It was a mark of how much Professor McGonagall cared about Quidditch that she didn't give us homework in the week leading up to the matches.

"You've got a lot on your plate at the moment" she told our class, who couldn't quite believe it until she looked at each of the team members in the room and said "I really don't want to hand those cups over to Professor Snape, so make sure it stays in my office, please"

Snape was no less obviously partisan; he had booked the Quidditch pitch for Slytherin practice so often that the Gryffindors had difficulty getting on it to play. He was also turning a deaf ear to the many reports of Slytherin attempts to hex Gryffindor players in the corridors. When Katie turned up in the hospital wing with her eyebrows growing so thick and fast they obscured her vision and obstructed her mouth, Snape insisted that she must have attempted a Hair-thickening Charm on herself and refused to listen to the fourteen eyewitnesses who insisted they had seen the Slytherin first team Keeper, Miles Bletchley, hit her from behind with a jinx while she worked in the library. Andrew was also subjected to repeated leg locker curses wherever he went on Tuesday, but Snape said he must have just drunk a badly made potion and ignored everyone's protests.

I felt optimistic about our chances, we'd never lost to Avery's or Malfoy's teams after all. Ron still wasn't performing fantastically, though when he was focused, he proved he had something in him. I heard that at one reserve team practice, he had hung one-handed from his broom and kicked the Quaffle so hard away from the goalhoop that it soared the length of the pitch and through the centre hoop at the other end: this save compared favourably with one made recently by Barry Ryan, the Irish International Keeper, against Poland's top Chaser, Ladislaw Zamojski.

The one thing that was really worrying was how much Ron was allowing the tactics of the Slytherin reserve team to upset him before they even got on to the pitch. He had never endured a relentless campaign of insults, jeers and intimidation. When Slytherins, some of them seventh-years and considerably larger than he was, muttered as they passed in the corridors, 'Got your bed booked in the hospital wing, Weasley?' he didn't laugh, but turned a delicate shade of green. When Draco Malfoy imitated Ron dropping the Quaffle (which he did whenever they came within sight of each other), Ron's ears glowed red and his hands shook so badly that he was likely to drop whatever he was holding at the time, too.

October extinguished itself in a rush of howling winds and driving rain and November arrived, cold as frozen iron, with hard frosts every morning and icy draughts that bit at exposed hands and faces. The skies and the ceiling of the Great Hall turned a pale, pearly grey, the mountains around Hogwarts were snowcapped, and the temperature in the castle dropped so low that many students wore their thick protective dragonskin gloves in the corridors between lessons. The morning of the matches dawned bright and cold.

Demelza, Amy, and I got down to the Great Hall early, as it was always important to have a good, well filling breakfast before any Quidditch game. Not only do you need the energy, but the dopamine release from things like sausages, scrambled eggs and bacon can give you a huge mental boost. When Harry and Ron arrived and passed the Slytherin table there was an upsurge of noise. In addition to the usual green and silver scarves and hats, every one of them was wearing a silver badge in the shape of what seemed to be a crown. For some reason many of them waved at Ron, laughing uproariously.

"What's gotten into them?" asked Amy

"Don't even wonder" I said "it's probably their way of trying to get inside our heads. Best not to pay them any attention"

"Good thinking" Demelza said, and she stared down at her food with a determined look on her face.

They received a rousing welcome at the Gryffindor table, where everyone was wearing red and gold, but far from raising Ron's spirits the cheers seemed to sap the last of his morale; he collapsed on to the nearest bench looking as though he were facing his final meal.

'I must've been mental to do this,' he said in a croaky whisper. 'Mental.'

'Don't be thick,' said Harry firmly, passing him a choice of cereals, 'you're going to be fine. It's normal to be nervous.'

'I'm rubbish,' croaked Ron. 'I'm lousy. I can't play to save my life. What was I thinking?'

'Get a grip,' said Harry sternly. 'Look at that save you made with your foot the other day"

Ron turned a tortured face to Harry. That was an accident,' he whispered miserably. 'I didn't mean to do it - I slipped off my broom when none of the other reserves were looking and when I was trying to get back on I kicked the Quaffle by accident"

I exchanged a look with Demelza, Amy, and Andrew, who had arrived as Harry and Ron spoke those last two lines, biting my lip. This revelation dampened my mood slightly, but still, I really believed in Ron, and so did Harry, because he replied:

'Well, a few more accidents like that and the game's in the bag, isn't it?"

Hermione arrived at this point and sat down next to Ron

"How are you feeling?" she asked

'He's just nervous,' said Harry.

'Well, that's a good sign, I never feel you perform as well in exams if you're not a bit nervous,' said Hermione heartily "Anyway, I'm really looking forward to today, can't wait to smash a few goals past Sarah!"

"Make sure it's more than a few, and if you can make them hit her in the face on the way in, even better" said Amy darkly. "I really wish she wasn't a keeper, otherwise I'd be firing bludgers at her all day!"

"Me too!" said Andrew

Hello,' said a vague and dreamy voice from behind us. It was Luna, along with Matilda.

Many people were staring at Luna and a few were openly laughing and pointing; she had managed to procure a hat shaped like a life-size lion's head, which was perched precariously on her head.

'I'm supporting Gryffindor,' said Luna, pointing unnecessarily at her hat. 'Look what it does…'

She reached up and tapped the hat with her wand. It opened its mouth wide and gave an extremely realistic roar that made everyone in the vicinity jump.

"Me too" said Matilda, laughing "especially after seeing that"

'It's good, isn't it?' said Luna happily. 'I wanted to have it chewing up a serpent to represent Slytherin, you know, but there wasn't time. Anyway… good luck, Ronald!'