I get her a box of chocolates?" "Then what did you ask me for?" said Hermione huffily, and marched out of the shop. Harry looked at the ring one last time, and then scooped it up and took it to the friendly witch at the counter who smiled at him toothily. "Do you want it wrapped dear?" "Yes, please" Harry mumbled. It was a great relief when he was out of the shop. He joined Ron in the sweet shop. Ron was looking with interest at the small neatly wrapped parcel Harry was holding, but Harry ignored him. Instead he looked at the shelves of boxed chocolates, choosing a neatly wrapped box in the shape of a dragon. He paid for it along with a few of the latest creations. They then visited the pub where Sirius got them a small back room where they could talk freely, and then paid for them all to have large goblets of butter beer and large wizard cream cakes that grew back every time you took a bite, so there was always some left on your plate. "I've waited many years to do this," Sirius told them when they protested that this was too much. Sirius was a great entertainer, and amused them for hours with accounts from his youth, and stories from his travels. Harry was a little skeptical about the truth content of some of them, but they had him and the others rolling about splitting their sides with laughing. It was already starting to get dark, and the sky was thick with rain, when eventually Harry and his friends left Hogsmeade. The bright lights of Hogsmeade were twinkling merrily behind them, making the road in front of them seem darker and more threatening. The clouds were very low, and within minutes it was raining. Harry was convinced there were people behind every bend, and he strained his eyes in the rapidly thickening gloom to peer at the high hedges. Sirius was cursing himself for letting them leave so late. They were a little over five minutes walk from the gates of Hogwarts when a loud cry was heard not far away. The small party stopped dead. The sound came again. It was not a pleasant sound. A scream, a screech, the sound of a terrible beast. The terrible cry came again, and then Ron shouted, "Look over there!" A winged creature was silhouetted against the sky. It had huge talons stretched out in front of it. It swooped low over the group it's claw just scraping Ron's back. "Run!" yelled Sirius. "Get to the school." His wand was drawn. Harry and the rest of them ran as fast as they could along the road. Harry turned back to see Sirius, his wand in the air, blue white sparks bursting out from it. The appalling brute was circling again it's claws reaching towards Sirius. The sound of its raw screeches filled the air. Ron grabbed Harry's arm saying, "Come on. He told us to go." Harry followed him panting heavily and thinking about Sirius. It was a relief when they passed the high pillars at the entrance to Hogwarts, and could see the lights from the many windows spilling out onto the dark lawns. "Come on!" Harry yelled. "Let's get some help." He ran towards the steps leading up to Hogwarts. To his relief Professor Jenai was walking down the steps. She stopped and looked at their pale scared faces. "Where's Sirius?" asked she quickly. "We were attacked, just down the road, a winged." Harry stopped, Professor Jenai was shrinking and turning a golden yellow. A tail appeared, and her clothes melted away. A huge tiger leapt down the steps and tore across the lawn and out of the gates. "She's an amigus too" Harry breathed. They stood and looked out of the gates. A few minutes later Sirius rounded the corner, panting and holding his arm, Professor Jenai was supporting him. Blood was leaking under his fingers from a nasty wound. "It's gone. Come on let's get inside." Professor Jenai and Sirius strode off leaving the others desperately wanting to ask the same question, what was that? Back inside the school, things were nearly back to normal. Sirius left them saying he was just going to see Madame Hooch. The teachers had been very busy using their drying charms on all the furniture, floors, and personal possessions. The Fat Lady was still swimming in her frame however, wearing a ridiculous bathing costume with large red stars covering the huge expanse of flesh. She showed off doing a handstand underwater as Hermione told her the password, Angelus. Inside Harry was please to see a roaring fire on the grate. As they had missed tea there was a large table full of sandwiches, crisps and raspberry cheesecake. Telling the others to wait in the common room he dashed upstairs, and returned struggling to carry the Quiddax set. Hermione's eyes lit up and Ron's mouth fell open in admiration. Several of the Gryffindors were watching Harry, pleading at him with their eyes. Harry asked Neville, and