The next few days passed in a quiet, normal routine.
Edward settled into life at the castle very easily.
He woke up early, did his heavy training outside, and went to his classes.
He did what the teachers asked him to do.
He did not raise his hand to show off.
He did not try to answer every single question.
He just sat at his desk, read his books, and listened.
When a teacher called his name, he answered the question clearly and simply.
In Transfiguration, Professor McGonagall asked him to turn a wooden matchstick into a needle.
Edward pointed his wand, said the spell, and the matchstick turned into a shiny silver needle on his first try.
McGonagall gave him a very rare smile and awarded Hufflepuff five points.
He just nodded, put his wand down, and waited for the class to end.
He liked keeping a low profile.
Thursday morning arrived.
Edward sat at the Hufflepuff table eating a bowl of oatmeal.
Justin sat next to him, looking very excited.
“Flying today,” Justin said happily.
“We have flying lessons right before lunch.” Edward looked at his class schedule.
Justin was right.
They had their first flying lesson with the Ravenclaws.
He looked across the hall at the Gryffindor table.
Harry and Ron were looking at their own schedules.
Edward knew the Gryffindors had their flying lesson later in the afternoon after lunch.
Edward felt a spark of interest.
He really wanted to try flying.
Anyone would want to fly.
They finished their breakfast and walked out of the castle.
The morning air felt crisp and cool.
The grass was still slightly wet with dew.
They walked down the sloping lawns toward a flat piece of ground near the edge of the forest.
The Ravenclaw students were already there.
Twenty old wooden broomsticks laid in a neat line on the ground.
Madam Hooch marched toward them.
She had short, grey hair and yellow eyes that looked exactly like a hawk’s eyes.
She carried a whistle around her neck.
“Well, what are you all waiting for?” Madam Hooch barked.
Her voice snapped like a whip.
“Everyone stand by a broomstick.
Come on, hurry up.” Edward walked over and stood next to an old, scratched broom.
A few twigs stuck out at odd angles.
“Stick your right hand out over your broom,” Madam Hooch called out, walking down the line.
“And say ‘Up!'” “Up!” the students shouted together.
Edward held his hand out.
“Up,” he said normally.
The broom jumped off the ground instantly.
It slapped right into his palm with a solid thud.
He closed his fingers around the wood.
It felt warm and vibrated slightly.
He looked to his left and right.
Only a few other students had their brooms in their hands.
Most of them were struggling.
Justin’s broom just rolled over on the grass.
Terry Boot, a Ravenclaw boy, yelled “Up!” and the broom handle popped up and hit him right in the nose.
Madam Hooch sighed.
She walked past the struggling students.
“If your broom does not listen to you, just bend down and pick it up,” Madam Hooch instructed.
“Pick them up!
We do not have all day.” Justin bent over and picked his broom up from the grass.
He looked a little embarrassed.
“Now,” Madam Hooch said, standing in front of the class.
“I want you to mount your brooms.
Grip them tight.
You hold it like this.” She showed them how to place their hands.
She walked down the line again, fixing their grips.
She told Justin to move his left hand higher.
“When I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard,” Madam Hooch told them.
“Keep your brooms steady.
Hover for a moment.
Lean forward slightly, and then touch straight back down.
Ready?
Three, two, one…” She blew her silver whistle.
Edward kicked the ground.
He did not kick gently.
He pushed off hard with his strong legs.
He shot up into the air.
The ground dropped away instantly.
He went up ten feet, then twenty feet.
He stopped and hovered.
The wind hit his face.
It ruffled his dark hair.
The sensation felt amazing.
He felt completely weightless.
He looked down and saw the tops of the other students’ heads.
Madam Hooch did not notice him go so high.
She was completely busy on the ground.
A Ravenclaw girl kicked off poorly and got stuck hovering just two feet in the air, spinning slowly in a circle and looking terrified.
Madam Hooch grabbed the tail of the girl’s broom to stop the spinning.
Edward saw that the teacher was distracted.
He decided to test the broom.
He leaned forward.
The broom shot forward across the open grass.
He leaned left, and the broom carved a sharp turn in the air.
