Complete and Utter Opposites (Katie)

[Lotus]

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As Walter watched Jasmine unsteadily get to her feet, hold on to him for dear life and then collapse to the floor in front of his bookcase, he couldn't help but berate himself. How stupid could he have been? She had been unconscious and unmoving for over two weeks, and he expected her to get up and walk. He really was an idiot. He let out a small sigh, but couldn't stop the small smile that formed on his lips when he saw the slight spark in Jasmine's eyes as she looked over the spines of his books.

Once she'd picked out a book, he took it from her grasp quickly because he could see how badly her hands were shaking, and he knelt down beside her; still giving her space. He turned the book over to read its cover and smiled softly. "I-It's c-called a ta-tale of tw-o ci-cities." When Jasmine didn't stop him from talking, he briefly looked up at her before proceeding to explain briefly what the story was about.

Once he'd finished, with rather little stuttering, he looked back up at Jasmine with slightly rosy cheeks and his hands shaking a little. "S-S-So... Wh-what d-do y-ou th-ink? I-It wo-won't b-be easy."

[OOC: I didn't want to explain the story description because I've never read it. I read the plot overview and it sounds great, but my overview would not do it justice ]

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine listened intently as Walter read the synopsis of the novel he held delicately in his broad hands. It sounded interesting, she might even enjoy the book with the same passion that he had found in the old worn pages. It was also interesting how he managed to speak so clearly when he read despite his constant stutter any other time he spoke. She reached upward and laced her fingers through his. "Well, it definitely sounds better than being about a garden. What's the point of a garden anyway? It's like having an orchard for no particular reason other than to look at it. It's pointless."

She shook her head. "Now, what you have in your hands sounds way more interesting." 

Jazz pulled herself up, and very shakily walked the short distance to the bed. Her wobbly steps reminded her of a story that her father had told her long ago, back before his drinking had turned him violent. She recalled a girl that was something called a mermaid. She was normal on top, her lower half had been that of a fish, but the girl wanted to be human. She found a witch that was able to give her legs but she had to go through the stages of learning how to walk properly. She felt like the girl in that moment, trying to figure out how to walk again. It was strange to not be able to trust her own legs, but she managed to make it to the bed as her knees gave out beneath her. She fell to the mattress in an exasperated heap before offering Walter a small smile, and pulled the blanket up around her waist, patting the bed beside her. 

"We should probably start off easier though, like the letters and their sounds? In the meantime we could read the book together."

[Lotus]

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From his bookcase Walter watched as Jasmine staggered over to his bed and he scolded himself for not helping her over there. "Y-You re-really sh-ouldn't p-push your-yourself t-too much." He mumbled before walking over himself and sitting gently in the space she patted besides her. He wanted to move closer, he really did, but he wasn't sure that was Jasmine wanted. After all, the last he got close to her without her express permission he'd caused her to be unconscious for over two weeks.

He let out a soft and small sigh, before inching just a little closer. Knowing he needed the proximity to her despite everything; they'd kissed after all. That's what Walter tried to tell himself to make it okay for him to move just that little bit closer to her radiating warmth.

Opening the book to the first page he turned his head towards her and let a soft smile spread across his lips. "S-So we'll r-read together a-and w-we can t-teach l-later...? We'll d-do a l-little o-of both t-too th-though." His smile got a little wider as he believed to see a slight sparkle light in her eyes at the notion of her learning how to read. When she'd robbed him before all this mess started she hadn't seemed the slightest bit interested, but maybe being around him was helping her in some form of way. Walter wouldn't be able to say how, but he knew she was changing and he liked that more and more.

Turning to the words on the page in front of the two of them, Walter began to read out loud with only the hint of his normal stutter. It was easy for him to get lost in the words of a novel. And despite the haunting so-called memories that were haunting him and somehow had something to do with Jasmine, he found it easy to be around her. Calming. Real.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine settled into the covers, the blankets wrapped around her legs. She leaned up against Walter, her side pressing warmly into his as he read aloud from the book. This one was a bit more interesting, although the story did kind of drag out. She shook that thought away as she realized that she didn't have the experience enough to judge whether or not a book was slow. She listened to him speak about the carriage as it traveled in the middle of night somewhere cold and wet to an inn that was in a place called Dover. She didn't know where this place was, but the name was odd. She leaned her forehead into his shoulder as he continued to read aloud about the dark furniture and walls that housed a very bright looking girl. It was funny. The way he described the girl made her sound as if she were from the capital in a blue dress that fell to the floor and was very puffy, and her hair was all done up in curls on top of her head. 

