2021 Stage 3 Group F: Gryffindor vs Slytherin Finished

Yes, soothe me, Ravenclaw boy. Try to convince me and yourself that this is anything but a pointless display of one-sided violence. That we are surrounded by friends and that this is a competition. See you, bird boy. This is a demonstration.

Feeling the hand of consolation on his shoulder, Valentine’s weathered gaze fluttered to the side as he wondered who it was that would extend him this final gesture. Evelynn? Bridget?

No. It was just his imagination. An unrepentant sigh left his lips as his wicked countenance returned to facing forward. Such a romantic display, he thought. Two Davids facing up against a pair of Goliaths: the true antithesis of underdog and top dog.

His hand rose to grip Everly’s shoulder as he strode onto the duelling platform in tandem with his partner, the sting of his last duel’s outcome a distant memory as the frightening events of January. Was this assurance? Or something else entirely? Here was Everly Charlton, come to mollify yet another pair of angry duelists, so very unsure of herself and her marble-like touch. How beautiful was she when marked by distress, Valentine felt; how lovely did she appear, touched by tragedy. Meeting her somerset eyes with a softening of expression, he seemed on the verge of dutifully stowing away his aggressions and giving her this fighting chance, his fingers squeezing the softness of her shoulder with a wordless camaraderie. He had not joined the duelling team to trade barbed words with meaningless individuals, after all. He did not come to play at violence, but the simple act of learning. His learning was more important than any slight made against his ego, prickly as it was. Unfortunately, Valentine was a boy of principle, and his word, once given, he was loathe to break. Frowning and acting with clear reluctance, he gently disengaged his partner’s shoulder, his hand falling back to his side to draw his wand.

It was not fury in his eyes when they flicked and levelled the weight of their scrutiny onto Dmitri. Flat and emotionless, like two chips of dull, bloody ice, they regarded him in the brief eternity that existed between Slytherin Captain and Gryffindor underdog with the uncharacteristic display of clinical detachment. Of his wrath, neither Ruby nor he could invoke the tiniest of embers. This was not a personal vendetta. He had nothing within to elevate either the two to a tier of personability, and it reflected in his every expression and gesture. They unto themselves were nothing to him but casualties of misplaced pride.

“... Begin!”

Turning his head and sights on Pericles, Valentine frowned severely. Begin, he had said. Begin, as if it were a statement of truth and not the falsehood he sought to convey. This was not a beginning. This was an unavoidable, insurmountable end. The bird mad girl beside him, she saw but did not see, and he hated her for that ignorance. Even if the passing twists of fortune fell in their favour, the outcome of their duel was writ clear in stone. And so he knew he was betrayed. The system had delivered him an impossible challenge: the widest age and skill gap possibly achievable with the combined duelling lineups of every house.

More besides, Valentine did not care to know. How terrible was wisdom when it brought no profit to the wise, and he had suffered enough for a lifetime. He did not want to know the regard for him his foes felt, the apathy if not vague dislike they held in their eyes for his visage. He did not want to know their disdain for the blows he meted out to retain both his honor and integrity. He looked on, hoping to recall the time when his innocence had remained a core aspect of his character. It was a gesture of futility, of course. The expectations of society had placed upon him a great burden that had rendered his moral tower unstable. He felt himself cracking, motes of personality twisting and contorting to create new thoughts and aspirations he had never considered. Yet, he tried all the same to convince himself that there was once when he would measure himself with sportsmanship upon such a field.

Feeling the violent shudder of a chill down his spine, Valentine knew that this would ever be thus: he was alone. There were none here who he could speak friend to, and he resigned himself to this certainty. Unwilling to contest the unbending rules of this school, Valentine closed his eyes and braced himself for the inevitable strike of cruelty that would be dealt upon him.

His ears throbbed as the crowds stirred, but among the fevered cackles of teenage girls, he heard a distinct excitement to see Dmitri Jones striking him down, and there was no clearer sign of dismissal than he had ever seen. His friends, the only ones worth growing furious over, and how he burned with self-righteous indignation. It was writ clear across his face, that fury he had been lacking. The grimace, the snarl, the rush of heat that bloomed in his hands and face and loins, he nearly shook with it.

“... I resign,” he said, and then softer to his partner. “I suggest you do the same.”

Stalking off, Valentine shoved his way past anyone that tried to impede his path. If he was to serve as entertainment like a clown in a circus, then he was going to be a clown on his own terms. He walked, and he walked, his legs shuddering angrily with each heavy step, a veritable display of impotent wrath as there ever was one. He made no noise to fill the sudden quiet that surrounded him.

Knowing the way better than most first years, having walked these halls repeatedly in his personal ventures, Valentine went home. It was not to the Gryffindor bunk he traveled, though. That had never been home.

