October 15, 2009
11:15 pm
Knockturn Alley

Baddrick was in a pub.  A very small one, a horrible one, dark and cramped.  One of the few that had cropped up after the Black Chimaera went to seed.  She was hunched over a bowl of barely edible stew, and drowning herself in the pub's own brew, a mandrake mead.

Her life since coming to London in June had been a chaotic lark - she'd strung along no less than eleven muggings, cornering the undeserving and taking all they carried at wand point.  Not for the money (clearly), nor the glory (clearly), but because she could.  Because she was entitled to all she could take.  Entitled by the power of the Dark Arts.  She'd been bold enough to harness it - and she'd paid dearly - and so whatever came to her was due.

The Aurors were close, but she didn't know that.  They'd been able to attribute seven of the muggings to a witch matching her description and modus operandi - single assaults at night, using Dark Magic, seemingly at random.  They'd even been able to recover and return some of the items she'd stolen and then sold.  But Baddrick didn't care about Aurors, because in her heart she knew she was better. They limited themselves - didn't use Dark Magic - and so they'd never be a threat.  She'd been caught before and she'd never let it happen again. 

But little did she know, a concerned citizen (aka an informant leveraging information for leniacy and favors) had spotted her and alerted the authorities...

---

All information concerning this plot and what the Aurors know about Baddrick can be found in the wiki entry.  Her crime spree has lasted from June 2009, until now.  The Aurors know of 7 muggings, but upon catching her, they'll be able to connect her to the other 4, and her past criminal record.  (They don't know her name as of yet, since witness reports have been a touch foggy.  It is possible she could be a suspect.)

Sam had received a tip-off about a wanted criminal being in a pub in Knockturn Alley. On alert, he made his way down the Alley, keeping his badge concealed and his face hidden for now, in case one of the denizens of the alley caused a stir. Especially since the suspect in question was linked to a spree of seven muggings recently, with some very nasty spells being used. Squiggs had suffered from an organ-liquifying curse, Hawke had a Living Statue curse to contend with, and other, similarly dark spells had been used. Hence why Sam was one of the arresting Aurors. He was one of the best duellers the Auror corps had, having fought death eaters.

Not far from the pub, Sam revealed his face, unconcealing his badge at the same time. Entering the pub, he scanned the room quickly, looking for the suspect.

Someone had reported a sighting of a suspect in one of the pubs down in the alley, and Auror Callen was making her way there as soon as she got the information. Because she had been off-duty before, she was still in her normal clothes. Plus, she didn't want to spook the suspect with her red cloaks that gave away her status as an Auror.

Vivian slipped into the pub silently, brushing her curls out of her face. She looked around for the suspect, noting that Sam was here as well. Not wanting to ruin anything that he might have been planning, she just nodded to him to signify that she was here as well.

She remembered who she was looking for, a woman, black and green hair, Caucasian; as the case file had reported. Looking around, nobody stuck out immediately, but everybody blended in in a place like this. She would just have to look harder.

Near the front, an Auror showed his badge and immediately the nearby patrons reacted.  Some of them quietly remembering they'd left their cauldrons on, others turning to face the Auror in a kind of defiant, but otherwise harmless, show of impunity.   Aurors were never welcome in Knockturn, but few would dare openly attack.

But few were as jumpy and wanted as Vesta Baddrick was.  The stirring over by the front caught her eye and she looked over to see what was up.  The golden badge, the clean-cut face - AUROR!

"Nyyyaaaah!"  she shrieked and flung her heavy glass mug towards the Auror, and stumbled off the bar stool.  Her wand was out in no time, and without care for bystanders, she whipped off a curse.  "Effodio!"[1]

1.	Deep Gash Hex

Sam ignored the reactions of the general Knockturn populace, they might not like his presence, but they wouldn't attack. He noted some people were slipping out, but fortunately for them, he wasn't here for them. Eyes scanning the crowd, he suddenly heard an incantation. Whipping out his wand, he instinctively cast an non-verbal Shield Charm, sending the vicious spell into the ceiling. Facing the one who had dared attack him, he saw it was his target. Without stopping, he sent a Stunning Spell at her, hoping she'd come relatively quietly, although not truly expecting her to.

