Y31 Gryffindor Quidditch Tryouts

[Merrill Piper]

Merrill was practically buzzing with excitement as she set up the quidditch pitch for today's tryouts. It was a cool morning so far, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It would be a good day for flying. She almost still couldn't believe that James had passed the title of captain down to her, but Merrill was determined to keep Gryffindor's winning streak going. If she could do that for her two years left at school she would for sure get drafted into the professionals. Soon there was quite the crowd waiting in the field. Some seemed calm, but there were quite a few that looked anxious. Merrill turned to face them, and cleared her throat before beginning her speech. "We're coming off winning another quidditch cup, and I'd like to keep the streak up. If you were on the team last year your spot is guaranteed if you're here. Last years alternates need to try out again. Good luck everyone, and have fun. You can begin!" Merrill finished with a smile.
​

Players	Position[/td]
Seeker	Open
Keeper	Merrill Piper
Chaser	Marisol Woods
Chaser	Camelia Kyle
Chaser	Open
Beater	Lizzie Taylor
Beater	Gabriel Rosenberg
Alternates	Open

[th colspan="2"]Current Gryffindor Team[/th] [th]

Out of Character:

Returning players are guaranteed their spots as long as they post before tryouts are over. Alternates will have to tryout again.

No first years unless you PM me first. First years will not be allowed on the team unless we have a shortage of older students.

 

[Tomas Wode]

With James having graduated from the school last year, Tomas was somewhat hopeful that he would be the next Seeker on the Gryffindor team. He smiled at both Marisol and Merrill and announced what position he was going to be trying out for. ''Tomas Wode, trying out for Seeker.'' He mounted his Scarlet Streak and kicked himself off into the air, waiting for the captain to release the Snitch. He had seen a glint of the golden ball a couple of times whilst flying around the Quidditch pitch in search for it. Without realising it as Tomas was too focused on catching the Snitch, a blugder had hit him in the sides. Watery-eyed, the Gryffindor groaned and grabbed his side. However, he wasn't going to have one hit take him out so tried his best to ignore the pain and continued his search for the little, golden ball. Zigzagging around the pitch to avoid getting hit by a bludger for the second time today, Tomas noticed something out of the corner of his eyes. Pulling up quickly in the hope that he could catch up with it, the Gryffindor leaned forwards to go faster. When the teen felt like he was close enough to the Snitch, he held out his arm and reaced out for it. He smiled brightly as it was struggling to break free from his grasp and flew down to the ground, the pain in his sides slowly returning.

 

[Lizzie Parker-Taylor]

It was difficult to swallow down the bitterness in her throat as Lizzie approached the pitch for tryouts. She had spent the entire holidays waiting for an owl that had never come, an owl to tell her she would be taking on the captaincy she had worked so hard for. She had been on the team the longest of any member, worked hard and never gotten into trouble, it felt obvious. But the owl had never come, and she had to force herself to pretend it was fine, to congratulate Marisol and Merrill as though it didn't hurt. Lizzie had faith in her teammates, of course, she had played alongside them long enough to know they were competent, and skilled, and would steer the team in the right direction, but being passed over for something she worked so hard for still stung, and as she made her way onto the pitch she tried to focus on her faith in them, swallow down the lump of pain and rejection, and hoped that Merrill hadn't heard her crying in her bed last night.

Listening to Merrill start the tryout, something Lizzie had been looking forward to doing all holidays, she had to suppress her sadness and tried to focus on the new talent instead, hoping they would find strong players to replace the people they had lost at the end of last year. Once tryouts started Lizzie kicked off to help out with testing the new players, hoping to at least do her best to make sure they wound up with the best team possible, even if she wouldn't be the one leading it.

 

[Frankie Tillington]

The closer the date for Quidditch try-outs approached, the more psyched Frankie began to get about attempting to return to the house team. Last year had been a complete buzz for her, especially during the game where she had actually been chosen to play a starting position. Frankie had had a taste of everything that was now awaiting her on the pitch, and she was determined to do her best today in order to try and get at least the same alternate position as she had held last year. She was striving toward something more permanent, of course, but in Frankie's opinion any chance to be on the team was nothing to be sniffed at. As she arrived on the pitch with her broom held loosely at her side, Frankie was stoked to see a female in the role of captain. The previous captain had been an alright dude, of course - he'd been the one to give her a chance after all - but Frankie couldn't deny that being led by a female presence this year would be way more awesome.