She didn't quiet understand some of the words, or the giant red woman for that matter, but she still found it entertaining to listen to. They didn't get very far before she started to lose focus though. She was tired of sitting still, but the more she sat the more tired she became. Good grief, you'd think that after all the sleeping she'd done, she would be awake. Unfortunately, she was the type that couldn't stay awake long if forced to sit still. 

After some time, the sun had already set. She shrugged into a more upright position, giving Walter a break to stretch her arms as high as she could above her head. Her back arched in the effort before she fell back against the pillows next to him. "Does Lucie find her father?"

[Lotus]

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With the words from the book and the warmth radiating from Jasmine, Walter found himself lost in a calm that he hadn't felt since the night he'd fallen asleep with his arms wrapped around her; the night before everything went wrong. He knew she wouldn't understand some of what he was speaking out loud, but he hoped she'd got the gist of it and she seemed to. He had somehow come to know when she was paying attention and when she wasn't, and for every word Walter spoke, Jasmine was paying attention.

It was only when Jasmine stretched and flopped down onto the pillows that Walter realised quite how long they'd been reading together. The sun had set and the street lights were creating a dim glow that cast itself across the room, landing on Jasmine in an ethereal manner. He couldn't help but watch her for just a little until she removed him from his thoughts with her question, earning a chuckle to escape his lips in answer. "Y-You'll ha-have t-to wait an-d s-see."

Walter stood from the bed, placing the book on his bedside table. They hadn't eaten anything for dinner and Jasmine knew that as tired as she was, it was best for her to eat something before going to sleep. He motioned to her that he'd be right back before walking to the kitchen. He knew his parents would be asleep so was expecting to make something for himself and Jasmine, but he instead found a note from his mother.

'There's dinner left on the stove for you, it just needs heating up. Your father and I heard you reading, so we left you be. We love you Walter, sleep tight x'

The letter brought a smile to his face and a feeling towards his parents he never thought he could feel again. But then, his strange memories hit him and he fell to the floor, his breathing laboured. He was not about to break down when he'd been as calm as he been, but he couldn't help it. His hands flew to his ears, gripping tightly as tears welled in his eyes and he chocked on the air as he tried to force it down his lungs.

Somewhere in the haze of his memories and his melt down, he remembered that he had to get dinner for Jasmine, so forcing himself to stand and calm his breathing as much as possible he reached the stove, serving up two bowls of the stew his mother had lovingly cooked. Shaking steps took him back to his bedroom, where he perched on the edge of the bed, eyes slightly wider than normal and his breathing still slightly laboured, but he still turned to Jasmine and held out the bowl to her. "D-D-Dinn-er."

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine curled onto her side and faced the wall as Walter shut the door behind him. Her hand gently traced the raised scar tissue that was etched into her ribs, wondering if he'd mind it being there. She looked over her shoulder and back at the door to make sure he wasn't about to barge through it and lifted her dress up to look at the newly healed wound again. Her wrist kinked suddenly, a sharp pain the arched from her knuckles to her elbow causing her to hiss her breath inward through her teeth. Rubbing her wrist gently between her thumb and first two fingers, frowning as she realized that her wrist must have still been sprained along with her ankle. Sighing, she returned back to trying to look at her scar. It was bright pink against her dark skin. She had other scars of course; the long white line down her leg from a fight with her father when he had been drunk, the small dashes in abundance on her forearms from branches scratching her when she reached for every piece of fruit six days each week, the small line beneath her right eye from a knife fight in the street one night over a loaf of bread. Hell she was covered in scars, but then again it wasn't uncommon to see people missing whole limbs. It was law that thieves had fingers cut off for stealing, and she was lucky to have all of hers. 

She smoothed her dress down when she heard Walter's footsteps coming closer. She sat up and smiled as he walked through the door, but her lips fell as she saw the state he was in. He'd probably had another episode. She wanted to slide off the bed and go to him, but her legs were so weak. She took the bowl from his shaky hands before he could drop it. It was stew. His mother must have left dinner out for them. She didn't mention his state, but instead ate the stew in silence. 

When she was done, Jazz put the bowl on the table beside the bed and put laced her fingers through his. "Are you okay?"

[Lotus]

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After Jasmine had taken the stew from his still shaking hands, they ate in silence and he appreciated that whilst he probably looked a state, she didn't ask what was wrong with him. Instead they ate the stew his mother had lovingly cooked and left for them, and with each spoonful Walter took his hands shook a little less. It was the silence and the hope that he had for Jasmine when he saw how hungry she actually was that seemed to calm him a little, because despite all the strange things in his head, Jasmine was there. She was getting better. She was going to be okay.

