Again, Jesús had to remind himself to stay calm. The inclination to walk away was strong, but he wasn't entirely sure that the man wasn't part of the challenge. This uncertainty slowly heightened his anxiety. He also had to remind himself that things were going to work out; he was determined to not let his anxiousness put him on edge. Jesús figured that the best way to firmly keep control of the situation, was to relax and think things through. He thought about how relieved he would be to finally exit the forest (and if he could leave the man behind, all the better); thought about how he really wanted to eat something fried and greasy; and thought about how he wanted to sleep for at least twelve hours straight when everything was over.
Reminding himself of these things helped to soothe his irritation, and with that he was able to breathe a little easier.
While his attempt to remain at ease did not go in vain, his blasé demeanor refused to change. And although the man raised valid points (all of which Jesús would agree with, had the situation not been so messy,) the boy still would not allow him to steamroll his way through the conversation and push Jesús into a confession that he did not and would not give. He ignored the bit about the no-maj not liking his tone (and he wanted to say that this wasn't the first time he'd been told that, but kept the comment to himself.) "Unfortunately," he drawled, keeping his voice as even and as non-threatening as he could, "neither one of us are in the presence of a police officer and, therefore, do not need to investigate any closer than we already are." Not that he really needed to continue reasoning with the man; the whole argument was going around in circles and Jesús did not have that kind of time or patience.
Jesús didn't actually think that the spell would be entirely successful, but he'd hoped that something would've happened. This placed him in another situation that he didn't want to deal with, but knew he had to. Sighing (again, he was getting so tired of this,) Jesús stared at the man, and folded his arms across his chest. His eyebrow twitched as he thought about his next course of action. Clearly any attempts to further convince the no-maj that he was making the events out to be a bigger deal than they actually were was pointless. He brought an arm up, just slightly, and tapped his wand against his cheek. It wouldn't do to leave the job half-finished, especially when the man continued to insist that he wanted to forget. Briefly, he considered hexing him or physically knocking him out with something nearby, but he wasn't entirely sure that that would go right, either. Confundus Charm, Jelly-Brain Jinx, Memory Charm. He mulled over which one to choose. It wasn't a hard decision, but it wasn't exactly easy either. Again, he considered his choices. Confundus Charm, Jelly-Brain Jinx, Memory Charm. If he didn't pick something quickly, everything would fall apart. Confundus Charm or Jelly-Brain Jinx or Memory Charm... If he was going to help the man out (which, really, this was all being done to help Jesús out,) then he'd have to stick with the spell he'd attempted previously.
As it wasn't his own brain, Jesús figured there was no harm in trying the spell again. He felt a surge of confidence (that was fueled by his desire to be rid of the man and his determination to get the spell right out of spite,) and stopped tapping his wand to point it at the man again. He concentrated solely on removing this unfortunate and unnecessary experience from the no-maj's mind. "Obliviate," he said firmly, ensuring that his enunciation was as clear as possible.
__________________ Coming soon. |