Open Hard Won Victory

[Orélie Manuel]

The game against Hogwarts had been unbelievably vicious, tempers and frustration in the whole team running high as player after player was hit with no end in sight. Orélie could still barely believe it had all happened, the phantom feeling of the snitch still gripped so tightly in her hand even now that they'd made it back home. She, Penelope, and Aidan had had some time to recover back at Hogwarts, being tended to by the nurses there, but she was still aching all over. But nothing was going to stop her celebrating with her team after a game like that.

"To our amazing team! Let's hope we never have a game like that again," She called out to the gathered group, wincing as she raised her glass. Her other arm had been wrapped around Nadine almost permanently since she'd nearly collided with Orélie after the end of the match, all previous animosity from earlier in the year forgotten out on the pitch after such a harrowing match. "I couldn't be more proud of all of you, really," She said, still feeling wobbly with emotions and pain after everything.

 

[Grace Martinez]

Grace was tired, it had been quite a rough game, with some fighting and yelling in between, but at least it was done and no matter how many hits her teammates took, they still managed to nab the snitch before the Hogwarts team, even with three people playing as seeker. It was a miracle, and luck, though she believed Orélie had talent in that position too. It was no wonder she was co-captaining for the team. She was relieved that her humiliation at being unable to hit many bludgers didn't last long. She smiled brightly when her captain raised a glass and Grace did the same, cheering. "To our amazing team, well done for continuing to fight even though there were bludgers coming at us in all directions." It had been an unforgettable game, and as that had been her last, she knew she was never going to forget it. She approached Orélie with a small smile. "Nice grab you had there," she said, referring to her catch of the snitch. It had been a really close call, as one more hit and she would've been out like Aidan and Pip.​

 

[Nadine De Rosier]

It was a relief to be back in France after the intense match at Hogwarts in New Zealand, and back on familiar ground. While she enjoyed playing against another school, she always found it somewhat disorienting to play in a place that wasn't familiar to her, and where everyone was rooting against her team. The game had been brutal, but now that they were back, it was something to brag about. Especially Orélie, who was really the star of the team today. Not only had she caught the snitch on her very first time playing seeker, but also right after being hit by two bludgers. She held a little speech, raising her glass. Grace added to it a little, and then it was Nadine's turn. She stood on tiptoes to raise her glass the highest. "And to Orélie, who won the game for us all!" She called, grinning at her friend. "That was a legendary catch, you know." She told her proudly. All their fights were now behind them, as far as Nadine was concerned. She felt nothing but affection for her Co-Captain now. If the game had done nothing else, it had at least helped heal the rift between them.

 

[Mualla Avar]

It felt good to be back at their own castle again. She had heard that matches could turn out to be brutal but only thought that stuff like that happened in the professional leagues and not the kiddie league. What felt less good was the fact that she had been playing awfully all throughout the match. She had failed to protect not one, not two but almost three of the Seekers and couldn't help to feel absolutely gutted about it. Still, she joined in the celebrations when the others started to raise their glasses, not wanting to bring the whole mood down by her moping. At least she was determined enough to train even harder over the holiday and come back kicking butt the next year. ''And don't forget that we're the international champions, too,'' she said, raising her own glass with them to remind them that not only had they won from Hogwarts but from Ilvermorny too earlier that year.

 

[Simone Moreau-Chen]

Simone was happy to be back at Beauxs, if only because it put many, many miles between her and that awful team. The last few moments of that game were such a blur. She just remembered desperately racing towards the goals trying to make some points while their team was under attack. She had hardly noticed when the game was finally over. In retrospect she was a little embarrassed that her moment of anger once the game was over got turned into such a melodramatic scene. But given the chance she would do it again. The look on the Slytherin’s face as it made contact with the quaffle was just too good. “I’ll drink to that!” she shouted after Mualla gave her toast and Simone took a sip of her drink. What she wouldn't give to have champagne at a time like this. She looked around awkwardly as no one else drank. “And we can’t forget the fallen seekers." she said, looking around for Aidan and Pip. "You both did great even if you got bludgeoned out of the sky.” she said and raised her glass again.

 

[Orélie Manuel]

Orélie continued hanging off Nadine, giggling when she raised her own toast to her, feeling warm and giddy with her teammates despite the lingering ache in her body. "You were all amazing, though Simone, if you ever pull the sh*t again I will destroy you," Orélie said sweetly, though her eyes clearly read how much she meant it towards Simone. She got it, she had wanted to defend their seekers too, but it had not been worth getting dressed down by the stupid Hogwart's ref. "But that's that, now we get to celebrate. We've got to make sure we send our Grace off in style," She said, turning to toast Grace with fond sadness. Orélie knew she hadn't really been on the team very long herself, not compared to Nadine or Grace, but they'd all become pretty tight knit in her eyes and she would miss Grace a lot. "It won't be the same without you next year,"

 

[Grace Martinez]

Grace had wanted to protect her fellow teammates, and as it had been her last game with her girls, it hadn't been a very uplifting result. But, it had been fun, and unforgettable, and she knew that they had all done their best, and they had pushed on, without giving up. When Orélie mentioned her, Grace smiled warmly at her. She was really going to miss them all, it had been a fun few years playing with them. "Try not to beat the sh*t out of anyone when I'm gone," she said jokingly, although she sort of meant it. "And show 'em who's boss next time," she added. It could only go up from there, Grace was convinced. They were going to do an amazing job, they had amazing captains, after all. She felt sad as Orélie told her it wouldn't be the same without her, and nodded. "It won't be the same without you guys, either."​