I'M BACK! I had such a good spring break in Utah! Visited my Dad, hung out with some old friends, and WROTE THIS SUPER LONG CHAPTER! Enjoy!
Lily's plan to not be like her parents was going well. She soon found her cousins and siblings were all the same. And if her cousins and siblings were all the same, she bet that they were like their parents, meaning they were like her parents. She realized that she didn't like them very much.
About a week into term, after DADA, Professor Villeti called Lily back.
"Lily, on your first morning here, I overheard you and your friends talking by accident. I know that you resent your family for abandoning you," the professor said.
"And you're going to tell me that they didn't abandon me. That I was kidnapped," Lily sighed.
"No. As an expert in defense against the Dark Arts, I know how to tell when somebody is lying. When your parents told me you were kidnapped, I knew they were lying. It wasn't until I overheard your conversation with your friends that I realized what had happened. I had assumed that they were protecting you from the reporters, and kept you hidden," Professor Villeti said.
"You believe me?" Lily asked hopefully.
"Yes. Now, what do you intend to do out it?" Professor Villeti asked.
"I dunno, Professor. What can I do?" Lily said.
"Get back at them. Revenge in a beautiful thing Ms. Potter," the professor said.
"Would you help me?" Lily asked.
"Yes. I cannot let such atrocities go unpunished," Professor Villeti said. "Come to my office tonight, and we will discuss what to do."
_Line Break_
That night, Lily told Aludra and Elizabeth that she had a detention, and went to Professor Villeti's office. lily knocked on the door, and heard Professor Villeti call, "Come in!"
When Lily entered, she found that Professor Villeti's office walls were adorned with plates with moving kittens on them. She was accustomed to moving paintings by now, but had not seen anything as sickly sweet as the plates.
"Tea?" Professor Villeti asked.
"Yes, please," Lily answered.
Once both Professor Villeti and Lily had tea, Professor Villeti spoke.
"Lily, before we go on, I must know how far you are willing to go to get revenge on your parents," she said.
"As far as necessary," Lily said.
"Very well. I must tell you, that I am a part of a secret organization who believes your family and the Order of the Phoenix went to far in stopping the Death Eaters. I feel almost sure that the rest of my comrades would be willing to help you," Professor Villeti said.
"We'll need all the help we can get," Lily said.
"I'll ask them. In the mean time, you must act as if you love your family. You must get on well with your cousins, and write to your parents. Also, you should join the Quidditch team," the professor said.
"Quidditch? But I promised myself that I wouldn't be anything like my parents!"
Lily protested.
"True, but you must convince you family that you love them for my plan to work," said Professor Villeti.
"What is your plan?" Lily asked.
"Once you have gained their trust, you lure them to a location, where my comrades and I will be waiting. We will capture them, and give them a little scare. Just a scare! We won't hurt them!" Professor Villeti assured Lily.
"Fine. I'll join the Quidditch team," Lily said.
"Very good! The tryouts are in a week. Ask one of your cousins to teach you to fly," Professor Villeti said.
_Line Break_
Lily looked over at the Gryffindor table where her cousins were talking and laughing together. Rosie saw her looking, and waved at her. The rest of the cousins saw this, and looked at Lily. They all smiled and waved. She stood, and went over to talk to them.
"Hello everyone," Lily said.
"Hey Lily!" Lily's cousins said.
Lily sat down with them. Elizabeth and Aludra sent her inquiring looks from the Slytherin table, but she ignored them.
"I saw a notice on the Slytherin board today. I was wondering, what's Quidditch?" Lily said.
Most of the Weasley/Potter family choked on their food. They were all avid Quidditch fans.
"Quidditch is only the best sport in the world!" James said.
"The three chasers try to throw the Quaffle through the hoops, which are guarded by the keeper. Two beaters hit bludgers which try to knock players off their brooms. The seeker looks for the Golden Snitch. When it's caught, the game is over, and the team who caught it gets 150 points!" Fred said.
"I wanted to try out for any sports there are here, but I don't know how to ride a broom," Lily sighed.
Her words had the desired effect. Many of her cousins made affairs to teach her. Rose offered her a book called Quidditch Through the Ages. Roxanne told her that the first years flying lesson was too far away to go out for Quidditch.
In the end, it was decided that Lucy, Percy Weasley's youngest daughter and captain and chaser for the Gryffindor team, would teach Lily to play Quidditch.
