Another Quidditch chapter. And Cho Chang is back as a POV.

Life at Hogwarts continues despite the Chamber of Secrets being opened. And life for wizards and witches necessarily includes Quidditch.

CHO II

She begrudgingly put some more smashed eggs in her plate. Cho didn't have much of an appetite today. On the other side of the Great Hall, the Slytherins were doing quite loud noises. She noticed that they got noisier on the eve of Quidditch games. It was probably a way to intimidate their opponents before the game begins.

"Don't pay attention to them," Roger said, taking a bite of bacon. "They're loud, that's all. Being loud doesn't mean a thing on the pitch."

He could tell that, but Cho was indeed intimidated. It would be the first time she would face the team of Slytherin, and with their brand new Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones. Her own Comet Two Sixty paled in comparison. Every Ravenclaw who walked in the alley encouraged her. Even Cedric Diggory, the Seeker for Hufflepuff, came to wish her good luck.

Sooner this year, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff faced each other in their first match of the season. The Hufflepuff team had a new Seeker, Cedric Diggory, who was a year ahead of Cho. She had already heard about him. It was already difficult to find a girl at Hogwarts who had not heard of Cedric Diggory. Cho herself had to admit she wasn't immunized to his charm. He was already expected to become Prefect next year, and perhaps captain of the Hufflepuff team when their current captain would leave Hogwarts. He and Cho faced each other in November, and it was Cho who caught the Golden Snitch, earning Ravenclaw a crushing victory against Hufflepuff, which was nothing new. Despite this, Cedric had come to congratulate her and shook her hand at the end of the game. There wasn't a trace of spite or grudge in him. Cho had to admit she blushed when he congratulated her.

Cho had played two games of Quidditch so far. The first was last year against Gryffindor, but she wasn't facing their real Seeker. She won against Hufflepuff this year, but they were not reputed for their skills. Today, they would face Slytherin, the first real challenge Cho had to face as a Seeker. She had to admit that she was afraid. Her friends might try to encourage her, she could feel the uncertainty in their voices, their hugs and their taps on her back. They were afraid for her as well. Slytherins were known for their violent gameplay style. Games involving their team were those with the most injuries. The fact they had better broomsticks than any Ravenclaw player didn't ease the pressure on Cho and her teammates. But they had to win that game.

Ravenclaw was for now engaged in a race to the championship with Gryffindor. Both teams won their first match. If Ravenclaw defeated Slytherin today, Flint's team would lose all chances of winning the Quidditch Cup this year. Cho and her friends would only have to worry about defeating Gryffindor in their last game during the spring. Cho had to admit that she wished she would face the Gryffindors today. The odds against this team were not that batter than against Slytherin, but at least they played fairly.

Gryffindors had managed to defeat Slytherins in the very first game of the season, despite the superiority of their broomsticks and a Bludger that was clearly tampered with since it only targeted Gryffindor's Seeker. In the end of the game, their Chasers even completely turned down the tide of the game. Before the game, everyone in Hogwarts was certain that the Slytherin team would win, but the Gryffindors had destroyed this myth of invincibility. As a result, Trevor had them training very hard before this game. He said that if Oliver Wood's team could defeat Slytherin, they could as well. The team wanted to beat Slytherin, and the whole school wanted them to defeat them as well. Cho could feel a general consensus around Hogwarts, where students wished that Slytherin would be crushed once again today, and that the last game of the season would showcase a final for the Quidditch Cup between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, without any fear of Slytherin winning due to points differentiation like last year. After watching Slytherin lose the House Cup last year, everyone now wanted them to lose the Quidditch Cup as well.

Cho wanted Slytherin to lose too, and she wanted to defeat Draco Malfoy. She didn't know him much, but from what little she knew, this boy was horrible. She was there when he shouted that soon Mudbloods would be targeted, after they all found Mrs Norris. Cho had been terrified by this finding. She wasn't Muggle-born, her parents were both wizards working for the Ministry of Magic, but some of her friends were. By chance, so far, no student from Ravanclaw had been targeted.

Cho chased these ideas from her head. She needed to clear her mind for the Quidditch game. For now, the only thing that mattered was winning against Slytherin. She forced herself to eat. It wasn't the first time she would play Quidditch. She won two games out of two. She was so far undefeated. And she had a strategy to counter the superior speed of the Nimbus Two Thousand and One.

