He recognized the broom immediately. It was a Nimbus 1500, and for its time, it was a killer broom. "Brilliant."
"Don't mention it." Regulus said. "If you're good enough we might have a chance at the cup this year. Lucinda just made Captain."
The girl gave a devious grin. It was infectious, and he found himself grinning as well.
When they got to the pitch there were already brooms up in the air.
"Are you bloody kidding me?" Regulus exclaimed.
"Gryffindor scum." Lucinda spat.
Not a moment later, he saw something he should've anticipated. Flying down in style was none other than the Gryffindor seeker, his father, James Potter.
"You lost, Regulus?"
"We reserved this pitch. You bloody damn well know we did."
The Gryffindor team laughed. "Yeah well maybe when you win the cup you'll get special privileges."
Regulus was fuming, and to be entirely honest, Harry couldn't help but feel a bit miffed. He kind of looked forward to spending some time in the air.
"All right, Potter." Regulus said. "What about a little friendly exhibition? Who wins gets the pitch for the next two weeks."
He saw James ponder it. "You're just a sore loser."
"And you're a coward." Lucinda piped back.
This did illicit a response from James, he was losing his cool too. "You're sure you have a full team? Who's the new guy?" He said gesturing to Harry.
Harry stepped forward. "Harry Peltier, seeker."
A look of pleasant surprise came over his Slytherin comrades.
James let out a laugh. "All right. Looks like an easy win boys. Game starts in 5 minutes."
Regulus took him aside. "Good thing we were missing a seeker. You're sure you're up for this, we're playing for the damn pitch."
Harry grinned. "Don't worry. We're winning this."
He wasn't going to pass up an occasion to go one to one with his old man.
Not five minutes later the pitch was electrified. Harry was staying sentinel, watching his team dart around the air. Lucinda was the real thing, a born chaser, she danced around the field like a fish in water.
Unfortunately Regulus who was keeper, had a rough time. The Gryffindor chasers let no opportunity slip and the hard work of their own chasers was being nullified by attrition. The stands which had been near empty, had filled at the sight of the game.
James was similarly guarding the air like a hawk. The score was 50 to 90 when he spotted it. Barely a glint, a hint of a glint over the east stands. Harry rocketed towards it. The snitch veered left, then up, then right. It was a struggle just to keep it in his sights.
Just as he was ascending towards it, he noticed Potter, his father he reminded himself, on his tail. No doubt he had noticed the Slytherin seeker and thought he could get an easy steal. Not so. While James was fast, Harry was faster, more agile, more practiced. It was surreal to Harry that he had such an edge on James Potter, but then again his father hadn't fought for his life for a year, lived on instinct his nerves frayed, where a single mistake meant death.
The snitch plummeted. A common behavior, and Harry flipped backwards nearly clipping James Potter on his way down. The ground approached quickly but Harry knew the snitch would have to level at some point, and that would be his chance. Adrenaline was pumping through his veins, time slowed to a crawl as he was mere seconds from sure doom.
Then it happened, the golden glint changed its course and Harry righted his broom seeing the distance diminish. He was at arm's reach and without thinking, propelled himself forward leaving his broom behind. The cold humming prize was clutched in his hands as he rolled. He could hear Lucinda shout something.
Endorphins filled his brain as he lifted the snitch above his head. Mere seconds later Regulus pulled him into a hug and soon Lucinda and the rest of the team joined in. He'd won. He fought his father and won. It was a strange feeling.
As the group hug subsided, his eyes turned to the stands. Sounds muted around him as he spotted a flash of auburn swept by the wind. His heart stopped. She'd seen him play. As strange of a feeling as outseeking his own father was he now realized his mother had been watching, and she saw him win.
The Slytherin common room was filled with laughs and good humor for the entire evening. Lucinda had penned him in as temporary seeker without asking his opinion. And to be fair, he hadn't protested at all. It felt good having people around him to joke and laugh with, to belong. But he had to keep reminding himself that he didn't in fact belong. And that before their stay at Hogwarts would end, some would turn to Riddle's dark pull.
