Mika was a little scared but she wouldn't admit it. She just wanted to see what would happen when she showed everyone her awesome hoverability. Yeah she was just great.

Mika swung her leg over her broom. And gently, really gently, she pushed off of the ground. Yeah she just loved hovering there, hovering was awesome. Well, no, it wasn't actually fun. But it was one more step until awesome flight.

She was hovering there and really, really, she wasn't excited to be there. She just wanted to get some flight time.

She nudged her broomstick downward and gently landed on the ground.

Sure, she had really wanted to kick off again and fly off into the air again.

Bliss eyed the girl suspiciously. She still wasn't convinced that it was just an accident. All the brooms had been lined up so that this probably wouldn't happen, so that meant she'd moved it herself. Why though? There wasn't any POINT. Silly girl. Though Bliss should give her the benefit of the doubt, right? It COULD have been a mistake. But...it had hit Alec and...she didn't like that.

Okay, the girl was now telling her that Alec plays Quidditch. She deserved a sarcastic clap, really she did. "I know, I'm on him team," she state as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She shook her head and tried to turn her attention back to her own broom, but she was too hyped. She knew that she wouldn't be able to concentrate.

Belle heard the professor's instructions. They were not joy riding yet. They were going to do the hovering part. That should be simple. Belle took the broom with her two hands and then put her leg over it and started to get the feel of it. The broom did feel old compared to her firebolt back in her room.

As Belle sat on her broom, she gently kicked off from the ground and then hovered and to land, she gently nudged the broomstick handle downward - the more gentle she was, the slower and more carefully she descended. Belle felt confident and was ready to go on her joyride.

Jory watched the Professor as she demonstrated what she wanted them to do. He held the broom parallel to the grass and mounted while turning the tail towards the ground.

Now he worked on his grip. He carefully paced his right hand above the left one on the handle making sure his hands were relaxed. Ready, the Puffer gave a small kick off the ground where he hovered. "Cool!'' he thought. He now gave a small nudge to the handle and he slowly returned to the ground.

He had private lessons from the two best fliers in the world and now it was Rawdon's chance to show his schoolmates that he inherited the flying gene. Or not.

Remain calm. Remember the trick you were taught in dealing with the school brooms. Be firm. Let the broom know who's boss. I'm a Vindictus and the broom MUST obey!

He stuck his right hand over the broom handle and cleared his throat. His blue eyes glanced down at the broom. Rawdon opened his palm so that he could grasp the broom. But he felt that he had to tell the broom who was boss and what it would get if it behaved.

"Broom, I am a Vindictus and you will obey me. Got it?" he told the broom in a low voice. "Obey me and I'll be very nice to you when we're flying. Okay?" The broom lay still on the grass.

He cleared his throat again.

"Up!" he commanded in a firm, clear voice. The broom quivered for a second and then flew up into his open palm. Rawdon instinctively grasped the handle as he wrapped his fingers around it. He pulled the broom towards him and swung his right leg over the broom as he mounted it, then placed his left hand on the handle.

Rawdon checked his grip. Not too loose, not to tight. His feet were firmly planted on the ground. Professor James said to push off and hover for a moment and then land. I can do this. I can! Remember what Uncle Rex told you....

While he was thinking about what to do, the broom began to wiggle impatiently beneath him. Rawdon rocked back on his heels while pulling the handle towards him. The broom calmed down. It worked! He slowly shifted his weight forward and raised both heels as his toes gently pushed off the ground.

He felt the air come up underneath him as he rose six feet in the air. Rawdon hovered for a few minutes and then nudged the broom handle towards the ground and descended slowly. When his feet touched the ground, he stood there and awaited further directions.

Cool, so now they were going to fly... sort of. Well, they were going to hover, which she assumed was sort of the same thing in a beginner's class. Honestly, she just wanted to mount her broom and fly up in the air and just sort of get points for it. Could there be a class for that? Then again, if that were true then she would never get to scout out the new talent. And that was why she REALLY wanted to come. She LOVED seeing new people discover flying. It was so important to her. Harpies pride, yo.

