Change of Command
After returning safely to Hogwarts, James and Sirius woke Peter the next morning and told him all about the mysterious passage on the fourth floor, guarded by a portrait of a blonde girl in the Hog's Head. Although upset at first that his roommates had abandoned him last night, Peter listened to their story in unblinking awe and agreed to join them on their next visit. Remus himself straggled back into their dormitory later that day, and his roommates greeted him with bright smiles and a box of treacle fudge that James and Sirius had nicked on the way through Honeydukes.
"What's all this?" Remus inquired, brushing the back of his head with a slight smile as the others beamed. "It's James' birthday, not mine. Don't you remember?"
"We thought that you deserved an early Easter celebration!" James announced.
"Do you want me to open this now so we can share?" Remus asked, and the others leaned forward as he shook his head and began unwrapping the container. "Where did you even get this? It can't have been lying around our room all this time."
"My parents sent it to me," James lied, and Remus glanced up at the others' uncontrolled beams.
"Why the good moods?"
"Can't we be happy?" Sirius questioned. "It's not a crime, you know."
"All right," Remus shrugged, biting into one of the fudge squares with a smile. "But you know that you still owe me candy on Easter, right?"
"Er, right," James agreed, and the others laughed as Remus passed around the box.
None of the four roommates returned home for the week-long Easter break, Remus claiming that there was no point in disappearing from Hogwarts longer than necessary and the others too excited to formally begin their Animagi training—at least, James and Sirius were eager. On their first afternoon in the secret passage behind the mirror, James wondered if Peter had only come because the others had dragged him, but he offered no explicit complaint about the use of their free time.
Deprived of the Animagus Potion, the boys could only do so much as they read through Animagi in the Making, but James hardly had time to dwell on their limitations as he helped Peter with his spell-work. James and Sirius were racing by the incantations described in the book, but Peter found it harder to deliver his spells perfectly even after several attempts. In fact, aiding Peter took up most of their time in the hidden tunnel, but James thought that it might be for the best whenever he stole a look ahead at the future pages and noted their contents' complexity.
For better or worse, James was repeatedly called away from his secret Transfiguration sessions for work on the Quidditch field. Discouraged after their early victory against Hufflepuff, the Gryffindor team had lapsed into lethargy when it came to their practices, even though King did his best to spurn them on with the wildest exercises that James had ever witnessed. In his attempt to keep the players on their toes, King once made both ends of the field fair game for the Chasers, which meant rapid zipping back and forth for poor Joseph. At the end of the practice, he doubled over and regurgitated his dinner, but the others' sympathy did not last long when they returned to the pitch the next day and had to locate a total of seven released Snitches, one for each player.
James and Frank would have complained to each other more heartily if it was not for their underlying anxiety. No one else on the team mentioned their apprehension out loud, but James caught sight of the others' downcast eyes far more often than he would have liked. Even Kennedy was wise enough not to comment on their state of affairs, although he was prone to carefree chatter about the weather, and the team's nervousness began to wear on James.
By the time of the final Quidditch match, he felt like a complete wreck on the inside. He spent almost twenty minutes staring at his reflection in the washroom mirror before Sirius finally coaxed him out with several loud bangs on the door.
"James! Quit moping about and get to the field! You're going to be late!"
Giving his wild hair (which he had somehow not yet found the time to comb) one last glare, James rushed out of the door and knocked into Sirius. Although he seemed that he might berate James for the inconvenience, Sirius instead grabbed him by the shoulder and stopped him before he could leave for the grounds.
"Mate, it's going to be fine!" he insisted, locking eyes with James. "It's just a lousy Quidditch match!"
Recoiling, James gaped at him. "You don't mean that!"
"No, I guess I don't," Sirius corrected himself with a sheepish grin before continuing. "What I mean is it's just another lousy day on the field. Do you remember last year when you had to pull ahead of Slytherin by 300 points in your final game? Didn't you end up doing it?"
"Yeah," James replied, looking down, but Sirius pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with a shove that commanded attention.
"Then what's to worry?"
