Getting There Safely? PV Closed

James had only turned around for a split second, before, as he feared, the towel was ripped off of him. He tried to grab at it, but both his hands and the towel were wet and slippery.  James reflexively put his hands on top of his head, trying to hide what was there, but he knew it was no use. The thing James had been holding underneath the towel also fell down and hung freely.
James spun around to face Max, and saw him not even looking up, but rather at the towel. One by one, he ripped strips of the towel off, and tied them into heavy, wet knots.
"Your reputation." Splat "Your friends." Splat "Your family."
"By the time we're finished at Hogwarts, those three things will have strangled the lot of you. You've already put the nooses around your necks. I hope you enjoy the way they tighten over the next seven years."
James recognized the shapes of the strips of his previously existent shelter. They were, as Max had said, nooses. Evil. That's what Max was. And he was very good at it. So good, that he had made James' heart feel like it was being squeezed and choked with horror. And it didn't get any better as Max looked up.
Poking out from James' head were two furry fox ears, and hanging behind him, hanging out of his wet clothes, was an orange, bushy fox tail.
James' face heated up instantly, turning a bright red. He became conscious of everything. Himself, his fox ears that had replaced his human ones, his very noticeable tail, Max looking at him, Marissa who was still behind him, and probably staring at him too. James' whole face and parts of his neck were scarlet from embarrassment. All because of a careless attempt at a play pretend spell...

They could have made it. If Ebony was smarter. Or faster. Or better they could have made it. Away from this bully and to safety. But no. They failed. She failed. Maybe if Ebony didn't talk to James in the first place and stuck to the role of the lonely, odd, peculiar girl maybe James wouldnt be in this giant mess at all. What was she thinking? Of course it was her fault, if James didnt met her than he wouldn't be here right now, in this situation. That kid grabbed James' towel and tore of strips of it, tossing them to the floor. Ebony was froze in her place, a deer in headlights. She hated herself right now. She was as useful as a tree stump right now, and all she could do was watch as this kid unfolded thier plan with ease. At the last couple of seconds he spoke about James will suffer, his family, friends, and his reputation breaking apart. When Max looked up and saw James, fox ears and all, his face didn't have scowl or grin. Just a blank expression which quickly changed into something else. She didnt care about what Max or the other girl thought. She just hoped James didnt loathe her for messing up. She also was furious at the kid, and clenching her fist, she looked up towards the kid and spoke in a loud, clear voice. "I hate you. And I would be disgusted if if you were my son." Her words turned cold and the end of her statement. Then she laid her hand on James shoulder, as if to say 'I'm sorry I ruined everything '.

Marissa continued to hide behind the two, it was easy due to them being taller than her. She glanced between James and the girl, wondering if they were actually going out. After realising she was staring, she blinked and look to the boy who tried to threaten them. He looked defeated for a moment which made Marissa feel slightly more better. But then that all came crashing down.

The boy who Marissa labelled as 'bully' pulled off James' towels. What she saw was one hundred percent not what she expected. Fox ears and a tail. She blinked instantly and titled her head as she inspected them. Mari saw James' face turn bright red, just like whenever she got embarrassed. She looked surprised as she went to go touch the ears but decided it was better not to. Marissa finally turned her attention to the bully.

She stepped forward, in front of James and his 'girlfriend'. She had a frown on her face as she crossed her arms, looking up to the boy. "S-Stay.. a-a-way.. f-f-from m-my f-f-f-friends!" She went a bit red as she completely failed at trying to act scary or at least confident. She huffed, angry with herself that she could not do this. Marissa turned back to James with a slight smile. "C-c-cute ears." She gave her trade-mark goofy grin before turning back to the bully.

In an instant, Marissa was not even thinking at that time. All the anger pent up for the past years of her life, making her selectively mute made her do this.. She punched Max straight in the cheek. Marissa stiffled a yelp instantly. She clutched the hand that she punched with and walked back to James. She took a deep breath and tried not to cry. She just PUNCHED a person. Marissa was completely freaking out inside.

It was honestly hard not to laugh at the site of whatever spell James had tried gone wrong, especially when the boy went red enough that a yellower tint would have him matching the colour of his tail. He distinctly remembered the professor saying not to try messing with transfiguration spells, but James must not have listened - lucky for Max, because the sight truly made his day. He could leave them happily now, content to know that misfortune had fallen on his enemy.

He was actually planning to turn and leave when the dark-haired girl suddenly spoke up, making him pause with a long, internal sigh. "Thanks. Hate is a passionate emotion. And no. If you were my mother, you'd probably be near tears with pride." It was partly a lie since his mother was never 'near tears' about anything, but the sentiment was close enough. The comment had been so far off the mark that he couldn't bring himself to feel even the slightest bit of true provocation, so the plan was still to leave.

