Quidditch 2022 season Game 1 Gryffindor vs. Sly

[SUZIE]

Game One:

GRYFFINDOR VS. SLYTHERIN

This is the official game thread for the first game of the season. The specified winner is going to be SLYTHERIN. Please refer to the outline thread as a reference to know what you are to include in your post. This is a PRIORITY THREAD. You have three days to do your post following the person before you, otherwise a sub will fill in to do your section. It doesn't really have to be a HUGE post, just as long as it encompasses all the important information, at least from that character's point of view. Since the outline page makes it very clear what your section is about, we suggest writing it in advance so you do not miss your deadline.

The posting order will go as follows:
@abigail-COMPLETE
@mercy- COMPLETE
Guest Poster-- Ethan Johnson COMPLETE
@philip-COMPLETE
@joffroi- COMPLETE
@james-skipped
Guest Poster-- Moreta COMPLETE
@berengaria-COMPLETE
Ginevra Molly Potter-COMPLETE
Guest Poster--Neville Longbottom COMPLETE
holly proserpina mcgonagall-COMPLETE
@theodorus- COMPLETE
Albus Severus Potter-skipped
Guest Poster-- @james - COMPLETE
@mathieu-CURENTLY
@scorp- CURRENT by 4/22/15
Final Guest Poster (?

Early afternoon on a sunny day, the clouds partly cover the sky as the students, staff and guests begin to fill the stands surrounding the Quidditch Pitch in preparation for the first Quidditch match of the 2022-2023 Season. Tensions are high as the red and green flags decorate the area, signifying the match between Gryffindor and Slytherin. In the locker rooms, the teams listen to pep talks from their captains and smiles are crossed with serious faces as they prepare for what is surely to be an eventful moment in the year. The match is a well needed break from classes, and from the dark goings on lurking about the castle...

[Deleted]

The Gryffindor Locker room were a place of rambunctious behavior and serious pep talk. James had gathered the team together in order to give a speech about how proud he was of them and how they were going to be amazing today. He didn't fail to add a little snarky comment or two about the Slytherins and the team didn't fail to deliver their roars of approval at his words. They were ready for today. They had been practicing for weeks and had come even closer together as a team this year, maybe even more then the last year.

They had a lot to be supportive of each other over. James discovering a dead student. Abby losing her father. James, Holly and Lily having Albus to play against on the other team. Philip learning of some recent additions to his family. James and Albus's mother losing her memory, but coming to support them anyway. Overall, the team had grown even closer due to all the dramatics happening off the field. Whilst in practice, they tried their best to keep real life problems off the field, which was a good thing for them. They were able to set their minds to Quidditch without all of the insane life experiences pulling them away. No, this game was a good thing for the Gryffindors and they were determined to win.

As the players in red sped onto the field as soon as they were announced, the crowd went wild with anticipation and excitement. James surely acknowledged his brother, whilst they both turned to face their parents in the audience. Abby tried not to look, for she knew that this was a private moment going on between the Potter family. Sure she was incredibly close to them, but she didn't need to be one of the hundred people watching how the Potter boys would play with their mother in the audience. No, she wanted James and his siblings to feel like everything was normal. No pressure.

When the green team came speeding out, Abby didn't know where to look for a moment. First, she tossed a little wink Elias's way, he was one of her best friends after all. Then her eyes fell on Theo, the main reason she was so worked up for the game today. Sure she had seen him in action before, but not in a full-fledged game. She couldn't deny that she was feeling a bit fearful for her teammates, and had given Phinny a stern warning about the new Slytherin Beater.

Of course, she was ready for anything he was going to throw her way. As the teams flew around the pitch, preparing to start the match and jeering at one another, Abby and Theo casually floated toward each other, the crowds and teammates around them disappearing into the background for a moment. "You ready to play, Little Girl?" Theo said, his face encroaching on hers. From the stands, and possibly from the other players point of view, it probably looked like they could have been kissing. Not that Abby really cared if people thought that.

"Only if you are, Pretty Boy," Abby said in a soft voice, her eyes forming a glare while her smile remained amused. Soon, the teams were started to line up, but the couple in the middle didn't quite notice yet. Abby heard a voice call from the Slytherin side, Elias. He must have been telling Theo to get back into line. Then another voice, James, was calling Abbys name.

But before the beaters separated, Abby inched in closer to Theo, "let's make a bet. When you lose, I get to use you as my bag carrying boy for a month." The bet really wasn't that hard core, but it got her point across. Gryffindor was going to win. Abby then sped off towards the Gryffindor line. Soon, the balls were in the air and the game had started and Philip was clasping onto the Quaffle...

Next player: @mercy-post due by midnight on 3/7/15

[Deleted]

Going into this, Elias knew it was going to be one hell of a fight. The match was going to be his Slytherin side versus a Gryffindor team that was probably most favoured to win. In all honestly, he couldn't say for certain which team would come out victorious, but as a captain of a more than capable side he was pretty confident in his teams ability to pull a win out of the bag. With all the practices he had the team put in, Elias felt as if they were prepared for a full out battle. They were going to bring the game to Gryffindor, not the other way around. Back in the changing rooms where the faint cheers of the crowd could be heard Elias offered little words of motivation to his teammates.
"Go out there and kick some ass." were his simple words to each of them. He was never going to go into some boring speech about the fundamentals of playing as a unit, or encouraging them to do their best or else... It wasn't how he worked. The badge on their chests already spoke the story of how they were a team and the effort he had seen from each every one of them at their practice sessions was enough to show that they were the best.

