Hufflepuff vs. Slytherin!

[Josephine Bowman S7]

Josephine barely missed getting hit by yet another bludger. "Hey Mary! Kailyn! Pay attention!" she screamed in annoyance. Last thing she needed was to get hit by another bludger. She felt she was close to catching the snitch. It was like her whole world was focusing and she knew that the snitch was about to make itself known to all of them...of course that could have been the drugs talking, but she felt sure that any minute now the snitch would be seen and she would be the one to catch it. She had to be...Slytherin needed her to catch the snitch...her house was counting on her...everyone was counting on her and she wasn't about to let them down.

((snitch searching + avoiding bludgers))

[Finn Miles H7]

Finn watched excitedly as Ivy had almost scored. And then, after Drake managed to stop her shot, Ivy was quick enough to intercept the Quaffle right back from him! "Nice nab, Ivy!" he shouted, flying past his captain as he saw the Slytherin captain send a Bludger toward Sita. He'd have warned Sita about the oncoming Bludger, but he didn't want to distract her. Plus, he figured he could get to it with enough time to send it in another direction. More specifically, he figured he might send it at Josephine. It was quickly becoming a battle of keeping the Seekers safe!

((Defending Sita, deflecting toward Jo.))

[Kailyn Valak S6]

Damn that nasty Hufflepuff. She was flying around the pitch like she was the queen or something. Nobody did that around Kailyn and got away with it. She had already earned a detention though, and lost some points for Slytherin, but where in the rules could she be penalized for hitting a Bludger at Sydney? She couldn't. And, that's what she did. While the Hufflepuff was busy elsewhere, Kailyn flew in behind her and batted the iron ball hard at Sydney's back side. "Let's see you hit this," she said, a clear focus evident in her narrowed eyes.

((Focusing an attack on Syd!))

[kael]

Things were going well for Hufflepuff. Ivy had been successful in catching the quaffle he had passed to her, though her yelled comment to him had made Kael roll his eyes. Did he really look like he would shout across the pitch in reply to her? He wasn’t a first-string Chaser because that would mean working even more closely with the team. He was quite fine as a relatively isolated Keeper. Though, he did have to admit, he hadn’t played his best as the Keeper just before but he was doing reasonably well now. Even though Ivy hadn’t quite succeeded in scoring, she had at least gotten the quaffle back from the Slytherin Keeper. Eyes narrowed, Kael noted the younger Slytherin Chaser trying to steal the quaffle and frowned. That wouldn’t do at all.

((Marking Adalia.))

[Ivy Tunstall]

Ivy allowed herself a satisfied smile as she tightened her grip on the Quaffle and swooped away from the Slytherin she'd cheated out of possession, knowing that she wouldn't have long before her own possession of the red leather ball was challenged. She saw that Kael was nearby and, taking advantage of the clear line between them, she lobbed the Quaffle in his direction, hoping that he'd be paying attention to catch it because she'd made the pass quickly in an attempt to disguise it from the Slytherin Chasers. She didn't want anyone trying to intercept the pass.

Ivy noticed that Sophia wasn't doing quite such a good job as Kael of keeping with her fellow Hufflepuff Chasers... which was where they needed her. Fair enough that she could have stayed back a bit when Drake was getting ready to pass the Quaffle, but she really should be here by now. The dire game situation making her ruthless towards her friend in a way that she was usually not, Ivy decided to bring her Vice Captain back into the game in her place. Detailing the first substitution to Madam Hooch, she decided that she might as well give another one of her reserves on the bench an opportunity to play while she was at it...

((Making changes to the line-up!
Substituting Sophia out and putting Chace in her position as Chaser.
Substituting Sydney out and putting Carson in her position as Beater.

Also passing the Quaffle to Kael.))

[Sita Mehadi H7]

What was that? Was she seeing things? Could it really - she could hardly believe it - could it really be a CLOUD? A wispy excuse of a cloud, but something to break the cruel monotony of the blazing sunshine and vivid blue sky that had begun to hurt her eyes and annoy her so much. She was so happy to finally see a cloud...

Oh! But there weren't any points available for cloud-spotting. It was the Snitch she was supposed to be searching for. Mentally bopping herself on the head, Sita focused herself on her search once more.

((Focus search.))

[Madam Xiomara Hooch]

((There have been a couple of changes in the Hufflepuff line-up!

