Closed Running Out of Patience PV Percival

⋖ 28/Mar/2024 @ early morning | OUTFIT | ENGLISH [#715380] | FRENCH [#b654a9] ⋗
INTERACTIONS @Percival Gray| MENTIONING n/a
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Not one to have balked at her bark before, Gray didn't alter course now. As the lioness bared her fangs, the snake only flicked his tongue, rearing back in preparation to strike. She should have expected nothing less. While there were those who could be cowed by aggression, or worn down by continued defiance, there remained others who rose to the challenge—reveled in it, even. He had, regrettably, always struck her as a member of the lattermost, driven no doubt by pride and pureblood prejudice. For a brief moment, however, she'd thought the whole encounter concluded. The hard impact with the ground when he'd thrown her back had expelled her breath with a graceless grunt. He'd stormed off after that, leading her to belief—or perhaps just to hope—that he was taking his exit. Thus, she hadn't hurried to rise, instead sitting up just enough to wipe her palms on her grey joggers and nurse a wounded pride.

She should have kept her eyes on the retreating snake. The sudden incantation jerked her back to reality. It wasn't over. And as the spell's effect lashed out, goring at the ground, she flinched reflexively away from it, the tempo of her pulse kicking up a notch as arms shot up to shield her face. Comprehension didn't quite catch up with his approaching shadow until he'd already closed the distance. His weight pushed her back against the ground through the boot on her chest, pinning her in place and gifting her a right little crack on the back of her head in the process as it connected with the earth. In an instant, she found herself in a position she would rather not have been in, a wand tip in her face, Gray's looming form silhouetted against the morning sky above.

Perhaps she ought to have taken him more seriously. After all, she'd seen the cruelty he'd displayed towards younger students in earlier years. Yet somehow there existed a disconnect between her position and any perceived threat. Or maybe she just didn't care. So he'd called her a stupid twat. She didn't even bat an eye. She'd been called worse. He may as well have called her dull as lead for all the impact it had; and perhaps then he might have had a point. Like lead, she could be somewhat dense at times, but could also be soft and malleable with if carefully handled. When placed under pressure, however, Evelynn hardened; just as she did now. The remorse that had touched her heart earlier had long been forgotten beneath the icy glare that looked down on her.

If it was an apology that he wanted to hear, he'd be sorely remiss. Instead of apology, his antagonizing elicited a grown of annoyance, steely eyes departing briefly behind her lids. "He was right..." she muttered bitterly. The whole situation had launched her back to a recent encounter largely similar to this, only she'd been the one chastising someone else's imbecilic recklessness. "It does sound akin to a villainous monologue..."

"It hardly matters what I say, though, does it?" she continued with a grimace, shifting uncomfortably under his foot only to settle moments later with the futility of it. Like it or not, she certainly wasn't going to be outmaneuvering him in a contest of strength. Nor in casting. All too aware of the stark absence a wand within her own hand, she would be all but at his mercy if he really did intend to exact some sort of ridiculous punishment. Justice, he would no doubt call it. For what. The only one injured was him, and that was only because he'd deigned to involve himself where he had no business being. Her jaw set as her gaze peered up to meet Gray's. By the look she set him with, one might question whether she really understood her disadvantage. "A forced apology can hardly be considered authentic. No more can this nepotistic display of chivalry. You should have just stayed out of it."

Interacting with @Evelynn Decipio

The fact she was still holding her nerve from what Gray had done was admirable, but it was something that was starting to annoy him further. Expressionless, he gazed down into her defiant eyes and shook his head at her words "An apology would be a good start, Evelynn" he grunted before forming a grin in response to her chivalry comments. His wand moved closer to her head until the tip touched her forehead, dangerously close to causing serious harm with a small flick of his wand.

"I think Chivalry can be thrown out the window when the girl when a girl was only inches away from brutally murdering me don't you think?" he remarked with a snarl, the wand digging deeper into her skull "I can only wonder what could have happened if I didn't get involved. Attacking a person in your year is one thing, but attacking first years is a totally different story. Imagine the guilt you would have felt after leaving them bloodied and within an inch of their life, you wouldn't be able to live with yourself would you?"

