Mariel found it important that she and Lucas were at the race before any of the students, and so they obtained their own portkey to Kopparberg before the start of the race. She gave Lucas the honors of asking a few questions of on of the veteran fliers before they actually got started, then they cheered on the racers as they began. What a privilege it was for the Magical Games and Sports representatives to be here for this!

As the course was nearly 500 miles long, there was no way they could watch it all from where they stood, so, just like many of the other spectators, they apparated to the finish line in Arjeplog to cheer on those finishing. She found a spot at the front of the sectioned of Hogwarts seats and waited for the others to arrive. Hopefully it would be soon as it wouldn't be long for the racers to cross the finish line.

SPOILER!!: Boss Lady! <3

Quote:

Originally Posted by emjay

Mariel found it important that she and Lucas were at the race before any of the students, and so they obtained their own portkey to Kopparberg before the start of the race. She gave Lucas the honors of asking a few questions of on of the veteran fliers before they actually got started, then they cheered on the racers as they began. What a privilege it was for the Magical Games and Sports representatives to be here for this!

As the course was nearly 500 miles long, there was no way they could watch it all from where they stood, so, just like many of the other spectators, they apparated to the finish line to cheer on those finishing. She found a spot at the front of the sectioned of Hogwarts seats and waited for the others to arrive. Hopefully it would be soon as it wouldn't be long for the racers to cross the finish line.

Lucas and Mariel chatted with the flier before the race got started and then they said their good- byes before the race got started. It was a rather exciting one and Lucas felt good upon hearing all the cheers and shouts from the spectators. Competitive flying did this to everyone just as Quidditch did.

When all the fliers had departed from the start, he Apparated to the finish line with Mariel. They were to meet the Hogwarts students and Professors soon. "I have the brooms secured,'' he told his Department Head. He was anxiously awaiting the students. This would be somewhat like being back in Brazil when he did coaching.

Hadley made her way down the steps of the stadium seating. Asher was out of her bag and on her shoulder today, since she wasn't planning to be near the dragons. At all. That would be tomorrow. Today was all about the broom racing.

She found a relatively empty row and sat down next to the aisle. Immediately Asher hopped down from her shoulder into her lap and started to sniff around her bag. She'd bought a plush dragon for him previous day, and the ferret loved the thing. Smirking to herself, Hads opened her bag and took out the plush dragon for Asher and the omnioculars she also bought yesterday. She leaned back and made herself comfy while Asher had fun attacking the dragon on her lap. Time to enjoy the races. Was there an American racer in this?

So this was definitely her first stop. She had to scope out her seat right away. After all, this was the best part of the entire trip! And though she thought she had gotten here quickly, there was already another member of their group present. Tiara set her one, lone bag on the seat in front of the Ravenclaw. "Well Miss Denaker! How did you possibly beat me here?" she exclaimed. And then, after a beat.. "And, erm.. who do we have here?" she queried after spotting the critter in her lap.

"Professor Tanner," the teen smiled, obviously excited. "Fancy meeting you here." The smile became a grin just like that. "I woke up at like 5 AM and was too excited and restless to fall back to sleep. That might have had something to do with it. This is my first Wizarding event ever. And it's on brooms." 'Nuff said right? How much of the race Hadley would actually see versus how much of it she spent daydreaming of being one of the racers was yet to be seen.

"Oh, him?" Hadley joked, pointing at the ferret in her lap. "He's nobody." The ferret was too busy playing with the plush dragon to notice or care. He even squirmed to get back to his toy when she picked him up a moment to give him an apology kiss on the forehead. "No, this little guy is Asher. A gift from Hogwarts on my birthday first year. Isn't that right?" Hads tickled the ferret's stomach, but he skillfully rolled out from under it and playfully attacked her hand before returning to the dragon."And the dragon is Kurwich Kurfluffle. I let Asher pick out the name."

Here she was. The broom races. It was supposed to be the highlight of the trip or something. Sorry but not in her eyes, that had been the dragons. Which she would've gladly reminded behind to stay with only she felt like she had to come to the broom racing. It probably wouldn't take to long for someone to win and then she could be on her way again.

Pushing some hair back from her face the snakette pulled a red hair tie from her wrist and tied her hair back into a loose semi messy ponytail. All the while still walking, her hazel eyes scanning the rows of seats designated just for Hogwarts for an open spot. finding a seat that was empty and so were a few seats around her on every side Hady gladly sat herself down in one. Slumping down in her seat a bit she pulled her hood up over her head even though she wasn't at all cold. Maybe it would keep anyone from noticing her? Highly unlikely but well worth a shot.

Kitty followed the others towards the special section of seats reserved for students and teachers. She was a little bit slower than the others because she insisted on taking pictures every time she passed by people who were dressed fashionably. She wasn't certain they would have all liked that however, so she did it when they were distracted. There were people of all sorts of fashions here, and twice she even passed by other Goths.

