Unwavering Ambitions Finished

Ariana was lost deep in thought as she wandered down to the quidditch training pitch, a school broom in her hand. She had taken the broom for some mending, and was now excitedly clutching it at her side, determined to keep up her flying skills by practicing as often as she could. She came to a halt at the broom shed and peered in before walking onto the training pitch, mounting her broom and kicking off into the cool, fresh air. Her hair was whipped from side to side in the wind, but her green eyes stayed as alert as ever. She did a few loops in the air and laughing to herself, grinned as she sped into a sharp dive, practicing her various skills. She really wanted to be on the quidditch team as a beater, and her passion for quidditch only made the thirst to prove herself even more. She pulled the broom sharply upwards and slowed down as she admired the view from above. 

Swooping back down, she let the raindrops settle on her long brown hair as she came down to the ground, the tips of her trainers brushing the soft grass. Grinning to herself, she hopped off the the broom and was walking over to return it to the broom shed when she spotted a figure on the training pitch not far off. The mild storm and rain was making it harder to see but Ariana could just make out the figure of a boy. She squinted her eyes through the rain, he seemed to be on a broom, but he wasn’t far off the ground. Maybe she should go up to him?  It was getting late and she worried about what trouble he would get in if he stayed out here too late. Mud splattered her trainers as she walked over to him, he had seemed to stop and stayed stationary on his broom, looking in her direction. As Ariana moved closer she noticed the green colour of the boys robes and knew that he must be a slytherin. She stopped in her tracks, but he had already seen her. Was he going to tell her to back off? Or was he gonna be nice? Sure most slytherins and gryffindors were supposed to hate each other, but ariana didn’t particularly see it in that way, she was open to making friends with anyone. She snapped out of her daze to stare at the slytherin boy. He had brown hair and nice green eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again, she was unsure of what to say. This was much unlike the chatterbox, whose reputation was to be quite confident and loud, but she stayed unusually silent still staring at her trainers. She finally looked up and spoke. " Hello, Umm I'm Ariana, what's your name? Do you play quidditch too?" She asked tilting her head to one side, she waited for a reply from the boy.

During his intensive practice Thomas had hardly noticed another student independently training on the pitch. In his defense, the layer of fog did not allow for much visibility. He narrowed his eyes in the distance to see the other student ascending effortlessly into the air. If she had noticed him, she did not seem very concerned in intervening. Perhaps she, like him, did not have permission from school officials to use the pitch? It was an encouraging though for the boy, as his only concerns on this day was a demand to leave the pitch. It would only increase frustrations, there would not be improvement without practice.

Thomas elected to remain at a distance when the girl ascended and re-focus his mind on his horizontal movements, as if to simulate going between the goal post rings to deny the opponent scoring. After several moments, he variated his training to extend his body slightly of the broom with only one hand to support his weight. He progressively attempted more aggressive movements, until sharply crashing down onto the ground. The combination of imbalance and slippery broom from the raindrops led to this fall. He landed shoulder first in the mud, fortunately he was not far off the ground. The fall would leave no more than a bruise. His robes, however, would require more attention as they were soaked from the rain and now contained spots of mud throughout.

Thomas released a heavy sigh, rolling off his shoulder to sit up. He’s learned to live with these frustrations, refusing to beat himself up for simple errors. Besides, there were more pressing matters as the girl that flew on the opposite side of the pitch was now walking…towards him? Given her effortless ability to fly, Thomas assumed she was already a member of her respective house’s quidditch team. Was she coming to ask him to piss off? Blabbing on about how the quidditch pitch is reserved for team players? Probably so.

Thomas stood his ground, she appeared hesitant in her approach. Once the girl was close enough, Thomas surveyed her features. She had undeniably pretty features, her colors signified she belonged to Gryffindor. Thomas has not interacted with many from the house, if any, though he did not place high significance on houses as most students do. Sourcing from the fact he did not want to be a Slytherin. Given she approached him, Thomas awaited her to break the silence. He would raise his eyebrows a bit as she delayed breaking the silence, as time passed it appeared she did not have the intent to kick him off the field.

