totally understandable! no worries

"oh yes yes," Clarke said excitedly as he thought, "Quidditch is like my specialty! I may not know everything about potions or transfiguration, or have A History of Hogwarts memorized but I know Quidditch that's for sure" He got up off the bench and turned to her, ready to show her with gestures and movements what Quidditch was.

"So first you have 7 players and 4 balls" He explains, "It's almost like muggle soccer but it's a lot better because you're on broomsticks and like I said there's 4 balls. And they all act differently! First there's the Quaffle, that one doesn't do much it's the most like a soccer ball I reckon, but it's shaped differently because you hold it. The Quaffle is taken by the Chasers... there are three of those on each team... and put into one of the three hoops at the end of the field. The three hoops are being guarded by a keeper who tries to keep the quaffle out." Clarke took a big deep breath.

"But that's not all, there's also the bludge those are nasty things, they're like little cannon balls and the zip around the pitch while Beaters use bats to hit them towards the opponent to distract them," as Clarke said this he mimed hitting a bludger with one hand towards and imaginary opponent, "Then there's the golden snitch, that's the one everyone's looking for. It's very little and it flies around like a bird and there's a seeker on each team who must hurry to catch it. The game only ends when the Snitch is caught and it's worth 150 points so you the seeker is really important." He took another deep breath when he was all done.

"My dad plays for the Falmouth Falcons of the British and Irish Quidditch league and he's made the English national team, he's a chaser so he's one of the people who puts the Quaffle in one of the hoops. That's where most of the points come from," he explained. "Hogwarts has teams, four of them one for each house and they compete in tournament" He started to calm down as he said this, sitting back down on the bench, "I'll probably end up trying out."

Amara listened to Clarke excitedly about the sport Quidditch. It seemed a little odd to her, how the sport was played, but at the same time it was fascinating. She tried to picture how to sport went about in her head. Seven players on each team, all riding broomsticks. Then there were the four balls: the quaffle, the two bulgers, and the beautiful Golden Snitch. What each looked like was unclear to Amara, but she tried her best to imagine them. One is guarding the hoops, two are knocking away the bulgers, three are fighting for the quaffle, and then one is flying around in search of the Golden Snitch.

The game seemed so peculiar yet so astonishing to Amara (her little imaginary one that is). She was even more excited to hear that her friend's father was an actual Quidditch player and was fairly famous. "That's so amazing!" she exclaimed with excitement. "I hope you get to play at Hogwarts. It sounds like loads of fun. I bet you'll be good, too, since your dad is a Quidditch player."

The redhead showed off her happy grin again. "It must be so amazing to have a mildly famous Quidditch player as your dad. You must be popular with other magical children." Though she smiled, a sigh was released from her chest. "I wish my dad did something like that, but he's a Muggle, so he wouldn't have a clue about it. Instead, he works late a lot nowadays, so when I visit Mum, I don't see him really. I don't really know what his job is, but I hope he's good at it. He was a construction worker for a while and worked all day on the weekends, but I suppose he's quit." Amara shrugged her shoulders. "Aside from his job, what's your father like? And your Mum?"

"Oh I don't see my dad really either" Clarke said, he could definitely relate to what she was saying. "He lives here in Falmouth too technically but since he's always busy with something I hardly get to see him nowadays although he'll invite me to games and practices a lot. My mom though, she doesn't want me traveling too much with him so I really only get to watch the games and practices they have here in town. But he spends a lot of time in London."

"My parents are divorced" he said after a beat or two, thinking about his parents and what they were really like, "which is fine, it's for the best really. My mom really does not like my dad so I can't imagine what it'd be like if they were still together. And my dad would have been just as busy if they were together So i still wouldn't see him much. You know my mom was always the one taking care of me anyway so it's not like my life is really any worse off than if they were still together." he said, "But they're both... oh I don't know... My parents" he laughed. That was the only way he really knew how to describe them.

"They're both from old wizarding families, so my mom's always so concerned about being proper and everything. My dad not so much but his mother is like that. They think that Quidditch is fun and all but that actually going pro in it is irresponsible. My mom always talks about how my dad still hasn't grown up so she really doesn't want me playing Quidditch. But it's just, a lot of fun," Clarke said.

