Snow falls softly on the church lawn. The tall iron churchyard gate is covered in long, precariously clinging icicles. The large sign hanging over the gate reads "Canterbury Children’s Orphanage".

An owl flies overhead towards the orphanage. The owl has a letter grasped in its talons; it releases the letter and the letter falls directly onto the front porch of the church, where it lands with the other mail. Soon after the owl departs, an older nun opens the large, oaken front door and picks up the mail. The old nun shuffles through the mail and comes upon the letter the owl delivered. She breaks the seal with a slight frown and reads it, standing in the cold. "Oh dear," she mutters to herself before making her way back inside, shutting the door behind her.

She walks past several playing children and makes her way down the hall. Still looking down upon the letter, she enters the kitchen. Another nun, younger than the first, is washing some dishes at the sink.

"Read this." the older nun says, passing the letter to the younger woman.

The younger nun wipes her hand on her apron and takes the letter. She looks down upon it, the same frown crossing her face. "What are we to do with this?" she asks, looking to the other nun in confusion.

"I don’t suppose we can do anything." the older nun says somberly, "He is old enough to make his own choices by now."

The younger nun nods slowly and folds the letter, handing it back to the older nun. The older nun takes it, holding it in both hands. She looks up to the younger nun, frowning slightly. She speaks in a barely audible whisper: "We can pray."

The younger nun nods once, slipping her apron off and walking side by side with the older nun as they make their way down to the sanctuary.

Hope there's someone
Who'll take care of me
When I die, will I go

Hope there's someone
Who'll set my heart free
Nice to hold when I'm tired

There's a ghost on the horizon
When I go to bed
How can I fall asleep at night
How will I rest my head

Oh I'm scared of the middle place
Between light and nowhere
I don't want to be the one
Left in there, left in there


from Hope There's Someone by Antony and the Johnsons


______________________________________________________

Joki sat on her bed, staring straight ahead. An opened letter from her father slipped from her hand and drifted to the floor. She glanced down at it, the harsh black letters of one line in particular glaring up at her: "You are no longer our child."

She leaned over and picked up the letter, refolding it and placing it under her pillow. Wearily she stretched out on the bed, her mind racing and her limbs aching from sheer misery. She and Creed had been caught by Filch smoking outside after curfew, and the ill-tempered caretaker has immediately sent for Dumbledore. Dumbledore had sent letters to their homes, and forbidden them to leave the castle for a month without permission. Joki had known that the repercussions from home would be severe, but nothing had prepared her for this. Her parents had made no secret of the fact that she was unwanted in their home since Adam died. Apparently they had seen this as an excuse to rid themselves of her for good.

On and on her thoughts went, spiraling out and coming back in again in a savage, relentless rhythm. Finally she sat up again, pressing the heels of her hands against her eyes to try and block the images in her head. Standing, she grabbed her homework ingredients pouch and went to the Entrance Hall. The Slytherin girl prefect was the only authority figure present. Joki strode to where she stood and stopped in front of her. "Permission to go outside for homework ingredients."

Gabrella looked her over cooly for a moment, then shrugged. "Be back before curfew."

"Whatever," Joki muttered under her breath, heading for the door. The afternoon was cool, a light dusting of snowflakes drifting from the grey sky. Joki quickly scanned the grounds to make sure there was no one nearby, then summoned Memnoch and ducked into the Forbidden Forest with the panther at her heels.

As soon as she cleared the treeline, Joki stopped. A small girl wearing Slytherin robes and a shadowy hood stood on the path before her. Like Joki, the girl was trailed by a great dark cat. Joki's first thought was why a student so young was in the forest alone, but the thought fled as soon as the girl spoke.

"Hello," said a musical voice from within the hood. Something in the voice, something primitive and nameless, caused every sense Joki possessed to heighten. Memnoch growled low at her heels. "Your cat is lovely." The girl continued in a friendly tone. The other panther came forward to sniff Memnoch, who stood still as a statue. "What's your name?"

Finally Joki found her voice. "Wilde."

The girl smiled, her shadowed face brightening prettily. "It's nice to meet you, Miss Wilde."

Joki nodded, swallowing hard. "Same, I'm sure."

"Well, I won't keep you. Enjoy your walk." The girl smiled again, as if wishing Joki a pleasant stroll in the park instead of a dangerous trip into the forbidden woods. Joki stepped aside as the small girl passed and left the forest, her panther giving Memnoch one final sniff before bounding after her.

Joki stood in the clearing for several minutes, her pupils dialating and her breathing growing shallow as she thought about the things she sensed from the girl. She vaguely remembered being at her sorting. What was her name? Dios . . . Dionne . . . Suddenly it came back to her. Dy Onos. A strange name, but not half so peculiar as the girl herself.

Something in her eyes and her voice had spoken to Joki of death. Death, and life. Not the old death of graveyards and tombs; but a sort of undeath- death hungering, straining, fighting desperately for life.

All Joki knew for certain was that she had to find out why.

_________________
Evie Cromwell, Hufflepuff
Joki Wilde, Slytherin

//How Joki and Eglan met in Eglan's eyes, hope you enjoy ^.^//


In the light of the pale moon, Eglantina Dy Onos had made it out of the castle, her dark panther, Velvet, trailing by her side. She tucked her hood forward, using the shadows to hide her silver-like, blue hair and amber, butterscotch eyes. She didn't need to be seen nor recognized, not now anyway... Her mission was very clear to her, “Get out of that castle and find what you need.”

She wasn't sure how long she'd be able to stay in that place and keep a cool head, the magic her brother had shielded her with wasn't much of a match compared to these wizards. She clinched her teeth as she walked on, into the deep forest.

Velvet froze by her side and hissed, her sharp white fangs glistening in the moonlight. Eglantina scanned the area, its dark trees and bushes reaching out like arms around them. Then she spotted it, a dark bird in a low tree. Slowly, she nodded to her panther. Velvet stealthfully crept behind it, then jumped up the tree and snapped her powerful jaws onto the small owl, catching it in midair. Velvet proudly trotted up to Eglantina, dropping her prized owl in front of her.

