Merlin Save Her.

Victor was shirtless, and smiling down coldly at her and though she was absolutely furious with him, Airi couldn't help but be effected. He was perfect, Merlin save her, the boy was perfect. His smooth tanned skin, the musculature of his abs, he was surprisingly muscular for someone with such a lean build. Was is hot in there or was it just him? No, wait, she hadn't meant that, no. No. No. She was NOT having these thoughts right now.

Airi swallowed nervously, still glaring daggers up at Victor regardless of how effected he was making her feel. How could he, how could he sit there and smirk at her like that after what he had said? The boy really had no heart, it was so obvious now, and Airi found herself wishing she were like him, that she could be cold and uncaring, it probably made life so much easier.

But we are friends, Mondai… that’s why I feel…
What was he doing? Why was he coming closer to her? Didn't he realize he was half-naked and that being so close to her while he was unclothed was totally inappropriate, and- Oh no, his arm, his arm was around her waist and he was pulling her much too close, so close that she could see his long eyelashes with perfect clarity and smell his clean skin, and this was not okay.

When you’re kissing gits.
She was furious, absolutely furious, she wanted nothing at all to do with him, but here she was, with her eyes fluttering close, and her heart beating at a rate she would have deemed impossible, letting Victor get far too close for comfort. How was it possible to hate someone this much, but still want them so badly? Airi had no idea. His lips, his warm, smooth lips were brushing softly against her own and Airi was just about ready to give in, when he suddenly pulled away.

Nope, this was it, he had broken her, completely and totally ruined her. There was no more Airi Mondai, she was totally gone and in her place was just an angry shell. THAT ABSOLUTE BLASTARDO. HE WAS- HE WAS THE WORST, THE ABSOLUTE WORST. Airi was totally and completely done, that little trick he had pulled was the last straw.

Unthinkingly, Airi turned blankly away from Victor and knocked back the last of her firewhiskey, unable to do anything else.

Victor picked up his refilled glass and finished half of its contents in one go. The rush of the firewhiskey burned his throat, making him shut his eyes tight to ignore the uncomfortable sensation. The funny thing was, Victor actually wasn’t much of a drinker. He only really drank during Hall’s parties, and even then, he had always preferred to remain sober (being drunk meant losing control, and control was one thing Victor would never willingly give up), and would only have a drink or two which he would make last the entire night.

Tonight, however, he had finally let go of the one thing that made him who he was: self-control. And the firewhiskey sure was making it easy.

When the boy turned back to his only company in the entire room, her back was turned to him. Victor smiled; not one of his cold, calculated smiles. It was a lazy, drunken smile, though the usual cruel mocking was still hidden within. She was simply adorable, thinking that by ignoring him he would just disappear into thin air, that he would suddenly decide he’d had enough of emotionally torturing her.

“Don’t tell me…” Victor started slowly, taking in the sight of her small frame. Suddenly, he seemed to remember the first time he saw her at Hall’s Shrieking Shack party. She’d had her back turned to them, her brown hair the same as now, but wearing a Wonder Woman costume instead of a Hogwarts uniform. She’d looked incredible. “…That you honestly thought I would kiss you, Mondai,” he continued, almost mockingly as he closed the distance between them to stand right behind her.

“…Did you want me to kiss you?” His voice was only a whisper as he leaned in ever so slightly to break some of their height difference.

Airi felt like her senses had been heightened, because although Airi had her back to him, she could tell everything Victor was doing by her hearing alone. The slosh of liquid meant he was pouring himself another drink, the sound that followed was him swallowing the magical alcohol. Funny how aware she seemed to be now that her mind had gone so blank.

She felt like a muggle computer in standby mode, she was still on, still working, but her mind was a complete blank. It was a survival trick, one that let the girl retreat into herself when her emotions became too much for her.

Victor was coming closer to her again, she could hear his footsteps, and even in her strangely blank state, she felt herself tense up in preparation for another verbal attack. Had she thought he would kiss her? Yes, yes she totally had, she had been expecting it, and she had, for that one second, welcomed it. He didn't have to make fun of her, she had already berated herself enough, thank you.

He was right behind her and as he leaned in closer, Airi managed to pull herself enough from her broken state to pay his words heed. Did she want him to kiss her? That was a question Airi didn't want to answer. Not for herself and certainly not for him. So she ignored it, kept her back to him, gritted her teeth and said nothing.

