Relaxation... or not. _-=[open]=-_

[Tony Dedrian]

Tony was stretched out on a hammock levitated out next to his hut. He was taking the day off.

Pfft.

More like taking twenty minutes off. He had just gotten done wrangling the Thestrals for Tabby's class, and also stunned a few escaped Blast-Ended Skrewts that were precariously making their way to the castle. It was tiring work, and he had a pair of jeans ruined from the Blasted ends. Perfect day.

Anyways, he had just laid down, staring into the sky, looking at the clouds.

"Bout time you got to me."
...There's a wall there for a reason.

As he laid there, the breeze seemed to wash his frustration away. Sleep wouldn't take him now, because there were other responsibilities that he had to tend to today... and they were many. One was renewing the barrier around the forest. Another, patrolling the lakes. Third, giving a report to Kaliana by the end of the day about any significant events regarding the threat in the forest. Plenty to do, with there being about five miles of forest, and him having to stop every five hundred feet to place the central point of a renewed barrier. That'd be... four hours of work? And it was already 2pm.

The patrol would take about an hour... and then the report would take another hour to write. It'd be about 8pm... dark... and too late to go anywhere, and he'd be too tired to give a damn anyways.

Of course, this wouldn't be half as bad... if his leg didn't hurt.

[Shaylyn Menki]

Shaylyn had just gotten a new kitten. It was an adorable little thing, completely black except for its paws which made it look like it was wearing socks. She had named it Bobby Sox, or Bob for short. It was a nice day out, it wasn’t hot, the breeze was cool, and there were just whispers of clouds in the sky. Perfect, in Shay’s opinion. All it was missing was for her to go outside with her new little kitten and let it feel the grass and fresh air.

Skipping down from Ravenclaw tower, Bob in hand, she wondered towards the grounds. She want going to any place in particular, just somewhere with grass where she could lay out and possibly watch the clouds go by. Stopping in one spot where the grass was particularly soft, she was preparing to get comfortable, putting the kitten down and on the verge of sitting when Bob sprinted off in the direction of what she assumed was the Gamekeepers hut. Oh no… she muttered to herself as she sprinted off in the direction Bob was headed. She didn’t have to run far when she realized that Bob had jumped up onto a hammock that appeared to have someone laying in it. Bob, leave people alone! She said as she approached who she assumed was the Gamekeeper (who else would be laying in a hammock in front of the Gamekeeper’s hut?), hoping he wasn’t allergic to cats or something. I’m sorry if she bothered you. She’s likes to run apparently. She said with a shy smile, walking forward to collect Bob.



Words: 269
Clothes: Use your Imagination
Tags: Tony Dedrian
Notes: Sorry its short. My muse ran out in the middle.

[Shiloh Alexis Mindel]

Shiloh walked the edge of the forest down to the lake bypassing Tony's hut figuring he wouldn't be around, and even then probably wouldn't want to see her. When she reached the lake she hid behind a rather thick trunked tree and transfigured a bathing suit out of the tank and shorts she'd had on previous. With a slight giggle she jumped into a deep area of the lake, only to see a split second before her head pierced the surface a form struggling to reach shore...

She came up sputtering.. It hadn't looked..human at least... more like a large cat or smallish dog. She thought hesitantly.. She still avoided creatures of any sort until something clicked in the back of her mind.. And panic seemed to over take her for one apparent reason. The thing had had the same colors as the feline that Tony favored so highly.. In her haste to catch sight of it again she swallowed stale water and heaved quiet a few heavy coughs to clear her stomach.

She caught sight of it again, it's head just above water and it seemed to be getting drug by something into deeper waters. In a frenzy Shiloh summoned her wand from the pile of her things on the shore and began to aim stunning curses through the water at what ever had the poor creature. As she swam closer she recognized it as one of the rare Naiads of the lake.. It must have been just sitting there when the cat had come down to get a drink..

She finally got within range and fired another stunning curse at it, knocking the feline free. But having given such a valiant fight, the thing was exhausted and barely kept it's head above water. Braving her fear of any and all creatures for the second time in under five minutes, Shiloh picked the cat up and rushed from the water toward the Hut.

