Y37 Hufflepuff Practice S1

[Elliot Briar]

Hufflepuff,Practice

Though Elliot had some distance now after the holidays, he had hated how last year's Quidditch season had ended for Hufflepuff. He didn't consider himself a particularly competitive person normally, but he hated the feeling of letting his team and his house down. Now with Analei and Arvel gone and him and Abian left as captains, Elliot felt that pressure even stronger than before. But try-outs had gone well, and Elliot was hesitantly confident that maybe this year would actually be a chance for Hufflepuff to shine again.

It was a little early in the year to already be out on the pitch, the air still crisp and cool from the receding Winter, but Elliot was eager to get the team in the air and see some of their new players in action. If they all worked hard, he knew he'd feel a lot better about their first upcoming match. He was already on the pitch, checking over the gear before the rest of the team were done in the lockers, keen to get started.

Out of Character:

Just arrivals for now. We'll post again within about 24 hours once practice has begun

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor was ecstatic for today. He had barely slept, he was so excited for his first practice as a full, proper member of the Quidditch team. He was gonna give everything he had and prove that he was a worthy replacement for Analei. Connor had looked up to Elliot and Abian for years, and he was excited to show that he could be everything the team needed in a strong player. So he made sure to show up to practice early, grinning brightly at the sight of the two captains. "Hey guys! Can't wait!" He said with a broad grin, bouncing slightly on his toes in excitement.

 

[Amy Jewel]

Amy was looking forward to the first practice of the year. It was even more exciting this year, considering the team had a group of new players. She made her way down to the pitch, breathing in the cool air. It would be a little chilly in the air, but she knew that it'd warm up quickly. She had spent some time over the holidays practicing her throwing and catching, and hoped that this year would turn out better than last year. She smiled around at the team, trying to remember the new faces.

 

[Lillith Montgomery]

Lillith was up early, excited to go practice. She was an alternative, but that didn't mean that she could slack. She was keen on working extra hard to get the chaser spot next year. The two captains and a few other team members were already there. "Good Morning!" She greeted upon reaching their earshot. She had a big grin on her face and her broom in her hand.

 

[Tilly Drage]

Even though the team lineup had been posted days ago, Tilly was still stunned to be appointed as a beater. Maybe this was a mistake. When she got to the pitch, Elliot would tell her so sorry, they’d actually gone with someone else.

Thankfully, that didn’t happen. And besides, three other seconds years had made the Hufflepuff team- it couldn’t be a joke.

Tilly arrived early and got dressed for practice. Then she found a spot by @Lillith Montgomery and said a quiet, “Hey.” Tilly grinned broadly but didn’t say anything else, waiting on the captains. She was both excited and nervous.

 

[Hunter Robinson]

Hunter was pretty excited for his first practice of the season. He was still a bit shocked that he had made it in the main team as a chaser, he coupd have only dreamt of it and even those were some wild dreams but now his wildest dream had become true.
He arrived at the pitch, not really knowing anyone but his fellow second year classmates Lilith and Tilly, all the others were familiar, as they were all Hufflepuffs but he had never talked to them in his life. "Hi everyone, I'm Hunter" he said energetically and loud enough for everyone to hear and get to know him.

 

[Abian Hunter]

Abian was excited about the first practice of the season. He'd spoken with Elliot about tactics, but mostly thought the team just needed to play together to get used to each other. There were a lot of new people on the team, which was exciting. A lot of young people too, which was slightly worrying with all the bludgers flying around. Abian hurried over to Elliot on the pitch, to see if he could help out in any way as he prepared for practice. The rest of the team started to arrive, and Abian greeted them cheerfully. He was eager to get started.

 

[Lucas Fletcher]

Lucas couldn't believe he'd made the team. He had really done it! He was excited to go to the first practice, practically beaming as he arrived. He looked at his new teammates, feeling thrilled to be here with them. He spotted Connor Holland, who he knew a bit through his friends, and headed over to him. "I made it!" He said happily, though it wasn't really news at this point. "And uh, so did you! Congratulations. I'm so excited, aren't you?" He asked, realizing he was babbling a little.

@Connor Holland

 

[Elliot Briar]

With the team on the field and things just about set to go, Elliot glanced over at Abian, giving him a nod to be sure he was ready before they got started. It would be both of their first official practice as team captains, while Elliot knew it wasn't really any different from other practices he'd done before, it felt important. "Alright, let's get started guys," He called, motioning any stragglers to gather round him and Abian and clearing his throat. "First off, welcome, it's great to have some new faces on the team," He said, nodding to their new, mostly younger members. "Hunter, Tilly, Lillith, Linden, Finn, Lucas, if you guys have any questions let us know," He said before turning to check the balls were ready for release.

"I have a good feeling about everything year, so let's put in the hard work and win some matches, yeah?" He said, aiming for something he hoped was encouraging. "Chasers, you guys will want to work on your team work, make sure you're communicating and passing. Linden, set up at the North hoop. Beaters, try to alternate between defense and offense with each other. Lucas, you and me know what we're after," He said, feeling more confident handing out everyone's roles. That was familiar ground he could handle. "Alright, let's do this," Elliot said, clapping his hands together and giving Abian one more glance before releasing the balls and kicking off into the air.

Out of Character:

Practice will run for about 2 weeks. Please don't hesitate to hit up me or Daphne if you need any help or have any questions.

