Most if it belongs to JKR. The last line belongs to Shel Silverstein. Anything else is mine.
Thanks to all those who have reviewed so far. If you would like me to email you when I add another chapter, please leave your email in a review.
Nat, my beta, ROCKS!!!
That being said:
*****
"CHECKMATE!" Astrid cried. She jumped from her seat and began a quite annoying victory dance around the chess table.
"You know Astrid, you're really quite insufferable when you do that," Jason scolded from his seat on the opposite side of the chessboard.
"You're only saying that because she beat you, AGAIN!" Sawyer laughed from his spot on the couch. He was hanging over the back of the couch watching his two friends' game.
"GRYFFINDOR QUIDDITCH TEAM!" one of the Weasley twins shouted from just in front of the portrait hole. Both were decked out in full Quidditch garb and holding bats and broomsticks.
"COMMON ROOM NOW!" The other one cried. Instantly the staircase on the girl's side of the common room began shaking as Alicia, Angelina and Katie thundered down it with Ginny Weasley close on their collective heels. Harry came down the boy's staircase a little slower.
"Where's our bloody keeper?" George asked Harry.
"Harry pointed up the stairs he had just walked down.
"RON! GET YOUR ARSE DOWN HERE!" Fred cried up the stairs. Hermione's head appeared in the fifth year boys' door.
"He's not coming," she announced.
"WHAT!" came the simultaneous roar of the entire team, Ginny, Astrid, Sawyer and Jason.
"He's not coming," Hermione repeated, as if they hadn't all heard her the first time. Harry shook his head in agreement.
"What's his problem?" George asked. He started towards the stairs. Fred was right behind them with the chasers on his heels. Ginny looked over at Astrid and shrugged. The three first years followed the seventh year members of the Quidditch team up the stairs. Ginny followed Astrid, Jason and Sawyer. Harry was right behind Ginny. The eleven teenagers packed themselves into the fifth year boys' dorm and crowded around Ron's bed.
"Guys! We're breaking tons of rules!" Hermione exclaimed when she realized how many people where packed into the boys' dorm, and how many of the assembled group were girls.
"So THIS is what a boys' dorm looks like!" Astrid exclaimed from the back of the group. She tilted her head up to look around and turned in a circle. Hermione gasped and looked again at the group. She hadn't realized there were first years behind the wall of Quidditch players.
"Hermione, I'm head girl," Alicia reminded the prefect, "This is an extreme situation. I approve."
"What's your problem?" Fred asked Ron. Ron was dressed in his Quidditch robes sitting against the headboard of his bed. He had his knees drawn up to his chin with his arms wrapped around them.
"Not going," he muttered.
"WHAT?" Fred asked.
"Not going," Ron muttered again.
"What do you mean you're not going?" George asked in a voice so quietly evil it almost scared Sawyer and Jason.
"I'm not going! I'm not going to play," Ron informed them.
"WHAT!" Chorused the chasers.
"What do you expect us to do?" Fred asked.
"Call in Neville," Ron said. He still hadn't made eye contact with any of them. "Hell, call in Astrid for all I care."
"I'll play!" Astrid cried from the back of the group.
"I don't think so!" Fred and George both said, turning to glare at the little girl.
"Why aren't you going to play?" Angelina asked.
"I'm not good enough. You guys have a cup to defend and you won't be able to do it with me on the team. We're playing Slytherin. They have Malfoy. He's fantastic! What am I going to do against him?" Ron rambled.
"Ron! I'm the one that has to worry about Malfoy," Harry said, "Not you. You worry about the chasers."
"You're a damned good keeper," Katie said.
"Not as good as Wood," Ron replied.
"You haven't had as much practice as Wood," Alicia reasoned.
"EVERYONE OUT!" Ginny declared from just behind Fred and George.
"What?" the twins asked their sister.
"You heard me, everyone out," she gave the twins a look that showed just how serious she was. The three first years scampered out of the room followed by the chasers. Fred and George went a little more slowly, then Harry and finally Hermione. Hermione shut the door behind her as she left. Ginny jumped up onto the bed next to Ron.
"Okay boy, what's your problem?" she asked.
"I'm not playing," Ron said.
"We've established that," Ginny said. She flung an arm around her brother's shoulders. "Why?"
"I don't want to talk about it," Ron said.
"Ron, I'm your baby sister, you can tell me," Ginny said.
"Idunwannalookstupidinfrontofmandy," Ron mumbled.
"What was that?" Ginny asked.
"I don't want to look stupid in front of Mandy," Ron said, louder and more clearly.
"Mandy Brocklehurst?" Ginny questioned.
"Yes, Mandy Brockelhurst," Ron said. He still hadn't made eye contact with anyone.
"You're being a great prat because you don't want to risk looking stupid in front of a girl?" Ginny asked. Ron didn't answer. Ginny reached behind her back and pulled out something she had been sitting on. She pulled her wand and placed it to the head of the object she now held in her hand.
"Go, or Ted gets it," she said savagely, waving the teddy bear towards him.
