It was now the last week of the holidays. Harry had spent his time
alternating between Black Manor, Greengrass Manor and Potter
Castle. The two months had been used to learn as much as possible
from Alfred Potter who was delighted to teach his descendant again.
Harry spent more time learning Runes and Potions from Alfred along
with several spells from the family grimoire. Sirius supplemented his
education by bringing Harry's Defence and Transfiguration training
up to speed. He also told Harry, much to the boy's immense joy, that
he would start teaching him how to become an Animagus.
In the last week of August, the book lists finally arrived. Just as he
was about to head over to Black Manor, three elves popped inside
the dining room. It looked like they were fighting.
"Master, Dobby is trying to sneak into the castle," cried Tippy
furiously. Harry didn't miss the stark contrast in their appearance.
While Tippy and Sally were dressed in proper uniforms, the other elf,
who seemed quite weak and unhealthy, was wearing a horrible
looking tea towel.
"Who are you?" asked Harry, with narrowed eyes. "And why did you
try to break into my home?"
"I am Dobby, sir," squeaked the elf. "Dobby is coming here to warn
you, sir. Harry Potter must not return to Hogwarts School this year!
Dark things are planned! Dobby has to protect Harry Potter!"
"Tippy, Sally, release him," ordered Harry. He kneeled down to match
the elf's height and asked, "What are you talking about, Dobby?
What terrible things?"
Dobby burst into furious tears at the gesture. "Harry Potter is greater
than Dobby ever thought! He treats Dobby like an equal! But Harry
Potter sir should not go back to school. There is a plot, a plot to
make the most dangerous things happen!"
"What dangerous things? Who's plotting them?"
"Dobby cannot say, sir. Dobby's master doesn't even know he is
here! Dobby would have to iron his hands for betraying his master.
But Dobby doesn't care, for Harry Potter's safety is most important.
Don't go to school, sir. Great danger is going to befall the castle this
year. Harry Potter must protect himself and stay safe," said the elf,
and snapped its fingers and disappeared.
Harry frowned. "Guys, who is Dobby's master?"
"Dobby is the Malfoy elf, Master Harry. He is treated very, very badly
by his masters," answered Sally sadly.
Harry gritted his teeth. He had a soft spot for house-elves and he did
not like people mistreating them. But what was Dobby talking about?
An hour later, Harry and Sirius were in Diagon Alley, shopping for his
school supplies. Despite his godson's protests, Sirius had put his
foot down and decided to pay for all their purchases, saying that it
was his duty as Harry's guardian to do so. Once uniforms, potions
ingredients and other stationery were taken care of, they headed to
Flourish and Blotts, which was playing host to a throng of people,
including the press.
"Eh, this is bad," muttered Harry. "Quick, cast a glamour on me."
"Good idea," Sirius nodded. With a wave of his wand, they were both
under a simple glamour charm. It turned out to be a good thing
because Gilderoy Lockhart was posing for photographs. Just after
Harry finished buying his fourth and fifth-year books, there was a
scuffle at the entrance of the shop. The duo looked at each other in
surprise when they saw Arthur Weasley physically fighting Lucius
Malfoy. Harry could hear the last bit of their conversation.
"Here girl, take your book. It's the best your father can give you,"
snarled Lucius, thrusting the books into her cauldron. Sirius shook
his head as he steered Harry out of the store.
"What was that all about?"
"Arthur Weasley's Muggle Protection Act," answered Sirius. "There
have been several raids conducted in connection with the bill. It's
being endorsed by Dumbledore, actually, but the bill itself is poorly
written. Lucius Malfoy is quite angry about it."
"I would be too," Harry scowled slightly. "There should be a wizard's
protection act from the threat known as Muggles, not the opposite.
We are the ones in danger, yet I hear no talk about that!"
Sirius tilted his head to the side as they Portkeyed to Black Manor.
He observed Harry for a moment and said, "You don't like Muggles,
do you?"
"What does that have to do with anything?" asked Harry defensively.
Sirius merely narrowed his eyes and his young charge flushed
slightly under his stern gaze.
