An Unfamiliar Face on a Familiar Route PV Closed

Selim Text Color: #4d0f25
Aku Text Color: #614f6d

"Society is no comfort, to one not sociable.."- William Shakespeare's 'Cymbeline'

Selim had been out past curfew yet again. In his second year, he rarely broke it simply because he was too busy holing away in the common room in a little nook he had found to keep himself neigh-perfectly hidden from everyone. This year though he wandered out a bit more often though, not nearly as often as some students likely (A number which had likely dropped quite a lot thanks to the hag warning), but still enough for it not to be 'rare' per se.

The reasons for his rather bold action of leaving the safety of the dorms more often were rather simple. 1, after the common rooms being threatened twice from the school's darkness he decided that they were, well, not as secure as they should be (because of his housemates, that is).2, he was likely unappetizing to the hags, seeing as how a half-hag had told him he smelt of rot. Very flattering, but unsurprising. 3, at this point he had decided his housemates were more of a danger than the hags, for him at least.

Thanks to them he had gotten into three, almost four, close calls with death and/or trauma, which he didn't need seeing as how he was already unstable.

First, there was the spider invasion in his first year, caused by his housemates deciding to open the door despite the confirmed unknown horrors that lay behind them. Then, there was the fight club, which he would've escaped from unscathed and untraumatized if his dormmates hadn't barged into the room when a living shadow was agitatedly pacing around the tent while he was having tea with a certain Ravenclaw (He didn't move from that trap door for a reason!). The worst case (which was ever so slightly partially caused by his own paranoia), was around February of last year when all of Slytherin suddenly decided to parade into the dungeons, ignore their head of House, and almost caused his death by chasing his terrified, half-lucid self into a dark cramped room, where he almost got gassed to death thanks to two unknown chemicals mixing in the very much small and not-ventilated hovel. Yes, he had run himself in there, but with how compromised he was during the time he could most definitely plead insanity. So with blaming himself off the table for that incident, he was blaming, again, his house (this isn't even mentioning the other almost-fatalities of other Slytherin students).

So yes, Selim did not view his house as a 'safe' and 'comfortable place. NO, it was a pit of vipers, toxicity, and excessive testosterone levels of foolhardiness. It was a hyena den where getting stabbed in the back was a normal Tuesday, and basic respect for fellow students was neigh nonexistent. Fueled by ambitions led to them being fueled by selfishness and childish levels of pettyness. The fact that they had next to no relationship or respect for their head of house makes that clear enough already.

Now, Selim didn't have a relationship with their head of house either (For one he had a deep-rooted paranoia and fear of adults... and that was the main reason), but he could give her the basic respect she'd need if given the chance (Be it with some anxiety-ridden twitching and cursory glances to the shadows for enemies of some sort to jump out and tear him limb from limb or drag him away to some facility of unspeakable horrors). Respect for his elders had been pounded into him since he was a child, it was only a given that he'd give a small bow of his rabbit-masked head to any professors or faculty that passed (While quietly hoping they don't single him out). He also handed in assignments rather promptly... though he did stills struggle with actually paying attention in class.

His housemates did none of that except maybe the last bit. Of course, he could name a few that might hold that respect for the staff of Hogwarts, but they definitely were the minority.

All in all, he deemed the dorms and common room of Slytherin about as safe as the basement of the massive castle they dwelt in.

So all in all, he didn't much fear what possibly came out at night. Besides, the moon was full and the stars were out. It gave him a fleeting sense of deja-vu, memories of a visit to the astronomy tower with the previous respectable, but terrifying, Chiadavini drifted across his mind as he gazed at the sky, Kioshi purring at his side. Some tea sat on a small slab of wood in front of him as he took everything in from the view beneath the old willow tree he had met a scant few people under. Aku rested by one side of the wood slab, Kioshi closer to the other, as if a small tea party was happening in the silvery glow.

With only the light of the night scenery lighting him, he looked like nothing more than a strange, humanoid silhouette with distinct rabbit ears curving up from where his head seemed to be. Was he a student? A phantom? Some deity that deigned itself to visit Hogwarts and fend off the corroding darkness permeating it for a single night? Or... something else?

Alas, the dreamlike scene was disrupted by the unwelcome glow of a wand carried by a girl baring a shiny badge to her name. The darkness was chased away by the luminescent pale hue, and the feline opened one gooseberry green eye lazily, meowing in mild protest. Sharp shadows now outlined a sight perhaps a bit more unsettling than a phantom. There sat an unidentifiable boy, two pale, thin hands cupped around a chipped tea glass. One of them was marred with knots and puckered scars that had long since healed, leaving almost none of the appendage unblemished.

