A/N: YESSSS! I am finally finished writing this chapter. I would like to apologize to those who have been waiting on me to update. I am truly sorry, I just have been tied up with school about to start up again (eighth grade WHOOP! WHOOP!) and also a truly horrible case of writer's block. Anyways, it's here now, so go on and read.
A/N: I decided to try something different this chapter…let me know if you don't like it.
Chapter 14: Bad News and Worse News"He came to your room, and apologized, basically on his knees, and you just sent him on his way?" Ginny asked incredulously over breakfast the next Saturday, just before the Quidditch match.
Jazz, who had just stuffed a piece of toast into her mouth, simply nodded her head with a shrug as if to say, "More or less." She swallowed hard and shook her head as her eyes began to water while answering, "It's a bit more complicated than that."
"Then explain it to this simply creature," Ginny returned. Jazz rolled her eyes as she reached for the orange juice, only to have her hand slapped away from it by Ginny. "Not until you explain, please." Jazz gave her a agitated glance and sighed.
"Ginny, I want to forgive him. I do. I just…I can't. I'm still angry. I'm still hurt…do you get that?" She asked her helplessly. Ginny nodded sympathetically. She patted her hand gently, and began talking about Quidditch.
"It'll be a piece of pie beating out Hufflepuff. They've no good players this year. Brookwood hurt his leg last night and he can't play today, so Browning is taking his place, but he stinks so that's no problem, and Silvering is performing rather poorly this season. That only leaves Arbon, she's really good. But Harry will have her in check before she's had the chance, don't you worry. And Garby, Jackson, and Simpson are okay, but they hold no candle to Katie, Aarolynn, and Pete."
"What about the beaters? Waters has been improving. I watched his tactics last time and they were amazing. And Harrow's pretty good."
"Yeah, I know," Ginny replied, as if she wasn't phased by this fact. "But she's lacking. Last match she failed to make some of the easiest hits I've ever seen. How do you miss a blunger when it's right in front of you?" The two beaters laughed at this, forgetting their problems. That is, until Jazz's problem came over to speak with them.
"Ginny, Jazz, we need you to go change. We'll be going to the pitch soon." Harry said keeping his eyes on Ginny. Jazz made sure hers were focused on her breakfast, which she had finished, feeling violently ill.
"Yeah, okay, Harry. Be there in a moment." Ginny answered, a bright smile set on her features. "And don't worry. Jazz and I will be perfect this match." Ginny pushed her plate away and retreated from the table, not waiting on Jazz, leaving her with Harry.
"Jazz - " Harry started, attempting to settle their problem.
"I have to go. See you out on the pitch." Jazz said quickly, sprinting to catch up with Ginny. Harry watched as the one girl he wanted ran from him, and sadly went back to Ron, who kept eating his food, as if he hadn't seen anything at all.
"How do you do that?" Harry asked him curiously. Ron gave a look of confused inquiry as he finished stuffing two spoonfuls of porridge into his mouth.
"Do what?" he questioned, spitting some porridge at Harry in the process.
"How do you just sit there and eat when something's going on?" Harry wanted to know.
"I don't know." Ron replied with mock surprise and suspicion. Harry found it a loss cause and informed him that he would be going to the changing rooms to replace his normal clothes with his Quidditch attire. "Right, mate. I'll meet you in there. We'll kill Hufflepuff." Ron gave an encouraging thumbs up and went back to his porridge.
XXX
Aarolynn Chambers, a third year, and Katie Bell were already in the girls' dressing rooms, sitting with one another chatting. When Jazz and Ginny came in, they joined into the conversation, once and a while dismissing the questions that flew toward them about Harry or Draco.
"Well, I reckon its about time to go and see those boys, don't you?" Katie declared with a flip of her hair. She lead the way out of the girls' room, and barged into the boys'. Thankfully they were all changed, ready to go.
"Pete, you better have been practicing the other night when I caught you on the pitch," Jazz joked when she saw him. He blushed and told her to shut up playfully, high fiving her as she came in. "How's Marietta?"
"The same. She hates coming to Quidditch. The only reason she's actually here today is because I promised to buy her something from Hogsmeade." Pete brushed his dusty blonde hair away from his face and smiled his perfect teeth shining brightly.
"Ah, well, gifts are the way to a woman's heart," Jazz agreed. He and she laughed heartily, sitting close like old friends. Ginny, always the observer, watched intently as if they were on the discovery channel. Harry stumbled in a moment later, his eyes falling on Pete and Jazz, who now had his arm around her.
"Harry!" Katie shouted happily. "Ready to kick some Hufflepuff butt?" They all yelled an agreement, waiting Harry's speech. Nothing came.
"It's time. Let's go," was all he had to say as he turned on his heel, leaving the room.
"What's his deal?" Pete asked, his arm still around Jazz's neck.
Jazz looked from Ginny to Ron and back. "Dunno. Let's go out and win this thing, shall we?" Jazz led the way out of the changing rooms, stepping onto the ramp leading to the pitch lightly. "Ah, jeez…Good luck, everyone. Let's go." With that she continued her strides onto the pitch, trying to seem confident and careless, while in all actuality, she was attempting incomprehensibly hard to not vomit.
"Captains," Boomed Madam Hooch with her whistle in hand, "shake hands." Harry shook with Silvering and then backed away to stand with the rest of the team. "Everyone," Madam Hooch continued, "mount your brooms. Nice clean game. You all know the rules. Right, on my whistle. One…two…." Then came the whistling sound as it screeched loudly over the celebrating crowds.
