Fantasy Howl's Flying Castle (Finished! ---Whoo! (*＾▽＾)／)

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Not Seifer-
​

"Peponee Caverns"
​

 
​

The quicker they could get back to work, the easier it always was for Lydia. Even in Seifer's body, the novice witch took to spell craft with intense focus, at the least to get her mind on something less trivial than typical teenage girl thoughts and at the most to actually finish the spell they had begun to undo this mess.


Using a combination of mathematics, appropriated runes from the depleted core as well as runes from the Ogre tome and her own personal notes, with the help of James-in-Echo,  Lydia-in-Seifer's body devised a spell circle with eight segments each linked to the one across from it by runes of transference circling the middle portion of the ring and each specifically centered in its own segment. The center circle of the ring was a reconfigured form of the runes that were engraved in the core, specifically the ones that most likely resulted in all of them getting switched when it was touched. Towards the outside of the circle were symbols to help increase manna potency in order to help keep their own reserves from being completely depleted by the spell so that they wouldn't be completely drained should the need to cast arise later. Around the outer ring of the circle Lydia placed boundary glyphs to keep the spell from leaving the circle so that they didn't risk the spell going awry and someone ending up in the body of something or someone outside of the circle.


Between the runes of transference and the ones for manna potency there were concentric patterns in each segment towards the larger portion of each which were the areas specified for each person of the group that had been body swapped to stand, the person whose body they had swapped with to stand in the designated area straight across from them. The idea was to channel all of their powers into the center to create a similar nova effect to the one the core had produced but with a more calculated outcome that would hopefully end with all of them in their own bodies again as well as without completely leaving each of them drained.


Of course before actually applying the design and drawing one large enough to put into effect, Lydia checked and rechecked the sketch with James since he was more advanced in this sort of thing than she was and most of her abilities were not practiced and only theory.


@Zer0 @Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

Renee continued to giggle despite her brother's demand. No way she can stop laughing. How can she? The paparazzi would eat this up quicker than her twin younger brothers with breakfast. When the group moved away from the dead monster, the little black sheep stayed close to her brother's body, watching James hugging her body as he pouted.


Echo-in-James' body snapped out of it when James-in-her body pulled her away from Johnny, a bit of horror and sadness written across his face once he realized what he has done. Even more so when Echo told him not to touch anymore. The little black sheep sighed when she heard James mumbling something about...What? She hoped all of James' favorite cheese with his tea rot?


Geez...who knew she missed cuddling and kissing Johnny that much?...


Then again, it's not a far-fetched idea considering Echo loves to cuddle with him...'Maybe that kids thing will happen sooner than I thought.' Renee half-joked, walking away from her silly friend in her silly brother's body and sat next to Johnny. 


'We'll have our bodies soon...I'm sure Echo will body-tackle you.' She warned him cheerfully, her poofy tail wiggling a bit.

***
​

Frozen in their hiding spot, Serena-in-Seth's body watched the destruction of the city, wondering if this is how Leor looked like during the siege. Then he spotted the farms, thinking that they should check inside, Seth stealthily walked over, and peeked in. Gasping quietly in shock and a bit of hope, he spotted a couple of air ships. They could get on those to escape-!


"Seth! Look! Air ships." Seth whispered to Serena, pointing inside. With a glimmer of hope in his eyes, he asked. "Think we should take one or should we go back and bring the others here?"


@Zer0 @Roleplay Skittle

 

[Zer0]

- Not Serena -
​

" Outskirts of Holt "
​

"Let's go back and bring the others." said Serena. She held on to Seth's shoulder for moral support, looking on at the battle as though she wanted to help the poor people trapped inside, but lacked the courage to move forward.



Seth-in-Serena's-body was scared at the prospect of just the two of them in their current state sneaking pass an entire monster horde, entering the besieged city, stealing an air ship inside from people who'd probably want to escape the city as much as they do (which was something Seth-in-Serena's-body could never do even though he was a thief), and then somehow flying it pass the dark army surrounding the city.


@Katsuya

- Peponee Caverns -
​

"This'll do." said Echo happily, looking at the drawing of their counter spell. "You're very smart!" she added clapping Seifer on the back accidentally-hard. "As soon as Serena and Seth come back, let's perform the spell, everyone!" she went around with Seifer's help explaining everyone how the spell works and what they must do.