Glaring a hole into her soul, his mind was screaming at him to flick his hand and do something way beyond his nature. However, for now, he was doing well to keep his composure and prevent himself from sinking into the same dark pit she was trapped in.

"All I see is a person full of rage and anger, an Evelynn who is the total opposite of who I've spoken to over the years. So, why don't you stop the stubborn bullshit and tell me what's going on"

⋖ 28/Mar/2024 @ early morning | OUTFIT | ENGLISH [#715380] | FRENCH [#b654a9] ⋗
INTERACTIONS @Percival Gray| MENTIONING n/a
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"You will be waiting a long time, then," Evelynn growled back, ice meeting rock in the exchange of their glances. She hadn't apologized yet, and she had no intention to. "I. Am. Not. Sorry," she seethed, punctuating each word with staccato just to drive the point further home. She wasn't. Not at all. The only thing she was sorry for was botching her initial spell in the first place. If she'd held on to her wand, this little series of events would have turned out significantly differently. She was also sorry that he'd stumbled upon the situation, that he'd seen her animagus form. She was sorry that she hadn't just retreated the moment he'd intercepted. And for a time, she'd been sorry to have drawn blood from him, but that guilt had faded swiftly in the presence of his insufferable righteousness.

The point of his wand pressed against her forehead, and she lifted her head to press back. If he was trying to scare her, he was doing an awful job of it. Trepidation may have initially coursed through her veins, the Slytherin an uncertainty that she couldn't quite account for given the lack of interaction between the two and his associations with certain others. But it, like the wisps of shame that had deigned to fall upon her, slipped away with every second that passed. As far as she could tell, he wasn't going to do anything. All bark, no bite. And consistently putting himself into a position that became more compromised for every inch he crept closer. Still, she grimaced with discomfort as the weight behind his wand increased, threatening to tear flesh from her skull.

His words continued to scratch at her, one after another. More accusations of her recklessness, hyperbolic claims against her self-control. Making mountains of mole-hills, her mother would have described it, as he described how near he had been to death at her hands, and how she would have killed the boys were it not for his gallant interjection. She almost laughed, and couldn't quite prevent the nasal scoff at the suggestion. A hand snapped up to grasp his wand as he demanded she explain herself, ready to snap the wooden implement in half the second he started an incantation. The only person she knew to have mastered non-verbal magic was Miss Silmataurea, and even then, the caster still had to be able to trace the correct movements with the wand.

"Do you think you can recite a spell before I can break the tool that allows you to?" An amused curl of her lips accompanied the sardonic purr. "You should have kept your distance. It was your only advantage."

If there was anything positive that could be said about her in that moment, it was that she didn't break his wand on the spot, as much as she would have liked to impart upon him a lesson. "You paint a vivid picture of my terror." Her voice settled to a simmering drawl. "But you have it all wrong. No harm would have befallen them. As I said, I was chasing, no more. Had I wanted to catch them, I would already have done so long before you got there. So this guilt you speak of? There would have been none, and I imagine I would have been back to studying now--" which she desperately needed. Her grades had been suffering to the point that she caught whispers now and then while traversing the halls between classes of her academic downfall "--instead of wasting my time explaining myself to you."

"Moreover, what are you going on about 'total opposite of who you have spoken to over the years'?" she inquired, the tone suggestive that she held no stock in what he'd said. "Have I somehow forgotten about an array of conversations over afternoon tea? I was not aware we were so close, nor do I seem to recall any interactions so entirely opposite of this. You want to know what is going on?" She lowered her voice, then, to deliver her explanation with careful enunciation. "I was sitting by the lake, resting after my run." Or trying to, at least. "Those imbeciles started casting, an offense against school rules, I will remind you." As though she had ever paid that one much mind. "In their incompetence, they fired a spell at me. Or perhaps they did it on purpose. In my generosity, I am giving them the benefit of the doubt. So I chased them away.

