Barker extreme

Ah, so the curse was still in effect. And now that it wasn't, Elijah became Elijah again, that was an interesting tidbit that he hadn't realized could happen. Elijah must have some very strong mental problems if an imperius curse caused him to go temporarily insane. It was an odd thing, but it made Felix rather amused. He could do some damage with this little fact, but not to much though, or Elijah would learn how to escape the spell, like many people did. These days the Imperius curse was really only good for one use against a particular person, because then they would learn how to fight it off, if they were kept under it to long. People had to much willpower these days. Khaat obviously thought Elijah was safe, and she was wrong and it was apparent when he started to yell at him. Saying that she was 8, and he was a sick... well he used vulgar words. Then went to say lamely, that he hated him. "Wow.. so harsh coming from you..." he said gently, putting his wand under Elijah's chin. "Let me tell you, that was a satisfying kill, you were a little brat though.. had to keep you off of her." He said lightly.

He shook his head and smiled at Elijah before finding himself even more amused when Elijah started to defend the little slut he had gotten pregnant. "Oh, You'll kill me will you? I'm sorry but somehow I find the fact that I could get ahold of her just as easy as I got ahold of both of you amusing. I've already stolen one kid from Hogwarts, what's another little pregnant slut?" He asked lightly. "I could sure have some fun with her.. I mean, it's not like I can get her pregnant, but nobody can say that YOUR baby will survive a good pounding from me." He said with a grin. "I don't see why your so cocky anyway, not like you have much there." He said poking Elijah in the stomach with his wand. "You're just a little kid anyway. I mean, I've heard of some manwhores in my day.. but sheesh." he said shaking his head. "Chase will make a charming addition to my collection someday.. I'll just have to expand the girl's cell a bit to make room for her... it shouldn't be to hard to get her out of the school, she's been tortured more times then I can count." He said shaking his head. "And all because you defended her, she's going to get tortured, and lose her kid, how sad." He said before pulling the knife back out of Elijah's side with a grin.

Well, the nice thing at the moment, if there is one, Khaat thought, is that being a third wheel means I am ignored like wallpaper. She couldn't do anything to help Eli right now, much as she might have wanted to. And as long as Eli kept Felix fed with juicy bits of information, that was where a man like Barker would focus. That was as well with her. Barker would make Eli's life unpleasant, but he wouldn't kill him, ultimately, because Eli was interesting. He kept Barker amused.

She tuned them out completely. It didn't help either of them for her to keep tuned into Eli's pain and suffering. At best, it would make her share his suffering. At worst, it would stop her from being able to think clearly enough to see whatver little envelop of opportunity there was for her to use to design an escape plan with. If they were going to get out alive, she had to return her mind to strategy. To trying to find a way to get out or to send for help. One way or another.

And she absolutely had to last long enough to kill Barker. Or to get word to her father. IF she was not going to live long enough to get out, she had to get some sort of word to her father. She wanted her father to pick up where she had left off.

Elijah’s anger had made him forget about the knife that that bastard had plunged into his side. When Felix pulled it out again, Elijah gasped. His eyes widened and he bit down hard on his bottom lip. Elijah had room to insult Felix. He was a one trick pony, Khaat was right. Elijah wanted to see if he’d put the knife in his other side or whether he was just going to pussy-foot around. Elijah swallowed and ignored the dig about Alice. She was dead and although Felix wanted to be responsible just to provoke Elijah further, he wasn’t and Elijah knew he wasn’t.

“So you’re what? A ghost?” Elijah questioned. “I can’t imagine anything more fitting. It’s a shame I didn’t get to kill you myself. Oh wait...if you were there then I must have done. How very curious. Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to spout off bullshit about things you know nothing about? Or was she too busy shagging the neighbours to care?”

Elijah’s anger flared and he pulled at the chains. He was threatening Chase. No one on this Earth had the right to do that. They’d have to go through him firs then maybe that poncy little Frenchman she took a liking to. Then he’d have to go through Rob and Jen. If he beat the first two then he certainly wouldn’t get past them. And he was also threatening Kitty. She wasn’t even born yet and he was threatening her. She didn’t even know what was going on around her. She didn’t know what had happened to her parents...what was happening to him now. She was ignorant of it all thank Merlin and yet that bastard had the nerve to threaten her.

