In the Melancholy Moonlight

Chapter XLVII: The Bestest Birthday Ever

Now take it in but don't look down
'Cause I'm on top of the world
I'm on top of the world
Waiting on this for a while now
Paying my dues to the dirt
I've been waiting to smile
Been holding it in for a while
Take it with me if I can
Been dreaming of this since a child
I'm on top of the world

"On Top of the World"
Imagine Dragons

LUCY:

The night before the Slytherin-Gryffindor Quidditch match, the common room seemed fit to explode.

Everyone was coping with the stress differently. Fred and George were cracking Angelina and Alicia up with their antics while Oliver sat in the furthest corner of the room, hunched over a model Quidditch Pitch and moving the little players around and talking to himself. Harry and I chose to isolate ourselves, too, with only Ron and Hermione for company.

The past month had been intense, to say the least. We had thrown ourselves into researching for Buckbeak's appeal, but the full moon had brought my efforts to a screeching halt. I had never taken wolfsbane two months in a row before, and it was rough, to say the least. I once again saw no sign of Sirius Black or the Grim in the Forbidden Forest, but I was still glad I had done it in the end.

Cedric was feeling the strain, too. His big match against Ravenclaw took place the first weekend in May, and both teams fought to the bitter end. However, just before the match, Henry fell victim to a nasty case of dragon pox, meaning they had to play their game with their back-up Keeper. Although Cedric beat Cho to the Snitch, Hufflepuff still suffered a horrible defeat. I was terrified that Cedric would catch Henry's dragon pox, given how much time they spent together, but to my immense relief, he stayed perfectly healthy.

Once both Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were out of the running for the Quidditch Cup, the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin grew astronomically. Slytherin tried to sabotage us left and right, especially Harry. Legs stuck out from every direction in the hallway trying to trip him, and he received a number of threats saying he needed to keep a very close eye on his Firebolt. He stopped leaving it in his locker and instead left it in the trunk at the foot of his bed. I snuck up to their dormitory one night to place extra protective enchantments all around it, just in case.

The night before the match, I could have cut the tension with a knife. Well, maybe not a knife... perhaps a very strong severing charm. Point being, everyone was nervous. Perhaps no one was more nervous than Harry and I were.

Wood had been mercilessly repeating the same thing before, during, and after every practice.

He'd start with Harry. "So you must catch it only if we're more than fifty points up, Harry. Only if we're more than fifty points up, Harry, or we win the match but lose the Cup. You've got that, haven't you? You must catch the Snitch only if we're fifty points up."

Then he'd turn to me. "Lucy, it'll have to be up to you to get those fifty points and stay there. You're the fastest one on the team, and the smallest Chaser. They're going to try to play dirty, but you have to be smarter and faster to get away when they try to cheap-shot you. And they will, trust me."

Then he'd turn back to Harry. "You have to catch the Snitch only when we're fifty points up, but do it as quickly as possible."

Then he'd turn back to me. "Be sure to stay on your broom and uninjured until he does. One dirty shot might kill you."

The night before the match, Oliver didn't say any of these things to us, but we still heard his words looping in our heads. My stomach fluttered uncomfortably, like it was full of angry bees trying to escape, as Harry and I watched Ron and Hermione play chess.