"I'm asking you because I need to know," said Sirius as they entered
the informal drawing room. "I am your Regent and I represent you on
the Wizengamot and for that, I need to know what your thoughts are.
I've observed that you're not of a liberal mindset, but I never pegged
you for a red-blooded traditionalist."
"I'm not," Harry corrected him, regaining control of his emotions once
more. "I'm more of a centrist, from what Grandfather Charlus' portrait
told me; a balance between the two. I believe we need new ideas
while also retaining our magical traditions and beliefs. You have to
understand that I grew up both in the Muggle and magical worlds. I
have a unique vantage point. I deeply respect our traditions and I
don't want to see them gone. Dumbledore's supporters have a very
narrow-minded view of what they believe is dark and light. They'll
convert the magical world into a replica of the Muggle world, if they
have enough power. The traditionalists, on the other hand, are so
deeply rooted in their beliefs that they can't ever think outside the
box, from what I've read from history and observed myself. We'll
crumble from within if they are in power. We need a balance
between the two factions; surely there are others who aren't
extremists."
"That certainly is a novel idea," said Sirius after a few minutes. "And I
have to say I agree with you. But I need to ask … what are your
thoughts on Muggles and Muggle-borns?"
Harry took a deep breath. "I don't have a problem with Muggleborns;
in fact, I believe they have amazing potential and
unconventional thinking. Just look at some of the Muggle-borns we
have today! My mother was not the only exceptional witch or wizard
they had to offer; there are bound to be others who are talented too.
But there are some who tend to look down upon us, saying that
we're backward as compared to Muggles. I've heard a couple of
Muggle-borns say that. According to Hermione Granger, an exclassmate
of mine, wizards don't have a shred of logic. She believes
we are archaic while her vaunted Muggle world is perfect and that
we need to change our ways and become more like Muggles." He
sneered as he said, "Tell me that doesn't make you angry."
Sirius nodded slowly. "I must admit those are statements that do get
me mad. You have to understand, Harry, that there are bigots on
both sides, and the Death Eaters used such Muggle-borns as
examples to further their agenda. Your mother was never like this,
you know. She completely embraced the magical world when she
came to Hogwarts. Within a few years, no one could tell if she was
Muggle-raised or wizard-raised. Unfortunately, not all Muggle-borns
are like that. Lily's attitude, with the way she whole-heartedly
embraced our culture and traditions, was the only reason your
grandparents agreed to the marriage. They were furious at first,
when they realised that James wanted to get married to a Muggleborn.
After several fights, James managed to convince them to meet
Lily and give her a chance. The first meeting was kind of frosty, from
what I heard, but Aunt Dorea had to grudgingly admit that Lily did not
behave like any other Muggle-born. Several months later, after they
got to know her better, your grandparents agreed to the marriage."
"I know. Their portraits told me and I've also read my parents'
journals. But my point is that the traditionalists will always point out
such Muggle-borns and use it against the rest. Also, Sirius, don't you
think the International Statute of Secrecy is breached with each
Muggle-born being informed? Each Muggle-born means two parents
informed and maybe siblings as well. The more Muggle-borns, the
more Muggles know about magic. Doesn't that defeat the purpose of
secrecy? How can you believe that word wouldn't spread amongst
the Muggles about the existence of magic? I'm genuinely confused
about that."
"Harry, you are treading in very, very dangerous waters here,"
warned Sirius. "What you're saying is exactly what Voldemort
preached."
"I know," said Harry bitterly. "That's why I never raised this issue with
anyone but you, but I really do want to know the answer. I've lived
with Muggles, Sirius. I have dealt with not just my relatives but also
Muggles in the neighbourhood and at school. Trust me, there is a
reason I don't like Muggles. None of them would react favourably if
their child is born magical. Do you think I'm the only child in the world
who has been abused by Muggles because of magic? There are
bound to be others as well, right? Isn't there some truth to that? Isn't
that also why MACUSA completely cut off from the Muggle world,
banning wizards from interacting with Muggles? I've heard that it is
similar in Asia and Africa as well. Why can't we do the same?"
