The Mission ((Open))

[Lola_La_Fringe7]

Jackie stifled the flash of surprise that crossed her face when Henry showcased some of his power. The edges of her lips turned down, just hinting at a frown. She had underestimated this boy. After a second, her downturned lips turned into a full on frown. Stacey was angry. If there was one thing that Jackie ever learned at Hogwarts, it was that Stacey mad didn't ever amount to anything good.

The entirety of the forest around them seemed to have changed. It felt almost charged with energy that was waiting to explode at any moment. Jackie glanced at Stacey, only her eyes portraying a sense of alarm. It was then she realized she was soaked to the bone. Her clothes clung to her skin, and her hair plastered to her cheeks, giving her the look of a sad five year old.

She turned back to Henry, keeping her expression level and serious, yet sympathetic. She always turned to the empathetic approach first, usually it worked for her. But with Stacey's powers raging next to her, Jackie ditched the act. "I would listen to her." She offered, doubting Henry would listen. He didn't seem like he was in the mood to listen to anyone at the moment.

Waiting, she tensed her muscles in preparation for whatever was to come.

[Sky]

   Henry held the baby tighter to his chest, to keep the rain from drenching the little boy.

  "You couldn't fight me if you wanted to. You wouldn't want to endanger him." Faint black flames started to form around Henry's body. He was charging his power, concentrating his energy, so that he could break through the wall and apparate. It was much faster than using his hands to temporarily melt away the wall. He couldn't risk being too slow. He just needed a few minutes, and then he could be on his way to a hideout of some sort. Where he was going, he couldn't be tracked.

[potter_fan122]

Stacey felt his plan form in his mind as he thought it himself.  She felt his mind as if it were her own.  Her hands curled into fists, and she continued to glare at the boy.

"I could very well fight you if I wanted to, son.  I know a good deal more magic than you, a different kind.  And while you may be powerful, you are stronger than the school wards.  You can't Apparate here.  The Death Eaters didn't Apparate, they used a different way called transporting, but even that is blocked by the school except to the most extreme." She looked the boy over.  "No offense, but you don't look like much."

As she spoke there was a low wooshing sound, and there was a sound similar to wind.  Air was being pulled away from Henry, creating a breeze flowing into the trees.  The air pressure dropped dramatically, as if they had been pushed into space.

"Now I'm not going to ask you again.  Please hand over the child and I will let you leave and do whatever you want to do.  Even if you decide to stay, I can help you."

[Sky]

Henry's narrowed green eyes focused on Stacey, watching her threats roll off of her tongue. So she was still insistent on having the child then. Alright, this would have to do. He didn't have anymore time to waste.

   The flames were jet black now, reaching high above them. And without warning, he was rushing into the wall, breaking through its barrier. He could feel the pain in his body as he burst through, but he couldn't stop now. He was running, sprinting, with the baby in his arms. He just needed to get past that point, then he could apparate. He could feel his flame aura weakening, his body already getting too tired to handle it. He had only practiced it a few times. He would have to remember to work on that and build up his strength.

[Lola_La_Fringe7]

Jackie watched Henry crash through the wall and tear off in a sprint. She muttered a curse under her breath. He had to run. Everyone always ran. Her legs bunched underneath her as she sprang after him. It felt good, doing something that was so natural to her. The wind whipped her face, and rain pelted into her eyes. Not exactly ideal weather for a chase.

She caught up to him, her vampire abilities making it easy. She matched him stride for stride and growled under her breath in frustration. His flame aura kept her from going in to directly stop him, and she couldn't trip him for fear of hurting the baby. He was smart. Picking her pace up so she stayed slightly in front of him, she watched for a moment.

His aura wasn't flaring as brightly as it had earlier, Jackie noted. She just needed to wait out his fire aura and she could move in. She didn't think she would have a hard time restraining him. She just couldn't let him get past the wards.

[potter_fan122]

She flinched as he broke through her wall, a little pain running through her. For a second she stood stunned, then her "borrowed" senses from Jackie kicked in.  She pushed off the ground with her bare feet and ran after the boy, not far behing her vampire friend.

Various thoughts ran through her mind as they moved--the thoughts of three different minds--but Jackie's fire concern was one that stuck. Jackie couldn't do anything about the fire, or she would get seriously burned. But Stacey could.

Almost without needing to think she snapped her fingers and a wave of water formed in front of her, soaking Henry.  Char remained dry, however, with a little help from the element air.

((Nyehhh.))

[Crazy_About_You]

((Totally forgot I was standing there... coming back now))

Zepha watched in awe at what was happening. It was so terribly intense and horrifying. She gasped as Henry broke through the wall. As he ran past her she realized that he couldn't see her. She took of running as well, dashing through the forest and staying out of eye sight. She didn't know enough spells to do any good but she could run, fast. She ran far enough into the woods that they couldn't see he couldn't see her.

She saw Stacey cover Henry with water and knew this was her chance too help. She ran out in front of him, stopping and staring right at him. At that point in time, she knew that there was no spell that she could preform to stop him. However, she was a distraction. Maybe, if she could get his attention Stacey or Jackie could intervene and do something, anything to save Char.

