"Better make it count."
/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Harry gripped the broom tightly. He took a lap around the pitch, picking up speed until he went into a dive after an imaginary Snitch. As he pulled the handle of his broom up at the bottom of the dive, he was rocked by a jolt of pain in his chest.
Suddenly, he was panting for breath and relief from his pain as he landed his broom. Ginny was next to him in an instant, taking the broom out of his hand and replacing it with one of his pain relieving potions. He sat on the grass and drank it gratefully, gritting his teeth and squinting his eyes shut until he felt the pain beginning to ebb away.
"That bad?" Ginny asked delicately.
He grimaced and nodded. "It wasn't good."
"Where?"
Wordlessly, Harry traced the horizontal scar on his chest over his shirt, still breathing heavily from the sudden exertion.
"You've still got a week," Ginny said hopefully.
"Six days," Harry corrected, shaking his head in disappointment. "I want to play so badly, Gin. But I can't do that to you."
She sat down next to him. "You're not gonna have to make that decision. You've made it through everything else. You can make it through this, too."
He wished he shared her optimism. He supposed, after everything, this wouldn't be the most surprising recovery he'd made, but… it still didn't feel very likely. The pessimism helped him, so he'd hopefully be less disappointed if he couldn't play.
"If I can't play–"
"You're gonna play."
"You're still gonna win. And you're gonna look brilliant in front of the scouts."
That was the other thing weighing on him. Beyond wanting to play in this match because it was for a championship and his last ever match at Hogwarts, he wanted to play for all the scouts that would be there. And even more importantly, he wanted Ginny to be able to play Chaser rather than Seeker.
"Well, duh," Ginny replied, grinning proudly. "But still, you're gonna play."
He smiled and kissed her. "I love you, you know?"
She nodded. "I know. Still like hearing it though. And I love you too."
No matter how many times he heard it, his heart still skipped a beat every time she declared her love for him. "So I had an idea…"
Ginny tilted her head curiously. "I usually like your ideas."
"It involves breaking a couple rules."
"Like Amelia's rules for you?"
"No, not those."
"Oh," Ginny said before grinning wickedly. "Then when has that ever stopped us before?"
"I was really hoping you'd say that. So… all I'm gonna tell you for now is we're gonna sneak out tonight."
Her smile somehow got even brighter. "Mister Potter, is this something for our anniversary tomorrow?"
Harry laughed. "Maybe, Miss Weasley. But it is a surprise, so don't start interrogating me."
"Fine," Ginny replied, feigning disappointment before kissing him. "Can't wait. But we should probably go and work on that Charms essay before we go."
Harry groaned as she stood up, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. He would've been happy just staying on the pitch until they snuck out tonight. He slowly moved into a kneeling position and tried to stand, but his leg, the one he was still limping on, refused to cooperate.
Ginny saw and immediately held her hand out. Harry tried vainly a few more times to stand before accepting her help. She pulled him up easily, supporting him as he regained his balance now that he was standing.
"I'm gonna be here to help you whether you need it or not," she told him, both comforting and defiant.
He forced a smile and nodded, feeling the heavy weight of his mokeskin pouch against his chest as they left the stadium and began walking to the castle, hand in hand.
Amelia had told him that he could start flying slowly and see how his body reacted to it. He'd only had two days with pain in their first week back at Hogwarts, so they were all encouraged by his progress, but the issue he'd just experienced was a concerning setback. And that didn't even address the fact that his limp had barely improved since he'd started walking, and he couldn't stand up from the ground without help.
How was he supposed to get on one knee and propose to Ginny if he couldn't even stand back up? He wasn't even sure he could kneel without keeling over. The ring was in his mokeskin pouch. The plan, even before he bought it, was to propose to her on their anniversary. He'd still been planning on proposing tonight, after they snuck out, but… he was doubting himself now. She deserved the perfect proposal, and that didn't include him falling to the ground because his damn leg wasn't working properly.
The evening passed incredibly slowly. Ginny was eager with anticipation, and Harry did his best to match that, even though he was weighed down by the decision of what to do tonight. More than anything, he wanted to marry her, and that started with proposing. He just couldn't make up his mind if this was the right time.
Ginny was restless in their bedroom while they waited for the common room to empty. She polished both of their brooms and did her Care of Magical Creatures homework, which somehow, for a N.E.W.T. level class, was drawing a unicorn.
About a half hour before midnight, Harry finally stood up, closing Hogwarts: A History on the same page that he'd started on two hours earlier.
"Is it time?" Ginny asked excitedly.
He grinned in spite of the decision he was still wrestling with. "Yep. Let's go."
He removed the Invisibility Cloak from his pouch, careful not to accidentally knock out the ring box, and pulled it over both of them. The common room had completely cleared out, and the Fat Lady was sleeping when they walked through the portrait hole. The Marauder's Map showed that Peeves was in the library, while Filch and Mrs. Norris were puttering around near Ravenclaw Tower, so they had a clear shot to leave the castle.
They kept the cloak on while they crossed the grounds. Harry was very surprised that the gates were open. He'd just been thinking that they might not have actually been able to get out, having been trapped at Hogwarts one night last summer because the gate was shut. He wasn't about to question their luck at Hagrid forgetting to close the gates tonight though.
Ginny looked at him with a smile already on her face, even though she didn't know what the plan was yet. "Where are we going?"
Harry kissed her quickly. "I believe I still owe you a date."
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
"Why am I so nervous?"
"I don't know. Why are you so nervous?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and glared at Hermione, who was smirking proudly. "Very funny," she muttered.
"I thought so. You're not the only one who can make jokes, you know."
Ginny turned back to the mirror, doing her best to keep herself from punching Hermione. "It's stupid."
"What's stupid?"
"Me being nervous. I've known him for years. I've literally planned out dates with him since I was like five or six."
Hermione smiled at the idea. "It's not stupid. I think– actually, I know that you already care more about Harry than you ever cared about Dean or Michael. It's obvious just seeing you two together. And, even though you're not that little girl anymore, there's a part of you that remembers what it was like to be terrified around him because you fancied him so much. Just… don't forget who you are now. That's who Harry developed feelings for."
She nodded. "Still– we've already kissed a bunch and spent a lot of time together as a couple. This is just our first official date. It shouldn't be that big of a deal."
"It's not stupid for it to be a big deal. I guarantee you Harry's just as nervous as you are, and he's got it worse because he doesn't feel comfortable talking to Ron about any of it, so he's dealing with it by himself. But once you two get together and start your date, you'll both forget all about being nervous."
Ginny hadn't thought about it like that. If they were both nervous, it might actually make things go smoother. "You're right. We're gonna have a great day together," she said, sounding much more confident than she felt. "How do I look?"
Hermione grinned at her. "I'm just glad Harry's gonna be staring at you on the ground instead of on a broom because he won't be able to take his eyes off you."
Ginny laughed and gave Hermione a grateful hug before leaving the dormitory. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Harry waiting for her in the common room, staring at the fire. He barely moved when she sat next to him, but he almost jumped out of his skin when she whispered, "Is this what you planned for our date?"
"You almost killed me," Harry gasped, clutching at his heart. Ginny couldn't help but giggle at that. He was so adorable without even trying.
"Sorry," she finally said. "I just wanted to know if this was the big date."
The tips of Harry's ears turned red as he shook his head. "Er– no, that's not it. It's– well, we're going to Hogsmeade." Ginny already knew this, considering it was a Hogsmeade weekend, but she nodded along. "And I was thinking we could go to The Three Broomsticks together."
"Not Madam Puddifoot's?" Ginny asked teasingly.
Harry's face paled. "Merlin, no. I definitely think The Three Broomsticks is more our speed."
She grinned, and, just because she could, kissed him. "I couldn't agree more."
They took their time walking to Hogsmeade, holding hands the whole way. His hands were slightly clammy, and he kept glancing over at her when he thought she wasn't looking. He was very obviously nervous, which made her nerves feel more manageable somehow.
