Together Again

Chapter 28:

Weasley Is Our King

Angelina shoved a large plate piled with fried eggs and sausages in Harry's face the moment he sat down at the Gryffindor table.

"Eat up!" she said bossily. "You're going to need your strength if we're going wallop Slytherin today."

Harry took a few bites of sausage to get her off his back. Appeased, she wandered down the table to scold Katie for her small helping of oatmeal.

Ron flopped down into the seat next to him miserably. "What have I done?" he asked his best mate. "I'll be dreadful. I'm going to drop my broom, or give the quaffle to the wrong team, or – or something," he bemoaned.

Harry patted him on the back. "I've seen you play fine loads of times. You'll be-"

"Eat up, Weasley!"

Angelina had materialized behind them with another plate of food. She set in front of Ron. "Less talking, more eating. That cup is going to be ours!" she added forcefully as she walked away.

"There has to be a way to get out of this," Ron panicked under his breath. "Can't you push me down a staircase or something? I can't play with broken limbs."

Harry smirked at him, and took a bite of toast. "No good. Madam Pomfrey'd heal you in minutes. We'd need something more permanent."

Ron just groaned miserably and sank in his seat. "Where's Hermione?"

Harry shrugged. "Dunno. Probably in the library."

IIIIIIIIIIIII

James practically skipped to the Quidditch pitch that Saturday morning.

Dressed in a set of golden robes to compliment his best mate's brilliant red ones, Sirius followed along at his heels. Lily and Remus (both normally dressed) rolled their eyes and trailed behind them.

"Do you know how long it's been since I've seen a Quidditch game?" James said to Sirius excitedly. "Fourteen years!" he answered before Sirius could open his mouth.

"Just wait till you see this," Sirius replied conspiratorially, gesturing at the towering pitch in the distance. "I snuck into the school to watch in Harry's third year – excellent. I mean, bloody brilliant. He totally would have caught that snitch if those Dementors didn't spook him off his broom from so high up."

In the back, Lily paled. "How far did he fall?" she asked Remus, worriedly.

"I wasn't there. But rumor has it that he dropped at least a hundred feet," Remus told her as they strolled. Ahead of them, James and Sirius had made it to the stairs and joined the throng of students making their way to the stands.

"Don't worry," he said when he saw the ashen look on her face. "Dumbledore caught him. He was only in the hospital wing for the weekend."

"He's a Potter!" James boasted to his friend. "We have skulls of steel. Nothing keeps us down!" He rapped the side of his forehead with his knuckles for emphasis.

They began climbing the stairs. James and Sirius were only floating heads in the crowd at this point. "Why couldn't he have been a gobstones player? Why Quidditch?" she bemoaned. "He's had enough near death experiences without that flying death-"

Lily looked around for her now missing husband and his cohort. She huffed. "Honestly! Where did they go?"

Remus sniffed the air with his heightened sense of smell (it always got stronger the closer he got to the full moon, and the next one was only a week out) and picked up their scent amongst the throng of excited students. "This way," he explained, guiding her by the elbow through a group of excited first years towards the Griffindor section.

"There you are!" James called out to them from over the heads the crowd, his face painted red and gold with a large, black number 7 on his forehead. "Come on. They'll be marching onto the pitch any moment now!"

Lily and Remus wove their way through the sea of students towards the two men.

Upon reaching them, Lily was surprised to see Hermione with them, as well as a blonde girl wearing a very large lion-shaped hat.

"Hello!" Hermione greeted loudly over the noise. "Harry said you would be here. This is Luna Lovegood,"she said gesturing at the blonde haired girl.

Luna stared at her dreamily. "It's a true pleasure to meet you Mrs. Potter," she said breathily. "I've never met anyone who's been in a magical coma before. Father and I believe your awakening must have been caused by a rogue crumpled-horn snorkack."

Lily smiled politely and gave Hermione a questioning look. "Crumpled-horn snorkack?" she asked delicately. Never, in all of her studies (and she had aced her Care of Magical Creatures N.E.W.T.), had she heard of a crumpled-horn snorkack.

Sirius looked back at them with a bemused look, and whispered something into James's ear. The black haired man sniggered and continued looking out onto the pitch.

Luna nodded. "Oh yes. Their quite rare creatures. We've never had the opportunity to see one, but-"

Hermione rolled her eyes and cut in. "Oh look! I think they're about to step out!"

"Welcome to the beginning of the 1995 Hogwarts Inter-House Quidditch Cup," the announcer boomed. "As usual, the competitors for the first game are Gryffindor and Slytherin. Gryffindor is the reigning champion, having won the cup back in '93 – there was no competition last year with the Triwizard cup and all. It's a shame the school didn't just do both. I mean the Quidditch cup is a Hogwarts tradition-"

"Jordan!" McGonagall snapped in the background.

