Quidditch Sign-Ups. on Aladren Commons

Captain David Wilkes

January 12, 2013 1:04 PM

Quidditch Sign-Ups. by Captain David Wilkes

Some of his peers, he knew, might get more than a little upset about Certain Announcements made at the Opening Feast, but so far, David was still feeling pretty cheerful about his seventh year. It had occurred to him, thinking in bed as usual because he didn’t always sleep well at night since he had always preferred sleeping in the mornings and had just had a whole summer to indulge that preference in, that most of the more enthusiastic members of the team had girlfriends anyway, so they would have other things to pay attention to once the shock wore off and would indeed probably be compelled to do so by said irritated other things, and since he had never fancied himself a professional player anyway (occasionally, just occasionally, he’d wondered if landing a spot on a low-rate college’s bench might net him anything in the way of scholarships now that he’d risen so high, but even that he acknowledged as a distant chance he wouldn’t be devastated by the unmaterialization of), that meant he most likely didn’t have much to worry about on that front this year. There were still the activities which would replace the games to think of, but that was a problem he had no idea when he’d have to deal with and so one he could happily ignore for now.

His one regret was about not getting to play the Final one last time, not because he enjoyed the Final - he didn't - but because for three years, he had been planning to try his hand at adapting music to magic and playing the Imperial March, or at least something very like it, at top volume as the team entered the Pitch for that last game, when he'd be close to beyond Coach Pierce's ability to hang for that kind of thing. He'd known he should have done it last year, against Pecari again, but had been too worried about Repercussions to quite dare.

Still, though, he did have to put together a team, so about lunchtime on the first day of classes – not because of any eagerness on his part, but just because he knew he’d forget about it if he didn’t do it as soon as he thought about it – David went back to the common room and slapped the sign-up sheet he had made on his computer at home up on the bulletin board. He had thought of it the night before, too, but had thought, in light of how stressed everyone was about the whole thing, it might be a little too provocative to put it up on the first night.

Quidditch Sign-Ups

Sign up here for the Ever-Victorious Aladren Quidditch Team. Put down your name, your year, and which position you want, and you, too, will be eligible for try-outs (as will walk-ons, but sign-ups are preferred). Dates for try-outs and practices will be forthcoming, but sign up today! Bring all your friends!

David Wilkes, Captain.

Beneath that, he’d also signed himself up properly - David Wilkes, 7th Year, Keeper - so the first years, if they were so inclined, could see how it was done, and then he'd walked away from it, trying not to go too fast or draw attention to himself and so making himself about as conspicuous as possible for anyone looking in that general direction as he left the common room to get to his first after-lunch class of the day. Why had he thought taking as many classes as he was was a good idea, again?

Subthreads:

One. by Russell Layne

Two by Thad Pierce

Three by Arthur Carey

Four by Arnold Carey

Cinco by Kitty McLevy

Seis by Andrina Thornton

16 Captain David Wilkes Quidditch Sign-Ups. 169 Captain David Wilkes 1 5

Russell Layne

January 12, 2013 2:34 PM

One. by Russell Layne

When he’d heard that Quidditch had been cancelled for the year, even after he’d just heard about the no doubt intense and time-consuming challenges they were going to have this year as well, Russell’s first thought had been not so much a thought as a feeling of shock. He suspected that even those who had never played the game a day in their lives might have felt a bit of the same, especially Aladrens, just because it was so much of a part of the school’s whole culture usually. Oddly, he didn’t think that Aladren’s long winning streak had really dimmed enthusiasm for the sport anywhere in the school, but turned it up instead as everyone thought they’d be the ones to win instead this time, especially among the Pecaris.

His second thought, though, had been perfectly coherent and promptly reinforced by Preston’s storming out of the dining hall: Damn, I’m glad I was never that crazy about studying in bed anyway.