Still dripping, and in a very skimpy suit, Shiloh ran up to bang on the door of the hut.. Having not seen either the student, or Tony lounging in the hammock she began screaming at the top of her lungs while continuing to try to knock the door off it's hinges. "Tony! Tony, open up the blessed door! It's your cat!!! She's been hurt!! I found her in the lake!! OPEN UP!!" She screamed, her throat becoming sore from the effects of holding the pitch so high.


OOC:
Who: Shiloh
What: Found PJ in clutches of Naiad at the Lake, brought to Tony
Expecting: Tony, open

[Tony Dedrian]

Oh, God, cats everywhere!


Tony was chilling out, letting the sun warm him in the winter air. The day was perfect for this sort of thing... Then suddenly, something furry jumped up next to him, not startling him, but certainly catching his attention. DJ was never one to just jump at him... He blinked and looked down at the furry form, giving it's ears a scratch as he registered that it wasn't DJ. Huh... He then glanced over and about fell out of his hammock as a younger girl came trotting over. She...

She looked just like Delilah...

He caught himself and kept a neutral face as she approached. He smiled a bit, and looked down at the furball, giving him another scratch behind the ears, and sat up, holding Bob out to her. He nodded. "It's alright, really. My cat does similar things... though, I haven't seen her today..." he looked around again. Where was she..? He shrugged it off, and got off of the hammock, stretching. He would have to start his rounds soon, and probably needed to-

Suddenly, he heard a scream coming from his hut. Shiloh?! He instinctively took off in that direction and saw her- holding DJ. His heart stopped as he saw that DJ wasn't moving, and rushed forward, taking DJ into his arms and pointing his wand at her, muttering several incantations to dry, heal, and resuscitate her. After a moment, purring sounded from her, and she jumped out of his arms, annoyed. Taking off into his hut, he sighed, rubbing his eyes and leaning against the door.

"Thanks..." he said quietly, nodding towards Shiloh. He was so thankful for her at that moment... despite her fear of cats... she brought DJ to him. He looked at her and gave a smile, then turned towards the lake. "Naiads..." he said begrudgingly. He growled and set off towards the lake. "Come with me if you ever want to know how to dispose of Naiads..." he continued towards the lake, a dark look in his eyes. They had already almost claimed a life before he had arrived, and since they had no idea how to dispose of them, they were left alone, with two or three signs posted up with weak warnings...

He arrived at the lake and glared at the waters, removing his shirt and transfiguring his pants into shorts, and charging into the water, right where he knew the Naiads would be.

[Shaylyn Menki]

Chasing after Bob was hard work and by the time she was able to stop at the hammock, she was rather tired. She stopped for a second to catch her breath before stepping forward to collect her kitten. I hope she didn’t wake you up from a nap or anything. I just got her a couple of days ago so I think she’s still getting used to me…seems she’s already bonded with you though… She smirked at her cat as she took him when the gamekeeper handed her over. Bob seemed reluctant to leave. He mentioned that he hadn’t seen his cat lately and she shrugged. I haven’t seen any other cats around today, maybe she’s off sleeping somewhere? As he she got a better grip on Bob, she looked at the man. For someone who was probably much older than her, he was very attractive, but she shrugged it off. He was an employee of the school and she shouldn’t even be thinking like that in the first place.

All of a sudden there was a loud voice coming from the other side of the hut and he had gotten up instantly, running over there. Shay followed, Bob in hand, wondering what all the commotion was about as she didn’t hear what the voice said very clearly. She stayed a good few feet away, not wanting to interrupt anything personal but she became very concerned when she saw the limp body of what she assumed was the cat he spoke of earlier. It didn’t take long, just a wave of a wand and the cat was back to what she assumed was normal, jumping down from his arms and walking away. She wasn’t sure if he was even talking to her when he said to follow him but she was curious to see how someone would handle a Naiad so she followed anyway, watching from a distance as he got ready and charged into the water.

