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A Batting We Will Go
Author: Coco Nutt
Date: 01-29-10 17:14
Twenty to zero.
Coco looks away from the scoreboard, not that she needed to actually see it to know what the score is. She'd glanced that direction to check on Cornelia. A very short time ago, the Slyherin seeker had spotted the snitch and most likely would have caught it if not for a bludger from Coco.
Coco batted one of the black balls Cornelia's way. She'd ended up flinching when Cornelia tacked slightly to compensate for one of the infrequent gusts of wind and from Coco's perspective it looked as though the bludger was going to connect with Cornelia's face. The girl might be on the unpleasant side but Coco isn't the sort to deliberately aim for someone's face so she was very glad that the bludger ended up not actually touching Cornelia at all. It did, however, accomplish what Coco wanted, which was to divert Cornelia from catching the snitch.
From the corner of her eye, Cornelia must have seen the bludger approaching. She steered to avoid it, trying to keep an eye on the snitch and one on the bludger but the snitch disappeared from view. After glaring daggers at Coco, Cornelia resumed searching for the tiny ball. Coco returned her attention to using bludgers to interfere with the Slytherin chasers and, as soon as the chance arises, with Slytherin keeper Zuberi. She does, however, check regularly to see if she can tell if Cornelia is once more on the snitch's trail.
Coco reaches a bludger a fraction before Basil does, turning to hit it in a way that makes it harder for the fourth year to intercept her shot and redirect the ball. That doesn't stop him from chasing after it but Coco doesn't care because she's going after it as well and she's found that most of the time in an all out sprint against Basil, she'll win.
The bludger catches Alexa in the act of passing off the quaffle. She'd taken it away from Hadrian just moments before so as she fumbles with trying to salvage her pass, he gleefully takes it right back. Seeing that he's in perfect position to try to score, Coco pours on the speed, passing up Basil, to reach the bludger in time to hit it at Zuberi.
Hadrian doesn't take the shot but instead passes off to Jack. Jack does go for it, letting the ball soar. Zuberi would have had it blocked if not for that Coco sent bludger. The quaffle passes through one of the hoops and now Ravenclaw is finally one the board with 10 points, though still behind Slytherin's 20.
Finesse (Olive)
Author: Emerald Green
Date: 01-29-10 19:41
Olive closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Since Jack made that Ravenclaw goal earlier, there's been a lot of back and forth with the quaffle with no one getting into a good position to try for a goal. Olive weighs the quaffle in her hand, feeling its heft, then opens her eyes and stares down Daniel. She's only getting this goal attempt now because of a foul called. The only problem with taking foul shots though is that the while the chaser is getting ready to take the shot, the keeper has more time to think about what the chaser is doing without all the extraneous distractions of the other chasers, beaters, bludgers, seekers, and even snitch sightings to get in the way.
Olive lines up the shot, acting as though she's going to throw the quaffle straight ahead, which would be to the hoop on Daniel's left, Olive's right. At the last second, as the ball is leaving her hand, Olive gives it a tap to send it spiraling towards the center hoop. Daniel isn't taken in by her efforts to fake him out and easily moves in for a full body block, catching the quaffle in his arms. With that, the other players swoop in from their waiting positions to either accept a pass from Daniel or to stop the pass from happening.
Griet does her best to keep Deak from getting his hands on the ball, but short of deliberately fouling him, which would put the quaffle into Ravenclaw hands for sure, she doesn't succeed and Deak rockets away, tucking the quaffle in close to his body. Alexa, Griet, and Olive try to do what they've been doing the entire game - steal the quaffle away and keep it for a long period before having another turn over. Slytherin might have only made two goals so far but by having possession of the quaffle more often than Ravenclaw means that team has had less opportunity to score points.
Either the Slytherin chasers are slipping or the Ravenclaw chasers are finally getting their groove because Deak, Jack, and Hadrian work the quaffle down the length of the pitch, not letting the green clad chasers touch it once nor letting bludger hits deter them. Jack has the ball now and is in that golden area they all think of as prime scoring range but the Slytherins aren't allowing him to set up properly to throw the quaffle. Anyone who thinks that it's just a matter of tossing the ball from one point to another would be wrong. Sure, there are times that's the case, but most of the time it's not. Back in the States, in her Muggle life, Olive played little league basketball and soccer enough to know that whether throwing the ball or kicking it, there is a certain finesse to having the greatest chance of the ball reaching the target without other players, including the goalie as in soccer or in this case the keeper, from halting the ball's progress and preventing points being scored.
