Take a Look Around&&Jasper

[EMBER PENELOPE CONNORS]

Let it be known by all that Ember had a fantastic sense of direction. Whenever she was with her family and they happened to not be able to find their way, Ember was generally the one to point them in the right direction. Though she was a menace with the cardinal directions, she could guide someone by using landmarks like it was nobody’s business, and she took pride in it. However, this was only with general cases and places that she had been before. When didn’t know the layout of the area, she was of no use and of little help to anyone, let alone herself. So, when the sixth year red head found herself wandering aimlessly through the dark and dingy way of Knockturn Alley, several questions were quick to be thought up, her intelligent little brain working hard to come up with solutions to each and every question that was presented. First and foremost, where in the world was she? With icy blue eyes taking in the appearance of her surroundings, Ember could only come up with one possible answer: Knockturn Alley. Second, how in the world had she gotten here? That, of course, could be answered by saying she just wasn’t paying attention. She had been spending the day at Diagon Alley with her family, as there were several things that she needed to buy that could not be purchased at any muggle store. She and her family and just been walking around, purchasing the items and taking everything in stride, when her parents ran into a colleague of theirs. He was one of the ministry workers that her father knew, an older man who she had seen around multiple times; he was always one of the men invited to a party at her house, being an influential and generally well-liked man. Her parents began to chat with him and as Ember would have had to stand there in complete boredom, her parents gave her permission to walk around by herself. She was sixteen, only months away from being an adult in the eyes of the wizarding community, so she was old enough to walk around Diagon Alley by herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t like the man, seeing as he was a friendly old goat, she just didn’t feel like standing around for a long period of time. She was thankful that her parents had allowed her to wander away, an opportunity she didn’t pass up. Within seconds of being released, she was off, stalking off into the crowd and disappearing from their sight.

As only someone like her had a way of doing, Ember wandered around aimlessly, looking around at the shop windows and moving out of the way as a bustling family walked by. She didn’t have any particular goals in mind and she didn’t see anybody she knew, let alone someone she would actually want to talk to. She didn’t have many friends, if any, and she wasn’t fond of talking to complete strangers. Even if she did recognize anybody from school, she tended to avoid them as to not look open to conversation; she was much happier being quiet and avoiding talking to people. Not that it mattered when there weren’t many people who would want to talk to her anyway. She wasn’t the friendliest of girls and while she was not exactly a bully, she tended to say mean things to people and hurt their feelings, even though she didn’t have the intention of doing so. See, she didn’t really mean to be so rude when people spoke to her, it was just what she was used to. When not around a person of authority or an adult figure, the other girls around her age at her mother’s work would become nasty and cruel, treating her poorly and making fun of her all the time. So, to help cope with the treatment she received from the girls, she learned to be just like them. To retaliate against the others, she copied their attitudes, acting sweet and friendly around adults and becoming rude and quiet when just around those her age. It was a defense mechanism that she had built for herself to protect herself, layering down a frosty layer so she wouldn’t get hurt. It kept her safe and didn’t allow her to be hurt, but it kept her away from others, which was an equal amount of damage, even if she hadn’t realized it. She also hadn’t realized that she had stopped paying attention to her surroundings and had begun to instead just follow her feet, eyes unseeing and only allowing her to react in time to move out someone’s way. She didn’t pay attention to where she was going, which led her to her current predicament.

