BrIefings.

[Keaira O'Connell]

It seemed like it had been forever. As if years had passed since she walked these halls with no knowledge of what happened in the world outside of them. In those days she was troubled with working hard for her classes, passing each exam, making friends, and keeping few enemies. All she really worried about then was the constant buzz that hummed through her mind each day. Her thoughts always on whether she would lose her control one day and cause herself or some one else lasting damage. Now she found much darker thoughts roamed her mind as she traversed the halls of Hogwarts.

Since she had last actually spoken with Dee she had learned so much. Training in China even for the short amount of time she had, truly changed her. They had helped her to focus beyond anything she had been able to accomplish before hand. Clearing her thoughts, emotions, and memories away so that she could truly fight the battles she needed to fight had been a task she had worked endlessly to achieve. Armed with new skills and knowledge to be the shadow warrior that she had been born to be, she returned to the school, and just in time it seemed.

The very night Keaira was returned to the school she had rushed in to the forest armed and ready to fight the demons she had just trained to destroy. For some reason it seemed that Alessandro had wandered in to the forest after several other students none of whom could protect them selves. Luckily Keaira had seen the glow of their patronus, and was able to safely escort them back to the castle, even though she sported a nice injury from it. That night alone she had managed to reveal her abilities to three students, something she couldn’t cover up, and only offered a feeble story to keep it from the truth.

Aside from the first nights events she also had the news that Teresa Serlaen was kidnapped by the mage, Professor cage was suspicious of her ‘sickness’, and an unknown person had tried to access her thoughts, as well as Darko’s on two separate occasions. The only thing she even knew of them so far was that it was a male, and he had a sister, with a name that started with a ‘t’. There was much for D’rorah and her to talk about. So very many things had happened since her return, most of which she had not told D’rorah of, even though she was the unofficial leader of their group. Keaira found that she both dreaded and look forward to speaking with D’rorah as she passed the empty stretch of wall three times. Upon her third pass a door was revealed, one that would only reveal itself to D’rorah Philosophy, Keaira looked around the deserted corridor before grasping the door knob. It was late. Only prefects and teachers were allowed to wander the halls at this hour, so Keaira felt confident that no one saw as she slipped behind the door in to a loung room, and waited for Dee to make her way to meet with her.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah made her way to the sixth floor quietly. Though it was only two floors up from the floor which housed her common room, she wasn't particularly keen on being seen. It wasn't too late... still early enough that she was allowed to be up and about in the corridors, but the sun had long ago cast its slanting rays through the windows of the castle creating shadows which slowly grew as the light dissipated, giving way to the relative darkness of night. It was in the muted candlelight of the sixth floor corridor that D'rorah paused, turned and paced back to the beginning of the hallway, then paused and turned once again as she thought of the room she desired. After making three passes before the door, it came into view, emerging from the wall with a quiet bit of pomp.

"Ah, Miss O'Connell," she greeted quietly after shutting the door behind her. "I see you are well this evening. Tell me, how did you find your training in China? I trust Master Po and his monks are all quite well?" She looked around at the lounge furniture, debating for a moment whether to take a seat. Deciding upon a straight-backed chair on the opposite side of the room from where she had entered, she made her way over and sank fluidly into the seat.

"Things were relatively quiet while you were away. We have not had to venture into the forest again since the night of the last major incursion."

[Keaira O'Connell]

Keaira waited quietly for D’rorah’s arrival, a task that turned out to be quite easy as D’rorah was prompt as ever. Settling down in to a comfy suede chair, Keaira listened to D’rorah as she inquired about her time in China, and her reassurance that things have been quiet while she was away. She wondered if D’rorah would hold any information from her, a question that silently plagued her since the discovery of Dylan. Had D’rorah simply decided that she couldn’t trust any one with that information quite yet or was it a simple slip of the mind? Either way it was done, and now was the time to regroup.

“China was very enlightening. I never imagined that I would be put through so much in such a short time. But I find that I am already thankful of their training, as since my return things for me have not been so quiet. I found my self in the forest the very night returned to the school in fact. Thankfully I was headed up to the castle when my attention was drawn to the forest by the familiar glow of a patronus. I must say I was glad to be there when I saw Alessandro Darko, with three other students attempting to defend themselves from the shadow creatures. I have learned a bit of sword play, nothing to rival what you know I am sure, however it was enough to help. I also am fluent enough with the chants to use them effectively and my skill with a bow and arrow has come in handy as I have learned to channel the chants through the arrows to help direct the spell better.”

