TriNymphs - Chapter Twenty - Through The Rabbit Hole (Disclaimer on my profile and OMG look a Note: This chapter title has even less to do with the acctual chapter then usual just so you know)
The next day classes started. The heads of houses went around their tables handing out schedules. The group met quickly just outside the doors immediately after they got theirs. They were counting on the fact that no one would be outside that early, they wanted to meet and compare schedules. Depending on who saw them, the dungeons could have become a very dangerous place.
The Gryffindors and Slytherins had Potions and Defence Against the Dark Arts together. Cho had Herbology with the Slytherins and Transfiguration and Charms with the Gryffindors.
They snuck back inside gradually and went off to their classes. Lyssa and Katie went off to Charms with Cho. Professor Flitwick started off the class by taking attendance, as every first class of the year was generally started, so the teachers could get to know who was in the class. After that was finished he started on the lesson on a charm to unlock locks.
Each person was given a small padlock and was instructed on how to use the spell. Cho's friend Maria was intensely trying to open the lock, her attempt however did not work and she was getting progressively more agitated at the lock as time went by. Lyssa did not envy Cho, who would have to spend the rest of the day with her yet.
By the end of class most of the students had gotten their locks to open, as Flitwick had started them off on a rather easy charm. Maria was one of the very few people who had yet to unlock it. Flitwick set it as homework to those few as they would be starting something else the next day. One of the girls who hadn't been able to pull off the charm picked the lock, unfortunately for her Flitwick had seen her do so.
In the meantime, the Slytherins were in Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs. That class was started with the attendance being taken as well, after which they moved on to turning a beetle into a button. Unlike the students currently in charms, few were able to do so by the end of class.
Next was Defence Against the Dark Arts. The classroom was spilt into a Gryffindor side and a Slytherin side. It passed fairly uneventfully. Snape only managed to take a total of five points from Gryffindor in that class. It was taken because of Katie who accidentally added way too much of some obscure sounding ingredient. This resulted in the caldron bubbling over and dissolving its way through the table.
Then it was to the Great Hall for lunch. Chelsea ended up sitting next to Warrington, a chaser on the Slytherin Quidditch team. She struck up a conversation about the team. Usually no girls would be expected to get on the team, but according to Warrington there weren't very many promising Slytherin players that weren't already on the team. That meant she had a good chance.
Or, she had a good chance as long as she tried out to be a seeker. The chaser spots were apparently as good as taken already. When Madam Hooch got up from the staff table and started walking out of the hall Chelsea got up and jogged after her. She had a head start but Chelsea caught up in the next room.
She asked to sign up for tryouts. She followed Madam Hooch to her office where the signup sheet was, then hurried off to her next class.
It was Defence Against the Dark Arts with the Gryffindors. She stepped into the class just after the bell rang; she wasn't particularly worried as Eve had said the new teacher was a nervous wreck. Eve was never wrong, Chelsea thought to herself, thankful for her friend, as she walked over to sit next to her.
Quirrell was attempting to make his way through class list, which was taking longer due to his stutter. He didn't mention Chelsea coming in late.
The class passed in relative boredom, aside from the Slytherins mocking Quirrell. Next was Herbology for the Slytherins and Ravenclaws. Chelsea, Alex, and the other two were free to sit near Cho and Maria as there was no Slytherin-Ravenclaw feud. In the meantime, the Gryffindors had Transfiguration.
Those classes passed smoothly, they were the last of the day and once they were finished, people went off to a long awaited break in the common room.
"How's Hogwarts treating you, lil bro?" Alex asked Draco, as he came strutting into the common room.
"Just fine. Does Snape act like that towards all the Slytherins?"
Alex nodded before Eve interjected, "Nope, he favourites you a little more even then most of the Slytherins. It's apparently because you're a Malfoy." Eve had evidently gotten over her frustration at not knowing about the forbidden third floor corridor.
"We're Malfoy's too," said Alex gesturing to herself and Chelsea.
"Not according to Snape or Mr Malfoy. They were talking through Snape's fireplace last night, rather loudly I might add, and apparently you two and Lyssa are adopted. Besides, you both go by the last name Black, don't you?"
The two (and Lyssa when she was told) were surprised; Alex however was the only disappointed one, as she was the only one to fit in with the Malfoy's. They left her to deal with that. Chelsea had always suspected they weren't her real parents, but as time went on and she got older she started to doubt this suspicion, and think that it was maybe just her hopes talking.
Two weeks later were Quidditch tryouts. Saturday was the Slytherin tryouts. First the hopefuls, which were about twenty-five or so in numbers, were split into three groups then made to do laps around the pitch.
Five people were eliminated after that; next they did more laps, still in their groups. But that time the three already existing members of the quidditch team threw small balls at them as they flew. Not as painful to be hit with as bludgers, but it still weeded out a further three people who were awful at dodging and quickly fell off their brooms. Seventeen remained.
After that they were tried out in groups according to which position they wanted. First was the Chaser spot. It was given to some boy named Montague that Chelsea knew little about, but he was very good. Warrington and Flint were chasers, but played Keeper during tryouts. They were pretty good at both positions, and the person who could get the most goals past them got the chaser spot. Keepers next, the one who could save the most out of ten goals got the spot.
They already had two beaters, so then it was finally the Seeker tryouts.
The snitch was let loose as the five hopefuls (including Chelsea) stood on the Quidditch pitch. They waited fifteen seconds for Warrington to blow the whistle then they took off. First person to get the snitch three times won. First time was a girl in third year. Second time was the same girl.
She caught Chelsea staring at her, sizing her up, and she smirked. The third time the snitch was let loose; Chelsea caught it, chasing it halfway across the pitch while the girl ran into the stand whilst trying to go after it. She hadn't gone high up enough.
Fourth time was a boy in sixth year. Fifth was a fifth year girl. Sixth was Chelsea, she was tied with the second year girl. That girl had been progressively getting more and more awful.
Seventh time, Chelsea was circling above the pitch above where the rest of the team would be in an actual game. She had seen seekers doing so at the World Cup in Ireland a few years ago. The Malfoy's had gotten tickets through some ministry contact there.
The girl she was tied with was circling just below where the players would normally be. The other three were ambling around at normal height, hoping to run across the snitch. Chelsea spotted a glint of gold at the other side of the pitch just below her. She streaked towards it, passing the other girl, who was stationed half way across the field. Before she even noticed anything the snitch had been caught.
Only one of the people trying out saw her streaking towards it, so absorbed were the others in their search. She easily outstripped the third year boy with the unibrow and caught the snitch, making that her third catch.
She got on the team!