Simon unconsciously winced as Kurumi collided with the latest barrel, but he couldn't help thinking it was better then it could have been. And better then flying off into the stands like what had happened when he stopped her spinning the last time, which was the main reason he hadn't tried it again this time. He nodded as he listened to her explain what happened, glad to see she was alright.

The captain raised a slight eyebrow as Kurumi in fact challenged him to a race, almost about to decline figuring not to pressure seeing as it wouldn't be entirely fair between them. However Simon decided to take her up on it, figuring it would be more fun then just flying through them one by one. "You're on then..." he replied. "Race starts once we both fly through this one," he instructed motioning to the one the younger girl had hit into figuring it would give them a warm up, the older lion setting off to go through the 19th barrel.

Halfway there! Ariella coaxed herself as she flew threw a few more barrels. She glanced down. Oh my goodness. Broom on fire. Broom on fire! A small scream escaped her mouth. Almost done. This torture will be over soon. She closed her eyes as she flew threw another barrel.

Quite relieved that they were using a Quaffle instead of a goat's gallbladder, Vashti took one before mounting her broom and kicking off the ground. She never got over the rush she felt every time she soared into the air; it was amazing every single time. Though, perhaps, even moreso now, with all those fiery barrels to fly through. It was really kind of exciting looking at them all and knowing that she wouldn't get burned...and yet, at the same time, it was a bit frightening. It was one thing to imagine going through a burning barrel - it was another thing entirely to actually go through a burning barrel. But she'd never really know until she tried, right?

So she tucked the Quaffle securely under her arm and zoomed off, heading straight for the first one, trying not to think about what it would be like in a normal game of this, without fireproof equipment and spells...

In a matter of seconds, it was over. There was a rush of heat, the light from the fire filled her vision, and then suddenly she was out, the burning barrel behind her, the rest of them ahead. It was over so quickly - but there were loads more, which was good because this was too fun to stop now. She reluctantly slowed her broom though, quickly glancing down at herself to make sure she hadn't caught fire anywhe-

GAH! Her arm!

It didn't actually hurt, of course, but the shock of seeing her arm ON FIRE got to her, and she dropped the Quaffle. Brilliant. She waved her arm a bit, the fire quickly died away, and then she dove for the Quaffle, just managing to catch it and pull out of the dive before either she or it hit the ground. Phew.

Kurumi nodded and shifted her seating position on her broom a little just to make sure her feet were properly in the holders. She didn't want to go falling off now, especially when she was gaining confidence about being on one. She looked down at the handle and ran her fingers over the carved portion of it.

Leaning forward, Kurumi followed Simon through the barrel, picking up speed just a bit so that she was at least even with him. As the tip of her handle emerged from the flames, she looked over her shoulder at him. "Loser has to bake the other one cookies!" she winked before leaning forward more to pick up speed. Really, that situation was a win-win for her. That is, unless Simon was a terrible baker.

Zooming forward, Kurumi weaved through two more barrels before picking up even more speed. She could feel the flames lick her cheeks and a few times her robes caught fire, but she hardly took notice of this. As she approached her forth barrel, Kurumi looked around to see where Simon was. She had been too focused on watching her own broom's handle to notice anything else.

Janice flew through a few lighted barrels. Soot was covering her, but the quaffle is safe in her hands.

20 more barrels to go.

Brushing the spot where the flame just was, Mina righted herself again. The spot was still a bit warm and she had to admit that it was kind of cool to be on fire and not get burnt. There were still 29 more barrels to go and she did want to make it through all of them without running into someone and going down in a ball of flames.

Taking a moment to let a few more people through, she circled back around and attempted to go through a few more barrels without catching herself on fire. Not that she was intentionally going it or something.

Pulling up on her broom again, she began to fly back toward the next set of barrels. If she times it right, she could possible get through maybe three or four of them without running into another flyer.

Eying the barrels as she flew closer, she leaned her body close to the groom and maneuvered just to the right as she flew through her second barrel with no trouble. Pulling to the left a bit, she flew through the next one and continued onward.

Most of the other flyers were well ahead of her at the moment and she didn't feel like she had to rush, but that competitive side of her was coming out as she leaned into her broom more and picked up a bit more speed. In the back of her mind, she reasoned that if she could clean maybe another three or four more barrels; she would be in good shape again.

