chain of despondency [open]

[Bryan Kelley]

With a light frown over his lips, Bryan had paced the area before the Room of Requirement three times before the door appeared. Before had arrived at the corridor he had made sure no one was about. And even now, as he pulled open the door, he checked again. Closing the door lightly behind him, Bryan entered the room of elemental doors, the room D'rorah had brought him to that day they had bonded. This was only the third time Bryan had entered the room. The first with D'rorah and the second when the meeting about Alessandro was called. He didn't really know why he had bothered to come to it before, once he knew about it, or even why he did not, but he just wanted a moment of peace to work with his element. However, there was another reason.

Bryan barely glanced at the other doors as he walked over to the one labeled Wind with the Chinese character. His hand touched the door handle as he turned it, pulling the door open. There was a light rush of wind as it greeted him, as if sensing his own mood. Stepping inside, Bryan did not pull the door completely closed, but enough that unless one looked closely they probably would not have noticed it was open. He walked further into the lush green area, the babble of the stream humming in the background as his own mind touched with the gust of wind that flowed through the air. He was uneasy and the wind's movements seemed to show this.

Dropping his book bag down against a tree trunk, Bryan seated himself, crossing his legs. He closed his eyes for a moment, focusing on his mind. Through his bond with D'rorah he had known that something wasn't right with her. He had grown used to the worried feeling he received from her during the time that Dylan had gone missing. He had also felt relief when it seemed she had found out about him. The Ravenclaw hid her feelings and thoughts both outwardly and inwardly, due from her telepathic abilities Bryan assumed. Yet their bond allowed him further in and now he felt utter grief from her. It was the only feeling he could feel. He was still new to this, but he knew it was strange to only feel one emotions. Humans were odd creatures, they were able to feel a variety of things in one instant, and to feel only one emotion? It was odd and that in itself had uneased Bryan. What was going on? He didn't know; she was almost despondent, and through their bond Bryan felt a sense of that himself.

He sighed quietly before opening his eyes. He stared down at the grass as it moved in the wind. He was learning to control the element little by little, and mostly on his own. With the breeze moving around him, Bryan felt a little better, but he couldn't dispel his thoughts about D'rorah. He had tried to seek her out once, but the places he knew she frequented she had been absent, granted Bryan didn't really know what he could do to help, but he felt it was his duty and now it felt like he was failing at that.

Was their little group falling apart now, or maybe just more so now? First the Elemental Master of Fire's death, the arguments that had ensued after it, Dylan's disappearance, and now these feelings he was sensing from D'rorah. It was all not right in Bryan's view point. It was feeling like the seams were breaking that held the group together.

Bryan shook his head to dispel these thoughts. He didn't want to think about this anymore at the moment. It was apart of his life now but it seemed the thoughts had been constantly filling his mind. He sought to clear his mind, focusing it merely on the pull he felt from the wind. He sought his own center and in turn where he felt his control on the wind laid. He took that and focused his energy in modifying the wind's action. He had slowed the breeze down to the feeling of a whisper against one's skin, changed the direction it blew, and he pulled it to form a ball around himself before he released it. Finally, Bryan increased the force of the wind, until everything in the room bowed down to the pressure of it. He held it this way for a few minutes, actually enjoying the solid pressure of it at his back as it whipped at his hair and clothing. Then, the wind ceased and returned to its light presence it normally encompassed in the room.

Bryan brushed his hair from his face, straightening the strands from when the breezes have messed it up.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah had finally been coaxed from her bed by the concern of Kerridon and Katherine, who had both come to check on her at nearly the exact same time. Having finally heeded to the necessity of filling her duties as the leader of the Lightfighters, she had forced herself from bed and taken a long shower before heading to the kitchen. It had been on her way to the kitchen that she had been accosted by a very concerned and newly-returned Cavan. Filling the role of the brother she had never had to a tee, he had rather sternly voiced his concerns for her well-being and forced her to eat a meal specially prepared by his mother. Even though she still felt as though her heart was nothing but a quivering pile of disintigrated muscle fibers, she knew that continuing to stay in her room would likely only make matters worse. Besides, she'd always been able to hide her emotions before, even subdue them completely. Why not now? This seemed like the perfect time to put that self-discipline to work for her and snap out of her depression. From all accounts, Dylan seemed happy with his new situation, so she determined to be happy for him.

Of course, she wasn't so disciplined as to think she could stand the sight of him with his girlfriend so soon after having her heart destroyed and handed to her on a platter. So, rather than heading to the library as she usually might, D'rorah now ventured to the Room of Requirement. She needed meditation and space for weapons practice. And she hoped that the feel of the Elemental Wind might give her soul the lift she so desperately needed. She checked the hall carefully before pacing the requisite three times before the Room of Requirement and proceeding through the door that appeared. Closing that door securely behind her, she turned in the direction of the door bearing the Chinese symbol for wind. Her hope built as she crossed the main room, only to flounder for a moment when she saw the door was already open.

Pausing slightly, she wondered why the door would be open and realized that it likely meant Bryan was inside as well. Suddenly, she felt a new wave of guilt crash over her. She hadn't even thought of him as she allowed herself to languish in her room. No doubt her own emotional turmoil must have been bewildering and annoying to deal with. And her death... well, she was thankful now that she hadn't put him through that. Losing an Elemental Master was always a devastating blow for a Shadow Warrior...and losing a Shadow Warrior was never easy for an Elemental Master. Quietly, she pushed the door open more, not wanting to disturb him. As the door opened, she felt the strong gusts that Bryan had conjured, whipping her hair into a frenzy, pulling it loose from its tight coif so that strands of the recently greyed waist-length hair danced about wildly. She stood for several minutes, watching as he manipulated the wind. When it finally settled down and Bryan began brushing hair from his face, D'rorah continued into the room, closing the door the rest of the way behind her.