"Well, you might pray that I don't punch out Kennedy again," James said over his shoulder as he turned to leave. Before disappearing, however, he paused and smiled at Sirius. "Thanks, mate."
"Go get 'em, Potter!" Sirius answered, raising his hand in a salute before James could run off.
In the common room, James paired up with Frank for the walk to the pitch, and James glanced at his curly-haired friend when he noticed the pronounced bags under his eyes. "Are you doing all right?"
Moaning, Frank raised his hand to his eyes and rubbed them as if trying to gouge them out. "I never knew that life could get this difficult. I haven't been able to sleep between Quidditch practices, prefect duties, and studying for the end-of-the-year exams."
"Oh, yeah," James spoke, nodding. "I should probably see about those soon." Staring at him, Frank said nothing as they walked down Gryffindor Tower at a parting wave from the Fat Lady.
Reaching the locker rooms after the other players had already arrived, James slipped into his uniform and tried his best to ignore the nearby Seeker as Kennedy pulled on his unsoiled gloves. Although James could see Kennedy look at him through the corner of his eye, James kept his head trained forward as he grabbed his Airwake from the wall and gave it a twirl in his grip.
"How are you feeling, James?" Michael asked, leaning closer as Raul finished pulling on his uniform.
"Ready to let Ravenclaw watch my tail end," James joked with a projection of confidence that he did not quite feel, but he brightened when both of the Beaters laughed. Next to them, Kennedy's mouth twitched as he glanced in their direction, but he did not speak.
"James, we've been playing together for three years now, and even I haven't seen your front end!" Raul declared. "I doubt that there's a player in the school who can keep up with you!" At this, Kennedy stiffened, but King spoke and called the team to attention.
"Listen here, everyone!" As the players turned to him, he said, "Give it all you've got out there. We still have a chance to win the Cup, so let's not give up before we've started."
After a short pause, Raul moved first and put his arm out, and the others quickly put their hands on top of his. "Let's get this right," Frank told the others, his exhaustion disappearing.
Even Kennedy seemed to steel himself, although he was the first to break away from the circle and adjust his uniform. "If we're going to beat Ravenclaw, we have to at least make an appearance," he pointed out, thrusting his chin towards the door, and the rest of the team followed him out of the locker rooms with shared grimaces.
Once out on the field, King and Captain Tori Hansfeld shook hands before lifting into the air at Instructor Zunderfield's whistle. Hovering beside Frank, James narrowed his eyes at the enemy Chasers, his hands tightening around his broom's handle. If he looked down, he knew that he would spot his roommates and parents in the crowd, but he hesitated in case he would end up distracting himself from the match. Even so, he eventually allowed himself a brief glance down at the stands, but instead of spying his friends, he almost slipped off of his broomstick in response to the cheer that arose from the crowd. Several of the spectators were waving red and gold flags, and many more started to jump up and down when they spotted James looking down at them.
"Go, Potter!" a distant student yelled, hoisting a banner with James' name emblazoned on it. Grinning, James waved before turning back to the Ravenclaw Chasers, feeling his heart rev much like Sirius' motorbike.
As soon as Instructor Zunderfield's whistle blew, James swerved in and out of the opposing players, keeping close to Frank and King. The release of his pent-up energy caused him to fly even faster than normal, and he had to double around the Ravenclaws just to stay within passing distance of his teammates. Thankfully, his rapid veering so early in the game seemed to disjoint the other team, and Gryffindor was able to start with the Quaffle.
Ducking underneath Chaser Jeanette Bridge, James took the ball from King and knocked it through one of the Ravenclaw goalposts with the end of his broom. Clapping hands with Frank on the journey to the center of the field, James raised his fist as the crowd screamed in approval. Looking down at the spectators again, he caught sight of Lily and her friends standing just in front of Hagrid's easily-spottable mass, and he felt his heart leap. Looking back towards Frank, he motioned for a quick word as they flew back into playing position.
"What is it?" Frank asked James.
"Do you think that you could keep passing me the ball? I think I can keep Ravenclaw at bay."
