Disclaimer: All rights go to JK Rowling. Anything you don't recognize is mine.

Updated as of 6/14/2019.

Chapter Thirteen

The First Match

The Sunday following the joint birthday party saw Cassie perched in an uncomfortable position on her bed, struggling to stay awake through the reading Professor McGonagall had assigned them on the Inanimatus Conjurus Spell. Weak sunlight filtered through the clouds outside, playing shadows across the pages of her copy of Intermediate Transfiguration, and finally, she snapped her book shut with a groan, untangling her limbs from her former seating position and lying flat on her back, staring at the red canopy above her.

Boredom was making her restless, and she wished Lily, Alice, and Marlene would come back from whatever they were doing and save her from reading another word of Emeric Switch's borderline obsession with Transfiguration. She had barely seen them since Friday night, before her detention with Professor Carlisle, and she couldn't help but feel a little miffed that they kept running off without her.

Thinking of her detention led her thoughts back to that night, and her mind turned once again to the papers she had seen in the professor's office. The maps and the list of the Four Founders were gnawing at her brain, poking at her meddlesome nature with a long stick, and the more she mulled it over, the more she was starting to like James's idea of breaking in and seeing what she was hiding.

You can't, an insistent voice in her head chided. What if you were caught? You're already on thin ice with her, and think about what your parents would say if you got expelled for doing such a thing!

But I know she's hiding something! her stubborn half persisted. I just have to find proof!

Leave it alone!

Cassie sighed and rubbed her hands over her face, immensely thankful that Marlene had backed off on the makeup thing, as she quite enjoyed not having to worry about smearing it or accidentally wiping it off.

Deciding that sitting in her dormitory alone wasn't much fun, she traipsed down the stairs into the common room, her eyes searching for a familiar sight of red waves, blonde curls, or cropped brown hair. She stifled her disappointment when she saw none of those, but perked back up when she noticed someone else.

"Afternoon, gentlemen," she said when she approached the Marauders sitting in their fireplace seats.

"Hey, Cass," Remus returned, shifting on the couch to make room for her between him and Peter.

She sat down, copying Sirius and putting her feet up on the table. James made a rasping, squeaking noise in greeting, and she turned to him, raising her brows.

"Sorry, James, what was that? I don't speak Tea Kettle," she said wryly. The others snickered as he scowled, sinking lower in his armchair and glowering into the hearth.

"He screamed himself hoarse at practice this morning," Sirius explained from where he was slouched in his chair too, head tilted back and eyes closed in clear exhaustion. "Poor bloke sounds like a mouse getting trod on now."

"Don't let Lily hear him, then," she said, smirking when James cast her a sharp look. "She's scared of mice – she might hex him into cheese or something."

James opened his mouth to retort something, but when all that came out was a puff of air, he pursed his lips and looked away again, crossing his arms and pouting like a child.

"So was practice really that bad, or is he just being overdramatic?" she asked, turning back to Sirius. But he didn't answer, already asleep in his seat.

Her gaze roved over his face; the fluttering eyelids and serene expression. He looked so much more peaceful in his sleep, more…open. His dark hair spilled over his forehead and tickled his neck, just brushing the tops of his shoulders, and she took in the smooth olive skin of his exposed throat, traveling to the collar of his Quidditch robes, which were slightly undone at the top.

She nearly jumped when Remus cleared his throat. She tore her eyes away from Sirius, praying to Merlin that she wasn't red while simultaneously cursing herself for staring so openly. It was hard to deny Sirius's obvious looks, but she suddenly felt like the girls who would crowd around him and coo their compliments and pleasure, and the thought made her want to vomit.

"Apparently Weatherly and James got into it at practice," Remus said, speaking for the unconscious Sirius and the sulking James. She tried to ignore the spark of mischief in his eyes after noticing her blush. "Weatherly was being daft, as per usual; how that bloke ever became Captain is beyond me."

James squeaked in agreement, and Cassie nodded, now caught up to speed. "I see."

"I think the stress is getting to them," Peter said, lowering his voice and gesturing to the other two boys. "The first match is this Saturday, and I've heard Ravenclaw put together a solid team this year."

Cassie wrinkled her nose. "Please, Aubrey may be top of the sixth-year class, but he couldn't tell the difference between a Quaffle and the Snitch."

Peter nodded sagely and Remus snorted. James glanced over at her with newfound admiration at the statement.

"You follow the House matches?" he asked, sounding like he had lived in a chimney all his life. Cassie scoffed.

