Broken books Finished

“Shut up girl.”

He did not say that to Erin but rather Ariella. Erin's brows raised as she listened to the tone, felt the cold hail inside of him. Oh he felt good. "Howard" was finally emerging. "Howard" was what Erin was feeling bubbling just beneath the surface. It was understandable that Howard hid behind a mask. "Howie" was gentle, polite, kind and 'good.' "Howie" was also always afraid, but Erin could sense no fear in "Howard." She felt his ire, his elation, this incredible rush of power that came with this release. She was responsible for this this sensation, this brutal ecstasy. "Howie" was a survival mechanism. A face he chose as he repressed his true nature beneath a guise of compliance and conformity. His soul was no longer malingering. 


“What good?” 

There was some contention regarding the value of Howard's actions. Perhaps Thomas saw right through her. He knew that there was a reason that Erin wanted this. It had to be more than pure masochism or self-hatred. Perhaps Thomas was a good boy wearing the skin of a lone wolf with the sort of bad-attitude face you would see on a deviant leaned against the back of the school. 

“Don’t you see it Thomas? I feared it too before, but now I see its true meaning. Look at her.” 

Howard's arms spread out to either side as to showcase the scene before him. Erin got what she wanted from him. Hopefully she was prepared for the consequences thereof.

“Look what I have done!” 

Howard had gone at least partially mad. Good. That means that the structure that once rested upon Howard’s strong foundation had finally been demolished. It was time to clear the rubble and rebuild. 

“She is my enemy, and I have the power to stop her! The consequences are irrelevant, Thomas!”

And stop her he had. They could break her. Well, her body in any case. Her mind was another fickle matter. 

Lestrange was a different creature. Thomas was trying to bury his truth deeper. That pain and fire and blood that she did not think but rather KNEW defined him. It was not surfacing like Howard's was. Little did Erin know, it was there. That the lone snake had no mask, he was alone for a reason. That his wrath was not as physical as LeStrange's ally. That Thomas was going to willingly play her game. He intended to destroy her for what was if one thought about it a trivial offense. Erin had won just then without knowing.

“I don’t need your fucking permission!”

Howard was lashing out verbally at his allies. Isolating himself as he drowned in his own power.

Her hand gripped Howard's. Comparatively his flesh felt hot to her. With a tug that strained her shoulder she would be pulled upwards. Erin grit her teeth and let out a pained hiss through a clenched jaw. The girl tried to stand, her bare feet slipped from beneath her. A streak of red traced the path of her heel. Howard's other hand gripped the collar of her hospital gown and forced her to her feet and then beyond. As the gown tightened around her neck like a drawstring she found the strength for a short-lived struggle as she tried to release her hand from his grip and with her free hand attemped to claw at his forearm. 

Her toes left the floor as she reached eye-level with the maddened Hufflepuff. Howard (per previous thread reference) was nearly a head taller than Erin. Their difference in size more noticeable in this moment. Erin could barely breathe, but she was able to muster the wind somehow to whisper that she always gets what she wants. 

“Not today, Erin.” 

Howard was defying her. His maker. As if he could... 

She was destroying Howie, building a better man from the sum of the parts Howie left behind. Howard was dangerous, perhaps more so than Erin had anticipated. There was this welling sense of panic as breath was almost denied. She had almost reached the climax of feeling something once again. Like it was for Howard, an addiction... a need. Yet it was more a tease for Erin, dancing on the precipice of death and defeat to feel something but twice on this day she felt something. 

But she would have likely gotten herself killed had she been alone. She might have went too far. Thankfully Ariella was there.

“Guys! Calm down. If you’re still here, you’re hurt okay? So just...tone it down.”


She was more than a voice of reason, she was also a witness. 

“Not today then...darling.” 

She would feel a chill run through her as he said that. Thrice it was. If he was a pureblood and if she was capable, she might have fallen in love with her creation. He was perfect. Howard would fling, well 'push' the ninety pound girl away. She would land sideways on the mattress, gasping for air. She never blacked out, but she wished she had. It was as if the bones that were already were broken were rattling inside of her. Her head, which was still bleeding throbbed intensely and there was this heaviness in the pit of her stomach left from her intimate moment with Howard. She was not entirely sure how to define it. Had she, she would have identified it as a sense of trepidation.

