A Raven's Claws (Adele/open)

[Caleb Renneau]

Caleb nodded, " Has anyone threatened you? what makes you think this, is it just a feeling?" he asked trying to keep himself from asking a million questions like he wanted to.

[Adele Graham]

"It's a feeling." She looked up at him, a fierceness in her eyes.

"Don't you dare even think that I'm crazy. I'm not. You saw all the graves I visited in the cemetary."

[Caleb Renneau]

"Actually I didn't." he said he had only known of two, so he thought, "How many...?' he asked wondering if she would tell him how many loved ones she had lost and if that was the reasoning behind her thinking she was headed for death's door.

[Adele Graham]

She sighed. "There were four," she said, running a hand through her hair. It was half pulled back anyway, so she only made it messier.

[Caleb Renneau]

Four graves? Merlin no wonder the girl seemed an expert at the cemetery, no wonder she seemed so sad. Who were they? Family of course, he wanted to hope that they were all grandparents and great elders who had passed but he wasn't that delusional.

Reaching out he took her hand"I'm sorry Adele."

[Adele Graham]

She pulled away from him. "I don't need your sympathy," she hissed, almost like a cat. It was obvious what she was doing... putting up a wall, keeping him out. It was a defense mechanism.

[Caleb Renneau]

His own eyes harded at her tone of voice, "No? What do you need? Me to leave you alone so you can worry about death on your own?" he asked knowing that she was pushing him away, it made him inexcusably angry, " I know what it's like to lose someone Adele, I was there at the cemetery too remember? Perhaps I havn't lost four people who were close to me, but I do know what it's like to be alone, and to have to work to provide a place for my mother and I to live and so we could eat, I remember asking all the angry questions and grieving horribly so you can stop acting like you're the only one who's ever lost somebody." he finished angrily.

[Adele Graham]

Her eyes hardened at this, enough that the last brick was placed in the wall she had thrown up.

She stood up.

"It was nice knowing you while it lasted," she said, raising her eyebrows and turning on her heel.

[Caleb Renneau]

"I didn't say we were finished Miss Graham." he didn't regret what he had said, not yet, he was still too angry, which was a surprise to him, because he never got angry. He never losed his cool, hell the girl had almost hexed him the otherday and he was able to laugh about it, but apparently being pushed out of the girl's life because of her defenses, well he just just wouldn't stand for it.

[Adele Graham]

"I did," she bit out, gathering her bag. She had almost let him in... and what did she get for it? Him chastising her? She could feel death forcing itself down her throat and he wanted her to get over it? Well, she could show him where to shove it.

[Caleb Renneau]

Had she shared what she thought with him, it would have been apparent that they shared two different conversations. He didn't want her to just get over it, how hypocritical could he be anyway since he wasn't over his father's death. He simply didn't want her to push him out completely which was what she was doing. It was his weakness that when he went for something he went for it full tilt, so the subtle long race of winning her trust just wasn't going to do it.

"We're not finished, but we can continue this conversation here, or at the school, you forget Miss Graham that I am still your teacher." and no he hadn't intended to Lord that over her, but he would if it was necessary.

[Adele Graham]

When she turned back to him, her eyes were brimming with tears that she was fighting to hide.

"You're barely older than me," she told him. "And you're quite obviously not helping at all. What with fate and my selfishness, I can see your point."

[Caleb Renneau]

He was three almost four years older than her and knew well enough that when you kept people from your hearts it made you lonely as hell. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair at the sight of her tears. " I didn't mean to explode." he confessed surprising himself, "I don't ...usually I'm very level headed. I just...don't want you to push me out because you're afraid that I'll use what I know against you, or that I wouldn't understand. I don't want you pushing me out Adele, and I got angry...I havn't eaten anything." he grumbled as if that was his excuse, he was like a big bear trying to apologize dumbly.

[Adele Graham]

"What?" She asked, her brow creasing. What did his not eating have to do with anything? Was that his excuse for being all grumpy and dumbly assertive like a bear as well?

"I don't even know you," she said, glossing over the food comment at length. "It's hard to push out a complete stranger."

[Caleb Renneau]

He knew she made sense, she was a Ravenclaw of course she made sense, so he didn't know why he wanted to "correct" her and say that he wasn't a stranger when they were strangers. He sighed, " So make me not a stranger." he told her.

"Is that possible?" he asked trying to catch her eyes, " Look...you've already seen me act pretty foolish twice, but usually I'm...well not...I swear it." he didn't like the fact that both times he had acted foolishly he had been riled up about this girl, and he knew he wasn't explaining himself well.

"Look...remember the day we met?" he laughed at himself rolling his eyes, it wasn't exactly a forgetable moment, " Wel...when I said you could trust me I was a teacher not a stalker?" he asked hoping she was following his strange logic, " I turned out to be honest then, and dependable...I'm telling you now that I'm not going to hurt you...so you can let me in.. I won't let you down now either. I promise."

[Adele Graham]

The look she was giving him was unwavering, and almost unreadable. It looked like a mix of sadness, mistrust, and a sense of humoring him for the moment, though she clearly didn't trust him.

After a long pause, she took a breath. "Don't make promises like that," she told him. "You want to know something funny? My boyfriend's name was Caleb. I called him Cale... you remind me of him a little, actually. But he promised me that same thing... that he wouldn't let me down. I bet you can guess where he is now."

[Caleb Renneau]

"I'm sorry for your loss." he said softly truly sorry for the girl's extreme sorrow, " I lost my father." he said in turn, " He promised the same things, that it was a man's responsibility to stay with his family." he shrugged as if confiding this didn't mean much to him, but he hadn't even told his mother this story, " They'd argue...my parents...sometimes... and sometimes my dad would go out...cool off, I worried that he wouldn't come back...but he told me that it was his responsibility to come back, and to make my mother happy, and to provide for all of us... it was his duty as a man. He made me promise that one day when I understood what he meant by being a man, that I would be one. And then he promised me he'd never leave again...and he didn't until..." he lowered his eyes from her at that point.

[Adele Graham]

She licked her lips and sighed, looking away from him. "Yeah... my mother and two of my brothers made that promise, too. It never gets any easier... the people you love not being there anymore. But I guess you understand that. I just don't want to have to say goodbye again."

[Caleb Renneau]

"I understand." he said softly nodding, " forgive me...for what I said. I didn't mean it...not really, and You're right I don't know you well enough to know if half of what I say is right or wrong about you, I just kinda jump in guessing. In all fairness you're not exactly forthcoming, but I know the reason for that." he sighed and rumpled his hair again, "But you can't just tell a bloke you think you're going to die and then scamper, it isn't ...nice."

[Adele Graham]

"Sorry," she said, rubbing a had over her eyes briefly. "It might not even be me, though."

And tha scared her much worse.

"Anyway, I don't know why I told you at all."