Chapter 32 Slytherin vs. Gryffindor
At eleven o'clock, the Quidditch Pitch.
Quidditch is one of the most popular entertainment activities in the Magical World.
Almost all the teachers and students of the school surrounded the entire Pitch. The Principal, Deans, Professors, and various staff members sat in the upper sections of the stands, while most of the lower Classstudents were in the lower sections.
Hagrid, the Giant, probably preferred the lively atmosphere, so he also stayed in the lower stands. He even brought a pair of binoculars.
In the Slytherin changing room, Aaron somewhat disdainfully put on the green uniform, "Don't we have uniforms in any other color?"
"No!" Terence said. "Red, green, yellow, and blue represent the four Houses respectively. The green uniform is exclusive to Slytherin, and this is a tradition that has remained unchanged for a thousand years."
"That's really a shame. To be honest, I don't like this color."
"You have to wear it even if you don't like it," Captain Marcus walked over and said. Then he looked at the other team members, "I won't say much else. We might be at a slight disadvantage in this match compared to previous ones.
But we've also undergone quite rigorous training during this time, plus the most formidable Seeker in House history, Aaron Gaius, I really can't understand why we would lose.
Slytherin will win, and this year's trophy will definitely belong to Slytherin."
Several people in the team exchanged smiles, as if they had already envisioned Slytherin crushing Gryffindor.
"Ahem! Not to be a spoilsport, but to win beautifully, we still need to respect our opponents," Aaron said inappropriately, and then met the angry gazes of everyone. They had never taken their opponents seriously.
"Alright! I didn't say anything," Aaron chuckled. Although these teammates were arrogant, their flying skills were not bad.
More importantly, he was confident in his own ability. Catching the Golden Snitch would earn one hundred and fifty points and end the game.
This meant that the Seeker controlled the pace of the game. Even if the score was truly widened, as long as it was within one hundred and fifty points, the Seeker could still turn the tide.
In other words, as long as these teammates weren't particularly bad, Aaron could still carry them.
A few minutes later, the Gryffindor and Slytherin teams flew above the Pitch on their broomsticks. With their appearance, the cheers from the stands grew even louder, like oil igniting a fire.
"Hey! This is Hogwarts' first Quidditch match of the season, and today's game is between the Slytherin team and the Gryffindor team," commentator Jordan said excitedly.
The two teams circled in the air for a while, then each took up half of the Pitch in a standoff. The two Beaters, three Chasers, and one Keeper from each team eyed each other from above.
Above them were the two Seekers, Aaron Gaius and Harry Potter.
Harry Potter was a bit nervous. Although he had undergone more than a month of training and his skills had improved significantly, this was his first official match, and he couldn't help but feel a little anxious in front of such a large crowd.
"Harry, you seem a bit nervous!" Aaron asked.
"I am a little. Aren't you nervous?
I heard Ron say you've never participated in training."
"Uh... I don't feel nervous at all. This is just a small occasion.
As for not participating in training, it's purely because the House team has confidence in me, and I'm quite confident myself," Aaron said with a smile. At this moment, he saw the 'Nimbus 2000' trademark on Harry's broom and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, "Nice broom."
Harry gave an awkward laugh. After all, Aaron's broom was still an old Nimbus series from the school, slightly inferior in speed to his.
"Both teams' players are in position, and now Professor Hooch is entering the arena. The match is about to begin," Jordan said.
The two looked down together, only to see Madam Hoochwalk up to a wooden box and look up at them, "I hope both teams will play to their best and with style."
With that, she kicked the wooden box.
The bludgers flew out of the box, followed by the Golden Snitch.
The Golden Snitch provocatively flew a circle around Aaronand Harry, the two Seekers.
Professor Hooch picked up the quaffle from the box and tossed it upwards. The match officially began.
All players from both teams, except for the Seekers, rushed towards the quaffle immediately, as scoring the quaffle into the opponent's goal would earn ten points.
Before long, Gryffindor's Chaser, Angelina, snatched the quaffle and charged towards Slytherin's goal.
During this time, she encountered several attempts to block her, but she dodged them all with her agile movements.