Was it over? 

"Stop. Howie, stop. Just stop it! All of you! Why the fuck are we here? Why does this need to happen?" 

Ariella was trying to stop the madness. 

"I hate this! I hate you. I hate you all. I even hate myself, now! ...We're crazy, aren't we? We're so damn broken it's sad. I doubt that you could deny it, and even if you did, I don't care. I've stopped caring now."

She claimed, but found herself on the floor out of Erin's sight. The Ravenclaw physically echoing perhaps Howie's metaphorical collapse and death. Of course there were still matters to attend to as Howard left the bleeding Slytherin on that bed. Erin challenged Ariella to finish what Howard failed to do.

"Gladly."

Ariella acquiesced. How quickly the girl deviated from the path of mediator, the voice of reason. There did not seem to be a discernable logic to this transition. Book in hand, she made her approach. "Still angry..." Erin murmured, turning her head towards Ariella. Her vision was blurred but she could see the flesh-colored blur approaching with a dyed leather tome in hand.

Thomas intervened for whatever reason. She would not understand why he intervened. Was it some misplaced sense of chivalry. The book was knocked from the first year's hand and it bounced off the side of the bed and onto the floor.

"What? What the hell? Are you trying to protect her or something?  Look at her. You're just going to help her? After all the damn threats? After what she has done? I see that now, and here you are, protecting her?"

Ariella was trying to prove a point. Either that or Ariella really felt that Erin was some sort of monster in her bloodied and broken state. What had Erin actually done to earn this ire. A few nasty statements, a failed attempt to inflict harm on the Ravenclaw. Yet Erin had apparently done 'so much' to them. So much so that she deserved that crushed leg, that broken rib, the abrasions and the bruises, the bleeding wound from where the book had struck her in the head. 

"There is no fairness to this fight."

Lestrange declared. Justice? She wondered. He did not seem the type to be concerned over fair play. Her brow furrowed, her head pounded as she tried to lift her head from the disheveled bed. He was not wrong, but there was no reason for him to intervene. She found that more concerning than the prospect of further injury. 

"Hah, sure. You're some sort of book saviour or something. It's stupid. So stupid,"

To be fair, thus far he was. When a book was the intended weapon, twice now he had intervened. Equivalently in fact, once in both of their favors. "Logical," Erin interjected. The gears in her head were turning. People were reliable. People could be read. People could be controlled. "Actually... smart," she considered as a wave of pain caused her to see lights.

What did they think they would do -- KILL HER? They would be throwing their life away because she said a few mean things. Hurt her? She did not seem to care, in fact she seemed to welcome the pain and wear the scars like some would a badge of honor. As it was, it was obvious that an additional assault transpired. That Erin was not the winner. That all of the blood on the floor and on this bed belonged to the Slytherin. 

She was goading them to finish her off. Pushing Howard, begging him to further his sin. Once certain lines are crossed, it becomes easier to do it again and again. When you spend your entire life coloring between the lines, that first scribble is the hardest. By the second and the third and whatever is drawn thereafter becomes easier with each and every movement of the hand. She knew she would survive, she was in the Hospital wing with some of the most practiced medically capable wizards in the region. She had no reason to fear, but they did. Someone was going to have to explain these injuries, her near death experience. What story would these three be able to tell -- the girl with the broken leg said mean words to me so I bashed in her skull. It sounded like a one way ticket to Azkaban if there ever was one.

Ariella drew close to Thomas.

"Don't join her. Please."

She requested after calling Thomas and his actions 'stupid.' Was this where they kissed? Gross. Cue the scene from the notebook and a bit of rain. Well, perhaps not. Thomas made his way to Erin, Ariella the adjacent bed. Was he here to end this himself, bloody his hand in place of her? Erin let out a sigh. "You are an odd one Mister Lestrange." She was dedicating his name to memory, searing it someplace deep inside of her in case she forgot. In case the darkness was too black.