Their first stop was the pub, and they were lucky that Madam Rosmerta liked Harry so much because she directed them to a small table almost completely out of sight of the door and most of the patrons within the pub. They ordered two butterbeers, and, while they waited, Harry tried his best to make conversation.
"Have you been here before?" As soon as he said it, his face went very red, clearly realising how silly that sounded. Ginny didn't even have time to joke with him about it before he said, "Sorry, that was really stupid. I– I'm kinda nervous."
She couldn't hide her smile. "Really? I never would've guessed." He blushed even deeper, and she continued, "I'm nervous too, you know."
"You don't seem nervous."
She shrugged. "I definitely am. Just ask Hermione."
"Why are we so nervous? It's stupid, right?"
Ginny thought about it for a moment. "Hermione told me I was nervous because I cared more about you than other people I've dated. Maybe… that's true for both of us."
Harry nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."
She tried not to smile to brightly at Harry admitting he cared more about her than he ever had Cho. "But things have been great at school this week, right? So things shouldn't be different now that we're on a real date."
"Yeah, it's just–"
Harry was interrupted by Rosmerta bringing them two butterbeers. "Just…" Ginny probed.
Harry blushed again. "Just… I really like you. Like, a lot. And I don't wanna mess anything up." Quickly, as if it would muffle the words he'd just spoken, Harry took a large gulp from his butterbeer.
Ginny started to point out the foam moustache he had, but she stopped when she made a decision to stop being nervous. "I really like you a lot too. And I don't think you've gotta worry about messing things up at all."
Then she leaned over and kissed him, cleaning the foam off his lip. He smiled at her as she pulled back and took her hand that was on the table. His hand wasn't sweaty anymore. "That's a relief. Er– you've got something," he said, pointing at the foam that had transferred to her lips.
She laughed. "I think you're gonna have to kiss it off of me."
Harry grinned and started to lean over, all nervousness forgotten. "If that's what it's gonna take."
"You owe me a date?" Ginny asked curiously.
He nodded, looking slightly nervous, almost like their very first date. "Yeah. Back at Astoria's, before I left, we– we planned to go to Weymouth."
It all came rushing back to Ginny, and immediately, she hugged him tightly. "You remembered," she whispered.
"I wasn't gonna forget a second time," Harry replied, making her squeeze him even more tightly. "Can't really breathe, Gin," he added in a slightly breathless voice. Ginny quickly removed her arms, remembering the pain he'd been dealing with, but he didn't seem to be hiding any discomfort.
"Sorry. I– I just love you so much."
He kissed her softly. "I love you too. So… I'm still not allowed to apparate on my own, so you're gonna have to take care of it."
"Done," Ginny replied, locking arms with Harry. "Hold on," she warned before spinning on her heel. The world compressed and expanded, and then they were on the sandy beach near Weymouth.
They took the cloak off, and Harry glanced down at his watch. "It's midnight," he said. "Happy Anniversary."
Then he swept her into a deep kiss that left her lips slightly swollen as she grinned almost drunkenly back at him. "Happy Anniversary, babe."
"D'you feel like swimming?" Harry asked hopefully.
"It's gonna be cold," Ginny warned.
"And?"
"And I don't have a swimsuit."
He smiled suggestively. "I don't think that'll be a problem."
She laughed, never one to turn him down, especially for an idea as brilliant as this. "Alright, but when I freeze my bum off, it's your fault."
"I'll do my best to keep your bum warm then," Harry replied salaciously, making Ginny giggle again.
"I'll do my best to keep your bits warm too," she teased, which made Harry blush far more than the suggestion of her doing anything to his bits really should've at this point in their relationship. He definitely didn't seem opposed to the idea though.
Seconds later, they were completely divested of their clothes, which lay in a pile on the sand. Harry took his time removing the mokeskin pouch from around his neck and gently laying it on top of their clothes. Then he turned back and his mouth slowly opened as his eyes hungrily raked up and down her body.
Ginny was grinning when she put her hands on her hips. "You really should be used to seeing me like this by now."
He shook his head. "I don't ever think I'll get used to this."
The cutest part of it all was that he didn't even mean to be flirting with her. He just said what he was actually thinking, and it often turned out to be some of the sweetest things Ginny had ever heard. And, in cases like this, it made her rather turned on.
She didn't even say anything else. She just took Harry's hand and led him into the water. It was a little chilly, but they were soon warming each other up with passionate kisses. Ginny's legs were wrapped around Harry's waist as he squatted so only their heads were above the water. It wasn't the most comfortable they'd ever been while kissing, but there wasn't anywhere else Ginny would've rather been.
Some time after, they took a break from all the kissing and warming each other to just wade around the shallow water, sometimes holding hands but always staying close. Harry kept stealing glances at her, almost shyly, which was pretty ironic considering he wasn't shy at all when she was naked and snogging him.
It hit Ginny like a charging Graphorn. Everything was perfectly set up– their anniversary, being here in Weymouth, Harry being nervous like on their first date, even his mokeskin pouch. The care he gave to it made her convinced that the ring box was inside. He was going to propose to her tonight.
The thought sent lacewing flies fluttering in Ginny's stomach. Her heart started racing. Now that she knew it was going to happen, she couldn't wait. Her ring finger almost felt like it was tingling in anticipation.
She was like a little girl again, watching Harry through the eyes of someone enamoured with the idea of him. Her love for him was deeper and indescribable when compared to what she felt as an eleven year old, but she couldn't help but feel some parallels as she carefully watched him, wondering when it was going to happen.
"I wish we could stay here all night," Harry said wistfully.
"McGonagall probably wouldn't like that very much," Ginny replied, twisting so she was pulled closer to him in the water. "I wouldn't complain though. I love it here."
He nodded. "Me too. I think this is my favourite place. It just– it reminds me of you."
Yet again, his honesty was so touching and adorable. "Me too. This is our place."
Harry chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I like that. It's our place."
As much as they both wanted to stay at their place, they knew they had to return to Hogwarts and get some sleep before class in the morning. They finally pulled themselves out of the water and, after a couple Drying Charms, put their clothes back on.
Once more, Ginny felt her heart racing as Harry fingered his mokeskin pouch, as if he was trying to make a decision. All she wanted was for him to ask her. The moment seemed to stretch for ages, even though it likely lasted for only a couple seconds. Harry definitely had no idea that she was watching his every move, waiting for him to drop to one knee. He took a deep breath, and she started to break out into a grin, knowing it was about to happen.
Then he put the pouch around his neck and smiled at her. His smile seemed a little stiff, but Ginny didn't think too much on it. She hated to be honest with herself about it, but she was slightly devastated after expecting him to propose tonight.
Harry noticed too, his smile morphing into a look of concern. "Are you okay?"
She nodded, forcing a smile. "Yeah. Just wish we could stay longer."
He took her hand and kissed it. "This summer. I promise we'll come back."
"I can't wait," she said truthfully. She loved their week here last summer. The only question on her mind for their next trip was if she'd have a ring on her finger by then.
The question lingered in her mind even as they returned to Hogwarts and snuck back through the suspiciously open gates to Gryffindor Tower. She didn't want to ruin it if Harry had a surprise planned, but she wished he knew that she didn't care how he proposed. She just wanted to be engaged to him. She'd wanted that for a very long time, and it had now been almost two months since they'd seriously discussed it and decided that they were ready to be engaged. The only thing left was to make it official.
Her thoughts about Harry proposing to her were briefly interrupted when they entered their bedroom and saw a piece of parchment on their bed that hadn't been there when they left a couple hours earlier. They exchanged a confused look before Ginny grabbed it and held it up for them to see. Seven words written in remarkably rigid yet elegant handwriting had them both stunned.
The gates will not be open again.
Slowly, they both turned from looking at the parchment to staring at each other again. "You don't think…" Harry began before trailing off.
"I do think," Ginny said, a little grimly, as she nodded.
"But why?"
Ginny shook her head. "Who knows? I don't think I'll ever figure McGonagall out."
"So she knew the gates were open?"
"Or opened them for us."
Harry ran a hand through his hair before chuckling. "I think she might be the strangest person I know. And that's really saying something."
