Lily Potter and the Potions Master (Year 2)

by RainyDaySunlight

The second book in my Lily Potter series. (Find book 1 in my profile) - Returning for her second year, Lily is feeling determined to accept her life as a Slytherin despite continued clashes with housemates, family, and a particular blonde boy who can't seem to leave her alone. (Lily/Scorpius)

22. Game Day Revenge

A/N: Thank you for the patience! Sorry for vanishing all month. It's been crazy life. Here is an extra long update! I had such a hard time with this chapter for some reason. I just really wanted it to work out a certain way and it fought me the whole way! But hopefully you enjoy the outcome. I will try to get the next update up MUCH faster. Promise promise! Only 3 chapters left of this book :) Please let me know what you think.

Chapter 17: Game Day Revenge

As she had promised, Lily woke the next morning feeling motivated and determined to finally tell her family everything she had been keeping from them since January. She just needed to figure out a way to convince her brothers to not tell her parents.

Julianne walked with Lily to the Gryffindor table at breakfast. Lily planned to eat with her family and then ask them to join her by the lake for a conversation; she had insisted Julianne not leave her side for fear she would lose her nerve entirely.

Rose and Albus were in the middle of a conversation about a test Rose refused to study for, that Albus was insisting she needed to be more serious about, while Louis and Hugo were eagerly opening up their Saturday morning mail that had arrived a few moments before. A quick scan of the table, showed Lily that James hadn't yet arrived, and neither did she see the two beaters, which made her feel a little more easy about sitting down beside Rose.

"Morning Lil!" Rose smiled at Lily. "Twice in a row? What did we do to earn your special treatment?"

"Oh, just wanted to chat with you guys," Lily said, trying to keep her voice calm and not shaky with the anxiety she truly felt. "Anything interesting in your letter?" She turned her attention to Louis.

"Victoire took a job in France!" Louis said.

"She what?" Lily frowned. "So far away from Teddy?"

"Apparently they alternate weekends visiting each other," Louis read from his letter. He shrugged.

Lily frowned. Remembering how hard it was for Teddy and Vic to be apart during Vic's final year at Hogwarts, Lily was surprised she would choose to make this move now. Everyone had been anticipating an engagement announcement soon after her graduation, but it had yet to happen, and now Lily wondered if something was wrong in their relationship. She would have to owl Teddy about it. She frowned to herself, realizing that she had let herself become so consumed with her own emotional and mental turmoil over the past few months at school, she had lost touch with many of her relatives outside of school. She used to owl Teddy weekly, but she couldn't remember the last time she had written him a letter now. She had even slacked on writing to her parents. Her guilt and sadness momentarily clouded her mind, but it was quickly replaced by anxiety when James finally turned up to the table. Roxie and Dominique weren't far behind him.

"Hiya Lils!" James greeted her. His amber eyes were unusually bright, the light dusting of freckles across his nose — the only trait from his mum he shared with Lily — were more prominent due to the flush across his cheeks, and he looked out of breath as though he had been running. "Morning everyone!"

"Alright James?" Albus asked, staring up at his big brother with his questioning emerald eyes.

"Alright?" James beamed. "I'm great!"

"Feel like sharing what has you all worked up like this?" Rose asked.

Roxie and Dom were grinning now too, standing on either side of James.

"I just had a meeting with Eli," James started. Lily knew Eli Denver was the seventh year Gryffindor seeker and captain.

"And?"

"Well, he's finally made it official!" James said.

"Made what official?" Lily asked, but Rose had started grinning and clapping her hands. Lily and Julianne exchanged confused shrugs.

"It's not even the end of the year yet though!" Rose said, she had stood now and thrown her arms around James in a clearly congratulatory hug.

Lily was feeling more confused.

"What are you on about?" Lily asked. "Can you clue in a non Gryffindor, please?"

"Eli named me Captain!" James said. "I'll officially start next year, of course, but he already spoke with Professor Longbottom and McGonagall about it and they agreed to let me captain the final game as practice."

Lily felt her heart burst with both pride for her brother, but also crumble with the sudden realization that she could not do what she had come there to do. She stood, tugging on Julianne's sleeve to make her do the same.

"That's fantastic, James. I'm really proud of you. I don't know of a lot of fifth year captains in Hogwarts history!" Lily gave her brother a hug. She forced a smile for the rest of the table and waved. Julianne followed her back towards the Slytherin table.

"Lil! You promised you'd tell them this morning," Julianne whispered as they walked.

"I can't right now," Lily said.

Julianne frowned but remained silent until they took their seats at the Slytherin table. They sat across from each other at the end of the table, but before Lily had even managed to pour herself a cup of tea, they were joined by Regina, and a moment later, Scorpius. They sat down on the bench on either side of Lily.

"Well?" Regina asked expectantly.

"She didn't tell them," Julianne said.

Lily scowled at her best friend.

Regina rolled her eyes. "Why not?"

"Look, I just couldn't right now, alright? Things changed. James was just given the captain spot for Gryffindor. He's in charge of the final game now. I couldn't do that to him!" Lily said.

"They gave a fourth year captain?" Scorpius asked.

"Well, officially he'll start next year, but he gets to lead the final game," Lily explained.

"Even more reason to tell him then," Regina said. "As Captain, he should not let those two bastards be a part of the team. Don't you agree?"

"Of course I do," Lily said, feeling exasperated and slightly like crying. "If I tell him now though it'll ruin the game for him. He won't have time to find and train two new beaters before next Saturday. It'll seem like I only told him to ruin their chances. I can't do that. He's so excited. He deserves a fair chance at beating us. If I make him get rid of his beaters, I'll be taking away that chance."

Scorpius sighed and nodded slightly. Lily was relieved to see that he at least seemed to understand her reasoning. Regina rolled her eyes.

"Bloody Quidditch."

"I'll tell them after the game," Lily said. "I promise. Nothing will stand in my way then."

Regina stood. "Fine. For the record, I think you're wrong here." She walked away.

"You understand, right?" Lily asked Scorpius.

"I understand why you think you're making the right choice, but I agree with Regina. I think it's wrong. I don't think it's fair for you to have to play the final game against those two. I don't think it's fair to let your brother have his moment when it costs you so much pain."

Lily sighed and stared down at her plate, feeling her appetite vanish.

"I've got homework," she said. "Jules, I'll see you later." Lily stood and left the table. She wasn't in the mood to hear anyone else tell her how she was making the wrong choice for her life. She sought quiet by the lake, finally giving in to her eyes' want for tears.

…

"Jules! Where's that green ribbon?" Lily called from the bathroom through to the closet space where Julianne was dressing.

"I'll get it!" Julianne called back and a moment later she entered the bathroom dressed in tight black jeans and a bright green tank. She was holding the ribbon out to Lily and carrying a silver sweater in her other hand. "Want help?"

"Yes please," Lily turned around so Julianne could do her hair. She braided it halo style around the top of Lily's head, weaving the ribbon in throughout. "You are so talented with hair!" Lily told her friend as she glanced in the mirror to admire the finished product.

Julianne shrugged. "It helps having a best friend with such long amazing hair to play with!"

Lily smiled.

"Ready for breakfast?" Julianne asked.

"I just need to get my boots." Lily moved back into the bedroom and sat on the side of her bed to pull on and lace up her black flying boots. "All set!" She tossed a pillow to the bed beside hers where Kenny was still sleeping. "Get up! It's game day!"

Kenny moaned, but rolled over and blinked open her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I'm up."

"See you in a bit then," Lily smiled and followed Julianne out of the room and upstairs for breakfast.

"How are you feeling about the game?" Julianne asked as they climbed the steps.

"Oh, just great," Lily said, trying to sound positive though her full lips were pulled into a tight line and her pale green eyes were darker than usual.

"Yeah right," Julianne rolled her eyes. "It's okay to admit you're scared, you know?"

"I'm not," Lily said. She sighed. "It's not fear. I'm not afraid of those guys. They're not going to do anything to me on the pitch. I just feel so angry. I'm angry with myself for not having the strength to say something, and I'm angry that they've put me in that position. I still don't know what I'm going to say to James and Al and the others when we talk later. He's going to be so upset with me for keeping it from him."

"He's not going to be mad at you!" Julianne argued. "If anything he'll just be sad you didn't tell him earlier."

"You don't know James well," Lily said. "You only know the James that he lets people see here at school. He has a temper. A really big one. I'm scared for what he might do when I tell him."

"You mean to the beaters? Who cares. Let him."

Lily shook her head. "I'm not going to let James get in potential trouble for me."

"You are going to tell him after the game though, right?" Julianne asked. "You promised."

"Yes, I am," Lily said.

"And Willoughby?"

Lily sighed, but nodded.

