Dare To Tangle With The Devil

[Perseas Stratis]

It was a break from revision for Perseas Stratis. The Gryffindor needed an escape from the books and notes, now left at Gryffindors common room, and get out to breath some fresh air. It was always like a bird confined in a cage when he was in the castle but at least he had the capability to open himself that cage and get away when he wanted. The outdoors were always offering opportunities to get your mind away from every day's problems. It usually was the forbidden forest where he could play pranks on lost, younger students but today there was something else he wanted to inspect after the previous stormy night.

Perseas arrived with his rucksack at the edge of the Forbidden Forest where he had spent the previous day digging with a shovel he had 'borrowed' from the Greenhouses. The pit he had made was deep to the knee and filled with sticky mud. It was obvious what was going on in the teenager's head as the widest of smirks arced on his lips. A single tree from the forest's tree line was bending over him and the pit. Instantly, a mischievous idea hit him. Perseas flourished he wand and pointed above him, casting every single spell he knew at the bowed branches. A rain of leaves started pouring on him from the abused branches and soon enough the muddy pit was camouflaged by a convincing layers of fallen leaves. The cunning Gryffindor scattered more of them at the area surrounding the now concealed pit so that no one would suspect something out of the ordinary there. Hardly containing his laughs, he climbed up the nearest tree and hid behind its rich canopy. He didn't even had to watch down at the pit. A splash and several curses would be enough to announce his newest victim.

 

[Victoria Chase]

It was a new day and Victoria looked forlornly at the desk in front of her. She hated studying and all the strings attached to it. The professors seemed to be strangling her now that the exams were coming to them like an unexpected wave. She just had to surf right through it like the surfer she was. Wrong. Vicky was no surfer nor the perfect student and she knew that no matter how hard she tried, her grades would stay like any average student's. That was what she was, an average student and Victoria couldn't care less. The pressure of her family was not entirely on her shoulders so she was all chill with her grades. Really, Victoria just needed some of the fresh New Zealand air outside and so she stood up and gathered her things before dropping them off in the Gryffindor Common Room, in the corner where she knew no one would give it a glance.

When Victoria reached the gates she sighed happily. Now this was the feeling of sheer happiness! She knew that a walk along the grass of Hogwarts' lush lawn would be perfect. With her brand new ballet flats, she could give it a test by even exploring the deeper part of the lawn. She walked further until she reached an area that was somewhat isolated save for the very few people that were far enough. She grinned as she thought that going a little further would have her discover something different and true, the moment she set her right foot forward, she did discover something. A pit of gooey mud.

Vicky shrieked when she fell to her death displeasure. "Sh*t!" Vee flailed her arms and felt the mud sticking to her legs and by that she knew that her newly bought shoes were ruined. This made her scream in frustration. "HELP!" The dark and rich liquid of dirt and other vile things were clinging to her legs and because of the splash, she felt parts of her hair that were wet. Damn, even her top was half ruined. Vee balled her fists and lifted herself to get her out of the sticky mess, hoping that no one actually witnessed that. "DAMNIT!"
​

outfit

 

[Perseas Stratis]

It was so boring to wait for his future victim to meet his genius trap. Perseas sat back comfortably leaning against the hard bark and his legs hanging off the branch, moving rhythmically as he started humming a tune that had stuck in his head days ago. He sighed impatiently and glanced at his watch to see how long he had been waiting there. Perhaps he should have dug that pit somewhere closer to the castle. Within the exams' period, really few students were not paranoid over revision to get out for a walk. Perseas decided to give it some more time and searched inside his rucksack for the apple he had shoved in just before leaving the common room in hurry. Waiting had certainly whetted his appetite.

