Metaplot

[Ianna Umbridge]

METAPLOT - Part One - The Beginning, and The Past.
Note: This takes place -before- Headquarters or the spell to capture souls was cast. This is THE Beginning of Ghosts of the Past....

Matilda sat quietly on her large bed, the gentle gauze of her transparent white dress floating around her in an unseen breeze. She was thinking, and the expression on her lovely face mirrored it perfectly. Something had drastically changed in the world she had known before she had been killed. No longer was the hate apparent, but it was still there- sneaking around in the corners, cloaked subtly in the guise of politeness

The small glances.

The little smiles.

The gloss of the world had changed, but the core had not. It had gotten worse - and Matilda felt it in her heart.

And she didn't like it at all.

But how...HOW would she change it? How could she breed acceptance? So many of her kind had been persecuted, and still were. So many had died - horrible, wrongful deaths - only to be sent into the river of souls, past the nine gates and into oblivion.

How could she change it? She couldn't physically go back in time...but could she bring time to her? That was certainly a thought...and something she would have to look into.

Her laws stated that she could not go back and change the past. It never said anything about her bringing the past to the future...

A smirk touched the woman's lips and she stood up, gliding to the cabinet where her books and various bottles and bobbs were lined up. She could do it...It would take a lot, but she could DO it....

But how? That...that was something she would have to think about.

Fingers trailed over each and every one of her dragon-leather bound books, the scales scratching at her fingers slightly - something she was used to. It comforted her, if she was completely honest. The feeling of life that was given to make the instruments that would bring salvation to the magickal race.

She stopped on one particularly large book, thick with worn parchment-like paper sticking out this way and that. It was a very old book...Perhaps this was the one she should use? It had been passed down her family for generations, each member adding a bit of their essence, their magicks, their wisdom and thoughts, into the very pages. The pages were constantly changing, and no matter how many times you read it, it was never the same.
It used to give Matilda a headache, but now...Now she knew it was the book she would need to pull off one of the greatest challenges that she would ever face.

The woman pulled the heavy book from the shelf, half carrying, half dragging it to the bed, where she hoisted it onto the comforter and opened it with a soft groan of protest. The poor bindings had not been cracked open for too long.

"There, there, little book." She murmured, stroking at the spine of the binding, extracting a small shudder, the book falling open compliantly. "That's a good book."

And she began reading. Her eyes scanned the text for hours upon hours, days upon days...never moving, not eating, nor sleeping. Matilda was a woman on a mission, and she HAD to find what she was looking for. It wasn't until the fifth day of no sleep that the Ancient came across the passage she was looking for. Time travel.

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Nothing can be taken without something being given, and nothing can be given freely without something being taken somewhere else. It is what keeps the balance in the universe. To bring yourself into the past, one must simply observe. One may not interefere with the past, for to change one thing could change the world - and more often than not, in a not so pleasant way.

But to go into the past, one must sacrifice time in the present - fairly take and fairly give. Time travel is not a simple thing. It is difficult and, if done improperly, can cause serious psychological and physical damage. One must take the upmost care in time travel, and only those who have experience in advanced magicks should attempt to do so. Even then, there is a danger.

Matilda stared at the passage. She had known much of what she had read, but how would it help her to bring the future to her? She studied the spell written below and mouthed the words, careful not to even so much as whisper them. "Dear Mother and Father," She whispered, "Help me seek the answers that I long to know. Help me gain the knowledge to set the world back in balance..."

Nobody answered the Ancient as she silently pleaded for the gods, for the heavens, to answer her and to give her the strength she needed. And it was then that Matilda knew she was utterly alone on the quest to set things right.

This only made Matilda more determined to do what she had set out to do.

She was weary, her eyes drooping. No longer could she remain awake, it had taken all her reserves. But she had to do this! She...had...to....Sleep. And she did, slumping over, falling asleep.

