Part Three:
After my not so pleasant experience with Ariande, which left me feeling a bit sympathetic towards Isabella about the way I treated her, I returned to school for my second year, determined not to let girls get in the way.
Of course, that changed rather quickly.
Quidditch tryouts for Gryffindor were coming up, and James was determined to get the one open Chaser spot. "Come on, Sirius, you should try out. It'd be great to be on the team together..."
I considered it. After all, there were three other spots open: both Beaters and the Keeper. I figured, hell, may as well try for a Beater spot.
More people tried out then I would have figured. There were about seven others trying out for Beater. I didn't think I had much of a chance: there were at least three players better then me. I wasn't so bad, but I didn't think I'd make it.
James, of course, smoked the try-outs. The youngest of the four to try out for Chaser, he was the fastest and most precise of them all. Clearly, he would get on the team.
But the captain, a fifth year girl named Daphne Bell, announced that she wouldn't be putting up the results for another week.
"A week? I can't wait a week!" I complained to James as we headed back to the school.
"I know what you mean. I mean, just get it over with, and-"
"Please, James. You know you're going to get Chaser." I sighed. "I don't think I can take it. I'm going to talk to this girl. See you later."
Daphne had gone into her captain's office, and I knocked on the door. "Come in," she called.
I opened the door and stepped into the dim office. Daphne, a bean-pole of a girl with frizzy dirty-blond hair, dull grey eyes, and a gap between her two front teeth, looked up from where she sat at her desk. "Black, right?"
I nodded. "I know that you said...about the results being posted in a week. But I don't think I can wait that long." She nodded, and I continued, "Just, give it to me now: I didn't make it, did I?"
Daphne stood up. "I'm still deciding. You have a lot of promise out there..."
"But...?"
"Well...you don't seem ready for the team." She gave me a small smile. "I'm thinking that I'll pick Gamble and Longbottom for the Beaters."
I snorted. "Gamble?"
She raised her eyebrows. "What?"
I sighed. "Well...I thought that even I did better then Gamble. But I think I'd go with Lionel, or-"
Daphne suddenly let out a cry of frustration. "That's why I had to give myself a week, Black. This is impossible! I shouldn't be captain!" I wasn't exactly ready for her breakdown, so I started to edge for the door.
"Well...thanks. It's good to know that-"
"Wait!" she cried. I stopped, my hand on the doorknob. She came over to me, pinning me to the door. "I haven't made my choice yet. But maybe you could...persuade me a little?" She leaned in and started kissing me.
I was in shook. Daphne was fifteen, as I was only twelve. Sure, I knew the girls thought I was "hot": I saw them all giggling about me everytime they thought I wasn't listening. But these were first, second, and third year girls...not fifth!
But I kissed her back. And I knew: this was going to get me on the team!
So we started going out. And the results were posted, with James as the new Chaser and me and Frank Longbottom (who was also in fifth year) as the new Beaters. James wasn't surprised, as was anyone eles: they all knew the reason I'd made the team. But I didn't care.
Until the first game.
I could tell that Daphne was starting to get tempermental. The rumors about the two of us and stressful practices made her irritable, even when I tried to make her feel better...She would push me away and say, "Not now, Sirius, I need to think."
"Geez, Daph, I thought this was what you wanted."
"You don't understand, Sirius. I'm the captain!"
Woopdidoo, I thought sarcastically. I wanted to dump her, but I knew I'd lose my place on the team if I did, and I was having too much fun at practices with James and the others that I wasn't willing to give it up.
But the first game changed everything. Daphne was very nervous the night before, but gave up her complaining when we started kissing in one of Filch's storage closets. But the next day, she was more stressed then ever.
"Eat something, Daph, come on," I said, as James and I wolfed down breakfast. We were both confident that Gryffindor would beat the shit out of Ravenclaw.
Daphne rolled her eyes. "How can you eat at a time like this? We're totally unprepared..."
The game didn't go as good as was expected. It was all the new Keeper's fault: vincent was impossible, and let Ravenclaw get 60 points get by. Thanks to James, we managed to hold out own on points, and he got 90 points before the Snitch was caught...by the other team.
Daphne, being the Seeker for our team, was very upset. She started to cry in the locker room, making everyone eles really uncomfortable. They looked over at me, as if expecting me to comfort her. With a sigh, I went over to her.
"Daph, it's okay...it's just the first game, don't be upset..."
She pulled her hands away from her face and gave me an evil look. "I'm not the only one to blame, Black! If you'd been on them properly, we could've gotten more points." Now, this was unfair: Longbottom and I had been doing our best, which wasn't so bad.
"Daphne, come on..."
"I should've never let you on the team!" With that, she picked up her broom and started to hit me with it. Hard! When the others had pulled her away from me, she went into her office and started smashing up things with her broom.
She was provoked her position of captain, and it was given to Longbottom. I now had an excuse to break up with her: her psychotic behavior in the locker room was as good an excuse as any.
Still, I couldn't help feeling guilty whenever I saw her in the hall. She would give me this woebegone look, and I would look away. Why did girls make me feel so bad? I swore to myself, I would never let another girl make me feel bad again...
Yeah, like I kept that promise...
