The news that Harry was once again going to skip years was nothing out of the ordinary within the school. Many had already grown accustomed to seeing him jump from one year to another with relative ease. Not even Harry himself found it too abrupt to be back in that routine, as, already accustomed from the previous term, the change was well within his plans.
What definitely hadn't been part of his plans was Richard Morris, the Hufflepuff Quidditch captain, practically stalking him whilst begging him to try out for the team. To be fair, it wasn't the first time he'd asked him to join; the previous year, Richard had been very disappointed when he found out they wouldn't make exceptions for Harry. Harry should have been prepared, but the truth was, he'd thought Richard had forgotten about wanting him on the team.
"Please, Harry, you have to accept," Richard said every time he saw him. "You promised me last year; you told me you would join."
"I didn't promise anything. I merely said I'd take it into account, which is different."
"But you have to accept… Please."
"I'll think about it…"
"But…"
"I said I'd think about it. I have a lot of things to consider. You know I have different class arrangements that are harder than for others."
"Very well…"
This pursuit continued every time an opportunity arose. Almost every time Harry finished a class, Richard was there, begging him to join the team. Harry felt bad, because on the one hand, he wanted to meet everyone's expectations, but on the other, he longed for some peace and quiet that year. He knew that if he agreed to join the team, he'd hardly have any free time for himself. Furthermore, his friends weren't helping either; every time they saw the captain, they did nothing but urge Harry to agree to the try-out to join the team. It was quite frustrating, like fighting a battle on two fronts. Finally, after only a week of constant siege, he gave in.
"Very well, Richard, you win," he said after two steady hours of the captain's pleas.
He was in the common room, doing his homework there for the first time in a long while. He'd wanted to get away from his brother, but instead, he was besieged by Morris, who was determined to have him on the team. So, for two uninterrupted hours, he'd been bombarded by entreaties. Normally, he could ignore them, but when you're trying to concentrate on writing a particularly complicated Potions essay, in the end, you have no choice but to give in.
"Really?" Richard asked excitedly. "Are you going to try out for the team? Do you promise?"
"Of course, I promise, but that doesn't mean I'm going to get in."
"Of course, you'll get in!" he exclaimed. "Harry, Madam Hooch wanted you in the team halfway through last term… Madam Hooch never intercedes for students!"
"But that…"
"That means you're damn good," Richard said, getting up. "I'll see you on Saturday at ten… Don't be late."
"Hold on! You haven't told me what positions are open!" Harry exclaimed, but it was too late; Richard was already gone.
"There's a Chaser position and a Seeker position," another voice answered.
Harry turned around in surprise and found one of his classmates, Cedric Diggory, who smiled, amused by the boy's predicament. Harry didn't know much about Cedric, only that he was quite popular and a good student. The truth was, Harry didn't usually know much about his classmates, because he rarely stayed with one year group for long.
"I'm sorry, but we were all wondering how long it would take Richard to badger you before you gave in," Cedric continued. "I'm also going to try my luck… I'll try for the Seeker position, but if not, I'll see about Chaser."
Harry didn't know how, but the news that he was going to try out for the Quidditch team spread like wildfire. Everywhere he went, everyone was talking about it. Of course, after the relentless pursuit Morris had subjected him to, it was normal that this would be the topic of conversation; the strange thing would have been the opposite. The downside was that many people wanted to come and watch the try-outs, because if the Quidditch captain had gone to such lengths to get him to try, it meant he must be pretty good, right? It was because of this that Morris eventually had to prohibit anyone who wasn't trying out from attending the trials, so they could have some privacy.
On Saturday morning, many tried to circumvent the prohibition, but they were met with the rather surprising presence of Madam Hooch and eventually had to desist, leaving a quite empty Quidditch pitch. That was how all those trying out for the team found it. And although some were quite disappointed, many more were relieved.
"Right then…" Morris began. "First, we'll try out those going for Seeker, so Chasers, please stand clear."
A group of five people remained on the pitch, who were obviously going to try out for Seeker. Harry was among the group, much to the captain's delight, though he wouldn't say so out loud, or else they might cast a Cruciatus Curse on him.
"Perfect," Morris said. "Now, to select our Seeker, we will use a very simple but effective method. We will release the Snitch, and whoever takes the least time to capture it will be our new Seeker. Begin!"
