Welcome to the new Deja Vu (Kendall, Jacob, Lenore)

[Luke Passero]

The fall weather was coming in with a storm and the sunny days were shortening ever so quickly. Soccer season thrived in the cold of winter, of course, but Luke preferred staying inside when it got too cold: there was nothing better than hot chocolate and a book. Luke chuckled to himself because he was about as Ravenclaw as any Ravenclaw could be. But that was besides the point. He had watched a movie where the teacher wanted the students to seize the day. And that was precisely what Luke was doing right now: seizing the day. He felt like he could conquer anything and find the answer to everything: including a lingering question that had been on his mind for a while. Where was Kendall Yorke?

Luke was the type of guy who didn't make friends very easily, mainly because he wasn't exactly outgoing. Lately, he seemed to be Mr. Popular, making friends left and right, on all parts of the spectrum. He was now buddies, if not good friends with Jacob Brant, someone he had never seen himself hanging out with. Jacob stood for everything Luke went against. He took advantage of girls (though Jacob preferred saying that the girls wanted what he did to them) and he was mean to nearly everyone. But the one thing they did have in common created a pretty strong bond that couldn't be tampered with. They were both Native American, and they looked alike, which could have meant that they were Luke was pretty sure something fishy was going on with his family lineage, because he couldn't trace it to anything. Jacob seemed to have been doing some research on his own, which would probably be more helpful for Luke's case, since Jacob did have family living on the reservation.

But once again, all of this was besides the point. Luke had made friends with Jacob, yes. But he first made friends with Kendall. And she had been avoiding him lately. Granted, he wasn't making much of an effort to hang out with her, because in between figuring out the stuff from his past and doing homework, he had little to no time to hang out with her. He waved to her in the halls but she always seemed to have something else on her mind. Some days, Luke wouldn't even see her at all - not at dinner or in the common room. Something was going on, and Luke was going to get to the bottom of it. Maybe Kendall was a little jealous that Luke wasn't only her friend anymore. He was, after all, hanging out with him a lot these days. And Luke did notice an awkward, almost sad look that she gave Luke when he was walking with Jacob in the hallway. Jacob was unphased by it, of course, so Luke didn't see to bringing it up.

As Luke went outside, he noticed that there was a solitary person under the giant willow tree (not to be confused with the menacing Whomping Willow) that looked eerily familiar to Kendall. He jogged over with a nice welcoming look, hoping to figure out what was bugging her. He liked her too much for her to be mad at him, and she was endearing. He liked teaching her about muggle ways because she didn't seem to have a clue about any of it. He ran through the drooping branches and plopped down next to her.

"Hey! I haven't seen you around that much. How are you?" Luke smiled to keep the obvious tension growing between them to a minimum.

[Kendall Alexandra Yorke]

Kendall led an interesting life. Managing her OCD left her life without a single dull moment. She was used to the unusual. But nothing could have prepared her for what happened. He tricked her and took advantage of her. She never anticipated that his actions were anything less than honourable, yet here she was, sitting under her favourite willow tree, feeling disgusting and completely humiliated. She had been keeping a low profile for a few weeks since the incident, but she hadn't been able to avoid the stares of people passing by. For years, people had stared at Kendall just for her last name, and she had never once noticed. Now she was acutely aware of the eyes that followed her movements. She knew she wasn't completely innocent in the whole matter. That being said, what transpired afterwards was not at all her fault. It may take two to tango, she told herself, but it only takes one to tell the whole school.

Kendall leaned her head back against the tree, pulling her knees to her chest. She wanted to disappear. She still couldn't look at herself in the mirror after what happened. She hated what she saw. She felt used. How could she have been so stupid? She thought he was sweet, but it was all an act. She wished she had heard of his reputation before falling victim to his charm and good looks. It was times like these that Kendall wished she wasn't such a social misfit. If she was popular, or at least normal, she'd have known what he was like. She wondered if he ever thought about her, or what happened. Did he regret it? Did he have any remorse for taking advantage? No, probably not. That thought made her feel even worse. She leaned her chin against her knees and sighed. She reached to her chest and buttoned up her cardigan all the way. Even so, she felt revealed and exposed in the brisk autumn wind. She reached into her grey tote bag and pulled out her black knitted hat and pulled it over her loose curls. No amount of clothing could cover the shame she felt.

