Ch 27 Quidditch Weekend
Harry and Ron reappeared on top of the Astronomy tower.
"So, you going to thrash me in private, huh, Harry? That's considerate of you," snarled Ron, reaching for his wand.
"Shut up for once and listen Ron. You want an explanation, I'll give you one. I tried to tell you last night, but you weren't in our room working on plays like you said. Hunt found me and Hermione last night and told us he had a lead on where some of the Death Eaters were hiding out. So Hunt and I left last night and staked out their place, hoping to catch all of them."
Ron's jaw had dropped. "Why didn't Hermione tell me?"
"You didn't give her much of a chance."
"Ohh, right. Did you get them?"
"Some of them. There might have been more coming, but I think someone tipped them off that I had left the castle. An owl came from Hogwarts…"
All the color drained from Ron's face. "Oh Harry! I was shouting in the Great Hall this morning that you were gone…anybody could have heard…do you suppose there is a Death Eater here at Hogwarts? I am sooo sorry for doubting you Harry. I…I don't know what to say."
Harry sighed. "You don't need to say anything, Ron. But you need to trust me a little more. And you need to learn to control your temper. And Ron, don't mention any of this to anyone-we have no idea who the spy could be."
"It's probably Malfoy," muttered Ron.
"Knock it off Ron. I know you still hate his guts, but he did save Hermione and me last year."
"And then he tried to kill her during dueling practice," replied Ron.
"Look, I don't know what his problem has been recently, but I doubt it's Malfoy. I've been watching him closely with the map and in the halls and I haven't seen anything out of the ordinary, besides most of the students scattering when he approaches. Now, if there's nothing else, let's go back and figure out how we're going to finish off this tournament."
"Good idea. Let's go."
They reappeared in the Gryffindor common room, much to the surprise of their classmates. Ron broke the silence by announcing, "Quidditch team, meet me over in the corner in five minutes, we need to fine tune some strategy for Hufflepuff tomorrow. Hermione, Ginny, I'm really sorry I exploded at you earlier, I was way out of line. Come on Harry," and he patted him on the side.
When Harry winced, Hermione noticed this time and immediately stood up with a look of concern.
"What's the matter Harry?" asked Ron softly.
"It's nothing," insisted Harry.
"Harry, it's not nothing. What did you forget to mention?"
Harry looked at her and sighed. "One of the Death Eaters, I think it was McNair, kicked me in the ribs while I was watching the backdoor in the alley."
Hermione looked at him crossly and muttered, "You should have told me earlier, Harry." Then to Ron she said, "I'll take him down to Madame Pomfrey and have her check him."
"Harry," Ron paused when both Harry and Hermione looked at him, "just make sure you get feeling better. We'll manage without you if we need to tomorrow."
"Don't worry, Ron. I'll be flying tomorrow."
Hermione snorted and grabbing Harry by the elbow, leading him out of the common room.
*-*-*
Madame Pomfrey snorted in disbelief as she examined Harry's black and blue ribs. "I don't even know why I bother patching you up anymore, Mr. Potter. You just come in the next week with something else bruised or broken."
"Oh, I just like to keep you on your toes-you know that."
"Now drink this and then lie still, this potion will mend those two cracked ribs you've got. You're lucky neither of them punctured your lung. How you managed that, I have no idea. I didn't think you were even playing in that silly tournament today."
"I wasn't," sputtered Harry, choking on the foul tasting potion. "But I plan on flying tomorrow."
"Well then I'm sure I'll see you again tomorrow, Mr. Potter." Hearing the door opening she called out, "Go back to your common room. Mr. Potter will be just fine by tomorrow and he doesn't need any more visitors tonight."
"But Madame Pomfrey, I promise I will trouble your patient for only a few minutes," explained Dumbledore.
"Very well, a few minutes then. It's not like anyone listens to me anyways," she muttered and wandered off to her office, satisfied that Harry had finished the potion and was lying still in bed.
"Congratulations, Harry, on a job well done. I hope you will be feeling better by tomorrow."
"Thanks, how did you know I was back?"
