Kī O Rahi

Gabrielle was one of the first students to abandon the stuffy Hogwarts robes and slip into a pair of shorts, eager to embrace the warm weather on Moutohora Island. Despite the fact that the Hogwarts students were not used to the heat, they were taking it in stride, as the friendly New Zealanders offered them refreshing drinks to keep them hydrated and they joined in as the rest of the schools had a good-natured laugh at the Polaris students from Svalbard, who were still dressed in their thick fur coats and were obviously struggling to keep cool as the days classes wore on.

Potions class on Moutohora Island was like nothing Gabrielle had ever experienced before. The usual dreary lessons were transformed into an adventure as they wandered into the lush forest to gather their ingredients. The old Māori Potioneer's brewing techniques were like a masterclass in the art of potion-making, and the students were enthralled as they watched him bring the Strengthening Solution to life under the shade of a grand tree. As they learned, they breathed in the sweet scent of the forest, listened to the rustle of leaves in the gentle breeze, and were in awe of the beauty of the island's natural surroundings. For Gabrielle, who had always found potions dull and tedious, this was truly a magical and unforgettable experience that would stay with her for a long time to come. It certainly beat sweating over a cauldron in the stuffy dungeons where Professor Slughorn taught potions at Hogwarts. Whilst her own Strengthening Solution was far from perfect, it was a marked improvement on her usual attempts, and she left the class feeling quite pleased.

After classes had finished for the day, Regina suggested they take a hike to the other side of the island, attempting to see as much of Moutohora as they could in their short time on the island. Gabrielle was more than happy to comply, eager to spend time with her friend and swap stories about their day, even if it meant a trek in the evening heat. The pair of them made their way around the north side of the volcano, crossing some pretty rough terrain as they made their way to a stunning white sand beach, where Regina stripped off her shorts and t-shirt, an unexpected move that left Gabrielle's heart racing. Regina's athletic build was tanned and toned, her long dark hair falling in loose waves down her back, and her curvy hips would no doubt catch the eye of many a beachgoer if they were back in Gabrielle's hometown in France. She moved with a frustrating grace and ease as she dove into the water, her laughter ringing out as she splashed and played in the surf, beckoning Gabrielle to join her. Gabrielle almost followed her in blindly, but not before her fear of water snapped her out of her trance. She would be much safer on the sand, she thought, and besides, Regina might have the confidence to prance around the beach in her underwear, but Gabrielle definitely didn't.

Gabrielle stayed on the shore instead, watching her friend swim, and waving off her protests that the water was lovely and relaxing. She felt a confusing mix of admiration, affection, and a strange sense of yearning. As the sun began to lower in the sky, Regina emerged from the water, her skin glistening in the orange light. She smiled at Gabrielle, and the two of them sat together on the sand, watching the sun start its descent towards the horizon.

"I really like it here," said Regina, who was mercifully pulling some clothes back on whilst Gabrielle tried to keep watching the Horizon. Stop ogling at your friends Gabrielle thought to herself. She'd already put up with two years' worth of torment from Julie and Jo at Beauxbatons for having a giant poster of Elisé de Laserre in her room, and she'd be damned if people at Hogwarts started teasing her about having a crush on Regina.

"Potions is definitely better here," Gabrielle replied, hoping Regina hadn't noticed the pink tinge burning into her cheeks.

"Potions is fine at Hogwarts," Regina waved her off, "you just don't have the patience for it."

"I prefer my magic to be pretty, and colourful, and not take eight months to complete. I don't see what's wrong with that." Gabrielle said hoisting herself to her feet and readying herself for the return trip. "I know what you mean though, it seems very relaxed here. Nice weather too. I think the scenery is better at Beauxbatons though."

"Are you trying to say Beauxbatons is better than Hogwarts?" Gabrielle said nothing but stuck out her tongue and gave Regina a wicked grin. "That's dangerous talk you know, you're a Hogwarts student now."

"Almost wasn't," Gabrielle replied mournfully, "My mum went absolutely spare when my name came out of the Goblet of Fire. My father is..." Gabrielle thought for a moment, struggling to find the right words in English, "Ministre des Affaires étrangères*… he talks to the other countries governments to help with trade and peace and other things. Anyway, he tried to pressure your government into getting me out of the tournament, but it didn't work."

Regina seemed to consider Gabrielle with a look of pity on her face, and the pair walked on in silence for a few moments. "Your Dad must be a pretty important man." Gabrielle shrugged nonchalantly. Her Dad was an important man in France, but when your best friends' father was the French President, he seemed less so.