"As long as King's all right with it, I suppose," Frank answered, glancing at the Captain before turning back to James. "What have you got in mind? The Woollongong Shimmy?"
"Whatever it takes to keep them distracted," James replied, nodding.
"All right, I'll run it by him," Frank responded, zooming off down the pitch.
As Bridge and the other Ravenclaw Chasers recovered from the last play, James watched as Frank conversed quickly with King and shot him a thumbs-up from across the field. Grinning, James nodded in return as the game started again, and King soon intercepted the Quaffle from a wide pass between the other team. Taking off in the other direction, he waited until drawing up beside James before relinquishing his catch, and James made a series of sharp turns to the left and right on the way to the goalposts. Crossing paths with him from above and below, Frank and King mirrored his sporadic movements, and the Ravenclaw Chasers had trouble following the Quaffle's path in the midst of the coinciding zig-zags.
In a little over a minute, James had scored against the Ravenclaw Keeper once again, and King caught James as the crowd cheered again. "Good call, James!" he praised, and he waved over Frank as Ravenclaw retrieved the Quaffle. "We'll keep up the tactic for another few plays. As long as they're confused, we'll have the upper hand."
"I'll start with the Quaffle again!" James volunteered, and he started to fly off until King grabbed his arm.
"James, let's switch it up now and again, shall we?" he suggested, giving a wry sort of half-smile. "The point of the play is lost if Ravenclaw starts to see a pattern."
"Oh. All right," James agreed, glancing briefly towards Lily. Joining Frank and King in the center of the pitch, he tore his eyes away from the stands and squared his shoulders for another flight.
The next hour of flying gave both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw sufficient opportunity to score against each other, but James' idea for the Woollongong Shimmy came in handy during the first several plays. Even though the opposing Chasers were never fully able to control the Quaffle when Gryffindor had possession of it, Captain Hansfeld eventually called an impromptu meeting with the Ravenclaws Beaters, and the Bludgers became a bit of a problem for James and his teammates. Talented in their own right, the Ravenclaw Chasers held their ground against Gryffindor, scoring several points of their own. At the end of the first hour, Eric Thompson's voice came over the speaker as the crowd clapped again.
"And there's another goal for Gryffindor! That leaves the score 140 to 80, their favor."
Mixed murmuring ran throughout the spectators, and James nodded at Frank and King as they flew to his side. Although they exchanged no words, James could read the message in their eyes as clearly as if they had sent him a Howler—they still had a lot of work to do.
"Still aiming to confuse?" Frank asked King with a turn of his head, and the Captain nodded as he glanced up at the scoreboard. Following his gaze, James could not stop a slight hiss from escaping his teeth as he spotted Kennedy float down to them, his mouth already partway open.
"King? If I may," he began as the Chasers turned to him, "I rather hoped that you had another plan. The game seems a little slow-going, and although my abilities with the Snitch go unquestioned, I won't be able to raise our shot at the Cup more than 150 points."
"Unquestioned by whom?" James inquired under his breath, but King replied to the Seeker in a far more controlled tone.
"Just worry about the Snitch, Cassius. I'll call the plays here."
"I only thought that my concerns would be of assistance," Kennedy muttered as King beckoned the other Chasers away, and the Seeker threw James a dark glance before they parted ways. Pleased that King had put his trust in him rather than Kennedy, James lifted his head higher as both teams' Chasers prepared for another match.
"This way, King!" Frank shouted as he dove to snatch the Quaffle, and James kept at his side while the opposing players sped up from behind.
Breaking into another round of back-and-forth flying, James glanced up at the sound of swishing robes and ducked as Bridge attempted to block his movement. Cut off from his teammates as he slowed and corrected his path of travel, James took the long way around the enemy Chaser and relied on his superior speed to catch up to Frank and King. However, by the time his teammates had reached the three hoops on the other end of the field, he was still several meters behind.
"Coming your way!" Frank yelled at King, hurling the Quaffle with a thrust of his arm. As King reached out to snatch it from midair, James noticed a black blur racing towards the Captain from the other direction, and he yelled a warning.
