Sometime Around Midnight {Open}

[Selli Riggs]

"And It Starts Sometime Around Midnight, Or At Least That's When You Lose Yourself For A Minute Or Two"

Night terrors, as one could call them, often haunted Selli's dream. The same images over and over, of her mother's eyes soulless and dead, and the blood everywhere... The dreams are always the same, but sometimes different. At times she goes back to being that helpless little girl and at other times she is as old as she is now, and sometimes she's the one comitting the murder. The one when she's old, and standing on the sidelines... those are the worst. It's that helpless feeling, she isn't causing or preventing anything, she's just standing there. She hasn't felt that helpless in real life since that night when she was 11 years old.

When the dreams occur, her best bet is to just let it pass. This time she walked the castle, one of her favourite things to do. It was weird being a professor now, and not having to worry about being caught for sneaking around. She had all the freedom in the world, it was nice. She made her way up to the astronomy tower, looking over the grounds, and up at the night sky, it was all so surreal to be back here. But she had a purpose.

She looked down at her left arm, which did not carry the dark-mark. Her attribute of being unmarked was one of the reasons why she was dealt this job, it would be hard to gain the trust of the Headmaster while carrying that thing. The rest was easy, she just blocked her mind off from all possible intruders, and everyone else played right into her hands. As she gazed down she wondered when the next message would come to her, the worst part of being at this castle, protecting so thoroughly by various enchantments, was that she was cut off from the rest of the wizarding world, and she had no idea what her 'companions' were up to.

She leaned her head out the window, sighing as she did so, wondering exactly what the future had in store for her and the rest of the world.

[Ariana Leigh Thorn]

That rebel moon is shinin'.
Those stars burn like diamonds,
Hell bent on chasin' down that crazy slide.

I'll follow you where you're leading,
To the first sweet taste of freedom.
You got me runnin' baby,

Ari grumbled softly and pulled the thick cloak tighter around herself. Why did she always have to pick up the slack when a prefect shit out on the job?

’Because you’re the Head Girl. That’s what you get Ms. Over Achiever’

Caleb’s reply from when she had asked this question earlier sounded in her head and she growled, gritting her teeth. ‘Stupid redneck boy.’ She thought darkly as she trudged up the stairs to the Astronomy tower, one of the places she had to check on her rounds. All she wanted to do was curl up in her bed with a good book and a cup of warm cocoa, she never did acquire a taste for Butter Beer, then fall asleep with Yoda on her lap. But no. Some sniveling Slytherin had to fall from his broom and bust his nose making it so she had to cover his rounds. She stopped in the middle of staircase and growled. ”Why couldn’t the Head Boy cover this job?” She asked the darkness, almost screaming in anger when she heard Calebs taunting voice ’Because yer an overbearing, brown nosing girl who has an anal need to pick up the slack where yer not needed’ She opened her mouth to tell him to shut up then stopped, and blushed red. She put her head down and continued up the stairs. She was starting to wonder if all this talking to herself was what her dad meant by her ‘withering and dying’ if she was without any social interaction.

She sneered to herself when she remembered her dad telling her that, just as she had the day he’d done it. She shook her head, making a note not to tell him she thought he might be right.

She reached the top of the stairs and pushed the heavy door open, shivering as the chilled night air hit her, such a change from the must air in the castle. She took a deep breath, making a mental note to stay away from the edges, and scanned the small area, hoping there wasn’t any Slytherin lurking up here.

It wasn’t that she disliked Slytherin house, okay well she did but it was with good reason. Since her first day she had heard sneers and snarky remarks from anyone in a green tie. She knew what it mean, Mudblood, but even her arrogant country side couldn’t make it any less hurtful. She wondered idly how her cousin had managed to deal with it for the seven years she was here.

Her eyes caught a figure and she frowned. “It’s after curfew, what are you doing up?” She demanded in as official a voice she could muster. She started forward and her eyes bugged when she recognized Professor Riggs, Head of Slytherin House. ‘Shit. Teacher. I’m boned.’ She blushed red and looked at her feet. “Excuse me Ms. – er – Professor Riggs.” Why couldn’t they use Mr. And Mrs. And Ms. Like they did back home dad gummite? “I thought it was a student up here.” She shuffled on her feet for a few minutes, hoping her History of Magics teacher wasn’t going to go AWOL on her.

