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Post by Mosrael//Ranna on Jun 1, 2011 0:49:30 GMT -5
[[ I thought it might be fun to stir up trouble, so anyone's welcome to post! ]]
Air swirled soundlessly in on itself in the wee hours of the morning. Shopkeepers were just getting up and preparing their stores for business hours. Sunrise was a good half hour away, and in the pre-dawn light, the mist and dew turned everything to gilded silver.
Except for a shadow that glided through the mist, moving with silent grace befitting a dancer. Behind her several more shapes followed. Not human, but four-legged canines.
As she emerged from the mist seeping away from the outskirts of Hogsmeade, the witch paused, taking in the scene of the sleepy town. She wore a light-leeching black cloak that swept around her form elegantly, beneath that a high-collared, dark purple dress with a black sleeveless, collared corset over it, revealing her slender, petite figure. High black boots completed the ensemble. The only thing that stood out above the costume was her mask. Deep velvet purple with swirls of silver accenting slanted eyes and a mocking smile. Beneath it, only the glint of dark eyes could be seen. Thick black hair framed the mask.
The five dog-creatures stood around her, waiting obediently. They were a type of demon, direhounds from the depths of the forests in Transylvania. They had black pelts, lean and long-legged, with long, black horns curving back from their skulls, and red eyes.
"Wait here," she ordered, proceeding forward again. Another figure, taller than her, coalesced from the fog. Silent, wearing a clock-work mask with no mouth, and completely covered in what looked like inter-locking pieces of bronze and dark silver armor, the figure was her silent bodyguard, constructed from dark magic and old bones, covered in armor.
Mosrael stopped at one of the first shops, an apothecary. Reaching out a slender, pale hand, she pushed the door open. Silently, the bodyguard, or Krellith, as she called him, waited outside on the steps.
The witch perused the selection of herbs, potions and bottles, looking for several certain ingredients. And the shop's owner.
Mosrael had some questions for her as well.
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Post by Maebh Breandan on Jun 2, 2011 23:48:22 GMT -5
Mornings, a blessing and a curse. Up stairs in the flat above the Apothecary, Maebh was halfway through her morning stretches and exercises. Ever since the demon attakck she had implemented an everyday morning practice with her knives. It was a simple, quick half hour of basic techniques to keep her abilities sharp. Her body protested as she pun slashing low. If she had been sparing with her brothers she'd be losing. Her time on her own made her soft.
A chiming sound caused Maebh to pause. Someone was in her shop. Which was odd since no one ever came in this early. Storing her thin blades on her person she quickly jogged down the stairs, pausing to smooth her slightly sweat damp hair. Where was her assistant? Probably stepped out to get a pastry. Maybe, she'd bring her one. Maebh stepped into the room a smile of greeting on her face.
"Good Morning, What can I help you with?" She asked, curious as to who this person was. Her outfit was rather dramatic and there was something a bit strange about her customer. She couldn't put her finger on what it was but she didn't exactly trust this person but also didn't want to jump to conclusions. Then she spotted the mask. What was this person hiding? Maebh kept the distance from this stranger. Mask boded ill.
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Post by Mosrael//Ranna on Jun 3, 2011 0:09:02 GMT -5
The masked woman did not turn from the shelf immediately at the sound of the shopkeeper's inquiry. Instead, she reached up and lightly ran her fingers across the tops of the bottles lined neatly along a shelf.
"Yes, you can indeed." A cold voice rasped from beneath the mask. "I'm looking for essence of chimaera blood. I doubt you have it, as it's rare. And controlled. I'm also looking..." pale fingers plucked a black vial from the shelf as the woman turned slowly to face the gypsy storeowner.
"For information." The bottle was labeled Nightweed Poison, but the masked woman rolled it around deftly in her hand, toying with it. "Several nights ago some demons paid a visit to your shop." The masked head inclined in the direction of the recently repaired door.
Back and forth the black bottle rolled, sometimes coming precariously close to dropping, but never falling.
"What did you see of the demons, and how did you and your...rabble defeat them?"
Mosrael made no pretense of being friendly, but her calm, albeit raspy, voice was like oil on water, smooth but a thin veneer over unspoken menace.
The clock-work masked guard stepped inside the shop and made several complicated hand gestures at his mistress.
