Saturday, 8th September, 1990
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry
It was early morning and bright, thanks to the rays of the sun piercing through the clouds. The first such day in the entire week. A sweet yet chilling breeze greeted the First Year students of Ravenclaw and Slytherin, who were heading towards the lawn outside the Castle, near the Quidditch Pitch.
There was no hint of tiredness on their faces, and many of them were brimming with excitement. Today promised to be another fun day. It was their Flying Test as well as their first Flying Lesson.
Their first week at Hogwarts had been nothing short of an enchanting dream. Every subject was fun, even though some teachers were not.
Professor Snape was very strict, quiet, and gloomy, and Professor Colin Fletcher was underwhelming, to say the least. He was a nervous mess and not what they had imagined their Defence Against the Dark Arts professor to be.
In all honesty, their Magical Ethics, Honour & Sociology teacher, Professor Victoire Jean Montclair, could have made a far better DADA instructor, but her hands were already full.
She was not just a teacher, but also the Head of the Hogwarts Duelling Association, the Chief Referee and Supervisor of the Hogwarts Duelling Cups, and the Deputy Head of House Ravenclaw.
Gemma told them that if the position was not already taken when she arrived at Hogwarts, she would probably have been hired for the DADA post. But now, that was not possible.
And for some strange reason, the Teachers for this post kept changing every year, and Professor Montclair did not seem interested in it either.
Professor Fairwind, their Wizarding Law & Contracts teacher, was an old man, but his wit was unmatched. In fact, he was the most fun of all their teachers.
Professor Pince, the Hogwarts Librarian and teacher of History of Magic, was stricter than Professor McGonagall, though less so than Professor Snape. She was well-versed in centuries of wizarding history, and in their first lesson, she spoke of the First Goblin War in the 4th century, where all the conflicts began.
Her teaching style was akin to that of an intriguing storyteller, and they were amazed at how enjoyable she made History. Cho had called her a genius to her face, and it had earned her a playful tap on the head.
Professor Sprout, their Herbology teacher and Head of House Hufflepuff, was kind, loving, yet playful. She taught them how to handle basic magical plants, and her lesson was far from boring. She had a way of putting one at ease and was the most patient of all.
The strangest, yet most enjoyable class was Astronomy, taught by Professor Aurora Sinistra, a Pure-blood witch from the Sinistra family, which had produced some of the finest astronomers in the magical world. Her class was scheduled every Wednesday at 11 p.m. for Slytherin and Ravenclaw, and in their very first lesson, she taught them about constellations and their magical significance.
If they had to name one teacher who was not up to the mark, it would undoubtedly be Professor Fletcher.
Even though Professor Snape was incredibly strict, he was an excellent Potions Master and teacher. No one could deny that, no matter how much they disliked him.
As for what Altair did to the seven Gryffindor students on Monday night, the news had spread like wildfire through the Castle. Rumours exaggerated his feat to ridiculous degrees, but no one from Slytherin corrected them.
The Weasley twins and their friends were discharged from the hospital wing on Thursday morning, all hiding their hair, which was now dyed green and silver.
None of the teachers helped them clean it, and Professor McGonagall let them keep it as a reminder and punishment for what they had attempted. The spell's effect was to last for the rest of the month. Though none of the Slytherins mocked them, abiding by Altair's order, the smirks of students were more than enough to humiliate them.
Then again, nobody really cared about what they felt. They had reaped what they sowed, and because of them, Gryffindor's total points tally was now negative sixty.
Back to the present... the newcomers of the two Houses gathered on the lawn at exactly 7 a.m., having only had a light breakfast for their first Flying Lesson and Test.
It was a lesson for those who didn't know how to fly, and a test for those who did.
For that very reason, the Captains of the Ravenclaw and Slytherin Quidditch teams were present; likely to scout and train students with promising flying potential for future teams.
First Years had not been accepted into the House Quidditch teams for over a century. But since the changes to the Quidditch Cup brought it to professional standards, with reserves and substitutes making it more competitive, Houses now began training students from their first year.
Everyone was watching Altair, Cho, and Aurelia, who were standing with the students lined up for the Flying Test.
They had their Nimbus 2000s in hand, and Madam Hooch was verifying that the customisations on their brooms were within legal limits.
A few minutes later, she cleared their brooms, but had them wait while she tested other Pure-bloods or Half-bloods from prominent families.
Unsurprisingly, most of them knew how to fly, but as the test progressed, their inexperience and limitations showed.
The Captains noted a few names but did not invite anyone to join the Quidditch practice.
"All right, put your brooms away." When their turn came, Madam Hooch handed them standard Hogwarts brooms for the Flying Test.
These were Tinderblasts, much better than the Shooting Stars they replaced four years ago, but still far from racing or Quidditch-quality brooms of this day and age.
None of them complained. All three took a short test flight before landing at the marker, ready for assessment.
"On your brooms!" Madam Hooch raised her hand as she took her position at the far end of the lawn, exactly three hundred metres away.
She had her stopwatch and whistle ready. Both Aurelia's and Cho's hearts were pounding as their grips tightened on their brooms.