"He reports directly to Jacques DuPont. You've played Quidditch against his daughters, last year."

"Oh, are they the twins?"

Gabrielle nodded her reply. "They were my best friends at Beauxbatons, we live on the same street."

"Is it only Wizards on your street?"

Gabrielle nodded. "Mostly it's politicians and influential families, we live in a hidden part of Quiberon, a bit like Diagon Alley, only bigger."

"I'd like to see that," Regina responded, gazing far across the green landscape, "add another stop to my tour of the world."

"Ask your parents if you can visit, I'm sure mine won't mind, we have plenty of space."

"Both my parents are dead." Regina let it slip out quite casually, but the shock of what she had just revealed stopped Gabrielle dead in her tracks. Sensing an explanation was due, Regina carried on. "During my fifth year, You-Know-Who had taken over everything. The Ministry, the school, Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, everywhere. You can't imagine it; you don't want to imagine it. Attending Hogwarts was made mandatory, it wasn't in the past. I mean, everyone went to Hogwarts, but you didn't have to. Mum and Dad weren't having it, they wanted to flee to Torino, that's where they were from originally, it's where I was born. The Snatcher gangs got wind of their plans and came to the house to drag me to school. I was tied up and flung into a carriage and taken up to Hogwarts. I only learned afterwards that my Mum and Dad were murdered trying to rescue me."

Gabrielle had no idea what to say, and Regina had turned her face away from her, probably welling up with emotion. So, Gabrielle did the only thing she could think of, and flung herself forward, wrapping her arms around the older girl and holding onto her tightly. Regina stiffened at her touch, but then, much to Gabrielle's relief, relaxed and returned the hug.

"You never told me." Gabrielle mumbled sadly into Regina's chest.

"You never asked," Regina sighed, "and it's not something I like to bring up very often."

Gabrielle continued walking, this time keeping her arm wrapped tightly around Regina's waist. "Come to mine for Christmas," She said, the worlds tumbling out rapidly, "Mama is going to send the car to Hogsmeade, and you can take Fleur's bedroom because she'll be staying with Bill in England. My family speak good English, except my Grand'Mere, but she doesn't like to speak to me anyway, so you won't be missing out. We'll visit Julie and Jo, and I can show you around Quiberon, we might even go shopping in Paris."

"I don't want to intrude on your family at Christmas."

"You won't be, my dad will be at the office most of the time, and my Mum will love having another girl to fuss over, especially as Fleur is staying in England," Gabrielle realised that she was almost pleading now and it would be best to drop it, "at least think about it." Regina nodded and the pair plodded on in silence. As the terrain became rougher once more Gabrielle slipped her hand out from around Regina's waist with what felt like a pang of regret as the pair scrabbled up a steep slope that would get them back to the school quicker.

After almost an hour of walking the tents that made up the foreign schools' campsite hove into view. Students were beginning to emerge from their tents, and the air was abuzz with excitement. It was time to find out what the first round of the tournament of Champions would entail. Gabrielle and Regina joined the throng making their way towards the fire pit. Professor Taylor was already there, guitar in hand, plucking an upbeat melody with a carefree ease that could only be achieved through years of practice.

"Thought you'd gotten lost," said Joshua, grabbing a plate and making his way toward the barbecue.

"So did I when we were climbing over the steep part of that hill," Gabrielle replied, nodding her head to the peak that she and Regina had just descended from. Joshua shook his head with a resigned sigh.

"Not for me, thanks. What are you hoping for with the first round?"

"To not have to do it," Gabrielle answered honestly. "Seems like we'll have to do it though. A Quidditch match would be ideal for me, but it's not gonna be that simple." Joshua gave another shake of his head.

"I don't understand the fascination everyone has with Quidditch," Gabrielle looked at him as if he was completely round the twist, but he continued, "Looks too dangerous to me. Don't the other players hit you a lot?"

"Yeah," replied Gabrielle with a smirk, "but you can hit them back."

"But what if you fall off? You could die!"

"Oh, there's an easy solution for that."

"What?"

"Don't fall off." The pair gave a chuckle and sat on the grassy bank watching the bonfire blaze away in front them. It occurred to Gabrielle that this was the longest she'd spoken to Joshua since his name came out of the Goblet of Fire. He seemed quite shy and reserved, the opposite of herself. But as Regina had said, the Goblet of Fire picked the best students for the tournament. There must be more to him than meets the eye. Gabrielle decided to probe further.

"What about you? What do you hope it is?"

