Lighting It Up
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LIGHTING IT UP @Percival Rocierx|xEvpraksiya Publishing Housex|x20/11/2025x|xWC: 339 OUTFIT; hufflepuff robe, grey long-sleeve shirt, black skort, white socks, and new balance 574 in nimbus cloud |
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. | verity𝓣hursdays are for duelling. It had become a sort of routine for Vera, despite the sport not having another set of matches until after the New Year. There was more than enough time to relax, and she would still have enough time to prepare for the next stage if she took the entire rest of the year off. Still, Vera came up and kept practicing. She was a captain, after all, and captains had to know what they were talking about, right? No one was going to take a First year seriously, let alone a Muggle-born First year, regardless of her title. It was a lonely sort of hobby. Her fellow First year captains had magical upbringings to an extent, and the rest of the captains had been in the game for far longer than she had. They knew what was going on and what to do. Vera? There were still doubts. Doubts that were well justified. "Incendio!" She watched as the training dummy shifted, but did not burst into flames. Instead, the flames nipped at the dummy's material, then snuffed out with a subtle trail of smoke. She huffed. That wasn't good enough. The older students had a stronger version of this spell, but the professors wouldn't teach it until she got to that point. How was she supposed to make sure the Fire-Making Spell led to her opponent going up in flames every time? The answer was starting to look like never. Vera raised her wand again. "Flipendo!" Now, that spell had fared better. The training dummy bent so far backward that it almost hit the ground before springing back up. It hadn't been fully knocked down, but Vera still grinned. Closer. She was getting closer to perfecting an absolutely lethal Knockback Jinx, which was important considering it was her hardest hitting spell at the moment. Until she got older, this was going to be the best she could do. Duelling alone every Thursday evening before dinner was beginning to be a very lonely hobby. |
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ACTION; just hitting training dummies on a thursday [1] minor appearance shift / [2] skilled transfigurer STA 5 | EVA 7 | STR 2 | WIS 7 | ARC 3 | ACC 6 |
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Last edited by Verity Engels on 24 Nov 2025, 04:01, edited 1 time in total.
Lighting It Up
Percival waited just outside the duelling chamber for a moment. The last time he’d been here, he had nearly set part of the room on fire. Ara had been patient about it, and he did manage to get better at his spellcasting... but he hoped that he'd do better today. He had been practicing since then, after all, both in class and in his free time, and this felt like the right place to see if any of it had really stuck.
As he approached the room, the sound of a spell being cast drew his attention. Someone was already here, and now he wondered who it was.
He peeked around the corner of the doorway, just in time to see a dummy snap backward under the force of the familiar Knockback Jinx. It was an impressive feat of magic, but he was more focused on the witch casting the spell than the spell itself. It was Vera, the girl he met during flying class not long ago. He already considered her a friend, even though their little chaotic adventure had been a brief one, and now he saw a chance to spend some time with her again. So when she inevitably turned to look at him, he smiled at her, “Hey, Vera,” he said with a friendly voice.
“Looks like you're doing pretty well with your spells,” he added as his gaze moved between the dummy and her. “I've been trying to get better at them, too.”
He paused and began to fidget with the sleeve of his robes, “Do you mind if I join you for a bit?" he then asked somewhat nervously, hoping she'd be fine with another round of practice together. His wand was already in hand, but he waited for her answer before taking another step toward the duelling mat. The last thing he wanted was to interrupt if she wanted to practice alone, but if she wanted a practice partner or just someone to talk to, he'd be more than happy to join her.
It'd be fun to have a friend to practice with!