Then she, with the rest of her class, mounted her broom and placed her hands in the proper place like she had done literally a million times. There was something amazingly familiar about a broomstick and the Pitch. It even smelled like home. Yeah, yeah... it was cheesy. If anyone wanted to call her out on it she would have them talk to Mortimer. ANY TAKERS? Yeah, she didn't think so.

Once she was all settled on her broom, she kicked off and hovered for just a brief moment. She had this HUGE inkling to just lean forward and fly up into the sky, but it was not worth the house points loss. Nope, nope. So she leaned it down slightly and landed back on the ground.

...Could they fly now?

They could Fly they could Fly they could FLYYYY!

okay more like hover but that was just as exciting. After Ariana summoned her broom to her hand and it naturally came to her with ease she mounted it as instructed and as she already knew how to do and Kicked off hovering a few feet in the ground, she then turned to watch Audrey, the new ravenclaw girl whom she just adored and hung out with over summer and made sure she was doing everything right and taking in some key tips that she taught her.
after staring for a few moments ariana landed back on the ground and waited for further instructions

Minus a minor broom incident between two Hufflepuffs(who earned themselves a concerned look from the professor) and a flying hat, everyone seemed to be progressing wonderfully!

"Yes, yes, brilliant work, everyone! Taking off will generally be as simple as that, but landing can be a bit trickier when you're flying faster and parallel to the ground. You have to carefully approach your descent - you'll want to lean away from the broomstick handle to slow yourself down and tilt the broomstick gently toward the ground to have a successful, smooth landing," Professor James advised, not wanting the young ones to think touching down would be as simple as going up and back down. She didn't want any of them to panic at the last moment after they were properly airbourne.

Aaand for the fun directions - the kind that meant they were almost ready for a proper take-off. "Once you're in flight, you will find that lowering your body toward your broomstick will speed you up, then leaning away from it and nudging the handle upward slightly will slow you down. You will use your dominant hand to steer - remember, the slightest movements to the left or right will take you in the direction you want to go. To ascend, pull back on the broomstick handle - once again, gently is key - we don't want you falling off the back end. Beginners especially, do not remove both hands from your broom handle. " The present Quidditch players certainly could, but it probably wasn't wise to encourage the new flyers to do the same. And she already mentioned how to descend.

"As this is a lesson on the basics, today we will practice controlling the broom," Professor James announced brightly, removing her wand from its holster and removing the disillusionment charm from one side of the pitch to reveal white poles perpendicular to the ground, hovering ten feet above the grass in a staggered line.

Text Cut: Visual

"I've set up a couple of exercises today. On this side of the pitch," she gestured to the white poles, "is your first task - we have an area to practice making turns. Turning is a vital part of flying, of course - for example, when it comes to Quidditch, one must be able to swiftly sneak by opponents with ease! Today, your mission will be to weave in and out of the poles without touching them. You can take your time, try to go as fast as you can, time yourselves, or partner up and race a friend - but if you bump a pole, even if it's just with the twig of your broomstick tail, you'll have to go back and start at the beginning!"

A simple drill, really, but surely those who were itching to fly would find the option of competition to be alluring while those who needed to practice the basics could do so as well.

"The space here in the center of the pitch will be used for general flying purposes throughout the remainder of the lesson; if anyone wants to practice flying and getting used to your broomstick, feel free to do so before or after attempting the activity, but please steer clear of the activity areas with the joyriding," Professor James gestured to both far ends of the pitch.

"For those who wish to dive right into the activity, please kick off and fly over to that," she pointed to her designated starting area, "end of the poles, form a line for either set - they're the same, I promise - and begin!" And those who wanted to fly around the center of the pitch for a bit could do so. "If anyone has any questions," she was mostly talking to those who had never flown before, "feel free to ask!"

