C H A P T E R 14
As the week came to an end, it was time for their deciding match against Ravenclaw. The winner of this would face Slytherin in the finals at the end of the month since they crushed Hufflepuff the previous week.
Ravenclaw had a decent team. Roger Davies, a fourth year and friend of Oliver's was a great captain and Justin Cross was a very good Keeper. Justin finally forgave Samantha after a week of her trying to apologize but would just end up laughing instead.
It was time for the match to start and Roger shook hands with Oliver. They flew into the air and Madam Hooch let the Snitch and the Bludgers out.
"The Quaffle is released and let the game begin," Lee Jordan announced. The crowd cheered for Ravenclaw and booed for Gryffindor. They called out names at Harry and hoped Ravenclaw crushed them. Samantha sighed and felt bad for Harry. Having the whole crowd, even most of the Gryffndors, go against him.
Alicia grabbed the Quaffle and passed it to Angelina who ten passed it to Samantha. She turned and flew around a buzzing Bludger. Roger was flying at her to block her so Samantha tried to pass to Angelina but the Quaffle was intercepted by Chaser Jason Samuels. He flew down the pitch and he shoots....
"SAMUELS SCORES!! Ten points to Ravenclaw," Lee announced loudly but a bit annoyed. He caught Samantha's eye and gave her a pointed look that read 'What's going on?'
Something was indeed going on with her. Samantha missed all of her intended passes and missed three out of three shots at the goal. The Gryffindors were now booing at her while the other parts of the crowd were cheering like maniacs. Ravenclaw was leading 80-30. Oliver decided this was the time to call a timeout.
Everyone flew to the ground and were glaring at Samantha. Even the twins were giving her angry looks. No one spoke until Harry decided he had to stand up for her, even if the team hated him as well.
"I know it's going to have to come down to me. I won't let you guys down so for now just please stop blaming Samantha. She's just having an off game," Harry spoke trying to sound confident.
The team sighed and grumbled an 'ok' before mounting their brooms and flying back out to the center of the pitch to resume play. Samantha held back and gave Harry a one arm hug.
"Thank you," she said smiling.
"You're welcome. Now get out of the rut and play like you always do," Harry replied.
Samantha laughed and rolled her eyes. She mounted her broom and flew to where the others were. The game resumed and Samantha tried to sort out why she wasn't playing her best.
Was it nerves? Definitely not. This wasn't her first year. So what was it?
It wasn't any personal problem. Even if she did have something going on, she would never let it get to her playing ability. Quidditch was her escape that let her forget about any problems she may have. A thought then crossed her mind. Earlier in the match she threw it right to Roger, thinking it was Alicia. She felt confused immediately after she had done it.
That was it.
A Confundus charm.
That had to be the answer. There wasn't another explanation as to why she was playing like that. As she flew ahead of Angelina to block any opposing chasers, her eyes quickly scanned the crowd. She first checked the Slytherins since they were most likely the culprits. A certain black haired boy stood out in the crowd as he had his wand out and was discreetly muttering words.
Samantha's mouth dropped and she almost stopped flying. It was Marcus who was cursing her. This didn't surprise her but she never thought he would take such drastic measures to secure a Ravenclaw win. He was a Slytherin, but she thought he had more sense and more of a conscious. This definetly proved her wrong.
It was lucky that she had her wand because she then took it out secretly and muttered the counter curse. Samantha immediately felt relief and took off the other way intercepting the Quaffle from Samuels. She tucked it under arm and sped down the pitch avoiding both Bludgers. She saw Justin guarding the middle post. Samantha aimed at the right post but swerved and threw at the left. Justin swerved back and stuck out his hand to try and block it. His hand barely touched the Quaffle before it hit the edge of the post and fell through.
"SAMANTHA POTTER HAS SCORED FINALLY! Gryffindor still trails 120-60," Lee cried ecstatically. Some of the crowd groaned knowing that this game was about to get interesting if Samantha had gotten her game back.
Meanwhile, Harry was still flying circles around the pitch looking for the Snitch. Sixth year Jeremy Rudolph was tailing him but keeping a good distance in case the Snitch flew around him. Harry needed to catch the Snitch soon to prevent Ravenclaw from getting too much of a lead.
The point value of this match would determine how much the winner needed to beat Slytherin by. So far, sixty points was a fair amount but Harry knew it couldn't pass one hundred.
"SAMANTHA POTTER GETS PAST CROSS AGAIN! Another ten points!" Lee announced. "Go Gryffindor! Come on!" he added enthusiastically, obviously well into the match that has taken a serious turn. McGonagall yelled at him to stop but even she agreed with him.
She was staring to get worried at Potter's play and almost wanted to talk to her, maybe even threatening a detention. She shoved this thought away as she watched Samantha pass to Alicia who then scored bringing the score twenty points closer. Potter was back.
