Care of Magical Creatures class had been interesting to say the least. Ayla still wasn't sure how she felt about the new Professor. He definitely knew his stuff, that much was obvious but he seemed a little too strict for her likings. She was bound to get in trouble in his class more than once for talking when she wasn't supposed to. At least she hadn't gotten into any trouble today which was shaping up to be a pretty good birthday even if she did have to spend the last hour in the same classroom with Xavier. It looked as though he had moved on although to which Dark sister she couldn't be certain.

She packed up her things and said her goodbyes to her friends. She wanted to go back to the common room and freshen up before dinner. She also wanted to sneak down to the kitchens to see if she could convince one of her favourite house elves to make a special meal for her birthday dinner. So she was one of the last students out of the classroom when the lesson was finally finished just after five.

She exited the room and turned right where most of the students were going left. There was one of those many shortcuts that was practically a straight line down to the dungeons where the Hufflepuff Common Room was housed. She knew many of her friends would be hitting the library in the opposite direction to catch up on the hour of studying they had just missed from the rescheduled class.

Ayla was humming softly to herself as she passed one of the many floor to ceiling tapestries that lined the marble walls of Hogwarts castle. As she passed this one however, that was depicting a rather gruesome looking troll holding a wizard upside down she was suddenly jerked backwards. She let out a small yelp as someone had taken hold of her wrist and dragged her behind the tapestry.

Xavier was glad the class was finally over. An hour spent with the third years and the seventh years mixed into the his regular fifth year class was tiring. He wasn't used to being outshined by the older students and he definitely didn't enjoy how distracted he had been being in the same classroom as Ayla. Even with the Dark sisters by his side his mind kept going back to the raven haired Canadian. He had been trying to convince himself that he was over her, he had even told his uncle that he was giving up on her but his racing hormones weren't letting him.

If he was to move onto greener pastures he'd have to get some closure on the subject. He was determined to get her out of his head for good even though his inner voice was begging him not to do it. He wanted to move on, set his sights on someone else, someone more worthy of his affections but his inner self wasn't going to let him do that without some kind of send off and so here he was standing just behind one of the tapestries that was hiding a set of stairs going down. If he was going to do this he sure as hell wasn't going to do it where someone could run into him.

As Ayla walked past he pushed the tapestry back just far enough to reach out and wrap his hand around her tiny wrist. With one swift yank he was able to pull her into the small passageway. He felt his skin heat up being this close to her again. It was just the kind of reaction to convince him that he was doing the right thing. He needed to make sure she'd never come near him again lest he completely lose himself.

Xavier couldn't afford to be with her.

It took a little bit for Ayla's eyes to adjust to the sudden lack of light. She could tell that she had been pulled into one of the many passageways that littered the ancient wizarding castle. It still amazed her how many passageways were in the castle. It made her think of how naive she had been as a child thinking of how huge and secretive Casa Loma had been. After admiring the space she had been dragged into she took the time to recognize who had brought her there.

"Xavier!" She punched his shoulder as hard as she could muster. He was the last person she wanted to be inside a dark enclosed place with. She had been avoiding him since the dance. At first it had just been because of his nasty words when she had seen him but then she had discovered what he had done to Maddie and she couldn't even imagine looking at him let alone being anywhere near him. She had wanting to scream and kick and punch him for what he had done. Who the hell hits a girl anyways and in front of the whole school no less and now he was practically kidnapping her?

"What the hell do you think you're doing, you psycho?!" She hadn't even noticed she was continually hitting him while yelling, "First you kiss me then act like nothings happened then ask to dance with me in front of my firends, then insult them and then punch Maddie in the face?! You are the most despicable person I have ever met!"

Xavier had been wearing his most charming smile as he pulled her behind the tapestry. He waited for her to realize he was there and even though he had anticipated her attack he still stumbled backwards slightly and leaned against the stone wall to keep himself steady while she continued her attack. He couldn't help but continue to smile. She was so adorable when she was angry and her anger towards him was only strengthening his resolve. Although it made him like her even more it made him realize that ducking out now was for the best before he got so invested in her he wouldn't be able to turn away.

