It had been easy convincing her Head of House to permit her to bring her own broom for this year abroad. She was sure that the school brooms at Hogwarts were...fine and perhaps even satisfactory, but there would be none that could compare to her Star Spangle 3001: red, white, and broomstick. She would have preferred a Canadian model as all the American patriotism was lost on her, but she would be a fool to deny that it was the best broom on the market at the time. One of the few things she allowed herself to splurge on.

Tightening her messy bun and brushing a few white wisps of hair away from her face, the Wampus quickly mounted her broom for a few laps around the field. Just because Quodpot was not to be played officially this year did not mean she could permit herself to become complacent.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valerie Gray

It had been easy convincing her Head of House to permit her to bring her own broom for this year abroad. She was sure that the school brooms at Hogwarts were...fine and perhaps even satisfactory, but there would be none that could compare to her Star Spangle 3001: red, white, and broomstick. She would have preferred a Canadian model as all the American patriotism was lost on her, but she would be a fool to deny that it was the best broom on the market at the time. One of the few things she allowed herself to splurge on.

Tightening her messy bun and brushing a few white wisps of hair away from her face, the Wampus quickly mounted her broom for a few laps around the field. Just because Quodpot was not to be played officially this year did not mean she could permit herself to become complacent.

Ezra couldn't BELIEVE the size of the Quidditch pitch here - Ilvermorny was all about Quodpot, which had never really been his preferred broom game of choice. Coming from a No-Maj family, Quidditch had just been...easier to grasp for him. It was like basketball, but on brooms! Easy. Whereas Quodpot was like basketball too...but with an exploding basketball.

No thanks. He'd take a pass. Although one could argue that bludgers were no safer...and they definitely weren't...but he liked the added element of the snitch too!

So naturally, he found himself wandering around the pitch multiple times since he had arrived at the school, taking in the sheer size and beauty of it. It was a real crime that they didn't play here - something about someone threatening the school over it? Or something stupid like that? Shame, he would have loved to see the Hogwarts houses play each other. It was nice and quiet over here too, so it was a good place to stroll and think. He often whistled to himself too as he walked. It echoed around the pitch and made him chuckle.

Today though...there was someone else there. That Valerie girl from Wampus who had been chosen to play in the IMPS competition. Ezra was just a tad disappointed he hadn't gotten picked, but at the same time, he was sort of relieved. It sounded dangerous, and he was not a big fan of danger.

Not being a daredevil is what prompted him to speak up now.

"Um, is that allowed?" he called out to her, biting his lip as he watched her fly around. So many questions - ONE, why hadn't HE thought to bring his broom? TWO - did she think there was going to be flying involved in the competition? Or was she just...out for a nice fly? And THREE - seriously, was this allowed?! Would they get in trouble??

Something told him that she didn't care at all about the trouble part.

Few would understand the depths of the freedom Valerie felt on a broom. It came second only to what she felt when she slipped into her animagus form.

She had started off slow. Nothing more than the standard tour around the field without much showmanship. Her second lap produced a bit more unpredictable movements. Sharp zig zags and loose 'S' shaped curls every now and then as she glided effortlessly through the air. Her third trip around was all about speed and it was during her third lap that the Pukwudgie joined her. She pulled up on the handle to bring her broom to a stop and looked down when he heard her.

"Perfectly good field with no indication of its use being off limits," she started cooly in reply. "Why would it be disallowed?"

Not that it would have particularly mattered to her regardless.

It had been a couple months since Flying class and also since Skylar had been on her broom, probably due to the fault of studying and the arrival of the Ilvermorny kids that she had just been too busy to head out there. But for once, the Fall weather wasn't rainy, which meant an excellent day for stretching her air legs.

Pulling her hair back into a ponytail, the fourth year stopped short, however when she realized she wasn't alone. There was that girl, Valerie, who Felicity informed her of her name present. The one who had this permanent unfriendly face across her expressions and another boy. Realizing it had been a couple months since the American kids arrived and she hadn't been all too welcoming towards them, Skylar figured she should probably at least make an attempt at hospitality. Besides, they at least had quidditch - or well, they played quodpot - in common.

