Coach Olivers

February 13, 2015 7:20 PM
The grass was freshly cut, the air was fresh, and the sky was a beautiful blue canvas with splashes of white here and there. At least, that’s what Florence had dreamt before waking up to the torrent outside her window. She hadn’t expected it to rain so hard like this in the fall, but it didn’t look like it was going to stop anytime soon. Once she was dressed and covered by her raincoat, dark purple rainboots, and with a clear umbrella over her head, she stood under the stands half an hour before the players were expected to arrive, waiting for a clap of thunder or a glimpse of lightening. Any lightening and the match would have to be canceled. But, though thunder sounded, there was no lightening around the Quidditch pitch and Florence deemed it safe enough to play. Despite the very heavy rain, of course. The spectators would be hard-pressed to see everything that went on.

This year there weren’t enough players for Teppenpaw and Crotalus to form individual teams, so Pecari would be playing against a combined team today. Florence wasn’t sure how the players felt about it, but she was sure that for some students it didn’t matter as long as they were able to play. As for Pecari’s team, she was glad to see that the same team from last year was playing this year. She had wondered briefly if Rupert was going to change any players in since there were quite a few reserves on their team this time around, but it didn’t look like he had. For quite a few of them, this was going to be their last chance to play competitively on a serious Quidditch team unless they decided to go professional.

The Quidditch scouts had deigned to come another day when it wasn’t raining so hard, so today it was purely going to be fun and games for these kids. As the players made their way onto the sopping pitch, she handed them goggles that were charmed to stay clear and dry. “Make sure you put these on tight around your head,” she told them, wearing a pair herself. “It will be very difficult to see without them.” If it wasn’t for her rain gear, she would be completely soaked already. She felt a little sorry for the players, but they had chosen to play no matter what the weather. There was luckily a tent over the benches on the side of the pitch where the reserves were going to be. They wouldn’t have to worry about getting wet unless they were called in to play. Florence hadn’t yet seen the first-years play the sport, though she had seen them on a broom during Flying Class, and she was looking forward to seeing them eventually in action.

Once the hour for the game arrived, Florence charmed her voice and gestured to the stands. “Welcome to the first Quidditch match of the year,” she said, her voice echoing through the stadium, “and thank you to all who decided to support your houses in this weather. Here we have Pecari, led by Captain Rupert Princeton, playing against the combined Crotalus and Teppenpaw team led by co-captains Alistair Johnson from Crotalus and Liac Reinhardt from Teppenpaw. Captains, if you will please shake hands.” When the captains came together, she nodded at them, her throat already feeling scratchy again. It was odd, seeing two against one. “When I blow my whistle, the game begins. The game ends when the Snitch is caught. Players, please take your positions.”

She waited for the Keepers to fly up to their posts and the others to mount their brooms. As they did so, Florence released the Snitch and picked up the Quaffle. She would set the bludgers loose once the Quaffle was tossed. She put the silver whistle into her mouth, the umbrella tilted slightly so there would be no danger of it interfering with the Quaffle, and made eye-contact with the Chasers. After a curt nod, she blew her whistle and threw the Quaffle into the air, eager to get back under the tents to watch the game progress.

OOC: Welcome to Quidditch! As per posting rules, two paragraphs minimum are expected, but creative, detailed, and realistic posts will earn more points for your team. Have their skill level be on par with their age. Reserves are encouraged to post as well—your contribution will count as points for your team. Make sure your names are colored according to your house color as well as according to the rules. In addition, no one should be falling from their broom to their deaths/injury. Florence will intervene before anyone crashes to the ground. If you have any questions, tag Coach Olivers on the OOC board. Have fun!
Subthreads:
0 Coach Olivers Quidditch Game I: Pecari vs. Teppalus 0 Coach Olivers 1 5

<font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font>

February 16, 2015 12:18 PM
As he blinked rapidly, trying to get used to looking at everything through goggles, and resisted the urge to rub the top of his head as raindrops made their way through his hair and ran down his scalp, Isaac realized he still half-expected someone to jump out and admit this had all been a really elaborate joke. The orange robes, the height disparities, the tiny Crotalus talking as though he were a real captain and the little Keeper singing...it was all ridiculous. They weren’t really going to go through with this, were they?

The others, though, kept their poker faces, moving along just as if this were real and not a prank on - someone. A whistle blew. People started to rise into the air. Isaac, looking at nothing in particular in the gray field of rain, laughed for lack of any other response to make as he followed them.

He didn’t do that long, though, because the wind blew rain into his mouth. Nothing like cold water to the face to sober a body up, he thought grimly, watching as first one Pecari and then another handled the ball.

The other two boys both acted as though they wanted to try to intercept, but Isaac had better sense. Spencer and Pierce were a talented team, experienced both in the game and in working together. If they were going to intercept, it would most likely be either while applying heavy pressure to the Pecaris - not likely, given their collective skills or lack thereof and how hard it would be even for good Beaters to provide support in this weather without hitting their own people - or maybe when a pass was heading toward the second year. They might get lucky, but probably, they would have to wait for Beaters to knock the Quaffle-bearer over, the rain to make the Quaffle slip away, or for the Keeper to give it back to them, because they’d look even stupider if they crashed into the Pecaris and fell off their brooms.

Spencer didn’t seem to want to chance it, because he didn’t pass again. The Beaters failed spectacularly to take him down and so he shot and he scored. Isaac’s eyes widened slightly behind the goggles when he realized Ginger was aiming toward him with the Quaffle, but he darted forward and caught it and turned to head the other way, toward the distant figure of the Pecari Keeper.