When she finished her rant he took hold of both her wrists to make sure she'd stop attacking him. He wasn't holding her hard but strong enough that she couldn't break out easily. He needed her to listen to him and he couldn't do that with her constantly pounding on his chest. He was thankful she wasn't an overtly strong girl otherwise those punches would have hurt.

"Ayla, Ayla!" He called out to get her attention and try to stop her from struggling in his grip, "Calm down will ye? I've gotta say sumthin." Her brought her hands down so that they were at about waist level hanging between the two of them, "I kissed ye, yes, an' I really liked it. I didn't wanna stop and I haven't bin able ta stop thinkin about it since, It was killin' me ta be in class wit ye today and not be able ta be near ye."

He sighed and figured if he was ever going to get this done he was going to have to tell her the whole truth, let her see a side of him that didn't exist for anyone else, even his uncle. There was a small soft spot inside of Xavier that all the anger and hardships had kept away. He rarely acknowledged it himself but for now, for this moment, he let it out, "Thee only reason I acted like it didn't happen was because Callum's a prick." He smirked at the shocked reaction he had gotten from her. Callum was one of his best friends at Hogwarts but it was no secret that he could be mean, cruel and vindictive. Even Xavier feared what his best mate would have done if he knew he had been snogging a third year Hufflepuff, "Ye know it's true. He's a known bully and I didn't want him ta hurt ye. Then when Fauna came in well I've got me own reasons fer bein' mad at her right now. She hurt me friend real bad and I ain't about ta let that go."

He stroked the back of her hands glad to have this little bit of physical interaction with her. He was still surprised by how attached he had become to her in such short time. He had known her for over two years now sure, but it wasn't until this school year when the pair of them seemed to have grown so much over the summer that he really found himself drawn to her, "At thee dance well ye started it." His smirk faltered slightly. He sounded like such a little kid but it was true, "Ye were thee one who called me a wretched beast remember, I had simply come over ta ask ye ta dance, talk about that kiss we had." He sneered ever so slightly but quickly went back to his charming smile, "An I wasn' insultin' yer friends, I was actually complimentin' Maddie, she just took it as an insult."

He felt weird telling his side of the story. Her own version had been so clouded by emotions. She had obviously been hurt about that night they shared in the kitchens and to be honest he couldn't blame her. He wished things had turned out differently but was also glad it turned out the way it did. It was best to know this was a challenge he couldn't conquer this early on, "As fer Maddie, well ye weren't there, ye have no idea what happened." His charming smile fell again and this time there was genuine emotion in his eyes when he spoke, "I didn't punch her, I smacked her and I know I shouldn't have and I'm sorry I did," He choked on the words slightly. Even now, with his softer side showing he still wasn't actually sorry for hitting Maddie but he needed Ayla to think that he was. He needed to redeem himself in front of her so that when he said goodbye to her she'd accept it.

"She threatened me, pulled her wand on me, ordered me ta never see ye again. Told me I didn' have any balls then insulted me family, said we were nuthin' more than common criminals. I couldn't stop meself. She just made me so angry." He looked into her green and gold eyes, "I'm sorry Ayla, I never meant ta hurt ye."

She hated him. Or rather she wanted so badly to hate him and could only muster being able to hate what he did to her. She couldn't stand the fact that she felt herself softening listening to his defense. If there was any man in the world that could turn this whole situation around to make himself look like the victim it was Xavier Tawse. She was still shocked by how much she liked him. She had been determined to put all her focus into showing Blake that they would be much better off as more than friends but there was no use in denying that she had a thing for Xavier, even before he had kissed her. Xavier, in her opinion, was the most attractive guy in school and she had thought so since her first year. She had never really had any interactions with him until this year though and now she was wishing she had for once kept her distance.

She was sure her whole head had turned scarlet when he mentioned not being able to forget about their kiss. If she was being completely honest with herself the same thought had been haunting her ever since that night as well. She wanted to hate him and was doing her best to convince herself and those around her that she actually did hate him but every night since the one she had spent with him in the kitchens brought her back to that knee weakening sensation brought on by his lips crushed against hers. She felt a little bit better and very embarrassed knowing that he had felt the same way.