He felt the speed in his chest.
He pulled the handle up.
The broom climbed higher into the sky.
He did a wide loop, feeling the rush of the cold air.
He loved it.
He fixed it in his mind right then and there.
He was definitely going to buy his own broom.
A new one, not an old school broom.
He saw Madam Hooch finally helping the Ravenclaw girl back to the ground.
Edward quickly pushed the handle down.
He dropped out of the sky smoothly and came to a stop just a few feet above the grass, hovering exactly where he was supposed to be.
Madam Hooch turned around and nodded at the class.
“Good.
Now slowly touch back down.” Edward touched his feet to the grass.
The rest of the class went by without any accidents.
They practiced kicking off and landing a few more times.
When the bell rang, they handed the brooms back and walked up to the castle for lunch.
The Hufflepuff first years sat at their table in the Great Hall.
They grabbed sandwiches and filled their cups.
“Did you see Ed?” Justin asked the others, taking a big bite of roast beef.
“He went way up high.
He was flying all over the place!” Ernie Macmillan looked at Edward.
“Did you fly before you came to Hogwarts?” “You guys know I am muggle-born, right?” Edward said, grabbing a chicken leg.
“Oh.
Right,” Ernie said, scratching his cheek.
“I forgot.” “It just came naturally to me, I guess,” Edward said simply.
“I didn’t have much difficulty with the balancing part.” A few older Hufflepuff students sat nearby.
They heard Justin talking.
A third-year boy with messy brown hair leaned over.
Edward knew his name was Cedric.
“You did stunts on your first day?” Cedric asked, looking surprised.
“Just a few turns,” Edward said.
Cedric gave a sad smile.
He shook his head.
“Too bad you are a first year.
First years are not allowed on the house teams.
We really need good flyers for the Quidditch team this year.” Edward just shrugged his shoulders.
He did not care much about playing sports for the school.
He just liked the feeling of moving fast.
After lunch, Edward did not have any more classes.
He walked up to the library on the second floor.
The library was huge.
Tall wooden shelves held thousands of old books.
The room smelled like dust and old paper.
Madam Pince, the librarian, sat at a desk near the front.
She watched everyone like a hawk.
Edward found a quiet table in the back corner.
He sat down and took out his parchment and a quill.
He did his Charms homework.
He wrote a few inches about the wand-lighting charm.
When he finished his homework, he walked through the shelves.
He found a book about magical plants and took it back to his table.
He spent the rest of the afternoon reading quietly.
Evening arrived.
Edward put his books away in his hidden space.
He walked down to the Great Hall for dinner.
As soon as he walked through the giant doors, he heard the noise.
The hall was buzzing.
Everyone was talking loudly.
Edward walked past the Hufflepuff table.
He heard Wayne Hopkins talking to Justin.
“They say Harry Potter made the team!” Wayne said loudly.
“He is the new Seeker for Gryffindor!” Edward raised his eyebrows.
He changed direction and walked over to the Gryffindor table.
He saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione sitting together near the middle.
Harry looked happy.
Ron looked shocked.
Edward stopped behind Harry and tapped his shoulder.
“Congratulations,” Edward said.
Harry looked up and grinned.
“Thanks, Ed!
Take a seat.” Edward sat down next to Ron.
He grabbed a baked potato from a bowl and put it on his plate.
“So, what happened?
First years never make the team.” “It was crazy,” Ron said, waving his fork.
“We had flying class after lunch.
Neville fell off his broom and broke his wrist.
Madam Hooch took him to the hospital wing.
She told us not to fly.
But Malfoy picked up Neville’s Remembrall.
He flew up into the air with it and said he would hide it in a tree.” “So I flew after him,” Harry explained, looking a bit shy.
“He threw the glass ball really hard.
I chased it.
I caught it right before it hit the ground.” “It was a fifty-foot dive!” Ron added excitedly.
“Professor McGonagall saw the whole thing from her office window.
She came running out.
We thought Harry was getting expelled.
But she took him to Oliver Wood, the Quidditch captain.
She gave him the Seeker spot!” Edward nodded, chewing his potato.
