A/N: Please, read this notice for this chapter.

James Potter's role in Quidditch is unclear in J.K. Rowling's novels. James Potter had a trophy of the best Seeker with his name engraved in it, but J.K. Rowling said that she first thought of him as a Chaser. In this story, I choose to set James Potter as a Seeker because he often carried with him a Golden Snitch to show off in front of Lily.

Fallen & Risen 13. New Opportunity

Previously…

Yet, for some reason she didn't understand, Heley believed that Draco Malfoy's new behavior wasn't an act or a play. She didn't feel the loathing or the abhorrent feeling Harry used to receive from Draco Malfoy. What the Draco Malfoy of today emitted differed a lot from the Draco Malfoy of before. Not once did Heley feel disdain, arrogance or hatred come from him. It was like there two totally different Draco Malfoys. Heley would tell that he was… sincere (even if it irked her to think that way). But since she had sworn to herself to start everything from scratch, Heley had no choice but to try looking at everything with a different point of view and not in Harry Potter's perspective. And Heley Potter's perspective of Draco Malfoy saw things that Harry Potter didn't see. Back there, before the Herbology class, Draco Malfoy was nice.

However, Heley couldn't tell if this new change of behavior in Draco Malfoy (which, by the way, was a little bit of scary) was only temporary or if it would last longer.

"Hey Ron! Today's the big day, huh?" Seamus said, putting an arm across Ron's shoulder. "The Quidditch try-outs."

"Yeah," Ron replied, Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, checking his long, long list. "And I have the feeling that I won't finish before lunch time," he mumbled. Suddenly, his eyes popped out of his head. He just saw a name he would never think to see on a Quidditch try-out list. "Neville, you are trying out for the team too?"

"WHAT!" Seamus and Dean exclaimed in horror while peering over Ron's shoulder to read the list.

"No way!" Seamus exclaimed, "Neville, are you insane?"

"You'll hurt yourself!" Dean added. "Like fall off your broom or break a leg or twist an arm or something like that."

"I'm sorry to say it Neville, but I don't think that would be a wise idea for you," Hermione agreed, fusing her eyebrows together in worry.

"I agree with her, Neville," Ginny said. Neville only smiled to them.

"I know, but I still want to try," Neville calmly reassured them. "I had always wanted to play Quidditch at least once in my life. And this year seems to be the very last chance I will have…" Neville stopped momentary. "Harry always told me to try everything I want to do when the circumstance presents itself, because we will never know if the chance will show up again."

". . ." Silence.

'Neville…' Heley thought, remembering very clearly when she/Harry had said these words to him. It was during a practice for Dumblodore's Army, when Harry personally coached Neville.

In the room, no one wanted to discourage him from trying anymore. They understood Neville's feeling and reason. And they approved of him.

"Neville," Ron said in a serious tone, "I will not stop you from doing the try-out. I even encourage you to do your best. However, do not expect me to favor you if you fail to fulfill what I require from a player of the team." Truly the words of a captain. Ron took the new role Harry Potter left behind for him seriously. Neville smiled at Ron.

"Thanks, Ron," Neville replied. "I understand."

Heley smiled as she watched them.

'You have grown up too, Ron,' Heley thought. Neville turned over to Heley.

"Hey, Heley, why don't you try out for a position too?" Neville said.

"Huh? Me?" Heley stuttered. "Why do you ask?"

"I saw you stopping many times in front of the Quidditch trophies glass," Neville said. "I thought that maybe you like Quidditch too, so why not try?"

"Y-you saw me…?" Heley muttered. It was true that she had stop many times at the Quidditch trophies glass to look at the one with her father's name engraved in it, but she had always thought she was alone.

"Yeah, we've also seen you there a couple of times," Dean said, Seamus nodding his head.

"Then why don't you try too, Heley?" Ginny chained. "It won't hurt. Come on!" Ginny pushed Heley out of Gryffindor common room.

And before Heley understood what happened, she found herself standing between Ginny and Neville on the Quidditch pitch with a broom in her hand.

"Okay everyone," Ron started. "Since I'm the Keeper, the try-out is to find out three Chasers, two Beaters and one Seeker. I will start first with those who wants to be Chasers. Please enter the pitch. The others can sit and wait." Everyone sat on the bench except for fifteen people. "Since there are so many of you, you will do the try-out in groups of five. Divide yourselves." The fifteen people formed three groups of five. "I will start with you," Ron said to the first group on his left. "The two other groups, please wait. Now, the try-out for the Chasers is very simple. In a round of five minutes, you must score as much goals as you can. I will pick out the two who have the highest scores for the next round of try-outs. Now begin." Ron threw the Quaffle and Ginny immediately dashed for the red ball on her broom.

