Chapter 23
As both the Quidditch teams got into the air on their brooms, they realized that it was very windy, making it hard to fly straight. Harry looked down and saw Katie and the new Hufflepuff captain on the ground, getting ready to shake hands before the beginning of the game.
"Okay, captains. Shake hands. I want a nice, fair game." said Madame Hooch.
"Hi, I'm Tiffany O'Hara." said the new Hufflepuff Quidditch captain, introducing herself while shaking Katie's hand.
"I'm Katie Bell." Katie said, returning the greeting.
After they shook hands, they both got on their brooms and got ready to take off. Soon the Snitch and the Bludgers were released, the Quaffle was thrown up, and the game began. One of the Hufflepuff Chasers had caught the Quaffle when it was first thrown up and so the Gryffindor Chasers took off after them. The Bludgers were moving with extra speed and force today due to the wind, but unluckily for the Gryffindor players, Fred was not much in the mood for team work with his fellow beater George. Every time a Bludger came to Fred, he would hit it at George instead of the opposing team. The first few times it happened, George did not even realize that it was Fred doing this since the Bludgers were coming at him so fast that he did not have enough time to think about where they came from, just enough to make sure he did not get hit and to try to hit them toward the other team. Finally, when Fred was right by him, did George realize that Fred's target was not Hufflepuff, but him.
"Cut that out, Fred!" George yelled as he hit away another Bludger that Fred had hit at him, "Are you trying to get me killed?!?"
"If I'm lucky!!" Fred yelled back.
"Look, I'm sorry about that whole thing with Sophia, alright?!" George yelled.
"Why don't you just pretend to be me and then pretend I accepted your apology?! That wouldn't be hard to do since you're so good at being me anyway!!!" Fred yelled, aiming another Bludger at George.
"That's it!! I've had it with you!!" George said, now aiming the Bludgers Fred hit at him, back at Fred, himself.
As this war between Fred and George continued, Gryffindor began to do progressively worse without the help of their usually impeccably synchronized Beaters doing their job. Since Harry was flying above everyone else to look for the Snitch, as he usually did, he did not see what was going on with Fred and George.
I'm going to have those Weaselys' necks when this game is over with!! Katie thought angrily as she looked for Harry on the field, If those two are going to keep acting this way the whole game, I'd better tell Harry to find the Snitch before things get too out of hand.
Katie had to hurry in finding Harry because Gryffindor was already behind by 40 points. Finally she spotted Harry on the other side of the field. When Harry saw Katie flying up to him, he waited for her to come up to him. As he waited, only then did he notice Fred and George's weird behavior.
"Hey, what's up with Fred and George?!" Harry yelled over the wind, "From here, it almost looks like they're aiming the Bludgers at each other!"
"You aren't mistaken!! That's exactly what they're doing!!" Katie yelled back very angrily.
"What?!? Why!?!" Harry yelled back in surprise.
"I don't know!! I aim to find out after the game!!! But we can't worry about them now with the way that we're losing! You've got to find us that Snitch now before it's too late!!" Katie yelled as she rushed off to try to get the Quaffle back from one of the Hufflepuff Chasers.
"Right!!" Harry yelled back after her.
Now Harry knew that it was all up to him to win the game. He squinted as he looked around the field for the Snitch. As he looked down, he saw the Snitch-and the other Seeker racing towards it.
Oh, no! Harry thought, abruptly switching direction on his broomstick and flying as fast as he could towards the Snitch.
But as soon as he and the other Seeker converged upon the Snitch, the Snitch seemed to disappear. Both he and Tiffany looked around themselves in confusion until they realized that the Snitch had flown straight above them both. Harry and Tiffany exchanged a look of determination before they took off after it. The Snitch, seeming to understand the especial importance of its capture in this game, particularly for the Gryffindors, put up its best fight not to be captured this time. It took both of the Seekers for a ride all around the field and other Quidditch players, but with Harry always having a noticeable lead. As Harry and Tiffany flew by the area that the commentator sits, Harry heard Lee grudgingly announce that Gryffindor was now behind by 60.
If I'm going to catch the Snitch, it had better be now!! Harry thought, putting on another burst of speed to chase after the Snitch, making Tiffany struggle to keep up with him.
But keep up with him she did.
