Not Only a Daydream, or Quidditch and Daydreams Don't Mix
By Nicole
Scenario: Harry loses the Quidditch Cup and Hermione must comfort him.
Summary: Harry loses the Quidditch Cup due to infatuation with a certain Gryffindor Prefect. However, losing the Quidditch Cup proves trivial when confronted about the reason for his inability to catch the Snitch. Mostly fluff, but not that of an Orange Crushy fic.
Note: I'm fairly certain that Hermione's not completely inexperienced with guys, and we know that Harry kissed Cho under the mistletoe in OotP, so excuse the seemingly perfect snogging you might find around word number 2,600. I'd like to thank Jim and Pat for doing grammatical checking and such, Connie for my general readover for a "normal person's reaction", and Anne for my title, which I was at a complete loss for.
When Harry Potter woke up on that rainy Saturday, Quidditch was the absolute last thing on his mind. Now, as the star seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Quidditch should have been the first thing on his mind. This was because the final match of the season, the one that would determine who won the Quidditch Cup, was today-and they were playing Ravenclaw.
Now, Ravenclaw was nowhere near the caliber of the 1993-1994 Gryffindor team that had won the Quidditch Cup, but they weren't a team that you wanted to face at anything less than your best. However, since all of the Gryffindor matches had been very well played, and their practices showing them to be well rounded, Gryffindor captain Katie Bell wouldn't be worried about anything. She would go into the day's match concentrating only on her duties as a Chaser.
Truth be told, all Harry could think about at the moment was his best friend, Hermione Granger. Lately it seemed that everything she did had some kind of extra meaning. This included things like her spontaneous walks around the lake, her words of encouragement, and above all, her numerous gestures of the physical kind.
One thing that didn't help Harry's current situation any was the fact that he was the only person in his dormitory that was awake. Neville, who had taken the position of Commentator, was muttering in his sleep. What Harry caught vaguely resembled something along the lines of "Ginny", "great Quidditch player", and "still won't go out with me", all of which would later induce a sense of déjà vu.
Seamus, who had considered trying out for a position as a Chaser, was tossing and turning in his bed, and to someone in a fully aware state, would have been sounding as if a banshee-something that was commonly known to be Seamus' greatest fear-was chasing him. Dean was the only one in their dormitory not thinking of a girl, Quidditch, or their greatest fear. As a matter of fact, he didn't appear to be dreaming of anything at all.
Ron, however, was definitely dreaming of something-or someone. Harry was able to concentrate enough to hear "Ravenclaw", "Quidditch", "silly hat", and "she's different." Harry didn't bother to think of who or what Ron might have been dreaming of, because he wanted to dream of her even more.
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After everyone had gotten out of bed and gotten ready for the day's game, it seemed that all anyone could talk about was Quidditch. People were overheard making bets, the most notable one being Colin Creevey's bet that Ravenclaw wouldn't score more than five goals but would win the Cup.
Ginny Weasley was then overheard asking Colin how he expected to win with a bet so specific. He then told her to monitor Harry's behavior, and she would understand. So Ginny spent the majority of breakfast watching Harry, who was looking very content-and was staring at his best friend Hermione Granger. This would have been a pleasant surprise, had it been any other day but the day of the Quidditch Cup.
Ginny quickly motioned to her fellow Chaser, Natalie McDonald, and told her that they were going to have to be at least twice as strong as usual in order to win the game. This meant that they were going to have to score twice as much, play twice as mean, and-she hated to say it-but they were going to have to play like Slytherin's Chasers.
Hermione Granger, who obviously had no idea that she was someone else's "eye candy," was engrossed in her Arithmancy text. She wasn't as interested in Quidditch as most people, but she always attended the games in support of Harry and Ron. It was only speculation at the time, but many Ravenclaws, including one Luna Lovegood, were overheard saying that after that day, Hermione would never regard a Quidditch match in the same way.
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Once everyone had gotten down to the Quidditch Pitch, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor took the field. Ravenclaw definitely appeared ready for this match, and if not for its Seeker's fixation with a certain girl, Gryffindor would have appeared the same way.
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen! I'm your commentator, Neville Longbottom, and we're all gathered here to enjoy the final match of the Hogwarts Quidditch Season. The winner of today's game will be awarded the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup, and will have bragging rights for quite some time. Madam Hooch is now ready to start the game… And the Quaffle is in the air! Gryffindor Captain Katie Bell intercepts and quickly passes to fifth year Ginny Weasley. Weasley passes to McDonald, who feints left..."
