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 Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 1:38 pm
Alicia shrugged. "You haven't been getting much sleep, have you? Fortunately for me, the exams at school are over, so I can actually sleep at night rather than spend a third of it up studying... and if we're anything alike.... well, mornings can be a little slow," she said quietly. She knew she was not a morning person. She remembered a few months before, her roommate had gone to wake her up and she'd retaliated by giving him one heck of a shiner; people had spent nearly a week afterward asking him which MMA fighter he'd pissed off.
Lorcán smiled faintly. "A pin and ring," he said quietly, amused.
Merrick sighed. "Frankly, I know very little about magic other than what I've learned over the past week," he said wryly as he glanced at Carolyn when she came in. "I'm also getting used to the fact that I'm apparently part Kitsune myself," he said with a sigh, shifting the sunglasses he'd slid on when he'd changed to show his golden topaz irises and slitted pupils. "Fortunately for me, unlike when it first kicked in... I can control how much shows of that side of me now," he said, making sure to look towards the cat rather than the woman since the cat seemed to act as her 'eyes'. He concentrated as his irises deepened in color from a slightly glowing golden topaz to a deep cerulean blue with teal edges and round pupils.
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 2:20 pm
Cassandra laughed and nodded her head. She had a somewhat childlike laugh that people often complimented her on. They said it made her seem younger, happier. "Yes, mornings are a terrible thing. If only we could always remain awake and alert." She smiled at her niece, happy they had something in common.
"Hmm, very nice." Amelia said with a nod. "There is no need to worry about not knowing much about magic. All of us here can teach you a lot." She smiled a little. "Just about anything you want to learn could be taught by someone in this room."
Merida raised an eyebrow. "A pin and a ring....why?" She asked quizically. She chose to ignore the fact the Carolyn had entered the room and sat far away from them.
Cassandra cleared her throat as she stood. "We should probably get started. We all know why we have gathered here...well most of us. Let's put it on the table again. Witches are being killed by hunters who shouldn't be able to get near them. Somebody is giving these hunters powers to aid them. We need to find out who."
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 2:40 pm
Alicia tilted her head. "Also, we need to know if there are witches that have forsaken the usual ways... for darker talents, as some of them may be at least partially the source of this," she said thoughtfully.
Lorcán shrugged one shoulder. "Just a little surprise for her; I'm sure she'll find what else I left for her when she goes to her room," he said with amusement. He knew that would peak Merida's curiosity, but he planned on keeping it to himself for now; he had a friend leave a bouqet of thirteen deep red, lavender, peach, and light pink roses on Cassandra's bed right between the pillows as a different surprise.
Merrick chuckled. "With the cunning and beautiful women in this room, not including Lorcán, I have no doubt of that," he said with amusement. He found Alicia's input interesting, as it was an idea that would need to be looked into; traditionally, most witches that forsook the 'light' ways of magic and turned to the 'dark' side did tend to attract demonic forces more often than not and from what his memories that his mother had given him as well as Constance's little incident, it was very possible that a demon or multiple demons were manipulating dissatisfied and 'dark' witches to do their dirty work for them.
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 5:38 pm
"I wouldn't be surprised," Amelia said as she sat up straighter in her chair. With a wave of her hand a scroll came from the chest she had brought and landed in front of her. Her hands ran lightly across the page as she 'read' it. "Many years ago, long before our grandmothers, our great grandmothers and our great great grandmothers were born an unmentionable evil befell the land." She pulled her hands away. "It doesn't state exactly what it was, but it does say that many witches died and it was only because of a few witches that it was stopped. Not stopped completely, but dormant. These witches created the covens, and they became their leaders."
Merida had let go what Lorcan had said. She, of course, wanted to know what else Lorcan had left for Cassandra, but there were other more important things. She listened to Amelia silently.
"A history lesson," Carolyn sighed. "I thought this was supposed to be a meeting on what we were going to do?"
