Introduction
Marissa looked around the shop with great interest, little doodads and trinkets scattered around, obviously enchanted items laying about. She eyed the moving painting in the corner, the painting showing a happy family, all blondes with green eyes and familiar facial features. Certainly a sign of purebreeding, and good genes with that. It was such a shame that many of the older families stopped practicing it, though in some cases she could see why. The Crabbs and Goyles were practically retarded, and the Notts weren't far behind them. Though they practiced breeding with relatives far too close or damaged stock. Magic could fix most of those problems, and what couldn't would be done by throwing in a powerful half-blood into the mix. It's what made her father so magically powerful, and that power went to her as well.
"Hello, welcome to The Rune Emporium, how can I-" The voice stops, losing all the cheer in it and turning colder than the arctic. "You...what do you want?" She asks, voice dripping with venom as she glares at the woman. Marissa smirks speaking, her voice practically oozing with smug authority.
"Well if it isn't my best friend." She smiles at the blonde with the ankle length hair. "Aethel, how have you been? The purebloods treating you well?" Aethel's eyes narrow, her fist tight around her wand.
"You know damn well it isn't Marissa. I-I've had to scrape by after father kicked me out because of YOU and SIRIUS. I got kicked out of the my family because of your bullshit, hell I haven't seen my family in years. None of them come to visit the "disgrace of the family"," She said in a voice filled with contempt. "And now, I get to be in your presence. Make it quick, I'm building a new runestone for a small pureblood family in Ireland."
"Is that what you've been reduced to? Making runestones for poor purebloods." Marissa snorted. "To fall so far, it's almost hilarious." Aethel fumes as she watched the woman pick up one of her trinkets and gaze at it. "Nice craftsmanship though, wouldn't think a Blood Traitor like you could come up with something this detailed." She said, nearly sending Aethel over the edge.
"What. Do. You. Want?" Aethel gritted out, green eyes full of hatred and envy for the pureblood's position, her own diminished by her banishment from her family.
"Oh, nothing. I just figured you'd want to know that the Blood War is over. Thought i'd tell you since you were always too busy in that lab of yours to notice the outside world, or rather, you were trying to hide in your own little safezone." She said with a smirk, before continuing. "Dumbledore and his mugglelovers won after Voldemort got beaten by an infant." She snorted, "The Potter Brat to be specific. The little mudblood and her blood traiter husband produced a powerful offspring in that one, shame it's so dirty though." Marissa said, before noticing the small bundle on Aethel's back. "Oh, who's sprog is that? Or are we going to have to play a game of "Who's the Daddy"?" Aethel narrowed her eyes, her wand sparking in her grip.
"I've done somethings i'm not proud of to get this far after getting kicked out of Hogwarts because of your shit. I've put up with a lot of your shit but you WILL NOT insult Craeft in my presence, do you understand me?" She said, her homemade wand sending a cutting curse over the woman's head, splitting apart some wood behind her. Marissa sighed as she flicked her wand, repairing the wood behind her, before lazily casting accio, ripping the wand from the witches fingers. She took a careful gaze over it, looking at it's quality.
"Oak with several amplifiers engraved, and a set of precast curses to make common spells easier and quicker. No wonder you were able to get that cutting curse out so fast, you were always a dunce at it at school." She said as she stood up, tossing the wand back to it's owner, "Oh well. It was nice chatting with you but i've got to go. Mr. Greengrass is waiting for me at home. But don't worry, i'll make sure to visit sometime." The brunette walked out the door. "Love you Aethel!" The door closed with a slam, causing Craeft to wake up and start crying.
"Shhhh nononono, don't worry, mommy's got you." Aethel said, rocking the baby back to sleep, his little tuft of blonde hair making a smile cross on her face. "You're the one bright spot in my life, Craeft." She mumbled, giving him a small kiss on the forehead before walking to the back of her store and putting him in his crib. She watched him for a few minutes, a couple tears leaving her eyes as she looks at the boy. She was scared of what being in Magical Britain would be like for her son. He would never be accepted by the purebloods, nor the muggleborns, and she couldn't afford to send him to Hogwarts. Not at the rate she was going. Hell, she could barely afford the shop, the place being her home and store, and the groceries and...it was so hard. Raising a kid when you barely had enough to support yourself, but had no other options. She couldn't go muggle, she had no idea how to fit in. And she was already an outcast in Wizarding Britain...
Maybe she should just take the offer that the Irish School for Wizards and Witches was offering. Hell, she was already getting clients from there, might as well move there. It was just...she was scared of change. She had lived in Wizarding Britain all her life. It was her home. But it certainly didn't feel like one. The Rich purebloods did whatever they wanted, the muggleborn shit all over the pureblood culture and cried when they were called out on it, and the non-humans may as well have never been sentient under British Law. But as she looked back at her beautiful son, she knew that there was only one option that would give him a future...
AN: Hello, and welcome to my new quest. It's something that i'm working on to help bring about some new life in my writing, and hopefully you enjoy it. If you're wondering why there is multiple updates in a row with no voting, it's because I moved this quest from Spacebattles to here. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy it!
Aethel cradled Craeft to her chest, the infant having fallen asleep a couple minutes ago as the blonde mother rocked him to sleep. She stood in front of a large green fireplace, a large chest in her right hand, having gone to the public Floo to head to Ireland. While it was still under the British Ministry of Magics control, she knew that the rich purebloods and Death Eaters had a tentative grasp on the area at best. At the very least, she would only have to worry about the Ministry's corruption rather than being murdered in her sleep.
"Gonna be a whole new chapter in our life Craeft," She whispered to the child, a couple tears flowing down her face as she saw her store meeting it's new owner. A relative of the Malfoys, the Mauvaise, had purchased her old shop, leaving the woman with quite a couple gallons under her name. Not like she had much choice in the matter. Being a poor pureblood mattered little to the rich ones, being little better than mudbloods in their opinion. Either she would've sold the shop or had an "accident", especially with the Malfoy Head, Lucius, getting off scot free by claiming the Imperius Curse. If he could do that, after all the rapes and murders him and his little band of friends committed, than there was no chance she would've been able to stand against him. Better to take what she could and leave than stay and be murdered along with her child. "Me and you are going to Ireland. It'll be better there, I managed to snag a small house for us and I even managed to..."
D100 = 52
"Keep my Runic recipes, so you don't have to worry. I'll make sure you'll have a better future than I had." She kissed her child on the forehead before she walked into the portal. Her eyes widened as she took in the sights. It was strange coming from the hustling and bustling community of tens of thousands of wizards and witches that was the main British Communities, to the only several hundred that were in the farming community she waltzed into. Going from the magical gothic style that made up the Alleys to the ordinary brick and wooden buildings that decorated the village was a bit mind boggling but it held a charm of it's own. Smoke bellowed out of the town's chimneys, blue in color, and she could see several stalls showing off their goods to the public. Yes, while it may not have been as big as she was used to, she was sure she could get used to this.
Dozens of eyes landed on her, a foreigner in their community, but she didn't let it bother her, or rather show that it bothered her, and walked with her head held high.
"Someone new here? Probably Pureblood by the way she walks."
"Dammit, bet she's another bloody tax collector."
