Chapter 10: Duellers
Wednesday afternoon, following History of Magic, Liane made her way downstairs to the Entrance Hall. It had been raining all day, and Liane had only ever seen the Duellers congregate once before, and it had been out on the south lawn. When she arrived, she was surprised to find Booker and Wanda coming up from the dungeons in not simply exercise gear, but rainproof boots as well.
"Practice is still going on outside?" she asked.
"Absolutely; we held practice in the Great Hall once and McGonagall made us promise to never ask again," Booker replied with a smile, "come on, you don't want to be late for your first practice do you?" he asked.
Liane shook her head and raced down to the dorms to get changed. She didn't have anything waterproof, so she instead simply donned her sneakers and figured she would simply scourgify them clean later.
When she got out to the practice area, she found she was only one of several first years trying out; Rose, Scorpius, Remy, Mitchell and Bertie were all there as well, waiting for her. Cassandra and Yvette were standing up by the castle, underneath a large white umbrella. Besides her friends, there were a few other faces among those trying out she recognised; Peter Lysander, Gabriella Lorde and the Pascall siblings Erica and Westley from Ravenclaw, Freddy Dodgson from Hufflepuff and Ben Evergreen from Slytherin, all of whom she recognised as strong students but nothing terribly threatening. It was worth betting that each of them had their names down to compete in the qualifiers too, so Liane promised herself that she would watch them all for clues as to their general ability. She was surprised to see so few Gryffindors in the mix; given the Gryffindor proclivity for bravado, and the high number of strong Gryffindor seventh-years in the group, it seemed odd that so few of them signed up.
As Donovan and Jeremy walked forward, seeming about to start, there was a noise of running and panting behind Liane. When she turned to look, she was surprised to see Albus had joined the lines of first years.
"I thought you weren't coming?" she asked quietly.
Albus shot a quick look towards Scorpius, who was looking steadfastly forward. "I wasn't," he said. Liane smiled and rolled her eyes, but said no more.
"Students of Hogwarts," Donovan called, his wand held to his mouth and amplifying his voice, "you who stand here today have taken the first step in claiming control over your own lives. But the road we travel, those of us willing to be the everyday warriors in defence of our sustained freedom, is a hard and painful one. You must show, every day, that you are something more than the average witch, wizard or magus. You must be the person who will stand against evil, not cower before it. Hogwarts will teach you how to live in the magical world; but it is us here who will teach you how to ensure it's a world worth living in.
"Before we begin, there are two most basic skills that all applicants must know before moving on to general Dueller sessions, and certainly before you engage in any events; Disarming, and Shield-Breaking. So, our first session today, prior to choosing who will be accepted and who will need to reapply after furthering their studies, will be to teach and master these two simple spells. Those who need to learn the Disarming spell, follow Lion and Tania down to the lowest part of the south lawn, those who need to learn the Shield-Breaker follow Jeremy, Booker and Wanda over to the lake. I will remain here to test applicants when they believe they are ready, and mark off those who have successfully completed. Existing members, those who have already been selected as coaches go to your relevant group, otherwise move to the west lawn to practice with half-power combat spheres. Duellers, move out," he cried, and the existing members replied with a chorus, shouting;
"Sir, yes sir," before moving out.
Liane, having taught herself the disarming spell long ago, immediately moved towards the lake to learn the shield breaking hex, and Rose, Remy, Scorpius and Albus joined her. Most of the others moved down towards the Quidditch pitch, although Liane was mildly irritated to see Bertie and Mitchell were both moving straight towards Donovan.
"I get Bertie knowing those spells already, but how did Mitchell learn them?" she asked, turning to Albus.
"Didn't you know? Ever since you let slip about your extra training sessions those two have spent every waking moment together training to catch up. Didn't you think it was odd you hadn't seen either of them except in classes?" Albus asked. Liane blinked.
"It's been a weird couple of days, I kind of stopped paying attention," she admitted lamely.
"Well, they had their detention with Malfoy and me, and they wouldn't shut up about you. I can't quite tell if they're both keen on you or just embarrassed that you keep showing them up," he replied. Liane pulled a face.
"Ew, no, Mitchell is like my brother, he's not into me," she said.