And the commentary of Luna Lovegood began, her voice light and mystic, as if she'd just finished a large pile of chronic (A/N: Just so you know…I wouldn't know what people sound like when they are high, I'm only guessing…) "Ah, and its Corrigan with the quaffel as we start off the game, and Potter begins to circle the pitch like a one eyed vulture atop the world….Sorry professor. Anyways, and an excellent hit by Granger, the top of the class I hear, also a very loyal friend. And a return charge sent and saved by Ginny Weasley as Bell moves in for the shoot – stopped by Garby who is now in possession of the quaffel. She sends it to Jackson, who passes it off to Simpson, and oh my, that blunger looks like it must have hurt, sir. Do hope you used the Snapping Snorklebush's leaves as a protection before the game, but as I can clearly see, none of you read the Quibbler. Shame." Luna concluded more to herself, still speaking into the magical microphone. Jazz stole a glance down at her friend, seeing professor McGonagall harping on her for not keeping her head in the game. 'Well,' Luna spoke defiantly in her mind, 'I agreed to do this, so I shall do it as I please…and don't you dare begin to think wrong Jasmine. By the way, watch out to your right.'
Jazz quickly flew forward and down, hearing the whooshing sound caused by a blunger she could have easily hit, sending flying at Harrows after the foul she got away with on her last match. Thankfully she did not, as Pete had just made a goal.
"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, Harry….where's the snitch?" Jazz chanted to herself nervously, watching out for any blungers charging at her teammates. She chanced yet another glance at Harry, who continued to be a vulture in search of food. Finally her eyes followed Harry as he began gaining speed, chasing a small glint of gold in the air. Breathing heavily, she leaned forward on her broom, waiting impatiently for him to clasp his fingers around the snitch. All of a sudden, she was forced off of her broom, screaming in terror as she watched the broom fly off out of control.
Jazz heard a screeching sound that was clearly the whistle before she was again hit with a force, only this one knocked her sideways, and caught her, keeping her from falling anymore.
There it all went black.
XXX
"Quick, she's awake. Jazz, Jazz are you all right?" She heard Aarolynn Chambers cry as she sank back onto her chair. Lifting her head slightly, Jazz took in the room, trying to remember what happened. Unfortunately, all she could think about was the head splitting pain in her forehead.
Jazz mumbled a reply while running a hand over her face. "I think I'm fine…just a really bad headache. What happened? Did we win?" She watched as the entire team began to squirm. "Harry," Jazz demanded, singling him out among the rest. "I saw you closing in on the snitch. We must've - "
"No Jazz," Ginny interrupted gently. Jazz tore her eyes away from Harry and focused them on Ginny. "When that blunger knocked you off of your broom, we were all blocked, we couldn't do anything. Harry was the only one free so he tried to catch up with you before you hit the ground. He caught you, Jazz…and we…we lost the game." Jazz could feel Ginny watching her, trying to see her reaction. As soon as Ginny noticed Jazz's face slacking, she could tell she was scolding herself about it. "Don't worry, Jazz. Quidditch isn't as big of a deal as you living is. There's going to be more games. That's the only one we lost. Don't worry about it."
The team murmured agreements, and Jazz couldn't bring herself to look any of them in the eye. They had lost, and it was because of her. "You know," She spoke with a sigh, "I'm a bit tired. Do you think you could…um…let me get some rest…this headache is really taking its toll." Ginny shooed the rest of them out, but Harry stayed, standing in the back.
"I'll come back later," Ginny whispered, giving her best friend a hug before retreating. She nodded toward Harry on her way out, as if to wish him good luck.
Jazz was about to close her eyes again to sleep when she heard a throat being cleared. She jumped in her bed sheets, letting out a small yelp that failed to help her headache. "Oh, Jesus, Harry," Jazz complained, massaging her head once more. "Give me a heart attack why don't you?"
"Well…seeing as how I just saved your life, that wouldn't work out very well." Harry tried to joke with her, moving closer to her. "How are you feeling?" His eyes glowed with the same deep caring green they always had when aimed at her.
Jazz took a second to reply. "I'm…" Jazz was about to answer him with "fine" but, figuring it was Harry, and that she simply did not have the energy to be grilled, she answered him truthfully. "I feel terrible. My head hurts, my side where you caught me is going to send me into a seizure from how much tingling is going on, and I feel so horrid about making us lose." Jazz leaned back onto her pillows again. "I feel like a total idiot. If I hadn't been so caught up in making sure you caught the snitch, I would have seen that blunger. I would have sent it to that Miss Harrows before she knew it. I wouldn't have caused - "
"Jazz," Harry interjected, "Stop. It's okay that we lost. That's not the big issue. That blunger that attacked you…it was acting strange the entire game. That was the one that kept coming back to you." Harry waited before going on, making sure Jazz understood. "There's some bad news."
"You mean worse news," Jazz corrected him. "The Quidditch match was bad enough. Now what?"
He took a moment before answering. "Dumbledore thinks someone is spying…he thinks that someone inside of the school is trying to bring Voldemort in…his troops as well."
A/N: YAY I finally am able to post chapter 14. Chapter 15 is coming up soon, I promise. Love ya all!
The one and only - Sylverwings