The Pecaris could cover half the Pitch in two jumps today, but Isaac knew that if he tried such a thing, he was dead, and if he tried to cover more than half the Pitch, they would have to scrape bits of him off the Bludgers. The Pecari Beaters would treat him like a lame duck in a box. Once he was well clear of the goal area, then, he started to look for the others. When he spotted one, he took aim and tried, hough his peripheral vision was messed up by the goggles, to check for lurking Pecaris who might want to intercept before passing toward the robe he really hoped had been orange before it was soaked through.
16 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> It looks like we both are. 273 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color='tan'>Liliana Bannister, Keeper</font>

February 20, 2015 4:04 AM
Liliana was ready for the first game of the year. She and Atlas were good again despite a dispute over his reaction (or lack of reaction) to Ann-Marie’s using him. Liliana snorted derisively, thoughts of how the twit had him wrapped around her little finger causing her to tie her game braid a little too tight. She contemplated re-doing it as she snapped the elastic in place but upon remembering what the weather had been like on her way to and from breakfast decided a tight braid was probably a good idea.

“Hey,” she said, linking her arm through Atlas’ when she arrived in the common room. “You ready?” The excitement showed on her face and in the way she bounced instead of walked. “So, did you tell Ann-Marie you’re a world class beater yet?” She teased lightly, delighted there was a part of Atlas’ life that was just hers and that Ann-Marie could never be a part of.

When they got to the Pitch, Liliana cheerily greeted her teammates, making sure to bestow extra cheer in the direction of Jamie Park who was sulking, again, before strapping on the charmed goggles Olivers had given out. Despite the rain she was ready and overjoyed to be playing again—after all she only had these few years of her schooling left before she was meant to go out into the real world and become the society woman her entire family expected her to be. The thought which had once in her life been so appealing to her nearly caused Liliana’s mood to turn sour but the thought no sooner entered her head than she pushed it out, determined not to let the future muck up her attitude in the present. What mattered was that now, in that moment, she was doing something she wanted to do. And now, in that moment, her family supported her and didn’t mind since she was still “only a child” despite her insistence fourteen was not babyish.

Once the Quaffle came into play, Liliana attentively watched the match. The opposing Keeper was a first year girl on a team mainly composed of underclassmen, and watching the other girl’s small form caused Liliana to flashback to her first year. She had only saved that goal by the grace of Merlin because somehow, someone out there wanted her to succeed. Though she desperately wanted Pecari to win—to take back the title they’d had her first year of playing, Liliana also wanted the non-society Pierce girl to succeed. It was terrifying being a first year in the Keepers hoops, Liliana knew, but what made it even worse for Pierce was that the Teppalus team likely did not have as many experienced players as Pecari’s did during her first year.

So, when the Pierce girl let the Quaffle through the hoops, scoring ten points for Pecari Liliana grimaced, hoping the girl wouldn't take it too hard—she knew that she herself as a first year would have been extra hard on herself. However, Quidditch had been the first thing at Sonora that Liliana had ever really begun to enjoy, the idea that as a first year she could play on a team while her cousins had not even been allowed their own broom, had filled her with a vindictive glee and though she wanted Pierce to be able to prove herself Liliana also recognized the younger girl as her competitor and so cheered Adam and Annette on for working together like such a well-oiled machine and scoring the first points of the match.

As the match reset, Liliana had time to realize just how wet it was. She would be in desperate need for a chai tea or a hot chocolate upon her return to the school. After a long, hot bath that was. She shivered, the wetness of her Quidditch uniform and the gloves and guards she sported served only to make her colder. At least it’s neither thundering nor lightninging, she thought to herself as she watched her fellow players fly around the field. Is lightning even a word? she asked, forehead frowning as her eyes squinted trying to decide who had just caught the Quaffle. Orange and brown were two very different colors though it seemed, at least to her from her position on the other side of the field, that when wet the two colors did slightly resemble each other. “Though one thing is for certain,” she commented dryly to herself even though no one was really around to hear. “No matter what their robes look like one can still tell who from who just by looking at the size of all the players.”

OOC: Okayed with Atlas the mini convo they had :)
10 <font color='tan'>Liliana Bannister, Keeper</font> IBTFY (when the rain starts to pour) 274 <font color='tan'>Liliana Bannister, Keeper</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font>

February 20, 2015 12:40 PM
Rupert watched his first bludger stray off, harming no one, and he followed after another to catch a Chaser unawares. Annette and Adam seemed to be doing splendidly. Annette snatched the Quaffle quickly and was very aggressive in her approach; that was one trait he liked very much about the Anns. They weren’t afraid to ruffle feathers to play a sport which they all loved so much. Being nostalgic, however, wasn’t going to help Pecari win, and Rupert smothered the memory of the twins arriving at the try-outs covered head to toe from his thoughts with his present task.

Annette passed to Adam, and Rup could see that they knew each others’ strengths and weaknesses. He swelled with pride and quickly followed along, deciding to protect his Chasers instead of targeting another. It was crucial that they made it down the pitch without any obstacles. Rupert followed his cousin closely, at first waiting for a pass to be made, then surprised that Adam was daring enough to press on. Rup allowed a bit of slack as they approached the hoops, and Adam flew the rest of the way to make the first goal of the match for Pecari. Rupert had seen his cousin practise his feint before, but Adam was not nearly as confident as he ought to be in his own abilities. Rupert couldn’t understand his cousin’s mentality completely; after all, Rupert knew his abilities and he wasn’t afraid to use them on the pitch.