OOC: Even though your characters have to wait in line, go ahead and post as if they're at the front of the line and have at it! Also, at least three posts are required for full points for this part of the activity with a minimum of two good-sized paragraphs in each post; the posts can consist of general flying practice or taking part in the activity, depending on what your character is most comfortable with right now. Take creative liberty and have fun with this!

Alyssa listened as Professor James told them what she wanted them to do. 'Cool. This sounds interesting. It's like barrel riding only we'll be weaving in and out of the poles.'

Alyssa kicked off from the ground and immediately rose in the air. She pointed her handle upwards, and leaned forward on the broom handle. The broom immediately flew upwards. Once she had reached at least 10 feet high, Alyssa slowly pulled back on the broom handle and straightened it out. Then she leaned forward on the broom handle and pointed it towards the poles, until she reached the first in the row. Hovering above the ground, Alyssa studied the poles in front of her. They were spaced in a staggered line but far enough apart for someone to weave in and out without touching them...if they were careful.

Alyssa leaned slightly forward on her broom lining herself up with the first pole, then she leaned towards the left, and at the same pointing the broom handle to the left, she maneuvered the broom between the first and second pole. Once she had cleared that, she leaned to the right, pointing the broom handle to the right and weaved through the third one.

Repeating the steps first leaning to the left and clearing through one pole, before leaning to the right and weaving past the next one, Alyssa nearly made it to the end of the line when she leaned a little more the left and her broom handle slammed right into the pole.

Quickly regaining control of her broom, Alyssa sighed. She had almost succeeded in completing the course but she had for a second lost concentration. Shrugging her shoulders, she leaned to the left, turning the broom handle in the same direction, and flew back to where she had originally started from. As she flew back she made sure that she didn't get in the way of anyone who was also attempting the course. When she reached the back of line of students who were also trying the course, she hovered above the ground, waiting for another turn again.

Lourdes was amused with the students practicing the summoning (kinda) of their brooms. Some were really good at it, and it brought a smile on her face. Though the others didn't get in on their first attempt, she was kind of amused at how they tried and tried until they got it in the end.

For basics, Lourdes thought the new Professor was teaching them well. Though maybe be she, the Professor, could help students if they were having trouble. Demonstrations, she did them... But she might get the point.



Another easy thing to do. Basics was boring... she definitely wanted something more challenging. Who would like to volunteer to have a seminar class about Quidditch? It'd be awesome, really.

Kat mounted her broom and kicked off the grass. Ten seconds on air first. She missed flying brooms especially this summer. She did fly on it a few times but her advanced OWL studying made her preoccupied. Also meeting up with friends.

COUGH.

Then Kat landed. Next off?



Turning. Well, time to brush on the Quidditch skills today. Ain't it? Kat dismounted her broom and took it with her as she went to form a line with all the students. Oh and... she hated waiting too. But then, for Flying and showing off her glorious Flying skills, she will wait. And wait, she did.

...

OH FINALLY. Her turn. In excitement, Kat immediately mounted her broom and kicked off as fast as she could. In ease. Hah, it was just too easy and if anyone failed at it... well, Kat would mentally judge them. She would... cos it was easy. I mean, REAL easy. She flew up a few feet and then sped up towards the post of the goal hoop. Nearly there... Kat lowered her body a bit to the broom she had, which made it fly faster.

Then she tuuuuurned around the post. Too easy. Games playing Chaser, Beater, and Keeper did her well. She had a smirk on her face. Look, the candidates are deffo watchin'. Then when she returned back, she touched down. She was ONLY excited to watch the Slytherins fly cos they seem 'cooler'.

Melody did her best to pay attention. She had the need to to be one of the best at flying. Well, maybe succeed most first years. That is her goal. However, the talking started to bore her. She twirled her her hair with her finger to help pass time while listing to the teacher.

Once again Melody envisioned herself, kicking of, raising the broom up, staying up more than just a few seconds and taking odd to an area she could practice before she tried weaving in and out of the polls. After all practice makes perfect right?

