The Lady of the Wood Ravenclaw Murder Thread Finished

Mentioning: @Dealla Prince, @Callie Jensen, @Thomas Baines, @Sylvain Wylt

Just as he thought he'd done something helpful, the red spark signal had spread red flames upon the canopy of the forbidden forest. Huffing in exasperation, Cade furrowed his brows wondering what spell would remedy this situation. Of course, whenever the young Ravenclaw ever attempted to save the day, something went wrong. Perhaps Cade just wasn't cut out for this sort of heroism. Fortunately, before the first year could wave his wand at the trees again, Thomas and Callie approached easily throwing extinguo up at the red flames. Cade dusted the ash from his bangs and bent to help Dealla from the forest floor.

"I'm fine, it's Dee I'm worried about," Cade answered Thomas, eyeing the nasty wound permeating her side. "We need to get out of here. I reckon Vladimir is too far for us to follow without advanced help." Cade spoke with a glance over his shoulder deeper into the forest. He could just barely see movement in the trees. "He's injured. So he can't go far. A professor can find him." Truthfully Cade was done with this whole fiasco. He'd been lucky so far in keeping reasonably safe and not sustaining an injury, but who knew how long that would last. Seeing Dealla get continually attacked by the forest did not do well to soothe his anxiety. He wanted to get out of here quickly. And to him lingering in one place for too long wasn't the smartest of plans. The sooner they joined Sylvain outside the trees, the better.

"Agreed," Cade nodded to Dealla's suggestion. With that, he would make his way slowly back towards the treeline ahead, noting Callie's lit wand Cade copied and flicked his wand. "Lumos."

Action: Casting Lumos and heading out of the forest

"AURORA!" Winnie's words were half caught in her throat, sounding strangled as she watched her friend basically light herself on fire. Winnie's hand shook as she gripped her wand, her spell successful but only in lighting up Aurora's now charred skin. The scent of her burning flesh was enough to make Winnie's stomach turn.

"Oh Merlin..." She couldn't quite decipher what her dormmate was trying to tell her, but her brows furrowed in concern. It hurt her heart to see her friend in pain and terrified. Now she was babbling like a madwoman. How could she stay away from her? Regardless of her friend's concerns, she would step forward, one hand gingerly gripping her uninjured shoulder while the other reached forward to cup her cheek. She tilted the girl's face upwards so she was looking directly at Winnie. It was her hope that this would force her to pay attention to what she was saying. "R-Rori, you're fine, you just... You're okay, shh... You're not a tree, you're a girl, and I'm right here." Her voice caught in her throat again, salty tears welling in her eyes. "No, no, Vladimir, I don't think he's evil, I think... He's scared... I don't know, but attacking him won't help... Let's go b-back to the cabin and get Brumby to look at your arm... C-Come on..."

She would pull back and release her hold on the girl. Just in time for her fellow Eagle to make her speech about Violet taking care of her cat. Winnie balked at the girl, her mouth slightly agape. "What... What do you mean?" She would ask, her voice shaking. "Aurora, don't talk like that, I--... WAIT! AURORA! COME BACK HERE!" Panic rose in her throat, clenching as her lungs as she watched the girl rip towards the forest. How could she run off? Directly back into the path that she herself had just been dragged out of. Her eyes flickered upwards as she saw sparks begin to fly up overhead... And then set the damn leaves aflame. Perfect... With a dry swallow, Winnie gripped her wand and pointed towards the forest. "Extinguo!" She would quickly cast, before making a beeline back towards the forest and re-entering. She would try to remember the path she had taken before, but she was mostly attempting to catch up with her friend.

"AURORA!" She called. "VLADIMIR!" He likely wouldn't respond, but it was worth a shot if her friend was in search of the boy. She was hit with sudden dread; the thought that the young Ravenclaw may try to foolishly attack him. "Don't hurt him! You'll end up hurting yourself more! Please, listen to me!" Merlin, the one time she was making sense. Her. Winnie.

Action: Returning to the forest after casting Extinguo.
Stats: Stamina: 6 | Evasion: 6 | Strength: 7 | Wisdom: 7 | Arcane Power: 7 | Accuracy: 7
Abilities: Healing Sage & Muggle Condition | Health: 600/600 | Trunk: X

mentioning: @Vladimir Athanatos

interacting with: no one

outfit | rings

And almost as soon as she walked inside the forest, Nell was thrown out again. She lay on the ground outside the forest and groaned. She took out her wand that - surprisingly - had not been broken yet. "Lumos," she incanted in a strained tone. Being tossed out of the forest, at full force, two times in a row may have taken a toll on her.

