To Wake Up Screaming PV Hjørdis finished

Patrols. Twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. She appreciated the few professors that stepped up to assist the motion, making the whole thing a little easier. However, for the most part, she was doing extra patrols and far too many of them for her liking. But it was essential. The news of the previous attacks were worrying. They only seemed to be getting worse - and she knew that she did not have enough information to even know everything. Hjørdis sighed as she walked up the stairs.

The castle was relatively quiet. Another professor was scouting the outside but since the attacks seemed to be stemming from within the walls - or had a way of getting into the castle - she knew it was important to check the inside too. As much as she wanted to just sleep, she knew the patrols were much more important. They ensured the safety of these children that were sleeping soundlessly within the stone building.

Hjørdis was dressed in a pair of sneakers, jeans and a half-sleeved jumper. Her outfit was intentionally chosen to be good to run in, in case she needed to. Danger, sadly, was something she had to run towards these days, instead of away. If she did not, a student might get hurt in her stead.

Today, however, it seemed destiny had a different plan for her. It was not danger she ran into but rather, another being. A child walked right into her. The Head of Slytherin's eyes narrowed in an instance. The girl was no older than twelve or thirteen from the looks of it. She did not instantly recognise her, meaning she was - at the very least - not a Slytherin.

Why did students insist on breaking the curfew in the middle of all of the danger? It seemed incredibly foolish to her. The curfew and rules were put in place for the safety of the students. Breaking it was just creating more work for professors and prefects, whilst putting yourself at risk.

Or... the student was up to something bad. There was very few reasons to be wondering around casually in the middle of the night. Students, unfortunately, breaking curfew had to be treated like suspects at the current time. She did not want that but it had to be done. Because she had to ensure she protected the innocent. Somehow, things were constantly going wrong in the castle and there had to be a way in. The students - and the professors alike - had to be suspected if they were doing something they should not be doing.

Hjørdis did not move as she was hit. Instead the other girl stepped back, "And what is it then, Miss...?" She paused, waiting for a name and a reason to explain why this student was wandering around in the middle of the night. Her expression was relatively blank, bar the narrowing of her eyes before quirking an eyebrow as the student was quick to claim it wasn't what it looked like.

@Hjørdis Jensen

Fidgeting with her hands was a habit Ivy had picked up in the last month or so, and one that she did subconsciously when faced with something panic-inducing. Being asked what she was doing late at night had caused her heart to race quickly again, and she seemed to be unable to speak, her voice catching in her throat. Something about admitting that she was having nightmares seemed like admitting a weakness - because in Ivy's eyes, fear was a weakness that should never be shared with others. If other people knew what you were scared of, it made it so much easier for them to hurt you.

She wrapped her arms around her stomach as if shielding herself from Professor Jensen's scrutinizing gaze, and took a deep breath, unwilling to reveal her name. Her name held the key to everything - her house, her year level, her reputation. She could make up a random name on the spot, but that would cause trouble in the future. No, the truth would come out sooner or later, and besides, these circumstances were already bad enough.

"Bellamy. Ivy Bellamy, Gryffindor," she finally said, her tone reluctant. "I was just..." Ivy paused, uneasy with revealing the fact that she had been woken up by a bad dream and unable to come up with any makeshift excuses. She looked down, avoiding Professor Jensen's eyes, and mumbled, "I had a nightmare." She didn't elaborate. Images of the hag flashed through her mind again, and she shivered violently. Why was she so affected by this? "I - I just needed to take a walk and clear my head." Her voice was soft, almost inaudible, and she hoped that the Slytherin Head wouldn't ask her to repeat herself. Admitting it once was enough for Ivy already. "That's all it is."

The Gryffindor looked up at Professor Jensen, hoping that she believed her. She knew with all the strange attacks happening around Hogwarts, the professors were less lenient, less trusting of those who were in the wrong place at the wrong time - and she could see how walking around the castle at night would appear suspicious. She must have been a strange sight to behold, with the thick coat thrown haphazardly over a nightgown and her hair plastered to the sides of her forehead and neck with sweat. Ivy clenched her fists tightly as she realized she was fidgeting, and stuffed them into her pockets. She wanted nothing more than to turn on her heel and run back to her dormitory, but her attire wasn't exactly best for running, and Professor Jensen already had her name and house as well.

Ivy's next words were spoken hesitantly. "Are - are you going to tell Professor Pendrast?" It wasn't so much that she was scared of her Head of House, it was more that there was a higher chance of her parents getting the information that their daughter was breaking rules if she was notified. Failing class was bad enough already, and an owl with the words "breaking rules" would push it right over the edge.

Hjørdis calmly watched the girl, observing her. The lady did not speak much, in general. She tended to focus on what the others were saying whilst watching them. People's behaviour often told you much more about them than their words did. It was very much the reason that she had spent many years practicing not displaying any noticeable signs. There were definitely signs that she still possessed but she had spent as much time as she could practicing and reducing her natural instincts to react.

