Yay. Sports. ['Spectator', Concessions area] on Quidditch Pitch

The Coach

June 08, 2021 7:31 AM

Schoolwide Quidditch Extravaganza by The Coach

The Quidditch season had long since been running and running rather well in the coach's opinion. Sonora's team had played teams from several other schools and won more often than they'd lost, although they were hardly winning them all. Still, it was good for students to lose sometimes and to learn about good sportsmanship in all circumstances. Some of the players, the coach knew, needed that lesson more than others.

With a bonfire coming up at the end of the year, big events in spring term were usually small events in spring term. Still, recruitment was on the coach's mind as the year came to a close and students would be looking ahead to their futures at or after Sonora. With some of the players graduating, including some who had been around for all or most of their school careers, it was important to get people interested in the game who hadn't yet shown an interest in playing and to maintain the school's general good feelings about the sport. It wasn't like everyone enjoyed watching Quidditch, but in the coach's not-so-humble opinion, everyone could enjoy attending a Quidditch game.

To that end, an all-Sonora spectacle was hosted on the Pitch to allow students to come watch a friendly rivalry and to allow Sonora students, both subs and regulars, to play together. They had managed to recruit a few extras, between siblings and friends of current players, so they had two full teams of Sonora students going head to head. The coach had been sure to mix them up so it wasn't regular players versus subs and the teams were pretty well balanced now. It also meant a fair amount of showing off, as there was less pressure on actually winning the game this way. Before and after the actual game, students who weren't on the team could also enjoy some air time, flying around on their own or on school brooms and enjoying the nice spring weather. Otherwise, there was food the elves had kindly set up in concessions and plenty of social opportunities for students in the stands to enjoy. Feasts and games were some of the only school-wide events outside of the year-end events and the coach enjoyed the opportunity to be part of bringing everyone together.

OOC: This is an opportunity for everyone to socialize regardless of what classes they're in and it can be assumed that it's a pretty low-key affair for some casual fun. Please consider include details of where/when your character is posting in their title so others can participate (ex: [pre-game, flying], [during game, stands], etc.). House points will not be awarded for posts here; it's purely a fun opportunity. :)

Subthreads:

Friendly chatters. [post-game, Mara] by Leonor De Matteo with Mara Morales

Goodbye, Pitch. [Pre-game, player] by Evelyn Stones

Someday, I'ma play too. [during game, stands] by Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith with Oz Spellman, Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

Whoo-hoo!! [In Game, Flying] by Valentine Duell

Yay. Sports. ['Spectator', Concessions area] by Iris Cobb with Ian Malone

Take this joke seriously (tag Hilda) by Jeremy Mordue with Hilda Hexenmeister

22 The Coach Schoolwide Quidditch Extravaganza 0 The Coach 1 5

Leonor De Matteo

June 08, 2021 8:58 AM

Friendly chatters. [post-game, Mara] by Leonor De Matteo

Leonor played well. The game went well. Everything was fine and there was totally nothing on Leonor's mind at all as the school year was nearing a close. After having narrowly avoided a visit from Jeremy to Los Jardines de Plata last summer after her father had invited him over and after avoiding his visit over Christmas by convincing her father it was rude to impose on other families at the holidays when they got to spend their time together, Leonor knew she couldn't get out of it again. She'd had her quinceañera over winter break and the celebration had seemed only to remind her father exactly how useful she was as a pawn now, despite being the literal friggin' heir to Los Jardines de Plata at this point. Of course, much as she hated her father's more misogynistic tendencies, she couldn't help also appreciating that he was, on the whole, a generally philanthropic person. Sure, it came almost entirely from a life-long desire to spite his own father, to prove he was important and needed, and to feel valuable, but still. Helping people was helping people, and their winter break had been full of helping people. That's how it always was, but a quinceañera meant there were even bigger celebrations than usual and the De Matteo display of generosity was extreme.

Doing the right thing for the wrong reasons and doing the wrong thing for the right reasons had both been on Leonor's mind since then and she'd resolved to do something about it. Namely, she was resolved to at least try to bridge a connection with a friend she'd lost touch with by doing one or the other of those things. She wasn't sure yet whether she'd done the right thing or the wrong thing, or whether she would in future, but she knew she'd hurt Mara. She also knew that, at this point, there was a good chance she was stuck with continuing to do so and that the Mordue family stain would very soon be impacting her own subjects as well. Knowing that her life was only half in her own hands now, and certainly much less than it had been before she'd taken Felipe's position, Leonor found it hard to care about things like Quidditch as much as she'd have liked to. Seeing Jeremy only made her stomach do flips, even when she kept her broom steady, so she tried not to look at him. It was generally an ineffective tactic, but she tried.

Once the game was done though, she paid him no further looks and made her way around to look for Mara. She had high hopes the girl would be in the stands, suspecting that she and Jessica had both watched the game. Felipe and Jessica seemed to have made up some so that was good and boded well for Leonor's ability to get done what she wanted to get done and to do so as quickly as possible. This was the sort of thing you only did once or twice in your life, so she wanted to get it right.

When she finally found her old friend, Leonor approached with as demure a demeanor as she could manage without looking ridiculous. She was sure Mara knew the posture was hard for her but wasn't sure whether that would make her more or less sympathetic to the Aladren.

"Hi," she began. "I wanted to apologize to you. Do you want something to eat?"

22 Leonor De Matteo Friendly chatters. [post-game, Mara] 1471 0 5

Evelyn Stones

June 08, 2021 10:32 AM

Goodbye, Pitch. [Pre-game, player] by Evelyn Stones

Evelyn changed into her game robes and held her broom a little closer than she normally did. The familiar leather braces on her wrists, the familiar boots on the familiar ground, the familiar smell of the changing rooms and staging rooms . . . this felt as much like home as any other part of Sonora, maybe more than anywhere but the library. Even her own dorm room didn't feel as homey as did the Pitch where she'd spent so much time with some of her closest friends, doing one of the things she loved most. She had pretty well settled on a college now and while colleges generally did have Quidditch teams, she doubted she'd play again. Between studying, seeing Heinrich and CJ and Ness and Gary and . . . well, she had a lot of things to do other than play. She hoped she'd be able to fly still and she'd keep up her exercise, but it would be different soon. Everything was changing soon.

