Chapter Title: Chapter 8: To Gryffindor
Characters:
Genres:
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: HBP Spoiler
Summary: The Potters and Weasleys enjoy a free Saturday and the carefree skies over Hogwarts before observing the Gryffindor Quidditch Team tryouts.
It was just a few hours after Hermione's party had finally broken up and Harry was lying peacefully in bed, sleeping soundly. The long week had taken its toll and he had fallen asleep the second his head had hit the pillow. Ginny turned slightly next to him and Harry's eyes popped open. He sat up abruptly, snatching his wand from the bedside table and staring around the room suspiciously before he realized what had happened. Grumbling, he laid down his wand again and returned to the comfort of his pillow, whispering, "Your feet are cold."
"Mm?" Ginny stirred slightly.
"Your feet are cold."
"Hrm… Harry, I'm tired too you know," she whined without opening her eyes. "Why'd you go and wake me up? I was asleep," she grumbled into the pillow.
"So was I."
"What woke you?" she asked as she turned her head to face the other way, clearly not intending to hear an answer.
"Your feet are cold."
"What?" Ginny said, blinking as she grudgingly turned to face Harry.
"Your – feet – are – cold," Harry said patiently.
"Oh," Ginny shifted again, blinking and rubbing her feet together as if trying to feel how cold they were. "Sorry, but yours are warm."
"Yes, I know, but they won't be for long if… Here, just let me do a warming charm."
"No Harry," Ginny sat up as he reached for his wand. "Please, warming charms dry out my skin."
Harry rolled his eyes and sighed, earning him a glare from Ginny. "Alright, give them here then. Maybe if we get the circulation going…"
"Ooh, thank you sweetie," Ginny said, pulling her pillow down along the side of the bed and propping her legs up on Harry's lap as he sat up against the headboard. "Mm, that feels nice." She fell back heavily into the pillow, fully relaxed as Harry massaged her chilly feet, occasionally rubbing his hands together to warm them.
"Bloody Hell!" Harry shouted as a wailing klaxon blared from his office downstairs. Ginny had instinctually retracted her legs at the sudden noise.
"What is that?"
"Oy," Harry groaned, pulling on his dressing gown and a pair of slippers. "Someone's really going to get it. That's the alarm for the girl's dormitory, remember?" The alarm silenced as Harry flicked his wand in the general direction of Gryffindor tower and muttered, "Silencio."
"Oh. They told us about that, but I've never actually heard it. I was already down at breakfast that time Ron set it off."
"It's three-thirty in the bloody morning. All of Gryffindor is probably awake." Harry spat as he stuffed his wand into a pocket of his dressing gown and shoved on his glasses. "I'm sorry Ginny," Harry apologized as he reached for the bedroom door.
"Don't be, it's your job. I'll just go and make sure Ron and Hermione are okay."
"No, I'll take care of it. You get some sleep. Here," he pulled a pair of thick woolen socks from a drawer and tossed them to Ginny. "I guess this is the best I can do for now."
"Thank you sweet heart. Are you sure you don't need anything? I could make some coffee or something."
"No, I'm hoping this won't take long enough for that. Don't wait up for me." Harry hurried over to a bedroom on the opposite side of the flat in time to see a sleepy-eyed Ron peering through the open door. "You two alright there?"
"Yeah. Was that what I think it was?" Ron grinned at the memory of the time, years ago, when he had raced unsuccessfully up the stairway to the girls' dormitory, looking for Hermione.
"'Fraid so. Go back to sleep if you can. I've just got to run and take care of this."
With that Harry stomped quickly down the stairs and into his office. Cursing under his breath, he marched quickly through the office door and down the hallway, turning up the staircase, tearing his way through one hidden door and throwing aside a tapestry hiding another. Seconds later he stood in front of the fat lady.
"Did anyone come through here recently?" Harry questioned the portrait impatiently. He suspected he knew the answer, seeing she was as fully awake as he was.
"Yes, just a few minutes ago. I'm afraid I didn't see who it was. I had been asleep at the time and I didn't get a good look before they were behind me. Password?"
"Quaffle."
Harry settled his face into a firm and stony expression as the portrait swung open. Emerging into the Gryffindor common room, he approached a small crowd of students near the stairway to the girls' dormitories.
