The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
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OOC notes: noneFlying is, by large the main way of moving around in the wizarding world. Apparating isn’t easy, and most wizards can’t grasp the concept and Flooing requires a fireplace connected to the network, which reduces it’s use greatly. So to be a poor flier means you can’t go where you please, or at the very least, need to rely on others. Neither being great options, Thomas felt like he had no other choice but to improve.
He doesn’t have to be a great flier, not a good flier even. Just competent enough to be able to get from A to B without kissing the ground, which doesn’t sound all that ambitious, and it wouldn’t be if you had never seen Thomas fly before. Though flying might be generous here. At any rate, doing this alone wouldn’t do which is why he had asked Harumi for help. Considering her position on the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, if she couldn’t help him, who could?
After what could only be described as a slightly awkward conversation, as shamed-tinged requests for help tend to be, they had agreed to meet on the grounds where flying lessons are typically held. With his mother’s old broom in hand, an older model of Cleansweep, well taken care of yet unused in years. When he had asked for permission to take it, his mother was hesitant at first. Well aware of her son’s… lack of flying prowess she worried that he’d injure himself with no one around to help. It took it some convincing, by first appealing to her practical side, after all there was a chance that he wouldn’t be able to Apparate, so he needed to have a way to get places., he also promised her that he’d find someone to help.
As usual, he was early and with nothing better to do, Thomas put his belongings against the wall and began waiting.
Suspended in a frigid fantasy
Sta 6 . Eva 7 . Str 5 . Wis 10 . Arc 6 . Acc 6
Prodigal Charms | Calming Presence
The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
Word count: 522
Mention: @Thomas Lancaster
Key: Speech
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It was already too late when she woke up, she had been staying up late alot the past few days, she should have slept earlier last night, or should she say this morning? She had slept at 9:30 am after doing captain duties and eating a quick breakfast, a very bad choice. To be fair, she would have slept early, had she remembered she was meeting Thomas today, but instead she spent the previous night daydreaming about the show she spent the summer watching, as well as reading whatever books she had.
----Frankly, it's Hogwarts's fault, had muggle technology worked in it, she could have just brought something to watch the show on for 30 minutes, instead she kept daydreaming about it for 3 hours, especially because she won't be able to know the ending until at least the next exeat weekend which is in November! And she'll probably have to wait for the winter break anyway.
----So her morning was a chain of chaos, she woke up normally at first, it was 12 o'clock, nothing to do on a Saturday, so she was about to sleep again, but took a look at her comet 180 sitting in the corner since the morning, and suddenly it clicked.
----She frantically got dressed and grabbed her broom, then ran as fast she could across corridors, stairs, classrooms she never saw before, and more. She may have gotten lost half way through causing her to be even more late. When she finally spotted Thomas she waved at him as she was panting. She would have worried about her image as a captain had she not been already sleep deprived and fatigued from running.
----"Hey! Sorry for being late, I ummm.. was doing a few things that took longer than expected" She lied, no need to let everyone know about her amazing sleep schedule. "Ready to let go of your fears and fly across the sky!" She encouraged, she liked the sound of "fly across the sky" a bit too much. Was training in the place where flying class held really a good idea? The professor, and probably anyone sane, would be horrified to know Harumi is not only planning to fly, but also teach someone to fly while being on 3 hours of sleep.
----"anyways, let's get started! Ride your brom!" She called as she mounted her own broom and kicked off into the air. "You umm, have one leg in the air then pretend you're jumping on leg, but be confident about it, think it, you can fly! We'll just hover for a bit, nothing scary." She explained, not knowing his level of expertise, it's always better to explain something an extra time rather than not explaining at all.
----She hovers close to him, just in case he trips or falls, "a quidditch captain not even able to save someone falling from a broom when she said she will teach him to fly" isn't exactly the kind of rumour Harumi would like to spread about her, and she definitely doesn't want it written on the first page in the headliner by her fellow reporters.
iNPC: Shion♡
The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
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I got here too early. Drat. Thomas had been waiting for what felt like forever, though in reality only forty minutes had passed since he had arrived, and he had shown up twenty minutes early. All in all, his impatience could easily be explained by nerves. And who wouldn’t be nervous? He was about to fly! Or well, probably just hover. And then fall. Many times, if his first year was anything to go by.
