Hogwarts 2022 - Practical Defense Against the Dark Arts

[LeaT]

The notices had gone up shortly after the start of the new term in the Great Hall and the Common Rooms of each house. Perhaps most interesting about the announcement is what it was not called, there was no mention of a dueling club or similar term often used to describe those few sanctioned opportunities where students were actually encouraged to draw wands against each other. Such clubs had been sanctioned before with varying success, others had been underground activities such as Dumbledore's Army just before the battle of Hogwarts. With the fall of Voledmort and the death eaters, such things had fallen out of fashion with much of the wizarding world. As if no one else would think to use magic for less than ideal purposes.
​

Professor Augsburg was rather tight lipped with details, in part due to her own anxiety that the school and even more so, the Ministry of Magic, might frown upon some of her more unconventional ideas about defense and the wizarding world as it had evolved since the fall of the Dark Lord. It simply wasn't the genteel society the Ministry liked to think it was anymore. Dueling was a quaint idea, moderately useful for the early year students, but the reality that faced their O.W.L. and even N.E.W.T. level students was not nearly as neat and tidy. There would be no drawing wands and bowing before hostilities if another witch or wizard wanted to cause harm to them.

Given Professor Augsburg somewhat practical nature and the overall reputation of Hufflepuff as sort of, soft, as a polite term, might give little hope that this would be anything exciting or dangerous. Her worst fear was that no one at all would show up, followed quickly by the fear that someone would.

---

At ten minutes to 8 pm on the evening indicated, the Great Hall was transformed into a wide open gymnasium type of setting. The great long house tables and chairs were nowhere to be seen. The stone

walls and columns were covered in soft padding. Absent were the dummies for practicing beginner spells and the neatly laid out dueling carpets that would designate the official 'area' of a duel. There were however various everyday items interspersed about in a somewhat haphazard fashion and an intricate series of platforms and scaffolding. It wasn't too different from the setting used to train Aurors during the darkest days of the wizarding wars when there was more appreciation for the life and death struggles that happened in the dark corners of the wizarding world.

The DADA professor stood upon one of the lower platforms, just high enough to be easily seen by anyone who decided to attend. She pace nervously, she

had placed a lot of her hopes and reputation upon this extra credit class. She was not dressed in her usual clothes, instead opting for a form fitting two piece that would allow her to move with agility and flexibility. It left little to the imagination of her curves, some might consider it distracting, but that was part of the point.

Her anxiety built as the first students arrived, but she relaxed as a few more showed. A decent number for a start but not overwhelming. Those who did show, would learn a lot with a high student to teacher ratio and a variety of skills and experiences. She had invited select members of the staff to assist her, those both with reasonable skills and also not likely to shy from the controversial nature of the class or its setting.

As the 8 o'clock hour chimed in the great hall it was time to begin. "Greetings students and fellow teachers." She said from her platform, her usually soft voice magically enhanced to ensure they would all hear her without any harsh yelling on her part. "I welcome you to Practical Defense Against the Dark Arts." Her voice emphasizing the first word of the title. "Here you will get an opportunity to use that which you have learned in your formal classes, and mix it with some improvised twists that will make you more adaptable and less predictable to a future opponent."

She let them digest the basic premise of the lesson as she saw it. "In short, we will make this as 'real world' as we can, dispensing with the niceties of formal dueling and limitations on non-magical improvisations. You may also introduce spells that you have learned or heard of outside of your formal training here. I only ask that you run it past me before using it on one of your fellow students. We don't want to send anyone home in an ash bin." She paused for what would hopefully be taken as grim humor but also a reasonable precaution for a not necessarily reasonable lesson.

"For your first exercise, who can join me up on this platform?" She asked as she brandished her wand. "Not that I am going to let you." She said as she challenged her students to take the high ground from her and to dispense with the idea that they needed to treat their teacher with any kind of reverence in this setting.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

Seeing the signs, both Marcus and Amir found themselves debating that very subject on the first night afterwards. "Are you going to go to that thing?" Even if the man wasn't his best mate, Amir heard the derision in the other's voice loud and clear. "You're in N.E.W.T. level DADA too, buddy," he reminded his friend, as the two of them sat peacefully in the Ravenclaw common room. Both had been studying, working through different homework assignments here and there, trying to wade past it. Towards the end of their education, it seemed like all of their teachers wanted to drown them in research, and neither felt very secure about any of their chosen subjects - Defense Against The Dark Arts included.

"Well, look, I'm no expert, and we both know if a Death Eater pops up in our room, we're toast," he whispered back, causing Marcus to laugh so hard that he almost fell off his bed. In truth, both were pretty good students, in their final years and ready to face the world. Even though He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had been defeated, and there were hardly any of his followers left, they could never be too sure what lurked around any corner in the wizarding universe. Theirs was a world fraught with danger and peril, one of the reasons DADA was such a hugely important and popular subject.

One factor driving his decision happened to be that of Professor Augsburg herself, who had a certain charm that he found appealing. Well, that and her physical frame certainly left little to complain about. She was a looker, through and through, and something told him that she was all too aware of that fact. Perhaps he was wrong though. At worst, Amir considered that he'd get some more practice in a tough subject, some more time around the good professor (and her considerable assets) and maybe even get better, good enough to pass the exam. "I'm taking it, and if you don't want to, suit yourself," Amir said coolly, poking his head back into his book. "You just want to stare at her tits, don't you?" Marcus questioned him.

Amir threw a book at him instead. Then they burst out laughing together. Because yes, he did want to take a peak at that chest. Any red-blooded male would.

---

While nothing on the note itself had said to dress for the occasion, Amir figured that he might as well be comfortable. A bunch of students close together with professors, hurling spells all day? It was bound to get hot and heavy. Therefore, he dressed in his typical gym gear, relaxed and loose, and ready for anything. Amir loved his wand, and he had a chance to fire off some spells in the Room of Requirement privately beforehand also, so he felt confident about his chances if there was going to be any dueling.

Once he arrived, however, he stopped short and took a look around. He'd never seen the Great Hall looking anything remotely like this, and Amir considered himself impressed. Many different students lined up, all with high amounts of anxiety appearing on their features, yet as Marcus wasn't around and Amir wasn't too close with the other Ravenclaws, he kept to himself. The man couldn't help glancing at Professor Augsburg, since she was dressed so fantastically. Damn, it was almost like every bit of her outfit served to highlight and accentuate her natural beauty.