At the side, Johnny was impatient that Echo return to her body, though he looked slightly taken aback at Sheep Renee's mention of having kids soon. "H-hold on, Renee, I'm not ready to have kids yet." he chuckled quietly, looking kind of scared at the idea of soon. He obviously didn't get that it was a joke. "Though I will receive her body tackle most happily." he added looking at Echo with longing.


In case Echo decides not to tackle him, he was going to tackle her and not let go for the rest of the day. That girl better be ready for some intense cuddling.


He kept a straight face though when James-in-Echo's-body came to explain to Sheep Renee her role in the counter-spell. He's very, very fond of Echo, but James had been his best mate for three years and the loyalty between them was strong, though his weakness for Echo has been making him not a very good friend lately what with the secret affections Johnny had given Echo-in-James-body. James-in-Echo's-body has after all not peed, nor pooped since yesterday faithfully for his sake without complaining.


And so, they prepared the spell, Johnny very carefully drawing the arcane circle with his wand in the light of his will-o-wisps. And as soon as Seth and Serena returned (Echo telling them to talk about their findings later as making the counter-switch was of the utmost importance right now in case another shade appeared), they took their places, then performed and completed the spell.


@Katsuya, @Roleplay Skittle






OOC || Characters || Interest Check

 

[Katsuya]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

The little black sheep snorted in amusement when Johnny took her joke seriously. Echo isn't ready for that sort of thing especially when she didn't even kiss Johnny on the mouth yet. Renee guessed that she wanted to wait until the moment was right.


When Serena and Seth came back, her brother in her best friend's body explained to them what's about to happen and Seth took his place; Across from Serena. Sheep Renee stood across Midnight who's in her body and James stood across from Echo as soon the spell circle was in place. Once they returned back to their bodies, Renee sighed in relief, clutching and flexing her hands. She missed having hands, itching to draw and write down everything that's happened. She did promise to Calcifer to send letters and what's better than having letters with pictures?


The horse, now sheep, baa-ed in distraught as it complained about not being in his original body. He looked at James as a source of comfort and nuzzled his leg. 'Can I have my body back?'


Echo, now back in her own body, squealed in glee and did as Renee predicted: The fawn body tackled Johnny to the ground, snuggling and cuddling him while leaving butterfly kisses on his face and squeezing a bit in her hug. Renee winced at the possible force behind that super hug and grimaced. Hopefully, Johnny could take it...


Hopefully.


Serena, now back in her body as well, quickly explained to the group of what Seth and her found. Her normally care-free smile disappeared as she stared at James seriously.


"There's air ships hidden in the Holt. If we get in one of those, we could leave to another city without those creatures coming after us." She concluded, hoping that James might give some input or opinion on this plan of action.


@Zer0 @Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Seifer grinned brightly, the praise was well worth the effort, but the anxiety wouldn't be laid to rest until they had completely the spell successfully. Lydia-in-Seifer wasn't holding her breath. He winced as Echo clapped his back, sucking air in through his teeth and hunching over slightly like a little old man. Wiping the freshly appearing tears that were spawned by the back slap, he followed behind Echo.


He was very observant as Johnny drew the circle, his expression serious as his eyes squinted and softened every now and then. It all had to be perfect. The sounds around them were mostly tuned out as he concentrated on the circle, confident in the abilities of those around him since they were actually highly skilled and properly trained mages while he was not.


When Serena and Seth returned and they all took their positions in the circle, Seifer was a ball of nerves. James-Echo praised the design and then Lydia-Seifer and she had faith that James knew a proper magic circle when he saw one, so that eased the tension a bit which was also important.


The moment of truth. When they all focused and cast the spell and the nova of energy hit them again, at first, Lydia was afraid to open her eyes. Mostly just because she was scared that it had failed and she didn't want to open her eyes and look across to see herself staring back at her with an irritated expression. She didn't move, nor look around until she had heard some sort of expression of success coming from those around her.


@Zer0 @Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Peponee Caverns -
​

" Back to Normal! "
​

Johnny braced for impact, and caught Echo happily in his arms as she downed him. "Oof!" Now he knew how Renee felt like when he hugged her until her eyes popped out. He hugged Echo tightly against his heart, happily enjoying her soft lips on his face and saying, "My hummery dinger"; "Bluber wubber"; "Sweet scented flower", and more absurdly sweet things.


