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Chapter 200: Neville, You Need to Have More Confidence
Chapter 200: Neville, You Need to Have More Confidence
As Kyle and his companions left the Quidditch pitch and returned to Hogwarts Castle, they were stopped by Harris.
"Wait a moment, I almost forgot something important due to Wood's interruption earlier," Harris said, giving his head a light pat. A hint of seriousness crept into his voice as he continued, "There's something we must be cautious about. For our next match, the referee is going to be Professor Snape..."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone turned to look at Kyle.
Thanks to the loudmouths, Mike and Ryan, almost every Hufflepuff student now knew about Professor Snape's relentless targeting of Kyle.
So, upon hearing this news, their first reaction was that Snape, not content with merely deducting points, was now looking to cause trouble for Kyle in other ways. And what better way to do that than through Quidditch?
"Are you sure, Captain?" someone frowned. "Professor Snape has never been a referee before. Are you sure you weren't misinformed?"
"Mrs. Hooch informed us herself," Harris replied. "All four captains have been made aware."
"Why don't you sit this one out, then?" Cedric blurted out, then immediately realized what he'd said and glanced awkwardly at Harris.
Suggesting that one of the team's key players, Kyle, should withdraw from the game right in front of the captain—that was a daring move even in the entire Quidditch world.
Fortunately for Cedric, Harris had a mild temper. If it had been anyone else, he might have found himself in the hospital wing the very next second.
Cedric let out an awkward laugh and stammered, "I mean... if Kyle is targeted by Snape during the game, it would be like we're a player short, which could make things more difficult."
Unexpectedly, Harris didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at Kyle with a serious expression and said, "Cedric is right. If you don't want to participate in this game, I'm fine with that."
Harris had thought it through. Their lead in points was significant, over a hundred points ahead of Slytherin in second place. Even if they lost a game, it wouldn't matter much.
With Harris' approval, the others didn't hesitate anymore and started suggesting ways to convince Mrs. Hooch to allow a substitution.
"Let's pretend he broke his leg," one suggested.
"Or he could actually break his leg!" said another.
Kyle felt more and more uneasy as they continued brainstorming. If he let them go on, he might just end up with a year-long hospital stay.
"Wait..." Kyle interrupted their wild ideas. "When did I ever say I wanted to withdraw?"
"But..." someone started to say something, but Kyle shook his head.
"There are no buts. And what if I withdraw this time, and Snape is still the referee next time, and the time after that... Am I just never going to play again?"
Harris furrowed his brows.
"So, there's no need for that," Kyle smiled. "Besides, Snape might not even target me. Don't forget, there's also Potter from Gryffindor, and he's even less liked by Snape."
"You mean Harry Potter?" Harris was taken aback, as he had never heard of such a thing.
"Yes," Kyle nodded. "You can ask around. The young wizards from his year should all know about it."
Harris seemed to relax a little.
"If you think it's fine... then alright."
After entering the castle, Kyle did not return to the common room with the others. Instead, he made his way to the library, intending to finish his Transfiguration homework before curfew.
"What happened?" Kyle frowned and promptly helped him undo the curse.
"Malfoy..." Neville said, his voice shaking. "I bumped into him outside the library. He said he wanted to try that curse on someone else."
"Did you fight back?" Kyle asked.
Neville shook his head. "No... there were too many of them."
"That won't do, Neville," Kyle said. "You need to try to be braver."
"You're right... Malfoy also said I'm a coward and don't deserve to be in Gryffindor," Neville said, his voice thick with emotion. "But I can't help it. I can't even cast the most basic spells properly. They're right, I don't deserve to learn magic."
"No, Neville, you need to believe in yourself," Kyle said, patting him on the shoulder. "The fact that you received an invitation to Hogwarts proves that you have the potential to be a wizard."
"Thanks for comforting me, Kyle," Neville said, wiping his nose. "But I'm just not very bright, and I can never seem to get it right."
"Maybe you just haven't found the right approach yet," Kyle suggested with a smile. "Can I ask you for a favor?"
"Of course," Neville replied eagerly. "But... I don't know if I can do it right. I always mess up, even with the simplest of tasks."
"Don't worry, I trust you," Kyle said, handing Neville a few seeds.
"What are these?" Neville asked.
"Cloaking Seeds," Kyle explained. "I've been wanting to grow a few of these plants, but with the Quidditch matches and all, I've been too busy lately to take care of them."
"You want me to help you with this?"
"I know they've been with me for a while, and they got soaked during practice, so they're in pretty bad shape," Kyle continued, waving his hand dismissively. "But just do your best. It's no big deal if they don't grow; Cloaking Seeds are cheap, only ten galleons each."
Neville's body shook, and he nearly dropped the seeds.
"How... how much?" he asked, his voice trembling.
"Ten galleons," Kyle replied.
Neville shook even more violently. He counted the seeds in his hand—five in total, which meant fifty galleons!
Fifty galleons... he wouldn't be able to pay it back even if he sold himself!
"Oh, and one more thing," Kyle added. "These seeds have been with me for a while, and they got soaked during practice, so they're in pretty bad shape. You'd better plant them soon."
Hearing this, Neville felt like crying.
He regretted taking on the task and wished he could return the seeds and pretend none of this had happened. But as he looked up, he saw that Kyle was already gone, having taken the moving staircase to the other side of the corridor.
Neville hurried after him.
Holding the seeds, he dared not run too fast, and by the time he arrived, Kyle was nowhere to be seen.
As Neville stood there, unsure of what to do, he suddenly heard a faint sound coming from a nearby room.
Without thinking, he pushed open the door... only to find two older students whispering inside. There was no sign of Kyle.
(End of Chapter)
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