Came in like a wrecking ball (Victoria)

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"Hey, watch your fucking step," Jackson growled as yet another older student nearly bowled him over on his way to the prefect's compartment. "Sodding losers," the boy muttered under his breath as he dragged his trunk to the side, pausing a moment to catch his breath. It wasn't like he was weedy by any measure but somehow, everyone seemed to be so well cut it made the boy wonder if summer meant getting hooked on steroids for the new Quidditch season.

Grumbling to himself, the fifth year Nightshade dragged his trunk to the nearest empty compartment, or he would have if the nearest empty compartment hadn't been there coaches away. Instead Jackson simply ducked into a corner and took a seat on his trunk. Today was not his day.

It had been difficult enough explaining to Merida why he wasn't a sixth year, and how getting your finger hacked off didn't allow you to just gloss over exams. Saying good bye to the twins had been a whole different story, girls were definitely less attractive when they cried.

And Jackson had had enough of the waterworks to last him a lifetime.

"What the hell," the raven haired boy murmured, slipping a hand into his back pocket and withdrawing his flask of scotch from its depths. "Its five o clock somewhere on this planet."

With that, the boy took a long, drawn out sip, tilting his head backwards as he let the liquid languish down his throat with familiar heat and promise.

Guest

The prospect of getting back on the train had been one Victoria had been counting down to. She'd also been counting the amount of days it had been since she'd written to Jax and hadn't heard a reply from him. Fourteen. It didn't seem long, when you thought about it, but Victoria had wanted to hear back from him in regards to her last letter. The Nightshade had obviously gotten caught up in something and mislaid the letter, hence he'd forgotten to reply.

Victoria had been seen off by her parents who seemed a lot more smiley and full of energy since her operation. Everyone was happy, that was the only thing Victoria could come up with as she skipped on to the train, trunk in tow. Her own had been lightened to make it easier for her to manoeuvre, and for the first time since being accepted to Salem, Victoria boarded the train and left everyone behind her.

It was harder to skip down the train, but Victoria walked with a bounce in her step, greeting everyone on her way as she looked around for her friends. Humphrey had ran off in his haste to try and find Aphrodite, or something like that, so Victoria was looking for everyone else. As she continued down the train, the length not bothering her because she enjoyed walking. Victoria finally found a familiar face.

"Jax!" Victoria squealed as she opened the compartment door enough to pull her trunk in. The boy before her didn't seem happy, so she paused for a moment, taking everything in. A flask, probably filled with coffee, or hot chocolate from his mommy. A small smile touched Victoria's lips as she leant forward and ruffled her hair. "Missing the twins already huh? Or the peanut butter?" She asked, still not understanding the implications of his words, but deciding it was a good way to go. "I have ham sandwiches, if that makes up for the lack of peanut butter!" She added a moment later, pointing to her trunk.

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

Just as the slightly chilled liquid coursed down his throat, making Jackson feel as though things might look up, the constant pounding of school shoes on metal train carpeting hit his ear, again and again and again.

"Jax!"

"Merlin's mouldy boxers, tune it down a notch, kiddo," the raven haired boy winced at the overly perky tone of voice. "How do you even get out of bed-" And it was then that he realized what he was saying.

The Wormwood princess, on her feet.

"Oh shit, you... you weren't just making it up..?" Before the Nightshade could explain it even to himself, his body jumped up off the trunk, pulling the girl into a hug. "Fucking hell, you're walking."

Realizing the burst of emotion, Jackson let the girl go, awkwardly distancing himself from her. Great, he'd just groped the Wormwood princess.

"I mean, yeah, whatever. Ham sandwiches." Truth be told he hadn't heard a word she'd said but it sounded like she'd invited him to lunch. Whatever, he could figure it out on the way, girls were easy like that.

Guest

"Merlin's mouldy boxers, tune it down a notch, kiddo," the raven haired boy winced at the overly perky tone of voice. "How do you even get out of bed-"

Victoria only grinned at his words, Jax had never been overly excitable, but he was a nice boy. And like Azalea had asked her, she would keep him out of trouble. "Sorry Ja-" But the sentence was cut off as the Nightshade boy threw his arms around her and pulled her close to him. Asking questions he should have already known the answer to.