She listened to the opening spiel with a small grin on her face, and once directed to begin the try-out she stepped up to Merrill right away. "Hey. You may recognise this face from last year," she said, drawing a few circles in the air in front of it with her free hand. "But if you never managed to catch the name, I'm Frankie. I'm trying out for chaser again." She finished with a grin and, giving the girl a cheeky salute, she turned away to kick off into the air. Once at a good height, Frankie made sure to get her hands on a Quaffle as soon as possible, and once she had the large red ball tucked under her arm as she headed straight for the designated hoops. It felt great to be up in the air again, and the rush of adrenaline it gave Frankie had her shooting toward the posts without much of a strategy in mind - which ended up costing her the shot. The Quaffle flew wide, and Frankie groaned in disgust at herself. What a rookie mistake from a rookie. Once she had the ball back again, she spent a lot more time on her second attempt trying to find the best way to dodge past the keeper. She almost thought she had it, too - but the keeper managed to get there just in the nick of time to save it.

Determined to show that her full potential was better than this, Frankie went for her third shot in much the same way as she had done the second, but this time she tried to combine the move with her earlier speed and finally her efforts paid off. The Quaffle shot through the center hoop, and Frankie performed a small fist pump to herself in celebration. That's what she was talking about! She got right back into the game, and not long after that she was lining up her fourth shot of the try out. She thought the attempt had gone well on her end, but unfortunately the keeper was too quick for her and managed to bat the Quaffle out of the way right before it was about to sail through the far hoop. Frankie took the failure more seriously than the previous ones, and with her last shot of the try-out she put everything she had into practically blowing the keeper out of the water. They were good, but Frankie knew that she was also pretty good, and thankfully she was able to prove it. In a much more elaborate move than she would normally have the patience to pull off, Frankie pretended to switch up the hoop she was aiming for, only to swing herself back around to the original hoop once she'd seen the keeper had taken the bait. The Quaffle soared through unobstructed, and when it was announced that time was up not long after, Frankie was glad that she had managed to end the try-out on a personal high. She descended back to the ground and jumped off her broom with a thud, although she didn't feel like leaving for the changing rooms just yet. "Hey thanks," she said to Merrill, a wide grin of exhilaration still on her face. "Gryffindor's going to have an awesome year."

 

[Marcos Morales]

Marcos had been on the team a while, though never more than an alternate. He assumed that most people would be bothered by this, but Marcos wasn't. He knew the current keeper was good and active so all he needed to do was be there just in case. He practiced and celebrated with the team and was able to help out if ever need be. The boy walked on to the pitch with the second hand broom in hand and listened to the usual spiel that the two new captains gave, two people whom he knew were the right choice. Marcos nodded and listened until they were allowed to get started, "Marcos Morales, back again, here to once again try out for Keeper, but I can fit in wherever is needed in games themselves" he told them before getting on his broom and shooting up into the air.

He did better than in any prior try-out, of course. He'd been on the team for a couple of years now. He had always been good and he had always been working to improve himself. He blocked a few shots, let a few in and flew better than before. Despite the broom his balance on it had improved, he was more stable, he was able to pay attention to more elements within the try-outs, block a few shots by catching the ball, or sending it down to the ground. He got better at covering the hoops though the odd ball still did of course go through. he was better than before but he wasn't yet amazing, or the best that there had ever been. Sometimes it depended more on the chaser throwing the ball. Some were more experienced and more difficult to block than others. Some were easy because they went wide anyway and would've missed any of the hoops but Marcos had a good time, and he felt he had played well. He felt he'd shown that he could remain a part of the team. He flew down to the ground as it was rounded up and he thanked the captains. He hoped he'd be back on the team this year.
​

 

[Syrus Stilinski]

What are the chances of him getting on the quidditch team this year? The odds were stacked against him. Slim to none. Syrus would have like to have been on the team several years back so he wouldn't have to do this in the first place. That never happen. He was left hating the team captain and being jealous of April's role on a team. That solved nothing. Syrus, then started to see the serious problem of quidditch and why his mother forbid him in the first place. The game was tough, ugly and brutal. He would be risking getting hurt, and all for a game he loved watching. When he was able to attend. For a game that practically shouted his name. If his dad was still alive, he sure the man wouldn't had let Syrus not try out. Meaning he would've gone behind his wife's back and defy her rules. With all these mixed emotions and feeling a bit cynical, he pushed it all to the side and though of only his father. He sure of it, if the man was living today he would be cheering for Syrus to play.

