Disclaimer - I do not own Harry Potter.

Slytherin's Potter

Chapter Four: Playing Dirty

The time for the match of Slytherin versus Gryffindor had snuck up on both teams, making them constantly fight on who got to practice on what days. No one knew exactly what was said during Lily and James's fight, but everyone was aware of the tension between the two. Lily had taken to not acknowledging her brother, or most of her family in fact. The only one she seemed to talk to was Hugo, and that was when one was trying to get a rise out of the other. It usually ended in one of them hexing the other.

To Lily's surprise, she hadn't gotten a letter from her parents concerning Scorpius, so Lily had the feeling that James had been bluffing. He couldn't tell them much without telling them about the whole fight.

"What a pansy," Scorpius had laughed when Lily told him of her suspicion.

Lily had taken to hanging around Scorpius Malfoy more often, partly because it annoyed her brothers, which she knew Scorpius enjoyed as well, but mainly because he was a good guy. He made her laugh, and she never dwelled on what her brother had said. And his calling her Lily Luna actually had spread, and now most of the Slytherins called her that, except for Jace and Lola. Lana didn't call her that either, just to go against Scorpius.

When the day of the match actually came, Lily chose to eat a full meal, but not enough to where she would end up throwing up. Part of her was a bit afraid. Aaron had briefed the team on the Gryffindor players, and told her that she would be going up against Albus. Lily had gulped. She knew Albus was a good Seeker. She had seen him play at home. She didn't know if she could actually beat him.

Lola seemed to read her mind. "Don't worry about Albus," she told Lily. "You're smaller, so you might be faster."

"Yeah," Jace agreed. "And if you're not, just tackle him off his broom."

Finally, Lily cracked a smile.

Later that afternoon, Lily was sitting with the rest of the team in the locker room. Aaron was pacing in front of them, trying to find the words he wanted to say. "Alright, team. This is the biggest game for us. We've lost the past few years, but this time I think we can do it. We actually have a good Seeker." He grinned at Lily. "And from what I hear, little Albus is a little shook up about having to go against his sister. Any hesitation he shows could be the key. But James Potter's been pretty aggressive the past few days, so I need the other Chasers to watch out and be careful."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Lily joked. The others laughed.

Aaron finally smiled. "Alright. Let's head out."

They all walked out into the stadium and toward the middle. The Gryffindor team had already come out and had been announced.

"And on the Slytherin team, Captain Aaron Goyle, Adrian Flint, and Scorpius Malfoy are playing as Chasers. Dante Montague is back as Keeper, just as Raven Bole and Lars Goyle are back as the Beaters. And the new popular player is their Seeker, Lily Potter. The first girl on the Slytherin team in a long time." Meredith Macmillan, an older Gryffindor, was commentating the games.

The teams made it to the middle, and Madam Hooch stood in the middle, the ball crate at her feet, and the Quaffle in her hands. The teams glared at each other. Lily caught Albus's eye, and Aaron had been right. He seemed hesitant.

"I want a clean game," Madam Hooch told them. "Captains shake hands."

Aaron and a burly sixth year Gryffindor that Lily was sure was Corbin Wood, walked forward and tensely shook hands. When they parted, they were both flexing their fingers.

"Mount your brooms," Madam Hooch called when the captains rejoined their lines. Lily mounted hers as she scanned the Gryffindor team. It consisted mainly of her family members. James and Rose were both Chasers, Lucy the Keeper, Fred was a Beater, and Albus of course was their Seeker.

Suddenly, Madam Hooch gave a loud shrill with her whistle, and they all rose in the air. The Bludgers and Snitch were released, and the Quaffle was in the air. The game had begun.

"And James Potter had grabbed the Quaffle, and he's making a beeline for the goals. But Aaron Goyle is on his tail," Meredith spoke.

Lily flew up above the other players. Albus had done the same, but they stayed far away from each other. But Lily let her eyes stray toward her brother every so often. If he saw it, Lily was going to do her best to catch it first. But after a few minutes, Lily noticed that he was looking at her too, and when she caught his eye, he quickly looked away.

"The score is ten to ten, and Slytherin is in possession," Meredith said as the game continued. "It's a rough game so far. Malfoy's taking the Quaffle up the middle, but Rose Weasley steals the ball, but oh! She takes a Bludger to the shoulder, shot by Lars Goyle. Flint catches the ball and shoots off toward the Gryffindor goals. He makes it there, throws the Quaffle and . . . he scores," Meredith didn't sound all too happy. "Twenty to ten, Slytherin in the lead."

