Quidditch Match

That week, Muya saw the first snowfall. The mountains around the school were blanketed in ice and snow, and every morning on her way to class, she could see Hagrid bundled in a thick coat, defrosting the brooms on the Quidditch pitch.

However, the Heads of House had also learned that Dumbledore had become Muya's guardian. Though they were unwilling to accept it, they expressed respect for Muya's decision.

Muya: No! I actually didn't want a guardian at all!

That evening, Muya heard Sean tell them that their House would be playing Ravenclaw tomorrow morning, while Gryffindor would face Slytherin in the afternoon.

For the past few days, Harry had been dragged off for training by his captain, the senior named Wood. He told Muya that thankfully Hermione was around, or he would never have finished so much homework.

Seeing how cold the weather was, the house-elves had made plenty of hot dishes, which the young wizards praised endlessly.

Muya decided to dress warmly the next morning and bring some snacks along.

After dinner, just as Muya was about to leave, she suddenly saw Snape limping out of the Great Hall. She hurried after him.

"Professor, did you hurt your leg?" Muya walked over to Snape's side, hunching down to get a closer look at what was wrong with his leg.

"It's nothing." Snape flicked his robes aside, then lifted Muya up by the scruff. "Since Miss Muya cares so much about her professor, she can come help brew potions tonight." Snape wore a wicked smile.

Muya: Not hee-hee.

"Ah, Mya Mu has been taken to the dungeons by the Snake King again." Ron poked his head out, watching Snape and Muya's retreating backs as he chewed on a piece of chicken.

"So Mya Mu has it even worse than I do." Harry began to pity Muya.

"All right, you two. Ron, you haven't finished your homework, and Harry, you have a match tomorrow." Hermione returned to the common room with several books in her arms.

Muya returned to the common room carrying a large pile of little bottles. Snape had said these were potions he had brewed poorly and told her to take them back and study them.

Muya: I'm seriously so done.

"Quick, quick, quick, Mya Mu, time to get up!" Hannah patted Muya's blanket while Susan and Shalian hurried through their morning wash.

"Mm, Hannah, it's still early, isn't it?" Muya was forced out of bed and rubbed her eyes.

"It's not early!" Hannah pushed Muya off to wash up.

By the time the four of them went to breakfast, there were not many people left in the Great Hall. They quickly finished eating and rushed to the pitch.

Muya felt the milk in her stomach sloshing around. Well, it looked like they were late.

When they arrived, they saw Sean waving at them from the Hufflepuff stands. "Looks like Sean saved us some good seats." Muya and the others headed over.

"Oh, you little wizards really aren't very proactive, are you? Good thing I'm here." Sean patted the hat on Muya's head.

"Thank you, Sean!" Muya said sincerely.

"Thank you, Senior Sean!"

"Hahaha, no need to thank me!" Sean's nose was practically in the air.

"Tone it down. They're coming onto the pitch." Vester reached over and pressed his book onto Sean's head.

"Vester!"

Muya saw Cedric lead the Hufflepuff team onto the pitch alongside the Ravenclaw team. Everyone had a broom in hand, and when they saw McGonagall's magical fireworks, they all mounted their brooms and flew into the air.

"Excellent! We can now see that a Hufflepuff player has scored ten points for Hufflepuff right at the start!" The commentator sounded extremely excited.

"Beautiful! This Ravenclaw young lady sends the ball through with perfect accuracy!"

"Now, the Seekers from both teams are desperately chasing the Golden Snitch."

"Perfect defense!"

Muya saw Sean pull out a banner. He tapped it with his wand, and the words "Hufflepuff Will Win!" appeared on it.

"Come on, help hold it up!" Sean handed one corner to Muya and gave the other to Vester.

Muya looked at the banner that had suddenly appeared in her hands, silently took out her wand, and made it float.

Then she continued cheering for the team.

In the end, the match concluded with Cedric catching the Golden Snitch. The Hufflepuff students cheered loudly for Hufflepuff and Cedric.

After Cedric changed back into his clothes and came out, Muya handed him some hot water. "You were amazing, Cedric."

"Thank you, Mya Mu." Cedric accepted it with a smile.

"Not bad, brother!" Sean came over and patted Cedric on the back.

"A few seconds faster than last time." Vester closed his book and looked at Cedric.

"That's great! Does that mean our House has a chance to come first in the tournament?" Hannah and Susan happily hugged each other and bounced around.

That afternoon, before the match began, Muya ran into Harry. "Hey, Harry, good luck in your match later!"

Harry tugged his lips into a slightly awkward smile. "Okay, Mya Mu. Oh, and congratulations on your House winning."

Muya looked at Harry again and guessed, "Harry, are you nervous?"

Harry froze, then scratched his head. "Is it that obvious?"

Muya thought it was ridiculously obvious!

"Good luck, Harry. This is for you." Muya handed him a red string bracelet with a little wooden fish hanging from it.

"What is this?" Harry asked.

"It's for keeping you safe, Harry." Muya patted his hand, then left.

Muya sat in the same place as that morning. Over in the Gryffindor section, she saw a huge banner flashing with multicolored light suspended above the stands.

"Oh, theirs is way cooler than mine." Sean seemed a little regretful.

As Harry and the others entered the pitch, cheers rose just as they had that morning.

Hooch was the referee for this match. "Listen, I hope everyone plays as fairly and honestly as they did this morning."

Then everyone mounted their brooms and flew into the air together at Hooch's whistle.

"Oh, the Quaffle is immediately seized by Gryffindor's Angelina Johnson—what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and she's quite lovely too—" Uh, what was wrong with the commentator today? Muya rubbed her forehead.

"The ball goes to Johnson again, and then—oh no, Slytherin has taken the Quaffle! Slytherin captain Marcus Flint gets the Quaffle and charges ahead."

"Excellent! Gryffindor goalkeeper Wood makes a beautiful move and intercepts the ball."

The Golden Snitch suddenly appeared. Muya saw Harry race after it, but a Slytherin player slammed into him, and he nearly lost control.

The Gryffindor students shouted, "Foul!"

Even Cedric, seated beside Muya, frowned.

Hooch angrily reprimanded the Slytherin student, then ordered Gryffindor to take a free shot in front of the goalposts. But amid the chaos, the Golden Snitch vanished from sight again.