Bathsheda Elenora Babbling

[belbabbling-blog]

“You don’t say. Huh. Well, I had my suspicions. I’m glad someone takes rules seriously around here. Thanks.” Regulus turned and grinned, knowing full well most of them took the rules as more suggestions, but loved acting the part of a perfect prefect all the same. “I’ll be sure to send their Head of House their extra detention then. Good catch, Sheda.” He nodded in approval and stuffed his hands in to his robe pockets. “You busy or want to prowl around with me, send some more degenerates off to detention?”

 “I’m not exactly a stickler for the rules but that was just inappropriate.” Bathsheda laughed, shrugging, “He kind of deserves that detention.” When Regulus offered to let her tag along, she smirked. The two had become relatively friendly over the past few years. Never super close but they worked well together in classes. “How could I resist the opportunity to live vicariously through a prefect?” she said, “I don’t think I’d ever get another opportunity!”

[belbabbling-blog]

“What about Nora then?” Malcolm frowned lightly. “Yea, I suppose that is rather sad, but life expectancy wasn’t exactly ideal before. And, no offense or anything, but if you wanted to go by a different name, I don’t think it is really anyone’s place to tell you not to. Your life and all that junk.” He halted in his place, glancing at his companion, his brows furrowed in concern. “My honorable duty? I know you’re drunk and I probably shouldn’t be arguing semantics here, but if you think I consider this an honorable duty, I would most like to amend that now. Not taking advantage of someone shouldn’t earn anyone an honor ever. It is literally the very least amount of decency you could show those around you.” He was trying to keep his tone soft, not wanting her to think he was annoyed or rude or something else of that nature. Malcolm just made it a point to not let false rumors about him float around. “Nothing is bothering me. I was just–going for a walk, that’s all.” He didn’t want to out his roommate by any means.

“Perhaps...” she shrugged, “I don’t know though, you’ve never stuck with something just to make your family happy?” She looked over at him curiously, despite what she said, Bathsheda didn’t really know all that much about Malcolm in reality. She knew he was a great student and a prefect but she couldn’t recall ever hearing anything personal about him.“Oh I didn’t mean it that way, you know that.” she huffed, “I was just trying to tell you I’m fine, if you need to do something else. I had made it pretty far into the castle already before we ran into each other - haven’t fallen off a staircase yet.” Bathsheda raised an eyebrow at him, not thoroughly convinced that he was telling her the truth. “Oh come on, I’m not going to rat you out...” she sighed, “Just tell me what you’re up to because you’re a terrible liar.”

[belbabbling-blog]

Severus would have normally rolled his eyes at the lecture, but he was too caught up in an almost manic energy. It wasn’t unfamiliar. He was usually vibrating with it when he was either about to make a break-through, or else break something. If Bathsheda would just stop running her mouth for a moment, maybe he could center himself, but there she was, accusing him of not being ‘enlightened’ and he barely had any idea what that meant.

Enlightened?

“Oh, you know. You think you know everything, don’t you?” He should sit down again. Count backwards from ten. Hadn’t someone once told him that was a method for re-centering a frantic mind? A distant part of him knew he was allowing himself to get too caught up in this moment, but controlling his emotions was an uphill slog he had only recently even begun to attempt and he had a long way to go.

Gods she was maddeningly stubborn. Severus moved on an impulse he wasn’t sure he’d ever fully understand. It wasn’t quite anger. And it wasn’t to shut her up. Well, it wasn’t just to shut her up. His lips met hers roughly, a hard and insistent press that channeled all his frustrations with this whole stupid conversation. With the whole stupid book of runes.

“You are difficult. In fact, you’re bloody infuriating.” He said, before kissing her again.

Dumbstruck is the only word to describe it. When Bathsheda felt his lips on her's, her mind went blank and all her frustration instantly melted away. It wasn't something she would ever expect from Severus. Especially after she had spent the last half hour essentially yelling at him. She had always respected his intelligence but never considered that he could be interested in her? She had thought about it...once, she was only a teenage girl after all.

Bathsheda still didn't understand how she got herself into these situations though. She had actively vowed to avoid whatever this was. Boys tried to flirt with her but she never gave them the time of day. If this was anyone else, she would probably push them away and run off but, surprisingly, she didn't want to. She had been frozen for a few moments but ultimately started kissing him back.

