Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff!

[Seth Wright]

Seth heard Ivy's words and grinned at his Captain. Before he could say anything she was off again, and he watched her back as she, Chace and Sophia - a strong trio of Chasers - do their part on the pitch. Seth's feeling of elation rose as his eyes followed their movements. He had saved a goal! Saved it! And his Captain had been delighted with him, as were, seemingly, the rest of Hufflepuff. Seth was, to say the least, a little chuffed with himself.

But it wasn't over. His pass to Sophia was hesitant and awkward, and it was no surprise that Scott Ryder swooped from nowhere to grab the Quaffle. "Ah!" Seth grimanced and yelped as Scott flew in then out. "Oh damn," he jabbered to himself in worry, patting his broomstick subconsciously. "What am I doing?!" Inwardly, Seth ordered himself to strap up. He could save goals - that was, after all, when he wasn't panicking, his forte, right? He had good reflex reactions... well, he was good at predicting where the Quaffle was going to go just by analysing his opponents. Still, his handiwork needed a lot of work. He was just so clumsy... He made a mental note to practice passing and Quaffle-handling in the next Hufflepuff practice.

Seth's eyes widened as they flicked back to Chace. His best friend had heard his warning but it was too late - the Bludger hit him. Seth's heart leapt in fear but it seemed Chace was on the whole uninjured and flew on. Seth let out a breath he had been holding and forced his eyes to return back to the other Chasers and the game at hand. Scott was passing to Casey, and the two of them were pretty close to his goals. Seth's hands gripped his broom tighter; he had to save it if Scott managed to pass, for Casey would no doubt try to shoot. He had to make the last fluke happen twice. "C'mon," he chanted to himself under his breath. "C'mon."

(((Very) Panicky. (Distracted) Concentration. (Trying to) Relax.))

[Oscar Flynn G7]

He smiled as his Bludger collided with Chace - but a wince came soon after. The Bludger fell away and Oscar was immediately chasing after it once more, determined not to let one of the opposing teams Beaters have a say in who got hit by a Bludger next. A speeding Bludger soon caught his attention however. Despite his efforts, Sydney seemed to have successfully defended his attack on Sophia. With a scowl Oscar changed direction last second and spend towards the second Bludger, hoping the first would not be hit by a Hufflepuff. Once he caught up with the iron menace he took just a moment to survey the Hufflepuffs. There were three main people he would want aim at - Chace, Ivy, Finn. Making a quick decision, Oscar threw all his strength into defending his team's best Chaser.

((Defending Scott, deflecting to Finn!))

[Sydney Rawson H6]

(( Okay, I think I am allowed to do this. At first, I thought I couldn't make a move this round- but I think I can... lol. Here it goes.)

Syd was flying around the pitch like a mad woman. She was determined for Hufflepuff to have a chance to get on the board. She was a determined beater, and she wanted to keep her team safe. She has grown closer to her team-mates as they year wore on, and they practiced countlessly with each other. So, not only were they housemates, teammates, but also close friends. Sydney would hate to see a friend hit by a bludger on her watch, that was her one and only job to do. She just felt like she didn't have enough extremities to do so. "Where the hell is Carson?!" Syd mumbled under her breath, as she watched her bludger hit off of her bat and fly toward Scott. She didn't have enough time to look around to see where Carson was. She was just hoping he was around and alive. Syd watched as she saw Oscar fly in between the bludger, and Scott. Preparing to guard her team, she squared up with him and waited for him to make a move. She noticed his eyes were darting up- possibly regulating a distance. Without looking Syd knew who was above her--- her seeker, Finn. Only Seekers flew that high.

((Defending Finn, and Deflecting back at Scott. ))

[Ivy Tunstall]

It seemed that Carson was having difficulty focusing; even his girlfriend on the opposing team was trying to spur him on. Hearing Casey's call, Ivy understood that perhaps Carson wasn't all that eager to be out here at the moment anyway, and seeing that he was still indecisive - not the best quality for a Beater - she decided that it was time to give their new reserve player a chance. He'd done well in his audition and seemed like a decent player from the intense set of team practices they'd had before this game, so she hoped Billy would be able to prove himself in the actual game situation. He seemed a steady enough sort of character, certainly less flighty than the friend he'd auditioned with, although with her spark and athleticism Sita could well prove to be an excellent player if she produced some focus from somewhere. Ivy signalled over to Madam Hooch that she wanted to make a substitution.
"Carson, take a bit of a break," she told the sixth year. "Get your mind focused on the game - and just the game - while you're down there." She offered him a conciliatory smile and detailed the substitution she was making to Madam Hooch; a moment later it was being announced from the commentary box.