"I only know Aubrey's the Ravenclaw Captain because Marlene went out with him last year, and her little brother's on the team," she said, quirking her brow. "And everyone's been talking about this match since the term started, so no points for me in the Quidditch category. Sorry."

Peter looked as if she had insulted his mum, and James seemed, if possible, even more upset, turning back to the fireplace and positively brooding. Remus snorted again, thumbing through the pages of the book he held in his hands, but Sirius remained asleep, though his head was now lolling on his shoulder and snores were beginning to emanate from his open mouth.

"Oi, this isn't your dormitory," Cassie said, kicking his foot lightly to startle him awake. He sat up and glared at her. "You look exhausted; go sleep in an actual bed."

"I am perfectly content here, thank you," he said, throwing his legs over the opposite arm of the chair and giving her a petulant look.

She rolled her eyes, her retort lost when her gaze landed on something else. "Hey, guys!"

She leaped to her feet when she saw her three friends emerge from the portrait hole, and they stopped walking as she went over to meet them, beaming.

Marlene whispered something in Lily's ear as she approached, and she watched in confusion as the blonde girl scurried away up the stairs to the girls' dormitories, not once glancing Cassie's way. Shrugging off her retreat, figuring she had homework to catch up on (after all, Mar was the queen of procrastination), Cassie bounced up to Lily and Alice.

"Where have you all been?" she said, reverting to her dramatic, whiny voice. "I've been dying without you here."

Alice only gave her a forced smile, but she guessed Lily was the source of her unease, for the redhead had her Prefect manner perfectly in place, disapproving frown pulling down her lips and her green eyes sharp and flaring.

"What's wrong, Lils?" she asked. "Catch anymore second-years throwing Dungbombs down the corridors?"

If possible, Lily's face got even darker at the joke.

Cassie looked between Lily and Alice, her smile fading as confusion began to take hold of her. "Seriously, what's up with you lot?"

Lily opened her mouth to speak, but Cassie internally groaned when Sirius spoke directly behind her.

"All right, Evans?" he said. Cassie turned to see him smirking at the Prefect mockingly and tried to block out how fantastically tousled he looked right then, coupled with his signature smirk that made first-years melt into goo. She mentally slapped herself, wondering what in the bloody hell was getting into her that day, but she was spared the agony of reflecting on his looks when Lily replied.

"Go away, Black," she said, and Cassie's brows rose at her harsh tone; though Sirius was James's closest mate, she usually treated him with a slightly warmer attitude than the latter, yet now his name held as much venom as when she spat Potter.

Sirius looked to Cassie incredulously before turning his gaze back on Lily. "Whatever it was that happened, I swear James and I weren't involved."

Lily glared, her eyes turning to green slits, and Cassie nudged the smirking boy with her elbow. "Sirius, I advise you to walk away now."

Clearly sensing danger, he nodded and backed away, patting Cassie's shoulder bracingly. "I'll be sleeping if anyone needs me."

He hurried away from the trio as quickly as he could without breaking the languid grace of his stride, and when his Quidditch robes rounded the corner of the boys' staircase, Lily whirled on her accusingly.

"Since when do you call him 'Sirius?'" she said, her voice shrill.

Cassie blinked, trying to absorb what was suddenly happening and looking to Alice for support. The other girl was no help, however, as she had opted to stare at her shoes, and so she looked back to Lily, completely baffled.

"Since when do you care what I call him?" she asked.

Lily's face glowed red.

"Because Sirius Black isn't your friend, Cassie!" she snapped. "We are, though it seems as if you've forgotten that as of late!"

"What are you—" Oh. "You think I've been avoiding you?"

Lily let out a frustrated noise. "Of course we think that, Cass! As soon as the news about your brother got out, you've completely ditched us for them! Sneaking off to the kitchens, returning to the dormitory at the crack of dawn, smelling like firewhiskey – I mean, what has happened to you? Is this some sort of coping mechanism, throwing caution to the wind and running around with troublemakers who will place the blame on you as soon as you get caught?"

"They wouldn't do that to me," she denied immediately, though a spike of uncertainty went through her as she said it. Lily just looked at Cassie with utter disappointment.

"You know you can talk to us, Cassie," she said, much more quietly. "We've been waiting for you to open up to us this whole time."

"See, that's the thing, Lily," she said, suddenly angry. "I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to hear about it, or see another damned article in the Prophet, or even think about it. This isn't something that a late night girls' talk can fix! And they get that – the boys, they take my mind off it, and that is me coping with it!"