The Gryffindor didn't necessarily want to keep a low profile. He started munching the apple without caring about the crunchy sound every time he was taking a bite. He let his mind a wander a little bit, thinking again of who could have invited Rhiannon McGowan to the Yule Ball. He was abruptly drawn out of his daydream when swears sounded like melody to his ears. He climbed down the tree, looking insufferably smug. "You definitely know some French..." he commented about the girl's swearwords. Coming closer, Perseas recognized his new victim. The girl was a fellow Gryffindor but he definitely didn't like her. She was in his list with the people he wanted to play a prank at least once. Usually, Perseas was targeting snob people, people acting superior to others and bullies. He had self-claimed the title of the 'punisher' to comfortably excuse his need to cause havoc from time to time and this girl (her name was really escaping him at that moment), was categorized in the snobs. "Stop shouting!" he tried to cover his ears before they were damaged by the girl's yells. "I'm here to help you. Now come on, grab my hand." he offered his hand to pull her out of the mud. Just when she attempted to reach it, he took it back and had instead a bite from his apple. His wide smirk was enough to tell her that he was planning to get on her nerves for a little longer.

 

[Victoria Chase]

Vee wanted to scream with all her might and even let the birds in the forbidden forest know how pissed she was. Her reputation was something she did not want anyone poking at and now Vicky was not sure if this would reach the Gryffindors' ears. She really hoped not or else she would be the next laughing stock whenever she went inside the common room. She breathed heavily whilst making her best efforts to move her feet without feeling some sort of venomous snake lurking down the mud. Victoria was too busy to lift herself up from the rich mud filled with... crap, most probably, that she did not hear the comment uttered from above. When she heard a voice however, it was when someone told her to stop shouting. Victoria's mouth formed into the perfect 'O', shocked at how someone was there standing by the edge of the pit. "WHAT THE--" Vicky almost wanted to hex him away, embarrassed by how he managed to see her drenched in mud. She looked at him closely as he held out a hand to her in which she sighed at, before reaching out. But she missed when he pulled his palm back and held an apple instead and bit on it.

"You son of a b--" Vee started, as she stumbled on the mud. She steadied herself before her own outfit screamed 'mud monster' and was glad she saved most of her hair from the mud. Victoria looked at the smug boy and her eyes became as round as saucers when she recognized him. She knew him as one of the pranksters of the school and most probably one of the top wanted Gryffindors who deserved detention at least six times a week. They did nothing but cause trouble and here she was, one of their poor unfortunate victims. "How dare you! You're the one behind this, you stupid piece of... ARGH!" She stomped her foot on the ground, only to be rewarded by massive drops of mud on her face. Indeed, speak for her stupidy. If only there was a way she could call the Headmistress and convince her to put this guy in detention for the rest of the year but no, she was stuck here on the thick mud. "I bet your twin is behind this too. It's Stratis, right? Yeah, the name rings a bell because you cause too much havoc around. And guess what, nobody likes it." Victoria crossed her arms before her chest, demanding through her facial expression that he help her out of the pit. But her words said she wanted to get revenge by attacking verbally. Vee was ready at any point now to throw balls of sticky mud at him so he can feel her pain.
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

The reaction was always wrong no matter who was his victim. Prey fighting back only provoked the predator to charge again and keep attacking. This girl had the kind of attitude that Perseas really disliked and with each single word coming out of her mouth, he was more determined to let her there, sinking in the mud. "Watch your mouth or a scouring charm is coming your way and it is not intended for cleaning your clothes." Perseas warned her. When he was younger, he used to swear a lot around home and his mother was punishing him with a scouring charm, causing soap to fill his mouth. He might have to do this if she was going to keep cursing.

He might looked busy finishing his apple but he was actually listening to her, quite amused with the blame she was putting on him and the fact that his reputation preceded him. "I knew you were one of my admirers." he responded calmly but with his half smile mocking her and threw away the apple's core. "That's insulting the least. My brother would have never pulled such a genius prank." he added and took a few steps back as she insisted struggling in the mud, sending foul drops everywhere. "I should let you know that the more you struggle, the deeper you'll get." he began saying and sat down on the grass, a safe distance away from her and the pit. He brought his knees closer to his chest and wrapped his arms around them before continuing. "A first year girl fell in there before you. Now I think she's somewhere at the bottom. Keep thrashing like a stranded trout and you'll meet her soon." he chuckled. The pit wasn't that deep to gulp a person and no other student had ran into it before her. Perseas was just chaffing. He just wanted to witness that face of superiority she always had, to be transformed by stress.

