Gotta Keep Your Head Up (Anna)

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Finn had been so busy the last month, and now before he knew it it was just three days before the First Task. Anna Weasley had been one of his good friends last year, but he had barely spoken to her! He felt awful; he had no idea how or what she was feeling, but he hoped she was doing alright. He always saw her in the company of a dark haired boy from Beauxbatons; he hoped he wasn’t using her because she was the Hogwarts champion.

He used his afternoon that he had off to search for Anna; he had no idea how the Gryffindor seventh year schedule differed from last year, but so far they did NOT have Charms or Transfiguration the same time as he did the previous year. He walked into the Great Hall and finally spotted her. Bounding over, he flopped down on the bench next to her, a wide grin on his face. “Well Molly Annaliese Weasley, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” he said happily.



@annelise

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Oscar was still gone. He was in France for his best friend's funeral and Anna felt terrible because all she really wanted was for him to be here with her. That was selfish. She knew it was, but she couldn't change the way she felt. She was anxious that he wouldn't come back in time for the first task, or that he wouldn't come back at all. She was trying to focus on life and preparing for the task, but it was hard to focus with him gone.

She jumped when someone sat next to her at the table and started talking. She'd been lost in her thought, but Finn brought her back to reality. She smiled back at him, "Oh really? I was beginning to think you forgot all about me," she teased, reaching up and tapping her chin thoughtfully with her pointer finger, "Or that you're avoiding me. I'm not really sure which one ..." Anna was sure Finn would know she was teasing, so she just said the first thing that came to mind. It was nice to see him, though. She hoped that he would be able to distract her from how nervous she was. The task was in three days, a fact she was constantly trying to forget. If anyone could help distract her (anyone but Oscar, that is), an old friend like Finn would be able to.

@finn

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Finn chortled as Anna joked that he had forgotten about her. “Molly Anneliese Weasley, how could you think I’ve forgotten you? I’m hurt, really, just simply dying,” he said, pretending to swoon in dismay. He sat back up and grinned at her. “No really I am sorry I haven’t come by to say hi sooner; this whole Auror business is very time consuming I have to say,” he admitted. He reached out and squeeze her arm lightly. “How are you doing though? Do you need to practice any spells or something before your Task?” he asked. Technically it wasn’t cheating; she’d need to practice certain spells for her NEWT exams at the end of the year after all. Normally champions were excused for end of the year examinations, however that did not extend to the NEWTs. Finn doubted the Ministry or any other profession would take ‘I was a champion for the Triwizard Tournament’ as an excuse for not obtaining required marks for their requirements.

@annelise

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Anna's eyes narrowed and her mouth opened in indignation, "How could I not think you've forgotten me? You've been here for how long and you haven't said a word?" She was teasing. She knew he knew that too, but she couldn't stop herself.  She shrugged when he apologized. "It's really not a big deal. I figured you were busy with your training and everything. I was just waiting to see when you'd have time for little old me," she said, unable to keep a serious expression for long with him. It just wasn't who she was and he knew that better than most. "I'm," Anna took a second to gauge her emotions. "Alright. Really nervous about the whole thing, but it's getting to the point where I don't know what to study anymore," she confessed, wishing once more that she knew what was coming. "Do you have any ideas of spells that I should practice? Like, something you've found useful? I wouldn't mind more tips or advice or anything either," she said, really leaving it up to him. Anything she knew she needed to study, she had. So now she was looking for what other people thought she might need. Uncle Harry and Madam Macmillan had given her lots to work on, but maybe Finn had something for her too.

@finn

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“Alright, alright, I will forgive you if you forgive me,” Finn bargained, holding his hands up in surrender. He gave a shrug and a smile. “It has been busy, but I will admit I have had a bit of time off that I’ve spent with a certain cousin of yours,” he said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. He chuckled and patted her shoulder. “Though if I hear things correctly, you’ve been enjoying the company of a certain Beauxbatons gentleman. Do I need to run a background check on him?” Finn asked, only half-joking. He wanted Anna to have the best, including any prospective boyfriends, because that was what she deserved.