Olive gets in as close to Jack as she can without committing one of the many, many possible fouls Quidditch has. Griet is covering Deak, and Alexa is on Hadrian. Olive hopes that Jack will get frustrated enough to either take a shot anyway or try to pass off. Her hope is dashed when Fritz and Coco are both able to get to one of the bludgers, with Fritz taking aim at Zuberi and Coco at Olive. Their timing in hitting their respective targets couldn't have been better if they'd coordinated beforehand. Olive take a hard hit to the shoulder from behind, giving Jack enough of the opening he needs for a goal shot. Zuberi takes a bludger to the shoulder as well but from the front, the bludger catching him in a way to smack his collarbone and part of his breastbone. If he hadn't been so focused on watching Jack, he might have seen the bludger coming in time to not take one face on like that.
Jack's throw is good, with the quaffle going through the hoop at nearly dead center. Rubbing her shoulder for a second, Olive guides her broom to where Griet's putting it back into play, the score now tied at 20 points apiece.
Improvements
Author: Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen
Date: 01-30-10 06:03
With each goal that Slytherin made, it was easy for Fritz to begin losing morale, which sometimes can make someone play badly. True, Fritz knows that it's not about winning, but when you are playing against some wizards who aren't in the game for the sake of good sportsmanship, it's hard not to take a loss difficultly. But then the game seemed to take a shift in Ravenclaw's favor. Jack managed to make two consecutive goals, and now the match is tied.
The even score has definitely improved Fritz's spirits. He flits around the pitch with zeal, hitting each bludger he meets with powerful force and accuracy. Already, he's managed to knock the quaffle off its intended path, prevented one of the Slytherin chasers from stealing the red ball from Ravenclaw, and deflected a bludger intent on slowing down one of his own teammates.
Ravenclaw currently has possession of the quaffle, which was intercepted during a pass between the Slytherins. Fritz keeps an eye on the action as well as afield, where he pays attention to the location of the two bludgers as well as the location of the two Slytherin beaters. Basil's tracked down one of the bludgers, while Coco's on top of the other. Good. Basil's still a long way off that he probably can't do any harm from where he is, but from Mark's position, it seems like they might be setting up some sort of hand off of the bludger.
Coco, meanwhile, uses hers to target the outstretched arm of Griet, who is trying to continue her streak of stealing the quaffle from the Ravenclaw chasers. She pulls back her arm at the last second, the bludger barely grazing the hairs on her arms.
Fritz swoops in at that moment to utilize the bludger to his advantage. Griet has flown over to Deak's other side, and while she isn't next to his carrying arm, he is beginning to feel boxed in. Fritz bats the bludger at Olive, who was creeping in on Deak's other side. She dodges out of the way. Mark, meanwhile, has aimed for Deak's back, but Fritz is right there and directs it at Griet instead. She veers off too.
That just leaves Alexa right on top of Deak, but Coco manages to distract her with the other bludger. For half a second, it's just Deak, his Ravenclaw chasers, and Zuberi at the Slytherin hoops.
Both Coco and Fritz race after each bludger, but it turns out that they don't need to lend Deak any aid. He scores all on his own, bringing Ravenclaw in the lead for the first time of the match.
Annoyed (Basil)
Author: Jared
Date: 01-30-10 11:04
As this Slytherin-Ravenclaw match has gone on, Basil has become increasingly annoyed and irritated. For one thing, inferior people like Coco Nutt and Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen shouldn't be able to outfly him. In Basil's mind, the fact that they are older and more experienced has no bearing. The fact that Coco is petite and light on her broom is insignificant. They are both Muggle borns and while in hindsight the tactics taken by Euphemia Smythe-Jones and her followers were extreme, Basil still firmly believes that as someone from a long line of witches and wizards, he should be better at all things magical. That includes flying on a broom during a Quidditch match or at any other time. So, to have them both, Coco in particular, beating him nearly every time one of them and he sprint for the same bludger annoys Basil no end.
Also increasingly irritating is that Ravenclaw has scored three goals since Slytherin's two. How can the Slytherin chasers have let that happen without at least scoring once more themselves?
Basil reaches the bludger he was going after and, using some of that irritation fueld energy, knocks it a good one. The bludger goes on course to intercept Hadrian, who's again got the quaffle. Fritz gets between Hadrian and the bludger, batting it away, sending the black ball at nearby Olive. Basil scowls, shooting after the bludger to stop it before it gets to Olive.