Looking up just for a moment, panic flashed before her eyes as she realized that she was heading right for a barrel and she going to fly right into it. Pulling the the right, she nearly rolled herself over as the bottom of the broom and robes brushed the fiery ring as she passed through.

She couldn't stop in middle barrel, but she could feel the heat on the back of her heels now and just needed to get all the way through. The fire would extinguish itself, she just needed to keep flying.

Ariella was starting to get used to the rush. Although she still got a little freaked each time she saw fire on her or felt some heat, she was warming up to the challenge. She flew through a few more, feeling the wind in her face. The heat from the fire was starting to fog up her glasses. Thank goodness for a fire-protectant charms. Only 10 more to go!!!! The quaffle started to slip from her arm. Uh-oh. She reached to try and grab it. The broom swerved off course. She yelped as she fortunately regained control of the quaffle and her broom and kept going as if nothing happened.

Now how many burning barrels did they have to fly through again? Sierra took a quick glance around the pitch. Merlin! There must be thirty or forty of the blasted things! At least she already had...what? Five down? She thought so, but then again, it was a little hard to focus on counting when your limbs were on fire!

...but anyway. She stared forward, making sure she was judging her position as accurately as possible, and then she soared through the middle of the sixth hoop. Her skin caught on fire again, but she tried not to think about it as she soared through the seventh and then the eighth hoop. Somewhere between the ninth and tenth hoop, her skin stopped burning, and it relaxed her enough for the ride toward the eleventh hoop to be pretty much a piece of cake. Before long, she'd flown straight through the twelfth hoop.

...great. Only about twenty more to go, and she should be done.

The seventh year couldn't help but chuckle at her words, Kurumi laying down the groundwork for the challenge. Simon sped off as they both exited the barrel zooming through the first one of their race. Granted it was a little tight but the younger lion's small size and his lanky stature helped them alittle as they both passed through another neck and neck. If asked, the captain may have admitted he was holding back but he wasdoing his best not to show it so it appeared totally fair.

"I'm right behind you," Simon mused with a chuckle as he spotted Kurumi looking back at him. He did manage to catch up as they slipped between the 22nd barrel into the 23rd for the inbetween spaces allowed them more freedom of movement and he soon overtook the lead slightly.

Okay, four barrels down and only two mishaps with fire. Mina reasoned that wasn't all that bad. There were just 26 more to go and she needed to try not to panic or catch herself on fire again.

Glancing back to check that she wasn't still on fire, she flew toward the next set of barrels. They were all starting to look the same to her and the glowing flames of them were even starting to distract her more as she flew. But, no she needed to focus and make it around the pitch at least once.

Tucking the quaffle in her arm again, she bent over her broom, gripping it tight as she attempted to fly herself through the centre of her fifth barrel and then on through the sixth and seventh. The faster she flew the better it would be for her. Yes, they weren't being timed on it per say or anything. She just didn't want to look like a complete slacker.

Clearing the seventh barrel, she sped forward taking on the eighth, ninth and tenth in quick succession. Flying up and down as to avoid flying into someone. She was slowly making up time as she noticed everyone ahead of her.

Kurumi squeaked and temporarily let go of the handle of her broom when Simon spoke. She couldn't return his chuckle, especially since her face was mostly one of surprise, but she did manage to return her hands to the handle without straying off course to much.

She made a somewhat dramatic turn to the right to avoid colliding with the entrance of barrel 24th and found herself chasing after Simon's robes through the 25th. She figured as much, and with only a few more to race though, Kurumi began thinking about what sort of cookies to bake this time. No! Bad Kurumi! Now was not the time to be thinking about cookies...unless it were possible to cook some of them using the fires on the barrels. That was an interesting notion...

Mentally slapping herself, Kurumi leaned forward to pick up a bit more speed and try to keep herself even with Simon - well, as even as a third year on a broom could do with a seventh year. Still, she couldn't help but feel that she had seen him flying much faster at practices...

Must be all the heat melting her brain.

Nika did a double check to make sure she had all of her equipment on properly. Everything was good. She looked around and saw others had already started flying and some were even done, but Nika hadn't even left the ground. She was practically quaking in her robes.

She could barely fly and now they have to add fire and barrels!? She was glad that they were using a quaffle instead of the bladder, but it was still nerve racking. She took in a deep breath and kicked off into the air. She was only hovering a good five feet above the ground and she knew she had to get higher.

