Dark Spectr(a|e) Pv Fin.

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Teenagers were a significantly different bunch than toddlers. Toddlers were cute, sometimes spawns of hell, but they were cute and Sereia would be happy to coddle them with whatever they wanted. Teenagers, on the other hand, were moody, angsty, and uninterested in whatever she had to say. A shame, really, since she was so excited to teach. After the first day, she genuinely considered resigning and going back to working in childcare; she even owled her boyfriend about it! But he told her to, at least, stick around for a year before she quit.

"Right, remember that your essay on death omens is due this Friday. I'll see you then."

She didn't expect anything to happen once she concluded the lesson, wiping the blackboard clean from the notes she'd gotten them to copy. Upon hearing her name, she hummed and looked over her shoulder. "Of course," she said as she put down the eraser, "Mr Marchonné, was it? What's up?"

Sereia mentally face-palmed at the use of a colloquial greeting. It's fine, it'll make him less scared of you, right? So unprofessional. Despite living for four years in the UK already, being New Zealand-born and raised meant her mannerisms had been built in so securely that she still had culture shocks. Some days, she missed home, the casual atmosphere and light-hearted interactions she could have with anyone on the street. Being in England felt isolating, at first.

Sereia snapped back into reality, largely helped by the Hufflepuff's(?) mentions of signs and not ignoring them. She shrugged. "Well, there are some signs you're allowed to ignore if you feel it doesn't fit into your life or you believe strongly that bad luck wouldn't come upon you. But if they've been bothering you for some time, then you would be right in not ignoring it."

The appearance of a cat made her smile. Her hands started tingling, a sign that she needed her cards. "I need to get my cards from my office, but did you want anything to eat or drink? I keep snacks and water on me whenever students come to my office."

House Colours: Hufflepuff

Calming Presence in Effect: Sereia Clairmont & Figaro Affected

Green eyes turned back to the young professor, a small smile continuing to grace his face as his eyes crinkled with concealing mirth. A smile was quite a tool, and the boy was remarkably good at using it when need be. "In fact, I think it's a bit more concerning that... many of the things I've sort of pseudo-predicted--with the exception of the most ridiculous ones that I get every once in a while or so, the ones I'm mostly worried about now--have been... pretty remarkably on point when I recall them afterwards." When he blinked lightly there was a flicker of silver in his mind's eye, his vision briefly imprinting the sad eyes behind his lids... "They've been... remarkably... active."

He recalled the broken mirror, the Devil, the shape in the shadow and in the dreams that were darkened and swirled with nebulous and strange landscapes devoid of color. Mountains that were jagged black against the skies, canyons that had no depth that could be seen, a sky of pitch night with only a fuzzy grey horizon to divide it from the onyx mountains and the stark white shadows cast by th strange grasses that were sharper than blades. Rivers that ran white with vespers, rippling and flowing with no sound. No sound, silence that was muffled with every step in a way that would drive a sane mind mad. Shadowy figures that marched silently without so much as stirring a blade of grass or a leaf--not that there were felled leaves to begin with. It simply was... a world.

A place, a place where things did not make sense or make sense. No noise, no movement, no breath, no constant light. It could drive a deaf man mad with the soundlessness of even his own pulse, for there was no heartbeat, no sensation of touch. Total dissociation and isolation from everything else that was around, that appeared to be around in the form of an untruthfully truthful illusion.

"Oh, well I'm perfectly alright. But thank you anyways." Piérre kindly turned down the offer of food and water. He wasn't hungry; he usually wasn't except for a few times a day around mealtimes. If anything he tended to feel challenged even so much as trying to eat at times, as if his stomach just refused to allow him to eat for some reason. "I-I also have a deck of cards here if you want to see them too. They were a gift from a friend. I don't try to use them because they're really antique and fragile... but they have a history that I feel attached to, so they tend to do well by me. They're the ones that have been 'acting up' the most" Piérre also withdrew a normal red-backed deck of Italian playing cards that he always had on hand. "I also use this deck, but it doesn't have the major arcana or any of the pages yet, so..."