Melody positioned herself again. And like she pictured she kicked off raised up a few feet like last time. Then she slightly lifted up the handle and raised a bit more up into the air. So far so good. Now how to go forward again. She couldn't exactly remember what her teacher said. Melody thought about what her father taught her. Oh yes... lean forward...

ooc: Making a post this big is going to be a challenge for me. Let alone three. I appreciate it. Thanks.

Minerva listened to their instructions, well this sounded fun. Plus it couldn't hurt to practice her turns. She always needed more practice to try and get it correct. With tryouts coming up, it was a great plan to get more accurate and more swift. She wished she could have a bat with her as she did it, so she could practice turning and moving the bat around.

Giving a last look to Susan she wanted to make sure her cousin was comfortable. Then she kicked off the ground and brought her broom up. Leaning forward she slowly made her way over to the poles. Why rush when there was a line and when there were plenty of newbies flying around that could crash into you if you weren't paying attention. It was nice just to get up in the air anyway. Checking out one of her favorite views while up in the air Minerva smiled. She really did love seeing the castle from this height.

Once she pulled into line Minerva floated patiently until it was her turn. Then she leaned in and started around the poles. They were a little closer then she thought. Really watching to make sure she wasn't hitting any, Minerva noticed the back of her broom was getting a bit close so she was focusing on her twigs when she felt the front bump something. Looking forward she saw the pole. Oh merlin that was just dumb Minerva, she thought to herself and moved out of the poles and made her way back to the start.

What an AWESOME activity! Slalom slalom baby! West was down. Or up, since it was uppppp there. Yeah! Air slalom, even better. He made himself listen to the instructions. He was behaving, see? RIGHTINTOTHEACTIVITYKICKOFFGO!

He did exactly that and was at the head of the line in an instant, eyes bright with glee. And now to zigzag! Too bad it was a school broom, but still... heeeeere goes....

Ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig........... .............. zaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag!

West hurtled between the markers, certainly not taking it easy rather, as usual, he just threw himself all in, getting so close to the markers that they vibrated from the air rushing around him and his broom, but the kid didn't touch one. Once he got to the end he looked over at Dylan, almost as if for approval.

*beam*

Jory listened to the instructions. He couldn't wait to try! But he didn't like the part where they had to start all over if they hit the pole. "I'll just have to avoid hitting them.'' He joined the line and patiently waited for his turn.

As soon as it was his turn, Jory mounted his broom and kicked off just as he has practiced previously. He hovered a bit before leaning forward and carefully made his way to the poles. heart pounding with excitement, he took a deep breath and took on the first two poles.

The badger succeeded in making it through them. Second and third, third and fourth, left to right, left to right- all a success. "This is easy,'' he thought as he weaved between the fourth and fifth. Until- BOING! The broom hit one of the poles. "Aw man!'' Jory muttered. Back again to the line.

Ivy's eyes widened as she listened to the instructions the teacher was giving. What if she fell off? And died? That would be baaad. Surely this activity was super dangerous in so many different ways? Because she probably wouldn't even get past the first pole.

She got her broom ready and murmured, "Up!", wobbling slightly as she rose in to the air. Ivy began to fly really slowly, careful not to fall off. the little girl tried desperately not to look down, but couldn't help one quick glance. She gasped at how high she thought she was going, accidentially removing her tight grip on the broom and making her wobble furiously for a second. But she put her hands back on straight away, of course.

Now, time for the hoops. Ivy cautiously flew towards the large obstacles and began to twist through the very first hoop. She'd made it! For real! A little more confident now, she headed for the second hoop, wincing as the broom brushed gently against it. Back to the start. Convinced she was about to fall to her death, she went back to the start.

Oh well. It was nothing more than she'd expected.

Round two for Jory! As soon as he reached the front, he mounted the broom once again. Hovering, he looked up at the poles. He now leaned forward and rose in front of the lines of poles. He turned to the right side first.

