Closed No 'I' In Team

[Lysander Summers]

Lysander pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a long-held, exasperated breath. Quidditch had been a disaster. He'd known it would be tough to beat Slytherin, but he'd still expected more from himself than he'd given. He hadn't been able to defend Flynn, or hinder Blake, and to make matters worse, Emma had broken the rules and gotten into trouble. He couldn't blame her for hitting a bludger after the match had been ended. The frustration of watching Blake easily dodge them left, right and center all match, seeing him catch the snitch yet again, and knowing how much he generally peacocked around with his victory, it was a lot. She'd only done what he'd imagined doing himself. He got it, but the rules had still been broken. She'd put both herself, and the whole team at risk.

Having asked Emma to stay behind after the match under the pretense of helping him to clear up their gear, Lysander seated himself on one of the changeroom benches, still dressed in his Quidditch robes. He felt deflated. He'd had low expectations coming into the game, tried not to get his hopes too high, and somehow, it had gone worse than he'd expected. "I...I don't know where to begin. That sucked." He said, said, after a few moments of silence. He leaned forward, dropping his head into his hands. The year had only just begun, and it was already off to such a miserable start. He peered at his best friend through the gaps of his fingers. "I can't believe you did that. Why did you do that?" He asked, more disbelieving than disappointed. Urgh. He didn't want to have to deal with this. They should have been back at the common room, trying to forget about their loss. Captaining was so much harder than it looked. This would've been easier to deal with if Sierra had still been around, or if it had been anyone but Emma. Why did it have to be Emma?​

 

[Emma van Houten]

Emma felt conflicted. Yes, she knew it was wrong that she had hit a bludger at Blake after the match, but she wasn't sure if she entirely regretted it. It had felt good, and it had felt deserved. Gryffindor had been trying to win the cup for years and every time it was Slytherin that ruined it. Why was it her fault that she was frustrated?

But no, she knew she shouldn't have done it. Both Iris and Lars would probably scold her for it later, and now she had gotten Lysander in trouble too. Not to mention, she should probably apologize to Blake now. Emma stayed behind as Lysander asked, waiting anxiously for him to finally start speaking. She winced when he finally did, looking down. "I'm sorry!" She said finally, sitting down on the bench as well and throwing her beater's gloves on the floor in frustration. "I was just so mad- you worked so hard and we deserve that cup." She said, clenching her hands into fists. "It's not fair!"

 

[Lysander Summers]

Lysander dragged his hands down his face, as if trying to wipe the frustration away, and sighed. "Look, I get it. I was mad too. Blake, he's way too good, and ever since we lost Sierra we haven't really stood a chance. I just want us to have a win." There were only so many chances he had to win the cup while he was captain of the team, and each loss brought him closer to having none. He didn't want people to think he was a terrible captain, or that he'd only got the spot because his father was a professor. The disappointment in Buchanan's voice had definitely made him feel like he really was a terrible captain. "Look. Blake's fine. Getting hit by a couple of bludgers isn't that big a deal, and he dodged pretty much all of ours. It wasn't like he was about to be knocked out of the sky." He tried to rationalise it. Emma was one of his best friends, and he couldn't really punish her for what she did. It was all a part of the game, and it wasn't worth risking resentment over. "You heard Buchanan. I'm responsible for what happened. I have to tell him I handled it somehow." He frowned, wracking his brain for a punishment that wasn't too awful. "You could always help me prepare for practices and matches. We can say I made you do all the work." He suggested after a moment, shrugging his shoulders lightly. He could make up something about it teaching responsibility, and hopefully that would be enough to warrant the issue being considered resolved.​

 

[Emma van Houten]

Emma sighed when Lysander said he understood, knowing he was being nice. She had brought him a lot of trouble, and she felt bad about it. Even if Blake had deserved it just a bit. "I'm sorry." She repeated, this time sounding more like she meant it. But when Lysander started rationalising it, she did feel a bit better. "I mean, yeah. He hadn't been hit much yet." She said quickly. "He's fine." But as Lysander reminded her he was responsible for what happened, she felt guilty all over again. His idea of saying she helped him prepare was a good one, and Emma nodded. "I can really help." She said quickly. "I got you in trouble, I want to make it up to you." She said. "And... it would be fun?" She paused. "If you wanna hang out with me." She added after a beat.

 

[Lysander Summers]

Lysander gave a lop-sided smile and rested back against the bench. He could do with the help, and he was sure Emma would have agreed to help him even if he wasn't posing it as a punishment. It was a deal, and he looked forward to his best friend helping to set up with him. "I'm not going to not want to hang out with your because you hit Blake with a bludger." He chuckled lightly. "I think some of the Gryffindors would want to hang out with you more, now." There had to be a few people who were as fed up with Slytherin winning all the time.

As worth it as it was to see, it sucked to have Buchanan sound so disappointed with him, specifically. If he was, then Professor Kingsley probably was, too. And his dad. It didn't seem very fair. He could lead the team, but he couldn't control what they all did. Did it really make him a bad captain? He couldn't recall any other captains being told off before, an it left a nagging doubt. "Hey, I have a question..." He said after a moment, looking back up at Emma. "Has anyone on the team, like, said anything about me? Being a captain, I mean." He clarified, wondering if she'd heard anything and hadn't told him. "Just 'cause like, Eric Holland said...well, I think some people think I'm only a captain because my dad is a professor. You don't think so, right?" He asked, lifting his shoulders from the bench slightly to prop himself up. Everyone had been nice enough to his face, but he knew he had been pretty young to make captain, and he couldn't help but wonder what people really thought. He didn't want to believe Eric, but it made sense, especially coming off the back of another professors kid being a captain.​

 

[Emma van Houten]

Emma smiled slightly when Lysander said her hitting Blake with a bludger didn't mean he wasn't going to hang out with her. She knew it hadn't been very smart to hit Blake, but she wasn't sure if she entirely regretted it either. "Well, if it helps me be more popular maybe it was worth it." She said with a slight grin.

Lysander then asked her a question, and Emma frowned. "What?" She asked, surprised to hear him so uncertain. But then he mentioned Eric Holland, and Emma scoffed. "C'mon, it doesn't matter what he says." She said dismissively. "You're not going to let Eric Holland get to you, are you?" She asked him, incredulous. "He's the biggest loser in the entire school. He's just trying to make you feel bad." She said with a roll of her eyes. "You're captain because you're awesome and the best player on the team." She told him firmly.