"Yes I am walking!" Victoria confirmed for him. "I kept telling you in my letters, but you didn't believe me!" She reminded him, chuckling softly at him as he let go of her, still looking incredibly... un-Jax like. "There's no need to distance yourself, it's a happy piece of information, and Merlin have I been able to do so much over the last couple of weeks! Did you not get the photo I sent you?"

"I mean, yeah, whatever. Ham sandwiches."

As the boy agreed, Victoria took a seat and pulled her bag in to her lap. The train's movement would topple her if she wasn't careful, so Victoria thought it best to sit. Taking out the carefully made sandwiches, Victoria held out one lot to Jax. Her mommy had made her make far too many anyway, thinking she would be starved during the train ride. "Mommy made me add an extra helping, just in case. Personally made by yours truly. Which reminds me, you must tell your m- Merida, that if she could send me the recipe to those cakes, I would be grateful!"

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"There's no need to distance yourself, it's a happy piece of information, and Merlin have I been able to do so much over the last couple of weeks! Did you not get the photo I sent you?"

The volley of information left Jackson's head reeling. What was he supposed to answer first? In the end, the boy settled for a nod as she passed on some sandwiches, sitting down as if this was her personal throne room instead of some crappy train compartment.

"You make sandwiches," he asked, genuinely puzzled as he took in the neatly wrapped thing from the seventies into his hand. Sandwiches were two pieces of bread with uneven butter of origins unknown stuck to a bit of meat - of equally unknown origin - finished of with enough ketchup and mustard to drown out the taste of the actual sandwich.

Not this clean cut, clean film wrapped monstrosity from a coking show.

"Will this burst into flower petals if I bite into it?"

"Mommy made me add an extra helping, just in case. Personally made by yours truly. Which reminds me, you must tell your m- Merida, that if she could send me the recipe to those cakes, I would be grateful!"

"Alright," the boy smirked up at her, unable to believe how someone could be this... naive. "I'll get my Merida to ask the Kroger's guy. I'm sure he'll be grateful to give it to her."

Guest

"You make sandwiches,"

"Course! I always help mommy in the kitchen. I'm allowed to do so much more now too!" Victoria explained, of that much she was glad. "Cooking is great fun! Though, obviously, not much cooking is needed in the process of a sandwich. The ham is left over from last nights dinner. So it's real pork." She added, hoping to appease him with real meat as opposed to the processed kind.

"Will this burst into flower petals if I bite into it?"

A soft giggle left Victoria at the notion she would but flowers in her sandwiches. "As interesting as that might be, I haven't taken to eating flowers, Jax." She told him, taking him rather literally rather than anything else.

"I'll get my Merida to ask the Kroger's guy. I'm sure he'll be grateful to give it to her."

The teasing didn't go unnoticed as Victoria paused unwrapping her sandwiches to look at Jax who had taken his seat back on his trunk. "Oh... Merida didn't make them? You said she... oh, she sent them, sorry, I misunderstood. Usually..." The witch shook her head, deciding not to call him out on his words.

"So what mischief did you get in to at the end of the summer?" Victoria asked, a fond smile on her lips for a moment as she took the time to finishing unwrapping her sandwich and take a delicate bite out of it. Tasty, she thought, but maybe a little more mayonnaise should have been used with the salty pork.

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"Course! I always help mommy in the kitchen. I'm allowed to do so much more now too!"

Merlin was this kid out of a radio show, in the eighties, which had been cancelled for being too overly happy. How someone could make slaving away in a kitchen sound fun, Jackson did not know. But he supposed her kitchen was made up of gold and diamonds and whatever pink material found under the sun.

The thought of it was enough to make him reconsider his no drinking in front of children rule.

"Oh... Merida didn't make them? You said she... oh, she sent them, sorry, I misunderstood. Usually..."

"Its 2012, sweetheart," the Nightshade drawled. "In the real world anyway. Who even has time to do actual baking?" Certainly not Merida who had to work two jobs to keep food on the table and make rent every month.

"So what mischief did you get in to at the end of the summer?"

"What can i say, I tested out my new finger, it works just fine if the twins had anything to say about it... Though admittedly they were very incoherent by the point this baby got done with them," the boy smirked, lifting his new finger up and examining it proudly. Yes, it had served particularly well over the summer.

Guest

"In the real world anyway. Who even has time to do actual baking?"