"Doesn't look much richer than us though. Probably another runaway from one of the nastier families."
"You could bounce gallons of those thighs. What i'd give to-"
Aethel felt her face redden at the last comment, keeping her head down as she made it past the crowd and to a particularly shrewd looking woman. She had purchased the land and home from a local Noble House, the Alcott family. Of course, due to her status as little more than a mudblood, it had been rather difficult, but eventually she had convinced them by paying 10 Gallons over the price, something that would set her back quite a bit. It was worth it in her mind though.
She would do anything to make sure her child was better off than she was.
"Well, Mrs....what was your family name again?" Lana Alcott asked, the skinny woman wearing a rather expensive looking purple dress, sparkles running down the sides of it in thin lines. Her eyes were a baleful blue, and dark brown hair cascaded down her shoulders like water down a waterfall.
Aethel is hesitant to reply, but does so anyway. She didn't want to offend the woman, especially when she was the one showing her to her house. The blonde may have owned the land, but if you were rich and powerful enough, you could get away with much, and a few bribes to the Ministry would make sure that it wasn't investigated too closely.
"My name is Aethel...
[ ] (What is her last name?)
"Ah, to see one of their family having fallen so far." Aethel clenched her right fist around the handle of her chest, her hand turning white from the grip, as she held her child with her left, "But gold is gold I guess. You've payed for it, so come with me." She walked off, motioning for Aethel to follow her. After a few minutes, they arrived at a house at the edge the village. It was small, only one story, and made of wood that was painted bright yellow with a chimney poking out of the top of it. A small well was out front, probably due to the house being previously owned by muggles before they were "convinced" to leave. It may not have been the most exquisite place she had ever lived in, but Aethel couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh.
'I'm home.'
"Now since you own this property, you may do whatever you please with it. As long as you pay your taxes on time, and don't piss off any of the local mudbloods, halfbloods, purebloods, or well, anyone since it's a small community, you should be fine." She glared at the younger blonde woman. "However, if I hear about you not paying your taxes on time, I'll schedule a little visit. You won't like that, I assure you, because if I have to come down here, you'll be needing to visit a healer. Am I understood?"
"Yes Ma'am." The blonde gritted out. While she was far more physically fit and stronger than the woman, since creating runes required it due to the intense physical aspects, this woman had a real wand rather than the preset ones she used. She didn't want to tempt the witch into cursing her when she couldn't protect herself.
"Good." That's all the older woman said as she handed the blonde the deed and the keys, the older woman apparating away, leaving Aethel alone. She took a deep breath, before releasing it and setting down her chest. She unlocked the door and walked inside, the place being completely barren.
Luckily she had brought everything she needed with her.
"Ok Aethel, it's time to get to work."
It's Perk Time! (Choose two perks from the list!)(Due to Aethel's nature as a Runic Creator, she had + 5 to Runes)
[ ] Widow maker (+ 10 to speaking with the opposite sex! You'll be knocking em' dead!)
[ ] Woman's Intuition (+ 10 to speaking with the same sex! You're gonna be total besties!_
[ ] Speaker (+ 5 to Speech Rolls! Talk your way out of any trouble...hopefully!)
[ ] Runic Master (+ 10 to Rune Rolls! You're already good at it, but you might as well be even better!)
[ ] Alchemy Major (+ 10 to Alchemy Rolls! When you start making new stuff, you're gonna want to have it!)
[ ] Spell Creator (+ 10 to spell creation! Swish and Flick!)
[ ] Geneology (???, includes Parseltongue, possibly having some creature blood, and more!)(Specify what you want!)
[ ] Seduction (+ 10 to wooing anyone! UwU A very Questionable decision!)(Lemons will be posted on QQ)
[ ] Green Thumb (+ 10 to Herbology! Time to grow some poiso-er, I mean crops!)
And pick an Option:
[ ] Set up Shop (Start getting money. You're going to need it.)
[ ] Meet with people around town (Make some connections!)
[ ] Write in!
AN: Also, Omakes and art add a + 30 to rolls!
Part 2
December 1st, 1981
Athbane (Small Irish Wizarding Village) [X] Proudhill
[X] Runic Master (+ 10 to Rune Rolls! You're already good at it, but you might as well be even better!)
[X] Geneology (???, includes Parseltongue, possibly having some creature blood, and more!)(Specify what you want!)
-[X] Valkyrie(and thus theoretically Norse deity) ancestry
[X] Meet with people around town (Make some connections!)
"And there we go." Aethel Proudhill said, Craeft asleep in the baby carrier on her back. The tall woman shoved the fifty pound Runic Home Stone into the hole she had dug, scratches and eldar futhark covering it. She had heard some of the town's people wondering why she was so muscular, but many of the farmers recognized it for what it was due to requiring Anti-vermin wards. Working with runes was an intense job, since magic could not be used to carry the usually fifty pound and over rock needed to graft runes onto, and it had to be carved and chiseled by hand, requiring much strength to do. Using any magic in the process, outside of the Floo, could cause anything from the wards failing to the Rune Stone exploding and perforating the Rune Crafter with deadly shrapnel.
Luckily, while their had been a few close calls earlier in her career, by now, Aethel was quite talented in the art. She pushed some of her magic into it, a thin blue wisp leaving her homemade wand and slipping into the stone. The runes began to glow a bright blue, the tall woman letting out a pleased sigh as she felt the wards wash over her. "Intent wards, Anti-Vermin Wards, Anti-Apparition Wards, the works. Mmm, feels like a real home now. Now I just gotta meet up with my new clientelle and go from that foreigner who lives on the outskirts of town to one of the regulars." She quickly buried the Home Stone before she walked back into town.
After a short walk, she noticed the sun was starting to set. And with it being night time in a small town, there was only one place that anybody would be.
The Tavern.
Walking up to the Green Hag, a two story building with a sign hanging near the door with a bottle of Fire Whiskey on it, Aethel felt slightly nervous. "Calm down Aethel. Just gotta make a good first impression. Then we can start reeling in the customers. We won't have to go back to working on the street again or prove that bitch Marissa right." She took a deep breath, before slowly letting it out.
"Showtime."
She walked into the tavern, a little bit of music playing over the Wizarding Wireless Radio near the front of the tavern, a country band if the drawl she was hearing was correct. There were several tables of all sorts of people. Poorer purebloods, evident by the way they carried themselves, a couple half-bloods, and even a few mudbloods. It was strange to the woman, seeing everyone interact seamlessly like this. Back in Britain, you were treated like a king if you were of the noble families, especially the bigger ones like the Malfoys, Potters, or Blacks. She distinctly remembered Sirius and his friends cutting in line when she was at a book store, and her mother quieting her when she complained about it, telling her it wasn't her place to complain about them. There were more examples, like the time her father had torn her away from conversing with a mudblood, her father sneering at some of the half-bloods, calling them filthy mongrels, and a slew of other insults and comments about anyone that wasn't a pureblood, and even some of the poorer ones were the targets of his ire. To see these people together was...
Disturbing.