Finn listened to Anna talk about her nerves and preparation for the First Task. “I would definitely make sure you have ‘Protego’ mastered, for a start,” he said, though as Anna was the new lead of Phoenix Rising, he knew she probably would have that down. “Make sure any spells that slow down your opponent are mastered too. Thinks like ‘Stupefy, Petrificus Totalus, Locomotor Mortis, Impedimenta’ I think would be really helpful,” he added. “If you’d like I have time now. We can go practice some of these if you’re feeling a bit unsure of your mastery level?” he suggested. He hoped that practicing spells would put all of his friends’ concentration on that effort and away from her nerves.


@annelise

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"Of course I forgive you," she told Finn easily. She laughed when he started talking about his time off. "Oh really? Now I understand why I didn't even get a hello, Anna," She couldn't help but tease him. It was almost like he was asking her to, with his silly facial expressions. Then he bought up Oscar and her delight at seeing her friend fell a little. Oscar. She forced another laugh, trying to pretend like things were normal, while inside her mind was focused on Oscar. Again. Was he even coming back. "I have been, but you don't need to go to any trouble. I'm fine," she told Finn. Completely head over heels for the guy, but fine all the same. 

Anna started to nod when Finn listed different spells she might want to have ready. Most of them she'd already been practicing and could do easily, but a little more practice never hurt, right? Besides, she hadn't mastered all of them yet. He brought up some she hadn't thought of. She smiled, "If you don't mind, I think I'd like that. It's not like I'm doing anything here, anyway," she muttered, gesturing to the half-eaten plate of food in front of her. "Where do you want to go?"

@finn

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Finn tapped the side of his nose. “Well you just say the word if he ever hurts you,” he told her, half-joking but half serious. He never wanted to see his friends get hurt, especially if he felt like he could have prevented it. Sometimes he supposed though, things just needed to play out on their own and let people handle their issues like adults.


Standing up, he looked around. “Is classroom eleven still empty? We can practice there,” he suggested, leading the way out of the Great Hall to the empty classroom on the ground floor. He waved his wand and a number of floor pillows appeared. “Figured we could use some cushions,” he told her with a quick grin, then turned to face her square on. “Right, where do you want to begin?” he asked.

@annelise

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Anna smiled, loving the way that Finn was always there for her. He was a good friend and she was glad that he was there for her if she needed him. "I'll let you know, but I hope that doesn't happen." She was sure that Finn would understand that, still she had to say it. She didn't want him to think she was expecting Oscar to break her heart. 

She followed Finn out of the Hall, "Yeah, I think it's open," she said with a shrug. She wasn't surprised when he conjured a bunch of pillows. Anna thought for a second when Finn asked where she wanted to start. "Umm ... maybe start practicing my shield spell? Or do you think we should work on something else?" After all, he was the auror and she wasn't really sure what she was doing. Being good at defensive spells would probably be a smart thing to do. 

@finn

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Finn waved his wand again so that pillows surrounded Anna. The last thing he wanted was for his friend to receive a concussion while simply practicing for the First Task. He imagined the Task would be far more dangerous than two people practicing dueling techniques; no need for her to go into it with an injury that could have been avoided. “I think Shield Spell is a great idea; just remember not to rely on it for any sort of elemental spells or projectiles coming your way like...fire, or ice. But it could totally help with basic attacks,” he said. He took several steps back and planted his feet squarely facing Anna. “Ready? Three...two...one….STUPEFY!” he shouted as a jet of red light flew from his wand right towards Anna.


@annelise

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Anna grinned when Finn made it so the pillows were surrounding her. Really? Was he that worried about her safety? "Wow Finn. Do you really think I'm that bad at shielding spells?" She was mostly teasing him, but not at the same time. Why all the pillows? It wasn't like she didn't know what she was doing. She shook her head, deciding to ignore the fact that Finn was being overly protective. It didn't really matter. Anna nodded, serious and ready when he started reminding her that a shielding spell wouldn't protect her from everything. "Protego!" She shouted immediately as he attacked, smiling grimly when it worked perfectly. She paused, looking at Finn curiously. "Now what?" Would he want to keep on working on protective spells or move on to something else? She wasn't sure how fast-paced this practice was supposed to be.

@finn

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Finn shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, I just don’t feel like giving you an accidental concussion moments before the First Task, you know? Better safe than sorry,” he reasoned; he could tell she was faintly annoyed at all the pillows, but really it was for precautions in case one of his spells got through and she fell back. He didn’t think Nurse Blacksmith would be all too happy with him giving the Hogwarts Champion a head injury.


