| Details for The Blame Game |
| Summary: | Colton confronts Melody about Myrus giving his little sister booze. |
| Date: | November 19th, 1939 |
| Location: | Hogwarts - East Parapet |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
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It is a fall night. The weather is cool and stormy.
East Parapet
The parapet is made from grey-colored granite with black stains and specks, though it remains in good repair despite the elements and infrequent catastrophes. The space is a long rectangular shape and open to gusts of wind, but only reachable through a slight ascension of worn stone steps from the castle's central ramparts. Along the wall are two large stone benches, both of which have been cleverly carved and set within the the tower's masonry.
Through the ramparts are the expansive castle grounds, which roll away from the castle in the form of gentle hills. To the north is the Forbidden Forest, an uneven wall of trees that extends away from the castle for hundreds of leagues. To the south is the castle aqueduct, a long line of beautifully crafted stone structures built into the very cliffs beneath them. The structure curves slightly to the south, towards the loch.
Colton is once more tucked away in the precarious place that's between some giant slabs of grey granite. With a sketch book on his lap and his eyes squinting in deep thought he stares at what ever is sketched on the page it's opened too through a veil of smoke. He almost seems a gargoyle himself sitting there very still. He's not even really smoking. The cigarette just eats away at itself in his lips as he stares deep in thought.
Melody got to feeling a bit cooped up, studying in the Hufflepuff common room, so has been taking some time to drift aimlessly about the castle. She's stopped more than once to talk to other students, sometimes walking a bit with them to their next class, but she's alone as she pads into the east parapet on gently scuffling maryjanes. It's colder up here, but she doesn't mind, and with her robes over her uniform it's almost as warm as her winter cloak. She's only about two steps in before her eyes find Colton, and she stops at once, even as her foot goes out for the next step. There's a pause as she studies him, lost in thought as he is, and then she eases back a step.
Colton drops ash on himself as he talks with the cigarette still in his mouth. "No need to run off pidge. Enough air up here for the both. Aye?" He glances over to her. "'Sides, I could use a look-out. Didn't even realize you were here til you were." He tilts his head to the stone bench beside and below him. "Yeh mad at me or somethin'? Tryin' to sneak off."
The retreat stops as quickly as her advance had, and Melody holds her place, for a moment uncertain. Then she straightens her back and squares her shoulders. "I didn't want to disturb you." Which is fair enough, more evasive than a fib. After a moment of stillness, she slides forward a step, as if to prove that she's not sneaking off. "You look busy."
Colton shakes his head, "Not busy, more like stumped. So I'm just staring and staring some more. Barely seeing what I'm looking at. You know?" He scratches his head, ruffling up the curls that are under some pall mall control. The scratching however cracks some of its control and his head is a crispy mess when he's done with it. "Could use a bit of distraction. How's flutin'?"
Staring and staring some more could also be fairly accurate for Melody's regard of the older Traveler, her eyes unwavering on him, although her head tilts to one side. When he brings up the flute her hand moves, unthinkingly settling to rest on the instrument where it nestles inside her robes. "It's fine." She finally shifts her eyes and moves again, angling on a path the crosses some distance in front of Colton, a northward trajectory that affords her a view out over the Forbidden Forest as she stops. She turns and leans back on the stone, not quite looking at Colton again as she asks, "What are you stumped by?"
Colton watches her through the haze of the smoke from his cigarette. "Good. Come across any new songs?" When she asks about his work he hmms and flops about the sketch book before he closes it up and slides it away. "Workin' on the Trapped Door Flint created for the box he had Abe hide. It's going to be my NEWT project for Ancient Runes. But puzzling out what a master of Anicent Runes did with his own designs it looks like in parts. It's a blighter."
Colton spends so much time getting into mischief that it's easy to forget he's a student with work to do and grades to make so he can graduate. Melody has no clue how smart he might be, all she ever seems to see is him acting out or sneaking a smoke. But, she does know that Sierra seems rather smart, and it's a fair assumption that she didn't get all the brains. Her foot scuffs lightly at the stone floor, dark eyes landing on Colton again for a moment before flicking away. She shakes her head to the question, then pushes her hair behind her ear with one hand. "Not since the ones you taught me. But I've been practicing them." Even Sierra seemed to approve of her ability with them.
