Suddenly, a full-grown mountain troll appears on the Pitch. It's armed with a club and swinging wildly at the students in the air.

Nicholai pulled his wand out, since he hadn't seen anything in thre rules against using it; and pointed it at the mountain troll, levitating the club. The mountain troll wouldn't let go of it but stood there hollering and tugging on the club while Nicholai tugged back and slowly inched past on his broom with his wand still pointed at the damned club. He swung around his broom when the Troll attempted to knock him off with his free hand but got past safely. Now past the thing, Nicholai leaned low and shot forward, still at a steady pace and not willing to go at an all out speed. He tucked his wand away.

"No wands!" Vindictus shouted and subtracted points from Nicholai. "You're to fly around the obstacles, not attack them!"

Astrid gasped in horror as she saw the Troll come into view. Instinctively, her eyes shot toward Nico, her protect so it seemed. He had somehow managed to keep the menacing troll's club levitated high enough in the air to fly under it and she was not going to let his hard work go to waste. She leaned her body in close to her broom handle and flew as fast as she could past the troll. When she was finally clear of it, she shot Nico a smile and mouthed, "Thanks again."

Lucas screamed on his broom when the mountain troll appeared. "Get out of my way!" He yelled trying to clear a path that was well away from that troll. He was too busy looking at everyone else that he didn't see the club swinging right at his face. The resounding CRACK! sent a shockwave through his whole body as he floated to the ground. He lay on the ground till the tweetering birds stopped flying around his head.

He looked around for his broom and when he found it he climbed back on and got back in the air. He made it around that troll this time around.

Anna had been flying along quite nicely and had just passed up a few more people, when a sudden high-force wind nearly knocked her off her broom. Anna rocked back and forth a bit, nearly falling off once again before she was able to steady herself. When she was sure falling was no longer a threat, she whirled around to see what in the world had caused such a wind. "Ahhhh!" Anna yelled, startled at what she came face to face with. A full-grown mountain trowl was stomping down the pitch, swinging a club wildly through the air.

Anna sat still as can be for a few moments, startled at the latest turn of events. How on Earth were they supposed to get around this thing?!? Anna took a few deep breaths and remembered that all of the unusual things that had popped up unknowingly on this pitch had disappeared within minutes. If she made do for just a little bit longer, the mountain troll would be gone, and she could fly around the pitch once again.

Anna jumped as a large, brown object flew right in front of her face. She'd been lost in thought and hadn't been paying attention to where the troll was. Not wasting any time, Anna steered her broom around and darted off away from the troll.

Nicholai shrugged, not willing to argue even if he was sure there had been no mention against using it at the start. He was not regretting using his wand at all . It was a mountain troll, and Nicholai had flown around it. He continued flying bent low over his broom and grinned at Astrid as she took advantage of the situation.

His attention was torn between trying to keep an eye on that troll and trying to race around the Pitch. He knew the whole point was to make sure he did both, but self preservation told him to keep on eye on that troll and that club that was indeed a real club! He slowed down a bit following behind Anna hoping at least she would be able to take of the troll before it hurt him.

Final Task
Hitting a Moving Target
Worth 5 points

*Swoop down and take a fist-sized rock out of the bucket located near the starting line.
*Fly directly at the mountain troll - you'll need to avoid his club that he's swinging about (he thinks you're all pesky gnats).
*When you're within 100 feet of the troll, take aim with your rock - aim for the space between his eyes. Aiming for his forehead is okay, too.
*Release the rock when you're 50 feet away from the troll and then fly upwards (if you don't then you'll be visiting Healer Trelawney).
*Once you are clear of colliding with a club or another classmate, remain high in the sky and fly back to the starting line.
*Land and dismount from your broom. Return the broom to the broom rack, and you may leave the exam.

Nicholai followed the instructions, turning his broom to aim for the bucket and neatly taking a rock, hefting it as he flew higher and angled back toward the mountain troll. Nicholai wasn't completely sure, but it seemed to him the Mountain troll was watching for him after he had pulled his wand on the thing.

Nico was out of practice with throwing things... he hadn't played Quidditch for a long time, but figured muscle memory and his natural aiming abilities would work in his favour.

He came withing 100 feet of the mountain troll and hefted the rock again, taking aim. He hesitated slightly and had to circle around again and he took a moment to collect himself. Taking in to account the wind, the distance and the fact that the Mountain Troll was swinging his ridiculous club as if daring him to get closer, Nicholai took aim again and as he reached a distance of 50 feet, put as much power into his throw as possible and angling it slightly.

Immediately he veered up to avoid the Troll's club and other approaching students. He looked back as he heared a roar just as his rock glanced off what could possibly be called an eyebrow on the mountain troll.