Once they'd finished, he knew she would ask so it didn't surprise him all that much. Instead of answering straight away he concentrated on the tingling feeling her hand created with her fingers entwined with his, and if anything, he held onto her hand a little tighter. Knowing she was there, with her hand in his to ground him, he was calm. His mind was silent for once, and he knew he could trust Jasmine. He knew it from the first time he laid eyes on her (well second if you count the time she'd stolen from him as children and he'd forgotten). Everything they'd been through in the past few weeks had been nothing Walter could have ever imagined, and he knew, with her hand laced with his, he was going to let her in.

"I-I'm n-not o-okay. I-I h-haven't be-en f-for a long t-time."

[Draco Malfoy]

(aww sweet,)

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine seemed to deflate as Walter spoke quietly. Before she could stop herself, she placed her free hand behind his neck. His skin was warm and his hair was soft beneath her fingers as she leaned forward, pressing her body flush with his in a tight hug. She had to stand on her knees to place her chin on the top of his head, and she could feel his warm cheek and cool breath against her neck and shoulder. Her face flushed delicately at the closeness. He was so warm and solid against her. A seed of worry grew in her stomach, worried that he would pull away from her.

Walter was so anxious that she should have realized that he'd been a mess while she was in a coma like state. She remembered his voice as he read quietly to her in those long two weeks. It seemed like an eternity had spanned across a short period of time. His voice had gone on endlessly, only steady when he read from the pages of his beloved books and she had found comfort in it. Her thoughts were active but her body had been unresponsive, and she had hated being imprisoned inside her own skin. It had made her feel as though she were being suffocated from the inside out. But now she could return the sense of comfort that he had given her over the past two weeks.

[Lotus]

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Walter didn't quite know what to when Jasmine knelt up and wrapped him in her arms. It had been such a long time since the last time he'd been in someone's arms; he couldn't even remember. Ever since what he'd remembered had happened, it sort of made sense in his mind as to why he was scared of human contact and people in general, but he felt stupid for letting it have effected him so badly that he couldn't even handle proximity to his parents; the two people he should feel comfort with no matter what. But now, he felt as if he was too far set in his mind to be able to go back to the loving boy he had been before.

Slowly, very slowly, his muscles relaxed in Jasmine's hold and he let out the breath he'd been holding; his breathing going back to its normal pattern. With shaking hands he brought his arms up and wrapped them around her stomach tightly, but gently enough that he wouldn't hurt her again. He realised, the longer Jasmine held on, that he needed to be in her arms. He needed someone to be his anchor. He needed someone to hang on to for dear life.

After several moments, Walter's arms slackened from around Jasmine's waist and he wiggled his head out of her hold so he could look up into her eyes, a small smile forming on his lips. "Th-There's n-no ne-ed f-for you t-to w-worry ab-out me." And then ever so gently he reached up, closing the small gap, and placed a chaste kiss to the corner of her mouth; chickening out at kissing her like that had before. It wasn't that he didn't want to, he just didn't know if he could handle that, and he didn't want Jasmine to witness another of his meltdowns.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine thought she was suffocating Walter with how hard she had holding him to her chest. It was strange to have him so close to her but she was oddly comfortable with the proximity. She was able to breathe him in; the smell of fresh earth and books seemed to overwhelm her senses. She liked her body pressing against his. If only he were comfortable enough around her to get even closer, but she didn't want to push him. It had been a long time since someone had clung to her like this. Those instances seemed to be kind of grimy since she'd been able to bathe regularly, and as often as she'd found herself with a man in a compromising situation it seemed that things would be different if she had wound up in such a compromising situation with Walter. It had been about a month since someone had touched her, which was kind of a long time if she were honest with herself, and she would have really liked to get some in that particular moment. However, the kiss he'd planted on the corner of her mouth was so innocent and adorable that she would have felt bad to corrupt him no matter how much she would enjoy doing so. And she definitely would enjoy doing so, yet she didn't think Walter was ready for such an... extreme pastime. 

Jasmine loosened her hold and smiled mischievously at him. The urge to push him down on to the mattress and give him something new to think about seemed to take over her mind. Hot desire that stemmed from the pit of her stomach caused her cheeks to redden and her pupils to dilate. Her mouth was suddenly dry as though she were very thirsty, and she was in fact very thirsty. Hell, if she did manage to get him in bed it might even give him the confidence boost he needed. The pads of her fingers slid along his jawline and tilted his face towards hers. She brushed her lips against his lightly enough to be hotter than hell. She didn't want to scare him, but she couldn't resist the temptation to make him squirm just a little bit. 

After a slow kiss that made her dizzy, she leaned away from him enough to make eye contact. "Damn, I must be feeling better." 