Breakfast was boisterous. All the tables were loud with enthusiastic chatter in anticipation of the big game. Lily noted the Gryffindor table, awash in red and gold, and the Slytherin table shining in silver and green. The two tables between were fairly decorated in red and gold as well, as she had come to expect, but what she hadn't expected was the few students here and there at Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw who were also wearing Slytherin green. She made a quick detour to the Ravenclaw table where Leona was sitting with her brothers, all three wearing green shirts. Leona had even painted a very detailed snake on her cheek.

"Thanks for the support, you guys!" Lily smiled at the Scamanders.

Leona smiled and pulled Lily in for a hug. "As if I wouldn't support my best friend."

Lysander and Lorcan stood and gave Lily their traditional sandwich style hug, both kissing one of her cheeks.

"Kick some lion butt today, Lils!" Lorcan told her.

"I plan on it!" Lily said, she smiled as they released her.

Leona patted both brothers on the head as they resumed their seats, then gathered her bag and cup of tea, following Julianne and Lily to the Slytherin table. She didn't often sit with the girls there, but Lily was pleased that she did that morning.

They ate quickly, discussing only the game and how much they were looking forward to celebrating Lily's birthday the following week. Leona and Julianne both avoided discussing the beaters or the conversation Lily knew she'd have to have with her family post-game. Lily avoided eye contact with Scorpius throughout breakfast, though she knew he was sitting just halfway down the table with the other third year boys. She wasn't ready to see the questions and concern in his eyes.

After breakfast, Lily walked down to the pitch with Leona and Julianne, saying goodbye to them at the door to the locker rooms. They hugged her, wished her luck, and ran off to find seats.

Lily entered the Slytherin locker room, trying to keep her head high and her anxiety low. Spending the morning with her best friends helped to keep her mind off of the game and the Gryffindor beaters. Now though as she sat on the bench, listening to the rest of the team chat about the game, she felt her nerves getting the best of her again.

Payne walked over to her and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. "You good, Potter?"

She frowned at the tone of his voice, but nodded.

"You can do this," he said, again in that strange tone, as though he was trying to say more than he had.

She nodded. He gave her a tight smile, then walked away to prep the rest of the team. Scorpius sat beside Lily on the bench.

"How are you feeling about today?" He asked.

"Oh just fine," she said.

He frowned at her. "Really? No anxiety? No concerns?"

"I'm fine, Scor," she said. "I'm just going to focus on the snitch and win us the cup, right?"

He smiled and reached out to squeeze her hand. "That's right. You just focus on winning us the cup."

Despite her determined resolve to not think about the beaters at all that morning, with Scorpius there trying to comfort her, she couldn't help herself. "I'm scared, Scor."

He let out a sigh.

"What if I see them and freeze up? What if I can't focus? What if I do something stupid?"

"You won't," he said.

"But what if I do. You know what a wreck I've been these past few weeks, and that was without knowing who they were. What if now when I'm there flying with them I just can't…"

He slipped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in for a tight hug. "You can do this, Lily. You are strong and brave and the best damn seeker Slytherin has ever had."

She laughed slightly. "Wasn't your dad a seeker?"

Scorpius nodded. "Yes he was. And I said what I said."

She laughed again and returned the hug.

"You will not let those bastards win this game," he said. "I know you. You'll fight and you will take this victory."

"Thanks," she said.

They were interrupted suddenly when Lucy entered the locker room. She was wearing jeans and a red sweater, but Lily noticed she had a silver and green scarf wrapped around her neck.

"Lucy!" Lily stood and gave her cousin a hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a message for your captain," Lucy said.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Really Luce? Before a game? You couldn't have waited to snog your boyfriend later?"

Lucy laughed. "Trust me we snogged plenty this morning. This message isn't from me." She moved toward Payne and whispered something in his ear. He frowned briefly, nodded, and followed her out of the tent.

"They're definitely going to snog more," Scorpius said, laughing slightly. "Also, didn't realize your cousin was hooking up with Payne."

"Oh yes, I've known for a while," Lily said. "I'm not sure the rest of the family does."

"Yeah, wouldn't want to stain the family name with a Slytherin boyfriend."

Lily rolled her eyes. "I'm a Slytherin too, in case you forgot."

"I didn't." He smiled. "So I guess that means you're allowed to have a Slytherin boyfriend?"

Lily couldn't prevent the blush that took over her cheeks, and she had to look away from him suddenly. "I'm not planning to date anyone anytime soon." She answered, still without looking at him.

She could feel him still staring at her, but she busied herself with fixing the laces on her boots to avoid him.

Payne returned and gathered the team for one last pep talk before leading the way out to the pitch. Lily jumped to her feet, eager to get away from Scorpius.

The crowd roared to life with cheers as both teams met at the center of the field. Professor Woods held the snitch in one hand and his whistle in the other, waiting for both teams to approach him. Lily's eyes fell first on her brother, leading the Gryffindor team, his new captain's badge shining on his uniform. She smiled at him. He looked so proud, but there was something else in his eyes as he glanced at her that she couldn't quite place. She assumed it was just nerves at competing against her again, and tried to ignore it. Then her eyes shifted to Rosie standing to James' left and Dominique on his right. She smiled at both of them, getting a wink from Rosie and a head nod from Dom. The two beaters stood behind James, their height giving her the perfect view of their narrowed eyes and smirks as they stared her down.

She flinched and looked away. Scorpius was suddenly standing directly next to her. She didn't know when he got there, but he pressed his arm against hers firmly, and let his fingers graze hers. It was a comforting motion, slight, but enough to be reminded of his support.

"You can do this," he whispered in her ear. "You're stronger than they are. You're braver than they are. You're better than they are."

She nodded, resolutely determined not to cry or fall apart in front of the entire school. Instead she grasped his hand, squeezing it tightly. He didn't pull away, but instead reciprocated by squeezing back.

"I'm here for you," he whispered. "You're not alone in this."

"Keepers to position." Professor Wood announced.

Scorpius squeezed Lily's hand one more time before releasing her and climbing on his broom, instantly flying up to the Slytherin goal posts. James flew to the Gryffindor side simultaneously. Lily held tightly to her broom, feeling suddenly alone without Scorpius' reassuring presence. She didn't have to wait long though before Wood had blown the whistle signaling for the rest of the players to take to the sky as he released the snitch and the game began.

Lily's instincts told her to fly high and stay out of the way of the game going on beneath her. It was her usual method, and the best way to observe the chaos below while having better perspective to watch for the golden snitch. Tonight, however, within mere moments of flying high, she realized the two Gryffindor beaters were following her. Panic settled in the depths of her stomach and she felt momentarily overcome by her fear. She didn't move. She wasn't even sure if she was breathing anymore.

It wasn't until the bludger hit her broom, narrowly missing her hand, that she snapped back to reality and managed to swerve her broom into a dive away from the beaters, back down to the main action of the game. She circled around behind the goal posts, hovering slightly behind Scorpius as she caught her breath and forced herself to refocus.

You can do this. She repeated to herself silently, closing her eyes briefly to take slow breaths the way Madam Rougal had taught her.

"You can do this."

She suddenly heard her same words being shouted to her and opened her eyes to see Scorpius flying towards her.

"You're strong. You've got this," he said, close enough now to not have to shout.

"Scorpius! Get back in front of the goals!" Lily gasped. She pointed to his abandoned position. "Dom is flying this way."

"Are you good?" He asked, not flying away.

"I'm good," she said. "Go!"

He waited another moment, his eyes searching her face. She forced herself to look confident and nod firmly at him. Then he nodded at her and returned to his post, just in time to block the quaffle that Dom had sent his way.

Lily hovered there for another minute before flying higher again, trying to resume her watch on the snitch. Only a moment passed, however, before the beaters were following her again, this time circling her on either side, tossing the bludger back and forth between them over her head while grinning at her in what she felt was a very menacing manner. She turned her broom down and dove quickly, trying to escape them. Before she cleared them entirely, one of them sent the bludger after her and it crashed hard against the end of her broom, sending her spiraling across the pitch unable to regain her control.

Lily held tightly to her broom, feeling a strange desperation to scream or cry, but nothing came out of her throat as she continued crashing through the air. Everything was spinning so fast around her, she closed her eyes to keep from getting sick. She was stopped suddenly when her body crashed hard into a solid form. Still keeping her eyes shut, she found herself suddenly drawing in long gasps of breath as her heart tried to slow down.

"Lils, are you okay?" Her brother's voice was loud and heavy with panic.

She opened her eyes slowly and found herself cradled against her brother's red and gold clad chest.

"Are you okay?" He repeated, now placing one hand beneath her chin, forcing her to look up at him. She saw the worry in his eyes and tried to nod to reassure him.

"I'm okay," she said, finding her voice slightly raspier and quieter than she had meant it to be.

"You sure?" He demanded, his eyes still searching her as though looking for signs of her being broken.

Lily glanced towards the goal posts, now far above and behind James. "James, no one is watching your goals!"

