neither threat nor prayer (open)

[DAREIOUS LYULF GREYBACK]

Oh Hogsmeade...how he loved the trips down here. It was always nice to get out of the castle for a bit and it was even better when he didn't have to go back home. He hated going back to that island - it was too quiet out there. He flourished when surrounded by people, but apparently that wasn't allowed, not when Andrew was calling the shots. No, his time at home was spent trying to be alone and concentrating on one of his few great passions - music. Sure, people were great, but not everyone wanted to sit and listen to him play half the instruments. It was their loss in his eyes. There were a few who would hang around and wait on him, but most wanted to go elsewhere and do other things - like queue for ages in the chaos that was Honeydukes, or sit around in the three broomsticks.

Now there was a thought...maybe he'd go see if Ana was in the Hog's Head today. He liked her - she was alright really, all things considered. She was pretty chill with him being there, ad he'd already sworn blind he would never try and get served anything stronger than butter beer. Truth was, he hated all alcohol and he hated what it did to people. No, he'd rather sit around and talk to people before they became incoherent - he got away with it too. Oh the perks of being a Greyback kid – they weren’t always obvious to those who weren’t one of them, but when you knew you understood. Sure, the drawbacks were obvious, but where was the fun in spending your whole life wallowing in pessimism? Nope – Dare far preferred optimism. After all, it always had been a fun approach to have towards life and he had no intention of changing it.

He actually had been planning on avoiding this little shop today. Musically Yours had a habit of drawing him in though, and today it was so he could escape the chill outside. His body was aching and he needed a little warmth. He had made the excuse that he wanted to check something out inside, but really he just wanted to be warm. And he didn’t want to have to push too hard to keep up - there was still a twinge in his back every now and again, and the cold seemed to aggravate it to no end. Keeping up with them was hard. This was the first shop he found himself in, and sitting in the corner was that pretty little guitar – not a big thing, nor was it all that appealing to most others who chose to pass it by, but it was still pretty and it called to him, begging to be played and used. Glancing around, he didn’t spot anyone other than the shop keeper, who seemed unruffled by his appearances these days. No...no-one else that he could see. Well, not that really mattered all that much.

Picking it up, he sighed, missing his own guitar. Actually – he was missing all his little collection, not just the guitar. He was going to put it back down, but he glanced at the door and reconsidered. No, he was not ready to go out in that just yet. Besides, he really wanted to play. He just…he didn’t want others questioning where he’d got to. He knew he had a choice to make – play, or leave. Aww, to hell with it. He missed playing too much. Ave Maria was his default, so thinking wasn’t required all that much – not any more. Besides, it would kill enough time to warm him up a little, wouldn’t it?

[jez]

jez didn't know what she was doing here really, after all she wasn't so good with musical instruments. she could play a little bit of guitar, knew some chords and such but only because when her brother was in a good mood, he used to teach her a little. being from a fully muggle family, she'd grown up with muggle things like musical instruments and muggle songs, and her brother had always been fascinated with guitar and so he'd had lessons (being mummy and daddy's favourite of course). it seemed to keep him stable and calm him down whenever he was in one of his moods. it used to help him. but over the years he started to play less and less, and that screw in his head continued to loosen, which was when his 'attacks' on jez started to get worse. she tried to get him back into music but it was hard, and if she pushed too much he'd set her up for another 'accident'.

still, music wasn't really one of her passions but she'd picked up a guitar here or there and found that it wasn't difficult to lose yourself in the tunes and all. it sucked that she didn't really know how to play though, and she didn't want to ask her brother, always scared he'd turn on her the next minute. she would ask her parent's but she doubted they'd say yes, they weren't a rich family and her parent's didn't go out of their way for her. she had to need something for them to give it to her or she had to go out and get it for herself. it had made her rather independent over the years but still, it wasn't quite fair. she always wondered if they wish they'd just had one kid, that they could take her back and just have her brother as their child. they couldn't though. tough luck.

she sighed to herself as she headed into the musical shop, curiosity and lack of planning had brought her here, and she'd surprised herself. she'd never been in the shop before, no matter how the guitar's had tempted her, but now she found such a peace in the store she wished she'd ventured here before. smiling slightly to herself she wandered through the shop, looking at all the instruments - some muggle, some she'd never seen and guessed them to be wizarding one's. they were fascinating, and she wished she could play them all. she dared not touch any of them for fear she would disturb them, but she caught the music of someone else playing and it mesmerised her. she wandered a little further into the shop to find a boy there, roughly her age if not a year older, playing a guitar - a lot better than her brother had. she was tempted to go over and say something, but the fact that he was male held her back and she resisted the urge, instead she ran her fingers over the ebony and ivory of a near-by piano. something she did in fact know how to play - forced to by her parents. she tried to forget she could play it for she'd always preferred a guitar and piano had not been her choice, but the keys felt so familiar and she was almost tempted to join along to the boy's melody, weave in a tune of her own...