Figaro curled and uncurled claws into and out of Piérre's school robes, lightly kneading and rubbing his face on the boy's neck as he thickly purred. "I'm curious what will happen if you try drawing for me with your cards, though..." His green eyes glimmered with intrigue as he lightly opened the box with the Turkish Mamluk cards and began to lightly pull away the gorgeous black velvet cover that protected them. "I have a feeling I already know what card is going to come up for me, even if I were to stack the deck after shuffling this hand carefully."

It was a major arcana that had followed him around oh so much in the past year alone, even more frequently ever since the fall when he had learned of this Gitano Luca Vero that his twin Romeo told him about after he had made a trip up to Norway to follow up on a trail he was suspicious of. It was, in the Turkish deck, a depiction of a figure with three pairs of golden wings extended to heaven and to earth wreathed in flames. Poised upon a glorious pedestal and garbed in luxurious robes that opened in a way to expose a picturesque feminine torso and a notably masculine lower half, it held a captive male and female humans by golden chains that held each by the throat with a golden collar. They did not appear to be in desire to leave, however... servicing the creature with a radiant face that outshone the most beautiful man or woman to set foot on the mortal world. It was a card that Piérre loathed due to his knowledge of its nature, its name and its significance. Prince of Demons, Light-Bearer, Regent of Hell, Morning Star. These were but a few of the names that it knew well and took great pride in.

Occasionally the card came accompanied by the Fool; a young man with his hair pulled back with a broad and innocent smile on his face dressed in a gypsy-like style and accompanied by a dog that led him close to the edge of a cliff-face. Sometimes it came with the Chariot; a flaming chariot that was drawn by white and black horses that snorted flames and had sparks that struck from the iron-dressed hooves. Still other times it came with the Fool and Death... Swords and wands came frequently as well. Still he did wait patiently, swaying back and forth ever so slightly with his hands behind his back and humming lightly as he let the Divination professor do her work. "I've had some... weird mirror scryings. Occasional dreams. Cartomancy. Things out of the corner of my eye. Paranoia, probably."

Statistics: Stamina 7 | Strength 5 | Evasion 18 | Wisdom 12 | Accuracy 16 | ArcPower 5

Abilities:
Keen Eye | Calming Presence | Beast Master [Cat] | Cat's Grace | Animagus [Hummingbird]

Items:
Wand | Soda | [Sharpened] Locksmith's Knife | [Red] Deck of 52 Playing Cards
Turkish Mamluk Cards

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Sereia hummed as she jogged up her stairs and swept her cards up from the desk. As she came down and started shuffling her cards, she said, "While I would be happy to draw some cards from your own deck, I will admit I'm not all too familiar with Turkish Mamluk cards." She shrugged. "Besides, I'm more bonded to my cards, so I'm more likely to get some more meaningful pulls from it."

This deck, the Tarot of the Divine, had been her longest-serving deck of tarot cards she ever used. She was fifteen when she first got them and now she was twenty-four. Almost a decade. The sides were worn down from the shuffling and bending but the designs were still vibrant. Aside from being her longest-serving deck, it was also the one she found the easiest to interpret.

"The longer you've spent with your cards," Sereia began as she pulled the card right at the top: The Fool. She hummed. "The better they are at telling you things. Is this how you see yourself?" She turned it around for Piérre to see.

The Little Mermaid had been chosen to represent The Fool. It made sense considering the story. Ariel wanted to see the human world and walk on legs rather than swimming in the sea to the point where she gave up her voice. The Fool tended to be reckless, restless, but they were full of innocence and curiosity. A natural card for a student.

Looking back down at her deck, she found Death right underneath The Fool. Sereia was not familiar with the fairy tale associated with Death, but she could understand the imagery. Rebirth. A new soul. This fool had to take another journey to find themselves again. Well, he was a teenager so new beginnings were natural to growing up. Or maybe...

The fact that two Major Arcana were found beside one another chilled Sereia to the bone.