"All of you back up and stand along that wall."
"Professor—"
"No talking!" Harry spat. Looking over the line of students, (some giggling, some confused, others mortified) Harry observed that most were wearing dressing gowns or pajamas. One pair, a fifth-year boy and a sixth-year girl near the center of the group, stood out quite readily, fully dressed in their school robes and trying desperately not to look at each other as they stared at the floor, rubbing sore spots on their knees and shins. "You boys go on upstairs. And straight to bed!" Three other fifth-year boys, a fourth-year, and a third-year walked quickly over to the opposite staircase. "No talking either," Harry added. "You can gab all you want about it in the morning. I don't want to have to come up there, but I will, and you'll find it decidedly unpleasant. The same goes for you girls." Harry flicked his wand and the stairs reemerged from the smooth surface of the spiraling slide, leading up to the girls' dorms. Two sixth-year girls stepped lightly up the restored staircase and out of sight.
Without speaking, Harry gestured to two nearby chairs. Cowering slightly under his livid gaze, the two blushing students took their seats quickly. Harry sat down slowly on the large hearth of the fireplace and looked from one guilty face to another for a few moments, allowing the weight of silence to settle into their guts like a great, heavy stone. When his subjects each appeared sufficiently terrified, Harry turned and relit the fire. The room warmed slightly, and the mood lightened to match it as the flames crackled away.
"It appears that, while you are certainly guilty of something, you were not doing what your fellow students seem to think you were doing. I expect you will both suffer a certain amount from the gossip that will surely ensue in the coming days. For that, I offer my sympathy. I know what it is like to have people talking behind your back about subjects they couldn't possibly understand."
The two students in front of Harry looked at each other with puzzled, but knowing, expressions. Harry sat patiently as they pondered what he had just told them. After a moment their eyes softened slightly and they finally looked Harry in the eye, searching for some clue that would explain the strange calmness with which Harry was addressing them.
"Now, I hope you will be able to see that I am not an unreasonable person. I assure you it is best to be honest with me right up front. Would you like to tell me what happened?"
The girl spoke first, with surprising confidence considering the punishment she might be facing. "It was my fault. I was the one who suggested—"
"No," the boy said firmly. "It's mine. I was having trouble with my Potions homework and Lauren offered to help me study." Harry noticed a familiar look of fear on his face. It was one he had seen on the faces of a number of Professor Snape's least favorite students. Harry's expression softened slightly.
"You were studying on a Friday night in the middle of September?" Harry asked. His tone was deliberately skeptical but he was actually quite sure of himself that the boy was being truthful.
"I got worried. I fell behind a bit this week and I really need to get a good O.W.L. grade on my potions, so I didn't want to wait until it was too late."
"That is quite admirable Mr. Meeks. My concern is why this caused you to be out in the castle so late and, more importantly, what possessed you to enter the girls' dormitories."
"We went to the library," Lauren chimed in helpfully. "We were doing pretty well for a while until…" She paused, looking at the boy as if for approval.
"We had to leave," the boy said evasively.
"The library was getting too, uh… distracting," Lauren continued vaguely.
"Someone was teasing you for studying alone together in the Potions section," Harry speculated, "which I believe is rather conveniently, or in this case perhaps inconveniently, tucked away in a secluded corner of the library." Harry paused and saw looks of assent on their faces. "Very well, what did you do?"
"Well, we decided to take a few books and find some place else to study," Lauren continued, looking warily between Harry and the pale looking boy next to her.
"I expect that prompted some further heckling from your fellow students."
"Yes. They followed us out and we had to run to get away from them. Thankfully we found an empty room that was just the perfect place to hide and turned out to be a good place to study as well. It even had potion ingredients and cauldrons and things so we could practice. I wish I had known that room was there last year."
