Adding to the long list

[Wysteria Edwin]

There was a long list of things Wysteria should not have done but did anyway. Tonight she added to the list by going into the library, sans polyjuice cloak, in the middle of the night without telling anyone. Her exceptional speed allowed her to be virtually unseen traveling down the stairs to the library as long as she used her other senses to ensure she didn't smack into a student.

In truth getting into the library after hours was not hard. The ancient woman in charge of locking the area at night only remembered half the time. Bless her... Wyst thought with a small smile. Before rounding the final corner Wyst heard distant footsteps coming from the eastern corridor, and hastened to enter the library quickly and shut the door. She was not interested in being seen by any student and risk them recognizing her and the information falling into the wrong hands. The whole charade of hiding her existence grew more tiresome when Lightfighers news was slow and dull, as was the case within the past few weeks. The addition of Niobe and her suspicions about Sam were well and good, but no news about the other side was a unnerving. What was Yang planning?

Tonight her research was a bit more selfish. The inability for her to do magic of even the simplest level with her wand inclined her to study wand lore in depth. She knew that other magical creatures were denied wands now, but there were stories of goblins, vampires and even veela at one time using some type instrument to channel their magic. If she could find out how to channel the abilities she possessed...well, that would make her feel a bit less like a leper.

Wysteria picked out a few books from the restricted section regarding vampire lore and history, and a couple general books on wand lore. There was no book on vampires using wands, only a few phrases about magic channeling to help her along. But the more she learned the better prepared she would be if she decided to venture out in polyjuice fashion to another library.

Her head jerked up as footfalls from the entrance of the library perked her interest and her instincts. Immediately her senses were heightened as her eyes scanned the dimly lit room. Wyst walked over to a nearby bookshelf where she could peek through and discover the identity of the new guest. If they were friendly, she would sit back down at her desk and continue her research.

[Ethan Lacroix]

The late night patrolling wasn't nearly as enjoyable to Ethan as strolling the halls during his free periods to ensure the younger students were where they ought to be. Not as enjoyable, but perhaps more important, he told himself as he walked quietly down a darkened corridor on the first floor. If there was indeed a cadre or malevolent students plotting to let the dementors and whatever other dark creatures swarm into the school, they would likely meet at night. Or perhaps not since that seemed a little obvious. Still, cliche as it may have been, it would still be easier to find seclusion long after sunset so Ethan felt it worth investigating. He still couldn't believe that fellow students would be involved in anything so sinister, but he saw no reason not to trust Caira. She was the headmistress after all. Whatever actual fact may be, he believed her to truly believe the seriousness of the situation and to fear for her wards.

Thus he'd taken to patrolling the whole of the castle, rather than merely the lower floors closest to his common room. He didn't wish to step on the others Prefects' toes, but the impression he'd gotten from the headmistress was that she didn't fully trust them, that perhaps they were keeping things from her. Ethan didn't like to think what that could mean. He'd met a few of them: D'rorah, Dylan, Caitlin, and very briefly Keaira. While he very much hated thinking ill of anyone, particularly without clear cause, he was trying to keep his mind open and not make snap judgments. Keaira had been... distracted. Perhaps she truly was merely worried about this Zane, but perhaps that was because he was crucial to their plans...

Ethan shook his head in disgust. Suspicion had never been a characteristic he'd nurtured, and he didn't like it being a part of him now. No, he would wait until he had irrefutable proof or at least very solid reasoning behind a suspicion before taking action. For the moment he went back to focusing on his patrol.

Having returned from the upper levels, he was again on the first floor and approaching the library. He hadn't checked it on his way up, wishing to scan the castle from the top down, and now expected the door to be locked and to simply move on. The latch however clicked when he grabbed it. Surprised, he gave the door a little push and peered into the dark room. There was no sound and he saw no movement. A part of him was tempted to just close and lock the door, but he couldn't do that. Conscience and a sense of duty forbade it. Stepping in and closing the door behind him, Ethan pulled his wand. He would much rather have gone in empty handed to appear as nonthreatening as he intended to be, but he simply couldn't see much. Igniting the tip, he closed his eyes to the sudden brightness and dimmed it considerably so that it would merely let him see a few feet ahead.

Moving forward, he neither saw nor heard anything and began to think there wasn't anything to worry about. Then he found the gate to the restricted section unlatched. Ethan looked around with concern, but still saw nothing but shadows. And books. Books on a table? Moving closer, he bent over to get a closer look, setting his still lit wand down beside the tomes. Briefly reviewing them, they at first seemed innocuous enough, merely wandlore and theory. But... several were about vampires, in part or in full. He knew little of such creatures, his muggle childhood coloring his wizard knowledge so that he wasn't sure what was fact and what was myth. All he did know for sure was that they were considered dark creatures. Like dementors.

Ethan bit his lower lip and straightened, slowly looking about again. Clearing his throat lightly, he left his wand on the table and held up both hands. Taking a few steps away to encourage whoever was there (if anyone) that he wasn't going to grab his wand and turn it on them, he spoke out quietly. "Hello? Listen, whoever is here, let me take you back to your dorm. It's late and you should be asleep. I'm sure you know it's against the rules for you to be here now, but no blood no foul, right? We can overlook this." The boy was actually speaking sincerely. What he'd found worried him some, but hardly constituted proof of a dark conspiracy. It was probably just some overzealous Ravenclaw who couldn't get enough studying done during the day. Again, Ethan felt the rules were there to protect the students, so a broken rule that didn't result in anyone getting hurt didn't really require a punishment.