"Sometimes a history lesson is needed so we can make a plan," Casandra said as she shot a dirty look at Carolyn. "Look I know you don't really want to be here. You want to stay locked away in your coven home, but we have a responsibility to our fellow witches to figure this out."
"As I was saying," Amelia said with a sigh. "The records don't say what it was. Back then the witches feared that to speak the name was to bring the thing you did not wish to see."
"The Great Deceiver," A voice whispered through the room.
All the coven leaders turned their heads to look at Constance. She stared back at them with blood red eyes, her nails digging into the wood table.
"You speak of the great deceiver. Many years ago he had a plan to destroy witches. Because no matter what people think, you are ultimately beings of light, beings of the almighty." Constance let out a hissing breath. "He is breaking free, he wants to bring the havoc he started with your kind...I knew it was happening. I tried to stop it with her father....but he died and I am stuck..." Her eyes closed and her head sank into her chest. Her hair falling over her face, hiding her features.
"Constance?" Merida got up and slowly moved to the young woman. As she reached out and touched her the young girl's head snapped up. Her eyes were back to normal.
"What..what happened?" Constance asked as she pressed a hand to her head. "My head is throbbing..."
((lol it's long..I had to stop myself..))
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 6:36 pm
Alicia blinked. "I wonder if the different religions use different names for the same thing. Christianity has 'Satan', Shintoism has 'Yomi', Catholics have 'Lucifer'.... it could be possible that every one of them is the same entity under different times and forms," she said thoughtfully.
Lorcán blinked, thinking, though he was amused at Cassandra's subtle warning to Carolyn. He liked Carolyn as a person, but sometimes she came off as being far too laid back to the point of seeming lazy.
Merrick listened silently before he frowned fractionally as Constance spoke.
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 6:53 pm
"The Great Deceiver?" Carolyn's eyes widened. "This can't be true...come on! And even if it is...do you think we are a match for him!?"
Merida closed her eyes briefly before looking at Constance. "Your mother...gave us a little more help." She smiled a little. "She wouldn't have been able to get through if she meant to harm or deceive." She then turned her gaze to Carolyn. "If we all work together then I don't see the problem. Apparently it's been done before."
Cassandra saw the fight that was about to irrupt from the two and stood up quickly. "I think we all just need to take a break. This is a lot to take in. The fact that we may be up against the biggest and baddest of all demons is very unsettling."
Carolyn clenched her jaw and nodded. "Very well. I am going to my room to rest a bit." She stood up and quickly left the room. She always hated meetings like this. She always felt outnumbered.
"Well that was a quick first meeting," Amelia sighed as she pushed back her chair and stood up. "I think Nala and I will go to our room as well." Both her and the cat looked to Constance. "You must be tired. Being used as a medium is not easy. Especially if you are not experienced."
"I really think we all could use the rest." Merida said as she stood up and helped Constance who was a bit unsteady on her feet. "I'll help Constance to her room."
When Merida and Constance left along with Amelia, Cassandra sighed and sat back down in her chair. "Well that was an interesting first meeting." She looked over to Alicia and smiled. "You may want to check on your friend," she said softly. "I am sure she could use your presence right now."
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 7:21 pm
Alicia nodded before she shivered, feeling a ripple of energy shoot up her spine. Her eyes widened when her gaze shifted to Merrick as a faint rippling aura of deep crimson swirled around him. She could see his jaw was clenched and his eyes were closed tightly. "I have a bad feeling..." she started to say before her eyes widened as the aura around him intensified before his legs simply gave out from under him.
Lorcán rose to help Merida, though he paused when Alicia spoke, spinning as he too felt the ripple of energy before a furball of gray slammed into his chest. He realized the vixen that had been nestled comfortably on Merrick's shoulder was huddling against his chest, shivering. Her aquamarine eyes were wide before her gaze shifted to Merrick as he stumbled away from the table.
