There Are No Family Ties on the Pitch

After chatting with Sirius for a few more minutes, Harry hung up the phone and called Veratia again.

Veratia was sleeping, wearing the light blue nightcap Harry had bought for her.

She opened her eyes somewhat groggily when she answered the phone.

"What's wrong?" she asked groggily.

"Uh, you're asleep?" Harry said a little embarrassed. "I'll call you again tomorrow..."

"I'm jet-lagged..." Veratia said with a yawn. "Go ahead and tell me, you've already woken me up anyway."

She sat up, leaned against the bed, and placed the Crystal Ball on her lap.

"That's how it is." Harry explained the suspected resurrection of Pettigrew to Veratia in great detail.

"Such a thing really happened?" Veratia paused for a moment, then asked, "Are you sure?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but it's very likely." Harry's words were almost meaningless.

Veratia pondered for a moment, then said to Harry, "I think the possibility is extremely slim. After all, if I were Voldemort, I would prefer to resurrect more capable Death Eater rather than Pettigrew, that cowardly good-for-nothing."

"Of course." Veratia said before Harry could speak, "There's another possibility: with Runcorn's help, Voldemort's cost of resurrecting people has reached a point where he doesn't care about resurrecting one Pettigrew."

"In that case, we're in a rather serious situation," Harry said gravely. "We need to talk to Dumbledore about this as soon as possible..."

"Didn't you tell him?" Veratia asked in surprise.

"Dumbledore went to Wizengamot today," Harry said with a shrug. "So I spoke with Sirius and you first."

"I understand. Leave this to me," Veratia said. "I'll call Dumbledore in a bit and tell him about it."

After hanging up the phone, Harry sat on the bed and began to ponder the possibility that Veratia had mentioned.

It's fucking scary.

The next day, breakfast was as lively as usual. As each member of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team entered the Great Hall, the Slytherin booed and jeered loudly.

Although Gryffindor and Slytherin are not as irreconcilable now, a match is still a competition... and booing is part of the game.

If you're not happy, don't play.

Draco, in particular, laughed the loudest, grabbing Ron and mocking him, making Ron's face turn red with anger.

"If I were the Chaser, you'd be done for," Ron yelled at Draco.

However, Draco didn't seem to care and even made a face at Ron.

The Gryffindor dining table was a vibrant mix of red and gold, and the students cheered enthusiastically as Harry and Ron approached. Harry waved to them with the air of a leader, but instead of stopping, the students stood up, jumping and raising their hands in a display of perfect poise that would earn a thumbs-up from even a general.

"Eat something," Ron said to Harry, still somewhat excited. "Little Slytherin? We have to get them today! I'll let Malfoy know who's boss on Hogwarts Street!"

"Just eat," Hermione rolled her eyes. "Even eating can't shut you up. Be careful you don't bite off more than you can chew!"

Ron took the milk from Hermione and gulped it down in one go.

"I feel pretty good today," he said. "Don't worry, Gryffindor will win!"

"It's almost time," Harry said cheerfully.

They strode toward the stadium, the frost-covered grass crunching under their feet.

"The weather's so nice, we're really lucky, aren't we?" Harry asked Ron.

"Yeah." Ron chuckled, stretching as he walked, looking quite well-prepared.

Ginny and Demelza had already changed into their Quidditch robe and were waiting in the locker room.

"He seems very confident," Ginny said to Harry —she was referring to Ron.

"Ha." Ron scoffed, still holding a grudge against Ginny for her attack on him yesterday.

It hurts, it hurts so much!

This is simply reopening his wounds!

Sleeping with a mouse is fine, but the problem is that the mouse turned out to be a middle-aged, balding old man.

This is really frustrating.

The Gryffindor players also arrived at the locker room, changed their clothes, and then gathered around expectantly.

"Alright, guys," Harry said.

"And the girls too," Ginny reminded them.

Harry took a breath.

He recalled the first time he stood on the Quidditch pitch, when the old captain Oliver Wood began his pre-match pep talk, and it was Angelina Jansen who reminded him of this.

"It's like going back to the old days, isn't it?" Harry said to Katie, the only veteran member.

Katie smiled gently, and she thought of Captain Wood and Angelina.

"Alright, many of you just joined the Quidditch team this year," Harry said to them. "But don't be nervous. We've never lost to Slytherin on the field—in fact, Slytherin hasn't been able to beat us since I joined the team. So all you need to do is believe in yourselves, believe in me, understand?"

"Yes, Captain!" everyone shouted.

Morale is high.

"So what tactics should we use?" Demelza asked.

"Your tactic is to wipe out those sons of bitches of Slytherin! I repeat!" Harry said.

"Yes, sir!" the team roared in unison. "Kill those sons of bitches of Slytherin!"

"Great!" Harry clapped his hands. "As long as you have this kind of confidence and this kind of morale, then there's nothing to worry about—"

Just then, Madam Hooch's whistle sounded.

"Alright, the competition is about to begin," Harry reminded them. "Don't be nervous, just follow me."

Harry led them to the bustling stadium outside.

On one side of the stands was a sea of red and gold people, while on the other side was a vast expanse of green and silver.

Many Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw also have their own teams to support, and amidst all the screams and applause, one can clearly hear the roar of Luna Lovegood's famous lion hat.

Harry walked up to the referee, Ms. Madam Hooch Madam Hooch was standing there preparing to release the ball from the box.

"The two captains shook hands," she said.

Harry reached out and shook hands with Urquhart, the new captain of Slytherin.

"Potter." Urquhart grinned sinisterly.