"And now I lay beneath a hypocrite, accused of homicidal ideation and recklessness and dearly hoping you do not bleed on me. It would be such a shame to ruin this outfit," she bemoaned, purposefully calling back to an old complaint of Gray's to mock him, her words absolutely dripping in sarcasm, her entire retort excessively and uncharacteristically bitter. "Oh wait, I am a witch. How could I forget. There are spells to magically mend and clean our clothing."

Interacting with @Evelynn Decipio

Percival tilted his head in amusement at the fact she wasn't sorry in the slightest over the incident. She was either stupid or reckless to the point where she didn't think much harm was going to be done. However, the way she reacted seemed to only prove the opposite. Gray was certain she would have done the same to the first years as they did to him, ripped up and bleeding from sharp claws that could kill a person if needed.

Again, he silently took in the arrogance she fired his way and kept an expressionless face throughout her attack. He wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of seeing further reaction from her words, instead Gray was going to do the same to her. Not with the same spite she offered, but words that had truth and disgust. Upon her last smart comment on his sweater, he finally chuckled to himself and grinned.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't be sorry in the slightest. A part of me wanted you to, but now you're only digging yourself a bigger hole Evelynn. One I could leave you in if you're not careful" The Slytherin warned as his eyes gave a sparkle of confidence. If Evelynn thought she was going to break him down that easily with words then she didn't know him well "It's like how you are saying you'd feel no guilt at all. How are you meant to know you wouldn't have done the same to them as you did to me? Do you have a mystic ball in that little head of yours Evelynn, because I'm certain a "witch" like you can't see into the future"

Looking down at the wand she still held, Percival had not moved it an inch just yet "The thing is Evelynn, you're wrong. In your current form, you are nowhere near as strong as your cat form. Tell me, what's stopping me from letting go of that wand and throwing you all over the place like a ragdoll?" Gray said with venom in his tone, his free hand pretending to grab something in the air "I doubt you'd be able to turn back in time before I've snapped you like a twig"

Gray didn't normally speak of such violence to other students, but he had to make a point to Evelynn who thought she had the upper hand. The girl needed to be taken down a peg and he had no hesitation in doing just that.

" And here's another thought Evellyn, have you ever thought about not sinking to their level?" Percival continued with a straight to the point fireback "They are immature first years who are still grasping the rules and ideals of Hogwarts. You on the other hand have been here for five years, a veteran year student who should know well how to react in their time of trouble. Even as a Slytherin, a stern talking to is enough. Chasing them and taking advantage of your experience is just wrong in every form of the imagination!"

Leaning his upper body down, his voice went low just like hers "What I see below me is a disgrace of a Gryffindor. You are not bold, you're a coward who goes against the very means of your house." he grunted, before using his free hand to grasp Evelynn's collar and pull her up towards him "You're attitude is almost as bad as your grades. And from the looks of it, they're only getting worse"

⋖ 28/Mar/2024 @ early morning | OUTFIT | ENGLISH [#715380] | FRENCH [#b654a9] ⋗
INTERACTIONS @Percival Gray| MENTIONING n/a
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Evelynn really couldn't be certain she had heard what she'd thought she'd heard. For a moment, it had sounded as though the Snake was suggesting she needed some sort of clairvoyance to be certain of her own intentions and actions. Lips parted in bemusement, words lost to her for a breath, before they closed once more twitching at the corner. "You cannot be this daft. How am I meant to know I would not have done the same to them as I did to you?" Her expression reflected her feelings of talking to a wall. "Because I was only chasing them. Had I wanted to catch them, I would have. You cannot harm someone if there is no contact. But I am wasting my breath. I already told you this. Which means you ask questions but have no real care for the answers since you are being deliberately deaf to them."

Frustration began to spike again, clawing at her throat as heavily as the boot pressed to her chest. "So what is the point in trying.." She fell silent, all her willpower having to be redirected to stop the swell. She couldn't cry. Not here. The lump that formed was swallowed down, and swallowed down again. Jaw clenching, teeth grating. It really didn't seem to matter what she said. Every word spoken lashed against her, battering against what resolve she had managed to raise. Even the grip on his wand loosened slightly, though it didn't release entirely. She still had every intention to snap it at the first sign of casting.

