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Old 07-28-2009, 11:04 PM   #15 (permalink)
MalfoyzBeloved
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MAJOR filler chapter, I apologize ahead of time. I didn’t just want to say in one sentence what happens throughout this entire chapter for some reason.. oh yea, I didn’t want to jump too far ahead like I originally planned. That too. Lol. There is some Malfoy in here though.
Either way, enjoy.

Chapter 5
The Try-Outs


It was the 3rd week of school already. I’ve had very little time to actually enjoy myself; given all the homework I have to do and studying for the final exams at the end of the year for the 7th years, it’s amazing I have time to eat, let alone work. Sometimes I skipped that to study and Aurelia would bring me something. If this was only the 2nd week of school, I dare not imagine the nightmare the rest of the term will be; this is only the beginning.

The sad thing about all of this is I never much cared about homework and scheduling time to do it until I came here. Now I was paranoid about it all.

I was hoping I would be able to try out for Quidditch here so I would be able to enjoy myself for the short while I had between homework and study sessions, but at the rate I was going I would be lucky if I had time to find my broom, let alone use it. Either way, Draco talks a bit too much for his own good and, because of it, Aurelia thinks I’m some female junior version of Viktor Krum and pressured me into trying out. I never knew anyone to be more stubborn than me!

It was Saturday morning when I was woken up ay 7a.m by a mix of my alarm clock and being shaken.

“Come on! Try-outs will start in an hour, get moving!”

“Go... away...” I grumbled, rolling over onto my stomach so my face was buried into my pillow.

“You have to do it! You have custom-fitted dragon skin gloves and a Firebolt 360 for a reason! What do you think they’re for; leisure? You never give yourself leisure time anyways.”

I turned my head so I was looked at her with half-shut eyes. “I don’t. Need. To use. Them.”

“Yes you do!”

“They’re. Gifts. From. Malfoys.”

“Really? You never told me that. Christmas?”

“Birthday. Now bugger off, it’s unnatural to be awake so early on Saturday.” I turned my head so my face was buried into my pillow again.

Moments later, I felt some tight grip around my ankle yank me up midair. My neck bent awkwardly as I was lifted and now held up in midair by my ankle. I was so thankful I didn’t wear a nightgown last night.

“I will forcibly dress you by myself if I must.”

I looked back at Aurelia, seeing her upside-down, determined and angry expression.

“Why are you so desperate for this?”

“Because with you the Slytherin team will finally win for the first time in over a decade!”

“Are you sure it isn’t just because you want to see me without...” my sentence was cut off by a shriek from suddenly being yanked from my bed to hovering over the floor, and then dropped.

“There, you’re awake. Now come on, you need to take a bath and get dressed and get down there!”

I grumbled and groaned as I slowly got up. I stretch my stiff and now badly aching muscles.

“Dropping me onto the floor...” I yawned mid-phrase. “Won’t help me do better.”

“Sorry. Now get moving!”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head as I turned around.

Over the course of the next hour I heard nothing but Aurelia’s voice saying one thing after another about tactics and general pep talk. She followed me right out the common room door, down the dungeon, and down to the field. It was just a few steps from the field I stopped.

“So when you grab the Quaffle that way you ca-why’re you stopping? You’re so close, come on!”

“For the sake of Merlin above could you just shut up for a minute?” I cut in loudly, my hand tightening to the pound you could hear the dragon skin gloves straining around my knuckles.

For the first time in almost an hour, I didn’t hear my friend’s voice.

“Thank you!” I sighed. I then walked onto the field and Aurelia went up the stairs and into the stands where all the students from Slytherin were watching the try-outs.

I lines up behind the other younger kids trying out for Chaser. All the first and second years were babbling to each other about Quidditch. Whenever I absentmindedly caught parts of conversations, I noticed how Quidditch-stupid these little kids were.

“OK!”

The babbling quieted until it was no more. Everyone looked forward.

