A/N - JKR owns the idea, all of these characters etc.
A/N - Keep posting ideas and suggestions, it can only help.
A/N - Having Bronchitis is no fun.
Chapter 43
Some Stuff
Snape didn't concern Harry.
"My, my, where are we going in such a rush?" The greasy-haired head of Slytherin asked with his usual sneer that he reserved especially for Gryffindors.
"I need to find Dumbledore. Do you know where he is?"
"The headmaster is too busy to see the students at their whim, Potter. Tell me what you need."
"We're not doing this again. Mr Crouch might still be alive if you weren't so petty last year." And with that Harry ran down the corridor leaving a stunned Snape watching him go.
Fortunately the next creature that Harry ran into was a large black dog. With only a slight tilt of his head, Sirius asked Harry what his rush was.
"I have to find Dumbledore --- now!" That was all his godfather needed. The large black dog turned and led Harry outdoors and into the Forbidden Forest running almost too fast for Harry to keep up with him. When they reached the very outline of the Forest, the dog turned and growled at Harry. Harry knew that Sirius meant him to stay put and he nodded his head to show his willingness to wait where he was.
Before Harry even had enough time to properly wonder why the headmaster was in the Forbidden Forest, he had stepped into the moonlight and was approaching Harry. Sirius was already back standing beside Harry before Dumbledore was within hearing range.
"Professor Dumbledore, something strange just happened. I got sucked into a book about the Orders of the Phoenix and the Serpent during Madame Pince's class and when I came back out everyone else was in a sort of trance."
Sirius was about to transform so he could ask Harry to elaborate but the headmaster cut him off.
"Let's go."
And with that the three of them raced back into the castle. By the time they reached the classroom though Harry saw the last thing he had expected. Everything was as it should be. Everyone was talking and was in all ways just as animated as ever before. Madame Pince was asking if anyone knew where Harry had gone just as he was running back in the classroom. Harry was dumbfounded. Seeing his reaction, the black dog turned from Harry to Dumbledore trying to will the older wizard to ask Harry's unasked question. Which he did.
"Hello everyone. Is everything all right here?"
"Hello Albus, I'm glad to see you actually. I was in the middle of a demonstration when I noticed young Harry over there had left my class without permission. I was asking if anyone knew where he went when the two of you and that filthy beast entered my classroom."
Sirius growled. Ron and Hermione chuckled.
Harry spoke. "What? Didn't any of you see what happened? I was --- "
Dumbledore interrupted Harry before he could tell everyone what had happened. "He was told to come to my office. Now Harry, let's leave Madame Pince to finish her lesson, shall we?" And with that Harry, Dumbledore and the black dog all left the classroom and headed straight for Dumbledore's office.
"Raspberry Rodents"
Once inside, Sirius transformed and Dumbledore spoke. "Harry, I need you to tell us everything."
Harry, still a bit dazed from everything that had just happened, nodded slowly. Slumped in a chair, he recounted everything from the serpent inviting him in to the book, through all of the visions of both Orders, ending with the book burning up and everyone being in a trance. After a brief consideration, Harry decided to mention his encounter with the head of the Slytherin house just in case Snape mentioned it later.
Sirius and Dumbledore listened intently as Harry told his story. However they were obviously more interested in certain parts than in others. After he finished his tale, Harry launched into a sea of questions: "What do you two know about the Order of the Serpent? Why did I attack someone? Who did I attack? Why did the book burn up? Is there another copy of it somewhere? Have either of you seen these images before?"
Harry only stopped when he noticed the amusement on the faces of the other two men sitting in the room. Sirius, obviously trying not to smile, said, "Harry, I thought we were passed you trying to question us to death."
"Sirius, this is important."
"Right you are Harry," Dumbledore interjected. "However I'm afraid we can't answer any of these questions for you. The journey is sometimes more important than the destination. You must answer most of these questions for yourself. Now I suggest you go on back to Gryffindor Tower - think on what you saw today."
Harry got up to leave when Dumbledore stopped him. "And Harry, do you know why I interrupted you back in the Defense Against Dark Arts classroom?"