"[blue]Well done, Mister Kelley,[/blue]" she remarked quietly. "[blue]I see you have been practicing.[/blue]" She stood there, waiting for his acknowledgment, not wanting to intrude if he wished to be alone. Though she looked better for having slept and for having finally eaten, she was still rather thinner than usual and had a deadened look to her eyes that had come along with heartbreak. But, she was making an effort to look and behave more like herself, including keeping her emotions in check. And so, she stood straight-backed and resolute as she faced him, determined that she would heal from heartbreak quickly just as she had healed from so many other calamities. Or, to at least affect the appearance of having been healed.

[Bryan Kelley]

As he had toyed with the wind, Bryan had not really paid attention too much to anything else around him. His focus had been on the wind. He was getting better at controlling it and calling it up. But he was still in the stage where he was focusing more to do it than letting himself do it naturally. Granted, Bryan could do it naturally, he had found himself doing it a little unconsciously when he was thinking, letting the breeze flow around him to comfort him, to help him sort out his thoughts. However, since for the time being he had been discovering how to do this one his own, Bryan had decided to first work with the wind by focusing what he could do with concentration. He figured if he went through the different possibilities he could do with the wind he would be more prepared for when he did them naturally, having already an idea of what it felt like.

That was his plan at least. As aside from Susan, Bryan did not really have much contact with the other light fighters. This was not really any different from his life before all this. His friends were limited, but he was loyal to those he had. He didn't jump into something without placing his whole self into it. However, it truly did little to alleviate the feeling of being an outcast to this group. If they were a group shouldn't they spend more time together? More time training, getting to know one another? Learning the others' weaknesses and strength so that they could build up on them? Yet, to Bryan very little of that was happening. They were rather a dysfunctional family, one that was easily torn apart. A little push in the right direction and they fell apart. One needed to only find a loose string to pull and they would start to unravel. That was what seemed to be happening in Bryan's mind. Granted. He didn't know the details of everything. He could only base things off of what he knew, which honestly wasn't all the much.

But for the time being, Bryan would work on controlling this new ability of his. As it was, he was ignoring another ability of his. He had meant to ask D'rorah about his sketching past events he had never even witness -- his mind coming back to the time in the corridor when he had drawn something that had happened to Caitlin. He had other moments like those, his sketchbook had an assortment of those drawings mixed within its pages, but like many things those thoughts had been scattered on the wind with the recent events.

So for the moment, it was easier just to focus on refining his interactions with the wind. It seemed to come easy; he would admit that. He really did not need to concentrate all that hard for the wind to do his bidding. It had been harder to make the wind change directions, to go against its nature, but perhaps that was to be expected. Things did not like to go against what they were made for, or what they're used to doing. As the wind had whipped at him in a strong gall, Bryan had not noticed when the door to the room had opened and another person had slipped inside. Even when he had released his hold on the wind, whispering a mild thank you to it in his thoughts, he did not notice. It was strange to think of him thanking his element, but it seemed like it's own, for lack of better term, person and needed to be acknowledged.

Bryan had finished brushing his hair from his face when he had noticed the presence of D'rorah in the room. Her voice had alerted him to the fact. Her voice had been quiet, but it still caused a small start from the Gryffindor. His attention had been else where and not exactly in the present. It was no wonder her words had caught him unawares. His blue eyes shifted to look at the Ravenclaw, already noting the vast differences in her appearance from the last time he had seen her. Instead of responding to her compliment, Bryan asked a question.

"Feeling better?"

[/color] he asked. He did not really expect an honest answer from her. In some ways, he didn't know what answer he expected her to give at this question. But it felt the thing for him to ask. He had felt her sea of emotions over the past how many days and weeks. He was still trying to understand the bond they shared to be honest. But he had sensed the low emotions the older Ravenclaw had been feeling. It seemed only appropriate that he would ask after her. Not because she was the counter point of their element or the leader of this strange group, but because he truly did care for her. Bryan came from a loving family and as such he in turned cared about people, especially those who had tie to him, whether family, friendship, or some other form. Feelings and emotions just came to him a bit naturally, even if he wasn't as social as some, but his background approach to things made him more rational and logical. It allowed him to think about things more, hence all his above musings on their group.[/size][/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

"Feeling better?"

It was a simple question, and perhaps the most logical to ask given what he had likely endured on her behalf... first her mounting anxiety as she searched for Dylan, followed by a brief period of elated relief, followed by a week of trying to catch up to him to see how he was doing. And then, this most recent two weeks had been spent with a broken heart since Dylan had so cruelly pushed her aside.

"[blue]Not yet,[/blue]" she answered honestly. "[blue]I am, however, determined that I shall feel better. My apologies for what you have endured on my behalf. It was inconsiderate of me to fail to take our connection into account.[/blue]" She crossed the room to where Bryan sat, gesturing to a nearby patch of ground. "[blue]May I?[/blue]" she asked, seeking permission to take a seat.

Waiting for an acknowledgment, she folded her legs beneath her and sank to the ground slowly, folding her hands in her lap. Here was the one person with whom she should feel free to share anything in the world because, by virtue of their connection, he would know everything about her; and yet she felt as though she had alienated herself from them. But then, D'rorah had never been particularly graceful in the art of connecting with other people. Dylan had been her first true success... and well, now even that seemed to have a sad ending to it.

