AN: Happy Tuesday loves. No big announcements this week, just another chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Happy holidays! As ever yours, -cowriter

Chapter 8 POV Jo

This is right. This is it. This is my time.

I take off, rise fast, and join the red and green fray. Were about an hour into the Gryffindor v Slytherin match, and I take a second to survey the scene- Oliver's in all his glory by the goalposts, there are three shocks of orange hair flying around, instead often two I'm used to, and then there's my two targets: the quaffle, and Jimmy Peakes.

Everyone's words are still swirling around in my mind- Cas saying I should challenge up, McGonigal saying I've got the aggression of a Beater, Oliver saying he doesn't regret his decision, and me telling him that it wasn't over yet. Today it will be over. Today I'm gonna be a Beater.

As I think that, the quaffle gets tossed to me, and I whizz off, diving and dodging the incoming Slytherins. I get down the pitch and drill the quaffle right in front of a fourth year chaser, who catches it, shoots, and scores all in one flawless motion. The Gryffindor side of the stands goes wild, Lee congratulating us over the microphone. But it's a short lived victory. Slytherin is wailing on us- they're better than I thought they would be.

I can see Fred's focussing on aiming his bludgers at Angelina, and she's struggling. She's one of our better chasers, even as a second year, and she's struggling. Our saving grace is the fourth year. Our Beaters aren't doing much better- George is pitted against a gorilla of a Beater, and he's having trouble. The Slytherin is getting pretty physical with him, and I'm worried. And annoyed- Jimmy could be against that guy, it'd be a better match up, but no- Jimmy's putting his effort into trying to hinder a thin little third year, and not doing well at it. He may be small, but the third year is wicked fast, and keeps avoiding the bludgers from Peakes, getting the quaffle, and shooting on Wood. And Wood, well, he's doing his best, but I can see he's getting tired. Even Charlie is having a hard time finding the snitch.

Slytherin scores again and Wood clears the quaffle to the fourth year, who immediately gets teamed up on by Fred and another Beater. They get her to trip up, lose the quaffle, and the kid Jimmy's supposed to be handling swoops in and scores. Something needs to change.

"George- switch with me!" I shout, making my way over to him.

"What?! No way!" He replies, but I position myself beneath him anyway.

"Drop the bat, George. Something needs to change here." He yields, drops the bat, and starts chasing the quaffle. I can hear Lee shouting something, but I don't pay attention. Now I have to get Jimmy's attention. Gryffindor has possession, so it's not too hard for me to get to Peakes without neglecting my job, and I tell him to try and take down the gorilla while I take on the scrawny one. He tries to argue but I don't stay to listen, I whisk off and send a bludger dead straight at the scrawny kid. He takes the hit hard.

Possession changes back to Slytherin, but the kid I hit has lost his edge- he's not flying near as fast, and it looks like turning hurts. And this messes up their plans. With one of their chasers taken care of, it becomes a fair fight. Wood blocks a feeble shot, clears it to the fourth year, who gets it to George, who scores. Everyone cheers, but I can here Wood yelling. I think it's at me. It sounds slightly angry. I don't stick around to find out.

I fly towards George and toss him his bat back, and go resume my Chaser role, knowing George will do better now that he can focus on protecting our own instead of stopping the gorilla. The game continues, and Gryffindor is coming up from behind. Peakes isn't sticking to the gorilla, though, which is a problem. I hear Wood shouting at him, and Jimmy recklessly rams into the Slytherin, who was going to hit a bludger at Angelina. Maybe if Peakes was attacking the scrawny one something would have happened, but no. The gorilla hits back, hard. And everyone stops as we see Jimmy fall. Down, down, down, hard and fast. He hits the ground like a Bludger, with a solid thud. And something else- a crack. I drop so fast I amost hurt myself, but I'm the first to get to him, before Madam Pomfrey or anyone else.

I dismount and run over and kneel down next to him. He's breathing and conscious. A moan escapes his lips, and I nearly get sick when I see his leg. It's bent a way legs aren't supposed to bend. Madam Pomfrey and Proffessor McGonigal get over to us, and McGonigal shoos me away- says the game hasn't stopped and I need to go play. I look up and realize it's true. As I fly away I hear Madam Pomfrey saying something.

"He didn't fall that far- I don't know how this much damage was done. Poor boy, braking a leg- it's the sharpest pain you can feel."

I fly back up to where the action is. I'm hovering around Wood, and he calls to me.

"Oi! Ferret! Head in the game- you're Beater now. Go get the bat, and be bloody carful. You gotta take care of the big one." I don't even flinch. I shoot down back to Jimmy, pick up the bat he dropped, and find the gorilla. I don't play too close, but close enough that he can't do any real damage to our team.

And with that, it's an evenly matched game. George on the fast one, me matched against the big one, Oliver in goal, Angelina and Fred butting heads, Alicia in as a Chaser. Everything's right in the world. We play hard and fast and true. The score is close- neck and neck for the next hour. George and I are the perfect team, were in sync the whole time. Shots are being fired left and right, and goals keep racking up on both sides.