Albus shrugged. "Sibling rivalry then. Either way they're going to push themselves into overtaking you, they're so determined," he said.
"Huh; you know Yvette was certain that sort of thing would happen with Scorpius and you," Liane answered. Albus flashed another glance at Scorpius, his face impassive.
"I don't think that's likely," he replied.
As the first and second-years lined up ready to receive instruction, the fifth-years gathered together facing them, a number of fourth-years standing behind them.
"As you have all no doubt learned by now in your Defence classes, the most basic tool in any combat is the ability to avoid damage, whether by blocking, disarming or shielding. It therefore falls that should you wish to end a stalemate, you will need to know how to shatter an opponent's shield," Jeremy announced. He then turned to Wanda and nodded, and she took several steps away and drew her wand. Jeremy stepped away from the huddled group of fifth-years and drew his own wand.
"Protego," he chanted, and a bubble of blueish light surrounded him. Wanda raised her own wand and trailed the tip in a swirl, ending in a forward thrust.
"Lagann," she chanted, and a blast of red and purple light blasted from the tip of her wand. It crashed into Jeremy's shield and the barrier shattered into blue sparks. Once the sparks had winked themselves out, Wanda returned to the line.
"We will split you into groups, one instructor to…four students. Booker will run down the line and give you a number," Jeremy said, and with a wave Booker stepped forward and began counting off the students in the rows, giving them a number between one and seven. When that was done each of the fifth and fourth year instructors called out their number and the groups split off to separate practice areas. Liane was in the third group, and found herself with Peter Lysander and two second-years. To her pleasure, they were matched with Wanda to practice.
"As you saw in the demonstration, this simple form of the Breaking Drill hex is not complicated, but its power relies not only on the caster's ability but on the precision of their wand movements. First, raise your wands," Wanda ordered. Liane drew her wand and held it up in the same manner Wanda had held hers.
"Your first revolution," Wanda continued, "ought to be between two and three inches in diameter, and you should reach the centre of your spiral at the end of two complete revolutions. When you complete the spiral the forward thrust should be the length of your wand."
Liane looked at her monster of a wand, slightly longer than her forearm, and mentally swore, re-adjusting her stance to allow for the thrust.
"The incantation is lagann, with a long 'ah' sound in the second syllable that should coincide with the thrust. Again, it should go like this," Wanda said, turning to face the lake. She spiralled her wand and thrust forward, shouting the incantation. The drill blast speared out over the lake, and Liane saw out of the corner of her eyes that the other instructors were doing the same.
"Now, we'll practise the wand work against a simple shield, to get you used to it," Wanda said, turning back to her group. She waved her wand.
"Prismatis," she chanted, and the crystal shield appeared around her. The four initiates lined up in front of her, their wands raised. The first to fire was one of the second-years, who fired off a spell that looked very similar to Wanda's spell, but splashed across her shield without seeming to damage it at all.
"Well done, Corben. Liane, you're next," Wanda said.
Liane nodded, and tried to replicate the wand movement.
"Lagann," she cried, thrusting forward. The heavy wand drooped as she pushed forward, and a weak glow shot forward and crashed into the lake, sending a cloud of steam into the air.
"Bad luck, Liane, you'll have to try again. Mister Lysander?"
Peter nodded, lifting his wand. Liane noticed with a touch of envy that it was only six-inches long, and had a curved handle like Remy's, perfect for this kind of fiddly movement. He rolled the wand around his wrist and fired off a near perfect replica of Wanda's spell, the drill shattering her prism shield on impact.
"Excellent, well done Peter. If you wish to go and present that to Donovan, go ahead," Wanda said. Peter shook his head.
"I'll practise a little longer if that's alright," he replied. Wanda recast her shield and moved to the other second-year.
Practice continued for another quarter of an hour; many from the other groups had already moved on to the disarming tutorial, presented to Donovan or flunked out completely. Liane, however, was still unable to keep her wand steady with such a large, dramatic movement.
Eventually, Wanda dropped her shield.
"Liane, are you certain you want to continue?" she asked. Liane glared.
"Absolutely; I refuse to give up, I can do this, I know I can," she replied.