Meanwhile, the copious talent of one particular Gryffindor was becoming quite tedious. Seth's pass hadn't been... so bad... maybe it didn't have a Chaser's natural elegance, but all the same it hadn't been a very bad pass, and Scott seemed to intercept it without even really trying. It was really very frustrating. Returning to the game in hand, Ivy saw that the Gryffindor Chaser was doing something really rather strange. For a moment her heart sank as it looked like he was about to try scoring; he was making all the customary movements that suggested that, but then her years' experience playing as a Chaser (and also garnering knowledge of the Keeper position) kicked in and she decided that the angle was a ridiculous one for him to be trying that from. If he was trying to score, it wasn't going to go into the goalhoops, and he was too good a Chaser to make such a bad shot on goal. So Ivy reckoned that it was fair game for her to try to get the Quaffle if he did drop it in that direction; she swooped inwards, hoping to snatch the Quaffle from the air before any Gryffindor could catch it; they might be in a better position for shooting than Scott and Hufflepuff needed the Quaffle more. Gryffindor were being selfish by monopolising it!

((Making a substitution - subbing Carson McGreggor H6 out, subbing Billy Brady H5 in as Beater.

Also trying to intercept Scott's pass.))

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

This very chilly altitude wasn't bringing Melody any success and she decided to drop a bit lower. Finn showed no signs of having glimpsed the Snitch yet, and that made Melody feel a bit more comfortable with her own lack of success. Seeking wasn't something that could be hurried... the Snitch would turn up when it wanted to, and the best she could do was to be looking out for it as carefully as she could; she understood that after the previous match she'd played as Seeker in. Finn had been a much more distant opponent so far, compared to the rough and not strictly legal tactics Josephine Bowman had employed; it left Melody wondering whether he went in for elbowing rival Seekers out of the way when chasing after the Snitch.

It was certainly less cold lower down, but it was also busier. She was more at the level of the players, and Melody could feel herself getting distracted. She looked upwards, her eyes scanning intently the blue sky and the white puffs of cloud frisking across it. The Snitch was out here somewhere; she just had to find it.

((Searching fer t'Snitch.))

[Billy Brady H6]

Finally, Billy had been substituted in! He was new to the team and hence hadn't had as much practice or experience as the other team members, but he apparently showed excellent natural talent, so he hoped to show his worth out there on the pitch that afternoon. Luckily he saw a free bludger as soon as he got onto the pitch, and went over to hit it as soon as he could. He aimed to hit it at Casey, as she was about to get the quaffle, it seemed.

((Hitting bludger at Casey))

[Madam Xiomara Hooch]

((Sydney, I’m afraid that your move isn’t allowed; defending against deflected Bludgers is considered as ‘one-ahead posting’, which we decided not to allow. I’ll find you the details some other time.

Oscar attempts to defend Scott from Sydney’s Bludger and to deflect it to Finn.
Sydney = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 4 + 5 = 9
Oscar = Defend (D8 + Str) = 1 + 5 = 6
Oscar fails to defend Scott; the Bludger continues on.

Scott attempts to dodge Sydney’s Bludger.
Sydney = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 2 + 5 = 7
Scott = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 5 + 6 = 11
Scott dodges Sydney’s Bludger!

Billy hits a Bludger at Casey. There is a Bludger flying at Casey.

Chace attempts to steal the Quaffle from Scott; Scott attempts to defend it.
Chace = Steal (D4 + Str) = 4 + 6 = 10
Scott = Defend (D8 + Str) = 3 + 6 = 9
Chace steals the Quaffle from Scott! Chace has the Quaffle.