"Indeed," said Harry with a knowing smile on his face. He suspected quite strongly that they had run across the Room of Requirement, which he and his fellow students had utilized years ago. Without warning, Harry swept his wand out and a jet of light shot off over the heads of the two students sitting in front of him. Looking past their suddenly ashen faces, he said, "Ah, Mr. Simmons. Lurking in the stairwell are we? Sleep walking perhaps?" Harry addressed the shocked looking third-year boy that he had sent away a few minutes before, who was now standing stock-still with his face pressed up against the door-jam. The door was no longer present as Harry had just vanished it. "I think not. That will be a detention for disobeying me, Ivan, and twenty points from Gryffindor for disrespecting the privacy of your fellow students." Looking scandalized, but unable to speak, Ivan turned back up the stairs in a huff. "So sorry about that, what were you saying Miss Walker?" Harry turned again to the students in front of him as he waved his wand, rematerializing the door. The two students didn't speak for a moment and both eyed the door warily. "Don't worry, I've sealed the doors. They won't unseal themselves until someone opens them from this side, which you two will be doing soon enough."
"Well, we got a lot of studying done," Lauren continued confidently. "I really think you've got the hang of that Draught of Peace Edward." Lauren looked fondly over at the boy.
"I dunno," Edward said dejectedly.
"You did really well. It was quite peaceful in there after we tried it out. Maybe a little too peaceful actually," she said, turning back to Harry. "You see, the reason we were out so late is… well… we fell asleep. It's been a long week and, after we tried the potion and realized it worked so well, we sat down to have a rest. The next thing I knew it was after three and Edward was waking me up. We didn't want to get caught," she smiled meekly at Harry, "so we snuck back here as carefully as we could."
"Well, that sounds like an honest mistake to me. You should work a little more on that potion. I think it's still a bit strong, but it must have been almost right or you'd both still be sleeping up there. In the future, always have someone around who isn't trying the potion, in case something does go wrong. I'd also advise you to be more careful when you're out so late, to be sure that you get back at a reasonable hour. Nevertheless, that still doesn't explain the alarm."
Edward squirmed a bit in his seat and blushed. Lauren looked over at him with a mixture of fondness and empathy at his shyness. Gazing at Harry, her eyes pleaded with him as she spoke. "He just wanted to thank me. I told him it was no trouble but he seemed a bit… I dunno… He's really sweet you know." Harry smiled at her candor and openness. Edward tried to sink deeper into his chair. "I don't really know what came over me, but I just had to give him a hug and then… well…you know…"
Harry nodded and held up his hand before she had to finish. "I think I understand that much. But, why did you try to go up the stairs Edward?"
"I felt bad…"
"About what?" Harry asked gently.
"Well, I uh…" Edward studied the floor as he stalled for an answer that wouldn't be embarrassing.
"I guess I caught him by surprise. My friends always say I'm a bit forward at times," Lauren came to his defense. "I realized that I might have scared him so I decided it would be best just to say goodnight, and I left. I was almost to the first landing when the alarm went off and I went sliding back down and collided with Edward at the bottom." She paused and turned to Edward who was now blushing deep crimson. "I'm sorry. I guess I shouldn't have… Was it too fast? You know if you don't like me that way I'll understand. We can still be friends."
Edward looked up suddenly, his mouth hanging open as he shook his head slightly. "No, I uh…I mean…well, actually that's why I was trying to get up the stairs to catch you so I could say I was sorry. I didn't realize what had just happened," he blushed again, "until you were already going upstairs. I never knew anything about that alarm. I'm sorry I woke everybody up, especially you Professor."
Harry seemed satisfied and got to his feet, hoping to give the poor boy a bit of a reprieve from his embarrassment. "Well, as I had suspected, this wasn't quite as bad as it appeared to be. As for how to handle your housemates, I'll leave that up to the two of you. From my standpoint, I can't simply let this slide, so to speak," Harry chuckled, "but your honesty has, I think, earned you a bit of leniency. I think twenty points each from Gryffindor and a detention should do. I'm afraid I can't be any fairer than that, but I expect you'd only suffer more from the gossip if it seemed you weren't being disciplined. I think I may be correct in guessing that your fellow students will punish you far more effectively than detentions will." Harry smiled and looked down at both of them. " Now, I expect you two have some things to talk about, but I must insist that you sleep on them for now. You'll see each other again soon enough. Off to bed with you."
