And a second chapter on Quidditch. But not only about Quidditch.

SEVERUS III

"Is everything ready for tomorrow?" Albus Dumbledore asked him, as he continued to write a letter to Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic. They were in his office, surrounded by his buzzling instruments and portraits of former Hogwarts headmasters.

"It is," Severus confirmed. "Though there is not much to prepare."

"Considering we want to avoid what happened last time, I would say there is much to prepare," the current headmaster stated.

"Quirrell will not risk hurting Potter with you in the crowd. He's neither courageous nor foolish enough to try this."

"And yet, you insisted on being the referee for the match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff."

Severus Snape had a hard time believing he would actually do it. He never enjoyed Quidditch. He enjoyed that the Quidditch Cup was in his office since 1987, an additional testimony to the superiority of Slytherin over all the other houses. Along with the House Cup his House won over the last six years, they were proofs of Slytherin's dominance in Hogwarts. However, he never liked the sport. He only enjoyed it when Slytherin crushed their opponents, which meant only in February this year, when Ravenclaw was defeated. Tomorrow, two weeks after Slytherin got their first victory in the season, Gryffindor would face Hufflepuff.

Severus still didn't understand how Gryffindor managed to win against Slytherin in November. He put it on the side of luck. Without his intervention and the fire that started, Harry Potter would have been crushed to the ground. And he didn't really catch the Golden Snitch. He swallowed it. He was even surprised Madam Hooch did not call a foul on this one. Lily's son had just been lucky so far. Snape doubted that this would last. Even against Hufflepuff, the weakest team of Hogwarts, he wouldn't be surprised if people finally saw Potter for who he truly was, a famous boy of eleven with no talent, and whose successes so far were owned to damn luck and a glory he never earned.

But that wasn't the most important. They had to make sure that Quirrell would try nothing on Potter during the match. That was why he would referee this game. Lily made very clear that she would hold him accountable if anything befell her son. She protected him with such determination and heart. No wonder the Killing Curse bounced back on the Dark Lord ten years ago. Still, Snape wished she wasn't ready to go to these lengths to protect this boy. He didn't deserve it.

"Better be too cautious than not enough," Severus shortly commented.

"Indeed. I think we both want to avoid the rage of Lily Evans. Especially now that she's started training to become an Auror," Dumbledore said.

Severus was aware of this. He wasn't very surprised, truth be told. Lily had always been a talented and powerful witch, even before she came to Hogwarts and before she even knew she was a witch. She faced the Dark Lord four times and survived each one of those encounters. If Snape had been awarding Auror positions only on experience and merit, Lily would have gotten it without having to go through any training at all. He knew Dumbledore and most of the teachers here at Hogwarts, including McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and even the former Potions Master, Slughorn, petitioned the Ministry to let her enter the program, despite her advanced age in comparison to other trainees. Even the Minister Fudge supported her, probably just because Dumbledore did as well. Snape thought about sending a recommendation letter as well, but he had not been one of her teachers, and he didn't think it would contribute to her acceptation.

"She has nothing to complain about anymore. I treat her son better than he deserves to be."

"If you say so," Dumbledore said. "By the way, I heard there was an accident in Potions today."

"Only Longbottom again. This boy is the total opposite of his parents. Talentless, clumsy, stupid, afraid of his own shadow. At least, he is not arrogant and impertinent like Potter is."

"Here we are again," Dumbledore said, not a hint of exasperation in his voice, but Snape felt that the headmaster felt this way all the same. "Severus Snape, Potions Master, talking about how Harry Potter is supposedly the worst student this school has ever had."

"His father was talented. His mother... is talented as well. But the son... if you want my opinion..."

"I know very well what your opinion is, Severus. And if he was in Slytherin, I might be a little more inclined to listen to you. But he is a Gryffindor. Sometimes I wonder if you would have the same opinion of the boy had the Hat sorted him into your house."

He would. The house made no difference. Harry Potter remained who he was, a boy who received everything in life, none of it he deserved, and thought everything was owed to him as a result. He would never have been chosen to be Gryffindor's Seeker had his family name been different from Potter. He still didn't understand why Dumbledore allowed this when the rules strictly forbade first-years to play Quidditch. This was enough proof though to show that Minerva McGonagall was not as impartial as she claimed to be.

"It doesn't matter, anyway. The other professors are blinded by the fame attached to his name. They will never see him for who he really is."