"It's okay to practice, you know?" Skylar called out to the pair, who seemed to be unsure over whether or not to start flying. To demonstrate, the brunette mounted her broom and kicked off into the air, doing a little figure eight, before flying low and hovering nearby. "Interested in practicing with a quaffle?" Did they call it a quaffle? She never asked Brent and realized she probably should have, because apparently talking their language might be crucial. "I'm Skylar, by the way."

Valerie had not even noticed the arrival of the Hogwarts girl, her keen eyesight locked on Ezra waiting to see if he would be joining her or staying a wet blanket on the ground. So when the girl called out to them that it was perfectly alright to practice she did nothing more than bat her white eyelashes at her.

Once.

Yes. She had assumed as such. Hence her already being in the air.

The girl seemed to be a fair enough flyer. At least someone she could practice catching and throwing with if nothing else. "I will practice with whatever as long as it remains that I am not the only one on a broom," she replied as she leaned over to the side a bit to look down at the top of the girl's head. Skylar, as it turned out. "I doubt your school has a supply of Quods on hand anyway." Unless they were to charm a quaffle (yes, she did know what a quaffle was) to act as one. She would not mind giving that a go. "Valerie," she introduced as a bit of an afterthought.

The Gryffindor team. Interesting. "So your sister was a Gryffindor? What about your parents?" Because houses didn't always run in the family, right? "Oh, so your sister KNOWS some of the people who play professionally now?" Now THAT was definitely exciting. "Like who?!" Anyone good? Did they still hang out? Were they invited to Cambridge family events? Weddings? Could he meet them? Maybe she knew some he didn't already know. Wow. That would be so cool.

Almost as cool as THEM GOING TO QUIDDITCH CAMP TOGETHER!!

Only almost though.

Genny Tate's workout routine, though. "Okay. We should definitely do that." Surely she'd let them tag along, right? Even if they were younger. They were STRONG. And not first years or anything. Jessa was even a year older. They couldn't say no to them. They'd work very hard. Just as hard as they would work on their Quidditch skills. Once they'd finally reached the pitch, Cameron stopped and set down his bag and bat for now. "Of course. We can try out all the positions." Even though he mostly knew about Beater but you know. Keeper and Chaser you could do together. It was mostly about throwing and catching. Seeker on the other hand.....he'd have to think of something for that. But surely it would all work out.

Alright...now. "How good are you on a broom?" First things first.

SPOILER!!: Def gonna make everyone at camp jealous

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lislchen

The Gryffindor team. Interesting. "So your sister was a Gryffindor? What about your parents?" Because houses didn't always run in the family, right? "Oh, so your sister KNOWS some of the people who play professionally now?" Now THAT was definitely exciting. "Like who?!" Anyone good? Did they still hang out? Were they invited to Cambridge family events? Weddings? Could he meet them? Maybe she knew some he didn't already know. Wow. That would be so cool.

Almost as cool as THEM GOING TO QUIDDITCH CAMP TOGETHER!!

Only almost though.

Genny Tate's workout routine, though. "Okay. We should definitely do that." Surely she'd let them tag along, right? Even if they were younger. They were STRONG. And not first years or anything. Jessa was even a year older. They couldn't say no to them. They'd work very hard. Just as hard as they would work on their Quidditch skills. Once they'd finally reached the pitch, Cameron stopped and set down his bag and bat for now. "Of course. We can try out all the positions." Even though he mostly knew about Beater but you know. Keeper and Chaser you could do together. It was mostly about throwing and catching. Seeker on the other hand.....he'd have to think of something for that. But surely it would all work out.

Alright...now. "How good are you on a broom?" First things first.

And on they walked, Jessa having a bounce in her step as they drew ever closer to the quidditch pitch. Previously, she had no real reason to fly and no company but that was changing now and if she had to say she was excited one more time it would simply be UNREAL.

