The lady in black.
Was it through this door? He could not quite remember well. And he had gone up a fair amount of stairs by now. Even as a young boy he had trouble finding his way around Hogwarts castle. Back then, things were simpler. He'd just have to follow any of his friends and they'd show him where he'd have to go. He remembered his Head of House scolding him in his sixth year, for still not remembering how to find his way back to the common room. To be entirely honest, of all the detentions he ever had received as a student, perhaps only one or two had not been for showing up past curfew. He just simply got lost all the time.
As he flung the door open, it was fair to state he did not expect to see what he would. Though, without a doubt, he instantly knew where he was. The poop, the feathers, the scattered bits of food and of course, the owls were a dead giveaway. There was no real reason for him being here at all, so it was clear now he should have taken the right turn instead of the left. Or was it the other way around? He couldn't quite remember. In the end, he figured a little peekaboo inside would not hurt. After all, it had been years since he had sent off an owl in this room. With a careful step (there was A LOT of poo) he appraoched what seemed like a main window in the furthest wall at the back. And maybe he scratched a few owlheads along the way, just to be sure he was amongst friends.
Through one of the open windows he could recognize Hogwarts' surrounding landscape. It was a very particular kind of beautiful. But it would never grow old. If only he could come back here some day and spend his final days at a place like this. Where children would grow into wonderful beings and the world seemed at peace. Despite history disagreeing with him, he always thought of Hogwarts as a safe haven for all. The professor seemed to slowly get lost in his own musing of the past.
If you're reading this... You're awesome.
Calming Presence/Healing Sage/Wandless/Non-Verbal
STA - 16 | EVA - 6 | STR - 15 | WIS - 16 | ARC - 8 | ACC - 4
The lady in black.
The school year would be over soon. It had felt longer than nine months to Elena. Life at Durmstrang had been routine to her after more than twelve years, but Hogwarts... Hogwarts was a new experience entirely, and maybe she had gotten too placid in knowing every corner and hidden room of Durmstrang, maybe she had become so used to the known that she'd forgotten how to handle the unknown. There was a certain tension to her shoulders since she'd first set foot into Hogwarts, an always-present alertness to the shadows ghosting over her skin. At first Elaine had thought that it would go away by itself, that the problem wasn't her but everything else. She wasn't so sure about that anymore.
One month. One more month and she could go back, if not to Romania then at least to Gabriela, her moody teenage daughter. She'd denied missing them in her last letter, of course she had, but Elena had raised her - she could read her frustration from between the lines, the helplessness of being treated like a mere child by both of the women who had raised her.
There wasn't much she could reply with; no kind words would dampen Gabriela's anger. She was a Văduva, with the same distaste for idling around as her mother and uncle.
A sound made her look up. There shouldn't have been anyone in the Owlery at this time, not a student at least, but she could tell apart a human from an owl. The half-eagle moved up her neck as Elaine's dark eyes darted across the room filled with birds and feathers, searching and finally finding another human being. It was a man, one she wasn't familiar enough with to recognize with his back turned to her - she would have recognized Barnaby Ryker at least. He was looking outwards, towards the Grounds and the forest.
For a moment she contemplated ignoring his presence altogether, but in the end the manners ingrained into her since early childhood won out. She lifted her arm for a barn owl to land on it and tied the letter she had brought to its leg before she carried the bird towards the high, open windows.
"Excuse me, I did not mean to interrupt," she said softly to not startle him. The tower was high enough to be potentionally deadly to a trained wizard, especially if they were caught unaware.
Cu ochii deschiși.
The lady in black.
Caradoc did startle a little. His head quickly snapping towards the sound. The slight stubble on his jaw would cast a heavy shadow across his pale face. Clear blue eyes were now fixed on the lady by the entrance. A lady draped in dark tints, perhaps black. Caradoc had trouble with seperating particularly dark colors from a distance. Maybe it was a tad creepy for an image to turn around and be greeted by. However he believed he knew who he was meeting here.
"I must apologise miss..." His eyes narrowed themselves to mere slits as he tried to make sure he'd be guessing correctly. "Pendrast? They gave me a vague description of my colleagues." He grinned softly trying to explain his poor excuse for an introduction. He meant to lean on a nearby ridge but realised too late his hand had just been touching owl poo. "Ahh... that is... unfortunate." He stared at his hand now covered in bits of crusty excrement. For a second he was almost convinced he had not magic at his disposal and was considering brushing most of it off on his trousers.
His head awkwardly turned to his fellow professor he had yet to properly meet. A quick snap of his fingers rendered his hand cleansed as if new. With a head now covered in deep red, he extended a hesitant clean hand. Silently considering throwing himself off the tower.
If you're reading this... You're awesome.
Calming Presence/Healing Sage/Wandless/Non-Verbal
STA - 16 | EVA - 6 | STR - 15 | WIS - 16 | ARC - 8 | ACC - 4