It was why she stood there, straight and composed, simply watching the girl with a blank expression. Her hands did not move, her eyes did not flicker too much. The girl claimed to be a Gryffindor called Ivy Bellamy. Easily verifiable even if it was a lie. Hjørdis knew the Head of Houses very well, actually spending time with all of them now or then for that intention.

She quirked an eyebrow. Nightmare. The girl claimed to be having a nightmare and had decided to go for a walk as a result. Miss Bellamy mumbled, shivered, speaking so softly that Hjørdis almost missed what she was trying to say. If it was not for the silence of the otherwise empty corridors, Hjørdis likely would have missed it. The Head of Slytherin stood there silently for a moment, taking the information in and processing it.

After everything that had happened in the school, breaking curfew was not something she tolerated. It was for the student's safety, after all. Hjørdis wanted to protect them. She did not admit it openly; people likely thought the exact opposite. However, everything she did was for the students. She wanted to protect them. It was that simple. But an issue arose in situations like this. Did she protect their physical health or their mental? The girl was clearly suffering. It could have been a lie, of course. The possibility that Ivy was a very good actor was there. But if this was true, if none of this was a lie... the girl needed help.

Hjørdis stayed silent for a moment longer. It was likely only a few moments but to the girl, it might have felt like a lifetime of being judged under the professor's blank gaze. "I will have likely have to, yes." She instructed honestly. It was imperative that the Heads of the four houses communicated together where it was important. If there was a chance that Ivy would leave again and again, Elaine needed to know. For Ivy's sake.

"Walk with me," She instructed her abruptedly. It was more of a command than a question, to be honest. However, Hjørdis had her reasons.

She did not want the girl to be forced back into her dorms and risk her leaving again. She also did not want her to sit in her dorms, panicked and worried and scared. Hjørdis had made a decision. The corridors were likely empty, to be honest. Nothing really happened during most of the patrols, luckily.

The Head of Slytherin started to walk down the corridor. It looked like she was not going to stop to wait for the girl to walk beside her but to be honest, she would have dragged her by the ear if she had to.

@Hjørdis Jensen
sorry for the wait!

Of all people, why, why, why did it have to be Professor Jensen that she bumped into? Why couldn't it have been someone else? Ivy rarely came across her, and while she wouldn't say she avoided her, she certainly kept her distance semi-consciously. Despite appearing unfrazzled by everyone and everything to her peers, Ivy was actually scared of a lot of things. Nice people, smart people, but most of all, people like Professor Jensen, who never let their emotions show.

To be honest, Ivy was a little similar to her in that way. While she wasn't completely blank, she didn't like to show how she felt to other people unless they had earned her trust. Maybe that was why she was so intimidated by Professor Jensen. People like her could see through the fronts others put up. The fronts Ivy put up.

Or maybe it was just the blank, judgemental stares that Professor Jensen gave. Ivy looked down hastily, avoiding her gaze, chewing her lip anxiously as she waited for a response. She could practically feel her eyes boring into her, and the Gryffindor's stomach flipped. Just say something, oh my God... In reality, it was only a couple of seconds before Professor Jensen spoke, but in Ivy's mind, it was much, much longer than that.

Her shoulders slumped slightly at the reply, although she wasn't quite sure what she had expected. Of course she had to tell Professor Pendrast, why had Ivy thought differently? "Ok," she said in a small voice. There were a few extra seconds of silence until Professor Jensen spoke again. Ivy looked up, surprised at the request. Walk with me. The Slytherin Head was already walking away; it was rather obvious she would not wait. "Wh-?" This was definitely not what she had expected. Perhaps detention or a lecture. Definitely not this. "Walk?"

Ivy ran to catch up, unsure of what Professor Jensen hoped to achieve. "I, um, where are we g - why - are you -" She stopped, realising that there was no way that any sane person would be able to interpret that. "Why are we walking?" she finally said.

Her sneakers tapped softly against the stone floor. The footsteps were almost inaudible, even in the quiet of the corridors. She kind of liked that, to be honest. The usual sound of her heels tapping was one that she encouraged but this method was far more sneaky. Situations like this could arise much more when people did not actually hear you coming. Though, she was not dressed as such to catch students. Rather, to catch intruders and to be able run faster. Admittedly, she could run in heels but it was always far easier in proper footwear.

Despite the fact that she looked like she was not going to stop for Ivy, Hjørdis actually slowed down a little to allow the gryffindor student to catch up. Once the younger girl was by her side, she maintained a reasonable speed so she could easily keep up without feeling like they were marching around. It was not a casual stroll, of course but certainly at a more comfortable pace than a brisk walk.