Just then she heard footsteps approaching her. She turned and saw Luke towering over her. She was a little taken aback by his sudden appearance. She hadn't exactly been avoiding him, but she hadn't wanted to be around him. She was worried that he'd heard about what happened and would judge her for it. She didn't want to lose his respect or make him think less of her. He was her only true friend and the last thing she wanted was to change that. But Jacob was his friend, and that made everything one hundred times worse.

"Hey! I haven't seen you around that much. How are you?" Luke smiled to keep the obvious tension growing between them to a minimum.

Kendall forced a half-hearted smile. She wanted to say she was fine, but that would be a straight up lie. She wasn't a liar, or at least she tried not to be.

"I'm...I don't know," she mumbled, feeling her eyes welling up with tears after just moments of speaking. "I'm not good, I guess."

[Luke Passero]

Kendall forced a half-hearted smile. She wanted to say she was fine, but that would be a straight up lie. She wasn't a liar, or at least she tried not to be.

"I'm...I don't know," she mumbled, feeling her eyes welling up with tears after just moments of speaking. "I'm not good, I guess."

Luke could see the sadness behind her eyes. He didn't want to think that it was his own fault, because he couldn't see how he had done anything wrong to begin with. She had been avoiding him for some time now but if something really was bothering her, then he could understand why she was keeping to herself. Hell, if he was in her position, he probably would have gone back to loner-Luke mode, where he just stuck to his three favorite places: the Library, the Great Hall (for food), and the Ravenclaw Common Room. But Luke never really had things that bothered him too much, except for now, which was the reason why Kendall was so, well, depressed. Luke wasn't the type of boy to associate mood swings to a girl's monthly cycle, but if that was the case, he would turn the other cheek this time. Kendall didn't seem like that type of girl though.

Or... maybe someone hurt her. He understood that girls were generally pretty vicious with each other, especially over boys. He didn't understand why, especially since the boy never really had the say in the matter. What if he didn't like either of the girls more than friends? Or what if he didn't like either of the girls at all? It was really touchy talking to girls about their feelings too. From what Luke had gathered from watching movies and television shows, girls did not like being confronted and did not like being "attacked", though they never really were ever being attacked. Girls in general just confused Luke, which was probably why he had never had a girlfriend (though he couldn't say he was ever really into any particular girl before). If Kendall had been fighting with a girl over a boy, what boy would that have been? Luke thought about it, and no name came to his mind. Maybe it wasn't a girl that hurt her.

The only other option that could have been possible was that a boy hurt her. But when would Kendall have gone and actually done anything with a boy... The only person that would have actually gone and hooked up with someone would have been Jacob Brant. But that couldn't be possible, especially since Luke had been around Jacob long enough to know what he would have been doing... But then again, Luke never did want to talk to Jacob about his escapades, though Jacob did seem like the bragging type. He didn't want to believe that his new friend would have gone and done something to his other best friend. Kendall was too young to be tainted anyways.

"Kendall, if someone hurt you, you know you can tell me." He draped his arm around her shoulder, bringing her closer to him. "You can trust me." He felt the wetness of her tears and immediately felt guilty for not being around her enough in the past few weeks. All he wanted to do was hug her and tell her that everything was going to be better, but held back since he wasn't sure if he would look like a creep.

[Kendall Alexandra Yorke]

Kendall felt as Luke slipped his arm around her tremulous shoulders. His touch made her shiver; it was both comforting and frightening. Though she was still shook up from the incident, and any human contact was slightly unnerving to her, she allowed herself to lean against his body, feeling his warmth radiated through her grey pea-coat. The closeness made the tears flow faster, for reasons Kendall didn't quite comprehend.

