| Details for Head Girls Can Punch,Too |
| Summary: | As per their agreement at the dance, Ulysses gives Morgana some sparring lessons. Apparently, with an audience. |
| Date: | 25 January, 1939 |
| Location: | Club Room, Hogwarts |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
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This large room has a variety of uses, and can be setup differently for each club that uses it. Large storage doors around the room each hold a different club's equipment, to be setup with the wave of a wand. When the Athletics Club is here, for example, the room is full of gymnastics, weight, and other sports equipment. When the Domestics Club is here, however, stoves and cauldrons and workstations are more likely to be found here.
He'd actually had the gall to send instructions. Or perhaps just the stones, who knew? Regardless, it had been a simple note, with a time about an hour after dinner to meet in the club room (which was probably a good thing considering the ruckus that occurred), and a request that she wear light, loose-fitting clothes, preferably trousers or shorts unless she didn't mind giving a bit of a show (he'd actually included that in the note).
Lys was there already, dressed accordingly in an outfit similar to his request: a loose, white, short-sleeved shirt, and similarly loose-fitting white shorts. His feet were bare, but wrapped in white cloth over ankle and sole, as were his hands around the knuckles and palm.
The room was set up for Athletics, although the typical bags and weights weren't there, just a simple mat in the center of the room, and cloth wraps similar to what Lys was already using.
Variel steps into the room and peers about. He'd been planning to use the room himself, but if the inhabitants are amenable enough, he might not feel the need to relocate.
Instructions were not frowned upon, since this is a whole area of study that Morgana has not even looked into before. She does have some trousers to wear, thankfully, since sparring in a skirt would be awkward. She has on a loose fitting blue shirt, that she normally wears when she's out flying or otherwise getting dirty. While she can't really pull her hair back any more, she has pinned it away from her face, so she it does not get in the way. Spotting Lys when she walks in, she'll give him a nod and do a quick turn in front of him. "Is this acceptable attire?" She asks.
There's a bit of a joviality to Lys as Morgana comes in, and he nods emphatically as she shows off the outfit. "That'll do nicely, Rashley… I approve. Although if I'm going to be punching you today, do you mind if I just call you Morgana? Seems more appropriate. I'll even let you call me Lys in exchange." Another smile as he waves over to the cloths he'd left out for her, "You'll want to get into those, though. Let me know if you need help."
As Variel enters, Ulysses nods. Dora's friend and fellow protector, so the boy gets a friendly grin as well, "Weasley."
Variel nods with a slow grin. "Selwyn, Rashley- hope the two of you are going to be socking each other in only the most refined of manners, yes?" He moves to find a spot to sit, pulling his flute from his satchel- the wooden one.
"That is probably the most bizarre way anyone has asked to use my given name." Morgana says with a nod of her head. "However you do bring up a good point, Morgana will be fine and I am sure it will be far easier to keep track of you, using Lys instead of Selwyn." Because there are just so many of them! Looking at the cloth, she nods her head. "Perhaps it is best that you show me this time, I don't want to wrap them improperly after all." She'll bring the cloth pieces over to him and present her hands.
"What part of me ever struck you as normal, Morgana?" Lys replies with a chuckle, which expands at Variel's question. With a nod to Morgana, he walks up, takes the cloth, and unceremoniously takes the first hand, wrapping the cloth around it with a practiced ease. Then at look over at Variel, "Of course not. 'Refined' fisticuffs is fine when you're looking for a spectacle, but general sparring is much better for the heart anyhow. And unless your opponent is also 'refined', you're in a world of trouble with it."
Variel shrugs. "Wouldn't know. Never settled anything with my fists." He lifts the flute to his lips and starts a lively, rich tune, starting slowly while the others prepare, but settled to increase the tempo when things get lively.
"I suppose nothing about you appears to be normal Lys." Morgana teases, watching as he wraps her hand, mostly so she knows how to do it, if she ever spars again. "Trust me, there will be absolutely nothing refined about the way I am going to be doing things. I have very little talent when it comes to this." However, that doesn't keep the Ravenclaw from asking questions. "So why is it that we have to wrap our hands and feet?"
Adam sticks his head into the club room and looks around. When he sees the way the room has been set up, he hesitates, watching Ulysses and Morgana for a while. But then he steps inside and moves over to Variel, though he maintains a cautious distance from the Gryffindor boy. "Hello, Variel," he says. "What's going on here?"
