Confessions and Plans (Justin)

[Vasilisa Alyona Konstantinov]

Vasilisa never thought her best friend was serious about leaving school. She, Vasilisa Sabrina Ryan Dolohov, thinking that her best friend was just joking, helped Helena Ravenclaw engineer a bulletproof escape plan. But, when the younger girl did not show up during breakfast, lunch and dinner one whole day the following day, Vasilisa knew that Helena took their planning seriously and that she escaped school.

With a notorious wizard killer on the loose and the possible dangers of the muggleworld, she could not help but worry about her Helena and her safety. The wizard killer was someone more than enough to worry Vasilisa for a lifetime. She had the misfortune of meeting him at the turnover ceremony and she could still remember how fearful she had been. The danger the wizard killer posted was too great to take lightly.

Knowing that the young Ravenclaw was smart, she knew she would survive in the muggleworld. Their plan had been perfectly orchestrated so she was sure Helena was safe. But given the fact that half of the plan was on her and that someone crazy, like the wizard killer or he himself, could show up and try anything on her best friend, she still felt anxious. So, despite her certainty on the success of their plan, the Slytherin still worried that something might go wrong one way or the other. As she sat on one of the dark green sofas in the Slytherin common room, she thought of all possible courses of action to be taken and the young Slytherin came up with the following:

i. Orchestrate a flawless plan to sneak out of the castle and find her bestfriend herself.
ii. Ask Janine, her guardian, to help her locate Helena and bring her back to school.
iii. Go to Christian. Explain to him that she helped Helena escape unintentionally and ask him for help to find her.
iv. Approach Helena’s mother, tell her all about Helena’s plan and leave it all to the professor.
v. Blab Helena’s plan to Justin and create a plan with him on how to find and bring Helena home.
vi. Find Adrian and… *remembers that he is out on a date with his girlfriend*

After some time of introspection, Vasilisa found herself strangely attracted to option one. It was the easiest. Doing it herself would ensure its success. However, option four was the most logical thing to do. But, she did not want the professor to know that Helena was gone. She knew that the two had a rocky relationship and she was willing to bet that the professor still was not aware that her daughter was missing. If all else fails tonight, she would go to the professor’s office first thing in the morning tomorrow. Option two, also, was a good remedy of the situation, but that meant giving Janine a heads up on everything, which would lead her to even be more watchful, and, Vasilisa did not want that. So it was between options three and five. Vasilisa knew Christian would understand, however, she did not want to worry him so she decided that Justin would be the best bet. He surely would help her for he loved Helena.

So, Vasilisa, not wasting any more time, got up and went knocking on Justin’s door. She could only hope he was inside and that he was alone. If Christian or any of Justin’s roommates were inside, the two of them would have to find someplace quiet to talk. It was ten in the evening so she would bet Justin and his roommates were probably asleep and she and Justin would be forced to seek another venue for their conversation.

[justinlaw]

Justin Law lay down on his bed, looking wistful. It had been rough last week, since they fought a battle against a known wizard killer, by the name of Peter the Ripper. He began to think about how the killer singlehandedly killed some of his Advance guards, who were the cream of the crop of all guards serving nobles and even used some of them as puppets to turn against them. He then thought of all their families whom he went to personally to give support and assistance in every way to atone for the loss. However, he knew it wasn't enough. The losses were too many and skilled guards are getting fewer. He knew that he couldn't afford to hoard all the remaining guards into his service.

He then got up and went over to the mirror by the dresser. He then surveyed his reflection and saw the dark rings around his eyes. He knew that he hadn't got enough sleep since what happened because he had to smooth out the necessary plans for the capture of this killer, not to mention the extra work he did to silence wizarding newspapers to stop them from reporting the event. However, what was bothering him all the more was the fact that he had been too busy to try and talk to Helena. He really wanted to explain to her the truth; however, he knew that she was deeply hurt by what she had seen and he could not blame her for it. He only hopes that she would give him the chance, it didn't matter to him if she would accept the apology.

He was abruptly awakened from his reverie when he heard a knock on his door. He was quite perplexed since it was already way past bedtime and it was quite unusual for someone to come knocking at this hour. He then dressed himself in slacks and a white cotton shirt and went to open the door. He was quite shocked to see Vasilisa standing right at his doorstep. It was a good thing he managed to put decent clothes on. "Good evening, cousin. It's unusual to see you here in the boys' dormitory," he greeted, nodding slightly. It was then that he saw her face that he suddenly became worried. "How are things going for you? Is everyone close to your heart well?" he asked, looking concerned.