"Okay, team," Trevor said at around ten o'clock. "Everyone to the pitch."

Cho just finished her plate. She stood up.

"Good luck, Cho," Marietta told her. Many other girls and boys of Ravenclaw told her the same thing as she followed her teammates.

The whole Slytherin team stood up at the same time. Both teams arrived in front of the doors of the Great Hall at the same time. They faced each other, seven players on each side. Cho could feel the gazes of everyone in the Great Hall on them. For once, she was glad that there was no other girl on the team. There had been a brawl between the teams of Gryffindor and Slytherin early in the season. The Slytherin players barely received a few scratches while the Gryffindors ended up in the infirmary with broken bones. The Slytherins had seven players who looked like they were built in the rock. Cho's teammates were not so well-knit, but they were still stronger than she was. She barely reached the shoulders of the smallest. She was glad that she could count on their help, because right now she was afraid.

"Afraid to walk through this door, Memphis?" Marcus Flint, captain of Slytherin, asked with a grin. "Or are you finally letting your superiors walk ahead of you?"

All the players with the snake badge laughed. Cho wouldn't be surprised if the so-called heir of Slytherin was among them.

"You're superior, I'll give it to you," Trevor replied. "For all but one muscle." He pointed to his head.

Cho's teammates laughed, but she didn't. She didn't want to provoke the Slytherins, and from the look on their faces, they weren't pleased. But Flint made a sneer appear on his face. "We'll see how clever you'll look on the pitch."

He and his team walked through the doors. Draco Malfoy, the Seeker of Slytherin, looked at Cho in disdain. He probably only saw her as a pretty little girl, like so many people did. Yes, indeed, they would see each other on the terrain. She would show that pampered boy what little girls could do.

While walking through the school's grounds to the changing rooms of the Quidditch pitch, Cho took in the grey atmosphere of the day. She hoped she could make this day merrier before its end, but before, she had to catch the Snitch. The ground was muddy under their boots, and Cho felt water getting inside. In the changing rooms, everyone changed in silence, only exchanging words in low voices. Cho mostly talked with Roger.

"We can win," he said excitedly, but also on a clear stressful tone. "If Gryffindor defeated them, we can."

"Yes, we can," Cho said on a very low tone as well, while arranging her hair in a ponytail. She couldn't let her hair fall free during a Quidditch game, or else it would fly all over her face and obstruct her vision.

"Don't forget out strategy, Cho."

"I know, Roger. We've been practicing it for weeks. I can do it."

"Be careful about the other players. Slytherins are vicious. It's not like the Gryffindors or the Hufflepuffs. If they can harm you, they'll do it."

"I know, Roger."

She tried to be patient with him, but sometimes Roger was just a little too gummy. Though he seemed sincerely worried for her. She was flattered, in some way, but they were about to play a game, and the pitch was no place for flirting. Cho wondered if it was Roger who sent her the Valentine two weeks ago.

"Everyone, listen up!" Trevor Memphis, their captain, got their attention. Chasers, Beaters, Keeper, Seeker, it didn't matter. They all listened to their captain. Trevor seemed quite under stress. "Look, I know we won against Hufflepuff, but today will be a very different game. You know what we are up against. The Slytherins will not show us any mercy, so we must not show them any. We score points at any occasion, we throw them as many Bludgers as we can, and we catch the Golden Snitch. We must not let go of this game."

He looked to the floor. "Look, everyone. We almost had the Cup last year. Ten points. That's all that separated us from Slytherin. And this year, they might have better broomsticks and a new Seeker, but we've seen who they really were at their previous game. They are not the best players. They had everything in their favor last time, including a rogue Bludger that only targeted the other Seeker, and yet they lost. We can defeat them, just like the Gryffindors did. Last year, we could challenge the Gryffindors at our game. We still can this year. And we can still defeat Slytherin. We will defeat Slytherin! And we will get the Quidditch Cup!"

"YEAH!"

"Now let's show these trolls how real Quidditch players win!"

"YEAH!"

Trevor's speech was galvanizing. They followed him through the small passage leading from the changing rooms to the pitch, Cho behind everybody.

"HELLO, EVERYONE."