As Morris had indicated, that was a very simple and effective method, as it was very easy to tell who had the potential to be a Seeker and who didn't. Of the five who tried, it was clear that the first two had no potential whatsoever to play in that position, when thirty minutes after the Snitch had been released, they still didn't know how on earth to catch the Golden ball. The third had better chances, that was for sure. After all, he did achieve the goal of catching it, although it took twenty-five minutes.
Very soon, everyone could see that the duel for the Seeker position was going to be between the last two: Cedric Diggory and Harry. There was no denying it, Cedric was good. He managed to capture the Snitch in just twelve minutes, and everyone thought he would be the new Seeker, as that seemed impossible to beat. Harry also thought the same and inwardly rejoiced in it, because it would mean he would have much more time for his own things than if he were admitted. So, he set out to do the try-out very calmly and enjoy the sensation of flight, although he much preferred to fly in his phoenix form.
It was fantastic, almost as if everything else had ceased to exist; that was always what flight meant to him. For a few moments, his brother and his parents ceased to exist, and only the broom and he mattered. He wasn't even making an effort to look for the golden ball – why bother? Cedric was clearly going to win the position. A slight golden flicker to his right made him spot the elusive ball, and he shot off to take it. It was fast, he had to admit, but he would be faster. Only a few seconds later, he achieved his goal, and when he turned to descend, he discovered, to his amazement, that the stopwatch that had appeared to count the time impartially, showed he had managed to capture the Snitch in just seven minutes and twenty-six seconds. He had just joined the team.
"Very good!" Morris said enthusiastically. "We have a new Seeker! Harry Potter has just joined the team." Several people cheered here, many of whom had tried out for that position themselves. "Now we will begin the trials for the Chaser position."
The Chaser trials were somewhat hazy for Harry. If someone had asked him what happened, he wouldn't have known the answer, because he paid little, or rather, no attention. He still couldn't believe he was going to play with the team; he had participated in the try-outs just to try! Finally, once the captain finished the selection of the Chasers, Harry had assimilated it enough to accept it and found out that Cedric had managed to get a Chaser position. Seen this way, it was somewhat predictable since he was the best on a broom.
"Alright, thank you very much to everyone who has tried out for the available positions… even if you haven't got in this year, you will be able to try next term."
There were some angry people for not having made the team, but everyone had to agree that none of them had performed better than the two chosen ones, so, to the extent possible, they were satisfied. Of course, that also meant that very soon the whole school would know who was on the team.
"For the team, you should know that practices will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 4:00 p.m…"
"Morris… I sometimes have classes at that time," Harry cut him off. "How do you expect me to attend practice if I'm in class?"
"Blast… I'd forgotten," he murmured thoughtfully. "17:00?"
"I'm free then," Harry replied with a resigned sigh. "Goodbye, a few hours of free time."
As he supposed, by lunchtime, practically the whole school knew that he was going to be the new Hufflepuff Seeker. While most people didn't hesitate to congratulate him (especially his friends), there were also those who weren't happy. Oliver Wood, a sixth-year Gryffindor who was the captain of his team, almost burst into tears when he found out. Then, there was also his brother, who didn't hesitate to use this new information to mess with him, although of course, that didn't cause Harry any anguish; it was more of a slight annoyance.
There was also the fact that his brother was much more full of himself than usual. Apparently, their flying lessons would begin the next day, and since he had been flying almost since he learned to walk, he assumed he would be the best of all of them. There was also the fact that he hoped to be able to dazzle Madam Hooch with his technique and get her to allow him to join the Quidditch team.
"Is he as good as he makes out to be?" Athenea asked on Monday during breakfast.
"Yes, he is. Flying is one of the things where he doesn't exaggerate," Harry replied.
"But… is he as good as you?" Cedric asked, who was sitting next to him.
"I don't know… We've never flown together. So I can't compare."
As we have seen, Brian really had reason to boast about his skills, if what the first-years rumoured was true. They said that while Madam Hooch had taken a first-year to the infirmary, Brian had disobeyed a direct order and had put himself in the air, proving he had been right when he had been showing off his skills with a broom. Of course, it was also true that the stunt had backfired on him, because Professor McGonagall had caught him, and despite his excuses, she had taken him away.
