warmups and excerpts

23/03/2019 - That One Aemulus Thing I Sent a Milennia Ago. It's 3am

"I'm going to kill someone if I see another stupid raccoon." Ryan muttered to herself.

The wind howled, blades of red grass and dust rose into the air and pelted Ryan's eyes. She groaned rubbing them, momentarily wishing she didn't have eyes at all. She had only talked to Blaise for a minute before he decided it was best for her to go along on a mission. Ryan kicked at a pebble, it was bad enough to have magics be cryptic. Just her luck that the only other full-blood human happens to be a confusing jerk too.

She rubbed her hands together, the wind whistled and chipped at her face.

"Sure thing, Mr. Knight!" She thought bitterly,  "I'll do anything you say! I am after all a stupid little girl!"

Kathleen interrupted her thoughts, "Hold on."

Ryan looked up to find Leo jogging quickly to catch up to them, Atlas following quickly behind.

"C'mon!" Leo yelled, "Let's just talk to this crazy lady, find fire boy, and get back by lunch!" He sprinted past them, only to be met by a wall of fire. He screamed and leaped back. A scowl crawled at his face and he glared at Kathleen. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

She sighed, her shoulders tense. "On any other day, yes." They caught up with Leo, Kathleen punching him in the arm, "But we need to be careful. I just got a bad feeling about something."

A smile crept along Leo's face, "Want to back out now, Kathy? I wouldn't hold it against you." He snickered.

Kathleen's ears flattened, "I'm being serious, idiot! Smell the air." She crosses her arms and tapped her foot, occasionally holding her nose through gritted teeth.

Ryan sniffed the air. Besides pine, the only thing she could smell was the cold biting her nose.

"It smells like charred grass." He snickered, "Is there something you need to tell the group?" Leo laughed and rested his arm on Atlas.

Atlas' eyes went wide and he cursed, and groped at his head.

"Wow, Atlas, If you wanted me to get off you could've just asked."

"Shut up." Atlas turned to Kathleen, "Do you know what that is? It's dreadful."

Leo grabbed his nose, "Oh no! It's the faint smell of garbage! Whatever shall we do—" He grabbed his stomach and keeled over, "Oh Godds, what is that." He croaked, dry heaving and grabbing at the grass.

Ryan sighed, "I don't smell anything." The wind died down, but the air still nibbled angrily at her toes.

"Trust me, you're better not smelling it." Leo groaned, holding his stomach.

"Oh would you quit complaining! I thought it smells weird, but it kind of smells nice, too. It smells like roasted marshmallows and chlorine."

"You're insane." Atlas muttered through his teeth.

"Or at least your nose is." Leo added.

"Fine, just quit your whining." Kathleen set fire to her palm, letting smoke drift into the wind. "The smoke should cover up the smell."

Leo got up shakily, "Barely." He offered his hand to Atlas, who slapped it away.

"Guys, I think that's it." Ryan pointed to
the house in the distance.

Atlas snorted, "Wow, what a dump."

"It looks exactly like it smells." Leo muttered.

The house, which wasn't even a house at all was perched at the top of the hill. Strokes of white paint peeled at clawed at the edges of the walls, revealing burnt and bitten wood. The steps were charred into red charcoal. The windows cracked and covered hastily with torn pieces of cloth.