WINTER BREAK was a lovely time for amos . baking christmas cookies with his mother , going to get a tree with his father , and celebration of the season were some of the best parts of the break from school . these celebrations , however , could never compare to the feeling of being free from the stress of school . being in classed was something he surely didnât miss , save for care of magical creatures . but , for the most part , he did miss the fellow students . amos was a friendly guy , and had a lot of great pals at school with him . he would certainly miss seeing them , but only almost as much as he enjoyed not being in class.Â
BUT there were some people he didnât miss .
NOW that he was back at school , he had fallen back into the swing of things for the most part , but there were some things in the castle that he could never get used to . naturally , one of those things would approach him almost as soon as he had returned . while he had been busy waiting around for one of his friends , he must have unfortunately caught her eye . the second the two made eye contact , he would offer a friendly smile , not only out of habit but also almost as a plea for mercy . that was something he knew he would not receive , but it was certainly worth a try .
â ALECTO , â he started , picking up on her cruel tone , and doing his best to keep from stammering as he would continue on , â no , you werenât who i was looking for , sorry . â he wasnât a shy guy in any sense of the word , but there was something about her that made him want to hide , like a turtle in its shell , and never make his way out .Â
HE took a look around , before leaning in and whispering , â listen , could we please not do this today ? i happen to be waiting for someone who i have plans with . â he knew what was practically begging wouldnât work on her ââ nothing would ââ but he thought anything to be worth a try to get a lighter sentence from the woman .
  the way they behaved aroud her - that was what made it all worth her while. had they not recognized her authority perhaps she would have sought out a new victim. alecto could trace her path to her current wicked ways all the way back to her third year at the castle - sure, she had hurt people before, and other creatures as well, but torture⌠now, that was a bliss. she had been quite young when her father first foud her hovering over a dead bird, feathers plucked out as she examined the body closely. the image hadnât fazed her in the least.
  psychologically taunting her classmates hadnât been something she was naturally attracted to: she couldnât quite see the appeal in leaving bruises that could not be seen. she wanted everyone to know where sheâd been, she wanted to leave a signature on every single one of her victimsâ bodies that other would recognize. she so desperately wanted to be feared. eventually, her brother had convinced her that was all too risky ( who else could have changed her mind but her other half? )
  she understood now. the mere glimpse of terror in their eyes as she simply walked past them - that was enogh to give her the thrill of the year. amos diggory was a true gem, a real gift to her boring afternoons. for some wonderful reason, fate seemed to push them toward each other quite often. how dull her days would be without the fun he so provided. the way he said sorry pushed her brow up in a perfect arch over her cat-like eye. was that nerve she sensed in him?someone ought to teach him a lesson. and how he leaned in closer to her as if whatever words he would speak were a tacit agreement between them - it almost had a romantic tint to it.
  now begging - that she enjoyed. if she had to choose, they wouldnât have been in a crowded hallway when he begged - rather, heâd be on his knees and her wand pressed tightly against his skull. but she wasnât picky. âi truly am in the mood to have a conversation with you, amos,â she hissed, words nothing but posion as they dropped from her lips. âdid you enjoy your time home?â one might think she was actually interested. one would be correct - she wanted to know so she could use his own words against him. wrap them around that pretty little throat of his and PULL. âwas mommy dearest alright?â she added, dragging her words as if she was putting so. much. effort. into the exchange.