“Hello, Umm I'm Ariana, what's your name? Do you play quidditch too?"

Finally, she broke the silence, and to Thomas’ relief he was able to let his guard down. Of course, she could have been playing him, so he would remain cautious in revealing too much about himself. “Thomas…and I do.” While Thomas has never played a competitive quidditch match, it was not a complete lie. Practicing on this field counts as playing, right? His muggle mother shielded Thomas’ from the wizarding world as long as she could, until his gifts were apparent. Ironically, he discovered his ability to use magic during a muggle sporting event. “You’re Gryffindor, yes? Are you a member of the team?” Thomas swiftly attempted to shift the focus to her, hoping she was also not part of her house team. If that was the case, neither one of them should be on the field without supervision. It’s a dangerous sport. “I’m training to be a keeper…” He remained vague in hopes she would assume he was already on Slytherin’s team without asking. He did not want to lie, but he would if he needed to.

"I am a gryffindor yes, but no im not on the team yet." She looked sadly to the ground and let her long brown hair swish over her face, wishing that she was already on the team "Im still waiting for my applications to be read." she paused, then looking up at him brightly she said "Im training to be a beater!" She tilted her head to the side and scanned him with her bright green eyes, was he on the slytherin team already? thats cool she thought, I wonder if he could help me in my training...? He seems really nice.... Her eyes moved to his soft brown hair and she flushed, noticing that she was staring, bringing herself back to earth, she stood up straight, shaking her thoughts out of her head, what was she saying again? She forgot. Instead she stood there flustered, fiddling with the twigs on her broomstick. "Um are you coming back then?" She asked hestitantly, "I mean it getting late and i mean if your caught you dont wanna get kicked of the team do you?" She grinned, teasing him slightly, then turned as she swished her long brown hair back over her shoulder, and marched back towards the broom shed. Ariana smiled to herself, she wasn't much of a rule-follower herself, she was a troublemaker and was always up for unpredictable adventure and pranks. Still, her kind, humorous nature made her easy to forgive, lovable and caring. Placing her broom in the shed, she turned on her heel heading back out to see if the boy was coming in or not. Her green eyes narrowed and she scanned the ground trying to spot him in the semi-darkness. Where was he?

It was an instant relief to learn Ariana was not part of her house club. Her expression mirrored disappointment of the fact, and Thomas could relate. Though he has not even approached try-outs, knowing all too well he had a long way to go before he was ready to take his place on the team. He wasn’t looking to be just another player, he wanted to be the player. The best of the best.

"Im training to be a beater!"

Thomas narrowed his eyes in suspicion if that was the best role for her. She demonstrated an exceptional ability to fly, and combined with her light physique he considered her as more of a seeker prospect. “Don’t beaters have to be…strong?” It was not intended to be a jab at her strength, but the blunt comment may be received the wrong way. Thomas opened his mouth for a split second as if to begin an apology, instead releasing a deep sigh, opting to remain silent. Perhaps she did not even hear him, as she seemed to stare towards the top of his head for several moments. Did she actually…fancy him? Me? Thomas Lestrange? Not a chance. Even if his suspicions were correct, it would not last very long. He has an ongoing habit of antagonizing others and rubbing people the wrong way.

"Um are you coming back then? I mean it getting late and i mean if your caught you dont wanna get kicked off the team do you?"

Thomas sheepishly smiled, his fingers tightly gripping around the end of his broom as he decided to follow through with his deceiving notion. “Right, yes. Wouldn’t want that.” His eyes scanned the pitch before returning to connect with Ariana. “I’ll be right behind you…” When the girl neared the broom shed, Thomas mounted his broom and took off into the air.