was in the process of asking Dean and Seamus if they wanted to play when Lizzy bounded up. "Can I play?" she asked with a big rosy grin. Harry didn't have a chance to say anything before Ron had grabbed one of the gold rings and placed it over her thick brown hair. Hermione looked at her with loathing, while Ron sat next to her on the couch placing a ring on his head. Neville, Seamus, Dean and Harry all put on a ring, which made a Quidditch team. They each choose their positions, and decided to play against the Chudley Cannons, which was Ron's idea. They were spectacularly beaten because although Harry caught the snitch, Hermione was no good as a beater, and Neville was ten times worse. However they all enjoyed it immensely, especially as they were playing in an African Jungle on a lovely sunny day. At the end Harry quickly wrote a little note to the Gryffindors saying they were welcome to use it anytime. He then used a sticking charm to attach it to the wall. Sirius had appeared with a bandaged arm sometime while they were playing Quiddax and was already asleep in the dormitory. Harry reread his Christmas present; Chudley Cannons The History and Legend. He called Ron to read him the bit where the Chudley Cannon seeker swallowed the snitch in the 1286 National Cup, when he realised Ron wasn't there. He put on his night gown, and crept down the stairs into the darkened common room. The candles were all out, and the only light was from the glowing embers of the fire. Harry strained round and was just able to see Ron and what looked like Lizzy Ferkell talking passionately on the couch. Harry quietly returned to his bed. (
Quiddax
Harry woke up. He'd been having a wonderful dream that Cho had been dancing with him at a fancy dress party. There had been snow, and oddly a lot of golden stars. It took him several minutes to realise that it wasn't a dream. No one was up early that morning, and there was a general feeling of tiredness percolating the corridors of Hogwarts. When Harry, Ron and Hermione finally got up they took a late lunch in the Hall. As Harry chewed his kipper, he was half listening to Ron, telling him about Lizzy, "She was at the buffet eating chocolate gateaux, she asked me about my shirt, and then I think it was the punch, I asked her to dance, and she said yes, and she's really nice, her favourite team is the Chudley Cannons, we're going to see a game together sometime. She's promised to write over Christmas." The other half of Harry was thinking about the magical kiss with Cho. Was she just kissing him because she felt sorry for him, or did she really like him? Hermione was rather quiet over breakfast, unobtrusively eating her porridge. When they had eaten they returned to their dormitories to finish packing. Harry felt a pang of sadness, feeling rather lonely left behind in the castle, but he tried not to show it. As he stood on the steps of Hogwarts waving sadly to them, Hermione turned and said to him, "You will be careful, won't you while we're away" "Of course I will. You have a nice time. Merry Christmas." "Merry Christmas" she replied, her eyes looking at him one last time, before getting into the horseless carriages. When they had gone, the castle felt very empty. There were even fewer students staying at Hogwarts that Christmas, as many of the families wanted to be together with Voldemort exerting his power. Sirius followed Harry back to the dormitory where he tried to concentrate on a recent addition to the library called Quidditch: The Greatest Games, which he'd been looking forward to reading, but somehow he couldn't concentrate in the deserted common room. Sirius eventually suggested a game of chess, and they went to the Turkish room where they had a vicious game of chess. Harry's chess set were now a bit more skilled, and together they managed to beat Sirius playing with Ron's chess set. At the end Sirius brought out a huge bar of Honeydukes chocolate, saying that he thought Harry needed it to cheer him up. Harry took a large piece, and felt the familiar warmth flood through his body. Without his friends, even Sirius wasn't able to make up for the loneliness. Still, it was the first time that Harry and Sirius had had a chance to properly get to know each other. With the school so empty it was possible to talk more openly, and Harry was able to fill in Sirius on his life so far. Sirius in return was able to give Harry a quick course in Magical Culture. Harry had learnt about the origins of magic through his lessons with Professor Binns, however it wasn't the same as knowing about the heroes of Quidditch matches, the major cultural centres for wizards such as the Museum of Magic in Frome and The National Quidditch Teams headquarters in Oxford.