She wondered how odd he would think it if she opened up now. She herself felt odd about it to begin with. She mused briefly about what Master Xiu would say, and was certain that in this instance, he would strongly urge her to deepen the bond between herself and her Elemental Master. She was to be his protector... and he would be her greatest lifeline in times when she needed him. He would be the one to pull her emotions back after she separated from them to fight Shadows. Rightfully, he should be the one she turned to in times of distress... for many reasons, one of which was the fact that her distress would affect him as well. Also, if there was a possibility that her problems might affect her ability to protect him, that was something he deserved to know. Besides, this wasn't something she would recover from simply on her own... lying in bed for two weeks should have proven that to her by now.

"[blue]This is not easy for me...[/blue]" she began, lowering her eyes slightly. "[blue]I am accustomed to depending upon myself in all matters... however, never before have I had an experience such as this latest with Dylan.[/blue]" She thought for a moment of how to continue speaking. Suddenly, she felt her age... which she realized with a start was already eighteen. Somehow, she had managed to miss her birthday back in February. Oh well, no matter there. "[blue]Typically, I am very in control of my emotions. I have been sternly and strictly educated in that area because loss of emotional control for a telepath can be dangerous to both herself and to those around her. Even in my grief, I forced myself to maintain my mental barriers...[/blue]" she trailed off for a moment, closing her eyes. She couldn't believe she had been so ready to lie down and simply allow herself to die over the loss of a boyfriend. It had been devastating, certainly, but he hadn't died, had only moved on from her. Even her grief over the deaths of her parents hadn't defeated her in the way this had. But then, that made sense in a way. "[blue]You see... there is something about Mister Cooper. Though neither of us was ever able to identify exactly what it was, some quality of his brings out deeper emotional reaction within me. It is part of the reason that he and I worked so well together. Never before had I bonded with anyone in such a way. And so, his recently adopted loathing of me affected me quite severely.[/blue]" At that point, she paused, feeling tears begin to well in her eyes at the memory of it all. Her heart was raw and mangled... but then, she supposed she would never be able to move on if she couldn't even think about Dylan without tearing up. She paused to give Bryan room for any questions, as well as to compose herself so that she might be able to figure out how to continue.

[Bryan Kelley]

The question that Bryan had asked was one that it would have been easy to lie to. It was like the "how are you?" question. People normally said "fine" or "good," whether they were actually fine or good that day or not. It was just one of those polite questions and answers. They were something one asked of someone to be polite, to show some sort of interest in the workings of the other person. How many people actually truly cared about the answer they got to that question? How many actually spoke honestly when presented with the question? So when Bryan asked his own inquiry, he had not really expected to get a truthful answer from D'rorah. Not merely because it was one of those polite questions but also from what he knew of the Ravenclaw. She was not the type to wear her emotions and thoughts out on her sleeves. As such, it was to be expected she would not answer such questions freely either.

So when the older girl had answered honestly, Bryan was a bit intrigued. He inclined his head lightly in response. "It's alright,"

[/color] he stated, brushing off her apology a little bit. Bryan would admit the emotions he had received from her lately were a bit irksome but he had learned to deal with them. "I felt more worried for you than any real discomfort with bond itself,"[/color] he stated in response. He motioned for her to have a seat when she asked. It was not like he was going to tell her no she could not seat herself down.

Bryan fell into silence after he had spoken and D'rorah had taken a seat. He could somewhat tell that she was inwardly debating with herself, so while she gathered her own thoughts, Bryan pulled his book bag over to himself, sliding the spiral sketchbook from its folds. He located the pencil from where the wind had knocked it from its perch behind his ear. It was as he opened the book to a fresh page that D'rorah found her words. Bryan was in the habit of just sketching at almost any given moment. But as the Ravenclaw spoke, his pencil remained still as he regarded her with blue eyes. Never much of a speaker himself, Bryan listened in silence as she spoke, his own mind taking in her words and turning them over. For a moment there was silence after she had finished, as Bryan thought.

"It seems strange,"[/color] he stated, "not that I know everything to begin with, but with Dylan ... I mean I saw you two at the dance and you yourself stated that you two had a special connection. Why the sudden change? It seems sudden ... I mean, he disappeared and then reappears hating you?"[/color] he continued shrugging his shoulders at the end. "Just doesn't seem right when I look at it like that."[/color] And Bryan was also unaware that Dylan had been in the shadow realm. If he knew that, even more bells would be sounding in his brain in this area. "Humans are strange creatures to begin with but usually such changes are not so sudden... but as I said, I don't know the details,"[/color] he then stated, looking down at the blank page.

Too bad he could have drawn something with the answer to this question. Those strange urges usually ended up with some sort of interesting picture, at least to Bryan. Considering he never knew what it was he was drawing. Almost unconsciously as these thoughts passed through his mind his fingers played with the edges of his sketch book.[/size][/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah nodded slightly as Bryan spoke. "[blue]Well, Dylan's emotions always have been somewhat more volatile than mine... and even before he left...[/blue]" She shook her head slightly, remembering the emotional turmoil Dylan had been through in his months at Hogwarts. "[blue]Well, I suppose it suffices to say that this year has been extremely difficult for him, from an emotional standpoint. Though, the suddenness of it all was what shocked me so. It was suggested that perhaps the bludger injury that sent him to St. Mungo's has caused a shift in his temperament.[/blue]" She thought for several moments... she knew that wasn't the entire story, but sharing that Dylan had been in the Shadow Realm could well cost Kerridon his life. "[blue]I looked myself... briefly, of course, but have noticed nothing out of place in his mind...[/blue]" She hadn't wanted to pry, but the thought had crossed her mind that perhaps this emotional reaction wasn't all Dylan's. But then, if the Mage's hand had been anywhere in it, she had covered her tracks well. D'rorah knew Dylan's mind very well from the time they had spent together, and hadn't been able to spot anything amiss.