"Whatever, Cassie," Lily said, backing away and shaking her head. "Save the excuses. You can hang out with them if you want – I won't stop you."

She stalked away to the staircase, leaving her speechless. She stared at Alice, winded.

The other girl just shook her head. "I'm sorry, Cassie. I just—" She broke off, biting her lip before saying "I dunno" and following Lily up the stairs.

After standing for a few seconds in shock, she turned to the staircases and darted up the boy's, leaving behind the curious eyes in the common room that had followed the argument. She made her way to the room Remus had led her to not that long ago, finding it and opening the door quickly and slipping inside.

"Bloody hell!" Sirius jumped in his bed when she slammed the door shut, and she looked up to see him lying in his four-poster, covers pulled to his chin as he stared at her in alarm.

"Er, in any other circumstance, I would love a girl to come barging into my room while I'm lying half-naked in bed and looking like she wanted to punch something, but…" He trailed off when she glared at him, and he cleared his throat before asking, "What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she growled, throwing herself on top of Remus's bed and moving his things aside to make room for her body. She yanked off her shoes and turned on her side, facing Sirius. He looked back to her quizzically, though thankfully had enough sense not to press.

"Whatever you say." He shrugged and got into a more comfortable position under the sheets, closing his eyes and falling back to sleep in an instant.

Cassie huffed, punching Remus's pillow into a firmer shape before closing her own eyes, willing herself to calm down. If she wasn't welcome in her own dorm at the moment, then the Marauders' would have to do.

Lunch was tense, to put it mildly.

After James, Remus, and Peter had come up to the dormitory (Remus nearly screaming like a girl when he mistook Cassie for his clutter and attempted to sit on her), James and Sirius had gone into the washroom to shower (winking at Cassie the entire time and telling lewd jokes), and she'd climbed out of Remus's bed to sit on the floor with him and Peter for a game of Snap before they headed down to the Great Hall.

She had calmed down a bit since earlier and now relayed her and Lily's spat to Remus and Peter, gesticulating wildly the more agitated she got before having to throw down her cards, as they had begun to smoke warningly in her hands.

"I mean, what does she expect me to do?" Cassie said, watching as Peter punched the air silently after winning the round from Remus. (Peter, as it turned out, was the best at Snap, which explained why he always wanted to play and kept a deck of cards on him at all times.) "Am I supposed to be moping around depressingly, casting anxious looks out my window anytime it rains? Do I have to act like I'm Moaning Myrtle for her to see that I'm 'trying to cope?'"

"She doesn't expect those things from you, Cassie," Remus said, grudgingly fishing in his pocket and handing over a chunk of chocolate to the gleeful Peter. "From what you said, I think she's just hurt that you're choosing to spend time with us rather than her and the others."

"Well, she can get over it," she grumbled. "It's not like I'm doing anything wrong."

"Oi, Alderfair!" Sirius shouted from the other side of the washroom door. "Cover your eyes! We're coming out!"

"About time!" she said, taking the proffered pillow from Remus and covering her face with it. "I always thought you and James would make a cute couple."

Sirius whistled from inside the washroom, and there was a suspicious slapping sound that elicited laughs, before the door clicked open and she could hear the two boys begin to dress. She sensed Peter get to his feet and walk over to his trunk, but she jumped when she felt Remus's breath right on her ear.

"Do I need to keep an eye on you and make sure you don't peek?" he teased.

Cassie felt her face grow warm, and not just from the pillow.

"Ew, Remus!" she complained. "Why would I do that? That's creepy."

He snorted, a puff of hot air on her ear, and shivers raced down her arms. "I saw you staring at Sirius earlier, and don't deny it." She could practically feel his smug grin. "Seems like the Great Cassie Alderfair isn't immune to him, either."

"Oh, go boil your head, Remus!" she snapped, removing the pillow to give him a poisonous glare before remembering why it was over her face a second too late.

"Merlin's bollocks!" Sirius yelped. James let out a noise that resembled a shrieking bird, but the damage was already done. Thank Morgana and her lucky stars that they at least had knickers on, but the full effect of the scantily clothed James Potter and Sirius Black was now forever seared into Cassie's mind as she fell back, Remus smothering her again with the pillow as the dormitory roared with laughter.

"Remus, end my suffering!" she moaned, but all she got as a reply was Remus's howling laughter. "I never want to see that much of them again!"

Although, as she reflected on the incident fifteen minutes later when they were walking to the Great Hall, the experience had not been entirely unpleasant. James and Sirius were good-looking, and fit from all that Quidditch, and their physiques had portrayed that quite nicely, in her opinion (not that she would ever tell them that, of course).

