Magical Teacher Professor Landry! - Episode 4: The Lady in White

[Teal Mage]

Heart thundering in her ears, Chou burst out onto the north-side of the pavilion. Nearby, Diana lay crumpled on the ground. The dark haired girl's aura burned like a wild pyre in the golden air above her - she was still alive. Voicing a soft grunt, the Shuyin directly in front of Chou swung toward her. Expression grim, he fixed her in his inhuman cat-eyes. Dark scarlet light burned around his body as he fell into a fighting stance - but he appeared to be without a weapon.

Chou bared her tusks in a tight, menacing, grin. Behind him was the final pillar. Her fingers tightened on the grip of her club.

And she charged. Expression calm and eyes steely, Shuyin held his ground. Save for the sound of her steps, Chou was silent as she rapidly closed the distance with the bluenette, aura burning bright around herself. With but two paces separating them, the oni dove forward, lashing out with her club at the man's knees.

Twisting, Shuyin threw himself into an elegant pirouette and slipped away from the strike. Chou curled, quickly turning the momentum of her attack into a roll. Carmine magical power flickered around Shuyin, as a closed folding fan slipped out of his sleeve and into his hand. As Chou regained her feet, Shuyin swung toward her, hand snapping out –

Like a thundercrack, a column of gale force wind slammed into his shoulder. Ice spikes, more than a hand’s span in length, rammed into his side, piercing shallowly into his flesh. Shuyin's gasp of pained surprise was cut off, as more of those fragments of slammed into, and bounced off, his skull. Unbalanced, the man was swept from his feet and into the air, tumbling like a rag doll.

Suddenly, a dark shape appeared behind him.

"Ah!" Shuyin let out a cry of pain as a fist slammed into his back. Grey tinted darknessed exploded outward, filling the air with the twinned smells of rotting meat and dusty decay. Around them, the Greater Blizzard spell suddenly disintegrated. Blowing snow, winds and ice spikes fell into fine-grained orange ash, spraying outward as if repelled by a powerful magnet. The darkness swallowed Shuyin, obscuring him, and his assailant, within a shadowy cloud.

And from that mass, there came a bestial roar.

Stone shattered explosively, fragments spraying outward. Shuyin cried out in pain again, as dark red powder suddenly erupted from within the cloud, mixing with the orange dust left over from Sean's spell. Another roar, this one of monstrous delight, burst into the air, just before a shape was launched out of the dark cloud, and through the curtain wall of the Pavilion.

Silence.

* * *

"Professor Landry," Astarte called, approaching from the north, bright fire-red hair trailing out behind her lazily. "May I help you, too?"

Startled, the Professor blinked. She turned her head over her shoulder, expression unreadable as she regarded her bandage clad student. After a moment, she turned around fully and smiled, eyes lighting up. "Astarte!" She took a step forward, "Why, of course you can help! Come -"

She stopped abruptly. Jack was standing. The young man seemed to be struggling to speak. His voice was low enough that the Professor had to strain to hear him.

"You're both…" He began, forcing himself to walk toward Professor Landry. The vines hanging from his body seemed to be to heavy for him – each step he took was an obvious battle against them. "…wrong." As the boy went on, Hannah's sobs slowly quieted. Over her granddaughter's head, the elder Iruimi fixed Jack with a gradually darkening glare. Professor Landry’s expression, on the other hand, remained perfectly neutral – even curious.

"…I don't pity you." Jack continued, pausing in his approach to the Professor. He had turned around and was speaking to Hannah. "Because the sad state you're in - that's your choice. Your fault."

Hannah didn't even turn her head toward him.

Jack turned toward Landry again. "You have to try something. Otherwise, what's the point in anything? Even if you fail, at least you tried – did something. That's...all that matters to you. If you do just that, your life will have been well lived."

The dark haired wizard let out a long breath as he finally stopped. He was standing before Landry. The auburn haired woman was smiling kindly at him. "If none of you can help me with this curse then I'm going to go off." He stated, meeting the woman's dark eyes with his own. "…probably get myself killed." He added, gaze falling slightly. "And laugh."