She didn't want to feel so horrible anymore. She told herself that the affection Luke was showing her should make her happy. But all she felt was shame, sadness and heart-wrenching guilt. Luke was her best friend, and she hadn't told him anything. She had avoided him for weeks, yet there he was, holding her petite, trembling body in his arms like they had never been apart. She couldn't have asked for a better friend. She buried her head in his shoulder and let her tears soak his jacket, wanting to tell him everything, but not knowing how. Kendall, usually bubbly and blissfully unaware, was simply despising reality. Where had her innocence gone? He'd taken it. What she wouldn't give to get it back.

"Kendall, if someone hurt you, you know you can tell me." He draped his arm around her shoulder, bringing her closer to him. "You can trust me."

Kendall sniffled pathetically into Luke's arm. She wanted to spill it all out, but she was embarrassed. What happened to her was humiliating. He'd taken everything that mattered to her. Her dignity, her self-esteem, her innocence and, she suspected, her best friend. She doubted Luke would stick around when he found out what she'd done. She supposed she couldn't say he'd "taken" all those things. She was the one who had been stupid enough to believe all the things he'd told her, about his feelings for her. About how she was the prettiest girl he'd ever seen. About how he'd never wanted anyone more. Lies, all of it. But she'd fallen for it. She was just as much at fault as he was. Even with this knowledge, she couldn't help but feel resentment towards Luke's friend. She resented her own stupidity. She cursed the world silently as she cried.

"But he's your friend," she cried, her voice louder than she'd anticipated it to be. "Please don't hate me, Luke. Please. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen and now I just feel like the world's biggest idiot!" The words exploded out of her in one breath, a weight lifted off of her shoulders as she let all of her emotions out into Luke's shoulder. "Jacob isn't who I thought he was and he...lied and he tricked me and I fell for it. I never wanted...what happened, but I was caught up in everything. Now everything is so messed up. I look in the mirror...I hate what I see, Luke. I hate it!" She broke down. She bawled hysterically, clinging to Luke's sleeve. It was the first time she'd let herself cry like that, and she felt ridiculous. At the same time, she felt as if her shame and guilt left her body with the tears. Not all of it, but some was enough for Kendall.

[Luke Passero]

"But he's your friend," she cried, her voice louder than she'd anticipated it to be.

Luke's mouth opened as he tried to register what Kendall had just told him. He wasn't sure to be mad at Jacob or Kendall, Jacob for totally taking advantage of Kendall, Luke's best friend, or Kendall, for falling prey to a predator. She was clearly distraught about it so he wasn't going to reprimand her for anything, but he was disappointed. He thought she would have been able to see through Jacob's falsified feelings, because Luke knew that Jacob didn't really care about what the girl thought in the matter. It was the fact that Kendall gave into his game, and that was enough to make everything go so very wrong.

"Jacob Brant... is no friend of mine."

"Please don't hate me, Luke. Please. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen and now I just feel like the world's biggest idiot!" The words exploded out of her in one breath, a weight lifted off of her shoulders as she let all of her emotions out into Luke's shoulder. "Jacob isn't who I thought he was and he...lied and he tricked me and I fell for it. I never wanted...what happened, but I was caught up in everything. Now everything is so messed up. I look in the mirror...I hate what I see, Luke. I hate it!"

He looked at her through narrowly open eyes. His arm left her shoulder, and instead of comforting her, he was trying to comfort himself. She was so vulnerable to everything and it nearly killed Luke inside to see her like this. But he was more or less furious at this point: Jacob was a dead man. He had never really had a chance to fight Jacob, especially after he had been so close to in the fated day where they met in the hallway. Luke needed to beat the crap out of something as soon as he could. As luck would have it, his expressions began to show on his face and anyone could see how quickly he was changing his demeanor.