No one realized how much Samantha influenced the match. It even surprised her that the way she was playing controlled not only the crowd, but the other players as well. The Ravenclaws were now the ones playing sloppy as they were nervous now that Samantha was playing well again. Justin was the most nervous since he was letting in easy goals and not giving sufficient passes to the chasers.
The score was now 130-110. Ravenclaw still in the lead. Fred and George each hit a Bludger at the chasers which caused them to miss their block on Angelina. She weaved with Samantha and Alicia as they neared Justin who gripped his broom. Samantha aimed like she was going to shoot but she quickly passed to Angelina who took the shot, and then scored.
Gryffindor was now ten points from tying this match. Harry cheered loudly as his eyes then scanned the pitch searching desperately for the tiny golden ball that would secure them a spot in the finals. His heart gave a leap as he saw a shimmer by the goal posts Oliver was guarding. He didn't want to cause too much attention towards himself so he sped off the other way. Jeremy immediately sped off after him. His eyes went ahead of Harry to see if he could spot the snitch.
'This kid is good,' Jeremy thought as he realized what Harry was doing. He heard Lee Jordan announce that Spinnet had scored which meant the game was now tied. He had to reach the snitch before Potter. He knew Harry was lighter than he was so if he was to dive, he would certainly beat him.
Jeremy tried to take a better angle at the snitch but had to veer off his path due to one of the Weasley twins hitting a Bludger near him.
Harry was near the goal posts and he followed the snitch which had moved and was flying towards the middle of the pitch. The Ravenclaw chasers were in passion of the Quaffle so everyone was flying at Harry who ignored this, his eyes securely on the golden ball.
Samantha had her eyes on the Quaffle and knew Davies was going to pass to Samuels. She faintly saw Harry flying towards them as she sped towards Jason. As she reached out for the incoming Quaffle, the snitch was now in her way and Harry was aiming at them like a bullet.
Even though the snitch was in her grasp, she couldn't catch it. That was a foul; Snitchnip.
As her hands grabbed the Quaffle out of Jason's, both jerked and instantly hit someone. The hit was unexpected and both of them fell off their brooms and were plummeting towards the ground. They didn't realize that they hit Harry who was trying to catch the snitch. His hands knicked the snitch as his fingers clasped around it just before Samantha and Jason hit him.
"ARESTO MOMENTUM!" McGonagall cried aiming her wand at the three players who had almost hit the ground.
Samantha felt a slight thud when she hit the ground. She was still conscious but completely winded. It took her a few minutes to regain her breath and then she sat up. To her left was an unconscious Jason and to her right was a winded Harry who had his hand tightly clasped around the snitch.
"HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" Lee yelled into the microphone.
Madam Hooch blew her whistle as she raced towards the three. "Gryffindor WINS!" she cried and then landed next to Jason who was already crowded by his team members.
Samantha felt two hands on her shoulder and saw Fred and George looking at her intently.
"Are you ok?" they quickly chorused together.
She nodded and then saw Oliver knelt by Harry hugging him. Harry looked uncomfortable since he was probably in a bit of pain. Oliver let go then stood up and jumped into the air yelling "Off to the finals! Off to the finals!"
The twins helped her up and she then received hugs from the girls who were apologizing crazily as they explained that they were just blinded by the match. Samantha hugged them back and forgave them explaining that she was too. She made a mental note to tell the twins about Flint later.
They cheered as they helped Harry up. The Gryffindors in the crowd had come down and were crowding around them happy that they were in the finals, and were facing their rival. They could just picture Gryffindor beating Slytherin for the Cup.
The Ravenclaws were sulking but then congratulated the Gryffindors. Ravenclaw had lost to Slytherin this year and they were happy that if it wasn't them, then they would want Gryffindor to win. They went down to the pitch to their team to ask about Jason. Some of them caught sight of Harry and applauded him for his yet another outstanding catch. He definitely earned the win for his team.
Once again the Gryffindors cheered up until dinner, however this celebration was much larger and more meaningful.
Samantha thought this would be the best time to tell the twins about Flint. She found them setting up the piles of candy that they got from Honeydukes.
"Hey guys, I need to tell you something," she told them and gestured towards the portrait hole. They looked confused but followed her anyway.
"What's up?" George asked her once they reached the corridor.
She told them about the match and the twins were shocked.
"We thought you were worried about Harry," Fred spoke.
Samantha shrugged. "I was a little but I wouldn't let it get to me,"
The twins clenched their fists at the mention of Flint's name. They had thought that he was over this since they hadn't had any quarrels in the past few months.
"So what are we going to do?" George asked.
"Yeah, we only have a few more weeks of school left," Fred continued.
Samantha thought for a few moments. Then something came to her. "I believe our best bet is to destroy them in the Finals," she replied giving them an evil grin. This wasn't a prank but this would truly crush them, defeating them in Quidditch. They wanted to relive the match they had previously played and their expressions after Harry had caught the snitch.