She quickly took back The Fool and began shuffling as Piérre continued on. On her mind wasn't the usual Past, Present, Future reading she always did. Option one, option two, and what to consider between options. A few cards threatened to spill out from her hands, but she was quick to catch them and whispered to her cards, "One at a time."

Eventually, three cards fell out. The Five of Wands, Temperance, and Two of Cups. Too many Major Arcana for one day. Way too many.

Sereia put down her deck and stepped back. "Would you like to have a go at interpreting them, Mr Marchonné?"

(She knew. A path filled with conflict and another path of solitude and reconciliation. There had to be a chance at compromise and harmony between these two different paths somehow.)

House Colours: Hufflepuff

Calming Presence in Effect: Sereia Clairmont & Figaro Affected

Piérre shrugged. Using her own tools made sense to him, he guessed.

As he watched her shuffling her cards, the boy found himself impulsively making the motion of shuffling with his own hands. After realizing he was doing so, he carefully took the Mamluk cards into his hands and began to gently perform light side-shuffles with them as well. He did not want to attempt a bridge, and he only touched the cards with the tips of his fingers on the very edges of the cards. They were long in length and thin in width, almost lopsided in dimensions compared to what was a 'normal' sized card. His green eyes never departed Miss Clearmountain's hands, tipping his head in curiosity as the first card was turned up.

His eyes lit up in recognition of the 0 upon it, the distinctive number that was a null. A slow smile began to spread. "Yes!" He said, lightly excited. "I'm quite an idiot sometimes... but I've always thought the fool was the most powerful card in the tarot." Quietly he smiled. The card of bringing about change, of action that was unbound and an individual who had the ability to become or to do anything that they desired so long as they had the ability to take the chance no matter how risky. The power of the Fool came not from the fact that it was a fool--for indeed it was--but because it had the ability to become anything, it had the ability to accept and bend with the times and the things that bent around it like a reed in the wind. It was not bound down, because it could not be bound down. Nothing could hold the Fool back, not even from its own mistakes and reckless abandonment. The Little Mermaid... hm...

Continuing to lightly shuffle the cards just as the professor did, Piérre smiled cheekily as the cards nearly tumbled out of her hands. He knew the feeling his own deck of normal 52 cards escaping even from his own rather dexterous fingers quite well; sometimes it would result in an unexpected game of 52 card pickup if it was bad enough. "They want to go for a fly." Was all he jested lightly.

The five of wands, Temperance, and the two of cups. Piérre blinked at the minor cards softly. He usually saw the wands in the form of his clubs, and the cups in the form of his hearts. Temperance, a major arcana, did not appear in his 52 cards... but it did have a shape in the Mamluk cards: an angelic being with a foot in the ocean and a foot on the land, pouring a crystalline-like substance from a conch shell and into a bejeweled goblet. Its face was obscured by a radiance, with no facial features discernable. Swirling ethers were in a golden sky, and the earth rolled with green verdancy.

His eyes flicked back to Clearmountain as he was invited to attempt his own interpretation of it. He hesitated for a moment before his brow creased lightly and he swooped down on his knees to put his arms on the table and his head on his flattened hands, brow creasing intensely as he tried to decipher them in his own way. He was not as experienced, he didn't quite know the drawing method Miss Clearmountain had used... but he had his own way of interpreting things... and they tended to be a tad bit more straightforward--his preferred method was "past, present, future, and how to get there"... but he was sure he could come up with something.

"The Five of Wands... or of Clubs..." A card that was inherent of tumult, of discord, not because of disaster or outside clamor, but because of clamor between people. People who spoke over each other, who refused to silence themselves for long enough to listen to the other or to others around them. Ideas, diversity of thoughts, and no ability to consolidate them or to ensure a single voice was clearly heard... "Discord and confusion, an inability to listen to others or to even hear your own voice. Internal clamor. When reversed it can indicate a new perspective, or an ability to take a step back and think before formulating one's words... unless they are actually unsure of where they stand to begin with." Fairly vague, but at least to him it indicated an internal struggle of sorts. Internal, or perhaps tight-knit. There were strifes with his brother, sure, but they were nowhere near that bad as to indicate a 'civil war' between them. They had differing opinions, different methods of approach, but there was no 'bad blood' between them, as the case was.