The two students blushed as they rose and looked at each other briefly before turning to their respective doors. Lauren smiled broadly at Edward as she mounted the girls' staircase. Edward waved awkwardly back and walked quickly up to the boys' dorms. Harry gazed around the common room. Mysterious shadows danced on the walls, illuminated only by the dim light from the fireplace. Yawning, Harry strode through the portrait hole and down through the darkened castle, eager to return to the warmth of his bed and the comfort of Ginny's arms.
The following afternoon found Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron walking leisurely across the grounds. The autumn air was pungent with intoxicating smells and they each inhaled the strong scents deeply as they strolled through the slightly dampened grass. Over Harry's left shoulder was his freshly trimmed and polished broomstick, his other arm rested gently around Ginny's waist as he leaned affectionately into her shoulder.
Hermione looked up from a spare bit of parchment she had found in her pocket and was examining curiously. "You okay Harry?" she asked, mistaking Harry's droopy eyes as evidence of his lack of sleep the previous night.
"Never been better. I was just having the strongest memory." He sighed in contentment. "Remember that first time in class with Slughorn in our sixth year?"
"When you won the Felix Felicis?" Hermione asked, pocketing the parchment. "I was just remembering the same class. Isn't that funny?"
"Well, I wasn't thinking of the Felix, but yeah, I guess that happened then too."
Ron suddenly looked curiously over at Hermione, who quickly glared at him as if to say "Don't you dare say a word." Ron shrugged.
"So Ron, did Harry tell you about his idea for a Quidditch intra-house league?" Ginny asked brightly.
"Yeah, he did. It sounds like a really great idea Harry. I bet the other houses will do the same if it works out." Ron looked around nostalgically as they entered the Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch. "I wonder, though, if you'll have trouble finding enough time on the pitch for all of those extra sessions and games."
"I thought of that. I suppose Hogwarts could use a new Quidditch stadium. There are a lot of parents who come to games now." Harry looked up at the ancient timbers of the Quidditch pitch as they strode across the well-kept grass. "Minerva told me they were packed to the brim for every game last year."
"Cool," said Ron as he reminisced.
"Want a ride Gin'?"
"That would be fun. We haven't done that in a while," Ginny said excitedly. "Are you two going to be alright?" She looked over at Ron and Hermione.
"We'll be fine. It's always fun to watch Harry fly. We'll just be up here in the stands."
With that Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry's middle and they zoomed off into the sky. Harry flew gently at first, weaving in and out of the various parapets and outcroppings of the quidditch pitch and then over to do more of them same around the castle, with its slightly more random architecture. Ginny squeezed Harry tightly as he maneuvered deftly around the obstacles of the castle. When Harry felt Ginny begin to tire of his weaving, he straightened out, soaring high over the lake to cruise leisurely around its perimeter. Ginny pointed over at the tiny outline of the train platform and the winding line of the tracks disappearing into the hills. They waved to the tiny specks that were Hermione and Ron, sitting in the Quidditch stands. As they gazed out at the varied rooftops within the village of Hogsmeade, Harry turned back toward the Quidditch Pitch. Harry pushed the Firebolt as fast as he dared and pelted towards the stands, earning one final scream from Ginny. Harry smiled as he saw that Hermione and Ron were facing the other way as they sat. Ginny's scream had dissolved into a holler of delight just as Harry blew past them mere feet away from their heads before landing lightly on the grass.
"Bloody hell Harry!" Ron bellowed as he and Hermione made their way down to where Harry and Ginny stood, panting happily. "That wasn't even close to funny. You gave me a right scare and I think you've given Hermione a heart attack." Ron looked mortified as he patted a heaving Hermione on her back. She was doubled over and wheezing, clutching at her chest. Harry and Ginny's grins quickly melted into terrified concern for their friend.
"Oh no, what have I done?" said Harry as he knelt down quickly beside Ron who was now trying desperately to get Hermione to look at him.
"Come on baby, breathe!" Ron cried in panic, rubbing her back vigorously. Without warning, Hermione toppled over and collapsed backwards onto the grass, her hair obscuring her face. "Hermione!" Ron screamed as he bent over her. Harry was still kneeling, frozen in horror. "What the…" Ron said as he pulled Hermione's hair away. She was beet red and her eyes tightly closed as she convulsed rapidly. With a great gasping breath she pointed up at Ron and howled out so loudly that the sound echoed throughout the stands and Ron jumped away in reflex.