[Wysteria Edwin]

Oh for the love....

Wysteria rolled her eyes in annoyance as she saw the Hufflepuff boy's face illuminated in the glow of dim candles. Clenching her jaw, she tried to think of another person that she would want to see less. Not to say she didn't like him--she just did not know him well but they were in the same year and house. she couldn't place his name...but she knew his face, and so he might remember hers. This meant he could recognize her with the knowledge that she SHOULD be dead. Add on top of that her the complete lack of knowledge regarding his loyalty to either side.

shit.

Making a quick side step to a book shelf a few feet away from turned back, Wysteria quickly assessed the pros and cons of revealing herself. He had a prefect badge, so he must have met with the headmistress at least once. More than likely the headmistress picked his brain for information and made him suspicious. Why else would he be poking around the library in the middle of the night? Even when Wyst was a prefect she never checked beyond the third floor...or did she? It was so hard to remember now.

If he had met with Caira then he was not to be trusted. Anything he saw that was suspicious would be reported back to her. The books Wyst left at her table also fell under the category of worthwhile reporting. If the DADA classes were not discussing vampires, those books would look out of place indeed as well as the books about wand lore. Shadow vampires were supposed to be a well kept secret in the shadow realm. If Caira had even a whiff of suspicion that the Lightfighters knew about them, the elemental masters and their warriors could be looking at a very large battle far too early.

"Hello? Listen, whoever is here, let me take you back to your dorm. It's late and you should be asleep. I'm sure you know it's against the rules for you to be here now, but no blood no foul, right? We can overlook this."

Wysteria struggled very, very hard to suppress a dark chuckle. The idea that a prefect could force her to do anything was absurd. Go to bed? What was supposed to say to that: sorry but if I sleep in the dorms now I'll be dead by lunch? The idea was silly enough to relax her a bit. D'rorah would be angry with her but...she could not escape a gut feeling that not revealing herself would hold worse consequences. At the very worst she would have to knock him unconscious and have Dee perform a late night memory charm.

"Look, I think you need to know first of all that you are in no position to make threats," she said, still hiding behind a book shelf. Walking very fast she placed herself right in front of him.

"Don't say anything to anyone if you recognize me," she said. "Understood? Things would get bad very quickly if people knew I was here." she waited to see if he would show signs of retreat before speaking again: she needed to knock him out quickly if he decided to make a run for it. The last part of her statement wasn't entirely true, but Wyst wanted to give him a bit of a fear litmus test to see if he could handle anything else she might need to ask him...like what Caira was up to...

[Ethan Lacroix]

Peering into the darkness, Ethan neither jumped nor froze when a voice responded. If anything he felt a tiny swell of pride that he'd succeeded in getting the presumed student to reveal herself. He was however surprised that his words had been taken as a threat. He'd been trying to be anything but threatening and immediately shook his head as he hazarded a brief glance over his shoulder, back to the table and his softly glowing wand. He hoped this encounter could still have an amiable end. "No no, I didn't mean it as a-." Facing forward again, he found himself staring into the face of the girl whose study he'd interrupted. "Threat?" The final word came out almost as a question, Ethan suddenly quite addled. The dim glow of his wand didn't show him much, and he was mostly blocking the light from her face anyway, but what he could see was not what he'd expected.

She was shorter than him, but only by a few inches. While the absolute details of her features were obscured, she was clearly beautiful. An almost otherworldly beauty that he didn't even fully understand. He could tell that she was ghostly pale, her smooth skin almost glowing in the darkness and contrasting sharply against her ebon hair. Her eyes, while brilliant and intense, were not necessarily hostile. Still there was something... else. Something predatory. Ethan took an unconscious step back as he cleared his throat again, trying to regain his train of thought.

For a moment he just stared at her, but it didn't seem he could quite get his mind fully cleared, so instead he just focused on what she had said. Recognize her? She thought he might recognize her. Ethan was fairly certain he'd remember a face that hauntingly lovely. His eyebrows pulled together as he tried to reason through where or when he could have met her that she would suspect that. Also she was apparently not a student if she was worried about others knowing she was there. Unless she just meant there in the library so late at night? Somehow that didn't seem like what she had meant. Eventually he just voiced his confusion, seeking an end to it but not really expecting one. "I don't... who are you? What are you doing here?" His voice, while less confident, was still far from hostile and showed confusion rather than fear.

[Wysteria Edwin]

He doesn't recognize me?