"Don't worry about it," he said. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head. Her brother was not going to lose this game because he was worried about her. Before she could argue him anymore, she felt another presence behind her and saw her brother's eyes deepen into a scowl.

"Payne called time-out."

Lily was surprised to hear Scorpius speaking behind her. She could see James clenching his jaw, but he nodded and when he spoke his voice was surprisingly calm, though perhaps somewhat forced.

"Thank you," James said. "She's okay."

"Yeah? That's good." Scorpius placed a hand on Lily's back and she turned to look at him. "You good, Lily?"

She couldn't quite wrap her mind around her brother and Scorpius Malfoy having an almost civil moment, but she managed to give Scorpius a slight smile of reassurance.

"Can you play?"

"Of course," she said.

"Alright let's get back to it." James nodded at Scorpius again in a strange almost secretive way that made Lily think she was missing something entirely.

Scorpius nudged Lily and she turned her broom to follow him back up towards the Slytherin goal posts. Lily noticed Payne waiting there speaking to Leo and Geoff. When she and Scorpius arrived, Payne nodded curtly to the beaters and they sped off, circling the pitch like vultures waiting to descend on their prey.

"Alright Lily?" Payne asked.

She nodded. "I'm good."

Payne squeezed her shoulder in a brief and strangely affirmative motion then flew off to alert Wood they were ready to resume play.

"Stay away from them the best you can," Scorpius said. "Just focus on that snitch and winning this game for us, yeah?"

"Sure, yeah, of course." Lily took a breath. "I've got this."

"Yes you do." Scorpius agreed. "I believe in you."

Unfortunately it took another long hour before Lily even spotted a flicker of gold. During that hour, Lily spent the majority of her time trying to ditch the Gryffindor beaters and avoid their dangerously thrown bludgers. They were merciless. Fortunately, after the time out Geoff and Leo were committed to defending Lily throughout the game. They beat off the frequent bludgers and returned plenty of their own. Lily had never had a more exhausting game; she didn't stop flying once, constantly having to maneuver away from the bludgers. She didn't even know the score or what was going on with the other players while she was too busy avoiding her own disasters.

When she finally saw the snitch, hovering near the commentators stand, she let out a sigh of relief and turned her broom that direction, diving quickly towards the snitch. Leo and Geoff blocked the Gryffindor beaters when they tried to follow her. Eli Denver, the Gryffindor seeker saw it too, but Lily's determination pushed her forward. The snitch eluded her, flying off towards the far end of the field by the Slytherin posts before she could grab it. That gave Denver the temporary advantage, but Lily didn't hesitate for a moment. She turned and leaned low on her broom, flying hard and fast directly towards where the snitch was currently flickering directly above Scorpius' head.

Scorpius' eyes widened as both Lily and Denver zoomed in on him. He ducked just in time as Denver flew too close to his head, while Lily swerved around him. They both reached out at the same time, but with one last burst of energy and focus, Lily's hand closed around the fluttering ball first. She grasped it tightly and held it up to show everyone.

Wood blew his whistle and called an end to the match. Scorpius flew to Lily, followed eagerly by the rest of the Slytherin team.

"I knew you could do it!" Scorpius told her, reaching out one arm from his broom and wrapping it around her in a half hug.

Lily's heart was still racing from the exhilaration of the game's end, and she was breathing heavily as the rest of the teammates caught up and tried to reward her with their own hugs or high fives. She was thrilled she had won, but the stress of the game and the way the beaters had chased her throughout was still heavy on her and at the moment, the idea of being touched, hugged, or surrounded by people was overwhelming. She slipped out of Payne's hug and soared down towards the ground, eager to avoid anymore contact for a moment. Jumping off her broom while still a foot off the ground, Lily dashed away to the locker room before the crowds started flooding the pitch.

Alone in the locker room, Lily stripped from her uniform and stepped into the shower, pulling the heavy green curtain shut and letting the water heat up until it almost scalded her skin. Then she cried.

She lost track of how long she had been standing in the shower, simply letting the water beat down on her, but eventually she heard her team entering the locker room.

"Potter? You okay in there?" Payne called out and she jumped instinctively at the booming voice.

"I'm good!" She called back. She tipped her head up towards the water and let the heat wash away her tears.

"You've been in there a while! You should be out there on the pitch celebrating your victory!" Kale's voice called out now.

"Yep, I'll be out in a minute."

"There's going to be a party!" Payne said. "Come on!"

"You go on ahead," Lily said. "I'll be there soon. Promise."

She heard muffled voices and then shuffled steps as the team left the locker room. Then there was silence, and she let out a relieved sigh. She didn't want to go to a party. She didn't want to be around people. She still had to tell her family about everything, and she had to talk to Willoughby, and all she wanted to do at that moment was hide in her bed.

She turned off the shower, opened the curtain, then let out a shriek. Scorpius was standing directly outside the shower, clearly waiting for her. He held one hand covering his eyes, and the other was holding out a towel. Recovering herself, she grabbed the towel and wrapped it around herself.

"Scor, what the hell are you still doing here?" She demanded, once she had covered herself.

He slowly removed his hand from his eyes. "Safe?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes." She held the towel securely beneath her arms, making sure she was fully covered. "Why didn't you go on with the others?"

"I didn't want you to be alone," he said. His tone implied he thought it was obvious.

"Thank you." She sighed. "I'm sorry I left the pitch so suddenly. I just needed a minute…"

"You don't have to explain anything to me."

She moved across the room to the locker where she stored her change of clothes and he turned around politely. She hesitated for a moment, wondering if she should make him leave, but she knew he would respect her privacy, and she dropped the towel to dress in the black jeans and green tee shirt she had stored there.

"I'm dressed," she said, and he turned around again. She took her wand from her locker and put it in her back pocket.

"Payne's probably already getting the party started, but you probably want to go catch up with your family first, yeah?"

"My family?" Lily hadn't even thought about the possibility of her family being there.

"I think I saw your parents watching the game. Did you see them?"

Lily shook her head. "I wasn't really paying attention to the stands."

"Come on, let's go find them then," Scorpius said, beckoning with his hand.

"Hold on, I'm not quite ready." She deposited her dirty uniform in the hamper, knowing that just like the one in her bathroom, the elves would clean it and return it to her locker. Then she moved over to the mirror. She briefly wished she had some makeup there, but hadn't thought to bring any. She also briefly wondered when she had become the girl who cared about having makeup on. "You don't have to wait for me," she mentioned to Scorpius who was leaning against the wall, watching her reflection in the mirror. He shrugged and she rolled her eyes and continued. Using her wand, Lily cast the charm to dry and fix her hair.

"Huh," he said as he watched her long wet hair dry and curl itself into its normal gentle waves down her back.

She turned around and smiled at him. "What?"

"That was a cool charm. I've never seen it before."

She shrugged. "I guess guys don't have as much need for silly hair charms."

"There's nothing silly about it," he said. "Style charms are actually pretty complex."

She headed towards him and motioned with her head that she was ready to leave. "My cousin Victoire taught me. She knows lots of style charms."

"I bet she does," Scorpius said in a perfectly kind way. "She was head girl and earned high marks didn't she? You're lucky to have someone who wants to teach you things like that."

Lily nodded as they walked together towards the pitch where families and friends from the stands had gathered after the game.

Near the opening of the pitch, Lily paused. Just out of site of the pitch, nearly hidden beneath the stands, she saw Payne talking with…her brother? Lily blinked, thinking she had seen wrong, but sure enough Payne and James were having a conversation, they looked like they were trying to stay hidden and quiet. Before she had a chance to think about it or say anything, someone came running towards her, catching her in a surprising hug and all Lily could see was a mass of blonde hair.

"Leona!" Lily squeaked out as her friend's arms tightened around her. When Leona had released her, Julianne moved in for her own hug. When Julianne pulled away, Lily looked back to the spot where she had seen Payne and her brother, but they were gone.

"Where were you?" Julianne demanded. "We looked for you right when the game ended, but you weren't there! We found the rest of the team, but you were just gone! All your family is looking for you."

"I just wanted a shower," Lily said. "That game was exhausting."

The girls nodded their understanding, then linked arms with Lily and started guiding her back towards the field. Scorpius followed more slowly behind, but as they reached the entrance and spotted the mass of Weasleys and Potters waiting for Lily, he stopped.

"I'll see you back at the rooms," Scorpius said, turning around and walking away before Lily could say anything. She watched him walk off, momentarily thinking she should have said something to express her gratitude that he had come to keep her company while she got ready, but she didn't have a chance to think on it too long before someone called out to her.

"Lily!"

Her head spun at the familiar voice and she squealed to see her oldest brother waving to her from the center of the pitch.

"Teddy!" Lily half-screamed and ran the rest of the way to meet him, throwing her arms around his neck as he swung her off her feet.

"That was a great game, Little Flower!" He told her, still squeezing her in a tight hug. "You flew so hard. Those Gryffindor beaters were playing way too hard. James should talk to them about being less aggressive."

