A/N: Okay, here's the final chapter!

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Chapter 4: Short and Long

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opted to skip the Europeans and Four Continents to focus on her exams…


Autumn fidgeted nervously as Miko and Kim conversed excitedly in broken English. Milly Hughs and Ashleigh Taylor stood with a reporter from France who was getting a last minute interview, and Autumn noticed with annoyance that Peter Carruthers was standing near the group. She had never liked him.

Last fall, Lydia Walkers of Britain had popped her toe loop on her triple lutz- double toe loop combination. After receiving her scores, she had begun crying in frustration backstage, since she had made the same mistake the week before. The next day in their free skate warm up, the man had spent a better part of his five minute screen time on how Lydia needed to grow up and handle the situation more like her fellow competitor, Autumn Harrow.


"…just needs to pull it together. And you know it's just too bad. You've got competitors like Autumn who see the glass as half full, and skaters like Lydia who see it as half empty. And there's Autumn now, the favorite for the gold, getting last minute advice from her coach."

"It looks like she's glaring at you, Peter," laughed Terry, and it was true. Meg had begun firing away about the report and Autumn's eyes flashed. She turned to Peter and initiated her best Slytherin glare (courtesy of Snape.). She was proud to find him fidgeting nervously. She immediately took off down the rink to where Lydia was warming up. Despite the pop, she had still landed in third.

"Lydia," muttered Autumn, and winced at the look on her face. It was obvious she had heard the interview. "Hey, don't listen to that guy. He's an American, remember?" Lydia gave her a small smile and Autumn smirked.

"Good luck," said Autumn with a wink, and Lydia nodded.




Finally, the gate opened and the skaters were allowed to enter. Autumn stepped out onto the ice and smiled. She was finally here. She had made it.

As she began warming up, she scanned the crowd, brightening when she saw Hermione, Susan, Theo, and Blaise in the audience. She sank into a spiral, her legs nearly perpendicular to the ground (something she was quite proud of. Jack, her coach, had told her she was five degrees from ninety.). Cameras clicked as the ten girls warmed up, and Autumn focused mostly on her lutz, satisfied that she kept an outside edge.

LATER……

Autumn gave Milly a small nodded as she came off the ice, a large smile plastered on her face. She said a few words to Jack and skated off, keeping her legs warm as Milly waited for her scores. She scanned the crowd, and waved to the loudly cheering Hermione, Susan, Theo, and Blaise (though Blaise and Theo weren't jumping up and down.).

"Technical Elements score… 28.63," droned the announcer's voice. "Program Components score… 29.53. Total score is 58.16."

"…And remember, just do your best and you'll be fine," said Jack encouragingly. Autumn nodded, wondering if she really could top the 71.95(a new ISU record) by Kim or the 69.50 by Miko. Taking a deep breath and giving a thumbs-up to Jack, she skated off as the announcer called her name. She raised her hands to appease the crowd, apprehension brewing heavily in her stomach.

As she took to the center of the ice, the previously wild crowd died down and she stood in position.

(A/N: ATTENTION!! You don't need to read about the choreography if you don't want to, since anything of importance will be reported by ESPN announcers. If you want to give me constructive critics, feel free to let me know how bad it is. Otherwise, just skip until the next A/N.)

The music started and she flicked her foot, her body being propelled backwards. She turned and twirled into a camel spin, dropping into a cannon and after a few rotations, pulled her leg up into a catch-foot.

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(DickTerry Teresa) Music: "A Broken Heart" -Ladies of Lavender soundtrack

"Look at that… holy cow…"

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She skated forward, picking up speed. She turned and reached her leg back. Triple flip… Triple loop…YES!

Autumn allowed herself a small smile as she jumped into a flying-death-drop-spin and landing in a camel.



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"That's a gorgeous camel position."

"She pulls onto the forward part of her blade, giving it more difficulty."

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She winced at the burn in her thighs as she sank into another cannon. She leaned forward slightly, slinging her other foot into her waiting hands. She then hoisted herself up and, after a final twirl, began skating backwards around the bend, gaining speed.

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"Footwork into a triple lutz…nice. No flutz this time.

"Here's her footwork sequence…"

"She really getting deep into those edges and getting a lot of speed from them."

