No matter what the Ministry of Magic decided to do, or what Dumbledore might have planned, nothing could halt the sacred battle between duelists.
Outside, rain had begun to fall.
Today was the day Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were set to duel Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe.
A two-wizard duel.
Even before the match began, the young wizards were buzzing with excitement, their earlier fears of Sirius Black seemingly forgotten.
In a way, it was reminiscent of the days surrounding the Basilisk incident...
Though the Slytherins didn't seem particularly worried about this duel, the overwhelming support for Harry Potter was undeniably disadvantageous for them.
It was hard to tell whether it was because Slytherins were simply that unpopular—or because Goyle and Crabbe were just exceptionally good at making enemies.
Walking alongside Draco's group toward the Duelling Club, Astoria tilted her head curiously at him. "What exactly did you do to make everyone hate you this much?"
Having only joined Slytherin this year, Astoria naturally didn't understand the long-standing feud between the two houses.
She had heard whispers before entering Hogwarts and sensed some tension after being Sorted, but seeing firsthand how every other house treated Slytherin as an enemy still shocked her. That was why she couldn't help but ask.
Draco merely shrugged. "Let's just say it's the inevitable result of a lot of coincidences coming together."
"Huh?" Astoria mentally rolled her eyes at the cryptic answer.
Draco might have looked indifferent, but she could tell he was the main reason behind all this hostility. Goyle and Crabbe were probably just collateral damage...
Otherwise, those glares aimed at Draco wouldn't be so full of venom.
"Hmph. If you're scared, you don't have to walk with us," Pansy said coldly.
"Unfortunately for you," Astoria replied smoothly, "our families happen to be business partners. And since Draco's looked after me all this time, betraying him isn't exactly something a Greengrass would do. Besides, I'm a Slytherin too."
These two clearly couldn't get along. Whenever they were together, it was an immediate clash of wills—neither willing to back down.
Astoria disliked Pansy's suspicious, watchful eyes, while Pansy loathed the other girl's overly polished smile. So it was no surprise that every conversation between them quickly devolved into thinly veiled jabs.
Draco sighed, tugging at the corner of his mouth before glancing toward Goyle and Crabbe, who looked like they wanted to bolt. "How's the preparation going? The duel won't be as easy as you think."
"Relax, Draco," Goyle said confidently. "It's just a Weasley. One punch and he's done."
One punch?
After all that training, they still planned to fight with their fists?
Before Draco could say anything, Pansy shot them a dark glare that made both boys pale. They immediately fumbled for their wands and swung them around hastily.
"Don't worry! We'll take them down with spells!"
"Yeah! With spells, not fists!"
"..."
Draco's cheek twitched slightly. He thought about warning them to be careful—but after a moment's hesitation, decided against it.
For some reason, he had a feeling it might be better if they just lost the duel...
...
Duelling Club.
Though Gilderoy Lockhart's reasons for founding it had been less than noble, Cedric Diggory—who later took it over—was genuinely determined to develop it properly.
Especially after Draco began rising as one of Hogwarts' most prominent figures, the Hufflepuff wizard grew restless. Wanting to make his own mark, he chose the abandoned Duelling Club as his starting point.
What few people knew was that Cedric's decision to take charge of the club had partly been influenced by the persuasion of the Weasley twins.
The three had even formed a united front aimed at countering Draco's growing influence...
"Come on, Harry. With Professor Lupin's advice and all of us in the Duelling Club helping you train, there's no way you'll lose."
"Yeah. I won't let you down."
Cedric Diggory's voice carried encouragement as he approached Harry Potter, his words making their friendship clear.
At the same time, it revealed just how much preparation Harry and his friends had put into this match. From Cedric's tone, it was obvious that they'd benefited greatly from his guidance.
No one knew exactly what Harry had learned from Professor Lupin, but it was safe to assume he wasn't walking into this duel unprepared...
"If you want to thank us, it's simple enough," one of the twins said.
"That's right, Harry. Just make sure to give those Slytherins a proper beating this time."
The Weasley twins appeared suddenly, grinning and patting Harry's shoulder, their enthusiasm making it seem as if victory were already in the bag.
"But where's our dear little brother?"
"Seriously—he skipped every practice, and now he's late too?"
Hearing the disappointment in Fred and George's voices, Harry felt compelled to defend him. "Even if Ron didn't come to training, I know he—"
"It's fine, Harry," George interrupted. "We're his brothers. We know him best."
"Exactly," Fred added. "He's probably so nervous he doesn't even know what to do right now. But he'll show up. He always does."
Before Harry could respond, George suddenly waved toward the doorway.
"Ah, look who's here—the one we have the most faith in, Harry."
"Ginny! Over here!"
As Harry and the others turned toward Ginny Weasley, who was walking in with Luna beside her, none of them noticed the familiar figure standing quietly in the corner.
Ron Weasley was there, staring intently at his wand. His head was bowed, hiding his face from view.
From the look of it, he had been standing like that for quite some time...
...
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