Chapter 27 Severus Conquers
As Severus and Lily neared the time of their departure, they paid their tab, then left Bob's Bombardastic Burgers to head back to the Portkey field. They'd just exited the burger restaurant when they spotted Nicole and Thomas across the street from them exiting a cafe of some kind. As Nicole and Thomas stepped out of the cafe they presumably ate at, they sighted Severus and Lily rapidly approaching them from across the street and excitedly waved them over. Whatever it was they'd eaten, it must've been good because Thomas was wearing the broadest smile Severus or Lily had ever seen on his face since before his crash. The two couples greeted each other and then formed up to make the rest of their walk back to the Portkey field together. They were soon joined by the rest of their classmates and the Seventh Years who all grabbed ahold of their own Portkeys just in time to be whisked back to school.
Upon arriving in the Ceremony Hall, Severus, Lily, Thomas and Nicole quickly righted themselves and got to their feet. They then gathered their purchases and headed back to their dorm rooms to put away their things. Lily and Severus made a quick pit-stop in the Potions lab to put away their newly-purchased ingredients from Barton's Apothecary then carried on back to the common room. About a half hour later, Severus, Lily, Thomas and Nicole all decided to head for the library where they'd exchange the details of their outings to the Wizarding Enclave. They entered the library and offered the kind Librarian, Missus Cooper a kind nod in greeting. The old librarian returned the gesture but with an added, wrinkled smile as the quartet of fifth years passed her. For the most part, they all got along well with the librarian. Only Lily didn't have a great relationship with the elderly woman, this was largely owing to the fact that she'd accidentally burned the cover of one of the tomes she'd checked out last year when she was experimenting with a new spell she'd been trying to craft. They moved through the stacks of books and tomes to the back of the library and found a little nook sandwiched between a trio of desks and a few tall stacks of books that they hoped would grant them the privacy they needed.
Lily and Nicole flopped down in their seats after discarding their bags on the desks, with Thomas following suit soon after. Severus drew his Rowan wand and cast his oft-used privacy charm, Muffliato, that would hopefully ward off any nosey listeners. Severus then dumped his bag on the desk and claimed the last remaining seat beside Lily.
"Shouldn't we try to find Scott and Caroline?" Thomas wondered aloud. "Surely they'd be interested in—"
"Why should we?" Lily asked, lips curled in a frown of confusion. "I thought they were meeting with Rebecca and Mary-Anne, weren't they?"
"Yeah, Lily's right. Don't you remember Tommy?" Nicole questioned. "They wanted to go over their Transfiguration assignment together or something like that."
"Anyways, it's not important now," Severus said, cutting off the conversation before they could be sidetracked any longer. He leaned back in his chair. "Lily and I want to hear about what your surprise was, Nicole, and hopefully that'll explain why Thomas hasn't been able to wipe that idiotic grin off his face since we bumped into each other in the village."
Said grin quickly vanished from Thomas' lips, only to be replaced by a frown. Thomas knew Severus well enough by now to know that the vast majority of his snide comments were only offered in jest, and that Severus usually turned his snark up to eleven when trying to provoke a reaction from someone.
"Oh that's very funny Severus, real witty of you," Thomas said dryly, responding in kind to his roommate's blatantly obvious bait.
Nicole heaved an excessively loud sigh, her narrowed brown eyes darting between Severus and her boyfriend in irritation. She was used to the verbal jabs and barbs Severus liked to dish out to herself, Sandra, and others; oftentimes she'd respond in kind with some verbal barbs of her own, playing Severus' little game of insults if she was in the mood for it. Right now though, the last thing she wanted was to perpetuate this verbal skirmish.
"Are you two through yet?" she asked sarcastically. "Or are you gonna continue behaving like an old married couple instead?"
Both boys shut their mouths without another word leaving their lips; the sternness of Nicole's glare saw to that.
"Thank you," Nicole said curtly, plastering a fake smile onto her face. "As I meant to say, Tommy and I have some very important information we'd like to share with you."
She shifted her gaze to her boyfriend, whose smile had now returned for all to see. "Would you like to do the honors, Tommy?"
"Gladly," said Thomas, who now sported an obscenely wide grin stemming from the mere thought of bringing his two friends up to speed on his and Nicole's fruitful trip to Worcester.
To Lily and Severus, Thomas looked as if Christmas had come early. Never before had they seen him look this happy over the course of the entire year they'd known him.