Lily blushed. You have no idea. She managed to murmur her agreement without saying anything, but felt an unexpected desire to tell Teddy everything that had happened. He was the one person in her life she had always confided in with all her secrets, even the time when she was six and accidentally broke daddy's wand and was so scared she locked herself in her closet until her dad had left the house; Teddy had found her and she had told him everything through her tears. Keeping something like this from him now didn't feel natural.

He set her down on her feet, mussed her long hair briefly, then placed his arm around her shoulders protectively. She knew that despite her desire to confide, she would never tell Teddy about what happened. Things weren't the same as when she was a little girl hiding in closets. She was older now. She was responsible for her own problems now. She offered him a smile, hoping it looked genuine enough, as he guided her towards the rest of the family who had come to the game. Leona and Julianne tagged along.

"Lily, darling!" Her mum found them first, and pulled Lily in for a hug. "You were fantastic!"

"Thanks mum!" Lily returned the tight hug. "I didn't know you'd be here."

"I felt so awful for missing your first game of the year. I wasn't going to miss your last as well!" Ginny told her daughter.

"I'm glad you're here." Lily said. "Is dad?" Her eyes searched the crowd.

"No, I'm afraid he couldn't make it. He wanted to. Work got in the way," Ginny explained.

Lily pouted briefly, but she saw the sadness in her mum's eyes and decided not to dwell on it for her sake. "It's okay. I'll see him in a few weeks. I know work is important."

Ginny nodded, seeming slightly relieved that her daughter wasn't too disappointed in Harry's absence.

"Have you seen James yet?" Lily asked, suddenly recalling how she had seen her brother talking with Payne a few moments before.

"Yes, we saw him right away after the game. He seemed a little…" Ginny hesitated. "Upset. But he'll get over it and be proud for you, I'm sure."

Lily shrugged. Their quidditch rivalry was something they'd just have to get used to over time.

"Upset?" Teddy echoed. "He was bloody pissed."

Lily cringed slightly.

"It seemed like more than just losing the game though," Teddy said. "Do you know if there's anything going on with him? Girl trouble maybe?"

Lily shook her head. "No, he and Bea have been doing really well. Everyone says so." She shrugged. "Honestly I don't know him as well as his housemates though. You should talk to Al if you're concerned." Her thoughts again drifted to Payne. She had to know what they had been talking about.

"Alright, we won't keep you. I'm sure you have a great victory party waiting for you to get to," Teddy said.

Lily smiled. "I'm sure it'll go on for a while. I don't need to rush."

"It's alright," Ginny said. "I should get back to work anyway. I have another deadline coming up soon. Just make sure you say hello to your Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione before you leave."

"Uncle Ron probably won't be too pleased to see me," Lily said.

"Nonsense. He's mature enough not to let silly quidditch rivalries get in the way," Ginny said.

Teddy guffawed and Lily smiled in agreement with his assessment.

"There they are now," Ginny pointed and Lily followed the direction of her finger to where her aunt and uncle stood with Rosie, Roxie, and Dom.

Lily wasn't eager to go and greet her aunt and uncle when they were speaking with her cousins whom she had just beat in the final, but she noticed the look her mother was giving her and headed that direction, dragging Julianne and Leona along with her.

"Hi," Lily said a little quietly as she reached the group of her family.

Hermione smiled at her and pulled her in for a hug. "Congratulations, Lily. You were great!"

Lily smiled into her aunt's hug. "Thanks, Aunt Mione." When they broke the hug, she glanced up at her uncle. He hesitated briefly, glanced at his own daughter, then offered Lily a one armed shoulder squeeze.

"You did really well, Little Flower."

"Thanks Uncle Ron." Lily smiled up at him. She knew how important quidditch was to her uncle and how proud he was to have Rose playing for Gryffindor. She also realized that it was now the second year in a row that Rose had not won the cup, thanks to Lily. She glanced at her cousin hesitantly, but was surprised to find the three girls giving her kind smiles.

"Good job, Lily," Rose said, throwing her arms around her cousin. "You flew so hard out there."

"Oh! Thank you Rosie," Lily said, a little breathless and surprised by her cousin's support. "You guys played a great game too." Lily realized that even as she said it, she wasn't really sure if it was true. She assumed it was because her cousins always played hard, but she had been so distracted by the beaters chasing her around, she hadn't even had time to look at the other Gryffindor players.

She glanced at Roxie and Dom and saw they were nodding along with Rosie. They both offered her their congratulations as well and gave Lily a quick joined hug.

"I expect you've got a party waiting for you," Rosie said after a moment of slightly awkward silence.

Lily nodded.

"We'll let you go then. See you soon," Hermione said.

Lily and her friends waved and headed back towards the castle, pausing one more time by Lily's mum for a hug and a promise to write at least once more before summer break.

"You did fly really well," Julianne told Lily as they entered the castle and headed towards the stairs. "Those guys were brutal. I can't believe how they chased you around the entire time."

Lily felt her heart race slightly just remembering the relentless attacks from the beaters.

"Are you okay, Lil?" Leona asked, seemingly able to read her friend's sudden silence. The three girls paused at the top of the steps.

"Yep, I'm fine." Lily forced a tight smile. "I'm just not sure I'm in the mood for a big party atmosphere right now."

"Well, you don't have to go," Leona said. She didn't tend to see the point to large parties anyway.

"Of course she does," Julianne said. "She won the cup for the team."

"It was a group effort," Lily said, trying to shift the focus from herself as she continued to mentally debate avoiding the inevitable house party waiting downstairs in the Slytherin common room.

"You have to at least make an appearance!" Julianne insisted.

Leona shrugged, signaling that she didn't care enough either way to make an argument.

Lily sighed and nodded to Julianne. "One drink," she agreed.

Julianne grinned, hugged Leona goodbye, and linked her arm with Lily to lead her down to the dungeons before the redhead could change her mind. Lily knew Julianne enjoyed the party scene, and wouldn't want to make her friend miss this epic final quidditch celebration, even though the idea of faking joy while being surrounded by overly-enthusiastic, slightly-intoxicated students did not appeal to Lily in the least at that moment.

They found the door propped open when they reached the Slytherin common room and heard loud music and laughter pulsing through the opening. Julianne grinned, instantly getting caught up in it, and hurried into the room. Lily sighed, gritted her teeth, and forced a smile as she entered more slowly behind her friend.

"Finally!" Kenny exclaimed from the center of the room where she sat on the end of a table, surrounded by third and fourth years. She was holding a cup of something that Lily assumed was not simply Butterbeer and laughing loudly. She leapt from the table and approached the girls, slinging her arm around Lily's neck. "Those beaters were being bloody gits! I can't believe how they kept after you." She took another sip of her drink and Lily could smell it on her breath. "Don't worry. They'll get theirs."

Lily quirked an eyebrow at her, questioning that statement, but Kenny just laughed, shrugged, and hurried away from the two girls, returning to her ring of fans at the center of the room.

"What did that mean?" Julianne asked.

Lily shrugged and didn't have a chance to follow up with Kenny before Kale had found her. He swept her up into his large arms, lifting her high off the ground.

"You were brilliant today!" He said.

"Can you put me down please?" Lily wriggled in his tight grip. Despite him being completely friendly and always kind to her, she didn't like the feel of his arms around her at the moment; they were too tight and made her skin prickle.

He laughed and returned her feet to the ground, not picking up on her discomfort.

Payne was at her side next. He kissed her on the cheek, before he began chanting her name.

"I think I feel a speech coming on!" He grinned, taking her by the hand and walking towards a table at the center of the room.

Lily shook her head adamantly, not wanting to join him for his speech. She didn't want the focus on her today. She didn't want people staring at her and applauding her. She wanted quiet and isolation.

"Payne I don't really want to be a part of a speech…" Lily tried to pull her hand free from his.

He just laughed. "You literally won the cup for us. We wouldn't have gotten it without you. This is your victory!" He put his large hands on her small hips and lifted her swiftly. She yelped and momentarily felt breathless, but her feet found the table and he stabilized her easily enough. She stood still in the middle of the table, her arms hugging herself as she noted eyes being drawn to her from all around the room. Payne caught the attention of a fourth year, gave him some sort of order, then hoisted himself up onto the table next to Lily, his arm instantly securing itself around her waist.

The fourth year returned and held up two cups of a dark reddish drink Lily knew she shouldn't drink. Payne took one and handed it to Lily then took the other for himself. He stomped twice on the table to get the room's attention.

"We did it!" He declared loudly enough for the whole room to hear clearly. "We have won the Quidditch house cup for the second year. We have started a new tradition here at Hogwarts, one where those Gryffindor gits don't get to take all the victories." He held up his his cup and everyone around the room mirrored his action with drinks of their own. "This is the girl who got us there." He squeezed Lily with the hand still around her waist, pulling her closer to himself. "Three cheers for Potter!"

