————. ° ♧︎: *.☽. * :☾. ♕ *. ————

"He sent me this," Hermione said, holding out the letter.

Harry took it. The parchment was damp, and enormous teardrops had smudged the ink so badly in places that it was very difficult to read.

Dear Hermione, We lost. I'm allowed to bring him back to Hogwarts. Execution date to be fixed. Beaky has enjoyed London.

I won't forget all the help you gave us.

Hagrid

"They can't do this," said Harry. "They can't. Buckbeak isn't dangerous."

"But in court, they should've taken it into account that-," Y/N spluttered, panting for a coherent response, "Have you tried-"

"We tried everything but Malfoy's dad's frightened the Committee into it," said Hermione, wiping her eyes. "You know what he's like. They're a bunch of doddery old fools, and they were scared. There'll be an appeal, though, there always is. Only I can't see any hope... Nothing will have changed."

"Yeah, it will," said Ron fiercely. "You won't have to do all the work alone this time, Hermione. I'll help."

Harry and Y/N swiftly catches glances and both angled their arms with a fist pulling back into the air with suppressed grins on their lips from Ron's contact with Hermione after their endless quarrels.

"Oh, Ron!"

Hermione flung her arms around Ron's neck and broke down completely. Ron, looking quite terrified, patted her very awkwardly on the top of the head. Finally, Hermione drew away.

"Ron, I'm really, really sorry about Scabbers..." she sobbed.

"Oh — well — he was old," said Ron, looking thoroughly relieved that she had let go of him. "And he was a bit useless. You never know, Mum and Dad might get me an owl now."

The safety measures imposed on the students since Black's second break-in made it impossible for the quartet to go and visit Hagrid in the evenings. Their only chance of talking to him was during Care of Magical Creatures lessons.

He seemed numb with shock at the verdict. "S'all my fault. Got all tongue-tied. They was all sittin' there in black robes an' I kep' droppin' me notes and forgettin' all them dates yeh looked up fer me, Hermione. An' then Lucius Malfoy stood up an' said his bit, and the Committee jus' did exac'ly what he told 'em..."

"There's still the appeal!" said Ron fiercely. "Don't give up yet, we're working on it!"

"Yeah what he said," Y/N said with a frown patting Ron on the back casually.

They were walking back up to the castle with the rest of the class. Ahead they could see Malfoy, who was walking with Crabbe and Goyle, and kept looking back, laughing derisively.

"S'no good, Ron," said Hagrid sadly as they reached the castle steps. "That Committee's in Lucius Malfoy's pocket. I'm jus' gonna make sure the rest o' Beaky's time is the happiest he's ever had. I owe him that..."

Hagrid turned around and hurried back toward his cabin, his face buried in his handkerchief. "Look at him blubber!"

Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle had been standing just inside the castle doors, listening.

In all fast paced processing- Hermione and Y/N immediately made furious trudges towards the lot of taunting howls of laughter. "Y/N, you get the conception," Hermione muttered under her breath seeing that Y/N took it as cue when she saw her wand at the side of her. Y/N brought her, levelled at Malfoy's right side of his face, and slapped the smug smirk off his face downwards. Malfoy staggered.

Ron gulped looking completely baffled trying to adjust the uniform collar around his neck with an astonished Harry blinking amazedly at the red blood rush that issued on Malfoy's cheek.

Shaking the weight of pressure off her hand, Y/N abruptly wasted no time in sharing the satisfaction of reprisal with the girl to her left glaring daggers at the bleach-headed boy, "Your call now."

— SMACK!

Hermione swiftly punched Malfoy square in the face with satisfaction engraved on each of her knuckles that imprinted into the centre of his baffled face with stinging pain from double hits, "Don't you dare call Hagrid pathetic, you foul — you evil —"

"Hermione!" said Ron weakly, and he tried to grab her hand as she swung it back.

"Get off, Ron!"

"C'mon." Malfoy muttered, and in a moment, all three of them had disappeared into the passageway to the dungeons.

"I can die peacefully now," Y/N panted.

Harry looked at her with twitchy lips and lustrous eyes scanning every inch of her gaze, "That was-"

"Brilliant, I know." Ron finished, "We're- we're due in c-charms. We'd better go."