Merrick stood when Amelia and Carolyn left and watched Merida and Constance follow. It was then that he felt his mother enter his mind. She felt determined... and strangely sad. "I am sorry, my son, but this will hurt," she whispered in his mind. He opened his mouth to speak when the pain hit. Almost immediately the tendons of his neck stood out as he clenched his jaw, fighting back a scream. He could feel his bones and muscles burning and tearing as they became denser and stronger. It felt much like it had when he'd awakened his Kitsune blood for the first time... only about a hundred times worse. It felt like someone was shoving white hot needles over every inch of his skin, then replacing them with icy cold needles. It happened in waves within his body.
Lorcán inhaled sharply as Merrick began to shudder before his legs gave out from under him. He was surprised when Alicia caught him, though she inhaled sharply and managed to lower him to the floor as he began shuddering more violently.
"s**t, I don't know what's going on... but this isn't good," Alicia said quickly as she pulled her hands out from underneath Merrick, startled to find them stained red with blood. Her eyes widened as thin trickles of blood oozed from Merrick's pores.
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Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2012 7:30 pm
The magic that filled the room was so intense that it made Cassandra hunch over in her seat. She gave a small gasp as the energy passed through her and when she looked up Merrick was on the floor with Alicia next to him. Cassandra stumbled from her seat, landing next to Alicia and Merrick on her knees. "Here, let me see," she said softly as she gently moved Alicia out of the way. Her hands lay on Merrick and she closed her eyes, concentrating. She couldn't find anything..nothing she could pinpoint that would help her help him. Her hands were stained with the blood that flowed from Merrick's pores. "I..I don't know what to do..." Cassandra whispered softly. This was the first time in a long time when she was totally unsure of what to do, unsure of herself.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 7:08 am
Alicia shifted Merrick's arm, looking for the odd tattoo that was on the back of his hand. She saw the full marking. "What's going on?" she said softly, very worried and confused. Her eyes widened fractionally as the dark reddish gold color was fading from Merrick's long curly hair that stopped just below his shoulders, being replaced by silvery white color. She cocked her head, noticing that the normal dark reddish gold remained at the tips of his hair. Lorcán frowned. "Merida, we have a serious problem," he thought, knowing that as he touched the marking on his inner wrist that Merida had placed on him and a couple of the other high ranking members of the Dark Coven which allowed for telepathic contact with her directly. Merrick shuddered, the shuddering slowing as he panted before he turned his head away from Alicia and Cassandra, spitting out a mouthful of blood. He felt a searing heat ripple up the arm that had held the mark as the sealing mark disintegrated to be replaced by an odd dark gold gauntlet that had a deeper gold aura beneath it. The gauntlet, however, vanished in a swirl of golden sparks that dissipated into the air almost immediately, leaving a bare hand. A soft voice followed, emitting from his mouth. "I did not wish to hurt my son, but it is necessary he is at his strongest, and his grandmother's binding mark was holding his powers back," the soft voice said, holding a strong Japanese accent at the edges of the feminine voice.Lorcán blinked at the soft voice before he inhaled sharply, recognizing it as his fingers slipped off of the communication marking. "Kasumi Hoshitama," he murmured under his breath. She was an old friend of his, supposedly dead.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 7:30 am
Cassandra frowned as she heard the voice. She thought she recognized it, but she couldn't be sure. When Lorcan spoke a name, her head shot up and she stared at him. "Are you sure," she asked him softly. She had thought the woman was dead. They had all thought that she was dead.
Moments later Merida appeared in the room and when she saw the scene she hurried to them. "What the hell happened here?" She stood by Lorcan's side, staring down at Merrick. Cassandra and Alicia were already by the young man and if Merida joined them it would be too crowded. There was so much blood. How had someone managed to get passed the defenses?
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 7:47 am
Alicia jumped slightly. "We have no idea... but Merrick fell hard," she said slowly.
Lorcán nodded slowly. "Absolutely; I haven't heard that voice in nearly twenty years, but it's one you don't forget," he said quietly. It was a big fact if Kasumi, a very powerful witch, was his mother. She had been known for her pyrokinetic and telekinetic powers as well as a power she referred to as 'blinking', similar to teleportation though she had to be able to visualize the location she was 'blinking' to perfectly or she had to have been there before.
