[center][h1][color=#FF640A]Vespa Ruvina[/color][/h1][/center]
[hr]The walk back to the Castle was one with deep contemplation and worry for her sister, Elina. Though she was loathe to leave the silver-haired girl alone, Vespa was a witch, and that entailed plenty of study and the honing of her skills. Still, perhaps she should have stayed with her. For weeks now, Elina had preferred solitude to mingling with her fellow witches, and seemed to like the outdoors better than the Castle. It occurred to Vespa that perhaps her sister was deeply troubled with their station in life, as feared individuals of power who were hunted by a specific guild, and that she wanted to get away with it.

But what could she do? She was just Vespa, not their mother Reyna. She could not bear to wrench Elina away from her long walks and constant daydreams. Just look at her, with her silver hair, red eyes and overall comely form - she was like a wraith, or a ghost, or a spirit in all senses, even in demeanor. Elina... was frail, vulnerable. And worst of all, too good for this world.

Vespa sighed. "Kings and queens do what they will... the rest of us, do as we must," she muttered. The quote, so old that all scriptures attributed it to 'Anonymous,' was sounding incredibly apt today.

Castle Bloodrose was a formidable fortress without and a luxurious palace within. Its library was expansive and its dungeons went deep into the earth. Coming into this Coven was the right choice, she thought. Had the two continued to wander, she did not know where they would be by now. Since first passing through the gaping, maw-like front gate that now shadowed her, her lore and skills in the art of Blood Magic had expanded greatly. Madame Bloodrose's generosity in taking her and Elina in was something that she admired very much, and what Vepsa wanted to repay by killing any Hunters who dared to assault her precious newfound sisterhood.

It was indeed the right choice. Even disregarding the steady waxing of her power, she had met Lorelai. Oh Lorelai. Just the thought of her turned her frown into an immediate smile. Navigating through torch-lit corridors lined with portraits of powerful witches now long passed, she sought to find the powerful witch whom she was proud to call her lover.

[i]Lover[/i]. Oh, just the thought of the word made her blush. Vespa didn't know what Lorelai saw in her, but she didn't mind. In fact, she delighted in her affections. She hoped that Lorelai delighted in hers as well.

[hr][h1][center][color=#DBFFFB]Elina Ruvina[/color][/center][/h1]
[hr]Luna cowered as she never had before behind Elina's skirt, the fur along her curved spine standing on end. Meowing fierce retorts at Alltia and intense reprimands at Elina, to her dismay she found herself ignored. Elina continued to pet the large, white wolf and even the arrival of Lady Alexina was of no help. The two human ladies exchanged cordial greetings and lavished the foul beast with attention. It was an ugly wolf too, riddled and crisscrossed with scars almost its entire length and especially around its ugly skull. Luna would not have been surprised if the overgrown mutt had fleas! Yuck!

However, there came a conspicuous thump. Another wolf? Luna turned her furry little head and saw a human - a man. Apparently, he had fallen from a tree and - could that be fire? Fire on the grass, which he was trying but failing to extinguish, and now, fire upon the brush? It appeared to the cat that the man was feverishly muttering apologies, too.

"Oh my," Luna heard Elina say. Her master had taken a few steps towards the stranger. Her voice was flush with worry. "That's not- are you okay? I mean- wait," her voice choked a bit, "... pyromancy... could you be... a Hunter?"

A Hunter! Luna hissed at the man. Pyromancy, that was pyromancy what the man just did! The tree he was standing next to was on fire now. Did he intend to burn down the entire forest? Now, Luna was by no means as clever as her master or a talented mage - although, being the first ever wizard cat wasn't a bad prospect at all - but she did know some facts relevant to the continued protection of her master:

1.) That dogs, wolves and other mutts are barbaric beasts that are best left avoided.
2.) That there are only two kinds of human who are able to perform extraordinary feats over the lesser ones of their kind, feats like magic.
3.) That those two kinds of human are Witches and Hunters,
4.) And that Hunters and Witches are mortal enemies.

Elina was rather paralyzed at this point. She had not been expecting a Hunter. Could it be that he was stalking her the whole time, and she didn't know? The silver-haired girl turned towards Alexina, hands over her chest feeling the rising drumbeat of her heart.

"Alexina, what do we do? That man - he can't be a Hunter now, can he?"

Luna's meow was loud and fierce. Her bright blue eyes were wide with killing intent, as if she had just seen a fat and vulnerable mouse. "Kill him! Hunters are Witches' mortal enemies, and so they are my enemies too! Master, if you so wish it, I can claw his eyes out!"

[@Aerandir][@Meiyuki][@Ellion]