[Forest] Midnight Wanderings

[vampireangel]

Erika McCallister walked silently through the Forbidden Forest, honey-gold eyes seeing everything within five hundred yards, her sharp ears picked up every sound within a one mile radius. Every snap of every twig, the rustle of every leaf, the call of every animal, and the voice of every human that had wandered into the Forbidden Forest. Stepping silently through the trees, the young vampire went deeper and deeper into the ancient forest, soon she wandered upon a small encampment. The rogues! she thought to herself, the camp was filled with the sounds bantering and laughter. Erika stepped forward until she was hidden within some bushes at the edge of the camp. Suddenly, someone turned her way, and stifling a gasp, the young girl stepped back...

[Gabriella De Conti]

Gabriella smiled and laughed with the rest of the Rogues; most forgetting their anti-social tendencies in favor of drinking and merry-making. And of course, it was well merited. But Gabriella had grown tiresome of the rookies reveling in their first battle; ignoring the losses that had come with it. She took off to the side of the encampment deep in thought, wondering just how long they could survive.

The Rogues had just scraped themselves away from a battle that had spelled doom for them and their beliefs but they had survived. And for brief moment Gabriella let herself hope She hoped for an end to the bloodshed. She hoped that she would some day not be hunted. She hoped to live.

And then she heard it; the sound of brief footsteps approaching the camp. There was only one; Gabriella smiled. Few could match her skill and even fewer surpassed it. She pulled out her wand and shoved it in the assailants face and she was surprised to see a young girl.

"Tell me, what foolish thought brought you so close to our encampment?" she said. "Do you not know the dangers of these woods?"

[vampireangel]

Erika stumbled back in shock, then gathering her resolve stepped forward, honey eyes glowing. "No foolish thought prompted me to come here. And I am well aware of the dangers of this forest. For I am one of them." She grinned, flashing her dagger-like fangs. "I am Erika. Erika McCallister. You must be Gabriella De Conti?"

[Gabriella De Conti]

Gabriella pocketed her wand and unconsciously rubbed her tongue over her own teeth. "Nice teeth you have there Erika McCallister." She said bowing her head. "You're a young vampire aren't you."

Her eyes flicked around her surroundings; she never felt safe outside the Rogue halls. The danger of attack, especially one made against her, was always great and she had always been a paranoid individual. "I am Gabriella De Conti; do you seek me or are just familiar with the want adds?

[vampireangel]

Erika smiled again, this time without showing her fangs, she didn't want to freak out the woman too much! "Yes, I am a vampire." She shrugged, "Just recognised you from the posters." she sighed, "And yes, I was seeking out the Rogue encampent. I want to talk to you."

[Gabriella De Conti]

"Well most unfortunately you found us," she said frowning. "And I truly mean that in the best sense." If a young girl, vampire or not, could find their encampment she doubted it would take much longer before the ministry elite found them. She ran her fingers through her hair and glanced back at her comrades who were enjoying themselves. They could not be destroyed; not while she still lived. They had found homes and friends with each other; the Rogues, the loners, the outcasts had finally found a sense of appartenance. No, they could not be defeated.

"So why do you seek us?" she inquired as she pulled out her wand once more and circled around the young vampire glancing around her surroundings as she did so. The last she needed was an ambush. "Doubtless there is some good story to accompany your reasons."

[Prof Octavious Everritt]

His arrival at the encampent put them up in a torrade of cheers and drinking, obviously a battle victory was at hand as well. His delivery of food, greater than usual, prompted such a feast that no scrap was wasted. Addis knew that several of the Rogues were growing closer and into a family, depending upon each other and now trusting each other with their lives. Addis was on the outskirts of such trust but he still respected each Rogue.

He had drank several glasses of firewhisky before seeing Gabriella leave the encampment. He raised his eyebrow as a smile appeared on his face. He walked past several drunken rogues all swaying on a log, raising their glasses and merrily singing a drunken song of unknown words, most likely just random sounds coming from their mouths.

His eyes never left the entry gate from the camp, seeing Gabriella vanish into the darkness after it. He had to talk to her about one thing that egged at the back of his mind every time he saw her, the one thing that he felt frightened of, her bloodlust for battle. Though as he followed her he soon heard sounds and his ears pricked at the voices soon heard. Both female, one Gabriella's.

Seeing no point in trying to hide himself, Addis still walked quietly, hearing the beginning conversation between an obvious student and Gabriella.

'Leave the poor girl alone.' Addis said, his eyes looking upon the student. He had heard rumours of another vampire student in the school, he looked at her as a small smile appeared on his face, though his eyes darted away quickly to focus on his fellow Rogue once more. 'She may want to join us once the school year is finished. I know the Rookies aren't your favourite, but she looks like she has skill.'

[Gabriella De Conti]

Gabriella pocketed her wand once more and stopped moving around; satisfied that the young vampire had not been followed.

"I do not doubt that she has the skill," said Gabriella slowly as she turned around to face Addis. "It is doubtless that she is stronger than I," she said and turned to smile at Erika. "And that McCallister is saying a lot for I boast a great a many strengths."

She closed her eyes and glanced once more at the base. "I have not forgotten Addis. I have not forgotten what is was like before we were united us Rogues. I remember the constant loneliness; the constant fear; the constant tracking. For years they hunted us down like wolves and the only thing that kept us alive was our constant movement. It is no longer the same these days.

"Every day further Rogues join us and everyday we become stronger. To say that I trust most of them would be folly and certainly. But I admire all of them as all of them have fought and bled and given their lives for our cause.

"Though I have grown bitter in my few short years of life; my days here have been the happiest since I left Hogwarts. Yes, I do not trust most of the men and woman here but I would give my life for every one of them and I would not see us be betrayed by arrogance and folly." She said and took a deep breath.