Ginny smiled faintly. "It's a good thing she likes us. I don't think I'd wanna spend the next two weeks in detention every day."
He shuddered. "Yeah, agreed." Then he yawned widely. "I am beat."
"Ditto."
"We should probably shower first," he said, and she nodded. Then he added, "I mean, together. To… make things go quicker."
She raised an eyebrow and started smiling again. "Do you really think that would make things go quicker?"
He laughed. "Okay, maybe not. But it is officially our anniversary. Maybe I just don't wanna be away from you today."
She dropped the act and gave in immediately. "Well, when you put it like that…"
It was definitely a much longer shower than if they'd gone separately, but it was also much more enjoyable. Harry passed out the second his head hit the pillow afterwards. Ginny fell asleep shortly after, with one nagging thought keeping her from a completely peaceful slumber. The night had been perfect. But he didn't propose. Why?
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
He was a coward. It was pathetic that after everything he'd been through in his life, he was too afraid to do this. She'd told him, multiple times, that whenever he proposed, she would say yes. The only thing holding him back was a stupid fear that he wouldn't be able to get down on one knee properly.
He had been really close to proposing to her on the beach at Weymouth, but, in the end, he couldn't bring himself to be brave enough to do it. It was just so stupid that he felt like kicking himself. He knew– he really knew– that Ginny wouldn't care. But he also knew that she deserved it being absolutely perfect. He'd propose as soon as he was able to get down on one knee, and he'd give her the perfect proposal that she deserved.
They were exhausted the morning after their excursion to Weymouth, and the way McGonagall looked at them during Transfiguration made them both more than a little uncomfortable. Thankfully, for some reason, she didn't say anything.
The rest of their day was great. They spent most of it outside, under their tree, practically reliving the day they got together two years ago. The night was even better– at least, it was until they both got hit by simultaneous waves of sleepiness that had them asleep by ten.
The rest of the week passed in a sort of blur, which Harry attributed to two reasons. First, every day after their anniversary was another day that he should've been engaged to Ginny, and he hated that he wasn't yet. The other reason was that every new day was one less day for him to be healthy enough to be cleared by Amelia to play in the match on Saturday.
She'd come to Hogwarts the day after their anniversary to check on him with Madam Pomfrey. Amelia told him to start flying more, despite feeling some pain with his first flight. It was possible his body just needed to adjust to moving at speeds like that again. She was encouraged by the rest of his progress though. He still hadn't had any other painful episodes, and, based on her internal scans, he seemed to be almost completely healed.
When he asked about his limp, she admitted that she hadn't given much thought to it, being preoccupied with all of his other health issues. She told him it was possible that he would have the limp for an extended time, but she'd see about magical or Muggle remedies for it. Harry hoped she'd find an answer sooner rather than later.
Amelia left with the promise of returning the day before the match for one final check. Harry had immediately thrown himself into flying. Ginny was out there with him every day, watching him closely and keeping a flask of his pain relieving potion on her in case he needed it.
He found that the hardest part of the recovery process was the unpredictability of it. The day Amelia had visited, he flew for two hours without any pain. The next day, he dove for a Snitch and was hit with so much pain that it was a struggle to stay conscious and on his broom. And every day, he was coming more and more to terms with the fact that he wouldn't be able to play on Saturday.
Ginny refused to let him accept that. In their final practice of the season, two days before the Slytherin match, he was finally up to participating with the rest of the team. And Ginny, the personification of confidence, didn't even mention contingency plans. She spent the entire training session playing Chaser, and Dean didn't get any time with the first team, even though he'd likely be playing with them on Saturday.
After practice was officially over, the entire first team remained on the pitch while Harry continued taking laps, diving and rising rapidly. He felt great, and they cheered him on, feeling uplifted and sure that he'd be able to play. He really hoped they were right. Throughout his life, he'd missed out on so many Quidditch matches. He'd only ever played in the last match of a season once, in his third year. Every other year, he'd missed due to cancellation, injury, or suspension. He would be absolutely gutted if he couldn't play in his last ever match at Hogwarts, and he knew Ginny would be too, even if she wouldn't say as much.
She was in high spirits after that practice, confident that she'd made the right decision in training without considering Harry's potential absence from the team. He felt better than he had before practice, but he was still worried that something would change before the match.
Amelia was set to return late in the afternoon on Friday, and the day trudged on remarkably slowly, in sharp contrast to the speed with which the week had passed. Ginny could sense his nervous agitation, rubbing his bouncing leg under the table at breakfast. Word had pretty much spread throughout their entire house by now, and everyone was watching him too, as if what he was eating for breakfast would determine if he played tomorrow. It seemed that they'd all decided that the fate of the match and, by extension, the season came down to his ability to play. That seemed pretty unfair to the rest of the team, especially considering Ginny was almost as good at Seeking as she was at Chasing. But whatever nerves or pressure everyone else on the team and in Gryffindor was feeling, he was positive he was feeling it worse. He had to play.
Finally, there was only one thing standing between him and meeting with Amelia– his Defence class.
McGonagall had taught the class while he'd been recovering, and she'd also taught it last Friday, to give him an extra week to settle in before returning to his teaching position. That meant that this was not only the first class he'd taught in over a month, but it was also the first time he was teaching since it became public knowledge that he'd fought four Death Eaters in Diagon Alley and barely survived.
At the usual time, Harry was in the Great Hall with the rest of the leads, outside of Owen and Astoria. He was about to ask if anyone knew where they were when the large wooden door creaked open and they both entered.
Ginny had told him that Astoria had talked extensively with Owen about everything, and they'd come to a decision to continue their relationship very slowly. They both still had feelings for each other, and they wanted to find a way to work through everything. Harry hoped that meant that Owen wanted to do the same with the rest of his friends. Unfortunately, it didn't look like he was quite at that place yet.
Owen looked guarded and kept his head down. Harry was almost certain that Astoria made him come, considering she was practically prodding him forward. They sat down in two seats across the circle from Harry. Owen glanced up hesitantly before grimacing and dropping his gaze again.
Harry exchanged a look with Astoria, who nodded like he was okay to start. He awkwardly cleared his throat. "Right. Sorry it's been so long. I've– er– had a lot going on."
Owen stiffened, and Harry realised that might not have been the best thing to say. "Anyways, it doesn't matter. I'm here, I'm good. We're gonna pick up where we left off with nonverbal spells. Like I told you all last time, the trick with nonverbal spells is getting them to carry as much power as verbal spells. Someone who can do nonverbal magic could try stunning me, but if they're not able to put the same power behind it, I'm not gonna feel a thing. It's like how wands concentrate magic, but we can still do wandless magic. Same idea. Our words concentrate the magic too, so we have to learn how to use our thoughts the same way, to concentrate our magic using nothing but our strength of will."
Owen almost flinched, and Astoria subtly put a hand on his leg.
Harry rubbed the back of his neck, wishing there was something he could do. Then the idea came to him. It was probably stupid and reckless, but that was sort of his modus operandi at this point.
"So we're gonna do what we did last time and pair up, practising stunning each other with nonverbal spells. Make sure to conjure mats before you get started, and really focus your thoughts on controlling as much of your power as possible. So let's pair up. Justin and Dean will be a pair, Ginny and Astoria, Luna and Mia, and I'll be with Owen."
Astoria's eyes widened, and Harry could feel Ginny staring at him. Nobody moved until he stood up, and everyone took that as the cue that he was, in fact, serious about this.
Owen stood slowly, walking to the far side of the room, looking like a prisoner awaiting his sentencing.
"You better know what you're doing," Ginny warned.
Harry nodded. "I think I do."
Astoria didn't say anything as he passed, but he knew she was worried about what was about to happen. He was nervous too. Not for himself, but for Owen.
When he neared Owen, he turned and conjured a mat behind himself. Owen had raised his eyes slightly, warily considering Harry. His eyebrows furrowed when Harry put his wand into his pocket.
"Have at it," Harry encouraged.
"What?" Owen almost rasped, his voice was so quiet.
