10th of May, 1976
Marlene doesn’t think she’s ever played this hard in her life. Her arms are tired from swinging her heavy bat against the bludgers hurled at her teammates, but she dutifully hefts it over her shoulder as she sprints on her broom to hit away the bludger flying straight for James. He grins gratefully, before performing a dangerous manoeuvre to avoid the Slytherin teams and tosses the quaffle straight through the arms of the keeper.
She sighs in relief as their score goes up to 250-170.
Still not enough of a lead. Gryffindor needs to find that stupid snitch before Regulus Black spots it. She doesn’t think Black has missed more than two snitches in his four years of playing. Even if her competitive personality is loath to admit it, he really is the best seeker the school has seen in generations.
Marlene groans as her eyes find their own seeker, Honey Montivory. A very kind, very quiet fourth year who is talented, but not nearly as ruthless as Marlene wishes the girl was.
Marlene misses Braxen but the older boy had dropped quidditch this year, saying his parents had told him he needed to focus on school. The tears in his voice at quidditch trials this year had made Marlene feel sorry for the seeker whom she had befriended quite easily.
Right now, she felt only mutinous to his parents for forcing him away.
If they lose this cup, in the last year Marlene herself was going to play (not that she’d told her friends about that yet), she will riot. She absolutely refuses to allow that to happen.
Besides. Her girlfriend would never shut up about it if she won.
So.
Marlene whips around as she hears the unmistakable whistle of a bludger coming at her and belts it so hard into the atmosphere, she is satisfied it will take a few minutes before returning.
Her keen eyes flit around the field, watching the play unfold. Her gaze finds Dorcas, as they always do, and she watches her girlfriend flying furiously after the quaffle being passed between Mary and Alice. Marlene holds her breath as Dorcas reaches so far, she looks like she’ll almost certainly fall from her broom.
And honestly, you’d think Marlene would remember how excellent of a chaser Dorcas is by now as she watches her girlfriend’s fingers curl around the quaffle and immediately spin around to the Gryffindor goals. Momentarily distracted, Marlene watches Dorcas zip around, dodging players and the one bludger still currently in the game to pelt it at the goal.
Marlene watches, mesmerised, as it sails just past Longbottom’s fingertips. The Slytherin stands go crazy after the field long sprint and goal, erupting with cheers and Marlene even sees some of the Gryffindors cheer, albeit a bit reluctantly.
Marlene fights the urge to go and kiss her girlfriend, instead moving to look at James who is quickly rallying the other chasers. Sirius hovers within earshot of James' quick speech, customarily always around James.
You’d think the pair were attached at the hip the way you can never find one without the other.
Marlene rolls her eyes deeply, instincts making her look up just as the bludger still in the game gets belted at her from one of the Slytherin beaters, Rabastan Lestrange. She gasps a little as she has to duck to avoid it, eyes narrowing at Lestrange’s barely concealed smirk.
Ok Lestrange. That’s how it’s gonna be, huh?
She flies after and past the bludger, so fast for a second she feels like she’s completely become the wind, and positions herself a second away, waiting for it to come to her.
“Sirius!” She hollers and he must somehow hear her from a good few dozen metres away because he turns to her with a grin, already knowing what she’s shouting for. That’s all the confirmation she needs as she swings at the bludger, sending it straight at Sirius who takes his own bat and sends it barrelling for the group of Slytherins holding the quaffle.
Startled, the Slytherin chaser holding the quaffle, some seventh year that Marlene doesn’t really know, yelps and drops it straight into James’ waiting hands. He twists in the air, whipping around from his upside-down position (which Marlene is quite sure is absolutely not allowed) to fly straight for the Slytherin goals.
Marlene’s cheer is lost amongst the Gryffindor stands as he scores, because of course he scores, because he’s James Potter, the best quidditch player of their generation.
“-nother goal from Gryffindor chaser James Potter, bringing the score to a solid 260-130! Slytherin is gonna have to get that snitch soon but maybe they shouldn’t waste their energy, saving it, instead, for later when they complain about how much their rich fingers hurt from doing anything themselves. The match is likely to be over soon with how Potter, Macdonald and Fortescue are playing.”
Lupin is narrating, voice as deadpan as ever. He is honestly one of the funniest motherfuckers Marlene. She’s also pretty sure he’s not supposed to say any of that, the thought supported by Professor McGonagall pursing her lips beside him. He nods at something she says but she swears she sees him roll his eyes as he turns back to the game.
In the meantime, James has scored two more goals, Mary and the unknown Slytherin chaser also scoring once each.
One more goal and they’ll win.
No sooner has Marlene thought that than she sees Regulus Black abandon his lazy circles, sprinting towards something on the other side of the field. Marlene strains to see the snitch, hoping desperately that Black is feinting, but she sees a glimmer of gold and her hopes sink. Their only chance of winning is to score another goal in the ten seconds before Black catches the stupid snitch.
To her credit, Montivory is also speeding after the snitch now, seemingly undeterred by Black’s head start. She weaves between players, gaining on Black every second until they’re almost neck to neck, flying so fast at the infuriating snitch that keeps slipping past their open fingers.
Marlene becomes aware of the earlier bludger’s return and sends it flying towards another of the Slytherin chasers, Aurora Mythos. Unfortunately, it’s intercepted by the other beater, Barty Crouch Jr., who uses his bat to send it flying at Alice closing in on the quaffle. She pulls up to avoid it, turning to glare at Crouch who smirks and blows her a kiss. She frowns before diving after the quaffle once more. The move seems to distract Aurora enough that Mary reaches over and steals it from her hands, throwing it at Alice before it can get stolen again.
Alice lofts it at James who catches it in one arm with ease, not even slowing his flying. Marlene doesn’t think anyone from their house dares breathe as they watch James racing for the goals, hotly pursued by Slytherins. James hurls it and there's a moment of silence before even Lupin sounds a little breathless as he announces victory for the Gryffindors.
‘Just in time,’ Marlene hears him remark, ‘as Regulus Black has just caught the snitch.’
The victory party that night is the best Marlene has ever been to.