The boy, for the only sure info on the student(?) was that they were masculine in shape, was wearing nothing more than grey sweatpants and a long-sleeved white shirt that was much too baggy for his slim frame. No shoes were in sight despite the cooling weather, and his callused feet only had bandages wrapped around their sols as 'protection'. There was a cloak tossed against the trunk of the tree, but the only thing occupying it was a vaguely familiar ratty satchel, with an old leather tome slightly protruding from its opening.

The only identifiable feature of the unknown boy was his bedhead, the black hairs blended in with the shadows, making it stand out against the most distinct part of his appearance. A white rabbit mask, seemingly made of cloth and leather, hid any facial features the figure might've had. Moonlight and magic-washed pink decorated the nose and inside of the tall ears, the rest was ethereally pale, which made the darkened lines ringing the pitch-black eye sockets all the more stark and eerie.

Another glance would reveal that a purple, off-white patchy rabbit puppet sat on the other side of the 'table' with its own teacup (empty). It had a garish grin of ivory fangs that looked too real to be harmless protrusions of leather or cloth. Its two button eyes almost seemed to hold a glint of sentience, the black and violet decorations giving an off-putting overall image of the cloth hare.

It almost seemed to be staring at the source of the disturbance that ruined their surreal setting, the buttons held no pity.

Selim raised one of his hands against the light, shielding the eyes that likely hid beneath the mask. He, of course, was annoyed that his view had been ruined by the offending glow of cursed magic, and let out a disgruntled-sounding growl to show his displeasure.

Kioshi stood, stretching his limber body and padding over to the visitor, meowing and rubbing against her legs, further ruining her attempted prefect front. Her words seemed to very much not bother the boy, who let out a huff, turning away from the bright light. He lowered his mask back over his mouth, leaving only the now-gone glimpse of thin, chapped lips and slight tendril of a hidden scar curling down from the edge of the rabbit visage and over his mouth.

The Slytherin was rather apathetic tonight, without having his previous identity of clan heir, he was left floundering, trying to grasp something to keep him above the waves of society. The empty space once occupied by his birth family bred only anxiety and uncertainty, and for now, he gave up trying to stay above the water. Impassivity, solitude, lethargy, those few traits he crafted to try to put a bandaid on the empty hollow were all he could display. It was a lonely mask, with only his volatile thoughts and Kioshi for company, he was left with the feeling of standing before a river, watching a crowded festival on the other side glow with warm light he couldn't reach.

He didn't know how to address the situation at hand, he could either listen to the prefect who had no presence, or he could ignore her and continue tea with Aku and Kioshi. After a moment of silence, he chose option 'c'.

Kioshi was trying to make friends with the other cat in the meantime, completely ignoring the mood, as per usual. After all, why would cats care about the mood?

"On patrol, I assume?" His gravelly, obviously-unused voice came from behind the visage of the rabbit, both muffled and echoed at the same time. "If the hags haven't been eradicated by the professors it'd probably be safer for you to stay with me." His tone was blunt, holding no hint of the intent behind his words.

Kioshi meowed loudly, making the masked boy sigh. Back to his dorm, huh? "Too suffocating..." The phrase was spoken as nary a murmer. The two words summed up his situation with his dormmates nicely. Surrounded by a chaotic crowd he was supposed to be dormmates with that were 80% strangers was unnerving in and of itself. With the tense weight that sat between him, Flash, and the Fox, though, it constantly felt like his lungs were being filled with that cursed gas, smothering him. As if he were back in that dark, compact room, clawing at the merciless wooden slab that sat between him and life, dying slowly... slowly.

A sharp jolt made his fingers curl up briefly, digging into his clammy palms.

... It was... exhausting. His sleep patterns had gotten better over the summer, but those efforts were all but dismantled upon returning back to the brick and mortar prison they called a 'Wizarding school'.

His heavy eyes stared blankly at the moon from behind the shadows of his 'safety net'. Slowly they slid around to stare at the suddenly elongated shadows being cast by the prefect's wand-tip. Faintly he could see remnants of his most common hallucination; movement, shifting, breathing. The shadows were alive and always watching.

He looked away again, ignoring the faint pressure of paranoia that tried to encroach upon his blissful apathy.

This was troublesome, all he wanted was some peace and quiet, and its school rarely had moments of that nature. You had to take what you could get.

This he knew very well, you had to learn early that every moment some torture wasn't being inflicted on the dwellers of Hogwarts wasn't true peace... it was just the calm before the storm.

How far away was the Fall ball again?

