Dark Places PV Closed

The owl came in a flurry Max wasn't expecting, landing with a letter in handwriting he didn't recognize. It wasn't from outside the school, and suspicion welled up within him as he warily opened it, wondering if it was either a prank or a threat. He still hadn't forgotten the Masked Man and the problems a single young Ravenclaw boy had caused, so he wasn't about to become a hero based on a letter from an unknown assailant.

Opening it carefully in case it had one of those ridiculous love potions in it, he gingerly removed the paper and scanned the contents of the letter before letting out a small laugh. Whoever had sent this knew him well enough to know that he had a deep anger within him and he used to like taking it out on Hufflepuffs. That, or they just knew knowledge that almost everyone in the school had heard about since he'd gotten into the fight with James.

Setting the letter down carefully, he considered his options. He could leave this mystery person hanging or he could go down to see exactly what kind of trap they'd set for him, since it had to indeed be a trap if it wasn't from Eris or Dorian. Clearly Dorian was out and he knew Eris's handwriting well, so his decision was a rapid one filled with all the stupidity of a teen boy.

He scrawled out a hasty letter to Eris to come with him for backup and then, after sending it, he made his way down to the dungeons. Sure, he could take the safe route and leave it, but then he'd always be left wondering why someone had wanted to lure him down here. Why live a life without any risk? It was times like these you could look back on when you were on your deathbed and say 'I did that.' He had to make death proud to take him.

Lifting his wand as he neared the meeting spot, he narrowed his eyes against the darkness and tried to make out any figures he could Flipendo before they had the chance to attack. Every sense was on high alert as he took the first right, and he paused in the alcove to the second, squinting into the dampness to make out two shapes. He lowered his wand and stared in stunned silence at the scene before him.

Erin Ryan. A girl he'd never met before but had seen around the past three years; as far as he knew, she was a very odd person he'd somewhat avoided because the rumours surrounding her suggested something... dark. Darkness was something he was familiar with, but with the amount of it in his life and own bones, he tended to avoid it as best he could. She also certainly wasn't a Muggle born, so he had no reason to attempt anything nefarious on her. All in all, his perception of her was rather neutral, yet it was clear she was the one who had sent this letter because Rosie Parker wouldn't have said something like that.

"Erin Ryan?" he asked, his voice an eerie echo as his eyes darted between the girl and Rosie in confusion. Why on earth would she call him here to fight Rosie? Rosie was a tiny girl Erin could likely turn into a pretzel if she chose to because the young Hufflepuff didn't have a fighting bone in her body. "And... Rosie... Parker...?" His voice trailed off in hopeless confusion as he stood there looking between the two of them like an idiot, waiting for one of them to explain what the bloody hell this was all about.

The note Max had left Eris was messily written, she decided. It had taken her a few moments to understand what was being asked of her, as Eris picked it up and read it. Once the meaning of the message was finally grasped, the redhead sighed once, an exasperated smile sliding into place on her face. What had Max gotten himself into, and why was she looking forward to whatever was about to occur? In truth, Eris was tired of sitting around and pretending to be prim and proper. She longed for the feeling of an adventure, for that endless excitement that had propelled her forward during her first year of school. Back when Dorian had been part of Max and Eris' little gang, and most of their time had been spent kicking hufflepuffs. Eris had been angry then, but nowhere near as angry as she was now. This year, she was angry with the world. Just for giving her such terrible parents, a grandfather who was mean, and for taking Max away from her for a whole year.

The anger festering under her skin had only grown from the start of term, and due to the quidditch season not even starting yet, Eris had no way to let go of the pent up anger. Or, at least, she had never been taught healthy ways to deal with her emotions. Thus, she found herself craving a fight of some sort. Something to do that wasn't homework or writing letters to her grandfather. With that in mind, she was more than happy to oblige with Max's wishes to guard his back at whatever event was occurring in the dungeons.