Jazz figured she must have been in more of a state than originally thought if it had taken a month to revert back to how she would normally act. Now all she needed to do was steal his pants and things would really be back to the way things were. She laughed softly at the thought and rested her chin on his shoulder. "If I didn't worry about you then I'd be somewhat bored while I'm stuck in your house."

She poked him in the stomach playfully. "Besides, you seem to be doing better than when we first met."

[Lotus]

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Walter's breathing hitch when Jasmine trailed her fingers along his jaw and placed a tender kiss on his lips. It wasn't something he'd expected, and the way his heart pounded and blood rushed to his ears definitely wasn't something he expected. However, when she chuckled to herself it made him worry if his reaction hadn't been what she wanted, or he'd done something wrong; even more so when she said how bored she'd be if she never worried about him. It made Walter realise that he probably hadn't given enough attention to Jasmine to make her time stuck in his house more worthwhile, and made it worse by her only stimulation being from worrying about him.

Being stuck in his own head after all that meant that when Jasmine poked him in the stomach he jumped away, tensing up and moving back from her slightly. It was a stupid reaction, but one he couldn't help when something came unexpected to him. "I-I'm s-sorry..." He muttered out, casting his eyes down to his lab as he fiddled with his hands. Jasmine thought he was getting better, but to him, the inside of his head was still a complete mess and the way he acted was far from normal. Sighing, he slowly lifted his head back up and looked Jasmine in her eyes, holding eye contact for as the longest time he ever had before trying to speak, knowing what would come out of his mouth.

"I-I...I d-don't th-think I-I am. I-I've r-remembered thi-things..."

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine let go of Walter and sat back down on the bed as he jumped away from her. He seemed to mull over something in his mind, so she sat in silence as he worked out his thoughts. She didn't want to interrupt him. After a long while, he looked up and caught her in his stare for what seemed like ages. She almost wanted to lean away from him with a look so intense in his eyes, but she tilted forward instead to lace her fingers through his. 

She felt the color drain from her face as he spoke. She didn't know what he was referring to, but she could tell that it was important to him. She squeezed his hand tightly. "Tell me what's bothering you."

[Lotus]

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Walter shook his head, regretting his words. He may have remembered but he didn't want to make himself think about it when those images themselves had a habit of popping up when he least expected and wanted it. And he especially didn't want to say anything when one of the people involved very much resembled the girl next to him that had captured his attention completely. Then there was also the fact that with Jasmine being the outgoing and brave person she was, him revealing what he'd remembered to be the cause of him being so panicked and closed off, would seem kinda of pathetic to her and she'd tell him how stupid he was. He was fighting with himself, but he was so tired of keeping it all to himself and having it scare him all over again, so he gave in to the girl beside him holding his hand.

"I-I d-don't know h-how old I-I w-was, I-I can't re-member m-much a-at all, but I-I w-was l-little." He took a deep breath and gripped his trousers with his free hand to stop the shaking, but the shaking only moved upwards. "Th-there w-was a g-girl th-at l-looked a-a lot l-like y-you. Sh-e ask-asked f-for a-all m-my b-belongings, a-and I-I w-was s-scared s-so I-I g-gave h-her everything I-I h-had. Sh-She left b-but... But..." He stalled, words not coming to him as he came to the worst part. "A-A g-group o-of b-boys, o-older, s-saw me give th-this girl m-my st-uff so th-they t-tried th-e s-same. B-B-But I-I didn't h-have any-thing, s-so I-I tr-tried t-to e-explain and walk away. B-B-But th-they d-din't l-let me. I-I was c-cornered a-and th-they b-beat me..." By this point Walter had tears slipping down his cheeks, but he couldn't stop despite how pathetic he knew he sounded. "I-It g-goes f-fuzzy then, a-and th-e n-next p-part o-of th-the memory is m-me making it h-home b-b-but I-I c-couldn't walk, m-move o-or s-see..." Another deep breath. "I-I r-remember m-my p-parents w-worried and pain-ed looks, p-pressing cloths d-down on p-parts o-of m-my b-body, t-telling m-me i-it w-would b-be o-o-ka-y. B-But th-then i-it g-g-es fuzzy again a-and I-I h-had m-my f-first p-panic a-attack. Th-Then i-it's blank a-gain."

Once he was finished, Walter's breathing was laboured as he verged on the edge of a panic attack and he pulled his hand from Jasmine's sinking to the floor and grasping his hands by his ears, nails digging in to the marks already there. He really was weak.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine blinked slowly, trying to wrap her mind around what Walter was telling her. The more she thought about it, the more irritated she became. She took a deep breath through her nose. "So. You mean to tell me that you got amnesia from being jumped this one time years ago. You do realize that there are people here in district 11 that would dream of that being the only bad thing to have happened to them in their lives. God if only that was my only problem, you literally have it made here. You have both of your parents alive, and they actually like having you around. My father is a drunken bastard that tried to sell me for booze once and you're crying because of one mugging."