It felt surreal.
He steadied his mind. Walls upon walls upon corridors erected to fool the legilimency crystal opposite of him. He felt it probing in the recesses of his constructed labyrinth, trying to escape and tear at his subconscious.
Harry had searched out the Room of Requirement on his third day. It dawned on him that one of his weaknesses, was his own mind. If anyone managed to see his past true self, he would be at risk of losing everything. And so he stood in front of the empty wall wishing to learn to occlude his thoughts. The answer of the room was the legilimency crystal, a strange pulsating yellow lighted crystal that assaulted his mind the second he walked in. His first time he had been exhausted after no more than five minutes, but two weeks later, he managed to keep up with it, and he was in a deep trance preventing its encroachment on his psyche.
Letting the remaining defenses stand, he finished his training for the day. This time he managed to last almost an hour. A definite improvement, and he felt he could extend the time much past that if he wanted. But he had a DADA essay to complete. Despite being a time traveling assassin, he had to fit into his new role, Harry Peltier, seeker extraordinaire, and friend of the serpentine caste.
He was lost in his own thinking and didn't notice someone turn the corner as he buzzed in direction of the library. He felt something hit his head as he flew backwards. He panicked as he saw a tumble of red. Fate either loved or hated him recently.
"Sorry! So sorry!" He exclaimed as he righted himself. Lily Evans had been carrying a stack of parchment and books when she bumped into him and was now on her knees rubbing her head. He went for his wand and levitated the books and parchment up as he held out his hand. He hadn't realized what a mistake that was when Lily let out a giggle and took it.
"Thanks." She said. "It's partly my fault, my mum always told me I had my head in the clouds. Don't think we've met properly, Lily Evans." She extended her hand.
"Harry Peltier." He shook it.
For a few seconds he stood there as if petrified by a basilisk. And without thinking blurted out. "You uh were, going to the library?"
She nodded. "Yes. V-"
"Vampire assignment." He smiled. "Me too."
Again she giggled and Harry felt like his brain had left on permanent vacation. "You must be the most curious Slytherin boy I ever met."
Lily stood there for a second and he had to look down to prevent himself from turning into a tomato. She bit her lip before asking. "You want some help?"
"I'd love that." Love. The whole way over he wanted to mash his head against a wall.
Lily knew the library like the back of her hand, and after the initial shock he had to admit it was nice to have her help out, this domain had always been Hermione's. After getting out all the necessary references, they sat down to write their assignment.
They worked silently for about an hour and it was coming along well. "Do you still need this?" She asked pointing at 'History of Famous Magical Persons'.
"No, all done. You want chapter 7 and 34."
She gave him a warm smile and took the book.
"Can I ask you something?" She said absentmindedly.
"Sure."
"Do I know you from somewhere?"
This took him slightly by surprise. "I don't think so."
"It's just… you seem familiar, that's all." She turned to look at him and he held his breath. "And I don't mean because you look like you could be James' brother."
There it was. He had done well pretending not to notice the similarities but at last she was the one to say it. "You think?"
"Kind of. 'Cept your eyes. I have to admit I was a bit taken aback first time I saw you. It was like looking in a mirror."
"I guess so." So she was staring at him back then.
She returned to her writing. "But it's not as if we could possibly be related. My parents were muggles."
He knew what she was implying. Despite Riddle not having put together his army yet, the pureblood sentiment had been bubbling to the surface. And despite often forgetting since he arrived, he was a Slytherin. The thought of Lily suffering from that bigotry made his blood boil.
"My mother was muggle-born. It's my father who was from a wizarding family."
She looked up. "Really. How did they meet?"
"Wizarding school sweethearts."
She blushed. And he realized how what he said must have sounded. He buried his nose in his paper, ruffling his hair.
A while later he was almost finished, and he saw Lily was about to put on the finishing touches.