----
Harry briefly wondered what could happen to his brother for disobeying a teacher, though he knew not much: Brian was the apple of the Headmaster's eye, and he would make sure nothing bad happened to him. An idea that was later confirmed when Ginny Weasley came furiously to sit down with Harry and his Hufflepuff friends.
"Ginny… What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?! On top of your brother disobeying the rules, Professor McGonagall has put him on the Quidditch team! Brian is the new Seeker!"
"What!?" Athenea exclaimed. "It must be a joke, right?"
"No."
"But Harry wasn't allowed to join last year, and Madam Hooch and Professor Sprout asked the Headmaster themselves!" Jonathan added.
"That's favouritism! That's not fair!"
Yes, it was favouritism, and Harry knew it as well as the others, but he also knew why Dumbledore showed such great favouritism towards his brother, although he wouldn't be the one to say so out loud. What was clear was that now the youngest Potter would be unbearable, and that would be even more unpleasant for Harry.
---
The next day, Harry was about to go to his Quidditch practice, whilst trying not to think about Brian. As expected, his younger brother had been unbearable, and this was the shared opinion of everyone within the Hogwarts student body. In fact, Harry knew that more than one person had had to refrain from uttering two or three curses at him every time they met him in the corridors, and the funny thing was that more than one was giving Harry their most heartfelt condolences for having such a horrific younger brother. Many were incapable of understanding how they were related, much less be siblings.
"Petrificus Totalus!"
The spell caught him completely by surprise, which disconcerted him. He should have noticed someone approaching him! He had been able to do it since he was very young! So immersed in his own thoughts he had been, that he was unable to notice someone sneaking up behind him? Apparently so.
He was quite lucky, as he fell on his back instead of face down; at least he had been spared breaking his nose, and that was something. Now he only had to wait to find out what his brother wanted, because he had recognised his brother's voice with total clarity. He didn't have to wait long. Brian showed himself straight away and, to Harry's surprise, he looked angry… actually, angrier than he had ever seen him until now, and that, which seemed to be focused on him, didn't seem like a good omen.
"You'll be proud, won't you?" Brian said, looking at him and leaving Harry bewildered. "Yes… You must be very proud… You achieved what you have wanted all your miserable and disgusting life."
Then, to Harry's horror, his own brother kicked him in the ribs with all his might. It hurt… Oh, Merlin, how it hurt. But perhaps, what scared him the most was seeing the incredible amount of hatred directed towards him. What could have happened to Brian for him to blame and hate Harry for it?
"What's going on? Don't you know what on earth I'm talking about?" Brian asked before kicking him again. "I'm talking about Quidditch, you imbecile! You must be very proud… How long did it take you to run to Professor Sprout and convince her to complain about favouritism? I bet it didn't take you five minutes once you knew I was going to join the team."
Harry was barely aware of what Brian was saying to him, as he could only concentrate on the pain caused by the continuous kicks. Besides, he had taken a couple of blows to his head, and everything had become hazy, whilst he tried not to lose consciousness. However, he was somewhat aware that in the end, Brian was not going to make the Quidditch team. It seemed his Head of House had complained of favouritism, seconded by Professor Flitwick and Professor Snape, and of course, Brian had decided to blame Harry, just to be different.
Brian, for his part, when he noticed that Harry was losing consciousness, took the opportunity to hit him even harder, whilst calling him all sorts of insulting names. Not even when he saw that Harry was no longer conscious did he stop his attack on his brother; on the contrary, he increased it. Truth be told, Brian Potter wanted revenge on his brother for all that was happening to him since he came to the school. Since he was a child, his parents had taught him that he was much better than others and that was why he had the right to behave as someone superior, but since he had arrived at school, things hadn't gone that way. He wasn't the best in his class, he had no friends, and now he wasn't even on the Quidditch team, whilst his brother, who had never been anything more than a failure, was turning out to be all of those things, and it was for that reason that he hated him.
Just as had happened to his brother a while ago, Brian also didn't hear someone approaching from behind; he was too busy beating Harry. So it was a surprise when he heard a shocked and horrified scream.
"Mr. Potter! Immobilus!" Not two seconds later, Professor Snape appeared in front of him. "I hope you realise that you're in big trouble, Mr. Potter… After this, I will do everything in my power to get him expelled."