Closed Grounded

[Raawhiti Te Rangi]

Don't cry in front of the team. That was the first thought in Rāwhiti's mind. He had felt like a ghost as he went through the motions of being a good sport - applauding the opposition for a good game, thanking his team for their hard work and consoling them on the loss, (not that he could even remember what he had said on autopilot,) - as though he was just floating through the events happening all around him. Being a ghost would almost have been easier, able to just pass through everything happening to him without being affected at all.

But unfortunately he was still painfully, achingly human, and it all caught up with him as soon as he was out of the stadium. Rāwhiti didn't even try head back to the school, dodging away from the crowds still making their way out and sneaking around to the other side of the stadium. There was no chance he could face the Gryffindor common room tonight, and the pitch was the only other place he felt safe, though a fat lot of good it did now. Rāwhiti was barely out of sight of the crowds when it finally became too much. He leaned on a wall and clapped a hand to his mouth as his knees gave way, sliding limply to the ground. His whole life he had dreamed of his brilliant future on the Quidditch pitch, had trained and struggled and worked every second he could for the opportunity... and here he was. Captain, Seeker, Failure. His first year with the team on his shoulders, and they hadn't managed a single win. This defeat had been embarrassing. Thousands of eyes on him - eyes he would have to face in the halls of the school - and Rāwhiti had fallen short. A whole hard working team putting all their hopes in his hands, and he had entirely fumbled it. He struggled to keep his sobs quiet as they wracked his whole body, hiccuping tears running down his face.

 

[Emery Mettlestone]

Emery was concerned for Rāwhiti. He had been at the match, which had been very short. Normally Emery would've enjoyed that, but he knew that losing like that and so quickly would upset his friend. He had sort of given up on pretending not to go to the matches to support his friend, even wearing a red shirt which had gotten him quite a few dirty looks from his fellow Ravenclaws. Emery didn't care. He had gone looking for Rāwhiti after the match, and when he couldn't find him he even asked around, even though it required a lot more talking to people he didn't know than Emery would've liked. He finally ended up going outside to the pitch, he had a feeling Rāwhiti could still be there. He wrapped his arms around himself as he looked around, starting to feel a little silly. But then he heard a noise that was unmistakably a sob. Emery looked over and sighed softly at the sight of his friend. He headed over to him, kneeling next to him. "Hey..." He said softly. "it's okay..."

 

[Raawhiti Te Rangi]

Rāwhiti was so engulfed by his sobs that the rest of the world felt like a far-off dream. He thought for a fevered moment that he was imagining Emery's voice, only really processing when he looked up that his friend was actually here. "I.. it's not..." He croaked between sobs, trying and failing to wipe his face. "I- I failed everyone. I'm... I should... I've gotta resign..."