His dorm, after all, was, unfortunately for him, probably going to be the most dynamically-impacted room in the school because of this. Russell himself only worried about getting a little Quidditch-crazy when he was playing the game itself, but he thought Preston hovered around that level all the time anyway, and thinking of Arnold not playing Quidditch was kind of like thinking of Arnold’s brother skipping around the school grinning like an idiot and giving random people big hugs: it just didn’t work, at least in his head. Add in RATS classes beginning and Arthur and Josh being Arthur and Josh and Russell himself having a badge and now, somehow or the other, probably a warranted but not for the reasons they would think reputation for entering illicit relationships with girls who were not of his social class but were of theirs, and he could see so many ways this could end up being a little uncomfortable for everyone involved without even trying. He was hoping for the best, that everyone would act like people who were nearly grown-ups (he would be seventeen before they left for summer vacation, and the rest of the guys would all beat him to it) and continue to get along with each other, but trying to think how to plan for the worst.

He hadn’t, though, had much success with that yet when he came in on the second night and found that David had already put a somehow printed (that must have cost a knut or two; he wondered what had inspired David to do it) sign-up sheet on the board for the Quidditch team that wasn’t to play anybody. He raised an eyebrow at the description ‘Ever-Victorious,’ thinking it did have a good ring to it but that it wasn’t strictly accurate, before signing up – Russell Layne, 6th, Chaser – figuring that this was one thing, anyway, which would be helpful in the way of keeping things functioning as normally as possible in his corner of the school during this most abnormal year.

16 Russell Layne One. 183 Russell Layne 0 5

Thad Pierce

January 12, 2013 3:24 PM

Two by Thad Pierce

Thaddeus Pierce was neither violently opposed nor entirely happy about the staff's decision to cancel Quidditch games this year. Kitty's shout and Preston's storming and David's quiet grief were all proof that he had handled the announcement with relative calm compared to some of his teammates. He wasn't quite sure if that was just because he was less invested in the game, or because he was only a fourth year and he still had over half of his time at Sonora left while most of them were beyond that halfway point.

Despite his lack of obvious upset, he still added his name as soon as he saw the sign-up sheet. Practices were almost more important for this game-less year, since that was the only way they were going to be able to keep in tip-top shape and maintain their dominance over the other Houses once games came back next year. It just wouldn't do to fall apart just because there was no driving force to make you work hard now. Aladrens were more suited to such long-term thinking than, say, Pecaris or Teppenpaws, so he expected next year things would get back to normal with Aladren and Crotalus taking the Final.

Certainly, Thaddeus wasn't going to let himself be a weak link for the team.

Thaddeus Pierce, Fourth Year, As Needed

He wasn't a great beater. He had done badly in the game against Teppenpaw, and worse in the game against Pecari. He thought he did okay beating with the Seekers, but he just couldn't keep up with the chaos of the Chasers, and things got even worse when his opponents included his baby cousin who seemed to somehow know he had reservations against hurting her.

He hoped that since there wouldn't be games this year, maybe David would start training him to take over as Keeper next year, though if he nominally had to play beater again, that was okay, too. It wasn't like he was going to have to face off against Annabelle again.

1 Thad Pierce Two 213 Thad Pierce 0 5

Arthur Carey

January 12, 2013 9:07 PM

Three by Arthur Carey

When he had heard Headmistress Kijewski-Jareau say that the Quidditch tournament was being called off for the year, Arthur had sat up abruptly straighter at the table and stared at her, his expression one of disbelief. He had moved past that, but he still didn’t know completely what to think. He could not say that he was sorry to think of spending a year without anyone trying to hit him in the head with a Bludger, but he suspected a curse to the back might be more of a problem than usual with the challenges taking the game’s place, and which was worse depended entirely on the severity of the spell used against him.

He had been thoroughly irritated with the behavior of his team- and roommates, though, enough that he had thought of not even bothering with the practices which were being demanded of them in spite of the absence of tiresome games against Pecari and Crotalus specifically. Instead, he had calmed himself, reminding himself that he needed them, and when the list appeared on the second day of school, he signed himself up dutifully, though he did not take the liberty of putting down either of his brothers' names either before or after it. He didn't know if Arnold was done sulking - like a spoiled child, he thought irritably even now; Anthony sometimes struck him as a better example of maturity and good sense than the so-called eldest of the three of them - or not, or if Anthony meant to spend the extra time this could afford him with on his studies since he'd only be a reserve again anyway if he signed up.