That afternoon, Lily and Lucy met on the Quidditch pitch.
"Have you ever played a sport before?" Lucy asked.
"I played football at the orphanage," Lily said, observing Lucy unlocking the Quidditch equipment.
"Well, Rosie is letting you borrow her broom until next year when you can get your own," Lucy said, handing Lily a Nimbus 2027. As soon as the polished wood of the broom touched Lily's fingers, a tingling sensation went up her arm, just like the one she experienced when she touched her wand for the first time.
Lucy showed Lily how to ride the broom, and by the time the pair landed, Lucy was scowling.
"Why couldn't you have been a Gryffindor so you could be on our team?" Lucy asked.
Lucy had her hit a few bludgers, but the bludgers went off course and were erratic. When Lily tried to catch the snitch, the thing disappeared, and Lucy ended up using a summoning charm to retrieve it. Lily was excellent at stopping the Quaffle as a keeper, but Lily found she didn't like just sitting there. But, when Lily tried Chaser, she got lots of goals past Lucy, and Lucy was practically crying over the fact that Lily couldn't be on the Gryffindor team.
_Line Break_
On the morning of Quidditch tryouts, Lily bid goodbye to Elizabeth and Aludra and went to tryouts. Lily had been training everyday as Chaser. Lucy has toiled the Weasley/Potter clan of Lily's Chaser brilliance, and many had expressed their disappointment that Lily could not be on the Gryffindor team.
When Lily arrived on the pitch, she was greeted by ten other hopefuls, along with the six people already on the team. The only position open was a chaser. Lily was the youngest person trying out. Lily watched as the others tried out. The captain, Michel Flint, who played seeker, seemed to think that Lily was a bit of a joke. Flint had the hopefuls attempt to get ten balls past Savanna McLaggen, the keeper. Eight of the hopefuls didn't get more than 7 past her, but one got 9.
"Alright, it's the little ones turn now. Go easy on her Savanna," Flint said in a condescending voice.
Lily grabbed the Quaffle from him and rose into the air. She feinted right, and then threw the Quaffle through the left hoop. One. Lily feinted right again and got it into the left hoop. Two. Savanna was catching on, and when Lily feinted right, she went to the left. Lily threw the ball through the right hoop. Three. Lily threw straight through the middle hoop as soon as Savanna threw the Quaffle to her, and caught Savanna off guard. Four. Again and again Lily got Quaffles past Savanna, until she had gotten nine through. She could only try once more, and if she did, she would have gotten a perfect score, and would have won the Chaser position. Lily flew forward from the end of the pitch and flew forward. Savanna was ready for any tricks that Lily might use. Lily gave no indication as to what hoop she was going to try and get the Quaffle through until she was only ten feet away. She quickly threw the Quaffle through the left hoop, and even though Savanna rushed forward to catch it, the Quaffle flew through the hoop.
Many of the other players looked at Lily with slack jaws. She had extraordinary talent, and Flint immediately accepted her onto the team. Once he had arranged the first practice, the new team traipsed back up to the Great Hall.
When Lily entered the Great Hall, her family at the Gryffindor table gave her inquiring looks. She smiled and gave them a thumbs up. They cheered.
Lily walked over to where Elizabeth and Aludra sat at the Slytherin table.
"Wow. First year and already on the Quidditch team. At this rate you'll turn out to be just like your parents!" Elizabeth said.
"Yeah. Maybe," Lily murmured.
_Line Break_
Lily continued her now peaceful time at Hogwarts. She went to her classes, Quidditch practice, and did her homework in the library with Elizabeth, Aludra, Hugo, and Roxy. They were sometimes joined by Rose, Al, and Scorpius. Professor Villeti said nothing to Lily about the plan, and Lily grew worried that she had forgotten all about it.
A week before the first Quidditch game of the season, the traditional Slytherin vs. Gryffindor game, an owl came flying down with a package for Lily.
She had written to her parents a few times already. They had told her that the little girl at the orphanage who Lily took care of, Polly, (Bet you had forgotten about her!) had moved in with them. She had adapted extraordinarily well to the wizarding world. Lily had written to her as well, more often than to her parents.
The package was carried by an owl that Lily recognized as her parents. It was a long thin package, with a note attached to it.
