71. Magnus' Trick
Magnus walked out to the open field in his Slytherin gear and his Nimbus 1500 broom. Actually, everyone in his team had it because most of them were rich compared to the Gryffindor team where only 4 kids had Nimbus 1500 brooms.
"You better catch the snitch," A 7th-year teammate barked at Magnus.
"Sure, you better keep on scoring points." Magnus talked back.
"ENOUGH. Focus on the game." Lucius voiced up. Everyone quieted down after this.
Both teams lined up on the field. Madam Hooch came and stood between them with the suitcase ready. The audience seats were filled to the brim and loud noises were coming from them. A 5th year was using Sonorous Charm to give commentary.
"Get ready. I will count to three and sound the whistle. That will be the start of the match, the quaffle will be thrown in the air soon after and bludgers and the golden snitch will be released later.
"On the brooms now. Remember, I will disqualify anyone using unfair means to cheat and win. Good luck." Madam Hooch gave instructions.
All players got on their broom and waited for the whistle to sound.
Magnus turned to his side to look at Emma. She had somehow won a seat in the 1st line by giving a discount for the new brooms, perks of being the daughter of Nimbus broom company owner.
"You know what to do, right?" He asked.
She nodded seriously. Gone was the mysterious smile, it was her favourite sport after all. She always said that if she wants to inherit her dad's company, then she must understand the veins of a broom and what makes it great. What better way than quidditch?
"You can count on me, Magnus." She showed a thumbs up.
"1"
"2"
"All the best." Lucius smugly said to Gryffindor captain.
"Sorry for your loss, Malfoy... But we won't show you any pity"
Before it could heat up more, Madam Hooch started the game.
"3"
*WHISTLE*
*WOOSH*
Everyone except Magnus flew away, the game was on and Gryffindor had the first ball. But Magnus and James were waiting for the golden snitch to rise up.
Soon, like a small hummingbird, it hovered in front of their eyes for a split second, making noise with its metal wings.
That was their cue and they zoomed after it. As practised, Magnus was slightly faster, but James was a player to challenge too. His broom control was godly and his reaction speed was also inhuman.
~Ah, some people are born differently.~ Magnus thought.
"Haha, just the speed won't help you win, Magnus. You gotta manoeuvre and safeguard yourself. This is not a race... But a game of chess. Make your move now." James taunted him.
Magnus chuckled, "Don't assume what my abilities are, James. I didn't show them all in the practice sessions. In fact, if everything goes well, I won't have to use it. Ah, I have a special pair of underwear made for you to wear today. I can't wait to see you running around in it."
A deep fear instilled in James' head, ~What has he planned now?~
He regretted making that bet. It was eating up a lot more of his mental abilities than it should. ~I need to focus on the game dammit... And clear that smug smile off his face.~
*WOOSH*
A bludger passed by Magnus. He noticed it came from Gryffindor's side. They were being very aggressive at the moment.
Soon, the announcement came. "AND THE FIRST GOAL GOES TO GRYFFINDOR... WITH THIS, THEY HAVE 10 POINTS LEAD. CAN THE SLYTHERIN COUNTER? LET'S SEE."
Magnus glimpsed at what his team was doing. They had better brooms but were still finding it hard to compete. Soon, he saw the problem. They didn't train on new brooms.
*Sigh* ~I guess it's all up to me then.~ he felt.
He picked his speed and tried to actively chase the golden snitch.
"DOWN"
A sudden voice came and he ducked down without decreasing his speech.
*ZOOM*
A violent bludger just brushed off his hair. James was right behind him so he saw everything. He easily dodged it but now he had a wide smile on his face.
"So this is how you will play? You got your girl to assist?" He muttered. Not knowing Magnus also had a smirk, knowing exactly what James was thinking.
"LEFT"
The next time Emma's voice came, Magnus and James both went a little left. The bludger passed by them and this time, James didn't have to slow down either.
"UP"
James was ready. As soon as he heard it, he noticed Magnus move so he did the same.
"BASTARD..." He suddenly cursed as he saw Magnus doing a fake and going back to the original place.
Instead, he lost the lead this time because the Bludger came from his left at him and he had to save himself.
"Haha... How was it, James?" Magnus' mocking voice came from ahead.
James gritted his teeth.
"DOWN"
Magnus this time did as she shouted and saved himself, while James didn't and stayed vigilante, still losing some speed though. They circled around the seating towers, went up and around the field.