"Yes, stay inside now Krellith. We don't want the early risers out there getting nervous when they see your lovely face, now do we." Mosrael returned her gaze to Maebh.
"Do you feel like talking, gypsy?"
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Post by Theo Bowre on Jun 8, 2011 23:20:22 GMT -5
If it were even possible, Theo loved Maebh Breandan more than ever. She was a beautiful person, a stunning lady, and she kept wonderfully convenient hours of operation. Here it was barely dawn in the sleepy village of Hogsemeade and the sultry shopkeeper already had her apothecary open. Bless her. Theo's latissimus dorsi would embrace her if it could. He decided instead to bring her coffee and a muffin.
The beater awkwardly clambered up the stairs, still sore from last night's training session, and reached for the door. The scent of freshly brewed coffee mingled with the fragrant herbs and essences of Maebh's stock, and while Theo was at first caught up in the gentle aromas, he felt a peculiar breath of electricity cross his back and neck. It was an odd feeling, and not one to which he was accustomed in his friend's cottage shop.
"V?" Bowre turned the corner around an antique cupboard of essential oils and came to a sudden stop at the sight of Maebh and two bizarrely-dressed customers. "Oh, sorry." The apology was immediate and done out of manners, but Theo's decency was quickly becoming an afterthought as a feeling of unease clawed at his stomach. As a rule, he disliked when others wore masks, especially for everyday errands. Intent was hidden, deceit was obscured. The bronze and silver armour was unlike anything he had ever seen. "I brought you breakfast." Theo placed the coffee and muffin on her counter, his eyes remaining on her guests. "Good morning."
Theo instinctively went and stood beside Maebh. He knew she was capable of handling anything, but he loved her. Something wasn't sitting right. He used his order collection as an excuse to be close and absently flipped through the small envelopes, collecting one that read Theo - Arnica and dropping money in her till. He felt inclined to stand taller and did so. It was amazing how small he still felt in their presence.
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Post by Maebh Breandan on Jun 9, 2011 11:29:03 GMT -5
"Yes, you can indeed." "I'm looking for essence of chimaera blood. I doubt you have it, as it's rare. And controlled. I'm also looking..."
"For information." "Several nights ago some demons paid a visit to your shop."
What was this woman doing here? Was this some kind of test of her loyalty? If so, to whom? Maebh's position in a family of gypsies often brought criminals to her doorstep. It was with the territory. Her family, except for a few members, weren't criminals but they knew about crime. As a child, Maebh had learned to pick pockets and glean information that could be bartered or sold. Her contacts for the ministry were criminals too. Maebh had a reputation for being able to procure illegal substances from people who mishandled them. While she could get a hold of chimaera blood she would not do it for someone she did not know. And not a masked person.
Maebh stood silent as the woman asked her questions. Her eyes watched the bottle of poison as the woman toyed with it as if it were a toy and not a potentially dangerous substance.
"What did you see of the demons, and how did you and your...rabble defeat them?"
Again, Maebh remained silent. The woman's voice was icy steel and Maebh knew she meant business. This was not a friendly chat and she would get her information one way or another. But how should Maebh handle it? Play the flighty, in it for the money gypsy who sold information to the highest bidder, which offered protection and risk at the same time. Bought informants were often killed before being paid. Or would she play the wary shop keeper, afraid of the demons and this woman. So many possibilities.
A strange thumping sound made Meabh glance towards the door. A man creature with no face walked in, dread rolling off him. Dark magic was at work. The day had come. A pinprick of fear tingled at the back of her neck. Would this be the day she died?
"Yes, stay inside now Krellith. We don't want the early risers out there getting nervous when they see your lovely face, now do we."
Early risers, Maebh prayed that no one would enter her store. She'd often open very early to accommodate those early raisers, most shop keepers, or beings who wanted to avoid the crowds.
"Do you feel like talking, gypsy?"
The smart mouth in her wanted to quip, not particularly, but she doubted sarcasm would go over well. The urge not to be tortured that morning won out.
Quips aside, she opened her mouth to speak when the door opened again and maebh's nightmare came true. The sight of one of her oldest friends made her stomach clinch into a thousand knots. She wanted to yell at Theo, demanding that he left. It was too late, he was already by herside offering her breakfast.
Maebh shot him a smile that did not reach her eyes.