And she had to scoff, a faint, melancholic exhalation through her nose at the suggestion she refrain from sinking to their level. Bold of him to assume she wasn't already miles in the ground below them. Or that she cared. How was someone supposed to learn if they didn't receive lessons to modify their thinking and actions? Could she have been kinder? Probably. But fear was such a powerful motivator and in that moment, like now, she hadn't cared. What a hypocrite. This lecture coming from one who tormented those weaker than him of other houses simply for his own amusement.

As he leaned down, she winced. Whether it was from the words or rough handling of her collar as he leveraged that to pull her towards him would be difficult to tell. In truth, it was both. Granted, his comments of her boldness and cowardice hardly left a merk. She didn't consider boldness to be a positive trait, and nothing she had done objectively fit the definition of a coward. He was simply twisting its use to fit his own agenda. She cared little for that. But she was a disgrace. Not of a Gryffindor, necessarily, but as a human. After all, it was her fault the others were gone.

"What do you want from me, Gray?" Rubbing her declining grades in her face only sealed her perspective. It should have been an unusual thing for a high achieving student of four years to suddenly exhibit grades suggestive of academic struggle. Perhaps most attributed it to the year of the O.W.L.'s and cracking under pressure. Fact was, nobody cared. The lump in her throat ebbed, gradually replaced by a yawning pit. A cool numbness crept forth from it, blanketing her roiling emotions in a weighted blanket, muting her expression and tone. "We have already established I have no intention to apologize. So why do you not just 'leave me in that hole' already and be done with it.

"Or is that what this all is? Just some elaborate ruse to provide you an excuse to bury me?" She spoke slowly, almost dreamlike, the stone-grey eyes that met his, dull and defeated. "Have you done this before?" Was this where it would finally end for her? "You were a pawn of the hags once before, perhaps you are again." If she'd had her wand on her, she would have been rather swift to rule out the possibility of his being a host right from the start. "Is this what you did to Martin? Are you the reason she disappeared?"

Interacting with @Evelynn Decipio

Percival was starting to get the feeling he was only wasting his time with this fool. She had been stubborn to the bone throughout this confrontation, if this incident wasn't going to make her realize the slippery slope she was on nothing would "What's the point in trying? Believe it or not Evelynn, I care for student safety as well as your well being. Even after how much of a stupid prick you've been..." he grunted, indirectly revealing why he hadn't chosen to straight up throw her around like a ragdoll.

There were many better ways Gray could have done this, but he was choosing the way he knew best. The way he acted could label him as an asshole to many. However, if you stood and examined what he was doing it could only be described as tough love. Everything Percival did had a reason behind it, if there wasn't anything to justify his actions there was no reason to do such a thing. Threatening Evelynn was one of them, she needed to know that her actions were going to have consequences.

Gray wasn't normally moved, although when something so close to his heart was used against him it was quite hard for him not to show any emotion.

As soon as she stopped talking Gray looked hurt for the briefest of moments. His emotion from San leaving was still buried deep in his core, and it had been a long time since anyone dared mention her name. Weakness soon turned into anger and without warning his boot suddenly lifted off her chest so he could roughly drag her up to her feet with one hand. Their faces only inches apart, Percival was finding it hard to hide the madness that was behind his eyes.

"Don't you dare mention her name, you have no right to create a falsehood that is impossible" The Slytherin spat, his grip on her collar tightening by the second "I would never dream of hurting her by any stretch of the imagination, even with the hag controlling me I never did such a thing!" Gray continued, his tone lowering down to almost a whisper as he locked eyes with her "It's not my fault I've experienced love you've never felt in your entire life Evelynn..."

With his hands shaking and eyes watering, he was on the brink of snapping and letting out all his anger on the girl in front of him.

"If you don't let go of my wand and leave I will no longer hesitate with what I do next..."