Victor smirked. The girl’s silence was response enough for him, and though it would have been nicer to actually hear the confirmation in her voice, it would have been nice to hear her try to deny it, too. But instead she remained completely silent, something highly unusual in the Ravenclaw. But Victor, having received his response, had no complaints.

The boy was turning away from her when, very suddenly and just like that, Mondai’s shirt was gone. Gone. Completely. Leaving behind her exposed torso covered only partially by her bra. And there it was: the confirmation Victor had been looking for. “…if Either of You Lie, Tell a Half-Truth, Or Even Tell A Boring One, You Will Lose Your Clothes!” the board had read. So there it was - Mondai’s lie. She had wanted him to kiss her.

Strangely, Victor didn’t feel the satisfaction he’d expected. He thought this would be the perfect opportunity to make some sly remark, to rub in her face how he knew what she wanted from him. But no clever comment came to mind, no cruel impulse overtook him. As the girl stood there, emotionally beaten and physically exposed, a spark of anger suddenly seemed to awaken him from his drunken stupor. He knew Airlia must have been the unhappiest girl in all of Hogwarts at that moment, much thanks to him, and he didn’t mind that. But he also knew that she must have felt horribly uncomfortable with her shirt suddenly gone, as if matters just couldn’t get worse for her. And he minded. Probably because he hadn’t been the one to bring this discomfort upon her.

“Maledetto blastardo, farò in modo che egli paga per questo,” muttered Victor under his breath, making an awkward movement with his hands. He had meant to remove his robes, but had completely forgotten he was in the same position as Mondai. For once, he was actually unable to help her. Usually he was unhelpful on purpose, now he actually physically couldn't do anything. And it suddenly hit him like a wave of realization, how little control he had over this situation.

“CAVENDISH!” He called out, as if expecting the professor to suddenly burst flying in from one of the high windows. “You bloody git, this has gone too far!” How far was the man willing to go?! It was one thing to undress a teenage boy, they were exhibitionists by nature, but this -- this was absurd.

Thank Merlin, the boy had finally let her be. She couldn't believe it, but she supposed he had had his fill of embarrassing her for that evening. After all, she'd all but confessed she wanted him to kiss her, and now that the boy was equipped with this knowledge, Airi had no trouble believing he would be using it against her. And probably soon.

Airi's shirt, her shirt, it had just vanished, and this brought Airi right out of her blank state and as panic and embarrassment took over. Oh no, oh no, oh noo. She was in her little pink bra standing just a few feet away from a drunken and strangely aggressive Victor Vincenzi, with no way out. Her face was flushed with angry mortification and she didn't know what she was supposed to do in this stupid, embarrassing situation. What was wrong with Cavendish? How was this an appropriate punishment?

maledetto blastardo.
Airi knew those words, she knew them very well, she had heard them from Vianna a thousand times over the years and they never boded well for the person they were addressed to, but Victor wasn't speaking to anyone it seemed (though it was hard for Airi to tell that really with her back turned). What was he doing? Airi was itching to turn around and see, but the thought of exposing herself to him was so unpleasant.

Airi jumped as Victor suddenly shouted out the name of their Professor, his voice sounding surprisingly angry as he called out to the man. "What are yo-" Airi began to say, startled out of her silence, but then the board in front of her began to change and Airlia stopped mid-sentence to read.

MR. VINCENZI.
Your Hypocritical Gallantry Is Charming, But Hardly Matters, The Detention Goes On.
-Sincerely Cavendish.

Victor walked toward the professor’s desk and made an obscene hand signal at the board before proceeding to make himself comfortable on the man’s chair, his glass still in his hand. For once, Victor had no ideas. No idea how to get out of this situation, no idea how to pass time. But he calmed quickly, as these frustrating facts sunk in, and he allowed his mind to cool, to slow down and return to its more logical nature.

Taking a small sip of the firewhiskey, he watched the girl that still stood frozen and shirtless just a few feet away. What was Mondai’s plan? Was she just going to stand there for the rest of the night, pretending he didn’t exist? He hadn’t been that unpleasant, c’mon. Just… might’ve toyed with her emotions a bit, but nothing that could cause long-term damage.

Victor moved his attention to the record player sitting on one side of the desk, and the neat pile of records that sat beside it. It had been one of Cavendish’s many rewards to Mondai, and it caused a spark of curiosity to flicker in the boy’s cold blue eyes. He flipped through the records with vague curiosity, leaning lazily into the armchair. It wasn’t like him to look so lazy and relaxed, but the firewhiskey was still strong in his head.