"You should have seen the look on your face," Hermione gasped between fits of laughter. Ron's look of dismay slowly melted into one of profound confusion as he looked from Hermione over to Harry and Ginny, who turned away and hid behind their hands as they started laughing as well. The three of them rolled there on the ground, chortling as Ron stared at them in disgust.
"It's not funny," Ron said over and over, which only made them laugh harder. After a few minutes of blissful giggling, Harry, Hermione and Ginny sat there, holding their sides in hiccoughing moans, refusing to look at each other in order to avoid any further fits. "Are you three about done?"
"Oh come on Ronald," Hermione chided, "loosen up. A good laugh is just what you need. Just think about things from our perspective for a second. Your face was simply priceless." And Hermione descended into another painful fit of laughter. This time Ron chuckled lightly as he shook his head at all of them.
"I guess I must have looked quite a sight. But really, how can you blame me. I thought Hermione was about to choke to death," he reasoned as he sprawled out on the grass with the rest of them.
"Ohhhhhhhhhh," Hermione let out a long sigh. "I haven't had a good belly laugh like that in ages. That must have been a fun ride."
"It was," Ginny responded happily.
"Do you want a go?" Harry asked.
"Me?" Hermione sat up abruptly.
"Nah, Hermione hates flying," Ron answered for her.
"Actually… It's been a long time since I've tried. Maybe it's time I develop a taste for it."
"You're joking." Ron looked at her, dumbfounded.
"Really Ronald, I think I've had about as much joking as I need for today, don't you?" She nudged him playfully as she stood up.
"Okay with you mate?" Harry asked Ron as he picked up his broom.
"Do what you like. I haven't had a good chat with my sister in a while."
Harry waited patiently as Hermione situated herself behind him. After a number of false starts, with Hermione saying "Oh wait, wait, hang on… okay now," they left the ground gently and skimmed the grass for a moment before Harry began to climb gradually. He took Hermione on a much more subdued ride but covered more or less the same territory. After a few minutes Hermione spoke tentatively into Harry's ear "Let's go faster." Before long Harry was rocketing around the pitch and Ron and Ginny looked up every few seconds as Hermione's voice zoomed around them.
"Why'd you stop?" Hermione asked as Harry landed. Her face was glowing and she grinned from ear to ear.
"They're here." Harry pointed over to the tunnel to the locker rooms as a few red-clad students and a number of others gathered near the end of the pitch.
Ginny and Hermione retreated to the stands again as Ron and Harry marched over to the students.
"Remember, they'll probably recognize you so don't tell them you're here scouting. You're just a friend of mine and you used to play for Gryffindor too and wanted to meet the team. We don't want to make them any more nervous than they already are."
"Right," Ron replied as they approached a strapping, burly seventh-year.
"Mr. Crawford, I'd like you to make the acquaintance of a friend of mine," said Harry. "Otis Crawford, this is Ron Weasley." They shook hands firmly.
"Call me Oatey."
"Good to meet you. I heard great things about last year's team. Good luck with the tryouts. We'll just be over here observing, you know, for old time's sake."
"Actually, Mr. Weasley, I'm a big fan of the Cannons," Otis said confidently. "I wonder if you'd like to weigh in. I'd appreciate any advice you can give me." Ron looked quizzically at Harry.
"That sounds alright to me," said Harry.
"Alright. Sounds great," said Ron.
Most of the students present were trying out for chaser, as there were two open positions. They still had the previous year's seeker, one chaser, and Otis as beater, so there were a few trying for keeper and the other beater position as well. Otis decided to have the prospective chasers wait and go last so they could do the other positions quickly and allow them to leave.
They were all pleasantly surprised when the third and final beater flew through the air with Otis, hitting the bludgers around with great precision. Between the two boys, the bludgers were like two ping-pong balls bouncing back and forth from bat to bat, without any time to take their own direction before being hit again. "Fred and George should see these guys," Ron said out of the side of his mouth to Harry. Harry nodded excitedly as he contemplated the number of plays this sort of bludger work could contribute to. The other two students who had tried out for the position didn't really need to hear Otis's announcement of who got the job.