A predicament was presented, as Thomas didn’t want to stop. He had more drills left to accomplish, and considering they were mostly stationary movements, the spreading darkness should not pose too much of an issue. There remained the girl, who could potentially report him missing if he disappeared. He weighed his options, whether to avoid her sight until she returned to the castle, or to convince her to continue with him.

Thomas slowed himself to a stop above the broom shed, requiring the girl to look directly up if she was to see him. “If you can catch me, I’ll stop.” Thomas shouted from his broom, circling in the air. He was an amateur flier at best, and after watching the way she could fly, it likely wouldn’t take her long to catch him. He smirked, readying himself to take off across the field if she accepted the offer. “Bet you can’t.”He declared in an arrogant tone, challenging her to show him up.

@Thomas Lestrange 

Ariana green eyes widened in surprise as she heard a shout from above her. “If you can catch me, I’ll stop.” Thomas shouted from his broom, circling in the air. He smirked, and Ariana stood shocked for a minute before smirking back and mounting her broom to follow him, “Bet you can’t.” He declared in an arrogant tone, challenging her to show him up. Ariana never backed down from a challenge, she was a Gryffindor after all! "Well challenge accepted!" She grinned, as she kicked off from the ground following him. She felt the sweet evening air whip though her hair and part of her longed to stay out here on the pitch for ages, messing around with this fun boy. She laughed to herself and swerving sideways to follow him, she caught up easily, now tailing behind him with effortless strength. She was a considerably good filer, strong inside, and could be quite rough when she wanted, although she didn't really look like it from her immediate appearance. Leaning forward onto her broom she grinned at the boy as he looked around and sped off in a dive to the pitch below. Ariana followed and as she got closer took the chance to grab the boys shirt so that she caught him, they were near the ground now and Ariana tackled him reaching maybe to roughly. She winced in pain slightly, the fall had hurt her arm. She looked over to the boy who seemed a bit hurt too, he smiled at her though, and Ariana felt slightly guilty for her tackle earlier on, she gazed up into the night sky above them. "Guess, I caught you then" Ariana giggled softly turning to smile at the boy, "Are you okay?"

The Gryffindor did not appear to debate his offer, swiftly accepting the challenge in amusement. If she had seen him flying earlier, her amusement likely reflected that Thomas had no chances to lose her on his broom. She kicked off the ground almost instantly, prompting a raised brow and look of concern on his visage. The Slytherin gripped his handle, leaning forward to brace for the wind when he sped off across the pitch.

With robes fluttering through the wind, Thomas flew faster than he ever has before. Likely due to the adrenaline Ariana provided as she continued to close in. Thomas attempted a few sharp turns that only slowed him down, he lacked the ability to seamlessly execute adroit maneuvers. Hence his appearance on the field to begin with, he was in desperate need of practice before attempting a try out for his house. Ariana’s laughter only grew louder, she easily remained on his heels.

Thomas knew he had to play to his strengths if to successfully lose her. What were his strengths? All that came to mind was he was not afraid of pain. His past as a hockey player assisted in molding him to embrace the pain. Pain is good, suffering is good, builds character. Words of his former club coach, a native of Kazan, Russia.

It appeared Ariana also lacked this fear, or perhaps it was simply her confidence to avoid colliding with the pitch surface. As they neared the grass, Thomas felt her tugging his robes before extending her arms in attempt to tackle him. Thomas quickly lost control, his broom handle collided with the field, successively launching him into the ground. He extended his hands shortly before in attempt to break his fall, but his descent was far too fast, his abdomen taking the brunt of the fall.

Staring face down in the grass, he struggled to regain his wind for several moments. He did not see where or how the Gryffindor landed until he steadied his breathing. Thomas rolled over and modestly attempted to sit up, wincing as he did so.

"Guess, I caught you then. Are you okay?"