Sophia has been substituted out of the game; Chace Coxen H7 takes her place as Chaser.
Sydney has been substituted out of the game; Carson McGreggor H6 takes her place as Beater.

-----------------------------------

Mary hits a Bludger at Sita; Finn attempts to deflect it towards Josephine.
Mary = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 1 + 6 = 7
Finn = Defend (D8 + Str) = 3 + 6 = 9
Finn deflects the Bludger successfully! There is a Bludger flying at Josephine.

Kailyn focuses on hitting a Bludger at Sydney, who has been substituted out of the game so it will fly at her substitute instead! There is a Bludger flying at Carson.

Kael attempts to mark Adalia.
Kael = Mark (D4 + Dex) = 2 + 5 = 7
Adalia = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 5 + 2 = 7
Tie! Re-roll.

Kael = Mark (D4 + Dex) = 4 + 5 = 9
Adalia = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 8 + 2 = 10
Kael fails to mark Adalia.

Adalia focuses on stealing the Quaffle from Ivy, who attempts to defend it.
Adalia = Focus Steal (D4 + Str + Con) = 3 + 2 + 2 = 7
Ivy = Defend (D8 + Str) = 6 + 6 = 12
Ivy retains the Quaffle.

Ivy passes the Quaffle to Kael. Kael has the Quaffle.

Josephine searches for the Snitch.
Josephine = Search = 22
Josephine = Search = 9
9 is not the Snitch number and neither is 22! Josephine does not see the Snitch.

Sita focuses on searching for the Snitch so her search roll will automatically be successful.
Sita = Search = 14
Sita = Search = 7
7 is not the Snitch number and neither is 14! Sita does not see the Snitch.))

[Ivy Tunstall]

Ivy was almost disconcerted by how well everything was going for the small band of Hufflepuff Chasers - the contrast to the beginning of the game was enormous and it seemed almost too good to be true. In an attempt to capitalise on the situation and give Kael a clear path to the goals, Ivy flew in front of the younger Slytherin girl who hadn't got to Manning's pass in time and began to whiz round and round the other Chaser in a loop, trying to force her back and away from Kael and the goalposts. If this didn't make the girl dizzy, Ivy didn't know what would...

((Marking Adalia in a slightly unconventional manner!))

[Sita Mehadi H7]

This search was interminable... it would be so easy to drift off to sleep. But she'd already tried that before and it had resulted in her falling off her broom, so she knew she must resist the urge to fall asleep. It didn't really seem to her that staying awake would really help her find the Snitch any sooner, though. Josephine had shown no sign of seeing the Snitch either. It appeared that it didn't want to be found.

She had to do something to keep her eyes open (after all, there really was no chance of seeing the Snitch if she closed them). She decided to try out the feint again... practice made perfect and it was quite feasible that she would have seen the Snitch by now... surely. This time she put everything she had into making it look convincing.

((Focusing on feinting, and also searching for the Snitch.))

[chace]

After a quick rest Chace was back in the game. At the same time Ivy put Carson in as a Beater. Chace would have liked to play some Beater but figured that Chaser was were he was needed. Ivy and Kael seemed to have the situation under control leaving Chace feel like a sack of pumpkins. Kael was in a position to score as Ivy put herself in the between Adalia and Kael by making one of them dizzy (he couldn't tell who) so he guessed he could do the same.

((Marking Stephen))

[Finn Miles H7]

Finn wasn't sure why, but Ivy decided to take Sydney out of the match. He hoped that this wouldn't hinder the success that the pair of them had been experiencing. Finn had never worked hand in hand, or rather, bat in bat, with Carson. Either way, the two Bludgers were both zooming quickly toward a target, one at the Slytherin Seeker, and the other at Carson himself. While Carson was completely capable of defending himself, Finn knew that it would be even tougher for the Bludger to get past two bats, and so he flew over to help knock it away.

((Defending Carson, deflecting toward Josephine.))

[Kailyn Valak S6]

"Damn it! No!" Kailyn screamed, half ready to fly over and bop the Hufflepuff captain on the head for taking Sydney out of the match. Kailyn was just getting started. Now though, her Bludger was headed toward a new male Beater, one that she didn't know and wouldn't have attacked had she known he was being substituted in.

