The Girl That Never Forgot *Harry Potter Fanfiction*

Chapter 7 - Quidditch

Lounging in the stands over two hours early, Lyra watched in delight as Gryffindor practiced to play Hufflepuff later that day since Slytherin had dropped out because of a player's injury.

'They're just babies.' She thought to herself, a tang of disappointment sparking in her chest at the fact that her old team was such wusses.

It was raining, pouring heavier as each moment passed. Lyra sighed, not unhappily as the condensation soaked her, the angry black clouds emptying their contents onto everything below.

Dementors lurked around, she couldn't see them at the present time but she knew they were there, she felt the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end as if she were a cat or dog, goosebumps sprouting from the cold weather and chilling knowledge that the horrible creatures looking for Sirius Black were so close by.

Keeping her eyes on the field intently, she spotted a beater on the Hufflepuff team a large distance away, practicing. No other Hufflepuffs were anywhere in sight.

She stood, walking over the edge of the stands and leaning over the edge, getting as close to him as physically possible to shout down to him.

"Hey!" His head shot up, looking around. "Yo, Hufflepuff!"

His gaze shifted up towards her. He had honey blond hair and brown eyes. He appeared to be in about fourth year. He raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Lower your hand on the handle of the bat." He looked down before adjusting his grip then met her gaze again as if to ask for clarification. Lyra nodded. She searched behind her, looking for a ball of some sort before she felt something hit her foot.

She glanced down to see a tennis ball and caught a glimpse of a dog waddling away. She snickered before picking it up in her left hand and returned her gaze to the Hufflepuff boy.

"Ready?" He shrugged before nodding. She threw it down and it was only a few seconds before the Hufflepuff boy hit it. It flew across the field, nearly hitting a brown haired boy on the Gryffindor team in the back of the head.

He turned to scowl at the boy but he seemed to be too happy about his success to be concerned.

Lyra smiled, giving him a thumbs up before going to sit down once more.

Time lapse

The steady drizzle of rain had increased quickly to a rough downpour and the wind ripped through everyone's hair and clothes.

Lyra sat in the crowd, one of the few people without a cloak but she didn't appear to be too bothered about it.

Although no one offered her theirs, she didn't make any move to shield herself from the freezing water droplets. If anything, she seemed to be enjoying it far too much.

Watching the Quidditch game excitedly, her waist length hair was tangled and drenched, clothes soaked through. She deeply resembled a student sitting there looking as if she couldn't be happier.

Gryffindor seemed to be having a hard time seeing their teammates as they glared into the rain. Specifically Harry as it took several minutes of Wood motioning him to the ground for a time out before he noticed.

They were up by about fifty points.

Straining her eyes, she noticed Hermione was down there too. She appeared to be making an adjustment to Harry's glasses.

The game began again and immediately Harry seemed to be coping much better.

But something strange was happening. Harry peered into the crowd, as if spotting something and he looked very distracted. An eerie quiet was settling on the stadium like a heavy blanket of silence.

Lyra turned in her seat, gaze nearly missing a huge black dog sitting several rows behind her. She whipped around so that she was facing forward again, chills running down her spine.

"Harry! Harry, behind you!" A strangled cry came from the Gryffindor goalposts as Wood pointed frantically behind him where Cedric Diggory was streaking up the pitch, chasing a tiny speck of gold.

Never taking her eyes off him as he pressed himself down against his broom, trying to reach the snitch in time, Lyra felt as though she was being frozen.

It wasn't just her fear of the monstrous dog that just couldn't have been there nor was it the icy cold rain anymore. With each breath she took, it felt as though ice water was being poured into her lungs and took her breath away as soon as she had it back.

Harry glanced down and a terror stricken expression had taken hold of his face. Following his gaze, she spotted dozens of Dementors scattered around the pitch directly below Harry.

Although he was making an obvious effort to get away from them, it wasn't enough.

Feeling as though the entire stadium was holding its breath, he tipped his broom and was sent plummeting to the ground below.

Time lapse

Lyra stood at the door of the hospital wing, waiting patiently as Harry spoke to his friends and team.

She surveyed the room. She had been in this room many times before, so many times that she had memorized every single detail. Heck, she had been in the hospital wing more than her own common room.

After what seemed to be centuries, the rest of his teammates left his bedside. Muttering compliments to the Weasley twins about their skill as Beaters, Lyra turned to see that he was holding the splintered pieces of his broom. She strode up to him, clearing her throat to make her presence known.

"Oi, sleeping beauty. Rise and shine."

Harry didn't make any motion or noise to confirm he had heard her. He was still holding his mangled broom as if he had just lost his best friend.

"You flew brilliantly." She sat down beside him. "Not as well as I did, of course," she added quickly, "but I'd say you've definitely given your father a run for his money." She gazed off into the distance. "Although he was a Chaser."

Harry finally raised his head. "I fell off. How's that brilliant?"

"The Dementors aren't supposed to come onto the grounds. There was nothing you could've done to prevent it."

"But if there was something I could do-"

Lyra shook her head. "I'd speak to Lupin about that."

"But can you do that? What Professor Lupin did to hold off the Dementor on the train, I mean."

She glanced around, no one was in sight. "I suppose." She took her wand from her left boot and stood facing him.

"Expecto Patronum!" At first only a bright mist materialized from the end of it. Then a shape moved out from inside it.

A seemingly timid fox stepped out. It took a few weary and careful steps before pausing. It disappeared as they heard Pomfrey's voice in the office behind them.

Lyra faced Harry, he was staring at where the fox had stood only moments before in awe.

Slipping her wand back into her boot, she kneeled by his bedside. "There's nothing wrong with fear, Harry. Only someone truly foolish is fearless."

Her thoughts drifted to Lily and James' smiling faces. She continued. "You just have to choose what you do with it. You can let it destroy you, let it rule your life until you are nothing and it has won, or you can get right back up every time you fall. Show them that they aren't going to knock you down so easily. Take whatever they shove in your face and throw it back, twice as hard. Then you've won."

{12/11/15}