They had just begun to descend the marble staircase when a voice called out, "Potter!" Cassie turned to see one of Marlene's many exes, Bertram Aubrey, approaching them from the opposite corridor, where she knew the direction of Ravenclaw Tower to be.

"Aubrey," James said as coolly as he could with his shot voice, pausing on the stairs, so people had to swerve around them to get past. "What's up?"

"I need you to pass on a message to Weatherly," the Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain said, his voice confident and unwavering as he faced James squarely, though not unkindly. "Tell him I'm booking the pitch Thursday night, but he can have Friday morning if he wants."

"All right," James said. "I'll tell him."

Aubrey grinned, clapping him on the shoulder before turning his eyes to the rest of them. He started when he met Cassie's gaze. "You're one of Marley's friends, right?"

"Also the Gryffindor with a Death Eater brother, but thanks for not dwelling on that part," she said, giving him a small wave, and to her surprise he laughed.

"Sorry," he said, chuckling, "I'm not laughing at you. I'd just forgotten how blunt you are."

Her brows rose at this, but her face flushed slightly as he kept grinning at her. "Forgive me if I don't recall ever speaking to you; you and Mar were always very preoccupied anytime I was around."

He chuckled again, running a hand through his blond hair, which seemed perfectly styled by the wind. She grimaced nervously.

"I think the one time we did you told me I had a pumpkin juice stain on my tie," he said. "You asked me if tie-stains were now in fashion, and that you'd have to make a note to your mother so she could include it in her magazine." Cassie gaped when she remembered the incident, which had been a good seven months ago. Aubrey kept grinning. "Marley reckons you were pissed at her for spending so much time with me; kept telling me that you were a lot nicer than that, but I thought it was hilarious."

"I forgot about that," she said, half-quizzical, half-embarrassed. "How did you remember?"

He shrugged, opening his mouth to answer, before Remus let out a particularly large and painfully fake sneeze.

"Whew, sorry," Remus said, rubbing his nose theatrically. "All this climate change going on…must be something in the air…"

"Some soup will fix you right up, mate," Sirius said, clapping Remus on the back before staring pointedly at Aubrey. "If you don't mind…"

"Of course," the Ravenclaw said gracefully. "I'll leave you to your meal. Don't forget to pass on my message to Weatherly, Potter, Black." He inclined his head to the two boys in turn before starting back up the staircase. "Nice chatting with you, Cassie!"

When he had disappeared back up the staircase, she turned to Remus, raising a brow, but Sirius was already ushering him to the Great Hall with dramatic commentary on the sandy-haired boy's critical condition and crippling sinuses that made people edge out of the way. Rolling her eyes, she followed after them with James and Peter, who seemed to be communicating silently behind her back. She grit her teeth, not surprised in the least if James had now taken it upon himself to chat with Aubrey as he had done Avery. The thought made her scowl, and she remained silent as they entered the Great Hall, heading for the table and passing Lily, Alice, and Marlene in their usual spots – her usual spot.

The three girls acted as if they were unaware of her presence as she slipped by them, but from the frowns on their faces and their stiff posture, she knew that they had seen her with the Marauders, and they were displeased.

Setting her jaw, she sat down with the boys and immediately began tossing food onto her plate, keeping her eyes on her cold cut so they wouldn't stray to where Lily sat. She was thoroughly exasperated by the redhead's behavior in regards to the Marauders and her new association with them, but she wasn't stressed about the ordeal. Lily's friendship with her was stronger than her hatred of the Marauders, and she would soon see that and apologize for treating Cassie so harshly.

"Is it just me, or does Snivellus look greasier than usual today?" James rasped, his eyes narrowed past Cassie's shoulder. She turned to see Severus Snape slinking into the Hall and taking a seat next to Kanin Mulciber at the Slytherin table.

In truth, Cassie couldn't tell much of a difference; Snape was always greasy and dour, though she had tried to keep her opinions on him neutral since he and Lily were such good friends. She knew of the silent (and sometimes not-so-silent) war raging between the boy and the Marauders that spanned back to their first year, but she had no idea what had made them hate each other so much, and now she couldn't help her curiosity.

"What is it with you lot and him, anyway?" she asked, turning back to face James and Sirius. "Why do you hate him so much?"

"Because he's a slimy Slytherin git," Sirius said, as if that explained everything.

"Every Slytherin is a slimy git," she said, recalling Defense last week and Mulciber's note to her. "But what makes him so special?"

