Quidditch Practice

“Val, I know I’ve practiced a lot, but I just need your opinion on things,” Jim said as he and Valerie walked onto the Quidditch pitch.

“And with Nani busy running tryouts and all, you’re the only other friend I have that’s good at flying. So, I need you to see how my skills are.”

“I still don’t see why you’re so worried,” said Valerie as she brushed her blonde hair over her shoulder. “You’re one of the best flyers I’ve seen. You’ll make the team easy. You said Nani was pretty confident in your abilities.”

“Yeah, but I’ve never tried out for the team before,” Jim argued as a slight breeze blew. “At this point, I’ll just be happy to make it.”

Valerie sighed, but didn’t say anything. Jim had been getting more anxious as Quidditch tryouts got closer and closer. Now, three days before tryouts arrived, he had asked Valerie to watch him fly and see how good he was. And he had even got permission to borrow one of the Golden Snitches to practice with. Even though he would be glad to take any position, Seeker was one spot he had always wanted. He didn’t know if he would get it, but he tried not to think about it too much.

“Alright, get in the air Jimmy-boy, and let’s see what you’ve got,” Valerie said, smiling at him.

“Do you have the Golden Snitch?” Jim asked as he mounted his broom, swinging one leg over the handle.

Valerie nodded and held up the little golden ball in the palm of her hand. “I’ll throw it up in the air eventually.”

Jim nodded. He took deep breaths as his grip tightened on his broom handle. Then, with a kick of his foot, he had shot up into the air, leaving the ground far behind him in an instant. He climbed up as high as he could, the wind blowing his hair back from his face.

“Woohoo!” Valerie whopped, cheering him on as she hurried across the grounds in a better attempt to watch him. “Go Jim!”

Jim laughed to himself as he flew higher. And the higher he got, the less nervous he became. That familiar feeling of excitement and high-running adrenaline started to fill his veins, making his nerve-endings crackle and pop. He took a deep breath, before diving downward, gravity doing most of the work. His speed climbed, steadily getting faster and faster as the ground got closer. Then, at the last second, he pulled up, avoiding splattering on the ground by an inch. Valerie watched with amazement. Jim had really improved over the last few weeks.

“Jim, here’s the Snitch!” she yelled as she tossed the ball into the air. In a flash, little golden wings had sprung out and it was zooming through the air faster than a hummingbird. Jim heard Valerie’s shout, but he couldn’t see the Snitch. Where was it? His brow furrowed as he looked around, trying to spot the little thing.

Come on, Jim. You want to be a Seeker. You can’t be one if you can’t spot the Snitch at all.


“Come on, Jim!” Valerie called from the ground. “Keep looking!”

Jim circled around the Quidditch pitch, getting anxious as more time passed. Then, something gold flashed across his vision. The Snitch! He shot after it, not taking his eyes off of it for a second. Despite it being a million times smaller than him, the Snitch was a quick little bugger. It seemed like every time Jim caught up with it, it took a sharp turn to the left or shot upwards, out of his reach. Jim bit his lip as he tried to concentrate. Just keep your eyes on it. Don’t let it out of your sight.

He flew low to the ground, the Snitch not too far ahead of it. “Come on, come on,” he muttered, willing his broom to go faster. Slowly, but surely, he started to catch up with it. He reached out, stretching his fingertips as far as he could. He was inches away from catching it. Valerie bit her nails as she watched anxiously.

Suddenly, the Snitch dived downwards. But Jim was faster. His hand dropped downwards, his body halfway off his broom. But his fist finally closed around the Snitch, its little wings beating helplessly against his fingers. Valerie saw the look on his face and knew that he had caught it.

“Yes!” she crowed, jumping up and down excitedly. “Wahoo! You did it, Jim!”

Jim laughed as he swopped above her, feeling more confident about himself than ever before. Having the Snitch in his hand seemed to make him feel like a real Quidditch player, like he had just won a big match. Maybe making the team wasn’t such an impossibility after all.

((This is just my fanfic for my Quidditch video challenge. XD The video can be found here:

Valerie: *fan-girl moment*