When The Weather 'Aint Good

Vivianna was beyond displeased. The first reason for this, was her Transfiguration assignment, how she loathed Transfiguration. The second reason, was all the trouble she had gone to in the attempt to find someplace to sit and write the blasted essay!

Her first choice for such things was always outside, but the weather was beyond miserable, and there was no way she would get and work done in that. So, she had tramped down to the Slytherin common room, where three second years appeared to be fighting and about to draw wands. Vivianna was more than capable of getting them to sit down and shut up, but she didn't want to throw herself in the middle of that. Besides, her dorm was just a few steps away.

However, when she entered her dorm, it was already occupied by her two least favorite roommates chattering away. So with a huff, she left Slytherin territory. When she arrived at the library, she quite literally wanted to bang her head against the wall. There wasn't a single empty seat, apparently she wasn't the only one stuck indoors due to the weather.

Vivianna was devising a plan involving threatening the occupants of her dorm, when she spotted the hall of little study rooms. Releasing a breath of relief, Vivianna yanked one of the doors open, and sat down at one of the small desks, letting her head bang against the wood with a satisfying thunk.

Darius, though lazy as hell in some occasions, had his homework done. He left the professor's office with a grin on his face. He was more than pleased with himself now, but as he entered the dormitory, he had another question in his head: what next?
He knew that the music classroom would be reserved for tonight. He was not the only one who knew how to play a musical instrument.
His brown eyes scanned the room, therefore witnessing a fight between the second year students. It was amusing to be honest, but Slytherins should stick together in his opinion. Eventually, after watching how those kids tried to outbeat each other, he got bored and went up to get his books.

His classmates were either playing wizard chess, cards or just wasting their time by laying down on the bed and staring into the ceiling. Darius would stay with them if they'd provide his mind with something new and interesting, but as they did not even notice his entrance, Darius left the room to explore the school.

His first thought was visiting the library, but he knew well enough that it should be occupied at this time. He was a frequent visitor. That left only two rooms that could afford him peace and quiet during his study. Either room of requierments or the study room. Getting into the first one was not that hard, but there was a big possibility that the Potter's Army troops were there, occupying his favorite place once again. Darius sighed. He was bad at deducting, nor did he want to waste much time to go and see if his predictions were true, so he choose the only one place that should be (almost) empty after the lessons. The Study Room.

Browsing the new book that he had bought during the summer, but had not had enough time to read it, he finally entered the study room. Lifting his head, he was more than pleased to see that his assumption was correct. And what's better – there was another Slytherin! “Mind if I join you, Varnes?“ he asked politely as he approached the girl.

Vivianna lifted her head up from the uncomfortable surface of the desk, taking as long as humanly possible to complete this task. Vivianna had decided days ago that she wouldn't do her usual procrastination of Transfiguration homework. However, it really seemed like the world was against her. Every time that she had tried to be good and get the bloody thing done, something else would come up. So, Vivianna took a deep breath in, mentally told herself to get in gear, and pulled her bag onto her lap.

It only took a moment to find the loose parchment she had messily scribbled the assignment on, and less than a minute later all the supplies she would need were laid out on her desk. She pursed her lips for a moment, before grabbing her favorite quill and touching the nib to the blank sheet of parchment.

Vivianna was so absorbed, that she didn't even hear the door to the little room open, and it wasn't until she heard a voice that the girl realized she was no longer alone. Turning her head towards the sound, Vivianna found herself inwardly relieved that she recognized the voice's owner. The newcomer was another Slytherin, a 7th year, Darius Dolohov. They'd never really spoken, but Vivianna knew who he was. She thought it was important to be able to recognize any of your housemates, even when they weren't wearing a crest or tie.

"Of course, take a seat Dolohov," she replied, looking up into his eyes as she did so. She may know who he was, but she didn't know a ton about him, and if he was one of the Slytherins who was big on sticking to the hierarchy, Vivianna didn't want to anger him.

Unthinkingly, Vivianna stared at the ink covering Darius' arm. She had always adored tattoos, and had vowed to get one as soon as she was seventeen. It wasn't like her parents would give permission, so she'd just have to wait until she was an adult. Then she could do what she liked.

Darius smiled. He did not expect a no as an answer. Not from her at least. After receiving a permit, he took a seat right on the other side of the table, placing his book on it. He did not open it yet as his brown eyes found her parchment. Darius smiled once again, remembering that he did his homework and he expected to get a good, or it not, then at least moderate for his essay.
He tilted his head when he realized what she was staring at. Darius was really proud of his tattoos. Each word and picture that was inked into his skin meant something. He knew that his mother was against it all, but Darius never was the one to listen. He did as he pleased when it came to himself.