"…you know what?" Hannah spoke up, voice mild, and expression blank. She had finally turned her head toward the boy, but hadn’t moved otherwise. The red mark on her cheek was startlingly bright now. Slowly, she turned her head to regard Jack. "Just jump. It would probably be the first selfless thing you've ever done." She continued, a hint of scorn entering her disinterested voice. The blond chuckled, before adding. "The world will be better off without another spoiled magic-user like you." A cold smile followed.

Professor Landry's hand closed on Jack’s shoulder.

"…I'm disappointed in you," The auburn haired woman stated, "Hannah." She sighed, eyes falling on the young wizard she now held. "Its true that Jackson's suicide threat was immature." Professor Landry went on, raising her eyes to regard Hannah again. "But, you should know better than to provoke him."

Hannah grunted and glanced away. She didn't reply.

Another sigh came from Professor Landry. She crouched in front of Jack, eyes regarding the glowing wound on his chest critically. "Jackson." The woman stated, keeping a firm hold on him, "I know you must be frustrated, but -" Casually, the auburn haired Professor reached into the glowing light. Jack felt a slight tug, as she pulled her hand away, a small blue seed held delicately between her fingers.

The vines glowing from his body disintegrated into dust.

"- the next time you need help," Professor Landry stood, before flicking the seed dismissively over her shoulder, and off the tower. "Simply ask."

And, she smiled.

* * *

Boisterous laughter floated up from the constantly shifting ring of ghostly dancers, now seven strong. Four new Mannerquins had joined the ritual, leaving Shuyin to deal with the transformed Johanna alone – and strengthening the white glow emanating from the circle’s boundary. In its center, light yellow magical power rose like steam. Dal, now immaterial, was weaving a new glamour – this one designed to free him from the Ballroom.

"I..."

Over the sounds of combat to the south-east, and the laughter from the dancing Mannerquins around him, a halting voice rose.

Sitting limply behind Dal, a few steps from the center of the spell circle, was the half-changed Mannerquin. Its face was no longer featureless, instead the creature's plastics skin now held depressions where eyes should go and below them, the impression of lips were visible. Boyishly short dark hair covered its head, and the red fabric of its dress had faded to pink. Pale yellow light still flickered around its body.

"...am broken." She whispered.

The doll was gazing down at its hands. Dented from its struggles against Dal's metallic body, and separated into the beginnings of fingers, its katar-like hands were no longer sharp. A whimper escaped the creature’s half-formed lips.

"Wh-why..." It turned its head toward the glowing place where Dal - immaterial now - stood. "… would you do this…?" The doll asked, shakily. Then, the doll paused, and seemed gulp. "…why would you do this to me?" She repeated, voice stronger this time – and filled with utter, distraught, confusion. It sounded on the brink of tears.

Below them, a series of geometric lines, like a circuit, appeared. Written in white light, they were almost painfully bright. A network of red lightning gradually rose from the top of the circle’s edge – climbing into the sky, higher and higher.

Had the light from the boundary gotten brighter?

* * *

The darkness evaporated.

Flecks of orange, dark red and deep grey dust floated through the air, like snow. A crater of shattered marble appeared, with a figure standing in its center. Slumped forward, the figure's legs were spread widely, and its arms hung limply in front of it. Dark liquid sheathed the creature from head to toe, dipping slowly. Its head lulled forward, long stringy stands of soaked hair framing its animalistic face. Rows of sharp, black, teeth, were visible within its dog-like muzzle, and a pair of glowing milky white eyes peaked out though its forest of hair. A dark grey aura burned around its body.

Which abruptly gutted out.

Diana collapsed to her knees, panting. Deep red hair, a few inches longer and several shades darker than before, now framed her pale face. A black dress, shredded beyond all hope of repair, was all that covered her body. Down the girl's back, a thick, black, and wildly branching scar was visible – it ran along her spine. Bright red blood sheathed her right ankle - and her hands.

There was no sign of the creature from before – or the black fluid that had covered it.