"Hello, Theo. Thank you. These guests have a few questions about Hogsmeade's demons. I was just about to tell them about the story of how a few shopkeepers, a gypsy and a teacher defeated them. Luck really. And I do believe it was our combined talent, everyone had something to offer." She said in one of her story telling voices. Her words were melodious and rather pleasant, as she tried to give the impression that nothing was wrong or out of the ordinary. Only the tight lines at the corner of her eyes belied that something was the matter.
"Any other questions? Perhaps you were wondering what they looked like? I could give you a sketch. Maybe even the door they destroyed. They were rather playful, like toddlers arguing over the door. Rather stupid creatures."
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Post by Mosrael//Ranna on Jun 13, 2011 1:04:43 GMT -5
For most dark wizards, they thought that fancy spells and brute strength were power. But information, and fear, those were power to Mosrael. A man entered the store, and walked over to join the shopkeeper. Mosrael reached out with her mind, calling on her skill with legilimens and occlumens, to pluck the strings of the woman's mind, and the man's, to call up some information. She didn't care if they felt her intrusion, she actually preferred it if they new she was entering their minds.
Fear was power, after all.
So there was care between them, a relationship, love even. It was also obvious in the way the man stood next to his friend, protection suffused his stance and eyes.
"Well, Maebh Breandan," Mosrael smiled coldly. Her eyes did not smile. "Thank you for that information. I suppose I don't have to burn this place down after all." The threat was given offhandedly, meant as a jab to throw her off balance.
Pale fingers placed the black bottle back on the shelf, and with the whisper of movement, the masked woman drew her wand. "But you have defiance in you." Pale eyes focused onto the man beside the gypsy. "I hope you're good at taking messages, Theodore Bowre."
Krellith moved as though blinking from one space to the next, and stood beside the man. Before Theo could move, the clockwork man placed his fingers against the man's forearm, and the metal on his fingers grew white hot, burning into Theo's skin.
It was over in an instant, the marks looked like fingerprints, and once the burn healed it wouldn't leave scars, but the pain was the real message Mosrael wanted to send.
"Tell all who oppose me that Mosrael, Mistress of Masks, is now a force to be reckoned with." Her voice was cold, like ice striking steel, the final knell of a damning bell. "I will bring your precious Ministry down around your heads, like a disease I will turn it inside out, it will crumble and fall. You will know that chaos is my calling card."
She was at the door, Krellith opened it for her. She pointed her wand at the window of the store, and like black venom a mark appeared, creeping along the glass, a mask without a mouth, tendrils of darkness radiating outwards from it.
Then Mosrael called the direhounds, reaching them with her mind. With howls that sent a wave of fear before them like a sickly dark cloud, the beasts loped into the village and, began to attack the nearest building. Krellith strode before them, bashing in doors and windows. The aim was destruction, not death, but any early rising villager caught out of doors was in danger.
Mosrael walked, danced, behind them, and with her wand began marking each building with the mark of the Mistress of Masks, each burning with black fire.
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Post by Theo Bowre on Jun 13, 2011 22:48:40 GMT -5
"Hello, Theo. Thank you. These guests have a few questions about Hogsmeade's demons. I was just about to tell them about the story of how a few shopkeepers, a gypsy and a teacher defeated them. Luck really. And I do believe it was our combined talent, everyone had something to offer."
Theo quickly caught on to the gypsy's caution and dropped his pack to the ground. Maebh was the type of spirit who shone so brightly that one could instantly catch a shadow, no matter how faint. He carefully regarded the two "guests" in front of her and remained at the shopkeeper's side, ready to intervene if necessary. Dawn brought darkness to Hogsmeade.
It was in the silence that followed Maebh's explanation that Bowre felt the rage of Mosrael's presence. He suddenly found it increasingly difficult to focus as a slight pain entered his head, followed by the intrusion of another's wicked thoughts. Legilimency. Theo winced slightly but he would not give her the satisfaction of overpowering him. He shot back a look of defiance.
"Well, Maebh Breandan. Thank you for that information. I suppose I don't have to burn this place down after all."
"Get out of here. If you so much as touch this shop, Miss Breandan, or anything else in this village, I will reign a very heavy hell on you and your chum here will become a paperweight." Theo was about to suggest that Maebh retrieve her brother's blades when the masked-intruder levelled her next threat.