"I do see him for who he really is, Severus. As I see you for who you really are. The difference between you and Harry Potter is that he is not trying to hide who he is. In a sense, he is more mature than you have ever been. Certainly a side effect from the way Lily Evans raised him."

Severus had enough of this discussion that went nowhere. He stood up. "I think we said everything, Professor. All we have to do now is to ensure Potter doesn't get hurt tomorrow. Though it wouldn't surprise me if he hurt himself."

"Let's hope then that Lily's son has more common sense than his father. But before you leave, Severus, are you sure that it was Quirrell who Hagrid was playing cards with at the Hog's Head?"

"I'm sure. Perhaps the half-giant is not clever enough to realize it, but a cloak cannot totally hide the turban."

"And you think he might have been trying to find a way to get past Fluffy?"

"I don't see another reason why he would keep buying drinks and playing cards with that idiot, always asking questions about the creatures he worked with."

"Let's assume you didn't call Hagrid an idiot. Did he give up any crucial information?"

"None that I could hear. But I had to leave before their conversation was over."

"Well, in this case, let's assume Hagrid didn't give up anything that may have consequences."

"You seem to grant too much credit to the gamekeeper."

"I would trust Hagrid with my life," concluded Dumbledore.

As Snape went down the stairs, he wondered how a powerful wizard like Dumbledore could be so trusting with people who didn't deserve it and yet be one of the wisest wizards of all time. He headed back to the dungeons, where he had to correct homeworks from his N.E.W.T.s students, a task made shorter by their small number. Severus preferred to spend time on the students who truly had a gift for potions rather than on lost causes.

Lily and Severus had both received an O for Outstanding at both their O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. in Potions. James Potter only got an E for Exceeds Expectations at his N.E.W.T.. Severus already knew that James would not get the maximum note, as he had used a spell to check his answers after the exam. That didn't stop Lily from kissing him after they had left the room together. All that because once, a long time ago, Snape called her for who she was. Snape had been insulted, humiliated, mistreated all his life. And yet he endured, he persevered, and he got where he was thanks to this. He deserved, worked for everything that he got. Everything, good and bad, he earned it, unlike James Potter and his son. Even Lily had help to get where she was. Snape never got any help, and he never asked for any. Nothing was ever landed to him on a silver platter. It wasn't fair, life was unfair, but it was like that. And so he corrected his students' homework without pity, picking up every flaw, every mistake in their answers or the reasoning behind them.

The next morning, Snape took his breakfast in the Great Hall. He looked up from his plate when Potter walked in. He was talking to his best friend, the last Weasley addition to Hogwarts, as he feigned to ignore the looks and gazes he received from other students, even months after he was accepted into Hogwarts. Almost all people from the Gryffindor table came to pat him on the shoulder or exchange a few words with him, and Snape could see how he enjoyed the attention he received, even if he barely acknowledged the others. The girl he spent almost all his time with, the know-it-all from Gryffindor House, joined them soon after. He guessed the boy felt more intelligent, and probably more important by spending so much time with the student with the best marks in his year.

Snape had to leave early to prepare for the match. He went to see Madam Hooch, who tried to explain him the main rules of Quidditch as she gave him her whistle, and also to tell him how to do his job.

"You must look everywhere to be able to call fouls when they happen. Having eyes all around the head is not enough when you referee a Quidditch match. Neck strains are the most common injuries among referees. If you ever..."

"I know what to do, Madam Hooch," he cut her short as he seized a broomstick he deemed appropriate. "I'm no longer a first-year you're trying to instruct, but a professor, and your colleague. Let me do your job, today."

She wasn't happy with the words he used, and he didn't care. He had work to do, and he would do it, although he took no pleasure in it.

A crowd had started gathering around the pitch. As he took flight, Snape noticed with satisfaction that Albus Dumbledore had already taken place in one of the towers where Minerva McGonagall was also sitting next to Lee Jordan, the impertinent friend of the Weasley twins who was everything but an impartial commentator. Minerva might try to give the impression she was impartial whenever she interrupted him for inappropriate commenting, but the simple fact she chose him for commenting proved her favoritism towards her own house again.

Quirrell was not there. Perhaps he wouldn't come. Then Snape's work would be much easier. If Quirrell wasn't there, Lily would not have anything to say about him refereeing the game since nothing would happen to her son. Of course, Snape had to be careful all the same. Quirrell could be hiding somewhere, and so he began making rounds of the pitch, looking for any trace of Quirinus Quirrell.