On her wrist, the camera bangle flickered. A picture appeared.

It was working again.

* * *

Ice shattered.

The winged Shuyin arced a delicate blue eyebrow.

A hulking figure now stood before him. Over seven feet in height, the creature dwarfed the bluenette, both in length and width. A complex carapace-like suit of glittering ice covered the being's muscular body, each interlocking piece shimmering with supernatural power. Long white hair spilled from its head, which, like its arms, hung limply in front of it. Hidden within those locks, a pair of black eyes stared sightlessly down at slowly spreading pool of tea below.

Thoughtfully, Shuyin raised a delicate hand to his lips. "Well, well." He chuckled softly, a smile spreading on his face. "I admit, I didn't expect that." Another chuckle bubbled from the man, gradually raising in volume until he was almost doubled over, laughing hysterically.

Johanna's head rose, slowly. Black eyes blinked, once. Twice. Her lips pealed back in a snarl. Magic flared. Ice raced out from Jo's hand, forming into a long, slim, crystalline staff. At its peak, a blade formed, a massive wedge-like crescent on one side of the haft, and a wicked spike on the other.

She charged Shuyin.

Steel clashed against ice. "My plan has gone wrong." Shuyin murmured, gold eyes dilated to slits. His jian had appeared. Knuckles white and arm trembling, the bluenette held it between Jo’s axe and his body, blocking her strike. "And will continue to go wrong." A crack had appeared in the steel of the blade. "That was -"

The blade shattered.

Coral light flared and Shuyin's wings snapped open. Jo's axe swept down, the edge slicing through white fabric, then flesh, as the man was suddenly launched backward, narrowly escaping a direct hit. Clear green-tinted liquid sprayed and steam rose from the wound, staining the kimono around it.

It appeared that Angel Shuyin had tea for blood.

"- what you said, wasn’t it?" Shuyin finished, stabilizing himself in the air above the central platform. "The truth is Johanna -" He cut himself off, gold eyes falling on a figure below.

The other Shuyin.

On his hands and knees near the central platform's southern edge, the tuxedo-clad version of Professor Shuyin was surrounded by a raging corona of carmine light. Blood stained holes marred his suit, and his hair spilled over his face and back - the gold cord that had bound it, lost. One of his hands was jammed against his stomach, surrounded by an almost blinding supernatural glow.

It seemed Tuxedo Shuyin was healing himself.

"- gods blast it." Angel Shuyin muttered. "Alph, you have absolutely terrible timing."

He was the closest thing to Jo.

[Bard The 5th LW]

Sean could feel his heart pumping in his chest. Rapid fire, like a machine gun. Ice and snow streaked his arm, and his shoulder was sore from the recoil. His eyes were wide and his jaw open. His legs were shaking. There were too many thoughts in his head now, but one came to mind.

Was that a roar?

Stone was broken around Di. Her clothes were different again. Dal's words returned to mind. As did the sense of uneasiness she gave him earlier. He didn't say a word, but his eyes were locked on her as his legs forced him to take several steps back. What... was he looking at? The... creature... seemed gone, as did the black liquid. He scanned the girl, blood on her hands and ankle. She was on her knees, injured? Sean still couldn't bring himself to advance into the fallout zone. Was that her own blood on her hands and ankle? He still was at a distance, and he realized that he still had his arm up, shaking as well. He was shaking all over!

But as he tried to put his thoughts together, he couldn't think of anything. A part of him wanted to try to help, but what could he help? The larger part of him was also still in shock! Was it a good idea to get closer? There was a monster in that girl's place but a moment ago.

"D-Diana?" He asked, trying to assert his voice. He wasn't really sure of what he was looking for in an answer.

[Girasol of Chaos]

As her body recovered from the roll, an ice and wind-laced cacophony erupted behind Chou, prompting her feet to carry her immediately into a sprint towards the final foundation. An icy wind bit at her back, freezing some of the stray onyx hairs that had fallen from their pins and coupled with a pain that prompted her to go impossibly faster. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as the distance was closed almost instantly, but to her it felt like a mile. Young Shuyin's cry behind her was drowned by Chou's mind alerting her of an overwhelming stench. Diana had returned to being a rotting horror, foul decay watering the oni's azure eyes with stinging odor. Her peripheral vision detected darkness engulfing the area behind her, spurring her towards her goal.

