Victory Talk
“Alright team, this is the one; the big one. The one to make or break it,” announced James, and the rest of the team looked at him expectantly and attentively with their brooms clutched in front of them, and their eyes glowing with adrenaline. “We all know the maneuvers that Wood wants us to use?”
The team nodded.
“OK. All we can do now is wait,” said James, and he turned to face the gate that would soon open and unveil their eyes to a roaring, excited audience.
For almost the first time in his life, he was nervous. James was now going to go out there as Quidditch Captain. He had always wanted to be captain, but now that he was, he felt a certain burden of responsibility. Everybody on the team and the Gryffindor audience was counting on him; every single one.
“It’s going to be weird not passing to you, Potter,” stated Keira suddenly from behind him. “I bet I’ll end up passing the Quaffle to you anyways. I’m so bloody disorientated when it comes to change.” Her voice held a nervous tone to it.
Cory placed a hand on her shoulder. “What about Fiona and I? You can pass to us.”
“Yeah, but you guys aren’t as special,” replied Keira jokingly and Luke, Skye, and Gordon chuckled.
Fiona and Cory scowled at her sarcastically, and James laughed.
Suddenly, the gates rose to reveal blinding sunlight that hit everybody in the face strongly. The sky was a deep light blue and not even the faintest trace of a cloud could be seen. The grass that made up the pitch was a rich green colour that was sure to leave a grass stain with even the slightest bit of contact.
The team’s smiles from before turned into concentrated frowns as they marched onto the pitch with their heads held high. Their ears were on the brink of bursting from all the enormous amount of cheering. Bits of confetti were tossed carelessly onto the pitch, and there were waves of banners in blue, bronze, red, and gold.
James inhaled as he led his team mates to the middle of the field where Madam Hooch stood authoritatively.
“Alright, I want a nice game for a final from all of you. All misconducts will not be tolerated, does everybody understand?” asked Madam Hooch as she glanced at both teams.
Each side nodded.
“Captains, shake hands.”
James stepped forward somewhat self-conscious about the Captain’s badge he had pinned on. He shook confidently with a tall, blond haired boy that was the Ravenclaw Captain.
“Everyone, mount your brooms,” announced Madam Hooch as she leaned down to open the case holding all the Quidditch items. “The game will begin with the release of the Quaffle and my whistle.”
James hopped onto his Nimbus 1500 and listened intently for the silver whistle that Madam Hooch had just placed in her mouth.
Both teams and the audience were suddenly plunged into silence as they waited for what felt like hours for the start of the match. After many anticipating seconds, the Quaffle was thrown up into the air as Madam Hooch’s whistle let out a sharp sound. Keira was the first to jump on it and fly to the Ravenclaw end.
“And there goes Chaser Jensen as she speeds down to the Ravenclaw end! She’s being really aggressive very early! She dodges a Ravenclaw Chaser and- oh, but she was denied by a Bludger from Beater Shawnahan! There goes Chaser Lunt from Ravenclaw as he sprints passed Chaser Callihan with the Quaffle in hand!” commented Naomii as the crowd made a huge human wave.
James went up into the air and glanced around below him before zooming down toward the ground. The Ravenclaw Seeker (a freckled, bronze haired boy named Colin Denison) shot down behind James immediately thinking that James had seen the Snitch. To Colin’s dismay, James pulled up and started to head over toward the Gryffindor end.
“Oh, Chaser Lunt is coming in close to Keeper Flam! He passes it to Chaser Fiop and- scores! Ten points to Ravenclaw!”
James peered up to see that Gordon Flam, the Gryffindor Keeper, had just missed the Quaffle.
Cory Callihan clutched the Quaffle handily and tossed it over to Keira. She grasped it, and upon noticing James, threw it over to him. James avoided the Quaffle slightly off-guard, and Fiona Locke snatched it up handily instead.
Keira looked at James and smiled. “I told you, Potter! I can’t not pass to you.”
James rolled his eyes, and Keira flew off in the direction of the Quaffle and the Ravenclaw end.
“Chaser Jensen from Gryffindor is speeding down the left side after catching the Quaffle from Chaser Locke- she passes it to fellow teammate, Chaser Callihan- Callihan passes the Quaffle to Chaser Locke, but- OUCH- Chaser Locke was just hit with a nifty Bludger from the Ravenclaw Beater, Jason Howes! Now here comes Ravenclaw with the Quaffle again led by Chaser Lunt!” shouted Naomii as the sea of blue and bronze present in the stands erupted into cheers.
