Of Threasholds Great and Small
14th of February 2007 A.D.
One thing that's nice about being surrounded by all these neon-colored drinks, meant to be experienced more with the eyes than on the tongue is that no one bats an eye at a bottle of dark blue Oathwine from the cultivated ringside parts of Sanctuary, so called because it would be unwise to consume it with anyone not oath-sworn. Made from the stinging heads of the innocuously named blue ribbon-flower that feeds in a manner similar to sea anemones improperly prepared Oathwine is universally poisonous on a timeline from one to seven days, putting it beyond the reach of most common short term divination while also magically decaying to almost nothing in the moment of death.
So maybe I shouldn't have grabbed the most expensive bottle in the palace, but I did so here we are.
The cufflinks on the other hand are hand-made elf-made technically, which sort of kind of makes them a late Christmas present, which you also point out to much amusement, though admittedly not as much as Harry's gift. Sure it's a Twilight novelty mug with Robert Paterson's Edward looking very serious on one side proclaiming 'hang on spider-monkey', but it's the quote from Bella on the other side that seals it: 'I'm Switzerland, okay!'
"I
do hope I don't have to fight any werewolves for you," a soft voice cuts in from behind you. "I rather like the Alphas and it would be a shame if anything happened to them." You turn to see a girl with silver hair a few years older than you going for a kind of black and white look between the skirt and turtleneck and the gloves that makes it clear she owns it, no matter how she came to bear the mark. Harry probably thinks that play-threat is just cute but if you're any kind of judge she's the kind of girl who has a journal
just for the elaborate revenge fantasies, which is just as well hanging on with a vampire. Someone as sweet and demure as she presents at first glance would have long since been devoured by the White Court, maybe literally.
That's not to say the smile isn't genuine when she greets each of you in turn. She's very good at being a hostess, which is to say looking interested without asking for any truly interesting information, the kind that might be secret. One can well imagine how good she is at gathering information by implication and innuendo and you are not, it seems, the only one who noticed. She works with Lara Raith, and she has a message.
"I feel a bit weird bringing this up at a party but... I'm not sure when else I'll see you and..."
"Don't worry we can take it," Harry hurries to reassure her with a smile and a self-deprecating swagger.
"It's for Molly and... Michael, you would be the most interested I guess. Someone's making a move against the Catholic Church, the parts of it that are in the know, nuisance attacks all over the world, staggered, each of them individually could be small or local but with enough of an aggregate that Lara thinks it's the prelude to something bigger. She doesn't know what, but with this kind of ratcheting up it's often attrition or distraction. Attrition is just when you have more resources than a rival or are willing to burn them faster so you're working to degrade capability whereas distraction is an attempt to create noise in that information gathering apparatus so that when something significant does happen it blends in delaying a response. The problem of course is..."
"The best reaction to one is the worst to the other," you shake your head annoyed, not at her but at this whole thing, at the idea of competent enemies you guess, at the memory of Father Forthil looking like he got more coffees than hours of sleep last night.. "If someone's trying to distract you then you should pay more attention, if they just want you to waste resources you should be more economical with them."
Either way you do eventually get to the boat... and then on the boat.
***
15th of February 2007 A.D.
The Water Beetle is as Harry suggests a lot like the boat from 'Jaws', though you'd say in more ways than one. Between the peeling paint, the smoke stains and the alarming creaks and groans of some sections of the deck you wouldn't be surprised if it's
from 1975. Still it makes it out of Burnham Harbor lively enough under Sophia's ministrations, much to Detective Murphy's surprise, though granted she's more surprised at you being 'twins'. But after that's settled you have some fun explaining the small and subtle work of
spirit-craft, how everything has a spirit even on Earth since magic flows through all things and if you can put yourself in the right frame of mind one can listen for the echoes in the silence of its present existence. "See what I mean about there being no line, everything and everyone is magic, what's different is
how they are magic."
"It's been a long time since everyone knew it though," Lydia puts in. "Won't be long before White Council puts their oar in to make... " she motions in the vague direction of the boat's now cheerfully noisy engine. "That's been a thing since humans learned how to make walls. There's the wall around your hearth and the wall around your city, the wall around the graveyard, all of them breaking the world to pieces, each one a circle."
"Funny I don't remember living in a round house," Olivia jokes.
"It's not the shape, it's the idea, the
threshold," Harry steps in, drawn to magical musings as only a wizard can be. Moths to the flame are slow besides that.
"Yeah," you allow looking into the distance. Fog's rolling in. "Whatever they say no one wants absolute oneness with the universe. Freezing to death since you don't have a roof over your head is an act of oneness with the universe, people want to meet magic on their own terms and that's fine, it's give and take, but people out there have forgotten how to talk at all..."
Take out the demons and the monsters, take out the vampires and the warlocks and there's just so much about the world that people are missing.
The island is right where you thought it would be, rising out of the fog like the bony back of a dragon, dark trees like spines along it. A half circle around reveals an ancient pier that hadn't quite given up the ghost extending into the waters of the lake.
Speaking of ghosts... you look to Lydia, but she shakes her head.
"There's no one there, but the wards are strong here, they go down deep and it's aware. The only other place I ever felt that was this aware wasn't on Earth at all, but Sanctuary. Like that but alone... lonely. It definitely knows we're here, me and you I mean, most likely it can sense the Sword too," she motions to Dad who'd been listening more than talking for most of the trip, occult musings are not his speed. "Not sure about Warden Dresden or Olivia," she adds.
"It doesn't care about regular folks then?" the question is wry, but you can see the seriousness in Murphy's eyes.
"Water muffles magic, which includes the senses of such as might dwell on that island. You're a lot less loud than the rest of us," Sophia says. "You want me to fly out and talk to it. Maybe turn into a seabird or something that naturally belongs on the island as a sign of peace?"
"Or it'll think you're trying to sneak in," Harry points out.
"I'd have to be the worst sneak that ever snuck," she says the same words that come to mind, or near enough at least.
"It's used to wizards I'll go first," Harry declares boldly. He's very good at that. You do your best not to dwell on how he looks doing it. Not the time Molly.
"The nearness of battle inflames..."
"Finish that perils Usum and I will find a way to put you in jail," you snap back. Maybe you should go first, if nothing else you're the toughest.
Who steps onto land first?
[] You'll go you're the hardest to hurt
[] Dad's good at talking to people, maybe it applies to islands too
[] Lydia to get a closer look with her arcane senses
[] Harry, this used to be a wizard place right?
[] Olivia is the one with the 'don't see me' powers, maybe she can scout ahead
[] Write in
OOC: Sorry this took so long guys, very annoying and distracting stuff happened. On that note I will be on the road Sunday since the trip has been delayed. But hey that means reliable updates for one more day. 