"Echo mello." he said affectionately and pressed her head close to his cheek for a moment, breathing in her scent before returning her kisses with big passionate smooches all over her face, finally cupping her warm cheeks and planting a sweet kiss on her nose. Johnny dreamily smiled up at her, and gave her another hug. " Love, I am not letting you go."


Meanwhile Seifer was hugging himself. "Oh, I'm back in my beautiful self again." he said narcissistically; Seth whooped for joy; and James was so relieved, though that relief was short lived when Serena told them everything.


"We need to reach Dalaran. There is no safer place for Princess Mia to be." he said, looking thoughtful. "Seth, Seifer, we need to get into the city. Could you two do some scouting and see if there's an area in the sky Renee can secretly fly through to get us to Holt? I'll send Sasha out as well."


"Alright." said Seth bravely.


"You want me to go near that place?" said Seifer. "Let's just go back, look for a boat far from Holt and sail to Dalaran."


"It's monsoon season. Only a large airship or a large boat can pass through the storms, we have no choice." said James.


"But how can any airship or boat leave Holt? According to Seth the port's blockaded and there are arcane artilleries ready to shoot airships out of the sky."


"I don't know, but there's no other way to Dalaran." said James.


" . . . Fine, but I want someone to come with me." said Seifer.


"Me too." said Seth.


@Katsuya@Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

"I'm not letting you go either, my fluffy jolly Johnny." Echo sighed happily, nuzzling onto his cheek with hers before kissing his cheek once again. This is bliss~ She really missed hugging Johnny and felt envious at Renee when Johnny non-stop cuddled with her. The fawn couldn't blame them though, knowing that Renee had good intentions and Johnny missed her just as much as she missed him.


It's obvious with the way he's kissing back and all. "Oh how I missed holding you, my snuggle puff of wool." Echo sighed, taking in his comforting scent and smiled in a warm and goofy smile.


In the meanwhile, Renee listened in the conversation and walked up to her brother with a determined frown on her face.


"James, I can go with one of them. Don't care who, but I want to see the route myself." Just in case her feral self didn't understand why she needed to go to a certain place. That and it's better to remember where she needed to go instead of following where like a confused chicken that lost her head.


Serena also volunteered. "I don't mind going too. I can help as a look out and shield either one if they need it."


@Zer0 @Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Hearing Seth's cry of joy, Lydia kept one eye shut, squinting the other open to see Seifer hugging himself. Her hands immediately went to her face, cupping either side as she breathed a sigh of relief, closing her eyes in a more relaxed fashion than previously and smiling gently to herself, "it worked!" she softly exclaimed to herself as she felt an overwhelming sense of pride.


Her smile faded as Serena delivered the news, her head tilting downward slightly and her hands lightly clutching each other in a sort of gentle form of mourning and prayer. Both for the citizens of Holt as well as for themselves. She listened silently as the others conversed and James asked Seifer and Seth to scout... and as unsurprisingly as Seifer tried to get out of it.


She drew in a deep breath and shook her head but stayed quiet as Renee and Serena volunteered. They'd both be better for the job than she would, which left her feeling a little sad, so she turned and went to Speckles digging in her bag for her journal and glasses. She hadn't much time to spend on writing since she had been working so steadily on the spell that she had a lot of experiences and thoughts she wanted to catch up on.


Thinking about how Seifer had tried to burn Renee and failed miserably (thankfully!) she wanted to test some spells that might be able to make her ability to use fire a little less... embarrassing. Remembering how she called herself a flat tire to Seifer when he was in her body and how she realized that she didn't have a lot of survivability, she also wanted to use the knowledge she had gained from working with the runes for the spell in order to build herself some sort of shield, so if she had the time to do so while the others were scouting, she was going to get to work on that right away.


@Zer0 @Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Peponee Caverns -
​

" Secret Hideout "
​

Seth immediately sidestepped touching shoulders with Serena and held up his fist up for a fist bump. "Partner?" he asked her.


It was very slight, but a shadow of competitiveness flitted for a moment over James eyes. Something only those who knew him well would notice. Seth met his gaze evenly, sanguinely smiling. To someone who didn't know them, one would think Seth was waiting to see if this scouting arrangement was good.