"Ginny! No!" Ron cried. Ginny jumped to her feet and began backing towards the door. Ron began to get up and she increased her pace. Ron followed Ginny and Ginny slipped out the door backwards. She never once removed her wand from the bear's head. She began to back slowly down the staircase. The group assembled in the common room held their collective breath. Ginny made it halfway down the stairs before Ron appeared at the top.
"GET HIM!" Fred and George cried at the same time.
"Accio Ron!" Harry cried before turning and sprinting out of the common room. As the object summoned goes directly to the person who summoned it, Ron whizzed grumpily along behind Harry. At the end of the corridor, Harry started to turn left to head towards the Entrance Hall.
"STOP!" Ron cried, "I'll walk if you'll quit running. You don't need to wear yourself down before the match." Harry instantly stopped and ducked. Ron sailed over his head and smashed into the wall.
"Bloody hell, Harry!" Fred cried.
"Are you trying to kill him?" George asked. The two boys ran down the hall towards their fallen keeper/brother.
"I'm okay," Ron said, staggering to his feet. He brushed off his Quidditch robes. The three chasers walked quickly behind the twins.
"Are you sure?" Fred asked.
"If he hadn't ducked, I would have crashed into him. Then you'd have an injured seeker and an injured keeper," Ron explained.
"Well
then good for ducking," George said. Ron glared at his older brother.
"Now that
the four of you are through fooling around, may we please go kick some
Slytherin arse?" Angelina asked sweetly from behind the boys.
"YEAH!!" Chorused the rest of the team. Fred and George started towards the entrance hall with the chasers in their wake. Harry and Ron fell in line right behind the chasers. Hermione turned to Ginny who had just banished the teddy bear back to Ron's room.
"How did you manage that? And what was his problem?" Hermione asked.
"Mandy," Ginny replied. "And I simply threatened Ted."
"OOOO!!" Sawyer cried.
"Ron's got a girlfriend!" Jason finished for his friend. Ginny and Hermione leveled glares at the younger boys.
"Shove it," Astrid commanded without even looking at her friends.
"Where is your fourth?" Hermione asked.
"I sent Colin and Dennis down to the field to save the entire crew seats," Ginny provided.
"Who is the entire crew?" Sawyer asked.
"Me, Hermione, you three munchkins, Colin, Dennis, Mandy, Hannah, Ernie, Justin, Chelsea, and Dean," Ginny replied.
"Chelsea?" Sawyer asked.
"Mandrake Chelsea?" Jason echoed.
"Yes, Mandrake Chelsea. Hannah's bringing her along," Hermione said.
"Why?" Jason asked. "I get enough of that girl in History of Magic!"
"Is she your partner for the project?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Jason replied grumpily. He ran his fingers through his fuzzy black hair.
"Is she that bad?" Ginny asked. The five began walking towards the entrance hall.
"Yes," Jason replied.
"Why is Dean sitting with us?" Astrid asked.
"It seems as though little Miss Finnegan is driving him crazy," Ginny explained.
"Karey?" Jason asked.
"No, the other little Miss Finnegan," Astrid laughed.
"What's Dean's problem with Karey?" Hermione asked.
"Ever since she danced with him at the party after the school Quidditch tryouts, she's had a crush on him. It works out because she likes Dean; Hailey likes Seamus, and Madeline. Well. Madeline. I can't say who Madeline likes," Astrid said.
"Harry or Ron?" Hermione guessed.
"Harry," Astrid mouthed to Hermione. Hermione smiled sweetly at the little girl and glanced over her shoulder at Jason and Sawyer. Astrid nodded to let Hermione know that's why she couldn't say the object of Madeline's affection out loud.
"So why is Dean sitting with us?" Sawyer asked.
"Well, Karey is driving Dean crazy evidently. So Seamus and Lavender and Parvati are taking Hailey and Karey over to sit with Padma in the Ravenclaw stands," Astrid said.
"So Dean is sitting with us or else he'd have to be with Karey?" Ginny guessed.
"Yes," Astrid replied, "Unless of course he has a crush on one of you. In which case, the Karey bit is an excuse." She smirked at Ginny.
"And if he had a crush on Hermione, Fred would rip his face off," Jason supplied.
"So
the only logical thing is that he has a crush on Ginny," Sawyer finished.
"Oh. We'll
I've got Braeden," Ginny replied, rather definitively. She missed the
simultaneous eye rolls from all three first years. Hermione had to stifle her
laughter at the three.
"So who do you think will win today?" Hermione asked.
"GRYFFINDOR!" Ginny, Jason and Sawyer chorused.
"SLYTHERIN!" Astrid cried. Ginny, Jason, Sawyer and Hermione all stopped dead in their tracks and turned to look at the littlest Malfoy currently at Hogwarts.
"What?" She asked, shrugging her tiny shoulders. "They've got Draco Malfoy and we all know that he's the greatest Quidditch player to walk the halls of Hogwarts." She cracked a bright smile and shook her head no as she made her statement.
"Astrid Malfoy," Ginny exclaimed. Sawyer took a more direct approach and thumped her soundly on the back of her head.