"Dad was a Slytherin. Everyone in his family was for a couple generations, but then me and Lexa broke the trend. My grandparents are more content with my house than they were hers though." They weren't too thrilled to find out they had a reckless Gryffindor in the family, go figure. "Mum's a muggle so...." Never got sorted by the hat, y'know? "but Dad says if she'd gone to Hogwarts he's positive she'd have been a Slytherin too." For as much as Jessa had wanted to be a Slytherin--as most of her friends were, she could admit she didn't really have it in her. The Ravenclaw was too strong and so were the Hufflepuff undertones.

"Umm...um..." Sometimes names were hard to remember. "There's Alice Fischer--I mean Odessa," couldn't forget THAT name, "And and...Toby ...something," Lexa gushed about him sometimes during matches. "There's West Odessa. Oh! Mo too! Branxton." There were probably others but Jessa didn't spend a tremendous amount of time trying to learn her sister's friends.

Oh hey the pitch!!!

Jessa nodded along, agreeing they would try to get into Genny's routine but her attention was quickly shifting upward. The hoops were so high up. It reminded her of just how high they would need to be to play the game correctly.

"I'm good enough at it when I don't have to be focusing on too many other things at the same time." So basically, she could fly around but then you added other people and a couple balls and it was likely she'd just hover there not remembering her right from her left.

Oh, a Slytherin, really? "My parents were both Slytherins too!" He grinned at her. "Maybe they went to school together." Depending on how old her dad was, of course. "Yeah, I don't think I'd make a very good Gryffindor either." That was NOT his house for sure. Not that he had any problems with Gryffindors per se. It was just so not for him. "But you like Ravenclaw, right?" Jessa seemed like a REAL Ravenclaw. Now that he thought about it, Ravenclaw would have been okay for him too, he supposed.

She knew Alice and West Odessa?! Now THAT was really really cool! "Do you know them too?" Were THEY invited to family meetings? Or social events?Did they have social events at the Cambridge house? If so, what would it take for him to be invited to one of those? Could she just bring guests? "Toby FULLER-THOMPSON?" Okay, he should lower his voice a little but OKAY NOW THAT WAS REALLY COOL TOO!!!! "I've met him!" Like, for real. There was proof. He'd met him T W I C E!

Hmmmmmmm. Okay, maybe he should have actually planned this out. But it was only their first try. He'd get better. Maybe they had books on coaching in the library. "Do you think you can fly and hold the bat at the same time?" Because THAT wasn't as easy as it sounded either. One-handed flying could be tricky to say the least.

SPOILER!!: She kinda just wants summer to happen already

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lislchen

Oh, a Slytherin, really? "My parents were both Slytherins too!" He grinned at her. "Maybe they went to school together." Depending on how old her dad was, of course. "Yeah, I don't think I'd make a very good Gryffindor either." That was NOT his house for sure. Not that he had any problems with Gryffindors per se. It was just so not for him. "But you like Ravenclaw, right?" Jessa seemed like a REAL Ravenclaw. Now that he thought about it, Ravenclaw would have been okay for him too, he supposed.

She knew Alice and West Odessa?! Now THAT was really really cool! "Do you know them too?" Were THEY invited to family meetings? Or social events?Did they have social events at the Cambridge house? If so, what would it take for him to be invited to one of those? Could she just bring guests? "Toby FULLER-THOMPSON?" Okay, he should lower his voice a little but OKAY NOW THAT WAS REALLY COOL TOO!!!! "I've met him!" Like, for real. There was proof. He'd met him T W I C E!

Hmmmmmmm. Okay, maybe he should have actually planned this out. But it was only their first try. He'd get better. Maybe they had books on coaching in the library. "Do you think you can fly and hold the bat at the same time?" Because THAT wasn't as easy as it sounded either. One-handed flying could be tricky to say the least.