She reached behind her and hurled the pillow she'd been leaning on at him, smacking him in the face and causing his glasses to settled crookedly on his nose. "Quit it. There are literally thousands in this district with bigger problems."

[Lotus]

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Walter knew he was pathetic. He knew he was weak. Yet it still hurt when Jasmine used those words against him. The girl that had helped him start opening up had just told him how pathetic she thought he really was. Maybe it wasn't in so many words, but that's what she'd meant; and somehow he knew that's what she'd thought about him all along. Her words had hit him hard, so hard he didn't understand the way he was feeling. His panic attack had stopped midway, yet it was still looming, but then there was this numb feeling starting to brew inside of him. His eyes lost their spark, the one that had appeared since he'd known Jasmine. His face lost all ounce of emotion. He lifted his hands slowly, fixing his glasses to sit straight on his nose before placing his hands beside him to push himself from the floor.

There were other memories trying to flash before Walter, but with him no longer seeming to be in control of his mind or body, none of them made sense. All Walter knew was how pathetic he was. How weak he was. How Jasmine had thought those things about him all along and now made her thoughts known. She didn't care. No one really did. He knew people had worse problems than he did, he saw that every day, yet what happened to him had altered his life in ways he wished they never had. To Walter his problems were big, but like Jasmine said, in the great scheme of things his problems were nothing. They meant nothing.

His fists clenched by his side, and with somewhat rigid movements he walked to his door, opening it and only pausing for a moment. "I, understand." Walter didn't turn his head to look back at the girl that just ripped him apart. After all, he knew the look of disgust that would be sneered across her face and his final words to her were to make her see that he'd heard exactly what she said. To let her know before he left that he understood why he was weak, to let her know he wouldn't go near her again, to let her know that she could stay to heal for as long as it took her. With that, he closed the door behind him to leave behind the home where people knew how weak he was. To leave behind the girl that had once made him want to speak.

Once outside in the dark street, Walter just walked. His mind was still clouded with the feeling of panic and numbness, and his dull eyes watched the floor as his feet kicked stones across his path. The calming noises that were the norm were he lived had changed, with scuffling and rowdy voices filtering through his hearing. His dull eyes finally looked up around him to find that he'd wandered into the rough part of District 11, but the panic didn't set in like it should've done. Instead, with the state Walter's mind was in just kept him walking further into the area and turning down one of the darker alleys, well aware of someone following him.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine tried to call after Walter as he walked away from her, but he didn't seem to hear her as he stormed out of the house. With a huff, she fell back onto the mattress and glared at the wall until she was sure that if the wall had emotions, it would be cowering in front of her. She seriously needed to teach Walter how to have an actual conversation, or else he was going to get hurt wandering around the district alone. She knew the streets and knew how tough things could be, and Walter was going to be eaten alive one of these days if she didn't teach him how to defend himself. He also clearly needed to gain control over his mind, that was going to be his downfall before the streets took him. 

She laid down in the bed for a long while after the sun had set before she'd realized that he wasn't back yet. With a growl, she kicked the blankets off of her and reached for the bandages that the doctor had given her. She wrapped her wrist and ankle in the way that she had been shown, but she couldn't do it as well as Walter had. Not that she wore her bandages often, being bedridden most of the time, but Walter had been meticulous enough to do it right. She stood and walked a few steps, judging that it would work. 

Jazz' steps were slow and uneven with her ankle but it would have to do. When she found Walter, he was going to get an earful, but finding him was going to be difficult. She made her way out of the door and stumbled into the hot balmy air that always seemed to encompass the entire district. She set off on her own, walking he familiar alleys and paths, grumbling about how all she wanted to do today was get laid, but that didn't seem to be an option at the moment.

[Lotus]

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Walter's panic still hadn't set in, it was like a switch had been flicked and all his emotions were set to numb. None of them were registering apart from the ever present reminder of how weak and pathetic he truly was. It was a dangerous way to be feeling in a dangerous environment. The footsteps behind him were quickening their pace, so half way down the dark alley Walter stopped and turned to cast his empty eyes and dull face upon his pursuer. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he should be running, but that would show just how weak he truly was and the way he was feeling was making him want to prove to someone that he wasn't as pathetic as everyone really thought him to be.

