Scorpius had a light spring in his step as he walked for the second time through the gates and into the stadium of the Falmouth Falcons. He already saw some of his new teammates hanging around the pitch, some were in the air, warming up, others were chatting cheerfully with one another. Scorpius saw a dark shadow pass over his and he looked up. He breathed heavily as William Horton swooped down from the sky and landed elegantly in front of him. Scorpius gripped his broom and bat in anticipation of what he was about to say.

"Morning." William called cheerfully.

Scorpius breathed out, relaxing. Relax, he told himself. He's only human.

"Hi." he replied.

"Looking forward to practice today?" he asked.

"Absolutely." Scorpius nodded.

William smiled. "Fantastic. I have some moves I wanna show you today but first, we'll have to see what you've got."

Scorpius was about to answer when he heard a loud whistle at the end of the pitch. Oliver Wood was standing with his clipboard and pen, glancing around at his team, which was still scattered across the pitch. Scorpius saw him gesture for them to approach him and without a word, William and him immediately set off in that direction. The other players seemed to notice this as well and instinctively they all stopped whatever they were doing and obeyed the coach. That was rule number 1, Scorpius knew for a fact. Obey and respect the coach. Rule number 2, listen to and back up your teammates. They were no negotiable these rules and anyone who did disobey them suffered the wrath of the whole team. Something Scorpius was not keen to experience any time soon. Every was silent as Oliver Wood did a quick headcount. Scorpius caught Adrianna's eye and she gave him a smile. Scorpius smiled back, albeit hesitantly.

Satisfied, Oliver Wood looked at his team, ready to address them.

"We have a big season ahead of us." he called out. "There have been numerous changes and we all need to step it up and bring our A game. This is not the time for complacency. I expect your 100% commitment every session. If you're not prepared to give it, don't bother to show up." he remarked seriously.

Most of the team nodded this off casually. This was normal for them. But for Scorpius, he drank in every word. He was going to follow Wood's instructions to the the T. Oliver Wood continued.

"Now, today we're just going to get back into the swing of things. We'll do a few rounds about the stadium, them I want you guys split up and we'll play a mini game. What I'm looking for today: agility, alertness and speed. A lot of team bought new players in the transfer window. New players means new blood, new energy and better speed. We have to compete to keep on top. Also, it's obviously Scorpius' first session in the air with us so I want everyone to look out for him. Horton, I expect you to show him any ropes."

He eyed William who nodded immediately. He then turned his attention to Scorpius.

"Don't worry Scorpius we'll go easy for today." he smiled.

The rest of the team chuckled a little while Scorpius gulped.

"Alright then," Oliver Wood glanced at his watch, "Up you go!"

Scorpius had barely processed this instruction when he felt the rest of his teammates zoom upwards in the air around him. Quickly trying to join them, he mounted his broom and soared into the sky, bat in hand. He noticed that the team was doing laps around the stadium, getting the adrenaline going and the blood flowing. He rushed to join them, trailing at the end. They were fast. Going at probably their fastest speeds, Scorpius found he had to constantly lean forward to catch up with them. They must have done about 10 rounds about the stadium when finally, Scorpius heard the distant whistle of his coach from the ground below. He took this as a cue and followed the rest of the team as the turned and began to plunge once more towards the earth. Scorpius could feel the wind whipping against his ears, his eyes squinting despite the goggles on his face. His hair was windswept and his hands, gripped his bat and broom. It felt good to be flying again... The team stopped just before they hit the ground and Scorpius too, screeched to a halt. they hovered just above the ground, waiting for further instructions.

Oliver nodded his head with approval.

"Good. Looks like you're all ready to go. Nice to see you could keep up Scorpius."

Scorpius nodded as the rest of the team gazed at him in approval.

"Now" Oliver looked at his clipboard, "Two sides. I want, Adrianna, Scorpius, Colin, Kristine and Casey on one team. Everyone else, you're on the other. Scorpius and William stay as beaters. The rest can decide on a seeker, chaser and keeper for your team. Quickly now!" he called.

Scorpius flew over to where his mini team was gathering.

"What now?" he asked.

"This is sort of a mini competition. You challenge yourself to play against your own team. know their weaknesses and you know how to back them up." Colin explained.

"I'll be the keeper this time." Adrianna remarked.

"Yes this is a good example. Ad's usually a chaser but by playing a keeper, she sees things from another perspective. It makes her a better player." Casey continued.

"I'll be seeker then." Colin smiled.

"I guess we're the chasers!" Casey sighed smugly, glancing at Kristine who laughed.

"This will be fun." Adrianna chuckled lightly.

"Everyone ready?" Oliver called.

The teams turned to face their coach who was now carrying a heavy box, where in Scorpius knew, lay the quaffle, the bludgers and the all precious snitch.

"Yes coach!" they called in response.

"Good" he smiled, setting the box down.

"Remember, the objective is not to win but to see things from a new perspective." he reminded them.

"William doesn't believe in that philosophy. He'll be out to win." Kristine whispered to Scorpius who glanced over at William. Kristine was right. His teeth were gritted and Scorpius could see sweat trickling down his face. This would not end very well if he didn't play things safe.

"A clean game from all of you now." Oliver glanced at William as if sensing Scorpius' fears.

William didn't bat an eyelid.