The thought struck her, an honest surprise to a young woman who was rarely surprised. Although she saw the confusion in his face she did not understand it. They were in the same house, she though they were in the same year...maybe she was mistaken? The idea that her appearance had changed so drastically was hard for to her to believe, but she did look different: her skin was paler and took on a slight glow in low light, and her hair no longer carried her signature flowers. Add to that the idea that she was supposed to be dead for almost eight months, it was logical to assume she might not be recognized. But Wysteria was around those who knew her before the turn and no one indicated to her that her appearance so changed

"You don't...nevermind," she said, her brow furrowing slightly. Keeping him from telling Caira anything about this evening was now crucial in her mind. If she left now she would create an air of mystery and their exchange would stick in his mind. He would know nothing about her and his first instinct might be to ask the headmistress if any staff changes had occurred (she did not wear student robes anymore). So maybe if she invited his confidence...although her social skills were minimal. Wysteria needed to try though, and aim toward the goal of his suspicion being focused off of her and onto the headmistress.

"I see you are a prefect" she said, glancing at his badge, " although I am surprised that you're looking around the library. What student delinquents spend their time with dusty books?" she asked with a smirk. "When I a prefect at Hogwarts I usually went up to the Astronomy tower late at night. But the library is...another way to go," she teased. "Did you catch wind that a couple teenagers might be snogging in the restricted section or are you just exploring?" she asked, stepping a few feet back and sitting on top of a table.

She twirled a strand on onyx hair between her fingers, as she had done whenever trying to play the social game with someone new. Since her hair had once been decorated with pretty jasmine flowers, the gesture made her feel more human somehow since she often played with the flowers when unsure of her surroundings.... or during a tough question on a test. Being a vampire made a person very still, since one did not experience the normal discomfort of humans (an arm falling asleep, a slight nerve twinge). Wysteria picked up on this from being around very new and very old vampires. The new ones did not know of the echange and the old ones no longer cared if they looked "real" or not. So the simple gesture gave her some assurance that her demeanor would not appear entirely inhuman.

[Ethan Lacroix]

The fact that his questions had been utterly disregarded did not escape Ethan, and it wasn't his intent to similarly ignore hers, but it happened anyway. He continued to stare, rarely blinking, as she expressed her own minor confusion. That was quickly dropped however, she instead essentially asking him what he was doing there, though in far more nonchalant fashion than he had inquired. Again it took him some time to respond, trying to work through her words and possible intent, all the while distracted by her face and figure. Who was this girl? Girl? Woman? She appeared mature, but young. Vital. Flawless even. She wore no student robes, but he'd heard nothing of new staff and she didn't seem to give the impression that she was there in any official capacity. She said she'd been a prefect? When? He'd been here for over five years now and...

Backing up himself as if he were going to similarly sit on the table behind him, Ethan reached behind him to grab the edge and hoist himself up. His hand however did not find the rounded edge of the table, but by design the much smaller rounded form of his wand. Caitlin had only been here since the start of the year, and had only been made a prefect a few months ago. Before her there had been another. Keeping it low so as not to seem as if he were about to unleash anything offensive at her, Ethan merely brought his wand around to the front, bathing both himself and his enigmatic companion in its soft light. Then the wand slipped free of his hand and clattered on the floor, though its illumination had done its job, and still remained.

They had been wide before, but now Ethan's eyes were veritably struggling to be free of his skull. His jaw similarly fell open. This wasn't possible. There had been a brief memorial service at the school. He'd attended. Of course he hadn't known her, not really. But she was his Prefect and he's seen her face daily. Finally his jaw seemed to find enough control to utter a single disbelieving word. "Wysteria?"

[Wysteria Edwin]

The shock of seeing a supposedly dead woman resonated on Ethan's face. If Wysteria had not been the object of his expression she might have considered it comical. Wyst assumed he would not recognize her but now that he did...she could not decide her next plan of action. But if she had taken time to consider the situation she knew it might have played out as such: it would take him time to process her face, surely, and now he was no doubt utterly confused about the situation. There was a question of whether to clarify it fully or not. She decided to not yet reveal herself as a vampire yet simply for the draw of mystery. If he suspected she might be hiding something he was more likely to stick around long enough for him to give her information. So she opted for a half-truth.

"Ahh, clever. You'll find that being kidnapped for a lengthy amount of time will make anyone assume you're dead. But, that is another, longer story that I'm not keen on repeating," she said dryly. "Although, what I said before is still true: people can't know I'm here, and my reasons for returning are my own, but I assure you that I mean no harm to the good people here. You know I was a Hufflepuff before: we do not lie or betray easily."

"I am curious however," she said, "if the dementors still haunt the grounds? I remember their presence before I was taken but I have not been able to go and look around since that time." Wysteria of course knew the answer to the question. But she thought identifying a common enemy would help Ethan to open up to her: she needed to know whether he could let him go freely or not after the conversation.

[Ethan Lacroix]

Though he was a naturally trusting person, usually giving others the benefit of the doubt even to the point of naivete, Ethan was unconvinced that his former Prefect had been kidnapped and held hostage for several months, but was now back and sneaking into the library in the middle of the night. How had she even gotten into the castle? And he would think being a captive for so long a time would have a detrimental effect on a person's aesthetics, but that was certainly not the case here. As he recalled, Wysteria had been pretty before, but now it defied comprehension.

In fact, though he'd managed to keep his jaw closed after uttering her name, Ethan continued to stare. Of course it was shocking to see her apparently alive and his mind was still trying to work that out, but he was also trying to figure out how or why she was so unnaturally beautiful, what it was about her. And of course there was a part of him, being a seventeen year old boy, that simply stared because he liked what he saw, regardless of the illogic of it all.