Wanda nodded. "Okay, I have an idea. The standard pose is the way everyone else performs this spell, but truthfully it's not how I normally do it."
Liane looked confused. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, back home, I didn't just learn magic in defence classes; we combined martial art stances and techniques with our magic. Stand with your feet apart, your off-hand side in front, your wand arm back," Wanda explained. Liane followed her instructions, adjusting her stance as Wanda directed.
"Now, raise your wand so that it is in line with your eye level, your hand just behind your ear. Raise your other hand to balance. Lean on your front foot when you begin the spiral, then step forward with the thrust, using the balance of your body during the movement to keep your wand aligned. Keep your elbow bent and your wrist loose, using the shape of your hand to keep your wand level," Wanda showed Liane the move as she explained, moving her through the step. Liane tried a few practise swings, not really feeling any different.
"Are you sure?" she asked, nervously.
"No, but let's give it a try," Wanda said, moving back towards the lake bank, raising the shield once more. Liane looked at Wanda, dropping into the stance, and tried to focus on the same feeling of desperation she'd tapped into during transfiguration. After a moment's pause, she twirled her wand and stepped forward into the thrust.
"Lagann," she cried once more, and nearly stumbled when the drill spell launched from her wand, bearing down on Wanda and striking the centre of her shield, blowing away the crystalline energy like it was nothing and hitting Wanda in the chest, knocking her from her feet. Liane's eyes widened, and on instinct she swished her wand towards the falling prefect.
"Wingardium Leviosa," she called, realising after a moment that she'd heard three other voices say the same thing. Wanda hovered, in mid-air a half meter above the surface of the lake, a look of surprise on her face. Liane pulled her wand back, spotting Booker, Jeremy and one of the fourth years doing the same, and Wanda returned to the bank.
"Well done," Wanda said with a cough, her hand pressed to her chest, "that was...very good. I think we'll keep up with our private lessons, Liane, building up a core strength and a strict technique seems to be necessary for harnessing your talent, and the philosophical side will help you to take over the psychological aspect."
Liane grinned. "I'd love that, thank you," she replied.
Wanda coughed again, a little unsteady on her feet.
"Thank goodness you're the last one, Liane, I don't think I have another one of those in me. Tell Donovan when you go and present to him that I recommended he use the full shield spell, not the prism shield," Wanda said, and Liane nodded.
"I'll do that. Are you alright, do you need anything?" she asked.
"I'll be fine, I just need a moment to catch my breath. You go on ahead," Wanda replied, and Liane turned and jogged back across the lawn to where Alastor was waiting with his checklist. Liane arrived as one of the other students was presenting their attempts.
"Beckeridge, disarming: pass, shield-breaker: pass; congratulations, go and join the others up near the castle," Donovan said, and the third-year nodded and walked back up to the small crowd of accepted initiates, about a third of those who had come out to apply.
"Liane, good to see you. I've been quite impressed by your year level; we're seeing the highest percentage in successful applying students across those in first year than any others. You ready to show me what you've got?" he asked.
"Yes sir," Liane replied, and Donovan drew his wand.
"Where do you want to start?" he asked.
Liane shrugged. "It doesn't phase me really. Oh, one thing though; Wanda says that you should use the regular shield charm, not the prism shield," she said. Donovan raised an eyebrow.
"Really? That must have been some quick progression, given what I saw last time I looked over your group," he replied.
"Yeah; she and I worked out the kinks in my technique," Liane said.
"Well, I'll be interested in seeing that, let's start there," he said, raising his wand.
"Protego," he chanted, and the bubble shield sprang to life around him.
Liane dropped into the stance Wanda had shown her, bringing her wand up to her ear and raising her hand, palm towards Donovan. He raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Hey, I know that-" he began, but Liane was already casting her spell.
"Lagann," she cried, and the massive drill blast launched at the blue sphere surrounding the seventh-year captain. Donovan twisted as the shield shattered, and caught the spell on his wand, flourishing it around his wrist and scattering the energy in a cloud of coloured smoke. Even as he blocked it, Donovan still had to step back as the force of the blast travelled up his arm.
