Dark Arts Classroom

[Leanna Barker]

Leanna stepped back from Amycus and shrugged off her outer robes. She was wearing a skirt and as she drew her wand, lifted the material so she could reach her thigh. The cutting curse sliced deep into her, blood forming at the cut then slowly running down her leg. She dropped the material and lifted her skirt, her wand drawing across her stomach, from the bottom of her ribs on the left, diagonally down to her right hip. Blood welled and rolled down her body, the first drip reaching her skirt and starting to soak into the material, turning it dark. She dropped the material, still holding her wand and waited for her next instructions.

[Amycus Carrow]

"See now," the Death Eater drawled as he moved back behind the Ravenclaw, one arm laying over her shoulder to dangle down before her as he leaned his weight on her person, chest idly leaning on her back as he tilted his head, examining Leanna's face. "The problem with imperio is..."

Lifting his other hand he waved it before the girls face to show her lack of reaction, Amycus's eyes flickering to Theo instead as he shot him a wicked smile.

"No one's at home to get the good of it. By the time she comes around, you might as well have cast yourself... Understand the flaw, little snake?"

Imperio while useful, had always been a boring spell to him. Where was the fun in forcing someone to obey if they couldn't fight you? Where was the screaming and the crying? Boring... far better to look in someone's eye and make them choose, make them agree to hurt themselves and those around them, to watch that spirit die as they realise you *owned* them fully.

[Pansy Parkinson]

Pansy gazed with a raised brow, she didn't know Theo could think of that... or that he could cast an Unforgivable.

[Amycus Carrow]

Amycus caught sight of the girl sitting silently in the back of the class and gestured her over with a crook of his finger.

"Come here, little Miss House Cup," he invited, though his tone made it clear it was more of an order. "Wouldn't want someone so eager to be left out of this lesson now would we?"

[Pansy Parkinson]

"Yes, Professor," Pansy replied politely and moved over to a desk in front of the class, though she was cursing in her mind. She had hoped she passed unnoticed.

[Theo Nott]

A thoughtful look crossed Theo's face at the Professors comment. He nodded. "I understand sir." He said. "What would you have me do next?" He asked.

He glanced at Pansy as she moved forward, this certainly was about to get interesting.

[Amycus Carrow]

Amycus rolled his eyes at the response, lazilly flicking a hand in a wandless hex, the nasty stinging blow lashing accross Nott's face.

"Didn't I tell you to think for yourself?" he asked dryly, before his eyes shifted to Pansy instead. "Get thinking before I get annoyed. Parkinson, why don't you show us if you're a little less mindless than your sweet little contempory over there. What would you do?"

[Pansy Parkinson]

She didn't dare gaze at Theo, her heart racing as the Professor challenged her to give an answer.
"I would have her hurt someone she cares for, given the fact that the Imperius allows her to be aware of what she's doing, Sir," she replied quickly, gaze only on the Carrow twin.

[Theo Nott]

Theo's head snapped back at the hex, it wasnt entirely unexpected, but he managed to keep from crying out. His eyes watered lightly, but filled with determination. He did not want to permanently harm Leanna, but he was at a loss for what to do. He glanced down at the floor for a moment in thought, Pansy's words flickering through his mind.

"That is useless here in the castle." he commented to her before turning once more to Leanna. Turn around and transfigure the papers on the desk behind you into two dozen small thin blades. he ordered.

[Leanna Barker]

Blood was starting to soak into Leanna's skirt where her thigh was bleeding. It would have been numb if she'd been in control of herself, but she wasn't. Leanna heard Theo's voice in her head again and turned to the desk, her wand waving (I almost wrote: 'wave wanding') over the papers. They changed to the blades he had wanted from her, her wand lowering.

[Theo Nott]

Set your wand aside, Theo began his last set of orders. Raise your left hand above the blades and bring it down palm first onto them. he concluded, hoping she would understand why he was doing this.

