{CHAPTER EIGHT}
"You should beg!"
Urges are things that all people fight. Every singled moment or everyday they all beg to be completed.
Sometimes the urges fight to the death, popping up every second until satisfied. Others if ignored dwindle away.
A lot of urges are reoccurring. They frequent your mind most of the time and even once their satisfied return after less than a day.
Now, some of these urges are utterly harmless. It could be as simple as putting on lip balm or having a drink of water. These urges are entirely safe and mundane.
But you have others. Most are lucky enough never to have them. Those urges cause harm to either oneself or other individuals.
And it was that type of urges that frequented Harlow's mind. Hers were potentially deadly to herself and murderous to others.
For someone who believed to hate the colour red so much as it reminded her of blood, it was rather ironic how captivated she was by it. The way it would run so carelessly from a wound, soaking your clothes and dying them the colour.
Harlow knew very well how lethal she could be. She had experienced it first hand. The blood she spilled, the lives she took. No one was more wary or the power she had with just her hands.
Maybe it was due to the fact that no one truly knew. Harlow wasn't dumb. She was clever enough to know Dumbledore had his reservations about her, and rightly so. But, she was very self conscious in knowing she would be straight out of the school if he understood the extent of her deadly-ness.
Luckily she had managed to keep it well under wraps. Only having one explosive argument and many snarky comments. She made sure there was no physical violence against another student, even though she thought many deserved it.
That was of course until the girls very protective nature bubbled to the surface. She had always had a protective side to her, she just wasn't aware it still warranted for the people she used to call her best friends.
They hadn't talked since she exploded in the common room around a month ago. That, she was thankful for. No annoying voices constantly asking question and trying to get in her business.
So it definitely came as a surprise for her and the others when she defended Lily Evans rather heatedly.
Harlow never claimed to despise the girl. She was very clear that she wanted nothing at all to do with her. That much was evident. So for Harlow to voluntarily get involved and put herself at risk wasn't expected at all.
It would be important to note that Harlow had once more barley slept. Her memory plagued mind continued to show her the monster she truly was.
She was on edge and it was undeniable. Anyone that spared a glance at her could tell she wasn't truly there.
Harlow had sat silently through all of their lessons of the day, like she usually did. But she wasn't writing notes or staring ahead at the board. She was staring constantly at her hands. Her natural weapons. She couldn't remove her eyes of them.
Her hands were almost their own person. They would move on instinct and assaulting someone before she really thought about it. Her lethal hands were one of her downfalls and certain a big insecurity of hers.
But when she was in her killer mindset, she loved watching as they moved. Almost like a dance. A dance that stole the life of another's. The power they held gave her a rush in that state.
Harlow left the last class of the day, which happened to be charms and made her way outside. Her eyes still glued to her hands. She bumped into a few people, offering no apologies. They wound grumble back but their words weren't even existing to her. They didn't even make contact to her ears.
Her plan to make it outside was cut off as her attention finally drew away from her life taking hands.
"Mudblood!"
That was all it took to rip her back into the present. A slur that was constantly used against her vulnerable first year self. It used to make her cry and hate being who she was. She found it stupid now, but still knew it would effect others.
The person just so happened to be Lily Evans.
The slur in particular didn't effect Lily. Rather the seventh year pure-blood Slytherin student that had her cornered, while a small crowd was starting to gather.
None of those trying to subtly watch even made an attempt to help. All too scared or enjoying it too much to make it end.
"Just leave me alone." Lily firmly demanded but her voice broke slightly betraying her tough act. She was trying her best to be brave but she was scared. The older student was a lot bigger than her and she knew there was no way she could beat him in a duel.
"Don't fucking talk you mudblood!" The boy snarled as he pulled his wand out and held it threateningly at her.
"Please?" She mumbled, her breath hitching as he moved his wand to touch her chest.
"Oh the mudblood is begging." He ridiculed amusedly a wide grin coating his face. The boy looked over his shoulder at the gathering students. "Look everyone at how pathetic she is." He jeered, drawing Lily's attention to the students not willing to help her. "You see how not one of them cares about you. You pathetic filthy mongrel!"
"I wouldn't say that is true." Harlow uttered as she calmly strolled over to the pair. Her eyes flickered back to the crowd and she couldn't help the scowl that took over her face. "These lot are the pathetic ones. Just standing and watching as someone gets threatened."
"Aha it's Harlow!" The boy exclaimed almost excitedly. His wand still did not removing itself from its place on Lily's chest. "I remember the time Bellatrix had you right in this spot, doing the exact same. I was there you know, she was teaching us how to properly deal with you disgusting mudbloods."
"That isn't very creative of you, is it? Copying her exact moves. Rather disappointing if you ask me." Harlow responded boredly faking a pout, still taking steps towards the pair.
"Look at that you've grown a pair of balls." He scoffed and moved his wand to point at her. It was almost laughable how unthreatening he was.
Harlow laughed falsely, "No, I became a woman. And woman are far superior to men." She drawled, smirking as she watched him grow annoyed. It was no secret in the pureblood society that women were treated like objects. They were purely there for the men, as sad as it is. Even the women knew it from a young age.
"I guess you'll just have to show me how superior you are then." He stepped in front of Harlow and locked his eyes onto hers. He placed his wand to now touch Harlow's neck making sure to dig it into the flesh.
"Try me." Harlow spat as she pushed the wand further into her neck to show him just how serious she was.
He lifted his wand to perform a hex. He needed to correctly say it and move his wand in the right way. Which gave Lily enough time to try and do what she originally wanted to do. She moved from her place against the wall and pressed her wand to his back. "Don't."
