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It is a long walk to the home of Leslie Parker. Longer than Nerium ever expected, particularly in the hot sun. Her feet ache with time and wear, each step from the woods to his edifice a tedious reminder of the mundane forces of this world that now bind her. It is more than a worthy price to pay, to have her magic transcend body into a new world. And it is imperative she speak to Leslie. That he may use the powers of his family to bind Grimhilde manor and all that is dangerous there that she can no longer control. But the toll is making itself known nonetheless.

When she arrives, his door mocks her. No more can she teleport inside, paying no heed to walls or borders. Today it stands firm, and when she knocks, there no response, only silence. And so Nerium gathers the layers of her dress and perches upon the steps to his porch. Sitting, and waiting, until he should choose to return.

The metal pierces the dragon's chest, and through it, as the great beast crashes to the ground, its heart. The world quakes as the spell dies. Memories and realities ripple outwards in great waves of voluminous purple and sparks, though only the most sensitive to magic would see its traces.

There is no time. Nerium apparates to the dragon's side in an instance, but the life has already gone. All is shattered. Her work, her dreams, the gift of magic she has brought upon all. But there is no time to mourn. No time to think of consequences. Traces of the dragon still burn, the spell is still alive within the wood.

With a rush of whisper and prayer, Nerium closes her eyes and steps within the burning ash that was once a creature of magic. Her words offer sacrifice to the goddesses and to the great deities of old.

The final gust of wind rushes around her, through her, reaches inside of Nerium and pulls her apart. Something like a soul disperses through the woods, resting upon every tree, every trace of ground, every root and flower and animal until they are one. Nerium's magic leaves a silvery sheen upon all it touches. The quickly unraveling spell is repelled upon its boundaries and what remains is an Enchanted Forest, as wild and alive with magic and fantasy as Nerium's dreams.

And a woman. Just a woman. Whose magic has been sacrificed to a higher calling and lives within her no more.

She stands there frozen for quite some time. Unsure now where the woods end and she begins. And when the final traces of magic finally leave her, Nerium collapses.

The next several days are difficult. Even the most mundane tasks prove difficult without her innate skills. Steps heavy without levitation, candle flames exhaustively numerous to light. She still has her potions - her books and knowledge - but all that require a higher level of innate power are lost to her.

It is no matter. She has brought magic back into the world. True, wild magic. When she walks into her wood, she is greeted by unicorns. The hooves of centaurs echo wild in the distance and the water nymphs which once lived only in her pond now inhabit all the waters of the wood.

Even if only a pocket, pure magic rests now in this world once more. And if this be her legacy, Nerium Oleander Grimhilde, Mother of Magic - it is all worth it.

(ooc: Find Nerium in the woods or use this to address your character's aftermath of the spell)

She summons them at dusk. Not to the manor, but somewhere deeper than that. In the very center of the wood, just beyond Grimhilde manor, there is an open field. It is surrounded by trees that look far more ancient than their surroundings, and the air of magic is thick here. Long has the family used it for ritual, for drawing power from the surroundings. The moon and the stars and the darkness. But tonight shall be different.

Tonight, magic shall rain upon the land in darkness and glory. Wild and untamed and beautiful. Siren Cove shall be great once more.

When her coven arrives, in the wood, they are greeted by a raven who flies them to the field. Nerium waits there, hooded in black lace veils, encircled by candles. Her cauldron already bubbles.

Hi Everyone!

This is just a post to plot out potential repercussions between your characters and Nerium from the blackout. I'm open to anything, particularly if this calls from some use of the Magical Regulations/SCPD/Coven of Twelve as it would help move those plots forward all around :)

Or anything else at all!

For the sake of context, it is Grimhilde tradition to create utter havoc on Halloween, and the blackout is tame in comparison to most. Nerium would also not likely recognize any attempt at enforcement by authorities, should they try to assert it.

