The Room of Requirement was slowly filling up as word of the morning's news spread throughout the castle. The walls seemed to vibrate with the murmur of dozens of students.
Aurelian Gaunt stood near the main podium, watching intently as the members of his no-longer-so-secret "training club" began to arrive. After the forced hiatus caused by the Obscurial's attack, classes had resumed, and Aurelian had decided it was the perfect time to assess what his not-so-unwelcome students were truly capable of now.
That afternoon, an official dueling tournament would take place among all the club's participants. And to ensure that no one held back, Lord Gaunt had put an incentive on the table that made more than a few eyes sparkle: the winner would take home the not-to-be-snubbed sum of a thousand galleons—not one more, not one less. That prize had ignited the competitive spirit in everyone present; no one would say no to a thousand galleons.
The preliminary rounds were fast and brutal. After a few sparks, shattered shields, and the occasional student sent flying, the large group had been whittled down to just four finalists: his friends Fred and George and Cedric, and to the absolute and incredulous surprise of everyone present, Luna Lovegood. Even he was surprised to see her make it this far.
For reasons that were more than obvious to everyone there, neither Hestia nor Flora were allowed to participate; if they had, as they wanted to, the tournament would have ended in less than a minute with several students in the infirmary. Neville Longbottom had refused to participate; according to him, these duels weren't doing him much good, and he preferred to watch and help out with whatever he could, something Aurelian was extremely grateful for.
Aurelian prepared to oversee the first semifinal. From behind, Hestia and Flora watched the dueling platform with slightly furrowed brows. They were both greatly surprised that, of all the people present, the absent-minded blonde from Ravenclaw was one of the four finalists.
This had only increased Lovegood's danger; they knew they had to be careful around her. In a swift movement, the girls approached Aurelian from behind and hugged him possessively, wrapping their arms around his torso. Aurelian was theirs—that was more than clear—but their instinct always told them to be on high alert against the opportunistic bitches who might try to get close to their beloved. And of all the bitches walking the halls of Hogwarts, Lovegood was always the one who set off their alarms the most.
Aurelian let out a slight sigh as he felt them hugging him tightly around the chest, almost cutting off his breath; he could only resign himself to it every time Hestia and Flora behaved this way.
He looked toward the center of the platform, where Cedric and Luna were already facing each other, wands in hand.
"The rules will be the same as in the previous rounds. If your opponent surrenders, is incapacitated, or is forced off the platform, you win," Aurelian announced in a clear voice, raising a hand. "Begin!"
The two nodded. The moment Aurelian lowered his hand, Cedric Diggory took the initiative in the battle. The Hufflepuff, demonstrating why he was considered one of the strongest in the school, unleashed a rapid and aggressive succession of Stunning and Disarming spells, seeking to overwhelm his opponent from the very start.
However, Luna didn't back down. Without losing the dreamy smile from her face, the Ravenclaw girl defended herself with great precision. Her shields rose at the last second, deflecting Cedric's spells toward the ceiling or the sides. Her strategy was clear: maintain her defense for as long as possible and let Cedric exhaust his magic with his offensive.
After a couple of minutes of intense back-and-forth, Cedric realized what Luna was trying to do. Panting slightly from the effort and knowing that direct attacks wouldn't work, he decided to change tactics and use the advanced Transfiguration he'd been practicing.
With a quick flick of his wand toward the floor, Cedric cast a spell.
The stone tiles beneath Luna's feet instantly lost their solidity, transforming into an incredibly slippery surface that trembled at the slightest movement; the floor now had the consistency of jelly. It was impossible to even try to walk there without falling.
From the edge of the platform, Aurelian raised an eyebrow, surprised by Cedric's move in his attempt to gain control of the area.
But it seemed he hadn't thought it through completely; unfortunately for his handsome friend, the masterstroke would backfire completely.
As he tried to step forward to corner Luna and force her to surrender, Cedric slipped on his own gelatinous trap. In a fatal moment of carelessness, he lost his balance, and his arms began flailing comically in the air as he tried not to fall.
Luna, who had managed to stay on her feet with a quick jump, didn't miss the opportunity. Her smile widened, and with one final flick of her wand, she cast a powerful Depulso.
The spell struck Cedric squarely in the chest as he slipped. The Hufflepuff boy flew through the air, crossing the platform's boundary line and landing heavily on the floor outside, completely disarmed.
The entire room fell silent for a second before erupting in applause.
Luna hopped up and down happily on the jelly, humming… whatever it was that made Luna happy.
"Someone has been knocked off the platform!" declared Aurelian, pointing at the blonde girl. "Luna Lovegood is the winner of this match and advances to the final!"
Hestia and Flora, who hadn't loosened their grip on Aurelian's chest at any point during the duel, frowned slightly at the Ravenclaw girl's flamboyant celebration. The idea that Luna might win the tournament didn't amuse them in the least.