Amara nodded as she listened. She felt a bit better knowing that she wasn't the only one who didn't get to see her father very much at all. However, hearing that Clarke's parents were divorced started to sadden her a little. She wasn't sure how to sympathize for Clarke since her parents were still very much together and had never fought with one another.

"I'm really sorry your parents are divorced," Amara said kindly. "However, I'm glad you're handling it well! I can't really understand what it truly feels like, though. My parents have been together since forever it looks like, but I'm scared they might not love each other anymore if Dad keeps working his late night job, whatever it might be." She sighed a bit. "When I lived with them, we hung out together a lot throughout the week since Dad only worked the weekends all day. But after he found out I was a witch, he kinda just.. I dunno, he looked sad a lot, sometimes mad. I don't know why, though. I thought it'd be cool to have a kid that has magical abilities. Mum is pretty delighted, though. She was very excited about it and wanted me to learn everything there was to it, so that's why I'm now with my great grandmother."

Amara blinked and quickly shook her head. "Sorry, I rambled again. Anyway, I think you should follow whatever your dreams are. If you wanna go into Quidditch, I'd do it! Obviously, you still need to talk to your mum and tell her that's what you wanna do. But even if you don't wanna go pro, you should still be allowed to at least play for the Quidditch team! I'd cheer the loudest for you, hehe." She grinned widely.

"That's easier said than done," Clarke laughed, "i'd love to follow my dreams I just don't have any right now. But I think that's okay," he said that last part slowly, like he had recited it to himself over and over again, "I haven't even started at Hogwarts yet so I don't know what I'm good at."

He shook his head as if to clear it out. "It's not that bad that my parents are divorced anyway. I can't remember what it was like when they lied each other so I'm not missing anything. besides they're both pretty happy now and growing up I got two christmases and birthdays, and that's all I really cared about." he said.

"I don't understand muggles, and I believe they probably don't understand us," he told her, "I think your dad just may be confused, a little shocked, and perhaps a tiny bit scared. But that's only because He doesn't know and Hogwarts can be a big change even for pure blood children like me," He said to her. "My mom always said that sometimes people just take things a little slower than we would like but that's because they don't see it the way we do and we have to wait for them to catch up. Like for instance I'm not a very good reader, it takes me ages to get through a book but when I get on a broom stick it's like second nature to me. Where as, someone else may be able to read through a book like it's second nature but then might not even be able to get the broom off the ground."

Amara nodded again as she listened more. However, she wasn't entirely understanding what Clarke was telling her. Why would her father be scared? She thought he would think it's cool that she has magical potential. 'Maybe I'll just show him it's not that scary the next time I see him!' she thought to herself. 'Then he won't be so scared anymore, and he won't have to stay out late anymore and be scared!'

When Amara heard that Clarke didn't have a dream yet, it got her thinking: What's my dream? She remembered wanting to teach when she was very little, but teach what? Then her mind started to boggle a bit as she reminded herself that she was a Witch and that wizards have jobs, too, but not out with Muggles. 'What kind of jobs do Wizards have?' she thought. Surely teaching was one since there are teachers at Hogwarts. But what would I teach? I don't know any of the classes at all...' The redhead shook her head a bit to clear the thoughts. She would surely find out sooner or later what she was good at once she arrived at Hogwarts and began her classes.

Those emerald green eyes of her's found their way to Clarke once again. "I'm wondering... well, I'm wondering a lot of things, but it's best to ask one a time... How do you find out and/or know what you're good at? And once you know, what do you do?"