"Yes, the Order is a secret." After seeing Dumbledore nod, he left and went back to the common room. He tried to follow the headmaster's advice and think on it, but that only made his head hurt.
That night Harry had a dream. He didn't have just any dream, he dreamed about his experiences earlier in the day during his Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Fortunately, in his dream, he was able to once again ask the lone question that had been plaguing him since his experience with the serpent and the phoenix.
In his dream he was back in Dumbledore's office. His headmaster was asking him why he attacked a staff member in the Great Hall. But his dream self didn't seem to know why he had done that. If he did know, he had decided not to respond. Since Harry had no answer, he just stood there quietly facing his questioner. Finally, Fawkes left his perch and flew over to Harry's shoulder where he watched his owner triggering Dumbledore to speak.
"So Fawkes, you know why Harry attacked a member of my staff?"
A wide-eyed Harry Potter turned to watch the reaction of the phoenix perched upon his shoulder. Fawkes was nodding his head up and down without shame. This sight faded and was replaced by Fawkes and Harry alone in a solid white room that reminded Harry of the room that the weird book had put him in towards the end of the story.
Much to his surprise and great joy, Fawkes assumed the position of the previous phoenix when it had been willing to answer one question --- it was hovering at eye-level facing his dream self. Figuring that he had nothing to lose, Harry's dream self posed a single question to Fawkes. He wanted to ask who he had attacked in the previous image but there was a much more important question than who.
"Why did I attack that staff member in my previous images?" Since the last phoenix wasn't tied to a yes or no response Harry had desperately hoped that Fawkes wouldn't be any different. Fortunately, he was right.
His white room was replaced with an image of a dark room that was empty except for a single being. The one inhabitant was wearing gear that Harry had seen before - the uniform of a Death Eater. Above the Death Eater's head was the unmistakable sign of Voldemort and his followers - the Dark Mark.
After Harry's brain had time to register that fact, the dream ended and Harry woke with a start. He had no way of knowing yet whether it had been a true sign or just a product of his teenage brain working overtime because of his recent experiences. He would lay awake in his bed for the rest of the night trying to figure out the entire meaning of his previous dream.
He was starting to put together the messages. They seemed to be telling him that someone on the Hogwart's staff was a Death Eater. Harry also remembered back to Malfoy's testimony --- he had also warned of a Death Eater at Hogwarts. Unfortunately that was old news. Harry and a few other people knew that Snape was a Death Eater but Dumbledore trusted him and besides that his actions during the Christmas holidays certainly removed any lingering doubt about Snape's loyalties. Harry decided not to tell anyone about his dream until he could derive a better meaning from it.
Nothing else eventful happened until that Saturday when Gryffindor's second Quidditch match of the year was taking place.
Harry woke that morning to the sound of Dobby the house-elf's piercing cries. Actually, all of the Gryffindor fifth-year boys woke to that same horrendous sound. Dobby was wailing something fierce. All the boys were looking between Dobby and Harry trying to figure out what had happened.
"Dobby," Harry called. No response. Harry had to physically shake Dobby to get his attention. Unfortunately that had the affect of making him cry even louder, which none of the boys even thought possible. It was a solid five minutes before they could get Dobby calmed down enough to talk to them. Oddly enough, it was Ron that had finally managed to calm him down.
Ron thought he was calm enough to tell them what was upsetting him. "Dobby, what's wrong?"
"WWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Apparently Ron had been mistaken and Dobby was not calm enough to tell them what was wrong. Eventually though, he did.
"Dobby is sad."
"There's a news flash," Seamus chimed in. Catching the harsh glances from Harry and Ron, Seamus didn't say anything else and instead started studying Neville's bunny slippers. Ron prodded Dobby to continue.
"Dobby is sad because Harry Potter did not l --- l --- like his Christmas present that Dobby gave him."
"What? Dobby don't be daft." Harry's words didn't have the desired effect of laying his fears to rest. Instead, they set him off again.
"WWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Dobby, Dobby, Dobby!" Harry turned to Ron.
"Ron, will you calm him down again and ask him what he's talking about please?"