After the last round of try-outs for the Chasers, Ron blew his whistle.

Whizzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

"Okay, time over!" Ron shouted. The last six candidates for Chasers landed on the ground. Ron pulled out the list where he wrote down their scores. "Here are the Chasers. Demelza Robins, six goals, Ginny, five and Christopher Williams, four."

"Yay!" Ginny and Demelza gave each other high fives. Christopher victoriously threw his arms in the air. The people who weren't picked began crying, but Ron ignored them.

"Okay, a little break before the try-out for the Beaters," Ron told the crowd. "Meanwhile, you can play a little bit if you want."

The group of waiting candidates immediately jumped on the balls. Ron walked to where Neville and Heley sat. He smiled at Neville.

"Sorry Neville," Ron said. "You had an excellent attack tactic, but you're not fast enough."

"That's okay," Neville replied, feeling no remorse. He was disqualified right after the first round. "It was fun anyway."

"Still, it was an excellent trick you pulled out," Ron commended. "I like how you can see the flaws and weak points that others cannot and make use of it. Do you want to help me to develop strategies to improve their games?"

"Hey! That sounds cool!" Neville exclaimed, grinning. "I accept."

"Then, you will be our manager!" Ron said, giving Neville his hand. "Welcome in the team." Neville took it.

"Thank you," Neville reciprocated, shaking Ron's hand. Ron turned to Ginny and Demelza.

"Oh! And welcome to you too," Ron sheepishly congratulated. "I should have say that line to you first."

"Yeah, it certainly took you a long time," Ginny grumbled jokingly.

"But we forgive you, Captain Weasley," Demelza added in, grinning. She took the hand Ron offered her and shook it like Neville did. After ten minutes, Ron decided that the break was over.

"Okay! Next, the Beaters!" Ron called for the next try-out.

Out of a dozen of people, Dean and a Fifth year by the name of Martin Pickott became Beaters. Pickott was a Muggle-born who loved to play baseball. The way he swung the wooden club showed how talented he was with a baseball bat.

The last try-out was for the Seeker seat. There were over twenty people who wanted to fill the position. Harry Potter's reputation as the youngest Seeker in a century contributed greatly in the popularity of the Seeker seat. Ron divided the try-out in five groups of four. Heley was placed in the last group.

The try-out consisted of being attack by Bludgers and being fooled by fake Snitches. The Snitchy Snitch was the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes latest product. It exploded when someone caught it. It was a perfect pratice item for anyone interested in becoming a Quidditch Seeker because they must double their attention so they wouldn't be fooled. The goal of the try-out was to catch the real Snitch. The first person to catch the Snitch five times in a row would go for the next round of the try-out. There was also an addition condition: if someone caught a fake Snitch over ten times, that person was automatically eliminated. Ron noted down each time someone caught a fake Snitch, that was how he could count down the number of chances wasted and scratched off a name from his list. After one person from each team was chosen, they had another round to select two people. And lastly, the two best candidates would competition for the Gryffindor Seeker position.

Heley easily succeeded to climb to the final round. She was now facing Jack Thompson for the last try-out. She gripped the handle of her broom, waiting for Ron to give the signal. Ron blew in his whistle and Heley kicked the ground. The Beaters launched the Bludgers. Without hesitation, Heley waltzed in the air among the dangerous Bludgers without being touched by any.

When Heley learned about the try-out for Quidditch, she wanted to run ahead everyone to be the first one to write down her name on the list, but then immediately froze. Quidditch was Harry Potter's favorite sport, a very big part of his identity. It also meant, if she played Quidditch, Heley would be constantly reminded about her past life, something that she wanted to bury deep inside her. But now, being on the broom and feeling the wind in her hair, Heley knew that she could never pretend to ignore this side of her past life. She loved to fly too much. She loved the thrill of riding on a broom. She loved feeling the sound of rushing air in her ears.

'I love this marvelous sensation of freedom too much to give up playing Quidditch forever,' Heley thought, closing her eyes at the feeling of the wind on her face.

Ron blew in his whistle and the Chasers and Beaters launched the fake Snitches in the air. Immediately, she and Thompson were surround by some twenty fleeting little golden flying balls with wings. Ron lowered the restriction so that they would now have only five chances to catch the real Snitch. The first one who caught the Snitch will be Gryffindor Seeker. Thompson already lost two of his chances. Heley still didn't catch anything. One by one, she automatically eliminated all the Snitches that didn't fit her personal judgment criteria. The real one didn't have such a shinning coat. It didn't beat its wings so hastily as if there was a fire somewhere behind. It also didn't swing in the air like a drunken bird either. Heley never heard of a Snitch drinking Firewhiskey before. And it certainly didn't fly so slowly as if it were a thousand years old, unless it had a broken wing. Heley knew by heart the real Golden Snitch. The real Snitch's speed and movement were permanently engraved into Heley's head.

