Harry Potter: 19 Years Later

11: James' POV

  "Let's go, James! You can do it!"

James peered down at the field below where Roxanne was standing and clapping her hands. He smiled down at her and zoomed forward on his broom, relishing the wonderful feeling of the wind rushing past him. The adrenaline rush was what he loved most about Quidditch.

James focused his eyes on the tiny golden ball zigzagging in the air in front of him. He jolted forward, then to the left, mimicking the Golden Snitch's direction. He knew that it was impossible to predict where the Snitch was going next (no one controlled it; it had a "mind" of its own), but he was very skilled at following it.

Finally, after about 5 more minutes of going after it, James swerved to the right, then nose-dived to the ground, catching the Snitch about two feet above the grass. He skillfully stopped his broom and jumped off, grabbing it a second later.

"Great job, James!"

James turned and pushed the hair out of his face as Teddy clapped him on the shoulder. His eyes roamed over Teddy's face. Despite his encouraging smile and hearty laugh, his eyes looked concerned and tired.

I'll ask him about it later. But he didn't have to. Teddy, about to walk back to the team, leaned in close to James and murmured, "I'll meet you behind the One-Eyed Witch statue after practice."

James didn't even have time to ask before he walked off and began talking to Victoire.

"What's up, James?"

James picked up his broom and high-fived Trevor and Fred.

"That was one hella good dive there, James. I wish I was as good a seeker as you," Fred sighed.

James laughed. "Don't worry, mate. You're as good a Beater as I am a Seeker!"

Trevor nodded in agreement. But he turned to James with an expression like he just ate something sour. "James, I have bad news for you. While you were practicing, I took a bathroom break and saw Isabel and Felix snogging outside the bathrooms. Can't believe no one caught them."

James' heart sank. So Isabel like Felix a lot. A lot. One part of his mind was telling him to just forget about her. She and Felix were obviously in a relationship that would last long. Plus, there was no way that she would like him after what happened.

Stop, James! She's not worth being upset over. Neither is that scum-bag Felix!

"Hey...don't worry about it. She'll see what an asshole he is sooner or later," Fred reassured him, patting him on the shoulder.

James nodded, unconvinced. It was true that Felix was really mean to everyone but Isabel, but he didn't think that would convince her to dump him. Truthfully, he didn't even know if Isabel knew what jerk Felix was. She was always talking about how sweet and caring he was.

James gritted his teeth and walked with Fred and Trevor, trying to ignore the clenched feeling in his stomach as he thought of Isabel and Felix. When they reached the door to the school, he quickly came up with an excuse. "Hey, I have to go ask Slughorn about the grade I have in his class. It's a P." He shrugged sheepishly.

Trevor winced, stifling a laugh. "Oooh...that's bad, mate. Well, I'll meet you in the dormitory, since Fred has to serve a detention." He shot a pointed look at Fred.

James nodded and headed off towards Slughorn's classroom. Then, when he was sure Fred and Trevor were out of sight, he turned and rushed to the statue of the One-Eyed Witch. Teddy was already there.

"So, what did you want to tell me?" James asked abruptly. "You've been looking tired and sad the past couple of days."

Teddy's eyes widened. "It's that obvious?" He ran his fingers through his turquoise hair, a worried look in his eyes.

James met his gaze. "What's wrong, Teddy? Come on, you know I won't tell anyone."