Suddenly, a glint of gold caught her eye, and Lily zoomed off toward it. But Albus had seen it too, and they were soon neck and neck, and both had a hand stretched out. But then James was in front of them, and they both ran into him. Albus wobbled, and Lily almost fell off her broom completely. The Snitch was gone.

"You can do better than her, Al!" James yelled as he flew away. The Slytherin team was yelling complaints, but Madam Hooch didn't call a foul, for they had both hit him. Lily was fuming. James was complaining about Scorpius playing dirty, but then he pulls this? Albus nodded at his brother, and then threw his shoulder into Lily as he went past her. Lily bit back the urge to take Jace's advice and tackle him. But both of them flew back up to resume their search from above.

"After a brief interruption by James Potter," the Slytherin crowd started to chant 'cheater', "we're back in the game, with Rose Weasley in possession."

The game continued for another hour and a half, and neither Lily nor Albus had caught sight of the Snitch again. The game was proving to be an even match.

"Goyle scores another ten points for Slytherin," Meredith said glumly. "That makes the score one hundred and forty to one hundred and ten, with Gryffindor in the lead." Those words seemed to cheer her up.

Lily was getting worried. The Gryffindor was stepping up their game, and Albus seemed much more alert. Words from the others started to come into her mind. "Just tackle him off his broom." "Any hesitation he shows could be the key." ". . . always plays dirty." Suddenly, Lily knew how she could make sure Albus wouldn't get the Snitch, but it would be a dirty tactic. She looked at her brother and thought back to the stunt James had pulled earlier, and how Albus had reacted toward her afterward. She didn't care anymore. She turned toward Albus and flashed through the air, she went past him and then went down into a dive. She carefully looked back, and just like she thought, Albus was following her.

"And it seems as if Lily Potter has seen the Snitch!" Meredith practically screamed. "Come on, Albus!" She wasn't the only one yelling. Most of the crowd was. Some of the other players had forgotten about their positions, and the Slytherin Chasers made three goals before the Gryffindor team was shaken back into the game. The game had tied now.

Quickly, Lily was getting closer to the ground, and Albus was still following her. Lily was starting to lose her nerves the closer the ground got, but she kept going. And when she was barely a foot above the ground, she pulled up sharply. Albus wasn't as lucky, and he crashed into the ground, rolling off his broom and skidding across the grass. There was a collective gasp among the crowd and the players. The voices that spoke became hysterical when Albus didn't get up. Lily ignored it all and flew back up into the air.

"Albus Potter is down after a dirty trick from the Slytherin Seeker," Meredith seethed. The Slytherin team cheered happily as Lily flew a lap past them. She caught Scorpius's eye, and he had his famous smirk on his lips.

"Good job," he said as she flew past him.

Lily smiled as she rose above the players. The game had started back to its fast pace, but Lily watched as Albus was levitated out of the pitch. Lily sighed as she lazily flew around the pitch. They didn't bring out another Seeker, and Lily wasn't surprised. In her mind, she thought that they had assumed Albus would be the best. They didn't think that he'd fall for a trick she played. So now, she had all the time and relaxation she wanted.

As the game went on, Lily saw the Snitch three or four times, but she didn't pursue it. She just kept above the air, and dodge a few Bludgers that went her way. A few times Lars Goyle had come up to bat them away.

"Way to go, Lily Luna," he told her once.

Lily grinned. "Just playing like a Gryffindor's Slytherin." Over the weeks since her and James's fight, Lily had learned what a Gryffindor's Slytherin was. Basically, it was just when you acted like what Gryffindors thought a Slytherin was. Sneaky, cunning, or 'dirty'. It was a common term among the older students.

Currently the game was a hundred and forty to a hundred and ninety. In their excitement about Albus's fall, the rest of the Slytherin team had started to overwhelm the Gryffindors. And Lily noticed that the Gryffindor team looked a bit panicky after their Seeker was knocked out.

After what seemed like forever, Aaron finally left the other Chasers, and flew next to Lily. "Hey, next time you see the Snitch, just go for it. We've got this in the bag," he said with a laugh.

Lily laughed too. "Alright. I'll get easy."

