Eleventh: Loch Manor, Lilies and Living (Sept Catch-All)

[colchismagecraft]

🧙 WHO: Caster and OPEN!
⚔️️ WHAT: Caster hiding out in Loch Manor, getting turned into her teenage self, getting involved in branding rituals and shearing sheep.
🕒 WHEN: Throughout September
🗺️ WHERE: Various
⚠️ WARNINGS: Branding in the TDM thread, potential discussion of unhealthy age-gap relationships in the Lily prompts, will update as needed



1) Late Aug/Early Sept: Loch Manor

Caster knew that, after royally angering the Gods, she had to find somewhere to get away where they couldn't easily track her down- and in her panic, her memories drifted back to her conversation with Yuber after her breakdown. How 'no one would find her' at Loch Manor…

Despite her better judgement, she found herself at the entrance to the creepy Manor, and retreated inside.

And for at least a few days, she could be found testing out some of her potions in quiet corners, muttering to herself:

"If I can get this right…then I won't need to sleep. That way I'll be spared his wrath."

2) Early Sept: Medea Lily

After an…unfortunate incident involving one of Claude's potions, Caster had been dowsed with something that had turned her from her usual, creepy witch self into a wide-eyed, disorientated 14-year-old girl.

And, well, the poor thing had no idea what was going on in this strange new world!

a) Unlike her adult self, she had few qualms about trusting strangers, so went up to whoever she could find to ask their advice.

"Um, excuse me? Where is this place… and- have you seen a man by the name of Jason? We've been separated."

b) Later on, she can be found in the training grounds, looking more than a little perturbed as she tries to heal a graze on her arm- or perhaps as she's trying to take care of someone else's injuries- chanting a small spell under her breath as she does so.

"Pain, pain, go away~"

...Of course, what came out her outstretched hand was only the curling shadows of dark magic, much to the girl's alarm.

3) Pain 'Tolerant' Badass

Once Caster returned to her usual self- thankfully, that transformation only lasted for a few days- she decided to get back into another of the world's rituals. Academic curiosity, as it always was with her, but also an attempt to forget that ever happened.

She certainly wasn't going to be letting a random person control her, though.

And that... meant she found herself lying on her stomach on one of the slabs, cloak off to one side, and the back of her dress undone to expose her back.

...Her pain tolerance was awful, and she'd already tensed herself up in preparation for what would happen.

"...Let’s just get this over with, shall we?"

4) Shire Determination

"Hm...I can't say I'm confident that they won't start breathing fire when we begin shearing them."

Caster was eyeing the sheep with suspicion, entirely unconvinced that they wouldn't get immediately set on fire for their trouble. Well, at least she had something prepared for this eventuality.

Untucking a couple of small bottles containing a shimmery, silver-coloured potion, she offered one to her partner- if they took it, they'd find the bottle was strangely cold to the touch. Surely there was nothing wrong with accepting a suspicious potion from a suspicious witch, right?

"This should help."

5) Hot Knights for morns

"Haha...do you really think we should rescue them? It's far more amusing watching them suffer, isn't it?"

Caster was in one of her sadistic moods. Or maybe this was her baseline misandry, who knows. Still...there was something a little odd about how she was dressed today- the cloak seemed to be fitting a little differently, like she was wearing a frillier skirt than usual underneath it.

Perhaps Kate had encouraged her to wear something appropriate before they set out, perhaps this was Caster's own idea. But right now, she was more interested in laughing at the expense of the people trapped here.

Comments

[colchismagecraft]

Thanatos and Hypnos are brothers. Thanatos contacted me after the whole affair as well...warned me I shouldn't sleep.

Haha...not that I needed him to tell me that. I've never heard Hypnos angry before.

[There was definitely a nervous energy in the woman's voice- or maybe that was just the overload of caffeine and other substances.]

[mayoninofukucho]

Ah..!

[He nods. Right, Sleep and Death are brothers in the Greek pantheon; that vaguely rings a bell.]

I guess you seriously screwed up big time. Talking to Thanatos probably won't help much if it's purely Hypnos who's got it in for you. It'd just turn into a game of telephone, and we don't need that.

[What he means is: he, personally, doesn't need that. The last thing he wants is for an irate Hypnos to think he's somehow in cahoots with Caster! Still, instead of leaving her to her insomnia he at least has the charity to think of another possible solution.]

Have you considered making an offering to Hypnos? That's how you appease a god, right?

[colchismagecraft]

...an offering.

[That actually gave her pause from the somewhat crazed chuckling from moments before.

She didn't want to admit it, but... he actually had a good point. Darn him.]

Perhaps...that wine, or...one of my potions, maybe-

...Hmph. You're not supposed to have decent ideas.

[mayoninofukucho]

What the hell is that supposed to mean?! I'm the brain of the Shinsengumi, I'll have you know!

[He really was introduced like that... never mind that just a few episodes later he was seen "looking for the entrance to the mayonnaise kingdom" in a big pot.]

If you're confident in your wine's quality, and you know that Hypnos likes wine of principle, then I'd say it's worth a shot! Better don't offer him any of the stuff you've been cooking up here.

[Seriously, her sleep-deprived concoctions look really ominous!]

[colchismagecraft]

[She glanced to the...whatever it was she was brewing right now. Hey, it smelt a little burned but-]

Well, this potion is doing it's job- I've been awake three days already. If I make it a little stronger, then I won't need to sleep at all-

...But that wouldn't go down well with him, will it. It's acting in opposition to his very domain, after all.

[mayoninofukucho]

Damn right. So sleep already, will you? After you make him an offering. That'll hopefully appease him enough to not send you any nightmares.

[Why is he still helping her??? This woman is demented, and her strife with Hypnos and whoever else isn't his problem! Why does he always compulsively follow up on other people's messes?!]