It was in her sleep where the answer came to her, causing her eyes to snap open. It was so SIMPLE...in a very difficult sort of way. She did not know how she could have missed it before! To bring Present to Past, one must sacrifice Future. To bring Past to Present...one must sacrifice Present. HER Present.

But how would sacrificing herself help? How could she help, if she was dead? Her soul could only last....Her soul. Her eyes lit up with epiphany. Her SOUL! She could tie the past to her soul!

It would eventually kill her. It would, however be enough. JUST enough to set the wheels in action and maybe complete her task...  

[Ianna Umbridge]

METAPLOT - Part Two - Wheels in Motion
Note: This is the past. This is THE Beginning of Ghosts of the Past....

It was a month before Matilda had been able to start on the spell, collecting the correct plants, stones, and ingredients at the correct time. Moonflower had to be harvested under the midnight full moon and purified. Snap dragon had to be collected at high noon and cleansed with moon-blessed water. Thistle had to be cut at the crack of dawn and washed in a salt bath. Her Mugwort had to be fetched at dusk and ground at dawn. And her Bay Leaves had to be left out for the new moon.

Her four stones, Amethyst, Amazonite, Opal, and Aquamarine all had to be blessed and powered on the full moon as well, all without touching the Moonflower blossoms. Several other ingredients had to be collected, crushed, powered and stored for at least weak to allow their potency to become stronger. Needless to say, it was a lot of work and preparation.

Finally the day that was perfect for casting arrived, and Matilda stood over her cauldron dressed in her black ceremonial robes - Black, for neutrality. Systematically, the Ancient placed the stones, and again, added the ingredients.

"For liberation," she murmured, dropping several of the white and yellow blossoms into the heated water of the cauldron. "Mugwort, for healing," The Mugwort was then, as the Moonflower had been, dropped into the cauldron.

She continued, Snap Dragon - for protection, Thistle - for strength, Bay Leaf - for victory, and then moved on to the stones - the solid items which would create the foundation of the spell.

"Opal, for change," she scraped some of the opal into the mixture, the liquid turning a soft lilac color. "Amethyst, for spirituality," she tossed a small piece in with a plop. "Aquamarine, for travel," another plop could be heard.

And once more, she continued until all four stones were added to the mixture; Amazonite for Success was the last she added, turning the mixture a deep blue. The foundation and the growth of the spell had finally been completed - and it was now time to start the ritual to tie her own soul to and speak the words which would complete the spell.

"Past," the woman whispered, sprinkling in a small amount of dust. "Present," she pricked her finger, dropping a few drops of her scarlet blood - representing her person of which she would be tying to it - into the pot, "and Future." She dropped in a crystal, perfectly round.

As the last ingredient was placed in, the cauldron began to shudder and shake, a large mushroom cloud reminding her of her first, floating into the air and hovering above her.

"On this eve I plead of thee
Bring the past, tie unto me
As the sunlight now declines
Offer now my soul to bind
Past is past and future be
Mark it now, so mote it be!"

As the last words were spoken, the familiar feeling of the mushroom cloud entering her own body and withdrawing a single glowing ball washed over her. Her soul had left her body, wrapped by the tendrils of smoke which had turned into what appeared to be a rope dipping into the cauldron. From this rope sprung many different strands, each connecting to the orb of light and pulling. Each time, she felt as if her very being was being pulled apart - for it was. A blinding fire shot through her body, causing convulsions and screams to wrack the girl's being. Each new thread that connected itself tugged a soul from death, placing it in limbo. Each new thread caused a shard of her soul to be ripped from the ball and recoil into the cauldron until there was nothing left and Matilda collapsed on the ground.

The ball slowly reformed and entered her, whole...but only for now. Each time a new life was actually awakened she knew she would feel that incredible pain yet again... only much worse.

For now the pain had faded to a dull ache, allowing the woman to stand up slowly. "It's done," she said to herself, acknowledging the fact she had sentenced herself to death.