Absit Omen RPG

Dante is the current head of the DoM.  He has worked their for his entire professional career and is a potions master.  So, even if he's not on board with experiments involving Runespoors at the moment, I would think he has been in the past.  Perhaps he may find a need to experiment again.

Anyway, if I can be of help in any way with the DoM part of the plot let me know.

"I don't intend to get anyone else killed tonight," Ward shot back.  "Level Nine is my responsibility and one dead girl on my head is one too many.  There will be a thorough investigation when this is done, I assure you, and we can worry about pointing fingers then.  Right now, I don't want more innocent blood on my hands, directly or indirectly."

This was a nightmare.  He signed off one everything.  Lumpkin had submitted some paperwork on a project similar to this, but there had been virtually no communication after that.  He felt the weight of the responsibility for the life of the girl who had no ties to the Ministry other then the underling she had been with in the DoM.  If he had been more concerned with what Lumpkin was up to and less with finding a project the Minister would sign off on funding for they might have prevented this and she would have still be alive.

The sound of a commotion, likely among some trash bins in a side alley drew his attention.  Drawing a vile of potion from his pocket he said, "It'll be a primate...or it was at one time.  As I said, use any means necessary."  He had a few tricks up his sleeves, experiments no one knew about, things he had worked on in the late hours after everyone else had gone home and left the DoM virtually empty.  Of course he wasn't sure if any of them would work in this case.

"One group go around the back," he said, pointing to another alley, "the rest of you with me."  He started moving in the direction of the noise, prepared for anything.

Dante sat listening to the meeting going on around him, sipping at a cup of coffee.  These meetings always seemed a bit superficial to him, but still he did his professional duty.  Ever since the Minister's surprise visit he had been keeping himself busy with constant reviews of his employee's work, hoping to find a project that would gain the support she had promised.  So far he was a bit empty handed, but he had a few ideas.

Most of those ideas would not able to discussed here.  They would have to wait for a private meeting with the Minister.  There were too many outside ears and the last thing he needed was one of his department's projects ending up in the wrong hands.  It could be a complete disaster for all of them.

He stood on the sidewalk watching her spin in the rain.  The ever excitable Conner had joined her, and he smirked a bit, the only sign of any amusement he seemed capable of.  He kept a careful eye out for any headlights, making sure the street stayed empty.  All it would take was one unaware drive on the wet road for the laughter to come to an abrupt halt.

"I haven't danced since I was just a lad," he informed her.  "It's going to take more than hauling me into the rain in the middle of the night for that to happen now.  Contrary to popular belief, not all the Irish are natural performers."  The memories of the brief part of his childhood that might have been considered joyful were buried so deep they little effect on him after all these years.

“London is too quiet. You cannot hear the ferocity of nature.”

He regarded her for a moment.  He hand was outstretched and the other held a wand.  He was relatively certain he knew what she was suggesting, but her behavior was a bit unpredictable.  Looking at her, meeting her eyes, he did something a bit unexpected from him and threw caution to the wind.  Stepping out into the street without a word he crossed to her, fastening Conner's leash before taking hold of her hand.  It seemed the three of them were about to have that walk elsewhere.

Women were put on the earth to be the death of the men they were with, he was feeling rather certain of that.  To him it was a rather frigid evening, but she seemed completely unaware of that fact.  Hearing her suggestion of how they might go about getting warm, he felt a slight smirk form on his lips.  That was a much more appealing thought than standing out in the rain, but apparently it would only come as a reward for his cooperation.

At least she had seen enough sense to take the coat, and he put the slippers on the ground in hopes she would put them on.  As ridiculous as they might look at least she would have a bit of protection should she step on something sharp.  The slippers and coat were forgotten though when her lips met his.

He could have stopped her from pulling him out in the rain if he had tried.  But, he allowed her to lead him out into the night, trying to resist the urge to grumble about the rain,  and vaguely aware that Conner tentatively followed behind them.  He felt the cold drops hit his skin, but he kept his eyes focused on Evangeline.  The water droplets on her skin and hair reflected a bit of the light from the street lamps.  There was something hauntingly beautiful about her in her current state.   This was a glimpse at who she really was.

"Alright, I'm standing with you in the rain," he said finally, trying to maintain his usual bored tone.  "If you expect me to dance next you'll be disappointed."  Unclasping their hands he reached up to brush a stray, damp lock of hair away from her face, seeing the welt that was starting to bruise once more.