Over the next hour, Thomas explained everything in the lead up to his and Nicole's trip today and how the special meeting they'd had came to be. Starting about a week ago in the immediate aftermath of Thomas' accident during the race, Nicole was leaving the hospital wing when she was approached by a short wizard dressed in a sharp, grey, pinstriped suit. Nicole initially wanted nothing to do with the man and swept past him, but upon him producing a business card and expressing his wish to get into contact with Thomas—who the rotund man presumed to be Nicole's boyfriend, she turned around and gave him five minutes to speak. The man used those five minutes wisely, introducing himself as Wallace Paxton, and claiming that he was a talent scout for one of the up and coming Broomstick Racing Teams in the Broomstick Racing League, or BRL, for short. Paxton had come to the race to scout for any talented individuals that might be worth recruiting. A certain chocolate-skinned fifth year who'd qualified in Seventh Place out of Sixteen on a freaking school broom caught his attention however.
After falling back to thirteenth on the opening lap of the race because of a poor start, he worked his way through the field to climb to fifth, and briefly, fourth, on the penultimate lap, before his crash. Needless to say, Thomas said Paxton had been incredibly impressed and basically implored Nicole to ask if Thomas would be willing to meet with him so they could discuss a potential future for him in the sport if he were willing to pursue it. Nicole said she'd think about it and promised to write back to Paxton at a later date once Thomas was feeling better. With his five minutes elapsed, Paxton bade her farewell and left. Thomas then went on to explain who Nicole had planned the whole encounter behind his back as a way to surprise him and cheer him up. She'd written his mom, and upon receiving Missus Baker's approval, she wrote back to Paxton saying she and Thomas would be available to meet him next weekend in Worcester. The two coordinated a time and date leading to their meeting today.
Severus and Lily had so many questions to ask, but they'd all have to wait as Thomas then detailed how the meeting had gone and how Nicole revealed to him the nature of the surprise she had in store for him. Their meeting with Paxton at the cafe dragged on for close to two hours, during which the scout made clear to Thomas that he or one of his associates would be in attendance at all the remaining races this year and that they'd be watching him. Paxton also revealed that should Thomas manage to finish the year in the top half of the championship, I.E. in the top eight, then he'd stand a better chance of being recruited or signed by one of the up and coming racing teams from the BRL. Naturally, Paxton hoped that Thomas would consider the Wade Snyder Racing Team, the team he represented/scouted for and was so named after their founder who is a Squib as well as a former No-Maj racing driver.
In short, Paxton said that if Thomas kept up his form and could string together a strong season from here on out, he'd be on their radar, as well as that of numerous other racing teams that'd be watching them race. By the end of the meeting, Thomas didn't know what to think. All this time, he'd been gearing up for either a career in the study and analysis of Ancient Runes and Scriptures—the subject he was most gifted in, or a career in the No-Maj armed forces like his father. To hear that he was being scouted for Broomstick racing…it came as a complete shock to him especially because he'd never raced on a broom before his tryouts. It was a good problem to have at least, considering that his main gripe with the whole situation was that another potential career avenue had opened up for him, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't interested in pursuing broomstick racing as a career. After all, it sure beat studying runes all day or following his father into the Air Force, even the prospect of being sent to Vietnam had all but gone, what with the North having conquered the South now.
In any case, despite his first ever race ending in disappointment, Thomas was more than delighted with what arose from the ashes of his crash. Perhaps now, he might even gain his father's heavily sought-after approval.
By the end of the fourth week, Lily, Severus and the rest of their friends seemed to have settled into a weekly routine of what to expect each week. By withdrawing from Advanced Potions and giving her spot in the class to Nicole, Lily was more able to manage the rest of her workload in addition to her duties as Prefect. It was still difficult for her, balancing her work, her extracurriculars in Dueling Club, and her Prefectorial Responsibilities, but she coped well enough. When she had free time though, she usually spent it either with Severus in the privacy of their little alcove, or sending off letters to her parents to distribute to Charms Masters and Mistresses back home.
As they made their way out of Ancient Runes one fine, fall afternoon, Severus decided to accompany Lily to the owlery from where she'd send her letters.
"We'll see y'all in a bit," Lily said as she, Severus, Caroline and Thomas left Ancient Runes.
The other two exchanged a curious glance, then turned to the couple across from them. "Not going to the library now?" Thomas asked.
"Nope." Lily fished for the letters in her backpack, showing them to Thomas and Caroline. "Got these two to send to my folks back home."
"Ah." Caroline nodded in understanding. "Alright then, guess we'll see you later."
Caroline and Thomas waved goodbye as they headed away down the corridor that would take them to the library. Lily and Severus headed in the opposite direction, bound for the Owlery which was situated on the penultimate floor of the Watchtower.