She felt lightheaded when he pulled away. She had simply stared at him when he called her infuriating. Honestly, she was afraid to say anything else. Bathsheda had a knack for saying the wrong thing at exactly the right time. The last thing she wanted was for him to walk away from her. Then he was kissing her again. This was confusing. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pressed herself closer to him.

[belbabbling-blog]

“Definitely reading the wrong signs,” Gladys promised her with no hint of jest, “Caradoc, Ted, probably all of the Hufflepuff boys. I’m just Davey and Galvin’s kid sister. I mean, that’s completely fine. Those boys have basically known me since I was nine or ten. I’ve accepted my role in their lives. It’s nice to have that many people looking out for me - if not entirely overbearing,” she laughed, completely oblivious to Caradoc’s feelings. The fact that she had hardly seen him since she accidentally friendzoned him had only secured her thoughts. “I don’t know. Nothing. It just doesn’t feel like me,” she admitted, knowing her mother was beautiful and sensual and she was just…Gladys.

Bathsheda usually trusted her intuition. Her intuition told her she was definitely not reading the wrong signs. It also didn’t hurt that she often caught the looks Caradoc would give Gladys...it was obvious to anyone besides Gladys apparently. “Okay, if you say so.” she said in a sing-song voice, “Well Seraphina wa- is the same way. It’s just siblings...I suppose.” She cleared her throat, she hadn’t meant to mention her sister. “Anyway! Like I said...you’re stunning. You just have to believe in yourself a little. There’s no point in wasting time wanting the things that you could already have...although I feel like that’s some advice Alecto would give you...maybe I should go see Pomfrey...”

[belbabbling-blog]

Bathsheda had an attitude and Marlene knew that. The girl had a chip on her shoulder, but didn’t they all in the long run? She was far too aware that everyone had their own issues. “What bit you in the ass?” she immediately questioned, slightly concerned that maybe she was one of the few who didn’t seem too happy about the attack being stopped. Marlene could pretend all day that she wasn’t prejudice about certain houses, but she was. Bathsheda was a Slytherin.

Bathsheda had forgotten how crass Marlene could be. She knew her, vaguely. Marlene seemed to be very different from her twin brother and obviously lacked the type of charm Malcolm had. “The universe.” she said, leaning against the door frame. “Isn’t there somewhere else you could do this? People actually need classrooms..to, I don’t know...learn in?”

[belbabbling-blog]

Malcolm raised his eyebrows. “To be fair,” he said, “Babbling is also your name. Just not your first name, Bathsheda. And if you think it’s so hard to pronounce, why don’t you go by Elenora? Or just Nora?” He sighed and gave a short shake of his head. “It doesn’t have to do with me being a prefect, it has to do with me being a decent human being. I can’t just let someone run around the castle drunk. You could get injured. Or caught by McGonagall.” He glanced down each corridor that they passed, double checking for prefects, professors, and poltergeists. He could only imagine the nightmare it would be to bump into Peeves. “Well, that’s good. I’m glad that you’re self-esteem is so high.” For a moment, Malcolm glanced at his companion, no emotion registering on his face. That was something he’d gotten rather good at over the years–keeping your thoughts to yourself, experiencing extreme emotion on the inside. Malcolm was quite proud of this ability, knowing it would help him in the Ministry. “Forgive me,” he finally said, tearing his eyes back to each hallways, “if I prefer to believe what you say sober, than what you say drunk. Or don’t forgive me. That your prerogative. Either way I’m going to do it.”

“Elenora is so pretentious though.” she scoffed, “Plus, Bathsheda is a family name. I don’t think anyone would be very happy with me making a sudden change. Great aunt Bathsheda did die at fifteen after all..all very sad.” Bathsheda glanced at him from the corner of her eye and tried not to feel offended at the insinuation that she would get herself caught. She also couldn’t help the nagging worry that he was probably irritated with her for distracting him from whatever he had been up to. She had been nervous about getting caught but it was more out of inconvenience than anything. “I’m not mad at you for not taking advantage of a drunk girl.” she sighed, “Why would I be? You’ve done your honorable duty and all that. I’m perfectly capable of getting where I need to be if you have something else you need to attend to. You seem distracted.” She cleared her throat suddenly before linking her arm with his, “Or you could actually tell me what’s bothering you? Why are you lurking around past curfew on a weeknight?”