James circled back behind the Ravenclaw end to find that Colin Denison was watching his every move very closely. James had observed that Colin seemed to always be extremely close to him; always nearby. He knew that Denison was not watching out for the Snitch but was watching him.
“WOW! What a hit from Beater Luke Brown! That just knocked Chaser Lunt right off his broom! Now steaming away with the Quaffle toward the Ravenclaw end is Chaser Calihan- he passes it to Chaser Locke- she passes it to Chaser Jensen- Jensen shoots and scores!”
The Gryffindor end exploded into applause, and banners of scarlet and gold were waved about frantically.
Keira slapped hands with Cory and headed down toward the ground. Cory circled back around the Ravenclaw end to pursue the Quaffle and narrowly avoided a Bludger in doing so. Keira hovered low to the ground while looking up above for the Quaffle. Suddenly, a Ravenclaw Beater came down below and knocked Keira right off her broom with her bat.
“Oh my gosh! There has been a collision on the ground involving Chaser Jensen from the Gryffindor team and Beater Shawnahan from Ravenclaw!” announced Naomii, clearly trying to hide outrage in her tone.
The crowd burst into cat calls and booing instantly after they saw what had happened. Madam Hooch blew her whistle madly as both teams headed toward the ground and dismounted.
“Keira, are you alright?” asked James as he propped Keira to sit up.
Her nose was crooked, and her face was plastered with blood. She shook her head slightly and closed her eyes to calm herself.
“That was a dirty hit!” yelled Luke furiously as he was held back by Cory.
“I just bumped into her by accident!” retorted Shawnahan while rolling her eyes.
“Like hell it was an accident!” shouted Skye as she raised her bat angrily, and all members of each team broke into argument.
“ENOUGH!” screamed Madam Hooch glancing at both teams with frustration, and the yelling between the two teams was momentarily silenced. “The Gryffindor team will have a penalty shot on Ravenclaw.”
“What about Keira?!” questioned Skye aggressively.
“Miss Jensen will be brought up to the Hospital Wing immediately,” answered Madam Hooch strictly.
Both teams mounted their brooms once again rather irritated and rose into the sky. James flew over toward Cory to tell him to take the shot.
The crowd held their breath as they saw Cory fly toward the Ravenclaw Keeper and score.
“CORY CALLIHAN OF GRYFFINDOR HAS SCORED!” shouted Naomii excitedly as the crowd cheered ecstatically.
James exhaled with relief and continued to circle the pitch above everybody else.
The game was going smoothly, but James knew somewhere in his head that he needed to find the Snitch and fast.
He dodged a Bludger as he flew around the middle of the pitch. Squinting below him, he searched the green grass frantically. Suddenly, he saw a quick flash of gold. Without any hesitation, James shot down towards the ground like a bullet. As soon as he had made his sudden move though, there was a swish of a broom behind him; Colin Denison’s broom.
James was in a vertical downward plunge as his hazel eyes focused hard on the fast approaching Snitch. The ground approached him closer and closer as each second passed, and he threw his hand out in front of him to prepare to wrap his fingers around the gold, wriggling ball.
James knew that he was way ahead of Colin Denison. He knew he was going to catch the Snitch. He wasn’t going to let it elude him again.
Then abruptly, without warning, a Bludger came flying towards James and hit him square in the side of the shoulder, sending him off course. He span around in mid air, not exactly sure which way was up or down as he felt suddenly like something was missing. Then, he realized his round-rimmed glasses (the ones that he had had for such a long time, they defined him) had come off in the scramble and fallen down to break on the hard ground below him. He blinked a couple times before blindly (and luckily) reaching out to clutch the edge of his broom.
“James Potter is hanging on by one hand from his broom after being hit by a Bludger from Ravenclaw Beater Howes!” shouted Naomii, and loud murmurs broke out throughout the audience. “There goes Seeker Denison right after the golden Snitch! WOW! He just dodged a Bludger from Gryffindor Beater, Skye Fornei! It looks like there is nothing that can take him off his course now!”