"Don't tell anyone, but you had James in a right fury after that match."
Harry had to laugh at this. "Really."
"Losing to an unknown seeker. And losing the pitch for two weeks to boot. It wasn't pretty."
"Saw you watching from the stands." He said.
She put her arms over her books and crossed them, staring straight at him. "Harry Peltier, are you stalking me?" She said with a grin on her face.
"Wh- I- no, I didn't, I swear."
She let out a laugh that resounded in the entire library. Prompting Pince to give her a pointed shush. She put her hand over her mouth and whispered. "Relax. I was joking."
He had been a hair's breadth from a heart attack, when he heard steps hurriedly entering. "Lily, that's where you are."
James' brow furrowed at seeing the scene before him. "What are you doing with that snake?"
Harry saw annoyance in Lily's face, which gave her eyes a cold edge to them. "Maybe if you took the time to get to know people, you wouldn't be so prejudiced." She whispered viciously.
James stared daggers at him, Sirius was loyally backing him up and behind them was a shy looking boy with ruffled hair and a smattering of scars on his face. Remus. And just behind them, eyes darting around, was none other than the betrayer, the one responsible for the death of his family and the scar on his forehead. Peter Pettigrew, the filthy rat.
The anger that was stewing inside him must have been visible because Lily stood up and whispered loudly to the both of them. "Not here!"
He let his temper cool. Pettigrew's betrayal was still in the making. It was still a mirage. He let out a deep breath.
"Come on Lils. Let's go back to the common room." Sirius said half pleadingly, half cheerily.
She sighed. "Fine. You go ahead I'll be there in a minute."
They turned and left, but not before James gave him the stink-eye again. Harry sighed, he hadn't really planned to make an enemy of his own father.
Lily slowly packed her parchment and books. "Sorry about this." She said somberly. "They're not bad people, it's just Slytherin and Gryffindor don't really get along."
Harry nodded. "It's fine."
"It's not." She said, and with her books in hand she bowed forward, her face closing with his as she gave him a peck on the cheek.
"Thanks for helping me with my assignment." She said, her mouth curling into a genuine smile.
And she was gone.
As his head thumped on the table he could hear Pince reprimand him.
Harry had gotten up early to catch up on his Defense Against the Dark Arts schedule. He sipped from his tea glancing out the window of the Slytherin common room. The northern wind was sweeping the last leaves off the trees on the Hogwarts grounds as mid November was approaching. Time was rushing by and he still hadn't destroyed a single Horcrux. But he knew he couldn't smash the beehive without anyone noticing. He knew he had to plan his assault on Riddle carefully and methodically, he had to prepare himself fully this time.
Regulus descended with a yawn. "Aaaaaaaowh Peltier! You up already?" He said rubbing his eyes.
"Regulus. Doing well?"
Regulus laughed. "Better than ever. Can't wait for apparition this afternoon. It's a vital skill to all grand wizards you know."
"True enough."
Regulus grabbed some tea for himself and settled into the chair next to him. "You ditched practice yesterday."
"I told Lucinda ahead of time. Had to catch up with some assignments."
"Hey. Not judging, you're still one of the best fliers on the team. But don't forget about the cup, you're our ace in the hole. If we lose I'll turn you into a newt."
"So you have been practicing transfiguration." Harry responded sarcastically.
Regulus almost choked on his tea. "You cheeky bastard."
Harry shook his head laughing. Thinking of who this man would turn into made his heart heavy. He knew he wasn't here to save everyone but at the same time he couldn't help but want to turn Regulus to the light. He had been nothing but a friend since he got here.
Apparition class, Harry had been told, was being taught by a retired Auror by the name of Darren Leahey, now well into his 60's. No one knew why the veteran had come out of retirement to teach at Hogwarts, but Harry figured the scheming headmaster had something to do with it.
The man was of a sunny disposition and had a scar running along his neck, as if someone had changed their mind halfway through beheading him. Knowing what real dark wizardry was like, Harry had no doubt this wasn't far from the truth.