This would be a tough one to get through, Amir thought to himself, although he was able to smile inwardly. Fine, let's get to it.

Listening to her spiel, Amir found himself agreeing with the idea behind presenting this opportunity and while some aspects of her potential methodology struck him as mildly concerning, she made it clear that she wanted to get their best shot, and even issued a challenge. No one seemed to step up, however, and so Amir assumed he'd go give it a chance. Why not? As a Seventh Year student, maybe he was expected to do so anyway.

Raising his hand, he looked Professor Augsburg dead in the eye, and came forward. "I'll take a crack at it, sure, professor. Don't expect me to go easy," he said quietly, firing a wink. With all his considerable knowledge and recent testing-out, Amir felt reasonably confident, although even against the weakest teacher he'd be an underdog. Yet, steeling himself up, he put himself into position form below and glanced up.

"Just say the word when you're ready," he told her firmly, holding his wand up, a small bit of sweat trickling across the brow. No matter what, this would be entertaining, he was sure of that much.

 

[LeaT]

@Doctor Manhattan
Professor Augsburg gave Amir only the slightest nod of recognition, he had already made his first mistake and she would be certain to punish him for it. She kept him in her peripheral vision as she scanned the rest of the group, many of them too timid to take a crack at it so soon. Once she finished with Amir they might be even more timid, she smiled slightly as she turned back to him and he said she should just say the word. Hopefully the Ravenclaw was a good sport. The only word she gave him was "expelliarmus" the most basic of offensive spells but quite effective all the same. She pulled no punches with him either, unless he was especially quick, he would soon find himself glad for the padding placed around the ancient stone column he would be thrown against. She barely watched for her spell's effect as she paced about ready to take on any comers. "Why would you announce your intentions?" She asked the group as a whole, having used the good looking seventh year as what might be a painful example. But he was young and strong and she doubted she injured anything except maybe his pride. She doubted he would make that mistake again, certainly not in this class and hopefully not in the real world with his life on the line.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

@LeaT

"Expelliarmus!"​

Well, shit, he did ask for it.

As he heard her choice selection of vocabularly and summarily felt his wand fly from his hand, Amir felt extremely stupid. Say the word when you're ready, yikes. Please kill me. It wasn't enough that he'd been embarrassed, which was entirely his fault, no less; it'd happened in front of a ton of the student body and many of his teachers to boot. He couldn't have felt worse if someone had tried to make him feel so, and it was all he could do not to simply bolt right then and there.

Still, he wasn't a quitter, nor a child, and so he took his defeat like a man, properly, moving swiftly to pick up his wand and dust it off. "You're right, professor, that was foolish of me. I was too...I wasn't focused on the task at hand," he corrected himself. Yes, that was it; all he had to do was aim and fire, whatever spell he thought might have worked (and he had a good one in mind). Instead he'd fallen into the pitfall of giving his opponent ample time to disarm him instead.

No way he'd ever do that again. For that, at least, he was truly thankful, and as soon as he'd recovered his wand, he moved back into position smartly. "I appreciate the lesson. Please, continue," he said with a broad smile, inclining his head slightly.

Smart woman. Something to keep in mind in their next encounter, whenever that would be.

 

[LeaT]

@Doctor Manhattan and others.

If it were any consolation, she did offer him a discreet wink as he acknowledged the lesson. He did after all, show some initiative, even if from a disadvantaged position. But they were there to learn and so far so good. He might have been the first and most obvious, but he wasn't alone for long. Height wasn't her only advantage, the platform itself gave her some shielding from those standing on the floor. They would have to raise their wands noticeably to properly aim at her and few got their wands even into position before she sent them flying back as she had Amir.

But they were bright witches and wizards and she wouldn't be able to hold them at bay indefinitely. Sooner or later they might learn to get a better position or to team up on her. Of course striking without warning was hardly the only trick she had up her sleeve for this first class. One student simply tried to climb up onto the platform but a solid kick to their shoulder pushed them back to the ground. They would have a bruise no doubt, but nothing Madame Abbott in the infirmary wouldn't be able to patch up if it were even that bad.

 

[TheCorsair]

It was just curiousity that had brought him to the Great Hall. Really. Not a lingering resentment about having been kicked out of teaching DADA because of “parental concerns”, combined with a grudging interest in how Mina Augsburg was planning to teach practical defense. No, not at all. It was just curiousity, really. Will Burke didn’t have a jealous bone in his body. Ask anyone. And then call them liars when they respond.

The multi-tier training platform was unexpected. He’d used them before, of course. Aurors used them to practice magical combat on unstable environments. But he hadn’t expected that Mina would set them up for the students. That was… surprising. Still, he could respect that.

What didn’t impress him was the way she strutted at the top platform, daring the students to come at her. She was, after all, a fully-trained Auror with years of field experience. None of them stood a chance.

Well. Time for her to face a challenge.

“Volantum gradum,” he murmured, waving his wand in a subtle circle and tapping each of his shoes. Then he darted forward, kicking off the tile floor and leaping up onto the second platform. As his black brogans touched down he kept again, the enchantment carrying him up to the top of the third platform.

To the assembled students, he probably didn’t look ready for a serious magical fight. Not in dress shoes and his black linen suit. But Mina? She would know better. All of his suits - all of his clothes, really - were cut for ease of movement.

“Lignum putredo et confractus,” he called, slashing his wand at the midsection of Mina’s tower. In response, the support poles dry-rotted and splintered. He didn’t think it would be enough to defeat her, because if it was then she wouldn’t have survived as an Auror, but it would hopefully distract her from his actual attack.

As he finished the motions of the rotting spell, he lunged with his wand as if it were a blade. “Avoda Kethavra!” Not the actual unforgivable curse, of course, but the Auror’s training version. A flash of green light and a rush of wind, and the target would be paralyzed if struck.