"I know you too." Perseas admitted, risking to inflate her ego. Such kind of girls were always seeking for recognition. "You are that snobbish blood supremacist, aren't you?" he continued without expecting an answer. Perseas was an observer and he had noticed the girl's attitudes towards fellow, muggle-born classmates. "Well, look where are you now. With so much mud on you, someone could mistook you for a 'mudblood'." he used a word that he wouldn't in any other case. But now he wanted to talk in her own 'language'. Perseas then took out his wand, either reviving her expectations of help or making her believe he was about to hex her. He was fine with both. "Listen how it works. I feel quite the philanthropist today so I think I might help you after all." Perseas said and deftly spun his wand around his fingers, in a show off manner. His expression was revealing there was a catch there which he was going to reveal.
"I just need from you the magic word and I'll be there in no time, helping you to get out of the mud." he offered, wondering if she would grasp what he was meaning. The magic word was a simple 'please'. A word that he was quite convinced she rarely used.

 

[Victoria Chase]

Victoria's face was priceless as she was "commanded" to watch her mouth. Absolutely no one spoke to her like that and the only one who could silence her completely was her dad. Since daddy dearest was not around, Vicky could say whatever she wanted. Even setting a toe out of line was something she could do, as long as the deed would not reach any of the professors' ears. She wanted to claw at him and make sure he felt how long her nails were and how manicured they were, before he set up this stupid and illogical trap for his fun. In all her life she was never the one who set up pranks constantly but there were times wherein a girl had to make some shallow fun for herself too. Really, if this was boy was not notorious for his vicious pranks she would have even conversed with him in her sweetest yet most sarcastic way. Vee just knew they were bound to be annoyances. It was for sure though, they would harbor this dislike for each for the rest of their years.

Vee glared the sharpest daggers at Perseas, hoping he would get the message to shut up and just help her out of the pit. However wherever this conversation was going, she did not get the implementation that he was going to assist her out of the damn hole. No, in fact he seemed to want to push her temper even more, just like how she felt (in the paranoid way) that there were suckers, literally, on the ground trying to pull at her feet. When she heard his assumption of a first year several feet feet under her, she rolled her eyes struggling to fumble for her wand and cast the strongest Stunning Spell a third year has ever cast. The idea of casting Petrificus Totalus was appealing too and Vee would love the idea of pushing his petrified body down the pit and leave him be. But now, she would have to deal with herself surrounded by the stickiest mud she has ever encountered.

Her eyes snapped with more life when he expressed his awareness of her. Right, Vee just thought so because they were housemates of course despite the fact Vicky seemed to have made more true friends in Slytherin than in any other house. She kept her eyes glued on him as he mocked her with the mud, referring to her as a mudblood because literally, she was drenched with it. "I have a tolerance for halfbloods and other bloods," Vicky said it with the subtlest sign of disgust before continuing. "But I think my reserved civility for you has burned out. Not gonna lie though, you really didn't deserve it." She answered back with a curve of her lips that made a half sneer and sickly, sweet smile. She uncrossed her arms and searched for her wand that was in the charmed pocket of her skirt. When she felt the wooden thing, she groaned loudly and felt that it wasn't saved from the mud. Victoria got it out and tried to shake the mud out of it, ignoring the words of Perseas until he told her to say the magic word that would help her get out of the rotten hole. Now this caught every ounce of attention she had at the moment.

She noticed his wand at first and she stepped back with caution when he thought he was going to jinx her. Her own was covered in mud and she really needed someone to cast a cleaning charm on both her and her beloved wand. It was like her twin and having it with filth wasn't ideal. She rolled her eyes at him, having no idea what kind of magic word he was looking for from her. She trudged heavily to the edge of the hole and noticing that it would take a great effort to lift herself up along with the mud clinging to let her stay, she needed his help. With all her pride though, Vee believed she could do it by herself if he was only there to mock her. "Wow, sounds like that magic word is some kind of muggle statement. I'm not a muggle, if you noticed so I don't think you'd get me." She answered, not entirely getting that what he wanted was a simple 'please'.
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

Patience had its limits and this girl was determined to exhaust Perseas' already poor stocks. His piercing, grey eyes were inspecting her from the distance as she kept showing her true colors. At first, Perseas couldn't understand why pure-bloods were so obsessed about blood purity. They were either too shallow to judge people from their lineage or they feared that muggle-borns were actually far better in magic than them. The last case seemed more plausible to the young Gryffindor, having witnessed many of his muggle-born friends at school, thriving like they were around magic for their entire life.