The cold and dreary castle had never been nothing more than a residence, a repository for wealth, knowledge, and power. He hated it, he hated it as he hated all cold and unfeeling things tonight. No, Valentine wandered the halls seeking what was warm and familiar, his embittered verbosity all but spent now that he was alone and able to feel again. Rubbing at his face, no longer having the excuse to stow sentiment for the principles of death, his emotionalism burbled to the surface in great waves of weariness and sorrow, moving him as surely as it made him stumble along, unhappy and despondent. It was to the owlery he went, unsatisfied, humbled and hurt. To the owlery he went, traveling paths he would never, ever forget.

Good people never walk alone, memory said, but he refused to listen. Gladder times, happier times, times never appreciated until they were faded memories, beautiful through the gauze of distant recollection. Wrapping his arms around his trunk, Valentine fell victim to himself, being unable to leave the emotions half-felt, and stumbled along deeper and deeper until, at last, he was where he wanted to be, where he belonged, where he was home. The broken walls of a dilapidated owl coop, the savage garden among the broken statuettes and murky waters strangled by overgrown vines, that was where he went. He tripped over a stone, and bereft of focus, went down on a knee, sighing lowly.

Banish the thought, banish the sentiment, he could not be crippled again, but he was, he was crippled and furious and more. Approaching the top of the tower near the choked, marble steps overgrown with roots and hidden by moss, he went for the dedicated spot he had affixed there long ago, now grimey and forsaken. He uncurled an arm around himself and touched the weathered stone, cleaning its surface and dirtying his hand, rubbing until he was able to see the pristine reflection once again. He sighed again to look at it, and settled back on his heels, shaking his head. Yes, he would stay here a while, he knew, with time enough he would muster himself. What of his shattered thoughts? Too much truth in prose, too much weight with rhapsody. He buried his face into his palms, then leaned back, sitting down in the dirt before the broken owl coop and broken statuettes, there to remain indefinitely. 

Actions:

Conceding the duel.

Leaving unless stopped.

Reducio

OOC note: Everly and I have both agreed to concede the duel on our ends for both in-character and out-of-character reasons. Congratulations to Dmitri and Ruby!

Conclusion

GRYFFINDOR FORFEITS, SLYTHERIN IS VICTORIOUS

The referee was ready: ready to see what wily tactics the first-years might use to preserve their stay on the stage, to see the spellwork of older years, to learn from both sides and collectively grow as a group of duellists, as students, as people....

Pericles was ready for anything except a resignation. Though the declaration took him by surprise, he had enough sense to react reflexively. His hand shot up, pale and slender, a flag signaling surrender before the forfeiting team could come to harm. The expression of suppressed excitement crumbled, making way for gentle shock: wide eyes, parted lips, a stunned silence. He looked at the back of the retreating Gryffindor cub's head, then on to the partner, half expecting her to try and drag her teammate back on stage. The lions lost before they began. Banishing his bafflement with a blink and cleared throat, Pericles climbed onto center stage, turned towards the crowd, and announced rather plainly: "Gryffindor has chosen to resign. Slytherin is victorious."

This match has concluded.
Please be sure to still make one post (Outro? Intro? Inside-Outro?) before the deadline.

Reducio

goodbye I guess

───────────────────────── INTERACTION @Jackson Valentine - - ─────────────────────────

───────────────────────── MENTION @Pericles Dralt @Ruby Cazares @Dmitri Jones ─────────────────────────

New stage, new duel, and new ways to die.

Brilliant.

Last stage was... er... Everly would say somewhat disappointing. Then again, it was her first stage. Should she be as hard on herself as she was?

Then again, last stage, Everly had hopes she would win.

Yeah, this stage was quite depressing.

Dmitri Jones and Ruby Cazares. What was it with facing super overpowered fourth years that must certainly be bloodthirsty?

People at Hogwarts were stupid.

Everly could feel Jackson's hand gripping her shoulder as they stepped up. What was it? She felt unsteady, like she had almost tipped over. She was scared, sure, but she also couldn't identify what else was in there. It was almost - no, certain they'd lose, and Everly was already readying herself for it. What had happened in January was still foggy in her mind, to be honest. She was delighted for another bruise to her ego.

The referee started talking. Everly turned her gaze on him, not ready at all. Things were happening way too fast for her to process, and Everly was still lost in her thoughts, mulling over what to do. She could hear Jackson's wheels turning next to her, plans and strategies running through her mind. One thing was obvious though, pushing all schemes out of the way. No matter how many master, brilliant plans she could come up with, some things couldn't be won.

"Begin!"

Everly reacted way too late for her liking. Wand was out, and ready to -

She almost missed Jackson's next words.

And everything stopped.

A wave of new emotions burned through. Everly was new to this feeling, willingly giving up, and no matter how many times Everly could tell herself that it was better than losing within two minutes of the duel, she was still crushed.

Everly was also mad that she knew Jackson was right. No matter how hard she could've fought, their experience was too little to be compared to their opponents. And that just made her angry, wondering what people were thinking when they had organized this. Were they hoping for something fun? Well, she hoped they had fun while they did.

"I forfeit as well," she said, quietly.

And then she spun on her heel and walked off.

