A/N: A quick thank you to the anon who pointed out I had accidentally given Harry two birthdays. I cut out his 'second' one and updated my chapters accordingly. Hopefully such an embarrassing mistake won't happen again but no promises. .

Chapter 12: Tryouts

Luna had come out to the Quidditch Pitch on a chilly fall day to watch Harry run the Quidditch tryouts for the Gryffindor squad this year. A few students wanted to say something since she wasn't a Ravenclaw but Harry simply gave them a look and that was enough to shut them up. Being the Boy-Who-Lived did have some advantages, and having survived the Triwizard Tournament and a trip to the Ministry to fight Death Eaters had only served to enhance that reputation. Harry was eager to start the Quidditch season, but first he had to sort out a team. The only person he thought for sure would make it was Katie Bell, one of the remaining Chasers who hadn't graduated with Angelina and Alicia. However, he wasn't going to play favorites and everybody would have to win their position fair and square.

Scanning the group, Harry gave them his best welcoming smile. "Alright, good to see that we have a proper turnout for today. First things first, I want you all to separate into groups of five and circle the Pitch together. I'll watch from the center and see how you all are doing and make some notes." he said, and walked out to the middle where he sat down. Once they started flying he immediately focused on a group of girls that seemed far more interested in giggling and gossiping together than they were in actually flying. Everybody else seemed to be doing rather well and at least knew what they were doing. When the group of girls landed he walked over to them and glared. "Off this pitch, now. If you want to watch you are welcome to from the stands, but I won't have you wasting my time or anybody else's." he told them, crossing his arms and waiting until they did as he'd requested before turning to the other students. "Okay, the rest of you form up into groups based on what positions you'll be trying out for." he instructed.

When everybody was grouped up he saw that Ron and another boy who turned out to be named Cormac McLaggen were trying out for keeper, and that Cormac was completely full of himself. For Chaser there was Katie Bell, Ginny, a girl he hadn't met before named Demelza Robins, Dean Thomas, and a scrawny fellow named Richard Gates. For Beaters there were four boys in all, Ritchie Coote, Jimmy Peakes, Brandon Sparks, and to his surprise Seamus Finnigan had actually come to try out. Harry was more than a little surprised to see Seamus because he'd thought the boy had little to no interest in the sport. "Okay, we'll start by giving the Chasers and our Keepers a workout. Cormac and Ron, you'll each have one end of the pitch to defend. Katie you fly with Richard as one team, Ginny and Demelza as the other. The game is simple, try to score as many points as you can while working with your teammate. Partway through I'll swap one of you out with Dean to make sure he gets a fair trail, too." he said, moving off the pitch and grabbing his own broom. Harry flew up a ways above the Pitch so he could look down with a good view of the action. He waited until everybody had gotten into position and then blew a whistle as he released a Quaffle towards the Chasers.

Ginny and Katie raced towards the Quaffle as it fell, Ginny beating her out with a clever spin to maneuver around the seasoned Chaser. She sped ahead, getting Ron's attention before sending a clever pass to the other side of the hoops that Demelza swooped down and caught before easily scoring. Katie and Richard went on the attack next, she took the initiative but when she tried to pass to Richard Ginny deflected the pass. Demelza scooped it up and sped down the Pitch, shooting at the shortest hoop but Ron was able to catch that one, tossing it out to Katie once again. She was able to get around both Ginny and Demelza, but Cormac easily kicked her shot aside when she went in for the score. Harry took it all in, watching from above as they continued to play and get a feel for how they all worked together. It was obvious that Ginny and Katie were the best flyers out there, and that Demelza had a knack for clever passes and precise shooting that was deadly when used correctly. After another ten minutes to see if anything changed Harry blew the whistle and flew down. "Excellent work, everybody. Dean, you swap out with Richard and we'll run it back." Harry told them. He was curious to see if a change on the other side would be able to disrupt Ginny and Demelza's teamwork.

As they started to go at it once again, Harry was rather impressed with the whole group. Dean wasn't quite as fast as the others, but he used his size well to give him the edge when he needed it. Plus, he had a bit of extra reach that proved useful in securing passes and getting angles to throw around the defense. However, the experience and speed the other girls possessed was simply a little too much for him to handle. Instead of simply trying to mark one-on-one they began to double-team Dean instead when he had the quaffle. He burned them once by lofting up a clever pass for Katie, but after that Ginny and Demelza shut them down. Their ability to adjust on the fly like that had him grinning widely, they would definitely do nicely. Once again he blew his whistle and flew down. "Great job all, you really are a great group. The starters will be Ginny, Katie, and Demelza. Dean, if we ever need a substitute you'll definitely be the first person I call. Richard, keep practicing and please do try out again next year." he told them, before focusing on the next task.