 

[LeaT]

@TheCorsair @Doctor Manhattan

Professor Augsburg was not the only one dishing out lessons this evening. She should have been more prepared for his attack, having invited him personally to back her up when she was challenging a numerically superior number of students. But he had less faith in their students than she, justified or not, she gave them more credit. So the rotting wood crumbling beneath her feet was creative and did surprise her. So much so that she tumbled headlong into Amir whom she so recently stung with a dose of humility. Fortunately the main impact between them was between his face and her left breast and her momentum took them both crashing to the floor with her on top of him, nearly smothering him in lycra covered boob.

Wand arm raised towards Professor Burke, uncovered Amir's face just long enough to say "sorry" before smothering him again. He might of thought she was saying sorry for boob punching him and knocking him down. But she really was apologizing for what she was about to do. She wrapped her left arm around his neck, more thoroughly pressing her breast into his face, she hooked her right leg around his left for better leverage then with all her strength she rolled him on top of her just in time for the poor boy to be struck square in the back by Burke's curse.

She wasn't in the greatest of offensive positions, but she did present a relatively small target for the elevated professor and her wand hand remained free. He had the initiative but she was far from defenseless.

 

[Silverbird]

Charles, as usual, was torn.

Since hearing a couple of seventh-year students joking about it in the Ravenclaw common room — and getting a better look at the notice himself — Charles had been looking forward to Professor Augsburg’s extracurricular Defense Against the Dark Arts class. He’d always enjoyed DADA as a subject; there was something about studying the worst the magical world had to offer and the tools to deal with it that made him feel just that little bit safer, a less anxious in a world that he still didn’t really fit into. With his O.W.L.s on the horizon, too, it just seemed like a good idea. Why not jump at a chance to learn a little more?

As the evening grew closer, however, he’d started to doubt himself. The notice had been frustratingly light on details. What would he be learning, really? The class was open to N.E.W.T. students; wasn’t it arrogant to think a class like that was in his grasp? For all he knew, some of the students from wizarding families had been practicing dueling and the like from a young age; if it was something like that, maybe he’d just be making a punching-bag of himself and wasting everyone else’s time by showing up. And then, of course, there was his ordinary workload. Did it really make sense to spend time on something that might help his exams, instead of something that he knew would?

Round and round his thoughts went, imagining the worst case scenario and slowly talking himself out of something that, really, he wanted to do. By dinner that evening he still hadn’t decided, and was starting to get annoyed with himself — having lost track of time in potions class earlier that day dwelling on it, at the cost of his potion. By a half past seven he was pacing irritably out by the lake, his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face.

“This is getting stupid,” he muttered in disgust, coming to an abrupt halt and throwing his arms up in disgust. “Just go do it, Charles. What are you so afraid of?”

If nothing else, he told himself, at least it’s Professor Augsburg’s class. He’d always felt protected in her presence. What was the worst that could happen?

—

The Professor’s foot struck Charles directly in the shoulder, brutal and efficient, momentum tearing the platform from his grasp. He hit the ground with a solid thud, the air knocked from his lungs. If only the floor had been as well padded as the walls and stone columns.

Not that he was badly hurt, really. He’d taken worse hits playing football as a kid, even if those were accidental; and then, of course, there was that incident with the stray bludger in his third year. Still. The young wizard groaned. This wasn’t going according to plan.

He’d felt so clever when he’d figured it out. The class hadn’t been what he expected; like several of the other students there, Charles had arrived in his usual school robes, only to find the professor in skin-tight exercise clothes with the hall converted into something that looked more like a muggle obstacle course or gym. He’d watched cautiously as Amir made the first move and got smacked down for it, and as a few of the others began to make their attempts, it had hit him: This wasn’t a test of magic. It was a test of strategy.

After all, none of the handful of defensive spells he’d learned over the last few years was going to unseat the professor — or stun her, or let him apparate up there, or whatever other tricks might be up some of the older student’s sleeves. She was too good for that; it just wasn’t a fair fight. She’d said it herself, though: this was a test of real world improvisation. He didn’t have to actually fight her, just avoid notice for long enough to get up there.

And so he’d waited until her attention was on the other side of the room, and then shrugged off his outer robe, crouched low, and made a run for it. He was actually pretty light on his feet, and between the scattered objects and the platforms themselves, Charles thought he might actually have enough cover to escape her notice.

He was wrong.

Should’ve waited for a better distraction, he chided himself, as he lay on the cold floor and waited for his back to stop throbbing. As it so happened, that better distraction arrived a moment later in the form of Professor Burke — but by that point it was a little too late for the young wizard to take advantage. A loud crack issued from one of the support poles above him, and Charles took that as his cue to be elsewhere. He rolled to one side, body complaining as his bruises smacked into the ground again, then scrambled out of the way before the whole thing could come down on top of him. Better to regroup and try again.

If the Professors left anything standing, anyway.

 

[TheCorsair]

“Really, Mina?” Will called as she let a student take the brunt of his attack. “Using innocent bystanders as human shields?” It wasn’t strictly true, of course. In this scenario, the students were attacking her. But it might rattle her.

Might.

He kept from the third platform to the remaining upright pole of the fourth, the spell on his shoes allowing him to land lightly and maintain his balance. “In captionem pro inimicis meis,” he intoned, flourishing his wand in a complex pattern. “Fiat bitumen!”

Once again his target wasn’t Professor Augsburg. His wand tip flashed black and the mat beneath her became black as well. Black and viscous and sticky, stinking of roads in the hot summer sun. He smiled wickedly as she sank slightly into the thick mat of asphalt, pushed down by the weight of her paralyzed human shield.

 

[LeaT]

She ignored his taunt, this wasn't meant to be about the two of them and she wasn't going to let it devolve into a grudge match between them. Professor Burke so underestimated their students she decided to use that conceit against him.

"Professor Burke has the high ground now, see if you can take it. Cast any spell you can think of, just overload him." She encouraged the crowd of students to get involved even as she creeped into the sticky tar floor. Hoping that might keep him occupied until she, with their help, could retake the initiative. "vere areæ" She cast casually over her shoulder into the floor and bounced back up. The floor was now springy like a trampoline and any standing student would be able to spring high into the air once the felt the spring in their steps. Making it easier for them to get a headstart up to the higher platforms.