Soon she had to put away her camera because they had arrived at their seats. Kitty looked for someone she knew. "Can I sit here?" Kitty asked this question uncertainly to Hady, the sixth year Slytherin student who had unfrozen her and Haddie last year.

Barely had she been in her seat for five minutes before someone was speaking to her. Sigh. Slowly her eyes shifted upwards to take in the appearance of a younger girl before catching the girls voice. Her mind knew who the girl was but sadly with everything else she had been thinking of she was coming up blank on the kids name. "Sure, go ahead," Hadleigh answered with a small nod. This was the girls she had unfrozen last term right? One of Haddie's friends if she was remembering correctly.

She wasn't cruel and wouldn't send the girl away even if she didn't feel much like being around anyone. At least this one wasn't a friend of his or anything so that was a large plus in her eyes.

Fancy? There was nothing fancy about Tiara right now, actually. She was wearing casual robes and sneakers, which was something she rarely did in the presence of students. Clearly she was at ease in this setting, and her excitement to be here was obvious. "Well try not to fall asleep when the race gets closer. You will certainly not thank yourself for that."

Then her attention was taken by the ferret. "Oh I doubt he is nobody, poor creature," she said sympathetically. "May I?" she asked, her hand extended. She had never pet a ferret before. They didn't bite.. right? "Interesting name. How exactly did Asher pick it, may I ask?"

Hadley shook her head. "I am way too excited to fall asleep. Don't worry." It was good to see Professors loosened up, dressed more like everyday wizards and witches.

"Oh, Asher knows I was teasing. He knows he's my boy and I love him," she scratched his forehead. "Don'tcha?" And she was his as much as he was her. No one would ever separate them. "You may. He loves to be scratched under the chin, just fyi." And Asher loved meeting new people, and getting pets from them. "Well, the dragon wasn't sure what it's name was..." Happens from time to time. Rarely but it happens. They couldn't all be as sure of their name as Charlie the broom. "So I threw out a bunch of options to Asher, since it is his toy, and let him pick the one he liked. That was Kurwich Kurfluffle."

Rooney knew they had very little time here compared to that of the time they had at their castle back in Scotland, so he was determined to see everything in equal amounts that he felt he hadn't neglected anything here. He had already promised his Mother a detailed review when he got back to school and he needed to know everything inside and out to do that to the best of his ability. But there was only two people he wanted to really see anything with. His Char and his Liv. His Liv would totally hit up the shop to buy presents for himself later, or just to get food. Either way... this was his time with his Char.

And none of her friends that he just couldn't make himself like as much as he tried. But he WAS trying.

"There are special seats saved for us, you know?"

Tiara understood the sentiment and nodded. It was like the rush she would get before a gymnastics meet growing up. Early mornings just didn't seem to matter, adrenaline carried you through it all.

"It sounds like you and Asher make a fine team, then," she remarked. She had never had a pet of any sort, not even a goldfish. Or a pet rock, like Airey. So she really enjoyed getting permission to bond with someone else's pet, even if it was only for a moment. "Hello, Asher!" she greeted, giving him a few scratches in his favorite spot. "You be nice to Kurwich Kurfluffle. He looks like a very nice dragon."

The stands were starting to get a few more people at this point. "I wonder when the racers will start to arrive. I do not think I can wait too much longer!" But really, she couldn't. "Maybe some sort of announcement will let us know or something." Hopefully so, because eventually she wanted to visit that food court area she had passed on her way over here...

"There ARE? Okay!" Charlotte was looking FORWARD to the broom races. That was the best part about Sweden, she was pretty sure!

Even better than that was the part that she was here with her friends. Not that she was sure where they were but that didn't matter right now because she was going to sit with Roo and it would be the first time for ages that they were just hanging out and having FUN!

"Are those our seats?" She pointed at some at the back.

Kitty sat down happily next to Hady, glad that the seat hadn't been reserved for somebody else. After she was seated she took out her small hand mirror to examine herself. Her hair had gotten blown backwards by the wind so she combed it with a small comb from her robe pockets.

After awhile she noticed how dispirited Hady was acting. It occurred to her that she should try to start a conversation."Do you like Quidditch?" I'm afraid I never really was all that interested in it," Kitty admitted truthfully. "I know I could never play because I'm not very good at physical activities and would probably die or have broken bones. But I like watching people watch it, since it's fun to see how much people enjoy it."

Yeah, she liked when her friends were having fun. Hopefully she wasn't bothering the Slytherin with her chatter.

Rooney decided that it was his JOB to lead the way and squint a little to make sure they were their seats. "I don't think those are them." But he did think it would be a good view from there. "Maybe we can sit here until other people need to sit down." He actually liked sitting at the back better. Not because he could hold her hand or point out funny things in the crowd, but...he wasn't at all close enough to having an accident or being at the beaten end of a broom battle. The back was safe.

"I got us some things to make posters." Because he was being fun like she wanted him to be.

Rooney Bronwyn could be fun.