Using her speed to build momentum, the blue ogress twisted her body to swing the club with all of her might at the pillar. Feet planted now, the second swing on was fueled by fear. Behind her an impossibly deep roar sounded, rattling her very bones. Again, and again she swung, another roar-was it closer now?- bellowed behind her fueling her panic. Sweat beaded on her forehead with each swing, muscles tensing and flexing in determined, repetitive waves. Iron teeth bit the magically-enhanced substance as it cracked and splintered.

Every fiber of her being was willing the pillar to break.

[Steel Shadow]

For one blessedly clear moment as her anger broke, Diana was free to try to comprehend what had just happened.

And then the pain hit her.

Everything hurt. Everything. She felt as though she'd used to smash bricks. Many, many bricks. The strength that had filled her just seconds ago just drained away with her rage, and she was left empty.

She fell to her knees, then forwards onto all fours, and heaved out the contents of her stomach. Her protesting body was finally folding under the stress. Both the physical and mental strain of the past... Hour? Had it only been an hour?... Had taken their toll.

Spent, she coughed pathetically, her arms shaking from the adrenaline rushing through her system. Hot tears stung at her eyes and left tracks down her face in the dust that settled on her. What little remained of Diana's once flattering evening dress did little to cover her now. She looked terrible.

"D-Diana?" A voice she recognised called out to her, somehow reaching through the fogged daze her mind was in. She looked up, her unfocused eyes searching for him.

"S... Sean?" Blue eyes latched onto the Canadian and held on to him like he was a beacon in a storm. "I..." She fumbled for words, the acidic taste in her mouth tripping her tounge. "Sean... Please..." She choked again, her voice becoming raw and pleading. "I don't... What's going on?"

[Bard The 5th LW]

"I don't... What's going on?"

A shaken "uhh" was Sean's response.

Sean was still just standing there as he looked down at the girl, hacking a lung on her knees. He was still frightened, and he could still feel a nagging voice in his head telling him to "run away" and just leave her.

But a spark of empathy changed his mind. Despite what fear he was feeling, he didn't know how he might feel about himself in the long run if he had just ignored her plea.

He took cautious steps forward as he moved into the sort of crater she had made. The blue girl was flinging herself at the pillar, still trying to collapse the structure. He looked into the curtain, and viewed a rather infinite expanse. Two things caught his eye. Shuyin, proving the man wasn't the dust in the air, and a large, lumbering figure. More monsters. He wanted to get away from here.

Now an arm's reach from the girl, Sean took off the somewhat torn white jacket that made up his tuxedo, leaving him in his dress shirt. This was to serve two purposes, to cover her up and to try and minimize physical contact. He reached down and draped it over her shoulders. He tried to avoid further eye contact as he spoke once more.

"Try to get up," he spoke uneasily, eyes flickering on Shuyin and the somewhat familiar giant, as he hesitantly extended an arm to the girl to help her to her feet.

[Dracorion]

Hand. Shoulder. Don't flinch. Don't even blink. This is a perfectly acceptable touch.

Landry expressed disappointment in Hannah, then she crouched to look at Jack's wound. Okay, awkward. He was once again acutely aware of the shameful state of his clothes and overall appearance.

"Jackson." She began, "I know you must be frustrated, but -" Then Landry stuck her hand in his chest. AUGH BAD TOUCH BAD TOUCH. Jack groaned and flinched at the uncomfortable feeling, but Landry's hand was still on his shoulder, keeping him firm and she didn't spend a lot of time rooting around in his cavity. A moment later, she had removed a seed and flicked it off the tower. "- the next time you need help, simply ask."

