Since the beginning | Deamus |

(first year) Ch. 8 The Quittach Match

(I know nothing about soccer so don't judge me if I get anything wrong)

There were very few highlights to that first November. Classes dragged on and on, schoolwork became more difficult, and everyone was losing sleep to homework. A bright side was that I didn't have to do all of my homework on my own, Hermione would help you out if you asked. Ron, Harry, Dean, Neville, and I wouldn't have made it past first year without her.

Another good thing was that Quidditch season was starting. Harry was constantly at practice because Wood wanted "to train Potter to be the best Seeker that Hogwarts has ever seen!". I was still a little sore about Harry being chosen for the team even though he was in first year, but it started to seem less appealing after a bit.

"Is it true that people die playing Quidditch?" Harry asked. He had been me questions for weeks because I knew how to play, yay.

"Well, only a few. But that hasn't happen for centuries." Deaths were very rare and even then it was probably because the player crashed into the stands. "There are a lot of injuries though."

Harry looked like he was about to puke.

"But," I started quickly, "that's what the Beaters are for! Even if the Seeker is the one targeted most of the time, I'm sure you won't get too badly hurt."

"Seamus!" Dean was all the way across the common room but apparently he heard every word I said.

"What?"

"Your not helping!" He gestured to Harry who had a horrified look on his face.

"But it's true!"

Dean only shook his head and went back to his work.

The quidditch field lay between the castle and the forbidden forest. Fog spread across the whole grounds so the stands seemed to float. Every student in the school poured out of the front doors and talked excitedly about the first Quidditch match of the season.

I would like to say that I was calm and collected about the match, but I really wasn't. Dean later told me that I was hopping around and grinning like the little jittery-excited-eleven-year-old I was.

Slytherins and Gryffindors were enemies to begin with, but this was a whole new kind of hate. Fights broke out on the stands between Gryffindors and Slytherins over who would win the match. Fred and George even beat up one kid for mouthing off the whole team. He had to stay in the infirmary for a whole week!

"This is way better than football! You'll see!" I yelled to Dean as we took our seats.

"Ya right!"

Don't expect me to remember all of the match, I can barely remember what I had for breakfast this morning. But I do remember some of the more exciting parts.

Gryffindor had already scored and the whole stand was yelling like crazy. A gigantic banner that read Gryffindor Get the Gold! was pushed into my face more than once. The screaming all blended together.

"Wait - was that the snitch?" Lee Jordan, the announcer, called out in surprise. Sure enough, a tiny golden speck was flying around a Gryffindor chaser. Harry dove towards it but so  did the Slytherin seeker. They both raced to it but just as Harry was going to grab it, someone from the Slytherin team rammed into him.

"Foul!"

Hooch gave the Gryffindors a free shot but Dean was still screaming loudly in my ear.

"Red card!! Come on that was a red card!"

"What is a bloody red card!" I shouted back.

"If you do that in soccer, you get kicked out! It's a red card!"

"Well this isn't soccer, Dean! It's quidditch!" Ron seemed almost hysterical.

"But they should change the rules," said Hermione, "he could have killed Harry!"

The game kept going but commentary was getting entertaining. Lee Jordan was disobeying McGonnagal and shouting at the Slytherin team.

"So, the Gryffindor team takes the penalty with no problem- oh no."

Everyone looked up to Harry who was flying around in jerked motions. It looked like he was being thrown off his broom.

"Did that happen when he was hit?" Dean asked curiously.

"No, that can't happen."

Hermione whispered, "Only dark magic can do that."

"Dark magic?" Ron stared at her like she was insane, that happened a lot. "You can't be serious."

"Afraid I am, look." She was pointing over to the teacher's stand. Everyone there were on their feet, all but Snape. "Snape's jinxing Harry's broom!"

"What are we going to do!" Ron inquired.

"Leave it up to me."

As Hermione left to do something crazy, Harry was being knocked out of the sky. I was surprised he could even hold on the way the broom was rolling through the sky. No one was even paying attention to the game. Some of his teammates tried to help him onto their brooms but it was too dangerous. A few Slytherins scored but I doubted it would count, seeing as everyone was too focused on Harry and his malfunctioning broomstick.

Next thing, the teacher's stand was utter chaos. No doubt Hermione had done something to Snape. It must have worked too because all of a sudden Harry regained control over his broom and zoomed towards the ground.

He stopped midair and held his hand to his mouth. At first I thought that he was going to be sick, that the past few minutes had been too much for him. But, something gold fell into his hands. The snitch!!!

"Harry caught the snitch!" Lee shouted into the megaphone, "Gryffindor wins!"

"But he almost swallowed it!" Obviously, some of the Slytherins were sore losers.

The after-match was amazing, it was hosted by Fred and George of course. They got some food and drinks from the kitchen and were celebrating the first won match of the year by basically ignoring every school rule in existence. Hermione would be furious.

Fortunately, she wasn't there. Neither were Ron and Harry but then again the three of them did everything together.

The party went on well into the night but I got uncomfortable pretty early on. Dean followed me back to the dormitory, probably because Fred and George were interrogating him about whether or not soccer had flying brooms.

"So, what's so special about this soccer anyway?" We were the only ones in the dorm even though it was well past dark.

"Well there's no flying balls or players who get knocked out of the sky."

"I know it's not as exciting as Quidditch," I grinned, "but tell me anyway."

"Uh, actually it's a lot like Quidditch. There's the goalie, or keeper. And there's the people who try to kick the ball into the goal, or the chasers. But I guess that there's no equivalent to the Seeker."

"Cool, anything else?"

"Well . . ."

We talked about the similarities between soccer and Quidditch until we both fell asleep, next to each other on the floor.