Aaron was laughing as he flew back into the game. Lily went back to actually looking for the Snitch. After a while, she laughed again. Find the Snitch was much harder when you weren't actually trying. But she finally caught a glint of gold hovering above the stands. Lily took off for it. Meredith didn't comment on it, but people had noticed, and the Slytherin team was cheering loudly. Lily followed the Snitch as it zoomed over the crowd, and then turned off onto the field. Lily stretched out her hand and snatched it out of the air on her turn. The Slytherin cheers seemed to deafen her.

"And Lily Potter catches the Snitch. The game ends with Gryffindor with one hundred and forty, and Slytherin three hundred and forty. Slytherin wins," Meredith said with a pout in her tone.

Lily landed on the ground, the Snitch still clutched in her hand. The rest of the team landed, and instantly surrounded her. Lars and Scorpius had hoisted her onto their shoulders. Lily grinned as she noticed the Gryffindor team landing.

"Hey, Potter!" she yelled across the field. The field seemed to quiet a little as she yelled. James looked back at her, his eyes full of anger. Lily grinned. "Thanks for congratulating about making the team. I couldn't have done it without your confidence!" she told him loudly.

The Slytherin team and crowd had bursted into laughter. Scorpius and Lars almost dropped her they laughed so hard. James glared furiously at her, and had to be herded into their locker room by Fred.

The two boys carried Lily to the locker room, but put her down so that she could go into the girls' room and change. Lily felt as if she were on an adrenaline high as she changed back into her clothes. She had never felt so giddy in her life. Winning that game had been exhilarating! She left the locker room to see that Scorpius was waiting for her with a smirk.

"That was a brilliant play," he told her.

Lily laughed. "Yes, I thought so too. But I wasn't sure if Potter would be stupid enough to follow after me."

Scorpius chuckled. "I'm not sure if I've ever seen anything so satisfying as him crashing to the ground. Are you going to go visit him?" he mocked.

Lily scoffed. "If the wounded kitty wants me to visit, he'll ask for me."

Scorpius laughed at the shot against Albus. Soon Jace, Lola, and Lana found them.

"That was an amazing game!" Jace cheered.

"And of course they're throwing a party in the common room," Lana told them.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Scorpius said with a grin.

Lily was exhausted the next day. The party was fun, but Lily spent a lot time talking with other Slytherins who wanted to congratulate her on catching the Snitch and, most of all, for knocking out Albus. Lily had accepted it, but she didn't get to bed until late, and she was trying her best not to fall asleep at breakfast.

For the next few weeks, an older Slytherin accompanied Lily in the halls. The Gryffindors were proving to be sore losers, and they tried to send most of their anger and hexes toward Lily. Even James had confronted her before one of her classes. He didn't say a word, but had just loomed over her, glaring. After a moment, he walked away. Lily expected to see a teacher, something to explain why he just walked away, but there was nobody else there.

Albus was let out of the Hospital Wing two days after the game. Lily didn't actually talk to him, but rumors had reached her that he was furious with what she did. As he had apparently worded it, "she was just another dirty snake." Lily had laughed when Lars Goyle told her this.

December came up on them quick, and also passed in a cold blur, and soon they were all getting ready to leave for the holidays. Lily and the other first years were relieved. Teachers seemed to love adding on extra homework before the holidays came, and they needed the break. But Lily almost considered not going home at all. She wasn't sure if it was worth it to go home, knowing that she would have to face her brothers practically every day, and she knew that trouble would brew. But when Professor Longbottom came around with the sign-up sheet for those staying for the holidays, Lily let it pass over her.

"So, Lily Luna," Scorpius asked one day at breakfast, "what does your family do at Christmas?"

"Well, we all go to my grandparents' house on Christmas Eve, we stay the night, and then spend Christmas there as well," Lily explained. "It's always really crowded, because sometimes other come over as well."

"Like?" he prodded.

"The Scamanders come over a lot. The Finnigans have joined us a few times, and so have Cody Thomas and his parents," Lily listed. "And there's already a lot of us, so you add more, and it gets kinda hectic." She looked at him. "What does your family do?"

"Well, on Christmas morning, I wake up and open presents with my parents and grandparents, and then my aunt, uncle, and cousins. Then we open more presents there, and have a big formal dinner that night. A little boring really," Scorpius mused.

"At least you get to hang around your cousins," Lily said. "Or are they younger?"

"Younger, but Tanner's only a year younger, so I mostly talk with him," Scorpius told her.

Lily bit her lip in thought. "Wait, Tanner Zabini?"

Scorpius grinned. "Yeah, that's my cousin. He's got three younger siblings, but they're really little."