There was a younger Keeper for the combined team, and Rupert’s eyebrows raised as he watched the Quaffle soar in. “Brilliant shot, Adam!” said Rupert as he whizzed by him, leaving his Chaser behind to find a bludger. An orange-clad wizard took hold of the Quaffle then and Rupert had an iron ball ready for him. With a crack! it soared towards Douglas with furious speed. Despite the years of experience on Rupert’s shoulders, the weather and the dodging ability of the target were crucial to the success or failure of hitting his mark. Rup hoped to catch Douglas unaware, but he couldn’t be entirely sure that the rain hadn’t amplified the sound instead of muffled it.

He was finding his fond memories of Sonora becoming more and more distracting as the year progressed. Rupert wanted to do his best and leave some sort of legacy behind with his team and the friends he’d made her. Granted, his mark on Sonora wasn’t nearly as controversial as his older brother’s, but Rup wanted to be less scandalous and more of a team player. He wanted his team-mates to remember him as fondly as he remembered the previous captains of Pecari’s team.

But he was getting distracted again. The rain was making it difficult for him to concentrate. He hadn’t even looked to see if his bludger had hit its mark or not, nor was he sure who had the Quaffle now. He took note of the Chasers he was meant to be protecting before taking a glance to see how Atlas was doing.
0 <font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font> Providing an obstacle. 0 <font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font>

February 20, 2015 12:43 PM
Attempting goals always made Adam nervous, even during practises. He didn’t want to look in case he missed, and yet he was dying to see the Quaffle soar into the hoop. It was one thing to make goals during team practise, but another to make a shot during a match. He turned briefly, but the announcement of a goal towards Pecari came first. The rain had most likely played in his favour today, but he knew he wasn’t exactly a new player on the pitch either. Torn between congratulating himself or thanking the rain, he pumped his fist in the air with a pleased grin. “Yes!” It was his first goal in his Quidditch career which, considering his current age, was a bit late.

Nevertheless, he was pleased. He hoped both Francesca and Ginny were here to support him, and he equally hoped they’d both seen his goal. It gave him the confidence he needed to try his hand again, if given the opportunity. He did, however, hope the Keeper hadn't taken it too hard. He didn't want to make any enemies on the pitch nor did he want to leave anyone with any hard feelings.

An orange colour took the Quaffle on, and Adam flew after him. It was strange playing a team with such vibrant robes. Orange didn’t seem to suit any of them, but a team of two houses needed to compromise somehow. His own robe was the Pecari brown, and he was proud to be representing his house. Though Adam wasn’t as competitive as others and his best mates were from different houses, he did have some house pride. How could he not, being both Prefect and the Assistant Captain of this team?

Adam intercepted the pass from Douglas, flying away as quickly as possible when he saw Rupert’s arm rise several metres behind his opponent. The resounding smack reverberated from every direction, it seemed, thanks to the rain, and it was difficult to know exactly where the sound was coming from. In any case Adam didn’t want to see any iron near him. He turned the Quaffle around and flew back towards the Keeper of the Teppenpaw-Crotalus team, a shorter distance than the ground he'd covered earlier, but he didn’t want to push his luck again. He had never liked to gamble. Adam made eye-contact with one of his fellow Chasers and threw the Quaffle over to her, sweeping behind her as an attempt to protect her while she made the shot.
0 <font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font> Stepping in, thanks. 0 <font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color="orange"> Andrew Carey, Chaser</font>

February 21, 2015 10:02 AM
Andrew watched the older boy with the Quaffle closely, expecting him to pass the ball and give Teppalus another chance at it. The older boy didn't oblige him. Andrew groaned quietly as Pecari scored.

He didn't think he held it against Ginger - he hadn't been able to intercept the Quaffle before, either, after all. That was why he was glad to see Isaac get the Quaffle. Mal had said something about money-grubbing, social-climbing westerners when Andrew had told his brother about his teammates, but whatever else Isaac was, he was the oldest of them and so the one Andrew trusted the most to get the Quaffle away from Pecari.

It only took him a moment, though, to remember the problem with that: since the only people Isaac had to pass to were Andrew and Alistair, he couldn't exactly carry the game, at least not unless he was very brave, very self-sacrificing, and very fast. He chose to try to pass, and the Pecari boy intercepted and started back toward Ginger again.

Andrew just watched the ball. When it started moving toward a girl Chaser, his mouth opened in surprise, but he had trained enough and was immersed enough in the game now that he was already moving toward the Quaffle. He sped up, flew as quick as he could, with the tangential thought that being smaller than the Pecaris might actually have one benefit for them if they could get it together enough to use it, as he swerved to avoid the Pecari boy's next move, and more collided with the Quaffle than caught it.

He got a grip on it, though, which was the important part. Now came the other important part: getting far away before someone crushed him. Turning, he held his broom with one hand and the Quaffle with the other, feeling constantly as though both were about to slip away, and flew away.

It was strange how much different, he thought, having the Quaffle now felt was from how it felt in practices. Now, it felt like every eye on the Pitch and in the stands was focused squarely on him. Knowing that probably wasn't literally true did not help much.

He wanted to hold on to the ball for two reasons. One, the good one, was not wanting Pecari to steal it back again. The other, bad, one was not wanting to take the hand he had on it off the broom. It had to be done, though. Screwing up his courage, Andrew forced himself more upright, shifted the Quaffle away from his side and toward his stomach, and then took it in both hands.