Victor paused when he stumbled upon a record featuring a girl in baggy dark clothes, standing in the middle of a street with a motion-blurred background.
“…Avril Lavigne? Seriously?”

Despite her earlier exclamation Airi was still not quite herself, and as she numbly watched Victor flip off the Professor's blackboard, she felt none of the usual amusement such a thing would have inspired within her. She was still in her head, trying to shut out all the emotions and feelings that her current situation had created within her.

The "near kiss experience," had definitely traumatized her and in the recesses of Airi's mind she was wondering just how she was ever supposed to recover from Victor telling her she smelled of Mcgi- Robert, when Victor spoke, breaking the silence between them.

“…Avril Lavigne? Seriously?”
Airi blinked, and funnily enough, it was this comment that brought the girl back to herself. Because it was ridiculous, and so very Victor of him to judge her taste in music, and that little bit of normality somehow comforted her.

"Yes, seriously... It's a guilty pleasure, okay?" Airi said, unthinkingly crossing the room and taking the record out of his hand as if protecting it from him. Arrogant git, judging people all the time, who did he think he was anyway? "And what kind of music do you like? Oh, let me guess," - Airi straightening out her back and flipping back her dark hair, her face suddenly impassive. "I only listen to the classical masters," Airi said, in a perfect imitation of Victor's mannerisms.

In her anger, she had totally forgotten she was standing shirtless in front of him.

I SAW THAT VINCENZI - Cavendish.
And poof, there went Victor's expensive trousers leaving him in only his beautiful silk green boxers.

Victor couldn’t help the smirk that curved a corner of his lips when Mondai, apparently more concerned with her guilty-pleasure records, forgot her earlier shyness and snatched the record from his fingers. Oh, this was amusing. Very amusing. Victor had always imagined Mondai to have a more ‘mature’ taste in music, so this little surprise left him quite curious to see what other guilty pleasures she had hidden in that pile of records.

He wasn’t done with that one, though.
“Well, then. Let’s hear it,” he said, gesturing toward the record player with a little jerk of his head. “Play us your favourite song, Mondai. We’ve got a long night ahead.” So they might as well pass time by making fun of Airlia’s music taste.

The boy felt a sudden chill wrap around his legs as the girl continued speaking, this time imitating him and taking a wild guess at his taste in music. Distracted, Victor glanced down, only to find himself sitting in only his boxers. He turned to the blackboard and shot it a glaring look before turning back to Mondai. He wondered vaguely if Cavendish would be daring enough to have the boy’s boxers removed next; there wasn’t much left to take from him at this point.

“While that is true,” started Victor casually, already forgetting about his lack of pants, “and I do enjoy Mozart’s Symphony number 40 in G minor during study sessions or while reading a potions book, the truth is…” he paused for a moment. This would be his second truth of the night. “I don’t listen to music.”

With that, he leaned back into the armchair and took another sip of firewhiskey.

Airi was glaring over at him, the record clasped protectively to her chest as Victor smirked. Okay, so maybe it wasn't the most sophisticated music ever, but it wasn't hardly as awful or cheesy as Victor was making it seem. This album, this pop-punk album, had been Airlia Mondai's preteen favorite and it was very close to her heart. play us your favorite song, Mondai.

No, no. That was alright, she could live without the experience of listening to Avril Levigne with Victor Vincenzi. No, thank you. Instead, Airi glared up at the taller boy before putting down the record and picking up another of the records, this one a hell of a lot less embarrassing. Airi put the record on and smiled as the song began to play. "Just Hold On We're Going Home," by their own History of Magic teacher. It was a guilty pleasure for Airi as none of the Hogwarts students, save Ned, wanted to be caught dead listening to the erratic professor's music.

Airlia turned from the record player and back to Victor to see his reaction, and ended up blushing scarlet. He was. He was. He was in his... His boxers. this was ridiculous, why was she blushing and feeling warmer than before? It was the same as him wearing shorts for goodness sake! Silky green shorts... Okay, no. Airi needed to stop acting like a vapid, drooling school girl and be normal. And after everything he had said to her too, how could she be practically drooling over him? She was an idiot.

