28 Nov 2024, 02:12
Catching the Wind
Date: Sometime in late September 2024
Time: Evening, before curfew
Location: Quidditch Training Pitch
· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·It had been a surprisingly sunny day, and Koko had decided to take advantage of the good flying conditions to do some training. She had done push-ups, had done a five-minute plank, and now, she was flying laps on her Oakshaft 79 in hopes that she could manage a penalty lap even faster than usual. Currently, her efforts were in vain, with no results other than her ensuing dizziness.
She slowed to a stop and remained seated in the broom, not too far up in the air so that she could still see others milling about on the pitch beneath her, or others in the air above her. She reached up to her forehead and was surprised to find relatively little sweat stuck there — perhaps the wind had forced it off of her. She took a deep breath and coasted down to the ground. Maybe, Koko reckoned, she might have to practise dives at some point. The execution of the technique had been rather clunky, if she were honest with herself.
But for now, water beckoned. She dismounted her broom, and, holding onto it, headed over to a spot on the ground, where she had set her bottle of water earlier. She took a long drink and sighed before setting her bottle down, readying herself to take to the sky once again.· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·
@Ira Thornfield
[pc] koko riddle · 'pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.'
'it always starts and ends with birds.' · cyrus darsel [inpc]
28 Nov 2024, 11:54
Catching the Wind
Ira’s footsteps trace the same path around the pitch, her nerves grow tighter. Her eyes remain glued to a senior she’s been watching for some time. She’s spent the last several minutes trying to summon the courage to ask the older girl for a favor.
Every second spent hesitating feels like a missed opportunity, yet she couldn’t bring herself to ask, uncertain how the senior would take her request. And the fact that the girl was not only much older than her but a Slytherin? That made it all the harder to approach.
Ira found herself stumbling onto the pitch, with each step, her mind raced with the realization of how incapable she was at flying, of how hopeless she felt at flying. she couldn’t even manage to stay on a broom for five seconds without losing control and falling off.
Ira sat with her palm resting against her chin, staring up at the pitch. That is when her gaze landed on the senior. The senior’s effortless control of the broom immediately caught Ira’s attention.
The confidence and expertise were evident, and Ira’s mouth dropped slightly in awe. A blend of admiration and quiet envy filled Ira as she watched. She couldn’t help but picture what it would be like to be in the older girl’s shoes, effortlessly gliding through the sky.
Of course, she knew she can't expect to be perfect overnight. But what troubled her most was how far behind her classmates she felt. Every now and then, she could’ve sworn she heard whispers and laughter behind her. At least, she assumed it was about her.
As the girl dismounted the broom, Ira took a deep breath and started toward her. With each step, Ira rehearsed the words she was about to say. As the senior turned, Ira’s lips quirked up in a hesitant smile. "Hello," Ira looked up and blinked, her mind momentarily blank.
Realizing she was likely wasting the girl’s time, Ira let out a breath through her mouth, clutching the hem of her shirt as she started to speak. "I apologize if I’m being a bother during your practice but I would love to learn how you make flying look so natural you were fantastic out there." Her words tumbled out in a rush with no pause.
@Koko Riddle
6 Dec 2024, 01:43
Catching the Wind
Date: Sometime in late September 2024
Time: Evening, before curfew
Location: Quidditch Training Pitch
· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·Koko paused, the weight of her broom caught in her right hand as her head swivelled so that her gaze focused on the newcomer to the pitch. She saw a younger girl, smiling slightly, so she returned the girl's smile and gave her a small wave with her free hand. 'Hi.'
She would have simply kicked off into the air again, but when the girl began to speak once more, Koko focused her attention on the younger student, who seemed almost... nervous? She reminded Koko slightly of the way she had been when she was younger. Merlin, she'd wanted to be good at flying back then.
She dismounted her broom and held it gently above the ground, switching it to her left hand as she walked towards the other girl. 'You're absolutely not a bother,' she said, her words genuine. She hadn't even managed to do much, anyway, really. Not that she would admit it.
She had to think of a way to answer the rest of the girl's statement. Her cheeks coloured slightly as she registered the compliment, and she murmured a quiet, 'Thank you, that's really very kind,' as she continued to wrack her brain for a suitable response. Finally, she said, 'I mean, I can try to teach you a few things — I'm not sure if you had anything specific you wanted to learn, or that you were interested in? But I could try to help with that.'