Realizing that Amir's paralyzed face was buried in her bosum, she rolled him back over then cast a counter curse on him to free him once more. He had been paralyzed but not unconscious and he would well remember his experience. But she was soon up and moving. She continued to encourage the students to cast any and all spells they could think of up at Burke. He would be inundated with spells as harmless as falling feathers and as serious as swarming bees. None of which was likely to incapacitate him, as long as he dealt with them in some fashion or other.

Mina used the trampoline like floor to bounce about, but threw no spells of her own at Edmund. She found herself behind young Charles. She placed her hands on his shoulders and bent close, pressing her breasts into his shoulder blades as she whispered into his ear. "Don't aim for him, use your divination, aim for where he is going." Her breath was warm on his ear, despite the chaos of the moment, her voice was calm and soothing. "Keep it simple, no need to be fancy just well aimed." She suggested, hoping he would take her meaning before she jumped on to another student.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

This was devolving into far more of a free-for-all than he suspected, but honestly Amir was here for it.

And why not? From what he'd observed, and been a part of, there was a lot more to digest here than simply classroom settings, lessons and the like. For instance, the waves of tension between Professors Burke and Augsburg would have been obvious for anyone to see, yet most of the students seemed rightly concerned with the theatrics taking place within the Great Hall than anything else. For good reason, clearly, but Amir found it somewhat amusing.

That was until he felt himself get the wind knocked out of him as Professor Augsburg stumbled and crashed into his frame.

"Nothing to be sorry for," he mumbled, through the fair amount of breast that peppered his face. Who could really complain about that? At the same time, it only just registered that she was about to use him to take the attack of Professor Burke directly. Ah, that wasn't what he had hoped for in the least.

"What...?" The word left Amir's lips just as the curse hit him square from behind. Ow. "Holy shi-" he yelped, managing to cut off the last part as he was stunned, and completely useless. Thankfully, whether through mercy or simply protecting him, the good professor uttered the counter curse and set him loose. "Uh..thanks," he told her quickly, a bit shocked at getting so up close and personal with her chest, but remembering where he was, he managed to focus himself and then rolled away, finally off Professor's Augsburg's bosom. Twice she'd made him feel completely like some sort of set decoration! Hating that, but resolved to see this to the end, he instead dusted himself off, got to his feet, and took a peek around the room.

While the black goo sprang up, Amir jutted out of the way to avoid it, hotstepping free and clear of the mess. Thankfully, aside from some of the muck stuck to his shoes, he didn't experience too much discomfort.

She seemed to be assisting the other student who'd made an attempt before Burke's arrival - Charles, he thought that was the name - and Amir merely aimed a few spells of his own right at Burke. "Petrificus Totalus," he cast swiftly at his new opponent, and also one of his favorites, "Mortenialus!", which was a rather advanced spell that he directed toward Burke's legs. If it hit, it would bind both stems, and cause him to at least trip if nothing else.

Seeing the mass of students work with Augsburg to subdue the interloper, Amir considered himself thankful that it wasn't him up there.

@Silverbird @LeaT @TheCorsair

 

[TheCorsair]

“Tempus fugit,” Will intoned, spinning his wand like the hand of a clock. It was complex spell for all its simplicity of casting, one that accelerated the speed of your thoughts and actions and left the world moving at half speed. For all of about thirty seconds.

It was a tiring spell if used frequently, but necessary. Because Mina - to her credit - was rallying the students against him now. With the spell in place, he could see students raising wands and mouthing spells.

“Reflexionis sphaera!” he intoned, drawing a circle in the air around him. The motion transformed into three digits sketched in the air that flared briefly with black light. “Hexruptor!” This was followed by a circle drawn rapidly in the air before him. “Quantascutum!” And then he hurled himself from the pole as the world returned to normal speed.

The top of the pole exploded into flames, froze solid, and then shattered as a hurricane-force gust of wind tore the top of the pole away and smashed it into a wall of the great hall. Then he rolled, evading two jets of black ink that looked to be a stunning or disabling spell.

“Petrificus Totalis!”

The spell splashed agains the shield of quintessence he’d summoned, rendering it harmless. Sadly, the shield could only take another few hits like that. The second spell from Mina’s human shield, Mortenialus, was utterly unexpected. Much more advanced and specialized than he’d expected from a student. As a conjured physical object, albeit temporary, it was uneffected by the shield. The hexbreaker, on the other hand, stopped it cold. It could only do that twice more, though.

He moved to retaliate, but drew back as a volley of stunning spells blasted past him. This was, in a word, untenable. It was time to do something about this.

And he had just the thing. “Accio staff,” he intoned, then caught the lightening blasted oak staff as it flew into his hand. Then, trusting to his shields for a moment, he rose with the staff spinning overhead like a rotor. “Taranis!” he roared. “Dall agus bodhar mo nàimhdean!”

The staff slammed into the platform. Thunder roared in multiple blasts like physical impacts, and a blast of blinding light erupted out with each blast.

 

[Silverbird]

Things had clearly gotten out of hand. While Charles had imagined plenty of ways this evening might go badly for him, getting caught up in what was effectively an all-out magical brawl hadn’t been on his list! The young wizard’s heart pounded in his chest as spells erupted all around him. He slipped his own red oak wand from his pocket, gripping it tightly, but at first he hesitated, unsure about getting involved. He doubted this was what they’d had in mind when they organised the class; there was clearly something going on between the two professors that had led to this chaos, and he wasn’t really sure he wanted to get in the middle of that after the kinds of spells he’d already seen Professor Burke throw around, whatever Professor Augsburg might say…

But then she bounced over to land beside Charles, and he found himself suddenly caught in the warmth against his back, the tickle against his ear. His heart beat faster, and his mouth felt suddenly dry.

Aim for where he is going. Keep it simple.

He could do that.

The young wizard swallowed deeply, and gave the professor a shallow nod. He could do that. He just had to focus; block out the chaos around them and keep his eyes on Professor Burke’s movements. The transfiguration teacher was perched on top of the last remaining pole from Professor’s Augsburg’s platform, but he wouldn’t be able to remain there long with everyone hurling spells up at him. He’d probably move — jump to another platform…

“Got it!”