Ness had called the McLeod home their home and the parents their parents. It was the first time Evelyn had really truly let herself accept that she'd been adopted, spiritually if not legally. She had a family and part of that family was right here on the Pitch with her, flying for one of the last times as Sonora players. It was a beautiful, painful thought and Evelyn grasped her broom a little tighter.

Not wanting to let the entire moment go by in her own head, she turned to a nearby player and grinned. "You ready for today? Weather is gorgeous . . . this should be great."

22 Evelyn Stones Goodbye, Pitch. [Pre-game, player] 1422 0 5

Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

June 08, 2021 2:18 PM

Someday, I'ma play too. [during game, stands] by Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

Mommy liked to support her students when they played games and she liked to take Zeus to games and Zeus was super okay with that so he was basically bouncing around all happy and stuff when they finally arrived at the Pitch. He was excited to get to watch the big kids play even though he was also super jealous. He'd brought Circle, the stuffed Snitch, and he was holding the little squishy ball in his lap as he watched the players fly through the air. Someday, he was going to be a student at Sonora and he'd get to play too. He thought maybe he'd like to be Chaser because they got to do the most and there was lots of action for them, but he thought maybe he would like to be Beater too because they got to whack stuff with sticks. Keeper and Seeker seemed boring because you just hung out alone and who wanted to do that? He already spent a lot of time alone when he wasn't with Dora and it wasn't nearly as exciting as hanging out with other people and stuff. Most of his time was either spent with Dora or with adults; he didn't even spend much time with the big kids that went to school. No, when he played Quidditch, he'd definitely want to be something more exciting than a Seeker or a Keeper. A Seeker's job was just to end the game and a Keeper's job was to make the game harder for other people. Bah. No thank you.

As much as he loved Quidditch, Zeus loved people more and he let his eyes wander around to see who they were sitting near as the game went on. His mom was riveted to the game, although she glanced his way often enough to make sure he hadn't run off or set anything on fire (both of which were possibilities although the former was much more likely than the latter) and he didn't think she'd mind him socializing. Dora wasn't nearby that he saw but there were some other kids there. They were big kids, students at the school, but not the really big ones that were basically like thirty years old or something. These were smaller big kids. Of course, Zeus was terrible at guessing how old.

"I'ma say hi," he told his mom as he ran off. She adjusted her oversized hat and tucked her long black hair over one shoulder so she could see him more easily but let him go. He could feel her eyes on him which was nice because sometimes stuff was scary and it was good to know mom had his back.

"Hi," he said, approaching the nearest big kid. "I like Quidditch too," he told them, since it was obvious they did or they wouldn't be here. "Can I sit with you?"

22 Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith Someday, I'ma play too. [during game, stands] 1576 0 5

Valentine Duell

June 08, 2021 4:04 PM

Whoo-hoo!! [In Game, Flying] by Valentine Duell

Valentine shot through the skies around the pitch on her new broom. This was fantastic! They were having a fun game at 'home' now and it was great! The wind rushed past the girl whipping her hair all about and she grinned madly at the sensation. The other great thing was that she had gotten Bonabelle to play again! She liked playing against the other schools well enough, but this was better, there was no desperate need to win, no intense focus on outdoing the other team. This was just a fun game they were all playing as friends, and it was the best!

Now... where was that ball she was supposed to be doing something about? Val decided she should probably be doing something actually game related. Ah! There it was! A quick dart downwards and she sliced between two of her opposing chasers and snatched the ball as they tried to pass it. She cackled manically as she continued the dive and then pulled up in a wide arc towards the goal. Potions class and gaming had really done wonders for her maniacal cackle.

She narrowly dodged a bludger as it tried to intercept her just as she had intercepted the quaffle, but it was to slow for her new broom! Still giggling in delight she raced along the pitch trying to find someone on her team that was open. There! She spotted someone! Her arm pulled back and launched the ball towards her teammate as she cheered them onward! This was great!

OOC: Bonabelle coercing approved by her author.

2 Valentine Duell Whoo-hoo!! [In Game, Flying] 1490 0 5

Oz Spellman

June 09, 2021 3:50 AM

Lucky you by Oz Spellman

Oz sat in the stands. He wasn’t sure why he’d come, given that all he could do was sit here and miss out, watching Billy having fun. He hated the hours when he was out of their dorm. He hated it when he came back from practice full of stories, and Oz had to pretend to be just as excited as he was when he was jealous that he was hearing it secondhand. It had been worse last year when Gus had been on the team too, and he'd had to ignore their room being totally empty, but even Gus choosing to quit hadn't helped much. Gus had still had a choice.

He’d kind of wanted to see, wanted to get as close to the action as possible, and would have suffered from the FOMO of skipping it entirely, but being one of the people in the stands was only compounding his misery.

He’d chosen to sit away from Henry, partly because that was his default position, and also because he didn’t want to be angry at Henry when this wasn’t his fault. It was a risk, because if anyone else came along, he was going to have to choke down the anger and put on a smile like he did with Billy and Gus.

At first, his section of the stands had been pretty empty. He had been too wrapped up in himself to be really sure whether he or Professor Brooding-Hawthorne had sat down first, but when he saw the little blond menace scrambling around the seats, he wondered whether this was why there was space around them. He had thought he was successfully giving off moody vibes, and that was why.

Apparently, it had either been a deeply unsuccessful endeavour or they were invisible to a… what age was that? Two? Anyway, whatever.