Good enough for Nicholai. He remained high and headed back to the starting line, easily dismounting in one smooth motion and walking toward the rack. He carefully stowed his broom and nodded politely once to the Professor before heading off the pitch intending to study for his next final.

"Oh for all things holy," Lucas muttered. He wanted them to throw things at an already irate mountain troll! Lucas took a deep breath and turned his broom around to fly down and grab a rock. He leaned over on his broom imagining that he was reaching out for the snitch and grabbed a small sized rock out of the bucket, and he was back in the air with a smile on his face.

The smile didn't last long when he looked at the troll he was going to make madder by throwing something at it. He squared his shoulders and shot off toward the troll. T he rock in his hand was trembling slightly and he had to keep flexing his fingers to keep a hold of the rock. When he got within a 100 feet his breath caught in his chest and he reared back to toss that rock as hard as he could. He took aim and let that rock fly. "Please let it hit him." he said as he watched the rock sail toward the troll. THUNK! The rock hit him right on the forehead. "Yes!" He said pumping his tiny fist in the air. He wanted to dance a jig but he was on his broom.

He turned his broom back to the starting line. He misjudged the landing and landed hard and then fell over. He picked himself up and trotted over to the broom rack. He survived. He smiled as he placed his room back on the rack. He thought for sure that troll was going to make a Lucas omelet out of him.

In an attempt to dodge the troll's club once again, Anna darted to the right and then swooped down to grab a fistful of rocks from a bucket near the starting line. When she was sure she had a sufficient amount of rocks, she took off into the sky once again. Anna flew around and around the pitch at first, surveying her target and watching his movements. She was trying to figure out what strategies---if any---the mountain troll was using. When Anna was sure that the troll was just simply moving about recklessly and without any sign of a planned movement, she made her first move.

Clutching the rocks tightly in her hand, Anna headed off in the direction of the troll. She stopped exactly 100 feet from the creature, steadied herself on her broom, and then took her aim. The club was still being swung wildly throughout the air, so Anna was careful not to act when she thought she stood a good chance of getting smashed by it. When the aim looked just about perfect and the coast seemed clear as far as the club was concerned, Anna dashed forward 50 more feet, released the rock, and watched for a brief second as it hit the troll right between the eyes! Anna then darted straight up into the air, trying to get away from the troll as quickly as possible.

Anna flew high enough so that she was sure she wouldn't be hit by the club or another student. She then headed over towards the starting line and landed safely. She then dismounted her broom, returned it to the broom rack, and then made her exit. She was exhausted! This had certainly been one tough final exam!

Becca let out a sigh of relief when new instructions were given. She was about to go kung-fu on that troll for swinging at her, and she did not want to have to unleash her moves in front of the other students so suddenly. It might intimidate and frighten them to tears.

Making sure the troll did not take another swing at her, the Ravenclaw flew over to the starting line to retrieve her weapon, which was a rock, in this case. Definitely not her first choice, but she could make it work. She tossed the rock up in the air a few times, catching it each time it returned, just to get a feel for the weight and how much that would effect the aim and how hard she would need to throw.

As Becca began her flight over to the troll, who stood there looking rather annoyed with students flying around him, she remembered the story of David and Goliath. That's exactly how she felt right now - the troll was Goliath, she was David. And with her mighty rock of power, she believed that she could conquer this mountain troll!

Now, there were about 90-100 feet separating Becca and the Troll of Doom. She locked on her target - she closed one eye and focused directly on the spot between the troll's two ugly eyes. She zoomed closer, watching as the troll caught sight of her approaching, and the second year braced herself for the worst. Now with about a 60 foot gap, she squawked loudly as the troll swung - "NUH UH DUDE! Not gonna happen!" - and slipped out of the way of the troll's strike just in time.

Deciding the moment right after the swinging of the club was the best moment to catch the troll off guard, Becca gripped the rock tightly, aimed, and launched the rock directly at the troll's forehead. "GERONIMOOOO!" She didn't take the time to see if it hit, that was too dangerous and wouldn't give her enough escape time. Instead, Becca zipped straight up into the air as swiftly and timely as possible. She heard the SWISH! of a club below her, but when she looked down... she had exceeded the reach of the troll. And by the response from the troll and the anger that was pulsing from it, Becca figured she hit her target right on. Brilliant.

"Victory is mine, you big oaf. Never mess with me. Never," she spat, and with her head held high she flew to the opposite end of the field and landed at the starting line. She then began to talk to herself, but aimed it towards the students still trying to conquer the troll. "My work here is done. Thank you, comrades, for making this exam quite enjoyable. No autographs will be given, but don't worry - I'll be here the next five terms." And with that, she placed her broom on the rack neatly and exited the pitch.

