(1938-01-07) Challenges
Details for Challenges
Summary: Seamus invites Lucian to discuss an idea for a dueling tournament. When Gabrielle shows up, tensions rise, and Ophelia tries to settle them.
Date: January 7, 1937
Location: Classroom 2
Related: Don't Touch My Girlfriend!
Characters
SeamusLucianGabrielleOphelia

Classroom 2, Hogwarts Castle


This classroom appears to be currently out-of-use. More often than not, though, the area proves to be an out of the way gathering place for groups that might disturb the sanctity of the library. Desks here are rarely in any kind of uniform order, having usually been rearranged by the last group to occupy the premises. Random copies of old and perhaps out-of-date textbooks are stacked haphazardly on the shelves around the room. Littered here and there are also old work books, charts, the occasional love note hidden here in secret and even a few Marvin the Mad Muggle comics thrown in for amusements sake.


It's just after lunch and Seamus had sent a note for Lucian Proudmore to meet him in this particular class room. The slight silverhaired prefect currently is making notations in a leather band journal of sorts. There's quite a few notes in there and upon the front of the journal says 'Dueling Club'. Whatever he's working on right now probably has something to do with the Club no doubt. Seamus's quill makes soft scratching sound.

When Lucian finally appears, he lingers in the doorway, hands stuffed in his pockets. He watches Seamus for a moment before clearing his throat to announce his presence. His mouth is set in a hard line, his brow heavy and somber. He's been a rather grim presence around the school ever since the end of the holidays. "What's this about, Cavanaugh?"

Looking up from his journal,"Ah good. Just the person that I was hoping to get help from." Seamus says looking up and offering the journal to Lucian,"The No magic in the Halls tournament the ministry was a good idea. However, in the end I was left with a bitter taste in my mouth. It didn't seem terribly well done and I thought that perhaps we students should arrange a second round. Something that has a bit more structure to it. You'd probably have clinched the first place if you'd stayed in. On top of that, you're pretty well accepted by the other members of the club and you'd be a great figure to use as the person organizing it. If you notice I have a full idea of breaking the first and second years into their own, having winners and loser brackets, and organizing a group of points based on the person's skill." He says grinning a little bit,"I've even worked out prizes for the winners. Also thought of having points awarded for style. So that it's possible for someone to lose a match and still gain points."

Lucian blinks and lifts his hands, "Whoa, whoa…slow down, Silver. A new tournament?" He runs a hand through his hair as he moves further into the room. He just seems…tired. "I've thought about it myself. But come on…I dropped out of the last one. Everyone will just think I'm trying to set up a new one for my own glory."

"Not necessarily. If they hear that Mr Jones was going to be allowed to continue even after he was disqualified when others who were disqualified weren't even able to compete then don't you think that it makes it clearer that we need another tournament. A properly designed one. My name will be on it as well so I don't think anyone will leap right to it." Seamus says looking at Lucian rather intently. "Sorry. But the rules will be posted. Do you think given those rules that anyone would jump to that sort of conclusion. You'd be among those rated with the highest point value, so you'd have the least to gain in any individual match."

Lucian finds a desk to lean up against, crossing his arms as he considers the proposal. "I think people will leap to whatever conclusion suits their sense of superiority. But I don't really care what they think of me. I'd just want this thing to succeed, and show people what dueling is really about. So who would judge it? Have you talked to Bumblebore about it?"

"I figured the upper years and Dumbledore would be the judges. I have a request to meet with him. I know the other members of the Dueling Club would be interested. I've heard from several that have said as much." Seamus says shrugging a little bit,"It's about time that we did show people what a proper duel can be like."

Lucian nods, slowly warming to the idea. "Couldn't have anyone competing as a judge. That's a conflict of interest. Trouble is, I wouldn't really trust anyone that's not in the club to be a good judge, and most in the club will probably want to compete. Slughorn's a keen duelist, too. He'd be a good judge. Probably Professor Viridian, too. Maybe…we could have a little test for non-club members, to see if they can be a proper M.C."

"I'm sure that it would interest Slughorn to see who is a good duelist as well. Professor Viridian might take an interest and with Dumbledore as a judge as well. I think we can make pretty good headway on things." Seamus says nodding his head,"And I'm sure there are plenty who could. But I think Dumbledore would be the hardest judge of skills." He just has a feeling on that one. "Might be hardest to get skill points from him."