His pursuer faltered slightly, not expecting Walter to face him or acknowledge that he'd been being followed. This new part of Walter made a slight smirk appear, yet his face and eyes were still void of true emotion. He'd stopped his pursuer from jumping him from behind. He wasn't going to go down that easily this time. He was going to prove to himself that he could handle a situation without cowering to the floor in a panic attack. His pursuer moved forwards, sneering as he did so, fists at the ready, but Walter stood his ground gazing through the man before him.

"Give me everything you've got on ya, otherwise things ain't gunna turn out good for ya."

The panic side of his mind became a little more prominent until the numbness overshadowed it again, letting Walter ground out a "No."

The fist to the side of his face was sudden, and Walter's head snapped to the side, blood dripping from his lip and jaw swelling. The pain brought a little bit of sense to his mind, the numbness loosing some of its hold over him as the second fist came flying towards his face; this time causing blood to trickle from his nose. Walter stood his ground though, missing the next punch and pushing the man away from him. "I. Will. N-Not." The stutter coming back as the numb hold lost even more of it's grip on him. However, the strange feeling Walter had inside of him caused him to walk towards the man he'd made stumble backwards, and he pushed him again. Harder this time until the man was pushed into the wall, his head hitting the wall, but not with an impact that would daze him.

Walter turned to walk away, finished with dealing with someone that wanted to prove how much of a weakling he truly was. He didn't get very far before he was grabbed by his shirt and forced into the wall with enough force that his face and knuckles scraped along the brick. A knee in the stomach caused the wind to be ripped out of him and he was forced to the floor and his pockets rummaged through. "N-No." He tried to still force out before he was met with a chuckle and one final fist to the opposite side of his face.

"Thanks man. Appreciate the money."

When Walter looked up to see the man walking away, the numbness truly started fading away to be replaced by the panic and the absolute disgust at how pathetic he was. He hands shook as he forced himself to stand up, coughing with blood dribbling down his chin. Once again he'd failed. Once again he was weak. Once again he was useless. And all he could think about was how much Jasmine hated him for everything he was as he stumbled out of the alleyway in an attempt to make it home.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine had been running along the roof tops for the first time in what felt like ages, and despite her worry, she felt free. However; the longer it took to find Walter, the more her anxiety grew. Her ankle was really starting to give her trouble as well, the ache running into her knee with each step. She looked over one of the busier streets of the district that wasn't too far from the market. It was one of the more dangerous parts of Eleven, Damien's territory if she recalled correctly. She scanned the streets below her, looking for any sign of Walter but couldn't seem to find him. Then she spotted Damien slink out from behind an alley about thirty feet down the road. She watched as he slipped into the crowd. 

She ran alongside the street until she found a way across, slipping along a wooden beam that would have left splinters into her bare feet if she weren't careful until she reached the other side. Crouching down low, she watched as Walter picked himself up off the ground and stumble into the road, heading back towards his home. She heaved a sigh of relief, knowing that he was okay. No one mugged someone who'd already been mugged, and with the way Walter was looking she figured he'd make it home in one piece. 

Jazz slipped away from the edge of the rooftop and looked back towards where she last saw Damien, scanning the crowds until she spotted his familiar gate. She followed him along the rooftops, far back enough to not be noticed as he mingled into the bustling crowd. When she saw him duck into an alley, she dropped down behind him, blocking his escape route. Her ankle ached sharply in protest of the sudden jarring landing, but still she followed behind him with a slight limp. 

Slipping her hands in her pockets, yes her loose white dress had pockets, and tailed him quietly until they rounded a corner. "So you look well."

Damien stalled for a moment before turning to look down at her. His face opened to revealed a missing tooth in the corner of his smile. His dark eyes crinkled with the expression as he scratched through his dense coils of hair at the back of his head. "Man, girl I thought you must-ave died or somethin' with the way you disappeared. What you been up to sweetheart? You look good."

Jasmine shrugged, still keeping her hands in her pockets. "Oh you know, I've been busy."

He arched an eyebrow at her. "Word is you took quite the fall out of a tree little bird."

She shrugged again, not wanting to give too much away about the condition she was in. If she were to fight him it probably wouldn't end well. "I'm alright. Been hangin' round, but I've been out of the loop for a while. I take it my territory has been taken over since I've been occupied with other things." 

"Other things huh? You seein' a new boo, because if that's the case then boss man isn't going to take to kindly to seeing his little Jazzy with another man."

Jazz shrugged a third time. "Maybe. You actually slim jimmed him a second ago." It had been a while since she'd spoken the slang used on the streets. If Walter could hear her, she'd probably have to explain that slim jim meant a mugging. 

She watched Damien's eyes widen suddenly. "You mean the piece of stale bread that can't say anything other than 'no'? You hittin' that? Jazzy he's too soft for you. How bout you come back with me and let me remind you what its like to be with a hardened criminal."