Christmas slowly crept up. The weather was gradually getting colder. Harry often woke up to thick frosts, making the world outside an icy white. On Christmas day, Harry awoke in his empty dormitory. At the end of the bed was a small pile of presents. Dudley would have immediately thrown an enormous tantrum if he saw it, but to Harry it was enormous. He carefully opened the presents. Firstly was the annual Weasley jumper, this year it had a picture of a Quidditch player on it, and was red and gold which were the Gryffindor colours. Harry immediately put in on. The house elves hadn't lit the fire in the dormitory, so it was very cold. Harry immediately felt a lot warmer, and read the note that went with it. To Harry, This is a special jumper using a new charm. It will respond to your body temperature, therefore will cool you in summer and warm you in winter. Also I hope you enjoy the chocolate fudge. Love Mrs Weasley Harry pulled away the rest of the wrapping paper, and underneath was a huge box of home-made chocolate fudge. He broke a large chunk off, and ate it. He also gave a piece to Sirius who was making the most of the fact that Ron was home by sleeping on his bed. Sirius ate it slowly. The next present was from Hermione, he could tell it was a book from its weight and shape. Harry slowly opened it. Inside was a brand new book, Chudley Cannons, the History and the Legend. Harry smiled. He knew Ron would love to read it, after him of course. The next present was a large box of assorted sweets from Ron, and then there were three presents left. A long box, wrapped in expensive paper was the present Harry took next. A note tied with silver string said,
Dear Harry,
Thought you'd like these,
Love Cho
xxx Harry carefully undid the string. Inside there was a set of fine quills that wrote in gold and silver, and another that wrote in special fonts. His breath was taken away. They were quite exquisite and lay on a bed of cream silk. Harry knew immediately that they were very expensive, and suddenly felt awful that he hadn't got anything for Cho. Would she want to see him again? Sirius seeing the look on his face said, "It's alright, I expect she'll understand. We'll go to Hogsmeade and get her something for when she comes back." Harry looked relieved and studied the two presents that were left. The small grubby one he guessed was from Hagrid. He took off the wrapping and found inside a small bag that said wand holder. Inside was a thin belt that had a small holder on it, just the size for a wand. "Discreet and Useful" said the bag. Harry looked rather bemused, however not wanting to offend Hagrid he put it round his waist. He looked down and he couldn't see the belt or his wand, yet he could feel it. He took it out and it became visible. When he put it back into the holder he could feel on his hip, but not see it. Harry noticed a scruffy little note attached to the wrapping remains, These are all the rage in London. Thought you'd like one, Merry Christmas from Hagrid. Harry gave a sudden grin, and then proceeded to examine his final present. It had no label on, and was by far the largest present of the pile. It was about two feet high, and about three feet long. It seemed to be very knobby. Harry hadn't a clue who it was from. Sirius, Hagrid and all his friends had already given him his presents. He looked at Sirius questioningly. Sirius nodded, and Harry removed the paper. Inside was a large Quidditch pitch, complete with hoops. With it was several sets circular metal rings about the size of a head. Harry looked at it confused. "It's a Quidditch Simulator," Sirius told him. "In the wizarding world it's known as a Quiddax. You put one of those rings on your head, and then you can either watch one of 1000 famous Quidditch matches, or you can use it for practice. So you can pretend to be any of the players, or play against or for your fantasy team. I thought it might make up for missing the Quidditch practices." "You mean you gave this to me?" Harry asked in amazement. "But you already gave me that shirt, you can't give this to me as well. It's too much" "Well I bought it, but Dumbledore, Hagrid and even Professor McGonagall and Dobby put some money towards it. You've got a lot of friends. I suggest you give it to the Gryffindor Common Room. Then all the Gryffindors can play it, and maybe have a match. Do you want to try it?" Harry opened his mouth but nothing came out. He stood, his mouth open like a goldfish. Sirius understood however. He took one of the golden rings, and Harry copied him. As soon as he put on the golden ring he heard a little squeaky voice. "Hello Harry Potter, and welcome to the Quiddax 3000, Would you like to play a game, or watch a game from Quidditch history, one of the thousands available to the new owner of this highly sought after Quiddax set, produced exclusively from only the finest materials, and using only the latest wizarding inventions." Harry heard Sirius telling him to ignore the sales talk, and say what he'd like to do. Harry, feeling rather foolish said, "Play a game," immediately he was answered, "Which position and which team would you like to play for?" "Seeker and English world cup team" "Which year?" Harry remembering his famous Quidditch robes given to him said "1879" "Training, match or final?" "Final" "Player 2?" Sirius answered "Keeper." Harry suddenly felt the warm humid air around him. He was in the changing room of a huge stand, around him were standing men