Chasing the Chaser - Molly and Arthur

10

Quidditch season spans all of winter, and Molly Prewett's Gryffindor team was cold indeed. In the field house after practice, they were warming their hands over the stove as she explained what had to be done to keep them from being pulverized by Slytherin in tomorrow's game.

"The weather diviners are calling for heavy sleet most of the day, so we're each going to need to find some goggles. No, not charmed Muggle ones," she said as Arthur raised his hand. "Proper quidditch anti-fog goggles, like the ones everyone on the Slytherin team will have. There are some dodgy old ones here we may be able to – "

Potter cleared his throat. "I have reason to believe we will receive an anonymous donation of brand new quidditch goggles by tomorrow morning."

Angelo huffed. "Anonymous? You mean from your old Dad, Potter? That's bloody brilliant of him. Why not crow about it? Give him some credit."

"Because," Sharlene said. "It would get people saying he bought little Potter's way onto the team."

"Something no one who's ever seen him play would believe," Molly added. "But people will say anything to unnerve each other on a game day."

Potter might have blushed. "Thanks, captain."

Molly gave a quick nod. "Please give your father our thanks, Potter. And everyone remember: quidditch is a mental as well as a physical and magical game. No matter what the Slytherins bait us with tomorrow," she said, her eyes traveling from Sharlene to Kingsley, and falling on Arthur, "we stay calm."

"So will he be back then?" Kingsley asked, his voice even lower than usual. "The ringleader himself, their captain, bloody Malfoy – is he well enough to play again?"

Sharlene shifted where she stood at the stove. She'd been suspended for a day after "accidentally" petrifying Malfoy and sending him to the Hospital Wing for two nights. It didn't turn out to be much of a punishment for her since she passed the time shadowing Alastor Moody's workday at the Aurors' office.

Molly nodded again. "Lucius Malfoy's name is back on the roster for tomorrow, yes."

Kingsley sighed and scrubbed his face with his hands.

Molly wanted to reassure everyone that Malfoy was still a harmless fop, but the words wouldn't come. Not after meeting his father and being so heartlessly abandoned by him. Stars only knew what he was capable of now he was enraged.

"Look, we're going to need everyone's best work to get through this," she said. "No player is expendable. But if anyone feels personally threatened during the match, ask me for a substitution at once. You can sit and get your head together before anyone gets hurt."

"More careful risk reduction, yeah captain?" Angelo said, not hiding his disapproval.

"As a matter of fact, yes," Molly said, her voice rising.

Kingsley threw himself between them with his typical good sense. "As long as it's just a game, we can afford risk reduction," he said. "It's fine. Thanks, Molly."

She dismissed them and they all filed out of the field house but Arthur. She turned around from locking up the chest of balls and was not at all surprised to find him waiting. She was surprised to find him frowning and rubbing at his right shoulder.

Molly clucked her tongue. "I knew you hyper-extended something on that last wild wallop at the bludger."

Arthur smirked and forced himself to stop kneading his deltoid. "It was either that or let you take the bludger in the skull."

With her palms on his shoulders she pushed him to sit on the bench in front of her. "Honestly, Arthur. I knew it was coming and I was already getting out of the way," she scolded. Her fingers dug into his sore muscle, strong and probing enough to make him wince and hiss.