The choice for keeper was nearly as easy. The girl who saved the most goals wasn't astounding, but she was only a second-year and they were banking on her learning quickly throughout the season.
Otis put the chasers through a number of trials. Some involved passing in various patterns while flying the length of the pitch, some had them shooting penalties, others had full on three-on-three mini games going while the two beaters challenged their maneuverability. Ron and Harry had been able to sit back for the most part and allow Otis to make his own judgments. Soon he had the field of chasers narrowed down to three final candidates.
"That Lauren Walker is definitely one of them," said Otis as he conferred with Harry and Ron between drills. "I just can't really decide between the other two. Any ideas?"
"First of all, it's best if the other two don't know it's down to one of them to get cut," said Ron, "Make them all sweat a little and they'll be more likely to show you their true stuff. I agree it's a tough decision. I haven't really seen any mitigating differences between them. The short one there is really good with his broom, but the other one is a little more comfortable handling the quaffle. Try taking the game factor out of it. Just test their speed. Have them do a few laps around the pitch. That might show us something we can use to make a decision."
The three students raced neck and neck for the first few laps. As they started the final turn, Lauren pulled away and won quite clearly. Her friends cheered from the stands and she waved. Harry noticed an excited Edward waving back, and smiled. The other two crossed the finish line at virtually the same time. Otis was visibly frustrated as he turned back to Harry and Ron. "Doesn't seem to have helped. Any other ideas."
"It absolutely helped," Ron said brightly. "Weren't you watching them?"
"Of course I was," Otis grumbled, slightly perturbed.
"Who's the short one?"
"That's Scott Jackson."
"And the other one?"
"Frank Ellington"
"What differences did you notice in their flying?"
"Um…" Otis paused, unsure of exactly what Ron was getting at.
"Get back to basics. Think details: hand position, posture…"
Otis thought for a moment. "Okay, I see. Scott's technique is much stronger, and his whole stance on the broom was better. Thanks Mr. Weasley," Otis called happily as he turned back to announce his decision.
"Hold it!" Ron yelled, waving Otis back.
"What?" the boy replied impatiently.
"So which one are you going to pick?"
Otis looked thunderstruck. "Who do you think I'm going to pick? Scott of course!"
"That would be unwise."
"And why the bloody hell is that?"
"Because his form is already near perfect," Ron said matter-of-factly.
Otis stood, opening and closing his mouth like a dying fish, absolutely flabbergasted at what Ron was saying.
"Think about it!" Ron continued. "They both finished the race at about the same time right?"
"Yeah."
"And Frank's form leaves a bit to be desired."
"Yeah."
"So there's your answer!" Ron waved his hands wildly. "You're not auditioning who the player is right now. You're auditioning who the player is going to be four, five, six months from now. If you can get Frank's technique improved, he'd beat Scott every bloody time." Ron emphasized these last three words with strong pointing gestures.
Otis closed his mouth and narrowed his eyes, staring off into space for a few seconds. "Wow," he said softly. "You're right."
"I know I am," Ron said confidently. "Now aren't you glad I stopped you."
"Yeah. Wow. Thanks a bunch Mr. Weasley. You know, I just knew somehow, you'd be in professional Quidditch from the moment I first saw you play six years ago. Now I can see why. I thought you'd be too Professor, but I'm awfully glad you're here instead."
"Thank you Mr. Crawford," said Harry. "Now go on and set your team before they start biting their fingernails clean off."
Harry later decided that diplomacy must be one of Otis's strong points, as he observed all of the students in rather bright spirits, trudging up to the castle for dinner. Even the ones who didn't make the team seemed quite certain that, this year, Gryffindor would win the Quidditch cup undefeated, and gave accolades of their future victory to every person who would listen as they and their seven team members walked confidently through the great castle doors.
Harry and Ron joined Hermione and Ginny and followed closely behind the ecstatic group of Gryffindors, smiling at their youth and their innocence, silently glad that the biggest challenges these students would be facing this year, would come in the forms of Quidditch balls and exam papers. They laughed and joked about the events of the day as they ate in Harry and Ginny's flat. And with a satisfying chink, they toasted, and raised their glasses saying, "To Gryffindor."