Eris had forgotten what it was like to resolve conflicts through punches, or even solve conflicts. She'd kept mostly to herself, thoughts and actions tucked tightly inside, fearful for the judgement that her grandfather would reap upon her. But, after 15 days back in school and no letters from Adrian Fawley, it was time to let go. She felt faintly guilty for her actions regarding Ami P. last year, and the way that she had beat up that girl. Chalking that up to the fact that Eris had no clue what she had been doing then, and that the guilt was mostly due to that loss of control, Eris shrugged and grabbed her wand, tucking Max's note into her jean pockets.

As she walked through the dungeons, the young redhead couldn't help but think about the last time she had been down this far under the school. It had been for a potions adventure with one of the old Heads of House. She couldn't quite remember who the man was, as so many teachers had come and gone in Eris' few years at school. Eris wasn't afraid of the darkness. She was used to it, having lived in the Fawley Manor for the whole summer. It was impossible to fear something that you'd spent so much time staring at. So, she ventured forward.

Taking the first right turn, Eris tried to listen for noises. Hearing and seeing nothing, and not wanting to give herself away by casting Lumos to give herself a vantage point in the inky darkness, Eris made the next right turn and then promptly blanched at the strange scene. Max and a girl who Eris vaguely recognized as one of the crazy kids who always caused problems at the balls and whatnot were standing around, while .. Rosie Parker .. was looking around, evidently confused.

She didn't know the crazy girl, though. Not really. But, Eris did like her hair. Eris was busy staring at Rosie, heart pounding in her chest. She didn't want to deal with Rosie, or the viable betrayal that Eris felt in seeing her there. A part of her felt betrayed; just seeing that there was a muggleborn who Eris was friends with, who she was supposed to hate. The other part of her felt like she was betraying Rosie, just for being a pureblood and being forced to adhere to most of their beliefs. It was harder to let go of the belief that muggleborns sucked, when her mother had acted like a muggleborn witch and utilized the dangers of both worlds. Eris had no trust for muggleborns. It was easier to trust those who were wizards. Rosie wasn't one, not really.

Steadying herself, Eris slid into a position next to Max, thinking for a moment about how used the two of them were to these kinds of situations. It felt nice to know that Max would always have her back, even when Rosie Parker was nearby, along with .. Erin? Was that her name? Ignoring her nerves, Eris plastered a grin onto her face, mustering up gusto that she didn't really have. "This looks promising. Is somebody going to tell me what the hell is going on, or point me in the direction of whoever's ass I have to beat the information out of?" She didn't have time to sound overly nice, not when Rosie Parker was somehow in the vicinity. This situation already was shaping up to be a mess. Idly holding her wand in her hand, knowing it was the greatest weapon Eris had, as a short girl with hardly any strength, she patiently waited for whatever storm was about to hit.

@Carson Miller, @Kyle DeRook, @Marian Lynch, @Eris Fawley, @Max Avery, @Erin Ryan, @Rosie Parker

“This place gives me the creeps, Car.” Maggie whispered, her arm outstretched as she held the candle far out in front of the pair. The candlelight licked the damp cobblestone walls, creating an eerie glow and casting shadows in all the wrong places.

“Shh!” Maggie hissed, hearing voices up ahead. Even if they were whispering before, it felt like the right moment, y’know?

Maggie peeked around the corner of the wall, her hair hanging down in a brown curtain. She narrowed her eyes at the scene before her, Max Avery, Eris Fawley, Erin Ryan, and a girl Maggie didn’t recognize stood in an almost-circle, confusion painted on most of their faces.

Maggie held her arm out, against Carson’s chest, like your Mom or Dad did when they came to a sudden stop in their car. She recognized Max Avery and Eris Fawley, and she didn’t really have warm feelings towards either. She’d recently figured out that Max was extremely elitist when it came to blood, and Eris was pretty much the same, though she seemed to have a little more sense of morality.

Maggie only knew Erin Ryan through rumors, and her reputation. Newsflash: it wasn’t good. While she didn’t know the other girl, the fact that Eris, Max, and Erin were gathered together in a dark dungeon couldn’t mean anything good.