Ariana’s amusement prompted Thomas to roll his eyes in annoyance, in large part due to his defeat. “You could have just tagged me, y’know.” He mumbled, regaining his feet to walk over and collect his broom. Upon closer examination, the wood was now splintered from the collision, partly split near the handle. He began to collect the shards of wood. Considering it was a school issued broom, Thomas assumed forthcoming repercussions for damaging school property.

Thomas placed all the shards in his robe pocket, muttering to himself in muffled anxiety. He began to walk towards the broom shed, turning back to Ariana briefly. “You coming then?” He was too caught up in his own emotions to check in with the brunette beyond that.

On approach, Thomas began to feel woozy. With every step on his left foot, pain shot through his hip. He stopped in his tracks, sliding his free hand down his side to feel for swelling. Instead, he felt a thick shard of wood firmly implanted in his hip. The area was moistening with his blood that steadily escaped the wound. Well that needs to come out. Thomas foolishly did not stop to consider how far they were from the hospital wing. Without hesitation, he yanked the blood-soaked shard from his hip. There was momentary relief before blood consistently began to flow from his wound. It was not immediately visible to the boy, but he felt the warmth as it poured down his leg. Increasingly woozy, he dropped to the ground, pressuring the wound with his left hand.

@Thomas Lestrange

Arianas smile faded as her eyes spotted the splintered broom. She looked down at her trainers in embarrassment.  “You could have just tagged me, y’know.” she heard Thomas mumble. “Yeah sorry about that” she started cautiously, shuffling her feet as she spoke, “I didn't mean to be so rough” He turned to walk towards the broom shed, and Ariana heard him call for her. Walking forward she turned to get a closer look at him and gasped in shock as she saw the splinter of wood stuck in his hip. She felt a huge wave of guilt wash over her “I'm so sorry” she cried, her hands clapping to her mouth as she moved her eyes over the boys face. “I didn't mean for you to get hurt!” She felt so immensely guilty,  that she barely noticed her own wounds, of course they were not as bad as Thomas’s but her bloody knees and broken wrist still throbbed with pain.  She cautiously reached out, meaning to help Thomas but retreated back unsure, “We need to get you to the hospital wing” , she said softly, tilting her head to get a better look at him. “Sorry” she said again, sometimes I am a bit reckless.

She reached out to take his hand, then gasped suddenly as Thomas sank to the floor, unconscious. Her heart skipped a beat. This was all her fault. She sank down to the floor in desperation, and tears threatened to prick at her eyes. One thing about Ariana was that she never cried. Ever. And when she did, it was always silent tears. Tears or real pain. She never cried for something silly. I guess you could blame it on her brothers for roughing her up like this, maybe. Maybe not. But she had always been a tough cookie. “No no no no no”, she muttered under her breath. Placing her hand on his cheek she gently tried to stir him,repeating his name over and over. Should she go and call for help? She wondered. She was too small to lift his body weight all the way back to the castle, and she just couldn't leave him here on his own to go get someone. What was she to do? She tore a piece of fabric from her robes with her uninjured hand and used it to mop up some of the blood, doing the best she could for now to improvise for bandages. “Thomas” She called softly, “Please, please wake up” Only then did she become aware of her own injuries, her wrist kept stabbing with pain, and her bloody knees stained the grass, but she forced herself to focus on Thomas. She stared into his face, regret and sadness filling her. Maybe she should run up to the castle quickly and get help? Or maybe there was someone out there?

Temporary relief arrived after removing the shard of wood from his hip, a foolish choice that only decreased his chance to reach the castle under his own willpower. A steady stream of blood dampened the location of his wound, warranting a hand to press against it. The brunette’s regretful concern was not lost on the boy, approaching near his side with guilty sentiments. Thomas lie there woozily from the impact, consciousness drifting as he only caught fragments of the girl’s words.