He gets there in time, but only just. He has to be careful not to catch Olive with his bat as he swings back to deliver a hard, solid hit. He's hoping to get Jack with it and nearly whoops with pleasure when he watches the bludger on its path and it does just that, thwarting a pass Jack was accepting from Hadrian.
Griet snatches up the quaffle when it falls free, racing down the pitch with it tucked firmly against her body. Olive and Alexa move in to help Griet, with the three executing a series of quick passes that get them within range to try for a goal. Basil scowls again, this time at Coco when she reaches the bludger before him, sending it at Alexa. He can't get there to stop the bludge before it reaches his teammate but at least Mark has reached the other bludger and has it on course to hit Daniel, with Fritz unable to stop it.
Mark's bludger gets Daniel on the arm as he reaches to block a shot Olive's just made. The bludger shoves Daniel's arm aside, and the keeper's fingers barely brush the quaffle as it sails past to bring the score tied again at 30 points per team.
Is A Keeper Really Necessary (Zuberi)
Author: Viktor Krum
Date: 01-30-10 13:05
As with the match against Gryffindor and as with every practice, Zuberi began with an underlying current of anger. Even after months of playing the position of Keeper, he still views it with disdain. It's the dullest position on a team and he strongly believes that with some changes to the game itself, a team could get by with no keeper at all. Sort of like that Muggle sport of basketball he's heard enough about from others that he finally looked up more information on the sport. With some tweaking, that game could be a good Wizarding one. Or, he supposes, it doesn't need any tweaking at all of a magical nature. He'd have to play for himself or see it played to better judge. Maybe sometime he'll ask Professor Miller about it.
Even though he hates playing Keeper, Zuberi is still not about to let on just how much he dislikes the spot because he continues to hold to the idea that it's better to play Keeper on the house team than to not play at all. The pick-up games played by students just aren't enough to suit him so Keeper it is. He still doesn't really know why Slytherin kept him on the team after that match against Gryffindor. Something was said about second changes and him reigning in the attitude during matches, blah blah blah. He thinks it has more to do with the fact that Dosie's his sister, even if she was the one who deducted points from him during that match. The others probably figure it's good politics with Theodosia to keep him on the team. Would have been better if one of them would have let him be Beater or Chaser. Selfish. The lot of them.
Zuberi had been doing well, for a Keeper, blocking Ravenclaw shots when they could actually get their hands on the Quaffle AND get close enough to try and score. Then something changed. Slytherin playing didn't degrade. The Ravenclaws stepped up their game. Three of the last four goals made in the match were all by Ravenclaw. Zuberi hates that he left even one shot get by him but at least those goals are partly because of other things, like bludgers.
Deak's trying for another goal, but Zuberi blocks. He tries to catch the Quaffle so he can control who gets it but he flinches when he sees a Bludger heading towards him. The Quaffle bounces off, is caught by Hadrian who doesn't hesitate to throw it again. That one Bludger momentarily not a threat, Zuberi goes to block again only to have the other Bludger interfere. He still gets fingers on the Quaffle, sending it off its course to knock into a goal post.
Ricocheting off, the Quaffle this time is caught by Alexa. She takes off, going away from Zuberi, with the other five Chasers and all four Beaters moving away as well. For his part, Zuberi is glad for another respite of having to be an attentive Keeper.
Near Misses And One Hit (Hadrian)
Author: Aaron Miller
Date: 01-30-10 15:10
The chasers of each team, Ravenclaw and Slytherin, have made several goal attempts since Slytherin last scored to tie the game at thirty to thirty. Hadrian's got the quaffle at the moment but is setting up a pass to Deak. Alexa's sticking to him like glue, making it harder to get the shot off but Fritz helps out by sending a bludger at Alexa. The pass is successful, with Deak arcing around Cornelia, who seems so focused on locating the snitch that she doesn't seem to be aware of Deak, then evening out to fly a straight course towards the Slytherin tended goals.
Jack is slightly ahead of Deak and Hadrian's slightly behind and to the other side. Alexa wasn't slowed down by that bludger hit and is also right there. Olive is off to Hadrian's other side but he doesn't see Griet anywhere. He presumes that means she's behind him but he's not going to turn around and look since it's not important at the moment.