Keaira took a moment to simply let that sink in a little. She wasn’t particularly skilled with swords, just skilled enough to wield them. Her skills with a bow however were a bit better. She had taken a few lessons on its use when she was a bit younger, so picking it up now wasn’t that difficult. As she paused her mind drifted to her elemental master. He had been particularly distant during her entire training. Even more so than he should have been. It made separating her emotions both easy and hard during her training. She found it was easier to pull apart due to his distance, but that same distance worried he so much more than anything else.

“Have you spoken with Dien Serlaen recently? We have unfortunately had very little time to converse but I have noted a bit of worry and other bothersome things with him concerning the situation with Teresa.”

Keaira wondered whether or not D’rorah was actually aware of her kidnapping? If she was why they had not done anything about it? And what is going to happen to her with so much time being spent with the mage? Surely D’rorah would know the best of them all what it was like to be tortured by the hands of the mage. More things still plagued her mind but it was best to deliver things one at a time. This way it was easier to digest.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D’rorah’s posture tensed slightly as she leaned forward at Keaira’s mention of an incursion in the forest on the nigh she had returned. She had heard nothing of this so far. As she continued on to speak of the various skills she had learn, D’rorah’s eyebrow quirked at the mention of Keaira being able to channel her chants through her arrows. However, she saved her questions for the end, intending to hear out all that Keaira had to say to begin with before delving into her own questions.

“A situation involving Teresa?” asked D’rorah after she had finished speaking. “No, I have not spoken with Professor Serlaen recently. I do remember that she insisted on coming to Hogwarts, despite the dangers of the current situation with the Shadow Mage. Keaira’s words however did not convey any particular urgency to whatever situation she spoke of, so she returned to the questions she had, figuring Keaira would offer more details on everything as they progress.

“I am please to hear that your training went well. The channeling of chants through arrows I find particularly intriguing. I have never heard of such a thing being done. I think it might be quite helpful to attempt that very thing with other weapons. I, of course, am quite partial to my swords; but I wonder if the same thing might not be done with throwing knives as you have done with your arrows.” She shifted slightly in her seat. “However, the item which most drew my attention was your mention of an incursion in the forest upon your return. I knew absolutely nothing about this and would like to have further details.” She wanted to know why she hadn’t been told sooner, but surmised that the lack of information meant that no one had been seriously injured at the time. She waited to be filled in, holding her own news of the attack against Dylan until her own questions had been answered. She had already determined that his attack had nothing to do with the Shadow Wars, and was far more intrigued in matters which concerned the Shadow Wars than in what she considered to be a more personal attack.

[Keaira O'Connell]

Keaira tensed a little as she found that Dien had still not informed D'rorah of the situation involving his wife. It puzzled her as she knew it had bothered him immensely to even speak of it to her. Her attention was stolen from Teresa at D'rorahs prompt to hear more about her excursion in to the forest. Although Keaira wanted to tell her about the forest she felt the need to let her know about Teresa as well.

"Teresa was kidnapped by the mage some time ago from my understanding, Dine had told me he would speak to you about it nearly three days ago. And I must say I haven't heard from him since then. However what bothers me more than that is he has chosen to shut out my mental attempts to contact him. It worries me that he might try something rash."

Keaira shifted in her seat, it made her very uneasy to think that Dien might try something foolish in his grief, something foolish enough to get him hurt. Telling D'rorah of this was a big priority to Keaira. It might help him, if they could act soon enough. She could only hope that they wouldn't be too late when they did.

As D'rorah shifted gears in their conversation Keaira followed suite. Noting that D'rorah's interest was a bit more keen on some of the other subjects that Keaira had mentioned, she was willing to let D'rorah think about what to do with Teresa and Dien for a bit as she shifted in to her next statement.

"Well the channeling of the chanting powers through the ranged weapons was actually something that Master Po and his fellows were just recently working on. It's not a perfect technique yet, but I find it does help. Particularly when facing numerous foes, or when you are in a weakened state. It insures that the enemy that you are trying to defeat is the one that is destroyed. I believe that it can be used with other weapons it simply would be a matter of teaching the technique and using it with a different item."