The girl seemed to be unrepentant as she continued with her snobbish attitude that was driving Perseas crazy. He had also acquired a headache from her ridiculous delirium about blood status and muggles. "Shame. You should have been hanging out with muggles more often because I need to hear that 'muggle word' coming out of your dirty mouth." he leaned back, almost lying down as he used his elbows for support. Perseas could lay down on the grass all day long, basking under the sun until she was going to ask politely but he thought that the situation needed special measures. He let a moment of silence pass as he examined his sneakers for mud spatters, giving her a last opportunity to behave. When it was clear that she wasn't going to change her stubborn mind, he stood up. "Alright, I get it. You really like this pit and you want to stay there. Fine." he said and brushed dust and dirt off his jeans. "No need for my help I assume and I have to catch up with revision you know." he explained, hardly managing to hide the smirk on his face as he was picking up his rucksack and loaded on his shoulders. "Good day and very best luck to you!" he waved back at her and pretended he started walking away, heading for the castle. Perseas wasn't going to leave the girl there alone. It was his last card to play in order to hear her asking kindly for his assistance.

 

[Victoria Chase]

Under the sun with only her glorious self around, Vee would have been a joyous little lady. She loved the sun when it gave them the right amount of heat, despite the fact that there was a chance of sweating her pores out. Right now Vee wished the weather was a bit cooler, so she would not have to feel herself break a sweat with nervousness. Damn her tongue for being so defensive. Her pride as well was not something that would go down. Victoria knew that there were things that could be done without having to let down her stubborn pride, but some situations had it that putting down her pride was mandatory. She felt that this was one of the days wherein she had to but now, she only felt that those words coming out from Perseas' mouth were empty threats. Really, he could not just leave her there right? Vee huffed to herself and felt her arms cross itself tighter, tense if he was really was going to leave her. Sh*t.

Victoria bit her lip, feeling a little panicky. She couldn't lift herself here without struggling for at least half an hour. It would be torture, especially to her poor clothes that she only purchased about a month ago. She hated ruining garments and because of this boy, she felt too torn with everything. Vee uncrossed her arms and hoped her decision to call him back was worth it. "WAIT!" she called out, hoping he would hear her and not walk back his ass to the castle. "Okay, okay, I really want your help and what the hell, I'll shut up now. Okay? Can you just turn around now?!" Vee tried to move herself but only felt the edge that was her only hope to get up. With all the strength she had in her muscles, the brunette tried lifting her weight off the mud that clung to her and successfully lifted herself not more than two centimeters. She fell back to the mud, choking back her frustration and gritted her teeth. Without looking at him (she was focusing on the grass now), she cried, "I swear..." Vee added, whilst grunting because of the sucking mud at her thighs. "Just please pull me out." Vicky was a fragile thing when it came to these physical stuff and some aid would be more than fantastic.
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

Perseas smiled to himself as he was walking away, hearing the panic in her trembling voice. He stopped when she heard her almost crying. Although he felt sorry for her, he wasn't going to let that show. People like her were really good actors and they would do anything in order to manipulate others. Perseas slowly turned around and walked towards her when she finally used the word 'please' in her last plea for help. "That's more like it. See? With just a simple word like 'please' you can get all the help you want." he said and returned back to the pit. For some reason she had made him feel guilty while watching her there trapped and desperate. Perseas dropped his rucksack back on the floor and examined the pit. With all those leaves scattered around it was hard to see where the ground was stable and where not. The girl was also trapped somewhere in the middle and he could hardly reach her without falling himself in the mud. "Hold on and try not to stick deeper in there." Perseas encouraged her and searched in his rucksack for the rope he used to tie in front of doors to make unsuspecting people to trip.