Through the poles he went. Weaving in and out. "Got it this time!'' he thought, pleased with the progress as he had come further than his previous try. The boy kept his eyes on the poles, worrying about it only when it came looming up in front of him.

Left to right, left to right.

He was almost to the end now. "Just a few more,'' Jory thought as he eyed the poles before him and momentarily loosing concentration. That moment caused him big time as he succeeded in hitting one of the poles on the left. "Shucks! So close!''

If anyone was watching Ella, which they shouldn't be because the Professor was talking...RUDE, duh. They would see her BOUNCING excitedly on the balls of her feet. Wanna know why? Because they were going to FLYYYY! Like...not only fly but go through obstacles which was just, really cool! Especially since Quidditch tryouts were coming up and the blonde had planned on practicing her skills before then anyway. Good thinking, Professor James! BEAM!

The blonde adjusted her grip on her broom, kicked off from the ground, and went to wait in line. This was going to be great! It would be even cooler if they had to avoid moving obstacles but still, this was going to be awesome. When she arrived at the front of the line she GRINNED and took off, zoooooming towards the pole-thingers.

Zig....Zaaaag...Ziggggg...Zag.

In and out she went, slower than usual because she wanted to get a feel for the distance and how close she could come to the things without taking herself out. The next round, that would be for speed. BEAM!

Alice payed CLOSE attention to the professor's instructions, because she figured that the lady would probably have some helpful tips. But she might have been a little less attentive than usual, because they were going to start flying soon. Actually FLYING, not hovering like before. And the fact that there were going to be obstacles was even better. Professor James got.. like.. a million brownie points for this activity, mmhmm. She approved.

And now.. FLYING.

The lioness shifted her grip on her broom, kicking off and spiraling towards the line. After waiting forever, she finally made it to the front. Still, when she started zig-zagging through the poles, she was BEAMING from ear to ear, 'cause this was awesome. Imagine what fun it would be if there were moving targets? Or maybe James was saving that for the next lesson. Whatever the case, it was still the best lesson ever and Alice maneuvered around the poles with ease. Sure, she was going a little slow on purpose, just to drag out her turn, but she'd be faster next time.

Maybe.

SCORE!

Well, not a score as in what happens when you earn points in a Quidditch match, but score as in--they were about to take to the air! Sierra began the process of mounting her broom. She kicked one leg over the broomstick and angled the tail toward the ground. She then placed her right hand above her left and gripped the broom's handle.

...and then the rest of the directions came. Wait--so they were hovering?! What about the experienced flyers, though? Did they have to hover?! Ehh...This is what she got for attending a basic flying course, but she was glad she did so anyway. She hated going to try-outs without any practice ahead of time.

At the sound of the whistle, Sierra kicked off. She traveled up to the hovering height and stayed there for a bit. Then she ever-so-slightly angled her broom back toward the ground and made a graceful landing.



WOOT!

So why was Sierra so excited? She'd never had these type flying drills before. Sure, Vindictus had launched many different in the air and propelled them toward the students, but this felt like a real drill! The kind they'd do if you went pro. This earned the professor a grin from Sierra. The seventh year then kicked her leg back over the broomstick and assumed a position to begin the kick-off. With a proper grip on the handle, she kicked off the ground and joined the line of students waiting to maneuver through the poles.

When it was her turn, Sierra began maneuvering through the poles with a certain hint of ambition in her eyes. She started out slowly but then eventually lowered herself to the broom stick handle and picked up speed. She could feel herself whipping through the poles like the expert she hoped to one day be. Sure, she was good, but perfect? Nah. Even she wasn't Slytherin enough to try and claim that. She was about three-fourths of the way through when she felt the end of her broom, the part with the twigs, just barely brush a pole.

WHAT?! NOOO!

She sighed and got back in line. Yeah. This was why she attended the basic flying lesson before try-outs started.

