Atala was so excited to be trying out for beater again. She'd had so much fun last year that she wanted to do it as many times as she could! She'd gotten a bit of a later start, that much was true, but she'd enjoyed the camaraderie she'd felt with the others on her team, so of course she wanted to try again. And if she got to smack some heads in, well, all the better. She'd been in a bit of a foul mood all week, after she'd learned that her brother wouldn't be coming to school with her, it just wasn't fair! Homeschooling? Why didn't she get to be homeschooled too? Though that would have made her tryouts a little more difficult if she was honest and she definitely didn't want that, no way. Still, she wanted to be with her brother and not being allowed to be with him was upsetting and annoying and a bunch of other big words she didn’t care to focus on right now.
With a lollypop in hand and her broom in the other, Atala made her way confidently to join the others. She hoped desperately that she would be picked again, but since she’d only been an alternate she knew that she could be over looked this time and that she was not guaranteed a spot, even if she really, really wanted it. She took a deep breath and looked at everyone else as she listened to Mualla. She liked Mualla, she was a good beater Atala thought. She would be happy to be Captained by her, definitely. “Hey Mualla, Atala,” she said, though it was mostly for the other hopefuls as she knew Mualla already, “I’m trying for Beater again this year!” She was still in a sour mood, but she hoped it wasn’t obvious as she mounted her broom and took off into the sky, much smoother this time than at last years tryouts. She’d definitely gotten more confident on a broom and she was sure that was a plus, right?
Spotting her first bludger, and using the anger she felt bubbling below the surface, Atala took a swing at it and hit is as far as she could to the other side. It was a bit less controlled than she would have liked, but it went mostly in the direction she wanted and she quickly looked around for another, deftly swiping it from another beater hopeful before they managed to hit it. She hoped that showcased a bit of her ability with the broom and the bat, that she could defend her team by stealing the bludgers from the other side. She caught another bludger that was speeding toward one of the other tryouts before having to dodge one of her own. Merlin, that one nearly took her out, she had to be more careful.
By the time the end was called, she’d missed a couple, but managed to hit more or less all of the ones she’d been trying to, she just hoped it was enough. “Thanks Mualla,” she said as it all ended. She only hoped she got another shot at a position, she really, really, wanted to be on the team again this year.