Eglantina smiled, “Nice catch”

Velvet nodded in approval, then kept a good watch of the area around her.

Suddenly, Velvet hissed lowly. Eglantina growled, looking around her, she flashed amber gaze on Velvet. Her panther's voice flowed into her mind, “Eglan' Dy Onos, get out of here..now.”,she hissed.

Immediately, Eglantina disappeared into the shadows. Velvet sniffed the air, taking in two scents.. She purred as she let her voice flow into her masters mind, “It is okay, there is two, coming slow..”

Eglantina stepped out of the shadows, her face safely hidden in the darkness of her hood, her eyes calm and patient, her voice steady with elegant grace. She smiled brightly as out of the woods, came an older girl and her panther.

“Hello” Eglantina greeted pleasantly. The girl looked shocked, yet not so frightened as Eglantina had suspected. She glanced at the girls' panther, standing steadily and loyally by her masters side.

Eglantina looked to her own panther, whispering into Velvet's mind, “Check them.”

Velvet calmly trotted up to the girl, sniffing friendly to the other panther, Velvet purred as she felt the other panther stiffen. She gazed up at the older girl, her bright yellow eyes glistening in the moonlight, as she sniffed the girl as well. Velvet purred once more in a friendly manner and trotted over to Eglantina, standing by her side.

Her voice whispering back into her masters mind, “The panther is strong” she purred, “but not as intelligent as me. And the girl...”

“Yes?” Eglantina whispered curiously into Velvets' mind.

“She is a strange girl, keep an eye on her...she may be...'useful'” her panther purred.

Eglantina smiled again, keeping her gaze on the girl, “What a beautiful panther you have..such strength.” she paused and then continued, “May I ask your name?..”

The girl blinked, letting her words soak in before she answered carefully, “Wilde”

“Well Miss Wilde, it was a pleasure to meet you.” Eglantina added lightly.

“Same to you...” Miss Wilde said cautiously, shallowing hard.

Eglantina gave a last smile, then walked gracefully out of the forest and back into the shadows, her panther right behind her...

She could not risk a long conversation with that girl. Velvet nodded in agreement, as they made there way back to the castle.

"Got yourself into trouble, I hear."

Joki rounded a corner in the dungeon and came face to face with Priggo Seville, who greeted her with a smirk. She shrugged, keeping her stance deliberately casual. "It's a hobby."

Priggo nodded, then grinned slowly as he noticed how Joki's hands shook; the results of several days without nicotine in her system. Joki's temper flared at his enjoyment of her discomfort, but she kept the mask of indifference in place. Priggo started to move on when Joki called his name. "Seville." He turned back to her, apparently surprised at hearing her call him by his name. "There's a new student I've been meaning to ask you about," Joki said slowly, examining her nails. "Girl named Dios or something." Joki could feel Priggo's strange eyes on her; could almost feel him weighing his words in the silence.

"I know her," he merely said.

"Something . . .different about her, don't you think?"

Seville nodded.

"I need to know what it is," Joki said with determination, finally meeting his eyes.

Priggo smirked. "She can't help you."

"I don't know that for sure, do I?" Joki's tone grew low and cold, her anger at him glittering in her eyes. He studied her for a moment.

"Tell me, Ms. Wilde, why exactly do you think I know anything that would be of value to you?"

"Because," Joki answered slowly, "I swore a long time ago to leave no stone unturned. And so far, you're the only rock that isn't moving."

Priggo laughed. "I told you, there is no magic that can do what you want. At this point, you're so f--cked up, I doubt your brother would even want to be near you again. You're better off killing yourself and trying to find him that way."

Joki nodded slowly, then took a step forward and leaned in until her face was inches from Priggo's. "Keep your eyes open, Seville . . ."

_________________
Evie Cromwell, Hufflepuff
Joki Wilde, Slytherin

It was, by all appearances, Girl's Night in the Olgavich Cemetery. Joki and Eglantina slipped out of the Slytherin Common after curfew and went to the Stubby Candle by the floo network. Out into the cold night they went, Joki leading and the younger girl close behind.

"This way," Joki said quietly, pushing the creaky cemetery gate open. Among the crumbling stones they talked, each trying to learn about the other while giving nothing about themselves away.

A sound from the trees soon alerted Joki, and she dragged an older Slytherin girl from the shadows by her collar. The small girl faced them defiantly, her violin tucked under her arm. She introduced herself as Alexandra Teallow, claiming she had seen Joki and Eglan leaving the Commons and "followed out of curiosity". Not sensing that the girl was an immediate threat, Joki relaxed and began to actually enjoy talking with the other girls.

Creed even joined them for a little while, then walked away into the darkness. He seemed distant and guarded, the way he had for the past few weeks. Joki watched him leave with a frown. Sooner or later she'd catch up with him and try to find out what was on his mind, whether it was school or a girl or something she had done, or something else. They hadn't really talked in a while, and it bothered her.

Towards dawn the party broke up, with Alexandra and Eglantina heading back to school. Joki stayed behind, and when they were out of sight she walked to the back of the cemetery and slipped inside the crypt of a long-dead magician. An hour later, just before dawn, she reemerged carrying something in a white sack.

Over the past year she and Creed had befriended a sixth year Slytherin named Jang Ashby. He was still the only other student who ever accompanied them on their smoking outings, and the three had talked about a camping trip whenever Joki and Creed's month-long castle confinement ended. Often he had expressed admiration for the dark and macabre. Joki swung the sack from her fingers as she walked, the corners or her mouth curving up in a smile as she wondered what Jang would think of the present she was bringing him.

Joki was surprised to find him in the Entrance Hall, with a Gryffindor girl who wore a familiar red hood. Joki and Angel Siger had had several encounters over the years, all of them less than amiable. This would be no exception.

Sidling up to Jang with a flirtatioius smile for the sole purpose of angering Angel, Joki ignored the Gryff completely. "Brought you a present, Jangy."

"Jangy?" Angel muttered in disgust.

"Hey Jokers, what's in the bag?" Jang asked, looking down at the sack Joki held.