Lucian sighs, "Yeah. Well…he won't be unfair with the whole school watching. Not while Dippet's still Headmaster." He scoots back to sit fully on the desk. "If we do this, I want to make it clear to everyone that this is a tournament of honour. I don't want to see any more of this 'anything goes' style of dueling. I don't want a champion that got there with dirty tricks."

"Why don't we call it the Tournament of Honour?" Seamus says grinning a little bit,"We will need to define to some what we consider dirty tricks. Because everyone has their own idea of what a dirty trick is." Seamus says as he stands near Lucian,"I think even if we do this though, it will be at least a bit still before any matches actually take place. There's the meeting with Dumbledore and then the signups and then I need to put the brackets together in a way that is fair and balanced."

Lucian wrinkles his nose, "'Tournament of Honour' is a little too blatant. As much as I might like to slap Auror Bates in the face, we probably shouldn't. Maybe…maybe give a special title to the winner, and name the tournament for that. Like…the Paladin's Challenge, or something."

Gabrielle , arms full of books and rolled up papers comes stumbling into the room. She doesn't even notice anyone there, as one one of the parchments goes rolling off her stack onto the floor as she's bumped in the back with the door closing. "Oh!…brilliant…" She'll bend down to grab it, and that's when she notices the other two boys."Oh…I'm sorry…I didn't realize anyone was here." She'll look to Seamus first, and glance over to Lucian before going back to Seamus. She looks a bit nervous.

"Paladin's Challenge works." Seamus says nodding his head a little bit,"It will probably be a bit of a slap…" Seamus says trailing off at the sound of the door opening, closing and things falling. Seamus bends to try and help Gabrielle pick things up,"It's not a big deal. We were just discussing something." He says casually. "We're pretty much done now." He says smiling a bit at Gabrielle.

"Yeah, but it's not an obvious slap, and it really does mean something." Lucian's attention is drawn to the clatter of Gabrielle's appearance. His eyes narrow, just slightly.

Gabrielle cringes slightly and will mutter, "Sorry…" Her cheeks flush a bit, and she'll try to give Seamus a smile as he hands her her things, "I can go somewhere else, if you need to finish talking." She'll glance up again at Lucian, but it's almost like she's trying to gauge something.

"It's ok. I think we're done. " Seamus says with a bit of a shrug of his shoulders,"I think we'll be ready to begin in the not too distant future." he says looking at Lucian,"And hopefully Paladin's challenge will turn out to be a success."

Lucian nods, looking a bit less grim than when he came in. "You're alright, Cavanaugh. I think this can work." He catches the glance from Gabrielle, and arches an eyebrow at her. "What?" he demands.

Gabrielle will give Seamus a tilt of her head, "Paladin's challenge…is that what you've been working on?" She'll cringe slightly at Lucian's demand, but will take a moment to collect herself. She's trying to not be scared anymore. She'll stand up, still holding all of her things in her arms, "I was wondering if Ria talked to you about the owl I sent her."

"It is." Seamus says nodding his head a little bit as he begins packing up his stuff, "It didn't have a name until now but yes. The full details will be out soon." He says grinning a little bit, before he continues to get packed up.

Lucian nods in agreement with Seamus, though still giving Gabrielle a wary look. "Yeah…a new dueling tournament. A fair one. But, what owl? What are you talking about?"

Gabrielle nods at the idea, "I think a new tournament would be good…"she'll start to say something else, but then Lucian is speaking to her, "I send an Owl to Ria…I thought she'd talk to you about it…"She'll glance at Seamus, not exactly sure if she should contuinue or not….Or if she'd just rather wait for Ria to tell him.

"I think you two might have something you need to talk about…" Seamus says seriously as he finishes packing up his stuff,"I am going to go see if Professor Dumbledore is in his office and see if I can get this approved by him…" He says sounding a bit uncomfortable himself at this point as he begins heading for the door.

Lucian sighs impatiently, crossing his arms. He nods to Seamus, "Right. I'll catch up with you later." Then, to Gabrielle, "Ria and I have had other things on our minds. Just spit it out, Evans."

Gabrielle looks like she's going to ask Seamus to stay, but he's already at the door. she'll take a deep breathe, put on a bit of fake bravo and goes and sets her things on a table. It things go poorly, better to have her hands free. She'll turn to look at Lucian, "I'm trying to help. If you don't want it, just forget I said anything."

Lucian snorts, sliding off of the desk and shoving his hands into his pockets. "Yeah, you've been a huge help in the past," he says, voice dripping with sarcastic venom. He shakes his head, giving her a dark stare. "If you have something to say, just say it. Stop playing games."