"I hope you're good at taking messages, Theodore Bowre." Theo had no chance to retort. The movement of the clockwork sentinel was so instant that he only became aware of the being's presence when his arm was already in the masked-man's grasp. An impossible heat pierced through the beater's skin and he stifled a scream through clenched teeth. He looked down to see white fingerprints glowing on his forearm.
"Tell all who oppose me that Mosrael, Mistress of Masks, is now a force to be reckoned with. I will bring your precious Ministry down around your heads, like a disease I will turn it inside out, it will crumble and fall. You will know that chaos is my calling card."
Theo instantly wrapped his arms around Maebh and pulled her close, watching in horror as a vicious black mark stained her store window. The image, not unlike the Dark Mark, sent a shockwave of disbelief and fear through the man, who remembered being a child when He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named imparted his destruction on the innocent. Mosrael and Krellith could be seen with their direhounds destroying the village. Like the front lines of the Second Wizarding War, it was a scene that could not be described.
Bowre ripped open his sack, pulling out his beater bat, a bludger and his wand. He shot out a patronus and raced for the door, screaming back to Maebh to take arms. The moment he had a clear shot he took it, rocketing a bludger with mach force at the direhounds attacking the villager. With the ball in flight he used his wand to target the clockwork giant.
"Expelliarmus!"
Within a minute, over half the shops on High Street were either marked or on fire. Theo switched quickly between attack spells and defence, using Cave Inimicum to try and protect those still in their shops.
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Post by Mosrael//Ranna on Jun 15, 2011 0:09:16 GMT -5
The stunning spell hit Krellith in his midsection, sending him tumbling to the ground. Rolling to his feet, the bodyguard charged at the offending wizard, grabbing him bodily and throwing him against the side of the shop. Moving slowly, tauntingly, the clockwork creature walked towards Theo. Krellith held no wand, he could do no regular magic, but possessed great strength, and innate black magic abilities of a certain kind.
Chaos.
People were coming awake, falling from dreams to a waking nightmare. The black fire glowed against windows, doors, dark marks blooming like poisonous flowers all over the street. Mosrael's mask flickered in the darklight, the strange luminous glow from the shadowfire. It was as though her mask were a living face of twisting expressions, but the same dark, cruel eyes.
A witch came from behind her, shooting a stunning spell at the woman. Mosrael spun gracefully, deflected the bolt, and pointed her hand at the witch. She screamed and clutched at her head as thoughts bored into her mind like daggers.
Mosrael had two more wizards attack her at the same time. She dodged as an incendio spell shot at her, past her to strike the other wizard square in the chest. Her wand came up, a green jet of light struck the first wizard and he crumpled to the ground.
"Come out and play..." she whispered, raising her hand to point at the sky. The dark mark spread against the clouds, swallowing the growing sunlight as more clouds gathered to her spell, filling the sky, veiling the sun.
Twilight fell on the village.
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Post by Theo Bowre on Jun 15, 2011 1:17:12 GMT -5
Theo slowly pulled himself up from the ground, fighting the weight of wood planking and thatch that fell with him from the wall. He could feel Krellith's presence in the immediate foreground but remained both fearful and incredulous at his perfect silence. He had just struck the being with a stunning spell and it hardly seemed to wind him. Bowre got to his feet and remained in a stand-off. He discovered wand was missing.
Without removing his eyes from the clockwork mask, Theo reached down and grabbed the sturdiest wood shard he could carry. It looked like a square spike but inverted it served as a rather decent club. Theo took aim as the bludger he set upon earlier skimmed passed Krellith's head and approached his airspace. His contact with the solid orb obliterated his makeshift bat but the energy released by the impact sent the bludger heavily in to Krellith's left shoulder, resulting in a loud metallic clank! Theo used the split second of interference to charge back at the giant and tackle him around the waist. Krellith's armour was not something Bowre could punch through, but he wasn't about to give the menace a further opportunity to strike. Theo dug an arm beneath the being's shoulder and a leg beneath his hip, flipping the heavy form so that it lay partially on its stomach. He sat on top of the man's torso and bear-hugged him from behind, reaching for the mask that hid Krellith's identity in an attempt to dislodge it. The beater faltered for a moment, finding that the skin and iron facade were flush.
