"Alex, I didn't expect you to be so good at throwing insults! Did you see Travers' face? He was red with rage!" Vivian chuckled, covering her mouth with a grin.
"But seriously, you're a Slytherin. Won't this make things tougher for you at the academy? I feel like I've caused you trouble."
Alex glanced at her and then turned to Charles, who seemed a little guilty for the situation as well.
"You don't need to apologize for anything," Alex said calmly. "Backing down only makes people push harder. The only way to get stronger is to learn to fight back. Weakness is the original sin. And while I'm not one to seek out trouble, I'm not afraid of it either. Plus, I'm a Muggle-born in Slytherin—I was already prepared for this."
Charles nodded, appreciating Alex's firm stance.
Vivian, still a little worried, added, "But what if they start causing you more trouble? I mean, I've got Senior Vanessa watching out for me, and I'm the third heir of the Bulstrode family, so they probably won't mess with me too much."
Alex raised an eyebrow, slightly impressed. He hadn't realized that Vivian held such an important position in her family.
'Third heir, huh? No wonder they value her, even with her Muggle-born parentage.'
"Well," Alex replied, turning to Vivian with a small smile, "If anyone gives you trouble, just let me know. I'll figure something out."
The three chatted a bit more before heading into the Quidditch stadium. Inside, they found seats in the stands where Senior Vanessa had already saved spots for them. As soon as they sat down, Vanessa turned to Alex and Vivian with a concerned expression.
"I heard you two had a bit of a fight with Travers at the entrance. Look, we need to stay united in Slytherin. Our academy's reputation isn't great right now, and with the House Cup still far off, we can't afford more division."
Alex tried not to roll his eyes. He understood Vanessa's obsession with unity and the House Cup, but in his opinion, her approach was too soft.
'Warn them all you like, but without some real discipline, those troublemakers won't listen,' he thought.
Still, he and Vivian nodded along politely as Vanessa continued, not wanting to argue.
Vanessa, as a prefect, was deeply committed to improving Slytherin's standing, but the constant conflicts with Gryffindor had taken their toll on the house's performance in the House Cup. Ever since she entered Hogwarts, Slytherin had yet to win, often losing out to Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, who quietly benefited from the chaos between Slytherin and Gryffindor.
The weather mirrored the tension inside the stadium, with black clouds looming over. It was as if the skies themselves were signaling that today's game would be anything but bright and cheerful.
Soon after the players from both sides entered the field, Mrs. Rolanda Hooch blew her whistle, signaling the start of the year's first Quidditch match. What followed left Alex in disbelief.
From the very start, the match was more of a brawl than a game. Players on both sides collided aggressively, even the Seekers, who were usually more focused on finding the Snitch, got involved in the chaos. The Chasers didn't even bother trying to score at first, choosing to ram into each other instead. To Alex, it almost seemed like they were passing the Quaffle to their opponents on purpose just to set up another collision.
The Beaters were just as wild, swinging their bats at each other when the Bludgers weren't nearby, and occasionally aiming for the opposing players rather than the balls. Gryffindor set up a ring formation, trying to surround Slytherin, while Slytherin countered with a triangle charge straight through their defense.
Alex, much to his own surprise, was actually enjoying the spectacle. Though he had little interest in the sport itself, the sheer brutality of the tactics and the almost absurd level of aggression were entertaining. Unfortunately, Mrs. Hooch wasn't as amused. She called for a timeout after just ten minutes when no goals had been scored, but several players were already having bruises and bloody noses.
'A shame, I was enjoying the chaos more than the game itself.'
During the timeout, both Professor McGonagall and Mrs. Hooch stepped onto the field to warn the players, urging them to focus on the game. For a brief moment, things calmed down, but as soon as the whistle blew to resume, the aggressive play started up again.
Elbows, kicks, and even spitting became common tactics. Alex shook his head, finding it all too similar to a violent video game he used to play in his previous life. Mrs. Hooch was practically blowing her whistle nonstop, calling out fouls, awarding free throws, only for the players to commit even more fouls right afterward.
More than an hour into the game, things had taken a clear turn for the worse. Slytherin was down one player, sent off after a particularly brutal foul, and another was injured. Gryffindor's Seeker had fallen off his broom, breaking a leg, leaving them without anyone to catch the Snitch. The current score was 70-130, with Gryffindor in the lead.
Despite the chaos, the game showed no signs of ending.
In Alex's eyes, the Quidditch game had devolved into a bizarre farce. The Slytherin Seeker, instead of searching for the Golden Snitch, was darting around the field trying to interfere with the Gryffindor players. At the same time, the Gryffindor team, fearful that catching the Snitch would trigger a premature end, huddled defensively in front of their goals.
As the game dragged on, it became increasingly absurd. Another hour passed, and the score had ballooned to 110-280 in Gryffindor's favor. The Slytherin players were doing their best to hold on, but with only five players left—one of them being the Seeker, who wasn't even trying to find the Snitch—it was essentially a 4-on-6 match. Their chances of mounting a comeback were slim at best.
Alex watched, a mixture of amusement and disbelief on his face.
'This won't end anytime soon...'
Despite the chaos, both teams refused to call it quits, their captains too stubborn to agree on ending the match.
With the score still climbing and the players battered and bruised, it became clear to Alex that this Quidditch match might go down in Hogwarts history as one of the strangest and most brutal games ever played.
He had no intention of wasting more time watching.
After a quick word to Vivian, he slipped away from the stands, leaving the chaotic match behind.