"Merlin! If Ria can forgive me and be my friend, what is your issue?" She'll glare right back at him, although the effect isn't the same as, she's Gabby, and not scary like Lucian. "There's a creepy man at Hogsmeade's asking about you. You /specially/. By name. Just days after the attack on Josie. I don't know if it means anything, but it didn't feel right. So I wanted to /warn/ you, you ass. I didn't want anything to happen to you. Feel free to ignore me though, it's most likely nothing." She'll actually sneer the last part. Ok, maybe she's a bit scary, "Just so you know, I'm done being scared of you. You, Kaiden, you're just big bullies. And I'm done being afraid." She's standing straight, and there's definite tension in her body, like she's ready to take a hit, but she doesn't look like she's going to bolt.

Ophelia slips into the classroom, her nose stereotypically in a book. Today its Herbology, and if the frown on her face is any indicator its not an enjoyable read. She's concentrating hard, though, not even noticing that she's not alone until she's gotten a few feet into the door. She comes to an abrupt halt as she realizes someone is talking, eyes widening as they look up and take in Gabrielle and Lucian. And for a moment, she just freezes.

Lucian rolls his eyes. "Great. Don't be scared of me. Exactly when have I ever said two words to you, let alone bullied you? You want to know my issue with you? You act like everyone is out to get you, and then you're a complete bitch to them just to make sure they are. You know, sort of like attacking my bloody girlfriend. Surprise, surprise, suddenly nobody likes you. Wonder how that happened."

"You told Ria you'd take my head off. I'm sorry if that's not a threat, what was it? And I did not attack your bloody girlfriend. I popped her in the eye for saying about the most awful thing she could to me. And we've /resolved/ it. Don't act like you understand /anything/ about me. You don't know anything I've had to go through. If I was being a bitch I would be telling you about Lionel, you jerk. He's dangerous." Gabby'll stop, realizing they have an audience…or maybe to catch her breathe. She's shaking slightly, and has tears starting to form in her eyes.

Ophelia looks at Gabrielle. Then Lucian. Then Gabrielle again. Swallowing, and trying to decide between making an attempt at being helpful or running as fast as she can for the door, she takes a single step back. Finally, in a quiet and wavering voice, she manages to say, "Uhm… "

Lucian's voice suddenly rising to a rather unnecessary level of anger. "I never said any such thing! How dare you! What the hell do you think I am?!" His face is twisted up in shock and…horror? Sensitive, this one.

Gabrielle s voice rises as well as she turns back towards Lucian, "You didn't have too. Gods, I was terrified because of what Kaiden had done, then you're giving me death glares. I think you're the type of person who's never going to forgive someone for doing something they shouldn't have. I know I shouldn't have hit Ria. I've apologized to her.I offered her anything I could….I think you the type of person who holds grudges , and will never let it go, and will take any opportunity to make me miserable, even if it's at the expense of getting knowledge that could help you!" Some of her false bravo is starting to leave her, she'll lean back into the table for a bit of support.

Ophelia continues to stand there, uncertain, until Kaiden is brought up again. What he did? Frowning suddenly, she bites her lip to think. This takes a few seconds and a couple of thoughtful looks, after which she squares her shoulders and steps forward. "Ok, so, um. Gabrielle is sorry she, ah, hit Ria. And Lucian is… not planning to do anything to her in defence of his girlfriend? Right?"

Lucian seems to notice Ophelia for the first time, which is enough to throw some confusion into the mix and stifle his rage a bit. "What? Hades, it's not like I've been hunting her down, no matter what she thinks. That doesn't mean I have to like her." He turns back to Gabrielle, scowling. "I'm not what you seem to think I am. You're one to talk about making assumptions about other people. Even Lionel. What the hell makes you think he's dangerous?"

Gabrielle glances at Oph, and then back to Lucian, "I never said you were hunting me down!"Although she make a weird face when she says hunting, like something is clicking. Her eyes go big with realization, "I know he's dangerous. I did a card reading on him, and he was asking about you specifically, and not being….kind in his tone about you. I said it may be nothing, but with the attack I wanted you to know…" Her eyes narrow some, but it's more of a still figuring things out, "But if you know him, then fine." She'll take a deep breathe.

Ophelia winces, already looking apologetic. She nods a little to him before looking at Gabrielle again. She bites her lip, listening to the girl's warning, then tries one more time. "Oh, ok. So Gabrielle is sorry, Lucian is not feeling violent, and Lionel may or may not be dangerous?"