It wasn’t like they were there for a hugging circle or anything.

@Maggie Parker, @Kyle DeRook, @Marian Lynch, @Rosie Parker, @Erin Ryan, @Max Avery, @Eris Fawley

Carson and Maggie creeped through the eerie hallways of the dungeon, shuffling down the dark passageway close together. Not because they were scared or anything— definitely not. It was just— a bit creepy, that’s all.

“This place gives me the creeps, Car.” Maggie whispered, holding her candle far out in front of her.

“Really? I think it’s quite nice— with the creepy statues, complete darkness, ghosts and all.” Carson commented, sarcasm dripping from his tone. His voice had been a little louder than intended, but it wasn’t like there was anyone else down here, right?

“Shh!” Maggie hissed, stopping suddenly in the corridor. Carson bumped into her, which wasn’t surprising, considering how much shorter Maggie was than Carson.

“You shh!” Carson shot back, rather childishly. He brought his voice down, however, when he heard the voices. Okay, that sounded bad— like, real voices, not in his head or anything.

Maggie peeked her head around the corner, Carson mimicking her actions and sticking his head out above hers. The scene before them was strange, to say the least. There were four students gathered, all with varying degrees of confusion on their faces. Well, besides one. Erin Ryan, who was probably the mastermind of the whole thing, which was unsurprising, due to her reputation.

“Bloddy fuck,” Carson cursed under his breath, his eyes wide, “I think we just walked into a cult, Mags.”

OC: Is this everyone? If not, I apologize and can delay.

Someone was approaching. Erin could hear the soles of the interloper's feet scrape against the stone floor. Her ears twitched and her body tensed with anticipation. She would find herself disappointed that the gloomy figure that was first to arrive was not the red coat, former Head Boy, but rather a lone badger summoned by the prospect of a hugging circle. In fact, she even arrived early. "Helluva stereotype," the Slytherin muttered to herself out loud.

The Hufflepuff would critique Erin's choice of venue. The Slytherin's left eye would twitch involuntarily as the ball of frigging sunshine mentioned the need for a less dreadful setting. No wonder Avery enjoyed kicking Huffle ass. "Snakes like the cold... and the dark," Erin would reply grimly as she looked into the darkness beyond Rosie. She was not there for the hugs, she was there for the violence. She could hear the approach of another. She was hopeful. Her hand would reach into her school jacket and she would retrieve her wand. The girl's diminutive hand would clutch the smooth, hard chestnut shaft of her wand and with a low whisper she would whisper a single word "Lumos." The tip of her wand would light and give off a cool glow that would illuminate the dark passageway better than the sparse, sputtering torches that lined the hall.

She would look Rosie over and then assess her surroundings. The walls were filthy, the refuse on the floor suggested that this dungeon was the home to a veritable army of vermin. Rat droppings, tuffs of hair that aggregated into tiny tumbleweeds or organic material. A thick layer of moist dust, turned grime over the semi-even floor that was clearest in the center but ever-present suggesting infrequent passage down this particular corridor. The ceiling, a haze through the layers of spiderweb that housed arachnids large enough to consume... by Merlin, is that a mouse trapped in a web! No, even worse... a dead bat.

She would see Avery approach, she would not call out to him, but rather in a human moment warn Rosie. "You should run," she announced. She did not explain why in that dark, dire tone. She pointed to her left, which would be Rosie's right, Erin's back to the wall. "Follow this passage, take the second right as the first is a dead end. Carefully traverse the full length of the hall, avoid the spider's nest at about mid-way, those spiders are aggressive and about the size of dinner plates," she warned. Erin would not have done this a year ago, advise someone on how to find refuge or that danger was coming for them. In fact, she relished those moments when things went wrong, she fed off it like an emotional vampire. "Once you reach the end, you will be in familiar terrain. Take a right. You will find the stairs you descended to first enter this dungeon... You should get back to your marshmallows and teddy bears..." Her mental canon of Hufflepuff was probably not very far off.