She wanted to tell someone about Dylan's foray into the Shadow Realm. But she couldn't bring herself to betray Kerridon's trust... still, she couldn't be dishonest with Bryan. As a general rule, she preferred being honest at all times. It was easy enough to be honest without giving away everything one knew, and then no one could accuse her of dishonesty. "[blue]There is a part I am leaving out... but it is true that he was taken away because a rogue bludger caused some sort of head injury. The rest of the story, I am afraid, is not mine to tell.[/blue]" She left off there, hoping Bryan would understand without the need for her to elaborate further. "[blue]In any case, here I sit now talking to you after having been driven from my bed by the concern of two of our allies and forced to eat by Mister Weiss, recently returned from Peru, apparently...[/blue]"

She trailed off thoughtfully, her eyes falling to where Bryan's fingers played at the edges of his sketchbook. The left corner of her mouth twisted upwards reluctantly into something almost resembling a half-smile. "[blue]Have any of your other subjects drawn you into as much trouble as that sketch of me did?[/blue]" There was a slight joking undertone to her words. Being here, with her Element, was helping greatly. Distance from the entire issue was allowing her perspective. She also realized with a bit of pleasant surprise, that here she could not feel Dylan's thoughts, that there was a bit of haven. And then Bryan's presence was calming itself. This place, with her Elemental Master, was meant to be a place of wholeness. It had been exactly the right place to come. The brief sojourn was helping immensely. Too bad she couldn't simply remain here indefinitely.

[Bryan Kelley]

"Just seems strange the suddenness of it,"

[/color] Bryan stated once more before adding with a shrug, "But then, I don't really know Dylan, so who am I say what's strange for him,"[/color] he finished. He knew very little of many of the fellow Light Fighters. Bryan could only base things off of what he knew and most times he knew very little with being still the newest member into the little clique, if one could call it as such. However, past his one reiteration, he wasn't going to press the matter further. He trusted that D'rorah would know Dylan enough to judge accurately in accordance with her fellow Ravenclaw. There were probably only a few people who would really know if something was wrong with the other Ravenclaw Prefect or not and Bryan wasn't one of them. But then sometimes outside opinions were the ones that mattered the most, as they were not emotionally invested in what was going on it. Although, it did make Bryan wonder how interactions inside the group was going to go with this sudden relational shift.

Bryan had accepted her reasoning on leaving a part out. If he was someone different perhaps he would have pressed her for more information but he wasn't someone else. He was still sort of following clumsily in the dark in regards to anything going on with the Light Fighters that he was bound to trust D'rorah's judgment and her words before almost anything else. She was the one who found him and brought him into the group. It seemed only logical that he take more of her words to heart than any of the other's.

A light smile trickled over his lips when she spoke about two of their allies had coerced her from her bed and another had forced her to eat. At least there were people around looking out for the Ravenclaw's safety and well being. He knew there were other people around but it didn't help that in the time she with drew that he had felt useless. Being in different houses had placed a hindrance on him. He could sense her own distress but could not really do anything to help, being in different houses and knowing not where the Ravenclaw common room. And then there was also the spell, as Bryan was sure it was in every common room, of not allowing boys into the female dormitories.

For a moment Bryan was surprised in the shift in the conversation. His mind blanking in the moment he looked down at the sketch book on his lap as a means of doing something in response. "I don't think so per-say ... though Caitlin wasn't happy with me when I somehow drew something that happened to her and having not actually seen or heard of it myself ... I gave the sketch to her since it didn't feel right to keep it..."[/color] he stated, drawing his eyes up to look once more at the Ravenclaw as his mind fell on this subject in response.

"But there were other times like it ... not actually knowing what I'm drawing or really being aware of it, I guess,"[/color] he then stated as he rubbed his neck in an unsure motion. "Ah,"[/color] he mumbled when he nicked himself with his pencil in the movement. It just seemed like with meeting D'rorah his life wanted to now drop a large amount of unexplainable things in his path, this and the light fighter. He decided not to wonder what else would happen.[/size][/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

Though it wasn't having an immediate impact, Bryan's thoughts about Dylan were being packed away. They'd likely prove themselves useful, though she didn't realize it at the time. For right now, thinking about it stung rather a lot. The way in which she had been dismissed had felt so cold and cruel. She was almost afraid she didn't want to understand what had happened because she couldn't think of anything she had done that would have warranted such treatment. But then she realized that his whole life had been changed, and much of it ruined, since meeting her. Perhaps their falling out had been long in coming. In any matter, what Bryan was saying about his sketchpad seemed far more interesting at the moment and she was glad she'd changed the subject... even though she'd done so without thinking about it.

D'rorah's brow furrowed slightly as Bryan mentioned his having drawn a picture for Caitlin of something that had happened to her that he'd never seen himself. She nodded slightly at his mention that he hadn't felt right about keeping the sketch himself, turning over the idea in her head.

She had seen his art and realized that his sketches were very talented. Hearing the story about Caitlin made her recall how they had met in the first place. D'rorah had been studying in the library when Bryan had asked, completely out of the blue, to draw her. She'd been dryly amused at the time, thinking it odd that anyone would find her an interesting subject to sketch. Her eyebrows lifted slightly in concern as he knicked himself with his pencil while rubbing his neck.

