The Dip PV Rafael D’Spacito Closed

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Interacting With: @Maria Dee
Mentioning: Gem Stuart • Jo Morgan

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[font=Segoe Print]It was a ruddy wonderful afternoon, Rafael had long since decided, a perfect study day if he’d ever seen one– the air was fresh, a light southward breeze blowing through the air, the gentle rays of the sun falling gently upon the children of Hogwarts in a warm, comforting blanket, painting the countryside in a mural of green and gold. April’s was almost over, taking with it all its gloom and tears, leaving behind a beautiful sort of outdoors, a scene the child hadn’t seen for quite the long time – the birds sang brightly in the air, torrents of insects buzzing through the newly-sprouted flowers, a multitude of colors painting the grass in every spectrum of the rainbow. There was not a cloud in the sky, nor a shade of ominous gray looming in the heavens – it seemed as if the universe could stretch on forever before his eyes, leaving the young boy to ponder his very existence on the earth.

The Gryffindor could do nothing to fight his animal instincts, could only succumb to the day’s call, allowing himself to be drawn toward the outdoors, its gentle rays, crisp breeze, alluring beauty. Having just escaped from the confines of his last class, he’d made quick work of heading to the dormitories, tying on his grass-stained shoes and throwing on his signature red hoodie, before quickly escaping into the lovely April air, the very environment bringing a bright glint to his eyes and a wide grin on his face. There was no squelch beneath his feet as he treaded upon the soft grass, nor a breath of humid air coming to meet his lungs, which was certainly a comforting fact, one that did nothing to bring down his bright mood. Perhaps there was nothing, no ill tone, nor sour words that could cloud the proverbial ray of sunshine over his head, brightening his livelihood with its gentle grasp and warm tendencies. The day was certainly too lovely for such antics.

Hood up over his head and arms clad with books, he stepped quickly, eyes carefully searching for the place in which he was to study – in specific, a tree hanging over the Great Lake. Such a tree certainly carried a multitude of memories, good vibes if you will. After all, it was where he’d asked his first boyfriend out on a date, and the same tree he and Jo had climbed together during the Christmas errand, in search of the items to design an optimal wreath. It was also the destination in which he studied just about every weekday, as the courtyard was far to busy, as was the Quidditch Pitch and campgrounds. However, it was slightly enraging, the amount of effort it took to find such a destination – where was the tree? This seemed to happen every time, in the midst of his merry trekking. All trees looked the same, as it seemed, which made locating his special place harder and harder with each walk he too. His eyes searched outdoors in vain, a frown only growing on his face. Where was his hideway? The damned tree that seemed to disappear every time he searched for it?

It certainly wasn’t long before his eyes had brushed the lovely tree – along with a rather pretty girl inhabiting where he usually sat, looking out into the lake or working on homework, or whatever the hell she was doing. He couldn’t quite make her out from the distance he stood – what he could clearly make out, was the feeling of dread that crept up into his stomach at the very sight of such a perpetrator, eyes narrowing in the slightest. There was something purely irritating about the sight of the girl, a feeling that stirred in his stomach and aggravated his senses to no end. He could feel his cordiality trickling away slightly, his fingers twitching, his lip bit between his teeth in thought as he grasped at his control of impulse. Who was this person, to inhabit a place that was, by all means, his? Who did they think they were?

It wasn’t until he’d gotten closer, that he could put a name to the face – “Mulan?” he couldn’t help but voice aloud, an eyebrow raised in slight surprise as a small grin grew on his face. Was it that his Tug of War Teamie was the supposed perpetrator? A smile crept upon his features about then, his eyes gleaming in excitement. He’d been wanting to talk to this girl for a while, as she certainly had served their merry crew well all those many days ago. However, that wasn’t to say that he was to disregard her blatant intrusion of his space – “What are you doing here? That’s my study spot, yeah?” [/font]

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Interacting With: @Maria Dee
Mentioning: N/A

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[font=Segoe Print]“Territorial. Why am I not surprised?”

There was something in the way the girl spoke, some sort of sarcastic edge to her voice, bite to her tone, that seemed to tug at something in the back of the young Captain’s head, sending the hairs on his neck bristling, his gaze sharpening in the slightest at the sound of her wry words. What was she going on about, now? Territorial, pfft. He wasn’t territorial, only protective of what was his – there was a difference, obviously. At least, he thought there was… what did territorial mean, again? English was too confusing, he’d long since decided, a real mess of a language, one that gave him a migraine just about every other day. He’d probably have to pull up a dictionary later and redefine the word. Or maybe he wouldn’t – he was never wrong. It wasn’t like him. If anything, this gild had been dropped as a baby, and was speaking in tongues. Delusional. What other explanation would fit the issue?