Lucian sighs, running a hand down his face. "He's not dangerous! Bloody hell. This is why divination is so…" He shakes his head. "He's my brother. My half-brother, anyhow. And he's probably the Proudmore man I'm least concerned about being a danger to me. He a baker, for crying out loud."

Gabrielle just looks at Lucian, almost a bit sorry herself,although she does /not/ look convinced that Lionel isn't dangerous. It's clear she's not sure if she should continue "…He's hunting two different things…you're one of them, for good or bad." She'll glance over at her things on the table, "I was honestly just trying to help." She'll start nervously pulling at her right sleeve.

Eyes widening as she learns yet more of the interesting tale of Lionel, Ophelia slowly closes her Herbology book. "Well you… you gave your, um, warning? And maybe its, um, best we leave it there, yes? A-and Lucian, you can decide what you want to do with it now?"

Lucian gives a long-suffering groan. "Yes. Fine. I'll go talk to him next Hogsmeade weekend, or something." His eyes flicker to Gabrielle's fidgeting with her sleeve, as it stirs a memory. Quite unconsciously, he is mirroring her action and itching at his own forearm.

Gabrielle looks up to say something else to Lucian, but stops when she seems him ,in what looks like, mocking her action . she'll drop her left hand rather quickly, "I just wanted you to know, do whatever with it." She'll turn towards her books, not dismissive, more needing something to do with her hands if she can't fidget with her sleeve.

"Alright. So." Ophelia offers each of the two a worried smile, "We're.. um, alright then? Warning passed on?" Violence averted? For now, anyway. She glances around, fidgeting with a corner of her book as she adds haltingly, "Ah- Lu- er, P-Proudmore? Did, ah, you have a good holiday?"

Lucian eyes Gabrielle with a furrowed brow, his expression difficult to read. "Great…thanks." He glances sharply to Ophelia at her question. For a moment, he's dead silent. "No," he says curtly. But he's immediately remorseful, sighing. "You…may not have heard. Nevermind, it's…fine. Sorry. Both of you." A haunted look passes over his face, and he starts to trudge out.

Gabrielle nods to Oph, and will pick up the pencil case,and then set it down quickly, like maybe it's not a good idea, she'll turn to look at Lucian, for his …odd departure. Telling herself to shut up, and she doesn't listen, "Lucian, maybe the cards /were/ wrong…but he was asking about you…that's gotta mean something."

Ophelia blinks. "Oh, oh no I'm sorry, I didn't… " biting her lower lip, she stops herself and lets her shoulders slump. And then Gabrielle is bringing up Lionel again. Or still. "I think he gets it, Gabrielle." She speaks softly to the other Ravenclaw, "Maybe you need to let him think about it for awhile now."

Lucian stops near the door, turning to look at Gabrielle. "He was probably asking because of the attack. Whether he actually gives a damn, I don't know. But wouldn't you want to know what happened if your brother was fighting Dark wizards?" He shrugs, almost helplessly.

Gabrielle glances to Oph…she thought she was giving him an out with the card line, sigh. But then, he's asking her…Gabby will nod,again talking when she knows she shouldn't, "If I did, yes I'd want to know….I can…find out, if you want. If he gives a damn….He projects a lot…" Her voice is soft, and she's back to pulling at that damn sleeve again.

And that's when Ophelia remembers the news she'd heard at Mabel's party. "Oh! You… but, didn't you save Josie from the dark wizards?" Confused, now, she frowns at Proudmore, then Gabrielle, and then just decides to sit in the first seat she finds. Maybe she should go back to studying, since cheering people up is likely not a skill of hers.

Lucian shakes his head, "No, Evans. He's my brother. I'll handle it. Even if he means me harm, I'm not afraid of him." He nods toward Ophelia. "I took on Dark wizards, didn't I? I think I can handle Lionel." Looking more directly at Ophelia, he adds. "I helped to save her…yes." He leaves it at that, thinking it better if they don't know all of the details.

Gabrielle just nods, she offered that's all she can do.

"Well, ah. The way I heard it you were quite brave?" Ophelia looks a few more times at each of the others before opening her book once more. "And good luck with your brother. I've… I've no real experience with Gabrielle's divination, but I tend to think it wouldn't be a class at Hogwarts if there wasn't some truth in it. So maybe there is something dangerous in his future. Anyway, I hope everything's ok in the end."

Lucian shrugs noncommittally. "I just did what had to be done. She was in danger." Looking suddenly rather embarrassed, he looks down to his feet, then back up to the girls. He opens his mouth as if to speak, but shuts it again. Awkward and frustrated, he just gives them a weak wave and walks out.

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