Chapter 406: The Match Begins
The crushing loss to Slytherin had left Gryffindor students in a funk for quite a while, dampening any conversation related to Quidditch. But Harry's acquisition of the Firebolt had undoubtedly rekindled their spirits, bringing their enthusiasm for Quidditch roaring back to life.
Their renewed fanaticism only grew stronger as the days passed. By Friday, the Gryffindors were so fired up that, in just one morning, their house's hourglass score had plummeted, dropping them from second place down to last. Caught up in their excitement, they couldn't resist talking about Quidditch during classes, earning frequent scoldings from frustrated professors.
Snape, in particular, seemed all too eager to penalize them, single-handedly responsible for half of the points Gryffindor lost that day. When the Gryffindors finally realized the damage they'd done, they found nearly 200 points docked from their house total—a sobering outcome that quickly curbed their enthusiasm.
The following morning, Kyle made his way to the Great Hall with Cedric and Kanna for breakfast. It was game day, and from the moment they entered the hall, they could feel eyes on them. As the first team to face the Firebolt, they were attracting nearly as much attention as Harry himself. Especially from the Ravenclaw table, where a good number of students seemed to be watching them.
"Davies sees this as a chance to observe just how good the Firebolt really is," Cho whispered as she took a seat next to Kanna. "He hasn't come up with a strategy to counter it yet, so he's curious to see what you guys are going to do. Are you confident? If Gryffindor racks up too many points, our chances in the next match will be slim."
"Don't worry, we've got it covered," Cedric replied, patting his chest. "We've trained hard for this, and we'll show Wood he's counting his victories a little too early."
At a quarter past ten, the Hufflepuff team set off for the Changing Rooms. The weather was clear and crisp, with a pleasant breeze—ideal conditions for Quidditch. However, this wasn't particularly favorable for Hufflepuff; with all of Kyle's weather-proofing gadgets, they had a distinct advantage in harsher conditions. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't something they could control.
Outside, they could hear the whole school filling the stands, the buzzing excitement from the crowd spilling onto the pitch.
"Don't be nervous," Cedric reassured the team as they prepared to leave the Changing Rooms. "We've practiced for this a million times—we've got this!"