She narrowed his eyes at him when he began to talk about the dance. She had been hurt by how he had acted in front of Callum and Fauna especially since she had been swept off her feet by him only moments before. She was trying to play coy and be flirty with Blake but it ended up exploding in her face and everyone around her seemed to be overwhelmed by emotions. She hadn't even really thought about the fact that Xavier had only come over to ask her to dance. She wondered how differently the night would have turned out if she had just danced with him instead of trying to push him away. Maybe Maddie wouldn't have gotten hit.

She felt a storm of emotions brewing inside her when he spoke of Maddie. It was true that she had only heard one side of the story which hadn't even come from Maddie. The older Hufflepuff hadn't wanted to upset her and so Ayla had to find out what had happened through outside sources. It was bound to have holes in the stories and even though Ayla didn't want to believe him that Maddie had instigated it and done all those things she couldn't help but trust him. When Maddie stormed off she had been very angry with Xavier convinced the older boy had forced himself on Ayla so it wasn't really that hard to imagine her threatening him with her wand and then some.

Ayla pulled her hands free from his grip and placed one of them on his cheek stroking it slightly. She gave him a small smile and sighed, "Don't beat yourself up about it okay? I don't like that what you did but if someone had done that to me I'd probably hit them too." She was trying to figure out what to do with her other hand and awkwardly shoved it into her pocket not wanting to touch him anymore than she already was, "I forgive you okay and to be honest I can't get you out of my head either. No one's ever kissed me like that before, no one's even ever looked at me the way you do. It makes me feel excited and uncomfortable all at the same time and I really don't know what to do about it. I keep trying to tell myself that I hate you and that you're nothing but a low life jerk who prey's on younger girls but at the end of the night I don't believe it and I end up falling asleep to thoughts of you."

She took her hand from his cheek and wrapped her arms around herself. She hadn't wanted to tell him all of this stuff. Why couldn't he have just left her alone and moved onto some other girl so she could go back to pining over one of her best friends in peace? She looked back up at him, "So you're crazy about me and apparently I'm crazy about you, what happens next?"

What the hell was he thinking?!

How was he supposed to give up and say goodbye to her when she was being like this? Maybe he should have just let things be, let her continue to avoid and hate him and move onto Bella like he had initially planned. Why the hell did he need to have closure? This was killing him. Xavier had never given up on anything in his life. He had always found a way to make things work in his favour, he wasn't a quitter. How had he managed to throw himself into a situation that had no positive outcome? If he said goodbye now he was sure to lose a bit of what little heart he actually had but if he continued on with her, kept on using her while slowly losing himself to her kindness he was screwed. He would be shunned by his friends and constantly under attack by hers. There was no feasible way for them to have any sort of relationship.

With her hand on his cheek he tilted his head to the side pushing his cheek further into her palm closing his eyes at the feel of her touch. He breathed heavily mentally preparing himself for what he would have to do. He opened his eyes when she took her hand away. He scowled slightly at how small and vulnerable she looked. He hated himself for what was coming next but it was a necessary evil.

He scoffed slightly and crossed his arms over his chest as well, "What happens next?" He gave a low dark sounding laugh,"Nuthin, absolutely jack shite." He looked into her green and gold eyes. He wondered if she would tell anyone about the new side of him that she was seeing, even if she did he supposed it wouldn't be that bad. His reputation was already pretty much shot. It was why he needed to cling onto his feelings for Bella, with her by his side he could build himself back up to his former glory, "Simply put, nuthin cin ever happen between us no matter how much we want it to. Imma Slytherin yer a Hufflepuff. I know yer fourteen now and everythin' but yer still a third year and well I'm not. Our friends would never let us be together. Maddie would probably castrate me and Callum would make yer life a livin' hell. Maybe if we were older, and we weren't in such an idiotic social hierarchy things might've worked out fer us."

He drummed his fingers on his forearms wishing he had a cigarette or a punching bag to get rid of the jittery feeling that was coursing through his veins, "We're jus too different. Ye need ta go on an live yer life and I need to live mine."