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Autumn smiled in relief as she finished her footwork and waited a few beats to gain speed before sinking into her spiral.

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"Look at the extension on that…! Beautiful. Absolutely textbook."

"You know, Dick, usually with skaters, their supporting leg slides forward, tilting their hips and the split; but there's no tilt there. Her leg and the ice are at a perfect 90° angle."

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She bent her leg down and pulled it into a cross-grab biellman. She smiled up at the crowd as she released the blade and lifted her leg up in front of her.

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"Look at that…you know, I can never get over the strength of some of these ladies. To be able to lift the leg that high and hold it is unbelievable. And you know, that is a position that is acceptable and elegant because she doesn't stretch her hip out, point with her phanny, and get her leg higher that way."I've got five seconds. She's going to get major points for that.

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Autumn gritted her teeth and brought leg down, rotating around the bend. The music was a slow and mournful piano and violin piece. Not the most exciting piece, it was one of her favorite songs. Taking a deep breath, she stretched her leg back.

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Ina boeur into a double axel- no, single. She popped it…

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Annoyed, she huffed and swung her body into a layback. She immediately brought her hands into a clasp behind her back and arched it. Finally, as the last notes began to chime, she grabbed her blade and carefully pulled it over her head into a beillman.

(A/N: Okay, the short program is over. If you read it and were confused about any of the terms (I don't think a lot of people even know what a flip is.), see the first chapter!)

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"And there, my friends, is the brilliance of Autumn Harrow, the prodigy from England."

"Although, Dick, I think that pop in the double-axel cost her the gold medal. Look here… she just didn't punch her knee through enough."

"Now here's her Triple Flip-Triple Loop combination. She gets fantastic height on the Flip, and it's almost as though she accelerates when she comes back up for the Loop. And in the Triple Lutz… difficult entry…she gets a beautiful outside edge and, again, great height."

"She went through a growth spurt last month, and she just hasn't lost any of her spring in the jumps or any of her flexibility. The catch-foot here is absolutely breathtaking. And here are her scores…"

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Autumn waited in the Kiss&Cry with Jack as the announcer began calling out her scores.

"Technical elements… 34.01," droned the announcer, and Autumn raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Program components score…27.72. Total score is 61.73."

There was a thunderous cheer, and Autumn breathed a sigh of relief. She smiled and stood, waving to the crowd. She was in fourth behind Kim, Miko, and Claire Leblanc. She stood and waved to the crowd, carrying a large, light-blue winged teddy bear and a bouquet of white carnations.

"Congratulations!" squealed Hermione and Susan, tackling the smiling girl into a hug as she entered backstage.

"Thank you," said Autumn, touched as Theo handed her a large bouquet of sunflowers.



"You did so well!" said Susan in admiration.

"Thanks. Hey, come on. I want you to meet some people!" said Autumn, grabbing Blaise and Theo and dragged them over to a group of girls and men who stood around a large TV, watching as the final group of Ice Dancers began warming up.

"Hey Ashleigh. Congrats on the T-T at Nats, by the way," said Autumn with a smile.

"Thanks. Who are they?" said the tall girl with a friendly smile.

"This is Hermione, Susan, Theo, and Blaise. They're friends of mine from school," said Autumn, pointing to each in turn.

"Hey, what's up," said Ashleigh, nodding to them. She then turned to Autumn and said quietly, "you should have seen Devyn after she got her scores."

"She threw a right tantrum, didn't she?" said Autumn, sighing.

"And she chewed out John and Milly. I honestly don't know how Katrina puts up with her," said Ashleigh, turning to the screen.

"She's too nice. I hope her coaching change helps her. She wrote to me after four continents," said Autumn, wincing as Tauren Bentin tripped. "Have you seen Kim and Miko?"

"Yeah they went that way looking for you," said Ashleigh absently, pointing to her left and Autumn nodded waving good-bye.

"Come on. Hey James," said Autumn, waving to one of the passing men, who waved back, looking frantic.

"Wow, you know a lot of people," said Susan with wide eyes.

Autumn stared at her blankly before saying, "he's one of my teammates… there they are. Miko! KIM!


"Wow, that was good," said Kim, and Autumn nodded in agreement. Their hotel was treating them to dinner, and Autumn was happy to receive it.