"Ready..." the teams leant forward, having taken their positions at the pitch.

Scorpius glanced down at his bat, the initials R and S seemed to be bolder than ever, screaming at him. "I can do this." he reminded himself. "I can do this."

"Go!" shouted the coach and with a flurry of movements the balls were in the air.

Scorpius caught a brief look at the snitch before it fluttered away again. He saw the bludgers next and quickly zoomed out of the way, looking for a better position to hit them. The players zoomed across the pitch, heading in different directions. Scorpius saw Kristine get past the defense as she flew straight for the hoops, easily tossing the quaffle in. She was followed quickly by Casey. Scorpius had to remind himself that he was playing, not watching. Turning his attention back to the bludgers, one was coming his way. But who to hit it at? Just then he saw Jonathan Riller, heading towards Adrianna, with a determined look on his face. The quaffle rested confidently under his arm. Thinking fast, Scorpius swung his bat and the bludger flew towards him. It missed him just by an inch but it was enough for him to lose his focus and drop the quaffle.

"Go Scorpius!"

Colin cheered as he zoomed past with Victor Trupher both of them intent on getting the snitch. Scorpius smiled for a moment before getting his thoughts back into the game. The next few minutes for Scorpius was a blur. William Horton was competitive but he wasn't brutal like people made him out to be. He did have a killer swing and sometimes he looked like he was in a complete rage but he made sure never to angle the bludgers so that people would get hit. Scorpius observed him as he had been instructed to, the trajectories of his swings, the force he used, how long he waited before he took the shot. It was impressive, very impressive. All of them were.

Scorpius himself had to keep reminding himself they weren't his opponents. After what seemed like forever with the points drawn at 80-90, Victor caught the snitch. It had been a close call, Colin had almost got it but it was just snatched out of reach Scorpius had smiled, a little disappointed as the opposing side cheered at their win. After helping the team to gather the bludgers and the quaffle, he slowly flew over to meet up with Casey and Kristine who also looked a little down. Suddenly, he felt a warm shoulder on his hand.

"Not to worry Scorpius. You did a cracking job. But someone had to win." Adrianna smiled.

Scorpius nodded slightly and shrugged.

"Yea well we'll get em next time." he replied.

Adrianna laughed and slapped his back once more.

"There's the fighting spirit we like to see!" she chuckled.

"Sorry about that guys."

Colin had flown over to his other teammates who were hovering above the ground.

"It was a good game Colin. Couldn't have asked for anything else." Casey assured him.

"Yes we all did good." Kristine joined in.

"You were fantastic Scorpius!" Colin turned his attention to him.

Scorpius smiled.

"Well let's hope I stay this way." he replied.

Just then Oliver's whistle sounded and the two teams turned around and merged together to form one solid group once more. They waited patiently as the coach hastily scribbled down some notes for later reference.

"Some excellent work out there today from all of you!" he called.

"Now don't be too disheartened if you didn't win. That's why we have practices like this so losing isn't an option when it comes to the real thing."

The team nodded in agreement.

"I'm quite impressed with Scorpius today. He managed to keep up with everyone and I think he came up with some fine moves when the situation called for it. I think everyone agrees with me?" he added.

There were general murmurs of approval, nods, smiles and Scorpius could see the sides of William's mouth twitch.

"Do you think he'll make a decent partner Will?" Oliver asked.

William glanced at Scorpius for a moment. In that instant, he was a blank slate, his expression unreadable. The he turned back to his coach once more.

"Think he'll make a cracking partner coach! Of course once I've trained him up a little." he called.

The team burst out into agreement, thumping Scorpius on the back and giving him the thumbs up. He had passed test number 2. He quietly wondered how many of these he would have to go through.

Oliver smiled. "Excellent. I like it when my team likes each other. There really were some great moments from you Scorpius and I could see you watching. As long as you keep up the proactive attitude, you're going to go far..." he reassured him.

Scorpius' heart swelled at the idea. Him, he could go far? They were the magic words he always wanted to hear from someone as renowned as Oliver Wood. This was just the boost he needed. If they thought they had seen all of him today, they were wrong. He was going to show them, just what he was capable of. He would be the best player for the Falcons, ever! His mother and father would be so proud. And what would Rose think as well? She would probably say, "I told you so" he thought to himself, chuckling.

"Go far?" Jonathan's voice shook him out of his thoughts. "That's an understatement. Did you see how he got me to drop the quaffle?"

"Yea I did!" Adrianna laughed. "He was awesome."

"Scorpius is awesome!" Casey called.

"We are awesome." William playfully corrected her.

"We are awesome!" The team called.

Oliver laughed and shook his head.

"That's enough with you. To the locker rooms. Be fresh and ready for tomorrow."

And with that, he turned with the box containing the Quidditch balls and slowly walked of the pitch. The team watched him go and then surrounded Scorpius once more, some slinging their arms around him, others pulling his hand, trying to chat with him. It was like he was a new toy with them. They adored him. The feeling made Scorpius feel good. Like he was really wanted and needed. He just hoped the this treatment would last. As they passed under the shadow of the headquarters, entering the cool and chilled hallways, Colin nudged Scorpius playfully as the girls head of to their changing rooms whilst the boys took the left to their rooms.

"So" he asked Scorpius. "How do you like flying with the falcons?"

"Fantastic" came the immediate reply.