Chapter 5
Jude breathed deeply, trying to calm his frazzled nerves. It was the first quidditch match of the year; Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. While the blue eyed teen was not scared of going against Scorpius Malfoy; he knew could beat that boy in his sleep; he just had a strange gut feeling that something bad was going to happen. He also didn't want to let Kelli down since this was her first and last year as captain and she had so much faith in him.
Maybe he should've asked Professor Trelawney if she had seen anything in his tea cup.
"Alright, you lot," Kelli began as she stood in front of her team, her broomstick gripped tightly in her hand. "This is our first match of the year. Now I know that if Olivia were here, she'd give you the same speech her father probably told over and over again. I'm just going to say fight hard and true. We're Gryffindors; we don't let our friends down. Now are we ready?"
"Yes!" The other teammates shouted enthusiastically.
Kelli gave a firm nod, "Well let's get going then." The team cheered once more before following their captain out.
Jude flew next to James and Emma, gazing around the pitch. Professor Harmon wasn't there, and his heart constricted painfully when he realized this was the first quidditch game she would be missing.
"Welcome, welcome everybody. Adrian Conners here to give you the best update on the game you are about to see in front of you," The fan favorite Conners spoke happily into the microphone with a wide grin. "It's great to be here for a new school year, especially now that we got those O.W.L.s out of the way. Can I get a heck yes for that?"
The older students cheered at that. Jude gazed sadly at Professor Alexander who didn't even have enough energy to scold Conners. That was one of his favorite pastimes. On one hand, hearing Conners' commentary was funny. On the other hand, seeing the normally cheerful and composed History of Magic professor lose all composure at the young man's words was hilarious.
"Today is the first match of the year. As usual, it is the Gryffindor lions and the Slytherin snakes," Conners announced to the lively crowd. "On the Slytherin side we have captain and chaser; 7th year Brady Chase. 6th year Cheryl Stacks and 5th year Danny Simmons are the other lovely chasers. We then have 7th year Michael Craver; the keeper, 4th year Erik Howard and 3rd year Bailey Fairley are the beaters, and 3rd year Scorpius Malfoy is the seeker."
The Slytherin students cheered loudly for their players. Conners shushed them before continuing, "On the Gryffindor side, we have the new captain; our seasoned chaser 7th year Kelli Sharp!"
Students and teachers alike cheered for the widely smiling Kelli. Conners laughed, "Good on you, Sharp. Now, for the other chasers, we have 4th years James Potter and Emma Thorne. Give it up for them." More cheers from the crowd. "For the beaters, we have 7th year Simon Boone and the magnificent 6th year Louis Weasley. Let's hear it for my best mate!"
Louis grinned, clapping as the Gryffindor students cheered for him. "Right," Conners gave a chuckle. "Now, replacing our very talented Olivia Wood as keeper is 2nd year Hugo Weasley. Let's give the boy some love."
Jude grinned, watching as Hugo's cheeks flared just as red as his hair when the crowds cheered for him. He hoped the match wasn't going to be too hard for him. While the chasers and the seeker got the most points for the team, it was the keeper that made sure the other team never scored. Olivia was extremely great at her position; he just really hoped Hugo was as well.
Conners grinned, "And for our last member, he really doesn't need any introduction. Let's hear it for the best seeker alive; 4th year Jude Porter."
The roaring of the crowd didn't help the blush that erupted on Jude's cheeks; neither did the giggling of Emma and the cackling of James and Louis. He grimaced, his face pinched; he wanted to push them off their broom sometimes.
Professor Walton gave them the instructions before letting the balls loose. Jude quickly got out of the way once the chasers and beaters started flying about. He dodged a bludger that was too close for comfort before quickly making his way around the pitch. He needed to find the snitch before Scorpius did; he couldn't let Kelli down. She had complete and utter faith in him; he wasn't going to let her down now.
He licked his dry lips, making sure his mind was clear of any insistent thoughts that tried to make their way in. He had to keep a clear mind, especially this time. No clowning around and no-
"Oh!" Conners shouted in shock as the Gryffindor students cheered loudly. "And Sharp gives Gryffindor the lead. Dang girl, I did not know you were that flexible."
Open mind. Open mind, Jude repeated to himself.
"Good job, Weasley. Look, you're already on your way to be the next Wood. Keep it up," Conners complimented the jittering Hugo who had just blocked a quaffle from getting into the hoop with great skill.
Jude blocked another bludger that suddenly came his way, cursing mentally. What the hell was going on? Usually Louis and Simon had a better handle on those. Sure, Jude had been hit once by a bludger but that was because it was tampered with by Professor Lamb so he could try and kidnap him when he was unconscious in the infirmary. What was happening now?
The blue eyed boy snapped his head around when he heard the familiar fluttering of the snitch's wings. His eyes darted around, finding the golden ball a little ways above the teachers' stand.
He shot off quickly with Scorpius on his tail. He dodged some chasers as he made his way towards the snitch that rapidly buzzed around, trying to throw him off its trail. He gritted his teeth when he felt Scorpius bump into the back of his broom. He lay down on his broom, hoping to go faster as the snitch made a dive closer to the ground.
Once the snitch was only an inches away, he held out his hand in hopes to catch it. He was so focused on the snitch that he didn't see the bludger coming his way until he felt a harsh cracking sound and pain flaring in his arm.
Jude yelped as his right arm fell limply at his side with his mind becoming hazy by the cloud of pain enveloping it. He clenched his jaw tightly, biting his lip harshly in hopes to transfer the pain. Nothing could match the pain in his arm, but he could at least try to take his mind off it.
He scooted closer on his broom as he followed the snitch as fast as he could with Scorpius only centimeters behind him. He opened his mouth just as his broomstick tipped forward, sending him tumbling to the ground.
The crowd was silent. Teachers clamored out of the stand, trying to get onto the pitch where Jude laid unmoving. The players floated in the air, simply gazing at the seeker. Scorpius paused in the air, his eyes on Jude as well.
Suddenly, Jude retched forward. His face was red and his eyes were bulging out behind his broken glasses. The crowed watched in awe as the now saliva covered snitch fell onto the pitch.
Jude exhaled raggedly, lying on his back while cradling his broken arm to his chest. He couldn't hear when Conners announced Gryffindor the winner. He didn't even notice his team or the teachers come up to him, eyes full of worry.
He closed his eyes, letting the darkness and exhaustion take him away from the pain around him.