"Something I picked up for you while I was out and about. Wouldn't recommend opening it here, though."

"Probably something dirty," Angel said hatefully as Joki handed the bag to Jang. "And they say I'm a [Jinx]."

Joki turned and faced the girl, unable to see Angel's features because of the hood. "At least I don't hide my bad habits under a hood, Gryff," she said with a sneer.

Angel recoiled as if she had been bitten. Her hand reached up to touch the hood for a second, then she turned on her heel and walked off. Joki looked at Jang with raised eyebrows. The comment had been mere reflex, apparently she'd hit a nerve. "Your girlfriend's a bit touchy."

He grabbed her by the shoulder roughly, putting his face inches from hers. "You mention the hood to her again, and I will kill you myself." His eyes were cold, his tone deadly serious. Joki grinned.

"Sounds like a party, papa bear."

"I'm serious," he said, releasing her.

Joki looked up at him, the smile gone from her face and her green eyes glinting dangerously. "Let's get one thing straight. You ever threaten me again, and you'll be joining him," she hissed, gesturing to the bag.

_________________
Evie Cromwell, Hufflepuff
Joki Wilde, Slytherin

"Snape says if Pince goes to the ministry, it could mean Azkaban."

Joki sat across the table from Creed in the Three Broomsticks, hardly believing what she was hearing. "But- why, Creed? You must have had a reason."

The young man nodded, his eyes on the floor. "I was looking for a book in the restricted section. She told me to leave, then I cast upon her. Banishio, then Oblivate. Apparently the Oblivate didn't take."

"Apparently," Joki said softly, nervously tracing patterns on the rough wooden tabletop with her fingertips."Must have been an important book."

Creed nodded, his eyes still on the floor.

"Look, if it comes to that, my parents still have some influence in the wizarding community. I could write to them for help. Not that they're acknowledging me as their offspring at the moment, but still . . ."

Creed looked up, his hazel eyes warm and strangely quiet. "Thanks anyway."

There wasn't much opportunity for more discussion, for the tavern began to fill up with students. Apparently many had decided to ignore curfew that night, and it was no great surprise when Joki and Creed, along with Lucian, Eglantina, Angel, and Drado, ended up in the Trophy Room for detention. Creed looked around for a moment with a frown, then conjured a chair for himself and cushions for Joki and the other girls. He sat in glowering silence, Joki smoked, and Eglantina polished a trophy with a ferocity that made Joki grin.

The detention wasn't quite as intolerable as it could have been, given the fact that Joki and Angel had put hostilities on the back burner for the time being. Joki even offered a smoke, and Angel accepted with a shrug.

As she sat on her mound of cushions, Joki watched Creed with veiled worry. Ever since the rumors started circulating a few days ago that a student was going to be expelled, she had worried.

_________________
Evie Cromwell, Hufflepuff
Joki Wilde, Slytherin

Soft moonlight spread itself across the sparkling night snow. Eglantina stepped silently through Hogsmeade, keeping her guard up for any demetors around her. Her dark panther, Velvet, right behind her. Eglantina stopped, waiting in the shadows of a nearby house. Her panther purred lightly in her mind, “Be careful, Eglan, somethings odd about this place...”

Eglantina narrowed her eyes, casting her vision far out, scanning each house and shadow. “I don't see anything 'threating'..” she whispered back to Velvet, her voice bored.

Eglantina walked out of the darkness, she paused suddenly as she heard voices coming from a nearby tavern. “Might as well have some fun, hmm?” she grinned down at her panther, but her panther seemed annoyed.

Eglantina shrugged, “Fine have it your way...go off then.”

Her panther hissed in her mind, “It is dangerous in there, do NOT go.”

Eglantina looked at the tavern, its lights flickered across the outside snow, “I'll be fine, Velvet. Please do not worry about me. Trust me, just once?”

Velvet hissed at her master, then disappeared into the darkness. Eglantina carefully opened the door into the tavern. She let her eyes adjust to the light, then looked around. She was surprised to see so many students here. She glanced over to a nearby table, to see Joki and Creed. Both with serious and distressed looks on their faces. Creed looked up at Eglantina, annoyed.

She quickly looked away. “It seems Joki has more serious matters to attend to..” she noted in her mind. Eglantina walked on, looking around curiously. “Why had Velvet said this place was dangerous?..”

She walked into an empty room, boxes lay on each wall, stacking up to the ceiling. Suddenly she heard a soft rustle, coming from behind one of the boxes. She turned her head sharply to the noise, and saw a man, leaning against the wall. She walked closer, then his stench hit her. He was drunk and...

Eglantina stiffened, He wasn't human.

Every instinct in her told her to fight him, told her to rip him into shreds. But she knew of the people just outside the door. She could not risk it. The man grinned widely, his voice slurring, “Hey ther' perdy lady..what brings ya here?”

She grinned a playful smile, advancing towards him, as her voice echoed across the room, softly and sweet. “You..”

The man grinned a bit more widely, Eglantina hissed in her mind, in great disgust. She knew what he was, and she knew what she must do...

She let out a warming laugh, and watched him curiously. “Want ta go-” he paused, either for dramatic effect, or out of loss of intelligence, she wasn't sure. He continued, “sum-place alon'e?”

Eglantina would have hissed in his face right there, but she bit her lip and continued with her act. “Oh...what place do you have in mind?” she whispered sweetly.

He paused again, this time she was sure over loss of intelligence. She leaned in and whispered in his ear, “Surely, not the school or here..hmm?”

He grinned a toothy grin, the suddenly his face grew serious, his eyes looked upon Eglantina with a look, Eglantina couldn't quite read. He put his hand roughly on her shoulder, he grinned again and put his face near Eglantina's, amusement in his eyes. His voice slurred, as its stench wrapped around her. She bit her lip from wanting to cough, “I thi'k tha' I don't need ya'r servicess...”

He pushed Eglantina away sharply, then staggered out the door. “Services?!” Eglantina hissed coldly in her mind.