Having spotted a mop of red hair near the front of the tavern, she walked up to the bar and sat down next to the man. "Peach Cider please." The bartender, a short and skinny man with large flappy ears, probably a Half-Elf, nodded. He pulled his wand out, an old ratty thing that looked as if it could fall apart in an instant, and made her drink for her, levitating it in front of her. She handed the man two Sickles and he shoved it into his pocket. Turning towards the man next to her, she had to stop herself from bowing. She didn't know whether this man was a fellow pureblood, a half blood or half breed, or a muggleborn, so it would be a breach of pureblood etiquette to bow, so instead she stuck out her hand.
"Hello sir. Aethel Proudhill of the Noble Proudhill House." The man looked at her for a second, as if he was debating shaking her hand or not. His grey eyes looked a bit concerned, but in the end, he shook her hand.
"Gawain Weasley of the Weasley Family." Aethel let out a sigh of relief at finding a pureblood, something that caught the man's eye.
"I'm so glad I found another one of us. I didn't want to end up accidentally bowing to a," She took notice of the fellow occupants of the room, leaning a bit closer to the man so she could whisper it, "mudblood."
The man's rather small smile instantly turned into a frown and he began to harshly whisper to the woman in a furious tone. "You're gonna want to drop that attitude real quick here. We don't take kindly to your type around here, and while we may each be a little different, we're all united by our poverty so you can take that bias and shove it. Unless you wanna get run out of town of course and judging by the fact that your robes have a couple stitches on em' and you're carrying your babe with ya, you can't exactly afford to be doin' that." Aethel clenched her fist hard around the apple cider as the man lambasted her. "Besides, why would someone of your breeding talk like that? You may be one of the Proudhill's from Britain, a noble family, but judging by your height, you're obviously half-giant. I don't remember anyone from that family being seven feet tall after all."
The man's eyes widened as her glass cracked slightly, Aethel looking downright pissed now. "Listen here you bloody prick, I am not a half-giant. My family hails from the mountains of Sweden, and we are dedicated to Odin. He saw fit to allow my ancestor to lay with one of his valkyrie, and while many of my relatives may not have inherited their grace, I did. If you ever insult me like that again, I'll chokeslam you through this bar counter and prove where I descend from." She took several deep breaths, the man looking at her with wide eyes as do many of the occupants of the room. "What are you all looking at?!"
A great many of them turned around, while Gawain simply let out a laugh.
"Hahaha, I think I'm going to like you." He smiled at her. "Most of you fancy purebloods would've acted all snooty and prissy before walking off to a more "refined" establishment, but I've certainly never had one threaten to chokeslam me before." He tilts his head slightly. "Sooo...a Valkyrie ancestor. Not sure if I believe it from all the shite noblemen like to peddle, but I'll admit that you seem to be a little smaller than most half-giants, and they are more...er, bulkier than you, in a kind of fat way." A growl emanated from one of the larger patrons, a mountain of a man a few stools down. "Not like you, Aideen." Said half-breed rolled his eyes before returning to his drink. "A Proudhill though, didn't expect to see one of your kind here. Not exactly Sacred Twenty Eight material, but still one of the more affluent families in Wizarding Britian. What are you doing here exactly?"
Aethel swirled her drink, thankful that Craeft hadn't woken up and screamed when she shouted. She would have to burn some incense to Odin when she got home, maybe even use some of the small amount of whiskey she had left as an offering. "I...ran into bad financial circumstances and ended up selling my shop and moving away so I could find better opportunities."
"You moved to a rural town...for better opportunities?"
"You all don't have a Rune Crafter here do you?"
"The nearest one is fifteen miles away and charges outrageous fees to anyone who isn't a pureblood...so basically no."
"Than that's your answer. I can work cheaper, and I won't raise my prices for those of...lesser blood." She fought to keep the sneer off her face. After so long of looking down at them as some sort of others, it was certainly going to be difficult to change that behavior. "I can't really afford to do it."
"But wouldn't you have had your family to fall back on." The sad expression on her face said it all. "Ah, kicked out were you. Judging by the babe on your back, I'm guessing you had an illicit affair outside of a marriage contract."
"No. I was...humiliated and tricked by a couple of Purebloods. How they did it is rather personal, but rest assured, my darling Craeft isn't the result of that." She said as she pulled her babe out of his carrier, the tiny blonde child groggily stared back at it's mother, it's green eyes wide with curiosity. "18 Months old and getting cuter by the day."
"He is a cute little fella. Who's the father?" He asked, and Aethel clammed up.
"I...was very destitute when I was disowned, so I had to work some unsavory jobs. I'm sure you understand what I'm trying to say."
"Ah," He replied, "say no more."
There was an awkward silence between the two, Aethel quietly lulling her baby boy back to sleep before she put him back in his carrier. Gawain spoke up again. "You're workin' in runes right?"
"Yeah. Why, you want to purchase some?"
"Yep. I own a small farm, and I'd be willing to pay ya. Gotta keep those vermin away somehow, and while I doubt that it'll keep the local werewolf away, RYAN," He said snidely, the blonde man sneering back at him in return, "it should help me save some money."
"Local werewolf?" Aethel gulped. Those animals were vicious, and if what he was saying, this thing had been here for a while. Her handmade wand might be able to get a nice blow on it, but she rather doubted she'd be able to face one on her own.
"Bastards been here for a while, and most of us lack the combat experience, the spells, and the tools to kill it. The local Aurors give us a paltry examination to find it, but they are under ministry control and since the ministry trusts Ms. Alcott to keep this place nice and tidy and paying taxes, she doesn't really give a shit unless somethings burning. Still, with that asshole tax collector taking more than his share and the werewolf pillaging our wild life, it's become a lot tougher to live out here. A few families are damn near broke from it, and it's not getting any better." He glared at the blonde man he had mentioned earlier. "Of course, if Ryan would lend us his Lockball rifles, we might actually be able to handle them."
"I ain't handing you shit asshole. Those things cost money to make and modify from the standard Flintlock, and it's a bitch and a half to make the ammo and the charms work to get this thing firing without the powder, and still be decently accurate." The blonde man, a bit on the short side and wearing a button up shirt and suspenders. "Cough up some money or do me a few favors and I'll give you one, but it's too expensive to be handing these things out all willy nilly." The man said, before returning his attention to his Fire Whiskey.
"Dick." Gawain said, as he gulped some of his alcohol down. "So, you interested in those wards? I can pay you if you'd like?"
"I'd be..."
D100 = 91
"Happy to. I'll wave some of the fee, but in exchange, I want you to spread the word about how good a job I'm doing with those wards. I'm going to need help drawing in some customers and some good word of mouth is worth it's weight in gold." He held his hand up to his chin and started thinking on it, before deciding it was a good idea.
"You got a deal."
'And I've got my first sale.'
The smile that spread across Aethel's face was practically Cheshire.
(Permanent + 2 Galleon for when Aethel opens her store!)
And pick an Option:
[ ] Set up Shop (Start getting money. You're going to need it.)
[ ] Check with Ryan about those Lockball Rifles (Requires 10 Galleons!)
[ ] Check the Local Bookstore (There may be rare books in a store all the way out here...)
[ ] Play with Craeft (Who knows what could happen...)(???)
[ ] Investigate the Werewolf (It's a mystery gang!)
[ ] Write in!
