Ron suddenly swooped downward on his broomstick and snatched the Potions textbook Lucien had left beside the grass.
Hovering several feet in the air, he looked unbearably smug, as though stealing something from Lucien Grindelwald was an achievement worthy of celebration.
"Mr. Weasley," Lucien said coldly, slowly rising to his feet, "I strongly advise you to put that book down."
His voice lost every trace of warmth.
"Otherwise, I guarantee you'll regret this."
Ron instinctively flinched.
For a split second, fear crossed his face. But then he noticed how many students were watching. Pride immediately forced him to stiffen again.
"It's just some stupid old book!" Ron shouted defiantly. "If you want it so badly, come and take it yourself!"
The moment he finished speaking, he kicked off hard and shot away across the sky on his broom.
"Weasley! Get back here!"
Draco instantly grabbed a broom and launched himself into pursuit.
Fueled by anger—and possessing far greater natural flying talent than Ron—Draco rapidly closed the distance despite starting later.
"You've embarrassed your entire family, Weasley!" Draco shouted furiously.
"Shut up, Malfoy!" Ron snapped back. "Your father was a Death Eater! You'll become one too! You're just as disgusting as your little dark wizard friend!"
Draco's face instantly turned scarlet with rage.
"What did you say?! Say it again!"
"A dark wizard's friend is obviously another dark wizard!" Ron yelled recklessly. "None of you are good people!"
Completely blinded by anger, Draco accelerated without hesitation.
The two boys chased each other higher and higher through the air, entirely forgetting Madam Hooch's earlier warnings. Before long, they had already flown far beyond the training grounds and dangerously close to the castle itself.
On the ground below, many students began looking nervous.
Although Ron had started with a lead, Draco's flying ability far surpassed his. Among the first-years, perhaps only Harry Potter could rival him on a broom.
Within moments, Draco caught up completely.
He reached forward and grabbed Ron by the shoulder.
"Weasley, stop right now!"
Ron struggled violently to break free. Their broomsticks swayed dangerously in midair as the two boys nearly collided repeatedly.
The students below gasped in alarm.
"Lucien… will they be alright?" Daphne asked worriedly while staring upward.
Lucien's expression remained calm and icy.
"As long as I'm here," he said quietly, "nothing will happen."
Truthfully, Lucien didn't particularly dislike the Weasley family.
In the original timeline, most of them were exceptionally talented. Charlie worked with dragons. Percy eventually rose through the Ministry. Molly Weasley herself managed to kill Bellatrix Lestrange in combat.
Even Ron possessed decent talent compared to ordinary students.
Unfortunately, his jealousy poisoned nearly everything.
It happened with Harry during the Triwizard Tournament, and now it was happening again.
Lucien had tolerated it several times already.
But this boy actually dared push things further?
"If I don't teach you a lesson now," Lucien thought coldly, "you'll truly believe I'm harmless."
Beneath the wide sleeve of his robes, Lucien quietly drew his wand.
His gaze remained fixed on the two figures fighting above the castle.
High in the air, Ron twisted frantically while trying to shake Draco off. Unfortunately, Draco clung to him relentlessly.
Unable to outrun him, Ron simply continued circling the castle desperately while shouting insults over his shoulder.
"Evil Slytherin!"
"Just wait until I get another chance—"
"Weasley!" Draco roared from behind. "You think you can escape?!"
Ron nearly slipped off his broom in shock as Draco suddenly surged upward directly beneath him. By the time Ron regained his balance, Draco was already right beside him again.
The two darted wildly through the sky.
Realising he couldn't lose Draco no matter what he did, Ron suddenly sneered and hurled Lucien's textbook away into the wind.
The heavy book tumbled rapidly through the air.
"There!" Ron shouted triumphantly. "Go chase that instead if you care so much!"
"Bastard!"
Draco glared murderously at Ron before immediately diving after the falling textbook.
His green-trimmed robes became a streak of silver and emerald against the sky. Even on Hogwarts' old school brooms, Draco's flying talent was astonishing.
