[OPEN] Wizard Duel

[vampdetective]

Who: Professor Angel, Professor Isabela & you!
Where: Dueling Hall & elsewhere!
When: Throughout the event.
Rating: Rate as needed!
Summary: Professors Angel and Isabela are here for all your duelling needs!
The Story:

DUELING CLASS

[ Classes are held in the dueling classroom; one of the larger classrooms that can be found in the castle. There is a raised platform in the middle of the room, clearly marked to indicate where the duelists should stand. A large desk is off to the left on the platform centered between both duelists, where both professors can sit and watch and intervene if necessary. Isabela is usually perched on top of the table while Angel can usually be found standing in front of it, arms crossed.

Classes are broken up by year, first and second years focusing on simpler moves like disarming and shielding. The spells and techniques become more difficult and more advanced as the years progress, with students not only learning how to defend themselves, but also how to attack. There is a strong emphasis on not harming other students, and those students who are caught purposely violating that rule are dealt with swiftly by both professors. As is standard in wizard dueling, physical contact between duelists is also against the rules. ]

OFFICE HOURS

[Anyone seeking to speak to either Professor Angel or Professor Isabela will be able to find them in their shared office at various hours, sometimes together, sometimes separately. Whether you have a simple question or would like to schedule some extra practice, they’ll gladly make themselves available-- aside from whatever time they might spend in Hogsmeade over the weekend.

Students or other faculty visiting their office will notice a very stark contrast between the two halves: Isabela’s desk and the area surrounding are mostly bare, aside from a number of awards and two bottles of firewhiskey lined up on the shelves behind it. In spite of this, her space still manages to be disorderly, with quills and parchment spread out across the desk and on the floor immediately surrounding. Angel appears to have more physical belongings, with the shelves behind his desk filled with books from end-to-end, but everything on his side is neat and meticulously put in its proper place.]

ELSEWHERE

[Of course, most professors look forward to Hogsmeade weekends just as much as the students do. Both professors will be visiting the village, including taking up a table at the Three Broomsticks for the better part of late Sunday afternoon. They can also be found eating with their fellow faculty members in the Great Hall during mealtimes, and Angel is a frequent visitor to Hogwarts’ expansive library, not seeming to mind its ghostly caretaker in the least. Isabela can frequently be found out on the Quidditch pitch taking up residence in the stands as Professor Stark puts in extra time with his students.]

((OOC: Please feel free to specify if you’d like one professor in particular or both!))

Comments

[ivehadbetter]

[ Isabela shares a look with Angel and follows his lead. He tends to fall more on the kind side when it comes to circumstances like this, where as Isabela will take a harder line. If his understanding stance fails then she's ready to step in. Though given the circumstances she does understand not wanting to participate- she remembers what happened four years ago. Still it was a participatory class and Bedelia wasn't going to be able to get out of it if she wanted to pass.

She just raises her eyebrow at the student waiting for an answer. ]

[ivehadbetter]

I heard that.

[ Isabela wanders over to their conversation, keeping an eye on the students who are currently dueling. She shoots Angel an amused look before turning her attention to Tim. ]

He's right though. Marks aren't everything, Is there a subject you are really interested in, over everything else?

[ivehadbetter]

[ Isabela puts down her quill and looks up at the door. They had been getting a lot of visitors lately- not that she was surprised. It was that time of year when seventh years began to panic realizing school was going to be over soon. She leans her arms on her desk and waits for him to come into the office. ]

[postictal]

Staying alive? [he ventures dryly, because that's really about as far as his basic desires go. Stay alive, don't die, and...somehow pursue something, anything, that keeps him from becoming utterly worthless. As if he isn't already. Ha ha.]

I mean, that's what this is...for, right? Self-preservation?

[Presumably, anyway. He supposes there's a kind of ritual to dueling, but he doubts that most people are ones to go for that sort of ceremony in the real world.]

[actualwizard]

[ Billy nods, closing the door and walking across the office to take a seat in the chair opposite Angel's desk. ]

You were an Auror, right? Before you started teaching here?

[vampdetective]

Some would say that the brooding face is part of his charm.

"Certainly a very real concern, as dangerous as things are becoming beyond these walls," Angel remarks, glaring briefly at Isabela in reply before offering Cami his full attention. "How can we help?"

[vampdetective]

First and foremost, yes.

[There's an art to dueling, a certain finesse, but at its core, it's as important as DADA when it comes to self-defense.]

Knowing how to counter and disarm are both important when it comes to fending off an attacker. Everything else you've learned here builds on that concept, and it's important to remember that not everyone who brandishes a wand follows the rules.

[vampdetective]

[He offers a single nod in reply, without hesitation, shifting his weight in his seat.]

For several years. If I ever stop teaching, there's a good chance I'll go back. Why do you ask?

[vampdetective]

It's not an excuse.

[An explanation, but not an excuse, because he doesn't expect her to stop trying to improve just because her wand makes things more difficult for her.]

I think you'll find that there are very few things in this world that just 'work.' Even magic-- especially magic. Everything takes effort. The more work you put in, the more satisfying the rewards.

[therapize]

No they wouldn't, Professor Angel. No they wouldn't.

"Something like that, yes." She knows it's a tricky subject to say the least. She steps into the office, casting a final glance over her shoulder before she shuts the door behind her. This isn't a conversation she wants people overhearing; honestly, it probably isn't one she should be having, given how much of it is based on a particular someone's confidence in her.