Wild at Heart.

[Selli Riggs]

Selli had been enjoying this moment to herself, the clear air, the sense of control as she looked over everything that happened in the silent of the night it was almost calming. She had almost felt comfortable in her surroundings until...she was rudely interrupted and not just so, but mistaken as a student by a student. Her brow furrowed in an angered way and she did not turn around as she heard the soft American voice of the Gryffindor Head Girl. She listened to the stammering of fear, the nervous shuffling of feet as Ariana feared what was in store for her. Well to fear would be right.

Selli knew she looked young, but she thought that her very aura and presence would command respect the minute someone was in the vicinity. She thrived on the idea that most were intimidated by her and the fact that this stupid girl... a Gryffindor one for that matter, would mistake her for a student. It was enough to make any level-minded person fill with anger... but we can't necessarily assume that this Professor was level-minded.

Selli stood up straight, adjusting from her leaning position against the window and she turned around with a full-on sneer on her face. "Miss Thorn, am I right? I would recognize that dirty American accent anywhere." She began to slowly pace, a few feet in front of Ariana. "Now first of all, I believe that you are the one out of bounds here, the astronomy tower is supposed to be covered by the Slytherin Head boy. So thats 20 points from Gryffindor." She paused her speaking and movement to clear her throat and then continued, "Secondly, even if I was a student, what that said person is doing awake is none of your business, so there's another 10 points off for asking stupid questions. And then we have the blatant issue of you mistaking your superior for an insolent child. Lets just say you're very lucky I'm not allowed to inflict corporal punishment on students or you'd probably be begging for your life at this moment."

She ended her rant while standing in front of Ariana looking upon her with an expression of triumph and disgust, just daring her to talk back.

[Ariana Leigh Thorn]

That rebel moon is shinin'.
Those stars burn like diamonds,
Hell bent on chasin' down that crazy slide.

I'll follow you where you're leading,
To the first sweet taste of freedom.
You got me runnin' baby,

Ari gritted her teeth, bitting down on her tongue when her History of Magics teacher turned to her, sneering. ‘Oh yeah, she hates me.’ She thought numbly, hoping she wasn’t like some of the teachers who could use Legilemency to read her mind. None the less she kept herself from thinking the various curse words she had in mind and forced herself to look at the woman with the respect her position demanded.

She couldn’t, unfortunately, stop the narrowing of her eyes when her American accent was referred to as ‘Dirty’. If she wasn’t catching shit for being Muggle Born she was catching shit for being American. She clenched her fists as 20 points were taken away due to her covering for the womans own house. “Professor.” She said, politely. “I was covering for the Slytherin Prefect who happened to bash his nose in during Quidditch practice.” ‘You snide –GAH!’ She stopped her thoughts and continued watching her professor. “Excuse me Professor, but it is my job to question and punish students who are out of bed after curfew without proper permission.” Her eyes flickered down to the Head Girl badge that was pinned to her cloak.

She really wished she hadn’t picked up the slack tonight. She had always had a feeling her Professor didn’t like her, but now she was certain of it. Of course she couldn’t actually say anything about it. Teachers didn’t just hate students. They weren’t “allowed” to. ‘Not allowed to my ass.’ She thought darkly, biting the inside of her cheek.

Her teacher’s words made her eyes snap up and widen slightly, growing more green than Hazel in shock. Then they narrowed on her Professors form and she clenched her fists tightly. Screw being a brown nosing teachers pet. Screw showing this woman the respect her position demanded. This woman had pushed the wrong redneck. “Professor.” She said in a cool voice. “If I didn’t know any better I would think that were a threat.” Okay, it was an out right threat. Even a frickin’ first year could see that. Her eyes narrowed even more and she drew on some past knowledge of what her cousin had told her from the past. “You might want to be careful what you say. Sounds a bit death Eater to me.” She hissed. She actually couldn’t be sure, in her mind this teacher being a Death Eater was about as likely as Caleb being gay, but she figured if anything would push the buttons of a Slytherin, let alone a Slytherin Teacher, it would be a reference to that batch of nut jobs.