Additionally, to answer a few inquiries, the shadow creatures that will be coming from the dark are just that - shadow creatures. Shadows come to life in illusion - from unicorns to skeletons to spirits, to whatever fantastical thing you want. They will believe they are alive and act as such, but they cannot cause harm to your character (besides scaring them, or maybe even delighting them, its your call).

If anyone is interested in having a character connected to this...

It's long been established that Nerium comes from a line of powerful dark witches. Related to infamous evil queens and wicked witches etc. But each has their own set of specialized powers. Nerium's grandmother, who raised her, was particularly cruel. A fan of curses and hexes with little disregard for who she placed them upon. Nerium's mother was something different. Her powers were almost siren-like, in that she specialized in seduction. Love spells, bewitchment, luring men and stealing their souls. In my mind she loved the attention and adored the suitors. But men do not fit into the Grimhilde way.

Anyway, when Nerium was 6 years old, her mother died. More specifically, she drowned off the coast, during a perfectly clear day. No witnesses, her body was found washed up against a rocky cliff the next morning. And while even the most powerful witches can die of natural causes, there has always been suspicion of foul play. Of course, the SCPD closed the case almost immediately, practically cheering that a Grimhilde was gone, and Nerium's grandmother was never able to prove anything. It certainly shifted her farther to the side of vindictive cruelty and hatred for anything outside the Grimhilde way (such as swimming at sea like a siren), and left Nerium highly isolated and under that much more scrutiny by her now only family member caregiver. I imagine growing up, most of Nerium's first attempts at magic were to bring her mother back from the dead and never succeeded beyond sad ghostly traces that she would soon banish.

That being said, is anyone interested in establishing a connection in the backstory here? Was your character involved in Nerium's mother's death, or maybe a member of your character's family was? Perhaps they were involved in the investigation, or knew a victim of her seductive ways?

The more I expand upon Nerium's character, the more I want to establish deeper ties. She's so much fun to play, but really isolated - so any additional connection would be awesome :)

Any takers/thoughts/ideas?

About a half mile from Grimhilde Manor, beyond the land and in a thicket of overgrown trees, there lies a deep pond. It teems with life. Shimmers with magic and the surface is particularly exquisite under the full moon. It has been Nerium's place, since she was a child. Lonely and wandering her woods, she found the fish and frogs there not to be potion ingredients, but charming companions. Today there is another world there. Ruled by a family of mischievous water nymphs borne of a spell of Nerium's long ago. Magic breeds magic and soon the pond was home to grindylows, ashrays, bunyip, and kappas - even miniature hippocamps. They regard Nerium as a goddess. For her, they are her closest friends - along with the ravens and other creatures of the manor.

She often floats a canoe to the center to think or reflect on a new spell. Today she is there with a book in hand, and several others resting at the floor of the canoe. She is a bookseller now, during Rose's occasional stints at The Quill, and she must make her role believable. So she's gathered an assortment of books, those highly recommended and sought after. Others considered classics.

Nerium is unsure how she feels about this boy wizard. He who survived a curse from the the great dark lord.

"It is in poor taste to attack a child. But his wrong is seeking power for purely selfish gain. One will always be corrupted by the great dark forces if they are not dealt with accordingly. Sacrifice and worship." The water nymphs lean against the side of her boat, ever a captive audience. "Though this so-called hero is insufferable. Who cares of sport when there is magic to learn? Certainly all his brilliance comes from his female friend."

Perhaps Nerium likes the bushy-haired girl. Even if she was born of humans. Her power is the same.

In further fleshing out Nerium, I've found it necessary to explore the origin of her belief system. She is very much a Lawful Evil, motivated not by her own sadistic satisfaction (like many Grimhilde women), but serving what she believes to be the truest power - darkness. Darkness and chaos being the original force from which all else came (and therefore perceived to be much greater magic than the "earth magic" practised by most witches).