Until the final girl - the stammering, useless-looking one whom he'd really thought would stay in her own lane - punched him in the face. It took him a second to realize it, his head snapping to one side as the sudden pain radiated through his cheekbone. Ah. Of course. It had been a while, but the feeling was still as familiar as an old, unwelcome acquaintance turning up at your door to ask for a favor. The surface pain of skin being bruised, the closer pain of the inside of your cheek being cut up by your teeth, and a feeling throughout your head that could only be described as similar to the taste of copper. This was going to leave a bloody mark.

As Stammering Girl starting walking back, Max dropped the shredded remains of the towel he'd been holding and reached up to ghost his fingers over where the bruise would rapidly form. It hurt. He dropped his hand and finally tilted his head to stare at the three kids who'd just made the biggest mistake of their lives. Without hesitation, he turned his back on them and marched up to one of the suits of armour, feeling like he wasn't really in control of his own body anymore. His hand darted out and snatched the helmet off one of the suits, making it look for one garish moment like he'd decapitated a soldier. Before he himself knew what he was really going to do, he'd spun around with his whole weight and hurled the helmet at the three behind him. He didn't really care who he hit - or even if he hit anyone - he just wanted something destroyed.

The girl in the background. The one that looks like nobody would ever take a second glance at because she looked so normal. As if she was just another person on earth, nobody special. Thats what Ebony thought at least. That rhis girl couldnt harm a fly,even if her life depended on it. Butshe was wrong, because the girl pulled back her arm and punched that bully in the face. That girl had guts. Ebony didn't expect it at all. Ebony shoved him but she punched him. For a second she mentally congratulated the girl for standing up to James and wondered if that girl could be her friend in the future. Maybe. She stopped going down that train of thought and got back to the present. Which was this bully. He might have left them alone earlier, but after that punch that idea was no way possible. Ebony started to think about any way to get out this situation but stopped when she saw the kid march away from them and take a helmet from one of the suits of armor. Ebony was scared for her safety at this point. You have a mentally unstable kid who is really mad, grabbing a metal helmet. How can you not be scared? She thought he wouldn't hit them, he would get in bounds of trouble after all. But when he threw the helmet at them, she couldn't say she wasn't surprised. Too bad it was coming straight for her. She was frozen like a deer in headlights, just watching the helmet come towards her in slow motion before it connected with her stomach. Pain was the only thing she could feel as the fell , more like flew, backwards and landed on the floor. She couldn't speak or move, she was in too much pain. She wouldnt cry though, she would not give him the satisfaction of crying. She was so preoccupied in not crying she didn't notice blood slowly seeping through her clothes.

Punched. Marissa had punched Max! Everything after that went by so fast. James was still red from embarrassment with his towel being taken off and his ears and tail shown. His blush didn't get any better when Marissa commented "Cute ears." And then, Marissa punched Max. James' heart glowed with pride for his friend, but at the same time, crashed with horror, knowing that Max was not the forgiving type. Max stepped back and grabbed a helmet from off of a suit of armor. James knew exactly what was going to happen. He needed to get the three of them out of the way; but James instantly realized he couldn’t push Marissa AND Ebony out of the way… but could he choose one over the other!? It didn’t matter, because Max’s throw was fast, and struck without any interference from James. Ebony fell to the ground, having taken a blow right to the stomach. James watched as she fell, his mind instantly panicking on what to do. He didn’t want this to end the way it did before, which was Max and James locked with fists, and Max almost cursing James with his wand. James could use his own wand, but he only knew Periculum and Incendio, and neither of them sounded ideal right then. He could take care of Ebony, but he didn’t want to leave Marissa to fight Max on her own. That only really left the option to fight Max and hope Marissa would take care of Ebony, because with Ebony’s state, they couldn’t just run away. James had only wanted to get help for his fox situation. But now, he had to deal with this. James wondered if he had any fangs he could use. He checked with his tongue as he stepped forward in between Max and his two friends. He could not feel any fangs, but he still stepped forward. Any act of aggression that James made he was sure would end badly. So, James did the only thing he could think of. He ran up to Max and the suit of armor he was next to, and reached up to the headless knight. He pulled the suit down, attempting to send the whole heavy thing crashing down on Max.

“RUN!” he shouted back to Marissa and Ebony.

Marissa freaked the hell out! She just punched someone. She flt good about it but also felt pure pain shooting through her wrist. Max deserved it though, of course he did. He was a bully, no doubt about it. Marissa checks felt red hot as she hid behind James and Ebony, seeing Max react to the punch. She coward slightly, worrying about how he would retaliate. Suddenly Max hurled one of the helmets towards the tree of them. Everything went in slow motion. The helmet hit Ebony in the stomach before anyone could react. James then pulled one of the nights crashing down onto Max.

Mari freaked out again. She did not mean for this to happen. A small stain of blood already stared to form on Ebony's stomach. Marissa could not help but tear up, feeling incredibly guilty for the events unfolding. She instantly put an arm around Ebony's waist and then guided her arm around her shoulders. That is when James screamed for them to run. Marissa tried to stumble again, taking Ebony with her. This is all my fault. Why am I such an idiot? Why did I have to punch him? Now they are both going to get hurt because of me! Marissa continued to try and take Ebony down the corridor, away from Max and James.

