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The Letters of Autumn / Owl Post and Broomsticks
Draco, along with Crabbe and Goyle, ambushes Harry and attempts to steal a letter he's posting a letter to Ginny, but Harry thwarts the attack, and Draco is knocked out by his own reflected spell. Professor Snape appears immediately and attempts to punish Harry for duelling in the corridors, but Harry is able to appeal to Professor McGonagall and argue that he cast nothing except a shield. The experience does leave him worried, however, about how far Snape will go.
Harry, Ron, and Neville start morning exercises, as a precursor to learning martial arts; Hermione disapproves of taking self-defence into their own hands, instead of turning to the professors, but is unable to deny that Professor Snape is part of the problem.
At their first Flying lesson, Harry ensures that Neville keeps control of his broom, instead of crashing. However, Harry and Neville are both run down by Crabbe and Goyle, breaking Neville's wrist and knocking them both out, which gives Draco a chance to steal Ginny's latest letter. Harry furiously chases Draco down and narrowly retrieves the letter before the Whomping Willow can destroy it — which results in him attracting Professor McGonagall's attention to his flying skills, and him being appointed as Gryffindor Seeker. Despite the prospect of playing Quidditch again, Harry is chilled by his failure to meaningfully change events.
Tropes That Appear In This Chapter:
- Crime of Self-Defense: Snape tries getting Harry in trouble for "dueling in the corridors" when the only spell he cast was a defensive Protego, Draco, Crabbe and Goyle all attacking him all at once unprovoked.
- In Spite of a Nail: Even though Harry averted the theft of Neville's remembrall, Neville still winds up in the infirmary and Harry becomes Gryffindor's new seeker. As much as Harry likes playing Quidditch, this makes him think that You Can't Fight Fate and that the Bad Future will happen all over again, which scares him.Harry never imagined getting to play Quidditch would cause him to feel this much dread.
- Kung-Fu Wizard: Harry starts a morning exercise regimen for himself and his friends, with the intent of teaching martial arts, so they'll be better prepared for the coming war.
