Book of Love PV Bloom Finished

Bloom was just confusing him more and more. It wasn't enough that Ben struggled to even see her. She was trying to be kind. He knew it was best for them to be apart but he wasn't mature enough to keep up that front for long. Her desire being made obvious just made him want to risk it all. The mask demanded pain even after it was long gone. Ben hardly could put her at risk, but he also wanted to be with her.

"You'd risk yourself to be with me? I don't know if I feel good about it," He replied quietly, swallowing a hard gulp as the tears tried to push out again. "The last thing I wanted... last thing I want now... would be for you to stay away. But... maybe... it's for the best."

It hurt so bad to say it yet again. The pain Ben felt in saying that out loud was worse than anything he had felt beforehand. Bloom was his first girlfriend and he had daydreamed of her being the last too. Silly 12 year old emotions and lack of world knowledge. Ben glanced over to his girlfriend... ex girlfriend... maybe girlfriend... whatever she was.

"What if the mask comes back and I hurt you? What if the bad people come back for me and you're in their way?" His voice picked up, but still not too loud. "As much as I want to stay together, it scares me that you might be harmed. If you want to take the risk I... I'd like it... but I could never ask that of you."

The boy began to fidget with his hands nervously. He hated this entire situation so much. Would this be a time of pain that led to them being closer? His mom said that arguments made couples closer sometimes. Was this an argument? Ben was a little unsure of what to call this. He had been a horrible friend, not to mention the boyfriend aspect. Why was she being so accepting of him?

The answers Ben gave Bloom were circling round and around. There was no common area for them to decide upon: should they stay together or should they be apart? They obviously want to be together, but the underlying tone that she was getting (and feeling) was that it was better to be apart. Does Bloom really want to bet her chances of getting hurt? Granted, even when he was "the mask" she never got hurt to begin with. But was that something she should be taking a chance on?

Shaking her head, she knew what she had to do. Although she wanted to be there for him, she couldn't put herself in dangers way and he had been telling her to leave him every moment he responded to her. Perhaps she should listen to him...

"I want to be there for you, Ben. But... I don't know how I can. This is all too much," she said without thinking. She looked down to the carpeted floors of the library. Dust bunnies forming in the corner across from them. "What if you hurt me?" she asked, wondering about the idea of their relationship going sour because of whatever was happening to him. Even she did not entirely understand.

Bloom took in a deep breath. "I want to take the risk... But I can't," she said, tears rolling down her face fast the moment she said those words. It pained her that she was unable to be strong enough for Ben. "I love you, Ben. I'll always love you, but I can't. This is too much for me," she said, wiping her tears with the sleeve of her navy robe. Her mind whirled. She needed to leave as it was too much and the more she stayed, the more she would want to be with him-- which is truly what she wants, but it was not the time.

"I'm sorry, Ben," she said, and she soon got up and quickly walked away. At the end of the aisle, she looked back at what was perhaps now her ex-boyfriend and instantly turned to run out of the library. She made her way to the Ravenclaw Common Rooms, into her dormitory and cried out all that she could of this event.

[Bloom has left the scene]

NPC: Unknown Student

It was the first night of school. Most students were probably busy unpacking or hanging out in their dorms, excited to see their friends after the summer break. He had heard some rumours of some textbooks belonging to former students that had been donated to the library, that had additional notes on it. There was no way of knowing if these were true or not but apparently, the extra notes would certainly be useful for the coming year. It would help him to pass the exams that he was constantly struggling with.

The library was quiet, of course. It was late and far too early for students to be studying. He thought he had the advantage by coming here early. He would be able to grab all of the useful second hand textbooks he could find and avoid having to work hard at all Even Ravenclaws did not study on their first night. The library would be empty. Or so he thought. Scanning the shelf in front of him for the charms textbook that he required, he paused as he overheard voices.

‘Eurgh’ was all he could think as he heard a female voice start barking. Something pathetic. About love. The older student could not help but roll his eyes as the voices sounded so dramatic. He did not care what happened. Perhaps one lied to the other, cheated on them or broke up with them. He did not care much for their bickering. Whatever it was, he was sure it would be something boring and lame. That was until he heard something of interest.

"The Ben you knew last year, after Easter, was not me. My body was... I was... a magical mask took me over. I hurt people... I still could..."

His eyes widened slightly. A male voice was claiming to have hurt people. The word ‘mask’ caught his attention. There had been rumours, unconfirmed by any Professor, of a masked figure going around late at night. Towards the end of last year, students claimed to have been attacked by a masked man. The colour drained from his face.

Was this boy admitting the rumours were true?

Was he the masked man?

Peering through the books, he tried to spot their faces. They looked familiar but he could not quite place them. They wore Ravenclaw house robes. Students that appeared to be younger than him. He called her Bloom. She called him Ben. A gasp almost escaped his lips as it dawned on him. Ex-Ravenclaw Prefects, Bloom and Ben… He knew they looked familiar.

Prefects were role models… Or so, the rest of the student body believed. And yet… One of them was claiming to be the masked figure that haunted other students for months? Those rumours were… true? It could not be… He never believed the rumours but this boy - this former Prefect of all people was claiming it was true. That he was responsible.

The two former role model Prefects were hiding in a quiet place, just before curfew. The female did not even seem phased by this news. Did she know? Did it mean this was true?

Looking around carefully, he tried to find a way to sneak past the couple. He wanted to get away, unnoticed. That was his only goal now. If this boy was capable of hurting people, there was no way he would be safe if he caught him. Quietly, he stepped away from the shelf after sliding the book back into the place. He sunk down onto the floor, avoiding detection as he tried to steady his breathe and this awful news.

These… rumours were true. The horrible dark rumours of a masked man attacking students was all true. It was a student, no else. A former student that was granted the title of ‘Prefect’ by the professors. Were the teachers here at Hogwarts corrupt too? Did they all practice dark arts too? Or did they simply not care?

The Professors must have known and yet, they let him stay here? They did not expel him? So many questions flooded to the boy’s mind. He did not know what to do. Who could he trust? The teachers were meant to protect them… They had failed to do that. He was on his own. The students were all on their own. They needed to know. Everyone needed to know the truth. The danger they were under. They needed to know, they had the right to know. It was only fair and it was his job to tell everyone.