As Alex left the stadium, Travers, who had been keeping an eye on him from a distance, smirked. He leaned toward his companion, Randall Rozier, and whispered a few words. With matching sneers, the two followed Alex, quietly slipping out of the audience.
Alex, walking ahead, soon noticed the heavy footsteps trailing behind him. Their clumsy attempt at tracking was obvious, loud, and poorly concealed.
'Amateurs,' he thought, rolling his eyes. He had no doubts that Travers and Rozier were looking for trouble.
Smirking to himself, he decided to lead them on a detour, heading towards the owlery instead of Hogwarts Castle. Seeing Alex change direction, Travers and Rozier didn't think much of it. They just quickened their pace, ready to confront him. When Alex reached the owlery, instead of going inside, he circled around the back, out of sight. The two pure-blood boys thought Alex was trying to escape, so they hurried to catch up.
But as they rounded the corner of the owlery, they found Alex calmly leaning against the wall, arms crossed, waiting for them.
Travers sneered, stepping forward.
"You filthy mudblood," he spat, his voice dripping with disdain. "Why don't you run—"
Before Travers could finish, Stupefy the stunning spell shot from Alex's wand, hitting him square in the chest. Travers collapsed, knocked out cold.
Rozier, wide-eyed and panicked, fumbled for his wand, but his hands shook so badly he could barely grasp it.
Alex stepped forward slowly, his expression bored.
"Really? You came looking for a fight and didn't even have your wand ready?" He shook his head, disappointed by their lack of preparation.
Rozier, finally managing to get his wand out, pointed it at Alex with trembling hands.
"S-stay back! If you come any closer, I-I'll…"
Alex raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.
"You'll what? Trip over your own feet? Or maybe you'll hex yourself by accident."
Rozier, clearly terrified, squeezed his eyes shut in panic and flung a spell in Alex's general direction.
The spell flew wide, missing Alex by several feet and hitting a distant tree instead. Alex couldn't help but chuckle.
"Well, it seems fear does boost the power of spells, but your aim? Pathetic."
Rozier, still in a state of blind panic, began firing off spells wildly, each one missing its target by a wide margin. Alex sighed, now more annoyed than amused. With a flick of his wand, he disarmed Rozier, sending his wand flying across the ground. Stepping forward, Alex kicked Rozier to the ground and pressed his boot into his chest, pinning him down.
Pointing his wand at Rozier's throat, Alex asked coldly, "Do you want to die?"
Rozier, gasping for breath under the pressure of Alex's boot, whimpered, "N-no, please! Don't kill me! It was all Travers! I swear, I didn't want any part of this!"
Alex sighed heavily. "Why is it so hard to get through to you pure-blood idiots? Is inbreeding messing with your common sense?" He leaned down, his gaze sharp as a blade.
"Shut up. I'm not going to say it again."
Rozier, his eyes wide with fear, nodded frantically and fell silent, except for the occasional cough.
After a long moment, Alex lifted his boot off Rozier's chest and crouched beside him.
"Are you scared?" he asked in a low voice.
Rozier nodded, his breath coming in shallow gasps.
"Y-yes, I'm scared! Please, just let me go!"
Alex smirked. "Are you going to mess with me again?"
Rozier shook his head furiously. "No, never! I swear, I'll stay away from you! I'll even tell Travers to back off!"
"Don't bother," Alex replied with a cold smile. "In fact, feel free to encourage him to come at me. I don't mind."
Rozier looked confused and terrified, stammering, "No, no! I'll keep him far away from you, I promise!"
Alex let out a low chuckle, then stood up, extending a hand to pull Rozier to his feet. The boy, legs wobbly with fear, nearly collapsed again, but Alex kept him upright. Patting the dust off Rozier's robes, Alex said, "Look, I'm serious. You don't need to stop him from coming after me. But if you do find out he's planning something, let me know."
Rozier blinked, unsure whether Alex was serious or setting him up. "B-but if I'm caught—if he finds out, I'll be done for!"
Alex's eyes gleamed with mischief. "If you cooperate, I'll protect you. Ever heard of a 'protection fee,' Rozier?"
Rozier's confusion deepened. "Protection fee? What's that?"
Alex's grin widened. "Simple. You give me 10 Galleons every month, and I'll make sure no one hurts you. Think of it as… insurance."
Rozier's face paled. "That's extortion!"
"Call it what you want," Alex replied casually, still smiling. "But it's either that, or you can try dealing with your own problems without my help. Your choice."
Rozier, trembling with the realization of how deep he'd gotten himself into, swallowed hard.
"But what if I don't have enough money? What if I can't pay you?"
Alex shrugged. "Then I guess you'll just have to figure out how to stay safe without me."
Seeing the deadly seriousness in Alex's eyes, Rozier nodded weakly. "O-okay, I'll get the money… I'll find a way."
Alex clapped him on the shoulder, his voice mockingly friendly.
"Good man. I knew you'd see reason."
Rozier, still shaking, glanced over at the unconscious Travers, who was sprawled on the ground a few feet away. "What about him?"
"Oh, don't worry about him," Alex said, waving his hand dismissively. With that, Alex let go of Rozier and walked over to where Travers lay. After a quick search, he found a bag of money.
Counting the contents, Alex grinned.
"Twelve Galleons and six Sickles. Well, look at that! This covers your protection fee for this month. I'll even be generous and give you a discount for next month—let's say you owe me eight Galleons."
Alex's smile widened as he looked back at Rozier, who was staring at the money bag in disbelief.
"And if you manage to bring me some extra useful info in the future, I might even reward you. How does that sound? Not a bad deal, right?"
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