"Well, besides the fact that all of the Gryffindor students I have seen seem to be in incredibly high spirits, I spoke briefly with Remus and Samuel an hour ago."
"Ahhh."
"And they were both extremely pleased at your accomplishments today."
"Have they learned anything? Do they know who the…" Harry looked around quickly and then spoke very softly, "spy is?"
"I am afraid not. Nobody seems to know for sure. Do not worry, we will be watching very carefully. Now I will let you get some rest, no doubt you will need it for tomorrow." Dumbledore stood and turned to leave.
Hermione couldn't resist any longer and asked, "So did your discussion with Professor McGonagall go any better after you chucked me out of your office? Sir?"
Dumbledore paused, but did not turn around to look at the two teens. "Not that it is any of your business, but no, it did not go much better after you left, Miss Granger." Harry and Hermione could detect a note of amusement in his tone. "I imagine she will want to have a few words with you as well, Harry, about forgetting to inform her of your departure. Good night." Then he left.
Harry stared at the closing door apprehensively.
"Don't worry, Harry, I'll protect you," promised Hermione teasingly.
"I'm not scared of McGonagall…well, maybe just a little bit…"
"I wouldn't worry too much, Harry. I doubt she'll do anything until after the tournament is over. Who knows, if you win it, maybe she'll be more lenient…"
"Thanks, Mione. I feel loads better now."
"But if you lose, well, then I don't know what she might…"
Harry closed his eyes and replied, "Good night, Hermione. I think you can stop trying to make me feel better now."
--
Sunday morning during breakfast, Ron was holding a Quidditch war meeting with the other players at the Gryffindor table. Harry sat down and started chewing on a piece of toast.
"Here's how I see it," started Ron. "If Hufflepuff can beat Ravenclaw today, then both of them will be one and two, and both will be out of the tournament. So far, nobody has beat Slytherin. Thanks to Harry's quick work last night, we're back in at one win, one loss. All we have to do is beat Slytherin this afternoon and then we'll be tied with them in wins and losses. And then we'll probably have to play some kind of tiebreaker. But if Ravenclaw manages to win today, then there will have to be some sort of three way playoff."
"Ravenclaw is not going to win today, bro. Their goalkeeper is good, but she got hurt too bad last night, she can't play today. Their seeker is mediocre at best and their best chaser was Delecour. And ever since the other teams have been drinking those anti-glamour potions, they've been complete rubbish. Even Hufflepuff will be able to beat them. No, all we have to worry about is beating Slytherin. Any ideas how they'll decide the winner? Will there be a playoff match or what?" asked Ginny.
"I don't know. But I do know that Slytherin has been rolling up the points in their victories-they've scored a lot more points than we have. They might try to make the case that if there is a tie, then the tournament winner should be based on points, not a sudden death playoff match or something. I'll go talk to McGonagall after breakfast to see if she knows." He kept discussing strategies with Harry, Ginny, and the others during breakfast.
When the owls dropped off the mail, Hermione gasped in astonishment as she read the front page of the paper. "Harry, the raid is in the paper already!"
"What?!" half shouted Harry before lowering his voice. He leaned over to look at the article Hermione had been skimming.
"Ministry Refuses to Confirm Rumors of Raid on Death Eaters.
Only weeks after assuming office, it seems the new Minister is already achieving dramatic results. Sources within the Ministry confirm that a successful raid on a former Death Eater headquarters resulted in the capture of nearly a dozen of the Death Eaters remaining at large. Our source indicated that the Aurors acted on information provided by an anonymous tip and resulted in a fairly routine capture.
When asked to comment, Minister Weasley refused, saying only, "I cannot either confirm or deny the rumors surrounding this alleged raid. We wish to emphasize to the public that we are doing everything possible to recapture these murderers and bring them back to justice. Thank you."