Don't look down. Don't look down. Don't look down. One of his teammates was a little ahead of him; he didn't know if it was on purpose or just because Andrew had slowed down during his preparations, but he was glad to see them there. He threw the Quaffle forward toward that teammate and then grabbed his broom again, relieved to feel in control of his position again even before he saw if the pass had worked.
0 <font color="orange"> Andrew Carey, Chaser</font> Don't go out of your way on our account... 0 <font color="orange"> Andrew Carey, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Annette Pierce, Chaser</font>

February 21, 2015 2:53 PM
Adam had taken advantage of her push and gone right for a goal. The little Californian that Teppalus had fielded as their keeper made a valiant effort worthy of her Pierce name to block it, but she was just too small to close the distance in time. Annette felt no misplaced family loyalty to the half-breed, but she did feel a little bad for the kid. It was rough being a first year playing against bigger kids. That didn't stop her from gleefully cheering Adam's goal though.

The Californian passed to the largest of the Teppalus players. He brought the Quaffle away from the scoring zone, but between them, Rupert and Adam disrupted the other team enough that Adam ended up in possession and brought it back to the scoring area. He passed back to Annette who had placed herself in a good scoring position, but the little Carey got in the way for the intercept.

Annette followed after him as he carried it away again, trying to stay back in his blind spot. The rain and the goggles that killed peripheral vision must have helped hide her because he passed without seeming to realize she was right behind him. She pushed her broom for its best speed, flying past the boy who had slowed down as he threw and snatched the Quaffle from the rain-filled air.

Changing directions, Annette headed back toward the Californian once more. She made as if to go for a goal in the leftmost hoop, but at the last moment tossed the Quaffle sideways toward one of her teammates instead, hoping to take the California Pierce kid off guard and give Pecari an open shot at one of the other hoops.
0 <font color=tan>Annette Pierce, Chaser</font> Oh, no trouble at all 0 <font color=tan>Annette Pierce, Chaser</font> 0 5

<font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font>

February 21, 2015 5:31 PM
It didn't happen often, but sometimes, Isaac was surprised to find that he hadn't been quite pessimistic enough. He was really surprised to find it possible under current conditions. The sight of his first year companions in the Cascade Hall had been enough to fill him with gloom for the past week, but for some reason, he was surprised when Adam Spencer stole the Quaffle back.

Surprised, and a little offended. Spencer had already made them, or at the very least the Reinhardts, look like idiots once in the past five minutes. It would have been annoying if one of the girls had done it, embarrassing if the second year girl had done it, but the same person doing it just seemed worse. Spencer was already Assistant Captain and widely, Isaac thought, acknowledged as a good player, he really didn't need to try that hard....

One should always try that hard, he imagined his father replying as he turned around again. Take nothing for granted -

He allowed himself to mentally skim over the parts of the imaginary lecture about the vestigial empires of the old families and the rise of families like theirs, and even the likes of Isaac's half-sisters, to levels of respectability and acceptance that would have been unthinkable for all of them a century ago. He had heard it far too many times, though he did indulge himself in imagining Dad would have added something about how one should try to avoid being too obvious about things, which Spencer was surely being now.

It looked like Spencer was also going to display the character flaws of arrogance and a mild dose of sadism by doing the exact same thing he'd done before, which made it another surprise when Isaac saw Andrew Carey flying like a madman. That wasn't too surprising, though; Careys had a reputation for playing Quidditch like guys who didn't care if they came out alive, plus Andrew was one of the Tiny Teppenpaws. He could have just cracked under pressure. More surprising was Andrew somehow getting the Quaffle out of...whatever had just happened....

Oh, well. Not like it mattered now. Isaac turned, too, flew after the Quaffle, then stopped in confusion when Andrew was suddenly out of formation. Where had he...?

Isaac turned just in time to see Annette Pierce steal the Quaffle. Isaac scowled. Here they went again.....

He covered Annette - he tried very hard not to imagine Annette telling Alicia all about this in excruciating detail over the holidays, or about Alicia then coming to one of the family get-togethers this year just to repeat that version of the tale right after Isaac presented a more flattering version; he could only hope Alicia's tendency to prefer male company to that of other witches extended even to witches who shared Loverboy's perfect genes - on the wrong side to intercept when she passed near the goals. Isaac kept going forward, looking for an open position to receive the Quaffle if necessary that wasn't open enough to practically ask a Beater to pick him off before Ginger could return the Quaffle to play.
16 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> Not even a little? 273 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> 0 5

<font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font>

February 23, 2015 6:14 PM
Alistair let out a quiet groan as the Quaffle soared past the little Teppalus Keeper and through the hoop. He didn't blame Ginger for Pecari's triumph as the feint had been well performed but was none the less sad to see a goal so early in the game, before any Teppalus player had even so much as touched the Quaffle.

The first year comforted himself with the thought that they had at least now been given possession of the Quaffle, small consolation for a 10 point lead to Pecari. Alistair heard the Teppenpaw girl called out an apology and should he not be captain and therefore tasked with ensuring a good team mentally he would have undoubtedly ignored it. But yet, he wasn't quite close enough to say anything worth the effort in the time frame he allowed himself and therefore gave her what he hoped was an encouraging smile before darting up the pitch to ready himself for a pass from Isaac Douglas when the older Crotalus felt the need to lose the Quaffle.

He didn't think Ginger's attempt had been terrible. Unsuccessful it was but she'd moved quickly to adapt to the Pecari Chaser's sudden change of direction and Alistair found himself thinking that with practise she could be alright (praise enough coming from Alistair), she was already proving far better than he'd given her credit for.

