Silence of the Forest

[Signit Sonata]

Sig walked the familiar, worn path into the Forbidden Forest, the moonlight casting out eerie shadows around him. Three and a half months. That's how long it's been since he'd last seen this Forest. The esact night he joined and Danawi on the attack of the castle. Three and a half months since he ran away. When he left, he crammed all those memories away, willing himself to forget them. But as he walked in between the trees, they washed over him like an ocean.

He looked around, noticing claw marks on trees and in the ground. Lycans or demons? he questioned himself. Suddenly, he couldn't help but chuckle. He had been back at school for barely three days and he was already wandering a dangerous area, ignoring all signs warning him to keep out. Ironic.

Climbing a tree, he stuck a reed between his teeth and began to hum a melocholy tune, the words playing out in his head.

[-Roan-]

"Are you dull boy, or just plain stupid?" An angry voice echoed through the small area of the forest, no matter how low Roan tried to keep it. The girl had been out by the lake when she saw another student enter the forest, and frankly, she was sick of it. The Hufflepuff had ran in after him angrily. Her brown hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her black robes were slightly torn from her venture inside, but she was just glad she hadnt lost Signit on the way in. Her wand out she was standing at the base of the tree, her hands on her hips, angry hazel eyes staring up at the Gryffindor.

"Do you have any idea what has been going on out here latley? Havnt you heard any of the stories? Come down from there, and lets get out of here before some creature finds us." Roan hissed up at Signit, her hazel eyes blazing. She could not believe someone would risk their lives just to climb a tree. She was out there to try and protect someone from a possible disaster, he just wanted to hang around. Foolish boy.

Tucking her wand back into her robes she glared at Signit before looking around the dark forest. So many attacks lately, including one by an evil demoness in the common room. Fenris had also been seen attacking students, who in their right mind would venture in here for fun. With all the hostile terms at the school, the beings in here were angry enough. They didnt need another reason to enter the school.

[Signit Sonata]

Sig looked down and the angry girl and smiled. Same old, Same old he thought, ignoring the girl. "If you want to leave, go ahead. I'm throughly enjoying myself. I know very well where I am and what lives in this forest and I am quite content with dealing with it myself. So if you would be so kind as to GO AWAY." he said these last two words with great force, glaring at the rude girl who had commanded him. "If you'd shut up for a moment, you'd notice while you are obviously out of breath and had you clothes torn, I am quite fine and dandy, which shows that I have been here before and know what I am doing. I frankly don't care what you have to say anymore if you haven't enough manners to at least introduce yourself before demanding me to follow you away to god knows where. Good day and good bye." And with this, Sig turned on his heels and walked away, heading towards the decrepted temple that Danawi had conducted his hellish ritual. He was fuming.

[-Roan-]

Roan let out a growl and clenched her teeth at the ignorant boy. "Im not going anywhere without you, you could be hurt here. If you have been here before, it obviously hasnt been latley. The creatures here have gotten worse, crueler, meaner, angrier. We need to get out of here, right now. I will not let you possibly be hurt while I can stop it." She said, breathing heavily, holding her wand at the ready. The girl realized that she was being foolish here, but she would not let a student's blood be on her hands while she could stop it. Recently in the Common Room she had seen a demon shred the jaw of a friend.

A demoness she knew to live in this forest. Roan grew more nervous by the second being in the confines of those woods. "Im Roan, Hufflpuff house, please come back to the school!" She said pleadingly as Signit began to leave, walk deeper into the forest. It took a long few moments to decide what to do, but she took a deep breath, put her wand at the ready, and headed in after him. What she was going to do could have reprocutions, but she would not let this happen.

"Come back here!" She shouted, running after him, wand out. The trees tore at her robes, but she finally found him again. When his back came into the view of her hazel eyes, Roan bellowed. "Impedimentia!" Hopefully the spell would hit and slow him down. "I wont let something out here tear you to shreds! Now lets go back to the castle, now!" She said, screaming at the Gryffindor. Roan was quite serious, and would drag the boy back if she had to.