They both came from Slytherins! Only difference was, the hat had made him a Slytherin too but know there was no such luck with her. Although......her ambition had grown since attending here and the hat had said it could see something there with her but at the time she couldn't figure it and now...with the way she was prepared to lie to Derf and collect knowledge at all cost, it was somewhat more apparent. "I do, I love my house but I spent my first year thinking the hat had made a mistake. Never felt like I fit in. Always got locked out of the Common Room because the riddles were hard," Still did sometimes but with less and less frequency, "and I wasn't exactly doing AMAZING in all the classes." But then she spoke to Professor Hirsch and he dispelled the notion you had to be super smart to be Ravenclaw. She'd felt much better after talking to him.

"Mhmmmm! Alice is by Lexa's apartment sometimes when I'm there or we'll pop in to visit her before going somewhere else. They're weird together. Like.....they've got this way of affection that's nothing short of Gryffindor." Aggressive, abrasive, and hard to understand but apparently very strong. She wouldn't pretend to understand it. "And yes! Him too! Toby!" Wait. " You have?? Was it at a match??" Or did he KNOW know him like house visits and all that fancy stuff??

And wasn't that the million galleon question. Could she fly and hold a bat? "I...think so.....shouldn't be too hard as long as I'm not immediately gonna be doing anything with it." Did that mean they could fly now??

SHE WAS SO READY!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Valerie Gray

Few would understand the depths of the freedom Valerie felt on a broom. It came second only to what she felt when she slipped into her animagus form.

She had started off slow. Nothing more than the standard tour around the field without much showmanship. Her second lap produced a bit more unpredictable movements. Sharp zig zags and loose 'S' shaped curls every now and then as she glided effortlessly through the air. Her third trip around was all about speed and it was during her third lap that the Pukwudgie joined her. She pulled up on the handle to bring her broom to a stop and looked down when he heard her.

"Perfectly good field with no indication of its use being off limits," she started cooly in reply. "Why would it be disallowed?"

Not that it would have particularly mattered to her regardless.

Ezra shrugged. "I dunno, I just...know they're weird about Quidditch here. Or something," he grumbled. He wasn't entirely sure what the whole deal was - he knew something about someone threatening the school or the pitch or whatever - and because of that, no Quidditch. Which was SOOO lame. Ezra had been looking forward to seeing them play!

"Do you think there's going to be flying in the competition?" he called up to her, trying to make friendly conversation. He wasn't sure WHY, as Valerie Gray usually made it perfectly clear that she wasn't one for idle chatter. He was here, though, and he felt...weird just leaving. He felt weird staying too but...

Yeah.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixRising

It had been a couple months since Flying class and also since Skylar had been on her broom, probably due to the fault of studying and the arrival of the Ilvermorny kids that she had just been too busy to head out there. But for once, the Fall weather wasn't rainy, which meant an excellent day for stretching her air legs.

Pulling her hair back into a ponytail, the fourth year stopped short, however when she realized she wasn't alone. There was that girl, Valerie, who Felicity informed her of her name present. The one who had this permanent unfriendly face across her expressions and another boy. Realizing it had been a couple months since the American kids arrived and she hadn't been all too welcoming towards them, Skylar figured she should probably at least make an attempt at hospitality. Besides, they at least had quidditch - or well, they played quodpot - in common.

"It's okay to practice, you know?" Skylar called out to the pair, who seemed to be unsure over whether or not to start flying. To demonstrate, the brunette mounted her broom and kicked off into the air, doing a little figure eight, before flying low and hovering nearby. "Interested in practicing with a quaffle?" Did they call it a quaffle? She never asked Brent and realized she probably should have, because apparently talking their language might be crucial. "I'm Skylar, by the way."

Ezra turned when he heard someone approaching them. It was a girl - Slytherin, if he remembered correctly, but it was hard to keep all these kids straight - and smiled.

"Good, thanks! I'm just, uh, watching," he added awkwardly, blushing a bit. "And I'm Ezra, nice to meet you," he told her with a smile as she introduced herself. He was glad that the Ilvermorny kids hadn't COMPLETELY scared away the Hogwarts kids after their little impromptu dance party when they first arrived. He had the feeling some of the Hogwarts people thought they were a bit...much.