Finn searches for the Snitch.
Finn = Search = 18
18 is not the Snitch number. Finn does not see the Snitch.

Melody searches for the Snitch.
Melody = Search = 5
5 is not the Snitch number. Finn does not see the Snitch.))

[Oscar Flynn G7]

The Bludger from Sydney slammed past his bat harder than he had expected and Oscar barely avoided being hit himself; it was only in the last second he had that he was able to twist to the side and escape. But perhaps blocking the Bludger with his whole body would not have been such an awful idea. That would be better than the thing hitting Scott while he had the Quaffle in his arms, he was sure. Luckily the Chaser twisted from the Bludger and dodged it successfully which only increased Oscar's annoyance - his dislike for his housemate, teammate and dorm mate emphasized by the fact that Scott was playing better than Oscar today. 'You're not competing against him, Flynn...' In his mind the playful voice of Theo Darke with that underlying strictness lacing through shot into his head, and he smirked slightly before nodding rather decisively. There was a game to be played - and he would rather be playing it than scowling at Ryder.

The switch Ivy made with her Beaters he didn't notice, but it was impossible not to spot Billy on the pitch once he slammed a Bludger towards Casey. Frowning at the new kid as his eyes registered the odd strength behind the hit, Oscar flew to meet the Bludger once more.

((Defending Casey, deflecting to Chace.))

[Casey Allen G5]

“Oh no!” Casey screeched turning her broom around abruptly. Chace stole the quaffle from Scott before he had a chance to pass. Great. Oh well. That just meant that Casey had to try harder. It’s okay. Even if Casey was a small girl she did have a lot a spirit and a very competitive nature. Casey raced back to Chace Coxen determined to steal the quaffle from him. She got as close as she possibly could. “Well I don’t love stealing in general but I do make exceptions.” She said loudly. “I’ll be taking that back now. Thank you!” She smiled cheerfully. Oh she was having too much fun with this match. Casey concentrated and tried her best to steal the quaffle back.

((Dodging the bludger and stealing the quaffle!))

[Sydney Rawson H6]

(( Hooch, don't worry about it. I should have known- as well as listened to my instincts... ha. No worries. I just got too caught up. ))

Syd cursed under her breath as her bludger swifty flew past Scott. He needed that hit. He was too much of a game player- he needed to lose a few points. Normally, Syd would never wish pain on anyone, but this was Qudditch- this wasn't normal life. Looking down toward the bench, she noticed Carson getting out of the game and Billy coming in. She shot him a smile as she flew off putting her head back into the game. She hoped Billy was up for this high stakes game. She needed someone flying around like a chicken with their head cut off- she needed a partner in this to protect and defend. But most importantly, to have fun!
With all of this stress going on, Sydney flying around as if she was on speed or something- she enjoyed every moment. Every curse word, every growl, every hit from her bat. She loved Qudditch!
Quickly out of the corner of her eye, she saw a bludger shooting down the pitch. She picked up speed as she saw yards ahead, it was targeted to Chace. "Watch it, Chace!" She shouted as she leveled up with the bludger and attempted on hitting it away, back toward a better target, Scott.

(( Defend Chace, Deflect to Scott. ))

[chace]

Finally! The Quaffle was in his hands, in Hufflepuff hands. Chace let out a brief laugh that was more out of surprise than pride. He tucked the ball snugly under his arm and pointed his broom toward the Gryffindor goal. Maybe the Keeper would be lazy and just let the ball in. Probably not but one could always hope. Chace could sense that another Chaser was on his tail and looking behind sure enough he saw Casey flying after him. There was no way that he was going to let her steal the Quaffle back after he had tried so hard to get it in the first place. He smirked a little as he looked back at his destination. Soon the score would be even. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to be vice captain. Maybe it would even be a little, fun? There was only one way to find out.

((Defending the Quaffle, Dodging Bludgers, Attempting to Score!))

[Seth Wright]

Seth watched the game with intent eyes. Really, if a Gryffindor player had snuck up upon him now he would not have noticed. His eyes were completely focused on the others on the pitch - the Chasers, the Beaters, the Seekers. Seth liked being Keeper; it meant for most of the game he could relax and watch everyone else, cheer them on. So far the teams seemed evenly matched, despite Gryffindor having already scored once. Seth was sure the rest of the team would pull together and work hard to fight back, though. Hufflepuff had a lot more spirit and determination than most people thought.