She stood ups after a few minutes and looked into the forest. It was a terrible idea to back in, she'd end up getting tossed out again like a rag doll. It really wasn't worth it. She had heard screams from within the forest, cries. They were gut wrenching, truly, but she didn't know how to help without almost getting killed herself. Vladimir was one dangerous man.

So, she decided to wait outside of the forest and wait. If anyone else was thrown out, she might be there to possibly help someone. Nell knew Pericles had gone back for help, however. Should she go back to her cabin and do same? No, it was best to wait here. Or maybe it wasn't. She truly didn't know what to do. There were people that were hurt, people that needed help. She couldn't do too much. But, then again, she could help the injured make it back to the cabins.

After making a mental list of the various pros and cons, she decided to stay.

Action: casting lumos and staying outside the forest

| @Zoë Fresnel | @Marcus Iwasaki |

Pericles' luck won out. He closed in on the camp, only to come across none other than the Ravenclaw Head of House- exactly the man he had hoped to see- with the added bonus of their Charms professor alongside him. Pericles panted a sound of relief, something between a groan and a sigh, huffing "Professors!" His desperate sprint slowed into an exhausted stagger, long limbs losing their grace for a moment, hands braced to knees in an attempt to slow his heart rate. The lad gasped for air as he was approached, blearily regarding the letter presented by his Head of House. It read like something a colleague would have written, not a student, what with the way it casually requested retrieval from the forest. "No... sir..." Pericles panted, not a single spark of recognition in his eye, implying he didn't know who would have left it either. "We got... this...." From his pocket came a crumpled note, that most mysterious puzzle:

The dead have risen and have rushed into the darkened wood.
Seek the black raven for he has secrets you might learn on this day.

As soon as he had thrust it into adult hands, the young prefect forced himself to stand upright again, turning to lead the charge back towards the woods while he explained further. "Someone sent... that... to Ravenclaws and we... thought it was a- a riddle. We found Athanatos by the woodline, and we... tried to talk him away, but he ignored us all, and he's... cursed so he's got the...." Peri paused talking to catch his breath, instead opting to pantomime, making an explosive gesture from his wrist. "...monster blood! Attacking the others! We tried to... keep everyone out though... they wouldn't listen so I came for help, but they're...." Distress tugged at his flushed features. Pericles breathed something of a short hoo before picking up the pace again, quickening into a jog, trying not to think too hard on what was happening to the others. The ominous plume of smoke in the distance implied the warning about forest fires had fallen on deaf ears.

Summary: summarizing the situation to Zoë and Marcus, trying to lead them back

Stats

Reducio

Perfectionist, Perfectionist II, Keen Eye
Stamina - 7 | Evasion - 9 | Strength - 4 | Wisdom - 9 | ArcPower - 8 | Accuracy - 9

August 8th, 2021

Before spilling all of her feelings to Bloom, Lavinia spotted a small spider coming out of the forest towards her. A yelp of surprise came out of her as she jumped from the path that the spider was taking. Looking back to see the spider, it had already disappeared from her view.

After telling the truth to Bloom, Lavinia felt relieved yet still scared of the forest that lots of her peers were inside of. Her wand was lit and she had hopes that Bloom would agree to the new plan. All of that hope dissipated when she listened to Bloom’s thoughts. Bloom thought it was useless and deep inside, Lavinia knew that too. She had been trying to tell herself that waiting for people to come out would make a difference when it obviously wouldn’t help.

Still trying to convince herself she was doing the right thing, Lavinia tried to change Bloom’s mind. “Bloom…they will come out..they have to come out.” she said forcing the waver out of her voice. “N…no….Bloom don’t go back in there.” she whispered out in horror. There was no way Lavinia was going back in there after Bloom again because she was horrified by what was happening.

Watching as one of her closest friends went into the forest, Lavinia knew there was nothing she could do anymore. What was the point of staying to help people when she couldn’t even keep Bloom out of the danger. The whole idea of her plan was that they did it together and Bloom just headed right into the danger. Lavinia felt so defeated and frightened. There were screams coming from the forest and she could see some fire raging on yet there was nothing she could do. She was useless and scared out of her wits.