With breathy chuckles, Y/N and Hermione fixed their hair into manner, and turned their backs to hurry up the marble staircase toward Professor Flitwick's classroom.

Harry leaned into Ron's side discreetly whispering in gazing awe at Y/N, "Impressed. Are you impressed?"

"Im impressed. You impressed?" Ron breathed out, goggling at Hermione hysterically.

"We're impressed." Harry grinned at Y/N as she cluelessly wrapped her hair up with her wand.

"Affirmative."

————. ° ♧︎: *.☽. * :☾. ♕ *. ————

"You're late, boys!" said Professor Flitwick reprovingly as Harry opened the classroom door. "Come along, quickly, wands out, we're experimenting with Cheering Charms today, we've already divided into pairs —"

Harry and Ron hurried to a desk at the back, near Y/N, and opened their bags. Ron looked behind him.

"Where's Hermione gone?"

Harry looked around too. Hermione hadn't entered the classroom, yet Harry knew she had been right next to him when he had opened the door.

"Never you mind but I must inform you that you're unfortunately going to have to take your own notes today."

"Maybe — maybe she went to the bathroom or something?" Harry chuckled, shaking his head.

"Do you think she can listen to the lesson from the girl's lavatory. I can't take these notes down alone." Ron whispered to harry.

"You don't say, idiot." Harry palmed his forehead laughing with Ron under their breaths.

Hermione didn't turn up all lesson.

"She could've done with a Cheering Charm on her too," said Ron as the class left for lunch, all grinning broadly — the Cheering Charms had left them with a feeling of great contentment.

"So could've I if Harry hadn't burnt the tips of my hair with his horrendous spell pronunciation," Y/N said blowing the ash from her shoulders, "How unfashionable of you, Harold, honestly."

Harry slung his bag over his shoulder and threw and arm around hers, "It's a character trait. Learn to embrace it."

Hermione wasn't at lunch either. By the time they had finished their apple pie, the after-effects of the Cheering Charms were wearing off, and the three had started to get slightly worried.

"You don't think Malfoy did something to her?" Ron said anxiously as they hurried upstairs toward Gryffindor Tower.

They passed the security trolls, gave the Fat Lady the password ("Flibbertigibbet"), and scrambled through the portrait hole into the common room.

Hermione was sitting at a table, fast asleep, her head resting on an open Arithmancy book. They went to sit down on either side of her. Harry prodded her awake.

"Wh — what?" said Hermione, waking with a start and staring wildly around. "Is it time to go? W — which lesson have we got now?"

"Divination, but it's not for another twenty minutes," said Harry, nudging Y/N in the ribs for mocking a lullaby to Hermione which she wearily wavered off, "Hermione, why didn't you come to Charms?"

"What? Oh no!" Hermione squeaked. "I forgot to go to Charms!"

"Now, now Hermione," Y/N huffed, "You were almost in the beyond, zen, I felt your aura pulsating-"

"But how could you forget?" said Harry, taking ahold of Y/N's waist to pull her back from her snickering. "You were with us till we were right outside the classroom!"

"I don't believe it!" Hermione wailed. "Was Professor Flitwick angry? Oh, it was Malfoy, I was thinking about him and I lost track of things!"

"You know what, Hermione?" said Ron, looking down at the enormous Arithmancy book Hermione had been using as a pillow. "I reckon you're cracking up. You're trying to do too much."

"No, I'm not!" said Hermione, brushing her hair out of her eyes and staring hopelessly around for her bag. "I just made a mistake, that's all! I'd better go and see Professor Flitwick and say sorry... I'll see you in Divination!"

Hermione joined them at the foot of the ladder to Professor Trelawney's classroom twenty minutes later, looking extremely harassed.

"I can't believe I missed Cheering Charms! And I bet they come up in our exams; Professor Flitwick hinted they might!"

"Breathe Mione- I'll stay up, and for you and only you, I can school you on it." Y/N offered.