Lily and Severus quietly wound through the corridors on their ascent to the Owlery, passing a handful of Pukwudgies on the way up. As they neared the Owlery, Severus' curiosity of the letters clutched in Lily's hands got the better of him.
"Those are for…your parents?"
Lily nodded quietly. "Mmm. Mum and Dad said they'd help distribute them to the Charms Masters and Mistresses I wanted to get in contact with."
"I see," Severus murmured. "Did you have any luck with Lambert earlier?"
Lily's lip twitched in a grim smile. She gave a quiet snort as she shook her head. "No," she muttered. "And besides…I'm kinda more interested in pursuing a mastery back home, y'know? That way I can be closer to Mum and Dad…and keep more abreast of what's going on back there with…You-Know-Who and all that."
"That's understandable," Severus agreed. He reached for Lily's hand, entwined their fingers together. "But just know you have my support regardless of where you find an opportunity, both here or back in England."
"So you wouldn't mind if I found a Charms Master in the Faroe Islands then?" Lily asked, sporting a cheeky look, her green eyes twinkling teasingly.
Severus didn't even deign her little quip with a verbal reply, only settling for an annoyed, reproachful look, and leaving his response at that.
They reached the Owlery then, the pungent stench of the birds causing their noses to wrinkle in distaste. Lily quickly found one of the school birds and tasked it with delivering her trio of letters to the Portkey delivery office located in Boston's Back Bay.
Before she sent the bird off, she turned to Severus. "Got anything to send to Mum and Dad?" she asked.
Severus shook his head. "Not this time. I sent them a letter a few days back so I should hopefully be getting a reply soon."
"And you came here without me to send it?"
Severus' lips curled upwards into a wicked, little smirk. "Evidently."
Lily snorted and turned back to the owl, her fingers reverently stroking its glossy coat before it took to the skies and soared Eastwards away from the dying sun. The dwindling rays of the sun on her back gave Lily a warm glow—turning her coppery strands of hair fiery and bursting with heat. Severus' breath hitched in his throat at the sight. As long as he could have gazed upon Lily in such a way, the torrid smell of the Owlery was soon growing too much for the both of them, so instead, he offered her his hand and they quickly took their leave from the foul-smelling place.
There was no need for Lily to ask where Severus was leading her, she had a good hunch already, and had no protest to his intentions. Before long, they were back in the Horned Serpent wing near the row of Potions labs, none of which was their destination in the here and now. Instead, an alcove situated between two of the labs was what they sought. Severus reached for the tapestry and brushed it aside, allowing Lily past, before following her in. Once the tapestry swung shut, Severus turned around, only to see Lily's sparkling, lust-filled eyes.
He hardly had any time to prepare himself before she cancelled the distance between them with a few quick strides, and planted her lips on his. The aggressiveness of her kiss took him by surprise at first, causing him to stagger back to the nearest wall as her thigh slid between his. Severus quickly returned her affection though as his hands rose to tangle in her tresses; her fingers found their resting place braced against his chest, fisting the material roughly and keeping them close.
Severus pulled back but kept his forehead rested against her's. Lily wouldn't let him rest for long, though as she pulled him closer once more and attacked his lips with reckless abandon. Severus groaned into the kiss, letting his hands drop from her hair, traversing her sides until they found her waist. He pulled her even closer, increasing that wonderful friction between their legs, but to his surprise, Lily's hands unwound from his rumpled robes and she stepped away. As she took one, two, then three steps away, she wore a bashful, yet unapologetic look.
Confusion and shock quickly drew themselves over Severus' features, but said confusion was quickly chased away as Lily's hands wandered lower to his trousers, palming the growing evidence of his arousal through the fabric and lightly stroking it. He kissed her then, with all the force she'd sent his way earlier—momentarily distracting Lily from her goal. Severus used her surprise to his advantage and moved her across the room 'til her back was up against the opposite wall.
Lily could sense his hesitation, his reluctance to go further and cross that boundary like he had back home. He'd rucked up the hem of her skirt, but refused to do any more than that, staring deeply into her eyes with an uncertain, hesitant look. More often than not, Lily would admire him for his attentiveness and consideration, knowing that he was always thinking of her and was permanently attuned to her wants, and her needs. Now though, she wasn't touched by it and her frustration only continued to mount, so she grasped his hand and brought it lower to the apex of her thighs. He briefly lifted his gaze to her face, his hesitancy and uncertainty on the way out and being replaced with understanding and desire. All it took was the slightest of nods on Lily's part for him to gain the approval needed to reach below her skirt.
"Just pull 'em aside Sev'rus," Lily grunted, gyrating her hips forward off the wall in search of his long, dextrous fingers. She ground her hips against his hand, not bothering to rein in her moans and pants of desire that filled the heavy air of the alcove.