Colton flicks the little remains of his cigarette off of the ledge and rubs at his weary eyes. "That so? Good, good." When his sketchbook is tucked away into his book bag he rubs at his eyes again. "So how's things with Myrus? Has he gotten any other kids drunk since he gave my sister alcohol? Real winner, that one." For all of his trouble-making and rule breaking, Colton wouldn't ever endanger or badly influence a minor. He also seems very tired and rather grumpy, it gets putting Sierra in a bad position to get Colton to get in a foul mood. He's been debating going to the faculty, but he'll settle for telling Melody for now.
A light frown comes to Melody's lips at this turn of conversation, her big eyes narrowing just a little as her gaze sharpens on Colton. There's no confrontation in her tone as she asks, "When did he do that?" It's the first she's heard of it, despite the time she's been spending with Myrus and Sierra being her housemate.
Colton thumbs behind him which both points towards the Village and the past. "Over the weekend. He gave her some and then left the drink for her to have at when he left." Yes, he's quite displeased. It's causing no end of distraction for him too. Which is one reason he's just staring at his project.
The frown deepens on Melody's face as she recalls the events, and there's a protest, "I was there with them. Yes, he did let her have a sip to taste his drink. Then I ordered him another, but he needed to go outside for some air. When he didn't come back I went to find him. So it wasn't his fault. If you're going to tell on someone, then I guess you'd better tell on me." This may possibly be the most that Melody has ever said to Colton in one go. And she's not done yet. "But it wasn't left there with the intent that Sierra drink it, so I suppose she ought to take some responsibility for that as well." Amazingly, Myrus seems to be the one not at fault for this.
Colton rolls his eyes. "You don't think she got a chiding? And if you did have any part in it, well you two deserve each other then. She's 14 years old, he shouldn't…because /he/ is the one that gave her it to taste. It's illegal and not for him to do. So very noble of you to try to take the blame for your boyfriend's stupidity. But he's still to blame. You trying to get her into trouble? Course if you give an impretionably 14 year old something to taste that you shouldn't and then just leave it on the bloody table all unattended she's going to take advantage. He was out of line and he's lucky I haven't punched him in the gob. Or reported him, and you at this point. You idiots trying to get hers and your Hogsmeade permissions yoinked?"
Melody approaches Colton, stepping right up to him boldly, back ramrod stiff. "You go ahead and tell on me, Colton Higgins, mister breaks all the rules. She wanted to taste, which I'm sure never happened to any 14 year old ever before in the history of the world. I'm not being noble, and he's not my boyfriend. And your sister knows right from wrong as well as any single one of us, so don't you try and say she couldn't help herself. So go on, if you're going to punch someone in the gob, punch me. Tell on me and have my permissions taken away." Her voice is low and level, never raising volume. "I like your sister very much and wouldn't do anything to harm her, but if you think that I would, that's just fine. I'll stay completely away from your sister and your little brother for good measure. And you as well." She turns away from him in a swirl of robes, stepping away toward the door she came in through.
Colton grumbles. "You're not the one that gave her the drink you silly git. Keep him away from her if you won't do the smart thing and do it for yourself. I break the rules sometimes sure, but nothing that would do anyone any harm but myself. Listen to me when I'm saying something. Cause you're obviously not. He's bad news, what he did last Quidditch Game followed up by what he did to my sister should be warning flags enough. But you're so stupid you're taking all the blame from him. Yeah, you two are perfect for each other. Forget the tunes I taught you. You don't deserve to know them."
There's a swing back, her voice still not raising, and Melody regards Colton coldly from the other side of the parapet. "He gave her a sip. If you want to blame someone other than Sierra for drinking what was left on the table, then I left it for her to drink. Full stop." The volume doesn't alter, but there is a light note of contempt in her tone with the next words. "Call me names all you want, big man. I'll never play those songs again, I don't want to know anything that you might be able to teach me." There's a huff of breath and she turns again, golden hair streaming out behind her as she walks off.
"I am calling it like I see it, you're an idiot for thinking he's worth your time, and you're an idiot for taking all the blame. I blame her just as much as I do him, and now you. Don't you worry. But he is the one that started all this by giving her the drink in the first place. If you are dead set on taking the blame for him like an idiot. Cause if yee do then yee are.. then aye, stay the bloody hell away from my family. We have enough trouble without ye and yer Mr. Do-No-Wrong literally pouring it down our throats!" Colton raises his voice the further away she gets and with a growl he punches the granite beside him. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. "Ow." He shakes his hand and rolls the lousiest cigarette ever.