Syrus, came along for tryouts with his broomstick. He's been working on that thing, adding some modifications and charm so it could ride the way he wanted. He didn't do too much, just enough to bend the rules a little in his favor. He greeted Merrill, and again congratulated her for making team captain. He could tell she was ecstatic about the given title. Syrus, related to her what position he was attempting today. Seeker, it was random or maybe not. He had more than one reason to try out for seeker, for the time being he kept that to himself. Syrus, mounted his broom and took off. The seeker ball was released and it was up to Syrus to catch that thing. He knew what to expect, but it still came as shock to him. Syrus heard the whizzing sound, it's wing flapping at the speed of light. The golden snitch hovered above and then disappeared on him.

Syrus started flying and zooming across the pitch. He kept his ears alerted and his eyes searching for the snitch. It was tricky. James and April made it look so easy from the stand. And he almost forgot the bludger for a moment there. He hadn't seen Merrill released any, however, he kept an eye out just in case. Syrus rushed to the other end of the pitch and caught sight of a golden ball ahead of him. Syrus, with an outstretched hand try all his might to capture it. It loomed and zapped away. Syrus, groans frustrated but kept flying and moving ahead. He focused on the sound again until it was near. And it was flying at his side. Syrus grabbed at the snitch once more, and it's wing collapse within his grip. He had caught it, he had caught the snitch! Several more times he went cashing for the snitch, until he was able to perfect his own way of catching the snitch. He let his ears guide him and that resulted a few more captures during his tryouts. He was feeling very confident towards the end. It had all worked out perfectly well. ​

 

[Gwen Owens-Lee]

Gwen had quite a good holiday, and she was willing to come back to Hogwarts better than ever. When she saw the notice about the Gryffindor Quidditch Tryouts she was instantly excited to try out. She didn't know if she would get in, especially considering she was only a second year, but it would be good experience and she was sure her mothers would be happy about her giving something new a go. When all of the other Gryffindors started heading down to the Quidditch Pitch Gwen excitedly followed, her hair tied neatly back and a smile on her face. Many of the people were taller and older than her but she was still ready to try to beat them. She gathered around as the co-captain of the team began to speak. Gwen thought she must be a really good player to obtain her position, and the second year was excited to try and impress her.

When they were told they could begin, Gwen approached the co-captain to introduce herself. "Hey, I'm Gwen and I'm trying out for seeker!" she exclaimed, beaming at her. She took off into the skies with the other people trying out and instantly began trying to look for the snitch. The snitch was what had to be caught to win the game and so Gwen knew that if she managed to get the postion that she would be the most important player and everyone would depend on her. When the Gryffindor saw a glimmer of gold, she quickly turned her head in that direction, and when she saw it in the distance, she leaned forward, racing to grab the snitch. It was definitely fast but Gwen pushed on and after many times almost catching it, she finally caught it and beamed as her fingers wrapped around the small ball, throwing her fist up in the air. She looked over at the co-captains to make sure they saw before letting it go and looking away so the snitch could continue flying around and she could try to catch it again. She caught it two more times by the end of the try outs and was quite proud of herself. She knew there were lots of other people trying out too however and so would not be disappointed if she didn't get it. The main thing was that she had fun and it was a good learning experience for her.

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob trudged onto the pitch with his broom in hand. Up until this morning, he hadn't even been sure he was going to try out. Everything in his life seemed to be changing and quidditch seemed like it should be the least of his concerns, but his mom had stopped him in the Great Hall to wish him luck, and now he couldn't not show up. Everything else was making her sad these days. It had been nice to see her smile, so eager for her son to follow in her footsteps.

Seeing the team for the first time on the pitch was intimidating. Jacob blinked, looking around with his broom in his hand. He had seen most of these people around, but they seemed bigger and more formidable now. Spotting Lizzie, Jacob gave a small wave before he continued looking around, spotting one of his year mates. He stood by her, giving her a nervous, shaky smile. Listening to the instructions, Jacob nodded his head and whispered good luck to the girl. When it was his turn, he spoke. "I'm Jacob and trying out for Beater" he stated, leaving out his surname, wanting to steer clear of the complications that came with it. Mounting his broom, Jacob flew low to grab a beater's bat before kicking off into the sky. He wasn't worried about his flying ability.