Severus did as she asked, tugging the cotton garment to the side and gently rubbing the tips of his fingers across her womanhood. Lily lifted the hem of her skirt higher and lifted her knee to grant him greater access—soon being rewarded by the wonderful feeling of his digits tracing over her clit and rubbing circles across it—just as he knew she liked. All that time, Severus kept his eyes trained on her face, observing her reactions and remaining attuned to her wants and needs without wavering. The intensity of his gaze made her flush, she arched off the wall and pressed herself more firmly against him while staring deeply into his eyes with all the desire he'd been showing her. Soon he had her teetering on the brink of an orgasm, and with one final stroke, she cried out in ecstasy against the skin of Severus' neck. She bit down, lips and teeth colliding with the pale skin of his neck as it swallowed up her muffled groan of ecstasy.
She was sure it would leave a mark, but she didn't care if it did, perhaps it would convince those nosy bints to stop staring at Severus as if he were a hunk of meat at a butcher's shop. Severus was hers, and that mark would show it, prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt. She'd told him before of the jealousy she felt from all the stares that he seemed to get from other girls in the halls, and her feelings on the matter hadn't changed since. She knew she was jealous, possessive, even—but frankly, Severus was exactly the same, Severus belonged to her, just as she belonged to him.
Severus leaned closer to kiss her cheek, tenderly grazing his lips across her skin while Lily regained her senses. After the haze of her orgasm washed over her, she was soon reaching for his tented trousers and had resumed palming his erection through the fabric. Severus' quiet groan of approval caused a smile to bloom on Lily's features as she undid the button, pulled down the zip, and reached past the hem of his pants. She quickly pulled his pants lower to grant her greater access, searching for his rock-hard member and giving it a few quick strokes. Severus groaned his approval and kissed her neck softly, sucking on her pulse-point. His hands went lower, searching out her arse and coming to rest on the soft globes of flesh. He kneaded her arse, his rough hands cupping the soft flesh as he tensed and twitched in her hand. Before long, he too reached his peak, expelling a low groan as Lily finally brought him over the edge.
Unlike at home in the privacy of their bedroom—holding the knowledge that Petunia and Lily's parents were out, there was no time to waste here. They quickly righted their garments, vanished their mess and stepped out of the alcove after checking that no one else was in the corridor. They'd only had one encounter far since their return to school prior to today, but living in a boarding school with about several hundred fellow students, and dozens of staff meant they didn't have the luxury of time on their side like they did back home.
In this regard, both Severus and Lily couldn't wait to return home.
Later that same week, the day Severus had been anticipating finally arrived. Today was the fourth dueling club session of the year, and coincidentally, it was the day he was due to make good on his intention to duel Hank Walters and finally settle his feud with him. Severus made sure to wake up bright and early on the day and spent as much free time before and in-between classes brushing up on some of his offensive spells. Severus liked to think he had a good repertoire of offensive and defensive magic, but if experience dueling the Marauders three or four-on-one had taught him anything, it was that one could never be too prepared and that the more spells and options one had available to them, the better their chances of emerging victorious. Severus was ashamed to admit that he oftentimes lost his bouts with the Marauders. When he was fighting one Marauder, Potter for instance, he might be winning, but then that mongrel Black would jump in, then he might still be winning and then that ingrate Pettigrew would step in, and if he were somehow beating the trio of loathsome asshats, then Lupin would finally join in the melee. Severus could count on one hand the number of times he'd successfully fended off all four of that moronic quartet singlehandedly, but now, he'd only have to worry about one opponent. Needless to say, he liked his chances.
His focus during class was average at best, but he was able to make it through the day without being called on by any of his teachers. When he walked out of Charms class that evening though, his focus turned wholly towards dueling club and his impending duel against Walters. Upon leaving Professor Lambert's class; Thomas, Nicole and Caroline bade Severus good luck for his upcoming duel against Walters and then split off from the group to head back to the common room. Severus, Lily, Scott and Sandra meanwhile, soldiered on to the Ceremony Hall where duel club was being held, all the while asking after Severus and the strategy he'd cooked up for his bout.
"So what's your plan then, Severus?" Scott asked, as the quartet of friends navigated their way through the maze of corridors leading to the Ceremony Hall.
Severus gave him a blank look, then shrugged. "Let him tire himself out, strike back, win. Easy as that."
"And what makes you think you'll be able to beat Walters so easily?" Sandra chimed in. "He's no pushover you know."
"If I'm fighting only one opponent, I like my odds."