Charles suddenly darted forward, head low, almost like he was repeating his first run on the platform. Up above, Professor Burke was throwing out counter-spells so fast the words seemed to blur together, basically none of it intelligible to Charles’ ear, but the young wizard paid that no mind. Just as he’d predicted, the professor lept again, the movement accompanied by a loud shattering and a howling wind that whipped at Charles’ sleeves and tie. As the professor landed, Charles skidded to a halt just a meter or two from the base of the platform; and as the professor called upon his staff, Charles stretched out his own wand to aim at the underside of the platform the professor was standing on, ignoring the twinge of pain from his injured shoulder.

“Flipendo!”

The knockback jinx; one of the simplest defensive spells taught to Hogwarts students, but powerful enough to shatter the nailed-down wood, and aimed right under the professor’s feet. The spell blasted from his wand with a sound like a gunshot; it probably wasn’t exactly what Professor Augsburg had had in mind, but Charles hoped it’d at least catch Professor Burke off-guard.

The young wizard’s aim was on-point, but he didn’t get to see it land, or even hear the splintering wood he’d expected. The sound was swallowed up in the professor’s sudden thunder; the platform itself shielded Charles from the light to some degree, but not enough to escape it completely. The young wizard staggered back blindly, ears ringing, raising his arms reflexively to shield his eyes in the crook of his elbow.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

Whether the Great Hall itself or any of the contents within it survived the encounter remained to be seen.

For his part, Amir ducked quickly, listening to everything that issued from around him, and especially from the voice of Professor Burke. No way the Headmaster approved of all of this, did she? Students ran in every direction, many of whom tumbled and rolled past various spells whizzing in their direction, and at least a few other students seemed to be directing their wands toward the new entrant, whether he was ready or not.

At least it appeared that with Professor Augsburg's assistance, Charles would be alright, and the other wizard took good aim at least. For that, Amir felt thankful; it wouldn't be just him fighting this battle. Come to think of it, why were they in this kind of brawl in the first place? So many questions sprang up at Amir, who dismissed them at the moment and instead turned his focus into surviving.

He heard his own initial spell reverbate off the shield that Burke conjured, and cursed to himself as a result. Damn, that might have been his best chance. While he didn't quite have the magical knowledge to compete with Burke in full, he did have enough experience to recognize that the professor gave himself an advantage with his initial cast, and therefore racked his brains to consider what might actually work - if anything.

Then he heard Charles shout out, "Flipendo!"

Smart, to use something so simple, especially since Burke created an entire display of active spells to protect himself and keep the others off him as a result. Just how real was all of this supposed to be? Amir wondered, but as the time seemed to be for action rather than consideration, the young man instead closed his eyes, summoned his strength, and tried to add to what his mind told him would perhaps fit. "Protego!" He shouted out, defensively securing himself, before he leapt from behind his pillar and aimed where he guessed Burke would land if Charles hit his as well.

Aiming toward the eyes of Burke, Amir figured might as well see if he could at least shut off the man's vision. "Obscuro," he fired off, trying to at least prevent Burke's field of view from being so wide and open.

Frankly, he was sure at least a few other teachers would show up and put an end to this odd affair, because if this had no chance, then he would bolt out of here in a hurry. Nothing was worth getting killed for.

 

[LeaT]

For a brief moment, Mina felt like Joan of Arc, leading peasants against knights, as she rallied the nervous students. Win or lose, they had to learn that even their professors were not invincible and that magical combat was not at all neat and tidy. The second part of that lesson seemed well in hand, but she needed them to at least land a few blows on Professor Burke if they were not to learn the wrong lesson from the day. For that same reason, she decided she would not be the one to put a stop to him, at least if she could avoid it.

"Bravo Charles, brilliant!" She cheered her young student as much for standing and fighting than for any specific contribution he might make to the contest. She was very proud of him and would have to tell him personally some time soon. The first real step in becoming a great wizard was having the courage to step up and face your fears and doubts.

Yes Amir, good job, keep firing those spells at him. The two boys actually seemed to be working together and Professor Augsburg gave them encouragement and suggestions as they worked to take down their revered professor. Their efforts, along with the others were likely to pay off. That was before Burke summoned his staff, hardly a fair move given the nature of his adversaries. "What's wrong Edmund, feeling threatened?" She called upward as his staff erupted into the room.

His thunder and lightning broke the morale of the bulk of the students, sending them scattering and fleeing from the Great Hall. But Mina remained, and she was proud to see Charles and Amir hold their ground as well. In fact, working together they just might dent Burke's ego a little, That would delight her to no end. She cast her own protection spell over Charles and Amir, hoping to buy them some time. She then stepped out into the open, hoping to draw his attention from the remaining students.

 

[TheCorsair]

He didn’t hear the spell, not in the thunderous cacophony if his own attack, but he certainly felt the effect. The platform exploded beneath him, dropping him unexpectedly some two meters. Volantum gradum allowed him to land sure-footed, but it didn’t help with the disorientation of the sudden motion. “Crap,” he murmured , grabbing a pole for the feeling of support.

And then his vision went blurry.

There was a moment of panic. His wards were still up! What could these students have done to pierce them? But he drew a breath and forced himself to relax. There were spells that clouded the air itself, made it difficult to see. Obscuro, most likely.

Still clinging to his staff with his left hand, he reached inside his coat for his wand once more. It would serve better for the counter spell, after all. All he needed was a moment or two, and a bit of good luck, and the irritating optical distortions would be gone.

The last standing students were going to be the clever ones, of course. So he’d need to be quick.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

At the very least, in all this madness, only a few remained still going at it. All thoughts of this being a proper lesson flew right out of Amir's mind; in fact, he had little clue exactly what he was supposed to be doing anymore. Professor Augsburg so very badly wanted to take Professor Burke down and out - but why? Was it just part of the practical DADA activities that had been planned for this evening?

But, no, it wasn't that at all. None of this had been planned.

It seemed like his previous attempt had been successful, and Burke didn't appear to see clearly, from what Amir could tell.

Still, Amir had one goal now, and that was merely to disable Burke. Getting to the top of the platform didn't matter anymore as there was no platform. Having watched it shatter and erupt into a million pieces below, he also saw that Burke managed to right his footing, yet the other man went right for his wand.