"My mommy does all the cooking, and baking in the house. And the cleaning, and washing and all the household activities. As well as having her friends over every... Thursday for lunch." Victoria replied, letting Jax know a little bit more about her family. Maybe his mom was very busy, and his dad... Victoria had never heard him mention his dad, and decided not to ask. She was naïve in a lot of things, but some things were best left alone.

"What can i say, I tested out my new finger, it works just fine if the twins had anything to say about it... Though admittedly they were very incoherent by the point this baby got done with them,"

And there it was, Jackson Blake back in to his usual confusing conversations that brought a slight frown to Victoria's brow as she tried to decipher his meaning. The young witch opened her mouth to ask a question before closing it again, trying to ascertain what he could possibly be on about.

But Victoria was drawing a blank, so the young witch shook it away. "That sounds great!" She supplied happily, her mind was still churning over his words, but not noticeably. "Especially that your finger is working correctly, can I have a look?" Victoria asked, holding out her hand for his so she could see how well the job had been done.

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"My mommy does all the cooking, and baking in the house. And the cleaning, and washing and all the household activities. As well as having her friends over every... Thursday for lunch."

The fifteen year old merely shook his head at that information. He had suspected as much, a prissy stay at home mom who didn't need to work. Jackson had never minded Merida working though he had often wished she didn't have to so hard. Which was why it was even harder for him to deal with being held back a year, because it made Merida's sentence that much longer.

"That sounds great!"

"Oh it was" Jackson reassure her, a look of pure bliss taking over his features for a moment as his entire body relaxed. If he closed his eyes, he could almost hear the twins and their vocal glory, screaming out his name.

"Especially that your finger is working correctly, can I have a look?"

"Sure," the boy responded, thrusting his left index finger towards her. "Just make sure not to scratch it, this little thing brings a lot of ladies a lot of happiness." The declaration was accompanied by a smug grin.

Guest

"Oh it was"

The smile on Jax's features only made her own smile grow, it was nice to see him happy. It was nice to see anyone happy, but Jax had a smile... Victoria caught herself at that thought, confused with it's origins. Nope, she pushed that away, and would evaluate later, if at all.

Taking Jax's hand in her own, Victoria looked over the handiwork. You couldn't tell the difference between the other fingers unless you looked really hard. "They did a very good job of it! I'm pleased." Victoria admired, feeling much better about the whole situation since it had happened, especially seeing as Jax didn't seem at all bothered by it.

"Just make sure not to scratch it, this little thing brings a lot of ladies a lot of happiness."

Okay, enough was enough, if Jax insisted on keep talking about it, Victoria was simply going to have to ask. Not knowing was going to be the end of her otherwise. Taking a moment to figure out the question, Victoria turned vaguely serious as she looked at Jax. "Have I ever told you that you're the most confusing boy, no, the most confusing person I've ever met?" She asked, shaking her head at the idea as a smile touched her lips. "But please tell me how a finger can make a girl happy." She stated, positively confused with him today.

But then, that was simply Jackson Blake.

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"They did a very good job of it! I'm pleased."

"Not as good as what your healers did but I can't complain," the boy replied easily, biting into the sandwich he'd been too afraid to taste until now. And loath as he was to admit it, prissy food did feel and taste better compared to the two take out places back home. And the instant ramen suddenly fell from palatable to disgusting as he took another bite.

There were no pink flowers, thankfully.

"Have I ever told you that you're the most confusing boy, no, the most confusing person I've ever met?"

"D'phends oon ho'mny beople y'no," Jackson said thickly through a mouthful of ham sandwich. Screw ramen, this was real food. If the princess had a couple more, he wouldn't even have to go to that drag of an opening feast.

"But please tell me how a finger can make a girl happy."

Finishing off the snack, Jackson let out a low chuckle. How could she not know? But then again, she was like twelve right?

"No can do kiddo," he smirked, sweeping his mop of raven hair off his face before raising his arm to indicate height. "You must be this tall to ride."

Guest

"Not as good as what your healers did but I can't complain,"

That comment made Victoria nod. "They were very good Healers. Azalea must have spoken nicely to them, or something." Victoria mused, because the whole mannerism of how she'd received such good treatment under such a short time scale (in her head at least) was beyond her knowledge.

"D'phends oon ho'mny beople y'no,"

"Quite a few, but they're not you." Victoria replied, shaking her head slightly at the way he spoke around his sandwich. A sandwich that he seemed to be enjoying thoroughly. The witch took a half of her sandwich and offered the other half to Jax too. It seemed he was very hungry, and she had more than enough food to keep herself going.