"I've had a change of heart. I will join you."

"You seem incapable of doing what I expect," she commented. "But ultimately you have done what I want," the crease of her brow deepened. So I know that there is something wrong she thought. He skipped too many steps. He was not hers, not yet. But he would be, practice makes perfect and habits are hard to break once formed. "Yet I find myself asking... join what?" Erin was for the most part alone, not unlike Lestrange or Howard or Ariella in that regard. "My merry band of one?" Erin was not the secret leader of some evil organization. Well, not yet in any case. 

This moment of calm was simply the eye of the storm. Ariella let out her battle cry and lunged at Thomas. Erin did what any reasonable person would do in such a situation. She reached for the drawer of the nightstand next to the bed and pulled from the shelf a metal bedpan. Hopefully Howard had not used it, and if he had that the nurses were at the very least hygienic enough to bleach down the perma-chilled metal as Erin swung the metal device like some would a bat announcing as she did so "behind you Casanova." It probably did not hit, it was meant more as a deterrent in her state.

Most of the time the three had been around each other, the attention of Thomas was squarely on Erin. The character analysis she offered, assemblage of insults, or the revolving message of his fire and potential and how she sought access to him. He held no admiration for the girl but could not deny her insight. Now his attention turned to Ariella, a faint background noise up until this moment that has brewed within her. A proposition to join Erin was a fool’s errand, his failure to anticipate a negative reaction from Ariella proved this vacancy in his mind.

"What? What the hell? Are you trying to protect her or something? Look at her. You're just going to help her? After all the damn threats? After what she has done? I see that now, and here you are, protecting her? Don’t join her, please."

Thomas blankly stared at Ariella as the barrage of questioning poured down on him. He could only draw the conclusion that she had come to care. Perhaps a bond had developed from the mutual irritation constructed by the Slytherin girl. Or she had come to despise Erin as passionately as he. However, she failed to see, much like Howard, how little the physical pain would deter the Slytherin from her continuous pursuit. If to achieve a change within Erin, or a victory, the approach required fine-tuning. The book shelves gave her the beating they all viewed was necessary. Though it appears it is only Thomas with the capacity to understand. The moment she opened her mouth in the hospital room on this day, she persists to attack. This was no ordinary monster you could slay with physical blows from a large weapon. It would require research and understanding to discover her true source of pain.

"You seem incapable of doing what I expect, But ultimately you have done what I want,

"Yet I find myself asking... join what?"My merry band of one?"

Thomas felt an achievement from the Slytherin’s words, finally a move that she failed to see coming. Perhaps it was only a result of the weary state induced by the laundry list of injuries or the continuous trail of blood sourced from the back of her scalp. Her mind did not deter from latching onto the source of his actions. Perhaps saving a monster the expense of a book to the face was not the right approach, as a natural monster would only acknowledge the moment and continue to pursue its desired target. What a grand fool he was to think this action would help him attain a spot beside the girl, with the larger goal to access her mind until he found what he wanted to use against her.

His eyes wandered to the right to see Ariella, pulsing with resentment for his decision to join Erin. Thomas was not in position to explain the reason for this declaration to the girl. Erin would only decipher the nature of this choice further. His mind would enter dark territory as his eyes connected with the puffing Ravenclaw. To use her to show Erin what she wanted to see. A release of rage to attack Ariella, a display of the potential within him. Perhaps that was the action Erin needed to see to accept his presence at her side and expose her mind to him. Thomas looked away from Ariella and back to Erin. He could not, he would not. He could not blame Ariella for the position she took against him, she did not deserve to be the target of his rage.

Thomas was going to have to talk his way out of this one. “Call it what you want,” He was likely only digging a deeper hole for himself to lie. “I offer you access.” It was his way of saying she could use him, as a way of achieving what she desired. Not as a slave, more of a weapon that would help her reach goals. Whatever they may be, Thomas would serve himself as an instrument to assist her. Internally with the goal of betrayal, but he would keep that to himself for now. As he saw it, there was nothing for him to lose. With no friends among staff or peers, there was no one for Erin to use had she come to realize his lofty goals.

