Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh)

Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:19 am

"I used to have quiet Christmases with my dad, it was the best because there was no fancy meal to prepare and no one to impress, just the two of us and my god mother if she wanted to join us."

"Christmas is overrated." Josh replied in agreement. What was the point in a holiday that gave out presents when you were supplied with everything you needed at the drop of a hat? No, Josh had learnt from a very young age that holidays were unimportant, the house staff would get him exactly as he wanted, or bad things would happen. Though why she used the past tense, Josh didn't enquire, family were trivial at the best of times, and seeing as his Azalea hadn't asked for the reasons behind his own quiet Christmas, he wouldn't probe hers.

They passed a few pieces without much comment, Josh's eyes merely watched Azalea as she took it in. The interest on some of the intricate details, and the confusion in the cat. Josh supplied nothing where she didn't ask, not wanting to bring the fact he was watching her intently in to play. But the one thing Josh had noticed, whether it was the wine or the pictures, Azalea had seemed to relax since being here. Something that made him feel...

"When was that?"

Averting his eyes from the witch before she looked to him, Josh looked up at the portrait of himself. It was just a trophy shot, nothing important. "Polo club, two-thousand and four, youngest member to ever the vote of all players for Best Player." Josh replied, returning his gaze to the witch. "I was playing in the youth team, which went up to the ages of thirteen." The boy explained, not bothering to explain how the boy who should rightfully have won the trophy had found himself accidently in a hospital ward, nor how the rest of the team had quickly changed their mind from the more amicable boy to Josh.

Brushing away the rest of the thoughts in regards to that moment, Josh motioned for his Azalea to continue around the gallery. "The next section is... yours." The words came out slightly hesitantly from Josh, before he opened the door to the next section, holding it open for the witch. The big moment he'd been waiting for. The work he'd shown her so far was nothing in comparison to what she was about to see, but Josh didn't tell her that, she could make the decision for herself.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:21 am

Azalea sipped her wine politely as Josh explain the portrait. Polo, she was as familiar with the sport as she was with any besides Quidditch, and even that too because of Jake. The witch called to mind an image of people riding horses and possibly using golf clubs. Deciding not to give away her poor knowledge of the game, she merely nodded as Josh explained how he had won as the youngest something ever. It didn't surprise her, he looked very comfortable on his horse.

With the last piece done, the Slytherin ushered her towards a dark wood paneled door, pushing it noiselessly open and waiting for her to enter.

"The next section is... yours."

"Mine?" the Brunette asked, an inquisitive eyebrow raised as she entered, only to take in a huge frame, holding a simply sketched cavas obviously enlarged for the benefit of the frame. The sketch was simple enough, of a young girl knelt over some potted plants. The girl's face as obscured, her hair falling over her shoulder in great cascading details a she lavished attention to the potted shrubs she knelt beside. The plaque beneath simply read September 2007. Joshua's second year at Hogwarts.

And though the girl's face was not in sight, a small feeling of unease crept inside the Herbologist. Many things from that sketch stood out. And though anyone could have worn those simple jeans and the tight fitted black top that showed a mere hint of the girl's navel, not everyone had access to the exact kind of plants this girl was tending to, in the south corner of the Hogwarts greenhouse as the light filtered in, slightly odd through the uneven glassed titles on the roof because the caretaker hand't cleared them all properly that day...

A few steps further there was another piece depicting an all too familiar figure, this time in watercolours, the paint capturing her smile better than perfectly as she helped a group of first years dry off after a stint in the tank with Gillyweed. The water droplets glistened as though they were real, sprinkled on the canvas the moment before they walked in to give the painting a realistic quality. So much so that unconsciously, Azalea extended her hand to touch the painting before realizing where she was and withdrawing.

A series of azaleas, the flowers, drawn in perfect detail, some to scale, some not, some coloured, some plain, some burning and some mid bloom dominated the next section, making the witch marvel at the botanical correctness with which Josh had managed to duplicate the otherwise useless flowers.

"This is... unbelievable," the witch breathed, not quiet in compliment as an edge of hesitance entered her voice. What was it Miss Kira had said about the drawings she'd seen? Here was proof of what the young woman had said. Josh... had drawn her in very intimate detail. And Azalea wasn't sure if this trip was appropriate any more.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:21 am

"Mine?"

A nod was the only manner in which Josh conveyed she had understood him correctly. Very carefully, the Slytherin closed the door behind them, following behind his Azalea, watching the way she moved so elegantly, gracefully to the first picture. And for the first time that evening, Josh took in the intricate detail of her shoulders, poised perfectly in a manner all too familiar in his society. Her bone structure, how each carved it's own pattern in to her skin. Skin that he'd been working so carefully to match in each and every picture.

Though even Josh wasn't sure he'd found the beauty in each picture that was on display before him.

Within touching distance...

But to touch such astounding beauty would be foolishness. Josh would not succumb to such frailties of men, even if his Azalea was the temptation of another world.

