Open Practice Makes Deadly

[Luxen Silverback II]

Luxen entered the dueling chamber and set up a few of the dummies so that they were in front of him. He needed to practice his dueling and knew that it was one of the few things that he couldn't do in his room. Recent experiences had shown him that most of the students wanted to fight like wild animals. Luxen was not a wild animal and would always use his wand to settle things. He looked down at his polished wand, curved yet stiff. It was a wand that required a wizard with strength and determination and one that was deeply rooted in the dark arts.

He knew that it would be powerful casting dark spells or battling dark wizards based off the wizard that wielded it. Luxen wanted his wand to do both, not because he was confused about where his path would take him but because of it. He knew he would learn as many dark spells as possible once the chance presented himself but also knew that he wanted to be an auror. A wand that could fight off dark wizards would come in handy for a career hunting down dark wizards or at least the ones Luxen did not approve of. There was also the threat that he knew almost nothing about. He figured it would have to be coming from Dark Wizards since the Ministry wouldn't target a child for the sins of his father.

He bowed slightly to the three dummies before taking a stance that made his wand movements slightly faster than if he were to be standing normally. "Stupefy! Stupefy! Stupefy!" Luxen called out as he moved his wand slightly so that it pointed at each dummy in turn. One by One the dummies were hit with a red flash and sent backwards. Luxen made note that his wrist movements for the curved wand were too strained and he would need to make it more of a flick in the future. He had to be able to unleash his spells quickly in order to defeat his opponents.

 

[Stan Beckett]

It appeared that his reflexes weren't as good as he would they were when he got stunned by Luxen on the Quidditch pitch, which was something that still annoying him a couple of days after the incident. He couldn't have that, especially if he wanted to try out for the Quidditch team next year. Deciding to go and practice now since he had time to spare before he would meet some of his friends, Stanislaw made his way to the duelling chamber down in the dungeon. He had to ask around for the right direction once in the lowest level in the castle, as he only ever came here for Potions lessons and those had now ended. When he finally arrived, the Gryffindor could hear a voice coming from the other side of the door. Someone was already practising spells. He opened the door without making a noise, not wanting to startle the person, and peeked inside, wondering if it was someone he would practice with together rather than throwing some spells around on his own. Upon seeing that it was Luxen who was hitting the dummies with the stunning charm, the boy's blood began to boil out of anger again. Taking out his own wand, hiding it in his sleeve and sneaking in, Stanislaw coughed to announce his presence, as ready as he could be for when the other boy would cast something towards him. ''Taking it out on innocent dummies, too?'' he asked. Whether it was the moon affecting his mood or not, Stanislaw wanted some sort of revenge to what Luxen did to him and his friends.

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

Luxen wanted to practice the flick movement required to fire off a spell towards his side rather than just in front of him however a cough and then a familiar voice revealed that he was not alone. He turned his head only and saw that Stan had appeared and oddly enough was alone. Perhaps he was merely pretending to be alone so he could jump Luxen with a surprise attack. If that were the case, Luxen would be ready for the little runt. He was curious as to what had made the timid boy so bold over the holidays though.

"Practicing my stunning spell, where's your little babysitter? Is little Stanny going to get a detention for running off?" Luxen sneered as he quickly flicked his risk and said "Stupefy" the spell was not aimed at Stan but at one of the dummies near him that was still by the walls. Luxen noticed that his spell had not hit the center as he had intended but instead his the shoulder of the dummy sending it wobbling a few inches. His aim and the power of his spell was definitely not the same as when he was directly facing an opponent. He would have to work on that.

 

[Stan Beckett]

''Such a big mouth for someone who got beat up by a girl. I can summon her if you want to get beaten up again? I do not think that she would mind punching your ugly face again.'' Stanislaw retorted. He was trying his best not to flinch when Luxen's spell went right past him. Slipping his wand out of his sleeve, the boy pointed it at the Slytherin just in case he would fire another spell. ''I have come here to practice on the dummies, too,'' he said, focused only on the other boy. ''But a living target would be even better, don't you think?'' However much of a coward Luxen might have been when he stunned him on the pitch, Stanislaw wasn't going to give the boy another chance to hit him without being able to see it coming. ''You play fair this time?''

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

Little Stan, even his comebacks were pathetic. Luxen wasn't afraid of his little wild haired girlfriend and fully believed he could take both of them on if needed too. He still didn't trust that she might not pop up out of nowhere and start firing off spells. "I could use the practice though I'm not sure you would be better than any of the other dummies in the room" Luxen said snidely. He looked at the door once more before deciding the best approach. "Don't be afraid little Stanny, you use whatever spell you want and I will just use Protego" Luxen smirked. It made sense for him to use defensive spells, if needed he could surprise Stan or his girlfriend and fire off a stunning spell.

 

[Stan Beckett]

Agitated by the fact that he continued to call him 'little Stanny' Stanislaw growled softly, his wand still pointed at him. He didn't need Allie at his side to fight, he was perfectly capable of doing that himself. Of course, he'd rather use his fists to fight Luxen, as he didn't know how good of a spellcaster he was, but he would need to learn how to fight with his wand sooner or later. ''Stupefy!'' the boy called out, hoping that he would be fast enough.

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

Stan had growled again just as Allison had on the Quidditch pitch, Luxen had thought their thing had been sharks considering they had dressed up like them for Halloween. Lately however he noticed that they seemed to growl more like dogs. They were weird and not to Luxen surprise Stan's spell was something he easily saw coming. "Protego" Luxen said lazily knowing that it was more than strong enough to protect him against Stan's stunning spell. He remembered reading in a book that it was possible to direct the rebound of a spell that came into contact with the shield charm. It was definitely something a first year couldn't do, but practicing with Stan would give Luxen a chance to try it out. "Can't you do better than that runty Stan!" Luxen mocked.