[DAREIOUS LYULF GREYBACK]

Andrew would shoot him if he knew where he was. Mind you, Andrew would shoot him if Seth said so. There was no chance they'd be together here in Hogsmeade, what with Seth being a muggle and all...but it didn't stop him worrying. And then ther was image - he knew the image Greyback's had and being all flowery and musically didn't quite fit with it. Then again, he was hardly your average Greyback, was he now? No, if Andrew had it his way then poor little Dareious Lyulf Greyback would be Darius Oliver Jackson.

Good lord did he ever hate that name. Jackson, that is, not Greyback. That name was near enough all he had left tying him to the wizarding world. Andrew didn't like coming to Hogsmeade and his mother had no interest in things that Andrew didn't like, not any more at least. Andrew also had little interest in music, hence why it's practice was so rare in the family home these days. There was a time where music was a constant - and not this electronic rubbish muggles listened to now - true music. Everything from mid eighteenth century to some stuff from the 80's. And OK, so he had a weakness for bands that got started in the mid-noughties. But real bands mind you, bands who actually played their own damn instruments and wrote their own songs on their own rather than having someone else write them and relying on machines for a sound. No, that was just stupid. Maybe he did have a slight weakness for this one muggle - she was unusual and there was this one song that made him smile. Monster, was it? It was the way it was written and the way it was worded - it always made him think of werewolves and vampires. He did have to question if she really was a muggle with some of the phrases she used. These americans were strange after all - after all, a royal family called Gaga? Sure, because that happened.

Maybe he was lucky it had been just him and his mother for so long. She'd very much shaped him and she'd worked so hard to cater to his every whim. He'd never really had very many whims - more time with her was one she could never really give him though. There was too much to think about to take time off, too much to pay for. It seemed silly to him, but it was the way it was in the muggle world. Everyone was so dependent on money...but wasn't that true of the wizarding world too? It seemed so silly to him - the earth used to be able to support them, or had they finally outgrown their planet? Had their consumption and desire finally flipped a switch that couldn't be reversed? Possibly, and that made him sad. Maybe a little angry too - after all, if this planet couldn't support them then where would they go? What other options were there?

It was odd really, that in this world he found himself playing something usually only found in cathedrals or catholic chapels. Odd for the hatred and condemnation of magic that he heard so often. They spoke such spiteful words with little consideration - if he ever became more than angry at a full moon, those would be the first he went for. They would feel what he felt for them. But for now? For now it seemed silly to dwell on matters. Placing the guitar down, he looked up for a moment at the other person stood not that far away. They seemed to hesitate at the piano, like they wanted to play, but at the same time they didn't. Maybe it was a little odd but who was he to judge what was odd? Tilting his head to one side, he weighed up his options for a moment before making up his mind. Standing up, he tugged the back of his shirt down and smoothed the front. It was a common ritual - considering how small he was, his clothes were always slipping out of place and would be a mess by the end of the day if he didn't do something to try and keep on top of it. This was one way that he found cut down on the mess.

"You should let it flow. If there is music in you, it'll come." Moving behind her, he ran his hands down her forearms and placed her hands on the keys, covering them for a moment. It helped that he was bigger than someone for once. "Just let go and feel it." He whispered in to her ear before pulling away and standing next to her, hands ghosting over the keys, but never leaving enough of an imprint to bring out any sound. Maybe there was something more in his touch, however fleeting. He'd never say a word though - he would always maintain total innocence in such matters.[/justify]

[jez]

she didn't really know what she'd expected, maybe for the two to just ignore each other. she'd never been in a music shop but her imagination had always let her see this glorious peaceful place where people were absorbed in their own worlds, sometimes branching out and weaving melodies with the chosen instruments together, but otherwise stuck in their own thoughts. she liked the idea that there was somewhere so out of her usual world that she might be able to find comfort or peace here, not that she'd probably come back for a while. it was a lovely store, but she didn't have the money to buy any of these beautiful instruments, and even if she did she wouldn't - where would she put it? not in her dorm for fear they would break or ruin, and not at home for fear of the same, or that her parent's would return it. it was a dream for the future perhaps.

so she was a little surprised when the boy stopped his music. she had turned her head away to look down at the keys, tempted but slightly disgruntled that she was tempted. she had never enjoyed the piano, though thought that if it wasn't something that had been forced upon her she might have - the sounds that came from it could be beautiful, but always marred by her parent's complaining that she wasn't putting enough effort in, that she would never be as good as her brother, that she didn't practise enough despite the hours she'd put in to try and shut them up. eventually they'd fought over it and the piano had gone. good riddance, she'd believed. her brother had thought her upset and in one of his good moods, that was when he had tried to teach her a little guitar. that instrument she had come to adore, and yet she never got many lessons really, and she never dared ask for more than her brother simply offered.