They all congratulated each other and Dean flew down to leave and he smiled before blowing his whistle again. The other chaser Richard had already left the pitch ahead of him. "Okay, okay, well done all. Now we need to pick our Keeper. You'll all take a total of ten shots, working as a team of three like you would in a match. I'll be playing defense to give you somebody to work around and make it more like a proper match. Ron, we'll start with you. Whoever saves the most shots gets the spot." he said, before flying into position a little ways in front of Ron. Katie took the quaffle to start, with Ginny and Demelza flanking. As she sped towards him Harry knew he was in trouble, and she sent a clever pass to Demelza who quickly launched it to the other side of him where Ginny was waiting. It was obvious that Ron was feeling the nerves, but when Ginny shot it he managed to deflect it with a headbutt. After that his friend seemed to settle in, ending up blocking nine out of the ten shots sent his way. The only one that got by him was one that had a wicked spin on it that bounced off the side of the hoop and in shot by his little sister Ginny.

Next up was the annoying Cormac McLaggen. A large part of Harry wanted the boy to fail simply because of his attitude, but it became clear that he was confident for a reason as he blocked shot after shot. Harry really thought that Ron was going to get beat out for the role of Keeper, but inexplicably when the last two shots happened Cormac seemed to move the wrong direction, shaking his head after each of the shots. Looking around, Harry saw Hermione fiddling with her wand as she placed it back in her lap, and he frowned. He thought he knew what had happened, and he would definitely be talking to his friend later about it. For now, though, he simply flew over to Cormac and offered his hand. "You're a good keeper, maybe you'll make it next year." Harry said. The boy looked at his hand before simply shaking his head, ignoring Harry as he flew down and then walked off the Pitch, clearly upset. He might not have known who had messed with him, but he seemed to be aware that it was unusual to put it lightly.

"I don't know what's going on here, but something's not right!" the boy called out, but nobody was paying him attention. The majority of the group thought it was simply his temper at not making the team showing through, but Harry had a sneaking suspicion there had in fact been some foul play. That would have to wait for now though, he still had a beater due to pick. Harry shook his head and tried to focus on the task at hand.

Once Cormac had left he went over and congratulated Ron, who seemed relieved to be done with his part of the day. Ron was a great keeper, but Harry knew it would be a challenge helping him handle the nerves that the position required. Last to try out were the potential beaters, and he divided them into two groups before doing the same with the chasers. Harry went to team up with Ginny to make it even. He had the beaters do their best to harass the teams of Chasers as they went up and down the field, simply focusing on passing as opposed to taking actual shots at the moment. It quickly became apparent that Ritchie Coote and Jimmy Peakes were the best beaters there, and he stopped them after twenty minutes, telling the other boys they didn't make it and to try again next year. He congratulated Ritchie and Jimmy before getting them all to gather round. "Okay, our first official practice is next Sunday at three o'clock, rain or shine. We have a lot of new faces this year, so we'll need to work hard to get ready for our first match. Good work everybody, I'll see you Sunday." he said, before walking up to the stands where Luna and Hermione were sitting together watching the proceedings.

Ron followed him, and he thumped Harry on the back as they went, giving him a relieved smile. "For a second there, I really thought that Cormac was going to beat me out." he admitted. Harry had honestly been thinking the same thing, but he knew it was best not to burst Ron's bubble at the moment. He needed more positive reinforcement if he was going to work up the confidence to be consistent.

Harry had to refrained from commenting, thinking 'And he would have, too. If not for Hermione, that is.' Instead he simply gave Ron a supportive smile, nodding. "You did a good job, I guess the nerves just got to him at the end. Happens to the best of us." he said, and Ron just nodded in understanding. He was glad that Ron at least seemed to not have noticed anything strange. If he had seen Hermione interfering, it could very well have been disastrous.

Soon enough they reached the girls and sat down next to them, Harry next to Luna and Ron next to Hermione. Luna chose that moment to wrap her arms around him in a tight hug in spite of how sweaty he was and give him a kiss on the cheek. "Good job, Captain Potter." she said, laughing just a little as she said it because of how strange it sounded coming out of her mouth. It was rather fun, and almost made her think of him being the captain of a ship instead of a Quidditch team. This position suited him much better than the ship one, though.