[Shiloh Alexis Mindel]

Shiloh's breathing still hadn't evened out from the battle with the Naiads nor the run to the hut when Tony'd come around the corner and a student came around after him carrying a kitten. Her expression fell even more as she saw the sorrowful expression on the girl's face at having been interrupted from what ever they'd been doing.

As Tony brought the limp body back to life in his arms she finally breathed a sigh of relief.. She'd gotten there in time.. And she knew how much the stupid creature meant to him.

Shiloh was about to bow out gracefully when Tony had yelled something about revenge and went like h*ll on wheels toward the lake. She thought about screaming at him, but knew that would do no good. So instead she hit stride and raced after him in order to see what crazy stunt he was going to pull to avenge his cat. Though she didn't see why, the thing had lived. She glanced over to see the student following toward the lake also.

She should just turn and walk the other way.. Obviously she'd interrupted something, and since DJ had made it there was nothing more she really needed to do. Yet the fact that Tony was now in shorts, and standing as though daring something to get him had her transfixed to the spot.. What if he needed help and she just decided to leave? It wasn't long until a multitude of vines had come out and wrapped around Tony's ankles. Shiloh could only stand there in utter terror waiting on what he had planned.

[Tony Dedrian]

Tony felt the tendrils... well, the hands of the neglected Naiads wrap around his ankle, and took out his wand. He closed his eyes, waiting for the right moment, when a snap, barely audible in the water, signaled him to take a deep breath. Drawing the breath, he suddenly felt the sudden pull of the Naiad's jerk him down, and towards the center of the lake. Water rushed over him as he was fully submerged that instant. The hands's claws dug into the flesh around his ankles and calves as he was drug deeper into a hole... deeper, and deeper. He kept his eyes closed as he knew the ladies above would most likely panic. But at this point in time... he couldn't risk anyone else getting hurt.


1... 2... 3... 4...

Deeper he went as he was pulled into a hole. He kept his breath held as his leg began bleeding a bit. The Naiad went into a frenzy as it tasted the blood through it's hands, and kept dragging him, pulling more ferociously than before. He knew that most Naiads had about... one hundred and twenty feet of reach, and about sixty points in which it could reach out and nab anything for food. People... cows... In the times of the "Old Gods", they were revered as such, being fed offerings... but years of neglect caused the remaining population to become ravenous carnivores, yanking down fish, horse, human, and about anything they could get their hands on. He even heard a story about an unfortunate Dragon that was pulled under and fell prey...

13... 14... 15... 16...


His lungs began to burn as he descended deeper, his eyes squeezed shut as the hands had him around the waist, securing their grip. How much farther...? He couldn't guess until he felt the teeth from the monster on him, and he hadn't felt it yet... He let out a little air, but kept the rest in, trying not to gag.

35... 36... 37...

Finally, after a few more seconds, before he let out his air, and gave up, he felt jagged teeth start gnawing on his foot, and whipped his wand down.

--------------------------------------------------------

On the surface of the water, it would erupt in an explosion, possibly traveling twenty to forty feet high, pieces of green flying upwards.

Five seconds.

Ten seconds.

No one emerged.

Thirty seconds.

A second explosion rocked the lake as several more pieces flew out of the water into the air. Another moment later, a hand emerged as Tony broke water, scratches all over his face, arms, and body. Stinging, he made his way over to the shore, and pulled himself up, gasping for air, rings under his eyes from nearly losing consciousness.

[Shaylyn Menki]

((OOC: Sorry that it took so long. I've been having really crap muse for this post. AND sorry if its crap. I'm running on empty here. >.<))