She smiled sweetly. “So sorry for bothering you Professor, I think I’ll finish my rounds now.”

Wild at Heart.

[Selli Riggs]

Oh how she loved when they talked back. When they thought they were so witty, and so not out of line. When they didn't understand how things were run around here, how things worked. Selli listened, and she listened carefully, plotting her next words to use against the student. Selli had obviously already struck a nerve, because this girl, known for being a brown-nosing head girl was already releasing some fire from within her. Maybe she had some useful anger buried within her... that could be explored later though for now it was more about the situation at hand.

The meek excuses that came up were merely replied to with a wave of the hand, and a look that said 'your excuses are getting you nowhere so give up'. But then the accusations came, she was certainly brave this one, as most gryffindors were known to be, but how far would the fire-headed american go?

"Actually miss, since you are given that position from the school, I believe it is your job to do as the staff tells you. So if I tell you, you are sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, I'm right do you hear me?"

Selli couldn't deny that she admired the girls courage for throwing out the term 'death eater' around Hogwarts. Hogwarts, where the famous Harry Potter is employed, a place which is supposed to be protected unconditionally by the powers of 'good and love'.

"Threats are a tool for disciplining children...but accusations on a teacher, now that is a very serious matter." Selli thought for a moment, then looked back at Ariana, her eyes boring into her, "The world isn't split into good vs. evil, Death Eaters vs those who aren't. I thought you were supposed to be somewhat smart. If you're serious about it though, I suggest you go to the headmaster with your fears of my 'evilness' and see how long he laughs in your face for."

[Ariana Leigh Thorn]

That rebel moon is shinin'.
Those stars burn like diamonds,
Hell bent on chasin' down that crazy slide.

I'll follow you where you're leading,
To the first sweet taste of freedom.
You got me runnin' baby,

Ari frowned when her replies were waved away. It wasn’t the fact she had lost points that had her so riled, she’d earn them back with ease on her classes before anyone even noticed them missing. What irked her is she was losing points for doing her job as appointed by the Headmaster himself. She knew it was insane to think this teacher was doing it simply because she was in Gryffindor, but Ari couldn’t help but assume that this act of taking points stemmed from more than just a minor confusion. The woman had already made a comment on Ari’s being American, so if it wasn’t her house her Nationality was certainly a factor.

But what could she do? She was a student, and Selli Riggs was a teacher, ignoring any opinions Ari might have about her she was a teacher.

Ari’s grip on her tongue with her teeth remained, the pressure increasing every so often as she fought the urge to tell her Professor where to shove a broom stick. Unfortunately Ari had been quiet for far too long and her hear headedness got the best of her. “You can’t be right all the time.” She said simply, quoting something her mother had told her when Ari had lost the spelling bee. She looked up at the teacher, her eyes open, she had forced them from being narrowed so her words would seem innocent, her head cocked to the side slightly as she looked at the woman.

“You misunderstood Professor. It wasn’t an accusation. Just a simple comment on your choice of words.” She smiled sweetly, her eyes darkening a little as her anger grew. Her eyes narrowed again and she frowned. “Of course the world isn’t split like that. You have to account for all of those snakes that you can never be too sure about.” She said quietly, meeting her Professors stare. She wasn’t sure what it was, but she suddenly had a bad feeling about her Professor. Some part of her told her to stop pushing her luck, but the pig headed side of her, the part that had probably cinched Gryffindor as her house, wouldn’t let her drop this. She smirked at little. “Why would I go to the Headmaster, like I said.” She said softly, her smirk fading. “It was simply a comment.”

Wild at Heart.

[Selli Riggs]

“You can’t be right all the time.”