"I feel pretty good about my nonverbal spell ability. So I'm letting you practise. I've got the mat behind me, so I'm not too worried."
Owen's expression was one of confusion, and, confusingly enough, fear. "You… want me… to stun you?"
"Yep," Harry replied cheerfully.
Owen's mouth moved without speaking for a second before he said, "You do know–"
"That you're pretty good at nonverbal spells? Yeah, I do."
Owen shook his head. "No, that I–"
"Don't wanna stun a friend? Yeah, I get it, but I'll be fine," Harry interrupted facetiously.
Owen's expression was growing less grim and more annoyed. But his voice was louder too, and he was actually looking at Harry's eyes instead of his trainers. "Bloody hell, no! Knock it off, Harry! We both know what you know."
Harry cocked his head to the side. "I know that you've been going through a lot this year, things I couldn't even dream of. I know that none of it– and I mean none of it– was your fault. And I know that I trust you, enough to give you a free shot at me. Because I know that you're my friend. So have at it," he said, spreading his arms wide, inviting a stunner from Owen, who looked stunned himself.
Instead of raising his wand, Owen took a hesitant step forward, and then another one. Harry was almost certain that Ginny and Astoria, at the very least, were watching them, if not everyone. But his eyes didn't leave Owen's stormy face, fraught with emotions that would've killed Harry to experience.
Owen stopped just a couple feet from him. "You almost died," he said in a shaking, hushed voice, like the very act of saying it pained him. "I tried to ruin your relationship with Ginny, and then… I told R– him exactly where you'd be. Astoria told me everything– your coma, your amnesia. It was all my fault. How the hell am I supposed to look at you, knowing I almost ruined your life? How the hell can you look at me?"
Owen's eyes were bloodshot. Harry wondered how many sleepless nights his friend had endured since Rookwood's influence on his life was removed. Owen had been torturing himself, riddled with so much guilt and confusion that he didn't ask for. He'd been a victim, as much as anyone, selected for some reason by Rookwood to carry out his evil deeds against his will. Harry just felt sorry for his friend, not afraid or angry.
"Because it wasn't you. I know what that curse is like. He was one of the best at them. You didn't have a choice. Why would I blame you for that? You're still my friend. One of my best friends, actually. Fuck him. I don't wanna let him ruin your life anymore than he tried to ruin mine."
Owen seemed to stop breathing, staring intensely at Harry with an inscrutable look on his face. Then, he slowly extended his hand. "I– I'm still so sorry. If– if I could've done anything, I swear–"
"I know," Harry interrupted, taking Owen's hand and shaking it once before pulling his friend into a brief, back-pounding hug.
In an instant, Owen's stiff posture collapsed, and he let out a long, relieved breath. "Thanks," he whispered, sounding breathless.
Harry shrugged. "That's what friends do. Now stun me."
The corners of Owen's mouth twitched. He shook his head disbelievingly. "You asked for it."
Harry woke up with Owen standing over him. And he wasn't afraid at all. His friend reached out a hand to him that he accepted, and then he was pulled to his feet. "Nice one," Harry commended him with a grin.
Owen let out a sharp breath and shook his head again, but Harry saw a small smile on his face. After that, they progressed on to different nonverbal spells, both feeling comfortable with their silent stunning abilities. Soon after, the rest of the school entered, and Harry assigned lessons to each of the leads for the year they were teaching.
Ginny smiled proudly at him and quickly kissed his cheek after he told her to begin teaching the second years the Freezing Spell, Glacius. Astoria had a different look of… something like awe on her face when Harry assigned her first years the Smokescreen Spell, Fumos, and encouraged her to clear the smoke it generated as much as she could.
For his part, Harry slipped back into the familiar routine of pacing around the Great Hall, helping the leads where they needed it. It was a testament to how well they all worked together that they were able to so smoothly pick up from where they'd left off a month earlier.
Several students, mostly first and second years, asked him questions about everything that had been reported in the paper. He reluctantly confirmed that he had fought Death Eaters in Diagon Alley, but he promised them that there were no more left, and he couldn't have been that badly hurt because he was here now, wasn't he?
By the time the lesson was over, he was grinning from ear to ear, loving being back to one of the best parts of Hogwarts and already planning in his mind how the rest of the term would go, with only a few short weeks left before exams.
Eventually, everyone filed out of the Great Hall until it was just himself, Ginny, Astoria, and Owen that were left. Owen seemed to be a completely different person than he had been when he'd entered the Great Hall a couple hours earlier. Ironically enough, he seemed to be the exact same person that he'd been all year, when he'd been under the Imperius Curse. But Harry trusted Owen, and he also trusted Dumbledore's assessment of the situation. There wasn't anything to worry about.
"Thanks again," Owen said, nodding at Harry. Then he turned to Ginny. "I already told him, but I am so, so sorry for–"
Ginny shut him up with a hug. "Don't worry about it. Seriously. Dealing with something like that… not being in control of– of what you're doing… it's the w– it must've been terrible. You're still our friend."
Owen nodded, looking like he might be getting a little choked up. Astoria quickly stepped forward and hugged Harry and Ginny. "Thank you," she whispered, smiling at them before leaving with Owen.
Harry smiled after them before glancing down at Ginny, who was looking at him with that same proud and curious expression. "What?"
She smiled even wider. "You don't know how amazing you are, do you?"
"For not holding it against him? I thought we both–"
She shook her head, the smile never leaving her face. "The way you did it. Astoria and I watched the whole thing. It was just– you're perfect," she said with pride before standing on her toes to kiss him. He didn't really agree with that, but he wasn't about to turn down the reward for her misjudgment.
Once she pulled away, she said, "The only thing that can make it better is good news from Amelia. You ready?"
Harry inhaled sharply, having completely forgotten about his final check with Amelia with everything that had happened in Defence.
"It's gonna be fine. She has to sign off on it."
Harry nodded, taking a deeper breath. "Right. Yeah. Let's go."
Amelia had told them to meet her at the Quidditch Pitch. She wanted to see Harry flying before she gave her final approval.
The nervous tension was palpable when they met her. Harry knew that she badly wanted to give her approval, but she wasn't going to compromise his health for it. He appreciated that, but he'd definitely appreciate it more if she did still sign off on him playing.
After performing her routine scans and analysing the hovering runes around his body, Amelia nodded. "Your scans look better than ever, Harry. Have you had any more issues with the pain?"
"A few days ago, it wasn't easy to be on the broom. But yesterday, I flew for a few hours without any pain at all."
Amelia nodded, pressing her lips into a thin line that terrified him. "Okay. Well, let's get you up in the air and see how you do."
This was the scary part. His episodes of painful flight had been completely random. He had no idea how his body was going to react until he kicked off from the ground. He gave a thumbs up to both of them, watching from the ground, and Ginny released a Snitch. Amelia had wanted to simulate as close to game action as she could and monitor Harry throughout.
Immediately, Harry dove after the Snitch, which eluded his grasp before reversing direction much faster than even the Firebolt could. As Harry whipped his broom around and pressed on in the other direction, he felt a small twinge in his stomach. He brushed it off as a normal side effect of a manoeuvre like that. It was normal. He was fine.
The twinge didn't go away, but it wasn't really that bad. Honestly, he probably wouldn't have noticed anything if he hadn't been paying so much attention to his pain for the past several weeks. It certainly didn't affect his performance– he caught the Snitch less than ten minutes after it was released. He was fine.
When he landed, Amelia scanned him once more. "I don't see any changes that we wouldn't expect from you just getting off the broom. Are you feeling okay?"
The twinge in his stomach was gone. He nodded. "Yeah, I feel great."
Amelia nodded and continued reviewing the runic reports of her scans for close to a minute. Harry and Ginny exchanged nervous looks, waiting for Amelia to say it was too risky.
That wasn't what she said when she finally did speak. Instead, she asked, very simply, "Do you think it's safe for you to play tomorrow?"