Perseas threw the other side of the rope in the pit, close to her. "Just relax. I will pull you out of there." he said and started walking away from the pit in order to get her out. At first, he was pulled closer, his feet plunging deep in the mud to his ankles but he didn't give up. He insisted, clenching his teeth, both hands holding tightly the rope. Eventually, the girl got out of the pit back on steady ground and Perseas collapsed exhausted on the grass. "Just one more thing..." he said breathless and took out of his rucksack an old camera. "Say cheese." he said and took a photo of the girl with her stained clothes dripping mud. Perseas was quite aware that she was probably going to act *****y now that she escaped her little hell. Provision never harmed anyone. "That in case you start threatening me again. Now stand still. The caretaker is going to mistake you with a dugbog if you're going to return back to the castle like this." he said with a half smile as he put the camera back in the rucksack. Then he casted a few scouring charms on the girl and her clothes and soon she looked like she had never ended up in the gooey mud. "Satisfied now?" he pocketed his wand and loaded his rucksack again. "You would have been out of the pit long time ago if you had just asked it politely." Perseas let her know why he had changed his mind.

 

[Victoria Chase]

When she heard that all she had to say was 'please,' Victoria almost lost it but nevertheless, she did not show it. Really, if she knew that the only thing she had to do was say some senseless please then she would have done it a hundred times with her best frown. Although when it came from him telling her in a way that all she needed was some politeness, Vee knew he was right and expressing it genuinely was her key to get out of the stupid hole. She moved herself a little closer to the edge, but the mud was too sticky for her to get past through. Hell, she felt that in no time she would be baked under the sun with this mud. The thought of that brought budding sweat to her neck, aware that he was pretty much her only chance if she wanted to get out in less than an hour.

Victoria jumped when a rope was thrown to hold her hands together. She suddenly felt like she was some prisoner being hauled to where the inmates were located and truthfully, all she wanted was a hand for assistance. She was proved wrong though when he started to pull as hard as he can and the only movement they got was not even more than five inches. Victoria mustered her calmness to take over her mind so she can think clearly in order to pull herself out of the pit. She struggled and with the boy's help, she was able to already reach the edge of the pit. Vicky breathed in deeply and with one strong pull, she heard herself stumble onto the grass and him on it as well with exhaustion. Victoria eyed him for a moment and considered the idea of running from him in case he wanted to push her in again since she was pretty close to the edge of the hole still. When she decided the prankster was only a harmless ****, she paid more attention to herself to get herself cleaned.

"Thanks," Vee murmured in a whisper, not even making the slightest eye contact with Perseas. She did not want to see that big smirk on his face when he finally got the thank you of Victoria Chase. She sat up from the grass and shook her wand in attempt to get the mud off. Whilst shaking it, she heard a snap that was familiarly from a camera and she whipped her head around to glare at him. True enough she saw the device and honestly, she could not distinguish whether it was from the wizarding world or muggle's. Vee rolled her eyes at him, feeling tired to snatch the camera away from his hands. Instead, she got a handful of mud from herself and threw it at the boy, hoping it would hit him square on the face so that he'd feel her suffering.

With no choice but to obey, Vee stood as still as she can without shivering because of the dirty feel she acquired. Literally she felt like some mud monster out to scare the little children during Halloween. She looked down, nibbling on her lip just so he could not see her embarrassment. Although he probably felt it from the very start already. When he was done, the pureblood looked up at him and nodded solemnly, touching the fabric of her skirt and feeling that it was not as bouncy as before. Okay, perhaps with the millions of skirts that she had it would not matter but Vee always loved to keep her clothes in the best condition. She breathed in deeply, feeling less troubled and panicky. Victoria clasped her hands behind her back and approached him with the most serious face in the world. "I hope you don't always target poor girls like me," Vee said looking him deadpan right in the eye. She wasn't poor per se, but he'd get her context. "Or maybe you should make more girl friends to know how they'll feel." Victoria's lips lifted itself into a forced smile, trying to recall if she ever saw him hanging out with any girl before. So far, no memory came to mind.
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