For a moment, Alistair felt the excitement as he thought he was finally going to get his turn with the Quaffle but then that same Pecari Chaser who had just scored intercepted Isaac's pass, snatching away the scarlet ball before Alistair had a chance to do anything. Then Spencer passed and Alistair felt his heart leap to his throat as he watched the events unfold, urging his own broom to catch up with the action. Andrew Carey was, much like Ginger, showing himself to be better than his Crotalus captain had previously thought him to be. Sure, his playing never seemed to have that finesse that Alistair always strived to perform but he was on possession of the Quaffle and that already was more than Alistair had done.

It was difficult for the first year to gage when his teammate was going to pass but now that they had turned the tables once more, Alistair found himself in a good position ahead of the Teppenpaw Carey to pass to him. But there Pecari went again, this time the girl stealing the Quaffle and spinning the game back around to face Ginger in the Teppalus hoops.

Alistair ground his teeth in sheer frustration, feeling as though Pecari were running circles around them (or rather, flying circles). The Pierce twin looked as though she were going to take a shot but like Pecari's Assistant Captain used the element of surprise and passed the Quaffle last minute. It was a smooth move and Alistair was certainly not prepared for it. Whether Ginger was prepared for such a sly shot or not, the first year Crotalus sincerely hoped she saved this time around as he kept a close eye on Beaters, bludgers and opposing Chasers to get in a good position for the Teppalus Keeper to pass out to him.
8 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> Desperately wanting to give you trouble. 306 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> 0 5

<font color='tan'>Joella Curtis, Chaser</font>

February 24, 2015 2:43 AM
Joella was more than happy to be back playing with the same team she had last year. Only this time around she thought herself even more excited. She was no longer new to competitive play and had a bigger desire to see Pecari win. It was also an exciting prospect to have the all new Teppalus team to play against. She had undeniably been surprised to hear that her childhood friend, first year Alistair Johnson, was co-captaining the team along with Teppenpaw Liac Reinhardt. Not only was it am interesting partnership but the two were both young students at Sonora.

When she realized, however, that Isaac Douglas was the only older student on the whole team things made a little more sense. Nevertheless, it didn't stop her feeling about how such a title in his first year would go straight to her old friend's head. Perhaps it was this or generally her competitive streak but Joella felt sure that Pecari would win, they just had to. Otherwise there would be no stopping Alistair. The rain was, of course, a slight disappointment when Joella took a look outside but it would be an experience she was willing to learn from.

Her enthusiasm not dampened by the weather but increased by Rupert's words, the Pecari second year took to the pitch. Annette did well in grabbing the Quaffle first and taking it up some way towards the Teppalus hoops. Then Adam took a shot, a good one too. Joella was impressed and let out a whoop as her teammate scored Pecaris first goal of the year. It was a good start and she found herself grinning inspite of how drenched she was.

The little Teppalus Keeper threw the Quaffle back into play but it wasn't long before Adam had snatched it back. Joella flew back up towards the Teppalus hoops but was surprised when one of the opposing Chasers intercepted Adam's pass to Annette. But the game only turned momentarily as Annette soon had the Quaffle back under Pecari control. Joella was aware that Alistair would by now be getting frustrated about every pass to him being cut off and found herself smiling at the thought. She shook her head, reminding herself to focus should her fellow Chaser suddenly need to pass.

For a moment Joella was sure Annette was going to attempt a shot in the left hoop but rather cleverly the older Pecari sent the Quaffle towards Joella instead. Fortunately Joella caught it easily. She flew quickly into the scoring area and took a shot it the right side hoop, hoping that Annette's manoeuvre would have confused the first year Keeper. The attempt was well aimed and thrown with a fair amount of force, scoring being her strong point. Joella hadn't hung around waiting for any encouragement that this was her call but instead gone ahead and seized the opportunity and she could only hope Annette's clever pass and her speedy reaction had paid off.
8 <font color='tan'>Joella Curtis, Chaser</font> Go on then. 295 <font color='tan'>Joella Curtis, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color=orange>Ginger Pierce, Keeper</font>

February 24, 2015 3:38 PM
Ginger thought she was handling her first miss pretty well. She passed to Isaac and Alistair even spared her a reassuring smile (something she didn't think came naturally to him), so she tried to recenter herself (mostly emotionally, but physically as well, flying in front of the center hoop until she knew where she might be needed next) and resolved to do better next time.

Next time came much more quickly than she would have liked. The Pecaris did not let up.

The guy who scored on her already stole the pass from Isaac and then flew back to threaten another goal. She positioned herself to hopefully best block a shot from him, but was ready to redirect on a dime again since he seemed to like feints. He passed though and Andrew thankfully handled that.

Then the Pierce chaser - one of the younger set of New Hampshire twins - brought it back to threaten again. She was going for the left hoop, so Ginger got in the way. But then Pierce Twin One passed to a Pecari girl on the far right side who immediately shot for the distant right hoop.

Ginger had zero chance of getting over there in time but she tried anyway.

Her extended fingers reaching for the impossible block were still feet away when it sailed unmolested through the hoop, and Ginger had to bite her lip really hard to keep from crying. She had no idea what she could have done there to stop that. If she hadn't blocked the left side Twin Chaser would have taken the shot and scored. But she had blocked it so Twin Chaser had passed and someone went for the hoop she couldn't have possibly physically have gotten to in time. How did professional Keepers do this?

She made a mental note to watch a few professional games over the summer.

Retrieving the Quaffle, rose back up in front of the goals, hoping people thought her sniffling was because of the rain and not because of her frustration with the impossible saves the Pecaris were throwing at her during her very first minutes of ever playing the game. She didn't think a seventh year could have made that save, never mind a eleven year old in the rain flying for maybe the twentieth time ever in her life. This wasn't fair.

She passed the Quaffle off to one of her teammates and hoped they'd keep the stupid ball away from the Pecaris a little longer this time.