Harry blinked once, surprised by the direct question. He thought about the promise he'd made to Ginny to never risk his health for something like Quidditch again. He just wanted to play so badly. But he made a promise, and he didn't intend on breaking any promise he made with her, ever.
"I– I felt something in my stomach."
Amelia frowned, and Harry almost couldn't bear to look at Ginny. "What did you feel?"
"Just– just something… a little twinge, really. I think I can play. I really do. But I had to tell you about it, just to be safe."
She nodded appreciatively. "I'm glad you did. Where in your stomach, exactly?"
He waved his hand vaguely over where he knew he'd been impaled by a knife in Diagon Alley. He hadn't realised it was that spot until just now. "Honestly, I don't know if it's even related to everything else. It's kind of hard to remember for sure if I'd always feel that way when I'm chasing the Snitch, especially when making sharp turns."
Amelia glanced back at her scans, using her wand to scroll through them. "I am all for an abundance of caution, and I'd tell you if there was anything here that suggested any problem, but this is as thorough an examination as I'm capable of doing, and I don't see anything that looks concerning at all. Granted, I know nothing about the effects of Quidditch on the body, so we should check with someone else. Ginny, do you ever feel any discomfort in your stomach while flying?"
Harry finally looked at her, but he couldn't make out the expression on her face. Her eyebrows were knitted together as she thought before saying, "Sometimes. If it started when you spun around after the Snitch at the start, that probably would've had me feeling something for a little bit too. You didn't stretch before you started flying either, which could've had something to do with it."
Amelia nodded. "That's very true. And there is the additional fact that you've only been getting back to training for the last week or so, after a month of practically no physical activity. Honestly, Harry, I don't think I can tell you to not play. If you don't feel comfortable with it, then I don't want you to, but I don't have a medical reason to keep you from playing, and I trust you to make whatever decision is right for you."
Harry slowly exhaled, knowing that was the same as her giving him approval to play. But it wasn't quite that simple. His eyes found Ginny again. "What do you think? I– I promised you that I wouldn't risk anything for something like Quidditch again. If you want me to sit out, I will."
Ginny blinked a couple times as she stared at him before she answered, "I can't tell you to do that, Harry. I also promised I wouldn't tell you what to do like that again. If Amelia feels like you won't be risking anything by playing, I won't be upset if you play. If you feel like there's still a chance of something going wrong, I won't be upset if you sit out. But I can't make that decision for you."
He took another slow breath. Then he gave his answer. "I don't think I'm at risk either. I just couldn't lie and say I didn't feel anything when I did. I couldn't do that to you."
A smile started growing on Ginny's face. "So…"
"I'm gonna play," he confirmed, matching her smile with one of her own before she flung her arms around his shoulders.
"I told you that you'd be okay!" Ginny exclaimed giddily.
Then she hugged Amelia, who had a very happy smile on her own face. "Thank you so much," she said, almost like Amelia had done them a favour in clearing him. Then again, Harry supposed all of her treatments of him over the past year had been favours.
"Seriously, thank you," Harry echoed, smiling gratefully at his Healer. He never would've predicted when he first met with her to discuss his panic attacks that they'd be here a year later. But he was so thankful that she'd been the one to take care of him through all of it.
Amelia smiled, very happily, and Harry saw tears in the corners of her eyes. "You don't have to thank me. It has been my honour and privilege to be taking care of you. I just hope we start seeing each other as friends now, instead of you needing my services as a Healer again."
Harry chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I really hope so too."
They walked Amelia to the gates of Hogwarts. Once she disapparated, Ginny almost tackled Harry in another hug before remembering that he should probably still be treated with caution until after the match.
"I can't believe it," Harry said, still completely stunned that he was going to play tomorrow.
"I almost can't believe you were honest about hurting," she replied. "Thank you for that. For– for not breaking your promise."
He kissed the top of her head, seeing how much it meant to her. "I don't ever want to break a promise I made to you. What we have is too important to hurt it for a match, so I wouldn't be playing if I wasn't good to go. I love you too much for that."
"I love you too," she answered before a wide grin spread across her face. "We are so gonna kick some Slytherin arse tomorrow and win the Cup!"
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
Ginny was woken from her dream of hoisting the Quidditch Cup with Harry by a clap of thunder. Next to her, Harry stirred groggily. Immediately fully awake, she tucked herself into his side, savouring every second they had in bed together. Even in his sleep, he made her feel safer and more loved than she ever felt away from him. She didn't know that she'd ever fully understand that feeling, but it didn't matter as long as she never lost it.
This was it. After everything they'd been through, Quidditch was, admittedly, slightly less important than simply being together, healthy and with all their memories. But only slightly. This still mattered to her, more than she could completely express.
She'd won two Quidditch Cups, in her fourth and fifth years. She'd actually been on the pitch for more Cup wins than Harry had been, which seemed mental considering he'd been on the team since he'd been a first year. This one felt different though. It was the only season she was captain. This was her team. And the fact that she was doing it with Harry only made it better. This probably being their last match on the same team for a long time was depressing and motivating at the same time. It was another reason she was positive they were going to win today.
Harry stirred again and slowly blinked his eyes open. As soon as they landed on her, he gave her a tired smile. "Morning, Blaze."
She shifted even closer to him, smiling when his arm protectively wrapped around her stomach. "Morning, love."
He let out a small chuckle. "Is it a 'love' sort of morning?"
She kissed him slowly and softly. "Yeah, I think so. How are you feeling?"
"Good. Even better after that," he added with a grin.
"Sounds like it's raining," she said after kissing him again. "You gonna stay on your broom today?"
He rolled his eyes. "When have I ever– actually, don't answer that."
She snorted. "Yeah, exactly."
"Well, I guess it wouldn't be right for things to be too easy for our last match. Some bad weather ought to make it more entertaining."
"I don't care about it being entertaining. I care about us winning."
"Oh, we're definitely gonna make that happen. I've got a good feeling about today."
"Me too," Ginny agreed.
They'd woken up rather early and had plenty of time to enjoy in bed before they needed to get dressed and go down to breakfast.
They were still some of the first people at breakfast, aside from Demelza, who, surprisingly, looked nervous.
"You good?" Ginny asked once they sat down next to her.
Demelza kept her jaw clenched and nodded. "Spectacular."
"You don't look great."
She glared at Ginny out of the corner of her eye before she saw Ginny's teasing smile. Demelza grunted and rolled her eyes. "This is just the big one. I'm ready. But it's still big."
Ginny elbowed Harry in the side as he choked on a piece of toast before saying, "Yep. It is big, but you're ready. This is what we trained for."
Harry abruptly stood and walked away from the table. Ginny glanced back to see his shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
"Your boyfriend is a pervert," Demelza commented with a suggestive grin of her own.
Ginny just laughed. "Honestly, it's better seeing him giggle at stupid stuff like that instead of being sad. But… yeah, that is a little dirty," she admitted. "You are good though, right?"
Demelza nodded, already looking like she was feeling better. "Yep. Can't wait."
Harry returned a moment or two later, his face a little red from laughing. Ginny couldn't help but smile at him. If only the reporters could see him now.
The team slowly joined them over the next half hour. Everyone had similar expressions of confidence now, even Demelza.
"It's absolutely bucketing it down right now," Ritchie informed them when he sat down.
Ginny nodded. "We can handle it."
Until the end of breakfast, Ginny ran through every possible strategy that could be effective in a storm in her mind. She barely noticed all the Gryffindors who wished them luck as they passed by, either coming in to breakfast or heading out to the stadium. She did snap out of it briefly when Emily gave her a good luck hug and when Mia gave her a high five, but otherwise, it felt like breakfast flew by in a blur until it was time to go to the pitch.
As a unit, the team rose from their table and exited the Great Hall to cheers from the remaining non-Slytherins. Before they left the castle, Ginny saw Astoria waving at her and Harry. She nudged Harry, who glanced over and nodded.
"We'll meet you out there," Ginny told the rest of the team, who continued on into the deluge outside.
They walked over to Astoria, who was almost hidden in an alcove. She glanced around conspiratorially before putting an arm around each of them. "Didn't want anyone else to see. I love my house, and I wouldn't be upset if they win. But… I would be upset if you two lost."