[Signit Sonata]

Signit was walked away when he heard Roan try to jinx him. "Protego! he cried, whirling around. The spell bounced off his shield and hit a nearby tree. "How dare you try to jinx me!" he shouted, walking back to the woods. "Fine, I'll leave for now. But you can't stop me from coming here. So now, after we leave, meet me in the Dueling Hall. You'll see that I can handle myself." And he began to head back to the castle, casting dark looks at the girl.

[-Roan-]

Roan shot him a glare when her spell was rebounded. It stopped him from heading further into the forest, but now she was angry. He was challenging her now, to a duel. For looking out for him. Well if he wanted to fight her, he would. But not in a dueling hall, she would not give him that right. "Oh no you fool, you want to duel me, you duel me here. For I accept your challenge you ignorant boy! I have been training, for I have been facing horrors these past days, and I do not think our duel will be long. So here it shall be." She called after him, raising her wand. It took a while to think of the spell to use, but she shot the perfect one at him when she finally figured it out.

"Incendio!!!" She bellowed, a jet of flame shooting at the boy. Trees nearby also caught fire. Hopefully that would make him duel her here and now. She would then take him out of the forest and talk to someone about keeping him out of here. She couldnt risk him getting injured again. Better she hurt him then a lycan or a demon or a vampire. Even if it was fire. Quickly Roan went into anothe stance and got ready to block any spells.

"Fight me!" She shouted at Signit, angry beyong all reason. She had been practicing spells to fight Fenris, to fight Mai, or Xailyn. She was ready for combat against a student. With all her heart though she prayed she didnt awaken any creatures out here with her fire. Or that the fire that had caught on the foliage wouldnt spread. She had already faced those flames, courtesy of Fenris, and didnt want to again. It was true horror.

[Signit Sonata]

Sig dodged out of the way of the spell, then quickly put out the flames to the surrouding foliage. "You fool! What are you trying to do, set the entire forest ablaze!? That'll really make the Lycans love you!." He turned to face Roan, wand drawn, eyes on fire. "Avis! he cried, conjuring a group of Blue and white Humming Birds before shouting Oppugno!, sending the bird streaking towards the girl

OOC: yes, I know, it's from HBP.

[-Roan-]

"The lycans hate me already boy, as do the demons. I dont fear their wrath anymore though. Why should I?" She bellowed back at Signit as the birds flew at her. She let them peck at her, drawing small dots of blood on her face and arms. But they passed on as all spells do and she just glared at the Gryffindor. "You need to do better then that, birds wont stop me. If a lycan cant, what makes you think birds can. Ive suffered worse then those few little pecks in the last few months." She growled at him, once again putting her mind at the ready. Spells ran through her head until she found the right one.

"Bombarda!" She yelled at a flaming tree to the right of Signit, causing it to fall towards the boy. The fire in the forest gave Roan's face an eery chill, it was drawn tight and angry. "You are a fool, risking your life for this. I wont let you, we are going back to the school, and Im not letting you enter here again. We have already suffered too much in this school to lose another student." She whispered.

The blood in the common room danced before her eyes in the flame. The screams, Ken's jaw hanging horribly, Mai rampaging. That was why she didnt want any students in the forest, she had seen a demoness's wrath. She had felt Xailyn's touch. She had been pummeled by Fenris again and again. They all resided here, and would attack students. And Roan didnt want to risk that.

[Signit Sonata]

"Who are you to tell me what I can and can't do!?" cried Signit, dodging out of the way of the falling tree. "Fine you want ot play like that huh? Vulnero Inflatus!" He cried, causing a super fast shot of compressed air at Roan. "You're a fool. You think you being noble, but your just dense! I'm perfectly capable at spells and plus I half-demon!"

[Dante]

Darkness swelled in the depths of the forest only to be poked and prodded by the rare prick of light that broke through the canopy. Debris and dust glittered in the light. A trail of smoke from a smoldering fire glistened in the air. A smoldering fire laid as proof of recent presence in a small camp. Recently scattered dirt gave proof to a hidden treasure. All of this would shed light to the more informed that a specific being was playing with his chemistry set again to make another batch of Hell's Insight. All signs that the being was still in the immediate area pointed to no.