The room burst into whistles and cheers and Payne took a pause in his speech to take a long sip from his drink. Lily wanted to be anyplace but there at that moment, but not being able to escape she decided the next best thing was to pretend to be enjoying herself like everyone else. She took a drink from her cup, squeezing her eyes shut briefly against the burning in her throat as the firewhisky went down. Payne grinned at her, squeezing again, his fingers pushing against her hipbone. She winced at the pressure, not because it hurt but because she didn't want him touching her. She knew Payne didn't mean anything by his actions though; it was just his personality to be overly physical and friendly. She tried not to react.

He lifted his cup again to the room. "And three cheers for putting those Gryffindors in their place! Despite those bloody beaters trying to knock our girl off her broom the entire game!" The room applauded again, this time mixed with loud "boos" and hisses for the Gryffindor beaters. Payne drank again and then Lily drank again. He lowered his head suddenly, putting his mouth up against her ear so only she could hear him. "Don't worry, Potter. We won't let those bastards get away with what they did."

Her body tightened at his words. She didn't know how to interpret them. She stared up at him, trying to read into his blue eyes. They were hard and cold and she could see anger in them. He took another sip from his drink, then shook his head and grinned and the coldness was gone and he was laughing and chanting "Slytherin" along with the rest of the room.

Lily felt dizzy. She took another sip as though it would somehow help, but of course it only made it worse. She couldn't puzzle out what Payne had meant, but assumed he had just been referring to the way the beaters had focused on her during the game. Payne didn't know what had happened to her. He couldn't.

"Hiya," Scorpius spoke up from beneath Lily. "You good up there?"

She glanced down at him and shook her head firmly. She felt like she was going to be sick. Her skin was clammy and her head pounded.

He reached out towards her hand holding the cup and she handed it to him. He passed it off to another student nearby before putting both arms up to Lily. She pushed Payne's hand off of her before moving over to the edge of the table to let Scorpius help lift her down. When her feet touched the ground, she found herself still holding onto him, clutching his shirt more tightly than necessary. His arms wrapped around her waist and he let her hold on for a moment without words. Julianne appeared beside them and touched Lily's arm.

"Hey, Lil, you okay?"

Lily pulled away from Scorpius and smiled at her friend. "I'm just a little beat. I think I might go lie down."

"What about lunch?" Julianne asked.

"I'm not hungry." Lily said. "I just need a break from all the noise."

Julianne nodded. "Let's go."

"You don't have to leave on my account," Lily said.

Julianne shook her head. "I'll grab us some Butterbeers and we can go practice that new transfiguration spell your uncle sent you." Lily smiled gratefully at her best friend for her willingness to isolate herself for Lily's sake.

"See you later, Scor." Lily said to Scorpius as she followed Julianne away from the crowd and down the girls' corridor for their quiet.

…

A couple hours later the party had finally begun to wind down, the Slytherin students seeking out varied other forms of entertainment on that Saturday afternoon. Lily and Julianne had spent their time practicing the complicated spell Uncle Charlie had sent Lily. He had told her it helped him deal with problematic dragons at times. It made something that was large and dangerous momentarily small and docile. The transfiguration had a time limit, and it was a shorter amount of time the larger the object, but he said it was useful in a pinch and thought she would enjoy learning it. The girls had been practicing on Julianne's bed, though Lily had a feeling it would have a different affect on something that was actually dangerous as opposed to an inanimate object. Not for the first time, she considered requesting permission to go and stay with Charlie at the dragon reserve sometime over one of her holidays.

When they had tired of transfiguration, Julianne had insisted on painting Lily's nails, combining a mix of muggle varnish and a cosmetic charm she had learned that added sparkling gold stars that twinkled and flitted across Lily's black-painted toenails and fingernails like shooting stars. Lily thought the outcome was delightful. After her nails were finished, Lily agreed to go up for dinner. She had been getting hungry and decided avoiding people all day was just silly. She had come so far in her anxiety over the past couple weeks and she was angry that one bad morning with the Gryffindor beaters had thrown her so far off course.

Instead of eating with the Slytherins, Julianne and Lily joined Leona with the Ravenclaws. They didn't often sit with the Ravenclaws, but none of the other students at the table seemed bothered by the addition of the Slytherin girls, and Leona was happy her friends had joined her. Lorcan and Lysander sat with them as well, congratulating Lily on her quidditch performance that morning and then turning the conversation to final exams which were coming up in just a couple more weeks.

Halfway through eating, after Lorcan had managed to add a bubbling potion to Lysander's tea that made bubbles come out of his ears and nose, Lily and the girls burst into a fit of giggles, drawing more attention from down the table. Lily noted an older student sitting a few feet away staring at her for a moment. She couldn't be certain, but he looked angry. She didn't recognize the older Ravenclaw, but she looked away, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze. He stood abruptly and she watched him walk away, heading directly towards the Gryffindor table. She let out a sharp breath when he stopped beside the two beaters and leaned down to whisper to them. Lily instantly knew the identity of her third attacker. She felt it instinctively.

"Lils? What's up?" Lorcan asked, noting her sudden silence and panicked expression. "You look like a ghost just walked through you."

She shook her head, trying to soothe herself, and forced a smile. "I'm fine."

The twins frowned, looking entirely unconvinced.

She kept the smile plastered on her face, and tried to ignore the coldness creeping into her stomach as she eyed the Ravenclaw and two Gryffindors in her periphery.

Julianne was watching Lily carefully. "Want to go back to the room?"

Lily shook her head. She was done hiding out in her room. Now that she knew the identity of the third, she felt more confident somehow. Still completely racked with fear, but slightly more confident. They couldn't hide from her. She knew who they were, and it was time for others to know too.

"I need to talk to Willoughby," she decided out loud. "And then my brothers."

Julianne smiled slightly and Leona squeezed Lily's hand.

"Want us to come with you?" Leona asked.

"I do," Lily decided. She was feeling more confident but not quite so brave that she didn't appreciate the support of her best friends. Her eyes drifted automatically towards the Slytherin table and she didn't even realize at first who she was looking for.

"Want me to find Scorpius?" Julianne asked, following her friend's eyesight and understanding her better than Lily even understood herself.

"Umm, sure, yeah, he should be there too."

The twins sat silently watching the three girls with utterly confused stares.

"What's going on?" Lysander finally asked.

Leona turned her big blue eyes to her brothers and narrowed them slightly. "It doesn't concern you."

With her simple statement, the twins frowned, but didn't press, and Lily knew they wouldn't. It was something about the Scamander siblings that she and her brothers would never understand—the value of privacy. If she told her brothers something didn't concern them, they would not rest until they had learned every aspect of the supposed secret, which was one of the reasons she had been so determined to prevent them from learning this particular secret of hers for so long.

The three girls stood as one and moved away from the Ravenclaw table, heading towards the Slytherin table. As they approached, Lily noticed Payne standing towards the end of the table talking with Leo, Geoff, and Kale. She frowned curiously, feeling instinctively that she wanted to know about their conversation. Scorpius had been waking towards the group at that moment, but when he spotted her approaching he turned and moved towards Lily instead.

"Hi," he said, his voice forcefully casual. "Didn't see you at dinner."

"I ate with the Ravenclaws," Lily said, her eyes still focused on Payne and the others. "What's going on there? Did I miss a team meeting or something?"

Scorpius shook his head quickly. "No, nothing's going on," he said. "Just guy stuff."

Lily lifted one eyebrow. "Guy stuff?" She repeated, hoping her voice demonstrated the irritated doubt she felt at that moment.

Payne glanced up and spotted Lily suddenly. His previously serious scowl quickly contorted into an overly friendly smile. He winked at her, then turned and walked away, making a brisk head motion to the others; the three guys followed Payne out of the Great Hall without hesitation.

"Scor, what's going on?"

"Nothing's going on," he said. "We've just got something to take care of."

"Now?" Lily asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, so I'll catch you later, alright?" He started backing away from the three girls.

"I was going to ask you to come with me to talk with Willoughby," Lily said quickly before he moved too far away.

He stopped, as she knew he would. "Now? You're ready now?"

Lily nodded.

"Why now? You've been avoiding it for days, and suddenly right now?"

Lily glanced at Julianne who looked to Scorpius and shrugged, since she also hadn't understood why Lily had suddenly felt determined to discuss things with Willoughby.

"I know who the third is," Lily said directly.

Julianne gasped. Scorpius' mouth opened but no words came out. He shut it again and shook his head. "Who?"

"I don't know his name. He's a Ravenclaw. Probably sixth year like the others."

"A Ravenclaw?" Scorpius' eyes grew wide.

Lily nodded.

"Are you sure?" Leona asked, slight surprise evident in her usually detached and nonchalant tone.

"Completely," Lily said.

Leona nodded and didn't question again.

Scorpius glanced over his shoulder in the direction Payne and the others had gone and sighed.