Looking at the clouds he had no hopes of joining today, he kept waiting until he heard someone running in his direction. Tearing his head away from the skies above, he turned to look at a panting Harumi, waving at him. She quickly caught up to him, greeted him and apologised for her tardiness. Then she asked him if he was ready.
Was Thomas feeling ready? Not at all. But he had asked for help, and she made time in her apparently very busy schedule for him, so answering ‘no’ would be so disrespectful. And so Thomas lied, something that seemed synonymous with flying lessons by now. “Hi. I’m as ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.”
Harumi then mounted her broom, as to what kind it was, Thomas had no idea. Brooms held no interest to him, and it felt like there were so many different kinds, and yet they all did the same thing, that is flying. And in his case, throwing him in the dirt below.
Anyway, now wasn’t the time to turn up his nose at the concept of flying, he had a broom to mount. This at least wasn’t complicated. The old Cleansweep in hand, Thomas quickly got on the wretched thing, and pushed with his legs. Then he tucked his legs back, and let the broom hover slightly off the ground.
The sensation always felt wrong to him, but he could bear it. The real struggle would be coming next, getting some altitude. Before that however, he decided it best to warn Harumi. “So… letting you know, I’ve brought first aid stuff in my bag over there, for when I’ll fall. I should be enough for anything superficial at least. Also hovering is easy enough, rising up is more complicated.” Heh that’s one way of putting it. “I fell a lot last year, like at least once per lesson, so… yeah…”
Suspended in a frigid fantasy
Sta 6 . Eva 7 . Str 5 . Wis 10 . Arc 6 . Acc 6
Prodigal Charms | Calming Presence
The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
Word count: 366
Mention: @Thomas Lancaster
Key: Speech
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The boy looked so sure he'd fall, Harumi however can't let this come true, she'd die before letting that happen. "I assure you, we won't need it! No one is falling today." the girl stressed, she's keeping an eye on only one person, so if he still falls, she might as well disappear for the rest of her life. "Aside from first aid, I hope you have snacks and water, because I'm going to work you down to the bone!" She warned only half serious. "The best way to learn, is the hard way!... Also I'm hungry...." She added the last bit in a low voice.
----The girl observed his posture on the broom. "Find a comfortable position, hold onto the the broom with both your hands, and don't overthink it. When you ride your broom long enough for multiple times, you'll gain muscle memory!" She explained. She wanted to try and avert his thinking from from the fact that he's not touching the ground, so she looked around to see what there is to talk about.
----"Oh, look! I can see some owls flying over there, do you think they're someone's pets?" She started. "What's your favourite pet? I like all animals, but cats are just cute, especially kittens." She continued hoping that he's not overthinking, this could either go very well if she's successful, or very bad if he completely forget he's on a broom and consequently falls, thankfully they're not far from the ground, but soon it'll be time to fly further above.
----She started by going a bit further up herself, aiming to encourage him, when she reached a height of about 4 meters she looked bact at him. "Think you can reach me?" She provoked, a challenge is always a good way to make people take risks. "Tip the front of your broom up to fly higher, and balance it when you reach the height you want, obviously you do the opposite for landing" She guided, again, she didn't know the extent of his knowledge, he did go to flying classes so he probably knows that, but she's not about to take chances, so he'll have to bear with continuous overexplaning.
iNPC: Shion♡
The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
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She was so sure he wouldn’t fall. Hah. Mum says I’m naïve but even I know this will happen. Still I’ll try my best not to fall. Aside from this, she also expressed her desire to work him ragged, which he knew would be a pain but he had asked for it, so the only one to blame would be himself. Luckily I did bring water and snacks. Yay me!
The broom was as he expected, uncomfortable that is. Sure like any other broom, it was enchanted with cushioning charms and the like to ensure comfort during long flights but at the end of the day, you could make sitting on a wooden rod only so comfortable, and so finding a good position was a struggle and a half.