Anger fired in Eglantina's veins, she felt her face strain and her mouth become harder to breathe. She clinched her teeth shut, fighting her urge to hunt him. His kind is not meant to be here! Focusing her instincts and letting her urge take her, she pulled her hood low over her face, she stocked out of the tavern. The hunt is on...

Eglantina followed the man, by using the shadows to her advantage. He stumbled along to the castle, until he stopped. Eglantina froze. The man waved, as a shorter man stepped out of the shadows joining him on the walk to the castle. Eglantina growled in frustration. She closed her eyes and calmed herself, promising she'd find away of erasing his kind without her danger. The thought, seemed to sooth Eglantina, as she regained her composure. She walked out of the shadows, joining the shorter man and that 'thing'. She smiled at the man, then looked to the drunk man, “Is he alright?..” she asked innocently.

The shorter man looked to the tall one and shrugged. Eglantina looked worriedly, “Perhaps it'd be best--” Suddenly, she stiffened and whirled around, to face an older girl, with a wand pointed at them. Her voice stern, “You three are out pasted curfew.”

Suddenly Eglantina was sent to detention, along with the others she had seen at the tavern. Eglantina hissed under her breath as her mind filled with curses. She grabbed a trophy and sat down on the cushions that Creed had provided for all of them. Joki looked over at her curiously, Eglantina didn't care if Joki could read her face or not, right now Eglantina was worrying over when she'd be out of here to regain her senses and energy. Interrupting Eglantina's thoughts, the Gryfinndor, Angel, laughed “We should have a big sleep over party!”

Eglantina stopped polishing her trophy, her words cold and harsh “I refuse to sleep with that thing..” her eyes glanced over to the drunk man with a piercing look.

Angel glared at Eglantina, “That 'thing' has a name.”

Eglantina ignored Angel, her hunger was rising, she could feel each and every one of them. Their pulses banging in her mind, leaving her with a harsh headache. She hissed again, trying to regain her composure and focus on her polishing. Joki grinned, amused, “If you keep polishing like that Eglan, there's going to be nothing left.”

Eglantina growled in her mind coldly,“There's going to be nothing left of you, if i don't focus on something..” She forced out a smile, and sighed. “I suppose your right.” She set down the trophy next to her.


I should've listened to Velvet's warnings..

Graves stretched on endlessly in a sea of fog; innumerable headstones that bore no name or mark. In mud up to her knees Joki struggled from one mound to the next, knowing only that it was of vital importance to find the right one. A sheaf of white roses was clutched to her chest, their weight becoming agonizingly cruel as the hours passed. A sign, a sign, she prayed as she grew faint, something to show me where the truth lies.


Sitting up in her bed, Joki tried to blink the sleep from her eyes. To wake rather than to sleep and dream was a skill she had long since honed, but for the past week every time she drifted off she became stuck in the same vivid dreamscape. And every time she awoke, the same impossible thought thundered in her brain: Adam lives. The thought was agony, hope, and despair in the same breath. In a way it was worse than the pain of loss without hope for regain. She cursed herself for having fallen asleep instead of studying as she had meant to do. She threw off the covers and stood, still fully dressed. It was late afternoon, and she had slept through her last class. She desperately needed some air.

Creed wasn't in the Entrance Hall or the Library, so she assumed he was in class and went out alone. Instead of the crypts she chose the acrid brightness of the Barrens. The darkness had become almost unbearably oppressive since the dreams had begun. The trip turned out to be more eventful than she could have guessed, for there she met Aden and Brennan Brask and found them far more tolerable, in her opinion, than most folks. Brennan, Aden, and Joki decided to go to Hogsmeade for a drink or ten, but were stopped by a disturbance in the forest. Invisible projectiles and flashes of magic filled the darkening day, and at Aden's suggestion they sought the advice of Aragog.

The spider patriarch's lair was filled with his children, their arachnid forms moving frantically. They were aware of the threat as well, and tumbled over one another in their mad scrambles for shelter- until they sensed the presence of the students in their midst. The spiders became even more agitated and openly hostile, attacking Brennan without cease. Joki too seemed to be a target. Perhaps drawn by some lingering scent of decay on her clothing from her last trip to the crpyts, the young spiders swarmed around her as she frantically tried to keep them off. Finally the three stood before the Great Spider himself.

While Brennan and Joki tried to keep the children at bay, Aden fearlessly faced the giant. Aragog's hoary voice and Aden's deep one carried only once to where Joki stood, and the sound of their words made her blood run cold.

"I am not meat for you, Aragog. And I will ask you only once again: What is it that has come to live in the forest?"

There was a pause, then the patriarch responded: "Deeaatthhhhh . . . " With that single word, he backed away into his stronghold and his children fiercely attacked the students, driving them from the Spider Wood.

Hours later the three finally made it to the bar in Hogsmeade, and acquired drinks by less than honest means. Joki turned from flirting with the bartender to see what table Aden and Brennan had chosen. It was not the table, but who else occupied it, that raised her eyebrows. Professor Snape sat across from the empty seat the boys had left for her. As she warily approached the table, she could hear Aden attempting to stump Snape with riddles. Joki sat beside Brennan, a drink in each hand, as Snape turned the tables.

"My turn," he said in his low voice, his dark eyes glittering at them. "I am underage, drinking, in Hogsmeade without permission, and out after curfew. Who am I?"

"Joki," Aden said without pause. Joki made a rude gesture at him, then pulled out a cigarette and lit it without thinking. Halfway through the first drag, she realized what she had done and choked. Dropping the smoke under the table, she crushed it with her heel and picked up her glass. Finally she met Snape's eyes defiantly.

"I have an idea. From now on, this outing will be considered a field trip . . . an experiment of sorts." Snape grated out, his eyes not leaving Joki. He pushed a glass across the table to her. "I wonder, Miss Wilde, if you can tell me what this is?"

The liquid had an acrid smell; a fog hung over the surface of the viscous substance. He raised a brow at her. Joki picked up the glass and held it under her nose, inhaling the scent and examining the substance. Finally she sat the glass back on the table with a thud. "Got nothing." she said flatly. She was notorioiusly poor at potions, Snape of all people should know that.