Ginny smiled, a little surprised but once again so grateful for her friend. "Thanks, Astoria."
She nodded. "I'll deny it if anyone asks, though."
"Wouldn't expect anything less," Harry replied with a grin. "Least competitive Slytherin I've ever met."
Astoria laughed. "You two better get down there. Good luck."
Ginny knew it had been raining, but she hadn't realised just how bad it was. She almost started to run until she realised that Harry couldn't run with his leg. Instead, they both mounted their brooms and flew to the pitch, over the heads of everyone sprinting to the stadium. They stumbled into the changing room, completely drenched, and were relieved to find that someone had already cast a Warming Charm.
They quickly cast Drying Charms on themselves, not that it would last long, and set about changing into their Quidditch robes. She saw Harry tap his glasses with his wand and remembered that they did have one thing that could help in the rain.
"Everyone cast Impervious Charms on your face. It'll keep the rain out of your eyes, at least."
"Not gonna help if we can't see anything else," Jimmy said, but he did it anyways.
She nodded, understanding the issue. "Yeah, this isn't gonna be easy. It's pretty dark out there and visibility is low. We're probably gonna have a tough time seeing anything. Keep your head on a swivel and play simple. Chasers– we're gonna focus on our Inverted Hawkshead formation. Basically, we want to pass the Quaffle as little as possible. Everything's gonna be slick, and it's gonna be hard to see it. Do what you can to carry it upfield without passing, and we should still be able to score."
"Jimmy, Ritchie– I know we talked about you both supporting the Chasers, but I want you both on Harry instead."
Harry immediately started to protest. "I'm fine. I don't need–"
Ginny cut him off. "It's not because you're hurt." He softened a bit. "It's gonna be damn near impossible to find the Snitch out there, and you can't afford to be worrying about looking for Bludgers too. Jimmy and Ritchie are gonna keep Bludgers away from you. You focus on getting the Snitch and ending the game as fast as possible."
Harry nodded firmly, understanding the plan now.
"This isn't gonna be a pretty game. We're gonna get battered and bruised out there. Chances are one or more of us is gonna get hit by a Bludger we can't see. But Slytherin's gonna be dealing with all the same conditions we are. End of the day, it's still Quidditch. We know we're the best team. We have the best players in the school. So even though it's gonna be a damn tough game, we're gonna be the ones holding the Cup at the end of it."
Jimmy and Ritchie rapped their bats on the benches, and the rest of the team applauded and got on their feet, fired up and ready to play.
Ginny quickly grabbed Zoe. "You're gonna let in goals today. I know you hate it, but it's gonna happen because you're not gonna be able to see much. But keep fighting. Every save you do make is gonna give us a better chance to win. You've got this."
Zoe swallowed nervously before nodding, steeling her expression. "We're gonna win."
The team lined up, ready to fly out for warmups. Ginny took her position at the front of the line.
"Last time," Harry said from behind her, sounding wistful and excited at the same time.
Ginny turned back and nodded confidently. "Better make it count."
He pulled her into a quick kiss that made her even more confident. "Let's go get that Cup."
They flew out and were immediately blasted by the torrential downpour and forceful winds. She had to fight to keep a grip on her broom as she flew around their half of the field. The crowd cheered them on, even though she couldn't actually see much of the crowd through the sheets of rain and black sky. She did notice that magical canopies had been erected around the stands, so at least the crowd was protected from the brutal weather. Lucky them.
The one thing Ginny hadn't even considered in her rush to get to the stadium from the castle was how cold it was. It was the middle of May, but it felt like she was freezing between the temperature, the stinging rain, and the cold winds. This game was gonna be unlike any they'd ever played before.
It took three blasts from Madam Hooch's already magically enhanced whistle to bring everyone to the ground. The sound was simply drowned out by the rain. Ginny landed as gently as she could, but her shoes were still filled with water and covered with mud immediately.
She pulled on her Chasing gloves, a birthday gift from Charlie, and pushed all thoughts of scouts and championships out of her mind, taking two slow, deep breaths. The rain was relentless, pummelling her face and body, but now, it felt cleansing, almost washing the stress and nerves away. She was just playing Quidditch with her friends. It was just another match. And she didn't lose at Quidditch.
Madam Hooch had to shout to be heard, even though they were all standing within thirty feet of her. "Stay alert, watch out for Bludgers and each other. I don't want to be sending all of you to the Hospital Wing. Captains, shake hands."
Ginny stepped forward and gripped Jimmy Vaisey's hand. "Good luck, Captain," she said to him, remembering their conversation at Astoria's in what felt like another life.
The corners of his mouth twitched, and he nodded. "Right back at you, Captain."
Madam Hooch opened the box, releasing the Snitch and Bludgers. It was a very bad sign that Ginny lost sight of all three balls within two seconds of them flying off. Hooch then took the Quaffle in her hand and raised it up, signalling to everyone to mount their brooms.
Like it always did, time started to slow down as the Quaffle left her hands. Hooch would blow the whistle as the Quaffle reached its apex. Ginny was a master at timing these jumps. When everything was moving at a quarter of the speed it normally did, it was easy. She tensed, sensing it was close, and pushed off the ground at the exact moment the whistle blasted.
The problem was the ground was incredibly soft. Nobody got a good jump, and the Quaffle fell into the fray of six Chasers, all fighting to take possession of it. It was so slick that nobody could grip it too tightly for fear of it slipping out, and it took several seconds for Demelza to emerge with the Quaffle and streak down the field. Yet again, Ginny felt concern for the conditions when Demelza vanished from view about fifty feet away.
"Demelza scores for Gryffindor!" Ginny could barely make out Luna saying from her amplified commentary box. "She is a nice friend of mine, even though she pretends to be mean sometimes."
Ginny grinned, high fiving Demelza when she came back in view. "I can't see shit!" Demelza shouted, despite having scored the first goal.
Ginny nodded. "I know!"
As much as Ginny believed they had the best three Chasers, Slytherin's were, admittedly, pretty good too. They flew together as a compact unit, and visibility was so poor that Ginny couldn't tell that Vaisey was the one with the Quaffle until he was almost past her. She flailed out with her foot as he sped by and barely clipped the Quaffle, but it was enough to knock it out of his grasp. It fell until Natalie sped underneath them and caught it. Ginny followed behind and saw her easily outmanoeuvre the Keeper, who almost fell off his broom trying to make the save.
Just like that, Gryffindor was up by twenty. Ginny hadn't heard Luna say anything about the Seekers or Snitch, and she hadn't seen Harry since the match had started. She wanted to score goals, but this match couldn't go on for too long without risking someone getting hurt or Slytherin getting lucky and stealing the win.
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
Harry couldn't see anything. Like he could barely see his hand if he stretched it out in front of him. He flew around the pitch countless times, thankfully without any pain, but to no avail. Jimmy and Ritchie were practically attached to his flanks, which made it hard to throw off the Slytherin Seeker, a girl named Juliet. The bright side was that it wasn't really necessary. They were both so disoriented that none of Harry's typical moves would've mattered.
At least Jimmy and Ritchie were doing a good job protecting him. Multiple times, he heard a crack of a bat very close to him and knew he probably would've been brained if they hadn't been there. Ginny's strategy really was brilliant.
The other thing he hated about the conditions was it meant he couldn't really watch her play. He caught a glimpse of red hair a few times, darkened by the rain, but he had to remain focused on his task. And at least, from what he could hear, Ginny was playing brilliantly. Five or six different times, Luna called out that Ginny had scored, and it sounded like she was doing a good job setting up Natalie and Demelza and stopping Slytherin attacks where she could.
The match was just moving slowly because of the rain. They had to have been playing for close to an hour, and Gryffindor was only leading 80-40. He hadn't seen the Snitch once. There was absolutely no end in sight, and his only hope was that he'd either get really lucky and the Snitch would fly in front of his face, or their Chasers could stretch the lead to 150. Neither one seemed particularly likely right now.