"Wow, that's a definite pass; I'd hate to actually be hit by anything you cast, Liane," he said, transferring his wand to his other hand and shaking out his wrist.
"Here's hoping," Liane replied with a grin. Donovan placed his wand back in his hand and returned to his stance.
"Well, then, disarming next; this should be easy enough," Donovan said, and Liane nodded. Flicking her wand back across her body, Liane brought her arm around in a semicircular arc, pointing at Donovan.
"Expelliarmus," she cried, and Donovan's wand lept from his hand, rocketing across the lawn, and he flew backwards in the opposite direction, skidding across the grass. Liane nearly dropped her wand as she started running towards Donovan, rushing to his side.
"Captain!" she yelled, dropping to his side as he pushed himself upright.
"It's alright, Liane, I've suffered worse. You've passed, that's for sure; I'm looking forward to the second-half of the initiation trials."
"There's more?" Liane asked.
"Oh, absolutely; but I won't ruin the surprise. Go on; it looks like we're going to be wrapping up the first bit soon," Donovan said as he stood up.
"What about your wand?" Liane asked.
"Not a problem; there is some benefit to the amount of work I've put in to get where I am," he said with a smile, raising his hand, "accio wand."
Liane turned to see Donovan's wand launching through the air back to his hand.
"You can do wandless magic?" she asked, surprised.
"Tania, Mietta and Lion can as well, and wordless magic. It's often a surprise in duels when someone disarms you and your wand can be called immediately back to your hand," he explained, wiping himself off.
"It does sound useful. Okay, if you're sure you're fine," Liane said, stepping aside.
"I'm sure, go and celebrate getting through the first half with your friends, Liane; you'll need to be ready to move out again soon," Donovan said. Liane nodded and walked back towards the castle. The first years standing in the pass group consisted almost entirely of the same people who Liane had been able to name, a fact that came to no shock when Liane realised most of them had stood out in her memory for their abilities in class. There were about twelve first years, Liane making thirteen, seven second years and five third years; anyone in the higher years who had wanted to join, it appeared, had done so already.
"Of course you would blow the captain across the lawn," Remy said, rolling their eyes as Liane walked up the slope to meet them.
"Shut up," Liane said grinning, stopping to brace herself as Cassandra ran down from the main steps to wrap Liane in a tight hug.
"Seriously, we're glad you made it; given the trouble you had with the shield breaker we were worried," Albus said, and Liane sighed.
"Oh, yeah, that was frustrating. Luckily Wanda was able to show me another way to do it, I'd have been gutted if I'd missed out on joining," Liane replied.
"So does anyone have any idea what the next phase is supposed to be?" Liane asked as Cassandra detached herself.
"Freddy thinks it's broomstick mounted combat," Bertie replied.
"For applicants who might not even get in? That's a little risky, isn't it?" Scorpius asked.
"You could cover the Quidditch field in a fall speed suppressor," Bertie said with a shrug. Remy coughed.
"You mean it isn't normally?" they asked.
"Of course not; low speed manoeuvring would be impossible," Albus responded.
"The key question, though," Rose said, "is how many of us are to be accepted. If they could as easily take all of us, it might just be some more simple spellcrafting. If they only want five, it might be a duelling competition, or worse."
"That's true," Liane replied with a shrug.
"Whatever it is, it better happen soon; the weather is getting worse," Remy replied. Liane looked up at the sky, shielding her eyes from the light haze of the ever-present drizzle. Sure enough, the clouds rolling in were of a darker and much more ominous nature, threatening an encroaching storm of far greater force than the damp mist they were all covered in at the moment.
As they spoke, the last few passing applicants, another two third years and three more second years, joined the group, and while the fourth year and sixth year instructors from the two groups moved off to join the existing exercise Donovan, Lion, Mietta, Tania, Jeremy, Wanda and Booker lined up in front of the waiting group.
"Well done, everyone; you've shown that you have at least the most basic skills necessary to be a dueller. But to be one of us you must also show you have the instincts, the attitude and the ability for teamwork that makes a true dueller. For the next test, you will be mixed into six groups of five, and each group will be accompanied by one of these six. The groups will each take a boat, and there will be three teams of two boats apiece for a game of capture the flag. I will set the flag myself, and assess the whole field, while each boat's occupants will be individually assessed."