She did not care if Max heard what she had said in part or in whole, the words and the message that they carried were not for him. He would call out her name, she was mroe famous than she realized. "Maxwell" she did not know he went by just Max "Avery" she echoed. He then said Rosie's name, not that Erin knew it, asked for it, or would likely remember at the end of this interaction. Rosie was not a Slytherin, as far as she knew she was not a pure-blood and she provided no advantage to her, so 'Rosie' was irrelevant. Wait, where have I heard that name before? Then a near-electric sense of shock ran through her as the color drained from the part-Veela's face. 'Rosie' was a damn Prefect!  She was one of them and either by an unfortunate twist of fate the messenger owl chose her, she interceded and stole the note or Max asked her to come along for back-up. He did casually know her name. She took a second look at Rosie, she did not look like much of a fighter. Some back-up... she thought. Rosie looked like the type that might struggle overpowering a wet paper bag. The type that needs to ask for help opening a bottle of pop. She looked between them, friends? That was what her brain defined them as at the very least. Max's sentiments towards blood-status would be an unknown variable to the third-year. 

"Tch," she made a noise. "Should have known," she shrugged her shoulders as she exchanged her lit wand between her hands. She considered between the two of them which was likely weaker -- probably the girl she decided. It is not as if on a scale of 1 to 15 (or 10 in his case) she would know that Max had a strength score of... It was decided, take down the girl. Hell, force Max's compliance through the girl if there is some sort of thing between them. Passive Huffle girls are probably someone's thing, why not the setting villain? 

Her logic infallible... Then another student arrived. From the carriage in the darkness, it looked like a wandering House Elf from afar. The owls surely did not discriminate did they? That could prove troublesome. As the unknown person came closer, she would note the lack of a globulous head, limbs not much but still thicker than that of a standard dwarf and some semblance of a girlish shape. Not an elf, a dwarf..." She came closer, no beard. She either shaved or not a dwarf, just a midget. Sleuthing would not likely become her day-job. She had overestimated the appeal of hugging circles. What a fool she was!

Then Eris opened her mouth and came into the light.

"This looks promising. Is somebody going to tell me what the hell is going on, or point me in the direction of whoever's ass I have to beat the information out of?"

She had not really interfaced with the 'little person' but she had heard of them. First years becoming Prefects is not something that goes unnoticed and people sure as hell noticed when a bunch of first-years became Prefects. With a lop-sided grin, Erin would answer "hugging circle" and extend both arms. She knew full well that Eris would know she was full of shit just as Erin would know that Max brought back-up. It was no coincidence that three former Prefects happened to show up, in fact they showed a bit early. She took a deep breath, she was nervous and outnumbered, she was going to lose this fight but she had a plan. The sorta plan a girl with a wisdom of 3 comes up with, but a plan all the same.

"Who's..." her voice trailed off as she looked past the trio. Someone else was coming. Was this the students summoned by the invitations? She froze, a bobbing light, that from a single lit candle heralded their presence and their approach. I'm so fucked she silently complained as she considered the very real possibility that it was more of Max's cronies. 

She was rather certain that Reid Kovacs was the brains behind the part-giant and Prefect conspiracy, first of the first-year Head Boys, favored by some of the Professors inexplicably such as her own Head of House. Now that she thought about it with the little brain power she had, she reminded herself that Max Avery was the Head Boy after Evans short tenure with Towers. He was probably someone important among the Death Witches or the part-giants. Kovacs was probably a midget giant, much like Eris was a midget-midget. Maybe Kovacs was a death witch too. Maybe Max was a midget giant. Maybe he was a death witch. BY MERLIN I AM CONFUSED!

OK, they are either tiny giants or death witches, maybe both...

She could hear a bit of what was being said as the light came closer. It was not one person but rather two. She hardened herself. As they got close enough for her to see them, she would not recognize either. They had not earned the same acclaim as Eris, Max and Rosie had. Were they inductees? Supposed 'victims'? Lost idiots in the wrong place at the wrong time? She did not have long to think, to consider the possibilities. If they were either of the later, they were going to regret coming to these dungeons. While she had a moment of humanity when she recommended to Rosie that she should run, the same grace would not be extended to those two as they made their way closer. It was like going bear hunting and picking who you would hunt with. You pick the fat, slow, old guy as your partner. Not because you want to give them a shit, but rather so that if a rampaging moose, bear or other dangerous wildlife turned on them you knew who they would maul first (not you). 