"At least you have one person to be around," Lily replied.

"Well, more come over," Scorpius told her. "It's not just the Malfoys and Zabinis that have dinner together."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked.

"Well, the Goyles come over as do the Flints, the Averys, and the Montagues," Scorpius said as he ticked them off his fingers. "So the dinner gets a little crowded, but it's pretty quiet otherwise."

"Well at least you're not related to them all. I have to put with them all for two days, and still see them afterwards," Lily reminded him.

Scorpius gave her a mock sympathetic look. "I hope you make it through the den of lions."

Lily gave a fake shudder. "I just hope lions don't eat snakes."

The train ride back to King's Cross was much more fun than the ride to Hogwarts had been, mainly because she didn't have to listen to her brothers gush about Houses and Hogsmeade. Instead she was sitting in a compartment with Lola and Jace, and a huge pile of sweets in the middle of the compartment.

"Finally, a long break with no homework!" Jace groaned as he stretched across the seat. He was sitting across the girls, and no had his legs stretched out along the seat.

The girls giggled. Lily sighed as she picked up a Chocolate Frog. She took a bite out of the frog, but out of habit, she took a look at the card. She wasn't a collector, but Hugo was, and she always gave the cards to him. What was she going to do with Falco Aesalon now? Could she force herself to give it to Hugo? She doubted he would take it anyway. He had been particularly furious with her about the Quidditch match.

"Are you going to keep that card?" Lola asked.

Lily raised a brow. "You collect them?"

Lola laughed. "No, but some of my brothers do. I like seeing them argue over who gets what card. Sometimes they end up in fist fights." She rolled her eyes.

Lily laughed. But she kept onto the card. "Actually, I think I'm going to keep this one."

Lola only shrugged as she opened her own Chocolate Frog. Lily shoved the card into her pocket.

Upon reaching King's Cross, Lola grabbed Lily in a tight hug. "You'd better write. I don't think I can handle having to deal with my brothers again. I'll need help to get through it," she told her.

Lily laughed as she pulled back from the hug. "Right back at you."

Lola looked toward Jace, and her face was a bit tighter. "Have a good Christmas, big ears," she taunted.

Lily rolled her eyes, but Jace smiled widely. "And you, dirty." Then he turned to Lily and gave her a quick hug. "I'll probably flood your house with letters. As an only child I tend to get very bored."

Lily smiled. "Don't worry, I'll just throw a few of them in the fireplace," she teased.

Jace grinned. "As long as you write one back. Goodbye, you two." And with a nod, he turned and walked away.

Lily looked back at Lola. "Perhaps I can get my parents to let you stay over. Have a good Christmas."

"Hurry up, Lola!" Lola's sister yelled from behind them.

Lola ignored her. "You too, Lily. Bye."

"Bye." Lily watched as Lola walked off toward her older sister. Lily sighed and made her way through the crowd and looked for her family. But soon it wasn't hard to see her uncle Ron's red hair over the top of the crowd. But before she could get there, someone had grabbed her wrist. Lily turned around to see the handsome face of Scorpius Malfoy. On his lips was his usual smirk.

"Glad I caught you, Lily Luna," he said with amusement.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Caught me is right." He let go, and she started walking, but Scorpius kept pace with her. "So what did you want?" she asked.

"I just wanted to wish you a happy Christmas, and to ask you what you want me to send you? I have no idea what to get you," Scorpius replied.

Soon Lily's family came into sight, so Lily stopped walking. She wanted to avoid a fight. Scorpius stopped as well, but she knew that he noticed her family as well.

"How about you don't get me anything," Lily suggested. "It's not necessary."

Scorpius waved off the idea. "I guess I'll just have to surprise you. Have a happy Christmas," he told her. And then, probably to spite her brothers, Scorpius Malfoy wrapped her into a hug. Lily felt her cheeks heat up a bit, but she hugged him back. When he pulled away, Lily noticed that his cheeks were a little pink as well. He handed her a small box.

"Happy Christmas, Lily Luna," he said once again.

Lily smiled. "Happy Christmas, Scorpius," she murmured.

With one last smirk, Scorpius turned around and walked away. Lily watched until he was lost in the crowd, and then she looked back at the box. She flipped it over and read the label. 'Crystalized Pineapple'. How had he known she liked it? But she only grinned and shook her head. She shoved the small box into her jacket pocket. It stuck out a little, but it didn't fall as she walked toward her family once again.