“HI.” He faked a very brief smile. His eyes roved over the players on the pitch. There had been something about flying later, after the game. Maybe he’d get a brief taste… “Yeah, it’s awesome,” he stated flatly. Then the kid threw him a curve ball (probably the only kind he’d have coming his way that day). Oz didn’t really want to sit with him. He didn’t know what to do with a three(?? Seven??) year old. “Uh. Sure…” He definitely sounded a bit baffled by the idea, but he wasn’t really gonna say ‘no.’ He just hoped they didn’t explode at this age, or he wasn’t meant to be somehow responsible now.

13 Oz Spellman Lucky you 1514 0 5

Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

June 10, 2021 9:26 AM

But you're the big kid already so... by Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

Zeus took a seat next to the older boy, pretty pleased with himself for being so awesome at making friends. Mommy and daddy had told him he needed to be careful but he didn't really understand what they were talking about. Something about how he was too cute but he already knew that because everyone loved him and said he was cute and he didn't see why that was a problem. This kid hadn't said he was cute but he was glad because it always made him feel like a little kid and sitting next to a big kid made him feel like he wasn't so little anymore. He even threw a pleased little smirk at his mom as he settled in.

"Thank you," he said, because you were supposed to be polite and because he was actually happy about being allowed to sit here. "I'm Zeus. This is Circle." He held up the stuffed snitch. "You can hold them if you want to but it's okay if you don't want to." Zeus really hoped the older boy didn't want to because then what would he hold onto? Nothing? The idea was appalling. Although . . . the older boy didn't seem to have brought his own stuffed toys. Perhaps that was something that big kids weren't supposed to do? Or perhaps the older kid just extra needed to be allowed to hold Circle. Zeus resigned himself to giving up his hold on the Snitch for a bit, even holding it up a bit so that the older boy could see it properly to make his decision. "What's your name?" he asked.

22 Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith But you're the big kid already so... 1576 0 5

Iris Cobb

June 10, 2021 5:31 PM

Yay. Sports. ['Spectator', Concessions area] by Iris Cobb

Iris could not wrap her head around what all the fuss was about with Quidditch. There were just a bunch of people flying around on brooms trying to throw a ball back and forth. At the end of it all, one side had thrown the ball better than the other side. Yay? She just could not quite see the point. It did have a few redeeming qualities, she had to admit. For one, it kept Billy busy, that was a very good one. For another it... umm... well she supposed it did get her outside right now and dong things that weren't learning related. That was good as well. For third... she sniffed the air about her, at the moment it was letting her get some snacks that she otherwise wouldn't have access to.

Doing her best to ignore the whooshing of the players on the field and the cheers and exclamations of excitement from the other spectators, Iris made her way towards the concession stands. There was something over that direction that smelled wonderful, and she was going to find out what it was and maybe what sort of magic was necessary to make it. As she approached, there was another gasp of excitement from the crowd and Iris reflexively looked up towards the players against her will. As far as she could tell they were just flying around, the same as always.

"I jus don' get it." She muttered aloud pulling her attention back to the food that was nearly in front of her now. Someone else was looking for whatever was making that aroma as well, looking around them she finally saw what she was seeking. "What is that exactly?" She asked them without taking her eyes off of it.

2 Iris Cobb Yay. Sports. ['Spectator', Concessions area] 1526 0 5

Oz Spellman

June 12, 2021 11:15 PM

Yeah but by Oz Spellman

“Uh, no. You’re good thanks,” said Oz, recoiling slightly when the plushie Snitch was held out to him. It was weird seeing part of the magical world rendered in plushie form. But then he guessed that was what life was like if you grew up in this world. And were a bougie little professor’s kid with plenty of money. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t have had plushie snitches wherever he’d grown up. He also didn’t want one now, as he definitely didn’t want to be seen holding a stuffed toy. He wasn’t totally sure he wanted to be seen with a little kid, but he wasn’t sure there was much he could do about it.

“I’m Oz. Hey?” he called to Professor Brooding-Hawthorne. “Your kid’s up here.” He was pretty sure she knew that already. But he wasn’t really sure what else he was supposed to do with him. Although he really hoped she didn’t come to sit with both of them. That was possibly the only way to make this worse. If she did, maybe he could claim he needed the bathroom or some popcorn or something. He had passed by the concession stands by default, because of course you didn’t buy snacks when you went to an event, but it now occurred to him that the prairie elves had been staffing some of them, and the others had just seemed to be operating themselves. Maybe it counted as school food and they were just allowed it. Things like that still seemed too good to be true though.

13 Oz Spellman Yeah but 1514 0 5

Jeremy Mordue

June 14, 2021 10:02 PM

Take this joke seriously (tag Hilda) by Jeremy Mordue

Jeremy made his way outside, as ready as he could possibly be for this absolute farce of a game. It was just hard to get truly excited for what amounted to a pick up match. The scraping around for friends, siblings, quitters etc to round out the teams only emphasized the atmosphere of a local park in a not particularly affluent neighbourhood. They could dress it up with all the flags and popcorn stands they liked – it was still pathetic.

He performed his warm-ups, not to get into the game, but because the last thing he needed was to pull a muscle during this sorry excuse for a match and end up benched for something that actually mattered. As much as anything he did with this lot could actually matter. Still, at some of their proper matches, there were actually scouts, though he suspected the kind who came to this league weren’t what he was looking for, and the connections he’d built over years at elite Quidditch camps were far more likely to pay off. He would be glad when he was done with this joke of a school and its underwhelming program.

He took to the skies, doing a couple of laps. For some variety, he dipped in between the players. They could hardly complain of him getting in the way or being unconstructive. It was an exhibition, after all. Best to give people a bit of show. Anyway, they didn’t know how his role worked – for all they knew, his eye had caught a glint of gold.

It was as he made these moves that he heard the Duell girl actually giggling to herself. He resurfaced from the pack, coming in close to Hilda, who thankfully had been assigned to protect him.

“I hope you’re taking it more seriously than she is,” he nodded down to where Valentine was laughing. The match might have been a joke, but his personal safety absolutely was not. And, as his roommate had so helpfully demonstrated, the threat was even higher when the pitch was full of incompetents.