she hadn't even heard the boy move over to her, and creeping up on jessamine was never a good idea. she tried to keep her head down and watch her back, to avoid anyone getting a jump on her - like a slytherin or her brother - but sometimes she didn't manage it. like now for instance, and she jumped wildly and turned, going to shove him back a step. "don't." she snapped and frowned. surely you knew you shouldn't sneak up on someone like that. especially not someone who was used to getting hurt when they were sneaked up on. then again.. he didn't know that, she had to remind herself that, and she sighed. "you made me jump that's all. " she muttered, quick to put it behind her. still, she wasn't sure of his intentions as she'd felt his arms run down her sides and she turned back to the piano.

she didn't quite like how he stood close behind her, the hairs on the back of her neck bristled warily, and she tried to put it aside. "You should let it flow. If there is music in you, it'll come." she moved her hands out of his grip. sure she'd had a boyfriend over the years, and she was fine being close to friends, but guys were always hit and miss with her, and she wasn't comfortable with the contact. "Just let go and feel it." she sighed and shook her head, ghosting over the keys for a second in a tune she most remembered, before she frowned at herself and took the lid, shutting it with finality. "i don't play," she said firmly, mostly to remind herself not to snap at him or anything.

[DAREIOUS LYULF GREYBACK]

Music was both a prison and a release for him. In a way, it did remind him of lonely week after lonely week, left alone for the most part on that island. Of course, he still had occasional visitors – nobody wanted him to vanish, did they? So they came over, fed him every now and again, beat him if angry and drunk enough. But the rest of the time, they left him alone with his music. Despite that, he still had good memories – those of ones with his mother before Andrew and Seth entered their lives. Weeks of summer spent playing instrument after instrument, learning as much as possible and slipping in to a dream world where time and reason had no place. Of course, it always had to end and it always did, much to his disappointment. Still, there was always another day and another chance. Music made him smile, it was possibly one of the few things that still did these days. It wasn’t as if he had much else to smile about.

He watched her – something told him she knew what she was doing, but at the same time there was such reluctance, almost a disdain for the instruments at her fingertips. It confused him, how could someone not love an instrument that versatile and elegant? Maybe she preferred something else – he knew if he had to pick, he’d opt for a stringed instrument any day. Maybe the violin or his guitar, possibly even a ukulele if he was running low on options. He had been known to break them from time to time when he didn’t have his temper kept in check. Such incidents seemed to only grow in number as he got older. Sure, he wasn’t exactly what you would call huge, but odd things happened when you got angry, acts that would be otherwise impossible seemed to take no effort at all and could not be replicated when calm. Or maybe that was just the wolf in him, baring it’s teeth and dying to get out. He could only be glad they’d caught it so early on and taught him how to keep it under control the rest of the time.

”don’t.” That shoulder still hurt, letting someone collide with it was not a wise move, not even in his eyes. It was just his shoulder this time though – that was a damn sight easier to hide than the time his ribs had been smashed up. God, why the man was that way he had no idea. He did nothing wrong but was still disgusting, still weak and still a failure. Still worthy of that hatred. He didn’t understand why and probably never would – oh dear lord he hoped he would never understand, never be like Andrew. Nor like the Fenrir in stories and textbooks for that matter. No, if he had to be like anyone then he would crave to be like his mother. She was firm but still so gentle at the same time. “you made me jump that’s all.” He could understand being made to jump. He hated that feeling – it was horrible. He could understand, his hands withdrawing for a moment. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to.”

She pulled away, moving from his grip and shutting the piano lid. Her words confused him and her body language contradicted itself so badly. “I don’t play.” He had to raise an eyebrow at that. Yeah, right, as if he believed that for even a split second. “You could have fooled me.” Picking the lid back up, he skimmed over the key for a moment, the tune from some old horror movie going in the back of his mind. It was tempting, but he couldn’t remember how to play it. Just the sound going over and over in his mind, it was frustrating if he was honest. Sighing, he sat back down and took a moment to examine her again. “ You present yourself like someone who knows, even if they have no love for the subject.”