"Sawyer Lewis, that was completely uncalled for!" Astrid cried. She turned on Sawyer. Sawyer shook his shaggy blonde hair out of his eyes and glared at Astrid.
"Look, Malfoy!" Jason exclaimed.
"CHIDLREN!" Hermione cried. All three first years turned to look at the older girl.
"The prefect has spoken. Go to the Quidditch pitch and be nice to each other or I'll separate you!" Hermione exclaimed. Sawyer cut his eyes over at Astrid
"I'm sorry, Astrid," he said.
"I'm sorry too," Astrid replied.
"I'm sorry three," Jason cracked.
"Not funny Jason Black!" Sawyer and Astrid cried at the same time.
"I was amused," Jason said. He pulled open the door leading out of the castle and step through. Instantly he pulled his scarf tighter around his face as the cold November air bit at his cheeks. He instantly picked up his pace a bit, and everyone else followed him.
"Which tower did you tell Colin and Dennis to go to?" Hermione asked, "Since we've got people from so many different houses and everything."
"We'll we're still majority Gryffindor aren't we?" Ginny asked.
"Hannah, Ernie, Justin and Chelsea are the Hufflepuffs. Mandy is a Ravenclaw and everyone else is Gryffindor," Astrid supplied.
"Thank you Astrid," Hermione laughed. Astrid stuck her tongue out at Hermione.
"Wouldn't it be awesome if Ron held Slytherin scoreless in his first game?" Astrid asked.
"He's really nervous," Ginny replied, "So I don't much see that happening. But as long as Harry catches the snitch, he'll be okay." Jason and Sawyer started up the stairs into the Gryffindor stands with Astrid close on their heels.
%%%%%
"This is it team," Fred began. He and George stood in front of the Gryffindor team. Ron and Harry sat side by side on a bench while the three girls sat at the feet of the two boys.
"The big one," George continued.
"The one we've all been waiting for," added Fred. Angelina silently raised her hand.
"Yes?" Fred asked before George could continue the speech.
"That was Oliver's speech. We're a new team, you guys are new captains, we deserve a new speech," Angelina proposed. Alicia and Katie nodded in agreement. Fred and George looked at each other. Fred raised his right eyebrow and George shrugged. They turned to the team.
"Give us a second," George said. The twins instantly put their backs to their team and began whispering.
"Oh no Angelina, look what you've done!" Alicia exclaimed.
"I think this is the hardest I've ever seen the Weasley twins think," Katie said, shaking her head. Her comment earned her a glare from George. Finally, the twins turned around to face the team again.
"Okay, I think we've got it," Fred said.
"It's a simple game," George began.
"You hit the ball," Fred said.
"You fly," George added.
"You catch the ball," Fred continued.
"You throw the ball," George finished. They both smiled sweetly at their team.
"Is that it?" Angelina asked. Katie and Alicia both looked warily at the captains.
"Yes," Fred replied.
"We think so," George added.
"Nothing about kicking Slytherin arse?" Angelina asked. Fred and George looked at each other again, sharing a moment of wordless communication.
"No," George finally said.
"We don't think so," Fred added.
"We don't want to emphasize winning as much as just playing by the basics," George explained.
"And if you just remember the basics, then the arse kicking will come," Fred finished.
"Reasonable," Katie said.
"Yes," Alicia agreed. Angelina shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes. She still though a motivational speech needed to mention something about beating the other team.
"Lets go you guys," Madame Hooch called from outside the locker room. The Gryffindor team stood up. Ron, Harry and the chasers started towards the door.
"Hey wait," Fred called. He and George hadn't moved but instead stood with their right hands extended in front of them. Fred's hand rested lightly on top of George.
"Put your hands in," George instructed. The rest of the team clambered over the bench and circled around Fred and George. Everyone added their right hand to the pile, ending with Harry's on the very top.
"What do we say?" George asked the team.
"Quack?" suggested Angelina.
"WHAT?" Fred and George both asked.
"Never mind," she replied, shaking her head at the twins.
"Go team?" Harry said.
"Okay, on the count of three," Fred said.
"ONE.... TWO.... THREE...!" George counted.
"GO TEAM!" everyone chorused, and threw their hands up in the air. Fred and George pushed through their teammates and led the way out the door into the tunnel leading to the field. Angelina, Katie and Alicia followed with Ron and Harry in their wake. They took an immediate right and hurried down the tunnel leading towards the pitch. They could already hear Lee Jordan announcing the visiting team.
"I give you Alexander, Warrington, Zabini, Bole, Derrick, Pucey and MALFOY!" Lee said. He didn't sound very enthusiastic at all and only managed to increase his volume for Malfoy because Snape thumped the back of his head. The green-clad Slytherin team rocketed up from their tunnel and flew a quick circuit around the pitch in the midst of boo's from three sides of the stands and raucous cheers from their Slytherins.
"And now! The reigning Quidditch champions of Hogwarts School!" Lee cried. Fred and George exchanged a quick glance with the chasers. In fact, they did still hold the Quidditch cup because of its cancellation in the previous year.