"He's also interested in the Dark Arts," James said, looking to her pointedly. "A little too interested, if you get what I mean."

"Noted," she said, rolling her eyes. "Is that it? That's not a lot of reasons."

The Marauders exchanged a dark look, before Sirius said, "Let's just say that he doesn't know how to keep his abnormally long nose out of our private business."

"And what kind of business is that?"

"Kind that you're not privy to," he replied sweetly, smirking at her.

"You're no fun," she complained, but all she received was a wink from him before their discussion returned to the upcoming match.

Cassie ate her sandwich slowly, her thoughts wandering. So much had already happened this year, it seemed, and the term was little more than halfway through. She didn't know how well she could take it if another Bludger of tragic news was beat at her head, knocking her world off its axis again, and she really didn't want to find out. But Professor Carlisle's mysterious maps and lists wouldn't leave her alone, until finally she couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Professor Carlisle is hiding something," she announced, cutting off Peter's ramblings of team stats. They all stopped and stared at her, dumbfounded.

"Didn't I say that last week?" James said.

She nodded, abandoning her sandwich and leaning closer, lowering her voice. "Yes, you did, but I have proof," she whispered. "If I can get my hands on it," she added as an afterthought.

The four boys exchanged a glance again.

"All right, I'll bite," Sirius said. "What did you find?"

"Maps of hidden trails in the Forbidden Forest," she said. "I think she's looking for something in there."

"That could be anything," Remus pointed out. "She could just be searching for some creature to show the class."

"I thought that, too," she said, "but I found something else that makes me think that that isn't the case."

"You're killing us with the suspense, Princess," James moaned. "Just spit it out."

She shot him an annoyed look. "I'm getting there. The other thing I found was a list of the Four Founders, but it was so strange. Next to Salazar Slytherin's and Helga Hufflepuff's names she had written 'found,' Rowena Ravenclaw's name had a question mark, and Godric Gryffindor's was bolded. Doesn't that seem odd to anyone else?"

"I dunno," Sirius said slowly. "Sounds to me like she's just really interested in the Founders."

"I don't think so," she said, shaking her head. "You didn't see the list – I think she's trying to find something connected to each of the Founders, but I can't know for sure. Not unless I find something else in her office that proves my theory."

"Cassie, that may not be the best idea," Remus said, frowning. "That list could mean anything, and it sounds harmless to me."

"I agree with Moony," Sirius said. "I think you're just overanalyzing things because you don't like the witch – not saying that you should," he added hastily when she threw him a glare.

"Remus and Sirius are right," Peter said, looking back to her apologetically. "It sounds like nothing, and you shouldn't risk your neck over it."

Cassie swallowed back her disappointment, taking a sip of her pumpkin juice before nodding. "All right, fine," she conceded. "I won't do anything. But if something else comes up…"

The others nodded, seemingly relieved. She took another bite of her sandwich, only looking up when she felt James's eyes trained on her. He gave her a pointed look, and after pausing to decipher it, she nodded and went back to her meal, silently understanding what he had meant: we need to talk.

When they'd finished eating, Remus drifted off to the library, saying he needed to study for some Ancient Runes exam coming up, and Peter followed after, asking Remus if he could proofread his Transfiguration essay. Sirius left for the common room, presumably to go back to sleep, leaving just her and James.

"Okay, spill," she said as they exited the Great Hall. Her eyes drifted to her normal seat with the girls as they passed, but to her relief and disappointment, they had already gone. She and James stopped in an alcove in the Entrance Hall, out of sight of the students streaming back to their common rooms.

"I think the map and the list of the Founders is sketchy, too," he said. "There's definitely something off about Carlisle, and I agree that we should find out what."

"So, you're going to help me?" she asked.

"As soon as we have a bit more information," he said, holding up his hand. "I don't want to go in there blind."

"Then we'll just have to keep an eye on her," she said.

He grinned, the same look of mischief lighting up his face as it did whenever he pulled off an exceedingly extravagant prank.

"I guess so," he said, and they shook on it.

"Oh, and Cassie," he said before they ventured out of the alcove. She stopped and faced him questioningly. He looked sheepish, running a hand through his hair before saying, "I'm sorry about the Avery thing. I was just trying to look out for you, y'know?"

She quirked her lips at him in a wry grin. "I know. I'm sorry for jumping down your throat about it. But I can look out for myself too, yeah?"

"Yeah." He nodded, before seeing something over her shoulder and groaning. "There's Weatherly. I guess I should pass on Aubrey's message."