Retired Auror Rudy Murphy had this to say, "The Minister is handling this just right. If the Ministry has captured several Death Eaters, they will not admit it right away-they won't want the other escaped convicts to know who or how they were captured. If they do have them in custody right now, they're being interrogated to discover any additional information that might help them to track down the other Death Eaters. In an investigation like this, you never hold a press conference to announce who you've captured-it might give some sort of advantage to those who remain at large. And whoever leaked this story to the papers is not doing the public a favor, in fact he might be endangering it to get his moment of fame. Now they'll be more on guard, and more cautious then before. It might be harder to catch them now. When they find out who it was who leaked it, and they always do, they ought to chuck him into Azkaban along with the rest of `em."
Reactions from the public have been ecstatic…"
"Good. At least my name stayed out of the story," sighed a relieved Harry as he finished reading the rest of the article. Harry was thankful that few students bothered to take a paper. He hoped nobody would make the connection between the raid and his absence on Friday. He tried to return his focus to the upcoming match, but kept wondering whether the Aurors were having any luck gaining any new information about the remaining Death Eaters.
*-*-*
Ravenclaw lost their match later that morning as Ginny had predicted. The following match between Gryffindor and Slytherin was unusually brutal, even by their standards. Every year Slytherin seemed to boast exceptionally good Beaters, and this year they had an American transfer student who was exceptionally talented. The two Slytherin Beaters had intimidated most of the Chasers they had faced in the tournament.
For the match with Gryffindor, they had altered their strategy. Both Beaters were focusing on no other player but Harry, sending every Bludger they got their bats on his way. Malfoy wasn't even bothering to look for the Snitch, but instead acted as a fourth Chaser. An hour into the match, Ron called a second timeout though Gryffindor was only down by sixty. He watched as Harry slowly limped over to their huddle.
"We can't keep this up. I can't block all of the goals with four of them shooting at the hoops consistently…"
"Well, it's not our fault! If you would…"
"Gin, I'm not blaming anyone. I'm just stating the facts. Obviously they're gambling big playing with four Chasers that Harry won't find the Snitch early. But if they build a big enough lead, it won't matter if Harry does catch it. And with their Beaters, I'm not sure Harry is going to last another half hour up there."
"Hey! I'll hold up," insisted Harry, rubbing a sore shoulder.
"Harry, I know you're the best Seeker that's played here in years, but it only takes one lucky shot and you're out of the game. And how many shots have you dodged today? Eighty? Ninety? A hundred? Even you can't keep dodging forever."
"So you got a plan chief?"
"Yeah, here's what we're going to do. We're going to see just how badly they want to win today."
As the action intensified again, the roar from the crowd and the hammering of Bludgers drowned out the sounds of the announcer. For the players, their entire focus was on chasing the Quaffle and avoiding the Bludgers. A few minutes later, Harry was again diving straight through another one of the Slytherin Chaser formations. Two of the Chasers barely missed getting decapitated by their own Beaters as Harry wove in among them, daring the Beaters to try and hit him. A minute later Malfoy took a Bludger full in the back and fell hard to the ground, and the Slytherins were forced to take an injury time out amidst the deafening cheers of the Gryffindors. Wearily, the Gryffindors huddled up again as Ron began speaking.
"Excellent Harry. If they have any brains, they'll back off a bit now, unless they want to risk taking out their own team. If they do back off, we'll start running the Hydra formations with the Flame and Fang options. But if they want to be stubborn and keep focusing on Harry, this is what we'll do. Harry, you start playing Chaser on the right wing. Beth, you'll take Gin's spot as point Chaser and run the plays-now you won't be passing with Harry, he'll be busy distracting and disrupting the Beaters and the other Chasers, so it will be basically a twin Chaser attack. Use some of the Double Dragon maneuvers we've been practicing. Gin, I want you to play spy above, watching for the Snitch. Make a few passes to make them think you're still playing Chaser, but I want you to really focus on the Snitch. Take it if you have a shot at it. I'll be watching you as well and help out if I can. Jake, your job is to cover Gin if one of the Beaters leaves Harry. Looks like ferret-boy is up again, let's go!"