How was he so nonchalant? He was pantless and shirtless and yet the boy carried on like it was nothing, whereas, losing her own shirt had been absolutely the worst for Airi. Her shirt. Her shirt. SHE WASN'T WEARING A SHIRT, HOW HAD SHE FORGOTTEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!?! At her realization, Airi grabbed the record cover for Nothing Was The Same.. and held it against herself, her blush deepening.

Mozart, of course he liked Mozart, Airi rolled her eyes, she couldn't help her exasperation with the infuriating boy sitting in front of her. "What?" Airi said blankly, taking in Victor's truth. Who didn't listen to music? It was such a human thing, to listen to music and express yourself through it. "I don't understand, how can you not listen to music? It's so.. It's just so important! Everyone listens to music! Even house elves love music!" Airi said, incredulous at this information.

Victor watched as Mondai placed down Avril Lavigne’s “Let Go” and instead placed Professor Drake’s “Nothing Was The Same” into the record player. A moment later, an all-too-familiar tune that Banana Man (who they now knew was Cavendish) always forced the DJ at their parties to play, began to echo throughout the room. Victor looked at the record player disapprovingly.

“If this is supposed to be less laughable than Avril Lavigne, you’re wrong,” he said simply, watching as the little Ravenclaw suddenly turned the brightest shade of red, her dark eyes leaving his to look down at his boxers instead. Suddenly, she seemed to remember her own half-nakedness, and Victor was all too aware of how tightly her arms held on to Professor Drake’s floating head in the skies, as if it was some heaven-sent saviour here to block the view of her little pink bra from his observant gaze.

“Obviously I’m not ‘everyone’, Mondai,” started Victor slowly, coming up to his feet just as he finished the last of his firewhiskey. “But if it’s really as important as you say…” He walked around the desk and toward the girl, moving with the same amount of self-confidence and grace as he would fully-clothed in his fine Italian fabrics. Obviously, Victor Vincenzi didn’t have a single insecurity when it came to his body. “…I’m open to suggestions.” With that, he pulled the record cover from the girl’s arms in one swift motion, smiling coldly to himself as his gaze fell to her half-exposed upper half.

“Is it as good as Hall claims?” he asked, casually leaning back into the dark ebony desk and obviously referring to the record cover in his hand, though his gaze remained fixed on the girl. He noticed that she was a bit smaller than she’d seemed with the Wonder Woman costume a couple of weeks ago, but it only made his smile widen slightly. He'd always had a thing for petite brunettes.

As Professor Drake's voice filled the air, Airi found herself smiling, despite Victor's obvious disapproval. How could anyone listen to this song with disapproval! It was a perfect song (Didn't make it any less embarrassing, she was still listening to her professor after all), and a classic. Maybe this was why Victor was always such a sourpuss (sourpuss? I must be drunk to be thinking words like that), Because he didn't listen to music! Airi still couldn't believe it, because it was unbelievable! Her suspicions had been confirmed, Victor Vincenzi was, in fact: An evil android, an evil, sexy android, okay, no, where had that thought come from? No more firewhiskey for her.

Still clutching the record to her bosom, Airi watched Victor wearily as he rose from his chair with all the grace and usual charm he possessed, minus his clothes. Because naturally the blastardo was as comfortable in his skin as she was uncomfortable in her own, he was probably enjoying this. Git, bloody git. How he could have said all those things? How could he have tried to take advantage of her? She had trusted him, always, throughout all their years, she had trusted him and he had totally tried to misuse her. The blastardo, the evil git.

Airi squeaked femininely as Victor took the record from her in a quick, decisive motion, leaving her exposed before his probing eyes. Insufferable git! Taking her cloud cover! (haha, good one Airi, cloud cover, because of the clouds on the cover.. Who said she wasn't funny?) "it's a great album, not as good as his second one, but really good.. Emotionally honest, with really great lyrics and.. " Airi replied, speaking without realizing it. Yeah, she was definitely drunker than she'd thought.

Wait. Wait. Waaaiiiittttt. He was. He was staring at. He was staring at her.... Blush, Blush, Blush. He was OGLING HER, and SMIRKING away like a satisfied cat. "A-are, are you kidding me?" Airi said, offended beyond all belief by the boy in front of her. He had insulted and teased her all night and now he was sitting there ogling her?!? The absolute blastardo!! Anger filled her and then, quite suddenly, and without thinking. Airi slapped Victor, hard, across the face.