Arthur Carey, Sixth Year, Chaser

0 Arthur Carey Three 182 Arthur Carey 0 5

Arnold Carey

January 12, 2013 9:44 PM

Four by Arnold Carey

When Arnold first came into the common room, just making curfew, which he guessed probably wasn’t the best way to start the year off but he’d already had so much homework assigned that he had no idea how he was going to find time to do it all, he glanced by sheer force of habit at the bulletin board and, through the same conditioned familiarity, didn’t find it strange to see the Quidditch list already there and starting to fill up. For a second, actually, he forgot so completely about the announcement from the night before that he wondered what had taken David so long and why it hadn’t been up last night before they all went to bed.

Then, of course, he remembered, and though he kept going over to the paper, he did so much less cheerfully than usual. He wasn’t angry about the cancellation of the games, really, or even as upset as some of his teammates had been at the Opening Feast; he just felt confused, and cut adrift, a little. He was starting to accept the situation and knew he'd just have to be really good at the challenges to make his family and Fae okay with being associated with him this year instead, that it really wouldn't be any different than if they had played the games - well, at least if there was a lot of DADA in them; that was his best subject - but he still wasn't completely comfortable with it, because he was at his core a creature of habit who ran according to not only his own routines, but also the knowledge that everyone else was living according to routine all around him.

It helped with thinking positively about the situation just to be able to do something as familiar as sign the list, so he did.

Arnold Carey, 6th, Seeker

0 Arnold Carey Four 181 Arnold Carey 0 5

Kitty McLevy

January 15, 2013 7:54 PM

Cinco by Kitty McLevy

Kitty had the near irresistible urge to rip the signup sheet off the board, tear it into tiny pieces, and then stomp on said pieces. What was even the point of having a team if they weren’t going to play the games? Scowling at the innocent sheet of paper Kitty turned and started to walk away. She wasn’t going to participate in such a stupid thing.

Try-outs and practices only wetted her appetite for the real thing, the thing Kitty loved best. The Games. And most especially the Finals. Listening to the crowd cheering set the tiny girl’s blood on fire and she felt truly invincible, even if she got nicked by a bludger now and again. Even that made the games all the more intoxicating. In practice, the Beaters never really went after their own players, why would they? It could risk injury. They always held back a little, hitting hard enough to force the players to dodge, but it lacked the risk of knowing that someone was truly out to get you. The danger of possessing the Quaffle and the Glory of making a perfect shot and hearing the crowd roar its approval.

How could they take all that away from the players, and pretend that pale practices were really enough to state their appetites? Growling unpleasant things under her breath, Kitty started to march up the stairs. “Darn it!” She hissed as she suddenly spun on her heel and darted back over to the board and wrote:

Kitty McLevy – Chaser – 5th year

Instead of her normal bubbly writing the letters were almost carved into the paper like an accusation. Darn it all, she refused to be left behind! Even if it wasn’t going to be any fun at all.

0 Kitty McLevy Cinco 0 Kitty McLevy 0 5

Andrina Thornton

January 23, 2013 3:26 PM

Seis by Andrina Thornton

After the news at the Feast about Quidditch games being canceled due to the Challenges, she was slightly surprised to find (one day shortly thereafter), the sign-up sheet in their Common Room. “Hmm... Okay...”

Andrina wasn't about to give up on Quidditch just because they weren’t playing any games this year. This would be prime time to hone her skills, learn as much as she could, and then maybe next year she'd be able to be off the bench and really playing. That was what Andri really wanted. To be out on the Pitch with Kitty and the others, keeping Aladren on top, regardless of her sisters. Andri had a competitive edge that most people had never seen. It was clear to her, however, that the rest of the school was about to see that part of her firsthand.

Andri smiled at those around her in the Common Room and turned to see the door open and her younger sister rushed inside excitedly chattering with her lisp very apparent. “Whoa... Hold your horses Ana!” she said as she pulled her quill out of her bag.

Andrina Thornton, 4th year, Chaser/Keeper she wrote before turning back to see what her sister was so excited about.

0 Andrina Thornton Seis 214 Andrina Thornton 0 5