"[blue]I wonder, what was it that you drew for Miss Collins that upset her so? She is typically very difficult to upset...[/blue]" D'rorah trailed off, thinking that of all the things Caitlin would be upset about, the most likely was something to do with Mallan. It hadn't been fair to her to have the blossom of love clipped away so roughly while it was still so young. She was, as most would expect, taking a rather long amount of time to recover from the loss. Even D'rorah's finding Bryan at all had been a shock to Caitlin, who had seen it as a sort of replacement of Mallan which had thrown her into deeper turmoil over this whole war. D'rorah hoped she'd done something useful to begin healing that pain when she'd spoken to Caitlin after the meeting a few weeks ago... but only time would tell.

She was intrigued by the idea of these drawings... drawings Bryan did without really being aware of them. She assumed that wasn't something that most people did often... especially something as intricate as drawing. "[blue]Do you think you could re-create the experience now?[/blue]" she asked. "[blue]I would be very interested to see what the result would be.[/blue]"

[Bryan Kelley]

After he had nicked himself with his pencil, he had placed it behind his ear, where it would do the least amount of damage. As apparently, he had forgotten it was in his hand. Yet, he wasn't a stranger to pencil jabs as he was always poking himself with the pencil in some form or another. He was not particularly bothered then that he had pricked himself. As long as he didn't draw blood he figured he was fine. He had done that on occasion, but that was mostly if he was drawing a sharpened pencil from out of his book bag or something. Now that the pencil was no longer in his hands, they rested on the top of his sketch book as his gaze rest on D'rorah.

"I imagine it was a private moment between she and someone else; I'll say no more on it than that, since it seemed something special to her and not really for me to go blathering about,"

[/color] he stated in response to D'rorah musings on what was drawn that could have gotten a strong response from the Hufflepuff Prefect. Bryan was not normally one to go blathering other people's secrets. He usually kept most comment to himself and as such he was actually probably one of the best people to confide something in, especially if one wanted to be sure it wouldn't get out to anyone else. Caitlin had not told him he couldn't tell anyone about what he had drawn, but that didn't mean he felt he hence had the right to go explaining in detail what it was he had drawn to D'rorah. No, it seemed a private moment of Caitlin's life and it seemed it was bad enough Bryan had some how drawn it let alone having him share it with others.

He furrowed his brows slightly when she turned the subject towards trying to re-create a situation. "I don't think it works that way; it's just a sudden urge to draw and when I stop it's done,"[/color] he paused for a moment, "I didn't even finish that drawing of Caitlin and I couldn't even tell you what it was or what I would have drawn next in it,"[/color] he said. It was rather strange in his mind and before now, he never really stopped to think about it. He just knew he had those moments, and when he did, he marked the page with a small cross in the upper corner. He didn't know if there was a reason for the urges but he figured it would be helpful to know which ones were the result of the prompting during those times.

"I can show you some of the outcomes though,"[/color] he stated, as he turned his attention down to the sketchbook, flipping it to the front, "The pages with this symbol on them are the times it happened,"[/color] he explained, showing her the symbol on the first drawing as he handed the sketchbook over to her. "Some I finished and others I didn't as I was interrupted,"[/color] he explained as the first image was rather rough compared to some of the others. But Bryan did not really think much on them. They were strange and he was noticing it more now, but before now he had always just shrugged it off. Even now, he didn't really think much about it. He remembered briefly that Caitlin had brought up a possible reason he had drawn her experience. However, Bryan did not really think about bringing that up, that the Hufflepuff had suggested he was some sort of seer. It was probably mostly from the fact that Bryan did not really think it himself.


[[ Do what you wish with them... ]][/size][/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

"[blue]Very well,[/blue]" replied D'rorah as Bryan stated that he would not relay whatever private moment he had drawn of Caitlin. She certainly couldn't fault him for keeping what he considered to be a confidence. Even if she were inclined to pursue the matter further, she doubted she would get far with it. Besides, Caitlin hadn't thought to mention it the other day when they had spoken, so D'rorah assumed it was no earth-shattering revelation.

She nodded her head slightly as Bryan stated that he didn't think these drawings could be done on command. It made sense, he likely never would have just sought to draw something he didn't know about of his own volition. Though, she would have really liked to see them... an alternative presented itself quickly when Bryan opened his sketchbook, revealing a drawing with a small cross etched into the top corner of the page, denoting other drawings which had occurred in a similar manner.

She looked down at the pages as he flipped through them. He was right, some seemed to leave off abruptly while others trailed off. She supposed those were times when he had been interrupted. "[blue]So then, you do not know what you have drawn until you have, for lack of a better word, woken from this trance-like state and actually looked at the drawing that has been produced?[/blue]" It was partially statement, partially question. That was what she was deducing from what Bryan had told her so far, and from the fact that he could not create the episodes on demand.

She flipped through slowly, seeing a few familiar scenes, including one of Alessandro's apparent death, which she had witnessed through Wysteria's eyes. Most of the events seemed to be in the past, though several she could not place involving one or more of the Lightfighters. Of course, that could simply mean they were events for which she had not been present. She paused overly long at one page though, stopping at images on two facing pages. The setting for one drawing was of Dylan's home... a scene from when the two of them had gone to visit his mother, Astraeus. That was a happier time, certainly. She felt a sharp pang within her heart and quickly turned her attention to the next page. This one was obviously much older... in clear definition were the faces of D'rorah's parents. Their facial expressions were worried, though she didn't know why. She reached out and touched the page gingerly, feeling suddenly homesick and adrift in the world. And then, as if to squelch the feeling, she let out a barely audible strangled sound and quickly flipped the page on to the next page.