The voice of the commentator, Lee Jordan, reached their ears just as they mounted their broomsticks. One by one, they kicked the ground and flew into the stadium under the deafening cheers of the crowd. Cho flew through the opening, the grey sky almost looking sunny in comparison to the inside of the changing rooms.

"I am Lee Jordan, and welcome to Hogwarts' third Quidditch game of the season. Today, Slytherin versus Ravenclaw."

Cho flew around the stadium under the deafening sounds of the school's students and staff. If something could reunite everyone in Hogwarts at one very place, aside from banquets, it was a Quidditch match.

"For the Ravenclaw team, the Chasers, Roger Davies, Randolph Burrow, and the team's captain, Trevor Memphis. Grant Page as the Keeper. Duncan Inglebee and Jason Samuels as Beaters. And as the Seeker, the only girl in the team, Cho Chang."

The announcement provided her a morale boost as three quarters of the crowd waved banners, pennants and flags with the effigy of Ravenclaw. Cho waved at her friends in the section with the Ravenclaw students, like before any game. Marietta was wearing a scarf with an eagle, screaming at her. Cho always managed to find her, no matter the crowd in which she hid.

"For the Slytherin team," the commentator resumed, on a much less joyful tone, "their captain Marcus Flint, along with Adrian Pucey and Graham Montague are their Chasers. Peregrine Derrick and Lucian Boyle are the Beaters. Kevin Bletchley is the Keeper. And for their Seeker, Draco Malfoy."

A quarter of the crowd erupted in noises of support. Cho took a look at the Slytherins on their broomsticks. Even from her perspective as she was flying, they were obviously faster than any other player she played against. They were also muscular. Cho knew for a certainty that she wouldn't make it if the confrontation ever got physical. She reminded herself of her strategy. She spent so much time perfecting it with Roger. She had to follow it, at all costs, and then they could win. She saw Harry beat Malfoy to the Golden Snitch, despite an inferior broom, a broken arm and a Bludger going after him relentlessly. She could do it.

The players met near the central circle. Trevor and Marcus Flint shook hands. Cho looked ahead and met the eyes of the Seeker for Slytherin. Malfoy was definitely the smallest player on his team. Cho wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing. On one side, it meant he didn't overpower her physically by such a large margin, but he was still taller and stronger than she was. At the same time, it also made him faster than if he was heavy like his comrades. Cho gripped the handle of her Comet Two Sixty very strong, readying herself for one of the most important games of her life. Looking at Malfoy sneering in derision at her and her broomstick, feeling all superior, she just had one envy in this very moment. To crush him. She seldom began a game with such a thought, but today she did.

"THE QUAFFLE IS RELEASED! THE GAME BEGINS!"

Cho flew forward right when Jordan said so. For a moment, she saw a flash of fear in Malfoy's eyes as she flew right past him and began searching for the Golden Snitch. She scrutinized the pitch while Lee Jordan was commenting on how the game was going on below.

"Flint has the Quaffle... He flies through the Ravenclaws players and... He avoids a Bludger... He's right in front of the goalposts... Oh, what a catch!"

Cho shot a glance at her team's scoring area. Grant was holding the Quaffle. He managed to stop it, despite Flint crossing half the pitch to cast the red ball into one of their three circles. Grant sent the Quaffle back to Roger.

"Davies with the Quaffle... Flies in diagonal... He makes a pass on his right to Burrow... Burrow is new this year... He played very well against Hufflepuff... But he loses the Quaffle to Pucey... Pucey then passes it to Flint... Who avoids a Bludger... He's in the scoring area... He shoots... And No, Page got it again!"

The crowd cheered at seeing Cho's teammate stop the shoots at their goalposts.

In the meantime, Cho had gotten closer to Draco Malfoy. She approached him from behind, from below, so he wouldn't see her, like she trained with Roger. She could see he was looking for the Snitch. Cho was looking for it too, but she had another objective. Malfoy's broomstick was faster than hers, but she could limit, even annul the advantages that the Slytherin Seeker had. She boosted her broom to its maximum and flew right before Malfoy. She heard with pleasure his scream as she cut him in his path and was now in front of him. Cho proceeded to search the Golden Snitch, while remaining aware of her opponent behind.

"Davies got the Quaffle again... He passes to Memphis... Memphis avoids Flint... But Pucey takes the Quaffle... Only to lose it to Burrow... Burrow is flying right to the goalposts... He passes to Davies... Davies avoids a Bludger... Flint and Montague are on him... Davies throws the Quaffle..."