"It's true that Magical Europe is far more liberal when it comes to
wizard-Muggle relations as compared to the rest of the world. Tell me
something. Are you saying all this only because of your experience
with Muggles? What about those Muggles who don't hate magic?
You can't just vilify all Muggles or expect others to do so just
because you had a bad experience with them. That would mean you
are imposing your beliefs on others, which was what the last war
was all about. Think about it."
Sirius went to his room later, pondering the issue. He never thought
he would see the day when the son of James and Lily was anti-
Muggle. He honestly didn't know how to proceed because his
godson's argument made sense.
He would have to think about this; find out more. The Black family
had contacts throughout Europe, so he could do some research.
Amelia also had international contacts, not to mention had access to
restricted information at the Ministry of Magic. He owed Harry an
answer because he himself had to admit that what Harry said was
true. Being raised a Black, he had been taught the true history of
why wizards had gone into hiding in the first place, not the diluted
version that was made available by Muggle-sympathising historians
like Bathilda Bagshot. The witch hunts back then had truly been
horrifying; nothing how the school books described them.
Tens of thousands of witches and wizards, maybe more, especially
defenceless children, had been tortured to death back then, in
Magical Europe alone . Countless more had died all over the world.
The situation had been too dire to contemplate. That was why the
entire international community had teamed up to create the
International Statute of Secrecy, and that was the reason it was
enforced so rigidly by the I.C.W.
But he was also worried about Harry. The boy was walking down a
dangerous path which others like Grindelwald and Voldemort had
taken before, and Sirius vowed that he would do everything in his
power so that his godson did not make life choices erroneously for
something he believed was right.
Who knew parenting could be so hard?
The first of September dawned bright and early. Harry took his time
getting ready, finished his breakfast and once done, shrunk his trunk
and Flooed to the platform where he boarded the train. He spotted
Daphne and Tracy already there, so he sat down and began talking.
He didn't get time to read much as he was constantly pelted with
questions about the duelling tournament by the acquaintances he
had in all four Houses. Neville Longbottom was ecstatic because he
had listened to Professor Flitwick's advice from the end of the
previous term and bought a wand which suited him. He had
practised magic during the summer and was quite happy with the
results.
When they reached Hogsmeade, Harry gave a curt nod in the
direction of Draco Malfoy who nodded back at him. The two of them
didn't talk much and maintained distance, choosing to nod to each
other if the other passed by. They didn't share any classes, so there
wasn't much scope for them to interact, with each having a different
circle of friends. Harry also spoke to the older students with whom he
shared classes with the previous term. He would be their classmate
for another term since he would be starting fourth-year classes this
time. After the winter holidays, he would be advancing to the fifth
years' class.
The sorting went on as normal and Harry soon found himself back in
his room at Ravenclaw Tower. Tippy had already expanded his room
and put his clothes away, so Harry simply undressed and got into
bed. The next morning, he was by the lake, as usual, and ran and
exercised for nearly two hours. Once done, he took a shower and
got dressed. There were a lot more people staring at him when he
entered the Great Hall, but he tried to not let it bother him. He
received his schedule from Professor Flitwick and joined the rest of
the fourth years to head to Defence class which he shared with the
Gryffindors.
"I really hope he's competent," said Harry quietly.
"Why do –"
"– you say that?"
"I've read all his books and do you know what I found? Nothing.
There wasn't a single incantation mentioned anywhere," explained
Harry as he took his usual seat next to Fred and George Weasley.
"What's the point of prescribing them as textbooks if they're not
going to help us learn? I'm starting to wonder if he's faked it all,
claiming fiction to be factual."
"Our mum is a big fan of dear Lockhart," said George.
"She would be heartbroken if that were true," agreed Fred.
Their Defence professor soon entered the room, wearing bright
yellow robes. Harry grimaced; he would burn such clothes on
principle. They were way too cheerful for his tastes.
Lockhart gave a dramatic entrance and pointed to the various
portraits of him and said, "Me. Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin,
Third Class; Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defence League;
five-time winner of Witch Weekly's most charming smile Award, and
your new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Ah, I see you've
bought my complete set of books. Well done. Let's start with a quiz,
shall we?"