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[Vasilisa Alyona Konstantinov]

Vasilisa sighed when no one seemed to have heard her knock. It was either no one was there or all of the room’s occupants were asleep. Either way, she would not have the opportunity to talk to Justin and felt her shoulders slump. She was about to back away from the door and head back to her room and take everything in to her own hands, in other words, push through with option one, when light from Justin’s open door flooded in to the corridor where she was and illuminated her anxious face.

“Good evening Justin. Yes, I rarely come here. No actually I came here for the first time today.” Vasilisa sighed, relieved that Justin was still wide awake despite the lateness of the night. She was certain that coming to him was the right thing to do, even if it meant waking him up. “I’m so sorry I woke you but I need someone to talk to. It’s about Lena. I think I might have helped her do the most idiotic thing in her life.” She sighed and eyed Justin with the look that meant: You have to help me fix this. Vasilisa wasted no time beating around the bush. Justin needed to be aware of the situation as soon as possible. “Should we talk here or somewhere else?” She asked after a few moments of silence.

[justinlaw]

Justin merely looked at Vasilisa's anxious face. He immediately knew that something was up with her and he could not just take it for granted. He realized that it was indeed something grave that would really make her go all the way to the boy's dormitory just to talk to him. He then listened attentively as she told him the reason for her sudden appearance. When he heard her mention Helena's name, he felt like a rock sunk on his stomach. Her name sounded so pleasant on his ears and he could not help but regret everything that he had done that kept her away from him for good. "You did not wake me, I am having difficulty sleeping lately. What happened to Helena? I mean what did she do?" he asked her, looking anxious all of a sudden.

He then saw her give that significant look and it immediately told him legions about what kind of trouble Helena had gotten herself into. He then stayed silent for a few seconds before finally managing to speak. "You're right, we have to go somewhere else to talk. Just let me put some real clothes on. Please wait for a while," he then said as he entered his room and closed the door. As he was changing into his black slacks and white dress shirt, he could not help but contemplate on everything Vasilisa had just said. He knew that Helena might be in danger right now, with all the killings that have been happening. He then laced up his black oxfords and walked out of the room.

"Come with me," Justin said, taking Vasilisa by the hand and led her downstairs towards the common room. He then scanned the room immediately and found two seats next to the fireplace. He then beckoned her to sit down on one of the armchairs before he sat down on a stiff armchair. "So tell me more details, cousin. What actually happened to her?" he asked once more, looking serious. He needed to know more about it badly so he would know how he might be able to help her.

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[Vasilisa Alyona Konstantinov]

When it came to Helena and Justin, Vasilisa promised herself not to take sides. She knew Justin for a much longer time than she did Helena but Helena was her bestfriend and she could not just side with her cousin who broke Lena’s heart. Just the same, she could not turn her back on Justin after a mistake he obviously regret. The look on his face at the mention on her bestfriend’s name could attest as to how much remorse he had and is still having about his actions that led for the unfortunate events that in turn made his relationship with Helena be non-existent ever since that horrible day.

Vasilisa’s heart felt heavy as she eyed him. She knew he would be worried about Helena but she never realized that her cousin loved her bestfriend that much. “She ran off to the muggleworld. I don’t know what happened to her but I hope nothing happened to her for if something happens to her, I’m holding myself liable.” Vasilisa pointed out, anxious. When he understood the look she gave him, she could not help but smile. “Thank you.” She said, relief evident in her tone. Then, she looked down on herself and was relieved to know that she was clad in one of her decent night dresses that went pass her knees.

The moment Justin slipped back in to his room, Vasilisa started pacing back and forth along the corridor, worried about her bestfriend and at the same time, partially holding herself responsible. She took in deep calming breaths and in just a few moments, she was back in her calm and poised self. She had Justin on her side now and all they needed was a plan in order to make things work. The sooner Helena was home the better and it would be even better if they did not have to involve Helena’s mother.

Vasilisa was so busy trying to think of a plan that she did not even realize that she had already let Justin lead her to the Slytherin common room and that she was already sitting on one of the arm chairs next to the fire. The next thing she knew was Justin asking for more details about Helena’s departure. Vasilisa stared intently at Justin for a while, knowing what she was about to say was going to hurt him. “Helena had not been doing so well lately. It all began when Professor Fletcher casted an unforgiveable on her. She was about to recover from it all but she witnessed a… very unpleasant scene not too long ago, ” Vasilisa stated, hoping Justin would get what she was trying to say in between the lines. “She also mentioned some intense family problems. I could tell that she did not confide in me fully but I know that what I know, even if it was just part of what she knows, is enough to make any thirteen-year-old run off.” Vasilisa sighed and regarded Justin for a while, trying to read his face knowing that what she said would hit him hard. Vasilisa did not intend to hurt his feelings but she had to tell him that he was also partially responsible for all this and telling him the cold hard truth was a subtle way of saying it. “I was talking to her just yesterday. She and I were joking about going on break and touring some places in the muggleworld just to have the time of our lives. We orchestrated a Hogwarts escape plan... I did not know she was going to use it. You have to help me bring her back.” She appealed to him softly.