[belbabbling-blog]

   Alecto’s jaw clenched. The last person she needed to see was Bathsheda. Someone who managed to get under her skin more than anyone else. Despite being at the receiving end of Alecto’s viciousness more than once, Bathsheda never attempted to bite her tongue around her. When Bathsheda sat down, Alecto sighed audibly. “I’m sure,” she said, something of a mix of a grimace and a scowl on her face. Alecto tucked her letter into her bag, picking her sweater up off the floor and putting it on. “Since you’re making yourself comfortable, I’m assuming you didn’t get the hint. I’m not exactly up for a chat right now, Bat, despite how much I love having heart to hearts with you.”

“Who said I wanted a heart to heart? Maybe I’m just trying to commit this to memory.” she smirked, crossing her arms and leaning back in the chair. Bathsheda wasn’t exactly sure why she had taken a seat. She was not a cruel person but she could say she did take some pleasure in Alecto’s discomfort. Alecto had made her life miserable for a period of time and Bathsheda was only human. She couldn’t resist the opportunity to ruin her already terrible day. Seeing Alecto stuff a letter into her bag, she could only assume it was issues with her mother and father. “Problems at home?” she asked, “Your parents finally over your shit?”

[belbabbling-blog]

Marlene felt invigorated by the fight that had occurred with the vigilantes versus the Death Eaters. That was what she wanted to do. She knew this now. If they could stop attacks before they happened, how many lives would be saved? How many asses would she get to kick?

If she was going to do that, though, she knew that additional training was absolutely necessary. So, that is where she found herself, kicking dummy ass in an empty classroom, feeling like she could take on the world.

Bathsheda was in a bad mood. Arithmancy had been mysteriously canceled when she actually needed some help from their Professor. More canceled classes, It didn’t really bode well for the future. It wasn’t just her coursework she was concerned with, no, it was this sense of dread she couldn’t shake for the past few weeks.

When she opened the door to the classroom, searching for a quiet place to study, she was instantly disappointed. The two locked eyes before Bathsheda did an awkward little turn. She sighed, ultimately deciding to turn back around, “Sorry to intrude.” She wasn’t really sorry, just annoyed.

[belbabbling-blog]

Gladys began heading toward the washroom, knowing that Bathsheda was sure to follow. The conversation didn’t seem to want to die down. “Like what advice? Like…clothing choices and how to hold my head up high,” she stuttered, trying to come up with something normal sounding. When Bathsheda brought up Caradoc, Gladys shot her a confused look. “Yeah, all three of them would die laughing,” she sighed, rubbing at her eyes as she hit the mirror, “I look like my mom… a little bit.”

“I didn’t mean it negatively...” she sighed, “Just trying to lighten the mood a bit.” Bathsheda had been trying to change the subject but, as usual, she was failing miserably at it. “Why would they laugh?” she asked as they walked through the door, leaning against one of the sinks while Gladys gazed into the mirror. “Your brothers maybe - but they’re your brothers. Dearborn is different, or am I reading all the signs wrong here?” Bathsheda shrugged once more, “What’s so bad about looking like your mum?”

[belbabbling-blog]

Alecto’s eyes narrowed immediately. For the past few years, simply hearing Bathsheda’s voice was enough to put a scowl on her face. Especially in this moment. “I’m not crying,” she snapped, stuffing the letter she’d been holding into her pocket. She wanted to look in a mirror, suddenly feeling extremely vulnerable. Were her eyes mistier than she’d thought? Was her face red? Despite their falling out, Bathsheda knew Alecto well enough to be able to judge her moods. Even still, the only person who’d ever seen her cry was Amycus. “And even if I had been, I wouldn’t tell you. What are you doing up so late, anyway?”

Alecto had obviously been crying. Her quick retort and red-rimmed eyes were enough proof of that. Bathsheda felt she knew the girl well enough to tell the difference between Alecto’s regular self and when she was lashing out. She was good at keeping up her facade but if you looked closely enough, you were always able to see the cracks. Bathsheda still felt a familiar pang of sympathy for her though.  “Sure, sure.” she shrugged, “You might want to check yourself in a mirror then. You look a bit red.” Walking over to the nearest armchair, Bathsheda dropped her bag on the floor before taking a seat. “Slumming it with the resident undesirables..” she chuckled, “My usual Tuesday night.”