"So, death witches or midget giants?"

[quote]
[quote]As the situation progressed, things grew even more confusing. Eris showed up for backup like Max had expected her to - she was one of the few people he genuinely trusted in this school - and then all of a sudden behind her was a Hufflepuff and that girl Maggie Parker. His lip instinctively curled at the site of the two; Maggie Parker had been cheeky with him at the tea party and he vaguely knew the Hufflepuff as one of her friends. On a good day, he didn't need the excuse to hate one of the cheery Badgers, so the fact that this kid was friends with Maggie made an even worse impression on Max.

To top matters off, everyone present except for Erin Ryan seemed confused. Had the note been real and Erin actually had issues with Maggie and the Hufflepuff that she thought Max could help solve? Because it was true that the two likely deserved an ass-kicking and Max wasn't averse to the thought. In fact, he might even start to like the odd Slytherin if that was the case. He was fully prepared to round them and take them down when Erin began to speak.

When she'd originally spoken to Rosie, Max had figured it was because Rosie hadn't been a part of her plan; the girl wasn't overly abrasive or mean so they could let it slide that she was here. His feelings towards the tiny girl were confused at best, full of guilt, the tiniest amount of respect, and an underlying bitterness about her blood status. She was friends with a couple of his friends, and due to that he was willing to let her run away. Except, of course, she didn't want to run away. And Eris seemed to be positively fuming beside him. Though he wasn't sold on beating Rosie Parker, if Eris decided they had to then he had no choice but to back up his friend.

"You should run, Rosie Parker," he said, voice low as he dismissed her words with sharp ones of his own. "Or you're not going to like the consequences."

He withdrew his wand for maximum effect, not casting a spell but preparing himself for defense or offense based on what came next. It was a dark, creepy place with a kind of coldness permeating the air that made people make decisions they normally would've found repulsive. He wasn't a huge fan of starting fights, yet something about an environment reminiscent of an old prison where you could get away with anything you wanted was changing his mind. The situation was putting him in a bad mood, and he was ready to make some poor decisions.

So, death witches or midget giants?

With that there was a long pause, and Max turned away from the motley crew to stare uncomprehendingly at Erin. Death witches? Midget giants? He didn't understand a word of that and no matter how long he turned it over in his head, it simply didn't make sense to him. Was it some sort of code? Did it have meaning in the context of beating up Hufflepuffs? Did he have to pick one to prove to Erin that she should be on his side?

To be frank, he really didn't know much about her. Sure, he'd heard rumours, but he of all people understood that rumours could be greatly exaggerated. Beyond that, he knew she was Slytherin and that the green house was usually full of ambition. If she was full of ambition, surely her question was some sort of test to see if he was worthy of becoming her ally. Death witches. Midget giants. Some sort of riddle then. Midget giants struck him as something normal since a 'midget giant' would be a normal sized person. 'Death witches' were more nefarious since they made one think of the phrase Death Eaters, which involved a war against blood purity. While Max had no plans to become as bad as Voldemort and that crew, he certainly aligned more that way than as a 'normal person.' Clearly, the answer to the riddle was...

"Eris and I are death witches." He smiled, sharp and full of cold anger as he rounded on the Hufflepuffs. If Rosie didn't leave, what happened next could only be her fault. "And these people are the midget giants. Will you help us take them down, Erin?"

Eris stared at Erin, wondering if she was supposed to grin back at the Slytherin. For one, Eris didn’t exactly trust that the girl who was hanging out in the Dungeons was the hugging sort. Secondly, Eris wasn’t exactly a fan of hugging strangers. She wasn’t exactly a fan of strangers in general if they were meeting in dark places. That usually meant something suspicious. Unless the person in question was a vampire, hiding in the dark. Then the situation was suspicious AND dangerous.