Damnit! yelled James in his mind as he blinked a couple more times in an attempt to focus his blurry vision. That was the whole plan all along: get James Potter to see the Snitch and then hit him out of the way. Why was I so stupid?!
James tried to heave himself up onto his Nimbus but found to his horror that his grip was slipping quickly. Gulping down uneasily, James glanced around to where (at least where he thought) Colin Denison was. Denison was still chasing after the Snitch with great difficulty below him.
Are you sure that is Denison? Yes, yes I am sure. Or am I? Bloody hell, I can’t bloody see! Am I willing to do this? I could either be a hero or a laughing stock. I’ve been in worse situations, right? OK, I’m going to do this. You’re going to be in a world of pain, Prongs. James told himself as he closed his eyes and exhaled.
“Seeker Denison is close! He’s going to- WHAT THE FRICK?!” yelled Naomii, and the crowd gasped as they all stood up and leaned over the edge to get a better view of what was unfolding before their eyes.
James had let go of his broom and dove down with his hand outstretched to grasp the Snitch from right in front of Denison, cutting him off. James turned around with the Snitch in hand to glance upwards to see Denison’s astonished face. He saw that the rest of his team mates were trying fruitlessly to catch him before he hit the ground, but he knew they were not going to reach him in time.
James prepared for the worst as he slowly shut his eyes. He was going to hit the solid ground (and most likely break the majority of the bones in his body), and it was all for the game he loved.
Then suddenly, James felt himself slow down and flutter gently to the hard ground. The crowd instantly began to give a standing ovation.
“JAMES POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE GOLDEN SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS!”
Scarlet and gold banners flew every which way, and the audience screamed in absolute delight.
James heaved himself off the ground only to be bowled over by hugs from all his fellow Gryffindor team mates.
“You were bloody amazing!” shouted Skye as she gave him a kiss on the cheek.
“You truly were!” chimed in Fiona, and Cory handed James his snapped glasses.
“How did you do it?!” asked Luke amazed.
“How did I do it? What are you talking about?” inquired James with a wide grin plastered on his face.
“That was quick thinking using your wand to break your fall, Potter!” commented Gordon Flam as he smiled brightly at James.
“My wand?” questioned James almost more curious than overjoyed. “I didn’t even have- “
“POTTER!” came a voice suddenly, and he was tackled over with a massive hug from Jennifer Wood. “YOU WERE BLOODY AMAZING! A TRUE CHAMPION! I KNEW I MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE WHEN I CHOSE YOU TO REPLACE ME! WE WON THE CUP! WE WON IT!!!”
The Gryffindor common room was covered with celebration banners, and a party was in full swing. The whole Gryffindor team (still dressed in their Quidditch uniforms) was met with a sea of cheers as they entered the common room. A crowd of people immediately picked up James (who had his glasses fixed by Professor McGonagall) holding the Quidditch cup and paraded him around the room.
“Who won it?!” asked James as he held up the cup.
“GRYFFINDOR!” answered all the Gryffindors full of joy.
The Gryffindor common room exploded into laughter.
As James glanced about the room, he caught site of Remus and Peter soaking up the win ecstatically. He smirked at them before grasping a cup of punch someone had given to him. As he drank up his cup, he caught site of Sirius briskly come down from the boys’ dormitory stairs and toward the portrait hole. James smiled as he saw Sirius and dismounted from the crowd of people to follow him.
“Sirius!” called James as he made his way around a group of girls congratulating him. “Sirius we w-”
Oddly enough, Sirius seemed to ignore him and quickened his pace. He scrambled through the portrait hole with lightening speed, and James gave chase by clambering through after Sirius.
“Sirius!” called James once again, but Sirius had already made his way around a corner and out of site.
James was about to run after his best friend, when a small, cold hand clutched his, and James whipped around to see Audrey on the brink of tears.
“Audrey,” began James in disbelief. “What- “
“I need to talk to you.”
The two unnoticeably avoided all people through the corridors and hallways using short cuts. They walked swiftly in silence, and James couldn’t help feeling slightly uneasy at Audrey’s torn expression. For some odd reason though, he felt he had seen it before…
After stepping out of a wine tapestry, the two slipped out a rather large oak door that led outside to the Hogwarts grounds. James with Audrey walked passed large amounts of confetti and left over garbage (that littered the evergreen grass) which was from the Quidditch final that took place just an hour ago. Finally, the two reached the edge of the large Hogwarts Lake. At that time, James glanced around to make sure nobody was in site before turning towards her.