Feeling her knees give out, Lavinia fell to the ground in despair. Her lit wand was shaking in her hand as a tear slipped out. She couldn’t save her friend. Playing her head in her knees, Lavinia was now basically in a ball on the ground. Hearing her voice tremble so much, she whispered one thought to herself. “I let them down and now they are going to die.” Tears started flowing much more then before as that one thought stayed in the forefront of her mind.

Action: Falling apart mentally

@Pericles Dralt tore through the campgrounds to a populus center where he would cry out for help. Not the childish pleas of a game of tag, the shrill screeching and carrying on of a childish pastime. No, this was a panicked cry, an urgent call for help rather than adventure.

@Marcus Iwasaki, Head of House for Ravenclaw was already aware that at least one foolish student had entered the Forbidden Forest. It was a rescue mission long before Pericles had tore into the campgrounds carrying on about needing help. He had already summoned Professor @Zoë Fresnel, the Charms Professor for what would likely be a scolding and-- well, there was no time to think about that as he demanded answers from Pericles.

"What do you mean students in the forest?"

Marcus did not want excuses, he wanted answers. The children of Hogwarts seemed to have an affinity with death. They chased it like a cat would a bit of errant string. The disappointment that one of the students, yes one, eliminating the hope that there was a solitary fool ambling into the forbidden wood would occupy his and Miss Fresnel's evening. "Did you write this?!" Or was someone else to blame? Did it even matter at this point? The kids were more than thoughtless, they were utterly destructive.

Within a few seconds Mr. Iwasaki had once again ruined Zoë's day. She had a much better day planned, one that involved the handsome Eliseo Céspedes, the groundskeeper. It was like something from one of those tawdry paperbacks she totally never purchased that involved shirtless men and swooning damsels. And now... she had to deal with ugh, Marcus. Even the name sounded 'proper' and stiff.

Breathless the poor Prefect would try to summarize what happened. What was going wrong. Who were the primary players. He was able to deliver onto them a note. The dead have risen and have rushed into the darkened wood. Seek the black raven for he has secrets you might learn on this day.

"Someone sent... that... to Ravenclaws and we... thought it was a- a riddle. We found Athanatos by the woodline, and we... tried to talk him away, but he ignored us all, and he's... cursed so he's got the.... ...monster blood! Attacking the others! We tried to... keep everyone out though... they wouldn't listen so I came for help, but they're...."

His voice trailed off as smoke twirled in the horizon from whence he came. Drawn by a cryptic riddle that suggested nothing good and faced with monster blood the Ravenclaw students sounded thoughtless, careless and possibly thrill-seeking rather than letting logic dictate their next move.

"We got... this...." a crumpled note.

The dead have risen and have rushed into the darkened wood.
Seek the black raven for he has secrets you might learn on this day.

A cryptic note, not that it would have taken much to pique the interest of such a self-destructive group. The teen would quickly explain what he knew.

"Someone sent... that... to Ravenclaws and we... thought it was a- a riddle. We found Athanatos by the woodline, and we... tried to talk him away, but he ignored us all, and he's... cursed so he's got the...."

He had a difficult time finding the words. How does one describe the terrors that seemed to escape from the upper classman. The Prefect would struggle with the panicked words, finding none for a brief time.

"...monster blood! Attacking the others! We tried to... keep everyone out though... they wouldn't listen so I came for help, but they're...."

_________________

Bloom was standing at the forest's edge. She had been pulled to safety by Lavinia only to determine in such a short span of time that the girl's efforts were wasted on her. She was not going to stay on the forest's edge - the forest was on fire, it was actively lashing out at the students for their intrusion and the boy that they were chasing was actively attempting to hold them back but the teens were an endless stream of recklessness and stubbornness - they would keep coming long after Vladimir was dead.

Bloom cast Lumos
Roll: 18 Success

A light would emanate from the tip of the girl's wand. They felt safer with the light. They knew from past circumstances that the light made things better, that as long as they were not in the dark that they were safe. At least that was how it used to be. The darkness had been growing, proliferating and becoming increasingly resistant to the light. The light conferred some protection. It gave the darkness pause. But the darkness no longer receded, it no longer fled.

“Bloom…they will come out..they have to come out.”

@Lavinia Cloven tried to soothe Bloom. She was not wrong,a few of them were about to leave the forest but there were some that seemed to prefer to die. There was no soothing Bloom, not that she had a plan. Not that she could not save her friends because most were already leaving. Those that were not leaving were still about to enter.