Cassie grimaced, turning to see the broad-shouldered Gryffindor Captain lumbering out of the Great Hall, his rock-like face set into a scowl as he headed up the marble staircase.

"Best of luck," she said, patting his arm, and he winced before following Weatherly up the stairs.

She emerged from the alcove to hear two piercing giggles echo around the Entrance Hall, and she internally groaned when she saw Mary MacDonald and Dorcas Meadowes approaching her, predatory smiles on their glossy lips.

"I think you might have to take back your bet on Lupin, Dor," Mary said gleefully, staring at Cassie as if she were a bug she would desperately like to step on. "Seems like the Gryffin-slag is shacking up with Potter!"

This sent the Ravenclaw girls into a new fit of shrill giggles. Cassie just stared at them coldly.

"Of course, you're so right, MacDonald!" she said sarcastically, trying to match the pitch of her voice to theirs. "I mean, Lupin was last week, but Potter…well, they say it's good to have variety, right?"

She covered her mouth as she laughed as high as she could, and she felt a sense of smugness as the two girls gazed at her, dumbstruck.

"Adieu," she sang, wiggling her fingers and starting up the stairs. She heard them whispering behind her, but she couldn't find it in her to care. Between rumors about her being a slag, or having everyone talk about the crimes of her brother, she'd choose being a slag any day.

The day of the match dawned clear and cold, and Cassie made sure to bundle up before heading down to breakfast. The other girls in the dorm were already gone, but this past week had become a sort of routine for her, in the sense that she never saw them until they went to bed in the evening. Lily had yet to apologize for the argument, and Cassie had told herself that she would be just as distant from the girls as they were to her unless she received some sort of apology.

This had left her to hang around the Marauders all week, which only seemed to add more fuel to the fire, but what else was she supposed to do? She enjoyed their company (when they weren't being immature berks), and she certainly wasn't going to be alone until she and the girls made up, which made the situation halt at an impasse for the time being.

She sat down with the Marauders in the Great Hall, her cheery greeting quelled by the somber atmosphere. She looked round at them all, frowning. "What's gotten into you lot?"

"Shh!" Peter hissed, waving her off frantically. "We only just got James to shut up about the match!"

At this, James scowled, though Cassie noted that he seemed very pale. "Stuff it, Wormtail."

"James, you need to eat something," Remus said, gesturing to the untouched porridge in front of the boy. "You too, Sirius."

Sirius, despite looking as haughty and cool as ever, had only been taking small sips of gillywater. He seemed his normal, arrogant self, but Cassie could tell he was tense by the coiled muscles in his shoulders.

"'M not hungry," James mumbled, but he forced down a bite all the same, looking as if he were about to be sick.

"James, how are you possibly nervous?" Cassie asked, pointing her bacon at him. "You've been on the team since our second year; surely you're used to the pre-game jitters by now?"

"I am!" he said, closing his eyes as if in pain. "But Weatherly is a complete duffer, and our team is terrible!"

"Oi, give us some credit," Sirius said. "At least we're not Hufflepuff."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I believe that we can win," she said bracingly. "Just give it your all, and whatever happens, happens."

"She has a point," Remus agreed, and she looked to him fondly, pretending to faint. He only rolled his eyes in return. "Y'know, Cassie, sometimes I think that you have an ego as big as James and Sirius."

"Mine is far bigger than theirs," she assured, smirking. "I'm just not an arrogant idiot about it."

The comment launched an argument between the five over whose ego was biggest. Fortunately, it seemed to loosen some of the strain on James and Sirius, for they looked considerably better ten minutes later when they headed to the pitch to change and prepare for that morning's match.

Remus, Peter, and Cassie took their time following them, and it wasn't until they reached the doors of the Entrance Hall that Cassie realized she was missing her red and gold scarf.

"Oh, bollocks," she grumbled, already feeling a hint of the biting winter chill and knowing that she would not last long out in the stands in this weather. "I'll catch up to you in a few; I'm going to nip back to the dorm and grab my scarf."

The two boys promised to save her a seat, and she headed back to Gryffindor Tower while they made their way to the pitch, many other students beginning to follow them as they finished their breakfast.

Several minutes later, Cassie found herself back in the Entrance Hall, her scarf wound tightly round her neck. She was about to exit the castle when two figures caught her eye, partially hidden by the passage that led to the Slytherin Common Room. She started when she recognized the figures, her brows furrowing at the sight of Professor Carlisle talking to none other than Edmond Avery.