Keaira knew that D'rorah would want more details on the night that she had returned to hogwarts if for nothing more than her own curiosity. Although she had guessed that it was far more than that, particularly if they had not had any problems recently. As keaira prepared to tell D'rorah of the nights events she sighed. It would be so much easier to just allow D'rorah access to her mind to see what had happened with her own minds eye. However, the telling of the story was important, and although Keaira trusted Dee she felt that the fewer minds that had access to her would be better, particularly with the other nuisance that plagued her.

"The night of my return as I mentioned I noticed the glow of a patronus on my way to the castle, so I choose to investigate as it seemed the right course of action. Upon following the light I found Alessandro in the midst of quite the impressive fire display as himself and three other students that I did not know attempted to defend themselves from the shadow creatures. So I felt the need to help them after all they had little chance with out a real way of defeating them. During this time I did use my shadow warrior powers in front of them all, as I helped them to escape. When reaching the castle I also attempted to explain away any questions about the night. I am not sure how well my explanation went though. All the other students managed to escape with out harm, I myself suffered from some minor broken bones which Dien healed the following morning. All in all it wasn't a major problem. In fact those students have not shown to be a problem as of now. There is however one thing that does concern me. Since my return there have been two separate mental attacks on my mind and Alessandro's. It is something that bothers me immensely. Particularly since the only identifying things I know of the attacker would be that it was a male, who has, or had a sister with a name that began with a 'T'. The person might have had a bad experience with his sister being injured as it was a memory of my own that triggered his thought of her."

Keaira wondered how D'rorah would respond to all of this. Hoping that she would not be berated, or punished for her delay in contacting her. It had after all been a bit busy since her return. Catching up with school work, the Masque, and then there was everything else that she had to work on. Keaira was just glad that D'rorah might help her share some of the burden of her knowledge.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah was silent for several moments after Keaira finished speaking, knowing there were several things which needed to be addressed. And all of them were of high importance. Deciding that any order of questioning would be largely arbitrary, she simply began asking questions.

"Do you know who those three students in the forest were? We should certainly all know of them and keep an eye on them just to be sure nothing they witnessed becomes a matter of public knowledge." She took a very deep breath, giving her mind a moment to mull over a few things. "I believe the time is nearly at hand to reveal ourselves... soon we will no longer be able to hide who we are. Once the actual fighting begins between us and the Shadows, secrecy will no longer be an issue anyway. But then, there is the matter of attempting to maintain some air of surprise." She regarded Keaira with an assessing gaze. "What are you thoughts on the matter? For those of us whom the Mage has already identified, secrecy is a moot point. Should we then continue to maintain the secrecy of those we have reason to believe the Mage has no knowledge?"

She waited for a moment to consider Keaira's response, determined to also address the issue of Teresa Serlaen. "If Teresa Serlaen has been captured by the Mage and Dien Serlaen has gone after her... she will be quite difficult to locate." D'rorah shook her head a bit. "And you are unable to contact him mentally?" She took a deep breath; she knew exactly how trying it was for a Shadow Warrior to lose contact with her Elemental Master. She herself had been separated from Mordred for quite some time--to the point where she was again having difficulty maintaining her hold on her own emotions. "Until you locate Professor Serlaen, Miss O'Connell, it will be very dangerous for you to engage against any Shadows. We will have to avoid having you in a situation where you might encounter them. we should also attempt to locate them both, actively. You know him far better than I. Have you any idea of what he might be doing at this point?"

[Keaira O'Connell]

The silence that filled the room after Keaira finished speaking felt like a thick fog. After moments of sipping in the thick air D'rorah cut the silence with a question Keaira knew would come up. As soon as D'rorah had started to ask the question Keaira was already nodding. She knew who they were, and she had been keeping a silent eye on them during classes.

"I attempted to quell most of their questions with a bit of a fabrication that I believe I pulled off nicely. They were Collins, Bishop, and Broken. Since the incident I have made a point to watch them all during classes and during some of their leisure activities."

Keaira needed a moment to absorb the idea of revealing herself fully to the enemy. It was something she had struggled with for weeks. Since her return from training in China she had felt the eyes of a dozen or more people she had not met previously linger longer than they should have. It was a thought that had made her sleep uneasily more than once since her return. With the thought of her, and the others lives at risk, she knew that there was only one choice of what needed to be done.