Sometimes it was better to add to the body count.

“N…no….Bloom don’t go back in there.”

Not that Bloom would heed the girl's pleas. No, she would rush into the forest in spite of the girl. Lavinia would not follow. She would not. she could not. Her knees would shake and give way. The spongy earth would meet her knees.

This was defeat. This was futility.

How was it that they were the clever house. Sometimes a house works best when it abides by the cliches.

“I let them down and now they are going to die.”

Lavinia was crushed. What else could they do? They could learn. They could take this opportunity and every opportunity to take control of the situation through a means that was not force. That was not through prideful self-sacrifice. Heroes are not always the ones that rush head-first into danger. Sometimes they are the ones that ponder the options carefully. That discover and determine patterns. They use their spells in novel, unintended ways. They discover the patterns, the aberrant moments, the legacy of the darkness and what they can change with their brilliance.

Vermin would proliferate in such settings. @Thomas Baines had breeched the forest perimeter and would find insects and rats, snakes and spiders, none of which made of shadow but rather flesh and bone.

Vermin attack Thomas
Attack 14 (+10) Miss
Evade 19 (+12)

Thomas was far too nimble. He would escape the rabid beast that lunged at him. Why had he decided to enter the forest again? He was not there to save the upperclassman, he did not want to be saved. Maybe one of the girls? The teen would continue to bleed in the forest and struggle to stand. He was not coming out of the forest, Vladimir refused. Blood sloshed about his boot and something would leak over the tongue of his shoe and wiggle loose. He would let out a useless hiss as another spider scuttled away. "For the love of Merlin, I am going to get you killed!"

How was the suspect the only voice of reason and logic? Callie Jensen would cast Lumos Max forgetting that one needs to cast the full spell if they expected a beneficial effect.

Callie cast Lumos "Max." Critical Failure

The area around the girl would plunge into darkness. A terrible state when one knows what goes "bump" in the night. They would do well to fear the darkness, to embrace the light. As if a dimmer switch had been slid downward, there was little that could be seen as the forest before Callie became a dark haze.

It was not Thomas' day as the spider would skitter across the darkening terrain and attempt to latch onto the poor young man's face.

New shadow spider attacks Thomas
Attack 16 (+10) Miss
Evasion 12 (+12)
Evasive Maneuvers II: 6 Success

If it was not for Thomas' god-like agility, that face-hugger would have permanently disfigured the teen. He ducked below the spider and it sailed over his head in a reckless display of hunger or want to spread its disease.

His luck would not last forever, but for now he could live recklessly without his due-consequence under a canopy of blue flames. Yes, blue flames that cast light over the darkest places of the forbidden forest. Sylvain had finally figured out what had taken the rest of the student body years and to date he was the first to consider. Fire's pure, cleansing light could cast away the darkness but as a consequence reduce everything in its path to ash.

Blue Flame being the exception, The cool, illuminating flame that cast away the darkness but left the delicate, flammable bark and leaves remarkably intact. The shadows would grow faint, the vines would recoil, the forest itself would shutter but would fail to burn. A cool inferno that left the forest lethargic.

@Nell Zoldak was not going to run in yet again. She understood the importance of repeat testing and the results were consistent. "Lumos" Nell groaned. Light was important.

Nell casts Lumos.
Wisdom 11 Success

She had come to the conclusion that VLadimir was a dangerous man. She was not wrong of course, the boy was terrifying by reputation alone. The tip of her wand would light up, safety within the confined of the wand's warm light.

She chose to not return to the forest but she would not run away either.

Aurora was a few french-fries short of a happy meal. Through either a stroke of brilliance or a stroke of luck the curse for the first time did not take. A miracle that the girl would not have the presence of mind to celebrate.

“N-NO WINNIE! D-DON’T COME NEAR ME! Y-YOU WILL DIE IF I TOUCH YOU! I DON’T KNOW! MAYBE? JUST DON’T GET CLOSER!”

Why she believed that was anyone's guess. Even the incredibly sexy shirtless man was not causing people to die when they touched him, swoon probably, but not die.

"AURORA!"

EVERYONE WAS YELLING!

“B-BUT DON’T GET TOO FAR AWAY EITHER!”

