The wind blew in my face, as my hair flowed behind me. I shivered slightly, as the breeze hit me harshly yet again. Although it was chilly, I came to watch Quidditch practice anyway.
I've adored Quidditch since I was young. Mum and I played loads, having to do the roles of both, Chaser and Keeper. It meant double the work, protecting our hoops but having to go score in the others, but it built our skills and was worth it because of the time we'd spend together, chasing each other, laughing, smiling. Bonding.
At times, I've regretted not trying out for the Gryffindor team. Mum was a bit upset, because she had played Chaser in her time at Hogwarts.
I watched the figures on the pitch, fly around as blurs. Oliver Wood trained the team hard, he was determined to claim the Quidditch Cup and title, seeing as this was his last year at Hogwarts.
Everything was going smoothly until out of the blue, a piercing shriek reached my ears. I hurriedly stood up and ran onto the Quidditch pitch. They'd all huddled on the ground, I pushed my way through, only to find Katie Bell on the ground.
She was whimpering, barely moving.
"What happened?" I demanded.
"She was up high and didn't see the bludger headed her way. The bludger hit her, causing her to slam into the pole of the hoop really hard." Fred explained.
"What's going on here?" questioned Madam Hooch, who had been supervising the practices since Black's failed attempt. "Oh boy. Let's go to the Hospital Wing." Angelina put Katie's arm around her, while Madam Hooch seized the other. We all watched them disappear towards the castle.
"Now what?" Wood sighed in defeat. "Everything was perfect. What if she doesn't recover in time? The match is so close!" Wood complained.
"Let's wait and find out. If she recovers, great! If not, let's not think about that just yet." Alicia said.
"Let's go and-" George froze in mid-sentence, seeing as Angelina had returned.
"Well, I bring bad news. Madam Pomfrey says she's broken an arm, and part of her rib and hip. Plus, she's bruised. Madam Pomfrey says she won't recover for some time."
"No! The team was perfect! Where are we going to find a replacement now? The match is in four days!" Wood exclaimed with a broken expression. The team murmured in agreement, except for Fred who suggested an idea.
"Rubina can play right?" My head snapped up, bewildered by what he'd said.
"Can you play?" Oliver asked with a glimmer of hope in his eyes. I sighed.
"I mean I could try. Mum and I used to play Chaser and Keeper when we would play together." I told him.
"Okay. Let's see what you got. Someone give her a broom." Fred offered his, which I accepted with a smile, before it dawned on me.
"But Oliver, if I do make it, will I be able to get my broom on such short notice?
"We'll figure something out. Come on." He beckoned me to follow. "Alright, first we'll test how good you are at shooting with the Quaffle, I'll be defending. And then we'll do a mini game to finish."
I beamed at him before saying, "Alright." Although a nervousness had risen within me, I was confident of bagging the spot. I mounted my broom and shot upwards. Oliver passed the Quaffle and took his place in front of the three hoops. I did pretty good, my tosses were hard and I managed to trick Wood twice. He only saved two out of the ten shots I'd taken.
"Well done Black! Alright. One more test Black. We'll play a game of Quidditch, and if you excel in playing, you'll be the new Chaser." I was bouncing up and down with excitement, as the twins pulled up beside me.
"I haven't felt this alive in ages." I told them excitedly.
"Alright! Beaters will be on a team with me, so we can test Black's skills. Harry! Wait a bit before catching the snitch!"
"We'll go easy on you." Fred winked with the sarcasm obvious in his voice. I rolled my eyes as Wood blew his whistle to commence the game. George immediately hit a bludger in my way, I easily dodged it with a grin on my face. Fred flew his broom towards me, in an attempt to distract and block me. I passed to Angelina before I swerved around Fred. I had the quaffle in possession once again, and I shot straight at the hoops. With a mighty swing, I sent the Quaffle flying, which Wood missed, meaning I scored. We kept going until Harry caught the snitch.
We all landed on the pitch, tired, but pleased with the results.
"Congratulations Rubina Black, you are the new Gryffindor Chaser!" Wood extended his hand, which I eagerly shook before facing the twins, letting out a squeal of excitement.
"We knew you could do it!" Fred said while giving me a hug.
"Why didn't you try out before?" George asked.
"I wasn't sure then, but Mum's going to be delighted since she was a bit disappointed I didn't try out. I'll have to send her a letter right away if I want my broom in time for the match." I pursed my lips, "I feel bad for Katie though."
"It's okay, she'll be fine. I heard from Alicia she was wanting to quit, needed a break, so don't stress." Fred reassured me. Those words lifted my spirit.
"Thanks Freddie." He winked.
Hey!
I would love to update everyday, but then I'll run out of chapters to post soon, so I'm going to try and update every other day, if I can hold my eager self back that is! This chapter isn't much, kind of boring. Rubi wasn't actually going to play Quidditch in her third year, I was planning to do that for her fifth year, but then I thought since Padfoot is at Hogwarts, it'd be nice if Padfoot got to watch her play. So that's why I wrote this whole injury and finding replacement chapter instead.
The next chapter is one I decided to add, so it wasn't originally written with the earlier chapters. I just finished writing it yesterday, and I loved writing it! So I can promise you the next one will be better!!
Also, can someone tell me if my chapters are too long or too short? I've been splitting some chapters into halves, thinking they are too long to read in one go. So it would be great if you guys tell me if it's too much to read, or too less or just about right?
Here's a question:
Would you play Quidditch, and if so, what position?
I would love to play, but there do seem to be a lot of injuries so I would like to avoid those. I think I would like to play Chaser, or maybe Seeker.
Sorry for the long Author's Note!
:)
Mini-Padfoot!