13 Jeremy Mordue Take this joke seriously (tag Hilda) 1443 0 5

Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

June 16, 2021 6:27 PM

I'm the biggest kid. by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

Mary turned when she heard herself being called. Well, when she heard Oz Spellman calling out to someone who had a kid over there and since Tabitha was currently absent from the area, that left Mary herself. She was far enough away to clearly not be part of the conversation but not so far as to not hear what was going on and so far Zeus seemed to be teetering on the line between friendly and annoying, depending on who the recipient was of his attention. Oz Spellman seemed to think the attention was annoying, and Mary wasn't about to force either boy to endure an unwanted interaction.

"Zeus," she called, focusing on her son as she gathered her skirts and stood up, drawing nearer to the two boys to avoid shouting across the bleachers at them. "Did you ask if you could sit down first?" Zeus nodded innocently, confirming what she already knew but wanted to emphasize; after all, asking first was important, even if Oz had given permission he didn't really want to. "And did you wait to see if Mr. Spellman wanted to sit quietly or sit and talk?" Zeus was pretty used to the idea that sometimes people wanted to sit quietly, and he'd learned - theoretically - to respect that for the sake of spending time with either of his parents when they were grading, or else sitting with other students when they let him. His cheeks turned pink.

"No," he admitted quietly. He looked up at Oz. "Do you want quiet, Mr. Spellman?" he asked.

"Or?" Mary pushed with a polite smile to Oz himself.

Zeus sighed. "Or do you want to be by yourself?"

"Good boy," Mary beamed at her son. Then to Oz, she continued: "Either way really is okay. We can go sit over there if you're not feeling like company from a six-year-old right now," she smiled kindly, her eyes twinkling.

22 Mary Brooding-Hawthorne I'm the biggest kid. 1424 0 5

Mara Morales

June 17, 2021 1:06 PM

...huh. Didn't expect that. by Mara Morales

Even after four years in this world, and two more before that of hearing about it from Jessica, Mara couldn’t quite believe what a violent game Quidditch was. She was used to the idea that sport in general was nothing more than something people did to make up for how warfare was no longer a hand-to-hand affair – she had grown up surrounded by American football, and was familiar enough with Proper Football from her mother’s side – but at least a ten-man pile-up in American football didn’t involve cannon balls, and even someone who hit a rogue baseball with their own anatomy had a helmet. Come to that, so did American football players. Quidditch players were just insane and that was that.

Well…most of that. The implications weren’t lost on her, especially alongside all the stuff she’d seen and heard about in her classes. Injuries weren’t taken seriously here, and from what she’d been able to gather, adult wizards could hex each other in the bar without the law batting an eye at it, so long as no permanent damage was done. Reading about professional dueling was horrifying stuff sometimes; the things people did to each other here as a sort of sport would get someone tossed into a federal supermax back home. True, it was much easier to repair temporary damage here, and the other party had as much of a chance as the offender did, but…Just one more way, she guessed, in which the way she’d been brought up to think was just now how a wizard thought, and if it was bad for her, God knew how freaked out Jessica really must have been those first two years here.

A perk of having read some of the stuff about even what could even perfectly legally done with wands, though, was that Quidditch seemed tame by comparison, if still insane, and so Mara could enjoy watching it as long as she concentrated in the correct direction. Really, it was no worse than NASCAR, she guessed, after she remembered that car races were a thing; people died in that, too, as was only logical for them to do, zooming around at extreme velocity even with a helmet in a metal box. It was just a matter of adjusting one’s perspective, a matter greatly eased on any occasion when someone she didn’t like was among the more battered players involved that day. Quidditch was insane, race cars were insane, the world was insane – how much did it really matter what direction one came at it from?

The Morales Doctrine of Why Wizards’ Version of Racism Is Stupid, she thought as she climbed down from the stands after the game, and was amused enough with her own joke that she was half-smiling until she noticed Leonor seemingly approaching her, contorted into an odd, unnatural posture despite the fact that Mara was fairly sure Leonor hadn’t been banged up too much today. Her expression turned again, from wariness to confusion to a mix of both, as Leonor spoke.

“Is food supposed to be the apology, or go along with it?” she asked in Spanish.

16 Mara Morales ...huh. Didn't expect that. 1472 0 5

Ian Malone

June 17, 2021 1:20 PM

Assuming that's incredibly sarcastic, I totally agree by Ian Malone

When it came to Quidditch, Ian didn't just not care about it, he actively didn't care for it. It was a dangerous violent sport that could end in major bloodshed. Severe or permanent injuries could be a result. Players could end up with concussions, broken bones or worse.

And because of that, Ian could not see why anyone would want to play. He did not understand at all why anyone would knowingly take that risk. Especially considering all the diseases that were out there waiting to strike. Why would anyone purposely put them self in harm's way, when they could keep enjoying good health while they had it?

It would be different if, for example, there was some sort of...purpose to it. There were dangerous jobs out there that had to be done such as being an auror or researching deadly creatures up close. Jobs Ian would never ever want to do himself but at least there was a need for. Quidditch was something that,as far as he could see, had no purpose whatsoever and people were risking their well being for no real reason.

And while Ian didn't want to criticize those who played who might otherwise be perfectly intelligent people, it just seemed like a very...stupid thing overall. So he didn't at all get why the school was throwing some big event to celebrate an idiotic, dangerous game that had no real point. The Teppenpaw didn't like to be self-righteous but he honestly felt morally against such a thing.

Of course, this was an opinion he didn't think was a good idea to share with many people. Because people would think he was self-righteous and dislike him and to be honest, Ian very much did want to be liked. Despite the fact that there hadn't been enough people for each house to have it's own team in many years-a good thing in his opinion-overall the popularity of Quidditch, baffling as it might be to him, persisted enough that Ian was pretty sure that if he made a big stink over something that presumably only he had moral objections to, everyone would hate him and he'd be a huge outcast. Which would be among the worst things that could happen.

Plus,the second year had never been one to rock the boat anyway, even if he hadn't felt completely alone on the issue. He was sure there were others who didn't like Quidditch, but simply not liking something didn't always mean a moral objection.