The words echoed through Selli's mind as she remembered all the times she's heard that line before. Those people who spoke them to her however, forgot that when Selli wanted something she got it. Even in a situation where she didn't have the 'right' opinion or answer, she tweaked things her way so it became the right way. Should she waste her breath this student and explain to her that Selli Riggs was always right no matter the situation? She thought it better not to. It was one of her talents that was not ready to be shared with the world, if Selli had friends, companions of some sort who knew her well enough they would understand that. But as she thought on it more, Selli realised she never had that 'best friend' to share all her secrets with who understood exactly who she was, and that didn't bother her in the least bit.

"Well frankly, I don't think you're in any position to be commenting on my choice of words. Let's take another 30 points for disrespect and I would say detention with me twice a week for the next three weeks." Selli tore her eyes away from Ariana in a manner that showed that it was damaging her mind to look at the girl longer than she should, such an eager little face full of purity was enough to make anyone gag.

"You'll soon learn miss thorn that when you disrespect your elders and step out of line, the consequences will be rash. Sure you can survive a few detentions now, but if this meeting had happened outside the walls of the castle, beyond its protection I daresay you would not be so lucky."

[Ariana Leigh Thorn]

That rebel moon is shinin'.
Those stars burn like diamonds,
Hell bent on chasin' down that crazy slide.

I'll follow you where you're leading,
To the first sweet taste of freedom.
You got me runnin' baby,

Ari gritted her teeth and glared at the woman in front of her. She no longer censored the curses running through her mind. She had lost 60 and gotten detention for doing her job and then making a statement. What the hell had happened to Free Speech? She bit her tongue, not even wincing when the coppery taste of blood flowed over it. Her eyes were a forest green color by now as she stared at the woman in front of her who, unprovoked really, had seen fit to punish her unfairly. She wondered if it would be pathetic to go to her Head of House and complain about this.

“Yes Professor.” She hissed through clenched teeth. Her grip on her want tightened as her hangs hung at her sides. The way her Professor looked at her, like she was scum, it was really beginning to grate on her nerves. She locked her eyes on her professor, glaring at the smug woman before her. It was one thing to be looked down on by her class mates, that didn’t matter she could get over that, but a teacher? That was a-whole-nother story. This woman didn’t know anything about her, certainly not enough to make any assumptions, which it seemed to Ari she had. She had done nothing to deserve this contempt from someone who demanded respect herself.

She swallowed hard and looked at the woman, not missing the all out threat that was delivered. She gripped her wand as her anger flared. ‘Confringo’ The spell was shouted clearly in Ari’s mind, but the only thing that was heard audibly was the shattering of window behind the teacher, the glass falling to the floor. “Don’t underestimate me, Professor.” She hissed before she turned and opened the door, leaving the glass lying where it was as she started down the stairs.

Wild at Heart.

---

Ooc: Sorry if it seems I’m cutting it short. I thought if we left them up there for too long it’d end up a blood bath. Heh. You can have her follow, and maybe we can bring someone else in too that way no one gets hurt.

[Ginny Potter]

Ginny sat in her classroom this late hour grading papers as usual, god in heaven there were a lot of them! What made things worse is that she was dealing with a huge stack of essays that she had set three days prior. Brown eyes slid over the small cramped writing of one of her third year students for a moment before she set it down and rubbed at her eyes. They burned from staring at the page for too long, it was time for a break. Setting the parchment down she pulled her long waist length hair back out of her face and stood up from her desk to stretch her cramped legs. A small wince escaped her as she stood and she muttered something under her breath about getting old as she moved to the windows.

A small smile crossed her lips as she reached the dark glass, her husband's voice seemed to sound in her head as she stared at her reflection. "Your not old Gin, your as beautiful now as the day I married you" Of course she would have come back with some witty retort for that but at the moment her mind was filled with student's essays. Ginny stared out into the darkness for another couple of minutes before she slipped her wand out of her robes and flicked it at a tea set that had been settled out of view of the students. The tea pot rose up into the air and poured a cup of hot tea before settling back down onto the tray. Two sugar cubes ended up being dropped in and the cup floated to her.