Right now, Elias just wanted to see the efforts of their labor being implemented on the pitch and he'd be happy, whether they won or lost. As the teams stepped onto the pitch, Elias looked up at the stands where the adoring crowd was in joyous anticipation for the beginning of the game. Their shouts echoed off the large expanse of the field and Elias was instantaneously hyped to get proceedings underway. At Abby's gesture he replied with a simple wink of his own and mounting his broom, he took to the sky and waited for the match to officially begin.

For a moment while waiting Elias' eyes seemed to be lost in the sea of Gryffindor faces in the stands and it was for one lion that his eyes jumped from one face to another. She went by the name of Gwen and she had told him that she may come to watch, but she was no where to be seen. Maybe he had missed her face or maybe she backed out as she didn't promise him her definite turn up. Elias' attention was brought to the sight of Theo and Abby doing whatever it was they were doing and much to his disliking, Elias found it in himself to react. "It's a long way down...Be mindful of that, Pretty Boy!" he warned as he shot his teammate a glare. Elias personally didn't like the drama surrounding the pair of them. He saw Theo as nothing but a punk that was looking to play Abigail and given the opportunity Elias would knock him straight into the Hospital Wing. The last thing he wanted to see was a broken and hurt Abigail.

Without another word Elias got into his position and at the release of the balls, he braced himself for action...

---

Next player: @philip - post due by midnight of March 9th 2015
Suzie Edit: Ethan will be posting first to get the outline on track.

[Deleted]

Ethan, having finally found a new chaser, asked all of his team members to sit together during the Quidditch Gryffindor Vs. Slytherin game in order to do some assessing as a team. Plus, it was just fun for them all to sit together and enjoy a good old fashioned rivalry Quidditch game. Ravenclaws didn't really consider any house their 'rival' but by default it would have to be Hufflepuff, right? Ethans eyes scanned the crowd for Cordelia, who seemed to be surrounded by her own team. She blew him a little kiss and he caught it in the air, winking at her from across the stands.

When the balls were released, Ethan watched the chasers with intensity. They were his opponents, after all. Philip Longbottom took possession first, swooping in as if from nowhere. He was fast. Very fast. Before he could get far, however, Mathieu sent a bludger his way and Phil was thrown off course. This allowed Elias, the Slytherin Captain, to swoop in and steal the ball right out of Phils hand. The crowd roared with mixed emotions, most were boos from the Gryffindor section. Well, the Lions always were the loudest! Soon, the three Slytherin Chasers seemed to move into a well practiced formation. "Take notes!" Ethan tapped his fellow teammate on the shoulder and she began jotting down what she was seeing. The Slytherins were fast and very good.

Suddenly, there was a loud yell and all eyes turned to a different point within the pitch. The new Slytherin Beater, whatever his name was, had roared loudly as he knocked a bludger with extreme force toward Holly Weasley who was a good halfway across the field from him. Ethans jaw dropped and he turned to raise an eyebrow at Jo, one of his own beaters. This guy was going to be tough to beat, but Ethan had a lot of faith in Jo.

The timing of that Bludger was almost perfect, Ethan noticed, as it arrived just before the Slytherin chasers. Finny, Gryffindor Beater, didn't seem to be fast enough as he tried to stop the bludger. But, not to anyones surprise, Abby caught it with a harsh hit away from Holly, only to be smacked again by Mathieu from Slytherin. The bludger was drawing too much attention for Ethans liking and he turned his eyes back to the Gryffindor goal posts. The bludger had managed to cause Holly to move aside, opening the goal up for Elias to score.

Ethan bit his lip as the sea of green went wild.

_________________________________________________________________________
Next player: @philip - post due by midnight of March 9th 2015
Phils Outline To Follow:

3. The Second Goal – Writer: Philip
a. Gryffindor gets possession, scores
Philip gets possession of the Quaffle, leading the rest of the Gryffindor Chasers across the field. Elias manages to cut Philip off while Joffroi steals the Quaffle, then the Slytherins move back across the field to fire another goal. But Holly blocks this one successfully and passes the Quaffle back to Philip. He manages to pass the Slytherin Chasers while Abigail and Phineas flank him to push all the way down the field in one go. Philip manages to throw a goal upside down while looping over Elias and Berengaria, which Albus misses due to distraction.

[Deleted]

Finally, an official Quidditch game.  Phil, despite his nervousness at being watched and scrutinized by a million eyes and the responsibility he carried on his shoulders of helping Gryffindor win the game, was eager for the game to happen.  After all, that was what playing Quidditch was about, right? You played like a professional for spectators to watch and cheer.  Winning and losing happened to both sides and it was always like that.  He hoped that his team would win, but being very much the realist (or maybe the insecure) Phil was bracing himself for loss, too, and promised himself that he wouldn't be disappointed should Slytherin win. 

Nonetheless, all he could focus on was dressing into his Quidditch robes, listening to the prep talk James gave them--it was ironic how each and every one of them had gone through their own dramatic events in their short teenage lives, but Phil was too focused on the content of James' message to think about that irony now--and entering the pitch with his broom in his hand, not being able to focus on anything else other than the site of all those people sitting at the stands and the fact that he needed to focus on the Quaffle without disturbance.  Nothing mattered at the moment more than the Quaffle and that they had to either gain possession of it himself or help the other two Gryffindor Chasers take control of it.

However, he couldn't help but notice how Holly was smiling sweetly at her cousin, Albus from the corner of his eye.  Philip frowned at Holly and then at Albus.  Albus was his father's god-son and was his brother in a way and was utterly nice, but Phil just couldn't be charmed by his quiet and calm, kindness.  Albus was just so flawless and perfect on all aspects that Phil felt insignificant compared to him, and thus he was jealous.  He tried to like Albus, but gave up the effort because it just wouldn't happen.  Perhaps deep down he loved the dude as his own brother, but for now feels weren't there.  He was glad that he didn't have a relative in Slytherin, especially one he was up against.  He couldn't hold it against Holly for loving her cousin, but he felt a little resentful for her being so friendly to an opponent now of all times.

