Friday, Aug. 30th 1996 - Adrian's evening with fencing and talking
The firecall with Grett was quickly over. They didn't need many words to agree on a time.
Adrian preferred to be in good time and went directly to the training hall at the club after the conversation. The man had been eager enough to fence tonight, but preferred they stuck with sport fencing. He had to prepare for the tournaments after all.
He was warming up, using the charmed dummy to practice his coup de grace with the rapier. It was a nice and rather harmless way of getting rid of aggressions. Not that he was feeling angry, he was just slightly tense after the past week. Too many changes and too many frustrations. He would rather be calm and collected when fencing Grett. His chance of actually scoring points would be greater then.
He heard the door open and close, but completed his move, driving the rapier into the dodging dummy's vest, scoring a perfect hit. He drew back, saluted the dummy and thus ended the charm, before turning to face the man. "Hello." a faint smile curled his lips. Behind him the dummy slid back against the wall and slumped on its hook.
"Hello Adrian. Is the dummy thoroughly killed now?" Grett smiled brightly, hoping that Adrian was in the mood for joking. The Slytherin seemed slightly tense in his otherwise graceful moves. Varming up, he looked at Adrian while he made a few moves, stretched slightly and rolled his shoulders. Better.
Adrian's eyebrow quirked slightly and he glanced at the dummy with a soft laugh, then back at Grett. "I'd say so, if it had been alive in the first place."
"Take your time. I'm in no hurry" Adrian stepped down from the fencing area and went over to the table to fetch his mask. The wall cooled his back slightly, as he leaned against it. Leisurely he waited for Grett to get ready while letting his eyes rest on the smooth movements of the older man's body. A very nice view, both aesthetically and professionally. "Are you joining the tournament in Germany?"
Grett looked up as he made a few attack moves, then straightened up. "Yes." He smiled again at Adrian. "What about you?" He crossed over to where he'd left his own mask and picked it up.
Adrian was a very good fencer, but as far as Grett knew, the boy hadn't trained all summer, so any participation would require daily training until then
"I doubt it. I haven't been training and from Monday I'll hardly have the time to train properly." He pushed away from the wall, not elaborating on the cause of his lack of time. "Are you ready then?" Eyes still locked on Grett, he reached down and closed the last fastenings of his vest.
"Why not?" Grett looked questioningly at Adrian, then stepped over to the fencing strip, and straightened up slightly. When Adrian stepped up opposite him, they saluted each other in the usual manner, and put their masks on.
"I've entered the trainee program for Aurors..." Adrian got into position and waited.
"You've what?" Grett blinked behind his mask, his concentration broken for a moment. That couldn't be right. Pucey, an Auror?
"We can talk afterwards. En garde!" Adrian began moving slightly back, set on luring Grett to make the first real move. Grett followed after him, and eventually attacked. Not a serious attack, more for the purpose of getting the feel of the other fencer again, and Adrian parried it easily.
Adrian smiled faintly, the attack expected and rather predictable in its moves. He wondered if Grett was coddling him purposefully. He didn't want that. As he went into quick riposte, he made sure the man realised that just from the force and speed of his moves. Swiftly he parried off the initial defence with an upward swerve, forcing the man back with the continued attack.
Grett parried and backed smoothly, then parried the next attack as well. How typical of Adrian to tell him like that to get the fuck down to business instead of fooling around. Which he did, knowingly pushing Adrian to his limits and beyond.
For a long time, attacks and parries followed, the two fencers moving across the fencing area, sometimes swiftly, sometimes slower. Adrian concentrated fully on the exercise, thoughts melting away, and only body memories ruled, instinct...
Blissfully empty of any disturbing thoughts, Adrian's mind focused entirely on moves and countermoves, smooth evasions going over into rapid attacks, predicting moves and adjusting. Again and again Grett forced him to slip into difficult maneuvres, both in attack and defence, knowing only physical memory could pull them to the fore and save Adrian from a pitiful defeat.
He knew he didn't have a chance of winning against Grett. Of course, the man would never truly be lenient on a weaker opponent, but that was exactly how Adrian liked it. Either you fenced fully or you didn't fence at all. Right now Grett was fencing fully and Adrian was enjoying himself, not really paying attention to the score, the small tingle from the bell unable to break through his concentration.
Both were beginning to breathe hard, sweat trickling down their faces and spines. Grett was pushing him to do his best, to fence at the height of his ability. There was definitely no time for thinking now, not even about what his opponent was doing; if he did, he'd get hit.
He managed to evade a beat, Grett trying to move his blade out of the way with a sharp rap against it, and scored a hit on the man's foot. He got back into position again and took a deep breath. Grett kept breaking his tempo, forcing him to change the pace over and over, and it was beginning to take it's toll. As they engaged again, blades touching lightly, Adrian advanced a few steps, and started a new sequence of attack-parry-riposte.