AN: Also, Omakes and art add a + 30 to rolls!
"It's getting close to Yule isn't it Craeft?" Aethel asked, turning her head slightly to glance at the tiny blonde boy looking back up at her with his bright green eyes. "I'm sorry I am not going to be able to get you any presents this year, but with our shop open, we should be having an easier time with our finances." He let out a small 'Mama pway', the eighteen month old holding up a small wooden truck in his hand. She let's out a small laugh from behind the counter, a small child gate separating the two as she looked around the shop. "I can't play with you right now honey, I've got to watch the store. But don't worry, in a few hours, I'll close down and play with you as much as you want, alright?" The child tilted his head, confused at the big words his mother spoke to him.
"Hello? Are y'all open?" A man said as he walked through the door. Aethel turned her head towards the man, recognition sparking in her eyes.
"Ah, Gawain. It is nice to see you here. So you were looking for those Anti-Vermin wards if I'm correct." The man nods. "I can create them and install them, with both coming at these prices." She points to a displayed in front of her counter. He winced a bit at the prices, but he knew they were better than what the competition was offering. It had to be, because Aethel knew she would be going someone the community had been going to for generations, since no other rune maker wanted to come her since it was a poor farming community. Hence, if she couldn't lure customers in with familiarity (and back in Britain, her blood status), she would do it with the one thing she could.
Savings.
"7 Galleons? Ain't that a bit much?"
"My competition charges double the price I do, and that's without installation. The add another 3 for that, and they aren't willing to work in payments unlike me." She said, using the same tone of voice that had helped her business back in Britain. Not that it helped much outside of keeping her from being swindled, since her status as a pureblood was the only thing keeping her from being killed when the death eaters were out and about, and even that didn't protect her much due to being kicked out of her family. "Besides, it's hard work lifting those heavy stones, etching the runes into them, and digging the five foot deep hole required to bury them, and I'm certainly not doing it for free."
"Hmmm, well...it's not like i've really got any other choice in the matter. Mr. Joseph does charge more, and I need all the money I can keep because of that asshole of a tax collector." He mulls it over for a few moments, before extending his hand out, "You've got a deal."
"Good." Aethel pulls out a large contract, "Sign here and here. I expect half when I get there to do the job and the other half afterwards. Trying to not pay me will make you liable for a lawsuit and probably a visit from the Goblins, and no one wants those nasty beasts near them." She said, letting a little bit of her prejudice slip. She thought the man would call her out on it, but he surprisingly doesn't.
"Yeah, after the Malfoy's screwed our family out of our money, I don't want anything to do with those pricks. Buncha savages in my opinion."
"Agreed. Why they haven't been wiped out is a mystery to me."
"Because there lands have always been over the gold deposits." Gawain grumbled. "My clan helped fight in those rebellions time and time again, only for them to lock themselves in that bank of theirs. No wonder they were so happy to repossess our land, even though they gave those rich bastards extensions on their loans."
"Ah, I had always wondered how someone of such a rich heritage as the Weasley's had always ended up so poor." Her eyes widened as she covered her mouth. "Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to sound so cross."
"S'alright. The Weasley's have had an abundance of kids so it never really helped the vaults any, but the Malfoy's screwing us over due to one of ancestor's stealing the wife of one of their ancestors has messed us up. You would'a thought those peacocks would've gotten over it by now, but I guess I didn't think about how petty they are." He shook his head. "But let's talk less about family history and more about those Anti-Vermin wards you got. 7 Galleons? So, is 3 Galleons and 5 Sickles good for now? And I'll pay you the rest after you're done?"
"Yes. I should be able to do it Thursday, but I'll let you know if I have to reschedule."
"Sounds like a plan." He signed the contract before handing over the coins, Aethel smiling as she made her first new profit in her Rune Emporium. "I'll see ya later!"
"Have a nice day." The coins flew into a lockbox under the counter, the woman using her handcrafted wand to do so. "Ahhh, sweet sweet money."
The day went by slowly, a few more customers coming in and purchasing Anti-Vermin wards, most of them farmers, and a few Intent wards, with one even purchasing one of her more experimental ones, a Creature Trapper. He hoped it would be catching the Crumple Horned Snorkacks, Aethel nodding along with the strange man as he spoke to her about them. The sun slowly set, leaving the sky a rather beautiful mixture of colors as she walked outside and switched the sign from open to closed.
Before she could go back in, she noticed a rather skinny man walking up to her in what were clearly ministry robes, the bright blue color and leather giving them away. His black hair was frizzy and his brown eyes gazed at her with nothing less than disdain.
"Ah, a Mrs. Proudhill," He said, the woman looking at him cautiously. She had learned to distrust the ministry during Voldemort's Blood War, "My name is Alfred Evans, from House Evans. I'm surprised to see a Proudhill out here, but then again, I'm stuck out here in the middle of nowhere with you." He let out a depreciating chuckle. "But unfortunately, while I would like to talk to a fellow pureblood from a distinguished family, I'm here for another reason entirely. You're a bit behind on your taxes Mrs. Proudhill, and you're going to need to pay up."
Aethel narrowed her eyes. She wasn't completely sure if this was the same man that Gawain had mentioned, but she was pretty damn close to coming to that conclusion. "I already paid them two weeks ago sir. I really don't understand what you're getting at."
"But you forgot the fee. I need to be paid too, Mrs. Proudhill, and someone from a noble house like yours should be able to pay it off easily."
"I am not currently in good standing with the rest of my family."
"Surely you can cough up a few sickles."
"I need every sickle I have, Mr. Evans."
"Then I'll just have to find another way for you to pay me." He said as he walked up to her, "I'm sure we can come to an arrangement." She felt disgusted as she felt his hand trail dangerously close to her thigh. She had half a mind to do what she threatened to do to Gawain the other day, but the man's status was above hers. He was from a pureblood family, the Evans being a simple one, not noble or influential, but still a pureblood. She was a pureblood from a noble family, sure, but she had been cast out, making her as barely above a mudblood in status. If she took him to court, she was sure the British Ministry of Magic would find her guilty and send her off to Azkaban, leaving Craeft in some filthy orphanage or worse. "You are quite beautiful even with your obviously mixed heritage."
Her fists clenched.
'What can I do?'
Oh wait, she knew exactly what to do.
"And I think we can GLRRK!" Aethel picked him up by his throat, lifted him into the air, and threw all her might into slamming the bastard into the ground. Unfortunately for Mr. Evans, the back of his head smashed into the hard stone on her walkway, blood spurting out the back of it as the back of his skull fractured. He twitched as few times as he laid on the ground, and while injured, was not fatally so...or at least, not fatally so if he was treated in a few hours. Aethel's bright green eyes widened as she looked at the corpse in her walkway, the woman's hands shaking as she looked at him.
"Oh bloody hell," She said as the blood slowly flowed out of his body. "I have got to get rid of him." She eyed his wand, picking it up. She pushed her magic into it, a few sparks leaking out of the end. A good match for her then, she thought as she pocketed it. Finally, she could get rid of that inferior handmade one, perhaps even use some runes to make this one more attuned to her. She's also have to do some redesigns of it to make sure no one noticed that it was his wand. "Shouldn't be too hard." She said as she let spoke her spell.