Without further ado, he mounted his broom and shot up into the air on the Gryffindor side of the field where the Chasers were supposed to situate themselves.  He was on the alert and his reflexes were raw, waiting like a hungry lion for the balls to be released.  And finally they were and as if he were being chased by a hellhound, Phil immediately flew for the Quaffle as fast as he could, and he wasn't disappointed by his speed--he gained possession of the Quaffle.  Good, that was the first step, but just holding onto the Quaffle wasn't going to help, not when there were such things as Slytherin Chasers too. 

He knew what he had to do.  Phil began to fly toward the Slytherin side of the field, trusting that his fellow Chasers were going to follow him and thus help him wherever possible to get the Quaffle into the Slytherin hoop.  Thwarting off the wily snakes wouldn't be easy, though.

Unfortunately his fortune didn't last long, as Elias soon cut him off.  Phil tried to use his Chaser skills to get around his enemy, but before he knew it, the Quaffle was no longer in his hands and Joffroi was flying off with it.  Phil cursed himself and turned his broom around, intending to chase after the Slytherin, which he tried his best to.  He did what he could to catch up with Joffroi and thus stop him; unfortunately, Joffroi was too quick and was scoring a goal.

But whatever annoyance Phil had with Holly, he no longer felt as the girl caught the Quaffle and promptly threw it back to him.  He grinned at her while catching the Quaffle, and, gripping it tightly in his hands, he turned his broom once more again and began to dash off toward the Slytherin goals.  This time it was easier and effortless, considering that he had Abby and Phineas flanking his sides and protecting him from any intervention, which he internally thanked them mightily for.  Truth be told this was a rather impressive fete that wasn't managed all of the time, and he was living through the moment.  But he had no time to savor it.  He had to focus. 

Up ahead were Elias and Berengaria.  Phil knew just the right technique to use on them to confuse them.  Phil flew above their heads before diving right under them.  He then flew up again and over their heads once more, thus having looped over them, but when he came up again he was upside down and right underneath him was the goal hoop.  Smiling besides himself and his suffocating caution that Albus might, in the nick of time, manage to block the Quaffle despite how distracted the Keeper looked, Phil dropped the Quaffle into the hoop.  To his delight, it fell through successfully and he scored for Gryffindor! He was grinning wildly. This was a good start if you asked him.  He trusted that he made James proud.   

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NEXT POST @joffroi due by march 10th
Outline:
4. The Third Goal – writer: Joffroi
a. Slytherin gets possession, scores
Slytherin has possession of the Quaffle again. The Chasers use their practiced formation again to move up the field, while Theodorus and Mathieu are kept from adding Bludgers to the play by Abigail and Phineas respectively. Philip nearly manages a steal, but Joffroi turns sideways to collide shoulder-to-shoulder with him, while Elias and Berengaria move past, switching to a two-man formation. They move in together, and while Holly blocks the first shot, she is only able to knock the Quaffle sideways, where Berengaria recovers and the Slytherins take a second shot in rapid succession, scoring.

[Deleted]

Too bad, so sad, Phil had scored, but no matter, because the wily snakes had the Quaffle in his possession as soon as it was on the field again--the power of having a level head and calm demeanor! Well, at least his two fellow Chasers were chill people.  But whatever the case they had a formation they practiced, practiced hard to form, and Joffroi was hellbent on putting it into competent use now.  And it really paid off, because when Longbottom was on the brink of stealing back the Quaffle, Joffroi calmly and knowingly, but swiftly, impacted with him shoulder-to-shoulder, thus preventing him from disturbing Berengaria and Elias.

And with Philip having been disabled from stealing the Quaffle, Joffroi continued to fly cautiously after Beren and Elias with a hawk's eye to make sure they would make it to the Gryffindor goal in one piece, and to see if they would get past that silly Weasley.  At first Weasley blocked the Quaffle, but Joffroi was not fooled.  She left an opening when she blocked sideways, and Berengaria thus preceded to shoot the Quaffle into the goal again, this time succeeding.  Although the Slytherin audience cheered loudly, Joffroi wasn't surprised, but he was pleased nonetheless and proud of his teammates and what Slytherin stood for.  He smiled faintly, sure that they would have more than just payback soon.


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Next post @james due by march fifteenth.
Outline:
5. The Snitch is Sighted – Writer: James
a. Gryffindor and Slytherin's seekers contest the Snitch, but it gets away in the end.

Abigail spots the Snitch and uses a whistle to alert James without words, but Theodorus picks up on this immediately and yells to Scorpius. The two Seekers begin a side-by-side race to get the Snitch, with James fully confident in his success. Mathieu uses a Bludger to force Abigail to turn and deflect, stopping her from shadowing theodorus for a moment. Theodorus uses this chance to dive in front of both Seekers, aborting the race, giving the Snitch a chance to vanish. He sees that his continued presence and actions are throwing James off his game and grins at the Gryffindor Seeker with the same kind of self-confidence James always has.

[Deleted]

To put it simply, although she put up a stoic and nonchalant front, inside she was overjoyed that she was finally getting to play Quidditch on her house's team. She had once resented her housemates who were on the team, as they had what she coveted but couldn't have and thus she was jealous. But now it was not so and she got her rightful place in the team after one of the Chasers left; Berengaria thought it was about time. She had auditioned for the position and Marcus Flint's Quidditch talent had shined brightly, and it was only fitting that she had been allowed a place in the team. She had thus learned to like her teammates a little more, now that she didn't have a reason to be jealous of them. In fact, she was now able to appreciate their skills in Quidditch and work together with them, even if she was still reserved and not very sociable, especially towards the Potter and Malfoy boys. Still, though, at least they had managed to gain her respect where Quidditch was concerned, even if she was still distant with her peers.