They hadn't been given a particular task by the captain, so Jacob looked around for a second before he realized they weren't going to do a mock game or anything. Mostly, it was just them showing off their skills. He knew he could do that. Flying after the nearest bludger, Jacob lined up the shot and swung, sending it soaring away from someone who was flying by. He grinned a little wider, his family troubles disappearing a little from his mind. Jacob flew on, wanting to show off his speed and his new broom, if truth be told. Spotting another bludger, he smacked it away. Jacob wanted to show he could send the bludger to hit a person too but wasn't sure if they were supposed to. He didn't want to get in trouble and ruin his chances.

The practice with Lizzie had definitely helped guide his other practices during the break, and he was getting better at hitting the bludgers with the thicker part of his bat and not just the tip. By the time he'd ended, Jacob had managed to hit the bludger two more times and missed only once, though he never targeted a Gryffindor. He hoped that wouldn't hurt him. He just hadn't known what to do. Jacob didn't know if he had done enough. He hoped so. Instead of leaving right away, Jacob watched as others drifted in to try out.

 

[Jessica Cade]

Jess was a good Quidditch player the problem was she didn't know if good was good enough to make the Gryffindor team. With her brother gone she had a better chance to make the team with no one around to favour her but with so many people interested in the team was she good enough? Jess had prepared all through the holidays and had bought a new broom. Hopefully it wouldn't be all for nought. Jess took her new broom and headed down to the pitch where she found the new captains waiting along with other students hoping to try out.

"Jessica Cade, trying out for chaser," Jess said introducing herself to Marisol and Merrill. Jess knew after her brother gave Gryffindor back to back championships she had a lot to live up to but she needed to be clear headed. Jess mounted her broom and went up to join the others. Soon it was her turn, she was handed a quaffle and flew over to the hoops and stared down the keeper. Jess missed her first shot on goal. She managed to fool the keeper but her shot lack power and lamely fell short of the hoop. It wasn't a good start and she needed to not let it mess with her head. From then on she was on form and she felt a lot better about her chances. Her second shot was correctly guessed by the keeper but it was just beyond their reach and sneaked into the hoop. Third, Jess managed to fool the keeper with her eyes, sending the keeper to her left while the quaffle sailed through the hoop to her left. Fourth she waited for the keeper to move and sent the quaffle flying through the center hoop. Her fifth and final shot was a hit and hope for the left hoop. She scored.

Satisfied with herself Jess made her way back to the ground and thanked the captains. She didn't know if she would make the team or not but she was happy with her tryout and her progress. In that moment all she wanted to do was see Leila and tell her how she did.

 

[Jemma Potter]

Jemma woke up with the sun that morning. Today, she had Quidditch tryouts and it was the first thing she had really looked forward to since her world had pretty much crumbled around her during first year. She had lost her mother, but she had also lost her siblings. They moved out and had real adult jobs now playing for professional quidditch teams with very little time for her. Carter was the only father she had ever known, but he was busy with his campaign and her two newest siblings. Aunt Cyndi and Uncle Cameron were having their own problems, and Jemma hadn't even seen them much over break. She had been incredibly lonely which translated to a lot of hours flying and practicing to distract her.

The Gryffindor girl entered the pitch and felt slightly intimidated. There were quite a few students there, and most of them were older than she was. She spotted Jacob and went to his side. He was her best friend even though she hadn't seen much of him lately. The redhead smiled slightly at him before paying attention to Merrill, the new team captain. Jemma waited for her turn before speaking. "Hi. I'm Jemma. I'm trying out for seeker....but I can also play chaser." she added at the last moment. Link had always been a seeker, and he had often played with her, challenging her to see who could catch it the quickest. Link almost always won. It wasn't fair since he was so much older, but it made her better. Jemma was best as a seeker; it ran in her veins, but really, she just wanted a place on the team. She wanted to belong somewhere. Jemma mounted her new broom and kicked off the ground forcefully.

Jemma Potter was petite, like her mother, which meant she could move quickly through the air like a tiny little bird. She was quick, so quick that she could move before you noticed it. She smiled as she hovered in the air, nodding to the girl on the ground to release the snitch. The Gryffindor girl stayed alert, green eyes scanning the pitch for a glimmer of gold, when she saw it by one of the chaser's ears. Jemma took off, heading straight for it, but it darted away just as she was about to close her fingers around it. The second year pulled her broom to the right to narrowly avoid colliding with the chaser. Jemma scanned the pitch once more, hoping to catch sight of the snitch again. She rose higher in the air, trying to get a better view. It was only a few more moments before she saw the snitch by the north hoops. Jemma took off once again. Only this time, she closed her fingers around the cool metal triumphantly. She raised it high in the air with a grin on her face. The first real smile she had in months. "I got it!" she said, pleased with herself. She let the snitch go, wanting to give it another shot. She managed to catch it a little quicker that time.