“Good, very good,” he said, pacing in front of her like a cat. He wasn’t going to tell her what was coming next; if she ran into something that fought back in the task it wasn’t going to just stand there and tell her exactly what it was going to do now would it? “Confundus! Expelliarmus! Petrificus Totalus!” he shouted in rapid succession. Anna needed to be prepared for everything.

@annelise

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Anna rolled her eyes at her good friend. She wasn't completely sure if he was serious or not, but if he was then it was ridiculous. He knew she was planning on being an auror, didn't he? He should know that, champion or not, she was practicing for her future career. "I stand by my previous statement," she told him airily, while inwardly preparing herself. She knew he wasn't going to let her get away with that statement without some sort of repercussion. 

Finn was pacing and Anna was watching him carefully. She assumed that they were still going to be practicing her shield charm, but she wasn't positive, so she was trying to keep an open mind. When he started shouting jinxes, she lifted her wand, practicing her charm without saying it out loud. Non-verbal was a good thing to practice, right? She smirked when it worked and everything bounced off. She watched Finn curiously, wondering if he'd thought for a moment that he got her when she didn't say anything. "So ... should we practice something else or are you going to continue randomly trying to hex me?" Anna asked, cocking her head to the side with an innocent smile.

@finn

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Finn was happily impressed with Anna’s skills on blocking unfriendly spells. “Well Miss Weasley I can see why the Goblet deemed you worthy,” he said, bowing to her with a cheeky grin. “It is rather fun trying to randomly hex you though, but I think it is time to move on to other things,” he agreed, stopping his pacing to look over at her. “Right, let’s make sure your accuracy is on par. Things in the maze will probably be moving, not standing still waiting for you to attack them,” he said. He pointed his wand upwards and produced a target that zipped around the room. Another spell and the target multiplied by five. “Right, I want you to destroy all of these in….sixty seconds,” he instructed, pulling out his pocket watch, waiting for the seconds hand to reach the twelve. “Ready, set, GO!”

@annelise

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Anna grinned at Finn when he finally admitted she did well on blocking spells. She was actually quite impressed with her abilities when it came to those. Past that, she wasn't sure what she could do. Which was exactly why she was doing this with Finn! She could spend time practicing with someone who was training to be an auror. Surely he had some insight to drills and practice strategies that could help her in a high-speed, stressful environment. "Glad I met your high standards then," she told him, sticking out her tongue at him when he said he liked trying to hex her. Yes, it was childish, but she was with Finn. He wouldn't care. 

Anna's mouth fell open when Finn created a moving target, then multiplied it so that there were five. That was so cool! He explained what he wanted to do and Anna decided to start off seeing how good she could do just shooting by impulse and going for all five. She spun in a circle, shouting curses when she saw a target, taking about ten seconds to go around the circle. "Reducto," she shouted at each of them. Sure, she needed to focus on using a variety of spells, but at the moment she was seeing her accuracy and didn't want to think about it. After firing five times, Anna stopped and took a second to look at the targets. She'd destroyed two right off the bat, hit two more (though she hadn't destroyed those two) and missed one entirely. Narrowing her eyes in determination, Anna nodded and started again, this time using a variety of curses as she tried to destroy the remaining targets. This time, she was going to keep going until they were gone. "Confingo, Reducto!" By the time her time was up, Anna had managed to successfully destroy all the targets, though the last one gave her a bit of trouble. She wondered if Finn made it harder on purpose, or if she was just having a hard time with it.

@finn

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Finn watched as Anna tried her first tactic; impulse shooting. He personally would not have gone that route but better she figure out what works best for her now rather than in the maze. “That was good!” he told her at the end of the sixty seconds when she had destroyed all of her targets. “Let’s try that again, but pick a different way of going about it. Oh, and I’m adding in two more targets,” he told her, a wide grin spreading across his face. He waved his wand and seven targets appeared in the air. As they began to move, Finn checked his watch. “You have sixty seconds once again. Ready? Go!” he called, signalling Anna to start.

@annelise

ooc: feel free to skip ahead a bit if you want!