"So you're really not worried at all then, not even a little bit going into this," Scott pressed, sounding slightly more eager now.
Severus smirked smugly and shook his head. "Not at all. I will acknowledge Walters is…somewhat talented, when it comes to Defense, but it's nothing I can't handle," he said confidently.
Sandra arched a lone brow of skepticism. Scott too, looked skeptical, and he looked as if he was going to voice his skepticism but Lily cut across him.
"You lot haven't really seen Severus in action," said Lily, standing up for him. "That match against O'Shaughnessy last week? Psshhh, that was all a warm-up. Sev'll handle Walters easily, just you two wait and see."
"I guess we will," Sandra agreed.
They arrived at the Hall and quickly shuffled in. The Hall was practically unrecognizable compared to its usual layout. The four rune scriptures in the center were entirely covered with a special tarp that would absorb wayward spell-fire. In the middle of the room above the runes and the tarp was an elongated table stretching three fourths the length of the room. Above said table, was a mat upon which the two duelists would stand. Professor Bartholomew was currently guiding students into the hall and instructing them to take their positions at the base of the table. When the various pre-planned pairings for the day were announced, they would move from the periphery of the table and take their place atop it. Lily and Scott wouldn't be dueling at all today as they had their turn dueling last week, instead, their participation would be limited to cheering on Severus and Sandra. Sandra would be facing off against a Fifth Year Pukwudgie named Daniel Bridges. Severus' bout for the day would be squaring off against Hank Walters.
Once a group of Sixth Year Wampus and Thunderbirds took their place at the base of the dueling platform, Professor Bartholomew waved his wand at the door and slammed it shut with a bang.
"Your attention, please," the Professor said, prompting the Hall to fall into silence.
The Defense Professor's eyes swept over the mass of fifth and sixth years stood around him, and made certain he had everyone's complete attention before continuing. "By now, you lot should all know the drill. When I call your name, step up to the platform and take your position. Those of you who are not dueling today, kindly step back from the platform and make room for those that are."
Lily, Scott, and everyone else not dueling hastened to obey the professor's request and took several steps back from the periphery of the platform. Severus, Sandra, and the remaining students all shuffled closer to the Professor. Severus' eyes briefly found Walters', his were glittering hungrily—like he couldn't wait to finally duel Severus and put him in his place. The plucky halfblood and the arrogant pureblood had refrained from hexing one another, for the most part, and now, they'd finally get a chance to settle things between them with spellfire, in front of their fellow students no less. Severus relished the opportunity to put the arrogant prat in his place, and take him down a peg or two. In terms of cruelty, Hank Walters was no James Potter or Sirius Black, that was for sure, but he did boast his two former tormentors' arrogance and general air of superiority they held. Severus knew that his duel against Walters would be his best chance to stake his claim as the best at Defense Against the Dark Arts in their year, and if he could take Walters' attitude down a couple notches then that would be all the better for it.
"When I call your name, claim your position on the platform, and we shall begin."
Defense Professor Bartholomew's voice snapped Severus out from his daydreams and brought his mind back to the present. The professor read off two names belonging to a pair of Sixth years. With each passing duel, Severus' anticipation grew for when it would finally be his turn to take the stage. He observed each duel with interest, taking note of his fellow duelists' stances, their styles, and most importantly, their tendencies. Some preferred a more offensive approach, others preferred to adopt more defensive strategies. Severus took note of all of it though, knowing that in time he'd probably have to square off against most of the people in the club at some point. So far, Severus boasted a 2-0 record. He'd beaten a pair of fifth years in his only two fights of the year, last week and two weeks before that. Severus could largely credit his couple of wins to his observational skills. In both of his wins so far, Severus observed how his opponents fought and then used that information to find flaws in their strategies that would hopefully enable him to win. He was 2-0 in two fights, so clearly, his strategy had worked well so far; he intended to do the same today.
Walters dueled with brute force and power befitting his stocky size. He planted his feet, threw out hexes, and barely let up against his opponents. Based on Severus' observations of Walters' three duels he'd participated in so far, he was able to formulate a decent strategy today. By using his nimble nature and striking back once Walters tired himself, he hoped he'd be able to secure victory. Severus was confident that his defense would be more than strong enough to withstand the paltry range of spells Walters relied on as his bread and butter.
"Taking notes, huh?"
Severus pulled his eyes away from the pair of sixth year boys that currently occupied the dueling platform and turned to his fellow duelist and friend. Sandra regarded him with an amused look, fresh off a victory in Quidditch, or in Dueling Club, Sandra was usually at her most cocky. So having just won, naturally, Sandra was sporting a very smug grin.