As Donovan spoke, he gestured to the lake, where six boats slightly larger than those that had carried the first years across on the first night had appeared out of the water. Two of the boats were ringed in green around the gunwales, two ringed in red and two in blue.
"As with the preliminary tests, we will assign the your numbers to you at random. Boats are numbered one through six from the one closest to the castle through to the one nearest the forest. Once you have your number, go immediately to your boat and await your instructor. Okay; Tonkin, you're a one…" Donovan began, listing them off.
Liane was assigned to boat five, the first of the two blue boats, and was joined by Rose, two second-years, a third-year and finally, once they were all set, they were joined by Tania. Liane took the rear bench seat next to the seventh-year, the two second-years took the front, and Rose and the third-year took the oar seats. The other blue boat contained Remy, Bertie and Mitchell, two third years and Mietta.
"I take it you're not going to be helping us much, are you?" Liane asked with a smile. Tania grinned, a wide, mirthful smile showing off her brilliantly white teeth.
"I'm afraid not," she replied.
"I figured; it would be too much of an advantage having you two on one team otherwise," Liane said, turning back to the lake.
Donovan had stepped out onto the water, the surface bubbling around his feet as he sped out into the middle. Once he was nothing more than a speck of colour in the centre of the lake, he raised his wand and there was a bright flash of light. Liane covered her eyes, and when she looked back she saw that he was holding a four metre long pole, and strapped to it, fluttering in the wind, was a huge red flag with a pair of crossed wands emblazoned across the centre.
"Go, go now," Tania said.
The others turned to look at her in surprise, but Liane had already drawn her wand.
"Ventus," she chanted, and the boat launched forward, riding on the gust of wind. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw two other boats launching at the same time, both the green ones led by Lion and Booker.
The third years had both drawn in the oars, which were doing nothing more than providing drag. Once in, they both placed their wands in the water.
"Velocitaqua," they called, and the boat launched forward even faster, picking up speed and pulling ahead of the other boats.
"Rose!" Liane called out, and the other girl turned back.
"What?"
"When we get close enough, disarm Donovan; we can grab the flag from the water easier than we can pull it from his hands," Liane explained. Rose nodded, pulling out her wand and turning back to face the front. Liane turned back around and braced herself in the chair as her wind spell died down.
"Diffindo," she said quietly, twitching her wand towards the red boat a short distance behind them. There was a shuddering, cracking noise, and part of the prow shattered, the boat starting to take on water. None of the students noticed, but Liane saw Jeremy turn in her direction. Shrugging, Liane restarted her wind spell, pushing more power into this time.
Their lead started to close up as the other boats began to accelerate, and whether they'd worked out Liane was responsible for their damage or simply made the same decision, the red boats were already starting to fire on the other teams. Liane had to duck low as a bolt of turquoise light speared over her head, hitting one of the third-years and causing him to start convulsing with laughter. The boat began to turn as the laughing third-year dropped his wand into the lake, and as Tania summoned it to her hand Liane tapped on the shoulder of the other third year.
"Swap," she yelled, and with a nod the third year snaked backwards into the gap between the seats while Liane crawled forwards. With a blast from her wand out the side of the boat, Liane straightened up their heading as the third year caste the water jet spell out the back, and within moments their speed was back up, leaving them neck and neck with the green boat with Albus, Scorpius, three third-years and Lion. The three third years were all using the aqua jet spell, lying across the rear bench to get their wands in the water at the same time, and Albus and Scorpius were both in the prow. As the quicker boat overtook them, Liane looked ahead and saw that Donovan was not too far away now, and Rose was lining up to take the shot to disarm him. Before Liane could say anything, Rose had waved her wand and shouted,
"Expelliarmus!" As the spell hit, the flag lept from Donovan's hand, flying end over end towards the other boat. Liane grabbed the second-year beside Rose and pulled him back.
"Turn the boat towards them," she shouted, pointing to Lion's team.
"What?" he replied, looking lost.
"Just do it!" Liane yelled, and before he could respond, she stood up. Pointing towards the flag, she raised her wand.