Hady slumped down in her seat, her hair falling into her face and hood still on. It wasn't highly unlikely that her attempt at 'hiding' was doing her any good but that didn't stop her from trying. All she could hope was that if she was noticed that she would also be avoided and they would continue on their way.

This idea was made a bit easier with someone sat at her side. As Kitty began speaking to her she cast the younger girl a slight side-ways glance. "Not really no," she answered quietly in truth. "I don't follow any teams anyhow but my stepbrother is supposed to be trying out for a team soon." Hady shrugged her shoulders for she didn't exactly know the full details on this. "It is kinda fun to play if you're just in it for a good time." It had been a few summers since she had actually played honestly. That three day camp a few terms ago to be exact.

Broom races are AWESOME. But you know whats better than Broom Races? Broom Races in Arjeplog that’s what!

With an armful of snacks that can feed a small army and his omniocculars hanging around his neck, Tenacius made his way up the stands and plopped himself top and center-- best seats in the house at a complimentary price. Cant beat this deal.

So who's in the lead eh? The leonine lad fidgeted with his omniocculars as he stuffed snacks into his mouth munch munch munch.....

"Yeah, I think we do. I don't think I'd have made it through the summer without him and Wimple. My owl." Wimple was back at Hogwarts, hanging with his owl peeps, but she visited him as much as possible. Sadly she couldn't take Asher too, because well, that might not go so well with some of the other owls.

Asher, meanwhile, was practically melting under the chin scratches. He was becoming a ferret puddle. Hadley just chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, I think he'll be good to Kurwich Kurfluffle. He's already attached to the dragon." He's only had the toy for a day, but it never left his side. Hadley moved it away from him once, and had to reprimand the ferret for biting. He was not a happy camper.

"An announcement would be grand, actually," she agreed. She'd been to races before with her parents. Drag races, Nascar, etc. Dad wasn't exactly a race fan, but he'd get tickets now and then and take the kids with him. Mom too if she was off that day and he could coax her into it. "Have you seen many broom races? This is my first."

Tiara continued to give the ferret a few scratches under the chin as Hadley responded. Wimple, huh? Where did she come up with these names? "If he starts to be too rough, apparently all you need to do is give him a good chin scratching. He just gave right in to it!" Tiara stopped the massaging attention just to see what he would do.

Seriously, some sort of countdown clock or something would do the trick. "I have been to plenty of broom sports, though most of them were Quidditch. I have never been to this particular race, which is the biggest one around. But a few times I have gone to smaller races in Europe." But none were so long or had so many delicious-smelling treats to tempt her away. Although..

"I think I may see some activity by the starting line.." she trailed off, peering over the gathering crowd to see.

The ferret waited a few seconds to see if the scratches would return. When the didn't, he began to chatter and dance around on Hadley's lap, trying to coax Professor Tanner to continue. Hadley laughed. "Yeah, but stopping tends to wind him up again."

"It's a shame they still won't let Quidditch back at Hogwarts. I'm dying to learn how to play it." As much as summer programs would normally be an option, Hadley couldn't count on it with the way her Dad was about the magical world. "Are they?" Hadley pulled out her omnioculars and looked through them in the direction of the starting line. "Yeah, it does look like they're lining up. Here, see." She passed the omnioculars to Tanner.

Mariel turned and nodded at Lucas. "Perfect." She was certain some of the students would enjoy a little flying once the race was over, and she glanced over the railing to see the area designated for the students. She might even fly some herself if there were enough brooms.

She pulled out her omnioculars to see if she could see where the fliers were in the race when the first of the Hogwarts students started to arrive. She'd have guided them to their seats, but it seemed as if they knew were to go, considering the section was pretty clearly marked anyway. Besides, there was an adult there with them as well whom she'd expect to be one of the chaperones. The woman actually looked somewhat familiar to her.

Turning back to the course, she looked through her omnioculars, watching for the racers. "Here they come!" she announced to no one in particular. Hopefully Lucas brought his own omnioculars. And she wouldn't know if the students had a chance to stop by the souvenir booth to purchase any. She was far too excited for this race to care. But the racers would be visible soon enough for everyone, with or without visual assistance.

Tiara figured that she would be having the Quidditch conversation at least once on this trip. It was only natural since they were spectators at a broom sport. But.. she didn't control what was decided on that front. And with an interim/guest Head, this certainly was not going to have been the year for it. "Well, I miss it as well." It had been her whole life before Hogwarts, then still while at Hogwarts for a while. Fortunately, she really enjoyed Arithmancy as well.

Tiara was spared having to come up with some type of generic, noncommittal answer by the appearance of the racers. She gladly accepted the omnioculars from Hadley and focused them on the point of interest. "Excellent!" she said with evident satisfaction, handing them back.

Her eyes were trained on the lineups as the racers took their marks. She began to clap and cheer along with the rest of the crowd, anxious for the action to finally start. "Got anyone in particular you want to win?" she asked Hadley.