"Someone- Harry," Hermione murmured concentrating in fixing her robes flicking her hand around the atmosphere of her friends, "Tell her you love her in words of me. Im too busy at the matter of time right now"

"Yeah, Harry," Ron sighed, started fanning his face with his hand mockingly in a high pitched voice, "Tell her you love her, you know for Hermione because she seems really worked up right now. Share the message."

"Oh yeah? You wanna play like that- okay I see how it is."

Together they climbed the ladder into the dim, stifling tower room. Glowing on every little table was a crystal ball full of pearly white mist. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down together at the same rickety table.

"I thought we weren't starting crystal balls until next term," Ron muttered, casting a wary eye around for Professor Trelawney, in case she was lurking nearby.

"Don't complain, this means we've finished palmistry," Harry muttered back. "I was getting sick of her flinching every time she looked at my hands."

And all though he tried to keep his disappointment invisible to the others. Harry was going to miss having an excuse to hold Y/N's hand, trace the coruscated orphic lines that were chiseled into the eye of her palms, and feeling her finger tips of aureate stardust meet the surface of his skin in the most acadian manner. Academic purposes.

"Good day to you!" said the familiar, misty voice, and Professor Trelawney made her usual dramatic entrance out of the shadows. Parvati and Lavender quivered with excitement, their faces lit by the milky glow of their crystal ball.

"I have decided to introduce the crystal ball a little earlier than I had planned," said Professor Trelawney, sitting with her back to the fire and gazing around. "The fates have informed me that your examination in June will concern the Orb, and I am anxious to give you sufficient practice."

Hermione snorted.

"Well, honestly... 'the fates have informed her'. Who sets the exam? She does! What an amazing prediction!" she said, not troubling to keep her voice low. Harry and Ron choked back laughs.

It was hard to tell whether Professor Trelawney had heard them as her face was hidden in shadow. She continued, however, as though she had not.

"Crystal gazing is a particularly refined art," she said dreamily. "I do not expect any of you to See when first you peer into the Orb's infinite depths. We shall start by practicing relaxing the conscious mind and external eyes —" Ron began to snigger uncontrollably and had to stuff his fist in his mouth to stifle the noise — "so as to clear the Inner Eye and the superconscious. Perhaps, if we are lucky, some of you will see before the end of the class."

And so they began. Harry, at least, felt extremely foolish, staring blankly at the crystal ball, trying to keep his mind empty when thoughts such as "this is stupid" kept drifting across it. It didn't help that Ron and Y/N kept breaking into silent giggles having to pinch each other's arms to maintain themselves as Hermione kept tutting.

"Seen anything yet?" Harry asked them after a quarter of an hour's quiet crystal gazing.

"Yeah, there's a burn on this table," said Ron, pointing. "Someone's spilled their candle."

"Felt the passion from here," Y/N whistled, while sarcastically nodding, "I see you have a bright future in the surveillance industry."

"This is such a waste of time," Hermione hissed while glaring at Y/N for her words. "I could be practicing something useful. I could be catching up on Cheering Charms —"

Professor Trelawney rustled past. "Would anyone like me to help them interpret the shadowy portents within their Orb?" she murmured over the clinking of her bangles.

"I don't need help," Ron whispered. "It's obvious what this means. There's going to be loads of fog tonight."

Hermione, Harry, and Y/N took a second to blink before roaring of laughter, finding support in each other to stable themselves.

"Now, really!" said Professor Trelawney as everyone's heads turned in their direction. Parvati and Lavender were looking scandalized. "You are disturbing the clairvoyant vibrations!" She approached their table and peered into their crystal ball. Harry felt his heart sinking. He was sure he knew what was coming —

"There is something here!" Professor Trelawney whispered, lowering her face to the ball, so that it was reflected twice in her huge glasses. "Something moving... but what is it?"

Y/N inhaled sharply, sensing Harry's tense figure at the table, "Well you see Professor, fog tends to move in motion and it would only make sense tha-"

"Hush now. My dear," Professor Trelawney breathed, gazing up at Harry. "It is here, plainer than ever before... my dear, stalking toward you, growing ever closer... the Gr —"

"Oh, for goodness' sake!" said Hermione loudly. "Not that ridiculous Grim again!"