Mark puts himself between Hadrian and the other two Ravenclaw chasers, forcing Hadrian to alter course or chance a collision. That's when he locates Griet. She was definitely behind him and when he alters course without knowing exactly where she was, it nearly causes them to crash. Griet yells, swerving one direction as he swears and swerves the other.
Hadrian swears under his breath, thinking that Mark probably found that funny even if it would have been Mark's own teammate Hadrian crashed into. It's good that Griet yelled at him which way she was going or he might have altered course the wrong way and collided with her anyway.
Deak's handed off the quaffle to Jack by that time and Hadrian pours on the speed to catch up to assist as needed. That comes in the form of taking the quaffle when Jack gets boxed in by two Alexa and Olive with help from Basil. With help from a bludger sent by Fritz and Deak moving in, Jack's able to get the quaffle to Hadrian despite the Slytherin efforts to steal it away.
Mark once again puts himself on a collision course with Hadrian, positioned to hit a bludger at him. Hadrian veers sharply, screwing up Mark's aim. The bludger goes far off its mark, intercepted by Coco then batted at Griet who's come up on Hadrian to interfere with his pass to Deak. The bludger hit Griet then bounces to hit Hadrian's broom. Because he's already completed the pass to Deak, the hit doesn't affect the hand-off. What it does do is cause Hadrian to bobble then as he compensates to do what he's avoided so far. He collides with someone else.
Alexa had still be flying close to Hadrian and it's Alexa who Hadrian accidently rams into. Her broom had been damaged a little early in the match. It fully breaks now with both Alexa and Hadrian falling in a tangle of limbs and brooms. Someone, though who Hadrian's not sure, sees what happens and is quick enough to slow their fall. They hit hard, but thankfully not as hard as they would have without whomever's intervention.
By the time Hadrian's managing to sit up, several adults are around Alexa and him. His cousin has tears and is cradling either her right arm or her right elbow. He can't tell exactly for sure. Hadrian's arms and shoulders are fine as is his back but his right knee and left ankle are throbbing something fierce.
As Alexa and he are helped off the pitch to go see Madam Pomfrey, Hadrian apologizes profusely while also thinking that at least one team doesn't now have the advantage over the other.
Play Resumes
Author: Coco Nutt
Date: 01-30-10 16:33
When plays resumes after Alexa and Hadrian are off the pitch, the quaffle is put back into play with a tip-off. Coco had thought that with it having been Hadrian colliding into Alexa that Slytherin would be given the ball. The way the three referees conferenced for two full minutes before the match continue has Coco wondering if there was indeed a debate on who should get the quaffle and how. It's Deak who gets the quaffle this time around and he takes off with it held against his chest.
Having only two chasers really changes the way a team works the quaffle towards the hoops. In this case, Slytherin is also down a chaser, so at least they don't have a chaser advantage. Deak makes a move to pass to Jack. Coco's just reaching a bludger but neither Olive nor Griet are where she can hit them with it. Fritz is open and where he could use the bludger against against of the Slytherin chasers so Coco gets Fritz's attention, sending the bludger to him.
Meanwhile, Mark is batting the other bludger. That ball smacks into Jack as he's trying to get a better grip on the quaffle. The quaffle pops free but he's quick to grip it again though Olive has her hand on it as well. They tussle until Joseph Okafor blows his whistle. For the third time in the game, there's a tip-off. Olive's the successful one this time, racing with away with the ball. She only slows when a bludger hit by Fritz catches the tail of her broom. She throws to Griet only to have Deak rocket in between them, grab the quaffle, dive down while turning, then leveling out heading back the other way.
Coco finds herself in yet another sprint against Basil for the bludger. She can't help laughing out loud when the fourth year says with great frustration as she passes him by, "Can't you let me get there first just once?"
Calling back over her shoulder she bemusedly tells him, "As long as we're different teams, no."
Reaching the bludger, Coco finds she can't hit it in the direction all the chasers are because Basil is blocking the way. He grins at her so she grins back and hits the bludger anyway, putting a spin on it and hitting it at an angle that has it flying in a curve. Basil realizes too late that it's not coming right his way for him to easily intercept. He grumbles at her but Coco just laughs again and heads after the bludger to hit it again, hopefully before either Basil or Mark does.
Going Long (Jack)
Author: Kody
Date: 01-30-10 17:31
Deak has the quaffle but Olive and Griet hope to regain possession sooner rather than later. Jack scoots ahead, putting distance between the other three chasers then braking a little, he puts himself into a position to take a long pass from Deak. With Griet on one side of him and Olive the other, both looking for any opening to steal back the quaffle, Deak doesn't mind at all going for a long pass. He throws the quaffle hard, looking on with satisfaction when the ball flies true right to Jack.