She would have to thank her mother for teaching her so much when it came to household and making certain personal things easier with magic. Ginny wasn't as adept at some of the things her mother did but Molly Weasely was always willing to help her daughter and the rest of the family with any little thing. She took a sip of tea continuing to stare at her reflection for a few more seconds before she turned to head back to her desk and tackle that pile again. As she moved across the floor the sound of breaking glass caught her ear and she paused her head tilting slightly in curiosity. Who in the world would be up this late unless it was another teacher or a prefect?

Setting her tea cup on the edge of her desk Ginny moved to the door and pulled it open stepping out into the dark corridor. Brown eyes swept the hall for a moment before she stepped out and headed to her right in the direction the sound had come from. A moment later found her coming upon Professor Riggs and the broken window behind her. An eyebrow rose as she looked from the woman to the broken glass and back again.

"Everything alright here? What happened?" Ginny asked her gaze turning to look over her shoulder before returning to Riggs.

[Meleny Aldridge]

(ooc: I wasn't sure how many other people you wanted in here. I just saw the posts and wanted to join in on the drama. I figured it's time I break in my charrie for the site, anyway)

Meleny was walking across the grounds late at night trying to take her mind off everything. She knew she should've been in her dormitory but it was such a nice night she needed to be somewhere to clear her mind. She rarely broke the rules and tried to avoid detention but with everything going on she might need to break the rules a lot to blend in at school and continue her assignment as a student undercover. Being an undercover auror was hardwork. She may not look old enough to be an auror considering she is frozen in her 17 year old appearance from many years ago when Harry Potter walked the halls of Hogwarts but she does a good job when she needs to. She is very loyal to her fellow aurors and honors the assignment given without a second thought.

She started to walk back towards the castle just as her sensitive ears picked up the sound of glass breaking coming from the astronomy tower. Who else would be up this late? She started to run into the castle, a blur throughout the corridors. She slowed to a walk when she came to the door. She had to keep it a secret that she was a vampire or else she might be hunted and and she also had to be careful not to blow her cover. Her sensitive hearing picked up the sound of her Transfiguration professor and former Hogwarts classmate Ginny Weasley.

She stood in the shadows for a while longer to watch the other two occupants of the room. Selli Riggs, the History of Magic Professor. She hated that woman. She hadn't even stepped foot in her class yet but from the minute she saw her at the sorting ceremony something in her sensed she was bad news. She seemed to have the arrogance and bullying nature of a Slytherin. She remembered seeing the Slytherin table burst into raucous applause when it was announced she would be Slytherin's new head of house. Her eyes left Professor Riggs and landed on a Gryffindor girl who apppeared to be a 7th year. She glanced down at the glass all over the floor. "Reparo" she thought without using her wand. In her 7th year as a human she had taken a course in wandless magic and as her mind aged it only got stronger but she worked on it during her limited spare time so it isn't too strong but manageable. Her eyes remained on the Gryffindor 7th year for a long time. She noticed that she seemed pissed off about something and Professor Riggs seems to have been the cause. She wouldn't be the least bit surprised if it had been Riggs that made this girl angry.

[Selli Riggs]

Finally giving up, the small voice of Ariana being compliant with her "yes professor" only made Selli's head grow bigger with pride. She was expecting some sort of retaliation though, and she got it as she heard the window behind her crash. Silent magic, very impressive. And more words spoke through as Selli could feel the triumphant emotions coming off Ariana, as if breaking a window was making some sort of bold statement. "ooh don't underestimate Ariana, she can break windows with her mind". This mocking tone only rang through Selli's head however, she would never resort to such childish taunts in front of a student... well almost never.

Selli let the girl leave, she had her fun anyway, and more torture would be distributed during their detention sessions together. She couldn't help but feel victorious, she hadn't had this much fun in a while... probably since she was a student at Hogwarts. And more and more she was seeing the advantage she had over everyone here, and the influence she had on the flow of things. Maybe she could gain even more power if she played her cards right and gained the trust of the right people.

As she basked in her glory she heard more footsteps that echoed off the stone stairs, she didn't know whether to be annoyed that her moment of peace was interrupted once more, or anxious for another opportunity to stir up some trouble. But to her disdain, she saw it was Ginny Potter. Part Weasley, part potter, what could be worse. Selli tried to hide her sneer as Ginny emerged in her view, but she didn't know if she was that good an actor.