He frowned, knowing there was probably little he could do to help her with the things that haunted her.  He had a suspicion that suggesting a potion for a dreamless sleep might not be received well.  Yet it seemed the only thing he might be able to do.

"So, what now?" he asked, stepping closer and leaning in to trail his lips down her neck.

“You think much is unwise, Dante.  Live a little. You may be surprised.”

He turned back to face her for a moment, pausing in his search.  Living a little and doing things that were unwise had never brought about much that was good in his life.  His mother had been a fan of the unwise and it had put her in an early grave.  She had left behind a helpless newborn and a young boy who had blamed himself for her death for the majority of his life despite what those close to him might have said.

"Living cautiously has kept me alive all these years," he muttered, returning to his task and pulling a dark sweater over his head before searching for warmer pants.  "I haven't had much experience with surprises being pleasant."

A moment later, as he was trying to finish dressing she moved past him with Conner on her heels.  He blinked for a moment processing the fact that she had just walked out of his flat wearing practically nothing.  With a muttered, "Bloody impossible witch," he quickly finished dressing, trying to not be slightly amused by her antics, and scrambled after her.  Along the way he managed to retrieve a pair of slippers and a coat for her as well as Conner's leash.

When he finally caught up to her, he held out the coat and slippers, saying in an exasperated tone, "As fetching as you look in that nightie, would you please put these on?  I don't mean to state the obvious, but it is January in London!"

Apparently the break in her mood was not to last and Dante couldn't help but give a small sigh.  He chose to ignore the minor commentary on what dogs needed.  He spent more time playing with Conner than she knew, he just tended to do it when she wasn't around.  Games of fetch and trips of the local Muggle Dog park were not foreign concepts to him, but he didn't bring it up.

“I need air.  I’ll take him for a walk so you can sleep.”

"Are you mad?  It's the middle of the bloody night," he said.  "Even with Conner I don't think it's wise to go walking alone..."

Was Evangeline a smart and capable woman, yes.  However he was quite certain that if she encountered any problems on her walk there would be little she could do, with or without a wand.  Common sense told him it was not a good idea to let her walk out of the flat alone.  At this point he wouldn't be immediately falling back into a peaceful sleep anyway, so it seemed the air might do them both some good.

Without stating his intentions outright he rose from the bed and went to the dresser on the opposite side of the room.  If he was going to be dragged out in the middle of the night at least he was going to stay warm.

Crossing the room and settling on the edge of the bed, he watched Conner and Evangeline curiously.  The dog was unassuming, trusting, and gave affection freely...quite different from his master.  Conner was able to bring the blonde witch back to the present.  As the dog tried to practically climb into Evangeline's lap a ghost of a smile formed on his lips for a fleeting moment before it was replaced by his usual stern expression.

“Conner! Get Dante! Attack, boy!”

The dog only paused for a second, as if he was capable of weighing the consequences, before leaping up on the bed and trying to lick Dante's face.  Conner was usually an obedient dog, except for when it came to Evangeline's occasional playfulness. He gave him for a moment, silently allowing her to have a moment to find a bit of a humor.

"Alright, enough," he said, to Conner.  "Down, boy."  The dog immediately complied, bounding down off the bed.  Shaking his head at Evangeline he said, "You're quite the bad influence with him."

Dante watched Jacqueline as she spoke, a few of his questions were answered without being asked.  This creature was a part of the experiment she had informed him of via a report some time ago.  Of course, he had made his reservations known at the times, but had ultimately given his approval.  He had expected further detail...although he couldn't remember seeing anything further.

A review of the paperwork process was something he could ponder later though, when the creature was captured or dead.  He preferred dead.  Ward hated surprises, and he especially hated surprises that meant leaked secrets and time spent jumping through bureaucratic hoops.  He couldn't yet be certain the body of the young woman they had found was indeed their unregistered guest, but he was hoping this would be the only tragedy caused by incompetence within his department that evening.

"As I said, by whatever means necessary," he said to the group.  "Stay in groups...no one needs to play hero tonight.  The last thing we need is an attempt at heroics leading to more injuries."

Conner, ever eager for attention, practically wagged his entire body when Leyla reached out to pet his head.  Dogs were so blissfully unaware of what the world was really like.  Regular food and attention was all the was needed to buy their loyalty.  It didn't seem to matter what was going on with the rest of the world, Conner was perpetually happy.  If Dante was really being honest, in the last year he had almost grown to look forward to the dog's enthusiastic daily greetings.  Not that he would ever admit that to another person.