"When Erika is graduated I invite her to join with all my heart and the fact that she is a rookie is not what bothers me, however unusual that is," she said smirking slightly. "It bothers me that she found her way here with seemingly little difficulty and though it is doubtless her superior senses aided her...how long do you think it will be before others follow in her footsteps. Before those not so friendly to our cause find this sanctuary.

"The forest is no longer feared as it should be and every day people delve deeper. Before long they will find us, trap us, and all that we have bled and died for will be lost. There are many fools in the ministry these days but there is also a lot of cunning and strength. And have you seen Greenwich! he is the best tracker to have arisen in decades. We need to secure this area; no matter what difficulties may arise from it." She said slowly, careful to keep her voice low. There was no need to disrupt the festivities.

((so...I've been reading a lot of speeches and Lord of the Rings lately...))

[Prof Octavious Everritt]

(Nothing wrong with reading speeches and watching Lord of the Rings ;D)

Addis clapped, applauding Gabriella on her speech. He noticed the bitterness in her and the drive she held for the cause. With a simple smile, he crossed his arms and leant against the nearest tree.

'She is more than welcome to join us, once she has graduated, as well as these... aided senses, she will be a good addition to the Rogues.' Addis commented. 'Her ability to find our camp is one that suggests vampirism for only a vampire with a very keen sense of smell would find the Rogue Encampment, considering most of us travel through the branches of these old, yet sturdy trees.' He slapped a trunk, unfolding one arm and gently wacking the tree.

'So say you, Erika, will you keep quiet about our position?' Addis asked now, sternly, though keeping his warm smile. 'We do have sources within the Professor's.'

[vampireangel]

Erika nodded, honey gold eyes glittering with determination. "Yes, I will keep your location secret." she promised, she took a deep breath, "However, there is a way I can help you while I'm still in school." she paused, "I can be a spy for the rogues." she continued. "By being a student, I can go to a ministry official, and ask to be an apprentice, I'll tell them that I wish to join the ministry when I'm older." another deep breath, "Then I can come back here and report what I've learned." she looked them in the eyes, "By having a spy, the rogues will have a great advantage over the ministry." She flashed a grin, "Oh, and you can call me Rikki."

[Gabriella De Conti]

"It will be long before the ministry deems you trustworthy enough to give you information that would help us," said Gabriella thoughtfully; thinking that Erika would be of much more use in a battle. "However if that is what you wish and it could be helpful certainly. Try to speak to the hit-witch Quinn Locksley and become her apprentice; she is shrewd and cunning. She, at the least, won't trust you because you're a rookie as opposed to your unique abilities so to speak. Watch out for her though, she is not a merciful woman and is one of the best duelers in the ministry."

She turned her attention then to Octavious and glared at him. "Has the alcohol dumbed your senses so?! These trees are old and wise but even they can only protect us for so long. I realize that the consequences of using magic to protect our base could be catastrophic but what are our other options?" she said looking at him in the eyes. "Are we to sit here waiting like lambs to the slaughter?

"And I'm glad you're happy to keep our secret Rikki," she said with a smile. "Know that if you betray us nothing will keep us from testing your immortality." She said with a slight laugh. "But I doubt we shall have to worry about that."

[vampireangel]

Erika merely smiled, "That's where my abilities come in handy. What they don't tell me, I can learn from listening to their conversations." Her eyes darted around, "The ministry has gotten a bit more arrogant than usual as of late. A few of them have made the mistake of talking about their plans in public areas. I have a friend, Andie, she works at the Three Broomsticks. According to her, ministry officials often stop in for a drink and to discuss ministry business. I can have her listen in on their conversations- subtley of course-, tell me what she heard, and I can come back here and report what I've learned."

[Cessily Monroe]

{ I had plans of making Cess a rogue wizard as well, but I haven't been on much until now, so.. I'm in. By the way, she'll appear 17 forever, but in reality shes graduated Hogwarts. }

"And make mistakes they did indeed." Came a haunting voice from the shadows, as another vampire graced the scene with her inhuman elegance. She had spoken with the.. Younger brother, she believed, of one of the rogues. { Cant remember who. >_>; } He was going to set up a meeting for her with them, but they never got around to it. Now she was here for that reason alone, having tracked 'Rikki' here. Watching from afar, picking up every precious word, the woman then decided to make her presence known.

Parting her lips in a calm, yet unnaturally cold smile, the former Ravenclaw flashed her fangs, knowing at least one of them would catch the light and glitter dangerously. "Forgive my intrusion." She murmured, bowing her head for a moment, "But I couldn't help overhearing.." Grinning, she corrected herself, "In truth, I came to request to join you." Well that was blunt. But you couldn't blame her, she didn't like to play around when she wasn't hungry. Which wasn't at its all-time high, seeing as the vampire had satisfied her hunger with an.. Animal. Yeah, thats it. An animal. Her talents were more reserved for reconnaissance, and other assassin-like areas. They would benefit from this agreement, and unlike Erika, Cessily wasn't a rookie anymore. She was free as a bird, adult status and all.

Crossing her arms casually over her chest, she soaked up her surroundings, witches and wizards included. Was the male one.. Drunk? Why, she could smell it from her former hiding place. With her wand thoughtfully tucked in the long sleeve of her dark, beautiful dress, Cessily watched them carefully, wondering how they would react. Would she end up joining them, finally? She couldn't possibly become a teacher at Hogwarts, after nearly draining two of their students dry last term. Heh, whoops.[/color]

[vampireangel]

Erika turned at the sound of a voice, she raised an eybrow, and gave Cessily a calm, yet cool smile. "Cessily." She said, by way of greeting. She turned back to Gabriella and the other man -she had yet to learn his name-, "So, what do you say? are you willing to accept my services as a spy?"