“Well,” Elijah smirked, “If I haven’t got much then yours must be non-existent. I’ve never seen a weaker candidate. I hope this isn’t your day job. Get this through your head you thick f*ck. You’re threatening children. More to the point you’re threatening my child.” He winced as his t-shirt began to stick to the wound. “You value your life don’t you, you silly sod?” Elijah gritted his teeth. “You bought a ring for your girlfriend...now unless that’s just a pretence then I’m assuming it’s Greyback who you’ve fallen in love with. Maybe I’m an idiot to expect that from you of all people but how does it feel? How does it feel to be in love with someone? Hm? Go on, tell me. You’re not completely heartless. Clearly you care enough to go to all this trouble. How does it feel?”

Elijah’s voice was soft, lacking all of the venom. He was just talking, hopefully on Barker’s level.

“It’s that impossible feeling isn’t it? Like everything in the world is right because you’re with that one person, the one person in the world that truly matters to you more than your own life. You’ve got this one little spark that makes you want to get up in the morning. You’ve got this person that you just want to hold just because you want to feel their skin against yours; you want to feel the electricity. You want to kiss her because...that’s what’s right. You want to bury your face in her hair and inhale her scent. You want to feel every contour of her body...the smooth curves of her breasts right down to the awkward tips of her toes. Every sweep and sway you want to get to know because she’s yours and you’re hers. You want to make love to her because words are no longer enough. You cannot ravish her with sweet poetry or timid touches any longer. That little act, one that so many take for granted joins the two together, fuses you and is designed to do one thing...one thing everyone wants. This woman...the one you sang to, spoke to and loved ...the mother of your children? What man wouldn’t want that?”

Elijah inhaled a long overdue breath. “You’re not heartless Barker...Felix....you’re...” Elijah laughed, “young, stupid and in love. You love her. She loves you too I assume?” Elijah swallowed and continued. “Now how would you feel if you were in my shoes? I had my lover and I was threatening Naomi. Your Naomi. I was threatening her life...and let’s just say the child you’d created. How would you feel? You’d want to kill me wouldn’t you? You’d want to make me pay for every syllable. It’s okay. I’m there right now. With you. You’re threatening to hurt my Chase just as easily as, in your shoes; I could threaten your precious Naomi. We’ve got a few things in common you and me. We’re stupid, we’re in love and we both are apparently incredibly inadequate in the bedroom as far as our opposing opinions are concerned. But you’ve done one thing better. You got one thing right, one thing you could still get wrong. You kept her. I let Chase go. I let her walk away. One day Naomi’s going to get spooked and you’ll lose her. Love her. Don’t scare her. Drop this and just treat her like the woman you love; for your sake as much as hers.”

Felix laughed lightly. "Kill me? You think a kid could have killed me? Sure you got the others, but you were to busy in your attempt at revenge, you didn't even see me get away, and apparate away before you could notice that there was one missing.. or don't you remember? The house elves came just before that, my crack was lost in theirs." He smirked at him, he had done his research, he knew what had happened that night, and he knew where he could fit into the story with ease. "You think an insult to my mother will affect me Krum?" he asked with a laugh. "That's the most desperate move in the book. That's like saying 'your mom' to everything." he said shaking his head lightly.

"What makes you think I like Greyback?" He asked with a smirk, but his heart was beginning to pump. "I bought the ring, in hopes that you would take it and deliver it to me later... and I could get you then.. but you said you couldn't so it went to waste.." he muttered. "Good money too.. I'll have to pawn it off." he said shaking his head lightly, but his heart was hammering in his chest and he wasn't quite sure what to say to this new side of Elijah. Somehow this kid.. this stupid.. hero... man who bought expensive clothing because he could.. was describing exactly what he felt for Naomi. And it.. it wasn't right, how could he know? How could he know what he felt for Naomi, this odd fluttering feeling in his chest, the feeling that he didn't want to let Naomi go for the world.

