The Slytherin boys erupted into applause, laughing heartily as they watched Lockhart make a fool of himself. Their cheers were loud and unapologetic, all in celebration of their "Little Prince."
Even Professor Snape, usually stone-faced and unamused, seemed to twitch the corner of his lips, as if suppressing a smile.
Hermione let out a sharp gasp before yelling in frustration, "I knew he'd do it!" She then hopped up and down, trying to get a better look at Lockhart. "Is he alright? Do you think he's alright?"
Harry and Ron, meanwhile, exchanged a subtle high-five and said in perfect unison, "Who cares?"
Snape, his expression cool and composed, strode toward Nolan, standing over him with an air of authority. "A rather fine demonstration," he remarked icily. "This is the lesson Mister Von Draugr has imparted upon you all—never overestimate yourself, for most people are simply not worthy. Now, let's hear what Professor Lockhart has to say."
With a lazy flick of his wand, Snape lifted the Petrification Curse.
For a moment, Lockhart remained in his frozen state, his eyes wide with horror. Then, as if time had caught up with him, he collapsed forward, scrambling to his feet in a disheveled mess. Though his lips stretched into a smile, his expression was closer to that of someone who had just swallowed a live toad.
His signature wavy blonde hair, usually pristine, was now an unkempt bird's nest. His elegant purple robes were wrinkled beyond saving. And worst of all, everyone was still picturing his ridiculous heart-patterned underwear.
"That was… quite a show!" Lockhart chirped, as if nothing had happened. "Ahem, yes! A marvelous display of the Levicorpus charm and Petrificus Totalus! But, as you all know, such spells are not always useful in the heat of a real duel. Of course, I only allowed Mister Von Draugr to land those spells for the sake of demonstration—"
Slytherin jeered loudly, their boos drowning out his excuse.
Even Ron rolled his eyes and muttered, "Yeah, sure. You keep telling yourself that."
Lockhart, ever the performer, quickly recovered, straightening his robes. "Now, had I wanted to stop Mister Von Draugr, it would have been a mere flick of my wand! But I believe that talented young wizards deserve to be recognized." He gave the crowd a dazzling wink.
Nolan tilted his head, his lips curling into a smirk—but the dangerous glint in his blood-red right eye made Lockhart visibly shiver.
"Alright then!" Lockhart clapped his hands together. "The demonstration is over! Now, I will pair you all up for a practical session. Try practicing Expelliarmus, just as I demonstrated earlier!"
However, given Lockhart's current state, very few students were convinced by his words.
Within moments, Snape took over, replacing Lockhart as the true authority of the Duel Club. He divided the students into pairs, making the selections entirely at his own discretion.
Cho Chang and Eve Stock were, of course, paired together.
The entire hall buzzed with anticipation. Everyone was eager to see if the two "princesses" of Slytherin would secretly despise each other, perhaps using this duel as an opportunity to hex one another out of jealousy.
The Golden Trio, however, were separated. Hermione was assigned to duel the ugliest girl in Hogwarts—Millicent Bulstrode—while Harry was paired against none other than...
Draco Malfoy.
"Potter," Malfoy drawled, a slow, sinister grin spreading across his face. His pale complexion was flushed with excitement. "Remember that unfinished duel from our first year?"
"You mean the one where you ratted us out to Filch?" Harry growled under his breath.
"That was a strategic victory, Potter," Malfoy sneered, eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "But today, I'll beat you with sheer skill. Soon enough, you'll understand that you're nothing special."
Harry scoffed. "Yeah? We'll see."
From the stage, Snape's authoritative voice rang out. "Bow to your opponent. Wands at the ready. On my count—begin."
Then, everything descended into absolute chaos.
Hermione and Millicent abandoned their wands entirely. Instead of a proper duel, the two scratched, pulled, and clawed at each other like wild animals. It looked less like a magical fight and more like a pub brawl.
Meanwhile, Harry and Draco were going at it with reckless abandon, flinging hexes left and right. Draco's mouth swelled to the size of a sausage, while Harry, for some bizarre reason, started dancing uncontrollably and farting with every step.
The only pair that actually resembled a proper duel was Eve and Cho.
Their wands clashed with precise, calculated precision, both firing Expelliarmus spells in rapid succession. Unlike the other duels, where spells were either chaotic or poorly aimed, their battle had a mesmerizing rhythm.
However, it was obvious Eve was holding back.
Her reaction speed was simply too fast—so fast that if she wanted to, she could have disarmed Cho within the first exchange.
But she didn't.
"Faster, Cho," Eve encouraged, flicking away an incoming spell with ease. "The most important thing in a wizard's duel is speed. Your opponent won't slow down for you—so you can't afford to hesitate."
Miles Bletchley, watching from the sidelines, shook his head in astonishment. "Wait… aren't they supposed to be rivals? Why do they look like sisters?"
"They're too close," Alicia Spinnet muttered, crossing her arms. "Even actual sisters don't get along this well."
The duels continued for a while—until things escalated even further.
Millicent pinned Hermione to the floor, swinging her fists like a wild bear. Hermione screamed, barely able to shield her face from the brutal attack.
Draco, meanwhile, was in worse shape.
Harry had somehow managed to grow a massive, grotesque lump on Malfoy's stomach, making him look six months pregnant. In retaliation, Draco slammed Harry into the ground so hard that he lost two of his front teeth.
"I think it's time we put a stop to this," Nolan remarked coolly, standing beside Snape.
"For once, I agree," Snape muttered.
At that exact moment, Lockhart reappeared.
Apparently, during the commotion, he had vanished to fix his robes and hair. Now, he was back—shining, pristine, and utterly oblivious.
"Oh, my goodness!" Lockhart cried, stepping into the chaos with zero awareness. "Everyone, stop! Miss Bulstrode, please! Miss Granger is getting quite bruised!"
He barely dodged a stray hex before stumbling backward. Huffing, he turned toward Snape. "I think it's best we demonstrate a proper duel—something civilized and elegant. We wouldn't want the house-elves to work extra hard cleaning up, would we?"
Snape's eyes gleamed. "Agreed." Then, with a smirk, he announced, "Potter and Malfoy—step forward."
Lockhart beamed. "Brilliant!"
But no one could have expected what happened next.
Under Snape's instructions, Draco conjured a snake. A large, black serpent slithered onto the floor, its scales glistening ominously.
The students closest to it recoiled in fear.
The snake hissed, creeping toward Justin Finch-Fletchley.
Just as it was about to strike—
Harry spoke.
But the words that left his mouth weren't English.
They were hisses.
A low, slithering sound.
And, to everyone's horror, the snake stopped.
It hesitated. Then, it slithered away.
The entire hall fell deathly silent.
Eve grabbed Nolan's arm, her fingers ice-cold. "Did he just talk to the snake?"
Cho's face paled. "I read about this once," she whispered. "It's called—"
"Parseltongue."
~~~----------------------
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