Cho looked in the direction of the Slytherin scoring area. She saw the red ball entering the right ring from a very improbable angle. Roger had been practicing scoring points from such angles since the practices resumed after their first game, but she didn't think he would actually try it during a game. From this angle, his window opening was barely the length of the Quaffle. And from such a distance, it was a miracle that the red ball did make it through the ring that Cho was surprised when the crowd roared.

"Roger Davies scores! Ten points for Ravenclaw!"

The crowd roared again at Jordan's announcement. Cho herself raised her hand and cheered Roger. They scored the first points of the game.

"Must be proud of yourself, heh, Chang!"

A green trail flew right past her, hitting her with the elbow in the process. Cho deviated from her trajectory a little but recovered quite quickly. She trailed Malfoy once more. She had let herself be distracted by the rest of the game. She focused again on what was important: finding and catching the Snitch, and preventing Malfoy from doing so.

"Slytherin recovers the Quaffle... Bletchley sends it to Montague... Montague avoids Davies... And a Bludger... Makes a pass to Flint... Memphis is on him... Flint accelerates... Makes a pass to... Burrow intercepts... He avoids a Bludger, and... OH!"

The whistle sounded through the pitch. One of the Slytherin Beaters tried to hit Randolph with his bat. Cho's team got a penalty. Randolph positioned himself in the central circle, on an altitude just a little over the central ring, which was the highest. Chasers often did this because it was easier to reach your target if you shot from above than from below. The flags with eagles were waved in the air as people encouraged Ravenclaw's youngest Chaser. Cho thought she saw him, even from a distance, take a deep breath before he flew right towards the goalposts of Slytherin. Randolph took a turn to his left, heading for the lowest ring. Bletchley positioned himself just at the right time to stop his shot. Only, Randolph didn't shoot in that ring. Instead, he braked abruptly, then targeted the central ring. Bletchley, panicking, flew to it... only for Burrow to redirect on the left ring at the last moment.

CLING!

The sound of another goal was joined by the cries and shouts of the crowd.

"Wow! Burrow really got Bletchley on this one. 20-0 for Ravenclaw. It seems like good broomsticks are not enough to win, heh?"

The commentator was clearly on their side for this game. Cho didn't blame him. Everyone hated Slytherin. The game had barely started again that Cho willingly cut Malfoy's trajectory, forcing him to brake again. Their Seeker used words Cho would never dream of using in front of anybody. She kept looking for the Snitch as Marcus Flint took the Quaffle. He headed towards Ravenclaw's positions with the two other Chasers right behind him, lending the Quaffle to Pucey in the process. The three Chasers flew through the pitch. Roger, Randolph and Trevor all tried to stop them, but they either missed them or entered in collision, and since the Slytherin players were better built, they pushed back Cho's comrades easily. Duncan and Jason tried to stop them with Bludgers, but they only managed to throw Flint off course. Pucey entered the scoring area, but Grant faced him. Pucey simply turned and kicked the Quaffle towards Montague who hit it with his fist closed and scored in the central ring.

The green section of the stadium erupted in cheers while the rest booed or remained silent. It was now 20-10 for Ravenclaw.

"Are all your players such girls?" Malfoy mocked her as he went past her. Cho retaliated in accelerating and blocking his path once again. "I'm going to drop you out of your broomstick, tiny girl!"

As Cho kept blocking and cutting Malfoy's trajectory, the boy with blond hair turned more and more frustrated. This was in part what they relied on. If their Seeker was distracted, he had fewer chances to catch the Golden Snitch. Cho continued to scan the pitch in the meantime, looking for the small golden ball.

The Slytherins didn't have much time to celebrate though. Grant sent the Quaffle to Trevor who raised his arm. Roger and Randolph immediately understood what he meant. While continuing to search for the Golden Snitch, Cho couldn't stop herself from looking at the Chasers of her team performing the maneuver they developed after hours and hours of training. They started by gaining altitude. They passed the Quaffle between each other as they did so, preventing the Slytherins from getting it away from them.