"Incarcerous!" A few thin conjured ropes appeared and wrapped around the man. They should've been far thicker, but she knew she had always been terrible at Curses and Charms. Still, these wouldn't help her get rid of the body. That would rely on her specialty, Runes. 'A nice Dissolve Ward buried with him should do the trick.' She thought as she picked the body up, vanishing the blood on her walkway. 'I'll have to keep him in the closet for now. I'll have to wait till nightfall.'
As the hours passed, Aethel had dinner with Craeft, her son babbling as he ate his mushed carrots, before she layed him in his crib and went off to finish her job.
The Full Moon shone brightly above her, giving what she was doing an eerie light. Witches and Wizards were a superstitious lot, though with all the magical creatures, they had to be, and Aethel was one of them. Her eyes danced around her environment, checking for any signs of werewolves, the blights on humanity probably waiting for her to let her guard down so they could eat her flesh. Luckily for her, it was not to be.
Her digging went uninterrupted and once she had a deep enough hole, she dumped the human trash into it, his head smacking into the ground with a nice thump. If he hadn't been dead from bleeding out in her closet, he certainly was now. Not that she cared either way. Her father had been donated a lot of funds to Voldemort and his death eaters, which allowed him certain privileges.
Namely, getting some of the muggleborns for his own pleasure, something her mother had hated. But he had taught her a few things regarding killing with them, so she couldn't really say it was a wasted opportunity. Bloodying herself had made this whole thing much easier.
Then shortly afterwards she had gotten kicked out of the family, but she didn't want to dwell on that.
Instead, she picked up a stone she had put the dissolving ward on. A small one with not alot of power in it, so if anyone dug up the grave, they would simply find a rock with no symbols on it since they'd burn out. A genius way to get rid of a body and leave little evidence.
"Whew, good thing that's done. Now time to go snuggle my baby." She said as she finished covering up the hole. If she had a rose bush, she'd put one there. 'Maybe I should get one? To commemorate my slaying of this fool?' She would think on that later, for now, it was her Craeft time. She walked into her house, locking the door behind her as she strode into her bedroom and walked up to the crib beside it.
The toddler woke up with groggily eyes as his mother picked him up, the woman plopping down on her bed and laying him beside her.
"Momma."
"Yes darling. It's me." She said, nuzzling his cheek, causing the green eyed boy to let out a little giggle of excitement, before he yawned. "Sorry for waking you up, but I needed someone to snuggle." Aethel smiled as she wrapped an arm around him, making sure to place a pillow under his head. "Goodnight." She kissed him on the cheek.
Craeft wasn't paying attention though, having already fallen asleep.
Aethel joined him a few minutes later.
In the morning, as she prepared to open up her shop, she went out to check where the man was, wanting to make sure that the spot looked non-suspicious in the light of day.
Only to find the hole empty, large gashes cleaved out of the ground, like claw marks.
"Oh shit. Shit, SHIT, SHIT!" She clenched the wand in her grip tight. "No, calm down Aethel, just...calm down." She took several deep breaths. "He must've been the werewolf. That's the only way he could've gotten out of the ground, especially with a full moon. Just gotta update my wards to include dark creatures and I should be fine. I'll be fine."
She didn't feel safe as she walked back inside her house, as if someone was watching her.
Can pick two Options:
[ ] Check with Ryan about those Lockball Rifles (Requires 10 Galleons!)
[ ] Check the Local Bookstore (There may be rare books in a store all the way out here...)
[ ] Play with Craeft (Who knows what could happen...)(???)
[ ] Investigate the Werewolf (It's a mystery gang!)
You groan as the beams of sunlight wake you in the morning. You wish you could destroy the sun sometimes, but even you knew magic had it's limits.
But someday…
You throw your pillow over your head, trying to get that extra thirty minutes of sleep before you actually have to wake up, but a cry from the crib next to you wakes you. "I'm comin'" You mumble out as you roll out of bed before taking care of your child.
You thank Odin that he's an easy one. You remembered the terror stories your mother had told you, and though you hated the woman now and thought of her as a lying deceitful bitch, you knew that she was probably telling the truth back then. Or maybe she was just being an asshole.
Either option was viable really.
Anyway, after bathing, cleaning, and feeding some mushed up carrot to your little cute blonde baby, you set up a little playpen around him and got to work. While you had wanted to take the day off and read those nice books you had found, it was more imperative to actually start making some more money.
You picked up a large block of stone, easily weighing at least forty pounds, and plopped it onto a table behind the counter. You pulled out a hammer and chisel and got to work, carving out the Rune Stone and chiseling in the runes before pouring your magic into them. You loved this part of your job, the part where you could just chisel away and think about nothing but the runes.
No thoughts on Numbing Potion.
No bad memories.
No depressing thoughts.
Just you and the rock. Well and Craeft, but he was too busy being fascinated by a toy dog, its scraggly hair reminding you a bit of Sirius. You weren't surprised when he landed himself in Azkaban (and you may or may not have done a little jig when you found out that news, bitch got what was coming to him) and personally were glad that he was in there. A murderer like him deserved to be in there. Not that you had much high ground to stand on considering you killed Mr. Evans, but there was a difference between killing one tax collector that tried to pull some crap on you, and the innocents that Sirius killed.
He should have been in there after what he did to you in Hogwarts, with the fallout getting you kicked out from your family and onto the street, but you digress. He was being punished now, and you were happy about it.
Though you would be happier if you could smash that smug face of his in, maybe knock a couple teeth out, blacken an eye or two.
You catch yourself as you began to strike the rock a little too forcefully, thankfully saving the rock from cracking and ruining all your hard work. It was fully functional now, and only had to be aligned with the owner's magic and put into the ground.
"We're going on a trip Craeft." You said as you picked your son up and tightened him around your bosom with a cloth, the fabric filled with small rune stones to offer him protection. You were sure you could be shot by one of those muggle firelegs and he would still be fine. You throw some Floo Powder into the fireplace and step inside.
"Oh, you're finally here."
And you find that you instantly hate your customer already. A mousey little brunette with blue eyes, a mudblood obviously by the way she stood and acted. If only you were richer and could pick your clientele. And it turned out, she was one of those types of clients, the ones that always followed you and made sure you weren't trying to steal anything.
Bitch.
You got through the day, implanting the Rune stone in the ground throughout her whining and moaning and then came the time to pay up.
"Look, you came here with your kid, took forever to dig it up, and didn't even clean up your mess!" She pointed towards the large pile of dirt that was left of the hole. It wasn't your fault there was no where to put the dirt since the Rune Stone took up most of the hole's space. "I already gave you half the money before hand, but if I can't get quality work, then I want a refund."
You clenched your fist tight. It seemed that even after getting out of the sex industry, mudbloods were still trying to fuck you over.
If she thought she could get out of paying you your due fee, she had another thing coming.
"Listen, you signed the contract. Either you pay me now, or I'll get the goblins involved and my fee will have tripled. I'm the cheapest person here with regards to wards, I got here on time, and I did my job quickly, even if it took a few hours."