⋖ 28/Mar/2024 @ early morning | OUTFIT | ENGLISH [#715380] | FRENCH [#b654a9] ⋗
INTERACTIONS @Percival Gray| MENTIONING n/a
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His reaction was one she hadn't quite anticipated. In all their interactions--as few as that may have been--Evelynn had never really seen anything but smug righteousness from him. Regardless of his actions, whether it was beating on a defenseless new ravenclaw student or tossing her around like rag doll as though that would somehow make her dizzy enough to agree with his perspective, he seemed to be able to justify the path of his actions as long as it achieved whatever end-goal he'd set. She'd never seen hurt in his eyes. Just as she'd never seen the more subjective sort of passion derived of tenderness. She'd known he and Martin were close--they had been seen together enough times that even a halfwit with little more than two braincells to rub together should have been able to come to that conclusion--but she'd never born direct witness to any of their interactions.

It was only for a split second, but it was there. The tell-tale sign of pained surprise at the mention of a subject held dear. Evidently, Evelynn had touched on a matter considered sacred, support to that conclusion given less than a second later as she was roughly pulled back to her feet. Grimacing, the free hand not still clenched around his wand, grappling at the fist enclosing her collar to free up as much space as she could just to protect her airway. She couldn't help but smile, stopping short of chuckling at his reaction.

"The ever composed Percival Gray showing his true colours, perhaps?" Her stony gaze latched to his, dull and lidded in its fixation. "No right to mention her name? Creating impossible falsehoods?" Shaped brows rose with the judging condemnation creeping over her features. "Where were you when we had discovered the truth of the altered candies that Athanatos had circulated through the school, landing several students in St. Mungo's? What were you doing when the poison gas choked us and the dolls attacked in the dungeons? Who were you with when Davenport loosed shadowed spiders upon us and the trees bowed to her will, when we barely escaped with our lives?"

"Is it guilt?" she wondered, no humour remaining in the lingering curl at the corner of her mouth. "Projection of your own inadequacy? How creative of you to jump to take a shot at my love life with an empty statement impossible for you to substantiate. It is not at all as though it paints you as insecure about your own. And to say I have no right to say her name. Or that you would never hurt her. I suppose you meant to endanger Anderson, then, when you tried to kiss them?" The hint of a sneer cut into her countenance.

"Santario was my ally. My friend," she continued, fingers digging for a hold around his own to ease the pressure on her neck. "And we shared the battlefield. What were you doing while I put my life on the line to make sure she came home? You may not think that you would ever hurt her, but control is rarely an option when you find yourself the puppet at the end of Their strings. Frankly, how thickly you layer yourself with shame and denial is pathetic. Your lack of control highlights just how weak you are. She was here. And then she was not. How am I to take your word that you had no part in her disappearance, especially with you acting like a man with a guilty conscience."

Interacting with @Evelynn Decipio

"Because I am no killer Evelynn!"

The sudden raise of his voice erupted through the woods, echoing through the trees until it became a distant whisper. Her words dug into him hard, and in reflection, a part of him snapped. Santario would always be on his mind, from when she was still a student to the moment she went back to France with her parents. They still communicated every few months through owls, but even then it still made Percival lonely.

"Me and San were always close, there is no reason for me to simply make her disappear when we both agreed the relationship could last no longer!" he growled in her face, his grip on her shirt still tight as ever "You may question where I was during those "particular" moments, but where were you when San had reached rock bottom? Behind the scenes, I did everything I could to save her from that hagslug even when it was in me and forcing me to do things against my will. San was pushing everyone away due to that insidious creature making her sick, leaving her isolated and alone. Yet, who chose to stay with her through thick and thin? me..."

Percvial was showing clear emotion from the ordeal. He chose to stay with San when he could have left at the risk of his health. Even though Gray and others saved her in the end, the pain physical and mental pain still stuck with him to this day.