"King, look out! It's a Bludg—"
Closing his eyes as the inevitable played out, James winced as a sickening thud reached his ears, the crowd gasping. Once he dared to open his eyes again, James watched as King plummeted to the ground, his broomstick and the Quaffle following just behind. Although he zoomed after him, James eventually relaxed and pulled up as King hoisted himself onto his broom with both hands, still conscious after the collision. Slowing, James jumped to the ground as King landed, and the other Gryffindor players alighted a few moments later.
"Stay back a moment!" King commanded before any of them could ask if he was all right, holding out a hand as he clutched his stomach with the other. Half-turning, he gulped for air before touching his head and groaning, his knees sinking to the ground.
"King, you need to step out of the game," Frank spoke up, gaping down at the Captain as the others realized the seriousness of the situation.
"Just . . . give me . . . a moment," King muttered again, his teeth gritted, but Instructor Zunderfield and Madam Pomfrey soon hurried up to his side.
"Lie back, young man," Madam Pomfrey soothed, easing King onto the grass. "It'll help reorient you faster."
Watching breathlessly, the rest of the team listened to the murmuring of the crowd as Madam Pomfrey performed a few spells over King's body, paying close attention to invisible signs. After a minute of respectful silence, the matron looked up at Instructor Zunderfield and shook her head.
"We'll have to get him back to the hospital wing as soon as possible," she announced, and the Gryffindor players all shrank. "This one's worse than a few simple breaks," Madam Pomfrey explained, turning back to King. "I'm surprised that you're still conscious!"
Struggling to breathe, King kept his eyes shut as Madam Pomfrey conjured a stretcher underneath him. Taking a step forward, Raul stated the obvious. "We're a man down now. Who's going to captain us?"
"Normally, teams have players waiting in reserve," Kennedy pointed out before any of the others could answer.
"We don't have any reserve Chasers," King grunted from the stretcher, and everyone turned to look at him as he forced his eyes open. "We had enough trouble finding a new Seeker at the beginning of the year. We didn't need to make things any more complicated."
"So that's it, then," Kennedy grumbled. "We're up against Ravenclaw with two Chasers."
"Unless you feel like forfeiting, there's not a whole lot you can do about it," King snapped, narrowing his eyes, and Kennedy fell silent. "I'll tell you what you're going to do. You're going to get back up there and play like nothing has changed."
"But we still need a Captain," Joseph insisted. "You won't be there telling us what to do."
"It should be the player with the most experience," Kennedy announced, straightening. "It's foolhardy to appoint someone who's unprepared for the challenge."
Closing his eyes again, King laid still for a moment before issuing a sigh. "You're right, of course." Smirking, Kennedy opened his mouth to speak just as King turned to James. "James, do you think you're up to it?"
Freezing, James took a second too long to answer, and that was all Kennedy needed. "Potter?" he spluttered. "But he's the youngest of us here! Even Longbottom's got more experience than him!"
"Even Longbottom?" Frank repeated, turning on Kennedy, but King cut both of them off.
"James has proven his abilities time and time again this year," King argued, "and the most I've ever heard you do is complain."
Stiffening, Kennedy scowled and crossed his arms as the rest of the players exchanged grins. "Well, I still think it's an unwise decision."
"Very well," King relented, and Kennedy unraveled his arms as King nodded at the others. "Let's put it to a vote. Who says that James should be put on as temporary Captain?"
Throwing a glare at Kennedy, Frank shot his hand into the air along with each of the remaining players. Raising an eyebrow, King lifted his own hand a few inches from his chest, and Kennedy huffed at the clear outcome. Smirking, James finally found his voice as he turned to the Seeker.
"Well, you heard the team, Kennedy!" he announced, grinning at the grimace on the player's face. "Let's win this game, shall we?"
"Good luck, James," King said as the team leapt onto their broomsticks, and Madam Pomfrey raised King's stretcher into the air with her wand and carted it off the field. Spinning to face the spectators, Instructor Zunderfield raised his hands and put his wand to his throat.
