Bloodied Wings- The Streets of Hogsmeade- Closed

Darkness swirled around her like water, it was thick and it was stifling making Willow nervous automatically, she had just come from the funeral directors after all she had to sort out her fathers funeral some time and it was better to get it over and done with.

With a low sigh she walked slowly down the streets of Hogsmeade and her head whipped to one side as she saw a man down one of the side alleys. Willow being Willow she tilted her head and walked up to him as he looked like he was in pain.

"Um hello? Are you alright sir?"

Heart catching in her throat she staggered backwards and looked upon his face in horror...this was Gervais. But it couldn't be. He didn't look a thing like him he looked almost feral with a mad glaze to his wide eyes, a twitching smile on his lips which grew upon seeing her.

"Hello 'Little Tree'."

Using her fathers nickname for her sent a spasm down Willows heart.

"Hello Gervais...are you ok? You look awful what's happened to you?"

Wondering what she should do Willow took a tentative step towards Gervais and knelt down in front of him, her eyes probing his own dark grey ones which had dulled over the years. Much to her sadness the man she had once loved had died, and this shook her more than anything else.

Gervais grinned this was all too perfect, this was his chance his opportunity to get Willow back for tuning him like this, for making him turn into this crazed killer. As he gazed into her face he softened his expression...this was his angel, his saviour...and she was his and his alone.

"Tell me Willow, how was he? You little whore. I told you that you belong to me! Yet you go off and f**k some guy in a wood? Very classy you tramp."

"Gervais stop it I was only asking you how you were if your going to be horrible I'll just leave."

Willow bit her lip. She had never been this assertive with Gervais before and in a way it felt like the best thing in the world but on the other hand it felt like a contradiction of nature. Getting up from her kneeling position she stared softly down at Gervais.

"Goodbye Gervais..."

He growled a little and jumped up from his position on the floor grabbing her arm hard and yanking it backwards with all his strength. A satisfying crack followed by a delightful shreik ran through the air, shuddering happily Gervais let go of Willows limp broken arm and pushed her against the wall.

"I don't think so. What you going to do b***h? No wand arm? Unable to hit anyone or anything because you're too 'kind' and 'nice' don't fool me no no no you don't fool me."

Panic welled up inside Willows body, trying not to whimper as her broken arm was pushed up against the walk painfully. Again she tried to escape his grasp the firm hold that she had become only too familiar with over the last couple if years. Choking back tears she gulped softly:

"Please Gervais no, let me go please, please!"

Laughing manically Gervais trailed a finger down in-between Willows legs a devilish look on his face. Oh how he had missed this...how he had missed the feel of his angel underneath him...yes yes his angel his and his alone yes yes.

As Willow felt him touch her she sobbed loudly which earnt a smack from Gervais so her head whacked into the wall creating an egg on the back of her scalp. She tried to wiggle free but her broken arm twinged pain through get body and Willow had to stay still and take whatever he was going to do to her.

"I won't let you go. My angel. Mine mine mine my own! Stupid b*****d can't have you...no sir youre mine!"

Growling again Gervais grabbed Willows arms ignoring her yelps of pain and throwing her roughly to the ground so she lay on the front of her. Cackling he sat down on her back and withdrew a knife from his pocket trailing the point down her back making a tiny slither of a cut through her clothes. Hands gripping the fabric Gervais tore it off and rubbed the scar tissue on Willows back.

As soon as she was pushed onto the floor Willow had to fight against the oncoming blackness because of the pain surging through her veins at that moment in time. Whimpering softly as Gervais tore her shirt off Willows eyes widened...he couldn't be. No. He wouldn't.

"I've been talking oh yes, talking, to some people and they said if you don't want a bird to leave you...you should clip it's wings. Let's clip your wings Willow. Will you stay with me then?"

Bending down to whisper into her ear Gervais shoved down on her back and drove the knife into the delicate scar tissue. Willow screamed out loud and sobbed onto the cobbles, she kicked her feet on the floor still screaming as he withdrew the knife and replunged it into the other scar tissue and dragging it down the flesh. Gasping and chest heaving Willow lay still on the ground sobbing softly.

"Please...don't..."

Was all she could manage before her White wings that had begun to poke out of the holes in her back were sized by a snickering Gervais. He yanked them out viciously ignoring the relentless cries of Willow and took the knife to the base of one of the wings. Tapping the bone with his knife he set to work he sawed and tugged and hacked until the wing flopped to the ground.

