As seven o'clock drew nearer, Inojin left the castle and set off in the dusk toward the Quidditch field. Having never been inside the stadium before today, hundreds of seats were raised in stands around the field so that the spectators were high enough to see what was going on. At either end of the field were three golden poles with hoops on the end. They reminded Inojin of the little plastic sticks Chocho blew bubbles through, except that they were fifty feet high. Too eager to put his plan in motion again to wait for Slytherins try outs to begin, Inojin mounted his broomstick and kicked off from the ground. What a feeling — he swooped in and out of the goal posts and then sped up and down the field. The old broom turned wherever he wanted at his lightest touch due to some new spells on it.
"Hey, Kid, come down!" Slytherin Captain Chris Laird had arrived. He was carrying a large wooden crate under his arm. Inojin landed next to him.
"Not bad runt," said Chris, his eyes glinting. "I see why Professor Magnus want me to meet you but first years don't make the team even if they really are a natural. Sorry you will have tried out next year."
"I don't want to be on the team as a play but as an assistant coach if you like to justify it better." Inojin said drawing his attention as he made it sound fishy to the six year student.
"What do you mean assistant coach? There's no such thing in Quidditch." said Chris Rage at him as this breached on his Captain power.
"Oh good. Someone smart is captain after all. It a very little used position but it allows a first year like me on the team as a sub play but more of a tactical or if you prefer a behind the scenes aid. This will go a lot quicker if just tell you why I want it and how it make you look cooler as a Captain." Inojin tells him with a smirk the Captain looks him up and down the kid know something good and was will to tell without a beating this could be interesting.
"Alright you have five minutes of my time if I don't like what you say I get to beat the crap out you." The Captain folded his arms and look at Inojin with his best your gonna die face. Anyone else would have felt fear at seeing it but Inojin had already prepared for this. The Captain also had seen how the kid got perfects to back off and listen to him.
"In that box over there is new Quidditch uniforms spell casted not to let the weather bother the play but without ones opponent knowing it's just been approved for next world cup so it's silent. Call it a gift from by forks to the team. There this cocky first year in Gryffindor that believe they should be on the team because they better than everyone else not that they are but the problem is they have a very famous family that get them on the team if only they were as smart as me and saw this lope hole and even if they did know it they don't have my skills to use it correctly. I don't know the game well and it took me five seconds to find this which means there much the team could learn using my smarts. Also I think you should look close at my broom as it's not what it looks like. I don't know about you but I want that Quidditch House Cup in Slytherin house hand along with all the school records and I know you look good doing it." Inojin said showing him the old broom and watch the Captains look of disbelief turn into a cunning smile.
"I'm just going to teach you the rules this evening, and then you'll be joining team practice three times a week seeing as we don't need any week sub." He opened the crate. Inside were four different-sized balls.
"Right," said Chris . "Now, Quidditch is easy enough to understand, even if it's not too easy to play. There are seven players on each side. Three of them are called Chasers."
"Three Chasers," Inojin repeated, as Chris took out a bright red ball about the size of a soccer ball.
"This ball's called the Quaffle," said Chris. "The Chasers throw the Quaffle to each other and try and get it through one of the hoops to score a goal. Ten points every time the Quaffle goes through one of the hoops. Follow me?"
"The Chasers throw the Quaffle and put it through the hoops to score," Inojin recited.
"Now, there's another player on each side who's called the Keeper — I'm Keeper for Slytherin. I have to fly around our hoops and stop the other team from scoring."
"Three Chasers, one Keeper," said Inojin, who was determined to appear to be remember it all. "And they play with the Quaffle. Okay, got that. So what are they for?" He pointed at the three balls left inside the box.
"I'll show you now," said Chris . "Take this."
He handed Inojin a small club, a bit like a short baseball bat.
"I'm going to show you what the Bludgers do," Chris said. "These two are the Bludgers."
He showed Inojin two identical balls, jet black and slightly smaller than the red Quaffle. Inojin noticed that they seemed to be straining to escape the straps holding them inside the box.
"Stand back," Chris warned Inojin. He bent down and freed one of the Bludgers. At once, the black ball raised high in the air and then pelted straight at Inojin's face. Inojin swung at it with the bat to stop it from breaking his nose, and sent it zigzagging away into the air — it zoomed around their heads and then shot at Chris , who dived on top of it and managed to pin it to the ground.