It is not as if he needed to hear exactly what was said, the concern in her tone implied her culpable stance. Sorry sorry, no no, please please, get up. Blue hues found the dreary gray sky, progressively blackening from his weary state. “I-I’m fine—up.” A disoriented Thomas uttered a few weak words, a verbal response that displayed his battle to remain conscious. Then came a tear of fabric, Ariana compressed the wound selflessly. Not as useful as a tourniquet, but enough to constrict the flow of blood moderately, prompting the boy to flex his abdominals and sit up.

The boy’s heart right climbed, producing adrenaline to counteract growing insensibility. From the brunette’s perspective, still visibly adrift. However, the suppression of his injury facilitated a prideful tough guy state of mind. Thomas softly shook his head with a dreamy grin in hopes Ari’s panic would subside. Still too absorbed with his own bloody mess to pick up on Ariana’s grimace, denoting her respective pain that lingered from their nasty crash into the grass. “Th-thanks.” If Ariana still attempted to pressure his wound with the torn fabric, he would brush her hand away from the area. Tightly maintaining pressure with his right hand as he attempted to regain footing.

Not the most graceful rise to his feet, but he got there, albeit drifting in place. Only a few options remain, a stumbling trek back to the castle was quickly ruled out. He was better off lying in place to await a response to their plead for help. Only one option left that came to mind, of course the most foolish of all, flying back. Not separately of course, but on a single broom in unceremonious fashion. With his dominant left hand, Thomas retrieved his wand, shakily pointing it towards the broom shards scattered behind them. “Re-purr-o.” Craaap, no. It came out wrong, though had there been a looming cat perhaps gratifying pats would have arrived for it. Of course, nothing happened, leading Thomas to his second attempt. Pair, pear, pare. With a deep breath in, and retrieval of all available focus in repression of his pulsating wound, Thomas attempted the spell again. “Reparo.”



Shockingly, a flash of light emerged from Thomas’ wand, sending the shards of wood back into place to restore the training broom. It was ready for use again.

@Ariana Walker

@Thomas Lestrange

“I-I’m fine—up.”

It wasn't enough to satisfy her concern, but temporary relief flowed through her as he moved. Ariana stifled a gasp as he stood up; the movement had been too sudden for her liking. Her mind cleared slightly, the reality dawned on her and in the pit of her stomach the single grain of defiance bubbled, growing as she straightened up from her crouched position on the grass. It was time for her to take control. She cleared her throat. “Thomas, I think you should stay here while I get help, you are far too injured already, any further movement and you could inflict severe damage on your wound even more.” He didn't seem to be listening, or maybe he hadn't heard her, for he moved away towards the remains of the broom. Ariana followed in search of an answer. She silently watched, eyebrows furrowed and brown locks falling over her face, as Thomas shakily pointed his wand towards the broom, casting the reparo spell.

As soon as the broken splinters sprung together, she awoke from her temporary daze, darting forward and seizing the broom in her hands. “I'll fly us back” She said sharply, and her voice rang out clear through the evening air, green orbs boring into his blue ones, leaving no room for argument. She bent down, one-handedly tying her laces in a brisk manner, [her right wrist was still stabbing with pain] before standing up and making her way towards Thomas, scrutinizing his face slightly. “I don't know if this is a good idea…” She muttered, “But it's going to have to do.”

She jabbed at her chest and then pointed at the broom again, “As I said before, I am flying. I don't want you causing anymore unnecessary damage to your wound until we get to the hospital wing. Is that clear?” Without waiting for an answer she gently took his hand and walked over to the broom, dropping it as she mounted, motioning for him to get on with her. “I'll be gentle this time.” She cast him a reassuring smile, noting the broom's damaged appearance. Thomas had done an okay job fixing it, but the broom wasn't exactly in perfect condition, it vibrated suddenly and Ariana’s heart jolted with panic, she shot her hand forward in an attempt to steady it, earning her wrist another shock of pain. She put on a grimace and stared up at the grey sky for a brief moment before addressing Thomas without looking back.

“You ready? Lets go.”