Screaming so loud her voice was horse Willow felt blackness crowding her eyes she felt dizzy, but the pain was falling away, she lay there silent as she fought the urge to sleep. Failing badly as Gervais started on the other wing she only flinched with the pain and Willow closed her eyes, gently muttering before she fell asleep:

"I forgive you..."

Gervais giggled happily when the other wing fell away. Looking at his work and covered in Willows crimson blood he got up from her and wiped himself clean before taking one kiss from her lips and sauntering off down the alley before apparating away leaving Willow there for dead.

Arsen had stolen his grandfather's invisibility cloak and decided to take an evening stroll out in hogsmead to lose all the worried faces. He wasn't like normal kids he could look after himself. He'd been doing it since the age of five why should now be any different.

He kicked a stone along the floor when the silent night was filled with screams of pain. He stopped in his tracks scanning the surrounding areas trying to sense where the noise was coming from. He ran as fast as he could someone might need help and he couldn't stand by and watch someone else get victimised.

He saw a man apparate away and turned to look in the direction he had come to see a body lying in the street. "Oh god please be alive." He muttered to himself and he ran over.

"Hello can you hear?" He asked feeling for a pulse and sighing with relief when he found a clear one. He glanced down at her face trying to see if she was awake and immediately recognised her. "Willow? Willow can you hear me? It's Arsen."

Silence rang through Willows head, she couldn't hear anything and she could only feel the wetness from her blood on her back but that didn't matter to her she wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere she could be reached.

All she could see was black but then something sparked her attention, a voice, no, two they seemed to be arguing but then she felt something tugging at her inner core and Willow panicked...what was happening to her?

Arsen gritted his teeth who the hell could do something like this to someone so nice, so caring. He took a deep breath and thought for a second not sure whether or not he should attempt it but she needed him and this was all he could do to help. If it worked that was.

He rubbed his hands together heating them up and gently placed them over Willows back wounds. He closed his eyes willing his warmth into her making sure to tell it to heal. If it healed him it can heal others too. Her skin began to move together under his hands a little smile creeping on his face as he concentrated. Once that was healed he moved to her arm.

"No, no i can't do that it might not heal right then we'd have to re-brake it." He muttered to himself looking around for something to use but found nothing. He pulled off his jacket then his shirt ripping it down one side to make a sling for her arm.

He knelt down gently turning her onto her newly healed back so he could sort out her shoulder properly. He gently placed his arm in the shirt tying the ends behind her neck then turned to place one hand over the shoulder sending little amounts of heat to keep back the pain a little of it entering his own body but he was used to far worse from using his gift.

"HELP!!" He cried he'd stabilized her the best he could now he needed someone that knew what they were doing.

Jamie's apparation sound resounded throughout the street, shaking windows in their panes and cracking that pavement around his feet.

He'd felt it. He'd felt Willow's pain.

"WILLOW!" he roared, his voice magically enhanced. He'd felt her pain but he didn't know where she was or how he could help her. Running down the central street he stopped cold when he saw Arsen hunched over someone. Slowly he worked his way back up to a sprint,

"No... No, no, no, no, no..." he pleaded as he approached. Seeing Willow's face framed in her own blood shook him to the core, "NO!"

Falling to his knees beside her he reached down to check for her pulse but just feeling the slick blood on her skin threatened to make him hysterical,

"Oh... Oh god... God no!" he jabbered as he stroked Willow's cheek, "Please god no! Don't take her from me! Please!"

Now sobbing loudly he took hold of her broken arm gently,

"I'm going to fix you Willow..." he tried to tell her as he reset her bone with a quick snap before holding his glowing wand over the bone, using a temporary bone regeneration charm. With the worst of it over Jamie pulled Willow up slightly to wrap his arms protectively around her as he sobbed into her shoulder. Looking up at the sky, Jamie ignored the pain of his right arm burning his own skin off to prey,

"Please god... Please god not her. Anyone but her! Don't take her away from me!"

Thuds sounded in her ears, what was that? Was it someone running? Was it someone hitting something...? Someone hitting her? In actuality it was her pulse beating louder in her ear, Willow flinched her eyelids and with a lot if effort drew out of her sleep and opened her eyes.

Jamie.
Arsen.

Willow made to move her hand for Jamies but then she saw he was in pain and she squeaked all she was able to do to get his attention before she felt herself weave out of conciousness once more a wave of black covering her eyes.

Although present her pulse was weak from her body having to carry less blood around to do the same job as more...Willow tried to fight the sleep but she couldn't it was too strong.

He looked down into Willows face willing her to wake. "Willow can you hear me? It's Arsen please wake up." He begged before his gaze turned to see a man apparate down the street.

