| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 18:54:00 |
Me and Sirius and Ron and Hermione went and played Grottle this weekend and I'd never played it before, actually I never even heard of it, so it was really cool. The run is away from Hogsmeade, a little bit, but pretty close to it, so we flew from there. Sirius is a great flyer and Hermione doesn't get to fly very much so that was good. It was kind of cold but not too bad, except Ron forgot his gloves so I gave him mine and my Firebolt was really cold. There were alot of families at the Grottle run, but Lee Jordan was there too.
Grottle is really cool. I think it's the only place you can fly on flying carpets legally, I mean unless you get special permission from the Ministry of Magic, so I'd never flown one before. First I flew with Sirius and Ron flew with Hermione, on a count of me and Hermione never playing it before, and I still think I like my Firebolt better than the flying carpet but it was really neat. It was like you could fall off really easy, so it was kind of hard to get used to but then it was really fun. Sirius let me fly by myself then and it was kind of weird. Then we started doing Grottle runs. You have to fly the carpet through this course with all these snowpeople shouting things at you and throwing snowballs, and you're supposed to get their noses from them so you can get prizes. The snowpeople were sort of nasty, they kept making fun of Ron's hair and my glasses, but I got a bunch of the noses. Ron said the noses kept breaking in half when he took them and a snowwoman stuck a whole armful of snow down the back of my robes. I only got one nose on my first run and Hermione got two, but after I knew what the snowpeople were doing it was easier. Sirius was great at it too, he took one of the snowmen's head right off! They didn't give him any extra points for it, though.
Ron and Hermione went and made their own snowpeople and Sirius and I kept playing Grottle. I wish we played it at Hogwarts because it was really fun. I mean, I guess it's more a fun game than a competitive game like Quidditch, so it's not really something people would play at school. We got a whole bunch of prizes at the end when we turned in our carrot noses, and I got this Falmouth pendant, but I don't really like the Falcons at all. I gave alot of mine to Ron and Sirius got this really tiny book called The Small Book of Small Wonders, so he gave it to Hermione. Then we had a snowball fight and Sirius won, even though it was me and Hermione against him and Ron, because he stuffed Ron's head under a pile of snow. Then we flew back to Hogsmeade and took the carriages back to Hogwarts. The dorm was really quiet because Seamus and Dean were fighting, maybe, or something, and I think Neville was at Hogsmeade with Ginny.
Comments:
| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 12:05 pm UTC |
Of course you wouldn't like the Falcons, Potter. You're much better suited for a team whose motto is "Let's all just keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best." The Falcons are the best team in the League, and if you had any sense, you'd realise it. Then again, you probably do and that's why you don't like them. Always have to be on the underdog's side, of course.
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 12:18 pm UTC |
How can you even tell if you like them? They're always suspended, I don't even know if they get to play at all. And aren't the Magpies alot better? I mean, technically they're the most successful team in the league, so shouldn't you like them? And the Cannons have won 21 times, too.
(parent)| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 12:35 pm UTC |
Oh, right, the Cannons won a few times. They haven't even won since 1892. Don't tell me you're sitting around waiting for them to make a comeback. I do hope you're holding your breath.
The Falcons may get suspended, but that just shows they're dedicated to the game. Besides, they haven't really been suspended that often since the Broadmoors left the team. My Father says they were the best blaggers any team has ever seen. Of course, I'm sure the Cannons couldn't blag their way out of a box.
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 12:49 pm UTC |
What? What are you even talking about? Blagging is a foul! You did it to me that one time and Gryffindor got a penalty shot for it, that means it's a foul. It's in Quidditch Through the Ages under fouls. You can't just grab someone's broom! And you blurt all the time, too, and so do the Falcons. If the Cannons don't blag it's because they don't have to cheat! The Falcons cheat and that's how they win, so they wouldn't even win at all if they didn't blag and their Keeper flacks all the time. Maybe if you liked a team that didn't cheat you wouldn't cheat so much either.
(parent)| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 12:58 pm UTC |
I wasn't blagging. There was a sudden gust of wind. Had I not grabbed onto your broom, I would have fallen to my inevitable death. Besides, I seem to recall you catching the Snitch in your mouth at one point, which should hardly count as a legal move. If you could catch the Snitch in any pocket you wanted, there'd be no point to the game.
