Ravenclaw vs Slytherin
Author: Viktor Krum
Date: 07-02-04 08:12

Viktor steps onto the pitch, holding firmly to the box of game balls. He looks around and sees that despite the cold nearly every seat is filled. Walking to the middle of the field he turns his head and looks expectantly towards where the players will emerge. Then Viktor waits.

Let's Get Ready to Rumble!
Author: Draco Malfoy
Date: 07-02-04 09:24

Standing before a whiteboard upon which various strategic plays had been marked, Draco looked each of his teammates in the eye as he delivered his peptalk. "Ravenclaw is weak. They've lost the only match they've played so far this season and but for their seeker show little skill at the game. We're strong, the strongest team there is at Hogwarts. Let's show them how it's done."

He adjusted the strap on one of his leather gauntlets and said, "This is our year. Let's kick some Ravenclaw arse!"

His teammates let out jubilant cries and then prepped to go outside for the start of the game. Draco slung his broomstick over one shoulder and led the team to the double doors, which swung open a few minutes later. The blast of cool air stung at their bare faces but none of the players seemed to mind. They mounted their brooms and took to the air, save for Draco who walked to the center of the Pitch, where Viktor was waiting for him.

The double doors across the Pitch opened and out came Ravenclaw led by their captain, Kody Reese-Emerson. He approached Draco and Viktor and held out his hand to the Slytherin captain at Viktor's request. Draco took it and smirked, smelling a victory against the Ravenclods already.

Then it was time to start the game.

It's Time for Quidditch!
Author: Bronwyn Dewhurst
Date: 07-02-04 11:48

Cold blasts of wind frequently ruffled the many house banners that hung around the Quidditch stadium. Bronwyn, warmly dressed with yellow earmuffs over her ears, a yellow and black scarf around her neck and yellow mittens on her hands, sat down in the staff box and prepared to make the opening announcements for the Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin.

Though she bore no outward signs of it, Bronwyn wasn't feeling herself today. Ever since last weekend's trauma in the Hufflepuff common room, she'd felt scared and worried but she couldn't explain why or how. She thought of Kendra often, particularly of her untimely death by the hands of dark wizards. But Desi's accident had been just that, right? An accident. Still, a sense of foreboding weight heavy on Bronwyn's conscious. She didn't want to lose another friend. Just the memory of seeing Desi covered in blood sent shivers up and down Bronwyn's spine.

Shaking the morbid and depressing thoughts from her mind, Bronwyn attempted to focus on the task at hand. She clicked on the magical microphone and shouted, "Welcome to Quidditch! Today's match is between Ravenclaw..."

She paused for the cheers (and boos) that emanated through the stands.

"...and Slytherin."

This time the boos outweighed the cheers.

"Let's meet our players! For Ravenclaw: Bennett, Crusher, Maison, Makepeace, Nutt, Reese-Emerson, and Schnackenpfefferhausen!"

More cheers erupted throughout the stadium, though a few boos from the Slytherin fans did not go unheard.

"For Slytherin!" Bronwyn continued, "Black, Black, Cooke, Farnon, Fine, Malfoy and Masters!"

The Slytherins cheered wildly as the individual names of their House team were called.

Viktor stood in the center of the Pitch with Kody and Draco, who listened to their coach before carrying through with the obligatory handshake. Then they mounted their brooms, took to the sky and awaited the official start of the game.

Viktor released the bludgers and the snitch, then threw the quaffle high into the air...

"And it's Farnon of Slytherin with the first possession of the quaffle!" shouted Bronwyn.

My Quaffle
Author: Isolde
Date: 07-02-04 12:14

As soon as the quaffle left Viktor's hands, Isolde snatched it from the sky before any other chaser could get to it. She pulled it close to her body and held it securely as she pulled up out of the fray and flew over the other players. They were quick to follow, both Ravenclaw and Slytherin chasers alike. Mary and Nora used extra boosts of speed to catch up to the older girl, who kept them both in her line of sight for possible hand-offs of the quaffle.