☁ Interacting ☁
@Selim Faust

Willow had been expecting a student to grow out of the shadows that were cast over the Courtyard. But of course, this was Hogwarts. So why she expected it to just be an ordinary student was beyond her. She couldn't help but sigh, she was too tired for this. Would she have to give detention? She had never given detention before.

Her heart almost completely melted, forgetting it was after curfew when she saw that there was a cat. The young girl was a sucker for cats, and she leaned down to give Koshi a little head scratch if she was allowed. Buttons had been awoken by Willow and the other kid? talking and lazily lifted his head. When he spotted another cat he hopped down from Willow's shoulders to investigate. When she finally got a look at the... at best... a student in a costume, at worst a cryptid, she was slightly alarmed. She was now out in the dark with a possible murderous being. Certainly not a hag, maybe. Not that she knew much about them. Her eyes were attempting to scan every part of the person in front of her, to asses the threat. Her hand tightened around her wand that was the only source of light in the Courtyard.

The fact that he knew about patrol had to be a good sign towards a student, or at least just a well researched murderer. "And who is the 'me' that I'm speaking with? Not exactly easy to figure out who... or what you are. Which makes you not necessarily trustworthy. Not that unknown beings are exactly untrustworthy. But... anyway." She shrugged, the last part being a sentence she stared but didn't know where it was going. As Buttons continued his curious approach she quickly tssked and summoned him back with a tap on her shoulders. Instead of jumping up he sat by her feet, she was good enough with that.

"Your dorm must be different than mine then. There is nowhere warmer than the Hufflepuff Common Room. I've heard Gryffindor is pretty nice too. Slytherin is at least open, despite being in the basements. I could see the Ravenclaw one being suffocating though, stuck in a tower like Rapunzel with a bunch of books." Maybe this boy was just a first year whole didn't know how to fit into his house? But that seemed like a farfetched idea. A lot of the first years were too scared to be out on their own. She glanced down at the bare feet. "Are you cold? Maybe lose your shoes out here? I can help you find them before escorting you back. Either way... I have to get you back to a dorm. It would just help if you..." She waved a hand back towards the castle, just to make sure he knew which direction they would have to go. "You know... went willingly. You're actually kind of lucky I found you. I know a lot of the Professors and other Prefects are a lot harsher than I am. So, you're welcome."

Her body was still on edge, her arm shaking a bit from holding out her wand with the light. It didn't help hide her nerves, especially as the edges of the light shook with her. This wasn't an ideal patrolling situation. But it sure was the one that she was in and she had to deal with it either way.

Selim Text Color: #4d0f25
Aku Text Color: #614f6d

"Life is as tedious as twice-told tale, vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man."
- William Shakespeare's 'King John'

Selim couldn't help but let out a lacklustre chuckle of amusement at being called an 'unknown being'. Honestly, it was funny to be called that, but he didn't have the energy to give a proper laugh at it.

Kioshi, simply adoring being scratched, purred louder, rubbing up against her legs. Then, sniffing the other cat, Kioshi promptly decided to rub against them as well, meowing in greeting.

"'Unknown being?' That's a new one. I suppose it makes sense though, only my house really immediately recognizes me, thanks to my mask. Never have considered that fact being the opposite for people in other houses." He mused, his amusement quickly fading back to his exhausted, apathetic mood from before. "'My name is Selim Faust... though technically that's not my legal name anymore." He... didn't want to change that just yet, not yet...

The prefect's next words made him huff, "'Close but not quite, less physically suffocating, more emotionally suffocating. Living in a pit of snakes gets exhausting at times, even if the stereotypes about being Slytherin are often exaggerated." Turning away he rested his chin on his palm, eyes lidding tiredly, "'Hormonal preteens are also exhausting, even if I'm technically supposed to be one."

The fact that he questions his life's choices almost every day should speak enough about his state of mind. Luckily he hasn't gone off the deep end, probably thanks to his treatments for the issues he had last year.

"And I didn't bring shoes, too much effort." She commented on him being lucky she was the one to find him, he honestly didn't care either way. Detention would just be another way for him to escape his housemates, and it wasn't like the professors threw children in the dungeons for being out late. They just gave students menial, often 'boring' or 'unpleasant' tasks, at least in the eyes of children they were. Selim considered himself a bit more mature than their target demographic though. Writing lines? Cleaning chalkboards? Extra homework? In his books, that was just more peace and quiet, something to keep his mind off his life.

Rarely did 'punishments' of the average flavour actually affect him in any way, or dissuade him from 'doing wrong'. He rarely bent rules most days, this just wasn't one of those days.