"I GIVE YOU BELL! SPINNET! JOHNSON! POTTER! WEASLEY! WEASLEY! AND WEEAAASLLLEEYYY!" Lee roared. The seven teenagers kicked off and rocketed around the pitch. Madame Hooch strolled out to the middle of the pitch with the crate of balls under her arms. A shrill blast from her whistle called both teams to the center of the pitch. Malfoy and Harry lined up across from each other on the complete right. Angelina stood next to Harry with Katie on her other side. Fred was next, followed by George. Alicia stood to George's left with Ron on the opposite end. Finley stood next to Malfoy with Blaise to her right. Casey stood directly across from the Weasley twins, and Bole and Derrick tried to line up across from Alicia. Pucey stood just across from Ron. Madame Hooch kicked open the crate of balls. The snitch flew up, circled once around Harry's head and once around Draco's before speeding off towards the Gryffindor goals.
"Shake hands," Madame Hooch told the two captains. George stepped forward and took Casey's hand in his. The handshake the boys shared looked as though it would result in broken hands for one or both. George finally let go of Casey and Fred stepped forward. The action was repeated and Casey walked away shaking his hand out.
"I want a good clean game," Madame Hooch instructed. She released the two bludgers and picked up the Quaffle. She tossed the Quaffle straight up into the air. A shrill blast from her whistle signaled all fourteen players to kick off. Ron and Pucey took off towards their respective goals. Finley grabbed the Quaffle first and tossed it to Casey. Angelina easily intercepted the ball and streaked off after Pucey. George and Fred mercilessly cracked Bludgers at anyone who got in her way, effectively clearing the path for the first Gryffindor goal of the game.
%%%%%
"Oh wow, she's scored already," Ginny laughed as Angelina easily flung the Quaffle through the left hoop.
"That's because she's Angelina," Dean laughed, "She's one of the Gryffindor girls. They're simply the best chasers Hogwarts has seen in quite some time."
"Where are the Hufflepuffs?" Hermione asked Mandy, who had just slid into the seat next to Hermione.
"They're coming," Mandy replied, "Chelsea tied Ernie and Justin's shoes together and then transfigured the strings into iron. It's taken Hannah a minute to untie them."
"Does she really have to bring Chelsea?" Jason asked as everyone else laughed about the prank Chelsea had pulled.
"Yes," Mandy said.
"Why? I get enough of that girl in History of Magic!"
"I almost feel sorry for you, I really do," Mandy said, throwing an arm around the younger boy. "But only almost." Jason glared up at the older girl through unblinking brown eyes.
"Hi everyone!" Hannah exclaimed, taking a seat on the other side of Jason and Sawyer. Ernie and Justin climbed into the second row to sit with Dennis, Astrid, Colin, Ginny and Dean. Chelsea stood apprehensively at the top of the stairs.
"Chelsea," Jason and Sawyer greeted solemnly.
"Jason and Sawyer," Chelsea replied. Astrid slid towards Dennis to make a space between herself and Dean.
"Come on, Chelsea. Ignore those great gits. You can come sit up here with me," Astrid offered, kicking Sawyer and Jason both soundly in the seats of their pants. Chelsea easily climbed over her two housemates, and slid past Dennis to take the offered seat on the other side of Astrid. A loud gasp from Hermione made every head turn towards the field. A bludger headed straight towards Fred. He was facing the other side of the pitch so he missed the great iron ball hurtling towards his head. Hermione reached over and sank her nails into Mandy's arm.
"YEEEOWWWW!" Mandy screeched, loud enough to draw the attention of everyone in the box and even a few of the players on the pitch. Fred happened to be one of the players. He turned just in time to see the bludger and roll sideways on his broom to prevent grievous injury to his face.
"Wow, I saved him!" Hermione laughed as her boyfriend struggled to upright himself on his broom.
"No, I think Mandy saved him with that shout loud enough to wake the dead," Jason said, rubbing his ear. Mandy leveled a glare through tear filled blue eyes at the little boy.
"Mandy," Justin warned, reaching down and placing a hand on her arm.
"He didn't know," Hannah said over the two first years. Jason instantly bent over and grabbed his right foot. He pulled it up to right in front of his face. He opened his mouth and began trying to make the two meet.
"What, may I ask, are you doing?" Ernie asked.
"Trying to literally put my foot in my mouth since I seem to have already done it in the figurative sense," Jason replied. The boy's antics quickly diffused the situation.