He let out a small breath, and waited until the exact moment Leanna wouldn't be able to stop the momentum before dropping the Imperio, so she would be fully awake when she struck the blades.

[Leanna Barker]

Leanna set her wand down without any issue, but at the command to drop her hands onto the blades, she hesitated, life flickering into her eyes for just a moment. Her hand dropped down, the spell ended and she felt pain in the palm of her hand. The numbness of her leg came rushing into her and she stumbled and fell, her palm pressing harder onto the blades, slicing deeper as she tried to keep her feet. She dropped to the floor, a high-pitched whine leaving her, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of hearing her scream.

[Draco Malfoy]

Draco slipped into class and took a seat in the back.

[Caden McGinnis]

Caden meandered his way into the room, casting a quick glance around the place before sitting at a random desk.

[Millicent Bulstrode]

Millicent quietly walked in, biting her lip and then sliding into the seat beside Draco. She resisted the urge to say anything.

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex walked into the class and, spotting Caden, took the seat beside his before directing his eyes to the front, where he could see the Carrow's attention set on Pansy, Leanna and Theo. What exactly had been going on here?

[Caden McGinnis]

"Hey," Caden greeted his fellow Raven with a slight nod of his head.

[Draco Malfoy]

Draco took note of the other students and nodded a greeting to Daphne but didn't say anything. He didn't want to call the sadists attention to him anymore than needed.

[Ginny Weasley]

A petite hand caught the door as Alex let it swing back, just stopping it from slamming, pushing it open a moment later to allow Ginny's slender form to slip through, her brown eyes scanning quickly over the class, resting perhaps half a milisecond longer on Draco before she shifted her attention to the front of the class. Mouth turning down at the display of torture - between Leanna and her beloved Nott of all people - Ginny silently made her way to her seat, clamping down forceably on the urge to speak up and direct attention away from the other students.

Leanna had brough this on herself, the redhead reminded her heart. She had chosen Amycus's attention...

[Draco Malfoy]

Seeing Ginny, Draco gave a discrete look. It would be a lot easier if they could at least say hello or something in public, but that wasn't allowed. The blond boy quickly looked away before he was noticed and went back to watching the rather demented show.

[Amycus Carrow]

"Better," Amycus smirked at Pansy. "But still lacking imagination."

He allowed the topic to stay there a moment as his idle gaze watched as Nott tried to redeme himself, still clinging to his imperio to force it to try and work, though he had at least listened enough to realise to pull back in the last instance, leaving the redhead to crumple to the ground with a whine.

Ignoring the girl at his feet, Amycus prowled over towards Theo, his wand pressing to the underside of his chin, forcing his head up as he flashed him a downright nasty grin.

"One trick pony it seems," he mused, leaning in closer as he held his eyes. "Unimaginative... all round unimpressive, sweetness. You dissapoint me. Seems I'm going to have to expand your mind..."

His lips moved to the boy's ear as his wand pressed harder.

"Stand by my desk..." he purred, holding him there a moment before abruptly dropping the contace and stepping away, booted foot kicking Leanna as he passed. "You. I suggest you find a way to slow that bleeding. I'd be *most* dissapointed if you fell asleep in my class precious thing."

Without furter adiu he seemed to simply go back to ignoring the girl, instead sweeping his eyes over his now full class. Leaning back against his desk, the psychopath offered them a wicked smile.

"So many bright and eager shining little faces," he cooed. "Won't this be fun? Welcome to Dark Arts my sweet little kiddies. Todays lesson - the limitations of spells. Your naive classmate over here thought that an imperio could solve all his problems... who can tell me why he was wrong? Points for being inventive in your answer. Limitations bore me."

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex considered the question, as well as analyzing the sort of answer the deranged individual might want to hear. He considered merely staying silent on the matter, but also wanted to prevent anyone else from receiving any unwarranted scorn. Besides, he wanted to distract the man's attention from both Pansy and Leanna.

