Stage 2, 2022 Ravenclaw vs Hufflepuff Spectator

[font=Monotype Corsiva]Morning Slot, Match 2 & 3[/font]

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt @Dmitri Jones @Dealla Prince @Willow Anderson

Flash was excited to hear that Eun-ji joined the dueling team, he felt responsible for having encouraged her to do so. When they first met, he had mentioned the duels, though he had stopped coming to every match to spectate. No one would blame him of course, the last time he spectated, he had been attacked by Dmitri for suggesting he not make an ass of himself. He had set him on fire, even healed him in an attempt to make him suffer longer. He had been caught of course, they had served their detention, but it had ended Flash's career as Dmitri's fan. Not that he found the boy deplorable yet, but he was still waiting for an apology.

It would ironic then that the match he had come to see would contain the misanthrope, though Flash would also be intentionally watching Willow's match as well. It would divide his attention slightly, but he would watch the progress on both sides. Since neither were facing Slytherin, he'd naturally be rooting for them to win. Willow had been steadily growing in her ability, something he was excited to be on display in a competition, though it seemed like she hadn't quite been herself lately. Eun-ji was only just starting, and needed support along the way. He was glad to see Dealla was her partner, he had not seen many of her matches, but he knew she was a diligent captain at least, and a strongly competitive person.

Flash would land somewhere between the two, whichever position made it easiest for him to see. "Good luck, Willow!" He would call, using his hand to project his voice in her direction. He'd wait a moment to see if he got a response before turning to the other piste, "Good luck Eun-ji!" Though he had missed the first round of duels, the excitement was returning to him. Spectating matches was his element.

[font=Monotype Corsiva]Morning Slot, Match 2 & 3[/font]

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt @Dealla Prince @Willow Anderson

The matches would get into the thick of it, with spells flying on either side. It was hard to know where to look, but with Willow having given him a thumbs up, he watched her for a moment. The duel started with almost everyone blindfolded, almost with comedic timing. He allowed himself a small chuckle before his attention was drawn to a thud from the other side. There, he beheld Eun-ji on the ground, frozen. That would elicit a cringe, he knew she had feared not performing well, and one could hardly ask for a worse start. Well, it wasn't like the match was over.

On Willow's side, the majority pulled off their blindfolds as the first damage was dealt. Flash didn't recognize Willow's partner, but she seemed young. Even in the next round when everyone else seemed to dodged out of the way of spells, she still managed to get hit again, there was a chance Willow was going to be dueling by herself again. For as exciting as dueling games were, it was hard to not feel anxiety when it was his dear friends and they were struggling.

That said, over on Eun-ji's side, Dealla appeared to be having no issue keeping the enemy team on their toes. As Eun-ji returned and arose, the two of them combined their efforts to knock out the Hufflepuff captain Lydia, to which Flash would excitedly clap. With such a good advantage, surely Eun-ji was feeling better already... except the Hufflepuff team certainly seemed to be targeting her. Before he knew it, her wand was flying and she was set on fire. Of course. He'd shield his eyes briefly, before admitting it would do him no good. He just had to keep wishing her luck, helpless to help.

Willow's side was not in a much better situation, as Willow's partner was also nearly knocked out, had it not been for a perfect-looking healing spell by Willow. The poor girl was on the floor, winded and barely hanging in, which the Ravenclaw team would no doubt take advantage of. Though things were going worse for Eun-ji individually, her team was at least still doing well. Willow on the other hand looked like she would be playing from behind for the rest of the match, not an enviable situation for either.

"Keep at it!" Flash would call, though not terribly loudly. He did not want to be a distraction.

