"I don't believe you." The skin-rider actually sounded taken back, what she had said actually surprised it. It opened its mouth and lowered its head towards her shoulder but stopped short, closing its mouth and instead resting its chin on the shoulder it had been going to bite only moments ago. "Stupid promise. I still don't believe."

"Oh, but it's true. Bitter, unpalatable, and...butterbeer. Yes. I also taste of butterbeer." she stifled her laughter, as she was finding this quite amusing. She was almost even tempted to give him permission to prove her point. But no. "Do you even enjoy butterbeer?"

"Never tried it." It was still sulking. "Despite being the life of the party, you'd be surprised of often I don't get out."

"That's a pity," she said thoughtfully. "You know...." Swiftly unzipping her duffel bag, she grabbed two unopened bottles of butterbeer and handed one back to it. "Try one. They're amazing." The slight excitement in her voice was enough to convey that she adored them if one did not already know she practically lived off of them.

Languidly, the skin-rider unwrapped its arms from her and took one of the bottles. It turned it over and over in its hands looking at it, feeling the balance change as the liquid shifted inside. At last it opened the bottle and sniffed at the contents inside. Eying Diabolica warily, it sipped at the butterbeer. "Its awfully sweet, this can't be natural. What animal did you say this was made from?"

"This doesn't come from an animal." she shook her head, rather glad he had released her. Hah! Anyone could be distracted with the power and greatness of butterbeer! "It's brewed. And it is the drink of the gods." Popping open her bottle out of instinct, she grinned and took a long swig. "Come now. You know you like it." she insisted after swallowing, her eyes dancing with amusement.

"It's. . . okay." The skin-rider acquiesced before sipping at the bottle again. "Brewed from what animal?" It sniffed at the bottle again, clearly not certain what to make of the butterbeer.

"Not brewed from an animal, I tell you. Herbs, sugars, et cetera. Yes. Though personally I think it was gifted to us by the gods." she added, nodding upward. "You must like it on some level, or you wouldn't continue to drink it."

"I suppose." It commented grudgingly as it drank a larger gulp from the bottle. "It is awfully sweet though, its not like chocolate or anything is it?"

"No, not chocolate. Butterscotch." Diabolica nodded, taking yet another swig. She poked him in the shoulder, grinning. "Oh, don't sound so grumpy about it. Accept your newfound love of butterbeer!"

The skin-rider flashed a toothy grin before taking large swing of the butterbeer followed by tilting it upward and draining the entire contents of the bottle. Dropping the bottle to the ground it flexed it fingers tensely, a strange look coming over its features. A single quick stride carries it to the closest planter as it parbreaks into the flowers.

Grinning back towards it, she watched him curiously and her smile quickly vanished as it began to vomit into the planter. "Er...erm..." She began fishing around in her bag for something and pulled out a small jar of roots. "Would you like a bit of ginger root? It calms the stomach..."

"No. More. Poison. Thank you." The skin-rider growled as it ground the palms of its hands into the stone walls of the planter. Apparently unsatisfied it reached into the Taboo Roses and clenched its hands around the thorny stems until blood began to flow from the clinched fists.

"That wasn't poison, luv. That was just butterbeer. If you had some left over in your bottle I'd prove it to you." she shook her head, watching his actions. "What are you..." Oh Merlin. What have I done?

"Try and be nice, they attack you." The skin-rider released the now blood soaked rose bush and let its pierced and bloody hands hang at its sides. "Try and be civil and they scorn you." The blood flowing from the wounds turned to black ichor and began covering its hands. "Try and be human and they poison you." The skin-rider turned slowly its scythe like talons fully formed. "So why pretend at all?" It held out a clawed hand expectantly.

"I did not poison you. I would never poison you, and I hope you'd know that. It must have been a bad reaction to the small amount of actual beer-like substance there was inside that butterbeer. I didn't think it would effect you." Diabolica said truthfully. "I do not wish for you to pretend. To be who you truly are is always the best option... and I think of you just the same when you are being yourself, love." she looked down at its talons for the first time since the one night weeks ago he had attacked. She was at an utter and complete loss, and under the influence of the butterbeer, she was forced to call upon her inner Bugs Bunny. She swiftly and gracefully loped around to behind him and put a hand on his shoulder, where he couldn't get her.

"Oh, for shame! Just look at your talons! My, I'll bet you constant companions lead interesting lives. I said to Xana just the other day, I'll bet you constant companions are interesting, I said. The places you must go and the places you must see, my stars... And I'll be you meet a lot of interesting people too. I'm always interested in meeting interesting people." she quickly pulled out her wand and flicked it towards his hands, casting a complex, silent talon-clipping charm. It would file them down to being dull and short, at the very least.

ooc: Credit to Chuck Jones and Bugs Bunny for most of the base for the second paragraph, an excerpt from "A Hair-Raising Hare". *grins widely*

The skin-rider darted away from her, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. Each of the clipped and filled talons dripped blood as if a fresh wound had been opened. The rage and anger upon the face of Apedemak's constant companion was evident. "I am to believe this was due to self-defense?" It asked acquisitively holding up one of its bloody hands. "If only he could remember how cruel and heartless you are. Perhaps wizards should also be classified as Dark." It spun away from her, bounding off into the gardens and out of sight.

