Flying Class was held on the grass outside the castle, right next to the Forbidden Forest.
By the time Kate hurried over, the students from the two Houses were standing in their respective groups, discussing their past experiences with broomsticks in voices ranging from whispers to loud chatter.
"I'm a bit nervous, Kate." Hermione sought her out on her own initiative, looking downcast at the two neat rows of broomsticks on the ground.
During the two months of summer vacation, she hadn't touched upon the content of Flying Class. This wasn't a practical course where one could learn simply by memorizing knowledge from books.
"If I told you I haven't flown on a broom either, would you believe me?" Kate gently held her hand, hoping to relax her mood.
Hermione looked up hesitantly. "Really? Why haven't you learned?"
"Because my home tutor and his wife are both elderly. I couldn't possibly make them drag their old bones onto broomsticks to teach me, could I?" Kate teased, feigning nonchalance.
She indeed hadn't flown on a broom, though naturally not for the reason she stated.
However, Hermione clearly relaxed a lot because of her words, appearing even a bit heartened. At least in Flying Class, she and Kate were on the same starting line!
Soon, it was time for class to begin. The Gryffindor and Slytherin students stood in two rows beside the broomsticks.
The Flying Class teacher, Madam Hooch, gave a brief explanation of safety precautions for the lesson, then briskly ordered everyone to start trying it out themselves.
"Everyone stand by a broomstick. Stick out your right hand, place it over the broom handle, and say 'Up!'"
Everyone immediately began to try. The sounds of "Up!" intertwined, rising and falling one after another.
Only a few broomsticks were able to easily jump into the young wizards' hands, like the one in Harry's hand, or the one in Malfoy's.
Hermione's broom merely rolled over on the ground before going still.
As for the one at Kate's feet, it had absolutely no reaction at all.
Fine. Kate felt the same way; she had absolutely no desire to sit on this thing and fly into the sky. She could fly using the Levitation Charm, so why bother with a prop?
However, Flying Class counted for credits after all, and she didn't want to get a goose egg in such a simple course.
Slightly releasing the suppression on her magic, Kate narrowed her eyes and whispered, "Up!"
Swish! The broom shot straight up into the sky, attracting everyone's gaze.
Damn!
Countless alpacas stampeded through Kate's heart again. She raised her eyebrows to look at the broom in the sky, reached out, and yanked it down.
"Tsk, acting like she's so special."
She clearly heard Ron, who was standing diagonally across from her, whispering a complaint to Harry.
Her hand loosened slightly, and the uncontrolled broom shot out violently, knocking Ron right into the air and sending him crashing down on his butt.
Everyone was startled, and the Gryffindor students quickly gathered around.
"Oh my, I'm sorry." Kate waved her hand, and her massive mana guided the broom back into her grasp. "It seems a bit out of control."
She walked up to Ron expressionlessly to apologize. He had a cheap mouth last time, and a cheap mouth this time—if she didn't sort him out, who would?
"It... it doesn't matter." Knowing he was in the wrong, Ron clutched his stomach, his face pale as he stood up and shook his head at her.
Kate raised an eyebrow. Although his mouth was cheap, he did have some backbone.
She turned around and locked eyes with Malfoy, who had originally been laughing in schadenfreude. However, as soon as he saw her, his face suddenly went pale, and the smile on his face vanished completely.
Under these circumstances, he probably wouldn't be in the mood to snatch Neville's Remembrall anymore.
Madam Hooch briefly checked Ron's body. After confirming he was fine, she shouted loudly, "Alright, hurry back to your spots and stand properly!"
The class, which had been chaotic for a few minutes, instantly returned to its former order.
Kate stood properly again, her fingers stroking the practice broom in her hand, giving it a gentle pat.
"Now, when I blow my whistle, you kick off from the ground, hard," Madam Hooch said. "Keep your brooms steady, rise a few feet, and then lean forward slightly to come back down vertically."
"Listen for my whistle—three—two—"
Before the whistle could touch her lips, Neville, out of nervousness, kicked off hard and shot up abruptly.
Madam Hooch shouted desperately for him to come down immediately, but Neville couldn't control himself, flying higher and higher right before their eyes.
Then, gasping for air with his mouth wide open, he slipped off the side of the broom handle!
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Kate quickly drew her wand and cast a Levitation Charm on the rapidly falling Neville.
He didn't stop falling, but under the guidance of Kate's mana, his speed gradually slowed. Just like that, bit by bit, he landed perfectly on the lawn to the side.
Meanwhile, his out-of-control broom flew straight into the Forbidden Forest.
Madam Hooch hurried over to check on him. Although outwardly Neville hadn't suffered any external injuries, that round little face was still covered in tear streaks.
"I need to take him to the Hospital Wing for a check-up," Madam Hooch said, helping him up. "Remember, if you don't want to be expelled from Hogwarts, no one is to move!"
It wasn't until they had walked far away that Malfoy, who had just wanted to laugh out loud, suddenly remembered something and subconsciously looked at Kate beside him.
"He dropped his thing."
With a single Summoning Charm, Kate picked up the Remembrall Neville had left on the grass and tossed it to Harry. "Student Potter, remember to return it to him."
"Um, thanks." Harry caught the Remembrall, looking at her with a complex expression.
She was clearly a Slytherin, yet this Kate was impossible to dislike.
It was time for him to persuade Ron to apologize to her sooner rather than later; Kate was a good person.
Kate, having just been issued a 'Good Person Card', was currently calculating in her mind.
Without the incident of Malfoy picking a fight, Harry wouldn't be able to display his Quidditch talent and wouldn't become the Seeker. Then Malfoy wouldn't challenge him to a midnight duel out of jealousy.
In that case, Harry wouldn't discover the room on the fourth floor where the three-headed dog was kept, nor would he know about the Philosopher's Stone being at Hogwarts.
Tsk, seems like she accidentally changed the plot development?
Will Old Man Dumbledore really not come to find trouble with her?
She looked thoughtfully at Malfoy, who was standing honestly to the side talking to his friends.
This guy hadn't done anything particularly annoying so far, and his own arrogant attitude had converged somewhat, violating common sense. Was he restraining himself because he feared her existence?
That made no sense. In the original works, Harry and he were at each other's throats for years, yet he never restrained himself. Later, he even directly joined Old Man Voldemort's team.
So why would this guy suddenly curb his temper? Could it really be because of her?
Kate felt it was necessary to test him.
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