Undaunted, the Slytherins renewed their attack. The whirling melee in the center of the field continued. Harry shook off a glancing blow to his left arm, grimacing tightly but managing to hang on to his broom. The Slytherin Chaser to his right took the next Bludger right to the head and dropped like a rock. The Slytherins brought in a backup Chaser, who only lasted three minutes before taking a Beater bat to the ribs. Harry had barrel rolled at the last second and the Slytherin Beater knocked another of his teammates to the turf below. Slytherin brought in their second replacement.
"Only one left, Ferret!" shouted Ron mockingly.
"Stuff it Weasel!" replied Malfoy.
Harry played in disbelief. Malfoy wanted so badly to take him out of the game that he continued to have his Beaters focus on him, even at the expense of losing more goals or even the Snitch.
Harry continued dodging among the Slytherin Chasers, often causing them to turn the Quaffle over to one of the Gryffindor Chasers who would then streak towards the Slytherin goals. Harry followed them, swooping in front of the retreating defenders, cutting through their defensive spacing and dragging the Slytherin Beaters behind him. This further disrupted the attention of the defending Slytherins, who had to watch out for not only the pressing Gryffindor Chasers but also one of the stray Bludgers sent by their own Beaters. While the Beaters continued to focus solely on Harry, he made sure he was never more than a foot or two from one of the Slytherin players.
Amidst the constant swirling, diving players in the middle of the field, Ginny occasionally flew up out of the whirling mass of players to try and catch a glimpse of the Snitch. Twenty minutes later, Gryffindor was out of replacements and only had one Chaser still flying besides Gin. Slytherin too, was out of replacement players and when both of their Beaters collided trying to hit Harry with their clubs, Malfoy took the place of the Slytherin who didn't regain consciousness. Only when Gryffindor scored twenty points in the space of thirty seconds did Malfoy seem to realize that his strategy was finally breaking down. Out of time outs, he tried to call out new instructions to their two remaining Chasers and the other Beater. Meanwhile, Ginny had spotted the Snitch flying low heading towards the Gryffindor goals. She dove towards it as Malfoy tried to find a way through the tangle of flying brooms in the center of the field. Malfoy saw her diving and leaned forward, trying to gain every bit of speed possible. He was ahead of her, closer to the Snitch, and then swore as it suddenly slowed and then reversed direction and he overshot it. He banked as quickly as he could to turn and follow it and was nearly knocked from his broom as Ginny slammed into him with bone jarring force. Her flying body check into Malfoy helped her stop and turn the opposite way as the Snitch zipped away from the pair.
Smiling as she accelerated, she shouted over her shoulder, "Nothing personal Malfoy, just looking for the Snitch!"
Malfoy shouted something rude and unintelligible as he tried to catch up to her. He chased her back towards the Slytherin end of the field, both dodging the other fliers as they pursued the hyperactive Snitch. The Snitch dived under the left goal and then looped back towards the left, climbing in front of the crowd. Ginny started following and then feeling Malfoy coming up fast behind her managed to duck to the side just in time to avoid Malfoy's elbow aimed at her head. His hip hit her shoulder and sent her flying from her broom into a crowd of Hufflepuffs in the stands who were kind enough to break her fall.
Malfoy shouted, "Payback's rough, eh Weasley?!" and laughed loudly as he watched her careen out of control into the crowd. He then looked back to find the Snitch and dove back down towards the pitch as he spotted the flash of gold. However, with all of his focus on the Snitch, he failed to notice the two angry Gryffindors bearing down on him as he headed back towards the center of the pitch. Meanwhile Madame Hooch was blowing madly on her whistle, trying to call for a foul on Malfoy, but nobody was paying her any attention.
Malfoy was still grinning as he stretched to reach for the Snitch. His eyes widened in shock as he saw Potter bearing down straight for him, his left hand extended to catch the Snitch. Malfoy leaned forward and felt the wings brush his finger tips. Despite the fact that the Snitch and Harry were flying in opposite directions at nearly full speed, Harry managed to snatch the Snitch just out of the grasp of Malfoy and wrapped his fingers around it tightly. Malfoy screamed in anger and then out of the corner of his eye glimpsed movement. He tried to duck as an enraged Ron flew past him. Instead of catching a forearm full in the face, he simply caught an elbow in the forehead. His head snapped back and then he rolled backwards off his broom, out cold before his body bounced hard on the ground. Ron merely grunted, "Yeah, payback's rough, eh Ferret?" and then scanned the Hufflepuff crowd for signs of his sister.