He handed over sheets of parchment to everyone. "Now don't worry,
this isn't anything difficult. You have thirty minutes, so begin!"
Harry looked at the questions incredulously. They were all about
Lockhart and not one of them was related to the subject he was
being paid to teach! Who the hell cared what the man's favourite
colour was or what his secret ambition was? This was ridiculous! He
could hear Fred and George snickering next to him, so he knew that
the two of them were writing something embarrassing. He instead
wrote something on the margin in his neat handwriting –
I did not sign up for a Gilderoy Lockhart class.
I signed up for a Defence class. I refuse to participate .
There. Done. He removed his copy of Curses and Counter-Curses
from his bag and began reading. When Lockhart collected their
answer sheets after the time was up, his eyes bulged when he saw
the answers written by Fred and George, but also spotted the empty
sheet that belonged to Harry Potter, except for the line at the top.
"Detention with me, Misters Weasley and Mr Potter," said Lockhart,
with a beaming smile. "I'm sure you will appreciate why I give these
tests once we get to know each other better."
Harry rolled his eyes. He gripped the locket that was hanging from
around his neck and a notice-me-not charm activated. If the fool was
not going to teach anything, there was nothing Harry could do, but
he would be damned if he was going to waste time in class. His
O.W.L.s were less than a year away, and he had to prepare for them.
After Defence and Charms, Harry was heading towards the Great
Hall when there was a bright flash of light. Harry blinked his eyes
and flicked his wand out of his holster, suspecting a threat, only to
find a first-year boy looking at him with big eyes.
"Don't you think it's inappropriate to take someone else's picture
without their permission?" snapped Harry irritably. Knowing that his
magic was volatile, he exhaled slowly in order to calm down, and his
emotionless mask was back in place a few seconds later. He gazed
at the photographer with cool eyes.
The boy in question flushed, but his excitement was showing. "Hi
Harry," he said eagerly. "I'm Colin, Colin Creevey. I'm a first year
Gryffindor. Do you think – would it be alright if – you know – I could
take a picture with you?"
Before he could answer, things went downhill. One of the seventh
year Ravenclaws, who was quite vocal in his protest against Harry
being in the accelerated program, began laughing.
"What is it now, Potter?" he asked snidely. "Can't handle being on
the front page of the newspaper often enough that you give signed
photographs now?"
Lockhart chose that moment to appear at the scene, obviously
heading for lunch himself, and heard the last comment. "Oh, signed
photographs? Who's giving signed photographs? Come on, Mr
Creevey. A double portrait; can't do better than that. We'll both sign it
for you!"
"I don't think so," Harry interrupted, pushing past the new teacher. "I
don't have the time or the patience to indulge in this nonsense. Get
yourself someone else to bolster your fame, Professor Lockhart. I'm
not available."
Harry didn't even wait for the man's response because he was
already heading towards the Slytherin table in the Great Hall. He sat
down next to Daphne and began piling his plate with food.
"Trouble?" asked Daphne hesitantly.
"Some Gryffindor twit decided to take photographs of me in the
middle of the corridor," said Harry angrily. "Then Jones acts like a
jealous arsehole. That's when Lockhart shows up and annoys me
even more. That guy is a moron. Who the hell made him a teacher?"
"I'll tell you who," Theo Nott answered as he sat opposite to them.
"It's someone with a long white beard who calls himself the
headmaster. Lockhart was horrible. We had him just last period."
"What did he do?"
"What did he not do?" exclaimed Daphne. "He let a bunch of Cornish
pixies loose in the classroom. The pixies destroyed the room, picked
up poor Neville and hung him from the chandelier and caused
mayhem. The idiot professor decided to flee rather than help.
Granger said he was giving us ' practical experience ' ."
"Any chance we could get rid of him?" asked Harry hopefully.
"No," said Blaise Zabini. "All teachers have a contract. Unless
Lockhart does something drastic, we're stuck with him for a year."
"Great," muttered Harry. "Dumbledore just had to pick the worst
teacher possible for my O.W.L. year. How are we going to cope?"
