💎 WEEKLY POWER GOALS 💎
🔥 30→2ch | 60→5ch | 100→8ch | 200→15ch | 400→25ch
⏰ Resets Monday!
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The pitch descended into chaos. Gryffindor players landed around Madam Hooch in protest, while Slytherin's Seeker held the Golden Snitch triumphantly overhead, displaying it to the stands.
The Gryffindors around Anthony booed.
"Invalid! Invalid!" The student who'd previously shouted "red card," Dean Thomas, organized everyone to rhythmically pound the railings. Gradually, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw joined in. Calls of "Invalid" echoed across the pitch.
"As all reasonable people would agree, the audience believes the result should be invalidated—Gryffindor demands a rematch—" Lee Jordan said. "Slytherin took advantage of someone's misfortune and despicably obtained the Golden Snitch—"
Professor McGonagall had no time to correct his wording now. She was striding quickly through the crowd toward this group of indignant Gryffindors. Snape clapped smugly, saying with false regret as she passed, "Oh dear, Minerva, so close again."
Professor McGonagall walked to Harry's side, lips pressed tight.
"We could have won!" Harry shouted angrily. "I was so close—I—when I was summoned over, I even saw that flash of gold—"
Hermione pulled him from the sheet. "Oh, forget the Snitch. Are you all right, Harry? Are you hurt?"
Professor McGonagall also asked, "Do you feel unwell anywhere, Potter?"
Jordan was still commentating in the distance. "The Snitch was caught before the match was suspended. The referee declares the result valid—bloody hell—well, let's congratulate Slytherin on somehow obtaining victory."
The booing was deafening.
Gryffindor players surrounded Madam Hooch, gesticulating wildly at the sky, imitating the tumbling broom, but their arguments seemed to make her ruling even firmer. "If Potter had caught the Snitch in that situation, I would have declared Gryffindor victorious too! They didn't violate any rules!"
Hagrid said loudly, "This isn't fair! Quidditch rules should be changed!"
Wood pounded a goal post in frustration. While others still shouted at Madam Hooch, he flew over dejectedly to check on his precious (though completely useless in this match) Seeker.
Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Dean surrounded Harry. Harry was repeatedly assuring his friends he hadn't broken anything. Seeing Wood approach, he immediately shouted, "Wood, I saw it! When I was being summoned, the Snitch was right beside me! Just a little more and I'd have swallowed it!"
Wood consoled him grimly, "Slytherin got lucky today." His expression suggested that once the professors left, he'd make Slytherin considerably less lucky.
Anthony picked up Harry's broom and examined it. It looked like an ordinary broom, no different from the Nimbus 2000 in shop windows. At his level, he could at least guarantee there was no necromantic magic on it.
"Minerva, take a look," he passed the broomstick over. "What exactly happened just now?"
"What exactly happened!" Wood exclaimed, his fury suddenly ignited. "Want to hear from the person involved? Harry had just regained control of the broom, then whoosh, he crashed into a giant cloth, and Slytherin got the Golden Snitch! You tell me what happened!"
"Wood! Are you lecturing a professor?" Professor McGonagall glared at him warningly. "You're the captain! Potter's broom had a problem, yet you only care about the Golden Snitch!"
Wood shrank under her glare.
"The Nimbus had problems. We have backup brooms. Cleansweep Seven, Comet 290..." he muttered quietly. "But there's only one match against Slytherin this year... our ranking..."
Professor McGonagall stared at him fiercely. Wood shook his head and swallowed his remaining words.
Harry didn't seem to think his words were problematic at all. He was even more dejected than Wood.
Even after Professor McGonagall nearly dismantled the broom, she still found nothing wrong. It seemed Harry's broom had simply decided on a whim to perform backflips and two-and-a-half spins for everyone in midair.
Slytherin grew even more smug.
"Potter, what's wrong? Can't sit steady on a broom?" they shouted. "Blame the broom for flying poorly, blame the dog for not getting food—what a novel way to grab attention!"
Anthony silently stepped forward, gripping the stand railing and gazing at that group of Slytherins. Their mockery caught in their throats. After weakly finishing their words and feeling thoroughly embarrassed, they pressed their lips shut and left.
His nickname among students had changed from "Anthony Who Never Deducts Points" to "Anthony Who Emptied Slytherin."
After Neville's fall into the lake, the responsible Slytherin students must have angered Snape during detention, causing Snape to unprecedentedly deduct points from Slytherin.
Having their Head of House deduct points seemed an enormous punishment. For quite a while, even their own housemates barely spoke to them. They naturally blamed this on Anthony, making Anthony's reputation in Slytherin disproportionately large for a newly hired Muggle Studies professor.
The match had ended. The audience dispersed indignantly from the stands. Ron and Hermione comforted Harry. Professor McGonagall decided to speak with Madam Hooch—she was quite certain there'd been a previous match invalidated due to emergencies, and she'd request a rematch following precedent.
"Every match in Quidditch season is important," she told Anthony. "I don't want Gryffindor's ranking this low."
"Oh, Henry," Hagrid stuffed his binoculars into his pocket, saying dejectedly. "You shouldn't have interrupted the match... Harry was flying so well..."
Anthony shook his head. "But I thought Potter would fall."
"But the match..." Hagrid insisted.
Anthony asked in surprise, "Is the match more important than Potter's life?" He'd thought Hagrid and Potter were friends.
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