His attention focused instead on Temperance. Maybe it would help him more. "The Fourteenth, Temperance." A 'middle-of-the-road' card. It called for moderation in thought, speech, and action. To find a solution, preferably peaceable to all, and to see all sides. It seemed a natural complement to the five of wands drawn just before. Calming energy, the ability to 'take a breath' if in a frantic frenzy... or a warning to immediately implement such balancing at the risk of topping into excess in either direction. A need to self-evaluate, or a call to self-healing... Piérre's lips pursed. "A call to find center, a need to reduce panic or to self-heal or self-remedy before balance is completely destroyed. A scale tipping in either direction, perilously... With the Five of Clubs, I don't know if things will end well or poorly..."

And the last, the two of cups. "The Two of Cups, or of Hearts." A love between two people, a common understanding, or a formation of a relationship. A partnership, a partner, a formation of a contract or an agreement... and in reversed representing a fall out or a need to perform self-love. "Ah. I think this one is bringing the other two together." He smiled. "This is the formation of a relationship, or of a contract or a partnership between two people." He mused. "In reverse it could represent the destruction of such a contract, or it could be a falling out of a relationship or a need for one to instead have a formation of a self-contract with yourself in self-care."

All together, what he was trying to piece together was... "Internal chaos and confusion, an inability to hear oneself or others over the wailing tumult all around; not from an outside source, but from within your own group or circle... but I can't tell how close it is to home." Piérre clicked his tongue. "If unmanaged or ignored, a balance could be disturbed, perhaps destroyed. We don't want that to happen, it needs to be dealt with before it's too late; a compromise has to be made." And the last... "And either a compromise will be made, perhaps via a contract or via a partnership? If not, then a relationship will break apart, or internal reflection must be utilized." He shook his head and blinked curiously. "I-I'm not sure what this could mean for me. My brother and I are on good terms. I don't have any enemies here that I'm not aware of, and those enemies that I am aware of wouldn't want to make an agreement." He turned the Mamluk cards in his hands... and looked down at them briefly in consideration. "Unless..."

His brow creased. He didn't want to draw a card. He didn't want to know what was laying right at the top of the deck despite shuffling the group thoroughly and totally over and over again. It would be too ridiculous, too nonsensical to think about. His index finger tapped the top card hesitantly, considering the chances of it showing up now that he was thinking about it and now that he had a three card spread in front of him.

No, he would try another opinion first. Perhaps he was thinking about all of this completely wrong. Perhaps Miss Clearmountain had a better idea about all of this. She was more experienced, after all. It was more likely that he was missing out on something small, something significant that unraveled the complete nonsense that he had been thinking about, something he was likely taking far too far out of context and was blowing way out of proportion.

Statistics: Stamina 7 | Strength 5 | Evasion 18 | Wisdom 12 | Accuracy 16 | ArcPower 5

Abilities:
Keen Eye | Calming Presence | Beast Master [Cat] | Cat's Grace | Animagus [Hummingbird]

Items:
Wand | Soda | [Sharpened] Locksmith's Knife | [Red] Deck of 52 Playing Cards
Turkish Mamluk Cards

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When Sereia offered people to interpret the cards, it often ended terribly, half because they didn't know anything about divination and the other half because they did not care to try. Of course, as a teacher, she believed in giving students a chance to apply their learning into practice. In her dad's words, theory without practice is useless but practice without theory is dangerous.

(Her dad had absolutely no clue that the original quote was from Confucius, but it was okay. His point still held some substance.)