Anyhow, working together with Joffroi and Elias, she had managed to make a score with the Quaffle at the Gryffindor side of the field. That pleased her greatly and gave her confidence.  She hadn't been insecure, but she felt even more sure now that they had the lead.  Of course, it would be foolish to slack off and assume that they could afford to go easier on their enemy.  Beren still felt as cautious and prickly as ever, and that drove her to do all she could to use quick reflexes.

Her caution was not ill-founded.  Things were a little more complicated for the Slytherins, due to the fact that the Gryffindor Chasers had one of their Beaters protecting them, it seemed.  Both of the Slytherin Beaters were busy with their own Bludger beating business (the others were all Snitch-crazy).  Berengaria gave chase to the Gryffindors and had tried to regain the Quaffle; unfortunately, that was not to be.  There she was, on her broom on her team's side of the field, not too far from the goals in the case that Albus successfully blocked the Quaffle from going through and would toss it to her.  For all that she wasn't keen on befriending the boy, she knew his ability.  He was good.  She trusted him.  Come on, Albus, you can do this, she thought, keeping her eyes on him, the Quaffle, and the goal posts all at the same time.

He didn't disappoint.  In fact, she was rather astounded by how well he had been on the defensive.  He blocked it with success and soon threw the Quaffle to her, which she caught right in her hands.  It was almost as if this were staged.  She continued to put on a grim expression, but there was the faintest of smiles in the back of her brain.  Nonetheless, she turned her broom around and made a dash toward the Gryffindor side of the field; Joffroi had took the initiative and flew before her, so when she got there he was ready to take the Quaffle from her, which she didn't hesitate to throw to him.

She trailed behind Joffroi, who had the Quaffle now, and Elias.  The two of them were now going up further the Gryffindor's side of the field.  She watched the rest of the scene play out in front of her; Mathieu attempted to bat a Bludger in Holly's direction, but unfortunately Shacklebolt was able to block it from hitting the Gryffindor Keeper.  What a shame, but the next move almost made Berengaria grin, and that was saying something for a girl who was practically made of stone.  Theodorus roared, and the stupid Keeper kept her eyes off of the Chaser with the Quaffle and looked in Theodorus' direction; the gullible girl fell for Theo's trick, thinking that she was about to get a Bludger sandwich in her face, even though the Bludger was clearly still with her team's blonde Beater.  Honestly, how could anyone be so stupid? No Beater roared before hitting their intended victim; that would invite the victim to dodge quickly.  Holly must be hasty and one to easily succumb to panic, and that made Beren even more disdainful of those simpletons of the Weasley's house and prouder of the calmer and cunning Slytherins. 

As she predicted, Joffroi took this chance to score while Holly was definitely not focusing on blocking the Quaffle.  Wow, that girl was the world's worst Keeper, leaving an opening for her enemies twice in a row.  There was a stark contrast between her and her cousin who was serving as the Keeper on the other side of the field.  But that was to their advantage, because the Quaffle went in effortlessly, and the Slytherins cheered.         


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next: Ginevra Molly Potter

[Deleted]

If there was one thing that made sense to Ginny right now, it was Quidditch. There had been four goals thus far and things were looking well for both teams, which was okay because apparently she had children and nieces on each. Harry was sitting beside her, occasionally pointing out which kids were hers. It wasn't too hard to keep up with, considering Lilys red hair and the boys resemblances to their father. Still, it was weird that she had to think hard about it every once in a while instead of just knowing by the way they moved, how they sounded, how they flew... she should know all that. What was even stranger, was that Ginny just felt like a sixteen year old watching the game amongst her Gryffindor friends... Harry and Ginny had been invited to sit with the teachers, of course, so Ginny had Neville on one side of her with Harry on the other. That was familiar, at least. Well, except that normally Harry and she would be playing... but this was okay. It was just like watching a team that the Gryffindors weren't in, right? Except now she was forty something and her kids were out there... yikes. It sure was a lot to take in right now.

She had just seen her son, Albus, make an excellent save which helped the Slytherins to score. She applauded loudly and gave him a thumbs up. Did adults do that? Give thumbs up? Eh, whatever. She could tell James and Lily were proud too, even though they're team hadn't scored. What was with that blonde Slytherin guy who kept roaring like some kind of animal? Ginny was thinking of shouting something at him that would not be appropriate for a mother of three children...

Now, The Gryffindors were quite frustrated at the score Slytherin ahd just made and were zooming back across the field. James, her son, and the female beater-"Harry, who is she?" Ginny asked. He explained that it was Kingsleys daughter, Abby. Okay. So Abby and James teamed up and dived the Slytherin chasers, causing them to scatter about in order to help the Gryffindor Chasers steal the Quaffle back. But it didn't last long because Albus and another Slytherin Beater managed to block whilst the Slytherin chasers found their formation once more.

Ginnys eyes were soon drawn to another Gryffindor boy, blonde, diving with great speed toward both bludgers. Her eyes widened as he smacked them both. She applauded again and whooped, laughing a little as she did. What an impressive feat! She'd have to get his name later too. She wanted to know all their names, actually. She probably already did know their names... somewhere in there. If they were on James's team, she should know them. Anyway, both bludgers went flying toward the Slytherins formation and caused them to stumble a little which helped Philip Longbottom, Ginny remembered that one from earlier, to steal the Quaffle back. Then the beater who had just dived and Phil sped across the field together as the beater protected Phil from any oncoming bludgers and players.

