Doing the Wrong Things Right (for Andy)

[kalib]

Kalib read and re-read his letter, finding it almost comical that he hardly recognized the writer himself even though he had spent the better part of an hour writing it. He was in a moment of reflection, dully noting that his father was probably the one person on the planet that he could be perfectly honest about in absolutely everything – family, school, love life, friends; nothing seemed to concern him when writing to his father. As he read through it one last time, he found it bluntly obvious that if anyone were to ever read his letter (aside from the recipient) he would be scarred for life. There were things contained that if ever reached the public eye, Kalib was positive he would die from the sheer force of embarrassment. That said he was in a slight rush to the Owlry.

Today seemed to revolve around reflection for him, because curiously enough no girls horded him on his way to deliver his letter. It brought some satisfaction, knowing that he had finally been marked as a taken man for the moment. Before saying that he was taken was just laughable – it had never stopped him before. Clearly his current situation was spread amongst the female population and have given up hope in try to sway him to be theirs. That was good. Sometimes it was hard to refuse offers, even if he was madly consumed with Mariella. It was probably unhealthy, the way their relationship had soared after such a rough start…or rather, a rough end. Kalib had finally managed to allow himself to permit her name – Annette – in his head, though he hadn’t spoken it allowed. Annette had been a girlfriend, like everyone before, and it scared him to think that he had found someone who could present much more then the average girlfriend. Mariella certainly did not fit into the average category – maybe she was just a category all by herself. Kalib had given up trying to figure it out.

By this time, he’d managed to make it to the Owlry and locate his black owl Knight, perched in a doze. He didn’t like it very much when Kalib woke him up, but got over it quickly after giving Kalib a good cut along his index finger. He scowled as he managed to tie the letter successfully this time, “Honestly, it’s not my fault you decided to rest when I need you to deliver mail. Where on earth did you get such a temper?” Knight stared back at Kalib like it was obvious. Sighing, he took the owl to the window and set him loose, watching Knight fade into nothingness. His finger was really hurting now and he glanced down at it. He swore at Knight violently as he watched the blood flow freely, deciding he should probably do something about it. He pulled out his wand and mutter the spell – the most it did was bring more pain. Perhaps he’d done it wrong? Unlikely.

Unwillingly Kalib tucked his wand away and he clamped his finger with his other hand, trying to cut off the circulation enough to make it to the Hospital Wing without leaving an entire trail behind him. He stomped down the stairs from the Owlry and walked back to the castle, taking the shortest route he knew to get to the infirmary. Occasionally he would get an odd stare, what, like he’d done it on purpose or something. Although anyone walking down the corridors with bloody hands would probably alarm most. Sighing, he kept going, an annoyed air filling the silence around him.

[andyhemlock]

Andy was pushed out the door and then the sound of a door shutting echoed through the halls. He let his eyes fall on the door while rubbing his head, the nurse had scared him so much that he had fallen out of the sick bed and smacked against the floor. He let out a yawn stretching his arms before slowly moving down the hall. He could understand why she was mad; he had snuck in the hospital wing and took a nap on one of the beds. He had only meant for it too be a short nap before his last class of the day, History of magic started. Unfortunately he had been out like a light and messed the whole class, the teacher would surely tell his mother, and she wasn’t going to be too happy when she learns that he skipped a class. It was nice to have his mum around the school but when he got into trouble, she found out right away which had always made him wish that she wasn’t a teacher at Hogwarts.

Letting another yawn escape his lips, he stopped in the hall to stretch letting his eyes gaze around. There wasn’t too many people in the halls, just a few who were either heading somewhere or just standing there chatting with there friends. It was actually kind of boring standing there talking to no one, he needed someone to bother. God must of loved him because his prayers were answered, although it was hard to say if he was receiving blind love or a friendly joke. Down the hall he could see his brother; he appeared to be heading in his direction, now where was he going. It was doubtful that he was looking for Andy, Kalib and him rarely socialized at school. There was no real reason, they just had different interests and personalities, not to mention that arguments were quite common among brothers.

It had been a while sense he had really talked with his older brother and now seemed like a good time. His eyes caught sight of something drop from Kalib’s hand, liquid? No it was…blood. Now what had his brother been doing this time, normally it was Andy who was the walking accident. He studied his brothers approaching form, noticing how he gripped one of his fingers with his other hand, ahhh, he could see what happened now. Kalib must have been fighting with his owl again, that bird of his was too much like Kalib for Andys comfort. He wasn’t sure if his brother had noticed him or not so he just waited in till he got close enough for Andy to speak directly too him. ”Quarreling with Knight again Kalib, one of these days he might cut your finger right off.” He smiled at his brother not really expecting a response, he may respond or he may not. Andy was planning to follow his brother even if it angered him, it was time for him to catch up with his older sibling and see what’s new, like what new girl Andy was supposed to not flirt with.