Closed to interaction

[font=Monotype Corsiva]Morning Slot, Match 2 & 3[/font]

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt @Willow Anderson
Dee and Dmi minorly

As the duels went on, they had appeared to be bleak for either of them, but slowly, Eun-ji's situation got better and Willow's situation got worse. At first, Flash was encouraged by Willow's use of a powerful-looking healing spell, but her opponents gave her no quarter, and soon her partner was out cold. Flash would sigh disappointedly, though Willow would pump her wand into the air and howl. No doubt trying to psyche herself up. Flash could do little more than sympathize with her, there was little else to do in a bad situation but continue to try.

On Eun-ji's side, though she was able to break from the paralyzation, she was then hit with fire. Flash would wince, knowing well this was a mundane facet of dueling, yet unable to stand still. Dueling was so much harder to watch when it was people you cared about, he had to resist the urge to get up there and tell them to leave her alone. He knew Dee and her were competent enough to not need to be saved from dueling, it was a stupid urge, yet it existed.

When Willow's match continued, the situation did not get better. She was able to split her spells like he had seen Dmitri do so many times, yet making the spell still hit afterwards seemed like an immense challenge. He didn't know how she did it in the first place, but it looked like it needed more practice. As the opponents continued to stay healthy as she tried to fight them both off at once, he hoped this match wouldn't be a portent of her entire dueling career. She was still young, right? He knew she could master this, he had seen her determination.

Eun-ji's situation improved though. While the opponents seemed enthusiastic about taking her out first, both of them were accurate and deadly duelists, so the focus did not pay off. It was a relief to see her not on fire, not to mention standing and holding her own. He didn't want her impression of competitive sports to be ruined by a hellacious first run, but perhaps that was a selfish desire. He liked watching his friends overcome difficulty, grow and flourish. Whether Eun-ji's future was in spellcasting or dueling, he didn't know, but it couldn't hurt to become better at it.

He thought that, while he himself had struggled greatly with the act. He himself would never consider becoming a duelist, and his own spellcasting always seemed too little too late. Dmitri himself, standing over Eun-ji's match was a cold reminder of that. Not only that, but the mark on his chest. Perhaps it was more that he wished to surround himself with powerful duelists so that they could protect him.

[font=Monotype Corsiva]Morning Slot, Match 2 & 3[/font]

@Eun-ji Lee Hunt @Willow Anderson
Dee minorly

Things looked like they were winding down for Eun-ji and Dealla, as an aggressive double flipendo ended Miss Lydia's participation. The boy that was left was in the same unenviable position that Willow was in, though even worse for the fact that he was still relatively young and new to the team. He couldn't feel too bad for him though, with the fact that he kept shooting fire at Eun-ji. At the very least, the two eagles took the advantage as an opportunity to heal her, which gave Flash a great relief. She had likely been in a great deal of pain, and it pleased him that Dee as her partner considered her discomfort.

While they seemed particularly chatty with the young badger, he would not stop his monomaniacal fire setting. The match would end soon after though, with several powerful attacks from both duelists hitting. With it being over, Eun-ji's trial by fire would finally cease, which would be a small relief, as he realized he had been clenching his fist tightly towards the end. He'd be releasing that tension when he clapped in celebration of their victory.

"Amazing! Well done, both of you." He'd of course compliment Dee's performance, but his eyes were rested on his Divination partner.

He would have to turn back to the other duel, which he was dreading. Even if Eun-ji needed to endure a barrage of spells, she still had the advantage on her team for most of the match. Willow, as he turned back to look with a cringe, was beset with bogies. He knew how much she despised that spell, and felt like things could hardly get worse, yet her spells kept missing. It was bad. Even when one hit, the next round was another miss, and the Flipendo she received in return knocked her off her feet. He'd not be able to contain a small whimper of concern, the spectating causing him more distress than he expected.

"Come on, love. Don't give up." He'd not be yelling it, so it was likely to not be heard over the crowd. Perhaps for the best, since she didn't need a reminder that people were worried about her.

It would be hard to throw the large advantage their team had now, as the eagles were in a good position to finish the game soon. Flash would be left fiddling with the sleeves of his robe, awaiting either a miraculous turnaround or a mercifully quick execution.