Chapter 20

Soon the terms Hogsmeade trip came up. And it couldn't have come sooner for the seventh years. Despite having the run of Hogwarts and all it's grounds, they were starting to feel cooped up, and they all needed a holiday. Everyone in the school was excited about the weekend, even the younger years- those too young to be able to go to Hogsmeade. The Quidditch final was on the same night.

Gryffindor vs. Slytherin.

Everyone was certain that Gryffindor would win. After they had the legendary James Potter didn't they? The Slytherins seemed to realise this and became determined to get him either before or during the match.

The competition in the school was vicious. Both houses went out of their way to curse the other.

The Slytherins seemed to be getting very bitter about this. James had ordered that the whole Quidditch team went around school in groups, to try to make hexing them harder for the Slytherins.

James was one of the best duellers in the school. He could easily hold his own against any hex from Slytherin. Lily however............. She found herself, several times being dragged out of the way of a badly-aimed hex. She had begged James to teach some useful curses and he had willingly agreed. The last thing he needed was for Lily to be killed two days before his big match.

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"Isabelle, will you relax?" Lily asked. They were in Hogsmeade with James and Sirius who were up at the bar buying drinks for them all.

"I really don't think we have anything to worry about from a fifty year old bar maid!" she said, barely containing a giggle as Isabelle narrowed her eyes at Madam Rosemerta, the owner of the pub in Hogsmeade. Sirius and James had clearly just said something funny; as Rosemerta burst into laughter spilling the pints she was carrying.

"Down girl!" Lily said, smiling at Isabelle's glare.

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"Try this one!" Sirius said shoving a handful of sweets in James's face. So far they had tried one of everything in Honeydukes. Feeling slightly sick they were going round for a second time. The owner had started to have a go at them, but being James and Sirius they managed to charm their way out.

"It's made from blood!"

"Maybe it's for vampires," Lily said.

"Hey we should buy some for Snivellus," Sirius joked. "Are you going to try it or not?" he added in the special voice he used when he wanted to provoke James into doing something. Slightly mocking and half daring, challenging him to do it.

Raising an eyebrow he took it and immediately regretted it. Wincing he swallowed it.

"I do not want to know where that came from!" he muttered pulling a face.

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James, as usual, was the last one of the team to be ready. Going through some of the moves he had learnt in his head, he barely noticed where he was walking. Which is probably why he fell down the stairs.

Landing in a heap at the bottom, he groaned, tried to stand up and promptly collapsed again. His ankle hurt like hell, knowing his luck it was probably broken. Obviously his friends rushed over to him, and helped him to stand.

"SHIT!" he groaned.

"It looks broken. You should see Madam Pomfrey," Lily tried to persuade him.

"NO! I mean, we don't have time. Can't you fix it?" he asked turning to her.

"I'm not a nurse!"

"Just make it stop hurting,"

"Aw! Make poor wittle Jamesies ankle stop hurting, pwease Lily?" Sirius teased.

"Say that again, and YOU won't be fit for the game either," James snarled.

"I don't know James, it could make it worse," Lily replied looking confused. Obviuosly she wanted him to be able to play, but she didn't wan to be responsible if he got injured even more.

"I'll be flying, I won't be using it at all. Please? I can't miss this game, it's the last one I'll ever play,"

"We'll ever play!" corrected Sirius. Sirius, Ellis and Mia were also on the team. A beater and two chasers.

"Fine!" Lily muttered a spell and a red light shot out the end of her wand, it wrapped itself around James.

Supported by Sirius and Remus he limped down to the hall and out into the grounds. It was getting late and the air was cold.

"Perfect flying conditions," Ellis commented as they got on their brooms. Lily, Isabelle, Ciara, Remus and Peter had gone to find a good seat.

The game was brutal from the very beginning. James had had his hand crushed as he shook hands with a Slytherin but he didn't care. Climbing on to his broom, a wave of emotions hit him. This was better. This was where he belonged. If he could have his way he would have a broom instead of legs. Nothing else ever gave him the same rush, and besides the wind did a better job of messing up his hair than he ever could.