and women looking nervous, but very strong and athletic. They were wearing red, blue and silver robes. Harry was wearing the same. On the other side of the room was Sirius with the same colours. He gave Harry an encouraging smile. Harry smiled back weakly. Outside he could hear the muffled cheers of thousands of people. I am not going to let my country down, thought Harry. We are going to win. We've been practicing for months. This is it. We are going to win. Spain don't have a chance. The players were making their way out of the door into a room full of coffin sized boxes. Harry instinctively went to his box and took out a Ravensbeak 250. The best model on the market. Around him the players were mounting their brooms. Harry followed, and before he knew it was following the men out onto the Quidditch pitch. The stand was huge. The sky incredibly clear, and the sun was beating down without mercy. The heat and the humidity hit Harry like a wall after being in the cool changing rooms. He could vaguely hear the announcer "Here come the English team, Captain and Beater Doyle... Beater Forrest ..chasers, Douglas .. Rhead . Packer. Keeper Black and the world famous seeker, Mr Harry Potter. Harry circled the huge stadium, waving as the crowds roared. Within minutes the game had started. Harry delighted the crowds by showing off many moves such as the Alexander Drop and the Fenchurch marking. The game was hard fought. Sirius had to be constantly vigilant, as the Spanish players were good, hitting the bludgers towards him without pity. Harry was watching the sky closely for any sign of the snitch. His advisers had been right. The snitch would be hard to see with the shimmering heat and the sand coloured pitch. The game was getting rougher. The Israeli Referee awarded a penalty to England because the Spanish beater had flown deliberately into Sirius, knocking him off his broom. Harry circled a little lower than would normally. There was no point in straining his eyes too much. The match had been going for over an hour when Harry first spotted the snitch. He raced towards it, and was miles in front of the Spanish seeker, however the snitch disappeared just as his fingers touched it. Cursing his luck Harry returned to the sky. England were wining three hundred to one hundred and eighty when the snitch was spotted for the second time. It was very close to the Spanish seeker, who hadn't seen it. If Harry made any move towards it, he knew the Spanish seeker would see it and grab it. Instead Harry plummeted towards the ground pretending he'd seen it. The Spanish seeker followed. By the time Harry had pulled out of the dive the snitch had gone. After another half an hour a break was called to allow everyone to take a drink. Harry had never needed a drink so much. The cool Herb fizz was soothing to his parched throat. Before he knew it however, he was back in the air, the winking binoculars pointed at him were distracting him, but he ignored them. It wasn't long before he spotted the snitch a third time. He dived one last time, this time successfully, the snitch struggling uselessly between his triumphant fingers. He soared round the pitch in a state of ecstasy. The rest of the team swooped towards him cheering and screaming, but were drowned out by the thunderous roar of the crowds in the stands. England had won by five hundred points. A massive victory! Harry went to the platform, and hand in hand with the captain took the enormous cup. What a win! The crowds would not stop cheering. English flags and England rules signs were flashing madly in the stands. The English mascots, which were fairies riding little sledges pulled by flying bulldogs, were leaping off their benches and flying round like little balls of light. The keeper stepped towards him, Harry ignored him, savoring the atmosphere, this is what all the weeks of training had been for he thought ecstatically. It had been worth every minute. "I think we'd better be going to dinner," said the keeper. What? thought Harry. We've just won the Quidditch World Cup. What's he going on about dinner? We're having a special feast courtesy of the Spanish Quidditch Association anyway. "Come on Harry. It's time to go," said Sirius again. He disappeared from Harry's side on the platform. Harry was just looking at the smiling face of Doyle, when suddenly everything went dark. Harry blinked, he was standing in his dormitory. Sirius was standing next to him in his usual black robes.
"Well, what did you think of your present then?" Sirius asked with a grin. "You certainly got a bit carried away." "Was that, the game, was that all in my head, you mean it wasn't real" Harry stuttered. "Pretty good aren't they? Very realistic. Now we'd better get down to Christmas dinner before Dumbledore thinks you've been kidnapped." Harry was still feeling a bit disorientated. He was sure he'd just been in Spain, playing the home country, and they'd won. Now he was back at Hogwarts. The confusion, however soon wore off, and Harry couldn't wait to try the Quiddax again. In the Hall, the usual long tables were gone, and instead a large circular table replaced it. However although it seated twenty people it was dwarfed by the large hall. Apart from Harry there were two Hufflepuffs and a Ravenclaw staying. Harry didn't know any of them as they were all younger than him. They seemed averted their eyes if Harry looked at them, which Harry found disconcerting, but ignored it. The teachers and the