"Well-" He started, but then he finished processing what had been said. "Wait, jump?" He asked incredulously, turning to Hannah. "No, I was just going to get between Shuyin and everyone. And who the hell are you to give me any crap? You-" Wait, priorities. God forbid there might be bigger things at stake than whatever's going on between these two. Like all of our lives.

He took a deep breath, covering his face in his hands trying to calm himself. It wasn't entirely effective, and he stood for a minute just staring angrily at Hannah with his fists clenched at the sheer hypocrisy before turning back to Landry. "Sorry." He said ashamedly, one of his hands unclenching to rub absently at the aching spot in his chest where the hole used to be. "Um... thanks for helping me." Right, ask. "Do you have any advice for dealing with Shuyin?"

Then he remembered his clothes and body were still in a sad state. "... And is there any chance I could get some new clothes to go with that cursebreaking?" He asked quietly, cheeks red with embarrassment.

[Krylo]

Dalbhach looked back as he heard a voice speaking. Asking if it was broken, asking why he had done what he had done, and what he saw surprised him. Shocked, perhaps. He had expected that leaving the illusion creature half formed between his vision and its natural state would leave it, well, as it had said: Broken. He did not expect it to be able to move, to speak. To know anything at all.

The yellow glow dissipated as the fae, existing in a state of non-existence, allowed his power to dissipate, and the cracks in the world faded, as the faerie who was not really there moved to the side of the mannequin who should not exist, and inspected her for a moment. A voice, from the nether, then, spoke in her ear.

"I have made a mistake," it said, though the voice showed no remorse, no regret. In fact, it seemed ecstatic as it continued, the voice moving to her other ear, "You, are a mistake."

"A beautiful, glorious, incredible mistake," its voice was now in front of her, a foot away perhaps? And much louder. "Don't you realize what I've done? What I've given you?" It was coming from all around her now, the point of origin hard to find. Behind her? To her right? To her left? Ahead? Was it moving?

"I," it spoke again, this time once more in her ear, "Have given you life. Freedom. I've made you far more beautiful than your sisters, far grander, more than they could ever be."

And then the platinum boy was before her. "I've given you the gift of choice," his ruby lips curving into a smile as it addressed her.

However, his attention was quickly pulled away as sound erupted and Shuyin launched into the ballroom, and then the boy saw, that even with his magic gone, powerful energies were still at work here. The platinum statue of a boy once fae looked around himself as if trying to calculate an expedient enough escape, and then with a sigh, he placed a hand on the mannequin.

"I hope this isn't another mistake," he said quietly before they both vanished, as Dalbhach extended his glamour of non-existence to the... creature, before him. And both vanished, as the fae hoped this would be as temporary for the creation of illusion as it was for him, and pulled her toward an escape from her sisters, and toward the injured Shuyin.

[Astral Harmony]

"I think the real thing we need right now is to remove the barrier sealing us all up in the Field of Honour," Astarte butted in. "Maybe leave this whole Shuyin-stomping nonsense for perhaps some other day. I'm not even sure if us students should be acting on what's going on. We really don't know the whole story, or at least I don't, and I'm really too tired and pissed off to give a damn about who's right and who's left...ergh, wrong."

And if they probably weren't going to be fighting Shuyin today then maybe...

Astarted turned to Hannah. "Hannah, do you think you could help us, too? I'm not telling you to go against Professor Shuyin or take Professor Landry's side. I'm just saying that...we're not really in the correct frame of mind right now to go judging or bringing justice on anyone. We're trapped in this place, we've been fighting for some time, and the stress is really starting to get to me to where I don't want to do anything for anyone. Can we just work together on getting the barrier disabled and maybe go cool our heads? It's not like Shuyin and Landry are going to escape to somewhere else besides the academy, so this big ol' prison is completely pointless and has been since it was activated."

Astarte had tried her best to appear sincere, and actually was. She didn't know who was right or wrong, and at this point, frankly couldn't give half a damn less. And if there was some ancient wrongdoing involved, what evidence of said wrongdoing were they going to unearth here?

