hh_mirror

((Backdated to after this.))

Steff made a beeline back to Hufflepuff after she'd stormed out of Lezard's chamber of secrets. She pounded on Amy's door until the nymph answered, wrapped in a towel, which she immediately threw down at sight of Steff.

"Oh, honey!" she cried, reaching to pull Steff inside and envelop her in a hug. "What's the matter?"

Steff clung to Amaranth and let it all come spilling out, about her meeting Lezard, the WART broadcast, and the horrible way the evening had ended. Amaranth held her, stroked her hair and murmured soothingly until she was done.

"Do you need...?" the nymph began.

"Please." It came out desperately. "I need to hurt something."

Amaranth made sure the door was closed and gave her friend an encouraging smile. "Go ahead, honey. I'm here for you anytime."

When Steff was done, Amaranth lay unconscious and battered. The self-loathing Steff felt hadn't entirely gone away, but she did feel better, and she was grateful that Amaranth knew her so well.

Gently, Steff laid her friend on her bed, and covered her with a sheet, bending down to kiss her forehead. Then she turned and left, still feeling that she hadn't entirely exorcized her rage and humiliation.

She sat in the Hufflepuff common room for a few minutes, doodling idly on a blank piece of parchment. When she was done, the picture was of Steff herself, wielding a knife that was dripping gore and blood, looking down at a body which had clearly just been cut open. The face on the body was Steff's own as well.

With a sigh, knowing she was still getting nowhere, Steff flipped the paper over and composed a note:

Yukimura:

You up for a rematch again? I know you think you can take me, but I'm still not sure.

Steff

Capping the letter off with a picture of a smiley face with entirely too many teeth, Steff sent the grizzly note with a house elf, who seemed highly glad to have escaped her.

*****

Being able to heal oneself was a wonderful thing, and after some time, Amaranth roused, feeling exactly as good as she had before Steff had come in needing to be sadistic. Amaranth sat up and rubbed her eyes, lingering a moment longer than she should under the covers. Then she got up and dug around in the drawer of her unused (much) dresser for parchment and quill.

Lezard honey,

Can you come to my room for a few minutes? We need to talk.

Thanks!

xoxoxo

Amy

She dispatched another house elf to send this missive, then went back to bed, pulling the covers up over herself completely once more and closing her eyes, having forgotten that Lezard could teleport to her, figuring instead that his knock would alert her and she could pretend she hadn't... been covering herself.