Jack catches the quaffle, picking up speed again, reaching the Slytherin tended hoops alone save for Zuberi. Mark hits a bludger at Jack but it falls away short of Jack's position. Zuberi's ready for Jack though and has no trouble blocking the shot Jack takes. Jack gets the quaffle on the rebound and tries again, hoping to act fast enough that Zuberi can't react in time again. That's just what happens, the quaffle getting by Zuberi but to Jack's chagrin the quaffle hits the rim of the hoop he'd aimed for and bounces off back at Zuberi.
Zuberi snatches the quaffle, holding onto it for the remaining seconds it takes for Griet and Olive to reach them. Zuberi passes the ball off to Griet. Olive and she start working away from Zuberi, with Deak and Jack flying in close to slow their progress and hopefully regain the quaffle.
Weird Without Alexa (Olive)
Author: Emerald Green
Date: 01-30-10 20:01
Olive tosses the quaffle to Griet, mindful of where Jack and Deak are as she does. It's weird not having Alexa in the mix. She really hopes her friend wasn't badly hurt, Hadrian either. It looked like Alexa's biggest problem was an elbow that she was cupping and holding at an odd angle when being helped from the pitch. Hadrian's injuries must have been one or both of his legs because he didn't walk off the pitch. Or, Olive's brow furrows, she supposes that could mean a back or hip injury but Hadrian was sitting up on his own at one point so it couldn't be something like a back injury, could it?
Griet catches the pass, twisting away from Deak as she does. Because of how she twists, she narrowly avoids getting hit by a bludger sent by Coco. Before Griet can recovers from the twist and near miss, Deak's reaching to grab the quaffle. Griet twists more, putting the quaffle within Jack's reach to pop it free of her grip. Jack, however, can't get his hand on it well enough to grip it. The quaffle goes into free fall with all four chasers scrambling to be there first to get it.
Olive was quickest going into a dive after the ball but jerks backwards when a bludger goes screaming in front of her, less than an inch from the tip of her broom handle. Jack almost has it but is slowed by the other bludger. Deak's longer reach edges out Griet. He gets a grip on the quaffle, levels out his dive then pulls into a shallowly angled climb, aiming in the direction he needs to be to get the quaffle deeper down pitch to the Ravenclaw hoops where Zuberi waits to be the obstacle that prevents another Ravenclaw goal.
Griet's right with him, looking for any opening to gain possession of the quaffle again. That opening doesn't come until Deak's gotten close enough to go for a goal. His shot is blocked and Griet grabs the quaffle on the rebound only to have Jack catch a pass she intended for Olive. Jack takes a shot and again Griet catches the rebound. This time she waits until they are out of easy goal range before working with Olive again in a series of passes, moving the quaffle back in the opposite direction.
They get the quaffle all the way down to where Daniel waits to take part in the game again, though as far as Olive is concerned, while she likes Daniel as a friend, she wishes he hadn't had any active participation in this match at all. Deak and Jack don't let up on pressing the Slytherin chasers for the quaffle. Griet and Olive don't let the Ravenclaw chasers phase them as they set up to take another shot. Olive gets clipped in the head by a bludger but shakes it off, hoping that the pain doesn't linger the rest of the game. Playing Quidditch with a massive headache is no joy at all.
While Olive was being hit in the head, Griet was taking a hit to the shoulder and had both Jack and Deak swarming her, if it's possible to call two guys a swarm. Griet throws the ball in a high arcing loft. Olive catches it and with neither of the boys on her yet, immediately goes for a shot. Mark had gotten to one of the bludgers and as Olive shoots for a goal, Mark shoots for Daniel. Daniel takes the hit but his momentum carries him to the side enough to get fingers on the quaffle. It's not enough though and the ball still goes through the hoop. That puts Slytherin back in the lead 40 to 30.
It's A Good Thing Glaring Daggers Is Just A Phrase
Author: Christopher Chant
Date: 01-30-10 21:57
Christopher hears the change in score announced and thinks that Slytherin being up 40 to 30 doesn't matter in the slightest if he gets the snitch. Unless Slytherin makes so many goals that even with the snitch, Ravenclaw would lose then he doesn't really care how many goals the other teams makes so long as it's him, not Cornelia, who ends the game. Right now, however, he's having serious doubts of that ever happening. Sightings of the snitch have been rare this match, not that they're ever numerous to begin with.