Grett moved with Adrian, lured him with retreat, waiting until he head reached almost the end of the strip before lunging back at him, fluidly going from evasion into full attack. They nearly collided, but Grett ended the attack with a hit to Adrian's side, feigning a sliding movement to the side and instead continuing forward under the boy's defences.
The bell counted the hit, and Grett looked up at Adrian from his kneeling position, his small smile hidden by the mask, but Adrian knew it was there. They pulled apart and estimation from his level of exhaustion, Adrian was fairly sure they had been fencing for almost an hour. No wonder he felt like dropping to the floor and beg for mercy. Grett looked far from exhausted. It was time to break, better stop while there was still something to gain. He saluted Grett and tipped his mask up, smiling at the man. "I suck."
"Nah, you suck hugely. What've you been doing all summer? Shagging and drinking your brains out, if I know you at all." Grett pulled his mask off, laughing as he smoothed his sweaty hair back.
"Something like that. Not fencing at all for 2 months as well, so it's my own fault. What's the score?" Adrian took his own mask off, tucking it under his arm. He ran the fingers of his free hand through his hair, pulling wet strands away from his face as he followed Grett off the strip and watched him inspect the hit-counter.
"17 to 5, so not a complete loss. Of course, I went easy on you there for a while." Grett smirked and opened the fastenings of his vest to let in some cool air.
"The fuck you did, you arse. Don't you think I'd feel the difference?" Adrian rapped Grett's arse with his rapier.
"Hey! Watch it, Pucey, or you'll really feel a difference!" Grett smirked and held up his rapier slightly threateningly.
Adrian laughed and shook his head "Promises, promises, Grett," he knew the man was as straight as a Centaur arrow and it was only teasing on both sides. It was refreshing anyway. Distracting him slightly from the endless focus on Roger he seemingly had developed.
Adrian crossed over to the bench at the wall and drank some water. It was room temperatured, of course. The taste wasn't the best, but Adrian knew that his body really didn't appreciate cold water now.
"Anyway. The Aurors? Are you sure you're not making a big mistake? I mean, just look at that article in the Prophet." Grett put down his rapier and took a sip of water as well.
With a shrug, Adrian put down the waterbottle and idly pulled his glove off, "The Ministry hasn't commented on it and it's Skeeter who wrote it. I don't put much stock in her words. I made the right choice." His voice was firm and without doubt.
"If you say so. But that will swallow all your time, won't it? Should I look around for another assisting captain?" Grett didn't really want to. He might be able to beat Adrian, even if the boy was in training, but not many others at the club could. He would be missed at the tournaments.
"Probably a good idea. I won't be able to maintain a good level of training and many of the tournaments would be impossible to compete in for me, since they include week days." It was for the best, really. And it wasn't as if he wouldn't come to the club anymore and fence. Maybe Kenneth or Gabriel would be interested in joining him here.
"Okay, your choice. If you change your mind or decide to step out of the Auror training, just tell me. It'll take a while for me to find your replacement anyway." Grett mentally went over the short list of names that should be considered.
Adrian watched Grett while leaning against the wall. He opened the fastenings on the side of his own vest, welcoming the cooler air. He nodded. "I will, but I doubt I'll change my mind."
With a smile, Adrian pushed off from the wall. "I might bring along some of my fellow trainees. Two of them fence." Adrian gathered his things, preparing to leave for the showers.
"Great, we can always need new members. Are they any good?"
Adrian shrugged "Kenneth was in the fencing club at Hogwarts, he's fairly good, but I don't know if he's trained during the summer. Gabriel is another matter. He went to Beauxbattons, but he seems to be in good physical form. You'll see, if I manage to convince them."
"I'm sure you'll succeed." Adrian could be very convincing, Grett had seen it often enough. "I'll see you soon then. It was good sparring with your again."
"Likewise. I'll come by next week if I'm not completely swallowed by the beginning of training." Adrian waved and left the room, aiming for the locker room. He stretched his muscles and let the hot water relax him while he showered. He would be slightly sore tomorrow morning, but nothing a good run wouldn't cure. Afterwards he dressed and apparated home to the boarding house. He felt good, his body still warm from the physical exercise and the shower.
Before Adrian made himself too comfortable, he went down into the garden and fetched the dogs. The two very proud and happy dogs. They seemed to have found themselves a small nest of Gnomes. He counted 3 bodies and disposed of them after praising Bia and Zelus.
The followed him obediently upstairs but hesitated slightly when he aimed for the upstairs Common Room. They hadn't been there yet and were uncertain about going in. Adrian chuckled and patted their heads, "It's okay," before going in. He spent a few moments in front of the book cabinets, then picked out a book he knew. The dogs followed and chose to curl up together under the coffee table, when Adrian went over to settle on the couch and read.