Open Gryffindor Quidditch Tryouts Y49

[Teddy Pirrip]

Teddy stood at the edge of the Quidditch pitch greeting his teammates and the hopefuls as they arrived. He silently sized up any hopefuls potential based on first impressions. "All right, listen up,” he called out to get attention, “Thanks for showing up today. I’m Teddy Pirrip, one of your captains, alongside Fraser Fergusson over there.” He gestured toward Fraser so they knew who he was too. “Last year Gryffindor took the championship, and I’ll say it right now, we’re not handing that trophy over to anyone." He said matter of factly, "We’re looking for the best of the best to defend Gryffindor's title, so give us everything you got out there. We'll be watching.” He deliberately kept his speech short and watched as the tryouts kicked off.

Position	Player
Keeper	Teddy Pirrip (Co-Captain)
Chaser	@Fraser Fergusson (Co-Captain)
Chaser	@Ivy Cullen
Chaser	OPEN
Beater	@Santiago Torres
Beater	OPEN
Seeker	OPEN
Alternate	OPEN
Alternate	OPEN
Alternate	OPEN

Out of Character:

Returning team members must post to keep their spot on the team. Alternates must try out again!

First years are not allowed to try out unless there are still spaces that need to be filled. If you have a first year that's interested PM both captains and we'll let you know if/when you can post.

 

[Felix Layton-King]

This was the third time Felix was trying out for seeker, and he was determined not to fail it again. He'd been at the pitch waiting for the captains to arrive for the tryouts, dressed head to toe in gear and complete with goggles so that Teddy knew he was serious. Felix had thought there were already two spots on the team taken by the seeker and the alt, but his heart was leaping in his chest when he read the position was open.

"Seeker!" Felix suddenly blurted out, approaching Teddy with a grin that told him he was no longer just Ten's friend, but his friend too, surely. "I want to try out for seeker, you know who I am," he told the captains. Seeker was important because it was what his mum and aunt had played at school. He wanted to keep the Layton tradition, and while he also thought it would be fun just to play in the air as a Chaser, Felix also liked to think he was getting better every year at finding the smallest of the balls.

The third year mounted his broom and wasted no time soaring into the skies once the tryouts were underway, Sure, Aroha and Veronica had both played the position of seeker last year and won them the victories, but Felix? He would prove to everyone that he was faster and stronger, and he wouldn't let the bludgers knock him from his broom. Seriously, Susie had tried over the holidays during their family match.

Three time Felix managed to catch the snitch while in the air. Each time he'd held it up high for both captains to see before releasing it. It was a personal best if he could have said so himself. "You saw that right?" Felix told Teddy almost breathlessly once he'd returned to the ground. If he didn't make the team this year, he wasn't sure if he ever would. There wasn't a better chance to join than right now, not with this many positions open. Felix did what he could for others in the school, but Quidditch? That was always just for him (and Gryffindor, of course). ​

 

[Rose Edogawa]

Rose hovered near the hopefuls for her turn to get her alternate spot back on the team. She liked to think she worked well with Teddy, that he knew how good she was if he ever needed her to play in his stead, and last year she'd done some work as beater, so he'd seen her there, right? He'd worked with her before so she was hoping he would still see her as a worthy member of the team, she wasn't about to sit there and just pretend that she wasn't going to fight hard for what she wanted. She gripped her broom tightly in her hands, her heart hammering in her chest. She was ready for this, she could do this, she'd done it last year, and she'd been so proud of herself and kaachan had been so proud of her and touchan said he would be the loudest one in the stands... how could she let them down like that? She couldn't, she knew she couldn't, this was where she was supposed to be right? She had to nail this. She'd done it last year this year should be easy.

Teddy called their attention and Rose quickly turned to pay attention to him, biting the inside of her cheek to keep herself more grounded. She was always nervous, anxious on the ground, but in the air was where she really shone. She knew she needed to match the energy of all the other keeper hopefuls, she didn't want them to surpass her, she was the best one for the job and when Teddy finished, that position would be hers. She wasn't going to let it slip through her fingers. She glanced towards Fraser and gave him a small nod, they knew her. She was the right one for this.

Rose mounted her broom and kicked up into the air, Teddy didn't want to hand the trophy over to anyone else, and Rose didn't want to hand her position over to anyone else either, so it seemed like they were in agreement. She took her place in front of the hoops, both to help the Chaser hopefuls and to make sure she didn't let a single quaffle int through the whole tryout. She had to be better than Teddy, after all, or how could she be trusted to take over for him when he left. No, this was what she had to do. And she was better than Teddy, she knew that in her soul. The first shot came careening towards her and she didn't even have to think before she batted it out of the way, her fingers, bending back almost painfully as she did so, but it didn't matter, she'd had worse things happen in a proper game so a tryout was no big deal.