Instead, he chose option 'c'. "Would you like some tea? It's a calming blend, and it's warm. Helps clear the mind." He paused, before deciding to offer a compromise, "Afterwards I'll head back to my personal hellhole without struggle... it's just... a nice night." His finger twitched slightly at that.

A nice night... a calm night.

Just that, nothing more.

☁ Interacting ☁
@Selim Faust

Willow couldn't help but 'aww' at the cat brushing up against her legs. How could she be mad at a little cat, especially when it seemed to get along with hers. Buttons happily returned the rubs, obviously holding back his desire to play with this new feline. Her attention was pulled back to the ??? when he started speaking.

When he finally spoke his name, Willow got whiplash back to her first year. Drawing a stranger in a courtyard. A bizarre encounter at the least, he certainly made the impressions then and now. "I know you. Of course I wouldn't recognize you with the mask on. But I know you, we met in first year, do you remember? I'm Willow, the weird girl that wanted to draw you." Suddenly it seemed like her fright melted away with familiarity, her light lowered. Now pointed to the ground but not extinguished. "You had a name change? I won't ask if you don't want to tell me what it is."

She wasn't surprised with his feelings about Slytherin. She had heard many a mixed feeling about the common room, and the people in it. Somehow Willow was surrounded with Slytherins, she didn't know how it happened but at this point most of the people close to her slept in the dungeons. "I wish I could say I'm not one of the exhausting preteens but- at least I'm thirteen if that makes a difference? It probably doesn't." She shrugged it off. She knew that she wasn't everyone's cup of tea. As much as she hated it when she first arrived she had learned to come to terms with it since.

For now, she decided not to comment on the shoe situation. It really wasn't her business and to her knowledge not a rule that she had to enforce. Especially outside of class hours where they were expected to be in uniform. She awkwardly rocked back and forth on her heels, unsure about what to do with the situation until he invited her to tea. Sadly, that was one of her Achilles' heels. She loved tea. "Nox." Her wand light was finally put out as she sat beside the boy, at a healthy distance. She had obviously intruded on his peaceful night. Whether or not it was her job, it was still a disturbance.

"Do you know the blend? My family enjoys making their own blends at home. We're constantly trying new teas. Personally I prefer fruit teas, though I'm sure that's not hard to guess from... everything about me." Willow was a predictable girl, but it was nothing she ever minded. "Its kind of fun being able to patrol at night, the air is completely different than in the day." She closed her eyes taking a deep breath of cool, fresh, Scottish air.

Selim Text Color: #4d0f25
Aku Text Color: #614f6d

"Life is as tedious as twice-told tale, vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man."
- William Shakespeare's 'King John'

He paused as the girl seemed to actually recall, him, and for a few moments he looked at her blankly, hazy mind trying to conjure up the memories tied to what she was saying, after a few moments of struggling, though, he sighed in defeat. "Apologies, I don't recall that. A... lot has happened since then, and my memories are giving out on me far too early for my age." He huffed at that. Her question about his name change made him frown slightly. "Technically, my last name is now Shimada... I'm not sure what I want to do with my first name though." he looked away.

Kioshi settled down beside the other cat, purring contentedly as he became a loaf, tail twitching idly. The feline was surprisingly friendly with other cats, given the fact that cats generally preferred not sharing a space with other cats, and their dorm was chock full of cats.

The boy rose his brow in amusement at the girl's attempted assurances of not being an annoying preteen. "I wouldn't know, I'm barely coherent enough in classes to realize if my dormmates are sitting near me during lessons." He snorted dryly, sipping his tea once more as the prefect settled beside him, appreciating the bothersome light being snuffed out so the moon and stars could be revealed to him again.

As she inquired about the tea, he glanced over once more, he always appreciated fellow tea-lovers. "Ah, it's a custom blend from my birth family, peach and nutmeg, kind of reminds me of calm Christmases, not that I had many of those, mind you. I have a lot of curious blends thanks to them producing tea. Sadly I doubt ill be getting any for free any longer." He didn't sound terribly disappointed despite his words.

As she mentioned the night air, he nodded idly, "I prefer the lower energy of the night, nothing mundane to worry about in an atmosphere like this. Besides, the stars are always lovely." The boy mused as he adjusted to the company.

Reaching over to Aku's teacup, he refreshed the tea inside it, warm steam rising up as he offered it to his company. "Don't worry about it being too hot, I heat it up to not-tongue-scalding temperatures." He drawled. With magic, there was hardly any need to full-on boil the water if you can keep it warm. Admittedly though, getting the charm right took a few tries....