"Hold it, hold it. I'm not partnering with sheep girl." said Seifer, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder at Renee. "We hate each other."


"Renee, you're with Rathmore." said James. "You need someone who can cast shielding spells." he added to Seifer. The black sheep that was not yet a horse, followed James, nuzzling his leg.


"Pendragon twin here needs a shield more, he's got a shorter attack range." argued Seifer.


"You have a tendency to flee. Renee can keep up with you if you run, and attack at the same time. Serena might get left behind. Seth won't leave her behind." The sheep nuzzled his leg harder, bleating to get his attention.


'When did these people start to get to know me very well?' thought Seifer who couldn't think up of an argument against that. "Fine! Let's go, Pendragon." he went over to James horse. "I'm borrowing your horse."


James nodded. "Be back in four hours. Stay safe, everyone."


"Be careful!" said Princess Mia and Latifa. Madam Curie looked nervous about what was going on in Holt. She seemed afraid that another shade might come and find their little hideout and kept looking nervously up at the fissures on the cavern roof where it seemed night was coming early because of the dark clouds cast overhead. Even the sunset was shadowed.


Johnny sat up, still holding Echo. "James, I can go with them."


"No, Princess Mia's protection comes first. If another shade appears I need you here to help protect her." said James.


"Alright. Come back safe my fluffy sheep daughter, Serena, Seth, and yes even you, Rathmore." said Johnny.


@Katsuya@Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

-Scouting job begins!-
​

Grinning Serena fist bumped his. "Heck yea, Partner!" She didn't notice James' competitive streak, but Renee did. It seems Seth knew as well and that only made her giggle a bit.


Maybe James would finally open up more with Serena around Seth...heheh! 'Oh yea...Serena would make a good big sister.' She thought, grinning rather similar to the twins' when they are up to no good.


Clearing her throat, Renee casually repeated what Seifer told her brother long ago when he complained. "Oh? I thought you can work professionally with people who are annoying like me. Were you just boasting?" She raised an eyebrow at the other archer, daring him to try to challenge her.


Following Seifer to her brother's horse and grabbing her bow and quiver filled with arrows, the white haired Pendragon waved at the waiting group. "We will! See you later guys!"


She made a heart shape with her hands and fingers at Echo and Johnny. "Make sure everyone else is safe, sheep dad and mom! Bye Big brother! We'll come back soon!" With that, she sat behind Seifer, one hand clutching on the back of his shirt and the other on her bow.


"Before you complain, it's so we can lessen the chances of being seen. Less horses the better." She told him before looking over her brothers and smiling warmly at them.


Serena stayed close to Seth and did the same thing as Renee: sitting behind the young Pendragon sibling and holding her violin close. The violinist nodded at Seth. "Ready whenever you are, Seth."


Then she peeked over her shoulder and waved timidly? at James. "I'll be sure to watch over your brother, I promise! Bye everyone!"


"Come back safe!!" Echo yelled as she watched her friends rode off in the cavern, hugging Johnny close, worrying about their safety already. "They'll stay safe right?...Wait, who's sheep mom?" She asked him, blushing a bit.


@Zer0 @Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Lydia just shook her head as Seifer announced his and Renee's feelings for each other. Same old Seifer. She still couldn't believe he was going to try and make sheep flambe out of Renee. That was taking it a bit too far and while the outcome was funny, the thought of what caused him to decide to do that made Lydia fairly uneasy and she was glad she hadn't taught him anything that could potentially hurt someone.


Once all of the partners had been decided and Seth, Serena, Renee, and Seifer all mounted up and said their goodbyes, with her spectacles on her face and her journal under her arm, Lydia smiled and waved at everyone leaving, "good luck, guys! Be careful!"


Then it was off to study, she began with casting Illuminate and placing the conjured energy in the jar she had brought to act as her lamp. Lydia had a tendency to push things that were bothering her aside in favor of things she thought were more important. With her makeshift lamp in place, she began studying rune work, going over the various runes she had studied to make the boundary for the spell circle they had used to switch bodies again. Of course she kept the sketch that they had used to make the larger circle, something like that could come in handy later, or even variations of it but that was something to study another time.


@Zer0 @Katsuya

 

[Zer0]

- Outskirts of Holt -
​

" Behind Enemy Lines "
​

Seifer' opened his mouth to argue, but was shushed by Renee. He groaned. She had a point, and right now his safety was more important. He had no desire to be snatched and eaten whole by some scary hulking monstrosity and just grunted in reply to her before nudging his horse's side and they were off.


