England lost again.

That means... nothing. Jones started, the reserves played, Germany got their revenge for the Euro Cup, and everybody got one last hurrah in Japan.

Now Wasps training is going to grow past me, Llewellyn, and McCormack. We've been playing with a starting Beater, Chaser, and Keeper, so it's a good mix at any rate. Obviously Wiggleswade's been out because she's decided she's tired of breaking her nails or some shit, but we've known that since Scotland came back from the World Cup.

Macnair and Malfoy are in jail and it's fucking funny.

Aggie's in Portugal and fucking Edhino isn't, that's one thing we can all be happy about. I hope Australia hits him square in the neck with a bludger. Edhino can be grateful he won't be playing me until Wales makes the next Euro Cup.

Then I'll break his neck if somebody hasn't already.

Octavian and I are moving into our new flat this weekend, so I'll be out by the time Wintringham gets home from the Blenkinsop-Jones wedding.

My birthday's at the end of the month. Something will come up.

I saw Harper out with his kid the other day, and that was fucking weird.

( Private )

Octavian comes home from Hogwarts today. He needs to get his bloody NEWT scores and find a job so that we can get a flat in Wales. The only reason to stay would be so Howard can keep picking up on his Welsh. He sounds more like one of us every day.

It's the off-season, and I'm still locked into my contract, so I'm not going anywhere. I don't know if anybody else is or not, everybody's so bloody quiet about it. Innis Peasegood is retiring. That's fucking news, but he ended this season well so he should take the good end while he's old enough. Keifer Wiggin announced his retirement today too, so Hebe's got a lot of parties to go to this weekend.

( Private )

I've got a date for the Quidditch Ball thing. She's fit, she's a Healer, and she's got three names. She works in Artifact Accidents, Stephen Abbott pulled through for me and set us up. I've already met her for coffee and taken her out to dinner, and I really hope McCormack likes her.

I wish Eileen's father would let her out of that fucking pub

The season's over now and I haven't got the World Cup or any qualifiers. Octavian gets out of school in a couple weeks, and I told him we could find a place together if he doesn't sign with the Arrows. I'm waiting for Octavian to do something fucking stupid like announce his plan to get appointed Minister or work at Flint Cauldrons when he gets his NEWT results, but I'd still live with him, as long as it's not the Arrows.

I missed Adrian's birthday this weekend but I heard it was good.

Today I heard something about Holly Wintringh Ockley's birthday, so Happy Birthday Holly.

( Private )

I hoped everybody's liked what Rita Skeeter's had to say about me and Ludo. I'm not wearing my FREE LUDO BAGMAN badge right now (hope that doesn't put you back a couple of NEWTs, Octavian) but I've got it in my pocket and I'm flashing it at everybody who wants to know what I think.

They can free fucking Mulciber while they're at it.

We will take care of the fucking Prides and then the Bats and then the Kestrels. We end our season with the Cannons. We'll take care of them too.

Fucking FUCKING FUCK

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK

FUCK FUCK

FUCK

Alright so what I said at the press conference was, "Well sure Peasegood could've made an easy fucking slip with his bludgeon and bludger around Meg McCormack, he's only been playing professional quidditch since 1958 and those bludgers are fucking volatile."

Along with, "Well McCormack was a good sport about it, she has to be fucking honest and say that even though she is 100% sure that Peasegood would do a shitty thing like that, she was only .5% sure that he did it."

And, "It's every Beater's dream to smack a player after the referee has blown the whistle with no consequences."

But what I really meant to say was FUCK

Well this month, I can say that Octavian learned how to send a fucking letter. I've got twelve since 1 March, and the one I just got said "Send more Spellotape."

What the fuck that kid is doing with all the Spellotape, I can't fucking tell you because the letter didn't tell me, but I have a feeling that everybody in Slytherin who drinks with him has some idea. I'll send you the fucking Spellotape, and you can decide if I want to know what you're doing with it, Octavian.

Today the Arrows play the Wanderers, and I'm going with whoever. Last count was Ludo, Howard, Darius, and Blenkinsop (Barnabus not Brock). We'll see how Trent Blenkinsop swings refereeing this one and how Kiefer Wiggin's back's holding up. Sorry about the hit last week Wiggin. I don't know if the other two Blenkinsops are going. It's the only match today, so the tickets should sell well if it's not already sold out.

Portree, Montrose, and Wigtown play four matches this month. The Scottish are going to go broke going to matches every weekend, and Merlin knows how they'll choose which ones to see. At least this weekend it was easy. Portree won yesterday and Wigtown's up today.

Next weekend I know I'm going to watch Blenkinsops v. Urquhart in Puddlemere/Portree on Sunday, but I'll have to decide which one I want to see Saturday.



Wait.

Portree plays Saturday and Sunday next weekend.

Magpies and Puddlemere.

What the fuck?

( Private )

Thick fog for training this morning.

Well Brock fucking Blenkinsop proposed to Calypso at the end of the match Saturday. I don't know what the fuck he was thinking, proposing on a pitch with Tugwood, his brother, Bagman, and a number of other people who are not fucking married. I don't know which one shouted "MOTHER FUCKER" but it sounded a lot like Warrington but that was the general fucking sentiment.

Congratufuckinglations, Blenkinsop and Calypso. Hayley, you're getting a sister.

Looks like there's another divorce in the air. Maybe they'll put it back together, but it's one of Johanna's cousins and I heard all about it from

Octavian's back at Hogwarts where he belongs, Puddlemere's below us in the rankings where they belong, and my owl's in its newly cleaned cage, where it belongs. It shit all over last week's articles about Blenkinsop upsetting us going into the World Cup season. Not this weekend.

The match to see Sunday was Portree and the Magpies, and I'm glad I went. Lots of bloody Scots screaming at the top of their drunk lungs. Keitch beat Hell to the snitch after a full day of play. Don't know whether Hell let the snitch go one too many times or if it really did hide from Keitch and Hell all day long. Either way, it made for a full day and I think both teams' Healers wore their wands out.

Next Saturday, the Bats play the Kestrels and Slytherin plays Ravenclaw, and next Sunday, we play the Harpies.

Happy New Year.

Octavian's home, and he's working his way through all of the liquor in Wales. Tonight we're taking a night off because he's going to Orsino Thruston's birthday party, so really I'm taking a night off and he's probably showing up at the party with a few drinks already in him.

I don't know if there's something wrong with him or if he just likes the drinking.

We've also played Quidditch with Aggie, and I almost hit him with a bludger but he dodged it. I'll get him before the end of hols, rest fucking assured. He's got his match against Ravenclaw in January, but really we've got our eye on his pro career if he can fucking wrangle it. The league needs good Keepers and so does fucking Wales, so I'll try not to knock him in the head when I finally hit him.

I'll get him.

We went on the Knight Bus and caught up with Ernie. We went to Bhaksar's. Same fucking shit I do all the time.

The Wasps beat the Kestrels, and we're not playing again until after the New Year, when we take on the Falcons. I am so fucking ready to play the Falcons... and we have to wait for 2 January, when Octavian's on the train back to school.

Octavian really fucking needs to get out of Hogwarts. He should also skip the Snowball but no, he has to take the fucking Spinnet-Morgan and go

The Beater's Bible is selling for Christmas, but nobody needs to buy me one (if you have already, give it to somebody else, everybody should have a copy) because I got one a complimentary copy and it's a fucking good read. Scrimgeour found something to do with his time after he retired from the winningest team in Quidditch history. I've done a few of those promotion things with Ludo and Scrimgeour.