"It's the first Quidditch match today," Rodolphus said to Severus at breakfast, early Sunday morning.
"I know," answered Severus, taking the ketchup from Rodolphus. "Slytherin versus Gryffindor. We're going to trounce them."
"And," Rodolphus went on in a low voice, "we've got only a week till Hallowe'en, and till Malfoy's meeting."
"I know," Severus whispered back. "We've got to find a passageway to Hogsmeade, and soon."
It seemed inconceivable that it had only been a week since Lily Evans had failed the Slytherins' dare. Fortunately for both houses, the incident had escaped the notice of Filch and the teachers, though Severus and Lily had spent a terrifying, seemingly never-ending stretch of time hiding in the shrubs near the front door, waiting for dawn for Filch to unlock the doors. In the end it was Rodolphus who, after waiting several hours in the Slytherin common room enjoying an unhealthy diet of fingernails, had come up and let them in through a ground-floor window.
"Don't tell me you've never seen a Quidditch match, Petula!" Bellatrix was exclaiming nearby, looking aghast.
Petula shrugged apologetically, drawing back one long golden braid from where it was trying to trail into her porridge. "My parents aren't really Quidditch fans."
"Oh, it's exhilarating!" Rodolphus said. "We've all been following Quidditch since we knew how to read. You'll love it, Petula—by the end of today's game, I warrant, you'll be writing home to your parents to beg for a broom for Christmas." Petula still looked dubious.
People were still filtering into the Great Hall in varying states of bleariness. Severus spotted Potter coming in with Lupin and waving to Black and Pettigrew, already seated at the Gryffindor table at the opposite end of the hall. As they passed the Slytherin table, Potter's gaze alit on Severus. His face hardened with hatred, but he did not have a chance to act on his obviously violent intentions, as Lupin had caught his sleeve and was steering him away.
As they passed the other tables Potter was greeted with surreptitious congratulations—the air of daring conferred on him by the attack on Filch had still not faded, and his and Black's popularity seemed sealed. Black, apparently the stupider of the two, accepted people's mislaid admiration without question. But Potter, though he never outright claimed his innocence, had clearly not lost sight of the fact that he and Black were not actually responsible, that they were being framed, nor of the fact that their detention with Filch was quickly approaching. So far Severus had managed to avoid being close to Potter in class—close enough to hex, that is—but he knew his luck wouldn't last. Potter would get revenge.
"Morning, Malfoy," Rodolphus said as Lucius Malfoy sat down at the table.
"Good morning," said Malfoy brightly, looking unusually cheery. He was already wearing his dark green Quidditch robes. "Coming to the match?"
"Of course!" said Rodolphus.
"Good," Malfoy said, grabbing a plate of sausages, "because we're going to pulverize Gryffindor today!"
Before the match, the stadium was packed, and the crowds were rumbling in anticipation. Severus climbed the stands with Rodolphus, Bellatrix, and Petula. They were all wearing their silver and green scarves and waving Slytherin pennants.
"I bet you a Galleon we'll win by at least a hundred points," Severus said to Rodolphus.
"I bet it's by a hundred and fifteen," Rodolphus said, grinning, "and let's make it five Galleons." They shook hands.
A cry rang out from below. "Hey Snivellus!"
The Slytherins looked up sharply to see Potter and his gang climbing the stands towards them.
Severus cursed quietly. "Don't fight, please," Petula whispered fiercely in his ear as the Gryffindors moved past them and settled into the row directly behind.
"I'm not making any promises," Severus whispered back.
"Why Snivellus, fancy meeting you here," said Potter, with thinly veiled menace in his voice. "That really was a lovely turn you did us the other day." Black wasn't listening; he was engaged in conversation with a pair of third-year Ravenclaw girls.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Severus said.
Potter laughed. "Don't you?" he said, his eyes flashing. "Well it certainly doesn't take someone of, say, Lestrange's genius to figure out who framed us for sneaking round."
