Chapter 12: Got Quidditch

Harry circled the Quidditch pitch feeling the freezing cold wind on his face. It was wonderful to be flying. The match had just begun, and the two seekers of the game were merely staying aloft and scanning the field. So far there were no leads, no glint of gold, to send him on the right track. Cendric seemed in a similar position. So he waited.

If Gryffindor won the game, they would be playing Slytherin for the cup. They had better brooms, but Gryffindor's chasers were top tiered, and there was no way they could lose. Currently, the Gryffindor chasers were destroying Hufflepuff, thirty to zero. All Harry had to do was make sure Cedric didn't get the snitch until they were a hundred and sixty points ahead. Piece of cake. Except for Harry it was personal. He wasn't going to lose a seeker duel. Not again.

Harry circled the pitch once more, looking around for any glint of gold. Cedric looked anxious to find the snitch and end the match quickly. Harry took a deep breath and calmed himself down. Gryffindor scored two more goals. The crowd was going wild, well, half of the crowd anyway. Hufflepuff was usually a good team, but it seemed that they were having an off day. Or maybe Gryffindor was just a lot better this season. At least they were fair.

Harry scanned the field once more, and spotted the snitch. It was close to Cedric, and a moderate distance away from him. Harry pushed his broom forward at full force. Cedric noticed him, and thus the snitch, and began to head towards it. Even with his head start, he wasn't going to make it in time. The snitch was flying at an angled path, giving him a bit of leeway. Harry felt the wind, and it was pushing him up and forward. Harry smirked, looked like he was going to have a chance to get the snitch after all.

Streamlining his broom to the direction of the wind, Harry forward at an angle. He corkscrewed and reached right above Cedric as he was closing in on the snitch. There was no point in diving, but Harry knew a move just for the occasion. Already upside down on his broom, Harry braked and pitched with his broom, setting it along a certain trajectory, and simultaneously let go. He swiped the snitch from right under Cedric, who got a dreadful surprise. Harry flipped himself around and reached out for the broom. He was in range and the broom responded to his call. He grabbed it and stopped his descent a good amount from the ground. Harry smirked at the silent crowd as he lifted up the snitch. The crowd burst out cheering. The Hufflepuff fans looked a little dejected, but many were still admiring his slick move. It was quite a nice catch.

Harry landed and got off his broom, and he was quickly mobbed by Gryffindor and hoisted in the air. After the mandatory throws into the air, Harry was let down and given several thumps on the back. The rest of the celebration would come later. He went over to see Cedric, who sighed.

"That was a pretty nice catch" he said, offering his hand.

"Thanks, it was close though, you almost had it!" said Harry as he took the handshake.

"Yeah, I know! Aw well, you deserved the win, and maybe it'll finally get Wood to shut up for a while."

Harry chuckled and waved Cedric off. He met with Ron, Hermione, the whole team, and what felt like all of Gryffindor and then some. The field was finally starting to clear up, and Harry started to make his way towards the locker room, when he was pulled aside once more by another man whom he did not recognize.

"That was a brilliant game Mr. Potter! And a fantastic finish!"

"Oh, thank you. I'm sorry but... do I know you?"

"Excuse me. I am from the Scottish National Quidditch team. I usually get sent out to scout out upcoming talent. And you definitely caught my eye! Though, there is a small problem. Our seeker got injured and had to retire from Quidditch. We really weren't expecting that, so we don't have a second. One of our chasers ended up being put onto the position of seeker, and he is really not that good. Our first game of the cup is coming up, and we are playing Luxembourg. There is not enough time to hold tryouts, so we are pretty much done for. But then I saw you playing. And, if you would like, we would love to have you on the team. It'll at least give the team a reason to practice, and give us a fighting chance in the cup."

"So... you want me for the team?" Harry said slowly. He knew had considered a career in professional Quidditch, but this was a little unexpected. Pleasant, but unexpected, "I'll do it!"

"Fantastic! I'll contact your guardian and get the papers through, because you are a minor. But there have been no rules in the wizarding world against minors playing in the pro league. Oh and one more thing, please keep this a secret. It would give us an edge in the cup, and also give your friends a surprise when you send them tickets! Anyways, I'll work on getting that done and I'll send someone to pick you up from your guardian once school ends. You'll get about a week of practice in, so make sure you keep up with it even while your at school!" and with that, busy hurried man left.

Harry went back to locker room and found hat most of everyone was already gone, probably partying by now. Harry quickly changed, thinking over the recent occurrence. Harry shook his head, 'One thing at a time, first the Hogwarts Cup' Harry made his way back to the common room.

As soon as he entered the portrait hole, Harry noticed that the party had started without him. Everyone in Gryffindor, well almost everyone, was celebrating Gryffindor's Quidditch team. Wood gave more than his fair share of speeches again, not that anyone was listening. Harry just enjoyed being pulled aside for a butter beer with his friends.

That night, Harry reflected a little before going to bed. The year was almost over. Yet he felt like he had done so much already. Just simply changing his outlook on life made everything a lot better. He still had to beat Voltemort, but with his knowledge from the future, he believed he had a fighting chance. There were just a couple more variables to work out. Now there was just the final Quidditch game and final exams. Harry doubted he would have any problem. In the new subjects he was taking, he was already years ahead, since that was really all he studied to keep himself interested. That and spell development book. Harry sighed, and a weird thought crossed his mind as he was thinking about end of the year activities. What was the point in the House Cup? Surely Gryffindor didn't win when his father was still in school. He remembered forgetting about it almost completely around his fifth year. Harry sighed and shoved the thoughts to the back of his head. It looked like he wad definitely not going to bored this summer.