Make-up your mind woman! As she mentally complained why Trump failed to manage Hogwarts. A wall would surely keep the children safe from the dangers of the forest -- the screams, the term "forbidden" and the writhing, lashing forest all failed to serve as an effective deterrent somehow. A wall would certainly never be scaled, dug under or attempted to be bypassed in any way.

“This is not normal, is it?”

No, you are not normal Aurora. That has nothing to do with the curse. @Winnie Harper was somehow the logical one in this situation.

"R-Rori, you're fine, you just... You're okay, shh... You're not a tree, you're a girl, and I'm right here."

This was really not the time to pull the girl from her panicked delusions. She should have knocked her out and dragged her back out of the forest. Aurora would have done the same for Winnie (and she had literally minutes earlier).

"I mean, how would I know? I am not a tree-"

Do the trees know Aurora? Do they!

“- AM I? AM I A TREE? WHAT DO YOU SEE WINNIE? WHAT AM I?”

She was made of flesh and blood. She did not know how to photosynthesize. She did not lay pinecones like eggs. She probably (but who could be certain) moisturized enough to avoid having the skin texture of bark. An obvious schizophrenic. An issue for another day, there was not enough therapy, Clozapine or frontal leukotomies to make her normal, but that was distinctly a Pericles' (or any white-haired boy's) problem.

“Do you know that Calvin Klein model guy? The bare chest person? Should we- should we help him?”

Apt description but please don't imagine Vladimir in his underwear. He does however have a cousin that has more exhibitionistic tendencies. There was a reason for the self exposure, had he not been in the company of so many ladies the shoes and pants would have been gone also. Not that he was a nudist, rather it was for the purpose of weakening whatever might be drawn from his veins with an ounce of sunlight even if shaded by the canopy of the forest.

“BUT HE HAS SPIDERS COMING OUT FROM HIS LEG! SHOULD WE BURN HIM INSTEAD?”

Of course she went from help to murder in the blink of an eye. Vladimir did have a small, localized injury. His body was threaded with darkness so deep and so intimate, she had a better chance of torturing him to death rather than heal or save him. She seemed to innately understand this or just default to violence being the answer. Merlin knows.

“You know what? I- I am going in. I- I wanna know what’s going on, I-“

A conclusion she had come to after she had dragged Winnie out of the forest. She obviously could not make up her mind. Even if she saw something, would she have any idea what to do with the information. The girl wondered if she was a tree...

“Y-you stay here and tell that stupid @Violet Carrington to take care of my cat, okay?”

The girl with no plan who thought she was a tree would declare.

"What... What do you mean?"

Winnie's voice would waver.

“Lumos”

Aurora cast Lumos
Roll: 10 Success

The light on the tip of her wand would illuminate the dark spaces about her and she would rush into the woods. Perhaps he would have been safer if he wore a T-shirt afterall. Was his shirtless sexiness what drew the crazy?

Aurora enters the forest.

"Aurora, don't talk like that, I--... WAIT! AURORA! COME BACK HERE!"

She seemed to forget that she could do the same thing that Aurora did moments earlier. That she was just extracted from the forest because it was too dangerous. That the forest was too dangerous.

"Extinguo!"

Winnie incanted.

Winnie cast Extinguo
Wisdom 12 (+7) Success

The flames created by a rogue red sparks would be smited by the girls spell as she rushed in thoughtlessly after Aurora.

"AURORA!"

Winnie yelled after her.

"VLADIMIR!"

She was right, he was not going to respond. Why would he draw the girl that wanted to set him on fire? He was not looking to hurt someone but he was also not going to passively accept being attacked.

"Don't hurt him! You'll end up hurting yourself more! Please, listen to me!"

Well, priorities. Good to know. Great to take note of.

@Dealla Prince knew that Vladimir wanted to be alone. That he did not want to be pursued. He clearly explained how dangerous he was, how dangerous the forest was. He actively pushed them back rather than investing in his own protection. What was she even doing her, getting snared and picked at by the wild vegetation.

Sylvain spreads Bluebell Flame
Wisdom 4 (+10) Success

"Can anyone see Vlad?

Vladimir had escaped their range of sight as he darted deeper into the woods. The reckless, walking weapon was desperate for something and nothing was going to stop him from it. Sylvain could only be in one place, he could only do so much.



"Yeah!" Dealla shouted back towards Sylvain. "But probably not much longer, he's going in further."

He would fade from her sight. A distant haze under the cerulean light of the BlueBells Flame.