Grumbling to herself, she flew after the Bludger that was going toward Jo. "Coming behind you, Jo," she shouted, swooping in to knock the Bludger away. When she was annoyed or angry, Kailyn played a lot better, so she expected that Bludger to head right toward Ivy herself. That would teach her to ruin Kailyn's fun. Maybe Beater was best suited for Kailyn, even if Chaser was her preferred position. Having a bat made it so much easier to release her frustration, even if it meant earning a detention in the process.

((Defending Jo, deflecting toward Ivy.))

[Drake Manning]

Drake felt like muttering curses at Adalia for letting Ivy swoop in and intercept his pass. Granted, it was just as much his fault, but he wasn't willing to admit that. Instead, he used his frustration to follow the path of the Quaffle like a hawk watching a mouse run through the forest. Drake was not going to let anything slip by him easily. He watched Ivy pass to Kael, and it seemed as though Kael had a perfect opportunity to shoot. Drake focused on his defense though, ready to spring in whatever direction the Quaffle might be launched.

((Focus on defending hoops.))

[Carson McGreggor H6]

Carson could understand why he hadn't been put in the game until now, he really did. He wasn't even sure he could be trusted right now. Carson was almost glad he hadn't been trusted with the bat ealier on in the game. He wouldn't be entirely surprised if he ended up beating himself with it or maybe purposely putting himself in the path of a bludger just so it might hit him in the head--if he was lucky. Casey was in a coma. She had been for quite awhile now, and it was all Carson's fault. If he had been there to tell her not to get in the car, or maybe he could have at least told her to put her seatbelt on or--

Carson didn't have the time or the mental stamina to think about his guilt over Casey, because Ivy called him out to play. He had been out on the pitch for all of two seconds before he realized there was a bludger headed his way. Another moment later and he realized his fellow beater, Finn had put himself in the path of the bludger to defend him. Carson swallowed his guilt and thoughts about Casey and readied himself to defend. He kept his eye on the Slytherin chaser though, in case Finn did fail and Carson had to deflect.

((Defending from the bludger and deflecting to Jo in case Finn fails.))

[kael]

Hah! There was an undeniable feeling of something that came very close to glee residing in Kael. It was his very last Quidditch game in Hogwarts, so he hadn’t been happy when it had been his own blunder that had allowed Slytherin to score. There wasn’t any guarantee that the Hufflepuff team would win – Kael would rely upon Sita for that – but maybe they could at least even the score for now. Ivy was distracting Adalia rather...effectively, Kael noticed with a quick glance behind him as he flew closer to the Slytherin goals. He couldn’t imagine that he would manage well with someone circling around him so quickly so hopefully the tactic would work on the Slytherin Chaser. Without any outward sign of his concentration except his narrowed eyes, Kael hefted the quaffle and shot it in the direction of the goals.

((Focusing on scoring.))

[Josephine Bowman S7]

Josephine flipped around again on her broom. The snitch was very persistent on not being caught right now. She was getting increasingly more annoyed and even more so she was about ready to take out some of the Hufflepuff beaters. She was sick of having to dodge bludgers every few minutes. On the other hand, the brilliant sun was being covered by a small cloud at the moment so maybe that would bring some illumination in finding the snitch.

((focusing on not falling for the feint, I don't know if that works, but it should + searching for snitch))

[Madam Xiomara Hooch]

((Adalia, you need to edit within the round for your post to count. Therefore I haven’t counted your focus towards your total, and I’ll delete your post and edit your post count.

Sita, I haven’t rolled your feint because Josephine had already been reduced to one search roll this round. Therefore Sita and Josephine, neither of your Focuses have been added to your totals of 5.

----------------------------------------------------

Finn attempts to defend Carson from Kailyn’s Bludger and to deflect it towards Josephine.
Kailyn = Focus Bludger (D6 + Str + Con) = 2 + 3 + 3 = 8
Finn = Defend (D8 + Str) = 2 + 6 = 8
Tie! Re-roll.

Kailyn = Focus Bludger (D6 + Str + Con) = 4 + 3 + 3 = 10
Finn = Defend (D8 + Str) = 8 + 6 = 14
Finn deflects the Bludger successfully! There is a Bludger flying at Josephine.

Kailyn attempts to defend Josephine from Finn’s Bludger and to deflect it towards Ivy.
Finn = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 4 + 6 = 10
Kailyn = Defend (D8 + Str) = 1 + 3 = 4
Kailyn fails to deflect the Bludger; it continues towards Josephine.

It is assumed that Kailyn would warn Josephine to dodge the Bludger.
Finn = Bludger (D6 + Str) = 5 + 6 = 11
Josephine = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 2 + 6 = 8
Finn’s Bludger hits Josephine!

Josephine must roll Concentration in order to maintain her actions.
Finn = Bludger (D8 + Str) = 2 + 6 = 8
Josephine = Concentrate (D4 + Con) = 2 + 6 = 8
Tie! Re-roll.

Finn = Bludger (D8 + Str) = 3 + 6 = 9
Josephine = Concentrate (D4 + Con) = 2 + 6 = 8
Josephine is unable to concentrate and will only get one search roll this round.

Ivy attempts to mark Adalia.
Ivy = Mark (D4 + Dex) = 2 + 6 = 8
Adalia = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 3 + 0 = 3
Ivy marks Adalia successfully!

Chace attempts to mark Stephen.
Chace = Mark (D4 + Dex) = 4 + 6 = 10
Stephen = Avoid (D8 + Dex) = 2 + 0 = 2
Chace marks Stephen successfully!

Kael attempts to score and Drake defends the goalposts. Both focus.
Kael = Focus Score (D6 + Str + Con) = 3 + 5 + 4 = 12
Drake = Focus Save (D6 + Dex + Con) = 4 + 6 + 6 = 16
Drake saves the goal! Drake has the Quaffle.

Sita searches for the Snitch. She must get a search roll of 5 or more in order to search successfully.
Sita = Search (D6 + Con) = 4 + 3 = 7
Sita is able to search.

Sita = Search = 17
Sita = Search = 21
17 is not the Snitch number but 21 is! Sita sees the Snitch!

Josephine searches for the Snitch.
Josephine = Search = 25
25 is not the Snitch number. Josephine does not see the Snitch.))

[Josephine Bowman S7]

Obviously the beaters weren't doing their job this game as Josephine was hit by yet another bludger. She was getting annoyed and then she saw it. The Hufflepuff seeker was in a dive...this time Josephine knew she was faking. She'd only have one chance to catch up...one chance to get the snitch before the other seeker and the chances of her catching the snitch was still rare. Forcing the thought from her mind she narrowed her eyes and followed quickly after the Hufflepuff. She wasn't about to let her get ahead of her.

((chasing after snitch + focusing on not getting hit by Finn's bludger))

[Stephen Donahue S7]

Oh this was ridiculous. Stephen watched the seeker get hit several times by the bludger. He couldn't help but get aggravated at the fact that Josephine was constantly being targeted while their beaters didn't even seem to care. That was annoying...so annoying that Stephen found himself bolting toward Kailyn. "Give me that if you aren't going to use it correctly," Stephen growled as he pulled the bat out of Kailyn's hands. He eyed the nearest bludger, his mind focusing on his target as he swung the bat and watched the bludger soar toward the Hufflepuff seeker who was heading toward the snitch. "There," he growled handing the bat back to Kailyn.

((stealing Kailyn's bat to send a focused bludger at Sita))

[Carson McGreggor H6]

Carson was glad to have his fellow beater protecting him. He still wasn't all too sure he wouldn't have just let it go ahead and hit him when the time came. He needed to focus though. This game wasn't about Casey or Ezzie or what happened on Mercy Street. This was the reason Carson loved Quidditch so much. Simple problems had simple solutions. If there was a bludger flying at someone, all you had to do was focus all your attention on that black ball and the person you wanted to target it at. Then, with all your strength, you hit it. This of course let out any anger that would be in Carson's system. Quidditch was the perfect sport for him. Once he saw that the bludger had hit the Slytherin seeker, he congratulated Finn with a small nod and the smallest hint of a smile (everyone knew by now that Carson just didn't smile anymore) as he focused his attention on where the bludger was headed now. It seemed that one of the other Slytherin players had stolen the beater's bat and was now hurling a bludger at their seeker, Sita Mehadi as she was trying to catch the snitch. Carson sped up on his broom and put himself in the path of the bludger, hoping to hit it and redirect its path to the Slytherin seeker in the process.

((Defending Sita and deflecting to Josephine with focus.))