Quidditch Tryouts, believe it or not, were the next day, just like Madam Hooch had said. As I pass the bulletin board, heading to the Great Hall for breakfast, I saw a sign on it with big bold letters that read:
RAVENCLAW QUIDDITCH TEAM TRYOUTS
SEPTEMBER 2, 5:00, QUIDDITCH FIELDS
LOOKING FOR TWO NEW CHASERS
NO EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
The last sentence made my heart jump. No experience required. That was good. The only "experience" I had was yesterday, and that was an accident.
"You look excited." Owen says at breakfast, stabbing his bacon with his fork.
"How could I not be excited? Quidditch tryouts are today!"
"Quidditch? You're trying out?" Owen says this in a surprised tone. "But first years never make the team."
I shrug. "My uncle was also in the Quidditch Team when he was in first year. My dad and aunt also played. It's in my blood."
"Tryouts are today? But Professor McGonagall said they were in a week." Nina spoke up, not taking her eyes off the thick book in front of her.
"Well, the sign in the common room says otherwise. They probably need two chasers ASAP."
Owen changes the subject. "Nina, what are you reading?"
"Goshawks Guide to Herbology, the best subject." Nina adds. Owen opens his mouth to retaliate, but I interrupt, not wanting a repeat of yesterday.
"Er- why? We have no work in that class."
Nina finally looks up, looking offended. "No work? Nonsense! A bit of extra reading doesn't hurt."
"Blimey. I just realized." I read our schedule for Tuesday. "We have Charms, Potions, and Astronomy with the Gryffindors!" Nina, who had put down her book, and Owen, who had put down his fork, stare at me, puzzled.
"Albus Severus Potter! My cousin!" I nudge Nina. "He was on the train with us! He's a Gryffindor!"
"Oh right!"
Today was the only time I was looking forward to class. I was going to see Albus, and the three classes for today weren't half bad.
When we entered the Charms classroom, we saw all the Ravenclaws were already settled and some Gryffindors were making their way inside. I convince Nina and Owen to sit next to each other at a desk, and sit at an empty desk, holding a spot for Albus.
When I see a smiling, small, brunette boy stumbling into the classroom, a grin emerges on my face and I start waving frantically.
"ALBUS!" Some Gryffindor girls turn to look at me, but I ignore them.
"Rose!" I give Albus a quick hug and he sits down next to me.
"How's everything?" I notice Professor Flitwick wasn't in the classroom yet.
"AWESOME! I'm already friends with a boy named Felix, and our head-of-house is really nice… How about you?"
I shrug, smirking. "Awesome. I'm trying out for Quidditch."
His jaw drops. "You're – what?"
"Trying out for Quidditch." I repeat. "I had Madam Hooch yesterday and she said I would be perfect for the team."
"Blimey. Rose, that-that's-"
"Wicked?" I finish his statement for him. He chuckles and nods.
"Settle down, settle down." Calls a voice from the front of the room. Professor Flitwick. He was a short, half-goblin man with a bushy mustache and golden spectacles.
"Eh – wands away please." There was a small groan at this. "We must practice first. You wouldn't know how many beginners messed up by saying one wrong word. Charms may be perceived as a simple subject, but takes a lot of studying and skill. Take Wizard Baruffo for example, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest. Now, take out Achievments in Charming, please. You must know how to correctly pronounce the spells before actually doing them."
Charms wasn't as fun as I thought it would be. We left class with an essay to write by Thursday. We had to choose five charms, search up what they do, and who created them.
"Finally, some good, old-fashioned homework." Nina sighs as we walk along with Albus, heading to Potions.
"I'm pretty sure you're the only kid in school who would say that." Owen blurts out.
Professor Slughorn was tolerable. When we entered the misty dungeon, we didn't see him, but soon we saw that he was hiding behind his desk. "Take your seats please." his voice says.
"Potions." Professor Slughorn finally moved from behind his desk and begins strutting around the classroom. I knew he was about to begin a lecture. "A precise and fine art. Putting a wrong ingredient, or forgetting one, and your whole project will be ruined!" he flicks his wand at the board and the words Forbidden Ingredients appear. "Can anyone tell me the two Forbidden ingredients?" A few Ravenclaws rose their hand, Nina included.
"Miss Jackson." Professor Slughorn gestures at Nina.
"Mort and Muwa, professor."
"Correct. And do you know what they stand for?"
"Death. In two different languages."
"Correct! Five points to Ravenclaw." Slughorn continues to speak, making the words mort and muwa appear on the board. Owen, Albus, and I are staring at Nina in awe.
"How did you know that?" Owen hisses.