Koko took a quick, sharp inhale and held out her right hand. 'I'm Koko, by the way. Keeper for the Slytherin Quidditch team.'· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·
@Ira Thornfield
[pc] koko riddle · 'pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.'
'it always starts and ends with birds.' · cyrus darsel [inpc]
10 Dec 2024, 13:40
Catching the Wind
Even though the girl didn’t seem to find her a nuisance, Ira's nerves didn't settle. She'd never had a proper conversation with a senior before— unless her cousins, who were more likely to tease her than inspire fear, counted. She had always feared they might turn into bullies, and Ira was pretty sure she couldn't handle someone who probably had both age and a good few more inches on her.
However, Ira’s doubts quickly faded as she realized this sweet girl in front of her wasn’t likely to cause any harm. That realization eased Ira’s nerves a bit, and that made her stop fidgeting with her fingers. Ira’s eyes lit up with hope as the senior continued speaking, and a relieved sigh slipped from her.
The girl had agreed to teach her! But as the excitement settled, Ira hesitated— should she spill the truth about her broom skills, or just pretend she wasn’t a total disaster? Ira didn’t want the senior to dismiss her without giving her a chance. As Ira scrambled to find the right words, the older girl introduced herself. "Ira," Ira reached for her hand, giving a quick but firm handshake, "Nice to meet you, Koko. Thanks for agreeing to help me."
She bit her lip, trying to craft a response for Koko's question. "Sometimes it feels like the broom just... doesn’t want me on it? Like it just... doesn’t want to listen to me," Ira shook her head slowly, her voice a little hesitant. "—I lose control and it throws me off," Ira swallowed and mentally facepalmed. She was babbling now—blaming the broom for her incompetence. Koko was probably already mentally preparing her exit strategy from being stuck with a mess like Ira.
@Koko Riddle
21 Dec 2024, 21:04
Catching the Wind
Date: Sometime in late September 2024
Time: Evening, before curfew
Location: Quidditch Training Pitch
· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·Despite being many years older than she had been as a first year, the one thing Koko hadn't quite grown out of was her general lack of sociability. Talking to people had always been difficult, especially for long periods of time, and although she was better at it now, conversations were not ever free of awkwardness on Koko's end. She hoped the other girl didn't mind. She hoped she was coming across okay. Similar worries flooded her mind, but despite that, she remained with an easy, hopefully-disarming smile on her lips and warmth in her amber eyes.
The girl shook her hand quickly and firmly, something she appreciated. Ira. She would have to remember her name. It was not one she had heard before, but it seemed fitting for someone so confident at such a young age. 'It's my pleasure,' Koko said genuinely, in response to both Ira's thanks and her 'nice to meet you'.
She listened intently to Ira's explanation, humming in understanding when the girl mentioned that the broom didn't seem to want to listen to her. Her smile faded slightly when Ira mentioned that the broom threw her off sometimes. 'You're not hurt, are you?' was her first question, something forced immediately from her lips before she even had time to think up a proper response to the rest of it.
She paused, and despite however Ira would respond to her initial question, she would attempt to think of a plan for how to fix the issue at hand. 'Well, brooms are often made from wand woods. And people do say the wand chooses the wizard. I don't think it is quite the same with brooms, but I'm sure that has something to do with it.' She laughed softly, hoping to reassure the younger girl. 'Nonetheless, we'll get down to the bottom of this. Here, you can use my broom — I want you to situate yourself on it, as if you were about to take off, and then kick off. Show me how you've been doing it.'
She held out her Oakshaft 79 for Ira to take.· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·
@Ira Thornfield
[pc] koko riddle · 'pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.'
'it always starts and ends with birds.' · cyrus darsel [inpc]
24 Dec 2024, 04:59
Catching the Wind
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code by Tracey Bailey
26 Dec 2024, 19:52
Catching the Wind
Date: Sometime in late September 2024
Time: Evening, before curfew
Location: Quidditch Training Pitch
· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·Koko nodded,d assured, when Ira affirmed she was not hurt. Good. The last thing Koko wanted was for a younger student to become scared of brooms due to a mishap, especially considering the fun one could have on a broom, the freedom one could find. But she did mention that she 'usually' went to the hospital wing after flying... which was not a good sign, and meant she must have been hurt due to flying before. Not so good, Koko thought.
