2023, Stage 2 Hufflepuff vs Ravenclaw: Match 7

As Lucia had suspected, she had not been partnered with David for the second duelling stage after all. In fact, David had left the team altogether, and Lucia was partnered with her friend - one of the few she had left - Lindsey. It was maybe unreasonable for her to be this happy about a duelling pairing, but she'd duelled with Lindsey before and trusted her not only as a duellist but also as a person. It was a lot more fun to practise and talk strategies with a friend than someone you'd never seen before.
When the duelling captain overseeing their match called her up, Lucia ascended onto the stage, feeling mostly undeserving of the theatrics of the moderator, some older Gryffindor she'd never met. Still, though, the applause of the crowd made her stand up straight, ready to do her house, and her family, proud. Not that her family could be bothered to turn up. Briar had attended all of Lucia's previous matches, but when the Hufflepuff scanned the audience she didn't see her younger sister anywhere: yet another unneeded bit of proof that the two girls, once close as twins, were growing apart.
But Lucia did have somebody here for her, at least, and that was the girl who was about to fight alongside her. "You ready?" she asked Lindsey, just after the loud moderator prompted for the duellists to go to their places. Lucia drew out her wand and took a deep breath. She'd won her last duel. Hufflepuff had left the first stage with the lead. Lindsey was by her side. "We've got this." And then the duel began.

Another stage, another duel, another chance to win. Her last duel hadn't exactly been her best one, losing to one of her friends, so the brunette hoped this one would be better. At least she was paired with Pericles, an older duelist, this time. The boy had been one of the duelling captains before she became one and Samantha looked up to him a lot. She had watched his last duel in awe, it had been a nerve-wracking duel. Sadly, her teammates hadn't won but that hadn't stopped the young girl from cheering loudly for them.

With two braids in her hair and a big smile on her face, Samantha took her place on the stage. A little twinkle appeared in her bright blue eyes as she looked up at Pericles. "Good luck, partner!" After giving the white-haired boy a thumbs-up, she turned her attention to the Hufflepuff team. Samantha didn't think she had ever talked to one of the badgers, but she had seen their last duels. It was impossible for the brunette not to notice how beautiful Lucia was with those enchanting blue eyes. Of course, they weren't nearly as amazing as Bubba's eyes.

And so Lindsey stood on the duelling stage again, ready to start her second stage of duel this school year. Last stage had been quite a successful stage, knocking an opponent out and the other forfeiting. Her very first win, in fact, which she was pretty sure that she would feel even prouder if the one whom she shared the glory with wasn’t Autumn - even if she had to admit that Autumn was indeed quite capable, the latter had always been at odds with her, and Lindsey swore that if it wasn’t the captains’ decisions she would never have made herself a partner of Autumn’s. But this time it was far, far, better, she had had Lucia back, Autumn disappearing to another duellist’s side, wish her a nice day. Lucia had been a great friend to her after all these years, and though they lost the two duels fighting alongside, Lindsey had never lost faith in their partnership. Everything would be okay this time. She was better, they were better.

The moderator today was exceptionally loud, the elder Gryffindor seemed super enthusiastic about the fight which was about to start. Chocolate brown eyes gazing at her opponents - Ravenclaws are no easy opponents, huh - Lindsey calculated quietly regarding the percentage of victory. Before even getting an answer, she heard Lucia’s question. “Of course!” She nodded and smiled, flickering her wand in her fingers. Breathe in, breathe out. Hufflepuff was now in lead, and there was nothing to fear. Thinking of this, Lindsey grinned slyly. “Yeah, let’s do this.” Time for a second win to her. Time for a first win to them.

Action: as strategised

The deeper into hormonal teenagerhood Pericles Dralt delved, the more temperamental he became. His last duel had been lost by a hair, the result determined by a fickle kitten, and the typically unbothered Ravenclaw had been left sulking in solitude for two days straight. But when all was said and done, his feelings put back in check, he was held afloat by the positives. It had been another invaluable dueling experience, and he hadn't forgotten who was cheering for them throughout it all. An echo of gratitude lingered in his eyes as he glanced to his teammate. Samantha was smiled at, something steady and genuine, untroubled by the adrenaline-inducing match that lay ahead of them. He raised his chin, calling back with oldschool stage etiquette: "Break a leg, Sam." Towards their opponents, Pericles raised his wand and bowed at the waist, traditional to the end. He suppressed a smirk at Galton's trademark bombastic behavior, nodding at his instructions, and widened his stance.

Action: Preparing.