"What's going on in here?" Hermione was demanding from the doorway. "We could hear you all from our room."
Neville was the first to answer her. "Harry did something or other to Dobby but he won't tell us what." Hermione stared incredulously at Harry.
"What did you do?" She challenged.
Harry shrugged in response. Hermione went over to help Ron calm Dobby down. After another ten minutes of listening to Dobby wail, they got their answer. He was finally able to tell everyone what was upsetting him.
"Dobby came in this morning to help Harry Potter get ready for his big game. When Dobby went to polish Harry Potter's broomstick like he does before every game, Dobby found out that he wasn't using his Christmas gift. Dobby summoned it only to find out that it was under Harry P --- P --- Pot --- Potter's bed." Now that the cat was out of the bag, a couple of things happened.
The first thing to happen, unfortunately, was that Dobby resumed his ear- piercing howling. The second was that understanding dawned over Ron, Hermione and Harry who all remembered Harry opening Dobby's gift but not being able to figure out what it was. Although they still didn't know exactly what the gift was, at least they now knew it had something to do with broomsticks. Thankfully, Hermione had an idea.
"Dobby, Harry wouldn't show me your gift. He said it was too special to share with someone like me who doesn't like broomsticks very much. Will you show me?"
Ever so slowly, Dobby spread his fingers to reveal his tennis-sized eyes that were still full of tears. "Dobby would be happy to show Miss."
Dobby snapped his fingers making the mysterious gift appear in one hand and Harry's new broomstick appear in the other. He started sliding his gift over the handle of Harry's broomstick. "As Miss can see, Dobby got Harry Potter a cover to keep his broomstick handle cozy and safe."
After hearing what it was, it seemed rather obvious. Ron slapped his hand to his forehead but fortunately Dobby was too busy crying to notice that this was the first time Ron had seen the gift used properly. Hermione shot Ron a "don't be daft" glare.
Harry, following Hermione's lead, decided on a course of action. "Dobby, Dobby listen to me. I took it off last night so my broom would get used to air again. I didn't want it to be so dry that the air's moisture hurt it during the game. That's why your gift was under my bed. I tossed it there last night after taking it off." This didn't make sense to anyone in the room except for Dobby. Harry's plan of sounding sincere and drawing from his limited knowledge in science to make something up paid off.
Dobby stopped crying in an instant - it almost looked like he flipped a switch or something similar because it was such a quick transformation. "You mean that Harry Potter did like Dobby's gift?"
"Of course I did. It was very thoughtful and I would have told you so sooner but it was such a great gift that it didn't occur to me that you could think anything except that I loved it." Truth or not, this won Dobby over.
Dobby fell to his knees. "Dobby is so sorry Harry Potter sir. Dobby never should have doubted Harry Potter. Dobby is unworthy of his friendship." The next thing anyone knew Dobby was banging his head against the floor.
"Bad Dobby! Bad Bad Dobby! Dobby should know enough to trust Harry Potter!"
Hermione and Ron pulled Dobby up from the floor while Harry tried to calm him down again. Hermione thought of something to try.
"Dobby, don't you have to get back to the kitchens?"
"Oh no Miss. Today is Dobby's day off."
"Oh good then, you can come watch us play." Just as soon as the words left Harry's mouth, he doubted the wisdom of what he had just done. On the other hand, it did have the desired effect of getting Dobby to leave saying that he had to get ready for the game. Everyone in the room was a little nervous about what exactly Dobby was going to get ready but they decided not to worry about it.
At breakfast all the fifth-year boys and Hermione could talk about was Dobby. Dean was deep in thought for a second before saying, "Oy, Harry, you took quite a chance. What if Dobby had seen your broomstick before today and knew you hadn't been using his gift?"
"Nah," Harry said waving his hand in dismissal. "I knew from Dobby's reaction that this was the first time he had noticed. Believe me, if he had seen it before, we would have known about it."
Eventually, game time rolled closer. Harry was giving his team the pre- game pep talk.
"All right guys --- "
"AHEM!"
" --- And girls --- "
"AHEM!"
