Prologue

Green Ink, after the first letter only bad things ever arrived in envelopes addressed in green ink. Which left me, staring at the envelope in my hands, with a sense of dread rising in my stomach. "Miss Elizabeth Alvic" the curly handwriting glared up at me, I glared back, wishing the letter back onto the leg of the owl it was attached to, out through my window and away into the morning sky, undelivered and unknown. Unfortunately no amount of magic could make that happen, and with a resigned sigh I tore open the hated envelope, already knowing what it was going to say. A matter of seconds confirmed my worst fears

Dear Miss Alvic
Congratulations! You have been appointed Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain. Please report to Quidditch pitch on the 4th September at noon.
Yours
Madam Hooch

The letter was verified by the looped signature of Professor Dumbledore decorating the bottom of the page. I groaned and placed my head in my hands. It was going to be a very long year.

I suppose at this point I should offer some context. I know most people would have killed to be Quidditch Captain, and don't get me wrong I enjoyed the sport. I was a good chaser, I'd been on the team since my second year, but I'd never in those five years, ever wanted the captaincy. I'd seen how stressed the previous Captain had been. Every second of his life had been spent organising strategies and negotiating practices. Quidditch captain also made you a target, both from people in your own house and from rivals. Not to mention the fact I would be the only new captain, Flint, Wood and Diggory had all held their posts in the previous year. I knew that to them I would just seem like fresh meat.

At the same time though, I knew I couldn't decline. The position was rightfully mine, I'd been on the team the longest after all. Furthermore I was the only one allowed by the school rules to be the captain. Several of our team had left that summer and the only other member in my year, my fellow chaser Grimes had announced that he was quitting the team at the end of last year. Which left me with my second problem as the new Ravenclaw Quidditch captain, I didn't have a team, well I didn't have a full one at any rate. Cho would probably resume her position as seeker, she was a good flyer, one of the best in the school, and Duncan , a fifth year, hopefully would continue as a beater. But that still left me short two chasers, one beater and a keeper. Every team would be holding try outs but no one else would have so many new players. It was almost certainly a disadvantage.

And that was the problem; if I didn't care about the sport I wouldn't mind being captain. But I knew that somewhere along the line that desire to win would overcome me and I would become like my predecessor, obsessed with the game. I sank down on my bed, for the first time I could remember, dreading September.