Even if the Cannons cheated, they still wouldn't win. Claiborne's Porskoff Ploy is pathetic. Nieves has only even caught it once, and I'm fairly certain that was accidental. Of course, you were at that match as well as I was, so I'm sure you spotted this for yourself. The Falcons have a much better Porskoff Ploy, not to mention that their Bludger Backbeat is the best in the League. Of course, the Magpies are a fair team. Definitely better than the Cannons. The Falcons, on the other hand, are actual Quidditch players. The Magpies are politicians.
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 01:26 pm UTC |
You were cheating, and you were trying to stop me from getting the Snitch. There wasn't even any wind! And I didn't catch the Snitch like that on purpose, and anyway if it was a foul we wouldn't have won.
And O'Neill and Phoenix do a good Bludger Backbeat, too, and they don't have to use the Transylvanian Tackle all the time like the Falcons. The Prides have the best Dopplebeater Defence, anyway, and it's a better move than the Bludger Backbeat.
And I don't even know what that means. The Magpies are Quidditch players too, that's why they're on a Quidditch team. And if you think they're politicians, then you should probably like them anyway.
| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 01:43 pm UTC |
The only reason anyone even likes the Prides is because Kirley McCormack's sister is the Keeper. Everyone knows that. As soon as the Weird Sisters stop being popular, the Prides will, too. Anyone who likes the Prides knows nothing about Quidditch.
The Magpies have always been politicians. Hamish MacFarlan only ever joined a Quidditch team so he could be come Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, and they've all followed his example ever since. Ludo Bagman might as well have been on the Magpies as well. There's a place for politics, but it's certainly not on the Quidditch pitch. Unless, of course, you count actually getting onto the team. Or eliminating other players. Using Quidditch to get into the Ministry is pathetic, as there are much easier ways to do that.
Every time someone bashes the Transylvanian Tackle, you know it's just because they're jealous that their team can't manage it. It's one of the hardest moves, after all, aside from the Wronski Feint. I've had Slytherin practising the Transylvanian Tackle, but I suppose that's because I'm a better captain than Landgreen.
Face it, Potter, the Falcons would mop the pitch with your pathetic Cannons. The Falcons have better players, more cunning, and are much better equipped. The Falcons are on Twigger 99s, and I heard the Cannons are still playing on Nimbus 2000s. Suiting, of course, for a team that would be better off playing Quodpot.
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 02:04 pm UTC |
Twiggers aren't even good brooms. I can't believe you think they are. They're just supposed to make you look like you have alot of money, and they don't make you fly good at all. Flyte and Barker make all their brooms like that, like the Andretti. And the Nimbus 2000 is a good broom, too. Just because it's a couple years old doesn't mean it's a bad broom.
I don't really follow the Prides, and I don't like the Weird Sisters all that much either. I just think they're a good team and they have a good Dopplebeater Defence, that's all. And Meaghan McCormack is a good Keeper too. Puddlemere probably has the best Keeper, but she's really good. I mean, the Cannons are my team but there are other good teams in the league. The Falcons are okay at rough stuff but that's not all Quidditch is about.
Ludo Bagman is kind of an idiot, but he wasn't even on the Magpies so I don't know why you're using him as an example. He was on the Wasps and they're a pretty good team too. I mean, their fans aren't really nice, but they're not bad.
| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 02:36 pm UTC |
Flyte and Barker are the best broom manufacturers in the business. Just because you don't have the money to afford a Flyte and Barker, it hardly means that people only fly them to look like they have money. After all, if one has money, one doesn't need to bother with appearances, now do they? The appearances make themselves.
Just because you're jealous of my Andretti due to still being stuck on a Firebolt, it doesn't give you an excuse for being under-read.
The Andretti 2004 is the fastest on the market, and can be customised to the individual user. It comes with double the normal Cushioning Charm, making for airtight protection from the discomfort of the fact that, in reality, you are riding a broomstick. According to Which Broomstick, this advancement in Cushioning Charms makes it as though you're literally riding on the air. In fact, you can hardly tell you're on a broomstick at all. Nothing like the discomfort of the Firebolts.
The twigs are Self-Straightening and Self-Trimming, which makes for much sleeker and better leverage when flying. I hear that people who are still living in the Dark Ages and flying Firebolts have to trim their tails themselves. Such a pity that not everyone can afford a Flyte and Barker model racing broom.
The handle and body are made of solid ash, which makes for quite a difference in comparison to the every-day mahogany of yesteryear. At night, the handle illuminates in a light that--fantastically--only the flyer can see, which could be rather useful, I suppose. I believe it's an idea modelled after the Hand of Glory. And, naturally, the label is engraved on the handle in solid gold, which is rather pricey, but worth the extra Galleons (if you have them).