He growled moving to cover Willow protectively before he realised who it was. "She's still alive i've healed most her wounds but her shoulder but she wont wake up." He explained moving out the way so Jamie could get to her.

He watched as Jamie broke down in front of him and he knew how much it would hurt him to be preying so he decided to try one more thing. He took a deep breath and placed Willows hand in his concentrating on sending her energy. Willing the energy right to her core to give her the strength to fight the blackness he was familiar with.

He gasped breaking their hand contact as he got a small shock before he fell back into a sitting position to gain back his strength. There he waited to see if his effort to revive her worked or not.

Jamie clutched desprately at Willow's body, crying over her even as his skin began to blister and burn. Keeping his dangerously hot arm away from her he stroked her cheek softly,

"Come back Willow..." he sobbed, "Come back to me..."

He reached out and grabbed hold of Arsen's collar, bringing the boy closer forcefully,

"Tell me!" he demanded through his tears, "Tell me what happened! Please! I need to know!"

The sobs racked up and his grip on Arsen's collar slackened until his arm fell limply to the ground and he hung his head as he sobbed over Willow,

"I need... to know..." he shook his head as it began to rain lightly, "Please God... anything but this... anything but this..."

He opened his eyes as he was pulled over. "I dont know i found her like this i heard screaming so came to help. A man apparated away though just over there where you did. I'm not even supposed to be out." He explained pulling back to sit back on the floor his head spinning slightly.

"Hades will kill me if he knows." He muttered resting his elbows on his knees as he held his head in his hands breathing in and out.

Cold entered her limbs, the soft sound of her pulse in her ears faded to a beat like an insects wings yet Willow welcomed the crushing blackness she wondered if this was what it was like to die? If it was...it wasn't too bad it was peaceful.

Just as she felt herself being tugged away at the stomach Willows body began to heat up again, her pulse Started once more and it pounded relentlessly in her ears stronger and stronger with each passing second.

Then almost as if a hand was pushing her down back into her body Willow sat up and opened her eyes wide panting softly and looking around for Gervais she was worried about him...had he been captured? Had he done something stupid to himself?

"Well if that wasn't the oddest thing..."

It was then she focused on Jamie and she smiled placing a hand on his cheek:

"Why are you crying love?"

Jamie's mind raced.

Who would ever wish harm on Willow?

He reached the conclusion with a jolt.

Gervais.

Jamie was briefly aware that his arm stopped hurting. Apparently when his thoughts turned to the dark ways he could cause Gervais as much pain and misery as possible the boss decided that it wasn't worth killing him over yet. He growled and his magical power began to show as a slightly visible aura around him,

"Gervais..." he growled out lowly, "I will kill that man."

He jolted again when he felt Willow's hand on his cheek. The anger drainned from him in an instant and he clutched her tighter to him as he cried out in joy,

"Thank God! Thank God!" he cried up to the sky, laughing brightly, "Thank you God! You've delivered me that which I care most about! My life is yours!"

Leaning down he kissed Willow lightly,

"I was so worried... I thought I lost you..."

Softly Willow wound her fingers in Jamies hair and let him hug her closer to him, her head resting on his chest as she remained deep in thought. Craning her neck backwards she spotted another figure, it was Arsen! A smile lit up her face and Willow laughed, her voice horse.

"Arsen, hey."

With a deep breath Willow groaned and grabbed the cobblestones heaving herself up from the floor and gasping as the pain increased a little as she straightened her back.

"Well then, who wants tea? And muffins who wants tea and muffins?"

Grinning Willow limped off down the alley hoping that her happy demeanour would be enough to ensure them she was ok.

Jamie froze for a moment before he took sever strides towards Willow, ignoring the now heavy rain, and turned her around with a hand on her shoulder,

"Muffins and tea?" he asked with a scowl, "Someone beats you half to death and cuts out your wings and you want muffins and tea?!"

He shook his head and let go of her, pacing up and down a little,

"You know what I want right now?" he stopped pacing and scowled, not angry at Willow but still showing his anger none the less, "I want a name. I want to know who did this."

When Jamie placed a hand on her shoulder Willow flinched a little bit, not because she thought he was going to hurt her but because she thought that it was going to sting her back, which it did.

"Jamie...please...there's no need to act like this. I'm fine see...I'm sure my wings will grow back just like anything in the Wizarding World with spells and potions."

Watching Jamie pace up and down Willow leant against the wall and bit her lip, she sure as hell wasnt going to tell Jamie who did it although she was sure he already knew, Willow wouldn't knowingly send a man to his death.