[Lola_La_Fringe7]

Gratitude flashed through Jackie towards Stacey. She quickened her pace once more so that she was at in front of and at an angle to Henry and the baby. She was about to leap when she saw another girl standing in her way. She gave the girl a rough shove with her arm, making a mental note to apologize to her later.Then, pushing off the ground with her foot, she sprang at him. It was a perfectly positioned leap. She caught her arms around him, giving the illusion of an embrace before they began to topple sideways with the force of her jump.

Midway to the ground, she twisted her body so that she took all of the impact, sheltering the baby with herself. When they hit the ground, Jackie felt a harsh snap and immediately categorized it as a small rib fracture. No matter, it would heal quickly. Her back was pressed into the soaked ground, covering her hair in mud, and the child was sandwiched in between them; Jackie using one of her arms to stop Henry from crushing it with his weight.

"Should have just given her the baby." She muttered spitefully, still holding him with one hand and shielding the baby with the other, which was slightly difficult to manage from her position.

[Sky]

It all happened so fast. The veil of water, Jackie leaping onto him, him falling down with her still holding onto him. He had been running, pushing himself as fast as he could go. He had to get to that point, or else he would face more than one consequence. He was breathing heavily, mud splattered all over him, as he pushed himself off of Jackie and got back to his feet. He was back to a full sprint, holding Char to his chest. The rain wasn't helping. His fire aura would probably be too weak or even fail because of the great water wall Stacey had made. He needed that extra strength if he wanted to really outrun them.


  But there was the point. He just crossed it! Henry could feel it in his body. It was like something was lifted off of him, like a tiny weight. He felt oddly lighter. But they were close, he couldn't concentrate because he was so worried he would be caught. Henry spun around and apparated. But something wasn't right. He appeared several feet away, laying on his back on the ground, eyes closed. Did somebody just shoot him with a spell? He wasn't sure. He was in pain though. He couldn't move.

[potter_fan122]

This kid just wouldn't give up.

Stacey thought he would stay down.  It was rare for young people to keep fighting, but Henry jumped up again with the baby.  She dashed after him, reaching forward with invisible fingers of magic with her mind.  The edge was coming--she could feel it.  She had to do something fast, or they would both be gone.

Without really thinking about it, she pushed off the ground with her "borrowed" strength from Jackie.  She pushed her incomplete plan out so her friend could see it and hopefully get Char.  She leaped and suddenly there was a knife in her hand.  The blade gleamed in the rain, which was slowing down.  Without hesitating she flung the blade downward towards his thigh.  If it hit where she meant it to, he should go down.  But there was still the baby.  Somehow turning in the air, she was beside the boy, reaching for Sky's baby.

[Sky]

"N-no. Don't touch...him." Henry was trying to get up, but the weakness in his leg caused him to fall back down. "I can't fail this mission. I was...given..o-one simple task. I can't...fail." Tears were in Henry's eyes as he tried to fight the pain to get up. But it really was no use. Stacey had won.

 

[potter_fan122]

She ignored him.  Char was in her arms in an instant.  She stood up and back away, regarding the kid with black eyes.  She couldn't help but pity him--he was only a child--but the fact that he had been willing to join the Death Eaters tarnished her opinion of his innocence.

"I can heal that for you if you want."  Stacey nodded towards his bleeding leg, where her knife was still burried.  "Or I can not.  I can help you, I really can."  The rain was slowing now, almost stopping.  Char was wet.  She adjusted him so she had a free hand and snapped her fingers.  A dry, warm towel fell from nowhere into her hand.  Carefully she started to dry the baby off.

"If you don't want my help I will leave you here.  I'll take my knife back, so you can't try to throw it at me or something.  You'll bleed for a while.  Get weak.  You should be fine, though.  You know, if you don't pass out somewhere or get attacked by some vamps."  Her eyes moved to Jackie.  They both knew all too well what creatures were out here.  No matter her threats, Stacey would never leave a child out here alone.  No matter how powerful the kid was.

[Sky]

Henry was shaking. Partially from the cold, another part from pain and the last from when reality had set in.

He failed his mission. One simple task. To take the baby and get to a hideout. That was it. That was all he had to do. But they had stepped in and ruined his chances of completing the mission.

She would die. They said he could learn how to heal her if he helped them. If Henry joined them, he would learn magic far beyond the ranks of others. He would be taught things nobody but them knew. The strongest magic out there. The only magic that could save his dying mother.

"Why don't you just end me now? Before they do it?" He suggested.

[potter_fan122]

Stacey's penetrating gaze fell back to Henery, her eyes now a piercing blue.  His thoughts passed through her mind unwillingly.  She didn't want to think about his problems, she just wanted to leave him here and be done with it.  She didn't need another kid attatched to her, and surely not one involved with Death Eaters.

But she couldn't just leave him.

"Because I'm not like them," she said softly.  "I have killed before, but I am not a killer.  I don't kill people that don't deserve to die." She hesitated.  "And if I kill you your mother will suffer for sure."

[Sky]

So she had read his thoughts. Oddly enough, Henry didn't feel violated. He felt more...relieved. He had kept his mother's health a secret from pretty much everyone else.

He didn't say anything else. He closed his eyes and let his head fall back into the pile of wet and muddy leaves beneath him, letting the gentle sprinkle of spring rain fall down on his skin.