Well this was certainly a fun area to be in. While Ember realized that she had quite the knack for just walking around and not having a care for where she was going, she had never stopped to think that it would cause her to end up in such a place, a place she avoided like the plague. Ever since she was a little girl and had curiously asked her father what the dark alleyway led to, she had never once stepped foot in the suspicious alley, her father warning her away from it and commanding that she never ever go there; like any obedient daughter, she stayed as far away from it as possible. However, now she found that she was within the darkness of the cobble and brick with no idea on where the exit could be. She didn’t know which way she had come in and she wasn’t sure if she should go left of right to try and find her way out. Trying to keep her anxiety and nervousness from showing, Ember kept up her outer appearance of indifference as she walked around a bit, looking this way and that to try and figure out which way to go. It was obvious to any passerby’s that she was new to the area and had no knowledge of where to go. Ember was surprised that nobody had tried to talk to her in the brief amount of time that she had been down here, trying to take advantage of her naivety and guide her in the wrong direction. Ember hoped she could make her way out of the dusky territory without making contact with a single person, a hope that was soon dashed as she felt a hand lay heavily on her shoulder. ‘Lost deary?’ A deep voice said from behind her, dripping with venomous sweetness and dark intentions, a voice that belonged to massive brute of a man much older than herself, Ember came to find as she turned to face him. “No sir, I am doing just fine, but thank you for your concern.” She replied in a polite tone, one laced with the iciness that reflected in her blue eyes, a tone that tried to give him the impression that she wasn’t one to be messed with. She didn’t want to deal with this man and despite the sudden intensity of her heart beat, she kept her face cool and collected, only a flash of her fear showing her eyes. Hopefully, she could somehow get this man to leave her alone and if not, she would figure out a way to make him.

[JASPER NEPTUNUS FLINT]

Jasper had been back for about two and a half years. He lived in a tiny little apartment above a horrid shop in Knockturn alley and he worked at the Spider's Nest Inn. That was the simple story of Jasper Flint. That was the story that most knew. Few knew the truth and those that did, wish that they didn't.

Jasper was trained under a dark Bulgarian wizard, a friend of his fathers that owed him a favour. Marcus Flint, all though dim, had gained a lot of favours owed to him over the years. He'd been put forth on many missions and used as a human shield, he was too dumb to fully understand how dangerous his roles had been and just thought of himself as being manly, wizardly. As such these favours built and built and he had never really ever wanted much in return. He'd earned his share of galleon's from the things he'd done and he was always earning a neat little profit, half thanks to the dangerous or illegal good and services he provided from his own office at the ministry of magic or his holiday home.

The bright side of Marcus Flint never having used many of his favours was Japer was able to cash in on some of them and that was how he came to be in his apartment and how he had his job. The job was taken away from some pregnant homeless girl and the apartment was home to an elderly man that was renting it, that was before Jasper had the man removed, just thrown out on the street. Jasper didn't know if the man had any family to go to or not, that wasn't his concern. When you lived in Knockturn Alley you were bound to get screwed over a time or two and Jasper knew he'd have to leave before it was his turned to get screwed.

Having the day off wasn't new. Jasper usually worked the night shifts when there was usually a drunker, angrier mob about, purposely looking for trouble. He was able to handle himself well enough to fight off more than two men at once. He'd learnt dark magics and wasn't afraid to use them. The trick was blocking your emotions, letting yourself become void. The easiest way to do that was to stop caring about blood purities, to stop wondering about the well being of others and just concentrate on getting yourself through each and every day.

Right now Jasper was heading down the only stairs from his apartment at the back of the shop he lived above. It was dark, smelt bad and was in need of a dire cleaning but it wouldn't happen. No one could be bothered when it was manageable and now it needed some kind of expert. besides if it got cleaned it would lose its effect of keeping nice, normal people away. Jasper quite liked that effect.

Jasper pulled open the door to the outside world and stepped out. It wasn't too cold but Jasper always wore his fur cloaks and leather, it was warm, flexible and protective. The long fur cloak gave him a place to hide his wand up his sleeve and he always liked to have it close to his hand, ready to enter combat. What he would also have liked to carry around with him was his sword but that seemed a little too much for a day out.

Jasper walked down the little alley between the shop he lived above and the shop next door. Knockturn Alley was as it always was, a dark street filled with dark people and then he saw it, something light in the darkness not even fours steps away from him. A light that should not have been here.

Jasper's wand came out of his cloak, dropping straight into his right hand. He took a step, raised his wand and without doing anything himself, the wand shot off a spell with sparks that hit the darkened man in the forehead. It was easy to see the dark people and the light people when you were around it all day every day, those with darkened spirits were so easy to spot and Japer knew why, it was because he was like them.

The man he'd hit with the spell square in the head fell back, all within a split second, a look of surprise etched semi-permanently upon his face until he would be revived or recover from the spell. Others surrounding them jumped back and withdrew their wands before realising there was no threat to them personally and so put their wands away. Jasper could connect with these people, they all had a very similar philosophy to his own and that was possibly what made them a dangerous crowd to be about, look out for number one.