"Er --- and ladies --- if we win this game we'll have sole possession of first place."
"YIPPEE!" One of the twins shouted.
"HAZZAH!" The other twin yelled.
This had the effect of getting the entire team, including the reserve players, pumped up. Harry hadn't really been done with his pep talk but he knew there was no way he was going to quiet this crowd down. And really, he thought to himself, why should he? They were obviously psyched up for the game.
They mounted their broomsticks and took to the pitch just as Lee Jordan called for them. "And here's Gryffindor led out by their team captain, Potter!" The team flew around the pitch before landing back on the ground ready to kick off at Madame Hooch's signal. While he was flying around Harry did espy Dobby sitting in between Hagrid and Hermione in the lower portion of the Gryffindor stands. It was actually hard to miss Dobby because he was wearing a costume. He was disguised as a fairly large gryffin. The only reason Harry knew who it was beneath the disguise was that there was no mistaking the two large eyes looking at him. Harry smiled and waved to all three of them.
Harry and Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw captain, shook hands and the game began. While Harry was flying above the action he heard Lee calling -
"Gryffindor scores! Johnson grabbed the Quaffle and scored before anyone had a chance to get set."
Harry stole a glance to see how Cho was set. She was watching him. "So that's how it's going to be," Harry muttered to himself. He smiled to himself thinking about how much fun he could have with this. Cho was a fine player but Harry had had a lot of practice with the Slytherin seeker trying this same strategy.
After searching the pitch again to be sure the Snitch was nowhere in sight, Harry sped toward the Ravenclaw Keeper. Just as he knew she would, Cho followed him at break-neck speed. Harry was watching the Ravenclaw Keeper as he continued barreling towards him with Cho close behind. Harry swerved a little just to lose a few seconds. He wanted to ensure he got there just before Katie took her shot on goal.
At the last possible second, Harry guided the broom in to a sharp dive. Cho, however, wasn't as fast as Harry was. She collided at full speed with her teammate leaving a clear shot for the Gryffindor Chasers.
"SCORE! - Twenty to zero Gryffindor thanks in no small part to an excellent tactic by Potter. I've never seen that before and they can't even call a foul because it was the Ravenclaw Seeker who ran into her own teammate. I'll bet they name that move after Potter. And why shouldn't they? After all everyone knows that Potter is the greatest --- "
"Jordan!"
"Er --- sorry Professor McGonagall. Anyway everyone seems to have recovered and OUCH --- that had to hurt. Fred, or George can't tell which, just hammered Fred, or George, with a Bludger by accident. Oh my! That was no accident though. Fred, or George, just tried to retaliate but missed and instead hit Bell as she was catching the Quaffle from her teammate. The Gryffindors call time out. Hopefully Potter can straighten out his team. And what a lovely team he has. Did you all see how Katie is wearing her hair today?"
"Jordan!"
"Sorry professor. It looks like the game is about to continue. I sure hope that the twins remember what team they're on now."
Harry didn't know what had gotten into the twins but he knew that he needed to end the game quickly. If he didn't, not only might they lose the game and end up in a four-way tie, but also Ron might lose an older brother or two.
He stole another glance at Cho. She was still marking him instead of looking for the Snitch herself. The score was seventy to ten when the day took a decidedly bad turn.
The Golden Snitch flew right in front of the staff section and settled itself there. Harry and Cho took off towards it at once. Lee Jordan was screaming, "They've both spotted the Snitch. It's right here in front of me. Uh-oh."
Lee was obviously remembering the new tactic that Harry had shown off earlier and realized that he was in a fair amount of personal danger being so close to their target. He ran to the other side of the staff seats while waiting to see who was going to get it first.
"It looks like Potter's got this in the bag. He's going to get there first. He --- YES! Harry Potter receives one hundred fifty points for catching the Snitch. Gryffindor wins! Gryffindor is in sole possession of first place. Outstanding job by the Gryffindor team led by its team captain - Harry Potter --- Where did he go?"
Indeed Harry had disappeared. The last conscious thought he had was that he never again wanted to touch another port key.
