Hunting for Bish

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion pulled on two long, elbow-length black dress-gloves that fit her like another skin, seeming very much like an odd fashion statement. They looked brand new, nothing ripped or tarnished or faded. Just black on black, with nothing else to brag. They fit her arms nicely, though, and she wondered briefly why she didn't wear them all the time. Because you don't need fire all the time. That much was true, so she ignored her thoughts and fastened her cloak tightly around her neck, the silver clasp glinting in the fresh moonlight. Her hair cascaded down in mahogany curls, framing her high cheekbones and bouncing happily in it's freedom. She pulled the hood up, the heavy folds draping over her shoulders. Jeans coated her legs, a tight, light-blue shirt hiding beneath the warm arms of the cloak. Her wand was grasped firmly in her hand, shuddering slightly as it waited in anticipation.

[Professor Liam Imura]

Liam had been anticipating this day for a long while for some reason and was ready and strolling down the hills to the Forbidden Forest, careful as could be, appearing as though he was on serious teacher business, so no students bothered him on his way down. His wasn't clad in his robes, seeing as he didn't have any classes to teach. Instead, he was in a pair of jeans that would stand up to even the ugliest of brambles in the forest and a short-sleeve vintage tee with, what else, the world 'Ireland' across it with a four-leaf clover underneathe. He had taken off his wedding ring to shower and had left in on his sink by sheer accident, no joke. His long hair was taken up into a low horsetail by magic so that no strands would get in his way. Seeing Arion, he slunk over to her and smiled softly. "Alright, I'm here."

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

"Oh, good. Now, just remember...I haven't spoken with him in a while..." She trailed off for a moment, her ominous thought seeming so odd to her tongue, which couldn't wrap itself around the words. "We have a code...you see, I learned this spell from my father....sort of like a family recipe, only with magic. You say the right words, and....well, you'll see."
She paused for a moment, a little breathless for whatever the reason. Her fingers were itching nervously, and her wand had slowly begun to sing, a song that was terribly, hauntingly beautiful. It spoke, very briefly, of laughter and sudden sickness, then of death and the beauty of the rain that fell. With a rush of sound, it reached a crescendo that seemed to illustrate the rich carmine of the rainbow.
"Hush!"
Her mind was pounding with the melody and sad harmony that still rang in her head. That was her song, the one that rested so very gently in her heart, and her face was flushed as she realized the red had begun to turn to fiery passion. Right in front of Liam, so that he may have seen, may have felt...that rush of joy, and something darker. Something much darker. But with her reprimandation, the music stopped. And she exhaled shakily.

[Professor Liam Imura]

Liam nodded and silently steeled himself against whatever may come- he didn't want to be caught unawares around centaur, especially since he seemed to have earned himself quite a horrible name amongst the forest folk with he and Saren's bouts on full moons. Oh well, they couldn't really blame him...could they? Brushing the thought off of his shoulders, he listened to the song that her wand began to sing, becoming entranced by the melodic aria before snapping out of it as her 'hush' broke into the climatic crescendo. Gathering himself together, he noticed that she was flushed and put his left hand- his right was holding his wand- to her cheek, checking to see if she was alright. "D'you have a fever, Arion?" he asked softly as to not disturb the slumber or hunting of any of the creatures that lurked within the Forbidden Forest's borders.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion felt her stomach leap upwards so suddenly that her heart stopped and her breath caught in her chest. She knew she was blushing, but his hand felt burning hot against her skin. "I-I'm fine." God, she was stuttering now. Since when did she stutter? "We should get going." She turned away, still able to feel the warmth his hand had left. Somehow, she wanted that back but refused to turn around, knowing that moment had passed. There was no question now, she knew, about what her wand had almost betrayed. And it made her feel a swell of nerves and uncertainty, causing a shiver to run up her spine. Then there was something else too...something she wouldn't admit, although it continued to press down harder on her conscious entity.
((Ugh. I have to go at 9:30....which is in 30 min.))

[Professor Liam Imura]

ooc:// Alright, I'll post reaalllly fast

He felt her mood change and caught her stutter, which confused him. Of course, he didn't know everything about her so he didn't know if she had an occasional speech impediment, but he hadn't heard the stutter before, and did he do a bad thing by puting his hand to her cheek? Liam didn't know. After all, he was only a male creature and didn't know how certain things affected those of the fairer and greater sex. "Okay, if you're sure," he murmured in response to the insistance that she was fine, though he was still a bit worried about her odd behavior. "Alright...lead the way, Lady Arion," he said, referring back to the time in the empty room when she insisted that she was a lady and he a gentleman and that he should not expose his under side while in his dog state.

[Chance]

Chance knew he shouldn't have been there but he went against his will and stood leaning against one of the trees. Something drew him closer to this place and he couldn't place what. He allowed himself a brief moment before venturing a little deeper. He'd been a rule breaker from the beginning and knew this was no exception.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

((Dang it. It appears as though my father and I have a bone to pick about OCCD. Otherwise known as Obsessive Compulsive Computer Disorder. I think 9:30's fine...he says 9:15. Huh. o_0 Tomorrow, ok?))