On the other side of the classroom he could see James and Sirius were standing together, trying their best to ignore Harry. And a little further he saw Lily talking with a Ravenclaw girl he remembered was named Clara. He quickly remembered that Remus had only gotten his apparition license after leaving Hogwarts, which is why he wasn't there.
Leahey stepped into the middle of the room. "Welcome to Apparitions class."
"Before starting I must warn anyone who hasn't read the introductory material I assigned to you that you will not be able to participate in this lesson." He waited for responses.
"No one? Good. But remember that what seems a white lie might have you in a few dozen pieces by the end of this lesson. And as much as Madam Pomfrey is a talented woman, I doubt even she could do much to help you at that point." He smiled.
He then went on to go over in detail the process of apparition. How one must have the destination clear in mind, reciting the spell mantra mentally, and be fully determined to reach its location. That took about 10 minutes.
"Now." He turned to face the classroom. "Does anyone feel confident enough to try our first exercise?"
There were two chalk circles, one at one end and one at the other. The destination was marked with a Roman numeral II.
Harry who was determined not to stand out, kept silent, but felt two hands pushing him forward. Regulus lifted his eyebrows as to encourage him. Harry lifted one in return.
"Ah! Mr. Peltier. Wouldn't it be grand if our newest student were the first to successfully apparate?"
He glanced around the room. James was grinning no doubt hoping he would be separated into pieces, but Lily had one hand over her mouth in anticipation and when he looked over, she gave him a nod.
Fine.
"Are you prepared, Mr. Peltier?" Leahey asked.
"Yes sir."
He stood in the first circle.
"Now remember. To have a clear image of the destination, and never let your determination falter. It's difficult to start it off, but once done you must focus absolutely."
He cleared his head, and imagined himself standing in the second circle. The trick was to awaken in your being a sense of urgency, and it took nothing but thoughts of Riddle and the pain he would inflict on his friends to summon that determination. He knew the drill and was ready.
With a pop he appeared on the other side of the room.
"Bloody marvelous, pardon my language." Leahey said.
James was clearly trying to hide his disappointment. Regulus was punching the air in victory for Slytherin and when he glanced over to Lily she was practically dripping with glee.
"Well done. Well done! See? You only need to put your mind to it and it becomes a simple affair. You may stand aside Peltier."
He went back to Regulus.
"Look at them, bloody seething with anger."
But Lily was talking to the Ravenclaw girl and they both turned to look at him, smiling. Clara whispered something in Lily's ear, to which she gave an embarrassed look and her face turned bright red.
"Not all of them." He answered.
The rest of the class went mostly without maiming. Regulus who had told him he got private tutoring managed it after a few minutes. A fair few students didn't manage it at all. James did so after a short moment focusing and so did Lily, and Harry gave her an encouraging smile to which she turned red again.
Sirius however managed to leave behind a nipple, to everyone's shock and amusement, and was sent to Madam Pomfrey immediately.
It wasn't until two days later that lightning struck in Harry's fresh Hogwarts adventure. He was returning to the common room after dinner when Clara called him over and dragged him into an alcove.
"We don't really know each other, but she asked me to do this, and I can't say no to a friend." She handed him a letter with his name on it.
"Sorry. What is this?"
"She didn't have the courage to hand it over herself and… just don't say no, think about it." She grinned, and hopped back around a corner.
Harry was completely lost. Who in the world would want to give him a letter? He opened it, and wasn't sure if his face was turning crimson or pale white as he read the name at the bottom.
Dear Harry,
I know we don't exactly have much time to talk. But call me crazy, I think we were getting along quite well last time at the library. I know it's not ideal to spend much time with a Gryffindor girl, but I'd really love to catch up and learn more about each other.
Would you accompany me for a drink at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade this Saturday? It's on me, for keeping me company last time. If you can't, I understand. I'll be waiting for your response.
Sincerely,
Lily Evans.