A/N -Share your thoughts with me
A/N - Keep posting ideas and suggestions, it can only help.
A/N - Having Bronchitis is no fun.
Chapter 43
Some Stuff
Snape didn't concern Harry.
"My, my, where are we going in such a rush?" The greasy-haired head of Slytherin asked with his usual sneer that he reserved especially for Gryffindors.
"I need to find Dumbledore. Do you know where he is?"
"The headmaster is too busy to see the students at their whim, Potter. Tell me what you need."
"We're not doing this again. Mr Crouch might still be alive if you weren't so petty last year." And with that Harry ran down the corridor leaving a stunned Snape watching him go.
Fortunately the next creature that Harry ran into was a large black dog. With only a slight tilt of his head, Sirius asked Harry what his rush was.
"I have to find Dumbledore --- now!" That was all his godfather needed. The large black dog turned and led Harry outdoors and into the Forbidden Forest running almost too fast for Harry to keep up with him. When they reached the very outline of the Forest, the dog turned and growled at Harry. Harry knew that Sirius meant him to stay put and he nodded his head to show his willingness to wait where he was.
Before Harry even had enough time to properly wonder why the headmaster was in the Forbidden Forest, he had stepped into the moonlight and was approaching Harry. Sirius was already back standing beside Harry before Dumbledore was within hearing range.
"Professor Dumbledore, something strange just happened. I got sucked into a book about the Orders of the Phoenix and the Serpent during Madame Pince's class and when I came back out everyone else was in a sort of trance."
Sirius was about to transform so he could ask Harry to elaborate but the headmaster cut him off.
"Let's go."
And with that the three of them raced back into the castle. By the time they reached the classroom though Harry saw the last thing he had expected. Everything was as it should be. Everyone was talking and was in all ways just as animated as ever before. Madame Pince was asking if anyone knew where Harry had gone just as he was running back in the classroom. Harry was dumbfounded. Seeing his reaction, the black dog turned from Harry to Dumbledore trying to will the older wizard to ask Harry's unasked question. Which he did.
"Hello everyone. Is everything all right here?"
"Hello Albus, I'm glad to see you actually. I was in the middle of a demonstration when I noticed young Harry over there had left my class without permission. I was asking if anyone knew where he went when the two of you and that filthy beast entered my classroom."
Sirius growled. Ron and Hermione chuckled.
Harry spoke. "What? Didn't any of you see what happened? I was --- "
Dumbledore interrupted Harry before he could tell everyone what had happened. "He was told to come to my office. Now Harry, let's leave Madame Pince to finish her lesson, shall we?" And with that Harry, Dumbledore and the black dog all left the classroom and headed straight for Dumbledore's office.
"Raspberry Rodents"
Once inside, Sirius transformed and Dumbledore spoke. "Harry, I need you to tell us everything."
Harry, still a bit dazed from everything that had just happened, nodded slowly. Slumped in a chair, he recounted everything from the serpent inviting him in to the book, through all of the visions of both Orders, ending with the book burning up and everyone being in a trance. After a brief consideration, Harry decided to mention his encounter with the head of the Slytherin house just in case Snape mentioned it later.
Sirius and Dumbledore listened intently as Harry told his story. However they were obviously more interested in certain parts than in others. After he finished his tale, Harry launched into a sea of questions: "What do you two know about the Order of the Serpent? Why did I attack someone? Who did I attack? Why did the book burn up? Is there another copy of it somewhere? Have either of you seen these images before?"
Harry only stopped when he noticed the amusement on the faces of the other two men sitting in the room. Sirius, obviously trying not to smile, said, "Harry, I thought we were passed you trying to question us to death."
"Sirius, this is important."
"Right you are Harry," Dumbledore interjected. "However I'm afraid we can't answer any of these questions for you. The journey is sometimes more important than the destination. You must answer most of these questions for yourself. Now I suggest you go on back to Gryffindor Tower - think on what you saw today."
Harry got up to leave when Dumbledore stopped him. "And Harry, do you know why I interrupted you back in the Defense Against Dark Arts classroom?"