"I don't hate you. I can't understand why the hell you would do something like that... and that makes me mad." He looked down to where his legs were outstretched. "And I can't really think straight. Everything is messed up, and it will be for a while." He grabbed a handful of grass and ripped it out of the ground. "Jacob is pretty deceiving unless you hadn't realized it before." He noticed her crying, bawling, heaving. He wanted to hug her, he really did, but he couldn't bring himself to doing it.

[Jacob Brant]

Jacob had never lost a friend. He'd done some shady things in his life; some awful, low-life things, but it had never cost him a friendship. To be truthful, Jacob had never really had a friend to lose int he first place. Only recently had he developed any meaningful connections with anybody. Before, he had done exactly as he pleased, because he had no worries about hurting people who were close to him. There had been no one close enough to care about. But now, he'd done something horrible. He had betrayed his best and only male friend, and he didn't even know it.

To Jacob, Kendall Yorke had been just another conquest. She was attractive, and that's really all he had judged her on. That's all he had been looking for at the time. Jacob wasn't out to destroy girls. He assumed that, at this point, they all knew of his reputation. They knew what they were getting themselves into, and therefore expected the same out of the rendezvous that he did, or at least wouldn't be too shocked when Jacob ignored them for the rest of the school year. And even if they didn't, Jacob figured that if a girl was willing to do anything with a guy she'd just met, she couldn't be too surprised when he never talked to her again. But he'd never met a girl as innocent as Kendall before. Well, she wasn't so innocent anymore. It hadn't been Jacob's intention to break Kendall's heart and soul, but that's what he'd done.

Jacob was also unaware of the fact that Kendall was a good friend of Luke's. That was a no-no on the Bro Code, but as Jacob had never had a guy friend before, he couldn't possibly have known. He had an inkling of that rule, but he wasn't as well-educated on it as his male peers. So it stood to reason that as Jacob walked away from the castle and on to the vast grounds, he had no idea that Luke wanted to end him the next time they saw each other. And the next time would be much sooner than either of them anticipated.

The cool, autumn breeze was blocked by Jacob's leather jacket, but he felt it on his face. It was refreshing and relaxing, but his calm demeanor wouldn't last. As he walked, he noticed Luke sitting over by a tree. At first, it appeared to Jacob that Luke must be on a date, as he was cuddled rather close to a young lady. He smirked, imagining himself fist-bumping his friend in celebration. As he got closer, however, Jacob realized there was something off about it all. He kept approaching in curiousity, and, to his horror, discovered that the person was none other than Kendall, bawling animatedly into Luke's shoulder. The thought of the two of them being acquainted had never crossed his mind, and now he was rapidly trying to come up with the best course of action. He was too close to them to leave without being noticed. He had only one choice, and that was to talk to them. Jacob grimaced inwardly, but forced himself to make the final few steps towards them

"Hey," Jacob greeted Luke, slightly awkwardly. "What's up?"

[Luke Passero]

The anger building up inside of Luke was beginning to get slightly unbearable. He hated that his anger was starting to take over his mind, his emotion, and most importantly, his actions. It reminded him of when he forgot to take the Wolfsbane potion piror to a full moon. While the transformations were always painful, whether he took the Wolfsbane potion or not, his control over his actions depended on the potion. Needless to say, on the nights when he didn't take the potion, he was reckless, chaotic, and he usually couldn't remember what happened the previous night. Likewise, he was starting to lose control. He knew that the moment he saw Jacob, his hands would be around his (Jacob's) neck, strangling the living hell out of him and then proceeding to punch him in the face at least once.

Luke wanted to give Kendall and Jacob the benefit of the doubt. He couldn't understand why Kendall could have gone off and done something so stupid though. She should have known that all guys weren't as nice and chivalrous as him - especially Jacob. She was a Ravenclaw after all - she should have had a little more tact. It wasn't like she was intelligible. Luke was so frustrated with her actions and he didn't want to be the good friend she needed him to be. He wanted to yell at her and tell her that she could have done so much better than Jacob freaking Brant. A part of him pitied her because of her constant naivety. She was too young to have had such a life-changing event. Hell, Luke had never even had a girlfriend and here Kendall was, ruining a part of her she would never get back. She skipped the relationship phase and went straight to the deed. In the end, was it really worth all the pain it caused after?