"Because I need to patrol and you needed a walk to clear your head, so you may as well accompany me," She replied in a matter of fact tone, as though that was the most obvious solution here as she echoed back Ivy's own words to her. To be fair, Hjørdis had little left to patrol. But nonetheless, she kept the facade instead of forcing the child to go back to bed - especially when she knew that the girl would likely not actually be able to sleep. She paused for a moment before continuing to answer her first question - despite how incoherent it was. Perhaps any sane person could not interpret it but... whoever said Hjørdis was sane? "And you'll see where we're going shortly," She added, her tone softening a little.

Hjørdis would turn, make her way up a set of stairs before continuing down another corridor. Of course, the implication would be that Ivy followed wherever she went. "This nightmare... Do you often experience them?" She asked after some moments - almost rather unexpectedly, wondering if this was the first time that the girl had had a nightmare or if this was a reoccurring one that bothered her for some time. For perhaps the first time in the interaction, her tone far softer than it had been before.

@Hjørdis Jensen

In contrast to the soft tapping of Professor Jensen's shoes, Ivy dragged her feet a little, her slippers making uneven shuffling noises as she walked. She was still panicking, and was following the Slytherin Head only because she had to. If Professor Jensen was going to give her detention, couldn't she do it now instead of forcing her to walk with her? Ivy hated being kept in suspense, preferring that answers were given quickly and in the most straightforward way possible. She avoided Professor Jensen's gaze, choosing to focus on the corridor they were passing through.

The castle was a strange place at night. It was usually so noisy, but now it was almost completely silent other than the sound of their footsteps. It was odd to see what the corridors looked like without all the bustling students passing through. The Gryffindor had never really taken much notice of them; she always rushed from one classroom to another as quickly as possible, trying to avoid the loudness of the crowds. Even if she had walked slowly, she wouldn't have been able to properly look at it with all the other students there. It was rather dark, the small torches on the walls not doing the best job of lighting the corridor up, and Ivy noted that the inhabitants of the portraits seemed to all be asleep. It was as though she and Professor Jensen were the only people awake in the world.

Ivy didn't quite know what to think of the Slytherin Head echoing her own words back at her. She got the impression that the answer to her question was obvious, and her pale cheeks turned pink in embarrassment. There was a slight pause as Professor Jensen seemed to interpret Ivy's unfinished question, then answered it. Ivy didn't say anything, unsure of how to respond. Really, how were people supposed to have a conversation with this woman?

They went up a flight of stairs, Ivy trailing behind a little reluctantly. Wait a minute. Her footsteps slowed slightly, and she looked down the corridor from the step she was standing on. She knew this route! Either they were going back to Gryffindor, or... "A-are you going to throw me off the North Tower?" she inquired all of a sudden, regarding Professor Jensen with suspicion. She climbed up the last few stairs slowly, grey eyes narrowed slightly. Honestly, you could not trust anyone these days.

Ivy took a sharp intake of breath at the Slytherin Head's sudden question. Not only was the topic something she preferred not to talk about, but her tone had also softened considerably. Something about that made Ivy squirm. Honestly, she would have preferred she stayed emotionless and asked no questions. The tension in her shoulders increased, her mouth pinched together tightly, her eyes flickered to watch the ground. Ivy didn't want to answer, but she couldn't not answer, could she? She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but nothing would come. "I..." Just answer the question! "Yeah," she stammered quietly. "Yeah. I don't - I don't know how to make them go away."

The silence was likely deafening to the student. But it was not to the Head of Slytherin. Silence was actually one of the most underappreciated things there was. It was the calm before the storm. Or in the case of Hogwarts, the calm after multiple storms and before the next one. Hjørdis was not a foolish lady by any means. She did not believe that the storm was truly over. Perhaps it never would be. But she appreciated the few moments of silence in between.

They continued to walk. The dread likely filling Ivy's heart every moment that Hjørdis was silent. But she said nothing. Not until the Gryffindor student spoke up, voicing her inquiry. Quirking her left eyebrow, she continued to walk without even looking at Ivy. It was a rather interesting question to ask. Direct, bold and rather telling of her personality or the fears or thoughts running through her mind. Gryffindor was an accurate house, for the young Miss Bellamy, it would seem. "No. The Astronomy Tower is higher," Hjørdis replied in a matter of fact tone as she turned suddenly and walked down the corridor.

The North Tower was high, of course. But she would much rather throw someone off the Astronomy Tower - take in the beautiful view whilst doing it. She appreciated the finer things in life, after all - such as the beauty in nature. "Is it the same one over and over or...?" Hjørdis asked as she continued to walk.

She stopped abruptly, at a door. "In here, Miss Bellamy," Hjørdis pushed open the door, holding it open for the student before stepping inside after her.

[THREAD LEFT - Continued here]