This, apparently, was the last drawing Bryan had done. And this one showed a battle... apparently a battle in the past, for Alessandro was among the host of Lightfighters. Though, she looked at herself in the picture and noticed that she looked as she had when she had gazed in the mirror this morning... and that couldn't possibly be right if Alessandro was there as well. Wysteria was also there... looking very much vampiric. Another figure she didn't recognize right away. She studied the figure intently, but his face was turned away so that she could see only the back of a head of dark hair and an ear. Looking around at the others, seeing everyone present, if Alessandro was there, the mystery figure would have to be the Elemental Master of Water... but who was it? His hands, apparently, had been left unfinished, as they were white and mostly blank compared to the rest of the picture.

"[blue]Do you know anything about this drawing?[/blue]" she asked, hoping there was more information to go along with it. "[blue]It could be very helpful.[/blue]"

[Bryan Kelley]

Bryan watched as D'rorah flipped through the pages of his sketchbook. He did not say anything more in commentary, as truthfully he really had nothing to say. He didn't know what he was thinking when he drew any of the images she was focusing on. He could tell her where he was when he drew a few of them, or even what time of day, but that information seemed a bit irrelevant. As looking at the images one would probably wish to know more about the scene and not where the artist was when drawing it. However, Bryan could not say anything more about it than a person looking at it for the first time, even though he was the artist. His mind was more or less a blank during the time he drew it. He was aware to some extent what had been going on around him, but he had not known what it was when he was drawing.

As the Ravenclaw flipped through the pages, Bryan shifted his position until he sat with his knees bent upwards, near his chest, with his arms resting loosely over the top of his knees, his fingers clasped together to some extent. He could tell what drawings she was looking at from his vantage point, but he remained silent. Even when she paused overly on one, he didn't say anything. He furrowed his brows for a moment in confusion though. Bryan had not at the time really consciously recognized the figures in the drawing, but as he looked at it now and thinking about it in regards to D'rorah, as he wondered why she stared at it so, well, his mind shifted to give him an answer. However, his mind did not dwell on it long before the young woman had made a soft strangled sound and turned the page. His mind was broken from its train of thought as his blue eyes followed the turn of the page.

This time she ended on the last image he had composed. Bryan stared at it himself. It was done only a few days ago and in truth he had forgotten about it, as he had many of his drawings. He tended to when he turned the page to work on something new. There had not really been anything to trigger in his memory about the drawing. He watched as D'rorah studied the image, a little more intently that she had the others it seemed. Unconsciously, Bryan tilted his head, brushing a few strands of his bangs away with his left hand, as he watched her. He leaned slightly forward, hugging his legs for a moment when she asked him what more he could tell her about the image. He glanced at it for only a few moments before he relaxed back to his previous position, bending one leg so it rested under the gap the other one created in its upward position.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Not much,"

[/color] he answered her. "I drew it a night or so ago."[/color] He paused for a moment he thought about it. "I woke up with the urge to draw, grabbed my sketchbook and pencil and drew that until one of the guys had gotten up to use the bathroom, I guess. I don't know what it was I was drawing or what sparked it,"[/color] Bryan continued, shrugging his shoulders at the end. "As I said, I don't know what I'm drawing, can't even tell you what's going through my mind at the time of them and when I'm done I know nothing more than you do now looking at them,"[/color] he finished with a half shrug.

"Sort of disturbing if you look at it from my angle; the artist drawing it and having no idea what, who, where, why and what not about it."[/color] He gave a slight laugh and shake of his head at the thought.[/size][/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah nodded at Bryan's explanation. [blue]"I can imagine,"[/blue] she replied absently. She knew she would find it quiet bothersome to draw images and have no idea what they were or why they were being drawn. [blue]"Perhaps with time this ability can be mastered... it may even find other ways to manifest itself...[/blue]" her voice trailed of thoughtfully. She wished she knew who the mystery figure in the picture was. The Lightfighters needed to find that missing Elemental Master. They needed to be whole, which would be a welcome change from the brokenness they faced so often these days it seemed.

Unable to staunch a moment of overwhelming sentimentality, she turned back to the page with the picture of her parents. The look in their eyes made her heart tremble as she studied it. [blue]"It seems so long ago that I last saw them..."[/blue] her voice was a reverent whisper. [blue]"It was over two years ago since their deaths. I wish I had been stronger then. I could have protected them.[/blue]" She exhaled sharply, scoffing at herself. [blue]"Some protector I have worked out to be. Three Elemental Masters later and people dying all around me."[/blue]

She shook her head and looked back up at Bryan. Her last statement had called to her mind the fact that he was, as yet, largely untrained. She couldn't allow that to continue, for his own safety as well as that of the group. And, having work to do was a welcome respite from the pain she endured of losing Dylan and his dark hatred. She realized how selfish she had been, to think that there was any excuse in indulging her own grief when people's lives were at stake. It was a luxury she couldn't afford... people depended on her leadership, not her self-loathing. [blue]"Have you chosen a weapon yet, Mister Kelley?"[/blue] she queried, finding some solace from her grief in focusing on anything other than Dylan and the mess that swirled all around the Lightfighters at Hogwarts. He was alive, at least, and there was some hope to be found in that small fact. [blue]"I wonder if you might indulge my need to sublimate. We should begin your training... really, I should have begun it some time ago. And part of that must include meditation... perhaps we can work together to harness this new talent you have seemingly developed.[/blue]

[Bryan Kelley]

Bryan watched as D'rorah looked his most recent drawing thoughtfully. He could sense from her that she wanted to know more about the figure with his back to the viewer. He regretted that he could not tell her more about the drawing in question. The fact remained that he really did not have much knowledge on what he was drawing when he fell into the sort of trance state that produced these drawings. The fervor that gripped him, demanding that he express whatever it was onto a sheet of paper. He only knew his own mind tended to blank out from the moment to when his pencil touched the paper for the first time to the moment when it finally left it, leaving some form in its wake. "Do you want me to inform you when I produce other drawings?"