"Your English has definitely gotten better," commented Autumn, and Kim said, "Brent and David made me speak in English around them. So I have improved.

"I still having trouble," said Miko with a smile. "But it is getting easier. Tarasova makes me speak it around her as well."

"Tarasova?" said Autumn mildly. "So you're definitely switching to her this summer?"

"Yes," said Miko with a nod.



"Where do you two train?" asked Hermione curiously.

"I train in Toronto," said Kim, popping a mushroom into her mouth.

"Chukyo Rink in Nagoya. Training in Japan used to be very hard, but now I get…much ice time," said Miko slowly.

"Figure skating in Japan is pretty popular," explained Autumn at Hermione's confused look. "Figure skaters like Miko are treated like super stars, and the press is constantly following her."

"I think I'll turn in for the night. I'd like to study my short program tonight," said Kim, standing and Miko stood as well with a yawn. "Good luck tomorrow!"

"You, too. Remember, we promised we'd all podium," said Autumn.

"Of course we will," said Miko, rolling her eyes with a smile. "oyasuminasai!"

"'Night," said Autumn with a smile. "We should probably head up, too."

She stood up and the rest followed, heading for the elevator. Autumn soon began lagging behind, and Blaise soon walked over to her.

"You did really well today," he whispered in her ear, and she beamed. Between ESPN, EuroSports, and the many reporters, that was the best praise she could have asked for.


DickTerryPeggyPeter

Dreams begin as a child who sees them come true for someone else… and today they will.

For a British angel hoping to gain her wings

Or for a Korean who competes with every breath.

A Japanese hoping to continue a legacy

Or for a Swiss who conquered Europe, and now wants the world.

The ladies inspire dreams in others while pursuing their own… in the free skate.

"Good evening, I'm Terry Gannon alongside Peggy Flemming, Dick Button, and Peter Carruthers, and this is the final flight in the ladies free skate-"

"Peter, what's happening down there?" interrupted Peggy.

"It seems as though Devyn Richards nearly collided with Autumn Harrow and Miko Tahara while they were speaking with their coaches," said Peter in disbelief.




"What is your problem?!" yelled Autumn.

Devyn only smirked and skated over to her coach, who looked furious. "Don't worry about her," said Jack soothingly. "Just focus on the axel and your combinations, and you'll do fine."

"Right," breathed Autumn, walking through the gate and sliding on her skate guards.

"You've got a visitor, by the way," said Jack, steering her backstage.

"Who?" she asked absently, and smiled when she noticed the tall Italian boy.

"Thanks for coming," said Autumn, giving Blaise a hug. He patted her back and said, "I figured since you were the last to go, you'd want the company. You should see the ridicules banner Granger and Bones made."

"That's sweet," said Autumn, smiling. Jack walked away, claiming the need for a mocha frappacino, and Autumn stood with Blaise, waiting for the announcements to start. She ran her fingers through her ponytail and bounced on her heels.

"You look beautiful," murmured Blaise. Autumn blushed heavily and began fiddling with the light blue hem of her costume.

"Thanks," she said quietly.

"Are you nervous?" asked Blaise, and Autumn shot him a look that clearly asked 'are you stupid?'

"Very much so," she said, clasping and unclasping her hands. The two of them sat as one by one, the skaters entered the rink, and left it with smiles brightening their faces or their expressions downcast, obviously not pleased with their scores. Autumn watched with sympathy as Satomi Kozuka left the rink in tears after having to withdraw half way through her program. Kim quickly made first place with her program to 'Miss Saigon', which had earned her a hefty 125.25 points.

"That was amazing, Kim!" cheered Autumn, hugging the Korean girl. Brent Oren, her coach, stood by with a proud smile. An upbeat Spanish tune struck up as the two girls and Blaise waited backstage. The minutes slowly ticked by and Autumn felt her nerves tighten as the cheers from Ashleigh's performance echoed around the stadium. Miko stepped out onto the ice and Autumn sighed, knowing she was on deck as she watched the focused Japanese girl take center. The quick and fluid tune of Chopin's Fantasie-Impromtu began, and Miko was off.