His question was met with silence from the others.
A week later, Harry found himself at the Quidditch pitch for the tryouts
for the Ravenclaw House team. While he couldn't be bothered if
his House won the Quidditch Cup or not, he couldn't ignore the fact
that he greatly enjoyed the game. So, after some encouragement
from Sirius and Daphne, he decided to give it a try.
Holding his new Nimbus Two Thousand and One in his hand, Harry
stood with the rest of the potential players who were trying for
Seeker. The spot was already occupied by a third-year girl named
Cho Chang, but traditionally, try-outs were held for all positions,
except for the captain's. And since the captain of the Ravenclaw
team was a Chaser and not a Seeker, he had a chance to take Cho
Chang's place.
The try-outs began for Chasers and Beaters first, followed by the
Keeper. Once the rest of the team was formed, the captain, a sixthyear
girl by the name of Abigail Turner, turned her attention to the
Seekers. After a few rounds of elimination, only two remained –
Harry and Cho.
"Alright, you two, I'll keep this simple. You have to qualify two more
rounds – catch the snitch once without the bludgers and catch it
again with the bludgers. Up in the air!" she shouted.
Harry gripped his Nimbus Two Thousand and One as he shot off into
the air. He flew to an impressive height and stopped.
"I'm releasing the golden snitch – NOW!"
The small golden snitch disappeared immediately so there was no
point in looking for it. But Harry did not like waiting for the snitch to
appear, with nothing to do. He flew around the pitch for a few
minutes, diving and ascending. Finally, he saw the snitch near the
ground at the end of the goal posts. He quickly accelerated and
could sense Chang behind him. He dived at a sharp angle to throw
her off, but she was relentless. He approached the ground with
speed; he could hear a few girls scream in fright, but he suddenly
pulled up, with his gloved fist in the air, holding the golden snitch.
He approached the captain who looked slack-jawed at his
performance.
"You could have killed me!" cried a furious Cho Chang, who landed
next to him. "What do you think you were doing, diving at such
speed?"
"That's the point; the opposing Seeker would not be able to follow
me. Captain, could you please release the bludgers?"
Abigail Turner grinned. "Boys, give him the best you've got," she said
to the beaters. The Beaters took their bats and released the
bludgers. Harry and Cho took their positions and Turner released the
snitch again. Immediately, both Seekers found bludgers headed their
way and had to dive to get away. Harry again started flying from one
end of the pitch to the other. After five minutes of dodging bludgers,
he spotted the snitch. He immediately darted towards it, but could
sense a bludger coming his way. He slowed down, spun three
hundred and sixty degrees in mid-air and hit the bludger with the tail
of his broomstick so that it would trouble Chang instead, and his aim
was accurate as it did hit her. He dived and caught the snitch.
When he landed, people were applauding.
"That was awesome, Potter! Not only did you get the snitch, but you
sent the bludger away too! Welcome to the team," said Turner.
Harry smiled.
On the Saturday of the second week of September, Harry donned
his Invisibility Cloak over himself and slipped out of the great oak
doors of the castle. Walking towards the Whomping Willow, he
levitated a stick and used it to press the knot at the base of the tree,
just as he had been taught by his godfather. The tree suddenly
stopped being violent and Harry crawled into the secret passageway
leading towards the Shrieking Shack. He removed his cloak and
walked up the stairs. When he entered the room, he saw Sirius
cleaning it with several waves of his wand.
"Hey, Sirius," Harry greeted him with a small smile. "I got into the
Ravenclaw Quidditch Team!"
Sirius grinned proudly. He moved closer to give the boy a light hug.
"Congratulations, Harry! I knew you could do it! Seeker, right?"
"Yes," said Harry, as he took a seat in the armchair. "The first match
will be held soon. Shall we get started?"
Sirius nodded as he took a seat as well. After pausing to gather his
thoughts, he began.