Diabolica opened her mouth in protest, but he only scampered away. Rolling her eyes irritably, she put forth a swift burst of speed and followed him, and after a minute caught up to him. "Merlin, not self-defense, no! Not an attack, either. I mean, those talons would surely get in the way? It must be so inconvenient... for instance, if you've ever seen the Muggle film Edward Scissorhands? I'm sure the title conveys to you what the main plot of the story is?" she raised an eyebrow, running alongside him and talking at the same time. "Wow. Cruel and heartless. I'm hurt. And yes... yes, wizards can be classified as Dark. And unfairly so." A shadow passed over her face, her previous happiness completely vanishing and a haunted look taking place in her eyes. She quickly put a hand out, grasping his shoulder and attempting to stop him with all her strength. "Now, now. We were off to such a good start! Whatever happened, love? I wasn't aware that would happen, how was I to know?"

She found him standing in a far corner of the garden and when she spun him around she was met with all too human golden eyes. Apedemak stared bewildered down at his bloodied hands. His fingers looked as if they had been clipped and filled down; they were little more than a blood mess. Finally he looked up at Diabolica, the lack of comprehension clear in his face.

Diabolica met his golden eyes, waiting for a response, and became alarmed to find that they were no longer cat-like eyes, but the human eyes of the one she loved. She looked down at his hands, hoping they would have merely returned to normal, but her heart sank terribly low. She began to tremble slightly, the truth of what she had done truly sinking in, and she suddenly felt very cold--the sort of bone-chilling cold and feelings of despair one might find when facing a dementor. "I...I...oh, Apedemak. I'm so sorry." she managed to say after a moment, though it came out as more of a whimper. "I... I didn't know it would be like that... my mind didn't... it didn't seem like..." Stuttering, she could not tear her eyes away from the bloody, mangled mess she had made, utterly horrified. Would this prevent him from doing wandwork? Or gardening and herbology? Her heart sank even lower at the thought, her one foolish act causing him to never be able to accomplish his most loved hobbies. "Your constant companion was right, I realize. Cruel and heartless. That's what it called me. And now you realize it, just like it wished would happen." Her tone was soft and disbelieving at what she had done, trembling with guilt. Wasn't there a way to heal him? There had to be... One thing she knew; until that cure was found, there would be no studying done tonight. Diabolica looked up and met his golden gaze, still trembling, and tried to explain what had happened and her apology silently, as she seemed to have lost the ability to speak in horror and grief.

Apedemak didn't know what was wrong or why she was crying. His own pain and difficulties could wait, he pulled her into a close embrace and held her tightly with his bloody hands. There was a slight twinge of guilt that he was bloodying her clothes, but that could wait as well. Diabolica needed him, that all he needed to know. He forced his own pain down so his voice would been calm even, and feat only partially successful. "We will make it right my love. What ever it is, Diabolica, we will make it right."

Diabolica took a breath, trying to steady herself. Quite frankly, she was overly surprised--yet appreciative--that even after this, he still held true to her. Personally she would have despised herself for her horrifying, if accidental, actions if in Apedemak's place...but no. Somehow the fact that he seemed so forgiving towards her caused her heart to sink as low as possible. "Yes, my love...we must make it right." She carefully pulled away from the embrace and gently took ahold of his hands, cautious not to actually touch the open, bleeding wound for fear it might sting badly.

"Great Scott... do you need to head to the hospital wing? No, they might not be able to help too much... St. Mungo's, perhaps? Although...that's quite far... does it hurt you much? I'd think it would... it looks severely painful..." Her eyes were filled with horror, though tears went unshed. She drew her wand and cast a silent scouring charm upon his hands. The spell slowly began the siphon off the excess blood around his wounds. Would the nurse be in? And if not... who else could help? Xana might, she thought. She had healed wounds well before. "Shall we go find someone to help? I doubt I could heal a wound such as that, as much as I wish I could..."

He was having trouble focusing; but, he knew what she looked like and kept that image firmly in mind and in view. "I believe that I am still in shock and not yet feeling the full force of the pain. That will likely change soon." Apedemak spoke carefully, concentrating on each of the words in turn. "We should slow the flow of blood and go the nurse. Professor Erickson's office is closer though. He has the hands of a healer." He was beginning to look a little lost as if the world around him didn't completely make sense. The pained look upon his features was rapidly increasing.

"Yes, that seems like a good idea... though if Professor Erikson is not in, that would just cause you to walk farther..and if you are losing blood this quickly now, it would increase. And you'd pass out." she said quickly, trying to think. "Here, let's go sit for a moment... I'll send an owl." Leading him gently over to one of the benches, she cast a silent Oppugno and a small screech owl appeared, eyeing them both suspiciously. She pulled out a piece of parchment and self-inking quill, scribbling a note swiftly and handing it to the owl, who took it from her hands. "Take this to Xana. Quickly." she muttered to it and it set off, scanning the grounds for the girl the letter was addressed to.

(a brief time later)

Xana entered the gardens at a pace that neared a run, hurrying to find her friends. Diabolica's letter hadn't given all the details but had told her that Apedenak was hurt, perhaps gravely. She wondered what happened as she spotted the couple at last, deep in the gardens.

"Oi! Diabolica!" she called as she rushed over and noticed Apedemak with very bloodied hands. "Ohmigosh... Crikey, what happened?"