"Yes, the Order is a secret." After seeing Dumbledore nod, he left and went back to the common room. He tried to follow the headmaster's advice and think on it, but that only made his head hurt.
That night Harry had a dream. He didn't have just any dream, he dreamed about his experiences earlier in the day during his Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Fortunately, in his dream, he was able to once again ask the lone question that had been plaguing him since his experience with the serpent and the phoenix.
In his dream he was back in Dumbledore's office. His headmaster was asking him why he attacked a staff member in the Great Hall. But his dream self didn't seem to know why he had done that. If he did know, he had decided not to respond. Since Harry had no answer, he just stood there quietly facing his questioner. Finally, Fawkes left his perch and flew over to Harry's shoulder where he watched his owner triggering Dumbledore to speak.
"So Fawkes, you know why Harry attacked a member of my staff?"
A wide-eyed Harry Potter turned to watch the reaction of the phoenix perched upon his shoulder. Fawkes was nodding his head up and down without shame. This sight faded and was replaced by Fawkes and Harry alone in a solid white room that reminded Harry of the room that the weird book had put him in towards the end of the story.
Much to his surprise and great joy, Fawkes assumed the position of the previous phoenix when it had been willing to answer one question --- it was hovering at eye-level facing his dream self. Figuring that he had nothing to lose, Harry's dream self posed a single question to Fawkes. He wanted to ask who he had attacked in the previous image but there was a much more important question than who.
"Why did I attack that staff member in my previous images?" Since the last phoenix wasn't tied to a yes or no response Harry had desperately hoped that Fawkes wouldn't be any different. Fortunately, he was right.
His white room was replaced with an image of a dark room that was empty except for a single being. The one inhabitant was wearing gear that Harry had seen before - the uniform of a Death Eater. Above the Death Eater's head was the unmistakable sign of Voldemort and his followers - the Dark Mark.
After Harry's brain had time to register that fact, the dream ended and Harry woke with a start. He had no way of knowing yet whether it had been a true sign or just a product of his teenage brain working overtime because of his recent experiences. He would lay awake in his bed for the rest of the night trying to figure out the entire meaning of his previous dream.
He was starting to put together the messages. They seemed to be telling him that someone on the Hogwart's staff was a Death Eater. Harry also remembered back to Malfoy's testimony --- he had also warned of a Death Eater at Hogwarts. Unfortunately that was old news. Harry and a few other people knew that Snape was a Death Eater but Dumbledore trusted him and besides that his actions during the Christmas holidays certainly removed any lingering doubt about Snape's loyalties. Harry decided not to tell anyone about his dream until he could derive a better meaning from it.
Nothing else eventful happened until that Saturday when Gryffindor's second Quidditch match of the year was taking place.
Harry woke that morning to the sound of Dobby the house-elf's piercing cries. Actually, all of the Gryffindor fifth-year boys woke to that same horrendous sound. Dobby was wailing something fierce. All the boys were looking between Dobby and Harry trying to figure out what had happened.
"Dobby," Harry called. No response. Harry had to physically shake Dobby to get his attention. Unfortunately that had the affect of making him cry even louder, which none of the boys even thought possible. It was a solid five minutes before they could get Dobby calmed down enough to talk to them. Oddly enough, it was Ron that had finally managed to calm him down.
Ron thought he was calm enough to tell them what was upsetting him. "Dobby, what's wrong?"
"WWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Apparently Ron had been mistaken and Dobby was not calm enough to tell them what was wrong. Eventually though, he did.
"Dobby is sad."
"There's a news flash," Seamus chimed in. Catching the harsh glances from Harry and Ron, Seamus didn't say anything else and instead started studying Neville's bunny slippers. Ron prodded Dobby to continue.
"Dobby is sad because Harry Potter did not l --- l --- like his Christmas present that Dobby gave him."
"What? Dobby don't be daft." Harry's words didn't have the desired effect of laying his fears to rest. Instead, they set him off again.
"WWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Dobby, Dobby, Dobby!" Harry turned to Ron.
"Ron, will you calm him down again and ask him what he's talking about please?"