1 <font color=orange>Ginger Pierce, Keeper</font> You people are not being nice to me at all 302 <font color=orange>Ginger Pierce, Keeper</font> 0 5


Coach Olivers

February 25, 2015 2:31 AM
 
0 Coach Olivers Pecari scores! 20 - 0 (nm) 0 Coach Olivers 0 5


<font color="orange">Andrew Carey, Chaser</font>

February 26, 2015 10:57 PM
Andrew bit his lip, hard, as Pecari scored for the second time. As he did, another good thing about the rain occurred to him: it made it really hard to tell what sorts of noises were coming from the stands. Maybe the spectators, on both sides, were behaving like gentlemen and ladies, but he didn’t want to know for sure right now.

He’d known it was going to be hard, he guessed. Rain made a game more challenging even for experienced players, which the other guys had a lot of and his team had almost none of. Just how hard it was, though, was not something he’d foreseen. He felt awful for Ginger, himself, and…well, everybody on his team. Andrew wasn’t all that sure that he liked Isaac or Alistair all that much, but he was pretty sure they weren’t bad enough people for this to be their just desserts….

Of course, if you gave people who were that bad their just desserts, they would probably react to the humiliation by doing horrible things to all of your kids someday. Even he knew that. Plus, he guessed he could also see the argument that you deserved what you got on the Pitch because you could always have tried harder before the match – he was sure that was the view Morgaine, and so, since she was the one who occasionally gave him and Mal some of the lectures their father should have in the hopes that they wouldn’t suffer too much from just being raised by a pair of wives instead of by a real Carey, the family as a whole would take. So he guessed things were going to be all wrong no matter what. It didn’t, though, mean he had to like it. At all.

Ginger passed the Quaffle to him and he forced a confident smile before flying away. He flew faster than he knew was really smart in this rain, flying unevenly. Finally, he swerved closer to one fellow Chaser and then the other before trying to pass to the first after all, knowing his execution of the maneuver was a little clumsy but hoping they might finally make a successful pass in this game.
0 <font color="orange">Andrew Carey, Chaser</font> Let's try this again... 0 <font color="orange">Andrew Carey, Chaser</font> 0 5

<font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font>

February 27, 2015 12:29 PM
Pecari scored again. Isaac watched the ball sail through the hoop stoically, at least until he found it urgent to take the brief respite a goal attempt gave them to wipe away rain which was pooling at the top of his goggles and then running, in a rather annoying fashion, down his temples and toward his ears. The top of his head was numb with cold, his short hair completely soaked through and of no protective value to him whatsoever anymore.

Good thing the Keeper was a Teppenpaw - in Crotalus, he suspected her reception in the dorms would have been distinctly frosty. Maybe Teppenpaws would feel sorry for her, but in Crotalus...well, gambles like this were not a Crotalus thing anyway, it was why most of the team was Teppenpaw, and she was a girl. Their House was still probably the least friendly toward girls in the game, which was probably why they couldn’t field an independent team anymore, since the House probably also leaned at least as heavily to girls as Aladren did to boys….

Irrelevant thoughts, so fleeting he barely registered them as he watched Ginger re-collect the Quaffle again. This time, it went back out to Andrew, and so they began again.

For a moment, once they had put a little distance between themselves and Ginger, Isaac thought the Carey kid had simply lost his mind (again), but then he realized there was a method to his madness: Andrew was trying to confuse Pecari about which way he was going to pass. Or maybe just to avoid Bludgers, but either way, he was trying something. A tiny bit of Isaac admired him for that, at least for a second. Admiration and the more dominant weary certainty that it couldn’t work and that it was stupid to try were both washed away in surprise when he saw the Quaffle sailing through the air again and then, somehow, found it in his own hands.

He blinked at it, surprise seguing into shock, wondering if he had gone mad. Then he briefly wondered why they didn’t have French horns or something for moments like this, because it surely deserved them. Then, in the same breath, remembered that he was a Crotalus and that Crotali didn’t court danger and that the Quaffle was a dangerous thing to hold. He sped up, holding the Quaffle against his torso with one arm and clinging to the broom so tightly with his other hand that the joints in it ached. He ignored them; falling or getting hit had the potential to hurt a lot worse, and anyway, they distracted him a bit from the ache which had formed in his back.

They should give us laurel wreaths, he still thought absently, picturing himself and Andrew thus adorned. Or at least homework passes. A moment of competence should be rewarded.

It didn’t seem likely, though, and he could see Skies and Xavier’s point: if they did that, it would make them the laughingstocks of the staff room, since Aladren and Pecari required no such inducements to play competently. They had to guard their own positions, and while encouraging competence in their students would increase their status in the long run, being obvious about it - about the need for it - would lower their status right now. Xavier in particular couldn’t afford that. The game was the game, and students were really very insignificant pieces in it from their point of view. It was still a pity, though, and Isaac just hoped he and Andrew gained personal status among the other students at least. Though he wasn’t sure what endgame he should hope for to further that; if they won the game, their Seeker would naturally get most of the glory, but if she didn’t, the Houses might be too depressed to care about his and Andrew’s moments of competence….

