By the end of the week, the Patronus chaos had finally died down.
Mostly.
Though the girls had dropped the subject about magical patronus's for now, their eyes still had that little hint of a twinkle telling him that the matter may not be spoken but it was certainly not forgotten.
Afterall a win was a win.
But the universe, as always, refused to give him peace.
Because Saturday morning dawned cold and bright—
—and it was time for Quidditch.
Draconis vs. Slytherin.
The stands were packed.
The air crackled with anticipation.
And everyone—even the professors—was buzzing over two things:
Harry Potter's new Firebolt.
and
Cassius Snape's success on the national team, making every school match he played something of a showcase to be witnessed.
Cassius stood with his House on the pitch, the black-silver dragon banner of Draconis snapping sharply in the wind.
His teammates—six girls shaped by his training and a level of aerial coordination that bordered on military—mounted their custom-tuned Arcanum brooms.
Across the field, Flint and the Slytherin team glared murderously from atop their Nimbus 2001s.
But the real threat—
Harry Potter hovered a few feet higher, perfectly balanced on his brand-new Firebolt, just the name itself bore weight, as the 'fastest broom in the world' at least as far as critics were concerned.
However seeing this Cassius only smirked, the firebolt and later supreme models surely were marvels to behold, reaching speeds in excess of 150 mph in less than 10 seconds.
Taken into perspective thats like having a muggle super car, but compared to that Cassius and his girls sitting atop their Aeriusbolt brooms were not worried.
The Aeriusbolt may not be a mainstream production model but it boasted just as fast if not faster speeds, manueverability and handling than the firebolt.
Then there was Cassius's own broom an Aeriusbolt Supreme, this broom was the Hypercar of broomsticks.
Cassius could go from 0-60 and stop before Harry and his firebolt even got from 0-30.
~
The crowd gasped each time harry shifted or turned during warmup.
The Firebolt was, after all, the broom everyone had been obsessed with for weeks since the public release and intense marketing campaign the world over.
"Showoff," Daphne muttered under her breath.
Hermione, sitting in the stands with Luna and Astoria, cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted:
"DON'T LET HIM GET COCKY, CASSIUS!"
Cassius raised a hand in acknowledgment.
Harry scowled.
Madam Hooch strode forward, whistle ready.
"Mount your brooms!"
Cassius swung easily onto the Aeriusbolt Supreme.
The broom hummed beneath him—alive, eager, almost predatory.
Ready to face off against its new rival.
Where the Firebolt sat calm and composed unaware of the coming battle ahead, the Aeriusbolt thrummed like caged thunder waiting to lash out and show this newcomer what being a true racing broom was.
"Good Luck." Cassius offered.
Only for the offer to be rejected.
"Don't need luck." Harry's face scowling, he loved his broom, but the thought of the pressure placed on him to win, and against a national ranked seeker no less, was getting to him.
Madam Hooch lifted her whistle—
"Three—two—ONE!"
The whistle shrieked.
And the sky exploded.
The Slytherin team surged upward—
—but the Draconis players didn't just outfly them.
They humiliated them.
Daphne performed a tight 360 roll around Montague before stealing the Quaffle right from under his hand.
Cho dove between Pucey and Warrington, making them crash into one another while she passed the Quaffle backwards to Ginny—who volleyed it straight through the middle goal hoop.
10–0 Draconis.
The Draconis stands roared.
Flint sputtered like a boiling kettle.
Harry tore into the air, pushing his Firebolt to its limit just trying to keep up with the blur of Draconis movement.
But Cassius—
Cassius wasn't even playing.
He was performing.
While both teams scrambled for possession of the Quaffle, he ascended lazily, drifting above the entire stadium like a celestial event.
Loops.
Spins.
Zero-turn spirals.
At one point he flew upside-down for a full thirty seconds, hands behind his head, Aeriusbolt perfectly stable.
Every eye turned upward.
Even the Slytherin Beaters stopped mid-swing.
Even Professor McGonagall flinched.
"You're supposed to be catching the Snitch!" Harry shouted up at him, furious.
No doubt believing he was being mocked, or even 'paid-off' to give him the win.
Cassius glanced down, voice carrying easily.
"Oh, I saw it."
Harry blinked.
"You saw it—?! Then why aren't you—"
"The girls said they didn't like it when matches ended to soon, so i'm letting them have some fun."
Saying so he then tipped his handle forwards shooting down in a blur, so fast his afterimage dragged trails of silver-blue.
The Snitch darted past his head.
Cassius reached out…
…and swatted it away with the back of his gloved hand like it was a bothersome fly.
The stadium lost its mind.
"YOU—YOU—YOU JUST—" Harry sputtered.
Behind him Harry was floored having seen Cassius once more do a high risk manuever, even accidentally running into the snitch only to bat it out of his way, not concerned with doing his job at all for the moment.
Cassius shrugged pulling up on his broom inches from the pitched before performing a barnswallow.
Jumping into the air off his broom before spinning round, only for the broom itself to stop instantly and turn on a dime, back towards it's now airborn rider, before Cassius landed back on the seat of the broom and rocketing away in the opposite direction.
~
Ginny scored again.
Then Cho.
Then Daphne—who intercepted a Slytherin pass in such an elegant arc that even the Ravenclaws applauded.
The Slytherin team grew more desperate.
Bludgers were hammered toward Draconis players with increasing malice.
But the girls were faster.
Cleaner.
More coordinated.
Every time a Beater swung, a Draconis chaser simply wasn't there anymore.
"STOP FLYING CIRCLES AROUND US!" Flint roared.
Hermione who was starting to get bored hovering around the Draconis goals cupped her hands and yelled back:
"BUT THEY'RE ALL GOOD AT IT!"
Flint nearly fell off his broom.
Harry pushed harder, trying to keep pace with Cassius—but the Firebolt, for all its perfection, simply couldn't match the Aeriusbolt's absurd agility.
Cassius flew like a man who'd bonded with his broom on a spiritual level, every motion smooth, precise, effortless.
But for all his showboating and grandstanding one thing was clear to Harry, he was always aware of where the snitch was, as he patted it away more than once during his 'play' obviously keeping it near for the moment he would claim it to secure victory.
Harry flushed bright red.
"Where the hell's the snitch!"
Cassius in front of him pointed over his shoulder lazily.
"It's behind you."
Harry's head spun so fast he nearly flipped himself off his broom.
True to his claim, right there racing behind him was the golden snitch, the little ball trying to keep pace with the pair of riders.
Seeing this Harry didnt hesitate, his team was bleeding points left and right.
If he didnt capture the snitch now, it wouldnt matter if he did later... they would still lose.
He dove—
Harry leaned low, body flush with the Firebolt, wind screaming past his ears.
Cassius?
Cassius was busy laughing.
Actually laughing.
He spiralled downward in tight corkscrews, weaving past Harry with insulting ease.
The crowd watched breathlessly as the Aeriusbolt streaked past the Firebolt, the difference in speed unmistakable—almost cruel.
As the ground itself approached, Cassiuse pulled up last minute once more finishing his dancing leaf spiral, but right at the end as his flattened out, his outstretched leg booted the snitch, sending the golden ball sailing through the air being lost in the pale blue sky.