three other students were already sitting at the empty table. Sirius apologized for their lateness, which Dumbledore accepted graciously, Snape looked at them both with pure loathing. "Did you like your presents then Harry?" asked Dumbledore. Harry knew he was referring specifically to the Quiddax. "It's great sir," grinned Harry. "Good, good, Now let's begin." The goblets filled with steaming punch, and the golden plates were full of Christmas Fayre. Hot sprouts, tender turkey, steaming gravy, glistening chipolatas, golden roast potatoes and crackling bacon. Flaming Christmas puddings followed with huge jugs of thick cream. After the meal Harry was feeling incredibly full, and was quite happy to spend the rest of the day lounging in the warm common room playing wizard snap and chess, but only half-heartedly. The following days went very quickly with Quiddax to play, and Sirius to talk to. Before he knew it, it was the day that everyone came back. Hermione and Ron came rushing into the common room, and for the next half an hour everyone was speaking at once telling him about their Christmas presents, what Fred and George had done to the Christmas Pudding, and where they had gone on Boxing Day. It was sometime before Harry could tell them about the Quiddax set. Ron and Hermione couldn't believe Harry's luck, "A real Quiddax set" "You are so lucky" "Wish I had one!" "Can we play on it?" However before Harry could get it from his room, there came a strange sound from the ceiling. It was a sort of splashing and roaring sound. This was followed by a dripping through the roof, which soon became great streams of water through the common room roof. "What is that?" Ron asked. Water was pouring from at least ten places in the ceiling, and had already made large puddles on the floor. Everyone was soon soaked, and people started frantically clambering out of the portrait hole. Water had reached ankle height when Ron, Harry, Sirius and Hermione were able to get to the portrait hole. They scrambled out only to find that the corridors were flooded also. Professor McGonagall slipped towards them,
"Peeves has upset the water pipes. You'll all have to get out while we sort it out. Third years and above can go to Hogsmeade, the rest of you, you'll have to wait outside on the Quidditch pitch, just keep away from the castle." Harry delighted at the prospect of visiting Hogsmeade despite his ban, waded down the corridors. As they reached the ground floor the water reached nearly waist height and Ron tried swimming. At last they managed to get to the main entrance, but as the steps had turned into a roaring waterfall, they climbed out of a nearby window. They paused to wring out their sodden cloaks, and tip the water out of their boots. Hermione and Harry conjured up a fire to dry themselves out. Looking back they could see Peeves floating in a yellow duck rubber ring in the lake that had formed on the front lawn. He was cackling loudly. "I'm glad we can go out to Hogsmeade, it's freezing, I don't fancy waiting about on the Quidditch pitch," Harry told them. Luckily Ron and Hermione were still wearing their outdoor clothes and Harry was wearing Mrs Weasley's magically warm jumper. Then they headed down the country road to Hogsmeade. As Ron was talking to Sirius about Quidditch, Harry slipped back to tell Hermione about Cho's present, "So I don't know what to get her?" he concluded. Hermione smiled. "I know just the place. I saw it advertised in The Daily Prophet. It's a new shop- it's called The Witches Cauldron, You'll be able to find something there." They soon arrived at the twisting main street of Hogsmeade. There were already clusters of students, still looking slightly damp wandering up and down the street. Hermione made an excuse to visit The Witches Cauldron, and Harry followed her. Inside the brightly-lit shop were shelves and shelves of ornaments, wizarding gadgets and a few odd looking garments. Hermione studied the shelves intently before picking a small twisted silver ring. It was covered with intricate patterns and in the middle was a glowing milky pink stone, that was swirling. Hermione considered it, and then told Harry, "It's a bit forward isn't it, you've only kissed once," Harry blushed, but Hermione had already moved to the next shelf. She was now considering an ornate goblet. Harry began looking round the shop. There were some other students from the school, all girls however. Sirius was waiting outside. Some of them were looking at Harry oddly. Harry blushed again, and then pulled on Hermione's arm, "Why don't I get her a box of chocolates?" "Then what did you ask me for?" said Hermione huffily, and marched out of the shop. Harry looked at the ring one last time, and then scooped it up and took it to the friendly witch at the counter who smiled at him toothily. "Do you want it wrapped dear?" "Yes, please" Harry mumbled. It was a great relief when he was out of the shop. He joined Ron in the sweet shop. Ron was looking with interest at the small neatly wrapped parcel Harry was holding, but Harry ignored him. Instead he looked at the shelves of boxed chocolates, choosing a neatly wrapped box in the shape of a dragon. He paid for it along with a few of the latest creations. They then visited the pub where Sirius got them a small back room where they could talk freely, and then paid for them all to have large goblets of butter beer and large wizard cream cakes that grew back every time you took a bite, so