Still, Ian was not about to support the stupid thing so the day of the Extravaganza found him inside his common room reading a book. Until, that is, he unfortunately got hungry enough that he couldn't take it anymore. As he sincerely doubted that it was possible to get food in the Hall at this time, it meant he'd have to go out to the concession stands. Ian groaned inwardly, really not wanting to venture out there but having no choice. He gazed around trying to decide what he wanted, other than to get back inside and away from the stupid event.

It all actually smelled really good. The Teppenpaw was about to get in line when he heard someone speak to him. He turned to address the girl, whom he recognized from class. "I think it's the pumpkin pasties." He replied.

11 Ian Malone Assuming that's incredibly sarcastic, I totally agree 1522 0 5

Hilda Hexenmeister

June 17, 2021 7:31 PM

I laugh not. by Hilda Hexenmeister

Hilda had done her part to recruit enough bodies to fill up the roster for the pick-up game. She thought perhaps Hansel might even decide to join properly next term. It would be good to have a brother on the team again, and there had been enough time in between that it no longer felt like Hansel was trying to replace Heinrich, which had been a large reason both for why Hansel hadn't joined immediately and why Hilda hadn't made him join immediately.

The game today was low pressure. It had mixed teams of first string players and alternates/people who got dragged in out of the halls, so it would have no impact on their standings in the league. She did think it was a very important training opportunity for the alternates, especially the Chaser ones who were going to need to step into Evelyn and Ness' brooms next year. She was also going to be watching Billy very carefully to make sure he didn't do anything stupid in a real match situation.

Not so carefully, however that she was going to fail to protect her seeker. She was the best Beater on the team. It would just be embarrassing if she let a bludger get to him.

He didn't make it easy, flying in through the crowd of Chasers who were messing around with the Quaffle, where any Beater from the other side might just fire a bludger in there and hope for the best since they had a better than even chance of hitting an opponent and one of the options was the other team's seeker, but she got to the bludger first and knocked it toward a specific Chaser from the other team who was setting themselves up for a pass, and significantly farther away from Jeremy than the ones he was messing with. She'd seen him go after a snitch often enough to know he wasn't showing the single-minded focus that meant he was on the trail of the golden snitch.

He came up out of the crowd, much to her relief, passing close enough to make a comment about Valentine. "Always Quidditch is serious," she stated, not understanding why he thought she might not think so. She was a Beater. Her job here was not frivolous and must be taken seriously or people she was responsible for might get hurt. She was less concerned about the other team getting hurt, was in fact quite intent on causing that, even when the other team was comprised of people who were normally her team. (She was glad, however, that the Coach had been kind enough to put Hansel with her so there was no conflict of interest this time.) Protecting them was on Felipe and his beating partner. It wasn't anything personal.

1 Hilda Hexenmeister I laugh not. 1433 0 5

Iris Cobb

June 19, 2021 12:07 PM

It is, so I guess you do. by Iris Cobb

"Pumpkin pasties?" Iris repeated back questioningly as Ian answered her question. "They smell wonderful, are they any good?" She'd known that pumpkin juice was a thing around the school and it wasn't a taste she had acquired. It was just weird. However, these things smelled a little like Ma's pumpkin pie, and if they tasted anyway close they had to be good.

"What..." she began before another bellowing cheer erupted from the crowd and interrupted her. She shot the people in the stands a menacing glare, which as a mob they seemed to not notice. "What," she tried asking Ian again, "are you thinking about getting?" There was quite a selection of things at the food stand and she figured that while she was here, she should probably get more than just the pumpkin pasties.

Another roar erupted from the crowd and she sighed exasperatedly once again. Looking over the playing field, she just saw the players flying around again as always. "What is so exciting about that?" She inquired to nobody in particular. She wasn't sure what Ian's thoughts on the game were, but that didn't really matter. If he liked it, maybe he could explain it to her. She didn't have high hopes though, Billy hadn't succeeded on that front.

2 Iris Cobb It is, so I guess you do. 1526 0 5

Ian Malone

June 19, 2021 4:48 PM

Awesome, I like agreement by Ian Malone

Ian was not terribly used to talking to girls that he wasn't related to. The rational part of him knew that they were just people but he also had been raised to be gentleman which meant he wanted to treat them like ladies. Plus, there was that part of him that wanted to be cool and confident. Of course, the logical part of him laughed at that part and told it that that was impossible, that it wasn't part of the Teppenpaw's character. Because what people thought was cool and liked were types like Stanley or Quidditch types, which was definitely not Ian. He was just never going to be outgoing and sporty and confident. What he was interested in was good grades and healing and not getting hurt or sick. He was a nerd, pure and simple.

"They're good if you want something sort of sweet."He replied, ignoring the cheer that went up from the stands. Ian had no idea what the crowd found so exciting, Were they cheering because someone had failed to get hurt? That was the only thing that would make the second year happy during a Quidditch match. "I was thinking of getting a burger and some fries." Ian added. He wanted something a bit more...substantial than just sweets but he felt adding that detail might make him sound like one of those snobby stick-in-the-mud types who never had fun. Who never did something just for pleasure despite the fact that having a burger was pleasurable. They were tasty and not especially healthy although they did have protein. Even though Ian wanted to be a Healer, he was not the sort who kept to a strict regimen of diet and exercise, simply because those were things he didn't find all that pleasurable, especially given his overall dislike of sports.

And he did eat sweets, they just weren't what he wanted right now. Ian wanted a meal.

Before he could say anything else, whether cool or potentially damaging and alienating, Iris spoke. The second couldn't help but smile. Someone agreed with him, at least to an extent. Okay, so maybe the Crotalus wasn't questioning the morality of having an event celebrating a sport that had no point but did have the potential to maim people beyond total repair, but she didn't seem to find it interesting either "Honestly? I've never been sure either. Like, some people find it a fun thing to play but I've never gotten the appeal of flying around and having metal balls hit at you. To me that sounds like a great way to get brain damage and spinal cord injuries." Oops, that was probably a wrong thing to say, but then Iris didn't seem to think Quidditch was a worthwhile pastime either. " Sorry, I want to be a Healer when I grow up so I think of those things." He added, by way of explanation. "And watching it....I mean, yeah, I don't get that either."