*****
After an hour and a half, the score stood at Gryffindor, 140, Slytherin, 0. Ron had played a spectacular game, stopping most every Quaffle thrown at him by the Slytherins. Luckily, the few he had let by missed the goals anyway. The snitch hadn't yet made even a fleeting appearance. Harry and Draco circled the pitch from above, Draco trailing Harry tightly. Suddenly, when Harry and Draco were above the Slytherin goal posts, a flutter of gold appeared at the base of the Gryffindor goals, just below Ron. Harry and Draco noticed it at about the same time and shot off towards it. Harry was a bit ahead of Draco and they were flying at a breakneck speed. Neither noticed the three beaters closing in on the two of them. Everyone in the stands held their collective breath. With only a meter to go before the snitch, the beaters finally closed in. Malfoy did an impressive roll to his right. Derrick and Bole swept right over him and crashed into Harry with a sickening crunch. Harry flew off of his broom and landed on the pitch several meters away. Luckily, he hadn't been very high off the ground, and was unhurt save a big grass stain on his Quidditch robes and a scrape on his right hand. Fred Weasley was the closest Gryffindor player to the fallen seeker, but rather than check on Harry, he delivered a blow to Bole's shoulder with his beater bat. Madam Hooch's whistle rang out just as Draco's outstretched hand closed around the snitch. Draco held up the snitch for her to see, but no one cheered. Every person on the Quidditch pitch and in the stands turned to look at the diminutive witch as she landed into the middle of the stands. She quickly pulled out her wand and did a sonorous charm on her voice.
"Draco Malfoy has caught the snitch, giving Slytherin 150 points." She announced. The Slytherin stands erupted into raucous cheers. Their team had finally beaten Precious Potter and the Gryffindors. "HOWEVER!" Madame Hooch's voice cut through the cheering. "As I blew the whistle just before Malfoy caught the snitch, the teams will be allowed to have their penalty shots. Gryffindor gets two penalty shots while Slytherin gets one. Gryffindor shoots first!"
"Holy shit," Jason muttered.
"Jason Black!" Hermione cried. Jason glared at her.
"If Ron blocks the Slytherin shot and Angelina makes both of the Gryffindor shots, we could still win," Sawyer muttered.
"What makes you think Angelina will take the penalties?" Hermione asked. She was met by glares from everyone seated around her, including the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaw.
"Angelina is the best bloody chaser in Hogwarts right now," Hannah explained. Sure enough, Angelina had flown to meet Madame Hooch at the center of the field.
"Will you be taking both shots for Gryffindor?" Hooch asked. Angelina nodded and held out her hands to accept the Quaffle.
"On the sound of my whistle," Madame Hooch instructed. Angelina turned to face Pucey. Madame Hooch sounded a shrill blast on her whistle. Angelina flew straight towards Pucey. She began flying towards the right goal, so Pucey moved over to protect that goal. Angelina flew right up to the goal before quickly transferring the ball to her left hand and flinging it through the center hoop.
"10 Points for GRYFFINDOR!" Lee screeched. The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw stands erupted in cheers as Angelina flew back towards Madame Hooch. Madame Hooch summoned the Quaffle and handed it back to Angelina.
"On the sound of my whistle," Madame Hooch said again. She blew the whistle and Angelina started towards Pucey again. This time she flew directly at him, not committing to any of the three goals. Pucey, nervous about being scored on for the 16th time in one game, moved to the left goal because that was the goal Angelina had just chosen. She had the ball tucked under her left arm. When Pucey committed to the left goal, Angelina grabbed the Quaffle with her right hand and slung it through the right goal.
"GRYFFINDOR LEADS, 160-150!" Lee Jordan screamed. He was almost drowned out by the cheers from the three non-Slytherin houses.
"TEAM MEETING!" Fred cried. The Gryffindors circled around their captains. Alicia and Katie had almost abandoned their brooms in favor of jumping on Angelina's in a fierce three-way hug.
"Angelina, that was fantastic," George said. He pushed the other two chasers away and dropped a kiss soundly on his girlfriend's lips.
"Okay you guys, we're in the lead, but only by a shot," Fred announced.
"Really now?" Katie asked.
"Shove it, Bell," George spat. The twins turned to face your youngest brother.
"It's all up to you now, Ron," Fred said. Ron turned bright red and urged his broom backwards away from the group.
"You can do it," George assured him.
"No I can't," Ron said shakily.
"Look Ron, it's really simple," Harry said. "Catch the Quaffle or die trying." Ron's face cracked into a crazed grin.
"You're an absolute nutter, Harry Potter," he said before flying off towards the goals.
"Is
he suicidal?" Fred asked. "Catch the Quaffle or die trying. Seriously Harry,
where did you come up with that?"
"Who cares?
It made Ron decide he can do the job," George laughed. Fred glared at his
younger brother.
"And it will be our collective arse if he gets hurt." George flinched at the thought of an irate Molly Weasley. The entire team turned to face the center of the field. Casey Warrington had stopped beside Madame Hooch in the center. Ron flew over and tapped the left side of the left goal and the right side of the right before positioning himself in front of the center. Casey took the Quaffle and turned to face the youngest Weasley son. Ron brushed his hair out of his face and removed both hands from his broom. Madame Hooch blew her whistle. Casey started towards Ron. He instantly moved to Ron's left, so Ron moved in front of that goal. Casey stayed with the left goal. A few meters from Ron, he transferred the ball to his other hand, just as Angelina had and began to sling it through the right goal. Ron dived to block the shot and Casey hooked the ball back towards the right goal. Ron had already committed to protect the center goal. At the last possible second, he wrenched his abdominal muscles and back and twisted his body back towards the left goal.
