23 Duelling Club

It was the next day in the afternoon and most of the second year students were gathered in a spacious room with only a long table. It was time for the widely advertised duelling club, hosted by Gilderoy Lockhart.

The afternoon sun filtered through the tall windows of the room, casting a warm glow on the eager faces of the young wizards. Excitement buzzed in the air as they anticipated the start of the club.

Lucas surveyed the crowd, finding a few familiar faces, Holly, Ron and Harry were there, but Hermoine was nowhere to be found. It wasn't long until the door abruptly opened and two professors walked in. One with his pearly whites clearly showing and the other with his ever present scowl.

"Ah, my dear students! Welcome to the duelling club!" Lockhart announced with theatrical flair. "Today, you will witness some truly remarkable feats of magical prowess and learn valuable skills for your future adventures."

The students broke out into loud chatter.

"Now, now, none of that," Lockhart calmed the crowd with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Professor Snape is here as my esteemed assistant, and together, we shall demonstrate the most exquisite display of duelling techniques!"

The students watched with anticipation as Lockhart and Snape took their positions at opposite ends of the long table, their wands held firmly in hand.

"Allow us to demonstrate," Lockhart announced, his smile never wavering.

Both professors walked into the middle, showed each other their wands briefly before bowing and walking ten steps back. They turned around and took their duelling positions, where Lockhart began to count down.

With a dramatic flourish, he cast a disarming charm at Snape, but much to everyone's surprise, Snape effortlessly countered the spell with a nonverbal and precise flick of his wand. The disarmament charm rebounded and sent Lockhart's wand spiraling out of his hand, landing with a clatter on the floor.

The room erupted in amused laughter. Lockhart's facade of expertise had been momentarily shattered, though he tried to maintain his composure.

"Excellent use of the disarming charm professor," Lockhart said with forced cheerfulness, retrieving his wand and pretending that it was all part of the act. "Though if I had wanted to I could have easily blocked it. Now that you have seen how a duel should look like, how about a volunteer pair? Harry, Weasley what do you say?"

"How about a little competition between houses? We wouldn't want to favour a few students because of their celebrity status, do we?" Snape interjected as Ron and Harry, who had made their way up the table, came to a stop.

Lockhart seemed momentarily taken aback by Snape's suggestion, his smile faltering for a moment. However, he quickly regained his composure and tried to hide his irritation. "Ah, an excellent idea, Professor Snape," he said. "A competition between houses will surely add some excitement to the club. Who do you have in mind?"

"As the head of Slytherin I wouldn't want to come off as favouring my own house" he said to which almost every student couldn't help but scoff. "How about a student from Hufflepuff? Mr Foster? And as Mr Weasley is already up here he might as well be his opponent."

Lucas, who had been observing the proceedings with a quiet interest, was taken by surprise when Snape singled him out. 'That old man again, what's he up to now.'

The Hufflepuff students around him nudged him playfully, encouraging him to step forward. Lucas studied Snape's expression for a moment before nodding and making his way to the front.

"You got this." words of encouragement came from Hannah as well as almost inaudible ones from Susan. A few others said similar things.

The room fell silent as Lucas stood opposite Ron.

The two young wizards faced each other, their wands at the ready. Lockhart, relishing the opportunity for more theatrics, announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, the duelling competition continues with our Hufflepuff champion, Mr Foster, against Gryffindor's very own, Mr Weasley!"

"First, the show of wands. Excellent! Now a polite bow. Good! Please turn around, walk ten paces back and wait for me to count down. Remember, this is just a friendly demonstration, so keep it light."

"Ready... Set... Duel!" Lockhart called, and the duel commenced.

In an instant, Ron screamed from the bottom of his lungs "EXPELLIARMUS!"

The red spell whizzed through the air, but Lucas was quick on his feet, choosing to rather dodge the spell than blocking it. He shot his own spell with a normal incantation back.

Ron thought he had already won after he had shot his disarming spell, like Snape had done earlier that is why he was currently unpreparedly fumbling over his words, however, he eventually erected a rather flimsy protego shield.

Lucas' spell hit Ron's shield, causing it to shatter into shimmering fragments. The force of the impact sent Ron stumbling back, but he managed to stay on his feet. The room fell silent as everyone watched the young Gryffindor struggle to regain his balance.

Lockhart, trying to keep up the appearance of a thrilling duel, exclaimed, "Oh, an excellent attempt from Mr Weasley! But he'll have to do better than that to outwit our Hufflepuff challenger!"

The room erupted into cheers and laughter, though some Gryffindors looked slightly embarrassed by Ron's less-than-successful performance. Lucas, however, remained composed, offering a polite nod to Ron before focusing on the next move.

Ron, determined not to let the embarrassment get to him, clenched his jaw and steadied his grip on his wand. He took a deep breath, trying to remember the spells he had practiced. He shouted, "Stupefy!"

This time, his aim was better, and the stunning spell shot toward Lucas with more force. But Lucas was prepared. He swiftly sidestepped the spell again, letting it hit the wall behind him, causing a small explosion of dust and debris.