Merrick tried to sit up slowly, but hissed as he felt his entire body aching unmercifully. "Damn, I feel like I went ten heavyweight rounds with the Incredible Hulk," he said in a low voice. It was only then he realized his voice was slightly deeper.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 7:55 am
Cassandra nodded as she looked back down at Merrick. He had tried to sit up, but it seemed he was in too much pain. She didn't know if she could do much, but she could definitely try. "Here, allow me to try and help," she said softly as she rested her hand on Merrick's arms. Cassandra closed her eyes and concentrated, sending as much healing power as she could to his body. She only hoped that it was able to help him. She couldn't even imagine what Lorcan must be feeling at the moment. Cassandra felt her energy draining and pulled away, gasping in a lung full of air. She hadn't even realized she had been holding her breath. She fell back, catching herself before she fell. "I am sorry, but I can't do anymore." Cassandra said as she looked at Merrick.
Merida had peeked into their thoughts, reliving briefly what they had heard. She lay her hand gently on Lorcan's arm. "Hey, are you okay," she asked softly. She couldn't possibly fathom what he was thinking, what he was feeling. What would she be feeling and thinking if she heard her mother's voice after so many years?
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 8:13 am
Alicia exhaled slowly as her aunt leaned backwards, catching her with one arm. "You know you need to breathe... we aren't dead yet, and with luck, we'll be breathing for a very long time to come," she said with a teasing note in her voice.
Lorcán exhaled. "Kasumi was... is... like a sister to me, though I grew up as an only child; you know as well as I do that if she'd wanted to be, she could have taken your place as head of the coven. She never liked to be in the spotlight, though... she was as tough or tougher than any athlete now, though if I'm right... her magic was as strong as it was both because she was a witch and a Kitsune," he said quietly. He knew Merida knew that the three of them, himself, her, and Kasumi, had basically grown up together in both the magical arts and personally.
Merrick exhaled as the pain decreased to somewhat manageable levels; he still felt like a horse had kicked him in the head and then trampled him, but he was able to move without too much pain. He sighed as he looked down at his clothes. "You did more than enough... thank you... though if this sort of thing keeps up, it's going to be hell on both the clothes I have with me and Housekeeping," he said wryly, managing to sit up. He was surprised he was able to joke about something like this. He had, though, always had either an extremely strange sense of humor, or a morbid one, depending on who heard it.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 9:47 am
Cassandra chuckled softly as she looked at Alicia. "Yeah I know. I just hadn't realized that I was holding my breath." She slowly got to her feet, steadying herself. She took a deep breath before speaking. "I think...we need to just rest," she said to all of them. "Too much has happened now. Between Constance and Merrick we have a lot to deal with on top of the hunters." She looked to Merida and Lorcan and gave them a nod. "I am going to go lay down I think...I need time to think." Cassandra left the room quickly, still a little shaky.
Merida sighed as she watched Cassandra leave the room. She turned her gaze back to Lorcan. "Yes, and sometimes I think she should have," she said with a sigh. "I think she would have been better at it." She looked to Alicia and Merrick. "Come, let's get some rest."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cassandra sighed as she stopped outside her door and leaned against it. It had been a very long day. First Constance was being used as a medium, and then this thing with Merrick. She put her hand into her pocket, looking for the stone she always carried with her. It had been her mothers and it made Cassandra feel closer to her. Instead of finding just the stone, she found a couple of other things. She studied the objects in her hand. A pin and a ring? Who could have done that? She examined them for a moment before smiling a little and shaking her head.
The door to her room swung open and when Cassandra stepped inside she stopped and gasped. On her bed where many roses and varying colors. They were beautiful. Carefully she moved to the bed and examined them.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 10:36 am
Alicia giggled, shaking her head slightly. She's amusing, she thought. "That sounds like a good idea," she said quietly, doing the same.
Lorcán snorted. "She wouldn't have done it, you know that," he said wryly.
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