With the sudden comotion brewing across the room, Vivian pulled out her wand and dashed over to where the suspect was attacking Sam. "Everybody calm!" She yelled, holding out her badge. The pub was stirring with people trying to get out of the way and everyone who was the tiniest bit guilty were trying to leave.

Someone got in her way, a challenge of sorts. Maybe a friend of the suspect. The Auror disregarded him, writing him off as a drunken patron of the pub. She shoved past him and towards Sam and the crazy person they were trying to apprehend.

Not realizing that a Stunning Spell had been cast already, Vivian prepared to tackle their suspect from behind. Being so close to her and casting a spell might have been dangerous for the people around, plus she was already resisting arrest just by attacking Sam. Vivian was having a problem with the small crowd between her and the suspect. She was trying to shove her way through them, but wasn't getting anywhere.

The Auror's Stunner hit a bystander, but Baddrick had already cast a strange Dark Ward upon herself.  She'd learned it from the old wizard who'd taught her everything she knew.  And every spell came with a price.  The Dark Arts did not coddle the caster, and it was always a balance between using and being consumed by the power. This Dark Ward was known only to Baddrick as Haggard's Sacrifice....

The spell was cast over herself and was meant to absorb any hostile spells that hit her.  Her skin took on an strange inky purple hue, that seemed to throb.  The catch? Each spell would be absorbed into the ward, but not destroyed.  Only delayed... if she did not cleanse the ward, the spells it absorbed would erupt all at once.  But it was a risk she needed to take, a risk she was thirsty and bold for.

She didn't realize there was an Auror behind her, until she turned and was face to face with her.  Without hestitation, she thrust her hand out and grabbed the Aurors face with her bare hand.  Haggard's Sacrifice leeched onto the dark-haired Auror with a searing burn. 

Vivian was so close to taking down the suspect when they reached out with her hand and grabbed her face. She winced as the contact seared her face, burning it. Her entire body shook with the effect from the spell's being deflected towards her and crumpled to the ground, taken out with a single touch.

She held a hand to her face where she had recieved the worst of the spell, her skin was burning as she struggled to get back to her feet. Instead, she kicked out one of her legs, sweeping out the legs of the suspect and bringing her down to the ground where hopefully Sam could get her. If not, she'd deal with it herself.

Vivian winced with the pain, wishing she could get this over with and get herself back to Level Two, and possibly St. Mungo's if she needed to. This was a fun day.

Sam watched with horror as the Stunner had first missed, a rarity for him, and then Sam noticed a purple film over the target. Haggard's Sacrifice. That Dark Ward would absorb everything he cast at the target until the ward failed.  He would need to keep the target busy to avoid her cleansing the spell, or they could be there far too long, especially since Callen had been injured by attempting to touch the target. "That's Haggard's Sacrifice, Callen, don't touch her. Just hit her with spells until the ward falls. You'll know when it has" Sam called to his co-worker. Following it up by sending another stunner at the target.

"Shoulda told me before Sam," Vivian said, struggling to stand back up. She hopped away from the suspect, avoiding the curse as best she could. She sent a freezing spell that would hopefully penetrate Haggard's Sacrifice. It actually didn't though... Vivian was ticked, how could her spell not work!

"We need to cast at the same time," she yelled to Sam over the noise of the crowd. "Maybe it'll wear it down faster!" The Auror knew their suspect could hear them, but did it really matter at this point? They'd lost the element of surprise, may as well just go for it now.

With spells flying, the bar emptied.  Apparition cracks lit up the air, and a gust of wind came in through the door left open.  Now, the small pub was empty except for the two Aurors and Vesta Baddrick.

The ward was absorbing stunner upon stunner from the Aurors, and Vesta was keeping them at a distance.  With her wand, she flung broken glass and bottles from the shelves at the Aurors.  Strangely, she didn't seem focused on escaping.  Feeling energized and impervious under Haggard's Sacrifice, she shouted and cursed at them arrogantly.

"Never killed an Auror before! Two in one day!" 

"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!"  Streaks of nasty green spellfire shot across the room. 