Then George and I get taken out for a while, the match is going longer than usual. Jimmy's not with the team, he's in the infirmary. Everyone's talking about it, saying the Slytherins did it on purpose, and they were all out to injure us, break our team and win the cup at the end of the year. They've always won the cup, for years they've had this streak. I know Fred would never intentionally hurt someone. I don't think anyone would.

I keep thinking about what Madam Pomfrey said. "Sharp pain," she said. She said it really shouldn't have happened. That he shouldn't have been that hurt. I made him play on the gorilla. I'm the reason he broke his leg. It's just like Fred said...the tea leaves were right.

So that means...I look over at George, and catch him looking at me too. I wanna say something to him, but now's not the time. I drop the thought and take about a half hour off until I get put back in, still as a Beater. The gorilla's out, and I have a new person to play on. It's a second year girl like me- were the youngest fliers in at the moment, since George is still out. The rest are older, bigger, faster, everything. That's okay by me, I'll do my job and I know my teammates will do theirs.

The game is tied and Slytherin has possession. The team captain, a seventh year, has the quaffle and is going at the goal. We're all doing our part. I'm hovering around one of our Chassers, and I knock a bludger away from her, giving her the chance to try and steal the quaffle. She misses though, and I know I have to do something before Slytherin gets another shot off. But that Bludger is going after the girl again, so I drop beneath her.

"Hey! Hey! Fly under their captain- like way under. I'll cover you," I shout. She does as I asked, drops low beneath the action and races forward, until she's beneath the chaser who has the quaffle. The bludger is right on her tail, like I hoped.

"Break!" I shout, and she veers away. I swoop in low, and hit the bludger straight up at the boy with the quaffle. It doesn't hit him, but flies in front of him. He jerks back, and the bludger hones in on him, giving one of our chasers the chance to ram him and take the quaffle. I follow her as she goes for goal, block her from a bludger, and she scores, putting us ahead.

Lee and all the Gryffindors go wild, but it's a short lived victory. I saw it happen- Charlie had the snitch. It was in his hand. One more second and we would have had it. But Slytherin. Damn, they're geniuses. The keeper, he got the quaffle after the goal. Threw it to one of his beaters. The beater winds up and throws it at Charlie. Right at him. Hits his wrist. Not hard enough to break it, but enough that he doesn't catch the snitch. This gives their seeker just enough time to swoop in, catch the snitch, and win the game for them.

If we hadn't just lost, I'd think it was beautiful.

I slowly lower myself to the ground. I'm ashamed- I feel like I should have done something more. All the Slytherins are cheering, while the Gryffindors are less enthusiastic, mumbling. But then the older chaser lands next to me. Maxine. She puts her broom down, looks at me smiling, and starts clapping.

Then Charlie lands- same thing: he pats me on the back and then claps. The entire team is surrounding me, either landing or pourng out of the area reserved for teammembers who aren't playing. The make a circle around me and Max, cheering for us. Then I see him, he's beaming at me, coming over. He's opening his mouth- he wants to tell me something.

I take a step towards him as he lands, drops his broom, and pushes past George and some others. Oliver picks me up and swings me in a circle, and I shriek and laugh while everyone cheers. He passes me off to the team, who hold me high and carry me through the tunnel. I look back and see George, and Fred next to him- Fred's patting his brother's back. I get put down, Oliver tousles my hair and tells me I was "brilliant".

But then it's down to business. Wood gets a serious tone and everyone gets quiet and were down to business. Oliver talks about what we did wrong, why we lost, and how it was a crime. Everyone claps for Maxine, who technically got us the lead, and Charlie, who almost won it for us. Should have won it for us. Then we talk about how Jimmy's out for the season, and how I'm getting his Beater spot. How I earned it today. I'm smiling at Oliver when he says it. We make plans to increase practice time so we can redeem ourselves next match, and then we disperse.

I'm waiting to be alone with Oliver when Geroge comes up to me. He opens his mouth to say something, but I'm so excited I talk first.

"You were great- thanks so much for going with me on the switch, it worked perfect!" He doesn't look as happy as I thought he would, but he makes a funny face and shoves me playfully.

"Yeah, proved yourself a real Beater, finally. We'll make a good team."

I shove him back. "I wasn't trying to prove anything- I wanted to get Peakes to start focussing on the gorilla. Make him less of a threat to Angelina." The person talking to Oliver leaves, so Oliver turns his attention to me. I look up at him and flash him a smile, and he laughs.

"Guess it worked out for you," George mutters, walking away from me and Oliver. That was rude, and a little hurtful. But it's not important.

"Well, you've convinced me," Oliver says with a grin.

"I told you I would," I respond. I can't even contain myself anymore, and I jump up into a hug, my arms around his shoulders. He swings me around again, puts me down with a laugh, and messes my hair up.

"I'll see you at practice, Jo," he says, and I turn to leave. As I go he gives my ponytail a little jerk, I burst out in giggles again. He laughs, and I leave.

Fred was right the first time, about the "sharp pain". Maybe this is what he meant by the second part...