He hopes he can spot it, and soon. His feet and hands are freezing even though he's feet and hands are covered well. Christopher's cheeks and nose are numb and if not for periodically running his tongue over his lips he would have long thought they'd fallen off. Of course, compared to the day of the Ravenclaw match against Hufflepuff, today's weather isn't that bad and there's been little wind for early March, though what of it there has been has been strong gusts. Why Christopher's feeling the cold more today he doesn't know. At least the weather this past school year hasn't been as bad as last's. Even into April and May the weather was more like it was still the dead of winter. Even though they didn't have houses last school year, which meant no house teams, there was regular Quidditch practice for those taking Fitness & Athletics who also wanted to play in at least one of the official school matches. The never ending winter winter made those practices hell and the matches themselves were no picnic.
Christopher slows at the sight of a bludger angling in at him. It passes by and he picks up his pace again, which wasn't all that fast to begin with. Going too fast and things start to blur, making it harder to spot a small, winged ball that often moves at a blur itself. He almost immediately slows again as Cornelia crosses his path. She doesn't deign to bother glaring or scowling at him - Christopher has the sudden amusing thought that given how she can do both at once, it could be called scaring and in Cornelia's case that's pretty close to the mark; besides, calling it glowling just doesn't sound right. Guess that's what the word glowering is for. He shakes his head and puts his thoughts back on track. He guesses she didn't bother glowering at him because that would mean for less than one half of a second her eyes wouldn't be on task for locating the snitch. Christopher has a feeling that if during one of her matches, anyone pulled Cornelia aside and told her to relax, it's just a game, she'd hex the person on the spot even though the players aren't supposed to use magic during a match.
Christopher continues on a his way, which at the moment is a path perpendicular to Cornelia's. It's a path that takes him to where the current vying over the quaffle is taking place. Skirting around the four chasers and two of the beaters as well as a bludger, Christopher tunes in to what's going on what them in case they all start in his direction. He doesn't want to be taken unawares and end up getting caught in the middle of the fight over quaffle possession. Doing so increases the chance of getting hit with a bluger or by flying arms and legs. Once in a pick-up match when he was one of the seekers, it meant getting walloped in the head with the tail of someone's broom.
Feeling a sneeze coming on, Christopher puts on some speed and heads towards the edge of the legal playing area, where he can pause to dig a tissue from a pocket while reducing the chance of being run over by the chaser melange. He sneezes once, twice, three times and wonders if maybe he's catching something. That would explain why he's so much more cold today than the temperature and weather would indicate. As he's stuffing the wad of tissue back in a pocket, glad that his uniform has pockets at all, something on the edge of his vision has Christopher turning his head and concentrating on that spot.
Christopher's breath catches and he's almost afraid to breath normally again for fear that will spook the snitch and it's not even that close. It's yards away. Eyes fixed on the winged ball, Christopher gradually increases speed, one arms slowly stretching out in preparation of making a stab at grabbing the small gold and white ball.
With his eyes locked on the snitch, something else moves in his periphery but Christopher doesn't want to risk looking for fear the snitch will dart away and not show itself for several more hours. As he gains on the snitch's position, that other thing becomes clearer so that even without having to turn his head he knows it's Cornelia.
Crap!
With no choice now but to rapidly pour on the speed, Christopher races to beat Cornelia to the snitch. They reach it at roughly the same time, hands grappling and grabbing as brooms and bodies knock into each other. The snitch flits around, always just a hair's breadth out of both their reaches. Both seekers now have one hand reaching, stretching for the snitch and the other shoving against the rival for the coveting little ball. Christopher can say this about Cornelia - she's got a really strong shove.
Christopher lunges across his broom, trying to increase his reach. Even through his gloves he can feel the beat of the snitch's wings against his fingers. Lunging further, nearly to the point of overbalancing his broom, those fingers close around the snitch. Christopher lets out a triumphant yell, hand fully closed now around the snitch.
From the looks he's now getting from Cornelia as Christopher flies towards one of the referees to show that he does indeed have the golden snitch, he thinks it's probably a very good idea to watch eating or drinking anything that could be tampered with and to avoid little used hallways that an angry seeker who just missed out on the snitch might be lingering.
The other players now know the snitch has been caught. Christopher's teammates crowd around to congratulate him. The match officially ends with the score 180 for Ravenclaw, 40 for Slytherin.