He supposed she was correct about Hufflepuffs in general, and his trusting nature pushed him to believe Wysteria wouldn't be involved in anything devious, even though he hadn't really known her. But then he tended to think that way of everyone, having been shocked and appalled at the news Caira had given him. But even if the Wysteria he'd "known" before wouldn't, there was something different now. Perhaps something was controlling her. The Imperius? Something darker? Ethan didn't like any of the possibilities his mind was conjuring.

Between his inner turmoil and the distracting effect her looks had on him, it yet again took him several long moments to reply to her question, continuing to stare the whole while. "The demen...? Yeah, they're still around. They keep to the Forbidden Forest though. During the day anyway. I haven't been out at night. Curfew and all." He'd answered reflexively, honestly, but now that he thought about it, his concern grew. Why had she mentioned the dementors? Did she have some interest in them? Plans for them perhaps? All the pieces of this puzzle seemed to be creating a very dark image, one in which she was most definitely involved in the dark plots the headmistress had warned him about. Of course Ethan didn't want to tip her off that he was on to her, but deception was not at all something he'd practiced or was naturally talented at. Particularly to her eyes, his increasing discomfort would have been quite obvious.

[Wysteria Edwin]

Wysteria noticed the staring. She did not particularly like it, but could not help find it a bit amusing. A memory from a few years back flew to the forefront of her mind: overhearing a conversation by Dradoon vampires, talking about humans barely tranced who willingly were fed on. She had mentioned this phenomenon to Sam the other day and had encountered it before in a lesser degree when she was only part-vampire. But this human was so taken by her....it appeared easy to---

No. She would NOT do that, she told herself. That was not the vampire she aspired to become and she would not give in to her base instincts. The fangs betrayed her though, popping out briefly but concealed under her mouth as her thoughts turned dark. Retracting them quickly, she clenched her jaw and focused on her Elemental Master. Alessandro's presence often made her feel more at peace and at times the mere thought of him could ease discomfort. This was not always the case, but today she was lucky and her emotions calmed quickly. She relaxed and felt comfortable enough to focus on the young man in front of her without being distracted.

“That's unfortunate about the dementors. Don't you think it's odd how many of them there are? I remember a friend of mine bringing it up to the headmistress once but she said Caira didn't appear concerned. I don't know, part of me just never quite trusted her, but I guess that's just me being paranoid. There was just...something I couldn't put me finger on....” Wysteria took a big risk with this statement. Implying Caira might not be trustworthy was either a huge mistake or a good tactic to focus suspicion on someone else early.

“I don't want to think ill of the headmistress, and I didn't for some time. But there was this incident which was truly puzzling, although I'd have to ask you to not repeat the more delicate details to anyone. If that seems fair to you...” Wysteria gazed at him intently for a quick moment. She wondered if she could trance him to believe the headmistress was not on the Light side...although she did want to see if he would come to that conclusion on his own. She waited for him to give her an answer as to whether or not he would keep the secret he was dangling in front of him.

[Ethan Lacroix]

Numerous alarms rang in Ethan's head as the eerily alluring girl spoke of the headmistress. This more than anything helped solidify in his perception that she was indeed involved in the dark sect Caira had warned him of. First she tried to gauge his feeling toward the dementors, likely her allies, and now she attempted to undermine his loyalty, something he would certainly not allow. Caira had been kind to him, and she was the headmistress. He held no false belief that she was infallible or perfect, but she was clearly kind and just. How could she have been named headmistress if she were not? And was she herself not once a Hufflepuff, years before when she'd been a student? Ethan didn't explicitly rely on a person's house as a way to judge their character, but he knew well enough that the sorting hat certainly had a level of insight when it made its decisions. No, Caira had come to him, asked his aid in protecting the students. What was this girl asking? For him to keep secrets, perhaps to lie, and to remove his trust and loyalty from where he'd placed it.

Thinking back to a series of movies he'd seen as a child (several times actually as he'd been quite a fan), he thought he saw a possible explanation for Wysteria's inescapable and overwhelming beauty as well. The films had been several decades old, but were still considered classics, and one thing they emphasized was "the dark side is seductive."She must have cast some spell before revealing herself that accentuated her face and figure, hoping she could seduce him into joining her cause. If so she would be sorely disappointed. No temptation of flesh could make him betray his loyalty.

Ethan smiled,the expression holding a hint of sadness as he regarded the girl who was now clearly his opponent. Opponent, not enemy. She was still a person, and he hoped she could be redeemed from her misguided ways. He knew she could. Though he didn't particularly like how the situation was shaping up, the solidification of lines in his mind gave him confidence to act as he felt was right and so his nervousness began to fade. Giving a one shouldered shrug in what she'd likely discover to be a typical gesture for him, he responded calmly. "As long as it doesn't endanger anyone, I see no need to break your confidence. There is a point however where confidentiality must take a back seat. If someone were to confess thoughts of murder for instance. I don't want to make you a promise I wouldn't be able to keep." He continued to meet her gaze, but his eyes were less wide and he seemed less distracted by her gorgeousness, rather just accepting it.

