29 Aug 2020, 23:43
Searching an Anchor
OOC Warning: Panicattacks and mention of violence. Read ahead on your own risk.
Opeila knew very well that she was not meant to be here. She was meant to be in her dorm. Or in the hospital wing maybe. But not here. In front of the office of the Professor for Charms. Would he even help her? Or take her serious in the first place? She had talked to this Professor once out of class. When Jack Burnett had pretended to lose his memories. And then he was there when she had organized that stupid victory party. The second year likely made a very troublesome expression to the professor.@Artemis Vernatis8th September, 23.30 pm
But she didn't know where else to go. She would not go to her head of house after she asked Opeila to give her a reason not to expell her.
But Opeila had met the point where she just wanted help. Needed help. And not from her classmates. Her endurance shrunk immensely after the holidays and Opeila had been worn out before the year even began. Her mother was dead, her half-sister murdered and her grandmother dead. And her dad, the only muggle in the family on the run from a killer- who was a wizard.
And there was this boy, who unknowingly- how could he know?- poked that wound until Opeila snapped. He had insulted her family, an awefully childish move, that had affected Opeila in an even worse way. She had casted a Flipendo on him, hot rage burning all sense away for that moment. She wanted nothing more than to hurt him in that moment- no, not him. Ravensburg. The man who caused all that pain to her. And still, she wanted to just let it all out on that dumb boy.
It was that desire that caused her to freeze long enough for the boy to get back up and make her pay. Hurt her.
At least the physical pain, that she now still felt with every step, had caused the inner pain to disappear for the moment. Now she just felt sort of empty inside.
After the incidence with the boy, she hid for the rest of the day. She felt like it was her, who was the monster. Was that why she was alone now?
Only now, in the middle of the night she finally left her hiding place. Almost limped through the castle, without a target. She didn't care who might catch her. Who could give her detention for being out so late. And then she ended up at Professor Vernatis' door. Maybe it was her seer instincts, maybe her subconscious that remembered the short moment of safety she felt when she had been in that office last time.
She walked through the classroom, and looked at his office door, a numb expression on her face. Should she knock? Opeila felt the bruises on her face, a cut from a mirrorpiece on the abandoned bathroom floor even. The blood was dry by now.
Still it would likely be one of the first things that the professor would see if he opened the door.
Unsure what to do, she stared at the door.
Last edited by Opeila Winters on 24 Sep 2020, 22:58, edited 1 time in total.
24 Sep 2020, 14:51
Searching an Anchor
It was incredibly late and long past curfew when Artemis was disturbed by the sound of the small alarm going off in his classroom. He was just brushing his teeth and getting himself ready for his own bed when the second alarm went off, alerting him that a student was at his office door. The man sighed heavily as he took a wet washcloth and wiped at his face with it, eradicating the remaining toothpaste and the day's sweat from it. Who in the world would be at his door at this time of night? He moved through his private quarters into his office and heard the alarm softly go off once again, indicating that whoever was there was still in front of his office door. He repressed an irritated groan. He knew that it was a student. If a professor were knocking at his door, it would have been more urgent, more demanding of his attention. This soft knocking was more of a shy, scared kind of knock that was hoping that someone would answer but also wouldn't be bothred to continue knocking if there were no answer to be given. What student would dare to be out after curfew knowing that the new rules were in effect for their safetly?
Grabbing the doorknob, Artemis pulled the door open a bit more roughly than he intended and glared down at the child standing before him. Opeila Winters. She was currently on the snake woman's radar and was also involved in various situations that left her in trouble before. Well she was definitely going to be in trouble again tonight! He was going to lay into the child; give her the verbal lashing she never thought she would ever have before and give her a month's detention for putting her life in danger just to come to his office in the middle of the night. The students of Hogwarts were quite insane and he just couldn't understand what the hell went through their heads when they chose to do something that they knew were wrong or dangerous.
Artemis opened his mouth to lay into the girl, but then stopped as within the dim lighting coming from his office, he saw something dark marring her face; something that shouldn't have been there and wasn't there the last time he saw the girl in his class. It looked like...
"Miss Winters. Are you alright? Is that blood on your face?" Artemis asked as he put a hand on the girl's shoulder to bring her further into the light of his office. Sure enough, there was dried blood on the girl's face and what looked to be the start of a few bruises and a cut upon her features that Artemis could only fathom to guess where they came from. What in the world had this girl tripped over?
"Miss Winters, what on Earth happened to you?"