Brennan methodically drank himself into a stupor and Aden talked cheerily over his drink, but Joki found herself growing agitated under Snape's unyielding glance. Her thoughts began thundering in a mad rhythm, every deed and thought she had hidden from the eyes of others seemed about to tear loose from her and fling themselves into the midst of the group. She pushed her chair away from the table and stood. "I should go . . ."

Snape broke eye contact, and the panic eased off. The Brasks stood too, and as Brennan staggered out the door Aden took Joki's hand. "Walk to the common with us?"

She looked at him strangely for a moment, then shrugged. "Sure."

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

((I am copying the posts from the other site and continuing the thread here yet again, with credit given to the individual authors of past posts. Thanks for reading!!))

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 11:25 am by MShadows

//events of acouple nights ago in Eglan's eyes. Sorry if i mis-spelled anyone's names or didnt put lots of infomation >.<; lol i cant quite remember *everything* that happened. Anyways hope you like it!
~mshadows~//





Soft snow drifted along the night sky, as Eglantina leaned into the shadows of a large tree. Its massive limbs holding up the piling snow with great strength. She envied the tree, for it once was a seed, and then a plant, and now a strong tree. But later, it would die-of harsh cold or growing age. She wondered what would happen then. “Would the tree be reborn?” Her thoughts disappeared, as she heard footsteps. A sly smile spread across her pale ivory-like skin, as she stepped out of the darkness.

“Hello again..” she chimed.

The older girl, Joki, stiffened seemingly startled, before she turned and saw Eglantina's small form, Eglantina's face shadowed by the darkness of her hood. The girl watched her carefully, “ Why are you out here so late?”

Eglantina smiled, amusement in her eyes, “I could say the same about you...”

Eglantina glanced down at the Joki's large cloth bag, she could smell the old bones and a frail faint scent of blood. She raised a brow, curiously at the bag. The older girl dropped the bag, and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it with a sharp flick of her wand. She eyed Eglantina, then took a drag of her cigarette, letting the smoke swirl out of her nose and mouth into the cold night sky. “So what brings you here?..Something tells me you didn't come here just for a midnight stroll...”She said, almost bored.

Eglantina paused, then carefully whispered, “Do you know anyone by the name of...'Lucian'?”

Joki raised a brow curiously, then took another drag of her cigarette, “What about him?”

Eglantina continued, her voice worried “I fear for the school. I've heard he is dangerous...”

Joki rolled her eyes, then dropped her cigarette on the snow and crushed it with her foot, “Oh really?” she said bored with a slight hint of sarcasm, “What else is new?..”

Eglantina hissed under her breath, then advanced towards her and whispered in Joki's ear. The girl frowned, then looked Eglantina in the eyes. “And where do you know this from?”

“I've seen it..” Eglantina answered, her eyes locked onto Joki's.

Suddenly Eglantina stiffened, they weren't alone. She looked over her shoulder, only to see the darkness of the night and the soft snow raining upon the ancient graves. But she could feel it, two pulses. She looked to Joki, scanning her eyes if she had seen anything.

But Joki seemed to think it was not a threat, she pulled out another cigarette and glanced over the graveyard before looking back to Eglantina's shadowed face. Eglantina kept silent and on guard as the pulse grew closer, and out of the darkness stood a man, his eyes locked onto Joki's as a smile formed on his face. They seemed to know each other.

Eglantina learned that this man went by the name of, Aden. And he was joined later with another, his name, Jang. They continued with small talk as Eglantina's thoughts wondered, “Why did I even bother coming here? This was quite a waste of my time.” Eglantina growled from under her breath, listening to the group talk and make jokes. Her eyes drifted to Joki, as her thoughts continued. “Why do I follow this girl and her every move? Velvet claimed she is important. But I see no importance of her... So why do I run to her for help?..” “Perhaps it is because she carries the scent of death, as well?... Or perhaps-” Her thoughts were interrupted as Joki turned to Eglantina, “Your coming, aren't you?”

Eglantina nodded and followed them to a near-by bar, she kept to her silence, watching all of them carefully, when Joki playfully smiled looking toward to Eglantina “What are you going to have to drink?”

Eglantina narrowed her eyes from under the darkness of her hood, as her mind wondered, “Oh wouldn't you like to know...” She smiled politely and answered cheerfully, “I'll have what ever your getting!”

Joki grinned, and walked over to the bartender, whispering back and forth to the man, before he smiled broadly and handed her two glasses of an amber looking liquid. She walked over to the group, rather smugly and set down one glass to Eglantina. They talked lightly and made more jokes, as Joki drank with much speed, her cheeks filling up with a blush of pink. Eglantina looked down at her rum, and sniffed it. She couldn't smell a real scent from it, just nothing-ness.

She watched Joki take a drink, her eyes squeezing shut on the first gulp as her throat burned like fire from the taste. She grinned happily and beckoned Eglantina to drink. As the others around her lifted there drinks and shallowed down their drinks as well. Eglantina mimicked Joki's first gulp, closing her eyes just as Joki did. She let the liquid slide down her throat, leaving nothing but a bland taste in her mouth. Joki looked surprised by her action, then beckoned her to drink more. This went on for the night, before Eglantina stiffened, as every instinct inside of her exploded with rage; she clinched her teeth shut and felt her face strain, “He is here.” she hissed coldly in her mind.

She locked her eyes onto her glass in focus. The man, Aden, grinned widely, his face also blushed with a slightly darker tone of pink, “Lucian, come join us!”

Eglantina glared at her glass, fighting the urge to let her instincts take her. She could feel her hunger rise and the bland taste of the liquid before was not helping...

She glanced up at the group, Aden sitting close to Joki with a wide smile on his face. Joki draining down her drinks then glancing at Eglantina with amusement in her eyes, before her eyes wonder to Aden's happily. Jang, sitting next to Eglantina, drinking down his bottle and talking to Aden loudly. And Lucian, quietly sitting down in a chair vertically across from her, his clear blue eyes, like the sea itself, watching her. She focused on her drink, gulping down the remains of it.