"Oh no," muttered Astrid, clamping both hands to her mouth. Hermione and Mandy held hands, neither noticing the fingernails digging into her palms.
"We've lost," Dennis muttered. Colin shook his head in agreement. Dean's eyes widened. Jason and Sawyer both clambered to their feet and leaned towards the front of the box. Ernie and Justin instinctively reached out and pulled the younger boys back into their seats, never taking their eyes off of the proceedings on the field. Chelsea had attached herself to Hannah's head out of fear of the situation. Hannah clamped both hands over her mouth and tried to shrug Chelsea's arm away from her eyes. She finally succeeded in peeking out from under Chelsea's elbow.
Ron twisted violently back towards the Quaffle. He stretched his hands out and lunged towards the ball. His fingertips barely brushed the Quaffle. The momentum caused by his turn threw him completely off balance and he tumbled from his broom. The Quaffle continued to travel directly towards the goal as Ron spiraled towards the pitch. Fred, Harry and George all raced to catch him.
CLANG!!! The heavy Quaffle made contact with the goal post and ricocheted left, making the shot wide. Ron landed flat on his back on the pitch with a dull thud. Harry, Fred and George all tumbled off their brooms, only moments too late to catch their fallen friend/brother. Harry and George knelt to Ron's right while Fred crouched on his left.
"Oh no," Astrid muttered again, surveying her friend's motionless form from her spot high in the Gryffindor stands.
"HE'S DEAD!" Mandy shrieked. Tears began pouring down her face.
"RON!" Ginny screamed. Hermione disentangled herself from Mandy and jumped to her feet. She headed towards the stairs with Ginny and then Astrid close on her heels. Hannah instantly leaned over Sawyer and Jason and threw her arm around Mandy.
"He's not dead," Hannah assured her.
"He's dead!" Mandy cried again. "First my father, then my mother, now Ron!"
"So THAT'S what I said wrong," Jason finally clued in. Sawyer whacked the back of his head. Jason placed a small hand on Mandy's knee.
"Rather than sit up here and cry, why don't we got sit outside the hospital wing and wait for them to take him there?" Jason asked, trying to be helpful. Mandy looked down at the boy.
"You're a genius!" she said. She jumped up and started towards the stairs, Hannah, Jason, Sawyer, Chelsea, Ernie and Justin hot on her heels. Hermione, Ginny and Astrid sprinted across the field towards the fallen Weasley. McGonagall, Dumbledore and Snape came running from the other side. McGonagall and Dumbledore pushed George and Harry out of the way. They knelt down next to the boy. McGonagall reached for Ron, but Dumbledore pushed her hands away.
"Hermione," he called, "now is the time to put into use what you've learned in your lessons with Madame Pomfrey." Hermione's eyes widened and her jaw drop as she crouched down next to her boyfriend. Fred laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Albus," McGonagall began. Dumbledore silenced her by raising his hand. Hermione quickly scanned Ron for signs of broken bones bleeding. She saw none, so she leaned over and placed an ear at his mouth and nose. She looked down at his chest. His chest was still, but a thin stream of air cooled her ear so he was breathing.
"What do you propose we do?" Dumbledore asked.
"Well. It looks as though he's taken a hard fall on his back. It's simply knocked the air out of him and also knocked him unconscious. I propose we immobilize him to prevent any further injury to his back and take him to Madame Pomfrey," Hermione said in a rush. She pulled out her wand and did a quick immobilizing spell on her friend.
"Perfect, Hermione," Dumbledore said. "You are now fully ready to travel with the Quidditch team." Fred leaned over and dropped a kiss on her cheek. Dumbledore pulled out his own wand and levitated the immobilized Ron onto a stretcher McGonagall conjured. McGonagall started towards the castle, floating the stretcher along in front of her.
"Well, Gryffindor. Congratulations on the first win of the season," Dumbledore said. Fred and George both turned on Harry.
"Bloody Hell, Potter," Fred spat.
"What do you think you're doing?" George asked.
"Catch the Quaffle or die trying," Fred mimicked.
"It looks like he heeded your advice," George exclaimed.
"It wasn't Harry's fault," Angelina said, stepping in front of her boyfriend. She looked to Hermione to control his twin. Hermione stepped over to Fred.
"I was scared when you almost got hit by that bludger," she whispered, looking up into his big blue eyes. He looked down at her and brushed a wisp of brown hair off of her forehead.
"I'm sorry baby," he said. He dropped a kiss on her nose. She frowned at him. He leaned in and kissed her lips.
"Earth calling Fred and Hermione!" George called.
"Come in Fred and Hermione!" Angelina added.
"I think we need to go see about our keeper," Alicia said. She turned and led the way to the castle. Katie, George and Angelina followed her closely. Fred threw a loose arm around Hermione and they followed the rest of the team. Harry and Ginny fell into line behind Hermione and Fred. Hermione felt a soft hand entwine in the one she didn't have around Fred's waist. She looked down into the earnest gray-silver eyes of Astrid.