Oh Merlin's pants, this exam would be the death of him, he just knew it. Raiden hesitated at the obstacles and when the troll appeared, he full on stopped all forward motion. The exam was important, yes, but Miss Healer Intern Lady Trelawney would be really displeased if he had to make another trip to the Hospital Wing over his heart...

He couldn't avoid the last task though. It actually seemed like fun, as mean as it was to bombard the poor troll with rocks. It looked so confused! Maybe it wasn't mean at all... but still. Raiden swooped down unsteadily and scooped up a rock. He flew at the troll, going as fast as he dared, which wasn't quite as fast as he probably should've been going... when he was within range, or what he thought was within range, he threw the rock with all the might his little arm could muster, his broom wobbling slightly as he did so, and then angled the broom straight up into the air. He shot upwards, glancing back down as his rock reached the troll.

It pinged off the thing's nose. Ooops. He had been close, though... He hoped that close was good enough. He flew back towards where they had started, landing unsteadily again. His knees felt all wobbly as he dismounted the broom and put it back in the rack. With a smile to the professor, he headed back toward the castle.

Never underestimate the power of a clear pathway. That should have been rule number one in Dominic's personal book of quidditch laws, especially when a full-grown mountain troll appeared on the pitch. Eying it cautiously, Dominic wavered in the air for a moment and observed the other flyers before he heard Vindictus' final instructions.

In an effort to do as he was told, but also arm himself against the fearsome club and wrath of the mountain troll, the Hufflepuff flew down towards the bucket at the starting line and searched for a fist-sized rock. Upon setting his topaz eyes on one off towards the edge of the bucket, Dominic reached in and picked up, before flying back up towards the troll. Throwing rocks at a troll? Er, didn't the Professor yell at that Slytherin boy earlier for attacking the task?

Shaking his head, the fourth year almost wished he had more training as a chaser. He could seek things, but throwing was not really his specialty. Not that he was horrible at it, but he had a knack for finding and catching, rather than throwing.

Taking notice of the swinging club, Dominic was careful to avoid being within its reach and flew towards about the spot where Anna had flown away from - about 100 feet from the troll. Dominic took careful aim as he flew just a bit closer, about 45 feet from the troll and released the rock towards his head. Not even bothering to look to see if he had reached his target, the Hufflepuff flew upwards quickly as the last thing he wanted was to feel that club against his fragile body.

Once he was clear from the club and the other flyers, Dominic swooped back down to the starting line, dismounting from his broom. He quickly returned his broom to the broom rack and then made his exit. Next stop: Boy's dormitory! Dominic Denton needed a NAP!

Astrid sighed as she listen to the Professor's instructions. Wow! It sounded incredibly hard. She really hoped that she didn't screw it up and get clobbered by his big, old, nasty club. She doubted she'd survive something like that, as tiny as she was.

Doing as she was told, Astrid made her way over to the starting line and scooped up a rock. Holding it firmly in her right hand, she took off towards the Troll. As she neared the Troll she sat up a little straighter so that her aim would be perfect. When she guessed her distance to be at approximately 100 feet away she lifted her rock and took aim.

Cringing every time the Troll's club came down, Astrid did her best to calculate where the next swing would fly. Still moving swiftly towards him, Astrid cut her distance in half again. When she was 50 feet away, she let the rock fly with all of her might, smashing it against his forward hard enough that she could hear it connect. Then she darted straight up in the air, just missing his club as it came down after her.

Excited that she had accomplished her goal, not to mention, conquered her fear of flying, Astrid steered hard in the opposite direction and returned to the starting line. She landed gracefully this time, and hoped off the side of her broom with ease. Then she hoisted it up to rest on her shoulder and carried it over to the broom rack. She set the broom down gently and smiled at the professor as she left the pitch.

Maddox listened to the final task and instructions. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Once he was calm and focused he took off towards the bucket, gently swooping down and grabbing a nice round rock. He held it tightly, like he would hold a quaffle. Once none of the other students were in his path he darted toward the mountain troll.

Noting that the troll was swinging his club, Maddox took in every possible angle he could use to avoid it. Once he was within the 100 feet he aimed his rock. Taking not that the Troll was swinging much harder as he got closer to the ugly beast, he kept a swift straight line.

Once he was at the 50 feet mark, he aimed once more for the beast's forehead, and threw the rock with all his might. Once he let go of the rock he pulled his broom upward and rocketed away from the club. He looked down as soon as it was safe, noting that the Troll was rubbing his head and Maddox's rock was in pieces on the ground, he smirked.


Maddox stayed high, above all the other students, and more importantly the troll. He flew back to the starting line, and landed. He dismounted gracefully, which, for a big brawn dude, was interesting to see. He took the broom, and placed it gently in the rack, making sure it didnt fall over. He nodded and smiled at the professor and left the pitch in good spirits.