If Burke got a hold of that, they were done for. Hoping that Charles also had the foresight to fire off a spell or two, Amir directed his own first toward Burke's sternum, aiming precisely, right beforehe completed the complex weaving pattern involved.

"Debilitans!" The weakening hex would surely render Burke's spellcasting irrelevant, making most of what came out dissipate almost immediately, and therefore he'd be rather harmless. On top of that, Amir added another - "Inordinatio!" - and sent the confusion hex right between Burke's eyes, so there'd be little opportunity for the good teacher to resist.

Maybe he'd be lucky and they'd end this madness. That was his fervent hope, as Amir willed his hexes forward, trying desperately to hit his target.

 

[LeaT]

Liz Shah had watched the opening rounds of this poor excuse for a lesson from under the platform, wanting to stay out of things until she could more clearly see who would come out on top. It was pretty much how she lived her life, so for those that knew her it wouldn't be a surprise. She wasn't surprised when Amir took his early chance. He was confident to the point of being cocky, though his good looks, broad shoulders, and magical talent might justify some of the bravado. She snickered when he was so readily pummeled by their professor without warning. She smiled when her own head of house, professor Burke took the initiative from the woman who as far as she was concerned, usurped Burke's position at the school.

But then things went a little nuts and Liz moved to the margins where she was less likely to be hurt when some of her less talented classmates started hurling random spells about. It was for this reason she didn't get the full affect of the thunder spell, nor did she get caught up in the general panic that the lesser students fell into, like a routed army.

Only a few were left still trying to play whatever game Augsburg was still playing. Some of the usual top students, no surprise there, but then she saw a somewhat disoriented looking chap a couple years below her. Chalmers or Chadwick or maybe Charles she might have heard was his name. Her full lips curled upward across her lean face, a look of pure mischief at the sight of the boy having his heroic moment. He probably idolized Augsburg, or more likely fantasized about her, wanting to show off she supposed. He might prove quite the amusing distraction in her final year at Hogwarts. He looked dazed, covering his eyes with his arm, blinding himself if he wasn't blinded by the spell. She stepped out from her safe corner and pressed herself into him from behind. "Aren't you the hero today?" She cooed into his ear as she held her wand arm over his right shoulder, leaning into him. Her left arm wrapped around him, her hand gripping his tie just below his neck, pulling herself more firmly into him. She guided him to a more advantageous position, advantageous for her more so than for him.

She had learned at least one lesson today, it was good to have someone else take the brunt of any retaliatory magic. Once she was satisfied with their position she waved her wand and he would hear 'Stupefy' from her lips right next to his right ear. She had cast a stunning charm, not at professor Burke but at Augsburg, hoping to catch her unaware.

 

[Silverbird]

There was a ringing sound in Charles’ ears. He shook his head in an attempt to clear it and almost lost balance and fell over, only just managing to catch himself. The sound didn’t seem to be coming from anywhere, except maybe between his ears. The other noises of the hall seemed distant and muffled. Someone — the Professor? — was shouting something, though he couldn’t tell what. There were footsteps pounding against the stone; groans from others who’d been caught in the spell worse than he had, and the occasional raised, indistinct voice still calling spell after spell…

The young wizard breathed in sharply, blinking rapidly behind his sleeve like an owl caught in the sun. His senses were slowly recovering, but he was still disoriented, his mind still a blur. He’d barely managed to catch his breath when he suddenly felt another warm, soft body pressed against his back.

“Aren’t you the hero today?”

The cooing, feminine voice in his ear was the first properly distinct sound Charles managed to catch since the thunder spell, though even it sounded a little distorted. He couldn’t tell who she was — certainly not Professor Augsburg again — and there was something in her tone that worried him, even as her closeness made his pulse race. The discombobulated young Ravenclaw still couldn’t really grasp the meaning of her words, or what was happening. His only reply was a confused “Wha…?”, and he offered up no real resistance as she guided him across the floor, his heart beating hard beneath her left arm.

It was only when Liz whispered by his ear again that Charles realized what was going on. He’d finally brought his arm back down from his eyes, just in time to see a burst of red light shooting towards Professor Augsburg. “Professor!” He shouted in alarm, trying to warn her — though he was almost certainly too late.

What was that?! Sure, Charles had just launched his own sneaky attack on their male professor, but that was totally different — they’d been told to do it, and Burke had been ready for them. He hadn’t just blasted a teacher in the back! Scandalized, he twisted his head back over his shoulder as best he could to try and see who was behind him, eyes wide with shock. “What do you think you’re doing?!”

Despite his protestation, however, Charles didn’t make any attempt to escape from Liz’s arms. Perhaps it was just because he was distracted by what she'd done just done — but the thought had hardly crossed his mind.

 

[LeaT]

Standing out in the open made Professor Augsburg an obvious target, but she thought for Professor Burke not one of the other students. She should have known that some of the students would turn this into more of a house contest than a group lesson. She continued her calls of encouragement to those students still in the fight though she knew they would have limited success until Burke's wards were dismantled layer upon layer. So that is what she set out to do, knowing he would soon discover her plan and be unable to ignore her if he truly wanted to dominate this group of students, and herself by extension.

She did keep a certain situational awareness about her. One didn't get to retire as an auror without the ability to, as the muggles say, walk and chew gum at the same time. Charles' warning was indeed too late, at least for her to deflect the spell with her own magic but she had been able to dive to the floor and roll out of the line of fire so that Liz's spell flashed harmlessly over head, at least harmless to her. The quick roll brought her once again to Amir, but this time she lay at his feet, her red hair fanned about her head as if it were aflame. She gave him a smile as she gave him a suggestion. "His wards are powerful and specific, use area magic."

She then turned and flashed her wand towards Liz who was still hiding behind Charles. She almost giggled as she cast "Mirrodin" towards the unlikely pair. She hoped Charles might forgive her, she doubted Liz ever would. Liz and Charles were soon entangled and bound together by vines which ensnared their limbs and pulled them more tightly together. Not tight enough to be lethal, but they were certainly going to get better acquainted until the spell ran its course or was dispelled. She then turned her attention back to Amir and Burke.
@Silverbird @TheCorsair @Doctor Manhattan

---

Liz had ignored Charles' questions, if he was too dull to see what she was doing, she wasn't about to enlighten him. But she was none too pleased with his warning. "You little twerp." Liz hissed as her spell just missed the now warned professor and her chance of easy glory lost. Her hand at his belt, tugged him around to face her as she brandished her wand threateningly.