Meanwhile, the Shacklebolt girl was guarding the roaring Slytherin, with quite a bit of force from the looks of it. In fact, those two seemed to be taking a lot out on each other this game. Odd. With both beaters occupied, for the other chasers were keeping a close watch on the other Slytherin beater, Phil was able to make it too the goal and, with some help from his own beater companion, was able to confuse Albus enough to score. Ginny cheered loudly and stood again as the fifth goal was made but she wasn't sure if she could cheer too much. I mean, her son was just bamboozled right? This was giving her a headache...

________________

next post: guest poster- due on march 25th
8. The Timeout – Writer: Lucy
a. A timeout is called and the teams huddle up to discuss their options
James calls a timeout for the Gryffindor team, realizing that they've been unsettled by the unexpected coordination of the Slytherin team. They decide to switch tactics and instead try to prevent the coordinated Bludger attacks from Theodorus and Mathieu, while trusting their Chasers to outperform the Slytherin team's formation. They take a moment to try and calm down. On the Slytherin side, Elias is mostly happy with his team's performance, perhaps chastising Theo a little, while Albus attempts to get his head in the game and off his mothers memory loss.

[Deleted]

Neville hadn't been to the Quidditch games this year. It wasn't a lack of enthusiasm, no, he still loved to watch the sport. That his son was playing only made it better to watch. But security was an issue anytime the students congregated in one place. Someone had to be in charge of the security. Neville usually took this job himself, to let the Aurors watch the students play. They rarely got to see matches at all, and he was able to set it up so that they could rotate in and out. But today, he had left the security detail to the Aurors and joined Harry and Ginny in watching the game. It was more for Ginny's sake than for any personal reasons—Harry wanted her to be in a comfortable, familiar place. So he'd asked Neville to be at the match with them. It was more than a little sad, knowing she couldn't recognize her own children, not to mention his. But she was handling it well, all things considered. She'd always been strong. It was kind of a requirement if you wanted to befriend Harry Potter in his youth.

Gryffindor called a timeout.

Neville watched as the teams separated, considering their options. A timeout at this point was good. Slytherin's Chaser line was clearly more practiced at coordinated maneuvers than Gryffindor's. Neville didn't know the reason for certain, but he had his suspicions. James Potter was the Gryffindor team captain. Therefore, there was no central figure on the Gryffindor Chaser squad. Philip was the best flyer on the current lineup, but Neville knew his son wasn't the type to take charge, and he suspected the other two didn't want to give him orders because he was better. In contrast, the Slytherin team captain was Elias Devereux, who was on the Chaser squad. As team captain, he had clear leadership, which probably made Chaser practice much more orderly. Whatever the reason, Slytherin's formation was superior, though Phil's individual plays had kept Gryffindor in the game. Otherwise, the teams appeared to be mostly even. The Beaters on both teams were highly skilled, but Neville was worried. The Nott kid took any opportunity to tangle up both enemy Beaters, and Helvitus responded immediately by linking with the Slytherin Chaser formation. Abigail and Phineas had done the same when the opportunity presented itself, but then the problem came back around to the Chaser formation on the Slytherin team being better practiced.

He was proud of his son—with only a little backup, Philip had blown past the entire Chaser line himself to score—but the longer this went on, the more pronounced the Chasing games would become. Worse still, the Slytherin team was entirely aware of this, judging from how quickly they'd cut the Snitch chase off. They knew they didn't need to leave the game up to a duel between James and Malfoy.

Hopefully, James had come up with a change in strategy to deal with the deteriorating situation. Neville didn't mind the Slytherin team winning, but he knew there were at least a few Quidditch officials in the stands, and even if Gryffindor lost, as long as they made an attempt not to play Slytherin's game, it would look good for them.

holly proserpina mcgonagall

The Sixth Goal
a. Slytherin starts with possession of the Quaffle
b. Gryffindor scores
Slytherin moves up the pitch again, but Gryffindor's tactics have switched. Abigail aggressively targets Theodorus with Bludger strikes, forcing the Slytherin to respond by fighting back. The pair trade back and forth, smashing the Bludger at each other at a dangerously close range, while closer to the ground, Phineas uses his size and aggression to crowd Mathieu out. As Slytherin moves up the field, James signals Holly to move up the field, which catches the Slytherin Chasers off guard, as neither of their Beaters were in position to warn them. Philip purposely lets Elias past him, letting Holly surprise him and steal the Quaffle for a quick pass to Philip, who powers his way across the field for another score on Albus.

[Deleted]

Holly was so ashamed and exasperated at herself for failing to block the Quaffle from entering her team's goal post twice now.  The Gryffindors had just come back from a prep talk during the break and now they were back in the pitch with a new strategy, and of course Holly was going to do all she could not to make those same mistakes again.  But first, she had James' strategy for her to employ! It sounded brilliant and innovative, which was why her cousin was le best. 

She was on her broom situated in front of the goal.  At the sight of the Slytherin Chasers making it up the pitch toward the Gryffindor side, she tensed and watched them intently.  She already knew that while she was dealing with the Chasers, Abby and and Phineas were in the thick of Chaser action.  She heard that they were supposed to aggressively overpower the other Slytherin Beaters by, like, nonstop whacking Bludger strikes at them to the death--if Holly was correct, Abby was taking on Theodorus (little did she know that Abby and him were precariously too close in proximity to one another, though) and Phineas was going to be harassing Mathieu (the pair of them were closer to the ground than the others).  Whatever the case, she was glad that they were distracting the enemy Beaters because that was essential for Holly and Phil's plan.