“You know, you can always ask if you want to see my tats,“ he said with a playful smirk on his lips. It wasn't a fliratation though it might've sounded like one. Darius straightened his back and pulled his sleeves up. If his tattoos were really that interesting, he did not mind showing them or even exposing his upper body. A bit hesitant, he expaned his hand over the floor, touching its cold surface. It made him shiver a bit.

“This here is a phoenix,“ he said, pointing out at the visible part of the blue ink that wanted to be a bird. “And few flowers too,“ Darius laughed quietly before looking up at Vivianna.

Vivianna watched as Darius sat down across from her and placed his book on the table. She blushed lightly when he told her all she would have to do was ask to see the ink covering his skin. She wasn't blushing because of the words, or because she was interested in him, although she would admit to herself that he was attractive. The blood had rushed to her cheeks because she had been caught staring.

She tilted her head as the Slytherin opposite her rolled up his sleeves to reveal the images on his arms. She smiled slightly as he began to explain what the different things were, and without thinking, Vivianna reached out. Just the tips of her fingers brushed his skin, but she let her hand slowly trace as much of the phoenix and she could reach, before spiraling off to trace other things.

Her fingers memorized one flower, then two. Vivianna was entranced by the possibilities of all the stories that could be hidden behind the ink. Her mind was whizzing away, coming up with hundreds of likelihoods. All the while her fingers continued to trace, a serene look on her face.

Suddenly realizing exactly what she had been doing, Vivianna pulled her hand back as if burned. "I'm sorry," she said, eyes wide. "They're beautiful," she added, nodding towards the older Slytherin's arm.

Darius held his breath. He never meant to upset Vivianna with his words and when her cheeks went red, all he could think about was that he had done something wrong. But she looked prettier with some color on her white face. Darius liked people with pale complexion, but it was nice to see them blush once in a while as well. He looked down at his arm. He had a snake tattoo on his other arm, though not because it symbolized Slytherin, but because of the grace the reptile held. Darius loved snakes and having one was his dream.

He made no facial expressions when Vivianna touched his skin. After all, having so many tattoos got also much attention and she was not the first one who touched his hand because of the art that was inked into his skin. He had to admit, though, that children had better, funnier reactions to all this.

What people usually asked about his tattoos were the questions like „How long did it take?“ and „Was it painful?“ To be honest, that depended on the area and the picture he chose to copy. But as he was quite tolerant to pain, even enjoyed it a bit, he encouraged the curious ones by telling that this was not that bad.
Darius looked at Vivianna when she pulled her hand away as if he had burned her. He raised his eyebrows at the apology, not even sure why she said that. Her reaction was only natural. He knew that if Varnes would have a tattoo, he'd do the same. Darius smiled softly and shook his head:“Thank you and there is no need to apologize,“ he assured her before pulling his sleeve back down.

“Is there anything you haven't shown to anyone, Vivianna?“ Darius suddenly asked, playful smirk appearing on his face again. He had shown her one of his tattoos, decorated in flowers and all, now it was her turn to impress him with something unusual.

Vivianna was relieved when Darius showed no sign of being offended and told her that her apology wasn't needed. She figured that she hadn't been the first to do something like that, but tattoos had always seemed like such a personal thing to Vivianna. She was almost temped to ask where he had gotten them done, but decided against it. Two years was plenty of time for her to find a decent place to get hers.

As she looked up at his face, Vivianna felt that there was something intriguing about this older student. She wasn't sure what it was, but it felt almost like an air about him. The girl wasn't sure if it was just his personality and the way he held himself, or some sort of magic. She made a mental note to keep an eye on it, just in case.

When he spoke again, her mind just about went into overdrive. The small feminine part of herself wanted to slap him for any crude hidden meanings behind those words, but she rarely paid attention to that part of her brain. The meaner part of herself immediately came up with a plethora of comebacks, but she shoved those aside as well. The purely analytical part of Vivianna's brain, noticed that he had called her by her first name and wondered if that meant anything. It was part of her mind that had almost made the Sorting Hat consider Ravenclaw, which carefully picked apart the wording he used. Most people would have said something about secrets, or used the word tell. Everybody had something to tell, but not everyone would have something interesting to show.

It just so happened that Vivianna did, something that she hadn't ever shown anyone else at Hogwarts. The younger Slytherin wanted to trust the man across from her. She wanted to surprise and impress him. However, if there was anything her childhood had taught her, it was that sometimes the people who you should be able to trust, wouldn't be there for you.

