Closed Pretenders

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko had felt a knot in his stomach ever since he spotted the announcement for try outs on the bulletin board in the common room. Being on the team last year had been great but he never imagined he would actually get a chance to play an actually game. He was blind sided by the line up during their first game and he was fairly certain the current keeper now hated his guts even if it wasn't his fault. Nikko couldn't blame himself for losing their second game since he had been on the bench but he still took the loss hard. But he wasn't going to let a rough season get him down. He had worked hard to make the team and he didn't want it all to go to waste. He had proven himself, but for some reason it didn't make him feel much better. The only other person on the team who could relate to him was Flynn. He was an alternate last year too, but had to step up with out much warning. He spotted the younger boy as he headed to the pitch for try outs, and called out to him. "Hey! Wait up." He jogged slightly to catch up, and smiled. "Ready for try-outs?" he asked, genuinely curious to see if he was the only one feeling weird about them this year.

 

[Flynn North-McGowan]

Flynn had been feeling pretty hesitant about Quidditch ever since the previous year. Their loss in the finals was not something he could get over very easily and no matter how people told him it wasn't his fault, he still felt like he was the one to blame and that he had let the whole team down. It had taken quite a conversation in his own head as to whether the team would want him back or not before he eventually decided that he might as well show up. If they didn't want him then he simply wouldn't be picked and while it would be upsetting to know, he supposed he could accept that outcome. But there was still a slight hesitation to his step as he headed down to the pitch for the try-out, so he was somewhat thankful when he heard a familiar voice calling out from behind him. "Oh, Nikko, hey," he smiled slightly at the other boy, feeling a small weight on his shoulders as he heard the question. "I mean... not really, honestly. I'm not expecting to be picked again," but he didn't really want to dwell on that. "But what about you?

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko looked and Flynn curiously when he admitted his uncertainty. "Oh? Really?" he asked, looking concerned. He knew the lose against Slytherin had hit the whole team hard, but it's not like they could have prepared for Sierra to leave the team and put them in a less than ideal situation. He knew what it felt like to be thrown into a game when you weren't ready but at least they had won that game, even if it had little to do with his own performance. "I think my odds are about as good as last year. I have some more experience now, I guess we both do." he said with a small laugh and nudged the other boy gently as they walked. "But I couldn't practice all break and I feel like lost all progress I made last year." he admitted, and shrugged.

 

[Flynn North-McGowan]

He shrugged a shoulder, "Yeah, you remember how the finals went last year." There were probably better people out there suited more to be the team seeker and they should probably get picked for the team over him. While it would hurt, he'd understand. People told him they didn't blame him for their loss, Flynn still didn't totally believe that himself, and he still completely blamed himself for it. "I guess," was all he could offer with a hollow laugh, even after Nikko gently nudged him as they walked. It didn't really make him feel much better and it didn't change his opinion on anything. "But I'm the same, I can't practice anything at all when I leave at the end of the year." Not Quidditch and not anything else magic related, either. That was just the pain of living in a muggle environment.

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko bit his lip and nodded. He understood where Flynn was coming from and would probably feel the same way if he had been in the same position. But he tried to put an optimistic spin on things. “That was last year.” he said, sounding sure as he made a chop motion with his hand to emphasis his point. “New year, new beginnings. Or something like that.” he added before shrugging. He knew it sounded silly but he did believe on some level. They couldn’t carry the things that happened last season with them or they’d never grow and be better players with all that baggage being carried around. But Nikko nodded sympathetically. “It almost feels unfair if people can. You would think that would be against the rules too.” he joked lightly.

 

[Flynn North-McGowan]

Maybe Nikko's words would have made someone else feel better about things, but not Flynn. It was pretty hard to just get over as big a loss like that and feel positive about the upcoming season. "I don't think that it's going to be something many people are just going to forget," a lot of hardcore fans were going to look at him as the kid who had lost them their chance of winning the finals. But he would like to see them try and go up against Blake and see what happens. "It's certainly not fair," he agreed with a firm nod of his head, "How do they expect anyone to improve that much when we're stuck not even being able to hop on our brooms and fly around for months?" Coming back to Hogwarts and flying again took some time to get used to again.