"Indeed," said Severus, returning his attention to the bangs and whizzes of spellfire ricocheting back and forth on the platform.
"Your duel went rather well," he added, not taking his eyes off the action to look at his friend.
"Oh it certainly did," Sandra chuckled. She'd beaten Bridges within two minutes, having disarmed him, then stunned him, she was awarded a victory with high marks for the swift takedown of her opponent.
"Speaking of duels, how are you feeling about going up against Hank?"
Severus smiled thinly, that confident-looking smile of his speaking volumes of his thoughts regarding his chances against Walters.
"I'll be fine, Sandra, don't you worry about me," Severus said, as if Sandra needed any confirmation of his opinion. "In any case, I've shifted my attention from Walters towards any future opponents I might have later in the year."
"A future opponent you say? What sort of opponent did you have in mind?"
"Someone that can give me a challenge, preferably," he muttered dryly.
"So someone like myself then," Sandra chuckled.
"Perhaps…"
Before Sandra could respond to Severus' open statement, a loud bang rang out across the room from the stage as one of the duelists was flung off their feet and sent flying to the mat around the base of the platform. A sharp cry of Expelliarmus! from one sixth year relieved his opponent of his wand.
"And that's the match!" Bartholomew said, to the tune of applause and cheers from the audience for an entertaining duel.
The Defense Professor strode swiftly around the platform to help the fallen dueler to his feet and returned him his wand, he patted him on his back and murmured a few words of encouragement to the boy that Severus couldn't quite make out. Bartholomew and the losing dueler clambered back onto the platform, the latter of whom shook hands with the boy who disarmed him. Having officially concluded the bout with a handshake, the two boys hopped off the platform and returned to the crowd, both wearing smiles, albeit the winner's being significantly brighter.
"I'm pretty sure I'll be up next," Severus whispered to Sandra.
"I would say good luck, but based on how I've seen you duel so far, I don't think you'd need it."
Severus' lip twitched upwards into a wry smile. He'd memorized the order already so he didn't even have to wait for Professor Bartholomew to call out his and Walters' names, he'd already reached the base of the platform and was climbing it. At the far end of the narrow platform, Walters ascended the steps, his beefy hand wrapped tightly around his wand. His brown eyes seemed to glitter with the satisfaction he felt at finally being able to square off against Severus. Their verbal barbs had come to a head, and now, here they were about to duel against one another to settle their differences once and for all. A lot of their audience was aware of the bad blood between the two boys, who never lost an opportunity to disparage and humiliate one another with their words.
Severus ignored the crowd of students that had gathered just outside the protective enchantment around the dueling platform, his attention solely belonged to the boy thirty feet away from him whose grin he sought to wipe off his face.
"Gentlemen, I want a nice, clean duel—" Bartholomew emphasized the clean aspect in particular to Walters, who had a penchant for dancing about the rules and pushing his luck as far as what was allowed and what wasn't. "I say again, a clean duel, no illegal hexes, and no hexing after the end of the bout, is that understood, gentlemen?"
Severus didn't even glance towards his Defense professor for a second, his eyes remaining fixed on the grey eyes of his opponent. "Yes, professor," Severus said curtly, but not meeting Bartholomew's gaze.
"Of course Professor," Walters said in kind, his grin widening just a touch.
Severus knew damn well that Walters had no intention of heeding Professor Bartholomew's words, he fought dirtily, Severus was aware of this within three minutes of watching Walters' first match. Then again, there was only so much that the jovial Defense against the Dark Arts Professor could do to a boy whose father could have him fired with a simple floo call.
Professor Bartholomew glanced between the two boys skeptically, but then nodded. He too, wasn't fooled that Walters would play fair and stay inside the metaphorical line in the sand. Bartholomew knew both boys were talented, yet he silently rooted for Severus to win, hoping that it would take Walters' ego down just a bit after losing to his biggest rival.
"Very well then. You all know the format, when one of you is incapacitated, bound, disarmed or prevented from doing by any such legal means, the duel is over and the winner shall lower their wand at once. Let's have a fun, clean duel, and good luck to you both."
Severus nodded once at the DADA Professor; as did Walters, who to his credit, seemed a bit sincere. Bartholomew hopped off the platform and recast the protective enchantment that bloomed forth from the tip of his wand like wispy cloud. The enchantment enshrouded the table and prevented all their fellow dueling club attendees from getting inadvertently hit by wayward spellfire. With the enchantment in place, with only Severus, Walters and Bartholomew himself inside the protective shroud, Bartholomew instructed both boys to ready themselves for the commencement of their long-awaited duel.