"I read the entire Potions book. I had nothing to do yesterday." Nina shrugs as if this as perfectly normal. The entire book? Sure, I was in Ravenclaw and had inherited my mother's brains, but Nina was far more devoted than I was.
Class passed incredibly slow. By the end of class, just like Professor Flitwick, Slughorn assigned us a paper to write about alphabetized potion names – a potion for each letter of the alphabet.
When we made our way to the Astronomy tower, we saw Professor Sinistra already there, standing in the middle of the room. She was a tall, dark woman with a mysterious voice.
"Hello, class." She spoke very softly. "Usually, class is held in the evening around 8, when the stars are out. But our very first class is never that late. Our next class, however, on Friday, will be at 8."
When Astronomy finally ended, I felt free.
"Finally!" I groan, rushing to the Ravenclaw tower. "Class is over! I've been waiting forever to go to tryout!"
"I can't believe we have Charms, Potions and Astronomy homework!" Owen complains. I wave at Albus as we walk opposite ways, heading to different towers.
When we reach the wooden door with no doorknob or keyhole, Nina knocks the bronze knocker as the prefect instructed to do.
"I am tall when I'm young and short when I'm old. What am I?" it inquires.
"Ugh, I really hate these riddles." Owen spat.
"Tall when I'm young and short when I'm old," Nina repeats to herself. "Uhm…"
"CANDLE!" I holler. "You're a candle!"
The door swung open, revealing a half-full common room.
"How'd you know that one?" Nina asks. I smile, not responding. I wasn't going to tell them I already heard that riddle before.
"Well, I'm gonna start our essays." Nina announces, plopping down on the couch in front of the fireplace and pulling out quills and parchment.
"I should too." Owen admits, sitting next to Nina. "Hey, er." He blushes. "Can you maybe help me?"
"Only with some of it." Owen beams. He seemed happy to get any kind of help.
"Not me." I throw my backpack on the couch where my friends were sitting. "I'm heading out to the Quidditch fields."
"Good luck, Rose! You'll do great." Nina assures.
"Good luck, eh." Now Owen spoke.
I pull both of them in a quick hug. "Thanks!"
The Quidditch Pitch was a smooth and flat piece of land, with the stands surrounding the field decorated differently for each House at Hogwarts. One was scarlet and gold for Gryffindor, Yellow and Black for Hufflepuff, blue and bronze for Ravenclaw, and finally, green and silver for Slytherin. I knew spectators would sit in between the stands.
I saw a small group of people in their Ravenclaw Quidditch uniform standing in the middle of the field. I jog towards them.
"Hi." I say.
A tall, black girl with her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail turns to greet me, grinning. She holds out her hand. "Welcome, I'm Jasmine, the team captian." I nod curtly. "You're quite early, lets just wait until more people show up. Hey, Daisy!" she snaps at a girl with brunnete hair and freckles. "Show Miss-"
"Rose."
"Right. Show Miss Rose where the lockers are so she can change into uniform." A skinny, pretty girl stepped out of the group and gestures for me to follow her. The girls locker room was a wooden, small cabin with lockers and benches. This was where the girls changed into their uniform.
"What year are you in?" Daisy asks, walking over to what looked like a closet.
"First."
"Wow!" she opens the white doors of the closet to reveal several hangers with Quidditch uniforms on them. "Here, this is the smallest uniform we have." She threw it at me and began to head outside. "We have other equipment there too if you need it. And hey, good luck out there, ok?"
"Thank you." Daisy leaves. I change quickly into the uniform, surprised to see it fit me perfectly. It's like I was meant to play I thought. Seeing that I didn't need anything else from the closet, I walk back out to the fields to see much more girls and boys had arrived. Jasmine was pointing out the locker rooms to them.
When everyone was prepared, Jasmine began to speak.
"Hey guys. As you know, we need a new chaser." She scans the crowd. "You all look perfect for the position, and I already know we're gonna have trouble choosing. I just wanted to tell all of you to try your very best, and if you're not perfect, that's ok. We accept people who need a bit of improvement. And I immensely appreciate that you decided to come today. So thank you. And one more thing – GOOD LUCK!"
I smile as we all form a line. The first boy who went was terrible. He couldn't keep his balance on the broom, couldn't hit the Quaffle, and had bad aim. However, when he reached the ground, flustered, Jasmine patted his back and said good job.
The next girl was a bit better. She definitely could keep her balance, and hit almost all the Quaffle's in the goal. Her only problem was that she got too upset when she missed.
The next person (also a girl) was definitely my competition. She seemed to be a sixth year, and hit all the Quaffle's in the goal. She had strategy and skill, but I had one thing she didn't: the ability to arrive on time. As she lands on the ground, I recognize her as the girl who arrived just as we were about to begin.