"Nothing on a broom that's for sure," he responded with a worried look to the sky.

"Okay, but you must have your own strengths. What kind of stuff are you good at?" The older boy flushed a deep pink, and clearly didn't feel comfortable giving an answer, but Gabrielle raised an inquisitive eyebrow, pushing for the information.

"Er… I'm not bad at charms," he supplied, "and I'm top of my year for Herbology."

"There you go," Gabrielle smiled, although this was far from the answer she'd hoped for. Herbology might come in handy when they travelled to Brazil, but she doubted that the Kiwis were going to set them a task involving plants. "We'll definitely need you to be on top of your game at Castelobruxo."

"That's a long time away though, we've got a lot of tasks to get through before then." Gabrielle nodded in response. This seemed to mark the end of their conversation for the evening, as Joshua turned his attention to his plate. The grassy embankment they were sat on was still abuzz with chatter though, and Gabrielle knew everyone was waiting impatiently for the same thing. The first task.

As though on cue, Headmistress Taylor struck an ominous chord on her guitar that silenced the entire crowd in an instant. She must somehow channel magic into her guitar, Gabrielle thought idly. The headmistress fingered away at the guitar, playing a darker, more edgy tune than the one that had provided the background to her conversation with Joshua. The flames of the bonfire burned a deep blue and began rising higher and higher until they formed a column of cobalt that illuminated the faces of most of the crowd. The face of what seemed to be a hardened warrior appeared in the flames, similar, Gabrielle though, to when she had seen her father call home using Floo powder.

"In ancient times," Headmistress Taylor called softly, "there lived a powerful wizard by the name of Rahitūtakahina, Rahi for short. He was married to a beautiful witch named Tīarakurapakewai and they lived happily for many years. One day, a rival tribe entered the village and kidnapped Tīarakupakewai, and took her to their home, a large volcano." As the Headmistress told her story, shadowy figures danced in the flames, acting out the scenes she was describing. Gabrielle couldn't help but feel sorry for Tiara… whatever her name was.

"Rahi returned home, and when he learned of what had happened, flew into a rage, vowing to track down the rival tribe and cut down anyone who stood in the way of him and his wife. But the tribe were prepared for this, and sent many creatures to attack him, and placed many obstacles in his way. He would not be dissuaded though, and quickly defeated all the obstacles in his path. Soon, he came to a large river with a circular island in the middle, this is where the volcano was located.

The opposing tribe erected a large wall around the island to keep him out, but Rahi was powerful and used his wand to blast apart the wall. The opposing tribe enchanted the rubble from the downed wall to fly around and pelt Rahi with sharp stones." The figure of Rahi in the fire was now dodging around next to the water, avoiding large rocks which Gabrielle thought were reminiscent of Bludgers.

"Rahi used his own magic to lift an enormous boulder from the river and plug the top of the volcano. The smoke from the volcano was now trapped inside and forced the tribe to come running out. Rahi was soon reunited with his wife and confronted the leader of the tribe. A benevolent man, Rahi demanded that there would be no more fighting between the tribes, as losing lives from anyone's tribe was all too common, and a great waste. He declared that a game would be created to settle future disputes between the tribes, and this is the game that we will play against one another in the Tournament of Champions!"

The crowd which had been sitting in awed silence was now abuzz with excited conversation. The Moutohora students, of course, already new the game Headmistress Taylor was referring to, and exuded a smug confidence at their advantage. If, as Gabrielle suspected, the students here had been playing the game since childhood, then they would naturally be better at it than any of the other schools. We need to avoid playing them first, Gabrielle thought. Headmistress Taylor took out her wand and waved it in a large arc across the field the students were sat in. Pillars of light blue- stardust… was the only way Gabrielle could describe it – rose from the ground in a large circle, encasing the field, with the bonfire exactly in the centre. A large circle of blue wound its way around the students, encircling the bonfire like a river. No, Gabrielle thought, like the river from the story, which means that the bonfire must represent the volcano.

Her casting finished, Headmistress Taylor stood before the bonfire and took in the wonder on the students faces. With another flourish of her wand, she produced an egg-shaped ball that she tossed high into the air. It floated back to earth slowly, like a Quaffle would, and captured the attention of the students.

