August 22nd, 1890 — Morocco vs. Britain World Cup Match
Howler Stadium

The summer, which had started off as wholly uneventful, had become so overwhelming that the Quidditch World Cup seemed like an afterthought. He initially thought it would only be Mr. Bell, Maddy, Oakshaft in attendance, but the revelation of Greta's abilities meant that she (and their mother, because being the only muggle in the house somehow sent her into the mindset that she needed to be involved with the magical world) would come along as well. Earlier in the month, Mr. Bell had announced that they would not only be going as a family, but that they would be joining the Bixbys and the rest of their school friends.

The match arrived before he knew it. He stood elbow-to-elbow with his his friends as they leaned over the railing overlooking the match, Greta on his right side and another friend on his left.

"Now this is why I said you'll never need a broomstick," Cameron said to his sister in amazement as he watched one of the Moroccan chaser whizzed past their section, a blur to the naked eyes. He couldn't imagine flying that fast either, but he supposed he'd need to learn if he ever planned to make the professional league.

(But even he had to admit: the rate in which British players were getting whacked by bludgers was terrifying enough to question his dreams, if only for a moment.)

He looked back at Sloane, wondering how she was feeling. He didn't have a brother out there—none of them did, except for her.

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— OPEN TO Greta Gillenwater Madeline Bell Alcyone Slughorn Sloane Bixby Edison Moony Anne Moony Calla Potts Sisse Thompsett —

  

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While Sisse was not interested in quidditch the way her friends and brothers were she had desperately wished to attended the World Cup. An event as exciting as this, no she certainly didn't want to miss it. So while her father had already bought tickets for the boys, Sisse had wheeled her brother about attending with her friends as soon as the invite arrived. And now here she was, watching her eyes glued to the action more than she had anticipated. Thanks to her friends she understood enough rules to know what was going on but the injuries made her wince. She didn't think she would ever be able to watch a school match the same way again, she'd forever fret about the injuries her friends might sustain.

"They're so fast." She watched in amazement as another chaser zoomed by. She was keeping her distance from the front of the box, not wanting to get in the way of those who really really wanted to see the same. Besides, over the summer she had grown an inch or two and now stood taller than Sloane and Maddy, making it easy enough to see.

  

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Thank you Bee <3 Your magic has made Sisse bloom

This was not Sloane's first rodeo with the World Cup. That said, it still wasn't particularly easy to watch her brother out there with murderous kneecap-busting bludgers and beaters out for her brother's head. It was both thrilling and nerve-wracking all at once. Thankfully her father and Mr. Bell had gone in together on a private box and Sloane had mostly been able to bully her father into inviting most of her friends for the event. Well, since she, Cam and Maddy shared the same friends, it was pretty easy. Wally had his best mate with him so he was occupied and Alvin and Harrison were mostly keeping to themselves. Alvin (and Sloane herself) was still in a bit of hot water about the park incident and laying low.

"Right? It's crazy to think they can move that fast!" Sloane was a quick flyer herself, but because she was small and she practiced that specifically for seeking. This was another level entirely! "I really hope Rufus can avoid those bludgers today." That was really her only worry. So far the British chasers were making fools of the Moroccan team, but the beaters were a different story. Hopefully with MacFusty at full strength this time, it would make a difference.

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Greta's mouth was permanently agape as she stared at brightly coloured people who zoomed past. She vaguely  remembered Cam explaining that some of the players were from Hogsmeade, the wizarding city, and some had come from Morocco but she hadn't really been listening. There had been just so much new information coming at her these days that retaining it had become a bit of a worry. She was definitely beginning to suffer abit of magic-overload. It was if her preparation had been useless because now she was trying to learn everything she could and there was just so much to learn that a month wasn't nearly enough. She felt jealous of children who had their whole lives to get ready - she wasn't sure at this stage she'd finish reading her text books before term started! She was sure her teachers would test her on them that first week no matter what Maddie or Cam said!