Chasers were not used to gaining so much altitude that they would fly over the top of the towers surrounding the pitch. And since the Slytherins were not prepared to this maneuver and didn't understand why Trevor, Roger and Randolph flew upward instead of forward, towards the goalposts of Slytherin, they struggled to keep up. The Beaters of Ravenclaw used this confusion to throw Bludgers that sent the Slytherins further into disarray. The Chasers of Cho's team got so high that they were almost at twice the altitude of the towers' top. Then they plunged, gaining speed that even the Slytherins with their Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones could not hope to match as they stayed below. Trevor, their captain, had the Quaffle.

"Look at that! He's going so fast!" Lee Jordan was yelling in the microphone. "And he's..."

Trevor threw the Quaffle in front of him and hit it with his fist, adding even more speed to it. Bletchley was right in front of the ring the red ball headed to, but it was so fast and Trevor was so close that the Keeper couldn't stop it. The Quaffle bounced on his shoulder and got through the ring. The sound of a goal was more satisfying than ever, and the cheers that accompanied it as well. 30-10 for Ravenclaw.

Cho thought that it was clear now for the Slytherins that whatever advantage they believed they had, they lost it. The players from their house were heavier than those of Cho's team, negating a part of the superior speed and agility their Nimbus provided. Plus, Ravenclaw had found ways to surpass the performance Slytherins could reach by using simple laws of aerodynamics. As Trevor Memphis said, and on that he was in line with Oliver Wood, the captain of Gryffindor, bigger muscles didn't matter when the muscle in your head was lightweight.

Slytherins started to make their play more aggressive. Flint, Montague and Pucey flew together in a packed group, their Beaters in front of them, intimidating Ravenclaw's Chasers. Despite this, Trevor flew right to them, attempting to take away the Quaffle. Right after him came a Bludger that put Pucey off course, while one of the Beaters for Slytherin hit the other that knocked Roger off course as well as he tried to remove the Quaffle from their possession. When Montague and Flint arrived close to the scoring area, Flint sent the Quaffle to Montague, who deviated the Quaffle in a direction Grant didn't expect. Slytherin scored, bringing the game to 30-20 for Ravenclaw.

Cho saw something glittering near the goalposts of her team, close to where Grant was flying. She plunged in that direction just as she cut Malfoy's line of flight once again. She heard the boy first raging vocally, then a sound that could be nothing else but the acceleration of his Nimbus. In the meantime, her team tried to bring the Quaffle to the Slytherin zone in vain.

"Memphis to Davies... Davies to... Flint intercepts... He rushes to the goalposts of Ravenclaw... Wait, the Seekers are there!"

Cho realized at the last moment that the glittering she noticed was just the reflection of a glint on Grant's watch. Somehow, a ray of sun had managed to get through the clouds. She straightened her broomstick to climb back, but Malfoy didn't follow her. He continued on his path... and heavily hit his captain who lost the Quaffle. Randolph recovered it and sent it to their Keeper, who immediately threw it back at Trevor.

"Memphis heads for the opposite goalposts... He avoids a Bludger... He sends the Quaffle to Davies who's ahead... Davies gives everything he got... He shoots... He scores!"

It was 40-20 for Ravenclaw. Cho continued to look for the Snitch. For a short moment, she didn't trail Malfoy and focused all her attention on finding the small ball that would give her team one hundred and fifty points.

The Chasers of Slytherin were losing the hand. When they counter-attacked, the Quaffle changed between teams four times before Montague finally brought it into the scoring area of Ravenclaw... only to have Madam Hooch whistle.

"Penalty to Ravenclaw for stooging. More than one Chaser entered their scoring area."

Cho didn't see, as she was looking for the Snitch while resuming to follow Malfoy, but the green supporters were clearly unhappy about this, and so was their team. Malfoy threw her a look that suggested he wanted to kill her. Cho started to wonder if it was such a good thing to block his path all the time.

Trevor took the penalty and flew towards the right ring this time. He took some altitude at the same time, then abruptly changed his direction towards the left ring. Bletchley remained around the central ring, probably waiting to see where Trevor Memphis would shoot. Probably seeing Bletchley wasn't moving, Trevor made it for the left ring towards which he was flying. However, Bletchley proved that his Nimbus Two Thousand and One had some usefulness. He extended his hand as he tried desperately to block the Quaffle and deviated it just enough for the red ball to hit the frame and bounce outside the goalpost. Cho's captain had failed at his penalty shot.