Round 1

Lindsey Springhall vs Pericles Dralt

Reducio

Lindsey Springhall cast Ventus at Pericles Dralt
Wisdom DC: 11
Wisdom Check: [d20: 18] + 10 = 28 > 11 → Success
Split Chance: [d10: 9] < 10 → No split
Accuracy Check: [d20: 9] + 13 = 22
Evasion Check: [d20: 15] + 9 = 24
22 > 24 → Miss

Lucia Fox vs Samantha Salwis

Reducio

Lucia Fox cast Petrificus Totalus at Samantha Salwis
Wisdom DC: 14
Wisdom Check: [d20: 14] + 10 = 24 > 14 → Success
Accuracy Check: [d20: 8] + 9 = 17
Evasion Check: [d20: 4] + 7 = 11
17 > 11 → Hit
Damage: 50
Duration: [d3: 2] → 1 round (1d3, 1-2: 1, 3: 2)
Effects:
- The target is paralysed for 1 round and falls down (they cannot be targeted)

Pericles Dralt vs Lindsey Springhall and Lucia Fox

Reducio

Pericles Dralt spell spreads Ventus at Lindsey Springhall and Lucia Fox
Wisdom DC: 11 + 2 [LC]+ 2[SS] = 15
Wisdom Check: [d20: 1] + 11 = 12 < 15 → Failure to cast (Saved by Perfectionist)

Samantha Salwis vs Lindsey Springhall

Reducio

Samantha Salwis cast Ventus at Lindsey Springhall
Wisdom DC: 11 + 2 [LC]
Wisdom Check: [d20: 14] + 10 = 24 > 13 → Success
Split Change: [d10: 2] < 9 → No split
Accuracy Check: [d20: 13] + 9 = 22
Evasion Check: [d20: 18] + 7 = 25
22 > 25 → Miss

With roughly 13 years of schooling at Hogwarts combined from the duelists, Galton had high hopes the second the word 'cast' had come out of his mouth. Each wand wielder had access to access to a plethora of spells sure to delight and the know-how to use them. If Galton had been sitting he would have been perched as close to the edge of whatever surface his bum rested on as possible.

As incantations rung out over the wooden piste his hopes grew - his butt inched closer and closer to the metaphorical edge. Upon hearing not one, but three mutterings of 'Ventus' - one of, if not his favorite spell - he was sure that this duel was going to be as wild as the winds that were being conjured up.

The Badgers were responsible for one of the three Wind Jinxes. Lindsey's pronunciation and hand movement had been close to perfect, producing a serious jet of wind heading towards Pericles. But the remaining badger, Lucia, would not be outshone. No, she had a solid Petrificus Totalus for the other Raven, Samantha. The Badgers had the mind to either make the Ravens' flight bumpy, or end all together.

If the math wasn't clear, there were still two wind jinxes unaccounted for, and two Ravens. Pericles and Samantha had the same idea. Cut into and through the Badgers and trap them in the violent gust of their wings. While Samantha was able to produce formidable winds, something must have come over Pericles. Nothing would come from his wand - and lucky for the duelist, as it seemed that that was the best possible outcome for how poorly he had cast.

Spell flew, and Galton's excitement grew. The two successful wind jinxes would go awry, solid footwork of poor aim providing the targets with safety. But Lucia's Petrificus Totalus would stay on target. Samatha would feel her muscles tighten up, her whole body locked and unable to move.

In the small silence between bouts of magic, when the stands had quieted to observe the carnage their fellow students unleashed, there would be only one sound. A heavy thud as Samatha hit the piste. It was not the result Galton had envisioned a few seconds ago. But at least something happened. Would the next round follow a similar trend, or diverge like a split ventus?!

Information

• You have 96 hours from now to write your posts. A minimum word count of 50 is needed per post.
• In the same time period, send me (Galton Lansdale) your team's actions per owl. Do not hint at your actions in your post.
• If you don't post in the allotted time frame, your action is void.
• Your Stats, Abilities, and Spells have been locked to what they are now for the duration of this duel.
• Please owl or message me if you have any questions or concerns!
• Here you can find the rules to the Duelling System.
• Best of luck, let's have some fun!

The spectator thread for this duel can be found here.
Come cheer for your House and friends!

The duel took off with a bang, specifically, the sound of Peri's partner hitting the piste. A worried glance darted in Sam's direction. Although he very narrowly succeeded in dodging the opponent's Ventus, his own twin gusts of wind didn't appear at all. That wasn't normal. The boy's freckled features remained smooth save a telltale furrow of the forehead, troubled by the failure, but unwilling to let it distract him.

Action: As strategized

While casting a Wind Jinx at Pericles (whose own spell didn’t seem very successful by the way), Lindsey jumped aside to dodge Samantha’s gust of wind. It was near, but she succeeded, and yet her own spell went awry - just a little, or she would do it. Lucia was doing great though, a solid body-bind curse towards the younger Ravenclaw, and forced her to stay still. Grasping her wand, Lindsey kept her footing, ready for her next move.

Action: as strategised

That great minds think alike was proven once again when both Samantha and Pericles tried to cast ventus at the Hufflepuffs. Sadly, the keyword was trying because the older boy was unable to cast his spell. Samantha's spell wasn't the only spell to miss this round but she was still very disappointed in her casting, she should have aimed better!

Frustrated by her failure, the brunette did not manage to dodge Lucia's spell on time. As soon as the spell hit her, she was unable to move and fell onto the hard floor within seconds. This was the second time she was the target of this spell and she did not like it at all.

Lucia was unprepared for the popularity of the wind jinx, and even more unprepared for the fact that not a single one hit. Actually, one of the casters - the boy - Percules? - didn't even cast the spell correctly. The only spell which met its mark was Lucia's lone call of "Petrificus Totalus!", which forced Samantha's limbs to lock up. As the younger girl's head hit the floor, Lucia couldn't help a wince in sympathy.