Semper Fidelis

Chapter 12.1

familia (noun)
family

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Chapter 12

It was the last Saturday of September and James was up bright and early to prep for Quidditch tryouts later that day. He had gained permission from Madam Hooch to borrow one of the school brooms before the tryouts to warm up and practice. At precisely 7am, James made his way out of bed (Nate and Teddy were still sleeping though they did say they were going to practice with him), showered, and dressed in warm clothes since the autumn chill had already creeped in. After wrapping the maroon and gold Gryffindor scarf around himself and encasing his hands in matching Gryffindor gloves, James quietly padded out of the boys' dormitory and out into the Hogwarts halls.

He loved this time of the year. Winter was definitely his favourite season because of Christmas but autumn was a close second. He loved seeing the leaves change colour and Halloween was right around the corner! He wondered how Hogwarts would celebrate the occasion. Do witches and wizards get dressed up for Halloween? James guessed he would find out.

Finally reaching the equipments storage off to the side of the Quidditch pitch, James carefully grabbed one of the old Firebolts from the rack of broomsticks. He wasn't really sure what the tryouts would entail, so he also grabbed a quaffle and a bucket of golf balls from the storage. He eyed a Beater's bat and thought whether he should practice with it as well, but decided against it. He had heard from Teddy that prospects don't really get a choice on what position they were trying out for. Everyone would be subject to the same drills and it was up to the Quidditch captain and veterans to decide which student would fill the remaining roles. James didn't think he would be a good Beater (and he also didn't want to wrangle the Bludger out of its shaking chest - he doubted he could put it back himself) so he left the bat where it was.

With his armload of goods, James walked out of the storage unit and into the Quidditch field. He set the quaffle and bucket off to the side and laid the Firebolt on the grass. With his right hand over the broom, he said, "Up." The broom immediately shot to his open palm. James gave a grin as he closed his fingers around the handle. That never gets old.

After situating himself astride the broom, James kicked off with his right foot and he immediately shot to the air. He let out a whoop as he soared over the stands. The cold wind whipped through his body as he flew but he paid no notice. Flying always gave him a thrill and the excitement and joy warmed him all over.

As he was flying, James reflected on the last month he was at Hogwarts. He was excited to be at Hogwarts, yes, but he was also scared at first. He was scared of not fitting in. Many of his classmates and his two best friends grew up around magic but he didn't. He always loved books and reading but he would be untrue to himself if he said that that was the reason he devoured his Hogwarts books so quickly. What motivated him to read so much and as fast as he could was the fear that his knowledge of the wizarding world wouldn't be enough. He thought that by reading his books, even though he didn't have real-life experiences, then he would at least know about the magical things.

Oh, but flying. Flying made him feel more like a wizard than any spell or magical fact he learned at Hogwarts. Flying made him feel like he truly and finally belonged. It was easy. He didn't have to think as he tumbled and rolled in the air on the broom. Control of the broom came naturally to him and he knew just how much to lean forward or tilt his body to the side to maneuver however way he wanted in the air. As he approached the goalposts, James crouched low on the broom and he zipped through one of the golden hoops like a rocket. He looped in the air before making his way back to the grass where he had laid his items.