The Gryffindor quidditch team was in the locker room, changing for the final match. Harry and Ginny hadn't even looked at each other since the fight, but from what Harry had heard he had hurt her pretty bad. She had hurt him too: he had a sprained wrist and a few bruised ribs, not to mention a lot of burses on his face and chest. He didn't go to the nurse, because he knew she wouldn't let him play in the final. Harry heard Ginny walk over to the little meeting Ron was having, and he followed. He stole a quick glance at Ginny. She had a badly bruised eye that was so swollen it was almost shut. Apparently she hadn't gone to the nurse either.
"Harry?" Ron said
"What?"
"Did you hear what I just said?"
"No I didn't."
"That's nice. It was directed at you. Pay attention. I was saying that we need to have over 200 points before you catch the snitch. Ravenclaw has a lot of points. And by a lot I mean over 200. If that little girlfriend of yours catches the snitch first, we're done for."
"She's not my girlfriend." Harry muttered.
"Her captain is telling her to catch the snitch as soon as possible. You have to distract her until we get over 200 points."
"Okay."
"Harry I don't think you understand what I'm saying to you. If we win this year we'll have the second longest number on consecutive quidditch cup wins in Hogwarts history. And if we win next year, we'll have the longest. We will have passed up your dad's team."
"Oh really? Did Hermione tell you that, or did you read it in Hogwarts: A History?" Harry asked. Ginny laughed.
"And you'll have the most consecutive snitch catches ever." Ron said. "Two records. Three if you count that you were the youngest seeker in a century. You might want to think about that." Just then they were called out to the pitch. "Let's go." Ron said.
The Gryffindor team headed to the pitch. Harry thought about what Ron had told him. Three records? That doesn't sound right, he thought. Then again he probably knows more than I do. The team waited in front of the gate until they were announced.
"Harry." Ginny said. "Don't be afraid to get rough with her."
"Who?"
"The Ravenclaw seeker. Cho? Remember her?"
Harry pretended to be confused. "Hmm... nope never heard of her."
"Just catch the dang snitch first, okay?"
"No problem." The Gryffindor team was announced, and they all flew up into the air. The crowd was so loud that it was hard to hear Tonks, who was the referee. Eventually the whistle was blown and the quaffle was thrown up. Harry got up as high as he could so that he could find Cho. She was looking for the snitch already. She dove for the snitch, which was near the Ravenclaw bench. Harry followed and hit into her, making her lose control and flip over. By the time she had gotten control again, the snitch was gone. She growled and flew up above everyone. Harry was slightly amazed. He'd never heard a girl make that noise.
"Harry look out!" Harry turned just in time to see a bludger zoom past his head. "Sorry I missed."
"It's alright." Harry said as he followed Cho. She went up and stopped, so Harry relaxed a little and watched the game. The chasers were being brutal. They constantly bumped into each other and fought over the quaffle. Harry saw a blue and yellow streak go flying past him. He made a mental note to pay attention and followed Cho toward the Gryffindor goals. She was flying very fast. Come on, Harry thought to his Firebolt. Faster, I need to go faster! He managed to hit into her again. She went spinning in circles. Harry watched the snitch fly to the other side of the pitch. Cho tried to follow it, but she couldn't find it. She flew up higher, and Harry followed. He flew above the Gryffindor goals and waited. Ron glanced up at him.
"Keep her busy." Ron yelled. "We already have 130 points. It won't be too much longer. Their keeper sucks."
Harry nodded and flew closer to Cho. He watched the Gryffindor chasers score over and over again. 140, 150, 160, 170, 180. Come on! Harry thought. Two more. Let's get this over with. 190, 200, 210, 220. Just as Ginny scored, Harry spotted the snitch and flew after it. He had a pretty good head start on Cho, but she was close behind. The chasers kept scoring. They were going so fast that the points were get close to 300. He could almost hear Ron's thoughts. Catch the dang thing already! Harry reached out for the snitch, but then something hit the back of his broom. The Firebolt flipped over, throwing Harry off completely. Everything seemed to go in slow motion as he fell. Cho caught the snitch. Harry couldn't believe it. He'd lost. His record was broken. Gryffindor had just lost, which killed another record. He was glad he couldn't see Ron's face.
"Cho Chang has caught the snitch!" the announcer screamed, and the Ravenclaw fans went wild. That was the last thing Harry heard before he hit the ground.