"The Animagus transformation is not as horribly difficult as people
make it out to be," he explained. "The reason it is considered difficult
by most is because Transfiguration itself is a difficult subject to
master. You are changing the definition of the object in question, and
that is significantly more difficult than Charms where you enchant an
object. Until now, whatever you've learnt is inanimate or animal
transfiguration and basics of elemental transfiguration, am I right?"
"Yes," replied Harry promptly. "Elemental Transfiguration is the
process where you change one element to another. It is significantly
more difficult than transfiguration within the same type of element.
Conjuration is an example of elemental transfiguration because it
transfigures air into something else. The vanishing spell does the
opposite."
"Excellent, you've understood the theory. Now we can move on to
Human Transfiguration, which is significantly more complex. The
human body is much different from that of, say, a frog. You need to
understand the differences between the animals you transfigure and
also the challenges posed to human transfiguration. If you go wrong,
it could be disastrous, so you are not to try it without me in the initial
stages, understood?"
Harry nodded.
"The first step is to find your centre. This won't be difficult for you
since you are a natural at Occlumency. When you're done, we'll start
with your fingers and slowly proceed from there. Once you know
exactly what your animal form is, you'll be able to complete the final
transformation."
"Oh, by the way, I have something important to tell you," Sirius said
suddenly, interrupting their session. He hesitated for a moment, as if
unsure of how his godson would handle the news, and continued,
"Amelia and I were planning to get married this winter. What do you
think?"
Harry blinked once in surprise, having not expected this. Once his
mind processed what he was told, he smiled genuinely. "That's great
news! Congratulations, Sirius. I'm happy for you both."
The older wizard looked relieved that his young charge was not
upset by the news. "Thanks, Harry. Besides you, I don't have anyone
else on my side of the family except Andromeda and Narcissa, so
your approval really means a lot to me. We're planning to outsource
all the wedding preparations to a well-known event-organising
company in Diagon Alley, but we still haven't decided on the place."
"Why don't you hold it at Black Manor?" Harry suggested. "It'll be
easier to pull it off, not to mention will provide a beautiful backdrop.
The ceremony can be held outside, while the reception can be held
inside, in the Grand Ballroom."
"You know, that's actually a good idea," muttered Sirius, staring into
the distance. "I'll ask Amelia. Good job, kiddo. I'll keep you updated
on any developments. Now, let's get back to our discussion on
human transfiguration."
Three hours later, Harry returned to Ravenclaw Tower, exhausted.
When Sirius said the process would be draining, he hadn't been
kidding. His godfather had not allowed him to transfigure anything
more than his fingernails for today but told him to keep practising
and also so look deep within himself to know more about his animal
form. The more he knew what he was going to be, the easier it would
become.
On the thirty-first of October, the traditional Samhain feast was being
served in the Great Hall. Harry was strangely in a good mood after
another Animagus class, so he decided to be more interactive for the
night. His Housemates were all bemused at first, but no one was
complaining. Harry was a goldmine of information and the people all
around engaged him in conversation for hours until the feast ended.
Once done, the Ravenclaws walked together towards the Grand
Staircase and after several minutes, one by one they trickled into the
Ravenclaw common room.
Downstairs, on the first floor, the petrified forms of Argus Filch and
Mrs Norris were discovered along with the message that the
Chamber of Secrets had been opened.
HP*SAVIOUR OF MAGIC*HP
The next few days were filled with confusion and deep speculation
about the Chamber of Secrets and what could have caused the
petrification of Filch and Mrs Norris. Harry, like the rest, had believed
that someone must have cursed them and had written the message
on the wall to cause trouble, but had a nagging feeling in the back of
his mind that he was wrong. Something about the Chamber was
intimately familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it.
Draco Malfoy had been the most vocal about the incident, saying
that the attack and the supposed opening of the Chamber of Secrets
was a good thing. The boy also seemed to have gotten into the
Slytherin Quidditch Team as a Seeker and his father had bought the
entire team new Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones. Harry wondered
how the rest of the Board of Governors let this happen, but there
was nothing against donating brooms to the school. In fact, when he
spoke to Sirius, Harry was informed that there was actually a tax
deduction on any donation to the magical schools of Britain, so it
was sure to be a win-win scenario for Lucius Malfoy.
