Slytherin Weasley

Chapter 26

I woke bleary eyed on Saturday morning and lay for a while thinking about the comingQuidditch match. I was nervous. It was my first match as captain and there was a lot of pressure resting on my shoulders to beat Gryffindor. After half anhour of lying there, just staring at the canopy of my bunk, I got up, dressed, and went down tobreakfast early.

In the great Hall, the Gryffindor team huddled at the long,empty table, all looking uptight and not speaking much. Addy was sat at the Slytherin table, sipping pumpkin juice and fliiping through the daily prophet. i sat down next to him and grabbed a piece of toast.

"Did you eat?" I asked as I spread Jam om my toast.

He rolled his eyes, "Yes Mother."

"Just checking!" I a said and we fell into a comfortable silence. As eleven o'clock approached, the whole school started to make its way down to theQuidditch stadium. It was a muggy sort of day with a hint of thunder in the air. I was in the captains office as the rest of the team pulled on their emerald Gryffindor robes. I wandered out of the office and motioned them all to sit so I could give a pre-match pep talk.

I inhaled deeply and began to speak, "This is the first game of the season, we have better brooms than them," I ran a finger over the dragon scale inlayed on the handle of my nimbus, "We are better flyers than them and we can win this if we work as a team." I looked around then. Addy smiled and nodded, but Malfoy scoffed and looked away.

"That means I want a clean game people, we don't have to rely on dirty tactics to win! You understand me? We've trained hard and I know you have his in you so lets do it fair and square ok?" I asked.

They grumbled and shuffled.

I grabbed my broom and stood up straight. "I said do you understand?"

"YES CAPTAIN!" They shouted, Malfoy rolling his eyes again.

"Woooo Go Team!" He gave a little wave of his hands.

"Don't test me Malfoy," I said and pulled open the door to the pitch, "I will bench you."

He spluttered, as I walked out to the pitch to a deafening roar from the crowd. Mainly hisses and boos, becauseRavenclaw and Hufflepuff were anxious to see us beaten, but the Slytherins in thecrowd made their shouts and cheers heard too.

Madam Hooch, the Quidditch teacher,asked Wood and I to step forward shake hands, which we did. Wood giving me a threateningstare and gripping rather harder than was necessary. I smiled, titling my head to the side.

"Good luck out there!" I let go of his hand and retreated to mount my broom.

"On my whistle," said Madam Hooch. "Three... two... one..."

With a roar from the crowd to speed us upward, all fourteen of us players rose toward theleaden sky. Harry and I flew higher than any of the other, both squinting around for the Snitch.

"All right there, Scarhead?" yelled Malfoy, and I rubbed my face preparing to yell something back at him, as he shot underneath as though to showoff the speed of his broom. At that very moment, a heavy black Bludger came peltingtoward Harry; he avoided it so narrowly that it ruffled his hair as it passed.

"Close one, Harry!" said George, streaking past him with his club in his hand, ready toknock the Bludger back toward a Slytherin. George give the Bludger apowerful whack in the direction of Addy, but the Bludger changed direction inmid air and shot straight for Harry again. Harry dropped quickly to avoid it, and George to hit it hard toward Malfoy. I sat on my brrom still in the air watching. Once again, the Bludger swerved like a boomerang and shot at Harry's head. Harry put on a burst of speed and zoomed toward the other end of the pitch. And the bludger followed.