He closed the distance rapidly.
Just as his fingers were about to grab the spinning textbook—
Crack.
A horrifying snapping sound echoed through the air.
The old broom beneath Draco suddenly split in half.
Years of student use had already weakened the wood badly, and the reckless high-speed chase finally destroyed it completely.
Draco fell.
Straight down.
The speed increased terrifyingly fast.
Below, the students erupted into panicked screams. Everyone understood instantly what would happen if he struck the ground directly from that height.
He would either die or be crippled for life.
"Transfigure!"
At the critical moment, Lucien's spell shot out.
Bang!
The grass directly beneath Draco transformed instantly into a massive cushioned mattress. The impact was heavily softened the moment Draco crashed into it.
Even so, the violent fall still left him completely dazed.
Lucien slowly lowered his wand.
Then his icy gaze shifted upward toward Ron.
At the same time, he cast another spell beneath the concealment of his sleeve.
"Finite."
The spell was soft, almost impossible to hear.
There was no flash of light. No dramatic sound.
But the cancellation charm struck Ron's broom directly.
Whoosh!
The broom instantly lost stability.
Ron screamed as he plummeted from the sky.
Unlike Draco, however, nobody softened the landing for him.
Bang!
A massive cloud of dust erupted when Ron smashed violently into the ground. His arm twisted at a horrifying angle while his forearm bent in a way bones absolutely should not bend.
His agonised screams echoed across the field.
Lucien merely sneered before calmly turning away.
He walked directly toward Draco instead.
"How are you feeling?"
Draco looked up weakly, still dizzy from the impact. The moment he recognised Lucien, however, he immediately smiled.
Then he lifted the textbook he had somehow protected tightly in his arms throughout the entire fall.
"Lucien… your book…"
Lucien froze briefly.
Originally, he had intended to scold Draco for acting recklessly. But seeing the bruised boy still desperately protecting the book even after crashing from the sky made the words stick in his throat.
Humans were emotional creatures after all.
Even Lucien wasn't completely immune.
His expression softened slightly.
"Don't ever do something that stupid again," he said quietly. "It's only a book. Throw it away next time if you have to."
Then he added softly:
"I'm just glad you're alright."
"Merlin's beard! What happened here?!"
Madam Hooch finally came rushing back onto the field.
The moment she saw the scene before her, her face nearly turned white.
After hearing the full story from the surrounding students, her expression became terrifying.
"Mr. Weasley!"
Her furious voice echoed across the field.
"Did you completely ignore every instruction I gave you?!"
"Disobeying class rules, insulting classmates out of jealousy, stealing another student's belongings—"
Her eyes blazed with anger.
"For your disgraceful behaviour, Gryffindor loses fifty points!"
A wave of horrified groans erupted from the Gryffindor students.
Many of them immediately glared at Ron with open disgust.
House rivalry was one thing. But Ron's actions had gone far beyond ordinary conflict.
As Hogwarts' Quidditch referee, Madam Hooch valued fairness above everything else.
She stared directly into Ron's tear-filled eyes.
"I will personally report today's events to Professor McGonagall," she declared coldly. "And from this moment onward, students like you are no longer welcome in my flying lessons."
With those words alone, Ron's future in Quidditch was effectively destroyed.
Madam Hooch then turned toward Lucien, guilt visible in her expression.
"I am deeply sorry, Mr. Grindelwald," she said sincerely. "Because of my negligence, you were treated unfairly during my class."
"Once Mr. Weasley recovers, I will personally bring him to apologise to you."
"Madam Hooch," Lucien replied gently, shaking his head, "you couldn't possibly predict everything that might happen. None of this is your fault."
He smiled faintly.
"Besides, I didn't lose anything in the end."
"A true gentleman," Madam Hooch said with visible relief.
Then she raised her voice for everyone to hear.
"For your quick thinking and bravery in saving a fellow student, Slytherin earns ten points!"
....
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