January & February Test Drive Meme

[thewakemods]

It's that time again!

→ Comment with a new character you'd like to test out in the game's setting. (put character/canon in subject line pls!)
→ You don't have to be in the game to comment! HI NEW PEOPLE LET US ENABLE YOU.
→ Tag around with new and old characters.
→ App all those characters
→ ???
→ PROFIT!

**NOTICE** - For new series and recent updates/occurrences to existing ones, please mark as SPOILERS if you must refer to such, but please use your own discretion in general.

Comments

[phoenixknight]

He glanced at Clef's features before looking away, guilt written on every inch of him. Ariana's still body haunted him in moments like this and he felt his stomach turn. No, he wasn't a hero.

"All it takes is one choice; one bad decision and then everything is ruined." all of the good brought to nothing but a heap of rubble and heartache, "I'm not a good man. I hope to be a better man, but that doesn't erase what I might have done."

Might because there were two wizards in the duel that day. Two wizards that were very capable of killing with a simple spell. Albus wasn't sure which one of them cast it or when it hit her exactly.

[guru_clef]

He shook his head. "No. One choice is a start. But magic, like life, is about many choices, leading to each other. Some choices are bigger than others, have more of an impact, set you more firmly on one road or another. But choice also allows us to leave those roads and find or forge others.

He Waved his wand and a large stone appeared. He landed on it, popping his shield as he landed. "I have seen some of the best people choose to join the worst villain my home has ever known. If good people can make bad choices, anyone at all can make good choices. It starts with your will to make those choices, and the choice to try."

He extended his free hand. "If you choose the path of a hero, I will help you. That is what a Guru is for, after all."

[phoenixknight]

He knew he could rectify his mistakes - most of them. Except for one. That one would weigh him down for the rest of his life. Clef deserved to know before Albus took his hand.

"There is a Dark wizard in my world. He and I were...very close...once. We thought to change everything together and our plans were extensive. However I began to notice he had an awful temper and... Well... There are spells used for horrible things. He cast one of those at my brother and I felt my own temper snap." his face was pale as he continued as if the tale was drawing the life from him, "He and I began to duel. You must understand that he and I are quite powerful. The spells we used were cast recklessly and, at some point, my..." now his voice broke, "My sister... She must have heard the commotion because she entered the fray. She had no wand and no ability to protect herself. One of us must have cast a Killing Curse and it struck her." his eyes blurred with tears, "It could have been me. She needed me to protect her and I frightened and killed her instead."

[guru_clef]

He did not know what a wand was, but he could piece together enough of the story to follow, despite that. He nodded once, considering.

When he spoke, the words were not easily said or hollow, but full of deep emotion and well considered.

"Your temper snapped in defense of family. Protecting those you love. I am still learning myself how powerful a bond that can actually be. If your spell did kill her, it was an accident, and from the sounds of it, it was a situation where once things got to the point that this other wizard attached your family, your choices were limited, and I suspect the situation moved too swiftly for rationed and reasoned thought. If you killed her, it was, as I said, an accident borne of good intentions. If he killed her, then it was not your fault. Either way, you cannot change what happened then. What you can do is learn from it. And let those lessons inform your future choices."

He felt weary.

"If you think the fatal spell might have been yours, for example, focus on defensive spells from here on out. They might not be as flashy, but a shield is far less likely to harm an innocent, and an overzealous use of defensive magic is far less of a danger than attack spells used the same would be."

"Either you made a mistake borne of a good heart, or you tried to defend your family and failed. Both weigh heavily, both are terrible burdens to carry, but neither make you an evil man, and neither preclude your ability to protect others in the future. You decide that. The past does not dictate it."

He extended his hand again. "Your choices. Your choice."

[phoenixknight]

The situation was more complex than what he had said, but those were details he kept locked away in his heart. He had been in love with the other wizard and the duel had been the end of their relationship. Furthermore, not terribly long before then, Ariana had been attacked by Muggle boys and, in revenge, his father had sought them out. He was in Azkaban now - the wizard prison - and that made Albus the head of the family (as his mother had died in an accident caused by wayward magic when Ariana was fourteen). Aberforth - his younger brother - and Ariana depended on him and he hadn't been able to protect them. At Ariana's funeral, Aberforth had punched him in the nose, breaking it.

But nothing could be more broken than his heart.

"I know too much magic. It's not about what I study; I'm good at all of it." that wasn't even pride talking, "I want to be a teacher so no child endures what I have. In a few years, I will go back to my school and apply for a position."

Tentatively, he took Clef's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.

[guru_clef]

He shook his head, but returned the squeeze, reassuringly. "Magic is like the eating implements you might see at a party." Because until he arrived at Naut,m he had never seen a fork in his life and had no clue what it was. "They can make it easier to get the food you need, sometimes they can overcomplicate a simple process, but the choice to pick up a spoon over a knife is yours. Maybe you need a knife at the table. But if you have one knife, three forks, and a dozen spoons, even choosing randomly, you are less likely to grab something that cuts."

[phoenixknight]

"I'm not sure I follow, but... I do appreciate your faith in me." his head bowed and gave a small smile, "I know right from wrong if that is of any comfort."

Except when his poor heart was blinded by love. He wouldn't make that mistake again. If the Dumbledores were to live on, it would have to be through Aberforth.

[guru_clef]

"My son has trouble with my analogies as well. I have tried to adapt them to things more of what seems to be common among the worlds represented here, but perhaps this is one thing that does not translate well."

[phoenixknight]

"Analogies can be understood differently by everyone. I find it easier to be blunt." he shrugged a shoulder, "You won't hurt my feelings, I promise."

[guru_clef]

"Blunt it is then." Blunt was easier.

"I am not telling you to unlearn the spells you know, I am suggesting that you choose your focus going forward, differently. Then you will have habits more in line with the new spells than the old, as well has having more versatility with the new spells because they are freshest in your mind and you have chosen to pursue them. Majoritively, iof not exclusively."

[phoenixknight]

"And, forgive me, but I told you I finished my schooling. Should I acquire any new spells, they will likely be of my own making; not the sort found in textbooks." he paused, "But you have my word that I will not rely on the Dark Arts ever again."

Oh he knew it - well - but the spells were too treacherous.

[guru_clef]

He shook his head, disappointed. "You are like my son, then, thinking that there is ever a time when learning stops. Learning is a core part of life, it does not end when formal schooling does. Not unless you are fixedly determined to close your eyes and mind to all the wonders that can be learned each and every day."

[phoenixknight]

"I never said that." his expression hardened, "Learning is lifelong, however I have earned the right to say I am specialized in a number of magical subjects."

Most of them, actually. He was Head Boy and one of the brightest students Hogwarts had ever seen. The only one that will rival him in modern times is Tom Riddle, but he hadn't been born yet.

"As such, I know those spells and so it isn't a matter of simply changing my focus. What I know I know. I seek to teach in order to better the future; that is the good I will do."

[guru_clef]

"You hardly know all the spells there are. So changing your focus will in fact aid you in forming new habits and having new abilities at your disposal."

He is unimpressed with your arrogance, friend.