Afternoon arrived, and everyone gathered on the grounds outside Hogwarts Castle, waiting for Madam Hooch's arrival.
It was late November at Hogwarts, and the weather had clearly turned cold. The sky was misty, with black clouds hanging low, and everyone stood on the grass in their wizard robes, shivering slightly.
However, because the Gryffindor Quidditch team was coming to select a new Seeker, everyone's faces showed excitement as they discussed Quidditch matches animatedly, which made them feel less cold.
Soon, Madam Hooch walked over briskly under everyone's expectant gaze, with a handsome young man following behind her. She still had her crisp, silver, short hair, her sharp gaze sweeping over everyone like an eagle.
"Alright, let me introduce you. This is Oliver Wood, captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team," Madam Hooch said briskly. "Now, let him explain to you about joining the Quidditch team."
Wood nodded politely to Madam Hooch, then said, "The Gryffindor team is currently looking for an excellent Seeker. Although first-year students can't participate in Quidditch matches yet, they can be trained in advance, which is equivalent to getting team qualifications early."
"You can freely showcase your talents. If there are suitable players, I'll speak with Professor McGonagall to let you participate in training early."
Wood briefly explained the situation. The Gryffindor team was desperately short of Seekers. They really had no choice—these past few days he had already tried out several Seekers, but unfortunately none were particularly outstanding. Hearing that there were some good prospects among the new students, he had specifically approached Professor McGonagall and finally got this opportunity.
"Alright, you can mount your brooms and fly freely in the sky, showing what you've learned during this time. Remember, don't fly recklessly!" Madam Hooch shouted her instructions.
Everyone was already familiar with riding flying brooms. Even those without good talent had learned to soar in the sky after this period of training—it was just a matter of how fast and skillfully they flew.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
After mounting their flying brooms, everyone began to rise quickly into the air, flying freely over the grounds.
"Oh my goodness, slow down!" Hermione took off too fast, startling herself. She quickly lay flat on her broom, hugging it tightly and not daring to let go.
"Hermione, you need to relax. Being too tense will affect your control of the flying broom," Harry performed an elegant spiral and stopped beside Hermione.
"It's too high. I can't relax at all." Hermione knew she needed to relax, but seeing the grass and figures below getting farther and farther away made her so nervous she couldn't function. All the theoretical knowledge she had learned so well was completely forgotten once she was in the sky.
"Hermione, in the sky, this is our territory. You have to listen to us," Ron braked and stopped beside Hermione, saying with a smile. In other areas, they couldn't compare to Hermione, but when it came to riding flying brooms, they had a big advantage.
"You need to control your body first, like this—lift your chest slightly, then control the broom to fly where you want to go," Ron demonstrated while explaining to Hermione.
However, Hermione's face was pale. Even following Ron's instructions, she only learned the basics. Her body was completely rigid, and every movement was distorted.
"How about you lower your altitude and practice closer to the ground? That will help you control your body posture," Dudley suggested. Obviously, Hermione was somewhat afraid of heights. At this altitude, her body control was very poor.
"I... alright." Hermione didn't want to give up, but her body was honest—she felt that if she continued staying at this height, her brain might become oxygen-deprived.
Hermione slowly lowered her altitude to the same level as Neville and the others, flying slowly in the sky. Harry rode his flying broom, whooshing past. He thoroughly enjoyed the feeling of soaring in the sky—it allowed him to forget all his troubles and gain true freedom.
On the ground, Wood carefully observed each new student, his brow sometimes furrowing, sometimes relaxing, constantly shifting between the several people in the sky.
"How is it? Have you found suitable candidates?" Madam Hooch asked. "Among this year's Gryffindor students, there are indeed several with good flying talent, like Harry and Dudley."
Madam Hooch pointed to two figures in the sky.
"Thank you, Madam Hooch. I can see that—they both fly quite well," Wood said.
Although he couldn't see Harry and Dudley's expressions due to the distance, he could observe that these two flew with ease. That relaxed and natural posture couldn't be trained in a short time—it required real talent to achieve. If Wood had to describe it, perhaps the word "effortless" would be very appropriate.
It was obvious that everyone else was controlling their flying brooms to complete their desired movements, while Harry and Dudley could do it easily—it seemed they only needed a thought to achieve their desired results.
"Actually, Ron flies well too, though he's a bit nervous—I can tell," Madam Hooch pointed to Ron on the other side.
"Also a good prospect," Wood nodded.
Ron's talent wasn't as good as the other two, but it was clear that with proper training, he would also achieve good results. Moreover, their team already had two Weasley children. Although it wasn't explicitly stated, Fred and George had casually mentioned their younger brother, and Wood naturally understood their meaning.
In the sky, Dudley wasn't flying fast, leisurely admiring Hogwarts Castle below. This seemed to remind him of the feeling of soaring through the sky in that other world, when he looked down at all living beings below with coldness and solitude.
Suddenly, he noticed Wood's gaze from below. The Gryffindor team captain seemed to have been watching him for too long. Dudley's gaze shifted slightly.
"Harry, Ron, let's play a game—whoever catches this stone first wins!"
As Dudley spoke, he pulled out a stone from his pocket and threw it downward. The boys' competitive spirit was immediately ignited. Harry and Ron quickly adjusted their flying brooms and chased after the rapidly falling stone.
[Chapter Complete]
***
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