Grounded
Summary: After James Potter is forced to retire early from professional quidditch he struggles to find direction. Perhaps helping a talented ice skater fulfill her dreams of winning a gold medal will get him back on track.
AO3
Chapter one: Rock bottom
James felt the surge of adrenaline as he heard the roar of the crowd intensify over the wind whistling past his ears. This was what he loved about the game. The crowds, the passion, the everything or nothing feeling. The way the noise of the crowd followed every swing of the game like waves surging and crashing. When the crowd roared his heart swelled, this was the only way to feel truly alive.
His team was at the top of the league table and were all feeling pretty unstoppable. They were the best, no other team was even coming close. It was almost getting too easy. The whole team was still riding high from their last victory, beating last year's champions. Perhaps the team were overconfident going into this match, perhaps they were not as prepared as they probably should have been. But this game was hard. They were still winning, but they were having to take greater risks against a much more physical team. A team that didn’t mind how hard they pushed.
It only took him a few more moments to realise it wasn’t the move he had just put past his opposition that had the crowd going wild, but his teammate making an impressive dive for the snitch. Knowing this catch would end the game and get them off the field, James turned his broomstick in a fast but fluid motion to support her if needed. She was an incredible seeker, the superstar of their team. So skilled she made the rest of them look average. He knew the only way she wasn’t ending this game in the next few moments was by the opposition trying something illegal.
They were known to not shy away from dirty tricks to take the seeker out of the game, and by the way they were amassing they were definitely up to something. They had already managed to stop her and make the snitch disappear an hour earlier. Not that it had helped their chances any, in fact it had given James the opportunity to increase his own personal record, and become his team's highest goal scorer this season. James tucked the quaffle more securely into the crook of his arm as he took a defensive position between the seeker and his counterpart chaser, who didn’t seem to be at all interested in trying to get the quaffle from him. Something was definitely up. Their team were not behaving like a team that was willing to accept the fact they were being resoundingly beaten.
There was a flicker of something unexpected, a glimpse. All his instincts told him there was no way the seeker would be able to avoid it.
James didn’t hesitate when he positioned his body to take the hit.
The last thing he heard before losing consciousness was the announcer calling a good catch.
continue the chapter on AO3 here