“You’re right,” he countered back seamlessly, an easy smile coming over his features as he batted his eyelashes at her in flirty way. Of course, he wasn’t actually interested – no, such actions were simply a seamless façade, a mask put up in order to psychologically confuse his rather cute opponent. Stepping forward, he closed his eyes, shrugging easily as his lips pursed, almost in a wry way. “I don’t own everything the light touches. Just this tree. Here’s a thought,” he opened his eyes once more, jutting his chin in the girl’s direction, “Does everything you own have your name on it? Your clothes? Pets? Room? No?” It was then that he began messing with the drawstrings of his hoodie. “Suppose it would be a strange world, when a title should decree ownership.”

“And contrary to popular belief,” he added, blinking at her once more as he stepped ever-closer to the lovely tree, “I don’t ‘trick’ anyone into dating me. It’s called being good-looking. You should really try it sometime.” God, she was definitely trying it. His eyes flickered downwards in an attempt to evade her attraction – his smile never faded, giving the allusion of a wry look. “I’m a bachelor. You’ve got eyes, right?” He had absolutely zero doubt regarding what he looked like – he saw that handsome face every day in the mirror, genetic perfection, everything a man would wish to look like and more. What kind of loser would assume his lovely personality was a trick? Please, the girl acted as if she knew him.

“This isn’t your territory, so if you don’t like it why don’t you and your hot head take a dip in the lake to cool off, hm?”

“Now why would I want to do that?” the Gryffindor mused, stepping forward so that his hand touched the rough bark of the tree. Such words from Mulan were definitely curious, and for a moment, the boy pondered how to respond, brow furrowed and lip bit wryly. “I mean, for one, I know my head is hot. All of me is hot, that’s not exactly a secret.” He wiggled his eyes at the indication, the grin continuing to pull at his lips as he stared up at the girl in the tree. “Two, there’s plenty of room for me up there, yeah? Would you be a dear, scoot over?”

Before asking for permission from the lovely Mulan, he tucked his notebook under his chin, his hands grasping the branches as he hoisted himself into the tree with practiced ease, scouting out the quickest route up. The limb the girl sat on was narrower than he’d originally anticipated, a fact that was slightly disheartening – no matter, he’d make do. His foot digging into the rough bark, he curtly reached her height, worming his way beside her, taking the materials from his chin and placing them simply on his lap. Then, putting his hands behind his head, he smiled wryly, glancing over at the girl he had gotten rather acquainted with. “This is comfy, isn’t it? Sharing is more fun then it looks, huh?” [/font]

“This is comfy, isn’t it? Sharing is more fun then it looks, huh?”

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Interacting With: @Maria Dee
Mentioning: N/A

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[font=Segoe Print]At the very sound of the Hufflepuff’s words, the Gryffindor Captain couldn’t help the bout of amusement that flooded his chest, choking all rational thought and leaving him positively teeming in elation – a smug, shit-eating grin soon made it onto his face, eyes sparkling in mischief as he leaned back, jutting his chin up at the girl sitting quite literally right next to him. She thought he was cute, huh. It really wasn’t all that surprising, but still, the idea did little to suppress his only growing ego. And she tries to deny her own hormones. It was cheeky, enough to warrant a pang of attraction from the heart of the Gryffindor. But not enough to act on. He definitely liked her in some sort of way, perhaps comparable to a lion eying his dinner. She’s shown weakness, and he was keen on using it for his own amusement.

This would be fun.

He would cross his arms, teeth glinting in the bright grin he was portraying, his mind racing for the words to counter her pathetic verbal attack. He’d always been a man of action, the plan spinning in his head portraying just that trait. It would be all too easy to continue the casual banter, entertain her with his presence, but to be completely honest, he was beginning to get bored. It was time for some fun, the sort that would satiate his need for conflict as much as irritate the girl of whom he shared the tree with. His words would flow off his tongue, perfectly executed in smoothness, hindered in the slightest by his Argentine accent. “You sure you don’t want to stay?” he smiled, in the most charming, subtlely seductive way possible, making quick work to squish up closer to her. Rubbing it in. “Is that… really what you want, to leave? I can’t be that bad of company, now, can I?”

He looked down, chewing his lip, as if considering his next action carefully. When, in reality, he knew exactly what he was to do. Without waiting for an answer, he would look up, giving her an easy, innocent look, shrugging his shoulders, palms facing up. “Well, it seems you’ve made up your mind. If you’re going to leave, I can help you.”