Caprice even wished him well. 'Am I becoming friends with them now?' he thought, bewildered. That wasn't supposed to happen, they were supposed to hate him so that he can hate them, so that when he hands over the princess he wouldn't feel guilty. 'Shoot.' Seifer thought, annoyed.


Seth took the lead on his steed, a chestnut with a white muzzle. The two horses and their riders galloped out the tunnel, pass the corpse of the monster, and out into the late sunset. The sky was blood red as the sun dipped over the forest. The rain had ceased, but still the unnatural dark clouds hung ominously over the sky. There was a whooshing of wings above beside them and they can barely make out James' small ethereal owl gliding beside them like a silent specter.


They traveled off road, pass the hill crest where Seth and Serena first beheld the besieged city of Holt, and came within two miles of dark army's rear lines in an hour. Here they left their horses and began a wary, stealthy recon of the area.


It seemed that there were three ways to go about this: play safe and memorize the routes and timing of enemy sky patrols from a distance, or attempt to sneak inside the enemy camp and gather information, or the hardest one of them which was to sneak inside enemy camp, pass the fighting going on in the front lines, and attempt some way inside the besieged city.





@Katsuya

- Peponee Caverns -
​

"Erm . . ." said Johnny, looking away his cheeks tinged pink. "When Renee was a sheep, she was so adorable that I asked her to be my fluffy sheep daughter. She said she'll be our sheep daughter --- though James wouldn't let me adopt her." He cleared his throat, nervously wondering if the subject of marriage would alarm Echo.


"Johnny, could you lift the spell off Midnight?" asked James eyeing the sheep that was now weaving between his legs bleating grumpily.


"Oh, of course!" said Johnny, and with a wave of his wand, the black sheep was pulled up like taffy. The snout elongated and became larger, the poufy tail lengthened into a long wave of hair, and the fluffy wool vanished to be replaced by a sleek black coat.


Neigh!  reared Midnight happily and nuzzled James now almost knocking him back because of the horse's strength.


"Yes, good horse, good horse." said James patting Midnight's head. He went off to give himself a sponge bath and brush his teeth vigorously to cleanse himself of all icky-ness from Echo and Johnny's past romantic shinanigans, and was surprised that Midnight followed him everywhere. It seemed that the horse had taken a liking to him and even laid its head on James lap when he was finished and took to sitting near Lydia as he observed the goings on of the scouting through Sasha's eyes.


Princess Mia and Latifa started making dinner, but did not trust to start a fire, not when monsters are so close by. So James summoned will-o-wisps for them to heat the pot where they quickly made simple porridge with some nuts and sliced vegetables. They didn't cook meat as the smell might be strong enough to attract unwanted attention.


@Katsuya, @Roleplay Skittle

 

[Katsuya]

-Scouting patrol!-
​

Taking a deep breathe and remembering what calms her down, Renee followed Seifer's lead, copying his silent footsteps. The destruction in front of them is bringing back a lot of bad memories from Paroosia and the Tournament party and she needed to concentrate on this job. She can't be distracted. Not at all.


Letting go a bit of her anxieties, the white haired Pendragon asked quietly as to not grab someone's or something's attention. "So? Have any ideas on what we should do?"


Serena thought for a moment. "Well...we could split up into two groups: One group could watch the timing of the flying monsters and the other...well..." She didn't want to suggest it. As much it would help, trying to look for a way inside the city is too difficult for just two people especially when there's monsters fighting with the soldiers inside. One of those monsters could even follow them, harm the citizens, and destroy their slim chance of escape. So that's a really bad idea.


"What about you two? What's your opinions?" Serena looked at the guys of their little recon group, gripping tightly on her violin.


@Zer0

***
​

 
​

-Echo Muses-
​

"Our sheep daughter?..." Oh look! Her face is heating up and is as bright red as cherries in the summer.


"I-Isee...WellIdon'tmindhavingachildwithyouthoughnotnowcauseit'stoosoonandweneedtowaitabitsowecanreachourpersonalgoalsfirstandI'msureyou'llbeagooddad.ImeanyoutookgoodcareofReneewhenshewasasheepand..." Echo rambled on rapidly, her face getting redder and redder from the ideas that's popping in her head. Johnny as a father? Her as a mother to Johnny's child? Them being married?? Oh goodness, is it getting hot in here? No, it's just her being flustered.