@Verity Engels
Lighting It Up
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LIGHTING IT UP @Percival Rocierx|xEvpraksiya Publishing Housex|x20/11/2025x|xWC: 456 OUTFIT; hufflepuff robe, grey long-sleeve shirt, black skort, white socks, and new balance 574 in nimbus cloud |
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. | verity𝓥era turned to the familiar voice and immediately smiled. "Percival! Good to see you're alright," she said. "Looks like you've still got energy to burn after this morning's race." So far, their interactions had been about flying and anything above ground. Their first proper conversation happened during Flying class—an experience Vera's face would still grow hot over remembering, but one she could laugh over now—then, they had that race Matilde hosted on the broom racing tracks just this morning. They had briefly seen each other at the Fall Ball, though Vera didn't get the chance to properly talk to him then. This was the first time they were together, no brooms in sight, just two feet on the ground. Vera brought a hand to her chest and gave a small nod. "I am a duellist, so I'm just playing my part. Though, it's still hard to believe I got into the team just months after starting school." She hummed. "You would think they'd want more experienced duellists who have more spells to choose from, but if you've got the grit, they don't seem to mind young players." She then gestured to the open floor. "Not at all. Please." There were times when Vera shared the floor with other students and didn't do particularly well on her casts. Most that did come in were older students, no doubt testing more powerful and complex combinations Vera could only gawk at until she got to their level. People would judge, covertly watch from the corner of their eyes. Or, at least, that was what she believed. Being perceived while in this space was something Vera was still getting used to. Percival was no stranger. He was a friend, and one that already witnessed Vera's mishaps while figuring out the Wizarding World. He made no judgements then, just genuine care, and that helped Vera ease back into her flow state. She raised her wand at the training dummy again. "Wingardium Leviosa." Vera had been practicing the spell here and there, lifting small objects in and across her dorm room when she didn't want to stand. But Marshal was right. The spell was a mouthful to say, and not at all practical when people could fire spells in the millisecond it would take for you to finish the first word of the incantation. Still, there were merits. Then, "Flipendo!" As the dummy fell, Vera aimed a little ways below the falling target, nearly missing it in the process. Still, the Knockback Jinx brushed the side of the dummy, causing it to fall backwards once it hit the ground from the uneven landing. That was one of its merits. "So, what brings you up here?" she asked. "Interested in duelling?" |
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ACTION; duelling, talking, everything in between [1] minor appearance shift / [2] skilled transfigurer STA 5 | EVA 7 | STR 2 | WIS 7 | ARC 3 | ACC 6 |
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Lighting It Up
Percival’s grin widened when she greeted him. “Yeah, I’ve still got plenty of energy left,” he said with a small laugh. “I don’t think I’ll ever say no to a chance to practice.” And it was true, especially when it came to duelling practice. It's where his focus had been for the last few weeks, and he doubted that'd change anytime soon.
If ever.
He then stepped further into the room when she welcomed him in. The nerves that usually came with stepping into this space eased a bit faster than usual. Maybe because Vera was here, or because she didn’t look bothered at all that he’d shown up.
When she began to cast again, he watched her closely and quickly understood why she was already on the duelling team. Her movements were smooth, her incantations clear, and even though it wasn't all 'perfect', she was obviously well on her way to becoming an amazing duellist.
And all of that as only a first-year student.
“That was really good,” he said with a warm smile before nodding toward the dummy. “You make it look so easy, too.”
When she asked what brought him up here, Percival rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged a little, though the excitement behind it was obvious. “I want to get better at duelling,” he said. “I know a few spells, but I still need to perfect them.” He glanced toward the other side of the room, where more seasoned students practiced far more advanced spells, then back to her. “I signed up for the duelling team waiting list, but it’s long so I'll have to wait a while to get on the team.” He gave a breathy laugh. “So I figured… if I want any chance of getting on eventually, I should learn as much as I can now.”
He walked to the spot next to her and raised his wand, almost instinctively mirroring her stance. He had gotten better at it, purely because of his training time with @Dealla Prince. “Plus, it’s more fun practicing with someone else,” he added with a little grin.
His eyes then moved to the dummy again. “I’ve been trying to improve my aim and my form. And… well, everything.” His tone warmed as he smiled and looked at her. "If you don’t mind, maybe we can practice together for a bit? I could really use the help.” Whether it'd be watching each other cast spells and offering tips, or even throwing spells at each other, it'd be useful.