"I feel that for the time being we should try to preserve the identity of our remaining light fighters. After all, if the identity of our fellows is revealed to the Mage is if far more likely to attack all those with in their lives. I feel that my identity is already compromised. After all the Mage has Teresa. and If Dien has gone after her, there is a high probability that if the Mage doesn't already know who I am she will soon enough. We should try to protect the others until we have to reveal them."

It pained Keaira as she though of what Teresa and Dien might end up going through if they were both captured by the Mage. Dark Phoenix was not one remembered for her mercy, and kindness, as they all knew from D'rorah's experience. It was something that had plagued Keaira's mind since the morning after she returned to the school when Dien had told her of the kidnapping. Now there had been plenty of time for the Mage to have lured Dien to her, Keaira's hope of finding them both was very slim. But she nodded to D'rorah when it was suggested that they keep searching for the pair. Hopefully they would be able to find them.

As D'rorah questioned her ability to contact Dien mentally Keaira shook her head silently. She hadn't been able to contact him in several days, and it was draining her mentally and emotionally. It made perfect sense to Keaira that she should avoid the shadows until she could reconnect with her Elemental Master. It would make it hard to be separated from her emotions if she could not contact her master to hold the emotions for her.

"I agree, with out Dien around I won't be much help in the fight against the shadows. I shall try my up most to avoid any situations that might require actions that could endanger my self. I must say that my last encounter with Dien he seemed very distraught, which leads me to believe that he might be rash in his decision making. But I shall certainly keep my mind and ears open to any news about him."

Keaira let D'rorah have a moment to continue her thoughts making sure that she had the opportunity to digest everything. There still was the matter of the mental intrusion to deal with. What would D'rorah want to do about that. Would she have any Ideas to help figure out the perpetrator? It would need to be taken care of, but Keaira didn't know how it would happen.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah nodded as Keaira spoke, considering each word carefully. Indeed, they had many things before them to consider. Things were quickly becoming more and more complicated. She wondered how Light was ever supposed to triumph against Dark in the midst of such tribulation. She pushed such thoughts aside though, knowing them to be useless. They would triumph simply because there was no other option.

"This attempted mental attack concerns me as much as it does you. First of all, it means that someone certainly suspects that you and Alessandro are involved in this war. I am somewhat surprised nothing similar has been tried on me, as all of the Mage's servants are well aware of who I am." She mused over the particulars Keaira had been able to gather, repeating them slowly. "A male, who has, or had a sister with a whose name began with a 'T'. Who might have had a bad experience with his sister being injured as it was your memory that triggered his thought of her."

D'rorah thought for several moments. Short of breaking into the headmistress' office to go through every single student file, there didn't seem to be any plausible way of gaining that sort of information other than keeping their eyes and ears open for clues. "I shall do my best to make note of anything I hear matching that description. Though I am certain you will dislike this idea as much as I do, we may simply have to search for him mentally. If you and I combine our efforts, it might be possible. But I would prefer to use that as a last result. It would expose use to the private thoughts of many people in the castle. Not only would it be against my own ethical guidelines, but it would be quite draining."

She shook her head, troubled. "You know, since the departure of Professor Kade, I have also been closed off from him. I have noticed my own moods becoming somewhat more difficult to manage than they normally are." She shook her head, her gaze landing at a bare spot on the far wall. "In all likelihood, he is no longer alive," she finished quietly. "My years of mental conditioning as a telepath are an advantage, but they will not sustain me should I have to endure an particularly hard battle... I will not be able to re-gather my scattered emotions." And now, her voice was full of a hope that sickened her, the conflicting emotions making themselves heard in her voice. "When an Elemental Master dies, a successor in the next generation is endowed with those powers. If Professors Kade or Serlaen have truly been captured by the Mage in the time they have been away, they are most likely already dead. In which case, we must keep a keen eye for for their successors." She felt a pang in her heart at the thought. "I know, the thought of losing your Elemental Master is unbearable... but it may well be the only chance we have at this war... we cannot go into the Shadow Realm and fight the Mage on her own ground. We have not the manpower to do such a thing successfully."