"Is he okay?" Astrid asked hopefully. Hermione smiled at the little girl ruefully.
"I don't know Astrid. He's alive, so Madame Pomfrey should be able to mend him right up," Hermione said. Astrid nodded and looked down at her feet. In truth, Ron was one of her favorite people. He had always ignored the fact that she was several years younger than him and his friends and tried to make her feel included. She wondered if her transition into Gryffindor would have been quite as smooth if the tall redhead hadn't been there acting as the big brother she'd been missing for several years. She left her hand wrapped in Hermione's and the older girl squeezed it slightly, trying to be comforting. The procession proceeded towards the hospital wing in silence. Only when they reached the door of the hospital wing and found Hannah and Mandy waiting did anyone speak.
"Is he okay?" Mandy asked. Her eyes were puffy and red and her face had dusty tear-trails.
"He should be," Hermione replied, "Unless he's got an injury to his spine." Mandy gasped and clasped her hand to her mouth. Ginny slid down the wall to sit next to her. She threw her arms around the girl's shoulders and looked over her head at Hannah. When she had Hannah's gaze, she looked pointedly at Harry. Harry stood silently against the opposite wall. His left arm was crossed protectively across his body and he had his right elbow at his left hand. His forehead rested in his right hand. Hannah slipped away from Mandy and headed over to Harry. She leaned up against the wall next to him. He peeked out from under his hand and smiled softly at her. She placed her hand on his forearm.
Astrid looked up at Hermione and Fred again. Fred reached over and tousled the little girl's hair. She scowled at him.
"Okay baby Draco, that's enough of that," Fred laughed. Astrid flashed her typical Draco smirk at the seventh year. Professor McGonagall appeared in the door of the hospital wing.
"He's fine," McGonagall announced.
"But he can only have," her sentence was cut off by the surge of people rushing towards the hospital door to see Ron. Katie and Alicia pushed through the door first followed by the Weasley twins pulling their respective significant others. Fred and Hermione also had Astrid. Mandy tripped up off of the floor and almost tripped over Astrid and Ginny was close behind her. Hannah looked up at Harry again. He quickly laced his fingers through hers and they walked into the room. Ron was in the farthest bed, the one usually occupied by Harry. He was propped up on a large stack of pillows, still dressed in his Quidditch robes. The twins and the chasers framed the bed, all five screaming about how "bloody brilliant" Ron's save had been. Mandy, Ginny and Hermione gathered at the foot of the bed on either side, worrying that the team was causing too much excitement for the injured keeper. Astrid had dragged a chair up behind the team and was standing on it, vying to get a glimpse of her friend. Harry and Hannah stepped into position at the bottom of the bed, finally completing the ring of friends around Ron's bed.
"Is it contagious?" George asked, staring down at his brother. Angelina whacked him the back of his head with the back of her hand.
"I stopped it," Ron said weakly when he saw Harry. Harry smiled at him.
"And you didn't die trying," he laughed.
"You were absolutely fantastic!" George crowed.
"You had a shut-out in your debut!" Fred cried.
"That last stop was bloody amazing!" Katie said, patting Ron on his shoulder.
"You're alive," Mandy added her contribution to the joyous exclamations pouring down on Ron. Astrid jumped again, trying to see over George and Angelina.
"You're going to hurt in the morning," George laughed.
"I don't see what's so amusing about that," Ron said. Astrid jumped again, finally barely seeing Ron. She opened her mouth to call attention to herself, but quickly shut it again as Hannah, Ginny, Mandy and Hermione launched into a tirade about the absurdity of what Ron did at the end of the game. She jumped again, to no avail. When her last attempt wasn't successful, she climbed down from her chair and dragged it back over next to the other bed. She quietly turned and left the room, completely unnoticed. Shortly after Astrid left, Madame Pomfrey made her way out of her office.
"OUT!" she roared. The ten teenagers fell silent and turned to look at the hospital's matron.
"This boy needs rest. You can see him when he comes back to the tower in the morning," she insisted. Slowly Ginny and Hermione started away from Ron, wishing him a quick recovery. Hermione tugged Fred away. Ron raised his eyebrow at Harry and Hannah's entwined hands and the two quickly separated. Harry smacked Ron hard on his foot as the pair started away from the bed. George patted his brother's shoulder and started away from the bed with Angelina in tow. Katie and Alicia each ruffled Ron's hair before following the exodus, leaving Mandy standing at the bottom of the bed. She walked up and stood next to Ron.
"Feel better, okay?" she said.
"Okay," Ron agreed. Mandy leaned over and dropped a kiss on his sweaty forehead.
"Bye," she whispered, patting him on his shoulder.
"Bye," he replied, fighting unsuccessfully to hide the blush creeping over his cheeks. Only then did he realize he hadn't seen Astrid in his group of visitors.