"Looks like Lily's got a little boyfriend," Hugo mocked, his brow furrowed.

"Like Hell she does!" James growled.

Lily ignored him, but she looked toward Hugo. "Don't worry, Hugo. I'm sure you'll get one as well someday."

She heard a few sniggers, and Hugo's ears turned a bright red. He opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by his mother.

"Children, enough," Hermione told them, setting a hand on Hugo's shoulder. He looked as if a hundred pounds had been placed on him, and he shut his mouth.

"Besides, Lily does not have a boyfriend, " Harry muttered.

Lily bit back a smile. "Of course, Dad. I'm only eleven, and no one's that lucky."

"I would put anything past a Slytherin, Dad," Albus seethed calmly.

This time Lily had to bite back hurt along with anger.

Lily was tense the entire ride home, and as soon as she had entered the house she took her things to her room and stayed there. After everything that Albus had said, Lily didn't want to see her brothers at all.

And she stayed in her room for almost two days, only leaving to use the bathroom. She had Kreacher bring her meals to her, and to take them back. Lily wrote to the others, giving brief note on how she was herself. The only person who came up to see her was Teddy. He never spoke of te others, or about how she was her House. He asked about classes and her friends. Lily told him everything, happy to have someone in her family to talk to. There was someone in her family that she could still trust.

"You should write me more often," he told her on the second day.

Lily decided to tease him. "And why is that?"

Teddy smiled. "Because then you won't have to bottle it up, and then bottle yourself up here until you explode," he replied.

Lily rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to explode."

But Teddy just shrugged. "I worry." His tone let Lilt know that the words were a lie. It wasn't him that was worried. It was everyone else. Her parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents, and probably Victoire. Teddy never worried about her. He knew she'd talk to him about anything.

He didn't say anything else on the matter. He changed the subject to Quidditch, but then soon excused himself.

On the third day back, Lily finally left her room. She just wanted to act as if nothing had happened, as if she hadn't spent almost forty-eight hours in her room. But as soon as she came down for lunch, her mother was immediately fussing over her. She tried to get Lily to talk about it, but Lily didn't want to. She didn't think her mum would understand.

Her father came home an hour or so after lunch, and he was happy to see his daughter out and about. He too tried to talk to her about everything, but Lily kept silent.

At dinner, Lily decided to risk her refusal to talk.

"Mum, Dad," she addressed.

"Yes?" Harry asked.

Lily momentarily bit her lip, but then she steeled her nerves. "I've been writing to a friend of mine the last two days," she started. "Her name's Lola Pritchard. I was wondering if she could stay over for a day or two?"

Lily noticed that her brothers looked cross at the idea, but both of her parents smiled. "I don't have a problem with that," Harry told her with a smile.

So the next day, Lily waited in the living room for Lola to come. Her brothers hung around too, but with sullen looks. They didn't say a word to her. When a knock finally sounded, Lily hurried to the door. Upon opening it she found Lola standing there with a bag, her cheeks pink.

"My father Apparated me a few blocks away," she told her. "He walked back after we found the house."

Lily grinned and shook her head. "Well come into the kitchen. My mum wants to meet you."

Lily led her into the kitchen to introduce Lola, but then both girls quickly stole off to Lily's room.

"So, how have the last few days been for you?" Lola asked.

Lily sighed. "I'm ignored by both of my brothers, and fussed over by my parents. It's been great!" she mocked.

Both girls laughed. "My little siblings haven't left me alone. They repeatedly ask questions about Hogwarts. Especially Johnny," Lola complained.

"Why does he ask a lot?" Lily asked curiously.

Lola hesitated. "Well, . . . he really wants to go to Hogwarts too."

Lily wasn't surprised. She had been like that too. But she didn't understand why Lola seemed so guarded about the subject. But she didn't want to keep the thick air. "So, how many siblings do you have?"

"Ten."

"Are you serious?" Lily said in astonishment. Her own grandmother had only seven children.

Lola nodded grimly. "Yeah, seven boys and four girls including me. It's a mess."

"I'd imagine," Lily agreed. "This place is a mess with just two boys!"

"Well, my mum said that she wanted a big family since she was an only child. I have no cousins at all, so all the siblings make up for it, I guess."

"Well, I have nine cousins, I think," Lily said, trying to count in her head. "So I think that there's thirteen of us, counting Teddy of course."

"Ever wish you were an only child too?" Lola asked.

Lily sighed again. "Not until recently."