In the background the blackboard had re-arranged itself.
This Is My Jam. - Cavvy

Victor listened with amusement as Mondai began to list all the selling qualities of Professor Drake’s music album. Leave it up to Mondai, besides Hall, to actually enjoy the music every other student in the castle despised. She seemed to have returned to her chatterbox ways, and, though he’d never admit it, the boy felt relieved. He had always been too impatient to appreciate the girl’s talkative nature, but now that he knew what her silence felt like, he decided he preferred the constant flow of words.

Even if he wasn’t paying any attention to what she was saying.
He had been too distracted examining the girlish lace pattern of her bra to notice her sudden change in tone and proximity. Until her hand met the side of his face in a slap that echoed loudly throughout the room, successfully snapping Victor out of his daze. Though his reflexes had been slowed slightly by the firewhiskey, the boy looked up sharply, meeting her angry gaze with disbelieving blue eyes.

In a flash, his free hand wrapped around the wrist of her raised arm. “You should not have done that, Mondai,” he warned softly, tightening the grip of his fingers around her pale skin and therefore forbidding the girl to turn away.

Oh no, ohoho no, no one - no one touched Victor Vincenzi’s face and got away with it. Airlia Mondai must be punished for this outrageous behaviour. Punished severely. Mercilessly. If she thought he was just going to sit back and let it go... she was wrong. And perhaps it was the firewhiskey messing with his mind, but Victor decided to follow his instincts and do what he thought best at that moment - he leaned in and placed his lips on hers, the ghost of her hand still tickling his cheek and urging him not to let go just yet.

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.
This was so very bad, sooooo very, very bad. Airlia Mondai had just slapped someone, and not just any someone, but Victor Vincenzi! Airi couldn't believe herself, what HAD she been thinking? (she hadn't been thinking, was the obvious answer) Immediately, Airi was filled with regret, she had taken this too far and she was about to apologize when Victor grabbed her wrist in a vice-like grip. His blue eyes bore deeply into her own and the menacing, angry look within his crystal gaze, sent shivers down her spine.

"you should not have done that, Mondai,"
This was it, he was going to kill her and eat her liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti. Airi was panicking now, full on panicking. Victor was too close, looking down at her in that way that always made her stomach do backflips and she needed to get away from him, now. Airi tried to wriggle her hand from his grasp, but his grip was iron tight, and Airlia was reminded of a boa constrictor wrapped tightly around it's prey.

"Victor, wai-" she had begun to say, trying to avoid whatever torture he had planned for her, but then he was leaning in close, for the second time that night, so close, too close and Airi's poor heart was fluttering in her chest like a caged bird, unlike before, Victor didn't pull away at the last minute, no, this time he pressed his perfect, sweet mouth fully against her own in a kiss that burned right through Airlia. Maybe it was the firewhiskey, maybe it was all the teasing from earlier, but, despite being as angry as she was, Airi found herself giving into the kiss after just a moment's hesitation. She was still cursing him furiously in her head, though.

For a fraction of a second there, Victor was surprised. Surprised that Mondai had not only not kneed him where it hurt, but was actually even kissing him back as well. Still, he didn’t trust her not to change her mind, so he maintained a firm grip on her wrist as he pulled her closer, erasing the small amount of space between them.

He’d lied earlier, and it was a surprise Cavendish hadn’t taken his shoes for that.
Mondai, in fact, did not ‘reek of’ MacGhilleseatheanaich. She tasted sweet, despite the hint of firewhiskey in her breath, and her lips felt soft and fresh. No sticky lipgloss, no bright red lipstick that smeared all over his face. And even if she didn’t move with the same expertise and confidence of the Slytherin beauties he was used to, Victor much preferred this kiss to most he’d enjoyed in the past. It was… refreshingly new.

But, it was also supposed to be a ‘punishment’, some brief unpleasant experience meant only to further infuriate the Ravenclaw girl. And yet, instead of pulling away and making some cruel and clever comment, Victor slid his free arm around the girl’s slender waist and pulled her further into him. The cold, calculating mind had shut down; the plan was forgotten. Right now, he just wanted to kiss her.

Airi didn't know how it had happened, but her hand had found it's way to the back of Victor's neck, and her fingers were playing softly with his dark, wavy hair as their mouths moved together. It felt right, and as the cold Slytherin Prince pulled the sweet Ravenclaw Saint closer to him, Airi couldn't help thinking just how natural and right this all felt. Kissing him, being close to him. It was intoxicating and Airlia never wanted it to end. In the haze of her mind, she was still trying to understand how exactly this was a punishment, if it was a punishment, she didn't really understand why he had kissed her. Probably because he's bored said a treacherous voice in her head, but Airi pushed it away.