"I sure as hell didn't see you then, so don't you dare question my loyalty to her when you weren't there in her darkest hour"

For a few moments, his teary eyes glared into hers in silence. They judged to see if she still thought of him the same, or possibly a change of heart "You may think of me as being weak but it's clear you still don't know what love is. She gave me peace when no one else could and when that suddenly gets ripped away it leaves a black hole of frustration. One day you'll understand, just not today." he said while the grip on her shirt began to loosen to the point where he finally let go.

"Now please, let go of my wand..."

⋖ 28/Mar/2024 @ early morning | OUTFIT | ENGLISH [#715380] | FRENCH [#b654a9] ⋗
INTERACTIONS @Percival Gray | MENTIONING n/a
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If there could be anything that might have offered credence to Gray's claims and dampened Evelynn's ever-present suspicions, it would have been the lack of composure present in his sudden outburst. Until that moment, there had been frustration and contempt sewn through the pureblood's words, but his denial of having anything to do with Santario's disappearance was altogether different. Propelled by the exasperation and anger sourced from the questioning of a deeper value, Evelynn would be trapsing into the realm of irrational opposition despite evidence to the contrary. As stubborn as the girl could be at times, she had never been so inflexible as to dismiss credible observation or information. To that end, she had held her tongue, accepting his statement for what it was and listened to what he'd had to say, still skeptical, but slightly less so than previously.

She wasn't prepared for the revelation he'd unfold. "Santario was infected?" Brows rose with surprise, any sign of consternation slipping from her countenance. As far as Evelynn was aware in that moment, she'd had no indication of that to be the case. She'd had no idea. The last memory she had of her, was running into the Forbidden Forest after Lestrange and accompanied by Collins. Davenport had led them to a cabin in the woods before ambushing them with shadowy arachnids. "When?" It had to have been after that. Hygiene, social interaction, behaviour... it had all been normal at that time. "Who infected her?" And more importantly, were they still a host? How many others had likewise been affected? The emotion evident in Gray's expression and tone didn't help at all in the matter, drawing over it a black veil.

"Oh, shut up with your ridiculous need to loft your perceived superiority or whatever it is that you are trying to do," she snapped. He had made Evelynn aware of an entire branch of information to which she had been previously ignorant. She didn't care how much he did or didn't love Santario. She didn't care to hear him denounce Evelynn's lovability or capacity for it herself. "You are making yourself sound foolish." Impatience sounded in her words as she verbally batted aside the superfluous information to strike at the heart of the issue, pushing his wand aside in the process and denying him the need to ask her to release it. She didn't care about Gray; she wanted to know about Santario. "What happened to her? Was it revealed in time and was she saved? Where is she now?"

Interacting with @Evelynn Decipio

For the first time it seemed like he managed to get into Evelynn's skull with none other than the truth. It was certainly possible that she had been attacked by one of the slugs and forced to forget the whole ordeal, as well as not even being involved altogether. Percival couldn't remember everything that happened during that time and was unsure of her involvement, so he was quite unsure if she had any involvement at all. However, her reaction to San being infected did give an indication of what she did know "Yes... did you not notice her acting strange at all?"

If anything, the question he asked last was more rhetorical than anything. "I don't know when or who did this but considering a slug was buried inside of her my guess is it was a hag" he grunted, just before she snapped at him for speaking his mind. The Slytherin slowly shook his head and sighed in deep annoyance "Do you really want to know about her or what?!" Gray snapped back in frustration. The only way she was going to know more was if she kept her attitude in check, which so far wasn't going away. However, Evelynn did reluctantly push away his wand.

Taking a few unsteady steps back, he took a deep breath and glared straight at Evelynn "I'm only going to say this once so listen closely. San was saved, I don't know how but we managed to get that piece of shit out of her. From what I can still remember everyone was saved, including me from harming even more students." he said starkly, pushing away the broken memories of trying to harm Dorion "It took time but me and San started to heal together. We found peace again and even discussed the future, up until her parents broke the news..."

Gray's face looked cold and expressionless as he spoke, the wound of San going in full show "Her parents were moving back to France, along with San. She had no other choice..."Percival said with a lowered tone towards the end.

"At that moment, we thought it was best to part ways for good."