Jasper laid a heavily gloved left hand upon the shoulder of the girl the man had been approaching upon. "Ember. What are you doing here?" He asked in a deep and dangerous voice, he didn't really know his second cousin that well but he knew what she would look like now and he knew she was not someone to belong here but blood was blood and he would have done the same for any one of his siblings or actual cousins and would have taken care of any innocent that looked as though they shouldn't belong in this darkened alley, not because he was a hero but because he was the villain that could one day find his prey helpless and torn in this alley and he could reach out to her, protect her and then take away her life and still leave her to live.

[EMBER PENELOPE CONNORS]

How was she going to get this man to leave her alone? That was the most important question in Ember’s mind at the very moment; more important than getting out of the dark alleyway, more important than wondering if her parents had started to worry about her whereabouts, and more important than what she would do if her mother and father found out she had been down here. Oh goodness, what was she going to tell her parents when she found them again? They would more likely than not be wondering where she had wandered off and she would be in for a hell of a scolding if they found out where she had gone, even if it was by accident; she was not looking forward to that reunion in the slightest. But those thoughts were at the back of her mind right now as she thought of ways to get the dark, creepy man away from as quickly as possible without bringing the fact that she was not from around these parts to the attention of all those that were walking around them. It was quite the conundrum, but it appeared to be one that she would not have to solve by herself, as the question was answered by somebody else.

As Ember was standing there, watching the man with a cautious eye and wondering what on earth she was going to do, a bright flash of light appeared from behind her as the man was hit square in the face with a spell. Surprised and most definitely startled, Ember drew her wand from the pocket of her robes, readying herself for anything that would happen after the initial attack. She didn’t know who had hit the man with a spell, but she wasn’t going to take any chances with the idea that somebody forceful and violent enough to shoot a stranger in the face was standing behind her and she wasn’t ready for a fight. It also didn’t help that the people that had been walking through the alley at the time also drew their wands, all getting ready to defend themselves from whoever it was that had attacked. It was a curious sight, however, when they all were just as quick to put their wands back in the confines of their robes as they had been to draw them, causing Ember to raise an eyebrow in question. Whoever it was that was behind her was of no danger to any of them, which made her question even more on who it could be.

Ember didn’t have to consider the question long, however, as a large hand quickly found itself firmly planted upon her shoulder. This of course startled the girl and she was just about to turn around and shoot a spell at whoever was behind her, just as he had done to the man that had been standing with her earlier, when a semi-familiar voice came from the person behind her. Curious, she turned herself around to see the somewhat older but still familiar face of her cousin Jasper. Well, this was certainly a surprise. Last time she had checked, he was of unknown whereabouts, having disappeared just after his final year at the magical school. She wasn’t aware that he had returned to England; not that she knew much of what was going on with her father’s side of the family to begin with. They were purebloods, the haughty kind that thought they were better than everybody else simply because they had an untainted line of magical people, with never a single person of unmagical blood mixing into the blood. That was, however, until her father married a muggle. Though she had never been told so by a single one of her family members, she knew that they thought of her father as a blood traitor, as a person who had brought shame upon the family name. It was mostly the reason she wasn’t informed of Jasper’s return, as well as the reason that she had to do a double take when she saw him, seeing as he looked so different.

Due to the fact that her father was seen as a bit of a disgrace to the high-born purebloods of her family, Ember didn’t have much of a chance to get to know that side of her family. She got to see them every so often, mostly on big holidays where they were pretty much required to see each other. Ember never really liked those get togethers; she always felt as if the family looked upon her and her parents with disdain, only letting them go as a formality. Since they were still part of the family, they still had to go, no matter how much everyone wanted them gone. So, seeing as she didn’t get to see them often, plus the fact that her cousin had vanished from the face of the earth for several years, she had trouble recognizing him when she first turned around. He still had the same curly hair and the same eyes, but he looked shaggier than usual, and much more gaunt. He wasn’t as put together as he used to be and he looked in desperate need of something to eat. All in all, he looked darker and much more frightening than the Jasper of her memory, and Ember couldn’t help but worry. She didn’t know him all that well but he was still her family, and that still mattered to her.