The crowd was roaring and Madame Hooch swooped in, her whistle still blasting. "Malfoy, out! Weasley out! Potter, amazing catch! Gryffindor wins!"
Meanwhile, Gryffindor students were swarming the field. Both Harry and Ron landed on the ground, and Harry ran over quickly to prevent Ron from getting any closer to Malfoy.
"Nobody hits my sister and gets away with it!" he yelled as he looked angrily for the fallen Slytherin, his huge fists clenched tightly.
"Easy, Ron. Cool off! Look, here she comes. She looks fine." Both looked up to see Ginny flying over to see them with the rest of the team. Bedlam reigned on the field while Madame Pomfrey and several of the Slytherins helped Malfoy to his feet as the Gryffindor students began celebrating.
Dumbledore finally restored order with a loud announcement. "Quiet, please, quiet. As many of you are aware, we currently have a tie in the tournament. Rather than count the number of team members still able to stand upright, the tie will be decided by a special match. One player from each team will be selected to catch the Snitch. There will be two Bludgers as well, one to chase each of the Seekers. Each of the Seekers will be provided with a school broom of equal speed and ability, no personal brooms will be allowed. This match will be decided solely on the talent of the individual Seeker. Whoever catches the Snitch first will win the match and the tournament. This match will begin in one hour."
Madame Pomfrey then helped Malfoy walk to the tent that had been set up during the brutal match to treat all of the injured Gryffindor and Slytherin players who had started falling from the sky. She motioned for Ginny, Ron, and Harry to go to the tent as well. A few moments later, the three looked up as Hermione burst in with huge red streaks on her cheeks.
Expecting a sermon, Harry was pleased when she simply asked if they were going to be OK. Harry grinned and nodded. They quit talking when Madame Pomfrey barged in, muttering about foolish old headmasters and barbaric gladiatorial contests being inappropriate for schoolchildren. When Ron asked how Malfoy was doing, she replied irritably, "Well, his head is still attached to his body, despite your best efforts to separate the two, if that is what you mean."
"Did you see what he did to my sister?"
"Yes, Mr. Weasley-I am not blind. But that's why I dislike these contests, someone is always trying to get even with someone else for something that happened in one of them."
Ron rolled his eyes at Harry, but said nothing further. After she left, Harry stood up and began stretching out his sore and aching muscles when McGonagall arrived.
"Mr. Weasley, you will be serving a detention with me next week for the flagrant foul you committed on Mr. Malfoy during the match and…"
"Did you see what he did to my sister?"
"Of course!" she snapped. "But that is no excuse to lose your temper and stoop to his level. That said, I wish to congratulate you on a hard won victory. And by hard won, I mean that some of the other players will probably be out for another day or two. That was certainly one of the more, err…physical matches Hogwarts has seen in several years. And how are you feeling Miss Weasley?"
"I'll be just fine after Harry's finished off Malfoy in the next match, I've spent an hour soaking in a warm tub, and I'm back in the Gryffindor common room enjoying the victory celebration tonight," she replied with a grin.
"That was a quite a hit you took from Mr. Malfoy, Miss Weasley," observed McGonagall.
"I grew up with six brothers and they play a lot rougher. Frankly, Malfoy hits about as hard as a flobberworm."
Quickly concealing her grin, McGonagall turned to leave.
"Hey! I'm doing fine, too, thanks for asking," added Harry.
"Of course you are Mr. Potter. The only way you wouldn't be out flying again in forty minutes was if you were flat on your back out cold. Am I correct?"
Harry just grinned.
"Good. Now go out and win this tournament Potter." She then turned and left to visit the other injured students.
--
In the center of the pitch, mounted on one of the school's Cloudsweep Fives, Malfoy glared at Harry with undisguised hatred in his eyes. Harry glared back, and then cracked a smile when he saw the huge goose egg on Malfoy's forehead.