[jez]

she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable, feeling his eyes on her, not sure if he was just being friendly or if he was trying to flirt or something. she wasn't always that clear on guys flirting with her, sometimes she got it, sometimes she didn't, then again not many guys flirted with her. she kept to herself so much and often distrusted many guys who came too close to her, and so they kept away. she could flirt, and sometimes she did, but she didn't often. she just didn't trust males, and so she didn't often like to get too close to them or anything, especially guys she didn't know - hence why she didn't tend to like guys who came onto girls in random places.

she hadn't meant to hurt him or anything when she'd shoved. she was only petite, not exactly strong or anything, and she couldn't ever fight off her brother if he made to, say, push her down the stairs, but sometimes if she was scared or angry she could put a little power into her defence. so perhaps she'd pushed him a little harder than she'd meant to, he didn't exactly seem that strong but you could never really know. it was true though, he had kind of made her jump. not that it took much sometimes to freak her out, but you didn't sneak up on jessamine connors, a lot of people had learnt the hard way. they just didn't know why, and if she could help it, never would. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to.”

she bit her lower lip and nodded slightly, looking away despite how the rest of her senses were trained upon him just in case. he didn't seem like a bad guy, but she just couldn't help it. she pulled away slightly, wanting a little space, and going to shut the piano lid, not wanting to play. it was only habit that her fingers had run over the ivory and ebony, not out of want to play. perhaps if her experience with the piano had been better, perhaps if she had chosen the instrument rather than had it forced upon her she might like it, perhaps if her brother hadn't slammed the lid onto her fingers one too many times she might play it but something about the piano she couldn't stand anymore. she sighed slightly as he raised an eyebrow and she wished he wouldn't keep pressing her.

“You could have fooled me.” she frowned slightly and watched him lift the lid and skim his fingers over the keys, an imitation of what she'd done only a moment ago. she looked away as he began to study her again, feeling the hairs on her arms prickle with discomfort. “ You present yourself like someone who knows, even if they have no love for the subject.” she shrugged slightly. it was none of his business to be fair, why she didn't want to play, and maybe if he pressed people he might find he usually got an answer, but with jez the more you pushed the more she pushed back. she didn't like being challenged or pushed. "and?" she asked simply, yes, she knew how to play it, but she did not want to, did it matter? why did he care? he didn't even know her name.

[DAREIOUS LYULF GREYBACK]

His shoulder would jar, he knew that. It was entirely his fault though – if he’d just left it rather than talking back he might not have been grabbed. He may not have ended up against the wall. He might not have the bruising. But no, he had to get smart and push it. He had to defy the man rather than doing the sensible thing and keeping his mouth shut. Things seemed to be getting worse though, especially since the middle of the summer. He had no idea why though – he couldn’t think of anything he had done wrong, but he had to have dons something wrong, hadn’t he? After all, it was punishment that drove Andrew to act the way he did.

His only true escape came in music. That was one place where Andrew could never get to him. His mother had formed that love and that freedom for him and he could never take him away. Occasionally he had let his mind wander away, lost in itself and in to musings. How different would his life had been if Andrew had never come, or if the might Fenrir Greyback had taken him out of that home? Sometimes he wished he would, when the beatings had lasted days and he was beyond moving. Broken bones and split skin would keep him from moving too far or too fast – it was in those moments when he would wish that something could change, that he wasn’t there. But then his mother would come for him. She would fix him up an sit with him for the day, making sure he was as okay as she could make him. It was those moments though, between the end of Andrew’s presence and his blessed mother’s ministrations that he would pray to whatever was out there that the werewolf would come for him. Thoughts that would vanish at her voice and her touch. No, so long as he had her then he would never need that man. Still, he couldn’t help wondering...

That piece came back to his mind again, along with a name. Tubular Bells – that was from the exorcist, wasn’t it? Something like that anyone. It was probably one of the more recognisable horror movie themes in all honesty. Maybe it was odd that he found so much comfort in something like horror and psychological genres, he would put it down to living his own nightmare if he was honest. That, and muggles were just so funny in their assumptions and guesswork when it came to things like monsters and magic. It was all so very funny to him. He could play the first few bars, but he couldn’t remember how the rest of it went. He spent a moment in silence, staring at the keys and willing his memory come back to him, but it didn’t work. The few bars he could recall soon died, leaving an odd tension in the air.

“It’s a terrible shame when someone loses love for something like music.” He didn’t like silence and really only spoke to break it. That being said, he was honest in his opinion. He really did feel like love of music was important and there were few things he valued quite as highly. He didn’t understand how some people could be so indifferent to it when it did so much good for people. Something clicked in the back of his mind and he went back to the piano, face screwed up in concentration as he forced his second hand to remember what to do, but it did get easier very quickly. It wasn’t that long a piece anyway. “Music should be an escape, yet your reaction makes it feel like it’s more of a prison for you.” Though it would appear like he was concentrating entirely on the piano, he wasn’t. He was still more than able to hold a conversation with her and still continue playing – it was almost second nature to him. Besides, it was hardly the most complex piece to play when you remembered how.