"Perhaps we were trying to save you, ever thought of that?"

She would shout into the forest as Vladimir raced away. Yes, he had thought of it. he did not trust it. He knew the consequence of letting down his guard. Of trusting others. Everyone had an agenda, even the Ravenclaws. The Ravenclaws who stole (looking at you Sylvain), who pried, and read. The Ravenclaws who mettled and only asked questions in spurts when it applied to them and what was theirs. She would never hear his reply, but he did say something out of stubbornness and pride that would be forgotten, heard only by the wood.

"Let's get out of here."

Dealla announced as she announced her intention to withdraw from the forest.

Dealla leaves the forest.

@Cade Darkbound's Red Sparks reinforced the distress that the flock was under. Thankfully an extinguo would save Hogwarts from a repeat incident what would have made the eagles the new badgers.

"We need to get out of here. I reckon Vladimir is too far for us to follow without advanced help."

Cade spoke with a glance over his shoulder deeper into the forest. He could just barely see movement in the trees before he left the range of his sight.

"He's injured. So he can't go far. A professor can find him."

Sounded reasonable. He owed Vlad nothing. The boy was nothing but problems. He was more worried about Dealla who took a few good hits.

"Lumos."

Cade cast Lumos
Wisdom Roll: 7 (+7) Success

A warm, yellow light would emanate from the tip of the teen's wand as he left the forest behind Dealla.

Cade left the Forest

"For the love of Merlin!" Vladimir cried out in frustration, his legs throbbed and progress was lacking. "GeT bAcK!" He roared, a tone of desperation and panic because he could not be any clearer than he presently was -- they would get someone, likely themselves killed, if they pursued. They had no plan. They had no intention of saving anything. It was selfishness that propelled them. They wanted answers. They wanted the spotlight. They did not care about those involved, only how they could insert themselves.

"Flippendo!"

A spell he had shot several times before, a clear statement that he did not want to be followed. That he did not need to be saved but they would need it.

Vladimir cast Flipendo at Cade
Attack 6 (+10)
Evasion 10

He shouted, again attempting to mostly harmlessly, launch some of these Ravenclaws out of the forest. He had to try. He could have been healing himself, clearing a path. Avoiding the sharpened stones.

Nell [outside]. 400/600 health
Cade [outside]. Full health
Peri has left the thread.
Dealla [outside] 350/600
Aroura [inside] 320/500
Callie [inside]. Full health
Winnie. [outside] Full health
Vladimir. [inside] 670/1000
Bloom [outside]. Full health
Lavinia [outside]. Full health
Thomas [inside]. Ful health
Sylvain [outside]. Full health

Order of Operations
Maintained:
Pericles Dralt found help: Marcus Iwasaki and Zoë Fresnel, they are coming to help!
Dealla maintains Lumos Solem.
Vladimir is bleeding. [-10/round]

1. Bloom casts Lumos successfully
2. Vermin attacks Thomas [misses]
3. Callie Jensen Lumos "Max" [critical failure]
4. New spider attacks Thomas [misses]
4. Aurora enters the forest and casts Lumos.
5. Vladimir attempts to cast flippendo at Cade
4. Bloom re-enters the forest
5. Ending Lumos Solem and then casting Extinguo
6. Nell casting lumos
7. Winnie cast extinguo then entering forest
8. Dealla to forest edge
9. Sylvain spreading Bluebells
10. Cade leave forest
11. Cade cast Lumos Successfully
12. Aurora cast Lumos

Interacting with | @Cade Darkbound | @Sylvain Wyllt | @Aurora Ranvier | @Winnie Harper
Open to interactions.

Reaching the forest's edge was a breath of relief, a sense of safety washing over her that was likely not completely warranted. Being near the forest wasn't safe. Trees could move, things could come out. Still. An improvement.

Her hand was still pressed against the wound in her side, teeth gritted against the pain as she turned to observe the situation. Cade received a small smile as he followed behind her. Nell, Cade, Syl, Bloom, Lavinia, outside of the forest, many with light shining from their wands. This was good. Pericles had not yet returned.

Involuntarily, her eyes searched the trees for Vladimir, but he was lost to her sight. Lost to them, likely. Somehow she didn't think he was going to make it out, no matter what his intentions had been in the first place. What he was planning, what he knew and refused to explain. She couldn't blame him, really, for not being more open - she'd disliked and mistrusted him without ever knowing him, without talking to him even once. Had never bothered to ask him about the Fight Club last summer. Judging from a distance was easy, and now that she realised there was probably more to him, it was too late.

