Chapter 11: Lion vs Snake

"Chasers now! So, the first one is Adrian Pucey!" Adrian glanced at Riley with a broad smile. She tried to smile back at him, but she was too nervous to do so. "And the next chaser will be Montague."

The weird thing was that it didn't sadden Riley, but instead it angered her. Her eyes met Marcus', and he grinned with his right eyebrow lifted up, as if he was daring her to say something.

"What? This is so unfair. Montague wasn't even good! Come on Riley, go talk to Flint, I'll back you up." She heard Adrian's voice next to her face.

"No." She said, staring still at Flint.

"No?"

"This is exactly what he wants. If he wants to be stupid enough to put Montague in his team, it's his problem." She said calmly.

"Yes, but it also means that you're not playing." Adrian insisted. Riley turned her head to look at him.

"There are worst things in life." She turned around to go back to the castle. As she walked she could still hear Flint's voice, she knew that he was talking out loud on purpose.

"Congratulations for those who made the team, and for those who didn't, well, I couldn't care less!" He said in a husky voice. "Oh, and before I forget, next time we practise, try not to undress your teammates." She heard laughing behind her and instantly looked down at her T-shirt. It was all ripped up, it was ruined. She immediately regretted putting it on, it belonged to her father, a memory that had been was destroyed. The worst part was that it couldn't be repaired by magic, since most Quidditch uniforms were spell-proof with the purpose of avoid jinxes throughout a match. She took it off and increased her pace.

Later that day, it was Gryffindor's try-outs, she hadn't seen Fred since that morning during her own try-out. But she knew he would be there, trying out for the beater position. She decided to go to watch him after all, even if she was still feeling a little humiliated and angry for not making the team.

She sat down on the stands and started to watch the Gryffindor students flying around the field. She was relieved to find out that Flint wasn't there watching them. But on the other side of the pitch she could see Montague with Cora and some other Slytherins. She decided to ignore them and focused herself on the match that was happening in front of her. Fred and George were doing very well, and she wouldn't be surprised if they made it to the team. A pang of jealousy crossed over her, but she dismissed it quickly, not wanting to be that kind of person.

The Gryffindor captain finally whistled, telling them to gather around him. She couldn't hear what he was saying but when Angelina Johnson punched the air, she knew that the Gryffindor had made the team. Angelina was a nice chaser, it was hard to compare herself to her, but she knew she would have been a hard opponent. Next she saw the twins hi-fiving each other. She was happy for them, they had played very well and definitely deserved to be picked. Plus, it wasn't their fault if Flint was a bastard.

Riley decided to congratulate Fred and George. Fortunately for her, they were alone with only Lee Jordan. She had no wish to see Angelina. Riley approached the three boys and smiled at Fred when their eyes met.

"Should I congratulate you?" She asked, smirking. Fred smiled uncertainty at her for a moment and Riley guessed what the problem was. "So?" She insisted, not wanting to be pitied.

"George and I made beaters." He finally answered with the same faint smile.

"Then yes." She said, she didn't want him to feel like he needed to hide his happiness.

"Well, yes." He chuckled.

"This is what make school be worthy going to." George added. Fred looked at his twin with a warning look. A gesture that didn't go unnoticed by Riley.

"That's ok, Fred. You don't have to act like this."

"Like what?" He asked, faking unawareness.

"Like it's not a big deal!" She said, rolling her eyes. "You can show me how you really feel you know. Don't need to be sorry for me."

"Yeah…" He said a bit embarrassed. "For what it's worth, I think you were the best chaser."

"I know I was." She agreed, smiling. "But apparently, there are more important things than that." That last sentence came out a little bitter. She was trying very hard to not let it get to her but inside she was pissed. She had never hated anyone like she was hating Flint right now.

"Well, that's good news for us that you're not playing after all." He winked, trying to cheer her up.

"I know that you're trying to comfort me, but it's not working." She said crossing her arms. He laughed at this.

"Sorry… But it's true." It was times like that, that made her wish she was in Gryffindor. She was more willing to play by Gryffindor's rules than Slytherin's. Slytherins were always complicated, they lived in a world apart.

"Congratulations again." She smiled, before turning away and leaving for her dormitory.

Inside the Slytherin common room, she saw the new Slytherin Quidditch team gathered on the couches. Montague gave her a nasty grin when their eyes met. She ignored him and eyed Flint from the corner of her yes. He wasn't looking at her. He was busy trying to catch the attention of his team, who looked very annoyed to be there listening to him.