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion nodded into the darkness, moving forward, sliding her wand across her hand the way she's seen her brother once do with a knife. But unlike the sharp steel, the wand did not cut down into her skin, instead beggining to glow red at it's tip. In the soft light of a her wand, black ooze was visible as it ran over her hand, slowly slipping around on the skin of the glove. She whispered an incantation, and suddenly the entire, goey fluid burst into flame, surrounding her hand in brilliant, orange fire. "Come on," she whispered to Liam, stepping forward carefully yet quickly, the leaves crunching softly under her feet.

[Professor Liam Imura]

The tip of her wand intrigued him and he watched the goo with curiosity until it spontaneously combusted, wherein he grinned at the neat trick and followed her lead, honing his eyes alone into the sight spectrum of an Irish Setter, as dogs see better in the dark than humans, though not as well as felines- it was still helpful. Liam kept his breathing soft as to not startle anyone or anything in the forest, mindful of things overhead and underfoot, checking where he stepped and watching the path ahead of Arion just in case- one could never be too safe while within the Forbidden Forest.

[Chance]

Chance could hear the professors draw near. He tried to turn so he could hide but was very unsucessful. He had himself tangled in one of the vines on the floor and fell. Knowing he couldn't get himself free he just sat there knowing sooner or later he'd be discovered.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

The hiss of the flame was the only sound apart from the crackling of leaves and the heavy breathing of Liam and herself, yet this only made Arion tense more. Where there was silence, there were eyes. And where there were eyes...well, she didn't care. She held her hand forward, refusing to grow weak against the glaring animals that hunched low in the underbrush. Her senses were unusually keen tonight, and she could almost taste the dank fear in the air.

[Professor Liam Imura]

Luckily for Liam he had been in the Forbidden Forest many times, and knew many parts of it. However, it constantly changed so he didn't know how to map it exactly, though knew certain areas by heart, just not their locations. Because of his damned height, Liam had to crouch over, partially looming over Arion's bod. He heard another set of breathing- human breathing- and looked around. Spying Chance, he cast a spell by mind to set him free and gave him a look that clearly read: leave the forest at once!, before continuing on after Arion.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion whisked around at Liam's spell, but seeing that it was merely an issue of a stray student, she shrugged it off, though her heart beat madly. Never before had she felt nerves like this in the forest....it just wasn't normal for her. Bish had always been there though, and she wondered...would he still be? Centaur herds migrated every once in a while if they could, and though the Hogwarts heard was fairly stationary, there were always those few that chose to move on. Bish hadn't known she was coming back...maybe he wasn't here anymore. A stab of regret formed a cool bruise on her heart, the thought of her friend's absence painful.

[Professor Liam Imura]

The young Irishman rolled his shoulders back to loosen up tense muscles. He felt a bit of an aprehensive air hanging about Arion's frame and he raised a brow. "Something wrong?" he asked softly, touching her shoulder tenderly and slowly as to not frighten her out of her poor wits, though he might've- he didn't know. Gray eyes scanned the area again, watching as pairs of yellow and red eyes blinked in the shadows and disappeared at the sight and scent of him.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

"Nothing really...I'm just not used to coming in here so far without Bish. Most of the creatures here are scared of fire...but the Centaur herd isn't. I really wasn't serious about reading up on war ethics and the like, but Bish taught me a long time ago what to do if any of the herd caught me...You see, it wasn't just the Headmaster that didn't want me in here..." She petered off. The centaur herd had always been biased against her, for the most part. Some of them knew about the secret meetings...but generally, it was only Bish's interference that kept her safe.

[Professor Liam Imura]

He nodded, choosing to keep his hands on her shoulders to steady both of them, as his calves were starting to ache from hunching over as he was. "I see...did you contact him beforehand?" he asked curiously, having wondered that for quite a long while, not really knowing if she did or not. Personally, Liam would've made sure of the fact that their guide would be there to meet and lead them through the Forbidden Forest before coming within six metres of it, but Arion wasn't him, obviously, and he didn't know her well enough to know what she would do in a happening of such circumstances. So for now...he'd wait.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

She paused for a moment, increasingly aware of his hand on her shoulder. It didn't bother her at all this tme, and though her stomach lept immediately to her throat, she felt a warm sense of comfort and...somethinmg else from it. So she stood there, not moving very much for fear of him removing that gentle touch. "I was planning to leave him a symbol, but..." She paused. Their symbol was a single white feather, one from her tail, which she used to leave him often. But she hadn't changed recently enough to do that, and anything else in the form of contact would have been taken as trickery or a threat. "...I didn't have time."