"And you left this mess behind. I work my butt off to keep my lawn well kept and clean and you pull this! If you don't fix this up, I'll-"
"You'll what?" You sneer, "Listen here and listen good. I'm going to get payed, one way or another. I haven't come all the way out here just to get screwed over again." You say as you pick her up with one hand, the woman struggling in your grip as you lift her up to look you in the face. "So here's what's going to happen, you're going to give me my money or else you'll be needing to replace some teeth! Understand!"
"To say that with a child with you," The woman scoffed, "you really must have some kind of beast blood in you. I may be a mudblood but at least I'm not an animal, and I'm sure the courts will see that a fully human witch like myself deserves a refund."
"I have Valkyrie blood running through my veins you-" You start to say before you're interrupted by the little tart.
"Oh sure, I bet your mother told you that when she laid with a gian-" A slight coughing drags both of your attention away from the situation at hand to find Ms. Alcott standing there, looking rather angry. "Oh, Ms. Alcott!" The woman escaped your grip, hastily bowing. "I didn't expect to see you here today. I was just settling an agreement with her where she'd give me a refund and-"
"I heard enough of that conversation, mudblood, to know that you've forgotten who owns the land you're on. You still haven't payed me back fully for this house, so you'll still be following my rules, and I say you're going to be paying back this woman in full. Am. I. Clear?" The dark haired brunette asked, or rather demanded, with the mousey woman backing down.
"Yes." She said as she quickly walked into her house, grabbed a few galleons and gave them to you. You felt the satisfying weight of the gold in your palms, and after getting talked down to for your "half-breed heritage", it just felt so good to finally get one over on the woman, especially a mudblood. The woman quickly went back into her house, leaving you with the local lord of Athbane.
"Thanks for standing up for me. But while I really appreciate it, I'm guessing it wasn't an altruism that made you do that?" You asked, and the blue eyed woman smirked.
"While messing with mudbloods is fun, I also hate not being payed my due. Seeing a fellow pureblood, even one with mixed heritage as yourself, be derided by some weakling like that made me sick. But you are correct in your assessment." The woman breathed on her monocle, rubbing it slightly before putting it back on her eye. "I wanted to see how our newest Rune Mistress was handling herself."
You tilt your head slightly. "I'm just surprised you're talking to one who "fell so far" in your own words."
She shrugged. "It was a bit impolite of me to say that, but I understand that you may have been a bit put off by that."
"You think?"
She gave you a small smirk. "I try to, but being around the Ministry and hearing those politicians whine and moan over dumb laws while we have menaces like the goblins and werewolves about make me believe I'm the only woman in the Magical British Isles with a brain."
"I could drink to that. Most of the other pureblood women I knew back when I was at Hogwarts were raised to be pretty arm candy for their rich husbands. Or once I got onto the street, whores. Not a lot of opportunity there, but I think I made the best of a bad situation." You said, the woman letting out a small laugh.
"Indeed. But I confess I find myself a bit starved for some decent conversation. Why don't you and I have a small luncheon to discuss pureblood politics. I find the only other one I can talk to about politics being the tax collector, and he's always been such an odd fellow. It'd be nice to talk to someone who actually understood all the little things I talk about, rather than just nod along like Mr. Evans does."
You weren't one to turn down a free meal, so you agreed. "I'd be happy to, but only under if Craeft can come with me. I don't have a babysitter available, and so I'll have to bring him along. I hope that won't offend you."
"Not at all." The woman waved her off. "I'll have my House Elf Dingel take care of him while we eat." She pulled something out of her pocket, a small watch by the look of it. Envy filled your heart as she handed you the obviously silver pocket watch, the decorations on it only the wealthy could afford. You remembered times when acquiring something like that wouldn't even make a dent in your purse, but now…It'd probably take half a year to get one of those. "This watch has a nice portkey feature. Simply tap it, and I'll set up our date an hour from then."
"Sounds good." You say as you pocket the watch. "It was nice talking to you Ms. Alcott, but I've finished my job for the day and I'd like to head home."
"Don't let me keep you then," She tilted her head towards the house. "Me and Ms. Joshua were going to have a long chat about her little scam she likes to run. I wouldn't recommend doing much more business with her." She said as she knocked on the door to the woman's house. While you were slightly intrigued to see the mudblood get what was coming for her, you were tired and hungry, so you went home.
Eventually, after a nice soup dinner, you laid Craeft in the crib next to your bed and slipped under the covers, letting the nice soothing warmth take you to dreamland…
Aethel aspired to give Craeft the time he deserved…
D100 = 95
She smiled as she danced with him, the young boy's giggling as she sashayed with him to the Radio, strange music playing from the Wizarding Wireless, by a band named Golden Wind, ringing through the house. "Mummy! Dance!" He said as he spun around in a circle, causing his mother to let out a laugh.
"Keep it up and you'll be the best dancer at all the balls." She smiled as he squealed in excitement. It was such a shame that he'd never be able to experience that, as they were commonplace among the pureblood elite, but she was sure she'd be able to make something up for him.
He deserved it. He deserved everything she could give him because she wanted him to have a better life than she did.
To not be some drug addicted pro-
She let out a sigh as she clenched her fists. She was not going to think about that again. It was bad enough she had to work like that, but she had quit the drugs for Craeft. She had taken the drugs when she was pregnant with him, unable to handle the withdrawel symptoms and the way her life had turned out, and had been thanking Odin when he came out fine. But when he had cried for nearly an entire day when she had passed out due to them, she had enough.
She dumped the entirety of it down the drain in her old apartment.
She was completely clean now, but she could feel it under her skin, her nerves craving that icy cool feeling they gave her, the sheer certainty they gave her mind where nothing else mattered because everything was fine.
But Craeft showed her she didn't need those things. She didn't need to look at herself in the mirror and hate who looked back, or do drugs to make herself feel like she was worth something. He gave her life meaning, and she loved him for it.
And so they danced and enjoyed themselves till lunch time, when they went out on the front lawn. She had killed Mr. Evans and his the body well, so she should be fine. Hopefully.
As Craeft played in the yard, he eventually tripped and fell, crying on the ground as his mother went over to help him. "Aw I got you baby." She cooed as he stopped crying, the toddler sniffling as he clutched her. "Mama's gonna make it al…right?" She nudged the spot where he fell, noticing a large impression underneath the dirt. She tapped it with her foot a few times, making sure she wasn't just feeling things. "There's something there." She laid Craeft down for a moment and took out her new wand.
"Wingardium Leviosa." A minor charm, but even then she had difficulty with the thing. Luckily though, it worked just enough to reveal a small old box, about a foot long. Craeft had stopped crying as he was too entranced by the strange and obviously very expensive box, colors flittering across it's sides in a rainbow.
Aethel licked her lips, eager to open it and find out what was inside, but she had to be careful. It could easily have curses and jinxes all over it, and one wrong move could kill her. She levitated a nearby rock onto it and dropped it, and nothing seemed to happen. It was good enough for her, so she gently opened it to reveal many books.
"The Art of Equivalent Exchange by Barisson Alon"
"Magical Fists by Jonathan Zeppeli"
"Closer To Odin: Runic Branding by Bjorn Fellhand"
The smile on her face grew as she read the title till it was practically Cheshire. "Craeft, you helped Mama hit the jackpot. I'm thinking I'll make you some Mac n' Cheese tonight." She let out a laugh as he squealed in excitement for his favorite food.