Another shot, another save, over and over, she was everywhere - throwing herself into the path of every single quaffle that came her way, diving, stretching, kicking the quaffle in any and all directions when she couldn't reach with her hands. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t polished. It was pure heart and raw, stubborn refusal to let that ball past her. By the end, Rose was heaving for every breath, cheeks flushed, hair an absolute disaster, but she hovered in front of the hoops with a proud glint in her eyes, guarding the gates of her proverbial castle. No one was getting past this dragon, and they'd seen exactly what kind of a dragon she could be.​

 

[Finley Mackintosh Baros]

Finley was trying out for the Quidditch team again this year, though he wasn't entirely sure why. He liked the idea of being on the team and playing with the people on it. He'd watched every game last year and he wanted to be there with them, winning at every opportunity. His palms were sweaty before he even stepped onto the pitch, and he had to wipe them furiously on his robes so his borrowed broom wouldn't slip out of his hand. He'd tried out last year, hadn't made it but he hadn't really expected to, either. He was sure this year was going to be different, least of all because there was actually an available spot. It had to be different right? He wanted to do some of the things his dad never had, and he'd never been on the Quidditch team. Aunt Leda had though, so that did make another bit of different too, he thought. Aunt Sapphire had been on the team too, a beater, and she'd been Captain too, and how cool would that be if he could be Captain one day? It wasn't Slytherin, but she wouldn't mind, he knew she loved him anyway.

"Finley Baros, trying out for Beater!" He told them, same as last year. He thought Teddy gave a good speech, he seemed really comfortable giving speeches. Finley enjoyed listening to him, and as soon as it was his turn, he half-jogged, and headed over to where the other beaters were. Santiago was in his final year now and there was an open beater spot, so surely he could do something? He could either get the open beater spot or he was happy to alternate for Santiago, whichever got him on the team to be honest. He kicked up into the air and wobbled slightly with take off. He wasn't as used to being in the air as maybe some of the older students, but he didn't care, he was still going to do this.

He spotted his first bludger and took a swing, missing the first one - his stomach dropped - but he managed to recover as he chased down another one and smacked it towards his target. The sound of the bat hitting the bludger was like music to his ears and he grinned wildly. He almost missed someone hitting one back towards his and he just narrowly managed to dodge out of the way of it cracking him in the face. Heck, he needed to pay better attention, he couldn't afford to make mistakes like that in a game. Another bludger came flying towards him and he ducked just in time, but he never stopped moving, finding other bludgers and managing to hit them, or fighting for every second of air time. And then when he finally landed, out of breath, and beaming, he gave both of the Captain's a grin and a thumbs up. "Thanks for letting me try out!" He told them, hoping that maybe despite the mishaps, he'd done enough.​

 

[Peregrine Piper]

Peregrine wondered if the quaffle hit in the face had actually dislodged something and she'd gone quite mad. But no, apparently, here she was with a broom in hand standing before the very Quidditch team she'd been expressing the virtues of in terms of attractiveness with the somewhat mad idea of actually joining them. Sure, she could fly, she had a decent but certainly not incredible broom, and train ride aside she actually could throw and catch a quaffle. Plus, she knew the sport pretty well. She couldn't help but wonder if she was making a massive fool of herself by trying out for the team, however. What if she messed up and just made herself look stupid?

"Um, hello! Peregrine Piper, and, er, I'd like to try out for chaser." Too late to back out now, then. "I can do other things like beater or seeker if you need...probably...maybe..." Stopping herself before she proceeded to look stupid before even taking flight, she quickly mounted her broom and took off, joining the other chasers. She fumbled the ball a couple of times when she took passes out of nerves more than anything else, but at least didn't drop it. Once she got into the swing of things, focusing on just the game, then she seemed to do a bit better. It was hard to get the quaffle past the keeper, as she seemed really determined to prove herself (whoever she was), but Peregrine also took the quaffle up the other end just to show she could actually aim properly and did manage to get the quaffle through the hoops a couple of times. She seemed as surprised as anyone else, but she was quite proud of herself when she realised she had done it. It wasn't the most skillful or best showing, but she had a good time and she hoped that maybe Teddy and Fraser saw enough in her to give her a go.

 

[Aroha Blenheim]

Aroha knew she'd shown her worth last year, though unfortunately the inter-school game hadn't gone the best for her. She was ready, however, to do better this year. She'd practiced all holidays with her family - something her dad was a little bit annoyed by, seeing as he wasn't the best on the broom and had sheep to shear after all. Even Hēmi had joined in, as unconfident as he was. Aroha had really appreciated the support, especially considering the fact she had half a mind to continue on with quidditch after school ended.