Professor Trelawney raised her enormous eyes to Hermione's face. Parvati whispered something to Lavender, and they both glared at Hermione too. Professor Trelawney stood up, surveying Hermione with unmistakable anger.

"I am sorry to say that from the moment you have arrived in this class my dear, it has been apparent that you do not have what the noble art of Divination requires. Indeed, I don't remember ever meeting a student whose mind was so hopelessly mundane."

There was a moment's silence. Then —

"Fine!" said Hermione suddenly, getting up and cramming Unfogging the Future back into her bag. "Fine!" she repeated, swinging the bag over her shoulder and almost knocking Ron off his chair. "I give up! I'm leaving!"

And to the whole class's amazement, Hermione strode over to the trapdoor, kicked it open, and climbed down the ladder out of sight.

It took a few minutes for the class to settle down again. Professor Trelawney seemed to have forgotten all about the Grim. She turned abruptly from Harry and Ron's table, breathing rather heavily as she tugged her gauzy shawl more closely to her,

"Have I said something?"

"Oh why of course not," Y/N humourlessly laughed, "I personally think that Granger just truly wanted to show her appreciation for having been told she has a hopelessly mundane mind, that is."

Trelawney mouthed an inaudible 'oh' titling her head at the outspoken girl, expecting to hear more.

"Now excuse my grand exist too, but I'd like to go reassure Granger that she has beautiful mind rather than the very poor viewpoint you have on her. Enjoy your evening." Saluting with a jocose grin of rantipole performance, Y/N suppressed her frown at her offensive comment to Hermione and kicked back the trapdoor closed that Hermione previously kicked open.

"Ooooo!" said Lavender suddenly, making everyone start. "Ooooo, Professor Trelawney, I've just remembered! You saw her leaving, didn't you? Didn't you, Professor? 'Around Easter, one of our number will leave us forever!' You said it ages ago, Professor!"

Professor Trelawney gave her a dewy smile.

"Yes, my dear, I did indeed know that Miss Granger would be leaving us. One hopes, however, that one might have mistaken the Signs... The Inner Eye can be a burden, you know..."

Lavender and Parvati looked deeply impressed, and moved over so that Professor Trelawney could join their table instead.

"Some day Hermione's having, eh?" Ron muttered to Harry, looking awed.

"Yeah..." Harry glanced into the crystal ball but saw nothing but swirling white mist. Had Professor Trelawney really seen the Grim again? Would he? The last thing he needed was another nearfatal accident, with the Quidditch final drawing ever nearer.

————. ° ♧︎: *.☽. * :☾. ♕ *. ————

Ron had taken over responsibility for Buckbeak's appeal. When he wasn't doing his own work, he was poring over enormously thick volumes with names like The Handbook of Hippogriff Psychology and Fowl or Foul? A Study of Hippogriff Brutality. He was so absorbed, he even forgot to be horrible to Crookshanks. Harry, meanwhile, had to fit in his homework around Quidditch practice every day, not to mention endless discussions of tactics with Wood. The Gryffindor-Slytherin match would take place on the first Saturday after the Easter holidays. Slytherin was leading the tournament by exactly two hundred points. This meant (as Wood constantly reminded his team) that they needed to win the match by more than that amount to win the Cup. It also meant that the burden of winning fell largely on Harry, because capturing the Snitch was worth one hundred and fifty points.

"So you must catch it only if we're more than fifty points up," Wood told Harry constantly. "Only if we're more than fifty points up, Harry, or we win the match but lose the Cup. You've got that, Haven't you? You must catch the Snitch only if we're —"

"I KNOW, OLIVER!" Harry yelled.

Harry hadn't forgotten Malfoy's attempt to sabotage him in the match against Ravenclaw, but it was the matter of Buckbeak that made him most determined to beat Malfoy in front of the entire school.

Never, in anyone's memory, had a match approached in such a highly charged atmosphere. By the time the holidays were over, tension between the two teams and their Houses was at the breaking point. A number of small scuffles broke out in the corridors, culminating in a nasty incident in which a Gryffindor fourth year and a Slytherin sixth year ended up in the hospital wing with leeks sprouting out of their ears.