Perseas kept a safe distance from the girl as if he had just set free an unpredictable graphorn. It had nothing to do with her previous, muddy appearance. He just didn't trust her, he could see intelligence in her eyes and while he had in some way humiliated her, she could react unpredictable. Perseas was right. He raised his hands in front of his face as a handful of mud spattered on them, several drips landing on his cheeks. "Well, you still behave like a dugbog." he smirked and shook the mud off his hands. He didn't really had time to react as she approached. Her expression had nothing humorous or playful like his own flashing on his face.
"Poor girl?" he laughed and rolled his eyes before taking a step forwards as well. He was taller than her but this didn't prevent daggers shooting out of her eyes. "We both know you're not a poor girl. More like a devil." he said with his half smile that many people who had fallen for his pranks would love to wipe out of his face. "If I have to make girl friends like you, no thanks, I'll pass. I'll prefer enemies." he stated with narrowed eyes, not wanting to be the first to break eye contact. It seemed like the air between them would start charging causing sparks to ignite. Perseas noticed that her devilish smile had a well-hidden innuendo, mocking him to find out what it was.
"What is it? If there's something you're really trying to imply, speak clearly." inches away from her face, he questioned her with his eyes. The silence and her mysterious smile that made him feel uncomfortable, had both stayed for too long.

 

[Victoria Chase]

Vee's dry smile twitched and she really wanted to spit at him but that would be gross, considering that she was ladylike and she had all the grace not to do so. But Victoria was having enough of this nonsense. For one thing, she wanted to turn the mockery around so that he would be the target and not her. Perhaps Victoria was not an excellent prankster since the pranks she did were not all too harmful. They only were for kicks and giggles for her part. Vee knew though that she could bite back verbally and even make those cheeks of his go red in embarrassment. She stopped when she felt that he was going too close to her but did not back away. Her brunette head was lifted up so that her eyes were still in contact with his and slowly her lips curled into that ridiculous smirk of hers that indicated she knew something. Vee was not the resident gossiper of Gryffindor but she certainly knew the important facts about people that circulated the castle rapidly. Like him; Perseas did not escape the blabbermouths in Hogwarts and with Vee's keen ears, she knew just how to fire back.

"Well..." Vee trailed, crossing her arms and feeling a flare in her green eyes. She wanted to laugh humorlessly at him for telling her to speak up and damn right, she would speak up because he deserved some bites in his ass. Victoria did not budge when their faces were inches away, knowing that their closeness would even add more intensity to what she was going to say. "I might be a devil, but at least I'm not the one with a huge rejected sign stamped on his forehead, clearly saying that his chance with girls is so..." Vee searched for the word, still not looking away from Perseas' eyes. "Flat." Victoria did not pity him for what happened to him and that Hufflepuff girl. He deserved it, she guessed?

"I know what happened between you and that Hufflepuff." Vee almost sang, her head lowering, giving him a deviously gleeful look. She stepped back, thinking that now that she dropped her bomb it would be enough to leave him thinking. Being that close towards someone she disliked was uncomfortable and he was certainly intruding on her personal space right there. "What now? Feeling down that you can't use your dress robes? Oh, I hope those clothes weren't hideous."
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

The girl had started annoying the hell out of him. He just wanted in some way to make her stop giving him that wry smile but Perseas could never lift a hand on a girl. He was even suppressing the need to hex the girl's head into a sea urchin but he would defend himself with magic if he had to. For now, the girl's weapons were her tongue and ironic vein, both working effectively as he could do nothing to strike them back. Perseas mimicked her and folded his arms as well against his chest, daring her to speak of what she truly had in mind. What she said caught him unprepared and his smug went through a violent transformation to finally turn into a peeved expression. "How do you know that?" he sassed with seething eyes. She knew everything about him asking Rhiannon to become his date for the Yule Ball. For a moment, Perseas felt really betrayed as poisonous thoughts flooded his mind. But then he thought that Rhiannon would never gossip about it with other people. She wasn't that type of person. Someone must have eavesdropped their conversation back then at the courtyard, if not the irritating girl before him.