Ian continued "I mean, not that I don't do things that are just for fun." Because Merlin knew that he didn't want to be that person who only did things for self improvement because those people always came across as self-righteous jerks, "just that I don't think it's fun watching something where people might get seriously hurt. And I definitely don't think it's fun to do something where you could get seriously hurt." There was also the fact that Ian actually wasn't all that great at sports to begin with but he decided not to mention that.

11 Ian Malone Awesome, I like agreement 1522 0 5

Iris Cobb

June 20, 2021 5:40 PM

It can make things easier by Iris Cobb

Iris liked sweet things. They were one of the nice things about coming to school. Sweet things were something of a rare thing at home as sugar was something they had to get from town. They had fruits and honey and such, but nothing like some of the sweet things she had found at the school. As such, she eyed up the pumpkin pasties with eager delight. His comment about getting a burger and some fries reminded her that she should probably eat something other than just the pasties.

"That sounds good to." Honestly, it sounded alright, but one was supposed to eat proper food before indulging in sweets and the burger sounded just as enticing as anything else she could see that that had for 'normal meal food'. So she would get a burger a few fries, and some of those lovely smelling pumpkin pasties. Excellent.

Iris was a little surprised that Ian wasn't a fan of the game either. It seemed like most folk here were bewitched by it. The way Ian described it though, it sounded like some form of torture. She glanced again up at the players and caught sight of her brother gleefully swatting at one of those metal balls, sending it careening across the field in another direction. Was he in actual danger? She shook her head gently. "I think the game is a bit silly, but if those things could happen and it was that dangerous, they wouldn't actually let kids play it would they?" Glancing about the ground of the field she spotted the medic's tent. "The medic would fix up anyone that actually got hurt, right?"

That did lead to another thing he had mentioned which peaked her curiosity. "You're going to be a healer?" Ian was one year above her, so in Billy's class. As far as she knew, Billy's grand plan for his life was to wander aimlessly around the world. Not much of a career choice. She hadn't even started to think about what she would do once she graduated, that was still years and years away. Perhaps Ian had the best idea though and figure it out soon so that appropriate focus could applied. "What made you decide that?" She asked curiously.

2 Iris Cobb It can make things easier 1526 0 5

Ian Malone

June 21, 2021 4:40 PM

Indeed by Ian Malone

Ian could have kicked himself. He was pretty sure Iris's brother (or some relative of hers) was playing. He would have probably freaked out if Olivia was playing and someone else mentioned to him that those things could happen. Of course, the odds were that Ian would have been the one telling her that long before she even dreamed of playing. Anyway, the idea of Olivia playing Quidditch was on par with the thought of her dating. In other word, too terrifying to contemplate. Fortunately, she didn't seem to be growing into the sort who'd play.

Still, he felt bad.He shrugged. " Sorry, I mean, most things they can patch up pretty well, like broken bones and whatnot. I'm just the sort who thinks of the worst case scenario when it comes to disease and injury. I didn't mean to make you worry. Still, you're right, it's an incredibly silly game and even taking out the terrible risk of getting hurt-which by the way,even if you don't get like, life altering, permanent injuries, it would still hurt like crazy to get any at all-there isn't any real point to it."

Basically, in Ian's mind, all it was was people risking pain for no reason at all.And regardless of the exact odds of multiple concussions causing permanent brain damage or getting paralysis from a bludger to the spine. He knew there were some people who got a kick out of tasking risks but Ian had literally never understood that. It was as strange to him as people hurting others, physically or otherwise.

Maybe he'd said too much though, showing his nerdiest and probably most uptight side, to Iris. Still, she didn't seem to like the game or see the point of it either. He assumed she'd come out here to support her brother or maybe, as he didn't think she was from a magical family,see what it was all about. And come to the conclusion that it was silly. Maybe Ian could make a new friend by bonding over a mutual dislike of Quidditch. Basically any common ground could be a jumping off point.

Of course, Iris might well be wondering why he was out here if he hated the game so much. "I came out for food, I wasn't even watching." The second year added, hoping he didn't seem self-righteous on that one either. After all, the alternative was seeming like a hypocrite.

Then Iris asked him about his desire to be a Healer. Which admittedly was a much more personal topic to him. "I hope to be." He looked down. "My mom has an immune deficiency and while she's on a medication that helps and she's better than when she was our age, it made me want to go into the medical field, hopefully in the immunology specialty, to help people like her. So, I read about a lot of healing stuff, though I don't always understand it." Ian told her. He worried about his mom a lot.

11 Ian Malone Indeed 1522 0 5

Iris Cobb

June 22, 2021 5:51 PM

I guess it makes arguing harder by Iris Cobb

Iris was glad to hear Ian confirm that the medic was capable of fixing up her stupid brother if he got terribly injured from playing a stupid game. She watched the players fly about a bit in seemingly erratic patters around the balls. "I suppose they've just accepted that fact." She shrugged before turning back to Ian. "Permanent injuries would be bad, but pain... well, there's not really any escaping it, so you may as well learn to live with it." She certainly wasn't someone who enjoyed pain, but she'd had enough of it to learn that it wasn't the end of the world either. She was pretty sure her brother was farther along that path than she was, she wondered how much of it he even felt at this point. More than once, she'd seen him stumble back home bruised, bleeding, limping from some 'adventure' he'd gone on that day. He'd still have his inane grin plastered across his face as he told everyone about his adventure while Ma did her best to patch him back up.