"So are you coming with?" Lily asked, frowning slightly at his peculiar behavior.

"Look, just wait a little longer alright? We'll go to him first thing in the morning."

"What?" Lily frowned. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I am. Please, just one more day," he said. "I'll go with you first thing in the morning."

Lily narrowed her eyes at him. "Why? What are you lot up to?"

He took a step towards the door. "Nothing, I just need to go…"

"Why are you lying to me?" Lily took a step towards him as he tried to back away.

She saw him glance behind her, over her shoulder, and she turned to look at what had caught her attention. That's when she saw her brother, Rosie, Roxie, and Dom standing from their table.

"Seriously what is going on?" Lily demanded.

Scorpius finally sighed, shook his head, and grasped her wrist, dragging her from the Great Hall to an alcove in the entry hall, hidden behind a suit of armor. Julianne and Leona followed closely.

"I've been sworn to secrecy, alright? I can't tell you." He spoke in a rushed whisper. "If, however, you were to wander out to the pitch in say fifteen minutes and stay very hidden, you could maybe see for yourself."

Lily's scowl deepened.

"I'm serious though. Stay hidden. And don't tell anyone it was me who told you." He glanced at Julianne and Leona then leaned closer to Lily to whisper. "Use that special cloak of yours." Stepping back and letting the other girls hear, he added. "Do not let anyone see you."

He left them abruptly.

"Well that was odd," Julianne muttered.

"Yes, very," Leona agreed. "So I assume we're going down there?"

Lily hesitated. Of course she planned to go down to the pitch. She hadn't actually thought about her friends joining her though. She should have realized they wouldn't let her go alone.

"Yes," Lily confirmed. "I need to get something first though, in my room."

"Okay, let's go." Julianne turned towards the steps and the three girls headed down to the dungeons together.

Lily left the other two in the corridor outside the door to the common room while she hurried in to her room to retrieve her invisibility cloak from the bottom of the trunk where it had been stored for the past year. She had not had many reasons to use the cloak since her dad had gifted it to her and she still had not even told her friends or family about it.

I guess now's as good a time as any, she mused to herself as she pulled out the cloak and headed back to where her friends were waiting in the corridor.

"All set," Lily said as she rejoined them.

"What were you doing?" Julianne asked.

"I'll explain when we're outside."

Leona and Julianne frowned curiously but followed Lily obediently back up the stairs and out to the back expanse of the castle grounds towards the pitch.

"I got this my first year from my dad. He says to only use it when it's important, and I just haven't really had many opportunities to bring it out," Lily started to explain as she shook out the bundle of cloak.

"What is it?" Julianne asked, frowning at the silky material.

Leona's eyes widened. "Lils, is that an invisibility cloak?"

Lily nodded.

"Well that sure is a rare thing to have."

Julianne frowned. "An invisibility cloak? I thought those were mostly made up and didn't actually work."

"This one does," Lily said. "It's been in my dad's family for generations. It's very real." Lily swept it over her shoulders and waited for her friends' reactions. Leona nodded, impressed, and Julianne let out a little squeak as Lily's body vanished. "I haven't even told my brothers about it. They'd probably just be jealous that dad gave it to me and not them, and I don't want to start something over it…"

"Scorpius knew about it?" Julianne asked.

Lily nodded. "I used it for him last year when he needed to do something outside after curfew. He needed help and it was the only way I could think for us to not get caught."

Julianne looked like she had something else to say regarding that matter, but she kept silent and simply nodded her acceptance.

"Anyway, it should cover all three of us, if we stay close together."

Julianne and Leona stepped close to Lily and she covered them with the cloak as well, adjusting carefully until they were all three fully covered. Then the three walked slowly and silently towards the pitch. They heard voices and were careful to not make any noise as they slipped onto the pitch and pressed their invisible bodies up against the side of the stands.

Lily's eyes widened when she saw who had gathered on the pitch. The entire Gryffindor team and Slytherin team, minus herself, were standing at the center of the pitch, brooms in hand. Payne and James were once again talking off to the side, away from the others, and Lily felt a strong desire to get closer to hear what they were saying, but she didn't know how to do that without getting too close to the rest of the team and potentially blowing their cover.

Why are they all here without me? Lily couldn't understand why it had all been kept quiet from her. If the team was doing something, she should have been informed.

"Are we getting on with it or what?" One of the Gryffindor beaters shouted out suddenly and Lily's skin prickled at the sound of his voice.

Payne and James nodded and turned back to their teams.

"Let's get this rematch started," James called loudly for everyone to hear.

Lily's frown deepened. Rematch?

"Where's your seeker, Snakes?" The other beater asked, and again Lily had to force herself to breathe more calmly.

"Yeah, where's the little Potter?" The first one asked. "It's no fun playing without her." There was a slight sneer to his words and his beater friend chuckled.

Lily felt Julianne grasp her hand, clearly knowing that Lily had become nervous and slightly unstable in the presence of the beaters, but what surprised Lily more was the expressions that had flitted across various faces when the beaters spoke about her. James had looked downright furious, but he turned away and hid his face. Scorpius' fists were clenched, and Payne had a deep scowl on his handsome face.

"She'll be here," Payne said finally. "Soon. We didn't think her being late should delay our game. We'll still beat you." He seemed to almost growl.

Lily couldn't figure out what was going on. Payne knew very well she would not be coming, since she hadn't been informed of the game at all.

"Lily, what's going on?" Julianne whispered, her mouth close to Lily's ear.

"I don't know," Lily whispered back.

"Let's get started." Payne climbed on his broom and kicked off. The others followed.

It only took Lily a moment to realize they hadn't even released the snitch. Then a moment later she saw Eli Denver flying back towards the ground and slipping off his broom. He walked to the side of the pitch and held his broom out to someone who had been standing there. Lily hadn't noticed him until that moment, but as she squinted at the newcomer she realized it was her brother, Albus.

She gasped. "Why is he here?" She whispered more to herself than her friends.

Her eyes widened in surprise as Albus mounted Denver's broom and flew up towards the others. Her brother hated flying. They could rarely get him on a broom, even at family Christmas matches. Her eye searched the skies again, becoming aware of the strange formation in the sky. The Slytherins weren't running any plays. They weren't in any formations. Scorpius wasn't even guarding the goals. She became more confused by the moment. She glanced to the Gryffindors, and realized that everyone, apart from the beaters who were flying close together, circling the pitch, was likewise not flying in a formation. They had gathered towards the center of the pitch, close to the Slytherins. James hovered near the front of the others. Albus flew up beside him.

"What's going on? Why aren't we playing?" One of the beaters flew down towards the gathered group, his partner following slowly.

"Hey, what's he doing here? Where's Denver?" The second asked, motioning towards Albus.

Before anyone had a chance to say anything, Scorpius and Payne both had their wands out and had muttered the levitation charm, casting it towards the Gryffindor beaters. Their bats floated into the air away from them. Scorpius and Payne took hold of the bats.

"What the hell?" The beaters exclaimed in unified anger. One of them reached out towards Scorpius to take back his bat, but before he had a chance Payne had thumped him hard across the back with the bat he held. Lily let out a startled gasp.

Lily watched as James edged forward on his broom, she assumed he was intending to defend his beater from the Slytherin captain, but as she watched she only became more alarmed and surprised as Payne handed the beater's bat over to James while Scorpius handed the one he held to Albus. Then before either of the beaters seemed to fully understand what was about to happen, Payne nodded his head to Kale who slipped up beside him and together they took hold of one of the beaters, holding him securely. The other seemed prepared to flee, but Scorpius and Geoff caught hold of him and held him still as well.

"Oh Merlin!" Leona muttered under her breath as she seemed to realize what was about to happen.

Lily took a step forward, not sure what she was going to do, but feeling the urge to do something. Julianne and Leona both took one of her hands and tugged her back, however, preventing her from revealing herself and intervening.

She took a breath and held it momentarily as her brothers' next actions began and then escalated rapidly. She had seen her brothers angry before. Many times. Albus had been livid at her once when she was ten and had hidden all his school books when he came home for the holidays because she hadn't wanted him to go back to school without her; he had almost missed the train back to school. He had threatened to set her favorite doll on fire if she didn't give them back. James was angry much more frequently. Everyone in the family knew he had the Weasley temper tenfold. Many of the cousins had witnessed him shouting, punching the walls, or hexing various siblings throughout their childhood. Though she had heard his temper had calmed while at school, she knew he wasn't one to be tested. This, however, shocked Lily more than anything. Despite either brothers' angriest moments, Lily had never believed either to be prone to violence against another person; she didn't count the occasional wrestling or hexing matches between brothers and cousins.

