peryton

[shesepankh]

Summer vacation elapses, and sees their storefront doing one heck of a business in the Avalon with the help of their griffin employee. There is a suggestion box for new spells they should invent, some of which have to be long-term projects but others of which are converted into new product fairly promptly.

School starts up again. Darren and Bella are both skipping straight into twelfth grade. (Bella looked into just starting college early, but while she does technically have the sort of resume that can lead to that kind of thing, she can't exactly write an essay about how she saved the life of another person and this caused her to have Moral Character, let alone about how she started a small business - so skipping one grade it is.)

They apply to colleges. They both get into University of Washington and get sufficient scholarships to accommodate both going there.

Summer ensues again.

One afternoon, Bella is over at Darren's, and has fallen asleep - in purring fullform - across his lap on the couch.

Comments

[castmyown]

"Keeping the thing out, it doesn't like traveling over ice. Bella, I've been shot, but I've got scrolls, I can handle it. Savannah, you?"

[morethanimaginary]

"Shot twice. Wing, shoulder. Hurts like a bitch."

[shesepankh]

"Okay - Darren, please heal yourself, I can't control this thing and if you're going to be shot right next to me I might well pass out and then Savannah's going to go on being shot -" Bella heaves herself to her feet with effort.

[castmyown]

"Mhm," agrees Darren, scooting away and then getting to retrieving the correct scroll with his left hand. He looks like a mess. But then he heals himself. He still looks like a mess, but at least he's stopped bleeding on things and being shot.

"Got it."

[morethanimaginary]

"I'm over here," says the still invisible Savannah. "I don't know where you are, I'll stay put, just - follow the sound of my voice."

[shesepankh]

"Mmhm." Bella kisses Darren on the top of his head, and starts edging over the ice border towards Savannah's voice. "Can one of you find my medallion after -?"

[morethanimaginary]

"Yeah, I'll - find the fuse box, turn back on the power so we can see. Go looking for the medallion. Those should be all of the guards, I think, if there are more we all fly up in the air and - Darren blasts them."

She's breathing heavily. She shifts to fullform, inspecting the injured wing and wincing.

[shesepankh]

Bella nods.

"Okay, this is the first time I've tried to do this on purpose -"

She concentrates. It doesn't work immediately.

[morethanimaginary]

Savannah - waits.

[castmyown]

"I'll get the fuse box," says Darren, standing with a groan. "I can see in the dark now, it's easier for me to do it."

[shesepankh]

"How the hell does my fairy princess magic w," says Bella, and then she collapses.

[morethanimaginary]

"Thanks," murmurs Savannah. "Dare, good plan - go, I'll protect her."

[castmyown]

Darren nods, and then flies off to fix the lights.

He stops, when he sees the ink monster at the door, and he hovers and - watches it.

[alicornucopia]

It is a pool of void in the doorway out of the warehouse. Sloshing back and forth slowly.

[castmyown]

Hmmm.

Darren goes and gets a flashlight from - one of the many dead guards, warily watching the ink monster. Is it going to come after him during the vulnerable time when he's on the ground?

[alicornucopia]

The ink monster does not leave its position.

[castmyown]

Interesting.

Darren goes back up into the air in midform, and then he - shines the flashlight down at the ground in front of the ink monster. What does it do?

[alicornucopia]

It sloshes forward, extending into the new patch of light.

[castmyown]

Darren turns off the flashlight.

[alicornucopia]

It shoops disconsolately back into the area of light provided by the open door.

[castmyown]

Aw, poor little kidnapping horrific void monster thing, it breaks his heart to see it sad. Except not. Not at all. Darren would like it to be dead.

He starts looking around for some paper. He's got an idea for a spell to draft.

[alicornucopia]

There are officey places in this warehouse. File cabinets, desks.

[castmyown]

Easy places to find paper and a pen in. He finds both, and then he flies over to inform Savannah of what he's doing.

"The ink monster," he says, "only stays in the light. I'm going to make a spell that traps it in darkness, and see what happens."

[morethanimaginary]

"... Ooo. Ooo, okay, then - don't turn on the lights."

[castmyown]

Darren snorts. "Really? Don't, you say? I never would have guessed."

Spell drafting, spell drafting, runes runes runes runes.