Unearth? Now Astarte was worried about Linda. As one of Astarte's best friends, Linda would probably still be waiting outside the Field of Honour, and falling to pieces all the while. Not to mention Gorgeous and Vanilla still petrified down at the base of the tower.

[Arhra]

Steel sang out before it crumbled and fabric parted. An insipid spray welcomed Jo for a moment then sails billowed and carried it away. Meaningless words washed past her.

Her black eyes blank, Jo tracked the angelic Shuyin's movements up into the air. She lowered her axe and half twisted her body, winding up for a throw. With a grunt of exertion and burst of supernatural energy, she sent her axe flying through the air to meet him.

Closer, magic bloomed in a pulse of unwelcome heat. Jo whirled, the corona of red light about the tuxedo clad Professor Shuyin reflected in her eyes like flames. Without hesitation she surged forward at this suddenly revealed second Shuyin bare handed.

Shuyin was on his hands and knees, at the central dias' southern edge. One hand was jammed against his stomach, the source of the burning light. Towering over him, Jo fell on him like a pack of wolves. A foot lashed out to bowl him over and then she would fall uupon him with fists like battering rams.

[Teal Mage]

OoC: Please check your Inboxs and the OoC Thread before replying to this.

Golden energy flared, exploding brightly in the air above the central platform of the Infinite Ballrom. Shuyin's gasp of shock quickly changed in a cry of outraged pain, as Johanna's thrown axe shattered his defense spell. The top of a bisected hand thumped dully to the tiles below, leaking a puddle of tea.

When the conflagration cleared, the winged Shuyin was hunched forward, surrounded by a mass of shimmering cherry blossom-like motes of coral red light. In his chest, the head of Jo's massive axe had buried itself, weighing him down. He growled softly, before closing the delicate fingers of his undamaged hand closed around the painfully cold haft of the weapon.

A feral smile split his features.

Below, carmine light surged, and the second Shuyin lept away, narrowly evading Jo's wild kick. The long haired bluenette landed back two paces – wounds healed. Like a pack of wolves, Johanna pursued. Ice-clad fists lashed out, as Shuyin fell back into a defensive stance. Golden eyes darkened, as the man fell back, steps fluid, before the jotun's onslaught. His arms moves precisely, redirecting and slipping around her blows.

"This could only -" Face half-shrouded within his veil of blue hair, Shuyin pulled away, evading another kick by Jo. He ducked beneath the white haired giant's wild follow-up arm strike, landing on all-fours. Cat-like, he pushed off the tiles and into the air, narrowly escaping a jaw-breaking uppercut. The bluenette landed in a crouch several paces back. His fingertips slipped into the pockets of his pants.

"- have ended -" Dark scarlet power flared, as Shuyin's arms lashed out. Folded fans flew - each surrounded by dark red glass-like energy. They thudded shallowly into Jo's chitinous armor, throwing ice fragments outward. Undaunted, Jo was suddenly in front of the man, gold light flaring around her massive frame. Shuyin uncoiled, leaping back once more - to land beside the pale blue Jay statue. Shattered tiles and dust exploded into the air where he had been, as Jo's fist impacted the floor, demolishing it.

Shuyin's hand landed on Jay's own."- one way." The sword the statue held suddenly fell into the air – and then to Shuyin's second hand, waiting below. Dark red energy flowed up the blade, as Jo exploded out of her own dust-screen, axe-reformed.

An earth-shattering crack suddenly split the air. Shuyin breathed a soft sigh. The bluenette shut his golden eyes – as Jo's heavy ice-shod foot slammed down on the tiles before him. White hair dancing around her face, she whipped her axe in a two-handed chop, straight at his neck.

Rocks fell. The pavilion collapsed.

And darkness erupted.

* * *

"…this big ol' prison is completely pointless and has been since it was activated." Astarte concluded, crossing her bandage clad arms decisively -

A great crash sounded behind her, as the fissure riddled roof of Shuyin's veiled pavilion fell to the ground, shattering. From the rumble, three simultaneous thunderclaps of darkness exploded. Then, like a javelin, a great mass of seething darkness burst upward from the ruins, impacting the golden sky far above, and spreading outward. The golden radiance of the field dimmed, as the pillar expanded. New flares of darkness burst into the air, as Diana, Sao, Chou, Sean and Kohana quickly vanished into its flowing depths.

