#4 DaDA Duelling thingie

It didn't take long for Professor Hathmore to arrive. 'What an efficient and wise way to spend your free time.' He nodded in approval, approaching Gerald. He led the Ravenclaw boy towards a section deeper in the chamber that was reserved for these bonus lessons.

'Improving your skills in Defence has a variety of benefits,' Hathmore said. 'Today, we'll start with the basics of duelling. Wand combat is a crucial skill all witches and wizards should be familiar with. Choose one of these dummies to duel, and cast a spell against it.'

Hathmore explained each dummy so Gerald knew what his options were. 

Choose a dummy:

• White: learn how to duel. You will be given a tutorial while duelling. 
  
• Silver: you're familiar with HAU duelling and don't need a tutorial. This is a regular training dummy. 
• Black: duelling skill is level 5 or higher. It's more challenging, but doubles all exp rewards.

'Nice try,' Professor Hathmore said, amused the boy wanted to try the black one. Gerald moved to the silver one though, and started his task. 'That's it, aim at chest. Keep an eye on your footing - you need to space your feet to better brace yourself if caught off-guard.'

Gerald DP: 5 3
Dummy DP: 5

Gerald cast an offensive spell (score: 3), but the dummy's defensive spell (score: 5) overpowers it. The dummy wins the round.

'Like that.' Hathmore nodded, arms crossed as he observed the duel. 'Take a moment to ground yourself - keep those feet spaced. Focus on your target.' As Gerald already knew how to duel, which intrigued Hathmore considering how early in the school year they were, his critiques were mostly improvements and helping the boy remain aware of himself as much as his opponent.

Gerald DP: 5 3
Dummy DP: 5 2

Gerald cast an offensive spell (score: 4), which overpowers the Dummy's defensive spell (score: 1). Gerald wins the round.

Professor Hathmore observed Gerald's progress, able to determine the boy has certainly been in a few duels already. It needed work, but he was ahead of several of his peers in duelling experience. His question seemed a bit silly to Hathmore, but it also made sense for a first year new to all of this would be...Well, new to all of this.

He didn't answer immediately though. As useful as it might have otherwise been to training, Hathmore didn't answer while Gerald was in the middle of defending himself from an oncoming spell.

Gerald DP: 5 3
Dummy DP: 5 2 x

The dummy cast an offensive spell (score: 2), but Gerald's defensive spell (score: 5) overpowers it. With the dummy defeated, Gerald wins the round and match.

'Yes,' Hathmore answered. 'Any opponent can be defeated if you've got the experience and are prepared to do what it takes. The more you train and educate yourself, the stronger you will become - and the more obstacles you can overcome.'

Professor Hathmore observed the dummy then nodded, turning to face Gerald. 'Such as this one. Well done, Mr Smithes. You've completed this task. If you'd like to continue testing and increasing your skills against dark forces, I have another task for you - if you're interested?'

'There's an empty classroom not far from here,' said Professor Hathmore. 'Inside is a small cupboard - you'd easily spot it as soon as you enter. It's the one with a silver padlock.'

He offered Gerald a silver key. 'Unlock the cupboard with this. When you do, a cursed object will escape.' Hathmore said it all rather casually, considering there was nothing casual about the dangers of cursed objects. 'Your task is to, by any means necessary, get the object back into the cupboard and re-lock it. Afterwards, return my key.'

It was the last part that Hathmore was most stern and cautionary about. 'You may come find me in the staff room. If I'm not there - I'll be here. Good luck. Don't lose the key.' He nodded, then left the chamber.