The first hand done, Lys moves to Morgana's other hand, a look of satisfaction as he watches her pay close attention. That's always a good sign. "See… you're smart. If people were more observant, they'd get that about me right at the start, and so many misunderstandings could be avoided." Says the guy who had casually talked about caving in someone's face just the other night.
A look goes again to Variel, "It's nothing to be ashamed of. Sometimes there are situations where magic simply cannot resolve an issue. At least not quickly enough. And there's something to be said for the satisfaction of physical combat." As Adam enters, he frowns at the young one. Oh yes. The boy who would be a crow. He tips the Muggle-born a bit of a wink.
And then, Lys looks back to Morgana, and explains. "For the hands, it allows you some extra power to the strike, and protects the skin. You should use it with the punching bag as well… but when dealing with skin against skin… this will help you from damaging those hands. The feet? Better traction and stability to the ankles, rather than scuffing up school property with your shoes." Another grin there.
With that, her hands are done, and he kneels down. "All right. Feet."
Kaiden moves quietly into the club room, humming to himself and patting Adam on the head as he steps by him, "Hey there, Little Seeker." He stops and looks at Morgana and Ulysses for a moment with raised brows before letting a 'hrmmm' slip before he moves to sit down on a weight bench to watch them quietly.
Variel leaves off the song for a moment. "Hullo, yeh folks- here for th'show or th'songs?" The redhead's Scottish accent twists his words more when he's relaxed, and he seems to be now. "Sykes, an'ah… Irving, izzit? 'Chever you wanted, don't suspect Rashley'r Selywn's much of a mind'ta send ya packin'- a bit busy, they are." And back to the song, a folksy, slow ditty- one with an ear for tunes might hear how energetic it would be if sped up a touch.
"Normal is boring anyways." Morgana says, and when she goes through the explanation about the hand wrappings, she'll shrug. "I never really cared about what happened to my hands when I was hitting the bag before." That's usually done in hast, and anger. Hearing someone else enter, Morgana raises her brow and looks at Kaiden. Smirking she shakes her head. "Come to watch me make a fool of myself?" She asks, before lowering herself to the floor and presenting her feet to Lys for him to wrap it up.
Adam waves at Ulysses when the older boy notices him, but then someone pats him on the head, and he looks around, annoyed. "Oh, Kaiden!" he says when he sees who it is. "Hey." He beams at the title the Hufflepuff Beater gives him. "Did you hear how I almost won a broom race? Well, I didn't come that close, but I flew really well!" He looks to Variel and nods his head. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you," he says, but he hesitates when Variel continues to play his song. "But it can wait."
Variel is actually pretty well practiced at being expressive while he plays. He jerks his head at Adam, indicating he should come nearer, and makes one quick turn with his hand- "get on with it" or something of the like- before returning his hand to the flute to play.
Beginning work on wrapping her feet, Lys goes back to focusing on the task at hand. After all, he hadn't expected an audience… but he also recognized that this wasn't something seen every day. And, frankly, he liked doing things that ruffled feathers. "And see…," he continues, "that's part of the problem. These are things you /should/ think about. And better yet, find someone else to help you find an outlet. Makes sure you stay safe, and bleed the energy off quicker."
He follows her gaze as she looks up at Kaiden, even as he moves to the final foot, finishing it off quickly enough, "Oh… I'm sure you'll do fine."
Kaiden smiles at Morgana and says, "It wasn't in my schedule for today, but I will gladly make time." He looks over to Adam and says, "You did? Well, I'm ashamed I was not there to see it. I'm sure you did we Badgers proud." He smiles warmly to the boy, but his attention eventually falls back on Morgana and Ulysses.
"Well I am so glad that I can be fit into your busy schedule." Morgana teases, though her attention easily slips back to Uly, and his instructions. "Well if you say so, I at least know how to do it properly now." When he mentions how he think she'll do, she'll raise her brow just a bit. "We'll just have to wait and see. I am ready when you are." She says, finally getting to her feet. "Just let me know when you are ready."
"Yeah, I did!" Adam says, grinning at Kaiden. "It was so much fun! And it was a Badger who won it anyway. I lost to a Gryffindor because I couldn't turn fast enough, I need to practice that!" He notices Variel gesturing for him to go on with what he wanted to say, and his grin fades a bit. He hesitates, then steps closer. "Um," he says, not sure how to begin. Then he says it all in a rush: "Well, I know it's been a while, but I just wanted to apologize for what happened on the train."