Harry dove lower, wanting to see if the change in altitude would bring better luck. Jimmy, Ritchie, and Juliet all dove with him. He'd made two passes around the pitch and was starting to reverse course on another one when he heard a dull thud and crack simultaneously, followed by an ear splitting scream.
His head darted around wildly until he saw a red blur falling uncontrollably to the ground. As he dove after it, heart in his throat, he heard Luna saying something, but he couldn't make it out.
A few feet off the ground, he reached out and grabbed the spinning broomstick, and Jimmy and Ritchie supported Natalie, who was slumped over the end of it, until they landed.
"Stay up there!" Natalie screamed after rolling onto her back, seeing Ginny and Demelza coming towards her. In the confusion, Slytherin had scored another goal.
"We've got her!" Harry shouted. Ginny grimaced but yanked her broom up and shot back towards their goals with Demelza.
Natalie was delicately holding her shoulder when he looked back at her. Her face was incredibly pale. "Bludger?" Harry asked.
She winced and nodded. "I think my shoulder's broken."
"You need to get to Madam Pomfrey," Harry immediately said.
She started to shake her head. "No, just give me a second and–"
Jimmy touched her shoulder, and her eyes bugged out as she barely held in another scream.
"You need help, Natalie. Seriously. Go get patched up, and see if you can get back here."
She nodded, and he saw tears welling up in her eyes. She wanted this as badly as the rest of them did, and they were going to be down a player, likely for the rest of the match now. They helped her to her feet, gingerly avoiding her shoulder, when a loud whistle blast went off.
They all exchanged horrified looks. Had Slytherin caught the Snitch while they were helping Natalie?
"I'm sorry," she whispered despairingly.
Harry was about to comfort her when Ginny, Demelza, and Zoe landed next to them.
"I called time out," Ginny explained. "We've got two minutes. How is she?"
"Broken shoulder. She's gonna get someone to help her get to Pomfrey, but… she's probably done for the match."
All of their faces fell, except Ginny, who nodded resolutely. She grabbed Natalie's uninjured shoulder and looked her in the eye. "You killed it. We're gonna win for you."
Natalie nodded, tears freely flowing at the pain and disappointment, and hurried off the pitch. Harry hoped someone would be able to help her.
"What's the score?" Ritchie asked.
"We're up eighty to sixty. We need this match to end," Ginny answered.
"We're gonna be overrun," Demelza said. "We can hold out for a bit, but we're not gonna be able to stop them forever being down a Chaser."
Ginny had a grim look on her face. She already knew that. "Any sight of the Snitch?"
He shook his head. "Nothing."
She exhaled sharply and clenched her jaw. "Alright. We're gonna stick with the same plan. Harry, we'll give you as much time as possible, but you're gonna need to catch it soon."
"I will," Harry promised, hoping that wasn't a lie.
"Good. Then let's go win this thing for Natalie!"
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
Another thirty minutes passed without any indication that either Seeker had seen the Snitch. Ginny and Demelza were fighting tooth and nail to stay with the Slytherin Chasers, but, with their disadvantage, they were losing ground. Zoe bailed them out multiple times with acrobatic saves, and, once again, Ginny was extraordinarily grateful that she was on their team.
She and Demelza broke up as many attacks as they could, but, without an extra Chaser to retrieve the Quaffles they knocked away, they were only delaying the inevitable, getting further hemmed in by the three Slytherin Chasers. There were a few lucky breaks where one of them stole the Quaffle and was able to speed to the other end. Most of the time, they scored, but there were two very frustrating stops that the Slytherin Keeper made to keep them from adding more to their score.
Despite their best efforts, Slytherin had taken the lead. The score was 140-120, so it definitely could've been worse. The other big problem, though, was that she and Demelza were tiring, working overtime to make up for their missing teammate, which was only made more difficult in the pouring rain that hadn't broken for even a second. Ginny's hands were practically numb, and it was a shock every time she handled the Quaffle that it didn't slip out of her grasp.
When Vaisey threw the Quaffle over her head to Dobbins, the unmarked Slytherin Chaser, who scored seconds later, Ginny knew something had to change. Slytherin would keep pulling away until it didn't matter who caught the Snitch. But they didn't have another Chaser. At this point, their only hope was to catch the Snitch.
Suddenly, an absolutely insane idea came to her, one that she'd discussed at the start of the season as an absolute last resort because it was mental. It was even more mental when they were down a Chaser. But she didn't see another option.
She looped towards Demelza, who had recovered the Quaffle after Slytherin's goal and was starting to make her way back up the pitch.
"Can you handle this by yourself?" Ginny shouted.
Demelza looked at her like she'd lost it. "Are you mad?"
"They're gonna keep scoring on us! We're only gonna win if we catch the Snitch! I need to help Harry find it!"
Demelza gritted her teeth and surveyed the Slytherin Chasers, who were patiently waiting for her to make a move. She ducked out of the way of a Bludger sent her way by one of their Beaters and finally nodded. "Okay! But you've gotta send me Ritchie and Jimmy! We'll buy you time!"
Ginny hated that she and Harry would be exposed to Bludgers while frantically searching for the Snitch, but Demelza was right. They didn't have another choice. "Done! Let's make some magic happen!" Ginny shouted, optimistically, before shooting off, leaving Demelza on an island, surrounded by the Slytherin Chasers.
It took a minute to find Harry, and Slytherin had already scored again by then. "What are you doing?" Jimmy screamed incredulously, seeing her come into view.
"You two help Demelza! She's holding them off for as long as she can! Harry and I are gonna find the Snitch!"
Neither of them argued with her, probably recognising her madness and knowing better than to go against it. They shot away, and Harry shook his head dumbfoundedly.
"This is mental!"
She nodded. "Yeah! It probably is! But we don't have a chance otherwise!"
Then he grinned. "As long as you know it's mental, I'm with you!"
He started to shoot off, but she grabbed his shoulder. "I can't catch the Snitch! You've gotta listen for me screaming if I find it!"
Harry nodded. "I'll hear you."
They peeled off in opposite directions, and she lost sight of him almost instantly. Down below, Luna was openly wondering whether Gryffindor was suffering from Loser's Lurgy because there wasn't any other reason Ginny would abandon Demelza. She wasn't sure what Loser's Lurgy really was, but she was pretty sure she'd be feeling it if they lost.
Ginny never saw any of it, but she could hear that the rest of the team was playing brilliantly. Several times, she heard the Slytherin crowd start growing in volume as they anticipated another goal, only for the chance to be foiled, either by a brilliant save, a well-placed Bludger, or Demelza knocking the Quaffle out of someone's hands.
Ginny still couldn't find the Snitch anywhere. It felt impossible, searching for a tiny golden ball in a torrential curtain of rain that completely enveloped her. She searched relentlessly, occasionally catching sight of Harry and his Slytherin tail, but she still didn't find anything.
Somehow, almost another hour had passed, and the four other members of their team had managed to keep the score within 150. Demelza had even scored twice. They'd done everything they could to give Ginny and Harry time to find the Snitch, but they were almost out, with the score sitting at 280-140. A draw would be good enough, since their point differential was ten better than Slytherin's, but if Slytherin won, it wouldn't matter.
"Oh, Demelza just took the Quaffle right out of his hands! And she's flying to the goals–"
Ginny instinctively glanced in the direction of the action, seeing Demelza flying by with three green streaks trailing behind her. She immediately stopped following Demelza's flight when the briefest glint of gold caught her eye.
"Gryffindor scores!" Luna exclaimed, but Ginny barely heard it. She was darting towards where she'd just caught sight of the closest thing to the Snitch she'd seen all game.
There! The tiny ball was flying towards the Gryffindor goals. "HARRY!" Ginny screamed as loudly as she could, praying that he'd make it there before the Slytherin Seeker.
HGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHGHG
They were going to lose. After everything they'd worked for all season, after him fighting to recover for this match, after how sure he'd been, they were going to lose. He searched for what must've been an hour for the Snitch. He knew Ginny was searching too. And neither of them had seen it. Somehow, they weren't out of the game yet, but it wouldn't be long now.
