25 September, 1895 — Quidditch Pitch

They weren't the most hopeless bunch he'd encountered... that distinction belonged, and probably forever would, to the first class he'd ever taught. A shift in teaching style midway through the first semester hadn't done them any good, and Ben had still mostly not known what he was doing, and one of them was literally blind, which in terms of difficulty to teach broom sports to really could not be topped. This class had certainly had their rough points...

(... one of them heading to the hospital wing ten minutes into the first class when they'd shouted UP so forcefully the broomstick bashed their face and gave them a nosebleed, though thankfully not a broken nose...)

(... one having to be rescued from a tree after they lost control of their broomstick and decided grabbing a tree branch to slow themselves was the best recourse...)

(... one white-knuckling their broomstick at a breakneck pace and circling the pitch four times before Ben caught up with them and was able to communicate how to slow down...)

(... one jumping off a broom mid-air when they panicked, leaving Ben to catch them with a cushioning charm and their broom to sail off into the Forbidden Forest, from whence it had yet to be recovered...)

... but he was optimistic about their ability to get through today's lesson accident and injury free.

"Today's practice is about controlling one's speed," he explained. Perhaps overdue, given some of their misadventures so far, but he could hardly teach them nuance of broomstick handling when they were still trying to figure out how to even sit on the thing. "I've divided you into groups of five. You'll fly in a straight line, one right after another, and try to match the speed of the person in front of you. When I blow my whistle the lead flyer peels off and goes to the back of the line. It sounds simple," he paused, eying one of the more hopeless cases. "But some of you may find it more difficult than you expect. Just remember, when in doubt it's better to slow down than to speed up. All right — broomsticks at the ready. On my mark —"

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WELCOME TO FLYING LESSONS
– you may not join this thread until after your character has been sorted.

– IC these are groups of 5; OOC we'll do groups of 3 and assume two NPC students are with you. The order you post determines your group - eg first three responses are a group, fourth response is the lead flyer of the subsequent group.

– Student in the lead sets the pace. I'll roll to see how well everyone does but you are also welcome to preemptively make something go wrong <3

– in your first post include your stats (below) & any noteable events from earlier class sessions. The anecdotes mentioned in Ben's post can be claimed for you or your NPC roommates, relatives, or friends as desired.

Code:

<B>INNATE SKILL:</B> Below Average, Average, Above Average
<B>PRIOR EXPERIENCE:</B> Below Average (never rode prior to Hogwarts), Average (had ridden but not regularly, and/or rode as a passenger only), Above Average (had their own broomstick, rode regularly)
<B>CONFIDENCE:</B> Below Average, Average, Above Average

  

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MJ made this <3

INNATE SKILL: Below Average
PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Below Average (never rode prior to Hogwarts)
CONFIDENCE: Below Average

✿ - ✿ - ✿
Flying was one of her least favorite classes, and she was certain Coach Crouch knew it. It was a funny thing: she had no difficulty getting her broomstick to work as instructed, and in another life might have been a skilled flier, but in this one she never made it very far without having some sort of crisis. The first time she'd kicked off the ground, she'd gotten ten feet in the air before her arms and legs began to violently shake. Then, just a few classes later, she'd gotten dizzy while doing a basic maneuver and refused to come down until it passed. And just last week, she'd nearly crashed and ended up hanging upside-down from her broomstick three feet off the ground.

So it was only natural—obviously—that she found herself at the front of her small group.

"We are going slow," she insisted, eyeing the student behind her. "Don't bump into me. Please."

And then they were off.

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The following 1 user Likes Hermia Pucey's post:1 user Likes Hermia Pucey's post
   Reuben Crouch

INNATE SKILL: Average
PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Above Average (rode regularly)
CONFIDENCE: Average

Poppy found she rather liked flying lessons, though that hadn't been overly surprising. Though she was one of the more bookish and introverted Ravenclaws, she'd also grown up in an extended family of dragon keepers. Her father had taught her how to fly not long after her first display of magic, though living in Irvingly made it so that they had to trek by foot a ways until they were no longer in the village's limits. Magic wasn't allowed in public, even in the Swallowbury district.

Fortunately, she'd received some naturally athletic genes and thought herself experienced enough. She wasn't the fastest or the most skilled, but at least she hadn't fallen off or been smacked in the nose like her classmates. She'd even tried out for the house quidditch team earlier that month.

But of course, she found herself with a group leader who insisted on going slow. Not that she blamed Hermia. Poppy had seen her on a broomstick already. What the Slytherin's idea of 'slow' actually looked like was about to be revealed. Not that Poppy zipped around recklessly, but she did enjoy heights and feeling the wind rush over her. She bit her lip and nodded politely, "Okay. I'll try not to." And she did her best to do just that (at least until she was at the front of the line.)

  

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Club Membership in: Astronomy • Flying • Charms • Book • Quidditch

Adorably sweet set by the amazing Lady!

INNATE SKILL: Above Average
PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Below Average (never rode prior to Hogwarts)
CONFIDENCE: Above Average

Alys had decided she liked broom riding, she had enjoyed horses back home but this was something else entirely. She had never even touched a magical broom before Hogwarts but they seemed to respond to her. Perhaps it was her inner conviction in her own magical self, or even her connection to the choir that gave her another gift, but Alys had decided it worked, so it did. The broom had sprung to attention on her first attempt and now it seemed to follow her instruction without much difficulty.

She also had the confidence that if something truly terrible was to happen on the broom, she would have seen it in her dreams, surely?

She followed along behind the other first years, she wanted to go faster too, but there was no rush, they werent actually going anywhere. "I'll race you if you want Poppy." she said, hoping to make friends despite her difficult first impressions still lingering.

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Reuben Crouch Hermia Pucey Poppy MacFusty

The following 1 user Likes Alys Gower's post:1 user Likes Alys Gower's post
   Poppy MacFusty

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INNATE SKILL: Average
PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Average
CONFIDENCE: Average

For Chiara all brooms had ever been was a means of transportation and not one that was a favorite either. She would rather drive about in a carriage than ride a broom. But there were times when flying about the grounds at home was easier than saddling her pony. It was like riding a horse after all.

She mounted her broom gracefully, wishing she could ride side saddle as it was much more elegant, and pushed into the air at the whistle. She would set a decent pace for those behind her. Stately.

  

INNATE SKILL: Average,
PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Average
CONFIDENCE: Average

Ariel sat mounted on her broom behind Chiara - the appointed lead flyer of her group - and wished she'd been placed in a group with some of the Gryffindor friends she'd made * but thought that in all likelihood she'd probably been placed with the more scary Slytherin because he'd caught her not paying attention and chatting just a little too often. She wasn't entirely sure however that the Instructor would do such a thing but other teachers already had started to do so so she wouldn't be surprised.

She was just wondering if she ought not to be afraid of chatting with Chiara - because despite Slytherin and Gryffindor being supposedly rival houses a few of them actually seemed nice and her sister Chrysanta was one - when Crouch blew his whistle and they were off. It wasn't hard to follow her stately pace and Ariel was feeling beginning to feel quite confident. Maybe she would try and make friends with Chiara when this was done - there was nothing wrong with trying surely? The girl was a little stiff but maybe that was simply because she hadn't made any friends yet. She had an Italian name which meant that she could be a foreigner as well, alone in a strange land. That certainly would make things difficult.

Yes, Ariel decided, she was going to try talk to the girl after this. There was nothing wrong with more friends afterall.

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*Yes. I'm making up NPC Gryffindors. She's alll allllllllllloooneee. Except for Lysander. Poor Lysander. And yes. Ariel is reading Chiara all wrong. This is on purpose on my part.

  

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