She grabbed the box in one arm, and the boy in the other before heading inside. As the day progressed into night, she had dinner with Craeft and eventually laid him down into his crib, kissing him on the forehead as she covered him with his blanky.
She quietly exited the room and headed out, activating the heaviest wards she could to protect her son as she went and raided the man's house.
D100 = 38
Under the cover of the Half Moon, Aethel went to the tax collector's house to rob it, after making sure Craeft had a competent baby sitter of course. Sure, it may not have been morally right to steal, even to other purebloods, but she didn't give a damn.
"So this is the bastard's house," Aethel mumbled to herself as she walked right into the man's house. She had expected a lock, maybe a security system. Something. But everything was, "dusty. It's like no ones been living here for weeks." She looked around, noticing that things had looked untouched. "He must definitely be a werewolf. Thank Odin I brought my wand with me, or I'd be screwed. Or rather, his wand." She smirked. Taking out that prick had been more rewarding than just emotional.
She searched the room, checking near the bookshelves and the couches, everything looking too neat and tidy even with all the dust on it, like it was made this way. She opened the fridge and gagged. "Oh that's putrid. There's so much rotting meat in there." She held back the urge to vomit. "No, can't leave any evidence." She mumbled to herself as she closed the fridge door.
Holding up a pebble, she pushed her magic into the rune on it, creating a lighting charm. The room illuminated from the barely visible darkness to a bright shining light, allowing her to see everything more clearly. She had been trying to be stealthy to avoid anyone checking in, but seeing the way this place was, it was less likely for anyone to come in as it seemed no one had actually even been here.
A smudge on the floor drew her attention.
Mostly because it was red. Dark red.
"Old blood." She walked towards it, running her fingers over it. "And still a little wet too." She held her new wand tight in her hand. "But it leads nowhere," her eyes wandered over to the cabinets where the trail seemed to end. "Trap door maybe? Nothing to it but to check it out. She opened the cabinet door and noticed a lever. Of course, being the curious woman, she was, she pulled it and a nearby wall swung open revealing a set of stairs.
"Jackpot."
Holding the light rock in her right hand and her wand in the left she traversed down the flight of stair. The smell was noxious, reeking of rotting flesh and the dripping sound was starting to get to her, her eyes spotting movement in the shadows. The tight halls and seemingly endless stairs were messing with her mind, but it thankfully came to an end as she finally came to the end of the stairwell.
Wherever she was, it was clearly some sort of lab. She couldn't spot any flesh, but it smelled like disinfectant, like the ones her mother used to use when magic wasn't enough. She walked over to the tall desk in the corner, next to a healer's chair which reeked of disinfectant. There were a few documents on the desk and she looked over them, her green eyes growing more and more confused by the second.
"Project Saol? The hell," She tilted her head as she read the document aloud. "Needed two humans for my pet project. Needed to test biological resistance to curses and applications of silver. Is this some sort of super werewolf project? No, he wouldn't be testing resistance to curses, everyone knows werewolfs are resistant to anything but silver and powerful dark and light magic. The average curse takes more power to hurt them, this is shit we learnt in Hogwarts, so a Pureblood should know this. What is going on?"
"Excuse me." Aethel jumps as she hears a voice behind her and spots…Mr. Evans? "Who are you, and what are you doing in my home?"
"I'm..." She looked at the documents. "I'm checking to make sure everything is in order." She spoke with confidence, hoping to convince the man. If not, she could just kill him.
Again.
'How is he still alive?!'
"Oh, my master didn't tell me that I'd have someone check in on things. My name is Mr. Evans by the way, a pleasure to meet you." He bowed. "I haven't been taught the traditional family greetings yet, but I hope that you won't hold that against me."
"Don't worry. I won't." She replied, looking at him like he was a leper, something to be untouched. "So, what are the master's orders?" She asked, trying to pry some information out of the man.
His head tilted a little too far, making Aethel take a step back. "I thought they told you the plan?"
"They only told me that we had to gather bodies." She bluffed. "Not what we were doing with them."
He shrugged, his limbs rolling more than they should. "I don't know honestly. Master tells me very little, but apparently I am to take up the roll of tax collector to collect funds for what is known as the Ministry of Magic, though I don't know why I shouldn't just give them to my master."
"To whom?"
"To my Master." She groaned in frustration. "Would you perhaps like some refreshments? I'm sure there is something in the fridge-"
"No! I mean, no. It's been a long night and I'd rather be going home." She held up her wand. "I'm not sure if I'll be able to pull this off very well, but, Obliviate!" The man toppled to the ground like a puppet with his strings cut. "What is going on?"
She tapped him in the side with her foot, but there was no response. She quickly made her way out of the house, making her way back towards her home.
Things were just getting too weird and she wanted nothing to do with it. She came out here to have a calm and normal life with her child and get enough money to support herself, not get drawn into some conspiracy.
She couldn't shake the feeling of being watched as she got home.
Can pick two Options:
[ ] Check with Ryan about those Lockball Rifles (Requires 10 Galleons!)
[ ] Check the Local Bookstore (There may be rare books in a store all the way out here...)
[ ] Play with Craeft (Who knows what could happen...)(???)(Needs to wait one turn)
Yep. It took a while to bring over, but I got it here.
However, I'm more careful about what I upload now. Any NSFW things will be posted on my QQ account, and you'll just have to find it over there because I'm not going to risk linking it. However, there will be still be some dark things like character death, racism, disfigurement, etc. I'll keep them more reasonable (like no one's going to be exploding into intestines and blood), but there will some aspects of eldritch abominations and other disturbing sorts without being too descriptive.
at any rate this is different from the original vote I put on the other site but I don't want to leave the werewolf unwatched given that something is constantly staring at us. I'm not paying ten galleons for rifles in a Harry Potter quest and a rich ally is worth it.
[X] Investigate the Werewolf (It's a mystery gang!)
[X] Accept Mrs. Alcott's invitation (Possibly Ally)
[X] Read Closer to Odin: Runic Branding (0/100)(Runic Branding Unlocked)
No worries, I found it. I really like the idea of runic branding. As we don't have access to information on rituals as of now, it'll be a way to gain power both for us and our son.
Huh, with him obliviated he probably won't remember us killing him or going through his stuff at home...
I am wondering if, if we talk to the right people we could work up a lynch mob to get rid of him. I mean, werewolf and dark lord servant? Then again, probably a thing for the future.
"The weather is rather pleasant today," Alcott said as she watched Craeft play with her daughter, the pink haired child laughing as they played catch, the house elf making the ball float between the two. "Perfect for a nice discussion with some tea. Maybe even a couple of biscuits as well," She snapped her fingers and another house elf appeared, "Meazles, go grab me some biscuits with some grape jam on them."
"Yes mistress." He disappeared and reappeared seconds later, holding a tray of delicious biscuits, before disappearing again. "Ah this is the life."
Aethel couldn't help but be envious. This was the life she had been used to before getting kicked out of her family, so seeing it in front of her again made her rather jealous. She wouldn't let it influence her though. Being rude to your host was one of the number one ways to infuriate any pureblood, and doing that to someone who could slap you down with their galleon purse was a bad idea. "So you wanted to talk politics with me?" She asked, giving Ms. Alcott a questioning look before grabbing one of the biscuits.