From the corner of her eye, she saw James signal to her and she knew what she had to do.  Holly began to fly forward on her broom and up the field.  As expected, the Slytherin Chasers were confused by what she was doing.  Philip, who had been pretending to chase one with the Quaffle, Elias, slowed his place and stopped altogether, allowing Elias to fly past him and now Elias was like, right in front of Holly.  Holly swooped in and managed to steal the Quaffle from the pretty Slytherin boy with spectacles (at the time) she had encountered in the library while drawing dragons--she smiled apologetically at him--and then flew past him to quickly toss the Quaffle to Philip.

Philip caught the Quaffle, and Holly watched with delight as he turned around and made his way toward the Slytherin side of the pitch.  For a moment she held her breath and watched with anticipation and excitement as he got closer and closer to the Slytherin goals, and then whooped with joy and clapped when he managed to toss the Quaffle past Albus into the goal.  Success! This plan had been genius; again, James was the best.


 

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The Slytherins regrouped after Gryffindor's latest score, another one headed by that blonde boy. He was good. It wasn't entirely on him—Albus Potter was distracted by something, and Gryffindor's poor Chaser performance wasn't being punished like it should have been. As proof, when Albus was paying attention, they had easily turned around a goal attempt by Longbottom, as he was the only one they had to worry about scoring. Theo floated back up beside Mathieu, scowling angrily at Abby. But his voice didn't match his expression as he spoke. “They think we're easy to break. Try to pull your duel close to the ground and stay under the Chasers, and watch me.” Slytherin's team was stronger. Now they just had to prove it. Elias had swapped the Chasers to their secondary formation, and their movement up the field was much slower and more cautious than before. But very little of that mattered to Theo, as Abby wasted no time engaging him at suicidally close range with a Bludger.

Theo responded in kind, twisting his face into an angry snarl. Abby and he were very similar, but they did have their differences. It was hard to remember, considering how in sync they were most of the time, that there were a few things their thoughts differed on. They could feel each other, predict each other, and run parallel thoughts—except when they didn't. Abby hated to lose. It made her angry, made her try harder. Theo, conversely, lived for the thrill of the challenge itself. Losing never even occurred to him in most cases. And all his life, he'd been taught that losses would happen, even to someone as strong as himself. It was accepting that loss, leaving it as a loss, that made one a loser. So putting him on the defensive, getting an advantage on him, only made things more fun for the pureblood. But Abby would likely assume that he was frustrated with her stopping Slytherin's tactics, much as she had been annoyed earlier by Theo disrupting her own team. So as they began their highly dangerous close-range duel, he could tell she was relaxed again, confidence restored after Gryffindor's last play.

They moved up the field slowly, mirroring the movements of the Chasers as Slytherin slowly pushed up the field. But as they dueled, Theo gradually moved closer to the ground, with Abby mirroring his movements. He took note of the nearby red and green of Mathieu and the McLaggen boy circling each other at a more respectable distance. He bared his teeth and growled loudly enough for Abby to hear—yeah, she was pleased with herself at the moment. Back and forth, as the Chasers above stalled out. Two of Gryffindor's Chasers weren't good enough to complete with Slytherin in speed, but they couldn't use their speed without a Beater covering their narrowed field of vision. Then Mathieu swooped farther away from MacLaggen—now! Mathieu could see him, McLaggen couldn't, and Abby was winding up for another hit.

Theo grinned and swapped his bat to his other hand.

He saw Abby's eyes widen in surprise and realization, but she'd already sent the Bludger careening at him at high speed. The Slytherin powerhouse wound up and slammed the Bludger sideways, straight at MacLaggen's shoulder. Mathieu reacted immediately and shifted his grip, smashing his own Bludger straight up. MacLaggen pulled back on his broom to follow and force him back down, but Abby's shout warned him in time, as expected. Theo rushed forward, closing the distance with Abby without bothering to watch what happened. He more or less knew. MacLaggen would block with his bat over his shoulder, but he wouldn't have the power to knock the Bludger away, so it would bounce off, shove him, and then charge him again. Those few seconds would be plenty of time—above, the Slytherin Chasers suddenly rushed forward, catching the Gryffindors off guard as Mathieu linked up with them and they rushed the Gryffindor goals.

He saw Abby turn to intercept, but the time she needed to turn was time Theo was using to move forward, so he cut her off easily. “Oh no, Little Girl. You wanted me all to yourself, and now you've got me. Now let's sit here quietly and watch my team cut straight through yours.”

Ten seconds later, Berengaria secured Slytherin's fourth goal.

Theo's wild laughter echoed up to the stands.



Next up: @james

11. The Injury – Writer: JAMES
a. One of the players is injured and a timeout is called to deal with it
The Gryffindors power up the field once more, and a particularly vicious Bludger hit from an angry Phineas catches Mathieu off guard. Mathieu nearly gets to it, but only manages to tip the Bludger, accidentally redirecting it towards Albus, who has been distracted once more by the sight of his mother. He never sees the Bludger coming and it breaks his arm. Joffroi quickly lines up next to Albus to help him fly to the ground as a timeout is called, and Lucy Weasley, the reserve member of the Slytherin team, takes over as Albus is taken to the hospital wing, Harry accompanies him while Ginny stays in the stands with Neville.

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The first Quidditch game of the season. This was the sport James Potter lived for. The talent ran in his family. His namesake had been Gryffindor Seeker and so had his father before him. It was only right that James had taken on that title during his own years at Hogwarts. He had just happened to snag Captain along the way as well. James loved his team, especially this year. They were closer than ever and for many different reasons. They had all been through a lot in the last year. James definitely mentioned that during his traditional pre-game pep talk but he strayed away from the specifics of those events such as Abby's dad passing, finding the girl on the train, and his mother... it didn't feel right to focus on the bad. It was better to just come together as one and focus on the fact that each of them had been through a lot and they could rally together as one in spite of all that. James thought he made his point pretty clear as his team roared after his speech and they made their way out to the field.