[Professor Liam Imura]

He stopped when she did, not wanting to run her over with his gargantuan bulk. As she explained the situation about the symbol and not having time, he immidiately put two and two together and nodded gently, patting her right shoulder comfortingly. "I understand, Arion. Should we continue on or do you know another way to get ahold of Bish?" inquired Liam, keeping his voice low should anyone be peeping in on their conversation and doings or should something be watching and waiting for the right moment to take advantage of the two humans.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

"I think it's safe for us both to keep going...by now, if he's still here...Bish would have heard that we're in the forest. I'll just go to our old meeting place...if he's still here, he'll be waiting for us. If not, I guess we'll leave." I guess we'll leave. Of course they'd leave, they couldn't stay hidden in the forest forever. She stepped forward reluctantly, feeling his hand slide off her and enjoying the sensation. Guilt choked her as she suddenly remembered the picture of the two, writhing girls, both smiling and bright-haired. This was their father she was feeling about, and she knew that he was married as well. Her feelings weren't worth the destruction of a family. So she tried to tuck them away, finding they only resisted her hold more as she struggled to control them.

[Professor Liam Imura]

"Okay then," he said, not up to giving her a smart remark about staying in the forest, so he shut his mouth and let his feet follow after hers. Liam's marriage had been...hasty. Most Imuras got married right out of school and hurried to have children- which was what Liam had done. He hadn't know the girl, Corinne, very long and had met her in his 7th year. His parents felt that they had hit it off and demanded that they marry. Sarentegra desperately hated Corinne with a fiery passion, for Corinne never really accepted the fact that Saren was a werewolf and constantly looked at her like she was a danger to her two little girls, when Laine and Elizabeth loved their aunt Sarentegra dearly. But Liam and Corinne had gotten along, gotten over their many and frequent spiffs. However...he didn't seem to miss her when he was around Arion, merely he missed his two girls horribly, knowing that they would be little giants like he was and he knew that they would be sweethearts and break many hearts in their prime years.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion's inward battle continued all through the walk, the silence falling hot and heavy, so that she felt claustraphobic and in need of escape. She tried to speak, but felt as though her voice was enveloped by the darkness. Raising her words higher up so they could be seen and examined, she said, "We're almost there...sorry about this." She spoke the truth, but as soon as her words stopped, the warmth pressed around her again, sticking it's fingers up against her face and causing it to turn light pink from the pressure, her eyes sparkling with the brilliance of the heat. She wondered if Liam felt it and decided that he didn't, knowing it was because of his prescence and only that that her world was turning upside down.

[Professor Liam Imura]

Silence was an easy thing for Liam to handle- he actually relished in it after becoming a father and after becoming a professor. However, around friends and people like Arion, it was a little awkward, but each thing he tried to say sounded foolish and idiotic, so he kept his Irish trap shut. Twas then that the silence was shattered miraculously by her vocals and he nodded. Had he not been married, he would've given her a kiss on the cheek. Hell, if he'd been in Ireland he would've or around any other woman. But with Arion...he felt like he was cheating on Corinne just by being there with Arion and yet...he didn't mind that much. Silently he cursed himself roundly over and over again for being such a hardass and took a deep cleansing breath. "It's alright- I had nothing else to do today," he said with a small chuckle, trying to lighten up the mood if even by a little bit

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

(Oh, dang. I have to go. Just realized 5:30's rolled around...Well...tomorrow, ok? Sorry!)

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

"Well, you'd better not have, because this may take a while." The humor awakened her sense of normalacy and frightened away her dream-like state, so that her era of discomfort loosened slightly, allowing her actual breathing room. They moved on in silence for a while again, though this time it was tense and cautious in the sense that the eyes that had been watching them were following close behind. In truth, what bothered Arion most was when the eyes disappeared, leaving them alone in darkness. "d**n." The fire slowly flickered out, her glove completely dry and smooth, just the way it had been before the handful of flames had graced her palm.

[Professor Liam Imura]

He knew that the beasts were following them with their eyes like predators, and he knew that he would have to ignore them for the time being and if needed, deal with them later on. Seeing that her fire went out, he took out his wand and murmured, "Lumos maximus," it wasn't a true beacon of light, but it wasn't a tiny little sliver either. "There..." he murmured softly, holding his wand at eye-level for him, letting a beam of light fall out before them to light their path somewhat- just enough so that they could see, but not enough that it would draw a lot of, well...unwanted attention.

[~*..::Arion::..*~]

Arion shook her head in warning at the sudden light, her breath catching in her chest as she grabbed his wand-hand, pushing it down gently. Her fire went out after an hour, and she knew re-lighting it was not an option. Light this deep into the woods anyway was dangerous, so she would have had to put the light out anyway. "We can't use magic here, Liam...even my fire was pushing it. It'll be taken as a threat."

[Professor Liam Imura]

He was puzzled, but murmured the counter-spell, 'nox', to obliberate the light. At her explanation, he looked down. "Oh..." he muttered, not having known that- he didn't need to use magic on full moons with Sarentegra, so the thought never occured to him. "We'll just have to feel our way around then, eh?" he whispered softly. Instinct told him to lead the way to protect Arion, but he didn't know where they were going, so...that would just be foolhardy.