Her attention might have been better left on her DADA professor who did not take such back spelling lightly. But by the time she realized what was happening it was too late. The vines had already looped around them, binding them together with him half facing her so that her front was pressed into his left side. Her wand hand was behind him pointed almost upward in nearly useless direction. Her other hand, the one that had been gripping his belt and she had used to control him, was forced lower over his pants (thankfully on the outside) as her arm was bound against him. The palm of that hand pressed firmly against his privates like a flesh athletic supporter.

His left bicep was nestled neatly between her well developed breasts, the forearm pressed into her well toned abs. The back of his left hand pressed firmly against her pubic mound as the vines bound them more tightly together. It created a rather interesting pressure on the older girl which under other circumstances might not have been entirely unpleasant. "Watch your hand you wanker." She said glaring at him as she also blushed at the realization of where her hand was currently located. In a lower voice, not wanting to attract any more attention to herself in this unflattering position she hissed. "Don't you dare get a stiffie." Even as her hand nearly assured that he would, but there was little she could do to let him go. Her struggle to free her hand would only work to stimulate him more readily.

Charles' wand hand was relatively free, giving him something of an advantage over Liz if he were to use it. But he might also simply want to free them both from Professor Augsburg's rather creative defense.

 

[TheCorsair]

Flipendo splashed harmlessly against the quintessence field of his Reflexionis sphaera, reducing the shield’s strength further. It could, he estimated, dissipate another two to three spells before it collapsed. The hexbreaker shattered Debilitans and Inordinatio, expending the last of that spell’s strength as it crushed the hostile spells. All of it bought him time to disenchant the Obscuro that plagued his vision, though.

Staff in his left hand, wand in his right, Burke took in the scene. Mina was flirting about, offering tactical advice to the students still in the contest. Two students were bound together by vines. The one who’d cast the Obscuro - Amir Khanna, he recalled - was moving, trying to cast and avoid being a target at the same time. There were a handful of others, but Amir was the obvious threat right now.

“Patet quod vitrum,” he intoned, circling his wand above his head. “Durum est lapis. De carceri aeris!” With the last phrase his wand lashed like the handle of a whip. Must streaked out, engulfing Amir like a closing hand.

 

[Doctor Manhattan]

"His wards are powerful and specific, use area magic."​

​

Okay. Alright. Amir had no idea what Professor Augsburg herself had in mind, since she peered up at him in such a state of disrepair that he actually paused. "Uh...I can do that," he confirmed, though as soon as he'd said it, he didn't actually believe the statement to be true. Spells with a wide berth? Like what? Amir racked his brains trying to think of what he might be able to do to help, yet seeing that Burke had managed to deflect both of his last two attempts to slow him down, the young man's confidence dissipated quickly.

How the bloody hell was he supposed to target Burke when so far literally no one present had been able to reach the man, including another professor? It seemed impossible.
Just in that very second, Amir heard Burke fire off another complex incantation; while the nature of the exact spell eluded him, he knew enough to realize that if Burke hit the target, he'd be trapped. Shit. Looking around rapidly, Burke noticed Charles caught up with another female student Amir didn't recognize - lucky dog - and the rest of the class had all but vanished. Already, they all would have much to explain and Amir for one didn't want to get in trouble too badly over this.

With a rolling leap out of the way of the last attack hurled toward him, Amir landed on his feet neatly, closer to the Great Hall's exit, and caught Augsburg's hypnotic eyes on the way out. "Fun lesson, professor, but I'd like to survive till the end of term, if it's all the same with you. Good luck, talk to you soon." Tipping his imaginary cap, he darted off in the direction of the dorms, mind ablaze with what he'd done and witnessed within the confines of the makeshift classroom today.

Marcus waited for him in the dorms, completely oblivious, and at ease. "How did it go?" His good friend asked, eyebrows raising lightly. Amir lifted a finger to indicate the answer wait, and after gulping down the largest bottle of water he could, he turned to Marcus and rubbed his temple gingerly.

"Dude, that was the craziest damn lesson I've ever been to. This school is fucking nuts," he said simply. Marcus, after processing that for a second, merely nodded in assent. Hogwarts always has quite the story to tell.

 

[Silverbird]

A relieved sigh escaped Charles’ lips as he saw the Professor narrowly dive under the incoming spell, but the feeling didn’t last long. Before he knew it he was being physically spun around, and found himself face to face with an extremely irritated Slytherin — and her raised wand. Eyes wide in surprise, the young wizard instinctively tried to pull back. The girl’s hand on his belt kept him from going very far.

“W-wait!” He cried out, very much not wanting to get hexed in the face. He started to bring his own wand up defensively, with no real plan in mind for how he might use it…

… and then found himself suddenly yanked forward into his attacker, as Professor Augsburg’s vines closed about their bodies. Just like Liz, the young Ravenclaw had been too distracted to see what was coming until it was too late to avoid. He struggled reflexively against the vine’s grip for a moment — trying to shift his legs, flexing his pinned arm — but it was futile. The plants were too strong. They were pretty firmly trapped.

And the Slytherin, for one, was decidedly unhappy about it.

“Watch your hand, you wanker!”

Charles flushed, first as he realized just where his hand had ended up, and then deeper when he realized where hers had. “W-watch yours!” he spluttered in response, irritation creeping into his voice. This whole situation was embarrassing enough, and she was berating him as if it was his fault? His embarrassment — and irritation — only grew as she ordered him not to get a stiffie. As if that was under his control! If anything, the whole situation was her fault!

“Like I’m enjoying this any more than you are!” He hissed back.

Of course, his body was telling a different story. To his dismay, he could feel himself growing inevitably harder under her touch, a healthy bulge slowly pressing back against the palm of her hand. Now that he was thinking about it, he was noticing other distracting details, too: the gentle press of her generous chest around his arm, the firmness of her body and the heat pressing against his left hand. If he looked down, he was sure, he’d have a fine view of the way the vines bound their bodies together, pressed them against each other…

The young wizard cleared his throat awkwardly, catching his eyes starting to drift downwards and pointedly forcing them level. He couldn’t quite meet the older girl’s eyes, so he forced himself to look just past her. His face couldn’t be redder. There had to be some way out of this; he just had to think. His wand hand was still free. What spells did he know for dealing with vines?