Suddenly, everyone grew silent. Eglantina looked up, but surprisingly their eyes were not on her. They were locked on to the Professor standing behind the group with a stern look on her face.

Eglantina glared angerly as her voice cold, like the wind itself, hissed “Not... this again..”

The Professor glared down at them, her voice strong and furious, “Drinking and smoking, too?!” She paused looking at each of them her face stressed with anger, “Each of you, to the Great Hall, NOW!!”

Aden, Lucian, and Jang quickly got out of there seats and headed for the door. As Joki stumbled to the door as well, followed by Eglantina. They reached the door as blinding light flooded them. Joki groaned and held up a hand to block the sun from her eyes. As Eglantina hissed forcefully under her breath, she could feel her family's protective spells wrap around her. But it did not help from the stinging on her skin and the annoyance of the light in her eyes. She looked up to the Professor, but she seemed to angry to notice anything odd. Eglantina helped Joki to the castle, while thankful that her drink had not have such an effect on her
as it did Joki...

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2007 6:47 pm by Tonic


Joki was not having a good day, and apparently it showed in her face when she turned to the student who tugged on her robes.

“P-p-Professor Snape wants to see you in his office, Miss.” Joki looked down at the first year student, her eyes narrowed.

“What for?” she growled. The small boy gulped, opened his mouth to speak again, then turned and fled in terror. Joki rolled her eyes. “Glad the owls don’t do that . . .”

Finding Snape’s office took her a few minutes, as she had done her best to avoid it in the past. Finally she lifted a fist and knocked on the door near the Potions classroom. Snape’s muffled voice came from within:

“Enter, Miss Wilde.” Joki stopped in the doorway, surprised to see Creed in the chair opposite Snape’s desk. She looked from him to the professor, trying to gauge the situation. Snape gestured to a chair by the fireplace. “You may sit there.” Creed gave her a blank look, but Snape gave neither of them time for questions.

“Now, Mr. Wyldhart, you will please tell me what exactly was going through your mind when you attacked Pince.” The professor snarled.

Joki, sitting by the fire, tried to pay attention to Creed’s answers and Snape’s sarcastic responses, but the warmth from the fire and her usual lack of sleep made concentrating difficult. Mostly she just watched Creed; watching anger, frustration, and defiance flit across his strong features.

The scraping of a drawer opening drew her attention back to Snape. The man placed a small glass of liquid on the desk. Joki immediately recognized the substance as the same Snape had offered her in Hogsmeade a week or so before. She sat straighter in her chair, now keenly interested. Vapors swirled above the surface of the thick liquid, coiling upon themselves and rolling in the glass like living things.

Snape pushed the glass across the desk surface to Creed, his eyes flickering to Joki and a fiendish smile crossing his face. There were words between Snape and Creed, maybe some of them even directed to Joki. She didn’t know. Her face drained of color as Creed picked up the glass. She should warn him-stop him- all the thoughts of what she should do tumbled in her head as she sat motionless and watched her friend drink the liquid.

For a time, the substance seemed to have a calming effect. Creed seemed unconcerned about his surroundings and company as Snape continued to interrogate him. But the semblance of peace did not last. Creed began to thrash in his chair, his eyes rolling back in his head and his stomach heaving. Snape leaned back in his chair, watching with a dark smile. Joki clenched the arms of her chair so tight that her knuckles turned white. Finally she could stand it no longer. “Stop it!” she cried, jumping to her feet. “What the hell are you doing to him?!”

“Sit down, girl!” Snape snarled, the force of his anger making her sit whether she wanted to or not. For all her anger and training, she was powerless here- and she knew it. But she was also fascinated. Even as a thick brown substance exploded from Creed’s mouth, nose, ears, and eyes; she could not stop watching. Lifting his wand, Snape casually formed the substance into thick tentacles, coaxing them from Creed to himself and capturing every bit of the sickening stuff in a vial. Once captured the substance took on a colorful, shimmering appearance like thousands of tiny crystals. Creed slumped in his chair. Joki looked from him to Snape, keeping her expression stoic with effort.

With a word from Snape, Creed sat up. He was himself again. “That will be all, Mr. Wyldhart.” Snape said with satisfaction, waving his wand to unlock the door. With a look at Joki, Creed left the room. “A moment of your time, Miss Wilde.”

Joki turned to look back at Snape, any emotion in her green eyes veiled.

“I trust you will speak of this to no one.” Snape said, watching her with faint amusement. Joki nodded once. “You may go,” he dismissed her.

Back out in the hall, Joki turned a corner and ran smack into Creed. She jumped back with a yelp and he reached out and steadied her.

“What happened in there?” he asked quietly, jerking his head toward Snape’s door. Joki’s eyes darted from the door back to Creed. “Hell if I know. You and Snape nattering on about something.”

Creed frowned. “Care to explain the gap where I can’t remember anything?” Joki bit her tongue to keep from telling him the truth. She should, but she couldn’t. Maybe not ever.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The man looked down at her, something almost like sadness in his hazel eyes, “Since when did you start lying to me?”

His words brought an unexpected burning to Joki’s eyes, and she shoved him away and turned to leave. “Oh, shut up. I need a drink.”

****************

Hours later, Joki left a shop in Hogsmeade with Aden and saw Creed’s familiar figure down the street. “Can I meet you later?” she asked, looking up at her multi-pierced companion. Aden looked down at her with a smile. “Sure, kitten. You don’t have to ask for permission to go play.” She nodded and hurried to catch up with Creed.

“I need to ask you for something,” she said, taking Creed by the arm and turning him to face her. She wondered if her misery was evident on her face. Some trace of it must have been, for Creed’s eyes softened and his voice was gentle as he answered.

“Sure.”

“I need you to trust me,” Joki said slowly, “Just for a little while longer.”

Creed stood silent for a moment, his eyes searching hers. Finally he smiled. “Haven’t I always?”