Harry was having a particularly bad time of it. He couldn't walk to class without Slytherins sticking out their legs and trying to trip him up; Crabbe and Goyle kept popping up wherever he went, and slouching away looking disappointed when they saw him surrounded by people. Wood had given instructions that Harry should be accompanied everywhere he went, in case the Slytherins tried to put him out of action. The whole of Gryffindor House took up the challenge enthusiastically, so that it was impossible for Harry to get to classes on time because he was surrounded by a vast, chattering crowd. Harry was more concerned for his Firebolt's safety than his own. When he wasn't flying it, he locked it securely in his trunk and frequently dashed back up to Gryffindor Tower at break times to check that it was still there.

There was a great deal of noise. Fred and George Weasley were dealing with the pressure by being louder and more exuberant than ever. Oliver Wood was crouched over a model of a Quidditch field in the corner, prodding little figures across it with his wand and muttering to himself Angelina, Alicia, and Katie were laughing at Fred's and George's jokes. Harry was sitting with Ron and Hermione, removed from the center of things, trying not to think about the next day, because every time he did, he had the horrible sensation that something very large was fighting to get out of his stomach.

"You're going to be fine," Hermione told him, though she looked positively terrified.

"I guess I can give exclusive pre-match good luck hugs today if that helps," Y/N shrugged concernedly.

"I want that, please."

"Plus, you've got a Firebolt!" said Ron.

"Yeah..." said Harry, his stomach writhing.

It came as a relief when Wood suddenly stood up and yelled, "Team! Bed!"

Harry slept badly. First he dreamed that he had overslept, and that Wood was yelling, "Where were you? We had to use Neville instead!" Then he dreamed that Y/N got lost in the shouting crowds in the stands and left Harry uneasy feeling throughout all of the match without a signature good luck embrace. Then he dreamed that Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherin team arrived for the match riding dragons. He was flying at breakneck speed, trying to avoid a spurt of flames from Malfoy's steed's mouth, when he realized he had forgotten his Firebolt. He fell through the air and woke with a start.

It was a few seconds before Harry remembered that the match hadn't taken place yet, that he was safe in bed, and that the Slytherin team definitely wouldn't be allowed to play on dragons. He was feeling very thirsty. Quietly as he could, he got out of his four-poster and went to pour himself some water from the silver jug beneath the window.

Harry set down his goblet and was about to turn back to his bed when something caught his eye. An animal of some kind was prowling across the silvery lawn. Harry dashed to his bedside table, snatched up his glasses, and put them on, then hurried back to the window. It couldn't be the Grim — not now — not right before the match —

He peered out at the grounds again and, after a minute's frantic searching, spotted it. It was skirting the edge of the forest now... It wasn't the Grim at all... it was a cat... Harry clutched the window ledge in relief as he recognized the bottlebrush tail. It was only Crookshanks... Or was it only Crookshanks? Harry squinted, pressing his nose flat against the glass. Crookshanks seemed to have come to a halt. Harry was sure he could see something else moving in the shadow of the trees too.

And just then, it emerged — a gigantic, shaggy black dog, moving stealthily across the lawn, Crookshanks trotting at its side. Harry stared. What did this mean? If Crookshanks could see the dog as well, how could it be an omen of Harry's death? "Ron!" Harry hissed. "Ron! Wake up!"

"Huh?"

"I need you to tell me if you can see something!"

"S'all dark, Harry," Ron muttered thickly.

"What're you on about?" "Down here —"

Harry looked quickly back out of the window.

Crookshanks and the dog had vanished. Harry climbed onto the windowsill to look right down into the shadows of the castle, but they weren't there. Where had they gone? A loud snore told him Ron had fallen asleep again.

Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor team entered the Great Hall the next day to enormous applause. Harry couldn't help grinning broadly as he saw that both the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables were applauding them too. The Slytherin table hissed loudly as they passed. Harry noticed that Malfoy looked even paler than usual.

Wood spent the whole of breakfast urging his team to eat, while touching nothing himself. Then he hurried them off to the field before anyone else had finished, so they could get an idea of the conditions. As they left the Great Hall, everyone applauded again.

"Good luck, Harry!" called Cho. Harry felt himself blushing.