"Frigidiero Maxima," she shouted, and a blast of frigid air erupted from her wand, leaving a trail of ice towards the flag. As the second-year fired a wind spell, turning the boat towards the red team, Liane lept off the side, hitting the ice with her shoulders and firing her own wind spell in the opposite direction. Just like when she'd created the inflatable raft, Liane's wind spell sent her rocketing down the ice, the near frictionless surface allowing her to shoot passed the other team and hit the icy water just beside the flag. Grabbing hold of the flagpole in her frostbitten fingers, Liane pointed her wand at it and hooked one leg over it at the same time.
"Wingardium Leviosa," she chanted, and the flagpole rose into the air, Liane still clinging to it, pulling her out of the water. From here she could see Albus and Scorpius looking up at her, their boat circling around her ice bridge, their wands drawn and indecision on their faces. The three third-years, however, were not so picky, and they all rolled over and levelled their wands at Liane.
"Accio," the three of them said in unison, and Liane felt the flagpole shift in the air, pulling towards their boat. Liane pointed her own wand at their boat.
"Guys, get down," she yelled, and Albus and Scorpius, both knowing Liane well enough, threw themselves into the water without a second thought. Lion smiled and shielded himself, the third-years looking on dumbfounded.
"Bombarda," Liane cast, and the boat exploded into splinters, sending its occupants into the water. As the six of them broke the surface, Liane's boat caught up, and she dropped with the flag down into her seat.
"Any chance of a lift back to shore, Princess?" Lion called from the water, and Tania smiled. With a wave of her wand, the remains of Lion's boat all transformed into inflatable life preservers with blinking red lights.
"You'll have to wait for your team," she said, and the boat turned around. Behind them, the other green boat was coming along, Booker already casting extension charms to allow them to pick up the rest of their team, while the other blue boat was engaged in a pitched naval battle with the two reds. Both red boats had hemmed the blue in, and were pelting it with spells, while Remy and a second year shielded and Bertie and Mitchell fired back.
"Rose, can we help them?" Liane asked.
"I've got an idea; Jeffries, Chalmers, aim us at the nearest red. Liane, give me ice," Rose said. Liane nodded and, gripping the flag in one hand, began to freeze the rainwater collecting in the bottom of the boat. With each chunk she passed over to Rose, Liane watched as the other girl converted them into small, minnow shaped fish with drill-shaped horns, releasing them back into the lake.
"Are those going to do what I think they're going to do?" Liane asked, and Rose smiled. Looking back at the battle, Liane saw a commotion erupt on the far red boat, people jumping up from their seats and yelling about something, before the boat began to sink. As they fired various charms at their own boat to keep from taking in more water, Bertie hit three of them with sleep charms, leading Wanda to step in and raise the whole boat out of the water, driving it back to the shore. The tables now turned, Bertie and the second-year joined Mitchell in firing on the other boat at the same time as Liane's boat, the other third-year now over the tickling charm, came up on its other side. In seconds, the red boat's shields were broken, and all five student members were bound in full-body-bind curses. With a nod, Jeremy turned the boat around and returned it to shore.
With only one enemy boat still in the water, and with their allies between that boat and theirs, Liane's boat carried the flag triumphantly back to shore, and they stepped out onto the muddy ground with a cheer. Donovan had already returned to shore, his waterwalking spell allowing him to zip passed while everyone else had been busy, and Tania was the first to rejoin him, carrying the flag, followed by Wanda, then Jeremy, Mietta and finally Lion and Booker, who came up together from the same boat. Liane felt as though she might collapse; it had been an exhilarating experience, and she was eager to apologise to Albus and Scorpius, whilst at the same time wanting to celebrate her win with the rest of the blue team. Rose was busy explaining to her fellow Ravenclaw first-years Gabby Lorde and the Pascall siblings what had happened to their boat, and Bertie and Mitchell were trading blow-by-blows of their waterlogged trench warfare struggle against an overwhelming force. Remy was standing shoulder to shoulder with Liane, their head on her shoulder.
"Well done back there; just so you know, though, if you kill yourself this year I'm not coming to the funeral," they said. Liane grunted an exhausted chuckle.