"LEFT!"
MAGNUS made a faint this time. James was already not following him anymore so he was safe too.
"ROUND,"
This time, a different shout came. Magnus immediately changed his seating position and hung down as if a Koala on a branch. The bludger hit James this time, but it was just his shoulder.
James smirked, "So this is your game? I found the pattern now. One true and one false. It's so easy."
It was the excitement and adrenaline that made him make such decisions. So, he decided to focus on these shouts again.
Soon, the next two warnings came. They were as he had expected. One false and one true.
"DOWN!"
As soon as the shout came, Magnus dived down. James did not, thinking it was going to be false.
*BOOM*
Just then, all of a sudden, James felt a powerful knock on his broom from behind him. It was a fricking bludger... It destroyed the tail of the broom, limiting his speed.
"WHY? I GUESSED YOUR PATTERN." He complained.
Magnus' shouting answer came, "YOU GUESSED IT WRONG."
James saw the humiliating bet turning true against him now. It was now the honour of the Potter Family on the line. He had to win it at all costs.
Meanwhile, Magnus was very close to winning. His technique had worked wonders. It was simple, Emma was to add each number of warnings. If that addition was a prime number, then it would be a false warning, if it was a composite number then a true warning.
James' guesses were okay until the number 9 came. Which, leaving the previous order, was not a prime number.
However, Magnus had found something strange in this game. Many times, the bludger of his own team would pass close by him, nearly knocking up-down. This shouldn't happen as only Beaters could give them direction.
~I guess snakes in the house have started showing their fangs.~ he thought to himself and stayed more vigilant.
He flew after the Golden Snitch. It was very fast, fast but he had experienced it many times before.
...
James meanwhile was having problems chasing after Magnus. The distance between them was growing wider and wider.
He looked at one of the Beaters and shouted, "GIVE ME YOUR BROOM!"
So, he exchanged the broom with another team member and was now back in the race. But his headache was not going to end as Emma was still helping him. He just decided to ignore all the warnings but it was still annoying and focus diverting.
He came close to Magnus and tried to divert his attention, "HAHA... I'm back, Magnus. I'm not gonna lose today."
Magnus smirked, "Heh, the game is already at the end. You're too late."
Magnus adjusted himself to be more streamlined and increased his speed a little. The golden snitch was right in front of his eyes.
He inched closer by every second. James stared at him. With every inch Magnus got closer to the golden snitch, his heartbeat increased.
~I can't lose... Not today...~ he told himself, but what could he do?
Magnus was now at arm's length of the golden snitch. He extended it to grab it. The golden snitch was very slippery as it tried to change direction every second but Magnus was fixated on it.
The normal score right now was 40-50 with Slytherin losing. It was shameful that they were losing with better brooms.
Now all eyes were on Magnus as he was about to end the game.
"Come here now... Let's end this." Magnus called for the golden snitch as if it was a baby.
5 centimetres
3 centimetres
1 centimetre
*BOOM*
All of a sudden, a loud noise came. It was not from Magnus.
Magnus instinctively looked for the sources, as did all others. He then noticed Emma. Her broom was now in two pieces as she was falling from the air. It would break lots of bones if she fell from there as she was in extra height in order to give Magnus the right warnings.
Magnus then saw where the bludger came from and it was none other than from his own team.
"DAMMIT..." he cursed and used his secret move. He'd rather not have his spotter injured today.
"Here goes nothing." He muttered to himself and threw away his shoes.
In Quidditch matches, keeping a wand was allowed. But it was not allowed to use it on opponents, opponent's brooms, Bludger, Quaffle and Golden Snitch.
But the magic was still allowed.
Magnus took a long breath and channelled his internal body heat towards his legs. They started getting red within seconds.
*WOOOOSH...*
All of a sudden, deep red flames came out of the lower side of his feet. He shifted them for maximum acceleration and turned to catch falling Emma.
He zoomed past all the players who were watching her fall. Madam Hooch did the same. This was the game of quidditch, there was no guarantee of life in it.
At the very least, Emma was still holding onto her brooms and it had slightly slowed her fall. Though the speed was increasing.
"HORD ON!... EMMAH!." he shouted.
Emma was nervous and scared. She even forgot to scream. She couldn't see Magnus as he was behind her. But hearing him, she felt a ray of hope.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK I'M DOING? I'M HOLDING ON FOR MY LIFE!" She shouted back.
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