@Verity Engels
Lighting It Up
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LIGHTING IT UP @Percival Rocierx|xEvpraksiya Publishing Housex|x20/11/2025x|xWC: 884 OUTFIT; hufflepuff robe, grey long-sleeve shirt, black skort, white socks, and new balance 574 in nimbus cloud |
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. | verity𝓢he understood wanting to practice. After all, that was what brought her up here in the first place. Even if her seniors were to try take her out of the room and ask her to consider doing something else, what else was there to do? Hogsmeade was out of bounds, unless she wanted a detention, and there was still a month until Christmas break. Reading, perhaps, sure but there was only so much reading one could do in the library until you exhausted the school's collection. Of course, there would be books above her year level which she could pass on until the time was right, but that only proved her point that once you'd read everything you could understand, what else was there to read? The magic of being in magic school was starting to wear off. Vera missed the internet, the on-demand videos she could pick and choose on YouTube or on the Fire TV, and the playgrounds near her home if she wanted to go out. Really, Hogwarts did not offer much. But enough of that. There was only a month until she could have all of that again. Complaints aside, Vera approached the dummy she had just knocked over. Then, she couldn't help the smile that burst on her face, nor the blush on her cheeks at Percival's compliment. "Thank you. It's only easy now," she chuckled, "When you're actually up against people, it's easy to mess it up. I guess that's why I'm here a lot." Some would consider being here every Thursday to practice was doing too much, but Vera would disagree. Not only was coming up here a chance to practice and perfect spells she'd learned throughout the year, but also work on her stage nerves. Being comfortable in the exact environment that would normally evoke stress would reduce the amount of mistakes she would make on the actual day, in theory. Besides, where else was she going to practice spell-casting if it was not allowed everywhere but the Duelling Club and during class time? But there was also the saying "practice makes perfect". Compared to her peers who'd grown up with magic, spell-casting was not something that came to Vera naturally. She had the imagination, sure, with how much Muggle kids fawned over the concept of magic and levitating and making things out of nothing, but real magic was finicky and specific. Any distraction, any wrong angle, and the spell would fall apart. Being this good at spell-casting wasn't something that happened during class. Not even overnight. It took hours of work in the Duelling Club, sometimes even weeks. Some spells were easier than others, yes, but that didn't mean there was a clear timeline for perfection each time. There were failures, and that was all part of the process. Real duels wouldn't tolerate failure, though. Spells could just sizzle out to nothing, or, even worse, backfire. Most of the time, there was no recovering from them. So, practice would mitigate all that. "Maybe it's a good thing to wait. Honestly, being a First year on the Duelling Team is intense," she said. She was reminded of the First year in the duel she watched; Slytherin versus Ravenclaw. Livia hadn't even lasted half-way when she was knocked out by an enemy's and her own backfired spell. Vera cringed. Intense, indeed. When Percival asked for advice, Vera's face lit up. Call it Hufflepuff spirit, call it whatever, but she was happy to share something she was good at. While, yes, perhaps she wasn't the most qualified to give advice with being a First year and a Muggle-born and all, her hands were itching to help. Plus, Percival had helped her before with flying. This was the least she could do to repay the gesture. Vera nodded. "Of course. Let's have a look..." She positioned herself just slightly behind Percival so she could look over his stance. She hummed. "Good form will help your aim. I like to keep one foot slightly forward." Vera shuffled her feet slightly, then swayed side to side until she was sure she wouldn't topple over at the slightest breeze. Then, she tossed her wand from one hand to another. "It may be worth adjusting your wand hand, too. Usually being at the end of your wand means your movements are more flimsy and less controlled, but changing your grip can help with control." When Vera first got her wand at Ollivander's, she held it with her pointer finger out and she kept that since. It was as natural as pointing out your pinky while holding a teacup. Keeping her hand concentrated into a fist put pressure on her wrist, which was often sore with the amount of writing she had to do. Since computers, iPads, and tablets were not a thing, they had to write their assignments with pen (or quill, which Vera was somewhat fascinated by until she got tired of having to dip her quill in ink every few strokes) and paper. Which was fine, but tedious when it came to long essays, which were common enough to be an annoyance. Vera hummed. "Show me a spell. A Knockback Jinx or Fire-Making Spell, whatever you like." They had to start somewhere, after all.
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ACTION; duelling, talking, everything in between [1] minor appearance shift / [2] skilled transfigurer STA 5 | EVA 7 | STR 2 | WIS 7 | ARC 3 | ACC 6 |
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