"What's going on in here?" Hermione was demanding from the doorway. "We could hear you all from our room."
Neville was the first to answer her. "Harry did something or other to Dobby but he won't tell us what." Hermione stared incredulously at Harry.
"What did you do?" She challenged.
Harry shrugged in response. Hermione went over to help Ron calm Dobby down. After another ten minutes of listening to Dobby wail, they got their answer. He was finally able to tell everyone what was upsetting him.
"Dobby came in this morning to help Harry Potter get ready for his big game. When Dobby went to polish Harry Potter's broomstick like he does before every game, Dobby found out that he wasn't using his Christmas gift. Dobby summoned it only to find out that it was under Harry P --- P --- Pot --- Potter's bed." Now that the cat was out of the bag, a couple of things happened.
The first thing to happen, unfortunately, was that Dobby resumed his ear- piercing howling. The second was that understanding dawned over Ron, Hermione and Harry who all remembered Harry opening Dobby's gift but not being able to figure out what it was. Although they still didn't know exactly what the gift was, at least they now knew it had something to do with broomsticks. Thankfully, Hermione had an idea.
"Dobby, Harry wouldn't show me your gift. He said it was too special to share with someone like me who doesn't like broomsticks very much. Will you show me?"
Ever so slowly, Dobby spread his fingers to reveal his tennis-sized eyes that were still full of tears. "Dobby would be happy to show Miss."
Dobby snapped his fingers making the mysterious gift appear in one hand and Harry's new broomstick appear in the other. He started sliding his gift over the handle of Harry's broomstick. "As Miss can see, Dobby got Harry Potter a cover to keep his broomstick handle cozy and safe."
After hearing what it was, it seemed rather obvious. Ron slapped his hand to his forehead but fortunately Dobby was too busy crying to notice that this was the first time Ron had seen the gift used properly. Hermione shot Ron a "don't be daft" glare.
Harry, following Hermione's lead, decided on a course of action. "Dobby, Dobby listen to me. I took it off last night so my broom would get used to air again. I didn't want it to be so dry that the air's moisture hurt it during the game. That's why your gift was under my bed. I tossed it there last night after taking it off." This didn't make sense to anyone in the room except for Dobby. Harry's plan of sounding sincere and drawing from his limited knowledge in science to make something up paid off.
Dobby stopped crying in an instant - it almost looked like he flipped a switch or something similar because it was such a quick transformation. "You mean that Harry Potter did like Dobby's gift?"
"Of course I did. It was very thoughtful and I would have told you so sooner but it was such a great gift that it didn't occur to me that you could think anything except that I loved it." Truth or not, this won Dobby over.
Dobby fell to his knees. "Dobby is so sorry Harry Potter sir. Dobby never should have doubted Harry Potter. Dobby is unworthy of his friendship." The next thing anyone knew Dobby was banging his head against the floor.
"Bad Dobby! Bad Bad Dobby! Dobby should know enough to trust Harry Potter!"
Hermione and Ron pulled Dobby up from the floor while Harry tried to calm him down again. Hermione thought of something to try.
"Dobby, don't you have to get back to the kitchens?"
"Oh no Miss. Today is Dobby's day off."
"Oh good then, you can come watch us play." Just as soon as the words left Harry's mouth, he doubted the wisdom of what he had just done. On the other hand, it did have the desired effect of getting Dobby to leave saying that he had to get ready for the game. Everyone in the room was a little nervous about what exactly Dobby was going to get ready but they decided not to worry about it.
At breakfast all the fifth-year boys and Hermione could talk about was Dobby. Dean was deep in thought for a second before saying, "Oy, Harry, you took quite a chance. What if Dobby had seen your broomstick before today and knew you hadn't been using his gift?"
"Nah," Harry said waving his hand in dismissal. "I knew from Dobby's reaction that this was the first time he had noticed. Believe me, if he had seen it before, we would have known about it."
Eventually, game time rolled closer. Harry was giving his team the pre- game pep talk.
"All right guys --- "
"AHEM!"
" --- And girls --- "
"AHEM!"