So she took in another deep breath and looked around at the barrels. Right. She'd just have to get to their level. She began to fly up until she was high enough up, and merlin it did not feel safe. She went forward and flew through the barrel. She panicked when she saw that her robes had caught on fire and tried to blow the flames out which didn't have a very effective result. Taking a few more deep breathes she made her way through a few more barrels. Merlin this is going to be one long class.

Hehhehee. Lexi gave Evelyn a thumbs up in return as she breezed through about another 10 barrels with the dom tucked under her arm safely. Fun times. FIRE and FLYING all wrapped into one. There was SURELY nothing better than that. For reals.

as Lexi approached the 27th barrel she faltered just a tad as she WATCHED the fiyah. It was so very, very pretty after all...

Sweat trickled down her cheeks as Janice flew through the lighted barrels. The heat was killing her.

15 more barrels to go.

Nika took a few deep breathes. She was starting to go into a state of panic. Flying... Flything through barrels.... Flying through barrels that are on fire...

Was Vindictus trying to kill them!? What idea of a nasty, cruel lesson is this!? Nika took in deep breaths and made them quick and short. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. Breath. She looked around and saw some more burning barrels nearby. If only this class could be over already.

She went forward at a decent speed and went through the barrels. Her robes were starting to really catch on fire and Nika was starting to freak out more.

Imagine you're on a tropical island with Emily and Samira. Your going to go and relax by the beach and the heat isn't coming from the flames... It's coming from the nice hot sun.

She flew through more barrels and by now she was really feeling the heat. Why must her imagination choose to fail her at her most needy time!

Simon didn't register much of Kurumi's surprise at his words and appearance beside her, the seventh year trying to focus more on their surroundings. For while the fire didn't burn it was still an annoyance that was probably best avoided as well as one could. Now in the lead, the older lion continued his flying through the last few barrels in their chase, keeping a steady pace even if slightly slower then normal.

Blame it on trying out a new broom...Yeah that was it.

He glanced back to keep on his companion, spotting Kurumi near his broom tail the whole time and keep pace fairly well. Simon couldn't help smiling at her progress as he turned back just in time to pass into the 29th barrel.

Nika was taking huge breaths as she looked around worriedly. She was only glad that she was able to stay up in the sky for that long without even falling yet. It was a big accomplishment for her. She looked at a flaming barrel in front of her and closed her eyes as she went through it, which didn't turn out to be such a good idea.

This time she got flames all over herself and she was in a sudden state of panic. "EEEEEEP!" Flames. Fire. Barrels. Flying. Nika. Not a good combination. Flames+Nika+Flying= bad, bad things. She looked towards the ground and suddenly regretted it. Why didn't she listen to her gut!? It was telling her not to look down, but she did anyways.

She lowered herself towards the ground and hovered for a good five minutes before deciding it was now or never. Thank merlin the flames disappeared after ten seconds, but the heat was killing her. Even though it was winter and it did feel a bit good, it was just too much to handle. Was Vindictus trying to torture her for not answering any questions earlier!?

Woohoo! Mina was a third of the way done. Ten flaming barrels and only two mishaps. She was kind of getting the hang of it all now. Of course, she wasn't really flying as fast as she could and she could be a bit more daring with her flying, but she didn't want to go showboating. No, she wanted to make it out of this lesson alive and without making a complete fool of herself.

Circling around a bend, she eyed the next set of barrels. She was going to try the next five a bit quicker and with a little more grace then she had the first ten. She wasn't some newbie on a broom and her flying at the moment wasn't helping her show that.

Straightening up slightly, she positioned herself low against the broom. The Dom safely tucked under her left arm and nestled against her and the broom. That thing was not going anywhere and she was sure of it. Looking straight ahead, she manoeuvred her way through the other flyers around her and flew through the next five barrels, trying to only steer herself through the centres.

With twelve barrels out of the way and what seemed like a hundred left to go, Sierra continued her flight around the pitch. She eyed the thirteenth barrel, and noticing that she was heading more for the fire and less for the center, she veered her broom a little more to the right.

...and now she was too high, and she'd graze the top part of the barrel rather than the center. She lowered her broom just in time to fly right through the middle. Of course her skin was on fire again, but by this point in the game, she'd gotten sort of used to that. Only sort of, though. Getting used to something like being caught on fire wasn't exactly easy.

