an old broom (open)

[lucychiang]

Time: 11am on a Saturday morning during a Hogsmeade weekend
Weather: Chilly and raining

Although Lucy knew her Cleansweep 11 very well she had finally convinced her aunt to let her upgrade to an old model Nimbus. It had taken quite a while to find one but she now owned a well loved Nimbus 1700. She'd been flying on this since her 2nd term in 4th year and certainly felt better equipped to make a team now. As far as she knew her aunt had bought it second hand through the Prophet small ads. Lucy didn't think it had been somebodies steed in school so could a pro-quidditch player have used it? It had been well taken care off.

This had also been her first chance to get it tinted in her house colours with her name in black just like her Cleansweep 11 had been customised. At present the broom shaft was brown with the initials 'A.J.B' on it. It wouldn't feel like her broom until its makeover.

Lucy hadn't packed away her winter wardrobe yet as she wore blue jeans, a yellow quidditch jumper and her house cloak. Her cloak had taken some rain on already as the grey sky didn't look like it wanted to give way to blue sky. She also had the broom wrapped up in a bag and it had been neatly clipped and polished. Lucy knew all about keeping good care of her things.

Entering the shop the bell tinkled and she looked round for somebody to serve her..

[Louise Troy]

Louise looked up from behind the counter when the bell tinkled. "Lucy! How are you?" she asked, her face breaking into a smile. "What can I do for you?" she asked.

The Chiangs were good customers at Crennants, and Louise knew that Lucy was likely to be here looking for something, rather that just browsing as so many other Hogwarts students did. Noting that she carried a broom with her, Louise frowned. "Not problems with your broom I hope?"

[lucychiang]

Lucy had always liked Louise Troy and she managed a little smile for her seeing how cheerful the former flight instructor had been. She'd also helped this student sharpen her skills to the point where she felt able to play professionally full time. Assuming she had a break to help her achieve her ambition.

Walking up to the counter she took it out of the bag and showed Ms Troy the Nimbus 1700. "Hello Louise. I'm fine if a little wet today" she replied feeling a bit wet from the rain she'd taken on board on the way here. She also sounded a bit happier than she usually was since she hadn't been bothered as much as usual by boys. Perhaps they were finally getting the message?

"I need to have the broom shaft recoloured yellow with my name in black. The handling is still good. I also need some broom polish and Michael asked me to pick up something as well" she added rummaging in her strappy handbag. The old racing broom was still perfectly suitable for school use and certainly a lot faster and more responsive than her Cleansweep had been.

She emerged wth a slip of parchment in her left hand which was Michael's order. So she added "my brother wanted me to look round the quidditch fan wear. He's after one of the replica English training items he'd seen advertised in the Prophet if you have them in stock. The newly issued white tank top with the lions and broomsticks logo on them."

Michael was still quite athletic even if he couldn't play the game the way he had prior to the battle of Hogwarts. He still flew his Cleansweep in a relaxed fashion and could exercise in empty corridors after a fashion doing wheelchair sprints. He would have been able to exercise better if Hogwarts had a gym but you made do and improvised the best you could.

[Louise Troy]

((So sorry I forgot about this thread!))

'I need to have the broom shaft recoloured yellow with my name in black. The handling is still good.'

Louise took the broom as Lucy held it out. It was unusually quiet in the store today which meant that she'd be able to do it right away. It would only take a few minutes anyway. "No problem Lucy" she told her.

'He's after one of the replica English training items he'd seen advertised in the Prophet if you have them in stock. The newly issued white tank top with the lions and broomsticks logo on them.'

"He's in luck" she smiled. "We just got some in new today." She hadn't unpacked them yet, so she would have to get it from out back.

"I can do your broom right away for you since the shop is quiet" she told her. "Do you want a cup of tea or anything while you wait?" she asked.

[lucychiang]

"Some tea would be nice" was Lucy's reply. She correctly guessed if the new English tops had just arrived in they probally wouldn't be on display yet and so far they weren't.

So she looked content to wait as the broom was made hers. No longer would it belong to a wizard who'd probally kept it in a loft for many years even if it had been well taken care off. While she would have prefered a Nimbus 2001 or a Firebolt that was still beyond her aunts budget and if she wanted one Lucy would have to someday buy the broom herself.

A day that still had to come since she couldn't fully access her half of the inheritance her late parents left her until she was Eighteen. A safeguard her parents will had and probally since her late mother was a muggle.

[Louise Troy]

'Some tea would be nice.'

"Just a minute then" she told her as she disappeared out back to put on the kettle. Once the kettle was turned on, she quickly grabbed a tray and loaded it with milk, sugar and a plate of biscuts. Once that was done she began rumaging through the various boxes out back, looking for the tops.

