#3 Fun with Gobstones

'Hello, fancy a game? Or are you waiting on someone?' Sophia asked, having rushed over to the nearest open table. 'I'm Sophia, by the way. I don't think we've met? Do you know Josh or Caine, by any chance? I think they're in your year.'

The Ravenclaw looked like a 5th year, anyway. Or maybe 4th? Sophia wasn't great with that kind of thing, but tried to be friendly and seem approachable in case this girl was one of the stingy types. Too impatient to wait for a reply, or risk someone else stealing her spot when she was bored out of her mind, Sophia sat across from her and got out her own Gobstones.

She fidgeted, wanting to continue being social, but didn't even know the girl's name yet. One thing at a time, Sophia. She sighed, then offered a smile to show she was serious about playing and it would be a friendly match. Unless her competitive side came out, of course.

She hadn't really intended to join the tournament today, but hadn't had much luck tracking down her friends -- and she had a whole free period this morning. But knowing her friends, they'd probably end up here too anyway. Sophia hoped the game started soon. She'd just wandered aimlessly through the Main Corridor, and all the way out here.

'You can go first,' she added.

Sophia was pretty sure that was the rule anyway, but simply could not sit silently while waiting for a reply or to get started.

Amber smiled when Sophia appeared at her table.

"I always fancy a game, so sure!" she said and it was clear that she was excited to finally have an opponent. But the girl seemed somehow familiar to her.

Her eyes began to sparkle when Sophia mentioned Joshua and Caine, and hearing all their names together, it hit her. She had been a Chaser last term on the Hufflepuff team and also the one who helped the potential keepers and chasers during Tryouts this year.

"I'm Amber. Yup, they're actually my friends!" she grinned. "I hope they won't trouble you too much during Quidditch practise."

Both of them on one team could end up in a wild Quidditch session.

"Alright!" she answered for going first.

Amber flicked the first gobstone, trying to aim more at the left middle of the board.

'Oh hey, they're my friends too. We're in different years, though.' Sophia grinned, already feeling more at ease. 'That's cool. Glad we could finally and properly meet, Amber. And nah, they always give me trouble. Easy as breathing.'

She laughed, as if she wasn't just as much trouble, and watched Amber have her turn. Okay good, she didn't happen to be some sort of Gobstone champion. Sophia stood a chance, then. She readied her Gobstone, carefully measuring the distance (or at least look like she knew what she was doing), then gave it a strong flick.

'Did you tryout for the team, too?' she asked, more interested in making a new friend than the game now. Amber must be cool if she was friends with those lot. 

"I'm actually in the same year as them," Amber added as she noticed she didn't tell Sophia earlier.

Amber laughed heartedly as Sophia mentioned the trouble feature of the duo.

"Tell me about it! And then the tendency to pull one into it with them!" Then she added with a mischievious smile. "Although, often enough I don't mind. It's fun!"

Amber looked at her Gobstone which had been rolling farther than she had intended to. Though Amber was glad, Sophias stone didn't seem to land better compared to hers, the Ravenclaw did enjoy their conversation. It was clear to her why the Hufflepuff was friends with the boys.

Amber flicked her next Gobstone, hoping to have hit it better this time, then she answered Sophias last question.

"Yup, I tried for Seeker like Caine. And I got in." She grinned. "It will be a fun match, Hufflepuff vs. Ravenclaw."

Then she added "You're the Chaser, right?"

'I thought to.' Sophia smiled, hearing Amber was in their year. It made sense. 'Oh, sure, they can't seem to cause trouble without an accomplice. Not that we're a good influence though, right? Some of their ideas are brilliant.'

Sophia laughed, enjoying Amber's company. Hopefully they'd be friends by the end of this game. She seemed like fun company, especially if she could handle those lot as well.

'Seeker? Cool. I could never.' Sophia chuckled, flicking her next Gobstone. 'Will be fun going up against Caine for that -- you should def bet sweets on it or something. We'll win, though, of course.'

She poked her tongue out at Amber, as a competitive yet light-hearted teasing. Sophia was completely at ease now and it showed. She smiled at the board, not even caring about the outcome but still doing her best. She'd rather be playing Quidditch, especially in knowing Amber was a player too.

'Yep, Chaser. That's me.' She nodded, puffing out her chest like proud guys tended to do. 'The best, they say. Caine used to be one too, but he switched ranks. Wanted something crazier, I suppose. You seen Seabrook or Twiggs with those bats? Oof. He'd probably love it. Your go.'

Amber sighed theatrically. “I try to be one but as you sad, their ideas are just too good. Often,” she added as sometimes they needed to be reminded to take it a little bit slower.

Although, it wasn’t always successful with these two when they had a solid plan in mind. Then it was easier to get along with it while trying to minimalise the possible damage output. But often enough she just gets caught in their plans.

“Why not?” Amber asked interested, if there was a special reason or Sophia just preferred Chaser. Amber herself hadn’t thought about her position too much before, she had decided on a whim during Tryouts, having before mainly the goal to play Quidditch on her mind. But she was content with the outcome now, the chase after the Snitch had been fun and actually felt like it was a pretty good fit for her.

“Yup, I’m looking forward to it!” Amber grinned. “Oh, they would definitely like to bet!”

Then she smirked. “Oh, sure. We’ll see about that.”

Amber couldn’t help but grin at Sophia’s teasing. She felt rather at ease now in the Hufflepuffs’s presence. Their conversation was just like if she was talking to Joshua or Caine, it seemed she would be a great friend, too.

She liked that they thought alike – and they were similar bad at Gobstones. Or maybe the conversation was just so pleasant now that they didn’t really care about the game anymore, or at least the outcome, it was mainly there.

At least it was for Amber, as she just gave the next Gobstone a flick without thought.

Amber chuckled a bit seeing the proud Hufflepuff because it looked funny, although she knew she could be proud. She grimaced at the mention of the two Beaters.

“Yeah, in the Tryouts only a bit because I was focused mostly on the Snitch. But when I look back at least year…” She shivered, she really didn’t want to be hit by either. “The first match, Gryffindor vs. Slytherin, will be interesting.” She motioned Sophia to flick her next stone.

'Seeker is hard; everyone wants to kill you.' Sophia shrugged, staring at the board as if one of the squares might light up or give her a sign where to aim for next. 'And it's kind of boring, at least to me. You just fly around looking for something, while everyone else is racing and catching and looping. I just don't think I'm the right person for that sort of thing.'

Each to their own, right? 

She smiled at Amber's smirk, nodding at the competitive words while she flicked her next Gobstone.

It was too bad their match wasn't until the end of November. Who decided Gryffindor and Slytherin got to have all the fun first? Then again, that match was always crazy so they probably needed the most time to recover from it. Still, it sucked.

'I don't know if you've spent much time with your team yet, but I gotta ask...' Sophia gave Amber a dramatically inquisitive look. 'What do they feed you lot? Those tiny Ravenclaw Chasers are insane. You guys seem to be really lucky at times.'

She scoffed, genuinely frustrated by it and curious about the whole thing, but also couldn't help a chuckle at the sheer absurdity of it. Those kids were on a level all on their own that had little to do with skill or experience yet they weren't to be underestimated.