She flew through the fourteenth barrel, then the fifteenth, sixteenth, seventeenth, and finally eighteenth barrels. Merlin! It was getting warm out here. She drew in a deep breath and continued flying.

As Janice went in and out the barrels, she can't help but noticing the others flying past her, and put the quaffles in the final barrel. She had the urge to just finish this thing, and not to get burnt.
Professor V had put us all in anti-fire charms, right? She thought. So if we touch the fire, will we get hurt? As if to answer her question, her hand accidentally brushed the walls of the barrels. The heat was unbearable, but it didn't hurt. No burn marks, thank goodness.

10 more barrels to go.

How many barrels were they supposed to fly through again? With all of this udder madness Nika was starting to lose track of her own number of barrels. Flying through flaming barrels was harder than it looks, and it looks pretty dang hard. She was shaking and her hands were getting really sweaty, really fast. She was starting to lose her grip and so she took turns wiping each hand on her robes.

Is this what Vindictus calls fun!? What's his idea of fun?! It looks like a few students were actually enjoying this game! But how!? Nika was too busy panicking let alone having "fun". Her parents had raised her to never play with fire, but here she was flying through it. This is mental. Mad. Crazy. Insane. Like Vindictus, he's all of the above... and she thought Shaw was insane. At least he only made them catch hyper cats, not fly through fiery barrels.

Nika looked around and continued through some barrels. No matter how hard it was she was going to get it done. Not for the sake of "fun", but for the sake of becoming a better flyer and maybe even earning a few house points. She was trying her hardest...

Kurumi watched as Simon entered the 29th barrel ahead of her. Hmm...due to the heat from this lesson, perhaps a cookie with a litttle bit of a citrus taste to it would be best. Lemon perhaps. Nothing beat a nice cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer's day.

Smiling to herself, Kurumi leaned forward and gripped the handle of her broom tightly, making sure that the quaffle was still tucked snugly under her arms and shot off after Simon, her only chance at this was somehow passing him before he got out of the barrel, but things were so tight in there that the only way that were possible would be to shoot out through the burning top and glide back down in front of him.

Probably best to not risk that with their match coming up soon. Kurumi and fires were not the best combination.

Smiling all the way, Kurumi's broom handle was practically jabbing the tail of Simon's broom as they emerged from barrel 29 one after the other. Kurumi hovered for a moment as she looked at the last one, a smile on her face. Hey, she hadn't fallen off her broom, this was a very big accomplishment!

Nika couldn't help it, she looked at the ground again. Even though after she did it the first time she regretted it immensely. Seeing the ground so fair below her dangling feet was very terrifying. So she decided that she'd take another small break and fly towards the ground again. Maybe after a few minutes she'd gain some confidence.

Nika started to fly down towards the ground. She'd hopefully be able to stop around five feet above the ground so that she could just hover safely without having to worry about falling. Speaking about falling.... Nika almost forgot that she wasn't the only one in the sky. On her way down she made a sudden turn after almost running straight into someone, but she wasn't able to regain her balance. She ended up falling off of her broom and tumbling towards the ground. Luckily, it didn't hurt too badly. She wasn't too high up so the damage should be minimal.

She looked at the broom and noticed that it was fine as well and gave at a sudden sigh of relief after this realization. She took a few deep breaths to regain whatever little confidence she had in the first place to get up on the broom. She kicked one foot over and looked up to the sky. Not too many barrels to get through....

"Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God." Brielle whispered to herself over and over again while trying to put her shaking body into the broom. Growing up in a muggle community, there were a thousand curse words she had heard from everywhere, and she was tempted to say them all out loud in the moment. Why? Because she didn't like fire. HATED it, sometimes. And besides, who wouldn't be afraid to go through what they were supposed to go through now?

Finally sitting on her broom, she stomped a bit of the ground and her body rose to the air. Slowly, slowy, her broom rose on until right in front of her was a burning barrel. The protection she was wearing better really be fire-proof.

Seeing that she was pretty much halfway through the blasted course, Sierra focused all her attention on the nineteenth barrel. It was just up ahead, and there were probably about five barrels lined up right after it, so she leaned forward on her broom, causing her speed to slightly increase.

Whoooooshhh!

She flew through the nineteenth barrel with ease. The twentieth barrel was positioned slightly to the right, so she steered her broom to the side, flying straight through number twenty, as well. She continued in this way until she'd flown through barrels twenty-one through twenty-four. Merlin! Not too many more to go!