"You're going down this time Potter. It's just you and me today. Everybody is going to see what a fake you are today, and how I'm the best seeker in the school."
"That's funny, Malfoy-you've never beaten me before. At anything."
"Your parents, especially your dad, thought they were funny too. You'll meet the same sticky end as your parents one of these days, Harry Potter."
Harry's green eyes smoldered and his face became a stony mask.
Malfoy noticed and laughed. "Did I hit a sore spot Potter?" he mocked.
Harry refused to reply and looked at Madame Hooch instead who was about to release the Snitch. She opened her hands and it soared skyward. Ten seconds later she blew her whistle and both Malfoy and Potter kicked off with their brooms, Malfoy staying slightly below Potter, watching his every move. Potter drifted slowly with the breeze, emptying his mind of everything-the announcer, the crowd beneath him, Malfoy and his barbed taunts-and simply let his eyes roam as they searched for a glint of gold. Five minutes passed and then ten. After fifteen, Malfoy began making various snide remarks which Harry completely ignored.
Suddenly he saw a metallic flash and less than a hearbeat later Harry was plummeting towards the ground, with Malfoy nearly even with him. The Snitch broke right and Harry followed, taking a more looping turn than he normally would, making slight allowances for the inferior broom he was riding. It was not nearly as fast or as agile as his own-therefore he had to compensate and fly just slightly less aggressively lest he push the broom beyond its limits. He barrel rolled suddenly, to avoid one of the Bludgers that came swooping at him-apparently they only flew at him once he was actively pursuing the Snitch. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Malfoy roll into an inverted loop perfectly, avoiding the other Bludger easily. Harry hid his astonishment-he hadn't thought Malfoy was that good. They hadn't flown against each other since the attack last spring, and Malfoy really hadn't been flying as a Seeker during the earlier match. Malfoy must have been practicing over the summer break.
Harry continued to track the flight of the elusive Snitch, with Malfoy close by on his left flank. They soared over the eastern stands, swerved back under one set of goals, and then looped back through the highest hoop before diving back steeply towards the pitch. Harry quickly realized he would have to gamble and try to anticipate where the Snitch might dart next, since there was no way he was going to be able to catch it on sheer speed alone on one of the school brooms. He ducked under one of the Bludgers and then suddenly he zoomed up and to the left while Malfoy, after throwing him a suspicious look, continued to follow the Snitch. When the Snitch did change direction, it did zoom upwards. But instead of going left it broke hard right. Harry yanked his broom up and to the left as hard as he could, going inverted for a moment before he rolled over right side up again. He temporarily lost sight of the Snitch, but aimed slightly ahead of where Malfoy was headed. Luckily, the Snitch darted his way and then moved away from both pursuing players. He twisted to avoid the oncoming Bludger and then braced for the impact he anticipated with Malfoy. Their shoulders and hips slammed into each other as they adjusted their angles of pursuit to the new path taken by the Snitch.
It dove, then began rising slowly in front of them. Still bumping each other, both leaned their brooms into shallow dives to intercept the fluttering Snitch. Malfoy's elbow slammed into Harry's ribs once, twice, and then a third time. Harry swung one of his legs forward and then kicked it back sharply against one of Malfoy's shins, trying to gain a little leverage or a slight lead. As Harry surged slightly ahead, Malfoy reached out and grabbed Harry's shoulder. Harry threw his elbow straight back, extended his arm, and then rolled it up and over the top of Malfoy's left arm, breaking the grip and then Harry used it to push off a little more. They were closing in on the Snitch now, only a foot or so away, with Harry about six inches closer. The Snitch suddenly darted to the right slightly and Harry lunged forward before it got any closer to Malfoy. He almost reached it when he felt a fist slam into his ribs, making him wince and draw back reflexively.