ACTION | Forfeiting
HEALTH | 600/600
sta 6 | eva 7 | str 0 | wis 7 | arc 4 | acc 6
seer

congrats ruby and dmitri!

☆

An extension was requested. Slytherin, please be sure to get your posts in by the 24^th to be eligible for your stat!
@Dmitri Jones @Ruby Cazares

Heads-up Slytherin, 23 hours left until the deadline!
@Dmitri Jones @Ruby Cazares

Interacting with: @Dmitri Jones, @Pericles Dralt (briefly)
Mentioning: @Jackson Valentine and @Everly Charlton

Ruby was looking forward to the next duel. She had been practicing—not that she really needed to for them to win, but she wanted to be performing at her best and there was always room for improvement. The nerves that had appeared briefly in her previous duels no longer seemed to be there, as there was only a vague excitement with very little apprehension as she strode onto the duelling stage. A slight nod was given to her friend Pericles when she saw that he was moderating, but she knew that he would be fair regardless of their relationship. She glanced over at Dmitri briefly when she saw the two first years, eyebrows raised slightly in distaste and disbelief as if to ask if he was thinking the same thing about their opponents. This shouldn't take long.

The match turned out to be even shorter than she could have expected. The Gryffindors quickly resigned before a spell could even be cast. Were they not from the house of bravery? Of course, their defeat had been inevitable, but they wouldn't even make an attempt at fighting back? Surely they knew the risks when they signed up for duelling. Oh well, that freed up the rest of her day to watch other matches or practice. While it amused her slightly that she and Dmitri struck such fear into their opponents that they wouldn't even duel them, Ruby couldn't help but feel that she had been denied the satisfaction in the victory. There was now no space to demonstrate what she had worked on, to prove herself, to practice against actual opponents whose moves she couldn't predict. There would be no opponent going down after a well-placed spell, and she was denied what she had shown up for today. It was a waste of time, really. She rolled her eyes and quietly sneered, “Cowards.”

Entering and then completing the duel

Banner by Dmitri Jones, inspired by [x]

The Viper Magnate

Mentioning @Jackson Valentine, @Everly Charlton, Interacting with @Ruby Cazares, Open for interactions

Cocky - Shea Coulee (Explicit)

Roleplaying as Dmitri Kazimir Jones
Perfectionist | Perfectionist II | Spell Spread | Terrible Presence
Sta 8, Str 2, Eva 6, Wis 14, Arc 11, Acc 10

Dmitri Kazimir Jones entered the Dueling arena with a gait only those students with his title and renown were worthy enough to pull off.

It was another duel—another round—and the boy wagered it would end up just the same as the others that came before and will come in the foreseeable future—with him scoring yet another win for his beloved house, partner notwithstanding. Contrary to what others would surmise, even as a person of his infamy, Dmitri did come to prove something—if not for others, then for himself. By the time this duel would end—and trust him, it won't be long—he would remain one of the few undefeated duelists in the entire school.

It was nothing new, of course.

He wouldn't be Dmitri if his record wasn't spotless. The boy always had to make sure everything he was involved in would work in his favor, and that everything with his name on it would turn out perfect if it's the last thing he'll do.

As it should—if it were also a perfect world.

But he was bound to be disappointed.

Because just as the Ravenclaw referee was about to call a start to the duel ("Ruby, dear, I think I've seen you with this boy around quite a few times. If I've had known you two were friends, earlier, I could have asked you to bribe him to be lenient with some of our... weaker constituents in the duels a while back"), his young opponents appeared to have thrown in the towel.

Dmitri turned a disbelieving eye first to Ruby and then to Pericles, as if to say Are you seeing what I'm seeing? Is this allowed?. "Excuse me?!" He'd say out loud. Open-mouthed, the boy would gesture to his opponents' retreating backs. "What the hell?"

The boy was in the middle of a particularly nasty Incendio Duo, too, going so far as already having spoken half of the incantation, reflexes honed enough to not waste a single second after the referee has spoken the signal to start. However flattering it was that they saw the team as an opponent they cannot defeat, this was his moment! And fuck if he lets snot-nosed twerps take that away from him.

"None of you are worthy to be called Gryffindors!" He'd call long after both students have disappeared around the corner, echoing his partner's sentiments. "Not even bothering to try! The nerve! Is this behavior something we really want around the Arena?" Dmitri'd ask no one in particular.

In the heat of the moment, he would turn his glare to the general populace. "Does someone—anyone—want to fight? Or is everyone else a coward like those two, too?" Hell, he'd take on anyone at this point.

"I don't want a useless pity point!"

———

Inviting someone—anyone—to duel them, instead.

Banner design inspired by Parrot Digital

Eligible for Rewards:
To be eligible for rewards, your team should have won the duel and you shouldn't be disqualified.
@Ruby Cazares @Dmitri Jones
Please link to this post when applying for a trunk update if you wish to claim your +1 stat point from this duel!

Papertrail - House points allocated to eligible winners (Ruby Cazares & Dmitri Jones).