Autumn held her breath as Miko moved in to do the triple axel. "Come on… oh no," groaned Autumn as Miko popped the axel. This better not be last year all over again…

Miko prepared for the next jump combination, and Autumn let out a sigh of relief. As the program went on, the crowd began to get louder, and as she slid into her ending pose, the crowd exploded. She came 

off the ice with tears of joy running down her face. Autumn glanced at Blaise for a moment before she walked over to the rink. She paused to give Miko a thumbs up before taking the ice.

"Technical Elements score… Program components score…" There was loud cheering as Miko quickly tried to calculate her score. "Score for Free skate is 130.02. Total score is 199.53."

The crowd exploded as Miko burst into tears again. She was in first place with one skater to go, and had broken a new world record.

Autumn quickly did a single axel, confident that she would be able to do the first triple axel that night. She slid into her starting position, breathing deeply as the cheering crowd died down. She smiled and, as the music began to play, she looked up and fell into character.

She fell back and twisted, skating around the bend to gain speed as she prepared for the triple axel.

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Music: "Becoming a Geisha" -Memoirs of a Geisha soundtrack

Here it comes… and she nails it!

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Autumn repressed the urge to smile, looking down as she skated. She quickly stretched her leg back into an ina boeuer and came up, jumping into a double axel. She then spun into a camel spin and twisted into a lay-over camel.

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Here comes her spiral sequence…

You know, I don't even think Sasha Cohen was able to achieve this level of extension and strength.

Well, the thing that I think sets her apart is, again, her hips. There's a lot of strength and extension there. Most skaters tilt their hips for balance and to relieve some of the pressure, but she doesn't. And I love how she incorporates this next double axel with a backwards spiral and just jumps straight into it.

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Autumn waited a few beats until she launched into a triple loop and landed neatly. The music momentarily softened as she glided in an outside spread-eagle. Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of it and reached back. Triple flip- Triple loop…YES!

Autumn jumped into a flying back sit and lowered herself into a cannon. She pulled her leg into a catch foot and quickly brought her hands together behind her leg, and held it in a thigh-pull(1), a move she had invented. She felt her performance building and, as she finally looked up at the crowd. She smiled at them, and threw herself into her foot work.



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And here we go…

Now the fireworks begin. She has three more triples planned in this program, all in combination. And this footwork sequence commends her skill. She's getting deep into her edges and is incorporating her arms and gaining difficulty. I wouldn't be surprised if she gained a level four…

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Autumn smiled as she finished her footwork and concentrated on the upcoming jumps. As she prepared for her triple lutz, she took a longer entrance than normal and realized she had a lot of speed going in. She launched herself into the air, nearly popping the jump at the speed, and realized too late that…

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I can't believe it, a quad! A quad lutz! And she lands it she reaches back and … she does it! A triple toe-loop!

She's going down in history today…

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Autumn felt numb as the crowd exploded into cheers. She couldn't believe it. "Celebrate later, celebrate later," she thought, reaching back for her second triple lutzand prepared for her final combination.

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I'm holding my breath here…

Triple lutz…double loop…double loop, and she does it!

And look at this layback position… if there were ever a more perfect one. Look at how close her head and her feet are!

She's still paying attention to all the details…clasp behind the back… and look at that!

She calls it the pearl, and lifts her torso into a beillman… that's a gorgeous position.

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Autumn felt a few moments relief as she held the beillman before she let go of her leg and ended, breathing laboriously. The crowd exploded again, and Autumn realized absently that they were all on their feet. She dropped to her knees and stared at the ceiling, shaking her head. As her performance sunk in, she gasped and stood, shaking her head. She covered her face, trying not to cry as she raised her hands to the crowd and bowed. With her hands behind her head, she retreated back to Jack and Blaise.



Laughing, she launched herself in to Blaise's waiting arms. "Oh my god, I can't believe I did that! Oh my god…" she rambled. Smirking, Blaise handed her skate-guards and jacket. Putting his arm around the exhausted girl, he led her into the Kiss&Cry. Still breathing heavily, she sat in between Jack and Blaise as she waited for her scores. Jack continued to babble, but Autumn only focused on the anxiety of waiting for her scores and the hand that was tightly clasped in her own.

Technical Elements… Program Components… Score for free skate is 137.31."