This whole situation was just a tad awkward for Shaylyn at the moment. For one, she wasn’t even really having a legitimate conversation with this guy before it got interrupted so she wasn’t even sure that was grounds for following him to the source of whatever called him away. She did it anyway and was placed in the even more awkward position of having the Charms professor see her turning the corner with this guy. A guy who’s name wasn’t even told to her by him, but only heard when Professor Mindel yelled it a moment or so ago. Now, she was watching semi helplessly as this guy went into the lake after the creatures that attacked his cat. It would be rude to leave now like she didn’t care, because of course, even though she didn’t know him, she cared; that was just in her nature. So she watched, and waited as several seconds passed by with no sign of him. Then, out of nowhere, a large explosion-like splash erupted out of the water. He must be making some sort of progress… She thought, as she watched and waited. An impatient and uncomfortable Bob squirmed around in her arms, although this didn’t exactly seem the time or place to let him go. Several more seconds passed and nothing had happened. She began to get worried…there was no sign of him or any more breaks in the water that would let her know that he was at least moving under there. She assumed it had been around 30 or 40 seconds, which was way longer than she could have lasted underwater without breathing. Against all of her better judgment, she inched closer to the water to see if she could at least peak down to see if Tony was at least alive under there. No sooner had she taken a couple of steps towards the edge of the lake did another large explosion erupt from the water and a hand broke the surface. He looked injured, very scratched up and as if his body had almost given out on him. It was against every fiber in her being to let him remain like that, so rushing to his side, she pulled her wand out from the pocket on her belt and began healing his wounds, and making it easier for him to breathe. She could only hope that it would work.

[Shiloh Alexis Mindel]

Shiloh stood at the edge of the lake for what seemed to be an eternity waiting on something.. Though what she was actually waiting for, she didn't know. Has it merely been seconds, or has it been hours like it seems. She thought with a chill rising up her spine. She knew that he supposedly knew what he was doing.. She hoped that he did in fact.

Suddenly an explosion broke the water's glassy surface. A gasp escaped her lips because of her surprise. But little else happened for almost another minute it seemed. She glanced over to the student who seemed as perplexed as she. A jealous urge, that she quickly tamped down, shot through her at the expression revealing feelings that was rather..... She didn't have time to finish that thought as another explosion rocked the lake.

She waited as the shock waves died down and watched as Tony's hand broke the surface, followed by a mangled body. Hadn't he learned his lesson from the sphinxicore's attack? She silently yelled at herself. Granted, she'd learned how much the cat meant to him.. But jeez.. Going after naiads without any help.. How stupid could even he be?

She stood there, a mixture of relief and anger shoving each other forward as the man....boy....kid.... whatever he wanted to act like at the moment made his way to the shore.. With hands on her hips she witnessed the young girl rush to his side and begin trying to heal what she could see now were really just flesh wounds that would cause slight pain. On a bitter laugh, she let the idiot know what she thought of his 'heroism'. "Really!? You were really stupid enough to do that.. Battle a whole colony of Naiads by yourself?! Are you TRYING to get yourself KILLED?!" she ranted furiously.

Not even waiting for his reply, or for the girl to open her mouth, Shiloh spun on her heel and stomped off toward the castle, figuring he'd be relishing in the student's attentions not to even bother with her.


----------------------------Shiloh exits to the castle---------------------------------------

[Tony Dedrian]

Tony was still deafened and blinded by the sheer adrenaline of taking out a creature that was probably about seven hundred years older than him. He sat on the bank, hearing the muffled shouting of Shiloh, and realized he was sitting there, grinning like a schoolboy who had just won his first fist fight, his wounds closing and sealing because of the girl's impressive healing ability. He tilted his head to say something quippy to Shiloh but saw she was storming off.

"Good loooord, woman, freak out much?" he said out loud, voice slurred a bit from the drunkening euphoria of the pain he had begun to feel. He winced as he stood, popping his neck and looking into the water, a dark look on his face.

"Teach you to mess with my cat." he muttered, kicking a piece of the Naiad, still twitching, into the water.

"Those things are almost three hundred times older than the oldest wizards... and can regenerate. Though, with the number I did on this one, it'll take several years before it'll recover into it's full strength... then, I'll be ready for it again." he smiled, picked up his shirt and re-transfiguring his pants back, and looked back at Shaylyn. "Thanks for healing me... come on, I'll make you a cup of tea, as thanks."

He held out his arm to invite, and tossed his shirt over his shoulder.

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Short post, but eh. :3