Forever... Always

Year 2 - Quidditch/Team Bonding

I was right to say that things would be a lot different from how we had it during the break. I can barely even catch the twins in the halls, let alone have a conversation with them. Wood has been pushing the Gryffindor team to their max, so it's no wonder that even if I do catch the twins in the halls, that they either will be heading to a practice or coming back from one. Wood is having all these practices because this weekend is the Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff match. They hadn't done too well in their first match against Slytherin back in November and Wood is determined to show that they can win the Quidditch Cup, even though Slytherin has won it for the last several years. We hadn't done too bad in our first match against Ravenclaw, we won but it was simply by technicalities that Lee Jordan had pointed out, being that he's the commentator. It was a win nonetheless.
Today I have a practice after my lessons and my last one left is DADA, which Hufflepuffs happen to have with Gryffindors this year. Cedric and I talked the whole way there from Herbology. We talked about things we could improve in this evening's practice and plenty of other things. Once we got to the DADA class, I sat and not even 30 seconds later, George and Fred sat on either side of me. I wanted to talk to them but I knew I have to pay attention if I want to keep my grades as they are. After class, the four of us, Cedric, George, Fred and I, talked about how excited we are to play this weekend against each other and joked about how we'd demolish each other's team. We stopped at the stairwell, where Cedric and I would go down and the twins would go up, to just talk and cherish each other's presence for a little while longer, when a furious looking Wood came rushing down the steps.
"Weasleys! What are you doing talking to the competition?!" He snarked. Draper appeared up the steps from the basement and didn't look pleased to see Wood. "Draper, haven't you told your players not to talk to the competition before a match?"
"Why would I need to? If Dutchman and Diggory are friends with the Weasleys, they should be able to talk to them despite house rivalry and quidditch competition."
"It's common sense Draper! You don't talk quidditch with your competition!"
"Listen Wood, from what I could overhear of their conversation, none of them were actually talking about techniques or maneuvers. You take Hogwarts quidditch too seriously. You should try playing for fun sometime."
Wood stormed off towards the library just after telling the twins not to listen to Draper's nonsense.
"I'm sorry to interrupt, for a second time now, but Diggory and Dutchman, I'm going to have to take you away because our practice is starting soon. See you on the pitch Sunday Weasleys."
Cedric, Draper and I walked to the common room together. Cedric and I put our books and homework in our dorms, grabbed our quidditch robes and brooms and then met Draper back in the common room. He walked with us to the pitch and told us he'd see us on the pitch, leaving us to get our robes on. We quickly got them on and headed to practice with our brooms in hand.
"Chasers, we're working on Woollononong Shimmy and Parkin's Pincer. We've already got Reverse Pass and Hawkshead Attacking Formation down pat. We could work some on our Porskoff Ploy too." Draper said kindly yet forcefully. "Beaters, your Bludger Backbeat and Doublebeater Defense need work. Everglade and Dutchman, I have maneuvers for you too, can you wait a little while I explain stuff to the others?" Draper said, pointing at whoever was in the position he was addressing.
"Yeah of course. Come here Dutchman." Lora told him while waving me over. "He's going to use us as examples for the others, I can just tell. I don't know why he hadn't yet this year."
"Uh- ok, sounds easy enough."
"Dutchman! Can you come over here and help me out?"
"I knew it." Lora spit out quickly before I sped over to Draper and the other two Chasers, Cedric and Lyptus.
Vale Lyptus. How to explain her? Obviously she's a Hufflepuff and she's one of our three Chasers. Two things that need to be known about Lyptus, one, if she's not in the change room or on the pitch, you're to call her Vale. Two, she's basically the mom of our team, she brings snacks and as long as we're not in the change room or on the pitch, she calls anyone younger than her 'sugar'. She's kind of like those old ladies you meet in supermarkets that are just overly sweet and call you things like 'honey', 'darling' or 'dear' when you help them. Overall she's great.
"Do you know what a Woollongong Shimmy is Dutchman?" Draper asked me.
"Yeah, my dad taught me. A Woollongong Shimmy is a high-speed zigzag movement used by Chasers to throw off the opposing Chasers."
He looked at me with some shock in his eyes. I may be new to the team but not to quidditch itself, my dad made sure of that.
"Can you show us how it's done properly?"
"I can, I just need someone to pretend to be an opposing Chaser."
"I can do it Draper." Lyptus shot out.
Draper handed me the Quaffle and I took off. Lyptus was gaining on me quickly and so as I said I would, I did a Woollongong Shimmy and she completely lost me. We flew back over to Draper and Cedric to listen to what Draper had to say.
"Excellent, as Dutchman showed us, the Shimmy is very effective on even someone who knows that the Shimmy is coming. Imagine how effective it'd be if they didn't know! Alright, enough listening to me, Lyptus take the Quaffle and Diggory, you have to try to get it from her."
    They did it a few times and they all took turns to who was trying to take the Quaffle and who had it. In the meantime, Lora and I were instructed to practice our Sloth Grip Roll while Rivers and Raywood practiced their Bludger Backbeat. After a while, Draper called us all back to give new instructions.
    "Looking good everyone. We don't have a spare player right now so we might not get to practice Parkin's Pincer but we know how to do it right?"
    "Yes." Diggory and Lyptus said together.
