Chapter 43: Running Late
Chapter 43: Running Late
"Are you early?" Albert surveyed the Great Hall but couldn't spot the Weasley twins and their friend. He fished out his pocket watch and checked the time—10 past four.
Right on time.
"But of course," he murmured to himself, realizing that he shouldn't expect too much from three eleven-year-olds when it came to punctuality.
Besides, they didn't even have pocket watches! "I hope they don't keep me waiting too long," he muttered.
With time to kill, Albert pulled out his wand and began wiping it with a handkerchief, running through his memory of summoning charms from his Transfiguration theory lessons.
"Accio flower," he whispered.
Nothing happened.
Albert quickly checked his skill list and suddenly noticed someone sitting beside him.
It wasn't the twins; they would never be this quiet if it were them.
He scanned his skills again but couldn't find any summoning charms. He'd have to borrow a fifth-year textbook to look it up later.
"Is something the matter?" Albert asked, turning to face Susan.
"Um... could I...?" Susan hesitated, but before she could finish, she was interrupted.
"Albert, over here!" The twins were waving at him from the entrance of the Great Hall.
"I've got to go," Albert said to Susan. "What were you going to say?"
"It's nothing," Susan replied, looking a little disappointed.
"If you want me to teach you Transfiguration, now isn't a good time. I have another appointment soon. Don't worry, though; getting started is the hardest part. It took me a long time to learn Transfiguration, too," Albert reassured her.
"Oh, thank you," Susan said after a moment's thought. "Could you spare some time this evening...?"
"If I have the time, I don't see why not... So, see you later!" Albert said, quickly making his way out of the Great Hall.
"See you," Susan whispered as she watched Albert's retreating back. "Why is the gap so wide? How did he get so far ahead?"
"What were you two talking about?" Fred asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"About how you're late," Albert replied irritably. "You're meeting Charlie soon, remember?"
"We know, but we don't have pocket watches," the trio said, their faces betraying their embarrassment as they realized they had indeed kept Albert waiting.
"It's fine; I knew you'd be late anyway," Albert said, glancing up at the sky. The afternoon weather was still a bit muggy.
"Speaking of which, is your brother really going to let us ride his broomstick?" Jordan asked, changing the subject.
The thought of riding a broomstick made Jordan nervous. After all, he had never truly flown on a proper one before. His family had bought him a toy broomstick, but it couldn't fly very high or fast, and certainly not in front of Muggles.
"He will if he's a decent captain. A good captain wouldn't mind taking the time to see if there are any promising new players among the first-years, even if they can't join the team yet. They can always be reserve players for next semester," Albert reassured him casually.
"Albert's right," George said, patting Jordan on the shoulder. "I think your biggest concern should be making sure you don't fall off the broomstick."
"You're the one who'll fall from mid-air," Jordan retorted, shooting George a glare.
"Albert, have you ever played with a broomstick before?" Fred asked suddenly.
"I was born into a Muggle family. What do you think?" Albert rolled his eyes at Fred and bent down to pick up a small stone from the ground.
"What are you doing with that broken stone?" George asked, confused.
"You'll see," Albert said, tossing the small stone in his hand without directly answering George's question.
The four of them made their way to the Quidditch pitch, joking and teasing each other along the way. As expected, Charlie wasn't there yet; they had agreed to meet at 4:30 p.m.
"I bet your brother will be a bit late," Albert said as they reached the entrance to the Quidditch pitch, which was locked. But that didn't stop them. Albert easily opened the iron gate with an Alohomora spell.
Below the Quidditch pitch was a soft lawn, and the middle section was sandy to reduce injuries if players fell during a match.
There were hundreds of chairs on the surrounding stands, and at each end of the pitch were three poles, each fifty feet high and topped with a large hoop that resembled the plastic sticks children used to blow bubbles.
"Charlie's definitely late," Fred grumbled.
"What should we do now? We should've come later," George lamented, regretting their early arrival. Not having their own broomsticks was an added inconvenience.
"You can practice spells," Albert suggested, sitting down in the shade of the lawn. "Try the Lumos spell. It'll give you something to do instead of just waiting around."
"Alright, you're right," the trio agreed, their earlier grumpiness giving way to the realization that Albert's suggestion was a good one. It was better to keep busy and make the time pass faster.
Albert also drew his wand and began practicing the Disguise Spell with the stone he had picked up earlier.
"Now I know why you learned spells so quickly," Jordan said, staring at his wand, which was glowing with the Lumos spell. "Anyone would learn them this fast if they practiced as hard as you do. Unless they're really dumb, of course!"
Of course, if they knew about Albert's secret system, they might not be so quick to jump to that conclusion.
It was almost 5 p.m. when Charlie Weasley finally rushed over, bringing with him his broomstick—a Cleansweep Five, as the twins eagerly informed Albert.
"How did you guys get in? There should be a lock here," Charlie said, looking at the four of them with a puzzled expression.
"Of course, we used the unlocking spell," the twins replied matter-of-factly.
"Ahem, don't say it like you're experts at the unlocking spell," Jordan interjected.
"Well, it wasn't you who unlocked it," George retorted, giving Jordan a sideways glance.
"Alright, let's get started. The test is simple. All you need to do is fly around the Quidditch pitch on my broomstick!" Charlie said, turning to Albert and Jordan. "Have either of you ridden a broomstick before?"
"No," Albert replied succinctly.
"I've only ridden a toy broomstick," Jordan mumbled.
"You two can try after they're done," Charlie said, not wanting to exclude the twins' friends. He then turned to the bickering twins and warned, "And you two, fly properly around the Quidditch pitch. If I catch you trying any tricks... Hmph!"
(End of Chapter)
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