They were simple kindly words – for any ordinary person, it may take a moment for what he was saying to register. Though, surely no human would be able to anticipate his next movements in time. His hands would extend outwards, palms meeting the girl’s side as he shoved her quickly, pushing the girl into the pristine, calm waters below. Whether she fought back wouldn’t matter much, the boy had already scooted into her seat – there was only one direction to go. He shortly closed his eyes, feeling the splatter of water on his face, before looking upon the cool waves once more, and the girl that was now inhabiting them. The shit-eating grin promptly returned, and he wiggled his eyebrows, gazing upon his acquaintance in a smug sort of way. “How’s the water?” he shouted, trying his hardest to rub it in. At this point, there wasn't as much fear regarding his own health, as there was a need to provoke a reaction from the girl. And hell, if she didn't give him one now. [/font]

Interaction: @Rafael D'Spacito

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Interacting With: @Maria Dee
Mentioning: N/A

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[font=Segoe Print]“WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!”

Admittingly, a lot was wrong with the Gryffindor Captain. Like his insane attraction to anything with two legs and a half-decent face. His need to punch anything that managed to disrespect him. His lack of remorse, regarding the girl he’d just soaked in the choppy, wind-swept waters of the Great Lake below him. Everyone had problems, but Rafa just didn’t hide them – imperfections were the best, something to be modeled, something to be proud of. And, to anyone who had a head on their shoulders, it would be apparent that there was no shortage of pride when it came to the cocky Gryffindor. But that wasn’t relevant right now. The boy’s eyes trained on the pretty Asian girl below, he couldn’t help the surge of amusement that rushed through his chest, nor could he stifle the laugh that erupted from the contents of his throat – he was cackling like a maniac, eyes squeezed shut and a smug-ass grin on his face as he hugged the branch he inhabited for dear life, sobbed his amusement into the lake below him. It was priceless, her face, the surprise and anger he had so gracefully warranted. Well, mate, he reasoned, look like this one was a success. One for the books.

However, his views of the situation would shortly change – the girl was taunting him into the waters, and doing a great job at it. “GET DOWN HERE AN FACE ME, BLATCH BOY! Or is the little captain you scared of a little water?” Ah, well. Sobering up a bit, the boy’s laughter stifled in his throat, he rested his chin on the branch, considering the words of the girl in the water. He’d never been afraid of a little challenge, he supposed. What was a little water? Besides, he could certainly have fun with such a request. Make her a bit uncomfortable, maybe. The girl would most likely be able to tell right away, that something was up, by the evil smirk that was playing on his lips, mischievous look in his eye. “Fine!” he would quickly concede into the waters below, releasing his grip on the limb and climbing onto his forearms as to push himself to his feet. The second tell she would be able to notice, would be his hands reaching for the bottoms of his hoodie – he would make quick work of stripping it off, rolling it into a ball and chucking it to the soft green grass below. His shoes shortly followed. His jeans were all that had remained, the barefoot and shirtless boy gazing downwards maniacally, balancing on the edge of the limb as he reared backwards, using the tree as momentum to jump –

“CANNONBALL!”

He was airbourne for one, sweet moment, before the water shortly met him in a wet hug, splashing beneath him in ripples where he plummeted. He would shortly resurface, hair matting his face –pushing it backwards, his hair slicked back, he would finally have a moment to properly look around, in search for his water adversary. Whether he would have a moment to react or not, to whatever monstrosities the girl pitch against him in his moment of unawareness, that was up with his Mulan… [/font]

Good anger control was one of the qualities Maria prided herself in. She wasn’t entirely above taunting as she had displayed earlier in this interaction, but she usually knew when to calm herself down, take a step back, and learn to be the bigger person. Her father, a patient man (which he had to be because while her mother was a nice lady, she was a spitfire and in the occasion her rage would come out it rivaled the heat of a thousand suns only calmed by the stillness of someone who actually had control over their own feelings), taught her to be the bigger person and to walk away from conflict. Her mother on the other hand, would say that it’s not wrong to defend yourself (also adding that sometimes, you have to finish the fight even if you started it, but dad didn’t need to know that. But the young girl herself always believed to take the diplomatic approach as her eleven year old maturity decided that only children were petty.

Well today, it appeared she was going to be a child.

After a brief moment of confusion as to why the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain was taking off his shirt and shoes, she realized her taunt had worked. Oh, he was so going down – literally. Realizing that he may be going in for a canon ball, she swam backwards and quickly dove down before he hit the water. Her swimming experience did not fail her, and she maneuvered flawlessly through the water. Alright, it was time to teach this boy how aggressive badgers can be. Circling back, she saw that he was now treading around, probably wondering where she was – and he was about to find out. Propelling herself behind him she gave his ankle a sharp tug, attempting to drag him under water.

If her plan worked, she would have pulled him a few feet before letting him go, then swimming up to the surface herself to revel in her victory and rub it in his smug face.

That ought to teach him.

OOC: Permission to godmod obtained from Rafa

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Interacting With: @Maria Dee
Mentioning: N/A
Hex Color: #800000

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Well, to put it simply, Rafael was not at all prepared for the atrocities Maria had in store for him.