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Post by Maebh Breandan on Jun 15, 2011 20:28:04 GMT -5
A beat passed as Theo laid down his pack. He was one of her closest friends but he was fiercely over protected and would entangle himself in her mess if she wasn't careful. Maebh had to deal with this woman herself. Being apart of this lady's organization might be a great lead for the hit wizards. Maebh's mind was reeling with ideas, should she try to insinuate herself with this woman or wait for permission? The ministry would be daft if they didn't want an undercover in the masked woman's network.
A faint pressure in her mind warned her that the woman had begun to search her thoughts. Maebh focused on the demon attacks, allowing those memories to flow forth. Carefully, Maebh pretended not to resist the woman, allowing her access to a point. If this woman realized that she was an undercover she'd be dead. Maebh only pushed back a bit, it looked feeble and that defense was easily over come.
"Well, Maebh Breandan," Mosrael smiled coldly. Her eyes did not smile. "Thank you for that information. I suppose I don't have to burn this place down after all."
With a sharp pain the woman was gone. Maebh stood there testing her mind to make sure the woman was entirely gone. Maebh allowed her body to relax with relief. Any true shop keeper would be glad at that news. Personally, Maebh didn't really care. It wasn't her building and this was just a cover for her ministry work.
"But you have defiance in you." Pale eyes focused onto the man beside the gypsy. "I hope you're good at taking messages, Theodore Bowre."
Merlin. Fear coursed through the gypsy and her body tensed. Hands flexed, itching to grab the knives that were hidden on her person. Really, there were weapons throughout the shop. One could never have enough weapons. In a second the metal tin man was grasping Theo. MAebh carefully watched, ready to intervene, if he made to kill her friend. It took only a second but she could see the pain etched onto Theo's face. He hadn't bargained for this, all he had wanted was to bring her breakfast.
"Tell all who oppose me that Mosrael, Mistress of Masks, is now a force to be reckoned with. I will bring your precious Ministry down around your heads, like a disease I will turn it inside out, it will crumble and fall. You will know that chaos is my calling card."
The woman left and Theo pulled her close. V allowed him, taking the comfort that he offered. In her mind she was repeating the words over and over again, committing them to memory. She had no doubt her superiors would want that information. As they stood there minds reeling from this strange encounter, a little part of V's brain couldn't help but wish that she was in the arms of another. THeo was kind, strong and well very well muscled but she preferred another.
A mark was burned into her door, ruining Reck's hard work. Stupidly, tears formed in her eyes at the sight. Forcefully, Maebh shoved the notion aside. It was silly, there was more important work to be done. She hadn't thought about chasing after the woman and her henchman. Her mind was focused instead on the meeting, trying to sort out everything to report to the ministry. Theo had another idea. He'd let her go gently and instead removed qudditch equipment and telling her to take arms.
Maebh frowned but did as she was told. Then she heard it, an explosion in the distance. They were ripping up the place. Bloody hell. Maebh began collecting instant darkness powder, knives, and a few other things she thought she'd need as she followed Theo outside. The man had hit a mean bludger but it was a risk.
Black fire licked the doors of shops, leaving the masked mark behind. Destruction was quickly spreading. Theo dashed after the metal creature. Maebh quickly sent a warning to her gypsy brethren, praying that some were near by. Large demon looking hounds raced through the village attacking anything they could reach. Lacing her knives with magic, Maebh shot four at the pack of hounds as she ran.
The masked woman traveled quickly but her path was easy to follow. Everything burned behind her. Maebh stopped several times to help the wounded or the trapped. She found the wounded witch that had first attacked the Mask woman. This was no simpleton. She had a strong grasp of dark magic and little humanity left. How to defeat this woman how to get her out of hogsmeade?
Suddenly the rising sun was blotted out as dark clouds rolled across the village, a dark mark could be seen among the graying sky. Anger bloomed in V's stomach. What had they done to deserve this? The streets were soon filled with debris and scared people, so MAebh took to the roofs. Above, she paused watch the masked woman fling to wizards away like small pillows.
Quickly, before she killed the men, Maebh shot a stunning spell, then apprated to another roof not to far away and shot to more before sliding down off the building.
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Post by Mosrael//Ranna on Jun 17, 2011 1:41:26 GMT -5
Krellith hissed and struggled, but the mask suddenly came away from his face, detaching from the skin. But it revealed a nightmarish face. Black skin stretched taut over his skull, depthless black pits where the eyes should be, and no lips. It was as though skin had been stretched over a skull, with no muscle or tissue underneath.
