Chapter 8: Flying Lessons

Albus waited and waited the next few weeks for Naomi's return, but all that happened that was exciting over the weeks was detention with Daniel. Finally, Albus found him walking to the fields to practice flying with Professor Hutchinson as the new flying teacher. Albus stood in the two parallel lines the students had formed, each of them beside a broom. Professor Hutchinson clapped his hands once. "Looks like we're jolly fine, all kids here. OK you lot seem likely to be good fliers. We've got er- Albus Potter here, and Joan Krum..."
Albus looked down at the broom and jerked back up at the deafening sound of Professor Hutchinson's whistle. "All attention. Please look down and your brooms now and say, UP."
Albus did as said, and his broom flew to his hands. Most of the students were able to control the broom. Scorpius Malfoy had his broom up in a swish of his hand rather than an "up." Malfoy smiled confidently. "Ok, now. All those who didn't get it, pick it up. Ok, now mount your brooms. On the count of three, we will mount our brooms and fly into the air, is all ready? One... Two... Three."
Albus pushed up and his broom flew in the air. Malfoy did so as well, his broom flying perfectly with swishes here and there. Joan Krum did some stunts in the air. A girl names Alexia Gonzalez kept almost flying off her broom. Rose Weasley  was up in the air, dangerously dangling off her broom. It was, considered, a disaster.
Albus flew in the air and turned this way and that. He found his flying broom rather comfortable. He felt like he was free, whizzing through the air like a firework. Malfoy, of course, was doing the same thing, absolutely swift in the air, turning this way and that as if he were simply walking. Alexia finally got on her broom, now controlling it. Finally, at Professor Hutchinson's whistle, everyone got down. "We'll take a five minute break. As soon as we get back, we'll play a game perhaps."
Malfoy and his two friends, Snow Chang and Lyon Crabbe, were talking in the far right of the field. Albus met up with Andrew, who was panting heavily as he held his broom. "It's crazy, this broom-flying classes!" Andrew blurted out. "Did you see some people doing flips in the air because their brooms were bonkers?"
Albus just nodded but his full attention was at Malfoy, Chang and Crabbe. Snow Chang was smiling at a small brown box far on the right of the field.
Malfoy opened the box. Inside were three balls, the middle one was red with a few dents on the side to help anyone holding it to get a nice grip. Next to it were two smaller balls, chained to the inside. Then, Malfoy opened the box a little bit more and took out a small golden ball. Malfoy put back the ball and took out his wand and pointed to the ball that was chained down, and checked if anyone was looking, and waved his wand slightly and closed the box. Albus wondered what Malfoy was doing.
Then, Professor Hutchinson returned. She smiled at the lot of children and blew her whistle. "Now, please get back into the air."
Everyone flew into the air at once, except for Andy Timbers, who lingered on the ground a bit longer. Professor Hutchinson took the box Malfoy had just played with and opened it, revealing the balls. "Now, class, you have done a wonderful job, so I reward you with a single game of Quidditch. Now,Quidditch is one of the most common sports in history. It was made one million years ago. Brooms back then were simply sticks. In Quidditch there are three hoops. There are also balls called bludgers. All players have to play on brooms, Bludgers come around and knock players off their brooms. Two beaters hit the bludger so it can hit another player. A player hit by a bludger will take a ten second penalty. There is a quaffle. two Chasers score by catching the Quaffle and throwing it in one of the three hoops that will be displayed.One quaffle is ten points. Finally, there is the snitch. One seeker goes around and tries to find the snitch. If the snitch is caught, the game is over. The team with the seeker that caught the snitch wins automatically. What I just said were exact words from Quidditch throughout the ages." 
Professor Hutchinson took out one of the balls that were chained to the box. The ball immediately whizzed in the air. It turned left and headed straight for Alexia, but Hutchinson caught it, struggling to put it back in the box, chained. "That was a bludger." Hutchinson said, then got out the the red ball in the middle with dents. The ball zoomed in the air. "This," Hutchinson struggled to say, fighting it back into the box, "Is a Quaffle."
Then, Hutchinson took out the final ball. It was the golden one. "Now this is the Golden Snitch."
Hutchinson let go of the ball, and two white wings popped out of the ball and it whizzed through the air, fast as lightning. Andrew mouthed a 'wow.'
"Now, what we will be doing is not Quidditch. We will release the Snitch, and the two bludgers only. Then, I will divide you into two groups. Slytherins in one, Gryffindor in the other. Now, all we have to do is catch the Snitch. If one person catches the snitch first, their team is the winner of one-hundred house points."
Malfoy smiled at Chang and Crabbe.
Everyone got on their brooms. Gryffindor and Slytherin split, and flew into the air. Hutchinson let go of the snitch and two bludgers, then blew her whistle.
The Snitch whizzed through the air, Albus determined to catch it, like Malfoy. Malfoy was zooming through the air, on full lookout for the slightest clue of the Snitch. The two Bludgers zoomed through the air, and children frantically dodged it. But the Snitch wasn't seen. Yet. Then, Albus saw one of the bludgers, and realized what Malfoy had done to the Bludger. It was zooming through the air, following Andy Timbers as he tried to dodge it. Malfoy had bewitched the bludger so it followed Andy until it got him. Albus headed straight for Andy. If he caught the Bludger, he could save Andy before the huge bludger knocked him out. Andy was already frantically looking for help, nobody noticed.
Except Albus.
Albus tried to catch the Bludger, and finally grasped it in his arms. But then, after a minute, it wriggled out. Albus was swung aside on his broom. Andy was now screaming for help, but nobody noticed, because Malfoy was close to the Snitch, about to catch it. The Snitch didn't seem to feel Malfoy getting closer, it just whizzed in it's spot. Albus stopped. Either earn a hundred house points for Gryffindor, or save Andy.
Save Andy.
Albus focused and tried to get to the bludger. "Andy, I'll help!" Albus called as he tried to get to the Bludger. Then, the Bludger scooted back, as if taking aim. Andy was frozen. The bludger zoomed straight for Andy's skull, about to knock him out. Then, Albus saw the snitch heading towards him, but ignored the golden ball as he headed for the bludger, then caught it, one second to hitting Andy's skull. He recieved a painful blow if the jaw, then felt something zoom past his palm. He grasped it, wondering what it was. He looked, and it was the snitch. The pain from the blow came back right then, Albus clutched his jaw and fell to the ground from his broom, receiving yet another blow before he went black.