The whistle sounded, and all three shot forward, flying only a few metres above the ground and accelerating.
"15.1! 16.6! 16.9!"
Madam Hooch called out the times in surprise as Altair, Cho, and Aurelia crossed the line, and both Captains were stunned.
To accelerate and reach top speed so quickly on such brooms was no small feat.
The girls were very fast, but Altair's time was unbelievably quick.
"We'll go one more time!"
The three grinned and resumed their positions, Cho and Aurelia feeling even more confident.
When the whistle blew again, they charged towards the finish line and improved their times.
"14.9! 16.3! 16.5!"
Madam Hooch smiled brightly, then shot up into the sky.
They knew it was the ceiling test, and all three followed her, flanking her and climbing steadily higher.
"Good," Madam Hooch said as they stopped just short of five hundred metres; the ceiling limit of their brooms.
It showed they sensed, understood and respected the limitations of a broom they had never flown before.
"Dive now. Pull up twenty metres from the ground."
At her command, all three dived, spinning to stabilise their descent, and pulled up exactly at the twenty-metre mark, again showing that they were brilliant judges of distance.
Altair stopped faster than both girls, while Aurelia was only slightly behind Cho. Both the girls were far better than any of the other students who had taken the test, and this had left several students in awe.
Madam Hooch then had them perform vertical circles at top speed, testing their endurance to G-forces and their flying calibration. She was, once again, shocked by their performance.
They were brilliant. Altair was already better than most of the flyers on the Quidditch teams, and he was on a standard broom.
Their test lasted forty minutes, with examinations far beyond what others faced. At last, they stood before the Quidditch Cup Supervisor to hear the words they most wanted to hear.
"All three of you have my permission to go for your House Quidditch Trials," she said brightly, and Aurelia and Cho high-fived.
Damien led them to the training field, where the Slytherin team was practising. On seeing them, the team erupted in cheers.
Cho declared her wish to become a Chaser. The team did not refuse and let her participate in Chaser drills. An hour later, she realised she was still too young for the position. Her strength and size were not quite there yet. Though her instincts and reflexes were better than everyone except Altair, she was not physically ready.
In the end, she took up the position of Reserve Seeker. Damien and Madam Hooch assessed that she could be ready for the Chaser role in two years if she worked hard, but for now, she needed to focus on becoming a Seeker.
Aurelia, too, was a brilliant flyer. She wanted to be a Keeper, which surprised everyone except her two best friends.
She performed remarkably in trials, almost on par with the Main Keeper, and secured her spot as Reserve Keeper.
By rule, every reserve had to play at least one full game in the season. Miles Bletchley, the Main Keeper, promised her the starting position in their first match against Ravenclaw on 30th September. Their opponent was the current weakest team, and they could afford to take this gamble early on in the season.
Cho was also promised a start in the same match by Altair, who offered her the position.
Yes, Altair was now the Main Seeker of the Slytherin Quidditch team. His trial was spectacular, and both seniors and Madam Hooch were astounded by how instinctively and naturally he flew.
Once he spotted the Snitch, he never lost sight of it, and chased it like a predator, succeeding every time.
He was a prodigy. Cho, though brilliant and a natural Seeker, was not on his level at all.
Then again, no one at Hogwarts was, according to the senior players. Madam Hooch had also not corrected their word, which said something.
By the time Quidditch practice ended and they arrived in the Great Hall for lunch, news of their inclusion in the Slytherin team had already spread like wildfire.
Their House gave them an ovation, and Madam Hooch confirmed their selection by placing their names on the official Slytherin roster for the first three matches, which Damien had submitted to her.
It was posted on the notice board for all to see.
Altair was now the youngest Seeker in over a century. But to everyone's surprise, Slytherin had announced the line-up for the first match against Ravenclaw on Sunday, 30th September.
Cho would be the youngest Seeker in over a century, or perhaps ever. Not even eleven years and two months old!
Some questioned whether Altair and the girls had forced or bought their way onto the team, but most who understood Slytherin, especially how strict Damien was, knew better than to speculate such nonsense. They were the reigning champions, and they were the least likely of all houses to just give up the Cup.
The fact that Madam Hooch had cleared three First Years spoke volumes, and everyone was interested in them. All of them wanted to see them perform in their very first match and see if the Slytherin gamble was worth it.
Their opponents were, of course, wishing for their failure, but neither Aurelia nor Cho was so weak-minded as to succumb to pressure.
If only these students knew what it felt like being hunted by Altaira Black through a dark forest...
Now, that was real pressure and the mere surfacing of that memory sent chills up their spines.
However, today was a happy day.
Cho was so overjoyed that she kept hugging Altair's arm and skipping through the corridors as they returned to their dormitory.
It was not just because she had made it on the Team, but also because Altair had given her the position and the chance to become the youngest Seeker to ever start and complete an official Quidditch match.
After a quick bath together and a change of clothes, they joined their classmates in the Common Room before heading to the Duelling Hall on the fifth floor.
Today was also the new students' first Duelling Lesson, and needless to say, the kids were super excited for it.