Which Broomstick also says that the Andretti 2004 will set the record for the easiest fingertip-to-broomstick handling rate. Just a simple brush of my fingers, and I'm be able to turn at a complete 360 degree angle at a fixed point immediately. And the Andretti 2004 should reach speeds up to 230 miles an hour within seconds. Which, as you may know, leaves the Firebolt far behind in the dust.
It also comes with the same sort of identification protection wards used at Gringotts, as a matter of fact, so I wouldn't recommend trying to "borrow" it from me to test it out, either. Once the user customises it to their identity, the broomstick will only work for them. Otherwise, it will get up and start attacking the perpetrator and beating them senseless. After which, naturally, the broomstick would still be in perfect shape. It'll then start to shriek, leaving you looking very stupid. Again, I wouldn't recommend you laying your poor, Firebolt-loving fingers on it.
Besides, I've heard that the Falcons are going to try to secure seven Andretti 2004 prototypes this year. Theirs will be coming with the custom tail-shooter, which sends transparent rays of dark-grey and white mist from the tail as one flies.
Obviously if the Falcons are going to be using them, the Andretti is, in fact, the best racing broom that money can buy.
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 02:50 pm UTC |
I'm just saying, Which Broomstick said it can't really fly. I mean, I don't even really see you fly yours, either.
(parent)| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 02:59 pm UTC |
Of course I fly mine. I'm just preserving it in its original state so it doesn't get destroyed.
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 03:03 pm UTC |
I just thought maybe all that stuff on it made it hard to fly.
(parent)| potterstinks @ 2003-02-18 02:37 pm UTC |
And if the Nimbus 2000 hadn't needed improving, they wouldn't have come out with the Nimbus 2001 a year later.
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 02:52 pm UTC |
Yeah, but then the Firebolt came out, too, because brooms always get improved, and it's not a big deal. The Nimbus 2000 was the best broom then, and the Tinderblast was the best broom once, it's just how it works.
(parent)| finch_fletchley @ 2003-02-18 01:29 pm UTC |
Oh, it's really nice how the professors are taking field trips to play Grottle but they're not inviting any of the other Houses. That's fair.
| erniemacmillan @ 2003-02-18 01:31 pm UTC |
Well I guess we haven't won any awards for Special Services to the School, so we don't deserve to play Grottle! Nice!
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 01:33 pm UTC |
It wasn't a field trip. Sirius is my godfather, I mean, he was just taking me to play Grottle with my friends. It's not because he's a professor or anything.
(parent)| finch_fletchley @ 2003-02-18 01:47 pm UTC |
Well you don't see my parents coming and taking me to play Grottle, do you. They probably wouldn't even be allowed. Must be nice, having your GODFATHER as your professor.
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 01:53 pm UTC |
You know, it's not my fault that Sirius is a professor, and he's the best Defence Against the Dark Arts professor we've ever had, except Professor Lupin. Professor Dumbledore didn't hire him just because he's my godfather. And I bet your parents would be allowed, too, except aren't they Muggles?
(parent) finch_fletchley @ 2003-02-18 01:55 pm UTC |
Oh! So now my parents can't take me anywhere because they're MUGGLES! I knew it! I knew you hated Muggle-borns! The truth comes out!
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 02:05 pm UTC |
Yeah, that's what I meant. Or else I was talking about that Muggles can't see alot of magic stuff because of the wards.
(parent)| colin__creevey @ 2003-02-18 01:36 pm UTC |
That's mean, Justin! Prof. Black is related to Harry, he can do whatever he wants! I bet he was just trying to have fun with him! Why don't you just go make your own game of Grottle! Harry was right, he said he didn't know why we didn't play it at Hogwarts--we can make our own game and form house teams! Maybe that will make everyone happy! What do you think, Harry?
(parent)| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 01:45 pm UTC |
Yeah, maybe, Colin. Except, you know winter is almost over, and you couldn't really play without the snow, and you can't really have teams with Grottle.
(parent)| erniemacmillan @ 2003-02-18 01:51 pm UTC |
Oh, so now Potter's relatives can do whatever they want just because they're his relatives! I see.
(parent)| jadedsirius @ 2003-02-18 04:41 pm UTC |
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Harry! We'll have to make it an annual tradition. You played very well, much better than I did the first time.
~Sirius
| just_harry @ 2003-02-18 05:44 pm UTC |
It was great! I still think they should have winter Quidditch, but Grottle is great too. And yeah, I'd really like that, a tradition. I mean, I've never had one, but I think one would be fun.
(parent)