Grabbing the doorknob, Artemis pulled the door open a bit more roughly than he intended and glared down at the child standing before him. Opeila Winters. She was currently on the snake woman's radar and was also involved in various situations that left her in trouble before. Well she was definitely going to be in trouble again tonight! He was going to lay into the child; give her the verbal lashing she never thought she would ever have before and give her a month's detention for putting her life in danger just to come to his office in the middle of the night. The students of Hogwarts were quite insane and he just couldn't understand what the hell went through their heads when they chose to do something that they knew were wrong or dangerous.
Artemis opened his mouth to lay into the girl, but then stopped as within the dim lighting coming from his office, he saw something dark marring her face; something that shouldn't have been there and wasn't there the last time he saw the girl in his class. It looked like...
"Miss Winters. Are you alright? Is that blood on your face?" Artemis asked as he put a hand on the girl's shoulder to bring her further into the light of his office. Sure enough, there was dried blood on the girl's face and what looked to be the start of a few bruises and a cut upon her features that Artemis could only fathom to guess where they came from. What in the world had this girl tripped over?
"Miss Winters, what on Earth happened to you?"
Artemis Vernatis
Professor of Charms
24 Sep 2020, 21:24
Searching an Anchor
Opeila didn't have to knock. The door opened, exposing her to the firm look of the Charms teacher, who of course did not seem happy to see her. At least he didn't look like she had woken him up.
She couldn't say anything. Would he yell at her? Give her detention? Would he expell her? The Slytherin swallowed, panic slowly rose in her.
And then he didn't yell at her. He did nothing of the above, instead he asked about the blood on her face. Opeila noticed the surprise in his voice, but for the moment she was unable to understand the words he said.
Suddenly there was a hand on her shoulder, causing her to wince, but then she let him pull her into the light coming out of his office. Light was good. Darkness was bad. Darkness was deathly. The teacher would be able to feel the little girl's shoulders tremble under her unsteady breaths. Tears found their way out of the corners of her eyes when she finally managed to get words out.
"P-Professor, I didn't- I didn't mean to, I didn't want this to happen. He provoked me, and I snapped and I wanted to hurt him and then he hurt me and all I see all the time is him getting stabbed by the shadow, it never goes away. It doesn't stop and they are all dead... They are all dead, but they come for me in my sleep..." Opeila looked at his professor, as if she was trying to put sense into her words by it. The events of the last weeks blured together in the words that seemed to fall out of her, while her voice got heavier from tears every moment.
Her shaking hands moved up to her head, the fingers dug into her hair, the palms pressing against the sides of her head. "It doesn't stop... It doesn't go away and I am so scared all the time." A sob escaped her, more tears ran over her cheeks, the green eyes were widened with fear. "I don't know what to do, it is always there! Help me, please, please help me..."
She begged him. Opeila hit a line, a border of what she could take.
If he left her alone with it, she didn't know what she would do.
@Artemis Vernatis
She couldn't say anything. Would he yell at her? Give her detention? Would he expell her? The Slytherin swallowed, panic slowly rose in her.
And then he didn't yell at her. He did nothing of the above, instead he asked about the blood on her face. Opeila noticed the surprise in his voice, but for the moment she was unable to understand the words he said.
Suddenly there was a hand on her shoulder, causing her to wince, but then she let him pull her into the light coming out of his office. Light was good. Darkness was bad. Darkness was deathly. The teacher would be able to feel the little girl's shoulders tremble under her unsteady breaths. Tears found their way out of the corners of her eyes when she finally managed to get words out.
"P-Professor, I didn't- I didn't mean to, I didn't want this to happen. He provoked me, and I snapped and I wanted to hurt him and then he hurt me and all I see all the time is him getting stabbed by the shadow, it never goes away. It doesn't stop and they are all dead... They are all dead, but they come for me in my sleep..." Opeila looked at his professor, as if she was trying to put sense into her words by it. The events of the last weeks blured together in the words that seemed to fall out of her, while her voice got heavier from tears every moment.
Her shaking hands moved up to her head, the fingers dug into her hair, the palms pressing against the sides of her head. "It doesn't stop... It doesn't go away and I am so scared all the time." A sob escaped her, more tears ran over her cheeks, the green eyes were widened with fear. "I don't know what to do, it is always there! Help me, please, please help me..."
She begged him. Opeila hit a line, a border of what she could take.
If he left her alone with it, she didn't know what she would do.
@Artemis Vernatis