What she did not expect, however, was Piérre's interpretation to turn out the way it did. While she already had an idea of his enthusiasm in the subject, to see it live was something else. She hummed in satisfaction. "Impressive memory remembering the reversed meanings, too." For a time, Sereia avoided using reversed cards since she believed you could still do a decent reading without them. And yes, you technically still could, but she also couldn't be bothered to learn a brand new set of meanings. She was thirteen and believed there were better things to remember. Curiosity got the better of her, however, and she learned the reversed meanings.

Sereia hummed again. "Wonderful interpretations, Mr Marchonné. Considering I did not tell you what kind of reading we were doing, our interpretations were quite similar." She approached the cards and looked at each one carefully before sweeping them back into her deck. "Option one: confronting your enemies for answers. There is a chance—and I say 'a chance' because I'd like to be wrong—that someone is wishing negativity on you, cursing you in some ways."

Sereia paused to study Temperance. It was the card she often pulled her notebooks for. The messages never came naturally to her and the story behind its illustration was unfamiliar. But she could take some educated guesses based on its name. Temperance. "Option two: take the chance to reflect on your actions. Remember, after Temperance comes The Devil and The Tower. The Two of Cups suggests that, between these two options, there must be compromise. Do not seclude yourself to the point of solitude but do not confront your enemies to the point of dire conflict."

Taking a second to look up from her cards, Sereia felt the atmosphere shift. Something clicked and her sixth sense was going off. The lines on Piérre's forehead made her tilt her head. "Unless?"

House Colours: Hufflepuff

Calming Presence in Effect: Sereia Clairmont & Figaro Affected

"I guess I hyperfocused in that lecture... and then I know I did badly on tests concerning the reversed, so I tried to find patterns. I'm fairly certain I'd be helpless in much else. Oh and besides, I do a lot of cardistry anyways." Piérre hid the standard 52-card deck back in his messenger bag as he shrugged. "Why not, right?"

His brow creased at the interpretation that someone was wishing him harm. In a world of magic and literally limitless potentials using said magic, someone trying to curse him could honestly be quite a simple and laughably easy thing to do. This was particularly true if for some reason he had some higher power against him... such as the nurse, for starters... "That wouldn't surprise me." He blurted bluntly. He was more than certain that plenty of people wished harm on him. They had good reason to, after all, in most cases. He knew how much he pissed other people off in general. His hand ran down Figaro's back, feeling the feline 'bump' his tail as Piérre's hand reached the base of the cat's spine. His green eyes stared at the cards slightly coldly.

As for the second interpretation: "I try to think about what I do, but I feel I would be lying to myself if I second-guessed myself too much." His actions and his persona were spontaneous, singular, explosive and seemingly without thought for the most part. His words cut like a knife thrown from a precise hand; and when it was in flight it was unlikely to slow or stop unless by its target or by an obstacle. "If I knew who this was, maybe I would try."

Then, insofar as 'Unless'... Piérre pressed his lips together into a line as his fingertips curled under the top card of the Mamluk. With a sigh, he looked the Divination professor in the eye. "This is what I mean by 'acting up'." Angling his chin down at them, he asked them a single question. "Who or what is this other party I'm currently in discordance with? What is this 'enemy'?"

With a fluid motion, his hand flipped the card from its place, and with similar dexterity did it dance between his fingers in a small spin--for a moment free in the air--before it was caught between his middle and index finger, exposing its visible side for her observation. It was an almost mandalic depiction of an infamous major arcana: in wheels of fire a near-angelic hermaphroditic figure stood on a golden pedestal garbed in an open purple and red robe. In its softly curled hand two golden chains wound lightly about themselves and attached to golden collars on subservient, horned and spaded tailed man and woman seemingly unaware or at least unconcerned with their situation. Its face was kindly but vicious, alluring yet dangerous, radiant and yet terrible and cruel. The fifteenth card. Piérre closed his eyes. "Mmmmmm... I'm guessing the Devil."

He opened an eye. "Am I right?"

It wouldn't have been the first time this stupid, stupid card bared its lovely and terrible face. And if he was right and this was indeed The Devil, then surely The Watcher wouldn't be far behind would he. They seemed to have a bad habit of tending to go hand in hand like comedy and tragedy.