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Sun Feb 11, 2007 11:47 am by Thunder

Creed sits quietly, by candle light, over a blank parchment. He takes out a new Pegasus Feather Quill and dips it in the jet black ink. Surrounded by darkness in his empty dormitory, he begins to write on the parchment. Dear Joki he begins to write, his face as stoic as a statue’s. In the letter he writes all of his deepest feelings of desire, yearning, lust, and unending love that he has for the younger Slytherin girl. He writes tirelessly, only stopping to occasionally dip the quill into the ink. He writes quickly, filling the roll of parchment with everything he has wanted to tell Joki from the moment he met her.

An hour passes and Creed is still hunched over the now full parchment, writing at the same feverish rate. He then stops and heaves a sigh of relief of having written the epic letter of feelings he has just finished. He reads it over quickly, adding letters to misspelled words, and inserting correct punctuation. He wants the letter to his ‘smoking buddy’ to be perfect for her; as perfect as he sees her.

He re-reads it over nods a few times to himself. He rolls the parchment up carefully and pours wax from the candle over the seal of the letter. He then stamps it with a customized stamper, engraved on it are the letters ‘C.W.’

He looks over his perfect letter, the letter that will tell Joki, once and for all, how he really feels about her. He stops, the rolled parchment in his hand. He thinks of the relationship Joki's in and he breathes a frustrated, jealous sigh, that comes out as a low growl. He should've acted sooner and have been more obvious with his feelings. But it is too late for him now, she is taken and he spoke up too late. He wouldn't burden Joki with his belated feelings about her.

He then holds the parchment in his hand and snaps like he has done so many times before, setting the end of the parchment ablaze. The parchment burns slowly and Creed sets it on the writing desk before him. He watches his letter of love burn, his arms crossed, and the same stoic look covers his face.

As the letter slowly begins to extinguish itself, Creed frowns slightly and breathes another sigh, this sigh, however, is not one of relief but one of sadness. As the last embers of the letter burn out he leans over and blows the ashes away, the candle light goes out too, leaving him in perfect darkness.

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Tue Feb 13, 2007 2:42 am by Tonic

The inscription above the mirror read: ERISED STRA EHRU OYT UBE CAFRU OYT ON WOHSI.

"I show not your face, but your heart's desire." Aden translated, reading over Joki's shoulder. "What do you see, Joki?"

The girl stood riveted by what she saw in the mirror, barely hearing him. "What, Adam?"

Aden sighed and gently took her hand, pulling her away from the mirror as images disappeared into swirling mist. "Nevermind. Let's go, kid."

Out in the bright sunshine of the courtyard they stopped.

"Do I make you sad, Joki?"

She looked up at Aden, her face pale in the daylight. "Yes," she said slowly, "But I need it. Does that make sense?"

"I guess," he said, his expression troubled. Pulling her into his arms, the older boy hugged her tightly. "I worry about you."

She stiffened in his embrace. "Don't. And don't pity me."

"I don't," he said simply, releasing her. "Go on to class. I'll see you later."

Joki left him and went to her dorm to get her books. As she sorted her things and repacked her bag for the last class of the day, she thought about her strange and unexpected relationship with Aden. He had told the truth- he didn't pity her, or try to tell her what to do. There was a restlessness in him that matched her own, and she found being with him empowering.

With her supplies sorted, Joki went back upstairs and headed for the History of Magic classroom. She saw a familiar figure in black and gold robes across the hall. She was sure Creed saw her too, but he quickly turned away. Joki frowned as she continued to the proper staircase. For a long time Creed had been her only friend, and after her parents had made it clear she was unwelcome at home, he had been her family. And now things were . . . awkward. It made her angry; with what she wasn't sure. But most of all it made her sad. She made up her mind to catch up with him after class.

*********************************

Some hours later, Joki and Creed stood under their smoking trees.They leaned against opposite trunks, facing one another. Curfew hour was nearing, and the grounds were already blanketed in freezing darkness.

"Does your significant other know that you're spending alone time with me?" Creed growled. For the first time Joki heard the jealousy in his voice, and it made her feel sick.

"He doesn't ask me to account for how I spend my time," she said calmly.

The ember of Creed's cigarette glowed brightly in the night, orange light flooding the lines of his face every time he inhaled. The air between them was tense, an unbearable quietness taking the place of the companionable silence they had always shared.

"What's changed, Joki?" Creed finally asked.

She took a long time in answering. "Only that I could hurt you now, if I wanted to, and I couldn't before."

Creed didn't seem surprised by her answer, crossing his arms stiffly and speaking with his cigarette held in his lips. "And how do you think you could hurt me?"

"I think you'd know better than I would," Joki replied, flicking her burned out cigarette to the ground and lighting another.

"You'd think." Creed said bluntly.

Joki took a drag on her cigarette, the taste of tobacco and smoke filling her mouth and lingering on her breath. "What would you say if I said it wouldn't matter to me?" she said deliberately, her green eyes meeting his in an inscrutable gaze.

He had known her too long and too well to be fooled. "What's the deal, Joki?"

She frowned in frustration, holding her cigarette and sweeping her arm out in a gesture that included both of them. "Look at us, Creed! We're not kids anymore. We both knew that things couldn't always stay the same."

She was right, they had both changed much since the night they first met under their smoking tree. Creed was tall and strong, his face and form those of a man. Joki too had matured; though still thin she had filled out and grown taller, a far cry from the skinny, scared kid she had been six years ago. It seemed the only thing that had stayed the same for both of them was their prematurely-developed smoking habit.

Creed nodded slowly, acknowledging her last statement. "I guess you made the decision when the time came, didn't you." His voice was still harsh.

"I did. And I'm happy with him. What do you want me to do, apologize? Not going to happen."

"Didn't ask you for it," he grunted.

The curfew bell sounded, its resonant tones reaching them with ease. Joki sighed and put out the remainder of her cigarette. "I'll see you, then?"

"Only if you want to," Creed said in his low grisly voice, looking at his feet. As Joki passed by him, she tilted his chin up and forced him to look into her eyes.

"You're my friend, Creed. I always do." she said sincerely, then turned left him in the darkness.

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 1:33 am Tonic

Joki looked at the parchment, her brow furrowed as she read the message in Priggo Seville's impeccable script: "Come to the Entrance Hall as soon as you are able."