Aslan Evans was laying in the cold grass in the middle of the Quidditch pitch. Her dark eyes were glazed, greyed with pointless thoughts and the kind of academic nonsense she busied herself with when everything became too loud.

and tonight everything was loud. not literally - although the castle was always noisy, brimming with golden light and loud, yellow voices- no, it was, naturally, figurative. Symbolic. Messy even and Aslan needed a break from everyone, everyone including Minnie Darling and Vincent Ferrari. It was a night of quiet, stars and her ongoing existential daydreams.

it was just what she needed. She would sleep here tonight, she was sure of it. The cold was kept at bay with warming charms and the green flame in the jar by her waist, yes, she could sleep quite comfortably here tonight. Aslan hummed absently, her hand reaching up to play in the halo of her dark hair spread out across the cool grass.

With a school broomstick in his right hand because his parents had given his own to his nephew, with his permission of course, Mason had been walking from the storage shed to the quidditch pitch for some flying.

It had been some time since he had last been on a broom and that with all the studying he had been doing lately he figured he could have some me time. Getting tired of the Hotspring and....it was hard to admit this ...even the library, the Ravenclaw climbed on the broom and kicked off.

It wasn't the fastest broom, nor did it exactly do what he wanted, for instance, when he tried to turn a sharp right it looked more like U turn instead of a V turn. But it was better than nothing. He flew towards the hoops on one side of the field and then turned and went to the other side of the field.

Dora hated quidditch. Loathed it, really. Which had always been an oddity in her family seeing as her mum was a quidditch player at school. And her boyfriend's father was a bloody quidditch star. But bleh. It's never been her cup of tea. Ever.

But today she found herself moving down the grounds and onto the pitch despite her aversion. Glutton for punishment perhaps? Or just bored and needing to clear her head? Speaking of heads... over hers someone caught her eye. Ravenclaw robes. Mason, maybe? Pausing to watch him flY around she smiled a bit and shook her head before moving to the stands and leaning against one.

She'd just wait for him to come down. No way in hell was she going up there.

Zooming across the field, Mason kept his gaze focused and lowered his body closer to the broom handle, trying to get the broom to go faster. Sadly, the school broom just didn't go faster and after a couple of more attempts he gave up with a sigh.

He continued to circle the pitch, enjoying the wind and the freedom. He checked his watch after a moment and was relieved that he still had half an hour more of free time. He turned the broom and flew past the stands and as he looked around for something else to do he noticed a figure leaning against the stands on the other side of the pitch.

Recognizing the Gryffindor, Mason turned and flew towards her. "Hey Champion" he grinned "You're just going to stand there or are you gonna grab a broom and fly as well?" he asked the moment he was near her and put a brake on the broom so that he was hovering in front of her.

Umm... no. No thank you! The blonde shook her head hard, a look of near panic on her face. "Uh. No, no. I don't fly. " She was certain he had noticed her lack of attendence to flying class over the years, but perhaps not.

And here she thought everyone noticed her absence. Guess she thought too highly of herself, or her friends' attention to detail. Hmph.

"Why don't you come down here and we can find something else to do? " Or like maybe he could try harder to get her onto a broom? It seemed like no one had ever really trieD to get her to conquer her fear.

Huh? "Why not?" ...wait...was that fear that she was showing? It were definitely the signs he recognized in himself.

Instead of grinning, the Ravenclaw frowned. Was she afraid of flying or was it heights? It was odd for him seeing her shaking her head in near panic as he had seen her as a strong and ...stubborn... Woman all this time. Except during that time their names were called out to become House champions but that was normal to question ones ability. He was sure every competitor had had those thoughts. Huh, seems like she was afraid of something after all.

Personally, he was terrified of clowns. The happier they were the more terrified he became. His frown deepened when he thought back when Leesha had scared him with a clown mask. He had been so scared he had attacked her in a split second causing her to fall in to the great lake.

