LYOVA RASMUSSEN - A Durmstrang Quidditch Captain.

Chapter 32 - DRAGONS

LYOVA RASMUSSEN POV - Durmstrang Quidditch Captain

The whole school had become crazy about this game. Durmstrang needed to win by a hefty amount of points to have still a chance to win the cup, so they needed to prolong this match as long as possible and score as quickly as they could before the snitch was caught.

When Lyova and her team went to breakfast, they already heard students chanting through the corridors. Some even approached them, wishing them luck. Lyova nodded politely but didn't answer.

She needed the time before the match to get her head in the game. It was part of her pre-match routine to not talk much until the captain's speech, and her teammates knew about it, so they didn't address her.

The chanting and shouting accompanied them also on their way to the locker rooms, where they quickly changed into their uniforms.

Lyova opened her locker and changed into her trousers and a sports top. She laced up her chest guard and put her deep red jersey on. Her name was embroidered on the back of her robe in black thread with a big, bold number four directly below.

It was an old Durmstrang tradition that whoever was the team captain got the number four. It represented that the Team Captain was the centre of the team, as the number four was the middle of the seven digits.

Her Transylvanian Barb leaned against the wall, waiting for her to take it. With a last glance in the mirror, Lyova straightened ponytail and walked over to the boys' locker room.

"Hurry it up!" she shouted when she saw that half of her players didn't have their robes on. She was not in the mood to mess around, and her teammates quickly got ready and gathered around to listen to her.

"I don't think I need to impress upon you how important it is to do our best today. And by best, I mean, win this match. We need to score and score fast. Viktor, if you can fake out their seeker, do it. Delay catching the snitch until we're at least sixty points ahead. And remember, Emeryk will be reporting everything to Karkaroff. I need you to be sharp. I need you to show him that we're a great team. I chose every single one of you to be part of this team, so prove to me I didn't choose wrong."

Her voice had grown louder as she pierced her teammates with a fire in her eyes. They nodded at her, determined and followed her on the pitch, where the chanting and shouting again surrounded them. Lyova walked towards the middle of the pitch and waited for the Hufflepuffs to appear.

"Emeryk it is, now?" Lazarev murmured into her ear with a grin.

"Keep that for later, Davor." A frown crossed her face as she thought about the fact that she had accidentally used Kasprzak first name.

"HERE WE GO AGAIN, FOLKS! THIS GAME IS IMPORTANT FOR BOTH TEAMS. IF HUFFLEPUFF WINS, THEY TAKE THE LEAD. IF DURMSTRANG WINS, IT PUTS THEM BACK IN THE RUNNING FOR THE CUP," Lee Jordan roared into his microphone.

"THE WONDERFUL RASMUSSEN AND HER TEAM LOOK READY AS EVER. LOOK AT THAT BEAUTIFUL FACE, NOT TO MENTION HER...Sorry, Professor. I intended to say character – obviously".

Lyova couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle before she saluted towards the commentator box and shortly bowed. The students on the tribunes laughed and cheered at her unexpected actions as Lee again spoke up.

"What about a date on...Never mind – here we have the Hufflepuff team, led by their captain Cedric Diggory, who made some great catches in the last matches. What will he do today when he needs to beat the incredible Viktor Krum?"

Lyova stepped forwards to shake Cedric's hand, who looked just as determined as her, an expression on him that she had rarely seen before.

"Determination suits you."