Then the Snitch dropped down a bit. Harry dove too, and reached forward again. This time his fingers grabbed the ball and with an extra stretch, he was able to pull it safely into his grasp. He felt Malfoy's fingers clawing at his wrist, drawing blood and then he felt a sharp elbow catch him right below the eye. He snapped his head back and Malfoy's fist barely missed his cheek. His eye watering and fed up with Malfoy's cheap shots, he lifted his elbow and snapped it down viciously as he rolled slightly to the right. There was a sharp crack as he snapped off the front two feet of Malfoy's broom. Malfoy's right hand held on to the front part of the broken shaft, but the remaining part began spinning away as Malfoy's continued forward and slightly down. Harry pulled up and to the left as Malfoy slammed into one of the heavy canvas flags hanging from the towers of the stadium. With a sickening crunch that immediately halted his forward momentum, Malfoy's body fell limply to the ground. Tired, and with his ribs and cheek aching, Harry descended to the ground. The cheers that had broken out when the announcer had called the match for Gryffindor had largely subsided as the crowd watched the brutal punches exchanged between the two longtime rivals. There was now an anxious silence enveloping the crowd as they watched for signs of life from Malfoy who once again lay still on the ground. Madame Pomfrey hurried over to check him, and stepped back as Malfoy pushed her away and slowly rose shakily from the ground. The crowd burst out in cheers as Madame Hooch made the official announcement declaring Gryffindor the victors. Harry stood in the center of the stadium for a moment and watched Malfoy limp off the field before getting swamped by his teammates and fellow students.
*-*-*
Several hours later, the Gryffindors were still carrying on in the common room, led by Ron and Ginny. Hermione found Harry sitting in a chair by the wall, a happy look plastered on his face.
"What's the matter, Harry? You don't seem nearly as happy as you look," she asked as she sat on the arm of the chair.
"I still can't believe I did that to Malfoy."
"Well, he did have it coming."
"No doubt. But I was so mad, and I just reacted instead of thinking about it first." He suddenly turned and looked at her desperately. "Mione, have I been acting angrier or more violent?"
Hermione's eyes widened in surprise and she noticed the serious look on Harry's face and replied. "No. If anything, you are remarkably restrained, considering everything you've been through and the amount of power you possess."
"You don't think that maybe all of this Auror training is making me dangerous…I mean in the field, with Hunt, or against those Death Eaters, I act on instinct…I react…I mean, I think too, but I think about surviving and winning and tactics-not necessarily the morality of the situation. I mean I do, but…do you know what I mean? Tackling Death Eaters is different than playing Quidditch, it's even different from the duels Snape has us fight, no matter how realistic he tries to make them. What if I can't turn that off when I come back to school? I didn't want to hurt Malfoy, well, OK, part of me did, but I could have just as easily killed him. I had my wand, there was half a dozen spells I could have used, I could have jabbed his eye, or crushed his larynx, or"
"And you snapped his broom, Harry. And it wasn't that bad of a fall, you weren't that far off the ground. He hit pretty hard, but he walked away on his own. You didn't use a spell or try to kill him, Harry. You reined in your instincts."
"I guess, but it kind of spooks me that I came that close. What if I snap and get angry during one of the duels-I could really hurt someone. I could kill someone."
"And the fact that you think about it and worry about it is proof of the fact that you won't let it happen. You're right, Harry, it is tough. But if anyone can do it, it's you Harry."
"Thanks, Mione. That means a lot."
"No problem. If you're still feeling guilty, I could always give you a detention."
Harry laughed. "I'm not feeling that guilty. Besides, McGonagall already gave me a week's detention with Ron." It was Hermione's turn to laugh.
He smiled for a moment before a look of concern returned. "But there is something very strange about Malfoy. He said something before the match started, something his father said to me a long time ago. And he said it exactly like his father had said it."
"But Harry, we know Malfoy is not using a Polyjuice potion. What do you think is…"
"I don't know, but there's something very wrong with Malfoy. I just can't figure out what it is. Ron thinks he might be the Death Eater spy.."
"Well of course he does."
"I don't know. And I hate not knowing…"
"Don't worry Harry. We'll find the spy."
Meanwhile, the other students continued celebrating their victory.
*-*-*
Next chapter: The Halloween Ball
-->