Harry just shook his head and chuckled. "Please don't call me that, it will be weird enough hearing it from some of my teammates. I'd prefer it if everybody just keeps calling me Harry." he said, looking over at Ron to make sure he heard. Him and Hermione were sitting there awkwardly, still seeming to have a hard time talking with each other. "Hey Hermione, can you come with for a minute?" he asked, giving her a pointed look that he was sure she would know the reason for.

Once they were out of earshot of Ron and Luna he crossed his arms, glaring at her. She started to speak but he cut her off before she had a chance to start. "No, Hermione, I don't want to hear your excuses or your reasoning for why you did it. What did you do to Cormac on those last two shots? I could see you messing with your wand and then all of a sudden he's moving the complete wrong direction after never missing a shot beforehand. I'm not stupid, I can put two and two together." he said, waiting for her to explain herself. Normally it wasn't like him to snap at his friend, but he couldn't just overlook her messing with a team he was supposed to be leading.

"Harry, you saw how awful he was. I was trying to do you all a favor by making sure he didn't make the team." Hermione said, hoping she would get some sympathy from him but none seemed to be forthcoming from her best friend. "Okay, I know what I did was wrong. I cast a confundus charm on him to make sure he messed up. I'm sorry, I was only trying to help." she said softly, a part of her wondering just how upset Harry would be with her after this. She was used to her and Ron fighting, but Harry had always been there for her when she needed him. Sure, some of the time he had been a depressed or angry git, but he'd still been there.

"By all rights I should do a retrial for Ron and Cormac, but you're right he was awful and even though he's a great player the team will probably be better off without him. That's not your call to make though, Hermione, it's mine. I was named Captain and it's my job to handle the team. If you interfere with that again, I'll have to ban you from the matches and from our practices." he said, before leaning over and giving her a hug. "I don't blame you, but you have to trust that I can do this, okay?" he asked. He didn't like having to be hard on his friend, but he hoped she would understand that this was his responsibility now. McGonagall and his teammates were counting on him, and it was his duty to do his best for all of them.

Hermione nodded as she wiped away a few tears after his speech. She was simply relieved that they would still be friends like they always had. "You're right, I really am sorry. I'll make sure not to mess with things in future." she promised, giving him a good squeeze before letting go and heading back over towards Ron and Luna, with Harry following. "You know, I really do think you'll make a good captain. I'm sorry I doubted that you were up to the task, because you clearly are." she complimented him.

Harry was relieved to hear it and nodded. "Thanks, Hermione. I might not have as much Quidditch experience as some people, but the game's always made sense to me. It's a good escape from everything else going on and fun to boot." he told her with a chuckle. Sometimes it was nice to simply play a game with friends, but there was also a thrill to the competition that he really enjoyed.

Luna was glad that they seemed to have resolved things, she had picked up on Hermione's little helping hand as well and was glad that she didn't have to rat her out. Thankfully her Harry was smart enough to have spotted it on his own and seemed to have handled things accordingly. Standing up, she moved over to him and whispered in his ear. "Captain Potter, can you take me for a ride on your broomstick?" she asked, knowing just how suggestive that sounded and enjoying it as Harry blushed a bright red in response. Normally Luna was a sweet girl, but she wasn't above teasing her boyfriend mercilessly from time to time.

"Sure, I can take you for a ride Luna." Harry said, laughing a little and walking down to the Pitch with her, holding her hand as they went. They both got on his firebolt when they got there and flew for a few laps before landing. Once they got off his broom he pulled her close. "You have to pay the ride tax, you owe me a kiss." Harry told her, smirking. If she was going to tease him than he was more than happy to get her back for it.

Raising an eyebrow at him, she just giggled before leaning in and kissing him happily. Sharp tingles of pleasure ran through her and she smiled as she pulled back. "Come on, let's head back to the castle. I'm hungry, so I'm sure you probably are, too." Luna told him, as she started to walk. She was confident that Harry would follow her lead and join her.

"You're definitely right there." Harry agreed, his stomach giving a rumble in response. "I think it'll be lunch time soon. Though, I'm not sure anything can beat the taste of your lips on mine." he told her, wrapping his arm around her as they walked. It took a few moments for their strides to get in sync with each other but soon they were comfortably walking in rhythm towards the castle.

"I think you'll be a good Captain. Just make sure not to let Ron try and run things, if I know him he might try to steamroll over you because you're his friend." Luna warned him, and Harry nodded. She snuggled into his shoulder as they walked, and she smiled. Things were progressing nicely between him, and she thought it wouldn't be too much longer before she was ready to explore the world of snogging with her wonderful boyfriend.