"James Potter has been voted temporary Captain for Gryffindor!" he spoke, his voice unnaturally amplified with a spell. "The game will continue as usual!"
What started as scattered applause soon grew into a wild frenzy of cheering and whooping as the Gryffindor players rose into the air, led off by James on his Airwake. Acutely aware of the watching eyes below, James sent his teammates off with a wave of his hand, joined only by Frank as they faced down the Ravenclaw Chasers in the center of the field. At Zunderfield's whistle, the game began again, and James raced after the Quaffle as a Ravenclaw Chaser caught it and flew towards Gryffindor's goalposts.
Blocked by the other Chasers, James and Frank attempted to speed underneath them, but their attempts were easily thwarted with a few midair adjustments from Ravenclaw. Locking eyes with James, Frank waited for a suggestion as James nodded at the space between the other players. Drawing closer together, he and Frank zipped forward and shot out from between the Ravenclaws in a sudden burst of speed. Once they had passed them, they split up and flew unhindered, but it soon became clear to James that they would not reach the third Chaser in time.
"Eyes up, Joseph!" James yelled ahead, and Joseph readied himself in front of the goalposts. When the Ravenclaw player released the ball, Joseph swished to the side and beat the Quaffle down with a blow from his palm, drawing a cheer from the crowd. Circling back around, James gave Joseph a thumbs-up.
"Looking good!" he praised, and Joseph smiled. Cupping his hands over his mouth, James called to the Beaters on the other end of the field. "Keep the Bludgers occupied, fellows!"
"Aye, aye, Captain!" Michael agreed before he and Raul zipped off in opposite directions, aiming for the black balls with their bats held high. A short distance above, Kennedy glowered at James before turning away to search the field for the Snitch.
As the game progressed, James' popularity in the stadium increased with each consecutive order he gave out. The crowd clamored whenever he and Frank managed to score a goal between the two of them, even cheering when their attempts failed to get past the opposing Keeper. Under James' commands, the Gryffindors kept the other team on edge with aptly aimed Bludgers and deflected Quaffles. Even some of the watching Ravenclaws offered a few polite claps after a particularly good play from Gryffindor.
"And the score's 200 to 150, still a close game!" Thompson announced over the speaker. "What a show by Gryffindor today! Their Captain down, and still putting up a fight! Wait, I think that Kennedy's calling for a quick word with the temporary Captain." After a pause, Thompson cleared his throat. "Er, Potter? Potter, your teammate's calling for you! Will you turn arou—oh, never mind," he finally ended as Kennedy shot in front of James, demanding his attention.
"Potter!" Kennedy yelled out, jerking his broomstick to a halt, and James faced him with an eye-roll. "I know you probably can't read the scoreboard, but I'm sure that you can hear the commentator. We're still only ahead by 50 points, and the Cup's out of the question if you and Longbottom can't pick it up!"
"Unless you're going to tell me that you're secretly a gifted Chaser, I doubt that you have any real news to relay," James responded, hoping that Kennedy would not in fact respond with assertions of his abilities as a Chaser. "In case you haven't noticed, we're a man down! We're doing the best that we can!"
"It's still not enough!" Kennedy insisted, almost spitting as he sat back on his broomstick. "I can't begin to comprehend why King put you in charge if you can't even give Ravenclaw a fight!"
"I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of the crowd cheering my name!" James shouted, nearly telling the truth at this point. As he attempted to fly off, Kennedy started to follow, but the Seeker soon ducked as a Bludger sailed dangerously close to his head. Looking up, Kennedy shook his white-gloved fist at Michael, who sat atop his broom with his club in hand.
"Whoops!" Michael apologized, shrugging, and he turned to speed away with Raul in the other direction.