"This is... unbelievable,"

"It is." Josh replied in a soft tone, captivated by the unique composition of the witch before him. Until her tone struck through him, the hesitance in her voice. "You don't like them?" Josh asked, looking up at the picture she'd reached and trying to find the part his Azalea didn't like. They were perfect replicas of the tenderness of the witch beside him. Showing the manner in which she treated every one of her students. The emotions he'd never seen until Azalea Harrington had walked through the Herbology door over four years ago.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:22 am

"You don't like them?"

The witch shook her head, letting him know it wasn't the quality of these works she had a problem with. It still seemed bizarre that Josh would have made them from memory because she certainly hadn't posed for any of them.

"I just... do you paint other people too?" she asked, trying to steer the conversation into less murky waters.

Apparently not as she moved to the next exhibit, this time done entirely in shades of green. The monochrome shot showed Azalea reclining in her chair, probably between two classes, a half eaten apple on her desk as the witch leaned her chair back with her eyes closed, oblivious to the world around her.

This was not an image Josh would have gotten from class. This was... Azalea resisted the urge to ask if this was his conception or a real moment captured on paper. Because the answer might be more than she could handle.

"I don't understand why I... feature so heavily in your artwork." the witch confessed, moving to the huge portrait that stole centre of attention in this section of the gallery. At first glance it looked like a break from the norm. Greenhouse ceiling, glass walls, the usual mess and then, protruding from under a raised flowerbed, all covered in muck and with only one glove on...

It was the most beautiful depiction she had ever seen of herself, emerging from the cluster of earth, her hair nonetheless maintained a kind of raggedy perfection that could only be of the artist's creation. The subtle curve of her chest, the way her blouse rode up her waist as she looked on at something her real life counterpart could only imagine. The Azalea in the painting managed to give off the impression of incredible beauty, radiating the picture with warmth and light as she smiled at, what Azalea now realized, was josh holding out a hand to her, helping her get out from under the rotten roots.

He had captured and memorized her the way she looked an instant before giving him her hand and captured it perfectly in oils.

"Josh... " no words could describe the incredible portrait before her. And no words could explain the thread of fear that accompanied the realization. "You are... very talented."

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:22 am

"I just... do you paint other people too?"

"Duplicate, not paint." The reply came, much like it did with his mother. Josh never painted, he never sketched, he duplicated real life. He didn't have to see an image for long and could recreate it perfectly. "You're my only muse though, yes." Josh added, though it only took a quick sweeping gaze of the vast room to show that everything was focused on the witch in the room. Nothing else was allowed in here, on Josh's insistence, and the Slytherin had filled every space possible.

"I don't understand why I... feature so heavily in your artwork."

The reasons were endless, but Azalea's words were not a question. So that meant Josh would not supply her with an answer as she continued to look on at the pictures. The emotions on her face flickering quickly as she took in the work before her.

"You are... very talented."

"Oh no, A-Azalea. The talent lies in you." Josh replied, shaking his head at her words. Pointing back to the picture of the children emerging from the tank soaking, the look in Azalea's eyes showed the caring nature Josh had found so alluring from day one. "I've never... seen anyone look like that before. Or..." Pointing to another picture of Azalea bent over a flower bed tending to the plants as if they were able to understand the human touch. "How you tend to plants and people in the same manner. The caring nature... creates a perfection I've never seen before."

With that said, Josh lowered his arm to his side, looking back to the witch to see if that had sunk in. Hoping it made some sense to her, because for five years, he'd been struggling to understand the feelings Azalea Harrington had introduced to him.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:23 am

"Oh no, A-Azalea. The talent lies in you."

It was all but impossible to tear her eyes away from the painting, the degree of reverence conveyed through art but Azalea did, listening to his explanation of what he found so inspiring. Her eyes flickered to different parts of the huge space, taking in the works he mentioned, insuring that it was her caring nature that drew him.

And despite the sweet words coming from him, they were starting to make the witch realize how much of a mistake it had been to agree to come here.

Miss Kira had been right to warn Azalea. Josh Murray... his attachment to how he viewed her was... beyond the point of normal. All those portraits, sketched, watercolours, fitted monochromatic outlines, they were proof that the boy had nursed a soft spot for her for a long time now and this... This, Azalea realized with dismay, could be seen as encouraging him.

"How you tend to plants and people in the same manner. The caring nature... creates a perfection I've never seen before."

"I'm not that perfect, Josh," the witch corrected kindly, trying her best to shatter his illusions as gently as she could. Because beneath all the fear he was inducing in her, there was a lonely four year old who had sketched an empty table at Christmas. There was a boy who had never seen someone care for another. And he did not deserve more hurt.

"I mean, your talent is amazing, I don't look nowhere near as pretty in actuality as I do in all your works. All the talent is in you, nothing is mine," she reasoned, keeping an unsteady smile up as she spoke, suddenly very afraid and keenly aware that no one knew where she was, who she was with.