Victor knew what he was doing, his lips moved against her own with an expert ease, and as the kiss deepened, Airi reveled in his cool, sweet tasting mouth. It was amazing, amazing how he was able to completely wipe her mind with just the action of pressing his to hers, and how he could make her feel so very alive. It was something no other kiss had ever done for her. Airi wanted to keep on kissing him until her lungs burned for oxygen, because nothing else mattered, not even all those awful things he had said to her...

Airlia sighed into the kiss as Victor pulled her further against him, his cool hand on her naked waist, the other firmly holding her wrist, she was trapped in him, but rather than feeling panicked, or worried, Airi was enjoying it more than perhaps she should have.

She was still trying to ignore the little nagging voice in her head, but it wouldn't shut up. It kept bringing up Victor's words, and mentioning how he had done nothing that night but bully her to the point where she had actually broken down. Broken, he'd broken her and for no reason other than his sick twisted pleasure and now she was letting him kiss her? What was wrong with her!? Was she some kind of masochist? And as this thought entered her mind, Airi was filled with anger at him, and disgust for herself.

The hand that had been playing in Victor's hair, was now on his firm chest, and she used it to push him away. "No," Airi gasped, as she broke the kiss, speaking as much to herself as she was to him. She really hadn't wanted to let go.

There was something wonderfully pleasant about the feel of Mondai’s slender fingers running through his hair. It was a gesture that seemed to cause the temperature in the room to drop (or maybe that was another of Cavendish’s tricks, at this point it was hard to tell), and the only source of warmth was the beautiful brunette returning his kiss. It was perfect - she was perfect, and the more he kissed her, the more he found himself craving her soft, full lips and her small, delicate body. The kiss was completely counterproductive; instead of satisfying his yearning, it increased it.

And then she pulled away.
“No.”
Victor groaned softly at this, without realizing, and opened his eyes only to find the girl a couple steps away. His hand slipped from her waist, and the other was still holding her wrist, though quite loosely now. He released it reluctantly, brows furrowing. “Why not?” But he knew why. And, for the first time in his life, Victor Vincenzi understood just how unpleasant it felt to be kissed and to be left hanging. “…It’s not a game, Mondai.”

Her lips were still tingling, and Airlia was feeling strangely cold without Victor's arm around her and his body pressed to her own. It wasn't a good feeling, and her anger was almost being outweighed by just how much she needed him. It wasn't fair that he could make her feel like this, that he could bring something out in her that other boys never did, not when he treated her so poorly. Seeing his heaving chest and the frustration in his crystal eyes only made the feeling stronger, and Airlia had to mentally restrain herself from reaching out to him.

"why not,"
He sounded so unlike the demanding, cool headed Victor she was used too, and Airi wondered if this was the first time anyone had ever told him no, the first time a girl had ever told him no (the thought that they hadn't was annoying and made her a little jealous). Relief, along with some regret filled her as Victor let go of her wrist.

"It's not a game Mondai,"
It felt like a game, like some long game that Airi was doomed to lose. Victor was clever, and beautiful, but he was also cold, and self satisfying, and she couldn't stand the thought of being another of his little flings, another conquest for him to secretly smirk over. "It feels like one," Airi said, anger in her voice. "You're just bored Victor... I'm sure you could find a better way to past time,"

Airlia turned away from him, walked to the little desk with the firewhiskey on it and poured herself a glass. She didn't really want it, but it was a good excuse to be out of his proximity. The Ravenclaw drank down the amber liquid, her heart still hammering in her chest from her earlier contact with the beautiful boy behind her. Why did he have to make things so confusing? One minute he was berating her, belittling her and the next he was kissing her with the kind of passion Airi had only read about in bad romance novels. Could he just decide what he wanted from her already?

He knew it. Victor knew those words would come back to haunt him. And he would’ve regretted them, had he not been so proud.