[kalib]

The whole way to the Hospital Wing was something he would just rather not allow any…close friends ever witness, his rude string of insults against his stupid bird flying madly in mutters as he walked along. Seriously, what had he done to deserve such an evil-tempered owl? When Kalib had stood in front of the long line of owls at the pet store, Knight had been the only one that looked confident enough to actually deliver mail. The rest were scrawny and off colored. Naturally he had been drawn the massive creature, it gaze penetrating much like his own; although never would he have imagine such a cool, calm bird to have such unruly behavior. He figured Kalib’s own actions around Knight had just rubbed off on him in some weird, not-understandable animal way. It was common for pets to reflect their owners… So what does that make me? he thought in crude humor. Kalib chuckled darkly, making a mental note to ask his father about that in his next letter.

Kalib wandered down the halls, finally making it to the corridor leading to the Hospital Wing. He glanced down at his hand, now both surprisingly drenched in his own blood. He took a moment to be a true boy, unclamping his fingers to hold it up and examine it. The cut did look awful, long and wide with the red liquid flowing calmly down his hand. It felt almost numb now, he’d been keeping it in a death-lock. Again closing his other hand around the cut, he glanced up and felt a wave of recognition wash over him. Kalib liked referring to his younger brother as “mini-me,” the two so similar but determined to be different. Kalib had been careful to not allow the school to think he was all buddy-buddy with his sibling and therefore on most occasions avoided him at all costs. It was annoying to be talking and have a comrade walk by snickering as a Slytherins conversed with a Hufflepuff. At first Kalib had been equally as annoyed as his House, but had decided it wasn’t much of a surprise – Andy was too soft. That said sometimes it was difficult to admit they were related, let alone talk to one another. But luck was playing in his favor, very few around to view their interaction and they were small enough that Kalib could take them anyways.

“Quarreling with Knight again Kalib, one of these days he might cut your finger right off.” He had expected as much – on the rare occasion they were indeed relatively near one another, Andy couldn’t keep his mouth shut. He thought about being a rude big brother and swatting him off, but somewhere Kalib’s humor gripped him. “Yeah well today he was pretty darn close.” He undid his hold, lifting his wounded hand to show him, “Stupid bird will probably be the death of me. Sad really, I always wanted an exciting death.” He’d paused outside the infirmary door, his undamaged though bloody hand on the knob, “What’re you doing up here anyways? You look fine to me.” And Andy did look perfectly normal, no bandages or cuts anywhere visible. “Besides, if you got hurt you’d just crawl to dear old mommy anyways,” he snickered, unable to help himself. It was good to be the oldest.

[andyhemlock]

Andy's relationship with his older brother was very odd, most wondered how they were related when they never talked or sometimes acknowledged each others existence. Of course, no one could deny how very similar they actually were, something Andy rarely admitted. He had always admired his older brother but he was happy to not be exactly like him. There were things about Kalib that bothered him and he was sure Kalib felt the same about him.

He chuckled at his brothers words, it was rare that his brother ever made a joke to him but no one could deny that Kalib was not funny when he wanted to be. He listened as his brother spoke again and when he finished a wide grin spread across his face. "At least it would be original, I bit nobody has ever died because they pestered there owl too much." He couldn't help but continue to joke around with Kalib, but he reminded himself to watch it because he didn't want to feel his brothers wrath. He was pretty scary when he was mad and Kalib was so much stronger then Andy. Yep, making your stronger older brother mad was definitely on his not too do list, but he tended to lose his list sometimes causing him to forget.

“What’re you doing up here anyways? You look fine to me.” Andy thought about Kalibs words for a moment, why had he been in the infirmary again? oh yeah! He had been taking a nap before the nurse throw him out. She probably wouldn't be too happy to see him back so soon, oh well, he wasn't going to pass up the chance to chat more with his brother. He had been preparing to answer when Kalib when he had made a snide remark reminding him that he was indeed the baby of the family. Of course this didn't bother Andy; he just smiled at his brother as he trailed his steps. It was strange, following behind him like this brought back the memories of the past, the days when he used to follow Kalib everywhere...

"You know mum, she's hard to find sometimes, but theres nothing much wrong with me. I was actually down here taking a nap in till the nurse throw me out not too long ago, I kind of slept through History of Magic"

[kalib]

“Yeah, I’m sure that would look good in the obituaries,” he allowed with a laugh, contradicting the growing pain in his hand. Perhaps he’d lost so much blood that his numbed finger was finally noticing the side effects? He had a fleeting moment ot blame Andy, knowing he’d have already been in the Hospital Wing and probably on his way out by now if hadn’t provided a distraction from his mission. Still, he quoted sourly “‘Kalib Hemlock, death by crazed owl.’ Somehow I don’t think I’d be able to die peacefully knowing I’d forever be marked as the boy who was killed by his pet bird.” His pride was too big for that; he was vain enough to admit it to himself.