He bunched his hands into fists, but couldn't move as Elijah spoke, talking of his Chase, the one he had let go. Felix was clenching and unclenching his fists, unable to look at Elijah, and unable to stop himself from listening. It wasn't fair, how come this man.. this man who was the hero, why did he know what Felix was going through, why did he care? Why was he talking like he knew. "No.." He growled, and stirred. "No.. You have no idea what it's like Krum.. You don't know.." he said his voice stiff, his body shaking hard. "You grew up wealthy.. with people who loved you.. for who you were.. you grew up able to do whatever you wanted, you grew up with Alice, who you cared for.. you grew up knowing love." He said staring at the corner of the room. "You grew up in that! You grew up to the love around you.. even if it wasn't from your parents.. or your immediate family, you had love! I had a father.. who beat the pulp out of me.. and when he was put into Azkaban for murdering muggles, I was 13, and my mother, she took my little sister and moved, she moved to America! She didn't love me... She didn't, and after that no one did, because no one ever will.." He said, and his eyes found Elijah's finally.

"I was left, to wander the streets... I was 13 years old Krum, 13... I had lost all of my family, and all of my friends, and I was told, that because my father was evil, so was I.. because I didn't grow up into a big rich family like you did Krum, I was evil! So I did the one thing that everyone expected me to do. I became evil, I tortured and killed muggles, and was sent to Azkaban for it, but nobody loved me, so I didn't lose anybody... and then.. I got a job.. I got a job and I was told to kidnap and torture, HER." he said pointing at Khaat. "I was TOLD to, it wasn't MY agenda, I didn't WANT to.. I had actually learned something in Azkaban Krum! I had learned.. and I was TOLD to torture her, or I would lose my only chance of survival, because I was broke, I had nobody.. I had nothing. So what do I do? I kidnap and torture her.. and then I am the one blamed for it, not the person who hired me.. ME.. and I end up in the daily prophet, then I'm hired to get Sophia, so I do! And I get ran out of the building and she's rescued.." He moved so he was close to Elijah, glaring at him. "I ran, because I didn't want to go back. I found myself in Hogsmeade, looking at the only place I called home. And what happens, I discover that my name is in the paper, and they are after me, want me dead, or in prison.. so I take the only person who recognized me.. and ran... and then.. guess what happens Krum?"

Felix was shaking so hard by this point he could barely stand where he was, glaring at Elijah with hatred, mixed with pain, and humiliation. "I feel in love with her, I fell in love with the way she walked, the way she moved, every aspect of her.. I fell in love with her, and she hated me. She felt no more love for me then I had for my father. Or for the ministry officials who took me to Azkaban.. she hated me.. and then.. I shielded her.. that OAF of a man, Brian Quinn, threatened her, so I shielded her.. and ran.. and she started to like me.. and we fell in love." He said and looked at Elijah, his chin thrust up. "So I decided that because everyone thinks I'm evil, I am.. so this is what I'm doing Elijah Krum, I am living up to your expectations.." he said and jabbed the knife into Elijah's arm. "I am living up to your." He stabbed his other arm. "F***ing." He stabbed his hand. "Expectations." And rammed the knife into the wall beside Elijah's neck. "So don't you DARE pretend you know me Krum.. don't you dare." he said and turned and walked out of the room, going into the room that was a bedroom beyond, leaving the door open, and walking into the part of the complex that was his home. Leaving Krum and Lupin chained to the walls.

"Eli," Khaat called to him far too softly for anyone else to hear her except him. "Nice job. That's the first I've seen him truly completely off his game. Before he comes back, let me tell you a couple things.

"Brian did see them in a Diagon Alley shop. He roughed him up a bit. Barker had a standoff with Brian when Brian intended to just kill him. Naomi misstepped and make their relationship abundantly clear to him. So he threatened to take her out in order to get to him. Barker only confirmed it himself by stepping in front of her to protect her. So Brian knew she was there by choice and the handcuffs were merely window dressing. So, when Brian comes home to me, who do you think is the first person he tells about all this? Me of course. And Daddy. That's exactly why we haven't been looking for Greyback anymore. Because she doesn't want to go. She's with him by choice. And its why I haven't been feeding any of them any information more than I have to. I've known since Brian broke Barker's face with that shop counter."