Ethan knew that this was a basic lesson so he shouldn't have been surprised when Professor James reviewed the basics to the class. It was just that he was so eager to get on with things and get straight to flying. But he supposed he could be patient for the sake of those who were inexperienced..

He listened vaguely to the rules and advice, then held his hand out, parallel to the broom of his choosing. "Up!" The school broom shot up to his hand and he firmly grasped the handle. Listening to Professor James' next words, the boy frowned slightly. Hover, then land? That was far too easy.. Hopefully the entire class would not go this way, but he did as instructed at her whistle. Ethan mounted the broom and kicked off. He pulled up a bit on the handle, then leveled off to hover in the air for a moment, then nudged it down gently to land.

Ok.. maybe now they would get to do something a little more advanced.. or at least the experienced flyers would? He watched as the Professor revealed a sort of obstacle course type thing. Hmm, this might be interesting and definitely good practice for maneuverability. The sixth year kicked off again and flew over to the starting area. He had thought about racing the person next to him, but when it was his turn to go he saw that a first year was opposing him and he didn't think that would be fair. Maybe on his next go..

Ethan began weaving in and out of the poles at a steady pace. About a third of the way through, the boy felt that he had a pretty good handle on the drill so he felt comfortable going a little faster. He leaned forward on the broom slightly to get a feel for the acceleration of this particular broom, still weaving through the poles, then leaned forward a little more. He lurched forward a little too quickly and felt the broom's twigs brush against one of the poles.

Sighing a bit as he felt he still needed to get used to this particular broom for the lesson, Ethan steered himself out of the path of the poles and headed back in line at the start. Ok, that was just practice, he thought to himself as he waited his turn. The next pass will be better.

With a slightly disappointed look on her face, Sierra waited in line to reach the poles once again. She was mainly disappointed in herself. She was a seventh year, a veteran Quidditch player, and somebody who hoped to go pro at the end of this school year. She shouldn't be running into a pole during a short practice run. She tried not to let her disappointment show, though, as she quickly approached the front of the line.

She'd do it this time. If not, she'd keep trying it until she succeeded. She watched the person in front of her, and when they were done, she started again. This time, she keep a sharp focus on the poles while also paying attention to her steering. It was the steering that had gotten her last time, when she'd let the broom end with the twigs touch a pole. She could see the spot she'd stopped at up ahead, and if nothing else, she just wanted to pass that point.

Reaching it, she grinned, but then she was back to focusing on maneuvering through the poles once again. Now she watched the end, her goal, as she thought about how badly she wanted to get there without failing again. Just then, the tail twigs brushed across a pole again. WHAT?! What was she not doing?! Her heart sank. This meant everything to her. She wanted to go pro. Sighing, she turned back around.

Sarah nodded as the teacher spoke about old brooms - that was at first, before the teacher began to progess further. Sarah loved getting second hand things knowing that the money not spent on buying new things was spent on the tuition of herself and her brothers and to Sarah, education overrode everything. Then she heard the part about the older the broom it may not be as powerful she got nervous a bit then cheered up as she reaalized that the older brooms just lack certain capablities that Sarah did not need.

She then flung her leg over to the other side when the teacher instructed the other students to do so, yet that was more for those who had never climbed before. She angled the broom a bit downwards like she was told although she laughed inwardly at those who were considered about comfort. Sarah could not understand how to a person comfort was mopre important to the fun and thrill of flying. They were probably the ninny types of people which Sarah only just accepted, yet personally she liked toughies better. Life as a ninny would be so boring.