"behind you Casanova."

Thomas turned, regaining his footing to a howl accompanied with the full body weight of the young Ravenclaw launching into his side. The lack of resistance from Thomas allowed a sharp clash with his ribs against the metal bars of the bed initially belonging to Howard. He stumbled to the ground with a shriek, grasping the point of contact with his hand. The fire he had so long kept suppressed in analysis of Erin Ryan was stirred up once more. He lifted his head to view Ariella who had appeared to either bounce off of him like a strong body check, or it’s possible she quickly regained her footing after falling to the ground with him.

It was a long time coming, he had taken enough brutality from a pair of girls to be at his boiling point. He would break the code his mother made him vow to abide by after the lengthy history of violence, to never physically attack any girl. Heart rate increasing, he closed his fingers into fists, thumbs striding along his knuckles. He reached his hand with haste to wrap around the ankle of Ariella, pulling her harshly to join him back on the ground. Upon her landing, he would attempt to grip her chin, his thumb on one end of her jawline, pointer finger on the other, squeezing so tightly as if he intended to break it. Of course, he was not strong enough to do so. “As much as you want it to be, this isn’t about you!” Using every ounce of his strength, he would force her head back, releasing his grip.

A series of heavy breaths escaped the young boy’s lips as he gathered the brief cloud of thought and the consequences of his actions. Not from schools’ officials, but from his mother. She would demand withdrawal quicker than you could say expelliarmus. He would attempt to press his fingers against the floor, vaulting up to approach the exit. He offered one last cold stare at Erin before turning his back on the two girls altogether. A few tears dropped down his cheek when he walked through the doors. Erin 2, Thomas 0.

Ariella was pissed. Very, very pissed. As she launched herself at Thomas, she heard a few words from Erin.

"Behind you, Casanova."

Ariella almost laughed as she tackled Thomas to the ground.

"You are so, so damn stupid! She's going to hurt you, or something! Actually, fuck that, I'm going to hurt you!"

Ariella was boiling with rage. Not only because Thomas had chosen Erin, the evil killer of young children, over Ariella, whose only really horrible sin was probably what she was doing right now, but also because Ariella was worried for Thomas. As much as she delayed Erin getting her hands on him, she would delay Thomas getting hurt even more seriously that he was being hurt now. Realizing that she had no strength, she released Thomas from her grip and stood up.

It wasn't much longer before it was Ariella's turn to be tackled to the ground by Thomas.

Ariella let out a yelp as Thomas tackled her. He was gripping her jawline, and Ariella laughed.

"Hah, are you trying to like, break my jaw or something?"

Yeah, he was really damn angry now.

Have you ever felt the urge to laugh as soon as someone gets mad at you? Well, that was what Ariella was going through then.

"As much as you want it to be, this isn't about you!"

"Some attention is better than no attention at all," she replied, unknowingly stealing Erin's thoughts.(OOC: I am so sorry! I just thought it sounded so good and wanted to use it xD)

As soon as Thomas released Ariella, she scrambled up to her feet with a yelp. Ariella shook her head, standing near Erin. As Thomas left, Ariella noticed something drop to the ground, that she had immediately recognised as a tear. Ariella knew this well enough after all the tears she had shed as a young child.

"He just... did he just cry?"

Thomas would prove one day to be Erin's most dangerous adversary or Erin's most powerful ally. She did not trust Thomas Lestrange's sudden 'change of heart.' How could she? The heart is a miraculous, ever changing thing when you separate the heart from its supposed biology. But there was still a process, a feeling. A circumstance. Something, but she felt nothing at all that supported the words. She did not feel his resentment change or his fire fade. His fire was always there but it was being held at bay. That was the same thing Howard suffered from, this false persona he created to survive. To fit in. At a loved one's behest or to salve this perpetually lonesome state, who could say the reason why. Erin was not a mind-reader, she only understood potentials and possibilities. The paths most taken. The paths best taken. The paths she wished were taken. 

“Call it what you want.” 

Thomas replied. 

“I offer you access.”

Even if Thomas did not mean those words here and now he would one day. She would set him free. 