[Wysteria Edwin]

Wysteria raised an eyebrow at the smile Ethan gave her, detecting a somewhat patronizing sadness in his expression. He had no idea who she was, how could it be possible for him to pity her? Although...his face twitched less and his heart rate slowed down just a hair. She pondered what this could mean as he gave her the go-ahead to tell her story. The comment about murder made her chuckle internally, but she knew how to answer this truthfully while calming his fears.

"I have never killed a human," she said as her tone took on a steadier pitch, "and my morals will never allow me to harm the innocent, so in regards to that you need not worry about that in any story I tell you." She swung herself gracefully off the desk and began pacing with her arms crossed, remembering that this was a movement she sometimes did as a human when relaying sensitive information. Her goal was to appear as human as possible to him in the hopes that if he suspected something he would have little grounds on which to form a theory. But while she paced she had to remind herself: slow, steady movements. If she let her mind focus entirely on the story at hand she might go quicker...inhumanly quicker and Ethan would surely notice that.

"A while ago a friend of mine went missing," she said, glancing at him as often as the floor because it was hard to recall every detail nowadays, and staring at something neutral like the floor made it easier to remember. "My friends and I were very worried and Caira voiced her concerns as well. She called me into her office, even, under the pretense that she was interested in finding my friend. We were all very worried," she said, her mind flashing to the time of D'rorah's absence, which although she only got a few phrases or images, she still remembered the deep uncertainty the Lightfighters felt during that time. "But thankfully, our friend was recovered, but badly injured and needing to stay in the hospital for quite some time."

"It was obvious our friend had been tortured," she said, a touch of sadness in her voice as she remembered D'rorah's appearance upon returning from the shadow realm. "Caira did take her to the hospital wing, but once we saw our friend again she seemed to remember things a bit differently than before. Somehow she thought that some of those who rescued her had been the torturers and it took a while for her real memories to resurface but..." she took a deep breath (a somewhat involuntary response since she often breathed out of habit) and looked back at Ethan. She cocked her head slightly, just now realizing how his demeanor had changed with that strange sad smile she saw a few minutes earlier. He was more certain of himself, as if he had decided something internally and now acted on that guidance. Wondering for a brief moment what that might be, Wyst continued on with her story.

"But that's not the most disturbing part. We discovered our headmistress was the one who planted those false ideas in her head. Why would she do that? I know you are more inclined to believe Caira than someone you barely know but think...how well do you really know her? She's very kind and so charismatic it's easy to forget that we as students know very little about her. She was appointed just this year, but why? Where did she come from? And why is it that all these suspicious occurrences began the moment she stepped into that office? That's one hell of a coincidence don't you think?"

Wysteria let her question hang in the air for several seconds, hoping Ethan would truly think about what she was saying, open his mind up for a mere moment so she could help him understand...and hopefully get some info from him. If all else failed she would trance him or drag him off unconscious to see D'rorah....who would not be very happy with her, but there it is.

"Look, I know I sound paranoid, but I remember, being in your position, that she was very interested in who I consorted with. A bit odd for a professor, wondering about the social lives of students. I'm certain she is still carrying on in this way, is she not?" Wysteria did not know the answer, but appearing as if she already might was more likely to garner a response that outright asking that particular question.

[Ethan Lacroix]

Ethan noted two things about the words Wysteria had likely meant as a reassurance. First, she said she'd never killed a human. There were other creatures though whose death would warrant just as much sorrow. Elves, centaurs, and likely a few others. He didn't immediately infer that she had gone about wholesale slaughtering these other sentient beings, but the distinction was there. Secondly, the word "innocent" seemed to have as many separate definitions as there were people who spoke them. At the moment, he didn't place an overwhelming amount of faith in her definition.

He gave a little start when she suddenly and fluidly left the table and began pacing, but quickly recovered his neutral stance. Ethan did not overtly fear her, though he didn't put it past her to end him, but if he had indeed discovered something of the darkness he'd been warned of and was captured or killed before he could relay the information to Caira, then many others could suffer for it. Thus as Wysteria paced, he began taking quick glances about when he thought she wasn't looking at him. The table was directly behind him, but once he was clear of that there was but a single bookshelf he'd have to circumvent to reach the exit. He didn't yet plan on making a break for it, but he wanted to be ready.

The wooden platform came to just below his hips. It would be possible to hold the edge and swing his legs under, letting the momentum take the rest of his body as well, but it would mean careening into the legs of the chairs on the other side. Better he thought to go over. He could easily vault onto the thing and a single running step would have him at the far end. He could jump off then and quickly move around the bookshelf. Running his eyes over the girl's pacing form, he tried to gauge her level of athleticism. His had improved since he'd started his daily fencing practice again, but it had suffered over the winter months from his inability to swim in the frigid lake. Still, he had longer legs and would make the first move, so his odds of escape seemed good.