Lily,
This is for your game next week. Professor McGonagall told us it would be okay for you to have one, even though technically first years aren't allowed. Do not open the package in the Great Hall! We're coming to the frost match, along with the rest of the family.
Love, Mum and Dad.
Lily showed the note to Elizabeth and Aludra who brightened. They dragged her out of the hall down into their dormitory.
When Lily opened it, she saw a broom. Mahogany wood, shiny enough so Lily could see the reflections of Aludra and Elizabeths wonderstruck eyes. The twigs in the tail were perfectly trimmed. Lily used one finger to hold it. Perfectly balanced.
"It's a Firebolt 30!" Aludra whispered.
Lily traced the cursive script spelling out the words on the handle of the broom.
"Is it a good broom then?" Lily asked.
"Are you joking? It's the fastest broom in the world!" Elizabeth exclaimed.
When Lily showed Flint her new broom, he nearly cried with happiness. Only a limited number of people outside the team knew Lily was the new chaser, and Flint was ecstatic when Lily flew that day at practice.
"This year we'll win for sure!" Flint said, grinning.
The Slytherin Team had not won the Quidditch or House cup for twenty years. There were many theories as to why, but the most likely is that incoming students specifically asked not to be put in Slytherin since the war. Not a lot of talent for Quidditch.
_Line Break_
The night before the Quidditch game, there was a radio broadcast, that went over all of the Hogwarts teams, and predicted the outcome of the games. This started after the interest in Hogwarts Quidditch outside the school went up. The Quidditch channel also broadcasts commentary tot he matches.
"Well Lee, the Hufflepuff team looks good this year. They have strong Chasers, and a talented Seeker, but the Beaters and Keeper are only average," the voice on the radio said. That was the downside of the radio broadcast. What would they say about you?
"I completely agree with that analysis Zacharias. Sandy Smith as Seeker and Captain should be very interesting to watch. She is very talented, and I can definitely see her going into professional Quidditch," Lee said.
Lily could picture the scene in the Hufflepuff common room at that moment, Sandy Smith having her back patted.
"Also, the three Chasers, Ian Delany, Catherine Shaklebolt, and Zia Caster, work well together. Last year their teamwork got Hufflepuff second place," Lee Jordan continued.
"Now the Ravenclaw team will be hard to beat, as always. They always rely on strategy more than talent, although nobody can deny the talent on their team," Zacharias Smith said.
"Their Seeker, Cho Corner, systematically searches for the Snitch, almost guaranteeing a capture for Ravenclaw. Their Keeper, Chris Shaklebolt, is very good at predicting which hoop a Chaser will throw the Quaffle through, and nearly always blacks it," Lee Jordan said.
"Their Chasers work well as a team. They seem to know what the others are thinking. Always using their Ravenclaw minds to their advantage," Smith said. "The Ravenclaws have two new Beaters this year, so I think we're all excited to see what kind of talent they will have. My sources say that the two Beaters are Michel Corner and Chris Delany, two fourth years."
Again, Lily pictured the Ravenclaw teams reaction to the radio broadcasters analysis.
"The Gryffindor team is using all of their talent from last year. Captain Lucy Weasley works well with her fellow Chasers Molly and Dominique Weasley. The two Beaters, Fred Weasley and James Potter are vicious out on the field. They have knocked many players off their brooms. The Keeper, Louis Weasley is simply superb. Their Seeker, Albus Potter, started last year as a First Year. Only once in history has a student joined in their First Year, and that's Albus' father, Harry Potter. Both turned out to be excellent Seekers," Lee Jordan said. "Gryffindor is definitely the team to beat this year."
Lily grimaced at the thought of the Gryffindors celebrating their glowing review in their common room.
"Finally the Slytherin Team. The Slytherin team has not won the Cup for twenty years. However, this might just be the year it all turns around for Slytherin," Smith said.
"We say that every year Zacharias," Lee chuckled.
"Well, there is the Captain and Seeker Michel Flint. He has been on the team for four years, and is now in his Seventh Year. The Keeper, Savanna McLaggen, is superb, but simply cannot compete against the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw chasers. The Beaters, Andrew Nott and Petunia Parkinson are average, but hit hard and have some aim. The Chasers this year are very interesting. Annabeth Smith and Christi Anne Scott were on the team last year, and are both fourth years. A new rule was put in place some years back that requires teams to publish all of their team members the night before the first match. Prior to tonight, nobody knew who the new Slytherin Chaser was," Smith said.