Swiftly checking to make sure no one was watching, she crept closer to the pair, obscured behind a column near enough to where she could hear their voices and see them. She peeked her head around the corner, watching as Carlisle crossed her arms, her height matching that of Avery's and putting them at eye-level.

"Have you done any more research as I requested?" she asked, her voice flat and brisk. Though Avery's back was to Cassie, she saw his shoulders lift in a noncommittal gesture.

"Not much," he said, his own voice neutral. "O.W.L. year isn't exactly a stroll through the meadow."

Carlisle looked faintly annoyed, but she nodded. "See to it that it will be done, Edmond. We cannot proceed if we don't know where to look."

"Yes, Professor," Avery intoned. "It will be done."

"Good." She gave him another curt nod. "Come; your classmates are expecting you, and unfortunately I must be in attendance for these foolish games."

"I'll be down in a moment," Avery said. He gestured down the passageway to the dungeons. "I forgot to grab something."

Carlisle nodded again before sweeping toward the great doors of the hall. Cassie pressed herself flat against the column, holding her breath before the professor was gone in a swirl of black robes.

She let out a small breath, but shrieked and pulled out her wand when a voice spoke directly in her ear.

"I wouldn't think a Gryffindor would be the type to eavesdrop."

She whirled to see Avery standing behind her shoulder, a smirk on his lips, but his gaze was irritated.

"I wasn't," she said automatically, despite knowing how stupid that was.

He raised his brows. "And a liar, as well." He cocked his head, studying her with pale blue eyes, and she flushed to the roots of her hair.

"I may be a lot of things, but a liar isn't one of them," she said hotly. He chuckled, raising his hands in surrender.

"Perhaps not, Gryffindor," he said, "but I know for a fact that your kind loves to have their noses in everyone else's matters."

"We all have our flaws," she countered, stowing away her wand.

He smirked. "Indeed, Cassie, we do."

There was a tense moment of silence where Cassie began to regret putting up her wand, before Avery asked, "What all did you hear?"

"That Carlisle wants you to do some research for her," she said, figuring she was already caught. "And it sounds like it's important."

"Yes, it is," he said. "It's an extra credit assignment for Defense; I'm at the top of that class for the fifth-years, but if I'm not careful, you or that Lupin boy could claim my spot."

Cassie scoffed. "Yeah, because I'm such a threat. D'you know how long it took me to get that Shield Charm perfect?"

"Yet yours is the best," he countered. "The others are decent, but their lack of practice shows."

Cassie swallowed back her reply, wondering if the Slytherin was intentionally trying to get her off track with their conversation.

"So, what kind of extra credit assignment is this?" she asked instead, looking to him as innocently as she could.

He frowned, turning away and shrugging. "Just the usual: 'History of the Dark Arts,' obscure spells, all that tosh."

"Oh." She nodded like she was interested. "So, you could research the Founders, right? I mean, each one of them would be fascinating to write about from a magical point of view, wouldn't they? All their achievements in spellwork, things like that?"

She watched his face carefully, and though it remained aloof and blank, she thought she saw the faintest shadow flicker in his eyes.

"That would be fascinating," he mused, nodding to her. "Thanks for the suggestion."

She gave him a toothless smile before stepping away. "Anytime."

And with that, she turned on her heel and walked away.

"About bloody time," Remus mumbled when she finally found him and Peter in the stands. She was panting hard and nursing some bruises after pushing her way through the crowds to reach them; she hadn't realized how long her detour with Avery lasted, and the stands were filled to capacity now. "How long does it take you to get a scarf?"

She didn't reply, still too breathless. She wouldn't have had time to answer anyway, for just then a whistle blew, capturing the crowd's attention. The boys had managed to find good seats, and she looked down to see Madam Hooch standing on the pitch, her youthful frame tall and somewhat menacing, as the teams entered onto the field from opposite ends, the students cheering and booing in equal measure.

"And here come the teams!" the student announcer, Charlie Jordan, said into his magically amplified megaphone. "On Ravenclaw, we have Peddleton, Raj, Kerpensky, Moss, Macon, Bosworth, and Captain Bertram Aubrey!"

Strong cheering came from the Ravenclaws and Slytherins, while the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs booed, flapping their arms at the opposing stands where students stood clad in blue.

"And for Gryffindor, we have McKinnon, Potter, Schaffer, Wood, Black, Hamilton, and Captain Michael Weatherly!"