“That sounds like a good day.” “Is it true you did stunts on your broom this morning?” Ron asked, looking at Edward.
“Ernie Macmillan told my brother you were flying circles around the Ravenclaws.” Edward shrugged.
“Yeah.
It was fun.” Before Ron could ask anything else, three boys walked up to the table.
Draco Malfoy stood there.
Crabbe and Goyle stood right behind him, looking large and mean.
Draco did not look happy.
He glared at Harry.
“Having a last meal, Potter?” Malfoy sneered.
“When are you getting on the train back to the muggles?” Harry looked at Malfoy.
“You are a lot braver now that you have your two little friends with you.” Crabbe cracked his knuckles.
“I will take you on anytime on my own,” Malfoy said.
His pale face flushed slightly.
“Tonight, if you want.
A wizard’s duel.
Wands only.
No contact.
What is the matter?
Never heard of a wizard’s duel before?” “Of course he has,” Ron snapped, standing up quickly.
“I am his second.
Who is yours?” Malfoy looked at Crabbe and Goyle.
“Crabbe.
Midnight.
In the trophy room.
That is always unlocked.” Malfoy turned around and walked away.
Crabbe and Goyle followed him out of the Great Hall.
Harry looked at Ron.
He looked confused.
“What is a wizard’s duel?
And what do you mean, you are my second?” Ron sat back down.
“A second is there to take over if you die.” Harry stared at him.
“Don’t worry,” Ron said quickly.
“People only die in real duels with real wizards.
The most you and Malfoy can do is send sparks at each other.
Neither of you knows enough magic to do any real damage.” Edward finished his potato.
He wiped his mouth with a napkin.
He looked at Ron.
“He is playing you,” Edward said simply.
Ron frowned.
“What do you mean?” “Malfoy is not going to show up to a duel,” Edward explained.
“He is a coward.
He just wants to get Harry in trouble.
He is going to tell Filch that some first years are sneaking into the trophy room at midnight.
Filch will go there, catch you, and you will get detention.” Ron looked unsure.
He rubbed his chin.
“We don’t know that for sure.
What if Filch doesn’t come?
What if Malfoy actually waits for us, and we don’t go?
He will tell everyone in Slytherin that Harry is a coward.” Hermione slammed her book shut on the table.
She looked very annoyed.
“I cannot believe you are actually considering this,” Hermione said sharply.
“You cannot go wandering around the school at night.
If you get caught, you will lose points for Gryffindor.
You are being completely selfish.” “And it is really none of your business,” Ron told her, looking away.
Hermione huffed, grabbed her book, and marched away from the table.
Harry looked at Edward.
Harry trusted Edward’s judgment.
“Do you really think it is a trap?” Harry asked.
“Obviously,” Edward said.
“But I have to go,” Harry said quietly.
“Malfoy threw Neville’s thing.
He insulted me.
If I don’t go, he wins.” Edward looked at Harry.
He understood.
Sometimes, you just had to make a point, even if it was stupid.
“Will you come with us?” Harry asked.
Ron looked at Edward hopefully.
Having a third person felt much safer.
Edward reached for his cup of pumpkin juice.
He took a long drink.
He put the cup down.
He thought about the dark castle.
He planned to sneak out tonight to train anyway.
Going to the trophy room just changed his route.
Edward shrugged.
“Okay.” “Really?” Ron smiled.
“Yes,” Edward said.
“Sounds like fun.
I will meet you outside the Gryffindor common room at a quarter to midnight.” Edward stood up from the table.
He said goodbye and walked out of the hall.
He went down the stairs into the basement.
He walked into the Hufflepuff common room.
The fire was burning warmly in the fireplace.
Justin and Ernie were playing a game of exploding snap on a round table.
Edward sat with them for an hour, watching the cards blow up and laughing with his housemates.
When it got late, they all walked down the hall to their room.
Edward changed into his pajamas.
He climbed into his bed and pulled the yellow curtains shut.
He lay in the dark.
He listened to the room.
Slowly, the other boys fell asleep.
Their breathing became deep and even.
Edward lay still.
He waited for the castle to quiet down completely.
He waited for midnight to arrive.