With a sigh, Mason flew down but didn't touch the ground. "You don't have to if you don't want to" he said. "i read somewhere that in order to conquer your fear you need to confront it....which is stupid so what do you suggest?"

Why not, he asked? WHY NOT? "Because it is pointless and dangerous." And pointless danger wasn't her thing. Regardless of what house she resided in. She didn't mind danger WITH a point though. She kind of actually enjoyed that kind really. And yes it was fear. Pure and unadulterated.

Hmph.

And seeing as she had punched him while up in a treehouse he should have known that heights weren't the issue. It was the act of flying in and of itself. Nothing to strap you in or protect you if you fell. THAT was terrifying to her. And she was strong and stubborn, there was no disputing that. This was, for all intents and purposes, her greatest weakness.

And now the blonde found herself squinting at him as he spoke. Was he patronizing her for not flying? Was he CHALLENGING her to do it? The girl shifted from foot to foot and watched him, eyes narrowed. "What are you playing at?" Because if it was a challenge... she wouldn't be able to resist it. If he was patronizing her... she'd have to punch him again.

What was he playing at?

A look of pure confusion came across his face as he looked Dora straight in the eyes. Which was easy to do as he was still hovering a few inches off the ground. He did not like those narrowed eyes, definitely did not like it as the last them she had done that he had ended up in the hospital wing. And he really did not want that again.

"I'm not playing anything?" he said in the form of a question. "I was just stating a fact about fear" nothing more, nothing less. "When was the last time you flew on a broom?" he asked as he finally touched the ground and swung his leg over the broom, both feet back on the ground. "Do you want to try? I'll help" he said as he held out the broom for her to take.

He wasn't playing at anything? Was he sure? Dora wasn't sure. But it did seem like he was like low key challenging her or some such. Not cool. Oh but he was being a Ravenclaw, was he? That made more sense. Mason wasn't dumb enough to make her angry again, she didn't think. Heh.

"I have not flown since I was much... younger. I had an accident and I have been on a broom since." So there was definitely a reason to her not flying. "And my twin brother tried to like... help me, but he ended up getting hurt worse than me." Double whammy that was. Guilt and fear, ya know. Horrible combination.

The blonde girl watched him as he touched down and dismounted the broom. Was he even LISTENING. She felt her heart beating in her throat right now as he held the broom toward her. The Gryffindor even surveyed it as though it was some sort of foreign object. With her foot she reached out and kicked at it. "I'm afraid to."

....The reason why she was scared to fly was because she had had an accident when she was younger? Uhm. had she ever seen Quidditch before? Accidents happened on brooms all the time. Then again, she must have been really young for her to develope fear of flying and it would probably be too rude to ask her how old she had been so he kept his mouth shut.

Her kicking the broomstick was funny though and the Ravenclaw let out a chuckle. It wasn't his personal broom anyways and he wasn't THAT obsessed with flying and quidditch like some of the other crazy fans who would cry if someone insulted their favorite game. Taking back the broom before Dora set it in a blazing fire, Mason sat on it and hovered above the ground again though did not fly away.

"If you're afraid you should not do it" he said. "There's no shame in being afraid of something because everyone is" which was what Gryffindors sometimes forgot and they needed to act all brave all the time. "Why did you come here in the first place if you don't want to fly?"

Um yes she had seen infernal quidditch matches before and they did nothing to help her fear of flying. In fact that only made it worse. Much worse. She was constantly afraid that Casper was going to DIE on a broom. But it was clear that the Ravenclaw didn't understand fear... shame... or guilt. If he did, he wouldn't have basically challenged Dora to get on a damn broom. Which was what he was doing.

Idiot boy. UGH.

"Give me that bloody broom." That was all she said as she squared her shoulders and held her head up high. She knew HOW to fly, she just didn't care for it... but he had insisted that if she was chicken she just shouldn't do it. "Just because you might not garden doesn't mean you don't care for the scenery." UGH. Boys were so dumb sometimes.