Seth whooped when Chace grabbed the Quaffle in midair as it flew from Scott to Casey. Yes! "Go on, Chace!" Seth yelled his encouragement as he hovered excitedly at the other end of the pitch. His best friend was flying towards the goals, intent on scoring, and although he could definitely not hear Seth from so far a distance, Seth continued to cheer Chace on anyway. He hoped he would even that score... and not bring the Gryffindor Chasers flying back at him!

((GO CHACE! :D))

[Finn Miles H7]

Finally. The Quaffle was making its way toward the other end of the pitch in the hands of Chace, the vice-captain for Hufflepuff. Finn was eager to watch as his teammate neared the Gryffindor hoops. He knew though that he had one job and one job only - catch the snitch. Finn couldn't afford to let his concentration waver for even a few seconds, as it could be the difference between himself seeing the Snitch first and Melody taking first note of the golden ghost. Instead, Finn listened closely, hoping to hear a roar of cheers erupt from the Hufflepuff stands as he kept his eye scanning the pitch. Sometimes being the Seeker could be so frustrating. Maybe he didn't have enough patience or will power. Wyatt would surely tell him so if he were there to watch.

((Growing bored already, and hoping for some action. Finn has such a short attention span, it's sad. ))

[Ivy Tunstall]

"Yes!" Ivy cried excitedly as she saw that Chace had swiped the Quaffle away from Scott. 'About time too', she thought to herself. Now Hufflepuff really had a chance to score: Chace had absolutely shot off away from the goalhoops and was steaming towards the Gryffindor end; had it been Charlie going at that speed, Ivy would have been worried. As it was, she simply found herself a bit left behind, but once she'd reacted, she started flying behind Chace, if anything going slightly slowly, swerving to block Scott's path towards her Vice. She didn't intend to give him any chance to steal. Chace's surge into open air had left him without much protection from his fellow Hufflepuff Chasers, vulnerable to attempts to steal, and one of the girls from the Gryffindor side had managed to catch up with him. Ivy accelerated a little more towards the action, willing Chace on. Let him keep the Quaffle, she thought desperately. Let him score the goal...

((Willing Chace on... oh yes, and trying to get in Scott's way a bit.))

[Melody Bang-Bala G6]

Well, that was the problem with being lower down. It was distracting. Here was Melody getting distracted by seeing a streak of yellow going the wrong way down the pitch (towards the Gryffindor goalhoops... whatever were they thinking?) and itching to go and hit a Bludger at them. But that was not what she was supposed to be doing this game, of course. Melody shook her head and tried to get out of the way of the oncoming Chasers (she'd been sticking around the quieter end of the pitch), veering off to one side and hovering there, not so far above the stands. The mass below her largely sported blue scarves, which was fine. They were sedate and not about to throw rotten eggs at her. She scanned the crowd carefully in case the tiny ball had decided to masquerade as someone's earring or something similarly inconspicuous.

((Searchin' fer t'Snitch an' tryin' not to be distracted by t'game's events.))

[Madam Xiomara Hooch]

((Sydney… there isn’t currently a Bludger heading at Chace this round and therefore you can’t deflect it. I’m going to assume that you just meant to hit a Bludger at Scott, but since your post didn’t specifically state that to warn Gryffindor about it, I think it’ll have to roll over to next round even though you posted in the first 12 hours. I’m aware that this is rather 1-round ahead, but I did have one of Cassandra's roll over to the next round in one of the early rounds of the game, so I console myself that it’s about equal for now. I will have to get some advice off staff about this sort of thing!

Sydney hits a Bludger at Scott. There is a Bludger flying at Scott.

Oscar attempts to defend Casey from Billy’s Bludger and to deflect it to Chace.
Billy = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 5 + 6 = 11
Oscar = Defend (D8 + Str) = 1 + 5 = 6
Billy’s Bludger continues at Casey.

Casey attempts to dodge Billy’s Bludger.
Billy = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 2 + 6 = 8
Casey = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 4 + 4 = 8
Tie! Re-roll.