She did mention it to the girls who were bullying her at school, that at least she'll be in a happy marriage unlike them...but that was just a comeback. She didn't really think about it before when they were just friends, but now when Johnny told her about this...


The idea is definitely pleasing, but it's just an idea. Like Johnny said before: They need to wait and see if they are compatible for each other. 'When he comes back from traveling then...maybe...' Echo thought, cupping her cheeks with her hands as Johnny changed Midnight back into a horse. Oh dear...


She looked over to Lydia, her own pair of green eyes pleading silently to get her to shut up. 'Help me!'


@Roleplay Skittle  (OOC: Translation- Well I don't mind having a child with you though not now cause it's too soon and we need to wait a bit so we can reach our personal goals first and I'm sure you'll be a good dad. I mean you took good care of Renee when she was a sheep and... XD)

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Lydia had gone about transcribing runes onto her hand and focusing power into them. Some didn't do anything. Some made her feel a slight pulse that quickly dissipated. The last one she tried created a transparent dome of energy that glowed faintly around the edges and provided a shield for the front side of her body, but there was only one way to test it. It was then that Echo caught Lydia's attention when her gaze fell on the Fawn. The panicked look on her face caused Lydia's eyes to widen slightly before she gave a subtle, knowing nod and smile, "hey Echo... can you help me with something?"


She stopped focusing on the rune she had drawn on the palm of her hand and rose to her feet, stepping away from James and her book and motioning for Echo to join her a little ways from the group.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
​

She almost sighed in relief when Lydia caught her message, her ears twitched. "Y-yees! O-o-of course!" Echo quickly walked over to the novice witch, grinning a bit awkwardly as she asked. "W-w-with what I can help you with, Lydia?" Her heart pounding against her rib-cage as she tries to breathe and calm down, sitting next to her.


Honestly her imagination needs to stop before it gets too...


Too late. Lydia would probably see Echo's face turning so red that even her neck and collarbone had turned pink. Whatever she was thinking about must have been very intimate. "A-anyquestionyouh-h-haveforme?"


@Roleplay Skittle @Zer0 

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Lydia just had a steady smile on her face, perhaps hiding her own awkwardness at the given situation. She wasn't versed in romantic situations or the implications that came with them, but given her recent experiences she could recognize the embarrassment that could be had under those circumstances, plus she wanted to talk to Echo anyway even if she didn't really know her that well and she did actually need her help. But, one thing at a time...


"Yes, actually," Lydia stood a couple of feet away from Echo and extended her index finger, closing her eyes as she focused and drew a three prong Y on the palm of her hand, Each stroke of her finger leaving behind a shimmering residue on her hand before she held it out towards Echo and kept focusing as she opened her eyes, causing the marking to glow and produce a small pulse of energy that domed out in front of her, the whole transparent save for the shimmers at the edges, "can you please throw a pebble at me?"


Lydia knew she should be specific, after all, she had seen Echo's displays of strength and didn't want to try catching a boulder against her shield... at least not right away.


@Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-
​

Echo blinked when Lydia asked her, frowning in worry. "O-oh alright." Standing up, the fawn looked around and found a couple of small rocks that can fit on her hand. Then she stood across from the novice witch.


"Ar-are you ready?" Once Lydia says she is, Echo tossed one pebble with a bit of her strength, in case whatever the apprentice wanted to do didn't work.


@Roleplay Skittle @Zer0

 

[Zer0]

- Johnny Caprice -
​

" Peponee Caverns "
​

Johnny went as red as Echo did and his soul seemed to have left his body out of joy.

---- Johnny's Mind Theatre ----
​

A gold doorbell jingled merrily as a ringmaster in a blue top hat strode in through the front door of a cozy apothecary that sat on a village on a hill in the countryside. "Dearest, I'm hooome!" announced Johnny.


"I'm in greenhouse three, honey!" sang Echo's voice across the shop and out the backdoor.