'Oh, er, not necessarily! Just that certain brooms might have different personalities and might be more, ah, reckless, so to say.' Koko quickly amended her earlier statement. 'Any broom will take you,' she said earnestly, 'you've just got to figure out how to work with each broom separately. They've each got their quirks.'
She watched analytically as Ira kicked off. The first thing that came to mind after watching the girl take off and quickly lose control was that she lacked a strong foundation. Sometimes it was the way you began something that determined how it finished. If you started flying without confidence, you would not be able to control the broom. Similarly, if you thought about falling while you were flying, you were more likely to fall. Brooms could be incredibly receptive to the rider's wishes—or, perhaps, the rider unconsciously moved in accordance with their thoughts, much like being unable to walk in a straight line while looking in another direction.
She walked over to where Ira was now hanging upside down off of the broom, her expression serious although mirth glittered in her amber gaze. 'What types of dance?', she asked, trying to draw attention away from Ira's interesting experience with flying.
She would attempt to help Ira to the ground, but no matter if that help was accepted or not, she would speak. 'I think you might be doubting yourself—and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. But when I was learning to fly, when I thought about falling, the broom would often drop by a metre or more! It was terrifying. The smallest movements I would make had the hugest impacts on how I was flying. If I so much as flinched, the broom would dart out of control. Any worry of mine was often reflected in my technique, which could be disastrous if the broom reacted to my physical commands, which it often did.'
She chuckled fondly at the memory. 'Luckily, I never got too roughed up—iron constitution or something, I'd reckon—but it still goes to show that confidence matters. Your mindset matters.' She tilted her head slightly, thinking. 'I think what happened here was you kicked off unsure of yourself. And then you got up in the air, and you weren't entirely situated on the broom—was the takeoff perhaps rushed? I'm not sure. But whatever the case, you might have ended up leaning to the side, or your weight distribution was uneven, and the broom began to turn. Did you take control of the broom, or did you let fear take over?' The question was not mocking—Koko's voice held sympathy and compassion as she tried to discern the cause of the wily Oakshaft. She had had her own run-ins with immense fear and its consequences, of course. Just not with flying.
Whatever the case, she would do her best to help Ira work through whatever was causing her dilemma.· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·
@Ira Thornfield
[pc] koko riddle · 'pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.'
'it always starts and ends with birds.' · cyrus darsel [inpc]
30 Dec 2024, 07:45
Catching the Wind
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code by Tracey Bailey
31 Dec 2024, 05:12
Catching the Wind
Date: Sometime in late September 2024
Time: Evening, before curfew
Location: Quidditch Training Pitch
· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·Although Koko had heard of two of the dances, she had not heard of Bharatanatyam—given the name, though, it sounded like it likely was rather well-esteemed and something to be proud of. It wasn't as if Koko herself could dance anything other than a waltz, anyway, and poorly at that. 'That's all rather impressive! You'll have to show someone sometime.' That person could be her, if they met again.
She did have to help Ira down from the Oakshaft. Concern was evident in Koko's warm brown eyes as she did her best to help the other girl to her feet. As much trouble as she'd had with first learning to fly—perhaps a bit less than most first years, as athletics had surprisingly come easily to her—she'd never ended up upside down. She'd had a few rough landings, sure, but it had never been quite so potentially-catastrophic as that. She let Ira grab her hand and did her best to steady Ira as she wobbled, finally re-gaining her 'land legs' as Koko used to call the sensation. 'I'm glad you're alright; feel free to take it easy if you need to.'
It seemed her words had resonated with Ira, something Koko was somewhat glad for. On one hand, knowing the problem made it easier to figure out a solution. On the other hand, she knew first-hand how horrible intense fear could be, and it was a feeling Koko would not directly wish upon anyone. She nodded at Ira's words, expression void of judgement. 'It's perfectly normal to be scared,' Koko said softly. 'We're all scared of something, after all.' She smiled warmly at Ira. 'And working to overcome your fear, that's what's really admirable, and it shows how strong you are.'
Koko's smile widened when Ira said she'd like to have a do-over. 'Absolutely! This time, just focus on your movements—everything will be fine as long as you trust in what you are doing. And if you have questions, it's okay to yell them down at me.' She chuckled good-naturedly at the idea.· · ─────── · 𖢨 · ─────── · ·
@Ira Thornfield
[pc] koko riddle · 'pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.'
'it always starts and ends with birds.' · cyrus darsel [inpc]
2 Jan 2025, 07:37
Catching the Wind
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code by Tracey Bailey