Friday came crisp and clear, the sky a smooth sheet of pale blue as we filtered into the Great Hall for breakfast. Emmeline, Pandora, Andrew, Severus, Felix, and I claimed our usual spot at the Ravenclaw table, where golden light from the enchanted ceiling danced over our plates.
I glanced across the table and couldn't help but smirk. Felix looked like he'd swallowed a lemon whole.
"You alright, Felix?" Emmeline asked, waving a piece of toast in front of his face.
He gave a weak grunt and poked at his porridge.
"He looks like he's about to sit for a Troll-level Potions exam," Pandora whispered, eyes twinkling.
Andrew nudged him. "You'll do fine. It's just Quidditch."
Felix muttered something unintelligible and went back to staring blankly at his spoon.
I turned to Severus, who was buttering a slice of toast with the precision of a surgical hex.
"You nervous?" I asked, keeping my voice low.
He paused, then looked up at me with those familiar dark eyes and gave a faint nod. "A little."
"I know you'll do well," I said gently, nudging his knee under the table. "You always do."
He gave a small smile. "Thanks."
After breakfast, we made our way down to the pitch. Emmeline, Pandora, and I climbed the stands, settling on the Ravenclaw side wrapped in our navy-and-silver scarves. The wind tugged at our hair, but the sun was bright, casting a golden sheen over the Quidditch field.
"Here we go," Pandora whispered, bouncing slightly on the balls of her feet. "It's finally starting!"
The teams were already on the field. Ravenclaw wore deep navy robes trimmed in silver, the eagle crest glinting on their chests. Gryffindor, bold as ever, sported red and gold.
From our position, we could see Gavin, the Ravenclaw captain, giving last-minute instructions. A tall, wiry seventh-year, Gavin had the kind of intense presence that silenced even the loudest teammates. Beside him, Felix adjusted his gloves nervously, already mounted on his broom.
Severus stood slightly apart, his broom tucked under his arm, eyes scanning the sky. The Seeker. Sharp-eyed, quiet, determined.
On the other end of the field, the Gryffindor team huddled tightly, their crimson-and-gold robes flapping in the breeze. At the center stood James Potter, naturally. He grinned with the confident ease of someone who knew just how good he was and to be fair, the books didn't lie. He was one of the finest Chasers Hogwarts had seen according to the book.
Beside him stood the Gryffindor captain, Lorenzo Wood tall, broad-shouldered. The team looked focused. James gave a low laugh at something Sirius Black yelled from the stands, then turned toward the pitch with fire in his eyes.
"RAVENCLAW VERSUS GRYFFINDOR!" boomed the voice of Melanie Higgson, a fifth-year Hufflepuff perched high in the announcer's booth, her voice echoing across the stadium. "Captains, shake hands!"
Gavin Whitthorne, Ravenclaw's captain and Keeper, strode forward. He clasped hands with Lorenzo Wood, and for a moment, their gazes locked firm, unyielding.
Madame Hooch stepped between them, silver whistle glinting in the morning sun. "Mount your brooms!"
Twelve players lifted off the ground in unison, the roar of the crowd swelling like a wave. Emmeline, Pandora, and I stood in the Ravenclaw stands, scarves tight around our necks, hearts thudding with anticipation.
"AND THEY'RE OFF!"
The match erupted into motion.
Gryffindor snatched the Quaffle first James sped down the center of the pitch like a firebolt, flanked by the other two Chasers, Iris Byrne and Callum Dunne. Felix darted forward to intercept, but James passed cleanly to Iris, who hurled the ball toward the left hoop.
Gavin lunged missed.
"Ten points to Gryffindor!" Melanie shouted, her voice nearly lost in the uproar. "A beautiful opening goal by Iris Byrne!"
Ravenclaw fought back immediately. Felix took the Quaffle and streaked down the pitch, dodging a Bludger that whizzed past his ear. He flicked a pass to Celia Morrison, who spun mid-air and threw it to Raj Patel, the third Chaser, flying low beneath the Gryffindor defense.
Raj feinted left, shot right
And scored.
"Ravenclaw equalizes! That's ten-ten!"
The pace only quickened.
Bludgers whirled through the air like cannonballs. The Beaters Ravenclaw's Theo Ashworth and Juno Hale worked in perfect tandem, guarding their Chasers with bat-swings that rang like thunder. Gryffindor's Beaters retaliated fiercely, one of them nearly knocking Raj off his broom with a nasty hit to the shoulder.
Within minutes, Gryffindor scored again—James with a one-handed toss as he corkscrewed through the air.
Felix answered, weaving between two defenders and scoring a beautiful goal that sent the Ravenclaw side into cheers. The score ticked up, each team trading blows like boxers in a ring.
Twenty-all.
Then thirty-twenty. Gryffindor again.
The sun was bright overhead, but tension hung thick in the air. Every moment was a blur of color, movement, and sound.
"Potter scores again! That's thirty points for Gryffindor!" Melanie called out. "Ravenclaw needs to tighten their defense if they want to catch up!"
"Come on, Felix!" Emmeline yelled from beside me. "Get your head in the game!"
Down on the field, Felix winced. He had just fumbled a pass from Celia. Gavin barked something from the hoops something sharp enough to snap him back to life.