Harry's reddend expression threw Y/N off guard for a solid 5 minutes curiously glancing between the two from a distance.

Before the Gryffindors went to exit the Great hall, Harry halted for a minute, pulling Y/N by a tug of her robes stumbling into his arms for a sensational kick-off to the match. Y/N chuckled into his ear, feeling the a vigorous scarlet blush dust his cheeks.

"Good luck, Harry."

————. ° ♧︎: *.☽. * :☾. ♕ *. ————

"Captains, shake hands!" said Madam Hooch.

Flint and Wood approached each other and grasped each other's hand very tightly; it looked as though each was trying to break the other's fingers.

"Mount your brooms!" said Madam Hooch. "Three... two... one..."

The sound of her whistle was lost in the roar from the crowd as fourteen brooms rose into the air. Harry felt his hair fly back off his forehead; his nerves left him in the thrill of the flight; he glanced around, saw Malfoy on his tail, and sped off in search of the Snitch.

"And it's Gryffindor in possession, Alicia Spinner of Gryffindor with the Quaffle, heading straight for the Slytherin goal posts, looking good, Alicia! Argh, no — Quaffle intercepted by Warrington, Warrington of Slytherin tearing UP the field — WHAM! — nice Bludger work there by George Weasley, Warrington drops the Quaffle, it's caught by — Johnson, Gryffindor back in possession, come on, Angelina — nice swerve around Montague — duck, Angelina, that's a Bludger! – SHE SCORES! TEN-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!"

"LEE WE LIVE FOR YOUR COMMENTARY," Dean roared enthusiasticly.

"I SECOND THAT FROM THE VERY BOTTOM OF MY HEART," Y/N shouted gleefully.

"Honestly warmed my heart," Lee laughed into the microphone.

Angelina punched the air as she soared around the end of the field; the sea of scarlet below was screaming its delight

"OUCH!"

Angelina was nearly thrown from her broom as Marcus Flint went smashing into her.

"WATCH YOUR STEERING GAME- I KNOW HOW TO FLY AND NOTHING'S HOLDING ME BACK!" Y/N competitively yelled. Although Y/N never experienced flying on a broom, the zealous enthusiasm she took responsibility for quidditch matches were serious matters.

Ron roared into Y/N's ear, "Y/N you dont even know how to fly a broo-"

Y/N's mouth drew agape, offended even, putting her index finger to his face, "shut up."

"Sorry!" said Flint as the crowd below booed. "Sorry, didn't see her!"

A moment later, Fred Weasley chucked his Beater's club at the back of Flint's head. Flint's nose smashed into the handle of his broom and began to bleed.

"That will do!" shrieked Madam Hooch, zooming between then. "Penalty shot to Gryffindor for an unprovoked attack on their Chaser! Penalty shot to Slytherin for deliberate damage to their Chaser!"

"Come on, Alicia!" yelled Lee into the silence that had descended on the crowd. "YES! SHE'S BEATEN THE KEEPER! TWENTY-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!"

"'Course, Wood's a superb Keeper!" Lee Jordan told the crowd as Flint waited for Madam Hooch's whistle. "Superb! Very difficult to pass — very difficult indeed — YES! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! HE'S SAVED IT!"

Montague, a Slytherin Chaser, had swerved in front of Katie, and instead of seizing the Quaffle had grabbed her head. Katie cart-wheeled in the air, managed to stay on her broom, but dropped the Quaffle. Madam Hooch's whistle rang out again as she soared over to Montague and began shouting at him. A minute later, Katie had put another penalty past the Slytherin Seeker.

"THIRTY-ZERO! TAKE THAT, YOU DIRTY, CHEATING B —"

"Jordan, if you can't commentate in an unbiased way —"

"I'm telling it like it is, Professor!"

Harry felt a huge jolt of excitement. He had seen the Snitch — it was shimmering at the foot of one of the Gryffindor goal posts — but he mustn't catch it yet — and if Malfoy saw it —

Faking a look of sudden concentration, Harry pulled his Firebolt around and sped off toward the Slytherin end — it worked. Malfoy went haring after him, clearly thinking Harry had seen the Snitch there...