Soon it became obvious just how badly each side wanted to win.

Mia was hit by a bludger a quarter of the way though and had been knocked unconscious. In retaliation Sirius hit a bludger straight at the opposing captains head, also knocking him out. The whole Slytherin team grouped together and flew directly at the Gryffindor keeper. A small third year, he had been terrified and fell off, landing in the sand feet below the goal hoops. In payback Ellis had 'accidentally' thrown the Quaffle at a Slytherin beaters face and had broken her nose.

James was trying his best to cover for the missing keeper but they would never win if he kept hanging around the goal hoops.

Halfway through James called for time out, to count his remaining players. They had lost a beater, a chaser and their keeper. Fortunately the other team had also lost three players so they were about even. But in all the fuss of counting players and demanding extra penalties from Madam Hooch, no one noticed a large seventh year boy creep over to the crate of balls. Several spells flashed out his wand, and he crept back to the stands.

"We can win this," James told what was left of the team. "We're thirty points ahead at the moment. If I can catch the snitch soon, this will be over and we'll have the Quidditch Cup again!" he gave them instructions and they got back onto their brooms again.

But soon, it became obvious that something wasn't right. One of the bludgers seemed to be determined to follow James around. Soon he was flying as fast as he could but it was still trying to get him. It flew directly at his broom, but he went into a dive and it just missed him.

"That's a rogue bludger!" Lily whispered. Beside her Remus swore. That was all they needed, in the last ever match they would watch, to see James get smashed to pieces.

Fifty feet above them and James was beginning to panic. He had never seen a bludger fly so fast. There was no sign of the snitch and he couldn't keep ahead of the bludger forever. He needed to find it soon. Sirius was next to him, trying valiantly to hit the bludger away before it broke his best friend into little pieces.

Suddenly James saw a little glint of gold. Speeding after it he tried to ignore the fact that he was being chased by a furious metal ball.

'It was just another seeker, that was all,' he pretended. And he could out- fly another seeker. After all he was the best bloody seeker Hogwarts had had in years, he thought to himself. Although Lily had attempted to tame his ego, he doubted that it would ever disappear completely. He was just too damn good.

He never did figure to how he managed to catch the snitch, even when he thought back years afterwards.

Holding it up, he grinned from ear to ear as the school erupted into cheers. They had won the Quidditch Cup. For the fourth year running! The rest of the friends sprinted onto the pitch congratulating and hugging and screaming and cheering. James was so happy that he forgot about the bludger for just one second. But it was long enough. Smashing into the arm he was holding up he felt a familiar snap. But it didn't matter that he now had a broken arm to match his ankle, he had just won the Cup!

But the bludger wasn't finished yet. Hitting James squarely in the chest he stumbled and fell back, gasping for breath. Madam Hooch immediately took care of the ball. Winded, he was helped back up again and the few team members that were left were carried back into the school.

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The party in the common room went on all night. The professors kindly turned a blind eye to the celebrations. All the sweets bought that morning were spread out until everyone felt sick.

But James didn't feel right. Despite winning the cup there was something that he could not shake off. Nothing hurt him exactly, he had got his arm and ankle fixed after the match, but something just didn't feel right. He was probably just tired, he reasoned.

Starting to feel slightly dizzy, he staggered up to his room, making his excuses on the way. He was the hero of Gryffindor and no one wanted to see him leave. Once he was there, he leant on the edge of his bed and had a coughing fit. Feeling something at the corner of his mouth, he wiped away some blood. No doubt something from Hogsmeade. Sirius had fed him all sorts of crap in Honeydukes.

Around him the room span out of sight. He must have been more tired than he thought. He just had time to hang on to the end of the bed before it faded altogether.

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thank you for reading! Please review this chapter, PLEASE!!!!!! This was meant to be the 2nd chap and has been sitting in my head for months. Finally i've got round to writing it so please elt me know what you think.

Thanks to burningice22, firewalker and lilypad7879() for reveiwing the last chap.

Leo