    "Then we'll see if we can pull it off on Sunday. Everglade, I have two maneuvers for you, Starfish and Stick and Double Eight Loop. You know how to do Double Eight Loop, I saw you do it in our match against Ravenclaw. Do you know what Starfish and Stick is?"
    "Isn't it when you hold onto the broom with one hand and foot and have the other hand and foot extended? Like a starfish holding onto a stick." Lora responded.
    "Hit it right on the dot Everglade. Dutchman, two maneuvers as well, Wronski Feint and Plumpton Pass. Do you know either?"
    "Uh- er- I know that Plumpton Pass is supposed to seem like a careless move and that Wronski Feint is used to deceive the opposing Seeker."
    "You got the basics down. Plumpton Pass: a seemingly careless swerve that's used to scoop the Snitch up your sleeve. Wronski Feint: you dive to make the opposing Seeker think you've seen the Snitch, but you have to pull out at the last minute. Got it?"
    "Absolutely."
    "I saw that you have great potential as our Seeker Dutchman, once you get these maneuvers down, you'll be set. Alright everyone, let's work on these and get the bloody hell outta here." Draper joked.
    "Draper! There's little ears present!" Lyptus partly joked.
    Everyone started laughing. We got to practicing and before long, Draper was calling us all in again.
    "Good practice everyone, you all look ready for our match Sunday. We're done here, off to the changing room! You've got a snack for us don't you Vale?"
    "First of all, always, who do you think I am? Second, we're still on the pitch, it's Lyptus right now thank you."
    We changed out of our robes, took our snack to go and all walked back to the common room together. We were all making jokes and eating our fruit bowls that Vale made. Once we got to the common room we all sat together for a while and the conversion just kept going.
    "You know what? I think we need to play a game. We don't know much about our newest players." Raywood said.
"I don't know if they know much about us either." Rivers responded.
"Alright, fine, let's start with formally introducing ourselves and we can go from there, ok?" Draper said sternly.
"I'll go first because I know you already know my name. I'm Vale Lyptus."
"Marvolo Draper is me."
"Linden Raywood's the name." He's one of the Beaters.
"I'm Cedric Diggory."
"Rayne Dutchman here."
"Lora Everglade."
"Last and definitely not least, it's me, Thornton Rivers." He's the other Beater.
"Now that everyone knows first names, they can be used off the pitch and outside the changing room." Marvolo stated matter of factly.
"So it's Cedric, right?" I jokingly asked him.
"You spend too much time with Fred and George Rayne." He said with a laugh.
"So what kind of game do you suggest then Linden?" Thornton asked.
"I guess I should have thought of that beforehand. Hmmm- do we all know the muggle game 'truth or dare'?"
"I do." I said.
"Me too." Marvolo said.
"We have no clue." Cedric, Lora and Thornton said.
"Let me explain the game sugars. In basic terms, one person will ask another 'truth or dare'? The person being asked will pick one, if they pick truth, the person who asked has to ask them a question they can't lie to. If dare is chosen, the person who asked picks something that the other person has to do or say. Make sense? If not, not you'll catch on as we play." Vale stated clearly.
"We understand now." Lora confirmed. "I guess I'll start then, Marvolo, truth or dare?"
"Truth."
"Do you like anyone?"
"Yeah..." He said sheepishly. "Dutchm- I mean Rayne, truth or dare?"
"Dare?"
"Uh- Wear your pjs for the rest of the game."
"Ok, I'll be back guys." I said as I left to get my pjs on. He never said which ones so I don't have to wear my most embarrassing ones. I decided I'd wear my jumper I got for Christmas with my fuzzy black pj pants.
"Ooooo, that's cute sugar. Wait- is that a G on the jumper?" Vale asked curiously.
I hadn't even realized, I thought we switched our jumpers back before returning to Hogwarts. Georgie must have switched them again.
"So it is." I said, not really wanting to explain.
"Thronton got dared to sneak into Linden's dorm and snag his dorm mates' tie. Cedric told us that he has a crush on someone. Linden got dared to eat dirt from a pot. Lora got dared to put a fake mouse in the girls' dorms' hallway to see what people will do when they see it. Vale told us how she gets all our snacks, advanced culinary spells. Now it's Vale's turn to ask someone." Marvolo updated me.
"Sugar..." She said while turning to me. "Truth of dare?"
"Truth."
"Who's jumper are you wearing?"
"One of my best friends'."
"What's their name?"
"That's a second question and it's no longer your turn."
"But-"
"She's not wrong Vale, technically, she was truthful." Marvolo said.
"I'm so tired. I'm calling it quits. Goodnight team." Lora said while getting up and heading to the girls dorms.
"It is quite late. Goodnight everyone." Linden and Thornton said, disappearing to the boys dorms.
"Goodnight sugars." Vale said.
"Goodnight you two, rest up." Marvolo said to me and Cedric, being the only two left.
"Why didn't you want to tell Vale that that jumper is George's?" Cedric asked after Marvolo left.
"I'm not completely sure, I guess I just wanted it to myself?"
"That's understandable, well, see you tomorrow Rayne, goodnight."
"Goodnight Cedric."
I walked to my dorm, carefully and quietly went inside to not wake Amber and layed on my bed. Why didn't I want Vale to know it was Georgie's jumper? Oh well, I'm almost too tired to think, so I rolled over and when to sleep.