Voice-testing like woah.

[seeked]

Actually? I think I rather liked being kept in the back of your mind and completely ignored. It was a nice change.

Let's think about it this way. You and I both know you don't have time to do anything with me, and honestly, I'm not complaining. All I'm saying is that just because you're doing an entire re-read of the series doesn't mean you have to go and start obsessing over icons and canon points and layouts and--

...you're not even listening to me, are you?

Comments

[quicktoanger]

"Hey. How many times do I have to say I wasn't blaming you?"

[seeked]

Right. Look, I'm sorry that all of this has happened to you, but I can't do anything about it.

[quicktoanger]

... I felt like hitting my head against something.

"I understand that. Look, I wasn't serious about wanting to kill you, kid, I was half-kidding."

[seeked]

Half-kidding. Look, I have a lot of people out there that are completely serious about wanting to kill me. I don't exactly find it funny.

[quicktoanger]

"... Yeah, yeah, I know, Dark Lord Volderwhatsit. Look, kid, if the worst I had to worry about was a single really evil wizard and his cronies, I'd be in great shape right now."

[seeked]

Voldemort. [If you're going to say his name, say it correctly 8|] Really. Alright, go on then. Tell me about the evils in your world. [Not because it's a contest, but because Harry's nosy and genuinely wants to know...and because he's annoyed.]

[quicktoanger]

Aw, hell, I was starting to feel bad, now.

"Alright. Well. All told, I've got high-ranking vampires from three different vampire courts, an entire circle of dark wizards, two Faerie Queens, a host of Fallen Angels, and a Wyldfae so powerful he's been revered as a deity all out for my blood."

[seeked]

[...oh. Oh okay, that's a bit disconcerting.] What's a Wyldfae?

[quicktoanger]

"Ah. The Fae are as a rule a rather diverse bunch, but the majority of them are alined with one of two courts, the Summer Court or the Winter Court- ruled by those Queens I mentioned. However, even if you take away the majority, there's still a pretty freakin' big minority that are unaligned with either court. They're the Wyldfae. The one who hates me is supposed to be as powerful as the Queens themselves, but he's not big on politics."

[seeked]

What did you do to make them angry?

[quicktoanger]

"... You know how I greeted you when I first saw you?"

[seeked]

Er, yes?

[quicktoanger]

"Let's pretend for the sake of argument it wasn't out of the ordinary for me?"

[seeked]

Making death threats isn't out of the ordinary. Really. I never would have guessed that would make people angry.

[quicktoanger]

"It was not a death threat! It was just a sort of subtle insinuation.

Or. Well. Not subtle. But still."

[seeked]

[Yeah, Harry, about as subtle as a rampant blind dragon.]

So why do it?

[quicktoanger]

"I'm not large on tact. In fairness, I don't typically come at everybody like that, only the ones who annoy me for whatever reason."

I shrugged.

"Those people all annoyed me. Well, not the Wyldfae. Him I just had to distract to save a bunch of people. He didn't like it."

[seeked]

[Oddly enough? He can respect that. He can really respect that, actually. Him and his damn saving people complex.]

How long have you been fighting these people?

[quicktoanger]

"Ever since I found out about them. I was around your age, actually. About twenty years, give or take?"

No. The story was a little more significant.

"I was seventeen. Me, and Elaine, we were orphans. Both too old for most people to adopt, past that 'age,' but a man named Justin DuMorne adopted us. Took us in, and taught us about the magic. We both had it, and he taught us to use it. Taught us control, taught us everything."

It was an old ache, that flared again as I spoke.

"She and I were inseperable, I thought. I thought the three of us were like a family, but... Justin betrayed us. He warped her mind, bent her to his will, and then he made her hold me down while he did the same thing to me. It was only by luck that I managed to escape, but he... sent something after me. Something... ancient. Eldritch. He Who Walks Behind. A being from beyond the walls that bind our reality. He summoned it and sent it after me, and again I managed to escape with nothing but luck."

And a few deals I'd come to regret later.

"I went back to try to save Elaine, and Justin and I fought. In the end, I managed to beat him. Nothing but luck, again. He'd broken two laws of magic that day; he'd meddled with our minds, and he'd summoned beyond the outer gates, but he died in the battle, so he was never held accountable."

I chuckled, perhaps a bit bitterly.

"Me, on the other hand, I'd violated the First Law. Killed with magic. And the White Council of Wizards nearly executed me for it. The funny part? Justin never even told me there was a White Council, much less the laws that rule it.

I survived because another wizard agreed to teach me, to be my mentor. To keep me from breaking the law again, on pain of my death and his both. I spent a few years being taught by him, but after that, I moved to Chicago, and that's when I started fighting these things. So, if that first story counts? I was 17. Otherwise, I was in my early twenties."

[seeked]

[To his credit, he's very patiently listening and waiting while Harry tells him his story, a bit intrigued by some of the similarities. Both orphans, both taken in to learn magic, but then the similarities stop a bit.]

And you're going to keep fighting until it's all over, aren't you?

[quicktoanger]

"It's never over, kid. I'm gonna keep fighting until they bury me."

[seeked]

What about after that?

[quicktoanger]

"After that, somebody else takes over. How it always goes. There's always good people, and they're always gonna do their best. I'm just gonna make sure they've got something to work with before I go."

I grinned.

"It's not like I don't have time. Wizards live a couple centuries, where I'm from. You can do a lot with that."

[seeked]

That's all I wanted to hear, really.

Tell me more about the wizards where you're from.

[quicktoanger]

"Well. I want to say they're wise and powerful sages who keep the forces of darkness in check for the sake of normal folks."

I sighed.

"But, mostly they're a bunch of crusty old geezers who think they know everything when in fact they know just enough to screw everybody. And the overwhelming majority are self-serving political hacks."