When the window opened, Isolde let the quaffle fly to Nora, who dodged an errant bludger and sent the quaffle over to Mary, who turned abruptly with her broomstick to avoid collision with a Ravenclaw chaser. She deftly tossed the quaffle to Isolde who rolled around her broomstick when the German boy whacked a bludger straight at her. She felt it graze her fingers as it skimmed the length of her broomstick, and the contact with the tail end of her broom startled her slightly but did not force her off her path. Regaining position on her broomstick, Isolde darted for the goal hoops where new keeper Bennett awaited her arrival.

The quaffle exchanged hands with the Slytherin chasers a few more times before Isolde found it in her arms again. She feigned a throw to the left but Drake, anticipating such a ploy dove to the right. Isolde, however, went for the middle hoop. Drake quickly attempted to block the shot but his fingers were a mere millimeter short of contact with the quaffle. The ball went straight through the center hoop.

"Farnon scores for Slytherin!" Dewhurst cried out. The scoreboard read Slytherin 10, Ravenclaw 0.

Satisfied, Isolde grinned widely and darted after the Ravenclaw chaser who now had possession of the quaffle.

My Nose
Author: Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen
Date: 07-02-04 18:55

Fritz feels awful. He awoke yesterday with the beginning signs of a headcold, which only seemed to get worse as the day progressed. Today his nose is stuffed up and his head feels swollen, but the show must go on. With club in hand, Fritz flits around the dreary, wintry sky chasing a bludger around. Slytherin has just scored, which makes Fritz feel even worse but it is still just the beginning and anything can happen.

He follows the batch of chasers heading for the opposite end of the field and attempts to protect one of his own teammates from a spiraling bludger, which seems to have come out of nowhere. With a quick lunge over his broomstick, Fritz swings his arm hard and whacks the bludger away from the crowd.

He smiles grimly at the sight of the retreating bludger, attempts to breathe through his nose and then lets out a wary groan. With the air freezing cold and his sickness growing ever worse, Fritz wonders how long he'll last.

Behind Lock and Key
Author: Bill Weasley
Date: 07-02-04 19:35

Gringotts Hogsmeade opened its doors at ten a.m. every Saturday morning. Some days, Bill was there on time to unlock the doors, other days a goblin was charged to do the deed. Today, on Saturday, February the twenty-first, Bill was there at the door, juggling a light-weight cardboard box as he fished for his keys in his robe pocket.

When he had at last found them, he opened up and quickly stepped inside the atrium of the bank to warm himself from Scotland's wintry cold. Bill then let himself into his office and stepped behind his desk to unlock a hidden drawer in the finely carved wood. There he removed a small key, which matched an identical one that he had in his pocket.

With both keys and the box in hand, Bill stepped back out of the office and went into the small round room next door, where a spiral staircase led down into the basement where all the vaults were located. Pale, golden ensconced lights lit the way but did nothing to warm the dark tunnel through which Bill traversed to get to his personal vault. He followed the right angles until he found the very center of the square snail-like tunnel pattern, where the biggest vaults were located.

He paused there to observe the place and check to see that all was in order before backtracking the length of two full corridors before stopping before vault #34. He gently set the box to the floor and fished in his pocket for the two golden keys. He inserted first one, then the other and with a satisfied click, the door to the vault creaked open.

Inside were a few small tokens, but nothing of Bill's to speak of. They included a leather-bound journal with For Adriana glittering in gold letters on the front cover, an empty slim-looking box and a photo album. To these, Bill added items from the box.

He knelt down beside it and fished out what lay inside one item at a time. First came the charred remains of a wand, Adriana's wand, which had been found with her mangled body in the forest in Romania. Bill had kept it in his cottage ever since bringing Adriana's remains to Hogsmeade, but now it was time to lock it away with the rest of her things. She was gone now, and only the memories remained.

He put it in the old wand box Adriana had discovered in her vault in Diagon Alley a mere two and a half years ago. Bill had been there, and he remembered that day well. Next came tokens of love Bill had given her throughout their short time together: a gold ring set with a sparkling emerald, a silver necklace with the infinity symbol as a pendant. Both of the items had been on her deceased form when the dragon keepers had found her remains. The final item to go into the vault was a book of Shakespeare Adriana had leant Bill. He shoved it inside the narrow space with fondness, and then he shut the door on his past forever.