It didn't took him long to recover his roguish smile. Perseas simply didn't care what other people would think or say about him. "And? What's your problem with that?" he questioned and quirked an eyebrow suspiciously. "Don't you have a life to look after? She was already asked. I was just too late. That's all." he said, not that he was feeling the need to defend himself and explain. "Not in the slightest." he replied, taking a step even closer to her. Someone watching them from the distance would have thought that something else was going on between them than quarrelling. He could actually see his reflection in her green eyes. "I'm intending to go to the ball, whether it is with a date or not." he stated and poked her on the shoulder with his index finger. Perseas really wanted to shove her back in the mud but that poke was as much force, his upbringing was allowing him to use on a girl. He took a few steps back, realizing how awkwardly close he had got to her while boiling with frustration. "Now, leave me alone or I'll owl your photo to the school paper." he warned with an empty threat. Not even the tone of his voice was inspiring seriousness and he looked so affected by what she said to him. He was still fighting inside him to find out why he was so bugged by that day at the courtyard. He looked so discouraged that someone could pity him if they didn't have a heart of stone

 

[Victoria Chase]

Vee was gleeful when his reaction was just like she wanted. Okay, perhaps she expected something more violent like a sneer and maybe a hex, but physical violence was something she responded back with verbally so maybe she was glad she was not hexed back to the pool of gooey mud. It smelled of dirt and Victoria could imagine if he included some sort of crap down there. Victoria was just thankful her feet were touching proper ground now, even though she lost the normal bounciness of her outfit. At least she felt cleaner, even if the one who made her feel cleaner was Perseas.

When she stepped back, she thought it was better to leave him alone there and walk her way back to the castle feeling a little more triumphant compared to him. However her shoulders jumped a wee bit when she felt him enclose the space in between them and hell did it feel uncomfortable. Victoria did not even talk to this boy that much and here he was, intruding on her private space. Her head leaned back a bit, seeing that he was too close and she could already see the color of his eyes. However forcing herself to relax, she thought of something that could get her back in the game. When she did, she stood up straighter and looked at him squarely, despite the fear that was arising due to his threat about owling her picture. "No need to owl it. I can help you anyway. I bet you'd love to prank her in another kind of way." She smirked at him since scheming something like this was one of the few things she enjoyed even if it would harm someone. Vee dared to even lean in one inch closer and smiled deviously. "Isn't that what guys do? Make the girl you like be jealous? And who knows, maybe you can outshine that date of hers... Well, if she truly does have a date." This game was not so bad after all. Vee was just repaying him for saving her out of that hellhole even if he was the one who dumped her in it... Not literally of course. Also she'd like to see Perseas get all red when he sees who the Hufflepuff's date was. Maybe it was some dashing guy from the upper years.
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

Victoria Chase might have been talking to Perseas for a few minutes but she already knew how to speak in his language. She wasn't too straight with what she was really implying but she certainly didn't shot her mouth off. She was picking her words carefully and a single word could have far more power than a whole statement. Perseas had let his guard off from when she revealed she knew everything about what had happened in the courtyard few days ago, so what she was suggesting now with discreet slyness was finding him without any resistance. "A prank?" he repeated the word that had the most influence on him. "What do you know about pranks? You couldn't even see my prank coming and it was the simplest I have in my arsenal. Just for killing my time when I'm bored." Perseas doubted she could have thought of something clever, though her smug expression was suggesting differently. Victoria spared him another hint including the element of jealousy. "I never mentioned I like her." he cleared out although he hadn't really cleared this out with himself. "But stirring the pot would make the Yule Ball a fun event." he added, evidently eager to pull a good prank that night. "I don't see though, how a prank could make someone jealous." he wondered and his piercing eyes pinned on her devious smile. "Okay. I would really like to know what you have in mind. Cause you really have something." that devious smile must have been contagious because it slowly formed on his lips as well under his mischievous eyes.