And Professor Landry smiled brightly.

"Well Students," she stated, crossing her arms, "it appears there's nothing left for us to do here." The Professor raised a hand to her glasses, and began to calmly clean them on her labcoat's sleeve. "Your classmates have won, and Shuyin is vanquished." Unconcerned, she returned her glasses to her face, and smiled brightly. "I expect to see you all bright and early for class tomorrow."

And then, a pillar of darkness raced down from the sky above, consuming her completely. A whirling vortex of curving dark tendrils swirled out from it, curling around Hannah, her grandmother, Jack and Astarte. They slowly, almost delicately, they began to expand inward toward them. Around the roof-top, more pillars of darkness descended, seemingly at random.

Hannah laughed softly, and hugged her grandmother. "Just relax you two!" She called, "You'll be fine!" A whipping wind had rose, and its roar all but drowned out everything else.

"It was good to see you one last time, Hannah!" The woman exclaimed, smiling broadly, even as the darkness closed in on her and her blond haired granddaughter. She hugged Hannah tightly.

"It was good to see -" The blond stopped suddenly, eyes falling on the now-young-woman's aura, as if for the first time. She snapped a glance toward where Professor Landry had been, and then gasped. "W-wait! She - does that mean you're -?"

The woman nodded, a warm smile on her face - just before a swirling wave of blackness consumed her.

Hannah's eyes widened. "No -!" Around her body, a loud shattering sound ripped through the gale. Amid lashing strands of blond hair, her aura flared. Pale blue shards broke apart, razor sharp fragments spraying outward. Beneath, a white banner appeared –

And then she vanished as well.

* * *

Adeline bit into a length of celery viciously.

It was lunch time in the Amaranth Institute for the Gifted. After her first day, and first night here, the small tray of vegetables and fruits she'd picked out from the buffet set out by the school's cooks was refreshingly mundane. And after class with Professor Landry, she reflected, we all could use something a little more mundane. Adeline sighed, then selected an apple slice from her tray. She was lucky enough to be sitting alone in the, currently noisy, Amaranth Cafeteria.

As if having a a nightmare about strange blue-haired angels, towers surrounded by voids of crazy purple nothingness, killer plants and bizarre knife-handed dancing dolls wasn't bad enough, she'd been shocked awake at 5 am by Diana screaming. To make matters worse, her other roommate, Sarah, had looked like she'd seen a ghost when Adeline popped into Diana's room to offer the pair some of the strawberry tea Diana liked.

Adeline sighed mournfully. To say nothing about the way Sarah inexplicably forgot the month we've known each other. And Sarah was the normal one! Diana had been the one to talk her down. Diana! No surprise I didn't get back to sleep after that. She reflected, only mildly bitter.

Landry's class, at least, had been less crazy than yesterday. No exploding lightbulbs, battle axes or debates about sports, at least. They'd gotten two new students. Dal's cousin, and some girl named Antonia. She'd been appointed Class President - I will not think about that now - and Landry hadn't even shouted that much, outside of her rant about Shuyin at the class's opening. Apparently, he'd been transferred to Cambodia to tutor the country's royal family.

Adeline snorted. She shoved what was left of the celery stalk into her mouth. Probably stepped on too many toes. Professor of Etiquette and Manners my ass. On the bright side, it did mean their duel with him was canceled, no chance of that nightmare coming true now. She flicked a baby carrot across her plate. And Jay's duel with Hannah was canceled too. Adeline chuckled, God, what is wrong with that kid? Challenging Hannah to a duel? She'd waste -

Adeline blinked her two coloured eyes rapidly, hastily cutting off her thoughts. She'd done it again. All day, she'd been mixing up elements from the nightmare with real life. The girl heaved a heavy sigh.

"Maybe I'm going crazy." She muttered, idly returning to playing with her food. "Stupid dreams."

