Scratches (Fred Weasley)

(19) Slytherin VS Ravenclaw

"It's today, it's today, it's today, it's today—WHERE'S MY BLOODY JUMPER?! Oh Merlin—" "Florence!" yelled Nicolai, finally catching the rambling girl's attention. "You're holding the damn jumper!" she exclaimed, Florence looking down at her right hand, her face falling into an expression of relief, "Thank Merlin." she sighed, slipping her jumper on.

"I don't even know why you're so nervous. You did fine with the last game," said Alexander, snacking on flavored beans while sprawled out on Nicolai's bed. Florence gave him a look of exasperation, "That was different. It was a Hufflepuff game, this one's Slytherin. One of us is gonna get a bludger to the head if we near victory!"

"Well, take a bat and whack one towards them." said Nicolai. "No," said Florence, "That would be much like cheating..." she mumbled, taking her leather gloves. "Come on, let's get breakfast. I can't play on a famished stomach.

The past few weeks have been nothing but purely practice after classes. Roger was slightly irritated by Professor Flitwick who wouldn't allow him to do his own thing. But their practice routine was not at all limited, their mock games going smoother and faster everytime.

The pressure was not directed only to Cho Chang, but the whole team. They knew the Slytherins were dirty cheaters, so they had to play fair, but stealthier, to top their conniving ways.

During the Hufflepuff game, Roger was nervous because of Diggory. But this time, he was determined—challenged, more like. He wanted to plow Marcus Flint and his no good team to the ground. Every house captain hated Flint, except for Diggory, he might be indifferent towards him.

Florence walked in to the Great Hall just in time to see Cedric approach Cho, who couldn't hide her blush behind her hair anymore—as it was pulled into a ponytail. She gushed quietly, watching the two interact rather awkwardly.

"Aw, bless you two." she cooed, taking a seat beside Cho as she batted her eyelashes at them. She knew that she was ruining the moment and making it even more awkward, but it was too cute for her to handle. Cedric coughed awkwardly, sending a brief smile at Cho before heading back to the Hufflepuff table.

"Way to go, cockblocker." said Nicolai, who sat beside Alexander.

"I'm sorry, Cho, but that was just too damn cute for me not to."

The seeker, smiled lightly. "No, it's okay. If anything, you saved me from another awkward moment gone wrong. You arrived just in time." she reassured her, before resuming her meal in silence, listening in to the other three as they talked about the game.

A couple of minutes before the game would start, Roger had gathered them all in the changing rooms, everyone in their respective gear, brooms in hand. Roger was pacing in front of them, eyeing Marcus Flint tensely—who talked to his team outside as well. With a loud huff, he began his speech.

"Okay, to whoever gets a bludger to their head...or body, I pity you... Extremely. I'll be frank here and tell you that I think those Slytherins suck at Quidditch. Their game plan and strategies are complete rubbish compared to ours. But you know why they win most of the time? Because they're bloody cheaters and they don't play fair—a thing we know for a fact."

"Just get as many goals as you can, Jeremy, Florence. Duncan, Jason, focus on defense and offense—one should not be greater than the other. Grant, guard those hoops like they're your ball sacks, and Cho—you can do this. Malfoy can't even catch a snitch to save a life. We could do this. I am positive that we could."

They all huddled together, before making their way into the pitch. The blue cladded audience erupted into cheers and screams as soon as they took off from the ground.