Wow...this new person they got to be captain and Seeker is really good! Harry thought, almost feeling as though he'd met his match in Seeking.
Harry figured out that the only way that he was going to catch the Snitch was that if he were to trap it. Harry suddenly thought of a plan, but he knew that it was a real risk.
I really hope this works...Harry thought nervously as he put his plan into action.
Harry intentionally fell behind Tiffany, making as if he was looking for the Snitch, even if he knew exactly where it was. She took the bait. She made a break towards the Snitch thinking that she had a lucky break since she thought Harry had lost sight of it. When she was very close to capturing the Snitch, Harry gave up his act and blazed towards Tiffany and the Snitch. Startled by Harry coming so fast at her, she instinctively pulled away from the Snitch to protect herself from impact. This was exactly what Harry wanted. He halted centimeters before he hit Tiffany and closed his fingers around the Snitch.
"Potter's got the Snitch!!! Gryffindor wins!!!" Lee yelled happily.
The Gryffindor side of the pitch cheered in celebration of their victory while the other sections of the pitch were noticeably more quiet. The whole Gryffindor team (except for Fred and George who still had hard feelings toward one another) enveloped each other in a huge team hug once they were all on the ground. Violet, who was just as elated as the rest over the win, looked over at Ron and saw him smiling at Harry. This brought her mind abruptly back to the dream that she had that morning, since Ron's smile now was the same as it was in her dream. This caused her to lose much of the excitement of the win.
What is that dream supposed to mean?! Does this mean I love Draco? Not just like him, but love him? Violet thought, feeling torn and confused.
Suddenly Violet didn't feel like celebrating Gryffindor's win with everyone else. She slowly pulled herself out of the crowd, trying to escape from everyone unnoticed.
"Let's go celebrate our win!" said Katie.
Everyone cheered and followed her to the Gryffindor Common Room. All, except Harry, Hermione, and Ron.
"Hey, did any of you see where Violet went? Wasn't she just here a minute ago?" asked Ron.
"I guess we'll have to go find her then..." Harry said, looking around himself for Violet.
"Why don't you just wait for us in the Common Room, Ron? I think it would be better if you didn't come with us at all when we talk to Violet." said Hermione.
"But I want to come too!" said Ron defiantly.
"How would she tell us anything if she knows that you are around?" Hermione said with good sense.
"Yeah...that's true..." Ron said slightly disappointed, "Okay then...I'll see you guys later in the Common Room. Maybe I can ask Ginny if she knows anything about this."
"Okay. We'll see you later then." Harry said.
Then Harry, Hermione, and Ron parted ways.
"So where should we start looking for her? That was really weird how she just took off after the game." said Harry.
"Yeah, I know. Why don't we try looking for her on the grounds first, and then we can look for her inside if she's not out here." replied Hermione.
So they began their search of the grounds for Violet. After nearly an hour of searching, they finally spotted her sitting by the lake.
"There she is! Go on, Harry." Hermione said.
"I don't know if I should...I don't feel like it anymore..." Harry said.
"Why not?" Hermione asked, surprised.
"Well, maybe we shouldn't try to pry into her life...I know I wouldn't like it if other people did that to me." Harry replied.
"We're not other people, Harry. We're her friends. We're trying to help her make the right decision." Hermione said.
"I don't want to go any more! She seems to be liking Ron better now! She went to the Ball with him, didn't she?!" Harry complained, thinking that if he went he would annoy Violet.
"But when I asked her about her time with Ron later, she only told me that it was fine, and didn't say anything else!" said Hermione.
"Really? Well, that doesn't sound very encouraging..." said Harry.
"I know. So that's why you need to go talk to her!" Hermione said.
"Do I have to?" Harry whined.
"You have to go! You told Ron that you would!" Hermione said.
"I've got an idea! Let's play rock, paper, scissors! The loser has to go talk to her!" Harry said.
"Fine." Hermione said, rolling her eyes.
"Rock, paper, scissors!" Harry and Hermione said.
Harry came up with rock while Hermione came up with paper.
"Okay, now go!" Hermione said as if she knew what the outcome would be anyway.
"Best two out of three!" Harry said, slightly desperate.
"Go!" Hermione said while pushing Harry in Violet's general direction, "I'll wait right here to give you moral support."
"Okay, okay." Harry said in defeat as he walked up to Violet.