The Hufflepuff's response was calculated and precise. "Depulso!" he cast, aiming directly at Ron.

His reflexes were slow, and before he could dodge or counter, the banishing charm hit him, causing his body to be flung backward onto the floor. The room fell into stunned silence as Ron lay there, seething in anger. Getting embarrassed once was nothing new to him, but twice and in the same way, in front of all these people hit, a nerve.

Standing back up and with a face redder than his hair he roared "BOMBARDA!"

The spell shot from Ron's wand with all his fury backing it up. Lucas, taken aback by Ron's recklessness, quickly and wordlessly, to the surprise of Snape, raised a shield charm to protect himself. The two spells collided mid-air, creating a powerful explosion that sent shockwaves throughout the room.

Hannah and Susan gasped, watching the clash of spells with concern.

Harry and Holly were lost for words. They had never seen Ron this agitated before, and they knew he was not in control of his emotions.

"Enough!" a stern voice boomed, cutting through the tension. Professor Snape, who had been observing the duelling club from the sidelines, stepped forward with a disapproving glare. "Mr Weasley, get down."

Ron's face flushed with embarrassment as he realized the severity of his actions. He quickly lowered his wand, feeling a mix of regret and shame as he walked away from the table. "I... I'm sorry, Professor Snape," he stammered.

"Well, although a little out of hand it was nonetheless spectacular." Lockhart reassured the students present, while bringing the spotlight back on him.

Snape shot Lockhart a disapproving look, clearly unimpressed with the professor's attempt to brush off the seriousness of the situation. "Spectacular or not, reckless displays of magic have no place in a controlled environment such as this," Snape retorted, his tone icy. "The safety of the students should always be our priority."

Lockhart's smile faltered for a moment, but he quickly recovered and regained his charm. "Ah, yes, of course, safety first," he said.

Holly couldn't help but roll her eyes at Lockhart's theatrics. She turned her attention to Ron, who still looked visibly shaken from the incident.

"You alright?" she asked him quietly, concern in her voice.

Ron nodded, but his expression remained troubled. "I just let my anger get the best of me," he replied. "I need to control myself better."

"You'll get there," Harry chimed in, offering support to his friend. "It's just practice, and we all make mistakes."

Ron managed a small smile, appreciating the support from his friends. "Thanks," he said, grateful for their understanding.

With the tension starting to ease, Snape took charge once more. "Now, let's continue with the duelling practice," he said, his gaze sweeping over the students. "But this time, remember to stay focused and in control. Dueling is a skill that requires discipline and precision, just like potion brewing."

What followed were a few unimpressive duels, which mostly featured students blindly shooting disarming spells at their opponent.

As the afternoon progressed and the sun reached the horizon, it was time to stop for today, but before doing so Snape wanted to arrange a last duel. It was between Harry and Darco, which went pretty much like the one in the movies. After speaking Parseltongue, Harry stormed out of the hall and the two professors dismissed the rest of the students too.

Lucas was on his way out of the room, when Hannah and Susan caught up to him. "Lucas wait!"

He turned around, no expression visible on his face as he saw Hannah and Susan approaching him. "Hey, what's up?" he asked nonchalantly.

Hannah and Susan exchanged a concerned glance. They had never seen Lucas act like this, he normally greeted them with a warm smile and made them feel comfortable and welcomed. Hannah spoke up. "We wanted to talk to you about what happened in the duelling club," she said gently. "How did you get this good at duelling?"

Lucas arched an eyebrow at their question, a hint of surprise crossing his face. "Oh, you mean the duelling skills?" he replied, his nonchalant demeanor still apparent. "Well, I've been practicing for quite some time now. I guess you could say it's just a matter of dedication and practice."

Hannah and Susan exchanged another glance, sensing that there was more to it than just practice. "It's just that you seemed so skilled out there," Susan said, her curiosity evident.

Lucas shrugged, trying to deflect their questions. "I guess I just have a natural talent for it," he said dismissively. "But really, it's not a big deal. Anyone can get better with enough practice."

Hannah and Susan weren't convinced by Lucas's response. They knew there was something he wasn't telling them, and they wanted to get to the bottom of it. "Lucas, come on," Hannah said, her voice gentle but firm. "You can tell us, what's your secret?"

Lucas looked at them, unwilling to reveal the truth about his abilities just yet. He forced a small smile and replied, "I've just been practicing my dueling skills a lot. It's all about focus and determination."

Hannah and Susan exchanged knowing glances. While they respected Lucas's decision not to share everything, they couldn't help but feel that he was holding something back.

"Well, whatever it is you've been doing, it's definitely impressive," Hannah said with a smile while blushing. "You really held your own out there."

"Yeah, it was quite a show," Susan added, blushing as well.

Lucas nodded, grateful that they didn't push him further. "Thanks," he said, relieved that the subject had shifted away from his abilities.

As the conversation continued, they decided to head back to the common room together, discussing the upcoming school events and their plans for the rest of the week.