*****
The eight Gryffindors entered the common room to a chorus of cheers from the rest of the house. Everyone had gathered in the common room to greet the team. Dean had drawn a makeshift banner of Ron's final save and another of Fred hitting Bole with his bat. Fred yelled for Lee to get out the Wireless and the twins disappeared back out of the portrait hole. Lee set up the radio in the corner and couples slowly straggled on to the dance floor. Jae Lucas pulled Sawyer into an ungainly fast dance. Seamus swung Madeline wildly about the common room. Karey started towards Dean, who in turn almost sprinted to Ginny.
"May I have this dance?" he asked, holding out his hand to her.
"Certainly," she replied, placing her hand into his. Karey stood back looking quite dejected. Hermione raised a quizzical eyebrow at Harry.
"Maybe she's realized Braeden is in France and she's here so she might as well enjoy herself," Harry suggested.
"Maybe," Hermione agreed, "because I know they still owl each other and don't tell her, but he may be coming in for the holidays." Harry smiled at his friend.
"Mr. Harry Potter Sir?" a small female voice squeaked. Harry looked down to see the tiny form of Evelyn Creevey.
"Yes Evelyn?" he asked.
"Willyoudancewithme?" she rushed.
"Certainly," Harry replied. He followed her onto the floor and began an equally ungainly dance next to Jae and Sawyer. Jason and Natalie McDonald spun crazily around the dance floor. Dennis Creevey carefully approached Karey Finnegan. Angelina started a crazy dance with her little sister Hailey that was neither in time with the music or comprised of dance steps that anyone had ever seen. Lee Jordan and Marissa Lucas stood wrapped in each other's arms, right in the middle of the dancers swaying slowly to a tune playing only in their heads because the real music was very upbeat. Fred and George returned laden with snacks and sweets. They dumped their spoils onto the chess table and went to find their girlfriends. When Hailey protested at Angelina being pulled away, George pointed her in the direction of sixth year Kyle Burns. Hermione jumped into Fred's arms. He planted a kiss soundly on her lips. She threw her arms around his neck and jumped out of his grip. She kicked her shoes off and pulled him towards Lee and Marissa. At least next to the other couple, it didn't look so obvious that Fred and Hermione only slow danced. Harry finished his dance with Evelyn Creevey and she squeaked her thanks and scampered off to find Nathan. Neville and Parvati made their way onto the dance floor in what looked like an attempt by Parvati to teach Neville to dance. Lavender and little Charlie Lawson spun next to Seamus and Madeline. Lavender quickly spun Charlie off towards Madeline and claimed Seamus for herself. Astrid watched the entire proceedings from a perch near the top of the stairs leading towards the girls' rooms.
*****
Forty-five minutes later, Lee and Marissa had retired to... somewhere. No one wanted to follow them. Fred and Hermione still slow danced in the middle of the group along with George and Angelina. Jae Lucas and Kyle Burns were curled into each other's arms. Katie, Alicia, Leah, Dani and Coltan were sitting in one corner engrossed in a game of Exploding snap. So far, Coltan and Dani had singed off their eyebrows. The first years save Astrid and Nathan had retired to a corner and a raucous game of Gobstones. Dennis, Colin, Nathan and Neville all sat on one couch, re-living the match play by play. Ginny and Dean sat on the window seat, deep in a conversation about something. Lavender and Seamus had turned one of the armchairs to one wall and had disappeared into their little haven. Harry had wandered towards his dorm about thirty minutes into the party. Astrid still sat at the top of the stairs. She hadn't danced with anyone, and in truth, no one had even really acknowledged her absence. She slowly stood up and headed up to her dorm. She opened the door and headed over to her trunk to get her journal. While pawing through the trunk, her eyes fell on a thin green book and an idea formed in her mind. She grabbed the book and hurried out of the room. She slipped unnoticed out of the common room, since one prefect was occupied with her boyfriend, one prefect was in his room, one prefect was in the hospital wing, and the head girl was extinguishing Leah's eyebrows.
*****
The door of the hospital wing creaked open. Ron looked over to see who was entering. Madame Pomfrey had retired to her room for the night, leaving Ron with the instructions to ring the bell on his bedside table if he needed anything. Ron smiled broadly when he saw a small blonde head appear through the crack in the door. Astrid carefully looked towards Madame Pomfrey's office before heading over to see her friend.
"What are you doing here?" Ron asked. Astrid dragged her chair back to his bedside and stood on it. She reached over and plumped the pillows under Ron's head.
"I've come to fix your pillows. When you're hurt, you ought to have someone fix your pillows," she announced with a smile.
"Thank you Miss Malfoy," Ron replied. Astrid toyed with his pillows a few more moments until she was satisfied they were fixed. Then she reached down to his bedside table and picked up her book.
"Now scoot over," she instructed.
"What?" Ron asked.
"You heard me," Astrid replied. With a bit of difficulty due to the beads of pain ripping through both his back and his stomach, Ron slid to the complete left of his bed. Astrid carefully crawled into bed next to him and laid flat on her back. She pulled her knees up to create a space to lay the book. She laid the book over her knees.
"My mum used to read this to me when I was little," she said as she opened the book to the first page.
"'Once there was a tree.'"