Then, she saw it, the real Snitch, fifteen feet underneath her. It was idling around Ron, behind his head. Heley leaned her broom handle and dived at full speed down toward the ground. She was too excited, like each time Harry Potter caught the sight of the Snitch, to hear the sudden screaming around her. At a length of a broomstick above Ron's head, Heley extended her hand in front of her, scaring the devil out of Ron at the same time. Ron made a step back, alerting the Snitch that something dangerous was coming. The Snitch immediately flew away to the opposite side, but it wasn't fast enough. Heley rounded behind Ron and closed her fingers around the Snitch at Ron's foot level and pulled broom straight up, just in time before she collided to the ground, barely avoiding Ron when he fell backward on his bottom.

"Yaaayyy!" Heley triumphally shouted as she dived up, her fist in the air, the Snitch beating its wings helplessly between her fingers.

But the pitch was totally quiet. No one underneath made a sound. Heley looked down to see everybody looking at her with their mouth hanging wide open. They all had a collective heart attack when they saw Heley diving down on them with her happy grin plastered on her face. Their heart sunk faster when she dived. And Ron's white face just told how far his heart jumped out of his chest. They could even hear his heart beat in their head, which was resounding harmoniously with their own. But what shocked them most was the fact that the green eyes girl didn't even have the slightest scratch on herself. She just floated there, above their head, completely relaxed. At least, one thing was sure.

'There is no doubt. She is our Seeker,' everybody thought.

'And I hope she will never give us such a heart attack ever again!' Ron prayed to any gods he knew.

And that was how Heley was made Gryffindor Seeker.

Slytherin tower. Head Boy private room.

Blaise stepped in through the portrait of Melusine, the legendary woman with a body half-human, half-snake.

"DRACOOOOO!" Blaise bursted in the room, earning a positively annoyed glance from its blond occupant. "Draco, guess what!"

"What do you want, Blaise?" Draco annoyingly asked back.

"I saw the Gryffindor Quidditch try-outs," Blaise said as he freely made his way to Draco. He loudly dropped his book on Draco's desk and knocked Draco's ink well on the floor. The ink well smashed and it black liquid content spilled out. Impassively, Draco pulled out his wand and pointed it to his broken possession.

"Reparo," Draco mumbled between his teeth. The broken pieces of the ink well stuck back together with the ink inside. With his wand again, Draco brought the object back to its original place on his desk only to see that Blaise had made himself comfortable in the chair in front of him. Draco sighed. Blaise had never been very careful with Draco's possession and Draco had give up hoping to see any of his possession safe in Blaise's presence. Alas, his ink well was cursed to be Blaise's favorite victim.

"Why do you always lurk around the lions? I'm surprised that you didn't get caught yet."

"That's not what I want to talk about," Blaise said. "I have very interesting news for you."

"What?" Draco retorted, not impressed.

"Do you know who is Gryffindor Seeker?"

"What does Gryffindor Seeker have to interest me?"

Blaise's grin pulled out ear to ear.

"Draco, you never win against Harry Potter in Quidditch…"

Pop! Twitch!

'He really didn't need to put it out so bluntly!' Draco internally groaned.

"…and you lost the chance to challenge him again because of his death," Blaise continued. "But here's a chance for you!" he finished, screeching.

". . ." Draco switched his attention away from his book to Blaise. Weither he wanted it or not, his curiosity was picked.

"What do you mean?" Draco asked.

"You can challenge Harry Potter's female version in Quidditch as Seeker!"

Draco's eyes widen.

"Don't tell me that…"

"…that Gryffindor Seeker is Heley Potter? Yes!" Blaise excitedly said, throwing his arms in the air.

". . ." Draco didn't say anything. Inside him, a flame burst, waking up a desire of challenge.

Blaise was right. It frustrated Draco that he lost the chance to challenge Harry Potter in Quidditch again. But now, a new opportunity was showing up for him. Though that Heley Potter wasn't Harry Potter, she still raised the same thrilling desire of challenge in Draco like his late rival did. Draco didn't understand how she did it, but nonetheless, he was excited.

"You should have seen her. She is as good as Potter on the broom!" Blaise continued rambling. "Oh! The next Quidditch match against Gryffindor sounds so exciting!"

Draco inertly agreed with Blaise. The faster the Quidditch game against Gryffindor would come, the better it would be. For him. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears with only the sole thinking of a flying challenge against Heley Potter. Blaise continued describing each of the Gryffindor Quidditch players, but Draco was no longer listening to him. Only one person was occupying his mind.

'Heley Potter…'

Post on Friday January 22, 2010.