Outside the shroud, Lily and Scott had inched closer to the stage upon which Severus stood, moving to stand by Sandra's side. The three friends watched the fourth as he took the stage, bowed to his competitor—if you can call a slight incline of his head a bow—and then readied himself by adopting his dueling stance. Severus raised his wand and pointed it directly at Walters' chest, awaiting the bell chime that would would start the duel. Severus grasped his wand loosely, allowing his magic to run freely into the grooved stick of wood.
He shut his eyes, inhaled, then exhaled. Reopened them.
All the noise was gone—vanished into nothingness, the lights—a distant blur he could scarcely see. He could just make out a head of red hair in the crowd, and a pair of glittering green eyes eagerly awaiting his first move. A smile formed on her face, filling him with confidence and pride. Silence fell upon the hall as Severus focused his breathing, and in so doing, his mind, body and soul all fell into sync as he re-channelled his focus on his adversary. He emptied his mind, found his peace, and used the prevailing calm to anchor himself to the seabed that would, hopefully, enable him to withstand the coming storm. He could feel the wild, pulsing magic radiating off of Walters, reading the way the hulking boy stood, the way his muscles twitched, the way he breathed heavily, Severus could tell he was nervous. Not that he could blame him.
He'd be nervous too if he had to fight someone as talented as himself.
The bell chimed once, twice, then thrice, and without further delay, the long awaited duel between the two rival Serpents began at last.
For a brief moment, neither Severus or Walters. The spectating duelists and Professor waited with bated breath as Walters and Severus sized each other up, neither firing a spell and both waiting for the other to make something happen. True to his previous form, Walters acted first, stomping his foot on the ground and jabbing his wand forward in a feint—but not firing a single spell. Severus wasn't fooled however by the burly boy's antics and limited his reaction to Walters' feint as a slow, unimpressed blink. Walters blinked in surprise, the boy seemed so utterly sure of himself that Severus would fall for the feint. To his shock, there Severus stood thirty feet away from him, wearing an unimpressed look that conveyed his amusement better than words ever could. Walters bared his teeth in a feral snarl and kicked off proceedings with a flurry of hexes and curses.
Try as he might, Walters wasn't able to find an opening in Severus' stalwart defense. Severus, after all, had been used to fending off two, three, sometimes four adversaries at once, all shooting hexes and jinxes at him at a rapid clip. Having to defend against a single opponent was no difficulty at all to the former Slytherin. He even allowed himself a small smile as he continuously evaded and parried Walters' hexes and spells. Despite having the urge to strike back, Severus kept to his well-devised game plan and opted to remain on the defensive to let Walters tire himself out with his constant hexes. In all his previous matches, Walters either won by overwhelming his opponent with the brute force from a flurry of hexes and curses, or he'd lost the match thanks to tiring himself out and opening himself up to counterattack as the match went on.
Severus maintained his strong defense, never wavering or faltering under the bombardment of all manner of spells Walters shot towards him. His defensive display had the crowd gasping and on the edge of their metaphorical seat. They'd never seen anyone withstand Walter's offensive onslaught so effortlessly before.
"Rictusempra!" Walters shouted, casting the laughing hex at him.
Severus bellowed; "Protego!" and slashed his wand upwards, parrying the blow and sending it rocketing over his head into the protective enchantment.
"Is that all you've got?" Severus retorted, daring his opponent to come at him with more. "C'mon Walters, I expected more from—"
"Furnunculus! Expulso!" Walters shouted in rapid succession.
The first spell whizzed wide of Severus, his aim being off slightly. The second hurtled right for him so Severus ducked and rolled to the left. He jabbed his wand forward, shouting; "Expelliarmus!"
"Protego!" Walters cried, slashing his wand upwards. He blocked the spell, but only just, his fatigue evident through his heavy breathing, labored wand movements.
Walters looked entirely spent, magically and physically. Flashing his opponent a smug grin, Severus finally began his counterattack.
"Stupefy!"
Dodged, but just barely. Walters was slow getting to his feet after ducking and rolling out of the way of Severus' stunning spell.
"Tarantallegra! Locomotor Mortis!"
Walters' eyes widened, and he swung his wand in an upward arc to conjure a shield. Alas, his earlier offensive onslaught meant the strength of his magic had dissipated, and so, his shield charm was only powerful enough to absorb the first of Severus' two spells. The purplish jet of the dancing-leg jinx impacted Walters' shield, shattering it upon impact. The second jet of light, a dark red leg-locker curse found its mark, wrapping up Walters' legs and causing him to fall over flat on his face. Severus flicked his wand, casting a silent disarming charm to relieve Walters of his weapon, and just like that, the match was over.