Autumn shrieked as the score was announced, burying her head into Blaise's shoulder. The crowd exploded into cheers again as her scores were combined. "Total score is 199.04," said the announcer as Autumn stood, waving joyfully to the crowd. She had missed the gold medal, but at the moment she didn't care. The silver was all hers, and she nearly fainted as Blaise kissed her cheek and murmured in her ear, "congratulations."

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And there stands the silver medalist.

She's broken three records in a matter of five minutes: the quad lutz, the quad-triple for a woman, and a score of 137.31, the highest ever recorded.

The sixteen year olds on the podium. I think you'll agree with me that they are the future of figure skating.

Well, I don't think this year will ever be topped…


Autumn, Hermione, Susan, Theo, and Blaise returned to Hogwarts later that week…

… only to find a toad-like woman waiting for them.

"Headmaster's office. Now," she said through gritted teeth, trembling in fury. Autumn, amused, said quietly to Hermione, "I guess Dumbledore forgot to mention we were leaving."

"Duh," muttered Theo, following the enraged Professor to the Headmaster's office.

"Skittles," huffed Umbridge, walking up the staircase.

"Come in!" called a wizened voice. As they entered, he smiled and said brightly, "ah, Miss Harrow, you have returned. How were the championships?"

"Silver medal and three broken records," smiled Autumn, holding her medal up.

"Excellent. Thirty points to Slytherin. Did the rest of you enjoy Sweden? I've only been there twice, and I must say, they have some of the best chocolate."

"It was a lot of fun. The performances were amazing!" exclaimed Susan.



"Headmaster, you gave five students permission to leave the school grounds- and country- for a week and did not inform me?!" sputtered Umbridge, her face turning blotchy red.

"Yes, and I believe the rest of the school is now enjoying Miss Harrow's performance in the Great Hall as we speak," said Dumbledore pleasantly.

"What?!" cried Umbridge and Autumn (who blushed in embarrassment.).

"Yes, I believe Professor Flitwick found a nifty charm. Apparently, Mr. Finch-Fletchley saw your performance and gave us the memory of it so that we may enjoy it as well."

"Oh geeze," moaned Autumn, burying her head into Blaise's back. "Now everyone will know."

"Most of them already knew, my dear," said Dumbledore kindly. "Mr. Zabini and Mr. Nott were kind enough to help me ensure your privacy while you trained; something I know you value."

"Thanks guys," she murmured, pulling both boys into a hug.

"Now," said Dumbledore, clapping his hands. "If you five wish to leave your trunks here and go to the Great Hall, I will have them returned to your dorms by the time you turn in."

"Thank you," they said, exiting the office, a gob-smacked Umbridge staring after them. As they entered the Great Hall, Autumn jumped at the thunderous applause. Smiling weakly, she gave the student body a small wave as she followed Blaise and Theo to the Slytherin table.

-

With Hermione…

"Hermione, where were you?" said Ron loudly. "And what were you doing with those Slytherins?"

"I was in Sweden with my friends, Ronald," said Hermione, sitting down. "We attended the World Figure Skating Championships."

Harrow's your trustee, isn't she?" asked Harry.

"Yes, she is," said Hermione, smiling at her. "And she's my friend, too…"

-

-

With Susan…

"You knew Autumn Harrow and didn't tell me!" wailed Justin, staring at Susan with accusing eyes.

"Justin, you've known her for four years!" said Susan exasperatingly.

As Justin continued to moan, Susan shared a smile with Hermione and Autumn, and happily dug into a treacle tart.

-

-

With Autumn, Theo, and Blaise…

"So what're you going to do now?" asked Theo as they sat down. Autumn shrugged and said, "train and be in a few shows, I guess. I probably won't have to start a new program 'til the summer."

"And I thought you couldn't sink any lower, Harrow," drawled a snide voice from behind her. Rolling her eyes, she turned to see Malfoy standing behind her. Autumn smiled coyly and stood, walking up to Malfoy until their noses were nearly touching.

"You know what I think, Malfoy?" drawled Autumn, satisfied as his face turned red and he gulped audibly. "I think you need a life. And a brain to share between you and your cronies."

She flicked his forehead and sat next to a wary looking Blaise, waving to the furious Malfoy.

"Cute," said Theo dryly as Malfoy stomped away. "I don't think even he could ruin my day," said Autumn happily, a smile passing between the five of them.