"You must be this tall to ride."

A small frown touched Victoria's features once more at that idea and the witch stood from her seat, trying to see if she was big enough. As it turned out, she wasn't and the witch let out a soft sigh. "I guess I'll have to wait until I grow a little bit more." She decided, settling back down on her seat, once again trying to decipher his words.

A short pause came, allowing Jax to eat and her to mull over his words, until Victoria spoke again.

"Why didn't you believe me in my letters, Jax?"

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"They were very good Healers. Azalea must have spoken nicely to them, or something."

"Yeah, prol'ly," Jackson agreed, happily taking the half a sandwich from her. "Nice words tend to include phrases like "donation" and "big fat cheque", as I know," he added casually before biting into the other half of the princess' sandwich.

"I guess I'll have to wait until I grow a little bit more."

"A lot more," the Nightshade corrected under his breath. Geting taller didn't mean she was ready to face the real world, as opposed to the barbie one she seemed to live in now. The idea of fingering might actually give her a coronary.

"Why didn't you believe me in my letters, Jax?"

Looking squarely at her face, the boy said "How many T-6 Paraplegics do you know who recover from their condition in the span of two months?"

Guest

"Nice words tend to include phrases like "donation" and "big fat cheque", as I know,"

"I don't think Azalea is the type of girl who bribes..." Victoria replied, slightly defensive in her mannerisms because she couldn't see Azalea doing such a thing. No, Jake's girlfriend was a nice young lady, it was down to sheer merit that it had happened. Victoria was certain of it.

"How many T-6 Paraplegics do you know who recover from their condition in the span of two months?"

"Well... I don't know anybody who had the co-" Victoria paused, looking to Jax for a moment. Most people didn't know the stages of paralysis like that, and most people wouldn't say such things. Paralysis, yes, paraplegic, yes. But to state the type... "How do you know what stage of paralysis I had?" Victoria asked softly, trying to understand the boy before her the best she could in that moment.

Unsorted Posts : 108 Join date : 2014-04-15 Age : 25

"I don't think Azalea is the type of girl who bribes..."

"You make it sound like a bad thing," Jackson countered, looking the Wormwood princess over. She was just the type to go with the word "incentive", as in Jackson being given a flask of scotch was incentive enough to like the person who gave it to him. But then again, reframing was a concept the boy was too familiar with, even if he would never admit that. No, that would require admitting that he actually picked up a book.

Which, loath as he was to admit to even himself, he planned to do a lot more of recently, drat those stupid pink letters.

"How do you know what stage of paralysis I had?"

The question caught him off guard. Shit, why had he let that slip? What was he supposed to tell the kid now, that he had actually read up on her condition? Jackson hadn't been able to explain to himself why he'd wasted half a day researching types of paraplegia, contractions and current gold standard treatments. Nope, that was a line of thought he was not going to revisit.

"Must be this tall to know," the boy responded, trying his best to sound offhanded as he raised an arm once more.

"And thanks for the sandwiches, kiddo, I'll pick you up more of those cakes the next time Merida's at Krogers."

With that, the raven haired boy vaulted off his trunk and sent her a wave before pulling his trunk away and continuing with eh volley of muttered curses under his breath.

Guest

"Must be this tall to know,"

The comment made Victoria smile slightly, he was teasing her once more. And loath as she was to admit it, she didn't mind being teased by Jax. He obviously didn't want to explain how he knew, so she wouldn't push it. "Must be that tall." She responded fondly, not really sure what more she could say to that.

"And thanks for the sandwiches, kiddo, I'll pick you up more of those cakes the next time Merida's at Krogers."

"You're very welcome, Jax." Victoria replied, smiling at the boy as he mentioned cakes. "There's really no need though, honestly." She insisted, as nice as the cakes were, they weren't home made, and Victoria always preferred things made by a person who was more than a logo on a box.

As the boy leapt to his feet, pulling his trunk, Victoria moved her legs out of his way. "Bye.. Jax..." She called softly after him, watching him go. It was weird, watching him go... there was no goodbye, no notion of where he was going, but Victoria knew he wasn't coming back. So she sat quietly for a while, mulling over Jax's words before she finally gave in to some light reading to see her through the trip.

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