He secretly applied pressure to his hand, but unexpectedly Harry pinched him instead.

"Awooo—!"

A scream rang out.

"What's going on?" Madam Hooch's eyes darted between the two.

"It's alright, Madam Hooch," Harry smiled at Madam Hooch. "This Urquhart isn't feeling well, is he?"

Urquhart nodded quickly, indicating that Harry was right.

Seeing that nothing had happened between the two, Madam Hooch nodded.

She put the whistle to her lips.

"Get on your broomstick. Listen to my whistle... three... two... one... toot toot!"

As soon as the whistle blew, all the players pushed off the frozen ground and rose into the air.

Harry looked around, searching for the Golden Snitch.

At that moment, a voice that was completely different from the usual commentators rang out.

Okay, now they're off. I think everyone will be surprised to see the team Potter has cobbled together this semester—but even though it's a makeshift team, it still has two veterans, and I believe that under their leadership, the Gryffindor team will definitely be unstoppable!

It's Zacharias Smith, a Hufflepuff.

"Now, let's take a look at the newcomer—well, Ginny Weasley of Gryffindor, a very good Chaser, she seems to be in no way inferior to Gryffindor's former captain, Angelina Jansen —oh, and the first time Slytherin team made a run at the goal was Urquhart flying across the pitch—"

"Beautiful! Weasley!" Zacharias didn't hold back his encouragement. "Ron Weasley has shown us that Gryffindor has an even better goalkeeper after Oliver Wood!"

"Yes," a commentator chimed in. "That was the first brilliant save of the game. Gryffindor should have paid for that mistake, but Ron Weasley deftly saved the day."

Half an hour into the game, Gryffindor led 60-0. Ron was exceptionally skilled, making some beautiful saves, including a few he even dove with the tip of his glove.

Of the six balls Gryffindor made, Ginny accounted for four.

Harry spotted the Golden Snitch early on, but instead of giving chase, he decided to let the team practice their coordination.

We can't just end the battle now, can we? We have to let the guys have some gaming experience.

Besides, he also planned to use this match to train his players.

"Hey! Potter!"

Draco's voice rang out beside Harry, and then Harry felt himself being struck.

He quickly regained his balance, looked up, and saw Draco making a face at him.

"Oh, familiar Slytherin style," Zacharias said. "Look, Malfoy deliberately rams into Potter... just like Slytherin, good heavens..."

A burst of laughter erupted from the stands, mixed with the indignant roars of the Slytherin.

"It's 120-0 now!" Harry turned to Draco and shouted, "Why aren't you thinking about how to lead your teammates to catch up? What are you trying to do, just keep trying to bump into me?"

"There are no family members on the field!" Draco roared, waving his fist.

Harry:...

Fine, fine, so this is how you treat your great-great-uncle, is that it?

The Gryffindors seemed to have it all figured out, scoring again and again, while on the other side of the field, Ron effortlessly saved ball after ball, as if it were second nature. He even had a smile on his face now.

When he made a particularly brilliant save on a dangerous shot, and the audience sang along to their favorite old song, "Weasley is our king," he even pretended to be the conductor from above.

"He's really getting cocky, isn't he?" Draco said from the side.

"Ron said before the match that he was going to crush you," Harry shrugged.

Zacharias shouted again from over there.

"Ginny Weasley! What a beautiful goal, what an outstanding player! That's her twelfth goal of the match! If this were Muggle football game, she would have already taken the match ball home! 160 to 0!"

The match went on for another half hour, and the Slytherin went from fighting back tenaciously at the beginning to becoming listless.

After Harry caught the Golden Snitch, the game ended with the score settling at 380 to 0.

"That's terrible," Zacharias said gleefully. "This must be the worst score in Hogwarts history, right?"

"Smith!" Professor McGonagall roared, just as she had done when Lee Jordan gave his biased commentary.

"I'm sorry, Professor." Zacharias apologized to Professor McGonagall in a rapid-fire manner, but there was no trace of remorse in his voice.

After Madam Hooch announced the end of the match, Harry led the Gryffindor players to shake hands with the listless Slytherin players before returning to the dressing room to change.

Ron was still excited. His performance was indeed excellent, and he deserved to be awarded the Player of the Week award—very few goalkeepers can keep a clean sheet.

As Harry was about to return to the Common Room, Professor McGonagall stopped him.

"Albus see you and Bell about something," said Professor McGonagall, who was smiling very rarely. "Go to the Headmaster's Office, Potter."

Harry nodded, letting the team members return to the Common Room first, while he led a visibly anxious Katie to the Headmaster's Office.

Katie was clearly nervous; she had never been to the Headmaster's Office before.

In the Headmaster's Office, Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, enjoying some dessert.

When Harry came in, Dumbledore smiled and handed Harry a new bag.

"Try it," he said. "It's pretty good. I bought it from Muggle."

"No, Professor, thank you." Harry refused, his face pale. He knew he simply couldn't stand Dumbledore's tastes.

"I've received Veratia's message. I think we need to conduct a thorough investigation into that matter," Dumbledore said casually, then looked at Katie: "Katie, are you sure what you saw was really Pettigrew?"

"I... I think so, right?" Katie asked with some self-doubt.

"Hmm... tell me in detail what happened to you and whoever it was," Dumbledore said.

Katie nodded and recounted the events of that day to Dumbledore in detail.

Finally, she added, "That's all, Professor."

"I understand, Katie." Dumbledore smiled gently at her. "Alright, you can go back and celebrate with your classmates now."

Harry and Katie stood up together, but Dumbledore stopped them.

"Katie goes back first, you have to stay, Harry," he said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)