Then came the shift.
Theo slammed a Bludger straight into Callum Dunne's broom, forcing a turnover. Raj scooped up the Quaffle and took off like a rocket. He passed to Felix, who feinted twice and fired a pass to Celia.
Celia caught it mid-dive and hurled the ball straight through the center hoop.
"GOAL FOR RAVENCLAW! Thirty-all!" Melanie whooped. "This is shaping up to be one of the closest matches of the season!"
Every spectator was on their feet now. The air seemed electric. My eyes, however, were locked on one person—and it wasn't a Chaser.
It was Severus.
While the others darted and dove, Severus moved with eerie stillness, high above the chaos. His black robes fluttered behind him like smoke. He was watching, waiting his dark eyes scanning the sky with quiet precision.
And then
He moved.
Like lightning, he went into a steep dive.
"There goes Snape!" Melanie shouted from the commentary booth, voice cracking with excitement. "He's spotted the Snitch!"
The stadium gasped as a glimmer of gold darted near the Slytherin stands there one moment, gone the next.
From the opposite side of the pitch, a red blur broke free of the pack Gryffindor's Seeker, Callum McKinnon, lean and sharp-eyed, hunched low on his broomstick like a hawk in freefall. He was known for his calm under pressure, his analytical mind, and his deadly fast reflexes.
The crowd held its collective breath.
Severus didn't blink.
He angled into a steep dive, robes snapping in the wind, hair streaming behind him. He cut through the air with surgical precision, the Snitch bobbing and weaving just feet ahead of him. It zipped upward in a sudden burst of speed.
Severus followed tight turn, no hesitation.
Callum matched him beat for beat. The two of them tore through the sky in a blur of gold, blue, and red, their brooms nearly colliding as they wove between goalposts and dove again, racing toward the far end of the pitch.
My breath caught in my throat. "Come on, Sev," I whispered, fingers clenched around the cold metal railing.
All around me, students were shouting, screaming, pointing. The match still ongoing below had all but stopped. Even the Chasers hovered in place, staring upward.
Severus moved again rolled sideways, pressing his body flat against his broomstick, narrowing his profile. The tiniest shift but it gave him just enough speed.
He surged ahead.
Callum reached. Severus reached.
Fingers outstretched—just a few feet left—
Snap.
The wings of the Snitch fluttered in Severus's closed hand.
Silence.
Then—
"HE'S GOT IT! SNAPE HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! RAVENCLAW WINS!"
The stadium exploded into sound. A wall of cheers roared across the stands as blue and bronze banners unfurled from the towers. Ravenclaw students leapt from their seats, hugging, laughing, screaming.
Down on the field, Gavin flung off his helmet and shouted so loud it echoed. Felix whooped, punching the air. Raj and Celia dropped their brooms midair and crashed into a hug before tumbling to the ground laughing. Theo and Juno, the Beaters, clanged their bats together triumphantly.
And in the center of it all hovering five feet above the grass Severus Snape sat frozen, the golden Snitch fluttering in his palm, his chest heaving from the chase. His eyes were wide behind his windblown fringe, disbelieving.
Then Gavin was the first to reach him, pulling him off his broom mid-air in a tight hug.
"You bloody did it!" Gavin yelled.
The rest of the team rushed him. They swept him into a jubilant, chaotic group hug, lifting him high into the air. Severus, still clutching the Snitch, gave a small, stunned laugh.
The Ravenclaw team paraded him across the field like a war hero, teammates cheering, fans pouring down from the stands like a tidal wave.
And still, I stood frozen.
Beside me, Emmeline let out a sound somewhere between a squeal and a sob.
"Oh my Merlin," she gasped. "He did it. He actually did it!"
Then Pandora was already running, scarf trailing behind her. Emmeline followed, grabbing my hand. "Come on!"
I didn't think. My legs moved on their own. The three of us bolted down the steps, weaving between bouncing students, hearts pounding in sync with the crowd's roar.
By the time we reached the pitch, the team had set Severus down. He was still surrounded, flushed, breathless, blinking like he wasn't sure this wasn't all a dream.
"Sev!" I called out, pushing through the wall of blue robes and wind-chapped cheeks.
He turned and the smile that broke across his face made the whole world go quiet for me.
I threw my arms around him, nearly knocking the Snitch from his hand.
"You did it!" I cried, burying my face in his shoulder.
He hugged me back fiercely. "I didn't think I mean, I thought he was going to catch it first, but then" he laughed again, warm and real, "—I don't know. I just flew."
Emmeline crashed into us next, throwing her arms around both our shoulders, squealing. "That was insane! You looked like a star out there!"
"I thought Callum was going to cut you off!" Pandora added, breathless. "But then you rolled, and everyone screamed, and I nearly fell off the stands—"
Severus blushed, still clinging to the Snitch like it might fly off again. "I can't believe it worked."
All around us, Ravenclaws were chanting his name. Students from other Houses even joined in. Melanie was still shouting into the mic about what a historic catch it had been. And above us, the autumn sky blazed in celebration golden clouds drifting past a bright blue canvas.
There, in the middle of the Quidditch pitch, surrounded by friends, teammates, and a sea of navy and silver, Severus Snape smiled really smiled.
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