Or, to be more specific, the child was not at all prepared for the shock that was Maria’s assault – after all, it was no secret that, above all else, the Gryffindor despised that which he could not see or determine with stark certainty. Which was okay… few people were fearless, even fewer with a happy past. This fear, in particular, was deep-seated in the back of his brain, a result of having lived on the streets for a good portion of his life, his existence a pattern of always having to look over his shoulder, wondering if someone was going to hurt him, jump him, take his things… that life had been scary. Now, living at Hogwarts and learning of the multiple mysteries circulating the halls, the child supposed his fear had never left his subconsciousness, instead a fire that was gently stoked by the mysterious third party that was the school of magic. Hard-wired in the Captain’s brain, the fear of the unknown was so fierce that, in the midst of a rush, it was difficult to see, think, move. A sort of panic attack, if you would... except it wasn’t. In panic attacks, you felt fear. In this peculiar rush of hormones, you felt… nothing.

Treading on the water was none too hard, the Captain couldn’t help but notice with a wry smirk as he looked around his lovely surroundings, searching quietly for his opponent – having lived near the beach for a good portion of his eleven years, it was simply a way of life, knowing how to commute in the water. However, this wasn’t Buenas Aires. In fact, the boy couldn’t have anticipated the danger he’d put himself in by traversing the deadly waters, nor could he have predicted the harsh and merciless actions of the vengeful Hufflepuff he’d thrown into the waves mere moments prior… but he would learn. Oh, Universe-Be-Damned, he would learn. It would take only a moment for the child to register the absolutely chilling grip fastened tightly around his ankle, another to realize he hadn’t taken a breath before the water had submerged his face, his eyes wide and searching wildly for nothing at all as he was pulled deeper and deeper into the lake. There would be no time for thinking, no inward laughter, nothing but chilling, terrifying fear, and then… nothing. He was numb. His mind was blank. Where was he? What was going on again? Why couldn’t he move? Breathe?

As the moments ticked on painfully slowly, there was a split-second of a moment where the boy merely existed underneath the ripples, not dead, but not quite alive, in a mental sense of thinking. His mind, void of rational thought, was an expanse of blinding white, a sea stretching for miles on end, his consciousness a solitary island surrounded by thick, suffocating fog. There was nothing. No one. No existence.

Rafael.

Is that you, universe? The boy asked the voice quietly. Have you finally come to take me?

No, the voice answered, a bit miffed. It’s your common sense, ya moron. You really need to consult me more often. Then, Feel that hand on your leg? Rafael didn’t. Exactly. How about you stop dying and swim to the surface already?

Wow, his common sense seemed pretty damn pissed. He’d better listen to it, then. Shaking his head and picking off the tendrils of sleep clawing at his consciousness, he quickly liberated his mind from the shocking result of Maria’s assault, his muscles springing to life in a moment as to claw at the water surrounding him in an attempt to reach the surface. It would only take a moment – to the average onlooker, one would surely notice the first few small ripples bounce across the flat-topped water, before the surface would explode into action, the wet head of the Quidditch Captain breaking into the open air and greeting the world with an angry gaze. It was funny, there were things some people took for granted. However, Rafael would never underestimate the value of air again. In fact, it seemed as if he couldn’t have enough of it, the child taking deep gaping doses of the substance, as fast and consistent as he could fill his lungs. It was perfect. It was liberating. It was all he could focus on for a few short moment, until his eyes caught a familiar face, long black hair, tan skin, pretty brown eyes –

Maria.

There was something so acutely… disarming about the way the girl smirked, her face a stark portrait of the triumph she surely felt for her ill-mannered offensive attempt against the Captain, a sort of look about her that set off every alarm in the Gryffindor’s head, his stomach twisting in anger and distaste as a scowl slowly crawled over his features. She had won the battle, he couldn’t help but think with a pang of embarrassment. That was simply the fact of the matter, and there was nothing he could do to change it. However, that wasn’t to say that the war was over. The Hufflepuff had had her fun – now, it was time for revenge. His fists clenched, eyes narrowed in contempt, an inkling of an idea began to manifest in his mind, an evil grin blossoming across his face. No one got the jump on him like that and got away with it. “Fine,” he mused nonchalantly, much like one genius billionaire playboy philanthropist, shrugging as his face melted into something more amicable. “You want to play dirty? Well, the gloves are off.”

He would offer no further time to allow the comment to sink into the mind of his opponent, his arms immediately slapping together as to create a massive tidal wave of water – a mere distraction. Should it work, in the midst of the Hufflepuff’s discombobulation, the Captain would reach out, gently but firmly latching his hand onto Maria’s wrist and proceeding to pull her forcefully though the water. Not jerkily enough to endanger her health, but hopefully enough to give her a right scare…