Carl had been looking forward to this. His very first proper duel. However, he entered the Dueling Arena feeling queasy. His opponent was Mel. Why? He did not want to attack her! But he also wanted to win, so it was all confusing.

He walked onto the platform shakily, but with a firm grip on his wand. "Hey," he said somewhat cheerfully at his friend. A bow followed this short greeting. Fortunately, he had not forgotten the Dueling rules.

And then what? Was he supposed to start first? Just when he was about to cast a spell, he saw Mel point her wand at his face. Panicking, he said, "Protego!" His Shield Charm defended him against the spell, whatever it was. Whew!

The first spell he could think of was the one he had talked about in the first Dueling Club Meeting. "Tarantallegra!" Carl said, pointing his wand at his opponent. The Dancing Feet Spell really was the first spell he turned to in a Duel.