Clarke shrugged, "I guess I'm still trying to figure that one out" he laughed, "we're not allowed to do magic until we get to Hogwarts so you I guess that's what school is for, teaching us what we're good at. But, for me, I've been flying since I could walk, my dad took me up on a broom until I was old enough to use one myself. So I know I'm good at that and if I wanted to I could become a Quidditch player." he said

He looked to her as he continued, "you can do plenty of things depending what you're good at, I guess it just comes down to what you want to do and what you can do. For instance if you wanted to be a healer you'd have to get high marks in Potions and Charms. If you want to be an Auror you need to get high marks in Defense Against The Dark Arts. But to be a Quidditch player you either need to be recruited from Hogwarts or go try out for teams. My father was recruited in his 7th year while he was captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team." Clarke explained, "but we're all trying to figure out what we're good at still, so I don't know how to answer that question."

Amara took a moment to think about what Clarke had said. 'Potions sounds interesting...' she thought to herself. 'I remember reading about it in one of the magical books grandmother gave me.' Amara's great grandmother had given her a load of books on potions and charms since that is what she was skilled in when she went to Hogwarts. She had already told her granddaughter that she would be very skilled in charms because of her high magical potential and perhaps have a touch for potions. However, she would have to learn how to control her magical potential better, first, before she was able to use it to it's maximum. It has been shown to her more than once how powerful she can truly be.

The young girl looked to her young friend again, explaining to him about what her great grandmother had told her. "I mean, Charms does sound pretty cool, but I just feel so... drawn to Potions." Her small shoulders shrugged "I don't know why that would be. I've never made a Potion in my entire life. I mean, I kinda know a few from reading up on them, but other than that I wouldn't know why I'd like it so much..." While Amara was telling her friend the truth, there was something deep down inside of her that was holding a very dear secret that she had been told that explained the possible reason.. Did she really want to tell Clarke now? They had barely just met! No, no, it would be best to wait until she knew she was able to trust him as a close friend.

I just want to (again) apologize for my late replies. My senior year just started and work has been holding me over late recently.

it's okay i've been really busy too lately so I understand

Clarke nodded, "my mom says Potions is one of the more noble subjects at Hogwarts. I think because when Muggles hear about wizards they think of us waving our wands around like fools. But Potions are more scientific, more exact, and you can make or buy all kinds of potions," he said, "my mom is always on about how muggles see us but I don't really know why it matters," he shrugged.

"If you really like potions that much though you can become a potioneer, just make them your whole life," he said, "or you could end up as the potions professor at Hogwarts but then you'd have to work in the Dungeons which sounds depressing to me although," he paused, "now that I think about it the Slytherins have to live down there so it can't be much worse than that."

Clarke wanted desperately to see Hogwarts. Wanted to walk it's halls and go to his common room, whichever one that would be, or even wander around the grounds. He loved Falmouth for how close it was to the sea but Hogwarts was up in the Scottish highlands surrounded by mountains and a forest and a massive lake. He was so ready for a change of scenery.

"I don't really know, though," Amara replied to her friend. "I found Charms to be interesting, too, and I don't really think it's dumb at all! It's pretty cool if you can shoot out spells from the end of a stick. And, just to add in, I never knew about there actually being wizards or witches in the real world... I don't think Muggles actually have any clue about it at all. I mean, my dad was taken back and was in so much shock, he fainted!" Amara giggled a little, finding it a bit funny to see her strong father suddenly faint like a princess.

"But anyways.. I would really love to learn as much as I can from the wizardry world. It just looks to amazing and wonderful. I truly wonder what it's like to have a pure-blooded family... Growing up in a home full of magic seems like an absolute dream to me.." Amara's eyes failed to stay up for long as she found herself looking at the table. She truly felt that she was missing out on something marvelous, something that other magical children get to enjoy while Muggle-Borns like her miss out on. Suddenly, however, something came to her mind to say.

"You know, now that I think about it, I remember reading something once before on some of the most evil wizards and witches from the years before I was born, like twenty years ago or so and there was this guy in there who was supposed to be like the most evil of them all. I forgot his name, but I know that everyone calls him He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.. I'm pretty glad he's dead, though, because he was leading this group that wanted to embellish all Muggle-Borns and such, but I don't really get why.. I couldn't read it long because his picture made me feel pained and such.."

Amara looked to her friend. "Oh! Sorry, I started to ramble off too deep into it, hehe. Well at least he's dead, eh? That Harry Potter guy really did the job, didn't he?"