The crowd kept gathering. Hufflepuffs sat behind the scoring area at one of two extremities of the field, while Gryffindors gathered at the other end, Slytherins and Ravenclaws taking their place between them. Quirrell was still nowhere to be seen. Severus allowed himself a grin, thinking of how the fool must be cowardly. Snape made sure during the recent weeks that Quirrell understood he was being watched and followed. Perhaps he was already in the Forbidden Forest where Snape set up their meeting after the match would be over.

While he toured the terrain, Severus kept looking through the crowd, and at one moment, his eyes locked on Lily Evans. Of course, she had come to watch her son play. She was with another woman with fiery red hair, the mother of all Weasleys. Snape wondered how she managed to have so many children and yet have enough food to be so big. She was with a little girl who had hair as red as hers. For a moment, Lily's eyes met his, but they only threw daggers at him. Severus flew away and tried not to look at those green eyes again. He always tried to not notice them when Potter was in his classroom, and most of the time he forgot them since he looked so much like his father, but it was hard to avoid them all the time, especially when the boy decided to defy him and sustained his gaze. It was even harder to suffer the boy when he looked at him with his mother's eyes.

After a moment, Snape received a signal from McGonagall. The time had come.

"Hello, everyone." Lee Jordan's voice was welcomed by roars all around the terrain. "I am Lee Jordan, and welcome to the fourth game of this season's Hogwarts Quidditch Cup. Today, Hufflepuff versus Gryffindor."

Snape had to endure another round of cries and screams from the exalted crowd. All this only for a game of Quidditch. This was ridiculous.

"Welcome the players of Hufflepuff. Malcolm Preece, Heidi Macavoy and Tamsin Applebee as Chasers. Anna Fleet, their captain, as the Keeper. Anthony Rickett and Maxine O'Flaherty as Beaters. And their Seeker, the other Anthony of the team, Anthony King!"

The yellow and black of the crowd cheered while both teams entered the pitch and took flight. Snape barely listened as Jordan announced the Gryffindor team, occupied as he was searching for Quirrell, just in case, and also keeping an eye on Potter who had just waved his hand towards the tower where Lily sat.

"For Gryffindor, Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell as Chasers. Oliver Wood, captain of the team, as the Keeper. Fred and Gorge Weasley as Beaters, like always. And their Seeker, the youngest Seeker to catch a Golden Snitch over a century at Hogwarts, Harry Potter!"

Gryffindors roared in turn, but Severus wouldn't let them continue this farce. Let begin the match now and be done with it. Snape knew it was customary for the teams' captains to shake hands before the game began, but he didn't see the interest in faking friendship when everyone knew these children were ready to throw themselves at each other's throats only to win a game. He made sure that the Bludgers and the Golden Snitch were ready to be released and took the Quaffle. He didn't even let Jordan introduce him as the referee and threw the Quaffle from the central point. These children didn't seem to realize it for a moment, but their slow brain got them moving quickly all the same. The Quaffle made a slight turn to the side of Hufflepuff, and it was them who got it first.

"The Quaffle has been released. The game has begun!" Lee shouted, realizing it even later than the players.

Snape watched Potter, who was flying high over the other players. He guessed that the boy felt superior to all the others while being over their heads.

"Applebee got the Quaffle... He avoids a Bludger sent by one of the Weasleys... Johnson is after him... Applebee tries to lose her... She makes a pass towards... Did she try to give the Quaffle to one of her Beaters?... Spinnet has the Quaffle now... She passes to Bell... Bell avoids a Bludger from Rickett... Preece and Macavoy are on her... She lets the Quaffle drop... Johnson takes it, but she's followed by Applebee... Johnson is distancing her... She avoids another Bludger... She shoots... She scores!"

The red crowd erupted. These Hufflepuffs were really pitiful. Even someone who wasn't a Quidditch expert like Severus knew very well that Beaters could not carry the Quaffle. Severus noticed then how the Hufflepuff's Chasers, especially the two girls, looked very young. Only the boy looked older than fourteen. Hufflepuff's Keeper, Anna Fleet, sent the Quaffle towards one of her teammates. It was intercepted by Bell who scored in the left goalpost.