Her gaze caught on a suspiciously dark part of the forest, and Dee frowned. It was where she'd just come from, where Thomas and Callie likely still were. She vaguely remembered Thomas asking for light, but this was the opposite. It was like last time, in the common room, when Callie's spell had sucked away all light just before the shadows had attacked. Had she done the same again? Could this really be a coincidence?

Dealla took an instinctive step back towards the forest, itching to find out more, worried about two of her best duellists (who she'd need to beat Slytherin next year), but something more pressing caught her attention.

Aurora, closely followed by Winnie, was heading back into the forest, accompanied by some oddly disjointed yelling about... trees and cats and Vladimir, none of which in the context she would expect. They wouldn't have to burn Vladimir, he'd die all by his own effort.

"Aurora, Winnie, stop!" she called after them, starting forward again only to wince at the pain the abrupt motion triggered all over her body. "Syl, please help me stop them!"

There was no telling if they would listen to reason - Aurora especially seemed panicked, too panicked to get her back with words alone - so she would have to resort to alternate means. Raising her wand, which was turning slippery with sweat between her fingers, Dee pointed it at the girl. "Immobulus."

Action | Casting Immobulus at Aurora

Stats
Sta 6 | Eva 11 | Str 3 | Wis 10 | Arc 6 | Acc 10

Evasive Maneuvers | Charmer | Perfectionist
Allies: All Ravenclaws except Vladimir

350/600 HP

Terrible Presence

Sta - 5 | Eva - 8 | Str - 5 Wis - 8 | Arc - 4 Acc - 10

Evasive Maneuvers

Interacting with :
None
Mentioning :
Vladimir, Winnie

And once again, the girl put herself in danger. If only she decided to use the functioning part of her brain, never would she end up in this situation. Every tree, every branch, seemed to force the light out. All kinds of ghosts probably nested deep in the woods, moving ever so deliberately, waiting for its prey to step into the pitfall. The pandemonium outside slowly being muffled by the veil of darkness. Either it was that, or Aurora refused to let any reprimanded noises get into her ears.

But if she thought about this whole situation all over again, was it possible that everything was just a misunderstanding? Maybe someone else wrote that cryptic letter and sent it to every Ravenclaw ever existed because they want to make the old Vlad person the black sheep. Speaking of black sheep, because he was also one of the birds, that guy might as well be the black raven. Whoever he wanted to meet inside the woods might still quite blurry, but who knows that he just wanted to have a nice date with his secret partner, or perhaps the trees and he was just embarrassed to be seen with his tree lover. Most of the students of Hogwarts are quite unique, so that could be a possibility. But why are the vines attacking everyone including the prince charming? Like all lovers out there, they must have ups and downs in their journey. This might be the biggest fight they ever had. If this theory was true, what a true gentleman. Only one thing about it that was missing. A bouquet of chocolates, and he will win the tree’s heart.

Love should not be complicated. How would she know? She was younger than the cursed number. Despite that extraordinary assumption, the spider from his vein did not fit the puzzle. Something beyond Aurora’s comprehension was proceeding. A bloodbath would come in her way. Whatever she planned to do would not work, and just like Winnie said, she would get herself hurt terribly, even though she could see it happening any second. It was not ideal for an emotionally unstable kid to play hide and seek between the trees. The grass probably wouldn’t help her attempt to be a sneaky little bird. But as her favourite motto said ‘nothing is impossible’, so the girl dug her heels in and hoped for the best no matter how difficult it would be. Place your ears out, follow the frustrated cries begging people to stay out of his business, attack and scream if necessary. He was not the threat, whatever living deep in the gloom was the true culprit.

Being sneaky? following vlad?

Outfit Reducio Without mask and sunglasses

HP : 320/500

Hexcode= #507091

"Syl, please help me stop them!"

All of his being currently focused on staying in control of the fire that he had now spread throughout the Dark and Perilous Wood, Sylvain nearly had not heard Dealla as she asked for his help. It was not until he heard her say "stop them," that his attention was fully pulled away from the spell at hand. Blue light was especially distracting today but He would solemnly nod as he processed the order she'd given him. Dropping his concentration on the spell, he would approach the edge of the forest as his wand was directed at the pair attempting to delve further.