"And that's the match! Mister Snape is your winner!" Bartholomew cried. The sprightly Defense Professor quickly leapt off the platform to Walters' side, he was flat on his front, his legs bound tightly by an invisible rope. Bartholomew quickly undid Walters' restraints and helped him to his feet.
For a brief moment, a heavy blanket of silence descended over the two duelists and the rest of the hall. The silence was broken by one person clapping—Lily, Severus noted, then more people joined in—Scott and Sandra among them. In the span of a few seconds, the hall erupted into polite cheers and applause for a match well fought, and the conclusion of a heavily anticipated bout that in their opinion, lived up to the hype. It was common knowledge amongst all the fifth years that Severus and Hank didn't see eye to eye, and while their disputes were mostly verbal in nature until this point; the majority of the spectating crowd knew there was a sense of animosity between them that they hoped would translate over into an entertaining duel. Judging by their reaction, they were thoroughly entertained with the defensive masterclass Severus had put forth, not to mention enjoying the vast array of offensive spells Walters showcased today. At Professor Bartholomew's behest, the two rival Fifth Year Horned Serpents met in the middle of the platform to shake hands.
With grace and poise, Severus strode half the length of the platform to meet Walters in the middle. Lucius had told him once, that one must be gracious in victory or defeat in a formal duel, and that proper decorum must be observed regardless of the outcome. The former Prefect's words rang loudly in his ears now, one of the few things Severus retained of his old mentor's teachings but he remembered them loud and clear. Despite the urge to smile and grin at having one-upped his rival, Severus resisted the temptation and kept his face blank, restraining the elation and satisfaction he felt to the sanctuary of his thoughts. As Walters approached him, Severus couldn't help but think that studying all that Occlumency had paid off quite nicely in being able to reign in his smug thoughts while keeping his expression impassive as a good duelist should. The two boys stepped down from the dueling platform to make room for the next pair of duelists due up after them. As Severus made to enter the crowd, a firm, rough hand on his shoulder stilled his progress. He turned around to come face to face with his rival, the boy he'd just fought, and defeated. To Severus' surprise, Walters seemed uncannily subdued, a far cry from his brash and proud self, he seemed rather humbled—more than Severus would've thought.
"Well fought Snape," Walters said gruffly. He pulled his beefy hand off his shoulder and offered it to his taller, thinner opponent to shake. It seemed that he too, was aware of proper dueling etiquette and was at least attempting to put aside their gripes with one another for the sake of proper form.
Severus didn't keep him waiting long and grasped Walters' hand in a firm shake, then pulled away. "Likewise," he said evenly.
Walters snorted and rolled his eyes. "As if. You played me like a fiddle out there," he said, quietly enough so that no one could hear. "Which is why I want a rematch Snape, two months from now after I've trained some."
"And why would you want that?" Severus asked, his brow arched.
Walters shrugged. "Isn't it obvious?" he asked, the makings of a faint sneer etched onto his angular face. "I want to be the best. And to be the best, you've got to beat the best."
Severus blinked slowly, his gaze drifting lazily over the Walters' shoulder to a familiar head of red hair in the crowd on the opposite side of the hall. "I wouldn't call myself the best, Walters," he said quietly.
Walters took two steps back from Severus, then turned around, before finally looking back to Severus. "You can't possibly mean—"
"I can," Severus said crisply, daring his rival to disagree. Severus snorted quietly, his eyes sharp and his tone stiff. "My knowledge of magic is greater than Lily's, true; but her raw potential and power surpasses even my own. If you can't beat me in a duel, Walters…then you have no chance of beating her."
Severus sent one last look at his rival over his shoulder, it was a look of warning that sent chills down Walters' spine. Without another word, Severus turned away and made his way through the throngs of fifth and sixth years back to his friends.
A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and that the duel segment was alright to read. I haven't written too many action scenes before so feel free to critique and let me know where I can improve in that regard. This fic's main themes are more along the lines of friendship and romance, so it won't be that heavy on the action/warfare side of things Post-Hogwarts, even, but I'd still appreciate advice nonetheless when it comes to writing scenes of that nature. As far as progression of this fic goes, I've got nearly everything loosely mapped out to 6th year, so expect the next update two weeks from now or thereabouts.
On a side note, the finale of the 2021 F1 season is happening tomorrow, Hamilton V Verstappen for the championship and they're literally tied on points going into the final race. Try give it a watch if you haven't yet, this has only happened once before in F1 history after all so we'll be in for a showdown of epic proportions. The last time we had a season go down to the final race was in 2012, so if you've got the time, I highly recommend tuning in for this race.
Thank you for reading!