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps
Author: Professor Belladonna Sinistra
Date: 07-02-04 22:33

Bella motioned to the house elf as she wrapped her fur trimmed coat around her slender body. So cold, but winter always was. After the game, she needed an hour or so in the eternal summer that was Avonford. The she'd be warm, provided she could go without seeing Aunt Gertrude. If one more person referred to her as "poor Bella," she'd go insane again. Or perhaps not, as the threat of going insane stopped her family from doing anything.

She sighed as the house elf unpacked the hamper. Twinkle had to be under Mumma's orders. Twinkle hadn't left her side since the ending of Bella's engagement. Sometimes being a Sinistra was horrible and her family could care too much. Of course, there were things that made her feel better. For instance, the package that had arrived Valentine's night. "A true ring to replace the false," had been on the tag in her father's handwriting. Opening the box had revealed a ring engraved with the Sinistra arms that now resided on the third finger of Bella’s right hand.

Maybe something would replace it soon. Isabella had added a few dates to Bella's calendar and Bella most certainly was ready to bounce back. Someone young, handsome, and adventurous would be great. Hell, she was twenty-six, which was time to get in trouble. Date an ex-student, a married man, or a death eater. Something like that. Something crazy that no one would expect her to do.

Meanwhile, there were always her students. She wasn't paying enough attention to them. For instance, that young lady had collapsed in her bed while Bella was dressing for dinner. At least she had done the proper thing and ran to the infirmary, even in her red evening frock with heels. Dinner with Liam had been canceled and Bella spent the rest of the evening watching over the young lady and grading papers.

She sighed. Concentrate on the students. Must concentrate on the students. Perhaps she'd be a better teacher than she was a girlfriend. Perhaps she'd have someone new in her life soon. Perhaps she should stop thinking about perhaps and keep her mind in the present and on her students.

No Sign Yet...
Author: Emma Crusher
Date: 07-03-04 09:56

The air was cold, the wind even colder. Even so, the stands were crowded with spectators, all cheering for their respective teams. Emma felt the bite of the frosty air as she meandered through the pitch, back and forth, slowly but surely, searching for some sign of the tiny golden ball that was the snitch.

She'd banished all other thoughts from her mind. She wasn't going to let anything interfere with the game. Nothing. It had taken ages for her to get her mind so focused, and had even resorted to skipping most of breakfast in order to run through some meditation exercises her mom had taught her years ago.

However, her one-track mind was not necessarily a good thing. She didn't see the bludger that was headed her way. Even the score of the game didn't matter to her...

The bludger zoomed past her head, and she felt the prick of the displaced air against the back of her neck. Reality struck where the bludger had missed. Though her mind had been one-track, this game most certainly wasn't. She quickly checked the score. 10 to none for Slytherin. The game had hardly begun and already things were going badly... She needed to find that snitch.

Quidditch and Lingering Carnival Thoughts
Author: Roane Eternal
Date: 07-03-04 18:44

I sat in the stands waving a Ravenclaw banner I had borrowed from another Ravenclaw student. Each time the Slytherins did something inappropriate, I joined in with the hisses and boos that seemed to echo throughout the stadium (well, except for that one small section solely occupied by students dressed in green).

As I sat in the stands, my thoughts wandered to the Carnival from last week. Us girls had the perfect plan (luring the boys into the tunnel of love, and then ending the ride with a good old fashion bait and switch), but somehow the trick had ended up flat. Instead of having the boys end the trip sitting next to a few of Hagrids pets (Fang and friends) they had ended up next to us girls! Of course, after explaining things afterwards the boys were MUCH relieved that it had been a trick. For a moment they had thought us girls had caught a bit of the love-bug that had seemed to be in the air that day. All in all though, it had been a fun day, and it had been fun watching the reactions of the boys.

Pulling my thoughts back to the present, I stood up quickly as a Ravenclaw student took a shot that looked promising...