The speed of flyers was one thing - as was the noise of the stands. Cam had pulled her out to the railing so they could better watch the flyers and she tried to make sure she didn't grab at his arm in fright as some more zoomed past. He was with his friends now and she didn't want to embarrass him.

He mentioned something about about her never needing a broomstick and all she could do was shyly nod and try to remember to close her mouth because no doubt she looked like an idiot - she definitely couldn't picture herself up there flying like that. She spotted a girl on one brooms though - that was amazing in itself.  In her new world girls could fly and compete in matches like this with boys.

Greta quivered in excitement.

Her world had gotten so much bigger.

  

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Thanks go to the marvelous MJ for her sensational set.

"I'm sure he'll be okay. He's trained for this, right?" Alcyone said in reassurance as Sloane spoke about her brother. She glanced at Greta, her new sorta-cousin, her best friend and cousin Maddys stepsister, seemed awed and Alcyone honestly couldn't blame her. "They must all be so full of adrenaline," she couldn't help but comment. She knew she had been each time she had tried out for the Quidditch team. Which had been every year since her first year.

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Ned had been pleasantly surprised that he had received an invitation to join Sloane's family in a private box. He had fully expected his family would be perched up in the nosebleeds, if they attended at all. He had probably thanked the Bixbys a million times over before the game started, and he sat in rapt attention of the edge of his seat.

"Your brother is very agile, I'm sure he'll get out of this unscathed," Ned commented, agreeing with the others, even though he thought the Moroccans were particularly brutal.

He could feel Anne brimming with excitement next to him, so he nudged her with his shoulder and beamed at her. His face silently said 'isn't this amazing?' before lifting his arm up in victory as Britain scored again.

"As long as they keep those bludgers away from the seeker, Britain could win this thing." He hoped.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3 <3

ICalla stood at the edge of the box, leaning over the railing, eyes glued to the match though she did mind what her friends were saying as well. She stood out like a sore thumb, but that was mostly because she'd gotten one of her sisters to charm her dress into the colors and patterns of a British flag that rippled across her. The fact there were so many women playing thrilled Calla - she likely wouldn't have been quite as excited otherwise, though still excited. Both teams had female chasers and she'd spent the whole game watching them like a hawk.

Cameron's sister looked overwhelmed and Calla couldn't blame her.  From what Cam and Maddy had told her they'd thought she'd been muggle - which was understandable.  It was rare to she multiple muggleborn children from the same family. Still, it wasn't unheard of,  so she'd accepted the change with little fanfare,  welcoming the incoming first-year into their group without batting an eye.

"But that applies to the Moroccans as well. They are keeping pretty neck to neck - even if their play tactics are... questionable."

Eyebrows knitting together, she tore her eyes from the game to glance over at Cameron as she slowly processed what he said. "What do you mean she won't need a broomstick? You are from a Quidditch family and even if she doesn't want to play she should at least know how to fly!"

  

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look at the pretties mj made me!!!

This. Was. Everything.

Though Maddy was half-listening to the chatter of her friends around her, she, like her father, had her eyes and the bulk of her attention focused entirely upon the match before her. It was certainly rougher than Hogwarts matches—rougher even than the professional matches she had seen in the past—but it sill had its own sort of artistry, and the young chaser was entirely entranced.

  

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— Bree is a graphics genius ♡ —

Cameron glanced over at Calla, who said everything he expected she or Maddy or Sloane to say at some point. They were quidditch players, so in their minds they likely thought every girl was born to fly. Greta wasn't. She was his little sister and he knew her, and he was still entirely unconvinced that she would do any better on a broomstick than any average first year. (Not that he thought she'd be good for nothing—he thought she'd be powerful with jinxes once she learned a few.)

