Slythering through the Streets

[Hippie<333]

Josephine Vallencante was not new to the streets of Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley however was a different question. However, she was determined. There had to be a reason why her father didn't want her to go into Knockturn Aleey. And she was prudent to find out why.

He had told her on countless occassions, as well as her mother, that she was forbidden to ever enter the place; that there were bad people there-Death Eaters-Voldemort's supports, that was certain; and countless other reasons why. These particular reasons, on the other hand have only tempted her to visit the dark place- only out of curiousity though.

Now, Josephine had watched her father go against all that she had ever said and taught to Josephine-as she watched him enter the alley alone.

She followed silently, pulling an invisibility cloak over herself and observed the filty, grimy, litter-scattered place with a lok of utmost disgust. She became so obsessed with her surroundings that she didn't notice someone had bumped into. her.

As she fell to the ground, Josephine felt the invisibility cloak slide off as she and someone else, a boy her age it seemed, both collided to the ground together.

"Josie," the boy said coyly, entwining his fingers in hers and bringing his face witihin an inch of hers, "we have to stop meeting like this..."

"GABRIEL?!" Josephine called in shock.

[morellomel]

Melissa was walking through knockturn alley, trying to find her grandparents, but not really putting any effort into the job. She gazed through the shops as if in an unbreakable trance, staring at the evil gadgets and magical gizzmos. Her trance was only broken by the sound of two people colliding into each other ahead of her.

There were two people on the ground, and one was helping up the other. At this distance Melissa could not make out who it was, or what they were saying. She was going to resume looking through the shops until her conscience had gotten the better of her and she walked over to the pair, yelling, "Hey, are you guys okay?"

[Hippie<333]

Josephine shoved Gabriel off of her, giving a nasty look, her beautiful face contorted into a look of anger and contempt at the boy before her. "Go stick your annoying nose where it's actually wanted...if that's possible," she said coldly, glaring at him. Because of Gabriel, she had lost track of her father, and he had disappeared out of her sight. Josephine couldn't see any trace of him at all, which infuriated her even more.

She stood up and irritatedly drew her wand, using it to clean the back of her electric-blue baby-doll shirt, and denim cut-off's, without even offering to clean off Gabriel as well, let alone help him up. Gabriel scowled and stood up on his own, scowling indignantly before brushing his clothes off himself. "What has your panties in a bundle?" he asked ignorantly, not even bothering to keep his annoyance from his handsome features.

"You do!" she replied, glaring daggers at him, but he did not recoil, on the contrary he shrugged it off, grinning deviously at her and she groaned in exasperation and disgust. "Is it like your purpose in life to agonize me? Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"No, not to agonize you. I can't leave you alone, I love you too much." he said, "seriously." but his tone and expression only mocked what he was saying. He still sported the same cheeky, bemused look on his face that he had only a few minutes before.

"The feeling is not mutual." Josephine said bitterly, her hand clenching tightly around her wand and a few red sparks emitted from it's tip in her anger. "Now, now, love..." Gabriel said jeeringly, a cruel smile curling at his lips, "you know your mum and dad wouldn't be happy if they found out you were speaking to me like this."

"As if I care." she replied indifferently, decidedly unimpressed with him. "Well you'd better get used to it, " Gabriel said, relishing the annoyance and displeasure he was causing Josephine, her reluctance to him. It only made him want her more, "this marriage is going through whether you like it or not this year...it's been planned before we were even born."

"Sod off!" she threatened sharply, and in a flash she had her wand held up to his throat like a knife, ready to perform any and every curse, jinx, and or hex that occured to her on him. Despite her intentions, Gabriel remained utterly cool and composed, unthreatened by her. He pushed her against a wall, gently but deliberately nonetheless. "Save your breath, Josie. You can't hurt me, you never could. You don't even have the courage to stand up to your parents." with a wicked grin he placed a soft quick kiss on her lips before turning and dissapparating on the spot.

"Hey, are you guys okay?"

Josephine felt like crying. She blinked and wiped the tears away from her eyes, taking a deep steadying breath and fighting back the wave of anger and sadness within her. She looked up at the girl who had spoken with an expression caught half-way between exhaustion and sadness, then shook her head slightly, "No..."

[morellomel]

As she walked closer, Melissa saw a boy disapparating, leaving a girl with her back against a wall, silently crying. She heard the soft 'no' and saw the head shook, and was bewildered at how a collision with a person could cause this much of an emotional wreck.

Melissa watched the girl wipping the tears out of her eyes, not knowing how to comfort her because she was unaware of their cause. She conjured a tissue out of thin air with her wand, and handed it to the girl so that she didn't have to use her arm anymore. Then she put her arm around the girl and led her over to a bench outside of Borgin and Burkes.

Sensing that there was a deeper reason for the girl's tears, and for the want of being some kind of help, Melissa asked, "Do you want to talk? I'm a really good listener, and if you tell me what's the matter, I'll try to help you feel better."

