Gryffindor Practice

[Archie Renner]

Gryffindor,Practice

The last Gryffindor game hadn't gone well and Archie wanted the team to do better for the sake of house pride, every team member's individual pride and morale and of course his own dignity. He had some big shoes to fill since Jean graduated and didn't want to let anyone down or leave them with low expectations because the Gryffindor quidditch team deserved nothing but the best. This was the reason Archie had secured a decent practice time that week, after breakfast when he thought everyone would be energized enough to hone their skills and not too tired from the early morning.

Archie strolled onto the pitch with his beloved broom in one hand, and the case of game equipment held in the other, dragging slightly on the grass. A few of his teammates were already on the pitch so he waved them over, smiling as he knelt in the grass to retrieve the quaffle. He absent mindedly twirled the quaffle in his hands as he waited for the rest of the team to arrive.​

 

[Lizzie Parker-Taylor]

Lizzie hadn't spent so much time on a broom in her life. Disappointed about losing her first ever match, she had spent a lot of the time since flying, trying to work on areas where she was weak, like controlling her speed and stopping suddenly. Lizzie was used to being the best athlete of her age on the slopes, she didn't know quite how to cope with losing, and didn't want it to happen again. Plus, throwing herself into Quidditch was a good way to keep other worries off her mind.

She had arrived a little early to get in some warmup before practice, and was already on her broom when she spotted the captain arriving at the pitch. Descending quickly, she flew over to him and dismounted, keen to get into practice. "Hi." Lizzie smiled, a little less than her usual enthusiasm in her voice.

 

[Wyatt Finch]

Wyatt had not yet played a game of Quidditch against another house but he was still hopeful that he could surpass whatever Archie had seen in the new beater. He suspected that someone a little older, such as himself, would have done a better job but he didn't dare say that aloud. That was for just himself to brood over so the boy put his practice gear on, grabbed his bat and broom then headed down to the pitch. He hoped that he would get a chance to prove that he was ready for first string. He walked over to the very two people on his mind and said, "Ready El Capitan."

 

[Professor James Cade]

James was tired, but he needed to practice if Gryffindor had any hope of winning the house cup, but most importantly they needed to beat Slytherin, James needed to have bragging rights over girlfriend. James changed into his robes and grabbed his broom and walked out onto the pitch. There was already a small gathering of players when he arrived so he made his way over to them. "Hey Archie, hey everyone,"

 

[Leo Benivieni]

There wasn't a time Leo was tired this early during a day. He was constantly energized and had made sure to have more energy than usual for today's practice. He arrived at the pitch soon and greeted his fellow team. He was more than prepared and he was excited to be up in the air again. He barely had a chance to play during matches and he wanted to make the most out of practices, in case he got to play during next match. "Here and ready," he told Archie before standing with the rest of the team. If Leo got to play he made sure to make the team proud and score a few points to help their ranking.
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[Lyra Potter]

Lyra Potter entered the Quidditch pitch in her gear with her broom under her arm. She was excited that they were having an actual practice as a whole team today. Usually, she just practiced with the other chasers or Link when she got him to agree to it. Her brother was actually really good as keeper but he didn't bother trying out for the house team. She was hoping to change his mind next year. "Hey guys!" She greeting her team brightly, going to stand near her new friend, James.
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[Archie Renner]

Archie was pleased with the turn out that day and smiled at each of the players as they approached him. He noticed one of the new beaters lacking their usual enthusiasm but he continued to absent mindedly twirl the quaffle in his hands as he said "This will be a simple practice. I'll man the north hoops, the chasers will attempt to score and pass between each other, and the beaters will hit bludgers away from all the players. The seeker will of course try to catch the snitch. Practice will be finished when either the chasers have scored three times, the beaters have hit three bludgers or when the snitch is caught." Archie thought this was simple enough and not unlike their other practices. He was yet to see Ailsa arrive to the pitch but he was sure she wouldn't mind if he started practice without her. "Okay guys, get into your positions." He then said, throwing the quaffle to Lyra and waiting a moment for everyone to prepare themselves with their gear before he released the bludgers and snitch. He then mounted his own broom and flew to his position at the north hoops, tightening one of his arm guards as he waited for one of the chasers to attempt a goal.​