"We will win this fuck Cup this year, I don't care what we'll have to do, what you will have to do." He said angry. "And I won't hesitate to replace any of you if I feel like you're not good enough." The team nodded reluctantly.

"They're not good enough." Riley muttered to herself before going to her dorm. She was almost sure that Flint had his eyes on her when she did so.

That Saturday, the first match of the Quidditch season was taking place. Slytherin was facing Gryffindor and everyone was looking forward to this game, even the other houses. The entire castle was empty since every student, professor and even ghost were walking towards the Quidditch pitch, everyone but Riley. She had no desire to watch the game, she couldn't stand being among her housemates, cheering for her house. Deep down, she didn't want them to win. So instead, she decided to go to the library to do all her homework.

Riley was so focused on her Potions essay – she needed it to be perfectly done since Professor Snape was being incredibly nasty to her – that she didn't notice someone standing beside her and grabbing her arm.

"Where the hell have you been? I've been looking for you everywhere!" Riley's eyes widened with the sight of Marcus Flint in front of her. Wasn't he supposed to be on the pitch? Preparing himself for his big game?

"What're you doing here?" She asked, frowning.

"You're playing today!" He answered as he dragged her out of the library.

"What?" Did she hear him well? Was this a cruel joke?

"You're playing." He repeated impatiently. Riley stopped walking and pulled herself away from his grip. He turned around scowling at her.

"I have no time for this little game of yours. I have a real one that is about to start!" He snapped.

"Why am I playing? Last time I checked you chose Montague over me on your team!" She said folding her arms. Flint turned his face away from hers and sighed deeply.

"Montague is injured."

"What?" A smile was starting to take form on her face. She couldn't believe that Flint had come to her. He must have been extremely desperate. She wanted to say no, she wanted him to pay for what he did. But again, her wish to play Quidditch was stronger.

"Very well." She said, raising an eyebrow. "But you owe me one."

"Fine!" He spat.

"I'll grab my broom."

"Hurry up."

When she arrived at the Slytherin Locker room, she found her new teammates all dressed up in green robes, they were all waiting for their captain to instruct them. Everyone glowered at her, except for Adrian Pucey who gave her an encouraging smile.

"Seriously?" Bole asked. "She's replacing Montague?" Flint didn't bother to answer. He glowered menacingly at his beater, who shrugged, shocking his head.

"We're not letting those fucking Gryffindors win. Drop them from their brooms if you have to, I don't care! And you," he pointed his finger at Riley, "you better be up to it!" Riley didn't say anything, she wasn't playing for him nor for Slytherin, she was only playing for herself.

The team mounted their brooms and flew into the air. Outside, she could see tiny red spots flying around. She looked around her and saw the crowd of students screaming, she had never played with that much people watching her and it was certainly making her very nervous. When they heard Madam Hooch's whistle, both teams gathered around her. Fred glanced at Riley, raising an eyebrow and she shrugged with a smug grin on her face. When Madam Hooch asked the captains to shake their hands, Riley turned her eyes towards Flint. He shook the Gryffindor captain's hand so hard that his hand whitened. Riley knew it would be a rough game, but she only hoped that neither Fred nor George would get hurt. Madam Hooch whistled once again, and the game started.

Flint grabbed the Quaffle and flew up the field. He stormed off towards the goal posts, but was blocked by Angelina. When she tried to take the Quaffle from his hands, Marcus lifted his leg up to kick her, but was hit by a Bludger. The Quaffle fell from his hands and he turned his head angry to where it had come. He saw the defiant figure of Fred Weasley and gritted his teeth in silent fury. Angelina took the Quaffle that had fallen from Marcus' hands, and flew towards the opposite goal posts. Both Riley and Adrian followed her. Angelina dodged a Bludger that Bole had sent in her direction and positioned herself to throw the Quaffle through the hoop. But, before she could do so, Riley put her hand in front of the Quaffle, stopping her from throwing it. The Quaffle slid from Angelina's hand and Riley quickly grabbed it, speeding off to their goal posts. She dodged a Bludger not looking at the person who had shot it. She knew it was ridiculous since this was a Quidditch match and it was Fred's role, but she didn't want it to be him. When the Gryffindor captain put himself in front of Riley, she passed the Quaffle to Flint, who was near the left hoop. He scored.