"So be it Thomas Lestrange, a contract between you and I has been made." While it might have sounded innocuous, they were tethered by his claim. Erin was unlike the bullies he might have encountered in schools or that dangerous person he had heard rumors about. Erin was the sort of creature you were told cautionary tales about as a bedtime story by your parents or a sitter as a means to keep you in your bed safe and warm at night. He would likely regret his promise to her. He did not understand what Erin was or what she was becoming. The girl was far from innocent but she was more akin to a force of nature than a villain. One cannot blame the sea from rising in response to the falling rain anymore than one could blame the predatory intentions of this young girl. Yet she was evolving, changing. What was once a feeding has turned into something more with Hugh, Howard and now Lestrange and Ariella. She was seeing beyond herself but not for the 'greater good' but rather something more. She did not want to just feed. She wanted to have that same spark that they had. She wanted to use that spark that they had but lacked the strength of wield to change the world around her in an active manner. To experience and relish the pain and the sorrow, the fear and pride that they took for granted. She wanted to feel theirs and her own. 

Ariella crashed into Thomas with the full weight of his body. His ribs impacted the metal rails of her bed causing her (it was no longer Howard's) bed to shudder and shake and Thomas to fall to the ground. Throughout this entire encounter, from the library to the Hospital Wing, oddly enough Erin would prove to be the least violent among them. At least successfully violent. That fire in Thomas was revealed briefly as he fought back, ripping Ariella to the ground with him and telling the Ravenclaw that this was not about her as much as she wanted it to be. 

Erin could feel the rage and the wrath and strained to see, she could not intercede as the metallic siderails Howard had flung her over might as well have been twenty feet high. She would grip the rail with her bloodied hand and try to pull herself closer to the edge. She would see the end of the scuffle and feel the shame and fear that followed like a wave that could have knocked her over. She did not understand the sentiment, this sadness. The girl had attacked him, not the other way around. Was he supposed to passively accept this abuse? To her such a concept was irrational and nonsensical, especially considering their violently skewed view of justice against her for hurting their 'feels.'

The encounter would end as swiftly as it began. Thomas would break away and move away with haste. Ariella would comment on making him cry. Erin of course had a reply. "And so what if you did," Erin answered as she used the bedrail as leverage to help her move up in the bed. Her pillow was wet and uncomfortable. "That would be the least of your concerns soon enough," Erin commented. That not being the fact that Erin was physically capable of doing anything but rather the fact that Erin was left in such a state. Even as broken as she was, she was always considering how to find an advantageous position. "I strongly suggest running from this room... from this place. From my Thomas' side." Yes, she had claimed ownership of the Lestrange boy. "If you make another move against me, I will simply scream. Summon the derelict nurse to my side in time to see your assault. The rest of my freshly acquired injuries, the cut that is still bleeding also came from you as well... I would not even have to lie much when I tell them in gross detail of the traumatizing assault I suffered at your hands. How Lestrange saved me from your madness." 

It was a threat most certainly. Ariella could attempt to summon Howard, someone to support an opposing testimony but what would that be? Howard was broken already, even if he was willing to lie or represent their version of the truth in a more favorable light. She was giving Ariella an out, knowing that they would meet again. The Headmaster was furious. Detention was likely right around the corner. The Headmaster would be hard-pressed find a new and creative way to make her 'suffer' however until today she had mostly evaded his notice. They would meet again, once her injuries were healed in some isolated corner of this Scottish castle by the order of the Headmaster. All of them. She did not fear this eventuality, she considered it a necessary step in her plan.

This might have been a pyrrhic victory if a victory at all. It would be weeks before Erin could truly feed again. Her body was broken beyond what should have been reasonable and yet she kept on coming. She might have gotten what she wanted but she lot so much time and was now going to physically suffer for her gains. 

OC: As I have noticed the thread has pretty much ended, pleasure rp'ing with all of you. Please contact me with future RP opportunities. I enjoyed the different RP styles and what was brought to the thread. As always, my threads remain open so feel free to join.

OOC: I would be very glad to, this has been so fun!