 

[Lyra Potter]

Lyra nodded her head at Archie as he told them all to get in position. She swung her leg over her broom and pushed off the ground. She caught the Quaffle as her captain passed it to her. She waited for Archie to get in the air and head to the hoops before taking off. She looked around to make sure the other chasers were getting in their positions. It would be fun to see if she would be able to score on Archie. He was a great keeper, much better than the other keepers at the school in her opinion. She narrowed her eyes and made her way down the pitch. She flew as quickly as she could down to the north hoops. Lyra faked left before throwing the ball towards the left hoop. Archie was quicker than she was. Lyra pursed her lips and hoped to do better next time.

Out of Character:

I didn't think the normal "slow your roll" rule applied to practice. Correct me if I'm wrong!

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[Wyatt Finch]

Wyatt mounted his broom after Archie gave instructions, he was hopeful that this could be a turning point in the sport for him so he was sure to be prepared when the bludgers started to take off at their usual breakneck speeds. He flew quickly enough around and watched as Lyra missed a shot in the hoops and felt badly for her but this was what practice was for. He was more focused on where the bludgers were off too though.

 

[Lizzie Parker-Taylor]

Determined to shake off the dark cloud she'd felt over her head all year, Lizzie listened to the captain's instructions carefully and mounted her broom when instructed, kicking off and sweeping around the field, keeping a keen eye out for bludgers. She desperately wanted to get better, to help the team to victory next time.

 

[Archie Renner]

Archie watched intently as Lyra attempted a goal, veering left slightly in an effort to follow her movements before she threw the quaffle towards a different hoop. Archie sped in the right direction and managed to catch the quaffle without too much difficulty. "That was good, but I'm sure you can do better!" He shouted as he threw the quaffle back towards the chasers, hoping his encouragement would help motivate them more if they needed it. He would have begun trash talking but he was well aware this wasn't a practice with Jean and didn't want to accidentally offend the players. As he waited for someone else to attempt a shot, his attention wavered to the beaters who were flying around, searching for bludgers to hit.
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[Leo Benivieni]

Leo watched the practice with interest, watching one of the chasers, Lyra, try to score but not manage. He couldn't blame her though, Archie was a great keeper. He didn't waste his time in speeding after the quaffle when it was thrown in his direction. He mounted his broom and kicked as hard as he could in the air and he sped off, catching the quaffle in his right hand before flying to the hoops. He threw the quaffle as hard as it could and watched as it missed. He hoped he'd have better luck next time. He wondered whether he'd be able to score before the end of practice.
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[Lizzie Parker-Taylor]

Lizzie kept circling high, bat gripped firmly in hand. She wanted to do better, she knew she could be better than she had been during their match. Spotting a bludger she flattened herself to her broom and shot towards it, swinging hard, but she overshot again, and just like in the game, her swing flew wide, soaring straight past the ball. Frustrated, she gave a soft growl and swung her bat at nothing, shooting off to do laps again.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James was quick off his mark flying around the pitch, he ignored the rest of practice and zoned in on the snitch. He swatted at a glint of gold in front of him and made his way down to the ground with snitch in hand. "Boom, next!"

 

[Archie Renner]

Archie moved his attention from the beaters and towards the chaser that caught the quaffle. He watched their movements and flew in the direction of the quaffle, only to realize that it missed the hoops completely. Archie flew to retrieve it and was about to throw it back towards the chasers when James announced that he had successfully caught the snitch, proving once again that he was a great seeker. Archie raised his fist into the air, shouting "Good job, James!" in encouragement before he tucked the quaffle safely under his arm. "Practice is over now, everyone!" He shouted again at the rest of the team as he flew to touch back down to the ground. Archie was happy to leave the practice open for longer but he wouldn't do so without someone asking him to as he didn't know if the rest of the team had places to be that day.​