This didn't help much though. When Bletchley sent the Quaffle towards his own captain, Trevor intercepted it and, this time, he scored. It was 50-20 for Ravenclaw.

Malfoy renewed his use of elbows to get Cho far from him, while Cho stubbornly maintained the pressure to hinder her opponent's movements. Malfoy grew so frustrated that he seized the tail of her broom and tried to send her spinning. But Cho, despite her small frame, was not light enough to allow a boy like Malfoy to do it. He remained one year younger than she was. All he got from that was another penalty against his team, and a yelling from his captain who was about to score when that penalty was called.

"Catch the Snitch, you stupid idiot!"

And while Flint was yelling at his Seeker, Roger took the penalty and tried another one of his impossible shots from an impossible angle. This time, he first flew downward towards the goalposts, then he climbed back until he was at the central ring's level when he reached the scoring area. Then he kept climbing and tried to score in diagonal through the right ring, which he failed. Cho didn't think he would have succeeded even if Bletchley didn't catch the Quaffle.

Slytherin had recovered the red ball and was now launching a counter-offensive. It was at this moment that Cho saw it. The Golden Snitch just appeared next to the benches of Slytherin. She looked at Malfoy, who was flying a little ahead, up from her position, on her left. She accelerated and blocked him, then she dived straight towards the Snitch, who was now moving along the benches. He was in front a section that displayed Hufflepuff colors, even though it was occupied by students from Slytherin. This made keeping an eye on the Snitch more difficult because of the black and yellow sigil of this house. Cho nonetheless accelerated. In the meantime, a cling and the commentator's voice announced that Slytherin just scored ten points, bringing the total score to 50-30, but she didn't care as her whole attention was on the Snitch.

But Malfoy caught up with her, almost ramming into her, then giving her a nudge. Cho maintained her trajectory as much as she could. She approached the benches dangerously, but she didn't slow down. In a last effort, she gave everything her Comet could provide and brought her hand forward. The Snitch was just against the walls of the stadium. She turned to her right slightly. She closed her hand. Then someone pushed her to the side, and she went head first against the wall.

A great surge of pain went through her head. She heard sounds that looked like screams and cries. Then she felt she was falling into the void, darkness surrounding her. Then she felt she hit something on her stomach and lost consciousness. The last thing she remembered was the small ball with wings vibrating into her closed fist.

When Cho opened her eyes, she was blinded by the light and closed them right away. She tried to raise her hand to protect her eyes, but got immediately dizzy and let it fall back against the mattress. "Whe... Where... am I?"

Her voice sounded soggy, and as if it came from another world. Cho closed her eyes. The light hurt. She tried to say something again, but felt she couldn't. She slowly brought her hand to her cheek, and realized it was thick and soft there.

"Hey, she's waking up," she heard a voice say next to her. It made her ears vibrate. A high-pitched sound went through them. She brought her hand to her right ear, with considerable efforts. She was breathing with difficulty.

"Finally!"

"We thought you wouldn't make it."

"Don't say that, Duncan. She's tougher than she looks."

"Cho, are you alright?"

She tried to open her eyes again, but the light still hurt too much. She just got a glimpse long enough to see several figures and faces staring down at her. She tried to say something, but all she could come up with were sounds that were incomprehensible even to herself.

"She doesn't look very fine."

"Oh, shut up, Jason."

"What do you expect? She rammed head first into a wall at full speed."

"Yeah, try to say something intelligible after that. Though for you, it might look like an improvement..."

People laughed around her. Cho found herself laughing, which she regretted immediately for it caused a sharp pain in her abdomen.

"She's woken up?" a sharp feminine voice suddenly said.

"Yes, Madam Pomfrey. But..."

"Get out of the way!"

Everything was very silent all of a sudden, aside from small sounds of feet against the floor. Cho felt someone was gently taking her head and turning it on the side.

"Can you open your eyes, dear?" the sharp voice from before, now gentle, asked.

Cho tried again, but her eyelids shut down right away.

"Light hurts, doesn't it?"

Cho tried to nod from the head.

"Don't push yourself, young woman. You've got a severe concussion, and a few broken ribs. I administered to you the right potions and the right charms. Now we must let them do their work. You'll feel better tomorrow."

Cho wasn't sure if she understood everything, but she remembered hearing the authoritative voice ordering everyone out of somewhere before she fell into darkness once again.