Realizing that she had yet to answer the question she had been asked, seeing as she was so momentarily startled by his haggerad appearance, Ember looked up at him with clear eyes that showed a hint of innocence. “I got lost.” She said; a simple answer, but a truthful one. She could have lied or given him a rude answer, but she decided to just give him a straight answer. After all, he was her cousin and he had helped her, so she had to be respectful to him. However, this respectful attitude towards him didn’t stop her from quickly blurting out a rude line to make up for the honest answer, though she did have a hint of concern in her eyes as she spoke. “Are you feeling okay, Jasper? You look like you ran through a tornado.” She said with a straight face, questioning as to why he looked so gaunt and haunting. He looked like he could pass for one of the ghosts at the castle if he was a little more pale and slightly less tangible.

[JASPER NEPTUNUS FLINT]

Diagon Alley was a quaint little slice of the wizarding world smack in the middle of muggle London. Diagon Alley was a long street and it was surprising that the Muggles didn't notice it at all but they weren't the brightest bunch and the noise made by the witches and wizards that shopped in the Alley were hidden by the noise of the traffic and all the pedestrians that London had to offer on its own, it was no wonder they were not heard, but just off of the idillic long alley was a dark alley, one that daren't be stepped upon by pure innocence. It was a street full of the corrupt and dark, unsavoury characters were often found here in the wizarding world and so Jasper had no idea why Ember was so far off the beaten track of safety. This was not the place for a young, unescorted lady and if he had not noticed her there would have been a strong chance that she would not have made it out of this alley in one piece. It was a terrible thought but it was fact, parents didn't forbid there children from coming up Knockturn Alley just because they could, they did it because they knew what would happen to their poor, unsuspecting offspring.

Jasper looked down into the light blue eyes that stared back at him and wondered if she knew just how much trouble she could have been in. Her answer seemed to suggest that she was lying. No one accidentally got 'lost' onto Knockturn Alley and Jasper wondered just why his young cousin was here, was it to see someone, had she arranged to meet someone or was this because she was rebelling against her parents? Jasper was unsure of the reasoning of a teenage girl but he knew of one thing. She was stupid. An absolute fool to be anywhere near here but why should he care if this innocence got stomped? Jasper wasn't exactly sure any more sometimes he had no compassion for human life and other times he had to help, it was just the way his mind had been left, broken.

"Watch your tongue." He hissed as his face contorted into fury. Ember was in Knockturn bloody Alley and she had the galls to mention that he looked like shite? Jasper was not impressed to say the least. "Didn't your filthy parents teach you to respect your elders?" Jasper should have left her for the beast of a man that had been looming over her before his interruption. "Now tell me the truth, what are you doing here, Connors and if you lie again I'll be sure to wake up your little friend?" Jasper still had his wand out and had a tight grip on it, he didn't appreciate being fooled around, especially not by some Hogwarts student out of her comfort zone and use of a surname in place of a first name was common in the wizarding world when you didn't know someone that well or you were irate with them and Jasper had claim to both. It would have been politer to use her given name but he wasn't after polite, if he had to he would near scare the absolute life out of her to teach her a life lesson.

[EMBER PENELOPE CONNORS]

Concern and confusion were evident in the icy blue eyes of the young girl as Ember gave Jasper a weary look, her body language giving off little of the discomfort she was beginning to feel around him. Was this really the cousin she had known as a little girl? While it was true that she seen him little over the years, he certainly was not acting like the gentleman that he was raised to be. Everyone in her family, save for herself around those near her age, happened to be the epitome of a perfectly well-kempt human being. After observing her distant relations for the many years, she was sure that only the royal family could compete when it came to impeccable manners. While it could be said that the attitudes that were shown towards her half-blood family were not always the most polite, the same could not be said for the manners that were shown; no matter what attitude they held behind their words, her family had always made sure to be as perfect as those that ruled the country, as if they were striving for that position in the future, an idea that she was certain was not far from the truth. However, the man that stood before her was nothing like the rest of her relations; he was rude, he was dingy, he appeared as gaunt as the skeletons that had been laid to rest in the coffins that were nestled beneath the earth, and he was beginning to be rather frightening. Were it not for his looks, his appearance showing off the features that were so common within her family, she would not have been able to reassure herself that he was really Jasper.