She gave him a tight lipped smile. "Let's leave the past in the past. I'm done with criminals, hardened or otherwise."

He looked down at her for a moment in shock before falling into a fit of laughter. "There is no way you've settled for stale bread when you had a the bandit prince in your bed at one time."

Jasmine seemed to have a shoulder twitch since she shrugged once more. "Lets leave Ricky out of this. Things are over as far as he and I are concerned. You mind giving back what's mine or are you breaking code?"

He seemed to deliberate the idea, scratching at the little bit of stubble on his chin. "Well seeing as you're not part of the ring no more...."

She kicked him in the shin. He laughed and tossed a small leather bag full of coins at her. She snatched it out of the air and returned her hands to her pocket. "Thanks... and uh, if you see Ricky don't say anything okay? I don't need him snooping around where he's not wanted." 

"Alright, see you round Jazzy"

Jasmine slipped out of the alley way and began the long trek back to Walter's, her ankle protesting the whole way as she wondered what he would think when he got home before she did. A small smile played across her lips as she walked. It was strange, but somehow she considered his room with all his books as her home.

[Lotus]

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Walter couldn't see straight. He didn't know where his feet were taking him, but he assumed home as he didn't have any friends he could visit. His hands were shaking as he tried to hold one of the with the sleeve of his shirt up to his nose to stem the blood flow, whilst his other hand gripped the middle of his shirt as he tried not to hunch too far over as he walked. The blood from his lip had slowly dried up, and despite the turmoil his mind was in, he could still feel the throbbing of his chin and cheek.

There was a strange sense of déjà vu as images flashed through his mind, as if they were memories of his own, but once again ones he couldn't remember. There were people he recognised, his parents amongst them, and people he didn't recognise but could vaguely place to his schooling years. They all seemed to have angry, exasperated looking faces but some of the images were blurred with black outlines, as if Walter wasn't really there when they were somewhat shouting at him. Being preoccupied with the images in his head, Walter stumbled, looking around to realise he was outside his home, but as he attempted to take a step towards the front door, he realised he didn't really want to go back.

He didn't want to go back to someone that hated how he was. He didn't want to see the person that knew and told him how weak and useless he was. He didn't want to try and face his parents with how he looked right now, and especially since he didn't understand why his thoughts had shown them to be so angry with him at some point in his life. So, instead, Walter turned and carried on walking. Walking away from his home, the people that hated him, and in the opposite direction of his previous beating which showed just how weak he truly was.

Walter would go home. Just not yet.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine was wincing with every step by the time she got home, but at least Walter would be there to help her out if he wasn't still mad at her. His parent's tended to coddle him, so it wasn't much of a surprise when they avoided her as she walked through the door and headed straight to Walter's room. However, when she found the room to be empty she marched back into the living room and asked if they knew where he was. Their despondent 'no's made a pit fall into her stomach. He should have made it home by that point, but there was a chance that he had ran into trouble. She wasn't on any shape to go looking for him again, but she could't just sit around and wait to come home. When she found him, she was going to have to have a serious talk about him just walking off in the middle of a conversation. It doesn't solve anything.

She hobbled back to the kitchen where her painkillers were kept, and popped three of them in her mouth. She was only supposed to take two at a time, but she figured she'd need the extra boost. She then slammed down an entire glass of water to quench her thirst. After wiping her mouth dry, she marched back out the front door and into the streets. She just hoped that she wold find him before someone else did. Again. 

Jazz pressed a hand against her stomach as she walked, trying to silence the gurgling sound coming from her abdomen. She shouldn't have jumped across buildings so soon after eating. She still wasn't used to the constant food supply and it tended to upset her stomach from time to time. She shook off her discomfort as she wandered through the streets alone, hoping that she wouldn't see any more familiar faces other than Walter's. She was in no shape for a fight, and she didn't intend to find herself in the midst of one at that particular moment on that particular day. He was her first priority.

[Lotus]

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Walter was somewhat stumbling along by the point he reached where his dragging feet had taken him. His nose had since stopped the flow of blood from it, and he was now left with a dried blood trail instead. Looking up from the dirt below his feet, Walter looked around to notice he'd made it a fair distance from his home and not too far in the distance he could just about make out the fields and supply sheds he worked in. He couldn't even think about going back to work tomorrow with what he'd now been about himself by someone he trusted. How could he be in a higher ranking position than his parents and other field workers when he was such a weakling? When he was so useless?

