The gossip was all over the school next day: Harry Potter had not been expelled, but instead made the youngest Seeker in centuries and given a top-of-the-range racing broom.
Marisa was, to say the least, not happy. She was currently ranting to Leo under her breath during lunch. He probably wasn't listening, but she kept going anyway.
"I can fly just as well as he can, the only reason I didn't do that was that I'm not a complete and utter idiot, I bet if he wasn't the Boy Who Lived he would have been expelled for that, it's just blatant favouritism…"
"Marisa," said Leo, "if you don't shut up, I'll tell someone about that Remembrall."
She stopped, took a deep breath, and then said calmly, "You noticed? I thought everyone would be too distracted to see."
"Exactly. I have enough sense to know that when everyone else is distracted is when someone who's actually competent will do something secret, so I don't let myself be distracted."
Marisa nodded. "Is that a serious blackmail attempt, or are you just joking?"
"Semi-serious. If I really wanted to blackmail you, I'd find something more important."
Marisa laughed. "I'll make sure not to give away any secrets of mine. Anyway, I thought we were allies."
"We are," Leo replied, "but that doesn't mean we can't blackmail each other."
Marisa nodded. "Too true. Now, I was wondering, could you help me with something…?"
Approximately fifteen minutes later, Marisa was perched on a rickety broom thirty feet in the air, trying not to look down as she executed a series of twists and turns.
Leo, meanwhile, was staying firmly on the ground and watching. He glanced around regularly to check that nobody was watching.
Marisa had consulted the school rules and seen that there was a ban on first-years using brooms without supervision.
What the rules didn't specifically mention was who exactly was qualified to supervise. Technically Marisa hadn't broken the rules, but she doubted any teachers would actually let her off on that count. Except, possibly, Professor Snape. Leo might have some degree of influence with him.
As she angled her broom for a steep dive, Leo glanced at his watch. "We only have five minutes before we'll be missed. We should go."
Marisa nodded reluctantly and brought her broom to the ground. "Same time tomorrow?" she asked.
"No, I don't think we should do this every day. Next week. I'd better go." And with that, Leo hurried off.