She made very strange dreams that she barely managed to understand, and when she finally woke up, she didn't remember them. She found it difficult to open her eyes, but the light didn't hurt as much as before.

"You should have seen Draco Malfoy after the game. I think he would rather be in the same state as yours right now. Flint was yelling at him so loud that he sounded like a Mandrake."

Cho blinked. Who was talking to her? It was a male voice, but it wasn't one of her teammates.

"Truth be told, now that I think about it, Flint does look like a Mandrake."

Cho couldn't avoid laughing. It barely hurt this time.

"Cho? You've woken up?"

She finally looked in the direction where the voice was coming from. Sitting on a chair at the feet of her bed, a tall boy with chiselled features and dark hair was looking at her with his deep grey eyes.

"Cedric?" She barely recognized her own voice. She realized her throat was parched.

"Hey. Hi, Cho."

"What are you..." She tried to sit, but fell back immediately on the mattress, a flash of pain going through her body, from her waist to her head.

"Hey, go easy." He approached his chair and leaned so his face was very close to hers. Then he whispered. "Madam Pomfrey only allowed me to see you if I didn't disturb you. She might kick me out when she finds out I've woken you up."

Cho looked around. A clear light came from the windows. They had to be early in the morning. "What are you doing here?" she asked, looking at Cedric again. She saw him smile timidly, then look down at the floor.

"I'm paying a visit to a fellow Seeker. I mean, we all get our share of injuries. I thought I might at least check how you were doing."

She didn't understand. "What happened?"

Cedric frowned. "You don't remember?"

Cho closed her eyes under the effort. "I... We were playing against Slytherin, that's it?"

"Yes. And you played very well."

"So... we won?"

He looked surprised. "You won? Of course, you won. Two hundred to thirty, final score. And thanks to you."

"I got the Snitch?"

Cedric looked worried now. "Oh, so Madam Pomfrey wasn't joking about your concussion. Yes, you got it. You got it so well that you smashed head first against the walls of the stadium at full speed and fell in the trench, the one around the pitch. You broke your back against one of the beams. Your teammates were really worried about you."

Cho closed her eyes. Pieces of the game came back to her. She did remember closing her hand around the Snitch. She thought it was just before everything went dark. She sighed in relief and happiness. They had won.

"We defeated Slytherin," she said, smiling despite herself.

"I understand why you're happy. It seems like their great broomsticks are not making much of a difference finally."

She did it. They did it. They won against Slytherin. The championship was at hand for Ravenclaw. Slytherin would not win the Quidditch Cup this year. It was time, since they won it for the last six years.

"Well, I was just paying you a visit. I'm glad to see that you feel better. Take care, Cho."

She heard Cedric getting up. She opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Cedric. Thank you. For visiting me."

He smiled at her. It caused her to blush. "Between Seekers, sometimes we must stick together."

He walked away and went to the office of Madam Pomfrey. "She's woken up, Madam."

"Thank you for telling me, Cedric."

The Healer got out of her office and came to Cho. Cedric left the infirmary, sending a last wave of hand to Cho. She thought she blushed further.

"So, how are you feeling, Miss Chang?"

"A little better," she replied, bringing her hand to her head. She then realized it was covered in bandages.

"Concussion," the Healer told her. "Not to be taken lightly."

"How much time do I have to stay here?"

"You should be able to leave in the evening. In the meantime, you just rest. Your ribs are almost completely healed, but the head is the most important. You stay on your back until I say you can stand up."

She proceeded to a few examinations on Cho, asking her for example to tell how many fingers she saw, or what she saw when a point of light was directed in her eyes. Madam Pomfrey seemed to be satisfied with her answers, though she told her to be more careful the next time she played Quidditch. It was easier to say than to do, especially when you played against Slytherin. At least, her next game would be against Gryffindor, and this team played much more along the rules than her recent adversaries.

Lying in her bed, Cho had a lot of time to ponder on the next game. They had won their first two games. Gryffindor would play in two weeks against Hufflepuff. Despite Cedric being kind, she didn't see how his team could win against Oliver Wood's. After all, they had the only Seeker in Hogwarts, aside from herself, who stood undefeated.