Violet was so deep in thought that she did not notice that Harry was walking up to her.
What am I going to do about my feelings for Draco? How could I love someone like that? He was only using me! And his family doesn't give me much faith in his character either! Violet thought, trying very hard to discredit Draco to rid herself of feelings for him.
But the more she tried to convince herself that she meant nothing to him and because of that he meant nothing to her, the more she realized that it wasn't true. From every time he looked at her to every time they touched, Violet could tell that it was something more than ordinary feelings.
I do love him...Violet finally admitted to herself.
This didn't make things easier.
But there's still the fact that Draco is part of Voldemort's plan to come back to power...How can I love someone who is willing to help Voldemort come back?! Violet thought.
Although, she knew in her heart that Draco didn't want a part in it.
Whether Draco wants to be in this or not, I can't be with a person like that...I should just stick to Ron because I've seen what a sweet and wonderful person he is, and the fact that he doesn't have a dodgy family is a plus too...What did I do to deserve being in a situation like this!! I thought I had boy problems before, but this is completely over the top! Violet thought angrily, throwing a small stone into the lake.
This is when Harry finally reached her.
"Hey, Violet." he said.
She noticed Harry with a start and said, "Oh! Hi, Harry..."
"We seemed to have lost you at the Quidditch pitch! We were wondering where you'd disappeared off to after the game, so we came looking for you." said Harry.
"Oh..." Violet replied, not knowing what to say.
"Is anything the matter? You seemed to be a bit angry before I walked up." Harry said, trying to start a conversation so that he could bring up his issues about Ron.
"Well, nothing that can easily be fixed." Violet replied, slightly bitter.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry asked inquisitively.
"No...that's okay..." Violet replied.
"Oh." Harry said slightly awkwardly, "Well, there was something that I actually wanted to talk to you about."
"Oh?" Violet asked, now curious.
"It's actually about Ron." Harry said, "Here, let me help you up."
Harry offered Violet his hand. Violet took it nervously hoping that he wouldn't ask her too many questions about Ron. But suddenly, Violet gripped Harry's hand uncomfortably tight, almost to the point of pain as Harry had pulled her almost completely off of the ground.
"Oww! Watch it, Violet." Harry said slightly playfully, but still a little bit serious.
Then Harry actually looked at Violet and realized there was something strange about her. Especially about the way that she was looking at him. He couldn't pin point what it was, but he was certain that she'd never looked at him that way before. She looked at him that way for many seconds before she finally said anything.
"James. I really need to talk to you." Violet said.
This caused Harry to take a step back and look at Violet in shock. Hermione saw this from afar and wondered what was happening. The only thing Harry could figure was that this was some kind of weird joke.
"Come on, Violet. Stop messing around..." Harry said nervously, not really knowing what was happening.
"We can't talk here, James. I don't want anyone else to hear what I'm going to tell you. Let's go somewhere where no one will overhear us." Violet said, grabbing Harry's hand and pulling him away from the lake.
Where are they going? Where is Violet taking Harry? Hermione thought in confusion.
Being so shocked from being called James by Violet, Harry didn't even realize that Violet was taking him to the Forbidden Forest until he saw the trees towering over him. In fact, they were moving so fast that Hermione lost sight of them for a moment, and then she lost them completely. She knew though that the only place they could have gone is the forest since that was the general direction they were traveling in.
Now I've got to find them to get to the bottom of this! Hermione thought, looking for them both.
Finally, after walking for about ten minutes, Violet and Harry came into a small clearing in the forest. Suddenly she started to talk.
"James, I brought you here to talk to you because I think our lives are in danger."
Harry just looked at her in confusion.
What is she talking about?!? Harry thought, Why does she keep calling me by my father's name?
Violet then continued to speak.
"Remember that family that they said was killed in the Daily Prophet? Who they said was killed in cold blood in their own house?! I know who did it! It was Voldemort and his followers. I found out that Severus was there! I overheard him talking about it in the Common Room with his friends. I don't know if he killed anyone or not, but I didn't stick around long enough to find out. If he knew that I know he's with Voldemort, I really can't tell what he'd do to me-or especially to you."
What?!? Snape could be a killer?! Man, I thought he was bad enough as it is...I know for sure that this can't be a joke...Violet couldn't have possibly known Snape's first name and the fact that Snape was a Death Eater! Who could Violet be? It has to be someone in Slytherin that knew my dad...this just keeps getting weirder and weirder...Harry thought.