"Look, I learned the last time I was in this mess with him, you don't dare give him one ounce of emotion about anything. No matter what he does. And he truly gets off on all your screaming. You have to try to steel up to that, no matter what. And, one more thing, do not let your mind wander. The true test in all of this is disciplining your mind. You have to think about nothing else but the mental chess game this is. Everything he does is a counterstrategy to try to get into your mind. No matter what happens to me, you keep him out of your head. Don't ever allow him in there again. And now that you have his brain on the run, lets make sure he doesn't get the upper hand again. We might well manage to unravel this thing and get out.

"Eli, if it comes to it, get yourself out and forget about me. If the opportunity comes, just go. And don't come back. You know who to go to, who to send. You know its what I would do." She was totally lying out her ass. She would never, ever leave Eli behind. But she wanted him to think she would so he would get to safety the minute it came up. He was far more important to her. She was counting on Eli not knowing that and getting himself out and leaving her. She was counting on him getting to her father or Brian or Rob or Jen. That was the only way, after that, that she would have a chance.

Everything Elijah had said had been in vain. He hung there though, completely in awe of the man that was prattling on about his own life, making himself mentally vulnerable. He was a puppy that had been kicked at birth. Elijah felt sorry for him but he didn’t think his life had been the walk in the park Felix was making it out to be. It was better, yeah, but it couldn’t have been by much. He was a kicked puppy as much as Felix was; he’d just got back up onto his feet.

Elijah had had enough of being stabbed now. He was ready to bleed to death.

“Where’s Fenrir?” Elijah gasped, a wave of pain stunning him, “Shouldn’t he have a say on who’s dating his daughter? What about Ariel? He’s Fenrir’s twin isn’t he? He’d have something to say about this.”

Elijah was fatigued both mentally and physically. He didn’t want to do this anymore. He wanted to go home. He wanted to see Fauve and Thierry. He wanted to have a glass of wine with Camille while Cassidy cooked. He wanted to relax with his girls. He couldn’t do that while he was here, bleeding out and waiting for long overdue death to take him. He’d go home to Alice, quite possibly the best outcome after all of this. Chase didn’t want anything to do with him. Fauve and Thierry – they didn’t need him. What did he have left that was worth living for?

Not a lot, that’s what.

“I’m not leaving you Khaat.” Elijah replied, his voice hard. “I wouldn’t expect you to leave me so think on. I’m not going anywhere. Not that I, uh, could at present.” He managed a weak smile for her benefit and closed his eyes. “If he’s gone for a quick snog then I won’t be pleased. I always wanted to die in style. Chained to a wall drenched in my own blood is a little boring.” He chuckled, wincing as his shirt fibres stuck to the wounds. “He’s ruined perfectly good Prada!” Elijah exclaimed. “What a bastard.”

“I was never good at Chess by the way.” Elijah offered uselessly. “My dad...he tried to teach me once. I think it was the only time we ever spent time together. But I was, um. I was scared of the chess pieces. I don’t think I could play chess in my head if my life depended on it. I doubt he’d find much in there anyway, just odd words of a poet and painting ideas. Maybe even a few dreams. Chase and I...we...we don’t work. She doesn’t want me near her or the baby. I wanted to be there. For the birth I mean and after, always after. I wanted to watch my child grow up. At this rate I’ll be watching from a cloud. I really hope I inconvenience Felix somehow with my death.”

Elijah looked up at Khaat and grinned. This was a young man that had seen more than his fair share of things this early in life. This was a young man that, in his opinion, had seen it all. He’d experience life, love, lust and all those sinful things that he wasn’t meant to. He’d seen it, felt it, touched it, inhaled it, kissed it, licked it, all of that and now as a result of that, he no longer cared. He could die knowing that he’d left something behind. He had his children. They were safe. Arnold had paintings he could go nuts with once he got his hands on them. Fauve and Thierry would be supported and Chase would be safe even if that was the last thing he did.