So she let a cocky smile cover her face, and tilted her head slightly to the left. "And even if I did have some interesting secret, tell me why exactly I'd want to show it to you, Darius," she said lightly, almost mockingly. Vivianna knew that this would give away that had something to show, but she was a Slytherin. She figured very few of her housemates didn't have some sort of secret.

What he loved about the girls were their reactions. They way their facial expressions changed when he said something that might sound two sided or offensive. He, by any means, did not want to offend her. Not now when they were getting along pretty well. If anything, Darius was a polite young man. He knew how to act around ladies, he knew how to be polite and he would never say something rude to them. Not in the manner that would eventually bring up tears and all the bloodshed that came after that.

So, while he let his words sink into her mind, Darius leaned back a bit and crossed his arms, waiting for her to respond. To be honest, he did not even know what to expect. He knew that some girls would be amused by his question, maybe even intrigued, but he also did not forget the fact that girls were moody and that there were many other possibilities of her actions.

When she replied, Darius' arched his eyebrows. What would be his reason? He stroke his lower lip with his thumb, thinking. “So you do have something interesting to share,“ he stated, amused. Oh, that was interesting!
“Okay, well... First of all, I would not tell anyone. Hell, knowing myself I'd take your secret to my grave. Second, I'm just curious. I exposed my tatts to you and that would be only fair if you'd tell or show me something that is dear to you.“ He looked at Vivianna, eyes sparkling.

“Or are there some conditions you'd like to meet before telling me anything?“ Girls were like that, so much he knew. And as a Slytherin, he figured that she would not do anything without getting something back.

Vivianna watched his face carefully for an answer. She always had been rather good with facial expressions, it had served as a twisted survival skill in her messed up family. It'd always been important to know when her father was about to have a screaming fit, and even more important to be able to tell when her vampire uncle was hungry. As she watched the face of the older Slytherin, she quickly picked up surprise, curiosity, honesty, and amusement. She wasn't sure if she should be pleased or scared, he'd basically admitted to feeling all of these emotions through his words, which left two possibilities. Either his was very very good, or he was being honest. Vivianna bit the inside of her mouth; perhaps she was a bit paranoid.

When he offered to meet some conditions, she figured that she might as well tell him. The girl couldn't wait for her housemate’s reaction.

"Just so you know, I don't usually play by what's fair and what's not, so don't get used to it," Vivianna told Darius, only partially teasing. "And there's no need for the whole condition thing. I've always been talented at the fine art of revenge," she informed the older student matter-of-factly, "besides, even if you tried to tell someone, no-one would believe you."

She took a deep breath in and held up a hand. Her elbow was resting on the desk and her palm facing Darius. Vivianna scrunched her nose slightly in concentration, and her hand was gone. She was nowhere near a Master yet at the power of Invisibility. But she intended to be.

Darius waited patiently. If he wanted something, he was able to do as he was asked but only to get his wish fulfilled. This time, however, he did not have to wait long.
He was also good at spectating emotions, but he rarely made it known. It was just too amusing to watch how people thought that they went unnoticed, that there was no one around who could read them while he was just standing there, besides them, waiting and watching. That made him feel a bit stalkerish at some point, but he pushed that feeling away, assuring himself that this was not bad and that his small ability could come in handy one day.

He remained silent. If she did not want to talk, he understood. Secrets were secrets after all. But when she replied, he could not hide his smile that crawled upon his lips.
Ah, he knew that she'd agree on revealing something!
“I will remember that,“ he promised. Another thing that he had to keep in mind. Girls were devilish creatures! He smiled again as her last sentence proved him to be right. “I would never do anything to upset you and feel your wrath upon me.“ Or maybe... Sometimes girl looked cute when they were angry and went from nice princess to Hulk.

Darius shrugged. He had no reason to tell anyone about her little secret. He was the older brother and years had shown him that keeping secrets was one of the best things a person could ever do. Sad that not everyone did that. But he was impressed. Really. When she reached out her hand, he thought that she might show him something like a tattoo or something. Or maybe her scarred wrist. Suicide attempts were not rare, not even in their society.
However, when her hand disappeared into the thin air, Darius frowned and bent closer to the table. “That's...“ He had no words. Not only was her secret interesting, but it was also useful. So that's how she avenged herself if someone betrayed her? Again, he mate a mental note to keep his relationship with Vivianna on a friendly line. He did not want to end up in a hospital wing from an 'accidental' fall on the stairs while there was no one around.

Curious and forgetting about the manners, he was the one who reached out his hand and touched hers. “May I?“ He did not wait for a permission, but gently took her hand and lifted it. This was interesting. He could only see his hand holding around something, but nothing else but a thin air. “How did you manage to learn that?“ Darius finally asked, releasing her. Oh, this was far more interesting than studying history!