"The new Chaser is Lily Potter, a First Year. She was kidnapped some time ago, only to be found when her accidental magic put her on the list for Hogwarts enrollment," Jordan said. "Like all players who join the team in their first year, she is sure to have natural talent and after the Slytherins have trained her up, she is definitely a player I'm going to be watching throughout the season."
Lily pictured the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw retains so this news. The Gyffindor team already knew that Lily was playing chaser, but the rest of the school were oblivious.
"Of course, we must take into account that she comes from a family that is notoriously talented at Quidditch. They make up the whole of the Gryffindor Team. We can imagine what those Quidditch genes from both sides of the family will do," Smith said.
"We must keep in mind though that she will be playing against her family tomorrow, who all share those same Quidditch genes," Jordan said.
"Yes, but I am confident that Lily Potter will be one of he top players this year," Smith said.
"That's all for tonight folks. Tune in tomorrow at five o'clock to hear a play-by-play commentary of the Gryffindor-Slytherin match. Thank you, and goodnight."
The Slytherins cheered.
"You hear that Lily? One of the top players!" Elizabeth said.
Many Slytherins congratulated her on being on the 'Players to Watch' list.
When Lily finally made it up to bed, she lay in bed for a while. At first, she had only played Quidditch because she had to convince the world that she got on with her parents, ut now she was starting to enjoy it. Her cousins weren't so bad either. They were actually very kind. It was her parents who she hated.
_Line Break_
When Lily went up to breakfast the next morning, many Slytherins wished her luck on the game. She smiled back at them, but as soon as they looked away, she had a queasy expression. Aludra and Elizabeth tried to make her eat something, but she only picked at her toast and sausage. She waved to her aunts, uncles, cousins to old to attend Hogwarts, grandparents, and, of course, her parents as they made their way to the Gryffindor table. Ginny and Harry came over to wish her luck, but then followed the rest of them to the Gryffindor team.
Thirty minutes before the game started, Flint came over to Lily and told her it was time to go to the changing room. Lily grabbed her broom and Flint ushered her to where the rest of the team was waiting for them. He and Savanna each put a hand on her shoulders and steered her out of the Great Hall, the rest of the team following behind.
Lily's cousins called out things like, "Prepare to lose! Slytherins going down!" as they passed the Gryffindor table.
The Slytherin team jeered back at them, but Lily was too queasy to say anything, so she settled for sticking out her tongue. Lily thought the effect might have been somewhat ruined, because at that time she was a delicate shade of green.
As Flint gave his pre-match speech, Lily heard the roar of people settling into the stands, the pounding of feet on the stairs.
The butterflies in Lily's stomach intensified when Lorcan and Lysander Dursleys voices boomed over the Quidditch pitch. The twins were the commentators, and had been since their first year at Hogwarts.
"Welcome to the first Quidditch game of the season, Slytherin vs. Gryffindor!" Lorcan said.
The roar of the crowd was deafening. The team lined up, ready to make their appearances to the crowd.
"Let's introduce the Gryffindor team! I give you, Weasley, Weasley, Weasley, Weasley, Potter, Weasley, and Potter! From now on We'll refer to them using their first names to stop any confusion," Lysander said.
The Gryffindor supporters cheered for each of their team members as they flew out into the stadium. The Slytherins booed, but that was only expected.
"Next, the Slytherin team! I give you Flint, McLaggen, Nott, Parkinson, Smith, Scott, and Potter!" Lorcan said.
The Slytherins cheered as each of the players rode onto the pitch. When Lily flew to where the crowd could see her, she was sure the crowds roar would be deafening, but she couldn't hear anything other than her own beating heart.. The stands were a mass of green and scarlet. She couldn't pick out any of the people in the stands, as they seemed to be a sea of blurred faces.
Lily landed behind her captain, and faced her cousins on the Gryffindor team.
The Quidditch instructor, Madame Katie Wood, released the Snitch into the sky, it flitted about for a few minutes before it disappeared. She released the bludgers, which began flying around the air, waiting for the players to take flight.
"Captains, shake hands!" Wood said.
Lucy and Andrew Flint shook hands, perhaps a bit harder than necessary, and than retreated to their teams.
"Mount your brooms!" She put the whistle to her lips, waited until all of the players were ready for take-off, than threw the Quaffle into the air, simultaneously blowing her whistle. The game had begun.