She sneered at him. After all this, after weeks of avoiding him and trying to move on she finally admits to herself and to him that she's crazy about him and now he was just dismissing her? She felt angry and sad all at the same time. She wanted to tell him that they could work through it that any friends that would give him up just over the kind of girl he decides to date weren't very good friends in the first place. She wanted to tell him that she could handle Maddie and keep the older Hufflepuff at bay but when she really thought about it he had a point. As much as both of them wanted it there was no real way of making it work and if she was to even try working something out with Xavier she'd lose everything she had with Blake and she had no doubt there was another girl that Xavier would face the same situation with.

She pouted slightly, "So that's it then, one magical night cut short? One absolutely amazing kiss and then see you later?" She couldn't help but sound disappointed. Even though she agreed with him that going their separate ways was for the best she was still upset. This was her first real brush with romance. Xavier was the first guy who ever made her feel like this and she didn't really want that feeling to go away. One look in his eyes told her that he didn't want to give up on this either but there seemed to be something else motivating him. Maybe there was another girl that would be better for his 'image'.

"Look I should head back. I was supposed to take a shower before dinner and try and convince some house elves to make my favourite food for dinner." She was ready to say her final goodbyes to him but her body wouldn't budge. It was as if she was waiting for something, maybe she was waiting for him to say to hell with it, lets make this work, screw our friends and our reputations, if we want to be together there's nothing that's going to stop us. Sadly she didn't think that was the case.

Once again his stomach fell out from under him. He felt that familiar boiling of rage build up inside him when he saw how hurt and disappointed he had made her. He cursed himself for not having started things up with her when they were ten years older. As adults there was nothing in the world that would have stopped him from having her and as an adult he was more likely to make a greater impression on her father and his Ministry friends, afterall that was the whole reason he had gotten himself into this mess. Ten years of extra experience would have been enough to teach him how to use a woman like Ayla and not invest his personal feelings into it.

He moved towards the tapestry trying to block her way out. He wasn't finished, didn't she know that? He was putting himself out on a limb here trying to make their send off something for the history books and here she was ready to just walk away half way through. God, women could be so frustrating. He suppressed a growl and gave her a smile instead, "At least we'll have the memories." He gave her a wink knowing full well the effect it would have on her, "Besides I can't let ye leave without yer birthday present."

He opened the left side of his robes and pulled out something long and shiny. The golden chain seemed to be the perfect length for her neck and the pendant hanging off of it was a large topaz gem, her birthstone. It was the same pendant he had learned to make in Transfiguration the week before. The one he had made in class was reserved for someone else but he had made the second with every intention of giving it to Ayla at some point or another.

Xavier released the clasp and put the chain around the younger girl's neck thankful for the fact that her hair was no longer than a few inches. He didn't believe he'd be able to actually put the necklace on smoothly if she had a foot or more of hair hanging down her robes. He moved in closer than needed to fastened the necklace behind her neck and then slid his hands to rest on her hips, "Happy Birthday Ayla." He closed the gap between them and once again captured her lips with his own.

Thanks for the memories even if they weren't so great

Ayla couldn't help herself. As soon as he said it the lyrics just popped into her head. She knew people found her weird for keeping up with the muggle music groups from back home but it helped remind her of who she was and where she had come from. She let a smirk play on her lips as the song continued to play in her head although the volume went considerably quieter when he mentioned a birthday present.

She hadn't received any presents yet. Even her parents had sent her a letter explaining that they'd be giving her their present the next time she had a Hogsmeade weekend. Her father was going to be in the area for business anyway and wanted to give it to her in person. She had a feeling her siblings and friends were waiting for her party on Saturday to give her their presents. She felt her heart skip a beat when he pulled the necklace out of his robes. It was beyond stunning and it made Aleks' simple little heart charm look like a plastic 25 cent toy from a vending machine in comparison.