[justinlaw]

Justin laced his fingers together and sat stiffly on the armchair, as he listened to Vasilisa related to him the story behind Helena’s sudden escape. As the story progressed, Justin felt her gaze at him and he knew immediately that he was partly, if not primarily, at fault. He found himself unable to look at Vasilisa and he realized at that moment that Helena was indeed burdened by a lot of issues and he, who was supposed to be with her through it all blew the chance and made her take the brunt of everything. Deep inside, he already knew that she had a lot of issues so why on earth did he have to add up to them? Helena found him to be someone she could open up to and understood her perfectly so why did he have to ruin everything? Then it clicked. He was taken over by selfish desire when Viola appeared to him and that he let himself be satisfied, thinking that he might be able to get away with it. However, the impossible and inevitable happened and everything they had together suddenly dissolved into nothing. That and her complex family issues contributed greatly to her untimely escape.

As he gazed into Vasilisa’s bluish violet eyes, he could feel the desire to say something, that he himself would escape out of Hogwarts and find her on his own if that was the only way he could atone for what he had done to her. However, he realized that she must have something else to say and so he kept quiet for a while. When she told him that both of them were actually planning something reckless and that they orchestrated a perfect escape plan out of Hogwarts, Justin felt his blood pressure rise in anger. He then tried to calm himself down and eventually, it worked, enabling him to pick up the rest of what she said. He then felt his anger dissipate when she said that she did not expect that Helena would use the escape plan, which meant that it happened without her knowing it. After she made her appeal to him to help her find Helena, Justin was silent for a good two minutes, before he managed to respond. “I understand now. I know that I am partly, if not primarily at fault for all this. If it weren’t for me, then she would not have her heart broken and tried to take everything in stride,” he then managed to say, his brown eyes gazing directly at Vasilisa’s bluish violet ones. “So how can I be of assistance to you? Have you made plans beforehand? Maybe we could try and orchestrate it. Do you want me to contact my guards to search for her?” he asked, for he knew that his guards were excellent In tracking down people and their assistance would be indispensible at this point.

[Vasilisa Alyona Konstantinov]

Vaslisa was quite annoyed with Helena for outsmarting her. She frowned at the mere thought of being outsmarted. She outsmarted people, not the other way around. Vasilisa never considered herself as the brightest crayon in the box but she was bright enough to have her ego hurt in the event that someone outsmarted her. But, since she and Helena were bestfriends and she loved her very much, she found herself pushing aside her irritation and focused on finding her before she got into any trouble.

As she eyed Justin, she saw determination in his eyes and she knew that coming to him had been the right decision. Vasilisa was too busy feeling a bit guilty to notice the apparent progression in his facial expression. When she looked up at him and saw that he was turning beet red in anger, she almost found herself afraid. Afraid afraid like when Magnus had been around. She almost sighed in relief when he calmed down. “No, I’m also at fault. I should not have even joked about the escape plan. If I didn’t help her, she wouldn’t have done it.” Her bluish violet eyes showed how sincerely sorry she was as she peered into the windows of his soul. “Aside from looking for a partner in crime? No, I don’t have any plans… yet. I was banking on the idea of planning with another Slytherin. Two Slytherins are better than one.” She smiled up at him, feeling so relieved that she would not be alone with this mission. “As for the guards, do you think it would be a good idea?” Vasilisa inquired as she reviewed their problem in her head.

[justinlaw]

Justin merely regarded her with a curious look. Somehow, he knew there was indeed something more to what happened to Helena. He then wondered what could have made her run away from Hogwarts. Suddenly, he felt a surge of guilt for he knew that it primarily his fault that she became unstable. He then refocused his gaze at Vasilisa and realized that she was using his situation to get him to help. However, even if she did not even exploited his weakness, he will help her ungrudgingly.

He then laced both of his hands and sighed. He thought of sending an owl or even a howler to his guards to explain the situation and possibly persuade them to map out a search to find her. He would do everything in his power to find her, even if he had to use force to take her back. “Vasilisa, I will contact my best guards to go and search for her. Are you okay with that?” he asked, looking at her intently. “Or would you rather make a plan of escape for the both of us? We’ll go with escorts though to ensure our safety,” he added, though he looked rather doubtful of his suggestion. Suddenly, he noted the anxious look on her face and wondered what could have made her look like so. “Is something the matter? Are you okay?” he then asked, putting a hand on her right shoulder.