Chalice sees the Jack-in-the-box and quickly goes into a steep dive and flies below it. She pulls up just in time to not crash into the ground. She gains altitude and begins to fly around the pitch again flying as fast as her broom will take her.

Professor Vindictus was clearly off his rocker - why was it all the cool people turned out to be insane? It just wasn't fair! But honestly, who in their right min would set a bleedin' mountain troll loose during a flying final! Gah!

Almost getting knocked out of the air by it's flailing club, Clifford expertly dived out of the way and swooped gracefully towards the ground, collecting himself a rock from the designated bucket. Okies, time to show that mountain troll who's boss. Hmpf.

Turning in the air, Clifford leaned flat on his broomstick and raced straight toward the troll, when he was just 100 feet away, he took careful aim - aiming straight for Mister Troll's forehead. Oh yes.

He was just 50 feet away from the troll when Clifford released fire and launched the fist-sized rock straight for the poor, unsuspecting troll. He wasn't a Chaser for nothing, and caught sight of the rock hitting slap, bang on target before he leaned backwards and shot up and safetly out of the way.

Whoa, talk about adrenaline rush. The fifth year hovered for a few moments, watching the rest of his classmates go head-to-head against the troll before he slowly made his way back to the starting area and neatly dismounted his broom. Well, that had been .... different. Putting his broomstick back on the rack where he'd gotten it, Clifford trudged off of the pitch; he was shattered.

After completing the task to fly through the daisie-hoops Nancy just kept hovering in the air blue eyes staring at the daisies' faces like she still couldn't believe what she was seeing. She'd just flown through hoops in the form of daisies and those very daisies even had faces?! This really was some weird exam.

The moment Nancy was finally able to tear her eyes away from the hoops she heard Professor Vindictus' voice and jerked her head in his direction. The next moment Nancy had almost fallen off her broom but had somehow managed to keep her feet tightly around the broomstick which had caused her to perform somekind of weird full-turn on her broom. A little scream escaped her lips as Nancy had finally found her voice again after this little stunt. What the heck?! Was this-? No, it couldn't be, right?

It quickly turned ou that it was. It really was a fully grown-up mountain troll which was standing there on the ground randomly swinging its bat at students or anything actually. Nancy's blue eyes widened in sheer horror at the professor's instructions and she quickly glanced at the other students only to see similar expressions on their faces. They were supposed to hit the troll with stones?! Was this really going to do any harm to the troll? Was it actually going to even care whether there were students throwing stones at him or not?

Nancy continued to eye the mountain troll to keep out of its club's reach she quickly swooped down towards the bucket Professor Vindictus had indicated, picked up one of the stones and slowly started to rise again. Okay, now concentrate, Nancy! Gulping once Nancy inhaled deeply and then turned to face the troll her eyes showing nothing but determination. Gripping the stone firmly with her right hand Nancy flew towards the gigantic troll until there were only about 100 meters between them. Aiming between the mountain troll's eyes Nancy narrowed her eyes so she wouldn't miss her target and dashed forward another 50 meters.

Out of the corner of her eye Nancy noticed the troll's club which was going to collide with her any minute just in time to make a swift movement with her broom to dodge it. Eep! That had been...don't think about it! Her eyes shot back up to see where the troll's eyes were and after letting go of the stone Nancy already took off to get some distance between her and the troll. Looking over her shoulder to see whether the stone'd hit the target or not a smirk crept across her face. Yes! She'd made it. Well, not exactly right between the eyes but the forehead was sufficient as well, right?

After having flown another two rounds just to calm down again Nancy headed for the ground, jumped elegantly off her broom, put the broomstick back into the broomrack an with a "Thank you, professor!" made her way back to the castle. Whoa! That really had been a nerve-racking exam...

Cale nearly let out a girlish scream as the mountain troll appeared right in front of him. But no, he was a man, and men did not scream like little girls. So, he followed Vindictus' instructions and grabbed a rock. He rose up in the air and tried to find a weak spot in the trolls swinging--there was one spot he was continually missing, so he decided to go for that.

He flew forward, speeding up as he got closer and closer. He dodged the club a couple of times, but the troll seemed to be focused on the other people. Tossing the rock in his hand one more time, he took aim. As he approached his mark, he wound up his arm and chucked it WHAM right at his forehead as he hit what he figured was the 50 feet mark. He felt sorry for the troll as he watched the rock collide with his head, but he had to do what he had to do. The fact that the troll was also trying to flatten them made him feel a teensy bit less sorry as well.

He swooped out of the way and went upwards, circling around and coming to land a good distance away from the troll. Surprisingly, he found that the easier of all the tasks. He dismounted his broom and returned it to the rack, trying to fix his curls as he walked off the pitch.