"Why did you and your friends pick on him so much? Now he might just go after you guys. I don't know what I'd do without you." Violet said with a worried face, "I really don't want to lose you..."
Suddenly she began to smile.
"I just can't wait until we can get out of here and when I can become Lily Potter."
This left Harry staring at her in shock.
This is my mother?!? My mother was in Slytherin?!? Harry thought in absolute surprise.
"I just can't stand being Lily Blackstone anymore...Living in my house is intolerable! Not because of my parents or anything...it's because of Petunia! Every time I come home, it just feels like there's this cold wall between us. She just hates me and I just don't know why. I don't think I've ever done anything bad enough to her for her to hate me like this...But the sooner I get out of there, the better." Violet said.
I knew that they didn't get along but how could she do that to my mother? I thought she was mean enough to me but she's more horrible than I even thought. Harry thought.
After walking in the general direction she thought that they went, Hermione finally heard someone speaking.
I think that's Violet! Hermione thought, trying to get a closer look.
"I wish you could just take me away from here, away from it all." Violet said longingly, standing as if she was expecting him to hug her.
Why is she looking at me like that? She looks like she's expecting something. What should I do?! Harry thought, at a complete loss, Maybe she wants me to hug her...
Harry put his arms around Violet, just too shocked and confused to think much about what he was doing. This caused Hermione feel a spark of jealousy.
What does he think he's doing?! Could the other guy Violet fancied have been Harry all along?! Hermione thought.
After a few seconds, Violet pulled slightly away from Harry and looked into his eyes. Harry just looked back wondering what she might say next. But she didn't say anything, she did something instead. She began to lean closer and closer to his face.
Oh my god! I think she's going to kiss me!! Harry thought slightly frantically as he saw Violet closing in on his face.
But this was all he had time to think as she leaned in and kissed him. But within a few seconds, Violet pulled away from Harry abruptly and looked at him in surprise and confusion. This is when Hermione took the opportunity to come out from behind the trees.
"How could you, Harry?! How could you do this to Ron? To me?! You're
unbelievable!!" Hermione said, very upset, as she stormed off away from Violet and Harry.
"Wait, Hermione, this isn't –" Harry started to say as Hermione walked away.
But Hermione was gone. This is when he realized that he was still holding on to Violet. He abruptly let her go and blushed profusely. Violet also blushed for the moment, but then thought about the situation they were in.
"Okay, what just happened here?!? What are we doing here in the forest? Why did Hermione get so upset? And wait a second...why were you holding me? Don't tell me that we...kissed..." Violet said, fearing the worst.
"Yeah...we kinda did...that's why Hermione got so upset..." Harry said sadly, just comprehending everything that recently happened.
"How did we end up doing that?! The last thing I remember is talking to you by the lake and you helping me up." Violet said, feeling confused.
"Well, I helped you up, but you weren't yourself. And you started calling me James...my father's name..." Harry said.
"Really?" Violet said in surprise.
"Yeah, but it doesn't end there. You started calling me James and then you pulled me into the forest and told me that you had something important to tell me that you didn't want anyone else to know. You told me that you found out that Snape, our old Potions teacher here, had joined Voldemort because you were in the same house at him. Then I found out that you were my mother! Well, not you personally, but I really think that you were telling me something my mum told my dad a long time ago..." Harry said.
"Wow...I don't know why something like that might have happened...I've always been good at divination, so maybe this has something to do with that?" Violet said, trying to figure out why something as strange as this happened.
"Out of everything that's happened in my life, and that is quite a lot, this is really among the weirdest." Harry said.
"Yeah..." Violet said, just as puzzled.
"Hey, we'd better get out of the forest before Hermione goes to tell Ron something that we might not want her to...I'd really better fix things fast. I hope she didn't see a lot...but she sure seemed like she saw enough. I've got to explain everything to her...Well, there is a party in the Common Room for our win in Quidditch, so I guess you can go to that while I talk to Hermione." Harry said.
"I don't think I'm going to go to the party...I'm really not in the mood for one." Violet replied.
"Yeah...me neither..." Harry said as they walked out of the forest.
As soon as they got out of the forest, they parted ways.