"So how's the quidditch going, Lucy?" she called out as she continued to search for the tops.

[lucychiang]

While she waited for Louise and the tea Lucy leaned against the counter and replied "its going well but all I can do right now is train and keep my seeking and chasing sharp. Theres been very few official games played since I started Hogwarts and how are teams supposed to spot new talent if theres no quidditch cup being played?"

She did want to play professionally but the question was a valid one. Already her brother had to abandon his dream of playing for a living and she feared she might not get the break one needed to even join a professional team. She had no real alternative plans yet should this fall through but given what her dad did something in the MLE might appeal to her.

She could practice with other Hufflepuffs like James and Delilah but this was really all they could do right now.

[Louise Troy]

'Theres been very few official games played since I started Hogwarts and how are teams supposed to spot new talent if theres no quidditch cup being played?'

"Don't worry, if you're good enough, they'll notice you" assured Louise, as she pulled out a top from the box.

"You are practicing with other players though, aren't you?" she checked. "Catching a snitch by yourself is all very well, but you need to be able to do it when there's bludgers and another seeker."

The kettle whistled shrilly to announce that it had boiled and Louise quickly poured the boiling water into a mug and placed it on the tray to carry out to Lucy, along with the top.

"Here you are" she said as she placed the tray down on the counter.

[lucychiang]

"Thank you. I know that" Lucy replied since there were practice sessions like this even if there was no formal teams. The houses did co-operate to get round the shortage of players which showed they could at least have quidditch in common.

Sessions where all the perils of a quidditch game were out in the open and which were supervised by the flight instructor.

"I usually train with the Hufflepuffs and then theres the joint training sessions with whomever turns up at them" she added as she firstly fished out the tea bag and then sipped at her tea before adding a bit of milk. She still didn't take sugar in her tea and watches what she ate. Which added to her daily training regime explained why she looked so athletic. She usually combined quidditch with a run or a swim.

She still wondered just when there'd be a quidditch cup again. It was something that was still missing from the Hogwarts social calander and was missed by everybody.

She still had doubts about other things. Over the past two years she had still to find somebody that was like her. Into girls rather than boys and she feared she'd never find them. Her crushing on somebody like Aviana hurt Lucy more than the frustration caused by not being able to show her feelings to a special someone.

[Louise Troy]

Louise nodded. It was difficult to try and break into a professional quidditch team under any conditions, but the way things were now it would be even harder than usual.

"You've another few years to go before scouting will get too serious anyway" she assured her. "As long as you keep practicing you've got as good a chance as anyone. By the time you're old enough to try out for professional teams quidditch should have picked up again at Hogwarts."

As Louise was talking she took Lucy's broom out back to begin engraving it with her name. "Yellow broom, black name?" she checked.

[lucychiang]

Lucy found the reassurance helpful and nodded as she listened. Then as she drank more tea she heard :

"Yellow broom, black name?"

"Thats right Louise. I only need my surname on it" she replied as she heard her former teachers voice from the back of the shop. Lucy had learned a lot from her and was a hero to this teenage witch as a result. That job wouldn't take long but the tea was really nice. She could now lend her old broom to somebody else that could benefit from it. More likely it would be another Hufflepuff.

[Louise Troy]

'I only need my surname on it.'

Louise nodded and got to work tinting the broom. It wouldn't take very long at all, and thankfully no one else had come into the shop since Lucy had entered. It took her only a few minutes before she was done tinting the broom yellow.

Once the broom was tinted she began on the name. This would take slightly longer and would require mocre concentration if she were to do it neatly.

[lucychiang]

So while she waited Lucy drank her tea. Once she'd paid for this customisation and Michael's new top she had a few more places to go to but nothing exciting really. Just some things she needed for school. Ink and a new metal nib for her quill.

[Louise Troy]

Louise finished up a few minutes later and carried the broom out to Lucy. The broom was wrapped up in brown paper as it was still slightly wet and might rub off on Lucy's clothes.

"Now here you are" she said as she laid the broom down on the counter in front of Lucy. "You needed polish too" she stated as she began to search under the counter for some. Finally she located a tube of polish and placed that on the conter next to the broom while she mentally calculated the price.

"That'll be five galleons and 14 sickles."

[lucychiang]

Lucy counted this money out of her handbag having set this aside specifically for her broom customisation. Then there was Michael's tank top to pay for but he'd given this to Lucy already.

"Thank you Louise" she softly replied adding "how much for Michael's tank top?" She couldn't return without that given Michael was looking forward to owning it. He still loved the game even if he couldn't fly well enough to play anymore. These siblings were still Chudley Cannon fans and still loyal England fans although the team hadn't won a world cup for a long time. The last time had been 1970 which was a long time ago even by international quidditch standards.