The next three people were average, and before I knew it, I was up. My legs felt as if they were made of jelly. Here I was, about to go try out for Quidditch with everyone watching me. My cheeks reddened as I grabbed my broom. My mind was blank. I had forgotten how to fly up. I had done it yesterday, but I was barely paying attention. I imagine how stupid I look, showing up to tryouts and not even knowing how to use a broom. What was I thinking? One flying lesson and I think I can play Quidditch?
Madam Hooch's words echo in my head. I want you to mount them, keeping your feet sturdy on the ground, and kick off. I mount my broom. I haven't seen potential like yours in over thirty years. With determination on my mind, I take a deep breath and kick off. My broom rose up. I did it! I flew up to the same height as where the goalposts were and look down. Everyone looks like ants from up here.
I notice just now that there was two other chasers up here – Daisy and a blonde girl. Daisy waves. I notice in her other hand she's holding the Quaffle. A whistle comes from below, signaling to begin. Watching the others, I already knew what we were doing. We were pretending to play a real game, with Bludgers trying to knock me off my broom, the other Chasers passing me the ball, and me trying to get the ball into the goal, which was guarded.
Daisy flies toward the goalpost that was guarded, and throws the Quaffle at me. I catch it with one hand, speeding towards the goal. I see a round Bludger heading my way from the corner of my eye. Still clutching the Quaffle, I duck swiftly, still flying straight. I was surprised with myself.
I aim for the right goalpost, tricking the Keeper, but actually throw the Quaffle into the left one. Daisy and the blonde chaser cheer as the Keeper retrieves the ball.
We try again. This time, the blonde girl (whose name was Elizabeth) started off with the Quaffle and passed it over to me. I caught it with both hands. Again, I saw the bludger heading for me but this time it succeeded in knocking me off my broom. I quickly mount my broom again like I did yesterday. I hadn't dropped the Quaffle.
We do this five times. Each time, a Bludger was trying to knock me off my broom, and each time I passed the Quaffle to either Elizabeth or Daisy. I scored three times. Once I missed, and the other time the Keeper caught the ball. It was exhilarating. I didn't feel like myself, rather, I felt like someone who had played Quidditch their whole life. I felt proud.
Maybe it was just in my imagination, but Jasmine was clapping louder for me than she did to the others. "Great job!" Daisy and Elizabeth also congratulated me as we flew down together.
"Have some water." Daisy pointed to a small cooler where the people who tried out were huddling over it. I took a bottle of water as Jasmine blew her whistle, gesturing us to come closer.
"That was awesome guys! Give yourselves a round of applause!" Jasmine hollers. We all cheer and clap. "Like I said, its going to be hard to choose, and I thank you again for trying out! Results will be posted tomorrow morning on the bulletin board!"
The team started heading for the locker rooms to change. I was sweating and panting, yet I felt alive. I've done it. I tried out.
Just as I'm walking over to the locker rooms, I see two familiar brunette kids running up to me. Nina and Owen.
"ROSE!" Nina yells. She throws her arms over me in a tight hug. "You were awesome."
I hug Owen next. "You guys were here? But don't you have essays to do?"
Owen nods. "I finally convinced Nina to put down her quill and come see you! We followed some fifth-year girls over here." He looks around the field. "Wow, this place is huge."
"Rose, you did better than anyone else!" Nina compliments.
"Yeah, except when I missed the goalpost twice." I sigh.
"No one did better than you and if Jasmine doesn't pick you for the team, then she's blind." Owen sniggers. Nina is nodding.
"Well, I gotta go change." I turn to see Daisy and Elizabeth jogging out of the locker room, heading inside. Now they both wave.
"You've already got new friends." Nina winks. "Well, go change. We'll see you in the common room."
Jasmine was the only girl in the cabin. "Hey." She says when I walk in. Just as I'm pulling on my cloak, I hear her speaking. "You did great today for a first year. Daisy said you had a lot of confidence. I'm gonna think about that tonight when I choose the chaser." And before I knew it, she left.
I'm gonna think about that tonight when I choose the chaser. What did that mean? Hopefully something good, I hope. And without thinking of the mounds of homework I had to do, I trudge to the common room, a smile plastered on my face. I was going to send an owl to Mum and Dad, I had to. And I was going to be on the Quidditch team. Nina was right, no one else did perfect. The thought of me being a chaser, just like my Aunt Ginny pops in my head. The thought of me going to Quidditch matches, being part of the team… I feel slightly better about myself.
Good job today, Rose. Good job.