At the moment oblivious to the other conversations, Lys bounces up shortly after Morgana does, balancing on the balls of his feet as he does so. He doesn't stay still, instead shifting his weight from foot to foot, eyes dancing about, all business now. "Okay," he starts off. "We're going to warm up a little bit at first. Watch what I'm doing her, and try to mirror it. Let's get the heart pumping a bit." As he does so, he flexes his hands as well, "You'll note that the way I wrapped your hands also forces them to close into proper fists. It's important that you do so, since even against a bag, a poor fist can crumple and break with an improper strike."
He waits then, for her to follow his example, and at least come close to matching his posture and movements. "And then, when you feel ready," he opens his palms, "I want you to punch my hands. At least at first. I want to see where you are already."
The music stops. Just stops, dead, mid-note. A touch of color's drained from Variel's face, and his expression- rather than angry- is just… distant and pained for one, short moment. He recollects himself shortly, and shakes his head. "Don't mention it, Irving." It doesn't sound like a suggestion. "Do a better job of keeping up with our news-" Variel glances to see if the significance settles in. "-our. News. Or you're apt to say the wrong things to the wrong people again." His accent is gone. He spends a moment, two, looking at his flute, then wraps it up and puts it back in his satchel.
"Well, I did promise that I would practice with you, so don't you fret," responds Kaiden with a broad smile to the younger Hufflepuff. He looks toward the mat and shakes his head, leaning back on his hands as he watches.
Morgana mimics his movements doing as she is instructed, and waiting until she feels herself get comfortable before she dares move forward. She tests her hands, making sure her fist is made properly before she nods. Finally when she's ready she'll start punching his hands. Her movements are very controlled and no where near as hard as she hits when she is angry. There someone is punching something!
Adam bites down on his lip when the music stops. He starts to smile, but it vanishes at Variel's next words. "Oh," he says, looking away. There's a hurt look in his eyes when he turns back to Variel. "Right, I'll try. Just wanted to say I'm sorry. Really sorry." He glances at Variel once and then turns away and moves over to stand next to where Kaiden is sitting. "I know," he says to the Beater with a faint smile. "I'm really looking forward to it." He watches as Morgana starts to punch Ulysses's hands. "What're they doing?"
Shifting his hands after every punch, Lys seems to consider things as he evaluates what he feels of each punch. Promise, there, although he does have to tease a little, "Morgana… are you trying to punch my hands, or kiss them… because I'm having trouble telling the two apart at the moment." A playful glint is in his eye as he says this, looking directly at Kaiden as he does so, seeing the head-shake.
He turns back at Morgana, moving around a bit now, left, right, ever bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I've seen you go harder than that. You don't need anger or frustration behind it. HIT me."
Variel gives Adam one nod at the repeated apology and settles back into the corner, watching the group chatter and train, glancing towards the door once or twice.
"Well, Morgana seems to be flailing wildly at Ulysses in what is commonly known as 'sparring'. It's like when you want to fight someone, but you don't want the nurse to have to deal with them, afterwards. Silly, isn't it?" Kaiden grins, a hand moving back through his long hair.
"I heard you Sykes." Morgana says, turning over her shoulder to look at him. However Lys' words cause her eyes to narrow and she shakes her head. "Yes, but it helps." Steadying herself again, she tries a few more punches, using that frustration he's already giving her to follow through with her punches. This ones, are a little harder.
Adam can't help but grin as well. "A little," he admits. "But if they're trying to learn…" He shrugs and watches the two spar for a moment, though his eyes flick to Variel every now and then. "But why're they doing it?" he asks Kaiden all of a sudden. "I thought fighting like, y'know, Muggles - I thought that was frowned upon."
The second or third time Adam looks for Variel, he's slipped out of the room without a word to anyone, for better or for worse.
"Well, it's much better exercise than just waving your wand at someone to settle a dispute," replies Kaiden to Adam, his eyes never leaving the sparring.
"Because it's fun," Lys calls out to answer Adam's question, even as he speeds up his own footwork, forcing Morgana to adjust even more, "and precisely because it's frowned at. People tend to have their noses far too bent about things that fit outside their preconceptions, kid." Then his attention is back on Morgana, "Good. Good. Keep it up."
Form may be sloppy, but that's expected. She's new. But he does change it up as she starts putting more power behind the punches. "Now… forget my hands," he says, and he takes one of her punches and easily deflects it with a hand, possibly disrupting her balance if she's not careful, "Remember where I've put m y hands, and come at me. And don't worry about it. If you connect with me, it's my fault."