"You'll do the eulogy via skype then?" she asked.
"What the hell is skype?" Remy asked, and Liane let out an actual laugh. Before she could answer though, the instructors had come back and were standing in a line in front of the boats. The applicants lined up facing them, and when everyone was quiet, only the sounds of the rain around them, Donovan once more spoke into his wand.
"Well, everyone, congratulations on a fantastic test. We have a clear winner of the event, but before we get there, we have a few words to say and individual assessments to give.
"Firstly, most of you passed; we saw some amazing tactical thinking and teamwork today, as well as some impressive spellwork. Of those who made it in today, I think each instructor has said they would be happy to have you at their backs in a real situation, so well done. Official team roster will be announced on Thursday evening, by notice in the Entrance Hall, so check there tomorrow to find out whether you made it.
Secondly; step forward if I say your name: Gabriella Lorde, Erica Pascall, Frederick Dodgson, Remy Scofield, Bertie Macmillan, Mitchell Munroe, Rose Weasley, Albus Potter, Scorpius Malfoy, Peter Lysander, Ingrid Franks, Rosco Peters, Westley Pascall, Oliver Gordon, Isaac Weiss, Lachlan Alexander," Donovan called, and those students stepped forward. Liane was pleased to see such a high number of first years being singled out, although given the company was a little surprised her own name wasn't called.
"You sixteen showed exemplary levels of quick-thinking, fortitude and resilience in the face of danger. You have all shown the true spirit of a Dueller, and we expect great things from you in the years to come," he said, and there was a round of applause for those standing in front. Liane clapped extra hard, cheering on her friends a tad more enthusiastically than necessary to cover up her disappointment in not standing among them.
"One last thing," Donovan said as the applause died down. "Each year we award the student with the highest marks the title of "Most Dangerous Witch, Wizard or Magi". For the first time ever, this award is being given to a first year. Duellers, please put your hands together for the scariest Slytherin since the Bloody Baron; Liane Langford!"
Liane looked to Donovan in shock as applause exploded around her, and a number of hands appeared on her back to push her forward ahead of the crowd.
"For taking the lead, throwing yourself literally headlong into danger and for actually raining explosive destruction down from the sky, the Duellers would like to recognise you Liane as the Most Dangerous Witch in Hogwarts," Tania said, and Liane bowed her head awkwardly to them.
"I'm just happy I got a chance to take part," she replied, and the applause lingered a moment longer.
"Okay, everyone, go and have a good hot shower, make sure you eat well at dinner, and we'll see those of you who made it on friday night," Donovan said, "Duellers; dismissed."
"Sir, yes sir," the crowd responded, before they fell out and began to make their way back up to the castle, the older students heading around the corner to join the training session still in progress.
"Did you really have to blow up our boat?" Scorpius asked, sidling up beside Liane.
"It was the only thing I could think of," Liane said defensively, "what should I have done, try to target all five of you with full body binds?"
"Hey, calm down, I was just teasing," Scorpius said hurriedly, "it was a great shot, and I probably would have done the same in your position. But that water was freezing."
"Speaking of freezing; you joining the UK luge team Liane?" Remy asked with a grin, and Liane bumped her hip into them as they walked.
"I got further than you, didn't I?" she replied as they reached the doors into the Entrance Hall. There was a crowd outside and Liane craned her head to see what was holding them up; Filch was standing by the doors, insisting that everyone who walked in clean the mud off their shoes before they did so. Liane pointed her wand at her feet and began to charm the mud off, Yvette and Cassandra joining them as they did so.
"You did well, I hear," Yvette said as Liane moved from cleaning the mud off herself to drying out her clothes.
"You didn't watch?" Liane asked.
"We tried to, but in the rain all we saw were vague shapes and flashes of light. We got a little worried when we heard what sounded like an explosion," Cassandra explained. Liane grinned weakly.
"Uh, yeah, that was me; I blew up Albus' and Scorpius' boat," she replied. Cassandra turned to the bedraggled pair.
"Oh, my; are you to alright?" she asked.
"A bit hypothermic, but alive," Albus replied with a smile.
"We'd best get inside, then," Yvette said, and they pushed past Filch, who glared at their spotless feet before letting them through, and moved over to the Great Hall.