It had left moments previous in hopes to find the ones who sounded human and were making noise. Through the silence in the forest the increasingly loud voices of Signit and Roan carried easily between the trees and into the ears of even those who had less than excellent hearing. A chill wind flowed behind a shadow to be followed closely by the rapidly approaching sound of tree branches being shaken. Something was approaching quickly in the higher levels of the tree branches almost as though it flew.

Spells flew back and forth between the aggravated students. Comments concerning being able to take care of one's self and not getting the denizens of the forest involved glided on the air. All of them struck a humorous chord with the being that was approaching with a little gift. Fire from the first, then birds from the second, then a reply with knocking down a tree from the first. All of it was petty and insignificant to what had taken place recently throughout the school grounds and forest. A burnt and fallen tree was nothing in comparison to people having entire limbs ripped off in a simple stroke of a vicious hand.

With amazing ease Dante dropped from his perch. His clothing billowed in draft as he descended rapidly from over two hundred feet above. A full rotation, then another, he flipped gracefully as he came down then hit with a light thud onto the ground. The soles of his shoes landed easily on the tree that was falling. Heavy chains rustled on his pant-legs. Rings, spikes, chains, and multiple other metallic objects of almost purely ornamental value. The fabric itself was sturdy and as black as shadows, red thread was woven in to attach the straps and stitch together the seams. A long-sleeve heavy black shirt covered his torso, the cuff was met by metal gauntlets. The gauntlets themselves were as flexible as cloth yet as durable as depleted uranium and just as hard. The fingers came to a claw like point at the end. Dante's head was veiled in the shadows of a hood. Pure white eyes were they only think that showed that a head was even present in the hood.

"So little boy, you say you can take care of yourself, eh? What do you do when something that enjoys pain and the destruction of others comes along and you're in its path?" Dante called out to Signit. His fingers flexed slowly just before he launched himself at the boy. His right hand grabbed hard just behind the jaw and began to press hard on the pressure points. Dante twisted his body around in full circle and whipped Signit around by his jaw till his back slammed into the ground and pinned him there. "Didn't they warn you enough? They call it forbidden[/i] for a reason you know. Even that girl has been trying to avoid the inevitable! How thick are you?" In his last question Dante began to pound the boy's head against the ground with each word, harder and harder each time.

To some they may have thought Dante was trying beat some sense into the boy's head, but in reality he was enjoying just simply causing bodily harm to someone. Something he hadn't done been able to do in a while. "So girl, want to help him or yourself?" He asked while constantly increasing the force of his grip of the boy's jaw.

[Signit Sonata]

"Hello Dante." Sig grunted up the pressure of Dante's fist. "Enjoying yourself? I sure am. And you girl, run, NOW!" he commanded the girl, then began to roll over, flipping Dante off him. "And yes Dante, I DO think I can take care of myself. I have been here. Basiclly lived here actually. So, are you willing to fight me in a fair fight? Half-Demon to Soulless puppet?" he asked, wiping blood off his jaw. It was most likely broken, but at this point he didn't care.

OOC: Sig is more resiliant to pain than normal people. And yes, you would have been thrown off since you had to have been on me to be holding my jaw.

[Dante]

Dante smiled as he was flipped. He landed easily on his feet a few feet in front of Sig with his back turned. Memories of his last good fight came flooding back to him. It was over a year ago and in the graveyard, the poor sap ended up in two pieces. The front and back. Although he was only there to protect a brother, who was now dead, he enjoyed every bit of it.

"Fair fight? Never had one. The one who makes the rules always ended up breaking them. My last good fight I was in I ended up splitting the punk's body in two with an axe. Now, I think this will be interesting." He inhaled slowly, then exhaled. "Girl, I believe you will be the only one who will live long enough to remember; NEVER call me a puppet!" His voice hinted at anger as he looked to the ground for a moment.