“What happened?” asked James with worry clearly apparent in his tone and face.
“James, please don’t hate me,” pleaded Audrey with tears at the edge of her chocolate coloured eyes.
“Whoa, whoa, it’s OK. I won’t,” said James, trying to grasp her hand, but she avoided his.
“Do you promise?”
“I promise.”
She closed her eyes and turned away from him before saying reluctantly, “I’m leaving.”
The two words hit James so fast and hard that he asked, “What?”
“I’m leaving, James! I’m not coming back. I’m not.”
Hot, salty tears ran down her cheeks from her raw eyes as James remained speechless.
"It’s for my dad. My family isn’t rich, James. We’re not like you, and Sirius. We aren’t as lucky. My family depends on my dad’s job. He’s the only one supporting my family. He’s too old to find another job, but he’s not old enough for retirement. The bank he works at needs to transfer him to a newly-opened firm in France, because they want him to monitor the firm and make sure everything is alright. It’s a job opportunity of a lifetime for him.”
“When did you find out?” questioned James in shock.
Audrey inhaled shakily before answering, “Three months ago.”
James was filled with frustration he couldn’t seem to hold back. “Why didn’t you tell him, Audrey? You knew three months ago!”
“I didn’t want to hurt him, James! I love him! I couldn’t pull myself to tell him!”
“You’ve hurt him more by not telling him!”
“I know, but I was afraid! I was afraid to face him! We just got together. I didn’t want to ruin it so soon.”
“Why didn’t you tell anyone?” he questioned.
“I just couldn’t bring myself to face you and tell you the truth.”
Audrey knew that when James had said “anyone” he had meant himself.
James understood perfectly well what Audrey had intended, but he couldn’t help but feel disappointed at her decision. They were friends, right? They had shared so much between them, yet she couldn’t tell him about this. He hated to admit it, but he felt slightly betrayed.
“And you told him today, then?” interrogated James with a bitter sigh, and Audrey shivered from his tone.
“Yeah.”
“Why don’t you just stay, Audrey? You could spend the winter holidays at Hogwarts, and during the summer, you could just fly back to France. You could even stay with me, I would let you. I would.”
Audrey then gave him the saddest smile that he had ever witnessed before she replied, “James, how are you so sure I am going back to school?”
James’s eyes widened immediately, and an odd feeling came into his shoulders.
“I’m not rich, James, I told you that! I have four siblings, two of which aren’t even in school yet. How can my family support them?”
“You’re…” began James, but he was at a loss for words as a million thoughts burst into his head.
She’s not going back to school. Even if she stayed here, she wouldn’t go back to school. She’s going to work to support her two younger siblings. That's what she is going to do.
“Audrey, you have so much to give,” said James, surprised words actually came out of his mouth.
“That’s sweet of you to say, but I know that I’m not worth the money. I don’t have the talent, James, to offer anything to society.” She paused with a sigh. “I might finish my education sometime during my life, but right now, I can’t. Don’t get me wrong, this is my decision. My parents have nothing to do with it. My family means more to me right now.”
James gazed at her, and suddenly noticed that her robes were clearly handed down.
“When are you leaving?”
“Right on the last day of school. I begged my parents to stay till then.”
It felt so odd to hear about financial problems. James had always grown up surrounded by wealth and never ending income. Upon hearing about Audrey's situation though, he wasn't sure what to say or think. He had never been in the situation himself, and he hadn't known anyone in the similar situation either. It was completely new to him. It was as if his eyes were open to a dark side of life; a side he never knew could exist.
James turned to gaze at the serene calmness of the lake as she cleaned tears off her face with the edge of her Ravenclaw robe.
“I’m sorry,” she mustered.
He wanted to say that it was OK, that everything was going to be alright, but he knew it wasn’t. It wasn’t going to be alright for Sirius, Audrey, or him. Instead, he faced Audrey again, hugged her, and walked away from her, leaving her alone with the soft rippling sound of the lake and the setting sun upon the horizon.
As James walked away filled with so many conflicting emotions that he didn’t know how to feel, he realized why Audrey’s fallen face looked so familiar: it was because he had seen that expression on her last night when he warned her not to bet too much in fear that she was going to lose it all.