* * *

At Roughly the Same Time – Deep In the Ansidor Woods

Steam rose from a large pool of murky faintly green-tinted water. Happy yips filled the modest clearing, raising from the small black wolf pup dog-paddling happily along the hotspring's surface. The only other shape in the pool was the muscular, tanned, form of Kohana. The youth's clothes lay folded in a neat pile at the edge of the pool, and his long hair was unbound, leaving his triangular dog ears to twitch gently in the open air.

Nearby, a slim caramel haired youth reclined leisurely on a suspiciously chair-like knot, near the base of one of the surrounding trees. His violet eyes faced into the surrounding forest, and a sketchpad resting on his lap. A small box of coloured chalk lay in the grass beside his feet. His hands moved busily over the surface; he was drawing the likeness of a nearby fern.

They’d been here most of the day.

Beyond the trees, on the north side of the secluded hotspring, two women sat before a large, smooth, table-like, slab of stone. A pair of rough hewn stone mugs, filled with maple tea, rested before each of them. Three small rock contains were arranged midway between them, around a larger stone kettle, containing honey, sugar, cream and more of the syrup-like tea, respectively.

"Hm."

The taller of the two, a tall, slender figure with long green-tinted black hair and a red-ish caste to her tanned skin, had spoken. One of her long, delicate, fingers tapped the stone table before herself. She wore only a simple sleeveless dress of pale hide, the hem of which extended to her knees. Her green eyes were thoughtful as she regarded the younger, shorter, figure across from her - Sao Opallios.

"A curse made from magic, but resists magic." The woman spoke, voice soft and breathy. "That sounds quite a lot like White or Black Magic, to me." She closed her fingers around the wooden stir stick beside her mug, then began to tap the cup's rough hewn rim lightly. "I can see why Kirk would send you to me."

She nodded softly, "Although, if she resisted your healing spell yesterday, and the..." Her green eyes flicked toward Sao's lap, "...curse, somehow sealed you in human form, I'm afraid it will be beyond me, as it stands, to resolve the issue." The woman shut her eyes, dark green hair swaying as she gently shook her head. "The issue of how the curse got on you aside, for now, at least."

"If this spell is proper Black or White Magic, breaking it may be impossible." She stated, bluntly. "But, if you are committed to this, I may have an idea." Expression serious, she laced her delicate fingers together, and leaned forward. "All Hallow’s Eve will be here in roughly two months. It will be highly dangerous, but, if we begin preparations now, I believe we can have a ritual prepared by then of sufficient power, to stand a chance."

She seemed to be awaiting Sao's reply.

* * *

Meanwhile – On the Field of Honour

Hannah sipped tea.

The blond haired girl knelt on a white cushion, legs clad in well-fitted dark blue jeans. A plain, slightly frilly, white tunic covered her chest and hung down to her thighs, clinched at her waist with a simple black belt. Its gold buckle glinted brightly. Her green vine-like bracelet was in her hair today, tying it back into a thick pony tail. In front of her was a second white cushion. A cup of green tea was set in front of it, still steaming faintly in the afternoon light.

She smiled faintly.

Nearby, several groups of Amaranth students, mostly first years, chatted amongst themselves, arranged in small groups at random across the garden-like roof of the Field of Honour. It was too early in the year for many duels, so the Field was relatively free for public use. Hannah was at the eastern edge, near the massive tree in the south-east corner. The only students near her were her tuxedo-clad bodyguards – one lounging casually on the box-like planter of the nearest oak. The other was closer to Hannah, arms crossed imposingly.

Whenever a student came close, one of them moved to bar their approach to Hannah. Or just pulled down their glasses to glare at them. Given the space she had, the pair had been surprisingly effective at crowd control.

…it may not have hurt that the blond had also been having a causal, one-sided, conversation with herself for the past half-hour.

Just a normal day at the Amaranth Institute for the Gifted.

((OoC: Just to reiterate, please check your Inboxs, read the PMs I sent and the OoC Thread, before posting.))