Jacob, on the other hand, was not on Luke's death list. And now he was walking towards them. The nerve of him, to still have that stupid cocky look on his stupid face. Luke rubbed his knuckles, as if he was warming them up. He knew one swift way to get rid of the smirk quickly. He had so much anger pent up in him, and now he would be able to take it out on someone who definitely deserved it.

"Hey," Jacob greeted Luke, slightly awkwardly. "What's up?"

"Shut up, asshole." Luke stood up and was level with Jacob. They were even in height, even in strength. "You broke the Bro-Code bad this time." Luke's hand curled into a fist and crashed into Jacob's right eye. He had never really punched someone so ferociously before, so the reeling pain he was feeling made him uncomfortable. He shook the hand out and was ready to punch Jacob again if he retaliated.

[Kendall Alexandra Yorke]

"I don't hate you. I can't understand why the hell you would do something like that... and that makes me mad." He looked down to where his legs were outstretched. "And I can't really think straight. Everything is messed up, and it will be for a while." He grabbed a handful of grass and ripped it out of the ground. "Jacob is pretty deceiving unless you hadn't realized it before."

Kendall nodded, a tear running down her cheek. She understood he was mad. He had every right to be. She had made a terrible mistake; that much was obvious. She deserved a lot worse than what Luke was doing. He should have vowed to never speak to her again. Maybe he should have told the entire school about what she'd done; humiliate her so that she could never live it down. He could do a lot of things to get back at her, all of which she would understand and live with. But he didn't even hate her. She stared at Luke, her wet eyes sparkling with tears. He was better to her than she deserved.

"I know," she replied, her voice cracking. "I didn't expect that we could just go back to how things were before."

Though she didn't say it, she wanted desperately to be reassured that things would be normal (or at least some version of normal) again. Luke was her best friend, and she needed him around. Nobody else could handle her...quirks, quite like he could. Even her brothers didn't get her. Brody was a great brother, and he always looked out for her, but he sometimes treated her differently because of her OCD. She hadn't told Luke what it was that made her act like that precisely for that reason - she didn't want him to feel sorry for her and treat her differently. He knew there was something off about her, but he didn't it interfere with their friendship. That's how she liked it, but she'd messed it up. And she couldn't even blame it on the OCD.

Just when she thought, however, that her day couldn't get any worse, it did. Before them stood the last person on Earth she ever wanted to see again: Jacob Brant. There he was, smirking like he had the day he'd tricked her; talking like nothing had happened. How dare he? She trembled as she stared through him with dead eyes. Luke stood up to face his friend, and Kendall did the same, though she doubt he noticed. She began backing up, unable to face the boy who had ruined her friendship with Luke. The tears rolled down her pale cheeks.

"Shut up, asshole." Luke stood up and was level with Jacob. They were even in height, even in strength. "You broke the Bro-Code bad this time." Luke's hand curled into a fist and crashed into Jacob's right eye.

Kendall shrieked at the sound, and grabbed Luke by the shoulder.

"No! Don't fight!" she cried. Something about the way his fist had made contact with Jacob made her want to fix his eye, despite the fact that she despised him. Injuries were a big compulsion trigger for Kendall, which usually just made her look like a nice person, but in this situation, there was no way of doing it without infuriating Luke further. There was no way she was going to let herself do that. "I have to get out of here," she mumbled through her tears, her tremulous hands releasing Luke's shoulder. "I'm so sorry!" she let out in one breath before dashing away from her nightmare.