It seemed dangerous to be even this close, going deeper was not an option in his mind.

"What about Thomas?" He would ask Dealla in return, his voice the loudest it had been since the lockdown. His questions came in between foot steps. "And Callie?" He would say as he looked away to gauge Dee's reaction, his wand drifted downward a bit as he looked away from the hysterics, Winnie and Aurora. "Did we lose them and Vlad?" They had all gone deep enough to be lost to him some time ago, but at least Cade had come out behind Dealla. It worried him to no end that the other three were still without some kind of light. He hoped that his fire was enough to keep them safe from the shadows that would plague them.

"Never mind," he said, cutting her off before she could reply as he gave her another once over. She looked like hell, and he felt guilty for having not stuck by her side through thick and thin. "Let's save the others first." Wand still pointed in Winnie's direction, he contemplated how awful it might be to become completely frozen in place. A moment of hesitation that actually led to the revelation that it didn't matter if she was a little uncomfortable right now. He was doing everything he could think of to try to save both their lives. "Winnie! STEP BACK!" he shouted in warning.

"Aurora, that goes for you too! If you don't I'll make you both puke slugs!" Of course she didn't listen. Why'd she have to go and make him be the bad guy like that? "Slugulus Eructo!"

Action: Casting the Slug-vomiting curse on Aurora because she went into the woods.

Calming Presence- An aura of calm. Allies (House Ravenclaw) gain a 10% chance to auto-hit their chosen target. This does not stack.

@Dealla Prince, @Aurora Ranvier, @Thomas Baines, @Winnie Harper, @Callie Jensen, @Cade Darkbound, @Vladimir Athanatos,

Interacting: @Zoë Fresnel, @Pericles Dralt, all the Ravenclaws at the edge of the forest

Pericles had no idea about the note Marcus had found, and instead handed him a different note. The Ravenclaw Head accepted it and immediately fell into step beside the Prefect as he led the way towards the forest. Normally he would have told the young boy to stay behind at the camp rather than charge back towards the danger, but time was of the essence right now - as shown by the way they conversed and traveled at the same time.

Marcus examined the note he had been given. "The dead have risen and have rushed into the darkened wood. Seek the black raven for he has secrets you might learn on this day." A riddle? Someone had delivered this note to multiple Ravenclaws, and the students thought it was a riddle to solve? Typical. That would be fine and dandy with Marcus if it hadn't clearly led them to the Forbidden Forest. According to Pericles, Vladimir Athanatos was involved somehow, and there was "monster blood" currently attacking the students. Hearing that the students were actively being attacked prompted Marcus to quicken his pace as well, handing the note over to the Charms professor so she could examine it too (if she wanted).

As they ran towards the Forest, Marcus was grateful he had taken to wearing more casual clothes at summer camp, rather than the suit-and-tie aesthetic that he donned at the castle. Today, for example, he was wearing a simple white T-shirt and khaki pants, which were much easier to move freely in. The man's amber eyes traveled from the forest to the sky, seeing a trail of smoke. His facial expression grew very serious, but he did not ask Pericles for more information at that moment, so they could focus on getting there faster.

Finally they arrived at the edge of the Forbidden Forest to find a chaotic scene of children. He even thought he saw some of them casting spells.. at each other? Marcus paused, taking it all in and trying to determine what the best course of action would be from here. As his eyes traveled over the students he could see, he recognized a lot of the faces. All Ravenclaws. All students that he was meant to be in charge of. A frown was etched into his serious expression as he spoke up, loud enough for the students outside to hear him.

"Is there anyone still inside the forest?!"

Action: Arriving at the edge of the forest after following Pericles, taking in the scene, asking a question

Racial Abilities: Werewolf Form (Rend, Bite, +10% damage) | Heightened Senses (tell familiar people by smell) | Track Hidden People (within 24 hours) | Wolf's Cry | Predatory Abilities (+25% chance to enter hidden, +2 stealth) | Intimidation (uneasiness, -1 acc, +1 crit fail to all around)
Chosen Abilities: Obnoxiously Strong (+15% strength) | Martial Artist

Stats: Stamina: 15 | Evasion: 7 | Strength: 20 (23) | Wisdom: 4 | Arcane Power: 4 | Accuracy: 15

Marcus' Intimidation is in effect.

It is a sentiment that enters people's hearts when they are in your presence. They feel dis-ease when you are present, even if the interaction is casual or even friendly.