Listening to her story, he of course noticed her lack of names. That didn't bother him much, but the vagueness of certain portions surely did. Her friend was "recovered?" What exactly did that mean? Had they rescued her friend? From where? How? And she said they had discovered the headmistress was behind the supposed memory alteration, but how had they managed that? There were many questions, many holes, in the tale. Perhaps though it was crafted from the truth. Perhaps Caira had rescued the girl from Wysteria and her friends and it had been they who altered her memory. Ethan had nothing to go on so far but words, and it wasn't enough. He hated not trusting people, but under the circumstances he didn't see how he possibly could trust the conundrum speaking to him now. He still suspected her of somehow enhancing her looks in the hopes it would sway him. He didn't know how else to explain it. Blinking, he realized he'd started staring again.

Inwardly Ethan frowned at the questions she posed for him. They were... legitimate, and blind faith wasn't something he'd ever been a fan of. Caira, while he respected her, was not above reproach. Still, he couldn't confess the seeds of doubt Wysteria had just planted. They could very well be nothing more than a ploy, and if so he would not let it work. To her final question, he wasn't sure how to answer. Caira hadn't seemed much interested in the company he kept other than warning him to keep his eyes open and not to fall victim to lies. She had also asked him to keep their meeting private, so he didn't feel he could even deny Wysteria's claim without breaking that trust. Besides that, he had caught some useful leads despite the lack of details in the story he'd been told. Wysteria's friend was female, and had been taken to the hospital wing by the headmistress. If he could get access to the nurse' records, he could at least narrow down who she was talking about. She had inadvertently given him some useful information. He didn't plan on returning the favor.

Again lifting a single shoulder, Ethan refrained from answering that last question, speaking instead on other things. "I'll consider what you've said Wysteria, but you are asking for quite a hefty chunk of faith. There's much about you and your explanations that doesn't make sense, and I don't yet see how knowledge of your presence could be a threat to anyone, unless you represent that threat yourself. What details am I forbidden to repeat? Your tale didn't really hold many details, delicate or otherwise. And you still haven't answered my question; what are you doing here?" His tone was calm and even. He was holding back any judgmental undertones, trying to remain open-minded. The table behind him was still supporting him. He'd been half sitting, half leaning on it with his hands lightly gripping the edge on either side of his hips. It was a relatively relaxed posture, but also kept him ready to quickly pivot on one hand and spring onto the table to make his getaway.

[Wysteria Edwin]

Caira really has dug her claws in deep with this one. I'm less suspect he's one of her men just because he seems so determined to prove it, she thought raising an eyebrow at Ethan's latest series of questions. While his tone was not accusatory she did feel a bit like she was being interrogated, which was a laughable concept to her. If Ethan had some prior knowledge of her nature and was trained in how to combat vampires she might consider him worthy of holding a bit of power in this situation. But the truth remained that at any moment she could chose to snap him neck, bite him, or knock him out cold within a second. The only violent recourse she kept as a possibility was the last option, since if he proved completely stubborn she would have no choice but to erase their encounter from his mind. Beyond that, she wasn't entirely convinced he would keep his word anyway.

And what if his loyalties were to the mage? Well, the only real danger was that she revealed herself. Wyst was not entirely sure that her reemergence would be cause for concern on Yang's side. While she did learn a great deal about shadow vampires, that knowledge only represented a threat if Yang thought the rest of the Lightfighters unaware of the plan. Still, she was in the belly of the beast so to speak for many months and gathered a good deal of information about the shadow vampires and where the mage had formed alliances. Her cousin would also be in trouble, but he knew that the minute he helped her escape and he certainly would have tried to position himself far away from the Dradoons and the mage's allies afterward. Wysteria needed to make a decision about how much was necessary to tell Ethan, and whether or not she was sure of his loyalty. But she would only be certain of that if he actually said something more personal. Wyst could not sense any real fear and with his other expressions she decided that he was mostly curious, but that could still mean his moral grounds were shaky. She did not sense malicious excitement when he recognized her...which would have been a huge clue as to his loyalty. But she remained unsure.

"You ask a lot of questions for someone who has not even introduced himself properly to me. How am I to trust you if I don't even know your name?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "But, I am getting tired of your unshakable faith in the wrong people so I'll answer you. First off, either you have no idea how dangerous Caira is or you do and are waiting for me to leave so you can run off and tell her I'm back. If you let Caira know you are aware of my story about her little trick she'll either charm you back into her loyalties or she'll erase your memory once you've revealed it all and toss you aside like a rag doll.

"You see, when I was kidnapped the people holding me did not want me to leave. I escaped somewhat unharmed, but this came at a price: my cousin aided my escape and if it is known that I'm alive he will be hunted down. Caira will know that people to inform and I do not want that to happen."

The last sentence was the only change in tone for her, since the safety of her cousin Korin was vital to her. Wyst sighed, weighing the pros and cons of revealing whatever she could to convince him. If he was a spy he would already know this information, after all, so there was no harm to be done. She might as well try...

"Caira is evil, young man, pure and simple. If I had a pensieve you might believe me but...we are not so lucky. She is not the bigger problem, however, since it might surprise you to know that we are in a war. A very secret, dangerous war that has few allies on the Light side, which is were I stand whether you believe or not. You seem very...hell-bent," she said for irony, smirking a fraction at the word, "on finding out who's telling the truth and who is right or wrong. While this is noble, you must be careful of where you step. Caira will not reveal herself to you until after it may be too late, and then you will have known all along that I was right. I don't want that to happen.