"Er --- and ladies --- if we win this game we'll have sole possession of first place."
"YIPPEE!" One of the twins shouted.
"HAZZAH!" The other twin yelled.
This had the effect of getting the entire team, including the reserve players, pumped up. Harry hadn't really been done with his pep talk but he knew there was no way he was going to quiet this crowd down. And really, he thought to himself, why should he? They were obviously psyched up for the game.
They mounted their broomsticks and took to the pitch just as Lee Jordan called for them. "And here's Gryffindor led out by their team captain, Potter!" The team flew around the pitch before landing back on the ground ready to kick off at Madame Hooch's signal. While he was flying around Harry did espy Dobby sitting in between Hagrid and Hermione in the lower portion of the Gryffindor stands. It was actually hard to miss Dobby because he was wearing a costume. He was disguised as a fairly large gryffin. The only reason Harry knew who it was beneath the disguise was that there was no mistaking the two large eyes looking at him. Harry smiled and waved to all three of them.
Harry and Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw captain, shook hands and the game began. While Harry was flying above the action he heard Lee calling -
"Gryffindor scores! Johnson grabbed the Quaffle and scored before anyone had a chance to get set."
Harry stole a glance to see how Cho was set. She was watching him. "So that's how it's going to be," Harry muttered to himself. He smiled to himself thinking about how much fun he could have with this. Cho was a fine player but Harry had had a lot of practice with the Slytherin seeker trying this same strategy.
After searching the pitch again to be sure the Snitch was nowhere in sight, Harry sped toward the Ravenclaw Keeper. Just as he knew she would, Cho followed him at break-neck speed. Harry was watching the Ravenclaw Keeper as he continued barreling towards him with Cho close behind. Harry swerved a little just to lose a few seconds. He wanted to ensure he got there just before Katie took her shot on goal.
At the last possible second, Harry guided the broom in to a sharp dive. Cho, however, wasn't as fast as Harry was. She collided at full speed with her teammate leaving a clear shot for the Gryffindor Chasers.
"SCORE! - Twenty to zero Gryffindor thanks in no small part to an excellent tactic by Potter. I've never seen that before and they can't even call a foul because it was the Ravenclaw Seeker who ran into her own teammate. I'll bet they name that move after Potter. And why shouldn't they? After all everyone knows that Potter is the greatest --- "
"Jordan!"
"Er --- sorry Professor McGonagall. Anyway everyone seems to have recovered and OUCH --- that had to hurt. Fred, or George can't tell which, just hammered Fred, or George, with a Bludger by accident. Oh my! That was no accident though. Fred, or George, just tried to retaliate but missed and instead hit Bell as she was catching the Quaffle from her teammate. The Gryffindors call time out. Hopefully Potter can straighten out his team. And what a lovely team he has. Did you all see how Katie is wearing her hair today?"
"Jordan!"
"Sorry professor. It looks like the game is about to continue. I sure hope that the twins remember what team they're on now."
Harry didn't know what had gotten into the twins but he knew that he needed to end the game quickly. If he didn't, not only might they lose the game and end up in a four-way tie, but also Ron might lose an older brother or two.
He stole another glance at Cho. She was still marking him instead of looking for the Snitch herself. The score was seventy to ten when the day took a decidedly bad turn.
The Golden Snitch flew right in front of the staff section and settled itself there. Harry and Cho took off towards it at once. Lee Jordan was screaming, "They've both spotted the Snitch. It's right here in front of me. Uh-oh."
Lee was obviously remembering the new tactic that Harry had shown off earlier and realized that he was in a fair amount of personal danger being so close to their target. He ran to the other side of the staff seats while waiting to see who was going to get it first.
"It looks like Potter's got this in the bag. He's going to get there first. He --- YES! Harry Potter receives one hundred fifty points for catching the Snitch. Gryffindor wins! Gryffindor is in sole possession of first place. Outstanding job by the Gryffindor team led by its team captain - Harry Potter --- Where did he go?"
Indeed Harry had disappeared. The last conscious thought he had was that he never again wanted to touch another port key.
A/N -Share your thoughts with me