She thought about Cedric. He had come to see if she weas alright. It was very kind of him. She should have told him... She should have wished him good luck for his match against the Gryffindors. She would have to do it when she got out of the infirmary. But why did he come to see that she was alright? Perhaps it was like he said, Seekers had to stand together, sometimes. It was strange to say that, given all their teams where opponents, but at the same time it was true that Seekers had a lot in common, including the risks they assumed, being main targets during games. Cho's current predicament was proof enough of that. And after all, she went to visit Harry last year after the game he missed.

Cho wondered what it would be like to face Harry Potter. She had not faced him last year because he was injured. She faced Katie Bell instead, one of the Gryffindor's Chasers who played as the Seeker for this game. It had been Cho's first game, and she caught the Snitch, giving the second place in the championship to her house. She wished though she had waited for her team to have a higher advance before she caught the Golden Snitch. They could have won the Quidditch Cup then, instead of Slytherin. This year was their last chance at winning it while Trevor Memphis was their captain. He was in the team of Ravenclaw for four years now, and he never put his hand on the Cup. This year was really his last chance. Although Cho felt elated at knowing she had bested the Slytherins, she also felt additional pressure now. She would need to catch the Golden Snitch against Harry Potter, the only currently undefeated Seeker in Hogwarts aside from her.

Cho already began thinking about what she would need to do. Training would be more important than ever. Harry surely attended today's game. He certainly saw the tactic she used against Malfoy to deprive him of the advantages his Nimbus Two Thousand and One provided. She couldn't use the same tactic against Harry. He would know what she was doing. Anyway, he had a Nimbus Two Thousand, which her own Comet Two Sixty could more easily challenge. A different tactic would certainly be in order. Still, when she recalled all of Harry's games so far, she was more worried about defeating his team than about defeating Slytherin. The Slytherins, in Roger's own words, were bullies and trolls who happened to know how to fly, and who were subsidized by the father of a spoiled child. Cho didn't think that was exactly that. The players of Slytherin proved they could present a real challenge, including today, but it was true that this team used its muscles more than its agility or its brains. The Gryffindors, on the other end, used quite a different style of play. Their three Chasers were girls, which meant they relied more on speed and agility, a domain where they definitely held an advantage over Cho's comrades. Cho admired this team, truth be told. She wished there was at least one other girl playing for Ravenclaw. And there was their Seeker, of course, Harry, who managed to surprise everyone again this year by catching the Golden Snitch after a chase under the trench surrounding the pitch, and despite a broken arm and a rogue Bludger targeting him at all times. Cho would need to be prepared before she faced him. At the same time, she was excited. Comparing the behavior she witnessed with Harry on the pitch to Draco Malfoy's, she felt it would be very pleasant, and also challenging but in a positive sense, to compete against him. She wondered if he had come to see her while she was asleep, like she did for him last year and like Cedric just did for her.

Madam Pomfrey came to check on her a few times during the day. Cho's teammates and a couple of her friends also came to see her. In the evening, when the hour of dinner approached, she finally removed Cho's bandages around her head and made her walk a few steps. Cho still felt a little stiff and frail in her back, and her head turned a little when she stood up, but aside from that she felt very good. When she told so to Madam Pomfrey, she didn't question Cho's answers and let her go.

When Cho walked into the Great Hall, still a little light-headed, she was welcomed by an explosion of applauses and cheers from her comrades of Ravenclaw. Some people at the tables of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor joined them. Cho blushed under the reception.

"Hey, Cho. Welcome back among the living," Trevor told her as he escorted her to the table.

"It will take more than a small blow to this pretty head to lose her," Roger said while tapping her head, which caused Cho to wince.

"Leave her alone. She's still recovering," Marietta said. "Come on, Cho. We're all waiting for you."

Marietta just saved her life. Cho couldn't thank heavens enough to have such a friend. She ended up sitting next to her actual friends instead of her teammates from the Ravenclaw team. Given the small sensations she still had to her head, despite the healing potions and the care of Madam Pomfrey, she thought it might be better to sit with her friends who didn't happen to be Quidditch fans or who didn't always talk about it. And indeed, Marietta seemed to have guessed that, for none of them talked about Quidditch for the whole dinner. The closer they got to discussing Quidditch was when someone mentioned Cedric Diggory, which prompted a long discussion about him. Cho found herself at a loss of words while they discussed him, thinking about when Cedric came to visit her today. She told no one, not even Marietta, about this visit.

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