Victor watched as Mondai turned away from him to pour herself a glass of firewhiskey, his brows furrowed thoughtfully. Though he wasn’t about to admit it, she had been smart to walk away. That kiss… He wasn’t sure how far he would’ve let it go had she not been first to end it. He had been honest - it wasn’t a game. It wasn’t a tease by the steps of the Ravenclaw common room, a little joke meant strictly for his entertainment. He’d meant it, and for once, Victor wasn’t sure what to do with himself. Begging was obviously not his style, but at the same time, he wasn’t about to force himself on a girl who’d already turned him away.

But there were other ways to get what he wanted.

“Did you hate it, Mondai?” he asked casually, crossing his arms over his chest with the vaguest hint of a smirk on his lips. He knew the answer already. “Was it so awful you felt obliged to walk away?”

The firewhiskey burned her throat, but Airlia didn't mind, she had come to enjoy the slow burn of the whiskey, and it was a welcome distraction from the way her skin was tingling all over, and the way her delicate hands trembled as she held the crystal glass. Airi had never felt like this, all the times she had kissed Ignatius while they had been together had felt nothing like this kiss with Victor. It was dangerous, and Airi needed to get out of this little room before she did something she would end up regretting.

"Did you hate it, Mondai?"
The git, Victor must know she enjoyed it, her actions had practically shouted it. He was doing this to further taunt her... Or to get a reaction from her, she didn't know which, even so. She had to answer, it was ether that or lose her skirt and Airlia was very keen on keeping it. "I didn't hate it," Airi said, keeping her back to him, her posture tense. "It was... A... Good... Kiss," Airi slowly, reluctantly said.

"We need to get back to trying to get out of here," Airi said, trying to change the subject. Hopefully if he remembered about the prospect of Airi embarrassing herself, he would let go of this whole little kissing thing.

Victor’s smirk widened when Mondai confessed to enjoying the kiss, though he was rather disappointed by her honesty. He’d been rather looking forward to seeing what kind of undergarments Saint Airlia kept under her skirt.

”We need to get back to trying to get out of here.”
With a sigh, Victor unfolded his arms and walked around Professor Cavendish’s desk to take a seat on the comfortable armchair Mondai’s earlier honesty had earned. Taking the rubik’s cube he had solved earlier, the boy began to distractedly undo his earlier work. “The truth will set you free,” his voice echoed, repeating the first clue Cavendish had left for them hours ago. Amazing how two of Hogwarts’ most brilliant minds refused to solve this puzzle more out of spite for each other than lack of understanding.

At this point, Victor and Airlia finally had a common goal: to get out. And though the Slytherin didn’t believe in teamwork - depending on others always slowed progress - Victor trusted Airlia’s sharp mind enough to actually… team up with her.

“Go on,” he said suddenly, setting the unsolved Rubik’s cube back on the desk and setting his gaze upon the little brunette who kept her back turned to him. Leaning back in the armchair, Victor made a simple order, “Ask me something.”

Airlia felt that strange mixture of relief and regret again as Victor seemed to back down from his earlier teasing. Regret, because a part of her had been secretly hoping he'd pull her into his arms and kiss her again, and relief because he'd left her alone instead. Airi paid no mind to Victor as he repeated Cavendish's words, she was far too busy rethinking the last few weeks, specifically the times she had shared with Victor. Everything from the night of Ned's party, to stalking Nevi, to being arrested, and finally to the strange end of the night, when Victor had made her a promise that Airlia had believed he would ever keep.

Except he had, or he must have, because no one had said a thing to Airi about Victor or Ned's party, and that rumor wouldn't have died on it's own, no, it must have been the Slytherin Prince's doing.

The thought was heavy in her mind, and as Victor bade her to ask him a question, without thinking, it flew from her mouth. "Why did you squash the rumors about us? Why did you do that for me?" Airlia asked, turning around to address the casually seated boy, eager to see his reaction.

With the effect of the firewhiskey still heavy in his mind, Victor had long lost that upright posture of his, and he seemed completely casual and at ease as he sat on Cavendish’s comfortable armchair. But part of the prim-and-proper sober boy that we are used to, seemed to snap back into consciousness when Mondai asked her question. Caught off-guard, Victor looked up at her with genuine surprise.

Would he still lose his boxers if he didn’t answer the question? Not out of refusal, but rather due to a lack of an answer?
Airlia’s question was actually the same one he had spent the past couple of days asking himself, and he still hadn’t found a proper answer. Leave it up to Mondai to ask him precisely the most difficult question; she couldn’t have just asked him about his favourite colour, could she?