"Fine," Lee Jordan huffed and changed the subject. "Both teams are stepping out onto the pitch now."

The stands erupted as both teams stepped out onto the field. Lily leaned over the railing looking for her son. James pointed out a swath of jet black hair for her, standing in the back, and cheered loudly.

"The Slytherin team is being captained by Graham Montague – thank Merlin Marcus Flint's finally gone. Chasers for the team this year are Montague, Pucey and Warrington. New to the position of Beaters are fifth years Crabbe and Goyle. Bletchley has returned to the team as Keeper, and Malfoy is bringing up the rear again as the Slytherin Seeker – who as an interesting side note, for those of you who haven't been keeping track, hasn't ever been able to ever catch the snitch out from under Potter's nose…"

There was a loud cheer in the Griffindor section.

"Right! Sorry, Professor! Leading the Gryffindor team this year is Angelina Johnson, replacing the beloved Oliver Wood. Rest of the team lineup is the pretty much the same – Chasers are Johnson, Spinnet, and Bell, the undefeated Potter as Seeker-"

"POTTER!" James and Sirius screamed. Lily laughed at their exuberance.

"-and the infamous Weasley twins as Beaters. A third Weasley has made it to the team this year as Keeper, Ron.

"Their mounting their brooms now… quaffle's been tossed… AND THE GAME BEGINS!

"Spinnet catches the quaffle and speeds down the field. Intercepted by Pucey, who tosses it to Montague. OH! Bell steals it out from under him! Goyle hits a bludger at Johnson- misses it by a mile! Terrible shot… She shoots… she scores! 10 points to nill as Bell sneaks the quaffle past Bletchley. The quaffle is in Slytherin possession now. Bletchley tosses it to Montague, who almost loses it to Johnson. Montague sails it over to Warrington- OUCH! Warrington takes a bludger across the face, courtesy of one of the Weasley twins – I don't know which, I can never tell them apart…

"Crabbe tries his hand at beating a bludger at Spinnet – another miss. Where did they find these two? Their terrible."

"Jordan…" McGonagall warned.

"Johnson wrestles the ball out of Montague's arms and turns around. She passes it back to Bell, who passes it right back after Pucey gets out of the way. Warrington tries to intercept, but- what is that noise?"

Over the din of cheering and Lee Jordan's announcing, the Slytherin section of the stands began chanting. Lily leaned into the railing, straining her ears to catch the words.

"Oh no," Hermione said to herself. "Those badges…"

Weasley is our king,

He cannot block a single ring.

That's why Slytherin's all sing,

Weasley is our King!

Lily gasped in horror, and looked over at the scowling faces of James and Sirius. Behind them, Remus was shaking his head.

The chanting was louder now.

Weasley was born in a bin,

He always lets the quaffle in.

Weasley will make sure we win,

Weasley is our king!

"Wankers, the lot of them…" Sirius said, folding his arms across his chest.

"Spinnet steals the quaffle!" Lee Jordan shouted.

Lily was certain he was trying to drown out the sound of the chanting. Poor Ron, she thought to herself.

"She tosses it to Bell – oh no, Pucey catches it! This is going to be a test for Gryffindor's new Keeper – come on Ron!"

Above them, Ron swerved to the left to block Pucey's attack.

"He's going to feint!" Sirius shouted out. "He's going to feint. No, don't-"

Ron flailed at the last minute to intercept Pucey's feinted quaffle as it sailed through the right-most goal hoop, but fell several feet short of blocking it.

The Slytherin side let out a deafening cheer.

Weasley is our king,

He cannot block a single ring

"10-to-10. Bad luck, Ron," Lee Jorden said, encouragingly. Angelina Johnson's got the quaffle now – brilliant player, she is. Flies like an angel. Crabbe's shot another bludger, this time at Johnson – still can't hit any- Woah!"

The bludger, having missed its intended target, continued sailing through the air. Harry, busy focusing on Ron's panicked movements, had to dive and duck at the last second to avoid it.

Lily flinched.

James squinted through his horn rimmed glasses. "What's he standing around for?" Off in the distance, Angelina Johnson was shouting at him.

"It nearly unseats Potter from his broom! That boy has bad luck with bludgers! Speaking of which, looks like Warrington's taken another bludger. He's dropped the quaffle. Damn! Caught by Montague-"

That's why the Slytherin's all sing,

Weasley is our king!

"Montague makes it through Weasley's defense again. 20-to-10 for Slytherin."

James groaned into his hand.

Weasley was born in a bin,

He cannot block a single thing

"Come on, Ron!" he shouted. "You've got this!"

"Fred Weasley –or George, I really can never tell, aims a bludger at Malfoy."