The other Gryffindor chaser had the Quaffle. She passed it to his captain who sped off towards the goal posts. Riley tried to follow her, but she was already too far ahead. Adrian tried to stop her, but unsuccessfully. She scored. Adrian got the Quaffle back, he passed to Flint, who tried to scored, but the Gryffindor keeper, Oliver Wood, saved it. The Gryffindor chaser sped off again towards the goal posts, but this time, Riley was faster. She intercepted the girl and grabbed the Quaffle from her hands. She flew towards the Gryffindor goal posts and scored.

The Score was 90-30 and Slytherin was winning. Riley had scored 4 of the 9 times and was feeling particularly thrilled. The Slytherin students were all cheering madly. They screamed every time Riley was holding the Quaffle. She loved it, she wanted to play more, she wanted to score more points for her house. But, a whistle from Madam Hooch made her stop confused. She looked down and saw that Higgs had caught the Snitch. All the Slytherin players flew to his direction. Riley was feeling a little disappointed but decided to join them. The game was over and Slytherin had won.

Once she had finished showering, she exited the Locker room and saw Fred from afar. He was sitting on a bench with his head in his hands. He was still in his Quidditch robes. So instead of going to celebrate their victory with her team, she decided to go to see him. When he saw her approaching, he smiled weakly at her.

"Hey." He said.

"Hey." She smiled back as she sat down next to him.

"Good game." His gaze lost to the horizon.

"Yeah. You were good." She said trying to cheer him up this time. He didn't answer, only smiled.

"How come that you were playing?" He asked frowning slightly. Riley sighed deeply.

"Believe me or not, but I owe this to Montague's injury."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, then Flint asked me to replace him and even though I wanted to tell him to… Well you know, I really wanted to play."

"Well, I'm glad for you then, Riley."

"Thanks. It's a bit chilly in here. Do you want to get inside?"

"Nah, I think I'm going to stay in here a bit longer."

"Ok then." She got up and started to walk away.

"By the way." She heard Fred shout. "You're welcome for Montague's injury."

Riley got back to the Slytherin common room puzzled with what Fred had just told her. What did he mean by that? Did he do something to Montague? She could hear loud noises and music coming from the common room. Adrian was the first one to greet her.

"Hey, I was looking for you." He said, cheerful. "What a game. You were amazing!" She smiled at him.

"So were you."

"Come on, let's celebrate." He grabbed her arm and lead her to where the whole team was. Everyone was being nice to her, like she was their new hero. Even Derrick and Bole, who hadn't been very fond of the idea of her replacing Montague, were now congratulating her. This was the best day since she had arrived at Hogwarts. She noticed that Flint wasn't there with them, though it didn't bother her. The only person who wasn't having a good time, was Montague who spent the whole time scowling at Riley.

Several days had passed and Riley was still training with the team as their match against Ravenclaw was in a few days. One Friday afternoon, they were all training under the rain. Flint was being extremely obnoxious. He was yelling at them, insulting them all the time. Riley was tired and cold, so she wasn't playing at her best. When training was over and they were all going inside the Locker room, Montague was there waiting for them. He looked angrily at Riley.

"I'm better now, you can fuck off!"

"I'm playing this game Montague, either you like it or not!"

At this moment, Marcus Flint entered the Locker room in his green Quidditch robes holding his broom. Montague grinned evilly at Riley and turned to face the Slytherin Captain.

"I'm better now, Marcus, I can play. Can you please tell that one there to leave us men deal with Quidditch?" He asked, before turning to Riley again. He was taller and intimidating, but Riley didn't flinch, she was already used to it.

"No." The captain said indifferently. Without fully understanding what his captain had said, Montague turned around to face him again.

"What?"

"I said no. Potter is playing against Ravenclaw."

"WHAT?" Montague shouted. "How is this fair? She was only playing because I was injured!" Flint glowered at him, clearly annoyed.

"Not my problem."

Montague was speechless, he couldn't believe what he had just heard. But he was still a bit afraid of Marcus, so he just scowled one more time at Riley before storming off from the Locker room. Riley looked at Flint astonished.

"Are you truly putting me on the team?"

"Welcome to the team, Kitten."

I really wanted to post it sooner, but I've been so busy lately. Sorry if this chapter was a bit short, but I rather post it than make you wait.

Anyway thanks for reviewing :)