He had no idea how Demelza was managing to score, despite being the only Chaser on her team. She'd just scored again to make it only a one hundred and thirty point game, and Harry started racing off, reinvigorated to do whatever he could to find it.
Then he heard maybe the greatest sound of all time: Ginny screaming somewhere behind him, at the top her lungs, "HARRY!"
He immediately spun around and shot off in the other direction. But Juliet, the Slytherin Seeker, had a headstart. She hadn't gone after Harry at first, and she knew what it meant when she heard Ginny screaming his name. He was on her tail, but if the Snitch was anywhere near Ginny, Juliet would still beat him to it as Ginny was very rapidly coming into view.
Somehow, like it always did when he was getting close to catching a Snitch, time seemed to slow. He locked eyes with Ginny, willing her to tell him where it was without Juliet finding out. He didn't know how he saw it through the rain, if it was his imagination or something, but for a fraction of a second, Ginny's blazing brown eyes flickered to her left before she dove away to the right.
"HARRY!" Ginny screamed again, and Juliet followed after her.
Harry prayed he was correct and shot off in the opposite direction, towards the Gryffindor goals. Then he saw it, barely glinting at all with no light to reflect. It was fluttering around feebly, like it had grown tired of flying in the wind and rain, and he was mere feet away from it.
Suddenly, Juliet was neck and neck with him again, apparently not put off by Ginny's diversion for long. In his peripheral vision, he saw Slytherin scoring another goal as Luna said something about him.
Dimly, he heard a crack. His eyes flicked away from the Snitch briefly, catching sight of a black ball barrelling towards him. He pressed himself flat to his broom as Juliet flew over it, and the Bludger whistled over his head. Not changing course had given him the smallest of leads, and he stretched his hand out to the Snitch.
Juliet's hand shot out of nowhere, reaching for it, parallel to him. Acting on instinct, he swatted her hand away and lunged forward with everything he had, rolling forward over the broom as he closed his fingers around the Snitch.
He flipped forward twice, feeling a twist in his gut, before he steadied himself and, disbelievingly, held up Snitch, which had completely given up flapping its wings, in his fist.
"Oh wow! Harry Potter catches the Snitch, and Gryffindor wins, three hundred to two hundred and ninety! The Quidditch Cup belongs to Gryffindor and my friends!"
The roar in the stadium was deafening, completely making him forget about the new pain in his stomach and the stinging, freezing rain that had soaked every single bit of him to the core. They'd won. Against all odds, they had won.
There was only one thought in his mind, one person he wanted to find. He'd lost sight of her in the madness of the final chase for the Snitch, and the rain was so dense that he still couldn't see hardly anything. He touched down on the ground, listening for the cheers of his teammates.
Harry moved quickly, spurred on by the cheers of the crowd, ignorant of his limp and the mud covering his shoes. Then he heard her screaming his name, just like she had when she'd found the Snitch.
"Harry!"
He turned and saw her running at him, her hair absolutely soaked, cheeks bright red, and eyes blazing. She was perfect, and he ran at her too, not feeling any pain at all. Without thinking and without hesitation, she jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist, and he caught her, completely expecting it. He faltered slightly but remained upright, bolstered by the strength her smile gave him, and spun her around.
Her eyes were the only bright spot in the entire stadium. And they were absolutely shining. "We won," Ginny whispered, in disbelief. "We won!"
Harry grinned. "You won, Captain."
Then, there was suddenly nothing else to say. In the pouring rain, cheered on by what felt like thousands of people, he kissed her with all the love and passion and pride he could. They were champions, and he was kissing the woman he loved. Nothing could be better. He was on top of the world.
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A/N: They won! They really won! I'm sure it surprised absolutely none of you, but I hope the way they won was at least surprising! All the way back in C. 6, it's mentioned that Ginny discussed a strategy they'd almost certainly never use where a Chaser looks for the Snitch to help the Seeker catch it faster, but it sounded like something that someone who'd never played Quidditch would've come up with… which is very true. Unfortunately, I've never gotten to fly on a broom and play Quidditch, and, at that point, I'd only written one full Quidditch match, for Harry's birthday. When I wrote that, it wasn't something that was planned as an easter egg, but I do remember rereading the chapter once it was finished and thinking that it would actually be such a cool way for a match to end, and what better time for it than the last match of the season?
Of course, Gryffindor had to win the Cup. For all the acclaim Harry had for being an exceptional Quidditch player, I always felt bad for him that he only ever won the Cup once, largely because JKR just didn't like writing Quidditch, so I did want to change that and give him another one. There really wasn't ever a consideration in my mind that he might not play. To me, him being honest about how he was feeling, being prepared to not play, and still being okay showed just as much character growth from the start of the book as him being honest and not being okay to play. It definitely would've been a surprise to not have him playing when they won the Cup, but I didn't want to do that to him, so I did it to poor Natalie instead!
This was definitely an up and down chapter for Harry. There was all the stuff with his recovery and winning the match, and I love the way he helps Owen, but I'm positive a lot of you will be frustrated at him for what didn't happen in Weymouth. That's understandable, to be fair, but it also feels very in keeping with his character, or my interpretation of his character. In a lot of ways, I think he feels unworthy of Ginny, which has a lot to do with how he was raised, and he also feels like he owes her something huge after everything that happened over the last month. He's wrong on both counts, but it's understandable how he gets to that conclusion in my opinion. I will say that I wrote his leg being injured before I knew that I was going to have him struggle with the whole kneeling thing. I knew how I wanted the proposal to eventually go and that I needed him to chicken out of what he had planned for it to happen, and the reason for that came to me when I wrote him struggling to stand in a chapter while he has amnesia. It's logical enough, even if the emotions are absolutely what's motivating it, and it's also a very Harry reason, to me, for him to not propose yet. Let's just hope he gets it done soon!
So that brings us to the end of Chapter 34! As always, I hope you all enjoyed because this was definitely a fun one for me! I'm already so excited to pick up right where we left off with Chapter 35!
Coming Friday: Champions- He immediately remembered the kiss they'd shared in front of everyone on the pitch and wondered how he'd already forgotten about it.
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Finnspa23: Hopefully you enjoyed getting to see the last match! Kreacher's currently working at Hogwarts, and we will get to see him again before the end of the book! As for Grimmauld Place, there is a plan eventually, but it just hasn't been a priority for Harry at all yet. It brings back a lot of conflicting memories, kind of like Godric's Hollow does, so while he will eventually get to a place where he's willing to go back, I don't know that he's there yet... and it probably hasn't even crossed his mind that he does still own it lol
Etschi89: I'm glad that you enjoyed the chapter! I hope that you liked seeing Harry show in this one that he was willing to put his own safety above playing in the match, even if he ultimately didn't have to! There is still some time and decisions to be made about his and Ginny's future though, so I wouldn't say it's 100% locked in quite yet.
Very interesting guess about the woman in Hogsmeade! It would certainly make sense, given what day it was, so we'll have to see if she returns again or really was just a crazy drunk!
It's funny, but we only see Harry doing a small bit of magic in this chapter, so I guess there are still some questions there that aren't totally answered, but I do think it's safe to assume that, for now, things are mostly okay since he's back at Hogwarts and hasn't had issues in classes, but we'll see if it comes up again!
And thank you so much! There's a ton more to come, but I'm already immensely proud of everything that I've written and am very excited for you all to read it! I'm very happy to have you along for the journey- your comments are always so uplifting to read!
Aldous14: Wow, thank you so much! I'm so glad that you found this story and are enjoying it so much! I'm definitely always trying to let our characters grow in ways that feel like a natural extension of who they are at the end of DH, and I appreciate that you feel like this story is a continuation of the originals! I also love Arthur getting excited about Muggle stuff- there will be a couple things related to that in Book 3, and I hope to continue including more in the future because it really is so fun! And I might need to reach out and ask some questions about Weymouth at some point haha! It's very funny that you commented on the chapter before this one, which sees them going back!