“I am Bryony Montague, Quidditch captain this year. It’s great you all came out, but only a select few will actually make it. So, to start off these try-outs, I’d like you all to get on your brooms and take four laps around the field on your broomsticks.”

All the older, more advance students got on and up in the air no problem. I was following them at first, but managed to be up at the front because of the Firebolt’s speed. I pulled a few diving and dodging maneuvers I used in my past few years as Quidditch keeper and chaser to avoid the younger kids who, if they managed to stay on upon descent and pick up speed when at a high enough level with the ground, just got in the way with their unpredictable flying.

After these four laps were completed, we were left with a few 3rd years, a majority of 4th and 5th years, and only the eight 6th and 7th years on the field.

“Ok, for those trying out for keeper, line up by that goalpost.” Bryony announced. “Those for Chasers in the centre of the field. Beaters to the far right.”

Everyone started shuffling to where they were told. I followed the only face I knew that was trying out for Chaser, a girl named Daphne in my year. We were then told to break up into two groups, one on each side of the middle line. When we did that, the try-outs really began.

The first two elimination rounds seemed to go fast. It was rather amusing to watch some of the Chasers’ attempts to dodge the oncoming bludgers while aiming the quaffle towards the goalpost. Most failed; one guy ended up dangling upside down, only attached to his moving broomstick by wrapping his legs around it. I bit my lip, trying not to laugh, when the broomstick ran into the kid trying out for keeper and took out the both of them. A couple of onlookers in the stands took them to the hospital wing.

It was the last round and I was the last up. Kicking up on my broomstick, quaffle beneath my arm resting half on my hip, half on my stomach, I managed to dive-bomb and avoid the bludgers. I kept spiralling down, the ground seeming to grow bigger in each passing second. I pulled back up, but had to swerve again to try and avoid another spare bludger, but this time it nicked my foot, not enough to hurt but it threw me off and sent me spinning and unable to get back in control no matter how much I tried to turn it back. This was ridiculous – did the Malfoys curse my broom or something?

I was leaning so far to the side to try and turn it back that I fell off, but as soon as I was down, I felt something similar to a gust of air swing me back around and get my broom going in a straight line. I didn’t linger on it, even with the distraction of people cheering after my ‘performance’, as I sped towards the Keeper. I was coming up on their left and they were blocking it just so I couldn’t get it in directly from my current position. With one quick maneuver, I swerved off to the right and threw it towards the hoops. The Keeper wasn’t fast enough on her Nimbus 2003 and missed.

Everyone in the stands cheered louder at the success. I brought myself back down to the ground and hopped off, gracefully landing on the soft grass.

The roster of chasers was announced and I was on it. We were given a handout with the schedule for practices and another with the games. We were allowed to leave at least, so I made my way off the field. Aurelia met me there the moment I stepped off the field.

“That was an amazing save – how’d you even do that spin around on your broom? Perfect 360, I swear...”

“I don’t know,” I cut in.

“What?” Aurelia stopped abruptly, her head cocked slightly to the side in confusion.

“Whatever that was, it wasn’t me,” I responded, lowering my voice.

“Then you cheated?”

“I didn’t do anything! I thought you did it.”

“I don’t know how to do whatever kind of magic that would’ve required.”

I scowled and kept walking. She eventually caught up and continued on by my side, following me to the castle. Halfway to the castle, I saw a group of three guys led by the mentally disturbed Malfoy. He was making slowly making his way to us. I didn’t realize he was until it was too late; he slowed down his pace to match mine.

“Good last shot there, love. You’re rather lucky.”

“Bugger off,” I snapped, picking up my walking pace.

“The gloves did work well then?”

“Yes,” I responded curtly. “Tell your mother I say thank you again.”

He smirked. “I will.” His tone then changed when he spoke next, the softness to it sending shivers down my spine (and not in a good way). “See you later, love.”

Aurelia grabbed my forearm before I could totally lift it up into a punch.
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