James looked around at the packed stands. This was no surprise as Slytherin and Gryffindor had the biggest rivalry in history. It was natural that the whole school and then some had shown up to see the first game of the season. The eldest Potter instantly found his parents in the stands. He smiled at them, even though his mother was probably confused as to why he was doing so... He knew Albus would be doing the same. Then his eyes swept over to the Ravenclaw section and found the most beautiful spectator of them all. His grin grew wider as he shot a wink in her direction. He returned his eyes to his team to see Abigail face to face with the new Slytherin beater. His brow furrowed at this and he called her back into line. Who was that guy anyway?

Before James knew it, the game had started. Phillip had gotten possession first and James grinned to himself as he flew high above the rest of his team so he could begin searching for the Snitch. James always watched his team as he did this. Years of practice had trained his eyes to keep an eye out for the Snitch and watch his teammates in play at the same time. He punched the air a little as Elias cut off Phil and the Quaffle was now in the hadns of Joffroi. But it was no time before his cousin Holly stole back the Quaffle and threw it to Phil again who seemed to know just what to do as he flew over their heads and scored a goal. James let out a roar in celebration of Gryffindor's first goal, even if it was against his brother. James and Albus were always good about keeping the rivalry on the field.

With still no sign of the Snitch, James circled around above the rest of the players once before he stopped on his broom again and watched the game. As he had been circling and looking for the Snitch, Slytherin had managed to somehow score. James rolled his eyes at the cheers from the snakes in the stands.

James sat on his broom for a moment, watching his team and glancing around for the Snitch when he heard a whistle. He knew that whistle and instantly he was on alert. Then he spotted it. The little golden ball flying fast around the pitch, but evidently he wasn't the only one to realize it had been spotted. Scorpius Malfoy had suddenly come out of nowhere as he began to chase after the Snitch. Immediately James followed, his eyes trained on the Snitch as he zoomed through the air on his broom. He was slightly unaware of what was going on below him now as he was determined to reach the Snitch before Malfoy. It was like the two of them were neck and neck, chasing after this little ball. The title of Seeker wasn't the only thing James inherited from his father; a rivalry with Scorpius was very apparent between the two Seekers, much like their fathers before them.

James was confident in this chase as he inched closer and closer to the Snitch, smirking as he seemed to bypass Malfoy by inches but then he heard a smack and knew that a Beater had hit a bludger. He turned his head for a moment to catch Abigail deflecting it but when he turned around something - or somebody - had seemed to dive right in front of he and Malfoy and James stopped dead in his tracks, nearly avoiding a collision with the two Slytherins. James's jaw fell open in anger and shock. It was one thing to block the opposing team but why would this guy block his own Seeker? The action was enough to make James hate this guy more than he already felt he did.

Slytherin scored again. James let out a frustrated groan as he now stood spectator again, searching for the Snitch that had slipped out of his grasps thanks to that meathead of a Beater. He hadn't, however, missed the save that Albus performed and while it was against his own team, James felt proud of his brother. He was a great Keeper. But James was still frustrated that his team was losing. It was then that he teamed up with Abigail to dive at the Slytherin Chasers, causing them to scatter as James let out a hearty laugh and his team got possession again. Unfortunately, it didn't last long because their score was blocked again by Albus. "Damn," James thought. His brother really was good.

Back in the air, James looked around for the Snitch once more. He looked back down at the sound of cheers coming from the gold and crimson stands. Gryffindor scored again! James smirked as they had found a way past his brother. He would certainly be teasing him about that later. It was then that James decided to call a timeout to pull the team back together.

"Time!"

As the Gryffindors gathered around together, James began to discuss new tactics to switch things up on the Slytherins. "Phineas, Ab," he looked at Abigail and Phineas. "Try to prevent any attacks by those snakes and their Beaters." His eyes narrowed at Abigail. "And keep it professional." He didn't know why Abigail and the new Beater had been singling each other out but James didn't like it one bit. "Everybody just take a moment and breathe. We can do this!" The Gryffindors roared again and returned to position on the field as the game resumed. As they did so and James returned to his spot above the others, he could see Abigail singling out that meathead again. James let out a frustrated sigh. He decided to just let her do her thing and instead signaled Holly to move up the field to catch the snakes off guard. James was elated to see Holly steal the Quaffle from Elias successfully and pass to Phillip who scored another goal! Things were definitely picking up for the lions and James couldn't be more proud of his team.

James took his eyes off the game for a moment again to search for the Snitch. He thought he saw it as he darted over on the opposite side of the field but lost sight of it as he did so. It could not have been a worse time to look away from the rest of the game. James looked down just in time to see Slytherin scoring again and James's eyes singled in on that Beater again, who was laughing wildly. James glared at him and swore to found out who this guy was and where he had come from.

James watched as his team was powering up the field now, obviously riled up by something that James missed in his search for the Snitch and that was when Phineas hit a bludger. James watched the bludger as it flew right by Helvitius, the other Slytherin Beater. He seemed to have barely tapped the Bludger, which sent it flying toward the goal posts where Albus stood guard. Immediately, James could tell that Albus wasn't watching for it and his familial instincts kicked in. "AL!" He shouted from across the field, but it was too late. The sound of the Bludger breaking bone could be heard and then a timeout was called. James sat on his broom, frozen as he saw Albus struggling on top of his broom. He felt instant gratitude for Joffroi, who was near Albus's side in a second to help him down to the ground where the nurses were already on stand by. James looked up at the stands and already saw that his father was on his feet, on his way down to the field. His mother, on the other hand, stayed in the stands.

(at last! hope this is good!)