Billy = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 6 + 6 = 12
Casey = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 7 + 4 = 11
Billy’s Bludger hits Casey!

Casey must concentrate to maintain her action.
Billy = Bludger (D8 + Str) = 8 + 6 = 14
Casey = Concentrate (D4 + Con) = 3 + 4 = 7
Casey is unable to concentrate and so cannot steal the Quaffle from Chace.

Chace shoots. Riley attempts to defend the goals, but she didn’t post and so doesn’t get her stat points.
Chace = Score (D6 + Str) = 5 + 6 =11
Riley = Save (D6 + Dex) = 3 + 0 = 3
Chace scores! Riley has the Quaffle.

Gryffindor 10
Hufflepuff 10

Finn searches for the Snitch.
Finn = Search = 14
14 is not the Snitch number. Finn does not see the Snitch.

Melody searches for the Snitch.
Melody = Search = 14
14 is not the Snitch number. Melody does not see the Snitch.))

[Riley Coxen G7]

Of course Riley was angry she didn’t make the goal, but she tried not to let it get to her. Normally her anger was a real problem for her, but she wasn’t a chaser now. She couldn’t get her big brother back for scoring on her. Well…not on the Quidditch pitch at least. She’d get him back later on for that. But she needed to keep a decently level head. “Nice shot Chace! I see you’ve been practicing those tricks I taught you. You’re lucky I’m not playing chaser…” Riley warned her brother with a teasing smirk, trying to hide how mad she was that she had missed the goal. Instead, Riley took all her anger out on hurling the Quaffle as hard as she could toward Scott, who was nearest to her.

((Passing to Scott and wishing she could hurl heavy Quaffles at her brother. ))

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

"Casey!" shouted Cassandra as she saw the bludger hit the girl. Biting her lip, she resisted the urge to check on the girl. Quickly, she turned her attention to Riley and the goals. The captain screamed in anger as Riley let the quaffle slip through her fingers. "Riley! How could you miss that?!" Infuriated, Cass turned her back on the goals. She was just so angry! Her team wasn't playing to par in her eyes. "Madam Hooch," Cass said this curtly through almost clenched teeth, "I'm replacing Rosaliz with Julius." Cass went back to the game Tension mounted in her forehead as she looked for anything to take her anger out on. Racing towards a nearby bludger, she aimed it at what was causing some of her anger.

((bludger attack on Chace))

[chace]

Chace made a face at his younger sister. "Your moves?" he shout back to her. "I seem to remember teaching them to you." He gave her a final smile before making a large loop with his broom to better position himself to do what was necessary next. Chace hoped that Cass knew Ry didn't go easy on him because they were related. Ry was much too competitive to let even Oz score. She would have caught it in a heartbeat if she could have but there was no way that she could compete with her older brother he chuckled to himself. Chace looked for direction from Ivy on what to do next. Both of them were in a good position to intercept the pass. They would need to pass at least once before they were allowed to attempt a score again and Chace wanted possession of the Quaffle when they could. He hoped Ivy would try to intercept and then pass to him so he could score but then again she might as easily pick Sophia. But if Chace intercepted then he would have to pass which would give the girls the opportunity to score. Reality seemed to snap into focus again as he realised he was now the Vice he didn't have time to be so selfish. He needed to do what was best for the team. He waited for Ivy's instructions.

((Dodging Bludgers))

[Julius Lionheart]

Julius grinned in excitement as he mounted his broom. It was time for him to take his chances out there with his teammates and hope to contribute to the well being of the Gryffindor victory that was sure to come. He felt bad, somewhere very deep down, for Rosaliz as he would be replacing her, but that was in the back of his mind as he kicked off. He rose through the air like an shot out a canon, the Firebolt logo only discernible to those with omnioculars.

Once in the sky, he saw that he was to late to try and stop from happening. Groaning, he shouted, " They had to at least score once, otherwise it wouldn't have been a real match." He smiled genially and watched as Riley attempted a pass to Scott after her unsuccessful save. He watched with anticipation as it got nearer and nearer to Scott....

( Just posting, cheering, and entering the game!!!)