Wizards in New York

Quidditch Captain!!!

    *Percy's POV*

    "It's tiiiiiiiiime for Quidditch!"

    The crowd cheered as I ran into the arena, grinning. Chiron had asked me to organize the tryouts for the new game. It was nice to take my mind off of things...

    "Alright!" I yelled, and the demigods went silent. "Here are the rules:

    "There are three hoops at either end of the pitch. The goal of the game is to get the Quaffle, this ball here, through one of the hoops to score ten points." I held up a recreated Quaffle. "The teams are made up of a Keeper, who defends the hoops; three Chasers, who try to score on the opposing teams; two Beaters, who use these Bludgers" - I held up another two balls - "to knock the players out of the air and keep them from scoring, as the game is played on broomsticks. And there is the Seeker" - I clutched a golden ball with wings struggling against my tight grip - "who has to catch the Snitch, which is worth 150 points. Once the Snitch is caught, the game is over.

    "We will be using four teams, and they are named the following:"

    I consulted my scroll. "Olympus, Hades, Tartarus, and Elysium."

    The crowd burst into applause again, and I took a bow and headed back to a table set up for judging. I was to be a team captain.

    Chiron trotted to the middle of the newly decorated arena and waved of the cheering. "It is time for the beginning of the tryouts!" he announced, gesturing to the judges table behind him. Me, Annabeth, Will, and Reyna waved at the demigods in the stands.

    All the equipment had been recreated using diagrams that had come with the rules. The broomsticks had been a bit tricky, but the Hecate and Hephaestus working together had managed it.

    First up was Clarisse la Rue, trying out for the part of Beater, which I had to admit she was great at. But I refused to put her on my team list.

    Then was the Stoll twins, both trying out for Beaters too. They were awful, but it was still pretty funny.

    Demigods kept filing onto the pitch, but by the end of the tryouts, I was still missing two beaters on my team. I was going to be the Seeker.

    Then Fred and George Weasley headed onto the pitch.

    They held the Beater clubs like they had grown up using them and swung them at Bludgers with such force that they put a smoking hole in the bulls-eye of the archery targets. What was more, they navigated the broomsticks more accurately and easily than any of the other demigods trying out.

    Was that because of their being wizards? Nevertheless, I hurriedly jotted their names down.

    Chiron took our lists and dismissed the crowd, saying "The lists for teams will be posted tomorrow!"

    I really hoped the wizards were on my team.

                          ******

    The lists hung outside the Big House the next morning, and I had to push through eager demigods to get to see it.

    Elysium with Perseus Jackson:

    Beaters: Katie Gardener and Frank Zhang

    Chasers: Lacy Hartel, Piper McLean and Daniel Morfull

    Keeper: Michael Grant

    Seeker: Perseus Jackson

    I sighed. Fred and George weren't on my team. But they were on Reyna's team, Hades. Lucky.

    The twins in question were currently scanning the list, and broke into smiles when they reached their names.

    "Yes!" Fred pumped his fist. "On your girlfriend's team, too!"

    George's face turned as red as his hair. "Shut up, Fred."

    Girlfriend? I would have to look into this.

    I saw Jason, who was on Annabeth's team as Keeper, walking back towards the cabins. Perfect. He knew Reyna for a long time.

    "Hey, Sparky!"

    He turned. "What is it, Percy?"

    I caught up to him and got straight to the point. "Bro, is Reyna dating that new kid, George Weasley?"

    "No!" Jason looked at me in horror. "At least, as far as I know."

    "Okay." I relaxed. "Did you ever find out where they went the night of Capture the Flag?"

    He shrugged. "According to Reyna, the kid ran into the woods after a hellhound, and she had to chase him down."

    That made sense. Fred and George were obviously jokers, just like the Stolls. But still..."For that long?"

    "Well, what else would they be doing? Sleeping in the grass? Nah, I just think George got into some mischief. Simple as that."

    "Still, Reyna would've-"

    At that moment, the girl we were speaking about passed by. "I would have what, Percy?"

    Jason winced as she stalked towards them. "Bye."

    I was left alone and at the agitated praetor's mercy, which was never a good place to be.

    "Uh...well, we were talking about how you would have immediately taken down any monster you faced, so there must've been something else that happened in the forest."

    I braced myself for a slap, but it never came.

    "Good answer." Reyna smirked, sending fear coursing through my veins. "But I am here to tell you that nothing else happened in the forest."

    "But-"

    "Don't believe me, huh? Ask George then."

    With that, she sauntered away.

    I shook my head. "Why do you get yourself into these things, Percy?" I said softly to myself.

    But there were other things to concentrate on right now. One of those things was Friday's match, which meant I only had a couple of days to practice with my new team.

    Forget about wizards and scary praetors, I needed to learn to ride a broomstick!