To find out, though, he needed to be conscious, not recovering from a cracked skull in the hospital wing for a few days (an injury might earn him more praise if he could somehow not cry at the time, but one that took more than a minute to heal meant everyone would have forgotten all about that by the time he was in a position to enjoy their praise, and anyway, he knew his chances of not dropping the Quaffle and then crying like a six-year-old girl if he broke a bone were pretty much slim to none), so once he had used the confidence boost of the catch to put a respectable amount of distance between him and his starting point, he looked for an opening and then tried passing toward a teammate behind him.
16 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> With a bit of success this time! 273 <font color="orange">Isaac Douglas, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Annette, Chaser</font>

February 27, 2015 1:25 PM
Joella caught the ball Annette had passed, if not perfectly, then competently enough that Annette didn't see any flaws in her catch and quick redirect toward the far goal from where she sat on her broom, made somewhat fuzzy and indistinct by the sheets of falling rain dropping down between them. It looked good though from Annette's vantage and it worked. The little Teppenpaw wasn't even close to blocking that one, and Annette whooped as it sailed through the hoop farthest from her.

Then Andrew Carey again had the Quaffle. Following behind in his blind spot as she had before, she pushed forward when he faked to one chaser then tossed to the other. Annette got between them, reaching for the Quaffle but it wasn't there. It took her a moment to work through her confusion and realize it hadn't just magically vanished through some vile trickery or possibly just a rain-induced fumble and drop, but that Carey had actually passed to the first guy after all.

She muttered under her breath, not quite angry, but definitely irritated that she had been so deceived. Not hard feelings, though, of course; the irritation was focussed on herself not Carey. He'd just been doing what he was supposed to be doing.

So she set her broom to fly after Douglas, trying to keep between him and one of the Teppalus kids to block a pass that way. She wasn't sneaky about it or anything, so it came as no real surprise when he decided the other chaser was a safer risk and threw to that teammate instead of the one she was covering.
0 <font color=tan>Annette, Chaser</font> I liked the other result better 0 <font color=tan>Annette, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font>

February 27, 2015 6:02 PM
The whole match was a beautiful piece of work despite the horrendous torrential downpour and the slippery Quaffle. After making his first goal, Adam had followed the others closely, though not close enough to make any interceptions. He liked to allow his team-mates to have a turn in the limelight, and they certainly did. Annette and Joella were brilliant in their play, and Adam let out a cheer almost without realising it. They had the advantage of experience over many of the Teppalus players, and whilst he felt sorry for them, condolences would have to wait until after the match was over.

The other team they would play would be Aladren, and Adam was much less enthusiastic about that one. First off, his little brother was going to be an opposing Chaser, and secondly Aladren had done very well the year prior. Their team had its incredible strengths, every one of those strengths revealing itself during this match, but he wasn't certain how it would match up compared to Aladren's team that was both tried and true, save Jackie.

Though Jack was much more competitive and serious than he, Adam still didn't want to play so hard that the little first year would start crying. It was hardly fair even playing against Pierce who was still inexperienced at Keeping, or so he assumed. He didn't want to feel bad about being a good player and on a good team, but he still did just a bit.

Adam was impressed by Carey's pass, and equally impressed when Douglas managed to catch it. A faux pass usually required a solid knowledge of each others' play or sheer luck. Adam was betting on the latter in their case, but it didn't matter. What did matter was Douglas had the Quaffle now and he was sure to pass it soon. Annette had been covering Carey who had managed to catch her off-guard, and Adam followed behind, keeping close to the fray. Annette was covering one Chaser near Douglas, so Adam took a position covering the other.

When Douglas made a move to pass, Adam was in the right position to intercept it. With both Annette and Adam hovering closely over Douglas, there wasn't as much room for him to successfully complete a pass, though certainly it wasn't impossible. Adam had to slow down considerably to successfully catch the Quaffle, but the leather ball was slippery and eased by like the rain through his fingers. The Quaffle, after making it past Adam's hands, dropped quickly, and after the split-second of the initial shock had passed, Adam quickly flew after it, hoping desperately another Pecari Chaser would snatch it up before it fell into the arms of an awaiting Teppalus Chaser.
0 <font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font> As did I. Let's keep it going. 0 <font color=tan>Adam Spencer, Chaser</font> 0 5

<font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font>

February 27, 2015 7:10 PM
Alistair had never imagined a Quidditch game could be so painful. As soon as the older Pecari girl passed the Quaffle after looking as though she intended to shoot, Alistair knew that there was no stopping Pecari's second goal. Joella was a good shot and there was little way that any Chaser could miss such an opportunity. This time, however, the Crotalus first year's only response was the twitching of a muscle of annoyance in his face. The whole weight of the game seemed to be falling on poor Ginger's shoulders and Alistair did not like to think that he may be failing his duty as a Chaser. It only added to his irritation that it was Joella Curtis who had scored against his team but, of course, she didn't bear thinking about at this moment.

Jaw set firm in renewed determination, he turned back up the pitch as the Teppalus Keeper threw the ball out to Carey. Alistair's fellow first year Chaser was undoubtedly not a very aesetically pleasing player but his pass was successful and Alistair didn't really think he could afford to complain about such "minor detail" with the way the game was going so far. It suddenly crossed the young Crotalus's mind that Andrew Carey hadnt actually been doing too badly so far, he'd been a great deal more involved and more helpful than Alistair himself had, anyway (something Alistair did not care to think about). Douglas received the pass, which the Pecari Chasers fortunately failed to intercept this time around.

The older boy flew a fair distance further up the pitch before passing back his eager captain. However, Douglas had been rather optimistic and the pass was quickly stopped by none other than Adam Spencer. But barely seconds later and the Pecari had dropped the Quaffle. Not allowing himself a moment of surprise, Alistair continued the momentum he had been powering towards Douglas's pass to collect the dropping ball. To make the catch, Spencer had slowed down a little and Alistair found himself close to crashing into the older student, although he of course avoided such an incident occurring with his swift manoeuvring of his broom.