[murdock]

I still maintain that he kicked himself in the balls.

[belbabbling-blog]

“What else should I be calling you?” In the state that Bathsheda was in, Malcolm wouldn’t have been surprised if she told him to call her something ridiculous. Maybe even the nickname he’d given her the last time he saw her. He watched the young Slytherin for a few, ideal moment, trying read her. Once he felt sure she wouldn’t run off–possibly getting herself hurt or in trouble–he dropped her wrists. “Don’t worry about it. It doesn’t really bother me, anyways. It’s not as though it were a rumor. I do enjoy having some fun. I was–I guess I was a little distracted. Got too defensive.” He shrugged, then crossed his arms over his chest. “And you’re not a nightmare. I hope you don’t think these things when you’re sober. And if you don’t, I would recommend not drinking, so as to avoid these thoughts.” It almost felt rude to laugh at her words, but it also couldn’t really be helped. Malcolm chuckled. “Perfect hair and face?” He raised an eyebrow. “As I recall, you told me you weren’t going to sleep with me, so the only bed you’re getting into tonight is your own.” He put a hand on her back, chaste and firm, then started to lead her towards the portrait to Slytherin dorms.

“I have a name! Rather hard to pronounce but you haven’t had any trouble with it before.” she sighed, as he let go of her arms, “Even that silly nickname you gave me last time is better than Babbling. My name is rather ridiculous in reality anyway…Bathsheda Elenora Babbling is a mouthful…You’re just all business tonight aren’t you? Bloody prefects and your sense of duty…” If it hadn’t been obvious before, it was now. Bathsheda was an excessively chatty drunk. Usually she spent her time scowling or looking disinterested, hence the comment about her being a nightmare. She didn’t mean to sound negative but she knew she was a difficult woman. “Well don’t you worry about my self-esteem. It is pretty high..I am just being realistic. I know my faults but then again I am pretty damn amazing as well…You should know..” As he placed his hand on her back and tried to lead her down the corridor, she sighed in frustration. “I lied, obviously..” she grumbled, “If it wasn’t blindingly obvious by now, I’d shag you in a heartbeat.”

[belbabbling-blog]

“I’m going to wash it off,” Gladys affirmed with a laugh, “I don’t need you staring at me like that all evening.” The makeup was too thick on her face to show the hidden blush underneath, the blush from being far too noticed. It was what Gladys wanted. She wanted everyone to notice her, to like her, to think good things about her… but she still couldn’t quite handle it when it was actually presented to her. Her fears were too strong. “I promise I can handle myself, Bathsheda,” Gladys attempted to reassure, “I understand that the Carrows don’t have a stellar reputation, but there is no harm in letting her dole out some advice.”

Bathsheda could tell it was no longer a subject Gladys wanted to dwell on any longer. She didn’t want to press her luck any more either. It was better just to trust Gladys and keep on an eye on the situation. If worse came to worse, she wasn’t above hexing Alecto. It wouldn’t be the first time. “Like what?” she laughed, moving to follow Gladys to the washroom, “Like the most beautiful woman in the the world? I mean, it’s a tragedy we are both heterosexual. I bet if Dearborn saw you now, he’d probably have a stroke..”

[belbabbling-blog]

“A curse-breaker? I wasn’t disappointed,” Ted said, a small chuckle at the base of his throat. “That is pretty wicked. Ah–well, I’m aiming towards being a healer. Or a mediwizard. But–em…well my handwriting isn’t the best and that’s giving me some troubles.” He rubbed the back of his neck. He nodded along to his companion’s words. “I reckon everywhere has it’s problems. I mean–I certainly wouldn’t want to diminish anything that’s happened to anyone, but at least it gives us something to work towards. Well, of course, everyone should be equal and fair from the get go. That should be the default. I just try my best to look towards some light in a situation.” Nothing was out of the ordinary if Ted was rambling. “It’s nice that you travel. I think travel is good medicine for biases.” He sucked in a breath, his head bobbing up and down. “It seems that way, doesn’t it?”