She then examined her grip - it looked good, thankfully she had gotten coaching over the summer by her brothers. Maybe this year she would make the team (well not, Sarah was not the best quidditch player around yet she loved quidditch so she worked hard practicing hoping that someday she would make the team. Someday, hopefully before she finished Hogwarts, Yet Sarah was an optimistic hardworker and after all, her grandmother always would say "Rome was not built in a day, so like brick by brick she would take it slow (very hard for her), she knew she had and would make mistakes, yet that is how she will improve and grow so with patience, practice and a plan she would show everybody that when one believes they will achieve), so she was now awaiting the teacher's whistle for take off. So when in came she flew right in the air, yet she was enjoying herself so much she nearly forget about coming down until she saw that the others never reached her height and were going down. So she had forgotten about one thing - the gentle push and coming down immediately. She she nudged her broom downwards to land. Seriously, it was an honest mistake. Thankfully no one noticed as the teacher continued her lesson.


So they could go up, Sarah memorised what the teacher had said about the activity yet decided to practice in the middle for some time. Was she ready? Of course she was. She kicked off the ground with a flourish that sent her right into to the air. AHHHH.... Flying again.... Sarah had not flown on a broomstick since she had come to Hogwarts, and after spending her summer flying almost daily (it was an awesome way to avoid the kitchen where someone would put her straight to work - Sarah hated domestic duties of all sorts) such time away was long.

She loved the few from up here, seeing Hogwarts on one side as well as the breathtaking panaromic views. The stands, the grass below her (yikes it was far down - something that made her excitement mount) as she turned around more in the center the view changed completely - something Sarah enjoyed about being so far up. She loved the feeling of the wind against the airs as well as the sou nds the breeze made. Some strands of hair had come loose from the braid she had made and now hung over her. Trying to brush it aside she lifted her left hand to brush it away when her broom went veering to the right. THankfully she had managed to push her hair behind her ears before landing her left hand safetly on the broom again.

Determined to get it right this time. As soon as it was his turn, he mounted his boom. After hovering for a few seconds, he leaned forward lightly and headed up to level with the poles. Once again, he chose to start from the right side.

"Here goes,'' he thought. And so he started again. Right to left, right to left, right to left. He kept watch on the distance between the poles and tried to average when to turn so that he would avoid hitting any. The Puffer concentrated so hard that he lost track of where he was.

Jory continued weaving through the poles until... there suddenly wasn't anymore! He had done it! "Finally!'' he thought as he headed down for the landing.

"What? Flying through poles?" Alice shrieked

Alice had only just gotten use to being a foot off the ground, much less fly up 10 more feet. But at least she had the option of floating around and getting use to her broom. No need to go flying recklessly and end up like a smashed pumpkin.

Alice quickly practiced dismounting and mounting a couple of times, just to get use to it. Then she started slowly making '8's in the air out of the way of any of the more eager flyers. This wasn't so bad! Now she can write home and tell her twin brother all about her first flying experience. Not that he would read in-depth before burning it but it was the thought that counted! With a satisfied look on her face she continued to make her '8's with absolutely no care in world. Well, except for one, Alice couldn't help but wonder how Lex was doing. Probably better than her.

"Sigh."

Back in line, Sierra waited while she tried to figure out what had happened this last time. She had been so focused and so determined. How could she have hit that post a second time? She, probably unlike most others, was actually deeply concerned about this. She'd decided on a career choice, and since she was a seventh year, she didn't exactly have much time to play around with this. Would she still have a chance at making a team if she couldn't do a simple exercise such as this one?!

Looking up, she realized she was in the front of the line again. She'd spent all her time thinking and hadn't done much planning at all. She could do this, though. She had to. She leaned forward and began the process of moving through the poles once again. She steered left and then right as she tried her best to avoid touching any of the poles. Then she looked toward the end and suddenly, she imagined it being a bludger, one she just had to hit. She put all her focus on that fake bludger and fed off the adrenaline pumping through her body. She didn't realize it just yet, but she'd passed up both parts she'd had to stop at before.

That bludger was closer and closer, despite the fact that she was just imagining it being there. Just a few more seconds, and victory would be hers. She kept steering and focusing, steering and focusing. Finally, she flew right through where she'd imagined that bludger. Pulling back on her broom, she came to a stop and looked behind her. She'd cleared her way through! Finally! Victory was hers!