Seeking
Author: Draco Malfoy
Date: 07-03-04 20:49

With Slytherin ahead by ten points, Draco looked smugly from Ravenclaw face to Ravenclaw face though his smirks were mostly ignored because the opposing team had other things to worry about: the quaffle, the bludgers and that pesky, little snitch. His own thoughts quickly turned to his task, and Draco pulled up the front of his broom and climbed in altitude until he reached a desirable height.

From his viewpoint high above the other players, Draco could see just about everything... except for the thing he most sought. The snitch had not revealed itself to either seeker since Viktor had let it go into the air. Nearby, but not too close to where Draco hovered, Crusher scanned the sky, the ground and everywhere in between for the golden ball.

Nothing.

Suddenly, much commotion thundered throughout the stadium and both seekers abandoned their search for a moment to watch what started to unfold down below. A Ravenclaw chaser was darting towards the Slytherin hoops like a torpedo, unfazed even by the bludger by way of Crispin Cooke that glanced off the side of his shoulder.

Two-thirds of the Pitch was on its feet by now, cheering on the chaser's attempt to score...

Tearing his eyes away from the action, Draco set off to find the snitch...

My First Quidditch Game
Author: Ellspeth
Date: 07-03-04 22:34

Ellspeth had gotten up early and quickly posted signs in her windows that she would be at the Quidditch game at Hogwarts. It was a cold day, but she just didn't mind one bit. This was the first chance she had of coming to an actual match and she wasn't going to miss it.

She had put on several layers of clothing, her self-warming boots and gloves and a refilling thermos of Hot Pepper Jelly Tea. (guaranteed to keep you warm in the coldest blizzard/not too sweet) and headed for Hogwarts.

The walk was beautiful and brisk and in no time she was at the field seated in one of the spectator stands. She had noticed all the students waving either Ravenclaw or Slytherin banners here and there.

In no time the match was underway. Thank goodness for the book that nice Adam Sparrow. She was able to basically understand what was going on. But my goodness....how fast they moved. The intricate patterns those young people followed on their brooms. At times she felt herself holding her breath.

It was so very exciting....At the moment Slytherin was ahead by 10 points but it looked like something was happening....oh my oh my oh my......

Chasing
Author: Isolde
Date: 07-04-04 09:20

Isolde forced her broomstick forward, so desperate was she to close the gap between herself and the Ravenclaw chaser, Makepeace, who currently held the quaffle. Even the bludger Crispin sent to hinder Makepeace did nothing to aid the Slytherins in their quest to claim the quaffle. Reaching the goal hoops, Makepeace pitched the quaffle right over Pyrrhus' head through the center circle.

"Makepeace scores for Ravenclaw! The score is now tied, 10 to 10!" cried out Dewhurst.

Isolde scowled. Her only consolation was to see the Ravenclaw chaser finally show signs of his injury, when a pained expression crossed his face as he tenderly touched his aching shoulder.

But there wasn't time to linger at enjoying someone else's pain and misfortune. Pyrrhus threw the quaffle back into the game, and with it in hand Mary zoomed across the dreary sky. Isolde and Nora quickly pulled up along side the Slytherin chaser and soon the lightening quick hand-off between the three began. Mary tossed the ball high over the heads of the Ravenclaws who came in between her and Isolde. Isolde grabbed it with one hand and tucked it securely against her body, swerving suddenly to avoid collision with Schnacken-whatever-his-name-is, who'd stopped mid-fly to hit a bludger spiraling his way.

Isolde continued on her path, dodging a player here, a bludger there and then threw the ball at Nora, who returned it to Mary. Mary neared the Ravenclaw hoops but noticed that the Ravenclaw chasers were now targeting her and could very well steal the quaffle right from her arms if she wasn't careful. Isolde, wide open, stealthily signaled to Mary, who whirled beneath the Ravenclaw cluster of chasers and pitched the quaffle at Isolde.

Before they even realized what had happened, Isolde had sent the quaffle flying through the right-most hoop.

"Farnon scores again!" Dewhurst shouted. "Slytherin up by ten!"