Unable to hide a smirk, James shot down the pitch with Frank and continued to batter the Ravenclaw Chasers back from their side of the field. Michael and Raul were doing the same thing with the enemy Beaters, nearly unstoppable now that they only had two teammates to protect. Once in a while, one of them would send a Bludger shooting towards the group of Ravenclaw Chasers, and either James or Frank would grab the opportunity to carry the Quaffle through their broken line of defense. Still, Ravenclaw was mostly able to recover before a goal was scored, and the play progressed back-and-forth for almost another hour while the spectators yelled below.
"270 to 250!" Thompson exclaimed over the roar of the crowd, and James slowed beside Frank as the latter sat back and wiped his brow.
"They're catching up!" Frank pointed out, staring at the scoreboard. Running a hand through his hair, James followed his gaze and promptly scowled as Kennedy swooped in from above to block the score.
"Any ideas, Potter?" he goaded, lifting an eyebrow.
"Hmm, here's one: how about you stick to your job?" James suggested, but Kennedy scoffed.
"Trust me, the Snitch isn't going to appear when I turn my back for a few seconds. But what I'm worried about is our team's apparent ineptitude without King to lead us. I'll never understand what compelled him to pick you of all people as a stand-in, but I'm asking that you listen to reason and decide on a plan of action!"
"A plan of action?" James responded, his mouth falling open. "Frank and I are working our tails off just to keep the lead, and we're still 20 points ahead of Ravenclaw! Between us, Michael, Raul, and Joseph, you're the only one not contributing anything to the game!" Turning up his nose, Kennedy simply glared as James spat at him. "There's no need for a plan of action! We're just trying to keep afloat, and if you think for one moment that I—"
Breaking off suddenly, James stared above Kennedy's head and blinked, freezing at the sight of a flittering, golden sphere. Finally, he ripped himself out of his daze and pointed behind the Seeker's head with a yell.
"TURN AROUND, YOU BLUNDERING GIT! IT'S THE SNITCH!"
James spotted the whites of Kennedy's eyes grow to twice their size before the player spun his broomstick about and zoomed forward, grabbing at the minuscule ball hovering behind him. Unfortunately, his hurry caused his first swipe to miss, and the Golden Snitch jerked downwards at the sudden movement before tearing away with Kennedy in hot pursuit. Raising a cheer as Tori Hansfeld joined him in the chase, the crowd screamed encouragement as James turned and flew away with Frank, clutching his Airwake's handle until his knuckles turned white.
"I can't believe I'm stuck with that idiot!" James growled, but Frank had dissolved into a fit of laughter.
"Did you see how quickly he spun around?" he crowed, barely managing to hang onto his broom with one arm wrapped around his stomach. "You sure scared him! I wish that King was here to see that! Blimey, I should have caught it with a camera! I've never seen you look so angry!"
Glancing back at him, James felt his ears grow warm. "Er, shouldn't we get on with the match?" he asked, and Frank finally sat up long enough to wipe a tear from the corner of his eye.
"I don't think there's much need for that," he replied, pointing, and James followed his finger to watch as Kennedy reached his hand towards the Snitch a few meters in front of Hansfeld. With a slight stumble against the wind, he snatched the golden ball out of the air, and Thompson's voice shouted over the ensuing din.
"Gryffindor wins! It's not nearly enough to give them the Cup, but what a show! Make sure to congratulate both teams on the way out!"
As the commentator clicked off, James lowered to the ground with the rest of the team. Although a small sinking in his stomach seemed to increase the pull of gravity, he soon forgot his disappointment as a wild cheer rose up from the Gryffindor students in the stands.
"Potter! Potter! Potter!" they cried, and James smiled at the spectators' upturned faces as he alighted on the grass. Walking by, his teammates took turns clapping him on the back.
"Congratulations, James!" Michael told him before he and Raul jogged off towards their celebrating Housemates.
"I'd relive this game any day!" Frank told James, patting his shoulder and joining the Beaters.
Lifting his head a little higher, James began ambling in the direction of the stands, and a round of applause swelled up at his approach. Pausing several steps away, James allowed himself a grin and raised his fist into the air. Whooping in response, the spectators welcomed the Gryffindor players with energetic waves, and James pushed his hair back before marching into the crowd.