"If you insist." Morgana says with a slight shrug as she gets back on the balls of her feet and does as he asks. Again she holds back, mostly because she isn't sure how this is going to work out. By now, some of her hair has fallen back in her face, even though it's already been pinned. Throwing a few punches, she'll start to gain a touch more confidence, so she can actually learn how to hit something live instead of a boring old bad. "I'm not going to lose points for this am i?" She teases.
"Yeah," Adam says to Kaiden, "I'm just surprised, is all." He's surprised again at Ulysses's answer, though it's one he likes. "Yeah they do!" he agrees, taking a seat next to Kaiden on the bench. He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands, and continues to watch with interest as the sparring continues.
Kaiden slaps his legs as he stands up and says, "Well, I think I'm going to head out for now." Whether it's wanting just go about his day, or the fact that he'd rather not see Morgana smacked around is unsure. He smiles at Adam and says, "Monday after class I'll see you on the Pitch, alright?"
The smile Lys offers at the exertion now is wide, his hands circling into the inside of each punch to deflect it, actually rolling them off of his wrists. She's new to this. She telegraphs, but Morgana definitely could have a chance. And she's not making a fool of herself, either. Lys nods his encouragement, "I do insist."
At her question, he actually laughs, which allows one of her punches to glance off his shoulder. At this, he laughs, even if there's a bit of pain to it, "Only if you're the one to take 'em, Morgana!"
"I think my house has suffered enough." Morgana says dryly as she continues, watching as he deflects her blows. Perhaps if she tries to fake him out, moving one hand, but hitting with the other hand instead. Still she's sticking to the areas he told her to hit. Kaiden leaving does distract her for a moment, but if she's going to learn something, she'll have to stay focused. "More like that then?" She asks.
Adam sits up and looks up at Kaiden. "Wow, really?" he says. "Yeah, all right! Monday after class. Great!" He beams up at the Beater. "Actually, I'd better go too," he then says, thinking it might be strange for him to just linger and watch the two older students fight. He stands as well. "See you, Kaiden!" he says before waving to Ulysses and Morgana and hurrying out of the room.
She got one blow in… so Lys is focused now, enough so that he doesn't really notice the others leave, instead, he's circling now. A smile of approval is given as she changes things up a bit, the punch actually getting past his initial deflection, and going straight for his sternum.
Instinct kicks in at that moment, however, and instead of a simple deflection, he moves, shifting his body to the side to let the arm extend fully, and with a twist, moves to use her own momentum to twist the arm into a defensive hold, one that would have her arm behind her back and up against him.
It'll take a second before his mind registers that, however…
Morgana has yet to really gain any instincts about this form of combat, because she is better with her wand. So when Kaiden distracts her and she ends up in the hold she actually gasps in surprise. "Well.. that wasn't supposed to happen." She says, trying to get out of it and wincing when she pulls the wrong way. "So… how does one get herself out of this situation." She asks carefully.
Lys just holds her there for a moment in that pose, chuckling as the realization clicks. And in that pause he scans the room, realizing of a sudden that they're alone again. The laughter reappears, "Well… that would be a whole other set of lessons, as well as a whole other set of skills," he notes, letting her arm go a moment after. "My apologies. You surprised me, actually… which is a good thing. You should be proud, it being only your first time."
A pause, "I didn't hurt your arm, did I?" Actual concern for a moment there.
Morgana takes her arm back and rubs where he grabbed it and shakes her head. Realizing that they are not also, alone, she clears her throat. "No I will be fine, I just jerked in the wrong direction." Morgana says lightly before she continues. "Well good, I am glad that i was able to do so. Maybe I'm not a complete failure at this." She jests.
"Far from it," Lys offers back, shaking his head as a thick hand reaches out to land on the shoulder that wasn't hurt,"you actually took to it quite well, for a first timer. You took instruction, you thought ahead of me, and other than being a bit tentative at the start, you put your heart into it." The hand squeezes, lightly.
And then he snorts. "It was also nice to see your boyfriend come and check in on you. Sweet, even." A playful snicker as he pulls his arm away, his breathing already returning to normal after the exertion, "Oh, and Sykes, too." His grin turns almost wicked.
"I apparently learn quickly and you do a good job instructing." Morgana says with a smile before she shakes her head, and reaches out to swat at his arm. "Sykes isn't my boyfriend, he's just… Kaiden." There is an awkward tone to her voice as she pushes some of the hair out of the way. "Why don't we give it another try and see who does better." She'll smirk before getting back into the right stance. From there, she'll continue on with her instruction, until they need to be else where.