He quickly spun around and disarmed her. Lily face dropped as she took a couple paces back. The boy was quick to step forward and re-trap Lily back against the wall.
"Bitch." He barked but let out a loud manic laugh. One that was filled with evil intent, sending shiver down the crowds backs. "You really thought you were able to do shit. Useless Gryffindor."
"You're parents must have dropped you on your head as a child." Harlow expressed as she grabbed his arm and used her strength to spin him to face her and slammed him against the wall next to Lily.
Harlow forcefully grabbed his wand and snapped it in half before chucking it down the hallway. "What you gonna do now?" She ridiculed knowing there was no way he could beat her in a physical fight. She was aware he would most likely defeat her in a duel, but that option was now gone.
"Fucking scum." He screeched and started to throw what Harlow would call a childish tantrum.
Harlow wasted no time in shaking Lily's arm and pulling her off the wall. She still seemed to be in a slight shock at what went down but came back to the moment. "Thanks." She mumbled and allowed Harlow to gently guide her away from the scene.
Lily winced when he grabbed her upper arm with immense pressure. It was like he came out of nowhere.
Harlow reacted even quicker. She made a vow, no violence. But that went straight out the window when she saw pain etched on Lily's face, the girl didn't deserve it. She spun around herself and grabbed the boy by his robes. She used her hold to aggressively force his back to the wall, while doing so hitting his head on it. Her arm went straight for his neck. He was stuck in her hold, a hold that was literally taking his breath away.
"Don't you fucking dare!" Harlow shouted as she increased the pressure of her forearm against his neck. "It's people like you that ruin everything." She lectured, "The Slytherin image. People's days. And all because of what?"
"Harlow-" Lily's gasped and pulled on Harlow's shoulder sensing that the girl wasn't going to let go anytime soon.
Harlow forced out a chuckle. "Oh wait- you cant answer." She snickered darkly as she pressed harder. "It's starting to hurt isn't it. The pressure and the lack of air. I bet you're throats burning."
"P-please?" He tried to rasp out at desperate whine.
"Please? That's the best you've got. You didn't seem to care when Lily said please." She snapped back a evil grin spreading across her face as and idea came to mind.
Harlow wasn't sparing the crowd a thought. To her it was just the spur of them in the world. A world where she was seeing red. She didn't notice it increasing in size, or the arrival of a group of Gryffindor boys who were still insistent on befriending her once again.
"You should beg." She whispered to him sadistically. "Be a good boy and beg." She firmly stated and finally let him breath. Harlow harshly pushed him to the floor and onto his sunken knees. She raised her foot and used it to push his shoulder back. She left it in the air threateningly. "I said beg!"
"Please." He begged with evident fear on his face. "I'm sorry." He spluttered to Harlow. "I'm so sorry." He continued to splutter this time looking at Lily, who was watching In horror.
"It didn't really feel all that sincere to me." Harlow dictated her foot pushing him further into the ground.
"Harlow!" Remus called out to her and made the decision to approach. He walked slowly up to her side and tried to stop her. "He said he's sorry."
"I am- I'm so sorry." He cried out, actual tears flowing from his eyes from the immense pain in his neck and know knees. "Please I beg you." He whimpered rather pitifully in Harlow's opinion.
Harlow sighed heavily as her eyes traveled over the very large crowd. All of them looked an array of emotions. Mainly fear and shock. Some were still just enjoying the show.
Harlow removed her foot and grabbed his collar once again. She yanked him back up to standing. "Your weak." She writhed and vigorously pushed him away leaving him to stumble. Harlow wiped her hands against her skirt acting as if she was getting rid of dirt. Really, she was just used to wiping the blood away after a fight. This time, thankfully, there was no blood.
"Harlow are you-" Remus started to ask, trying to understand what the hell just happened. He moved a hand to her arm and sighed lightly when she flinched away.
"What just happened?" Lily snapped, her voice filled with disappointment. Her eye scanned Harlow's face as she tried to get some sense of the situation.
Harlow rolled her eyes, "You were there the whole time." She bluntly responded as she attempted to make her way out of the area.
"You didn't have to do that, I can defend myself." Lily stated clearly trying to prove to herself that he was wrong. And that she was in fact not pathetic.
Harlow knew this but she couldn't help the murderous rage she was feeling. "Try saying someone that's true for once." She hissed letting her anger out in words rather than more violence.
"You can't just help me and then Insult me!" Lily called out as she watched Harlow walk away. "She infuriates me."
"What happened?" James demanded urgently. The situation he walked in on seemed to just be Harlow almost suffocating a student to death and very publicly embarrassing him.
"He was threatening me, she was the only one that would help." Lily explained a small smile growing in her face at the realisation she was almost killing the guy for her. "She's still in there." She happily murmured.
"What are you talking about? I thought she was going to kill him!" Peter gawked as he dramatically flapped his arms gesturing to the spot where she had him on the ground.
"Yeah but she did it to defend me. Her ginger sister." Lily dreamily replied already planning her next move on getting her Harlow back.
"Lily she may have defended you, but there's nothing to say that she would have done any different if it was someone else." Sirius admitted his hesitance to believe that she was back. In his opinion, he didn't think there was anyone to get back. But rather a new person to learn all about.
"Sirius." James berated him lightly as he watched Lily's face fall.
"I didn't want her to het her hopes up." Sirius defended with a shrug. "You can't tell me I'm wrong."
Question of the day is, how would you feel about me introducing a new female student to have as a possible enemies to lovers with Harlow? Obviously this is a Sirius fanfic, but their relationship is a slowburn and certainly isn't be happening anytime soon.
We'll be seeing more of Regulus and Evans as well as bonding with the Marauder boys.
Thank you for reading and remember to interact xx