Thirteen O' Clock

[Jonathan Spenser]

Jonathan pulled his robes around him as he made his way around the Great Lawn on his daily patrol. He knew this was a task that he had to do but the weather was just so miserable today that he really had no desire to be outside on this supposedly 'spring day.' The day was going by so slowly and it was no where near finished, Jonathan was almost disappointed that the children that occupied the school were behaving themselves today, or maybe they were just smart enough to stay inside.

Jonathan made his way towards the Forbidden Forest, even though he hadn't seen any children he knew it was always a hot spot for rule breaking, even on a day like this. Jonathan had never seen why people were so attracted to the Forbidden Forest, it was the home place to centaurs and if the children knew anything, they should know how centaurs were to humans, especially children. He shook his head of the thoughts, and continued on his patrol.

As he made his way down the muddy path through the Great Lawn he saw a few young children emerge from the Forest. There's always some. he thought with a slight groan. He loved his teaching job but he did not enjoy the part of being strict and giving out punishments, like he would have to now. As he approached the students he saw the smallest out of the three fall. Concerned Jonathan ran forward and to his shock saw that there was actually four students in the group, the fourth lying motionless on the ground in front of the one who had just fallen. "Children what do you-" he cut of mid-sentence as he looked down on the ground at the fourth member of the group. Seeing the wound in the young boys chest and the blood soaked clothes he looked in horror at the two students still on their feet, "What in Merlin's name have you lot been up too?" he asked, not sure how to react, a mixture of anger, fear, shock and other things he could not place at the moment in time running though his body.

 

[Landon Dalton]

Landon's head turned sharply to the person who had joined them; the Ravenclaw head of house.
Though he was unsure what he could say, Landon would speak rather than let Artemis or Lucy attempt. He was inhaling some of the rain of his face, spluttering a little. "Professor!" Landon said hurriedly, "Help us, please!" Surely it was obvious what had happened. Surely the Professor could tell that the group had walked into the forest- forbidden for a reason- and a member of the group had been killed.
"We think he's been-.." Landon swallowed hard. He couldn't talk around Artemis right now. They needed to get Jareth somewhere he would be safe and Artemis to the hospital wing.. Perhaps Lucy needed a visit there also. Landon, however, ignored his own thoughts and feelings.

Landon turned to Artemis, his face soaked with rain, mingled with the pale shocked face beneath. "Artemis," Landon said weakly, his throat sore. "Artemis, Professor Spenser is here... He can help .. us." He narrowly avoided saying 'you'. Last thing he wanted to do was make Artemis feel more isolated than she probably did now.

 

[Artemis Tuuri]

She was so cold. Artemis had her frail arms wrapped around her knees and the side of her face pressed into the mud. She did not want to move anymore, but they had such a long way to go yet. Jareth was abandoned next to her with the rain splashing onto his cold body, and Art couldn't leave him like that. With supreme effort she uncurled herself and slid forward on her stomach, trying to reach his body and almost incapable of standing. But she heard the wet slap of new footsteps on the ground and Artemis looked up into the pouring rain to see Professor Spenser standing near them, towering above her. Fear struck her then, completely irrational and blinding. Art made a sound like a wounded animal and threw herself the last few feet onto Jareth where she wrapped her arms around his waist and became still again. No one was taking him anywhere, she wasn't moving, she wasn't.

Landon spoke her name. Art heard but did not respond but for a tightening of her arms. Yes, Professor Spenser was here, but how could he help them? Jareth was already dead, and it was too late for any of them. Couldn't they see? Jareth was white as a ghost and unmoving, limp. They were both splattered with his blood. Artemis made the wounded animal noise again. Slowly her legs began to move and she slipped and slid her way upright, dragging the tiny body of her fiance with her. She did not get far though, and she fell again to her knees, almost flattened as the weight of her beloved fell against her chest. She held his head against her and cried, forgetting that Professor Spenser was there at all. "Jareth..."

 

[Jonathan Spenser]

The scene in front of Jonathan was almost heartbreaking, he was listening to Landon but his eyes were on Artemis as she struggled to move towards to young boy on the ground. Even with Landon's plea for help Jonathan watched as Artemis tried to stand up again with the boy in her arms. When she fell again and began crying Jonathan had had enough. Knelling down beside Artemis he placed his hand on her shoulder gently. Speaking in a soft voice he said, "Artemis, how about we go up to the school and get you all cleaned and washed up. It's much warmer up there too." He hoped she wasn't going to be too apprehensive towards his suggestion, it was after all the best for everyone. By the looks of the children they had been out for a while and if they were out any longer they were all going to get very sick.