Letting out a deep sigh, Walter's feet took him to the left, slightly away from the fields he'd have to face tomorrow and towards and slightly more wild, unmanned patch of field covered in towering trees and wildflowers. His dull eyes didn't spark like they normally would when he saw this place as the perfect spot to get his head stuck in a book. Instead he just moved over to one of the trees, sunk down by its trunk, brought his knees up to his chest and just stared at the flowers and grass in the breeze.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine had given up on trying to find Walter in the streets so she took to the fields. Being small gave her the opportunity to leap through the trees, from branch to branch as she became more and more frantic. She didn't know why, but she just had to find him. Her stomach had knotted and her breathing came out in panicked bursts. Her dress had become torn by a sharp branch, leaving a large part of her legs exposed and a scrape following parallel to her collarbone. She had twigs in her hair and her feet were bleeding from not wearing shoes. 

She'd become a mess in a short amount of time, her jumps in between branches had become reckless. Her foot slipped suddenly, but luckily she had been on a low branch so that when she crashed to the ground her breath had bee completely knocked out of her. In between gasps came an abundance of swearing as she rolled onto her stomach and rubbed the back of her head tenderly. "Ow fuck dammit." 

Her injuries were really starting to bother her.

[Lotus]

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Walter was lost to his thoughts. There were faces telling him a multitude of nasty things, but he couldn't quite pick out the faces that matched with the right words. All he knew were his parents were appearing along with these words. He didn't understand how to feel. Confused. Upset. Panicked. Numb. It was all happening at once it seemed. All at once until his dull eyes flicked over to where a thump was heard to his right with the grass and the birds being disturbed.

Getting to his feet to investigate seemed logical in his mind, so he stood and walked stiffly over to where he'd heard the noise to find someone resembling the girl that hated him lying on the floor in a heap. He didn't understand why the girl was there. He left her in his home after she'd told him quite clearly how stupid and pathetic she thought he was. His brows furrowed underneath the rim of his glasses, woodenly standing and looking down at the girl that was trying to catch her breath. Slowly, he reached down and let his shaking hand reach out to touch her, not expecting his fingertip to touch skin seeing as he could swear he was imagining things at that present moment.

His hand quickly recoiled back, staring at the girl, not really sure what to do. There was a sense of déjà vu as he looked at her on the floor, remembering the time he first came to her aid before she really realised how useless he was. Sighing, he sat back on his haunches and just stared with those dull eyes.

[Draco Malfoy]

Jasmine Colt

Jasmine looked up to find a familiar face looking down at her. Relief flooded through her, but was swiftly replaced with anger. "Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea how long I've been looking for you?" 

She felt his hand brush the back of hers before he backed away from her. She shifted into a semi upright position, propping herself up on her elbow. It was then she noticed that Walter's eyes held a haunted look in them, causing the tight pit of anxiety to dissolve into guilt as she reached out and took his hand. Her anger was gone as quickly as it had showed up after seeing the state she was in. He seemed so far away despite his proximity, making her think that he was angry with her for her outburst. "Walter? Hey, are you okay?"

[Lotus]

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All Walter could think was that he was losing his mind. It was bad enough he was imagining and reliving the moment he helped the girl that hated him after she'd fallen from a tree, but for him to now imagine her talking to him was even worse. He moved his head woodenly, looking down at the hand that was held around his own, her bronzed skin a stark comparison to his pale complexion. He didn't understand how he could feel her skin on his, and if she was really here he didn't understand why she would be touching him. After all, it made sense to Walter that she would want nothing to do with him after what she'd found out about him.

Instead of holding on to her hand like he used to, despite the tingles he still felt from touching her, he pulled his hand from hers and placed it back in his lap. There were no words Walter could use. He wanted to apologise for how useless he was. He wanted to apologise for not being normal. He wanted to apologise for being weak and unable to protect himself, let alone anyone else. He wanted to apologise for letting something so small, in her eyes, to alter him into the person he was to this day. At the same time, he didn't want to have to apologise for who he was, he was ashamed enough as it is.

Lifting a hand up towards his nose, he wiped at the dried blood that was tickling his skin, hoping it wouldn't start bleeding again. He couldn't feel his pain anymore. He was too preoccupied with the images in his head, but they probably didn't matter either. In the great scheme of things, his problems were nothing compared to other people's in District 11. So, as he moved his dull gaze back to the girl that hated him, he realised that if she felt real and was talking she must really be next to him. Not that he could fathom why she was all the way out here in the trees, but he couldn't be that crazy to imagine her if his problems weren't significant.

Without saying anything, he reached forward and placed his hands underneath the girl, feeling the tingles, as he lifted her up to carry her back to his home. All he had to do was pretend like his problems were nothing to him, that he was okay, and he could move on. The girl that hated him could hate him a little less.