Before they could mutter any venomous comments about the girl, they felt Aurelian's warm hands rest on their heads. Her fiancé began to gently stroke their hair, melting away all their tension in an instant. The twins let out a small sigh, closed their eyes as they savored the touch, and decided to set aside their hostility toward Lovegood.
The second semifinal duel was a spectacle of lights.
After an intense exchange of spells that looked more like fireworks, Aurelian raised his hand and declared Fred the winner of his duel against his twin brother. Despite having been disarmed, George got up from the ground, brushing off the dust, and high-fived Fred. The two looked genuinely happy, completely unconcerned with the outcome of that match.
Aurelian smiled wryly as he saw them both return his smug grin. He knew those two inside out; his red-haired friends only cared about the prize. They really didn't care which of the two won the duel or took the glory, as long as those juicy thousand Galleons ended up in their possession.
With the final decided, the entire hall fell silent.
Fred Weasley, as the last contestant standing, watched his rival with the utmost attention. On the other side of the platform, Luna Lovegood stood rocking back and forth on her heels, staring at the stone ceiling with utter fascination, unconcerned with what was happening around her.
But Fred was no fool. He knew he couldn't underestimate her in the slightest; if he let his guard down, the same thing that happened to Cedric would happen to him, and he'd end up flying off the platform. Clenching his jaw, Fred adopted his best dueling stance and focused as hard as he could. It was all for those thousand galleons.
Aurelian signaled the start of the final duel, crossing his arms and waiting to see something truly interesting.
And, of course, he wasn't disappointed.
It was a whirlwind. Fred attacked with his entire arsenal and every trick he could think of, but the fluidity with which the Ravenclaw girl defended herself made her an impenetrable wall. With a wand movement that looked more like a dance step than an attack, Luna deflected one of Fred's Stunning Spells and, seizing the momentum, conjured a gust of wind that completely swept the redhead away, sending him flying right off the edge of the canvas.
Luna… had won again.
The Room of Requirement fell into complete silence. All the students present were speechless, stunned by the identity of the winner of the thousand-galleon tournament.
Aurelian burst out laughing, breaking the general stupor. He walked to the center of the platform and smiled warmly at Luna as he approached to present her with her prize.
Luna smiled broadly, her large silver eyes sparkling with happiness, as she received the heavy leather bag that jingled with the clinking of coins.
Without anyone seeing it coming, Luna hopped a few times and threw herself at Hestia and Flora, who had just stepped to the edge of the platform. She hugged them both with surprising strength, pressing them close to her.
"You're wonderful teachers! I'm so grateful for all your help and your shouting, it really worked," Luna told them with her usual cheerfulness.
The fearsome and deadly Carrow sisters froze completely, stiff as boards at the sudden, affectionate embrace from the one they considered their worst enemy. Unable to curse her in front of everyone or process what had just happened, they could only nod stiffly, their eyes wide at her words.
Aurelian shook his head, thoroughly amused by the surreal scene, then turned to the champion.
"Tell me, Luna, what do you plan to do with such a juicy prize?" Aurelian asked her.
Luna let go of the petrified twins, scratched her chin thoughtfully, and then shrugged, making the bag jingle.
"I don't know exactly yet, Aurelian. But I'm sure it will come in very handy at some point for finding a Crumple-Horned Snorkack," she replied with complete nonchalance.
A moment later, the crowd parted to let Fred and George through. The Weasley twins shuffled over, visibly dejected and wearing expressions of defeat that stood in stark contrast to their earlier joy. With a long sigh, they handed Luna another bag of coins, slightly smaller but just as heavy.
"Here you go… Luna," George mumbled, scratching the back of his neck. "These are your winnings from the bets on who would win the tournament."
Luna smiled even wider, took her second bag with her new winnings, and, waving goodbye to everyone, skipped happily toward the exit of the hall, humming a tune that was unintelligible to everyone but her.
Aurelian laughed heartily again, shaking his head.
"I think it's safe to say that the real winner today was Luna, don't you think?" Aurelian remarked.
Fred and George nodded, their faces etched with the pain of their losses.
"You can say that again, Aurelian," Fred groaned, rubbing his face. "Who would have thought that the only person in the entire room who bet all her money on Luna Lovegood winning the tournament... was Luna Lovegood herself? She left us completely broke."
Behind them, Hestia and Flora finally regained their mobility after snapping out of their stupor. As they smoothed out their robes, they watched the Ravenclaw girl disappear through the hall's doorway.
Narrowing their eyes, they both muttered in unison, clearly annoyed.
"You may have won this battle… but the war for our beloved isn't over yet, Lovegood."
Aurelian, standing to one side, sighed again upon hearing them. He didn't understand what his fiancées had against Luna, or why they believed she could come between their relationship. Perhaps he would never truly understand.
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