"Aroha, trying out for seeker," she said confidently once it was her turn. She got to the skies and immediately began searching, while also flying around and proving her ability on the broom. Manouerving past bludgers, staying out of the chasers' way - she did it all. Unfortunately for her, a certain showoff had also decided to try out. She kept up though, catching the snitch a total of three times too (she made sure of it - she couldn't lose to a third year). Aroha was exhausted by the time the tryouts were complete - mentally and physically - but she didn't show it. Well, not entirely. It had been good practice at the very least.

 

[Santiago Torres]

Santiago wasn't sure what he was feeling as he stepped on to the quidditch pitch for try-outs. He was one of the oldest members of the team and after their wins last year, for the first time he thought he may be feeling a bit of pride. With his bat in hand he took to the air and started looking for bludgers and kept an eye out for all the fresh faces trying out. He didn't want to be cruel and target them but they had to know what they were getting into. He got a few good hits in, and a few accidental ones but those counted too.

 

[Fiona Burke]

Fiona had been trying out for the team as long as she could remember, and each year she hadn't managed to get onto the team, which had disappointed Fiona furiously. But she wasn't going to give up on it. She was going to keep trying, no matter what, and this year was no different. The Gryffindor made her way to the Quidditch pitch along with the others who were on the team or trying out. She listened carefully to Teddy as he spoke about their expectations, and Fiona was going to make sure to meet those expectations. It wasn't long before they were up in the air, and they could try out.

"Fiona Burke, trying out for beater or chaser, I'm cool with either," Fiona says with a smile and shrug before she takes off into the air, thinking that trying out for different positions would get her a better chance of getting in. She decided to try the beater position first, making her to both hit the bludgers, both deflecting the bludgers away from players as well as managing to hit a few as well to show that she defend and offend. She managed to get a few good hits in before trying for the chaser position. Fiona hung around the chasers, doing a few passings and making sure to work with her chaser teammates. The Gryffindor had managed to get a few goals in, as well as missing some, but she felt that she did decent enough.

It wasn't long before try outs had ended and they were back on the ground again. Fiona says a quick thanks to the captains before heading back to the castle, in hopes she would make the team this year...

 

[William Potter-Cade]

William had been working hard in secret to prepare for the Quidditch try-outs, she hadn’t even told Eury what he planned to do. He made his way out onto the pitch clutching his new broom, nerves washing over him a little. He didn’t need to be nervous, Quidditch was in his blood on both sides of the family, he was a Cade and a Potter. His mother was Lyra Potter for Merlin’s sake. William waited with the other students hoping to try-out for his turn to swing a bat around. “William Potter-Cade, trying out for beater,”

Eventually he was given the go ahead to get on his broom and he did just that. He immediately found a bludger hurtling towards him and he swung his bat at it, hitting it away from the rest of the players. Surely it would be this easy would it? He continued to fly around, hitting bludgers away from the other players and even on one occasion hitting a bludger at one of the players trying out for seeker, it was just good practice to aim for the seeker after all. There was a lot of ducking and dodging as William was still getting used to the bat, he didn’t always raise it in time but overall William was happy with his afternoons work. He returned to the ground and nodded at the captains. Hopefully he would make the team.

 

[Fraser Fergusson]

Fraser nodded along with what Teddy said as the try-outs got underway. They had a number of spots to fill and he was eager to see what the talent pool of gryffindor would turn out for them.

 

[Miles Flynn]

Miles had been looking forward to the upcoming Quidditch try-outs and had been in as much time on the pitch as he possibly could, so he was nice and prepared for it. The boy liked to think he was ready and really had a chance of making it, but he knew better than to just assume he was going to get one of the open spots on the team. He was just going to have to put in the work and prove that he was made of the right stuff. "Miles Flynn!" He announced with a grin once it was his turn, "I'm trying out as chaser, but really I can play anything you need me to. Beater, seeker and even keeper, I just really want to play Quidditch." Chaser had become his preference over the years, but honestly, he really didn't mind what position he ended up in. Just so long as he could make the team and actually get to play Quidditch with everyone else.

Hopping on his broom, the second year wasted no time in shooting off into the sky, getting right down to things as he zeroed in on the quaffle. He made sure to show off everything he could do, getting in some good shots at the hoops and scoring some goals, as well as flashing his passing skills to help get the assist. After all, this was a team game and he couldn't just try and hog the quaffle to get all the glory himself. Which was why he had been making sure to practice his passing and maneuvers in the air as well.

Once his time was finally over, Miles drifted back to the ground and dismounted, the large grin still on his face. He felt as though he had put in a good showing, but now he supposed it was down to the two captains to see if he was going to make the team or not.