Cassie clapped along with the shouting Gryffindors, red and gold banners depicting roaring lion heads flying around her. She only distantly heard Madam Hooch bark, "Captains, shake hands!" In the next moment, the players had all mounted their brooms, and after a sharp blow on the whistle, the match commenced.

"And they're off!" Jordan cried, his voice full of gusto as the Quaffle began to pass dizzyingly between the players, flying so fast and so high on their brooms that they resembled buzzing flies. "Kerpensky starts off with the Quaffle, passes it to Peddleton – McKinnon is on the chase – nice hit from Gryffindor Beater Black!"

Cassie saw Sirius zoom past them in the stands, and she swore she saw him wink as he went back for the group of Chasers flying around, bat in hand.

"McKinnon now in possession of the Quaffle, circling back to Ravenclaw's hoops – he passes it to fellow Gryffindor Chaser Potter, and… HE SCORES!"

The Gryffindors roared their approval, and James waved to the red-clad supporters, black hair tousling in the wind and looking as if he were born to be on a broom. Cassie clapped with the rest of them, shaking her head at James's oozing self-confidence, but smiling all the same.

"Score is now ten-zero for Gryffindor. Ravenclaw Chaser Raj now in possession – fancy pass there back to Peddleton – Peddleton takes off for the Gryffindor goals…c'mon Weatherly…Peddleton goes to score, and…scores."

The roar was nearly deafening from the Ravenclaw supporters. Jordan (a Gryffindor himself) couldn't keep the bitterness out of his voice as he said, "Score now ten-ten, after Gryffindor Keeper Weatherly fails to block Peddleton's shot, and Ravenclaw is once again in possession of the Quaffle…"

Another hour of this passed, with each team gaining an upper hand before quickly losing it. Cassie found herself on the edge of her seat (not literally, of course; the energy of the match was too much for her to remain seated), anxiously watching the teams play with a fierce competitiveness reminiscent of animals fighting for their place at the top of the food chain. Her eyes kept straying back to James and Sirius, grudgingly admitting to herself that they were, indeed, excellent flyers, but her attention snapped back to the game when Jordan began screaming into the megaphone.

"And it seems the Golden Snitch has been sighted at last! Gryffindor Seeker Wood makes a spectacular dive, Ravenclaw Seeker Aubrey hot on his tail…there we go, Wood, show that tosser how to fly—"

"Jordan, if you can't keep your commentary objective…" Professor McGonagall could be heard warning him, and Jordan cleared his throat awkwardly before continuing with a muttered, "Yes, Professor.

"Wood and Aubrey now neck-and-neck, going after the Snitch… Current score is Gryffindor one-twenty, Ravenclaw one-ten, resulting in a win for either team if the Snitch is caught…"

"I can't watch," Peter whimpered, though his eyes never left the game. Cassie found herself holding her hands over her mouth, adrenaline coursing through her as she watched two blurs pelting through the air, both arms outreached…

"It's close," Jordan whispered, more to himself than anyone, but the crowd didn't seem to notice, just as entranced. "So close…just a little bit more…and – YES! GRYFFINDOR'S CAUGHT THE SNITCH, WOOD CAUGHT IT, GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

"We won?" Cassie gasped, uncovering her mouth and turning to a beaming Remus. "We won!"

The three all screamed together, jumping around and hugging, and Cassie was amazed at how invested she had gotten. Most of the Quidditch games she attended were spent lounging in the top stands, gossiping with the girls and occasionally reading through magazines and doing their nails, and she wondered how she ever could have done that when this – victory – felt so wonderful.

"PARTY IN THE GRYFFINDOR COMMON ROOM!" Peter roared, and the crowd went ballistic, racing off to the castle with whoops and hollers and very rude chants directed at the Ravenclaw supporters.

Cassie was so wrapped up in the euphoric sense of celebration that everything else faded into the background as she was swept back to the common room. James and Sirius intercepted them halfway there – still sweaty and dirty and wearing their Quidditch robes – and joined in their revelry. Cassie shrieked when Sirius lifted her up and swung her around, laughing loudly and joyfully, but she couldn't help laughing too as they walked arm-in-arm to the castle.

If she hadn't been so immune to her surroundings, then perhaps she would have seen the billowing black robes of Professor Carlisle walking in the opposite direction of the castle, passing like a shadow through the first trees of the Forbidden Forest before vanishing in a haze of mist.

I loved writing the Quidditch commentary! It was always one of my favorite parts in the books that made the world feel so much more real, so I hope I managed to do it some justice.

Next Chapter: The Slug Club

xx