He inhaled deeply then decided to act. His knees flexed as he lowered only slightly the he whipped around. His right foot hammered into Signit's broken jaw. An instant later Dante's fist smashed into the boy's ribs. He spun again and brought his heel into the side of the boy's knee soon followed by his arm hooking under the opposite knee and lifted up forcefully. Dante drove his forehead into the bridge of Signit's nose. He knocked the boy backward onto his head as his legs were lifted skyward. "While you're down there, why don't you contemplate the foolish actions that got you there." Dante was enjoying himself, it wouldn't be a long time till this kid was screaming in agony if he had anything to do with it.

[-Roan-]

OOC: Lets fight fair here Signit, you cannot dodge every single spell of mine, or Ill discontinue this thread.

Roan let Signit's spell hit her, let it move her body back a bit, the compressed air a pain. No effort was made to block it, and through it all she just clenched her teeth and smiled. "Not enough boy, not enough. I presume to tell you what to do because you seem to be foolish enough to wander in here with no good cause. Im looking out for your better being." She said angrily, raising up her wand to face the indignant Gryffindor, but before she could utter a spell, Dante made himself known. The girl gave a growl, but stood speechless for a moment.

But she could not tolerate the man harming Signit, that is what she had come to prevent. "Let him go!!" She roared, pointing her wand at Dante. The sight of him harming his jaw was enough to make her gasp, and her stomach churn. She hauntingly remembered Kenneth's jaw, and the damage done by Mai. It stunned her for a moment, and Roan dropped her wand a bit, her mouth open. Quickly shaking her head though, she shook out of the trance and raised her wand again. "Dont hurt him! He is just a foolish boy who doesnt know what he is doing, leave me to teach him a lesson. Please."

There was kindness in her voice, but she stood unwavering. Truthfully, Roan didnt want the Gryffindor hurt, and would fight on his behalf. But then the attack came, and the Hufflepuff was furious, her face went red and was drawn tight. "Stop it now! Incendio!" The fire rushed at Dante, but was cut short, the spell was weak. Hopefully it would get his attention though. So the real fight could begin. Careful and worried brown eyes went to the boy, hoping he was alright. She would see him out of here if it meant her own life, for this was partially her fault.

"If you want a fair fight, fight me. Not him, hes foolish, you said it yourself. Ill gladly fight you though, for hurting a student. For nobody does that while I can help it." She said angrily, oath in her words. The girl was prepared for pain and death since the day in the common room with Mai. If either came, it wouldnt be such a big deal, but a worthy sacrafice. Even for such a fool of a boy. To make her words known, and to make it so that Dante could not refuse, she initiated the fight herself, sending a spell at the Souless man. "Relashio!" Red sparks of heat and shock flew at him, and the Hufflepuff prayed they would hit home.

[Dante]

OOC: What's with this half-demon crap anyways? Why is it appears to be that every twit who enters a plot, comes in contact with a demon, or just feels the need to be special ends up as a half demon? What's your story Sig? But as Roan said, fight fair. I'll let you decide whether or not I just broke your jaw, bruised your ribs, ripped every tendon and ligament in your knee, and am about to snap your neck like a chicken's. Also, for your information, that's exactly the position you're in.

IC:
Dante paused as Roan yelled at him to stop. He decided to give her the decency to be heard. She wanted Dante to just simply let the boy go and let her beat the fool on her own. That was something Dante wouldn't enjoy as much as just beating the tar out of the boy himself. "Let him go? Why should I? You command no authority over me, I command none over you, and this boy here will soon loose the ability to command even his own lungs to fill with air. We can only decide on our own whether to obey or not when we are commanded. It is normally in your best interest to do as someone says, such as when you told this boy to leave the forest. It would have been in his best interest to obey and leave without further discomfort. But he didn't and his world has been flipped upside down because of it." Dante remained with his back turned to Roan and began to ponder the virtues of just gutting the boy now rather than pummeling him into oblivion but stopped when something came up.