The Dark Arts channel the ancient spirits and deities that still live within this darkness, fueled by chaos and fear. Humanity, by default, fears the chaos and the dark because of its great power. In the wrong hands, the darkness will consume them.

Nerium was raised on these believes, introduced to curses and deities of the dark from a young age. She's danced with devils, in a quite literal sense. But despite her devotion to darkness and the decidedly more sinister nature of her (now-passed) grandmother and mother, Nerium is still rather innocent.

The legend goes as follows:

The Great Darkness

In the beginning, there was only darkness
The darkness was everywhere and all things
The beginning and the end and all potential in between

In the darkness, all things existed in chaos
And from this chaos was borne creation
Galaxies and planets and stars

Gods and Dieties
Demons and Angels
And Beings of all kinds

The two-headed Life and Death
The destinies and fates
The earth moon and sun

The moon and sun were sisters of light
They danced together in the great darkness
Watching over the young earth

The beings of sun and moon had great magic
Masters of the forever darkness and the new light
But earth wished for power of its own.

So it fought through the chaos
Creating reason and order
And in it, forgot the magic from which it was borne

So went the first dawn of time
When the sun fell in love with the earth
And forgot her devotion to the dark

The sun swore herself to earth
And the world was split between day and night
With only the moon still loyal to the darkness

With the sun's help, the earth grew from beasts to men
Borne not of the ancient power but new science
The daughters of sun and moon alone still carrying magic within them

But the sun's daughters loved the earth, like their mother
And so they forged their magiks with the mundane nature of the new world
Forgetting the great and ancient powers of the dark and chaos

So became witchkind, torn between light and dark
The daughters of sun ruling the powers of earth
The daughters of moon ruling the powers of all

From which all are borne and all return
The ancient dark, the supreme chaos
The one true power.

There are no phones to contact the Grimhilde Manor, and unannounced guests are not welcome, outside of particular ritual and protocol.

When one wishes to reach Nerium, they should call upon the Raven of Night, and tie a message to its claws upon its arrival. Treat it with respect, and one should face no trouble.

Otherwise, come to the manor's door in the dark of night. It is advisable to wear a dark hood. Entry will be permitted upon offering of a token. If not is offered, one will be taken of the Grimhilde's choosing.

Grimhilde Manor

Through the deepest woods at the edge of town lies a great stone manor. The Grimhilde Family has resided here for centuries. A line of women of untold power - and unknown darkness.

Even non-believers whisper that it is the domain of witches. Trespassers have crossed onto its borders never to be seen again. Others, particularly pranking school children and teenagers emboldened by dares, return never quite the same.

But every so often, and sometimes, often more than the every so, figures from town can be seen venturing through the woods and to the manor in the dark of night. Veiled in cloaks, carrying offerings far more valuable than money. Because those who are in the know, those aware that true witches reside in these parts, know that there is no greater source of dark spells, vengeful curses, or potions of terrible power. That when this cruel world calls for moral compromise and dirty work done with grace, Grimhilde Manor is the place to turn.

ooc: This is the place for your character to request wishes, curses, or generally plot with a mostly-evil sorceress. (To be followed-up on with an IC-post)

Additionally, I could really use some Nerium plotting. She's taken a back seat due to the fact that, as one who is on the outskirts of town by nature, its hard to bring her in organically, and I was using Rose without ever developing her. I'd like to more though, so please let me know if you have any ideas of past connections or desired future ones. Along with any great mess she can make with your character and her dark arts.

Possible ideas:
1) Consulting with Nerium about the curse (since Dark Arts is her and her family's livelihood)
2) Seeking a vengeance spell, potion, curse, or other dark/powerful magic which the other witches are less likely to delve into
3) Allowing your character to become bespelled by Nerium (would have to be male, pursuant to her family tradition - think Xander in the Dracula episode of Buffy)
4) Relationship development - whether past history with Nerium or the Grimhilde family, or potential future development
5) Other - I'm open to anything!