Immune deficiency? Iris wasn't sure what that was, some kind of sickness she guessed. That made her feel a bit bad for Ian, it wasn't any good to have a sick mother all the time. "I'm sorry to hear that," she responded, "I hope she keeps getting better." As reasons for choosing an occupation, that one was pretty good. Unfortunately it didn't really help her think about what route she should go. In theory, on the mountain she'd apprentice to someone and from the way things had been sounding, it may have been for the teaching position. That hadn't really thrilled her. Now however, things were different. She had a whole new set of opportunities, which left her family trying to fill her spot at the same time. She had some mixed emotions on that subject.

"I'm sure you'll make a fine Healer," She responded to Ian finally. "I'm still not sure what route I should go. When do we need to decide?" She guessed she had at least another year yet because Billy hadn't said anything, but that wasn't exactly a reliable measure.

2 Iris Cobb I guess it makes arguing harder 1526 0 5

Oz Spellman

June 24, 2021 5:03 AM

That's called an adult by Oz Spellman

“Yeah, he did,” Oz confirmed Zeus’ nod hurriedly, feeling bad as it seemed like he might be getting him in trouble. Apparently, Professor Brooding-Hawthorne’s list went beyond that, because then there was meant to have been a follow up question about being quiet? He wasn’t even sure he knew he was meant to ask that and he was twelve. He had definitely never asked Henry that ever in his life cos the answer was obviously always gonna be ‘yes’ and that was tough cos if Oz wanted to talk, he was gonna talk. Man, she was strict.

“Nah, quiet’s boring,” he flashed a cheeky grin at Zeus, and then realised he was probably going to be rapidly sliding down Professor Brooding-Hawthorne’s list of favourite people for saying something like that. Oh well. He’d probably never been very highly ranked to start with.

“He’s not doing anything,” he stuck up for Zeus with a shake of his head, when she added ‘be quiet’ and ‘leave’ as options. “I was just checking he’s… allowed or whatever.” Bascially, if Zeus was gonna sit there, and then he like… exploded or something, Oz wanted it to be not his fault. That was the baseline he was aiming for. Pleases and thank yous and a range of seating/interaction options hadn’t really entered his head. Okay, him being taken away would have been preferable, because didn’t magical kids accidentally start levitating If they had too much sugar or something? He didn’t know how to deal with that. But taken away neutrally, not like… away and in trouble. Oz hated the feeling of being in trouble with his mom more than anything in the world, and he didn’t want to inflict that kind of gut-twisting shame on anyone else. Even if he suspected, if he had that many stupid rules to remember, Zeus was gonna feel it often. It was weird, Professor Brooding-Hawthorne didn’t come across as that fussy in class. “He even offered to share his toys.” That had to be worth parental brownie points.

13 Oz Spellman That's called an adult 1514 0 5

Ian Malone

June 24, 2021 4:02 PM

Well, I don't really like arguing by Ian Malone

"Exactly,so why seek it out? I mean if pain is part of life, if illness and poor health and accidents will happen, why do something that increases the odds of these things happening?And for no real reason. I mean, there are dangerous jobs that have to be done and that's one thing, there's a reason for it. Quidditch is something that is rather pointless." Ian replied.

He was doing it again. Sharing too much of an opinion that he probably shouldn't. Generally speaking, he wasn't the sort of person who was very free with doing that. He preferred most of the time to keep his thoughts and ideas to himself, for fear that people would judge them and him and potentially make fun of him for them. And his views on Quidditch were one of those opinions he most felt he should keep to himself, because of how popular it was,especially with young pureblood boys. Ian was the one who was different.

And he didn't really know Iris and her brother was playing, so maybe he shouldn't share so much. It wasn't as if the Teppenpaw thought that the people who played Quidditch were bad people themselves, they just...had a really weird idea of what was fun. Ian's objection was more with a school and a culture that would celebrate such a thing. Not just the danger, but the aggression of it all. The fact that he wasn't very good at sports wasn't even the main factor.It really was that Ian took issue with the possibility of serious injury.

Still, he hoped Iris didn't think he was judging her brother so he was glad for the change of subject. Even this subject. He nodded. "Thank you." The second year replied. He worried about his mom a lot. Most of the time she was okay, but she ran the risk of picking up stronger, more serious bugs. And the idea that he might bring something home to her was even more terrifying.

"And thanks for that too." Ian added. "I certainly hope I will be." He listened to Iris's question and replied. "You don't really need to worry until after CATS. That's at the end of fifth year. I'm pretty sure most people don't know real early." He only knew because of his mom.

11 Ian Malone Well, I don't really like arguing 1522 0 5

Iris Cobb

June 27, 2021 3:47 PM

I don't mind, as long as I'm right. by Iris Cobb

Iris wasn't really quite sure what to make of Ian's point. He had one she supposed, if it was going to happen, why encourage it more? She could see some logic there, but on the other hand, if it was going to happen why not get good at handling it? It was a bit like practicing anything else, wasn't it? She for one would like to be prepared and ready to handle whatever pain came upon here when it inevitably did. It seems like if she avoided any sort of getting hurt up to that point she'd be terrible at handling it when that happened. If she knew how it felt, and how to manage it, when it happened things would go easier. It certainly seemed to be working that way for Billy anyway, it almost seemed as though it didn't matter how beat-up he was when he got home, he was still functioning just fine.

However she suspected that with as adamant as Ian seemed to be on the subject, she probably wasn't likely to change his mind anytime soon. That was fine, he was allowed to live his life the way he wanted to. So, she just shrugged and gave him a bit of a smile. There was one thing she could agree with him on though, "Quidditch does seem awful pointless. Oh well, to each their own I suppose."

She sighed a visible sigh of relief when Ian said that she had until the end of her fifth year to figure out the rest of her life. She would have it figured out before then naturally, but it was good to know when the deadline was. "That's good, I wonder what sorts of jobs are all out there?" She really only knew of the ones on the mountain, and she hadn't really seen any new ones here at the school yet. Healer, teacher, cook, gardener.... was that all there was to life? Well, alright also Billy's 'world explorer' which she wasn't entirely sure was an actual job.

