Open One Step Back

[Alicia Richelieu]

Alicia knew she should be happy with the results from the tryouts, and she was, sort of. She was glad she was on the team even if it was as an alternate, but it still felt like a step backwards. She had been one of the main chasers on her old team and had been for three years, and now... she had given that all up to be an alternate chaser on a full team of players. Alicia had taken her own quaffle to the Quidditch pitch to get some practice in, but she had quickly lost steam after a few goals and was just tossing it in the air as she flew around now. It wasn't like she could practice her way out of her alternate spot, it was just a natural consequence of being new somewhere. It just... sucked, that was really what it boiled down to. Alicia sighed and tossed the quaffle down to the ground without looking, she'd pick it up later.

 

[Rion Pendleton]

Rion couldn't help but think she'd made a mistake. The idea of flying, in her experience, was always so much better than the reality, and even the thrill of win couldn't make her feel better about the prospect of getting back on her broom. It was different at try-outs. Nobody was relying on her. Nobody would get angry with her if she missed a goal. But when that whistle blew... everybody would be out for blood. Even the idea of practising alone filled her with a sick sense of dread. What if she got up there and discovered her aim had gotten - if it were possible - worse?

At least she was only an alternate. With any luck, Michael would keep her benched for most of the game. And by the time she got up in the air, if she ever did, the beaters' arms would be tired. Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the pitch gate. Just fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes of practice. She could manage that.

No. No, no no. Michael should have given the spot to somebody else. How could she have been so stupid and selfish? She couldn't fly. She couldn't even mount her broom. Her hands were sweating; she'd fall, and slip, and start to plummet...

A hollow thump several yards away brought her swiftly to her senses. It was raining...quaffles? She stepped out of the shadow of the stands and looked up. Rion wasn't the only one who'd thought to get some solo practice in today. Not the only one with slippery hands, either, she thought, as she stooped to catch the bouncing quaffle. Well, she had to return it. She could do this. If not fifteen minutes, then fifteen seconds. It was somewhere to start.

She kicked off, climbing steeply, steadily, until she came level with the Gryffindor. The climbing part was all right. It was hovering that made her feel like she was going to be sick. "Um," she said. Was her broom juddering? Was it supposed to do that? "You might have to come and get it. I can't throw." Or rather, she couldn't throw and grip her broom for dear life.

 

[Alicia Richelieu]

Alicia was letting herself just kind of... float, enjoying the stillness. At least, until she heard something. She turned slowly to see a girl flying up to meet her. She seemed a bit less confident on her broom, but she had the quaffle Alicia had thrown down. Alicia smiled at her, vaguely recognizing her from her classes. "Can't you?" She asked with a slight tilt of her head. "You could try it?"

 

[Rion Pendleton]

Rion, too, recognised the Gryffindor from classes, although she was a little preoccupied by the sight of the ground swaying beneath her broom. What was wrong with her? She'd done this dozens of times. She'd done it the other day, in tryouts - and she'd even scored a goal. Throw it. Stop being a baby. Throw it!

"I can't!" she snapped. Her cheeks burned, and she leaned into the heat. If she was angry, she wasn't crying. If she was angry, people didn't laugh. If she was angry, people left her alone.

The seed of recognition suddenly bloomed. Regret softened her features, tugged her shoulders down. Way the welcome the new girl. "Sorry, Alicia." The only way to fix this seemed to be to throw the quaffle, so Rion did - and watched as it sailed off to the right. Well, it was only a matter of time before Alicia had figured out she was useless. Why delay the inevitable?

 

[Alicia Richelieu]

Alicia raised her eyebrows slightly as the girl snapped at her, realizing she was upset and maybe even a little scared to be up here. But wasn't she here to train too? Alicia had assumed so. She shrugged a little as the girl apologized, then glanced at the quaffle as it flew off to the right. She flew down to catch it and moved back up. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." She said quietly. "But hey, you tried it. That's something." She smiled slightly. "And you know my name, bonus points. I'm afraid I don't know all the names in our year yet." She admitted.

 

[Rion Pendleton]

Alicia was so nice. That made Rion feel even worse. She'd had several opportunities to approach the Gryffindor, but hadn't yet found the courage. All she knew was her name and house. "I'm sorry," she said, and she was relieved to find that the fear in her voice made her sound more sincere, not less. "I'm Rion. I was going to say hi before, but..." But I thought Ruby might have already told you to avoid me. She would have been justified, too. Rion had been a horrible friend lately. A horrible person. She just didn't know how to put things right, or if she even could. Without Ainmere, she was lost, as usual. "I'm not very good at making friends. Or quidditch, obviously. Do you want to practice? Or do you want me to go away?"

 

[Alicia Richelieu]

Alicia smiled reassuringly at Rion as she saw how concerned she looked. She hadn't meant her comment badly and hadn't meant to make her feel guilty for not approaching her. "That's alright, everyone has their established friends. I came kind of late to the party." She said with a shrug. “Don’t worry about it. Everyone struggles sometimes, and honestly, it’s great you’re out here giving it a shot. Quidditch can be a bit overwhelming, I think you're probably better than you think”

She flew closer, holding the quaffle. "Practicing together sounds fun. My skills are a bit rusty from the break, so maybe we can help each other out and practice together?" She paused. "You're... Rion, right?" She asked, hoping she had remembered the girl's name correctly.