Over the next few moments, her brothers both began beating on the two Gryffindor beaters with the bats. The Slytherins held them still when they tried to pull away. Rose, Roxie, and Dom hovered nearby without any words of protest or evident discomfort. Lily didn't know how long they had been beating on them or how long she had been holding her breath when they finally paused. Even from this distance, Lily could see the two beaters were bloodied and badly damaged. Their brooms had fallen to the ground, so they were only being held up by the Slytherins on either side of them. Their faces were bloody, their bodies looked tired and sore. Lily felt tears rolling down her cheeks, but she hadn't realized she had started to cry.

Finally James spoke.

"Did you really think you could hurt our sister and get away with it?" His voice was loud enough that the entire pitch would be able to hear if it had been full. "Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

Lily felt her body trembling. Glancing up, she saw that Albus looked quite shaken as well. While James continued yelling at the beaters, Albus hovered near Rose. She had one arm around his shoulders and her head pressed close to his. Lily knew their friendship well enough to know she was probably whispering reassurances to him.

"We trusted you! I brought you onto our team. I thought you were our friends. I thought you were Gryffindors." James snarled.

One of the beaters actually had the nerve to attempt to respond. "We are more Gryffindor than you'll ever be. That little bitch was ruining what this school is all about, thinking she can just sit wherever she wants, be friends with whoever she wants, do whatever she wants, polluting the whole point of house division, acting superior just because she was a bloody Potter in Slytherin! We had the courage to put a stop to it, to put that little whore in her place…"

He was cut off by a hard elbow to his jaw. It was Payne this time, and Lily could see fury in his piercing eyes.

"You will not speak of her, at all." Payne said in a chilling voice. "She is above you in every way. You are not worthy to even think of her."

Despite his bruised and bloodied lip, he laughed. "I'm not worthy of her? She's a bloody snake slag and she deserves all she got and more. I just wish I would have been able to finish…"

Before anyone entirely realized what had happened, Scorpius released his grip on the beater's arm and he began dropping through the air directly towards the ground at a rapid speed.

Rose let out a slight yelp, Dom covered her eyes, while they others watched with wide, silent eyes. Roxie pulled out her wand and quickly muttered a levitation charm to slow his fall.

"Merlin, Malfoy, we're trying to punish them, not kill them!" Albus snapped.

Scorpius shrugged. "He had it coming."

"I might agree with you, but I'm not eager to end up in Azkaban before I turn fifteen!" James said.

Scorpius shrugged again.

Roxie levitated the beater back up towards the group. His eyes were wide and he looked much less confident than he had previously.

"They won't let me kill you," Scorpius told him. "Though you bloody well deserve it. I wish I would have done more than just stun your arse that night I found you."

"That was you?" The second beater who was still being held firmly by Payne and Kale stared at Scorpius.

Scorpius returned his stare.

"A little help?" Roxie called attention to where she was still focusing on the levitation charm.

Leo and Geoff flew forward and took hold of him this time, possibly not trusting Scorpius to really hold him again.

"I think we should get out of here now," Rosie spoke up, somewhat quietly. "We've been out here a while. I don't want to get caught."

Albus nodded, seeming to agree with her.

"What are we going to do with them?" Dom asked.

"Drop them in the forest?" Payne suggested.

James actually laughed. The girls didn't seem quite as on board with the idea.

"Or the lake? Let the squid deal with them." Kale suggested.

Suddenly Roxie grinned, and even from her distance, Lily recognized the sly plotting smirk on her older cousin's pretty face. "I know what to do." She beckoned to James and Albus, moving away slightly from the others to prevent the beaters from hearing.

James laughed loudly and Lily knew whatever plot Roxie had concocted had gone over well with her brother. He nodded toward Payne and Scorpius and they flew over to join the Gryffindors, Kale momentarily holding his captive by himself. A moment later, Lily heard Payne laugh as well. Scorpius nodded, seeming to equally agree with the plan.

"Great, let's get to it." James led the group back down to the ground, the Slytherins followed, the beaters still clasped in their grip.

Lily took a step backwards instinctively even though the group was still far away from them; her friends fortunately stepped with her so the cloak stayed firmly in place.

"Should we go?" Julianne whispered quietly near Lily's ear.

"Not yet," Lily whispered back.

"Where are you taking us?" One of the beaters demanded, his feet now stumbling across the grass as he was mostly dragged by Payne and Kale.

"Somewhere people will be able to see you for what you really are." James punched him hard in the face and the beater doubled over briefly, blood spurting from his undoubtedly broken nose. "Can someone gag him?"

Roxie pointed her wand at him and muttered a charm that seemed to effectively render him silent. Then she did the same for the other one, even though he hadn't said much for a while, and Lily suspected it had to do with his swollen lip and bloody jaw.

"I just wish we could track down the third one," James said, mostly to Albus, but everyone seemed to overhear. "I wouldn't expect them to give him up."

"Lily knows who it is," Scorpius said. "She figured it out. He's a Ravenclaw."

"A Ravenclaw?" Albus repeated. "No joke?"

Scorpius nodded. "She's certain. She was prepared to go to Willoughby straight away, but I convinced her to wait until morning. Didn't explain why, but she wasn't happy about it."

James nodded contemplatively. "Yeah, she should talk to Willoughby. That's good."

"She asked me to go with her," Scorpius said. "But if you want to instead, you know, maybe you should…"

James frowned briefly, then shook his head. "No, yeah, you go on with her. She asked you to. She hasn't even felt like coming to me about this yet." He shrugged. "I'm not who she needs there. You were the one who found her that night, saved her and all that."

Scorpius nodded. Lily didn't miss the odd look that he gave her brother, though she couldn't quite decide if it was gratitude or disappointment.

They came closer to where the girls were standing and all three girls held their breath simultaneously, edging back away from the approaching group. Lily felt both her friends grasp her hands and she knew they were nervous. James, Albus and her cousins passed through first. Then Payne and Kale pushing their captive through, followed by Leo and Geoff and the second beater. Scorpius came through last, and when he passed, Lily tugged on her friends' hands, indicating for them to follow.

James opened the heavy back door to the castle and held it open for everyone to pass through. Rosie and Dom paused.

"We're done tonight, James," Rosie said. "I agreed to be here in solidarity and support for Lils, but I'm not going to be a part of the rest of this."

"Me either," Dom agreed.

"I get it," James said. "Don't worry." He glanced at his brother who was walking beside Rosie. "Al, you should head back up to the rooms too. You don't need to be here for this either."

Albus hesitated. "She's my sister too, James."

"I know that, and you've done enough. This sort of stuff…it's not your thing. You shouldn't feel obligated to be a part of it. Lily would never think less of you for going up now with Rose and Dom."

He hesitated, glanced at the bruised and bloodied beaters, then at Rosie. She nodded encouragingly and he finally nodded at James.

"Fine, yeah, thanks."

James glanced at Roxie. "You too?"

She smirked. "I'm not leaving, mate."

"You sure?" James asked, though he was smiling slightly as though he knew she wouldn't back out.

"Hey, this was my idea," she protested. "I'm not going to bed while you lot have all the fun."

"Alright then let's do it." James followed Roxie through the door, leaving Scorpius to catch the closing door behind them.

The others were already heading towards the Great Hall and James and Roxie hurried to catch up. Scorpius paused and held the door open. He glanced back towards the girls, though his eyes scanned the area without focusing.

"I'm pretty sure you're there," he said suddenly. "With your invisibility cloak, yeah?"

Julianne and Leona let out matching gasps, while Lily smiled at his perceptiveness. They moved as a group towards him, still hidden, but Lily reached out and touched his hand on the door.

He jumped, startled, then smiled. "Bloody brilliant cloak."

"Scor, what is all this?" Lily asked in a whisper. Even though the others were far enough ahead they wouldn't hear, she didn't want to risk it.

"Isn't it obvious?" He asked. "I've got to catch up, but come talk to me tonight on the couch, after everyone else has gone to bed, alright?"

"I'm coming with you now," she said.

"No, Lily, I don't think you should."

"What's going to happen?"

He smirked slightly. "Your cousin's creative," he said. "You'll see in the morning. Don't be late for breakfast."

"I want to know now…"

"You should go back to your room now before someone else catches you out here. You girls too," he shifted his eyes around, imagining where other bodies would be beside Lily. "Go on."

The girls slipped through the open door and then he hurried off to join up with the others who were no out of sight.

Lily debated briefly, but Julianne and Leona begged her to consider his advice. She knew they were worried about being caught out after curfew, and if she was honest with herself, she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to see her brother do anything else to the beaters on her behalf. It had been hard to watch his violence earlier. She finally gave in, and the girls escorted Leona under the cover of the cloak up to the Ravenclaw tower before returning to the dungeons. They didn't talk at all the entire time, though Lily was sure they had thoughts and opinions they wanted to share. She appreciated their choice to keep their thoughts to themselves for the moment. She needed time to process what had happened that night.

By the time Julianne and Lily had made it back down to their own common room, Lily felt dizzy with all the emotions she was trying to process, also probably a bit from the extended use of the invisibility cloak. They had just reached the door and were about to remove the cloak when muffled laughter and voices came from around the corner, headed towards them.