The Herbologist found herself wishing Jake was here, even if she was fully capable of protecting herself.

Not that Josh would ever hurt her. No, the thought of the Slytherin harming her was inconceivable.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:25 am

"I'm not that perfect, Josh,"

Josh opened his mouth to argue, but his brain couldn't fathom a reply. How could the witch before him not see what he always had? See that everything about her was perfect down to the final eyelash? Nothing was ever out of place, everything worked, her mannerism, her looks, her words. The Slytherin looked at the professor with as much uncertainty as he'd ever found in the world, trying to work out her logic.

"I mean, your talent is amazing, I don't look nowhere near as pretty in actuality as I do in all your works. All the talent is in you, nothing is mine,"

The statement made Josh pause for a moment, looking at the witch before him with confusion written clearly in his features. Then the reality of the situation set in, she believed the artwork to be better than the muse. Taking out his wand, Josh turned his back on the witch and pointing his wand to each painting in turn, the paintings came alive with the dance of orange embers. Licking delicately at the different compositions and slowly consuming them in all the hate Josh held of them. There was no effort made to control the fire, especially those closer to the door.

Carefully, purposefully, Josh moved himself between the door and his Azalea, focusing his attention on the witch. "No duplication can ever match your beauty, A-Azalea. No piece of artwork shall ever outshine you again, I promise." Josh told her, sincerity in his eyes as he looked back to her. Sincerity that would be lost from the reflection of the fire in his eyes. He'd take everything from the world if he had to.

Everything, if it meant she'd see herself the way he saw her.

Perfect.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:25 am

With a growing feeling of dread in her stomach, Azalea watched the confusion mar his features, trying to digest whatever it was she had said because if there was one thing Azalea had begun to realize, it was that Josh Murray saw and heard only what he wanted to. What he appeared to know of her, no matter how rich in detail, was as two dimensional as the art that adorned the gallery. Art that seemed to linger for just a moment, needed before the Slytherin drew his wand.

Azalea wanted to flinch, to run, to call for help but the young woman was frozen in place as she watched the fire consume Josh's duplications, rendering them to ash, the fire not particularly careful about collateral damage it left in its wake.

And no one intervened. No security system came to life, no siren, no sprinklers or fire extinguishers even though it was impossible to fathom that a castle housing this much art would not take precautions against something as easily compatible as fire. Azalea stood amazed and terrified as she witnessed a glimpse of Murray power, the absence of guards or firemen proving what she must already have subconsciously figured out a while ago.

Joshua Murray could commit murder in here and no one would bat an eye.

"No duplication can ever match your beauty, A-Azalea. No piece of artwork shall ever outshine you again, I promise."

The promise made Azalea shudder, taking a step back from the blonde and the reverent look on his face.

"I... have to go," the witch managed, trying not to take in the burning room. "I..." and with that, she closed her eyes, Shifting for the first time in over six month, letting reality swallow her whole only to deposit her safely on her bed in Canada.

Where the witch curled up, still dressed from the gallery, trying to forget the nightmare she'd just witnessed.

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Subject: Re: Edge of Insanity (Azalea & Josh) Sat Mar 24, 2018 10:25 am

"I... have to go,"

"But we haven't finished..." Josh replied, looking as if someone had stolen his favourite toy. Which, in the Murray household was a recipe for disaster. But before the Slytherin could even begin to make the witch understand, she had left. Glaring at the space the witch had once occupied, Josh's hands curled in to fists, watching the various paintings burn until they fell to the floor.

The whole place could burn down for all he cared.

Turning on his heel, Josh left the room, slamming the door against its hinges. The sound of footsteps before him alerted him to an overly nosey servant. As the man rounded the corner the red flash of light knocked him back the way he'd come and the blood-curdling screams of the man filled the air.

Screams and begging, writhing and clawing. Josh paid no attention to the sounds or sights as he glided past the man. Nobody else moved as the sounds filled the castle. Nobody moved as the glass that had already broken in his hand slipped to the floor and shattered in to many and more pieces. The servants knew when they were needed and when they were not. Even in the knowledge their master was bleeding, they made no move towards him as the screams continued.

Joshua Murray was not to be disturbed when in a tantrum.

And only when he moved outside the front door of the castle, did the boy apparate back to the gates of Hogwarts, pushing through them. The witch had stood him up. Made him seem a fool. He would not tolerate it. Not for a moment.

The glass from the wine glass was not the only glass that imbedded in Josh's skin that evening. Each greenhouse had been shattered in Josh's wake. Each plant in that house would slowly wither and die. His Azalea's work would come to nothing, and slowly she would have to rebuild her collection. Slowly rebuild a collection, just as he was going to have to now. It was only fair they had to put the same effort in.

So he left her plants to die.

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» When No Matter What You Do, It's Never Good Enough (Josh & Azalea)
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