"See?" Chris panted, forcing the struggling Bludger back into the crate and strapping it down safely. "The Bludgers rocket around, trying to knock players off their brooms. That's why you have two Beaters on each team it's their job to protect their side from the Bludgers and try and knock them toward the other team. So — think you've got all that?"
"Three Chasers try and score with the Quaffle; the Keeper guards the goal posts; the Beaters keep the Bludgers away from their team although I can think of some fun with those. Are the Beaters allowed to aim those Bludgers at the other team? If so you're going to love my one idea," Inojin reeled off.
"Very good," said Chris .
"Er — have the Bludgers ever killed anyone?" Inojin asked, hoping he sounded offhand even though he'ed already check the answer beforehand.
"Never at Hogwarts. We've had a couple of broken jaws but nothing worse than that. Now, the last member of the team is the Seeker. That's your main focus. And you don't have to worry about the Quaffle or the Bludgers —" Chris reached into the crate and took out the fourth and last ball. Compared with the Quaffle and the Bludgers, it was tiny, about the size of a large walnut. It was bright gold and had little fluttering silver wings.
"This," said Chris , "is the Golden Snitch, and it's the most important ball of the lot. It's very hard to catch because it's so fast and difficult to see. It's the Seeker's job to catch it. The Seeker got to weave in and out of the Chasers, Beaters, Bludgers, and Quaffle to get it before the other team's Seeker, because whichever Seeker catches the Snitch wins his team an extra hundred and fifty points, so they nearly always win. That's why Seekers get fouled so much. A game of Quidditch only ends when the Snitch is caught, so it can go on for ages — I think the record is three months, they had to keep bringing on substitutes so the players could get some sleep. "Well, that's it any questions?"
Inojin shook his head. He understood what he had to do all right, it was doing it that was going to be the problem. "I think it will be best if I substitute for both the Chasers and Seeker place since I don't think the other positions are ever likely to be open well not to someone who's lean anyway."
"We won't practice with the Snitch yet," said Chris , carefully shutting it back inside the crate, "it's too dark, we might lose it. Let's try you out with a few of these."
He pulled a bag of ordinary golf balls out of his pocket and a few minutes later, he and Inojin were up in the air, Chris throwing the golf balls as hard as he could in every direction for Inojin to catch. Inojin didn't miss a single one, and Chris was delighted. After half an hour, night had really fallen and they couldn't carry on.
"That Quidditch Cup'll have our name on it this year," said Chris happily as they trudged back up to the castle. "I wouldn't be surprised if you turn out better than Harry Potty, and he could have played for England if he hadn't gone off chasing dark wizards."
Perhaps it was because he was now so busy, what with Quidditch practice three evenings a week on top of all his homework, but Inojin could hardly believe it when he realized that he'd already been at Hogwarts two months. His lessons, too, were becoming more and more interesting now that they had mastered the basics. The house points he had earn had also not gone unnoticed but it was his friendship with Albus and Scorpius what got the most attention by the other students who had give up on get his gender right and deciding he was a girl well expect for those who girls who hope he may be a boy.
The Slytherin house back off on this after one of the seven years built like a house had try to tell Inojin not to be their friend with a seventh year perfect, both had found themselves waking up in the hospital a week later after been taken out without magic use by the ten year old who use his Konoha Niger training before the entire house in the common room. Inojin had insisted on teach some basic ninjutu to both Albus and Scorpuis who both had talent for it. Albus seem to have way of reading his opponents minds but he didn't seem to know this. Scorpuis was a little too timid to perceive that he was more powerful at medic ninjutu than the average Medic Niger.
On Halloween morning they woke to the delicious smell of baking pumpkin wafting through the corridors. Even better, Professor Flitwick announced in Charms that he thought they were ready to start making objects fly, something they had all been dying to try since they'd seen him make a students' toad zoom around the classroom. Professor Flitwick put the class into pairs to practice. Inojin's partner was Scorpuis. Albus, however, was to be working with Ravenclaw girl. It was hard to tell whether Albus or Ravenclaw girl was angrier about this..
"Now, don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing!" squeaked Professor Flitwick, perched on top of his pile of books as usual. "Swish and flick, remember, swish and flick. And saying the magic words properly is very important, too — never forget Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."