"Step back," Lily whispered to Julianne, pulling her away from the door a few feet and pressing herself against the wall. Julianne did the same, and both girl stood silent and still waiting.

It only took a moment for the herd of voices to round the corner. Kenny was leading the way, laughing in her hysterical way.

"I'm never going to forget the looks on their faces!" Kenny said through fits of laughter.

"Yeah it was pretty great. It's going to be hilarious in the morning when everyone sees them," Kale agreed.

"You're all going to be able to keep your mouths shut about it, right?" Payne asked as his eyes swept over the group. "This is our secret, understood? We didn't do this for the glory of Slytherin or for attention. Got that Krum?"

Kenny pouted briefly, but rolled her eyes and nodded at her captain. "I know. I won't say anything."

"If you blab about who was behind it, it'll be all our heads, understood?"

"I said I understand!" Kenny repeated more firmly.

"Good." Payne nodded. He stepped up to the wall and spoke the password. The door opened and he led the group through into the common room. The girls slipped through after Scorpius, staying silent and close to the wall so as not to draw attention to themselves, even though they were still covered by the cloak.

Fortunately after all the events of the evening, it was later than Lily had realized and the common room was nearly empty with only a few students still lingering at tables with homework spread out. Payne waved to the group and headed immediately towards the guys' corridor. Kenny headed over to a table where Ian, Nicolette, and Cassie were studying. Kale, Leo, and Geoff moved off towards their rooms as well, leaving Scorpius to stand alone for a moment, his eyes shifting curiously around the room. Lily felt instinctively that he was scanning for a sign of her, and she smiled. Taking Julianne's hand, she pulled slightly and started walking them towards the girls' corridor, but moving close enough to Scorpius that Lily felt safe letting her cloaked hand brush against his arm. He tensed briefly then let out a breath as she whispered.

"I'll meet you back here in an hour."

He nodded slightly and she and Julianne moved towards the corridor and to their room. The moment Julianne shut the door behind them, Lily pulled off the cloak and drew in a deep breath.

"Well that was not the kind of night I anticipated," Julianne said, walking over to her bed and flopping onto her stomach.

"Jules, I don't know what just happened." Lily said. Finally able to take a minute to think, she realized she felt shocked, scared, and a little sick to her stomach. "I've never seen my brothers violent!"

"They were defending you," Julianne said.

"How did they know? How did they find out?"

"I don't know."

Lily felt hot all over and her throat felt dry and scratchy. "This wasn't their burden. They shouldn't have done this!"

"Lils, they were upset. As they should be. They're your brothers!"

Lily didn't like the conflicted feelings she was struggling with. "I'm going to shower." She didn't need or want a shower but decided it was a better option than sitting there talking things through with Julianne for the next hour until she would meet with Scorpius and get some answers. Julianne nodded and remained on her bed. Lily expected she would fall asleep shortly.

An hour later, Lily was showered and dressed in her pajamas, sitting up in bed with her canopy drawn, waiting for Cassie and Nicolette to stop chatting across from their beds to each other. Kenny and Julianne were fast asleep. Styx purred contentedly in Lily's lap as she absentmindedly stroked between his ears. It took another few minutes, but she finally heard Cassie and Nicolette say "goodnight" and slide their canopies shut. She waited just a couple more minutes before slipping out from her bed and tiptoeing across the room and out the door.

She was relieved to find Scorpius waiting on the couch for her. She didn't think she could handle one more minute of waiting.

"Okay, tell me what the hell that was all about!" She demanded, sitting down beside him and putting on her most firm face. "How did my brothers find out?"

"Payne told them," he said simply as though it explained everything.

"And how did Payne find out?"

"Regina told him."

Lily sighed. She should have been able to figure that out on her own.

"I told her not to until after the game!"

"I know. She wanted Payne's opinion. Merlin, you should have seen Payne's reaction. I thought he was going to tear them apart right then and there," Scorpius said.

"Wait, you were there?"

He hesitated, realizing he had said more than intended. He glanced towards the fire, then back at her. "Yeah."

"You and Regina told him together?"

He nodded. "I knew not telling your brothers was a mistake. You were being too selfless."

She had an urge to yell at him or hex him or, hell, even slap him. "It wasn't your decision."

"Yeah, well, you haven't been making the best decisions lately."

She glared.

"Look, Regina would have told him with or without me. I figured I could at least help make sure she got it straight."

She still glared.

"I don't care if you're mad at me," he said, shrugging. "I stand by my choice. Your brother deserved to know. And I think when you talk it through with him he'll tell you the same. He hated that he even had to play the final game with those bastards, but he was glad he knew."

"Wait, he knew before the game this morning?"

Scorpius nodded. "We told Payne yesterday and he told James immediately. They came up with a plan. They were going to throw the game this morning, call it a draw. Just stop and deal with them right then and there, crowd be damned."

Lily's eyes widened.

"Then James learned your mum and some other family were going to be there and didn't want them to witness it. He didn't want the questions or consequences." Scorpius explained. "So he and Payne discussed it before the game—that's why your cousin came and got Payne before we started this morning—and came up with the alternative plan."

"Beating them bloody after dark?"

"More or less," Scorpius said. "The idea was, whichever team lost would call a rematch after dark without spectators. It would seem innocent enough, and it would get them all gathered. Then, well, you saw the rest."

"And they dragged Al in on it all?"

"He asked, from what I understand."

Lily didn't know what to say.

"I told you your brothers would want to know," Scorpius said. "They couldn't believe you hadn't told them yourself. They were so angry and heartbroken."

"I didn't want them to have to deal with this. It wasn't their burden."

"Lily, I feel like you more than most people should understand that when you're family, your burden is their burden."

Lily sighed and nodded. He was entirely right, though she hated to admit it. "I've never seen my brothers violent like that before."

"Hate makes people do shocking things," Scorpius said.

"Scor, what did you guys do with them?"

He hesitated.

"Where are they?"

"The Great Hall."

"And?"

"We wanted to humiliate them, knock down their pride a few notches," Scorpius said.

Lily's eyes narrowed.

"They're fine, they'll just have to deal with some embarrassment in the morning when everyone come in for breakfast."

"I didn't want the whole school knowing about this," Lily said.

"They won't know why, they'll just enjoy the show," Scorpius said.

"I'm really not comfortable with this…" she said, feeling more and more nervous by the moment. "Everyone's going to be talking about it, they'll figure out I'm involved somehow…"

"No, they won't!"

Lily felt her heart beating faster and her hands starting to tremble.

He frowned, seeming to sense the change in her. "What do you want to do?"

"Nothing I guess," she shook her head. "It's out of my hands now." She covered her face with her hands and fought against the urge to cry. "This is all turning out much differently than I had expected."

"You wanted revenge right?" Scorpius asked.

"Revenge?" Lily almost laughed. "I hadn't even thought of it honestly. I just didn't want them to get away with it. I was going to turn them in, let Willoughby and McGonagall deal with it. Revenge wasn't even in my mind."

"Oh…" Scorpius frowned. He seemed momentarily confused and surprised by her response. "We thought you'd be happy…"

"Happy?" Lily sighed. "I don't think that's quite the word I'd use. Nothing about this situation makes me happy."

"I don't understand. They deserve this," he said, his voice slightly more aggressive than it had been. "They deserve more than this. What they did to you…" his voice broke off and he shook his head.

"Trust me I'm aware of what they did to me," she snapped, feeling suddenly slightly frustrated by the way everyone else seemed to think they knew what was best for her in this situation. "This just wasn't what I imagined."

"Look if it really bothers you, I can go down there right now and untie them, alright? They can run back to their rooms and no one will have to know what happened." He threw up his hands as if the thought of it exasperated him.

She smiled slightly, knowing he meant it, even if he didn't agree with it. "Do they need medical care?" She asked.

"Yes, probably, though nothing too serious. Some cut lips, black eyes, nothing that can't heal over time on its own."

She sighed. "Fine. They can stay where they are." She stood. "I'm tired. I think I need to sleep and just try to forget everything I saw tonight."

He stood as well and took her hand suddenly. "I really am sorry this made you upset, Lily. I thought…we thought we were doing the right thing. We just wanted to hurt them like they hurt you."

Lily shrugged. "Unfortunately it doesn't change what they did to me." She turned, pulling her hand away from his and started heading towards the girls' hall.

"Lily…" he called after her.

She waved over her shoulder and left him without another word. She suddenly felt very tired and very angry at everyone. She just wanted to sleep. She wanted to forget all that had happened that day, and a lot of what had happened that year. She wanted to cry and scream. And for the first time in a while, she wanted to use calming draught to make herself stop feeling all that she was feeling. Without that as an option though, she simply stripped off her clothes, climbed into bed, covering her head with her heavy blankets, and cried herself to sleep.