"Nothing that concerns you, it's been dealt with." She said shortly in response to Ginny's prying questions. She made her way to walk past the fellow professor when she saw another nosey student. She crossed her arms in front of her chest as she looked toward Meleny, "And you Aldridge, should not be here. I've already given one student detention tonight and I have no problem with handing out another."

[Ginny Potter]

Ginny caught the tone in Selli's voice and her eyes narrowed for a moment as the two women stared at each other. She dearly wanted to give into the temper that bubbled at the surface but the arrival of another student into the hall stopped Ginny from actually saying anything. She glanced to Meleny hearing what Selli said and she shook her head stepping forward. "I asked Miss Aldridge to meet me in my classroom Professor, I needed to speak to her about a few matters. Detention will not be necessary." Brown eyes turned to Meleny and she motioned for the girl to follow her back down the hall and into her class room. God I hate that woman....she's so cold and cruel....a lot like some other people I know. Ginny thought as she stepped into her classroom and back to her desk. She found her tea was cold, she flicked her wand at the cup and the tea heated once more.

(Forgive the shortness of the post)

[Meleny Aldridge]

Meleny bit her lip forcing herself not to give Riggs a piece of her mind. She stepped out of the shadows and stood in the middle of the room relieved when she heard Ginny's voice. She forgot she was supposed ti be meeting her after hours to talk about something. She was grateful she was saved from detention but ever since she found out she was supposed to see her she grew nervous and couldn't help but wonder what she wanted to talk to her about. She followed Ginny out of the astronomy tower and into her classroom. She watched Ginny reheat her tea and waited for her to speak.

[Ginny Potter]

Ginny moved and settled behind her desk with her tea, a wave of her wand at the tea set brought it over and she motioned for Meleny to have a cup if she wished. Another wave of her wand had the essays she was grading move over into a neat pile out of the way.

"Might I suggest not running into Professor Riggs in the corridors at night again? If not for me you would have most likely had detention several days in a row."

Ginny found herself flashing back to her fourth year when Professor Umbridge had been the DADA teacher and made the castle a living nightmare for all who resided in it. To her Selli Riggs was much like Umbridge though she would never openly say anything, at least not to Riggs face. Other teachers and her husband had heard the redheads opinion of the woman and it wasn't pleasant.

Ginny took a sip of her tea brown eyes meeting Meleny's. "Might I inquire as to why you were also wandering the halls at night?"

[Meleny Aldridge]

Meleny sat down in the chair in front of Ginny's desk and took the cup of steaming hot tea. She sipped it to calm her nerves. She sipped it some more until Ginny spoke. She knew she was in trouble the minute Ginny brought her to her classroom and the second the words flew out of her mouth. She bit down on her lower lip in thought. "Yes, Professor. That's a good suggestion. I understand that if it weren't for you I would have an endless stream of detentions." she said grateful that Ginny had saved her from detention but embarrassed she was found out of bed after hours.

She took another sip of her tea finding the hot liquid calming. She bit her lip again when Ginny asked the question she was dreading. She hadn't properly thought about what she was going to say if she was caught and she couldn't have found herself in a more embarrassing situation. She was an undercover auror posing as a Gryffindor 7th year. She had graduated with the golden trio and would be 17 for the rest of her life.

Her mind was adult but she had to play the part of a student. She wondered if Ginny knew all this and how it would sound coming out of her mouth. One, she knew that to someone other than Ginny, her fellow aurors, and the trio it would sound silly and two, she would blow her cover even though she could trust Ginny. "um...I was on my way back to Gryffindor tower when I heard the sound of glass shattering coming from the astronomy tower. I came to see what happened and to make sure no one was hurt." she said hoping it didn't sound too lame. It was as truthful as she was going to get tonight.

If she mentioned she was on the grounds late at night she knew she would probably find herself in detention. She hated lying to Ginny or anyone she cared about but as an undercover auror some lying had to be done no matter how much it hurt her to do so. She didn't want to lie to anyone and she didn't want to lose her assignment either.