[/color] he asked her as he watched her turn the page, flipping back to the one of her parents.

Bryan fell silent, allowing D'rorah to dwell on the image. He listened as she mused aloud, listening to her regret as it was expressed in the tones she spoke and the emotion that fell through their connections. "Death is unavoidable,"[/color] he commented, his voice soft. "You can protect every one perfectly all the time... it's not possible, to be so perfect,"[/color] he paused as he tried to work out the thought in his mind. "You become a machine, never making mistakes and never learning from them... never having a reason to better yourself and just existing,"[/color] he said before finishing, "and what sort of life is that? Not much of one..."[/color]

Bryan was roused from his musings when D'rorah suddenly changed the direction of their conversation. He blinked, confusion spreading over his features. "I haven't been informed I need to choose one,"[/color] he responded in mute tones from his surprise. He shook his head slightly, "Not that I was silly enough to be expecting that the wind and magic would always be my means of fighting and protecting myself,"[/color] he then added, as if to break down any image of stupidity his previous statement would create. Bryan knew he was untrained and knew he would have to learn many things, including physical combat and the use of weapons. However, with things as they have been between the light fighters the thought had never fully entered his mind and no one had thought to bring it up to him until now, until D'rorah decided to make him her project to clear her mind away from Dylan.

With this change in direction, Bryan had shifted where he sat so that he sat a bit straighter, no longer in a more casual position. The shift had been unconsciously done, if anything it showed that Bryan understood the seriousness and importance in this shift in direction. "I'm willing to try and learn,"[/color] he said in response to her last statement. "Though I don't pretend to be much good at fighting, as I'm sure you've noticed by now, I'm not a very confrontational person, socially or,"[/color] he gave a dry smile, "physically in fights. I usually try to avoid them. Though I suppose avoidance will not work in this case,"[/color] he finished, looking at her, a sort of humor in his eyes at the statement though he understood the seriousness of it.

The truth was, Bryan was a background person. He was more apt to stand back and observe rather than being the type to jump right in. As such, the Gryffindor tended to understand things a little better than most, not to the point of an expert as he was only sixteen, but enough to know when something was serious or not and how to address it.[/blockquote]

[D'rorah Philosophy]

"Do you want me to inform you when I produce other drawings?"

[blue]"That may be helpful,"[/blue] she agreed, nodding her head slightly.

She pondered his words as Bryan spoke about death being unavoidable. While it made sense, she couldn't wholly agree with it. [blue]"My duty is not to have a life, but to protect those of others. People depend on me."[/blue] She shifted her eyes to meet his own, watching him meaninfully. [blue]"And now you depend on me. It is my duty to protect to so that we do not lose the entire world to darkness. What sort of life would any of us have if I fail in my duties?"[/blue]

She laughed slightly as he finished speaking and closed with the thought that avoidance of a fight would not work in this case. That would be wonderful... if both sides could simply shake hands and agree to return to their own respective corners. It would make things far easier, in fact... perhaps then no one would have to die. She hoped, however, that their generation of Lightfighters would be the one to finally end the cycle of darkness rising and being battled back by light. Perhaps, when it was all over, there would finally be some semblance of peace. She was shrewd, and she would not hesitate to defend herself or her allies, but she would prefer to live peacefully just as much as the next person. She would prefer that her weapons training was a mere art form, something she pursued for its discipline and beauty. Nothing would please her more than to oil her blades only because it was necessary to maintain their beauty.

[blue]"Wind is your most powerful means of fighting yourself,"[/blue] she replied slowly. [blue]"Ordinary magic has no effect on Shadows... a very strong patronus charm might harm the weakest of them, but it is not adequate alone. We train with weapons because Shadows often join with wizards who have invited them in... our magic cannot affect those wizards, but our weapons can. Physical weapons, when teamed with Shadow Warrior chants and Elemental Magic, are our strongest line of defense."[/blue] She paused, thinking for a moment. [blue]"No, that is not entirely accurate. Our strongest defense is the power we have together, as a team. That is what I envision... this is an enemy we must all stand against, or there will be nothing left to fight for."[/blue]

A quiet passion had slowly crept into her voice as she spoke. She believed in the worth of their cause. Even though humanity had its own problems, she knew the death and decay of the Shadow Realm and couldn't let that be the fate of this world. [blue]"Hope, love, courage, kindness... those are the things we are fighting to protect. Those are the things that make us human."[/blue] She rose from her seated position.

[blue]"Perhaps today we can begin with choosing a weapon and meditation. You never know, you may find you have an aptitude for whatever weapon you choose. It seems that most of the others have."[/blue] She began to lead the way into the main anteroom, to a wall where myriad different weapons hung, waiting to be paired with a fighter. Bryan would have to choose his own, just as she had chosen her swords so many years ago. At the time, she had never fathomed she would actually raise them against another living being, but then again, it seemed she had lived several lifetimes in the course of her short eighteen years here.

