A Duelist in the Making Solo

Interacting with: N/A Mentioning: N/A Date: 10/25/25

Word Count: 1002

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The day was early and sun streamed through the windows of the Thunderbird dorm. Dylan blinked slowly and groaned. He was far from a morning person. Mornings were Avery’s thing as well as his mother’s. The two of them used to wake up before the sun rose just to watch the beauty of the early morning. There had been times that Avery had managed to drag him out of bed at dawn, but those occasions were rare. Rare enough that he could count them on one hand. Every time Dylan attempted to close his eyes, he couldn't fall asleep. He had noticed that the same thing was happening more and more recently. After the events after the ball between himself and Val, well, he hadn't been able to stop thinking. He had messed up, and messed up badly and there was no turning back. No way to take back the things he had said and the things he had done. He rubbed his hands over his eyes before throwing his legs over the side of his bed and standing. His legs were shaky from sleep, but Dylan didn't seem to notice. All he could think about was that he had to get out of the room he was in. He needed fresh air. And soon before he did something he regretted. Without even thinking about what he was doing. Dylan pulled on a blue hoodie, black jeans, some worn blue tennis shoes, and his wand before running out of the Thunderbird dorm and towards the grounds of Ilvermony. Upon making it to the grounds, the force of the cool American air brought him back to reality of who he was and where he was. He sighed and rubbed his face again. Shocked at how much he had changed because of one letter, one day, one phrase that had ruined everything and forced him to become the man he now was. A man even Dylan himself couldn't recognize. That's when Dylan saw something. A flash of magic in the distance. Well, he thought it was magic. Though, with how he had been lately, he wouldn't be surprised if he had just seen a trick of the morning sun. A mirage from his lack of sleep that he desperately needed. That's when he remembered. He didn't know why, but that flash of light brought him back to when he was little. Well, around seven years old. He and Avery had decided the night before to spend the whole day in the woods as it was one of their last few days of summer in Wales at their grandparents' house. Of course they had to go to their favorite place in the woods. A place that even after all the years of not seeing it reminded Dylan of the good old times when life was simple. The log. The long was a simple area, yet it held complex memories. Memories of times when Dylan's grandfather had shown him the woods and taught him of the plants found within, times when he and Avery had spent hours watching clouds in the sky, then there were the times that stood clearly to Dylan. The times when he and Avery had acted as if they were dueling. With stick wands and everything. He had laughed and joked about it for years, but now he realized something. Something was missing in his life. He hadn't realized until then what was missing. A hole that connected him to his past. Dueling. Maybe it was to take his anger out and get past what he had done, but maybe it was more complex. Deeper into his life and something he had buried for years. The memories that reminded him of his grandfather showed him the area that he had shown to Avery where they had dueled as little kids. Maybe that had been why Dylan was always so interested in the art of dueling. It reminded him of the good times instead of the bad. Dylan sighed and collapsed to the ground near the pond. Observing the ducks as they dunked their heads underwater. Their heads popping up occasionally. He was reminded of the time the year before that he had observed these ducks as well as other birds with one of the now graduated seventh years. He wondered if he had been a duelist, but Dylan quickly shot the thought out of his head. Attempting yet failing to think of anything but dueling. It had filled his head. Leaving him rendered useless to anything else. Dylan then laid down in the soft grass. The dew seeped into his clothes, but Dylan didn't even notice. His mind was whirling with that one memory. The last time he had ever "dueled" with his cousin before everything had changed. Before he was forced to leave the only place he had ever called home for a completely new country across the world. He couldn't believe it had been six years since that fateful day had happened. Time flew quickly and left no mercy. What only felt like yesterday could have been weeks, months, or even years before. That thought alone not only scared him, but also reminded him of how short life really was. Maybe that was why he was constantly plagued by what he had said to Val. She hadn't deserved it. She didn't even deserve him. He wasn't worth fussing over if he couldn't even handle himself and his own emotions. There was no excuse for his actions, but he knew something had changed within him when the moment struck. He had felt something snap within him as if a new door had opened. Dylan at that moment realized what he needed to do. If not for himself then for others he would join the dueling team. Maybe channeling his pain and anger would help him not come after people again. He couldn't stand burning any more bridges than he already had. It was just too much to bear. Too much suffering.

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