After hanging his hat on the coat stand by the door, Johnny made his way through the room that was like an indoor garden and a herbalist shop combined. Fresh twiggy plants on flowerbeds sat in neat rows on shelves upon shelves of various flora. There were plants that hummed, plants that coughed, and plantish plant plants that were in bloom. They were all for sale and each price tag seemed artfully painted. There were bottles of spices, and crates overflowing with dried cut fruit, mounds of seeds, and wonderful smelling tea leaves. On the rafters hung sheaves of dry medicinal plants, some sold out, and on the walls were paintings, all gifts from an artist with the initials R.P.


Sunlight poured down from the wide glass roof windows where in the corner was a swallow's nest. There was a counter and cash register at the far side of the room, where beyond it was a backdoor. Johnny made his way out and there under the sun stood five greenhouses, each wilder than the last. In he leaped to greenhouse three, where he beheld his sparkling wife harvesting giant pumpkins the size of horse coaches without breaking a sweat.


"Ohohoho, welcome home, my Jolly Johnny!~sparkle, sparkle~" said Echo, dropping the humongous basket of giant pumpkins on the ground with a crash that caused everything (Johnny included) to jump a foot in the air, to fall into his arms.


"Ohohoho, how was your day, my Echo Mello?" he danced, hugging her.


"It was ohohohoho, my potato pie."


"Sunset Emerald."


" Snuggle Puff."


They held hands and rubbed noses affectionately. "Shall we get ready for our picnic this afternoon, my lady?" asked Johnny, smiling. "Where are the kids?"


"Playing in the fields. Kiiiiids, daddy's home!" called Echo from the glass door.


A stampeding cloud of dust appeared in the horizon before Johnny was dog piled by a herd of bouncing sheep. "Baa! Baa! Baa!" the bleated cheerfully. All of them looked like Sheep Renee, different only in the color of their immensely fluffy wool. One was polka-dotted purple, and another was brown and white striped like tiramisu cake; some had reindeer antlers instead of sheep horns, and all their poufy tails were wiggling in joy as they greeted their father.


"Baa! Baa! Baa!"


"Ohohoho, hello, my fluffy sheep daughters!" said Johnny lovingly hugging them all tightly until their eyes popped out. He kissed all of them in turn and gathered them in his arms, some hopping into Echo's pumpkin basket for a ride. Ahhh, yes . . . Echo and him in married bliss.

---- Curtains Close ----
​

"Ohohohoho . . ." chuckled Johnny as if in a daydream all by himself, smiling like a loon. He didn't even notice Echo had left.


James stared at him in disbelief, laughing at the side.


@Katsuya

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

 
​

Lydia was a bit relieved as Echo seemed to become at least a little distracted by what she asked her to do. She didn't know why she was blushing, but assumed by the pleading look that she had given her before she asked for help that she probably wouldn't want to be asked about it because it was likely pretty embarrassing.


She gave a nod as Echo asked if she was ready and stood with her feet slightly apart, her form poised and sturdy. When the pebble flew at her, she held her hand still and as it hit the shield there was a sort of hollow plink almost like the sound the rock would make if it hit the bottom of a wooden cup. From the point that the pebble hit, there was a ripple of light that flowed out in a ring and dissipated as it reached the edge of the shield. Upon impact, Lydia winced slightly as though she had either felt the pebble strike the shield or that it had actually hit her.


She smiled excitedly at Echo as she realized that the shield was at least enough to stop a pebble before she was momentarily distracted by the laughter of James and Johnny. She looked at them a moment, a quizzical expression crossing her features before she looked back to Echo and shrugged slightly, regaining her focus as the barrier she was putting up had started to flicker slightly and the glow dulling in her palm.


@Katsuya @Zer0

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-​

Echo stared with wide eyes, smiling back at the novice witch as she recognized what she was trying to do. "Lydia that's-!" That's when she heard James' laughter, looked over at the pair, wondering what has caused him to laugh. She blushed again when she saw Johnny's silly face too. The fawn shook her head with an resigned smile when Lydia shrugged.

Well...at least Johnny likes the idea of having a family with her too...

"That was fantastic Lydia! Would you like me to throw another one but with more strength into it?" Echo asked, now excited to help the brunette witch across from her with her barrier.

Zer0 Roleplay Skittle

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

Lydia grinned to Echo's words. She always appreciated when something she was working on was acknowledged. Even after an initial test run, Lydia's mind was already percolating over ideas of how best to use the ability and even ways of improving it. She had so much she wanted to write down which led to other thoughts which she was trying not to distract herself with at the moment.