WHOOSH.

One of the Bludgers came streaking past Harry's right ear, hit by the gigantic Slytherin Beater, Derrick. Then again...

WHOOSH. The second Bludger grazed Harry's elbow. The other Beater, Bole, was closing in.

"ARE THEY REALLY TRYING TO TEST MY FLYING ABILITES RIGHT NOW SEAMUS?!" Y/N yelled, to her side where Seamus was intensely glaring the the bludgers.

"Ha haaa!" yelled Lee Jordan as the Slytherin Beaters lurched away from each other, clutching their heads. "Too bad, boys! You'll need to get up earlier than that to beat a Firebolt! And it's Gryffindor in possession again, as Johnson takes the Quaffle — Flint alongside her — poke him in the eye, Angelina! — it was a joke, Professor, it was a joke — oh no — Flint in possession, Flint flying toward the Gryffindor goal posts, come on now, Wood, save —!"

But Flint had scored; there was an eruption of cheers from the Slytherin end, and Lee swore so badly that Professor McGonagall tried to tug the magical megaphone away from him.

"Sorry, Professor, sorry! Won't happen again! So, Gryffindor in the lead, thirty points to ten, and Gryffindor in possession —"

It was turning into the dirtiest game Harry had ever played in. Enraged that Gryffindor had taken such an early lead, the Slytherins were rapidly resorting to any means to take the Quaffle. Bole hit Alicia with his club and tried to say he'd thought she was a Bludger. George Weasley elbowed Bole in the face in retaliation. Madam Hooch awarded both teams penalties, and Wood pulled off another spectacular save, making the score forty-ten to Gryffindor. The Snitch had disappeared again. Malfoy was still keeping close to Harry as he soared over the match, looking around for it once Gryffindor was fifty points ahead —

Katie scored. Fifty-ten. Fred and George Weasley were swooping around her, clubs raised, in case any of the Slytherins were thinking of revenge. Bole and Derrick took advantage of Fred's and George's absence to aim both Bludgers at Wood; they caught him in the stomach, one after the other, and he rolled over in the air, clutching his broom, completely winded. Madam Hooch was beside herself — "YOU DO NOT ATTACK THE KEEPER UNLESS THE QUAFFLE IS WITHIN THE SCORING AREA!" she shrieked at Bole and Derrick. "Gryffindor penalty!"

And Angelina scored. Sixty-ten. Moments later, Fred Weasley pelted a Bludger at Warrington, knocking the Quaffle out of his hands; Alicia seized it and put it through the Slytherin goal — seventy-ten.

Harry put on a huge burst of speed; the wind was roaring in his ears; he stretched out his hand, but suddenly, the Firebolt was slowing down — Horrified, he looked around. Malfoy had thrown himself forward, grabbed hold of the Firebolt's tail, and was pulling it back.

"You —"

Harry was angry enough to hit Malfoy, but couldn't reach — Malfoy was panting with the effort of holding onto the Firebolt, but his eyes were sparkling maliciously. He had achieved what he'd wanted to do — the Snitch had disappeared again.

"Penalty! Penalty to Gryffindor! I've never seen such tactics." Madam Hooch screeched, shooting up to where Malfoy was sliding back onto his Nimbus Two Thousand and One.

"YOU CHEATING SCUM!" Lee Jordan was howling into the megaphone, dancing out of Professor McGonagall's reach. "YOU FILTHY, CHEATING B —"

Professor McGonagall didn't even bother to tell him off. She was actually shaking her finger in Malfoy's direction, her hat had fallen off, and she too was shouting furiously. Alicia took Gryffindor's penalty, but she was so angry she missed by several feet. The Gryffindor team was losing concentration and the Slytherins, delighted by Malfoy's foul on Harry, were being spurred on to greater heights.

"Get out of it, Potter!" Malfoy yelled in frustration as he tried to turn and found Harry blocking him.

"Angelina Johnson gets the Quaffle for Gryffindor, come on, Angelina, COME ON!"

Harry looked around. Every single Slytherin player apart from Malfoy was streaking up the pitch toward Angelina, including the Slytherin Keeper — they were all going to block her — Harry wheeled the Firebolt around, bent so low he was lying flat along the handle, and kicked it forward. Like a bullet, he shot toward the Slytherins.