 

[Lillith Montgomery]

Lillith headed up towards the hoop early with a quaffle in her hand, having already mounted her broom. The chasers seemed to be lagging behind slightly, so she decided to practice a bit with the hoop before they got there. She had a distance to go to reach hoops, but decided to throw the quaffle right then and there. The quaffle flew into the hole as Lillith made a u-turn at a good distance. She saw it go in and cheered silently in satisfaction. She had a big smile on her face as she went to retrieve the quaffle, the chasers arriving in the mean time.

 

[Elliot Briar]

Up and scanning the pitch, Elliot smiled when he spotted Lillith grabbing the quaffle straight away. He was more impressed when she was able to score immediately, bolstered by the fact that maybe his good feeling about this year wasn't just wishful thinking. "Good shot, Lillith," He called before resuming scanning for the snitch.

 

[Linden Kinnek]

Linden made his way to the quidditch pitch. he couldn't believe that he had made it onto the quidditch team. well I wasn't often that anyone got denied, especially on Hufflepuff. but he hadn't intended to make the main team he had hoped for a year as an alternative to learn under one of the older students guidance. he reached the pitch. "umm hello. can I borrow one of the school booms. I don't have my own yet" he said. making his way over to the equipment shed. he would have to see if willow or his mum or dad would buy him one. he grabbed one of the brooms. the faded lettering on it marked it as an old cleansweep and made his was up to the air. starting to loop the goals. he was so nervous with the training starting that he totally missed the chaser heading towards him until she was diving after the ball after it sailed through the hoop. he managed to get to it first and threw it back into play hoping that he would be able to save the next shot.

 

[Elliot Briar]

It had been a bit cold on the ground, but it was even chillier up in the air, and Elliot flexed his fingers around his broom as he flew up higher over the game. It was tricky to balance wanting to keep an eye on the team and keep an eye out for the snitch, but he knew he'd need to keep up both if he could manage.

 

[Hunter Robinson]

Hunter mounted his broom, when he saw Lilith scoring. He waved his hand at her showing her that he was free to catch the quaffle if she decided to pass it to him.

 

[Abian Hunter]

The practice started, and it started well with one of their new chasers managing to score immediately. Abian grinned and cheered for her, then flew closer to her and Hunter in case she wanted to pass to either of them.

OOC note for chasers: After a goal you can usually just say you grab the quaffle if you're not the one who just scored!v In practice definitely. In a match there's rules connected to it.

 

[Lucas Fletcher]

Lucas almost jumped in alarm when it was time to start, he quickly took to the air, glad he had his own broom after last year when he saw Linden had to grab one from school. He quickly stopped looking around at the others, instead focusing on looking for the snitch. He had to prove himself now.

 

[Elliot Briar]

Checking over the team, Elliot smiled when he spotted Lucas up in the air as well. It was good having new players on the team, especially a few like Lucas and Connor who Elliot knew had tried hard in previous years. It was almost nice to have the extra distraction of the team to look after as well, making Elliot feel less adrift when he hadn't spotted a decent sign of the snitch yet.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor could barely contain his excitement, nodding enthusiastically when Elliot gave instructions for the beaters. Bat gripped tightly in his hand, he kicked off hard once the match began and shot towards the nearest bludger, smacking it with a loud crack. He didn't know whether he was disappointed or not when it sailed right past Elliot's shoulder, wondering whether it would have been cool to start his first official team member practice off with a hit, or whether he would have felt guilty about hitting Elliot.

 

[Elliot Briar]

More distracted than usual, Elliot flinched when a bludger sailed past him. Righting his broom, he glanced down and gave Connor a wary thumbs up. It was a good hit, and Elliot had needed the reminder to pay attention to the beaters as well as the snitch.

 

[Connor Holland]

Any doubts Connor had had about his shot went out the window as he saw Elliot give him a thumbs up, face splitting into a broad grin in response. Eager to make his captains proud, Connor pressed close to his broom and shot towards another bludger, hoping to make another shot.

 

[Amy Jewel]

Amy flew up into the air and followed behind the other chasers. She grinned when one of the new players scored. She knew she'd have to work hard on remembering everyone's names. She flew up into the group of chasers, and watched to see if she needed to catch the Quaffle.

 

[Tilly Drage]

Tilly had her sights set on a bludger, but the older beater- Connor- got to it first. He had a great swing. Then, Tilly noticed the second bludger headed towards @Hunter Robinson. She dove in, slamming at it with her bat and sending it across the pitch. Tilly then realized @Connor Holland had gone after the same bludger. She smiled at him apologetically and flew off in search of the other one.

 

[Elliot Briar]

Centering himself, Elliot decided to head towards the South hoops. It was good to see the team working well together already, but he needed to focus on his own position as well.

 

[Connor Holland]

Connor had been so focused on his own game that he didn't realise the new beater was going for the same bludger as him until it was too late. He pulled his broom around and shot across the pitch, chasing after the ball and hitting it with a satisfying crack. Unlike his previous shot this one headed straight for Elliot, and Connor winced slightly as he saw his shot strike the seeker.
@Elliot Briar

 

[Lillith Montgomery]

Lillith grabbed the quaffle and flew around the hoop to pass it to another teammate. She heard one of the captains calling out a praise and smiled even wider, if that was possible. This year was going to be a good year for her. She saw Hunter wave at her, and passed the quaffle to him, going back to around their height level. The other chasers were already there.

@Hunter Robinson