After her fourth successful catch of the snitch, Jemma switched to the chaser group. As a second year, she knew her best chance was to tryout for more than one position. She picked up a quaffle and practiced passing it back and forth with an older girl. Out of the six shots she attempted, she made three of them. It wasn't the best she had ever done, but it wasn't too shabby either. Jemma returned to the ground with a smile on her face and feeling happier than she had all summer. "Thank you, Merrill." she said, politely before heading to the showers.

 

[Mervyn Strangewayes]

Mervyn had been thinking about trying out for Gryffindor Seeker for some time. He was small, and quick, and where his height was often a curse in daily life, on a broom it was likely to give him an advantage. The sky was already animated with players when Mervyn arrived, but he tried not to let that put him off. It didn't matter how much competition there was: he only had to be the best. Given his lack of experience, he perhaps ought to have been a little less arrogant, but there was not a hint of self-doubt in his tone as he strode up to the captain and said, "Mister Mervyn Strangewayes, tryin' out for Seeker."

Mounting his broom, Mervyn kicked off and took to the skies. The air felt thinner, fresher, clearer up here, and he wasted no time beginning his hunt for a snitch. It was more difficult than he anticipated; every glint of jewellery, the slightest glare from the sun, looked like a snitch. In moments he was horribly disorientated, and almost ready to admit defeat. Then he gripped his broom hard. He couldn't give up. Even if he didn't catch a single snitch, he wasn't returning to the ground until tryouts were over. Weaving between the stands, Mervyn craned his neck this way and that, until - finally! - he spotted a pair of translucent gold wings. Banking to the right, he started in pursuit, never letting the snitch leave his vision for a second. It made a sharp drop; Mervyn followed. He was flying just shy of a meter above the ground when suddenly a bludger came flying toward him from above, and, ducking, he lost control of the broom. Two somersaults, three splinters and a grazed knee later, he came to a crumpled halt on the grass, broomstick lying next to him. Tentatively, he stood up, flexing his limbs to make sure nothing was broken. Thankfully, only his dignity was really hurt. Kicking his broom, he stalked out of the pitch, breaking into a run as he reached the gate and not stopping until he was back inside the castle.

 

[Marisol Woods]

Marisol was still surprised the school had allowed James to name her as one of the captains of the team given her previous rule breaking but she wasn't complaining as she was now the oldest and most experienced on the team. She smiled at Merrill, happy to let her take the lead, and was rather focused on watching all the tryouts to see who could be a good fit for the team. They were on a winning streak and she'd hate to lose that now in her last year on the team. The Gryffindor watched each participant closely and took mental notes, wondering what Merrill's thoughts would be too.
​

 

[Gabriel Rosenberg]

Gabriel was happy to be part of the team. He was a bit suprised by who the captains were, he figured Lizzie would be the one. He was so sure that James would make her captain, or Professor Kingsley. Gabriel really had no idea who could do that. He was recently playing as a beater and it wasn't the position he first thought he would play but the previous games were kind of fun, and he was started to become really good at it. Gabriel didn't liked the classes, the only thing he liked was to play quidditch. He hated studying and reading books it was nothing for him. The blonde swedish boy smiled as he entered the pitch. He waved to Lizzie and the other members. He and Lizzie were be a good team he figured. Merrill and Marisol were the new team captains and she figured they would do good too. Gabriel was surrounded with girls right now he hoped some boys would join the team. It wasn't that he mind to attention of the girls, but he hoped that his best buddy Marcos could join. The blonde wished his friend good luck and looked at the others trying out. It was a nice feeling that he could just watch. Gabriel was happy that he could play as chaser as he always had wished for the future.

 

[Merrill Piper]

Position	Member
Seeker	Tomas Wode
Keeper	Merrill Piper
Beater	Lizzie Taylor
Beater	Jacob Kingsley
Chaser	Marisol Woods
Chaser	Frankie Tillington
Chaser	Gabriel Rosenberg
Alternates	Marcos Morales, Syrus Stilinski, Jessica Cade, Jemma Potter

[th colspan="2"]Gryffindor Team[/th]