Order Only Private Message to Sally Anne

[alt_ron]

Just so you know, I think you're brilliant even if you do flinch a bit in a fight. And you're six times as clever as anyone I know, so I know that if you get even a tiny chance, you can think your way out of a tight spot.

But it's dead fantastic if Dolohov's got a way to train against that flinch. That's what we're doing here--taking advantage of everything they're willing to teach us and pushing for more.


G'night, you. Hope you're asleep already.

Comments

[alt_sally_anne]

Yeah, I was asleep, so I didn't see this until morning.

Anyway, I know you're right.

Honestly I think I'm not absolutely hopeless in a fight. It's just I tend to compare myself to you and Justin and Harry, not to Midgen and Dunstan and, oh, Neville even. I wonder if I could beat Patil? Wonder if she'd duel me, if I challenged her?

[alt_ron]

Still thinking about challenging Patil? You'd take her. No doubt. Maybe not easily, but you'd take her.

Maybe you and I should duel more? Would that help?

Only, well. I don't like hurting you, so I'd want to hold back, but if we're going to do it, the point would be to give you an actual fight. And then, I really don't want to end up getting cross at you over something we didn't have to do to begin with, but I probably would. I mean, I can't help it that I'm competitive about it. I just... am. If I'm duelling someone I think I outmatch, and then they land a hex I don't feel they should have been able to land, then I either get cross at myself or I get wound up, wanting to prove something to them, and it would still happen even if it's you, which is... wrong.

I mean, I think some blokes think it's kind of hot to spar with their girlfriends, but I can't see it.

Erm. I do think about you that way... I mean, you really are hot when you're sparring and I get to watch. Only, that's different.

Nevermind.

You really should see if you can get Patil to duel you. Only, I don't think she's good enough to push you on the things you really need to tune up. And she wouldn't be willing to spar more than once or twice, I reckon. So that's no good. You know... Over hols, we should get the twins to spar with you. They're the reason I know how to fight. The thing about fighting them is that they're always improvising. Always thinking of something mad to throw at you that you don't expect. And sometimes it's something you haven't seen since second year, and they're totally not embarrassed to pull something silly out of their arses, especially if it makes you break up laughing. Anything to put you out of rhythm, y'know?

That's actually what I was thinking about when I threw the jelly-legs at Desai--what would Fred do? Who knows what she thought of it. I'm sure Patil sneered about it, but whatever. At least it was something different than I'd tried before.

[alt_sally_anne]

I think it's probably better if we don't try to duel each other. I'll get cross if you're going easy on me but I'll also get cross if you don't. It's just not going to end well.

I've thought about challenging Patil. The thing is, first off, I think she'll be completely obnoxious about it and act like I'm totally above my station for challenging a COUNCILWITCH. The other thing is -- she totally thinks she's brilliant. Or at least adequate. If I beat her, and I think you're right that I could, that could be a bit of a wake-up call that would get her to really focus, and having our enemies and future enemies NOT spending this year honing their fighting skills is probably better for us, right?

Though, if she doesn't get that sort of wake-up call she's not going to last long. On the Council, I mean. And although I dislike her quite a bit I'm not sure she deserves to wind up dead.

Anyway. I think the first thing is to use that dummy Dolohov set up. And certainly to take advantage of his offer to duel with me again. And to duel people who are at about my level -- too bad Pansy's even worse about not wanting to hurt me than you are.

Patil really would be a good opponent. Good enough to be challenging, not so good she'd wipe the floor with me, and both of us would rather like to hurt the other, I think.