[Hippie<333]

Josephine accepted the tissue gratefully from Melissa, sniffling slightly. She dabbed at her eyes with it to stem the flow of salty tears leaking from them. Melissa lead her by the arm over to a bench outside a shop she knew as Borgin and Burkes and sat down beside Melissa thanking her, hiccuping slightly.

"Do you want to talk? I'm a really good listener, and if you tell me what's the matter, I'll try to help you feel better."

Josephine nodded slightly, and composed herself enough so she could talk, then said, "Since as long as I've been alive my parent's had already arranged my marriage," she glanced morosely to the spot where Gabriel had been previously standing. "Ever since we were little I hated Gabriel, no matter how keen he is on me. If I ever insult or did anything disrespectful to Gabriel and his parents I was and am severely punished."

"We're supposed to get married at the end of this year, my last year at Hogwarts, and I can't stand him. He's a foul, horrible, arrogant and slimy little git who cares notihng about anyone but himself." Josephine's voice became dry and and strangled. "...And there's nothing that I can do about it." a new stream of tears flowed from her eyes and streaked her cheeks.

[morellomel]

Melissa listened to the girl's troubles, slightly surprised that there were still things such as arranged marriages occuring in the country.

She conjured another tissue with her wand and handed it to the girl again, while saying, "Are your parents that heartless to be oblivious to your feelings?"

[Hippie<333]

"They think I'm trying to get attention, that I'm just complaining to get out of it. They think I'm trying to rebel or something. Whenever Gabriel is around he always acts so perfect and sweet. As soon as they're gone he pulls off the charm. They wouldn't care anyways. They never do." Josephine trailed off and said almost absentmindedly, "People say love is blind. And in my parents cae it's true. In their eyes, Gabriel is flawless."

"I've run away three times already, but my father has alot of high-connections in the ministry because he works there. Each time I've been brought back, I've only just given up hope in thinking I can ever escape this.....curse...they won't let me be. Gabriel won't let me be." Josephine was twirling her hair so quickly in her anxiety that it was probably frayed and damaged by split ends, but she didn't care.

[morellomel]

"If it makes you feel any better, I care." Melissa said, giving the girl a hug. "I'm sure there is some way to fix this...you just have to bring your parents to their senses."

Melissa sat for a while thinking. "Have you ever showed your parents how Gabriel really acts behind their backs? I mean have you ever been able to record him or something, or have your parents turn up in the middle of him harassing you?"

[Hippie<333]

"If it makes you feel any better, I care. I'm sure there is some way to fix this...you just have to bring your parents to their senses."

"Thanks," Jospehine said gratefully, accepting the girls hug. It had been a long time since anyone had ever cared about her opinion on any matter, or even since anyone had shown her that they cared.

Things hadn't always been they way they were for her now. There was a time, before she was thrown into the harsh reality of life, when she was younger, that she had been happy. Everything was so simple back then. She had loved her parents back then, and they loved her back. Gabriel had been like a brother to her then, and there had been no hostile or suppressed emotions.

Life had been so much easier when she was oblivious to her parents plans for her- Josephine was adored by her father, and doted and loved constantly by her mother. Her whole world revolved around pleasing her parents, and nothing made her more happy than when she earned their affection and praise.

Blissfully ignorant little Josephine could never have imagined that her mother and father were loyal, though secret followers of the Dark Lord- Death Eaters. She never would have guessed Gabriel would have fallen for her, and turn into such a cruel, vindictive person, nor that, after her father had gotten some bad luck after he had been gambling when she only thirteen, that they would be selfish enough to sacrifice Josephine's for their own, in order to regain all the money they had lost. She never knew how someday her family and friend since birth would betray her so badly. She did now, though.

"Have you ever showed your parents how Gabriel really acts behind their backs? I mean have you ever been able to record him or something, or have your parents turn up in the middle of him harassing you?"

Josephine had stopped crying now, though she still shook slightly with repressed anger at the situation she was in, and blinked, confusedly when Melissa mention recording. "To what?" she asked, dumbfounded. Brought up in a respected, wealthy, and Pure-blood family, she was completely oblivious,other than the existance of muggles.

[morellomel]

"Record him," Melissa repeated.

"It's like taking a picture, only it will show some event exactly as it had happened." she explained, realizing that not everyone was as up to date as her about muggle contraptions and things.

[Hippie<333]

"I doubt it would make a difference to them. As long as they are happy, and they have me married into a wealthy pure-blood family, and get me out of the house then they won't care." Josephine said.

"But if I was to.....what was it again....'record', then how do I do it?" she asked.

[morellomel]

"Well, I don't really know." Melissa said. "I know muggles have some weird looking thing that does it, but im not sure if wizards have something like it."

"We could look around though, in diagon alley to find one," Melissa suggested.