"I'm convinced you have scared them on to his good list."

He smirked despite his best effort to find no amusement in the situation and quipped, "Well, if that's the case then they should thank me Christmas morning when there's an over abundance of gifts waiting for them.  They can relish in being spoiled on yet another supposed holiday that has lost its true meaning for those who celebrate it."

When she mentioned turning down her seasonal orders he was quite certain the confusion had shown on his face.  The reason she had done so wasn't entirely what he might expect to hear.  Teaching at Hogwarts was quite a commitment, plus a classroom of children wasn't exactly for the faint of heart.

"Then I suppose as long as this is the professional change your looking for, I should say congratulations," he told her, trying to express sincerity.  "Teaching can be rather challenging...to say the least."

Never the type to coddle anyone, he was rather at a loss for what to do.  It wasn't like Evangeline had ever come across as a woman who appreciated babying either.  This wasn't exactly familiar territory for either of them, but instinct had said he needed to check on her and now the bridge was crossed.

Her bit of snark wasn't entirely unappreciated, although he couldn't help but sigh.  He didn't exactly expect her to take his attempt at showing a bit of concern seriously, nor did he think it would lead to some late night heart to heart.  However, he couldn't help feeling like a few words beyond 'too much wine' might be in order.  He kept that thought to himself though, doubting there was any ground to be gained by pushing.

"I'm more concerned about being put in an early grave," he mumbled.

The sound of Conner pawing at the door drew his attention away and he stood, crossing the room.  No doubt the dog had heard the commotion and was following his instinct to investigate.  Opening the door slowly, he blocked the mutt from simply bounding into the room, forcing the whining dog to sit and calm down before allowing him entrance.  Having a disobedient dog had never been an option in his mind.

After a moment, when Conner had finally settled, Dante allowed him entrance into the room.  The dog, much as Dante had suspected he would, went immediately to check on Evangeline.

I'm ok with it. I'd love for other departments to be involved.

A scream followed by a sharp pain in his shin had pulled Dante back into the world of the conscious.  He shot up in bed just in time to hear a loud thud from the opposite side of the room.  It didn't take him long to figure out what had happened...Eve had been in the grips of another nightmare.

In the past he had been able to simple ignore her nightmares...they had never resulted in injury before.  He had always figured her past was her own.  He had already developed a vague conclusion as to what haunted her dreams.  If she wanted to talk about it, she would bring it up.  It was the way he felt about his own past...he didn't take kindly to others trying to bring up ghosts from another life time.

"Bloody hell, Eve," he said, pushing aside the covers.  "I think my heart nearly stopped when you..."

He stopped short when he finally looked over at her and noticed the angry red welt on the side of her head.  It only took a moment to make the connection between the welt, the thud, and his bedside table.  The mild throbbing pain in his shin was forgotten for a moment as he slid across the bed and knelt next to her on the floor so he could take a better look. Trying to be as gentle as possible, he reached out to brush her blonde hair away to examine the welt.

"Are you alright?" he asked, trying to remember what little he knew about basic healing.  "Do you know where you are?"

~2 a.m.

This was the sort of disaster a department head hoped never happened.  Thirty minutes ago he had been in his study at his flat finishing up a last minute report and getting ready to turn in when he received word that something had gone wrong with one of the DoM experiments.

There had not been a great deal of information.  He had been informed a lower level underling had brought an unauthorized guest into the DoM, apparently to show off a creature being used in one of their experiments while giving the creature its nightly snack.  Around 1 a.m. something had gone horribly wrong and the creature had managed to escape leaving the underling severely injured and fighting for life at St. Mungo's.  The guest had managed to escape into the floo network, but judging from the badly mutilated body that had been found in the streets of Diagon Alley, she had not been alone.

Examining the wounds he knew the creature had to be big...and extremely strong.  Plans to test possible cures for lycanthropy on animals had crossed his desk a while back, but he had not heard anything further from anyone involved with the project.  It seemed that somehow work had been carried out in his department without his knowledge or complete consent.  And now he would have to do damage control and hope that no one else was injured or killed before the creature was subdued.

Recovering the body to keep it out of sight, he stood, retrieving his wand from his pocket.  This was going to take a lot of explaining to clean up this mess, but the first priority was to take down whatever had escaped from the DoM.

"The creature must be stopped by whatever means necessary," he said to the others who had gathered, "and quickly."

Will do, thanks!