"Yes. I don't really have many pureblood friends around here, or rather ones that actually care about politics. Mr. Evans is a creep, so I try not to let him near my property, and the other ones like Mr. Weasley are too busy farming to ever come to one of my luncheons." She sighed. "Either way, it's not like any of them want to discuss the English Ministry of Magic." She took a sip of her tea. "Not that I can blame them. It's nothing but a corrupt nightmare anyway."
Aethel raised an eyebrow at that. "I would've thought your family would be supportive of it considering the Alcott's are a dark family like mine. Father always liked to prattle on about the old ways and how mudbloods were ruining society, not that I think the same of your family." She quickly corrected herself lest she insult her host. "However, most of the dark families are of the same thoughts, with a few variations. Though I can't blame them. Replacing Yule with Christmas, a holiday from a religion that would rather hunt us down and exterminate us, and Samhain with Halloween is insulting, especially because they're both great days for ritual use."
"Agreed." Alcott tilted her head slightly. "But I cannot support a ministry that doesn't actually solve our problems. The Light supporters may be very liberal, but they're still wizards and witches at least. The ministry lets the goblins exist, along with other magical monstrosities like Werewolves and Hags, because they can't be half-assed to muster up the forces to exterminate them. The Dark Lord was well on his way to doing that, or at least, I heard it was in his future plans, but then he kicked the bucket."
Aethel bristled at that. "Please don't speak of that monster with me here. I am considered a blood traitor due to getting kicked out of my family and if you-know-who had won, I would have been killed...or worse."
"I wasn't trying to say you should be killed, but I was saying I agreed with some of his policies." She sharply reprimanded, "However, the Dark Lord was a raging maniac. Even if he succeeded in his goals, me and a few others had planned to poison him with some basilisk venom. No need to keep a loose cannon like him around, especially with how much of a sadistic monster he was. But now, now the Light side passes bill after bill to help mudbloods and creatures, like they should have rights. The mudbloods, as much as I dislike them, are required for new breeding blood. But creatures are of no use, so why are they kept around? And that's just the creature rights. My family specializes in Alchemy, yet Dumbledore, the apprentice of Flamel himself, has produced several bills to limit those who use the art. It's maddening to know that I can't practice my trade freely without some ministry jockey on my back. Really makes me wish we could go back to the ancient ways of Wizard Kings and Queens, where I would only have to appeal to one person instead of an aristocracy that would screw me over because of a family feud a few generations back."
"That's real old school, even for a dark family." Aethel let out a chuckle, Alcott smiling as well. "I never figured you to be the kind that would want the next Morgana walking around."
"Better the next Morgana than having to listen to Malfoy claim he was under the Imperius curse." Aethel snorted. "Yeah, that's about the same reaction everyone else had, but he had the money so he went free. A shame, I was hoping his pretty ass would have a fun time in prison."
"Malfoy would make a great wife." Aethel said. Mrs. Alcott snorted before drinking some of her tea. "So you said that you specialize in Alchemy?"
"Correct. We've been creating special materials whether it be related to spell-crafted metals, or even...well, I cannot discuss some of the darker aspects of our craft in polite conversation. I'd have to have you swear an unbreakable vow or else I could spend a lengthy time in prison. Alchemy has come under hard fire from Light Supporters due to some of it's more dubious uses, and those same uses are the ones that net me a lot of Galleons you see."
"Yes. Much like how my family specialized in potions of the more illegal sort." Aethel replied. "Shame I didn't have their talent with it. Could've made my life a whole lot easier if I could sell potions for a living, but I enjoy my work now, even if it's rather tiresome."
"Same with mine. I have to be rather careful or my experiment could turn into a piece of sentient flesh and eat me." Alcott chuckled, "But let's steer away from more morbid topics." She looked at the children playing, Craeft steadily walking at the toddler tried to catch the ball the slightly older girl was throwing. "They seem to be having fun."
"You could say they were having quite the ball." Alcott gave Aethel an exasperated look at the terrible pun. "So, your daughter...she an metamorphmagus?"
"You would think so, but no, Aileen is a product of my alchemy. I tried to create a metamorphmagus using my daughter as a base, but unfortunately, she didn't manage to retain many of the talents that they usually have. She can only manage to change her eye and hair color." Aethel frowned at that. If her little experiment came to light, she could be facing some prison time. "I know it's not very legal. Believe me, I know the consequences of Alchemy. I use to have a son as well but..." She slumped. "Just don't tell anyone about this."
"My lips are sealed." Aethel replied. "They are quite cute together, aren't they?"
"What, already drawing up a marriage contract?" The rich woman playfully replied.
"Just looking at options." The blonde woman said. "I'd rather have Craeft be happy with a nice pureblood girl than some mudblood tart."
"If I drank alcohol, i'd drink to that."
The rest of the afternoon went by in a blur as they talked and ate, their friendship steadily beginning to form, Aethel eventually leaving as she took Craeft back home. After a nice supper, she left Craeft in his crib next to her bed and plopped down onto her mattress, the Runic Branding Book in hand.
She opened it up, her eyes hanging on every word.
'The art of Runic Branding is considered a dark one, not due to the runes, but due to the branding and mutilation of the flesh that occurs. It is painful, horribly so, but the benefits outweigh the risks. I personally blame the liberalizing of our culture for it because the old ways were powerful but full of pain while the new ways are painless but pathetic. Magic is always about equivalent exchange, the more power and sacrifice, the greater the benefit. However, those liberal muggles do have some good ideas. The muggle enlightenment has left me speechless at how those animals have managed to actually use those brains of theirs, and spread knowledge and scientific reasoning.
Or, as much as they could understand.
Nevertheless, I printed many of my families secrets in these books, rather than have them rot in some library. It's probably legal in Wizarding Russia and other Eastern European Countries to own this book, but if you happen to be from my homeland, Iceland, than I thank you. It had always been my dream to teach more of my craft to some of my fellows, but they seem to have rejected it for that blasted stone work.
Fools.
Regardless, I, Bjorn Fellhand, will guide you through the ways of Runic Branding, the same ways of my father, and his father, and so forth.
Praise be to Odin.'
Aethel read on, but eventually fell asleep, the book still in hand...
Can pick two Options:
[ ] Check with Ryan about those Lockball Rifles (Requires 10 Galleons!)
[ ] Check the Local Bookstore (There may be rare books in a store all the way out here...)
[ ] Play with Craeft (Who knows what could happen...)(???)
[ ] Read The Art of Equivalent Exchange (0/100)(Alchemy Minor Perk)
Aha! A dark alchemist neighbor! If our kids do get along, and a contract is signed (Always get a contract) we could exchange lessons. Alchemy for Runes, train up both children in power.
[X] Read Closer to Odin: Runic Branding (26/100)(Runic Branding Unlocked)
Before I vote for my second choice, I did have some questions. Is playing with our son still on cooldown, or is that a copy/paste thing? With our new wand, do we know enough curses to be able to defend ourselves, or would we still be better off buying a rifle?
