Guts and Glory - Trouble with Twins, Book 2

Gryffindor vs. Slytherin

Quidditch season was finally here. Today was the opening match, and it was between us and our bitter rivals, Slytherin. We would have the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws on our side; they hated the Slytherins about as much as we did. When we walked the corridors, I even saw some brave students who had dared to paint their faces red in our support. The Slytherin team looked furious.

The changing room was bursting with energy. Everyone quickly got into their uniforms and gathered their supplies. Oliver Wood strapped on his helmet. Fred and George were juggling their bats between themselves. Angelina, Thomas and I pulled on our fingerless gloves. Charlie was quickly polishing his broomstick and watching over his teammates. Once he finished, he called us all into a meeting.

"Don't expect Slytherin to play by the rules. They'll do whatever they can to win, and they don't care how many bones they have to break to make that happen. We're better than that. Go out there and show them that." The whole team cheered and grabbed their brooms.

We walked onto the pitch with our heads high, and the sound was deafening. A sea of red, yellow, and blue jumped up and down, chanting one word: Gryffindor. I looked all around me, with the biggest smile on my face. The twins came up to my side. Words didn't need to be said right now. Fred pushed my shoulder, laughing, and I exchanged a sideways grin with George. We were taking in the situation. The audience seemed to get even louder the farther we walked onto the field, but those cheers eventually turned into boos.

It didn't take long too find out why. The Slytherin team had just stepped onto the pitch from the other side. You could hear their supporters in the crowd, but ours covered them up easily. It brought me joy to think about the scowl on Snape's face at this moment.

The boy leading the Slytherin team was tall and muscular, but that's about all the positive things I could think of to describe him. As we got closer, I saw the sneer all over his face. I saw him eyeing his competition up, even scoffing when he saw Fred and George. He probably recognized the signature red hair and put it together they were Weasleys.

Madam Hooch came in between the two teams and instructed the captains to shake hands. Charlie clearly wanted to be civil, but the Slytherin captain made no attempt whatsoever.  He squeezed hard like he hoped to break his rival's hand before the match even started. I was impressed by how calm Charlie was; I was already glaring at the other captain when he turned to rejoin his team.

All the players mounted their brooms and rose into the air. As Madam Hooch prepared to release the Bludgers and the Golden Snitch, the cheers from the crowd grew even louder. They were excited and obviously could barely handle waiting another minute longer. The whistle suddenly blew, and the Quaffle was launched into the air. Angelina swiftly grabbed it and started to make her way over to the opposite goalpost. Not surprisingly, she was flanked by not only the opposing chasers but their beaters as well. The latter held their bats at the ready, waiting for the perfect opportunity to sabotage her chance at scoring. As she got closer to the goalpost, I heard a familiar voice ring over the action. It was Lee Jordan.

"Welcome everyone to the first of the season, Gryffindor versus Slytherin! Here we have Angelina Johnson, new to the team this year and an excellent flier, not to mention quite pretty.." He said excitedly, earning a scolding from McGonagall, who was right beside him.

I smiled and quickly went to join Thomas in a formation around Angelina. She sped forward, and just as she released the Quaffle, a Bludger hit her leg and knocked her off course. The shot was easily blocked by their Keeper and passed along to the captain who still hadn't fully wiped the ugly grin off his face. He bolted away alongside his other Chasers. Fred attempted to send a Bludger his way, but the older boy easily dodged it and accelerated away. He whipped the ball into the farthest hoop away from Wood, and a bell rang out, signaling Slytherin's first goal of the game. Boos echoed out from the stands. As far as I could tell, neither Seekers had spotted the Snitch yet, leaving it all up to us to get as many points as possible.