Snape sighed. No wonder that Gryffindor was winning with such incompetent players on the other side. They now led 20-0. Right at this moment, a Bludger grazed him. Severus turned his head to the origin of this Bludger. One of the Weasley twins had his bat in the air and looked at him, stupidly smiling.

With a smile to his face, Severus whistled. "You do not attack the referee, Weasley! Penalty to Hufflepuff!"

The gold and red section of the crowd booed, which was no surprise seeing they would allow their team to do anything they wanted. Snape was there to bring them back to the ground, in all senses of the word if necessary.

The Hufflepuff team had enough grey matter to choose Malcolm Preece for the penalty shot. Snape took another look at Potter, who kept flying over the rest of the game. Preece accelerated towards Gryffindor's goalposts. Without Beaters or other Chasers to do the work for him, Oliver Wood was worthless as a Keeper. Preece feinted to his left, then to his right, before loosing the Quaffle to the left where it got through the left ring. Snape grinned as it was now 20-10 for Gryffindor. The gold and red wave was not so proud of their team now, but they took their anger on Snape, of course, who ignored them.

Again, Severus checked on Potter, hovering quietly over the pitch as always. he didn't have much to do for him from high up there, and he didn't seem like doing much either. Gryffindor took back the Quaffle.

"Johnson got the ball... She makes a pass to Spinnet... Back to Johnson... Macavoy intercepts... A Bludger is sent her way... Oh, I think it hit her, she dropped the Quaffle... Spinnet takes it back... She avoids another Bludger... She follows the side of the pitch... Preece and Applebee are after her... She drops her altitude... She's almost on the ground... Preece and Applebee are just over her... Wait, did she just kick the Quaffle?... Yes, it's in Johnson's hands... She has a clear way towards the rings... She ducks a Bludger..."

Severus whistled once again. "Gryffindor touched the ground! Penalty for Hufflepuff!"

The crowd booed him again. They overlooked how that Spinnet girl got so close to the ground while she had the Quaffle. Snape could swear one of her feet touched it. Preece got the penalty once again. The only Chaser in Hufflepuff with some potential, and the only one who happened to be a boy of a certain age, slowly made an arc on his left, accelerating in the meantime, and targeted the center ring. Wood approached him, probably to better cover his angles. But Preece finally shot in the left ring while Wood was moving and scored. 20-20 now.

"Well, Hufflepuff just equalized, all just because of a totally unjustified, undeserved..."

"JODRAN!" McGonagall interrupted the commentator. He had gone too far for her.

"Sorry, Professor. So, Gryffindor takes back the Quaffle... It falls to Spinnet... Wait, George Weasley, or maybe it's Fred, he just smashed a Bludger towards his brother... He hits back... And back..." The commentator couldn't contain the excitement of his partisanship. "The Weasleys are passing a Bludger back and forth between them... Spinnet follows them closely behind... The other players get out of the way... They crossed the pitch. They're right in front of Hufflepuff's goalposts... They send the Bludger... way over the rings... Spinnet scores..."

Severus was barely able to understand what had been going on as the Gryffindor crowd burst. The twins had batted a Bludger between them as if they played tennis, a Muggle sport, and used it as a cover to protect their Chaser, then scared the opposite Keeper by sending the Bludger towards her, but way far over her head. The Keeper had flown away, despite the iron ball flying way too far from her, and Gryffindor scored easily.

While Snape came to his senses and realized something had to be done, huge new cheers came from the crowd. He recognized that kind of reaction. The Golden Snitch had been spotted. He wanted to blow his whistle and call another penalty for Gryffindor, but then he thought better. There was a reason why he chose to referee this match. He turned his broomstick to see where Potter was.

He saw him just in time. The scarlet shape with the green eyes that were impossible to miss... rushing towards him. Snape did a barrel roll to avoid a collision with Potter. He heard the crowd laughing. As he took a hold of his broomstick, he was back to his first year, during his first flying lesson, when his broom went in all directions as he was unable to control it. Everyone had been laughing at him back then. To his greatest horror, even Lily couldn't contain a giggle. She apologized afterwards, and he forgave her a few days later, but the harm was done, and it remained. Snape stilled his broomstick. He was no longer a first-year student. Potter, on the other hand, was, and he just assaulted a professor and referee.

Just as Snape brought the whistle to his mouth to call two penalties for Hufflepuff instead of one, the crowd roared again, and Severus saw the Golden Snitch into Potter's hands.