Still, allowing a faint trace of humour to show on her face, even if there was nothing funny about the situation, Eris looked at Erin. “As nice as that hug sounds, I don’t want to get dungeon cooties.” Eris knew cooties weren’t real, and as a 13-year-old, still liked to bring them up in conversation. It was entertaining to see if other people still believed in cooties, and if they didn’t, it was even funnier to just mention them. Besides, Eris felt a bit loopy. Loopy enough to joke about cooties. The source of said loopiness was the small Hufflepuff in the corner, who had stated Eris’ own name with a familiarity that Eris regretted even having heard out loud. Eris rubbed at her eyes, the familiar questions upon whether or not muggle-borns sounded different running through her brain. It was a rabbit hole and one that Eris didn’t want to go down.

Being in the presence of Rosie Parker, who Eris had made out in her head to be a demon from Hell was.... strange. tIt beat all the humour out of Eris. To be honest, Eris had half expected Rosie to have grown claws over the summer. Or, to look like a cartoon witch, with warts and a crooked nose. Eris giggled once, the nervous noise penetrating her ears, as she tried to deal with her emotions. Eris was not good at that. She was good at recklessly blabbering out words that she didn’t really understand. She was good at fighting people for no reason. But, actually thinking over whatever weird twisting feeling was in the pit of her gut? Nah. Improbable. Impossible, really. It wasn’t easy to actually cope with emotions when you had been raised by a woman who was mentally unstable and were currently living in the household of two adults who’s best advice at dealing with emotions was to conceal them.

Eris just stared at Rosie. It wasn’t a judgemental stare. It was just wary, as Eris shifted away from Rosie, still saying nothing. She pressed closer towards Max’s side, trying to ignore the sharp pangs of guilt rising up in her gut, along with bitterness. A lot of feelings were brought up in Rosie’s presence, enough so that Eris was starting to panic. She hated feeling emotions, dreaded it really. Dreaded that loss of power and of bravery with a passion. She hated feeling actual emotion, because it took her back to living with her mum, in a world where the only things to feel were fear and sadness. Eris much prefered not thinking whatsoever to having emotions.

So, Eris just stood there, looking like a dumbfounded puppy for a long moment. She didn’t even move, just blinking stupidly for a long second. Finally, as the sound of footsteps echoed in the hall, Eris turned around and stared at the two people incoming. Eris turned to look at Maggie, mustering what must have seemed like the most pathetic smile ever. It was a grimace, really. Eris didn’t know why she even tried. Instinct, honestly. Eris’ grimace faded, as she turned to stare around the room.

Then the girl who Eris was almost sure was named Erin asked one of the strangest questions Eris had ever heard. And, she was friends with Kaegen. Eris would like to be a midget giant. It would be nice to be a midget giant. Midget giants sounded better than being an actual midget. The absurdity of the situation took over, as Eris’ brain tried to process everything going on. Her brain was unable to process anything, as Eris was too busy trying to distract from the fact Rosie was there and didn’t seem completely and utterly evil.

Eris, unlike Max, was not in the mindset to focus upon the possible double meaning of Erin’s words. Instead, she merely looked around the room and muffled another giggle, shutting her eyes to try and focus her thoughts on something that wasn’t as terrifying as actual sadness. As Max spoke, Eris gave a thumbs up, then blinked. Max called himself a witch. That was funny. Holding her wand in her hand still, nearly forgetting it was there, Eris blinked a second time and looked around. She didn’t really want to fight muggleborns. But, she also hadn’t wanted her mother to kick her out, had she? She hadn’t wanted her mother, who was basically the epitome of what muggleborns stood for, to do anything to Eris. But she had. So, why would Eris not want to fight people who acted like her mum? It was confusing. Eris just shrugged and looked at Erin. She would like to stop thinking whatsoever, and thus, if there was to be a fight, Eris would go along with it. Just to get rid of the sadness and anger that were battling in her head.