“If you see a window. You leave.” He all but ordered. “Can you imagine the arguments if you were six feet under and Rob and Brian were fighting over Abbey and Dakota? I think if it came to that then I’d vouch for Jen. She’d just pick ‘em up and walk out.” He chuckled. “She needs her mum. Fauve and Thierry...they’ve got everyone. They’ll bounce back. They’ve got their mother for all intents and purposes. I’m not much use to the Wizarding world but you are. If I die in your place then I know I’ve at least saved one asset to our world. Plus, I’ll make sure to go at the point Felix doesn’t want me to.”

"You're a twit sometimes, you know that?" She scowled. "You think you've done it all and seen it all at 17? You have no bloody clue. Pull yourself up here. I'm not leaving you alone either. So I guess what it comes down to is that we either get out alive or we die together. Look. Your children love you with just crazy devotion. They need you. Hell, I need you. Shut up about dying, would you? If it happens, it happens, but I'd like to avoid it. You have to man up here because we need each other to get out of here still breathing.

"You have every right to be miserable and to want to die. But that's exactly what he wants you to feel. The last thing he wants is for you to get the fortitude to fight back. I promise I will heal every single thing he's done to you. I swear. I know you probably don't give a damn about that, but I refuse to let you just toss it all in here. If you don't have the balls to fight him, then for God's sake, just keep your mouth shut. Don't feed him information we don't want him to know just because you're miserable. Shut him out if you can and ignore him. Let me deal with him. He and I are not strangers to this by any means. Remember who trained me. We can do this.

"As for Greybacks, they're bloody useless. They don't have any concept of family loyalty. Fenrir is a twisted old bastard who believes that every humanoid needs to suffer the werewolf curse just because he does. He's responsible for Remus's curse. If I had my way, I'd off him too. He's on my bucket list of assholes to kill before I die. Its no wonder Naomi took up with Barker. He's paying attention to her. And some attention, however bad or good it is, is better than none at all. She really is a pitiful little creature. I feel sorry for her. She never had a chance the instant Fenrir any idea about conceiving her. I don't see any way she'll leave him now, except if one or both of them dies. There were a pair of American gangsters a long time ago that they remind me of that behaved the same way. Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. They were thieves. Bank robbers that took up together and died together in a hail of bullets. I don't see these two ending any other way but something similar. Eventually. Or both ending with a death sentence in my courtroom. And, yes, I can do that, and I would. Yes, I could send them through the veil myself."

Blood, blood, blood, blood, blood and, guess what, more blood!

The Prada was absolutely freaking ruined. Elijah, had he honestly cared, would have been in pieces. Camille or Cassidy would have been trying to clean themselves on something or they would have packed up and died by now. Elijah, although quite ready in his mind to bleed to death, did want to spite Felix and he did plan on keeping himself alive unless his death would inconvenience the man. At this point in time though, he was sure that his living state inconvenienced him enough. If only he and Khaat broke into song, then Felix would come back and they wouldn’t be lulled into boredom.

“I’ve even heard her singing in the Abbey!” Elijah crowed, mimicking the nuns in the Sound of Music. Oh yes, he was losing his mind. “She’s always late for chapel but her penitence is real! Now you Khaat!” Elijah pulled at his chains so they shook and made something that resembled the tune and he grinned at Khaat.

He relaxed slightly and peered down at the blood drenching his shirt. He cocked his head to the left and smiled despite himself. He was using a safety mechanism. Plus, insanity was much more fun. When people thought you were insane you didn’t have to explain. Plus, Felix liked him better when he was mentally unstable. What did Elijah have to lose apart from what was left of his mind? Not much, he’d say that now.

“The Greyback’s are boring. Fenrir is more of a manwhore than me and that’s saying something! I didn’t help conceive, what, five kids? Six? He’s got steel bollocks!” Elijah laughed. “How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down? How do you find a word that means Maria? A flibbertijibbet! A will-o’-the-whisp! A clown!”

Dammit.. Not good, he had lost his cool, and told them his entire life story. Felix paced around his kitchen, knowing that the two in there were talking, talking about how to get out, except they would find that impossible. The only way out was through the sewers, there was no front door, or any windows in this place. It was actually situated in an old warehouse, and he had bought it out, closed it up, and made his home here. Of course it was bought out under a different name, but there was no use for them trying to escape. Of course they'd be talking about it now.