"Muffins and tea are my coping mechanism. I like them..."

Jamie growled at her argument that the damage could be healed,

"That's not the point and you know it!" he shot back, "This should never have happened in the first place! And the person who did it needs to be punished for their actions!"

He took a couple of deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself. Glancing over at Willow he sighed,

"It's who I think it is isn't it?" he asked her in a quiet voice, a dangerously quiet voice, "Gervais."

Willow flinched at Jamies angry tone and she pushed herself harder onto the wall as if to get further away from him, when he shouted at her she felt tears prick the corners of her eyes and Willow wiped them away softly.

"With all due respect I was the one hurt and I want to leave it be."

Casting her mind back to the look in Gervais' eye she wanted to find out what was wrong with him and make sure hd was ok...he looked really sick.

"I'm not Telling you Jamie! I won't send someone to their deaths it's not right!"

Willow cried shaking her head so her blood splattered curls bounced limply.

Jamie swallowed hard, as if trying to swallow his anger. Now deathly still, he spoke,

"You don't want me to kill him." he glanced at her, "You won't let me kill him."

He sighed a little and began to pace in the rain again,

"Despite all he's done to you..." he stopped and looked at her, "He killed your father for being with me. He ripped your wings out, cut and beat you for being with someone other than him. These actions, regardless of motivation, require punishment."

Willow shook her head wildly no she would not let Jamie kill Gervais he couldn't do it because however much he would deny it killing him would be an amoral act. Willow couldn't let it happen.

"No I won't let you!"

She cried walking over to Jamie and placing her hands in his shoulders to stop him pacing. Willow tilted her head and let the rain splatter onto her face washing away some of the dried blood.

" Please Jamie...he has punishment enough...he's suck and alone out there he just needs some help..."

Muttering into the dark night Willow sighed:

"I make everyone sick..."

Jamie hugged Willow close to him for a few moments before he spoke again,

"You know that the devil is crying out for his blood." he told her, almost as an aside, "He's telling me to kill him right now."

He frowned,

"It's not an unappealing prospect either..." he muttered before sighing, "But you don't want me to. So I won't."

Jamie's arm began to burn again but he ignored it,

"He's pissed about it but for you I will not listen to him." his gaze hardened, "But if anything like this happens again they won't find enough of his body to identify him."

Willow smiled into Jamies neck as she hugged him, he was going to stop with the whole killing Gervais thing and that made her happier than anything else he could have done in that situation.

"Oh thank you! Thank you Jamie..."

She hugged him tighter and began to sob lightly on his shoulder, if only Jamie knew just how much this man meant to her and just his much him himself meant to her.

"Im sorry....I don't want you to be in pain...im sorry..."

Willow whispers.

He smiled knowingly and kissed the top of her head,

"Don't worry Willow... soon that will be a thing of the past." he kissed her lightly on the lips, "And we can be together."

Jamie pulled away slightly, shaking his head a little,

"Sometimes I think there's such a thing as too nice Willow." he shrugged a little, "But I respect your wishes, no need to thank me for doing that."

Tilting her head up to the sky Willow let the rain fall down her and she pulled her tshirt closer around her trying not to get too chill out here. Her clothes began to stick to her and her hair became flat to her head.

"And we can't be together now?"

A little confused about what Jamie meant by this Willow wanted to get to the bottom of it. She felt a wave of dizziness wash through her and she held on a little harder to Jamie.

"It has been said that I'm too nice...I tried to be angry and it failed...want to see?"

Jamie thought about it for a second before closing his eyes tightly,

"I can't be with you right now Willow..." he choked up, "I can't... I can't even... I can't even tell you that I... what I feel about you."

He frowned a little,

"I don't understand Willow... you've never been angry."

Feeling a little taken aback by the declaration that they couldn't be together Willow bit her lip and nodded moving away from Jamie to stand by the wall again...

"That's ok Jamie take your time."

Smiling widely Willow took on an expression that was meant to br angry but just looked cute and she said in a slightly deeper voice:

"Un...I really don't like that Gervais I just wish....he'd get a stale muffin! See that was my attempt at being angry..."

Biting her lip again Willow tilted her head up the alleyway.

"Let's get out of here I have something i need to tell you."

He sighed a little and glanced down at his arm, which was now starting to singed his clothes,

"I can't tell you Willow." he closed his eyes, "Call me selfish but I don't want to die for telling you how I feel, because then we could never be together."

Despite himself, Jamie chuckled dryly,

"Mmmm... I think you may have to work on that." he teased, before nodding, "Sure. It is getting pretty wet out here."