"The Bells are a quidditch family," he reminded, always feeling compelled to make the distinction. Greta may have never known their father, but Cameron had, and he was adamant that he would never be a Bell. It didn't matter how affectionate Ambrose could be towards him, nor that Greta had started calling him father; there was a relationship between father and son that could never exist between father and step-son. It was fact. Little Oak—who at the moment was parked at his father's side—was proof of that. "And I'm a quidditch player. And don't you worry, Greta will get her time on a broom." He looked down at his sister with a forced smile, and then looked back to Calla. "She just doesn't need her own."

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While the conversation surrounded her Sisse’s eyes caught on the dirty air near one of the chasers. “That doesn’t seem like fair play.” She commented, her eyebrows furrowing as she suspected it to be a nasty trick.

But it wasn’t foul play that would make Sisse concerned to be a spectator at every quidditch game she would ever attend in the future. No, it was the bludger that was hurtling right toward the stands - indeed for a moment it almost seemed to be coming their way. “Do you see that?” She gasped, pointing (rather unladylike) in the direction of the bludger. Her breathe caught in her chest as she watched in horror as the scene that unfolded before her. It had hit a spectator box.

  

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Thank you Bee <3 Your magic has made Sisse bloom

Ned listened to the chatter about Greta and frowned. His gaze drifted over to Anne, hoping she was too engrossed in the game to speak up on the matter. He was certain she would have opinions. If his sister wished to become a quidditch player, he was fairly certain he would find some way for that to happen. Even if it meant sacrificing his broom so that she had full use of it.

Sisse drew him away from his thoughts, and he stared in horror as the bludger in question went straight into a spectator box. Ever the big brother, he shifted his body a bit, hoping that he could somewhat shield Anne's view. However, he was somewhat distracted trying to get a good look that he didn't do the best job.

"Merlin, I hope everyone is okay."

But how could they? Even up in a private box, they were all sat fairly close to one another. Hopefully, someone just broke a kneecap, since that seemed to be a theme.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3 <3

Anne was nearly vibrating with her excitement. She was going to the Quidditch World Cup! If that wasn't enough, she was going to enjoy it from a private box with Ned's friends. This was every Christmas and birthday and Ned coming home from Hogwarts day all at once and it was just too much for one little bouncing body to handle. As if her brother wasn't already the most amazing wizard, his friends were so amazing and they played quidditch, too!

She'd peppered Miss Bell and Miss Potts with questions and then meeting Miss Bixby a player and the sister of the Rufus Bixby was overwhelming. Anne had a million questions for the gathered friends, but the game began and she couldn't bother with the manners of polite conversation. "Bixby! Bixby! Bixby and Robins!" Anne squealed with delight. She loved chasers, they went so fast, but beaters were her favorite. How much fun would that be to fly and get to smack bludgers at people?

"Do a lot of knees get smashed at Hogwarts?" Even to her, this was getting violent. A possible answer was delayed when Miss Thompsett - and half the screaming stadium - drew attention to a bludger that was far too close to the stands. "NED!" Anne shrieked, grabbing her brother around the waist, ready to hit the ground with him. The bludger passed their box, crashing somewhere that was blocked by Ned's body, but she heard it. Merlin, she heard it.

Tears jumping to her eyes, the shock of a close bludger more frightening than anything, but now there was screaming. Looking around Ned, but holding tight to him, Anne couldn't make sense of what she was seeing. This didn't happen, not to spectators. "We have to help them." It was out of her mouth before she thought better of it. "Ned, we have to help."

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MJ about made me cry with this one!
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Greta this, Greta that, Greta, Greta, Greta. He'd been so engrossed in his sister's presence, which to him was so out-of-place after four years of keeping the magical world all to himself, that he didn't notice the bludger enter the stands until the screams around him signaled that something was wrong. He frantically glanced around until he found the source of the screams: a number of rows down a bludger had entered one of the private boxes, causing a panic in the surrounding boxes. Cameron immediately wrapped an arm around his sister's shoulders and pulled her tight against his side, gripping he like he was afraid the railings would suddenly disappear in front of them.