As Felix paced he began to get concerned about what they might be doing in there. Were the chains tight enough? He probably shouldn't have stabbed Elijah so many times, he may bleed to death, lucky him he had all of those potions. He wouldn't die if Felix could help it, but he had a feeling of dread. What would happen if they somehow DID get out? Him and Naomi would have to go on the run... and by the sounds of it, they had figured out her position with Felix. He wasn't sure how, he hadn't given any clues to it... in fact he had done all he could to make it look like she was still the victim, so that she wouldn't be penalized if such a day came as to getting caught. Maybe she could blame it on that one syndrome thing, that the hostage falls in love with the kidnapper, because of the mental abuse, it's their one way out, and then when they are out, they still love them, but they realize how horrible it was in their clutches.

Felix sat down in a chair and put his hand over his eyes, snapping his fingers on his left hand, as he stared at the floor. “Dammit.” he whispered, and then shook his head. All of their talking was giving him a headache, he'd have to fix that, because it was their talking that made him lose control like he had. He'd have to do to them what he had done before to Khaat and Sophia. He had a couple of potions just for that purpose, that would burn their vocal chords and make it impossible to speak, unless taken to St. Mungos for a restorative tonic, but if he had his way with them, they would never see the inside of St. Mungos again. So their voices would be lost for all time, and it would be all the better for him. Elijah's incessant mumblings made him want to strangle the kid, and he didn't want him dead.. no, them losing their voices would be better for them then they realized.

Felix got up and got a cup of water, drinking it down, he took some pain meds and then opened a drawer. Inside was a little black box, taking it out carefully, he held it up and opened it. Inside was a beautiful diamond ring. Naomi deserved better then what Felix could give her. He knew this... he was a wanted criminal, and if he was ever caught... well Naomi would be in trouble to.. She deserved to be on the happy side... not with Felix.. not with someone who tortured people for fun... no matter what Naomi believed, she wasn't happy with him.. there was no way she could be, he put bruises on her face, stuck her in a cold cell, with people she hated it.. it didn't work like that! He couldn't do it anymore. Felix ran his hand through his hair, half attempting to pull it out. Naomi deserved better then him, and he knew it... Naomi deserved a man who could wed her, and be there for her, and all Felix could ever do is hide... So that was it? He put the box back into the drawer and sighed. Him and Naomi needed to get out, go see some things, he'd make her happy before he told her that she had to run and get to the other side. Because... with him, she was only in trouble.

Felix shut the drawer and made his way back into the torture room, with Khaat and Elijah.

"So what chapter are we on now, Barker?" Khaat sighed. She was tired of this. She let Eli go on singing. For him, it probably would work. It might well be his salvation to keep him alive. Barker knew she was far, far stronger this time than she was This would come down to simply brute strength. Could she outlast whatever brutality Barker had been dreaming up while he had been in his room, stewing in his own juices? She wasn't sure. This was the first time since she had been her that she had not kept tight reign on her mind.

It now flashed to Remus. Blessed Remus. If she crossed the veil tonight, she was positive he would be waiting for her. And would that be so bad? No, not really. Her girls had an impenetrable hedge of the finest fighters in wizarding England around them. Abbey and Dakota would be fine. She wondered where they would end up? With Matt--their godfather? With Rob? With Brian? Her father maybe? She wondered if she was going to be able to look down and see? Would she be able to, if even unseen, keep an eye on the ones she loved?

And would the two men she loved be alright? Would Rob survive? Would Brian ever rid himself of his own guilt? What about her father, the man who had nearly died so many times just to save her? How would he take this.

Wait...wait! A cold panic started to rise up and it shook her back. Shook her back to her very logical core. That pure cold hard logic that Remus had made so certain was there so that when everything else failed, her mind would not. No. This was no time to shift into emotion, no time to allow the fear and the and boundless grief that was waiting just a breath away. She had to use all she had to block it out. She made herself go back to the mental gymnastics that kept her sane, that kept her from feeling. She made up her mind that she was not, not, not going to give into any sort of emotion. She was going to ride this out, just the way that Remus had told her she should. That was it. Decision final.