The next day was the first Quidditch match of the season and Ron was very nervous coming into breakfast. He couldn't stomach anything and his face was pale and worrisome. Harry tried to cheer him up as much as he could to no avail. Angelina Johnson, the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, had been putting a lot of pressure both of them. This had Professor McGonagall, who was determined to beat Slytherin, giving out almost no homework all week which was a major stress reliever for Aria.
Ron, Harry, and the rest of the Gryffindor team went down to the pitch early to practice a bit since Snape had had the pitch reserved just about every day that week for the Slytherin. So, after breakfast, Hermione, Ginny, and Aria made their way down to the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the spectators. The Gryffindors were decked out in their team's clothing from sweaters, to scarves, to dragon-skinned gloves with the Gryffindor lion on it.
"It's a Galleon coin that with numbers that change to show the date of the next meeting." Hermione beamed, showing Aria and Ginny her gold coin invention for the DA.
"Hermione, that's brilliant!" Aria said as Ginny took it in her hands to look closer.
"Oh no." Hermione said grimly, stopping in her tracks.
"What? Oh." Aria then noticed the Slytherin section when they approached the bleachers. Almost every single one of them had a button on their shirt that read: WEASLEY IS OUR KING. Aria did not have a good feeling about this.
"Ron can't see this." Hermione said, displeased.
"Hermione, there isn't really a way he can avoid it." Aria said, sitting down with her Hermione and Ginny, "He'll have a view of the whole stadium from up there."
"Hello." said a dreamy voice and the girls looked up to see Luna sitting next to them. On the top of her head, she wore a large lion hat which she had enchanted to move its mouth and roar.
"Hey there, Luna." Aria said, trying to look at Luna's eyes yet her gaze was drawn to Luna's hat as if it were a magnet.
"Interesting hat." Hermione said, trying to be polite.
"I thought I'd show some Gryffindor pride." Luna said, "I have a hat for each of the houses."
"Even for Slytherin?" Aria asked, smirking.
"Yes but I never find myself wearing it." Luna replied. As soon as Luna said this, the match began.
Madam Hooch had the captain's shake hands and then she blew her whistle. Just like that, the players were up in the air. Ron went straight for the goal hoops and narrowly escaped a bludger on his ascent. In the first twenty minutes of the game the Slytherins had scored twice on Ron, who had definitely taken notice of the Slytherin who had begun to sing:
Weasley cannot save a thing,
He cannot block a single ring,
That's why all the Slytherins sing:
Weasley is our King
"Come on!" Ginny shouted at her brother, but she of course was drowned out by the Slytherin who were all led in a repeat of their chorus by Pansy Parkinson. Aria looked to see Harry watching the match in midair on his broom instead of catching the snitch. As Angelina Johnson flew past him, he got his head back in the game.
Luna's hat and the Gryffindor cheered when Angelina scored the Gryffindor's first goal of the match. Hopefully, that would boost Ron's confidence. Aria watched as Harry zoomed past again, this time, with Malfoy right on his tail. The golden snitch was right in front of them! Aria bit her lip as Harry's right hand was inches away. He must've caught it because Madam Hooch blew the whistle. The Gryffindor's stood up, cheering and clapping in the frosty air. Then, out of the corner of her eye, Aria could see a bludger coming straight for Harry. Before she could warn him, it struck him in the back. Luckily he was only a few feet from the ground and got back up with only the wind knocked out of him.
The Gryffindor team, descended on their brooms towards Harry, raising their fists in the air with loud cheers and Luna's hat roared once more next to Aria. Aria sighed in relief, knowing there would have been a lot of unhappy campers in the common room tonight if Gryffindor had lost, and Ron would've most definitely been one of them. Aria looked down just in time to see Ron sulking back into the changing room. Perhaps, Ron would still be an unhappy camper.
(^^^stop music if playing)
"Aria look!" Ginny shouted, pointing to what Aria thought had been a team huddle. Looking more closely, having been distracted by Ron, Aria now saw what Ginny was talking about. Harry and Fred or George (she could never tell which), were pummeling a Slytherin who Aria would bet anything was Malfoy. Many of the Gryffindors were cheering but up in the teacher's box, McGonagall was rushing down to the pitch. Aria could see Umbridge, sitting next to Professor Sprout, with a smug, poisonous grin on her toad-like face.
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"It's a fight. They can't kick you off the team for that!" Hermione huffed, pacing the Gryffindor common room that night while Harry sat slumped in the chair by the fire and Aria sat on the couch. "You didn't even do damage! Fred didn't even touch Draco! They can't do this."
"Apparently, Hermione, they can." Harry said, irritably.
"'They' being the keyword." Aria said sounding angrier than normal, "It's Umbridge and the ministry. She's taking over." Just then, Ron came in through the portrait hole in the wall and slumped down on the couch beside Aria.
"This day is the worse." Ron said depressingly, "I'm sorry Harry."
"For what?"
"Thinking I can play Quidditch." Ron replied, "I might as well go and tell Angelina I'm resigning."
"No don't do that." Hermione said, "If you resign the team will be down both beaters, a seeker, and a keeper. That only leaves three players."
"This is the worst day of my life." Ron said, slumping down more.
"Don't be so dramatic." Hermione said, taking a seat next to him, "I'm sure you've had worse days."
"Thanks, Hermione. I feel loads better." Ron said, sarcastically, "Maybe my whole life is just the worse."
"Well thanks to Umbridge, Fred, George, and I are banned for life." Harry snapped, "At least, you're still on the team."
"Which I don't want to be on." Ron replied with a frown.
"Then why did you try out?" Harry exclaimed, growing frustrated.
"If we're going to blame anyone here. Let's blame Umbridge." Aria said hastily.
"I hope old Toad-face gets what's coming to her." Ron said.
YOU ARE READING
Aria Ashborn and the Order of the Phoenix (A Harry Potter fanfiction)
FanfictionIt's Aria's 5th year at Hogwarts. She's still getting over the death of her boyfriend, Cedric Diggory, and now dealing with a looming Wizarding War. Aria and her father are brought into the Order of the Phoenix and so the events of the 5th book unfo...