After my not so pleasant experience with Ariande, which left me feeling a bit sympathetic towards Isabella about the way I treated her, I returned to school for my second year, determined not to let girls get in the way.
Of course, that changed rather quickly.
Quidditch tryouts for Gryffindor were coming up, and James was determined to get the one open Chaser spot. "Come on, Sirius, you should try out. It'd be great to be on the team together..."
I considered it. After all, there were three other spots open: both Beaters and the Keeper. I figured, hell, may as well try for a Beater spot.
More people tried out then I would have figured. There were about seven others trying out for Beater. I didn't think I had much of a chance: there were at least three players better then me. I wasn't so bad, but I didn't think I'd make it.
James, of course, smoked the try-outs. The youngest of the four to try out for Chaser, he was the fastest and most precise of them all. Clearly, he would get on the team.
But the captain, a fifth year girl named Daphne Bell, announced that she wouldn't be putting up the results for another week.
"A week? I can't wait a week!" I complained to James as we headed back to the school.
"I know what you mean. I mean, just get it over with, and-"
"Please, James. You know you're going to get Chaser." I sighed. "I don't think I can take it. I'm going to talk to this girl. See you later."
Daphne had gone into her captain's office, and I knocked on the door. "Come in," she called.
I opened the door and stepped into the dim office. Daphne, a bean-pole of a girl with frizzy dirty-blond hair, dull grey eyes, and a gap between her two front teeth, looked up from where she sat at her desk. "Black, right?"
I nodded. "I know that you said...about the results being posted in a week. But I don't think I can wait that long." She nodded, and I continued, "Just, give it to me now: I didn't make it, did I?"
Daphne stood up. "I'm still deciding. You have a lot of promise out there..."
"But...?"
"Well...you don't seem ready for the team." She gave me a small smile. "I'm thinking that I'll pick Gamble and Longbottom for the Beaters."
I snorted. "Gamble?"
She raised her eyebrows. "What?"
I sighed. "Well...I thought that even I did better then Gamble. But I think I'd go with Lionel, or-"
Daphne suddenly let out a cry of frustration. "That's why I had to give myself a week, Black. This is impossible! I shouldn't be captain!" I wasn't exactly ready for her breakdown, so I started to edge for the door.
"Well...thanks. It's good to know that-"
"Wait!" she cried. I stopped, my hand on the doorknob. She came over to me, pinning me to the door. "I haven't made my choice yet. But maybe you could...persuade me a little?" She leaned in and started kissing me.
I was in shook. Daphne was fifteen, as I was only twelve. Sure, I knew the girls thought I was "hot": I saw them all giggling about me everytime they thought I wasn't listening. But these were first, second, and third year girls...not fifth!
But I kissed her back. And I knew: this was going to get me on the team!
So we started going out. And the results were posted, with James as the new Chaser and me and Frank Longbottom (who was also in fifth year) as the new Beaters. James wasn't surprised, as was anyone eles: they all knew the reason I'd made the team. But I didn't care.
Until the first game.
I could tell that Daphne was starting to get tempermental. The rumors about the two of us and stressful practices made her irritable, even when I tried to make her feel better...She would push me away and say, "Not now, Sirius, I need to think."
"Geez, Daph, I thought this was what you wanted."
"You don't understand, Sirius. I'm the captain!"
Woopdidoo, I thought sarcastically. I wanted to dump her, but I knew I'd lose my place on the team if I did, and I was having too much fun at practices with James and the others that I wasn't willing to give it up.
But the first game changed everything. Daphne was very nervous the night before, but gave up her complaining when we started kissing in one of Filch's storage closets. But the next day, she was more stressed then ever.
"Eat something, Daph, come on," I said, as James and I wolfed down breakfast. We were both confident that Gryffindor would beat the shit out of Ravenclaw.
Daphne rolled her eyes. "How can you eat at a time like this? We're totally unprepared..."
The game didn't go as good as was expected. It was all the new Keeper's fault: vincent was impossible, and let Ravenclaw get 60 points get by. Thanks to James, we managed to hold out own on points, and he got 90 points before the Snitch was caught...by the other team.
Daphne, being the Seeker for our team, was very upset. She started to cry in the locker room, making everyone eles really uncomfortable. They looked over at me, as if expecting me to comfort her. With a sigh, I went over to her.
"Daph, it's okay...it's just the first game, don't be upset..."
She pulled her hands away from her face and gave me an evil look. "I'm not the only one to blame, Black! If you'd been on them properly, we could've gotten more points." Now, this was unfair: Longbottom and I had been doing our best, which wasn't so bad.
"Daphne, come on..."
"I should've never let you on the team!" With that, she picked up her broom and started to hit me with it. Hard! When the others had pulled her away from me, she went into her office and started smashing up things with her broom.
She was provoked her position of captain, and it was given to Longbottom. I now had an excuse to break up with her: her psychotic behavior in the locker room was as good an excuse as any.
Still, I couldn't help feeling guilty whenever I saw her in the hall. She would give me this woebegone look, and I would look away. Why did girls make me feel so bad? I swore to myself, I would never let another girl make me feel bad again...
Yeah, like I kept that promise...