 

[Lucinda Dalton]

Lucy remained silent as Professor Spenser reached them. Now we'll get in trouble. Another thing to make this day awful. She did not linger long on that thought, however, because all she could think was whether Artemis would be okay, whether she could make it up to the castle alright. She didn't seem willing to go, not if she couldn't bring Jareth back. Her heart bled for the girl, she couldn't imagine what it was like, but she was sure if it had been Landon who had been killed, she would be acting exactly the same.

"I-it was a centaur, Professor," Lucy piped up, looking straight at the professor. Public speaking training kicked in, and as frightened as she was, she wanted to explain the situation to Professor Spenser. "A-at least, I assume it was." Her voice was slightly husky, as though she hadn't used it in a while. "He...he had an arrow in his chest. I'm so sorry, Professor, we shouldn't have gone out there," she added, looking down at her feet.

It was too heartbreaking to see Artemis struggle. Lucy dropped to the ground again, on the other side of Artemis to the professor. "Please, please Artemis, you...you can't carry him anymore. You have to go back to the castle, and..." her words failed her at this point. She wanted to promise her that it would all be okay, but she couldn't say such a thing. Her fiance was dead. It wasn't okay.

 

[Artemis Tuuri]

Why was everyone saying that they had to go? They couldn't leave Jareth here. Artemis couldn't think beyond each second; people were talking and she did not understand them. There was a hand on her shoulder and she wanted to shrug it off, but the next second she wanted to crawl over to the warm body and away from the cold one in her arms. They had to go to the castle but Art couldn't move anymore, didn't they understand? "I can't carry him back," she sobbed, her pixie face crumpled and broken. "I can't! Please don't leave him here, please!". She couldn't carry him, she couldn't walk, she couldn't do anything but press her face to Jareth's and moan. But she was not as incoherent as she appeared, for the Ravenclaw left in her mind was rotating the options sluggishly in her mind. They could levitate Jareth and have someone carry her. To add humiliation into the tide of bad feelings would be near unbearable, but if it meant that they ... if she was safe and that Jareth would be given at least some dignity, she would suffer it. Or someone could carry them both. Artemis and Jareth together would weigh as much as a one normal sized person. Oh, it was too much thinking.

Art stared up at everyone, wide and tormented eyes darting between them. "Please help him," she whispered, and finally gave in. It didn't matter whether Professor Spenser was expecting it or not; Art lifted her arms and placed them around his neck in order to be picked up. She had no strength to look at the tiny white body left on the ground and none to even support her own weight. It didn't matter; it was like carrying a teddy bear. Artemis, having sufficiently lost her inhibitions, buried her head into her arm and wept. I want to go home, I want to go home, mumbling the mantra in her head. It was base instinct to long for the place where things were supposed to be safe and happy once more. But home was lying in the mud at her Professor's feet.

 

[Jonathan Spenser]

Jonthan looked up at Lucinda as she spoke out. He words sent shivers down his spine. Of course he knew that centaurs lived in the Forest and that they were very protective over their territory but to kill one of the students, now that was taking it too far. "Thank you Miss Buckley. We'll sort everything out once we get to the school." He told her before turning his attention back to Artemis, not speaking as Lucinda talker to her, hoping she could knock some sense into her friend. When Artemis began talking again Jonathan looked at her, his heart went out to the young girl, he didn't know the full extent to the two children's relationship but he could tell they were very close. "We're not going to leave him here, I promise." He told the young Ravenclaw.

As a Professor it was responsibility to look after the students and that meant carrying a harmed one back to the school. Jonathan was about to suggest that he carry Jareth back to the castle and leave Lucinda and Landon to help Artemis up to the castle as she was clearly no fit state to walk the rest of the way up to the castle by herself. That was until she, out of no-where, put her arms around Jonathan's neck and started to cry. She was so tiny, Jonathan never really realised how much before. Not wanting her to have to go up to the castle by herself he, with ease, lifted her up in his arms and with his arm took out his wand and pointed it at Jareth. He knew that Lucy and Landon were there but he was not going to have it left up to them to carry the body of a dead student to the castle. With Jareth's body levitating in front of him he turned to the other students and said, "Castle, now!" before turning round and walked up to the castle. It was a sad day indeed!