A Few Days Before Flying Class

Word that Su Er had earned Hufflepuff points in Snape's Potions class quickly spread throughout the house.

Even if it was only one measly point.

"You're a hero." The Weasley twins from Gryffindor joined in the fun, grinning as they each draped an arm over one of Su Er's shoulders.

"No student outside Slytherin has ever earned points from Snape."

"You're the first!"

The twins chimed in one after the other, winning nods of agreement from the Hufflepuff students in their second year and above.

"Perhaps we have a shot at the House Cup this year." Diggory glanced wistfully at the hourglasses. Hufflepuff's hourglass already stood firmly in second place, with Slytherin in first.

Although the Hufflepuffs seemed indifferent to whether they won the House Cup, that didn't mean they didn't long for the honor themselves.

"Um, excuse me, how long has it been since Hufflepuff last won the House Cup?" Hannah asked curiously.

"The last time Hufflepuff won the House Cup was in 1913." Diggory looked embarrassed for a moment, but answered anyway.

That really was a long time ago...

Still, there probably wasn't much chance of winning the House Cup this year, either...

Unless...

Su Er turned his gaze toward the figure at the staff table with a scarf wrapped around his head. Thinking of the thing on the back of that head, he couldn't help shuddering. He shook his head, banishing the terrifying thought.

Who was he kidding? Facing Voldemort with his scrawny little body would be practically begging to get himself killed...

The night passed uneventfully. Well, not entirely-poor Justin ran into an elderly professor while foraging for food in the kitchen that evening.

"Professor Kettleburn. He teaches Care of Magical Creatures. He's a nice old man." Morn tossed a jam biscuit into his mouth. A scruffy old man with a limp could only be the professor whose elective they could take in their third year.

In just a few short days, Morn had already learned all about the teachers at Hogwarts Castle, along with plenty of gossip.

He had become Hufflepuff's newest resident know-it-all.

"Have you heard? We'll be starting flying classes next week." Morn looked around and whispered, "If you do well, they might make an exception and let you onto Hufflepuff's Quidditch team."

"Quidditch? What's that?" Justin asked curiously.

"You don't know what Quidditch is?!" Morn exclaimed. "Oh, I forgot you come from a Muggle family."

And so Morn began chattering away, giving Justin a crash course in Quidditch.

"I discovered I had a real talent for flying when I was little. Do you know what a glider is? The first time I rode a broom, I came face-to-face with someone flying a glider. Hehe! He was terrified."

Listening nearby, Su Er got the gist of it too. He learned that a Quidditch team had seven players: three Chasers, two Beaters, one Seeker, and one Keeper.

On a large pitch, the two teams, with fourteen players in total, scored by sending the Quaffle through the opposing team's hoops. The Beaters protected their teammates from being knocked off their brooms by the roaming Bludgers, while the Seeker took no part in the offense. His only task was to find the incredibly fast Golden Snitch. Once either team's Seeker caught it, the Quidditch match ended.

Caught up in Morn's excitement, Justin began imagining what it would be like to sit on a broom.

Su Er sat beside them, quietly leafing through a book. Although Snape scoffed at Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger, its instructions for preparing potion ingredients were important for young wizards building their foundations. Reading more was far better than knowing nothing at all. At the very least, Su Er could tell how their Potions Professor had altered the recipes.

After all, he had a tiny little goal he wanted to achieve.

On Saturday, Su Er and Hermione wrote replies to their families in the library, then went to the Owlery that same day to hand them to Little Gray.

They spent the rest of the day in the library. Su Er had wanted to take Hermione for a stroll around the castle and perhaps stumble upon a little adventure along the way.

He knew there was a miraculous Room of Requirement on the castle's Seventh Floor.

Unfortunately, Hermione was simply too devoted to her studies.

"You really should have been sorted into Ravenclaw," Su Er said, exasperated.

Without looking up from The Standard Book of Spells: Grade 1, Hermione said, "I wanted to go to Ravenclaw too, but the Sorting Hat thought I was better suited to Gryffindor. What could I do?"

"Why don't we go for a walk? The weather outside is lovely." Su Er tried hard to persuade Hermione to put down her book, but she remained unmoved.

Helpless, Su Er could only pick out a book on potion-making himself and start leafing through it.

On Sunday evening, a piece of news spread throughout the castle: flying classes would begin on Thursday, with Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw taking them together.

Meanwhile, a new round of Quidditch tryouts was about to begin.

As a result, from Monday through Wednesday, wherever young wizards gathered, there was talk of Quidditch.

Justin, who had barely understood Quidditch a few days earlier, began recounting his own Quidditch adventures at the Hufflepuff table.

Yes, he had stolen Morn's idea and made a few tweaks to turn it into his own version.

Malfoy swaggered along with his two lackeys and came face-to-face with Su Er, who was about to enter the Great Hall for a meal.

"Well, if it isn't Su Er Bones." Malfoy certainly hadn't forgotten being humiliated on the train.

Su Er narrowed his eyes at Malfoy's arrogant bearing. Why was this kid so insufferable?

"Did you need something?" Su Er asked evenly.

As their eyes met, Malfoy suddenly felt a chill spread through his whole body. He had meant to mock Su Er for surely never having flown before, or even touched a broom.

But he suddenly remembered that icy chill on the train in the middle of summer.

Malfoy lost his nerve. "N-no, nothing. I just wanted to say hello."

"Oh, pleased to meet you. Goodbye, Mr. Malfoy."

Malfoy and his two lackeys stood rooted to the spot, staring blankly at Su Er's retreating back. His face visibly alternated between red and pale.

"Harry, Harry, look." At the Gryffindor table, Ron pointed at the loathsome Malfoy, who was blocking the doorway without even realizing it.

"Malfoy looks pretty miserable."

"I think so too." Harry, sporting a bowl cut, nodded in agreement.

"That Hufflepuff's called Su Er, isn't he? If he were in Gryffindor, Malfoy would never dare come and bother us." As Ron spoke, he suddenly remembered the way Su Er had glared at him in the train compartment. He shook his head. "Actually, never mind."

"That boy doesn't look like someone you want to mess with either."

"Neville seems to know him. We could invite him and Neville to Hagrid's Hut for tea," Harry said thoughtfully. "Malfoy's just so annoying."

After chatting for a while, the two quickly turned the conversation to the next day's flying class.