They scattered as the Firebolt zoomed toward them; Angelina's way was clear. "SHE SCORES! SHE SCORES! Gryffindor leads by eighty Points to twenty!" Harry, who had almost pelted headlong into the stands, skidded to a halt in midair, reversed, and zoomed back into the middle of the field.

And then he saw something to make his heart stand still. Malfoy was diving, a look of triumph on his face — there, a few feet above the grass below, was a tiny, golden glimmer — Harry urged the Firebolt downward, but Malfoy was miles ahead —

"Go! Go! Go!" Harry urged his broom. He was gaining on Malfoy — Harry flattened himself to the broom handle as Bole sent a Bludger at him — he was at Malfoy's ankles — he was level —

Harry threw himself forward, took both hands off his broom. He knocked Malfoy's arm out of the way and —

"YES!"

He pulled out of his dive, his hand in the air, and the stadium exploded. Harry soared above the crowd, an odd ringing in his ears. The tiny golden ball was held tight in his fist, beating its wings hopelessly against his fingers.

Seamus' hands flew to his hair squealing, Dean aggressively patted Seamus on the back with the most proud-dad expression he could pull off, Ron was practically shaking the stands with his jumps, Hermione's hollering cheers radiated throughout all of the shouts, and Y/N was screaming praising marvellous words with a beaming smile through it all.

Then Wood was speeding toward him, half-blinded by tears; he seized Harry around the neck and sobbed unrestrainedly into his shoulder. Harry felt two large thumps as Fred and George hit them; then Angelina's, Alicia's, and Katie's voices, "We've won the Cup! We've won the Cup!" Tangled together in a many-armed hug, the Gryffindor team sank, yelling hoarsely, back to earth.

There was Percy, jumping up and down like a maniac, all dignity forgotten. Professor McGonagall was sobbing harder even than Wood, wiping her eyes with an enormous Gryffindor flag; and there, fighting their way toward Harry, were Ron and Hermione. Words failed them. They simply beamed as Harry was borne toward the stands, where Dumbledore stood waiting with the enormous Quidditch Cup.

Then at that very moment, Harry felt the softest force of lips collide and engage with the skin of his cheek with bliss of exuberance exporting from the touch to his. Harry nearly choked on air of his surroundings when he locked eyes with Y/N as she cupped his face in her hands.

Her eyes were coated in 7 different tiers of stardust and moonpowder screaming for a glimpse of sun. Each speck in her eye transported sibylline madness to Harry's green ones. Their touch ignited one another's skin in ways of erlebnisse. Harry instantaneously palmed the back of her head and pushed it into the crook of his neck as he proudly wore the most eesome illecebrous grin he could ever have painted on his cerise cherry lips.

Repeatedly showering Harry's cheeks in glistening crimson kisses, Harry's face was powdered in the deepest shade of auburn fire and he tightly held her body in their embrace. Their skins we united and it felt as if moondust, asteroids of exhilaration, and celestial comets pranced.

Stinging kisses on the cheek, pounding cheers, commotion of praises, sobbing professors, and a runaway goddess dressed in kalon in his arms.

If only there had been a Dementor around... As a sobbing Wood passed Harry the Cup, as he lifted it into the air, Harry felt he could have produced the world's best Patronus with the basorexia he felt for Y/N.

His overwhelming desire of the kiss left written with her signature on his cheek.

————. ° ♧︎: *.☽. * :☾. ♕ *. ————

𝑇𝐻𝐴𝑇𝑆 𝐻𝑂𝑊 𝐼 𝐹𝐸𝐿𝐿 𝐼𝑁 𝐿𝑂𝑉𝐸 𝑊𝐼𝑇𝐻 𝐻𝐸𝑅
𝐵𝐼𝑇 𝐵𝑌 𝐵𝐼𝑇
𝐴𝑁𝐷 𝑇𝐻𝐸𝑁 𝐴𝐿𝐿 𝐴𝑇 𝑂𝑁𝐶𝐸
︎☯︎︎

𝙄𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙩 ☯︎︎