(1941-05-23) Hogwarts Quidditch 1940-41, Game 06 - Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor
Details for Ravenclaw versus Gryffindor 1941
Summary: The sixth and final Hogwarts Quidditch match of the 1940-1941 school year pits Ravenclaw House against Gryffindor House. Final Score: Ravenclaw - 110, Gryffindor - 160
Date: May 23rd, 1941
Location: Hogwarts - Quidditch Pitch & Stands
Related:
Characters
Hooch

Gryffindor Team

BillyJosie

Ravenclaw Team

BrodyElspethGabriel

In The Stands

AbraxasAkilinaAntoninLissieMelodyAugustaErica

The day is cool and overcast, but it makes for good Quidditch weather because the sun isn't glarring and the overcast is high in the air above the normal playing area. On her Silver Arrow broom Hooch drifts about within the large oval pitch, keeping an eye on the crowd, making sure that the students sit with their houses and any guests are as well in their own designated area. In the distance from the castle the clock tower sounds out it's hourly call. When the chimes have gone quiet Hooch lifts her wand up to her throat from center pitch.

"Welcome Students, Faculty and Guests to our last game of the 1940 - 1941 Quidditch Season, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. Let's have a good game! For Ravenclaw! Brody Iolar, Keeper! Gabriel Ward and Ameinocles Mulciber as your Chasers! Myrus Lowe ready with their Beater Bats! Your Team Captain and Seeker, Elspeth Rosen!"

"Roaring onto the pitch, our Gryffidor Team! Terrance Green, Keeper at the hoops! Team Captain and Chaser, Ignatius Prewett along with Felix Flitwick and William Marlowe! Beaters are Finley Higgins and Angus MacMillan. Here is Josephine Davies, Seeker!"

"It is a wonderful day for a Quidditch Match, let's make the most of it!" Her (in)famous whistle is lifted up to her lips and when everyone is in place she sounds the notes that has the Quidditch Ball Box below her springing open and releasing the Snitch, Quaffle and two Bludgers into play. The quaffle pops up high into the air and a cool drifting breeze carries it into Gabriel's arms. Meanwhile a bludger is rather immediately on the tail of Josie. It certainly has the aim to start the game off with a *BANG*.

It started her second year as an alternate chaser, and now, five years in the blue and bronze, and Elspeth is two years captain and Seeker for the Ravenclaw Eagles. It all comes down to today, her last day on a broom in her house colors. Her custom Starchaser broom in hand, she leads her team to the field, and stops when she reaches it to turn and lift her forearms, tapping bracers with each of her players as they pass, giving them a word or two and a smile before they mount their broom to push off and up onto the pitch. She takes a deep breath, watches them warm up, and then puts a leg over her own broom and soars up into the sky, doing a loop around the pitch before she comes to settle in her starting position at Hooch's introductions. She nods to Josie, and then her attention is fixed on the box, even though she knows the likelihood of actually seeing the snitch's direction is slim to nil.

Making the long walk from the front doors of the Castle down the lawn is the Hufflepuff Prefect Mateo Lovegood. He is dressed casually, despite the cool and overcast day, and in one hand he holds a flag for Ravenclaw, while the other clutches one for Gryffindor. He smiles warmly to those he passes along the way, offering a kind word or joke as he climbs into the stands and then moves for the Hufflepuff seating and slides in. As the teams take the field, he lifts both hands, waving the flags held therein and lets out a yell for both.

Abraxas Malfoy has taken his seat in the Slytherin stands, and crosses his legs. Turning to one of the other Snakes next to him, the Slytherin Prefect remarks, "I can't believe it's come to this, that we have to pull for Gryffindor." Because the Slytherin team is 2-1, and lost to Ravenclaw.

Akilina lifts up her eagle wind puppet over her head a push of the button on its stick makes the wings flap more than just with the wind and the mouth opens and lets out an eagles cry. The soft spoken Ravenclaw is wooing, but there's not very much actual sound coming out of her. She uses her Spirit Prop to make all the noise for her.

Following his Captain, Brody Iolar clutches his own broomstick in hand as he walks along at the rear of the Ravenclaw team's single file line. His eyes are hard and his mouth set in a flat line as he stalls with the rest of the team behind Elspeth. Where she has had many years of experience and memories to relish and move on from, this single year was all that the Ravenclaw Keeper had, only joining the team his seventh and final year at school. It had been fun, and here they were, undefeated in the last match of the season. As the others took to their broomsticks after tapping bracers with Elspeth, Brody waited his turn and then walked along to tap his own and offer Elspeth a quiet, "Good luck, Captain. Let's win this one for us both, right? Enjoy it…" With that, he throws his leg over his broom and kicks off of the soft grass and soars into the air, performing his customary flight over the house stands and pumping his fist, yelling loudly to all before roaring to perform a few quick and agile circuits around the Ravenclaw goalposts.

Though Josie usually has a confident grin, this time, she looks a little nervous as she comes out on the field. Her record as the seeker hasn't been all that good this year, outside of practice anyway. So, she seems to be lacking her usual confidence, as she mounts her broom. Still, she gives Elspeth a smile as she nods back, as a means of wishing good luck. Then, her attention, too, turns to the box. Only, in her case, it's to see a bludger coming right for her. "Hey!" She turns and immediately flies to the side to try to dodge, flying fast to try to get some distance.

Still one of the younger members of the Gryffindor team, William or Billy Marlowe seems quite diminutive when walking along beside the older students onto the pitch. Despite this, he is plucky enough to still wear a broad smile as he throws a leg over his broom and kicks off into the air. He nods to each of his teammates before the balls are released and once the Quaffle finds its way to Gabriel's arms, the young Gryffindor tears off after the Ravenclaw, trying to intercept.

Among the Hufflepuff stands, one student stands out slightly, if only by the screaming neon yellow colour of her rain slicker. Melody Abernathy has never been one to shy away from bright attire. She's a spotty attendee of quidditch matches, but as it's the last match of her last year, she's accompanied her brother Eoin to cheer on friends on both teams. Said little brother has even managed to take a seat next to Melody, as a concession to their being not bloody likely to ever watch a game together again. The blonde Abernathy is a bit more interested in the social aspect of the gathering, chatting with friends, scanning the crowd, and only just barely really paying attention to the actual game.

For five years now, their has been concern for Godric's safety. Oh it was all mostly just jokes and playful ribbing towards Augusta, but today as she cheers loudly in one of her 'glorious' hats that looks like she has in fact skinned the House Mascot, Godric the Lion, those around her look concerned. Relief only comes to them when Kettleburn makes his stroll through the stands with Rowena on his leather covered arm with Godric padding along beside the Care of Magical Creatures Professor. A blanket of scarlet and gold embroidered with the House Crest covers the lion's body and Bronze and Blue jesse's with a medallion of the Ravenclaw House crest decorate their house Mascot with her bronze feathers and blue eyes. The noise of the eagle's cry from the stands gets her attention every time and she flaps her wings and replies with her own cry of pride.

Lissie is sitting in the Hufflepuff section, looking over the pitch thoughtfully. Her ferret is in her lap, seeming far more interested in the pitch and surroundings than the small redhead is. She's got an old wool shawl of Hufflepuff yellow, which clashes terribly with her hair. She's murmuring under her breath, though it's hard to tell why.

Erica is cheering for the Gryffindors, mostly, "Josie!! Woo!" Then like a mother hen she tugs on Melody and all in one breath stammers, "Josie looks alright, right? Do you see any patches of skin missing? I'm so happy she is alright, look, she doesn't look very happy, do you think she could be uncomfortable or in pain!?" Erica, despite Josie being fully healed and just fine is still a guilty mess for the accident that happened with one of her cleaning products a few weeks prior. Without thinking when the bludger goes after Josie Erica throws her arms around Melody and gives the older girl a tight cling that occassionally bounces frantically as her eyes are glued on the Gryffindor Seeker.

Settling into a ready position before the Ravenclaw goalposts, Brody watches as the Quaffle changes hands between the two teams. A score for Ravenclaw is followed by a fairly intense battle between the Crimson and Blue as Bludgers are struck and the Quaffle is dropped and stolen by the other team. Both Keepers manage to knock away a few goal attempts, though one clever feint and pass draws Brody too far from the far left post and the Quaffle soars just past his outstretched fingertips and through the hoop. With a curse, Brody watches as the game is now tied up and the two teams once more return to the heated battle.

As the bludger flies up at Josie, and the quaffle goes to Gabriel, it's almost like magic, the sun glinting off the snitch as it streaks up and away in an arc that almost seems to leave a sparkling trail behind it in Elspeth's eyes. It takes her a moment to realize that it really is the snitch she is watching, and not a trick of the light. When the connection is made, she smiles, and banks her broom around to plummet in an intercept course, paying little heed to the movement of bludgers and quaffle around her, or other players.

Having to spend the start of the game dodging a bludger, Josie totally misses the snitch. Or, in fact, that Elspeth is making a dash towards it. Finally, as she breaks free and starts to turn around, she sees the dive but is pretty much across the pitch. She starts in that direction, but there's no chance that she'll get even close.

Crimson robes billowing out behind him, Billy Marlowe zips along, passing the Quaffle back and forth from Chaser to Chaser. He ducks under a bludger that zips his way and catches the Quaffle tossed his way, feinting wide, he makes as if he is going to shoot and then at the last moment hurls the ball sideways to his waiting Captain who promptly tosses it through the open hoop. Pumping his fist at the well orchestrated play, the young Chaser zooms back out onto the pitch, once more seeking to reclaim possession. So focused is he on the interplay of the Quaffle as it changes hands, the young Chaser doesn't even notice as he zooms along and directly into the path of the zooming Ravenclaw Seeker, far too close to dodge or correct his course!

Abraxas is still cheering for the Gryffindors. Quietly. Because the forms must be obeyed, and Slytherins associate with Gryffindors like three horns with long necks. He claps lightly, and then leans forward as the chase for the snitch is on.

Melody pauses at Erica's questions, peering intently at Josie for a moment so she can answer the inquiries in an informed fashion. Finally she says, "I think she just looks like she's playing quidditch." Perhaps not the most helpful of answers, but she's trying, in her way. The older Hufflepuff doesn't seem to mind the embrace from Erica, her expression remaining in it's typical placid half smile as she pats her housemate. "It is a very exciting game, isn't it?" she ventures tentatively.

Erica alternates between covering her eyes and clinging to Melody. "Ack - EE - ohhh - oooo - ACK! Careful Josie!!" The Hufflepuff Seeker looks up at Melody to her question and rapidly nods. "It is! A whole lot more fun to watch than the blizzard we had last game. Ooo AH! Billy! Careful!" She calls out like she could be heard from the stands.

Making his way into the Slytherin stands is the brooding form of Antonin Dolohov. The young male steps over a bench and soon enough has slid along the row until he is able to ease himself to a seat near Abraxas. Despite his team not being represented on the Pitch, the young Slytherin wears the colors befitting his own house and his dark eyes gaze with a non-discriminating loathing at both teams as they whiz about on the pitch far below. "Malfoy. It is good to see you. I had wondered if you would come out to see if Ravenclaw would fall in their last match," he says, his voice a silken tone still tinted with the boyish note of his young age.

"I'm certainly hoping they do, Dolohov." Abraxas says, with a raise of his chin to his fellow knight, the bro upnod of greeting, even in 1941. "It seems to be getting down to brass tacks."

"Yes, well… what would you expect from two teams full of blood traitors and mud bloods. They can only hope to squabble amongst themselves until one gets lucky enough to gain the upper hand while the other falls on their face," the younger Knight with a sneer that curls his upper lip. Antonin tears his eyes from the blur of bodies zooming around on broomsticks and glances toward Abraxas as he says, "Term is almost over. What do you plan to do over the summer break?"

In the Hufflepuff stands, Lissie ducks her head as a collision seems imminent. And then, almost as suddenly, she is ducking her head further and scooping up her ferret and resting her chin against it. "Please don't… don't crash…"

Her view of the snitch is suddenly impeded with red and gold, and Elspeth sucks in her breath as she veers and braces for the impact she knows is unavoidable. There's a 'crunch' sound, and then she's spinning, pulling her broom back into line. As she blinks away the dizziness, the little lion seems to be sliding sideways off his broom, and she speeds over and slightly under the side to get her shoulder underneath his arm, and reaches out her hand to brace his waist, pushing him back up onto the broom. She waits until he has a solid grip again, then gives him a nod as she pulls back and away to look around for the snitch… the long gone snitch.

Akilina taps out the morse code for S.O.S. on the button of her wind puppet. *** --- ***! *** --- ***! Which translates to the eagle sounding like some Muggle Naval Transmission for a couple of times and then as she watches the collision happen the eagle nose dives into her lap as she looks on in concern. Then up it pops again to give Elspeth, Billy's hero a proud and loud spirited eagle's call.

Billy takes the hit hard and flat on, the older student easily able to send the young Chaser sprawling and losing his grip on his broom. Both hands go wide into the air as he begins to fall from his broomstick and to a far… so far fall for such a little guy, and then Elspeth is there, supporting him as he wallows around atop her shoulder, his knees gripping his broomstick and his arms waggling around wildly. Finally he manages to gain his seat once more, though it is obvious from the pained expression on his face and the gloved hand that reaches to cradle his ribs that the boy is hurt. A pained grimace covers his features as he looks toward Elspeth and says, "Thanks… I was almost a goner…" And then he sees Elspeth glancing around, and puts the pieces together. "Oh no… the snitch… I blocked you!"

Brown eyes widen at the collision over the pitch, catching Melody actually paying attention for a moment. "Oh dear," she murmurs, but her cloudy frown lightens as all seems well despite the crunch of brooms meeting. At once she's reassuring Erica, "That wasn't so bad." Eoin popped out of his seat in excitement at the action, forgetting his sister entirely to jump around, hooting with his yearmates.

"Now, now, don't let the Headmaster hear you say that." Abraxas says, with a hint of sarcasm in response to Antonin. He at once winces and claps at the collision on the field, "There we go!"

Brody sees the collision coming and calls out a warning that is far too late, and from much too far away. He begins away from the goalposts to help his Captain and the little Gryffindor Chaser, but it seems Elspeth has it under control and he is back to his station, though no shots are coming his way as Ravenclaw seems to be dominating the Quaffle in light of the collision.

That sneer only increasing, Antonin shrugs as he says, "Dumbledore cannot hear me from this distance, and even if he could… it's the truth. They were lucky when they slipped by us. Or Hooch was in their pocket. I would give anything if we could play them one more time this season. We deserve that Cup." He pauses as the collision occurs and he likewise claps, though he does add in a quiet aside only Abraxas might hear, "Pity she didn't let the Mudblood fall."

Even before the crash, it seemed Gabriel had found his groove in this last game of the season. A streak of blue quicksilver weaving through the red and gold, he seems to almost have the 'score at will' charm on the quaffle as he fakes Green out, or steals the pass between Gryffindor Chasers to return it right back to their end, racking up the Ravenclaw score.

"It is being part of the game," Elspeth tells Billy. "It is better that you are not hurt, I can find the snitch again." Her words carry a bit more reassurance than she feels, and she takes a wide path, more alert for bludgers and other players than she had been.

Lissie looks up just a little, and she gives a sigh of relief. Then she shakes her head and pulls out a piece of parchment from her bad and a quill, and she frowns briefly. "I shouldn't have come out here," she mutters, watching others jumping up and down.
On the pitch, There is a bit of a pile up of Gryffindor around Billy and Elspeth, some checking on them, others just getting hung up by the group in the middle of the action, like an accident on a race track. But it is no obstacle for the Ravenclaw Chasers as they are led by Gabriel to an amazing string of 9 goals in quick procession. Hooch lifts up her whistle to give the score, "Ravenclaw with an impressive 110 points, Gryffindor at 10."

Abraxas groans, "Typical. At least we put on a much better showing, even in a loss." Shaking his head, he continues, "But I suppose this is what we get when we have to depend on the Gryffindors for anything."

Seeing the collision from across the way, Josie winces. She smiles in relief, however, as Billy stabilizes, even as the crash distracts and causes a bit of a pile up of Gryffindors as many made some movement in that direction to help before Elspeth saved Billy. Josie starts to fly a circle around the pitch, as Gabriel makes his many excellent plays. Despite being on the opposite team, even Josie has to grin, seeing the success of one of her best friends. Though, of course, that's making things desperate for the Gryffindor team. Then, as Hooch makes her announcement of just that problem, there's the snitch again, skimming along the ground right at the edge of the stands. She dives for it, flipping over upside down as she pulls out of the dive, scraping her hand a little but snatching up the little golden ball.

Hooch gives her whistle another blow and the bludgers freeze where they are in the air. "Josephine Davies has caught the snitch! Gryffindor WINS! 160 points to the fine showing of Ravenclaw's 110! Thank you for attending and showing your support. Another round of applause for our talented teams!"

"That's it!" Abraxas says under his breath, still unwilling to celebrate too hard for his house's opposite number. "Now it's just down to points." With 3 teams at 2-1, after all. "Too bad we didn't get the snitch last time."

As she leaves the sight of the collision, Elspeth smiles for Gabriel and her chasers as their hard practice is paying off in a magnificent show for the school. She scans as she watches, and sees Josie making her dive. Too late, she hears Hooch's whistle, announcing the catch. For the moment, her shoulders sag, and her palms rest on her broom handle in front of her. She chews on the inside of her lower lip, then she squares her shoulders back up again, and glides down in wide spiral to her teammates. "Great game, Ravenclaw," she calls out. "Gabriel, what a show! You lead the chasers brilliantly." With a smile, she nudges him shoulder to shoulder before coming in for a landing for the after game bracer tap, sending them towards the Gryffindors to congratulate them. She taps last with Brody, giving him a bittersweet smile. "You were fantastic. Only one goal allowed? I think that is being a new record for least goals allowed, no? At least it is since I have been playing."

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