"Serves him right," said Remus, seriously. On the field, Madam Hooch blew the whistle. "I'd bet you a galleon he's the one behind this." Sirius grunted in agreement.

"Madam Hooch has called a penalty on one of the Weasley beaters. Looks like Montague is going to take the penalty shoot-"

Weasley will make sure we win,

Weasley is our king!

"Come on, Ron!" James shouted. "You've got this!" He didn't have to watch to know that Montague's shot had made it through. The Slytherins cheered wildly.

"30-to-10 for Slytherin- Potter is on the move! He's seen the snitch-"

Off in the distance, Lily could just barely see a streak of green and silver collide with Harry, knocking him off course. She paled considerably.

"FOUL!" James screamed, waving his arms at the pitch. "THAT WAS A FOUL!"

"FILTHY LITTLE MISCRETANT!" Sirius shouted next to him.

"Bloody hell! Malfoy makes a filthy play, colliding with Potter. Dunderhead wasn't even able to catch a glimpse of the snitch-"

McGonagall's retort was conspicuously absent. If she didn't know her any better, she'd say the Gryffindor Head-of-House was just as angry as Jordan and the two men beside her.

Weasley is our king,

He cannot block a single ring.

That's why Slytherin's all sing,

Weasley is our King!

"Warrington takes ANOTHER bludger."

The chaser in question slipped off his broom and fell to the ground with a sickening crunch.

"He's going to feel that in the morning. Looks like he's out for the count. Montague's called a time out. Looks like their calling in Tracey Davis as a stand in…"

Madam Hooch blew her whistle, declaring the game back in session.

"Montague's got the quaffle again- dodges Spinnet and Johnson. Passes to Davis – Davis fumbles, Bell takes possession- No, Montague's taken it back. Bell smacks it out of his grip, Spinnet catches… Davis tries to retake possession, but fails. Spinnet shoots- Bletchley just barely blocks it! So close! He hands it off to Pucey. Goyle hits a bludger Bell's way. Well, I'll be damned! It actually hits!

"Katie Bell, shakes it off, and returns to the fray. Potter looks to have spotted the snitch again- SOMEONE GET MALFOY'S FAT ARSE OUT OF THE WAY! Filthy minger!"

"Language!" McGonagall screeched.

Malfoy had once again blocked Harry's path.

James swore. "Bollocks!"

"Pucey scores for Slytherin. That's 40-to-10 now. Come on, Potter we need that snitch right about now…"

Weasley was born in a bin,

He cannot block a single thing.

"Someone shut them up, already!" Jordan snapped.

"This is getting out of hand," James said, scowling. "I have half a mind to go over there and start deducting points for bad sportsmanship…"

"-Johnson has the quaffle now, and ducks underneath Davis. Crabbe aims a bludger – Blooming idiot! He couldn't hit the castle walls from inside the entrance hall!"

Weasley will make sure we win,

Weasley is our king!

James searched the air for his son.

High above the pitch, Harry as flying around the field in slow circles, looking for the snitch. Malfoy trailed behind him.

"He won't get off Harry's arse," Sirius said incredulously watching the two boys. Harry sped up to get some distance, by Malfoy stayed on his tail. "That's not how you play seeker."

"The only reason Malfoy's on the team is because his father bought everyone Nimbus 2001's," Hermione said indignantly.

Lily scoffed. "Leave it to Lucius Malfoy to resort to bribery. That's probably how he's avoided serving time in Azkaban."

"Montague scores again. Slytherin's in the lead with 50-to-10. This is just painful to watch… Spinnet grabs possession of the- POTTER'S FALLEN OFF HIS BROOM!"

Lily stifled a scream.

"Shite!" James gasped.

"Fuck!" Sirius swore loudly. Remus leaned over the railings, his face ashen.

Harry was plummeting to the ground feet first at breakneck speed, hand wrapped around his broom. They watched in open horror as Fred and George swooped down trying to catch him.

Finally regaining his senses, James pulled out his wand.

"Wait, no. He's not falling- he's pulling his broom back underneath him- BLOODY HELL, HE'S CAUGHT THE SNITCH!"

The pitch erupted in cheers.

Lily sagged in relief. James put his wand back in his robes, gobsmacked. "Brilliant. Bloody brilliant," he said to himself.

"I think Potter's just created a new Quidditch move," Jordan said in awe. "The Potter Plummet! And with that, Gryffindor wins! 160-to-50."

IIIIIIIIIIIII

Harry did a victory lap around the pitch, snitch in hand, before he leaned forward and landed. Angelina and several other members of the team were upon him as soon as he hit the grass.

"That was amazing, Harry!" she squealed in girlish excitement, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him. "I knew you could do it!"