Every spell has some sort of weakness," he began carefully. "In my opinion, the Imperius curse is merely a scapegoat for those who possess neither persuasive ability nor any form of successful intimidation skills."

[Millicent Bulstrode]

Millicent smirked, deciding to add a bit of her own input. She looked to their teacher directly, a gleam of anticipation within her eyes.

"People who are placed under the Imperious are detached because they're being forced against their will. They can excuse themselves for any actions committed. The only way to really achieve any ultimate control is through persuading your victim into wanting to follow your orders," her smirk widened a little, "entirely of their own accord."

[Theo Nott]

Theo stiffened as the professor approached, but made no movements. He followed him with his eyes and winced as the wand dug into his chin. Knowing that to disobey was going to hurt more than whatever the man had planned saw Theo move over beside the desk as instructed, glancing only briefly at Leanna. He looked out at his classmates and waited until the professor turned back to him.

[Leanna Barker]

Leanna sat up carefully and grabbed her wand off the table where she had put it, her eyes staying purposefully off Theo. She lifted her shirt and sealed the cut over her stomach then did the same to the one on her thigh. Her hand was last, as it was already mostly stopped and the Raven picked herself up off the floor, wincing because her leg was still painful to rest weight on. "May I go back to my seat, Master?" she asked, her eyes staying on the floor. She wasn't going to meet his eyes and make Amycus explode again.

[Draco Malfoy]

Draco almost snorted at the stupidity of people. None of the Dark Lords minions wanted to hear that they only had to use an ineffective curse because *they* were ineffective. He knew Carrow would turn his attention his way sooner or later so he got it out of the way.

"Neither of those are limitations..." the boy said looking at Millicent and the Ravenclaw. "Yes, some use the imperious because they can't persuade someone to do as they wish, but most often the spell is used *as opposed* to persuasion. It's one of the highest forms of absolute control, and is usually employed just for that reason."

Draco rose a brow "You get someone to show their weakness, what they'd" he made quotations "never do" end quotes "then you employ the curse to make them do it, remove it from them and stand back and watch their decent into madness as they've realized what they've done. It is also employed when you need something done but you don't need some type of ineffective weakling on you team. You use the imperious, have them do the work, walk away with them not knowing who cast, and the Ministry too soft hearted to prosecute them and therefore you're free to cast again. Anytime you leave someone to use their own free will you open yourself up to weakness and betrayal..." he shrugged. "You can't always afford to be that open. The imperious isn't flawed it's effective, your answers are weak..."

He looked at the "Professor" "The only limitation to the imperious would be for those trying to determine when it's been used as it is untraceable..."

[Alexander Chevalier]

Alex listened to the Malfoy's response as he held his eyes on the Death Eater before them. His own answer had contained an underlying disapproval. In his own way, he was calling the man, and all others like him, out on their sole reliance on the unforgivables. Hardly any of them realized that they were being used in turn, persuaded into following the Dark Lord.

Granted, they were insane, but why would sadistic people like them ever seek to follow a half-blood? A blood status they wrongly opposed? The manipulation of Voldemort had convinced them that they wanted it. They had already fallen subject to it. Truth be told...it was almost a remarkable feat that the Dark Lord had amassed so much loyalty and support. He despised it, of course, but couldn't deny the persuasive skill there. Charisma was the most effective weapon in existence.

[Millicent Bulstrode]

"My answer? Weak?" Millicent smirked to Draco before shaking her head and clicking her tongue. "The alternative is just so much more fun. You get such a sense of..." she searched for the right word and lifted her eyes, bright with the thought. "Accomplishment. Breaking someone in that way."

[Amycus Carrow]

Amycus pushed himself up off the desk, slinking closer to Leanna at her demure request, his long fingered hand lifting to pat her cheek in a twisted charade of an intimate gesture.

"See sweetness? Isn't life much more pleasant when you know your place?" he crooned to her. "Go sit. We'll continue our lessons later."