Once inside, drying out under the roaring fires of the Great Hall and frequent thermos spells, they told the others what had happened out on the lake. All across the hall there were similar crowds as the second and third-years told the stories in their own way; moreso than on any other day the house allocated tables appeared meaningless as all four house colours mixed together to listen to the first Duellers event of the year.
"I'm excited to get into it," Liane said after she had warmed herself up with a big bowl of butternut pumpkin soup, "hopefully the next event we'll be able to pick our own teams."
"Yeah, who would you pick to be on a squad with you?" Bertie asked.
"Duh, you lot," Liane replied, tossing a bread roll across the table at him.
"Okay, but what if it's like today; only five people per team. You can't choose all of us; who do you pick?" he asked. Liane frowned.
"Oh, well that's different. Huh, I guess it would depend on what we're doing; Rose is the best spellcaster besides myself, so I guess I'd grab her. Remy is far and away the best transfigurer, so I'd grab them. The last two spots… Well, Albus and Scorpius are way better fliers, so if we need air support they'd be ideal. You and Mitchell are better fighters, so if we need to engage an enemy one to one you'd be better. I don't know the others too well; Lorde, Dodgson, Lysander and the Pascalls have a good balance of flying, spellcasting and fighting, so they'd probably team up together anyway. And then there's Evergreen, I barely know what he can do at all. I dunno, I guess it all comes down to who I need to get what job done," Liane replied, ticking the first-years off on her fingers, "and that's just our year; there were some talented third year students in there as well."
"Fair enough. And you could always balance out the mix, take me and Potter or Mitchell and Malfoy," Bertie added.
"Yeah, although I feel like having only one person with decent flying skills on the team would be dangerous," Liane said. Bertie threw the roll back across at Liane.
"Hey, I can fly," he protested, and Liane shrugged.
"Yeah, but you're no Albus," she said with a laugh.
"What about the seventh-years, what do you think of them?" Albus asked.
"Whoever the fifth member of their team is, I think Donovan, Lion, Haywood and Scalieri are going to puree the competition at the Olympiad, no question," Remy answered, "although I don't think much of three Gryffindors in the one team. Maybe if Tolley adds some Slytherin into the mix."
"What, no Hufflepuffs in the seventh-year team? You're dreaming," Bertie responded.
"If that fifth spot goes to a badger I'll eat my shoes," Remy snapped back.
"Not much luck, I'm afraid Remy; Tolley didn't enter. Either a non-STA like Lion enters or that fifth spot will go to Winslet or Jackson," Albus said.
"Would you like ketchup or mustard with those shoes?" Bertie asked with a grin.
"It doesn't matter if it goes to a Hufflepuff, a Slytherin or a house elf; so long as they can wallop the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang teams," Liane added, and the others nodded.
"What about fifth year?" Albus asked.
"What do you mean?" Liane asked as she turned to him.
"Well, there were no Gryffindors or Ravenclaws among the fifth year instructors today; it was two Slytherins and a Hufflepuff. If we're assuming Duellers membership means a higher than average chance of entry, does that mean Booker, Wanda and Jeremy are the ones mostly likely to get on the fifth-year team?" he asked.
"It might; I don't really know," Liane said, "they're all prefects too; what are the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw prefects like?"
"Ravenclaw hasn't really got anyone I'd be willing to put too much money on, I don't think," Yvette replied.
"What about the Scamander twins?" Albus asked.
"Second-years; I was thinking just about the prefects," Yvette replied.
"Oh, fair enough. Gryffindor prefects have Harry Moore and Quinn Farmer, who are pretty good," Albus said. Liane didn't mention what was on her mind; that as far as she was concerned, all four Slytherin prefects were worthy of representing their year.
When dinner ended and Liane stood up to leave, her muscles all cried out in protest, and she realised just how tired she was. Saying goodnight, she headed back downstairs to the dungeons, returning to the first year dorm room to retrieve some clean, fresh clothes. After a long, hot shower to wear the kinks out of her neck, Liane returned to her bed, set an alarm on her watch, turned up the quietus charm slider on her bed frame and went straight to sleep.