"Lestrange's genius, ha!" cried Pettigrew, looking delighted.
Rodolphus reddened and shot back, with barely restrained venom, "At least I've got enough honour to not copy off my friends, Pettigrew."
It was Pettigrew's turn to blush.
"Don't worry, Snivellus," Potter hissed, "we'll pay you back twice over for what you did."
"Stop it," came a voice from further down Severus' row. Lily Evans' fiery head came into view from behind other spectators. "You've already lost us fifty points and got detentions with Filch, aren't you in enough trouble already?"
"This is none of your business, Evans," Potter growled.
"Professor Astaroth is sitting just a few rows down," Lily went on. Severus glanced down, and sure enough, there was Astaroth's veined scalp stretched thinly over the bulbous skull with its tufts of white hair. He shivered.
Lily's eyes darted briefly to Severus, who felt heat rise to his cheeks and they both looked away. For the past week they had carefully avoided each other. Since the night of the dare there had been something strange and unspeakably sad between them. Neither of them seemed to know how to make it go away.
"This doesn't concern you," Pottter said to Lily. "But if we're going to talk about losing things for our house-"
Lily turned bright red. A week had done little to ease the disgrace of failing Maud's dare. Severus had been lauded among his housemates, and it seemed Lily had received the opposite treatment among hers.
Diplomatically Lupin changed the subject. "Nice view up here," he said loudly.
"Yes, if you can see round the Slytherins' great big heads," Black replied. He jabbed Bellatrix's spine with his knee. "Budge up there, will you Bella?"
"You're the one with the big head, Black," Rodolphus snarled.
Black burst out laughing. "Sorry, Lestrange, forgot you're in love with her, I'll stop teasing your sweetheart if you ask me nicely!"
Both Bellatrix and Rodolphus started to jump up, red-faced, but Petula grabbed their arms and pleaded, "Forget him! We mustn't get into more trouble…"
"Swipe's the only one with any sense over there," Lily Evans said loudly, peering at them around the backs of her friends. They ignored her.
"Yes, wouldn't want to get your temper up, Bella," Black said mockingly. "Been taking your medication lately, haven't you? Because I certainly wouldn't want you expelled for your little tantrums."
"One more word, Sirius," breathed Bellatrix, "and I promise I'll take this pennant and-"
"And here they are!" came the bellow of Ludovic Bagman, a fourth-year who was commenting on the match with the aid of a magical megaphone. Bellatrix's next words were drowned out by the roars of the crowds, but Severus saw that Black, who was sitting just behind her, went slightly pale.
"Slytherin's coming out first-" All the Slytherin spectators cheered. Potter booed ostentatiously. "And here's the Gryffindor team!"
All the players zoomed up and down the pitch, to the bellows and applause of the crowds. Severus spotted Malfoy, the captain of the Slytherin team, blowing a kiss to Narcissa Black, who was waving a pennant and laughing.
"The captains come together to shake hands," Bagman blared, "and today we have the magnificent Madam Hooch as referee. There's the whistle, she throws the Quaffle into the air—Malfoy's got it now—there he goes, off like a shot! A pass to Blackadder, Blackadder to—oh, Gryffindor's Jones has taken the Quaffle! Pass to Vance, back to Jones, Jones shoots—no, it's been saved by the Slytherin Keeper! No score yet!"
"Fluke," scoffed Potter. They ignored him.
"Slytherin in possession—look out Malfoy, the Bludger! It's just missed him. Malfoy passes to Farrow—Vance intercepts—Vance gets a Bludger to the face! Nice hit, Jugson! Vance is bleeding quite badly—will Gryffindor be able to continue?"
"Two minutes in and they give up?" Severus said loudly. "Some team!"
"Vance is up again," announced Bagman as the Chaser got to her feet, having performed a charm on herself to stop the bleeding. "The match is resumed!"
"Poor Slytherin can't win on their own, they've got to resort to cheating," sneered Black.