Still, by some miracle Thomas found a position that was slightly better than the others he had tried, and decided it was enough. She had made look so effortless though… Then again she is the Quidditch Captain of our house, so it makes sense… Also I guess she might be right about me overthinking it…
Then came a winged distraction. Owls flying around. They were a distance away, so there was no risk of running into one. Yikes. That would be painful… Harumi commented on them. Is she trying to distract me? “Well, they could be pets or… they could belong to the school. At any rate, I think fish are quite neat. They’re nice to look at and they come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.”
Then she began rising up. Not that high admittedly, maybe four metres at most, still it was at this point that Thomas usually lost control. His body tensed considerably as she challenged him, his senses screamed at him not to do it but, had he not asked for help? He wouldn’t be able to get anywhere hovering pitifully on broom. He knew she was explaining to him how to do it, something he knew, he listened during his classes after all. But in that moment, nothing registered in his mind.
So he did what he felt he had to do, and tipped his broom upwards. The broom suddenly shot up, way higher than intended, so in a panic, Thomas tipped it down suddenly. The old Cleansweep jerked in response and shot down, sending Thomas closer and closer to the ground. He tried getting it horizontal again, and closed his eyes doing so, something both dangerous and foolish. Yet, by miracle or at least that’s what Thomas would say if asked, he did not crash into the ground.
And then he laughed. Once he calmed down, he spoke. “I’m alright, I’m alright, just had a scare. But I held on, and stayed on the broom, so I’m counting this as a victory.”
Suspended in a frigid fantasy
Sta 6 . Eva 7 . Str 5 . Wis 10 . Arc 6 . Acc 6
Prodigal Charms | Calming Presence
The Chronicles of the Flightless Badger
Word count: 498
Mention: @Thomas Lancaster
Key: Speech
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The girl smiled when he seemed to find a comfortable position, flying on a broom isn't as comfortable as flying on a muggle plane, but you have to manage, honestly wizards live life on hard mode, yes they can make things move without touching it, but you can survive just fine without that skill.
----"oh, you like fish?" It's not an uncommon choice, but between cats, owls, half-crups, spiders, mice, and all the pets that can join your adventures on land, picking fish almost sounded boring, Harumi didn't want a pet to watch every now and then, she wanted one that can join her adventures, but fish do look more interesting than land animals, it's a matter of opinions, do you want a pet that can share your adventures, or one that you need to feed once or twice and then forget about until you are bored and want to look at again. "Well, fish are nice. Though I prefer something that's not bond to one place." She replied thoughtfully.
----As per her usual, she was still a bit lost in thought after she had risen, a grave mistake, but her sleep deprived self couldn't think so far. It was when she saw Thomas' great demonstration, that she was brought back to reality, he deserved a nobel prize, not in flying, absolutely not in anything remotely related to flying, but one in making people think he's definitely going to die or get seriously injured. Harumi could swear she saw her life flash in front of her eyes, she was prepared to die of shame after accidentally causing the death of her fellow Hufflepuff.
----It was when he manged to control his broom and balance it, that she let out a sigh of relief. "you don't close your eyes in the middle of the air, you idiot!" She yelled at him before thinking twice, she prided herself on calmness and positivity, but the scare of being responsible for someone's well-being might have brought out the worse in her. she made a mental note to never become a teacher, it's one thing tutoring once, but making a living out of it might make her end up in the magical equivalent of an asylum, if there is even anything like that, that was far fetched though, there is nothing more crazy than not only believing in magic but using it too.
-----"Ahem ahem... I might have lost my cool a bit, you scared the life out of me, I almost made a plan to run away and disappear forever... Maybe we should have started with sharing my broom." She looked lost in thought for a moment, but this time she quickly looked at him again. "Want to try that after a quick drink of water and a snack?" She suggested, a drink of water is due for both of them, after that scare. "Unless you're still feeling adventurous, you can always give it another try on your own." She finally added.
iNPC: Shion♡