A light bump was what he felt on his back as the incendio charm hit him and lit him on fire. Only when the flames swept over him and licked his gauntlets. He couldn't feel the heat, no body temperature made it so that he didn't have the sensory nerves to tell whether or not he was ten thousand degrees positive or negative. He switched his hand holds so that only his right hand was holding up the boy, claw points digging into the meat of the knee. His free, left, hand reached for something strapped to his back. The hand itself went through the cloth as though it wasn't even present, not a thread was moved, the hand quickly found what it was looking for then pulled it out from under the shirt.

A black leather pouch with a belt attached was what he held in his hand. Crystal flasks extended out of the top and bottom. A clear fluid filled each of them to the stopper. A wicked surprise for any who bothered Dante too much. A sixteen gage needle point was poking through the leather, a little toy that made hell come faster.

He walked over to the fallen tree and hung the pouch on a charred branch. "Don't break those." He said forcefully as he dragged the boy by his knee so that his head hit every rock and twig on the ground. The flames slowly crawled from Dante to the boy's leg. The flurry of sparks hit Dante in the back of the head. It didn't bother him much, it was like being hit with a firm pillow. The flames grew larger and began to spread more rapidly. "Well, it's nice that you're trying to warm me up to the idea of releasing him, but I simply don't have any intention of letting him go with more than one limb attached." A light air of humor accented the last statement.

Dante's free hand began to search for Signit's wand as he turned about so as to face Roan. "What's your name girl, and why haven't you taken the time to flee?" His hand stopped searching for the wand then jabbed the metal points of the gauntlet into Signit's lower back and began to poke and prod till it found the kidneys. The metallic points were cutting up everything that they touched on the search for kidneys. "I'll give you a choice girl. You can either save yourself right now and run, or you can share the same fate as this insignificant whelp and die in agony. This maggot won't leave here alive, but you can if you leave right now and save yourself. If you want to stop me and save this punk, you'll have to do a lot better than simple charms and hexes." He lifted the boy higher and returned his hand to the opposite knee. Signit was now vertical once again but his head was two feet away from the ground. Dante shoved the boy at the ground headfirst with obscene force. He began to get curious about which spells Roan knew that could possibly pause him from the destruction of another life, his curiosity did not diminish the force at which he was putting into Signit's short decent.

[-Roan-]

So, he is going to ignore me eh? Roan thought angrily, her wand still out. The girl had no intentions of running, that was not her nature anymore. Though she had to turn her head when Signit went through his torture and get her stomach into line, this wasnt right. Then she turned back to Dante, fire in her eyes. "I do not run because I do not fear you, and because no matter what a fool this boy is he doesnt deserve the pain you are causing him. Since the beginning of this war on the castle, I have felt very protective of its students, and will not be stopping now. Let him go." She was angry, venom in her words.

Slowly Roan began to move forwards towards Dante and his captive. She stole a glace towards Signit, care and worry in her eyes. He was not going to die this day, she would sacrafice herself before that happened. Her hand down by her side it brushed something by a tree. A large stick, shoulder high, which she wrapped her hand around and kept walking forward until there was but a few feet between the souless man and Signit. The fire was still dancing in the forest, giving her face an eery look.

"Release him and fight me, for he does not deserve it, and I think I will be more of a fair fight. For I do not bow down to anyone, nor do I run when things look bleak. I am not afraid of death, nor of pain. So there is nothing you can do that will stop me from getting that boy out of your clutches. For neither of us will die this day." She said very calmly, almost weirdly calm, as her hand clenched around the large stick in her hand. Spells were running through her mind until she found one that would work. It was time to change the targets in this fight. Roan shifted her weight back slightly, and began her part of this fight.

Throwing the stick like a javelin, it went wizzing at his head. But that wasnt meant to be an attack, for the real thing was coming up next. "Conjunctivitis!" She shouted, sending another spell at Dante. It was meant to keep someone's eyes closed. She didnt need to harm him, just get Signit away. The less blood shed there was the better, for that meant less blood on her hands.