Kyle stayed with Hagrid until noon, but when lunchtime drew near, he had to head back to the castle. Hagrid invited him to stay for a meal, but Kyle quickly declined after only a moment’s hesitation. He had just seen Hagrid pull two long, odd-looking creatures off a shelf, make a few quick cuts, and toss them into a basin, topping them with a thick, slimy green-and-yellow substance. If he stayed, he feared he’d end up spending the first weekend of the new school year in the Hospital Wing.
Ignoring Hagrid’s protests, Kyle made his way briskly across the grounds and back to the safety of the castle.
By now, the Great Hall on the first floor was already packed, and the lively chatter was even more intense than usual, thanks to the excitement of the Quidditch tryouts.
“If only I’d flown a bit lower,” groaned a Gryffindor student at the entrance. “You have no idea—the Golden Snitch flew right under me, and I didn’t even see it!”
“That’s too bad…” his companion said sympathetically. “So, do you think you’ll still make the team?”
“I think so,” the boy replied confidently. “The other Seeker candidates weren’t all that great, honestly. Some even fell off their brooms. Compared to that, I did pretty well.”
As Kyle walked through the Great Hall, he overheard similar conversations all around. At the Gryffindor table, nearly everyone who had tried out for the team seemed confident about their chances—even those who had taken tumbles off their broomsticks.
When Kyle finally reached the Hufflepuff table, he spotted Cedric coming over.
“How did the tryouts go?” Kyle asked.
Cedric shook his head, taking a long drink of pumpkin juice before answering. “A lot of people signed up, but most weren’t qualified. Some couldn’t even manage basic aerial turns.” He paused, then added, “Oh, and I saw your two roommates there.”
“Mikel and Ryan?” Kyle asked, curious. “How’d they do?”
Cedric’s expression turned slightly awkward, as though he were carefully choosing his words. After a long pause, he said, “I… don’t think they’re quite suited for Quidditch.”
“That bad?” Kyle was taken aback. For Cedric, who was always kind-hearted, to say that someone wasn’t suited for Quidditch… their performance must have been really poor. Kyle recalled they’d done decently in flying lessons—nothing extraordinary, but at least they could stay steady in the air.
“Maybe they were just too nervous to fly well,” Kyle suggested.
“That’s not it,” Cedric sighed. “The main problem was that they don’t know the rules of Quidditch at all. Ryan just bolted around the pitch without paying any attention to his teammates or opponents. He passed the ball to the other team twice.”
Kyle winced, but Cedric wasn’t finished.
“Mikel was even worse. He mistook a Bludger for a Quaffle and tried to score with it.”
“Uh…” Kyle was speechless. After a moment, he added, “Well, at least he’s got spirit.”
“If only that were the case,” Cedric said, sighing again. “He barely got ten feet before losing control of the Bludger. If the others hadn’t reacted fast, he’d probably be in the Hospital Wing by now.”
Kyle was left at a loss for words, and he noticed Cedric giving him a sympathetic look that seemed just a bit amused.
“Look, it was just an accident,” Kyle said, trying to defend his roommates. “They’re usually quite normal outside of Quidditch.”
“Really?” Cedric raised an eyebrow. “Wasn’t it one of them who accidentally blew up the Charms classroom with a simple Lighting Charm last year?”
“That was… well, Mikel has trouble with magic control. It wasn’t his fault,” Kyle replied firmly. “It was practically an act of fate.”
Cedric chuckled but went on. “What about the time they copied your homework but put your name on it?”
Kyle had barely opened his mouth before Cedric continued, “Or when one of them asked Professor Snape to add water to their potion during the exam…”
“Or when one of them managed to dye himself blue…”
“Wait a minute,” Kyle interrupted, his expression growing alarmed. “How do you know about that?”
“Well,” Cedric said, grinning, “the History of Magic classroom overlooks Pendulum Courtyard. You can see the Hospital Wing entrance from the windows.”
“…Right.” Kyle went silent for a moment before adding with exaggerated seriousness, “Cedric, you’re starting to sound like a gossip. That’s not the Hufflepuff way.”
Cedric gave him an amused look but said nothing.
“Alright, alright,” Kyle conceded, grabbing a piece of toast. “Let’s get back on topic. Any other team changes this year?”
Cedric looked at him, sensing the abrupt change of subject, but went along. “Slytherin did a full revamp, though the only thing I know for sure is that their new captain is Marcus Flint. Gryffindor, on the other hand, kept the same team as last year. They didn’t find any promising newcomers, and Oliver Wood’s been stressing about it all morning. Ravenclaw, however, found themselves a fantastic Seeker, and… I bet you can guess who.”
“Cho, right?” Kyle guessed. “She told me last year she wanted to try out for Seeker.”
“Exactly,” Cedric replied, grinning. “She was the first one to catch the Golden Snitch during tryouts. The Ravenclaw captain was so pleased, he’d probably have made her the team’s Seeker on the spot if it weren’t so early in the season.”
Kyle chuckled as Cedric added, “You should’ve seen it. Wood was so envious his eyes nearly turned green. He ran straight to Professor McGonagall to ask if first years could join the team but got a good scolding instead.”
“Hey, sounds like someone’s talking about our esteemed captain,” a voice said behind them.
“Wood’s that popular now?” added another voice.
Kyle turned to see Fred and George Weasley strolling over. They took seats on either side of him and asked, “What are you all chatting about?”
“The Quidditch trials,” Cedric answered, smiling. “So, did Professor McGonagall agree to let you recruit from the first years?”