Alistair wasn't quite sure how it had happened but as he accelerated on in the direction of the Pecari hoops with the Quaffle held tightly against his soaking wet chest, he fancied that his success had not at all be down to luck but his own expertise. Now he had possession of the Quaffle, the Crotalus felt the whole game improve somewhat. The rain didn't make flying easy but he continued with a fair amount of speed, knowing that Spencer would likely be hot on his heels. Teppalus simply had to get in a goal attempt sooner or later.
8 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> Doing exactly that. 306 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> 0 5


<font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font>

February 27, 2015 7:45 PM
Rupert was feeling a bit frustrated. His team was doing extraordinarily well, almost better than he had hoped, and he was very proud of his team-mates. But he was frustrated in his performance. Not only were his bludgers seeming to disappear into nothingness, but the quickness of the Chasers made it nearly impossible to pin one down. It wasn't his job to smash an opponent's broom into bits, but it would have made him feel a bit better about himself and his ability to play in harsh weather conditions.

It was lovely to see his team-mates apply themselves so well and perform to the best of their abilities. When Adam and Joella each made a goal, Rupert could have crowed for joy. Instead, he kept a close eye on them, aiming to protect his Chasers and keep this brilliant offence going without too much opposition from the other younger, and considerably less experienced, team. Whilst Rupert enjoyed the company of younger years, he had no mercy on the pitch for anyone. Playing against his own brother had been slightly disconcerting at the beginning of his Sonora Quidditch career, but Cepheus had since graduated and Rupert had improved in his position as a Beater. It was never personal, and he had learnt to separate his personal business from Quidditch.

The Quaffle bounced around and Rup followed it as best he could whilst keeping an eye out for the closest bludger. It would be prudent to stay on his toes in case an opportunity arose, but for now he didn't try his luck by throwing an iron ball into the fray. He was tempted to do so anyway out of spite, an attempt to make himself feel more competent as a Beater, but he held back, hoping the opportunity would arise more naturally.

It did when poor Adam made a blunder and an orange Chaser took the Quaffle on. He was one of the captains, Rupert remembered, and a rather young one for a combined team. He could only imagine how he'd received the position; perhaps his enthusiasm for the sport had been the greatest? In any case, Rupert felt even more inclined to bat a bludger his way, and he decided to finally try his hand at it and hope for impact. Not that he wanted Johnson obliterated by any means; maybe just a broken bone or a broken broom.

His broom was quick and Rupert flew parallel to Johnson. A bludger was approaching, and though Rupert was a bit a ways away from the opposing Chaser, his aim was sharp even in the rain. As soon as Rupert was within the bludger's vicinity, he slowed considerably and immediately cracked his bat against the bludger to send it flying to the spot where Johnson would no doubt be by the time the bludger met him there. Rupert waited, hoping for something, some indication to tell him he still had the possibility of impressing scouts for the next match. This match was only practise in comparison.
0 <font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font> Throwing in a distraction. 0 <font color=tan>Rupert Princeton, Beater</font> 0 5

<font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font>

March 01, 2015 3:29 PM
Alistair's current tactic was simply to fly as fast as his broom and the weather would allow towards the Pecari hoops for as long as the opposing team allowed him to do so. There was no point passing unless absolutely necessary as it only ever seemed to open windows for Pecari interception. The young Crotalus tried to keep his wits about him but it was difficult to concentrate on too many things, so when he saw the dim outline of a few other players out of the corners of his eyes he didn't bother to waste time checking out the threats but instead just fly on, Quaffle gripped tightly against his orange-robed chest.

Having never been one to get caught out by obstacles, Alistair was more confident of his dodging and escaping bludgers than of his throwing aim. Despite his love for the position of Chaser, the majority of his talents lay in flying rather than ball-play. That being said, Alistair was a decent shot much of the time and would most definitely never even consider such a vital area of the game being his "weakness".

So perhaps it was the noise of the rain and the sheets of water obscuring his vision, or maybe it was the adrenaline of the nearing hoops in the unfamiliar competitive situation, but Alistair wasn't ready for the bludger that suddenly came flying into his course. It had been well-aimed, undoubtedly by the skilled Pecari Captain, and Alistair gave everything he had to both slow down and veer away from it at the same time. His efforts saved him from what could have been very nasty, but still the bludger was on target and travelling at a hard force and Alistair had been flying far too fast for him to get away lightly. Sitting up sharply, the first year Teppalus player managed to brake a little in the short space of time that his realization allowed but as he attempted to swerve away last minute, the bludger struck him forcefully on the back, largely at his left shoulder. Shock shot through Alistair's body, the off-centre impact sending him back around to face the Teppalus hoops and throwing him forwards onto his broomstick, his face smashing into the broom handle and the Quaffle obviously relinquishing itself from his hold. The young Crotalus was momentarily lost for breath, the pain so agonizing where the bludger had struck his deltoid. He pushed himself upright after a moment, recollecting himself. A sickening feeling threatened to overwhelm him but right now Alistair was more concerned about the wounding of his pride than of his body. Had he not already been feeling so much frustration, his anger now would perhaps not have given him the determination he needed to continue the game, but his adrenaline was not lost and the excruciating pain he would do his best to ignore, as much as possible anyway.

Alistair wiped some of the blood off his face, fought back the tears that felt imminent (due to the impact of the blow, of course, because Alistair was never one to show such "weakness") and looked for the Quaffle he had dropped. He felt foolish for the incident and couldn't help berating himself on what he could have done differently. He certainly was making a very good name for himself.
8 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> More than a distraction, I'll say. 306 <font color='orange'>Ali Johnson, Chaser</font> 0 5