With a hissing snarl, Krellith heaved Theo off his shoulders, rolling to his feet. The creature had no tongue, so it couldn't shout threats at the nuisance that had distracted him and taken his mask, but if it had a voice, it would be cursing Theo's name.
Leaping to his feet, the twisted man reached out a hand, and a blade appeared in his grasp. In the same movement, the knife shot from his hand towards Theo.
===
Mosrael spun and deflected the stunning spells with a shield spell. With her mind she reached out and latched onto Maebh's mind, digging in mental claws like lances of pain that burned into the woman's thoughts.
Overhead the clouds continued to gather, the dark mark grew, tendrils of blackness twisting around the silhouette of a mask.
Firelight splashed across the dark mask worn on Mosrael's own face, distorting the cruel smile and dark eyes. She continued to press her psychic attack on the gypsy, toying with her, waiting to see how much of a fight she put up.
"If you're strong enough, I'll let you join me," Mosrael mocked. "Surely you can do better than a few stunning spells. See?"
Her wand lifted up and a hex shot out to hit a wizard about to cast at Mosrael. He screamed and ran around, batting uselessly at the massive beetles that suddenly started crawling over him.
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Post by Ralin O'Faerlun on Jun 17, 2011 1:53:42 GMT -5
Theo's in trouble! Ralin raced through the air on his broomstick, having just received Theo's flying cat patronus with a warning, and a call to arms. Hogsmeade was burning.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, Ralin was shifted into wolf form, massive paws propelling him forward into the village. A direhound was the first to meet Ralin's charge. He leaped and tackled the demon and they tussled for a few moments. But Ralin's size and agility won over the demon's nasty bite, and he moved through the debris, his senses alert for Theo.
Another demon hound tried to wrestle with the big wolf, and ended up running away with its tail between its legs.
There! His brother was battling some sort of armored man. As Ralin raced towards him, Theo tore off the mask of the man...or creature. Silently Ralin cheered the burly beater on. It had an inhuman face, one that brought Ralin's hackles up. Then he saw something that made his blood run cold, a flash of metal in the man's hands.
Ralin leaped, slamming into Theo, pushing him aside. He yelped as he felt the steel enter his shoulder like a white hot punch, landing awkwardly. Gritting his teeth, he moved to stand beside Theo, crouching and snarling at the strange armored man as he favored his front right leg. The wolf looked at Theo and winked, as if to say "Let's kick this thing's tin-can butt!"
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Post by Maebh Breandan on Jun 17, 2011 23:44:11 GMT -5
The knives she had thrown clattered to the ground and the stunning spells had been deflected. Maebh was about to shoot a hex when a sharp pain exploded in her mind. Thinking was not possible and without permission her body sank to the ground. Hands clawed at her head in a vain attempt to pry out the mask lady. The initial pain lessened into slow burns. Deep slow breaths helped calm Maebh. This devil would not win. Slowly, Maebh began to fight back with her mind, pinching the lines that were in her brain, trying to throw them back.
Maebh had been waiting for this. Here was her chance to prove that this petty criminal gypsy could be of use. But what spell? How to convince this monster that she was worthy? Maebh had not gone to Hogwarts. She studied art, dance and theater at the Wizarding Academy of the Dramatic Arts. In charms class she learned how to change colors and make things dance. Practical studies were not her forte.
In rapid succession, Maebh shot out spells and curses, including stunning spells, dismemberment charms, and levitation spells aimed at the woman and the objects around her. Each spell hurt, as the woman was still in her mind.
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Post by Reckony Pike on Jun 19, 2011 23:24:21 GMT -5
Reckony stirred beneath the covers, enjoying a rare opportunity to sleep in past 5am on a Friday morning. Normally, Fridays were abominably long for the barkeep; he would arise before dawn in preparation for a myriad of deliveries that would bring in stores of food and drink for the Three Broomsticks' busy weekend services. But this morning was different. He had passed the proverbial buck and gifted himself a much needed mental health day. Sometime in the evening, he had closed his apartment windows to the cool night air, which had given him a chill he could not entirely shake. His apartment fell silent and almost bordered on the point of peaceful.
At dawn that Friday morning, a faint blue light spelled the beginning of the end of it all.