Still holding the parchment in her hand, she stepped into the Entrance Hall. Her gaze swept the large room, the quietness of the late hour broken only by her footsteps. Seville stood at the far end of the room, his small figure shadowed by the umbrella he held. She could feel his strange eyes on her as she approached him.

"Oh good, you came."

Joki nodded. "What's going on?" She was tired, and hadn't had a cigarette in hours. The clamor for nicotine in her brain made her impatient.

"Seventh Year is upon you, and you still have no idea what you're going to do after you graduate." He said almost cheerfully, ignoring her restlessness.

"I have some ideas."

"Oh, I'm sure you do. Though the idea of what you might do with yourself terrifies me." He twirled the umbrella, sounding neither sincerely horrified, or mocking. "You may have noticed I've been absent for some days, Miss Wilde."

"Afraid I hadn't," Joki lied evenly.

"I traveled to China," Priggo said, the fondness for the place evident in his voice, "Seeking a rare artifact."

Joki moved restlessly, lacing her fingers together to keep her hands from shaking. The need for a cigarette was becoming unbearable.

"I didn't find it, but I did learn something most interesting."

Joki raised an eyebrow, trying to appear interested. "Oh? Do tell."

Priggo smiled happily in the darkness of his hood. "I learned the main difference between you and I . . ."

Joki had only been half listening, her gaze fixed longingly on the door, but at his words her eyes snapped back to his face.

"It is that goal, that thing that drives us, that will forever make the
distinction between us so incredibly clear."

Joki frowned. Seville continued, obviously enjoying himself.

"For every spell we learn, for every body we animate, for every life we end . . . you're always going to be doing it for yourself."

Sparks of anger kindled in Joki's eyes. Walking past him, she put her hand on the doors. Casting a final look over her shoulder, she said coldly: "I never denied that."

"That's why you'll fail." Priggo said in satisfaction, not bothering to turn and look at her as she pushed open the doors and went out into the freezing night.

Joki stood in the shelter of the doorway long enough to light a cigarette, then cursed as the wind and snow promptly put it out. "Accio Firebolt!"

Soon she was flying through the night on her broom, the wind tearing cold tears from her eyes and dragging them down her cheeks. Her green hair came loose from the black ribbon that held it back and whipped about her face. In a remarkably short time she descended to the quiet streets of Olgavich. Sending her broom away with a flick of her wand, she stealthily made her way to the cemetery and slipped inside the large crypt near the back.

Stopping just long enough to light a cigarette, she made her way deeper into the crypt, her feet treading the familiar path in near darkness. The smells of earth and dust and death surrounded her as she settled with her back against a stone sarcophagus.

Priggo's words rattled in her mind, punctuated with images of her brother, her parents, Creed, Aden, Eglantina, and the boy that supplied the cigarette she held in her hand.

Gritting her teeth, she slammed a fist against the side of the sarcophagus. The rough stone tore through her glove and sliced her flesh, the pain a dull cry behind the litany in her mind: "I don't care, I don't care, I don't care . . ."

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."

Posted: Wed Feb 21, 2007 6:21 am by Tonic

The book had come by post, with no return address or clues to the sender’s identity. Joki turned it over in her hands, examining the worn blue cover and the rune that covered most of the front cover. The sign of Death. Laying it on Priggo Seville’s desk in the Panther’s Enclave, her pulse quickened as she opened the book to the first page again.

She had stayed up all night reading, and could still hardly believe the riches the book contained. An instruction manual, practically; it could have been written just for her. Life, death, undeath . . . it was all there, in a stranger’s handwriting.

“There is only one story. One, echoing through all the generations before and after you. The story is this: A person wants something. And they either get it, or they do not. That is my story. That is yours. You have only one choice to make- get what you want, or do not.”

She turned a few more pages, to another paragraph that burned in her brain.

“It is the simplest principle in the world. Even animals know it. You must tear away the things that make you weak, so that you may be strong.”

Joki lifted her eyes, unseeing, from the page. She thought of how she had repeated those words to Creed earlier that morning. How she had justified wounding him and driving him away. “Even animals know it . . .“

Her reverie was interrupted by a familiar voice.

“Ah, and what have we here?”

Joki turned, shutting the book and stacking others she had brought with her on top of it. Seville stood before her, with a young Slytherin girl she barely recognized in tow. Joki nodded in greeting. “Seville.”

Priggo looked past her, to his desk where she had been working, then his gaze shifted back to her. “Ms. Wilde, this is Regriam Banther. Regriam, Joki Wilde.”

“Pleasure.” Joki said shortly. The small dark-haired girl just stared at her for a moment, before bursting out:

“You’re ADEN’S girlfriend!” Joki didn’t have time to reply before Regriam launched into a furious tirade. “You were there when Aden killed Drago’s cat! I swore I’d get you both back someday! You’re a hateful, ugly hag and someday you’ll get yours!”

“Regiram, be quiet!” Priggo pushed the spitfire Second Year behind him. Joki calmly gathered her books. “Quite the charmer you have there.”

“She reminded me a bit of you.” Seville replied coolly. “I remember you when you were her age.”

Regriam continued hurling insults, and Priggo repeatedly pushed her behind him.

“Unlike her, I knew when to keep my mouth shut.”

“Dye your hair back a normal color! You must have to use magic to get anyone to come near you with that face!” Regriam howled.

“I’m not sure I agree,” Seville replied to Joki. “Why do you think I choose mostly ambitious Slytherin women to be members here- you’re the most bloodthirsty of the lot.”

“You know, I’ve been thinking about what you said, about being useful here.” Joki said, ignoring Regriam with commendable effort.

"So you think you've found a place here, in these buildings and cobblestone streets?"

Joki shook her head, a dark smile creeping across her face. "Deeper still, even beneath these streets."

Seville's expression grew hostile. "I'll not have you burying your 'mistakes' here, if that's what you mean."

Joki walked to him, pulling the blue book from the stack in her arms. "No more mistakes." With that she dropped the journal at his feet, and turned and left them.

_________________
"We are not bound forever to the circles of the world, and beyond them is more than memory."