Harry woke up early that Saturday morning and quietly walked
outside to the grounds to finish his morning exercises. Since
Ravenclaw and Slytherin had been the finalists the previous year in
the Quidditch matches, they would be playing the first game of the
season today. Harry had trained rigorously with the Ravenclaw team
and he had to admit they were pretty good. The mood had been
dampened with the news of the new brooms of the Slytherin team,
but the captain said that it didn't matter.
"We have faced tough odds before," assured Abigail Turner to the
team as they assembled in the locker room. "This is no different.
They don't know the advantage we have. We haven't let anyone
know of our moves, so that should surprise them. Harry, start your
game immediately. If we surprise them early on, maybe they'll lose
confidence in their new brooms, and we can use every advantage
we can get today."
"Understood," said Harry calmly, as he gripped his broomstick.
The seven members of the team stood at the entrance of the pitch
and mounted their brooms, flying into the cloudy sky. Hundreds of
people cheered from below and Harry breathed deeply to take care
of any existing nervousness. Once reinforcing his mental shields, his
blank mask was back in place as he flew high in the sky. Any minute
now ...
"Welcome everyone to the first game of the season," shouted Lee
Jordan, his voice magically enhanced. "Today we have our resident
Eagles playing against the Snakes!"
"On my whistle," shouted Madam Hooch. "Three ... two ... one ..."
She blew the whistle and a mighty roar could be heard as the game
began. Harry soared upward but his green eyes were focussed on
the game below, not looking for the snitch. Draco Malfoy was behind
him, obviously wanting to retaliate if Harry saw the snitch himself.
"And Marcus Flint has control of the Quaffle. Turner tries to take it,
but – oh, that was nasty. He dodges a bludger and goes near the
goal posts, he – wait – what's that?"
When Harry had a clear line of sight to Flint, he dived sharply,
pushing his Nimbus Two Thousand and One to the maximum.
Behind him, Draco Malfoy dived too, but Harry wasn't going for the
snitch or attempting a Wronski Feint. He was heading directly
towards Marcus Flint and with one powerful kick, the Quaffle was
released from the older boy's hold. Harry dived and turned, grabbing
the Quaffle and quickly passed it to Roger Davies who scored.
"Outstanding!" yelled Lee Jordan. "It looks like Harry Potter is playing
as an interfering Seeker! That was one hell of a move! I thought it
was a feint but it wasn't. Roger Davies scores and it is ten-zero to
Ravenclaw!"
Harry saw a bludger coming right at him so he performed a sloth grip
roll to dodge it, but the bludger immediately changed course! He flew
higher, just as Jacob Samuels, one of the two beaters of Ravenclaw
gave a powerful whack to the bludger towards Adrian Pucey.
"You alright there, Harry?" asked Jacob.
Just as Harry nodded at the other boy, the bludger once again flew
towards him. Harry frowned as he dived to the ground to dodge it,
trying to focus on the elusive Golden Snitch. Slytherin had already
scored twice, bringing the score up to twenty to ten. None of them
knew why the bludger was going after Harry alone, but he didn't
want to forfeit the game due to an enchantment on the bludger gone
bad.
"Get back to the game!" yelled Harry as the beaters came to help
him. "We'll never win if you keep shadowing me. I'll be fine!"
The beaters looked concerned, but they decided to follow his
instructions. Forty minutes later, the score was one hundred and
thirty to fifty in favour of Ravenclaw. The rain was falling heavily now,
impairing vision. Harry knew that he had to catch the snitch soon, so
he made finding it his top priority. Higher and higher he went and he
could hear the bludger behind him. He looped and swooped,
zigzagged, spiralled and rolled.
"Training for the ballet, Potter?" called out Draco, smirking, as he
tried to distract Harry while he searched for the snitch himself.
Suddenly, Harry saw it.
The snitch was glinting from right behind Malfoy's ear. Without
waiting for a moment, he pushed and nearly unseated Malfoy from
his broom in the process. Just as his fingers closed upon the
struggling golden snitch, the bludger came back.WHAM!