“Preparing for it isn’t as glamorous as it sounds…I had considered mediwitch too at some point. I think my bedside manner would leave something to be desired though…” she said, starting to smile a little, “I could..ah, help you? If you ever needed it.” Bathsheda wouldn’t offer help to just anyone but Ted seemed nice enough. His flattery didn’t hurt too much either. “You’re sweet, really.” she said gently, “You’re right, travel does breed understanding. The “exotic other” becomes way less so if you are staring it directly in the face. All that fair and equal talk is rather inspiring too, I think. People tend to assume what side I fall on in this debate but honestly I don’t like this kind of fanaticism. It only leads to devastation. I hope to be far from it when school is over…” 

[belbabbling-blog]

“It’s practically another part of our common room this.” Galvin shrugged, a smirk on his face. He knew that most ofthe school came to the kitchens at some point during the year. But, it always felt like Helga herself had planned for the Hufflepuffs to take the short stroll here at night. It was just too handy to pass up. “If I wasn’t glum I’d feel like I didn’t care.” He chuckled. He didn’t want to just shrug the match off like it didn’t count. But, he wouldn’t sulk for too long.

“Really?” He asked, his eyebrows raised in amusement. “At least you’ve got confidence. I hope it isn’t knocked too hard when you lose.”

"I know that if the Slytherin common room were closer, I would be in here all the time too." she sighed, "I would get so fat...I'm in here enough as it is. It's always a lot more enjoyable than having to deal with people in the Great Hall." It was true, Bathsheda was not a people person. And if she were honest, she probably would've have avoided Galvin like the plague if he hadn't been Gladys's brother. She thought of her as an honorary sister really, so why not get to know him a bit more? "Oh please!" she huffed, "We lost to Ravenclaw, yes, but our team's far more superior. Just wait and see, we've been running practices a lot more lately."

[belbabbling-blog]

“I know you are bad at it and I love you for it. I was raised with Davey and Galvin. If you think we ever once had girl talk?” she snorted at the absurdity of the idea, “Come on. Let’s go for a walk to the bathroom and I can get some of this off of me.” It was easy, the way she changed the conversation and ignored the parts of it that she didn’t want to answer.

"Well, it looks nice to me." she shrugged, "If you don't want to wash it off, don't, but it's all up to you." Bathsheda figured she knew Gladys well enough to know when she was being evasive. Hell, Bathsheda was rather evasive herself so she couldn't fault her for it. She was just worried about her hanging out with Alecto so much these days. She tried not to put herself between the two as she feared that would just push Gladys further away but she needed to know she shouldn't be trusted. Bathsheda had been burned before. "I am just concerned..." she sighed, "You shouldn't take Alecto's word for everything...there's things about her - no, she's just not looking out for your best interests, is all."

[belbabbling-blog]

Malcolm hesitated for a long moment. It was clear to anyone that still had two brain cells to rub together that Bathsheda was on the side of not sober. If Malcolm hadn’t suspected before, the fact that she slipped her arms around his neck so causally was all he needed to solidify this. “Er—no one said you were difficult, Miss Babbling.” He reached behind him, and pulled her arms down from his neck, but still clung to her wrists in case she made a break for it. He had a plan to swiftly return Bathsheda to her common room before heading back out again. “Yes, I’m looking for someone. And, no, it isn’t a girl. There’s more to me than just that.” He had been looking for his roommate, Benjy, but he didn’t want to disclose this to Bathsheda. Not when he didn’t know what was going on with his friend, nor did he know if Bathsheda might report Benjy for being out past curfew. “But it appears as though I’m going to need to take a detour. You clearly need to get into bed.”

"What's with the Miss Babbling routine? I'm not someone's Nan." Bathsheda sighed, frowning as he gently removed her hands from his neck. He was now holding onto her wrists like she was going to run away. Bathsheda figured she had given him reason to think that she was going to explode on him again so she didn't try to pull away, just stared up at him with large eyes. It was a little strange but somewhere deep down, she liked the closeness. "I didn't mean to insinuate that you were always off with other girls..." she pouted, "Although I know I've probably said that before - so I'm sorry. Also I said I was difficult as I know I am...I am a complete nightmare to deal with and usually I am rather proud of it but somehow you make me feel bad. With your perfect hair and...face...And if you take me to any bed, I would hope that it would be your bed...Whoever you're looking for can wait." It had all come out rather quickly but the alcohol had given her no reason to feel embarrassed in the moment. In fact, she was smirking up at him, looking rather satisfied with herself.