Moony's sister was the most vocal of all, crying that they needed to help. He wasn't sure what they could do; they could go around saving each other—he glanced backwards at Sloane to make sure she was okay—but they were still just students. None of them were healers or aurors trained to help people in distress. Merlin, he hoped everyone would be okay.

"It's one of the bludgers," he said, voice raised, to Greta in the midst of the panic. This was why he didn't want her playing quidditch. This is why he wasn't a beater. The game came to a sudden pause on the pitch, with the announcer shortly after making the dreaded announcement: the game was paused until further notice.

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Sloane, more than content to watch and answer any questions by the little sisters of the box (oh, how the tides had turned!) was keeping a close eye on her brother as things got progressively more violent. Ugh. If there was ever another tournament hosted by Britain in her time as a professional player, she would certainly think twice about trying out.

That was when things really started to go awry. Rufus was kneecapped by the vicious beaters of the day and suddenly the bludger went zooming into the stands. While everyone else's reaction was to duck to grab someone else, Sloane threw herself at the front of the box leaning far out, not to where she thought the bludger may have gone, though from the looks of it the box wasn't too far away, but to where her brother was now grounded on the pitch.

Shaky hands gripped the railing, white-knuckled as her hair faded to almost black and she felt a little nauseous from the implications of what had just transpired.

No, no world cup tryouts in her future.

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Anne hated everyone and everything. She hated quidditch, she hated sports, and she hated gravity. After her head finished screaming, the only thing she really hated was fate and human fragility. Merlin (that's right, she swore!), this was all a bad joke. Buried against her brother, Cameron's voice drew her attention and calmed her for a millisecond. "But what about the other bludger? Does someone stop the other one? Nobody else needs to get hurt!"

Near panic at the idea of another bludger of doom and death, Anne noticed that Miss Bixby was clinging to the railing and, shockingly, not vomiting. Good on her. Remembering amid the panic that the professional Bixby was broken someplace below them, Anne reluctantly let go of her brother and tapped Miss Bixby on the shoulder. "He is very brave. He doesn't even look sick and I bet he didn't cry. Should you go make sure he's safe?" Naturally, if Ned was in trouble, Anne would come flying faster than a bludger to fix things.

It wasn't until Anne looked back up at Miss Bixby that she noticed something was different. "That's not what what color your hair was!" Anne squeaked. Wasn't stress supposed to make you old? What was going on?!

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MJ about made me cry with this one!
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Ned draped an arm over Anne as she grabbed at him, most of his attention on the commotion in the box that had been hit. His sister's insistence of helping the spectators dragged his gaze away, and he looked down at her with a strained sort of smile. It spoke to her character that she immediately wished to help those in trouble. "Anne, none of us would be of much help. If someone was struck, they'll need the attention of healers, which none of us are. We would only get in the way." Not to mention, he would prefer that his sister didn't gaze upon what could potentially be a gruesome site. She was brave, but she was only eleven.

The announcement of the game's official pause had him wincing inwardly. Although it was only his assumption, he feared that meant someone had been harmed particularly severly.

"I'm sure the officials will be sent out to retrieve the other bludger," Ned commented, trying to soothe Anne. It wouldn't do to have her constantly worried about some sort of rogue bludger ruining any future aspirations or interests in quidditch.

It was then that he finally looked to Sloane who had moved to the front of the box, her hair now nearly entirely black. If he hadn't been so worried about the implications of her hair change, Ned would have laughed at Anne's choice to mother hen Bixby. "She's right. Bixby. I'm sure your brother is alright and safer on the ground. An official pause means his injuries can be promptly seen to."

Moony looked around at those gathered in the box, and he raised his voice slightly, so all could hear. "Perhaps, we should all take our leave?" It seemed as if many were overly stressed by the goings on, and he was sure the Bixbys would want to be sure Rufus was alright. Not to mention, he wasn't sure he could de-escalate Anne if they remained much longer.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3 <3