InsaneJournal

Dedication and a high tolerance for pain. That should have been within the requirement description of a Death Eater. A high tolerance for pain was a must, especially when it came to that Dark Mark on all Death Eater's forearms. Tonight was certainly a test for Alecto's tolerance for pain. The searing, agonizing burning started earlier in the evening, waking her from a dreamless sleep. A deep hiss emanated from between clenched teeth as she felt the pain coursing over her flesh, and through her veins. The woman didn't cry out, no, instead she laid perfectly still, hoping the pain would subside. In the back of her tortured mind she wondered if anyone else was feeling this pain. They must be, she could see the darkness beginning to mar her usually flawless ivory skin of her forearm. It started as a simple black dot before practically burning over her flesh and taking form of a skull with a snake slithering through its hallow eyes and mouth. Clenching her hand tightly, nails dug into the palm of her hand, as she knew this was a result of the Dark Lord being mad. His anger hurt her, it hurt them all.

Nails dug into her palm more violently as ten minutes passed and the burning didn't cease. Her nails were slowly cutting into her hand, and she tried to slow her breathing to stop from getting angry. Concentrating on breathing in for five seconds, and then out for six seconds. Just focus, Alecto, don't lose it. She could feel a warm stickiness pooling in the palm of her hand, and she knew that her nails were cutting into the palm of her hand. Fifteen minutes passed and the pain from the Dark Mark didn't subside, but instead increased. Slowly coursing it's way up her arm, like a fire burning through her veins and searing her from the inside. It was torturous, and her mind was likely going to crack at any moment. She was all ready hopelessly clinging to whatever sanity might be left within her dark and twisted mind, but now? There was no doubt that this pain was going to drive her crazy.

Thirty minutes passed as she could feel that darkness making it's way across her chest, tearing through her body like a rabid animal seeking out any source of light and extinguishing it. The rage and fury was so powerful, and so suffocating. In consumed her, burning her insides and boiling her blood and sending her mind into a dark abyss of nothingness. This wasn't the normal summoning of the Death Eaters, Alecto was slowly realizing that. This was something far more darker, this was a rage of someone who was beyond angry. This was a malice, and a hatred of a being who could not think of anything else but revenge and awesome fury.

After an hour of being tortured by the mark on her arm, she heard the door to her room open. Alecto remained focusing on the deep crimson red crushed velvet of the canopy above her bed. Her breathing slow and deep as she only concentrated on her breathing and not the approaching steps of her timid house elf. Senses were running rampant as her ears picked up the quiet whimper of Tuli, and the vibrations it's feet made as it slowly took steps to Alecto's bedside. She could hear the elf open it's mouth and then close it again as if contemplating saying anything. "Mistress...?" The elf's voice cracked, as if it knew saying something was a mistake.

As if someone flicked on a light switch Alecto's half lidded gaze widened, a dark flicker was visible in those dark black eyes. Instantly sitting up, the hand without the Dark Mark upon it slid up her thigh and pulled a dagger from a thigh sheath. The blade went whizzing through the air and pierced the elf through the air. The speed of the blade flying through the air sent the elf flying across the room and becoming stuck against the opposite wall. Pinned by the blade through it's ear about four feet off the ground. A loud growl came from the woman as she scrambled off the bed, over turning a table and a chair in the process. The elf kept it's hands over it's mouth to prevent from crying out in pain, and hopefully avoid any more punishment. Tugging the blade from the house elf's ear, the creature began to slide to the floor, before Alecto wrapped her hands around the elf's throat tightly. Her grip was bound to cut off air circulation eventually, and the elf actually began to gasp, but being as subservient as it was didn't not fight against Alecto's grip.

In a blind fury, Alecto hurled the elf towards the door, which was all ready partially open. The force of the throw sent the elf hurdling against the door and flying out into the hallway. A loud THUD signaled that the elf smashed against the opposite wall in the hallway. Alecto stepped into the doorway, her gaze narrowed on the elf which was slumping down to the floor. The woman in the doorway looked like a cat playing with a mouse before killing it. Her steps were predatory, and sought out some sort of compensation for the pain that was coursing through her. Lips curled into a disgusted sneer as the elf began to nurse it's bleeding ear. "Vile, disgusting creature." Her voice was low, hissing towards the elf on the floor. She wanted to scream at it, tell it that it didn't know pain. That a tiny flesh wound was nothing compared to what was running through her body and burning itself on her fore arm. She wanted to shout, and show that elf what pain REALLY was, but... she restrained herself.

"Get out of my sight." Fingers twitched over that dagger which she still gripped in her hand, contemplating just driving the blade through the elf's chest. The only thing that stopped her from doing that was the mere fact that the elf was actually her mother's, and while Alecto would love to extinguish it's overbearing life. Her devotion to her mother stopped her from killing the sniveling creature before her. The elf scrambled to it's feet and darted down the hallway, leaving the woman to stand there with the pain torturing her body.

One hour, and it still hasn't let up. This was going to be a long night.