"The Potter Plummet?" Katie said incredulously next to her. "Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant."

He blushed. "Yeah- err. Thanks."

"They'll be talking about this for years," Angelina continued. She gasped. "They'll be talking about me for years. The Captain behind the famous Harry Potter's famous new Quidditch maneuver!" Her eyes glazed over in a very Luna-esque way. "They'll have to let me onto the team now…"

Harry spotted the Twins consoling Ron and ducked out of her grasp.

Ron looked up at him queasily and red faced when he neared. "I was horrible," he moaned. "I told you I can't do this, Harry. I'm dreadful."

Fred squeezed his shoulders in a rare moment of brotherly support. "You're dreadful at lots of things, Ron. But not this. You were just off your game. You'll handle things better next time."

"Yeah, and we'll beat the snot out of Malfoy and his cronies if they ever try and pull something like this again," George agreed, scowling.

Ron's shoulders sagged. "If there is a next time…"

"Angelina isn't going to kick you off the team," Harry tried to reason with his best mate. "You had an off day. Under the circumstances, you held up pretty well."

"And we still won," Fred pointed out.

"Thank merlin," George said dramatically. "Charlie wouldn't ever be able to look you in the face. The Weasley that ruined the family's Quidditch reputation! Can you imagine?"

"Mum and Dad would kick you out for sure," Fred added. "Can't keep such an abomination in the house. Might corrupt Ginny."

Ron punched his brother in the shoulder. "Shut up, you git," he said grumpily, a small smile on his face.

"Come on," Harry prompted, grabbing him by the arm. "Let's get changed. We don't want to miss the after-party. Dad said he'd smuggle in Butterbeer."

"Wicked," the twins said together.

Ron perked up. "Alright."

His grip on Ron's arm tightened when he saw Malfoy imitating Ron dropping the Quaffle by the entrance to the pitch.

"Hey, Weasley! Like my poem?" Draco sneered as they passed by, his teammates leaning up against the wooden archway behind him. He puffed his chest out to show off his enchanted 'Weasley is our King' badge. "I spent hours on it."

"Probably shouldn't brag about that," Harry snapped quickly.

"Yeah. People might find out you're just an idiot in a wig," Ron added contemptuously.

"What? Did mummy and daddy not have enough money to teach you any manners? Must be what happens when you were born in a bin."

"Shut it, Malfoy!" George snapped. "Or we'll shut it for you." The rest of the Gryffindor team congregated behind them nervously.

Draco laughed. "I mean, how many of you are there? A dozen?" He turned and made a face at Montague. "God. Can you imagine having that many children?"

"I think I'd rather bump myself off," Montague replied smugly.

"We wanted to write a few more verses, you see," Draco continued, stepping forward to block the entrance. "But we couldn't find anything that rhymed with fat and poor for his mother. Had trouble with useless ministry worker too, for his father, but it just doesn't roll off the tongue…"

"Come on, Ron," Harry said quietly, trying to tug him away. They could just use the entrance on the other side of the pitch. The last thing he needed was more detention.

Ron stood steadfast, and refused to budge.

Next to him, Alicia was tugging on Fred's arm. "It's not worth it. Just ignore him," she said quietly.

"Being a sore loser again, Malfoy?" Angelina said loudly, stepping in between them. "Maybe you should focus on learning how to play your own position before you start trying to stir up trouble with my team. Move. Or I'll go get a Professor."

Malfoy gave her a repugnant look. "I don't take orders from you, Johnson. I'll do what I like, thank you."

"Move out of our way, Malfoy," Harry said, annoyed.

"Well if it isn't Potter? Who knows where the Weasley family would be without you to bail them out?" Draco taunted. "You spend a lot of time with them, over holiday and such, right? It really is a bin, isn't it? Their house?" he laughed when Fred and George lunged at him, only to be dragged back by Harry, Alicia and Katie. Ron glowered at him.

Harry struggled to drag George back, while Alicia and Katie were forced to team up to keep Fred from jumping at the blonde haired Slytherin. "Frankly, I don't know how you put up with the smell. But I guess you don't have much of a choice. Your own parent's had to fake their deaths just to get away from you."

Harry had no idea how it happened, but one moment he was holding on to George's arms, and the next, he was on top of Malfoy, punching him repeatedly in the face.

A/N: I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who has been with this story since the beginning (when it was dreadfully written - I still don't know how to fix those early chapters). Thank you all for your patience and support and being on this journey with me. I'm not abandoning this or anything. I just got really sentimental when I realized I started writing this in middle school and I'm now starting my first semester of grad school. Who'd have thought I'd grow up to be Madam Pince? (I'm doing my Master's in Library Science)

Now that we're done with the sappy stuff... Read, review! - but bear with me. I don't have a beta :/