When it came to magic, as odd as it is, Lydia could be considered a bit of a scientist. She was all about developing theories and hypotheses with the eventual intention of testing out everything she wrote her thoughts on. Such as it was now. She had theorized and hypothesized and tested different runes and combinations of runes with the eventuality of the barrier for the spell circle and this rune she had on her hand now was a lesser product of all of that, not to mention the bit of testing she had done singularly on various runes just for this specific task. Even still, she always felt there was room for improvement, but that would have to wait until later because now there was more testing to be done.

"Yes, please!" Lydia nodded exuberantly, "I want to make sure that I can keep it up when in combat too," She smiled somewhat bashfully, her hand still held out and the rune glowing a bit more faintly when she wasn't completely focused on it, even idle chatter was a test to the rune and her concentration, "I'm not really... well, I'm not a battle mage -- I need to make sure I can focus enough to use this in combat."

She nodded again, more sternly this time and her delicate features grew more serious, the rune on her palm glowing a little brighter, "whenever you are ready!"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-​

Grinning with contained excitement, Echo found more small pebbles and came back to face Lydia, tossing one up in the air and catching it back in her hand. "Alright. Here. We. GO!" The fawn stomped her hoof down as she wounds up her arm and pitched it towards the witch-in-training with 10% of her strength. Enough to push Lydia's boundaries while keep it safe.

Echo was scared of using all of her strength. She didn't want to hurt anyone when they just started on their own training, so she's willing to try, at most, 50%. Anymore and she might leave a small hole on the cavern wall.

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-​

Lydia braced herself for impact again, focusing her will into the rune on her hand. The iridescent edge of the shield formed an oblong shape and pulsed, glowing brightly before slowly fading and repeating. If one looked carefully, they could see the slightly skewed area in front of Lydia which had a similar look to it as a when one looks into a fishbowl, the shield evidently doming out in front of her slightly.

As the second rock Echo tossed struck the rune shield, Lydia's left foot moved back slightly and again she winced, though this time she giggled, a bit nervously, as the pebble bounced off with the same sound as before and rolled away slightly, "It's weird... it doesn't hurt... but, I can still feel it?"

The shield faded a bit as Lydia lowered her hand and rubbed the palm, a slight glimmer of magic sprinkling from her hand before the shield dissipated, "can we try something else, Echo?"

Katsuya

 

[Katsuya]

-Echo Muses-​

The fawn nodded with an unsure smile. "Sure Lydia." She looked around a bit before looking at her hooves, wondering if maybe...

"I can kick instead of throwing something? Or would you prefer to practice something else?" Echo asked, her ears twitched a bit as she peeked over her hammer too...and shook her head. Too soon to use that, she believes.

Roleplay Skittle Zer0

 

[Roleplay Skittle]

-Peponee Caverns-
​

Lydia was looking at her palm, pondering the effects of physical means on magical compounds and furrowing her brow slightly as she thought before looking up to Echo as she glanced at her hammer. Lydia looked at it too and tilted her head to the side slightly, her thoughts shifting to ponder it as well for a moment before she looked back to Echo.

"Well, I was thinking that in combat, there are unpredictable variables that you can't commonly get through experimentation," Lydia spoke using her hands as she watched Echo with a thoughtful expression on her face, "so when you throw the pebble and warn me before you do so... well I can prepare for it appropriately."

The corner of Lydia's mouth quirked up in a slight smirk, "maybe a combination of melee and ranged?" Lydia was speaking how she typically wrote, with more thought than she generally used in common conversation. Typically when she spoke, she could be judged to be a typical teenage girl, there wasn't any specific designs on her intellect or thought process. When Lydia could discuss something that interested her, typically magic, her vocabulary, phrasing, tone of voice, everything about how she spoke changed.

"Of course since it's just you, it's still a little more predictable than if there were two unknown assailants," Lydia continued, her gaze drifting as though she were visualizing what she spoke of, "but still, I don't have a lot of time to get to where I need to be to actually be of help in a combat situation..."

Lydia covered her mouth with both hands, her eyes widening slightly as though she were surprised before she giggled slightly and shook her head as she realized the tangent she had just begun as it started leading away from the base idea and more into an explanation of why, "sorry about that..."

Katsuya