"That was a perfectly fair hit!" Rodolphus snapped, wheeling angrily. "You Gryffindors just don't know how to fly!"
"Malfoy scores!" Bagman yelled. "Ten points to Slytherin!" Only Petula, Pettigrew and Lupin were listening to him anymore, and that was with some effort on their part. Severus, Rodolphus and Bellatrix were all twisted round in their seats, having a shouting match with Black and Potter.
"It's not our fault your team's rubbish this year," hissed Potter. "Making Malfoy captain—only mad old Astaroth could make a stupid decision like that!"
"He's not mad," Rodolphus snapped, "he's brilliant! You only hate him because you're all doing appallingly in his class!"
"You're one to talk," scoffed Black, "you're getting threes and fours on your essays and that's with his favour! It's time to face facts, Lestrange, you're daft as a brush!"
Rodolphus went utterly still. "What did you say?" he said in a low voice.
"Sorry, was I speaking too fast for you?" Black sneered, grinning. "You're stupid!"
Severus happened to blink at that moment, and when his eyelids came back up Rodolphus was already kneeling on Black's chest, the two boys a whirl of fists and expletives. Potter started to grab for Rodolphus but Severus was on his feet in half a second, his wand raised. "Redu-"
"Don't even try it!" Potter snarled, taking a hard swing at Severus.
And as if time had slowed down, Severus saw Potter's fist moving through the air, ever so slowly, directly into the path of his swishing wand. CRACK—in a moment Severus was left holding half a wand, which was spitting yellow sparks, and Potter was standing frozen with his clenched fist still hovering in front of him, and a horrified look on his face.
"Your wand!" Bellatrix shrieked, staring at it.
In another moment there was nothing left in Severus' hand but a little pile of ashes.
"Oh—Sev, I'm so sorry, I can't help it, you know I can't!"
Potter was still standing as if paralyzed. Severus quietly stepped over the flailing fracas of Rodolphus and Black and did what he'd wanted to do to Potter for a long time: punched him hard, right between the eyes.
Potter's glasses broke at the bridge; the two pieces fell to the floor with the other half of Severus' wand; and, clearly only barely able to see at all, Potter roared in rage and threw himself at Severus.
Petula, Pettigrew and Lupin were rooted to the spot, too shocked to move, but Bellatrix immediately joined the fray, a tempest of clawing nails and biting teeth. At one point she missed Potter and slashed Severus across the cheek, leaving behind a set of red bloody tracks.
But he hardly felt it, nor did he mind Potter's blows; they were both much weaker than Septimus Snape, to whose violent slaps and fists Severus had grown accustomed. He pursued with single-minded determination his objective of putting black bruises round Potter's hazel eyes, barely flinching as Potter split his lip, smeared the blood from Bellatrix's accidental slap across his cheeks-
"Stop!" Lily Evans cried.
She grabbed a handful of Potter's robes and tried to pull him off Severus. But her impetus was reversed as the two boys rolled over, still fighting obliviously, and she was yanked into the tumult with a shriek.
"Get off, Evans, this is no catfight!" grunted Potter as he found his arm pinned under her knee. Lily's frightened face darkened with outrage and she slapped him hard across the face, and the momentary look of satisfaction that followed told Severus she had been wanting to do that for a long time, too. The slap stunned Potter long enough for Severus to get a good grip on his throat…
Suddenly a burning white ball of light wedged itself between Severus, Lily and Potter and exploded, blasting them apart. In another moment a second ball of light introduced itself into the midst of Rodolphus, Black and Bellatrix, and they were all cast down as well.
The six of them lay sprawled across their seats, bruised, bleeding, and gasping for breath, as Professor Astaroth loomed over them. Severus nearly choked on the blood filling his mouth when he saw the wrathful look on his Head of House's already ghoulish face.
He spoke very, very quietly, but his words were not lost even in the sudden roar that erupted as Bagman announced another goal for Slytherin.
"All six of you," Astaroth said softly, "will come with me. Now."