"Harry Potter caught the Golden Snitch! One hundred and fifty points to Gryffindor! Gryffindor wins, after a game that only lasted four minutes and twenty-seven seconds. Gryffindor: one hundred and eighty points. Hufflepuff: twenty points. GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

The commentator was out of control, and so was the crowd. Severus was of a mind to call the penalties all the same and call the game to continue. He approached the whistle from his mouth, eager to use it and crush all Gryffindor's hopes.

But at the last second, Severus Snape took away his whistle. His job was done. The match was over, and Lily's son was right and well. There would be no point in continuing this. He was already fed up with refereeing this game. Quirrell was away, and Snape didn't want to give him a reason to show up. He flew down and landed quietly on the ground, away from the gathering of fanatics who surrounded Potter and his teammates, and who Lily, and even Albus Dumbledore himself joined soon enough. Severus walked away. He wanted nothing to do with the after-match festivities, if they deserved to be called so. He abandoned his equipment into the referee's changing room and went back to the castle, making his utmost to remain deaf to the outcry coming from the stadium.

Severus went quickly to the dungeons. He put on a cloak that hid his face, then waited in an alcove, out of sight from prying eyes, in the Entrance Hall as students and school staff came back from the terrain. He waited nearly an hour. All these people celebrated on the pitch. Then he knew that Gryffindors would continue the celebrations in their common room. At least Slytherins had enough common sense to return quietly to their own common room. When almost no one was coming in the Entrance Hall, and Severus used a spell to look through the heavy doors, making sure no one else was coming this way, he headed out.

He walked as fast as possible, his hood covering his face, and headed for the Forbidden Forest. He followed the path there. The high trees cut off the light of the sun until almost complete darkness surrounded him. He continued on the path until he arrived at the meeting place. Quirrell was already there, looking anxiously all around him, shaking, muttering incomprehensive things to himself. When he saw Severus walked in his direction, he shook even more uncontrollably.

"Sev-Severus... I-It's..."

"It's good to see that you are punctual, Quirrell. Must I suppose that you were clever enough to not let anyone follow you, or am I overestimating your intelligence?"

"I-I swe-swear. No... No one f-f-followed m-me."

"Very good. You show more hurry in coming here than in trying to take that stone. Had you not hesitated before going to the third floor, it is you who would have been bitten by that dog."

"Sev-Severus... I sw-swear..."

"Don't make a fool out of yourself again, Quirrell. We both know you were the one behind this troll. It is only a matter of time before Dumbledore and the other professors realize it too. You're the expert on trolls after all. You don't have much time left if you want to steal that stone. As soon as the others will understand it, you will be done."

Quirrell stuttered further. He was looking all around him, as if he was afraid a vampire might come and suck his blood right away. "I... I d-don't know why you wanted t-t-to meet here of all p-places, Severus..."

The wind was blowing high as he replied. "Oh, I thought we'd keep this private. Students aren't supposed to know about the Philosopher's Stone, after all."

"No, they m-must n-not. Esp-p-p-pecially not P-P-Potter. He m-m-must abs-s-solutely n-n-not..."

Severus had enough. He grabbed Quirrell by the collar of his robes. He stank of onions, but it didn't matter to Snape. He was boiling with rage internally. "Have you found out how to get past that beast of Hagrid's yet?"

"B-b-but Severus, I..."

"You don't want me as your enemy, Quirrell," he warned him. To think that this man was Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts.

"I-I don-t know what you..."

"You know perfectly well what I mean. I saw you at the Hog's Head with Hagrid. You barely modified your appearance. Hagrid may not have recognized you, but I did. You really thought I would be fooled by your little bit of hocus pocus? I'm waiting."

"B-but I d-d-don't..."

He released the shaking man. He was disgusted that such a pitiful man was trying to steal the stone. "Very well. We'll have another little chat soon, when you've had time to think things over and decided where your loyalties lie."

Snape turned away and walked back towards Hogwarts, the cloak adjusted to hide his whole face, leaving the quivering Quirrell behind. Hopefully this stupid story of werevolves living in the forest was true and one of them would eat him alive.

Snape stopped. He thought he just heard a cracking sound, like a branch breaking, from the top of the trees. He looked up, but there was nothing to be seen from the thick cover of the forest. He resumed his walk and went back to the castle.

This is somewhat my attempt on what Snape and Quirrell told each other that Harry didn't hear or understand on this day.

Please review.

Next chapter : Hermione