[Lenore Pelletier]

Lenore wasn't even sure why she was outside on the grounds on this particular day. In fact, she wasn't sure why she was outside, because it wasn't like she liked the warm daylight or the outdoors very much, unless it was a cold winter snomy day. In fact, she would have rather just stayed in the library among lots of books and homework than come outdoors. But something in her made her impulsively go outdoors. Maybe it was the fact that she sensed that Jacob was outdoors? Yes, it was definitely that. She hadn't seen him in a while and she kind of missed her friend. Just a tad.

As she made her way outside of the walls of the Hogwarts Castle, she noticed Jacob across the green. He was walking towards the big willow tree on the other side of the grounds with that cocky gait she knew him for. She put her hands in the pockets of her jacket and quickened her pace. They could hang out, just like old times, by the Black Lake. They hadn't done that in a while, after all. Things between the two of them were kind of awkward since the ball and she really did miss him as a friend. She neared the tree, but the voices she heard weren't exactly friendly.

"Shut up, asshole." Luke stood up and was level with Jacob. They were even in height, even in strength. "You broke the Bro-Code bad this time." Luke's hand curled into a fist and crashed into Jacob's right eye.

Lenore rushed over and saw two Ravenclaws and Jacob, whose eye was starting to swell. What the hell was going on? But then she saw a crying girl, and angry boyfriend, who looked surprisingly identical to Jacob, and Jacob just standing there, taking the hit. She put two and two together, and clearly, Jacob had effed up. Literally. But she was his friend and he needed to get out of there before his pretty little face got hit anymore.

"Jake, let's go." Lenore said her words in a stern, but sincere voice. She put her hand around his wrist, hoping that he wouldn't punch back. "Don't." She didn't know what she didn't want him to do, but she didn't want him doing anything he was going to regret.

[Jacob Brant]

Jacob had gotten into his fair amount of scraps when he was younger. Fighting was second nature to him. He'd been beaten around so much at home he'd learned to defend himself well. It had never been a problem to kick the crap out of anyone who threatened him. Especially if they hit first. But this was not an average situation - it was his best friend punching him. Jacob had expected him to be annoyed or slightly upset if he knew what had happened between Jacob and Kendall, but punching him the face? Jacob had definitely not anticipated violence out of his usually well-mannered buddy.

He was so shocked that he at first did not even try to fight back. He just stood there, his eyes emotionless, staring at Luke as he rubbed his injured eye with his hand. He was surprised to find that he had an emotional barrier preventing him from defending himself. Then Jacob realized something: Luke blamed him. As if Kendall hadn't wanted it just as much as he had. Ridiculous! Sure, he made a mistake by pursuing Luke's friend, but he, at the time, had had no idea Kendall was a friend of Luke's. So really, he was not at fault. He had just gone after a girl, not knowing she was anything special. That was when Jacob's hands curled into fists. He raised his arms, preparing to strike Luke with as much force as his body could muster. As he did, he felt an small hand on his wrist.

"Jake, let's go." Lenore said her words in a stern, but sincere voice. She put her hand around his wrist, hoping that he wouldn't punch back. "Don't."

He knew that voice. It was Nora, of course. If anyone could convince him to not beat someone up, it was her. She had a weird effect on him. Jacob was an extremely hard-headed and irrational person, and he was the first to admit it. But Nora was the only person who could calm him. She could show him a more logical solution to problems he would rather solve by punching someone in the face. For that, he was glad she had shown up to help him. But it was too late. The rage had taken over Jacob's body. While his mind stayed focused on Nora's presence, his body continued to attack Luke. He easily freed himself from Nora's grasp and he threw his weight at his best friend, his fist making contact with Luke's cheek.

"Asshole?!" he shouted at his friend, his fists shaking to hit again. "I don't see you hitting your friend! It takes two to tango, Luke! You don't think she wanted it? Well, she did!" he gestured towards the slowly fading shape that was Kendall, who had run off crying. " And next time, how about telling me if you love a girl so I don't go after her, alright? This is all your fault!"