To sheer brotherly annoyance, Andy wasn’t fazed by Kalib’s taunts, which he figured was nothing to be surprised by. Having to live together and all when they weren’t blessed with the castle to roam, Andy had to endure much worst teases that just couldn’t bug him the way they had used to work. He had sadly learned better, leaving Kalib with little material to work with. All the same, he was amused that Andy had managed to involuntarily skip class – or perhaps he’d done it on purpose; he wasn’t willing to put that plan past his brother.

He couldn’t help but chuckle. “It seems you’ve learned something from me after all. I’ll admit I’d never pick the infirmary to be the ideal ‘class-skipping’ location, but…” He shrugged it off as though it didn’t matter, aware how outraged his mother would be if she knew Kalib was giving Andy praise for managing to weasel his way out of History of Magic.

Kalib had figured out for himself shaking his younger “mini me” off was going to be impossible and reduced himself to knowing he would have company while his hand was being attended to. “I doubt Madam Hollows will be thrilled to see you back then so quickly?” he guessed vaguely, finally pulling the door open and waved his hand towards the direction of inside. “No use pretending you’re not tagging along, is there?” Kalib smiled grimly, waiting for Andy go head back in.

[andyhemlock]

“‘Kalib Hemlock, death by crazed owl.’ Somehow I don’t think I’d be able to die peacefully knowing I’d forever be marked as the boy who was killed by his pet bird.” Words could not convey how many his brothers statement had been. Andy had laughed so hard that he had almost forgotten to breath. Luckily he had managed to calm himself down enough to allow his lungs to get their fill on some much needed air. Andy let a smirk cross his features as he rushed to catch up with his brother who had gotten ahead of him. "If you keep saying things like that Kalib then I may end up joining you in the papers, boy follows his brother, dieing after forgetting to breath while laughing."

Andy had to admit, no one could be funnier then Kalib, but then Kalib wasn't always in a joking mood. Being around his brother during these moods was rare but he always enjoyed them. He had been teasing him while growing up, it used to bother him but he just decided to ignore most of them. After all, Kalib was alot nicer then people realized, but he couldn't deny that Kalib could often times be a jerk but it didn't seem to bother Andy, Kalib was just being....Kalib.

He smiled at his brother, "of course it's not your ideal place, but it sure is fine. Those Infirmary beds are so comfortable.....how long do you think it will be before mom finds out?" Andy let out a small nervous laugh, he knew she would find out, but he really didn't want her too. Of course sense he didn't skip class quite as often as Kalib perhaps she would go easy on him. oh yes, Madam Hollows will not be happy to see him back so soon but at least it will be interesting. He flashed his brother a smile walking into the infirmary. "Madam Hollows I missed you so much I decided to return, I even brought my brother along this time."

[kalib]

It was rare; very rare that you would ever catch the two sharing a good laugh and though he’d never admit it aloud, Kalib liked when they did. For as much of a pain as Andy could be sometimes, his constant little thorn could sometimes be bearable and even enjoyable. Their booming laughter echoed off the walls, leaving a few staring – Kalib sneaked a glare at some little first year and sent her running once he composed himself enough to realize Andy was talking again: “…dying after forgetting how to breath while laughing…” Kalib grinned, flashing his teeth – “Ah, we’ll forever be mocked by our deaths then.” He nodded grimly, seriously – totally faking it. “Quite the shame – remember when we thought we’d both die by saving the castle from a dragon invasion? Now that would look more impressive in the Prophet.” He chuckled again, actually liking the conversation.

“How long do you think it will be before Mom to find out?” The knowledge that Professor Debbie Hemlock, more commonly known as Mom to the pair of them, would undoubtedly find out brought a familiar grimace to his lips. “Probably about as long as it takes her to realize I’m this close to having only nine fingers.” He glanced at his bloody hand, “So…” Kalib faked out mental calculations, “Not long.” Kalib winked and followed along in after Andy, immediately being swooped over by someone very familiar.

The girl was in her sixth year, a Ravenclaw – also very attached to Kalib with undying love that wasn’t ever going to be returned. “Oh, what happened to you?!” she shrieked, grasping at the chance to hold up his injured hand to her face. “Lisa, what on earth are you doing here?” Kalib choked out, wishing he had just let his finger off instead of finding her here. “Oh, I’m helping Madam Hallows! I want to become a nurse, you know, so I was just getting some real practice”- Kalib cut her off, “Why can’t she help me?” Acid flowed from his tone, making it bluntly obvious he didn’t care for her in the slightest. Lisa wasn’t concerned, immediately pulling her wand out and magically cleaning the numb wound. Lisa shoved him down onto one of the beds and ran to go retrieve something.

Kalib rolled his eyes and sighed, glancing at Andy with a pronounce smirk. “Hmm, women – what can you do, eh?” He chuckled, and then asked “How did you managed to get a decent sleep with her badgering around all over the place? I’m surprised she left you alone, being related to me and all… Did you pick up that from me too? Do you have trouble with over-active girls?” He raised an eyebrow in question, using Lisa’s absence to get in a good conversation before she could return.

RP DISCONTINUED (12/26/07)