"The ancient game of Kī Oh Rahi has been played in New Zealand for hundreds of years by Magical folk and Muggles alike. The rules differ from place to place, and the influence of Western games such as Quidditch have brought new elements to the game, the story that inspired it is thought to have originated right here on Moutohora Island. We shall play the game as follows; two schools will play against each other, and riding broomsticks must attempt to get the Kī," the Headmistress held the egg-shaped ball high in the air for the crowd to see, "through each of the hoops mounted atop the Pou," she motioned to the columns surrounding the field, "in turn before the attacking team can attempt to score the Kī into the Tupu." At this, Headmistress Taylor threw the ball hard into the bonfire, which was immediately reduced to embers before springing back to a modest fire.

"As I am sure many of you have worked out, the Tupu represents the volcano from the story. Scoring the Kī into the Tupu ends the game, with the scoring team the winner. If, after ninety minutes, no team has successfully scored the Tupu, the winner will be decided by which team has put the Kī through the hoops atop the Pou the highest number of times. Think of it like scoring a goal in Quidditch." More mutterings came from the crowd as each team tried to decipher the rules and decide how they would approach such a game.

"Like Quidditch, Kī Oh Raha is a full contact sport, and the defending team may attempt to steal the ball from the opposition, but any unnecessary rough play, deliberate collisions, or attacks made solely on the player and not the ball, will result in a stoppage and the ball turned over to the fouled player. Repeated incidents will result in a player's dismissal from the game." Joshua exchanged a worried look with Gabrielle, and she knew that this was exactly the sort of game he was hoping to avoid. She gave him what she hoped was a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder and continued to listen to the headmistress.

"The river from the story is represented by a large blue barrier, which protects the Tupu until the Kī has passed though all seven hoops. Any attempt put the ball into the Tupu before passing it through all seven hoops will result in quite a violent collision with the barrier, I wouldn't recommend it. Of course, this is not the only danger present in the game of Kī Oh Raha," Joshua's worried visage was now turning a sickly shade of green, and Gabrielle felt quite sorry for the older boy. She was used to being roughed up by Bludgers and the other Chasers during a game of Quidditch, he clearly was not used to being roughed up by anyone or anything. "When Raha broke down the wall the tribe had erected to keep him out, he was pelted mercilessly by the rubble. This is represented in Kī Oh Raha by something we have borrowed from the game of Quidditch."

A grim murmur of understanding rippled throughout the crowd as two Bludgers sprung forth from Headmistress Taylors wand and flew high over the crowd, knocking into each other and flying around erratically before she vanished them with another wave of her wand. "Finally, the players on either team may harness the magic of the elements to defend or attack the Kī. In short, any magic harnessing the power of Fire, Water, Air, or Earth is allowed in the game." This time even Gabrielle had to swallow a lump in her throat, and she could tell she was not the only one not pleased by this last revelation. Many of the students looked horrified at the idea of what would essentially be mid-air duelling, mixed in with Bludgers, and the typical roughness most would associate with a Quidditch match.

Further to Gabrielle's displeasure, she noticed that Zoey, the American who'd gotten under her skin at the first dinner didn't seem to put out by the idea. She was in fact having an in-depth discussion with one of her teammates as to whether a spell that sounded something like Cresco Gravity could be passed off as harnessing the power of earth. Did they play this game in America? Gabrielle wondered to herself. Surely not, but the Americans did play a lot of weird and wonderful sports. They like Qoudpot for Merlin's sake, she chided herself. No doubt they played some game over there that also involved the use of magic as a weapon against the opposing team. Gabrielle couldn't imagine playing Quidditch against a team that could shoot fire at you, but she would need to adapt to the idea quickly if she were to help her team. Above all, she thought, we need to avoid playing New Zealand first.

*Minister for Foreign Affairs

Authors Notes

Hello readers,

Thank you for reading the latest chapter of The Tournament of Champions! We now know what the first round of the tournament is! It's been a long time coming and is something I've written, binned, written again, binned again, and written again several times over to try and get it just right.

Kī Oh Rahi is a real game played in New Zealand, and the story told by Headmistress Taylor is similiar to the real version. I have of course adapted the story to fit within the magical world, and it is told in a heavily edited and shortened way. This is not meant to cause offence, it is merely an attempt to weave a piece of real NZ culture into my very fictional world, and to try and do it in a respectful way. The rules of the game have also been changed heavily to fit how I wish to tell my story. I encourage everyone interested to do a quick search on the real game of Kī Oh Rahi and the story behind it.

I am a British Author and for each country we visit in the Tournament of Champions, I will attempt as much research as I can on the culture, games, and stories of each one, but I'm not immune to mistakes. If you are from New Zealand, I hope you like my interpretation of Kī Oh Rahi, and Moutohora Magic Academy. i would love some feedback on both!

Thanks for reading,

IronManRidingaNimbus.