there was always some left on your plate. "I've waited many years to do this," Sirius told them when they protested that this was too much. Sirius was a great entertainer, and amused them for hours with accounts from his youth, and stories from his travels. Harry was a little skeptical about the truth content of some of them, but they had him and the others rolling about splitting their sides with laughing. It was already starting to get dark, and the sky was thick with rain, when eventually Harry and his friends left Hogsmeade. The bright lights of Hogsmeade were twinkling merrily behind them, making the road in front of them seem darker and more threatening. The clouds were very low, and within minutes it was raining. Harry was convinced there were people behind every bend, and he strained his eyes in the rapidly thickening gloom to peer at the high hedges. Sirius was cursing himself for letting them leave so late. They were a little over five minutes walk from the gates of Hogwarts when a loud cry was heard not far away. The small party stopped dead. The sound came again. It was not a pleasant sound. A scream, a screech, the sound of a terrible beast. The terrible cry came again, and then Ron shouted, "Look over there!" A winged creature was silhouetted against the sky. It had huge talons stretched out in front of it. It swooped low over the group it's claw just scraping Ron's back. "Run!" yelled Sirius. "Get to the school." His wand was drawn. Harry and the rest of them ran as fast as they could along the road. Harry turned back to see Sirius, his wand in the air, blue white sparks bursting out from it. The appalling brute was circling again it's claws reaching towards Sirius. The sound of its raw screeches filled the air. Ron grabbed Harry's arm saying, "Come on. He told us to go." Harry followed him panting heavily and thinking about Sirius. It was a relief when they passed the high pillars at the entrance to Hogwarts, and could see the lights from the many windows spilling out onto the dark lawns. "Come on!" Harry yelled. "Let's get some help." He ran towards the steps leading up to Hogwarts. To his relief Professor Jenai was walking down the steps. She stopped and looked at their pale scared faces. "Where's Sirius?" asked she quickly. "We were attacked, just down the road, a winged." Harry stopped, Professor Jenai was shrinking and turning a golden yellow. A tail appeared, and her clothes melted away. A huge tiger leapt down the steps and tore across the lawn and out of the gates. "She's an amigus too" Harry breathed. They stood and looked out of the gates. A few minutes later Sirius rounded the corner, panting and holding his arm, Professor Jenai was supporting him. Blood was leaking under his fingers from a nasty wound. "It's gone. Come on let's get inside." Professor Jenai and Sirius strode off leaving the others desperately wanting to ask the same question, what was that? Back inside the school, things were nearly back to normal. Sirius left them saying he was just going to see Madame Hooch. The teachers had been very busy using their drying charms on all the furniture, floors, and personal possessions. The Fat Lady was still swimming in her frame however, wearing a ridiculous bathing costume with large red stars covering the huge expanse of flesh. She showed off doing a handstand underwater as Hermione told her the password, Angelus. Inside Harry was please to see a roaring fire on the grate. As they had missed tea there was a large table full of sandwiches, crisps and raspberry cheesecake. Telling the others to wait in the common room he dashed upstairs, and returned struggling to carry the Quiddax set. Hermione's eyes lit up and Ron's mouth fell open in admiration. Several of the Gryffindors were watching Harry, pleading at him with their eyes. Harry asked Neville, and was in the process of asking Dean and Seamus if they wanted to play when Lizzy bounded up. "Can I play?" she asked with a big rosy grin. Harry didn't have a chance to say anything before Ron had grabbed one of the gold rings and placed it over her thick brown hair. Hermione looked at her with loathing, while Ron sat next to her on the couch placing a ring on his head. Neville, Seamus, Dean and Harry all put on a ring, which made a Quidditch team. They each choose their positions, and decided to play against the Chudley Cannons, which was Ron's idea. They were spectacularly beaten because although Harry caught the snitch, Hermione was no good as a beater, and Neville was ten times worse. However they all enjoyed it immensely, especially as they were playing in an African Jungle on a lovely sunny day. At the end Harry quickly wrote a little note to the Gryffindors saying they were welcome to use it anytime. He then used a sticking charm to attach it to the wall. Sirius had appeared with a bandaged arm sometime while they were playing Quiddax and was already asleep in the dormitory. Harry reread his Christmas present; Chudley Cannons The History and Legend. He called Ron to read him the bit where the Chudley Cannon seeker swallowed the snitch in the 1286 National Cup, when he realised Ron wasn't there. He put on his night gown, and crept down the stairs into the darkened common room. The candles were all out, and the only light was from the glowing embers of the fire. Harry strained round and was just able to see Ron and what looked like Lizzy Ferkell talking passionately on the couch. Harry quietly returned to his bed. (