Victor thought back on the events that led up to that night, to that promise, and searched for any clues related to his unusual behaviour. “I did it because…” he trailed off for a moment, dark eyebrows furrowing in concentration; his gaze had left the Ravenclaw girl and he seemed to be looking elsewhere - looking at himself and the girl as they stood by the gates of the castle, their silhouettes barely lit by the midnight moon. He’d been laughing, Airlia had been crying… “You seemed distressed. I don’t think I’d ever seen you like that.” Victor looked at her then, returning to the present. “I suppose I… felt something had to be done.”

And for once, the Slytherin sounded doubtful of himself. He had always known the answer to every possible question thrown at him; whether it be a complicated arithmancy problem or a potions exam. He always knew. He always had the answer, and from this knowledge came a self-confidence that overlapped with arrogance. But not this time, and he actually allowed himself to depend on Cavendish’s annoying tricks to determine if his answer was correct or not.

To his relief, his boxers didn’t disappear into thin air.

Airlia watched wearily as Victor's features took on a look of surprise, obviously he had not expected this question, and Airi had to admit, she hadn't ether. She had been completely fine with leaving that particular memory (of crying in front of Victor) behind, but Suddenly there it was, out in the open and Airi could do nothing but wait for him to answer.

As the silence stretched between the students, Airi found herself holding her breath. She had no idea what Victor was going to say, but every bit of her was worried he would say something as hurtful as before, and she didn't think her delicate ego could take another blow, at the same time, another thought entered her mind, an unlikely one, but one she clung to with hope; that Victor had done it because, maybe, just maybe, he cared about her a little bit, as a friend.

Victor started speaking, and Airi found herself listening with rapt attentions as the young man slowly started to explain himself, only to stop. He sounded so uncertain, and his blue eyes held none of their usual intensity as he gazed off into the distance, his mind seemingly elsewhere. It was so odd to see him like this. Without his usual cool confidence, it reminded her of when they had been in jail, and Victor had broken down, and once again Airlia felt that pull within her to reach out to him, but she didn't, instead she finished her drink and waited.

“I suppose I… felt something had to be done.”
Airi felt breathless as Victor finished, his gaze once more directed to her, she felt... She felt touched, that he would be moved enough by her obvious distress to try to do something about it, it was completely surprising and Airlia wasn't sure how to respond, or even if she should. The funny thing was, he seemed as surprised and as doubtful of this new information as Airi felt. "I... I don't recall if I, if I thanked you for that," The brunette quietly said, blushing softly as she spoke. "But, um...thank you," She added, speaking more firmly, shaking her head as she gathered her wits. This was not the time to go all soft.

"Ask me something," Airi said, echoing Victor's previous command.

Victor shook his head slowly but said nothing as Mondai thanked him for bringing an abrupt end to the rumours. She probably wouldn’t have been as thankful if she knew he’d accomplished the task through deadly threats and physical violence aimed at their peers.

“Ask me something.”
The boy stared at her silently, and though his gaze was fixed on her brown eyes, he wasn’t really looking at her. He was thinking. What did he want to know? What had he ever wondered about Airlia Mondai, official Hogwarts saint? Until only a few weeks ago, her existence hadn’t meant much to him, hadn’t sparked any curiosity. And now, suddenly, he found her face and her voice often invading his thoughts.

Victor opted for an honest curiosity, pushing his mean tendencies aside to make progress on this little task Cavendish had left for them. “…What’s your patronus?” he asked, genuinely interested. Would it be the Virgin Mary?

Airi was certain Victor would ask her something ridiculous or embarrassing, and she had steeled herself for it. Whatever he asked her, she would answer it honestly, no matter how badly she didn't want to, it was partly to keep the remainder of her clothing and partly because... Well, Airi was tired of keeping secrets and trying to hide her feelings.

Her patronus? She hadn't expected that at all. It was so... So innocent, and it took Airi aback, leave it to Victor to always keep her guessing.. "My patronus? It's.. A Labrador, Labrador Retriever," Airi said, tilting her head slightly as she spoke, looking on Victor with curious eyes. It didn't seem to be a trick, and he looked, well he looked as innocent as a Victor Vincenzi could look, and Airlia felt herself relax."I know it isn't as grand as a swan, or a wolf, but I like it," Airi said, smiling slightly. She put down her empty glass and took the seat opposite Victor at the professor's desk, still feeling weary.

"What's yours?" Airi thoughtfully asked, funnily enough, she had always wondered.