It was very difficult. Albus and Ravenclaw girl swished and flicked, but the feather they were supposed to be sending skyward just lay on the desktop. Scorpuis got so impatient that he prodded it with his wand and set fire to it — Inojin had to put it out with his hat. Albus, at the next table, wasn't having much more luck.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" he shouted, waving his long arms like a windmill.
"You're saying it wrong," Inojin heard Ravenclaw girl snap. "It's Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the 'gar' nice and long."
"You do it, then, if you're so clever," Albus snarled.
Ravenclaw girl rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand, and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!" Their feather don't move.
"It's your turn." Scorpuis said pointing at their new feather.
"Wingardium Leviosa." Inojon muttered at the feather. Their feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads.
"Oh, well done!" cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. "Everyone see here, Yamanaka's done it!"
Albus was in a very bad mood by the end of the class.
"It's no wonder no one can stand her," he said to Inojin as they pushed their way into the crowded corridor, "she's a nightmare, honestly."
Someone knocked into Inojin as they hurried past him. It was Ravenclaw girl. Inojin caught a glimpse of her face — and was startled to see that she was in tears. "I think she heard you."
"So?" said Albus, but he looked a bit uncomfortable.
On their way down to the Great Hall for the Halloween feast, Inojin and Albus they stopped by the library to get Scorpuis who was in a corner buried in book again. Albus looked awkward at this, but the moment later they had entered the Great Hall, where the Halloween decorations put it out of their minds. A thousand live bats fluttered from the walls and ceiling while a thousand more swooped over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles in the pumpkins stutter. The feast appeared suddenly on the golden plates, as it had at the start-of-term banquet. Inojin was just helping himself to a baked potato when Chris came sprinting into the hall.
"There's a problem one of our Chaser wouldn't be able to play in the first game and our other sub are also out of play. We can't withdraw." The Slytherin Captain Chris tells them.
"We lie." Inojin answered.
"What?" Albus and Chris asked not getting it.
"We lie. We tell them that someone like Albus here is the replacement which soothes them into a false hope that we don't plan to win. Then we keep lying till the game. Simple right." Inojin explained.
"Um that wrong. It's bad to tell lies. And you want the whole house to tell this lie." Scorpuis said.
"Not the whole house just those who want us to bring the Quidditch House Cup back to Slytherin House. In case you have notice it has been in our house since Albus's father join his house team and we also haven't been first with house points since then either. The points I've put on for us is still 150 below that house and another 100 below the record for the school which is below my goal for the house." Inojin said with a smile that sent shivers down the rest of the table.
"Um so we just have to lie until the game right?" asked the prefect they met the first night. She glanced at the Gryffindor table were the Head boy Prefect was sitting with their Quidditch Captain.
"Yes and what did the head moron say or was it the Captain moron?" Inojin asked her with a sweet smile.
"Both, das it matter?" She answered.
"Yes. Captain moron think your real hot has from the first year of school, would have date you if you were from any other house. He base ever one he date on some similar to you and eventually dumps them because they are not you. He's spent the last to two year wondering if it matters and then we had this year's sorting which means his house will be really mad at him when ask you out later this week. Give the moron a chance as he will put you before his house. Head moron on the other hand is a moron who drop a childhood friend for over seven years for begin in our house and blames you who have no idea said friend even exists. Why it matters is am I allowed to, use it." Inojin says as the table look away busying themselves with the feast before them.
"Not later this week. He was talking to me about to ask after weeks of finding any and every reason to spend time with me then head moron pulled him away. Yes I know he has a crush on me and he wouldn't go out with my cousin in Ravenclaw who take it out on me. If I agree to let you use this would it hurt any chances I have with him?" She asked as she has been trying hard to created chance to spend time with him.
"It means putting off your date and me paying for it. We lie, you tell him the truth. Let me explain, he has been Captain for the last three years which why they so good. They need his skill but the team don't know his tactic are his own and not the boy-who-live that they used for years now. Next to our house Captain, he is the only other one with a future career in the sport but that means nothing without the right motive which only you can provide. You tell him the truth means two things. One you're lying to him because don't like him want him to get lost. Two you're house is lying because either we got no way of playing or we gonna do what you told him which is bad for his team but great for him as means he has a chance with you. For us this is great we get to watch the Gryffindor team not trust their own captain while the head boy will lose a friend as he can't get over the fact his friend follows his instinct and heart." Inojin said as the prefect smiled at him the house was starting to think that the Sorting hat may have give them more than they could hand when it had give in to this kid.