"The dementors are part of a larger group of dark creatures from something called the shadow realm. Their leader Yang and her shadow mage are bent on the destruction of this entire world. I personally do not want them to succeed, but you make think otherwise. If so, be my guest and make Caira your best friend and see how long it takes before she teaches you the fine points of torturing others," Wyst said darkly, her lip curling in a disgusted sneer. She had stopped her pacing altogether at that point in time and simply stared directly at Ethan for a few seconds before walking back over to her table and sitting atop it once again.

"There," she said, throwing her arms out in a gesture of finality, "I've told you something very few people know and none without reason for this knowledge. So, you have a choice to make about who you are going to believe. I'd like to count on you for support, but I'm telling you nothing more until I get at least one of my questions answered about you and what Caira's been up to," she said, crossing her legs in front of her and gesturing politely for him to speak his mind on the matter.

I should just knock him out and pray D'rorah won't yell too loudly. Honestly, this kid's thicker than dragon skin if he won't listen to reason and I'd rather him on the other side if that's true anyway, she thought as she picked at a loose hem, waiting for him to get over his shock and speak to her.

[Ethan Lacroix]

It came as no surprise when his last question, which was the second time he asked it, was still responded to with yet another question. Her retort did however have him running back over the conversation in his head. It did surprise him that she was right, he'd not introduced himself at all. Typically he made a point of doing so early on; it was just polite. Little about this exchange had been conventional though, so he didn't berate himself too severely for it. Ethan also shared Wysteria's growing exasperation, feeling like they were somewhat running circles about each other and hadn't really accomplished anything. Well, she had succeeded in instilling some small doubt in him, but he hardly considered that a good thing.

He continued to half-sit, listening to her words and trying to keep the skepticism from his features. The doubt he felt about what side he was really on made him want to emphasize his doubt in what Wysteria was now saying, but the more mature side of him recognized that as stubborn rebelliousness and so resisted the urge. Besides, it would have been disrespectful. The neutral mask couldn't stand however as she began speaking of her cousin and the danger he would be in if she was discovered. Instead it gave way to the not uncommon look of sincere concern that emerged whenever he was listening to someone speak of their pain. More often than not is was sympathy for their struggles and a bit of empathy as well. This he connected more keenly with. Ethan knew something of the loss of family.

The concerned grimace shifted into a frown of disagreement when she again spoke on Caira, declaring the woman to be evil. Ethan almost shook his head at that. He'd paid enough attention to other people to have developed the belief that everyone had the capacity for good and evil and at times leaned either way. Some leaned more often and more heavily in one direction or the other, but he'd never label anyone as good or evil. People were people.

Again, despite her apparent sincerity, he had difficulty believing that Caira would turn on him. It seemed to clash heavily with everything he knew about her. Which, on the other hand, was admittedly not much. That inner debate faded to the background however as Wysteria continued, speaking on Yang and the Shadow Mage and the larger war. Ethan's brow furrowed deeply as he tried to make sense of it all. Though he at first met her leveled gaze, he found looking her in the face too distracting for him to reason through all that she'd said, and his eyes quickly fell to the floor.

Vaguely aware that she had moved a bit farther from him and was again sitting, he considered that he likely wouldn't have a more opportune moment to escape. She would have to get back off the table (though she'd already demonstrated that doing so smoothly was no challenge and for a moment he wondered if she was a dancer, or more likely a martial artist) and cross a few extra feet before she got to where he was, and by that time he'd have moved farther away, perhaps even already off the far side of his table. Still, whether from shock or simply the conclusion that fleeing was no longer his most prudent course of action, Ethan didn't move. His gaze remained at a downward angle, though he'd closed his eyes. Slow, deep inhalations expanded his chest and shoulders as he tried to focus on calming himself and figuring out what to do now, what to believe.

Before any solid conclusion had been reached, he looked up, the tiniest amused grin shaping itself on his lips. "My name's Ethan." On a whim, he'd offered that and then fallen silent, waiting a few seconds before speaking again. He had answered one of her questions, and was now acting as if he expected her to tell him more. In fact he didn't expect her to be at all satisfied, but humor was his way of breaking tension, and they certainly had developed an abundance of that between them.

Taking a final deep breath and sighing, his smile faded as his tone grew serious. "Wysteria, try and see this from my perspective. This is my sixth year here, and yes, some very strange things have been happening this year. But I was raised a muggle. Until I got here I had no idea any of this existed. Magic, unicorns, dragons, vampires. It was all just stories before. Yes this year is weirder than the previous ones, but I'd hardly call any of my years here uneventful. I don't really know what has precedent and what doesn't.

"A month ago I was just trying to make my way through the end of my second to last year of school, trying to figure out what classes to take next year, wondering what kind of career I wanted to pursue, while also trying to be there for anyone who needed me, which wasn't really anyone, truth be told. Not anyone here anyway. Then I get made Prefect. Suddenly I have the ability to protect the meeker students from the... abrasive ones without having to draw my wand. I can help ensure the safety of the children here. I can even patrol outside after curfew to make sure no overeager adventurers are foolishly trying to challenge a dementor. Good deal. But then I'm told that I also have to be Caira's inquisitor, that there are some students who have aligned with the dementors and whatever dark power drives them and looking to just about destroy the school."