2 Iris Cobb I don't mind, as long as I'm right. 1526 0 5

Ian Malone

June 27, 2021 9:13 PM

Well, everyone thinks they're right by Ian Malone

"Agreed." Ian replied. "On both points."He felt kind of bad. Had he insulted Iris's brother with his views on the sport since Billy was playing? Had he offended her on the Pecari's behalf? He probably wouldn't like it if someone insulted Olivia although, that was hard to imagine since she was three and it was kind of hard to insult a toddler. Ian imagined someone insulting his mother instead. Or being insensitive to her condition. Yeah, that would totally infuriate him. Actually, being rude about someone's disability or medical condition would probably make him mad even if it wasn't his mother.

"I'm sorry though if I insulted your brother and offended you." Ian apologized. "For what it's worth, even though I think it's a stupid dangerous game and don't understand why anyone would want to play, I don't think less of your brother as a person for playing it." Billy Cobb had never really seemed mean or anything, had never bullied Ian for being unathletic and nerdy. Of course, they didn't have much in common and hadn't really spent any time together, but he'd never sought out the Teppenpaw for torment so he was probably okay overall as a person.

Besides, Ian's disgust for the game was more the fact that it was so celebrated when it was so dangerous than anything to do with individuals playing it. On some level, that might have to do with his own lack of athletic prowess and the expectations of a certain type of masculinity in society that he didn't fulfill, though thankfully nobody in his family ever pressured him about it. However, the main issue to him was still safety and risk of permanent injuries. "If playing Quidditch makes him happy, I mean, as much as I don't get why, like you said to each their own."

"There are tons of jobs out there, I mean, I'm sure there are ones I don't even know about." Ian replied. As he'd never wanted to be anything but a Healer, it wasn't something he'd explored. Still, he figured Iris wanted to know about jobs specific in the magic world. "Well, there are like fields related to all the classes we take. There's creating new spells and potions, working with plants or animals. You could teach any of them. You could make wands or brooms. " Although Iris was probably not interested in the latter. "There are government jobs and Aurors, whose job it is to catch dark wizards. It's really all about what you like and what you're good at. Is there anything in particular you find interesting?" Ian asked "Of course, the person you really should talk to about this is Mr. Row, it's his job."

11 Ian Malone Well, everyone thinks they're right 1522 0 5

Leonor De Matteo

July 10, 2021 12:18 AM

I can take it back if you'd rather. by Leonor De Matteo

Leonor resisted the urge to grimace, her dutiful neutral expression in place as she realized that Mara was going to actually make her say it. Really say it.

"That depends. Would you let me get away with using food as the apology?" she asked, letting humor seep into her voice. There had once been a day when it was easy to joke with Mara. When they'd been friends. It had all started with Felipe and Jessica's relationship dying so it only made sense that now that that was working out again, Mara and Leonor's was gone to rubble. "I'm sorry," she said, returning to English. It felt more distanced from herself that way. "I mean it. Everything just . . . everything got bad. It's still bad. But some of that is my fault." She thought she understood a bit about why Felipe always felt like everything was all his fault; it was easy to slip into that sort of thinking and Leonor found herself swinging like a pendulum between being convinced nothing was her fault and everything was. "I don't know what you think of me but I know it's not good. I don't blame you I guess; I think badly of me too sometimes." Her voice trailed off before she shook her head to clear it. That wasn't a thing she wanted to think too much about.

"So . . . something to eat?"

22 Leonor De Matteo I can take it back if you'd rather. 1471 0 5

Mara Morales

July 14, 2021 11:54 PM

Can you really blame me for being a bit surprised? by Mara Morales

Mara pretended to consider the idea of accepting food as an apology. "That depends," she said, mirroring Leonor's language and half-smiling, "on what the food was."

She wasn't sure she ought to joke - was it like she was letting Leonor off the hook too easily? She didn't know. She hardly knew what she thought of Leonor anymore. Once, they had just clicked as friends, not even just as people rolling their eyes at their dramatic siblings. In a way, it felt like it would be easy to slip back into that. On the surface, anyway. Underneath...well, that was where things always got dark and tangled, wasn't it? Underneath was Leonor dating the school's most openly racist jerk. Or suddenly acting like a different person because she'd gotten bumped up in her father's will. Or - whatever all that had been that Leonor had supposedly had to do with what had gone down with her brother. Or...

Mara wanted to flinch away from the next thought, but that wasn't the way to react to reality. Facts were facts, and ignoring them did not enable good decision-making. Leonor wasn't the only one with briar pits just under the surface, was she? For all Mara knew, it was possible Leonor thought Mara was the one who'd pushed Felipe to extremities - apparently that was what his psycho girlfriend had tried to sell the staff. And it was what Mara, looking at it as harshly objectively as she could, felt was to blame for times when she felt as though something was digging claws into her shoulders - the worry that just maybe, Zara had accidentally told the truth without knowing she was doing so....

I have my own problems. I just want to figure out how to make my first million in peace, and yeah, hang out with a friend or two every now and then. I cannot deal with - whatever your brother thinks you need from me, or think I represent, or are projecting onto me, or anything like that. I'm not a psychologist, either. The last time I got involved with you people, it was right before -

"Why not," she said out loud, trying to push all that back into the supposed-to-be-sealed box in her head where it belonged. "Got to eat, right? Especially you, considering," she said, waving vaguely toward the sky.

"Honesty, Leonor, I don't know what I think of you now, either," she added, in Spanish, after a sigh, unsure how to react to Leonor's apparent profession of self-hatred but thinking she probably ought to, if only to head off any manipulation, maybe. "I really don't. I don't know which person I've met is the real one, and - I don't even know what you're saying you're sorry about," she said in a moment of exasperation, before softening a little and adding, "But I know - well, I know some stuff definitely went bad. And that stuff just goes bad sometimes in general. Plus what I know about is mostly third hand. So I can suspend judgment on how bad I think it is for now, I guess."

16 Mara Morales Can you really blame me for being a bit surprised? 1472 0 5