 

[Victoria Chase]

Hearing that his prank onto her was one of the basic ones, she rolled her eyes at the boy. Frankly she did not have to hear how he was so glorious in the art of pranking because for all she cared, he could go bother another person out. Vee just hated it when she was the target in a person's eye because who would try to harm Victoria when she was so dainty. Most of the time, that was. When she was provoked however she transformed into this vicious foul mouthed little girl whose first impression to people was that she was bratty. Victoria rolled her eyes the second time when he said he did not like their classmate, knowing that this was in fact, untrue. People like him were always in denial and they had to face their feelings. Even if it was just some puppy love, feeling were always mirrors of the heart.

She nodded, relieved they were finally getting along with something. When she saw him mirror her own expression she moved a step back and shrugged at him, having the upper hand. "Course I have something. I'm Victoria Chase." Victoria was not a pro at playing with one's feelings, but she sure had some experience. Living in a household where your parents' attention was mostly spotlighted on the youngest child was simply not acceptable. She always had to do something. Vee also tapped his cheek like she would do to little boys with her palm twice, hoping he would get her context about 'pranks.' Victoria did not pull out stunts and flabbergasting scenarios out of the situation. She liked being stealthy and sly. "I did not mean literal pranks or stunts, if that's what you think. When I said pranks, I meant making a fool out of her emotionally. If the normal case of pranking is fooling someone by letting them fall into a hole mud, then let this be a case of letting her feelings fall into confusion." Victoria uttered like a know-it-all would say it so. She suddenly felt like she was some smart, deep and wise person. The only hidden agenda Victoria had was to see Perseas' face when she saw who her date was. Victoria did not know who the Hufflepuff was bringing as well, so that surprise would be smashing.

Lightheartedly, Vee chuckled as she thought of his own feelings. It would be hilarious to regard his by now, but she did anyway. "Anyway I know you like her. Only Merlin knows if she likes you back. And maybe at the end of the Yule Ball, she'll regret going with her date. I dunno, it's still all up to you though Stratis."
​

 

[Perseas Stratis]

With a chuckle, Perseas lowered his head and shook it. This girl was surely narcissistic and Perseas could bet she was getting excessive amount of attention from her friends and family. He was going to make sure he wasn't going to make the same mistake. People like her believed that they had their milieu wrapped around their finger. He wasn't planning to turn into her new puppet and actually, he wasn't planning to become part of her social environment in general. He wanted to grab her wrist and squeeze it as she tapped his cheek mockingly but for once more he measured his reaction and just pursed his lips in a sort of a smirk. He bit his lower lip in an attempt to restrain himself and not drag her back into the pit.

Perseas scratched his chin as Victoria explained what exactly she was implying. He was hesitant to take her seriously. At first it seemed she had lost him when she crossed out the possibility of a literal prank. Perseas was an intelligent guy though. The girl was for once more not so straightforward, letting generality loom in the air but Perseas cracked a cheeky smile when he figured out what Victoria was suggesting. "All this delirium to just ask me if I want to go to the Ball with you?" he teased looking all arrogant and smug. He even pushed back a strand of her hair falling across her cheek. Now it was his turn to mock her. "I'll do you the favor and I'll be your date for the prom" he winked at her playfully. It was still hazy in his head why he was going to appear at the Yule Ball with a girl he was considering a loose cannon. But maybe Victoria was right. He wanted to make Rhiannon jealous or something and he could take advantage of this girl while she was offering her assistance. She probably going to use him as well for her own unknown purposes. It was a deal with the devil for sure. "Don't make me wait. I'll be expecting you at the common room so that we'll leave together for the Great Hall." he said and one-strapped the rucksack on his shoulder, ready to leave. He needed to catch up with his transfiguration revision and he had fiddled long enough. "Watch your step on your way to the castle. There might be more pits hidden around." he chuckled and with that he walked away, leaving her alone. He headed to the lake where he found a peaceful spot to study his notes. He had no success whatsoever. His head was filled with thoughts of the Yule Ball's forthcoming night.