 

[Robert Kain]

Rob, who had just finished up one of his classes, had been on his way down to the potions classroom to see his friend when he’d spotted the Gryffindor headed for the duelling chamber. Curiosity peaked with the first year and what he could possibly be doing down here, the Charms professor had headed after him, pausing behind the door when he realised he wasn’t alone in there. The man had been round children for long enough to know that they didn’t appreciate their privacy being violated, but he also knew that kids tended to act differently when they didn’t think a professor was in ear shot. At the sound of a spell being fired across the room, the man had almost intervened and would have if he’d not heard it hit one of the dummies. Another few tense moments past, and while he was not shocked at how these first years treated one another, he was disappointed, especially given that at least one was in his favourite house. Hearing Stanis prepare another spell himself, Professor Kain was quick on the mark, and with a loud crack apparated a few feet away from both boys, just in time to hear Luxen mocking the other boy. “I didn’t realise you loved Charms this much,” he said, irritation on his face. ​

 

[Stan Beckett]

Getting even angrier when it appeared that his spell did absolutely nothing to the Slytherin, Stanislaw clenched his jaw. Luxen was mocking him and it was working. Not caring that a professor had now joined them out of nowhere, and his favourite one at that, Stanislaw simply dropped his wand and rushed over to Luxen to hit him in the face before he could do anything. If he sucked at casting magic, fine, at least he knew how to throw a punch.

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

"Technically, we're practicing Defense Against the Dark Arts" Luxen responded when the Professor had appeared. They had learned both spells in their Defense Against the Dark Arts class last semester. Stan had taken the bait and was now trying to get physical with Luxen again like some sort of rabid dog. Luckily, even with a Professor in the room Luxen knew of the perfect spell to use. Protego!" Luxen called out.

He knew that the shield charm would protect against physical attacks as well as magic but at Luxen current level it would only be able to hold off small opponents like Stan. He knew that a larger person, even a second or third year would probably have been able to break through his protection spell. Someone like Stan however wouldn't be able to lay a finger on him as he was focused on making his shield as strong as possible against Stan's rage.

It was also lucky for Luxen that a Professor was in the room since he wouldn't need to hold it for very long, just enough to make Stan look even more foolish. "Some of us really need the practice" Luxen sneered from behind his shield. He had only used the shield like he said he would and despite his comments, words were just words and it would be Stan's actions that would be the bigger issue for the Professor than Luxen's. Once again Luxen proved that he was the wizard and Stan was nothing more than a little dog trying to keep up with the others around him.

 

[Robert Kain]

Usually when students saw a professor in the room, their reaction wasn’t to keep fighting. It all happened somewhat unexpectedly. The wand clattered to the ground and the man watched in bewilderment as Stanis moved across the room, half believing that he was just going to walk out. Instead, Rob watched as the Gryffindors made a swift swing for the Slytherins head. “PAH!” The loud laugh escaped his shocked lips before he could stop them. Almost as quickly as he’d done it, he was snapped back to reality. No, he wasn’t their classmate he was a professor, and he lowered his eyebrows which seemed to have made a sudden beeline for his hairline. Rob cleared his throat, “Technically, you’re practising duelling, regardless of whether or not magic is your chosen skill right now,” he replied, bending down to pick up the wand that lay discarded, not appreciating students who thought they knew how to spin a professor round their finger with their back chat. “Enough!” He said straightening out, “If you boys are going to fight without any respect for one another then you can get yourselves out onto the lawn.” The professor shot Luxen a warning glance, hoping he would lower his protection spell. “If you are here however because you’re actually trying to put what you’ve learnt to good use, then I suggest you keep a closer hold of this,” he said, holding the wand out to the Gryffindor. “Well?” He asked, looking between them. If they cleared off then Rob could go back to what he was doing, but if they wanted to actual behave civilly then maybe they would actually improve on what they already knew. ​

 

[Stan Beckett]

Knocked back by the force of his fist hitting the shield charm, Stanislaw staggered a little. His annoying little sneer angered him even more. ''Lower your shield, coward,'' the Gryffindor hissed in Polish, trying to hit the shield with his fist again only to be knocked back once more. All this talk of wanting to practice yet here he was cowering being a simple shield anyone could conjure up. He snatched his wand from Professor Kain and jerked his head back around to the Slytherin. Knowing that he would only get into trouble if he would actually continue to try to and hit the other boy, there was no way that he would be able to hit Luxen anyway with the charm still up, Stanislaw stowed his wand way in his pocket. ''I will not fight someone who only hides behind shields.'' Besides, it would not be worth losing house points over. He would get him back at some other time, when there wasn't a professor around to save his butt.

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

Despite Luxen's original confidence, he was relieved that Stan had not continued punching his shield, he had felt it waver and knew that it wasn't nearly as strong as he needed it to be. It was the first time he had used it on a physical attack so he couldn't have known that the force would be different when compared to a simple stunning spell. Stan said something in another language causing Luxen to roll his eyes at the foreigners. Always trying to impose their cultures on others, if it was so great than he should have stayed where he had came from.

When Stan did speak it was to make a comment about not fighting someone that hid behind shields. "Goodbye Stan, it was nice practicing with you" Luxen said in a pleasant tone. There were a dozen sarcastic, scathing, and otherwise insulting remarks he could have said but with a Professor still around he figured he would just let Stan continue looking liking the toddler throwing a tantrum. "I'll just stay here and continue to practice my spellwork if that's alright Professor" Luxen added with a smirk towards Stan. He could come for Luxen anytime he wanted; Luxen would ensure he would beat him every time like a proper wizard.