She felt a flash of heat where his fingers touched her neck and goose bumps spread over her skin. She suppressed a shudder and looked up into his cool grey eyes. She had never expected him to have given her anything like it. She had no words for what she was feeling and no time to sort them out. Before she knew it she was engulfed in his arms and lips yet again. Instinctively her arms wrapped tight around his neck and she pushed her body up into  his. She could feel his arms tighten around her his hands gripping and massaging her back giving off the impression that he couldn't get enough of her.

One More Night and One More Time

Much like the last time they had kissed timed seemed to melt away. She felt her knees weaken and would have fallen if it weren't for Xavier holding onto her so desperately. Every inch of her body was alight with sensation, because of this is had taken her a lot longer than normal to realize that her cheeks were wet. She pushed away reluctantly gasping for breath. When she looked up at Xavier she reached to touch his own cheek finding the source of the dampness on her cheek.

"Xav."

What Thee Bloody Hell Is Wrong With Ye Wentworth?!

Xavier scowled heavily at the vicious words of his inner voice. It was only in very rare and often anger fueled occasions that he ever referred to himself by his real name. He didn't make mistakes often but when he did, especially those that were done through lack of logical or rational thought on his part he reverted back to his birth name using it like the insult it was. Since the day his father left Xavier renounced the name hating him for everything he had left behind and never bothering to come back to. That anger only got worse with every year his father was gone and so the name held a special sense of blasphemy to it.

He looked down at Ayla and pushed her hand from his cheek a lot more forcefully than was necessary. He hated himself for what he had done. It was bad enough he had lost himself in her lips yet again but to let a woman, no a girl, a stupid silly little girl see him cry? There was no words for that kind of transgression. The fact that he was crying alone was proof that this was one big mistake. Who was he to have such emotions? He was a man, a strong confident man that had no use for feelings and emotions and tears.

He did his best to ignore the part of his mind that was screaming at him, begging him not to walk away to savour what he hand in front of him and be damned of the consequences. He had never had this voice be so loud before, it was maddening. He quashed it back, beat it into submission and ignored the useless tears that still streaked his cheeks. This was enough proof that he had done the right thing. The sooner he got out of there the better.

He opened his mouth to say something but the words lost their way partway up his throat. He coughed slightly and with the indescribable rage still boiling over inside him he tore the tapestry aside, ripping it from it's fastenings and without a further look back he marched away from a part of his life, a bundle of his emotions that he was beyond pleased to be putting behind him.

Ayla Collins was no more than a memory.

Ayla gasped when he viciously pushed her hand away. She had hated guys so much! Why was it so horrible to be able to show emotions? They were what made you human afterall, just because you're a guy doesn't mean you're not allowed to have them. Anger boiled up in her almost as quickly and furiously as it did in Xavier himself. She held her hand to her chest rubbing it although he didn't actually hurt her.

Her heart was still racing from their few moments of intense passion and she didn't think she was going to be getting the feeling back in her lips for quite some time. Although unlike their night in the kitchens she found herself having no desire to repeat the process. Xavier was right, this could never work and she soon found herself hating him for doing this on her birthday, who the hell breaks up with someone on their birthday? What an inconsiderate swine!

She watched his furious expression with a stone cold glare. He seemed ready to say something to her, maybe he was going to smarten up and apologize to her but there was no mistaking that anger in his eyes. As confusing as he had been Ayla understood that anger. He was angry at himself for crying in front of her and angry at her for making him come to the point of tears, whether the tears had been because he truly felt something for her and was struggling with letting her go she supposed she'd never know.

She refused to let herself feel sorry for him. If he wanted to be a macho dickhead by all means. She had wanted to think that he was different, that she would really miss what they could have had but it wasn't worth it. No matter how charming he had been and how sorry she had felt for him over the whole mess with Maddie all of that was washed away with the look in his eyes. Perhaps it was good he had done this, it just proved that she didn't really want him after all.

This guilt trip that you put me on won't, mess me up I've done no wrong
Any thoughts of you and me have gone away

She watched him tear out of the secret passageway, ripping down the tapestry as he went. She stepped out of the small passageway herself and watched him make a hasty retreat. She rolled her eyes cursing herself for ever feeling anything for someone like him, "Well screw you too!"

I'm better off alone anyway


~*~ Fin ~*~