Neville's voice seemed to get softer as Harry tried furtively to search for the Snitch. However, his thoughts kept drifting back to Hermione. He soon gave up on his search, choosing instead to just float around on his broom, staring at Hermione every time he passed by the stand where she sat. Eventually, someone noticed, and by the time the information got to Dean Thomas, Harry was on the opposite side of the pitch, miraculously avoiding the Bludgers that were constantly being sent his way. It did help, however, that Kirke and Sloper, the Gryffindor beaters, were following him around and beating the Bludgers towards the Ravenclaws.
When Harry started approaching, Dean nudged Hagrid, who was sitting on his left.
"Is it me, Hagrid, or is Harry staring at someone more than he should be?"
"Yeh know, Dean, I hadn' looked, ter be honest. Whom is he starin' at anyway?" Hagrid seemed more interested in how Ron was doing at the moment, but Dean was sure his answer would remedy that.
"Oh, he's just staring at Hermione with this enthralled look upon his face. I thought you might have an opinion, that's all." Dean was crossing his fingers in hopes that someone, preferably Hermione, would hear them.
"Starin'? At Hermione? Blimey, there's a new developmen'. Though, I can' say I'm too surprised. One of 'em was bound to see her as somethin' more than a friend at some point. An' the way she an' Ron figh', I think Harry's the better match fer Hermione." Hagrid was speaking a bit louder than usual, but Dean didn't say anything.
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Hermione was sitting there, trying to read her book and listen to Neville's commentary. However, at some point, Neville's voice became drowned out by the voice of the half-giant sitting next to her, and thoughts of what Hagrid's discussion was about flooded her brain.
So Harry was staring at her? And Hagrid thought Harry would be a better match for her than Ron? Admittedly, Hermione preferred Harry's conversations to Ron's, due to the fact that arguments occurred less often with Harry. Also, Harry was a bit more considerate of her feelings, was more likely to go on walks around the lake, and didn't overanalyze the spontaneous acts of physical contact.
The wheels in Hermione's head started turning, and pretty soon she had her whole plan worked out. She had to know if there was something that could endure the war against Voldemort and their friendship with Ron. She was going to take the initiative.
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Ron, who hadn't let in a single Ravenclaw goal, was getting a bit frustrated. This was because he had noticed the Snitch flitting about Harry quite a few times, and had to bear the agony of noticing Harry not notice the one thing he was supposed to be looking for.
Ron was about to motion to Katie Bell to signal for a time out, but she was all the way down at the other end of the pitch with the Quaffle, and didn't appear to have a care in the world. She let the Quaffle go, and scored Gryffindor its tenth goal for the game. Ron reasoned that if Katie, Ginny, and Natalie could score at least six more goals before Cho Chang caught the Snitch, they would still win the game, and more importantly, the Quidditch Cup.
As soon as he had finished with his reasoning, a vibrant roar rose out of the Ravenclaw stands. Ron's worst fear appeared to have happened-Cho Chang had seen the Snitch, and as the Gryffindor Seeker obviously couldn't care less about Quidditch, the match was lost.
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"And Cho Chang has spotted the Golden Snitch! It appears that Harry Potter, the Gryffindor Seeker, has not a clue what is going on with this match, but the rules say nothing about excusing that. She's only a few meters from the Snitch… and CHO CHANG HAS THE GOLDEN SNITCH!! Ravenclaw has won the Quidditch Cup! This is your commentator, Neville Longbottom, wishing you a good day. Would the Ravenclaws kindly not rub this in too much, I'm sure Harry has a very good reason for his very off game."
Professor McGonagall did not reprimand Neville for the last comment, as she was actually hoping that Harry really did have a good excuse for not being attentive to his job. She was about to go see if she could find out what was going on when someone tapped on her shoulder. It was Dean Thomas.
"Er, Professor, could I have a moment? It has to do with Harry's inability to focus on the match today. I might be able to clear up a few things that a normal person wouldn't have noticed." Dean looked as if there was nothing he'd rather be doing at the moment than this.
"Well, I suppose you could, Thomas. After all, I wouldn't mind knowing what was going on today. He normally isn't like this, you know." Professor McGonagall looked a bit intrigued for someone who was normally so professional. Even so, if this had anything to do with her best student as well, she might have a chance at collecting those two galleons from Professor Flitwick.
"Well, Professor, once I figured it out, it all made complete sense. After all, Hermione's been dragging him on walks around the lake and such for ages. She's always able to get him to work on his homework, which is something that only Luna Lovegood can get Ron to do. But, Professor, every time Harry passed by the stand where myself, Hagrid, Seamus, Lavender, Parvati, Colin, and Hermione were sitting. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her. I would swear he even stared at her when he was on the other side of the pitch!"
By that time, the crowd they had been following had reached the Entrance Hall. Professor McGonagall was about to reply when cheers arose from the crowd. These cheers were not, however, from only Ravenclaws. There were Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and a Slytherin here and there.