With the weariness and caution still filling her gaze, Ember felt her face contort in the slightest way as she felt a wave of anger overcome her at the words her cousin spoke. Ember was not quick to anger, but there was just something about the insult to her parents that had set her off. Over the years, she had grown accustomed to the insults that were thrown her way about her lineage. As a Slytherin, it was almost sinful to have a set of parents that were not both magically inclined and while her father was a member a very prestigious Pure Blood family, her mother was not and it led to quite a bit of scorn and criticism throughout the years. To say she had thick skin when it came to insults about her family and her heritage was an understatement but for this instance, she could not stop herself from feeling fury. He was her family, her kin, and here he was mocking her and verbally tearing down the connection that they shared by blood. It was certainly an offense that the Hogwarts student could not stand for. "I don't know Jasper, did your parents ever teach you how to act around a lady?" She asked in response, her voice sharp as she questioned him in return. His behavior was certainly unbecoming of those of her family and she was quick to point out his poor manners when he had been so hasty to anger at her concern for his haggard appearance.

Eyes narrowed, Ember tried to bring herself back to her calm and collected appearance once more, attempting to shed the angry glare that she currently held. She hated letting her anger show upon her face; she hated letting her anger show at all. It was uncivilized in her opinion to show one's emotions in such a way and by allowing your anger to show, others around you were more likely to become irritated as well and then it was all just a big mess and people were shouting, something that the red-head hated with a passion. Taking a deep breath, something that may have been mistaken for a calming of nerves rather than the calming of one's temper, Ember felt her features become less fierce as her eyebrows lost the slight furrow that they had attained, though her eyes retained the cold countenance that they had acquired. "Why is it so hard for you to believe that I could simply just be lost? It's not impossible to make a wrong turn, especially when you're not paying much attention." She said, clearly unhappy that he had not believed her the first time. While Slytherins were known for being crafty and cunning, she was not the type to lie to her family, especially not in such a situation. "Just because you're trying to hide something doesn't mean I am. Now why are you avoiding my question? You look terrible and I would appreciate it if you didn't ignore me this time." She said with a huff. She was not going to put up with this!

[JASPER NEPTUNUS FLINT]

Really? She fancied playing games with him? She was lucky that he had saved her but as warned he would awaken her little friend, the horrid excuse of a human being that fancied himself an escort for a somewhat attractive young girl walking the streets of Knockturn Alley. Jasper did not like to play games and nor did he like to discuss private matters with those that were not worthy of his attention.

With a swing of his leg his foot collided with the face of the unconscious bum. The man was rather larger but with his wand in hand, Jasper knew he could take him. The filth groaned and stumbled hazily about as he tried to push himself up off of the floor. Jasper scoffed at Ember. "They did and were there any ladies around these parts I would know exactly how to act, but seeing that there are none, only filth, there is no need. Now perhaps you'll tell me the truth before I have words with your father on controlling his vile off spring." His tone was menacing. He had woken the brute and the man did not seem to happy to have been hit in the head twice, once with a spell and once with Jasper's boot.

"You expect me to believe you made a wrong turn onto the darkest street of London in an area you should know like the back of your hand?" Every witch and wizard came to Diagon Alley for school supplies. It was the only place where you could get everything at once and seeing that Ember was at least a sixth year so she'd been at least five times, six including this visit and it wasn't as though it was a long street to get to know. The thought struck him. Why should he care what she was doing? Jasper despised being lied to but perhaps Ember was up to something quite sinister but he couldn't just let her get away with lying to him. They were distant family though not as distant as he would have liked.

The large man staggered forwards and Jasper stepped aside, letting the man stumble forward and into the wall beyond him. "Now you have two choices. I either leave you with your darling love interest or you can tell me the truth." He said, his gaunt features making him look truly insane with the lack of light in the dark alley. Of course Ember did have a third option to run, but even Jasper knew she wouldn't be that foolish. He would knock out the brute once more, capture Ember and would have no second thoughts on holding her hostage or selling her to the highest bidder. If she was still a virgin he could get quite a profitable turn over.