Finally, she got close to the goal and threw the quaffle from a few meters away.
Bang!
Just when everyone thought Gryffindor was about to score, the quaffle was blocked by Keeper Bletch.
The quaffle was now in Slytherin's hands, and offense and defense instantly swapped.
Angelina accelerated and rushed towards Bletch, but he merely smiled at the Gryffindor girl and passed the quaffleto Captain Marcus behind him.
As Captain, Marcus's flying skill was quite good. Starting from his own goal, he avoided the pursuit and interception of the Gryffindor team, as well as the sudden attacks of two bludgers, crossing more than half of the Pitch to reach Gryffindor's goal.
He threw with all his might, and the quaffle shot towards the goal, but Keeper Wood appeared in time and hit the ball back with his broom. The quaffle fell back into Gryffindor's hands.
Wood looked at Marcus, who was grinding his teeth in anger, and smiled, shaking his head.
Gryffindor's Chasers, Katie and Alicia, coordinated with each other, passing the ball while circling the pillars of the stands. After crossing half the Pitch, they passed the quaffleto Angelina for the final shot.
This time, Slytherin's Keeper was a step late, and the quaffleentered the left goal.
Ding!
"Beautiful! Angelina scores! Gryffindor gets ten points!" commentator Jordan said excitedly, then pressed the scoreboard, changing the score between the two Houses from zero-zero to ten-zero.
Professor McGonagall, next to Jordan, clapped excitedly, and Gryffindors in the arena let out thunderous cheers. Slytherin's momentum instantly weakened.
The quaffle fell into the hands of former Seeker Terence. He quickly adjusted his position and flew towards Gryffindor's goal. Behind him, Montague, holding a Beater's bat, was escorting him, blocking bludger attacks.
Terence bypassed Spinnet, bypassed Katie, bypassed the Weasley brothers, and avoided a bludger, finally arriving at Gryffindor's goal.
Without any surprise, the quaffle was still blocked by Woodand passed to the approaching Angelina.
At this moment, Marcus flew up to Montague, snatched the Beater's bat from his hand, and intended to hit a bludgertowards Wood.
But as soon as he raised the bat, his arm was grabbed by Terence, "Don't forget what we promised. The Dean is still sitting there! You don't want him to come talk to us later, do you?"
Marcus froze for a moment, glared resentfully at Wood, who was somewhat confused, threw the bat to Montague, and then turned and left.
The match continued. bludgers darted around the arena, and Beaters hit them towards opposing players.
The quaffle was constantly snatched back and forth. After a few minutes of warm-up, the atmosphere on the field grew even more intense. Offense and defense continuously swapped, and the most strenuous role became that of the Keepers.
Wood and Bletch each held their positions, doing their best not to let the opponent score a single goal. The score remained stuck at ten-zero.
At this point, the two Seekers, who had been hovering above, became the focus of the audience's attention.
From the beginning of the match, Aaron's eyes had been constantly searching for the Golden Snitch. He hadn't paid much attention to the game itself, only making simple evasive maneuvers when a bludger flew towards him.
Harry, however, dedicated most of his energy to enjoying the match and cheering for his House's excellent performance. This wasn't to say he forgot his role as Seeker; he was simply overly excited, being on the field for the first time.
Commentator Jordan also introduced information about the two Seekers to everyone: "Both Seekers are first-year students. One is the famous Harry Potter. He was recognized by Professor McGonagall's discerning eye and was specially recruited into the House team during his first Flying Class, and became Gryffindor's Seeker."
"Potter!" the Gryffindors cheered loudly.
"The other is Aaron Gaius. He has shown talent far beyond his peers at Hogwarts. He is a talent discovered by Professor Snape. He..."
Jordan's voice abruptly stopped. He had originally intended to mention Aaron's 'glorious deed' of 'bathing' the Sorting Hat upon his arrival, but at that moment, Aaron suddenly chased after a golden streak of light.
"Is that the Snitch? Wow! Aaron has spotted the Golden Snitch!" Jordan shouted excitedly.
Harry also reacted, immediately chasing after him on his broom. The Nimbus 2000 also unleashed its proper speed at this time, gradually closing the distance with Aaron.