Reckony opened his eyes to slits. He had lived in his apartment above the Three Broomsticks long enough to know how dawn entered his bedroom. There was the slow saunter of twilight followed the warm caress of the sun. Hues muddled from deep blue to gold and he would be spared the sudden pierce of morning rays by a small tapestry he had hung in his window. But the blue light that captured Reckony's attention this morning was not in the acceptable colour spectrum for the sunrise. It was very near, very insistent. And very much like a patronus.
The barkeep caught the form of a cat in the animated, pale light. It was a peculiar sight, as though the cat were flying or performing some manner of aerial acrobats. Odd, yes, but Reckony knew what it was or, more importantly, who it was from. Half asleep, the barkeep gruffly grabbed a pillow and shoved it over his face, speaking in muffled grunts beneath the cotton.
"Theodore, your cat is spinning." (Beat) Reckony bolted upright, his eyes failing to focus with the sudden rush of blood to the head. Merlin. Theo's patronus. The barkeep wished he could say that he was always getting such requests for assistance from his friend, to lessen the sudden pang of worry that crept in to his heart. In truth it was the other way around; Theo almost never asked for help, and the one time he did was a situation Reckony would rather have forgotten.
Slowly the blue light came back in to view.
Hogsmeade under attack. Require immediate assistance of the Black Watch. Casualties and extensive damage. Masked attackers and direhounds.
Confused, Reckony looked out the window, seeing darkness outside the panes. Clearly it wasn't as early as he thought for nightfall was still upon him. He checked his clock. 5:45am. Not early. Where was the sun? The barkeep stumbled nakedly out of bed, running for a closer look outside. The darkness undulated on the other side of the glass. Nothing could be seen outside or below but with heightened senses, the faint smell of smoke reached Reckony's register.
The village was on fire.
* * * * * * * * * *
"MAEBH! MAEBH!" Reckony sprinted down High Street, jumping through terrified villagers and charred debris in a desperate attempt to reach the end of the block. Thick plumes of smoke made breathing difficult, and Pike found himself struggling to make sense of the chaos that surrounded him. Dark, vicious marks seared the doors of each shop, spell fire erupted from corners and alleys, and in the few instances that the haze parted to the sky above, a retched mask filled with blackness amongst the clouds. "MAEBH!" Reckony's focus remained solely dedicated to the gypsy shopkeeper, who had recently become more than an kind acquaintance to the man. His heart clenched in fear for her safety: it was evident that the greatest extent of the village's damage was in the vicinity of her apothecary. She lived upstairs. "MAEBH!" Hands of the scared and the injured grabbed at Reckony's arms.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I need to get to her." Pike could have cried. He felt like he was abandoning his people, but he needed to know she was safe. He needed to know she was alive. He needed her.
"MAEBH!"
As he approached the apothecary, Reck caught a glimpse of a tall, masked woman deflecting spells from the top of an adjacent building. The hexes were flying fast and furious.
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Post by Theo Bowre on Jun 20, 2011 17:17:00 GMT -5
Theo landed heavily amongst the rubble. He was a lightweight against the armoured Krellith and had only succeeded in removing the creature's mask for all his efforts. The beater caught a brief glimpse of a black skull before being catapulted once again in to a wall. The impact left him winded.
Theo looked up in confusion as he spotted a large wolf racing for his attacker. Although he had known Ralin since he was a young child, he had only seen his brother in his werewolf form on a handful of occasions. Sometimes Ralin was open with his condition and other times he sought solace. The appearance of the young man, while welcome, brought a new sense of fear to a protective Theo.
"Ralin! Be careful!" The beater stifled an anguished cry as he saw Krellith's blade enter his brother's shoulder. The wolf quickly rebounded, but Theo could see that he was favouring his leg. It was just like Ralin to fight through the pain. "Accio wand!" Theo held out his hand, waiting longer than he had hoped for his wand to make contact. In his initial struggle with Krellith, it had become lost beneath a pile of wood and brick. He used it instantly. "Protego!" A spelled shield appeared before the two brothers, giving Theo a second's opportunity to attend to his brother. "Hold on, buddy. Vulnera Sanentur." A soft light bonded the tip of Theo's black walnut wand to Ralin's shoulder; with the wound as deep as it was, he had to repeat the incantation three times in order to get it to heal.
"Okay. NOW we kick its ass. GO! STUPEFY!" A crimson light flashed from Theo's wand like a bolt of lightning, hitting Krellith square in the abdomen.
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