The twins mirrored her evil grin and agreed. This was the best option.
• • • • •
Exam week was nearing and the teachers had piled on more and more homework as they lectured every minute. Samantha was still working civilly with Flint during Herbology. She refused to bring up the match as they worked on their final details of the Fanged Germanium.
Their projects were due today and Samantha made sure the leaves and its fangs were clipped and polished. Flint had worked on their schedule and essay and Samantha did most of the hard work. She had written most of the essay. Flint just reviewed it and put some of his input when needed. They both liked it this way since it didn't cause any problems and they both eventually received full marks on the project.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had received a note at breakfast the next day telling them that their detention was tonight at eleven o'clock. They would meet Filch at the entrance hall.
"Why so late?" Samantha asked them once she read the note.
The three shrugged while looking a bit scared. Detention with Filch at night did not sound good. Samantha almost wished she had gotten detention so she could watch out for them.
Her and the twins decided to stay in the Common Room to wait for them after their detention. They spent the time coming up with more ideas for their joke shop. Samantha had come up with a few ideas for their snackboxes which consisted of ways to get out of class. She added Fever Fudge under their Puking Pastilles and Ton-Ton Toffee. A thought then crossed her mind, a sad thought.
She wondered how they twins would pay for this. They did have savings but this was trial and error and would surely cost a lot of money. She felt awful that the Weasleys didn't have a lot of money. They were the kindest people she knew and they deserved by far more than money could buy.
If it came down to that, then she would give the twins her side of her and Harry's vault. She didn't need a lot that money and knew that she could live securely if she gave a lot of it to the twins. An auror position does pay nicely, even being a professional Qudditch player, which was another position on her mind.
They continued to add products to the lists and ideas on how to make them until the portrait swung open revealing the trio looking very scared and nervous.
'Why did they always look like that?' Samantha thought jumping to her feet to go and talk to them. She had begun to worry. It was well after one o'clock. What took them so long?
"Tell us everything," Samantha stated leading them back towards the fire. The twins tucked away their parchment and listened intently.
"Well we met Filch at the entrance hall and then he took us down to the grounds to Hagrid's hut. We were at first happy about seeing Hagrid but then we had to go into the forest," Harry started to explain.
Samantha cut him off. "The forest? That's no place for First Years," she said incredously. Even her and the twins didn't go into the forest during First Year.
"That's what Malfoy said," Ron grumbled.
"Malfoy? Draco? He got detention as well?" Fred asked almost sounding happy.
The three nodded and Harry continued. "So we go in and Hagrid tells us that we're searching for what killed this unicorn. Along the way we met two centaurs. Ronan and Bane,"
Samantha cut in again. "Ronan and Bane? You met them?"
Harry and Hermione nodded. Ron didn't since he went with Malfoy the first time. "Yes, " Harry answered. "And the both say hi by the way,"
Samantha smiled. The centaurs were very nice if you were nice to them. Not so much if you treated them like the usual stereotypical half-breeds. Ronan, Firenze, and Magorian were very nice to Samantha and the twins. They talked to them and they even showed them their pack and where they lived. Bane, on the other hand, wasn't so keen on interacting with humans. Though when he got to know the three more, he slightly became more nice.
"So then I went with Malfoy and we found the unicorn,"
Fred cut him off. "That's good then,"
Harry didn't look too sure. "There was something drinking its blood, a cloaked figure. Malfoy screamed and then the figure looked up and then at me. My scar was piercing and I was frozen in fear,"
Samantha gasped. She had a hunch on who that cloaked figure was and she was currently gripping Fred's hand. She obviously knew Harry was ok but this story wasn't going anywhere good.
"Then I heard hooves and another centaur came and charged the figure which had gone. It was Firenze,"
"Firenze? Firenze saved you?" Samantha asked with a small smile. Firenze was her favorite centaur. He definitely was the nicest of the pack and she was very proud that he was the one who saved Harry.
Harry nodded. "Yes and he also says hi to you three. Says he misses you guys,"
Samantha and the twins laughed. They certainly missed Firenze too and hoped they could go visit him soon.
"Then he explained what unicorn blood is used for and who was drinking it,"
"Voldemort," Samantha answered. Hermione and the Weasley boys each flinched. Samantha and rolled her eyes.
"So Snape wants the Stone for Voldemort," Harry concluded.
"Stone?" George inquired.
"What stone?" Fred added.
The four quickly filled them in on what they found out this year. From the three-headed dog to Nicolas Flamel.
The twins looked gobsmacked. Who knew this was happening at the school?
"Well I think we should go to bed and discuss this tomorrow," Hermione said yawning.
Everyone nodded and went up to bed exhausted from tonight's events.
Now the Stone was being stolen for Voldemort?
Things just got serious.
• • • • •
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