Pain. Just pure pain. Nothing else. Well, of course fear in some part of her brain. Ebony never hurt like this before. Bullies punched her, but never hurt like this. She mentally was hurt about her parents but she never physically felt like this before. She didnt enjoy it either. She vaugly remembered she was bleeding. She couldnt tell though. All she saw was a big blur. Fear took over her. She was immobile in this state and who knows what Max would do. She didnt feel much fear for her though. James was her first friend in a long time. She didnt really know how to feel about him, but she did know other people safety mattered much more than hers. Besides, James knew the bully, it was obvious. That means he's more likely to go after James. Ebony was surprised when the girl ran over and helped Ebony to her feet. Then she tried to take Ebony down the corridor, stumbling a bit. This girl punched Max. She was in far more danger than Ebony. And Ebony was definitely slowing her down. Ebony groaned, and with little strength she had, pushed her away from Marissa. She was surprised she had the strength to do that but Ebony landed on the floor. She tilted her head towards the girl. "Go. Leave. I'm slowing you down and If Max catches you, it would be far worse than him catching me. I'm a nobody, trust me." Ebony softly said. Ebony painfully turned her body and could see Max and James but Ebony wasn't as close as before, so she was safe enough. Ebony turned her attention back to the girl, trying to ignore the weird feeling of blood on her, and nudged the girls foot, a sign saying to run. Ebony was stubborn, even when injured. So no matter what, she will get the girl to leave.

It wasn't particularly satisfying to draw blood - there was no happy rush of elation or release from the anger that always lurked somewhere within him. He just felt like things were more surreal, if anything. Destruction didn't equate to death and he hadn't thrown with the intention of killing someone. Obviously. He was an eleven year old who didn't have the kind of strength to really do damage, and yet here they were in a situation that was pretty much irreparable. Sinking back down on his heels from where he'd stood like a pitcher throwing a fast ball, Max remained silent as he took everything in.

They were all panicking. What the hell they actually thought he'd do, he had no clue, but he'd spooked them enough that they were about to run away. And leave the injured girl behind? Probably not, with how stupidly loyal they were, but he distantly heard himself laugh at how dramatic it was. He was living in a place so outside of the situation that when James ran forward to pull his newly decapitated friend down onto him, he almost didn't react in time.

Two steps brought him back just enough that the thing crashed onto his legs instead of his body, and its joints all came apart during the landing so that it was pieces of the suit instead of solid metal. Painful, but scrambling back and drawing his legs out of the wreckage told him that they weren't broken. Just incredibly hurt, and probably going to turn into a mottled assortment of blues in the morning.

"Ouch," he muttered offhandedly, more of an ironic remark than an exclamation of pain. He didn't want to be here anymore. He didn't want to know what the hurt girl thought he'd do if he caught them, because he'd have no idea himself at this point. It was times like these that he'd usually draw on the coldness of his mother to deliver a well-placed barbed remark and make his exit. Instead, for the first time, he let himself be more of his father.

Rising from his spot on the floor, he adopted a posture a drill sergeant would be proud of and looked at the trio with an expression that said they disgusted him more than raw hide left in the sun to rot for days. "You make me sick," he spat in such a good imitation of his old man that he wondered if his father was who he was meant to be all along. Then, without any cold dialogue or emotionless threats, he turned on his heel and strode out of the hallway. His legs started to shake and his face twisted in a pained grimace the second he was out of his site, but in that moment he'd held it together well enough to fool a poker player. Without any threats, they could come up with their own ideas of what his revenge would be from the darkest places of their imaginations. Let paranoia be its own form of revenge. For now, he was done.

James' head was just a mess right now. He had no idea what he could have done, what he was supposed to have done, or what he should do now. He was very much scared of what Max would do in retaliation from James dropping the suit on him. As soon as James had done it, he had regretted it. But what else could he do??? He wasn't going to admit it, but the panic was taking control of him.
As Max stood up from almost being squashed, James instinctively flinched, before groaning internally, remembering Max's stupid nickname he had given James on their first meeting, Flinchy.
"You make me sick!" Max spat. At least, that's what James thought he heard. His mind couldn't really sort anything right at the moment. But to James' imense surprise and relief, Max left. Later, James might think about Max a little differently. But right then, James ran back to Marissa and Ebony.
"It's okay, he's gone..." he muttered to the two girls. "Sorry for getting so mad..." 
James' ears twitched embarrassingly, and his tail swished back and forth on the ground as he knelt beside Marissa and Ebony. James looked closely at Ebony's injury. It didn't look too bad. He vocalized this to them, realizing that in front of Max, they had probably looked like a bunch of dramatic, panicking chickens running around with their heads cut off...
James sighed, and then helped Ebony to her feet. "Ebony, let's get you to Professor Lear too... he's closer than the Hospital Wing anyway." James looked over at Marissa as well. "Could you... could you come with us, please?" He felt like he wanted some more company. Or maybe that was just because he wanted help half-carrying Ebony to the head of Hufflepuff's office.