Swallowed in her dark power, it seemed Vesta was loosing hold on any sense of humanity, of there being a tomorrow to live for.  As the Sacrifice absorbed more of their spells, she just felt more and  more powerful and ravenous for vindication.

"Vesta Baddrick falls to no one!"

Vivian hurled herself too the side, narrowly missing the nasty green spell that could have left her dead. She gasped for air as she hid behind the bar, coming to terms that she could possibly die tonight. Well, that would really suck.

She jumped back up, wand arm outstretched and a spell tumbling from her lips, "Devinctus!" The bolt of white light illuminated the pub as it screeched across the room, arcing towards where it would hit Vesta. She followed up with a counter, just in case that wasn't enough.

The Auror found herself wishing she could cross her fingers and hope this would all go the way she wanted, but it was never easy when you were dealing with a criminal fond of highly illegal curses.

Haggard's Sacrifice had to be getting weaker and weaker, with all the spells it was holding... Vivian really didn't want to see what was going to happen in the next few minutes.

Sam reacted in a split-second to the Killing Curse, Conjuring a golden shield[1] that deflected the Killing Curse, which slammed into the ceiling, which was looking somewhat unstable, having been hit by such a powerful spell. "Devinctus" Sam cast at the same time as Callen. He noted their target had given him her name. He ignored Baddrick's insane ramblings, except to be sure she hadn't cast any more spells.

1.	shield as in metal shield, not magical)

The Aurors were not backing down, but Vesta didn't care.  Her heart was racing and her teeth were grit and her eyes were wild.  Wind from outside whipped through and tossed her strangely colored hair all over.  She clutched her wand with both hands and slashed spells through the air one after another as her Haggard's Ward soaked up the legal subjugation hexes the Aurors had sent at her simotaneously.  The bar was in shambles and plaster was falling off the walls; tables and chairs were shattered and the whole place reeked of alcohol.

But the Sacrifice would not be her protector for much longer - it would soon require it's payment.  Vesta was beginning to feel heavy, weighted, and burdened.  It was harder and harder to lift her arms as the Dark Spell became laden with its purpose. 

"Augh!"  she shrieked wrathfully.  They were going to take her, she knew that now.   But she could take them with her.

She flung her wand away and slowly, step by step she trudged at the two Aurors.  The magic throbbed all around her, the Ward full and heavy with the hexes it had absorbed.

Vesta was halfway to them - well close enough - when Haggard's Sacrifice finally gave way.  Vesta was swallowed in black and purple light and her body contorted as all the spells hit her at once, exploding both inward and outward. 

Vivian stumbled away from Vesta as their suspect moving forward, her feet stomping harshly on the ground as she made her way across the room. Haggard's Sacrifice bubbled eerily around the woman's frame, dark purple and black. It was an inky dark color, and frankly it scared the hell out of Vivian just watching it.

"Sam! Get out of the way, it's going to go!" She said in regard to the slowly collapsing spell pulsating near Vesta. She threw a few more spells at it, hoping to weaken it even more, and eventually destroy it.

What she got was not what she hoped for though.

The Auror was thrown backwards, she could feel her back slam against the wooden wall behind her. Bloody Hell did that hurt, through it all, she couldn't see her partner. She choked from the recoil of the spell and felt glass shatter around her. The windows had exploded, as with all the glass in the room. Groaning from the extreme pain, Vivian's body was contorted on the floor. Cuts and bruises lined her arms where her shirt had been torn and ripped. Her neck screamed at her from where she had first been stung by Haggard's Sacrifice.

Trying to push herself off the ground, Vivian came to the realization that something, somewhere was definitely broken. By the bruising and pain itself, she could assume a few cracked ribs, maybe worse. The only good thing that came out of this is that they would get their suspect, she was crumpled on the ground somewhere in the smoky haze around them. The air was still alive with the leftover magic, pulsing and coursing through their veins.

Just because she felt safe with them, and because she liked the feel of the cool metal, Vivian pulled out the pair of handcuffs tucked in her pocket. From her place on the floor, she managed to say, "Vesta Baddick... You did a lot of terrible things, I'm not even going to try to list them. By the way, you're under arrest." Her voice was rough and even scratchier than normal. But she pushed herself up off the ground and tried to get through the haze around her.