Incendio? Obviously a terrible idea. (Her breasts really were distractingly soft.) Diffindo? It’d sever the vines, for sure, but there’s no way he’d be able to aim it safely like this; he’d probably end up slicing off his own shirt. Or arm. (Or her shirt. Hmm. Did she have to keep moving her hand like that?)

Charles’ eyes lit up as he was struck by a sudden inspiration. Professor Burke had been kicking everyone’s asses for the past few minutes; maybe it was time to put one of his transfiguration lessons to use. Not bothering to warn Liz what he was up to, the young wizard tapped his wand blindly against one of the vines twice, called out an incantation, and winced in anticipation of what was to come.

“Aquas reverte!”

The vine swelled, pressing the pair even tighter together for a moment, and then seemed to violently burst as it transformed into an explosion of clear, ice cold water. Even though he’d been expecting it, Charles couldn’t help but inhale sharply as the blast soaked through his shirt. Still, at least now they were free — or, at least, free-er. His spell hadn’t quite caught all of the Professor’s vines, but they were mostly now bound by their legs and feet, and so he could twist enough to see where he was aiming. He looked down, ready to start removing the remainder of the vines with diffindo — and found himself momentarily distracted by the sight of the older girl's soaked shirt clinging to her body, just next to where his arm was still mostly caught between them.

And he didn’t notice that her wand hand was now free.

 

[LeaT]

“Like I’m enjoying this any more than you are!”

"Oh really?" Liz practically purred as her fingers wrapped around the now well defined shaft of his growing erection. She gave him a squeeze. "I suppose this is for Professor Hufflepuff?" She said, the menace in her voice all the more potent given her rather firm grip on Charles' other wand. She could feel the pulse of him through it and had to admit it was more impressive than she had imagined. At least the heat of her arousal was less obvious than his, but the pressure of his hand on her did have her craving more. Conveniently, she could use her struggles against the entangling vines to disguise the way she ended up grinding her pubis against his hand as she felt her wetness build with her increasing arousal.

She had noticed his eyes drift south, not unusual for him as he rarely made eye contact with her anyway, The possibility of him being bold enough to actually check her out surprised her and not in a totally disgusted way. Her own gaze, had he been able to meet hers, was a bit more glazed than her normal sharp focus, her lips slightly parted as her own pulse and respiration quickened from a growing arousal. It took her a moment to realize he actually was focused, but on what? Certainly not trying to turn his hand around and finger her properly.

It was then she noticed his wand hand was free, was he trying to cast something? "Wait, what...?" She renewed her struggle, this time a bit less hip and a bit more shoulders as she tried to free her wand hand in defense. Of course that focus merely rubbed her breasts more rigorously back and forth into his shoulder. The thin material of her bra and blouse doing little to hide the softness of her perky breasts. Her eyes went wide when she saw his flash of inspiration and his wand tap against the vine. "You idiot!" She called out as the vines seemed ready to squeeze the life out of them, faces pressed close enough together to feel the warmth of their breath.

But then a release, the water was cold and gushing, soaking them both. The deluge made her blouse nearly transparent and her nipples hardened in reaction to the icy coldness. But they were free, well partially. She nearly fell backwards as her upper body was freed but her legs remained entwined. She saved herself by gripping his cock all the harder but she in turn found her wand arm free. She scowled at him but noticed his eyes were now blatantly upon her breasts. Looking down as well she was mortified to see just how well exposed she was to the younger student. Her wand went to his throat for a moment as if she were going to pierce it into him. But then it rose slightly to lift his chin so that his eyes came up to hers. "Enjoying the view?" She asked sarcastically then lowered her wand to perform the severing charm he had intended. Only then did she release his lower wand and use her hands to cover her wet and practically bare breasts. "I'll take this up with you later Charles." She said, then retreated in turn from the room. @Silverbird

 

[Silverbird]

Liz’s fingers drew a pained groan from deep within Charles’ throat as they closed more tightly over his hardened cock. For a moment, as he found the Slytherin girl’s wand at his throat, he felt sure that he was dead — but, to his surprise, all she did was force his gaze up to meet her own. The young man wasn’t quite sure what to make of the look in her eyes. There was anger, obviously, but masked behind it — embarrassment? Vulnerability? Whatever it may have been, Charles found his breath catching in his throat as he looked into the older girl’s eyes. His own eyes were a blue-grey colour, and rounded in fear, but mixed with that fear was a confused desire. Her hand was still closed around his cock. His lips parted slightly as he tried to say something — a witty comeback, maybe, a sarcastic insult, he wasn’t really sure — but he found himself tongue-tied, no words coming to mind. A moment later she’d severed the last of the vines, released him and stepped back, and his mind still hadn’t managed to process much beyond a final glimpse before she covered her chest. He could only watch, confused and aroused, heart pounding in his chest, as she retreated from the hall. Her parting words hung ominously in his mind.

It occurred to him that he didn’t actually know her name.

It took a minute longer for him to remember where he was.

Right! The class! The boy’s cheeks burned red again as his head swiveled around, taking in what was left of the ongoing battle. It didn’t look like it was going very well, but that wasn’t really what he was concerned about. He felt incredibly exposed; he tried to tell himself that everyone would have been too distracted by the Professors to pay any attention to what had just been going on with him, but that didn’t much help. In reality the erection in Charles’ pants wasn’t that noticeable (at least to anyone not pressed up against him), but to his mind it was incredibly obvious. The young man sheepishly ducked behind one of the remaining pieces of scattered furniture for cover, and looked around hurriedly for his discarded robe.

He felt a little bad about abandoning Professor Augsburg to her fight, but trying to win one over Professor Burke was frankly pretty far down his list of concerns right now. He wasn’t going to flee before the lesson was over, but he was perfectly happy to let the Professors resolve things for themselves. Besides, he told himself, it wasn’t like she really needed his help.