Yet that's exactly what's driven her here in the first place.

"I know that you're preparing us for what happens if we get into a duel, and that certain principles apply regardless of the spell being used." She reaches up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear, trying not to look as nervous as she feels. "But--how can we really be prepared if we never see certain spells we might have to defend against?"

[participates]

[She glances between the two professors, whose eyes are on her. Everyone's eyes are on her, but she patently refuses to look at any of her classmates. She refuses to move her arms from her sides, or ball her hands into fists, or do anything else that might betray a sense of unease with the situation. Instead, she lifts her chin high and addresses Professor Angel.]

Nothing is wrong, Professor. You requested that I take a turn, and I declined.

[She smiles in a way she hopes conveys politeness, if not sincerity. She will do what she has to to get out of this, but she would like to avoid detention, if at all possible.]

[vampdetective]

It wasn't really a "request."

[Only in the sense that it had been phrased as such for politeness' sake. Teaching etiquette.]

This class requires participation. We're not discussing theory in here.

[As firm as the words themselves are, his tone remains even-keeled.]

[ivehadbetter]

Isabela glanced at Angel and leaned forward on her desk. "I know we say this in class but it does always ring true, the first trick to dueling is not to get hit with the spell, that means any spell dark or otherwise. Now that being said we know that there is more to it than that. What we are preparing you for is to face any spell. To dodge or shield without thinking- for it to be reflexive. It won't matter what kind of spell of being thrown at you if your instincts are honed."

"But I know that probably isn't the answer you want. We do cover darker spells, Cami, but we don't usually do that until the end of seventh year."

[ivehadbetter]

And it's because people don't follow the rules that this class is important. What we want to hone are your reflexes so that you are ready for anything. So that its second nature. You may never have to duel again after you leave here but if you find yourself in that situation it's best to be prepared.

[ivehadbetter]

If you chose not to participate Miss Du Maurier then you will not pass this class.

[ She adds in, because that's the consequence of her actions and it needs to be stated. No other student would get away with it and she's not an exception. ]

[postictal]

Okay...

[He's still drawing the words out skeptically, as if he can't quite believe that this is a thing he's agreed to learn, or will ever really need to learn, but hey - might as well, right?]

All right. So...how does this all...start?

[He feels a bit absurd standing there, wand held slackly in hand, bracing for an invisible impact.]

[dothatgirl]

[ faith keeps trying to self-destruct, because it's easier to blame everything else for her failure to try than actually deal with how bad it feels to fail at all. ]

But my rewards are never gonna be worth anything.

[ it all feels so pointless, and faith sighs against the urge to just book it out of the class now. if it wouldn't spit in the face of everything professor angel's done for her already, she'd probably have just skipped entirely. ]

Someone's always gonna be better, or faster, or more perfect. Why bother?

[actualwizard]

[ Billy leans forward slightly, his interest in the topic apparent. ]

That's what I want to do, next year, after this year is over. And I just, I'm taking all the right classes and I generally have good marks but I feel like there is so much more I need to know to be prepared and I don't even know where to start.

[ Aka, please help? ]

[normandysbest]

[She looks between them, grinning a bit that they're actually being so encouraging. She honestly expected to be shut down before this, but they're actually being good about it.]

I dunno, honestly. I've never thought about being a cop-- er, law enforcement.

[Those muggle terms still creepin' up on her, of course.]

I bet it would be fun, though. You really think I'd be good enough?

[ivehadbetter]

[ It's one thing Isabela might never admit but she does love when teaching ends up being encouraging to one of her students. It's not something she ever thought about before actually doing it but when they come to them for advice it's always nice to know their students value their opinions. ]

Actually, I think that might be right up your alley. Your marks are high and you show a good aptitude in your subjects, I don't see any reason that it wouldn't be a good fit.

[vampdetective]

First off, you need to adjust your stance.

[Hold the wand with some purpose, at least.]

Get a good grip on your wand-- a real opponent won't give you fair warning, but as long as you're here, there's a little room for error until you're more confident.

[vampdetective]

[Angel gives him a faint, crooked little smile in response.]

Ambitious.

[He approves, and it's evident enough in his tone. Billy Kaplan certainly has talent.]

You've given it a lot of thought, haven't you. I'll let you in on a little secret-- you can take all the right classes and get the highest marks, but the fact of the matter is? You'll never be entirely prepared. Learning that early on is one of the best things you can do for yourself in that line of work.

[vampdetective]

Because it's not about being perfect.

[That would be impossible, even for the most skilled Aurors. He folds his arms across his chest, squaring his shoulders as he stares her down, knowing that being direct with her is the best thing he can do in this moment. Either she'll listen or she won't, but he's nothing if not blunt.]

It's not about being the best. It's about being your best.

[vampdetective]

You don't flinch when you're given a challenge, either.

[That's important-- moreso than most other qualities, if you ask Angel, although aptitude does have something to do with it.]

'Fun' might not be the right word, but-- well, it can be. Any job that ends up being a good fit for you can be fun. All about suitability.

[vampdetective]

Angel nods firmly in agreement; Isabela's response had more or less been along the same lines as what he would have offered. Defense being reflexive was the key to protecting yourself from any attack, though there was certainly something to be said for recognizing a darker spell on sight. Cami wasn't quite to that level yet, but the question itself had him curious.

"This doesn't seem to be an idle question," he ventures, one eyebrow quirking upwards. "What brought this on?"