Statistics: Stamina 7 | Strength 5 | Evasion 18 | Wisdom 12 | Accuracy 16 | ArcPower 5

Abilities:
Keen Eye | Calming Presence | Beast Master [Cat] | Cat's Grace | Animagus [Hummingbird]

Items:
Wand | Soda | [Sharpened] Locksmith's Knife | [Red] Deck of 52 Playing Cards
Turkish Mamluk Cards

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Sereia hummed. Cardistry was an interesting hobby to have. Not that she was judging, of course. She had a few... non-conventional hobbies herself. Her weightlifting hobby would probably not last considering Hogwarts did not have proper gym facilities. She could still run, at least.

She sighed. Knowing who wished ill on you would make life much easier but it would also open some doors she probably didn't want to know. Imagine it was a close relative cursing you? The betrayal might end up being a self-fulfilling prophecy at that point. Sereia made a mental note to discuss that with her Third Years. They wouldn't talk about it for a while since it would be part of their study on the Hall of Prophecy, but at least it existed and she could refine it in the meantime.

Sereia half-expected Piérre to have her shuffle her cards again and answer his question. She was pleasantly surprised when he decided to take a card from his own deck. Her positive mood was quickly overturned for fear again as the Major Arcana stared back at her with menacing eyes. The Devil.

Too much Major Arcana for one day, for less than an hour, even.

With a sigh, Sereia crossed her arms. "I can't stop the Fool's Journey, whatever that may look like for you. I don't know you very well, of course, so I wouldn't know what is going on in your life, either. However, I do believe you are quite capable of figuring out your next course of action."

A tight smile came on her face. After The Tower came The Star, a card of hope. "When all of this is over, there will be good things waiting for you. I bid you good luck on your journey, Mr Marchonné."

Sereia would have to keep an eye on any future classes involving the Hufflepuff boy.

House Colours: Hufflepuff

Calming Presence in Effect: Sereia Clairmont & Figaro Affected

Judging by the sigh of the professor, Piérre's 'clairvoyant' prediction was indeed true, and he turned the card towards himself just to look upon the petty arcana again. This 'enemy' that he did not know, that he could not possibly know for indeed he had tried to hard to not make enemies even with those that he disagreed with, did indeed like to 'speak' in this way, did like to make itself known, it would seem. Piérre sighed as well, carefully returning the cards to their protective casings and putting them into his bag. He began to stroke Figaro gently as the feline purred deeply and with immense joy.

He could most certainly figure out the next course of action, that was well within his power, but...

"And yet I can't seem to stop wondering, like there's something more that I'm just not seeing." He said softly. "...but I can come back anytime if I have more questions, right?" Piérre's brow creased gently in concern. He was sure the answer was yes, but he just... he wanted to make sure. Surely there was somewhere that was safe for him to be in this school... somewhere he could go... "Even if I don't know where I'm going?"

There was too much in his head, there was too much to think about.

He smiled at the light and bright hope, though. "I hope so too... Thank you Miss Clearm-- Clairmont." He wanted joy so badly, craved it so desperately even though he didn't know how he would obtain it or why he wanted it sometimes. It was just something he looked for... though he never seemed able to find.

But those same thoughts could come back to haunt him at a later time, preferably that night. He had been given enough to think about instead right now. Enough to consider, enough to ponder, and enough perhaps to be able to do his own research again. When Piérre found himself in the mood for wanting answers, he was going to get them.

He just needed to figure out where to start looking first.

Piérre Exits Unless Stopped

Statistics: Stamina 7 | Strength 5 | Evasion 18 | Wisdom 12 | Accuracy 16 | ArcPower 5

Abilities:
Keen Eye | Calming Presence | Beast Master [Cat] | Cat's Grace | Animagus [Hummingbird]

Items:
Wand | Soda | [Sharpened] Locksmith's Knife | [Red] Deck of 52 Playing Cards
Turkish Mamluk Cards