He paused and sighed again, gazing at her passively for a moment. Then another moment. Ethan shook his head and blinked, frowning at how that kept happening. "And now here I am. You're convincing, but either you're a very good liar, or Caira is. She was all politeness and concern. One or two things you've said could be taken as threats. She's the headmistress and invited me to her office to talk. You're a girl who's been hiding the fact that she's alive and I've caught you sneaking about the library in the middle of the night. And on top of it all something about you is off, something's..." Again Ethan paused, trying to figure out exactly what he was trying to say. His stared intently at her a moment, trying once more to make sense of her appearance. Finally he just shook his head. "Different. You don't look like you did before, and it certainly isn't a change that would indicate being held captive and abused for months. Can you see how I may not immediately take your words for truth and cast myself at your feet to beg forgiveness for choosing the wrong side? Please tell me that makes at least some sense to you."

Whatever he said or she believed about his convictions, he had confessed his meeting with Caira. True, it had been something she'd clearly assumed already, but he'd now confirmed it, breaking his promise to the woman. That alone told him that he put more stock in all that he'd just heard than he was admitting, even to himself. Ethan didn't like breaking promises. There were few things he hated more in fact. Perhaps it had been necessary, justified. Regardless, he'd not be happy with himself come morning, however this played out.

[Wysteria Edwin]

Ethan sounds like such an old man's name, Wysteria could not help thinking, but she restrained herself from any humerous expression as the young man was clearly trying to wrestle some serious moral dilemmas. She was rewarded for her honesty, however, as Ethan finally revealed some relevant details about himself and Caira: that he was muggle born and part of an inquisitorial squad made by the headmistress. The latter bit of info was of great interest to Wyst, since Caira seemed to be stepping up her recruiting techniques.

In the next few moments, however, Wysteria had a decision to make: whether or not she would allow Ethan to leave with his memory intact. This was of course tied to how much she could trust him to keep his word about not revealing her presence to Caira. She was no longer concerned about his loyalties at present, since Wyst was almost certain he was not aligned with the mage. At some point in the conversation she would have sensed some deceit, lie, or treachery in his heart beat, smell, or expression...unless he was better than Zane at hiding his feelings. It was true, Wyst did not read Zane as well as the others. His expressions were always consistent with what he said, which was not always the case even with the best of humans. At times something seemed...off. But Wyst knew she could attribute this to her own misgivings about Zee, but she did not dismiss those feelings of suspicion entirely.

Wyst had to concede that the young man had a point, and that no matter what she told the boy he had no more reason to believe her than anyone else. She was not sure how to address his concerns that she did not look like she'd been held captive for a long period of time and tortured. The idea of showing him one of her scars crossed her mind...but if shown in the right light the scars looked odd, as if alive. This was mostly because the only was to scar a vampire with another vampire and through the poison in their saliva that aides in draining blood out of a wound. These wounds can be healed, but not if kept infected like hers were with silver, so in soft light they gently shined from the embedded silver.

"It's true that I cannot prove anything right now, but I sincerely hope you discover the truth before you are...let's just say surprised," Wysteria said, her eyes focusing unfixed at a spot at the back of the room. Her mind went through all the possible ways Caira could pull information from him: threats, torture, and possibly veritaserum, although Wyst was unsure if the potions mistress would give any to Caira. the headmistress would most likely resort to charm and assuring smiles to get her info at first. This was problematic, since if Ethan revealed anything well...Wysteria would not only be in danger but her cousin as well.

"I see that this is a difficult situation," she said, turning her attention back to Ethan, "but I think we can come to some understanding. I know it appears very suspicious that I'm in the library alone at night, but I'm being completely honest in that I simply came here to look up information. I'm hiding in the castle because Hogwarts is the safest place for me right now. And whatever you believe about who's lying and who's telling the truth, I will tell you this: the last headmistress who instigated an inquisitorial squad was Dolores Umbridge. I'm not sure how much you know about wizarding history, but Caira is no more beneficial to the students than that woman." Wysteria knew this bit of information by sheer luck: she had been reading interviews with Harry Potter because of his knowledge of the Elder wand and came across an early one from the Quibbler from his fifth year.

"I'm wondering if there's anything I can do to help you to trust in what I'm telling you," she said, a bit as an aside to herself. "All I can tell you in that two lives will be in grave danger if you tell Caira about my presence. Is there any way I can assure you of my honesty so you will keep my presence unknown please let me know," Wysteria said, concern creeping into her voice. She realized there would be little way to keep him from doubting her words once they parted ways. Her concern mostly focused on her cousin Korin, since he did not have the protection of the Lightfighters at his disposal.

"In terms of my appearance, please understand I'm not jumping at the chance to show you my injuries. Their placement requires me to know you a little better." Wyst felt guilty that he might interpret that as rape, but her statement was true since she had been bitten on her thigh. But she was hopeful it would drop the discussion so she would not have to reveal herself to him. Vampires do not instill confidence in humans, and that was especially true now with the war.