[Bryan Kelley]

Bryan regarded D'rorah as she spoke in response to his musings on death and protection. He did not feel as his own views were assaulted when she spoke her own, speaking her mind in response to what he said. Bryan was open minded, knowing he lived in a world where people's views did not always correspond to one another. It was what made them different from one another, a difference that was key in the world -- as who would want to live in a world where people were all copies of one another. However, he could not agree wholly with what she stated. He saw the sense in it, but he couldn't agree to it all. Bryan had not lived the life D'rorah had lived. He did not have her dark past that shaped her views and thoughts. Through their connection he had been granted to the gift to see everything the Shadow Warrior of Wind had gone through to reach the point she had reached now. However, was it possible that what she had gone through had tainted her to the point that other view points were not even plausible to consider? To think up on her own and accept? It was why their little group needed people with different thoughts and opinions, to state what others missed, over looked, or never even saw.

"And then failure becomes not an option for you,"

[/color] Bryan commented as the thought came into his mind. If he had not spoken D'rorah would still have gleamed it from their connection. "Instead you become driven to become the perfect protector that failure haunts and drives you to the brink of collapse as you strive forward without giving much thought to your physical form and everything else becomes obsolete except the given task of protection and not failing. Not a good life and one setting you up to fall,"[/color] he finished. Bryan shook his head. "It's all just a large mess when you try to think through it, but that's war for you,"[/color] he commented before continuing on in his conversation about avoidance of fighting.

Bryan listened as she spoke in response to him. Much of what she said sounded so simple and so perfect when spoken. However, the hard reality of it was that things did not often go as how they were ideally presented. His eye brow arched up for a moment when she spoke about being a team. "That seems to be our little group's weakest point,"[/color] he commented quietly as his thoughts drifted back to the various events that had passed since he had joined the Light Fighters. From Bryan's view point, he had not yet seen an actual team who were working together at a common goal. Instead he had been seeing a bunch of squabbling teenagers in many aspects. So much of what they were doing now was asking them to grow up, and grow up quickly, that the habits of youth interfered and they were reduced just to arguing children who couldn't learn to share and work together to build that great big tower out of blocks. Instead there was always that kid in the group who saw fit to knock down the work of the others. Too bad in this group that kid seemed to keep changing amongst the members.

Picking a weapon and training with it was not something that Bryan really looked forward to. However, he joined this dysfunctional group and he would try to the best of his ability. His mum did not raise him to hang back when he was expected to pull his weight. In a large family it was easy to disappear into the background, but Mrs Kelley made sure her children always knew their given task in the family and made sure they completed them. More often than not she had told them she had enough to worry about without having to do their chores to.

Unfolding his limbs, Bryan got to his feet and followed D'rorah out of the Elemental Wind room and back into the main room. She brought him over to a wall that was a myriad of different weapons, more than Bryan had ever really seen in one place. He had never really paid attention to the items the few times he had been in their training room. He stared at the items that hung on the wall. He's eyes flickered from sharp object to dull, from metal to wood, from close up to long distance. His eyes focused for a moment on a bow and arrow set and crossbow before he dismissed them, his eyes continuing to look down the line of weapons amassed there. It seemed their little training room had a small armory at their disposal, which was to be expected from the room of requirement.

After a moment, his eyes rested on a section of long poles. They stirred a memory within his mind as he looked at a pole which was in three parts, each end capped by metal and hooked together by chain, his eye shifting to look at the next pole. He, his siblings, and cousins had always been close -- at least on his father side. They were always getting together for holidays, the kids often times being left to their own devices to amuse themselves while the adults caught up on the latest family gossip. Bryan could remember times when he and his cousins had played in the woods, choosing sticks to play with another in the childish game of cops and robbers or some silly game of that nonsense. The poles reminded him of those days. Days of smashed fingers and splinters -- and getting reprimanded for hitting someone too hard with the stick.

The memory was enough to tell Bryan that this was the section he wanted to look at it. His eyes studied the poles there. He didn't reach out to touch one, not until he had finished looking at them by sight. Even then he only looked, his hands hanging loosely in his pants pockets until he reach out and picked up a wooden pole from its place on the wall. The pole was maybe a few inches taller than Bryan. As he held the object in his hand, Bryan felt a weight to it that undermined the wood it appeared to be made of. From its weight he assumed the dark wood had a metal core, giving it weight and balance. Towards the middle of the staff was a handle groove, hardly noticeable except by touch. He placed his hands there testing the balance, as he held it horizontal. As he studied the staff, Bryan had momentarily forgotten about D'rorah, but he stood well away from her that the horizontal staff did not touch her for some feet. It what was while he was studying the middle of the staff that he noticed the thin line in the middle, hardly noticeable. He had only really noticed when his thumb had brushed it, feeling the change in the make-up of the staff there. He twisted his wrist is if knew he what he was doing -- in reality he really had no clue but was following his instincts and curiosity -- and from the each end of the staff a thin, sharp metal blade slid out with the sound of metal, turning the staff into weapon similar to that of a double ended spear.

"That's interesting,"[/color] he murmured, looking at the blades and also making sure that D'rorah had not been in line when the two foot blade had sprouted from the end nearest her. He twisted the the middle of the staff again and the blades retracted until there were only metal caps at the end of the staff. He set one end on the floor, his hand moving up to rest comfortable a little above the middle. He looked to D'rorah.

"I think this'll do,"[/color] he stated simply, sounding as if he didn't mind the fact that he just chosen a weapon to train with though inside he still disliked the idea of it. However, the staff he felt suited him. He could not imagine training with swords. The staff gave him a distance to work with, and if he needed it, a sharp edge that a sword or dagger usually provided.[/blockquote]