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The moment Cho had spotted the Snitch, Hermione was out of her seat and headed down to where she knew Harry would go when he was aware the game was over. She was determined to make sure he knew losing the Quidditch Cup wouldn't matter to her when there were more pressing things she had to attend to regarding the both of them. After what he had spent the duration of the game doing, she'd be damned if she wasn't going to do anything about it.
As it turned out, Harry noticed she wasn't in her seat, and it was at that moment that Neville was announcing the Ravenclaw victory. Harry almost let go of his broom in his mortification that he had apparently spent the entire Quidditch match not doing his job. He was even more ashamed to look at the scoreboard and see that the Ravenclaws had only won because Cho had been paying attention to looking for the Snitch.
He flew back to the solid ground, meaning to hurry back to the Gryffindor Changing Rooms, but when his feet touched the ground he found it very hard to go in the direction he wanted. This was due, in part, to Hermione's hand gripping his wrist and dragging him through the crowd. She was dragging him towards the castle, but when they got to the lake, she pulled him on the opposite side of the tree.
"Hermione? What's going on?" Harry asked. Surely she couldn't be mad that he had spent the entire game not searching for the Snitch. She had always maintained that it didn't matter to her who won the Quidditch cup, as long as he and Ron were always in one piece.
"I thought you just might like to get away from the crowd a little sooner, that's all," she answered. Harry thought there had to be more, as her cheeks were slightly pink. He didn't question her, however, and she continued. "I also thought you might like to explain why Kirke and Sloper had to follow you around throughout the game to deflect Bludgers from your head. Normally you dodge them yourself."
"Er… Well, you see Hermione…I really didn't notice that the Bludgers were coming near me. I guess I was a bit preoccupied with yo-something else." Harry prayed she hadn't noticed that he had almost let slip the fact that it had been his recent infatuation with her that had caused Kirke and Sloper to deflect the Bludgers from him.
She had. However, she didn't let him know that right then, as it wasn't part of her plan. She was going to follow her plan as closely as possible, even if it meant that she didn't get to kiss him when she really felt like it.
"Well, I was wondering if you also might have an idea as to why Dean Thomas was telling Hagrid that you were staring at someone throughout the whole game? It wouldn't happen to be anyone I know, would it?" Oh, I definitely know the person he was staring at. I know her better than anyone.
Harry couldn't take this anymore. She wasn't letting on whether or not she knew anything, and he had to tell her. If she did know, her innocent act was driving him insane. The problem was that he didn't know if it was an act or not. Only one way to find out, Harry. You have to tell her.
"Actually, Hermione, I think you know her very well. You see, there's this girl. And she's really intelligent. She can do spells that most ordinary wizards can't do, and she can make me feel like the most important person in the world without treating me the way the rest of the world does," Harry paused to take a breath, his mind full of thoughts about all of the good things about Hermione. "There are so many good things about her, that I can't even name them all. She can get me to do things I wouldn't normally do. That scares me sometimes, but she's saved me so many times that I can't help but completely trust her to keep me safe. She's my other half, the part that completes me, the part that I know is right when I am wrong. She-she's you, Hermione. It couldn't be anyone but you."
Hermione couldn't say anything. For the first time ever, someone had rendered her incapable of speech. She had never been completely speechless before. So she did the only thing she knew to do at a time like this.
She kissed him full on the lips. She knew he hadn't expected it because it took him a few seconds to kiss her back. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his head closer, and causing their lips to be joined together even more forcefully. She smiled as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She pulled her head back to breath in some air, and she barely had enough time to do so before his lips crushed against hers again, rendering her incapable of breathing through her mouth.
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Harry was in a very good mood when they eventually made it back to the common room later that night. They had wound up snogging in the Entrance Hall, and it had been the sight of those two that had caused the multitude of students to react as they had. Professor McGonagall was so surprised by the sight that she had forgotten all about the Quidditch Match, and eventually was escorted to her office by Professor Snape, who looked rather happy that Gryffindor had lost.
While the Gryffindors had been slightly miffed at Harry for losing them the Quidditch Cup, they all reasoned that at least they had lost it to Ravenclaw instead of Slytherin. They also reasoned that now Harry had actually found the girl of his dreams, he couldn't float about during the match staring at her. They told him that if he ever did that again, he would be shame of the house. They were only kidding, but he took them very seriously.
He never lost another match while playing at Hogwarts, and he even went on to play professionally for a few years. Hermione, however, wound up becoming a Medi-Witch, and kept Harry in ship-shape for his Quidditch matches.
As for the happy couple, they had the rest of their lives ahead of them. Eventually, they got married and had a few kids. They saw their kids grow up, win Quidditch Cups, get their hearts broken, get married, and have kids of their own. They went through life's next great adventure, and when they got to their destination, they were with familiar people and some people whom they had never met. But they were happy, and nothing could ever replace the love that they felt for each other.