Dropping his hand away, Amycus left the girl to return to her seat, ignoring the boy he had positioned by his desk as he lazilly paced the room, dark eyes sliding over his students as they spoke, his mouth curved up in a mocking smile.

"Aaah, unsurprisingly, darling-Draco is the closest," he voiced at last as the class finished their opinions, his tone lightsome, though his gaze was anything but. "But none of you grasp the entirety of the spell."

The man's boots stopped before Alex's desk, head tilting as he met the Ravenclaw's eyes, lips curling up in a slightly sharp smile. The boy's words had been daring, there was no doubt... perhaps even cheeky, but he did actually have a point. To many weak willed individuas overused the one unforgivable to make up for their otherwise lack of tallents. That didn't mean that didn't nessisarily mean Amycus was inclined to play nicely with him mind you, indeed he was still making up his mind about this one...

"The imperius as its place," he informed him, voice lilting and soft but pitched to carry over the room. "It aquires you allies that would otherwise be out of your reach, access to places you could never tread, moles in the heart of organisations with people they would never suspect, *because* they would never willingly betray them. As dear-Draco said, it's untracable - a positive more than a negative - and it *is* powerful."

His body shifted in a little closer to the Raven as he held his eyes, teeth showing slightly in a small grin.

"Never underestimate the power of a good Imperio, sweet child" he murmured lightly. "It could be used to make you do quite terrible things, all at the whim of whomever is pulling your strings... and an expert would do a lot more than just make you dance to their tune."

His eyes lingered there a beat before he straightened again and moved on, prowling back down the desks closer to Bulstrode and Malfoy.

"Imperio is a tool, and like any good tool has its place," he offered louder again, boots stopping at Malfoy's position, flashing him a wolfish smirk. "But only the naieve think any tool is flawless or only has one imperfection. I have to admit, I'm dissapointed in you all. I'd have though that *this* question at least you would have gotten given my former chum, Barty's tender teaching of you a few short years ago."

"Imperio is not full proof, though few and far between, people can overcome it - those with strong mental fortitude or training can overcome *any* compulsion - even imperius. If they do it becomes a direct battle of skill and will between the caster and the target. An unpredictable and potentially messy outcome given the usually delicate situations it's employed in. The more unnatural the thing you demand of them, the more likely they are to fight it. The harder they are to control, the more likely your hold will faulter and they will eventually break free."

"More than that though - even with the best imperio, you can only enslave the body. To break someone - to really own them, you need to enslave the mind. Though inelegantly put, Miss Bulstrode was somewhat right there. When it comes to torture or breaking someone, imperio is limited at best - yes, you can use it to force someone to do something they would hate, and that *can* be effective. But its a crude method - a shoehorn to force the way, when it should be a delicate art. Why give your victim the satisfaction of knowing they had no choice after all? The descent into insanity is all the more delicious when they really appreciate their own guilt."

His eyebrow cocked up again.

"Can anyone think of a better way to break a victim?"

[Theo Nott]

Theo listened to the professor as he spoke about the Imperious. It was a view of the curse that he had not heard before, but it made a lot of sense. It wasnt something to rely on, it was a tool to be utilized in the correct circumstance at the correct time. He stood thoughtfully as the professor neared the end of his lecture and posed the question.

He was not quite able to place exactly what the professor was looking for but he made an attempt at an answer anyways. "Put them into situations where their actions and decisions are the ones that cause the guilt. They have to choose which path will be for the best, and then have to live with that choice, no matter the out come. Eventually they will break when the realize and accept what they have become. Make a father choose the fate of his daughter or wife, a mother their child, will they die slowly, maybe quickly, will it be painful. Could it be by spell, or by the hands of another family member, it isn't my choice it is theirs. Once it settles in their mind that they are the reason those things happen, the guilt with break them." he paused. "It would be a slow realization, it wouldn't be quick like with the Imperio, and they would know exactly who caused it to happen."