12. Furious Skyward Battle – Writer: @mathieu
    a. The Chasers and Beaters of each team engage in a vicious contest wherein the Quaffle repeatedly changes sides
        The Gryffindors are now extremely frustrated. Many of them are friends with Albus, and from their perspective they lost an opportunity to score and he got hurt. The Slytherins, meanwhile, are now determined to crush Gryffindor for their Keeper's sake. When play resumes, the Chasers on both sides begin to get more reckless and physical, causing the Beaters to respond in kind. Things devolve into a slugfest of individual abilities, as the Chasers steal the Quaffle back and forth in quick succession while the Beaters of both teams attempt to maneuver into a better position while keeping up their own assaults with the Bludgers. Abigail and Phineas are attempting to split the battle two ways, while Theodorus and Mathieu are trying to stick together and stay close to the Chasers. Mathieu and Theodorus are at the right angle to see Scorpius suddenly take off, and Theodorus deliberately takes a Bludger to his shoulder blade to give Mathieu time to line up a shot on James to distract the Gryffindor Seeker.

[Deleted]

Throughout the game, Matty was on his a-game. He usually played his best against the lions but perhaps it was just that instinct that kicked in when the snakes and lions played off against one another. They had that centuries old rivalry going on and Matty definitely fed off of that energy on, and sometimes off, the field. He had been doing pretty well this game, having had some good shots with the bludger a few times and even better - Slytherin was winning. Matty felt on top of the world. It was his first match with Theodorus by his side, and the guy was a might good Beater. Matty was impressed and glad to have him on the team. The guy was a little out there, but it came in handy when he blocked James Potter from getting the snitch. However, Matty's game fell off kilter a bit when Albus got hit by a bludger... a bludger that Matty had failed to catch and instead tipped it with his bat and sent it flying in a new direction toward Albus.

Matty was stunned when Albus went down. He felt that the whole ordeal was his fault, although he knew Albus wouldn't blame him. Matty knew then that they had to beat Gryffindor. For Albus. The Chasers on both teams began to get a lot more physical which in turn caused Matty, Theo, Abby, and Fin to become more bludger-friendly. Matty found that he and Theodorus thought more alike than he initially believed they would. They both seemed to keep with the Chasers, staying on them in case one of the Gryffindor Beaters sent a bludger their way. That was when they both also seemed to spot Scorpius take off after what could only be the snitch. The two Beaters then went on to further play a good team when they angled up to take on the opposing team. Theordorus intentionally took a bludger to the shoulder blade and Matty knew that this was his chance.

Matty lined up, a bludger flying his way. He knew that he had to aim it at Potter to distract him from getting hold of the snitch. Matty spotted Potter, who had just seemed to have caught sight of Scorpius and then with a loud bang, Matty sent the bludger flying in the direction of the Gryffindor Seeker. It it was a close call, but it was enough to knock James right off course, giving Scorpius an even further lead. Matty smirked to himself and made eye contact with the Gryffindor player. He raised his eyebrows cockily. Matty never did get along with James, so it felt good to send a bludger his way.

Next Up: @scorp

13. The Snitch Returns – Writer: Scorpius
    a. The Seekers find the Snitch again, and after members of both teams get involved, the Slytherin Seeker makes the capture.
        Mathieu's Bludger shot forces James to roll, distracting him for a crucial moment as Scorpius locates the Snitch and takes off for it. James follows immediately, but he's a broom's length behind Scorpius. Abigail attempts to body block the Slytherin, but Theodorus cuts her off. Phineas follows suit, but Mathieu is too far away to intercept—and then Lucy Weasley shows up from the Slytherin goalposts to cut Phineas off. The Chasers are too tangled up to follow on, and the battle is too close to Slytherin's side for Holly to get there in time. Scorpius grabs the Snitch, ending the game in Slytherin's favor, 190-30 (man that looks lopsided, Rowling went way overboard with the Snitch's value).

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The game had been quite something up to this point. Elias was getting incredibly serious, clearly, as was James. Insanity was breaking loose as the Quaffle was being bounced around back and forth, it was making Scorpius lose his focus. Suddenly, Scor smiled, seeing Mathieu send a bludger James's way, causing the Gryffindor seeker to roll out of the way which gave Scor the perfect chance to locate the snitch before James could. His eyes fell on it. A little golden glint just above the Ravenclaw bannered stands. He sped towards it, not really caring whether or not James followed. He was faster than James, he was sure of it. The win blew past his face with incredible speed as he kept his eye on the goal.

James was fast, yes, but Scor had the lead on this one. James was about a brooms length behind him, and both were gaining speed. The crowds were watching, that was clear, for the stillness had settled for a brief moment, as it often did when the snitch was spotted. Scorpius focused on nothing else. He didn't notice Abby, the Gryffindor beater attempt to block him only to be stopped by a green blur that was Theodorus. Another chaser, Phineas, got closer than she did. Scor growled, almost having to change course when Lucy Weasley, the Slytherin alternate, burst from the goal posts where she had taken over for Albus and cut Phineas off.

As his team blocked the Gryffindors, it was just Scorp and James speeding toward the gold glint. Scor smiled as he reached out a hand, hearing the crowd roar as he neared the snitch. At the last second, he shot a glance toward the Ravenclaw stands, winking at none other than Rose Weasley as his hand closed around the snitch, giving the Slytherins one hundred and fifty points.

Cheers filled his ears, bodies were crashing into him, and he lost sight of the little Ravenclaw. He lifted his hand in the air and roared with the rest of his team, allowing them to lead him in a clump towards the ground. The game had ended in Slytherins favor, 190-30. Scorpius and the others in green clumped together, shouting for their victory. But, too soon, Scorpius handed the snitch off to his captain, and moved to follow James and Lily to the Hospital Wing.